To Serve at his Command| X

The shoveling of dirt awoke her abruptly to an icy room, thick of odd smells and loud snores. Frowning, Luffy cracked one eye open to search her surroundings, taking in the familiar lumps of blankets that covered her co-workers—fellow thieves.

While it was a downgrade in some senses to Crocodile's mansion, Luffy couldn't help but smile softly. It was home, and no matter how crude the smells got or how cranky the others could get in the morning, she felt at utter peace at that moment.

Until, that is, another clank of metal erupted in her ear. Pushing herself up with a quick yawn, Luffy threw a glance towards the direction of the sound, finding herself staring directly at the window. Getting up, she tip-toed across the room—making sure not to bump into the others still lost in sleep—and blinked at what she found.

Buggy digging, a grim look painted on his face.

Cocking a brow as well as an amused smile, she propped the window open, peaking her head out and waving for the clown's attention. "What are you doing?" she asked, curious.

Buggy threw her a sharp glance before forcing the shovel down into the dirt. His lips trembled for a second and a low mewl of a cry came out. "Just digging my grave, that's all," he answered, eyes growing blank. He proceeded to continue digging, muttering something about her being the death of him.

Resting her chin into her palms, Luffy asked, "And why are you doing that?"

Buggy stopped, throwing the shovel over his shoulder before turning around and approaching her at the window. He pointed one dirt covered finger up at her and with a heavy frown, said, "Because of you, I'm a dead man walking! You went and got involved with the wrong type of guy and now I'm going to have to pay for it!" He paused, eyes growing angry as he turned to return to his makeshift grave. "You're the most idiotic thief I ever did bring into my home. Robbing a goddamn mafia lord—only you, Luffy, only you!"

Luffy smirked, remembering the night before when she returned. Buggy, at first, was ecstatic she had returned to continue pickpocketing for him, but after she showed him her pay from her week of service, he grew pale of face and very nervous. He thought she had taken that money instead of earning it fair and square, and was dead-set on believing Crocodile would soon show up. "It's the only reason why you'd return," Buggy had said the night before, voice pitchy. "You robbed him and now you think you can hide out here?"

She had tried her best to convince him otherwise, but clearly—by the way he was acting that morning—she would need to try harder.

"He's not going to come after us—he gave me his word," she informed him happily.

Buggy snorted and she couldn't tell if he was being serious or sarcastic. "His word," he repeated, voice low and full of anger. "His word is utter shit, that's what it is—and you're just plain dumb to even believe that." He shook his head, locks of blue hair tumbling down across his face as he swung at the dirt. "When they carve my gravestone, have them write 'Died because of dumbass Luffy,' yeah?"

Rolling her eyes, Luffy closed the window. While she would have loved to continue that chat with Buggy, she had more important issues at hand, such as meeting her older brother—something she quite wasn't ready for.

Because of her employment with Crocodile—and then her sudden unemployment—she hadn't the chance to formulate a proper lie to give to Ace. What am I going to tell him when he starts asking questions? He does love his questions—picking at every little detail, making sure I'm alright…While she did appreciate Ace's protective side at times, it could get a bit overbearing.

She couldn't very well tell him about her adventures with Crocodile—that would definitely send him overboard, and to mention Buggy and his shady activities would be ill advised. What was left? Should I just sprout the same lie I wrote to grandfather and say I'm working for a baker? And what if he becomes curious and wants to check out the bakery?

Running her hands through her hair, she sighed heavily, knowing that thinking like that was only going to build more panic in her. I'll just have to stick to my guns and hope he doesn't get too curious…

Shrugging, Luffy decided that was all she could do and went to the bathroom to prepare for her afternoon with Ace.

With wide eyes, he came barreling out of the train, almost tripping on his way down the steps. His arms shot out and he took her in his arms, crushing her in a bear hug. "Luffy!" he cheered, arms growing ever tighter around her. "You're alive!"

"Y-yeah," she managed to spit up, feeling the air leave her chest. "I'm a-alright, but I won't make it if…if you keep squeezing me like t-this!" And with that, Ace released her, patting her down roughly on the head.

"I was worried that you didn't get my letter," he said before turning to pick up his luggage—a beat up leather duffle bag, obviously meant for a short trip. "Or worse—that you were dead." His expression grew heavy, full of anger and fear. "You shouldn't have left home like you did—when grandfather told me, I practically died of fright."

"No you didn't," Luffy huffed, annoyed when Ace sent her a friendly smirk. Crossing her arms, she added, "And I can handle myself, thank you very much." She began to lead them out of the station and towards the main city district.

"Sure," Ace mouthed as he followed her, clearly unconvinced. "And working as…what was it, again?"

"Baker's apprentice," she slowly answered, forcing back a wince as the lie rolled off her tongue. "I, uh, bake things and help set the shop."

