Hello Friends! Here is the second chapter :) Not all of Act 1 is done yet but I feel like this chapter can be posted without the rest being done quite yet as it leaves things on a more complete note. Anyways I hope introducing the crew isn't too overwhelming but if it is then don't worry I plan to focus on one or 2 characters per chapter for the most part so everyone will get an in-depth intro eventually. But the 2 main characters that I had to name because Oda hasn't yet are the big bald dude we see at Marineford with the monkey on him who I named Alden. Also Guy is the dude with the blonde manbun who Tekking labeled as "this guy" in his discussion video about the Red Hair pirates so I said "ok cool that's as good a name as any" so he is now just "Guy". Also this chapter hasn't been beta'd so it's all my hot mess lol.

Also! I am looking for a beta so let me know if you might be interested :)

Warnings at end of chapter

New World

I jerked awake suddenly as I heard a loud pounding coming from the cabin door. I looked around confused for a moment having forgotten the events of the night before.

Where…

Oh right. Shanks

My legs cramped slightly as I stretched them out of the tight ball I had curled up in after writing in that empty journal I had found. I sat up fully and looked for the journal before the knocking at the door came again.

Guess they won't let me hide in here.

With a sigh, I stood and walked to the door. I ran my hand down my salt-stained pants and took a breath before opening the door to see a huge man holding a rack of meat in his hand waiting for me.

I blinked at his chest before craning my neck back to see his face and the huge smile that was plastered on it. "Um… Yes?"

Why are you bothering with me?

Just leave me alone...

He took a bite of his meat. "You know how to cook right?"

"I do." I started to say with my voice straining to be heard through the painful scratch of my throat. "Not terribly-"

"Ok great, you're going to help me in the kitchen." He said before turning and walking away.

I guess I'm supposed to follow?

I glanced down at my rumpled clothes that were stiff from both having been slept in as well as the large amount of sea salt dried into them. I simply sighed and slumped my shoulders in resignation before moving to follow the jolly fat man.

It's not like I have any other clothes… But whatever, it's not like it actually matters.

As I followed him down the dimly lit hallway my legs started to burn from how much I had to lengthen my stride in order to keep up with him. "Um sorry but you're Roux right?" I asked.

"Yup! Lucky Roux to be exact but you can just call me Roux." He said with the huge smile still firmly in place on his face.

What's the deal with the smile?

I tried not to be too unnerved by this strange smiling man as we continued to walk in silence. On the one hand, his smile almost reminded me of someone I used to know, used to love, almost. But on the other, the disparity between his friendly, almost dopey, smile and the cold, calculating look in his eyes put me on edge.

Something isn't quite right with this guy…

But then again it's not like I'm one to judge. I'm far from entirely sane myself.

Neither of us said anything more as we walked through the halls of the ship. I blinked in the low light and looked at the warm planks of wood around me. The Brattahlid was a surprisingly small ship given how infamous her captain was, sure Shanks wasn't an emperor but if anyone on the seas had the strength to take that title whatever they pleased it was Shanks. But despite that he still chose to sail on a ship with only 5 decks if you counted the deck itself and the small deck house. But then again Shanks' crew supposedly only had 11 members, so how much space did they really need?

At least I don't have to worry about Shanks bringing me here out of pity. The man barely allows enough people on board to sail the ship. But then again if it wasn't out of pity then why would he waste his time dealing with me? He would have saved himself a lot of trouble if he would have just left me there… I should repay his generosity by getting out of here as soon as I can. After all, it's not like he really wants me here...

As it turned out the galley had only been down the hall from the tiny room I had been staying in and so it only took a few minutes to reach it. As Roux pushed open the door to the galley I braced myself for stares and jeers that were sure to follow. Yet once the door was opened and I could see inside I noticed that the room was completely empty.

Where is everyone?

The galley was once again, small. There were only 2 moderately sized tables with benches in the center of the room with windows lining the farthest wall away from me. Roux immediately turned to his right and headed towards a door at the back of the room.

