Disclaimer: One Piece is not mine.

Beta'd by Anime Foxx

psps***I recently published a new story called 'ReunionS'. It's a story about Sabo and his past that is co-written with rose7anne101 and beta'd by Black Victor Cachat. Go check it out if you're interested! You can find it on my profile! XD

Summary: He had just remembered, things that he should have never forgotten. The memories had come too late, and for a second Sabo thought 'Maybe I shouldn't have remembered.' But he did, and what matters now is that he was on his way to face what he had forgotten. Written by Syrisna and Rose7anne101, you're welcome to check out our other works. Beta'd by Black Victor Cachat.

Drop a review if you can : ) We're open for ideas (BMS too)

"Well?"

"…"

"I'm waiting, Ace."

On the Moby Dick, a rare sight was on display. The second division commander, famous for his hot-headedness, was sitting properly in front of a woman quietly. The woman, who had been introduced as his sister was tapping her foot impatiently against the wood.

"Ace." Her voice dropped into a lower tone, sending shivers up his spine. He didn't recognise that tone, but his senses were tingling like crazy, like they always did when danger was imminent.

"Sorry…" He grumbled reluctantly, only to shriek in pain immediately when a hand latched onto his left ear, twisting in all the way.

"OWOWOW! Nee-chan! That's my ear!"

She was even using haki to prevent him from turning into fire. Unable to escape, he threw a look at Sabo, but his brother merely stood there without lifting a finger, only throwing an apologetic look his way.

If even Sabo couldn't help, Ace didn't count on his ship brothers. He knew them too well. Especially Marco and the other commanders. In this case, they wouldn't stop his sister. They'd join in instead.

That and they knew better than to get in the way of an angry woman.

"'Sorry' doesn't cut it, little brother." Rainha said icily, letting go of his ear. "I know you're lacking in brain cells sometimes but this is beyond tolerance."

"Running back to face an admiral when you've just escaped execution?" She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring down at him. "What the hell were you thinking?"

He could hear the anger and worry that she didn't even bother to hide, and the guilt that had been sitting on his chest suddenly seemed to increase tenfold. But he had his reasons! He was defending Oyaji's pride. What was wrong with that?

His thoughts must have shown on his face, because the next thing he knew, he was being scolded again.

"Don't give me that look. You knew very well that whatever nonsense that crazy mutt spouted was a lie, and you still took the bait. And at what price? Your life?" She sighed wearily. "If I know the way Whitebeard operates, he would call you stupid. And probably all your crewmates too."

Ace glanced over at his crew, only to see them nodding in agreement. "I really screwed up, didn't I?" He mumbled.

"That you did." Sabo replied from his perch on the railing, eliciting a scowl from the fire user.

"Ace," Marco, ever the eldest, walked up to him and kneeled. "I know it's infuriating to hear someone slander Oyaji's name, but you have to remember, your life is more important than his pride could ever be. In fact, all of ours are. We'd gone to war with the marines to save you, not to see you throw it away right after we did." He paused to take a breath. "If your brother and sister hadn't shown up, it scares me to think what could've happened. It's only thanks to them that both you and Oyaji are still here with us."

Ace remained silent, not knowing what to say.

He had almost thrown his life away, and in that process endangered not only the lives of his crew, but also his captain and little brother.

He was a commander, for god's sake! He was supposed to take care of the crew, not the other way around.

Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! He scolded himself. If it wasn't for my accursed blood this would never have happened!

A warmth enveloped Ace as clothed arms wrapped themselves around him in an embrace.

Pulling her brother close, Rainha held him tight as she allowed the worry to flow out of her.

"Does it matter if you're Roger's son? You're you, Ace and no one else." She whispered. "And just like everyone else, you deserve to live. Never think that you don't." Because you are worth much more than what the world will ever know.

He stills, a strange feeling welling up inside him, and feels his eyes grow a little wet. Slowly, he reaches up to return the hug, drawing comfort from his sister's words.

There's a feeling of déjà vu, and he knows why. Ace has had a similar conversation with his siblings years ago, and memories from then surface, the words repeating themselves in his mind.

"Does it matter if your father is Gold Roger? He's him, and you're you. Why do you care what other people say?"

