The boat rocked gently as the waves lapped against its sides. It was an uninteresting vessel, a rowboat, no cannons, no sails, pretty much nothing going for it whatsoever in terms of notable factors. Santiago was lying within, bare chested (as always) his uncle's coat folded up for use as a pillow, propping his head up slightly as he snored. One foot dangled over the edge, just a few inches away from the sapphire water. The sky was clear and the sun was shining. Not a bad day to be at sea, not that Santiago would know that of course. Slowly, the waves began to pick up, and the boat was shoved towards the neighbouring island.

Why was there sand in his mouth? Santiago risked opening an eye, only to find that he was lying face down on a beach. Straightening up, he dusted himself down and stuck out his tongue scratching off some of the course granules with his hands while grumbling inaudibly. The boat was overturned, his jacket pinned beneath it. From the looks of things the boat had been run aground, and a large wave had flipped it, catapulting him into the sand.

Tongue still lolling out of his mouth, Santiago knelt down to pull his jacket free, and set about righting his boat.

The addition of the brave Southbird - whom she'd playfully taken to name Sengoku after a supposedly great Marine of legend - helped her more than any map she could have. Goku perched himself at the railing next to Linnea whenever she travelled through the ocean, and a quick glance in his direction was just about all she needed to grasp whether or not she was heading the right way. On occasion, Goku flew up from his perch to scout their surroundings, and after his most recent flight, he perched next to her and sang:

"Jyoojyo!", spoke the Southbird, raising his wing and pointing at the direction of the nearest island, allowing Linnea to use this pointer and his compass beak to correctly guess where to steer the ship.

Within the last few days, she'd grown to understand some of the deceptively intelligent animal's signs, allowing it to communicate with her to an extent. Though Goku understood her language, she didn't understand his save for the cry he'd just voiced which she figured it was his way of calling her, maybe even speaking her name?

"Centaurea is that way, you say? Alright, let's see what lies in store!", she smiled, steering towards the island, full sail ahead.

She soon anchored the ship by the shore, able to reach pretty close thanks to the Melusine's(Hit Link for pic) shallow keel, after which she simply dove straight onto the water and swam to shore. Both her clothes and weapons were resistant to water after all... Her sandy white, short skirt ranger's dress was as skimpy as one might expect of a Kuja warrior, even if for Linnea it was just practical. As she rose from the waters, stepping onto the beach, her feathery friend let out its odd cry from the skies as if announcing their landfall:

"JYOOOOOoooo~!!"

Linnea giggled as Goku went on to scout around the island, leaving her alone for the time being. She looked around and the only person she saw there was a shirtless man lying face down on the beach. She approached him with a curious yet slightly bashful look, her eyes partially hidden by her hood:

"U-uhm... Did you shipwreck nearby...?", she wondered, as her obvious curiosity outweighted her shyness. he didn't look like a Marine at least, so that much helped reassure her somewhat...

Santiago looked up from his boat to see the stranger approach, his tongue still sticking out of his mouth, a few granules of sand still sticking to it.
"Thumthing like fat" he said, smiling. Realising his tongue was still out he scratched off the last of the sand and repeated himself
"Something like that." He grinned and itched the back of his head, slightly embarrassed "sorry" he offered. He hooked a toe beneath the rowboat's edge and gave it a hard flick, flipping it over and sending it back into the water with a splash. Reaching out, he made sure it was still grounded, so that it wouldn't float away on him.

"Fell asleep" he explained "must've run aground at a bad angle, threw me onto the beach." Cocking his head to one side, he caught sight of the ship a short way off shore, and let out a low whistle "yours?" He put his hands on his hips, altering his gaze so that he was regarding the girl as opposed to her vessel. He'd missed a number of details on his first glance, namely her attire, clearly suited to the adventuring kind. The white had him unsettled, though she didn't look like a marine. It took him a moment before he realised that while he was reaching that conclusion, he'd been staring at the girl's bust. His cheeks flushed red slightly and his eyes snapped up to meet hers.
"Santiago Kellen by the way" he added.

