Tell it to the Marines
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Chapter 37
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A wake of water crests behind her and Riskua grins, wild and feral and full of pride. It flows beneath her feet, litres and litres of water, all reacting to each and every movement of her legs as she powers across the surface. It's taken months of training, her legs ache from the constant movement, but she's got it all working. It's not perfect, there'll always be room for improvement, but Riskua's pretty happy with what she's got so far.
A mixture of pure physical force on the same level as Geppo, and the spiritual force of Armament gives her legs the same properties as inflatable armbands. Only, significantly steadier… as long as she doesn't stop moving. It's like ice skating, though nowhere near as effortless, given water has significantly more friction than ice.
As Riskua rounds the corner of the underground lake, she tilts to a side, hand brushing through the liquid as she turns.
Clapping from the shore line has her straightening up, powering forwards until she makes the stumbling transition between water and ground.
"Well, you didn't fall arse of teakettle this time. Disappointing."
"Oh, I'm sorry, were you only here for a laugh at my expense?"
"It's the only reason I ever spend time with you," Sabo confirms, holding out his hand to pull her up and out of the awkward landing crouch.
There's a new scar on his wrist now, acquired on a mission two months ago, where he'd not been quite as careful as he should have been, facing down an enemy's without testing to see if they had any training in Haki. He'd paid for it, almost losing his hand, and he certainly would have lost a fair bit of movement had it not been for Hack's quick thinking. When he'd arrived back at the base after that particular incident, Riskua had had a few choice words for her friend, and none of them were the kind she'd have repeated in front of Luffy.
"It's such a shame this technique needs contact with the water, it's far too much for me to risk," Sabo murmurs with a wistful sigh, looking out over the expanse of blue and sighing. "Guess I'll just stick to flying."
"Now there's something I'd pay to witness; you attempting to fly."
The blond scowls, cheeks pinking in a way that indicates he's already had a fair few cracks at it, and that not one of them had ended well.
"I'll figure it out eventually."
"Sure you will, Sabs. Now come on, you've been away for nearly three weeks and I want to catch up."
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They make their way into the dining hall, arm in arm. Sabo's voice flows easily with the tales of his latest adventure, talking of his brief jaunt into the New World before a hasty retreat.
It goes unsaid that Ace now sails upon the New World's ocean; they're both aware, but neither of them can afford to go and visit quite yet. It's easy to ignore the quiet chatter of everyone around them, though it remains a little surprising that so many of them wave to Sabo as he passes. He's a popular guy, her best friend.
Lips tilting up in a little smile, Riskua adjust her ever present goggles with one hand, the other curling to bring her closer to Sabo.
"...and your pirate friend sunk a Marine ship over in North Blue; he's been slapped with a 25,000,000 bounty."
"Oh, Law's got a bounty now?"
Sabo's lips twitch, eyes sliding away to glide over the variety of food on offer.
"You seem pretty close."
"As close as pirates on rival crews can be."
"You know there are probably romance novels out there with that exact plotline."
Coughing, Riskua stops completely, shaking her head as she stares up at Sabo with wide yellow eyes.
"What? No! I mean, Law's attractive, don't get me wrong, but I couldn't ever be with someone who'd so seriously rival Luffy. Conflict of interests."
"Good to know."
"Good t- Sabo?! What do you mean, good to know?! Were you doubting me?!"
Jogging the short distance Sabo has put between them, Riskua grabs hold of his arm, pulling him to a halt and staring up at her blond best friend.
He's smiling, that awful smile that says he knows something she doesn't, and that he won't be sharing. That's the most annoying part, that he's always so smug over whatever little scheme his nasty mind has concocted.
"Sabo. What's with the look."
He doesn't flinch at her threatening tone, not like when they were kids and he was aware of just how childishly petty she could get in return. It's a shame she's trying to remain mature during her 'Revolutionary' time.
"Nothing for you to worry your little red-head about, Ri."
He actually has the audacity to pat at her wig covered head, all but glowing with smug pride. It's nice to see him so relaxed, even if it is at her expense; though, that doesn't mean she has to like it.
So she kicks him in the shin.
"Ow! Damn it, Ri!"
Snatching up a bowl of stew, Riskua makes her way over to a relatively unoccupied table, seating herself as far away from the others occupying it as she can get.
After a moment's hesitation, Sabo joins her, a helping of stew in each hand and a bag of baguettes hanging from one wrist. He might not need to eat as much as Ace or Luffy, but attempting to keep up with them throughout childhood has certainly taken its toll.
