Chapter VI: Before the New World P.2– Sabaody Archipelago
"Speech"
Thoughts or emphasis or scenery changes or significant time gaps
ANGRY VOICE
/ Flash back or summaries /
*noises* (except laughter)
*actions*
'Telepathy' (Only for the telepath's voice)
Grove #44
Ace
Sabaody. This was the place the slavers always talked about. A place where they would have sold the brothers. Yet it looked like nothing the boys had imagined it to be. All around were giant trees, mangroves, which made up the Sabaody Archipelago. These monsters dwarfed the trees back on Dawn Island. Ace gazed at the sights around him. Sabo admired the pearlescent bubbles that somehow came out of the ground and would float somewhere above the treetops. Right now, they were just kids taking in the new experiences. At least until they heard the sudden shouting.
"Oi, brat! Come down here!"
And there went Ace's moment of contemplation. Gazing into the bubble-filled sky, Ace's frown morphed into an expression of horror. Their bumbling little brother somehow ended up in one of those bubbles that kept rising from the ground. And the idiot just laughed as he looked around in awe at all the sights above and around the mangroves.
They had just docked at Sabaody last night. Marco had decided what divisions could have shore leave, and what the other divisions would do to prepare the ship for their next departure. Since the 12th and 7th divisions had shore leave, Marco had asked their commanders if they would watch the four children while the boys explored the island. Haruta didn't mind, and Rakuyo said he didn't plan for much anyway other than stocking up on his personal booze supply. Rakuyo may be having regrets now about agreeing. The 7th division commander had never spent more than a few minutes at the most with the boys, so he had no idea what trouble they could manage. Haruta, on the other hand, enjoyed watching his youngest brothers' shenanigans. Speaking of which…
*Pop.* Luffy's bubble had just broke open, and the rubber boy's laughter cut off as he felt his body suddenly plummet to the earth. Ace and Sabo scrambled to try and catch their little brother. Suddenly the boy's headlong dive to the ground slowed and abruptly stopped a foot above the ground.
"That, dearest Luffy, is why you should listen to the seventh commander when he told you to – how did he put it? – Not to do something stupid or reckless during our stay on the island. And that was only ten minutes ago," chided a voice above the group. Carelessly dangling from one of the mangrove's branches hung Kit. The elder boy sported a pair of yellow ears and was using seven golden tails to anchor himself to the branch. Haruta snickered at him.
"You're not exactly doing much better. At least Luffy won't hurt himself too badly if he fell."
"Mmm, good point commander," agreed the fox with a smile as he dropped down from the branch. Like Luffy, he slowed down just as he neared the ground. Rakuyo ran over to Kit and began yelling at him for being as reckless as his baby brother. Ace grumbled at the heart-stopping display. The show-off was using his telekinesis and messing with Rakuyo.
After Luffy and Kit sported some very interesting bumps from their sworn brothers and suffered a rant from Rakuyo, the group was off. Rakuyo warned the boys to not get into any more trouble and for Kit to change back. The boys were to stick close to the commanders as Sabaody had many dangers such as bounty hunters and slave traders. No matter what, the boys could not get separated from them. They stopped by a shop to rent some bubble bikes for which Luffy gave his best Luffy pout in an effort to persuade the commanders to buy one. Rakuyo chuckled good-naturedly and patted the young D's head. Apparently the bubbles of Sabaody popped outside of its unique atmosphere. That information slipped right through Luffy's rubber brain, though, and it took receiving another bump from Ace to get the boy stop nagging the commanders. Luffy had a short attention span luckily. He quickly forgot about the whole argument, as he cheered from his seat on the wagon attached to the bubble bikes.
Noon
Some Restaurant in Sabaody
They had just finished sight-seeing for the morning, and Luffy began to complain about food. Ace, Sabo, and Kit agreed with their youngest brother in a chorus of grumbles. Rakuyo smiled at the boys and said he knew just the place for lunch. Luffy cheered the whole ride to the restaurant chanting "Food, food, food!"
Upon entering the restaurant, a large scruffy man waved the group over to his table. The man munched on some pie as he greeted the commanders and the boys. Ace felt strange. He glanced at Luffy who had suddenly gone silent, his smile gone. The youngest D inched closer to him, hiding himself somewhat behind the older D.
Haruta's eyes slid over to littlest brother that hid behind the older. He frowned before directing his attention back to the bulky black-haired man.
"Guys, this is Marshall D. Teach, a member of the second division and one of the original members of the crew," said Rakuyo as he gestured to the large man.
Kit didn't act normally either. Normally, the older boy gave new people his trademark grin, a toothy smile and gleaming half-slitted eyes that hinted at mischief. Kit did not smile. Ace could imagine the older boy would be lowering his ears in threat if in his fox form. As it was, the boy consciously schooled his unconsciously formed scowl to a wary frown so quickly that someone not observing him too seriously would miss the vanishing scowl. Sabo looked to his brothers with concern before introducing himself to their guest.
"I'm Sabo, our youngest brother is Luffy, the boy he's clinging to is Ace, and Kit is the oldest. It is very nice to make your acquaintance."
