The two ships decided to head out when the night finally became completely dark, only the stars and moon to guide them and light their way. There was no reason to stay on the mountain once the Log Pose had set, the ships far more comfortable to sleep on than the rocky shores and too exposed should a Marine ship pass by, so it was better that they rest while sailing. Toshiro went back to the Sunny since the submarine planned on following her underwater and he still wasn't comfortable dealing with the stuffy heat. As long as both crews decided to travel together, he preferred the open air of the Straw Hat ship. Dextra returned to her siblings and told her Papa what she learned, though she respected Toshiro's wishes to keep the music box a secret for now as a silent thanks for him letting her hear the music. Law was curious about the odd bond they seemed to have formed after talking about their pasts, but was satisfied with learning a little more about the troubled warrior and let it be. This Aizen character definitely sounded dangerous, after all, and if he really was similar to Doflamingo… well, the surgeon could understand Toshiro's reluctance to talk about it.

Watching them leave from the mountain top, Maleficent bore a frown, the shy Tebliel at her side with more of a concerned expression.

From the witch's perspective, her plan had failed. She had hoped Lacia would succeed with her plan to push Toshiro back into the darkness before Maleficent would snatch him back for her own purposes. Lacia's death wasn't the issue, it was that Toshiro seemed to have found something inside the mountain that had the opposite effect both she and Lacia had wanted.

It was not hopeless, however, as when Tebliel had made her report she had shown a concern for the children due to Hyorinmaru's behavior. The Human-Mink had no knowledge of the dark fairy's real intentions, or that she even controlled the Heartless, so all was not quite lost yet. She had singled out the children after noticing one of the five was missing, mainly deceased as they were holding a memorial, and the broken hearts of children were easy to corrupt. She'd done it to Riku, and she did it now to Tebliel, the hybrid woman having almost given up on life as she was displayed at a slave auction until Maleficent saw the use of an angel's powers and snatched her up. Her secondary goal of manipulating the orphans was that, after noticing one had a fowl form, she would punish their attack on her sweet raven by replacing him with the harpy eagle.

Tebliel still as naïve as she was, she could gain favor from the orphans, especially now that Hyorinmaru was acting more Heartless than guardian. This would be easy…

"My dear angel, it seems the child of ice has been lost to darkness." Maleficent played up the sadness in her tone as she turned slowly to the Human-Mink woman at her side. "Perhaps Lacia finished her goal after all. This dragon of darkness who protects the boy is a danger. Should he choose, I'm sure he could demand the dragon kill them all if he felt they were no longer useful to him."

"But… Thursday seemed like such a nice girl, would he really hurt her?" Tebliel's wings fluttered nervously. In Maleficent's eyes, the wings had gone pitch black, shadows rising from their feathers.

"He is troubled and unstable… I have little doubt that, should the situation present itself, he would attack her." Maleficent put a hand over her heart in a feint of worry for the fate of the orphans.

"Well let me go get them." Feathers rustled as the Human-Mink's wings opened to take flight.

"Not yet, my child, the dragon would be quick to dispatch you. Best not to lose your life as well." The dark fairy stopped her, putting the rest of her plan into place. "There are people here who deliver justice to these unruly pirates, are there not?"

"The Marines? But they would lock her up too since she's part of the crew." Tebliel did not seem to like the idea her boss was suggesting.

"Do not worry about that, I will save them from such cages just as I did with you." Adding a little more to make sure she still had the angel's favor, Maleficent ruffled the other's hair a tiny bit in the best mockery of motherly concern. "But that means these Marines must find them. We will have them take care of the darkness, there's no telling how dangerous this boy may end up being."

Tebliel gave it a good hard thought before agreeing. Of course she believed Maleficent would save the children from a pirate's execution, why wouldn't she? Her wings spread once more and this time she was allowed to fly away, away from the fleeing ships to find a different kind. Maleficent's benevolent smile quickly returned to malice once the angel was out of sight.

"The world will always be against someone like you, Hitsugaya Toshiro." She chuckled to herself before vanishing into the darkness.

