When he saw Luffy collapse Ace's heart missed a beat. When Akainu went for his brother, the fire-user panicked. Unable to think of another way to stop the attack, Ace leapt in between Luffy and the admiral. As he did though, he heard two whispered words- not that he knew what they meant.
"Gear Second."
Ace blinked. He'd expected burning pain from the magma fist headed for his back, pain that simply wasn't there. Dread settled in his stomach as he turned around.
Luffy stood behind him. The rubber boy had a hole melted in the right side of his chest; one of his feet was blistering and skinless, dripping with magma. Luffy had managed to kick Akainu back as he moved. Ace caught his little brother as the young captain stumbled backwards.
"Shishishi!" Even dying, that rubber grin was the brightest thing Ace had ever seen. "I told you I'd save you Ace."
No, no, no, no! This was wrong! Ace was supposed to protect Luffy, not the other way around! Sabo had made him promise! Unable to speak, Ace fell to his knees. He barely retained enough presence of mind not to drop Luffy.
A rubber hand reached back and groped around on Luffy's back. A minute later Ace felt scratchy straw rasp against his hair and forehead. "Lu…"
"Take it. Ace… Look after my crew, 'kay? Just because I can't finish my dream doesn't mean they should give up on theirs." Luffy coughed up a wad of blood.
"What are you saying?" Ace tried to put pressure on the gaping wound. It was too large. His hand couldn't even cover the hole in his brother's body. Tears dripped unbidden from the fire-user's eyes. Ace's own chest felt like it was burning.
"Ace… I knew this might happen. Become pirate king for me, okay?" Luffy's broad grin morphed to a smaller, softer smile. "I love you… Don't forget." Huge brown eyes fell closed.
The fire-user's heart began to pound. "This can't be happening! No, no, no! Luffy!" He couldn't see, couldn't hear. All Ace was aware of was the pain in his heart and the slowly cooling body in his arms. At some point someone picked him up, but Ace couldn't tell who. Shortly after, he blacked out.
xXx
Mihawk was confused when he saw the newspaper. Why, after all that had happened, would Fire Fist go back to Marineford? And in the company of Silvers Rayleigh no less? Frowning, the shichibukai handed the paper to his temporary (and rather despondent) guest.
"Roronoa, you met Fire Fist once. What do you make of this?"
At first, Zoro was just as confused by the paper as Mihawk. Then he saw the straw hat on Ace's head and his new tattoos. On his previously bare right arm were the symbols 3D2Y, with 3D crossed out. Over his heart, the fire-user had a tiny name written in cursive. Zoro's eyes went wide with surprise; he felt tears stinging them, but refused to show them in front of Mihawk.
"It's the captain's last orders."
One elegant eyebrow rose. "I wasn't aware Straw Hat had time to give any orders before he died."
Zoro smirked. For the first time in several days he felt something akin to hope. He was still devastated- Luffy was still gone- but now he had a direction again at least. And the hat Ace was wearing made it clear. Even in death, Luffy's greatest concern was for his friends and their dreams. "You just don't know him like we do."
"That is true. And do you think the rest of your crew will also see the order?"
"If I can spot it, everyone else will." Zoro winced internally, but got down on his knees to perform a stiff bow. "Please… For the next two years, will you train me?"
"Why should I train the man who seeks my head?"
"Please, I need to be the best I can… For my captain."
"Your captain is dead."
Zoro growled. "I know that. But his last order is for us to grow stronger and continue on our journey, so that's what I intend to do. If you won't train me I'll find someone else who will. Somehow…"
Mihawk considered this. It was… disappointing that Straw Hat's life had been cut so short. The boy had an interesting power that should have taken him far- a power more potent than Mihawk had first imagined, if this was the kind of loyalty he still inspired after his death. "Very well."
xXx
On an island covered in white, a blond warrior stared at the newspaper and screamed. No one knew what was going on in his head. All they could do was catch him as he fell unconscious, carrying him to the infirmary to see if they could find what was wrong.
In a room not far away, a normally calm man punched a wall so hard it broke. Splinters dug into his bloodied knuckles as he plotted revenge on the world that had killed his son.
xXx
Two years had passed. The Straw Hats gathered on their ship, wondering where their new captain was. Zoro polished his swords impatiently. "Where is he?"
"Oi Moss-Head! You sure Ace is coming?"
The first mate growled at the cook. "Why else would he be wearing Luffy's hat?"
Not too long later, the crew heard two voices on the docks nearby. After the broadcast from Marineford, both voices were familiar to all. One of the voices made the Straw Hats cringe with its words. The brothers truly were alike.
"Hey, have you seen a ship with a sheep figurehead around here? Been looking for it all over the island."
No reply could be understood, just some mumblings from whoever had been asked. Ace's voice groaned. "I don't get it Marco? How do you hide a whole ship?"
"Maybe it was damaged and they had to get a new one yoi. You did say it was from the East Blue; it might not have been able to handle even Paradise."
"Oh. Right." Moments later footsteps approached the Thousand Sunny. "Hey, anyone up there?"
