Pride of the East

[Mr. Moon]

Michael #1

It was a beautiful summer day in Loguetown with the sun high on the clear blue sky and excited people heading towards the port. The ocean liner Pride of the East was a luxury ship for the rich who wished to travel the world while enjoying all the pleasures money could buy.
There were several passengers leaving the ship in Loguetown and several others embarking.
“I don´t think this is a good idea.”
Whispered Sophia, a short petite redhead that possessed both a cute face and a firm, athletic body currently hidden under a beautiful black dress that would be far above her humble means if not for the benefactor she was carrying in her arms. An especially large and incredibly fluffy black cat, that resembled a Maine Coon, although didn´t belong to this precious breed.
“Relax, I told you it will be fine.”
The cat whispered in return, making sure no one was watching them too closely as ruining his disguise this early in their mission would make him laughing stock in front of his fellow M.A.R.I. members, let alone Myra.
“But…”
She tried to protest again, but Michael silenced her with a hiss.
“No buts my dear. I need someone to get me on the ship. Rose didn’t get her leave approved and Scarlett is too unstable for this, so you are the only one.”
He paused, as they were walking around an elderly couple, before continuing.
“Besides what are you even complaining about? You are going to enjoy free ride; I am going to do all the work.”
Sophia stayed silent. Not because she would run out of excuses and protests, but because they already reached the stairs leading to the ship. A pair of guard in fancy uniforms of the ship crew stopped her, asking for her ticket.
“Yes…sure…I…”
She pulled one arm from below Michael´s fluffy body, reaching into her traveling bag for two tickets. Confused, the guard took them and looked at the strange pair in front of them.
“Sophia Walker…and Mr. Noir?”
He read out aloud his face full of confusion.
“Miss, you know you didn´t have to buy a full ticket for your pet right?”
Pausing for a moment, the ginger graced them with such a smile that even these hardened bodyguards lost their cool for a moment.
“I know but…he is used to his comfort, so I wanted an extra bed for him.”
Trying to ignore his burning cheeks the leading guard nodded.
“Of course, that´s understandable…welcome on board Miss Walker!”
As they made it half way up the stairs Michael whispered.
“See I told you that you will do fine.”
Neither of these men realized that a cat outside of a carrier was against the company´s policy.

[Kami-Gaz]

Cleo #1

---

Sunny days were always the best, especially those summer ones with a light breeze and zero clouds. They were just so warm and cosy and relaxed everyone, for most it was too hot to get all bothered but for some like Cleo it was just the kind of day that warmed her unusual body. The snake woman had boarded the cruise ship not that long ago as a part of a retinue for some rich merchant, she had used her twisted tongue and plays on words to convince him to buy her a ticket and that was all. The young man meant nothing more to her than a free way onto the ship for her real goal.

The woman sat on her coiled tail, and watched the world with eerily unblinking eyes, her quarterstaff rested down her side as one arm wrapped loosely around it. Her boots didn’t even touch the deck but dangled close to it as the light breeze ruffled the loose fit white silk trousers she wore. The pale blue vest button up vest top that she wore also had that flowing looseness that the wind caressed. Basking in the sun to warm her unusually cool body.

“Cleo~!” A young male voice spoke from behind the statuesque woman, causing her eyes to blink out of her absent-minded stare. It was the damned merchant here to bug her. With barely any effort she twisted her head around to gaze upon the blond man in his early twenties, his skin perfect and eyes ignorant to the woes of the world. “I was wondering, now we are on the ship, and we have nothing to do for the next week of the cruise… why don’t you go on a date with me tonight?” His high and grating voice asked, it sounded like a grating whine.

She smiled and her form lifted as her tail writhed slightly to get her a better position. Her movements were unnatural, snake like as she slithered her form in the air to get her face on his level. “Oh, but Troy~.” She hummed in a sweet and savoury voice. “If I were to say yes just now there’s no challenge in it for you~.” Her honied words said as she moved to coil around the man, her feet not touching the floor as the tail did all the work. “Relish the challenge Troy, woo me.”

She uncoiled from around the man and moved to use her feet, descending down to walk with the tail dragging behind her. Troy shook his fist but grinned at the challenge. “I will Cleo my gem. I will woo you like no man ever has!” He grinned and made a move to walk back to his small group of cronies that were backing him up.

