AmericanNidiot: Answers to reviews are to be answered down bellow! And if I'm to be honest, I'm looking forward to writing up chapter 5!
Ace looked up from his position on the bolder he liked to sit on and think, seeing Rain carefully crawl up to him with a package tightly clenched in her free arm. "Sis?" he called out tentatively, a bit wary as she sat next to him. Her face was scuffed up, smears of dirty decorating her clothes and face as she held out the brown paper package to him.
"Happy birthday, Ace!" she cheered, smiling at the now 12 year old boy, one of her baby teeth now missing on the upper left side and still bleeding slightly. She must have went into one of the towns on Dawn Island, close to Mt. Carvo, and got into a fight with someone. It explained her appearance.
The freckled boy flushed slightly, taking the package from her hands and placing it in his lap, his nickel gray eyes wide as he felt tears built up. He wiped them away, not wanting to cry in front of Rain of all people, and carefully peeled back the paper. Sitting in the middle of the paper was a burnt orange stetson with red beads acting as the hat band around the crown, with two blue smilies sitting close to the front— one was smiling while the other frowned— while two long orange side straps hung down the sides of the hat and met at a large medallion of a bull's skull with orange tassels tying it all together.
"You like it? I thought you deserve something, seeing as I have my bandana, while Luffy has his straw hat, and even Sabo had his own hat," she mumbled towards the end, smiling sadly as she knocked her heels against the stone. "Now we all have our own head gear!" Rain brightened up almost instantly as she took the hat and put it on Ace's head. It was a little bit big, as it nearly covered his eyes. "Don't worry, you'll grow into it eventually," teased Rain, lifting the brim up a bit to peek at the younger boy, a soft smile crossing her pretty face.
Whacking her hand away, Ace pulled the hat back over his face as the tears began to fall, his body shaking with each silent sob. "Thank you…" he whispered so softly, Rain had to strain her ears to hear him. "I'll treasure this hat forever…"
"Ace! Rain!" Luffy shouted, suddenly barging from some nearby bushes noisily as he carried a small white box. "Makino made a cake for Ace's birthday! So let's party!"
"We'll meet you at the fort Luffy, okay?"
"Okay, Rain!" and he zoomed off, giggling happily.
Rain turned a bit to face Ace, and proceeded to kiss his cheek. "I'm glad you're my little brother, Ace, never doubt that, okay?" she then pulled him into a tight embrace. "Now don't give up, you must live, Ace!"
†††
Breathing heavily, I cracked open my eyes, and stared up at a wooden ceiling. Lifting a hand shakily, I brought it up to my face, pulling the oxygen mask down, and stared in wonderment. 'Why am I not dead? Where's Luffy?!' panic began setting in, causing the heart monitor to go crazy, however before I could dwell more on it, I passed out once more, while thinking of one other person. "Rain…"
†††
I sneezed loudly, rubbing under my nose as I looked up at the sky. "Someone must be thinking of me," I joked, turning back to Shachi and Penguin. "Ready to go again?"
Both men had their hands on their knees, lightly panting before looking up in determination. "We're good! Don't hold back!"
"Wasn't planning on it," I told them while tying my bandana around my eyes, making a makeshift blindfold as I focused on my Observation Haki. With each attack, I either dodged or countered with my own while keeping an eye on not just their auras, but also all the others in the bay area.
"Rain is very skilled," commented Jinbei, sitting over by Law.
Law seemed to hum in agreement, seeming to focus on my movements if his aura was anything to go by. "If you enjoy watching me so much, Trafalgar, maybe you'd like to join in? I'm sure there's a few things we can teach each other…"
"Captain always gets the pretty ones!" a few members of the Heart Pirates cried, taking my words the wrong way. Snorting, I knocked Penguin and Shachi off their feet, and removed my bandana before retying it so that it held most of my hair out of my face, while my bangs framed my face.
"How much longer do we have to stay in such a small space…" someone sighed, as I took a seat next to Jinbei, and right across from Law.
"Yeah, the only thing to look forward to is…"
"Guys, sorry to keep you waiting!"
