THIRTEEN

While Penny tended to freak out when things went wrong, in the actual moments of chaos there was a stubbornness of spirit that made the decision to keep her on his crew the right one. Plus, Beckman and her get along like no one else.

"Do you think he's dead?" asked Penny, squatting atop the fallen Marine's chest. Her fingers poke the man in the face and then snap back, reminded that the gloves she had taken to wearing are no longer protecting her.

"It's over there," she said after a moment, the copied intel settling in her mind. "The treasure cove—I can take us there. They've been dumping things from the merchant ships."

"All those people starving, and these pigs fatten themselves up—maybe we should kill him," muttered Limejuice with a look of disgust.

"No point," said Beckman, moving his rifle onto his shoulder. "Someone else will take his place."

Lucky appeared out of nowhere, startling all of them. Shanks let out a sharp yell and ducked behind Penny, holding on to her like a human shield. "The big one's still out there."

"Treasure first—I'll deal with him after," said Shanks easily. He patted Penny's head lightly, dodging the lightning quick draw of her needle-like sword. Penny stood after him, dusting her tailored pants off and treading the ground lightly to not dirty her slippers.

The cove was filled with all sorts of goods that would surely bring them a fortune at the next port, but most of it wasn't worth taking. The people here needed it more than they did, and Penny's Devil Fruit made it hard to find any worth in treasure.

"This was made in the West Blue," said Shanks proudly, turning a gun around in his hands. He tossed it toward Beckman, making a slight face. Beckman shook his head, pointing at his rifle.

"That's where I was back before you found me," admitted Penny half-heartedly. She dug through the stolen treasure, put off by all the gold and jewels, looking for a symbol that she had seen before, pointing to a story no one else seemed to care about. "There were a lot of Marines there because of Bege-san and the other bosses."

"You've been to the West Blue?" And just like that Shanks was reduced to a small boy, far from home, meeting someone from the same town as him. Though, he and Penny both knew that she wasn't from the West Blue, for a moment they could pretend.

Throughout Penny's year on the crew, bits, and pieces of the picture came together. Penny refused to speak of her family, but she spoke of what came after. The Navy was the first stop in her long journey to them—Penny's quick mind and sharp tongue endeared her to the local shipyard who took pity on the half-dead girl and let her work for them. Asking a child to work, thought Shanks, was not pity, but punishment.

Information, skills, and names were picked up along the way, giving her the tools to run away and make her way to the Grand Line where they had found her. "I was looking for the Tree," admitted Penny shyly.

Shanks couldn't remember why people left home. His earliest memories were of Roger. Adventure, maybe? No one to return to? But, sailing the world for a tree was the kind of thing children did when they played games. There must've been a great story behind it, one that ached when he thought of it. "Which one?"

"Ohara's Tree of Knowledge, but it was all gone and when I asked no one would say what happened. A girl survived though. I thought I could find her, but I found you instead."

Beckman, who knew the weight that Ohara carried just as Shanks did, interjected. "What were you looking for there?"

Shanks was still reeling from the fact that Penny could say the word Ohara so loudly and fearlessly. And, just as with Luffy, his heart quickened.

"I wanted to know."

"Know what?"

Penny clamped up and shook her head. "It doesn't matter anymore."

Beckman looked at him. Shanks sighed and forced a laugh from his mouth. "Well, whatever it is, you're with us now. Should we go find the One Piece?"

Blunt as ever, Penny asked, "Shouldn't you have done it by now?"

Sixteen

"There are some very dangerous pirates on this island, miss," said the young boy, arm circling Penny's shoulders with a thick blanket. "I'm glad we found you before something nasty happened."

"Oh, me too! I'm so grateful for everything you guys are doing."

"There's a Den Den Mushi in the Captain's office you can use to call your relatives."

"She doesn't have any," said Beckman, flicking his cigarette to the floor and putting it out beneath his foot. "And you're more of a fool than she is for believing whatever she told you."