"So erm, why were you looking up the information we've got on Impel Down?" Sabo whispers, tearing into one roll of bread and dunking it right into the broth.
Riskua watches for a moment, frowning, before she forces herself to turn her attention to her own meal.
"What reason could I possibly have for wanting to know about the security information of the Marines' top prison, I wonder?"
The dry remark has Sabo's jaw snapping shut, though the grinding of his teeth is all because she's slurping at her stew.
"Damn it, Ri, you know I hate it that sound. And we've already looked into it; we can't risk attempting a rescue for Iva from that place."
That's right, Sabo was inducted into the Revolution by Ivankov, she doesn't doubt they were friends. She hadn't even considered the Queen in her own research, too focused on memorising as much as she can of that place… Just in case.
"I gathered as much, but, it's- I just wanted to know as much as I could, just in case."
"Please, I'm too sneaky to get caught by the marines," Sabo insists, coupling it with a haughty flick of his blond locks.
The motion has Riskua smiling, even as her heart clenches in her chest.
Because when it comes to Impel Down, Sabo is the last one she'd be worried about.
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Pulling the brim of her strawhat (she's missing Luffy, what else can she say?) lower as they walk through the town centre, Riskua shuffles a little closer to Sabo. Though one set of fingers are threaded through his, their joined hands are close enough to her hip that she can get at the daggers hidden beneath her sundress in a moment's notice.
For, beneath the cover of Sabo's summer shirt, they've managed to… 'acquire' certain documents, all to do with corrupt navy official that the marines no doubt have no intentions of ever bringing to light.
As such, the Revolution will take great joy in spreading the truth and tearing into the marines credibility. It's not all about sinking ships; the more people who understand the taint of corruption that runs through the marines, the more the population will not trust the marines, thus making their jobs infinitely harder.
Consequently, it will also make the Revolution's job that much easier too.
"How long until you think they notice it's missing?"
"Given that they've been checking in every hour or so to make sure all their confidential files are still present, I'd guess-"
A gunshot tears through the air in the exact second a bullet whizzes right through Sabo's skull, leaving little wisps of air spiralling out from the new cavity before it all reforms.
"Now. I'm gonna guess now," Sabo grunts, releasing her hand to take off in a run.
Swearing, Riskua takes off in a sprint, her language worsening as the strawhat goes flying from her head.
Of course, she hasn't run with a hat in so long that she's forgotten to slap a hand atop it to keep it in place.
A trio of bullets pepper the ground by her feet and Riskua scowls, leaping into the air. One bound, two bound, three bound, and she clears the line of buildings before her, coming down rough on her right shoulder in a messy tuck and roll.
In her defence, she has spent a few months trapped inside the Revolutionary base, teaching Concealment Haki and furthering her development upon the Water Skating technique. She's a little out of action, which is bad.
Springing up, Riskua finds herself in the market district, surrounding by a variety of wide eyed civilians and marines alike.
Well shit.
A marine Den Den goes off and she has no interest in sticking around to listen to her arrest warrant being broadcasted over the whole marine line to all those in the vicinity.
Swinging up onto her feet, Riskua takes off, barrelling down the street, shouldering her way past the few civilians that aren't quite quick enough to move out of her way. Her heart pounds in her chest, breath coming in sharp, efficient gasps, violently pulling the oxygen into her lungs as she sprints harder.
From the corner of her eye, she can see Sabo leaping from rooftop to rooftop above her, keeping pace, before being forced to duck the swing of a sword from a Marine with wings instead of arms. And who's somehow wielding his sword from the crook of his left knee.
Riskua stares to the point she misses the man in front of her, slamming right into him.
They go down hard, Riskua leading with her elbows in order to wind the man she lands upon, but they're caught before they can make any true impact. Riskua grunts, pulling back and trying to wring her elbows free of the man's grasp, but pauses at the eyes that stare up in surprise at her own.
There's not even a full second of eye contact though before a marine makes a grab for her and Riskua rolls to the left, ignoring the surprise of the man she'd collided with.
Her feet are quickly back under her and she takes a swing at the marine, fist blackening with Haki.
It impacts the side of his face, punting him away as civilians scream in panic at the suddenly violence that has broken out.
Shaking out her hand, Riskua rubs her thumb across the knuckles as she takes off running again; a rapid glance up shows Sabo's still making progress, even if he's locked in pipe vs sword combat with the weird bird-marine.
Is he some kind of parrot Zoan? It'd explain the fantastic colouring of his wings. Squinting at the red feathers, Riskua barely manages to leap to the side to avoid the next spray of bullets.
