Luffy giggled as he chased around Stefan. The giant dog was barking at him, his tail wagging as they ran around. "You're right Steffan! You can chase me now." Luffy said. Steffan yowled happily, and turned on his heels to start chasing Luffy. The dog's moustache fluttered as he chased the fourteen year old. Oyaji laughed as he watched the two play. It amazed him how Luffy always seemed to know what animals were thinking. He'd asked Ace one time, but the kid had laughed and said that it was probably because Luffy was like an animal himself. Whitebeard had to agree. Luffy seemed to run mostly on instinct.

Whitebeard glanced over to where Ace was learning how to read something called Braille. Marco had picked up a How-To book on the last island they'd stopped on, and now they were both learning how to read it. Marco was learning so that he could teach Ace how to read.

Being blind, and living on a small island, Ace had never gotten to learn how to read. The boy hadn't even gone to school. Instead, all the schooling he'd had, had been taught to him by Luffy.

The large captain chuckled. Ace was smart as a whip. Whitebeard couldn't wait to see how he'd progress.

There was a thud as Steffan pounced on the Rubberman, and pinned him down so that he could lick his face. Luffy shrieked with laughter as he tried to escape, then he suddenly fell asleep. Steffan took that as a sign that he should sleep too. The dog flopped down on top of Luffy, and laid his head on the kid's chest.

Izou watched it all. He still couldn't get over the fact that Steffan had grown close to someone other than Oyaji and Marco. But both Luffy and Ace had gotten that honor as well. Izou turned away from the two sleeping animals, and settled his gaze on Thatch.

The cook was fishing again. It was his favorite activity. Izou smiled. Thatch had started leaving his hair down, simply pushing it back from his face. The man still put it in a pompadour more often than not, especially before they hit an island, but it made Izou hope for them. He moved over and sat on the railing by Thatch, and tugged on a strand of hair.

It amazed him how soft the man's hair was. "You look very nice today Thatch." Izou said.

Thatch felt his face turn red, and he looked down into the sea, "Thanks Izou." He mumbled. He felt nervous. Izou always made his heart beat fast. He didn't know what to do. He doubted that the Crossdresser would believe him if he just flat out said "I love you."

"What did you say?" Izou asked, his eyes wide. He'd been sitting happily with Thatch when suddenly the man had said the three words that he'd been longing to hear.

Shit! Thatch couldn't believe that he'd said that out loud. How stupid could he be? His face was incredibly red. He could feel it burning.

They sat in silence for a moment before Izou decided to take a chance, "I love you too, you know." He said. The words were said softly, but clearly.

Thatch turned so fast he probably got whiplash. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He looked shell shocked. His heart was beating so fast that he feared it would explode.

Izou rolled his eyes, and kissed the idiot. Thatch floundered a bit, and then he kissed back. 'Finally.' Izou thought. The man was still an idiot, but now he was Izou's idiot, and that was all that mattered.

Whitebeard looked over to where Thatch was fishing, and he smiled. It had taken his two Baka sons long enough. He turned back to look out over his deck happily. All was right with his world. He laughed softly.

Ace heard the laugh, and raised his head. Moments like this made him wish that he could see. Marco saw the expression on Ace's face, and he brushed a hand over his cheek, "He's laughing happily because Izou and Thatch finally kissed." He said.

Ace leaned into Marco's palm, and made an affirmative sound. He was glad that Luffy had trusted this crew. These had been some of the best weeks of his life. They had been fun. He'd joined in fights, and explored islands. Marco had shown him and Luffy around some of the more dangerous ones. He was learning how to read. He'd always wanted to, but he'd always thought that it was impossible. Ace smiled happily.

Marco felt Ace lean into him, and the weight got heavier, and heavier, until Ace fell with a thump into Marco's lap, soft snores coming from his partially open mouth. The Phoenix looked down in surprise before he smiled, and rolled his eyes.

It was a nice day, and Marco thought that a nap might be a good idea, but before he could a call came out that a strange ship was approaching fast. Marco carefully extricated himself from Ace, and he stood up, moving quickly to the railing of the Moby. He squinted, but couldn't see the ship clearly. He moved over to Oyaji's side. "Who do you think it is?" he asked.

Whitebeard looked out over the deck, his eyes stopping for a second on each of the sleeping brothers, "I can sense Garp, but the other one, I don't know. I've never met him before." He said. Marco latched onto the fact that Oyaji had mentioned only two people, his way of saying that they were strong.

"That means that lookout doesn't see one ship, or that Garp is coming with help." Marco said.

Oyaji laughed, "I would bet that it is the first option. Garp only really works well with Aokiji, and Sengoku. I would recognize them!" he said. Marco snorted, and rolled his eyes. Garp was definitely a card. His thoughts were interrupted by the look outs call that a second ship had appeared from behind the first.

Marco moved to the railing again and looked out. He could see the Marine ship, but the other was unmarked and he had no idea who it might be. He settled into a relaxed looking stance. He had this nagging feeling that something interesting was going to happen.