so I'm not entirely sure when certain members of roger's crew joined and i made a rough timeline when my oc joined and how old certain characters were at major points of the timeline.
this chapter is going to be relatively short in comparison to my other stories because I can't think of much for this prologue, many apologies.
an oc that belongs to my friend, DrSour , makes an appearance.
sped run the shit out of this but, what can I do?
that is all.
word count: 7646
third person pov.
Hundreds of years ago, there was an era where it was the most devastating period to live in. A group of giants, no more than five of them, terrorised the occupants of the world. Their sadistic laughter could be heard from neighbouring island, fearing that they were next on the list of places the giants were going to visit. Giants aren't necessarily hostile, let alone powerful enough to disrupt the order of the world, but this group were different from the average giant. These were the rare ancient giants; lesser ancient giants to be specific. Different from their cousins, that being a little shorter and less grotesque in appearance but just as powerful and overwhelming in size, these giants destroyed everything in their path. Their leader, well, she was the craziest one out of all five of them. She was the one leading them on this mass genocide against the entire world, and why she was doing this in the first place? Well, that was because she was throwing a bit of a temper tantrum and the world just so happened to be her target to let out all her anger that lasted a couple... centuries. There was nothing that could stop her, not the world government, no the islands that allied with each other, nothing. She was just so powerful on her own she could decimate an entire civilisation with just a single wave of her hand, but the five of them together; there was absolutely nothing that could stand in their way.
"Five?! Did you just say all FIVE of them were sighted and heading this way?"
"Y-Yes sir! They're making their way here as we speak!" the marine in charge let out a shuddered breath, pacing back and forward as he tried to think of anything that could get them out of this dire situation. Without the help of the admirals, people that could actually stand a chance against this otherworldly monsters, an average marine corporal didn't stand a chance. The best option they possibly had was to flee but in the opposite direction was an island that these beasts were heading towards, he closes his eyes at the thought of another island up in flames because there was nothing that could get these damned bastards to stop of their rampage "What are you orders, sir?" he swallows thickly,
"... we remain in our current positions, but send word out to HQ of our current location so they can send help to all the islands within our vicinity." the private couldn't help but shake that they weren't going to flee, as selfish as that thought was, but he didn't want to risk his life fighting in a losing battle, but he just grits his teeth and salutes his commanding officer as his body trembled in fear.
"Yes sir." he all but collapses into his desk, his face falling into the palm of his hand as he himself trembled at the thought of facing the five giants that's been terrorising the sea long before he was born. There had been a single warning to all those that had joined the marines that the moment you come across those three individuals at all was to report the sightings to superior authorities then RUN, those who were not skilled enough were nothing but fleas in the eyes of those giants. But standing their ground right that moment would give the residents of all the islands near by a chance to evacuate, it didn't matter where, as long as they get as far away as possible then that's all that matter. The ship coming to a crashing halt brings him out of his head followed by the shouting and hurried footsteps of his men outside, he bursts out of his room and shouts for a status report but was brought to silence at what stood before him.
"Well, would you look at that~" a voice cooed. The weather was harsh, thunder booming and lightning flashing every now and then as the rain poured down on them while the sea crashed waves upon waves on their ship. However, the bow of the ship had crashed into something that caused them to momentarily stop in their tracks, it was at this moment he would have wished that they crossed paths with the sea kings or any other sea monster, but that wasn't the case for now. A giant shadow loomed over the ship that they would have mistaken for a mountain any other day but a pair of piercing gold eyes stared down at them, lightning flashed again and revealed the face of that monster "It seems another group of fleas have gotten in our way again."
"What should we do?" that sadistic grin stretched across her face followed by a sinister giggle.
"Heh, what we do best." the ship swayed as the water parted when she lifted her foot, on those on deck felt their hearts drop into their stomachs when the bottom of her boot hovered above them "Crush anything in our way."
They were dubbed, even to this day, as the Worlds Worst Calamity.
—
"Your majesty?" a voice called softly, the person they were directing their words to slowly opened their eyes as their little daydream of the past came to a stop.
"What is it?"