Where the hell are they even coming from, and how are they firing so many at once? Some kind of cloning Fruit? A multiplying Fruit? Hell, it might not even be a fruit at all, just incredible guns that backwater marines like these guys would never usually have access to…
Yeah, probably a Fruit thing.
That's Riskua's last moment upon that road before there's a sudden blow slamming into her side and she's crashing through wood, the force propelling her straight through the wall of whatever building she's just smashed into.
She bounces like a skipping stone, her back taking the brunt of the impact as she lands upon a bar table, sake cups exploding from the surface and dousing her in half-consumed alcohol.
She lays there, just for a second, eyes squinted shut from the pain and muscles tense in an attempt to not find any other way of causing her body unnecessary pain.
When that moment passes, she slowly prises one eye open, finding herself peering up at a poorly lit ceiling.
And then there's a face hanging over hers, a very familiar one.
Haki flares out from her body, but everyone at the table is a known presence to her, like an old song with lyrics long forgotten and a tune that oozes nothing but familiarity.
"Hi, Papa," Riskua groans out, peeling herself off his booth table and flying over his ruined round of drinks in order to reengage the marine.
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Paradise really is the right term for this little patch of ocean. Exciting, but not to the point it's dangerous for any of the crew. Even for Rockstar, their newest recruit.
It's why they're sat down for the traditional sake sharing upon the joining of a new member, even if Beckman hasn't quite made it back from his chores yet.
Pouring out the rest of the bottle, Shanks reclines back into his seat. It's peaceful; no one here recognises him as a Yonko, not in this little rinky-dink town that believes itself safe of pirates because of the overly large marines presence upon its shores. Ha, idiots.
Still, it means he and the rest of the Red Hair Pirates get to enjoy their alcohol in peace, free of any hassle from the marines.
So of course that innocent ritual between crew is shattered when a body comes crashing through the wall, landing smack dab in the centre of their table.
Of all the things, a body- a body that's still breathing.
Shanks leans over the young woman's face right as her eyes snap open.
Even behind those god-awful purple goggles, he'd recognise those eyes anywhere.
The quiet "hi, Papa," only cements it.
Jaw popping open, Shanks can only stare as the figure that smashed right into their booth (their booth, out of the thirty four others in the room!) painstakingly rolls off of the table top and springs back into action, slamming a fist into the jaw of the marine that'd just strode into the bar.
He goes down hard, harder than an anchor in the ocean and still Shanks can only stare.
Because even with this goggles, that nasty wig (god, please let it be a wig, it's gotta be a wig, right?!), it's undeniable.
That's his little Gully.
His little Gully who was this cute kid with little red curls and huge eyes and puppy-fat cheeks. And now, now he's got this.
Shanks lurches slightly just as Beckman slams the door open, looking ready to announce something before his eyes find the bleeding female in the room. So he found her too.
"Wha-"
Giving Rockstar no chance to finish, Shanks throws one arm, his only arm, over Yasopp's shoulder, forcibly pulling the man even further in the direction of the fight, as if they're not all already watching the goggle-wearing girl take on the next marine to arrive.
"Look, Yasopp, look! It's my precious little Gully!"
The meaty thump as one tiny, gloves fist punts the second marine right back out the Gully induced hole in the wall echoes Shanks' statement and he can only grin.
That's his baby girl! Why is he just sat here?!
"Gully!"
Leaping to his feet, the Yonko powers past Roo, long legs eating up the distance between him and his baby girl.
She turns to look at him, statement eyes wide behind those obscuring goggles. Red hair or not, she's undeniably his daughter; they share the same face, even if Riskua's is formed with a softer brush.
Arms, strong and with a slight tremble, wrap around his neck at the same time Shanks gets his one limb around his daughter, pressing her close to his chest and just breathing her very presence in. He can't recall what she smelt like before, but the scent of the ocean is almost overpowering.
Just like her Papa, setting out to se-
"You're only seventeen! What the hell are you doing out here on the Grand Line?!"
Flailing in panic as the facts come crashing down on him, Shanks' head snaps around, looking for whatever crew she's ended up joining (oh god, Luffy's not here too, is he? if his little Gully's too young to be on the Grand Line then their Anchor is far, far too young to be here!) only to have two small hands forcibly return his attention to Riskua's face.
Which is lit up with a wide smile. His little girl has truly bloomed into a gorgeous woman.
"I don't have time to talk, gotta finish up some business, but which way is your ship?"