Until they were caught up in this new, unknown plan, the two pirate ships were allowed to sail in peace. Toshiro chose to hide himself away in the crow's nest – which Zoro also seemed to use for training – for now while everyone went to go sleep, a nice high place away from the others should anything happen in his sleep again, though he didn't really feel like sleeping. He had the music box in hand again, admiring the dragon-like features added to the otherwise delicate fairy while he thought over the memories he had been shown. If what he saw was true, did the Head Captain know anything about it? Yamamoto was of course the oldest of the Soul Reapers, and the one who put the Thirteen Court Guard Squads together, as well as the school. And if that were so, then did he perhaps know Toshiro's first incarnation, the Heavenly Guardian, who bonded to Hyorinmaru and gave the Soul Reapers their spirits? So far the Head Captain was as in the dark about all this as he was, and seemed as sure as everyone else that the worlds had always been separate.

He had a lot of questions about the Soul Society's history now, ones that could only be answered when he went home… but ever since speaking with Nami and Robin, he had a growing feeling of not wanting to return to that restricted place. Having seen the cavern, the proof before his eyes of a world once whole, he wanted to know more, to understand what his predecessor dealt with in order to ready himself for what was no doubt a repeat in history. He wanted to keep exploring, to keep seeing.

But would Soul Society let him?

As he was now, if Yamamoto chose to have him isolated back on Soul Society… the sheer power of the old Reaper's fire-type zanpaktou would put Toshiro on his knees. Just as he could freeze an entire island around him, should Yamamoto match him in strength, all that ice and the water that fueled it would evaporate. He would have nothing. He knew he couldn't stand a chance against that powerful fire spirit, not yet. Perhaps that's why he clung to the rules and his title; if he rebelled now, he could be killed, and he would have no chance.

The pirates thought his powers were scary, wait until they met the one said to hold the power of a sun in his sword when his Bankai was released. One touch of the blade turned anyone to ash.

The threat of the old man aside, Toshiro had plenty of other things to worry about. His revival meant that soon another wave of darkness was coming to devour the worlds once more, and the Heavenly Guardian was needed to protect the light of Kingdom Hearts so that the worlds could be reborn again if needed. But Xehanort and his two halves had clearly anticipated that, perhaps even set the events in motion for his reincarnation. There was no telling how complex and deep that man's plans were, how far ahead he had thought. If he was anything like Aizen had been but on a grander scale, even Toshiro's current attempts to return to normal might be planned out. Perhaps Xehanort wanted him to become stronger before he took control of the guardian.

It was a huge possibility, but just as he had told Dextra, so far this was a path he didn't mind being led down. He had to believe he could overpower the man of darkness when the time came, so he needed to learn as much as he could. The idea of 'knowledge is power' was a moniker Toshiro believed in and so far Xehanort had all the knowledge. So, he had to catch up, and avoid the other's attempts to drag him back down in the meantime. It was not going to be easy, had never expected it to, especially after the giant Heartless from the Summer Island first appeared.

Maleficent was another problem he needed to worry about. She controlled the Heartless, and was a master of manipulation, traveling through the path Aizen had already gone to further isolate and torment Toshiro in order to bring him to her side. If she ever tried to actually fight him, he might be able to deal with it and be done, but that wasn't how she operated, and that made her far more dangerous than just a fight between dragons.

All of his most dangerous opponents were manipulators and schemers, people who already had information he didn't and was using it to their advantage, and he was the unfortunate one stuck in the middle of their conflict with a power he did not want that they did. The amount of caution he had to take for every situation to avoid their claws was driving him crazy.

Sighing heavily, Toshiro wound up the music box again, hoping for the calming lullaby to settle his thoughts. He had gotten off track from trying to clear up the memories he had seen to worrying about the 'bad guys'. Something in the brief flashes of history of his predecessor would give him valuable information to hopefully learn to control Kingdom Hearts. He had come to understand the ones that the Nobodies had been creating was a fake, as compared to the one he had seen with the Heavenly Guardian it paled in comparison, a dark Kingdom Hearts that was simply there to eventually replace the real one, and that connection was the only reason it still affected him when he was next to it.

But that knowledge alone wouldn't help him. Obviously Xemnas knew it was fake, he made it, trying to copy the work of the first Heavenly Guardian as best he could, so Toshiro knowing it as well didn't really do anything in terms of the power struggle for information.

He wanted to know more about the original world, about how it worked and kept itself going with so many places and people. He wanted to know about the groups of Keyblade Wielders, children by the thousands protecting the light, and what happened to them all to fall to darkness, about how those children brought the light back. He wanted to know what the first did to set in motion the events to stop the darkness. That last one might be the most important, as it would allow Toshiro to know what he needed to do should history indeed repeat itself.

