Disclaimer: Do not own One Piece or A King and His Hawk retold by James Baldwin from the Book of Virtues. All plot and OCs belong to Volleys-chan and I.

The Dragon Chronicles

Chapter 8 - Deliberation

"Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival."

-C. S. Lewis

"GIN!" The child screamed again as she began to struggle against the hold of her appointed guardian. She couldn't tear her eyes away as she screamed the name of her beloved protector once more in hopeless desperation. "GIN!"

The moment Gin's form disappeared into the depths of the ocean, Drake hefted the child up further into his hold as he began his swift retreat into the depths of the warship once more. He kept a firm grip on her as she squirmed and wriggled in his grasps, managing to at least turn herself around in his unbreakable hold so she could at least stare at the spot Gin had once stood one last time. Akainu and Aokiji were both frozen to their spots, still stunned by her sudden plunge into the ocean's embrace without either of them having to do anything.

Akainu recovered first, readying his powers so he could pour magma over the spot she had sank, as a precaution, but was stopped when Aokiji placed a hand upon his shoulder and solemnly shook his head. Gin willingly leapt. She had willingly accepted her fate with a smile on her face, there was no reason for him to do such a thing now that she was gone.

That was the last thing Rei saw before Drake managed to carry her through the metal door, leading the two inside of the warship before slamming it shut behind him with a loud, echoing boom. Rei was still screaming and crying hysterically on his shoulder for Gin, only now, her face was buried into his shoulder as he continued to speed walk through the halls for a safe place to quiet the child.

Drake continued his fast pace until he was at the infirmary, already motioning to the staff inside to not interfere or ask about the child's obvious breakdown. Finding a cot with a privacy curtain around it, he set the child down before utilizing the curtain and giving the two of them some level of privacy without overstepping any boundaries. Just as he had finished closing the curtain, Drake immediately had to snatch the child back up into his hold as she attempted to go back the upper deck of the ship. As he sat her on the cot again, he kept a firm hold of her arms so she didn't attempt to run off once more.

"No!" Rei howled as she struggled in his strong yet gentle grip. "No! No! No! No! Let me go! Let me go! Gin! Gin! I-I-I h-h-ave t-to-"

"She's gone." Drake's words snapped her attention fully onto him. Her red eyes clashed against his oak colored ones as she stared at him with surprise. Though his words had been stern and final, his eyes were soft and sympathetic. He knew how much Gin had meant to her and knew that this was extremely difficult for her to accept. "She's gone, little one."

Rei bit her lip as she tried to reign in her tears, a few hiccups of choked backed tears escaped her as she pressed the palm of her hands against her face. She was trying to rub the tears from her red speckled cheeks, flushed from her crying.

"B-b-but wh-why?" She knew why, but she didn't know why now. Weren't they escorting her elsewhere to execute her? She knew Gin had been destined to die, but she selfishly wanted more time with the woman.

"Because of many things you don't yet understand." What else could he tell the child without making her feel as if she was at fault for the old pirate's premature death.

"I-it-it's n-not f-fair..." She murmured softly as she continued to force herself to calm down and stop sobbing.

"No, it's not." Drake shook his head as he slowly let go of the girl, withdrawing his hands altogether once he was sure she wasn't about to try to take off again.

"It... It... is A-akainu's fault f-for l-los-ing hi-is te-temper... so... so wh-why didn't a-any-one th-throw him into th-the o-ocean..." Rei pouted as she managed to quiet her tears into a small case of stuttering as she continued to calm herself down.

"Because he's a marine admiral and she's a convicted felon."

Rei shook her head. Yes, she understood that. Gin was a pirate and Akainu was a marine, but if Akainu did something wrong, shouldn't he be punished? Gin was completely innocent in this! If she did something wrong, her mother was always sure to punish her appropriately. The same with her sisters too. So, why wasn't Akainu getting in trouble for losing his temper? Why did Gin have to die instead?

Drake could see the little girl's confusion and decided to explain it in the best way he knew she understood.