"Yeah! We love Ace because Ace is Ace!" Luffy had chipped in happily as he munched on his dinner.

Sabo just grinned and pointed at Luffy. "What he said."

That was the first time he had felt the burden of being Roger's son lessen. It was a long time ago, but to Ace, it would always seem like yesterday.

At that time, he hadn't answered them. Even if it had lessened, he still had his doubts.

He hadn't understood at the time, still a child who had only seen a small edge of the world.

But now, Ace thinks he understands a little.

Maybe, he thinks. I can let go now.

There was no need to hide anymore, not when the whole world already knew.

He felt another person join them, strong arms encircling them in a warm embrace.

"Sabo…"

Sabo chuckled softly, and whispered to him. "Try not to do anything that'll cause heart attacks again, dear brother. You'll make Nee-chan go grey before she turns fifty."

Ace laughed.

Now they were just missing Luffy, and everything would be perfect.

Marco and the Whitebeards stood some ways away, smiles gracing their features as they watched the three siblings. It was evident that they cared deeply for each other, even the assassin that was rumoured to have a heart of ice.

Sure, she had scolded him, but that was obviously because she was worried. Not to mention Ace really needed that scolding.

Watching them, Marco couldn't help but wonder what kind of person was Rainha exactly.

During the war, she was everything the rumours had mentioned and more. But when she came looking for Ace, she seemed softer and not as cold. When she was scolding him, a hint of iciness had crept into her voice, yet the next it was gone, and the sister stood in place of the assassin once more.

Her changing demeanour intrigued the first commander to no end.

Hopefully, he'd get to see her more.

Rainha was, for a lack of a better word, an interesting woman.

And she was Ace's sister to boot.

"Thanks for saving Ace."

After their little heartfelt moment, Rainha had left the two brothers to catch up and dragged Marco off to the side, saying that she wanted to speak with him in private. Leading him to the ship's bow, she leaned against the railings and let out a deep breath.

"Ace is our brother, we would never abandon him." Opposite her, Marco stood with his hands stuffed into his pockets and unabashedly studied the woman who Ace called his sister. It was nearing dusk now, the setting sun casting an orange glow over her which seemed to make her eyes shine brighter. For a moment, Marco found himself lost in those deep pools of gold and violet.

"I was there, you know." She spoke, looking out at the sea. "He said the only father he has is Whitebeard." Her lips curled in a faint smile, and the first commander couldn't help but smile too. He could understand where she was coming from.

"He's a troublesome kid, but thanks for taking care of him. And Luffy too."

"Like I said, he's our brother. And any family of his is one of ours."

She chuckled softly. "I figured you'd say that. By the way…" She turned to face him. "I would like to speak with your captain."

"Why?"

Rainha put a finger to her lips in a shushing gesture. "Confidential matters for the captain's ears only, dear commander."

"Right. Confidential. "Marco rolled his eyes, but started in the direction of the captain's quarters."Good timing though. Oyaji just woke up and he wants to see you and your brother, but I don't think he's going to want to leave Ace anytime soon." Following behind him, the assassin cocked her head, an amused smile playing on her face. "Aren't you worried I might do something to Whitebeard?" She wondered. These guys were too trusting, she thought. Even though she's Ace sister, shouldn't they at least be a little wary of her. She was after all, an assassin. Seemingly ignorant of the implications of her question, Marco replied with a simple no and continued to the cabins, stopping in front of a large door. He rapped on it twice, entering a few moments later after a reply from inside came.

Inside the dimly lit room, Whitebeard was lying on a large bed, hooked up to various machines. When he saw who had entered, he immediately set aside the book he had been reading and turned his attention towards his son and the assassin.

"Marco, I see you've brought our guest."

Rainha stepped up, and bowed slightly, just enough to show respect. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Rainha, Ace's sister."

Whitebeard quirked an eyebrow in intrigue.

"I've heard."He replied as he studied the assassin.

He'd always thought his youngest son had only one sibling, but apparently there were two more. Ace had never mentioned them before, but he could understand why. His sister was the Black Queen, in which case she would want their relationship to remain confidential. Although that didn't explain the other brother.

