A/N: I accidentally deleted my A/N on fanfic... oops? Correcting that now. Anyway, thank you for reading! The story now has a beta so hopefully, it's a bit better!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own One Piece. This wonderful creation is Oda's and Oda's alone. I will never be able to live up to his greatness.
Petal Island
Sea: East blue
5 years before Luffy sets off.
At some point in their life, everyone will come to know the same tough life lesson; You never realise how much you have until it's gone. Sometimes it's later, a natural progression that humbles you and then you get on with your life. Some people however, learn this lesson too soon, as was the case of a carefree young girl living in a village isolated from the rest of the world.
There wasn't much Luffy could remember from that evening, and when she could, it came in brief flashes that tormented her subconscious. The roaring hot flames that rose from the ground as the smoke suffocated her, the vomit retching screams that ripped her eardrums as the people were slowly cooked alive, their skin sliding off their bones, and the psychotic cackling that echoed through the village, finding joy in the chaos. She clutched the straw hat between her fingers – the only thing that made it out unscathed. It wasn't clear how or why it could have survived, considering her current guardian found her practically naked standing in the middle of a collapsing building, and yet it did. It was her only connection with her previous life. She had forgotten everything, bear her name, but she knew that this straw hat she clutched in her hands was very important to her. A symbol of something that would change the world.
Several years later…
"FOOD!" a voice bellowed through the air as a girl sat up from an uncomfortable mattress and groaned, opening a bleary eye as she looked around the trashed room. Stretching lethargically in an attempt to soothe her aching muscles, she yawned, and turned her attention to the window, captivated by a golden sunrise. Brilliant tones of red and yellow painted the outside world, serenity enveloping nature as small birds sang to the morning dew and crickets chirped at the dawn of a new day.
"Coming!" she shouted back, looking out of the window again before turning to get ready for the day. She removed her sleep clothes and froze when she caught sight of herself in the mirror, looking in awe at the scars that littered her small frame. It happened every so often, when her body became unfamiliar to her, as flashes of colour and vague recognition played in her mind. She ran her fingers over the scar on her right arm; it was lighter than the rest of her skin. Frowning, she pondered who she had been before and why she was so damaged. There were no fresh burns. None of them had come from the fire. It didn't make any sense, she had to be missing something. Well, in truth she was missing a lot of things, she just wasn't sure why this of all things bothered her the most. She moved closer to the mirror; her breath clouding the surface as she looked at her reflection. One of the most prominent scars was the shape of a semi-circle; she let familiarity wash over her as she felt the disrupted smoothness across her fingertips. There were a few others, both visible and invisible- the large gash on her chin, the small white marks across her forehead and her eye. She could barely see a bloody thing out of one of her heterochromatic eyes. Shaking her thoughts away, she shoved on a loose cream shirt and cropped brown trousers and sighed before putting on other essentials so she could head down for food.
A banquet awaited her as the pre-teen's eyes widened at the amount of food at her disposal, jumping into the fray of her hectic family. Oh, if only the male version of her could see her now - she contemplated that he would be disappointed at the lack of meat, as she tucked into her plate, which mainly consisted of just that. Around her sat her family – the one that had rescued her. They were members of an underground crime ring within East Blue, fighting for equality where the marines failed, and "in no way connected with the Revolutionary army" – a stock term in the leader's daily speeches. They were very adamant about that. She still couldn't remember anything, which was slightly annoying, but recently something had been nagging at the back of her mind. Something important. She was halfway through a mouthful of bacon when it struck her. She immediately stood up, an excited glint in her eyes. Her family looked up at her as she grinned with pride, stabbing her fork into the wooden table and gulping down the barely chewed mulch.
"I'm going to become the Pirate King!" She exclaimed; a typical 'D' smile plastered on her face. Her heart hammered in her chest as she glanced over at the proud faces around her. She looked to the woman who was like a mother to her, whose face was set in its usual frown; like someone had carved each of her features out of marble. But she couldn't hold it for long, and she smirked, breaking the oppressive façade.
"Well then, someone should betta teach yas' how to be a pirate then shouldn' they!" She exclaimed as the whole table burst into cheers.
Yes. This girl was going to rock the world to its very core, and her family would be damned if they didn't give her a fighting chance.
