Welcome To The Family

Halcen stood impatiently at the head of the ship. They had traveled for what felt like weeks, but they had finally made it. Ahead of them, slowly gliding through the water was the Moby Dick, the largest ship Halcen had ever seen. The glorious ship awakened his childlike wonderment, if only for a moment. He It had a massive white whale frontage with black spots on the corners to mimic eyes. The ship itself was so long it had thirteen cannons on each side running from front to rear, and six more sitting atop them. Below that was a dark blue stripe that added a touch of elegance to the brown wooden exterior. The tail and had what appeared to be a giant white fin with blue stripes jutting up into the air. It needed four masts the size of giant cedar trees, loaded with tow sails a piece just to moved. The sails were so large they looked like clouds in the clear blue sky. Halcen gasped as he looked upon the ship.

His fragile teenage mind had been rampaging with thoughts of anger and annoyance. Halcen had just lost his parents and the crew had shown him no mercy. They had allowed him no rest or time to grieve. He had been worked raw like a slave, being taught how a ship runs and forced to help out. He was filled with anger. But he understood that pirates did not give a fuck about emotions, so he tried not to complain too much. "Hey, assholes! I can see the ship!"

Jozu laughed raucously.

The crew of the Moby Dick saw them approaching and began to make ready to stop and welcome them aboard. They all went about bringing their sails up. With their whole crew's help, and their helmsman's expertise, they quickly slowed to a stall. The Moby Dick waited for them.

Jozu's second in command, Blanche, came forward to where Halcen stood. She walked up to the railing of their ship, the Regal Rhino, and looked across the sea. "There it is," she laughed. Blanche was a weird woman in Halcen's mind. She was about eight feet tall, with thin shoulders, long red hair, and a large bosom. Halcen was always trying not to get caught staring. She didn't have any Devil Fruit abilities, but she was supposed to be very fast, and fought with a whip. She had very keen grey eyes. "Are you excited?" he asked Halcen. She was always around Halcen, watching over him and making sure he was learning properly. It annoyed Halcen. He just wanted to be left alone.

"Why would I be excited?"

"Meeting Whitebeard for the first time. I still remember my first encounter with him. God, he was-"

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Halcen asked, cutting him off. "No, I'm not excited to meet some old geezer."

Blanche began to laugh. "I know, to you right now, he doesn't seem important. But one day you'll understand."

"Fuck off." Halcen had been dealing with getting to know the crew. He was pretty at ease with most of them, but Jozu and Blanche seemed to put the most pressure on him. He was sick of the grownups trying to force their will on him. He wanted to be the one calling the shots.

Halcen looked down at the sea passing underneath him. Getting so up close and personal with the water felt uneasy. He took a few steps back from the header. He took a deep breath. "Here we go."

They pulled up to the Moby Dick and dropped their sails. This was where they needed to meet; out in the middle of the ocean. Being pirates made it hard to have high caliber meetings like this on land. They were wanted men and women. It was safer in the ocean. The crew of the Moby Dick dropped a rope ladder so their Regal Rhino counterparts could climb aboard.

Halcen had become used to running a ship, but this was so much grander, so much more than he had been around for the last couple weeks. He was in awe, constantly looking about, trying to get his eyes to focus. But he just couldn't believe how big this ship was. There was just so much going on. The crew, the activities, the ship itself. Halcen tried to take it all in. But even above that, he could feel something… intense. He couldn't put his finger on it, but there was something very powerful on this ship. He could only wonder.

He must have looked like a kid in a candy store because Blanche walked up to him and said "Stop drooling," she laughed

Halcen snapped back to reality. "Hey fuck you," Halcen said. He didn't think it was funny. He caught up with Blanche, who was heading towards the crowded crew.

"Stick with me, kid. We got to find Whitebeard."

Halcen gulped. I wonder…

Blanche stopped to talk to one of the crew. "Hey, Rotto," she said, tapping on a big guy's back.

Rotto turned around. He was taller than Blanche, by at least a foot. He was rather rotund, and he had blue skin, gills, and a fin on his head.

Halcen looked agape.

"What's wrong, kid?" Rotto said. "Never seen a fishman before?"

Blanche intervened. "Come on, Rotto. He doesn't mean any harm. Just look at him. He's just a kid. What do you say? Have you seen Whitebeard around?"

Rotto's face twitched. He didn't take his eyes off Halcen. "Yeah, he's on the throne."

