#because I needed ace to die in canon. luffy NEEDED to get that wake up call and his whole crew NEEDED badly to get stronger | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

holykillercake · 3 years

Text

A Day In The Sun

pairing: MARCO x fem!Reader

word count: 3.3k

summary: You left the Moby Dick to go on a solo mission, from which you would never return. Two years later, when hope seemed to have drained out, a loud rubber boy appears, leading the way back to your family.

highlight: ¨I guess he´s not coming, so... tell Marco I will always love him.¨

warnings: angst, MARINEFORD spoilers

notes: This was an anon request for a ¨ [as angsty as possible] Marco with a fem!S/O who left the Moby Dick a year or two before and then they ran into each other by accident somewhere¨. I really hope you like it!♡ I feel like I chose an easy path with Marineford, so maybe I´ll try this one more time with a non-canon plot. The angst, tho, the angst!

𝕷𝖊𝖆𝖛𝖊 𝖈𝖔𝖒𝖒𝖊𝖓𝖙𝖘, 𝖗𝖊𝖖𝖚𝖊𝖘𝖙𝖘, 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝖑𝖔𝖛𝖊!

☩

You watched the guard check the chains for the fourth time with an amused grin on your face. He pulled it, hit it, and almost wet his pants with the effort.

The funnier part was that he did all of that while trying to stay as far from you as possible.

¨So, am I getting company?¨ no answer, just a glance and a drop of sweat falling down his temple ¨Will you tell me who´s my guy?¨ he ignored you again and left.

A few minutes later, you heard the lame sound of chains echoing throughout the cold walls. You had a minute to process the silent and compliant steps before the rest of the prisoners started to yell wildly.

You observed the shadow of your new cellmate projected onto the filthy floor. Then his dirty feet when he walked by you, giving yourself the trouble to look up only when he took a seat while the guards locked him.

You let out a disdained scoff and waited for ¨privacy¨ to talk to him. He, on the other hand, never bothered to look up.

¨I would offer you something to eat, but as you can see, my hands are tied.¨ you shook the chains, hoping that the distasteful joke would make the man lift his head.

But he showed no reaction to your words. Instead, he remained leaned forward with his head down.

You snorted heavily.

¨You know, I was kind of hoping to be the only Whitebeard pirate around here.¨

That was more than enough to make him face you. His narrowed eyes watched you for a moment, trying to recollect your features in his memory.

¨Oh, come on. Did I really change that much?¨

¨Y/N!¨ he shouted and tried to fight the strains.

¨How are you doing, Flame boy?¨

☩

The heart beating inside of your chest felt like it was going to jump out of your mouth at any moment. Although you were sweating, all of the ice around you made you wish you had more clothes.

How could you be cold and sweating at the same time?

Everyone had their eyes on you. Well, not only you. But the entire troupe that fell from the sky altogether with a marine warship, the weirdest circus freaks brought directly from Impel Down. Your home for the last two years.

As soon as Luffy stepped on the ice field and started to attack marines in order to reach Ace, the real beginning of the battle began to seethe in Marineford.

You joined your fugitives comrades and jumped out the ship, but differently than the straw hat boy, you ran to the opposite side. Dodging every marine in your way to get to the Moby Dick.

Whitebeard looked at you like a proud father and let out his legendary ´Gurarara´ laugh while the Commanders stared at you as if you were a ghost.

Not that you didn´t actually look like one. Even for them, who always considered you to be one of the prettiest women they have ever seen, you looked a little bit mistreated.

Your hair was dirty and messy, your always radiant skin was dry, and the bags under your eyes were deeper and darker.

If it wasn´t for the look in your eyes, they wouldn´t have recognized you.

The spark and shine remained stoic. The will to live and to fight remained standing strong, even though the rest of you seemed to be brumbling apart.

Marco stood on Pops' right side, still showing the same anger in his eyes as when you said that you were leaving the Whitebeard Pirates. But you couldn´t focus on that. You were too busy trying not to get killed to care about his attitude.

And more importantly, you were so happy.

Every night for two years, you prayed for the chance to see them again, to brew saké among your family, and laugh in their companies. It was so close you could feel it in your fingertips.

¨Daughter, you don´t look healthy.¨ Whitebeard said when you reached the ship.

¨I guess feeding me wasn´t on the top of their list of priorities, Pops.¨ you laughed.

¨And I suppose you met the troublemaker over there.¨

¨We were cellmates, can you believe it?¨ Marco peeped into your conversation, trying to look like he didn´t care ¨He was updating me on the current Whitebeard Pirate´s activities. Said you got yourself some pretty cute nurses.¨

You elbowed him slightly in the leg, and the Emperor gave his staccato laugh you missed so much.

¨Daughter,¨ he spoke more serious ¨I know it´s a lot to ask of you right now... but we need to get that boy outta here. You´re in?¨

¨Have you forgotten who I am, Pops?¨ He smirked, already knowing your answer ¨ Of course, I´m in.¨

You looked each commander in the eyes, in a silent agreement that when this madness was over, you would answer all their questions. When they looked back at you, nothing had changed. For them, you were still the same Y/N from years ago.

☩

¨I can´t believe Pops wants to keep that brat.¨

¨We should have him thrown off of the ship.¨

¨You should cook him for dinner, Thatch!¨

You couldn´t hold the smile bending on your lips when you heard the Division Commanders talking about the rookie Pops had brought onboard.

The kid had been trying to kill him for a while now. Even Jinbe had to step in and engaged in a 5-day battle with the young pirate. That, for some reason, got Whitebeard´s interest.

You felt a warm hand embrace yours and turned to see the First Division Commander take his seat on your side. You smiled when he leaned over and gave you a habitual kiss, the kind you share when you wake up in the morning or when you meet up in the halls.

But your heart ached behind your smile. Because, although it was something usual for him, something that he would do thousands of times for the rest of his life, for you, it could be the last.

You were about the destroy everything you two had and break his heart.

But you were out of options. You knew that, and so did Whitebeard.

When the first part of the meeting ended, and Pops had explained his motives to want to keep the hot-headed boy, someone questioned him about the second topic they needed to discuss. The one he kept as a secret even from Marco.

Your heart pounded faster, and your face heated. Whitebeard frowned and gestured something, giving you the word. The weight of the sixteen commanders staring at you made you shrug and hold Marco´s hand tighter.

¨Y/N?¨ he called you with a tone of concern in his voice.

You just avoided making eye contact with him. You couldn´t face him.

¨I, uh...¨ you raised your head and stuffed your chest. You had to be cold. ¨I-I am going on a solo mission... and I am not coming back.¨

The room went totally silent for a few seconds before they began to bombard you with questions and inquires, to which you could not respond. Marco, on the other hand, remained speechless, waiting for you to tell him that it was a joke.

¨I, uh...¨ someone interrupted you ¨I am leaving tomorro-¨ another Commander cut you ¨... tomorrow morni-¨

The blast of Whitebeard´s cleaving blade hitting the floor made all of you shut.

¨The decision was made!¨ his thunderous voice cracked the wooden walls ¨And blessed.¨

Marco shot up, his chair met the floor in a loud thud. ¨Pops, you approved this?!¨

¨Son...¨ the First Division Commander scowled and started to walk out of the room.

You reached him and held his hand to stop him. He turned, staring at you furiously.

¨Marco...¨

¨Why, yoi?!¨

You shook your head, not being able to tell him what he wanted to know. Tears began to fill your eyes when he pulled his hand from your grip and left the room.

A single tear made its way down your cheek and you quickly wiped it. You couldn't turn back on your decision. Even if that made the love of your life hate you.

¨Y/N...¨ Thatch touched your arm softly ¨Are you in trouble?¨

You attempted to give him your best warm smile.

¨When am I not in trouble, Thatchy?¨

The next day when you were saying goodbye to your family, everyone was there, even the Fire-Fist boy.

