Archive of Our Own

Harry James Potter had never thought that he would live past the war, yet he had and against all odds as well. But it wasn't in the world that he had been born into or the world that he was used to, instead he had found himself in another world and it was filled with pirates, bounty hunters, marines, angels, giants, fishmen. It was so strange for him and considering he came from a magical world where things like physics didn't apply that was saying something especially when he stopped and considered the things he had done and seen, however Harry was used to adapting he had to, Harry had learned quickly that if he didn't adapt then he could end up injured or dead. He had been through enough pain, the war, losing Sirius and everything else. But that didn't mean that he didn't stop to look around, even with the pirates and the marines constantly fighting it was strangely peaceful.

Harry wondered how they were able to do it and by it, Harry meant ignore the two fighting sides. It couldn't be easy, not when cannonballs are flying through the air destroying towns where people lived. But they did, people went about their lives as if nothing was wrong. To Harry it was slightly disturbing, but then again he hadn't been here that long to know if this was normal or not. Harry enjoyed the peace while he could, he knew that it wouldn't last. Nothing lasted forever, it simply wasn't possible everything changed.

Despite the fact that it was peaceful and the people were friendly, it didn't change the fact that he didn't have a job or a home. He still had his trunk and it contained some of his vault, but the currency was very different. Harry wasn't sure what it would be worth, or if it was worth anything at all. Harry knew that he was good at fighting, but he didn't want to be a pirate, nor was he willing to become a marine. Which left him with only one option, bounty hunter, it wasn't what he wanted to do. Harry was more than willing to settle down, to open a shop or something along those lines. He didn't want to fight and kill anymore, it may have been Voldemort's life that he had taken but he still regretted it. Even though Voldemort was evil, he had been human at one point. Harry had learned that evil wasn't born, evil was something that was created. It was what humans created, it also explained why he couldn't fully forgive Dumbledore for what he had done.

For Harry time passed slowly, Harry had collected a number of bounties. His reputation was slowly being built up even though it had taken nearly seven years to do so, most of the pirates that heard his name ran. The warlords, the Yonko and the many other big names kept their ears to the ground when it came to him, they all gathered what information they could. People watched him they tried to figure him out, tried to see what he would do next, Harry tried not to let it get to him. He couldn't let it get to him, not when he had a job to do but sometimes, he wondered what it would be like to have a crew. To have a group of people that he could depend on, he didn't act on it though. He wasn't going to risk it, he knew that he wouldn't be able to trust them fully and that wasn't fair to them or him. The last thing he needed or wanted was a knife in the back, no Harry felt as if he was better off alone.

However fate is strange, throwing a curve ball at people when they least expect it. For Harry it came in the form of a fishman, a fishman that went by the name of Jinbei.

Harry had been tracking a pirate that was known for his tastes in children, to be more specific young boys. There was a very large bounty on him, Harry wasn't too bothered about the bounty this time, and he was more interested in getting rid of the creep. For three very long weeks he had tracked him, taking great care in not being detected. He didn't want to scare his prey too soon, while normally he wouldn't take much pleasure from this, this one he was enjoying. He hated child abusers and molesters the most, it might have something to do with his own shit childhood, but Harry didn't want anyone to go through what he had. He hadn't been molested, but he knew if given half the chance then Vernon would have sold his body.

Vernon was always looking to one up people, to claim he was better than they were. Harry hated his childhood with a passion and even though he had come to terms with it, it wasn't something that he liked to dwell on. But it hadn't changed the fact that his childhood had helped shape him, he could have become bitter about it. He didn't instead he had clung to the happy times he had, even though there was very few times. It may not have been the best childhood but Harry still had some good memories, memories that he held close to his heart.

Harry had set everything up, the plan was nearly fool proof. He had planned on attacking when they were further out, he didn't want anyone helping them. He even had some spare medical supplies just in case there was any injured, if there was? Then he would patch them up and drop them off at the nearest island that had been the plan.

But all his carefully laid plans for derailed when some young amateur bounty hunter attacked, Harry groaned because the young bounty hunter had just attracted the attention, of another pirate ship. This was not going to end well and he could see that, that didn't mean that he was going to stand by and watch that wasn't in his nature, but at the same time he couldn't let his prey get away. Damnit it was a hard decision, one that he wasn't sure if he wanted to make, if he could make. Harry scowled if he didn't act then the young rookie could end up dead and his prey gone, Harry sighed, it wasn't that hard for him to choose. Harry grabbed hold of his scythe, while he wasn't a master at using it Harry could still give people a good run for their money.

Harry grabbed his mask, he had taken to wearing it after he had taken down his first bounty. He had very quickly realised that if people knew his face, then they could track him and Harry didn't want that. So he wore a mask, it wasn't the best one around but it did its job and that was what Harry cared about. Making sure that he had everything Harry quickly launched himself off his small boat watching as it rocked a few times and began running towards the fighting, the fact that he was in the air wasn't a concern. CP-9 weren't the only ones that could run in the air, he had just suffered more injuries from more trial and error than anyone else. It wasn't as if he had a teacher, nearly everything he knew was from watching people and being self-taught. Copying what people did until he got it right, he had to get it right, he wanted to live he wasn't going to just survive anymore. Those days were over, green eyes caught sight of the jolly roger of the other ship. It looked like a sun? Either way Harry had a rookie to rescue and a bounty to collect.