Ace nodded, a brow slowly rising. "Is that so?" he questioned, throwing his bag over his shoulder. "Did you bring any of these bake goods for your dear brother?"

Luffy fought back a whine of fear. "Well," she quickly answered, voice shaky as she tried to figure out a good lie. "I would have, but my boss wasn't keen on me taking food—and I can't anger the boss, you know?"

Her older brother sent her a thin smile. "Oh, well, you can just take me there and I can buy something. I really want to try your cooking."

With wide eyes, Luffy shook her head. "We…we can't!" she shouted, wining at how high her voice had gotten. "I m-mean, the bakery is closed for today. Since I took the afternoon off to visit you, the boss thought he'd take it off as well to visit…visit family, yeah…"

"Luffy…" Ace began, only to be stopped by Luffy's dismissing hand wave.

"Let's just drop it, alright?" she asked, sending him a pleading look. "I'm doing perfectly fine with work—don't worry. Besides…" She trailed off to reveal a bag of her own that she brought, full of small sandwiches she had made. "I made this—wouldn't you rather have a nice lunch that I made then some stupid bread?"

Ace's stare fell to the bag before slinking back up. With a shrug, he nodded. "Fine, fine, I'll cut it out with all the questions about the bakery, but," he leaned in to whisper, "we need to talk about something important."

Frowning, she sent him a confused look. "What do you mean?"

"Not here," he quickly answered, eyes darting around them. "It'd be better if we spoke somewhere away from everybody else. Got a place in mind?"

Luffy paused to think. "I suppose we can go to the park…?"

Ace nodded. "That's perfect."

They sat under a tree, secluded from any other visitors at the park. The food—what little of it—was sprawled out before them in a makeshift dinner setting, and Luffy couldn't help but smile as Ace took a bite of his sandwich.

A mixture of emotions passed through his eyes, causing her to frown. "It's not the best, but it's editable," he said. "Are you really a baker? I'd think they'd want somebody with more…talent than this."

Widening her stare, Luffy punched him on the arm to the best of her ability. "That's not nice," she huffed, gasping afterwards when he shoved her back.

Laughing, Ace retorted with, "You should learn how to handle the truth better." He took another bite before adding, "Besides, I said it wasn't that bad." After a moment, his smile dissolved, only to be replaced with a heavy frown. "Things have gotten worse…"

Luffy placed her own sandwich down upon her lap, eyes searching her brother's grim expression. "What has?"

Ace glanced away, out towards the distance. His jaw clenched for a moment before he finally huffed and answered. "Everything, really. I don't even know where to begin…" He threw a sad look her way. "I'm sorry for getting you and gramps involved with my shit."

"Ace," she began, only to be stopped.

"Let me talk first," he said softly before crossing his legs. "I'm not sure how much gramps has told you, but I'm sure he only gave you the simple version." Pausing, he tapped his fingers together, as if taking a second to figure out what to say next. "I'm in debt…and I can't explain why, so please don't ask me."

Luffy remained mute, but offered a nod.

"This person I'm indebted too…he…" Ace frowned. "He's not a good guy, let's just put it at that. I…I fucked up real bad, Luffy, and now this guy might come after me—you and gramps even—if I don't do certain things—again, please don't ask for details." A heavy sigh escaped his lips. "There's more."

"What?" she asked in a whisper, feeling herself grow paler with every passing second.

"I've met somebody who might be able to get me out of this mess, but only if I help him out," he explained. "Problem is, he's an enemy to the man I'm indebted too, and if I'm ever caught working for him, that's it—I'm good as dead. It's like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place."

"Ace," Luffy said, reaching out to touch his shoulder. "What…what are you going to do?"

"I don't know," he answered, offering her a weak smile. "What can I do?"

Tilting her head, Luffy took a moment to think of any possible solution. "You can try running away?" she offered weakly.

Ace shook his head. "They'd fine me—or worse, just come after you guys. And…and I'm not one to run away from my problems, you know that."

Biting down on her lip, Luffy glanced down at her food. "What do these men want?"

"I…I can't really answer that," Ace answered, frowning slightly. "I would love to tell you, but I'm worried to get you too involved more than you already are." Pausing, he let out another sigh. "I'm sure if I were able to help them out in some big way, my debt would be cleared."

"And…these men are involved with the mafia?"

Ace sent her a hard stare before moaning out in annoyance. "What else did gramps tell you?" he asked, voice heavy with anger. "I asked him not to say too much to you…"

Scratching her chin, Luffy said, "Don't blame him; I asked. He told me that this guy you're indebted too was heavily involved in the mafia world—said his name was Blackbeard?"