The entire crew looked over the rail together. Zoro smirked down at the freckled man below. Ace had changed as much as any of them; he wore a vest that hid his Whitebeard tattoo- though it was open at the front- and his hair was longer. A familiar straw hat perched above the low ponytail. "Up here… Captain."
Ace made a face. "Been a long time since anyone's called me that." He turned and waved at the blond pineapple-head behind him. "Thanks Marco; I'll take it from here."
"Alright yoi. Don't get caught again." The blond left. Ace stuck his tongue out at his friend's back.
"Mother hen."
"I heard that yoi!"
The fire-user shook his head and jumped up on the Sunny. As soon as he saw the crew he froze and bowed. The straw hat shadowed his eyes in an uncomfortably familiar way. "I- I'm sorry everyone. It's my fault Luffy's gone, so I understand if you don't want-"
"He gave you the hat, didn't he?" Zoro interrupted. "It was Luffy's choice to save you. The captain knew the risks. If you don't want to lead us, then give the hat back." The swordsman held out his hand.
Ace reached up and placed his hand on the worn straw. "No. Luffy told me to look after you guys and help you achieve your dreams. He said- he said he wanted me to become pirate king for him." Ace tried and failed to hide his tears. "The idiot knew what would happen if he didn't say that… Sometimes I wonder whether he looked after me as much as I looked after him."
Wiping his eyes on a scrap of red fabric, the fire-user forced a smile on his face. "If no one's against it, I'll lead you from here on out. So who're the new faces?"
"Nico Robin. I'm Luffy-san's archaeologist."
"Franky. I built this ship."
"Yohohohoho! My name is Brook. I hope these old bones don't make you uncomfortable."
"I've seen weirder," Ace chuckled. "I- I'm glad Lu found you guys. You're a great crew. So, let's set sail! Head to Fishman Island!"
xXx
It had been a surprise to meet Trafalgar Law on Punk Hazard. Following the distress call had been a random whim; since the death of his brother, Ace had been reacting more and more often with the WWLD method- what would Luffy do? And Luffy would've rushed headlong towards the island of fire and ice. But meeting the doctor wasn't entirely unwelcome. The alliance and proposal to take down Doflamingo and Kaido was certainly interesting, and would get the Straw Hats one step closer to accomplishing their goals.
It was also amusing to watch Law slowly assimilate into the Straw Hat crew against his will. Ace smiled at that. Even after death Luffy's charisma clung to his ship and crew like a blanket.
Once they got to Dressrosa though, things began to fall apart. Normally Ace would never abandon a plan- especially since the last time he did so got Luffy killed. But Doflamingo had found the one thing that Ace would give anything to acquire. The trap was so obvious only Luffy wouldn't have fallen for it, and yet there was no way Ace could stay away after he saw the poster.
The Gomu-Gomu no Mi. Doflamingo had found Luffy's fruit and offered it as the prize in a fighting tournament.
Ace at least had the sense enough to disguise himself before entering. Long sleeves, a cape, and a helmet that covered most of his face concealed his trademark tattoos and freckles. The hat he gave to Zoro for safekeeping.
Not that Ace knew what he would do with the Gomu-Gomu no Mi when he got it. None of his non-user crew mates were likely to want it, between the Devil Fruit curse and the burden of carrying their first captain's spirit. Maybe he could feed it to the hat? Nah, if any of Luffy's spirit was in the fruit, there's no way it would be content being a hat for all eternity. Ace would think of something later. First he had to make sure the Gomu-Gomu no Mi didn't fall into someone else's hands.
Watching the first fights made Ace bored and impatient. The old enemy of Garp's who attacked him was just annoying. When he attacked, Ace grabbed the front of his shirt and growled.
"Look, I'm not happy with Gramps either. He was going to let me die… He let Luffy die. If you think killing his pirate grandsons would bother that marine, you need your head checked." Ace didn't expect this to make the man stop the way he did, but he didn't mind. He'd still have to fight the guy after all.
Meeting Bartolomeo was… interesting. The rooster-head was hard to understand half the time, babbling and weeping about Luffy-senpai.
After Ace's first fight though, things became frustratingly complicated. It started with Zoro shouting through a window. "Captain! Law's thing with Doflamingo didn't work! Idiot's getting himself killed!"
"Dammit!" Ace punched a wall. He needed the Gomu-Gomu no Mi… but he couldn't let his ally die. Not again. Law was no Luffy, but he'd been growing on all of them, becoming their friend.
"Ace-sama?" Bartolomeo's voice was uncharacteristically quiet. "I- I can do it Ace-sama, don't worry. That was what I always planned anyway- to get Luffy-senpai's fruit and bring it to you and Zoro-senpai."
"Really?" Ace was surprised. He'd never imagined that someone would give him Luffy's fruit. It had belonged to a supernova- anyone who knew anything about Luffy's fights would've known what it could do and wanted it for themselves. Ace was so sorry he'd ever called his brother's powers useless.
"Of course! Have no fear Ace-sama, I'll definitely win Luffy-senpai's fruit for you!" Ace chose to ignore the fact that the rabid fanboy appeared to be talking to one of the support pillars.
