So I sorta wrote this fic in 5 days, and it was originally supposed to be around 6,000 words, but nooo, I had so much fun writing it that it got up to 30,000+ words! It's super fluffy at first, but eventually, there's drama and action! I'm rating it T for now, since there is violence and swearing. If anyone reads the darker parts and thinks I should change it to mature, I will. Enjoy!~

The moment the crew on the Moby Dick found out they were nearing an island that wasn't on the log pose and was rumored to have dragons living on it, the one place left over in the world that anyone knew dragons were still living at, they were ecstatic. Even Whitebeard had never seen a dragon and he was old and had been in many places, so even he was looking forward to it.

There were a large group of the crew who werent going to get off the ship. They were either afraid or just not interested. Some were planning on going hunting, even if they were only a few. Dragons, dead or alive, would probably be very valuable.

Ace had a backpack on to collect interesting things. He hoped to find egg shells. He didn't agree with the others hunting them, but he couldnt stop them since some of them were the commanders. Rakuyo, Kingdew, Fossa and Speed Jiru were planning on hunting them. Some of their division members wished to as well.

Marco was planning on flying around and looking for some, just to see. He wasn't planning on hunting. Everyone was just going to explore or look for dragons to just observe or get photos with the few den dens with cameras.

When the ship saw the island as a speck in the distance, they were all on their toes in excitement. They looked carefully to see if they could see any dragons flying around it. They had no idea how many could be on the island. If there even were any. It could just be a myth or legend told long ago and just passed down.

There was a volcano that they could see, and it was a big island with what looked like a dense forest. There was a long beach as well, stretching across the part of the island they could see. They wondered how many types of dragons there were with an ecosystem as diverse as this island seemed to be.

There were also rocky areas with what looked like caves connected to the jagged cliff against the sea. Namur looked forward to exploring the caves since he could breathe underwater. Were there water dragons? He couldn't wait.

"Alright, everyone needs to be back by sundown," the captain commanded. Everyone let out quiet agreements. Suddenly, no one wanted to make any noise. The island was so quiet. Ace and Marco were the first to get off the ship, Marco flying away in phoenyx form. He, Ace and Jozu were the ones most safe on the island. Marco could heal if attacked, Ace couldn't be stabbed or hit, and Jozu could harden himself into diamond.

Everyone had the possibility of death or severe injuries. Ace walked off into the foliage, using his observation haki to sense if anything was near him. He saw the first dragons immediately. Tiny little four legged pink dragons scurried away from him and into the bushes around him, making chirping noises.

Ace grinned. There really were dragons here! He could hear the chirping of the tiny dragons around him, and saw some little furry dragons climbing up the trees like squirrels, chasing each other. Were they unafraid of Ace? If that was true and they were unafraid of all the humans, that would be bad for them.

He didn't see anymore for a while, but he did hear a loud, angry roar that caused little bird-like dragons to flee from the trees. Ace hid behind the trunk of a tree, sensing a big one somewhere near. He masked his presence, the trees around him rustling as a big dragon rushed through the forest. He peeked his head to the side to briefly see a black, spiked tail.

He felt something on his arm and saw some very small dragons flying around like little butterflies. He wish he'd brought a jar so he could keep some or just show the others and free them afterwards. One landed on his finger he lifted up in the air. It crawled around on his finger tip before it flew away.

This was probably the most interesting island Ace had ever been on.

As he walked through the trees, he came across more little critters, finally seeing some animals other than dragons. Food sources most likely. He saw boars, deer, a bear, rabbits, real birds and squirrels.

Ace finally left the foliage and walked out to a field of long grass and flowers. He didn't walk through it, not knowing what was in it. He may have encountered little and harmless dragons, but they would not all be harmless, and he didn't want to chance being stung or stepping on one.

He walked around it, seeing rustlings in the grass, but unable to see what was making them. The pirate heard trilling noises from the grass, and watched in amazement as a dragon the size of a eagle dive down and snatch up a rabbit from the grass with its talons and fly off. Two more came and soon the grass was moving from the scurries of escaping critters.

Little rodents ran across Ace's shoes, but he wasn't bothered by them. A few dragons the size of house cats chased after them out of the grass and right past Ace's legs. He smiled again and walked on, heading towards caves he could see, curious to see some bigger dragons.

When he suddenly felt the presence of a massive creature, he ducked down into the dense bushes beside him, peeking out to see a dragon that could easily fill up half of the Moby fly past him and into the top of the volcano. Ace wondered how something so huge could fly. It was amazing.

He could see if was carrying a bear in his talons. It was red with thick scales, a dragon you would expect to see. Not one of the little furry ones he'd seen an abundance of.