Her head shot up, a sheepish smile crossing her face. He should've known that he would find her in the middle of all the chaos. Ever since they had heard that there were students from Ilsan University traveling with a Marine escort, she had been plotting to steal whatever she could get her hands.

"Oh my god! It's a pirate!" shrieked Penny, slapping her hands against her cheeks. She rushed to her feet, tripping over the hem of her skirts, and fell backward onto the boy.

Between her and Yasopp, it was an uphill climb to find a word of truth in them.

Her elbow rammed into the boy's throat, knocking him unconscious. Clicking her tongue, she lowered him to the floor gently.

"In my defense," muttered Penny, trading her coat for the Marine's jacket and cap. She tucked her coat under the boy's head gently. "Knowledge should be free for all to have and not guarded more thoroughly than a Celestial Dragon."

"Worry about your revolution later. We've got three vice admirals coming here."

"Which ones? I owe Garp-san a good beating after he knocked me out last time and almost had me executed. I thought we were friends," Penny sniffled, pinching her nose tight.

Beckman sighed. At sixteen, Penny's emotions altered between believing she could take on enemies a hundred times stronger than her and terrorizing the public over skincare. Plastering a sheepish smile on her face, she picked up a small bag and pulled it over her shoulders.

Penny's particular brand of Devil Fruit lent her a unique power to copy information which made getting off the Marine ship incredibly easy. Throwing a coat over his shoulders, they blended into the advancing troops and slipped back to the Red Force with ease.

"Wanna see what I got?!" asked Penny, bouncing with excitement as her feet landed on the wood of the ship.

She dodged a stray bullet and then turned around to glare at the man who had shot at her. "Oi, watch where you point that thing! It's dangerous!"

"Guys, look what I found!" Shanks stood on the side of the ship, holding a small chest over his head. "Think it's treasure?" He shook the box roughly, a comical look of glee plastered on his face. Yelping loudly, he threw himself down as the Marines aimed at him. "I think we made them mad."

Catching sight of her in her Marine cap and coat, Shanks threw an elbow into her face. Penny reared back, barely dodging what was likely a Haki-infused blow. "We've got an enemy on board!"

"I swear on the Four Blues, I'm going to murder you one day."

Realizing his mistake, Shanks threw his head back and laughed, "It's the devil herself. That's a good look on you, Penpen. Want me to throw you back toward your new crew?"

Penny gripped his hair tightly, pulling as hard as she could. Hopefully, it'd open up his skull and reveal the fact that his head was as empty as a dry well. Shanks swatted her cap off and pulled hard on her locks, shouting at her to let go.

Their heads were knocked together by a blistering blow from Beckman. Lighting a new cigarette, he ignored their weeping. "We've got Garp, Tsuru, and Momousagi in sight. Orders?"

"Eh, it's like a reunion."

A deep withering sigh escaped Beckman's mouth, "They've got cannons aimed at us."

"Right," Shanks stood, dragging Penny up with him. "Let's tuck tail and run. Turn to two points to port! Get every sail open!"

"Not you," said Shanks sternly, hand clamping down around her shoulder. Penny sent Beckman a pleading look that was ignored as everyone else got to work quickening their pace and patching each other up.

Penny turned around, clasping her hands in front of her, and made her eyes as wide and innocent as she could. "Yes, Captain?"

Shanks glared for a moment longer, before he dipped his head and whispered conspiratorially, "I gotta put on a strong face, so make it seem like I yelled at you or something."

Penny bit back her smile and balled her fists. Stomping her feet, she screamed, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN I'M GROUNDED?! WE'RE NOT ON LAND?!"

Shanks puffed his chest out, "That's right! Next three islands, you're staying on the Red Force and keeping an eye on her. If I see you anywhere near land, I'll toss you overboard!"

"That's a bit extreme."

"Yeah, it is, but I'm the Captain, so what I say goes."

