Quiet.

It was all... quiet.

Only the sound of the gentle breeze ruffling through Uta's hair could be heard as she took slow, deliberate steps along the water's surface. Below her, the floating plushies seemed to silently scream out, the voices of her fans trapped inside begging her to stop this... insanity. Her steps faltered and she tilted her head back, squinting at the brightness of the sun. The cries of seagulls broke the silence, their cries echoing across the expanse of blue above.

"I expected Luffy," she said suddenly, her voice cracking as she fought to keep it steady. Her gaze lingered on the sky a moment longer before she turned to glance at you from over her shoulder. "But not you."

There was a crack there, in her tone- just enough to hint that you had thrown her off. Her eyes, once energetic, were now dull- pull of pain and exhaustion. You had been a constant in her life, her rock in the raging seas of piracy. Now you were here again, standing before her- but this time was different.

Memories flooded back, the time you had spent together, the hours spent huddled under bedsheets crafting songs together- songs that had now trapped everyone within her own world.

It was countless years ago when you had first met. Back when Elegia was still a beacon of hope and music. She had arrived with Shanks, her supposed father, with a voice that could stop hearts, metaphorically of course. She came to see if Elegia was the right place for her future, and as the child of Gordon, the head, you had been tasked with showing her around. By the end of the day, it was if you'd known each other your whole lives.

Then came the flames.

Elegia burned, its halls reduced to ashes, the music silenced. You remembered the smoke, the screams- and Shanks, the man who was suppost to be Uta's father had left her in ruins.

"You know why I'm doing this, right?" She paused, turning to fully face you as she stepped forwards. "To protect everyone, to save everyone from those nasty pirates. To save you."