Marco

I stare in shock as Teach pulls his hand back from Death's Tempest's chest with her heart in hand. I expect her to instantly die since she just lost her heart but she shocks everyone by whirling around and slamming a fist right into Teach's face which sends him twice the distance than any of her other punches. Death's Tempest closes her eyes with a smile on her face before she glows a soft golden glow and when the glow disappears she crumples to the ground dead. A marine starts screaming about throwing lives away since Akainu still does not plan on giving up his chase. Before Akainu can slam a magma fist into the boy Red Hair Shanks shows up stopping him.

"I came to end the war." Shanks says picking up the straw hat that Ace's brother was wearing. He tosses it to Buggy who gives it to Trafalgar Law who's helping Ace, his brother, and Jimbei escape as well as patching them up.

"Red hair," I say and Shanks looks over at me.

"Marco, quickly withdraw your men and don't retaliate." Shanks says and like he said earlier the war does end thanks to him.

"Everyone right now, help me save some face." Shanks says and I look to the ground as my tears slowly slide down my face. "Whitebeard, Death's tempest we'll take care of their burials. This battle was broadcasted to the entire world. I won't allow anyone to desecrate their memories."

"What? Taking their heads will show the marines' victory." A marine yells.

"No matter, since it's you red hair. I'll take responsibility for it." Sengoku says.

"Thanks." Shanks says.

"She will be back." Sengoku says crossing his arms and rubbing his forehead.

"If she didn't show up again I'd be scared." Shanks says with a small smile and I raise an eyebrow at him which he responds with a shake of the head.

"Quickly attend to the wounded. The war is over." Sengoku yells and the marines quickly get to work. We board our ships before heading out with the bodies of Pops and Death's Tempest aboard. We bury the two bodies beside each other on an island in the New World with the help of the Red Hair Pirates before we split from them collecting Thatch and following Ace's vivre card that leads us to an island in the calm belt. We stop a bit from the shore where a yellow submarine can be seen and I fly over. I land to find Trafalgar Law and his crew. Trafalgar was sitting there staring at the straw hat in his hand before looking over to where I had landed.

"If you're looking for Straw Hat and Fire Fist they're over there." He says pointing over to where the two brothers were sitting on a cliff staring out at the sea just gently hugging each other without exchanging words. I give Trafalgar a nod of thanks before walking over to the brothers. Ace looks up probably sensing me and he looks over his shoulder at me.

"Hey Marco," Ace says before turning to look out at the sea once more.

"I can't sense anything Ace. I have no pulling feeling; where is she?" Luffy says hugging Ace tighter.

"I don't either but I'm sure she's still out there, she's tough as hell." Ace says but I can sense some worry in his voice as well. I let out a sigh and sit down beside them but before I can speak Luffy looks at me.

"Do you have a pulling feeling?" He asks and I blink in confusion.

"Pulling feeling?" I ask and Ace nods.

"A feeling in your gut that feels like it's being tugged in a certain direction." Ace says and I blink in surprise.

"You guys have that feeling as well?" I ask and they nod.

"Yeah, up until we woke up after the battle. Do you have that feeling still Marco?" Ace asks and I hear hope in his voice.

"I have a small pulling feeling in my gut." I say speaking the truth since I do have a small tugging feeling in my gut. The brothers exchange small happy smiles before Ace turns to look at me.

"What are you doing here anyway Marco?" Ace asks and I let out a sigh. I really did not want to be the one to tell them the horrible news.

"I'm sorry that I have to tell you this." I say and this catches the two's attentions. "Your sister, Death's Tempest, is dead."

"That can't be true." Ace stutters out as the two boys stare at me with wide eyes.

"Unfortunately, it is. She left a message for you two, said that the commanders should also hear it." I inform the two who exchange a look before they stand up.

"Okay let's get to the ship and hear it then." Ace says walking back towards where the submarine sat with Luffy walking slowly behind him. I walk behind them and when we reach the sight where the other pirates are Ace is already explaining the situation to Trafalgar.

"You two can go only if I come with you." Trafalgar says and Ace nods.

"Let's go." Luffy says in a voice that sounds almost completely broken. We borrow one of the row boats that are on the shore and we row back out to the Moby Dick.

