I just joined this site the other day, and this is one of the first few stories I'm posting so it might be a bit rough. I know we had a whole mini-arc surrounding Luffy's backstory, but honestly I can't get enough of little Luffy. I'm sure there's more to his backstory regarding Dragon and his mother and how he came to be in Garp's care, but until then all we can do is speculate. This fic might become irrelevant in the future of One Piece but for right now it's fun to write. If you enjoy it, feel free to offer suggestions or feedback, I'm open minded and can fit some head cannons in if they fit within the narrative I've come up with. As it is, I hope you enjoy!
Chapter 1: Minor Mishaps
"Thank you for the meal!" Ace and Luffy both said in unison as they bowed politely to the enraged chef who was chasing behind them. Their thanks seemed to only infuriate the man further as his face turned bright red.
"You damn kids, when I catch you I'll skin you alive!" He screamed waving his arms in the air. Several more shouts followed the initial threat and a handful of guards began following after them.
"Okay time to go!" Ace exclaimed grabbing Luffy by the back of the shirt and turning to run. The two brothers laughed as they scampered through the streets of the city, their full stomachs sloshing slightly with all the food they had just eaten without paying. It had been several years since Luffy had seen Ace laughing so hard. He didn't know what had happened over the past few months to make his brother so giddy as ever since the incident with Sabo, Luffy had noticed that Ace's smile never quite met his eyes. Seeing the gleeful look on the fifteen year old's face only made Luffy laugh all the more merrily despite the armed soldiers pursuing them.
"You're under arrest, you miscreants!" a deep voice shouted and a large man suddenly blocked their path causing the two boys to stop in their tracks. Luffy, who was just a hair slower than his elder brother, nearly crashed right into Ace as he abruptly halted and threw out his arms instinctively to protect the younger boy. The man was nearly nine feet tall and had a large frame that was covered with the thick armor the royal guards all wore, despite this he lacked the traditional headgear and they could see the malice in his eyes and the contemptuous sneer on his lips. Ace looked around wildly and noticed a small gap in the buildings that revealed an alleyway to the left. Thinking quickly he grabbed Luffy by the arm and dragged him behind him.
The gap was so thin that the two boys had to suck in their full guts to squeeze through into the larger pathway. Ace grimaced as he felt the rough bricks scraping against his bare skin but it didn't stop him. Luffy however wasn't so lucky and about halfway through the gap got caught and was unable to move allowing the large guard to make a mad swipe to grab him. The armored man was too large to fit through the passageway but his reach was just long enough to grab the rubber boy by the arm and begin to yank him out. The man let out a surprised shout as, instead of pulling Luffy free, the arm began to stretch out. In his surprise the guard nearly dropped the elastic limb but he quickly composed himself and began to reel in Luffy's arm as though it were a long rope. Ace shouted in alarm and began to do the same to Luffy's right arm which began to extend as well. The two men's attempts to retrieve the distressed Luffy from the walls resulted in a strange tug of war that slowly escalated as they pulled harder and harder.
"AHH!" Luffy cried out in pain as the rate of his stretching arms began to slow and his face became strained. "Ace, you guwys awre huwrting me!" he shouted frantically, his voice slightly muffled as his face was pressed in between the two buildings.
"That's your own damn fault for eating so much you fucking gluton!" Ace shouted through gritted teeth from the strain of pulling his brother free. In truth it wasn't really all Luffy's fault as having skin made from rubber made him much more susceptible to getting stuck as he generated much more friction than most others. Luffy was squeezing his eyes tight now, trying desperately not to cry out in pain again as he didn't want Ace to think he was being a crybaby. Nothing was worse than letting Ace down or having him think poorly of him. So he simply endured the pain as the two continued to relentlessly pull. At this point it seemed to be more out of a contest of strength than one of need.
"When I get my hands on you, you're going to wish you were never born!" The burly soldier said with a heave, causing Ace to yank on the arm in his grasp just as hard in response. Luffy whimpered quietly as he felt a surge of pain in both limbs. He saw the anger in Ace's eyes grow exponentially at the man's words, something about what the soldier had said seemed to throw the boy off balance.
"Who the hell do you think you are!" He screamed and gave his own savage tug. Just then there was an awful ripping sound and a spurt of blood shot out from Luffy's arms as the rubber flesh began to fray from the stretching. Both men gave out a gasp and released the arms which then snapped back into place with such force that it knocked Luffy free. The boy gasped as he finally pulled himself from between the walls. He stumbled into the alley way and he held both of his shoulders, which were leaking the bright ruby liquid at an alarming rate. The soldier on the other side of the wall screamed in frustration and he punched the stone bricks actually managing to chip them. He pulled out a pistol and fired three times into the gap, all of which missed, before he stormed off to find another entrance to the alley. The gunshots rang in the air as the scene was filled with a stunned stillness.
