The town of Portilla was a seaside resort known for its wine fountains and the colorful array of houses that could be seen as you entered the harbor. Situated on a summer island, palm trees and bright flowers lined the streets which were made of shiny mosaics depicting various idyllic scenes. Penny wished that she had arrived for reasons other than finding Blackbeard.

The residents stared as she paid her docking fee, not with berries but with a single diamond ring she had picked up from somewhere or someone. "You'll make sure no one touches her?" asked Penny, gesturing to The Looking Glass.

"Um, if the Navy comes—"

"I'll be out of your hair before then. I'm looking for a man—another pirate actually."

"T-there was a group that looked like that…" The girl gestured behind her. "…but I didn't ask."

Penny put two fingers against her temple, saluting her. "Not asking tends to keep you alive out here."

"Yeah…ok…"

Perhaps, the feathered hat was a bad idea, thought Penny, as the stares increased the closer she got to town. Most of the shops had their windows painted with small yellow flowers for the upcoming Harvest Festival. The heady scent of perfume wafted in the air reminding Penny of that night Shanks had left her in a brothel at the age of fourteen to learn about the wonders of womanhood directly from the source.

A smile tugged at her lips, unbidden, as she thought back to the simpler times before he had become a Yonko.

Ducking into shop after shop, Penny had to will herself not to buy anything with the thin thread of self-control she had. After she dealt with Blackbeard, she'd come and buy everything out as a celebration.

As she passed a café, a heavily pregnant woman bumped into her. Penny did her best to dodge the swollen belly, creeped out by the thought of something growing inside. Looking down at her torso, she pressed her hand against it, silently promising herself to never engage in such foolishness.

"You're a new face!" said the woman cheerfully. Her husband sweat-dropped behind her.

"Yes?"

"That's wonderful! Where are you moving to? There's that new villa built up near Rose Hill, but I heard it was a noble or something."

"Yeah…."

"See, I told you it was her!" She slapped her husband on the arm. "Why don't you come with us? We were just heading to the little one's baby shower and we'd love to welcome you to the neighborhood!"

"Oh, um, no, thank you," Penny tried at a smile, but she doubted it looked anything like one. The couple nodded, merrily inviting a stranger to their baby shower. What kind of town was this?

She made to leave before the pregnant woman stopped her once more. "There'll be wine and food! Of course, there's no need to bring a gift, but someone of your…"

Ah. Penny's hands found their way into her pockets, hiding her jeweled fingers from sight. Did pirates get robbed? She felt like she was about to.

"I'll come…after I finish up this thing…" Penny gestured behind her vaguely.

The couple wrapped their arms around her, pulling her along. "Great, let's go!"

Too polite to skip out on the impromptu baby shower, Penny somehow found herself sitting at a table of aunties from both sides of the family with enough wine and food to send a Giant into a wonderful, joy-induced coma.

"He's like seven feet tall," said Penny, stuffing her cheeks with fried plantains and some sort of spiced, creamy dip. "And always has his chest out like he's got something to prove. Shanks said he's religious, but I'm pretty sure it's just aesthetic."

One girl, who reminded Penny of a certain Empress, waved her hand in the air and poured more wine into her glass. "Oh, honey, I can fix that."

"Mihawk-san likes cooking. And swords."

"Like swords or swords."

"…Maybe both? I don't know. I haven't seen him in years."

Her leg bounced nervously under the table and when she was sure she had exchanged the proper number of stories and anecdotes with the rest, she got up and made her way toward the door.

"I have to go," announced Penny to the couple that had dragged her into the party, to begin with. "But I hope everything goes well for you both and—" She pulled two of her rings off, copied them, and handed them over to the couple, "—consider this my blessing for the newborn."

"You didn't have to!"

"I don't think I have a choice here," said Penny with a laugh. Shaking her hand profusely, the two wished her well. They held a strange kind of bravery that Penny wanted to commend them for. Whether it was born from desperation or an effect of the rumors that usually followed her around, she didn't know.

Penny had a bit of a reputation for giving away treasure and it had become a problem near Sabaody at one point as the local economy become 'destabilized.' Penny thought it was a funny way of wording the fact that slavery wasn't profitable when she was around.