However, inside the confines of his mind, the Yonko was absolutely roaring with laughter. Who would've thought? Ever since they first heard the name 'Luffy', the thought had never once crossed their minds that Ace would have another sibling other than Monkey D. Luffy, let alone two! One was apparently older than him. And a girl to boot! Not to mention said girl was a world-renowned assassin who was said to be scary as hell. But then again, they shouldn't be surprised anymore, should they?

After all, the kid's family was way beyond what one would call 'messed up'.

Nope, it was completely screwed to the end of the Grand Line.

He already had Monkey D. Garp for a grandfather, the late Pirate King Gol D. Roger for a dad, and the Revolutionary Monkey D. Dragon's son Monkey D. Luffy for a brother. What was one more elite assassin and who knows what identity the other brother held?

As if he knew what she was here for, he sent Marco away to which the commander obliged to without question. Once he was out of earshot, she straightened.

"Whitebeard-san," She started. "I have a proposal for you."

Leaving the captain's quarters, Marco made his way back to the deck where they had left his fellow commanders. When he reached them, there was a sizable crowd surrounding the two brothers as Sabo regaled the tale of how he regained his memories.

From what little he caught, their sister apparently had a lot to do with it. The pirates were roaring in laughter at something he said, and thus no one noticed Marco approaching except for the commanders who stood off to one side. He joined them and Haruta leaned closer to whisper. "You missed the best part."

He snorted and looked around, noticing that a large part of the gathered crowd was made up of the crew's cooks. Exasperated, he "whispered" back to Haruta. "If the cooks are all here listening to stories, who's making dinner?"

Horrified, the cooks immediately sped off to the kitchens, leaving behind a significantly diminished crowd of equally horrified pirates.

Sabo looked over to him, the intrigue in his blue eyes clear as day.

However, before he could approach him, the man had quickly run off along with Ace, presumably to go see their brother, though he didn't miss the fleeting glance Sabo had cast at him before Ace led him below the deck.

Sabo, huh? Now there was another interesting individual. Out of all four siblings, he was the only blonde, and the way he dressed was eerily like those of nobles. But he was strong. Marco rubbed his midsection, remembering the rude wake-up call he'd received earlier. The younger blonde had gone through several floors before landing on him, but he didn't have a single scratch on him. Not to mention he was obviously the one who broke through the marines Encircling Wall during the war.

Like his sister, Marco had to wonder what kind of person he was. He wore a different mask than Rainha. While the assassin used iciness as a mask, Sabo used his smiles. The first commander wasn't sure which was worse. Frankly, both unnerved him since he could never tell what they were thinking, which made them a lot more unpredictable than others.

Marco sighed.

Sabo and Rainha had only arrived at this ship less than two hours ago, yet already he could feel something shifting.

Staring at the sun that was slowly dipping underneath the horizon, he rubbed his eyes tiredly.

He could only hope that the shift was for the better.

"That woman has made a fool of the marines! She must be dealt with!" Inside the fleet admiral's office, the top powers of the marines were holding a meeting in regard of the previous day's events.

Sengoku and Akainu sat opposite each other, while Garp, Tsuru, Aokiji and Kizaru sat on the couches perpendicularly. His arms crossed, Sengoku glared at the magma user from behind his glasses. "Keep your cool, Sakazuki. The Black Queen is not to be underestimated, you should know that better than us." Akainu faltered slightly as his wound throbbed at the mention, but sharpened as he coldly stated that it wouldn't be a hindrance to him. "Even so, we do not know what her limits are. What she displayed yesterday was barely a fraction of her true capabilities, that much I can say for sure." Tsuru cut in, effectively silencing both men. As a veteran marine, she was heralded as the Great Staff Officer, and was one of the oldest active marines. Leaning back against the sofa, she continued. "Furthermore, she is a member of Carin's guild. He is not someone to be trifled with, especially when it concerns his people."

"She is quite the unpredictable woman." Aokiji admitted. "I didn't think she'd be able to hold us back that easily."

Sengoku's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Exactly. Not to mention…" He trailed off, feeling no need to voice his thoughts out loud when everyone in the room knew what he had been going to say.