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Sitting upon the railings, Shanks stares at the little boat that's hastily approaching, far too much wind in its sails to be natural. Hell, the air currents aren't going the right way for that boat to even be catching the wind.
"Throw down a line!" Shanks yells, because it's been years since he last saw his precious little girl, and suddenly here she is now, popping up out of the blue and he wants to spend as much time with her as he can.
And to also find out why she'd been in a fight with the marines!
Shanks peers over the side of Red Force once again, only to flinch back in surprise at the sudden rising form of his daughter.
She lands neatly on the railings, having physically kicked her way up through the air. Geppo, his little Gully knows how to use Geppo.
"Papa!"
And suddenly his got an armful of daughter, clinging to his neck and she's so short but she's all grown up and his eyes are tearing up.
"Riskua, my little princess!"
He's grown used to his disadvantage, grown used to the own arm. But there are times when an intense longing for that lost limb hit him, and this is such a time. To be able to hold his precious little daughter as tight as he can to his chest... well he'll just have to make do.
"I've missed you."
He's missed her too, so very much. Knowing she was off living on her own stung, even if he had Makino watching out for her, Makino and Luffy.
For while the little boy with Captain's Strawhat isn't exactly the sharpest sword in the barrel, he's protective of what's his, that Shanks knows for sure. He's heard from Mihawk's tales whenever he visits Dawn, Riskua is Luffy's. His big sister, his first mate, his Nakama. And Luffy is Riskua's. it's great his little Gully has made such a good friend.
And... speaking of 'friends'...
Shanks eyes the blond haired male that has climbed aboard, slipping onto the deck all the while fanning himself with the brim of his top hat. He's tall, a scar over one eye, and with Mihawk's short physical descriptions in his mind, Shanks can assume this is the 'blond scrappy one'. Luffy's brother, like Portgas D. Ace.
"Ah, this is Sabo, my best friend. Sabo, this is-"
"Your dad. I heard. Funny, I was picturing a Hawk-Eyed Swordsman when I heard that."
The unsaid 'you never mentioned exactly who your dad was' hangs heavy in the air, Riskua tilting her head to a side with confusion painted on her features before she gives a slow shrug of her shoulders.
"Oh that's right, I told Luffy and not you, oops?"
Watching his little girl's cheeks pinken beneath the heavy rim of those god awful goggles, Shanks peels the eyewear off, met with the oh so famed Dracule eyes.
"Oops?" Sabo 'the best friend' parrots in disbelief, a comical scowl crossing his face and pulling slightly at the scarring around that eye. It looks like a doozy of a wound, kid's been up to something dangerous. And while he can't exactly bar Riskua from chasing after her own share of danger-
"Whatever you're up to here, you're careful about it, right, Gully?"
She startles slightly, twisting around to look at him, sheepish smile on her face as she rubs gently at the back of her neck.
"That's kind of the reason for the disguise," she mumbles, peeling the god awful wig from her head (and no, he doesn't dislike it because it makes her look so very much like she's actually Mihawk's daughter, no way) to nervously wring it about in her grasp.
"We have time for you to catch up," the well-dressed blond finally states, breaking the awkward tension that has descended, a wide smile on his face as he looks between Shanks and then to Shanks' fellow redhead. "If you don't mind having us aboard, Shanks-san?"
Well he's unusually polite for someone roaming the seas.
"Dahahaha! I've always got room on my ship for my precious little princess! You'll have to sleep in the crow's nest though."
The blond grins back, offering a sweeping bow that looks terribly well practiced.
"How long can the two of you spare? We're a three day trip from Melring."
At that, Riskua goes still, the warm smile steadily slipping from her face.
Her companion cranes his neck to stare at her, but Riskua just shakes her head, worrying her lip between her teeth.
Of course; while Shanks has had a fair amount of time to settle his grief with Raowl's death, has occasionally visited her tombstone as Mihawk no doubt also does… that's not a comfort Riskua has been able to experience.
"Even if we don't have the time, I'll be coming," she informs him slowly, slowly flexing the fingers of one hand until the white knuckles begin to steadily flood with colour again.
The blond looks on with concern smeared across his features, taking a step closer to Riskua and instantly accepting her needy embrace of his person. It's like a punch in the gut. It's been years, of course his little Gully has formed new bonds, has found people with whom to gain some measure of comfort.
But to know she looks to this guy first before her own father…
It stings.
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The journey to Melring is filled with a tense kind of awkwardness.
