Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, One Piece or How to Train Your Dragon. All characters and their affiliations are owned by their respective creators. I am not making money off of this work of fiction. The characters Rock and Rain do belong to me.

A Family of Outlaws

Chapter Nine: Revolutionary Headquarters

The morning two days later. A loud shout of joy woke everyone on the three ships. In the captain's capin of the Revolutionaries ship Dragon sat bolt upright from his sleep. "It's okay," Kagome mumbled from next to him. "Luffy is just excited."

"What would he have to be so excited about?" Dragon turned to his wife.

"As of today he's no longer grounded."

"You grounded our adult son?"

Kagome opened her eyes and stared at Dragon. "You have a problem with that?"

"No, no, just checking."

"I didn't think so."

~ "Hey Luffy," Zoro called from the watch tower. "Why are you so loud this early in the morning?"

"I'm not grounded any more," Luffy announced.

"You were grounded?" Sanji walked up. "Well, now a few things make sense. Like why you didn't go fishing with Usopp." Sanji looked around as people started to exit the cabins. "I might as well get breakfast started now that everyone is awake." Sanji started to saunter off towards the kitchen.

"Yay, breakfast!"

"Straw Hatter," Law called from the deck of his submarine. "Must you be so loud in the morning? We could hear you through the steel hull of our sub."

"I can't help it Tra-guy," Luffy smiled.

He was suddenly seeing stars as he clutched the top of his head in pain and bent down. "Next time wait until everyone is awake," Nami growled. She stood over the captain, glaring at him.

"Sorry Nami," Luffy whimpered.

Robin also emerged from the cabin of the ship. She was making her way to make some coffee. She was beaten to the punch when Sanji appeared with a tray of fine china with the desired beverage. There were four cups on the tray. "Would you like some coffee Robin-chan?" Sanji offered her the tray.

"Thank you Sanji," Robin smiled. She grabbed a cup and took a cautious sip. As usual it was the perfect temperature when Sanji made it.

"Nami-swan, I made some coffee for you." Sanji rushed to Nami's side without spilling a drop. "For you my lady," he offered.

Nami took a cup absent-mindedly as she stared out at the horizon. "There's going to be a big storm this afternoon," she mumbled.

Sanji looked in the same direction as Nami. He couldn't see what she could, but he trusted Nami's skills as the navigator. She has never been wrong before.

"Where's Rain?" Luffy asked.

Sanji let out a sigh. It would figure that she would be the first person that Luffy would be looking for. He turned around and glanced around the ship. Rain was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Valka or either of their dragons.

"Inferno isn't on the barge," Usopp announced.

Luffy started panicking and ran from one end of the ship to the other. "Where are they?" He started looking in hiding places, including under the seats of the lounge. "I doubt she's under there Luffy," Chopper stated.

"They wouldn't leave without saying 'good-bye' would they?" Nami asked.

"Of course they wouldn't," Kagome called to them. She and Dragon were now on the deck of his ship, crossing over to the Sunny. "Didn't any of you notice that Shadow is gone too?"

"Honestly, no," Usopp stated. "Luffy is too busy panicking over Rain missing."

Kagome laughed and shook her head. "I suppose it's to be expected. After all, only one of you has ever been awake at this time of day." Kagome focused her attention on Robin, who hadn't moved from her place sipping her coffee. "Would you just let Luffy continue to panic like that?"

"Only until he came close to me," Robin said. At this time Luffy had stopped panicking and was paying attention to what was being said. "At dawn, without fail, all the dragons wake for the day. In Darkess' case, being nocturnal, get's more edgy. The dragons then will either go for a flight or will wake their riders to go on a flight with them. More often than not, Darkess wakes Rain to join her. I would imagine that they would be back any time now."

Luffy immediately climbed to the lookout tower and started going back and forth, searching the sky. Zoro did his best to stay out of his way. He didn't want to get plowed over by Luffy.

Souta joined everyone on the Sunny with a yawn. "If I knew I would wake up this early I would have asked Inferno to wake me for his morning stretch. It's more relaxing than what's going on now." He watched Luffy running back and forth in the tower. "What is going on now?"