Cleo shook her head and sighed with a look of disgust on her face that the man could not see. All she was here for was to do one job. Kill Leeroy Vallaban, and make it look painful. After that pay day was coming.

---

Cleo: 645990
Troy: acd1fc

[Bobbie]

“I haven’t been on a cruise in forever!” Rosalina Fernandez Dior's excitement was clear in her tone as she and her beloved Danny made their way onto the ship, she empty handed, of course, while Danielle carried their bags.

“Can you believe that Daddy actually let us come? This is going to be amazing! You’re going to love it, I promise!” The ginger giggled before throwing her arms around Danielle’s neck, pulling her down to give her a quick peck on the lips. 

Danielle did not share the excitement that Rosalina had. In fact, she didn’t want to be here at all, but her fiancée was so happy about this cruise when her father suggested it, that she simply couldn’t refuse. After all, perhaps she owed it to Rosalina after what went on with Namkhai and perhaps even Eponine. Her memory of that night’s events was still vague, but that didn’t prevent her from being ridden with guilt; enough so to feel she needed to fulfil some sort of penance… this damn cruise was it.

Nevertheless, she smiled for her beloved and kissed her back, then watching as the ginger doll skipped ahead of her, announcing that her lover had the tickets. Only once Rosalina’s back was turned did Danielle let her smile waver as she let out a sigh, tired from carrying their belongings and regretting her decision to be here.

“I do, I have both our tickets,” she called out to the guards, advancing toward them quickly before they would feel the need to stop Rosalina in her tracks. Handing over the two tickets that were for luxury cabins, the most expensive on the cruise as they were of course paid for by Olivier Fernandez Dior, she set foot on the deck and looked around for the ginger curls of her sweetheart, who had rushed on ahead without her.

“Here, Danny~!” her large emerald eyes peering up at Danielle, Rosalina seemed to appear out of nowhere and hugged Danielle's arm. The rosiness in her cheeks made it clear that she was quite flattered to see her blonde significant other search for her, and she enjoyed her short little game. Having no issue with this, Danielle turned her head to look down at the dress-wearing girl, whose outfit made her look like the cutest creation that could ever sit on a shelf in a girl’s bedroom - the lightly puffed skirt, frilled ends, and colourful patterns on the fabric only completing the look of sweet innocence that her ginger ringlets and freckled cheeks lent her. Danielle, on the other hand, would never dream of wearing anything so feminine. Unfortunately, her favourite suit was in desperate need of cleaning and mending, so she couldn’t wear that. Instead, she decided to go with a rather simple and ordinary pair of loosely fit dark trousers, plain light grey t-shirt and her leather jacket. As always, her hair was tied in a loose and messy side ponytail, easy and practical.

With Rosalina on her arm, Danielle smiled, the silver ring on her lower lip glistening as it reflected the sunlight. The blonde had nothing but admiration for this woman and it showed in every gesture that she made.

“Let’s go put our stuff in our cabin and then come back out to enjoy the fresh air, alright?” The blonde suggested, tired of carrying the bags and eager to sit down for a minute. One step toward the door that would lead to the cabins, however, would be all she'd make before Rosalina tugged on her arm.

“Danny, look! Look, somebody brought a cat on the cruise! At least cats would just sit in your lap or your arms without chasing you around or splashing water, right?”

This prompted Danielle into silence, irritated by what she knew was a jab at her love for Beast. Maintaining her smile so as to avoid an argument, she pressed her teeth together and looked in the direction of said cat. “It’s cute…” she replied, honestly, but really wanted to say that she would still rather have Beast with her. “Now can we-”

Again, her request to go to their cabin was interrupted, this time by a third party as another couple made their presence known in an unnecessarily loud manner. The woman caught Danielle's eye, her form rather unique.

Danielle was not against romantic gestures, in fact she quite appreciated them, but announcing them to everybody aboard was somewhat irritating - or perhaps it was rather her mood that was the problem, as she had yet to find a single thing about this trip that she was to look forward to. It surprised even her that simply the thought of spending time with Rosalina was not enough to lift her spirits.

She missed her friends.

“Woo me, Danny!” Quick to follow suit, Rosalina pulled on Danielle’s arm once more, singing and giggling to her partner to woo her, much like the stranger ahead of them promised to woo his supposed lover. With that, Rosalina grabbed Danielle’s free hand in both of hers, spun in front of her, and began walking backwards toward the cabin area, an inviting smile on her face.