Everyone but the person you needed the most to be there.

Every Commander hugged you tight, saying that if you ever decided to come back, your chair among them would be waiting.

You tried to hold your tears in the beginning, but that became an impossible task.

Pops held you close to his chest and suffered with you, for he knew the sacrifice you were about to make. And even a man like him couldn´t avoid it.

His voice roared through the four Blues when he declared, loud and clear, that you were his daughter and would be forever a Whitebeard pirate.

¨I love you guys. I love you, Pops.¨ you looked around, searching for your boyfriend ¨I guess he´s not coming, so... tell Marco I will always love him.¨

When you stood alone on the seashore, you waited. You waited until the Moby Dick disappeared on the horizon. You waited for Marco to have a change of heart and fly over to you, saying that he loved you and he would miss you.

But he never did.

☩

What happened was that you were a little rusted.

You got tired faster and weren´t as agile as before. So you preferred to keep yourself out of the line of fire, where you would disturb more than help. Your job was to back up the Division Commanders and make sure they would keep a clean path for Ace´s brother.

You wanted to be thrilled with the adrenaline of a battlefield, but you were scared. Every time Whitebeard stopped and put his hand on his chest, you feared.

That was the reason why you turned yourself in in the past, the reason why you didn´t ask him to fight for you.

He saved as much energy as possible for this war, but you knew he had started to die the minute he disconnected himself from the life support.

¨What are you up to, old man?¨ you mumbled to yourself.

Before you could do or think anything else, a sharp scream took your attention. Kizaru hit Marco with laser beams, and you noticed another Marine Officer approaching him with sea stone cuffs.

You grabbed a gun and ran towards them. Even rusted, you were incredibly fast. With an impulse, you jumped and grabbed Marco by the collar, shooting the marine with Haki-imbued bullets.

But again, too late.

Perhaps years ago, you would have been able to prevent this from happening, but at that moment, all you could do was get him out of Kizaru's sight, causing his laser to hit you in the thigh.

You turned in the air, changing your position so that he fell on you when you landed. In that battle, his life was worth more than yours, and it was your duty to offer support to the Commanders - your Commander, especially. His body had already gone through a lot of stress, and the sea stone handcuffs prevented him from using his powers.

You tried to muffle the scream when you hit the floor.

¨You ok?¨ you asked.

With so much of a glimpse he put himself to his feet, ignoring you and the blood he spilled before running back to the mess.

From that moment on, the situation got really bad, really quick. You went berserk, killing the marines like a freaking calamity. Your thigh was gushing blood, deep gashes covered your body, and your heart was torn apart.

Because despite all of your effort and sacrifice, the mission failed.

You didn´t see what had happened, but the person you were supposed to rescue, Ace, the Second Division Commander, was dead on the floor. And his brother was having a breakdown.

Ace had a peaceful smile on his face, and you thought that it would have been nice to get to know him better. From the days you shared a cell, you understood why Pops wanted to keep him. He was a pretty nice guy, after all.

☩

¨And how did you end up here?¨ Ace asked you.

¨Remember the solo mission thing?¨ he nodded, and you gave him a ´ta-dah face.

Suddenly, he got pale.

¨This... This is where you´ve been for the past two years? Why?¨

You hummed, pondering over your words.

¨I know things about the World Government that I shouldn´t. And when they found out, I got an ultimatum... I could turn myself in, or they would have thrown a buster call on us.¨

¨Y-You sacrificed yourself? But you know Pops could have handled it, right? We all could have handled it.¨

You smiled at him, deciding not to tell him the ugly truth.

The World Government knew about your knowledge regarding the Ancient Weapons and the National Treasure of Marie Geoise for a long time, but they waited to get to you. They waited until they had the perfect chance, and Whitebeard´s illness was just it.

At the beginning of his illness, he didn´t have the proper medication and life support devices, so he was vulnerable. Still stronger than all of you together but too vulnerable to deal with the Admirals and the CP-Zero.

When you took Whitebeard´s hand and accepted to be his daughter, you swore your loyalty to him, you vowed to protect your family even if it cost your life.

¨Yeah, I guess this one is on me.¨

After listening to everything he had told you, you knew Whitebeard would use the public execution to rescue him. He would not let anyone take another child of his.

That was the reason why you couldn´t tell Ace about your father´s state - not that he didn´t know, but he could be oblivious. And he would be crushed with guilt if anything happened to your old man.

¨Hum, but tell me, kid. Any chance the phoenix had already forgiven me?¨

You saw your answer in his awkward look.

¨He didn´t know about this as well, right?¨ Ace opened and closed his mouth a couple of times ¨He thought you had bailed on us when Pops needed you the most and... he still likes you, Y/N. He´s just hurt.¨

¨Yeah... okay...¨ you whispered.

¨If you´re right... and Pops comes to rescue me, I´ll let everyone know you´re here. And we´ll come to rescue you.¨

Your nose burned with the feeling of crying. Even with his powers restrained by the sea stone cuffs, he was so warm.

¨Well... I could use another day in the sun.¨ and you sobbed.

☩

But there was no sun.

There was no sun, and your father, together with Ace and thousands of your allies, were gone.

And the dream of brewing saké with your family, you did reach it, but couldn´t hold it.

When he opened a crater on the ground, separating him from his crew, you stood beside him, begging him to reconsider

¨Pops, don´t do this...¨ you whined, choking on your own tears ¨I-I just came back...¨

He looked at you in the eyes and wiped your tears.

¨My daughter... I´m sorry I failed you.¨ You shook your head and held his huge hand ¨I know you´ll take care of the boys. Your room and your seat remain untouched.¨

You couldn´t say anything else before he threw you on the other side.

Now the Red Hair Pirates were collecting Whitebeard and Ace´s bodies to assist with the funeral. Jozu scooped you in his amrs and carried you back to the ship as you cried. He walked you to your old room and put you in the bed, leaving without a word.

Inside of your cabin, you raged, not wanting to accept the fate of things. You punched the walls until your knuckles bled, you cried until your throat hurt and wished to go back in time, when you were in your dirty cell, and Whitebeard was still alive.

When do you think people die?

When they are shot through the heart by the bullet of a pistol?

When they are ravaged by an incurable disease?

No. It’s when… they are forgotten.

When the sun began to fall, you got up from the cold woodboard and reached the door, making your way to the deck.

The Commanders and the rest of the crew were scattered around, mourning their losses. The family was falling apart, and this time Pops wasn´t there to glue the pieces back together.

I know you´ll take care of the boys.

His words echoed in your head.

You watched the hundreds of men injured, bleeding through their wounds and passing out unattended. Where was the man in charge?

A sudden anger consumed you, and you rushed to his room, kicking the door open.

¨What the fuck do you think you´re doing?!¨ he didn´t answer, nor did he move.

Marco looked miserable, sitting on the mattress, leaning forward with both hands on his head.

You had a lot of emotions going on in your head.

You were happy because you got to hear Whitebeard call you daughter one last time, but you didn´t know how to live in a world where he didn´t.

You were happy to be with your family again, but it killed you to see them crumbled like that.

¨Not now.¨ he spoke when you approached with calmer steps. His voice was hushed and broken.

¨Marco, you have to-¨

¨Get out, yoi.¨

¨No. You are the one getting out and help-¨

¨GET THE HELL OUT, Y/N!¨ he roared.

¨NO!¨ you roared back and pulled him by his collar, facing his teary and red eyes. ¨YOU TURNED YOUR BACK TO ME ONCE, BUT I WON´T LET YOU DO THE SAME TO THEM!¨

You let go of him and shed heavy tears.

¨You have thirteen Commanders and hundreds of men out there who need you. So suck it and step in.¨ you said with gritted teeth.

¨They can handle themselves, yoi.¨ he grumbled.

