Tony returns the hug by reflex, reveling in the feeling of his brother's cheek fur brushing against his own snowy white face. The hug is broken and Tony stumbles half a step back and hiccups. The smile slowly fades from his face as he looks around at the patrons all staring at them with an array of reactions from smiles to shock at these two huge cats.

"Little Bro! That was a dream before. Before I got off the Wagon...erm, became the wagon. But now look" he gestures to the restaurant, "I'm doing good now, I'm on the straight and narrow and doing really good. Mom and Dad came and ate last night and it's been quite some time since I've seen them this happy for me"

Tony smiles a little sadly as he takes Leon in, from the vibrating energy, to the small stains that transferred byrom his own apron.

"Tony, I'm glad that you've got your life back on track. I mean it's kind of ironic that being permanently drunk was what you needed to kick the habit, but I'm very proud of you." Leon says and thoughtlessly shakes out the from his fur inside the restaurant to the dismay of all the customers, "And now that you're doing better we can finally go be pirates! Come on brother, I've been putting this off for years hoping you'd get a handle on things."

"You remember the Roger Pirates? The epic stories, the epic skills, the epic conflicts, and epic adventures! Jean Pierre Lafitte has his own crew now; he's a freaking Yonko!" Leon says pacing back and forth waving his arms about wildly, "We can go on our own adventures! We can build up a crew as awesome as Roger and go on super awesome mega adventures ourselves!"

"We can get our own crew?" Tony thinks back at watching his little brother grow up, the little brother who was always there for him, even at his lowest of lows. The same little brother who has wanted nothing by to be the best swordsman since the pirates first showed up in their village. He looks around the restaurant again his eyes looking over the people and objects in the room. "Where would we get a ship? We can't be pirates without a ship."

"Of course we can! Obviously I'm going to be an awesome Captain and you can be my first mate and ship Sommelier, but we'll need other people to do the other piratey things like navigating and fixing the ship." Leon says excitement feeding on his brother's question, "I dunno where we'll get a ship. We're going to be epic pirates, so we'll probably steal one or maybe someone will give us one because we'll be so epic and famous! Those are just details!"

He thrusts out his hand to shake, "What do you say brother!? Shall we go be epic pirates!?"

Tony feels his excitement grow even more. Of course the crew would need to eat, too! So I can do what I love, AND keep an eye on my little brother while helping him follow his own calling! He looks back to all the people eating. Suddenly a smile nearly splits his face in half, "Dinner is on the house! Me and my little brother are going to be pirates!" He took off his apron and put it on the nearest table as he puts his arm around Leon's shoulder and lead him out the door, not bothering to close it behind them.

With a huge grin they run down to the docks to hitch a ride with the merchant ships, "We'll start by visiting the place where Roger's was executed! This is going to be the most epic adventure ever!"

Lost.

Lightning flashed through heavy rain. Thunder boomed in the dark sky overhead. Thunderclouds as far as the eye could see, and not an island in sight. The Lionheart Pirates made it as far as East Blue, even acquiring a old beat-up fishing boat to take them to Loguetown. They hadn’t even come close.... or rather, they had no idea how far or near they were. Reading maps and following the stars and sun were not as easy as they thought.

Even in the midst of the storm, a News Coo managed to find the ship, sloshing in the mild yet violent waves. The average looking gull—average aside from the black-billed, white hats and reddish leather satchels slung at the neck next to the newspaper—flew down and dropped a paper on the deck before being whisked away in a gust of wind. It corrected its course before continuing in the direction it was going.

The paper’s headline read,


It continued below:

Another coup d'état in the small country of Vira in the Grand Line sparks a full scale revolution. Officials report that the head of the Revolutionary Army himself, Taiyi D. Zhenren, was seen destroying Navy Ships near the capital once the riots started. This confirms previous suspicions that these terrorists were responsible for previous coups.

The section below was titled,
LOCAL NEWS: EAST BLUE.
The first article there read,

BREAKING: The Shadow Strikes Again!

A mysterious terrorist continues to plague Hundred Palms Island. The Navy is hard at work to discover who he is and why he is attacking the peaceful town of Coconut Village. Locals have come to nickname this villain The Shadow.

The wind nearly ripped the paper from their hands as they fought the storm.

For Japanese/Chinese names, I’m going with the traditional [Surname] [Middle Name] [Given Name].

Leon and Tony are sitting next to each other each other in the boat soaked to the bone, each loosely gripping an oar, resigned to let the storm toss their small boat around. The storm wasn't even the worst one they'd seen and any storm is better than the week of windless, currentless doldrums they'd had before that. The islands they'd stopped off on had been beyond boring, simple fishing villages, none of them hiding an evil conspiracy or ruled by a maniacal despot.