"Once upon a time," he began in a slow, calm manner he always seemed to have. Rei's attention was instantly captured by those words as she stared at him with her ruby colored eyes. "There was a king. Now this king was a hunter and quite enjoyed going on long trips taking no one with him but his horse and his prized falcon. His falcon was an extremely loyal bird, both beautiful and intelligent. He lived to serve his master, his king.

"One day, as the king was coming home after a very disappointing hunt, he became terribly thirsty. So thirsty was he, that he felt as if he would die if he did not get a drink soon. He sent up his falcon to scope out the area as he looked around on the ground to see if there was anything to drink from. To what seemed to be his fortune, there was a small trickle of water coming over some rocks. He knew that there was a spring higher in the mountains that the water was coming from. Taking his goblet, he held it to capture the drops as they fell. Little by little, the cup slowly became full.

"As the king was about to drink from his cup, his falcon swooped down and knocked the cup from his hands. The king was irritated greatly by this, but set to work to fill the cup once more. When he filled it again, to his chagrin, the bird knocked the cup from his hands once again. The third time he filled it and the bird swooped down and knocked his goblet from his hands, the king became filled with such rage that he took his sword and struck the falcon that was still in range.

"As the bird lay on the ground, bleeding out, the king no longer had the patience to wait to fill his cup and began to climb up the hillside in search of the spring the water came from. It did not take him long and when he did come to the spring, all his anger left him and he was filled with regret. For lying dead within the spring was a large, poisonous snake. If he had partaken of the drink, it would have killed him. Forgetting his thirst, he returned to his bird and scooped him up off the ground. The bird was already dead, but he placed it in his hunting bag before swiftly heading home.

"That day the king had learned a mighty and sad lesson that day. Never do anything in anger. One might regret the consequences of doing so."

"That was just as sad as the story about the girl who couldn't taste anymore." Rei sniffled as she wiped her face once more.

"The stories with life lessons often are not pleasant. But do you understand what I am trying to tell you through this story?"

"I think so... Gin's like the falcon in the story. She paid the price of protecting the life of the person she was loyal to. The king could be either me or Akainu. We both lost our tempers. I said something I shouldn't have in anger and he lost his temper and acted out of anger." Rei explained her reasoning.

"And though the outcome is indeed not fair, Gin died as a result." Drake stated. "But I think that she was okay with it. As long as you got to live, she was happy to die for that. She got to die for something she believed in. She had a purpose once more, if only for a little while. That made her happy, I could tell."

"Really?" Rei looked slightly skeptical, but she wanted his words to be true. Did she make Gin as happy as she had made her? Did she really bring that much to her life that she'd be willing to die for her? Did she really give to Gin as much as Gin gave to her?

"Really truly." Drake nodded solemnly. "Before you came along, all she did was stare at the ocean somberly. She didn't sing, she didn't tell stories, she didn't truly laugh, and she didn't smile. She antagonized Admiral Sakazuki and on occasion Admiral Kuzan, but never did she seem so spirited before you came along. You made her end days a joy, I believe."

"But she still had to die..." Rei looked upset about that still. "...cause of me..."

"Your dear Gin was a woman marked for death. She merely died sooner than expected and in a more private setting than if we had made it to Marineford. She was to die regardless. There's nothing you could have done to spare her from her fate. This death had more purpose, though. She got to save you one last time."

"I'm going to miss her..." Rei teared up again as she began to hiccup back sobs again. "An awful, awful l-l-lot! Wh-who's go-going to sing t-to me or... or... t-tell me st-stories or h-h-hold me wh-when I go t-to sl-ee-p?"

Drake didn't know. He was a marine and a male at that. Due to strict regulations, he wasn't sure how he was going to continue looking over his assigned charge, but he'd be damned if someone else was assigned the sweet little girl. Though he wasn't exactly sure how he was going to accomplish it, he knew he'd try to see to her every need as long as he could.

"Well if you don't mind my stories, I have plenty to tell. They're just not as exciting as Silver-san's. As for singing... I'm not the best, but I'll sing if you want." Drake tried to encourage the girl to stop her tears with his calm, quiet words.

