I suggest you listen to Natural while reading this! The one that goes "that's the price you pay", "'cause you're a natural", and "better be the hunter than the prey". I'd search it, but I'm too lazy XP

Hi! So a bit of an oversight of mine, I have no idea how to contact those guest reviewers and AO3 users about their answers about the mystery person ^^; so here's my email address, which I will be deleting when said mystery person is finally revealed:

Hanasaku/ hanabi/ gmail/ .com

Please don't spam me or send me inappropriate messages/photos! You can send me your answer here directly, and for the guest reviewers and AO3 users, please write your profile name and answer in your message! Simply remove the spaces and (/).

So far, there have already been three correct answers in ffnet (one of whom I've already messaged, but had not yet been replied to) and two from AO3! Again, the prize is a snippet from the winners' chosen chapters/scenarios.

Good luck! Now, let's get this show on the road!

Edit: finished this yesterday (02/07/20) and planned to post this on my birthday (02/10/20) but I can't wait! Consider this my early birthday gift to yourselves!

.

Luffy was bored.

Sure, he could bother Ace and Sabo, maybe even convince them to spar with him or hunt for food. Sure, he could visit Dadan and the bandits and listen to some of their stories (stealing, faking deaths, and all that other cool stuff bandits do!). Sure, he could help out Maki-nee in the bar, but he'd probably just be distracted by the many customers or eat their orders. He drank some of that 'sake' before. It tasted awful.

But he didn't, because like him, everyone was feeling 'Cara's abscence.

Maki-nee would sometimes talk about something, a new recipe or drink she made on a whim, and would turn to a certain barstool with a smile on her face until she noticed that the person she was looking for wasn't there. The Old Hag would swear and scold them, and would mention 'Cara in an attempt to emphasize the stuff they shouldn't do, but would only end up sad and brushing them off with a, "Just get out of my sight."

The Doctor-guy was used to 'Cara not being around, but not in a way where he can't reach his student. 'Cara had promised to call when he got his hands on a Den Den Mushi, but it's been weeks and he still hasn't rang back. Old Lady Michelle would wonder where that nice boy that helped her till her land was, Madame Gertrude had sewn clothes meant for a specific lad who'd drop by and model for her latest ideas and frowned so severely Luffy wondered if she was hungry.

Sabo was writing on this leather-bound journal 'Cara got him more often than usual, recording all the things that happened to tell their oldest brother when he came home. And Ace...

Ace had it worst.

He'd go to the woods, alone (even when the Old Hag specifically told him not to!), and start punching some poor tree that did nothing wrong. Or beat up some of the monkeys swinging around but not eat them. So maybe he was sparring? But Sabo worried more and fretted until Ace told him to back off, so maybe it wasn't?

Windy told him that it was because Ace had been with 'Cara ever since he was born, but that was the same to Luffy too, right? Luffy was sad that 'Cara left, but it wasn't like he was gone forever.

(Windy had tittered and laughed, caressing his cheek and cooing about "sunshine child" or something or the other. Luffy didn't really get Windy sometimes)

So, now, Luffy was bored. And he'd been staring at the wall behind Parts Bar's counter for a while now, and Maki-nee had apparently set down a glass of juice for him to drink. How did he not notice it?

Looking up at the barmaid, Luffy grinned and expressed his thanks. He was about to lift it up and drink it when the doors to the bar slammed open and a villager said, panting,

"Pirates! There are pirates in the docks!"

Eyes widening, Luffy jumped out of his stool and ran towards the tired man—it was Cowardly Poh!

"Pirates?" He asked, even as numerous customers shifted and muttered. Some felt for their weapons—flintlock pistols strapped on their belts, daggers kept in dirt-worn boots, needles hidden underneath long sleeves—while others vacated to the inner parts of the inn. "Really? How many? Did they have a jolly roger? A huuuuuuuge ship?"

Poh nodded to all of it, and Luffy felt excitement bubble up inside him. Finally something interesting is happening!

"Luffy," Maki-nee called out, and Luffy turned around to see her calmly counting bags of flour. They were small, compact and deadly. 'Cara made sure of that!"Don't approach them recklessly, okay?"

Luffy grinned, remembering Gramps' warnings and 'Cara's quiet musings about decent pirates, and nodded. "Un! I'll be careful!"

Sprinting out of the bar, Luffy looked for the mystery pirates with a wide grin on his face.

.

Shanks took one look at the harbor, and raised an eyebrow.

