Disclaimer: I own nothing except Briar and Katsu...and the plot. Other than that, everything belongs to the manga-ka of One Piece
The Red Dawn: Ties of Friendship
Prologue: Briar Rose
Red haired Shanks blinked as he looked to the only female on his crew. She had just asked to stay behind to help the villagers repair the damage that had occurred during a sea battle between the pirates and a group of marines.
"Alright, just make sure to come find us, Briar. You're a good fighter, we don't want to lose you." The captain smiled, eyes downcast as he gently touched the twenty-two year old's face. "Stay safe." He kissed her lightly on the forehead.
The woman blushed, her silver eyes looking down. "Thank you Captain. I'll make sure to return as soon as I can." She turned to leave, but was grabbed by the man, being pulled against his chest.
"I'll miss you, Briar." The twenty-five year old sighed. He quickly turned the girl around and pressed his lips to hers in an innocent, but passionate, kiss.
Minutes later they pulled away, Briar's silver eyes wide. "C-Captain?"
Shanks smiled, kissing the woman's forehead once more. "Love you."
The ebony-haired female smiled, gently stroking his cheek. "I love you too."
The red head let go of her, grinning like a fool. "Get out of here then. See you in a while."
Briar shook her head slightly, her short hair flying with the motion. "Alright....Don't let Yasopp and Roux in my cabin, alright?"
"Will do lass, will do." He laughed, pushing her towards the dock. "Go on. I won't let them mess with your stuff."
Briar Rose smiled one last time, and disappeared into the night.
~Two Years Later~
"MOMMA!!!!!!!!!!!" a loud wail roused the sleeping woman from her slumber.
Briar opened her bright silver eyes, she had over slept...again. "I'm coming Katsu, I'm coming!" She stood and walked over to a fiery red bassinet that bore the Jolly Roger of the Red Haired Pirates. Old habits die hard. The ex-pirate lifted a red haired toddler out of it and rocked him slowly to calm him down.
Akatsuki giggled as he curled his chubby fingers into his mother's sleep shirt. "Momma's wate."
"Yes, I know I'm late Katsu." the young woman sat the child on the bed, quickly changing into her old attire from when she was a pirate, black button down shirt with the sleeves ripped off (though she could not button the top three buttons, she would have to fix that later), black capri pants held up with a wide black sash, a black bandanna that bore the Jolly Roger of the Red Haired Pirates, and black martial arts slippers. She grabbed her cutlass from beside her bed and slipped it into the sash, quickly checking that the tattoo on her arm was still the same as the symbol on her bandanna and Akatsuki's bassinet.
"Awe we weaving today Momma?" that lisp, so adorable, well, at least in Briar's opinion it was. The boy's cornflower blue eyes were also adorable as they gazed up at her, completely innocent and confused.
"Yes, Katsu. We're leaving. I'm going to find your papa and see if I'm able to rejoin his crew. If not, we can have a trade off sometimes so you can be taught by both of us." she paused and looked up. "Though I might have Yasopp teach you how to use a gun for long range battles because your papa and I both excel at close range combat."
The red haired boy smiled, "Yay! I wanna meet my papa!" He threw his little arms into the air as his mother lifted him up, gently brushing her hand back along his hair.
"We'll be leaving in a bit, but I have to quit my job first then we'll be out on the open sea...Hm, according to the info I got from Mihawk, The Red Force is using the island of Fuchsia as a home base for the time being so that's where we'll be heading first...about a three day journey if I use the cheetah currents." The woman tapped her lips, a sign that she was thinking.
"But I twaught you said dat the cheetah cuwwents were dangewous." the boy pouted slightly.
"For large ships yes, but small crafts can easily navigate them. I'll have no trouble getting us to Fuchsia." Briar smiled, quickly packing a bag full of her clothes and her son's clothes before adding enough food for the two of them and disassembling Akatsuki's bassinet and packing it away. She shouldered the pack before picking up her son. "Let's go. I want to make it to Fuchsia as soon as possible."
The boy giggled and grabbed his mother's shirt as she leaped out of the window.
~Fifteen minutes later~
Briar laughed as she felt the sea breeze in her hair and the spray on her face. There's nothing like being on the open sea after two years of being confined to the land. Land and pirates don't really mix.
Katsu hung on her neck as she expertly manned her wind surfer, cutting through the waves thanks to the speed of the current.
