-Blackbeard POV-

"I've now officially decided to kill him slowly," the suit of armor announced, "That seems preferable - to me anyway. Not so much to Blackbeard."

"You think you can beat me?" I asked. "Impossible! Didn't you see? I can nullify the powers of Devil Fruits!"

"Yes, I saw that." It was a female voice. "You can only do that when you're actually touching your opponent. That could be easily overcome by a range attack, but I don't have any really."

I laughed. "Then you're going to die!"

"Didn't I already tell you?" she asked. "Or can you not recognize me like this?" I didn't answer. That suit of armor definitely wasn't ringing any bells and normally something like that would be pretty memorable, even to a pirate on the Grand Line. Suddenly she sounded as if she were reciting from memory: "You'll see just what I think of your precious Devils Fruit Power. My Oni Oni Fruit isn't all-powerful or anything, I'm not invincible, but neither are you. The difference is in what we fight for. You fight to satisfy your own greed. I fight for revenge. You killed Thatch, placed Ace in danger, and betrayed your nakama. This is not something I will forgive. I'm just warning you."

I bust out laughing. "You're that little girl who tried to threaten me at Impel Down!" I realized. "I'm surprised that you're still alive!"

Even without seeing her expression I knew I was pissing her off. "Fine then" she scorned, "Call me a little girl if you want. So long as you're okay with a little girl kicking your ass instead of a full grown woman."

Apparently I'd hit upon a sore subject. "It's impossible for a little girl like you to beat me." I told her.

The metal sank under her skin, seemingly disappearing into nothing. Vexx, standing behind me slightly, gave a fitting wolf whistle. I was unsurprised. The girl's transformation was likely the effect of the Oni Oni Devil Fruit - whatever that was. I'd read the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia and that particular Fruit had never been discovered before. It was an unknown, but it wasn't threat. Whatever it was that she could do, I could stop her from doing it.

The girl smirked. "If you say so then it must be true," she was clearly mocking me. It was unwise.

"Laffitte, kill her," I ordered.

"Captain," he acknowledged, sprouting his wings.

"Oh," the girl said, "You're an Angel then." (*) She grinned darkly. "Funny thing, so am I." White wings sprouted behind her, spreading like a halo. "For now at least."

"I have no problem killing one of my own kind if that's what you're hoping," Laffitte informed her.

She shrugged. "I just prefer to fight people on even standing is all," she said. "Don't take it as a compliment or anything because it's not." I frowned. That didn't make any sense. What was compliment? Being an Angel? The girl sighed, tossing her red hair over her shoulder with a flip of her head. "Let's get this overwith, shall we?" she asked.

Rather than respond, Laffitte disappeared and reappeared in front of her, pulling the blade he usually kept concealed within his cane out and preparing to stab her. And then he wasn't there again. His face met the spiked end of a bat and subsequently, the cobblestones on the ground. He didn't get back up.

The girl blinked before nudging him with her foot. "I thought he'd be stronger," she muttered, "guess I went a little bit overboard. Whatever." She didn't seem overly broken up about it.

I laughed. Her face twitched in response but why exactly I wasn't sure. "What's your name, little girl?" I asked for the second time that day.

"Lilith," she said proudly. "Lilith D. I'll figure out the rest later."

"What's that supposed to mean, huh?" I asked.

Lilith rolled her eyes. "I have explained this like twenty times already. It's not my fault you missed it," she complained before answering anyway. "The short version is that I don't remember my last name anymore. Not that you care. Can I just kick you ass now?" she asked petulantly.

"No, Pizarro, you kill her," I ordered. He shrugged and took a few steps forward.

Lilith's wings disappeared and she glared at me. "Seriously?" She asked me, "Just how many goonies are you planning to hide behind? Because I can beat him too, though it will take approximately five seconds longer."

Pizarro didn't take that well. "Don't underestimate your opponent, little bitch!" he snarled and charged.