From what he recalled, Foosha Village was a peaceful place with picturesque windmills and fields. Pirates rarely visited, none would since it was in East Blue, but there were still a handfull of people going on their business even as the Red Force docked beside their small fishboats.

Maybe this vacation wouldn't be all calm skies and clear weathers after all.

"Captain..." Benn started, tone shifting into a warning one. Shanks is sure that Rayleigh taught him that, because it never failed to make him stiffen like he was ten all over again and sneaking some snacks from the kitchen with a terrified Buggy in tow. "Play nice. They're not like those in the Grand Line."

Shanks pouted, which lost its effectiveness ever since Benn had seen him accidentally set an island on fire ("How does one accidentally set an island on fire, dumbass Captain!?" "I dunno! Now, we run!" "Motherfucke—!") during their earlier years, and groused, "I'm not that bad! I know how to behave, Benn! Geez... no faith on your captain, whatsoever."

"I mean, he has a very valid reason not to, Cap'n," Yassop grinned, with Lucky Roux laughing beside him, a drumstick in his hand. His comment roused a chorus of hoots and whoops from his disloyal nakama, and he did what any mature adult would stuck a tongue out at them, making them laugh even harder.

"Why did I even pick you guys as my crew..." Ah, yes. He was fooled by the Roger Pirates' familial atmosphere and went out of his way to find those he felt comfortable with and were also badass. That's why. "Gah! I need some booze. I hope this place has the good stuff..."

"Unlikely, Captain!" Hollered one near the mast. "It's a quaint little village, after all!"

"Seas dammit." How the hell was he going to get wasted now?

"Hey!"

Shanks blinked, looking down and noticing a small figure staring back at him. A tiny boy with messy raven hair and simple clothes was there, wearing a grin so reminiscent of his Captain's that he had to inhale sharply and stagger back. Was he seeing things?

"Yeah? Whatcha want, squirt?" He yelled back and, ignoring the sound of Benn's palm meeting his face, leaned forward to better see their newcomer. "Shouldn't you be running home to your mom now? We're pirates, you know!"

"You're so silly! I'm not gonna run away just 'cause you're pirates!" He replied, and earned more laughter from his audience. "And besides, I don't have a mom!"

"You don't?" Was Yassop's incredulous question, no doubt remembering his wife and son. While he can't stay, he thought of them everyday. Shanks' bleeding ears were a testament to that. "Who's taking care of you then?"

At that, the grin turned brighter (and when he reached the final island, he laughed—), almost impossibly so with the way it's stretched over his small face. "'Cara does! And Maki-nee, and Gramps sometimes visits, and Old Hag Dadan, and Dad always comes on my birthdays, and—"

"Okay, okay! We get it, everybody loves you," teased Lucky Roux, but the commiserating look he shared with them spoke volumes of how they wouldn't be surprised if that turned out to be true. "Hey, kid, what's your name by the way? Mine's Lucky Roux!"

"You can call me Yassop, kiddo!"

"Benn Beckman, nice to meet ya, kid."

"Dahahahaha! And I'm Shanks! I lead these bastards around the seas!"

The kid laughed then, a shishishi that almost immediately endeared itself to him, and spoke with a loud exclamation, "I'm Luffy! Nice to meet'cha too!"

And as Shanks jumped down and ruffled the brat's—Luffy, was it?—hair, he had a feeling he'd enjoyed this particular stop. Who knows? He might stay here for a while.

.

Makino heard them before they came. Footsteps, sandals and boots, and Luffy's bouncing from here and there.

Baccara had taught her a lot of things: how to make bombs, how to shoot, how to wield blades of different kinds (the bandits helped out, and they were not as scary as the rumors had said), how to identify posion, and many more. But the very first thing Baccara taught her was how to know and hear.

While she might never unlock her Observation, that doesn't mean she can't rely on her five senses. He had trained her with blindfolds and hide-and-seek's, sneaking up on her and marking her face with black ink every time he managed to successfully spook her. So she knew before they showed up that they were a rowdy bunch, used to the sea with the way their steps swayed despite being on land and not intoxicated, sure legs that spoke of battles won, and looked up to greet the pirates with a smile on her face.

"Welcome! Who are your new friends, Luffy?"

Luffy, already so big and full of so much energy he could burst, grinned as he held the hand of the red-haired man in the front. "They're the Red-Haired Pirates! And they want to eat! And drink, too!"

"We heard you run the best bar in town," a man with a ponytail added his two Berries, acknowledging her with a tip of his head. "Hope you don't mind these idiots. They have no manners."

