WARNINGS AT END OF CHAPTER
Hello friends! Sorry this took a little while to get out but it's the end of the semester so I have a crap ton of school work before finals! Anyways I hope you all brought your tin foil hats cause we are really staring to delve into some theories and head cannon here! I'll explain in more detail at the end!
Also! I wanted to say a special thank you to the 3 people who kept checking on my story everyday! I don't know who you are or if it was even the same 3 people but thank you! Knowing that at least a few people are enjoying my story and are waiting for the rest really helps keep my encouraged! :D
MIRROR BALL ISLAND, EAST BLUE
About a week after the incident with the Marine ship we made it to Mirror Ball island. From my first glance at the island it became quite clear that when Skull had said that this island had a "big town" he meant to say "city". The entire island from the docks to the massive ball shaped mountain in the center was covered in buildings. The sprawling buildings looked nicely manicured and almost quaint, but not overly so. It was clear that while this island was well off a person could still find trouble without too much effort.
But quaint often means well off which means high class stores. And wait doesn't Doskoi Panda have their headquarters here? Well that would certainly be a welcome stop, I can finally get some clothes that actually fit!
"Hey Deuce I'm going shopping." I yelled to Deuce who was wandering onto the deck.
"Ok? Have fun?" He said in a confused voice.
I rolled my eyes and said "You're coming too. Who else would carry my bags if you don't?"
"Why do I have to carry your bags?"
"Don't be rude." I said with a flip of my hair before I started walking down the gangplank, but I froze when I heard Ace call after me.
"Hey Air why don't you take Skull? That way I can convince Deucy here to join our crew!" Ace said while ignoring Deuce's outraged shout.
"Ooh and I'd love to hear all about your adventures Ari!" Skull said.
Maybe because I don't want to talk to that weirdo! But actually this could be useful. Without Ace around then I can try and figure this guy out...
"Fine let's go then." I said to Skull before turning to Ace, "Also Ace, there are Marines on this island and I'd prefer it if we could avoid a fight. So don't be stupid."
Ace actually had the gall to look offended when he said, "What? When have I ever been stupid Air?"
"Do you want me to answer that question? Whatever, Deuce keep an eye on him." I said in my most deadpan voice possible.
"Still not a member of the crew!" Deuce yelled.
"Come on man let's go have an adventure! That's what you wanted right?" Ace said as he threw his arm around his shoulders and started walking towards the railing.
"I guess s-" Deuce was cut off by Ace grabbing him and jumping over the side of the ship.
"Well we might as well get going." I said after Deuce's screams died down and continued walking down the gangplank.
"After you Ma'am!" Skull said cheerfully.
"Did you just call me 'Ma'am'?"
"You're the First Mate." He said as if it was obvious.
"Yes but you can just call me Ari. This isn't a Marine ship."
"Sure thing Ms. Ari!" He said with a mock salute.
"Ugh, whatever let's just get this over with."
Skull and I headed into town and had found the Doskoi Panda store. Skull had been prattling along about something or another about pirates since we left the ship but I was only vaguely listening. When we got into the massive store I was still barely listening. I was perusing the display of designer jeans when he finally caught my attention.
"So what exactly are you doing in the East Blue?" He asked.
"What do you mean? I'm starting out on a pirate adventure obviously." I said with a smile.
"I know who you are." When he said this I stopped pawing at the jeans and turned to give him my full attention.
Oh do you now? Is it time for you to finally show your true colors?
"Really, and what exactly do you know?"
"I know that you are The Siren Donquixote Ariadne with a bounty of 50,000,000 Beris. I didn't recognize you at first given you aren't supposed to be in this part of the world but after seeing you fight and talking to you for a bit it's obvious."
So he knows my epithet and my bounty but is that all? Does he know about my father? Does he know about Ace's father?
"So you do actually know who I am. But why does my being here concern you exactly?" I asked.
"You're a big shot. You might not have the most impressive bounty yet but considering your age and what you have already accomplished it's obvious that you are going to be a major player in this era."
"Well on that we agree. But I'm more interested in you actually. Do you really expect me to believe that you are just a 'pirate enthusiast'? Really?"
"You think I work for the government?"
"Seems like the most obvious explanation for how you know so much about things that you really shouldn't."
Like me for example.
"The Marines destroyed my island when I was just a kid. I watched as they slaughtered every one I knew before they set what was left on fire. Only me and a few old folks survived. We would have died of starvation if a crew of pirates hadn't shown up. They saved us after the Marines tried to wipe us all out. So the way I see it pirates are the ones with the right idea in this world and the Marines are the villains. So no I don't work for those fuckers." Skull all but spat out at me.