It took her an hour to circle the port city and find Blackbeard. He was at the edge of town, in a seedy little café that looked like it doubled as a gambling hall. Penny walked around, noting the civilians milling about by the fountains. They'd leave as soon as the fight started.

Marshall D. Teach was incredibly tall, towering over Penny. He looked massive squeezed into a small café chair, lounging with three other men at his side. His shirt was unbuttoned, a common trait among male pirates, revealing a rather hairy and unkempt chest. With a crooked nose, missing teeth, and knotted beard—he looked like one of the pirates she remembered seeing in Navy propaganda material.

One of the men at his side, Penny recognized from her years in the West Blue. A tall thin man with frighteningly pale skin that made him look like a corpse known as the Demon Sherriff, Laffitte. Penny recalled a horrifying story of him skinning a man alive for stealing a loaf of bread. The other two, she knew from her intel gathering as Van Augur and Jesus Burgess.

"There you are," said Penny with a smile. Her cheeks were flushed from the rush of wine. She tapped her chest with her fist, letting out a small burp. "Apologies, there was a party, and I couldn't resist."

Blackbeard smiled, revealing several missing teeth. As common as pirate-doctors were on the Grand Line, pirate-dentists were about as rare as the One Piece. "It's Akahime!"

"I'm too sober to hear that again."

"ZEHAHAHAHAHA, come to join my crew?"

"I've come to murder you…though, I'll spare your crew as enacting a massacre is in pretty bad taste these days."

"Have a drink—"

Penny shook her head, "I have no desire to be polite about it, so kindly say your goodbyes."

"Relax and take it slow," said Blackbeard, offering a beer. "We're not enemies yet."

Penny looped a thread around the leg of the chair and pulled it sharply. The chair, Blackbeard, and table flew through the air and crashed against the marble fountain, splintering into tiny pieces. The statue of a winged boy broke beneath Blackbeard's back.

"Captain!" called his three crewmates, rushing to his aid. Penny grabbed a piece of toast off someone's plate as she walked toward them. The people sitting outside grabbed their things and ran off, screaming.

The sweet taste of strawberry jam was chased by a bit of salty butter. Some tea would've been nice too, but the wine in her stomach had done wonders to warm her up a bit. Unbuttoning her coat after she had scarfed down the bread, she set it and her hat on a chair and rolled up her sleeves.

Penny's hand shot up, catching a bullet in her fist. It burst against the Haki coating her palm and fell to the ground with a clink. She stared at the man with an anvil-shaped hat, Van Argur, in contempt and disbelief, "I'm sorry, did I hit you?"

"We're just getting started," said Blackbeard, clapping his hands against his knees as he stood. His neck made an awful cracking sound that Penny normally associated with the elderly and dying. "You should know better than getting in the way of people's dreams."

"Most people have dull dreams. You, for example, obviously desire for something as obvious and simple-minded as power, hence are inconsequential to my own goals."

Her fingers tapped against the hilt of her sword. Did she even draw it in this insistence? She didn't want Tsune tasting the blood of someone who had murdered his comrade.

Blackbeard grinned, "You remind me of another cocky kid, I had to teach a lesson to."

"I'm neither a child nor arrogant."

"Her bounty?" asked Blackbeard, looking back at the tall-thin man holding a cane. Laffitte, Penny recalled having heard his name during her time in the West Blue.

He tipped his hat, beady eyes roaming as a small smile played on his lips. "Inconclusive."

"Maybe we're more alike than we look," laughed Blackbeard, shaking the wine from his hair and beard.

Penny clicked her tongue, pulling at one of the knotted bracelets on her wrist. The fabric uncoiled, copying itself into a long loop. "I doubt it."

She whipped it out, catching Blackbeard around the ankle, and pulled him toward her, jerking her knee into his gut. He groaned, falling to the floor.

Penny frowned. Where was the fight in him?

Slowly, he craned his neck and then laughed once more. "Fine, fine, let's do this."

Something dark leaked out of him onto the ground around them, "Infinite Gravity."

"Please call out your attacks. It makes it so hard to counter them!" The 'hehehehehe' of her laughter filled the air as the inky, oily darkness spilled forth.