Noise by the edge of the crow's nest brought the Ice Nobody from his thoughts, turning to look at the hands at the top of the ladder pull up their owner. He was surprised to see the Straw Hat wearing Captain himself, bright-eyed and curious, in search of something.

"Oh, this is where it was coming from!" Luffy beamed, finding the object of his search as he looked at the music box still resting on a stunned Toshiro's lap. "Shishishi, Zoro was complaining about it but Robin was sitting outside listening, we all thought it was a ghost ship or something!"

"…Everyone can hear it?" This was the only question Toshiro thought to ask. The lullaby was only for those with troubled hearts – or in his own case a troubled mind – and Luffy did not act like a troubled pirate.

"Anyone who's not asleep, Shishishi." Luffy pulled himself up into the room and unceremoniously plopped to a sitting position across from Toshiro. "Wow, what a cool little box! And such nice music!"

"How… does it make you feel?" Toshiro questioned, curious.

"Hm?" Luffy went in to a thoughtful pose for a moment, scratching at his nose to figure out how to describe it. "Hm… like I just had a ton of the best meat, and the best adventure!"

While the pirate laughed joyfully, Toshiro took his words into his own thoughts. He supposed it made sense for the music box to bring about whatever made one the happiest, a counter to any dark feelings residing inside oneself, so for Toshiro that feeling was simply a peace of mind and a good night's sleep.

"Only people with trauma in their past, one that still hurts them, can hear this music." Toshiro finally explained for the smiling rubber man.

Luffy's smile went away, and for once Toshiro finally saw an adult, someone who immediately remembered what it was that would fit such a requirement. He looked at the dancing fairy in a completely new light, understanding why it gave him thoughts of a happy adventure with someone from his childhood who was no longer with him.

"Can I go show my friends?" Luffy asked, his smile coming back. The rubber man never missed a chance to share wonderful things with his companions.

Toshiro looked hesitant, still not quite comfortable with the idea of a pirate taking away this treasure. It didn't take him long to come up with a compromise, though, as his curiosity got the better of him.

"I'll bring it down." He told the pirate. Beaming, Luffy accepted the terms with a cheer and jumped right down the opening in the crow's nest, landing with a loud thud and a laugh on the deck below. Toshiro followed with less energy, actually using the ladder before jumping down with a lot more grace and a far more silent landing than the other had. By now the lullaby had run its first course, but that was fine, Luffy was busy running around grabbing his crew, so no music would have been noticeable anyway.

"What's with all the noise, Luffy?" Nami grumbled in a dangerous tone as she stood next to Robin, having emerged from the room the two girls shared when all the boys made complaints about being shoved from their beds. Zoro, out on deck as always anyway, just looked over at them all with a sleepy glare.

"Snowy's got a super cool thing!" Luffy answered gleefully. Toshiro had finally relented on the random nicknames as long as he never said 'Shiro' again, Luffy just didn't care and Toshiro didn't have the patience to keep correcting him.

"What a beautiful music box." Robin stated with a genuine smile, spotting the glowing figure in the still open box. Nami was instantly intrigued.

"I apologize for not showing you before, I had found it in the cavern… but you are pirates, and this wasn't something I could let go of. It's an important memento of my predecessor and the family he lost to darkness." Toshiro replied to the compliment, noticing as Nami's greedy look vanished instantly and became more solemn. "The magic in it eases any pain someone might have, otherwise it makes no sound at all."

Leaving his explanation at that, he wound it up for them before sitting down on the grass and resting it on the ground in front of him for now. The others slowly made their way over as the lullaby began to play, intrigued and drawn in by its magic. An odd air of peace washed over the whole ship, even the Sunny seemed to rock with the waves less and still, the ocean becoming calm and quiet. The fact that every member of the Straw Hats seemed to be listening intently to the music was a big insight into why such a chaotic group of people worked so well together. They all had some kind of trouble in their heart, something they must have all overcome together, and even between the arguing and sparring and yelling, there was something they all shared that made them absolutely inseparable.