She chuckled at the man's response, he was literally covered in sand like a breaded dumpling. He gradually shook the sand off his body, and spat the one that got in his mouth, enabling to properly voice an an answer to her question, even if the answer was pretty vague. She could always ask him about it later but for now she wasn't curious enough to go around asking a total stanger about a past they clearly weren't too eager on speaking about, she shook her head with a dismissive smile as he flipped his boat and knocked it back onto the water just so it didn't look like a random shipwreck:

"Yeah, that happens...", she smiled, scratching her head under her hood and looking up at the man, obviously thinking back to her own adventures by rowboat. An actual ship was far more comfortable, albeit hard to steer by herself. He glanced off into the ocean, interested in her ship, earning a bright, actually proud smile from Linnea who was quite happy to have managed to gather up the funds to build that ship, "Indeed. I call it Melusine."

Linnea was as comfortable with her body as she was clueless and despite her soaked, curvaceous visage like a ocean nymph stepping into sandy shores, she still just thought this man was exactly like her, shy and blushing around new people, and that put her a little more at ease, raising her head and looking at him at eye level.

"Naga D. Linnea.", she flashed a cool, gentle smile and offered her hand, "Nice to meet you!"

Since he didn't look like a Marine, no problem with using her full name.


OOC: Im using OP naming conventions and putting family name first xD

Santiago inclined his head, by way of a more formal greeting
"Pleasure's all mine." The two stood there in silence for a few moments, until the young pirate managed to realise the situation he was in.
"This may sound a little strange, but where are we?" He slipped his hands into his pockets, his smile diminishing somewhat (though it was still there).

He couldn't tell how long he'd been asleep for, what sort of wind there'd been or the amount of waves there may have been. In short, like always he was letting fate decide where he'd end up, so was completely lost. That was the problem with travelling solo, especially by rowboat. Though he could count his lucky stars, as a Sea-king hadn't attacked his puny vessel in search of a meal. Not that he wouldn't have been able to handle one of the beasties.

Hunger was the other thing he hadn't noticed, until he'd stopped long enough for it to catch up with him. His mouth was dry and pangs of hunger prodded him in the brain like a pointed stick. Hopefully there'd be a village or something nearby, stood to reason that if Liannea had been heading to this island, there had to be something here.

There was a short awkward moment of silence, at least for most people it might have been so but for a silent girl like Linnea, the truly awkward part was the talking, at least until she got used to the person she was chatting to. Santiago finally broke that silence with an odd question, which fortunately the explorer girl knew the answer to:

"Its called Centauruea Island.", explained Linnea, turning towards the center of the island and sharing a story she greatly admired, "They broke away from the World Government some time ago, and the Revolutionary Army now protects the Island against the Marines and Pirate Raiders. Sounds like a good place spend time, wouldn't you agree?"

There was actually a purpose to this question; depending on it she would tell how comfortable he would feel about being away from the World Government's protection and whether or not revealing her affiliation was a good idea. She cross her arms under her breasts, turning back to him with a smile. He probably fell asleep long enough to avoid noticing the oncoming island, which seemed likely given the way he reached it. It was less of a problem for Linnea now that she had a ship she could dock and sleep in, but she had to deal with it too...

"Shall we have a look around?", she asked, nodding towards the Island itself, obviously eager to explore it.[/color][/color]

"Assuming you're not a Pirate Raider or a marine I imagine it would be a nice to spend time here... you aren't either of those are you? Because if so, you are far too friendly to besiege an island... just saying," he threw the girl a cheeky wink before knitting his fingers behind his head and looking inland. At least it was clear there was food available here. "I'm game for some exploration."

Not wishing for his boat to be gone when he came back, he took a moment to drag it across the beach and bury it beneath some large leaves. He pulled his coat out of the raft before putting the last one in place. Once the boat was hidden, Santiago whirled the coat around himself, hooking his shoulders into the sleeves, so that it hung similar to the way marines wore theirs.