It rammed into an invisible wall with a surprising force, pushing Penny back a few paces as it sought to overcome the effects of her Devil Fruit. Penny grit her teeth, raising her hands in front of her to copy the space surrounding her.

What kind of monstrous thing had he eaten that it could cancel Limitless Space so easily? Rather than pushing past her shield, it seemed to be nullifying the effects of it entirely, only stopped by her Devil Fruit's ability to infinitely copy. What would happen if it touched her?

Blackbeard was furious. The inky shadows seemed to scream, changing from victorious to a raging frustration that dug its teeth into her heel and heaved. Sooner or later, one of them would outpace the other. Haki had always been her weapon of choice, a byproduct of being Shanks' apprentice. Beckman had warned her more than once that she shouldn't abuse her Devil Fruit for parlor tricks, but Penny was stubborn to a fault.

As the darkness welled, crushing the buildings around them, Penny's mind sought out the quickest escape route

The only barrier between her and death was the infinitely shrinking amount of space copying itself over and over even as Blackbeard attempted to suck it away. She'd lose the tug of war they were stuck in. Her Devil Fruit was something of an amusement, but the tricks it lent her were enough to help her escape from the worst fates.

No, thought Penny, that wasn't right. Her trust in herself was endless, but she had made the same mistake she warned Ace against. Blackbeard fooled the World's Strongest Man. The only fool around was herself.

Penny unsheathed the blade at her side realizing that this was more serious than she originally thought. The sword was a burnished red like the sun sinking into the sea and needle-thin. Penny smiled at the sight of it.

Tsune. A name that came from a phrase that Beckman liked to use: Tsune ni ite, kyū ni awasu. Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, always be prepared.

The rolling thunder of Blackbeard's laughter edged away from amusement to rage.

Her Haki thrummed down the edge of the blade. Penny rolled her wrist, moving her feet into a position that was as natural as breathing. The feeling of Shanks' hands teaching her the proper form ghosted down her back. She had never cut darkness before, but there was a first time for everything.

"Are we dancing?" asked Penny with a laugh as she sunk low and ran toward Blackbeard. The darkness seized where it met her Devil Fruit.

Speed had always been her strength over pure power. Thin cuts formed on his arms and legs as she weaved around him.

Men, more than any woman she fought, tended to get aggravated by their inability to catch her. When their power came from brute force, few understood that a fight was an exchange of willpower and skill. Penny lived for the small fractures that emerged with their growing frustration.

Tsune struck quick and true, finding an opening as Blackbeard stepped too close and left a gap in his defense.

A gash sunk into his skin even though Penny's sword cut the air. A single stroke copied itself until it hit whatever was in its path—that was the power of Tsune, a sword infused with her own will. It stretched from the corner of his mouth up and across his nose. Blackbeard roared, shrinking as he clutched his face.

Penny dropped low, tripping him. He went down, only to have her knee smash into his nose. She twirled her sword, cutting two long streaks into his arm, and kicked him away. Steady feet, steady hands, and a strong heart—that was what a sword required.

Blackbeard grabbed her. Penny let him. Using the momentum from his swinging arm, she twisted herself closer to his neck where she looped a thin thread-like wire around his neck and flipped backward. Roaring in pain, he attempted to shake her off.

"Bastard," hissed Penny, balling her fist. Penny punched him in the face, multiplying her strength just before the hit landed. Blackbeard sunk into the ground creating a crater around them. More screams. Civilians ran by, staring at them in shock and horror.

"You ate that one," laughed Blackbeard, laying against the ground. He was missing another tooth which Penny took as a victory. "You're using it all wrong. It's a waste—let me take it from you instead."

Something shifted in the air and in him as he activated his Devil Fruit. She dodged the wild arms of darkness that emerged from his body like an octopus contorting itself to fit into a tiny opening. Faster and faster, she spun away from the all-consuming darkness.

For the first time in their fight, Penny felt a true hint of danger. Even with Observation Haki, he seemed to be able to counter her attacks. So focused on not falling into the darkness, that she didn't see the hole in her vision until it was too late.