“Boss! Look out!”

He shouldn't have done that, his job had just got a hell of a lot more difficult but still it couldn't be helped. Look outs kept their crews safe and Harry knew that and deep down he respected them for it, it still didn't stop him from snarling behind his mask even with the fact that he respected them he still hated them as well mainly because they made his job harder to do, it was not impossible but far harder than what it should be, however that didn't that they were going to be getting away that easily that was if they got away at all. Twisting his body slightly Harry began diving towards the pirate ship, just as he was about to crash into it he opened his cloak. People looked up and gaped, there in the sky was them.

Weeping Angel.

A bounty hunter who had yet to fail, no one knew who they were. All anyone knew was when you saw them, you were dead no ifs and no buts. Many pirates had said that the Angel was an omen of death, and they weren't wrong. No one knew who they were, no one knew what they looked like either, all anyone knew was they wore a white mask with tear tracks on it. That and the one that had been called the Weeping Angel used a scythe with deadly precision, no one had been able to beat them, and some people had even claimed it was as if they were fighting a demon. Considering the fact that on the grand line and in the new world the Yonko lived there, it was saying something, the Weeping Angel was that good or people had gotten sloppy and lazy. Which was far from the truth, many of the people that had been taken out by the Weeping Angel were in their top form, it did however cause some people to wonder who would win in a fight between the Weeping Angel and a Yonko, then again they hoped that the bounty hunter never came across the Yonko or the warlords. No one wanted the think about the damage that could happen, even some of the marines were wary of the bounty hunter.

They had no allegiance to anyone, it didn't matter who a person was. Once the Weeping Angel got someone in their sights that was it, they would meet their end. To many it was fact as they had lost friends to the bounty hunter, people didn't want to see the hunter. Not when it meant their deaths.

There was also the fact that no one knew anything about the Weeping Angel worried people, it was as if they had just appeared one day. There were a lot of rumours going around about them, that didn't change the fact that there was no information on them. To many it was as if the bounty hunter was a ghost. A ghost with a single purpose of taking down all pirates, to many it shouldn't be possible and yet it was.

The scythe glinted in the sun, some of the pirates looked at him. They were small, that was the first thought that crossed man people's minds. For someone who had such a large reputation, they were surprisingly tiny. That didn't mean that they were going to underestimate them, they all knew that the reputation that this bounty hunter had was well earned. Many of them were looking forwards to fighting them, to see if they could beat them. For others they just wanted to see what they were capable of, if the person lived up to the reputation. It was fairly common for people to exaggerate things, it would be a good way to see if the stories were true or not.

“So Weeping Angel, has finally decided to grace us with their presence. Are we supposed to bow? To bask in your glow?”

No reaction, not that it was surprising. The Weeping Angel wasn't known to be a talkative person, that didn't mean that people didn't try to get a reaction from them. They did, it was just more often than not they failed. Which annoyed a lot of people, it had also sparked the theory that the bounty hunter wasn't even alive. That they were a doll created by the marines, created with one purpose. There was still the ghost theory as well, no one knew what to make of them.

“Not in the mood for talking? That's fine, after all you'll be dead soon.”

The captain snarled, there was still no reaction. What did he have to do? How did he get a reaction? Well no matter, once he had taken out this nuisance he would be able to find out, just who it was.

A scythe was gracefully twirled around gloved hands, a small shift in their stance. A smirk made its way onto the captain's face, it had been too long since he had a good fight.

It had been another normal day, or as normal as it could get being a pirate captain and a member of the seven warlords. Some training followed by a light breakfast, then more training. It wasn't the best routine that he had, but for Jinbei it was enough, being a former member of the Neptune army and then joining the Sunny pirates.

Fisher Tiger.

A fishman that had done so much for him, that had taught him so much. Even after Fisher had beaten him, he had taken care of him. Even when Fisher had left the island, Jinbei had been worried about him. But Fisher had returned, to everyone he been the same. Even he had been fooled, but that had been because he had been so happy to see him. To know that Fisher was still alive, to see him with his own eyes.

Then everything shattered, they had been betrayed and Fisher revealed the truth. It had been a harsh blow to all of them, it had shaken them all. It had shaken him to his core, he hadn't wanted to believe it. Jinbei had tried to see the good in people, to believe that not everyone was evil. But that dream had had been shattered in one moment.

Jinbei had been sure that he would never meet a decent human, that they all had some evil in them. He knew that even fishmen were capable of being evil as well, that it wasn't just one species that everyone no matter what race they were could be evil. It hadn't changed the fact that it had been humans that had done this, that had taken his brother from him. That wasn't completely true, because after years of traveling the sea and going to the warlord meetings. After so long of doubting himself and others, he met him. The one person that would help him to change his views.

Whitebeard.

A man who was one of a kind, who had called him son. Who didn't care that he was a fishman, that he was a warlord. To Whitebeard he was simply Jinbei, his son. Jinbei had no doubt that Whitebeard was one of a kind, that there was no one else like him. Whitebeard’s crew, his family had taken to Jinbei rather well but that hadn't stopped his doubt. Even though he had wanted to stay with the Whitebeards, Jinbei knew that he couldn't stay with them.

He had a duty and a job to do, and he wasn't going to let his personal feelings get in the way. No matter how much he wanted to.