"I don't understand." they let out a hum their words and turned their head to face them, letting them know that they were listening and to continue "I don't understand why you're acting so docile to those... humans." they let out another hum as they leaned back into their throne, legs crossing over each other as they let their cheek rest on their knuckles. This group of wayward humans came to their island in need of assistance; assistance of travelling to one single island that they have ventured to one their voyage. They were delusional to think they were going to change their mind, they've already seen what the ocean has to offer, what more could there be that they haven't seen. The captain let out a boisterous laughter at their claim, saying that the world is always changing and nothing stays the same. Things could be different from what they were before with how much the world is changing; evolving. The first voice raised a brow when they heard them chuckle softly, leg beginning to bounce from where it was hanging.
"Who knows, they're beginning to grow on me." they then gesture with their head over to where the source of all the laughter was coming from, their own smile working its way onto their face with how bright they were smiling "And besides, that man has a way with words that I can't really describe. He leaves me quite speechless, I suppose." this caused them to let out a hum, staring at the way their eyes sparkled in amusement as they stared at the humans dancing and smiling. Their brows quirked up when the human in question turned towards them, a big grin on their face as they held up their mug of ale and cheered.
"Calliope!" he cheered, he laughed drunkenly as he staggered over in her direction "Give us a hand, would you? I wanna make an announcement." she hummed softly as he and the men around him laughed and shouted for her, she shrugged her shoulders and slightly stood from her throne to kneel down towards him, her hand extending out towards him with her palm facing upwards. He giggled when her ridiculously large hand now hovered in front of him and without wasting a second he jumped into her palm, she then lifts him up high enough so he was overlooking all the guests within her banquet hall "Here's a toast to our latest member to the Roger Pirates! This stubborn woman had me on my hands and knees practically begging for her to join, and you know me! I won't take no for an answer, and with my persistence, I finally managed to convince her!" the rally of cheers from beneath him echoed throughout the room.
"We've got an unstoppable force on our side!"
"We'll be even more feared than usual."
"She's gonna stick out like a sore thumb." Roger chuckles and raises his mug once more, this caused everyone, even Calliope with her own giant mug, to raise them up to join him in his toast.
"Yeah, but it'll all be worth it in the end! No one will believe it until they see it, that the legendary ancient giant that decimated the four blues on her journey for power now resides as one of the Roger Pirates! The Tyrant Commander, Calliope Sideris!" they all shout out praise towards her, raising their mugs higher while exclaiming "kampai" before downing their drinks. Calliope and her fellow giants grin and follow their lead, their famous liquor leaving a burning aftertaste in their throats but it was totally worth it; these human pirates sure knew how to throw a party. She glanced down at the captain that twirled around in her hand then tripped and fell, she chuckled softly when he started giggling at his fall, he then waved at her to bring him close so she does just that "Did I tell you how grateful I am that you agreed to join my crew, Calliope? You're gonna make things easier getting around." she shrugged her shoulders as she brought him closer.
"Well, to reiterate what you said before, we're LESSER ancient giants. Ancient giants are much larger than us and have a more monstrous appearance compared to us, but, they are like cousins to us and we're on friendly terms. I'd appreciate it if you could get it right next time, thanks." she deadpans when he started mimicking what she was saying with his hand, mocking her.
"Same thing." she shakes her head.
"No, no it's not." she rolls her hand when he waved her off, she shakes her head when she saw that he started to sway to the sound of music being preformed. She leaned back in her throne, closing her eyes to think back to when this crazy man first arrived on her island, it almost felt like it was yesterday. She was going on about her business when he appeared before her, how he got through her guards unnoticed will forever be a mystery to her, but he declared to see the one who ruled her island. She stared at him in disbelief when he didn't suspect that it was her, but she jokingly played along and showed him around her castle before bringing him to the throne room, it only sunk in when she sat down on the throne and asked him to state his business as to why he was on her island in the first place.