Penny went limp, nearly tripping over herself as she felt her copied strength disappear. Her surprise was halting, blinding her to Blackbeard's next movement. He swung, showcasing a clawed weapon on his hand, and struck. Fire burned through her skin, pain sinking into her mind.

The pull of oxygen into her lungs ached. Inky shadows spilled from his hands coating everything around them. Scarlet dripped between her fingers as she held her chest. The crunch of bricks and wood filled her ears like an off-key concerto. The immense pressure tugged at her skin.

Penny saw his next move before it happened, twisting her neck to the side, to avoid the claws that would've dug into her jugular. She coated herself in Haki sending them shrinking away before they could do much damage.

"I need more practice," said Blackbeard with a smile. "Come and find me in a couple of months, Akahime. I'll show you its real power."

Tearing herself free, she withdrew. Copying the space between her and Blackbeard with every step, she got impossibly far in seconds, away from the pull of the shadows and reach of his claws.

Inhaling deeply, she calmed her rapidly beating heart and opened her senses fully. Laffitte was retreating, which meant they likely didn't plan on clashing with her.

Penny's cool eyes skimmed over his crew, calculating whether she could take all of them down at once, before deciding against it. She was injured. Pride would only get her killed. Penny was patient enough to play the long game—a scar was nothing compared to the information she gained.

"There's something wrong with you," she said, holding her head high. Blackbeard stepped forward. Penny loosened the lock on the immense Haki built inside her, cracking the air around them. Tremors shook the nearby houses, spiderweb fissures forming in the glass and bricks. "What are you?"

Blackbeard stopped, cautious too as he caught sight of the cracks in the ground. "Zehahahahaha, can't you see?"

She could, but she didn't understand what it was.

Whatever he…they were…she understood now why Shanks had told her to go after Ace. This wasn't a fight she could win on her own, nor at the level she currently was. Parlor tricks she stole from Shanks weren't enough. Though Penny was well versed in the theoretical application of thousands of things, she never had a chance to fight in the kinds of battles that were made into legends.

"The Navy's closing in," said Van Augur calmly. "Shall I try my luck again?"

Blackbeard spat into the ground, "Do you think she would be enough?"

"I can look into it," promised Laffitte. "One of them is going to fall soon."

Blackbeard shrugged off his injuries, holding himself up. "If we meet again, tell me about that dream of yours!" Blackbeard laughed heartily, turning to leave. "This age of pirates is only beginning!"

Penny stilled; watching each step carefully as they walked away. There was fear and there was dread, but beyond that, she remembered her promise to Shanks that she would be the best pirate the world had ever seen. Blackbeard be damned if he was the one to force her to break that promise.

Penny's escape came minutes after them, chased out of Portillo by the whispers and frightful stares of the civilians as she made her way back to the harbor.

The Looking Glass was blessed. The moment she was on deck, the ship fled from the harbor with a speed that would've made anyone else sick. Penny pressed her hands to the wood, whispering a soft and quiet thank you. The Looking Glass hummed back.

Penny forced her way to the medical cabin, a room containing a small cot, a desk with a scattered supply of surgical tools and a Den Den Mushi, and shelves lined with small glass bottles containing various colored liquids. It looked more like an apothecary than a place for treatment. A Copy sprung to life, appearing at her side, and wrapping her arm around Penny's waist to hold her up.

Copy-Penny hissed, eyes growing worried, "We need a doctor—a real one. Performing surgery's out of our league."

"Give me a sec," breathed out Penny.

"Boss, you're doing it again," whispered the Copy, revealing where the wound was copying itself over to her. Penny pulled her hands away abruptly, staggering toward the desk. Her shoulder hit one of the shelves, knocking a whole row to the ground where it smoked and ate at the wood.

Her Copy threaded a needle with surgical thread to stitch her up. Penny knew enough that stitching the wound closed might cause more damage, but she was going to bleed out at this rate.

Penny hissed, jumping away from the Copy's hands and sending the tray of medical supplies scattering across the floor. Her Copy groaned, muttering that she needed to disinfect everything again.

Her self-enforced illness as a child was not even an illness, but her body copying the effects of the King Mamba venom over and over again until it taught itself to overcome it. Her pain and injuries magnified ten-fold thanks to the unique abilities of her devil fruit. A body built to contain infinity within it—infinite pain and infinite joy.