So Jinbei continued to sail with his crew, he helped out where he could, while he wasn't friendly with the other warlords he did try and help them out. It wasn't the best thing that he had ever did, but it helped him gather information. It was how he had heard about the new bounty hunter, Jinbei would be the first to admit that when he had first heard about them, he didn't think that they would last long. Eventually they learned their name.

Weeping Angel.

But just because they had a name didn't mean, that they knew anything else about them. No one had any information on them, no one even knew if they were male or female. There was even a debate amongst the warlords whether they were human or not, Jinbei didn't take part in it. While it was an interesting debate, Jinbei didn't have enough information to make a guess. Nor did he want to make assumptions either, it wasn't his place to judge anyone, Jinbei felt as if he didn't have the right to judge. Not after what he had done, not with the blood on his hands.

As time went by Jinbei had heard more and more about the bounty hunter and he wasn't the only one, the marines were trying to get the Weeping Angel to work for them. Jinbei found it amusing that they couldn't find them, that even with all marines, spies and information gathering centers that they had, they couldn't find one person. He wasn't going to tell anyone that he found it greatly amusing, although he did wonder how they were able to avoid everyone for so long.

Jinbei knew that one of the warlords would end up meeting the bounty hunter, it would be impossible for them not to cross paths. If Jinbei was a betting person, he would have said that it would have been Mihawk to meet them first.

It had started out like any other normal day, Aladine had taken the last watch of the night. Jinbei trusted his first mate to alert them to any trouble, however it seemed as if last night was one of the very rare peaceful nights. Jinbei had decided to let his first mate sleep in, there was no need for him to be awake so early not after he had the last watch. With that in mind Jinbei began making his rounds on the ship, most of the crew was already awake. Which wasn't that shocking as most of them got up with the sun, it was only the people that had night watch that got up later than everyone else.

Things had been quiet which was a very good thing, quiet days were rare and they enjoyed them with a passion. It hadn't stayed like that.

The sound of an explosion had destroyed what little peace they had, the ship had rocked slightly as the ship was hit by a shockwave. Jinbei looked at his crew, it appeared that no one was injured.

“What was that?”

Jinbei looked at Aladine, so much for letting his first mate get some sleep.

“We are not sure at the present moment in time.”

Which was not a good thing, the lack of information could lead to them being injured or killed. They needed to find out what was going on and quickly, Jinbei looked up to the crow's nest.

“Anything to report?”

It was silent for a few minutes, some of the crew shifted slightly, they were eager for a good fight. But they wouldn't act unless Jinbei gave them the go ahead, but that wouldn't be until they had more information.

“Looks like someone has attacked a pirate ship, from the smoke coming from it. It looks like the ship has taken some serious damage.”

The fishmen turned and looked at the ship, the smoke billowing off it gave an indication of just how bad the damage was. Some idly wondered if the explosion had killed anyone, it wasn't as if they were going to shed any tears of the loss. Some people were just pure evil, there was no redemption for them. Others were what other people had made them, they had no other choice. It wasn't their place to judge, they were pirates but sometimes evil looked at them. They stared back, they tried to do some good but it didn't always work out.

“What is the jolly roger?”

They weren't about to sail away, not if they could help. They could round up any survivors, help them get to an island. Even give the dead a proper burial, it might not be much, but was all they could do.

“It's the bloody red pirates.”

That had certainly changed things, not only was the captain known for his tastes, he was also known for dealing in slavery, drugs and weapons. He was one of the worst pirates that there could be, a trail of dead bodies, broken families and traumatised children could be found. It didn't matter where he went, even the worst pirates kept clear of them. Which spoke volumes, Jinbei looked at his crew.

On one hand this was a known child molester, not one of them would mourn his passing, in fact they may throw a party over the fact that he had died. Jinbei himself found the man to be, distasteful. Not only had he destroyed lives, but there were confirmed rumours that he had bragged about what he had done, Jinbei looked at the still smoking ship.

The fact that they had managed to confirm them, meant that they were no longer rumours. That had hit Jinbei the most, that someone was willing doing this.

“Boss, we have a unknown…..shit!”

That alarmed Jinbei no one in his crew swore, unless it was for a good or genuine reason. The question was on the tip of his tongue, he was going to ask until he saw the pale shaking form. The question flew from his mind and concern for his crew took over.

“Nachi? What did you see?”

Nachi was a young shark fishman, he had only joined the crew two years ago. While Nachi had blue skin, there was two rings of yellow around his eyes. It made him look slightly demonic, but Nachi was far from it.

“Boss, stay away from the ship. You have got to stay away.”

Jinbei wasn't the only one concerned, Nachi looked as if he had just been inside of a sea king. They were pirates and had seen and done a lot but not one of them had ever seen a member of their family so rattled, so scared. Aladine moved forwards slightly, whatever it was that Nachi rattled was not good.

“Nachi, whatever it was you saw. It can't hurt you, you are safe.”

Nachi shuddered, no he wasn't none of them were and if Jinbei went over there. He wouldn't come back. Nachi knew who it was, he wasn't going to let his family die.

“You don't understand, it was them.”

Aladine shook his head at Nachi, the young fishman wasn't making much sense at all.

“Nachi, who?”

The crew watched as the young fishman took in a large breath.

“I saw them, Weeping Angel. The omen of death.”

Suddenly the way Nachi was acting made sense, many of them looked towards the billowing smoke. The bloody red pirates would be meeting their end that was fact. Some of the crew were twitching slightly, this was not something that they wanted to deal with. Jinbei made a decision.