Well it seems like I hit a nerve. While that may be a nice sob story I still don't completely believe you dear Skull. Although, maybe he isn't a spy. I'll just keep an eye on him. If he gets uppity I can always take care of him...
"Alright alright, no need to get testy." I said in my most placating voice.
"I don't enjoy being called a government slave." Skull snapped.
"I didn't- ok fair. But you have to admit that knowing about Rocks and about me makes you look a bit suspicious." I said while turning back to the jeans.
"Rocks is easily my favorite pirate out there. Him and Roger were the only ones to actually fight back." He said in a more calm voice.
"Well they certainly did fight…"
"But anyways so um… can you tell me what the New World is like? It's kind of always been my dream to go there." Skull said in an almost bashful voice.
"Ugh, I suppose. But first you have to tell me what you think about these outfits!" I said in a mock perky voice while holding up a mountain of clothes that I had picked out.
It is so nice to finally have clothes that fit again!
A few days later...
We had been on Mirror Ball island for a few days and Ace had surprisingly managed to keep himself out of too much trouble. Well, there was that one street fight but that wasn't that big of a deal. He had spent most of his time running around the island and dragging Deuce along with him. While I had been mostly staying on the ship and trying to organize all of my new purchases in my room.
"Hey Ari, I'm hungry. Wanna go get some lunch?" Skull asked after he poked his head into my doorway.
That was another development that had occurred since we first got to this island. Turns out that while Skull may dress super weird, and I still think he might be a government spy, he isn't all that bad. Sure it gets annoying when he starts rambling about random East Blue pirates that will never be relevant in the world, but besides that he's actually a kind of cool guy.
"Sure let's go." I said while I grabbed my backpack that held my wallet and other essentials.
Skull and I ended up finding a small ramen restaurant that had decent food. After we had lunch and were walking back to the ship he stopped and pointed to a store across the street from us. "Hey Ari can we go check out that pawn shop?"
"What why? They'll just have a bunch of used crap." I asked with my confusion obvious on my face.
"But they might have used PIRATE crap." He almost squealed.
"Seriously?"
Is he being serious?
"Come on we went to all those stores for you the other day! And I'll be quick. Promise." He begged.
"Ugh, fine." I groaned "But then we should head back to the ship it'll be getting dark soon."
"WHOO!" Skull yelled before running into the store.
Once inside, I watched as Skull ran around the store oohing and awhing at everything like a child in a toy store. He was in the middle of drooling over a gun in a display case when he gasped and pointed to something next to it. "IS THAT A REAL LOG POSE?" He yelled.
The shopkeeper came over at Skull's shout and said, "Oh yes indeed it is! This one in particular was once the personal log pose of none other than Gold Roger himself!"
"No! Really?" Skull gasped.
"Of course I would never lie to a customer!"
Uh huh sure you wouldn't. Alright I should deal with this before Skull loses his mind. Although a log pose would actually be quite handy...
"Wow that sure is impressive! You know considering the fact that Roger wasn't a navigator and all!" I said in the cheeriest voice possible. "But regardless this does look to be a fine piece that we would be happy to take of your hands!" I finished with my biggest show stopping smile plastered on my face.
The shopkeeper just kept smiling and said, "Excellent! Glad you found something that is to your liking! Now this little wonder is going for the humble price of 500,000 Beris! Should I wrap it up for you?"
Excuse me? 500,000?
"Oh of course but we won't be paying that much." I said with my smile growing a bit wider.
"Well I'm sorry dear I'm afraid this piece isn't one that I can bargain over." He said with a smile that almost rivaled mine.
"Oh really? Well either you accept 10,000 Beris for it or I'm afraid that I will bash your skull in and take it." I said with a giggle.
"10,000? Are you stupid or something? Do you have any idea how rare these things are?" The shopkeeper yelled at me.
Oh good looks like I can drop the school girl act!
"Do you have any idea how thin you are wearing my patience? As I said, either you accept 10,000 Beris and we leave peacefully or you die and we take the pose. Choose wisely friend." I said.
"I can't believe this! You come into MY shop and threaten ME? HOW DARE YOU! LEAVE! GET OUT THIS INSTANT!" He screamed at me while pointing at the door.
"Oooooh so you want to do this the hard way. Well fair enough." I said before grabbing his head and smashing it into the display case, shattering the glass in the process. I reached down past his head and grabbed the log pose before his blood spread to it. Then I turned to Skull and said, "Well did you want anything else in here or are you good?"
"I- uh- I'm good." Skull said while staring at the motionless shopkeeper.
"Lovely, well let's get back to the ship." I said before turning and walking out of the store.
