The Adventures of Monkey D Lily
Summary: Luffy is the Pirate King, and has been for fifteen years. He and Boa Hancock had a daughter they named Lily, she was born on Raftel. When she was five her father was struck down with a poison that no one could cure. Chopper was killed in that battle. Over the next ten years Luffy's nakama was slowly killed until it was only him and Lily left. On Raftel he used the One Piece to send both him and his daughter to an alternate reality where she would be safe. They landed at the base of the Red Line, at the entrance to the Grand Line.
Crocus did his best to cure Luffy, but he refused all treatments. He just wanted his daughter to be safe so that he could join his nakama and family in the next world. Lily had been taught almost everything from the Straw-hat pirates and knew how to look after herself. She was fifteen. She became the youngest member of the up-and-coming Straw-hat Pirates when they sailed down Reverse Mountain.
Chapter 1: The Lighthouse
Lily stared at the Grand Line sadly. It was all she knew but it was also the reason why her father was slowly dying, and had been for the past ten years. His body could no longer fight the poison and he only had a few days at most left to live. She looked back over her shoulder, her green eyes sad as they stared at the lighthouse that guarded the entrance to the Grand Line. Inside her father was bedridden, something he hated more than anything in his life.
With a sigh she stood up and started to walk towards the lighthouse. Crocus, the lighthouse keeper, was looking after Laboon, the Island Whale who had been keeping him company for fifty years and therefore not around to hover over her. It wasn't that she disliked the old man; it was just that every time he looked at her it was with pity, something she hated.
"Dad, are you awake?" she asked as she entered the room her father was supposed to be resting in.
"Of course My Treasure," the sick man replied. He was sitting up in bed and staring out the window forlornly. His black hair was tied back in a ponytail, but it was now more white than black as the poison took more strength from him. His clothes: a red vest, black shorts and a black and red cape, hung over the back of a chair, waiting for him to get up and get dressed in them. It was just for the last week he hadn't been able to get that far. On the desk beside him sat his second greatest treasure, and a symbol to all who saw it…a straw hat.
"How are you feeling today?" Lily asked as she sat on the bed so that she could rest against his side. At fifteen years of age she was very mature and grown-up, but she still liked to cuddle with her father, her anchor.
"A little worse than yesterday," her father replied, holding her close. "I don't think I'll be here for much longer. I will be reunited with my nakama soon."
"I'll miss you," Lily whispered.
"And I you, but when the time comes you will find me and your mother and all your aunts and uncles waiting for you."
"Why did you use the One Piece to send us here?" Lily asked.
"The One Piece granted me one wish, and I used that wish to ensure your safety, and maybe to change the past. My past self will protect you, and with him you will be able to live life to its fullest. You wouldn't be able to do that if I left you alone back in our time."
Monkey D Luffy looked down at his daughter. At 35 years of age he was still very young, but he was also close to death. When he had discovered Raftel fifteen years previously he had learnt that the One Piece had the ability to grant one wish to the person that called himself the King of the Pirates. He hadn't used it then, but when he lost everything except for his daughter, he knew that he could use that wish to send himself and his daughter to the past of an alternate reality where she was an unknown and would be safe.
"I believe that my past nakama will be here soon," he whispered. "I have instructed Crocus to talk to them to get you onboard. I don't think I will live long enough for that to happen."
"Daddy," Lily whispered, tears gathering in her eyes.
"I have lived for ten years longer than expected, I just need to know that you're safe before I move on," Luffy looked back out the window to where he could see Reverse Mountain. So many memories he had of the Grand Line, it seemed only fitting that he would die in the same place where his greatest adventure began. He looked at his straw hat and shakily lifted it. He stared at it for a long time before dropping it onto Lily's head. She froze as the hat landed on her.
"This hat was my greatest treasure for such a long time; it was my promise and my dream. It seems only fitting that I should pass it on to my new greatest treasure, for I know you will look after it. It is my legacy that I'm leaving to you."
Lily pulled the hat off her head and clutched it to her chest. Tears coursed down her cheeks as she felt her father's grip on her slacken. She closed her eyes as she sobbed, knowing that her father had closed his eyes for the last time. The Pirate King of the Future had finally joined his predecessor in death.
The sun had set by the time Lily left the room. She closed the door behind her before hiding away in her own room. She stood in front of the mirror, studying her appearance. She was thin; she hadn't been eating as much as she should have when her father was sick. Her black skirt reached mid-thigh and had two pockets which had various bits of sentimental junk in them. A skin tight black tank-top clung to her chest and stopped just past the top of her skirt, emphasizing her slim waist. Over the black top was a loose red t-shirt that revealed her shoulders and stopped just before the tank top did. Her chest was moderately sized for her age, and she was thankful that it didn't stick out like her mother's or her aunt's did. She wore tan boots that came up to her knees and around her neck was a gold necklace she kept hidden under her red top. Her black hair was unbound and fell to just below her shoulders. The natural curls would sway as she moved, giving her hair the impression that it was alive.
And now, perched on top of her head was a straw hat with a red ribbon encircling it.
Lily knew she looked like her mother more than her father, but she had his determination, his loyalty and his Will. That was all that mattered to her. With one last look at herself she went outside to find Crocus and Laboon, they would want to know that one of their guests was no longer with them.
Crocus was still with Laboon when the sun rose the next morning. Lily had made herself comfortable on the rock cliff and was talking to Laboon who was waiting at the base of Reverse Mountain. She told the Island Whale that her father had left to join his nakama, and that he wouldn't be coming back, before regaling the whale with stories her uncle's had told her as she was growing up. The straw hat was tied around her neck, but her hair covered it easily as she didn't want to wear it on her head just yet.
