So this is happening. Just some backstory to the Big Mom Pirates that we didn't get to see. I'm sure it will be fleshed out in the anime but until then IT'S ALL CANON MUAHAHAHA- Anyway, I have gone back and proofread this properly and will be making the chapters much longer.
DISCLAIMER (27/05/2019: This was written during the middle of the Whole Cake Island , so of course the ending contradicted a few parts of my story. Because I'm happy with most of what I've written, I'm going to keep this as it is, thus making it an AU (Yes I try to avoid these but eh). For the chapters after 11, which is the last one I wrote before the arc ended, I will follow canon when I can (Plus SBS stuff)
For the sake of clarity, anything in italics will be thoughts/the past, and normal text will be in the present.
So enjoy the origins of the Big Mom Pirates!
/
Charlotte Perospero did not feel fear often. Outside of Mama's rampages, he was the calmest child of hers barring Katakuri (And he had been recklessly violent as a kid, only calming down later). Now he felt fear, not just because of his Mama, but because the hairs on his neck were tingling. A sweet smelling breeze ruffled the clothes of his jacket, but to the Minister it was as if destiny stood among them.
Why? They were just some punk-ass pirates. They would not escape; could not be ALLOWED to escape. Nobody, not even this Mink, would get in his way. Charlotte Perospero raised his staff to stop Pedro's strike, falling back to avoid the riposte and returning with one of his own. A dull thunk sent vibrations up his candy cane as it collided with Pedro's head, the Mink down on the ground. Caught up in the fight, he stepped on the mink's chest, gloating over his victory.
"Good riddance!" came the reply, such firm conviction in the deep, growling voice that it broke through the Minister's euphoria. Slowly he watched as the coat fell open to reveal the bandolier of explosives that almost covered the Mink's entire body.
His brain shut down for a second at what was going to happen, and it didn't register at first. Were the explosives a threat to prevent the Minister from killing him? Then the bastard pressed the cigarette to his bandolier of dynamite and Perospero felt the colour drain from his face.
Impossible. Nobody had challenged his family as much as this since Gold Roger. Many had dared, and fallen, so for her eldest to die to this hairy bastard? What would Mama say? What would Mama do without him?!
Big Mom's firstborn saw the fizzle and separation of explosives in slow motion, and felt hatred before the fear. He hated Pedro for that single eye, that pupil filled with determination and conviction. He was not afraid of dying as Peros was. In the middle of it, a cold hand grasped his heart, one he'd felt far too many times in Totland.
Destiny wasn't watching the battle.
It was Death itself.
/
There was no father, or siblings, uncles/aunts or even cousins when I was born. The only person I could call family was Mama, and with this lonely feeling I clung to her. I clung to her and vowed deep within my newborn soul I would never leave her. We'd never be alone.
By the time I learnt about how babies were made, requiring a man and woman, I didn't care. Whoever my father was, he hadn't been there. Only Mama, with Streusen in tow. I may have asked offhandedly once during a cooking lesson, since anything apart from deserts bored me, but Streusen just chuckled in that mysterious way, remaining silent.
Later, Mama called me to her room, already pregnant with my younger brothers, and embraced me. "Peros, you are no one's son but my own. You are Charlotte Perospero, bearing my name and my wishes. All you need is your Mama, Peros. Do you understand?"
Perospero coughed up the smoke in his lungs, waking him from the delirium of his memories. The ringing in his ears was persistent and deafening in his mind. Blood trickled into his mouth, but any dizziness gave way to anger. "Bastard!" His first word after returning to the world, but it was appropriate.
His right arm. His FUCKING RIGHT ARM, gone in an instant along with his candy armour.
Sacrilege!
Pedro should realised his arm was Big Mom's. His body was made by her and so belonged to her. Perospero was her child, her pride, and her eldest. No other child could claim the same, and it made him proud.
Ever since he was a boy it had been like that. Through sheer force of will, Big Mom's oldest pulled himself up, doing all he could to remain conscious. A lattice of candy was already sealing off his the blood dripping from his torn arm, but he had more important things to deal with.
The reasons didn't matter. The strong and powerful men I saw in her company were either never seen again, or became a part of her crew. In those early days, many men were vying for one night with the Queen of Totland. Delusional, their fantasies led them straight into Mama's arms, giving her sources of power in the vessel that was her body. But in the end, no man was worthy of Mama. Each child that followed was told this, taught the same doctrine to help control them
Mama's children were smart; and the oldest, wisest of us always knew it was about power, fame and expansion. We all came along for the ride, and should be grateful for the opportunity. I watched Mama at her tea parties, happy and joyous and I imagined I saw her true personality come forth. The few pure moments of joy that made me want to hug her, to love her, made it all worthwhile.