"It's a meal time."
A group of Kuja warriors called out, carrying food into the bay.
"Finally!" the men shouted, rushing over to them as quick as possible.
"Here it is."
"The only consolation is that the food is good!"
"I agree!"
I chuckled at the excited faces of the men as they lined in front of the tallest Kuja woman, who spooned out soup for them happily. "Here you go!"
"Thank you…"
"Please don't push and wait for your turn." The Kuja woman lightly scolded the men, watching as they quickly got in line.
"Aphelandra!" the oldest scowled at the other Kuja, not pleased that she was talking to the men. "Don't talk to the men!" shortly after, I tuned her out, finding it to be ridiculous.
"Did she just seriously waste perfectly good meat, just because Aphelandra is telling the guys to wait their turn?" I questioned, frowning at the loss of food.
Next, the blond Kuja came rushing over to us, and went over to Law as he drank wine straight from the bottle. "Excuse me," she called out, gaining his attention. At least she has manners, unlike her Empress. "Is Luffy awake?" she asked, only for Law to shake his head in the negative, while I frowned again. For the last two weeks, I visited Luffy daily to make sure he was all right, spending at least an hour or two with him, and peppering his face with good luck kisses. "I see…"
"It's up to Strawhat-ya's spirit." Law commented. "Whether he's willing to live or not." I was unsure if he was trying to be reassuring or not.
Margaret sighed heavily, before turning to me. "Here, a gift from some of us Kuja warriors," she said, offering me a brown package that she had tucked under her cloak. "We're not really allowed to talk to the men, so thank you for keeping us up to date on Luffy's condition."
I accepted it, a bit surprised. "It's nothing, really…" I waved off her thanks. "But seriously, you guys all need a sex education class. How the Hell do you actually think the term 'family jewels' actually refer to real jewels?" I teased, watching her flush as she remembered that embarrassing story she told me on the second day we stayed here in the bay.
"Margaret, let's go already!" the grumpy Kuja shouted.
"I'm coming! I'm sorry! Take good care of Luffy!" she bowed her head towards Law and rushed off to the others.
"I like her. She's nice," I commented off handedly, while Law just watched them leave. Suddenly my back stiffened as I turned, looking towards the sub. "Luffy… he's awake! Is he wearing seastone cuffs?!" I asked, seeing as I had not seen him wearing any during my earlier visit.
"Not currently. Strawhat-ya's bandages needed changing, so we removed them… What's wrong, Rain-ya?"
I bit my lip in frustration. "Luffy's going to blast a hole in your sub soon. I'll pay whatever I need to for the damages, but your crew should clear out of his way."
"AHH!"
Law and Jinbei got up and rushed over, just as Luffy busted a hole through the sub to escape. His landing was rough, surprising both Jinbei and Law, while I anxiously bit my thumbnail. "Luffy!"
"Ace…" he began digging his fingers into the ground, forming a fist as he panted. "Ace…" Luffy then threw his head back, screaming to the heavens. "Where's Ace?!" the Heart Pirates tried calming him down, only to get blown back.
"Guys! Stop! It's worthless trying to restrain him, mainly without Haki to help!" I shouted, catching a few of them, just as more dogpiled Luffy. Law and Jinbei both sat down, with Law giving me a long side-glance as more of his crew tried to restrain Luffy.
"What is going to happen if we leave him like that?" questioned the Fishman, turning to look at the Surgeon.
"Well, it's simple. Like I said when we got here, if his wound opens up, he will die." Law stated calmly as I took a seat with them, sitting on my knees, and watched as Luffy torn down the barrier and vanished into the forest, all while screaming about Ace. Soon, a group of engineers started fixing up the damage Luffy made to the vessel. "Now seeing Strawhat-ya, what are you going to do now, Rain-ya?" Law asked, turning his silver gray eyes towards me.
"I already told you, Trafalgar. I refuse to give Luffy any false hope. I can deal with this burden myself. I will gladly torture myself with hope; however I refuse to let my brother do the same."