Sighing, Danielle let herself be pulled and smiled lovingly as she played along, though truth be told… she really wasn’t in the mood for Rosalina’s attention-seeking behaviour.

---

Danielle: #fffd17
Rosalina: #ffaaff

[Mr. Moon]

Michael #2

While Sophia carried him across the deck towards their cabin, Michael was watching the people around, trying to identify his targets. And while he didn´t see any of them, he definitely found some interesting people. The snake girl for one, flexing her abilities given to her by her Devil Fruit for everyone to see, and then an attractive redhead accompanied by her blonde boyfriend…a girlfriend. The killer corrected himself after a moment of staring at these two as he realized why the blonde was looking so familiar to him. It was Danielle, Gabriel´s new puppy, his brother couldn´t but brag about in every single letter he sent him during the past month or so. And if that was Danielle it meant, that the ginger had to be her fiancée, Rosalina.
“Well…”
The large cat snarled for himself as he was carried down the stairs.
“maybe I´ll make you more favors than you asked for brother.”
Fortunately, his companion had enough decency to wait till the doors of their cabin closed behind them, before she exploded.
“Wow, did you see it? All these fancy people and that bar on the upper deck and… holy sh*t! This cabin is bigger than the house I grew up in!”
The redhead laughed, throwing her body on a soft bed that loudly protested against such abuse.
“Language please…”
Michael growled, walking towards his own bed with a dignity, that was natural to all cats, before jumping on it.
“Yeah, sorry, I mean…just wow, we even have our own sofa and bathroom and…and….”
She paused, looking at the large cat, that rolled himself in the ball on the opposite side of the room, her face turning bright red as she realized that she was about to share a room with a man…capable of transforming into a cat, but…still a man…for the first time in her life!
Almost as if he could read her mind, the lawyer raised his head and looked at her.
“Don´t worry about it. I won´t be spending here much time, so just enjoy your voyage.”

[Kami-Gaz]

Cleo #2

---

There were quite a few characters lingering around the cruise ship, people that could make the trip a nice entertaining affair. Well entertaining outside of performing a painfully brutal assassination for boat loads of cash. Cash that could be used to help her find a cure for her sibling’s condition, that was one of the ultimate goals in her voyage.

The snake like eyes momentarily examined the woman that was holding a very fluffy cat, an oddity to bring on a cruise holiday. She was going downstairs, likely to ditch the cat and her luggage in her room and then explore herself. As the snake woman passed the stairway, she could swear she heard the snarl of a man. It was enough of an oddity to cause her to briefly pause. ‘Keep mental note of that one Cleo…’ she thought before carrying on passing the pretty red head and her unamused boyfriend.

“Woo her Danny boy~” Cleo hummed, adopting a sly smile as she almost slithered around the pair. Her long tail dancing along the floor and shimmering in the light. “A pretty lady like this needs all the care and attention you can muster!” She said before bowing her head and bringing it back up as a formal greeting, her tongue flicking the air as the smile grew just that bit more.

“Call me Cleo, I wish the boy chasing me was as reserved and darkly handsome as your one miss.” Cleo spoke, her slit like eyes washing over the pair. Her tail pulled in close and started to curl up behind her, once it was finished, she leaned back and sat on it.

The snake then took the time to rifle through her pockets. “I am in room 202, if you love birds ever need anything please come and give me a shout.” She said before pulling out a book and basking in the sunlight that was present on the open air deck, allowing the pair to go ahead and get settled in for the trip.

---

Cleo: 645990
Troy: acd1fc

[Bobbie]

Instinctively, her hands in her lover’s, Danielle pulled Rosalina to a halt when Cleo approached them, drawing the ginger girl closer to her protectively.

Rosalina was taken quite by surprise and further so upon turning and seeing that the snake-lady was actually talking to them. While she was initially taken aback, her body gravitating closer toward her protector’s, it only took a bit of flattery to destroy that wall that was put up for such a brief moment.

With a smile and a giggle, the red ringlets danced on Rosalina’s shoulders and her cheeks coloured.

“Thank you,” she shyly but whole-heartedly accepted the compliment, before glancing up at Danielle with a look of undeniable pride and adoration of her partner. “I sure did get very lucky with my Danny.” Gently, she gave a little nudge, urging an acknowledgement of what the snake had uttered to both of them.

