Halfblood [King|Alber × Reader]

Nine

"The Lunarians now flew over the seas, under the night sky," continues King with a soft voice.

"They were given gifts unique to all races of the world and started their search for a new home. Their body longed for the ocean, their mind for the stars, and the feeling of this abyss never let them rest. As the Moon felt the bitter distance from his lover, their children couldn't find peace either, at the edge of birth and death that we call life."

You silently listen to him and breathe in the fragrance of the hair.

You notice that it has a faint gleam along the color of pearls, like a thread of silver woven into the lines.

"As their heart ached, the cold sea felt their pain. Their soul was woken by the fire of the Sun, so they couldn't live in the shadows again. As the Lunarians cried, the sky joined them and connected the sky with the ocean. Drops, one after another, fell into the darkness, disturbing the peaceful surface of the endless water. That night, nature's last wonder formed for them, a flower blooming from the empty waves. A Rainflower, pale and beautiful, broken from the heavy storm."

The man turns the page, and your eyes widen as you see the drawing of hundreds of figures floating in a row in the air, with the Red Line towering opposite them.

"And the first ones noticed the plant, the only living thing they ever saw in their brief life. They flew closer and saw something in the middle of the ocean that shared the color of their flames. The Rainflower swam above the sunk land to show them. Lunarians held hands and collected their strength, their fire shining brighter than ever. Their pitch-black, monstrous wings moved as one, calling a wind strong enough to shake the world. The crimson land broke and rose from the depth, creating a new home. Their power built the first bit of the Red Line, where they found the middle of the air. It was close to both their mother, their father, and to the cradle that awoke them to life."

"The Red Line is empty," you speak up and feel King moving a little. As he turns his head, his dark skin brushes yours. "Mariejois wouldn't be lying at its edge otherwise."

"It'll never be empty," he sighs deeply, and your heart drops as he closes the book. "By the time I was born, it was already full of the dead."

"Alber-"

"Do you have to use this name all the time? I left it behind."

"It scares me less," you whisper. The strong muscles of his arms tense by your side.

Silence falls over the room, and his fire fades a little so the semidarkness hides his face.

"How did you escape Mariejois, Halfblood?" he asks quietly, his body still strained. "You aren't a pure Lunarian, but still the closest they could find. How could you leave a place so guarded with both your wings broken?"

"I told you I could never fly."

"I remember," answers King, and he leans away from you. As the distance grows, your soul feels colder without his warmth. The Sun will never gift fire to a Halfblood. "This is why I'm asking. I couldn't leave Punk Hazard without Kaido-san, but even that place is less guarded than the Holy Land."

He looks at you, and you tremble under the weight of his crimson eyes.

"How did you escape, being the rarest slave they could have?" he asks again, his voice clear and sharp.

The deep tone makes the air shiver like Haki.

"There was one night when the sky grew darker than ever before," you answer to calm him down. "The storm was so strong that even those rats feared in their castles. I was scared. Lightning, rain, and wind, they were so loud that I was afraid we will all be blown away."