The previous day, after the Whitebeards had escaped, the marines had tried to give chase, but was unable to do so due to the Red Hair crew being in their way. Forced to admit defeat, Sengoku had given the order to tend to the wounded and clean the battlefield after one of Garp's apprentices' desperate cry to stop. The pink haired boy had promptly passed out, leaving his companion to fret over him. Garp sat next to them, his solemn expression one that the fleet admiral hadn't seen in years. The admirals were fine for the most part except for Akainu who was still trapped mid-motion.

He'd thought that was the end of things. But the world just loved proving him wrong. As the marines headed back to their headquarters, the sound of subsequent explosions was heard from the large building. They rushed back, only to find that five storage rooms, three offices and four databases had been blown up. In one of the rooms, they had found a signature drawn into the soot that covered the ground—a hexagram with an R in the middle. Sengoku had nearly pulled his hair out afterwards, when his subordinates had cleaned up and found more than several files missing, and even more from his own office.

"In any case, we will deal with the Black Queen at a later date. As things are now, we can barely keep ourselves in order, never mind try to find someone who we know next to nothing about." Sengoku concluded, ignoring the glare that Akainu was directing at him. "You are dismissed." Akainu left first, storming out the door angrily. Aokiji and Kizaru followed, and then Tsuru did too, claiming that she was going to check on things. Garp remained in his seat, highly aware that his colleague had questions for him, so it wasn't much of a surprise when Sengoku asked about the assassin.

"I don't know her." He stated firmly. "Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you. Not after she saved my grandsons." Sengoku didn't comment. He knew all too well what his friend's feelings for the government were. Garp was a man of family. Since their younger days, the old marine had always put his work before his family and had contributed greatly to the government, yet they had tried to kill his family. Those two brats may not have been innocent to the world, but to Garp, they were his grandsons and that was all that mattered.

Garp left without another word.

Alone in his office, Sengoku came to a decision.

Dinner was chaos as usual, but even more so with the arrival of another black hole.

As reminiscence of their childhood, Sabo and Ace had held an eating competition in the gallery of the Moby Dick. As was typical of the Whitebeard Pirates, betting pools were held amongst the crew for events like this.

Rainha sat in a corner of the room with her back to the wall, observing the chaos from behind a cup of tea. It was messy yet amusing at the same time, and she thought that her brothers fit in quite well.

They had just started on their 28th plate when the Whitebeard's first commander, along with three others slid in on the opposite side of the table. Marco, Izo, Namur and Blenheim. She noted, recalling their information. First, sixteenth, eighth and ninth commander.

"Mind if we join you?" Izo asked politely, to which she replied with a shrug. It wasn't her place to refuse, this was, after all, their ship.

She sipped her tea, not bothering to make conversation with the pirates. The commanders, Izo especially, tried to make small talk. He would ask her questions which she deftly answered without giving away anything. Then Blenheim asked a question she hadn't been expecting. "Are you staying long?" The older man asked as he chugged his ale. While the other commanders had not been present when she and Sabo arrived, they had apparently been told about her identity while the rest of the crew only knew her as Ace's sister.

Rainha set her cup down, careful not to make any noise. Looking up, she found four pairs of eyes on her, obviously waiting for her answer.

"Depends on when Luffy wakes up." She replied as she fingered her bag, thinking back to a call she had received just before she had come to the Moby Dick. Never mind, she thought, shoving it to the back of her mind. There'll be time for that later.

"Why aren't you eating?" Marco inquired, noticing the plate of food in front of her which was completely untouched. "Not hungry?" Tonight's dinner mainly consisted of seafood, the only thing they had on board besides dried food since they could easily catch it.

Rainha shook her head. "It's seafood." She told them, and called out to Sabo who was wiping his mouth clean, at the same time drawing the attention of everyone in the vicinity. "Take it." She said, and pushed the plate in his direction. As soon as he did, she excused herself and left the gallery, leaving a room full of confused pirates behind.

"What did she mean by 'it's seafood'?" Izo asked confusedly, after a moment of silence. Along with all his crewmates, Ace was also confused, that was until Sabo leaned in to whisper something, to which his expression turned into one of realisation.

