Maelstrom

Chapter 30

Ruse's POV

Paws.

With fur.

Silver fur, and paws, elongated claws tipped where your fingernails once were.

You looked down at your silver-clad paw, blinked, continued to stare and did what any reasonable person would do and proceed to scream. Or whine? Bark, yelp? You didn't know what to call it, but you were screaming internally and making a weird-yelp like noise externally.

You had somehow pictured a wolf in your mind so hard that you became one. Looking down, still yelping and barking and whining with panic, you see that the rest of your body is covered with the same coloring silver and white as your hair, limbs lean and limber, a long bushy tail where your lower back would be. You crane your head down, trying to see if this canine body was really yours, feeling a soft ruffling against your ears as you brush your head against the dirt, oh those were not human ears, fur-rimmed and sensitive, and let's just say, you were thoroughly terrified. What if you were stuck like this? The devil fruit had literally turned you into a wolf! How ironic, and rather dull. No over-the-top features, just a regular wolf's body as far as you could tell- and that was rather disappointing.

So much for the warning that came with the damn thing, if this was all it could do, you didn't really understand why it was so dangerous.

A shadow looms above you, as you continue to lean your head down to observe your canine body, the shadow going unnoticed.

The sun had just begun to set, orange hues dipping into the ocean, and you perk up, hearing footsteps, about time that the rest of the crew came back. Your head whips towards the approaching figure ahead of you, ears perking up with interest, thinking it was Yassop or Shanks. But as the figure continues to approach, now five feet in front of you you can see that it is not who you thought it would be.

A familiar feathered hat, half-opened long coat, dark hair and piercing golden eyes, an unreadable expression on his handsome face, is Mihawk Dracule.

What was he doing here?

Mihawk's POV

After hearing from Red-Hair you cursed, quickly throwing on your coat, pulling your boots on, hurriedly rushing to your raft.

Damn Red-Hair getting into trouble again, of course he would call you to ask about a plausible solution.

You growl in frustration, untying your raft, setting your compass as you make your way to Foosha, hoping that you would be able to make it in time.

The waves crash against the rocky shoreline as you dock, leaping from your raft with ease, landing on the familiar sands of Foosha. Your golden eyes narrow as you spot what looks to be a large canine, crying out in a panicked whine. Ah, of course. You sigh, making your way over to the canine, already knowing that this large hound was most likely Ruse D. Argenti. How she had stumbled across the Okami Okami no Mi was beyond you, but you knew that if she had eaten it, she was most definitely not safe around civilians until she got it under control. From her whining and loud yelps of surprise, you had guessed she had just recently activated her devil fruit's powers, likely by mistake.

As you continue to approach her, you can see her fur is silver, form larger than an average hound, easily towering over a regular man's height. Her silver fur glimmered, seemingly otherworldly, large fur-rimmed ears swiveling in interest at his arrival. She turned to look at you, golden eyes wide as her jaws dropped slightly, razor-sharp fangs gleaming from a distance. You had to be cautious, it was likely she wasn't aware of her stature, and you only hoped she would be amiable. Instead, as her golden gaze locked onto you, a brief moment of surprise flickering across her canine features, tail wagging back and forth, she grinned at you, teeth stretching into a wide cheerful snarl, as she charged.