"What burden would this be, Rain?" asked Jinbei, looking at me curiously, as he stood, looking ready to go after my distraught little brother.
I gripped the hem of his haori, trying to make him stay with my pathetic grip. "Promise me, Jinbei… Promise me you will not breathe a word of what I am about to tell you to Luffy…" I begged, keeping my head bowed so he would not see the tears that brimmed my eyes. "Please."
"You must have a good reason to not want to tell Luffy… I promise not to say anything."
Slowly, I exhaled the breath that I had been holding. "Ace… Ace is alive; however, I have not gotten word of his awakening, so I do not want Luffy to get his hopes up, just in case he never wakes up… It is best we keep this bit of news silent, anyways, just so that if, when, Ace recovers he will not have the Government breathing down his neck until he is ready to face them." I explained, releasing my hold on Jinbei.
"I understand. As much as it pains me to do so, I am happy to hear that Ace is alive, so I will not tell Luffy about this. Thank you, Rain, for entrusting me with this burden," Jinbei agreed, and followed Luffy.
I ignored what the others were talking about, focusing instead at my lap, while Law studied Luffy's hat. Suddenly explosions could be heard, alerting us to the destruction Luffy was causing. "You mention that my crew would not be able to handle Strawhat-ya in his current condition without something called 'Haki'. Care to explain what that is, Rain-ya?" he spoke up, drawing me out of my thoughts.
"Haki is a power that most find out about in the New World, though high-ranking Marines have this power. It is one of the few ways to hurt Devil Fruit users, mainly Logia types, and is broken down into three types— two of which anyone can learn, while the last only select few are born with it. There is Observation Haki, Armament Haki, and lastly Conqueror's Haki; also known as The King's Haki or Emperor's Haki. Conqueror's Haki allows the few who have it to easily knock out anyone with a weak will. This is a Haki that both Luffy and I have, along with Ace, though I am the only one to know how to consciously use it. Observation Haki is as the name suggests, it allows you to observe those around you even at a great distance through their auras, and if mastered can let you see an opponent's attack even before they make it. Lastly is Armament Haki, which can be used in two stages, and the main type of Haki one can use to harm Logia and certain Paramecia Devil Fruit users." I began explaining listlessly.
"Observation and Armament Haki are the only ones that all living things can learn. You, personally, have shown signs of unknowingly using Observation Haki, such as when we first arrived easily moved your head to the side to prevent getting hit with the Kuja warrior's arrow without even looking."
"And it is possible to train such skills?" he inquired, looking up from Luffy's hat.
"Yes, with certain training, much like my blindfold combat from earlier. That is my way of using my Observation Haki. Armament, in its first stage, is basically like an invisible armor and can be used with weapons to prevent them from chipping, such a swords, and deal even greater damage. Unlike seastone, you cannot use this Haki to nullify a person's Devil Fruit, though it makes harming them much easier, mainly those with Logia or body-altering Paramecia types. The second stage of Armament is actually visible, and coats one's body and hardens it," I explain while demonstrating it by turning my arms black. "This can also be transferred to weapons, however if someone's Haki overpowers their opponent's own, then their attacks are rendered null-and-void." I continued. "Such as if Marco the Phoenix's Armament Haki is stronger than mine, then mine would be rendered useless. Another drawback is that you can 'deplete' this Haki if used for long periods of time, as it is proportionate to the amount of a spirit life force an individual possess."
"So it is possible to cut someone if they are using this kind of Haki then?"
I nodded. "As long as your Haki, which can also be influenced by your willpower, is stronger than whomever you're fighting, it should be possible to cut them down with your blade."
"Mm… Interesting… Now, Rain-ya, is your mind cleared now?"
My eyes widen as I looked up, seeing Law smirking at me as he tilted his head to the side. Raising my hand, I covered my mouth as I began giggling. "Thank you. I honestly needed that." I told him honestly, smiling slightly to show him that I meant it.