Miming a boat sinking, she said, "Everyone's respect levels just took a major dip."

"Hey," Shanks leaned in again. "I thought we were on the same page for this. Give me something to work with."

"Oh, sorry. I forgot my character for a second."

"It's the whiny crybaby who got locked up and can't go to the party. Let's try that again."

"I don't think that fits my personality."

"What are you talking about? You cried last week for that exact reason."

"No. I cried because my jail cell was next to all of yours and that cute boy kept flirting with me, but I couldn't even flirt back because you kept making pig noises every time, he opened his mouth. How am I supposed to develop normal peer-to-peer relationships like that?"

"He was a Marine."

"I could've fixed him."

Shanks pulled his cape over his face until it was resting just under his eyes. He gave her an intense stare, "My name is Penny," he said in a high-pitched voice, "And I'm the only girl on this ship, so I'm special."

"Have you been practicing that?" She clapped slowly. "I think I'm going to go find that clown you always talk about. Seems like me and him might get along."

"Dhahahahaha, Buggy-san's a riot! Did I tell you about that one time he accidentally set an Admiral on Captain Roger?"

"A million times."

"We had just gotten to the New World…" Shanks launched into a story that felt too insane to be fake.

"She's got how many kids?" asked Penny, choking on her onigiri.

"71?" said Limejuice, tilting his head toward Bonk Punch for confirmation. "Probably more since the last time we saw her."

"She's near eighty now."

Penny did a series of quick calculations in her head. "If each baby took the normal nine months, then that's over sixty years carrying kids." A shudder ran down her spine. "What kind of monster is she?"

"Not one anyone of us want to meet," said Bonk Punch, reaching around her to grab another onigiri. If Chef-san found them gossiping in the storage room with his stolen goods, they'd all be hung from the sails.

"I can't even take care of a fish, let alone a kid," whispered Penny. "No wonder she's a Yonko."

"It's not just that. She marries her kids off and herself to get more power. It's a whole business and she's got a sweet tooth that's insane. If you don't pay her tribute, your island might as well not exist."

"And Shanks is on that level?"

Limejuice snorted, knocking her on the head. "Where have you been? He's the strongest of them."

"I know that! It's, well, he's just the Captain. It's easy to forget he's a legend when he's right there sticking chopsticks up his nose."

"But he's taught you a bit," said Monster, climbing up onto her shoulders. "Keep your head down when we sail past, or she'll eat you right up."

"I heard a story like that once about a witch with a candy house."

"That's not a story—it's Big Mom."

"WHERE ARE THEY?! I CAN SMELL YOU HIDING IN HERE!"

Penny shot to her feet, looking for something to hide behind as Lucky's voice came closer and closer. Limejuice, Bonk Punch, and Monster looked at one another and then ran, leaving a startled Penny alone in the storage room.

The door opened once more.

Penny dropped to her knees, rubbing her hands together. "They weren't here! I swear they weren't!"

A chicken bone whacked her on the head. "DON'T DEFEND THEM! I TOLD THEM TO STOP STEALING FROM THE KITCHENS!"

"YOU'RE THE COOK! FEEDING PEOPLE'S WHAT YOU DO!"

Penny sat ram-straight, thankful that the binder she wore did wonders for hiding any trace that she was a girl. Big Mom's giant eyes skimmed their ship. Penny wondered what it was that made the other three Yonko larger than life. Shanks dwarfed her in every sense but power. His haki rolled off him, coating every inch of the ship.

Big Mom laughed a terrible laugh. "Boy, don't test me!" she called out to Shanks, who sat playing a game of cards with her and Yasopp, unbothered by Big Mom's presence.

Penny set her hand down. Shanks' gaze darkened, but he didn't have a hint of anger to him. "I'm not the type to play the games that you do. We're just passing through—there's no danger in that."