Unknown
Sea: Grand Line
5 years before Luffy sets off
Life is a tragedy waiting to happen. He had always thought he'd die before he'd see his Son die, never mind his granddaughter. But life doesn't seem to work out the way you want it too. Garp sat on his boat, eyeing the half-empty bottle of whiskey on his desk and the empty glass in his hand. Sighing, he contemplated his life. Where had he gone wrong?
You never realise how much you have until it's gone.
Truer words were never spoken.
Garp eyed the bottle again, put down the glass and picked it up. He paused, looking to the glass, sighing again as a tear escaped from his eye, running down the chiselled tracks of its predecessors. He put the bottle to his mouth and downed its contents.
Nimura Island
Sea: East blue
Three years before Luffy sets off.
"WATCH OUT!" A loud voice echoed through the trees as a rambunctious monkey came crashing towards the floor. The person she had directed this exclamation towards was named Trae. Trae was a normal, well reasonably normal, young man, who lived in Nimura Village which was up in the trees. He found himself on the jungle floor a few moments ago, wakening to a large spider stuck on his face. He was on the verge of a panic attack caused by said insects leg trying to make its way into his mouth when he shot up, soon to be knocked down again by the incident addressed previously.
Now, it's not every day you manage to fall from your home, out of your window, knock yourself out and then soon after, be knocked out again by some very sound and very rubber looking soles worn by a girl around 14. Trae had enough life experience in his short 15 years of life to know this was a rather unlucky and unfortunate encounter as he slipped back into unconsciousness.
When he re-awakened, he was greeted with two large black orbs, hovering over his head. It took him longer than he would like to admit in realising that these were eyes, not inanimate objects boring into his soul. Groaning, he sat up, cautiously looking around him to find that he was no longer in the place he was earlier. Instead, he was in a closed-off room which seemed to be similar to a hospital ward, except this was not like the single and only hospital room he had seen in his short and very insignificant existence.
"Are you okay? How are you feeling? What were you doing down there? I thought you people hated being on the ground. Why were you...?" The girl questioned incessantly, invading his personal space as she hovered like a small bird would over its pray.
"Where am I?" He asked finally after the buzz had calmed down, shifting his focus to the girl in front of him. His head was slowly but surely being removed from the feeling of being stuffed with cotton wool.
"You're on a ship." She replied straightforwardly, sitting down as Trae stared back for a few seconds, processing the information.
"Why am I on a ship?"
"Well…"
"Ah! That is a question that will be a little harder to answer..." a voice echoed from the direction of the door, bringing Trae's attention to the fact that they were not alone.
"Doctor!" The girl exclaimed standing up. He was stood in the doorway, leaning casually against the frame. It was at this moment his memories came flooding back into his mind.
"How is he?" the Doctor asked her, walking towards them
"He seems okay..."
"You! You're the one who knocked me over!" He interrupted, pointing at the girl as his mind raced to try to make sense of the situation. Admittedly failing miserably.
"Are you gonna tell him, or do you want me to?" The doctor asked, seemingly ignoring Trae's epiphany. The girl paused for a second, cocking her head and turning to her captive audience - of whom was now slumped against the headrest in resignation- he had no fucking clue what was happening and was now going with the flow in an attempt to fight off an existential crisis. She sighed, sitting back down again and clasping her hands together in what seemed to be a nervous gesture. Trae couldn't help but think that this did not bode well for his current predicament.
"Well… You see - We had a mission… Wait no, that's not a great place to start. We weren't meant to be on the Island for long, and we couldn't be – that's part of our thing. We can't stay after the mission finishes. It's the rule, one of the only ones that must be followed. You see, the rules are there for a reason, to keep us safe. And when I stumbled across you – I was heading back, and by the time I saw you, it was too late. You didn't look go…ter… err… awful is probably better - your face was unnaturally white and then I lifted your head, and there was blood. So much blood. Everywhere. You see the rules say that innocents can't be harmed. They're a liability, but they are also part of our mission. And I couldn't leave you there with your head like that… bleeding out, because you'd die… but I also couldn't go ba… go to the village because I couldn't stay. So… I took you back with me, and the doc patched you up. Good as new!" By the end of this very disjointed and confusing babble, Trae couldn't say that he was any more informed than he had been at the start. One. He had been taken somewhere – coincidentally he was on a boat. Two. He had a head injury, which was obvious by the very prominent ache in the back of his head. Three. He had been treated, which is also obvious because he was awake and not dead. Happy times.