Ace reached up and felt his brother's blood upon his cheek, a look of horror on his face as he pulled his hand down to stare at it in a state of disturbed fascination. Luffy was crouched over, his arms across his chest as he was still gripping his shoulders tightly. He clenched his teeth and grimaced in pain. The sound of footsteps shook Ace out of his trance and he quickly grabbed Luffy by the arm once more, this time a bit more gently and the two of them ran down the streets. Turn after random turn they ran until they were hopelessly lost in the backstreets of the Goa kingdom. Thankfully now the soldiers pursuing them were lost too, as there was no trace of them following the boys anymore despite the trail of blood that was sparsely left over the oddly clean streets. Breathing heavily, Ace and Luffy slumped against a wall and caught their breath.
"It seems," Ace heaved, still trying to catch his breath, "that they have finally caught on to our escape route, the damn bastards… We'll have to figure out a new way out of town…" Ace leaned back against the wall thinking hard. Luffy said nothing, he just sat there breathing heavily. His arms hurt so badly, but he didn't want Ace to think he was being a wimp or to make him feel guilty. So instead of saying anything he simply smiled through the pain though it came out looking a bit more like a grimace.
"Yep!" he said cheerfully after a few minutes and tried to pat his brother on the shoulder to reassure him, but the sudden movement agitated the open wound causing it to spurt blood once more. Ace cried out in alarm at the sight of the twelve year old's surge of blood. The bleeding began to pick up speed and Luffy bit his lip until it too began to bleed to keep from crying out.
"Luffy!" Ace exclaimed in concern, "Stop moving you idiot!" Luffy immediately froze. He felt awful, not because of the pain in his arms but because of the fact that it was his fault that Ace's first real smile in years was ruined. In fact he felt like crying, but that would make Ace even more upset so he bit his lip even harder. Why couldn't he be as tough as his older brother was.
"I'm sorry Ace, I didn't mean to get stuck," he whimpered miserably, sniffling slightly as his attempts to not cry were failing. Ace's face went rigid for a moment, then he softened slightly and scooted closer to his little brother and knelt beside him. Luffy looked up at him and grabbed his shoulders to hide the wound, not wanting to worry him. Instead of angrily hitting him over the head as Luffy expected, Ace gently removed his hand from his shoulder and looked at the frayed flesh. The wound looked worse than it was and at the sight of the torn skin Ace's face went slightly pale.
"I'm sorry Luffy, I should've been more careful," he said softly as he removed his shirt to tear it into bandages he could use to wrap around Luffy's injured arms. As he began to apply the cloth bindings, Luffy involuntarily flinched causing Ace to pull away reflexively. "This looks really bad… are you sure you're okay Luffy?" he asked looking almost frightened. Luffy shook his head and forced a smile.
"I'm fine Ace, don't worry about it, it doesn't even hurt at all!" And to prove it he stupidly punched his bleeding shoulder. This unsurprisingly backfired as the shock caused a wave of pain and there was a loud snapping sound as another thin layer of muscle and tissue tore from the strain. Ace recoiled a look of horror twisting his face as Luffy screamed and doubled over, clutching the agitated wound.
"See… I'm fine…" hissed Luffy through gritted teeth, although he was trembling slightly to keep from crying. At this remark Ace's face turned bright red as it contorted into rage. He raised his hand to slap Luffy over the head, then thinking better of it after the display he had just witnessed, brought his fist down heavily on the stone earth.
"YOU IDIOT!" he screamed "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?" At this point Luffy's right arm was bleeding furiously and his left looked like it was about to fall off his shoulder. Luffy looked away sheepishly, Ace was the only person in the world whose opinion mattered to him, and he was clearly ruining it.
"I'm sorry…" he muttered "It doesn't hurt though, really I'm fine-"
"NO YOU AREN'T! THIS IS SERIOUS LUFFY, YOU COULD LOSE AN ARM IF YOU'RE NOT CAREFUL!" Ace screamed and Luffy's lip began to tremble as big fat tears began to roll down his cheeks. His chest began to heave as it was racked with sobs he was trying desperately to suppress. But with the pain in his arms and his upsetting Ace he couldn't hold it back any more.
"IT HURTS!" he wailed throwing back his head, his tears flooding out now, then he quickly caught himself and covered his mouth and held his breath to stop his tears as he often did whenever Ace yelled at him not to cry. "I'm sorry Ace!" he said quietly "it doesn't hurt, I'm fine!" He looked up at the teenager to see if he was mad. Luffy felt his stomach sink when he saw Ace's face, he definitely wasn't happy. "I'm sorry," he whispered again, hoping Ace wouldn't be upset anymore. He just wanted his brother to be happy.
"What the hell're you sorry for!?" Ace cried exasperated. Luffy sniffled and looked away shrugging, although the simple movement caused his arms to ache and he winced a bit.
