#I watched alabasta like two years ago now and took a year break from one piece afterward

[wormzandgutz]

Happy birthday to Vivi!!!!<3 I wish she could join the crew orignal image:

[all-of-the-musesarchived]

Long Awaited Showdown (Ace and Cassie VS Blackbeard)

So this is part of a fan fic my dear friend and I are writing together. She simply asks when I name her that she goes by Anonymous Stoat, we hope you enjoy this. 

“I just got visual confirmation Ace.” Cassie stepped out of the alleyway, her hair tucked up under a black headscarf and her corset and top covered by a black and blue overcoat. “Blackbeard just anchored in the harbor two hours ago, they were headed inland for the nearest village.”

It had been a few weeks now since they’d departed from Alabasta on a false lead, and finally the monster they’d been hunting was in their grasp. Both Commanders had been overtaken by both a sense of relief and dread. It was almost unreal, to think that soon Teach would be in their grasp.

“Just don’t jump the gun on this.” Ace said tipping his hat up a bit with his thumb. “We finally found him, if one of us let’s out emotions get the better of us, then this was all for nothing and we’ll be back to square one.”

“I told you back at Alabasta, I’d follow your lead.” Cassie explained tightening her headscarf a bit. “I’m not going to be the reason he slips away again. It’s just hard to believe it’ll finally be over.”

“I know. Now come on. We should figure out what they are planning before we get involved.” Ace said shouldering his bag. Cassie simply nodded, her waterskin on her belt shifting as she turned and followed her brother in arms down the road. There was a feeling in the back of her mind she couldn’t quite shake, but it was better not to bring that up. Not when it was probably just her expecting the worst. They asked around for what felt like forever but most people they asked didn’t seem to even know who they were talking about.

At least, until they came across a rather shaken older man.

“Why would ya be askin’ about him?” The man huffed, tensing up immediately.

“Please sir, I’m begging you. We’ve been tracking this man for months now. He’s hurt a lot of people, we just want to stop him.” Cassie explained.

“Here. have this.” Ace said pulling a waterskin that had actual plain water and some dried fruit from his bag. “This man has done nothing but bad things. All we want to to stop him from making things worse for the people on this island.”

“You… Thank you…” The old man accepted the gifts before bracing his hands on his cane. “About two hours north of here. The man you speak of, Blackbeard, he’s ransacking villages left and right. The next he plans to hit, if he follows the road, is two hours from here.”

“Thank you. We’re going to do our best to make sure that this ends here.” Ace said think a polite bow. Unlike many people and pirates, Ace was somehow the most polite and well mannered person to exist. Despite his random narcoleptic eating habits which seemed to run in his family. Or just those that had “D” in their names.

“You have our word. This won’t happen again.” Cassie said. She made a note that he was bruised under his shirt, no doubt thanks to Teach’s crew. “I’m sorry we couldn’t stop him sooner. Let’s go Ace.”

“Yeah. Sir, please do me a favor. Do what you can to stay away from the town. When you can, try and get to the coast.” Ace said standing up and pulling bag over his shoulder. He bowed again to the old man before he started walking towards the the town direction. He was going to find out why Blackbeard had killed Thatch. He was going to to know what had driven him to take a the life of his friend. To ruin the love of Thatch and Cassie, the one couple that authors and poets wrote about. No he was going to get answers.

It took them a little under two hours to reach the town in question. The entire time, Cassandra had been uncharacteristically silent. Her mind was swimming with anger, pain, sorrow, rage, and an eerie calm that laid beneath everything. Thatch was her everything. He’d saved her life, shown her she wasn’t a waste of life or cursed like she’d believed, and had been the first true love she’d ever had.

“Ace… It’s way too quiet.” She finally said, noting that the town almost felt like a graveyard.

“I noticed that too. But this is better. The less people, the less risk getting hurt.” Ace said closing his eyes and listening for the ruckus that was bound to follow Blackbeard. It was easy enough, Teach wasn’t anywhere near silent or subtle. Even with them being across town, Ace could still feel the boisterous laugh that had long since turned from funny to a threat. They were occupied which meant that they could get the drop on them. “Let’s go that way. We can get up high and listen to them.”

The Fire Fist spoke pointing to his left and glancing at Cassie to make sure she was alright.

“Alright. Let’s hurry.” Cassie said, her hands trembling a bit as she tried to keep her composure. “The building over there looks like it has decent cover.”

She could hear the sickening laughter in the distance, and her form became a bit tense. All she wanted to do was to put an end to this nightmare once and for all. Without waiting, she jumped up to the nearest rooftop ready to kill their quarry and be over with all of this. Ace watched her go, wondering if had been a good Idea to bring her along. There was so much riding on this moment and the possibility of it not ending well for them nibbled on the back of his mind. Still he followed her up the buildings with ease and caught up to her before she could get too close.

“Stay behind me.” Ace whispered wanting to protect what he considered his sister. She made no indication that she was going to go ahead of him, instead she crouched down just behind him to his right, eyes fixed on the road below.

“Zehahaha! That crazy bastard! Get a load of this! It’s about Straw Hat! That crazy bastard and his crew attacked The Tower of Justice! His bounty should go through the roof after that!” Blackbeard cackled looking at his crew.

“Hm. That’s next to Water 7 yes? I wonder if they hijacked a sea-train to get there.” A very tall, slim man with a ghostly pale pallor spoke.

“It’s not that far from here…” An equally tall man wearing a scope like eyepiece and carrying a long musket commented. “At this rate, we might meet them again.”

“If fate is kind enough to place him in our sights,” A third said, the wet wheezing rattle of sickly lungs breaking his otherwise soft voice. “we’re obligated to pull the trigger aren’t we?”