Lavir island, home of the Lesser Ancient Giants, like how Elbaf was the home of giants. What made them different in comparison to the regular giants was that they were larger in size and greater in strength, not only that but their appearance were different. Unlike the grotesque Ancient Giants, they had a more human looking body but with different coloured skin tones. Calliope herself had a very faint shade of red for skin along with her eyes being gold and her sclera being black, but what stood out the most were the horns that protruded out of her forehead. Everyone on that island had horns, from the common one to the rare five, but Calliope was the average giant with three horns— well, two horns while her third was broken off. These giants are the embodiment of pride; the warriors spirit. Whether you're a child or an old man, they are natural born fighters and even a single giant can decimate an entire island, however, they are a neutral race. They do not belong to the World Government because they cannot control them and they don't see a point in listening to a species that was weaker than them, but Calliope established an agreement with them when she took over that she and her giants will not run amok, those who do not listen to her will quickly be dealt with. Anyways, they are an open island that tend to trade with those who are brave enough to venture into their land, but they will always be treated... gently.
Anyways— imagine Calliope's surprise when this ROOKIE declared that she was going to join his crew.
"Hah! That's the funniest thing I've heard in over a hundred years!" she laughs as she throws her head back, slapping a hand to her forehead "What on earth makes you think I'll just drop everything and leave my country to go on another adventure? I've already travelled the seas, I've been to the islands in the sky and the ones below the sea. I've seen everything in the centuries I've being alive, what more could I see?" her eyes widened slightly when he just grinned at her, smile stretching across his face.
"Well, you're just gonna have to come with me and find out." her guards look at her, silently asking how they should deal with this human, they freeze when they see a spark in her eyes. A spark that had gone out long ago. The castle workers watched closely as their ruler kept this human pirate close to her, sometimes they'd find him perched on her shoulder or even her head, the few times they thought she was alone they were met with him hiding in her pockets, sometimes asleep or talking to her about the adventures him and his crew have gone on during his time as a pirate. Her fellow giants saw a piece of her personality beginning to resurface that had long submerged itself under that tyrannical leader that ruled over their country; that piece of herself that was playful and mischievous before it became cold and psychotic, being dubbed the worlds worst calamity. She had long calmed down from that part of her life, but that terrifying part of her still lingered deep inside her; they'd say she was like a calm before the storm.
"My time out at sea has already finished, what could I possible do or achieve? There's nothing out there waiting for me." she says to Roger, she pouts softly when he laughs at her "What? It's the truth! Besides, even if you do somehow convince me to join you, there isn't anybody strong out there! Having to hold back during a fight isn't fun at all, I like letting loose and fighting with everything I have! Those are the battles that make me feel the most alive!" she blinked when he continued to laugh, her shoulders slumped in confusion at that. She was sitting outside on the balcony enjoying the sun setting along the horizon while Roger stood on the stone railing eating at her food that she gave him, she raised a brow when he gestured for her to come close.
"That's where the fun is in an adventure, my friend." her eyes widened slightly as she looked at him, that shine of color swirling in her eyes at the sight of this rookie pirate "Going out into the unknown, where the uncertainty of it all leaves you excited for more. What's an adventure where you know the ending? If I'm being honest, a story where you already know the ending to is what I call boring." she blinks at him and slowly considers his words, he grinned cheekily at her at the face she was making, she soon let out a sigh and leaned back into her chair.
"I have accumulated a vast knowledge of words, but it seems you have rendered me speechless." she rolled her eyes when he laughs this time, however, she couldn't help but join in on his laughter. Calliope later found herself lounging in her office with a wine glass in hand, human wine wasn't nearly as intoxicating as theirs and leave a burning aftertaste in her throat but she did enjoy the flavor. She exhaled deeply and swirled her glass around a handful of times, watching the crimson liquid swirl around in the glass as he mind thought back to Roger. He was an interesting individual, different from all the other humans that stepped foot onto her island in hopes of coaxing her to join their crew as many others have. They were arrogant and foolish; hearts full of nothing but greed as they wished for her to join them so she could run amok like she did all those years ago, she ended their pirating careers right then and there. Roger was different, he wanted to join her simply because he thought she was "fun". She didn't do anything that would indicate that she was a fun person, hadn't he heard that rumours about her? Does he not know that she could easily kill him, she once threatened him like that and he simply gave the answer "if you wanted to do that, you would have done so already", she let out a sigh.