You scowled

¨Is this how far your loyalty goes?¨ he clenched his fists ¨Pops offered you a seat on his side, and you took it! NOW USE IT!¨

¨SHUT UP! YOU DON´T KNOW THE THINGS WE´VE BEEN THROUGH, Y/N!¨ he marched towards you, stopping a few inches from you and yelling in your face ¨You have no idea the things we´ve lost, the things I have lost!¨

¨I do know!¨ you pushed his chest ¨I have always known, but you didn´t! You didn´t because you´re Marco, the Phoenix! And you´re great! Great rare, mythical Devil Fruit. Great First Division Commander. YOU. ARE. GREAT.¨ you sobbed, helpless ¨But being great didn´t make you confident, it made you spoiled. It made you forget what loss feels like. And now you lost. We lost.¨

He let himself fall on the mattress again, head down, tears dropping on his ragged pants.

¨So you don´t get to drown yourself in commiseration, Marco. You don´t get to sit here, feeling sorry for yourself.¨ your voice came out weak ¨They need you. I... need you.¨

You watched him for a couple of minutes but seeing that he wouldn´t move, you sighed, ready to leave the room and do his job.

¨I hated you, yoi.¨ Marco said before you could leave..

¨I know.¨ you whispered and leaned against the door.

More tears fell.

Two years in Impel Down were not enough to break you, but that... that was a difficult hit to take.

¨All these years, I hated you every single day.¨

¨I know.¨

¨Even when I thought you were dead, I hated you.¨

¨I know.¨

¨And when Pops told me what you did for him... I hated myself.¨

The both of you broke down.

¨I know, Marco.¨

You turned slowly and walked to him, sitting by his side, laying your head on his shoulder.

His shaky hands held yours, and you weakened, feeling the touch you missed so much.

¨I can´t do this, Y/N.¨

¨Yes, you can.¨ you touched his face gently, so he would look at you ¨We can.¨

You slipped to the floor, holding each other in your arms, hoping that the tears would wash away the pain, the guilt, and regret.

78 notes · View notes

petite-neko · 7 years

Text

Stability - 3

Fanfiction: Stability Story Summary: It wasn’t because he was self-conscious or ashamed. No, it was because he was afraid. His greatest fear was being alone after all. Characters: Luffy, Zoro, Chopper, Nami, Ace, Sabo, Law Pairing: Eventual LawLu Rating: T Warnings: Swearing, AU/UA, canon-typical violence, angst A/N: OTLOh my god. This.... this is a fucking monster. 17 pages guys. 17 mother fucking pages. Here's the lawlu portion of this! (I still can't believe how long this is. Like wtf!)

.xxx. = Time/scene skip

.+++. = PoV change

Read on Ao3

Part 1 || Part 2 || Part 3

“S-Sabo?!”

Sabo looked at the young man sobbing in front of him. His brother. His brother.. He nodded.

And he got a face full of Luffy’s chest.

(To be honest, he was really glad not only for Luffy that Iva fixed him up right now.)

Sabo laughed and patted Luffy’s back.

“Thank you Luffy. For living. For helping Ace to live…”

Luffy nodded furiously.

“And I’m glad for you too. That you met Iva… does it feel better?”

More furious nodding. And a hilarious story of asking another Super Nova how to take a leak. The Super Nova who was apparently allied with him…

(And the one who had saved both of his brothers’ lives.)

.+++.

To be honest, Trafalgar Law had no idea just what he had gotten himself into…

It was just supposed to be an alliance not this… this… thing it had turned into.

First the idiot insists that they were nakama, then he fucking saves his life against his wishes, bonds with his crew, and now?

Now that mother fucker just kissed him!

“…Have you been drinking Mugiwara-ya?”

(Law remember the last time a foreign substance had influenced Luffy’s behaviour. Seriously. The idiot forgot how to take a fucking piss!)

Luffy was pouting at him. “No!”

Law only rolled his eyes. “Of course not,” he drolled out, “you’re completely in full control of all of your capacities.” The sarcasm was practically dripping from his voice. “Because it’s completely normal to want to kiss me.” He rolled his eyes again, pushing Luffy away when he tried to press closer. “Just like it’s completely normal to forget how to piss.” And since Luffy obviously wasn’t taking the hint, Law just decided to stand up, letting Luffy just fall unceremoniously off of him.

“But Toraoo~”

Law sighed at the whining and rubbed at the bridge of his nose. Not even he was free from some slight intoxication. He was nowhere near drunk, mind you, but still inebriated. Probably was why he was saying the things he was saying, in all honesty. “We’ll discuss this when we’re both sober.” He said with some irritation before walking away.

Seriously… just what had he gotten himself into?

.xxx.

Law had settled against Bepo as he mulled on what just happened.

Luffy had kissed him. Had just clambered onto his lap, purred out his nickname, leaning in a bit before just pulling Law down by the cheeks and pushed their lips together. It was sloppy, awkward, and just… well… shocking. Of all of the things that Law had ever expected Luffy to do, this was probably one of the last things on that list. If it even made the list that is. (Not to mention that list was quite long...)

And what if? What if Luffy had truly wanted to do that? Somewhere inside of him. Alcohol was something that tended to loosen up any inhibitions people had. Certainly, yes, it made people do things that were uncharacteristic of them, even made them do things that they would never think of doing otherwise…

But, what if?

Law groaned.

Sure, the Strawhat was pleasant enough, even if irksome to no end. Sure, Law had gotten used to his presence, but mostly because he had to. Sure, they got along fine enough, even though some days Law regretted pulling that idiot and his brother out of the war.

But this?

Gods…

Whatever… Luffy acted all sorts of odd when inebriated by drugs – medically or otherwise. That, at least, he consoled himself with.

.xxx.

“Torao~”

To say he wanted to wake up with Luffy’s face far too close for comfort was a lie in of itself. Law groaned, pushing Luffy’s face away, and sat up.

“Morning, Mugiwara-ya.”

Well, at the very least, he didn’t have a hangover.

Luffy was laughing and on his heels as they walked, spewing out random things that, quite frankly, Law couldn’t give a damn about.

“Can this wait until I get my daily dosage of caffeine Mugi-”

(Apparently the mention of any sort of drug had prompted memories of other drugs to come flooding back, namely, alcohol. Even if that mention was a self-deprecating attempt at a joke.)

…Fuck, that really happened, didn’t it?

Never was Law so grateful to have a mug shoved in his hands. (He knew, with the expression he was currently wearing, he looked worse than he actually was. Because it wasn’t dehydration that paled him, no, it was mortification.) It also seemed that the chef had sufficiently distracted a rambunctious captain with food.

God. That’s what Sanji was right now. Gifting Law with everything he wanted before he even realised it.

He was already starting to feel better after his first cup, but he held it up for another. Not only would it keep Luffy at bay for awhile longer, Law felt that he was going to need it for today.

If Luffy asked him about last night, just what was he supposed to say? Fuck…

(Fuck indeed.)

No thank you, peanut gallery. He didn’t need his sardonic humour right now. Couldn’t it take a skip day or something?

Law sighed and stared into the black depths of his coffee.

Luffy, huh?

Well, the usual first two excuses he used couldn’t apply to the Strawhat, Law knew that much. As begrudgingly as he was to admit it… Luffy was his friend. And, foremost, a man he trusted. This was a man he was willing to die together with.

But that didn’t necessarily mean…

Certainly, yes, Mugiwara no Luffy was far from unattractive. Powerful and caring to boot. And it wasn’t as if Law only played for one team…

But this was Mugiwara no Luffy. The man who refused Boa Hancock of all people. The supposed most sought after woman in the world.

And this was him. Trafalgar Law. Whose personality and traits, in his own opinion, had to be the most unappealing in the world. Insomnia. Paranoia. Anxiety. An over-seasoned dosage of PTSD and abandonment issues. His humour bordered on insanity and insulting – both to himself and others. And, don’t forget that healthy dusting of suicidal, self-destructive tendencies. All in all, such a perfect and appealing candidate for a partner, wouldn’t you agree?