Danielle smiled, thinking very little of the compliment. In fact, it was slightly irritating - so this would be yet another person who mistook her for a man. It seemed that Rosalina herself had also had quite enough of it to the point of simply playing along with it as well, as she didn’t even bother correcting Cleo. Likewise, neither did Danielle, as she presumed that it wouldn’t matter for very long anyway. Once this dreadful cruise was over, what would the chances of them crossing paths again be, really?

However, preferring not to encourage such a misconception but rather just let it be, Danielle averted the topic altogether.

“Well, you seem to have a young man eager to please you in whatever way he can. Surely that must count for something.” The unwilling passenger replied in as pleasant a tone as she could muster, and then was ready to part ways with their new company. Rosalina, on the other hand, was not.

“I’m Rosalina, this is Danny, as you know.” She immediately blurted out their names, prompting Danielle’s jaw to lock shut as she pressed her teeth together. It was a coping mechanism she had learnt through all the trying times on past adventures and proved effective in reducing the chances of snapping and appearing unwelcoming as on the outside of said clenched teeth, was a kind smile to mask her annoyance.

“What a coincidence! We’re staying in room 207, that’s in the same hall! It’s supposed to be a very fancy suite, though I haven’t seen it yet. This cruise was paid for by my father to celebrate our relationship!” Wrapping her arm around Danielle’s, she stood close to her lover, holding her tightly as if she knew of her desire to simply run away.

Danielle couldn’t help but ask herself why Rosalina felt the need to share all that information with a stranger - was she bragging? Wasn’t everybody on this cruise filthy rich? It seemed like a pre-requisite to be allowed onto the ship, and so it would hardly be impressive to be wealthy as a passenger here.

“We’ve just overcome a very big obstacle that was causing us to drift apart, and Daddy thought this would be a nice way for us to get some time together… it nearly destroyed our relationship.”

Hearing Rosalina talk about her friends being that ‘obstacle’ was the final straw, as the blonde opened her mouth and interrupted the conversation.

“It was nice meeting you, Cleo, thank you for coming over and extending your kind offer. We’ll know where to find you if we need anything,” Danielle cut in, glancing at Rosalina next. “I’m going to unpack our things and get us settled in, love.”

The bags were all being carried by Danielle, and whether Rosalina followed her or not, she didn’t, at that moment, particularly care.

Giving Rosalina a kiss on her rosy cheek, the grumpier of the pair nodded to Cleo and was on her way toward the cabins, eager to escape the conversation and discomfort of her fiancée’s oversharing.

“Oh- I’m so sorry, Cleo… Danny’s a little nervous to be on such a huge cruise liner. Hope you see you around!” She curstied sweetly, and then hurried after Danielle, who had already disappeared through the door to escape the main deck and make way toward room 207. As her feet gently tapped the deck, her curls bouncing with each step, her voice travelled through the air as she called, “Danny~ wait for me~”

---

Danielle: #fffd17
Rosalina: #ffaaff

[Mr. Moon]

Michael #3

With her cheeks burning, Sophia nodded, trying her best to convince herself, that the large fluffy feline across the room was just a cat.
“Yeah…I mean, I don´t mind if you´ll stay here. You are paying for this journey after all and I…”
She stopped, realizing that what she was saying wasn´t helpful at all.
“Relax…”
The lawyer advised, jumping off the bed to take a stroll around their cabin. On this particular cruiser, it was one of the more ordinary ones, yet still, it was bigger and fancier than your average house in Loguetown.
“Did you see the snake lady?”
Sophia asked out of nowhere, probably trying to change the topic. Michael didn´t answer as he was trying to find something that could make him a cup of coffee but couldn´t find a thing. His silence however couldn´t stop the young woman from continuing.
“Do you think she was a Devil Fruit user? And that blonde guy, he was quite hot, and obviously into redheads…”
Sighing, the lawyer jumped down from the dining table and headed back.
“Well, first of all, the blonde is OBVIOUSLY in a relationship and second, it´s not he, but she.”
Sophia looked at him with a great deal of confusion and so he continued.
“Her name is Danielle and she is one of us.”
That confused look on Sophia´s face became even more confused before she suddenly realized whom he was talking about.
“Wait, you mean that Danielle? God, I always imagined her like a princess but…this is perhaps more fitting? Wait, do you think, she is here for the same reason as us?”
Michael couldn´t help but cringe over the nearly religious reverence in her voice, but then he realized, that perhaps he shouldn´t be so judgmental. For him, Gabriel was just his brother. For these people, he was the Grandmaster a nearly mythical figure, which was a status that carried over to most of his companions.
“I doubt it, it´s more likely just a coincidence, now be so kind and order me a cup of coffee.”
This sudden change of topic surprised her.
“Coffee? I mean sure, but…are you going to drink it like this? What if someone sees you?”
The lawyer frowned.
“Trust me girl, it will be safer for everyone if I´ll get my coffee.”
She couldn´t argue with that.