POV
The blond couldn't watch anymore. He hadn't been surprised to see Fire Fist Ace here once Hack had found out about the tournament's prize. Hopefully it wouldn't cause complications. As Chief of Staff, Sabo really should have been focused on finding the weapon smugglers, but his last lead was a dead end. Besides, this was important. Even Dragon would agree.
Tap. Tap. Tap. The sound of his boots against the floor echoed as Sabo approached Ace and Bartolomeo. "I can't let you do that, Cannibal."
"Huh? Who're you to say something like that?" The green-haired man got right up in Sabo's face. His breath smelled funny. "Don't you know who this is? Ace-sama is the big brother of Luffy-senpai who last used the Gomu-Gomu no Mi! He's the one who'll be king of the pirates in his brother's stead!"
"I know." Sabo pushed the loud man aside easily. He remained on guard as he approached Ace, Kenbunshoku Haki alert in case of attack. The blond was pleasantly surprised to see that Ace's temper appeared to be more under control, though the most likely reason made his chest ache.
"Who're you?" Ace demanded. "How'd you know me? What do you want with the Gomu-Gomu no Mi?"
Sabo smirked. "Straw Hat Luffy… Fire Fist Ace… You had a third brother, didn't you, once upon a time?"
POV
Ace was confused as the blond in the top hat approached him, and even more so when he started to talk about Luffy. It didn't help that the familiar fashion choices reminded him painfully of the third brother the stranger mentioned.
The stranger towered over him, and somehow Ace felt slightly intimidated. That was new; normally he only got that feeling from Garp. Although this man was definitely smaller than the marine- without the hat and heeled boots, he wouldn't be much taller than Ace himself. Not that that lessened the weird feeling coming from them.
"Yeah, there were three of us. But how could you know that? Did Gramps tell you? No one else would know; our third brother died years-" Ace's breath caught in his throat.
Gloved hands removed the top hat, fingers running around a band that held a pair of goggles. Scarred as it was, the face was familiar. Blue eyes gleamed as the blond man chewed his lip.
"Sabo? Is this a dream? You're dead!"
"It's really me Ace." Sabo's voice cracked. "Gods, I'm so sorry. If I'd just remembered in time I mi-!"
Ace cut his brother off with what was possibly the most forceful hug known to man. Tears forced their way out of his eyes, which certainly served to freak Sabo out. "I'm so sorry Sabo… You asked me to look after him and I failed. He- If he hadn't told me to take care of his crew-!"
"I know. Trust me, I know exactly how you feel." Sabo was crying too, which only served to make Ace feel worse. "I should've been there. I wish I'd been there, but I didn't remember… I had amnesia. I didn't even know I had brothers until I saw the paper, saw that Lu had been killed- and then all I could think was that I was so grateful that you were still alive, that I hadn't lost both of you. At least you were there."
A weak punch was all Ace could manage. He didn't want Sabo to say that- he'd rather Luffy had been the one to live. But then again, there was a chance that if he had the blond would still be here, having the exact same conversation with a different straw hat wearer.
"We're both equally crappy big brothers, aren't we?"
"Yeah…"
"So you want Lu's fruit? Even though it was totally useless for almost ten years?"
Sabo looked both surprised and amused. "It took him that long to figure it out? Really?"
"Yep."
The blond smirked. "Well, I'm sure I can do it faster. I always was the smart one."
That earned Sabo a solid hit to the head, like the brothers had inflicted upon each other so often in their youth. Ace smiled, the ache in his chest lessening a little. Not completely, but a little. "Yeah, and Lu's already done all the work figuring it out. You've heard what he could do, right?"
"Of course. I'm a Revolutionary Ace; even before I knew who Luffy was to me Dragon made sure we all followed his antics. He'd be a good father in a different world."
xXx
Klack! The chest opened rather quietly for something with so much power inside. Sabo grabbed the fruit in one hand and jumped off the back of the fighting fish. It tasted like burnt rubber and fermented tree sap as he bit into it. The taste almost made the Revolutionary gag, but he forced it down.
He wasn't sure what he'd expected. There was no tingling, no feeling of his body changing. Wondering if the fruit had done anything at all, Sabo grabbed his cheek and pulled it to the side as he'd seen Luffy do so many times. It stretched and stretched, far beyond what human skin could normally do. When he released it, it snapped back with a loud sound.
Grabbing Rebecca and snapping her out of the way, Sabo flung his arm back to gain tension. It felt wrong from a martial arts perspective- he was projecting massively- but it was what he'd seen Luffy do in so many newspaper clippings.
"Watch me Lu. I hope I'm using your techniques right. Gomu-Gomu no Pistol!"
The floor of the coliseum shattered under the force of a snapping rubber fist, sending the remaining competitors tumbling into the water. Sabo's punch broke through to a hollow place under the building- possibly related to his actual mission that he really should be getting back to. But that wasn't what held his attention at the moment. As his arm snapped back to normal length, the Revolutionary swore he heard a voice in his head. It didn't say anything- just laughed a familiar laugh. Sabo beamed, his grin stretching wider than it ever had before.