"How's the Moby Dick here?" Ace asks staring in surprise at the ship as we pull up beside it.

"Your sister brought it back." I say offering Ace to climb onto my back and he wraps his arms around my neck before I fly up to the deck. Luffy slingshots himself up while Trafalgar uses his devil fruit to switch spots with a crate. Small smiles cover a lot of the crew's faces when they see that Ace is still alive. I walk over to a crate and sit down on it pulling out the light blue tone dial.

"She left the message on this; one of you two should do the honours." I say holding the dial out and the two brothers walk over towards me. Ace grabs the dial and sits down on the ground with Luffy beside him. They stare at the dial for a bit before Ace finally presses the button and you can see both of their eyes are already damp. A blue light appears on the deck a couple feet in front of them and a second later an image of Death's Tempest appears. Jozu reaches his hand out and goes to poke the figure but it goes right through it. Death's Tempest turns her head and glares at Jozu before turning back to looking at her two brothers. She lets out a sigh before she sits down crossed legged on the deck and she rests her chin on top of her hands.

"So, since you're listening to this that means things went off track from the original plan and that means I'm probably gone or severely injured with no hope of recovering. Thanks for delivering my message to then Marco; I owe you deeply for that. I also owe you Law since you helped them recover from their wounds." Death's Tempest says and she looks at me before turning to look at Law who just waves his hand in front of his face.

"It was nothing. The only reason they survived is because you took the time to heal the worst wounds." Law says and Death's Tempest laughs.

"Someone's trying to be modest but still thanks and could you possibly check up on Thatch. I healed him as well but his was a rush job that wasn't done the best either since I had been bleeding out. It's not like I trust your guys' doctors it's just that Law's dealt with more of my work than others so he knows how to handle it best." Death's Tempest turns and looks at us again before her head lowers slightly so we can't see her eyes.

"I'm sorry; I was unable to save Whitebeard or stop Teach." She says and a quiet sob can be heard, so quiet that I doubted my ears at first. "Please heed my warning, if you plan on going after Teach be extremely cautious. He will only grow in strength from now on and since he was once a member of the Whitebeard Pirates he knows most of Edward's moves so he can use those. It'll be incredibly hard to beat him but I know you want revenge for Whitebeard so I won't try to stop you guys but just be careful, trust me on this." Death's Tempest says and she wipes her eyes before looking towards where the two brothers had been sitting in silence so far. "You two are idiots," She says with a smile on her lips.

"Hey," the brothers chorus in tones that sound ready to break.

"Even though you're idiots I still love you and I'm sorry that I won't be able to see you for a while. I need you guys to do me a favour." Death's Tempest says and her voice cracks slightly. "Keep fighting, don't let this affect you for long and continue living. Ace, you have people who love you for who you are and not based on who your father is. Remember that you are you and that some people may define you by your father but you will always be you, no matter what. Stay strong and never forget that it was a good thing that you were born." Death's Tempest says smiling and looking at Ace who has tears streaming down his face. A tear runs down Death's Tempest's cheek before she turns to look at the younger boy who was still hugging Ace.

"Luffy, I know this is hard on you but remember Ace is still here and you have your crew as well. Make sure to take care of your crew especially since they care for you so much. I realized that during the time I spent with you guys and I know that they will never willingly leave you since they're good people through and through. Live your lives to the fullest with no regrets like we promised. I know you're strong so you'll get over this and if possible don't forget me." Death's Tempest's voice breaks and she stops speaking to place her hand over her eyes for a second.

"Ohana means family," Luffy says and Ace picks up where he left off. (Yes, I just made that reference too, and this one was intentional)

"Family means that no one gets left behind or forgotten. We'll never forget you Kaede." Ace says and Death's Tempest looks up shocked at first before a smile covers her face.

"I hope not and thanks you two. When I first met you guys I felt just like you had Ace, unwanted, useless, and I believed that I was nothing good. A demon that had no right to live even though I had no choice but being forced to live in this world. You three changed that, I felt loved and you guys became my family. I was not going to lose my family again so I did what I needed to; I traded my life for Ace's, knowing full well that I was going to die there without any possibilities of escaping. I will never lose my family again and I will do everything within my capabilities to make sure that happens." Kaede says with a serious look in her eyes as she looks at the brothers.