"Where is everyone?" I asked as I followed him.

"Oh, they're still asleep. I figured you could use some time to get your feet under you without them all in your face." He said, holding open the door to the kitchen.

"Why?"

"Because they're loud and overbearing. They mean-"

"No." I interrupted. "Why would you bother trying to be nice to me?"

What's the point?

He smiled faltered for the first time as he responded. "I'm the morale officer of the ship. So it's my job to make sure everyone is doin' alright."

"But I'm not a member of your crew. And I won't be joining."

A sad look came over his face. "You might not be a member but you look like you could do with a friend."

I felt my brow furrow as I glared at the man. "Is that what you're trying to be? My friend?"

"Life is hard enough to get through when you have good people at your back. But try and go it alone and it's impossible."

"Oh trust me I do just fine on my own."

"You sure about that?"

"And what is that supposed to mean?" I asked as I clenched my fists.

He smiled and turned to walk into the kitchen as he said, "Don't worry about it. I'm sure you'll figure it out sooner or later. But come on we got foods to make."

After that terse initial conversation, Roux and I worked in relative silence. He would hum or whistle occasionally as he worked. But for the most part, he left me on my own as I helped him prepare rather basic breakfast foods. As we worked I tried to ignore the anxiety growing in my gut as I heard people making their way into the galley through the dividing wall. While I could hear the door opening multiple times and footsteps making their way through the room I had to strain my ears to hear voices through the wall.

But why can't I sense them? What's going on with my observati-

"Ok Ads that ought to do it." Roux said, interrupting my thoughts, as he placed a hot plate of toast on the serving cart near the wall. "Can you take this out to the guys while I get started on dishes?"

That was another development that had occurred this morning. Roux had taken to calling me Addie or Ads but I just rolled my eyes and didn't bother to correct him.

Whatever, I don't even give a shit anymore.

"Fine." I said as I walked over to the cart laden with food.

Ok just take the stupid cart out there and you can come back in here. You don't have to talk to anyone, hell they don't want to talk to you anyways…

I took a deep breath and pushed open the door. I braced myself for the wave of shouting that was surely waiting on the other side of the door and was immediately shocked by how quiet the room was. My head jerked up as my brow furrowed as I looked around the room.

Why is it so quiet in here? Didn't the entire crew come in?

Looking around I saw that 7 of the 11 members of the crew were already gathered in the galley. Most of them were sitting quietly reading newspapers with their mugs of what I assumed were coffee, while only a few of them were talking. I pushed the cart over to the table that they were all sitting at.

Huh, I really wouldn't have pictured them as being the quiet type.

One of the men, the one with the blonde ponytail, looked up as I made my way over to the table. "Oh hey you're the new girl Boss was talking about."

As he spoke everyone else looked up from their conversations or drinks to stare at me. I blinked and forced my shoulders to not hunch in on themselves like they were fighting to do.

So what if these idiots want to stare. It's not like there's anything worth looking at anyways.

"I- um yeah. I'm not joining the crew though." I said finally.

The blonde's smile dimmed slightly but he quickly recovered. "Oh yeah? Well, that's a shame. We could have been great friends." He said while leaning closer to me. "We could-"

He was interrupted by a fist to the head and a gruff, "Shut up Guy. You're making a fool of yourself."

I turned to look at who had punched the blonde and saw a truly ancient man standing behind the blonde. The man's face was covered in wrinkles and his body saw hardly more than a skeleton he was so thin. Although the steel in his eyes and posture made it clear that this man was not nearly as frail as his body might suggest.

The old man who had punched the blonde in the head groaned loudly as he heaved himself down into a seat at the empty table. However the table wasn't left empty for long as Shanks, Yasopp, and Beckman filed in after him. Shanks smiled when he saw me but I couldn't bring myself to return the gesture.

"Oh good, you're up. Should have known Roux would drag you down here first thing in the morning." Shanks said.

Roux walked into the galley with a fresh rack of meat and said, "I didn't drag her anywhere. I just didn't want her moping all day in her room so I thought it would help for her to have some time down here before the rest of you all got down here."