[Kami-Gaz]

The humanoid snake woman smiled and waved to Rosalina as she moved away to go and get settled into their cabin for the trip. Simple observations made during quick interactions like this one could tell far more stories than over sharing chatting ever could. The fact that Danny was actually a young woman that presented very masculine was a good one to keep note of. “Those girls will be useful.” She hummed softly to herself as her eyes peered down to her book. The Witch, the Fox and the Cowboy.

Using her curled up tail as a makeshift seat Cleo raised her legs and folded her legs up under her to conserve some more space. The book wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t particularly good either. It was some trashy fiction novel about a guy fighting some pink haired witch named Rose, her fox familiar named Guilard and the Cowboy who had been tricked by her called Rocker. The characters were so outlandish! The author, Peter Raskrie, surely had an imagination but it seemed he struggled getting this one onto paper, his earlier works were far better than this

As she read the soon to be assassin kept her ears open to listen for tid bits of information, gossip and news. It was also a good time to actually relax and enjoy herself, something she hasn’t really been able to do since the incident that orphaned her and her siblings.

A smile sly spread onto her face as she read the moment books protagonist got captured by the fox familiar and the cowboy. The banter those two had was fun. “Do you see that girl? She’s eaten a devil fruit! Look at her!” A woman said in the distance as a few more passengers filtered onto the ship. That was the other downside of this broken fruit that she couldn’t turn off. People always noticed her, gossiped and made horrendous assumptions. She was just sat here basking in the sunlight and enjoying a trashy novel, not nefariously planning to eat babies, or slaughter puppies. As other whispered mentioned.

‘Gah, can’t a girl sunbath in peace?’

---

Cleo: 645990
Troy: acd1fc

[Bobbie]

Danielle made it to their cabin with little fuss, following simple signage that indicated corridors and cabin room numbers. She did, however, linger outside a few rooms in the same corridor to eye the number carved onto a placard above each door and locate room 207.

Once she managed to lug all their bags inside, she let out a sigh and looked at her surroundings. It was a spacious room with a large double bed and furniture along one wall that looked handcrafted and polished. It was no surprise to Danielle, knowing how wealthy Rosalina’s family was, but she couldn’t help but despise anything that had to do with the ginger’s father - Rosalina herself being the one and only exception, of course. That's what love was all about, after all, adoring and treasuring that one precious gem even if it sat in the middle of trash. The cabin also had a small attached en suite. It wasn’t huge, but surely quite a luxury that some other rooms at a less costly rate didn’t come with.

The blonde shook her head and brought her own one and only luggage bag to a chest of drawers, filling it with her plain attire that really had little variety. She travelled light and wasn’t a big spender, resulting in her wardrobe coming across as a bit lacking to those who were more in tune with fashion trends.

Such a task didn’t take very long and was nothing in comparison to the monstrous endeavour of unpacking Rosalina’s many bags. The cruise was only for one week, but all of Danielle’s advice not to overpack clearly fell on deaf ears. Still, she was happy to take on the tedious task of organising their things, if it meant allowing her beloved more time to relax and unwind, especially after recent events that had her all stressed out.

Rosalina gingerly walked through the neatly carpeted corridor where her cabin could be found, having allowed herself to fall behind in her pursuit of her blonde lover under the guise of being lost. The cruiser was huge, and there were so many different hallways with rooms - by her estimation, there must have been at least 300 rooms! She simply couldn’t help wandering around curiously and taking a detour before going to her and Danielle’s cabin.

Silently lurking through the corridors to get a feel of her new environment, she was delighted to be there. It was a beautiful vessel, very well-kept and fit for a princess, she thought. Most of all, it was a vacation of sorts with her Danny! Everything was perfect.