"Zehahaha. Sure are a polite one. Ehhh…is the little one okay? Seems a bit scared if you ask me."
"Hmmm. Maybe he's not comfortable with new people, Teach. So how's the food?" asked Haruta, although he spent enough time with the kids to know that Luffy seemed to like just about everyone.
"Zehahaha. I guess the brat just needs time to know me better. The cherry pie here is excellent, and the booze's not half bad."
The group settled down to eat lunch. Luffy ate an outrageous amount as usual but slowly, as his eyes kept sliding to the large man across their table. Kit ate normally but stared at the man out the corner of his eye. Ace frowned as finished his meal. He shared a worried glance with Sabo and the boys silently agreed that they would be sure to ask when they were alone in their room. Teach got up and gave a hearty good-bye to the commanders before he finally left the group.
Luffy finally stopped trying to cling to Ace when Teach left, and Kit spared the departing man one last scrutinizing look before replacing his frown with his normal smirk. Sabo was about to say something to those two when Rakuyo announced their plans to spend the remainder of the day at Sabaody Park. Luffy smiled wide and stars shown in his eyes. The boys heard how Sabaody had an amusement park full of rides, games, and carnival food.
"Yay! Let's go! Shishishishi."
Sabaody Park
Luffy
This place was so neat. Luffy loved to dash around and point out all the cool shiny prizes and rides and games. All the boys wanted to try some of the rides at the park. Their eyes practically gleamed. Rakuyo looked a bit pale though. Shishishi. But Haruta only seemed amused and more than willing to accompany the boys on all sorts of roller coasters and rides. Luffy loved the Ferris wheel the most, though. From way up at the top, he could see all of Sabaody and even a bit of the sea beyond the furthest mangroves. Here, his dream to be the next pirate king felt all the more real.
Sabo
Honestly, Luffy could not be any more excitable than now. Their youngest brother practically bounced around and on more than one occasion had to be restrained before he tried to literally rocket off to the next eye-catching ride. Rakuyo actually tied a small rope to the energetic boy just so Luffy wouldn't get lost. If Kit, Ace and Sabo haven't taken turns at Luffy watch the boy would have already separated from the group before Rakuyo put the makeshift leash on him.
The top hat wearer sighed. With Luffy dragging Rakuyo to another game where he would hopelessly lose, Sabo decided to check out one of the game stands himself. The game was one of those test your strength games but not quite as simple. The various bells floated at different levels in the air. Not only did a person have to hit mallet with enough strength to send the shot flying up to a bell but the contestant would also have to have good aim to hit the bubbles that hovered in different sections of the sky. Sabo was about to leave when he spotted some of the prizes. On one stand was a rack of hats. The one that caught Sabo's eye was a bright orange cowboy hat that had two smiley medallions, a happy face and a sad face. Next to it was a black baseball cap with a white rim. The best part of the cap was the cartoonish blue fox design that ran along the sides. Sabo smiled. According to the sign, hitting the highest bell won the contestant either one gold prize or two of the silver prizes. Each hat had a silver tag.
Sabo paid for a turn at the game despite the vendor's disbelieving laughter. Fighting the tiger lord, crocodiles can't be easier than this. Good thing Izo working on our aim with some practice on slingshots and bows. He dragged the mallet and firing device to the area where the highest target floated. 1, 2, 3…*SMACK!* The shot flew straight up into the air, popping the bubble and smashing the target to pieces. Victorious, Sabo asked for the two hats from the sputtering game vendor.
Kitsune
Kit couldn't help the beaming smile that has occupied his face since Sabo presented Ace and him with their new hats. Ace received his hat with a bit of a red face as Haruta and Rakuyo commented on how cute he looked. Kit had no such protests and gave Sabo a one armed hug as he sat his new baseball cap at an angle on his head. The hats were actually a bit big on either boy, like with Sabo's and Luffy's, but they'd probably grow into them. This day certainly couldn't get any better.
The group just left the park and were heading off to meet with some of the commanders at one of the groves. They returned their bikes before going to the park, so the group proceeded on foot. They just entered arrived to Grove #20 when the crowds suddenly went quiet. Kit tilted his head in question before the commanders hustled the boys into the shadows of an alleyway. Kit watched as the groups of people in the streets drew to the sides and bowed. Luffy tried to protest Rakuyo's hold until the older man clapped a hand over his mouth and ordered him to hush. Ace and Sabo could feel the tension in the air. Kit felt like puffing his fur out if he had any.
There in the cleared path strode an oddly dressed woman that rode upon a…fishman? The woman wore some sort of suit and a bubble around her head. Her entourage didn't seem too pleasant as several of them wore shackles and collars, including the poor fishman. Haruta muttered darkly as he drew closer to the side of the alleyway. Once the group walked far from view, the crowd relaxed. People returned to whatever they were doing as if nothing happened.
"Who was that?" asked Sabo.
Rakuyo grimaced, and Haruta answered him. "Celestial Dragons. World Nobles. The worst scum in the world. They believe themselves higher than humans and treat us peasants as no more than trash or toys for their amusements. They actually think they're gods," spat the 12th division commander.