He merely waved it off, as if it was not a big deal. "I am curious, though, Rain-ya. What type of Devil Fruit do you possess? If I remember correctly, I should not have been able to draw your blood if you were a Logia type, though I have never heard of a Paramecia type being element based like yours."
"There's always an exception to that rule. Because air, oxygen in general really, is naturally everywhere, my body cannot turn into my element like a standard Logia user, and I have yet to master it enough to fly without the use of something, such as my glider or even the Solar Surfer [1] I made, so I'm stranded like everyone else is whilst in the Calm Belt, as traveling by glider is risky, because if my grip slackens, I'll easily drown. Does that answer your question?"
Law nodded, though it seemed I said something that piqued his interest. "What is a Solar Surfer?"
"It's a special board with a sail that I can combine with my Devil Fruit that lets me travel through the air or the sea. I figured out how to make it thanks to some shipwrights in Water 7, but also from the natives of Galaxy Way Archipelago. Actually, I am going to that place to next! It is one of the only islands in Paradise that has no contact with the World Government, as it is naturally protected by a giant tornado with the archipelago in the eye of it, and a shark Sea King prowls the harsher waters looking for prey, though Brutus doesn't venture near the seafloor, so there's only two paths to take to enter Galaxy Way. Either you fly over the storm and enter through the Eye, or you take the only path on the floor."
"What's so special about this place?"
"Oh, the islands that make up the archipelago are all named after planets and have their own unique seasons, while the main island that has the largest population is Sun Island located in the center, with Solar Flare city being their largest port town. It basically has a little of everything, and the storms play an even bigger role than just protecting Galaxy Way! A handful of people from each island are selected to go into the storm, looking for the rarest gems that only the Galaxy Way storm can produce. One of which is the highly sought after Galaxy Diamonds that can only be harvested if one flies into the tornado and pluck them from the raging winds. It's actually a hobby I have when I visit, so I have a couple million Beri because of it, which makes it easier to buy supplies and everything."
"Oh?" Law cocked an eyebrow in response.
"Mmhm!" I nodded, before pressing my palms against each other, a bit embarrassed about my request that I was going to ask. "Which sorta leads to what I'm about to ask as a favor… I know you are not obligated to do so, however if it honestly isn't too much to ask, could you and your crew take me to Galaxy Way? That is where my crew took Ace, and I did say I would pay you back for the damage Luffy caused your submarine. I'm sure parts are not cheap for such a vessel, on top of all the supplies you used to treat Luffy and Jinbei."
The pirate captain looked amused, acting as if he was seriously thinking about agreeing or denying my request, before shrugging his shoulders. "I'm sure my crew would find this archipelago fascinating, and it also has piqued my interest, mainly these Galaxy Diamonds. After all, One Piece is not going anywhere…"
"Thank you, Law!" I cheered, leaning forward and quickly hugging him tightly, before letting go so I could finally open the gift Margaret gave me. It was a red with black leopard printed Kuja warrior outfit. I blinked, holding up the top, before dropping it and holding the bottoms. "Okay, the top is nice and all, but what the Hell is this scrap of cloth for?! Is it a loin cloth?" I mused to myself, laughing as I placed everything into one of my many pockets on my coveralls.
Loud splashing was heard off the coast, drawing our attention as Law and I went to look. "… Take a look at that! It's a gigantic Sea King!" Penguin pointed out, using a pair of binoculars to see.
"What's going on?! Is it fighting with something?!" asked Shachi.
"It's dead! Something just killed that thing…!"
"A monster of that size…?!"
"I couldn't see what it was fighting…"
"This is one terrifying ocean…!"
"Oh? It seems we have a guest," I giggled, taking note of who had swam to shore, while the pirates around me looked shocked.
"Dear me… Ah, I know you people… We met at the Sabaody Archipelago." It was none other than a very wet Rayleigh, the Dark King and former-first mate of the Roger Pirates. "Well, you see… I ran into a nasty storm at sea. My boat sank, so I had to swim the rest of the way. My body doesn't move the way it used to… I really am getting old."
I scuffed, crossing my arms under my chest. "I hope I'm that lively when I hit your age, Old man," I teased, making the old pirate chuckle.