She is Mama, and nothing would ever change that.
Mama wanted strong children to help her along, to carry the future and provide an extra hand or two. Streusen did what he could to nudge the children along, and with staff in hand I knew then I would protect Mama. Even though she razed cities, had destroyed entire countries, she was still my mother, and had feelings like everyone else.
Cursing, the Minister pressed hands to his stomach, feeding candy into his body and exerting his will over it. He had to stem any blood loss and fix any trauma before his daydreams became serious.
Perospero seethed with anger, trying to ignore his missing limb. The Big Mom pirates were bigger than him, bigger than a single arm. Mama wouldn't care about a limb, so he couldn't care about it. Her son staggered towards the ship, determined to kill the Straw Hats himself. His legs gave out and Perospero wheezed from the effort, dragging himself forward.
He was her son, he was her Peros. It was up to him to save her
"Mama?" enquired Perospero softly, Streusen behind him and gesturing to the room. The door was ajar slightly, and he urged me to look inside. His tall and slender Mama was on her knees in a pool of tears. The photo she held was one he had seen only once before, what Mama called her most treasured possession.
"Mother. Mother. Why did you leave me? Mother!" wailed Charlotte Linlin, wiping away tears. Seeing such weakness from his mother, such human emotion, he gasped head turned in slow motion, and she rose up like a giant beast.
The door slammed behind the child, sealing his fate. Trembling, the boy looked up into her eyes, tall stature dwarfing the tiny human. Seeing her absolutely furious, Peros knew he was going to die for seeing a deep secret.
There was only one thing left to do, a last act of his life. He was frozen in fear, but a tear she missed dripped down her cheek, telling Perospero what he had to do. Even if he died, he could help her first, and hugged her legs, head barely reaching her knee.
Arms around her legs, he looked up into the stern, scowling face, putting every inch of his love and devotion to her in the gesture hiding the fear inside. "I won't ever leave you, Mama, I promise." A myriad of expressions crossed her face before she peeled off her firstborn and dropped it in front of the throne. She and knelt down, putting a hand on his shoulder.
"Never, tell, anyone. Never! You are just my lowly son, Peros. You will have to earn my love. Work hard for your Mama, and I will forget this happened."
Her hand patted his head roughly, shoving the boy out before he could respond.
Inside the Minister's body, candy solidified into a strong carapace to reinforce his skeleton once more. Devil Fruits were amazing things; he could replace his own heart if he wanted to with a working, candy model. No time to ponder on that, though, for he had embarrassed himself and, worst of all, Mama. After all she did to help him grow big and strong, it was almost like he had failed her.
No, it wasn't about him.
Peros shook his head, focusing instead on his Mama. She had protected him, and he needed to protect her. It had been that way since his tenth birthday.
The tenth birthday party of Charlotte Perospero. The first of many great affairs in Totland, and the first of many such birthdays. Such an extravagant affair, even compared to her weekly tea parties, it meant guests and VIPs came from all around to pay homage to Mama.
It had nothing to do with Perospero of course.
/
"Distinguished ladies and gentlemen of Totland, plus our honoured visitors. Once ten years of age, any child of Big Mom is required to prove themselves to her. In front of our esteemed guests, it is their job job to show Mama what they have done. It is a rite of passage for her children, and proper respect must be shown. Any who do not, will have their heads removed." Streusen finished with a bow before returning to his chair next to Big Mom.
On her other side sat the women of the Charlotte Family, starting with a smiling woman in the finest dress anyone there had seen. A single scar on her cheek marred the beauty of Cassandra d'Gateau, official nanny of the Charlotte family. She picked at the hair of the girl beside to straighten it, a haughty and proud Compote letting her even with her sulking.
Plumper, but no less regal, was Charlotte Mondée, second daughter of the Charlotte family and good friend to her older sister. There the resemblance of the children to Big Mom faded, as the three long necked women following provided a marked contrast to their older siblings. Whereas eldest and second daughter were jovial and arrogant, an unnatural stillness emanated from the presence of these almost alien-like triplets.
On her opposite side should have been sat the completely different Baking Triplets Katakuri, Oven and Daifuku, but they'd ignored her invitation. Anyone who called her merciless should first think about how gracious she was to let her children refuse an invitation, a luxury not even Kings were afforded.
Hidden with the cakes, I raised my collar against the cool of the pantry. A quick peek through the doorway told me exactly what I needed to know. Turning to a body length mirror, held up by a chess soldier, I made sure everything was spotless in his outfit.
The double breasted jacket was a brilliant shade of pink, Mama's favourite colour, while my trousers were the finest whale skin dyed a deep violet. I was tempted to enjoy this party, but then remembered this was Mama's moment. All my accomplishments would be hers along with my life.