Blanche patted Rotto on the shoulder. "Thank you." She looked to Halcen. "This way."

Halcen followed along. "I didn't know such people existed," he said, still clearly confused.

"There are a lot of things you don't know," Blanche said. "But just because you're not used to it does not mean you can be rude about it."

Halcen looked down in shame. "I understand," he said through clenched teeth.

Blanche came up with Halcen in tow. They were at the butt of a crowd all surrounding something. They were all more excited than the rest of the ship. Something was there, Halcen could feel it.

"Excuse me guys, we need to get through."

Nobody paid her any mind.

"GUYS! Move, please!"

Halcen watched Blanche struggle in vain. He didn't say anything, but he thought it was amusing watching her be powerless. She had been on his ass twenty-four-seven since he'd gotten on her ship. She was Jozu's number two. But in the overall hierarchy of the Whitebeard Pirates, she was overlooked.

Then suddenly the ship began to sway. Everyone turned to look at the port side, including Halcen and Blanche.

"Oh, shit," Blanche said.

Jozu had finally climbed his way up from his ship. He had stayed behind to take care of some of his own important business. He had sent Blanche ahead to introduce Halcen to Whitebeard.

Everyone froze in silence as Jozu began walking towards them. He didn't say a word, but everyone moved out of his way as he headed toward Blanche and Halcen. He looked down at them.

Blanche nodded.

The crowd that had blocked their path parted sides.

And there he sat; Whitebeard. He sat back, relaxed, in a giant blue cloth chair. His giant white jacket was hung over the back. He sat with his shirt off and his peach skin was illuminated by the day's sun. Even sitting down he dwarfed Halcen. He had a giant scythe-looking white mustache, and no beard.

It's him, Halcen thought to himself. That's where all that power is coming from. And he's just sitting there. Halcen looked upon the man in disbelief. This old man…

"Jozu," he said with a deep, humbling voice.

"Sir," Jozu responded in his own deep voice.

"Your message sounded important."

"It was. We have a new kid wanting to join our crew."

Whitebeard looked at Jozu in confusion. "This was…?"

Jozu nodded to Halcen. "Go ahead."

Halcen nodded. He stepped forward. "Hey there, geezer. I'm here to join your ranks!"

Whitebeard laughed. His boisterous voice reverberated through their little party. He looked at Jozu. "I like this one. He's got spunk." He looked back at Halcen. "And what's your name, kid?"

"My name is Avarik Halcen," he said with stalwart enthusiasm.

"Avarik Halcen?" he asked. Hearing the man say his name was something else.

"Yes," he said with confidence.

"Don't you have parents that will worry about you?"

Halcen's face twitched. "My parents are dead. They were murdered two weeks ago."

Whitebeard seemed to take his word. "Hmmm. I see. Now you're another lost sheep, looking for a place to fit in."

"I think… joining your crew would be good for me. I can hold my own in a fight and I'll carry my own weight. But I need someone to teach me how to be stronger." He clenched his fists. "I can't be this weak anymore." He almost choked on his words.

"I understand." Whitebeard stood up from his chair. He was beyond massive. He was a titan. He made Halcen feel like an ant. He looked deep into Halcen's eyes. "We have found ourselves a family here, Halcen." He looked about his crew, waving his arms. "If it is strength you seek, you can find that anywhere. But here, we find courage. We find meaning."

Halcen didn't look away from Whitebeard's eyes. "If that's what it takes." He clenched his fists.

Whitebeard extended his hand to Halcen. Halcen put his hand in Whitebeard's. The giant Captain's hand dwarfed Halcen's like an infant's, but he shook it anyway. "Welcome to the Whitebeard Pirates."

Everyone around began cheering.

"Welcome!"

"Let's party!"

Whitebeard looked around at his raucous crew, then back to Halcen. "I'll have Marco show you around. You're gonna need to get acquainted if you're going to be staying here."

"Wait, I won't be staying with Jozu?"

"Hmm? No, you'll be staying here, on my ship."

Halcen wasn't sure how to take that. "Why?"

"There's… something about you…" he said vaguely. "I feel like you would be better suited here."

Halcen smiled to himself. Now he could be free of Blanche and Jozu and their expectations. He looked about the ship. Off to my next grand adventure, with this crew. This is why I came here. To be stronger. I can do that even better with Whitebeard by my side. If Whitebeard recognizes me, that bodes well. Halcen looked up at Whitebeard with fiery eyes. "Sounds good to me."

