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One Piece - Halfway Broken Relationship Poll
🕑 Added 2024-02-02 13:36:41 +0000 UTCAlright, ladies, gents, and others! As I've mentioned a couple of times now, I'm not entirely sure what I want to do with the relationship in One Piece - Halfway Broken. There are going to be more crew (obviously) than canon, with several of the additions being female. Hence a bit of uncertainty with how I want to do this. There are multiple girls who would be good fits for Luffy, and part of me would prefer to do the story as a multi-pairing just so I can have my cake and eat it too. I've always liked both Robin and Nami, for example. So only allowing myself to explore one of them is a bit of a rough choice. And that's not even getting into other possible additions.
The one thing I will say right now is that no, Luffy won't be getting an outright Harem of Doom. Much like Kunia and Zoro, at least two of the other female characters I'm going to add to the crew are intended to be paired off with crew members who aren't Luffy. Nor does 'expanded' crew mean 'giant' crew. If there end up being more than double the original number of Strawhats in total, I'd be surprised. There comes a point when it becomes unwieldly to weld more people into a story, and I have to balance that with 'No, you can't actually run a ship with that few people, triply so not somewhere like the Grand Line.' Which is a big chunk of my problem with the original crew size -_-.
In the end, before I make a choice one way or another, I want to know what readers are thinking. To be clear, the winner of this poll isn't going to be an absolute 100% deciding factor. If things end up being a nearly even split, I'll likely just go with whatever feels right. But if one side gets a clear majority, then I'll let that fact take the proverbial wheel and run with it. Also to be clear, I'm not interested in anyone's opinions about who the specific Best Girl for Luffy is. If this story ends up as a solo pairing, that pairing will most likely be Luffy/Robin, as Robin is my personal favorite character in the entire series. There's a small chance that the early chemistry between Luffy and Nami (which is already developing a bit) would convince me to make the solo pairing Luffy/Nami instead...but the chance is pretty small. Honestly, the only reason the chance even exists is because this version of Nami hasn't fallen quite so far into Nami's more irritating habits. Her more cowardly/mercenary tendencies always turned me off of her in a lot of ways.
If, on the other hand, a multi-pairing is chosen...Robin and Nami are both likely to be in the pairing. Along with one other girl, most likely, though there are several that could be chosen from. Vivi, Perona, Boa Hancock, Hina (I have to admit, that one would be funny) and a few others are all viable possibilities. But I would likely stop at three. Frankly, trying to manage more than that tends to cause issues, with most examples collapsing into more smut than they are relationship. If the multi-option wins, I'll likely run another poll farther down the lane in the story to see who else (if anyone) people would like to see added.
For right now, it's a simple binary choice. So get your votes in! Which would you prefer to see:
Comments
Novus Peregrine
200% understand that. Anytime an author, even a good author, tries to expand to a large harem...it turns either into super shallow relationships, pure smut, or such a time sink that the story never gets anywhere. Since I don't want any of those things to happen, even a multi-pairing will be only a small number.
BookDragonling
I normally would never encourage a 'harem' but if it's going to be kept small then I wouldn't mind. Either way, I'm happy with whatever.
Novus Peregrine
To be fair, most people reading the fic will already know about the characters involved. So confusing the poll with a third option like that wouldn't exactly be helpful. It would just dilute the results. However, your earlier comments actually did give me a useful idea for a very short one-off...calling it a relationship is a bit too much. 'Encounter' would be better. With another character. One that will stick around, but won't be in the running for a long term relationship. Instead, she'll actually serve pretty well as a way to encourage other relationships... Anyway, you'll see than in a couple of days when I release the next batch of chapters for the fic :-).
Keht Jelicho
Basically I want a third poll option of "Too early in the story to determine an answer" I want to at least read about Robin more, if she would be the solo-pairing choice as you've indicated, before making a determination over a solo- or multi- pairing for Luffy. But definitely not for a permanent solo- pairing with Nami at this point in your story, things may evolve and character growth/development may change that opinion with future chapters such that a solo-pairing with Nami, should you go that route, would be ok- but for now if a relationship with Nami is starting in the immediate future then I would have to vote for a multi-pairing just because the currently revealed Nami on her own does not seem like a good fit for Luffy by her self.