“Then we shall see if they need help, the bloody red pirates are underhanded, they will use any means necessary to win. It will not be easy for them.”

With that Jinbei made his way up the stairs, some of the crew weren't sure that it was the right course of action, but they weren't going to argue. Not when Jinbei had made up his mind. They knew that it wasn't possible to change it, Jinbei was stubborn. Some of the crew sighed, they hoped that they would make it out alive.

This was boring, no it was beyond boring. Harry had expected a challenge, he had thought that maybe, just maybe he would get a good workout. Harry wanted to laugh, he really did.

“Stay still!”

Harry rolled his eyes behind his mask, there was no way he was going to make it easy. Well for them, Harry sighed this was a waste of his time. He blocked an attack that was meant for his chest, it was a low blow. But what else did he expect?

The bloody red pirates, were not known for their fairness. A shot rang out and Harry had to roll out of the way that was beyond underhanded. Not only did he have to worry about a sniper, there was still the young bounty hunter that was unconscious. Harry couldn't get to her, not without leaving himself open to another attack. But he couldn't just leave her, at the same time he wasn't about to let this scum get away.

This was one of the times where he wished that he had a crew, or someone to back him up.

“Hyakumaigawara Seiken.”

Harry watched with fascination as a body went flying, the sound of the body hitting the water would have made him pause. He would have gone to check, to see if they were dead but he had other things to worry about.

“You bastard!”

Well that wasn't very nice, Harry swung the scythe around before bringing it down. Blood splattered against his mask, his victim fell down his body cut cleanly in half. The body twitched for a few seconds before falling still, he caught sight of something from the corner of his eye. A fishman?

While he had never met them personally, he didn't have anything against them. They had the same colour blood as he did, the breathed oxygen like he did. He wasn't going to judge them, he didn't know them.

“Damn you, damn you to the void.”

Harry scoffed, the sound attracting their attention, some waited to see if he would talk. They were slightly disappointed when he didn't, instead he remained looking at the captain. Or they thought he was looking at the captain, the mask made it hard for any of them to guess where they were looking. Harry slowly walked forwards, his scythe resting in his hands. He never got any pleasure out of killing them, but this one?

Harry wanted to see him burn, he wanted him to pay for all of the crimes he had done. For every child he had hurt, for every life he had ruined. But death was too easy for him, to quick. He deserved to suffer, to feel the pain that every one of his victims felt. Which meant that he would needed to be kept alive, Harry knew of one place.

Impel Down.

He lowered his arms, death was far to good for him. The fire that had been burning inside of him for so long, lost some of its intensity. It was still there but it wasn't as bad as it was before, now it was just smoldering embers. But it could still be reignited.

The captain looked at the bounty hunter, for some reason they had stopped. They were not moving, he had tried everything to get some sort of reaction from them but he hadn't been able to. It was frustrating, everything that he had done, had failed. Nothing worked.

It was eerie, they had never once lost their temper, they didn't waver. They stayed calm no matter what he had done, it wasn't normal. The captain doubted that anything about them was normal, he strongly suspected that they weren't human either. He watched as some fishmen came aboard his ship, he looked at the one leading them Jinbei. This wasn't good, he had no way of escaping now, not with a warlord here as well.

He didn't have any hope of escaping and he knew it, he doubted he would be granted a quick death either. Still he had fun, it was just a shame that it was over now. He braced himself as the scythe swung down.

They had thought that the battle would have been longer, that there would have been something for them to do. There wasn't.

By the time they had made it over to the other ship, people were either dead or dying. There had been virtually nothing for them to do, a shot had rang out and they turned towards the bloody figure on the deck. They weren't going to bury the dead, not this time. Normally they would, but the didn't want to taint the ground. They would just leave the bodies on the ship, then set fire to the ship. Jinbei had been able to get one attack in, normally the warlord would have done much more but the work had already been done.

While it was disappointing that they hadn't needed to do anything, they were relieved that they didn't have to cross blades with the bounty hunter. The same bounty hunter that had just knocked the captain of the bloody red pirates out cold, which shocked some of them.

They tensed when the bounty hunter turned and was facing them, they had just seen the damage that they were capable of. While they were no slouches, they knew that not everyone would make it out alive. Some dropped their hands down to the hilts of their swords, some even got their guns ready. Just in case.

A piece of paper was thrown at Jinbei, the fishman picked it up off the blood soaked deck.

Death is too good for him, it is to quick.

Jinbei looked at the bounty hunter, he wasn't going to disagree with them. Death was an easy way out for this monster in human skin.

“You mean to take him to marine headquarters, where he will get taken to Impel Down.”

A second piece of paper was thrown at Jinbei, some of them began to speculate that the bounty hunter was mute.

You do it, if I do it. He won't make it there.

Harry was enjoying confusing people, he could talk, he was just choosing not to. That and he didn't want to give any indication of where he was from, not that it was likely that anyone would find out. But it was still fun confusing people, that and their reactions.

“You do not trust yourself? Then why did you hunt him down?”

The fishman had a point, a very valid one. He hadn't tried to attack him, but Harry wasn't willing to see if he would. But then again, if he was going to attack then he would have done so already. Harry cocked his head to the side, this one was strange. Harry threw yet another piece of paper towards the group of fishmen.

