Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece. I only own my OC, Aurora.

Hey everybody! So I know it's been a while since I last updated. Things have just been kind of hectic for me and my muse kept coming and going. But I finally got this chapter finished up and I've already started on the next one! Hopefully it'll be out soon. Enjoy!


Chapter 22

"Another price increase? Don't you think it's getting a bit too expensive?"

Aurora cracked an eye open, glancing over at Nami from the lounge chair she had situated under an umbrella. It would seem the navigator was getting into another argument with the bird that delivered the newspaper.

"Caww…"

"Raise the price again and I won't be buying your papers anymore."

Usopp spoke up from his spot near the two girls. "What're you getting so riled up about? It's just a newspaper."

"Daily expenses all add up, don't you know!?"

"I thought you were done with saving up money?"

"Don't be stupid." Nami berated. "From now on, I'm going to be saving up money for no one but me alone." The navigator glanced over at her half-angel friend. "Though I might be willing to share with you Aurora. But anyway… there's no way I'm going to be a penniless pirate!"

Peering over at the orange-haired woman, Aurora shook her head in amusement. Some things never changed. The half-angel also appreciated the sentiment, but she doubted the navigator would share her money without there being a catch. Shifting into a more comfortable position, Aurora closed her eyes once more and went back to her relaxation. It'd been so long since she could just kick back and enjoy herself. The half-angel was going to soak up every minute she could before something inevitably went wrong… and with this crew, it would happen.

"Ok, ok. I'm in the middle of developing my secret Tabasco star so keep away!" Usopp waved Nami off. "An enemy who gets this in their eye will be rendered completely helpl-"

"Keep your hands off!" Sanji's voice rang out.

A crash caused Aurora's eyes to snap open. One quick glance over showed Luffy getting sent into Usopp, causing the sniper to splash his eyes with Tabasco.

"GYAAAAAAAA!" Usopp began screaming in pain, flames practically bursting from his eyes. Aurora jumped up from her chair, catapulting over Nami who sat in a chair of her own. She faintly heard Luffy and Sanji beginning to bicker as she attempted to chase down the sniper so she could heal him.

"Oh come on! Can't I just have at least one?"

"Absolutely not!" Sanji declared, standing protectively in front of the tangerine grove that had been planted on their ship. "These are Nami's beloved tangerine trees! I won't allow anyone to lay even a single finger on them! Nami! Rest assured, my defense powered by love is infallible!"

"Oh well." Luffy shrugged. "I'm in a good mood so I'll drop it then."

"Thanks a lot, Sanji!" Nami cooed, not once looking up from her paper.

"GYAAAAAA!" Usopp continued to scream in pain, Aurora lunging at the sniper to keep him from falling down the stairs. The half-angel was practically strangling her friend, trying to keep him still long enough to heal his eyes. No one noticed Zoro lounging near the front of the ship, shaking his head at the scene laid out before him.

"We're finally on our way to the Grand Line!" Luffy crowed, the tangerines all but forgotten.

"The world's in such turmoil." Nami commented as she read the newpaper, briefly glancing over as Aurora collapsed in her lounge chair. The poor girl looked disheveled from attempting to heal Usopp. If only the sniper had tried to remain calm as the half-angel healed him. Nami turned back to her paper. "Another coup d'etat in Villa…?"

"Hm?" Aurora made a noise as something fluttered to the ground from within Nami's newspaper. The noise caused the navigator to look up, the orange-haired girl following Aurora's gaze.

"It's a flyer." Luffy realized.

The crew all took a closer look, with the exception of Zoro who was sound asleep up front. What they saw caused quite the reaction from all of them.

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Nahahahaha!" Luffy laughed, his reaction the complete opposite of his crewmates. "Looks like we're wanted men now! It says 30 million beli!" The straw-hat wearing boy grinned, holding up a bounty poster with his name and picture printed on it.