(Yeah, Luffy had to be intoxicated last night to even begin to think kissing him was a remotely good idea…)

Luffy wasn’t the problem here, it was him. He had never entertained the ideas of a relationship for too long. And, always, Law made a point to find a problem in them as well. Mostly to convince himself to not even see if they were willing to take on his shit load of problems.

He’d find something in Luffy. Eventually.

.xxx.

Despite all of his efforts, however, Trafalgar Law could not find a single, game changing fault in Mugiwara no Luffy. Anything and everything that he could find in the other Super Nova was either something he had already become accustomed to, or something so minor that it, in all realities, wouldn't have bothered him.

Weeks. It had been weeks since the incident, and, thankfully, Luffy had not brought it up.

But, by now, Law almost wanted the idiot to approach him and bring up the topic. There were things that Law wanted to know, things that Law had wanted to ask Luffy. And maybe, just maybe with answers to those questions, he could finally find something in Luffy that would turn him away.

Quite honestly, it was driving him insane. He had lost sleep on the issue. Had become paranoid and skittish around Luffy. And his anxiety was through the roof because, because...

He was afraid he wouldn't find anything.

All of this over a fucking hypothetical scenario that, in all probability, wasn't even going to happen.

Because if Luffy was going to ask, well he would have already done so by now. It's not like Luffy to put something that he wanted to do off for such a long period of time after all.

(Why? Why did that bastard kiss him damn it!)

.xxx.

In the end, it was him that caved. After the god-knows-what-numbered timed of losing sleep over some stupid drunken kiss Law decided to drag the other captain from his bunk.

"We need to talk."

(One of the bad side effects of brewing on this for as long as he did was the idea was starting to become appealing. This. This was why he never thought on these scenarios for so long. That's why he always tried to convince himself that the person in question wasn't suitable for him. He didn't do relationships. Even if there was that small sliver inside of him that craved it and wondered just what it would be like.)

...And he'd be damned. Fucking Monkey D. Luffy looked adorable right now, with a yawn on his lips, a fist rubbing sleepily at his eye and...

"Torao?"

Law sighed, before the most pathetic line of his life slipped out of his lips.

"Well, we're both sober..."

And the look on Luffy's face...

Well, he looked like a dying machine that was slowly being brought back to life. The way that the light slowly flickered to life on his face... the realisation...

"We can talk about it now?"

(...Did that idiot...)

...Never mind, he didn't want to know... Nor was he going to ask.

"...Yeah." He admitted awkwardly, glancing off to the side.

"Yay!" And the light that was slowly being ignited was now a fire. "I mean, I didn't know what you meant by sober and… I wasn't drinking and..."

"Wait a minute!" Law interjected - and now that he actually thought about it, wasn't Luffy a horrendous liar? "You didn't..." Oh God... Oh God... Shit. Fuck. This wasn't good. No. This wasn't what he had been anticipating at all and - Fuck!

"You - you just..."

His head was spinning and going a mile a minute and...

"I just what Torao?"

And god damn Mugiwara no Luffy was acting as if this was not a big fucking deal.

That somebody had actually...

"That I just kissed you?"

"Give me a moment..."

(He was not panicking. He was not panicking. Fuck. He was panicking. Over a fucking kiss that wasn't actually a drunken kiss and that somebody had actually...)

"...Yeah, I kissed you because I like you, duh. I mean, why wouldn't I..."

(See? Perfect partner material right here. Number one. VIP. Soon he'd have everybody flaunting themselves at his feet and--)

"...Seriously, why did you think I was drinking?" There was a pause in Luffy's babbling that Law wasn't really paying too much attention to right now. "Torao? Torao?"

"I said give me a moment Mugiwara-ya!"

Law had all but yelled and just squatted down, holding his head, closing his eyes.

He didn't get it. He didn't understand any of it. Why? How?

"...Torao?"

(See? Look. Luffy was worried about him now. Lovely, just lovely.)

Law inhaled deeply a few times, trying to calm himself enough not to lash out again. Trying to calm the chaotic thoughts in his mind.

"...Why?"

That word was croaked out - a barest whisper.

He felt Luffy's gaze on him.

"...How?" Law felt his body trembling again. "How can you like me?"

His stomach felt like lead. His head hurt. His heart racing. How can you..." And his lips wouldn't stop moving. Rambling, he was rambling. Listing off all of the god damned things that were wrong with him and...

"...full of problems and paranoid and everybody always leaves me anyway and-"

"Torao!"

At the mention of his name Law felt himself jolt. It wasn't that the voice was laced with Haki, but it held power regardless.

"You're not any of that - and even if you were I don't care. You're Torao, the man that I care for."

Law didn't know what to call the look in Luffy's eyes right now. It wasn't love, it wasn't empathy (he knew that from Cora-san) and it wasn't even forgiveness. But, whatever it was, it drew him in, and they remained there in silence for a few moments. Eventually, Law felt control returning to him.

"Feeling better Torao?"

Despite everything, Luffy smiled at him.

"...Yeah."

.xxx.

It wasn't long after that conversation that Law had agreed to try. To try a relationship.

He didn't make any promises - and Luffy seemed fine with that.

He couldn't find any reasons to decline Luffy after all.

(And the idea was appealing in its own sense. That he appreciated Luffy's company, perhaps more than just an ally or friend should. In different ways...)

The secrecy lasted a month.

(To be honest, really, Law was surprised Luffy had lasted that long. Given the guy's tendency with secrets and all...)

But, at least by then Law knew that, yes, this was something that he wanted.

.xxx.

Thankfully, they lasted a bit longer until Luffy's brothers found out.

Apparently Ace and Sabo had bumped into one another and had decided to jointly come to visit their little brother.

When the two brothers had boarded the ship, Law had been greeted warmly before they quickly bombarded Luffy with updates about his life. Inquiring about certain events that had happened in the news and such.

In the meanwhile, Law had just decided to wander off while Luffy caught up with his brothers.

His peace didn't last all too long however.

"What?!"

Both of the brothers had said that simultaneously. He didn't quite like the sounds of that. And low and behold, he had both of them at his side.

It was his turn to be bombarded with questions.

All about the topic of their relationship. Great. And a few about his sexuality and preferences and past history...

Needless to say, Law avoided answering the more personal questions.

"Relax Torao~ They just want to know more about you~" Luffy sang once he catapulted himself over, and hugged him.

"What we do by ourselves is of no business to anybody but us Luffy-ya."

(He received some scandalous sounds from the brothers.)

Law suppressed a blush. "Sh-Shut up! whatever it is that we do or do not do is none of your business!"

They were all laughing at him.

(He was just going to ignore the suggestions and scenarios that the brothers were laying out for him. Yup.)

Finally, it seemed that the teasing was mostly done. (For now, oh Law knew he wasn't escaping that easily.)

"So, I guess I should tell Dragon not to expect being a grandfather anytime soon~" He said with a teasing wink.

Ace had rolled his eyes. "They could always adopt, ya know Sabo. Just pick up some stray child in a war ravaged zone - you never know."

Law just ignored the two brothers in favour of looking down at Luffy who had tangled up on top of him.

"Shishishi." He was laughing.

Yeah, that's what really mattered here.

Luffy.

.xxx.

...Those god damned brothers of his...

If they hadn't gone and opened their mouths and...

"Torao? Did you ever want to have a kid?"

Damn those brothers for putting that idea in Luffy's head. Damn them.

"...This is because your brothers mentioned it, isn't it?" He sighed.

And Luffy only nodded enthusiastically.

Of course, Law went into the explanation that adopting a kid, really, would only be due to the scenario that Ace had given. Of course no orphanage would let pirates adopt children. Nor would they be able to pick up a child who was known by villagers, or other people. That the only children they would able to 'adopt' in a sense were those without homes or family or people to care for or remember them.