Her Copy popped out of existence, sending the tools toppling to the floor once more. "Fuck," she whispered, sliding off the cot as carefully as she could without straining the three gaping wounds that cut from her shoulder to naval.

Penny picked up the sterile needle, wishing she had a bottle of rum to consume and brought her trembling hands to her skin. No dying, she promised herself as she pinched the skin together. She had a promise to keep and a new friend to save.

By the time she was finished with the gruesome work, Penny passed into a frightful sleep. Her dreams were colored by shadows, chasing her, and putting a crushing pressure on her chest. Penny ran, not knowing if it was the cold of death chasing her or fear over her naiveness.

The shadows broke, giving way to a sprawling house surrounded by wisteria and the cool, sweet smell of Spring in the air. In the distance, a tree climbed toward the sky towering over everything surrounding it. Leaves of emerald flashed bits of silvery light as the wind revealed their underside. Small blossoms shaped like stars dotted the branches among the green.

It was a dream that she had before, always the same house, the same tree, the same sense of unease. She knew what carnage lay beyond it and the sticky betrayal that she had locked up to keep her madness at bay.

"Don't open it," whispered her younger self as Penny attempted to open one of the doors. She held on tightly to the fabric of her skirt, knees pressed to her chest as she sat on the walkway wrapped around the house. "You can't open it. You have to promise."

"Why not?"

"You're not supposed to be here. Something bad must've happened out there, so you're copying the wrong thing again," said child-Penny. She held out her hand, unblemished and free of any scars. "I'll help you, okay? It'll stop hurting soon."

Cute, thought Penny to herself. No wonder Shanks had been unable to toss her off. Sliding her hand into hers, a warm feeling enveloped her, and then nothing.

Days later, Penny woke in a haze of pain and a single, fleeting thought to find Ace as soon as possible. It was true that she had never experienced the kind of loss Ace had, but the thought of Luffy going through that when she could prevent it from happening

Even after all these years, she could remember Luffy's determined expression, choosing her as his friend despite how weak she was. One night with Ace had convinced her that there was something intangible about the people Luffy surrounded himself with and she wanted to help protect it.

"So, that's what she meant," said Penny, fingers sliding along the pink, still healing scars. Her hair was a vat of oil. A fine layer of dust covered her clothes. The scars were puckered and ugly and she probably wouldn't be wearing a bathing suit for the next couple of weeks, but they had closed far quicker than they should've.

There were certain things that Penny couldn't copy—life, death, and Devil Fruit. Other than that, there were countless possibilities. The slightest hint of a cold sent her looking for the healthiest person in sight to copy their health over to herself. She could put an enemy to the ground with a light flick, staggering their pain exponentially.

Rather than copy her pain, her subconscious must've sped the healing by copying from the unwounded portions of her body. It worked, but Penny didn't think she had any energy to move. Passing once more into a dreamless abyss, she cycled between waking and sleeping until she finally had the spare energy to summon one copy.

Copy-Penny dropped to the ground, looking as lifeless and injured as Penny felt—her strength still needed time to rebound. "Should I call a doctor?! Draw a bath?! We can't have anyone look at us like this!"

Penny groaned, "A bath would be lovely and some general idea of where we are and how many days I've been out."

After venturing up onto the upper deck, Copy-Penny came back with a newspaper and the declaration that it was dark as a shadow outside, which Penny didn't find funny in the slightest. The Looking Glass had a Roman-style bath on the lowest level, revealing the glass bottom of the ship. Penny often spent her nights lounging around watching the fish swim when she couldn't sleep.

"Eight days of my life wasted," muttered Penny, shaking out the newspaper as she sunk lower into the steaming water.

"It seems like it," said her Copy, pouring the warm water over Penny's shampooed hair. "But at least we're alive and the scars…well, we'll match Shanks."

Penny skimmed over the headlines about some war in so-and-so and Jewelry Bonney causing an uproar further down the Grand Line and Trafalgar Law being his cruel and bloodcurdling self—nothing of substance. She was half-convinced that the paper was a gossip column for the Marines more than an actual source of information.

"They're pinning it on you," said Copy-Penny, nodding to the image of Penny in the paper.