"A storm?! There are no storms in the Calm Belt…! Which means… Your boat sank outside the Calm Belt, and you actually swam all the way?!" Penguin looked stunned. "Then… The one who was fighting with that Sea King… Was that you as well…?!"
Rayleigh just ignored him as he began redressing. "Mmm… Now then. I'm guessing that Luffy is somewhere to be found on this island?"
"As if you didn't know that already." I rolled my eyes.
At that moment, Jinbei came back with Luffy on his back. "Whaa?! Old man Rayleigh?!"
"Ah, yes, speak of the Devil and the Devil shall appear," I joked, smiling at Luffy.
"Rain! What are you doing here?!" he asked, talking loudly like normal.
"Protecting your virtue, little brother…" I deadpanned, knowing it would go right over Luffy's head.
As expected, Luffy did not seem to understand. "Shishishi, you talk weird, Sis!"
"You love me anyways, so it's no big deal."
"What a beautiful sibling relationship," Rayleigh observed, grinning at us both as I went over and took Luffy's hat from Law and placed it on my own head. "Luffy, it's good to see you again."
"What are you doing all the way out here? I was just about to head back out to Sabaody Archipelago by following the Vivre card! Where are the others?!" Luffy questioned.
"Well, I doubt they have all been reunited just yet… I left my own Vivre card with Shakkie. I could hardly move about freely otherwise, you see…" Rayleigh answered with a carefree grin.
I walked over and placed Luffy's hat back on his head before going off with the Heart Pirates while he was not paying attention. "So, Rain-ya, is it safe to assume that you have an Eternal Pose to Galaxy Way?"
"Mmhm!" I nodded, digging in my pockets and pulled out the Eternal Pose to Galaxy Way… Specifically to Sun Island. "I also have the charts for the floor entrance in my bag." I told him while handing the Pose over to Bepo. "You can keep that Pose, and the charts, for your Navigation duties, Bepo."
"Thank you, that is kind of you, Rain." The large white bear smiled happily.
"Ahh, it's such a shame… after going all that way…" Penguin sighed wistfully, making me giggled softly.
"It would've been great to be able to actually go inside…! The Land of Women…!" Shachi added, blushing with Penguin.
"If only they were bears…," commented Bepo as he fiddled with the Pose.
"You stay out of this!" both men snapped, not understanding their crewmate at all.
Law chuckled at their antics. "Still, I wonder what the Dark King's up to… The 'D' will always bring a storm without fail… Heheh…"
I scrunched my eyebrows together, having heard that before. "My old man told me that when I was a kid," I commented, rubbing the back of my neck. "I just thought he was referring to my Devil Fruit at the time… But I guess not." I followed Law and the others into what appears to be a lounge-type area, if the plush leather sofas were anything to go by, with a window built into the floor so one can watch the marine life swim underneath. "Whoa… The view is great in here!" I sat by the edge of the window, watching the fish swimming along, as other members of the crew— that were currently off duty— sat around, while Law reclined back in his seat.
"So where are we going next, Captain?" one of the crewmembers that I have yet to be introduced to questioned, plopping down and crossing his legs while flipping through a medical tome.
"We're going to an archipelago called Galaxy Way, apparently there are some interesting things to see, and it gives us a chance to properly restock."
"If you can't find what you're looking for on Sun Island, the others that make up the archipelago will have it. Mars Island is actually the best for parts, so your engineers should check there first. However, the only island that will not have anything on it is Pluto. That island is mostly snow and rock, and pretty small compared to the others, so it's mainly being used as a training and testing ground."
"Sounds so nice!" Bepo sighed, walking in and sitting next to Law, his captain's sword clutched in his paws. "It'd be nice to visit a winter island… Is there any female bears?"
"Sorry Bepo," I patted his leg, "there isn't any bears in Galaxy Way, however they have the best seafood!" The bear perked up at the mention of seafood, his stomach growling loudly. "Sounds like someone is hungry…"
"Sorry…" Bepo bowed his head, his ears wilting a bit as he tried to obscure his stomach from view.