"Wh-What do I tell Zoro?" Luffy asks and you can hear the desperation in his voice.

"You don't need to tell Zoro anything." Death's Tempest says.

"What do you mean I don't have to tell you anything? You too are dating." Luffy says sad and somewhat angry.

"I already told him something like this might happen while we were separated. He knows that there was a high chance of this happening. I already told you he knows everything." Death's Tempest says.

A mournful cry fills the air and I look over towards the sound is coming from to see a sea king in the water beside us looking up at the moon that had started to rise into the sky. Seconds later another sea king surfaces and joins in the mournful cry. Marine animals continue to surface and join their voices in the grief-stricken cry that now filled the air. A howl sounds from the island behind us and I look towards the beach were the rest of Trafalgar's crew is to see a couple of animals on the beach. The animals were sitting on the beach staring at the moon as they too let out mournful cries. Birds that had been flying settle down on the Moby's railing before they too looked to the sky and let out sorrowful cries.

"Looks like it's started," Kaede says looking up to the moon and I suddenly feel a pull in my chest. It happens quickly but when it's done I feel like a hole's left in my heart, like I'm missing something important that I can't live without. My eyes start to water without my consent and the tears silently slide down my cheeks.

"Whoa why are you guys crying?" I hear Izo ask and I look up to see every devil fruit user on the ship crying.

"They're weeping; the fruits are weeping just like the animals are." Ace says his eyes never leaving his sister's projection who just nods as she slowly climbs to her feet.

"It looks like it's time for me to finish this up but before I go, know that one day our family will be complete again with some new additions. I love you guys and I'll see you around." Kaede says and she offers a small smile before she starts to dissolve into the wind.

"Kaede," Ace whispers as the tears run down his face and he hugs his brother tighter.

"We love you too." Luffy says crying.

"Wait she saved Thatch?" Ace asks looking up with damp eyes and a hopeful look in them.

"Yeah she helped me out when I was just about to die." Thatch says stepping forward. "I would've been at the fight but they tied me down to a bed saying I couldn't go. I owe your sister my life and I wish I could do something to repay her." Thatch says.

"She's gone forever," Luffy whispers staring at the spot where Kaede had been sitting while the heart wrenching song continues on. "She can't be gone forever, she was the strongest one. Why didn't she use her full power to save herself? Now her and Zoro can't get married."

"I don't know Luffy," Ace says staring at the same spot as Luffy. "I don't know Luffy. What do you mean her and Zoro can't get married?"

"She loved Zoro and he loved her so they would've gotten married but now that can't happen." Luffy says with tears streaming down his cheeks and silence falls upon us as we all stare at the spot the girl was in a couple seconds ago.

"I've been wondering this but she never said goodbye." Namur suddenly speaks up and everyone turns to look at him confused.

"Namur's right. At the end of the speech she said 'I'll see you around' not goodbye as well as that your family would be complete again and she apologized for not being able to see you guys for a while." Haruta says and everyone shares confused looks before going back to their sadness.

=~=~=~

Sabo

I stare at the newspaper I was crumpling in my hands. I read and reread the main article over and over again hoping I was only seeing things. Tears gather in my eyes as a variety of images travel through my mind of my childhood and in a matter of seconds I remembered everything. The last image was of a young brunette with bright purple eyes and a grin that could rival Luffy's was covering her face. It was the only time we ever saw her smile that big and it had only lasted for a few seconds but we had all burned it into our memories. The tears finally fall and I mutter the name of the little girl in my memories that also happened to be on the front page of the news due to her death.

"Kaede;" I whisper a couple of times over and over before I finally break and blackness swells my view.

The reference I made in Chapter Eleven (The Thriller Bark Arc) was to Mahouka Koukou No Rettousei. The move Tatsuya Shiba used during the Monolith Code during the nine schools competition arc.

In Chapter 15 I made a reference to Torkio's Three Nail Punch (Spa Island Arc).

In Chapter 30 I made a reference to Naruto's Rasengan (Marineford Arc).

In this Chapter I made a reference to a movie I watched a lot when I was a kid; Lilo and Stitch.