Sure they interact, but the truth of the matter is, Shanks doesn't know his own daughter anymore. She's spent eight years elsewhere, she's grown into this incredibly capable woman, intelligent and driven and he's not had much of a hand in it, not really.
Back then, it'd seemed like the right thing to do; even now, looking back upon that time, it'd been the only sensible option.
Raowl had been dying, hadn't wanted to cripple her daughter by forcing her to remain and watch her fade away. The Yonko can only imagine what such a thing would have been like; to see the person who'd been there since day one slowly disappear, to become weaker and weaker until they're suddenly just not strong enough to keep on living.
Looking after Riskua himself had never been an option. It was just too dangerous; if it were possible to raise a young child aboard a pirate's ship, then Shanks'd have had Yasopp bring his little sprog aboard.
Hell, Shanks had only managed to grow to adulthood because the pirate ship he'd been on had been that of the Pirate King's. It just hadn't been possible to stop Roger, it was why he'd gained the most impressive title in the world, no matter how the Tenryūbito insist they're the greatest thing on the face of the planet.
Shanks wasn't strong enough to face off against the entirety of the marines though; didn't have the devil's luck like his old captain had.
Mihawk; he was in the same position, hell, he was even worse off, not even with a crew to back him up. Plus, staying with Mihawk would have brought his baby Gully far too close to marines, and it'd have only taken one look at her splendid red hair in the vicinity of his bounty poster… and well, Shanks remembers the hunt for his old Captain's child. How viciously they'd killed mothers, babies and even unborn children just on the off chance that they'd be carrying Roger's blood.
Shanks'd thought his captain's child a goner, long dead.
Until just over a year ago.
When a young man baring Miss Rouge's name and his captain's face (minus the moustache of course) had walked into their little party.
Shanks had known the moment he'd set eyes on the kid, the moment he'd stepped into the light of the fire, that his captain's blood lived on, despite every last effort of the marines to ensure otherwise.
To know the brat had grown up with Luffy and Riskua; he likes to think Captain would find that appropriate.
Some things just come together thankfully, no matter how bad a hand the world tries to deal you.
That doesn't change the fact Shanks is still struggling to get to know his daughter all over again.
There just is no clicking instantly, no settling easily back into the flow of things.
Riskua sits and she writes, and when Shanks asks what she's writing, she goes on to start using terminology he only has passing knowledge of, certainly not to the point that he fully understands what she's talking about.
It doesn't mean he isn't the proudest Yonko in the Grand Line though, getting to learn all the results his little girl has been getting as she chases after her dream. Watching her skate across the ocean's surface, riding the waves and making it look effortless had been fantastic.
By making sure she'd grow up somewhere safe, not only physically but mentally as well, had meant missing those moments.
And while he wouldn't change that, it does hurt to know he didn't get to experience all this growth.
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Stepping out onto the docks of Melring, Shanks tilts his head up to the sky, allowing the autumn wind of the summer island to kiss at his skin, ruffle through his hair.
Beside him, Riskua still wears that damn wig, the one she'd insisted wearing for the duration of their stay, having jammed it back onto her head not long after they'd set a course. She's in the pretty sundress she'd been wearing when she crash landed on their table, freshly patched and mended, goggles once again back on.
She looks every inch a Dracule in all that purple and with that black hair.
"She's buried up on the hill, closest to the sky and sea." Riskua hums, a almost strangled sound in the back of her throat, and Shanks' eyes fly towards the crew, imploring that they give them some time.
"Sabo?"
"Yeah, Ri?"
"Come by in half an hour? I want to introduce you."
"Sure thing," the blond gives a snappy little salute, hefting up the den den mushi in his hands and disappearing into the little town.
Perhaps he's even heading towards the restaurant where Shanks once introduced his little Gully to his crew; the kid certainly eats enough to expect that to be his destination.
A hand works its way into a hold with his and Shanks tilts his head to look at Riskua. Not that he really needs to; he can feel the slight tremble in her fingers, can hear the slight hitch in her breath.
"Lead the way please, Papa?"
"Can do, Gully."
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Riskua sits before the black grave of her mother with her legs crossed, elbows resting upon her knees. She doesn't cry, instead just reaches out, fingers tracing across the yellow embedded into the indented words. And then, then she begins to talk.
Shanks learns more about his baby girl's past eight years in that half an hour than he did in the three days above the Red Force.
He listens as she talks about meeting Luffy, about how pure and sweet he is, how he's too good for this awful world and that she'll take great pride in being his first mate. He listens as she talks about Ace and Sabo, how one was a hothead too jaded to dare risk letting anybody in, how the other was a wild brat so determined to free himself of the shackles of being a noble that he started to pretend to be something they were not.