"What Luffy is trying to say is that she's very sorry, but she has kidnapped you, and now you can't go back to your small little island." The doctor added in exasperation, giving the now named girl a fond look as his words span in Trae's head. He sat still for a few minutes, trying to make sense of the situation. Shoving many of the less (psychologically) pressing thoughts to the back of his mind, locked in a tight box in the middle of a dark cave-like maze which he would hopefully never have to enter again. After a while, he concluded that he needed to deal with the most pressing matter at hand.
"Why?" he asked.
"We are influential members of a criminal society that runs underneath East Blue. Not only would it be dangerous for us if you were to leave us, but for you too. Once you've seen us, it's either you don't leave our site, someone will kill you, or we kill you. I've just spent a lot of time and effort to make sure your sorry ass stays alive, so I don't particularly want to do the latter."
"Huh…" said Trae, promptly fainting.
Unknown
Sea: East Blue
6 months before Luffy sets off
The ocean spray lingered on the deck as Luffy gazed out over the water. One hand wrapped tightly around the railing while the other clenched her distinctive straw hat. The sunset set the sky on fire as it ducked under the clouds, slowly turning into night. Her black hair flew back in the breeze, her silhouette outlined in gold. It was almost blinding, the power rolling off her in waves. Raw emotion. Like the ocean. She embodied the sea. Wild and free, untamed, beautiful and deadly. As she turned, her eyes lit, flames dancing, twirling, fighting for air as they plunged into shadow. But they were still there. She looked directly to her companion. Trae had grown in the last two years. He was still as weak as a fledgeling bird, but he had become taller. He leant against one of the cabin walls, watching Luffy carefully, not with obsessiveness as one does with a hobby or interest – but with curiosity. Over the last year and a half, he had learned things about himself that he never knew. He had battled with himself and others. When he had first found out about his predicament, he had fainted. It had been a massive shock. Ever since then, he had been trapped. Like a bird of prey stuck on the ground and de-winged, never to fly again. He was a chained animal in a gladiator ring – free until the show was over and he had to go back into his cage. Their eyes met, lingering for a moment before Luffy dropped her gaze to the tattoo on his wrist. It was intricate, three tar-black feathers encircled with a black line, connecting each one. It was a symbol of those who were taken. Of freedom that was not there's. Luffy felt like she was going to be sick. She walked over to him, stopping in front of where he stood, biting her lip.
"Do you hate me?" she asked finally
"Never…" he replied shortly, realising what she was referring to and immediately going to cover the thing with his hand. She stopped him.
"Why?" She asked, frustration clear in her voice. "Why don't you hate me? You should hate me! You've tried to run so many times, again and again, so don't tell me you don't hate me, I can't… no, I won't believe it." There was a pause as her passion, her anger, her whole person stared right through him.
"I don't hate you Luffy…" he stated, it was so quiet that it was almost impossible to hear "I don't hate you because as much as you trapped me… the last year… ever since I've been with you, I'm freer than I have ever been in my life." Her piercing gaze persisted, analysing everything, his breath, his face, his posture, his heart rate… his eyes. She could only see the truth. Letting out a breath she didn't even know she'd been holding, she relaxed, closing her eyes.
A sharp sound crackled through the air. Splinters of wood fell to the ground as blobs of water suddenly appeared in the air, the clouds above them darkening with anger. Trae flinched, looking back to the dark eyes of Luffy once more after his eyes strayed to look at the damage. She placed a hand on his shoulder.
There was a gaping hole in the side of the cabin.
"But you are scared of me." It was a statement, not a question. Trae nodded anyway. "How can you like someone you're scared of?" she asked in disbelief, the water droplets falling to the floor with a splash as she relaxed, anger dissipating as it started to spit rain – the droplets falling delicately on their skin.
"By understanding them." He replied. There was a long comfortable silence as they faced one another. Looking at each other and seeing the ugly truth, their trust in one another.
"Trae… I'm leaving soon." She paused, turning her back to him once more as the last rays of sun disappeared beyond the horizon. "Come with me."