He took a bite of his meat before waving it at the group of men seated near me and saying, "Oh speaking of, did you all introduce yourselves?"

The talkative blonde was the one to pipe up as he said. "We were supposed to do that? I thought you gave her the run down last night?"

Yasopp turned around in his seat to glare at the blonde as he said, "Boy, do you even remember last night? You were so damn drunk I'm amazed you're even able to walk."

"Just another reason to be glad I'm not an old fart like you man!"

Shanks just laughed while the two bickered across the tables. Beckman sighed, lit a cigarette, and came to stand next to me.

"Alright since the children are busy I guess I'll have to handle this." He said. "You already know the officers Shanks, me, Yasopp, and Roux, right? In that order?"

I rolled my eyes. "Obviously."

"But I'm assuming you don't know Gunther?" He said while pointing towards the old man sitting next to Shanks.

Why do I get the feeling I should know that old guy? Almost like he's...

"Then over here we have Andre our navigator." Beckman continued, interrupting my ponderings. "Max the shipwright, Doc, Rand our rigger, and-"

"Don't forget about me Beckman!" The blonde man shouted, apparently having finished his argument with Yasopp.

Beckman sighed again. "And then we have Guy and Alden, our deckhands."

"Just call me a deckhand why don't you! It's not like I do anything of importance or anything!"

"What, would you rather be the cabin bitch?" Beckman asked.

"What? No! I'm not a cabin bitch!"

"You hear that Boss, little Guy over here wants to be our cabin bitch."

"Well shit, why didn't you just say so, Guy?" Shanks asked with a massive smile on his face.

The blo- Guy went red in the face. "I'm not a cabin bitch!"

"Then sit down and shut up!" Beckman said with a smirk growing on his face. "Anyways, since Guy and Alden are the deckhands, just stick with them and they'll show you what to do."

"I'm not joining your crew." I said.

"No, and you're also not getting a free ride. You wanna sail with us, you have to work for it." He said before going to sit back at the table.

I watched as he and everyone else seamlessly fell into conversation as if I had never even disrupted them.

After the crew had finished with their meal I followed the blonde and the tall bald man up onto the deck. Apparently, they needed to sand down the railings as some sections had been damaged during the last battle.

"You're the one we- I met back on Snowy island. Sorry your name…" I said to the blonde as we walked out on deck.

He smiled. "You don't remember? Damn and here I thought I was just so memorable! I'm Guy the youngest and best looking member of the crew."

"Right."

"But yeah I remember you and that kid Ace right? What ever happened to him? I figured you'd still be with him."

"I-um- we…" I stammered looking down.

Why did I mention it? Why did I have to bring him up? Fuck, I don't want to-

"Guy don't you know it's rude to inquire about a lady's past? That is her business and hers alone." A tall, imposing, bald man with a scar running down his face said as he walked up to us.

I tried not to stare at his sunken eyes and slightly unsettling grin as Guy responded.

Why do all the pirates I come across nowadays have to all have such unsettling smiles?

At least Ace's- Nope, not going there.

I shook my head slightly and watched as Guy and the other man started to bicker.

"I'm not prying and if she's uncomfy then she can say so herself. Isn't that right sweetheart?" Guy reached out for my shoulder and I shrunk back.

"I'd really rather just get to work."

The bald man, Alden, smiled again. "Yes splendid idea! Now as our beautiful First Mate has placed you in our charge you may assist in our tasks this exquisite morning."

They started walking away as Guy started to complain once again.

"Alden, why do you have to talk like such a pompous prick all the time? Can you just talk normal for once?"

"Well my dear friend, while I could speak like an illiterate ruffian like you I choose to live my life a bit more refined-"

He was interrupted as a monkey jumped from the rigging and landed directly on his head, knocking him to the ground.

"Hah! Serves you right! Get him Monstar!"

I stared as Alden struggled to get up as the monkey, Monstar apparently, tried to keep him down.