"Oh…that. Right. I forgot." He said as the memory finally came to mind.

"Well?" Marco prompted.

"Nee-chan doesn't eat seafood." Ace replied simply.

Sensing the question that was coming up, Sabo quickly answered. "It's a minor complication." Then he proceeded to drag Ace back to their table to finish the plate in his hands, leaving behind a large group of confused pirates.

After a while, one of the chefs spoke. "I don't suppose she's allergic or something?"

Over at their table, Ace and Sabo traded looks. Bullseye, man.

Shortly after Rainha left, Marco, having finished his dinner followed, feeling slightly concerned. When he stepped onto the deck, she was nowhere in sight. Then, a soft rustle, almost inaudible in the winds, caught his attention. Turning around, he spotted a silhouette on top of the cabin.

"…couldn't leave him…proposal…no leads yet…west…Sonia…lands…" From his position below, he could hear the assassin talking, and since he couldn't sense anyone else up there, she must've been talking on a transponder snail. Not wanting to eavesdrop, he remained where he stood, waiting for her to finish her conversation before climbing onto the cabin. He found her sprawled out on the wooden surface, a hand pillowed behind her head while a book lay face down on her chest. The large bird that accompanied her raised its head in alertness to his presence. For a second, Marco was reminded of how Stefan, their resident war dog would react whenever anyone came near Whitebeard. When they'd left their nursing staff at that island, Stefan had stayed with them since Whitebeard was adamant about not bringing him.

"Calm, Oru." The assassin told the bird, reaching up to gently stroke its crown. The bird leaned into her touch, cawing softly in response as it settled down once again. "Good girl."

"She's very obedient." Marco commented, unsure how to start a conversation. While he had questions that he wanted answers to, he wasn't sure if he should ask her directly.

"If you have questions then just say it out loud." Rainha replied as if reading his mind. "And sit down, tall guy. You're blocking my view."

He obliged and sat down a little aways from her. Close enough to hear her clearly, but still outside her personal space. Below them, the noises of the crew could still be heard, but Marco thought it was a little too quiet. The assassin didn't speak and was obviously waiting for him, so he asked the one thing that was one his mind.

"What did you and Oyaji talk about earlier?"

She threw him a sideways glance. "My records don't specify it, but you're the first mate, no?" He laughed at the title she had given him, earning a dry glare from the assassin. God knows he hadn't been referred to as the first mate for a long time. Most people now only knew him as the first commander.

"I guess I am, in a way." He replied. "Most know me as the first commander nowadays."

Snorting, she sat up and Oru automatically shifted closer so her mistress so she could lean against her.

"I made a proposal to your captain." She said as she closed the book and put it back in her bag.

"A proposal?"

"Yes. You didn't forget who your enemy is, did you?"

The first commander's azure eyes turned dark at the mention. Of course, he didn't forget. The horrible betrayal that had scarred them all and ultimately led to Ace's capture was forever etched into their minds. Not only that, because of it, that person was almost killed…It was impossible to forget.

The assassin was apparently really good at reading people, because when Rainha spoke next, he was almost positive that the assassin could read minds,

"Yeah, I didn't think so." She looked up, her different coloured eyes meeting his azure ones. "Anyway, I expect that Whitebeard will tell you about the proposal soon. I did say to give me an answer within two days." Subsequently, she got up and stretched. "I'll be retiring now. Commander. Good Night." With that, she jumped off the cabin and headed below deck, presumably to the extra room they had allocated her when she mentioned that they'd be staying.

Moments after she had left, Marco realised that the Black Queen had never given him an actual answer to his question.

The heat was suffocating.

Footsteps sounded in the dark alleys of a village as a man rushed past, a young girl following closely behind.

"Hurry, we have to make it to the cove!"

"But your injuries…!"

"There's no time for it now!"

Frowning, the girl obeyed the man's words and continued running, even though she obviously thought otherwise. Looking at him-an arm limply hanging at his side-left a bitter taste in her mouth. As she ran, her thoughts drifted back to the events leading to their current predicament, and she cursed herself for letting that man get the better of them. If only…she shook her head, pushing those thoughts to the back of her mind. She couldn't afford to be distracted now, not when both their lives were on the line. She kept running.