Nami slapped a hand against her forehead in exasperation. "Once again, you splendidly fail to understand the gravity of your situation… don't you realize this means your life is at risk!? With that bounty, I'm sure the Marine HQ as well as other strong bounty hunters will come after you…"

"Look!" Usopp crowed to Sanji, pointing at something in the corner of the picture. "My picture's here for the whole world to see! I might be famous!"

"As if. That's just the back of your head."

"Don't be jealous now! Once we become more infamous, we might all get one!"

Nami turned away from the boys, glancing at the berry-haired girl next to her. "With this, we can't afford to just loiter around in East Blue any longer."

Aurora nodded her head in agreement. Now that Luffy had a bounty on his head, there would be many people coming after them now. They couldn't afford to stay in one place for too long, lest they wished to be caught.

"Alright, men! Let's head straight for the Grand Line!"

"Aye, aye!" Sanji and Usopp cheered.

"Hey!" Zoro piped up. "I see an island up ahead."

Nami perked up at the swordsman's words. "You do…?"

"That island…" Aurora breathed, recognizing it from her earlier travels. "It means we're close to the Grand Line."

Nami glanced at the half-angel quizzically, wondering how she knew that. It was almost as if Aurora had been here before, or at the very least seen the island before. The navigator kept herself in check, deciding to wait until a later time to confront the girl about her knowledge.

"On that island, there's a famous town called "Loguetown." It's also known as the town of the beginning and the end. It's the birthplace of the pirate king Roger… as well as his execution spot."

"So that's the town that the pirate king died at…" Luffy mused.

Nami peered over at her captain, brushing her hair out of her face. "Shall we go?"


Loguetown (Town of the beginning and the end)

"Whoa! What a big town!"

"So the pirate age all began from here, eh?"

"Ok, then! I'm gonna go see the execution stand!" Luffy declared.

"Seems like I can find some good ingredients and food here." Sanji chimed in, a wide grin spreading across his face. "As well as fine women."

Usopp piped up as well. "I'm going to go look for some equipment to buy."

"I do have something I want to buy too but…" Zoro glanced over at the navigator.

Nami grinned like the cat that ate the canary. "I'll happily lend you some money. At 300% interest, that is."

Aurora sweatdropped, watching as the two bickered back and forth. It would seem she was right about Nami loaning money; there was a catch.


"How's this?"

"Ohhh! It suits you wonderfully, miss!"

"And this?"

"Ohh, how elegant you look! Lovely, miss!"

Aurora felt her eye begin to twitch as Nami strutted out in outfit after outfit. She was beginning to question why she let the navigator drag her around clothes shopping.

'Because she didn't give me much of a choice.' Aurora thought, remembering how Nami had latched onto her and drug her away from the rest of the crew. 'Then again… it's better than being stuck with one of the boys I guess. Who knows what trouble they'll end up getting into?'

"What about this?"

"Elementary!"

"And this?"

"Electrical!"

"And this?"

"Elegiac!"

"And this?"

"Erotic! Eccentric!"

The half-angel felt her eye begin to twitch more rapidly. Why were they even in this store? The clothes were quite expensive and, though Nami did look good in them, not really her style.

"So will you be buying all this, miss?" the salesman asked, gesturing to the large pile of clothing Nami had tried on.

"Nope, don't need it." Nami smiled, strolling towards the door with an apologetic Aurora in tow. "I want something a little more casual, that's easier to move around in."

"Please come again!" the salesman choked out, tears streaming down his face.

Aurora glanced back at the poor man, her apologies having fallen on deaf ears as Nami dragged her to another store.


"So, Aurora… have you been here before?"

The half-angel froze in the stall she was using, the clothing she'd been holding falling from her grasp. She'd really hoped no one had heard what she'd said earlier on the ship, but Nami was too observant for her own good.

"The way you were talking earlier it sounds like you have."

Aurora gulped, taking a moment to compose herself. 'What do I do? I can't talk about my past. I left that all behind the minute I left Skypiea. Think, Aurora, think!'

