Kumpa'nia Nicolae

"If you help to protect the family, you will always have a home here." - Glox Stefan.

Kumpa'nia Nicolae is the First Lieutenant of the Gypsy Pirates on the Kumpa'nia Familia. His captain is Kumpa'nia Glox Stefan, and he is married to Stefan's only daughter Kumpa'nia Syeira. When he was 11 he ate the Tabū Tabū No Mi / Taboo Taboo Fruit and can place a taboo on anything he touches, and even people's names.

Etymology of Names
The culture of my crew is loosely based around that of the Romani people, commonly known as Gypsies. The names I'm using are all used by the Romani. Kumpa'nia means "More than one tribe / Extended family", and Nicolae means "Saviour of the People".

Appearance
Nicolae is a slim young man, standing at 5'9" and weighing 140lbs. He has a toned physique, lightly tanned skin, and scruffy, dark-brown, mid-length hair, with a very small pony-tail at the back, where his hair meets his neck. He sometimes wears an olive-green pork-pie hat, with a grey-blue band that has diagonal white stripes; An olive-purple vest that doesn't quite reach his belt-line, it almost looks a size too small for him. He wears it open because it doesn't have any buttons, just x shaped stitching where the buttons used to be. Nothing under the vest. He has a grey-blue scarf, with diagonal white stripes, tied around his waist as a belt. It has long fiber strands, that blow in the wind, fraying from the left hip. He has deep-maroon, loosely cut pants that are rolled up, just to his calves. His right pants-leg has a roughly sewn patch on the knee. He usually doesn't wear shoes, but when he does, he wears brown leather boots, scuffed with age. He has a large, slightly curved horizontal scar on his lower left abdomen, from where he was sliced open as a boy.

Physical Powers
Nicolae has trained with various member of the Gypsy Pirates in skills like swordsmanship and acrobatics, and has toned his body to be quite athletic and agile.

