Shanks was quick to make you feel comfortable enough to relax around the ship but he made it clear the arrangement was only until he got you back to Kid and Killer. You didn't blame him, you were another pirate from an enemy ship technically. He didn't owe you the kindness he was giving you now but he was a pretty decent guy. From what you could tell, he was cut from the same cloth as your old captain. Two fun loving guys who wanted nothing more than to have a good time. There was the obvious difference in their strengths but still, they were very much alike.
You got to spend some time getting to know the rest of his crew and they were all just as amicable as their captain. Roux was easily one of the more fun loving men in the group. Others like Yasopp were a bit more laid back and calm. Then there was Ben Beckman. He almost reminded you of Killer. Both were a bit more analytical and reserved with their emotions around others. It made you ache all the more to be back on Kid's ship and you couldn't help but wonder what they were up to.
Did they move on without a thought? You didn't picture Kid's crew as the kind of group to mope around over the loss of someone who'd hardly been on their ship for only a couple months but you never know. Killer had to be missing you, he was your partner after all. You just hope he wasn't beating himself up over you being gone. You'd have to make it up to him when you got back.
Depending on how fast and what direction Kid was sailing in, it could be a couple days before you reached him. In the mean time, you stayed busy holding up your end of the bargain with Shanks. He was curious about your wings so you gave him the gist of how they worked. You couldn't help but laugh when he asked the wingspan, just like the guys back on the ship did when you first joined Kid's crew.
From there he wanted to hear about some of your favorite adventures. The first that came to mind was the one with the wyvern, but you decided to wait to tell him that one. So you started with how you swooped into a marine base to steal a treasure map just because you could. Shanks got a good kick out of that. Then you remembered the time you were exploring a deserted island with your old crew. It was like any other time, except your captain found a good spot to go cliff diving and didn't realize the water below was full of huge, carnivorous fish.
You had caught him midair and threw him to land that day and nearly lost a wing in the process. He was entirely too heavy for you to try flying with but it kept him from dying. Of course he played it off with laughter like every other time you came to his rescue. You kind of missed that big oaf.
Then you told him about a time you got attacked by a flock of angry birds. You never figured out why they were so pissed with you but either way, you had a huge flock of much smaller creatures following you around for a solid couple hours. By the time you got away from them, you were covered in cuts and scrapes from being pecked at non-stop.
Shanks seemed to really appreciate the ones full of your minor misfortunes but you didn't blame him. It was funny looking back on it all. When more people were hovering around to listen in, you moved on to the story of your latest adventure with the wyvern. You couldn't lie, you like it because it made you feel cooler than you really were.
It delighted you that you could have the infamous red hair pirates hanging off every word you said as you described the spiney creature and the wild chase you led it on. The sound attack it had still amazed you and apparently, also Shanks' crew. While the world you lived in was full of strange people and creatures alike, it was hard to top a wyvern that could create sonic booms. The whole crew ate it up when you got to how you managed to shake of the beast by diving straight to the ocean. It'd be a risky move for anyone but it was even more so with you being a devil fruit user.
You hadn't thought about it at the time but if you had waited a little longer to pull away, you would've probably killed yourself that day. It was a good thing you didn't. At the end of it, you even showed them the small scars you'd gotten from the needles that had been lodged in your leg that day. They weren't that impressive but they proved that the story was real.
After that, Shanks asked a question that had been eating away at him. "So why did you join Kid's crew?"
"That's an interesting one." You laughed, kicking your feet back and forth from your spot on the railing on deck. "The same day I got that treasure map we had some Marines on our tail, they wanted it back I guess. At the same time Kid had targeted our ship and was looking to take us down for shits and giggles."
You smiled at the memory. It was terrifying at the time, especially when you thought about how viscous the captain looked. Now it was just another thing to laugh at.
"I shredded both the Marines and his ship's sails so we'd have time to escape, which worked, until my captain decided to stop at a nearby port for a while. I ran into him and his crew there of course, they followed us out, and then he decided that I owed him for the ruined sails."
The deck erupted into laughter and you joined in. It was a stupid way to join a crew, of course it was funny.
Shanks chuckled along before asking another question. "Do you miss your old crew?"
You pondered over the question for a moment.
"They weren't bad guys but they didn't know what they were doing either. I can't say Kid is the most level headed captain but I really love the rest of the crew. I've felt more at home on his ship than the other one. More like I can count on the people I'm sailing with."
"That's important." He agreed. "When it's just you and the endless water it's good to trust those you're with."
You sighed and looked out to the seemingly ocean. "Yeah, I miss them."
"No worries." Shanks smiled. "We'll have you back soon enough."
----
It took longer than you liked but after five days of sailing, you were beside yourself with joy when Kid's ship was in sight. Including the time you were unconscious, you'd been gone eight days. They probably thought you were dead. That didn't matter now, you'd be back on board the familiar ship very soon and things would be fine again.