The carnage in the town of Portilla has been identified and attributed to Phantom Penny. The Looking Glass was spotted fleeing the island by answering Naval ships, but the pirate managed to elude capture and sustained an injury in the process. Additional forces have been sent out to neighboring islands to alleviate the concerns of distressed civilians.

Penny threw the paper away from her, sending the pages flying through the air. They landed on the surface of the water, bleeding ink. She got out of the bath, ignoring her protesting body.

"I'll just clean this up," grumbled Copy-Penny.

"Sorry," called Penny.

Shanks was nearly impossible to reach, meaning he was either in the middle of nowhere or causing trouble. Turning to him at the first sign of trouble would make her no more than a spoiled little girl who relied on the strength of others to get by. Blackbeard had run first or perhaps retreated to play out a long war. Either way, Penny was the one to suffer the wound.

Gritting her teeth, she rampaged through her quarters for her Devil Fruit encyclopedia, landing on the page she wanted:

In the history of Devil Fruit, this is the most dangerous and evil of all fruits. Granting the user, the ability of darkness, the Yami Yami no Miis unique even among Logia types. A foremost and dangerous effect is the ability to nullify other Devil Fruit's ability upon touch. A complete entry on the fruit is maintained at Naval Headquarters. If found, do not consume. The reward is set by the World Government at an unknown price. Contact local authorities upon discovery.

Penny's mind went blank for a long moment and then a single thought echoed: Fuck.

Naval Headquarters was Marineford. Penny wasn't sure she could break into there without ending up dead or worse…but…she would be the first person to ever accomplish it if she did.

Flipping the page to her own Devil Fruit showed a sparse entry that only contained a picture and a set price at 600,000,000 berries.

A light smile pulled at her lips. "Maybe, it's worth trying," said Penny aloud.

The Looking Glass gave a little hum.

Dressing was a hard and near-impossible task given the aching pain in her torso. Her Copy thankfully took the embarrassing task up, making snarky comments the entire time as if they didn't share the same replicated body between them.

"They're just uneven. If you saw it from here, you'd say the same thing," muttered Copy-Penny.

"My arms are the same length! Everything is—it's literally a result of the damn fruit. Perfect symmetry!"

"Imagine how ugly we must've been before we ate it."

"Before we ate it, there was no you!"

"They say when you start talking to yourself it's a sign of madness," whispered Copy-Penny. Penny groaned, burying her face in her hands as she left the clone behind and made her way onto the deck.

The sun was just setting over the horizon, painting the sky a violent red. Thankfully, the ocean was still and free of any sight of storms. Though, if there was one on the horizon, Penny would never know. The weather tended to catch her by surprise.

Her Log Pose was hanging on the helm, looking like it was on its last legs. She needed to get a new one soon or be stuck wandering the Grand Line like a madman.

"He cut down Thatch when his back was turned." Penny shot around, clutching her torso as the movement pulled at the still-raw wound. Ace crouched low on the railings arms folded over his knees. "It was the middle of the night, but Tea—Blackbeard never slept, so we didn't think much on it." Ace's voice cracked over the words, eyes going glassy. The tears don't fall. "Something felt off. I woke up to go check and it was too late…I was too late…again."

Penny waited for the surprise she felt to die down, but it seemed to increase, recalculating every judgment she had made about Ace. "You came back."

The wind was warm on her skin, the setting sun lit the sky behind Ace enveloping him in light. The ocean crashed against the side of the ship spraying a fine mist onto the deck and rocking the ship, but Penny felt steadier than ever.

"It felt wrong to leave like that. I don't want to be on bad terms, and you weren't wrong." Ace's shoulders dropped, "Pops told me the same thing before I left, but he gave me his blessing anyway."

"I'm sorry too…" Penny stepped forward hesitantly, grasping the railing. "…for the way, I spoke to you. We barely know each other, and it was foolish of me to try and tell you how to feel or what to do."

Ace tilted his hat up, smiling at her widely. "I heard a thing or two about your stubbornness and figured, if I didn't find you first, I'd wake up as your prisoner."

"That's impossible. I refurbished the cells, so I'd have space for my clothes."