Devil Fruit
Tabū Tabū No Mi Abilities: If Nicolae puts either hand on something or someone, and says "Taboo taboo"*, he can place a taboo on that thing. The taboo will last until Nicolae deems otherwise, it is broken, or he loses consciousness. He uses this ability in a number of ways: ''Note. He doesn't actually need to say "Taboo taboo" to use his abilities, like all the other devil fruit users, he just does to add dramatic effect.''
 * Class – Paramecia
 * Names – Obviously Nicolae can't put his hands on a name, but if he speaks the name and says "Taboo taboo" that name will become taboo. Only ONE name can be tabooed at any given time. Everybody within earshot is affected and they will forget that name and the person that it belongs to. The memories are not erased; it's more like it's forbidden to remember that person. The advantage to this is that, for example, if Usopp's name is tabooed, the other Strawhats will forget that he is a part of their crew or that they even knew him, like he never existed in their lives. In the heat of battle, Usopp might be mistaken for an enemy and attacked by his own crew. They don't necessarily have to attack him, but if they are fighting a rival crew and they see someone they don't know, then they would probably assume he's an enemy. The memories of the person whose name it is will not be forbidden to remember their own name, and if they repeatedly remind people of it and of who they are, the memories will come back. Not immediately, but the more time they've spent with that person, the more memories they have of them, or the more they care about them, the quicker and easier it will be to remember. Also, a person from outside the affected area can enter it without the taboo affecting them. Therefore, they can help remind others of that person, or start to jog memories by how the act towards that person. "Why is Nami defending a stranger..? He's weird looking, but kind of familiar.. What was his name again, Oo-something? ". Also if a person has their ears blocked when the name is tabooed then they are not affected.
 * Weapons – If Nicolae gets his hand on a weapon and places a taboo on it, much like a name, the memories of that weapon will be forbidden. The taboo only affects the person attached to the weapon, and that specific weapon type. So if that person let's go of a tabooed pistol and picks up a sword, then the taboo will not transfer to the new type of weapon. But if he were to pick up a second pistol, it would be tabooed as well. The taboo affects the person's weapon knowledge, not the weapon itself. This taboo can affect multiple people and weapons at the same time. The taboo does NOT affect muscle memory. For example, if Zoro who can fight by instinct or unconsciously, has a taboo placed on his swords he would immediately forget what they are or how to use them, but when attacked, he might move to defend himself and counterattack without knowing exactly what he's doing, just that it's the right move.
 * Body Parts – A taboo can also be placed on a body parts. This ability can affect multiple body parts at a time, but only one of each body part. If Nicolae is fighting one enemy, he can taboo that person's entire body if he wants too. But if he is facing two opponents who are both punching him, he can only place a taboo on one person's fists at a time. If a taboo is put on someone's fists, then those fists will be forbidden to use. The person can still remember that he has fists and is still able to use them, but he will take recoil damage when attacking with them. He still does half the damage he would normally do to his enemy, but get's half that damage back on himself. So a guy like Luffy, who often cares more about winning then his own life, would still fight despite the damage he's sustaining, but a weaker opponent might not be so strong willed or tough.
 * Soul – Finally, the Taboo Taboo Fruit's most powerful ability, known as Taboo Taboo Pale'cido [Pale'cido means "Unclean status / Dishonoured / Set apart"], is to place a taboo on an entire person's being. This is a technique Nicolae has only ever used once before, he does not take it lightly, because unlike his other abilities, this cannot be undone. If Nicolae places his hands over a person's heart, says their name and "Taboo taboo", this person becomes completely forbidden. What that means is that, this person cannot interact with the world any longer. They cannot be seen, heard, felt, smelt or tasted by anybody, ever. They are still alive, but they cannot affect the world in any way, and are completely ignored by everyone around them no matter what they do. They can stand directly in someone's line of sight but that person will take no notice of them like they're not even there. Their names will slip away from people's minds, even when the name is read, it will escape the person the moment they finish reading it, and memories of them will become fuzzy and hard to concentrate on. This ability is a torture to its victims. They are alive, yet cannot truly live. They are forbidden. Only Nicolae can remember them, and only when he is dead will the taboo be removed.

Weapons
Nicolae carries a scimitar on his right hip, and sometimes a pistol tucked into the front of his pants. He is skilled with both, but a master of none, devoting more time to honing his Devil Fruit abilities then his weapon handling skills.

History
Nicolae was born on a peaceful little tropical farming island in the north blue. He had parents who loved him and they lived in the islands only town. One day, when he was 7 years old, Slaver Pirates landed in the islands port and ransacked the town, killed most of the men including Nicolae's father, rounded up the women and children to use as slaves. Nicolae's parents hid him under their, floorboards, and he had to watch as his father fought off 3 slavers before being confronted by their boss, Captain Cutlass himself, who mercilessly cut him down in a flash of steel, he laughed mercilessly as he grabbed Nicolae's mother by her hair and dragged her away. Nicolae was so scared, and so upset, that he just sat there, not moving, until the pirates were long gone. For months after the attack, he survived on any food he could find left in the town or in the plantations. There wasn't much and he survived until a seasonal trader ship stopped at the island for business and found the village in ruins and the boy malnourished but alive. He was taken to a nearby island and he was initially taken care of by the town doctor. Unfortunately the doctor was a man of little compassion who, as soon as Nicolae was well enough, kicked the boy out of his home. Now living on the streets, Nicolae lived by stealing what he needed to survive. Often getting caught and going to sleep with some fresh bruises and an empty stomach.