“HAHAHA! What’re we waiting for!?” A fourth wearing a wrestlers mask and carrying a rather large sack cackled.

“Nothing! Let’s go! Zehahahaha!” Blackbeard cackled leading his crew down the road back the way they’d come from. “We better cut ‘em off before they get away or the Navy gets to them first.”

“Hey, hold on a second there Teach. We need to talk.” Ace called down just loud enough to be overheard by the small band of five. He was crouched on the roof of a building, balanced just so that he wouldn’t topple over. His hands were linked together with his forearms resting on his knees.

“This is a long time coming.” Cassie added, standing to her full height with her hands in her pockets.

“Oh! Whaddaya know! It’s Commander Ace and Commander Red Hair!” Blackbeard said with a big smile, his gaze lingering a bit long on Cassandra.

“You have no right to call us that anymore. Use those titles with respect or don’t use them at all. I won’t have you disrespect us.” Ace said calm despite his feelings for Blackbeard.

“Ooh, so this is the famous Fire Fist Ace.” The Slender man with the top hat and cane said. ”And his little Water Witch.”

“Yep. You guessed it, that’s us.” Ace said playing the man’s comment off. “So this is your crew. It looks like you’ve become a Captain now huh? Captain Marshal D. Teach of the Blackbeard Pirates.”

“Tch, you don’t deserve that title.” Cassie muttered, the very thought leaving a bad taste in her mouth. Something about the way he stared at her was unnerving, but she tried not to think on it too much. Ace gave her a warning glance. A silent ask for her to let him handle this.

“Zehahaha! C’mon Ace! Cassie! Lighten up! It’s good to see ya!” Blackbeard cackled, still smiling at the two. “What brings you here? You weren’t lookin’ for me were ya?”

“You son of a bitch…” The red head clenched her fist, only to be stopped in her actions as Ace motioned for her to stand down.

“Let’s stop beating around the bush now shall we? Even if you play dumb I know you’re a crafty bastard. There’s only one reason for us to be here and you know what it is. So spare us the chit-chat.” Ace spoke with a hint of annoyance in his tone.

“Fine! Have it your way.” Blackbeard replied, completely unphased by the show of aggression. “But there’s one question I’d like to ask first! Well, two rather! Instead of fighting, Ace, why don’t ya join my crew? And Cassandra…”

Violet hues shifted to focus on Blackbeard, an uncomfortable tension eating at her.

“Zehahaha, why don’t you become my woman?” The redhead froze, her already pale complexion paling further and her form began trembling. Was he being serious? Surely he didn’t think she would say yes to the likes of him.

“I’ve got the perfect plan to rise to the top!” Blackbeard said. “Stick with me and I swear we could rule the world! Whitebeard’s days are numbered and you know it! I’m gonna be King of The Pirates! First I’m headed off to Water 7 to kill Straw Hat Luffy as a special gift to the World Government! Wouldn’t hurt to have you along for the fun! And what kind of King would I be without a Queen at my side!?”

“Luffy huh? You’re outta your mind.” Ace spoke clenching his jaw just a hair. He knew Teach had gone a little crazy over the years, but he didn’t think the man was this far gone from sanity.

“You sick son of a bitch!” Cassie snapped, finally recovering from her shock. “I would never be your woman!”

“Oh? You know him?” Blackbeard asked, completely ignoring Cassandra’s response.

“Of course I know him you sack of crap. I’m not going to let you kill my little brother!” Ace said glaring down at Teach. “And we’re not joining your crew. You can take your little offer and shove it up your-”

The sniper wasted no time in firing off three rounds at Ace, though he was a bit surprised to see it did nothing to harm him. Instead of blood, flames licked the bullet holes.

“Well you get it.” Ace said holding onto his hat. It amused him to think that Teach’s crew would so willingly enter a fight they stood no chance of surviving. He had warned Cassandra about letting her feelings get in the way, but there was nothing stopping either of them proving just how much difference there was between those serving under Teach and themselves. The fire cackled and licked along Ace’s skin till the holes left behind sealed without a mark left.

“Huh, seems like you need to teach your crew some manners.” Ace said with a scoffing smirk. He stood up suddenly hands curling into mock pistols at he aimed at th sniper. “Fire Gun!”

The gunner below had mere seconds to start running as bullets of flame were fired at him, one right after another. Cassie on the other hand glanced down to note the mask clad crewmate had been missing from the whole mess. He quickly made his reappearance though with a full on building he planned to bring down on the two commanders.

“Flame Commandment: Fire Pillar!” Ace shouted waving his hand to surround him and Cassie. This was not the first time he had done this and knew that he wouldn’t harm her as long as she bubbled herself. It took all of two seconds for Cassie to encase herself in a sphere to keep from being boiled alive.

The fire coiled up over them, skirting off the water rising high to meet and destroy the top half of the hotel that hand been thrown at them. The pressure alone was enough to break the wooden building apart and the fire began eating at the remains. The pieces left behind fell in a shower of burning panels and splinters.

“Both of you! Stay out of this fight!” Blackbeard ordered in frustration. “Until you get stronger this guy is out of your league!”

“Oh! Sorry!” The masked member of the Blackbeard said putting his hand on the back of his head.

“Fire Fist!” Ace called out and a horizontal column of fire shot out towards Teach’s back. It was enough to blast the entire Blackbeard crew through the building opposite of Ace and Cassie carving a path through the building to the next street over. Teach screamed in pain as some of his men recovered. They had not been the target, only collateral damage at that moment.

“You didn’t have to split the building.” Cassie commented, the water that formed her bubble now wrapped around her arm like a curled up whip. Ace looked over his shoulder at her and shrugged at the Blackbeards that could stand surrounded Teach. He jumped down afterwards and headed to meet them on the ground walking through flame and cinders without hesitation in his calm strut. The fire pooled at the bottom of the wreckage before being put out at Ace’s will. Cassandra was just behind him, walking just far enough behind to keep from getting burned.

