piratejournal | [voice]

Yeah. Saw a couple, the other day when I was having a hike around. They're real quiet, though, seemed like they didn't want any trouble.

[while holding his armful of weaving material, he sidles around the nest, peering at the giant eggs and taking a look over the edge. Shit, they're high up.]

I wanna go meet 'em. I bet their food is huge!

[happy happy sway]

We should give them something so they can make us a feast.

[best part of being a pirate]

[snorts. Well, these eggs sure are big enough to make a giant omelet]

We'd have to find them, first. I didn't notice a village or anything.

[because he got lost and wandered in circles]

Think there's anything like sky-sea-kings up here?

That bird was kinda big. [almost as big as the yoh birds in Skypiea.] Maybe there are snakes.

[because the nests were off the ground. But some snakes could climb even this kind of stuff so maybe not]

Maybe the giant villages are in hiding. Maybe they're camelflashed.

[finishes that weaving and tries to work it into the tear. When that's done he grabs armfuls of mud and pats on top of it. Then he takes the strips from Zoro's arm and starts to weave those]

They look like mine.

Camouflaged. [on beat.

He glances over his shoulder just to make sure that giant bird isn't about to destroy them for being near its eggs.]

I guess it's possible. If they don't want to have anything to do with visitors to their island, makes sense.

So, these eggs are clearly off the dinner menu. We'll just have to find something else.

[he nods absently and finishes the weaving. Dumping the rest of the mud on the grass and stamps it into place. Then he unties one of the eggs.]

Here hold on to it.

[He says as he rolls it to where the patch is. He trusts Zoro's grip. If it's too heavy, he knows Zoro won't let it fall through. Besides which, he has to get the other one so he can see if it will hold when the eggs were back where he found them]

Edited 2014-06-15 05:56 (UTC)

All right...

[Never let it be said that Zoro didn't trust his captain's whims. He loops his arms around the egg and does exactly as told, hanging onto it until Luffy can test them both.]

[he rolls the other egg into place carefully and lays it down. It seems to be okay and he waves for Zoro to let go. He stares at the patch hard, trying to see any sign of weakening and even stamps it lightly with a foot and though the greeny thick branch its perched on trembles, the nest stays intact]

Yoshh.

[he uses some leftover mud to patch up the tear Zoro made and then shoulders the muddy backpack]

Let's go! [they have a ship to find, and maybe a village, too. He jumps off the side of the nest, bounding down giant leaves as he lands on them and uses one to jump over the river, landing and nearly falling in butt first.

Fortunately he catches his balance and turns, crouching, to wash the mud off his arms and wait for Zoro to join him]

[Wow, look at that, Luffy made a thing. And it works! Zoro nods, impressed, before Luffy is off like a shot and he's left scrambling to follow before the bird lands on them and breaks them in two.

He makes his way down with slightly more grace and only a little bit of slipping on the vine here and there, leaping from perch to perch and only stumbling at the very end. Brushing himself off, he looks to see if Luffy's ready.]

Not bad. You'd make a fine momma bird.

Haha no way! They gotta share their food. Anyway--

[he puts the bag in the water to wash it out and then flaps and squeezes it before hooking it over one shoulder]

Do you know how momma birds feed their kids?

[do you? Do you? It's pretty gross and he wants to share]

Yeah, I do. [no thanks Luffy. He already knows and doesn't need the visual details right now.]

So. What now?

They throw up. [he was going to say it anyway, let's be honest. As for where next. He puts his hands on his hips and looks around. A wind blows and he sniffs it absently, smelling a faint kind of firey smell from that direction. Where there is fire there is people or at least interesting stuff so]

This way!

[starts off]

Wolves throw up, too, sometimes. Isn't it weird? Who'd want to eat that? I guess it must be super tasty to them.

[shrugs and follows]

Gross, Luffy. I know that! I...wait, wolves too? Weird.

Fine, you don't have to be a momma bird. I think we're all better off.

I don't wanna be a momma anything.

[they come to a place with a fallen log and he jumps up on it, using it as a balance beam]

Someone said that everyone has one of those. Do you think it's true?

A mother? Well, yeah. We were all born from someone, it ain't like they're finding babies under cabbage leaves. It's just. [a quiet sigh] We don't all get to keep them for our whole lives.

Ehhh They really don't come from those? [peers at him] At all? Not even sometimes?

Not even a little bit. [althoooouuughh...] Of course, I dunno where fishmen come from but. Probably not cabbage either way.

I guess they come from other Fishmen, right? ...And people too sometimes. [Wasn't Chimney related to a fish person? Well never mind]

I wonder if I'll ever meet 'em one day. [he'd be fine either way but he was sort of curious. Just like he was sort of curious to know what his dad looked like.

The firey scent is stronger now and it's almost acrid, stinging his nose and he snorts and rubs it.]

It stinks...

[and something big lows in the distance like a giant cow-- so he keeps going toward it anyway, curious now]

Heh, yeah, other...

[before he can even say "fishmen," he can smell it, too. And after what Kodachi did last week, well...]

That's not a campfire.

Tread carefully, Luffy. [he's got your back, though, one hand resting on his swords at his hip]

[he nods absently. As they get closer he sees there's been a fight. The giant trees are slashed through. One of the trees as been knocked over, splintered from the middle as if something crashed into it. There are more grappling hooks on the ground and one embedded into a drunk, covered in dried blood.

He pushes through a copes of thick underbrush and sees three blue and white whales lying on the ground in a scorched clearing. They're only a little bigger than the Sunny and one of them is still alive, eye rolling and lets out another low groan that vibrates the air and rattles Luffy's teeth.

There are still some fires burning around and a big pile of burning wood that looks like it might have been a hut. He doesn't care and hurries over to the big thing, resting a hand on its jaw as it rolls its milky white eye to look down at him]

Oi! Are you alright?

What...?

[for a moment it's hard to take in. Whales? Beached in a forest clearing? How is that even possible?! The scene of battle immediately has Zoro's attention, though - fire and blood, impossible to ignore. He moves in behind Luffy, walking backwards with his grip tight on Shuusui, ready to draw it in an instant. He takes a moment to feel around with haki, not just for any sign of attack or pursuit, but to gauge the life force of the whales.

He doesn't like what he finds.]

What the hell?

[even he can tell they're dying. It's dying. And if he listens really hard, it's almost as if he can sort of understand.

The whale's eyes close and Luffy moves around it's snout, feeling the heat of its final breaths against his legs. It makes a soft whine and Luffy keeps a hand on it as he sees a burned corpse just beyond it. A giant. With a broken weapon and some of the grappling hooks still in him.]

It's okay. I understand. [he murmurs this as he pats the whale again, waiting for the last shuddering breath before taking his hand away]

We gotta find out where he came from.

[Zoro is silent and still until the last one goes, at which his own anger starts bubbling under the surface. This is senseless. Madness. He can see it in the chaos.]

And what happened here. There's...one of the giants.

[He moves to investigate, his hand tightening on Kitetsu's handle. It takes a bit to trace what movement he can through the brush, comparing footprints, weapons, battle damage. After a long while, he speaks up with the knowledge borne of experience.]

That guy. He can't have taken that kind of damage from these whales. It's almost like he was trying to protect them...

[voice]

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