Most of which went over Luffy's head, but at least he understood that adopting a child wouldn't be as easy as it sounded.

But then Law went into the schematics about biological children, and then shit just... hit the fan.

"Statistically speaking, the chances of us being able to father a child together are nigh impossible. We're both guys after all." Law's voice was very matter-o-fact right now, as it tended to be when he was explaining. "Unless there's a devil fruit to change one's sex and keep their DNA intact..."

"Oh! Iva-san can do that! We could always just ask Sabo-"

"Well," Law paused, not at all expecting that response, "I suppose that would leave us with a few questions... First off, would we even want to have a child? Would I be able to even have a child considering my past? When would we do so, considering it would be a year of inactivity? And lastly, who would willing become female to carry the child to term?"

Luffy started acting... well... strange after that.

Law hadn't noticed it, however. No, not until Luffy had lashed out at him.

They had been exploring the questions - all hypothetical of course - and when they had gotten to the last comment, and Law had been listing out the pros and cons of Luffy carrying the child (after his own study of himself) Luffy had just...

Flipped.

Protesting about how he would never even consider carrying the child. That he was a guy and would never change into a girl.

Then went off on some incoherent rant that not even Law understood - but it seemed that Luffy had taken great offense to him even suggesting Luffy turning into a woman. That he was faulting him for something.

He let Nami take over from there.

And now? Well he was wandering the Sunny, just avoiding Luffy. And right now he had ended up in the men's quarters.

It was quiet down here. Empty too.

To be honest, Law never spent much time down here. He mostly slept in the infirmary or on the deck when he was aboard the Strawhats' ship. Occasionally Luffy would drag him to his bunk, if he wanted to sleep next to him.

(That being said, mostly when he was visiting nowadays, he would have his own submarine nearby and chose to sleep in his own bed.)

He sighed before sitting down on some furniture.

He glanced around, making a face at the apparent lack of tidiness of the room. There were clothes everywhere.

...Well not everywhere but more so than he would have liked.

(And were those Franky's speedos hanging off a nail in the wall? He fucking hoped they were clean. He wasn't going near them in any case...)

Law sighed and shook his head before leaning back, his head falling behind the couch he was seated on.

He stared at the room, which was now upside down.

There were a few other things he noticed. One of which was a dresser off to the corner. And a half-walled off area right beside it.

The dresser had accumulated a lot of dust. As if it hadn't been used in months. Years maybe.

Why was that, he wondered?

(He was curious, yes. Why there was an area that, in all appearances, looked like a changing room with a dresser nearby? And if that dresser was unused, well maybe he could use it as a storage for some of his clothes? He was on the ship often enough...)

Curiosity got the better of him, and he wandered over there.

When he was about to touch the dresser, he thought the better of it and just used his scan instead.

...Huh, so there were clothes in there.

But what were they doing unused?

As he focused in a bit more at the clothes, he began to recognise the style.

Luffy's?

He found himself glancing back to the dresser he had often seen Luffy rush to.

What the hell?

By now, Law knew that probably - probably he should just dismiss this. It probably was nothing. And Luffy tended to wear a lot of the same clothes over anyway... so it was probably just extra clothes that his ally never got to wearing yet.

(But the half wall was bothering him now. Why was Luffy's clothes over here? By the design, the thing looked to be a sort of changing room. Luffy was always flaunting his chest and he doubted the boy had any shame when it came to other body parts and strangers...)

Really. He should just walk away and go read a book or some shit. Luffy was already mad enough at him as it were. For god knows what reason. He didn't need to worsen it.

He was staring at the bubble his Scan had revealed.

Plenty of jean shorts. Hell, even a few boxers... and a plethora of shirts...

Bandages? And - wait a minute, that isn't a...

"Shambles."

Law was staring at the garment in question in his hands.

If he was honest in his opinion - really - this looked like, well...

A bra. The kind that women wore if they were smart about regular physical activity. (And the ones that were, quite frankly, a bitch to get off. At least, in his experience.)

But, no. The fabric under his hands didn't have much give. And with a brief tug, he confirmed his suspicions that, yes, it hardly had any stretch at all. Enough to fit over the head, be still be comfortable but...

It would do a whole lot of compressing.

... Was that why there were no button up shirts in Luffy's wardrobe? And those bandages...

Law groaned and just threw the... binder behind himself (with a quick, last minute correction to shamble it back into the dresser) before slumping onto the couch.

He was such a fucking idiot.

.+++.

"Luffy, Luffy. Calm down. He didn't know."

Luffy sighed and hugged his legs. He knew it wasn't fair to lash out at Torao like that. Torao didn't know. Of course he didn't.

Sure, they met before Iva fixed him up - but unless somebody saw him without a shirt on, they never suspected...

Well, maybe Torao could have - he was a doctor after all...

But by the time Torao had to really fix him up... well...

Apparently that was more than enough for Law to not suspect.

(Not to mention...)

Luffy sighed, frustrated. He needed to find Torao and apologise to him. Torao didn't know. He didn't mean anything by it. He just thought Luffy was normal like everybody else, and that's why he said those things. Torao didn't know and Luffy couldn't fault him for that.

Soon he found Torao, who was sitting by the tree like he always did.

He felt bad...

But Luffy swallowed and took a few steps forward.

"Torao!"

...The look in those yellow eyes hurt. They hurt a lot. He looked sad and angry and...

"I'm sorry Luffy-ya."

"I - no - it's okay Torao! It's my fault! I shouldn't have-"

Why was Torao apologising?

"I fucked up."

"...Torao?" What was Torao saying? He didn't know... he shouldn't...

"I was stupid. So fucking stupid!"

"Torao!"

(This time, his yelling did nothing…)

"I can't believe..."

Torao was holding his head again. Like before. Like when they talked about the kiss.

"Torao!" Damn it! What was he supposed to do here?! He grabbed the other captain's shoulders tightly, shaking him a little. "Torao!"

"I'm sorry - I - I can't... I didn't know... Fuck..."

Luffy froze at that.

...What... what did he mean by that?

"I'm such a fucking idiot... I just thought that you were..."

(Fear. Fear. That's what was lumping up in his throat right now. His arms trembled. His entire body did. No... No... It was like when he argued with Nami's doctor... when Nami came into the room... His arms went limp, he took a step back…)

"...If only I had know... I would have never..."

(The next thing he heard was the sound of flesh hitting flesh.)

.+++.

"You would have never what Law?"

Law had looked up at the woman who had smacked him: her hands now balled up and on her hips - but ready to attack him again. Her expression was angry.

(He could still hear the whispers though, in the back of his mind: God, how could he have been so stupid! How! He fucked up. Royally fucked up. Royally screwed up. Big time. Stupid. Insensitive. An asshole. That's what he was.)

And he glanced over to Luffy - only feeling that guilt hit him even more. Scared. Afraid… That's how Luffy was looking at him right now.

He had really fucked up big time, hadn't he?

"Well?"

...Nami had asked him a question, hadn't she?

(God, it was hard to concentrate...)

Law avoided her gaze, and Luffy's. "I would have never said what I said." He found himself biting his lip, trying to let the pain distract him from the deafening chaos inside of his mind. To let it ground him to the here and now. Nami's slap had knocked him back to his senses, and was he ever grateful for that. "It was insensitive... I'm sorry Luffy... I'm sorry that I suggested..."

(He reached his hand across his body and grabbed his elbow, fingers digging into the flesh there.)

"I fucked up and made you uncomfortable and angry and it wasn't right for me to do that and-"

"Y-You're not angry?"

Law looked up immediately at the tone of Luffy's voice. Why? Why was it so terrified and sad and pleading and -- oh gods he fucked up again didn't he?

(What did he do this time?)

He dug his nails in deeper. Luffy. He had to answer Luffy.