"I... I guess that'll do..." Rei muttered miserably. "Thank you, Drake-san..."

"You're very welcome, Rei-chan."

The following days passed in an odd manner. At times, the days seemed to pass by Rei easily. She kept busy by following Drake around as well as constantly keeping her nose in the book Drake had given her. It was a hard cover book filled with a plethora of different stories. Rei enjoyed it thoroughly when she was given the time to sit and read it.

However, as soon as the sun set and the moon slowly rose into the sky, time seemed to slow almost painfully for the child. She desperately missed Gin at night, wishing for someone to cuddle her in the night and make her feel safe. Drake did what he could, but because of his position as a marine, there were some barriers he could not cross unlike the pirate woman. He tried his best though, that was what mattered in the end and Rei was able to get through the nights and eventually fall asleep. Slowly, she was able to return to being the way she was before Gin died, though at times she was still quite melancholy about the whole ordeal. No doubt she still missed the wiry pirate woman that had filled her nights with joy and peace.

As for Akainu, he hardly even looked at her, which was fine with Rei. She didn't feel like looking at him much either. Aokiji tried his best, but the child was not interested in him any longer either, clinging to Drake whenever the ice admiral approached the two of them. After a while, he caught on and left her alone too. Drake was her one constant in those days following Gin's death and Rei was incredibly grateful for him. She wouldn't have known what to do if he had not been there.

However, the day finally came when both Akainu and Aokiji could fulfill the rest of Gin's last requests. The warship had finally been able to dock at an island and Aokiji had made sure to put Rei on the next commercial ship heading to Water 7 to reunite with her family. He had been the one to inform her and immediately afterwards handed her a worn leather backpack and ordered Drake to make sure he got the little girl everything she would need for the last leg of her journey back to Water 7 alone.

So now, after doing some shopping and buying the little girl a few essential things for her trip to Water 7, where she would be reunited with her family at last, Drake and Rei stood before the ship she was about to dock.

"Are you sure you have everything you need in your backpack?" Drake asked as he lowered himself to the child's level to look her face to face.

"Yes, Drake." Rei nodded, adjusting her grip on the straps of the leather bag that was securely on her back.

"You remembered the book I gave you, right?"

"Yes."

"And your snacks that the head cook prepared for you?"

"Yes. I didn't forget it."

"How about your-"

"Drake." Rei cut him off with a frustrated look on her face. He had been doing this since they left the boat this morning. Scratch that. He had been nannying her since the day Gin died. "I have my book, my crayons, paper, my new clothes, my old clothes, my toothbrush, toothpaste, my snacks, and my boat ticket along."

"I'm just making sure you have everything you require." Drake assured the child, fixing the collar of the leather cloak Gin had made the child so that it sat on her shoulders nicely.

"You're acting like my momma did when I first went to school."

Drake blinked a few times as he took the time to process with the little eight year old girl had said. "Excuse me?"

"My momma acted like this when I went to school for the very first time. She was very overwrought about whether or not I'd be okay."

Drake stared at the little girl once more before blurting out. "Where in the world did you learn such a big word as 'overwrought'?"

"It was a vocabulary word." Rei told him.

"That's a rather big word to teach a class of eight year olds."

"A class of eight year olds?" Rei cocked her head to the side in her confusion. "My school was just a room full of children of all ages. The teacher assigned us homework depending how easily we understood the material. None of the other kids my age did the same homework as me."

Drake couldn't help but ask, "who did? How old were the ones that did?"

Rei looked up as she thought about the answer, giving it serious thought as she tried to remember. "I think they were mostly the bigger kids, the second youngest being thirteen and the oldest being sixteen. I went to the library a lot too, when I wasn't helping Momma with the chores, helping Papa with the store, helping out our neighbors, or playing pretend with my sisters."

Drake was stunned at the level of aptitude the girl seemed to possess for learning. Rei always seemed to be curious about things around the ship, often asking questions or watching intensely as if to try to understand what was going on without asking anyone. She was very astute in her answers when he quizzed her about the lessons within the stories he told her. But, even though she was a brilliant child able to easily understand the things around her, she was still just a little girl. She got scared for irrational reasons, she liked childish things, sometimes she often acted childish or stubborn for no reason, and she wouldn't understand why some things happened, like how things were not always fair or even.

