sunnyofsuns

[sunnyofsuns]

Summary: Is it a crisis when the woman you've been hopelessly in love with for thirteen years still hasn't realized you're serious? Shanks is beginning to think there should be a support group for this.

Warnings: Some language, manga spoilers. 

Chapter List:

The Red Force

Turning Tides

[sunnyofsuns]

“The islands in the south are warm/My head's all sunny-sunny,” sang Shanks to himself, nursing the bottle.

“It was cute when Luffy was around, but he’s pushing forty,” said Cherry, crossing her arms as she shot a long look at the captain.

Cherry had been a bright-eyed twenty-one-year-old university student when Shanks wandered into her life. An orphan at birth, she’d beaten the odds and excelled at school, kept her head down, her nose buried in a book, and made it through two whole decades of life without any trouble. And then trouble found her. First, in the panicked Captain declaring that he couldn’t lose his first mate to marriage and second, in the questionable first mate who’d flirted with her through his divorce paperwork and stunk up her dorm room with cigarette smoke.

A week after they’d left, Cherry was greeted by a troop of Marines stationed at her door. She’d laughed herself to tears, realizing how utterly hopeless the world was that the mere act of talking to a pirate was enough to make you one.

Since then, she hadn’t parted ways with the Red Hair Pirates, declaring they owed her a debt for ruining her life. Shanks took that part too seriously for her liking, but things worked out for the best. Going from having no family to having a band of unruly brothers was something she wouldn’t trade for the world.

Except at times like this….when she was being serenaded by the rouge drunk who the world declared an Emperor.

“Tell him to stop.”

“Let him live,” Limejuice said, knocking his shoulder into hers. “And quit complaining when you’re the one pouring his drink. You two always work yourselves up when we’re out at sea and end up causing the whole damn ship grief over it. Just woman up and fuck the man.”

She kicked the back of his knee out, but Limejuice barely flinched, regaining his balance with ease.

“Lime,” said Shanks, lifting his head from the table, “I don’t want to hear that again.”

A rare rebuke from the Captain. It was only when Shanks’ head dropped back down that Limejuice turned to her with a look that had Cherry shoving him away. The blonde shook his head, turning to head to the main deck.

Cherry stared at Shanks for a long while. What was there to say about her beloved Captain? They were stuck in an unholy union until the end of their lives. She’d always pick him, out of any one else in the world. Wasn’t that the problem? Not a lack of love, but too much of it?

“To bed, Captain,” said Cherry, touching the crown of his head, lightly. “You’re worrying Roux.”

“Not you?”

“If I say yes, will you behave and come along?”

“I’m always behaving around you.”

Bringing him down to his room was light work after years of doing it. Cherry’s room was nestled between Shanks’ cabin, and the officer’s quarters, being one of the few with its own private bath.

Shanks threw himself into bed, tossing his cloak carelessly aside and kicking his shoes off. He stretched out long, hand tucking into his open shirt to slide against his chest as a groan left his mouth. Cherry was well practiced in hiding all emotions, so she tucked away that traitorous warmth blooming in her gut.

Cherry lay down beside him, keeping a few inches of space between them. It was that space which was dangerous and mind-numbing and so tempting.

“Tell me you love me.”

“Are you drunk enough to remember it?”

“I’ll forget the second you say the words.”

“If you’re lying, I’ll know.”

“I’m not lying.”

Cherry folded her arm beneath her head, turning to her side, so she could look at him. “Then, I love you very much, Captain.”

Shanks’ head rolled lazily toward her, his eyes dark and heavy, “Don’t say it like that. Don’t call me captain. Or boss or chief or any of that crap.”

She stretched her free arm out, fingers skimming lightly against his arm, “Everything changed, so we had to change too, but you asked me to call you Captain, so I will. Until you say otherwise.”

“Call me Shanks.”

She smiled, “Shanks.”

“Oh, fuck.”

A laugh. Cherry brushed his hair out of his eyes, “For all your efforts, there should be a reward at some point.”

“That’s why you’re the only woman in the world.”

“There’s more of us, you know? Dozens and dozens and dozens.”

“You’re the only one I want.”

“I’m here with you, aren’t I?”

He laughed, covering his eyes with his arm. “There’s less distance between the Reverse Mountain and the Red Port than there is between you and me.”

She moved closer, drawing herself up, so she was leaning over him, her hair spilling out between them, shrinking the world to the single shared breath. “Any less and we’ll forget who’s who.”

He came up, seeking a kiss, and Cherry pushed away. She was at the door by the time he managed to recover.

“Have a good night, Captain.”

Chapter One || Masterlist || Chapter Three

[sunnyofsuns]

Fun Facts:

Berry D. Cherry met Shanks after Benn Beckman married a nun to sleep with her ("I'm not an indecent man," in his words) and needed to file a divorce. Originally training to be a lawyer, she was thrust into piracy after the Navy accused her of aiding and abetting pirates.

Her unofficial role on the ship is taking care of the rookies. Her official role is intelligence officer. She has an office next to the med-bay, stock full of Den Den Mushi that she uses to tap into secure lines. Every report sent to Shanks is run through her first.

Shanks thinks it's hilarious that her name rhymes and has created half-a-dozen songs about it. Whenever he's properly drunk, he'll sing them.

The rookies on the ship call her 'nee-chan' behind her back. Cherry pretends not to hear it, but they slip up all the time. Once, she even got called 'mom' and still hasn't recovered from that.

Since Shanks is bad at keeping in touch, (I'll see them again, so there's no point), Cherry is the one writing letters and taking calls from their fleet and family members/friends. Gaban's her most frequent caller and her gossip buddy.

Masterlist || Chapter Two