Everything seemed to happen so fast. Too fast for your mind to even fully register precisely what was happening.

As you lost your footing on the ropes of the rigging, your heart leaped into your throat. Time seemed to slow down as your arms flailed wildly, your hands scrambling; desperately reaching for purchase on the ropes but not finding it. You were tumbling backward - or rather, hurtling! The air whooshed passed your ears as the world became a blur of rain, billowing sails, motion and chaos.

But you had your safety line....it just.....felt a little slack. Scarily slack in fact.

Oh god, no. No. How could it have come loose? This couldn't be the end. Not like this. Could it?

Evidently it really could.

You tried to scream, cry, anything. Anything but fall. - not that it would do you any good, screaming - your chest had tightened, all the air seemed to have left your lungs; stolen by the wind or perhaps maybe the utter shock itself of plummeting down at such great speed. Your arms continued to flail instinctively; grasping blindly at empty space as gravity mercilessly pulled you down. Powerless, there was nothing left to do but to close your eyes and brace yourself for the impending impact. You were powerless versus gravity.

Well, you had insisted on pursuing your dreams. Your stupid, misguided dreams. To become a pirate and take to the seas in search of your beloved Narvi.

You had been warned repeatedly of the dangers. Your adoptive parents, your friend Laurette, and of course your captain.

Your captain.

Wait. Why were you dwelling on him during your final moments, and not Narvi?

Your turbulent thoughts were suddenly shattered by a foreign sensation. The completely unexpected feeling of....arms. Not the hard impact of the wooden deck, not the salty embrace of the roiling waves, but two very strong and distinctly masculine arms; wrapping around your waist and catching you.

It was him of course. It had to be him. And your instincts were confirmed once the familiar voice of Buggy spoke, close to your ear and uncharacteristically gentle. And in that moment, the three words he uttered were undoubtedly the best you'd ever heard in your entire life...

"I've got you"

Relief flooded you and you had to suppress a sob; forcing it back down into your chest before it could escape. You felt almost hysterically relieved, unsure if you wanted to cry or laugh.....perhaps a bit of both. Not that you allowed yourself to do either of those things.

You couldn't however, disguise the way your body was trembling as a result of the fear and the adrenaline now coursing through your nervous system. You were aware of being suspended in mid air; your legs dangling beneath you, so you reflexively leaned back against his solid chest; seeking further support. Knowingly, your captain then repositioned one of his arms; his right one now hooked under the back of your knees, so he was essentially holding you bridal style.

"Th-thank you..." your arms encircled the back of his neck; clinging on, quite literally, for dear life.

How bizarre. How fortunate. For you to have been thinking of him in what you'd thought would be your final moments, and then he had saved you. As if he'd sensed your need for him somehow.

The stability and comfort momentarily gained from being cradled safely in his arms was fleeting, once his torso reattached to the rest of his body. The aggressive sway of the ship was unmissable, as the vessel continued to be tossed along violently on the waves.

But still Buggy held you. And oddly enough  you were in no hurry whatsoever to be parted from his certain and reassuring embrace.

"Are you ok?"

The surprisingly soft tone of his voice surprised you enough to compel you to raise your head and look at him. You had expected a scolding. Instead his face was a mask of concern; a worried frown creased his brow, his painted lips were turned down slightly at the corners, and his eyes....those beautiful pale green eyes scrutinized your features intently; as if trying to discern if you were indeed truly ok.

"I am now" your voice wobbled precariously, once again feeling overwhelmed with relief and gratitude, "I mean, that is, thanks to you"

Without meaning to you found yourself holding his gaze; becoming lost in those mesmerizing eyes of palest green, with their threads of jade filaments, ringed by circles of obsidian pigment.

God, they were exquisite.

His sudden, and slightly strangled sounding, sigh shook you from your almost hypnotized state, and you looked away from one another simultaneously, feeling your face grow hot. He gave a stiff nod of the head and haphazardly set you on your feet; as if he'd suddenly been struck by the fear he might be at risk of catching cooties from you.

But that made no sense, considering he'd kissed you so fervently earlier.

No, no, no. You would not allow yourself to revisit that moment, and now was most definitely not the time.

Even more so now that it appreared Buggy had ascertained that you were unscathed, merely just a little shaken up, and his handsome face had noticeably hardened somewhat.

Ah. Here it comes....

"I told you! I specifically instructed you NOT to climb the damn rigging! What were you thinking?!" He seethed, "or maybe that's the problem. You weren't thinking!"

"I-I had to do it. And I had a line.....I thought it would be alright, I followed the safety precautions—"

"You mean THIS line?" His hand darted out and grasped the line tied around your waist, and with a swift and effective tug the length of rope now lay in a pool by your feet, as if taunting you.