"Luffy is upset he doesn't know where Rain is," Kagome smiled.

"Is that so?" Akita joined in. A huge grin was also plastered to her face.

Souta shook his head and went to join Usopp at the aft of the Sunny. "Women are scary sometimes," he muttered as he stood next to Usopp.

"Try living day-to-day with Nami," Usopp said. "I'm surprised none of us have been hospitalized yet."

"From what I've seen, you better not let her hear you say that."

"So true."

Bortolomeo finally came out of the men's cabin. He was wide awake and armed to the teeth. "Why do you have all that stuff?" Franky asked from behind him.

"Luffy-sempai has been yelling," Bortolomeo said. "I thought that we were under attack."

"If we were he would be laughing," Chopper informed. "Right now it's most likely he lost his hat."

"What? Luffy-sempai can't loose his hat," Bortolomeo started looking around the ship.

"You can relax rooster," Sanji stopped him. "Luffy isn't looking for his hat. He's looking for Rain."

"Then he still needs my help," Bortolomeo said. He had a tone of confidence. "Luffy-sempai needs help in relocating his lady friend."

"Is he for real?" Usopp asked.

"Seems like," Souta said. "I don't envy you guys for having him on board. I bet he would go above and beyond just to make Luffy happy."

"That's what worries me."

In a flurry of motion the dragons landed on their respective ships. Shadow landed on the Revolutionary ship, causing a stir among them. Inferno landed on the barge, but lifted his head and nudged Souta since he was conveniently close by. Cloud Jumper and Darkess landed on the deck of the Sunny. Valka and Rain fully geared on their backs.

"What is going on?" Rain asked. As soon as her feet touched the deck she was wrapped in a tight hug. Luffy had come from out of nowhere. All of the women watched this with pleased smirks. Sanji and Brook were glowering at Luffy for getting a hug. Everyone else went about their daily business.

Sabo was crossing over to the Sunny. "Leader, I have a report from the Helm's man. He says that we're half a day away from Headquarters."

"That's a good thing," Nami cut in. "We need to get there as soon as possible. We don't want to be out on open water this afternoon. There's a huge storm coming that could sink all of us. Well, maybe not Tra-guy if they submerge."

"I'm not surprised there will be a storm," Valka walked up. "There was a red sky at dawn this morning."

Nami visibly paled while everyone else in the area looked confused. "What does that have to do with anything?" Bortolomeo asked.

"We have an old saying on Berk," Valka said. "Before our ancestors settled they were sea nomads, or sailors if you prefer. The proverb goes, 'Red sky at night, ships delight. Red sky in morning, ships warning.' It basically means that a red sky at night means good weather and a red sky in the morning means bad weather."

"I still don't get it," Bartolomeo flatpanned.

"It's all in the pressure system," Nami explained. "A good wind moves from west to east. This also applies to normal storms. If the sun setting casts a red glow then that means the wind and pressure system are normal since it's in the west. If it's in the east, that means that a system has just moved east. Lot's of moisture is in the air and that means heavy rain."

Sanji got hearts in his eyes as Nami once again proved her skills as a navigator. "You're so reliable Nami-Swan," he cheered.

Dragon nodded in understanding and turned to Sabo. "Give the order to travel at full speed," he said. "I want to reach the island before the storm."

"Aye-aye," Sabo grinned. He then left to carry out his duties.

Luffy didn't let go of Rain until she returned his hug. Even then it took a few minutes. Once she was finally released she blinked at Luffy. "What was that for?" she asked.

"I thought you left," Luffy said. "You didn't say anything to anyone. You were just gone once everyone was awake."

"I leave like that every morning," Rain said. "Darkess likes to take us both out."

"Next time don't leave without telling me," Luffy ordered. "I wouldn't be able to handle it if something happened to you."

Rain's eyes widened at the order. Then they narrowed in on him. "Now wait just a moment," she said. She started to poke Luffy in the chest. "Who do you think you are to give me orders like that?"

"I'm the captain," Luffy answered.

"That's besides the point," Rain said. "You don't run my life anymore then my father and brother do. If I want to go for a morning flight then I will. I don't need your permission to do so."

