(no subject)
Title: Prelude to a New Day
Characters: Dragon, Shanks
Rating: PG
Summary: A one-shot with Dragon and Shanks and some Roger in the background.
Prelude to a New Day
Dragon sat on the prow of the large ship, safely curled up in the shadows and hidden away from the raucous party that was still going on full swing, even now in the wee hours of the morning. Hidden away from the glaring lights and far enough away from the roars of laughter and rattling music, he thoughtfully nursed a bottle of sake as he stared out into the blue-black sea almost indistinguishable from the slowly lightening sky. The stars were not yet hidden by the overpowering glory of the sun and sparkled serenely over the calm sea that gently the rocked the ship as it sailed smoothly ahead.
There was a crash and bellowing shout, either of drunken amusement or fury. Dragon couldn't tell. He almost smiled at the thought. The crew of Jolly Roger pirates were…interesting and unorthodox. To say nothing of their captain! When he'd appeared on their ship and boldly presented himself to the infamous pirate as the son of his worst enemy, Dragon had expected to fight his way through the bloodthirsty horde out for his blood as vengeance for Vice-Admiral Garp's relentless chase or at the very least a promise from their captain to hold him indefinitely for ransom. Instead, the grinning pirate had joyfully clapped him on the shoulder as if he were a long-lost nephew and declared a party to celebrate his meeting "that crazy old dog's son!"
And so, Dragon found himself the center of attention as pirates clamored to meet him and offer him food, drink, or challenge him to fight to show how the son of a famous Marine handled himself in combat. He'd politely rebuffed most of the offers, and stuck by Roger's side to observe him. He'd heard a lot about the pirate from his father, strangely most of it tinged by fond exasperation and a good deal of respect. Watching the carefree pirate celebrate with unrestrained cheer, like a child or an immortal, Dragon couldn't help but study him intently. He was so much like his father, yet somehow so much more… He'd finally pulled himself away from the crazy celebration and its hot heavy atmosphere to find some peace and quiet.
Something blew by his head, headed out to sea. He caught it reflexively and turned the thing over curiously in his hands. A simple straw hat, well-loved and worn, decorated only by a bright red band.
"Hey, that's mine!"
A young pirate ambled over, barely into his teens by the look of him. He had the cocksure grin of a pirate tempered by a steady gaze and confident bearing. His hair was almost as red as the hat's band.
Dragon wordlessly handed him the straw hat which he immediately set on his head and pulled back to a comfortable position on his flyaway hair.
"Thanks, mate! Hey, you're Garp's kid, aren't you? What're you doing over here? The party's for you, ain't it?"
"Felt like getting some fresh air." Dragon shrugged and passed the boy his bottle of sake which the young pirate eagerly took and gulped down with relish.
"Thanks. For a Marine brat, you're alright."
Dragon let a small smile cross his face at the off-hand compliment.
"How'd you lose that hat?"
"Buggy tossed it after I made fun of his nose again." The boy smiled almost fondly, "He's sooo sensitive about that thing!"
"You mean the red-nosed brat?"
"Yup! That’s him. Me an' him are friends, even if we don't see eye-to-eye on everything. Or should I say, nose-to-nose!" The boy snickered at his own joke as he took another healthy swig from the sake bottle.
"Aren't you a little young to be drinking?" Dragon asked, habits of a strict upbringing rising up despite himself.
"I'm a pirate, aren't I?" The boy rolled his eyes at the young man's disapproval, "Besides, I doubt you're much older than me!"
Dragon had to let out an ironic chuckle at the boy's bluntness.
"So what made you come onto a pirate ship anyways?" The boy asked lightly, passing the sake bottle back to the silent young man.
"Curiosity." The sake burned down his throat like liquid fire. Dragon frowned and stared thoughtfully at the bottle's label, "No, not even that. More…the need to know what kind of man Gol D. Roger is. The one everyone calls a demon and a monster. The one my father calls a crazy idiot."
"Yeah, people say those kinds of things all the time." The boy smiled as he leaned back against the crates piled against the deck, "Doesn't matter what they say. We're pirates looking for freedom and adventure. That's all we care about."
"You willing to die for that?" Dragon asked quietly, settling down next to the young pirate.
"Mm-hmm. We've all got our dreams on this ship. If we die trying to reach them, then we die. If they aren't worth dying for, they aren't really worth anything, right?"
Dragon found himself staring over in wonder at the pirate who wore a calm peaceful smile on his face.
"You sound like my dad." Dragon admitted.
"Really?" The boy chuckled, pulling the brim of his hat to shade his forehead, "I was just quoting my captain!"
Dragon had to laugh at the irony, two enemies on opposite sides sharing so much between them. A comfortable sort of silence settled upon the two young men, isolated from the merriment that still went on into the early dawn.
"That's kind of why I came here." Dragon finally said. He wrapped his arms around his knees in a childlike pose, not caring what he looked like to the carefree pirate.
"I've been having a crisis of faith, of sorts. I don't really know what to believe in anymore. I don't know who's right and who's wrong, just that so much what I thought was true wasn't. It isn't my dad. He's alright." Absolutely crazy and unpredictable. Semi-Physically abusive, but loving in his own way. Alright as fathers went. "It's everything else. Everything around me. Your captain's just the tip of the iceberg. He's not really what I expected, but I doubt anyone knows what to expect from him by now.
"It's the entire world! Just everything and everyone. I've seen so many things that make me wonder if the government really is what it says it is. If Justice is real or if it's just a nice façade to hide the ugly corruption that just stares everyone in the face! People are being killed and worse and I… I don't know what to believe anymore. These days, I feel like the World Government would kill every single man, woman, and child, so long as "Justice" was served.
"I thought I'd get some answers if I went to meet Gol D. Roger himself, but all that's given me is more questions. I don't know where I stand, where I ought to stand. I love my dad, I really do, but what he works for, what he risks his life to defend… I just don't know anymore."
He risked a half-glance at the pirate sprawled next to him, forehead still shadowed by his hat. The boy just lay there comfortably. Dragon frowned and then blinked in mild surprise as a soft buzzing noise emerged from beneath the hat. Dragon couldn’t help but smile and looked back up at the brightening sky with a small weary sigh.
"Should've known." He muttered, "Guess the only answers I should expect are the ones I find for myself, right?"
He stared from the deck of the Oro Jackson as the sun slowly peaked over the deep blue horizon, filling the day with clear light. A new day, countless possibilities lay ahead. If only he knew where to go from here.
Dragon seems to have met Roger sometime in the past, or perhaps knew him at a distance. Whatever their relation, Dragon seemed to have some kind of respect for the pirate since he referenced Roger's words at Luffy's almost execution and he was seen grimly watching Roger's execution. I'd like to think he and Roger would have gotten along, even if Dragon was the son of his enemy. And then Shanks popped in...! The party-loving idiot! *glares at the cheerful red-haired pirate who just drunkenly salutes with a bottle of sake*