There was no Jolly Rodger emblazoned on the back of the coat, partially because he hadn't decided on what it would look like yet, and in part because he hadn't earned one yet. The Jolly Rodger was a rite of passage for a pirate Captain, or any pirate, and as he had yet to accumulate a bounty of his own, Santiago was well aware that though he called himself pirate, he hadn't done anything to back up the title.

She giggled and shook her head negatively; the way the man answered was reassuring enough, but Linnea had yet another trick up her sleeve. It was time for her to call upon the use of her Haki to scout this island, but with her Haki activated, she was also able to read the emotions of this man simply be looking at his aura. He genuinely didn't look like the liar type (even if most liars dont), but a simple gleam at his aura was more than enough to appease her paranoia.

"No... Just an ordinary Pirate. What about you?", she smiled, confident enough in the man's tranquility to speak with her perpetual cool kindness, even if she did blush slightly at his wink and looking down. She glanced around with both eyes and Haki, and as she did so, she heard a familiar bird's call from high up in the sky.

At least to her it felt familiar, but to anyone who might have never heard it, a Southbird's call was odd to say the least. Her unusual looking partner returned from the skies, perching itself atop Linnea' shoulder, its beak pointing perfectly South as it always did, which in this case happened to be roughly in the man's direction. The bird didn't look as hostile towards him as it normally did towards him, it looked pretty neutral, almostly friendly even:

"Welcome back Goku.", answered Linnea softly, petting her featheary partner, turning to Santiago, "Santiago, meet my partner Sengoku. He's a Southbird."

No doubt the bird might have spotted some shiny goodness while flying around the island, surely they'd have enough to keep themselves entertained soon. He draped his coat over his shoulders and with that they climbed up some stairs, into the first street of the first village they'd be seeing in this island. Walking around, Linnea quickly bought herself a bag of peanuts, eating some herself and giving some to her avian companion.

"Want some?", she offered, smiling and motioning the open bag towards him. When reading his aura, she also noticed him being rather peckish, so her offer should be right up his alley.

Santiago politely shook his head
"Thanks, but I think I'm going to go for something a little more substantial" he scanned the street for another food vendor. At the far end, he made out the striped parasol, and sign. The cheerful looking Meat mascot seemed to be staring right at him, motioning for him to come closer. He momentarily excused himself, before darting off towards the barbecue beneath the parasol. The owner grinned as the now salivating pirate stared down at the produce like a wolf might a rabbit.
"Hungry?" He asked. Santiago nodded.
"How much?" with a mechanical thrust of his arm, Santiago pointed to the largest chunk of meat on the grill, easily the size of his head.

The money exchanged hands and the food vanished almost as fast. It had been days since he'd had anything that wasn't bread or fish, if he'd even eaten at all. Travelling the way he did often meant he was on the edge of his limits. He made sure to have his back to Linnea while he ate, no need to unsettle her with the ferocity of his chewing.

Once the animal had died a second time, he walked back to join her, his satisfaction apparent.
"I would say i was a pirate" he said, drawing the conversation back to her question earlier "if I had done anything piratical. Not earned myself a bounty yet."

Simple peantus weren't enough for this guy's ravenous hunger, and the smell and sound of sizzling meat being grilled was too much for him. Linnea herself wasn't feeling overly hungry, so she just kept on eating her little snacks with Goku while Santiago went on to the street vendor. Much to her amusement, he picked off the largest lump of meat his eyes could find and bought that and quickly chomped it down like a ravenous lion, looking pleasantly happy and relieved once his hunger was sated; even if her eyes couldn't see it, she could still hear and her Haki was still sharp. For a woman raised in a tribal culture, there was nothing to be ashamed about and if anything it made her giggle softly:

"Even still... A desire to seek one's own freedom instead of living inside the World Government's golden cage is more than enough.", stated the ever sharp and somewhat poetical ranger, explaining her own ideals. Unlike the Revolutionaries to whom crushing the government was paramount, a pirate simple yearned for freedom which they could often only obtain by subverting the man. So she just smiled and reassured, "If you keep doing what you love, that is good enough. Your bounty will come in time."