“Zehahaha… Alright… You wanna finish me… Don’t you?” Teach asked, pushing himself to all fours after being extinguished. “The murder of a fellow crewmate is a serious crime… And yes, I killed 4th Division Commander Thatch with my own hands! But there wasn’t any other choice!”

“No other choice!? How about not stabbing your crewmate in the back!?” Cassie snapped.

“It wasn’t personal. But he had the Devil Fruit I had been searching for. And he had you!” Teach said pushing himself up to his knees and throwing his hands out to his sides.

“Me?” Cassie felt that pit in her stomach again, and a thing sheen of sweat dotted the back of her neck.

“You know the rules on Whitebeard’s ship. Whoever finds one gets to eat it.I memorized the shapes and colours of all the Devil Fruits that they discovered. So I knew that was the one I needed. Whether I liked it or not I spent decades biding my time on Whitebeard’s ship because it was the best shot I had at finding that one single fruit.” Teach said dropping his hand so they hung limp at his sides. “And all that time I watched as he wooed and stole the heart of the only person I ever cared about other than myself.”

“You… You bastard!” Cassie snapped before feeling Ace put a hand on her shoulder to keep her from lashing out.

“You were the only thing on that ship that helped me Cassie. But you never noticed did you? No because you were always with him.” Blackbeard chuckled a bit. “And just when I thought there was no hope left, there it was, right in the hand of my friend.”

“Then you murdered him in cold blood and stole it without a second thought.” Ace asked seeking the answer to his question. Teach was always easy to provoke into long winded explanations.

“Heh, bad luck for him.” Teach said getting to his feet. “There’s no other way. This ability has chosen me! Zehahahahaha! And its power has made me the strongest man in the world! Watch.”

Blackbeard extended a ringed hand and slowly the edges of his form began turning dark and grainy.

“Even among the Logia Fruits there’s Nothing quite like it.” There was a dull hum in the air as a colleum of dark almost mist shot up into the sky. It swirled in a chaotic manner that seemed to barely be under control. Along the ground it oozed from his feet to match the pillar in the air. “Ace... You’re body is made of fire. And you Cassandra, you’re made of water...”

“What is this?” Cassie muttered, her eyes growing wide. Out of sheer instinct she shifted the water whip to her actual grasp.

“Zehahaha... My body is darkness!” Teach said leveling a power glazed look upon the two.

“Darkness huh?” Ace said having long ago set his body in a pose that had his foot on a pile of rubble and with one hand on his hip and the other dangling free.

“You’ll see soon enough Commanders. I think you’ll wanna reconsider my offer. In the history of all Devil Fruits, this is said to be the most dangerous power of them all.” Teach spoke training his sight on Cassie. “The Logia type Dark Dark Fruit. In other words I’ve become a Darkness Man. I’ll give you a taste of its power. I wouldn’t blink if I were you.”

“Hm. Stop yapping and just do it.” Ace smirked, keeping the best poker face he could. Cassandra on the other hand had fallen silent again, her form trembling like a leaf in the breeze. Her gaze met Teach’s and she all but froze in place. His crew began running, shouting at one another about this or that, it all became static in Cassie’s ears. The black smoke poured off of his form and flowed across the ground as if a dam had been busted holding it back.

“Ace… This…” Cassie started, steeling her form to keep Teach from letting him know he’d gotten under her skin, though it may have been too late. “We need to end this. Fast. I’ve got a bad feeling.”

“Get out of here.” Ace said not taking his eyes off of the man.

“I’m not leaving you to fight him alone. We’re doing this together.” Cassie said, putting her foot down in the matter.

“We don’t have time to argue Cassandra. Either run or stay out of the fight.” Ace snapped with worry. Not for himself but for her. He was younger but he knew how to be an older brother, and those instincts were kicking in.

“Forget it! I’m not leaving your moron.” Cassie snapped.

“Then protect yourself. I can’t stop him and save you.” Ace said as Teach laughed. The swirling void spread out from him surrounding the two standing on the wreckage. There were screams of warning but they were too far to make out.

“You’re assuming I need to be saved.” Cassie replied, stiffening her whip into a rapier like shape. What unnerved her the most about all of this was the fact that save for the wreckage they’d been standing on like an island was just, everything was being cloaked in this blanket of darkness.

“Darkness is gravity. It swallows everything around it.Even light itself can’t escape! Its power is infinite!” Teach yelled out.

“That’s nice but it’s nowhere near us. You sure you got the hang of this?” Ace asked unimpressed by the man in front of them.

“Calm down, I’m not aiming at you yet.” Blackbeard turned from them to look at the ground below his feet. “You’ll be glad when you see what I do to this town.”

“BLACK HOLE!” He shouted as he slammed his palm into the black mist. The light around them dimmed and the smoke began swallowing the buildings and anything else left in the streets. In a mere matter of moments, all that was left of the town was the dirt it had been built on, and the small pile of rubble Ace and Cassandra had used as a safe haven.

“Within these shadows lies the power to compress anything and everything within them, to crush whatever they touch.” He cackled, as the last bits of darkness recoiled back towards him. “And that’s just the beginning. Now I’ll show you what happened to the town. Or whatever’s left of it I should say. LIBERATION!!!”

With a sound of mass effort, the shadows exploded and the remaining rubble of what was once the town began raining down around them. The carnage was impressive, an entire town reduced to scraps of wood and metal without one building still in tact.

“Zehahaha, so do you get it now Ace? Cassandra? This is what I was willing to kill a mate for.” Teach cackled before he noticed small green floating orbs around him.