No one else was doing anything, in fact everyone seemed quite content letting him do what he wanted. I wasn't, so I acted.

Jinbei read the note once more, while he was slightly shocked by the answer, he wasn't quite willing to open the barrel of fish as to why no one had acted. Jinbei idly wondered if some had tried to set this meeting up, to him it felt as if someone else was pulling the strings.

“That is not completely true, we only learned of his position a few days ago. Since me and my crew were the closest we decided to investigate, but you had already beaten us.”

Harry frowned, even though no one could see it. The fishman and Harry decided that he was going to learn the other male's name, because it was getting annoying calling him fishman all the time. That and Harry felt as if he was being rude, he didn't like it. A piece of paper was thrown towards the fishman.

Jinbei picked up yet another piece of paper, he wondered where it was all kept. There was no rucksack, although he might have seen a pen. Jinbei wasn't to sure, he looked down at the paper.

What's your name? I can't keep calling you the really tall fishman. I find it rude, to keep calling someone the really tall fishman. You're not going to attack other wise you would have done so already, you are also speaking to me. Or you are willing to speak to me.

That was shocking, no one has ever asked for his name. Most people just hurled insults at any and all fishmen, even Jinbei had been insulted more times than he cared to admit. Even being a warlord hadn't stopped them from doing it, now they were just more quiet when they did it. There was no harm in giving them, his name.

“Jinbei.”

He wasn't going to add anymore, there wasn't any real reason that he needed to do so. Everyone knew who he was, so there was no point in adding any more to his introduction. Jinbei watched as the bounty hunter tilted their head, Jinbei knew that there was no fear, that the other didn't fear him.

It was, refreshing.

Even his own crew feared him slightly, he knew that they didn't mean anything by it. But it still hurt, he knew that he was far stronger than the average fishman. Even when he was younger he was abnormally strong, it had been hard to make friends. The paper hit him in the face this time.

Well then, nice to meet you Jinbei. Call me Angel.

How strange, no it was more than strange. Jinbei found that he couldn't find the right word to describe it, normally it wouldn't bother him. This time?

The whole meeting felt as if it had been set up, Jinbei knew that it couldn't be the marines that had done so, Jinbei didn't believe in coincidences he had been on the sea far to long, to believe that this was just a random meeting. Jinbei had ruled out the marines as they had only just found out where the bloody red pirates where, where as the bounty hunter had been tracking them for some time. It could be a coincidence, but Jinbei wasn't entirely sure. His eyes moved from the bounty hunter to the unconscious form of the captain, Jinbei was going to enjoy escorting him to Impel Down.

Jinbei watched as Angel began securing the pirate captain, Angel wasn't being gentle. The body was tossed on to the deck, Jinbei was sure that the pirate captain was going to have some broken bones.

“We shall take him with us.”

Angel nodded their head, there was a lot of mystery surrounding the bounty hunter. However there was something else, Jinbei wasn't sure what it was but he was willing to find out.

Thank you.

With that Angel disappeared with the other bounty hunter, Jinbei knew that they would meet again.

For the last six months Jinbei and Harry met up, sometimes it would be while Harry was collecting a bounty. Sometimes it was when Jinbei was doing something for the marines and government, there had been a few occasions where they would meet up in a shop and share a cup of tea.

Although Jinbei hadn't seen the person behind the mask, he enjoyed the meetings. Angel had a good sense of humour and a strong sense of honour, the meetings were very pleasant. Even his crew was starting to get used to the bounty hunter, while they were still wary of them. They enjoyed the small jokes that the bounty hunter played, even though it was them at the butt of the jokes.

A piece of paper hit Jinbei on the face, several of the crew sniggered. They found it amusing, that no matter what Jinbei did, he still got hit in the face.

Jinbei how are you?

Jinbei looked at his sniggering crew, while they found it greatly amusing. Jinbei didn't, no matter how many times he tried to catch the paper, he couldn't and the crew enjoyed it. Traitors.

“Angel, good to see you again.”

A gloved hand waved at Jinbei, Jinbei would have rolled his eyes but he had better restraint than that.

“Is there anything that you need?”

A quick head shake, Harry wasn't here for any specific reason. Well if visiting his friend was a reason, then he had one. Harry watched as Jinbei went through his fishman karate, Harry wondered how Jinbei was able to make it look so graceful, so elegant. Harry sat on the deck and watched as Jinbei went through his moves, this was relaxing. It wasn't as if he could relax a lot, he couldn't relax when he was alone. But here?

Here he trusted Jinbei and his crew to have his back, he knew that Jinbei wouldn't allow anything to harm him.

Harry felt his eyes close, a short nap wouldn't be so bad.

Aladine looked at the figure that was leaning against the wall, Aladine wasn't completely sure but it looked like the bounty hunter had fallen asleep. Which wasn't all that shocking, the first couple of times had been a shock. Because who falls asleep in the presence of pirates? What sort of person where they? Who did something like that? Did they want to die?

Many of the crew agreed that the bounty hunter was strange, they hadn't trusted them. Some had thought that they were trying to get them to lower their guard, so they could attack them. Some had even decided to take up a watch, to make sure that they didn't move. Aladine had been one of the ones that had taken up watch, he had been sure that it was a plot. That the moment they let their guard down they would attack, for a hour Aladine had kept watch. But all the bounty hunter had done was sleep.

The second time, third and fourth were the same as the first.

