The chaos was at its peak, with Ace currently trying to tackle a laughing Marco into a sand dune, when the foliage at the edge of the camp parted. Maye stepped out, looking refreshed and radiant. Her damp hair was pulled back in a loose braid, and she was wearing a fresh set of clothes she'd scavenged from her pack. She looked like she'd just stepped out of a dream, her skin glowing and her eyes bright with a newfound energy. She stopped, blinking at the sight of her Captain "the fearsome Fire-Fist" Ace currently rolling around in the dirt with his First Commander like a pair of unruly house cats. "What is going on?" she asked, a playful smile tugging at her lips. Ace froze. He scrambled to his feet, frantically dusting sand off his bare chest and trying to regain some semblance of "Captain-like" dignity. His face, which had finally started to cool down, began to simmer toward a dangerous shade of pink the moment he made eye contact with her. "Nothing! Just... training! Leadership exercises!" Ace barked, his voice cracking slightly. Maye laughed, walking over to the fire and grabbing a cup of coffee. She leaned back against a supply crate, letting out a long, contented sigh. "Well, you missed out, Ace. I found this hidden grotto with a massive waterfall. The water was incredible, so clear and cold. It felt like it was washing away a whole year of being dead." She turned her gaze toward him, her eyes innocent and sparkling. "Honestly, it was a beautiful sight. You really should have seen it, Ace."
Cough. Splutter. Choke. Ace, who had just taken a tentative sip of his own coffee, proceeded to spray the liquid across the sand in a violent, undignified mist. He bent over double, hacking and wheezing, his face turning a shade of dark, pressurized crimson that looked like it might actually explode. His ears were practically steaming. "I—uh—water—scenery—YES. NICE," he managed to choke out, his eyes wide and panicked as he stared at a very specific, very uninteresting rock near his feet. The silence that followed lasted for exactly half a second before the entire crew—led by Marco's high-pitched cackle absolutely lost it. "OH, HE SAW IT!" Rakuyo howled, slapping his knee so hard he nearly fell off his log. "HE SEES THE SCENERY CLEARLY NOW-YOI!" Marco gasped, clutching his stomach as he doubled over. Even the usually stoic Izo was hiding his face behind his sleeve, his shoulders shaking with silent, hysterical laughter. The sound of dozens of pirates roaring with glee echoed across the entire island, scaring a flock of birds out of the trees.
Maye stood there, her coffee cup halfway to her lips, looking utterly bewildered. She looked at the laughing crew, then at her Captain, who was currently trying to burrow his head into his orange hat to hide the fact that he was glowing like a heat-lamp. "Did I say something funny?" Maye asked, her brow furrowed in genuine confusion. "I mean, it's just a waterfall. Is there some pirate joke about waterfalls I don't know yet?" Ace finally managed to stand upright, though he refused to look her in the eye, his hands shoved deep into his pockets as he vibrated with pure, unadulterated shame. "No joke," Ace muttered, his voice muffled and strangled. "Just... the crew is full of idiots. Don't listen to them. I'm going to... go check the ship's hull. For... barnacles. Deep barnacles." He turned and bolted toward the shoreline without another word. Maye watched him go, then looked back at Marco, who was still wiping tears from his eyes. "Is he okay? He seems... warmer than usual." "He's fine, Maye," Marco managed to wheeze out, giving her a supportive (and highly treacherous) pat on the back. "Our Captain just has a very... vivid appreciation for 'nature.' Don't mind him-yoi." Maye shrugged, still confused, but took another sip of her coffee. She didn't notice that as Ace reached the water's edge, he didn't check for barnacles, he just dived headfirst into the ocean to try and drown the memory of the grotto in cold salt water.