“Firefly Fiery Doll!” The orbs ignited against the man’s skin, bursting into a large brilliant flame and throwing the man to the ground as he screamed and writhed in agony.

“The Darkness part I get, but this not so much. I wonder what’s going on here. If you’re a Logia Type that shouldn’t hurt you. Or rather, that shouldn’t even hit you.”

“I already told you. My Darkness swallows everything around it. Whether it’s punches, blades, bullets, lightning, or fire. Unlike you two I can’t just turn into an element and dodge an attack. And the pain I absorb when I get hit is much greater than what it normal human feels. But the trade off for that inconvenience is worth it.”

“So, what you’re saying is you’ll feel every moment of agony when you’re given what’s coming to you.” Cassie clenched her fist and raising her water forged rapier to strike.

“Yes. Cause there happens to be one more thing I can absorb.” Teach said holding out his hand towards them. “Black Vortex!”

“ACE!” Cassie tried to reach out and grab the Flame man but wasn’t fast enough as his arm just brushed her fingertips before he found himself in Teach’s grasp. Out of sheer instinct, the redhead sprinted forward, blade raised high and murder in her gaze.

“First I use the gravity of Darkness to pull a Devil Fruit power holder into my grasp.”

“Too... strong...” Ace muttered trying to break free.

“And then when I touch them.” Ace grunted in pain there was a split second when he tried to burn teach but then he realized he couldn’t. “You’re smart. Have you figured out the secret yet? Huh?”

“It can’t be-” Before he could say anything, Teach reared back and punched the raven haired man as hard as he could in the stomach, sending him flying across the ground.

“Bastard!” Cassie jumped up, using the recoil from Teach’s punch to bring her blade of water down towards his throat. “You won’t leave here alive!!”

“I will. ANd I’ll take you with me.” Teach said reaching around and grabbing Cassie’s arm in his. He pulled her to his side and locked his arm over hers to keep her from struggling too much. “Zehahahah! Ahahahaha! It’s been a long time since you’ve been hit. I bet you forgot how much it hurts, Ace.”

He turned to face the Commander laying against what was once a building.

“But you both understand now. You understood the second I grabbed you.” Blackbeard continued. “Not only can my Darkness pull you in. It can also absorb your Devil Fruit Powers! In other words as long as they’re in contact with me, someone with Devil Fruit powers is not different than a normal human! Logia, Zoan, Paramecia. All of those who have become dependant on them are in for a surprise.”

“You sick… Let me go!” Cassie snapped trying to writhe free of the man’s grasp. “You traitorous bastard!”

“One little touch will make them realize how weak they really are.” Blackbeard spoke oblivious to Cassandra’s struggling. He was so trained on Ace that he gave no mind to her protests. He had all that he wanted. Next was taking down Ace and Luffy before he could move on to becoming the King of the Pirates.

“Then all I have to do is avoid you.” Ace spoke looking at Cassie with worry. He could care less of the blood running from his mouth. But he had to figure out a way of beating Teach without hurting her.

“You think you can escape gravity that easily… ” Teach taunted. “I’d like to see you try!! Black Hole!”

He raised his free hand up and reached towards Ace, pulling him in towards his sickening grasp. The black smoke once again swirled and Ace was yanked from where he’d landed.

“St. Elmos’ Fire!” Ace hurled two large fireballs at Teach, the flames piercing his form just as the offending man brought his fist down on Ace’s neck.

“Damn it! Get this Thing off of me!” Teach all but threw Cassie aside as he clawed at the flames which now resembled spears protruding from his body. Cassie took the opportunity to put some distance between herself and Blackbeard, taking up a defensive stance between him and Ace with a shield of water between them and Teach.

“That Bastard almost broke my neck. His ability’s gonna be a bigger pain than I thought...” Ace hissed before forming his fingers into a cross and aiming just past Cassie at Teach. “Cross Fire!”

The flames impacted, but it was hard to see what was happening through the cloud of darkness surrounding Blackbeard. There was an explosion before one of the mountains surrounding the town crumbled.

“Everything fall before Darkness. Even you can only struggle for so long. Still, finishing you off here here and taking her, would be a waste of your talents.” Blackbeard cackled staring at Ace who was on all fours, breathing heavily. Cassie was standing just to Ace’s right, two orbs of water hover over her shoulders as she prepared to strike once his guard was down.

“Don’t Fight it Ace. Cassandra. Join me!”

“If I surrender to you, then I can never call myself a man again. I won’t submit, and I won’t live with regrets no matter what.” Ace swore an oath to himself. “You got that, stupid?!”

“You killed the only man I loved, and you expect me to drop my loyalty to our Father and join you?” Cassandra snapped the orbs turning to javelins. “You can forget it! I’d rather die!”

“Once you die your morals are useless. I’m sorry you can’t understand that Ace.” Blackbeard said. H knew where Cassie was and so could avoid her all together as he threw his hands out to his sides. “Darkness take you!”

“Run Cassandra... Run!” Ace said pulling his arms in as fire began swirling 20 feet out and moving in towards the raven haired Commander. “Great Flame Commandment: Flame Emperor!”

“Zehahahaha! The Sun against the Darkness, huh? Only one can win!”

“I’ll make Whitebeard King, or die trying.” Ace said with determination. Ignoring him completely, Cassie turned her two water javelins into a wall of small, sharp looking needles.

“Something you’ll never understand Teach… Family always has each other’s backs no matter what.” She said before hurling the water needles forward, creating a rain of pain falling upon Blackbeard. It didn’t take much effort for Blackbeard to counter the water attack, using his repelling force to push Cassandra back against one of the piles of rubble before he focussed his efforts on Ace.

“Ace! You can do this!” Cassie called out trying to break free of the invisible force holding her in place. “Show this bastard who’s boss!”

