Romance Dawn (ON HOLD)

CHAPTER ONE

SWINGING ON the trees around the forest, Luffy capped down his straw hat using his free hand. His arm stretched like rubber, allowing him to swing all the way without hurting himself. With another swing, he landed on the grassy ground, the soles of his sandals almost slipping off the green field. An ordinary fishing boat floated on the nearby shore and he chuckled and looked back. He will not return unless he fulfill his dream. The boy with the strawhat leaped his way to the boat and began to paddle, though he didn't know where he should go.

Hours passed and the night finally came. Without anything to eat, his stomach growled at him. Neverland already missed him and he also missed it, especially the unlimited meat dishes he devours on every single day since. Neverland being a remote island that nobody probably knew about, had became a 'stop over' for pirates and marines alike. Luffy winced, trying to keep awake with all the cold breeze brushing against his face. The cold never bothered him, anyway. He tried to imagine what it's like to have a crew of his own; a mere group of friends who would always be by his side, and would never leave him astray. The thoughts made him yawn and he slowly drifted himself into a slumber.

Luffy woke up, his boat stuck on a shore of another island. He could already smell the freshly cooked meat from the town, and he hurried his way out of his boat. The soles of his sandals tapped against the grime and sand beneath him as he ran following the lingering sensation of his favourite food being cooked nearby.

He reached the town. Finally. A sign that read 'Shells Town' was plastered on the tall wooden fences that traced the edges of the town. With his hunger taking over, Luffy hurried to the nearest shop he could find. Freshly cooked dishes of different cuisines were placed in fancy plates before him, inside a glass counter. He stared at the food before searching his pockets for money.

"Crap," he frowned. "I didn't bring any money."

Left without a choice, Luffy turn his back on the meat shop to take a walk around town. People of all ages wandered as well, with some staring at him. He was recent to the town, alright. Moments later, birds flew away in a distance, and it made Luffy wonder if there were free food in there.

He followed the direction where the birds came from to see nothing but a green-haired guy, around two years older than him, tied to a wooden crucifix. His eyes were shadowed by the black bandana that was tied around his forehead. Luffy blinked and tried to approached him, only to pause when a young girl jumped over the steel barriers. He hid behind one of the fences and eavesdropped on them.

"Hey, you must be hungry." the girl spoke softly.

The green haired guy didn't answer.

"Here, take this." Luffy looked to see three pieces of rice cake being handed to the other boy. He drooled at the sight of it, his hunger becoming more dominant as seconds passed.

The girl spoke once again. "You might be one of the musketeers, but I believe that you're innocent."

"Musketeer?" Luffy repeated.

The green haired guy then yelled. "Just leave me alone, kid. Your parents don't want you to be in trouble."

The girl began to cry, much to his annoyance. Her weeps were surprisingly overheard by the guards and they came rushing to his direction. One of them, with an oval-shaped blonde hair, slapped the rice balls off the girl's hand and took a bite. He stuck his tongue out.

"Too sweet," he added before throwing the rice balls to the ground and stomping on it. "Rice balls are supposed to be salty, ya know?!"

The girl ran away and the musketeer growled at Helmeppo. "You're not a guard, aren't you?"

He was right. "Yes, I'm not. I'm the son of -"

"- a bitch, I know."

Helmeppo grabbed the musketeer's neck and gripped it tight. "Watch your mouth, Roronoa Zoro..."

"Where are my swords?"

Swords. Luffy took a quick glance but was unfortunately caught by another guard. He cussed before running away as well and hid on one of the trees. He didn't get the chance to overhear whatever was happening in the min-prison but the guards and that Helmeppo guy was nowhere. Luffy decided to approach the guy who was looking down at the stomped rice balls on the ground.

"Roronoa Zoro," he began, his arms across his chest.

Zoro eyed him. "And you are?"

"Monkey D. Luffy," he flashed a smile. "the man who'll be -"

"- leave me alone,"

"I came here to invite you to join my crew,"

The green haired guy's brows furrowed. "Crew?"

"Yep," Luffy looked away. "By the way, are you gonna eat those rice balls?"

Zoro pursed his lips before replying. "Yeah. Can you pick them up?"

The boy with the strawhat replied after a moment of silence, scooping the remainder of the food on his palms and handing it close to Zoro's mouth. He watched as the tied up musketeer ate all the rice balls, much to his dismay. Luffy's stomach growled at him once again.

Luffy began to inch away when a voice called from behind.

"Hey, you!"

Zoro gritted his teeth and scolded Luffy. "Get out of here, you!"

Luffy chuckled. "No."

"Oi!"

Helmeppo shot a gun at the raven haired boy. Zoro was taken aback by shock when the kid in front of him stepped a few inches backwards. Helmeppo blew to smoke produced by the tip of his gun before putting it back to his belt.

Luffy bent over and snapped his torso straight, sending the bullet flying towards Helmeppo. The two other men was startled, as Luffy flashed a smile and laughed. "That won't work one me."

Zoro's eye widened at the sight of Luffy's body not being penetrable by the bullets. He had never seen such feat before, though he could guess how it happened. And why. Luffy turned to him, hooking a finger on his cheek and stretching the latter outwards. "I ate the Gomu Gomu no Mi," he chuckled. "That's why normal attacks won't work on me!"

Of course.

After minutes of fighting several marines, Luffy had managed to steal Zoro's swords from the headquarters, and to his surprise, they weren't even the swords he were thinking of. Zoro's swords were katanas. The musketeer-slash-swordsman tightened the bandana on his forehead and looked over to Luffy. The latter could now see his left eye, which was shut tight by a vertical scar drawn on it. Moments later they made their escape to the other side of the town where everyone was wearing gloomy clothes and all. Luffy raised an eyebrow.

"What's wrong with this part of the village?"

Zoro then tied the black piece of cloth on his left bicep. "Nobody likes to have fun here. This is a territory of the queen, anyway."

"Q-Queen?"