Penny's eyes scanned her ship curiously. If her crew was truly her children, each one was overwhelmingly unique. She wanted to capture their image in a way that made it more permanent. The thing with people that were truly original, the way Luffy was and her crew was, nothing she did would ever come close to copying their essence.

Maybe one day, everyone would understand that they were living in the greatest age the world had ever seen. The only task they had was to enjoy the limitless possibilities that were offered.

Reaching out curiously to feel the clashing haki in the air, she wondered if Shanks ever got exhausted exerting his will the way he did. She knew that the Captain's haki was deeply layered and took immeasurable skill. It was an impossible gap that Penny wanted to cross.

So distracted by her thought, Penny hadn't realized that Big Mom was watching her.

Penny stared back. Realizing that she was eating the chocolate bar Shanks had handed her earlier, she pulled it from her mouth slowly. Shanks' cheeks puffed out, attempting to withhold his laughter.

Beckman's face was calm, a small smile playing on his lips. Yasopp, who had been using her as an armrest, dropped his arm to rest his hand on his pistol.

Penny swallowed down the sweet left in her mouth.

Clearing her throat as she pulled her collar loose, she held out the bar of chocolate. "Sorry, did you guys want some?"

Shanks snickered first, followed by the rest of them. It was only when Big Mom's rage grew large enough to wash over the ship that he stood.

SEVENTEEN

Her first bounty came on the eve of her seventeenth birthday—a date they had chosen randomly. It wasn't even her face plastered on the Wanted Poster, but a close-up of her scarred arm reaching toward a girl's fallen body to pull her keys out.

"DHAHAHAHAHAHA."

"Why did I get one?!" asked Penny despaired. So far, she had gotten away with her act of being Shank's Cabin Boy. "I didn't do anything wrong! She was drunk, I was helping her home."

"Sometimes it's our good deeds that are the most—"

"100,000 Berries?!" Yasopp clapped her on the back, "What're you getting worked up for? That's the same bounty they give cats for scratching people."

"People are going to be after me now! I don't want to go to jail! It stinks and it's damp and dark and the Marines have no sense of humor."

"IT'S SO PATHETIC!" cried Shanks, tears spilling down his eyes as he laughed himself to death. "Man, they need to put 'World's Worst Pirate' on the next one and call it a day."

"As opposed to World's Best Alcoholic?"

"It's the kingly nature in me, always striving for the top."

"I'm going to talk to the Marines," said Penny, rolling up the paper and smacking it into her hand. "If I explain everything, then they'll retract it, right?"

"Sure, sure," Shanks waved a hand, too humored by her distress to care. "Go try that out."

"But, sir!"

"Ma'am, I'm afraid I can't do anything about it," said the Marine, patting her on the shoulder. "Of course, it seems to be a simple misunderstanding, but it comes from my higher-ups."

Penny blew into her handkerchief once more. She'd worn her best outfit, one that had taken her a full day to cut and sew and made her look like the opposite of a pirate. Twisting her gloved hands together, she threw her most pitiful look toward the Marine once more.

He sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "I-I guess I can try calling headquarters."

"Oh, would you?!" She reached forward, holding his hands between her own. "That would make my day."

His cheeks tinged pink, "Y-yeah, sure!"

Sucker, thought Penny, leaning back into her seat as the man rushed toward the Den Den Mushi. She looked around curiously, spotting the wall of Wanted posters in the back. She had the Red Hair Pirates' bounties memorized but was curious about the rising stars across the Grand Line and Four Blues.

It was a few years too early for Luffy to show up, but he was around the age she had been when she left Foosha. There'd come a day when she'd find his poster staring back at her.

"Um—" The man swallowed hard, interrupting her thoughts. "—they want to speak to you."

"Me?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Penny accepted the Den Den Mushi gingerly. A booming voice sounded on the other side, nearly making her drop the snail. "IF YOU DIDN'T WANT A BOUNTY, YOU SHOULD'VE JOINED THE MARINES, YOU BRAT!"

