Opavia

11.

Vitani sat at the edge of the deck, looking down at Grandpa Ryu, the dragon. She smiled faintly, reminiscing about the time on her island and her Rekran. She sighed and closed her eyes, looking up at the roll of thunder.

"Luffy!" She yelled, looking around. Rain drummed onto her skin and she looked down at the dragon. He looked around anxiously, Vitani leaping over the rail. She landed on the platform, squatting beside him.

She held onto his fur, watching the ropes connecting their raft slip from the railing of the Going Merry as she began to panic.

"Ah-Luffy!" she cried. Apis grabbed ahold of one of the ropes, her hands bleeding at the friction. Vitani gritted her teeth and stuck out her hand, the lightning adverting to strike the water and not the Going Merry. She looked up to see Zoro had grabbed ahold of the rope as well, gritting his teeth.

"Vitani!" Zoro yelled as he strained, Sanji joining behind him.

The storm ceased after a few minutes and the sky immediately cleared. Vitani looked up, soaked as the raft began to settle in the water. She walked forward, Usopp helping her up. She collapsed beside him, looking over as he knelt beside her.

"Thanks." She breathed, Usopp closing his eyes and nodding.

They docked at the shore of a small island and slowly trailed off, the men forced to drag Ryu up the mountain behind them. Vitani had put her hair up, Apis sitting on her shoulder. Her chin rested comfortably in Vitani's sea of curls.

"I was thinking about braiding my hair." She admitted gingerly. "Get it out the way. Usually I'd braid it before my people go to war, but now the curls are just getting in my way."

"You'll look pretty either way." Apis giggled, Vitani smirking.

"No one's ever called me pretty, you know? It means a lot." She chuckled, Apis sighing.

Once they reached the top of the mountain, Vitani set Apis down. She looked up, narrowing her eyes. She stepped back to allow Apis to put the key in the wall, turning around when she realized she was too short to reach it.

Vitani snorted, Luffy attempting to help her. The ground suddenly shook and Vitani's eyes widened. She lunged for a loose root but didn't quite make it and plummeted with the others into the opening the ground had created. She landed on Usopp's back, groaning softly. Vitani sat up and looked around.

"Where are we?" She whispered as Usopp groaned below her. "Usopp!" she gasped, moving aside and pulling him up.

"Te challa (are you okay)?!" she fretted, Usopp nodding slowly. She rose and dusted herself off, looking around at the drawings and paintings of dragons along the wall.

Vitani felt along the walls of the building, listening to Nami explain that the Dragon'a Neat was on a different island.

"So we came here for nothing?!" Vitani scoffed. Apis frowned and looked down at the ground guiltily.

"I'm sorry." She whispered, Vitani furrowing her eyebrows.

"It's no worries." Nami quickly assured her. Vitani's ear twitched and she looked up to see Eric, the marine from earlier.

"He's got the Sickle Sickle Devil Fruit." Usopp noted. Vitani watched as Zoro stepped forward, drawing his sword from the sheathe.

"Always wanting to be the hero?" She muttered as he urged her on with the dull side of his sword. She ran after Luffy who had punched the wall until he had created an exit, leaping onto the raft. She held onto Ryu, gritting her teeth as the raft plummeted down the hill. they slammed into rocks and walls before actually making it to the ship. She helped tie Ryu's raft quickly before boarding the ship.