4 years passed, he was 11 years old, and he had become a very skilled pickpocket and sneak-thief. He had gained a reputation in town as a street rat and thief, but he knew every nook, cranny and forgotten space in town, and used those places to dodge the law or hide when he was spotted. He had made a home for himself just outside of town and amassed what he thought to be a great fortune of some gold and silver, but mostly trinkets and doodads he found in people's homes. But there was one thing he wanted that he could not steal, he wanted his parents back, and he wanted a family. One day, while in town he heard rumours of a slave ship being spotted in the area. Remembering the horrible day that his parents were taken from him, Nicolae swore that, if he got the chance, he would take revenge on the slavers for what they took from him. Surely enough, the next day, the slaver pirates made port and began attacking the town. The slaver's Captain, the same one from 4 years ago, loudly boasting that they had returned from the Grand Line, and have come to collect more slaves for auction. The island had a military force that was able to drive them away, but was unable to completely stop the pirates from getting what they came for. With a group of slaves in their hold, the pirates sailed once again for The Grand line, little knowing that they had picked up something unexpected, the young boy Nicolae. He was easily able to keep himself hidden from the ship's crew, with years of practice under his belt. He would often go down to the hold, to see what he could do to help the women and children that were captured. It was easy for him to procure food from the kitchen, but what food he did steal he often gave to the children in the hold, and he soon found himself feeling those familiar feelings of malnourishment. That didn't stop him from sneaking around the ship, gathering information and waiting for a chance to take his revenge though.

About 2 weeks into their journey on the Grand Line, Nicolae had stolen a dagger from one of the crew, waited for a moonless night, and snuck into the Captain's cabin intending to kill Captain Cutlass while he slept. The room was softly lit by candlelight, and he could see the Captain's lumpy form where he slept. But in that moment Nicolae only had eyes for the large, spherical, golden brown fruit, with little swirls on it that reminded him of the pineapples from his home islands plantations. Slowly and quietly, Nicolae took his dagger, cut slice after slice of the fruit and ate the juicy flesh, completely forgetting about the waking enemy behind him. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" shouted Cutlass, as Nicolae scrambled across the room away from the man's swinging blade. "How dare you eat my Taboo Taboo Fruit you filthy little rat!! Do you have any idea how many slaves that cost me? I'll gut you and take it back!" the Captain ranted like this as Nicolae jumped over smashed glass, ducked under flying furniture and crawled under the large bed to try and escape the sword aiming for his belly. A hole appeared above him, made by two quick slashes to the bed, and an arm reached in fumbling around trying to catch hold of the boy. Nicolae wished he had held onto that dagger, as the giant hand folded around his ankle like a vice. Screaming out in pain, Nicolae did the only thing he could do, he bit the hand that bound him. A yelp was heard from above the bed, and a second later the whole bed was thrown across the room, smashing though a large window and splashing into the sea below. Cutlass grabbed Nicolae by his neck and held him up like a fish about to be gutted. Muffled shouting could be heard from outside the door and the sound of fists pounding the wooden frame. Nicolae thrashed, and struggled, and pushed at Cutlass's chest as the blade inched towards his skin. The blade pierced Nicolae's abdomen, and as a white hot pain flashed through him he remembered his parents and how they were robbed from him by this man, all of his anger, all of his fear, all of his guilt rose up in him and he cursed the pirate's name. So tight was the grip on his throat, that it was barley a whisper "C-Cutl-ass.." and in that moment, Nicolae first used his devil fruit abilities, placing a taboo on Cutlass's blackened soul and forbidding him from interacting with the world forever more. Nicolae dropped to the ground, Cutlass seemed to have disappeared into nothingness, he didn't understand, 'What happened..?' he though. But his thought was cut-off by a loud crack as the door to the cabin burst open. As the slavers rushed in, Nicolae, who didn't know about the Devil Fruits weakness, jumped out the window intending to dive in the ocean, but was lucky enough to land on the bed still floating on the ocean's surface, and by the cover of darkness managed to escape with his life.