"Hehehehehe," Penny clutched her throat, laughing nervously. "Garp-san, it's a pleasure to hear your voice. I was just thinking about Luffy—how is he?"

The Marine in front of her stared at her stunned.

"That fool's running wild with his brother. You wouldn't believe how strong he's gotten. He'll be coming after you one day when he joins the Marines," said Garp with a loud, laugh that filled the room even through the Den Den Mushi.

Penny didn't even know that Luffy had a brother. Sitting with the information for a moment, she wondered if he had been born after her stay in Foosha Village.

"If you're the one training him, he'll probably never catch me."

"Bwahahahaha, don't get smart with me."

"So, there's no chance?"

"Be glad it doesn't have another couple of zeros like it should. You're more slippery than an eel."

Penny hung up, holding the Den Den Mushi out to the paralyzed Marine. Patting her dress down to smooth out any wrinkles, she picked up the feathered hat resting on the seat next to her and placed it on her head. Mihawk had the right idea when it came to his sense of style.

"P-p-p—"

"Pirate?" gasped Penny mockingly as she walked toward the door. She pulled it open, turning her head back with a slight grin. "Where?!"

EIGHTEEN

Three months after Penny's eighteenth birthday, she left the Red Hair pirates. Shanks saw her off with a drink in hand and a solemn vow that there was a spot on the ship for her if she ever wanted to come back. Penny didn't cry, so much as sob her heart out as if she was being forced at gunpoint to leave. She wasn't.

Shanks and the rest had grown more than fond of their troublemaker. He knew, as she did, that home was often something you made for yourself, but she was also suffocating under the weight of his new title and had her own name to put out into the world.

"It'll be dangerous on your own, so find people you trust, but don't trust as easily as you do. Especially when it comes to Marines."

"I know that!" said Penny, gripping her backpack tightly. Had Beckman checked it? Once they had dropped her off at a library she had been begging to go, only to get a call three days later that she had forgotten to take any money with her. "I learned my lesson that one time and it's not like I haven't been on my own before and…" Penny trailed off, throat bobbing as she swallowed hard.

"And?" prompted Shanks, hand resting against his sword.

The words seized in her drying mouth, but she forced them out. "I'll miss you."

Shanks cupped a hand to his ear, "What was that?"

"I'll miss you," mumbled Penny against the rising red in her cheeks.

"One more time. I don't think the crew heard you."

"I'LL MISS YOU," she shouted, balling her fists against her side. Her face was the color of a strawberry and her eyes clenched tight against the tears rising to her eyes. Lucky blew into his handkerchief loudly, sobbing.

Beckman didn't cry as the rest of them did, but his hand fell atop her head, patting gently. "You're smart enough to get by on your own. Come back and tell us the world's greatest story."

Penny hugged each of them tightly, wishing that she could copy a version of them to take with her.

And then she left, waving them off as she stood at Sundaisy Harbor with a bag full of clothes, her book, a bit of money, and two bars of chocolate. It's only when the ship is out of sight entirely that Penny realized she had forgotten to bring a map with her.

Sundaisy Harbor was the kind of spring paradise that was best left to the artists of the world to describe. An explosion of sunflowers, peonies, roses, and a bunch of other flowers that Penny couldn't name lined the docks. The houses by the harbor had matching red tiles and were painted a muted yellow giving even more weight to the harbor's name. Penny loved it and might have loved it more if it wasn't for the creepy teenager stalking her.

"So, you see, there are all sorts of roles if you join and very little danger in the intelligence sector. I've been following you around since this morning and your ability to pick up information is astounding."

"Uh, huh," said Penny, half-listening to the blonde weirdo who had introduced himself as a member of the Revolutionary Army. She wasn't a fan of organized politics and liked it even less when they tried to get her to 'help.'

The blonde had found her creeping around the harbor after she had decided to do what pirates did and steal a map and a ship.

