A/N: …

*Falls to the ground like Sanji VS Perona* I am human trash T.T I'm so sorry!

So, I still have an ear infection, but I finished the meds so hopefully I stop feeling like a walking plague. Also, I moved and still haven't quite settled in, but I do have a bed now, and reliable internet!

I'll admit, on top of the moving and the ear infection, I hit a snag because of an unkind message I got on my tumblr related to my other story and the possibility it'll have ships. If anyone else is concerned about what I ship, I added a section on my profile to explain what will actually be featured in my non-romance-genre stories. Rest assured, if it's not a romance genre, the story will -not- revolve around ships! Kyoudai specifically has nothing to do with shipping and is purely ASL/family related (other than that one dash of Shanks x Makino I implied earlier xD lol)

I'm sorry for the delay, though.

I don't know if I replied to all the reviews or not since it's been so hectic; I'll respond to the guest reviews at the bottom :) Thank you so much everyone for all the faves/follows and especially those amazing reviews!

Special thanks to Beyond Kailani as always, and extra love for the frantic pace at which I ask her to beta my things. (She posted Hand of Fate if anyone wants to see an amazing AU one-shot about what could have happened at Marineford!)

Dedicated to Ascaisil, who is the sole reason I watched One Piece in the first place.

I don't own One Piece. Praise be to Oda.

Chapter 10: Illness

He should have spoken up earlier.

The day had started like any other day since moving out. They'd woken when they felt like it, they'd hunted for breakfast, they'd decided on an activity for the day, placated Luffy with extra food each of them had saved from breakfast without communicating or admitting they'd done it for Luffy's sake, and then they'd started their task.

It had been a training day, with Luffy losing miserably on all one hundred of his fights and trying to insist on rematches. At first, Sabo had assumed Ace was just performing poorly when he'd won his first three in a row against the freckled boy. As the matches continued, he found himself watching Ace out of the corner of his eye, even when it was his turn to fight Luffy. It wasn't like fighting Luffy took much focus, although he did take care not to send him flying in any direction that felt like trouble due to being distracted.

The next indication had been the flush on Ace's cheeks that made his freckles stand out, and while Luffy had called attention to it with the same innocent tact - rather, no tact - as always, Ace had waved it off and insisted he was fine.

If Sabo had spoken up when they'd finished their matches, with Ace winning a dismal fourteen to Sabo's thirty-six, it would have saved him a lot of trouble. He hadn't because Ace had been irate and confrontational about his poor performance.

They'd gone fishing for lunch, and while Luffy had caused them plenty of stress by getting too close and almost falling in, it had been mostly uneventful. They'd even caught enough fish for Luffy to have extra for once. When they'd packed up to head to the treehouse for another lesson - Sabo had gotten them to agree to working on their reading and writing twice a week since their visit to the village - Sabo had gone across the river first. Luffy always had to go between them in case he slipped, and just like any time Ace went last, he was directly behind their energetic little brother.

The sound of the splash had Sabo whirling around and ready to jump in after Luffy, but his dark blue eyes went round with shock as he saw Luffy turning as well, focus going to water behind him.

"Ace!" Luffy gasped, and Sabo wasn't fast enough to stop their sweet, stupid little brother from jumping in to try and save him. Sabo threw his hat to the riverbank and made two quick leaps across the rocks before he dove into the water.

Ace was struggling to break the surface, Luffy limp and clearly deadweight under one of Ace's arms. Sabo reached them easily, grabbing onto Ace's shirt and pulling him up so their heads were above water again. The freckled boy was sputtering and coughing, but he didn't bother trying to catch his breath before he was hauling Luffy onto the nearest rock.

Sabo gave them both a boost, making sure the two dark-haired brothers were out of the water before he climbed up to join them.

"Ace, are you okay? Did I save you?" Luffy asked groggily, blinking up at them with his wide, owlish eyes.

"Idiot!" Ace scolded, reaching over to bring his fist down on Luffy's head. Sabo didn't even have time to try and deter him from the action - not that he wanted to, since Luffy really needed to be punched for that - but Ace's fist missed the mark and hit the rock instead. He yelped in pain, immediately cradling his sore hand.