What to do.
"Hey, Calliope!" she hummed softly, looking down at her human intruder as he ran up to her. She giggled softly when he now stood by her feet, hunched over and trying to catch his breath from running the distance he did just to get to her "Join... join my crew! I swear, you're going to have one hell of an adventure that you'll never forget!" he bounces off the ground when Calliope lifts her foot off the ground so she could turn to look at him, she places her hands on a her as she looks up in thought with a soft sigh.
"Eh, sure." she answered before turning on her heel and striding away with her hands behind her back, she snickers to herself when she heard Roger sputter over his words then quickly run off her.
"D-Did you just say yes?! Did you agree to join my crew?!"
"Well, did I stutter?" she turns around and kneels down towards him "Gol D. Roger, I accept your invitation to join the Roger Pirates to sail the seas once more. Does that answer your question better?" he stared up at her until that infamous big grin spread across his face, he squeezed his hand in her direction and she rolled her eyes when she knew that he wanted her to pick him so her hand reached down for him to jump into her palm. When she lifts him up and she slowly rose to stand up she brought him closer to her face, that was when he surprised her by throwing his arms up and hugging her cheek.
"Oh, you have no idea how happy this makes me." she hums and pulls him away from, setting him on her shoulder so she can continue her walk to her office " We're gonna have so much fun, Calliope! I'll make sure you don't regret your decision in joining me!" she nod softly.
"I better not or I'm walking home. I can and will do it." Roger laughed.
"I'd honestly love to see that." Calliope smiled fondly at the memory and opened her eyes, her usual cold stare softening at the sight of these human pirates singing some pirate shanty that managed to get her guards to sing along with them. Perhaps she was going to have some fun cruising along the four blues once more with this group of idiots, and that's where she found herself standing in front of their tiny little ship as they discussed what the hell they were going to do with Calliope since she could obviously NOT fit on the ship and they'll feel guilty if she had to walk beside the ship as they sailed "Well, I didn't think that far ahead, okay?" Silvers Rayleigh, Roger's second in command and right hand man, slapped a hand onto his forehead and let out a long sigh at their predicament.
"How did none of us think about this?" they glance up at Calliope, to which she just grinned and gave them a little shrug in return, before sighing and looked at the ship again "Do you think we should just take one of her ships? It'll be more convenient for her and we'll have a lot more space for stuff." someone shook their head at the suggestion.
"if we do that, then everything will be too big for us." now they were all brainstorming for any ideas, Rayleigh let out another sigh and turned to look at Calliope once more.
"What do you think, Calli—" he cut himself off because when he looked up to where she should have been she was gone, he sputtered out his words and looked around for where she could have possibly gone then finally looked down, his eyes widening at the sight of Calliope a lot smaller. She grinned at the shocked look on his face before bursting out into laughter, the others turn towards her and were just at shocked to see her so... tiny "Calliope! Since when could you shrink?" she grinned cheekily at them, shrugging her shoulders at them.
"This whole time, I was just waiting for this moment." her grin widens when they shout at her for making them look like fools, she made herself small but she was taller than Roger because they were certain people that she just didn't want to be short than, so now she stood at about ten feet tall. She laughed when stepped foot on the ship and it rocked a bit because she didn't exactly change her weight but made sure to do that next so she didn't sent the ship or fall through the floorboards because they couldn't handle the weight of a thirty-two meter giant. With the ship sailing further and further away from Lavir Island, she couldn't help but watch as it grew smaller and smaller the longer she watched it. Her brows perked up when she saw a few familiar faces appeared and were waving her goodbye, sometimes teasing her for being so tiny now, in return she raised her hand and waved them goodbye and only stopped when she could no longer see them.
"You already feeling homesick?" Roger asks, taking his place beside her. He watched as her face continued to look at to see where her island once was, that smile dropped slightly as her hand closed up "You could always go back, we wouldn't mind." she swallowed softly and looked at him.