As she marched down one corridor, her delicate feet in her sleek ballerina shoes tapping along on the velvety floor, she saw a redhead emerge from a room only two doors away. At first she froze in fear of getting in trouble for being nosy, but then she recalled having seen that woman before - she was holding the fluffy cat!

“Hello!” Rushing to meet her, Rosalina smiled sweetly, her hands behind her back as she offered a gentle curtsy.

“I’m Rosalina,” she politely introduced herself first, her gaze subtly moving past the woman to try and catch a glimpse inside the room. “You’re the passenger who had that gorgeous cat, aren’t you?”

Danielle was just nearly finished when she heard Rosalina’s voice somewhere outside in the hallway.

“Who is she talking to now?” She muttered to herself, hurriedly putting away the last stack of clothes in the first drawer she found before she stepped out of their room to look both ways down the long corridor their room was situated in. Spotting two redheads, Danielle raised her eyebrow and wondered if Rosalina would go so far as to stalk a fellow passenger just because they had a cat.

“Rosalina…” the blonde put an arm around Rosalina as soon as she reached her. “I was just unpacking our things…”

“This is Danny! That very special someone in my heart who makes me the happiest woman alive!” Giggling and putting her arms around Danielle’s neck as she stood on her toes to kiss her lover, Rosalina’s curls bounced to match the girl’s excitement. “Also SO fortunate to have all my things unpacked for me. How did I get so lucky?”

Danielle blushed at the compliment that was followed by another kiss. The pair were like a young couple on their honey moon.

Dividing her attention between Rosalina and the stranger before her, the treasure huntress offered Sophia her free hand as she really felt there was no other option but to go through the formal greeting since she was already introduced.

“I was about to head back onto the deck to fetch something to drink from the bar, can I get you anything…?” Danielle discreetly prompted the girl for a name. 

---

Danielle: #fffd17
Rosalina: #ffaaff

[Mr. Moon]

Michael #4

Sophia turned pale as she realized the level of chaos that the fluffy kitty in front of her could unleash if being annoyed. Of course, she respected Michael as her senior member of M.A.R.I., but she also heard enough about him to know she should be careful around that man. And so when he asked for coffee, she had to get him his coffee!”
Without even thinking, the young redhead rushed from their room leaving the lawyer behind.
“We have a room service, you know…”
He muttered to himself, getting ready to take a short nap before being interrupted by a female voice coming from outside.
“Rosalina? Like that ginger b*tch Rosalina?”
His eyes instinctively narrowed, while Sophia outside tried to mimic Rosalina’s curtsy as best as she could.
“I am Sophia, nice to meet you.”
She smiled, but her attention was quickly swayed away, towards the attractive blonde that left his…no, actually her room to introduce himself…. herself!
“Sophia, nice to meet you.”
The girl squeezed Danielle´s hand in a firm handshake, which was perhaps a bit too strong as she still couldn´t properly control her monstrous strength.
“Meow!”
An annoyed feline sound prompted her to turn around before she could answer that blonde´s offer as Michael walked from their room, looking anything but happy.
“Yes, coffee, I know!”
Sophia blurted out, regretting her careless words almost immediately, as her feline companion gave her a judgmental look, before jumping on her shoulder.
“Ehm, I mean, Rosalina, Danny, this is Michael, sir Michael, my…cat!”
She laughed nervously, freezing on the spot as the lawyer gently pushed his claws against her dress to remind her of the role she was supposed to play.
“And, to answer your question.”
Sophia turned to Danielle, seemingly much calmer than before.
“We are just on our way to the dining room, so perhaps we can go together?”

[Kami-Gaz]

Cleo #4

---

Cleo was flicking through the pages of her book; did the main character and Rocker the cowboy really just have such a nice chat? It shone a new light in how evil and twisted the Rose Witch was, going to such lengths to manipulate the young cowboy and twist her powerful but dull fox familiar. She did however give the cowboy his powers to create oil and allowed the fox familiar to take a cute human form.

The ship had started to sail now, the crew working effectively in the background to make it as smooth an experience as possible for the multitude of rich guests. The vibrations of the waves hitting the hull as they left the sheltered port and the slight but shifting air could be felt on the snake woman’s scales and that was more than enough to tell her that they were away now. Just a few more days and then she could do her job and drop those girls into the trouble.

