Chapter 1 - Embers

It was a warm day, and a slight breeze was blowing through her hair as she walked through the town. As the familiar ship came into sight, she grinned, chuckling happily to herself. Once she got closer, she could hear the sounds of the crew, a few voices standing out that she recognised. Though she couldn't hear a certain man's iconic laugh yet. The dock was long, making room for the huge ship.

The Moby Dick, legendary ship of the Whitebeard pirates, was close enough for her to almost touch now, as she strolled down to the small bridge linking the dock to the huge vessel. A few of the crew loading supplies greeted her, and a couple didn't recognise her at all. She strolled onto the ship and took in the people around her. There was new faces, but most were familiar.

"Lyanna?" A deep, gruff voice sounded from her right, and she turned to see the gigantic Third Division Commander, Diamond Jozu.

"Jozu." Her voice was low and serious. "How many times do I need to tell you?" Abruptly she grinned happily and ran over to him. "That you must always greet me with a hug!"

He laughed, realising that she was messing with him and pulled her into his massive arms. "It's so good to see you!"

"And you. I've missed you guys. This is always the best time of year." She could barely get her arms around even half of him, but she was too happy to care.

They both pulled back, smiling happily. Lyanna usually visited once a year, and she had missed her friends aboard the Moby Dick. Everyone had changed too, some a little, some a lot and some barely at all. Jozu had barely changed. But there was a few more that she desperately wanted to see. Izo laid eyes on her and she waved to him cheerfully. Vista tipped his hat along with a bow and she did a unladylike curtesy in return, which made him grin at her.

"Where is he?" She asked Jozu referring to her closest friend aboard this ship.

"Last I saw, he was above." Jozu pointed to the crow's nest atop the mast and she looked up.

She saw his ridiculous mop of blond hair and purple shirt, recognising him instantly, even when he was so high up with his back to her. With a laugh, she dropped her backpack, shifted her weight and took a deep breath in.

"Marco!" She yelled loudly, so loudly that the whole ship looked straight at her, some saw her and laughed and those who didn't were told the story by those who knew.

He leant over the edge and froze for a moment before he yelled back. "Lyanna!" She heard him laughing as he hopped over the edge of the crow's nest.

Her blue-grey eyes went wide as she recognised his transformation. Bright blue flames emerged from his body and she put her hands up in defence.

"No, no, no! Marco, stop!" Her voice was firm, but she had already accepted her fate. She wouldn't be able to move out of the way in time, or she would risk making things worse.

So instead, she was tackled by her friend and fell against the wooden deck with a heavy thud. He was laughing and sounded so happy, but she couldn't laugh with him because she was certain that the wound on her back had reopened and had to bite back the pain. He sat up and saw her strained expression and it was just long enough for her counter attack. Her right arm swung in a hook which hit him in the jaw. She pushed him off her and tried to sit up, but failed.

"That fucking hurt, Marco!"

He laughed as he rubbed his jaw that would have already begun to bruise if he wasn't a Mythical Zoan. She had always hit hard, and that had not changed. Lyanna certainly hadn't grown taller either, she had stopped growing once she hit about 5"1'. She was wearing a pair of flat, ankle-high, black boots, with spikes on the heel. They were her favourite. Her cropped navy pants were accented by her pistol and dagger holsters, and her loose black singlet revealed the corner of her tattoo on her shoulder. Her face had thinned out a little, a sign of her being incredibly fit, and it was reinforced by the appearance of lean, toned muscle on her legs and arms. The rest of her body was more shapely than last he saw her too. She had clearly become a woman. Her deep brown hair was much longer, and reached the small of her back, even in its braid. Long lashes framed her blue-grey eyes and they stared frustratedly at the sky from her position on her back.

Again, she tried to get up, not realising that her old friend was staring at her, noticing the things about her that had changed. A hand came in front of her face, and she took it carefully. The person helped her up and once she stood, she looked them up and down. It was someone she didn't recognise at first.