Shanks gets to listen on how they developed as people, how they all became something so much better than what they were.
He can barely pictured the polite, well-mannered young man he met being a brat so full of rage he'd lash out at anything and everything. He can't see the happy blond he's slowly gotten acquainted with these past few days as a child who'd cry in shame and denounce his origins.
And while she barely speaks about herself, Shanks can see how much his baby girl has grown.
She no longer gets lost in the fairy-tales she dreams up. No longer focuses so much on the end result as she does the journey. She's learnt how to really experience life with those boys, to pay attention to what's in front of her instead of getting lost in her thoughts and acting so passive. And she had been passive.
Despite her drive, Riskua never really had any friends on Melring, had stuck to Raowl and Shanks and Mihawk and showcased no desire to explore. Too lost in chasing after whatever she could uncover regarding Haki that she'd not really considered just what she was going to do with that knowledge. Teach? Protect? She hadn't even considered boasting about it, as young kids do.
He remembers Monkey D. 'my punch is as strong as a pistol' Luffy. Hell, it was meeting Luffy that made him realise his own kid wasn't so… normal.
Too mature.
While he wouldn't trade who Riskua is for anything in the world, it had made him second guess a lot of their interactions.
"Papa?"
Startling at the sudden address, Shanks cocks his head towards his fellow redhead (disguised or not), only for Riskua to shuffle closer, leaning into his side with her head pillowed on her shoulder.
"I had an incident, on Dawn Island. We were threatened by some pirates and, well, I'm pretty certain I used Conqueror's to knock them out."
Shanks'd be lying if he said that didn't please him. Of course, Conqueror's isn't necessary to make an impact in the world, to really be somebody. But it's a highly valued trait; he's proud to know his little girl has it.
"Only, I've not been able to use it since. Ace has it too, but he's been able to train it, to use it. I, I can't."
Frustration painted across her face, Riskua balls her hands into tight fists, gathering the material of her dress up in the process, the lilac fabric crinkling beneath the pressure.
The mention of Conqueror's though…
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People dropping like stones, frothing at the mouth. His tiny hands, pushing at their sides, imploring someone, anyone, to wake up and help him. Even the animals, all dropping like stones, unconscious. Nothing respond, they never respond.
Time blurs together, he loses track, all up until-
"Hey boy, join my crew!"
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"I'm probably not the best person to talk to on Conqueror's, Gully. My own was a special case… I couldn't turn it off."
Riskua stares up at him, yellow eyes wide, the purple goggles now pushed up to rest atop her head.
"All I can offer you is to keep working on it, that's what Captain made me do."
His little Gully sighs, a deep, accepting thing and Shanks wishes there was more he could do for her, he really could. But short of calling up Whitebeard for advice (he'd rather bite off his own tongue) there's not really any other Conqueror he can think of that'd be willing to talk to Riskua. None that he'd allow near her, that is.
"It's okay, I'll figure it out on my own. That's kind of the dream, after all," Riskua muses, tilting her head back and grinning up at the sky.
Soft footsteps to the left indicate that, as promised, Sabo has come along for his introduction, and Shanks knows it's time to get up and head to town. But first-
"I know I wasn't there for most of it, but you're grown up well, Riskua."
Then she does start crying, smile upon her lips wobbling away. Nodding to Sabo as they pass by one another, Shanks smoothes his shirt down, grinning.
Hopefully, with that out the way, things'll run a bit smoother.
Which means it's time for a Red Hair Pirates Party!
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(the meeting idea is a lot better than mine, so thank you to nordictwin for giving me a kick-start.)
There's only one more chapter left of the Revolutionary Arc. One more chapter, guys! (I did some editing to the plan, cut some unnecessary bits out)
See? At least one update a week. I'm trying to keep to that, though I'll let you know if I'll be missing a week or something, (there'll probably be that break in a month or so, when I run out of 'plan' and have to get my head down and figure out how Alabasta will go down)
Also, in other news, this fic is 6 months old today. 6 months. And I've somehow managed to collect 2,000 reviews? Man that's insane and I'm totally in love with each and every damn one of you. Thank you.
For those interested, the bonus oneshot will be on my tumblr when it's wrote.
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Man, this chapter was suppose to be light-hearted, but it really isn't...
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I'm sure I had more to say, but I'm super tired, so I'll leave it at that. As always, let me know if there are any mistakes, and I'll try and fix them up,
Lots of love,
Tsume
xxx