Why is there a monkey?

Guy noticed my staring and said, "What, have you never seen a monkey before?"

I glared at him and chose not to respond to his idiotic statement. I rolled my eyes and stood back to wait for them to finish wasting my time.

What am I even doing here? I should have just stayed on that island…

Eventually, the monkey got bored of pinning the man to the deck and he climbed to his feet with the monkey perched on his shoulder.

He cleared his throat and said, "Apologies for that. My dear companion tends to be rather excitable in the mornings. But nevertheless, this is Monstar, my monkey companion."

"Great." I said while rolling my eyes. "Can we just do what we came out here to do?"

I want to go back to my room…

Alden nodded and made his way over to a closet set in the side of the deckhouse. He dug around for a moment before pulling out a few sanding stones. As he made his way back over to us he continued to speak.

"Yes my darling friend Monstar here has been by my side even longer than the brothers in arms I have found on this ship."

"I didn't ask." I said.

But he continued as if he hadn't heard me. Because of course he did. "I found Monstar when the traveling circus I was raised with stopped at his island. He was just a weakened little thing all alone in the jungle, I simply couldn't bring myself to abandon him to his fate. No, of course not! So I took him in and raised him as my own, and he has been with me ever since."

"If you were raised in a circus then why do you speak like you're a noble?" I found myself asking.

Wow, Ariadne do you actually give a shit now?

"That's what I wanna know!" Guy shouted.

"I speak as a refined gentleman as it is part of my calling as a poet! Yes, I shall be known throughout the seas as the greatest poet to have ever lived!"

I looked up from the sanding stone Alden was holding out to me and said, "You're a poet? Does that mean you're a musician as well?"

"Well no, not quite." His smile dimmed slightly. "I'm afraid that my passion does outpace my talent ever so slightly. That and I've never been particularly skilled with any instruments. But nevertheless, I shall not be deterred! My dream is attainable and it shall be mine!"

Well, at least he's determined.

After Alden finished with his loud proclamation and after Guy ribbed him for it a bit more the three of us got to work. The two of them had apparently been tasked with sanding down a few sections of the railing that had been damaged in a recent fight. As we got to work I chose to work on a section closer to the figurehead while they stayed closer to the center of the ship. While standing there with the sea breeze tugging at my hair I took a moment to contemplate the situation I had found myself in.

What am I doing here?

I let my eyes fall down onto the waves below. With the wind roaring in my ears I could hardly hear the sound of the others on deck even though I knew that they were still there.

They are all so happy and carefree. They know exactly where they belong and what to do.

It must be nice…

"I see you're working hard to earn your keep over here." I heard a voice come from beside me suddenly.

I looked up to see Beckman leaning against the railing smoking a cigarette.

"I'm doing my best alright? Besides, it's not like this actually needs to be done. It's purely cosmetic."

"Sure if you like getting splinters."

I sighed. "Was there something you needed?"

"Not particularly. I'm just wondering what your next move is going to be."

"I'm still working on that, but I'll get back to you as soon as I have it figured out."

"Think you'll be staying here long?"

I looked over the deck and saw Guy and Alden once again bickering playfully, this time they were throwing Monstar between them. I looked back down at my hands.

"No. Don't think this is really my kind of place."

"Depends on what you're looking for." He said.

I scoffed. "What is this? Some sort of recruitment pitch?"

"You're strong, you're smart, you're resourceful. Anyone would be lucky to have you on their crew. But if we wanted you to join us we would have asked already."

"So what? You're too good for me?"

"We don't trust you." He said, staring at me intently.

I rolled my eyes and went back to sanding the railing a bit more forcefully than was necessary. "Yeah well, that seems to be a trend lately."

"Just lately? Seems to me you've always had problems with getting people to trust you."

"What is that supposed to mean?" I snapped, slamming the sanding stone down on the railing.

Just spit out what you actually mean Beckman.

"Have you ever given anyone reason to trust you? You're what, 16? 17? And how many crews have you sailed with? 3? A track record like that doesn't exactly inspire confidence. Hell, you almost became a Marine."