Breath coming in short, ragged, pants, the man and girl came to a stop at the edge of a cliff. Checking behind them for signs of their pursuer and finding none, the two quickly jumped down the side to land on a ledge that led all the way down to a small cove hidden between the cliffs.

Halfway down, the man stumbled as the blood loss from his wounds caught up to him, and the girl only barely managed to catch him. The movement sent several loose pebbles over the edge, though silent, it was enough to draw unwanted attention.

"Down there!" Someone shouted from above them. Immediately, the sound of soled boots pounding into the ground could be heard. The girl felt a chill creep down her back as she comprehended their current situation. They had been found! Looking around, her frown deepened as she saw that they were still a considerable distance above sea level. A relatively high jump, but she could manage. Under normal circumstances, she would, but now…she looked at her companion. He was obviously in no shape to make the jump. Unwilling to leave him behind, she lifted him onto her back as much as she could and started to shuffle along the ledge.

A glob of liquid heat streaked past, and she suddenly cried out, clutching at her side. When she removed her hands, they came away stained with blood.

"Leave me…" The man said, barely conscious.

"NO!"

"You should listen to your master, little girl."

A foreign voice interrupted, and the girl froze in fear. That voice…she dared not to look back. That voice belonged to their pursuer, the one who had given both their wounds.

"Sorry man," The man spoke shakily, with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "I'm afraid my apprentice listens to no one."

Their pursuer, a man dressed in a marine coat with a hood over his white cap, chuckled.

"Is that so?" He took a step forward. "In that case, this will be the end for you both!"

He lunged.

A hand pushed against the girl, and with exerted force, pushed her off the ledge.

As she fell, a magma coated fist plunged through the man's chest. For a moment, she thought she saw someone else.

The weightlessness and fear gripped her, and she closed her eyes…

Startling awake, Rainha took a moment to grasp her surroundings. She was breathing heavily as she wiped away the cold sweat that had broken out. Calming her racing heart, she remembered where she was: a guest room aboard the Moby Dick. Suddenly, she felt something nudge her lightly in the side and turned to see her avian companion who cooed softly at the distraught in her mistress' eyes. She managed a small smile. "Sorry girl. Did I wake you?" She asked as she scratched the large bird's scruff. Oru cooed again, a little louder this time.

"It's nothing I haven't had before, Oru. But…" Instinctively, the bird edged closer to the bed and Rainha wrapped her arms around her, relishing in the warmth her companion's soft, downy feathers provided. "I miss him. You do too, don't you girl?"

Oru cooed again, rubbing her head against her mistress.

Rainha pulled away, and got out of bed. Reaching for her bag, she brought out a pocket watch and checked the time.

3 am.

She looked back at Oru, a smile spreading on her face.

"What do you say we go for a short flight?"

Sabo was startled awake by the sudden ringing of his transponder snail.

Looking over to the side, he released the breath he was holding when he saw that Ace was still fast asleep.

Reaching inside his hat, he took the transponder snail and answered it. He would've gone out, but there were others in the larger room that was the main part of the infirmary. He figured he'd be safer in here.

As soon as he did, a loud screech that was all too familiar erupted from the small animal. Holding it as far as he could, Sabo waited until his ears stopped ringing before speaking to the person on the other end. The conversation was mostly one-sided, with the other end constantly shrieking at him for his apparent irresponsibility despite multiple reminders to quiet down. He was lucky that Ace was a deep sleeper and wouldn't wake until morning unless someone tried anything against Luffy.

However, he still didn't want to risk it, so Sabo quickly ended the call. Feeling sleep eluding him, Sabo decided to go for a walk topside, maybe get some fresh air.

Before that, he pulled up the blanket covering Ace, tucking it in so that it wouldn't fall off. When he saw Ace drooling on the sheets, he couldn't stop himself from snickering. Thinking back to all the times Ace would vehemently deny that he drooled when they still lived on Mount Corvo, he decided to take a picture. As proof, he said to himself and subsequently snapped one using a camera he had stolen from the marines.

In his moment of glee, however, he didn't notice as Luffy twitched ever so slightly.

Ace…