"I didn't say to ask for permission," Luffy came back. "I just want to know you're safe. We have a lot of enemies now, that includes Marines. They could use you to get to us, to me."

"I've said it before," Rain drawled back. "Darkess is too fast for them to follow let alone catch. If I want to swoop past a Marine ship, wave 'hello' then I will do just that."

Dragon's laughter broke up the argument. "You raised her alright," he managed. He was looking down at Kagome at this point. "I remember a similar argument between the two of us when we first learned Luffy was on the way." Kagome joined in the laughter. Rain blushed and looked to the side while Luffy looked confused.

~ Just before lunch the Revolutionary Headquarters was spotted by a look out on Dragon's ship. It was a relief to Nami since the skies had started to darken. Dragon's ship took the lead, making sure that none of the island's defenses attack the Straw Hat or Heart Pirates.

Once all the ships were docked, Ceasar and Jora were taken into the custody of the Revolutionaries. Dragon took Luffy and Kagome on a tour of the building. Robin offered to show everyone else around. The sound of thunder and lightning flashing followed them inside.

"How do you know where you're going?" Usopp asked.

"I spent those two years training here," Robin explained. "I was offered a place to stay here by Dragon himself." As she started to lead the way, Robin noticed that Rain and Valka weren't coming. "You two aren't going to stay here, are you?"

"Someone needs to look after the dragons," Rain answered. "Take a look around the area. There's a lot of curious eyes about. We wouldn't want anyone to accidentally spook one of them and cause havoc. You don't want to see a Monstrous Nightmire angry."

"Only one of you needs to stay," Robin pointed out.

"Why should one be forced to stay behind?" Rain also pointed out. "It makes them feel unwanted. It's just better if two humans stay behind, watching from different directions and all that."

Robin could no longer refute Rain's logic. She simply nodded to the two and continued to give a tour to the others. "You could have gone with them," Valka said.

"I still haven't come to a decision to stay or go," Rain sighed. "It's better not to get too close to anyone else if I leave."

"I think that you should stay."

"Grandma?"

"That young man is smitten with you," Valka said with a grin. "Though, I don't think that he realizes that yet. He's got an air of innocence to him." She laughed at Rain's blank look. "You're innocent as well. Rock didn't do you any favors by keeping the boys away. You don't recognize when someone is interested in you."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I haven't seen Luffy hug any other woman," Valka pointed out. "Not even his own mother, at least not willingly. He allows her to hug him in that case. Also, the way he panicked this morning when he thought you had left. I don't think that he'll let you leave so easily if that's what you decide."

"I suppose we'll have to wait and see."

` That night, after the storm passed, a banquet was set up out in the open to celebrate Dragon being reunited with his family. Everyone was anxious to meet Kagome and Luffy. So many people were demanding their attention that Luffy wasn't able to break away and find his crew.

The Straw Hats were busy with their own number of fans. A number of people had wanted tours of the ship, stories of their adventures and an idea of what it was like to travel with a captain that had such a high bounty on his head.

Of course, Valka and Rain weren't given much peace either. Questions about dragons came in from all directions. Were they dangerous? How fast were they? What they ate? When did they sleep? How did they ever manage to train and ride them? The only group that seemed to be able to just relax were the Heart Pirates. That suited Law just fine. He didn't like to be the center of attention.

Rain and Darkess snuck out of the banquet area when no one was looking. They found a nice set of cliffs to just sit and relax on that no one could reach without being able to fly in some way.

"What do you think Darkess?" Rain asked. Her closest friend lay next to her, staring out to the water. "Should we stay with Kagome, the Straw Hats or do we return with Grandma and Cloud Jumper?" Darkess let out a groan and put her head on the ground. "I don't know either," Rain sighed. "I know the logical thing to do would be to return home. I helped Kagome find her family, just like we set out to do. I'm sure that she'll want to take the time to get to know Dragon once again and to spend quality time with Luffy. She wouldn't want me to hang around just because I'm attached to her. She may have helped raise Rock and I, but she always made it clear she wasn't our mother.

