Two Dreams, One Adventure

The Mermaid Princess

They made it out of the bubble elevator and were back on land. "Oh, I gotta discharge," Luffy said. It had just appeared, so it would be smaller. They were far from the bubble, and the blasts/shockwaves/explosions didn't harm the bubble.

"I remember what happened at Sabaody!" Luffy nodded, and said it was what made him lose his arm's feelings.

"But I'm fine with it like this," he said. They were walking, Caimie in a bubble floaty. "It reminds me that I'm not invincible, and blood isn't a fix for everything."

Usopp said, "If that happened to me, I'd want it fixed." They all knew most people would. "You're weird like that." Luffy laughed and agreed, putting his arm behind his head. "Neh, can we get yummy food?!"

"Yeah, I wanna taste food from Fishman Island!" Chopper agreed. Caimie was more than happy to take them all to the best restaurants, after she got the clams to Pappag. When they got to the coral street, a main street, Chopper asked for them to get him some take out while he went to check on Sanji.

"Sure, we'll get you the best of them," Luffy vowed. Chopper hurried off to Sanji. Caimie brought them to mermaid cafe, though the dorms were far from the actual place. "Ooh, food!"

"It's a cafe, not a restaurant."

"They have food, like cakes and baked goods," Caimie said. They went inside, Luffy wanting meat, not baked treats. But he didn't smell any meat inside! "Oh, people here don't eat meat or fish." Luffy's jaw dropped in horror. But he was confused about eating Takoyaki with Hachi, then.

"That means the only meat on the island is on the Sunny?!" Caimie said sometimes meat was eaten at the palace, but otherwise, no meat or fish. "Not even sea kings?"

"Well, nobody hunts sea kings here. Those in the deep are less aggressive and don't come here often, but those that do are too big for anyone to kill," the mermaid explained. Luffy's whole body seemed to droop in disappointment. "The rich fishmen can have meat, though! But the food here is really tasty! And we have clams and shellfish and scallops," she added, wanting to pick up Luffy's mood.

Usopp said he could last a day without meat, sounding exasperated. He smelled Brook nearby, and listened, knowing he was inside instantly. It looked like he'd gone in through another entrance, as the front doors didn't smell like him. They walked inside, and saw him and Pappag together, Brook surrounded by beautiful mermaids.

"Caimie-san! Oh, and Luffy-san!" Luffy frowned and asked where Zoro had gone. "He got lost." Luffy pouted and crossed his arms like a little kid. "I'm sure you can meet up with him later," Brook added.

Luffy had missed him so much for two years and now they couldn't even go around Fishman Island alone together. He wanted to go look for him. Brook and Pappag were having a great time, and the starfish was glad to see the other two. "I've missed you all so much! You sure changed a lot, Hatty!" he said, addressing Luffy. Usopp was Nosey.

The captain said he went through all sorts of training with a smile. "I'm gonna go look for Zoro," Luffy announced. "I don't want to see everything and then know about Zoro." Usopp asked if that was a good idea. He could get lost, too. He'd said the scents were different here. After all, there was no wind to bring them to him.

"Well, I'll be fine," Luffy replied. "And I'll just follow my scent back here and then to you guys," he added. Usopp nodded, and Brook told him to be careful in the more rural areas. That's where they'd washed up. Luffy left, and wandered around, looking and listening for Zoro. He looked to the side and saw a wanted poster for who Brook said was a ghost. Vander Decken. Luffy wondered why he was wanted. But he was looking for Zoro. He wandered around, but had nothing helpful.