Missy

Fixing Burnt Bridges

I don't own One Piece. If I did, SMOKER WOULD SHOW UP MORE OFTEN! 

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Your hand clapped over your mouth before you knew it. Smoker was there? In that office.

You couldn't stay here. It had been dangerous before, but now it was on a whole other level. You had to move.

But you couldn't. Your body was frozen in place. You begged your muscles to move, but they didn't. Was that out of fear, or something else entirely. You couldn't tell. Not that it mattered anyways.

All you could do was sit here, and listen.

"You haven't answered my question, Commodore."

Smoker tsked, "Don't call me that. Don't deserve it."

"Oh?" You imagined that Jonathan was raising an eyebrow, "From what I heard, I'm surprised that you're not anything higher. You prevented the collapse of a country after all."

So that was what had happened. You had expected that the government would cover up that incident, and Smoker had very conveniently been there. You'd done your best to avoid him after all. But you weren't surprised that he would be resentful about taking the credit. He never liked undeserved titles, be they good or bad. It was why the two of you got on so well after all.

Well...why you had got on so well at least.

"... Mind if I have a drink?"

"Not at all. I'll call for one of our finest-"

"No need. I've got my own."

"I see."

There were clinks as glasses were set on the table. One... Two...

Three?

Jonathan found the third glass just as confusing as you did, "Are you expecting someone else?"

He snorted, "It'd be nice if I was. Nah, this is why I came here."

"...for us to share a drink?"

A pause. "I had...a good friend. She always wanted to drink with you, and since she can't I thought I might as well do it for her."

Your heart clenched. He...he actually remembered? Inwardly you chuckled. Of course he remembered, it was Smoker. Even so, you'd only mentioned this once. When both you and Smoker were arguing about which Marine Base was the best. He'd insisted on Loguetown, obviously, and you went for Navarone. You'd won, to no ones's surprise. There wasn't much of a case to be made for Loguetown, and he was a little on the drunk side. Which he would later deny.

A smile flitted over your face. Those were fun times. Pity they didn't last for longer.

"I take it that your friend is no longer with us."

"She's not dead. It's...complicated."

"Hm... It always is, isn't it."

Complicated huh? Well that was one word for it. A pang of guilt twinged your gut. Smoker didn't deserve this. If only you had been somewhat normal. A decent human being, to be a decent friend.

A pause. As if neither of them quite knew what to say. You couldn't blame them. You didn't know what to think yourself.

Jonathan tapped a finger on wood once more. Peeping around the corner, you could just make out various black and white figures scattered across his desk. A chess board? And he was rolling one of the black knights around in circles. Not quite falling, but teetered on an edge. It made your skin crawl just looking at it, despite just being an innocent wood carving.