Her stomach rumbled and that was a good enough warning to tell her that it was time to venture to the dining cabin and get a meal. With a small sigh of effort, the book was marked with her last page and she stretched her tail and then used her legs to walk across the deck and into the shade to go down below deck and find her dinner. That was when she ran into the interesting parties… the girl with the fluffy cat and her new scape goats- friends.

“Hey!” She said with a soft curl to her lips. “Fancy seeing you here. Rosalina, Danny… and a new friend?” She asked, instinctively shifting into a slither around the group and getting close to the new woman and her fluffy cat. Her tongue flicked out to taste the air instinctively as she stopped and pushed her face towards the cat.

“Oh he is just the cutest, snuggle him all day and never let go.” This cat had such an odd scent about it and while it gave off the same imperious and self-important air a regular cat would, this one seemed turned all the way up to maximum. “Can I pet? I’m gentle I swear…”

---

Cleo: 645990
Troy: acd1fc

[Bobbie]

As Danielle’s hand was grasped so tightly, her gaze immediately dropped to Sophia’s fingers. It didn’t hurt at all, of course, but she could feel the unusual amount of pressure that went into her handshake. A handshake that also seemed to go on for longer than she’d expect, and pulling her hand free was clearly not possible.

Noticing how firmly Sophia and Danielle seemed to be holding each other’s hands, Rosalina frowned. Gently nudging her lover to let go, she looked up at the blonde to mutter her jealous complaint with pouting lips that just barely reached Danielle’s ear while the ginger girl was stretched on her toes.

At last, Sophia relented when Michael emerged from the room, appearing to catch the woman off guard.

“Coffee..?” Danielle couldn’t help repeating after Sophia in confusion, withdrawing her hand that had now been freed and looking down at it as if to assess the damage done. She couldn’t see any as she flexed her fingers, and she put that hand in her pocket to prevent such abuse from happening again.

“Well, it’s better than the rubbish you’ve started drinking, Danny…” it was clear that Rosalina’s mood was ruined by that handshake, though even though her comment was made with hurtful intention, Danielle knew that she did have a point when pointing out the start of something unhealthy. Her drinking was only a recent habit that she picked up.

“I won’t be drinking ‘rubbish’, my love, mead is sweet and delicious. It does no harm in moderation.”

Rosalina raised an eyebrow at her, questioning the last addition to her statement the most, but before she could raise hell about it, she suddenly found that a fluffy cat was suddenly at her eye level. A welcome distraction and one that the ginger girl could certainly not resist, Rosalina spun to face Sophia, or Michael, more specifically, who was now on his supposed owner’s shoulder.

“Oh, he’s so cute!” The girl’s squeals filled the air around them as she possessed the power to steal the stage in a heartbeat with a voice as shrill as hers. Immediately drawn in by the temptation, Rosalina released her hold on Danielle to reach out and pet Michael instead. However, before her fingers could reach the creature’s fur, there was a new addition to this group party held in the corridor outside the cabins. It was that snake girl from the deck…

Withdrawing her hand before having the chance to bury it in the cat’s coat, Rosalina looked at Cleo, as did Danielle.

“Hello, again.” Danielle greeted the stranger before Rosalina did. While she was cautious, she really had no reason to be suspicious of the snake woman for being here by coincidence - this was where all the cabins were, after all. Those of this corridor anyway.

“You’ll have to get in line!” A playful snap came from Rosalina at Cleo’s request, despite the cat not belonging to her, followed by a cute giggle. “I’m first!”

At that moment, Danielle wanted nothing more than for this interaction to be over. Choosing not to engage with the adorable fluffy feline, she addressed Sophia instead, as her question had gone unanswered for the better half of this encounter.

“Why don’t we all go then? Everybody can get whatever they want, and you can bring your… Sir Michael with you. I’m sure there will be something for him there as well.” Danielle wanted to add a little bit more about how she was sure these two would also be happy to spoil him with attention if the coffee and food weren’t satisfactory enough, but she suspected Rosalina would not appreciated it.