"Ace," Sabo spoke as he helped Luffy sit up, thoroughly distracted from scolding the well-intentioned idiot to instead focus on the stubborn idiot. "What's wrong with you? Are you sick?"

"I don't know," Ace sighed, pushing a hand through his dark hair, which was tangled and plastered to his face.

"Ace is sick?" Luffy echoed.

"Probably," Sabo pursed his lips in frustration. "Let's get to the treehouse and change out of our wet clothes, and we can check on Ace there."

"Okay," Luffy agreed readily, pushing himself up into a standing position. His movements were still a little sluggish, and Sabo knew from experience he wouldn't be back to his usual levels of energy until he was completely dried off.

"Ace, wait here," said Sabo with an air of authority that a healthy Ace would have scoffed at. When the other boy simply grumbled a reluctant agreement, Sabo turned and offered his back to the youngest boy. "Luffy, climb on."

"Really? Yay!" Luffy gave a happy sound and immediately latched on, the force nearly knocking Sabo right back into the water. Thankfully, the blond managed to keep his footing, steadying himself and adjusting his jumps for Luffy's added weight.

It wasn't like Luffy really weighed anything either, with his tiny rubber body. Sabo used very little energy leaping across the rocks to set Luffy down on solid ground. "Now stay here and wait for me to get Ace, okay?" Sabo asked, giving the boy a stern look.

Luffy nodded, puffing his cheeks a little before turning his full attention to Ace. The freckled boy hadn't moved from the spot, a sour look on his face.

"I don't need help," Ace grumbled when Sabo made it back. His words were petulant and surly, and it was exactly what Sabo had been expecting out of him.

"Sure, sure," Sabo agreed, grabbing him by the arm and pulling him to his feet. Ace immediately wobbled, reaching out to grasp onto Sabo to keep his balance. "You seem to be perfectly capable of getting to the other side without me," he added sarcastically.

"Shut up," Ace grumbled, scowling. "I'm just dizzy. It'll pass."

"And when you fall into the river and I have to fish you out before Luffy tries to do it again?" Sabo retorted. He gave a pleased grin when Ace was left without a response. "Get on my back."

"I'm not getting a piggyback ride to the riverbank like Luffy did," Ace swore, shaking his head.

"Then what do you suggest we do? Before Luffy tries to come back and get you," Sabo pushed, knowing the implication of Luffy throwing himself back over the water would set Ace on edge. The effect was instantaneous, with Ace shooting a worried glance in Luffy's direction and trying to pretend he hadn't.

"Fine," Ace tightened his grip on Sabo's arm for a moment, but offered no resistance to Sabo giving him the same treatment he'd given Luffy moments earlier. The blond tried not to let his alarm show on his face as he felt Ace's feverishly warm skin against the back of his neck.

"I'm gonna hit you for this later," Sabo promised, scowling with worry at the obvious sign of a fever. "Luffy's the one who makes us worry, not you."

Ace's response was little more than a grunt. When they reached Luffy's side again, Sabo allowed Ace to get back down to walk on his own, keeping a watchful eye on him in case his strength gave out. Their younger boy was bouncing on his heels and looking to Ace with an unreadable expression, water dripping from the ends of his hair. More than once, Luffy tried to steady Ace if he stumbled, which resulted in Ace swatting at his hand and then actually falling over.

By the time they reached the treehouse, their hair had mostly dried, but all three boys were looking miserable. The days were getting colder, and bouncing back from an unexpected dip in the river was harder when the breeze chilled them to the core instead of leisurely drying them.

Ace was the picture of misery as he peeled his damp shirt off and flopped on the floor, breathing labored.

"Sabo," Luffy tugged insistently on the blond's shirt, effectively stopping him from being able to remove it.

He gave a patient sigh, tearing his gaze from Ace to look at Luffy. "Yes, Luffy?" he asked, kneeling down and removing Luffy's hand from the hem of his shirt so he could grab onto Luffy's. The rubber boy did little more than flail when Sabo abruptly tugged the shirt up over his head.

"Sabo," Luffy repeated, staring at him with wide eyes. With his hair tousled and unruly and his lower lip trembling just a little, he looked even smaller than usual. "What's wrong with Ace?"