Her boss had been very understanding when she asked to quit, and had given her a bonus in her last paycheck. He always knew that she would leave to find her captain, though that didn't make losing her any easier. She had become a sign of strength to the villagers and said that if she or her son ever had to come back, they would offer them free room and board and any visitors with them.
Akatsuki would especially be missed, the little redhead had kept most of the women entertained during their stay at the inn. The young toddler could charm even the coldest heart, let us hope that he retains that skill in the years to come.
~Three days later~
Briar docked her small surfer next to a large ship...though from where she stood she couldn't see the flag or the name of the ship. She shook her head, 'Probably a merchant ship...Hm... Now who could I ask to show me around town...or at least to the tavern?' Looking around, the woman spied a young boy. A grin swept across her face as she shouldered her pack and grabbed her son, calling out to the boy as she went. "Hey kid! Do you know where I could get something to eat?"
The boy looked at her before nodding. "Yeah, I'm heading that way anyways." He took her hand as she left the dock, managing to steady her as she nearly tripped on a loose plank. "My name's Ace...what's in the blanket?" He poked the bundle as the woman giggled lightly.
"My name's Briar Rose, but everyone calls me Briar. And the thing in the blanket is my two year old son Akatsuki." Her sliver eyes held light amusement as the boy nearly leaped twenty feet in the air.
"You're to young to have a son!" Ace yelled and Katsu cooed a little, peeking over the side of the blanket.
"Actually, young man, I'm twenty-four. Nearly old enough to be your mother."
"Momma, who's da strange boy dat's going to have a heart attack?" blue eyes blinked lazily, a sure sign that the toddler had just woken up from a nap.
"I believe he said his name was Ace."
The black haired boy calmed down before freezing at the sight of Katsu. "He looks really familiar...Oh well." He gestured for Briar to follow him as he resumed walking.
She did, though a few minutes into the walk Katsu reached his arms out to Ace, who blinked before taking the red haired boy from his mother's arms.
"I take it you've taken care of small children before?" Briar smiled, shifting the pack on her back into a more comfortable position.
"Yeah, my little brother Luffy." the boy started to gently bounce the toddler, though he was grinning while Katsu played with his hair.
Katsu giggled, clapping his hands. Briar only smiled a knowing smile as Ace continued, "Actually, Luffy's probably at the bar with Makino and the others."
"Ahh, I wouldn't mind meeting your brother Ace." the woman said, removing her bandanna and tying it over her tattoo, both Jolly Rogers hidden from sight. "If he's anything like you, I should get along with him just fine."
"Luffy and I are nothing alike really. He's hyper, boasting, rude, you name it that kid has probably done it." the boy grinned up at her, expecting her to drop her jaw, though she just shook her head.
"I've probably seen worse from the captain of the ship I used to work on. He used to act like a little kid all the time. And actually, Katsu's kind of like that." She laughed lightly, "My old captain was actually the one to get me to open up. Before that I would never talk to anyone, except kids about your age that were out trying to make a living as pickpockets and thieves. And then I had Katsu, so I had to open up even more, considering that, like his father, he craves attention and conversation, otherwise he's bored and starts to get into trouble."
"Were you a pirate?" Ace asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow as he looked up at the woman.
"When I was your age I was a pirate apprentice. Then my captain was executed and I started working at a flower shop for a while before I met a man that had been an apprentice with me and he asked me to join his crew. I said yes and I was a pirate again, but I quit two years ago so that I could help some villagers repair their town, considering that my crew had near destroyed it in a battle with some marines. Then I found out I was pregnant with a crewmate's child and I stayed longer than planned, waiting until Katsu was old enough to withstand the weather of the sea and I left, trying to find my old crew." Briar linked her hands together behind her head as she looked down at the ten year old.
"What crew were you on?" Ace swung the two year old around slightly, causing an explosion of giggles.
"That's a secret for now. If I don't have any new info on their whereabouts in the next week, I'll tell you and your brother." She winked a silver eye, a smile on her lips.
The ten year old blushed lightly, but it quickly faded when Katsu tugged harshly on his chin length black hair. "Ow, easy there squirt." He looked up and smiled a little nervously. "Well, I guess it's a good thing you're an ex-pirate, cause it sounds like there's a lot of drunkards in there...Hope Luffy's alright." He was about to pass the toddler back to his mother when said woman scooped him up in her arms. "H-Hey!"
Briar looked at him, her eyes showing amusement but also some caution. "I know those laughs and drunken slurs. And I know just how rowdy this particular group of pirates can be when they've had a little too much liquor."