"... do you remember the four guards that were always by my side?" he nod his head, she turns around so that her back was resting on the railing "They've always been by my side, and as horrible as it sounds, I conquered the world with them BY my side. You could say this will be the first time I'll be away from them for as long as we'll be out at sea, to me, they're my family." Roger's face softened at that, she let out a grunt when he bumped his hip into hers.
"Well, I know we can't replace them, but we can be your family for the time being." she raised a brow at the suggestion, he shrugs with a grin on his face "I understand it'll take some time before we get to the level, but the longer you stay on this ship the closer you'll get to everyone. By the end of this journey, it'll have you in tears." she scoffed at that, shoving him back and walking away.
"Oh, sure. I'd love to see you make me cry." he snickers and follows after her.
"Oh, yeah? I'll take that as a challenge!" they didn't even get that far from her island when a giant storm came their way, she pulled a face from where she sat as the entire crew ran around to stabilise everything and keep things in order so their ship doesn't capsize from how big the waves were. She sat herself on a barrel and was leaning against the railing as everything went down, she whistled at how calm Rayleigh and Roger were to which the latter was laughing wholeheartedly as the rain poured down from the sky "What a refreshing start to this adventure, huh?!" Rayleigh rolled his eyes.
"Well this adventure is going to end very quickly if we don't avoid that." they all turn their head forward at a few shrieked at the sight of a giant wave hurdling towards them, if they don't time it right then the ship will surely capsize "You do have a plan for this, right, captain?" Roger laughs once more.
"Nope." Rayleigh let out a sigh, slapping a hand onto his forehead.
"Great, just fantastic." he takes a breath, a bead of sweat beginning to bleed down the side of his cheek as the giant wave came closer and closer to their ship and getting ready to crash down on them. He turns towards the helmsman and saw that he was already getting ready to try his best and minimise the damage if it came to, the wave was just upon them when they heard a voice.
"Part." a shiver ran down their spines at the tone that echoed from those words, but they were in disbelief when the wave in from of them parted right down the middle while the rest of the wave crashed down beside the ship. They heard a chuckle so they turn back towards Calliope and saw that she was sitting as calm as ever, smirking when she saw that they were now all looking at her "Well, I can't have you all dying on me this early in this adventure, right? You've still yet to show me what this new world has to offer."
—
"This... can't be happening." it hadn't been to long when Roger disbanded the Roger Pirates and he left them to go off on his own, but as she swore, while everyone else was shedding tears when he departed from them, she didn't shed a single tear and waved Roger goodbye with a smile on her face. They all went their seperate ways and she herself returned home to that boring island she called home but she returned on a positive note, her friends noticed how she brighter on most days and even when the peoples he disliked the most did shit that would usually piss her off, she let them go with a mere slap on the wrist. That adventure out with the Roger Pirates was something she genuinely needed because the Tyrant who dictated Lavir was finally submerged, but that was until the latest news on Roger's wellbeing arrived.
"What? Roger turned himself in?!" she takes the newspaper from her royal advisers hands and starts reading it herself, her eyes widening in disbelief that Roger would do something like that. Her adviser watched as her hands tightened along the newspaper until she tore it apart, she throws it on the ground and stands to her feet.
"Your majesty, where are you going?!" he shouts, quickly jogging after her as she marches down the hallways.
"I'm going to Impel Down!" and that's where she found herself standing side by side with Monkey D. Garp as they stood in front of Roger's cell "Roger! I don't understand, why would you turn yourself into the government! Why have you done this to yourself, Roger!" her lips trembled when he laughed, she grits her teeth as she couldn't help but glare at him.
"Come on now, my friend, you and I both know the answer to that." the anger on her face dwindled a little and she quickly turned away, Garp glanced up at her then turned back towards Roger "Garp!! I'm gonna have a kid! It's too bad I'll be gone by then." now Garp was in shock at the news presented to him, he looks at Calliope again but saw she looked composed but scoffed that Roger told him, so, she already knew.
"I'm a marine! Why are you telling me that, Roger?! All the women connected to you are going to be executed!" she glared at Garp when he quickly glanced at her, to which she smacks him on the arm for that.