---

Danielle: #fffd17
Rosalina: #ffaaff

[Mr. Moon]

Michael #5

Sitting on Sophia´s shoulder, Michael wrapped his tail around her neck in what looked like a possessive gesture, that would be impossible if not for the freakish flexibility offered to him by this transformation, as under all that fluff were actually two tails wrapped around each other and not just one.
The lawyer really wanted his coffee, but apparently, his fluffy feline form worked as a magnet on women as not just Rosalina, but also the snake girl they met on the upper deck expressed their desire to pet him. And while he was willing to do a lot to get this job done, behaving as a harmless household pet wasn´t among them.
“Good thing that I am able to transform into an animal that is known for its moodiness.”
He thought for himself while hissing at Cleo to make it clear, that no one is going to pet him.
“Oh, I am…I am so sorry.”
Sophia blurred out as she witnessed her boss´s rude behavior toward their new friend.
“He is usually a very nice cat, but without his coffee, he can be quite grumpy…”
That was the level of insolence Michael would usually punish with claws, or at least a very sarcastic remark, but to protect his cover he decided to let it go…for now.
“Anyway, yes, it sounds like a very good idea. Does anyone know where the…”
Sophia started but was interrupted by Michael who suddenly jumped down from her shoulder, using his enhanced smell to lead them through the corridors towards the dining room, which looked and worked as a luxurious restaurant, way fancier than anything Sophia ever saw from inside. Looing on all of that beauty her eyes sparkled like that of a small child, that saw the lights on a Christmas tree before a grumpy meow pulled her back to reality.
“Right, the chair.”
She nodded, moving one a bit away from a table, so Michael could jump on it, before taking seat herself.

[Kami-Gaz]

Cleo #5

---

As the cat hissed the snake woman chuckled as she pulled back slowly, then with a playful smile hissed herself. Part of her failed devil fruit was the snake that was bonded to her, one that gave her remarkable abilities. One of them being able to hiss as a snake would. Then she giggled as she turned her attention back to the humanoids.

“I know the way-” Cleo spoke before being interrupted by the cat again, watching was it leapt away from the woman who was baring it. “Looks like the coffee addict is leading the way~.” The snake woman chimed as she moved to uncoil herself from around the gaggle of women and follow the cat. He had a good nose indeed as he took group right to their table.

“Chairs… my worst enemy.” Cleo joked as she carefully moved the one that was provided for her to the side and coiled her tail up behind her and sat back to use it instead. It was a surprisingly comfy affair. Once she was settled, she peered over the provided menu, absentmindedly flicking her tongue out to taste the air around herself. Occasionally her fangs would flash in the light, while civilised Cleo was truly a monster with no control of her power. She had heard people who had eaten proper devil fruits had full control of their abilities… so why couldn’t she?

---

Cleo: 645990
Troy: acd1fc

[Bobbie]

As everybody followed Michael, the group was led to a luxurious restaurant that looked like simply breathing the air within this space could cost an arm and a leg, let alone eating the food. It did, she supposed… all restaurant meals were included in the ticket price, and she knew the tickets were very costly.

Upon reaching their round table of five, Rosalina immediately rushed to the chair beside Michael as she wanted to sit as close to the fluffy cat as possible. While Danielle would have loved to see that eagerness to sit next to her instead, she didn’t complain and simply took the seat next to Rosalina’s with Cleo to her left and Sophia directly across from her.

Until she picked up the menu and took a peak at the meals being offered, the treasure huntress hadn’t planned on eating anything, only looking for a drink. The description of an aromatic peppered focaccia with herbs and olives, however, was enough to make her mouth water, followed by a sweet nougat dessert. It was far from the fanciest and most decadent item on the menu, but it called out to her empty stomach.

Putting the menu down, the blonde looked toward her fiancée, smiling as she saw the ginger in such deep and adorable focus over her meal. Leaving her to concentrate on that and waiting until everyone was ready to order, she turned to Cleo and Sophia, though she didn’t feel it necessary to address the cat.

“So what brought you two to this cruise?” She asked, genuinely curious about what, specifically, attracts people to cruises. People spend a fortune to spend days on a vessel, staring out at distant islands along a scenic route. It wasn’t frequent that the cruiser made a stop and allowed passengers to explore different cultures, though she knew there were a few planned for this cruise at some point. The biggest problem that Danielle had with cruises was that they always appeared so… stagnant. Not necessarily boring, but she imagined it to feel like a holiday that simply recycled the same forms of entertainment over the course of a week or more within the confinements of the same four walls. So far, she felt her assumptions were correct.

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Danielle: #fffd17
Rosalina: #ffaaff