When they had met, he'd been drinking a cup of Isojiman sake, and she had been sipping a steaming cup of some sort of black tea; Darjeeling, perhaps, he couldn't tell without smelling or tasting it himself.
Their eyes had met across the mezzanine of the café, and then she smiled.
Their conversations had taken them back to her place in the piazza, where they drank some more and exchanged stories of their jobs. She was a baker, he was a pirate.
Eventually the consumption of more alcohol had numbed her inhibitions and destroyed his ability to say no, which resulted in a night of raw, unadulterated passion.
But he stayed, and they grew closer until his profession called him away and then he was gone, but she always smiled fondly over their time together.
It was nearly a year before they communicated again, a single letter dropped by a carrier eagle, explaining her illness and potential death. She grew weaker each day and would not survive the coming winter. Among other matters, the letter also mentioned their three-month-old daughter, Soliel.
For the first time in his life, Edward Newgate was shocked; especially when the infant was brought to him the very same evening by a ferryman.
"Um, sir?'
"Boss…"
"Pops, what do we do?"
As his crewmembers bombarded him with questions, Edward "Whitebeard" Newgate examined the sleeping infant in his arms. She had copper-colored hair in soft downy ringlets, with plump cheeks and a button nose. She cooed in her sleep, revealing small dimples.
A few people actually "awww"-ed at the sight, and then did a lot of scowling, as though to re-establish their masculinity. Whitebeard chuckled, and then made a noise in his throat as the baby opened her eyes. They were a clear, dusky yellow, like white wine or champagne, fringed with thick lashes. She blinked up at her father, and made another noise.
"Given its meaning, I think Soliel is a perfect name." the man smirked as the baby gurgled in his arms some more.
"Whaddya think we should do wit 'er, pops?"
Whitebeard considered the infant, who looked up at him. "She stays with us." He chuckled. "Meet your new sister, boys."
