There is so much mystery surrounding Monet…
Given the way Monet was prepared to sacrifice herself for her captain, there is certainly a deep level of loyalty between Monet and Doflamingo. But what exactly founded such a loyalty and what keeps Monet maintaining such a loyalty towards Doflamingo?
Monet wasn’t featured in the Law/Doflamingo flashback during the Dressrosa arc, so there is currently no information surrounding the manner in how Monet ended up being a part of the Donquixote Pirates. Logically though, Monet would have joined after the incident with Rosinante on Minion as for that operation, Doflamingo had gathered his full force to attempt to steal the Ope Ope no Mi. If Monet was a part of the crew back than, Doflamingo would have had her join in the operation as well. It is likely that Monet only became a part of the Donquixote Pirates after the events on Minion and within the three years preceding the Dressrosa takeover operation.
>>Monet’s past:
Monet’s loyalty to Doflamingo could be due to a specific reason from the past. One I have been entertaining is that Monet was a former [Tenryuubito] slave and Doflamingo freed her while carrying out his mission of destroying the ‘world’ the Tenryuubito control.
If Monet were a former slave, it could explain her relationship to Doflamingo, why she is so loyal to him and possibly why Monet’s character seems so strange (and borderline twisted at times). Also we do know that the Tenryuubito are open to feeding some of their slaves Devil Fruits for entertainment purposes, it wouldn’t be too surprising that a rare Devil Fruit like the Yuki Yuki no Mi was given to Monet by the Tenryuubito. It is also possible that Doflamingo could have given Monet’s the Yuki Yuki no Mi after he liberated her from slavery.
When Doflamingo decided to become a pirate and target the Tenryuubito, on one of his operations he may have attacked a Tenryuubito and taken one (or more) of the slaves/prisoners which the Tenryuubito “controlled” with him, specifically Monet (because of her ability?). The Yuki Yuki no Mi is a rare fruit and seeing as Doflamingo was actively searching for Devil Fruits prior to the Dressrosa takeover, he could have seen value in what Monet could do. Just like it was with Jean Bart, Boa Hancock and her sisters, and Koala, they are extremely indebted to their saviors. If Monet were a slave and subject to torment and suffering that caused her to only think about dying, Doflamingo saving her would explain the level of loyalty she has for him. Also with Doflamingo holding a certain “trump card” against the Tenryuubito (the secret of the National Treasure of Mariejois), the Tenryuubito wouldn’t risk targeting him even if he stole one (or more) of their slaves – they could just buy more after all.
Given that Monet has wings now replacing her arms, not just wings on top of keeping her arms, it can be argued that Monet requested Law (if he did use his ability as Usopp gathered) to carry out such an act to remove her limbs for a reason. If her arms and legs were tainted with the memories of her traumatic past (memories of the shackles once binding her), it could explain why she had them removed, in order to escape such pain from resurfacing. With Oda going through the effort of explaining certain oddities of the Donquixote Pirates – Baby 5’s tendency to feel needed and Senor Pink’s clothes, it is very likely that there is a genuine reason tying into Monet’s past for Monet replacing her arms and legs with wings and talons respectively.
Monet being a former [Tenryuubito] slave could also help explain why she suffered from extreme paralysing fear when Zoro came at her with intent to slice her (which she believed would be backed with Haki). Once becoming a Logia Devil Fruit user (if the Tenryuubito fed her the Yuki Yuki no Mi), Monet may have been disciplined by a male ‘master’ (a Tenryuubito or a subordinate of one) who could use Busoshoku Haki, so a terror associated with Haki used by an intimidating male could have been engraved in Monet. Monet’s body having felt the effects of Haki and Zoro approaching her with his sword having his Haki ready and conveying every intention to cut her could have taken Monet back to a past memory of her being abused by Haki. The overwhelming fear from back then could have subconsciously came rushing out during her fight with Zoro and froze her body in place when Zoro charged her. That rush of fear could also be responsible for Monet losing control over her ability with her mind being shaken up so intensely. If instead Monet only received the Yuki Yuki no Mi when she became a Donquixote Pirate, there still would be trauma associated with a male when she was a [Tenryuubito] slave. Zoro projecting his killing intent may have been what caused Monet to recall painful memories from her past and subsequently freeze up.