The half-angel cleared her throat, poking her head out of the stall when she heard Nami exit hers. "You're right. I have. But it was a long time ago, when my family was moving from our original home to Shell Town. I was so young, I barely even remember it."

Nami paused in her modeling, turning to face her friend. "I thought you lived with a woman and her daughter? Isn't that what you said when you talked about how you, Luffy and Zoro met?"

Aurora mentally cursed, forgetting about the late night talks she and Nami had before the whole ordeal with Arlong. It had been nice to have another girl around to talk to. Who knew it would come back to bite her in the butt?

"Yes, I did say that. I lived with a bartender named Ririka and her daughter Rika." Aurora took a deep breath, ready to spout out the biggest lie she'd ever told. "I moved in with them after my parents died."

Nami froze, her eyes widening. The navigator's mouth snapped open and closed, the orange-haired teen at a loss for words. Aurora looked away, not wanting to see the look on Nami's face. She knew the navigator would sympathize with the lie, having lost a parent herself. It just felt so wrong to lie like that to her friend.

'It's for a good reason.' Aurora convinced herself. 'The past needs to stay in the past. No one needs to know about who or what I really am. It's better this way… safer.'

The half-angel cleared her throat, still refusing to look at the navigator. "It's not something I like to talk about. Maybe I'll tell you one day… but I'm just not ready yet."

Nami broke out of her stupor, pasting a smile on her face. "Well… what do you think of this outfit?"

"Looks great! You should totally get it."

It was only when Nami turned back to the mirror that Aurora retreated back inside the stall. Shutting the door behind her, the berry-haired teen leaned heavily against it. It had been a close call, but it would seem that Nami bought her story. Playing on her weaknesses like that made Aurora sick to her stomach. She was being a coward.

"It's better this way." She whispered.

But was it really?


"We'll… take… all this!" Nami declared, plopping a giant pile of clothing onto the store counter.

The shopkeeper seemed skeptical. "All this? You sure you even have enough money?"

Nami huffed. "Of course I do! How rude."

Aurora shook her head in amusement, taking the bag full of clothing she had chosen. She'd have to find some way to repay Nami in the future. It was the least she could do after the incident earlier.

"Thank you, please come again."

"Hmm?" Nami hummed, looking up at the sky. "The air feels different…" she shifted the large bag she held, flipping open the device she carried around. 'The air pressure's dropping… at this rate, there'll be a rainstorm coming… darn, I wanted to look around a bit more too…'

The navigator stepped back inside the shop, Aurora dutifully following behind her. She had no idea what was running through the navigator's head, but something told her it wasn't anything good.

"Excuse me, ma'am. Do you have any big vinyl bags?"

"Vinyl bags? But it's not even raining."


"The air pressure is dropping abnormally. It might be best to quickly return to the ship." Nami mumbled, she and Aurora making their way through town. The two came to a stop at an intersection, taking notice of who had also just arrived.

"Hey."

"Ah."

"Hm?"

"So where is he?" Zoro asked.

"He said he wanted to check out the execution stand…" Nami replied.

Usopp piped up from under the giant fish he was helping Sanji carry. "Isn't the execution stand right here in the town square?"

Aurora looked over at where Usopp had indicated, her jaw dropping open at the sight before her. Her crewmates reactions were no different.

"Wha!"

"Why the hell is he on the execution stand!?"

Yes, their captain was indeed on the execution stand. There was more to it though. It wasn't as if Luffy was just standing on the execution stand. He was locked in the stockade getting ready to be executed by none other than…

"Buggy!" Aurora breathed. She thought they'd seen the last of that clown.


With Luffy…

"For the crime of angering me, I sentence you, Monkey D. Luffy, to a flashy execution!" Buggy proclaimed. "Your flashy execution shall now be carried out for the whole public to see!"

"I'm sorry, please let me live."

"As if I'd just let you go, you idiot!"

"Hmph…" Cabaji grumbled. "This is only natural for all those who dare defy us."

