Also, For Reference To Be Used In Said Longform Thing I'm Writing, I Am Doing... Math.

also, for reference to be used in said longform thing i'm writing, i am doing... math.

by the end of rosinante & law's six month trip, he has ~15 maps with an average of what looks like 4-6 hospitals marked off on each.

so, over six months (~182 days), rosinante took law to at least 60-90 hospitals, which is roughly a new hospital every 2-3 days.

Better start cooking.

　　　　　　❝ in the woods? ❞

　well, he was living in the woods so perhaps that was a dumb thing to be incredulous about. somewhat. for rosinante, it was not so much the idea of others living in the woods with him, but he fixated on the word she used: 'tribe'.

he thought he had done his due diligence when scooping out the perfect area to build his home; secluded enough from people to satiate paranoias about his safety, but close enough to a neighboring townーan hour or two, both waysーthat he didn't have forgo modern conveniences. he could still make a living off what he hunted & grew, he could still buy the things too impractical for him to make on his own and, most importantly, he could still read the daily newspaper & get information on the world. he was connected to civilization, but could still step away from it any time he wanted. that was for the best. for everyone.

still, the idea of living on indigenous land of some kind wasn't ideal. if he wasn't meant to be there, rosinante would relocate in a heartbeat; the last thing the world needed was another donquixote coming in and asserting themselves as an owner of land in a place that already belonged to someone else. still, he liked to think he knew these woods fairly well; as long as he'd been living there, he had never come in contact with anyone who wasn't just a passing traveler, or people who were lost like the girl herself was.

❝ not that i know of. the area i go hunting in is pretty wide, in all directions, and i've never been approached by anyone who claimed to also live out here. what... tribe, exactly? ❞

she's not sure how to approach the matter - her mother might be dead and she might be free to do how she pleases, but this freedom has come with a fear pudding would have never expected. this world is cruel just the same way as it is beautiful, once found the most prized treasure here's another popping up for a new generation to take over already. people like her will be sought after until the ends of time and staying guarded is truly the only way to survive in this new life she's been gifted.

"i'm not sure actually." hand reaches into the pocket of her coat to get the map that was given to her by a kind lady on the last island pudding had found, and back then the instructions seemed pretty clear - turns out perhaps she should brush up on those raw navigation skills acquired from her siblings. "i'm looking for a tribe that is supposed to live in the woods... i just wasn't told which ones." the awkward hint in her tone is hard to miss, and if it weren't for her dedication, pudding would almost believe she's just not meant to find her kind. "does anyone else live here, that you know of?"

@onepiecc said: ❛ don’t go. please. ❜ / [𝟐𝟎𝟎 𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐌 𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐔𝐄 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐓𝐒]

　　　【 i wasn't planning on leaving. 】

　rosinante had left briefly to go check the perimeter of their baseーan essential daily routine for an organization like the donquixote pirates, who always had to be up & ready to move at the first sign of trouble.

though, the spy did always find it strange it was a task he was assigned at all; with his 'muteness', it wasn't as if he could warn the other family members of encroaching danger if he was father away from themーneeding to write and, on occasion, use the short list of hand signs he knew to communicate nearly everythingーand if someone was accompanying him on patrol, then there really was no need for him to be there at all. he supposed doflamingo just wanted him busy with something, no matter how small.

he returned ten minutes later after another uneventful sweep of the area, sitting across from her and doing his best to drop the 'scary & aloof' act he put up with other family members, smiling more warmly now.

　　　　　【 i'll stay as long as you want me to. 】

　　　　❝ ...something like that. ❞

　his voice still remained unfocused, sounding as if it were coming from somewhere off in the distance and not from his own throat. the scent of smoke brought him back, and he realized the ominous quality of what he had just said. he felt exposed, like he was wearing too much of his heart on his sleeve in the moment. he panicked.

　❝ not... not the 'cooties' part, the 'going after his bounty' part. ❞ wait, why did he say that? of course she wasn't serious about the first partーshe was joking. sigh. clumsy body, clumsy tongue, it turns out. he tried to tamp down his embarrassment, shifting focus to his coworker's face.

　❝ i don't think i could. at least not on my own; my fruit isn't really cut out for direct combat, and the higher-ups say he's a monster. apparently, he ran a gang with territory stretching all over the north blue islands since he was a kid, and i guess he just wasn't satisfied with that. makes me wonder what he's after. ❞

"You don't have cooties, do you?" Such sarcastic questioning was followed up with a long inhalation as the crimson-haired marine stepped beside her companion. Grey eyes scanned the posters, landing on the one she thought he might have been eyeing. "Ugly bastard, isn't he? Thinking about going for his bounty and ridding the world of one less shitty pirate?"

Taking down pirates- bad pirates- not one's that fought for a better life for everyone- were the entire reason she had become a marine in the first place. Her one eyes drifted away from her fellow marine had been eyeing to move to that of Shiki. The moment she'd heard news of his plight and looked upon his mug she knew what she wanted to do with herself for the first time in her life.

　　❝ yeah. i knew everyone, in a way. at least in the old days, not so much now. my adopted father used to be in a pretty high position with the marines, so i got shipped a lot of places and worked with a lot of people. ❞

　it genuinely had been so long since rosinante had spoken to anybody about his former life with the marines he often didn't know where to start. but not here; bellemere was a focal point, a rare connection he had with this girl and her story. somehow, he knew everything he wanted to say, but had no idea what to say at all. would this be stressful? comforting? cathartic for him, but painful to her? was he pushing too much to even want to bring this up?

but he couldn't help himself. when the subject came to law, oh, he could talk for hours.

　 ❝ my kid found me, actually. we didn't... start off in the right place, though. i doubt it was as sweet a story as it was with your mom & your sister; i kept trying to get rid of him for two years, i wasn't planning on getting attachedーfor his own good, he shouldn't have been around meーbut it just... happened. it was hard, and i... almost died a couple times, but i don't regret a day of it. i'm sure your mother didn't either. ❞

Talking about her mother always brought a sickening swirl of emotions. Happy, sad, anger, bitterness. It was odd, wasn't it? That she and Law each had a marine in their past. She had never attempted to talk about it with him --- neither of them were particularly the types to open up about that sort of thing, on the other hand. Nami only did, when people asked --- and it just so happened, Rosinante was one of the few brave enough to do so.

Her hands placed politely on her lap --- occasionally, she reached to stir the tangerine tea, although she didn't feel much like drinking it. She was much too captivated, by the thought of speaking to someone who had memories of her mother. They were so hard to come by, now, especially since she was so far away from Genzo and Nojiko. Even when she had shared a village with them --- Nami was permitted to only rely on her own memories. Some of which, were the memories of others --- stories passed around the village, which she had caught wind of, by happenstance.

"Did you know her? --- My mother, I mean..." Nami questioned, eyes lighting up. Despite how large the institution of marines were, she couldn't help but hope that Rosinante knew her. That he had stories to tell, about his time with her. There was only so much Nami could squeeze from the Cocoyashi villagers.

"A kid came along for you, too... hm, don't tell me you found yours in a war-torn, destroyed village, too." A sardonic tone and a soft smirk. She handled it in the only way she knew how: a wry sense of humor. A little good will went a long way, too, but there were several reasons she chose not to open up about her past. It was a quick way to make anyone uncomfortable.