They had still kept watch, no matter how many times the bounty hunter turned up. It didn't matter when or where, they kept watch. They weren't willing to take a chance, they couldn't. Jinbei had done so much for everyone, he had never once asked for anything back. He had kept giving and giving, everyone had just kept taking. It was why they protected him, why they would give their lives for him. Jinbei was the most selfless being that they had ever met, however the fears that they had were all for nothing.

They knew when to admit that they were wrong, that for once there was no hidden motives.

The next time the bounty hunter fell asleep?

The crew moved the bounty hunter to a bed.

A year and a half, that was how long they had officially known each other. In that year things had changed, for one Jinbei had found out that the bounty hunter known as Weeping Angel could talk and that their real name was Hari.

Jinbei knew more about the world's strongest bounty hunter than anyone else, no one knew as much as he did.

When they were around others Jinbei called Hari, Angel it was an easy habit to fall into. It wasn't that they didn't trust Jinbei's namaka, they did. Neither of them were willing to put them in danger, Hari had even fought with Jinbei about knowing his real name. It was a fight that Jinbei had barely won, but he had still won it.

“Hari.”

Jinbei hadn't even looked at the man leaning against the wall, he had known that the other man was there the whole time.

“Bei-Bei, good to see you again. How have you been?”

Jinbei twitched, it was the unholy nickname. While he hadn't minded that his friend had gave him one, it hadn't changed the fact that all over the ship there were notes with 'Bei-Bei’ written on them. His crew was absolutely no help, in fact some of them had passed out from laughing to much. Aladine had his hands full the first time the notes had been found, nothing had gotten done that day. The crew were just glad that Jinbei wasn't upset with them, many captains would have taken offence. But not Jinbei.

“The same as I always am.”

Hari frowned behind his mask, a gloved hand came up to it. It had been a long and hard debate over whether he was going to remove the mask in Jinbei's presence, he didn't want to put his friend in danger. But right now?

Jinbei needed him, not the bounty hunter.

The mask came off without a second thought, Hari sighed as he felt the sea breeze hit his face.

“Jinbei, what is troubling you my friend?”

Hari walked forwards and rested his hands on the railings, stunning green eyes looking directly at the sea. Jinbei hadn't paid the other male any attention, he was too busy looking at the sea. His mind was chaotic and it wasn't going to settle down anytime soon, he heard a sigh. Jinbei turned his head to the other and stopped, there was no mask. He was used to see the white porcelain, he had given some thought to what may lie under the mask. But he had never thought that there was nothing wrong with Hari, emerald green eyes pinned him in place. Such beautiful eyes.

“I trust you, it is as simple as that. No hidden motives, we are friends Jinbei. Whatever is troubling you, share it with me.”

Jinbei managed to tear his eyes away from the startling green ones, they looked like emeralds but that wouldn't do them justice. No they were purer that emeralds, if Jinbei believed in superstition then he would say that Hari’s were the colour of life. He wouldn't be wrong.

“For as long as I can remember, I have carried everyone's burdens. Even my own, I wonder how long I can remain strong.”

Jinbei's hand clenched, he nearly snapped the railings. A gloved hand covered his own, Jinbei wasn't sure what to do. What could he do?

“You are the strongest and most selfless being I have ever met, but right now? Jinbei you don't need to be strong, let me do it for you.”

It was the final straw for Jinbei, tears gathered in his eyes and he didn't have the strength to stop them. Even if he did, he wouldn't have stopped them. Arms gently pulled him closer and despite the height difference, Jinbei found comfort in the thin arms, that he didn't have to be strong.

“I have you, you don't have to keep going.”

Somehow the pair of them had ended up on the deck, Jinbei's head was in Hari’s lap. Hari gently ran his fingers through Jinbei's hair, Hari began humming as he continued to run his fingers through Jinbei's hair.

“The first time I met you I was stunned, yes I had saw fishmen before but I had never met one and  never had I seen one as big as you. The first thing that ran through my head was how kind your eyes were, and you do. I am not saying this to make you feel better, it's the truth.”

Jinbei had closed his eyes, he wasn't sure that Hari was telling the truth. Maybe he was to jaded, maybe everything that life has dished out had finally gotten to him, but then again. Hari had never lied to him, not once. Even when Jinbei would have preferred for him to lie, because having someone tell you that they have a sword in the gut is a good way to lose a few years off anyone's life.

“It sounds as if you love me.”

Jinbei couldn't help the disbelief, no one could love him. Jinbei was unlovable, it wasn't fiction, it was fact.

“What is wrong with that? What is wrong with me loving you?”

Jinbei sat up and whirled around and stared at Hari, and Hari stared right back at Jinbei. The bounty hunter wasn't going to budge on this.

“You cannot mean that.”

Hari narrowed his eyes and glared at Jinbei, Jinbei glared right back at Hari. Neither of them were willing to back down.

“How can I not? You don't know what I feel Jinbei, you can't tell me what I can and can't feel.”

Jinbei stood up, his face was stony.

“You cannot mean that, there must be someone else. Anyone else.”

Hari stood up, he couldn't believe this stubborn fish!

“You do not get to tell me who my heart chooses, what is so wrong with me loving you?”

“You deserve someone better!”

The angry retort had slipped out before Jinbei had a chance to properly think it through, he hadn't meant to tell Hari what he was really thinking. Jinbei would have been happy with loving Hari from afar, looking but never touching. Hari looked at Jinbei.