Though they had been given an old boat at one of the islands, it was a pity boat in every sense of the word. Given to them because the fishermen felt bad for them, but also in pitiful condition. A single many times mended sail, two oars of disparate lengths, and no matter how many times they patched it there was always a slow leak somewhere.

Their epic adventure adventure was turning out to be an epic failure and not even a spectacular defeat either, this adventure seemed determined to bore them to death... A News Coo? That meant they must be close to an island; at least they could find out where they were and get directions, though with their poor navigation skills it probably wouldn't help.

Leon holds tight to the paper and reads it. His ears perk up a bit and he starts the paragraph over reading it aloud to Tony, "Brother! This is just the sort of thing we've been looking for! Let's go to Hundred Palms Island and meet The Shadow! I dunno if we're gonna fight him or help him, but at least there's something interesting going on there!"

Tired and a little scared, Tony couldn't help but grin. "Well, the bird came from that way, so might as well go the way where once it came! With a cool name like the Shadow, he would make a great pirate to join our ranks...or awesome nemesis!" He began to row once more with his whole heart.

As they rowed the tiny ship through the rough waves until they could go no further, sunlight finally broke through the clouds and the storm began to subside. Panting, arms numb from both cold and exhaustion, they saw a glimmer on the horizon: a ship! It was going straight towards them, flying some unrecognized flag, neither Jolly Roger nor Navy. It was a two-masted, square-rigged ship, seemingly unarmed. Deckhands scurried about, obviously spotting the Hart brothers as they drifted on the still settling waves.

As the ship came closer, a lookout on the front of the ship called out to them, "You two lost or stranded or something? A wonder you made it through that storm in that little boat!" He squinted for a moment, then his eyes went wide. "Animals! A lion and a white tiger! No... wait... uhhh, a lion... man and a tiger... man? What... are you?" His face was a mixture of confusion and fear.

"Minks?" said a man taking to the front of the ship next to the lookout. He wore a captains coat and hat, with a glittering saber at one hip and a shiny flintlock pistol at the other. He stared for moment, then finally nodded. "Yes, they must be Minks. Never heard of them outside the Grand Line. Truth be told, I sort of thought them a myth. They look sodden worse than an unshorn sheep in a monsoon." He called out louder, in case the pair of Minks hadn’t heard him yet. "You two need help? You look worse for wear, if not starving. This here is a merchant vessel, so we’ve got little to spare that’s not for sale, but I can’t rightly let you die out here."

Tony looked up at the man hailing them. Good sir, we would appreciate the help, maybe toss a line? My brother and I would be more than hiccup grateful!

The captain raised an eyebrow, then squinted, pushing his head forward a bit on his neck as though looking closer at the pair.

"Are you drunk?!" the captain barked a laugh. "I’m not the trusting sort, but we can tow your boat along till we make land, and I’ll have the men put together something to keep your stomach’s from growling too much. Can’t promise much more, I’m afraid. Hundred Palms would be the next stop, but I’ll not be risking my wares in some town full of turmoil. You can make land there, or keep on till the Organ Islands."

"We are Minks!" Leon confirms standing up in the boat, "And what luck! We are trying to go to Hundred Palms to see what's going on with The Shadow!"

"A tow and food?! You guys are so nice!" Leon says as he tries in vain to shake the water from his fur, "See brother? Things are already back on track!"

The captain nodded and motioned for his men to throw a line out to tow the boat. "If you catch the scoundrel, and want to spend the bounty, you’ll find no better wares than on the Flying Fortune," he said, slapping the railing of his ship. "Remember the name Carter Hawkhurst, and the Hawkhurst Company," he said. "One day, perhaps, we’ll be the greatest merchant company to sail East Blue, maybe the world!"

The next day or so made quick friends of the group. The merchants were amicable and generous, despite Captain Carter’s protests to the contrary, and they made it to Hundred Palms with full bellies.

"Off with you," said Carter with a regretful smile. "I’ve got all the help I can get, and can’t afford to feed you two forever." His face belied his attempt to avoid a farewell.

I’ll give you two a chance to describe the short journey with the traders, and reaching the island, if you like, before moving on.

Tony sat, his back to the tiny mast of their small ship, tattered sail whipping lazily above him as they were pulled behind the larger boat. He turned to Leon, " So long as we don't have to row, I can really see why someone would want to be a pirate."