“This ends now, Commander Ace. Black. Hole.” Blackbeard spoke. Ace had been too worried about Cassie to remember that the Dark mist would spread around his attack and swallow him into what was essentially oblivion. In the blink of an eye the black haired Commander was gone and all that was left was Blackbeard, barely standing and badly burned. He turned to look back over his shoulder at Cassie. “You should have listened to him. But now, now I have you right where you belong.”

What the hell? It had all happened so quick, and now all that was left was an empty place where Ace once stood, and his hat covered in dust and tattered.

“You son of a bitch! I’ll kill you for this!” Cassie cried, tears brimming in her eyes as she tried to lunge forward at Teach. “You’ll pay for this!!”

“You don’t get it do you.” Teach spoke pulling Cassie into his hands. He pulled her till she was pressed flush against him. A demented but loving smile was given as he trapped her. “I saved you. In time you’ll understand that.”

The feeling of his hands on her skin, his form pressed against hers, the dampness of his sickeningly hot breath sent a fearful chill down her spine sickened her to the core.

“You bastard… What are you going to do with Ace?” She snapped trying to push herself away from his grasp to no avail.

“If I can’t kill that Straw Hat what makes a better offering to the World Government than a Commander of the Emperor Whitebeard?”

“So that’s it. You’re going to turn us in for the bounties?” She snarled.

“Not you. Just him. I’ll tell them that you decided to join me after realizing that it was your best chance. And then nothing will stop us from getting to the One Piece.” Blackbeard said with a grin turning from demented to lustful. “You know I’m right. That I am the only one to give you all that you ever wanted.”

“All I ever wanted was to be with Thatch. You took everything from me!” Cassie cried once again trying to writhe free, her defiant expression being taken over by fear. “What I want is for you to die damn it!”

“My my, Captain.” Lafitte, the top hat clad man chuckled walking over. “She’s quite outspoken, isn’t she? Shall we lock her in your quarters until she calms down?”

“Where else is my woman gonna sleep. I’m certainly not trusting you to be in the same room as her.” Blackbeard said, moving an arm up around her throat. He wasn’t going to kill her. Just put enough pressure to knock her out. Cassie struggled, her throat constricting under his grasp. In an act of desperation, she did something she was probably going to regret, she reached up and pathetically tapped on his chest.

“Please… S-Stop…” Cassie gasped, hoping he’d keep from knocking her out completely.

“Hm? What is this now?” Blackbeard looked down to her and released his grip a fraction. Just so that if it was a trick he could continue choking her till she lost consciousness for her own safety.

“You…” She swallowed a few gulps of air before looking up at him with half lidded violet eyes. “You’re right… You… You’re the only one that can give me what I truly want…”

Blackbeard wasn’t sure he believed her. Not so soon after refusing him. And yet she looked so pathetic that he had no choice but allow his ego to inflate.

“What I want… Is to live. And…” Cassie swallowed again, her throat still aching a bit. “To overthrow Whitebeard… H-He doesn’t… He doesn’t deserve power. I was blind…”

“It’s okay. You were lied to. But I will change all of that. For now, sleep.” Blackbeard said hating that he had to do this to Cassandra, but it was the only way to make sure that she didn’t trick him into letting her go. “I promise that this will be easier if you do.”

Cassie let out a choked gasp as his arm reapplied the pressure before she pressed against his form, sweat dotting her brow. She wasn’t dead, that was the important part of all of this. Not that he would’ve killed her anyway, but now she had her insurance. She just had to keep up the act until they reached another port.

“I know you are confused, but I swear this will make sense. Once we leave here I will get you a Seastone necklace. I’ll keep you safe so you never have to fight again.” Blackbeard said strengthening his hold on her neck. “This hurts me more than it is hurting you Cassie.”

“We’d best leave, Captain. Wouldn’t want Straw Hat to get too far ahead of us.” Lafitte chuckled watching the red head go limp in his grasp.

“Zehahahahah! Let’s go boys.” Blackbeard said pulling Cassie up into his arms. Now that he had her, he wasn’t going to let her go. At least not until they were far enough out to sea where there was no chance of escape.

[mystical-flute]

WIP Week Day 7: Newest WIP

You know those fandoms that just feel like home when you watch/read/listen to it again? Well, this is that fandom.

Title: “Come Sail Away”: When Agent Reika Mutou is called back to Domino after her grandfather falls into a coma, she thinks she's just come home to keep watch over someone that won't wake. But little does she know just how much danger the Duel Monsters world had..

Fandoms: Yu-gi-oh! // One Piece

Words: 5,537 (2 Chapters) Read here or here.

Ships: Seto Kaiba x OC

 BUZZ. BUZZ. BUZZ.

Reika frowned against her pillow as she heard the buzzing, before sitting straight up, the hospital sheet falling into her lap as she reached in the darkness for the source, a sinking feeling beginning to stir. She knew that the thing that was buzzing should not have been. Finally, her fingers grasped the vibrating phone from the bottom of her bag. Violet eyes darted nervously around the room for any signs of consciousness from the others resting there. No one stirred, as she put the phone to her ear.

"Yes?" she breathed into the receiver as she slowly got off her bed and inched toward the door.

"Reika… I'm sorry to bother you but I'm afraid I have to tell you that you're being taken off assignment," Kenji's brisk voice said on the other end.

She frowned, slipping out of the room with her bag. "What? You can't pull me out of here now! We've only just saved the Alabasta Kingdom. And what about my parents?" she hissed, violet eyes keeping a wary look at her surroundings as she made her way into a hallway far enough away from the medical area.

Even in the darkness, she didn't know who could be listening in. This was an area that had only just been recaptured from a hostile enemy after all.

"I know, and I apologize for having to do it, but we found out that your grandfather has fallen into a coma," Kenji replied. She could practically hear the frown through the phone.