"Then there's the Straw Hats. Why would they want me to hang around? They haven't seen us in a true fight, not really. Luffy was with us when we charged through the palace, but most of the enemy ran. I guess the sight of a dragon was too much for them. None of the others have a reason to accept us. Unless we're in a fight I suppose we would be useless and in the way. We have nothing to offer them besides arial combat. They don't even seem to need that." Rain moved so that she was leaning up against the side of Darkess. She stretched back and looked up to the stars. The sky had a crisp and fresh feeling after that storm in the afternoon.

"I suppose the logical thing would be to go home," Rain whispered. Darkess let out a groan and put her head in Rain's lap. "I know girl, I'll miss them too." Rain patted Darkess on the head. It wasn't long before the heat radiating from Darkess soothed Rain into a slumber.

~ The banquet was winding down and Valka was starting to get worried. She hadn't seen Rain or Darkess in at least two hours. She spotted Souta not too far off, trying to get some of the fangirls off of him and away from Inferno. Valka walked up to him. "I need a favor," she called.

Both Souta and Inferno rushed over as the fangirls let out noises of disappointment. "I can't thank you enough," Souta gasped. Even Inferno looked a little shaken. "What favor did you need?"

"I just need you to keep an eye on Shadow," Valka grinned.

Souta looked at her confused then towards Shadow. The Changeling was happily eating fish fed to her by some of the Revolutionaries, though never straying too far from where Kagome was. "She looks fine to me."

"No worries then," Valka said. "You can go back to your fangirls."

"I'll keep an eye on Shadow," Souta amended. Inferno was quick to agree.

Without another word, Valka swung onto Cloud Jumper's back and the two were off. They started out by circling the island. It was within a few minutes that they happened to see Rain on one of the cliffs. Darkess blended easily with the rocks, but Rain's hair stood out without her helmet on.

As the two flew in closer Darkess perked her head up to look at them. She then looked towards Rain then back up. Valka got the message Darkess was sending. She didn't want to wake Rain up. Valka nodded to Darkess as she and Cloud Jumper started to fly away. They would fly around for a little while, make it seem like it was an everyday occurance and that nothing unusual had happened. The younger of the dragon riders on this island was safe and that was all that mattered.

~ Bortolomeo wasn't used to so many people. He had to get up and stretch. He supposed that the Straw Hats tended to draw a crowd where ever they went. That wasn't too surprising. What surprised him the most was that he was getting attention now too.

As he went for a walk he spotted a set of cliffs on the other side of a beach. It wasn't a surprise there would be cliffs. What surprised Bortolomeo was a small blonde dot on the top of the cliffs. He squinted, hoping to get a better look.

As he stood and watched one of the dragon riders had shown up. She and her dragon flew in front of the cliffs for a moment and then left. He managed to see the profile of a black dragon's head lift from the rocks. It didn't take long for him to figure out who was up there at that point. A grin spread across his features as an idea came to him. He hurried back to the banquet.

Bortolomeo looked all around, but he couldn't find his target anywhere. Sanji was the first one to notice his strange behavior. "Try looking behind some of the barrels first," he suggested. "If that doesn't work, the kitchen followed by the storeroom."

"You know what I'm doing?" Bortolomeo asked in shock.

"I don't know what you're doing." Sanji lit a cigarette and inhaled. It wasn't until he let out his breath that he continued. "You have a one track mind though. You're looking for Luffy, for whatever reason. He's been crowded so much that he's gone looking for a place to hide. If he hasn't been found by someone else then he would be behind the barrels first."

"Thanks a lot," Bortolomeo cheered as he ran in the indicated direction. "Luffy will owe you a lot for this one."

"Why would Luffy owe me?" Sanji wondered to himself.

Bortolomeo spent half an hour looking around for Luffy. He finally found him in the storeroom, behind some barrels. "Luffy-sempai," he called out. "I need your help." Luffy cautiously poked his head above the barrels, his eyes shifting and looking for danger. "I need your help with Rain."

That caught Luffy's undivided attention. "What about Rain?" he asked.

"I was out for a walk when I spotted her and Darkess on a cliff," Bortolomeo started. "It looked like they had fallen asleep. If they stay out there all night then they might get sick. I can't reach them, though. I thought that you might be able to."