When we got back onto the street we noticed a commotion heading towards us.
"Huh, wonder what's going on?" Skull asked before a man slammed into him, throwing both of them to the ground. The man lifted his head and I noticed that it was Deuce.
"Oh hey Deuce. How have you been doin?" Skull asked casually.
"You know pretty good. How bout yourself?" Deuce said while panting slightly.
"Good but we should probably get goin." Skull said as they both got to their feet.
"Yea" Deuce said before they took off in a dead sprint down the street. I just stood there in confusion for a moment before I saw Ace skid around a corner and continue sprinting towards me. I was trying to figure out what he was carrying in his arms when a few dozen Marines came around the corner a split second later.
Oh
"What did you do?" I shouted to Ace as I started running with him.
"Uh, nothing!" Ace shouted back.
"I kind of doubt that!" I said before glancing back at the Marines chasing us.
"I'll explain later just get to the ship!"
We kept running until the port came into view. Thankfully Skull and Deuce had had the foresight to get the ship ready to sail and it was already pulling out of the dock. Ace and I kept running and jumped onto the deck before it got too far away. I quickly used my fruit to pull up a wave that pushed us completely out of the dock and set us on our way into open waters.
Then I turned to Ace and asked, "So would you care to explain why we had to flee that island just now?"
"Um, some guys said some stuff and then some other stuff happened and then we ran into you. But hey we got two new crew members!" Ace said with his huge smile on his face.
No Ari he is not being cute he is being annoying! Stop looking at his smile! Stop staring at the way his cheeks crinkle and his precious little freckles bunch up! STOP IT!
"That is not an answer and what do you mean by 'two' new members?" I shouted in an attempt to get back to the topic at hand.
"Deuce joined and I found this little guy!" Ace said while holding up what he was carrying.
"Meow!"
Why is he holding a lynx?
"Ace that is a lynx. Why are you holding a wild animal?" I asked.
"His name is Kotatsu and he's the newest Spade pirate." With just that one statement I could practically feel how pleased Ace was with himself over this newest development.
"He's a wild animal! You can't just bring an animal on board! And what do you mean 'his name is Kotatsu'? NO! Deuce what the hell! You were supposed to keep an eye on him!" I shouted at both Ace and Deuce.
"I did!" Deuce shouted back. "I watched as he freed Kotatsu from the trap he was stuck in. It was very sweet of him. He was very gentle."
"That's not what I meant!"
Since when does 'watch him' mean 'watch as he does stupid shit'?
Whatever I had been about to yell back was cut off by Ace saying, "Ari. He needs me." As he stared intently at me.
Damn it…
Later that day...
Night had fallen over the East and I was sitting on the railing at the back of the ship enjoying the sound of the waves when I noticed Ace walking over to me, with Kotatsu following him.
"Hey, what are you doin out here?" He asked.
"Just sitting. I love watching the sea at night, it's the only time that you can truly be alone with the waves." I said.
"Alone with the waves? What does that mean?"
"Come sit and you'll see" I said. When he settled himself on the railing next to me I turned my attention back to the sea.
Night truly is the most peaceful time on a ship. Without the light of day the only thing that you can see is the barest hint of the horizon and the faint outline of waves where they break against the ship. Without the crew around the only thing that you can hear is the wind and the waves. At the end of the day nothing will ever bring me peace like the whispers of the sea and the gentle caresses of the wind.
"Wow. You were right this is incredible." Ace whispered next to me as if to not upset the calm.
"Yes it is. I have always loved the sea but this has always been my favorite part of sailing. It's so easy to get caught up in the chaos of life but no matter what happens the sea will always remain the same. She will always be here."
"I've never really looked at it like that."
"Well the sea isn't a part of you." I said with a slight chuckle.
"Yea sure. Pretty sure the majority of people would disagree with you there." Ace said darkly.
"What do you mean?" I asked as I turned to look at him. Ace kept his eyes on the sea.
"My father?"
"He was a pirate sure, but he didn't make you set sail."
"Didn't he?"
"No, he didn't. Roger asked a Marine to take care of you. If anything that speaks to him wanting you to avoid a life of piracy."
"Ok yea that's something I've been meaning to ask you. How the hell did you find me?" Ace asked while turning to look at me.
I sighed before asking, "Do you want the long or the short version?"
"I want the whole version." Ace said seriously.
Welp, guess it was only a matter of time before this came up.
"Fair. Well it isn't really a secret either way." I turned my eyes back to the ocean before continuing. "I didn't know for certain that you even existed until I talked to an old Marine friend of mine. I had heard the rumors about Roger having a kid as well as what happened on Baterilla. I also knew that if Roger truly did have a kid that he didn't leave them with any of his old crew, Rayleigh would have said something if he had. So I figured that Roger must have left his kid to a Marine and the only possibilities were Garp or Sengoku. So I took a gamble and headed for Garp's home island."