Lilith lifted an arm, deflecting his first punch one handed. "Don't be a hypocrite," she retorted casually. The larger man pulled back for another blow. Lilith danced back for a step before darting forward. Somehow, there was a sword in her hand and it impaled itself in his chest, poking out the other side just a little bit. "I take it back," Lilith announced. "That was three seconds less than I expected."(**)

"I'm not done yet," Pizarro gasped out, "I won't be defeated by some no name little bitch!" He coughed blood all over his own face.

"It's a bit late for that don't you think?" Lilith asked, sneering down at him and placing a randomly bare foot on his face. "You've already lost."

"And as such," I pulled a pistol from my belt, "You die." I pulled the trigger and he stopped breathing instantly. Blood splattered across Lilith's bare foot and boot. I shot Laffitte too since he was still down. They had failed me. They were no longer needed.

Lilith snarled. "Of course," she spat darkly. "Someone like you has no problem killing nakama." Her bangs were shadowing her face and she was frowning deeply. "Thatch was a good guy. I liked him. And you killed him from behind. You have already passed the point of ever being forgiven. But now, with the choice to choose your own nakama, you still treat them like that!"

I laughed. "Of course!" I explained, "I'm the captain! If they fail me then they die! It's as simple as that!"

Lilith's head shot up, eyes blazing in anger. "I'll kill you!" she growled.

-Lilith POV-

"You won't lay a hand on the Captain, Lilith," Vexx protested smugly, stepping out from beside the dark skinned traitor. "You would have to get past me," he explained, "I don't think that's something you can do." He grinned. The motion squashed the scar over his right eye, making it look even nastier than it had before. I had given him the original cut. It was how I escaped. "We could always go again," he offered, "I don't usually revisit my property but you've just grown so beautiful I'd be willing to make an exception. It almost wouldn't be a requirement."

I gagged. I literally stood there, in front of the Blackbeard pirates, with half the Marines right there, with a den den mushi on my shoulder broadcasting to the entire world, and gagged. I just couldn't help it. I was lucky that my stomach was missing right now or I would have puked for real. "Never in a million years," I choked out, sounding as brave as I knew how. It didn't work very well.

"Oh?" Blackbeard seemed interested all of a sudden, "So you two have met before have you?" He laughed. I took it as a bad sign. "Then I'll let you get reacquainted while I handle my business here."

The two men started moving towards me carelessly. I took an involuntary step back as Vexx grinned at me hungrily. "No," I protested, "I won't let you do this!" I took some more steps back, nearly tripping over my own feet. "I won't let this happen!" I shouted. Why am I so scared? I could probably take them both on at the same time but - I'm just too damn scared. Why won't I stop shaking?!

"Oi, bastards," a deep, masculine voice called off to the side, "Don't you know it's rude to gang up on kids?"

"Gecko-chan!" I shouted, recognizing his voice instantly. "What are you still doing here?!" I demand, "I thought you left already!"

"Aw, Lil, I'm hurt," Doffy lied, grinning as he came up from behind the shorter - but still very tall - man. "I'm here too you know." I'm not sure how I missed him in that giant pink coat even with only my peripheral vision.

"Doffy! But - " I was so confused, "Seriously, what are you two doing here?!"

"Isn't it obvious?" Gecko-chan asked, looking away like he was embarrassed.

"We're here to torture that man to death!" Doffy said delightedly, extending a finger. I noticed he was only pointing in the general direction of the Blackbeard Pirates. He's not sure which one it was they're going to beat up, is he? But he's still here. Both of them.

"You - " I was stunned for a full second there. "You guys - " I ran at them and threw an arm around each of their waists at the same time. "You guys are the best!" I shouted, completely relieved. "I'm so glad that you're here!"

"Yeah, yeah, don't start crying on us or anything," Gecko-chan dismissed, keeping up his tough-guy facade. But I still noticed his hooked hand was behind my back in the closest approximation of a hug he was willing to give.