"I bet your mother and father are very proud of you for being able to keep up with children much older than you." Drake smiled at the little girl who immediately blushed at his compliment. She was still so shy, even if she had finally stopped stuttering around him.

"Th-thank you..." She murmured as she played in the dirt with the toe of her shoe.

"You are very welcome. Now. Are you sure you have everything with you? Even the things you had when you came onto our ship?"

Rei blinked, as if she suddenly remembered something and instantly panicked when she reached up in her now short locks of hair for something that had once been tangled within her snarly tresses. "My hairpin!"

Drake blinked. "Your hairpin?" He tried to remember ever seeing the little girl with a hair pin, or with hair long enough to put a hair pin in.

"Un! My momma put in my hair before... and..." She took a deep breath before continuing. "It was still in my hair until Gin cut it short! It must have been still in the hair when it was thrown out..." Rei looked down in disappointment with her own conclusion. She would never see her hairpin again, even after all of that.

"I was the one that was ordered to collect the hair from Silver-san's cell. She was already in there by the time I had the chance to retrieve it and was braiding it into something akin to a rope. She gave it to me when I asked for it, saying she was merely killing time doing so. There was no hairpin of any kind in it when I threw it away."

"Then... then..." Rei gave him a teary eyed smile. "Gin stole my hairpin."

Drake chucked as he gave her a small smile of his own. "A pirate to the very end."

"Un." Rei agreed, wiping her hands at her eyes again.

Just then, the captain of the passenger boat called down to the two of them, informing them that they were going to ship out in a matter of minutes. Drake looked up at the man and gave him a nod before looking back down at Rei and fussing over her one last time.

"Now, remember, you can call me at that number any time you'd like. I'll also be checking up on you in the near future. By that time, I'll assume that you are back on Fireworks Island and I'll come see how you are."

"Okay." Rei nodded, giving him one last smile. Seeing that he was about to continue, probably something about how her snacks were for later and not for her to eat right away, Rei quickly wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him her strongest hug. "Thank you Drake. For taking care of me."

Drake hesitated for a moment, but soon wrapped his arms around the little girl he had found himself growing quite fond of and returning the hug. "You stay safe so we can meet again, alright little Rei?"

"Okay. Goodbye for now."

"Yes. Goodbye for now." Drake agreed.

Rei released him and looked him in the eyes one last time before heading up the plank onto the boat where the captain was waiting for her. She instantly became timid as she handed the stranger her ticket and with one more glance at Drake, walked further onto the ship.

Though neither of them even knew it at the time, Rei would not see Drake again for a very, very long time.

Rei looked down at the ocean's waves crashing against the boat as she sat on the edge of the boat with her legs between the bars. It was the middle of the night and most of the passengers were already asleep. It had been a day or two since she had been on this boat and already the other people on the boat made her nervous and their presence was suffocating at times. Especially at night when she had to share a room with all the womenfolk. She wound up sneaking onto the main deck at night and watching the waves and trying to locate the constellations her father had taught to her in the night sky. It was peaceful and somehow it reminded her of Gin.

Pulling her backpack off her back temporarily, Rei dug around until she found the last of her snacks. After retrieving what she had been looking for, she returned it to its original spot. She didn't mean to seem rude, but she didn't trust any of these people with her backpack. She hadn't had the chance to properly dig through it just yet, too many prying eyes for something so personal, and was nervous that someone might steal the last of what she had of Gin.

She began to munch on her treat as her gaze returned once more onto the hypnotic motions of the water below as she continued thinking about all that had happened to her since her journey to Water 7 began.

What had started out as such an innocent journey to visit her father's family quickly turned into a living nightmare. Not once had she ever thought that Captain Mizushima's ship would be attacked by pirates and that they would kidnap her because of her eyes of all things. While she had been with them she realized how much she didn't understand, not only as a young child but as a native to a small, marine protected island. She learned about greed, betrayal, true fear, and how to numb herself to the cruelty bestowed upon her. Not only that, but a great deal of foul words she would not be repeating around anyone and a lot of ways to hurt a person without leaving lasting marks.