The woman standing next to him, whom turned out to be a much slimmer Alvida, piped up. "Has the man I so admired finally met his end…?"

"Any last words?" Buggy questioned. "Might as well make the most out of this large crowd."

Luffy remained silent.

"Well, whatever. Whether you have any last words or not, it ain't like anybody will care for what you have to s-"

"I'M THE MAN… WHO'LL BECOME THE PIRATE KING!"

A hush fell over the crowd as they were stunned into shock. The silence didn't last long however. Whispers began to break out amongst the townsfolk.

"Wha…!?"

"The pirate king…?"

"Saying that in this town out of all places…"

"How outrageous…"

Buggy smirked, raising his sword above his head. "Is that all you have to say… you rubber brat!?"

"Nghhhhh!"

"WAIT!"

"Sanji! Zoro! Aurora!" Luffy cried out. "Help me out here!"

"So you've come, Zoro?" Buggy chirped, acknowledging the first mate. "But it seems you're too late…!"

"We've got to bring that execution stand down!" Zoro shouted, the trio of pirates darting towards their destination, the crowd quickly moving out of the way.

"Take care of them, boys!"

"As you command, Lady Alvida!" the Buggy pirates chimed.

"MOVE IT!"

The pirates groaned and grunted in pain as they were swiftly taken down. Between Zoro's swords, Sanji's kicks and Aurora's energy blasts, they stood no chance.

"Gyahahahaha!" Buggy cackled. "Just watch carefully from there! Witness the last moments of your captain!"

"Bastard!" Sanji roared. "Come down here and fight me, coward!"

Twisting and turning, Aurora wove her way through the Buggy pirates, taking down any that stood in her path. 'We need to get to that execution stand! If one of us could just knock it down…'

"Zoro! Sanji! Aurora! Usopp! Nami!" Luffy called out, his usual goofy grin on his face. "Sorry, but it looks like I'm dead."

"Wha…"

"Don't say that, you idiot!"

"NO!" Aurora screamed, but something made her pause. Halting in her tracks, the half-angel hovered in the air, feeling a change in the atmosphere. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. She knew this feeling. It was something she'd become highly attuned to in Skypiea.

She knew what was about to come.

The half-angel's head snapped up, just as a bolt of lightning came crashing down… right onto the execution platform. Aurora's eyes widened in shock as the platform quickly lit on fire, tumbling to the ground and taking Buggy and Luffy with it.

As the rain began to pour, Aurora gently landed on the ground, sucking in a shaky breath. 'Breathe, Aurora. This isn't Skypiea. He didn't cause that lightning strike. You're safe.'

A hat slowly descended to the ground, landing with a quiet plop! A hand reached down to grab it, Aurora's gaze trailing up the arm to the owner.

"Luffy…"

"Nahahahaha! Looks like I did survive! How lucky!"

The Buggy pirates and townsfolk all wore the same gobsmacked expression. They couldn't believe Luffy had survived that. As for his crewmates… well…

"Hey…" Sanji turned to Zoro. "Do you believe in God?"

"Enough talking." He disregarded the cook's question. "Let's leave this town already. We've got more trouble heading our way."

"SURROUND THE TOWN SQUARE! CORNER ALL THE PIRATES!"

"They're here!"

"Run for it!"

"Which way!?"

Aurora held back the groan that was rising in her throat, gesturing for the boys to follow her. At least she knew the way back to the ship, which was stationed at the outskirts of the western port. Despite being airborne, Aurora tried not to fly too fast so as not to lose the boys. There were many marines on their tail and the last thing they needed was to be separated.

"Jeez, these guys are so persistent. Should we just stop and fight them off?" Luffy asked.

"Don't, there'll be no end to them." Sanji advised. "More importantly, Nami told us to return to the ship as fast as possible." Sanji paused, his face taking on a familiar expression.

'Don't tell me…' Aurora inwardly groaned, recognizing that look as the one Sanji got when he saw a woman. And there was a woman; she was just ahead of them.

"RORONOA ZORO!"