"Captain, I secured that line, Ken even double checked it for me"

"Ken? Who the hell is—actually, I don't care! The point is, how do you know you can trust him?" he pointed at the pile of rope, emphasizing his point "and WHY did you have to climb the rigging, exactly? I'm your captain!"

"......it was Heppoko. He said just because you ordered Alvida not to have his brother make me climb the rigging, doesn't mean he has to go easy on me"

"Oh did he now, and didn't you argue with the shithead? Because let's face it, you have no qualms about arguing with me and I'm your captain!"

"You'll be happy to know that, yes, I did refuse, but he insisted that his orders override yours, as he's the official first-mate of the crew"

"Oh really, well in that case I'll—"

"You'll what?!"

You both turned to see the familiar bulky figure of Poppoko looming behind you. Amidst the chaos on deck, you had to assume that Buggy and yourself standing still must've attracted his unwanted attention, and he'd clearly overheard.

"I'll put the shidiot in his fucking place, that's what!" Buggy ground-out in response; those ocean eyes now flashing dangerously, reaffirming his anger at having dared be questioned.

"Huh, and how would you do that exactly? He's twice your size!"

"Keep pushing me, shit-for-brains, and you'll find out!"

Foolishly, Poppoko openly scoffed "I'd like to see you try!"

"Oh don't worry, I'll ensure you have a front-row seat, in fact, I might just give you a sneak preview!"

Before Poppoko even had time to form a response, Buggy lurched forward and in the blink of an eye the obnoxious crew member's head jerked back violently as it met with the clown pirate's disembodied right fist. Blood and several teeth flew from Popoko's mouth and he staggered back, collapsing against some barrels. Fortunately for him the barrels were tied down, otherwise he would've gone sprawling and made an even bigger fool of himself.

"Aggghhh! You bastard—"

"Ugh, quit your whining, you baby. You deserve that and more for making Amby climb the rigging in the damn first place. I'm not stupid, I know your reasons for doing it.....and NOBODY messes with my girl!"

His girl

Your throat tightened inexplicably at his words. You knew it was all pretense, just keeping up appearances blah blah blah, and yet the hefty weight of such a protective declaration somehow still had a huge impact on you. A warmth filled your chest and radiated outwards, like being wrapped up in a warm, cozy blanket.

"Amby, time to go below deck"

"Hm, sorry, what was that, Captain?"

Sheesh. You really did need to pay more attention to what was going on around you instead of getting lost in your thoughts and feelings.

"I said, it's time to exit stage left!!"

"But I— hey!"

You flinched as Buggy gripped you assertively by the upper-arm and began escorting - well practically dragging you, along - but then you realized why. Buggy's assault on Poppoko had now gathered quite a crowd.

Didn't these guys have duties and tasks to be getting on with? Especially since the mast had come down! Around you the storm still raged, although the rain had eased off a little.

"Going somewhere, first-mate?" The gruff voice of Heppoko - Alvida's former first-mate, and more alarmingly, Poppoko's brother - caused a sliver of unease to creep along your spine, making the hairs rise at your nape.

Buggy halted; his eyes briefly sliding shut as he muttered a string of profanities under his breath, and for once you were in complete agreement with his sentiment.

"Quartermaster" Buggy corrected, schooling his expression into one of smug condescension, as he whirled around to face the mountain of a man that was Heppoko.

"You think you're a wise guy, forming some kind of shady alliance with our captain, acting like you run the ship, taking my place...and now you dare attack my brother. Big mistake, freakshow!"

"Attack? Oh please. Don't exaggerate. You guys are so melodramatic. It was barely even a slap. His teeth were probably rattling around loose before I even touched him, I mean, sheesh...you boys really need to visit the Conomi isles, lots of tangerine groves there, plenty of vitamin C helps keep the scurvy at bay—"

"Barely even a slap, you say? Oh, well how about I give your little whore a slap then, and we'll call it even?!"

Instinctively, you drew closer to Buggy as he stepped in front of you, protectively. Tilting his head to one side slightly, he rather put you in mind of a coiled cobra before it strikes.

"She is not a whore. And if you touch her, it'll be the last thing you do.....seeing how you already untied her line!"

"You!" Your jaw slackened, your entire face having gone completely numb with shock, "you untied my line on purpose? Hoping I would fall!"

Why would he do such a thing? Ok so you weren't officially one of Alvida's crew but you had been trying. But no, rather than accept you aboard as an extra pair of hands, this asshole had sabotaged your line! At best he'd tried to make you look incompetent. At worst he could've caused your untimely death!

"You...you absolute.....shithead!"

Seriously? Of all the insults, you'd automatically used one of Buggy's favorites.

Without knowing exactly what you intended to do - other than lash out at Alvida's former first-mate - you lunged forwards; seeing nothing but red.

But then a lean, muscular arm hooked around your waist; hauling you back.