"Marco!" Whitebeard roared, trying to get someone's attention.

"What's up?" came a small voice, followed by a smaller person. This was Marco. He was outrageously short, but he also seemed really young. He had slightly tanned skin and ruffled yellow hair. He was surprisingly thin, even for how short he was. Halcen thought he looked like a starving orphan. "I'm Marco," he said through a mouth with several missing teeth.

"Halcen," Halcen said, suddenly unsure about this whole thing. They shook hands.

"Marco," Whitebeard said. "Halcen's going to be joining our crew. I want you to give him a tour of the ship. You're going to be inducting him into our ranks."

"Sweet," the kid said. Marco turned around and said "Let's go."

Halcen walked off without looking back. He left Blanche and Jozu behind with a smile. They walked off from the adults with Marco in the lead. "What's all this bullshit about family? The old guy sounds nuts."

"What? No way," Marco said. "We're all each other's got."

"And that means we have to be family? I just want to be powerful."

Marco giggled. "How do you think that's gonna happen without any help? No one here is self made. We all lean on each other. We're a big old pirate family."

"And you're a pirate?" Halcen laughed.

"Yes indeed," the kid said with pride. "I'm Whitebeard's most powerful weapon."

Halcen burst out laughing.

"Hey, you'll see. One day I'm gonna be big!"

"And where are your parents?"

"I honestly don't know," Marco said with little offense. "I've been here as long as I can remember."

"Wait… you grew up on this ship?"

"As far as I remember, yeah."

"But… why? You're just kid."

Marco laughed. "So are you."

"Psh… I'm not a kid."

"How old are you?"

"Thirteen. I'm practically an adult."

"Well, I'm nine, so you're only a couple years older than me. We're not so far in age."

"But I'm a teenager. You're still just a kid."

"Nuh uh. I'm a pirate."

Halcen laughed. The kid had spirit; Halcen had to give him that.

"Anyway, I'm s'posed to give you a tour. We got a lot of ground to cover. There are a lot of important people to meet and a lot of places you need to know about. It's a big ship with a big crew."

"It sure is."

Marco began leading Halcen around the ship. First he took him down below, where he showed Halcen where the kitchen, dining room, latrine, and his own room were going to be located. There was a shortage of individual beds, most of them had to share. Halcen was going to be sharing a room with Marco. Most of the crew were put in bunks. After all, on that one ship alone, there were about two hundred crew members. Halcen met the quartermaster and cooks. Then they went up to the deck where Marco showed Halcen where all of the important parts of the ship were and how to run them. It took so long just to walk from one side of the ship to the other. Halcen was beginning to get tired of all the walking, and at that, walking at a nine year old's pace.

They went through the crew, introducing Halcen to this guy or that guy. After a while, all the faces began to blend together. There were just too many people and Halcen has only just arrived. Everybody else was drinking and having a good time, but Halcen was working. He was annoyed.

"There's so many people. Don't you ever just want to be alone?" Halcen asked.

"Not really. I like the attention. It's fun!"

"Of course you'd say that," Halcen said, annoyed out of his mind. He was getting fed up with the little kid and his positive attitude. It was getting old real fast.

And then they passed by and old man sitting on by himself against the railing of the ship. He had long grungy grey hair and looked depressed. He was pounding a beer, not paying attention to anyone else. He had a pack of beers sitting next to him. He was really tall though. Even sitting down he was as tall as Halcen.

"That's Grey," Marco said. "He doesn't talk much."

"Now that looks like fun," Halcen said.

"What?"

"Halcen began walking over to the old guy.

"Wh-what are you doing?!" Marco shouted, confused and scared.

"Fuck off pipsqueak." He walked up to the old man and sat down beside him.

Grey didn't pay him any mind. He was drunk enough to not give a shit about a random kid. He kept drinking in silence.

Halcen grabbed one of the old man's beers and opened it. He took a big swig. It was disgusting. It was so bitter. It tasted it like horse piss. Halcen gagged. But then he went to take another drink.

Grey looked down at the kid next to him, drinking that beer. He was so young. Not even hair on his face yet. And for a moment, he felt something. Grey snatched the beer out of Halcen's hands and chugged it all right there in front of him. Then he yelled "You don't need to be drinking this shit!" in an angry voice.