"Sgt. Major Tashighi!" the marines cried out from behind.

The woman, whose name was apparently Tashigi, had dark brown eyes and chin-length black hair. She wore a short-sleeved shirt underneath a white-trimmed, waist-length blue leather coat that was paired with blue jeans and black shoes. At her waist hung a single katana.

"To think that you were Roronoa Zoro! And a pirate at that, too! You were just toying with me all along!"

"You bastard! What did you do to that lady!?" Sanji raved at the swordsman.

"Never thought you were a marine…" Zoro mumbled, obviously familiar with the woman.

"I shall take that Wadou Ichimonji!"

"…just try it." Quicker than they could see, Zoro pulled one of his swords free, clashing with Tashigi. "Go on ahead."

"Ok." Luffy said, not appearing to be at all concerned.

With that, the battle began.

"That brute dares harm a lady!?" Sanji roared, wanting to go back and kick Zoro's ass.

Luffy kept a tight grip on the chef, forging on. "Let's go!"

Aurora followed after the two, not happy at being separated but knowing she didn't have much of a say in the matter. Honestly, her crewmates were going to be the death of her. She'd never worried so much about anyone in her life!

'Well…' Aurora shook her head, refusing to think about her past or Skypiea. Too many bad memories…

"Someone's up ahead!" Luffy's voice rang out.

"Another one?"

Several feet ahead stood a man. He was muscular and white-haired with two cigars sticking out of his mouth. He wore a large thick white and blue specialist marine jacket, which was open, with greenish fur lining the neck, wrists and hem. Many cigars were strapped to the jacket, which bore the kanji for "justice" on the back. He also wore brown leather gloves, blue jeans with a brown belt and large military issue brown leather boots.

"So you've come, Straw Hat Luffy."

"Who're you!?"

"The name's Smoker. I'm a Captain of the Marine Headquarters. And I won't allow you to set sail from here!" he proclaimed, thrusting his arms out. Luffy screeched to a halt, Smoker having thrust his arms forward to attack. But in the process… they had turned to smoke!

"Ahh!" Luffy cried out, the smoke having wrapped around his body.

Sanji charged forward. "Why you…" he aimed a kick at Smoker's head. "Freak of nature!"

It had no effect. Smoker had turned that part of his body to smoke, Sanji's kick having no effect.

"Wha!?"

Smoker glared, part of his face restored to normal. "I don't have time for runts." He thrust his free arm in Sanji's direction. "WHITE BLOW!"

"Sanji!" Luffy cried. "Why you…! GOMU GOMU PISTOL!"

Whilst Luffy began his assault, Aurora flew over to Sanji, checking on the cook. He was dazed, but the half-angel knew he'd snap out of it soon enough. She glanced over at where Luffy and Smoker were, her captain's attack having had no effect on the marine. Smoker had eaten a devil fruit; that was clear. It was also clear that he'd eaten a logia-type fruit. Aurora was quite familiar with what logia-type users could do. They were able to control an element based on what fruit they'd eaten. Smoke seemed to be a fitting element for a man named Smoker.

Aurora quickly came to a stand, her captain in a vulnerable position. In just the span of a few seconds, Smoker had subdued Luffy and was reaching for the weapon strapped to his back. Swallowing back her fear, the logia-type user bringing back dark memories of another, Aurora raised her wings up. The feathers might look soft and unassuming, but with one flick of her wings she could turn them into razor sharp projectiles. It was like a built in defense mechanism.

"Looks like your luck's come to an end."

Aurora shifted, wings rearing back in preparation for an attack. If she timed it right, she could knock the weapon out of Smoker's hand and injure it in the process.

A large hand clamped down on Smoker's. "Or perhaps not…?"

Smoker glanced back at who'd stopped him, freezing in place, his eyes wide. "You're…!"

"What!? Who's there!?" Luffy's muffled voice asked.

Aurora froze much like Smoker had, her wings drooping behind her. The man may have been wearing a hooded cloak, but the distinct tattoo that peeked out made it very clear who he was. Granted, she'd never met the man, but she'd heard talk and seen pictures.