In Amazon Lily, a leader and the true Empress was one recognized and acknowledged by the whole Tribe. Her face was known and loved by all, and she lead beacuse her followers wanted her to. Thus she could never acknowledge the world government whose nobles ruled hidden from the world out of a self entitled sense of nobility. No way she'd accept that faceless government telling her where she could or couldn't go; that would be an insult to her culture, to her Empress even...

Santiago nodded, his grin widening
"Oh I'm not worried about the whole bounty thing, it won't be an issue for long. Just need to finish planning my 'introduction.'" There were a number of marine bases dotted throughout the blues, all he had to do was raid one, thus killing two birds with two birds with one stone. He'd be a fully fledged pirate with a bounty, his monetary problems would be sorted and if he was lucky his reputation might make people more likely to join his crew. Just a few more things needed working out. Linnea seemed to have her goals in order though, it was clear that the freedom was the more important thing for her. Made him wonder why exactly he'd chosen to be a pirate.

Santiago grinned, and Linnea had a feeling that while he must be driven by a yearning for freedom like all pirates, it just couldn't be the only reason. What his story? If anything, the man's reaction made her curious, and for the most part she was enticed with meeting a pirate she could actually speak and get along with... Most of them were so blinded by greed they would kill citizens for a penny, and point their guns at her for the same reason, the kind of people she didn't mind killing since the world wouldn't miss them...

"My advice, If you find some corrupt Marines, teach them a lesson or too. They don't take kindly to Pirates cleaning up their messes.", advised Linnea, thinking back to her greatest bounty increase. But what about treasure? Santiago was a Pirate, he had to love treasure as much as she did if not more so, "Hmm... You could always start by hunting some treasure. Goku here is really good at finding it but an extra pair of hands if always helpful."

She looked at him as if proposing an offer he couldn't refuse, raising an eyebrow and wondering what he might reply. In order to sweeten the pot, she added something else:

"How about this? Help me out and you get to keep however much you can carry.", she winked at him, now certain there was no way he'd turn away from this offer.

Despite loving treasure, Linnea wasn't a greedy girl. She didn't mind sharing so long as she still got some for herself, she always managed to get by with little money and wasn't too fond of saving it, so she just wound up burning through everything on supplies and upgrades to her gear. Maybe even food!

"I don't know, I can carry a lot" Santiago teased. He nodded "I'm in... now to drink to the deal to make it count" the pirate bowed slightly, gesturing to a bar a little way down the street "shall we?"

It had always been a tradition in his uncle's crew to drink before embarking on a raid, quest, mission or anything for that matter. There had been a lot of drinking. Only seemed right that he toasted his first planned endeavour with his new ally.

They entered the bar, and Threw his arms wide
"Two flagons of the strongest thing you've got" he called to the barman, who nodded and uncorked a bottle. On his way to the bar, San stopped momentarily to elbow the jukebox, causing it to stutter on the downbeat tune it was playing, and spit out a livelier sea shanty. Taking up a seat, San grabbed the flagon placed before him and offered it to Linnea
"To freedom then?"

She chuckled at the reply, she didn't really doubt his statement given what she'd seen of his upper body so far, but the cheeky answer was still funny enough. His tradition was a widely known one however, so Linnea didn't shy away from it the slighest:

"Sure, lead the way. Though I'd wager neither of us know of any tavern nearby...", she smiled before looking around with a hint of uncertainty. Linnea scrounged around for a map, eventually managing to find one off a wall. With her southbird partner and that map, she could navigate well enough, though on the long run, it didn't even appear necessary.

Linnea raised an eyebrow towards the man, seeing that he had no qualms with pulling out all the stops from the get go. It gave her a good idea of the kind of man he might be in a fight, the kind that goes all in from the start and levels everything in his way. A reliable kind of ally, but far from her own style:

"I see you're not fond of holding back... To freedom it is!!", she quipped before raising her mug towards him, taking a good chug and sighing contently afterwards...