Totally Buggin' (Buggy the Clown Live Action Fic)

Part Two

   My crewmates and I had been searching for the Marine warship for weeks, and now its hulking mass finally came into view. It was impossibly dark out—even the stars were concealed by clouds—and the four of us drifted silently on the water towards the ship in our skiff. We stood still at statues, avoiding doing anything that could make us more apparent to those onboard. Once we reached the ladder on the side of the vessel, we began climbing without a word.
    Trixie, my best swordswoman, was the first to reach the main deck. She noiselessly cut the throat of the closest guard and motioned for us to come up, her dark ponytail swinging above us. I was next over the railing, followed by Douglas, the navigator and the oldest of our group, and Niko, who was the best at covert missions like this one. He led us across the deck with quiet feet, checking around corners to make sure there were no Marines in sight before we continued.
    Quiet as mice, we crept to the stairwell and made our way below deck. In the first hallway there were two guards, which Trixie and I made quick work of with our swords. One of them managed to call out for help before he was sliced down, and another soldier came running from an open doorway. Douglas took the man in one of his massive hands and slammed him into the wall, letting him crumple unconscious on the floor. We moved on.
    Every doorway we passed we stopped at, and if it was locked then Niko picked it quickly with the tools he kept hidden in his belt. We searched the contents of the rooms hastily and knocked out anyone who got in our way. Most were empty; some had small trinkets or valuables that we pocketed, but none had what we here for.
    We moved down another level and still no alarm had been raised. The ship was emptier than we had anticipated, and most of the soldiers on it seemed to be young and inexperienced. None of us said it aloud, but that did not bode well for our mission.
    Niko picked a lock and slid open the next door. We darted in, scanning for guards. To my bewilderment, someone was in the room with us, but it wasn't a Marine. Tied to a pole at the center of the lamp-lit space was a blue-haired clown with a red nose that I'd recognize anywhere.
    "Buggy?" I said with disbelief.
    He looked up, and those crystal blue eyes of his met mine in surprise. "Kitty," he said, a relieved smile washing over his makeup-covered face. He stood in a large bucket which was filled with what I presumed was sea water and had ropes tied at his chest and shins. His captain's hat was nowhere to be seen and instead he wore a new canary-yellow bandana. It had been five years since I'd last seen him but he looked exactly how I remembered.
    Buggy's smile quickly fell as I raised my sword to his chest. "Woah woah, hey, now, Kitty," he said, panicked. "There's no need for that." He let out a distressed laugh while I glared.
    "Captain, you know this guy?" asked Niko.
    I pursed my lips, not taking my eyes off the clown. "Buggy, meet the crew. Crew, meet Buggy," I introduced bluntly. "Any last words?"
    "You—you can't be serious," sputtered Buggy. "You're really gonna kill me?"
    "Yep," I replied flatly.
    Buggy stared at me open-mouthed. "If anyone should be angry here it should be me!" he exclaimed indignantly. "You left me on an island with no way off! In a pretty similar situation to this one, I might add."
    "Your ship was within eyesight," I recalled dismissively. "You were there for a few hours, tops."
    "You tied me to a tree and stole my boat!" he accused. "And my lucky compass!"
    "You held me hostage!" I shot back incredulously, my temper flaring. "You kept me in a cage for weeks!"
    "You were practically a part of the crew by the end!" he demanded with a scowl. "I trusted you!"
    "I was in love with you!" I yelled, all the old emotions flooding back. I felt tears stinging my eyes but refused to let them fall. "And you broke—" the words caught in my throat, and I found I was too ashamed to finish them anyway. I saw the surprise in Buggy's eyes and looked away, but I didn't remove my sword from where it pointed at his diaphragm. I heard my crewmates shifting uncomfortably behind me.
    "Captain," said Douglas, placing a hand on my shoulder. I looked at where he indicated and saw what had caught his attention: the purplish veins that spiderwebbed across the side of Buggy's neck, exactly matching the ones hidden now under the sleeve of my coat.
    I lowered my sword. "What do you know of the Elixis Fruit?" I asked Buggy cautiously.
    He eyed me. "The map's not on this ship, if that's what you mean," he said finally. "But I know where it is. I'll tell you, if you take me with you."
    "Not a chance, clown."
    "Captain," inserted Douglas again. "We need that map. We're running out of time."
    "He is a liar," I told the navigator. "We can't trust him as far as we can throw him."
    "It's the only lead we've got," Douglas insisted solemnly.
    I studied Buggy, my fingers still itching to stab him through. The light from the lamp cast a warm glow over him, and the clown watched me with wary eyes. "We're looking for the same thing," he observed grimly. I didn't respond.
    After another moment, Douglas added, "What have you got to lose?"
    I sighed, frustrated. "If you step one toe out of line," I threatened Buggy through gritted teeth, "you'll be on the bottom of the ocean before you can say ta-da." He nodded obediently, then flinched as I swung my sword towards him. It sliced through the ropes binding him with a satisfying whoosh.