"It's got to be a devil fruit. Which—"

Penny interrupted, craning her neck to look over his top hat. "Hey, are there any pirates around? The alcoholic kind that swing swords around at the first insult. That type?"

The blonde looked at her curiously. "Why?"

"So, I can ask them to kill me. Aren't you army people supposed to be hush-hush about that sort of business? Also, who admits to stalking someone?"

The blonde stared at her and then laughed loudly. Taking his hat off, he raked a hand through his hair, sweeping it away from his face to reveal the tight, pink scar over his eye. "I'm revealing my hand because I already know yours. Though, it's surprising to catch you away from Akagami no Shanks."

That was the trouble with Shanks—his reputation was too well known for her to fully escape its influence. "My bounty's not high enough for you to have me on your radar. Go find another loser to bother."

"We could use your help. The World Government and those—"

"Puke." Penny mimed throwing up. "I'm all for overthrowing tyrants and all, but it's more of a case-by-case basis for me."

"All right," said the blonde putting his hands up. "I'd rather not make an enemy I don't have to."

Penny gave him a thumbs up, smiling from underneath her droopy sunhat. "Keep it that way."

He held out a hand, smiling cheerfully. "Sabo."

Penny let out a low whistle, recognizing the name after having seen it in the papers. "Aren't you pretty high up? Why'd they send you after me?"

"You shouldn't discredit yourself," said Sabo, retracting his hand when he realized she wouldn't shake it. He kept a steady pace next to her, following her as she perused the ships docked in the harbor. Something light and fast would be best. "It takes someone smart to avoid having a bounty in the hundred millions given the crew you were on."

"Not smart, just mediocre. I'm a terrible pirate, great seamstress, though." She skimmed his form, wondering if he had come straight from a battlefield with his patched-up jacket and stained white shirt. "Want me to fix up your suit?"

Sabo threaded his finger through the burnt hole in his coat. "I was in a rush."

"As am I. Are we done? Or—"

"Have we met before?"

"I'm sorry?"

"I don't know…it feels like we've met in the past."

"Um, no."

Sabo nodded, looking a tiny bit stunned with himself at the question. Patting him on the shoulder, she copied the small coin purse he carried and disappeared.

Her real dream started with the image of the sun. In the objects she claimed as treasure during their raids, there was a small symbol sometimes interweaved with the more modern ones, but it existed. Alabasta's Flag. The Jolly Roger of the Sun Pirates. Fishman Island's guards. Paintings from the early years after the Void Century. Jewels and relics scattered around the world.

A sun with eight points.

Penny was going to find out what it meant, even if she died doing so, because finding out that truth meant proving that the Great Kingdom existed. It meant that she wasn't a fool for believing in a childhood story too astounding to voice and too horrific to repeat.

It meant that the Devil Fruit she ate wasn't cursed, but a thing of wonder.

"Any causalities?"

"None, sir."

"Lost cargo?"

The Lieutenant cleared his throat. "It was that girl that was always with Red-Haired Shanks—the only thing missing were the…new workers…that were meant to go to the Employment Office down at Sabaody."

"Repeat that to yourself and tell me again what the damn problem is."

Penny was a notoriously forgetful pirate—once having been shot at for asking a ship of approaching Marines to join her for tea. She didn't have much interest in killing. Or pillaging. Or plundering.

When everything in the world could be copied by the touch of a hand, stealing was only done out of pure pettiness. The one thing she and Shanks shared was an inclination toward a good drink and party, but other than that, Penny had little interest in traditional 'pirate' things. But, her inability to ignore the trouble she saw put her on the Marines' radar.

Most people knew that when she stopped by their island, she was coming to rid herself of the outrageous amount of clothes she made during her weeks at sea. Her skills with a needle and thread were more notorious than her career as a pirate. And in exchange for the fairytale wonders of cloth she spun, she asked only for books and food.

