Been enjoying the fem!Buggy stuff and wanted to join in. I have a Buggy transformation scenario in mind where she was born a girl and encountered the previous user of Ivankov's fruit as a child. Little Buggy already loved flashy things and pirates and had big dreams, but she'd also learned from the people around her that those things were for men or women beautiful enough for men to want to help them, and along with the expectationshe would have babies one day this made her resent being a girl. Buggy was never going to be beautiful with her nose, so in her mind that just left becoming a man if she wanted to follow her dreams. She becomes a pirate apprentice about a year after becoming a boy and never looks back, even after she hit puberty and dysphoria began to rear its ugly head. She is determined to be her loudest flashiest self that her stupid parents could never suppress. This lasts until she's 39, when she finally musters conquerors haki for the first time in her life to help out that idiot Shanks, and in the process breaks the DF effect she had maintained until now. Shanks is super surprised and supportive (he initially thinks Buggy is a trans man) and then has a crisis thinking about how scared Buggy must have been all this time to keep hiding herself like this once he finds out the truth.
This is a really intense and creative take!
I love how it ties into Ivankov’s fruit and gives Fem!Buggy such a deep, personal reason for the transformation.
Young Fem!Buggy, already obsessed with flashy dreams, hears the world around her saying those dreams are for Men or for for those who are considered beautiful, who can “catch” powerful men.
I think she might try to fight the Norms of society before she decides that becoming a boy as the only way to chase freedom and greatness without compromise.
I think Fem!Buggy would find the Devil fruit sitting dramatically on a velvet cushion inside a half-open treasure chest, is a weird, swirly fruit that practically screams “flashy.” It’s bright, eye-catching, and looks like something a superstar would eat. To Buggy, it feels like destiny.
She takes thinking it is something that would make her stronger only for the fruit to make her go through transition, of course she panics at first but then, fully commits . loud, dramatic, flashy Buggy who never looks back, even through the hardship. She builds herself into the ultimate pirate clown, refusing to let anything, especial societies expectation, to hold her down.
Then during a crisis where she unleashes Conqueror’s Haki for the first time to protect that Shanks, the fruit’s effect finally breaks. Boom! back to her original female form.
Shanks, eyes wide, staring at the very obviously female Buggy in front of him, still catching his breath: “…Buggy? What the- …You’re… a girl? Wait, you’ve always been a girl?!”
Fem!Buggy would have this huge breakdown as her secret is exposed, believing that all this hard work was for nothing, and that her enemies will not see her serious and that her crew would probably abandon her.
The CrossGuild will be shocked but mostly because of how they couldn’t see it from the start and allowed themselves to be fooled, but I think it would be mostly Mihawk as for crocodile he would probably see it as a major inconvenience.
The Buggy pirates will be even MORE dramatic, They’d rally hard though. Buggy has always been their flashy, larger-than-life captain. Most would just roll with it and amp up the theatrics: “Our captain is even flashier than we thought!”
And as you said shanks of course will be supportive at first. Classic Shanks, he rolls with chaos. thinking maybe Buggy was a trans man who just decided to revert.
But once the full truth sinks in, that Buggy spent decades living as a man out of fear and resentment, hiding her real self the entire time, he has a quiet crisis. The realization that the person he’s known and loved since they were kids was carrying that much fear and pressure alone hits him like a truck.
Shanks, voice softer, almost guilty: “All this time… you were scared they wouldn’t let you be a pirate if you stayed a girl? That I… that the crew wouldn’t accept you? Buggy, I- …shit. I wish you’d told me. I would’ve chosen you no matter what.”
It adds such a heavy, emotional layer to their relationship. Shanks suddenly understanding just how much Buggy sacrificed and hid to stay by his side (and to stay “flashy”) would make him even more protective and attached going forward.
As for her past with the Roger pirates:
Rayleigh: Almost certainly had suspicions. As the smart, observant first mate, he would’ve noticed little inconsistencies over the years, the way “boy” Buggy sometimes moved, certain emotional reactions during puberty, or how Buggy would get unusually defensive about personal topics. He probably chalked it up to “Buggy being Buggy” (dramatic and insecure), but deep down he felt something was hidden. He never pushed, respecting the kid’s privacy.
Roger: He might have had a vague gut feeling. I always headcanon that Roger was incredibly perceptive about people’s hearts and dreams. He could tell Buggy carried some deep insecurity and fear, but he assumed it was tied to the red nose and feeling “not strong enough.” He treated Buggy with the same loud affection as everyone else, never realizing the full gender secret.
Gaban & other senior crew: They probably felt something was “different” about Buggy compared to the other wild boys, but again, they attributed it to personality. Gaban might have been the most casually protective without knowing why.
This AU has so much potential for angst-to-fluff and identity exploration. The moment Buggy finally feels safe enough to drop the transformation because of Shanks is chef’s kiss tragic and beautiful.
What happens after the reveal? Does Buggy try to go back to living as a woman, or is she still figuring it out? I’d love to read more of your story!