"Where is the cliff?" Bortolomeo gave Luffy the directions that he needed and Luffy was gone. Bortolomeo had a satisfied look on his face. He was so sure that Luffy would let him join the crew after this.

~ Luffy found the cliff Bortolomeo described. He had to do a lot of hiding and jumping from one shadow to the next, but he managed to make it. Luffy stretched out his hands and pulled himself to the top of the cliff. He stood and looked at the scene in front of him. Rain was sleeping against Darkess. Darkess, however, was looking directly at him.

Luffy nodded towards Darkess and took a seat next to Rain. Once Darkess put her head back down in acceptance of his presence Luffy leaned back as well. He covered his face with his hat and was soon asleep as well.

~ The next morning Luffy awoke to his shoulder being nudged. He lifted his hat and found that Darkess was using her tail to wake him. It was already daylight out. Luffy stood with a stretch. He got down on his haunches and started to gently shake Rain's shoulder to wake her up.

Rain's eyes fluttered open and stared into Luffy's own. She glanced around and noticed that it was already morning. With a yawn, she sat up from Darkess. Once all the weight was off of her Darkess also stood up and stretched.

"Have you guys been looking for me?" Rain asked.

"Not really," Luffy answered. "Bortolomeo saw where you were last night and told me where I could find you. We should go back though. I know that some of the others are anxious to get started."

Rain nodded as she climbed onto Darkess. Luffy was right behind her and had his arms around her waist as soon as he was settled. Darkess leapt off of the cliffs and simply glided back to the dock, in no hurry.

When they arrived they found everyone already waiting for them. Sanji and Brook were glaring over at Luffy. All of the women looked quite pleased. Dragon and Sabo were smirking. "What is everyone looking at?" Rain asked.

Valka had told them that Rain was asleep and Bortolomeo then informed them he sent Luffy to her. They all assumed that they spent the night out together. "I woke Rain up this morning," Luffy explained. "We need to get going today."

Everyone took on looks of understanding. Luffy had taken the opportunity and slept by Rain while she was unaware. Darkess had been there so Valka and Kagome weren't worried about any funny business.

Off to the side were Valka, Souta and Akita. They were getting ready to head back to Berk. Rain looked to her grandmother and nodded. She and Darkess then moved to join them. "Where are you going Rain?" Luffy asked.

Rain turned back to look at everyone. "I'm going home with my grandma. I just want to tell you all that I enjoyed getting to know all of you. If you're ever in the East Blue you should look Berk up."

"What are you talking about?" Luffy demanded. He had that serious look fixed on Rain again.

"I'm heading back," Rain announced again. "I was supposed to help Kagome find her family. Now that she has there's no reason for me to make a nuisance of myself."

"You're not a nuisance," Sanji and Brook argued.

Chopper ran up and hugged Rain around one of her legs. "You can't leave," he cried. "You're a part of the crew now."

"I'm a what?" Rain was floored by the teary eyed talking reindeer.

"You heard him," Luffy said. He walked up to stand just in front of Rain. "You fought with us, you had fun with us, you ate with us. That makes you a part of this crew."

"Glad to know I'm not the only one he does it to," Law said from off to the side. He was growing slightly impatient though.

"You're a member of the Straw Hats now," Luffy announced. "You're not allowed to just leave the crew without my say-so. Those are the rules of the pirates, once a crewmember, only death or the captain's words can declare otherwise."

"You just decided to make me a member of your crew without asking," Rain said. "I really don't think that counts."

"It counts to Luffy," Nami said. She and Robin had a bag. Inside were some of the things that Rain kept in her saddle bags. Swift was perched on Usopp's head.

"When did you get my stuff?" Rain asked.

"We had a little help while you weren't looking yesterday," Nami winked. Rain turned sharply to look at Darkess. The Night Fury was conveniently watching a flock of sea gulls fly. This caused Valka to laugh.

"Just because you all decided this doesn't make it so," Rain argued. "I helped Kagome and she doesn't need me anymore. You don't need me either, all of you are capable fighters. Berk needs me, they need all the help they can get now that I'm available."