Keht Jelicho
Fair enough. As I believe I commented before- I never really go into the original, so I don't have any basis to know about Nami's story beyond what I read in yours. From that it seemed to me like a possibility existed for a long-term fling, to borrow your words, could be possible. She just hasn't seemed like she is/was in any kind of place to want a relationship, nor that she was trusting enough to start anything. That said I could see a, primarily off-screen due to age, physical aspect to their relationship starting (especially if she/they were in a fight and really thought they were going to die/had "I can't believe we're still alive" sex as a start to said fling, or if whatever she needs money for has her stressed out enough to seek comfort) between them based off what you'd written so far. That kind of physical fling based on circumstance and a desire for comfort however is not a good basis for a healthy relationship, and is more likely to lead to an unhealthy codependent attachment rather than a true relationship. That's why when you made comments liking Robin more I made the statement about having something with Nami that doesn't work out long term. (Though if you did do that, and wanted to eventually lead to at least a trio, it could still work if they had a physical aspect that they stepped back from once Nami's immediate issue is dealt with so that Nami can figure out who she is/what she wants, and then- depending on when Robin comes in- when Luffy and Robin start connecting on a deeper level Nami could realize that she wants that too leading to some angst/drama before resolving into the trio, but thats just one bare bones tweak of a possibility.) If you're writing Nami in such a way that if any relationship started with her will definitely become a long term one, then all that becomes moot and I am back again to having no way to make a decision due to a lack of knowledge on the original/canon characters. Have not "met" Robin, so cannot say whether having Luffy only Pair with her would work out, can only say that the current circumstances for Nami are such that I don't see her currently as a long term partner/a candidate to start a serious relationship with- regardless whether that would be a solo pairing with her or a lead-in to eventual multi-pairing with any other future (Robin) girls you introduce later in the story.
Novus Peregrine
Fair. And yeah, that was a slightly different situation in that Oriana went into that relationship knowing it was essentially a prolonged fling. With Nami, in particular, there's no chance at all feels wouldn't get involved, given how her story plays out. Both in canon and in my version. There's a reason she's a popular pairing for Luffy, as her entire story is pretty emotional. I could have maybe set something like that up for Luffy...if they weren't a bit young up until now. I'm fine with writing relationships between 16-18 year olds, though I skip on anything lemony until 18+. But up until the current point in the story, Luffy was only around 15, so any side relationship I set up for him would have been a bit limited...and a distraction from getting to the main One Piece canon ;-). I'm trying not to get too lost in the pre-canon content. Hmmm...though come to that, there is technically a character I'll be introducing in the update where I could see a fling happening. It would potentially complicate things for getting Luffy and Nami together, but it COULD give him some harmless relationship experience that I wouldn't feel awful about. Though, I think it would probably happen mostly off screen since he's only 16 and it would likely involve some 'thank you hero' sex. Not really inapposite for that age. But not something I'm going to actually show...
Keht Jelicho
Fair enough. I just liked how the first "relationships" Oriana had in Final Error worked out, where they knew from the start they weren't long term but then the other two found their long term partner with each other. Or how Oriana, Liara, and Shepard were a unit but had other occasional bedmates. Wasn't intending to ask for any kind of messy or bad "break-up" or anything, just a scenario we're Luffy+Nami is that kind of "acknowledged-not-long-term" but then you could have Robin be that Long term
Novus Peregrine
Because I hate that sort of thing when others write it. Unless the pairing is unlikeable (which is just silly, and toxic, and makes no sense for them to stay friendly afterward), I always end up feeling bad for the girl that had used as training wheel for a later relationship. Since I don't like reading it (I will actively avoid fics where the author says that is going to happen), there's no way I'm going to write it. I'm a sappy romantic with too much empathy I guess *shrug*.
Keht Jelicho
But what if I want to challenge you to have one relationship that for whatever reason(s) doesn't last before another one emerges and does (whether either or both those relationships are solo or multi, or a multi-to solo-to multi with new girl or something else is not something I can judge feasibility). I just don't know the story well enough to make a judgment between solo or multi pairings. That said, from what I have read and what you've said here- why not start something with Nami that for whatever reason(s) doesn't last long term and then bring in Robin since she's a favorite. Who says that just because a relationship is started with someone that it has to then stay through the whole story?