"No need to be sorry. You did not really get to eat your fill while we were on Amazon Lily, due to them only bringing animals from the forest, such as wild boar, which you cannot really eat due to being a Mink. That must have been hard on you." I got up and dusted off my coveralls. "Where's the kitchen?"
"Why do you want to know where that is, Rain?" asked Bepo, looking up at me.
"One, my blood sugar is running a bit low so I'm a bit light headed. And two, I want to cook you all something as thanks."
†††
Bepo gladly showed me to the kitchen after letting me collect my bag from the infirmary that I've been leaving it in, and pointed out where certain things were along the way, which I made sure to pay a great deal of attention to, before arriving at our destination. "So is there anything I should steer clear of while cooking dinner, Bepo? Besides the obvious?"
"Yes. Captain does not like bread, or umeboshi, so it is best to make dishes that do not require it. Though Captain is very fond of onigiri and grilled fish"
"Mm, Law's lucky to have such a considerate first mate that remembers these things. With Ace, as long as it doesn't eat him first, he'll eat just about anything, while Luffy is obsessed with any kind of meat," I chuckled, fondly remembering my little brothers' eating habits. Bepo blushed faintly through his fur at the praise, while I started wandering around the large kitchen so as to get a feel of where everything is, and found the fruit. Humming, I took and apple and polished it before taking a bite, the juices coating my tongue and bringing my blood sugar back up.
Finishing it quickly, I tossed the core into the trash and washed my hands, and started working on the largest meal I have made since a little over four years ago. "That smells good…" the Mink sniffed loudly, followed by his stomach roaring in agreement.
"Glad you think so! I haven't had to cook this much since I left home, to be honest." I told Bepo, making a fruit salad to go with the fish, and quite a few plain onigiri with just the nori, molded into triangles. "I actually miss cooking like this, so I'm glad I can make something for all of you," I smiled at the bear, having him help me with the plates and other things, and set up the dining room that connected to the kitchen.
There was about five rectangular tables, four of which had chairs on both of the long sides, while the only one going along the wall only had seats on the long side that is adjacent to the wall. If I had to hazard a guess, that would be where Law and his closest crewmates would be sitting. "Food's ready!" Bepo called into one of the voicepipes, making my ears perk to attention as the sound of feet rushing closer to our location.
"Great, I'm hungry!"
"How can you be hungry?! You're not the one assigned to the engine rooms!"
"Ralph, get off my foot, dammit!"
"Gordon's just being a bitch like normal, so ignore him Donny," pipped up Shachi as he elbowed his way through the crowd, ignoring Penguin's shouts of pain from having his foot stepped on.
"Boys, boys, calm down~ Fighting like children isn't all that attractive," I commented, a shit eating grin plastered across my face, as they all seemed to calm down.
Apparently the majority, if not all of them, are perverts, because the moment they noticed me, all of their faces turned a bright pink color. "Rain~! Did you make all this food for us?" Penguin asked, falling over himself as he got to the front, doing a weird wiggle dance as he admired the food (and me, I think).
"Yup, as a way to thank you all for helping my brother, and going out of your way to take me back to my friends. So please enjoy!" Moreover, just like that, a sea of men in strange hats flooded the dining room, going to their respective seats and waited. The last to enter were Law and Jean Bart.
"Captain! Look at all this heavenly smelling food that Rain made!" gushed Shachi, as he and Penguin sat at the table going along the wall, sitting together at one of the ends.
"Guys, I'm sure someone could easily make something that's a million times better than what I've made…" I commented, rubbing the back of my neck as I shrugged.
"But it isn't every day we get to have a woman cook for us!" cried Penguin, joining his ginger haired friend.
"You guys are hopeless…" I muttered, finding them to be too much, as Law sat down next to Bepo, while Jean Bart to the seat at the other end of the table, leaving the space next to Law empty. Seeing as there was not any other spots opened, I shrugged and took the seat next to the captain. "Hope you like it, Captain Trafalgar," I grinned, going for the fruit salad first for the natural sugars, before putting some fish and onigiri on my plate.