"We're heading back to Berk," Souta pointed out. "When we left there wasn't much that needed to be done. I'm sure there will be even less once we get back. I know the villagers will be happy to see you, but I doubt that they'll need your help. With your father and Rock there everything is pretty stable."

"We need you with the Straw Hats Rain," Luffy declared. He put one hand on Rain's shoulder. "You've become a part of this crew."

"I just don't know," Rain sighed.

"Alright then," Luffy stood straight. His hand was still on Rain's shoulder. The other Straw Hats looked at him in shock. They began to think that he would let Rain go. Instead, Luffy looked over to Darkess. "Will you join my crew?" he asked. Darkess moved excitedly as she rushed up the ramp and onto the deck of the Sunny. "Now what will you do?" Luffy had Rain pinned with his stare.

Rain let out a sigh. "Even if Darkess wants to join your crew I have no compelling evidence to support that this is the right decision. I could just catch a lift back with Grandma and Cloud Jumper."

Luffy's jaw set in determination. "Alright then," he finally said. Rain closed her eyes, thinking that he had finally given in. She felt him remove his hand from her shoulder. The sense of loss hit her hard.

It didn't last long, however. Before Rain knew what happened she was over Luffy's shoulder and he was walking up the ramp to the ship. Her eyes snapped open in shock at the abruptness of it.

"Alright Luffy," Sanji cheered. He definately approved of his captain's actions.

"Nice to have you as a part of the crew," Robin told Rain as Luffy passed them.

"This is considered kidnapping," Rain said.

"Not if it's truly what you want," Valka answered the accusation. "You really don't want to leave the Straw Hats. If you did then you could have easily left once Dragon joined up with Kagome. You would have finished your mission then. You chose to stay because you didn't want to leave. Right now your head is making the wrong decision. Give it some time and you'll realize that this is the right path."

Valka, Souta and Akita mounted the two dragons. "I'll let your father and brother know of your decision," Valka said. "I'm sure you'll receive a letter from them in short order." She lifted her arm and Swift flew to her. "I'll be taking this little guy so that you can get that letter in as little time as possible. Take care of yourself and your new friends." The two dragons then lifted into the air and started flying towards New Berk.

Luffy set Rain down on her own feet in front of him. He was grinning at her now. "Welcome to the Straw Hat crew," he announced.

Zoro put a hand on Bortolomeo's shoulder. "That goes for you as well," he announced. Bortolomeo was so happy that he had tears running down his face.

~ In an immaculate office a tanned man in a burgundy suit sat at his desk. He was glowering at a set of wanted posters posted on his wall. The most prominent were those of the Straw Hat Crew, Heart Pirates, Monkey D. Dragon and his wife Kagome.

A gentle rap at his door drew his attention. "Enter," he called out.

Admiral Fujitora walked in slowly, using his cane to insure there were no obstacles. He walked to the front of the desk and stopped. Akainu waited for him to start speaking.

"The mission to Dressrosa failed," Fujitora announced. "The arrival of strong allies for the Straw Hats kept us from capturing them."

"Explain."

"The first of their allies to arrive were members of the Revolutionary Army. The one leading them was Sabo, second in command of the Revolutionaries. He also claimed that Straw Hat was his younger brother."

"Not by blood," Akainu growled. "Continue."

"We were evenly matched for a time," Fujitora went on. "However, the arrival of another ally was most unexpected. Not only were they capable fighters, but one seemed able to cancel my devil fruit powers over gravity."

"What?"

"She released some sort of power and I was no longer able to control gravity."

"Who was it?"

"A woman who rode on a dragon. She called herself Monkey-Higarashi Kagome."

Earlier in the story a weather proverb is mentioned. The real saying goes, "Red sun at night, sailors delight. Red sun at morning, sailors warning." I changed the word sailors to ships cause if fit better in the story. Nami's explanation is correct as well. The sun's light reflects off of dust particles in the air, causing a red glow from the light spectrum. Red being the longest it's the most prominent. The other colors are broken and not noticeable. Further details can be found at the Library of Congress website under Everyday Mysteries. It was a question that was asked and they gave a detailed answer.