"I almost got us caught cause I got stuck, and then you had to pull me out and now we're lost… and you don't like it when I cry… please don't be mad Ace," Luffy glanced back up at the older boy, he had a pained expression which caused Luffy to pause. He remembered the gunshots the guard had fired, had Ace been hurt!? This was bad. "Are you okay Ace?" Luffy asked nearly forgetting about his own pain while looking Ace up and down for injuries. Ace's face softened and he ruffled his hand through Luffy's matted hair.
"I'm fine," he answered softly looking to be deep in thought, after a brief pause he looked at his little brother who was staring up at him with watery eyes. "Are you trying to prove that you're strong Luffy?" Luffy said nothing but he looked away, he wiped away a few tears and mumbled something under his breath.
"What?" Ace asked.
"I just don't want you to be upset," he mumbled again, a little louder this time. This seemed to startle Ace slightly, he obviously wasn't sure what to make of Luffy's response.
"I'm not going to be upset if you cry Luffy," Ace said very softly and Luffy blinked in surprise, Ace always yelled at him when he cried. "And it's not your fault you got hurt," he added pausing slightly "...its mine, I'm sorry Luffy…" Luffy felt his lip beginning to tremble and now that he knew it was alright with Ace he didn't stop the tears. He leaned his head on Aces shoulder and cried into it as Ace patted him gently on the back to comfort him. They stayed like this for several moments, finding comfort in each other's presence. Finally Luffy's crying fizzled out slightly and the two brothers separated from each other so that Ace could once again treat the wounds.
"I really did a number on your arms," Ace said as he began bandaging Luffy's right arm, "I'm really sorry," he added. Luffy shook his head although he was still sniffling slightly and wincing in pain.
"Its fine, it's not that bad," he answered not wanting to make Ace feel any more guilty than he already did.
"No it's not fine, if I ever act stupid like that again I want you to punch me okay!?" Luffy gasped, Ace had never let Luffy get a clean hit on him ever. His eyes went wide at the thought of it.
"Really!?" he whispered not even daring to take the offer seriously. Ace nodded solemnly and Luffy grinned and laughed "okay then, but I won't go easy on you!"
"I'll keep that in mind," Ace said returning Luffy's smile as he tied down the last bandage. When he was done Luffy Immediately jumped to his feet and began bouncing up and down on his heels excitedly. Ace sighed, he knew what that meant, the boy smelled meat. Ace tipped his head back slightly and gave his own experimental sniff, just faintly he caught the scent of something cooking on the breeze though he couldn't quite place what it was.
"Chicken…" Luffy breathed, his eyes glazing over and his mouth visibly beginning to water. Ace shook his head, they had just eaten hardly twenty minutes ago and already Luffy wanted more. Ace was usually known to have an extreme appetite but it was the one thing his brother had over him. Luffy began sniffing the air once more searching for the source of the scent his head whipping about wildly. Ace knew the second he pinpointed the location.
"GOMU GOMU NO-" Luffy began preparing to stretch out his arms so he could rocket himself towards the meat.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!" Ace screamed wrapping his arms around Luffy, pinning the still injured limbs to the boys chest. Luffy wriggled for a few moments, but he was oddly weak and didn't struggle for nearly as long as he usually would have done under similar circumstances. Finally the boy went limp in his arms so that Ace was supporting all of his weight. His face lost the intense expression he'd had just moments ago, and his tongue was lolling out pitifully as he was clearly exhausted.
"I want food…" Luffy panted out but Ace gently whacked him over the head.
"You dumbass, you can hardly stand, we're going home," Luffy began to wriggle a little more at that but Ace held him tightly. "You lost a lot of blood, you need to get some rest before you pass out!"
"That's why I need meat…" Luffy insisted but Ace easily scooped up the twelve year old who hadn't quite hit his growth spurt and even then was still quite small for his age.
"We are going home," Ace said slowly and firmly before pausing, "I promise I'll let you have some of my dinner tonight if you stop struggling," There was a brief pause, and then Luffy agreed, exhaustion winning out over his appetite for maybe the first time in his life. Ace gently shifted Luffy so that he was holding him piggy back style, his head resting comfortably on his shoulder so that he immediately fell asleep. Ace chuckled as the boy began to snore, assuring him that his brother would be just fine with a few days rest. He looked at his surroundings now, trying to determine the best course of action to take to find the way home. It had begun to drizzle at some point and the kingdom seemed to be in a state of calm. Ace smiled and he began jogging gently down the street, carefully holding his sleeping brother on his back in the gentle rain. He would find the way home.
As Luffy and Ace are both a bit younger in this story, I'm trying to write them with a mix of both their childhood personalities and the adult ones we've come to know and love. As this is the case, Luffy is a bit more of a crybaby than he is in the current story and a bit less confident in his abilities, and Ace is still a bit negligent to his little brother's needs. They are both learning though. This was originally intended to be part of a series of one shots but I ended up accidentally turning it into its own story so that's why this seemed a bit self contained.
Thanks again for reading and I hope you enjoyed it, feel free to write a review if you so desire and if not, that's fine as well.