She glanced down at her still bandaged hands, wondering how well her hands were healing up now that she was thinking about it. She almost took them off, but decided against it. It was too much trouble at this time of night and she had no where to put the white bandages once she was done taking them off.

Taking another bite of her snack, she continued to think.

When she had finally been saved by the Marine warship, she had never been so happy in her life- as far as she could remember anyways. Marines meant good guys. Marines meant she would get to go home to her family. Marines meant so many things to her at that moment that she didn't even suspect that being on a Marine vessel could bode ill for her. Especially at that point, where she was certain that merely because a person was a marine meant that they were good and that a person labeled as a pirate meant they were bad. Rei still couldn't believe how naive she had been to think something so foolish and she almost paid the price for her naivety if it had not been for Gin.

Through Aokiji's words and Gin's initial actions, Rei came to understand that people didn't work so superficially. They were much more intricate in the manner that they operated by. People were neither black or white, but a shade of grey. They did good deeds and they did bad deeds according to their moral system. People still made mistakes, no one was perfect, but how the world labels a person does not always fit the bill. Pirates could be good and Marines could be bad, not just the other way around.

Rei was glad she was able to learn that so early on or she would have missed out on so many things with Gin. The pirate woman had taught her so much in such a short time. She gave her confidence, courage, and gave her the affection she had so desperately needed at that time. She told her stories, sang her songs, taught her lessons, and even a few truths about herself that she didn't even realize.

Immediately, Rei thought back at some of the last words Gin told her. She had spoken of a birthright. A legacy hidden within the blood of their people. And that the only tale-tell sign of this... this... gift was their vivid eye coloring. The young girl honestly wished Gin had told her more, but she had been to paranoid to delve any deeper. Whatever this birthright was, Gin didn't want the Marines to know of it. Rei wondered if it was because she was naturally cautious about Marines knowing something so personal about her or if she was afraid of the Marines ever finding out about such an anomaly. Gin had said they were different from regular humans, so Rei wondered what made them so and if whatever they were was what she didn't want the Marines to learn of. Rei assumed it was the latter.

Finishing up her snack, the red-eyed child thought back to her last days with the Marines. Though she was already missing Drake terribly, she was glad to be away from Akainu and Aokiji. Both of them made her uncomfortable, especially the magma user since he had attempted to attack her with his powers. Not even they had tried using their devil fruit powers on her like he had. Aokiji, on the other hand, she had a hard time with because he let Gin die there and seemed so apathetic to it afterwards. It made her stomach twist terribly, especially after he gave her a warning about what would happen if she ever decided to go against the World Government like Gin had. He had said she got off comparatively easy and that he would not be able to guarantee such a thing for her if she ever decided to become a pirate or a rebel.

All his warning did was make Rei want to become a famous pirate one day just to spite the frozen bastard. Telling her such stupid things after he had killed off her beloved Gin. She let out an annoyed snort as she stared out into the vast ocean before her. Did he really expect her to respect him after that? To say 'okay Admiral Kuzan, whatever you say.'? No. She might be shy and timid and slightly frightened of him and Akainu, but all his words did was ignite that fury she felt when she thought of those pirates and make her want to do the opposite of what he said. Stupid Akainu. Stupid Aokiji. Stupid Kizaru (since she was calling the other admirals stupid, she figured she might as well add him into the mix).

Stupid Marines. (Drake is the only exception, however. He's definitely not stupid.)

Rei was snapped out of her thoughts when one of the men on deck rang the warning bell. Because of the unpredictable weather in the Grand Line, boats that sailed from island to island, especially ones with civilian passengers, had warning bells that they rang indicating the sudden change of weather. Glancing into the sky that had been clear merely moments ago, the young child could see the black clouds rolling across the night sky, covering the stars and moon in a matter of seconds. Since no one knew she was on deck, Rei decided it was time to take her leave and head back into the sleeping quarters and wait out the storm.