But greed was always at hand. Starved subjects, slaves, broken cities—for every kindness she witnessed, there was more terror behind it. Penny was never the type to turn away from something wrong, so she did what she could.

Sinking ships was a hobby to cure her random bouts of boredom. The worst pirates were the ones who laughed at her for claiming to be one. They're the ones that fall easily to a simple burst of haki. Weak spines and even weaker hearts. Marines were not so different.

WANTED

DEAD OR ALIVE.

PENNY

REWARD: 2,300,000 Berries

The World Government is offering a reward for information leading directly to the capture of this individual. If you have any information, please contact Naval Authorities.

The picture she put on the poster was of her posing with a peace sign as she sat atop the body of the governor of a small island near the Red Line. The only thing wrong with it was the trickle of blood running down her nose making her look like a pervert.

The confusion that her fake Wanted posters planted throughout the Grand Line was worthy of a novel. Bounty hunters didn't even bother approaching her without going to the Navy first and the Navy was stupid enough to try announcing her new bounty over their private lines, despite knowing that Penny was easily capable of copying whatever new method they come up with.

In the end, they give up, letting her have fun giving herself outrageous bounties.

"You'd think they'd stop trying to one-up me by now," said Penny, adjusting her hat and coat as she dropped the stack of freshly printed posters off at the nearest Naval base.

TWENTY-TWO

"Captain!" Penny beamed widely, pulling her hat off her head, and waving it fiercely to greet him. It was hard to believe that eleven years had passed since she first found her way onto his ship. He had gone back into Paradise to find Penny as she was notoriously hard to catch in the New World.

Her frigate was worthy of being one of the Marines' warships. Stripped of any guns, the massive ship was a wonder of a garden. Butterflies weaved in between the greenery spilling where the cannons might have once been. Flowers looped around the figurehead of her ship which bore a striking resemblance to the snake she had killed as a child.

The fluttering sails were likely Penny's work, something that even Shanks marveled at for the craftsmanship that went into every piece of textile she touched. The ones she had fitted on the Red Force had yet to tear despite their numerous battles. Every piece of the ship seemed imbued with Penny's own force, likely her strange penchant for leaking haki everywhere.

"No crew?"

She shrugged, "I dislike most people." Neither of them spoke on the rubber boy likely setting sail soon.

"Can we come aboard?"

Penny looked stunned at the question. "Why would you even ask? Of course, you can!"

A plank connected their two ships. Penny made sure to adjust the edge three times while he was walking across it, wearing an innocent smile the entire time. They spoiled her too much—a fact Beckman spoke on a million times but never sought to correct.

"I'm here for a reason," he said, appreciating the fact that his tea was spiked. Business always went smoother with a drink in hand.

"You're always plotting."

"How much did you hear about what happened with Whitebeard?"

Penny's eyes shifted down, setting the teapot down. Her eyes drift toward Beckman, a silent conversation passing between the two. Sighing, she rubbed her eyes, "It's horrible, isn't it? To think that they trusted Blackbeard for so long only for him to go and kill one of their own."

Shanks tapped the edge of his scar, "He had them fooled for years."

"Is that why we never went near Whitebeard?"

"Maybe."

Penny stuck her tongue between her teeth, contemplating. "Did the old man ask for your help?"

Shanks shook his head, stuffing the cookies on the table into his mouth. They were awful but telling Penny that would lead to a fight. "There's too much pride between pirates."

"Pride's not a bad thing, but everyone should know when to ask for help."

"What about his Second Division Commander? Ever met him?"

"I've heard of him—they asked him to be one of the Seven, didn't they?"

"He'd rather be free than chained down. A hothead like that won't go let what Blackbeard's done go—not without getting some sort of vengeance. If he goes down this path, it'll only lead to war. Blackbeard's not a fool."

Penny screwed her face up, realizing where his line of thought was going. "What do you want me to do?"

"Make friends."

