A/N: I am absolutely in love with the lullaby used in this! It's so calming and so relaxing. I'm happy about this story because it's the first One Piece story that doesn't involve any ZoLu whatsoever. It's just a sweet, nice, comforting fic. I wrote this in a few hours, so I hope you enjoy it!
Song used: Lullaby for a Stormy Night by Vienna Teng
Please review and tell me what you think~!
Nothing To Fear
Written by Sonic1615
Boom!
Another thunder crackle, louder than the last few, burst throughout the dark night. A small child shrieked and curled up in his thin blanket, shaking horribly. Crystal tears streaked his pale face, eyes filled with the salty liquid. One thin hand clenched the blanket tightly, desperately trying to find some comfort in the soft fabric. He was terrified.
The rain had started as just a small drizzle when he was told to go to sleep, but after a while of laying in bed, staring tiredly at the ceiling, a thunderstorm had struck. Lightning flashed and thunder boomed frighteningly loud, preventing the child from sleep. The sounds scared him. He wanted them to go away. But they wouldn't. They just kept getting louder and more scarier. His usually comforting blanket turned useless from the outside world sounds.
He was alone in the dark with nothing for safety.
Rain banged against the window more forcefully, splattering at the contact with the glass. A bright white flash of lightning illuminated his window and his dark room, giving him the chance to see a silhouette of a branch that resembled a hand outside of his window clinking against the glass. He couldn't stand it anymore. A horrified scream left his dry throat, tears flooding fast from his fearfully shut eyes. The ear-piercing scream ended with a crackling sound coming from the young one's throat. Sobs surged out from his mouth as his whole body shook. His front teeth dug into his bottom lip hard enough to draw blood. Even the metallic taste of his own blood didn't cause him to hesitate in his frightened state.
"Luffy!" The tapping of running footsteps could be heard nearing the other side of his door. Luffy took no notice, for the storm was getting rougher by the second and his little heart couldn't take it.
"MAKE IT STOP!" Luffy's throat constricted, a pained sob the only thing making its way out. Hugging his knees to his chest, he whimpered. He was so scared that the warm arms that encircled him almost went by unnoticed. Almost.
A soft voice spoke into his ear. Though Luffy could not comprehend the words said to him, the voice gave him comfort. "Luffy . . . Shh, Luffy, it's alright. I'm here, okay? I'm here. You don't need to worry, I'm here."
That voice . . . was Ace.
Luffy threw his arms around his brother, burying his soaked face in the other's chest. "A-ace. The r-rain, it w-won't stop! Make it stop!" Ace was here, he'd make it go away.
"I can't do that, Luffy."
No . . .
Luffy cried harder, his body shaking more. Even if his big brother was here the rain was still out there! He only wanted Ace! Not the rain.
A swaying motion, back and forth, started. Ace was rocking him and whispering sweet nothings into his ear. Luffy kept holding on - if he didn't, who knows where Ace would disappear to?
Ace swallowed. He didn't know there would even be a thunderstorm tonight, and a rough one at that. It broke his heart into a million tiny little pieces to see his little brother broken down like a dam. He wished there was something he could do to help Luffy through this. Then it hit him. There was a certain song he heard before, sung to him by someone he couldn't recall. It must have been from a very early memory, for all he could remember was a shadow of a lady with hair flowing out behind her beautifully, lips moving in a way that shouldn't have been humanly possible. The words began to resurface from the fog of his mind and flow from his mouth without intention.
"Little child, be not afraid
The ran pounds harsh against the glass
Like an unwanted stranger, there is no danger
I am here tonight."
Luffy heard strange words coming from Ace. He recognized it as a song, though he didn't know what it was.
"Little child, be not afraid
Though thunder explodes and lightning flash
Illuminates your tear-stained face
I am here tonight."
As Ace sung he couldn't help but to feel weird. Never had he sung to Luffy, especially never a lullaby. His voice seemed much too rough for the gentle words and the lyrics were very faint in his head. The image of the mystery lady stayed put in his head, seeming to sing with him - to help him. He kept going for Luffy's sake, and the more he got into it, the more gentler and softer his voice became.
"And someday you'll know, that nature is so
This same rain that draws you near me
Falls on rivers and land, and forests and sand
Makes the beautiful world that you see in the morning."
Ace felt the shaking coming from Luffy subside a little until it was more nervous than frightened. A smile played at his lips as he continued to sing for his little brother, hands still remaining around Luffy's figure.
"Little child, be not afraid
The storm-clouds mask your beloved moon
And its candlelight beams still keep pleasant dreams
I am here tonight."
It was pretty surprising to realize how much Ace did remember of the lullaby from his memory. The images may of been blurred and cloudy, but the words to the song were vivid and strong.
"Little child, be not afraid
The wind makes creatures of our trees
And the branches to hands, they're not real understand
And I am here tonight."
Ace noticed the wracking from Luffy had stopped. He gently pulled back from the young boy and looked him in the face. Luffy's eyelids were droopy and the only tears on his face were stains from the earlier ones. The ocean eyes that gazed back at him were losing their scared demeanor and turning into something more content. At ease. His song really was helping the younger after all. Ace felt proud.
"And someday you'll know, that nature is so
This same rain that draws you near me
Falls on rivers and land, and forests and sand
Makes the beautiful world that you see in the morning."
Luffy felt himself being laid back onto soft pillows by warm hands. The silky voice that Ace was using to sing that lovely song was like a mother to a child, making his eyelids feel heavy. Mesmerized by the wonderful song, Luffy let his eyes focus drearily on his brother's golden ones.
"For you know, once even I was a little child
And I was afraid, but a gentle someone always came
To dry all my tears, trade sweet sleep the fears
And to give a kiss goodnight."
Stroking Luffy's damp cheek, Ace still sung, his voice growing quiet. He saw the emotions written in Luffy's blue eyes. They were ones of contentment, peace, sleepiness, and wonder. His brother's fear over the rain was growing dimmer and dimmer at each verse Ace sung.
"Well now I am grown, and these days have shown
Rain's a part of how life goes
But it's dark and it's late, so I'll hold you and wait
'til your frightened eyes do close
And I hope that you know, that nature is so
This same rain that draws you near me
Falls on rivers and land, and forests and sand
Makes the beautiful world that you see in the morning."
The once visible blue orbs were shut behind pale eyelids. The once frowning mouth was set in a gentle line. The once struggling chest rose and fell softly. Any traces of being scared of the rain were hidden. Only gentle breathing came from the small child. The thin blanket was wrapped comfortably around the lithe frame of the boy. The rain that once pounded harshly against the window lightly fell beyond it. The flashed of lightning and crackles of thunder only made their appearance in the far off distance. Nothing banged against the window, nothing blew roughly, nothing made any noise of disturbance in the night. Nothing but the calmness of night remained.
"Everything's fine in the morning."
Ace got off of Luffy's bed and just let his eyes watch his brother.
"The rain will be gone it the morning."
Quietly walking off to the doorway of the room, Ace paused and, barely a whisper, spoke the lullaby once more.
"But I'll still be here in the morning . . ."
The soft patter of feet could be heard in the hallway along with soft humming. And if you listened just right, you could hear a sweeter, more feminine hum accompanying the first.
A/N: In case you're curious, the lady from Ace's memory is his mother. I know she died shortly after she gave birth to him, so what his memory really was was Rouge singing that lullaby to him as a spirit one night. And if you didn't realize this, Ace and Luffy are younger in this fiction. Ten years, kay?