"Damn it, captain! Let me go!"

"Whoa, easy there tiger! Let me deal with this prick. It's my job"

"Your job?"

Peering down at you he gave you a devilish wink "you're my girl, and nobody insults Buggy's girl. Protecting you is my job"

Heppoko growled impatiently and you could already see the direction the fool was marching in with misplaced and ill-fated confidence. This was not going to end well for him, yet still he made his move.

You could only presume that as he lowered his meaty hand and swiped in the general direction of your butt, that he had been intending to slap you on the ass. Probably to goad Buggy into retaliation and humiliate you.

Big mistake on his part. Big.

Huge.

Buggy was a man of his word and seemed eager to prove that he wasn't one for making empty threats. Your captain and self-appointed 'protector' moved swiftly and savagely. There was a glint of silver through the drizzling rain, the sound of steel slicing through the air, followed by an agonized cry.....and then there was blood on the deck. Lots of blood.

And a severed hand.

"How many times do you need to be told, you don't mess with my girl!" Buggy repeated, his fierce expression not faltering, and his lips curled in a way that made his face look hard and cold.

You had seen him angry before, though you could not recall having been quite as startled by it as you were right now. There was a visible cruelness in the fine lines around his red mouth; the tightness of his masculine jaw, and the narrowing of his beautiful eyes.

For once he hadn't raged or raised his voice, gesticulated wildly or even cussed. This anger had been the still kind. Like the calm before a storm, the silence following thunder before lightning strikes. This was Buggy's anger in its deadliest form, you realized. Heppoko was lucky to still be alive, though the man obviously wasn't in any coherent state to appreciate that, as he writhed around, clutching a hanky to the bloodied stump where his left hand had once been.

"What have you done to my brother!" Poppoko rounded on you both, yelling; albeit with an audible lisp now that he was missing a few of his front teeth.

"He got what he deserved. At least I let him keep the other hand!" Buggy shrugged, carelessly. He then gave a malicious chuckle as he added as an afterthought, "he can accessorize now.....hooks look pretty cool. But I'll spill his guts with one if he so much as thinks about laying a finger on Amby again!"

You blinked hard in total disbelief as the colorful clown threw an arm around your shoulders and turned in a slow circle; addressing all of the onlookers now, "AND THAT APPLIES TO ALL OF YOU! JUST IN CASE HOU MISSED THE MEMO!"

Another sudden pitch caused the ship to sharply veer right, as a high wave crashed overboard; making the starboard side of the deck instantly slippery, and everyone who was gathered there, soaked to the skin.

Sea water.

That was Buggy's weakness, and you could tell, as his body immediately sagged limply against your side. He didn't fall down, but as he leaned into you you could feel the effect it had on him.

And it couldn't have happened at a worse time.

"You'll pay for this, you freak!" Poppoko lisped, and produced a rapier sword from his belt.

You had to think fast. Now was not the time for deliberation but action. Mind whirring, you quickly scanned the gathering of mostly nameless faces until with fortuitous timing, your desperate eyes landed on the friendly face of Ken.

Thank the stars!

Beside you Buggy held up his hand in a defensive position, as if pride or vanity - or maybe just the simple fact that he was drenched through - prevented him from attempting to run away or even recoil.And because the salt water weakened him, you were only too aware that splitting himself into pieces wasn't an option. If Poppoko realized that also, you couldn't be sure, but either way you weren't willing to take any chances.

You didn't see what happened next exactly, perhaps thankfully, as you were too preoccupied with rushing to Ken whilst trying not to slip on the wet, seaweed strewn boards of the deck.

"Ken, give me your sword!"

The older man seemed transfixed by the drama that was unfolding, but in spite of that he was quick to respond also "Cutlass" he corrected, as he obligingly drew it from his belt and handed it over without question or pause.

You made it back to Buggy in three unsteady strides, faltering for only a split second. You didn't want to kill if you didn't have to, but you didn't want your captain to wind up dead either.

So using your ingenuity, you flipped the cutlass around; Buggy's gloves luckily enabled you to hold the weapon safely by the blade, and with all your strength you brought the handle down hard over Poppoko's dense skull.

There was a resounding crack as the blow rendered the oaf unconscious, and he crumpled to the ground in an undignified heap.

"Amby" Buggy blinked at you disbelievingly, a wry smile now curling his fine mouth "wow. You know....that was kinda hot"

"Buggy..." you warned, still having to fight the urge to grin.

"Only a little. It might've been hotter still if you actually, you know, had stabbed the shit bag"

The smile then fell from your face, "BUGGY!"

"Kidding, baby. Ahh, when are you going to stop taking things so seriously—?"

"N-no, Buggy, SHUT UP!" Dropping the cutlass, you wrenched the wet bandana from your hair and clasped it to his right hand, tightly, ".....you're bleeding!"