The boys paled at the word "Celestial Dragon."
"Dragon? Like the bad ones that blew up Sabo?"
"Hush Luffy. You said that like I'm dead. I survived, alright?"
"Blew up Sabo?" asked Haruta with a raised brow.
Kit nodded once before explaining. "A Celestial Dragon came to Dawn Island once. At the time, Sabo tried to set out early. He just couldn't stand his home anymore, especially after the fire. His ship crossed paths with the incoming Celestial Dragon's vessel, and well…Sabo survived because of this one guy that took him away for recovery. That's why Sabo has that burn scar across his eye. We thought he was dead for a while. I had to help Dadan, our caretaker, tie Ace to a tree, he was so mad. And Luffy cried for nights."
"You weren't better big brother. You work yourself to exhaustion trying to take care of us and holding in your own tears until you pass out one day," reminded Ace with a hollow voice. Thinking about the incident always made him moody and melancholy.
Haruta and Rakuyo looked to the boys with new understanding. The family still didn't know much about the boys' childhood before the slavers took them away from home. All they knew right now was that Kit and Luffy both got their devil fruits at young ages, the boys' guardian – Shitty Gramps, Grandpa, Old Geezer, or Grandfather depending on who was speaking – practically abandoned them and left them with the Dadan Family, and even then the boys usually fended for themselves in a forest full of vicious, giant predators. This incident certainly explained some the older ones' over the top brother complexes.
The two commanders said nothing and just gathered the boys close. After a minute or two, the group continues their way to the meeting place.
Shakki's Rip-off Bar
Kitsune
Shakki, Shakki, where have I heard this name before? The group finally reached their destination. The commanders had to beat down a group of thugs twice since they have entered the seedier part of Sabaody. Any of the idiot thugs that managed to get to close to the four boys received a face full of foxfire if Rakuyo didn't smack them with his flail or if they didn't feel Haruta's blade. The rough looking tavern didn't impress Ace or Sabo. Luffy just thought it looked really cool. Kit could only tip his head to the side. Where have I heard of that name? The commanders just chuckled as they strode into the bar with the boys following close after once Ace shook Kit from his musings.
There in the bar sat several familiar figures drinking. Thatch and Marco were playing cards at one of the tables with some of the first and second division members, Fossa was having a drinking contest with Blenheim, and at the bar was Izo chatting with – Shakki!
/ Sitting on a stool sat a five-year-old child. In front of him, his auntie was telling him about all sorts of things going on in the world. To the side, a tall man with silvery hair was arm-wrestling with Mama. /
"Auntie Shakki!" yelped Kit. Sabo spared a confuse look at fox. Kit gave his brothers a sheepish grin. "Auntie Shakki, my aunt. She's the lady tending the bar and is the owner. She's my uncle's wife," disclosed Kit with a bit of a red face as said aunt smiled before coming over to give the twelve year-old a much protested hug.
"My, have you grown. You're in luck Kitsune, your uncle is actually here and not gadding about the island," said Shakki, and a silver-haired man emerged from the back of the bar.
"Little fox, *laugh* you look life you've hardly aged a day since I last saw you."
"Not true, Uncle Ray! I grew plenty. It's been seven years after all! J-just because Ace is taller than me-" sputtered the indignant fox.
"Excuse me, did you say uncle?"
Oops. Kit forgot that no one except his bonded brothers knew about his family.
"Yeah. My mom was Silvers Lilith, Rayleigh's baby sister. She used to take me to visit her brother when I was younger, before she died and Grandpa adopted me…"
"So wait, you're not relate to Ace, Sabo, or Luffy?" questioned Thatch. The Whitebeard Pirates in the bar drew close to hear more about their younger brothers.
"Technically, none of us are related. We're brothers by bond, not blood. Anyways, Uncle Ray, these are my brothers, Portgas D. Ace, Sabo, and Monkey D. Luffy," clarified Kit. "The four of us joined the Whitebeard Pirates and…"
"Hmm. I don't think I ever heard you four's last names before. Two D's? That explains some of your appetites," remarked Marco.
"Mmm, three actually. My full name is Sol D. Silvers Kitsune. Sol D. Kit for brevity and for my own safety according to Mama and Uncle."
"Well, isn't this a day for revelations. Drinks are on me, boys. It's not every day I see my favorite nephew and meet his new family," exclaimed Rayleigh. "So Kit, tell me, how four kids ended up on Whitebeard's ship? I thought you lived all the way in the East Blue? How was living on Dawn Island, by the way?"
"Well, it's a long story-"
"We got the rest of the evening before we return," said Marco
All the Whitebeard Pirates in the bar gathered around the four boys as they told of their life on Dawn Island, of their adventures and hardships. The boys wove a surreal tale of giant monsters and bandits, bad pirates and good pirates, corruption and bravery. Rayleigh smiled. Portgas D. Ace and Monkey D. Luffy, huh? You sure made some interesting brothers Kit, reflected Rayleigh as he thought on his old captain's beloved and the man that chased his old crew across the Grand Line.