Ace laughed and Penny found that she had the sudden urge to hug him or ask him something preposterous like, "Join my crew."

Ace narrowed in on the odd way she held herself. "Are you hurt?"

"Emotionally? Yes. Physically? Also, yes."

"How bad is it?" asked Ace.

Penny pulled at the collar of her shirt, lifting it carefully to reveal the tight, slightly inflamed skin where the wound was still healing. Ace shook his head, frowning to himself. She wondered what was going through his mind as hopped down in one smooth leap and tugged at her shirt a bit more.

"Blackbeard did this?"

"He…surprised me…it doesn't happen often….or ever," muttered Penny, sullenly. She was less and less upset about the injury and more worried about the stain on her reputation.

"Does it hurt?"

"Nothing I can't handle," fibbed Penny.

Ace squeezed her shoulder, "That's worth a drink." He turned, heading toward the kitchen as if he already memorized the layout of her ship.

"You said that we should start as friends," said Penny, pulling her shirt back up. She reached over, resting her hand over Ace's, and squeezed lightly. "The worst things in life are always better when you're not alone."

Ace's gaze dropped to her hand and then back to her face. A somewhat shy look entered his face, making him look boyishly charming, "I thought Shanks sent you because I'm Roger's son."

"You are?" Shock colored her thoughts. Penny thought back to the photo that Shanks kept buried away and the pain that sometimes accompanied his stories of Gol D. Roger. "Shanks misses him more than he'll admit to. He must've been thrilled to meet you."

"He didn't say anything about it. Heard Luffy's name and then it was all over. My little brother's got a far reach to move an emperor."

Penny's eyes traced the patchwork of freckles on Ace's face. He moved on quickly from any mention of Roger, a dark look entering his eyes. Penny cleared her throat and dropped her hand. Ace pulled into the kitchen, opening the cabinets to find her rather impressive collection of liquor.

Hopping onto the counter, she accepted a shot glass from Ace filled with a clear liquid that smelled like rubbing alcohol and tasted like fire. "As tactless as Shanks is, he's got a kind heart. It's why he and Luffy got along so well."

"You don't care about me being Roger's son?"

Penny couldn't judge since she had little basis to understand parent-child relationships. "I can see the resemblance, but seeing as I've never met the man, I can't say how he's influenced your character. Your grandfather, on the other hand, is a menace and should be stopped. He's got in his head that we need to attend some sort of reform camp and turn a new leaf with the Marines."

Ace clinked his glass against hers, throwing it back in one smooth gulp. Penny, despite having a loving relationship with the wonders of liquid courage, never found the finesse to drink without a boatload of sugar and juice to cover up the burn.

Ace laughed at the face she made. "Did Gramps show you his Fists of Love? He used to chase us all summer just to fall asleep in the middle of it. He was the only person who ever made Luffy think twice."

"Luffy can think?" asked Penny in wonder.

Ace shrugged, "I've only ever known him after he ate the Gomu Gomu no Mi. I figured his brain turned to rubber too."

"No, it was like that before. Did he ever tell you how he got that scar? He stabbed himself in the face because he wanted to come with us."

It'd been ages since she hung out with someone remotely close to her age. The one-night flings she sometimes indulged in were less about friendship and more about scratching an itch. Her last real friendship had been a run-in with the Kuja Pirates which had stretched for weeks as Penny was reluctant to leave them behind. Had she been so absorbed with herself that she had forgotten about the wonders of humanity?

No wonder she had been so agreeable when Shanks came to visit.

They passed the bottle between them, air lighter than it had been during their first meeting, into the late hours of the night and fell asleep, tucked between the table and cabinets.

"Ace-kun," muttered Penny sleepily. He continued snoring, drool escaping the corner of his lip as he buried his face between her breasts. At least someone had a pillow, thought Penny, rubbing at the ache on the back of her head. She was sure the floor was dented to match the shape of her skull. "Get the hell off me before I call the authorities."

"Shut up."

"I'm injured and you're incredibly heavy. It's irritating—"

"Sorry, sorry." He lifted his head, a trail of drool coming up with him, and then rolled onto his side to sleep, curled up against the table. Penny tugged at her blouse in disgust. She needed a bath and laundry—Blackbeard could wait.