The words hit her like a train, and her stomach dropped. "What?" she managed to whisper. "What happened?"

"We're not sure. We're still trying to get information from your aunt and cousin but it looks like he just… fell into it," Kenji said, though Reika could hear something hidden in the words, and she exhaled slowly before speaking again.

"You don't think it was a normal reason, do you?"

"Like I said, we're still trying to get more information. I'll fill you in completely when you get back. But… my suspicions are that it wasn't a physical problem with him, no."

Rubbing at her forehead,   Reika sighed and leaned against the wall, staring out the window at the horizon, the light only just beginning to try to break through the inky blackness. "When exactly is that going to be? I can't set up a portal now. It's too dark, and I can't just abandon them in the middle of the night. Plus the Marines are looking for us." She wouldn't be surprised if the Marines were already well on their way here, actually.

Kenji's slight laughter rumbled through the other end of the line. "Akio is on her way on one of our ships. She'll be posing as a friend of yours to take you home. Just stay put. She's got your coordinates and left hours ago."

She forced herself not to groan. She hoped this worked. "Okay," she said softly. "Thanks for letting me know."

"Of course. We'll see you in a few hours."

"Over and out," she sighed in reply, ending the call and sliding to her knees, her mind still reeling with a mix of exhaustion, anger and sadness.

She hated the thought of having to leave this land – after all, she still had no answers as to what happened to cause her parents to disappear – only a bit of speculation here and there from what she'd managed to swipe and scrape by from the various battles with the Marines they got into.

On the other hand… her grandfather had taken her in after her parents had gone missing in this dimension, and the fact that he was in a come – one that Kenji didn't think was naturally occurring – made her very, very nervous for Yugi, the cousin she lived with. He was two years younger than she was and not exactly someone built to fight.

And yet… she was absolutely friends with these pirates – something she hadn't anticipated happening. She hated that she had to leave them. But she knew her duty to the agency and to her family, and so with a heavy heart, she began sneaking her way through the castle and down to where their ship was.

She managed to make it onto the Merry with a heavy breath, fighting back the fatigue and lingering pain from the battle with Baroque Works and slipped into the room she shared with Nami. Kenji had told her when she'd started this assignment the year before to keep a bag packed at all times in case an emergency ever happened.

"It's exceedingly rare, but it has happened before and any good agent needs to be ready, Reika," he'd told her in Domino City at T.A.I.D.R. headquarters. "It's just to make sure we can get in and out quickly."

  She wondered how rare this actually was, as she paused on a photograph of she and her parents from when she was ten. One of the last photographs they'd taken as a family before their disappearance somewhere beyond the Grand Line. They'd been here on assignment and headquarters had lost contact with them.

When she'd been sixteen and they offered her a position in the agency, how could she turn it down? Then at seventeen, they'd offered her the chance to come to the Pirate Dimension, and the rest was history as soon as she'd gotten Monkey D. Luffy and his crew to accept her as a member in Lougetown.

And now here she was. Having to give all of that up because of an emergency at home.

But regardless, she couldn't just vanish without them knowing she was leaving – even if it wasn't exactly protocol for the agency.

Reika grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and sat down to scribble a quick note.

 Dear Crew,

   I'm so sorry for having to leave you out of nowhere like this, but I'm afraid I've received word of an emergency in my home town and I had to leave at once. But on my honor, I'll come back and sail with you again when the emergency has passed – I'm sure I'll be able to find you. I just want you all to know that I've had the time of my life on the crew, and I've learned so much about myself because of you.

   I'll see you all again,

   Reika

She set the letter down on the desk and placed one of her arrows down with it (it wasn't like she was going to need them in Domino). Letting out a heavy sigh, she swung the bag over her shoulder and took a last look around the room. "Time to go then."

Wincing as she made her way back outside, she frowned when she noticed Aiko standing below her on the dock. Next to him, she could see a small boat.

"I was told you had a ship, Aiko," she greeted, making her way back down the gangplank and over to her.

"This is faster," the man replied with a shrug and a grin.

"Mmhm," came the hum as she tossed her bags down into the boat. "Shall we?"

Aiko nodded. "After you."

She gave the palace a last glance as she stepped on board, going slightly pale when she noticed lights popping on. "Let's go. Now. They know I'm gone."

"Hold on tight," Aiko said, slipping behind the wheel and moving them away from the castle as fast as the boat could go. "Any trouble with the Marines?"

"Nothing that wasn't handled. Only two of the crew I was with have bounties at the moment," she groaned, leaning against the wall. "We got into a fight with some criminals yesterday though. Gained a pretty cool looking scar on my back for my troubles."

Aiko laughed, tossing her the portal maker. "Well, at least you have a souvenir from your mission."

She snorted, typing in the right combination for a portal in a boat this size, closing her eyes as the bright light enveloped them, bringing them back to Domino.

"Welcome home, Agent Mutou," Kenji said as he peered over at them as the light faded, the boat sitting in the small pool in the underground of the base. The clock over his shoulder read five o'clock in the afternoon. Well, at least she had an excuse to sleep when she got home.

Reika sighed, slowly managing to climb the staircase to the main area. "Do you have any more information on what happened with my grandfather?"

Instead of answering, Kenji frowned as he looked at her. "You're injured."

"Well you didn't exactly send me to the Kuriboh and Cotton Candy Dimension," she retorted. "I'm fine, I'm just a bit sore."

"I still want you checked out before you head home. I'll explain while the doctors are checking you out," Kenji said.

Rolling her eyes, she relented. It wasn't like she'd have any other choice in the matter if she wanted to get home. Following Kenji into their hospital ward, she lifted her shirt up when one of the doctors moved to look at her back.