He stepped in line with her, turning slightly to catch her profile.
"Always… To the end of the world."
Baratie
Sea: East blue
6 months before Luffy sets off
"Come here, you shitty cook! When I get my hands on you!" came a shout from the restaurant as Sanji stood at the railing outside facing the window, taking a drag as he watched the chaos unfold. Well then, there goes another waiter.
Shitty Bastards. He smiled and took another drag.
Unknown Island
Sea: East Blue
6 months before Luffy sets off
Looking down at the pile of treasure at her feet, Nami smiled, contemplating life before all this business as she looked towards the corresponding collection of corpses.
Oh well, back to Cocoyasi Village.
Unknown
Sea: East Blue
6 months before Luffy sets off
Zoro stretched his muscles, looking at the sea below the edge of the boat he was on. He'd hitched a ride to the next village, a feeling of foreboding in his chest as the water lapped against the hull. Sighing, he turned to look for the sun, resting a hand on Wado Ichimonji, trying to not think about what was to come
Syrup Village
Sea: East Blue
6 months before Luffy sets off
"Pirates are coming!"
Those were the only screams that could be heard in the village, every day, for what seemed like forever. The communities were fond of the orphan's antics – as much as they would never say that themselves – but he was getting to that age now… most of them thought it was about time he settled.
Whitebeard's Ship
Sea: West Blue
6 months before Luffy sets off
Ace sat in the mess hall of the Moby, drinking a single glass of the most potent stuff he could find onboard. It was the anniversary of that day – the worst day of his life when his little sister…
He looked around; it was empty all for Thatch who was busying himself in the kitchen.
To you, and your life – wherever you are.
Unknown
Sea: Grand Line
6 months before Luffy sets off
A figure silhouetted against the sun stood on the bird's nest of a large ship, watching the sunset across the horizon. Another boat appeared.
They called the sighting, watching those on the deck below scuttle around like beetles at the possibility of a fight.
Drum Kingdom
Sea: Grand Line
6 months before Luffy sets off
"Chopper! We're setting off, get your ass down here" The 'un-ageing' woman cried, her voice reaching across the frozen castle. She could barely hear the squeaky reply as she mounted the sledge. She liked to think that this could one day become the home of the ruler of the kingdom again… she just needed to wait for the right moment.
Alabasta
Sea: Grand Line
6 months before Luffy sets off
Robin sat cross-legged across from one of the most dangerous men she had encountered in her ventures. A mantra played in her head… For freedom, for history.
Unknown Island
Sea: Grand Line
6 months before Luffy sets off
There was a pilgrimage she had to take, a pilgrimage that was not to find faith but to find a purpose. She had to. She didn't want to be lost forever.
Skypia
Sea: Grand Line
6 months before Luffy sets off
Ever since he was young, he had loved tinkering with things… he was one of those guys who had to figure out the mysteries of the world. The only question was – how did he get here?
Water Seven
Sea: Grand Line
6 months before Luffy sets off
The house was a ruckus, like usual, parties in full swing as the lives of Water seven's infamous gang never rested. Harbouring great secrets, they forgot about all responsibilities as the night ticked away, unknowing of impending chaos.
Unknown
Sea: Grand Line
6 months before Luffy sets off
When someone dies, does anyone know where they go? I wonder if I could find…
A dull thud echoed around the cave, the smell of sweat and blood emanating from every crevice. Laughter filled the room as they looked around them to the fallen.
"Oh, where do they go, I wonder?"
Florian Triangle
Sea: Grand Line
6 months before Luffy sets off
"Today, and tomorrow, our dreams through the night!
Waving our goodbyes, we'll never meet again!
But don't look so down, for tomorrow night the moon will also rise!
Going to deliver Binks' Sake!
Let's all sing it with a Don! A song of the waves
Doesn't matter who you are, someday you'll be bone
Never-ending, ever-wandering, our funny travelling tale!
Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho
Yo-hohoho…"
Unknown
Sea: Grand Line
6 months before Luffy sets off
"Are you planning on doing anything special?"
"Me? Oh… not really, I'm waiting for something."
"You don't know?"
"I do – I'll know when it happens because when it does, it will shake the world."