The boy tilted his head to the side slightly. "How do you know them?"
Briar smiled lightly, though it didn't really touch her eyes. "Because they're my old crewmates."
Ace froze, thunderstruck. The woman holding him had seemed so happy when she was talking about them, but now she seemed slightly scared. When he finally found his voice, he asked, "Why don't you look happy about it? I thought you really wanted to see them again."
Briar laughed slightly, but it was a nervous laugh. "I'm scared. The father of my son is in there and I have no idea how he'll react to me coming back, and I really have no idea how he'll take the news that he's a father."
The freckle faced boy sighed lightly. "Shanks is Katsu's dad, isn't he?"
The woman nearly dropped the two in her shock, but quickly regained her composure. "H-How did you know?"
"Because Shanks is the only one with red hair." Ace replied flatly.
"Well...I feel slightly stupid now." Briar grinned sheepishly and bit her bottom lip. "But thanks for lightening the mood Ace." She kissed his forehead, smiling as she heard a light giggle from her son as he saw a bright red blush dart across his face. "Shall we go in now?"
The boy nodded and Katsu clung to his neck as the woman holding the two strode into the tavern.
"HEY ACE! Who's the pretty lady?" a small boy sitting at the counter yelled. He looked kind of like Ace, though his hair was shorter and he didn't have any freckles.
Briar smiled, glancing at the red haired man next to the boy. "So, I suppose you're Luffy? You're brother showed me the way here from the docks...And I think my son is having fun messing with his hair..."
Katsu giggled and let go of Ace, reaching towards the red haired man next to Luffy. His mother set both him and the black haired boy down and Ace handed him to the man at the bar, a slightly concerned look on his face.
The man leaned down, cooing to the toddler as he picked him up. "Well aren't you a cute little lad." It was a statement, but the toddler nodded enthusiastically.
The small boy poked the man's chest. "Why you hawdew than Momma. Momma's chest is weawwy soft."
Briar, who had ordered a light fruit drink, choked and nearly fell off of her stool. Ace began to slap her back. "A-Akat-su-ki!" the silver eyed woman yelled between coughs.
The man gawked slightly before guffawing with his crew.
Katsu tilted his head to the side. "Huh?"
The man's laughter died down to chuckles as he hefted the child up onto the bar and looked into his eyes. "How do you know your mother's chest is softer than mine?"
The toddler failed to catch the mischievous glint in the older male's eyes, but he answered truthfully, "I awways fall asweep when Momma howlds me."
A collective "OOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHH..." went through the pirates, though it sounded dejected, as though they had been expecting something else.
The woman behind the bar coughed slightly, though the ex-pirate glared and stood, walking over the red-haired man.
"Sir..." her voice was quiet, though it held an edge like the blade of her cutlass, "I suggest that you stop the perverted thoughts while around my son."
The man turned to look at the woman and gulped, "E-easy now, lass." He suddenly paled, his eyes wide. "B-Briar..."
"Yeah, it's me. I said I'd catch up didn't I?" she smiled sadly as she removed the bandanna on her arm and tied it around her head so that both Jolly Rogers were visible now.
Shanks stood up quicker than Briar thought possible, his arms engulfing her in a hug as he buried his face into her neck. "I missed you lass."
The raven haired woman smiled, though her knees gave way and the man was left holding her up. "I missed you too..." she closed her eyes and a few tears found their way down her cheeks.
The red haired pirate pulled back and looked into the woman's silver eyes. "What's wrong...and wait. If he's your kid, than who's his father?"
Briar grinned weakly. "I was just wandering if you'd let me back on the crew and who's the only red haired man in the room?"
The man faltered slightly, looking around the room before his eyes landed on the toddler, who stared at the two with a confused look on his cherubic face, while Ace, who was holding a hand over Luffy's mouth and holding him still, also looked at the two, though it was with more concern than curiosity. Luffy, on the other hand, was squirming and trying to yell something to the captain.
'Well, the lad can't be his own father...I have red hair...and I don't think that anyone on that island had red hair.....Oh sweet Jolly Roger...' Shanks gulped as he looked back at the woman he held in his arms. "Y-You mean that night almost three years ago lass?"
The silver eyed female nodded, a dark blush rising to her cheeks, "Y-Yes, Sh-Shanks."
Shanks blushed himself as he remembered the events that apparently led to the creation of the red-haired toddler sitting on the bar. He released Briar, turning to the rest of the pirates in the bar. "Briar's back!"