Chapter Text
You snorted awake as a frightened yelp of your name roused from your slumber. A hand around your ankle was all the warning you had before you were tugged out of the comfortable darkness you were under.
“What were you doing? ” Slick asked, his and Boost staring down at you.
Head full of sleepy cotton, you sat up with a yawn. “Napping.”
“Holy shit, what if those things collapse with you underneath?” he wheezed, an arm thrown out to the bolts of fabric leaned up against each other in a shoddy tent.
You wisely chose not to mention how many times you’ve had to wiggle out of that exact situation. And the bruises that would inevitably form after being pinned by rolls of unyielding fabrics.
“That’s so dumb…” Slick sighed, ignoring your affronted ‘hey!’
It was also a good way to de-stress, the sound and light dampening effects helping you cut off from the world. And you told him so.
“You should just build a pillow fort, then!” Slick harangued. “Instead of scaring us half to death!”
You blinked. “What’s a pillow fort?”
They stared at you like you grew a second head. “You… don’t know what a pillow fort is…?” Boost asked.
Their strange reactions made you defensive as you stood up and crossed your arms. “If you guys are going to be weird about it, then just go away.”
Boost quickly shook his head, denying that. “No! No! It’s not that. We’re just surprised, that’s all!”
Shrugging, you waved them off. “I’m not sure what the importance of this ‘pillow fort’ is. If you don’t mind, I’m going to go back to sleep.”
You caught onto Slick the moment an idea went off in his head, resigning yourself to your fate as the dark-haired male grabbed your wrist and dragged you with him. “No! I have a better idea that won’t risk you being suffocated.”
Boost shot you an apologetic look as he went along with his best friend, shutting your workshop door behind him.
The three of you tromped through the Tang’s halls, with the tallest in the lead, looking for something specific. Slick didn’t stop until he saw Law passing by, absorbed in his documents.
“Cap’n!” he called, halting the man in his tracks.
Law stopped, humming to show that you all had his attention, but never lifting his eyes from the files in his hands. “What is it?”
You were presented in front of him like a guilty party, your name uttered out by Slick. “—doesn’t know what a pillow fort is.”
Law glanced at you and slowly raised a single, dark eyebrow. “And? What is the reason for telling me this?”
Slick’s eyes gleamed as he leaned forward. “The common room’s free for a while, right?”
“Yes.”
“And what about the crew duties?”
“Well…” Law drawled, pretending to ponder over a schedule that you all knew he had memorized. He shuffled the paper in his hands a bit, like a teasing bastard. “Nothing out of the ordinary for today. It’s actually a lighter day, so night shift should be done early.”
Slick’s wide grin grew even wider. “Perfect… Captain…”
Law held up a tattooed hand. “Do as you want. Don’t let it get in the way of your duties, don’t mess anything up, and put things back the way they were.”
The arm in Slick’s hold was yanked up along as he threw his up in victory. “Yes! Thanks, Cap’n! C’mon, we gotta start it early.”
“Start what early?” The plaintive voice of your navigation officer asked.
Slick turned his excited grin on Bepo, tugging you forward. And finally releasing your wrist to put his hands on your shoulders. He shook you back and forth, as if you were a rattle and not a senior officer twice his experience. “We’re going to build a pillow fort!”
Bepo tilted his head. “Oh, is this a team-building exercise? Can I help?”
“The more, the merrier,” Boost said, with the knowledge of someone who’d spent years accompanying Slick in his antics. “Slick usually makes them pretty big, so it’d be nice to have some help if we don’t want to spend all night on it.”
Bepo’s eyes glittered at that, and you knew it was inevitable that most if not all the crew would get wind of this as the mink sped off. And it was true, the air of the Polar Tang taking on a fervent energy at the thought of a new, exciting event. You had to admit, there wasn’t much to do outside of chores on the submarine, and when the underwater stints were weeks long, it really exhausted all sources of entertainment available. So you couldn’t blame everyone for being worked up at the Captain’s go-ahead.
“Yo.” Shachi popped into the workshop, the redhead stepping in to lift one of the bolts of fabric that you could spare (at Slick’s insistence and the promise to roll them all up later). He paused as he passed by you, leaving space for Uni as he too moved about in your workshop. The redhead’s gaze felt sharp and assessing beneath his glasses, and you blinked, relying on your old, hated training not to shift nervously and give anything away. “You alright with all of this?
The unexpected kindness threw you for a loop, and you broke your composure, eyes widening. “I—Uh…”
“If it’s too much, let me know right now, and Peng and I will tell everyone to pack it up.”
His concern warmed your heart even after so long with the crew, and you gave him a close-lipped smile. “It’s fine, Shach’. I’m just… It’s kind of exciting.”
It embarrassed you to say that, but it was true.
Shachi’s face broke into a broad grin at that admission, shooting you a thumbs up. “Don’t worry, then. We’ll make sure this is the best blanket fort you’ll ever have.”
Somehow, miraculously through the power of very careful maneuvering, lots of squabbling, and two unrolled bolts of the largest fabrics and what you think was all the blankets and pillows possibly on the Tang, the recreational space became a massive fabric structure that every single one of your nakama could fit under in comfort. Even the tallest ones, should they choose to partake, had a space for them. It wasn’t surprising that the thing got built (not with those like Ikkaku and Morsa helping), more so that everyone wanted to participate and wanted to join in on this silly little escapade that only happened because you had revealed an embarrassing facet about your childhood (or lack of). Of course, not everyone was present, as there were those who still had to go through their shifts. But they would come when their shift ended and someone else’s began. But not you for tonight.
Because tonight, you’d get the joy of experiencing your first ‘pillow fort’.
You couldn’t believe it. Full-grown pirates, led by the most fearsome surgeon of the seas. And there you all were, piled into a pillow fort of all things.
“So?” Slick prompted in a whisper, picking his head up to look at you from where he was. “How’s your first pillow fort?”
You hummed, feeling the gentle rise and fall of Bepo’s bulk behind you. Uni, already in his sleep, tossed a leg over you, the long limb pinning both you and Clione down under it. “It’s nice,” you said simply.
Law’s gravelly brogue rumbled over the space, a little grumpy after Bepo corralled him into the space. “Go to sleep, you two.”
In the dark, you smile gently up at the canopy above you.
Slick had a satisfied look on his face as he shot you a final smile before lying down. Unbeknownst to you, he exchanged a victorious fist bump with Boost for giving their dear tailor one more experience to cherish.