At least, six feet tall, he had impressive musculature that threatened to catch her eye for longer than was appropriate. If she threw caution to the wind, she knew she would enjoy running her hands over his form. He wore a large red-beaded necklace and she briefly noticed his tattoo, but didn't linger on it, recognising him immediately just from that image.

His face was much more handsome than she expected, and he was probably a year or so older than her. His freckles made him look younger again, but it was his surprisingly polite smile that took her off guard most of all. It wasn't the expression she expected to see on his face.

"Nice to meet you…" he was waiting for her to answer him and tell him her name.

As quickly as she could, she snapped out of her trance and answered. "Lyanna...You are Fire Fist Ace, aren't you?"

"You know me?" His boyish grin almost rendered her speechless, but Marco answered the question for her.

"It's her job to know things, Ace. She's our main source for what's happening on the Grand Line." He put his arm around the smaller girl's shoulders and smirked.

"Ahh, so she is the old friend you've mentioned." Ace smiled with his crew mate as Marco nodded.

Someone called out to the First Division Commander so he lightly punched Lyanna on the arm and walked away, leaving her shaking her head at him. Once he had left, she slumped a little, still feeling the pain from the earlier impact. Trying to make sure no one saw, she carefully put her hand up the back of her shirt, just enough to touch the wound. It felt wet, and she knew that it was bleeding again. Swearing under her breath, she didn't notice Ace's eyes on her, drawn by her sudden change in demeanour. When she withdrew her hand and brushed it against her clothes, he saw a brief flash of red on it and wasn't sure if it was blood. Before he could ask her if she was okay, Thatch appeared to greet her.

"My dearest Lyanna. How I've missed you! You are as beautiful as ever!" He hugged her and she returned it, but didn't let him linger, knowing that if she didn't pull away, he would try to pick her up and run away with her. It had happened before.

"Thatch. It's good to see you. You look well." She smiled as she pulled back, purposely stepping back out of his reach as well. The glint in his eye faded, and she knew she had foiled his plan.

"So, are you here to finally accept my proposal?" He clapped his hands together and shifted his weight onto his toes in anticipation.

Her laugh was as sardonic as it could get, "Hah! I've turned you down for the last 2 years. Did you think I would change my mind?"

"The saying goes 'third time's the charm'. I figured it couldn't hurt to try." He shrugged and chuckled, clearly not bothered by the rejection. It was a old, inside joke of theirs, but Lyanna knew that if she actually agreed, he probably wouldn't know what to do with himself. She doubted he had even thought that far ahead.

"You're lucky Marco is out of earshot then. He threatened to kill you the first time you asked, and I think his threat still stands." Lyanna smirked mischievously and felt eyes on her.

She looked to Ace, who had a strange expression on his face, but only for a second. He quickly grinned at her, and adjusted his hat before wandering off as other crew members came over to greet her.

After the rest of the crew said hello, and she was introduced to a few new members, Marco came back to get her.

"He's ready for you." They walked together, his arm over her shoulder and hers around his waist until they got into their destination.

The legendary pirate Captain, Edward 'Whitebeard' Newgate, was seated at a table in his quarters, and she gave him a beaming smile as his eyes fell on her. His usual laugh sounded out in the room, and her arm fell away from around Marco as she ran towards him full pelt.

"Old man!" Her tone was the happiest she had recognised it to be in a year. She was so glad to see him.

Leaping up, she landed in his lap and put her arms around him. His massive hand came to rest on her back and head as she returned her embrace while he laughed happily. She teared up a little as she held onto him, feeling absolutely great now that she had seen him.

"How are you, my daughter?" His voice boomed and he pulled back so he could look at her.

"Better now that I'm here. I never get a good night's sleep anywhere else. I never feel as safe as I do here." She smiled up at him, craning her neck back to make eye contact with the Pirate Captain.

"I'm glad that you are here too." He smiled warmly and she hopped down, ready to get down to business.