"Talk," she told Kenji. She knew she shouldn't speak to a superior officer in such a way, but she was anxious and frustrated.

"We detected a high amount of dark energy hovering around the game shop leading up to your grandfather's coma. We can't say for sure but… we think that the Millennium Items may have had something to do with it," Kenji explained with a small frown. "But we have no way of knowing for sure without you."

She hissed in pain as something was applied to the scar on her back. "So that's why you brought me back from the Pirate Dimension. You want me to figure out if it was a shadow game… which only brings up more questions."

"Indeed. That's all I have for you so far, so if you're cleared…" he looked over at the doctor, who nodded that she was. "Then you can head home."

Home. What an odd concept to her now.

But hours later as Reika stood in her old bedroom, her bow and arrows safely tucked away in the very back of her closet, she could feel a strange sense of belonging. A sense of peace. Without really thinking, she slowly made her way over to her jewelry box. She'd realized on her way home that she was going to need something to cover the tattoo she'd gotten with Nami – she didn't feel like answering so many questions at once.

Pulling out a gold bracelet her grandfather had gotten her while he was in Egypt, she held it up to the tattoo, and smiled in relief upon the realization that this would cover the mark on her wrist.

"Thank God," she whispered, slipping on the golden bracelet, before feeling the ground begin to spin for a moment. Her hands scrambled to grip the table as she looked at herself in the mirror. Letting out a slight groan, she shook her head. Why had she suddenly seen herself dressed in older-looking clothing? She must have been losing her mind.

Then again, she had only gotten three hours of sleep right after being seriously injured, so that explained it.

"Hello? Mom?" her cousin Yugi suddenly called, the faint sound of a door slamming following him. Shaking her head again to clear the odd feeling, Reika made her way downstairs.

"Yugi," she said with a small smile as she spotted her cousin in the main area of the shop. "It's been a long time."

"Reika!" Yugi cried, running over and hugging her tight. She returned it, glad to feel familiar arms around her again. "When did you get home?"

"Ah… only about an hour ago," she told him, fighting back a yawn. "I was just going to grab something to eat. Are you guys hungry? I can make enough for five." Her violet eyes darted over to the three friends Yugi had brought with him.

The blonde one grinned as they moved into the kitchen. "Well, I'll never turn down a meal but uh – who are you?"

"You're Yugi's cousin. I remember you from your graduation last year," the brunette girl said.

She nodded. "My name is Reika. And you're Téa, aren't you?"

"Yeah. That's me. And this is Joey and Tristan," Téa said with a smile.

"Ah… it's nice to meet you both. Are you duelists like my cousin?"

"I am. And I'm gonna win Duelist Kingdom for my sister!" Joey said with a wide smile.

She frowned as she tossed some garlic in a pan. "Duelist Kingdom? What's that?"

"It's a tournament sponsored by Maximilian Pegasus," Yugi said, giving Joey a strange look that Reika had seen before. A look that said 'don't say too much'. "I got invited to it because I beat Kaiba in a duel a couple months ago."

The mention of Seto Kaiba was an interesting one, but Reika knew that wasn't the important thing at the moment. "Really? And so the founder of duel monsters invited you to compete in a tournament?" she asked. "Did grandpa know about it? You know… before the coma?"

There was a glance passed between her cousin and his friends as she tossed noodles into the pan to cook. "Yugi… tell me the truth. He's my grandpa too."

Yugi nodded slowly. "Okay. Pegasus sent me a videotape and when I put it on… he challenged me to something called a Shadow Game. And I lost. And he said he took Grandpa's soul because I lost the game. So I have to go to Duelist Kingdom and win so I can get his soul back."

She paled a little when she noticed the Millennium Puzzle hanging around his neck. "So they're back. Shadow Games are back."

"Back? You know about them?" Tristan asked.

"I'm studying archaeology at school… and it was something that was mentioned in a few of my lessons. I didn't think… I didn't think it was real. Not like the items…" she trailed off, gesturing to the bracelet on her wrist. "I was only just starting to dig into them when I was called home."

It wasn't a lie, technically. She did know about the Millennium Items because of the studies… she had just been studying them in her free time on a pirate ship in a different dimension.

"So Pegasus has the ability to call Shadow Games. When do you leave for Duelist Kingdom?"

"We leave tomorrow night…"

Hm. Tomorrow didn't give her much time to get more information out of him, but she smiled and nodded in understanding as she got plates out. "I hope you're all hungry. My friend Sanji taught me how to make this."

"It smells delicious!" Tristan said with a grin as he and Joey snatched plates out of her hands and helped themselves to the pasta dish she'd made.

She shook her head in amusement as she watched her cousin and his friends as they ate together.  In the year she'd been gone it appeared that more had changed with her cousin than she ever expected. Now he was thrown into this shadow games madness with the creator of duel monsters.

Well, she thought, at least he has his friends with him. I couldn't be the only one protecting him after all.

  "I'll leave you guys to talk," she told them a couple hours later. "I had a long flight back here and it took a lot out of me. Goodnight."

"Night!" the group on the couch echoed as she went back up to her room.

"Goodnight, Reika," an unfamiliar voice whispered as she drifted to sleep.

[maisstories]

Tagged by @fanfiction-by-abalisk

Rules: List the first lines of your last 15 stories (or chapters). See if there are any patterns. Then tag 10 of your favorite authors!