“I don't want anyone else, I want you.”

Hari moved closer to Jinbei, he stood on his tiptoes and kissed Jinbei even with the height difference Hari knew that the message would get across. Despite the two large fangs, Hari was able to get Jinbei to relax into the kiss. Jinbei wrapped his arms around Hari and lifted him up and pulled him to his chest, Hari pulled away panting slightly. His cheeks were flushed, Hari continued to look at Jinbei.

“I don't want anyone else.”

Hari pressed his head against Jinbei's chest and listened to the strong heartbeat, Jinbei kept Hari close to his chest. He had never dreamed of something like this, never once had he thought that maybe, just maybe there was someone out there for him. He was glad to be proven wrong, Jinbei slowly began walking towards his room. Right now they both needed sleep, Hari was slowly falling asleep and they needed to continue this conversation with clear heads.

Jinbei was willing to try, now that he had a taste he wasn't willing to let Hari go so easily or at all. He was going to be selfish for once in his life, he was going to keep Hari, no matter what anyone said.

“Sleep, we shall continue this in the morning.”

Jinbei placed Hari on his bed and removed his boots and gloves, he removed his sandals and climbed into the bed. He laid down Hari wasted no time in snuggling into him, Jinbei wrapped an arm around Hari. It felt strange but right at the same time, as if Hari was meant to be there. Jinbei closed his eyes and listened to the sound of their combined breathing, allowing it to relax him.

Aladine who had taken the last watch, had decided to check on their captain. He was pleasantly surprised to see the two of them sound asleep, Aladine made a mental note to let the two of them sleep for as long as possible. He would also tell the crew, Aladine knew that none of them would cause a fuss over it. If anything they would be happy that Jinbei had finally done something for himself.

Things had progressed slowly, Jinbei wasn't going to rush the new relationship that he and Hari had. It was strange, being in a relationship was strange yet wonderful. Hari was taking things slowly for Jinbei's sake as well as his own, rushing things would get neither of them anywhere.

There were good days and bad days, but they both took the good with the bad. They knew that no relationship was perfect and that they would fight, sometimes Jinbei wouldn't let Hari get involved in a fight. Other times Hari would push himself too far and would end up on bed rest for a few days, both Aladine and Jinbei would have a go at him for it.

Jinbei had kept Hari away from the other warlords, he didn't want to introduce Hari to them. He knew that Hari could protect himself, there was no doubt about that. What he was worried about was how they would act, Doflamingo was unpredictable at the best of times. Hari could also be a pest, Jinbei didn't want to see what would happen should the two of them clash.

But meeting them was inevitable, Jinbei couldn't keep Hari hidden forever, no matter how much he wanted to.

When Jinbei had been summoned for a meeting, he wasn't worried to much. Aladine had said that he would keep an eye on Hari, the same Hari that was currently curled up and asleep in their bed. While they had yet to do anything, Hari had been exhausted from capturing a pirate with a rather large bounty. While it was a rather large and very  impressive bounty, Hari hadn't been injured more tired than anything else. Hari had said that the whole fight was boring and hardly worth an effort at all, it hadn't stopped Jinbei from warning Hari, not to get over confident.

Jinbei had arrived at the meeting place with no trouble, the sea was calm and no one had attacked them. Which was a relief, he didn't want to be late for the meeting. Sengoku got, rather testy when people were late.

“Jinbei, nice if you to turn up.”

Ah, it looked like Sengoku was in one of those moods and it was only a couple of meetings he had missed, he was nowhere near as bad as the rest of them.

“Fleet Admiral Sengoku, you look well.”

The glare he got was well worth it, Jinbei knew that he was spending too much time with Hari. He was becoming cheeky in his answers, he wasn't going to let Hari find out about it.

“Fufufu, Jinbei had been busy lately. Too busy for meetings?”

Jinbei wasn't going to reply, he knew better than to respond to Doflamingo.

“Indeed, it makes one wonder what Jinbei has been doing. It must have been important, for him to ignore summons.”

And now Crocodile was joining in, Jinbei was not going to give them the satisfaction of an answer.

“Fufufu, maybe our little Jinbei has finally grown up. Maybe he has a lover.”

They were both at it now, this was ridiculous. No this was beyond ridiculous, the pair of them knew what buttons to press.

“Are we starting the meeting or not?”

If he was snapping then no one needed to know, Crocodile and Doflamingo were right in what they had said. He did have a lover, but he wasn't going to tell them that. If he did? Then he would never hear the end of it.

The meeting eventually started, at first it was the same old boring routine. Bounties that had been collected, pirates that had been captured, new bounties that had been given to people. It was all so very dull and boring, Jinbei cast a quick glance at the clock. He would be free in half an hour, half an hour and he wouldn't have to deal with them.

“Is something wrong?”

Damn it looked like he had been caught looking at the clock, Doflamingo was smirking at him. Hancock was glaring at the ceiling like normal, Crocodile was looking at him. Moriah was too busy having a glaring competition with Kuma, Kuma wasn't giving into Moriah and was ignoring him. Mihawk was asleep, the meeting had bored him that much that he had fallen asleep. Not that Jinbei blamed him.

“No, I merely have an appointment that I need to go to.”

The smirk on Doflamingo's face widened, Jinbei now had the attention of everyone in the room. However Jinbei was saved from answering when something or rather someone came flying through the window, they all watched and the figure rolled and landed on the table. A piece of paper hit Jinbei in the face.