"No." He shook his head. "At least, not at you. The only person I'm angry at is myself. I was such a damn idiot and apparently I just fucked up again and don't know just how or why or-"

Nami slapped him again.

...That woman had a really fucking strong hand.

"Well, at least that shuts you up."

He felt Luffy prying his hand away from his arm.

"Y-You're okay with... with this?" Luffy squeezed his hand, gently but desperately.

...Wait. Wait. What?!

Law just stared at Luffy in astonishment. "I- of course I am Luffy-ya!" To emphasise the point he took his other hand to clasp Luffy's. Why did Luffy even think...?

"But I'm not-"

...Ah. Fuck. Law sighed and placed his forehead on top of Luffy's head.

"I couldn't give a damn about that Luffy-ya."

"B-But what If Iva couldn't-"

But Law could already guess what Luffy was getting at. "Then I would. Devil fruits are not the only way to fix that problem. Sure, it might not be as effective, but it still does a damn good job. Of course... only if you wanted me to."

Luffy moved and grabbed Law's face with his free hand so that their gazes matched. "...And what if I didn't want you to? What if I turn back or what if-"

Law leaned in and lightly kissed Luffy on the lips to shut him up for a moment, since his hands were otherwise preoccupied. "It wouldn't matter. We would do what you wanted. It's not like female bodies aren't appealing to me either."

(Law vaguely could hear Nami scoffing something about sappy or too much information before she stormed off in her heels.)

"...And if I want kids?"

Law chuckled softly. "If I agree, I suppose I'd have to carry them, wouldn't I?"

Luffy pulled him down for a kiss.

When they parted, Luffy was laughing.

"...Oh, Torao... how did you find out anyway... since I'm a guy now..."

Law groaned and placed his head in his hands.

...Ah well, it was bound to come out one day..

#lawlu #trafalgar law #monkey d. luffy #one piece #sabo the revolutionary #petiteneko:story #tlaw #onepiece #luffy #fanfic:stability #sabo

10 notes · View notes

authenticaussie · 7 years

Note

if you're still taking prompts from earlier, how about headcanons for a NaVi AU where one or both can use magic? (witches, wizards, whatever term you like)

i loveeeee magic aussssssss. Or even just not AUs, just UAs, (sometimes UAs are even BETTER bc u get to see how it fits with canon hehe ;u;). JUST. MAGIC.

This is actually part of show me skies on fire !! Bc I don’t get a chance to talk abt the magic system and that thing is so indepth it’s. Yep. So complicated. And I don’t get to rant and I love it.

ANYWAY Witches in the skies world have magic that they imbue in objects!! They can get it to do different things, and layer magic to make the object more powerful, so like, Nami’s weather staff has been imbued with weather magic for years, basically ever since she was a kid. And witches have less instinctive/explosive power than fae but? If their imbued objects have been given enough time to collect power they can beat a fae? So it depends.

Regardless, in Skies most witches form into covens! Bc then they are with people who are like them and they have more power together than alone and can share spells - because witches can create new spells but it’s Harry Potter style spells with specific words and gestures rather than just BAM! power like the fae - and Nami gooottttt. Inducted into one early? Like you’re meant to be able to choose but Nami got…shoved into it so she could get more power from the witches, and the witches she was pushed into joining weren’t the Best (most witches…aren’t?? They are very. “our opinions are right and yours are wrong and to prove it we shall kill people!” Which is. Shitty.)

ANYWAY Luf ended up breaking up the coven and beating people up bc he and Zoro got hired by the townspeople to get rid of the coven and Nami said she was going to tag along with them and Luffy was like oh. Uh. Okay then!! What can you do???

“Steer better than you, probably,” she says, but doesn’t reveal about all the magic she’s shoved into her weather staff for years and years until after Luffy refuses to let her go into a bar on her own to get what they need bc it’s Dangerous and she Obviously doesn’t want to do it.

Vivi’s actually a princess from another land!!! They’re neighbours and so Vivi’s land kiiiind of have fae?? But they’re not like, exactly fae, they’re more like elves? Vivi’s an elf!!! She was meant to meet with the Council to go over trade agreements but they were Dicks and confined her ship to harbour when she got message that her father was in danger and so Luffy + crew agree to help her get over the mountains and the smaller sea to the other side of their land to get to Vivi’s and it’s SUPER dangerous but Vivi is Desperate ™

Luffy is like. Hm. U could help Ace. Cools. and agrees to help her and they travel to the mountains from the sea and Nami is Standoffish bc like….she’s not a fan of nobility??? A lot of nobility drive out peaceful covens and turn them cruel and she’s still…heard lots of shitty tales from her coven and even tho she knows they weren’t trustworthy they were still her family for years??????

So anyway they end up getting all seperated while crossing part of the mountains and there’s this forest that. Literally throws you together with someone/something you hate/fear and vivi and nami end up together and vivi’s like seriously?! after they escape the forest bc she hears about how zoro and sanji had to work together and luffy was all alone and. yeah stuff like that but DURING the forest they’re arguing with each other but also stabbing things and Nami’s trying to fight things back and then like growls in frustration and grabs Vivi and pulls her really close and then. Lets loose a lightning bolt.

And vivi is like WHAT WHY DID YOU DO THAT WHY ARE WE SO CLOSE (why do you look so fucking beautiful with lightning in your hands????????/) and nami just huffs and tosses her hair back and daintly steps over a tree root or w/e they were fighting and is like do you want to die????? bc u would have if you hadn’t been close to me.

And Vivi doesn’t really know what to say to that bc like...she’s still Distracted by. How powerful & gorgeous Nami looked it Wasn’t good for her heart

so we start having like....pinning vivi??? a bit??? who knows she has an Aesthetic crush but nami is an asSSSSS omfg

But like......There’s Robin, Zoro, Sanji, and Luffy and Luffy and Zoro are always talking in shit that no-one understands and Sanji’s....ugh. And Robin is Cool but also not very talkative. So Vivi and Nami end up talking a little bit and slowly realising stuff abt each other and vivi ends up apologising one time to nami and nami’s like?????? what????

“for the nobility. for how you were treated. fo whatever I did to hurt you.”

“You haven’t- hurt me.” Nami goes cautiously, and doesn’t add but you might and knows Vivi can probably hear it anyway when Vivi’s expression softens with pain.

Anyway they reach the sea that separates their land from Vivi’s and!!! Robin ends up being a spy and double crosses them ((but then later ends up double crossing crocodile?? uhhh, lots of double crossing, man))

SHE MAKES OFF W/ VIVI. Nami is Not Alright with this shit, for fuck’s sake, goddamn, sTOP, they were just starting to get along damn!!! it!!!

aND LIKE. STAFF TIME. NAMI USES LIKE. HURRICANE-ESQUE WINDS TO PART THE FUCKING SEA AND STORMS ACROSS THE OCEAN FLOOR BED (in defence of this show of magic like. It’s not a big sea lol)

Nami almost electrocutes Robin but the wind stunt took a lot out of her and Robin dodges until Nami runs out of power and faints and Luffy looks at Robin and looks about ready to fight her but then robin’s just like “sorry, captain.” and he kind of goes ohhh,,, and stays by Nami’s side instead

When nami wakes up it kinda like alabasta except it’s like. five ppl overthrowing the entire revolution/Crocodile in a very blatant. Rescuing Vivi and Nami like. Punches someone out

ummmmm Vivi ends up socking crocodile in the fucking face

Vivi gets her kingdom back and,,,,like Luffy and crew aren’t technically bad guys lol so they stay in alabasta and Vivi ends up showing Nami (well, technically everyone but’s 95% for nami’s sake) the city and her favourite places and exploring libraries filled with how their magic works (bc it’s slightly different to fae/witch/demon magic) and they end up becoming,,,pretty friendly?? bc nami can see Vivi really,,,isnt as shitty as most of the nobles and they hold their nobles accountable instead of like what the Council does but

Luffy ends up getting antsy again and they have to move on, and Vivi offers to travel with them and show them more of alabasta but she’s needed to help repair the city and stuff and so nami promises to send her letters and that’s what happens for about a yeaar ish??? With na/vi slowly,,,getting closer to each other in letters,,,,missing each other bitterly, unhappily-

But then Luf always celebrate’s ace’s birthday at the tower so they pass back through alaburna to say goodbye and Nami feels so happy to see Vivi again and Vivi feels the same way and when Nami half-picks Vivi up in a hug when they see each other she doesn’t end up letting go and so they’re pressed super close and nami’s heart is beating super fast and she’s like oh.