Halcen hadn't expected that. He sat up abruptly and said "You're a sad old man!"

"Fuck off, kid."

Halcen stormed off in an uproar. He was pissed.

Marco rushed off after him, a horrified look on his face. "What was that?"

"I'm so fucking sick and tired of adults telling me what to do." he said aggravated. When he was far enough away, Halcen looked back and said "What's his problem anyway? Why does he get to sit by himself and nobody bothers him? Who does he think he is?"

"I don't know. I heard he's been through some stuff."

"Like what?"

Marco shrugged. "People don't tell me stuff like that. They think I'm too young to understand. But from what I've gathered, I think he's just got nowhere else to go."

Halcen looked at the old man from a distance. "I can see why. Nobody would want to be around a miserable old man like him."

"Anyway, we should keep up with the tour. We still got a few more things to go over."

"No, I'm done for now."

"But…"

"I'm tired of this. There's too much all at once. Just… let's do more later."

"Alright, well what do you want to do now? We can go check in with the others if you want."

"Yeah, sure, I guess." Halcen was too tired and angry to think properly anymore. It had been a couple hours of walking around talking to people, and learning about the ship. The sky was beginning to dim. He was worn out.

They went to find Whitebeard, Jozu, and Blanche. They were no longer at Whitebeard's "throne." Marco looked around, nervously. "That's odd. He doesn't usually leave in the middle of a party."

"Where else would he go?"

Marco thought hard. "His office? They might be having a meeting?"

"About what?"

Marco shrugged. "I dunno, but let's go check."

Halcen followed Marco once again down below deck. They went down to Whitebeard's office. There was a giant door that led inward. It was closed.

"This is it."

They heard muffled shouting. Halcen tried to make out what was being sad.

Marco wasn't paying attention. He went to open the door, but it was locked. "That's weird."

The voices ceased. Whoever was in there knew they were out there. Halcen gulped.

The door opened a crack and Blanche's face came to light. "Halcen? Marco? What's wrong?" Her face was red and it looked like there were tears in her eyes.

"We're done with the tour," Halcen said.

"What do you want us to do?" Marco asked.

"Oh, uhm… well we were actually finished up in here anyway," she said looking back into the study. "Jozu, I think it's time we say our goodbyes."

Jozu joined Blanche at the door. He was silent, but Halcen could tell he was angry.

What happened in here? Halcen tried to crane his neck to see Whitebeard, but to no avail.

"Let's go," Blanche said.

Halcen followed her and Jozu back up to the deck. There, Jozu interrupted the party. "First Division! Pack it up! Time to move out!"

The party ceased and there were cries of annoyance and groaning, but they did at he said. All the pirates from the Regal Rhino headed back to their ship, still drunk and in the mood to have fun. They slothed back, but they didn't talk back.

Halcen, Jozu, and Blanche stood at the edge of the ship, saying goodbye.

"Well, it's been a pleasure," Jozu said, shaking Halcen's hand.

"Halcen," Blanche said, kneeling down in front of him. "You're a special boy, and you're going to grow up and do something big with your life. Just mind Whitebeard and you'll be okay. We're going to miss you on the Rhino." She leaned in and hugged him.

"Are you kidding me with this?" Halcen jerked himself loose from her hug.

"Excuse me?" Blanche said, confused.

"You guys have known me for like two weeks. You don't know me well enough to say what I'm capable of. All you two did was get up my ass every five minutes. I came to you to become a pirate, because I wanted freedom and power. And instead, you suffocated me. I'm glad to finally be rid of you. But I'll tell you this, I am curious to see what I'm capable of under Whitebeard's training. With him, I might actually be able to do something. I can finally become strong. And then I'll choose my own fate."

"Halcen?" Blanche cried out, offended. Tears fell from her face.

"Is that really how you feel?" Jozu asked.

"Yes," Halcen said enthusiastically. "You guys act like leaving me here is some big tragedy. But you did nothing but harass me. Why would I feel bad about leaving you? Why don't you two do me a favor and leave me alone for once?"

"Fine," Jozu said, and turned back, and boarded his ship.

Blanche stood up. "I just… can't believe this is really how you want to leave this. But fine. Goodbye and good luck." She turned around and dropped down to the Regal Rhino.

The crew was already busy getting ready to go. They pulled the ladder down so they could make a gap between their ships. They made sail and away they went.

Halcen watched in annoyance. "It's about damn time."