Sabo blinked in confusion at Luffy's reaction, daring a glance at their freckled brother. Ace hadn't moved from the spot, but his condition was far from alarming. It was most likely a normal fever, and Ace, being stubborn and unwilling to show weakness of any kind if he could help it, had made it worse by neglecting it. Worrisome, sure, but nothing for Luffy to be so worked up over. "He's sick," he answered, looking back to Luffy. "He shouldn't have been pushing himself. He needs to rest now."

"What do you mean, sick?" Luffy asked, bringing his hands up to clench and unclench nervously in front of his chest, as if he wasn't sure what he should be doing with them.

"I'm fine," Ace muttered, his voice rasping. "I don't need an idiot like you worrying about me, Luffy."

"I mean he's sick," Sabo repeated in confusion, studying Luffy's expression. "He has a fever, but-"

"Does that mean he's dying?!" Luffy interrupted, large tears welling up in his wide eyes and rendering Sabo speechless for a moment. "Is Ace gonna die?!"

"Whoa, whoa," Sabo reached out and grasped the scrawny boy by the shoulders. "Luffy, calm down! Of course he's not gonna die. What gave you that idea?"

"I don't know what 'sick' is!" Luffy cried.

"You don't know what 'sick' is?" Ace repeated, shoving himself up into a sitting position and scowling. "Haven't you ever had a cold before?"

Luffy shook his head, expression earnest and less frantic at the sight of Ace no longer sprawled on the floor.

"I don't know if I should be surprised or not," Sabo admitted, shaking his head. "First things first. Change into dry clothes, and grab some for me and Ace too."

"Okay," Luffy nodded, rubbing at his eyes and giving Sabo a determined look, before rushing to the crate where they kept their clothes.

Once he was distracted, Sabo finished peeling off his wet clothes, then helped a disgruntled Ace whether he wanted it or not. "Don't argue with me," he muttered in a low tone, meeting Ace's gaze. "If you get any worse, I'm not going to be able to keep Luffy calm."

"It's not a big deal," Ace protested, though he offered no resistance to Sabo's help.

"It might not be a big deal to us, but if Luffy's never been sick or seen someone else get sick, what do you think this looks like to him?"

"Fine, but I don't need a babysitter," Ace muttered.

"Actually, you do," Sabo hissed back, before turning his attention to Luffy as the younger boy bounded over, arms full of clothes.

Ace groaned with obvious irritation as Luffy tried to help him get dressed. The first shirt Luffy had started to pull over his head - and the boy was not using a gentle touch - wound up being one of Luffy's own shirts, and fell short of his waist by over an inch. The second, Luffy put on him backwards. On the final try, Ace snatched it out of his hands and put it on himself, allowing Luffy to smooth the sleeves and the hem to feel like he'd helped.

In the end, Ace flopped back to the floor to catch his breath, clearly dizzy and exhausted.

"What do we do for him, Sabo?" Luffy asked. "So he can stop being sick."

"He just needs to rest," Sabo promised. "We'll get dinner tonight so he doesn't have to."

Luffy nodded, immediately getting up and gathering their bedding. Sabo didn't question his actions. It was likely Luffy was doing something adorable to help Ace, and it wouldn't cause any harm. This time.

Luffy laid their sleeping mats down, one on top of the other, then arranged their pillows at the top, a pleased expression on his face. "Ne, Ace, this looks comfy! You can rest here, right?"

Ace averted his eyes, and Sabo could have sworn the flush on his cheeks darkened a little. "Yeah, whatever."

Sabo refrained from helping him up, shaking his head as Ace rolled onto his side and shoved himself to his hands and knees so he could crawl to the spot Luffy had made for him. Once there, he flopped down onto the mats, pressing his face into the pillow with a soft sigh of relief.

"Is it good?" Luffy chirped, giving a smile bright enough to light up the whole forest.

"Yeah," Ace mumbled, reaching out to blindly pat Luffy on the arm. "Now go away, I'm gonna sleep."

"Shishishi!" Luffy turned his smile to Sabo, looking so proud of himself the blond just wanted to wrap him up in hugs and never let go. He settled for smiling back and opening his arms, allowing Luffy to jump into them. While they embraced, Ace stole a glance at them and seemed to relax, a fond look briefly crossing his features.