Well, Ace wouldn't be going into the highest caves. He continued walking towards the ones near the bottom of the mountain. It had grass along the sides, so the volcano hadnt erupted in a while.

The first cave Ace came across was lined with ice on the inside. Ace didn't want to melt the ice with his natural warmth, so he didn't enter. He just tried to see inside, but it was too dark. There was nothing living in this cave.

The next cave he came across was lined with greenery and leaves. There was a bright blue light in the back of the cave, though not bright enough to see what it was coming from. He slowly walked inside, feeling a small life form, thinking it was just another critter. He lit up the cavern with his fire and saw there were flowers and vines covering the walls. It was beautiful.

He came closer to the blue light and grinned in awe at what he saw. It was a little blue fire surrounding a soft nest that had a baby dragon in it, who was crying out with sounds like a newborn kitten would make. Ace knew he should leave since the mother to this baby wouldn't like him being near it, but he was too curious.

"Hey, little guy. Where's your mama?" The baby mewled out again, opening its wide eyes at him. It was all black besides a stripe of white that started at the tip of its snout and down its back. Ace could see from the light of the blue flame keeping it warm that it had feathers. It was cute and would no doubt become beautiful.

Ace couldn't help but reach down to it with his warm fingers. The baby dragon reached its front legs up to his finger and started chewing on him with its very small and rounded baby teeth. Either it was too trusting or it was clear that Ace was not going to hurt it.

"You're very cute, but I'm gonna leave before your mama comes and gets mad," Ace said, slowly pulling his hand away. It cried out again, like it was upset the warm hand was leaving.

And speak of the devil, Ace heard and felt a presence behind him. An angry one. He quickly turned around to see a dragon the size of a medium sized dog standing in the entrance of the cave, screeching at him. It was all black like the baby with a white stripe on it as well. The feathered wings fluttered angrily, trying to intimidate Ace.

The young man wasn't afraid of it, but put his hands up in submission. The dragon was much shorter than Ace, so he lowered himself to look smaller. He'd been in a situation like this back home. A baby bear and its mother was very angry finding Ace near it. He'd made himself look less threatening and it had worked to let him run away. He had refused to kill it and leave the baby alone, so he didn't go back to that den again.

He inched his way away from the crying baby dragon and against the wall, moving slowly. The mother dragon raced past him until it was behind him. She ran at him in a threatening way and Ace ran away, even though it would be unable to hurt him. He still heard it screeching at him until he was a good distance from the cave. He could see after turning around that the dragon was holding a rabbit in its mouth, probably to feed to the baby Ace had seen. It had been very cute, and Ace wished he could have gotten a picture.

Ace explored the island a bit more, the little pink marks on his fingers faded from the chewing teeth that Ace had kept tangible for the little baby. He came across two black dragons fighting each other, violently. There was blood on both of them, and they both had horns, while a smaller dragon of clearly the same species watched from afar. Ace almost laughed. They were fighting over the female.

But he hadnt given away his presence, for he just knew those two dragons would put aside their differences momentarily to attack Ace. By the time it was getting dark out, Ace had been able to find some egg shells and carefully put them in his backpack. He also found a footprint pushed into a block of ice that seemed to be unable to melt. Even from his warmth holding it. A good souvenir.

He hurried back to the ship, coming across some of the crew walking back. Many were injured in some way. Only a few carcusses were brought, and they were all relatively small for big dragons. He felt bad for them.

Someone had brought a large jar and it was full of the little butterfly dragons, along with some other insect like ones who were crawling around inside.

The ship was a bit off the cliff by now, and everyone walked across the plank and onto the ship. There had been no dragon attacks on the ship, though a few large water dragons swam around the underside of it, rocking it side to side briefly before swimming off again and diving deeper.

It wouldn't be considered an attack, but some small dragons had flown onto the yardarms and chewed on the ropes before they were chased off easily. Ace walked across the plank and onto the ship, supervising and helping the injured men to the infirmary. There were many. One was so severe that three of his fingers were was missing. Poor guy.

A few had severe burns across their bodies, but most were either lightly injured or perfectly fine. There was a pile of dragons laying on the deck, most still in good condition but clearly dead. Then Ace froze at one that Teach threw down.

It was the mama dragon. Ace was sure it was the same one. He could tell. He suddenly turned around and ran off the ship. That baby would die if it was left by itself. Marco called to him before chasing after his friend.

"Where are you going?! It's getting dark out!" Marco shouted to him, huffing in irritation before changing into his phoenyx form to fly after him at a quicker speed. He clamped his talons on Ace's shoulder, knowing it wouldn't hurt him.