"Hey!" Cut in the man Luffy was holding hands with, looking more like a parent-and-son duo than a fearful pirate and a civilian child. "I so do have manners! My Vice-Captain didn't raise no hobo!"

"What about your captain, Captain?"

"Oh, him?" He placed his free hand under his chin, and Luffy giggled at the exaggerated thinking face he made. "Hmm... nope! He raised a criminal instead!"

Hollers and guffaws exploded all around the bar, someone screamed, "Damn straight he did!" and Makino felt her eyes soften at the sight these pirates made beside the village's ray of sunshine.

They didn't look like pirates with ill intentions at all.

(But still, she doesn't remove the knife kept underneath her blouse, doesn't take off the pouches of flour hung on her belt. Not yet, not yet)

"Well, sit down then. Luffy, can you show them to their tables?"

Receiving a cheery, "Okay!" Makino went and started preparing for the newest additions, and discreetly shook her head at her other customers, all of whom relaxed and removed their grasps on their chosen weapons.

(Unbeknowst to them, Yassop leaned over to whisper in Benn's ear, "Fantastic service, eh?" eyeing the various individuals scattered around the bar. Everyone was regarding Luffy in some sort of way, be it with a noogie or a fond glance, but all had means of defending themselves tucked away from sight, and Benn nodded. "Fantastic service indeed.")

.

Sabo was worried. Well, he was almost always worried, but 'Cara had helped ease it away. So did the bandits and Makino-san.

But now, 'Cara was gone (he's not leaving forever. He won't. He promised them), the bandits were busy planning a heist, Ace was off to god-knows-where, and now even Luffy was leaving their humble treehouse to play with his new friends.

(And maybe Sabo was wrong, but he can't shake off the creeping feeling that he's being left behind—)

Sabo has heard of them. The apparently decent pirates that had taken refuge in their little island at the corner of the East Blue. He had puzzled over their reasons for leaving the Grand Line—possibly they were injured and wanted to regain strength without interruptions, looking for buried treasure, wanted to install a base of operations in the Blues, or perhaps they're simply vacationing—but hadn't met them personally to make any sort of opinion.

He should probably introduce himself, at the very least. They were taking care of Luffy, which was Sabo and Ace's job.

It took no time at all for him to get down Mt. Colubo. Fuusha Village was simply a hop, a jump, and a skip away via large, potruding boulders that Sabo had no recollection of them being there before. Then he remembered Old Hag Dadan coming home once with huge welts on her head after grumbling about Shitty Gramps training 'Cara, and left it at that with a sudden laugh.

The village wasn't that much different, even with the pirates in town. But with trained eyes used to scavenging trash, fighting goons, escaping the guards of High Town, and playing 'Cara's 'games' geared to preparing them for when they set off, he could see how everyone moved in groups with at least two frontal fighters and one used to long-distance ammunition. How Mr. Gab, a retired bounty hunter taking care of his aging mother; and Selena, an on-and-off hitwoman with a penchant for smothering him and his brothers with red kisses, were loitering in places (an open bar for those above age and a salon respectively) where numerous people were gathering during the afternoons and evenings.

He noticed how the paths were clear despite stands and vendors were still selling their goods, how boats were taken care of and anchored away from the pirate's ship from a distance, how the fishermen had harpoons alongside their fishing rods, how sacks of flour were near the docks beside crates holding what Sabo reckoned to be homemade explosives, and many more.

Sabo saw this all, and smiled, pride and giddiness bubbling up his chest at the fact that this sleepy village was a wolf in sheep's clothing, and his oldest brother had a hand in sharpening their best hunters' teeth.

(In another world, Makino would be a simple barmaid with a spine of steel from a year living with pirates. In another world, she would be sad as the captain of the Red Force would leave, a small boy clutching a strawhat beside her.

This is not that world.

In this world, a little six year-old washed up from somewhere faraway had muse about home supplies and turned them into weapons for war. In this world, simple barmaid Makino was armed to the teeth with pouches of flour that could explode, glasses laced with Poppies at the rim, blowfish poison shining at the edge of her needles stitched on her sleeves, and a smile that made grown men tremble as they set afoot in her territory.

Partys Bar was a den of monsters, after all. And she had been reigning Alpha since age thirteen)

When he does find the pirates, a well-loved sound of shishishishi permeated the air, followed with raucous laughter and hooting. At the center of it all was his precious little brother (the one he watched grow up, watched him say his first word and take his first step—), riding on a ponytailed man's shoulders as a red-haired, strawhat-wearing man clutched his stomach whilst leaning on them.