'W-Why would he save Luffy!?' she wondered. The most wanted man in the world saving a mere pirate. It didn't make any sense!

"The entire government is after your head, you know."

"The world awaits our answer…!"

A large gust suddenly swept through the streets, sending all the marines and Smoker flying. Luffy got caught up as well, landing in a heap nearby.

"Luffy!" Zoro's voice rang out, the swordsman rapidly making his way towards the trio. "Run for it or we'll be trapped on this island! A huge ass storm's coming in!" He grabbed the straw hat captain, dragging him along. "I said move it!"

"Ahh! Wha, what's going on?"

"So this is what Nami was talking about!" Sanji crooned, the mere mention of the navigator causing him to swoon.

Aurora swooped in next to the group, having been momentarily swept away by the large gust of wind. She hadn't been able to retract her wings in time and she paid the price. The wind had carried her up and away from her crewmates, but it didn't take long for her to spot them and regroup.

"LUFFY!" Usopp's voice rang out, the foursome having finally made it to the docks. "Hurry up! This rope won't hold for much longer!"

"What took you so long!" Nami griped. "Hurry up and get on board! We're setting sail immediately!"

The group scrambled on board, Usopp finally able to release the ropes that anchored the ship to the docks. The storm quickly carried them away from Loguetown and hopefully the marines and pirates left behind.

"Yahoo! The ship feels like it'll flip right over!"

"You see that light over there?" Nami pointed.

"You mean that lighthouse?"

"The light of guidance." Aurora corrected, having passed the landmark before.

Nami smiled at her friend, not questioning her knowledge of the lighthouse's nickname. Aurora was like her in a way, keeping her past close to her heart. Just like with Nami, Aurora would open up… it'd just be a matter of time. The navigator would respect that.

"The entrance to the Grand Line, is just up ahead of that light. So what shall we do?"

Usopp was cowering. "D-Don't you guys think that entering the Grand Line in the midst of this storm is a bit…"

Sanji plopped a barrel of ale down. "So we've reached the Grand Line, have we? Well this call for a celebration!"

"Guys!?" Usopp crowed, still frightened.

Sanji placed a heel atop the barrel. "To find All Blue."

"To become the Pirate King!"

"To be the greatest swordsman…"

"To draw a map of the world!"

"T… T-To become a brave warrior of the seas!"

All her crewmates had declared their dreams. Now it was Aurora's turn. But she couldn't possibly say her dream out loud. It would mean revealing her past… and she wasn't ready to confront it just yet. She wasn't ready for anyone else to know the deep, dark truth. She had to come up with something… and fast.

"Ever since I was a baby, I was told I was special. That my powers were a gift from God. I never really knew what that meant… and I still don't. So my dream…" Aurora placed her heel atop the barrel. "To find out what I really am and if there are others like me."

Ok, so it wasn't the truth, but it wasn't entirely a lie. Aurora knew what she was and that there were others out there like her… but she didn't know the full extent of her powers. She didn't know what all she was capable of or exactly what her purpose in life was. And though she knew other true angels existed, she'd never actually met any.

In a way, she'd told a half-lie. It still made her sick though. Lying was something she'd never liked to do and her holy powers raged at her whenever she did. She was supposed to be a being of good and light. Though lying was a small act of darkness, it had the potential to chip away at her soul if she wasn't careful. The last thing she wanted to do was become… fallen.

So, Aurora plastered on a smile, hoping her friends wouldn't see through the half-lie. It would appear for the moment that they were too caught up in their little celebration to detect any obvious signs.

"OFF TO THE GRAND LINE WE GO!"

CRUNCH!

The barrel broke, splitting into pieces with the ale being washed away by the rain. It was a happy moment for all but one straw hat pirate. Aurora's smile dimmed slightly, her thoughts drifting to a place far away. The place she called home.

'My dream… to become stronger and free my people from him.'