"I'm not one of them, asshole! And I would love to see you try." she then places her hands on her hips, looking at Roger "And I agree with him, you already told me to look after them, so why are you asking Garp as well? Don't think I can take care of them by myself?" he snickers softly as he looks in between them.
"That's exactly why I'm telling him, Calliope. The government will be all over my footsteps for the next year. If they find her, she'll be killed! My unborn child bears no sin, Garp!! We've faced each other in battle dozens of times! That makes us comrades, right?! I trust you as much as my own crew! Protect him!!" they both glare at him.
"Don't be selfish!"
"That makes no sense!" he laughs at their reaction, he already trusts Calliope to accept his favour, so his eyes zeroed in on Garp.
"No, you'll do it. Take care of my child!"
Six months later she found herself in Logue Town, the place which Gol D. Roger called home, and that very moment was going to be his execution. She and the rest of the Roger Pirates that managed to make it to Logue Town were in disbelief as she was that this was actually happening, that they were going to watch their captain and friend be executed that very moment. They weren't the only ways to make their appearance, some other big name pirates were present and waiting to see the infamous Pirate King be executed. Her hand closed into a tight fist when Roger finally appeared, his hands bound together as he walked towards the execution platform where two guards waited for him to take his seat and he did it with his signature grin on his face.
"Alright, let's get this over with quickly." Calliope had finally had enough, Roger raised his head when he heard startled screams then blinked when he saw Calliope appear in front of him as a giant "Oh, I didn't think you'd make it, Calliope! Don't you live out in the North Blue? It's good to see a familiar face before I meet my maker." she grits her teeth at how calm he was, that he didn't care that he was going to die in such a disgraceful manner. He lets out another oh when she slams her hands down on the platform and all the officers there aimed their weapons at her, waiting to see what she was going to do, but she could care less as she glared down at him.
"I don't understand, Roger! I don't understand why you're doing this! There's a much more honorable way to die than this!" he laughs at her distress, that manages to piss her off even more "Grr, don't laugh at me! Is this because Crocus said that you didn't have much time left? I can heal you! I can make you better so that you don't have to die like this!" she shouts, he continued to stare at her as that anger morphed into something different. If his hands weren't chained together he probably would have reached forward to caress her face but he could only watch; watch as her bottom lip trembled and her eyes began to water.
"Would you look at that? It seems I was able to make you cry in the end." he snickers softly when she closed her eyes and a few tears did manage to shed, a few people people having to jump away to avoid that giant tear drop "Calliope, my friend, listen to me. I've managed to achieve my goal from start to finish, and since my health is already declining I might as well die in the place I came from. I lived my life and I finished my adventure, but that doesn't mean yours has to end as well. You can continue to sail the sea and meet people, see the world evolve into something different as you continue to live. You giants have such long lifespans, it almost makes me envious! But I can see why you think it's a burden, since you're outliving me now." she sniffles.
"You humans are such fickle things; fragile. You live short lives, sometimes meaningless." she stares down at him, her heart aching when she saw that resolve in his eyes, the same one that she saw when he first came to her island and convinced her to sail the sea with "Is there really nothing I can do to convince you? Is this really how you're going to end your story?" he lets out another laugh.
"You're acting as if this is the end, Calliope! There's the entire world to continue this story! You'll find your entertainment, because there will be someone out there to replace me!" he nods at her, so sucks in a breath and finally pushes herself back. He watched as she turned her back and didn't look back when she disappeared, the crowd looked around in alarm when they couldn't' find her but there were the few individuals that could sense that she was still around and watching. Roger sat back, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, the two guards who collected themselves after the terrifying encounter and readied to bring the end of Roger's era.
"Hey, King of the Pirates!" this caused a group of people to turn towards the new voice that began shouting "Where did you hide all the treasure you found?! You got it, didn't you? The legendary treasure! The great treasure! The One Piece!" there was a short moment of silence until Roger burst out into laughter.