"I did what I had to to survive. You don't know a single fucking thing about me. So don't you dare stand there and judge me for what I've done."

I struggled to breathe as I felt rage boil up inside me. I turned to walk past him but jerked back as he grabbed my arm. I phased into water but his Haki was only a fraction of a second behind.

He held my arm tightly as he said, "You need to take a good look in a mirror and figure out your priorities before it's too late."

"Why do you even care?" I asked as my lips twisted in a snarl.

"Because you're on my ship and if you bring any harm to my crew… You will regret it."

He released me and I stumbled back before regaining my footing. "You know I'm not as disloyal as everyone seems to think."

"Prove it."

I turned and quickly walked back to my room.

Who the fuck does he think he is? He doesn't know a damn thing.

As I made it to the hallway leading to my temporary cabin another voice called out to me.

"Hey, girl wait up there."

"What do you want?" I shouted as I whipped my head around to see the old man from the galley ambling down the hallway after me.

He cocked an eyebrow and stared at me before speaking again, "Well shit. I figured you would be a piece of work but I didn't expect you to be a total bitch."

Excuse me?

I scoffed before saying, "Yes well life is full of disappointments. What do you want?"

The old man didn't say anything as he continued to stare at me and walk down the hallway. Once he was only a few feet away from me he began to ease himself down onto the floor. It was only once he was settled did he speak again. "You know you don't look much like your mom. Don't act much like her neither. I always expected you to be more… put together."

What did he just say?

"And I'm just supposed to believe you know my mother?" I asked.

"Course I know her. I sailed with her for years!"

"No, you're mistaken. My mother sailed with-"

"With Xebec! Don't you mock me you little shit I may be old but I don't never forget a face. Especially not one as bat shit crazy as your mother."

Of course. Of fucking course. Why wouldn't he be a former crewmate of his. Why not.

I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at him as I said, "Is there a reason you feel the need to bring this up? If not then I would very much rather be left alone right now, thanks."

"Of course there's a reason you brat and if you'd let me fuckin talk then you'd know what it is!" He said, staring intently at me.

I stared back and waited for him to talk.

"My name's Gunther. I've been a pirate for a long time now. Sailed on a whole lot of ships, met a whole lot of people, killed a whole lot of folk. But no matter what one thing has always been the same. Always will be."

"And? Are you planning on elaborating?"

Or are you just going to continue to waste my time?

"Some people are cut out for this life and others ain't."

"What are you implying?"

"I ain't implying nothin. We both know you should be out there runnin the whole damn world. But instead you was off playing rooky with some snot nosed East Blue kid. Then when that inevitably failed you was ready to throw your life away. You've sailed with Marines, big name pirates, and rookies. But you still ain't stuck with none of 'em. Why is that?"

"While it's none of your business what I do with my life, people just don't like me I don't-"

"Oh don't give me that yagara shit." He interrupted. "You are the daughter of two of the most influential pirates in history. If you wanted you could be running your own crew. Sure maybe you wasn't ready when you left Big Mom's crew but now? 6 months ago? Why was you hiding behind that Ace kid when you should have been off on your own."

"Don't. Don't say his name."

"And why not? It's true ain't it? You were hidin' behind him so obviously the only reason was so that you wouldn't have to live up to your potential."

"I wasn't hiding!"

"Then what were you doin'?"

"I don't need to explain myself to you. I don't even know you!"

"Well then you better make sure and explain that little fact to yourself before you really do succeed in throwing your life away." He said with a shrug before standing and leaving.

What the hell? Who the fuck does he think he is?

I'm not hiding from anything.

"I wasn't hiding!" I screamed at him before he turned the corner. He turned to look at me and just raised an eyebrow at me. "I wasn't hiding. I love him and I wanted to help him achieve his dream."

"Then why are you here by yourself?"

Warnings:

Ariadne is still very depressed and borderline suicidal but I don't feel there are many references to this beyond her standard train of thought.