"A pirate!?" the captain said, nearly stumbling. After catching his breath and putting a hand to the railing, he said, "Well, I suppose as long as you don’t try and steal anything from us, there’s no harm. After all, we’re lending you aid. You wouldn’t want to... would you?" His eyes grew cold, and a hand unconsciously felt for his weapon. "Not everyone earns an honest living, but I like to think that even your lot can be honorable. Roger surely was an honorable one, for a pirate."

"Aye Captain, one day my brother here will be the most well known, loved, and respected pirates to ever sail a Blue! But have no fear my friend, your kindness and generosity will not be forgotten, and you and your men needn't worry about us. You have a fine vessel, but not the one we are looking for.

"We met Roger! He's the reason we decided to become Pirates!" Leon says excitedly, "We aren't in it to rob and plunder, we're in it for the epic adventure! I am Leon D. Hart and I'm going to be the most epic pirate ever!"

"I have met Roger as well!" said Carter, removing his hat in his excitement. "He definitely set the bar high for epic adventures. He always bought from me, even when it was just me and a ship your size full of mostly useless junk. He always seemed genuinely interested in what he bought. I think half my income was Roger and his crew for the first year I was in business!"

"His first mate Jean Pierre Lafitte stayed at our house! He was the one who taught me how to use a sword and gave my brother a Devilfruit!" Leon says, "The Roger's pirates were the best!"

Bonding over their shared admiration for the great pirate Gol D. Roger the Hart brothers eat and drink and sing with the crew of the Flying Fortune well into the night. The next day the brothers pitch in around the ship, getting a crash course in sailing that they desperately needed, and before long Hundred Palms Island is in sight. They return to their small vessel and cast the line back to Captain Hawkhurst waving to the crew before rowing ashore, "Thanks again! And you remember us, the Lionheart Pirates!"

The captain looked away, a hand pulling his hat down.

"I will forget you immediately...," he said, a tear dripping off his chin. "I’ve already forgotten your name."

Leon D. Hart. That D....

The rest of the crew waved and cheered as they rowed away.

---

A new day. A new island. A new town.

Coconut Village was nestled in a bay on the northern coast of Hundred Palms Island. The island itself was mostly palm-tree jungle, with far more than a hundred palms. A few other settlements poked out of the trees, one atop a ridge to the south, another southwest, peaking out of the middle of the jungle with buildings reaching just above the sparse canopy.

Coconut itself had bamboo huts along the beach, but more sturdy, brick and wood structures sprawled out among sand and dirt streets about a thirty foot climb up a ridge. The beach had some docks, and a few ships were tied off there, but there was also a massive, stone dock that was basically empty, but built for huge Navy ships and larger marching vessels. The smaller wooden docks wouldn’t do for more than a small fishing boat. Leon and Tony’s was almost too big for it.

There were WANTED posters with THE SHADOW plastered on everything within view that could hold a poster. The picture was of a figure wrapped in a hooded cloak, his face obscured, holding a pair of kukris.

A pair of marines were lounging on hammocks between palm trees near the steep steps that lead up to the main part of town.

In the seas behind them, another merchant ship was coming into the bay, sailing right past the Flying Fortune and her crew.

Tony stood up and stretched, scratching idly at his tummy. His maw opened wide in a yawn that ended with him facing the wanted poster. He nudged his brother and inclined his head.

The brother's boat smoothly glides into the dock, or at least that was Leon's intention, what ended up happening was the boat was moving too fast and not parallel with the dock. The resulting crunch and lurch throws both brothers staggering and opens a few patches on the hull to resume their slow leaks. Leon quickly regains his composure and ties the boat up, "No matter. We'll get the hang of this."

The marines nearly fall out of their hammocks at the noise and several local fishermen cringe at the damage to dock and ship. Unperturbed Leon vaults over the side of the boat and begins striding up the dock to the island proper, "Hello there Marines! I'm Captain Leon D. Hart and I'm here to meet The Shadow! Where can I find him?"

The crunch of the boat made the few bystanders wince and turn their eyes toward the Mink brothers. Eyebrows raised, some jaws dropped, and others went white. They said nothing, but they all looked fearful.

The marines rolled over as if going back to sleep, never even looking at Leon and Tony. One grabbed a coconut that had been cracked open, a colorful straw and tiny umbrella poking out the top. He took a sip and grumbled something about it being handled, whatever that meant.

Everyone else slowly tried to get back to what they were doing, some trying with great effort to ignore the Minks, others simply frozen in place gawking.

Leon frowns at that. He lazily saunters up to the hammocks and pokes one of the Marines hard, "Excuse me. What exactly does that mean?"