"Sabo! Sabo!"

The blond boy opened his eyes, a low groan escaping as he tried to focus in the darkness. The first thing he saw was Luffy's panicked face. The younger boy was hovering over him with tears and snot dripping freely down onto his cheeks.

"Luffy?" he mumbled groggily, sitting up and pushing Luffy so he was no longer looming over him. He absently wiped his cheek off, focusing more on why Luffy was panicking. "What is it?"

"Something's wrong with Ace!" Luffy wailed. "He's really sicker!"

"He's…" Sabo woke up instantly, eyes alert and focusing on Ace. They'd given Ace their blankets - Luffy had insisted on letting him use all three, and Sabo had complied in the hopes it would help his fever break - and fallen asleep on either side of him with Luffy draped halfway over Ace's stomach.

The freckled boy was panting, pale face twisted in pain and cheeks an unhealthy shade of red. His skin was damp from sweat and the blankets were practically soaked with it.

"Sabo, you said he wasn't dying!" Luffy accused. His loud crying wasn't waking Ace, and Sabo recognized that as a bad sign.

"He's not dying," Sabo responded, keeping his voice steady as he reached out to feel Ace's forehead.

"Then why isn't he answering?" Luffy grasped at Ace's shoulder, shaking him. "Ace, why won't you answer?"

"Luffy, quit it," Sabo snapped, startling the younger boy. He instantly regretted snapping, but there was no use worrying over it. "He needs to rest, so don't disturb him."

"O-okay," Luffy stammered, pulling his hand back and looking at Sabo through his tears.

After replacing the damp cloth they'd put over Ace's forehead before bed, Sabo pursed his lips. If it had been a simple fever, rest and fluids should have been enough. Watching Ace writhe in pain, he was beginning to suspect it was a virus of some kind. They'd need medicine, and not the kind of medicine they had just lying around.

"Luffy," Sabo murmured after a moment. "I have an important job for you."

"What is it?" Luffy asked, still struggling to hold back tears.

"I'm going to go get some medicine for Ace to help him feel better," Sabo answered, "and I need you to stay here to keep him company."

"But…" Luffy faltered, clearly torn between wanting to help and wanting to stay with Ace.

"We don't want to leave Ace alone, right?" Sabo asked, pulling his shoes on and grabbing his pipe, just in case. "This is really important, Luffy. I need you to be here in case pirates attack, or in case Ace wakes up and doesn't want to be alone."

Luffy fidgeted, then wiped at his eyes and nodded, sniffling. "Okay. I'll protect Ace and make sure he's not alone. And he's really, really not dying?"

"He's really, really not dying," Sabo promised. "Don't let him hear you say that, either. You know he'll get mad,"

"Yeah," Luffy nodded and sat next to Ace, intently focusing on his flushed, freckled face.

"Don't disturb him," Sabo instructed, heading for the exit. "Don't wake him up, and don't try to move him, okay? I'll be right back!"

"Okay!" Luffy called back to him.

Sabo wasn't sure how much Luffy understood, but as long as Luffy kept with the basic instructions, it was likely Ace wouldn't be in worse shape by the time he returned.

He knocked again, louder this time, and he didn't stop until he heard the telltale sound of footsteps coming closer.

"What the hell do you want, you damn brat?!"

The door swung open, and despite the anxious feeling in the pit of his stomach, Sabo wanted to smile at the sight of her. She was tired, disheveled, and clearly in no mood to be disturbed, but she didn't slam the door in his face when she saw it was him.

"Hi Dadan," he greeted casually. "Do you have any medicine for someone who's sick?"

She opened her mouth like she might snap at him, only to pause as the words registered. Sabo could tell she thought she was hiding it, but she saw the flicker of concern in her eyes. "One of you brats is sick?"

"Ace is," Sabo explained. "He tried to hide it and collapsed today, and his fever got worse tonight. Luffy's watching him now."

Dadan grumbled wordlessly at him, then yanked him into the house and shut the door behind him. He only stumbled once, nearly tripping, but noted she didn't let go of his arm until he'd regained his footing.