Law grabbed one of the rice balls, turning over in his hands— probably to see if I added any filling— before taking a bite. He seemed to like it, if his slightly bulging cheeks were anything to go by, as he ate more onigiri and grilled fish, seemingly content with it. Bepo, sitting on the other side of Law, had a growing stack of fish bones on his plate and looked pleased as can be to eat his fill once more. The rest of the crew were lively, as they talked about some of the places they have been, and the trouble they have caused since entering the Grand Line, while drinking alcohol as if it was water.
"So, Rain, what's the archipelago like that we're going to?" questioned Shachi as he leaned back, and popped a grape into his mouth.
I stopped eating and smiled. "It's great. Everything you could ever need is easily found, and the system they have in place for visitors is very good. Like say if you originally landed on Neptune and got a room at one of the inns there, yet visit Saturn's night life and need some place to crash, you just go to the sister inn of the one you checked into on Neptune. All of that information can be located on your keycard from your main inn, so no worries of having to check into multiple inns when traveling between islands. In addition, the best way to get to each island is by either the walkways or using the ferries. I suggest using the ferries if you intend on buying supplies in bulk." I pointed out, taking a bite of a rice ball. "News travels fast on Galaxy Way, so it is in your best interest to not cause any serious problems, unless you happen to be drunk and in a bar; only then will they let it slide, but mostly all the natives are pretty chill anyways, so it's hard to get on their bad side to begin with. You'll probably get great deals on things, too, seeing as I'm with you guys."
"The natives like you that much?" questioned Bepo as he rubbed his belly happily.
"Well, yeah. The whole archipelago is my territory, and with all the diamonds I harvest for their use and mine easily covers many expenses. Such as three Galaxy Diamonds would probably cover the cost of two or three more ships made like this one; however, that's only after it has been cut and polished, though."
"How'd you figure that out?" Penguin jumped in, now reclining back as he used a toothpick to clean his teeth.
"Two Galaxy Diamonds cover the cost of Adam, and that'd give you enough wood for a brig sloop. Five Galaxy Diamonds gave us enough Adam Wood to build a ship the size of Shanks' Red Force, if not a bit bigger…" I explained, trying to calculate the cost in my head. "Oscar is better at explaining than I am, mainly because she's our treasurer." I popped in more fruits into my mouth and ate them. "Oscar knows more about how much jewels, gold, and silver costs in Berries, as she came from a well-known family of jewelers in the New World." I then began digging through the pockets of my coveralls. "Actually, I might have a small Galaxy Diamond on me," I said, patting down my legs and thighs, because I sewn in lots of little secret pockets to hide things in— mostly my gummies, but I digress.
Finally finding the jewel, I set it down next to Law's plate. The diamond is roughly the size of my thumb, which is pretty small for a Galaxy Diamond, and it had— ironically, given my present company— had a heart cut. Law picked it up and began observing the multicolored gem. Much like the name suggested, the diamond looked like a galaxy had been trapped inside of it, as the colors of it displayed as clear as day, being blue, black, purple and pink, while little white flecks simulated the stars. "How much is one this size worth, Rain-ya?"
"I think about 50 to 100 million? It is smaller than average, so the price would be lower than the normal 142 million," I explained, popping another grape inside my mouth.
"And the average size is what?"
"Roughly the size of a toddler's fist. The largest one I have seen is probably the size of Bepo's head, and is kept in a secured glass case in a Museum on Sun Island. That one, according to Oscar, is worth close to 2.8 billion Berries."
That caused a few people to either do a spit take, or start choking on their drinks/food.
AmericanNidiot: First to explain the notes!
[1] - If any of you have ever watched Disney's Treasure Planet and remember Jim Hawkins board, this is exactly what Rain's looks like/works like. Only difference is that hers uses air, so there is no flames at all.
Now reviews!
CaptainKicky: Glad you like Rain and the format of my story so far! Cannot wait to read more reviews from you! :D
dagset8: Patients is a virtue though. So wait, you must.