As she quietly made her way back to the door she had come from, she was thrown to the deck by a sudden, powerful wave rocking the boat. Water crashed down upon the entire ship, soaking the entire deck with water and forcing Rei to grab onto a railing as the strong rush of water threatened to take her with it. Rain began to pelt down and Rei struggled to get back on her feet and head back of the safety of inside, but within her something caused her to hesitate. As she reached the door, her instincts told her not to go in. Something bad was about to happen.

Just as she was about to shake off her feeling and head inside, the same warning bell began to ring violently as one of the sailors started screaming to his fellow crew mates.

"It's Aqua Laguna! It's come earlier than predicted!" He screamed in a panic on the top of his lungs as he continued to ring the bell. "Get to the life boats! Get everyone you can off-"

He never got to finish his sentence as a huge rouge wave forced the ship upwards and capsize in a matter of seconds. There was no time for anyone to do more than merely watch as the ship was force up the wave and flip as the annual rouge wave continued on its destructive path. Rei clung to the first thing she could, which happened to be a rail, and held onto it for dear life and she was suddenly submerged and pulled deeper into the water.

The moment she felt as if she wasn't being yanked by the wave's powerful current, she swam desperately for the surface. Her lungs were burning since she had lost a lot of her air when the boat flipped upside down under the water, the pressure had hit her like a punch to the stomach. The lights on the boat stayed on a while longer, allowing the little girl the ability to see where the sky and ocean separated. She didn't bother looking back. She already knew what was happening behind and she couldn't think about it at the moment. She needed to survive. She had survived thus far already with everything life had thrown her way and she wasn't about to die now.

She gasped for air the moment she surfaced, coughing violently as she tired to catch her breath. She didn't have much time before another wave splashed down on top of her and forced her underwater once more. Rei came back up, coughing again as she had nearly choked on the sea water. She quickly looked around for anything floating that she could cling to, but so far, now that the lights on the ship had gone out, she could see nothing around her. Her vision was good, but not when she was focusing more on trying not to be drowned by the ocean's angry waves.

Several more times she was dunked and each time she came up to surface, her strength slowly grew weaker and weaker. She was tiring and she had yet found something to grab onto.

"Help me!" She screamed up to the heavens, crying as she feared that she had survived all the horrible things just to die right before she could be reunited with her family. "Someone! Please! Help!"

She had so much she still wanted to do! She wanted to see her family again! She wanted to see Water 7 after so long of dreaming about it! She wanted to see Drake again! She wanted to travel the world! She wanted to find out what Gin had meant about being different than regular humans! She wanted to do so many things! She just couldn't die now!

"Please..." She murmured again as she started to sink, no longer able to keep herself afloat. "Someone... save me... one last... time..."

She couldn't keep her head above water anymore and slowly began to be dragged down by the tide's current. Her eyes closed in defeat as water began to choke her. She was dying after all that. Gin died for nothing.

I'm so sorry Gin... If only I was strong enough to protect myself...

Just as she was about to lose consciousness, something grabbed her, pulling her out of the dark water and into the air. Rei coughed violently as she vomited sea water and whatever she had snacked upon earlier that night. Her lungs felt as if they were on fire, but at the same time, she was relieved that she could breath once more. Her vision was too blurry from the lack of air, but before she fully passed out, Rei was certain that she saw golden scales and heard the beating of wings.

Perhaps she'd get to do all those things after all...

Then everything went black.

A/N: The first arc is done! :D Thank you all again for your great patience for this chapter. Real life demanded more of our attention as of late, but we should be getting more time soon-hopefully. Now, if you thought Rei was slightly 'out of character,' she isn't. We are reminding you that Rei is still a child right now, so she can act childish for her age. For most of this arc, she's had to deal with a lot of things that most adults can't handle and has been forced to think like an adult and grow up quite a bit because of it. But underneath it all, she's still a child and will act like one, even with all that's happened to her. As for the end, well, you'll have to wait and see what happens next. ;) Hope at least you enjoyed some comic relief in Drake being a 'mother hen' to Rei. X)

See you in the next chapter.