Marco took that as a sign for him to leave but said he would bring them both something to eat shortly. Whitebeard thanked him kindly and nodded for him to leave. Lyanna climbed onto the huge table and examined the maps and charts he had laid out. Then they began their discussion.

Every year when Lyanna visited, she would inform him of the state of all of the settlements that were under his protection. Lyanna was an information broker and it was her job to know everything that happened in the world. The more she knew, the more money she made. She never charged Whitebeard for her service as he was an old friend and someone who had done a lot for her in her life. She had almost joined his crew at one point but decided against it, knowing that she was better off working alone. In regards to combat, she could hold her own but the Whitebeard pirates were on a whole other level. She didn't want to have everyone protecting her either. Also, her abilities made her perfect for the job.

The discussion took a bit over 2 hours and she made sure she informed him of all of the changes in the settlements, which included the death of Mayor Daron from one of the villages. He had been ill for a long time and was an old friend of Whitebeard, so it was sad news. She had attended the funeral in Whitebeard's place and offered condolences on his behalf. When they were done she left the Captain to rest knowing that every year she saw him he was getting weaker and weaker. Every time she noticed his health declining, even slightly, it made her heart ache.

She went out to see Marco, and found him playing cards with a few of his fellow commanders. he dealt her in for the next round and they played a few hands each, a couple of which she won. Lyanna had a good poker face and knew how to use it. Ace was sitting behind her snoring lightly and she asked the men if he normally slept like that. They laughed and told her that he had a narcolepsy problem and would quite frequently fall asleep at random times. She chuckled and watched his peaceful sleeping face for a moment before turning away. If she didn't know any better, she would have thought he was dead.

After a few more rounds, they went to bed and Lyanna managed to get out of accepting Thatch's offer to stay with him for the night, even though she knew he was harmless. Instead, she was offered a bed in the crew's quarters. She hadn't told anyone, but she hadn't slept in three days now, and her wound was beginning to take it's toll. Especially since she had reopened it earlier today. It wasn't a good idea, but she had been too excited to rest as soon as she arrived. As she stood up, she felt dizzy and fell back down immediately.

Someone caught her before she cracked her skull open on the deck, and she heard Marco's voice call her name in alarm. She swore at herself for being so weak and careless, and felt Marco pick her up and carry her somewhere in the ship. She couldn't tell where they were going because her head was spinning like crazy and she just tried to stay conscious.

Marco placed her down carefully on a bed, and she heard the ship's doctor tell him to roll her over after seeing the spotted blood on his arms from carrying her. They lifted her singlet and saw a large, sword wound that almost spanned her entire back. It had been seeping blood for the last few hours, and she hadn't noticed the effects until she tried to stand up.

Blond hair came into her line of sight, and once she focused her vision, she knew it was Marco kneeling in front of the bed.

"What the fuck happened, Lyanna? That is a massive cut. You don't get hit like that...ever." his voice was quiet and concerned for his old friend as he brushed some hair from her face.

"I was protecting someone." she said cryptically and got a sigh from Marco in response. She was always stubborn like this.

He nodded, but wasn't happy. "Why didn't you come to us sooner and get treated? We've been here for a week now waiting to meet with you. We were going to send men to look for you soon." she stayed quiet and raised an eyebrow at him, and he understood. "This is why you were late and couldn't come sooner." he exhaled slowly in a concerned sigh.

Another voice sounded from her left, and she turned to see Ace speaking. "Who was it?" his face was surprisingly serious, very different from the cheery expressions she had seen earlier.

"Just rookie pirates wanting information for free. They grabbed a young kid to try and, uh...change my mind." she answered him evenly, but her eyes were dark with anger.

"You protected the kid?" Marco asked, and she nodded once in confirmation.

"Guys, she'll be fine, but you are going to need to leave so I can patch her up." the doctor's voice was firm, and the few crew members began to disperse. "Get some rest, Lyanna. You clearly need it."

That was all the encouragement she needed to fall into a deep, but fitful sleep...