"By the Seas, Anchor! Where have you been all my life?" Gasped the red-haired man, an attractive man with rougish looks and a grin that rivalled his brothers' on a good day. His eyes, a stunning shade of cognac, were warm with sincerity and fondness. Sabo should know, 'Cara looked at them the same way.

(The stab of loneliness hurt less and less with each passing day. He still missed him)

"What do you mean, Shanks? I've been here in Fuusha since I was a baby, dumdum!" And there was Luffy, joy personified that he is. His chubby cheeks were flushed with glee, grin stretching as wide as it can on his babyish face. Sabo immediately felt his mood lighten, a skip on his step as he approached them. As if picking up on his better demeanor, Luffy perked up and doe, chocolate-brown eyes met his, shining with so much love Sabo wanted to just wrap him up in a blanket and hide him away from the cruel, cold world.

"Sabo!" He all but squealed, and the obvious happiness Luffy showed upon seeing him never failed to make Sabo think he could fly from the sheer lightness he was feeling. "Sabo! Look, look, Shanks! That's my big brother, Sabo!"

Big brother. Sabo thought, fuck good first impressions, I'm gonna hug Luffy to death and ignore them all. "Lu! Happy to see me?"

Jumping from the ponytailed man's shoulders, Sabo braced for the rocket known as a clingy Monkey D. Luffy and grinned as thin arms wrapped themselves around him, grounding him in a way logic and reasoning could never, and buried his nose on the crook of the other's tanned neck. Luffy rubbed his cheek against his, yelling, "I'm very, very happy! Shishishishi!"

(Unbeknowst to them, the Red-Haired Pirates were abruptly subjected to their innocent adorableness and some had already fainted from the amount of cuteness overload, Shanks notwithstanding.

"Benn, Benn, I can't—"

"Captain..."

"Benn, I can't take it! They're too cute for words. I need them, Benn. I need them. They're just babies."

"Captain, we are not going to kidnap these kids!"

"Who says we're gonna kidnap them? We could just ask—"

"NO.")

"I'm happy too, Lu. Now," he shifted himself so that he could see the pirates better with Luffy in his arms, and raised an eyebrow at the sight of fainted bodies before shaking it off. Probably just drunk. "Why don't you introduce me to your new friends?" Nodding rapidly, Luffy did just that, listing away each and every pirates with ridiculous nicknames (which they all complained good-naturedly about) and the rare names that he deemed important enough to remember (which roused another round of complaining, saying that it was 'unfair').

Sabo idly bounced Luffy against his hip minutely, used to doing the same when he was still a babe, and mentally made a list of the Red-Haired Pirates whilst keeping in mind of their nicknames. While most might see these nicknames as Luffy's forgetfulnes or lack of attention, it was actually either him teasing them (highly likely), he doesn't like them enough to warrant attention (usually, his ncknames are more like insults, which is unusual but not rare), or someone he sees as dangerous (once in a lifetime, also usually insults, but with a different intonation when he calls them. See: Shitty Gramps the Senile Grandpa vs Shitty Gramps the Crazy Old Seadog vs Shitty Gramps and His Fists of Love).

Thankfully, most of the nicknames were only thinly-veiled jeers, inside jokes, and a characteristic (which means they're boring). Then there were Shanks the Strawhat-wearing Captain, Benn the ponytailed man, Yassop who loved talking about his son, and Lucky Roux whose appetite could rival Luffy's. Those whom he'd considered as important, and thus those he feels closest and most safe to be with. And, by proxy, the people he would trust the lives of his loved ones with.

(Sabo had always loved people-watching. But when one of the bandits took him to the side and told him how his hobby could be an important skill in life, he loved it even more)

"Pleasure to meet you all. My name is Sabo, Luffy's big brother. Thank you so much for taking care of him!" He said with a bow, Luffy taking off his hat for him when he did so, since he was holding a particular cheeky monkey and couldn't do it himself. Giggling behind a small hand, Luffy shrieked when Sabo suddenly blew raspberries on his neck and shoulders in retaliation.

("Oh no, they're too cute," muttered Yassop faintly. Lucky Roux, who had just taken a bite from his drumstick, guffawed, "You just noticed? Captain's raring to go and adopt them already!"

At the same time, they both looked at said captain, whose face was being palmed away from their irate First Mate, as the red-haired pirate whined and wheedled Benn into adopting the 'two most adorable munchkins in all of East Blue' in his words.

"They could be cabin boys! Just like me and Buggy when we were younger!"

