Authors Note: I'm not entirely sure where this idea came from. I was just thinking as I re-watched the arc what was it that prompted Ace to suggest the brother's leave Dadan's place after Garp's visit? This was the result. Enjoy.

Definition – the measure taken to protect someone or something

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Safeguard

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Ace coughed and groaned weakly as his equilibrium finally settled. He heard Luffy sniffling pathetically from where he was still hanging over a toppled tree branch. To his left, Sabo echoed his groan.

"Do me a favour," Ace begged, as he rolled over onto his knees, wincing as his weight settled on several open wounds. "Just kill me now and be done with it."

Sabo huffed. "Only if you kill me first," he retaliated, slowly sitting up and clutching his head. "I feel sick," he moaned. Ace couldn't bring himself to be surprised considering how ferociously Garp had spun the blond around earlier.

"Ace…Sabo…" The two older boys looked up to see Luffy staring down at them, tears and snot dripping down his face. "I'm stuck," he whimpered, bottom lip trembling.

"Alright, alright," Sabo said calmly, heaving himself to his feet. He wavered ever so slightly before finding his footing. He approached the sobbing seven year old who stretched a hand down to his brother. Sabo grasped the outstretched limb and tugged gently. Luffy slipped down slowly and once in reach he wrapped his arms around Sabo's neck tightly. Once back on terra firma he buried his head in the blond's shoulder, muffling the sounds of his pained cries.

Ace sighed heavily as he forced himself to his feet and approached his brothers. He eyed both of them critically and then looked down at himself.

"We're a mess," he observed. Luffy raised his face and nodded in agreement. Ace frowned and grasped the bottom of his t-shirt, reaching up to scrub quickly but gently at Luffy's swollen face. Once finished, he turned to Sabo who was trying lamely to brush himself down. "We should head back to Dadan's."

Sabo's head shot up. "Are you crazy?! Won't your grandfather still be there?"

Ace nodded unhappily. "Yeah, but all our bandages and stuff are there," he reminded the blond.

Sabo's shoulders slumped. "I guess you're right. What, Luffy?" He looked down at the boy in question who was tugging lightly at his arm, one hand holding his head.

"My head hurts, can you carry me?" he asked quietly.

Sabo shook his head much to Ace's surprise. The blond rarely denied Luffy anything. "Sorry, Lu, I think I sprained my ankle. I don't think it'll take both our weights."

Ace looked down and saw Sabo was indeed heavily favouring his left leg. Luffy nodded, his face scrunching up as he tried not to cry again. He took a brave few steps forward but it was easy to tell he certainly wasn't going to make it all the way home.

Ace sighed in resignation and quickly overtook his little brother. "Hop on," he said, dropping onto one knee. He caught Luffy staring at him over his shoulder, eyes wide in disbelief. Ace frowned impatiently. "I'm not staying down here all night. Either get on or you can walk back."

Luffy quickly jumped to attention and scurried up to sit comfortably on Ace's back, rubbery limbs stretching to wrap around him securely. Ace rose and was immediately surprised at how little Luffy weighed. No wonder Sabo didn't complain about the number of times Luffy asked for a piggy back ride. He felt like he was carrying a feather and Luffy's body was a surprisingly comfortable warmth against his back.

He hitched Luffy a little higher and set off, keeping the pace considerately slow to enable Sabo to hobble along next to them.

Unfortunately, reaching the hut proved to be the easy bit. It quickly became apparent that Garp had raided Dadan's sake supply as everyone was spread out all over the place in various states of inebriation and bottles and cups were strewn all over the place. Ace shook his dead darkly as he led Sabo and Luffy through the unexpected maze, all three trying desperately to breathe through their mouths to avoid the stench of alcohol.

"Okay, you two stay here, I'll go grab some bandages and disinfectant," Ace whispered, gently pushing his two brothers into the store room that had been declared their sleeping quarters.

He scurried away quietly, carefully darting back through the piles of bandits in order to reach the medical supplies located in the trunk. He glared at Garp as he passed, tempted to throw a punch at the old fart's unguarded head but he didn't particularly feel like he had the strength left in him to outrun the consequences - as satisfying as it would probably feel.

He stumbled into the store room and saw Sabo had managed to find a bowl of clean water from the washroom next door and was gently dabbing Luffy's swollen face, washing away the fresh tears. A second damp towel had been wrapped around Sabo's ankle to soothe the sprain.

Ace quickly joined the blond, snatching up another wash cloth and set about cleaning the various cuts and grazes he could see littering his brothers. Sabo had been relatively lucky since he had been wearing his jacket but Luffy had been in a sleeveless t-shirt and was dotted with weeping scrapes.