Doffy laughed, delighted. "Happy to do it, Lil," he said. His smile turned more deadly than usual. "Happy to do it," he repeated darkly.

I squeezed them both tighter. "Just the best!" I repeated. I know there's supposed to be some sort of thing about 'facing your fears' but I don't think that extends to 'facing your rapists'. At least it shouldn't. I honestly feel much better with that kind of trauma buried way, way deep and forgotten. It was just easier that way. And I didn't have time to overcome my - I'm not calling it 'fear' - trauma just now. I had more important things to do. Like stopping Blackbeard.

"Aw, Lil," Doffy said, "You're just so adorable!" He picked me up and squeezed me against his chest.

"Air!" I squeaked out but he didn't seem to hear my protests.

"Oi, don't strangle the kid, Doflamingo," Gecko-chan protested on my behalf. "She needs to breathe eventually and your stupid feathery hug isn't helping."

I was dropped. "What did you say, Gator Guy?" Doffy asked.

I quickly jumped between the two. "Guys! Guys, I know, we all love each other but can we not fight right now?" I begged. "I thought you were helping me fight the Blackbeards." And - because I knew it would help with these two - I added, "Please?" Gecko-chan tch-ed and scratched the back of his head with one clawed hand. Doffy hugged me again - more gently this time - and agreed in his customary dramatic style, striking a pose in the process. "Awesome! You guys are the best!" I shouted.

Doffy laughed. "You already said that," he pointed out.

"Like a million times," Gecko-chan agreed.

I resisted the urge to point out that they were finishing each other's sentences and instead shrugged and said, "That doesn't stop it from being true!" and beamed at them.

"Now," Gecko-chan decided.

"Let's kill that bastard," Doffy said.

They did it again! I thought. If they weren't being just the best right now I would so tease them! I'll have to remember for later.

-Sir Crocodile / Gecko-chan POV-

"Which one are we after again?" Doflamingo asked.

At this point I just sighed. There was no point getting irritated by his inability to remember faceless descriptions. It was a quirk of his. Unless he actually saw a face in person or in a picture he couldn't seem to keep the information in his head. He'd been like that for a long time, actually, nearly twenty years. "We're after that one," I told him, pointing with my left hand. The one with the hook.

"Be more specific," he complained, "I can't tell who you're pointing to like that." I rolled my eyes. This is getting us nowhere. To resolve the matter, I grabbed Doflamingo's head and pointed it directly at the man, I think someone said his name was Bother or something stupid like that. "Ah, gotcha." Doflamingo could be such an idiot sometimes - no, all the time really.

"Thanks again you two!" the kid beamed. Then she frowned, snapping into her 'so pissed its dangerous' mode. "Now where is Blackbeard?"

"You going after him as a human?" I asked.

She nodded, freshly shortened hair bobbing with her. "I'm gonna do that thing."

I almost slouched. "Do you really have to?" I asked. "There's no point, it's just a stupid waste of time."

"No it's not!" she argued, "It's more fun this way!"

Doflamingo laughed. "Only you would think something like that is fun." I couldn't help but agree with him, even if I didn't want to. He gave her a gentle push on the shoulder which nearly sent her sprawling because of her small size. "Get going Lil," he said, "You look exhausted so end it quickly."

Doflamingo tended to get kind of mush, by his standards, around Lil. I could understand. Especially now. Her clothes were full of holes, burns, tears and covered in blood. She still looked mostly aware but her strength was obviously weaning if she allowed herself to fight in anything less than perfect physical condition and the gaping hole in her side definitely qualified. The kid was approaching the end of her tether.

I wasn't worried about her fighting Blackbeard, not really, but beyond that and she'd be in trouble. Lilith couldn't handle it if another Admiral came after her and I knew Kizaru was still around here somewhere. Akainu was probably recovering before he could try again. There was no telling what Aokiji was up to. Hell, this was the kid we were talking about. I wouldn't be surprised if Sengoku came after her himself! We had to handle this as quickly as possible and get her out of here before she charged back into the fighting again.