Spar, with me.

Jinbei sighed deeply.

“No.”

A second piece of paper was thrown.

Spar………..

Jinbei clenched his hand, the paper in his hand got crumpled.

“We agreed after the meeting.”

Paper hit him in the face again, this time he heard sniggers.

So, the boring and dreadfully dull meeting is not finished?

If they were onboard this ship, then they would be sparring. It was a very good way to get stronger, it was also a good way to test each other as well. The next piece of paper that got thrown hit Doflamingo in the face, Jinbei bit back a laugh.

Pinkie, where did you get that fabulous coat? Also how do you pull it off? Because let me tell you that coat is very fabulous.

Doflamingo read the paper a second time, because what the hell? Seriously who threw paper at people?

“Fufufu, aren't you a curious one?”

This time several pieces of paper hit Doflamingo in the face, all with one sentence.

Fabulous coat, gimme. Gimme. Gimme.

Jinbei couldn't help the laughter that broke free, the look of absolute confusion on Doflamingo's face was priceless. Doflamingo was not finding it amusing at all, he was starting to get annoyed. However the next bit of paper hit Crocodile in the face.

Are you captain hook? Have you been to Neverland? Do you have a fairy? Your hook is so shiny, shiny, shiny.

Jinbei clenched his eyes shut, this was beyond words. He didn't even think that he could describe it even if he tried, there was simply no words he could use. A piece of paper landed right in the middle of Hancock's cleavage.

I don't like boobs, you have two enormous ones. Bouncy, bouncy. Do you give yourself two black eyes when you run? Wait, can you run?

Hancock went red on the face, Jinbei struggled to breath properly. This was part of the reason why, he hadn't let Hari come to any of the meeting. The other one? He was being selfish and wanted to keep Hari to himself. Jinbei looked at those that were gathered, they looked like they wanted to murder Hari. Hari was sat in the middle of the table throwing pieces of paper at people, each one with ridiculous questions on it. But Jinbei knew when enough, was enough and he didn't want a fight to break out.

“Weeping Angel, we both agreed that we would spar after the meeting was finished. As you can see it is not, I shall meet you on the ship afterwards.”

Jinbei had dropped that piece of information on purpose, the way that everyone was looking at him with wary eyes was well worth it. He knew that he couldn't control Hari, that no one could. But he wasn't going to tell them that, he was also going to let them think whatever they wanted to. He wasn't going to confirm or deny anything.

Fine, will see you at the ship.

With that Hari dived out the window, Jinbei looked around the room. People were now staring at him with a wary expression.

“That was the Weeping Angel? The most deadliest bounty hunter.”

Jinbei nodded his head.

“Yes, as you saw they don't speak. We have an agreement that we spar every few weeks, the last time we were both fighting for nearly thirteen days.”

Jinbei knew that information was worth a lot, especially to the marines. Sengoku looked at Jinbei his eyes were narrowed slightly.

“You clearly have a strong connection to them.”

Jinbei shook his head.

“No, we spar because they get bored. And as you have no witnessed yourselves a bored Weeping Angel equals chaos, we are all lucky that they hadn't wanted to spar against all of us.”

Many of the marines paled, Jinbei took a great amount of pleasure as to how shocked some of them looked. An explosion rattled the windows and many of them quickly stood up, Jinbei smirked. Something that was rare for him but he knew who had caused it, Hari was beyond bored at this point.

“It would be best if I took my leave.”

Sengoku made to stop him, when another explosion caused many of them to fall to the ground.

“Do you want the base in one piece or two?”

With that in mind, no one tried to stop him from leaving. In fact some of them looked relieved that the explosions had stopped, the warlords looked better than everyone else but they were still shaken up. Crocodile spoke up.

“I think that Jinbei missing a few meetings is not a bad thing, not if he is keeping them entertained. They cannot possibly be human.”

Sengoku nodded his head, that was by far the most chaotic meeting that had ever happened. It was never going to happen again, if Jinbei missed a few meetings then it was fine. He was not going to have a repeat.

“Agreed.”

Garp began laughing.

“Bahahaha, that was definitely an interesting meeting Senny!”

The window was smashed, paper was everywhere. Marines and warlords alike had been given the runaround, Sengoku felt a headache coming on. He wanted his rice crackers, after today he was having two bags. He needed it.

“I wouldn't recommend that you do that again, the marines will be on high alert now.”

Hari shrugged, now that they were both back on the ship Hari had taken off his mask. Jinbei couldn't get enough of those stunning life filled eyes.

“True, but you have to admit that it was funny. That and you now have a reason for not having to go to every meeting.”

Jinbei wrapped his arms around Hari, he looked out at the sea. His life was not perfect, it had its ups and downs and he knew that. But standing here with Hari, it felt perfect.

“Hey Jinbei?”

Jinbei looked down at Hari.

“Yes?”

Hari held his eyes for a few minutes before a blush took over his face.

“I love you.”

Jinbei smiled.

“I love you to.”

His life may not be perfect, he may have to deal with the other warlords and marines. But standing on the deck of his ship, with his crew and the person that he loved. Jinbei knew that it was as close to perfect as he could get.

“Get a room!”

Hari laughed and watched a Jinbei began walking towards the cackling crew, this was his life now and he wouldn't change it for the world.