"Why would you think that I was with Garp? Seems like a huge leap in logic there." Ace asked while turning to face me fully.
"Not really considering I know Garp, and he never shut up about his 'adorable grandsons'." I said.
"You know Gramps? How the hell could you possibly know him?"
"Again do you want the long or the short version?" I groaned.
"I want to know what the hell is up with your past. Why does it get more complicated every time I talk to you?"
"Rude, and my history really isn't all that complicated when you think about it." I said.
"Then why don't you explain it to me."
"Fine, no need to get testy. I told you who my father was but not who my mother was. Her name is Shakky and she used to be a pirate, but she retired long before I was born. Anyways she knew how dangerous being a pirate was and she didn't want me going down that road so she enrolled me in a school in a Marine base. I think they've shut down the program since I was in it but it used to be that kids that lived on Sabaody could go to school for free in Marine headquarters. Basically the only requirement to get a free education was that you would have to enlist in the Marines for the same number of years that you were a student there. It was their way of trying to keep people from becoming pirates, get to them young you know?"
"Wait, they let YOU into HQ? Why?"
"My mom isn't as well known as my father and he was off gallivanting around the New World with your dad at the time. I didn't meet Rayleigh until I was nearly 6 years old. But anyways they didn't know that I was his daughter and they also didn't know who my mom was so it wasn't really that big of a deal. They are used to orphans and bastards coming from Sabaody, it isn't exactly a posh place. Anyways, I was in Marineford for a while and Garp was usually hanging around. I wasn't close with him or anything like that but he was always talking about his grandsons. I also knew that you weren't left in Sengoku's care since he, first of all, would never have agreed to take care of Roger's kid in the first place, but he also didn't didn't have any family outside of Marineford. So since you weren't on Sabaody with me or in Marineford I figured you must have been on Garp's home island. Does that answer your question?"
"Sort of but if you went to school in Marine headquarters then why are you a pirate and not a Marine?"
"My father remember? He let me go to school in Marineford for a while but when I turned 10 he sent me to apprentice under one of his old friends so that I could 'grow up big and strong' or some bullshit. I still don't know what the hell he was thinking and I don't think I ever will."
"What crew were you with?" Ace asked.
"I doubt you would recognize their name." I said with a smirk.
"Try me."
"Ever heard of the Whitebeard Pirates?"
"Who?" Ace asked.
I immediately burst out laughing. Ace's face went crimson in a second before he said, "What are they a big deal or something?" That only made me laugh harder as I sank down to the floor.
WARNINGS: Mild violence.
OK so theory and head cannon explanation time! I'll expand more on all of these ideas as the story progresses obviously but I thought it would be a good idea to let you guys know some of the major topics.
One of the major ideas for the creation of this story was setting up Ari's parents and then asking "what would happen if this character truly existed in the story?" Which quickly spiraled into the fic that it now is. So after studying what little we know about Shakky and Rayleigh I came to a few conclusions...
1) In chapter 498 when Hatchan and the Strawhats meet Shakky she says "I see. You quit being a pirate. That's good. Honesty is the best policy!" (quoted for the viz translation) So what I took from this paired with the fact that Shakky quit being a pirate is that she would not want her kid to be a pirate. Therefore she would probably do what she could to prevent her daughter from falling into piracy. Hence the Marineford tie in. This program is actually loosely based on the Reserve Office Training Corp program here in the US where you can get a full ride scholarship so long as you enlist in the military for 5 years after completing a Bachelors degree (basically). As well as the fact that Marineford is super close to Sabaody.
2) Rayleigh would not want his kid to be a Marine. Obviously. So he would use his connections to help his kid become a pirate. Since people often stay within their own social circle (for them it just happens to be top tier pirates) and because of the close relationship that we saw between the Whitebeard pirates and the Roger pirates in chapter 966 it made sense to me that Rayleigh would send Ari to train under them. And we have seen Shanks and Buggy as young as 9 years old on the Oro Jackson so 10 didn't seem outrages to me.
3) Shakky is a Kuja! This is just a theory, but one that I support. I don't expect it to be cannon but it is for this fic! Basically this is based on Gloriosa living with Rayleigh and Shakky for a while and their connection to the Boa sisters.
4) Shakky is a part of Rocks! This has actually been basically confirmed by Oda in an SBS so that is what I will be rolling with.
Ok you can remove your tinfoil hats now...
Anyways thanks again for reading!