"Sit down," she barked, before loudly calling out for Magra.

Sabo did as instructed, watching with relief as Dadan ordered the sleepy bandit to mix some medicine for Ace. Dogra had also awoken, and upon being spotted, Dadan put him to work too. He didn't question what was going into the medicine or how they were supposed to know exactly what to make - if they needed information, they'd ask, and he trusted Dadan not to be careless in serious matters.

Once Magra and Dogra were started on the medicine, a grumbling Dadan went to work making soup. Every single bandit was awake and getting her anything she needed, and while they all seemed rather disgruntled at being woken in the middle of the night, Sabo caught more than a few of them giving him a cheerful wave, like they were happy to see him.

He couldn't help but smile a little. They may have moved out, and he wouldn't trade his home with his brothers for the world, but it was nice to feel welcomed and accepted.

"How long has he been sick, brat?"

Sabo jumped at the sound of Dadan's voice, heat spreading over his cheeks as he realized he'd been spacing out. "Just the day, I think," he answered. "He seemed fine this morning."

"That moron," Dadan muttered. "He never speaks up when he's sick. He just falls over."

"Does he get sick often?" Sabo questioned, wracking his brain to try and remember if there had been times in the past where Ace had seemed under the weather.

"No," Dadan snorted. "Only a few times."

Sabo fidgeted, watching the steam rise from the soup she was making. "I've been sick a lot before."

"You? Doesn't surprise me."

"Because you know where I'm from, right?" Sabo guessed. He continued once he heard an affirmative grunt. "In High Town, when you get sick, they just seal you off in your room and give you fancy medicine. I was thinking about it earlier today, since Luffy said he's never been sick. The Nobles do so much to keep 'unclean' people out of the city, they don't get exposed to a lot of illnesses. Bodies build up immunities through exposure, right? But when someone starts acting even a little sick, they get whisked away from the public."

He felt Dadan's gaze on him, but continued anyway. "Out of the three of us, Luffy's had the most exposure to diversity. Villagers, marines, pirates, bandits - ah, not you guys, the ones that he met in Windmill Village - and Makino-san probably took care of his nutrition and vitamins when he was growing up, so it's not a surprise he's got better immunities."

"Anyone ever tell you you think too much?" Dadan spoke finally.

Sabo cracked a grin. "They force us to study a lot over there."

"Doesn't suit you," Dadan muttered.

"Thanks," Sabo answered, understanding that she wasn't insulting his intelligence or education, but rather commenting on the way he'd received it. He fidgeted, daring a glance at her face and smiling at the flicker of softness he saw in her eyes. It was gone in an instant, but he was positive he'd seen it. "Hey, Dadan?"

"Nn?" she acknowledged without facing him.

"If whatever Ace has is contagious, I'm probably going to catch it," answered Sabo. "I think Luffy will be okay, but Ace isn't as patient with him, and Luffy has no idea how to handle either of us being ill. Can you just make sure they're still doing okay in a few days?"

"Why should I care, brat?" Dadan muttered, stirring the soup like it had personally offended her. A small amount sloshed over the side, making the hot coals hiss.

"I won't tell them you're the one who set off our traps."

"You little shit!" Dadan growled, cheeks reddening. "You-how-that's-!"

Sabo grinned rather cheekily at her. "I said I won't tell. Thanks, Dadan!"

"Oh shut your trap already!" Dadan swore, stabbing at the soup with the ladle now.

Sabo remained silent after that, just smiling to himself as the residents of his home away from home continued to scurry about to help his sick brother.

"SABO!"

Sabo had prepared himself for a greeting from a frantic Luffy, so he wasn't fazed when the younger boy appeared in front of him the moment he stepped back into the treehouse. Luffy's pawing hands tugged at his shirt, and he shifted the sealed jar of soup out of the way. "What's wrong, Luffy?"

"Ace is crying!" Luffy explained through frantic tears. "I tried to cheer him up and I tried to make him feel better, but he's not listening to me!"

Crying? Sabo did his best not to let surprise show on his face as he approached Ace, dragging Luffy along at his side. The freckled boy was indeed crying where he lay, his face a perfect portrait of anguish. His hair was still damp, although the overturned bucket and soggy rag near the pillows told Sabo that Luffy had probably gotten too enthusiastic with the damp cloth.