Since the incident of Zoro’s intent to kill freezing an opponent is isolated to Monet as of yet, it is possible that more than Zoro overwhelming Monet, it was also in part due to Monet’s personal circumstances (her past) that caused her to suffer such mental anguish from the threat Zoro imposed on her.
Common traits among former slaves (Hancock and Koala) include distant personalities and imprisoned emotions, and this is exactly how Monet came off during the Punk Hazard Arc, distant and emotionless. Only during the moment when Monet was at death’s door did she express genuine emotion, probably because she may not have minded dying, as it would end her suffering originating from her past. Even if Doflamingo saved Monet from her life as a former slave, he had not healed her heart, illustrated by how she still appears distant and emotionless.
The reason Monet may have been so passionate about her captain (Doflamingo) becoming the Pirate King is because the Pirate King embodies the person who stands against everything the World Government and Tenryuubito represent, and such a person is important to Monet given her circumstances (if Monet were a former [Tenryuubito] slave).
>>How will Monet’s loyalty to Doflamingo shatter?
Rosinante had mentioned that only the inner circle members (Trebol, Diamante, Pica, Vergo and himself) knew about Doflamingo’s true nature and madness. Monet may have become part of the inner circle members some time after she joined but I seriously doubt it given the nature of her role within the crew and how she had to spend time away from the rest of the crew in order to complete the missions she was given. There is also the fact that only the Donquixote Pirate members who held the Executive seats knew about true nature and madness of Doflamingo, Monet being a regular officer may not have been privy to such information. Given that Law did not know Doflamingo was a Tenryuubito until the day the Dressrosa Arc began, it suggest that Doflamingo wasn’t openly expressive of his roots as a Tenryuubito. Most likely only the inner circle members knew of Doflamingo and Rosinante’s past of being former Tenryuubito.
Not knowing about the true nature and history of Doflamingo, Monet may have had a false impression on who Doflamingo was and what he represented.
It is clear that Monet hasn’t been told everything by Doflamingo, otherwise Monet would have known about Law being a former Donquixote Pirate member. Monet also hadn’t been told about the purpose of SAD and most likely the existence of SMILE, otherwise once she learned that Law and Luffy entered into an alliance to target Kaidou, she would have realised that since the SMILE is being bought by Kaidou to empower his army, the SAD ingredient would be targeted, as well as the man who makes it – Caesar Clown. Monet as well didn’t convey to Caesar and Vergo that Law entered into an alliance with Luffy to target Kaidou, if she did, the two of them would have without a doubt instantly realised what Law was planning. The fact that they only found out what Law’s goal was on Punk Hazard the moment he entered the SAD room means that they didn’t know that Law was targeting Kaidou until that point. Monet may not have been aware of the connection between SMILE and Kaidou, so she didn’t see the need to convey any information beyond Law betraying Caesar by entering into an alliance with Luffy. And if Monet was aware of the importance of SAD, did she purposefully hold information back?
It is also weird that after her encounter with Luffy, Monet went to secure the children, rather than the SAD production room, which Vergo knew to be the most important of Caesar’s experiments. If Monet really was protecting Caesar’s “important experiments”, she should have gone to the SAD production room, the fact that she didn’t implies that she may not have known about the importance of SAD. If Doflamingo has kept information from Monet, what else is he hiding from her? Does Monet know about Doflamingo’s slave trading auction house he had operating two years ago?