Ace stopped and looked up at him. "I'm going to go get a baby dragon. Teach killed its mother, I'm not gonna leave it," Ace explained very seriously. He was rarely this serious.

"What?" Marco asked in disbelief. "You can't raise a dragon yourself, yoi," the commander said seriously.

"Why not?"

"It's a dragon, yoi. What makes you think you can take care of it?" Ace huffed.

"Well, it has more of a chance with me than alone in a cave," Ace argued. Marco sighed at his stubbornness. He finally conceded but insisted on flying Ace there. The dragons in the forest during the day were harmless, but they didn't know about night. Ace directed him where the cave was, and they saw below them some dragons that were glowing colorful marks. Amazing, both of them thought.

Ace and Marco landed outside of the cave. The blue flames in the back were gone, making Ace positive that dead dragon had been the mama. He lit himself on fire to light up the cave, hearing the crying of the baby.

When he got to it, it was shivering in a little ball. It was very cold. "Hey again, little guy," Ace said kindly, warming the temperature around him so the little baby was warmer. Ace gently picked it up out of its small nest and into his big hands, warming them.

The baby cried again, gripping onto Ace's fingers, it's feathered tail wrapped around the young man's left wrist. "I'm gonna take you someplace safe," he said kindly. "Okay, Marco."

Ace was lifted, still holding the dragon in his hands securely. He wondered if it had ever flown before, since it was looking around with wide eyes. At the ground, the dark sky, everywhere. It chirped loudly when they were descending and set on the ship.

Ace made sure to keep its dead mother out of view. There were loud noises everywhere, people talking animatedly about what they'd seen. Some had to constantly shoo away birdlike dragons flying around their heads, cawing at each other. They were getting less amazing and more annoying.

No one really seemed to notice what was in Ace's hands, and no one could hear its mewls, confused it seemed. The dragon corpses were dragged inside, put in one of the rooms. The ones with scales, most of them actually, would last longer. They would need to skin the furry ones. Including the mama dragon.

Ace knew he shouldn't be mad at Teach for it, since he most likely didn't know she had had a baby to take care of. But he was a bit irritated with the way he was handling the creatures. He sighed, knowing he wouldn't feel the same if they were regular animals.

"Let's get you somewhere more calm, how about that?" Ace said to the little creature in his hands. It looked around everywhere, even the boring hallways to Ace's room. Ace had a feeling it had never left the cave. It seemed so young. He wished there was a dragon manual or something. He'd have to just wing everything, hoping it'd work out.

When they entered Ace's chambers, which was a large bedroom and a small private bathroom with a very small shower, Ace headed towards his big bed. It was nice being a commander. He sat down on the soft surface and set the dragon down on the comforter. It mewled again, trying to drag itself around the bed, curious about its new surroundings. The cave hadnt been the most interesting place, since it was very dark.

Ace ran his finger down its furry spine. It clearly couldn't walk yet, though it was trying its best. He gently picked it up and set it down on its back, trying to figure out if it was a boy or girl. He didn't exactly know dragon anatomy, but couldn't tell at all. He would assume it was a girl since it looked the same as its mother.

"What should your name be?" he wondered. She hadnt really shown any personality traits besides curiosity. Well, he could name her after where she lived. Leafy? No, that sounds stupid. Greeny? No.

Ivy? There were plants growing up the walls of the cave. "How about Ivy? Do you like that name?" Ace asked. Ivy just looked at him with wide eyes. "Yeah, that's a good name," the young man decided. Ivy kicked her feet a little, swaying side to side, trying to get off of her back. Ace gently pushed her left side up so she could twist around back on her furry tummy.

Ace wondered if she'd had the chance to eat that rabbit her mom had brought. Those little teeth probably couldn't bite into the meat easily. He knew birds fed their babies pre chewed food. Ace was definitely not going to pre chew raw meat, so maybe he could get some raw meat and mash it into something soft. Add water maybe, to be like saliva that would made the food more watery. Yeah, that sounded like a good plan.

There was a knock on the door, earning a startled chirp from Ivy. "Hang on," he said quietly, leaving her on the big bed. He opened the door to see Marco looking at him in a stern way. "Hey Marco," Ace said in the most casual voice. Marco walked in past Ace. Ivy cried at him as he approached her.

"You have no idea how to raise a baby, let alone a dragon one. I get why you did it, but we can't have a dragon on the ship, Ace," Marco told him. Ace frowned, more like a pout. "Look at all the injured from this island. Burn victims. All by dragons. We can't have one on the ship and risk hurting anyone."