What a strange person, Ace was.

When she was done with her morning tasks and changed into a pitch-black suit that was perfect to wear to Blackbeard's inevitable funeral, she had her copies set up breakfast on the deck. The shade from her olive trees was a refuge from the bright sun.

"I thought they stopped with this nonsense," muttered Penny, shaking out the newspaper. "Kidd-san's bounty went up 25 million berries."

"They're all coming now," said her Copy, pruning a fig tree. "It won't be long until we run into some of them."

"I'll scare them off." Penny picked up her coffee, glad that the finely ground, spiced mix was popular in this half of the Grand Line. It was hard to find in some parts of the New World. "We can't have them thinking the Grand Line is a joke."

Her eyes skimmed the paper and then shot to the loud crash, watching as Ace bumped into the door of her cabin before steadying himself. On haggard steps, he managed to make it down the stairs without breaking his neck. "Jeeze, Penny, what the hell did we drink last night?"

"Probably something homemade. If you start having blurry vision, don't hold me liable. I'm unable to decline gifts, no matter how horrendous they are."

Ace leaned over the back of her chair, reading over her shoulder. His hand reached for her coffee. Ace gagged, setting the cup down as Penny silently offered him the world's driest cookie to wash it down.

"What's your bounty?" he asked, pulling out the chair next to her. Kidd's terrible grin was all over the front page. Penny wondered if he was the mass murderer that the Navy painted him out to be.

"My first one wasn't even newsworthy, and they called me that ridiculous nickname. The new one is much better."

"Not what I asked."

"It's middling."

"A number," shot Ace back, not letting her run from the question. His ego could handle hers being slightly larger since she had been at it longer, but he had to know how much so he could catch up.

Penny's lips quirked into a teasing smile, "Guess."

"There's a rumor about you. The Cape Swan kidnapping—"

Penny's shoulders did an odd shimmy, inching away from the words as if they were flying near her. "I have no idea what that is."

Ace wasn't embarrassed to admit that he'd heard so much about Penny from Luffy that he kept track of her even after leaving the East Blue. "The Battle at the Red Line. King's Helm. The Red Port incident."

A giggle escaped her, mirth dancing in her eyes. "That was troubling, wasn't it?"

"600 million?"

"You're so sweet, but no." Penny stood and handed him the paper. "I'm going to try calling Shanks and see if he's got anything to say for himself. We can leave right after."

"You should see a doctor first."

"That'll be too much trouble. Crocus-san is at Twin Cape and he's the only person I trust to treat me."

"We could go find Trafalgar," said Ace with a laugh. "He's supposed to be a doctor."

"No, thanks," said Penny, wrinkling her nose. She planned to stay far away from that man. "He hasn't laundered since leaving the North Blue. I can't believe he and Benn-san come from the same domain." She got up slowly, ignoring Ace's pointed look. "I'll be fine as soon as I find someone attractive to compliment me. Nothing like an ego boost to make you feel better after convalescence."

"Did you swallow a dictionary?"

A slightly haughty look crossed her face, "I have, as a matter of fact, copied several."

It was Luffy all over again, thought Ace, except this time Luffy had taken the form of an over-the-top, fashion-obsessed, precocious woman. He was adding it to the long list of reasons to avoid the Red Hair pirates as a whole. His first and only meeting with Shanks had ended up with him passed out drunk on a beach and everything he had taken with him missing.

"What exactly is your whole—" Ace, remembering the flamboyant flail of her hand, imitated the gesture. "—deal?"

"What do you mean?"

"Skill-wise. If I'm going to let you help, then I need to know."

Penny's grin gained an edge, "Are we becoming official?"

"Just tell me."

"One, I'm immortal. Two, I'm very good at arts and crafts. Three, I can hunt down all sorts of rare and illegal items. Four, I'm a superb conversationalist. Five—"

"You're annoying."

Penny sagged, pulling her coffee towards her, "I was the only girl surrounded by hordes of men who thought it was funny to place me in constant danger. How else was I supposed to turn out?"

Ace snickered, "I bet that was fun."

Penny's answering smile could've replaced the sun, "It was an absolute riot."

END CHAPTER