Monet also doesn’t seem very close to the rest of the Donquixote Pirate crew. She didn’t seem awfully connected with Vergo when he was there on Punk Hazard and due to her mission being away from Dressrosa, there wouldn’t have been much opportunity for her to get close to the other Donquixote Pirates. Given that Monet isn’t publicly known as a member of the Donquixote Pirates, which is why Law didn’t initially know of Monet’s affiliation with Doflamingo, it suggest that Monet must not have spent much time together with the crew to be marked as being associated with them (much like Vergo once his mission to become a marine began). It seems to me that Doflamingo is the reason for Monet being part of the Donquixote Pirates and she remains a member because shes believes in him.
The Pirate King embodies freedom whereas the Tenryuubito seek to usurp the freedom of others. Given the importance of the Pirate King to Monet (the subject of her “final thought” as she attempted to use her life to help her captain) she likely believed that her captain was the kind of man who would genuinely stand against the Tenryuubito and the injustices the Tenryuubito effect. Monet genuinely expressed emotion (her smile) in the moment she desired her captain to become the Pirate King, the first time she had expressed such pure and heartfelt emotion. In that moment you get the feeling that you are seeing Monet’s true personality show.
Knowing the importance the concept of the Pirate King holds to Monet, it is highly likely that she was unaware of the fact that Doflamingo was a former Tenryuubito. Doflamingo’s past isn’t something he openly shares as not even Law knew of Doflamingo’s roots, so it makes sense that Monet wouldn’t have known about the origins of Doflamingo. Bellamy himself was surprised when Doflamingo revealed he was a Tenryuubito.
Doflamingo himself hasn’t yet shown any interest and desire to attain the title of “Pirate King”, let alone have any pride in being a pirate. Based on the conversation Doflamingo had with Bellamy and how he expressed Bellamy always having a different objective from him – wanting to become a pirate, Doflamingo’s true nature is one of someone who doesn’t seem to care for such a title as “Pirate King”. Even in the flashbacks, Doflamingo had shown zero interest in becoming Pirate King. If Oda really intended for Doflamingo to have such a dream, it would have been more apparent than such a dream being isolated to Monet’s belief in Doflamingo. It is likely that Doflamingo used Monet’s obsession with the Pirate King, by lying to her with the pretense that he in fact sought to become Pirate King, in order to motivate her to join his pirate crew and follow his orders. Doflamingo hasn’t been against using others to further his own ends; Law, Bellamy and Baby 5 are testament to that. Doflamingo lying to Monet to use her wouldn’t be all that out of character and surprising for him. Ultimately though, one has to seriously wonder why Monet desiring Doflamingo to be Pirate King is such an isolated event =/.
So what happens when Monet finds out Doflamingo is a former Tenryuubito and has no desire to become Pirate King?
Much like how Brownbeard’s loyalty to Caesar shattered when he found out Caesar’s true nature, Monet would also come to realise that the man she believed in never existed and the real Doflamingo was someone totally different from the man she initially committed herself to. Law’s attitude towards Doflamingo also completely shifted when he seen the person Doflamingo really was. Baby 5’s situation is also relevant, as despite spending at least 16 years with the Donquixote Pirates, once she realised the truth behind how the core members of the crew saw her (a “convenient woman”), her loyalty to them began to dissipate.
If Oda has plans for Monet to find out the true nature of Doflamingo and the lies he fed her, the question becomes, how will Monet actually come to learn about the fact that Doflamingo was lying to her?
The theory I have in mind is that currently Monet is flying towards Dressrosa and during the moment Doflamingo is facing off against Luffy and the conversation begins to center around the “Pirate King”, Monet will arrive at the scene and witness Doflamingo express his lack of interest in such a title. As a result of the realisation that Doflamingo isn’t the man she believed, I can see the loyalty Monet has for Doflamingo crumble away.
With Monet’s loyalty to Doflamingo shattered, the chances for Monet to travel with the Straw Hats becomes a notable possibility.
There’s Something About Monet (Nakama Theory):
>>Evidence against Monet being dead
>>Is Monet evil and irredeemable?
>>Monet’s loyalty to Doflamingo
>>How will Monet become relevant to the story?
>>What will Monet’s role in the story be?
>>Using Nami and Robin to predict who the third female Straw Hat member could be
12Dimension 