Guest (Chapter 3): No, Rain doesn't buy into a lot of crap from her family (I mean, she had to deal with Garp's bullshit, on top of Luffy's). Ahh, was I not that clear? Rain doesn't believe that Hancock's beauty or Devil Fruit has any affect on Luffy. She just pointed out a well known fact that Hancock uses those two things to normally get her way, but seeing as Luffy has no lustful feelings for Hancock due to her being "beautiful" he is unaffected by Hancock's Devil Fruit (just like Law and Rain, and probably Garp and Dragon if we're to be honest). Because the Snake Empress abuses her looks/powers so much, and claims that Luffy as hers (and her to-be "husband", though Luffy has stated in canon that he'd never get married), it remind Rain a lot of the nobles from Goa Kingdom (Sabo's parents basically treated him as an object, not as a person, which Hancock sorta does as well). You got a teaser for Ace's condition at the beginning of this chapter! Though there's a few more chapters (possible 3 or 4, maybe even just 2) before he makes a grand return!
MuffinMan9223: Hope you think this chapter also has a lot of info rolled into one.
m00nbunnie: I am glad you like Rain's personality! XD She's fun to write for, cause to me Rain is a mixture of Luffy (in the sense that she basically says what she thinks/feels), yet is mature and responsible like Ace. And I feel your pain! Too many stories for One Piece are like *boom!* you're in love and make babies. :'( Mainly for Luffy, which is saddening, cause he needs more love. Though for a good fanfiction with a decent burn, I suggest reading "The Comet Wish" by morianna19 and also "Steel Heart" by duaba. They are a Luffy/OC and Sanji/OC stories respectively, and are currently on-going!
SoulXHunter: Oh god, did I not make Rain's Devil Fruit clear enough? Shit, sorry. Originally I planned on her Devil Fruit (which is probably gonna be called the Kaze Kaze no Mi, though if anyone has a better suggestion, I'm all ears) to be the same model as Luffy's, but normally element based Fruits are always Logia models, so I decided to make her a Logia, but give her the weakness of not being able to change into her element (without risk of basically dying from someone breathing bits of her in). Her Devil Fruit is going to be the most tricky thing for me to describe in action, because I'm drawing off of three(?) different sources of how it is used. One of which is obviously Aang's Air Bending, while another is Jin the Windmaster from Yu Yu Hakusho (total classic, 10/10 100% recommend), while also slightly drawing inspiration from Temari from Naruto. Well, I hope the beginning of this chapter clears up if Ace lives or not! I honestly cannot kill off my freckled husband, so there's that. And yes *spoilers* Rain does meet Sabo again and the fluff that happens will probably make you cry *end spoilers*. Pfft, Hancock's a HIGH-KEY bitch. *Bangs fists on table* DID YOU JUST SAY SIBLING FLUFF AND SHANKS FLUFF?! DON'T WORRY, I GOT YA COVERED WITH THE FLUFF! Shanks will return, just because he can, and my weakness for redheads says he can't stay gone for long, be it flashback or current time. AT LEAST YOU GOT SOME ACE/RAIN FAMILY FLUFF IN THE BEGINNING OF THIS CHAPTER!
KoreanMusicFan: Thank you for the review!
rose46652: Welcome to the Anti-Hancock club, please enjoy the snacks supplied by Rain, who thinks this is the "Luffy Protection Squad", which is sorta doubles as. :D
Next chapter will be in 3rd person and in Ace's point of view, and will take place when he first meets the Monkey D. siblings. I'm also working on chapter 2 of my Ace fanfiction "Into The Fox's Den" if anyone is interested in that, and have read the first chapter. Also, be on the lookout for a new story titled "Super Psycho Love" by me which will be a semi-crossover on top of being an OC!Self insert. What makes this one so special? Well, the OC will be from the HUNTER x HUNTER universe before being murdered and reborn into One Piece, and having to relearn Nen all over again. That story will be a Law/OC/Ace polyship story.