"I got some medicine for him," Sabo promised Luffy, tugging him to sit down next to him. "Ssh, Luffy. He's going to be okay."

"I-I'm not worried about him," Luffy lied through his tears, giving Sabo such a pleading look that the blond almost forgot about helping Ace to try and soothe him.

He managed to keep his focus, reaching into the bag Dadan had given him and withdrawing the bottle of medicine. She'd muttered something about there being enough in case anyone else got sick, then told him to get lost.

That's really what a mom is like, huh? he couldn't help but wonder as he managed to get a dose of medicine into Ace's mouth without spilling any. Dadan might not have been anyone's ideal woman or mother, but she cared, really cared about them, and that was enough for Sabo. That made her ideal no matter what anyone else said.

"Where did you get medicine?" Luffy asked, still hiccupping and sniffling. He kept wiping his face on his shirt, which had become one giant mass of tears and snot.

"I found it," Sabo lied, since he knew Dadan didn't want him telling. "I also found some soup for Ace to make him feel better. There's extra if you want some."

"I'll have some mystery soup, please," Luffy agreed, nodding.

Sabo smiled when Luffy didn't even question it, replacing the lid on the bottle and setting it aside for later. He figured he'd just put it with their other medical supplies in the morning.

"Ace, are you awake?" Sabo prodded. "I have some soup for you."

Ace opened his eyes, but Sabo could tell right away he wasn't aware of his surroundings, and probably couldn't even see them.

"Ace," Luffy got closer, draping himself on Ace's chest a little. "Ace, are you all better now? Sabo gave you mystery medicine, and we have mystery soup!"

"Luffy, it'll take time," Sabo chided gently. "You can't crowd him."

"Oh," Luffy huffed, backing off a little. He didn't get very far before Ace's hand shot out and grabbed his arm, halting him.

"Ace?" Sabo asked hesitantly.

"Ace?" Luffy echoed, his expression bright.

"Don't go," Ace whispered. His eyes were focused on Luffy's face, and there was a desperation in his eyes that Sabo had never seen before. It made his stomach twist uneasily. "Don't go…"

"I'm not going anywhere," Luffy answered. "But Sabo said I can't crowd you."

"Please don't go," Ace whispered, fresh tears welling up in his unfocused eyes. "Don't hate me!"

"Ace!" Luffy expressed his dismay verbally, while Sabo's was written all over his face. "Why would I hate my brother?" Ignoring Sabo's reprimand about crowding, which seemed to be for the best anyway, Luffy shifted closer and wrapped his arms around Ace. He pressed his face against Ace's chest, right over his heart as he held on tight.

"Everyone…" Ace's breathing was heavy again, his trembling arms wrapping around Luffy and holding on just as tightly. "Everyone always…"

Sabo watched them in silence, his heart aching for his proud, stubborn brother. He'd never asked Ace about the days when he'd shown up too injured to do any hunting or pilfering. He'd heard enough of the rumors to know what was going on, and when he'd finally gotten Ace to admit to his lineage, he'd started to understand the hatred underlying so many of Ace's actions and expressions.

They hadn't told Luffy about it - Sabo was positive Luffy would find it awesome, while pissing Ace off even more - but even though it had been a long time since Ace had gone picking fights and questioning his own worth, he'd known his freckled brother still carried the wounds in his heart.

Watching Ace clutch at Luffy in his feverish state, knowing the other boy probably wouldn't even remember doing it, caused an intense feeling of protective love to rise in his chest. He didn't want Ace to ever question his own worth again, or fear that he didn't deserve to be loved. He caught it sometimes in the way Ace studied Luffy, as if wondering how he could possibly be worthy of Luffy's unconditional and endless supply of love.

It wasn't like Sabo hadn't wondered the same thing himself, but he'd come to accept it over time. He wondered if Ace would ever stop struggling with it.

"Who cares about 'everyone'?" Luffy huffed, snuggling a little closer and closing his eyes. "I love my brothers, and I'll never hate Ace or Sabo."

"Luffy," Sabo murmured, smiling softly. He looked to Ace again, and his smile warmed even more if at all possible when he saw the look of raw emotion in Ace's eyes.