5 days passed, and Nicolae was convinced her was going to die. Dehydration and starvation had set in, and he had lost a lot of blood when Captain Cutlass had stuck him with a sword, intending to gut him. All he could do was sail across the endless ocean on the bed-ship he had fashioned out of the bed frame and a sheet. Laying there in the boiling sun, barley able to move, he thought he was dreaming when he saw the prow of a ship enter his field of vision. He was saved by a crew who call themselves the Gypsy Pirates. A group of people from every sea who've become more like family then crewmates. He was pulled aboard and was taken to the doctors quarters, where Drabengro Milosh [Drabengro is a title; it means "Medicine man / Healer", and Milosh means "Merciful Person"], tended to his wounds and treated him for severe dehydration, starvation and the effects of exposure to the elements. When Nicolae was strong enough, he was brought before the 'head of the family' Kumpa'nia Glox Stefan, Captain. The large man, with the dense curly beard, asked the boy about himself and how he came to be drifting in the Grand Line. So Nicolae recounted the tail of his life, about how his father was killed and mother taken, how he lived for years by stealing what he needed to survive. He told of how he snuck onto the slaver's ship to try to kill the captain, and the events of that dark night, how Cutlass had disappeared into thin air as he was about to kill Nicolae. Glox Stefan was very interested in this part, and asked many questions. When Nicolae had finished his story, Glox Stefan laughed his big hearty laugh and said that he might have a place for a strong brave boy like Nicolae in his crew, but he had to "work hard to help keep the family strong". Nicolae accepted as he felt gratitude towards this crew who had saved his life, and longed for a sense of family that had long since been lost. Nicolae was given the name Kumpa'nia, the same name as everybody else aboard the ship as a symbol of their bond, and was now one of them. Nicolae soon learnt that the Gypsy Pirates weren't like other pirates; they did not pillage and plunder when they made port, they were more like a travelling carnival, with acrobats, illusionists, fire-eaters, games-men and the most important group, of whom Nicolae was apart, pickpockets. The Kumpa'nia Familia would go from island to island and it's crew would enchant the people with their tricks and magic, and as a crowd would gather around, Nicolae would move through the people unnoticed and take what he could. They would sometimes stay for days, buying supplies from the natives with their own money, but sometimes the islanders would get suspicious, or a pickpocket might be caught red handed, and they are run out of town the same day as landfall. After every few islands, the Gypsy Pirates would follow an Eternal Pose back to Ts'erha Island, and the town of Bidonville [Bidonville means "Shantytown"], where the rest of the family has settled, bringing back gold and other valuable resources.

Over the next 8 years Nicolae grew with his family, as did his love for them. He mastered his skills as a pickpocket, becoming head of the Pickpockets Guild. Also learning new skills like swordplay, from the sword-swallower, a little acrobatics, and a few other tricks of their trade. With the help of Glox Stefan, Nicolae focused on developing his Taboo Taboo Fruit abilities, using them to help the family any way he could. Often being the deciding factor when their ship was attacked by other pirates, or the marines. He was loved by the crew, developing special friendships with some members, including Drabengro Milosh (the doctor) and Old-man Marko [Marko means "Of the sea"], who was born on a boat and has never set foot on dry land, moving from ship to ship before settling on the Kumpa'nia Familia, he is the oldest member of the crew and is nearly always seen with his companion Sea Eagle, Vardo [Vardo means "Living Weapon"]. Glox Stefan even has a special place for the boy, and decided when Nicolae was 15 to marry him to his 13 year old daughter, Syeira [Syeira means "Princess"]. This decision made Stefan's biological son Emilian [Emilian means "Rival"] very angry, as he has become jealous of Nicolae and his father's attention towards Nicolae. Emilian is an arrogant, stubborn and selfish boy, 4 years older than Nicolae. He was the Familia's best pickpocket before Nicolae came along and has resented him from the very beginning. It didn't help their relationship any when Glox Stefan promoted Nicolae to 1st Lieutenant at the age of 18 over his son who was already 2nd Lieutenant. And over the last year, Stefan has shown every indication of grooming Nicolae to become the next Glox.