Ace steadfastly ignored the questioning looks Sabo kept sending him as he quietly went about his task. He was feeling frustrated and angry, not altogether unfamiliar feelings to him, but this time he couldn't pinpoint why. Normally, it was directed at whoever he perceived to have wronged him.

The reason hit him like a lightning bolt half a second later.

He was mad at himself, Ace realised, hands pausing in their work. Never before in his life had he had others that depended on him to watch out for them. There had only ever been himself to look after. He had only befriended Sabo - and he used the term loosely - because two pairs of eyes were better than one in Gray Terminal.

But now he had two brothers. He had two people he cared for and who cared for him in return. And both were currently hurt because he wasn't strong enough.

It made Ace's chest burn with a protectiveness he had never experienced before when he saw them both in pain. He released a shaky breath as he acknowledged it was a feeling that could make him weak. Anyone could deduce their relationship and use his brothers to get to him. But it was also something that could make him stronger he quickly concluded, as Luffy smiled happily at him from his perch on a box as he lavished in the gentle attention his brothers were giving him. Ace smiled in return, a warm feeling settling comfortably in his chest.

Sabo cleared his throat and raised his eyebrows at Ace, head titled curiously. Luffy giggled.

Ace realised he'd been staring at them both and quickly set about applying the disinfectant to Luffy's knees, causing him to squirm uncomfortably, but it diverted their attention. Sabo shook his head, a knowing little smile flickering across his face.

"So, how'd you like Gramps?" Ace asked, clearing his throat.

Sabo snorted. "I honestly thought Luffy was exaggerating when he told me about his previous training sessions," he admitted.

"Hey, I don't egg-asterate," Luffy stumbled over the word with a small frown. Ace and Sabo laughed quietly.

"It's exaggerate, Luffy and yes, you do," Sabo said with a fond smile.

"Let me check that bandage is tight enough," Ace demanded, gesturing for Sabo to show him his crudely self-bandaged ankle. "You know," he continued as he carefully prodded and pulled, "the fact that the old man included you means you're as good as his grandson now, right?"

Sabo shuddered. "I don't suppose claiming to be sick will get me out of the training session he has planned tomorrow, will it?"

Luffy shook his head rapidly. "Nope! I was actually sick last winter and he still forced me to fight a monkey. Makino wasn't very happy," he said.

"A monkey?" Ace repeated, sharing a bewildered look with Sabo.

"Yeah, they're not very fun," said Luffy sagely. Ace shook his head slightly before finally releasing Sabo's ankle, satisfied it was bound correctly. He sat back on his hunches and began picking up the leftover supplies.

"Ace's turn!" Luffy said cheerfully, hopping down from his perch and whipping the disinfectant out of his startled brother's hands. He looked down and realised he had been so preoccupied with making sure that Sabo and Luffy were both taken care of he had completely forgotten his own injuries.

He opened his mouth to protest but Sabo placed a firm hand on his shoulder, forcing him to sit.

"Fair's fair," Sabo said with a grin, liberating the disinfectant from Luffy before he could spill any.

Ace sat back resignedly.

He had been patched up by Sabo before of course, so he knew the blond was quick and efficient. Luffy he expected to press too hard when Sabo put him in charge of cleaning the mud and dried blood from Ace's arms but he was surprisingly tender, his touch almost feather light as he set about his chore, tongue sticking out in concentration. Ace found their administrations surprisingly soothing.

"There, done," Sabo declared. He sluggishly went about picking up the spare wrappings. They couldn't afford to waste a single piece.

"Just leave them in the corner," Ace told him, flopping onto his back and biting back a moan as his muscles protested at the sudden movement. He would have to make sure to stretch properly in the morning before they went hunting or he would really regret it.

Ace felt Luffy settle down next to him, pressing gently up against his side. He couldn't even muster up the energy to tell Luffy to back off, not when he heard the small whimper of misery break free from the youngster.

"What are we going to do?" Sabo asked quietly. Ace tilted his head to watch the blond creep to the door and slowly slide it open a crack. Ace dragged himself to his knees and crawled over. There was a heavy creak of wood as Luffy stood and walked over to join them. Sabo hurriedly grabbed Luffy's wrist and forced him to sit before he made any more noise and woke everyone up. Ace peered through the gap and observed the occupants of the main room.

"At this rate, Gramps is gonna kill us tomorrow," he said, turning to his brothers.

"And even if we survive long enough to go to sea, we'll be beaten until we give up on being pirates," said Sabo, a frown on his face.

"I don't wanna die!" Luffy exclaimed, dramatically grasping his hair.

Ace rolled his eyes at the display. "There's only one solution," Sabo and Luffy both stared at him. Ace smirked. "It's time to make a choice, brothers."

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The final bit of dialogue is straight from the anime, all credit to the writers! Please review and let know what you thought!