"No, I don't trust anyone with them."

"Not even Yassop?"

Benn raised an unimpressed eyebrow, voicelessly reminding Shanks where Yassop was at right now in contrast to his fond recollection of his family. Chastised, Shanks stopped. Mentioning Yassop, that is. He won't stop bothering Benn until the Red Force gets two new kiddies to clean her decks!)

The men were quick to include Sabo into their circle of bullshit and high-tales, waxing poetry over the mermaids they've seen in Fishman Island—and had been glared at by Benn and Yassop for the nth time whenever they got too raunchy for the kids—regalling stories about other pirates, whispering the drunken escapades of their captain and how he 'went on a rampage for three days' as said by the Marines when it was actually just him pulling the seven 'destroyed' islands into a drunken tour of parties and booze, and many more.

Sabo could easily see why Luffy was taken into them, and how they in return adored this little boy from the middle of nowhere. Still, he'll withold judgement for now, and maybe he'll get to talk to Ace for more than a few minutes with this little nugget of information.

(Later on, when Ace comes back to their hideout, bruised and knuckles scraped, he tells them about the pirates from the Grand Line. To his relief, Ace's stormy-grey eyes actually registered his words and he even replied to his questions.

The downside of this was that Ace was now ready to maim or tolerate these friends of Luffy with all the fervor of a thirsty man upon seeing an oasis, and Sabo had only managed to cajole him into meeting them with a bandana he'd stolen from the Dadan Bandits.

The Shitty Gramps had remarked how Ace looked enough like his father to be recognized, and if Shanks really had been in the Grand Line since he was a kid, then it was better safer than sorry)

.

Ace had grumbled about wrapping his head with a dark blue cloth, but had grudgingly listened to his more logical brother after a few pointed reminders and facts.

(While he might not hate his old man, the way he looked like him still brought up a boiling feeling from the pits of his stomach)

Letting Sabo pull him downwards Fuusha Village without much protest, other than the surprise obstacle course his mountain goat of a brother used as a path, they found themselves putside Partys Bar where noise louder than usual can be heard even five meters away from the establishment itself.

Seeing Ms. Jolyne tap her right shoulder two times with her left finger (non-hostile, multiple individuals) and put her right fist on her left hip (second and first strongest inside, do not engage), they entered with only a cursory glance around for open exits and did the same when they entered.

Sabo was faster than him, being dragged into heists and steals by the Dadan Family as he is, but Ace wasn't trained by 'Cara for nothing. Clustered groups meant possibly easy way to knock out multiple potential-hostiles at once with the correct object (his eyes immediately zeroed into the tables and chairs near the entrance), nintey percent of the people inside were drunk (higher chances of making a break for it, since they're not allowed to engage too many and stronger foes all at once without backup), the inner circle were stationed at the bar counter with Makino-nee and Luffy (able-bodied reinforcement. If worst comes to worst, Makino-nee can kill them with her needles or create a diversion with her arsenal. Luffy was quick and small, an advantage he had almost everywhere, most especially in closed-in spaces), and others.

Nudging Sabo with his left elbow to the gut lightly (you take left, I'll take right) and crossing his arms (priority is defense), he motioned his head towards the direction their baby brother was at (I'll inform the others about the plan) and received a quirk of lips (copy that) and a fond shake of his head (possibilty of a hostile situation is nigh low).

Huffing, be scowled (keep your guard up, don't be too lax)

Hearing Sabo chuckle, he approached the pirates and squared his shoulders.

Here goes nothing.

.

When Shanks see the little bandana boy, he first thinks he's had too many drinks.

Because how else could he see a miniature Captain Roger in the first place? Then he takes a second look, notices the freckles dotting a tanned face and a familiar scrunching of a nose, and decides that he should probably stop drinking for now. Because he can see Ms. Rouge now, and paired with the stormy-grey (dark but bright, clear but clouded with a spark like fireworks) eyes narrowed at him and dark hair, he could fool himself into thinking that Captain and Ms. Rouge's kid was all hale and healthy in front of him, and not buried underneath Baterilla's soil alongside their mother.

(He should've set off earlier, shouldn't have wasted a second before leaving for South Blue, should've done something like Buggy told him to—)

"Shanks? Shaaaaanks!" Anchor exclaimed, snapping him out of his funk, and Shanks blinks at the frown on the boy's cute face. It seemed that his displeasure was a simple thing, maybe because he stopped paying attention to him or something, but he sees his unfathomable eyes so similar to Roger's (dark but not quite, and so blindingly bright with a supernova clearing away any vestiges of clouds) and stops the first teasing remark in his lips, instead holding his worried(?) stare for a few minutes before showing him a sincere smile.