"With Fire Fist Ace?" Penny rose from her seat, shaking her head. "He's not exactly my type—too much trouble."

"You'll have fun."

"I have fun now. Lots and lots of non-fatal fun."

Shanks reached over and flicked her hard on the head, infusing as much haki into the blow as he could. Penny flinched back, but she didn't go flying. "Don't be stubborn."

"Why not? You can't tell me what to do on my own ship."

"Fair enough, we'll flip for it. Heads, you go. Tails, I win."

"…something's wrong with that statement."

"By the time you figure it out, I'll be gone, and you'll be playing with fire."

Beckman interrupted their staring match with his advice, "Penny, the Cap'n is only here because you're the only one he trusts to do this right. If he thought that going after Ace himself would work, he would."

She shook her head rapidly, "I know that, but do I have to?"

Shanks pulled out a coin holding it out to Penny. With a look of intense distaste, she took it from him, flipping it between her fingers quickly, before tossing it into the air.

"Look over there!" shouted Shanks.

"Where?" asked Penny, craning her head behind her. There was nothing there than Yasopp, whose smile slowly crept on his face.

"I win!" crooned Shanks, showing her the coin eagerly. "No re-dos!"

Penny's hand fell to the sword at her side, wondering whether it was worth it or not to give Shanks a good beating, but he had come all the way here. Despite his fooling around, there was something about Blackbeard, a mysterious man who was now the source of much gossip, that threw off her unflappable former Captain. Penny would be remiss to ignore it. Despite their time apart and her own status now, Shanks had show her the wonders of the world.

"Alright," conceded Penny with a small sigh. "I'll find him, but if Whitebeard even looks in my direction, I'm taking permanent refuge as one of Big Mom's mail-order brides."

"She'll eat you alive." Despite his words, Shanks knew, believed without a doubt, that Penny was more than capable of handling herself.

"Let's hope that'll end my misery or I'm screwed."

Sleeping on a plate of food, all but dead to the world, was Fire Fist Ace. Penny stared at him, long and hard, wondering where she had seen his freckled face before. Leaning in close, she brushed his hair aside and stared intently, wracking her memory.

"Oh," she said, slightly stunned. Sobakusa-kun—how many times had she seen his Wanted poster without making the connection? "It's you."

"Big fan?" asked Ace with a lazy grin. He sat up slowly, stretching his arms out wide as a piece of carrot slid off his face

This was odd—how crazy was it that two pirates would emerge from the same sleepy village on the edge of the East Blue? Had Shanks known? There was no way that Beckman hadn't told him about their meeting in the woods that one time.

Penny cleared her throat, pulling out a small coin purse and counting enough berries to cover Ace's meal as the waiter came over to kick him out. Ace shook his head, digging around for some bills that were so obviously counterfeit Penny was almost offended.

"I've got enough manners not to make a lady pay."

Penny's nose twitched. "I'm a pirate."

"Huh?" Ace looked at her sharply tailored outfit and laughed. "My mistake."

"You seem to be making a lot of those lately," said Penny bluntly. Did he intend to hunt Blackbeard down on his own?

Ace's elbow slipped off the table, a sharp look entering his eye. He was wide awake now. "What do you want?"

"That's not really important." Penny's eyes were glued to the knife at his side, staring at the symbol embedded in its hilt. Her train of thought stood still and then raged onward. "I'm Penny."

Ace's face did a series of complicated maneuvers before settling on a bright, effervescent joy that she normally associated with her memories of Luffy.

"I knew it!" His hand clapped against her back heartedly. "Sorry about the death glare—just had to make sure it was you and not some other girl with the same hair color. I meant to come say 'thank you' to everyone when I met Shanks, but you were already gone."

"Thank you for what?"

Ace got off his chair, bowing in front of her, "For watching out for Luffy." Ace looked back up, a bright spark in his eye. "My little brother's a handful, isn't he?"

Oh.

She was woefully unprepared for this.

END CHAPTER