"Okay okay," the kid said, "I'm going! You two take your time!" she waved as she chased after Blackbeard, who was apparently trying to sneak up on Whitebeard while his back was turned, the coward. "I said I was your opponent!" she shouted angrily, "I thought I made that clear!"

Blackbeard laughed. "I thought you were too scared to come near me!" he taunted.

"He's right, Lilith," the rapist guy said. I'd already completely forgotten his name. Something stupid I think. "You shouldn't mess with grownups when -" His voice was cut off abruptly when Doflamingo's strings latched onto his foot. Apparently he noticed. But too late. Once Doflamingo's got a hold on you there's no escape. Sure enough, Doflamingo lifted his hand over his head and the man went flying into the air. With the jerk of a wrist, he crashed into the ground with a satisfying crack of the stone beneath him.

He seemed completely unharmed by such a basic attack. I didn't mind. It meant he would likely hold up longer. That was a good thing. The longer he lasted the more pain he would go through. "Don't you two idiots realize who I am?!" he demanded.

"I don't care," I informed him.

"A pedophile?" Doflamingo guessed. "That's what I got out of all of this."

"No! I am Vexx! The Man Who Rent a Thousand Hearts, Vexx Zorander!" he shouted. "A man so evil and feared that they locked me up in the depths of Level Six and tried to erase me from history!"

"I've never heard of you," Doflamingo said. "Gator Guy mentioned you though."

I shrugged. "Only because the kid pointed him out and I never got his name," I said, "I figured it wasn't important."

"You- ! Not- ! Why you- !" He couldn't even form a proper sentence. Vexx must be beyond pissed. Or maybe he was just stupid. It didn't really matter much. "Who the fuck are you to talk to me like that?!" he demanded.

"We're Warlords of the Sea," I said evenly. It wasn't really that big a deal. They let people like Moria in. It wasn't that hard.

"Well~," Doflamingo pointed out happily, "You're an Ex-Warlord, to be fair." I resisted the urge to rip his throat out. "And I'm the king of Dressrosa too." Does he have to rub it in like that?

"Well I've never heard of you either!" Vexx shouted. He was so obviously lying. Either that or he lived under a rock. A very big rock. Very far from the ocean.

"Can we just kill him now?" I asked, "This is getting beyond stupid."

"I thought we were torturing him first," Doflamingo argued. "I definitely want to torture him first."

Vexx started laughing. Apparently he didn't understand just how much danger he was in. Or he could be insane. That wasn't unimpossible. His laughing got steadily louder, bordering on Doflamingo level laughing. "You fools," he gasped out, "You actually think you can beat me?"

"Let's skip torture and just kill him," Doflamingo decided.

"Agreed," I said. "I don't like being laughed at, even by lunatics."

Vexx's form suddenly inflated, expanding outward as muscles swelled and rippled, approximately doubling his muscle mass. I wasn't overly surprised. Fur sprouted on his back and his shirt ripped away. I glanced at Doflamingo. "Zoan?" I asked.

"Nah, there's already some guy with a wolf Devil Fruit, worked with CP9," Doflamingo dismissed. Well, he would know. "Maybe he's a husky?" he suggested.

"I'm a Werewolf dammit!" Vexx protested. He seemed indignant. Apparently we were supposed to be quaking in fear or something.

"Oh yeah, Lilith can turn into one of those," I remembered.

Vexx broke out grinning. Actually, with his muzzle it was more like he was baring his teeth at the corners but I guessed it was supposed to be a grin.

(*) The likelihood that Laffitte is actually an Angel in the cannon and that it's not just some Zoan Devil Fruit that hasn't been explained yet is extremely low. But he does have white wings that don't have a story yet so from now on, in this story he's an Angel.

(**) There's little to no information on how Pizarro fights so there's not much to put there. Sorry if the fight's too quick or anything, I just don't want to have to make up a whole new fighting style for him.