"My treasure? If you want it, you can have it! Find it! I left everything this world has to offer there!" Calliope, hidden in an alleyway, looked away the moment those spears pierced through Roger's body, evidently putting an end to Gol D. Roger. She presses a hand to her mouth and cried silently, not caring when the bright skies turned dark and rain started pouring on all of them, soaking them all to the bone. She takes a breath, her hand sliding down from her mouth to hang by her side to take one last look at Roger's deceased body. Her heart ached for the one that managed to open her eyes out to the world and see how much it changed from what she thought it was, she'll forever feel grateful that she left her island to sail beside him and his crew to the very end, so the least she can do is honour his wish.
"Are we going now, Cali-chan?" looking down at the small child at her side, she sniffled softly when she was staring up at her with a tear stricken face and snot running down her chin "Are you taking me home now?" Calliope continued to stare down at her before kneeling down, wordlessly wiping away the tears.
"I will, but first... I have unfinished business too attend to." she deadpanned when she let out a groan, she in return stood up and started to walk away "You know I can just leave you behind, right?" she let out a sigh when the little girl let out a whine and started crying again but for a completely different.
"No... I'm coming, I'm coming...!" Calliope was coming to regret taking responsibility for this child, who was crying again and clinging to the end of her jacket. And so that's where she found herself in the South Blue on Baterilla Island in a small house standing beside Garp, but herself and Garp watched beside the doctors and nurses as the woman gave birth to Gol D. Roger's child after holding the child longer than physically possible. She felt a small smile tug on her face when the doctors presented the baby to the mother, it softened as she watched her cradle the small child in her arms and nuzzle her cheek on the baby.
"If it's a girl, Anne. If it's a boy... Ace." Calliope's eyes widened at the choice of name, because that was the name of Roger's prized sword "That's what he decided... the boy's name is... Gol D. Ace, the son I had with him." she closed her eyes, clasping a hand to her mouth when the woman finally succumbed to the exhaustion from the amount of blood she lost and died. The doctor then handed the baby to Calliope, who was at first hesitant, but soon cradled the small baby in her hands. Garp watched silently as Calliope readjusted her arms so the baby, Ace, laid perfectly comfortable in her arms and caressed his cheek with a finger.
"You're quite good with children, Calliope." Garp comments as they walk out of the room, she scoffs softly.
"Well I had to raise five children, unwillingly." at the mention of that they turn to one of said children and saw she was chasing a butterfly, she looked at Garp "She's just a stray, honestly." she immediately looked away when she gave her an offended look, she could hear her heart tearing into two as if it were paper.
"A-A stray...? I'm a loveable stray, thank you very much." she sighs again, she hands Ace to Garp and approaches the girl, she kneels down and places a hand on her head to get her attention.
"Illi-chan, do you know who that child is?" she sniffled, looking at the baby in Garp's arms.
"Didn't you say that was Gold-chan's baby?" Calliope nods her head.
"He is, and the World Government are going to stop at nothing if they find out that fact. It is both mine and Garp's duty to ensure that no one knows about his existence, so I need to you to promise that you'll NEVER speak of what you know." she grins at that, standing up straight and pointing a thumb at her chest.
"Well, I'll have you know that I am an excellent secret keeper! I remember a time when little Bug-chan stole a bottle of rum so he could share it between Tomato-chan and I but when Bug-chan left Tomato-chan drank all of it then pinned the blame on Coconut-chan! Ah hahaha! That was so funny! You should have seen Bug-chan's face when there was nothing left for him, and the fact that he believed him was even more hilarious! Oh, oh! There was another time when Gold-chan drew on Ray-chan's face and said that you were the one that did it!" Calliope pursed her lips, so that's why Rayleigh slapped her, before she could say anything else Calliope grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her gently.
"Illuka!" she was startled when Calliope addressed her by her full name, it had been a long time since she called her Illuka, instead calling her Illi-chan. She straightened her posture when she noticed that she was being serious, telling by the expression she wore on her face, Calliope took a breath when she noticed that Illuka was now properly listening to her "Promise me, Illuka, that you will NEVER speak of what you know." she repeats herself, Illuka pouts softly but nods her head.
"I promise, Calliope." she now smiles and nods her head, ruffling Illuka's red brown locks then gently shoving her head back "Hey!" Calliope laughs as she stands up.