As midday came along Lily heard a sound coming down the mountain and turned to look at it. Laboon remained motionless, despite Lily warning him that he was going to be hit. The ship that was approaching them at high speeds suddenly shot a cannon ball at Laboon, not doing any damage, but it was at that moment that Lily realized who exactly was coming down the mountain.
The Straw-Hat Pirates had reached the Grand Line.
Her father had told her stories of each stage of their adventure so often that she knew most of them off by heart. Attacking Laboon was just one of them. Lily shook her head and decided to watch from a distance as her future father and his nakama got their first experience of life on the Grand Line. It was only when Laboon sunk from view that she returned to the lighthouse and spent several moments getting her father dressed for a proper send off, befitting of the Pirate King. When she was done he looked like he was just sleeping peacefully in his clothes, except for his slack expression and the lack of movement from his chest.
Loud voices alerted her to the return of Crocus and the Straw-Hat Pirates so she walked outside and waited by the door for Crocus to notice her. It took him several minutes but as soon as he saw her he realized what had happened. He crossed over to her, ignoring the pirates, and pulled her into a hug. Her breath caught in her throat as tears pricked her eyes again at the gesture of affection.
"How long ago?" he asked quietly.
"As the sun set yesterday," she whispered back. His grip tightened around her before leading her to the pirates who had watched the moment with curiosity.
"This is the daughter of a good friend of mine," Crocus explained softly. "He passed on while I was with Laboon so I was wondering if you could keep her company while I pay my respects."
"Sure," the young captain agreed. "We can eat while you're doing that."
Lily nodded at Crocus so as he left she was pulled to the outside table and introduced to the current members of the Straw-Hat Pirates. Captain Monkey D Luffy, Swordsman Roronoa Zoro, Navigator Nami, Sharpshooter Usopp, and Chef Sanji. It was strange for Lily to see her family looking so young and whole. Her dad had short hair, Uncle Zoro still had both his eyes, Aunt Nami had short hair, Uncle Usopp was a weed and Uncle Sanji had his hair covering his left instead of right eye. None of her other aunts and uncles were with them, and if they allowed her to join them then she couldn't wait to meet them.
When Crocus returned, Luffy had already gotten into a fight with Laboon and declared it a tie, eaten all of the fish that Sanji had cooked, and broken the Log Pose right after Lily had explained how to travel the Grand Line without a compass. He sat down beside the young girl and looked at her questioningly. She just shrugged and watched as the pirates bickered amongst themselves.
"I have a Log Pose that you can use," Lily ended up explaining to Nami when she had stopped yelling and looked like she was about to burst into tears. "If I can join your crew I would be happy to give it to you."
Crocus looked at her sharply then, but she just shrugged. Her Aunt Nami had taught her how pirates negotiate, and if she had something that they wanted then she would more than likely be able to join them. Though knowing how her father thought, even if she just asked him she would be able to join free of charge. Crocus shook his head sadly.
"I'm sure that can be arranged," Nami said almost instantly. "Hey Luffy! Lily wants to our crew! Yes or no?"
"Lily's joining us? Alright?" Luffy said excitedly. Nami smirked, as did Lily. Crocus stood up from his place and went over to talk to Luffy anyway, explaining that her father wanted her protected and anything else that the Pirate King of the Future had wanted his past self to know. While he was doing that Lily had pulled out a Log Pose from her pocket and handed it over to the Navigator.
Shortly after that the Straw-Hat Pirates ended up with two more passengers, the mysterious agents Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday. They agreed to set sail as soon as the ship was fixed, and while they were doing that Lily and Crocus got ready to send Lily's father to the ocean.
Old Luffy had told his daughter how his first ship, the Going Merry, had had a burning send off, and admitted that when he died he would like his body to go the same way so that his soul would be free on the wind instead of in the ground or at the bottom of the ocean. As much as it pained Lily to do so, she helped Crocus drop the make shift boat into the water with the Pirate King lying on it, and once it was ready she pushed it off and set it on fire. She, Crocus, and in the distance the other inhabitants of the island, watched as the small burning boat drifted further and further out into the Grand Line, before the first consumed it all and there was nothing.
Lily turned to go inside the lighthouse but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at the young pirate captain in silence, wanting to see what he would do. He squeezed her shoulder gently and whispered into the silence.
"Take as long as you need, we will leave when you are ready," he stated. "But we're now your nakama; we are here if you need us to be."
Lily nodded and continued walking inside. No one else followed her and so it was with a heavy heart that she grabbed everything that she and her father had brought with them to the past and placed it in a bag that she would sling across her back. Eternal Poses from various islands had managed to come with them, various mementos from the future Straw-Hat Pirates also managed to garner a place, some medical supplies and her journals also joined the other objects in the bag. Inside her boots were two daggers the Greatest Swordsman in the world had taught her to wield and attached to her waist was a pistol. Her bag was thrown across her shoulder so on her back from her right shoulder to her left hip sat her worldly belongings. With that done she went back outside to stand before Luffy.
"I'm ready," was all she said.
Luffy nodded and announced to everyone that they were leaving. Lily went up to Crocus to bid farewell, and he told her that none of them knew she was from the future, that would be up to her to tell them if she wanted to. All they knew was that her father had died and she was now alone in the world. She was the greatest treasure to a man Crocus admired. Lily nodded and gave him a farewell hug. She was ready to become once again a part of the Straw-Hat Pirate Crew.
To Be Continued...
Next up in the Adventures of Monkey D Lily:
Chapter 2 - Whiskey Peak