Toshiro himself felt a lot more at ease among them once he saw this. He didn't have to know their exact pasts to understand that they had gone through a lot, just as he had, and he admired the strength they still had despite such trauma. He admired how carefree and resilient they all were, fooling even him into thinking they had nothing to worry about.

Brook walked away for a moment, silent as the night, before returning with his violin. He listened for a moment more, a musician appreciating every note of the music, before he put the bow to the instrument and began to play along. The man might be a walking skeleton, but his respect and passion for music shined in this moment as he gave the lullaby a whole new uplifting tone. The fairy seemed to flare brighter and the night sky embraced the music in its wind. For a moment, the world did not exist, only this single ship and a luminous sky.

And then the music ended, and everyone took a moment to blink, returning from their blissful trance with a renewed sense of peace and feeling like they had the perfect amount of sleep. The sun was peeking up over the horizon and lightening the sky. Somehow the entire night had passed them by, and they realized they were all laying out on the grass of the deck. They really had gone to sleep, not a dream to be had and wondering where the time went.

"Whoa…" Sanji was the first to break the silence, though unable to say anything else, everyone else still silent and stunned as well.

"That's some impressive magic." Jimbei's tone held awe to the power they had fallen under without even knowing.

"…yeah." Toshiro was speechless, not having expected anything like it. He had his suspicions that Brook aided such a powerful effect, as the music box had not done that previously, and turned to the skeleton in curiosity. "Your violin… it's like you amplified the effect."

"Oh? Did I?" Brook didn't seem to be consciously aware of causing anything different, but Toshiro knew there had to be something. The fairy had responded to the skeleton playing along, the magic had grown stronger for a brief moment, he had felt it.

"Your music always did give people a strong reaction!" Chopper praised his crewmate. "You can make them dance and fall asleep whenever! It's fun!"

"That's because I put my heart and soul into it!" Brook replied passionately, before turning back to them with a more deadpan tone. "Ah, though I don't have a heart, Yohohoho!"

"You and me both." Toshiro cut in.

A few of the others laughed at that, Brook putting his hands to his face in surprise at the response to his joke, and Toshiro couldn't help a small smile.

"Maybe that's why you made the lullaby stronger, that soul power you have for your music matched perfectly to this song's magic." Robin suggested, barely hiding a grin of her own.

"Ah! Perhaps that's true!" The skeleton looked pleased by this, glad he could help everyone with such a perfect rest, to rejuvenate their spirits. He hoped to memorize the lullaby for future restless nights.

There was the sound of waves being parted and they turned towards the right side of the ship, spotting their ally ship rising from below the sea. Once above the waves, the doors opened and a sweaty polar bear burst outside to seek the relief of fresh air and a sea breeze. Following behind him a little slower were a few other sleepy Heart Pirates.

"Man, why'd the last island have to be a mountain, a fluffy inn bed would have felt super nice." Penguin complained aloud as he stretched himself out.

"How's everyone up there?" Shachi called out to the Thousand Sunny as he finished his own stretches.

"We feel great!" Usopp responded with a huge grin, giving the confused engineers a thumb up.

"Best sleep ever! Barely noticed we fell asleep!" Chopper added on cheerfully.

"Huh?" The two boys looked baffled, even Bepo gave them a curious tilt of his head.

"Toshiro found this cool music box!" The reindeer explained excitedly. "It had magic!"

"What!? No fair!" Not as surprised by the term magic anymore, the engineers were more annoyed that they didn't get to share in this spontaneous discovery, especially if it meant such an intense sleep that one didn't remember it.

The two crews mingled once more and Toshiro had to explain the music box again, less paranoid about revealing it to everyone now. They asked to hear it play, only to be disappointed as they heard nothing. Bepo seemed to hear something, eyes closed and straining his ears, while the orphans were drawn in like moths to a flame. Toshiro was a little concerned what the four had been through to hear it so strongly – if it had been the death of Heinrich the whole crew would hear the music – but again chose not to pry. He took a glance at Law, surprised to see the surgeon with his eyes closed and listening peacefully from where he leaned against the railing of his own ship.

An odd sense of calm had come over the two crews, and for once Toshiro felt quite comfortable among them all, beginning to let his guard down and smile more at their antics. Robin watched like a proud mother, glad they were able to help the mysterious being. She only hoped they found a way to fix him before the darkness came back stronger.

Far in the distance, a fleet of ships was making their way through the water.