When Kid spotted Shanks' ship, it looked like he was preparing for a fight. But Shanks gave him a call over transponder snail and managed to convince him to stand down, saying he was bringing a surprise for your captain. He left it vague on purpose, probably hoping it'd either stress Kid out or make him angry, maybe a combination of the two.
If you had it your way, you'd try to fly back over but your right wing was still firmly wrapped against your back to keep it from moving around and slowing the healing process. You settled for bouncing up and down excitedly at the edge of the deck until Benn came around and placed a hand on your head to get you to relax.
"Sorry." You did your best to simmer down.
"It's fine." He chuckled. "Just don't need you hurting yourself after getting patched up only a few days ago."
You scoffed and rolled your eyes at him. "I'm not as delicate as I look."
"No, but your captain may think otherwise."
"Oh." You didn't think about how Killer and the others were going to smother you when you got back. Kid wouldn't at least, it wasn't in his nature.
He smiled at the look of discomfort you gave at the thought of being bombarded by a bunch of big pirates.
"It means they care. You're lucky to have people who worry about you so much."
"You say it like that's an uncommon thing." You raised an eyebrow at him.
"It is." He pulled out a cigarette and lit it. "There's plenty of men on the sea that only look out for themselves. Tight knit crews aren't all that commonplace."
"Well I guess you're right then."
You smiled widely when the ships were close enough for someone to cross from one to the other and Killer and Kid came into view. When he noticed you, your captain went from looking angry to completely surprised. Killer probably had a similar look on his face under the mask. The rest of the crew showed a mix of disbelief and delight.
Still, always the level headed man, Killer approached slowly and helped you across. His touch was warm, firm, and felt so right. When you were back on board Kid's ship, he didn't let you go, instead wrapping an arm around your waist to keep you close as he and your captain stared down Shanks.
"What the fuck did you do to feathers?" Kid snapped at the other red head.
"We just picked her up and patched her up." He took on a more serious demeanor than what he had the entire time you were on his ship.
"He means it Kid. All this is from the fight." You motioned to yourself broadly.
He glanced at you before returning to glaring at the other captain.
"Why'd you bring her back?"
"She asked me to. And though she's quite the interesting one, I can't keep her on my ship."
"You're not getting anything out of me for this." Kid's lips curled into his signature snarl. "I don't pay for damaged goods, your fault or not."
He motioned for the crew to get the ship moving and left for his cabin. It was obvious he didn't like dealing with Shanks but he didn't seem to see him as a threat right now either. Which was true, but you still didn't think he'd go as far as to walk away and leave the Yonko out of his sight while he was still so close by.
"Thank you." Killer spoke up beside you. "Kid won't say it but he's grateful you brought her back."
"It's no problem. Keep a better hold on her next time." Shanks dropped the serious look and gave you a playful wink. "It was nice having you onboard for that short while (Y/n), take care of yourself."
"You too." You smiled back and gave him and the rest of his crew a wave as the ship's began to pull away.
Despite all the anger Kid held for Shanks, you couldn't bring yourself to not like the older male. He was definitely a charmer.
Killer turned you to face him and began feeling around your body, looking for other wounds. He found your most painful one when he pressed down a little too firmly on your right side.
"Ouch! Yeah, not there!"
He moved his hand away quickly. "Sorry. Let's get you looked at in the infirmary."
You giggled as he led you by the hand. "Missed you too Killer."
----
After the doctor checked out your wounds and changed your wrappings, he gave you some alone time with Killer. It wasn't hard to tell the man was itching to take off his mask but he still refused to do so around others.
The second the door closed behind the doctor and it was just you two in the room, he had it removed and his lips on yours. He had barely been containing his need to do that since he helped you onto the ship. You were more than happy to go with it, wrapping your arms around his neck and burying your fingers in his soft, thick hair.
You flicked your tongue across his lips and he wasted no time deepening the kiss. Killer didn't give you a chance to have any semblance of control as he pushed into your mouth eagerly. But all too soon, he pulled away.
"I- we all thought you were gone."
"I'm sorry." You frowned. It's not like you wanted to make them worry but you didn't have much of a choice. "I would've gotten back sooner but..." You looked over your shoulder at your wing. It twitched and strained against the wrappings like it had a mind of its own and didn't like being talked about.
"It's okay." He sighed and hugged you, careful not to squeeze your side too tightly. "You're back now."
You giggled as his goatee tickled the top of your head. "And I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon."
A jarring knock came from the door to the infirmary.
"Oi! Don't hog her Killer! We all want to see feathers too!"
"Shut up!" Killer yelled back, his body vibrating against yours.
The person on the other side let out some obscenities before shuffling away. He'd gotten his point across. Everyone was waiting to greet you and it made you feel so at home.
"Alright tough guy, get that mask on so I can get this over with."