It was the same smile Ms. Rouge always showed them after a rough battle had shook the seas and rocked the Oro Jackson, forcing her to hide lest she be associated with them and hunted down. It was the same smile Crocus-san gave them after wrapping him up with Buggy guiltily standing near the side. It was the same smile Rayleigh-san wore whenever he woke up from a nightmare with his voice at his throat. It was the same rare smiles Roger had after they braved a storm or survived a hurricane, the same smile he had after the sails threatened to tear and the Adam Wood seemed to almost break.

It was the smile that said I'm alright, everything's fine, don't worry, I'm here.

He could only hope that Luffy could understand and believe him. And judging by the grin on his face that bloomed not a second later, he seemed to be successful.

(And it was strange, to be the one giving that same smile instead of the other way around. But as he watched the boy who was now quickly becoming a permanent fixation in their lives ramble about his brothers, he felt a warmth spreading to his every pore at the faith Luffy had in him to accept his word at face value.

Still, he forces himself not go react when he hears the other older brother's name to be Ace, and squashes down the questions he kept under lock and key for years)

.

(There's a man lying amongst the rubble. He's bleeding, clothes near unrecognizable from the blood and ash all over him, a pair of glasses lying broken not too far away from him. There's nothing but destruction around him, dead boadies littered about in a manner that signified the attack's carnage and danger.

This is how a Marine sees him, barely breathing and on the last threads of his life.

The man doesn't notice him, until the Marine approaches him and kneels at his side.

"What... are you... doing... here?" Come to laugh at my loss? He doesn't say, not wanting to waste his breath for someone who wouldn't, couldn't and chose not to understand why he was doing this. Why he fought and protested and refused to be let down.

"A man such as yourself should be remembered without any unwanted embellishments the government will surely do," was the surprising answer, one that gained a faint smile from his dying companion. With a huff that could have been a laugh, the man spoke, "Are you sure... you're a Marine?"

"Yes, I am—"

"No, don't tell me," the man cut in. "I'd rather you...be a nameless... friend than a... Marine that will... be tainted in my me... mories as a... guard dog for... the World Government..."

The Marine incline his head wordlessly, and asked after a few beats of silence, "And what do you mean by that?"

The man stared, his gaze skyward, and answered sotto voice, "What I'm doing... is something your... owners find to be... very displea...sing..." he gasped, and the Marine belatedly put pressure on his wounds—gashes deep, holes left behind by bullets, before receiving a resigned shake of his head. "Don't... bother... anyway... The Gorosei are... puppeteers who... choose what must be... accepted and... denied..."

"They paint everything... as black and white... pirates versus Marines... and covers the... grey areas... I pointed out those... grey areas and they... don't like that..."

"Why?" Inquired the Marine, helpless but not disagreeing. He had seen the many incidents that had spanned throughout the seas. Most notable the Massacre in South Blue, something that made his gut sour and feel like puking just from remembering it. "Why don't more people criticize their mistakes? Their shortcomings?"

A raspy laugh escaped the man. "People often... choose to blind... themselves than... face the ugliness... of the world around... them... They're no better... than the blind... and deaf... stopping their voice... and killing the... 'wrong'..."

Moving his head to better see his companion, the dying man smiled, having the vague impression that ths other was frowning severely. "Hey... can you do... me a favor..?"

"What favor?"

Heaving shallowly, he said, "At my right... pants pocket there's... a small notebook... it holds all the dirt I... have on high-... ranking Marines and... officials..."

"I'm not asking... you to expose... them..." he added at the shock he could feel the Marine expressed, hands holding the same notebook that could very well shake the pillars of the World Government. "Just... give them to... my wife and... she'll do something... about it..."

"Your wife?"

"Yeah..." he huffed once more, dirtied face fond and sorrowful all at once. "She's a real... force of nature... and would probably... kill me when she... finds me in... the afterlife..."

"Let's hope... she doesn't... die so soon..."

"I'll pray for you, then,"the Marine joked, attempting to lighten the atmosphere. The man smiled weakly. "May I have your name, friend? So that I may wish you peace and your wife protection."

Bleary eyes met dark russet, and the way his silver eyes shone would forever be imprinted in the Marine's mind.

"My name is...—")

.

NYD: Before y'all yell at me, I claim birthday girl rights!

There's no need to guess who this guy is, since he's an OC, but feel free to yell at the comments!