I shuddered, but was confident enough. The plan was a long shot, but nothing worth having having comes without risks.
Or, in the words of Head Chef Streusen, 'There's no such thing as sweet and fluffy in this life.'
I knew this would be the best chance to prove in front of everyone my worth to Mama. I wanted her to adore me, praise me. I didn't need her to love me; I wasn't that shallow.
An urgent poke from the head chef snapped me out of my thoughts. The signal! Barging past them I pushed the doors open easily, leading the parade of sweets and treats. The one right behind me carried the largest of them all. Guests felt silent as Mama regarded me with a neutral expression. "My beloved family and distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I thank you all for coming to my tenth birthday!" I called, arms out and my wooden staff gesturing like a conductor's baton.
No one could deny the showmanship of this moment, and the attention made me giddy. I had to word this correctly, however, or Mama would be enraged. Twirling the staff like Streusen taught, I continued talking. "But in this celebration, do not think of me, but of Mama! It is thanks to her that I and all of you are here right now! Let us all applaud her generosity!" I declared with a deep bow.
Everyone clapped rapidly, trying to outdo the other and not be killed for non-participation. Mama looked pleased and pretended to be flattered as I gestured to the cakes. For the first time, I had been given centre stage, and now it was up to me to show I deserved to keep it.
I bowed with a flourish, gesturing to the cake. "Thank you for having me, Mama! I promise to always give you the sweetest of deserts!" Ipulled the cloth off the titanic cake, almost as big as Mama herself. There was a gasp, and Mama was transformed into a giddy child at the giant, multi-layered cake.
The crowd was mesmerised, seeing five cakes stacked on each other. A moist and packed banana cake rested at the bottom, untouched by any decoration except for the glazed raisins that shone like jewels. Above that came the red velvet cake, cut into thin slices filled with exceptionally thin layers of cream in lines so straight they made the world look crooked. A thick layer of rainbow coloured icing finished the top of the cake, supporting the chocolate fudge, guilt laden monstrosity filled with a rich chocolatey cream that made everyone's mouths salivate.
The piece-de-resistance came in the form of a light fairy cake covered in three different types of chocolate sprinkles, toasted marshmallows and jelly beans all supporting the huge candied version of Big Mom on top.
"In honour of your glory, I give you my own creation. The Charlotte family Special!" The two chefs beside me went into action immediately, the shorter of the two jumping onto the taller one's back and leaping up. A huge knife slashed down into the cake, and the motion was then repeated on another part, cutting a huge slice that still contained only an eighth of the cake.
With acrobatic elegance they supported it over and placed it in front of Mama with a bow, stepping back so as not to steal my thunder. Everyone took a deep breath, wondering what she would think, and I resisted my body's temptation to sweat. Everything had to be perfect.
She squealed happily, bouncing up and down, and without any preamble she started shoving pieces of the monstrosity into her mouth. A gleam of pride in her eye made me dance inwardly, gleeful eyes revealing the ecstasy she felt inside. I knew she'd like the performance, but in the end it would have been the cake which would make or break me.
When she was finished, Mama beamed to the crowd. "Yuuuumyyyy!" she cried, her highest compliment, and looked at me proudly. "You've done your Mama proud, Peros! We will feast together!"
The applause was deafening, a dull buzzing in my ears as I climbed the gilded steps to my seat. Tears of happiness streamed down my cheeks as I took my rightful place by her side. Remembering her no hugging rule, I sat demurely, only giving my staff one last wave. "Thank you for having me, Mama!"
Everything cheered, Mama's happiness infectious, and I knew then I would give up everything to stay there.
All of it was for Mama, after all.
How could I leave her?
/
"WE~DDI~NG CA~KE!" Big Mom's firstborn let out a cry of frustration, dissipating the smoke.; now was not the time to reminisce! Focus, you bastard, because if the pirates escaped he'd be finished. Perospero grinned through the blood, standing up tall and proud. Their ships surrounded Straw Hat, and even if his candy web had been destroyed by that explosion, brother Katakuri was still on board their ship.
The strongest of them all, his brother had been a worthy rival, and now it got even better as Mama grabbed onto the ship itself, shaking it about. He kept a careful watch, as he was a bit worried about her falling into the ocean, but still tried to summon another candy web. A presence, or rather lack of, interrupted his concentration.
His brother's presence had disappeared. Before he could think on it more, there was another flash of white light that blinded the Minister of Candy and was followed by a deafening 'boom'.
Blinking his eyes better, Perospero gaped, howling in disbelief as the ship blasted into the sky to certain safety.
Oh God, this was bad.