"Now that that's been taken care of, I'll be on my way." she goes to take Ace from Garp's arms but frowned when he moved away from her, they have a short staring contest where Garp is holding Ace protectively in his arms and Calliope was ready to snap his neck "What do you think you're doing, Garp?" she growls, he huffs at her and holds Ace closer to his chest.
"You didn't think that you were taking him back to your island, right?"
"Why the hell not?"
"You govern an island full of giants! You'll never make the time to look after him properly, and I'm afraid you're going to rise him to be a savage!" she scoffs, glaring at him.
"Hah! And you think raising him yourself is going to be right? You going to raise him to be a marine with the World Governments sick sense of justice?! What bullshit! I mean, look what happened to your first kid!" they were pressing their foreheads together, a spark of lightning flashing between the both of them as they continued to snarl at each other, they only stopped when Ace started crying again. She crossed her arms and watched as Garp coddled poor little Ace, sighing to herself when she knew that Garp was right that she wouldn't have enough time to raise Ace properly, but she also didn't want to leave Roger's legacy to this... imbecile. She let out a hum when Illuka tugged at the end of her coat, she looks down at her and saw she was getting a little impatient again.
"Can you take me home now, Cali-chan? You're business is over, right?" she pursed her lips when she could just feel Garp smirking at her.
"Yeah, Cali~chan, why don't you take your kid home?" she sneers at him.
"Fine, where do you live again?" Illuka's face lights up, finally! She was going home!
"The East Blue!" Calliope nods her head and turns to Garp to bid him farewell but paused when she saw the look on his face, she stared blankly at him.
"Garp. Where are you putting poor little Ace?" she inched closer and closer to his face when he continued to look away, she grits her teeth when he mumbled his words and she couldn't pick up what he said so she grabbed him by his face and turned him around to face her "Tell me where you're putting him!" she shouts this time, she sneers at him when he tried to fight back her commands but ultimately lost.
"On Dawn Island in the East Blue!" Illuka sighed, her shoulders slumping, she still wasn't going home.
—
Time really was a strange concept to Calliope, or rather, giants. They can live a very long time since they age slower in comparison to human beings, so ten years didn't feel like a lot of time had gone by but for sweet baby Ace, of course it was because he was now ten years old. Garp and Calliope had different ideas of how to raise Ace, and though she agreed that having him be raised by neither of them and dropping him off with a group of mountain bandits would be for the best. Garp came at random times during the ten years and though Calliope did the same, she would at least appear during human holidays to present him with gifts. His birthday? He was given a new blanket and candy. Christmas? Some toys she stole from an island in the New World along with food for them all to eat. Even on minor holidays like the thing with the bunny and other shit like that, she always made sure he was given something to look forward to. Now was one of those times she was coming by the island on a random visit without Garp breathing down her neck, complaining about how she was converting Ace into a pirate each and every time she came to visit, whatever the hell that meant.
"What?" she starts, dropping the bag she brought with her at the sight of a small child that bore the resemblance of Garp himself.
"Oi, Dadan! Who's this lady?" Dadan, who appeared behind the child, stared at them two of them in dread "This weirdo won't stop staring at me!" Dadan was quick to grab Luffy, covering his mouth with both her hands as she nervously looked up at Calliope to see if she would react negatively to being called a weirdo.
"O-Oh, Calliope-san! Please, forgive this foolish child!" she watched as the child managed to break free from her hold then run away, to which Dadan was quick to make chase "Luffy! Get back here, you brat!" Calliope watched the exchange in confusion when two other bandits, Magura and Dogura, approached her.
"Who is that kid?" she asked, Dogura chuckles nervously.
"Um, that's Luffy... he's Garp's grandson." this caused her to whip her head towards them, his what? Bullshit, she ain't buying it. If that Luffy kid, or whatever, was genuinely and biologically Garp's grandson, then that would mean that he was the son of Monkey D. Dragon, Garp's son and one of the world's worst criminals to ever exist "And um, he wanted us to relay a message to you if you showed up on the island before he could meet you. He wanted to let you know that... he was your responsibility as well along with Ace."
.,.
...
"WHAT?!"