(I’ve added the beginning of three as of yet unpublished things, two for OP and the other for FMA :D)

1.     Marco was flying towards one of the closed windows of Albus’ office when he froze mid-flight. There was someone else inside the office with Albus, and it wasn’t a professor, one of the headmasters from the other schools or even a tournament judge. (Recreated Fire, chapter 42)

2.     Sometimes Thatch liked to bring Ace’s new stroller into the kitchen at odd hours, when the place was calm and Thatch could focus on an experiment or whatever he felt like cooking, and tell him about random things. (Born to be a Pirate, chapter 4)

3.     Roy received his berating with stoic serenity. Molly Weasley had the kind of terrifying air that came with being the mother of seven children, some of which were truly unruly, and this air served her well in dealing with anyone she believed had stepped out of line. Roy, however, was used to having Riza Hawkeye looking over his shoulder, with her disapproving glares, words and gun ready for whenever he did something she didn’t like —which was often enough. Molly’s scolding over the reckless move that had been Roy’s fake date with Tonks tonight —and she was all the more horrified because they had run into Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy— was positively refreshing in comparison. (The Colours of the World, chapter 14)

4.     “That’s it, that’s our destination!” Vivi announced, pointing towards the coast of what remained of Erumalu. She had been trying hard not to think about crossing through this destroyed city since her arrival at Alabasta, and so far she had managed it thanks mostly to Luffy and Ace’s constant chatter as they caught up. Now, however, seeing the dried-up land and the silhouettes of the abandoned buildings… (A Sibling’s Love, chapter 8)

5.     Marco accepted the room key from the lady at the reception with a smile and a ‘thank you’ and headed towards the row of elevators in the hallway. Contrary to his previous times here, he didn’t cross paths with anyone. Then again, Sunday evening was probably too late for many people to arrive and too early for those already here to leave. There was some noise coming from the restaurant, but that was it. (In Your Hands, chapter 1)

6.     The meal passes as smoothly as Gracia hoped it would. Alphonse tries everything on the table. He is careful about how much he eats, mindful of the doctors’ orders, but his eyes shine with happiness and childish delight the entire time, and he keeps constantly complimenting Gracia on the food. Elicia is happy to help Alphonse decide what to try next, offering input on her favorite foods, while Edward and Roy mostly watch the scene unfold. It’s hilarious, because Edward is trying to pretend he isn’t as emotional over this moment as Alphonse is and Roy has put a calm mask on, as though he hasn’t been waiting for years to see Alphonse retrieve his body. Somehow, despite staying mostly silent, they manage to end up bickering more than once, and watching then trying to keep their bickering child-friendly has Gracia snickering into her napkin every time. (As the World Turns, chapter 7)

7.     Hermione had walked into Professor Mustang’s office with a full speech and a long list of arguments to defend her case of why that array wasn’t theirs ready in her mind. Her speech died before she could even open her mouth upon hearing Professor Mustang’s admission. (The Colours of the World, chapter 13)

8.     Roy went motionless the moment he snapped awake, his battle instincts coming to life at the feel of the hard ground —a sidewalk, it felt like a sidewalk— under his body. He listened attentively, but there was nothing to be heard aside from some distant traffic and the soft rustle of leaves. There was no sound that would signal the presence of people around him. (FMA Big Bang Story)

9.     When Elicia learns that they will have guests for dinner tonight, she insists on helping to get everything ready. Gracia doesn’t trust her anywhere near the kitchen appliances or the food, of course, but she is more than willing to sacrifice a bowl of pie dough to make Elicia happy. (As the World Turns, chapter 6)

10.  Law groaned and turned around in bed again, the pillow firmly covering his head. The party had been going on for hours. Law had stayed for a while, had even enjoyed himself at first, but there was only so much time he could stand boisterous drunkards doing increasingly stupid and embarrassing antics. Law had quit the party the moment the lewd jokes moved from jokes to actual groping between people that felt no real attraction to one another while sober. (Paper Monsters, chapter 6)

11.  Marco is the first one awake that morning. It’s not odd, given how he rolled away from the position he settled in on deck last night and the sun hit him straight on the face at dawn. (Being Human, chapter 33)

12.  The World Government liked to handle most of the Shichibukai-related affairs at their base on Mariejois. Tsuru had no doubt that it was meant as a show of the government’s might for the Shichibukai, even if no one used such words to describe it. Personally, Tsuru thought it had no effect, at least not the desired one. No Shichibukai she had met had ever been impressed or awed by the Holy Land. Doflamingo found his visits hilarious, Mihawk was utterly indifferent to the place and what it represented, Jinbe had hated it… and right now… well, it was clear that Law was no more impressed by Mariejois than Mihawk was. (The Shichibukai, chapter 2)

13.  When Marco wakes up, he can immediately tell that this is not the room in which he has been sleeping lately. He doesn’t need any light to know where he is, but he raises a hand and calls his fire anyway. The sight of his cabin greets his eyes. The cabin that was destroyed alongside the rest of the Moby Dick over two years ago. (Living Dreams)

14.  Harry walked into the Alchemy classroom with his notes tucked under his arm. Next to him, Hermione was reviewing her own notes and Ron had an exasperated expression on his face, as though he hadn’t spent last night desperately going through his alchemy notes in an attempt to make up for the fact that he had been so focused on quidditch he hadn’t looked at them all week. Honestly, Harry hadn’t studied that much himself, what with Umbridge’s horrid detentions taking up so much of his time. (The Colours of the World, chapter 12)

15.  “I’m thinking I should tell Diggory about the dragons,” Harry told Marco on Sunday morning during a break from their risky flying training. “Hagrid took Maxime there, too, and I’m sure she’ll tell Delacour.” Hagrid probably hadn’t even thought of that possibility; knowing him, he most likely believed seeing dragons was an amazing plan for a date. “And I saw Karkaroff when I was leaving, so Krum has to know about the dragons by now.” (Recreated Fire, chapter 41)

The only pattern I could say I see here is that I tend to start chapters and stories using narration. In fact, the only two examples that start with dialogue are because I couldn’t get the narration to work properly.

I’m not tagging anybody, whoever wants to fill it go ahead. I’m curious to see what you guys write like :D