"I'll train her not to. C'mon, it'll be fine! What, you want me to kill her or something? Cause that's what I'd be doing if I put her back on the island."

Marco looked down at the baby dragon. It was cute, but they had no idea how big it would get. The mother they had killed might not have even been at full size. "You don't know that, Ace. Many animals are abandoned by parents as babies. They adapt by themselves. It will be better to leave her here, in a safe space."

"No." Marco turned around and glared at him in irritation. But Ace was a commander, too. Marco couldn't force him to do or not do things. Only the captain could tell the commanders what to do.

"Fine. We'll ask pops then. Let's go. Bring her with you," Marco said, waiting by the open bedroom door. Ace huffed but walked to the bed and picked Ivy up. She grabbed his thumb with her small legs, liking the warmth Ace was providing.

"We're going to go see a big man. Don't be afraid," Ace said softly, rubbing his thumb under her fuzzy chin. Marco looked at him in surprise. He hadnt heard this tone before. The only time a tone of voice had been similar to this was when Ace talked about his little brother.

Ace pulled Ivy up to his chest, still supporting her with both hands. Marco lead Ace and the dragon out onto deck. People were calming down and getting ready for dinner. Thatch had stayed on the ship, so he had had time to prepare the meal.

Much of the crew were also getting the ship ready to set off. They werent leaving the island today, since it was late and would be dark soon. They were just sailing a fair distance from the island so no critters could board, and no dragons would lay eggs in the sails again. A smaller dragon had laid an egg, but had come back to get it not long after, like it had had second thoughts of leaving it on this big and unknown... thing.

"Pops, Ace has something he wants to talk to you about," Marco said, gaining the man's attention. Marco looked irritated. Whitebeard looked to his youngest son. He noticed Ace had something in his hands, that sounded like a kitten. Had Ace found a cat somewhere and wanted to keep it? It wouldn't be too bad. They had had a dog before. But when Ace opened his hands, it was most definitely not a cat.

"We killed her mom, and she's just a baby. I don't want to leave her to die by herself on the island," Ace said earnestly, hoping his father would agree. Ace knew he couldn't go against the captain's order and might have to leave Ivy on the island. "Please."

Whitebeard looked at him curiously. Ace hadnt looked this determined in a while. The big man looked down at the baby dragon. He recognized it from the carcass of one of the dragons they'd hunted. Poor baby lost its mother. By them. It made him wonder if any of the dragons they'd hunted had babies. Or worse, were babies.

"Do you think you'd be able to raise it?" the captain asked curiously. Ace nodded his head vehemently and told him that he could do it. "Gurararara. Fine, son. We haven't had any children on the ship before." Marco looked angry.

"Pops! Look at all the injured men that came back from the island! This baby might be small now, but she could become dangerous!" Marco shouted. Whitebeard and Ace both looked surprised at his outbursts. Marco never shouted.

"Did something happen on the island, son?" he asked.

Marco sighed. "I saw some pretty gruesome things out there. Some of them were very violent, ripping apart other dragons."

"Son, that happens with many animals that are not on this island. Besides, as a baby, Ace might be able to raise her to behave. Who knows, she might become an asset some day. We'll give her a chance. And if, when she's older, she becomes too wild to be safe, we can always try and sail back here," Whitebeard reasoned. Marco looked down, looking defeated. He knew some of what the captain had said were true.

"Fine," he said and walked away.

Ace spoke again, "I found her in a cave by herself, and when the mother came back, she threatened me, but didn't attack. Just tried to scare me off. Maybe this species is calm. I saw a lot of dragons, pops. It was amazing! There were little ones the size of squirrels that just ran right past me, or ignored me. I saw two huge ones, but didn't come into contact with them. Then, I saw three where two males were fighting each other over a female.

"I think that, like regular animals, you cant group them all together. Right?" he asked, both hands now on Ivy, stroking her back with his fingers. He couldn't hear her purring softly, and didn't really notice he was rubbing her gently.

"I agree," the captain said. Ace grinned. "Did you name her?"

Ace nodded. "I named her Ivy. Her home had a bunch of plants grown inside against the walls." Ivy chirped quietly, as if she recognized her new name. Ace wondered how smart dragons were.

Whitebeard leaned down closer as Ace held his warm hands up higher. Ivy was still wrapped around his thumb and wrist. She looked at the giant man and sniffed his huge hand when he brought it closer to the little dragon. But he got too close and she leaned away. Whitebeard smiled at her.

"Welcome to the crew, Ivy."

The best thing about writing fantasy stories is that you can do whatever you want with the growth, powers and behavior of a creature. It was so fun writing Ivy! Does she count as an OC? Review!