“So I know this would be a bit late, but heroes can usually score kisses from damsels in distress.”

“I’m not in distress, and you’re no hero.” Vivi says, and when nami’s face falls quickly adds, “You are good at stealing what you like, however. And I wouldn’t put up much of a fight.”

and she grins and Nami looks at her and then grins back and quickly kisses her and viVI LIKE,,,, TOTALLY ENDS UP FLUSHING A LITTLE BIT BC AH. WOW. THAT WAS. NICE. RLLY QUICK AND SOFT BUT JUST SHE CAN’T STOP SMILING

They still send letters back all the time and Nami goes to visit her whenever Luf passes by the mountains, and travels back that way occasionally by herself to see,,,vivi. Vivi sends ships to pick her up bc it’s Faster ;u; and safer lol.

#navi #namivivi #nari is writing #opfanfic #aussie's anons #ask aussie #anyway i have one femslash ship left and i'll finish that first and then do the others!!#bc this set of reqs was meant to be femslash ship reqs haha #but im a Sucker for ships soO HEY #shrugs #mmm idk if this is like 100% finalised bc i havent finished skies lol but it's pretty!!! close ;u;#look hcs time; vivi's totally bi af and ended up dating kohza at one point #before they were both like ugh our parents may want us together but We Don't #and Nami's gAY. AS. FUCK. SO MANY GIRLFRIENDS. DATES BEAUTIFUL GIRLS AND LOVES THEM AND HAS A GIRLFRIEND/FRIEND W/ BENEFIT IN LIKE #EVERY FUCKING TOWN #NAMI HAS THAT GAY NETWORK GOIN' DOWN #anyway like tho nami Totally brings that up w/ vivi and vivi's like no no that's cool #im the only one who stole the thief's heart ;3c #and she copies nami's lil cheesy thief pose and nami Dies #her girlfriend........is to cute #she's fucking Dead

8 notes · View notes

petite-neko · 7 years

Text

Boyhood Blues - 04

Fanfiction: Boyhood Blues Story Summary: Actions, and inactions, have their repercussions. It may not be immediate but somewhere down the line, the effect will be seen. Chapter Characters: Law, Sabo, Luffy, Ivankov, Sakazuki, Ace, Jinbei, Bepo Pairing: LawLu Rating: T Warnings: Swearing, Universe Alteration, canon-typical violence, angst, A/N: I hope this is alright, I had to redo edits D< so. Here you all go.

.xxx. > Time/scene skip

.+++. > PoV change

Read on Ao3

Chapter 3 || Chapter 4: Brothers|| Chapter 5

Trafalgar Law didn’t have any time for questions. No, he just took the injured into his submarine and had them immediately prepped for surgery.

(The marines wouldn’t let them go this easily. No. No after the war that just happened. Not after Portgas D. Ace being declared at the son of Gol D. Roger. Not after Monkey D. Luffy being declared the son of Dragon the revolutionary.)

Ace was the worst of the trio. He had taken heavy damage to his side, and if the injury was anymore to the center of his body… (He wasn’t too sure if even he could repair the damage done…)

Jinbei wasn’t pretty either, a hole through and through. It would take a lot of work to heal that. But at least it was in a non vital area.

Luffy’s injuries weren’t light, (perhaps in comparison to the other two, yes, he was the least injured) he still sustained heavy damage, but repairable.

As he scrubbed himself down, Bepo was able to pick up on the anger that was practically radiating off of him.

(And angry he was… The Marines would do this to these boys? Merely on the basis of whom their parents were?)

(Who was he kidding? He was from Flevance after all. The Marines hadn’t changed, despite what Cora-san had said…)

“Captain, are you okay?”

Law sighed. “I’m just angry Bepo. Angry at the government. Let’s just go save these brothers, shall we?”

(And if he couldn’t save them, well, Trafalgar Law just had two more people to avenge.)

.xxx.

“…How are they?”

Law sighed at the repetitive question. He had been asked that by multiple people at once when Boa Hancock had boarded his submarine, demanding to know the condition of Mugiwara no Luffy. And then that person with the purple afro had also asked the same question but in the case of Ace and Jinbei. Thankfully, it was only the Snake Queen and this blond haired man that insisted upon remaining on his submarine’s deck, the others were aboard the stolen Marine ship. It was the blond haired man’s turn to ask this – but in the case of all three involved.

Law remembered seeing him. The man with the black claws that has succeeded in redirecting Sakazuki’s attack so that it was not immediately fatal. The man who had extended Ace’s life long enough to find medical attention.

(That attack however caused Ace to fall unconscious, and Luffy had just… assumed that Ace had died and proceeded to pass out in shock as well. And… that didn’t surprise him, no, because his memories of the two brothers had been becoming clearer and clearer as he mulled on them, and he remembered now, that these two brothers had been more. There had been three until…)

“Stable, for now.”

He didn’t want to imagine what it would be like when Luffy woke up however… (The boy had been through so much, as he had heard. He was informed of Luffy’s trials in Impel Down, and how he had been running on sheer adrenaline that entire war… And believing that he had lost yet another brother….)

It was going to be hell.

“My crew are constantly monitoring them. Ace sustained the worst of the damage, but I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss Jinbei and Luffy’s injuries as non life-threatening either.”

And the man relaxed. “They’re okay?” He let out a sob. “Thank god. Thank god…”

Ah, no… this was no ordinary man. Law realised now just where he recognised him. He was a revolutionary… ranked just below Dragon. The Chief of Staff...

“Why? Why did you do it? Why did you come here?”

Law blinked and shrugged. “A whim. Certainly, yes, I have history with these two brothers but…”

“Say no more!”

…Ah right, that person with the purple afro was Ivankov, weren’t they?

“Be glad ve have so many allies Sabo-boy!”

Law flinched as he heard the name. Sabo? Sabo?

“Luffy… Luffy calm down.” Ace’s arm was wrapped around the hysterical child.

Luffy was crying and screaming incoherently. Law could hardly understand what he was even saying, but he heard something about missing and not fair. And Sabo.

“Shh, I know Luffy. I know. I miss Sabo too, but we need to be strong for him. He wouldn’t want to see his little brother crying like this, would he?”

“Sabo wouldn’t want to see us like this at all Ace!”

And Law? All he could do was bring his legs up and buried himself deeper into his book about metal poisoning, trying to seem invisible. He couldn’t help but recognise Luffy’s actions as his own in his past… Had Sabo died?

It didn’t take long for his younger self’s suspicions to be confirmed with later visits by the brothers, and that Sabo’s death had really affected Luffy.

“…Sabo?” The name sounded foreign on his tongue. “Sabo-ya… isn’t that…?”

“…Yeah. Somebody Luffy and Ace knew as kids. Also happens to be my name, go figure.”

Law sighed and shook his head. “…No, not just somebody. He… was their brother, and he apparently died in an accident.”

“…A brother, huh?” Sabo said thoughtfully before wandering off.

.xxx.

Law didn’t know what to make of Sabo. He was perplexing and, well, he wondered just what his motivations were for helping Ace and Luffy. From what he knew, the second hand of the revolutionary army hadn’t been captured by the Marines, so just why was he at Marineford? It couldn’t be the fact that Luffy was Dragon’s son, because Sabo was already on the battle field before that was revealed…

He had begrudgingly let the revolutionary wander the ship – as long as he was accompanied by one of his crew members, and, well, he wasn’t looking forward to being that person whenever that time came. He didn’t know why but… there was just something he didn’t like about Sabo. Maybe it was the mystery surrounding him?