Tears dripped freely into Luffy's hair, and Ace's grip tightened enough that it probably would have hurt anyone who wasn't made of rubber, but Luffy's smile was as bright as the sun and it chased away years of demons and doubts, even if only for the night.

"Ace," Sabo spoke up after a moment, his voice soft. "You'll always have us. That's why we're brothers."

The rest of the tension drained out of Ace's shoulders. When he finally released Luffy, the younger boy grabbed the soggy rag to pat at Ace's forehead, pleased with himself for being able to help.

"Let's get him some soup now," Sabo suggested. "He needs us to help him though, okay?"

"Okay," Luffy agreed. "Ne, Sabo? I only want some mystery soup if there's enough for Ace to have what he needs first, okay?"

Sabo's heart swelled again - because Luffy was declining a chance to eat for Ace's sake - and he smiled. "Okay."

Luffy was still asleep when Ace awoke in the morning. His feet were draped over Ace's chest, one inching dangerously close to his mouth, but Sabo did nothing to move him despite having been awake for a while.

"Ugh," Ace pushed Luffy's legs away from his face, sitting up and rolling his shoulders.

"Morning, sunshine," Sabo joked. "How do you feel?"

"I don't want to answer that," Ace muttered, peeling his shirt off in disgust.

"Your fever broke last night after you had some medicine and soup. Luffy watched over you."

"Then I'll consider it a miracle I'm still alive," Ace responded dryly. "I don't remember what happened after dinner."

"Nothing eventful," Sabo lied nonchalantly. "Luffy thought you were dying, but you were really nice to him and let him cling, so he feels better now."

"Where did you get medicine?" Ace asked. "Or soup."

"What if I told you it was a mystery?"

Ace shot him an unamused look, which only made Sabo grin in response. "Well, whatever. I need to go for a swim, though. I feel gross."

"You look pretty gross too. And you smell," Sabo added thoughtfully. "Why don't you go get cleaned up and I'll stay with Luffy until it's time to go get breakfast?"

"Thanks," Ace picked himself up and grimaced again when a lock of hair fell over his forehead. It was matted and sweaty. "Hey, Sabo?"

"Hm?"

"I didn't say anything last night, did I? It's a blur, but I remember having some… some bad dreams," he finished lamely, clearly embarrassed to admit it.

"You said some stuff, but nothing really new," Sabo answered, choosing his words carefully. "Don't worry about it."

Ace hesitated like he might press for more, or even argue about the importance of anything he might have said, but Luffy mumbling about robots in his sleep had Ace sighing and turning to leave.

Once he was gone, Sabo took one of the blankets and draped it over Luffy, letting the younger boy sleep in a little longer. Sabo had woken much earlier to keep an eye on Ace and put the medicine away, and had heard both boys mumbling in their sleep. Luffy's ramblings had been mostly incoherent and whimsical, but Ace had called out for both of his brothers. Sabo knew they had a long way to go before Ace felt comfortable and secure, but he intended to make sure it happened.

It was a good thing Luffy could heal the scars in Ace's heart so effortlessly, because even after five years of companionship, Sabo still struggled to say what Ace needed to hear. He wasn't ashamed to admit it, either. His pride would never be more important to him than the happiness of his brothers.

Sabo moved to wake Luffy up a little while later, hearing Ace making his way back up the tree, but a wave of dizziness hit him when he stood. He put one hand against the wall, steadying himself and bringing his other hand up to feel his forehead.

"Bloody hell."

Sometimes, he hated being right.

A/N: *slumps* And yes, Sabo is referring to the fact that he caught whatever Ace had at the end there. Also yes, that is going to be the next chapter. :3

Thank you so much for your patience, and thank you to everyone who gave me well-wishes for my ear infection drama! The good news is, I haven't fallen down the stairs yet, and I can finally hear out of my ear again!

To my lovely guest reviewer on chapter 9,

sent: Kyaaaah thank you so much ^.^ I'm so happy to see how much people are enjoying this. I'm really enjoying writing it, especially since it's still in the 'fluff' stage where I don't have to cry buckets due to sticking to canon.

~Mithril