Meanwhile, he had Luffy’s hat in his hands, and he had been toying with it a little. Mugiwara… this was the reason for his moniker huh? Well, the kid had been wearing it even back then too, even if it was a little big and not as ragged looking as it was now. It had been important to Luffy, although why, he didn’t know (or remember if he had ever been told about it) but, he wasn’t the only one who seemed to know that it was important. That flying clown knew that too, didn’t he?

“Hey, isn’t that Luffy’s?”

Law flinched at the presence of the revolutionary. Dammit, he was hoping to avoid him until he had to…

“Yeah.” He said and ceased twirling it in his hands. “I’m holding onto it for him. Don’t worry, I left my sword in his care in it’s place.” (But not on his head, obviously.)

Sabo laughed and shook his head. “Nah, I wasn’t worried. So, how do you know them?”

“We met as kids every now and then.” He stated simply and looked at the hat in his hands. “After that, I had forgotten all about them until I encountered Luffy-ya at Sabaody a few days ago.”

“Oh! So you’re Torao!” Sabo was laughing. Laughing.

God damned idiot and not being able to pronounce his last name!

“…Apparently Luffy-ya has difficulties pronouncing things.” He sighed. Ah well, he had gotten used to it as a kid, so he couldn’t complain.

“You know, he doesn’t shut up about you.”

“…What?”

“Yeah, you were all he wanted to talk about as we travelled from Impel Down to Marineford.”

…Luffy was talking about him to others? Why? And when did he give that idiot permission… he better not have opened his mouth about…

“He was so excited to see you at Sabaody. I bet he will be when he wakes up too.” And more laughter from that damned revolutionary.

(Although now that he thought back to it… Luffy was rather enthusiastic back at the Auction House…)

“I can’t imagine why.” Law conceded with a shrug, and truthfully he couldn’t. “I mostly ignored him and his brother and read my books.” His life depended on it after all… Studying various poisons and genetic diseases, or whatever he could find on his devil fruit… “Not to mention, well, he’ll want to check in on Ace first. Shock was what caused him to pass out after all. It was the final straw, considering the stress he had put on his body.”

And Sabo nodded. “I… I understand him there.” His hand trembled. “If something happens to either of them…”

Law watched him carefully. He was a perplexing character. He didn’t seem to have any connection to Luffy or Ace and yet… he was so emotionally invested in this. Why?

“…Why did you help them Sabo-ya?”

“Huh? I… I guess it was similar to you, but not quite. I just… I had this urge. I had to stop the Marines. I couldn’t let Ace die. It just… unleashed this fury within me, and so I went to the nearest base and snuck aboard a ship…”

While Law could understand to some extent… he could also rationalise his own thoughts and reasons and behaviours. It was a way to get back at the government. At the Marines. And, well, he knew these brothers as well…

But Sabo? He couldn’t logically rationalise his actions one bit.

Unless Sabo knew about Luffy’s lineage, but he doubted that would be the case. Hell, even he didn’t know who Luffy’s father was. Not to mention, well, Luffy wasn’t even in the equation when Sabo decided to smuggle aboard a Marine ship…

So he shook his head. “I just… I don’t understand. Why you would do so much for men you don’t even know. Instinct? What caused that instinct? Or… do you just have a thing for righteousness?”

(He supposed that made sense considering the guy was a revolutionary after all…)

Sabo sighed and shook his head. “...No, it’s not that. Honestly, I... I don’t know. Just that when I read the paper that they were going to execute Ace something in me just... boiled with rage.” There was a sad smile on his face and the revolutionary placed a hand on the scar on his eye. “Ten years ago... I only have memories for the last ten years of my life. Maybe I experienced a trauma of execution as a child? Maybe it triggered some other sort of trauma? My feelings were the only thing that seemed to transfer over after I was involved in that incident which caused me to lose my memory.”

Ten years ago... isn’t that when...?

Law was starting to piece things together. It was making sense. If Sabo was in an incident traumatic enough to cause a loss of memory, it seemed feasible that people might think he had died. And since he didn’t remember...

“It… didn’t happen to occur in East Blue, did it?”

Sabo sighed and his hands clenched again. “...I know what you’re thinking. Iva brought it up too. But...” His gaze went towards the operating rooms. “Even if it’s what we all think it is... it’s better the way it is.”

Law’s hand clenched at the strawhat beneath his fingertips. “How? How is it better!” Why? Why was he so angry at this? This was just Luffy’s problem, not his. “Anybody would rejoice if their loved one wasn’t actually dead!”

Sabo sighed. “That’s just it. I’m not the Sabo they know and love. It’d just be like dangling a piece of meat where they can’t reach it. Can you imagine being told your brother or mother or father or whoever you lost was actually alive, but they don’t remember a thing about you? They don’t know your face or care about you, and may actually be a completely different person than you remember?” Sabo was clutching at his own hat now, pulling the brim down with taut fingers. “Or that it was just a maybe and may not even be true? How can I do that to them? To give them hope but brutally rip it from their grasps? How can I tell them I might be their Sabo but I don’t remember them? That there’s a possibility I might not even be that Sabo? They’ve been through enough right now.”

Law looked down at the hat in his grasp, fingers only tightening. No, Sabo was right. It was cruel to do that to the brothers. Law knew just how much they suffered. He heard it in their cries. He saw it in Ace’s eyes as he forced himself to stay strong. He knew what it was like to lose the people you cared about...

(That was probably why he had reacted that way. Jealous. He was jealous. Luffy and Ace had the chance at reuniting with a loved one they thought dead, and Law... he was angry that Sabo wasn’t allowing it to happen. What he would do to have Cora-san back… Or Lami... Or his parents... Or Flevance... and he didn’t think before he spoke.)

“…You’re a doctor, do you… do you know any way to remember what you have forgotten?”

Law looked at Sabo, and he realised that he wasn’t being mysterious just to be an ass, no he was just genuinely confused. (Just like he was.) He didn’t know what was going on, or why he was doing what he was doing, and he truly wanted to remember – especially if he was their long lost brother. And sadly, Law had to shake his head. “Memories are a strange thing. It all depends on where they were stored, and how they were stored and just what was the cause of your amnesia… If the memories or where they were stored were permanently damaged, or it was just simply the pathway was blocked, or even a subconscious decision or shock…”

Sure, he could transfer personalities along with their memories but…

“Let’s just say I doubt you’d be willing to lose who you are again just on a maybe.” And Law wouldn’t blame him if that was the case. Although, he did let a dark smirk slip past his features, “There are no documented cases of the Ope-Ope no Mi solving amnesia, and even if I was willing to attempt it, well it’s highly probable that things could go wrong.” He supposed it could work in theory – that was if memories were tangible to his ability and he could separate the personality from them. (But then again, where would that leave Sabo as he sifted through the memories?) “Not to mention I would have a great deal of knowledge about the revolutionary army once I finished.”

(And, finally, it probably required far more energy than he had at the moment. And whatever energy he did have had to be reserved if any of his patients took a turn for the worse.)

“I guess you’re right.” Sabo finally said with a soft chuckle. “I think I’ll leave it to nature… I think I sometimes almost remember… even if clouded by fog. Two boys calling my name… inviting me to go with them… foreign words and names whispered to me by a foreign voice… And it always seems to revolve around these brothers…”

And Law just nodded as it fell silent.

All they could do was wait after all.

#monkey d. luffy #trafalgar law #lawlu #portgas d. ace #sabo the revolutionary #one piece #fanfic:boyhoodblues #petiteneko:story #onepiece #tlaw #luffy #sabo #ace

10 notes · View notes