He nodded, throwing his gaze aside. "Yeah, that's it," he said dully. "It's just an alias, though. I found out his real name from the other man I told you about—Teach. Such a stupid name…" He continued to mutter insults under his breath about the man, but Luffy found herself lost in thought.

Teach, she thought, confused. That name…I've heard it before. Fluttering her eyes shut, she tried to recall from where and when she heard such a strange name. Doflamingo's voice filled her head, the smell of cigar coming to life in her nostrils. Edward Newgate and Marshall Teach…yes, that was it. Snapping her eyes opening, Luffy found herself muttering, "Marshall Teach?"

Ace—who was in the middle of a rather nasty insult—stopped suddenly, sending her a harsh glare. "How did you…?"

Blinking, Luffy realized her mistake. Oh no! I only know that information because I was working for Crocodile! He doesn't know anything about that! She casted her wide-eyed gaze aside, fingers folding together as she felt Ace dig daggers into her side with his probing stare.

"Luffy?" he asked, voice stern. "How do you know that?"

"Oh, just…just a guess," she whispered, wincing when he took a hold of her shoulder, forcing her to look his way.

"You're lying," he said, eyes searching hers. "You get all shaky and nervous and bashful when you lie, and you're hiding something, aren't you?" His voice grew in a mixture of excitement and anger. "Spill it."

Luffy wanted to hide, afraid of what to tell him. She wanted to help him out—she really did, but she also didn't want to freak him out by revealing her past week with Crocodile. When his hand didn't released her, she sighed in defeat. "Okay, okay," she began slowly. "So, I may have had a short-term employment as a maid for a certain person—"

"Name," Ace demanded sharply. "You're not leaving out a single detail, Luffy. Not a damn one."

"That's not fair," she whined in response. "You were vague in your explanations."

He shook his head. "Doesn't matter; I'm the older brother here and what I say goes. So, name, please."

Biting down on her bottom lip, she whispered out weakly, "Crocodile."

The look of shock in his eyes hinted that he knew full well who said man was, hand releasing her shoulder so he could rub the side of his face. "Crocodile?" he mouthed, clearly still taken aback. "You worked for Crocodile?" His gazed hardened as it snapped back to hers. "Do you even have the slightest idea what type of man he is?"

"I have an idea," she answered softly. "Same type of business as that Teach guy, right?"

Ace practically snorted at her answer. "You can say that," he said, voice angry. "Damn it, Luffy! I can't believe you—how the hell you'd get involved with that type of guy, huh?"

Crossing her arms, Luffy tried her best to send her older brother a matching angry look. "Listen here, it's not like I knew he was involved in that sort of stuff when first working for him, alright? I just went in thinking I'd make some quick cash to send back to you to help with the debt."

A look of guilt crossed Ace's face, his once hardened expression growing weak. "Luffy," he said softly, "I never asked for you to do that."

"But I did," she snapped back. "I'm not just going to sit around back home while you're struggling—that's why I really left, to help you out as much as I can. And so what if I end up working for some big shot, huh? I handled it and it's over, so don't worry."

Ace cocked a brow. "You're not working there anymore?" A look of relief came to life upon his face, his body relaxing.

"Yeah," she answered with a nob. "And anyway, while I was under his employment, I happened to overhear a few details—he was talking with some guy called Doflamingo about that Teach man as well as an Edward Newgate." She stopped when she noticed Ace lost in thought.

"And…and he just said such information in front of you?" he questioned.

Luffy nodded. "He didn't seem to mind me being there, really." Pausing, she thought about it. "Actually, I think he wanted me to hear—as strange as that sounds. I think he thought he could get me to spy on his guests, but I'm not so good at that sort of thing…"

"Luffy," Ace said then, voice growing in excitement. "Now, listen to this—and don't say anything until I'm done, alright?"

She nodded, confused by his sudden excitement.

"First, know that I love you more than anything and I wouldn't ever put your life in danger if I didn't think you'd get hurt."

When she went to question him, he stopped with a wave of his hand.

Licking his lips, he began to explain a plan. "I…I think I have an idea how to get myself out of my mess, and you're going to help me. But, uh, first, answer me this: Has he hurt you? Or has he shown anger at you…or is he mean to you?"

Luffy frowned slightly. "Mean?" she asked before shaking her head. "He got a bit cranky at times—but that was with everyone working there."

"And he never laid a hand on you?"

That question left Luffy blank, unsure if she should answer truthfully or lie. "No…" she said slowly. "No, he hasn't."

"You're telling me the truth, right?" Ace questioned, voice serious. "I need to know this before I can ask of your help."

While she hated lying to Ace, she hated his reactions more. "Yeah."

Ace took a long moment to process the information before nodding. He continued his plan. "I think if you were able to work for him again, and perhaps search around for information or listen in on any of his conversations, I could get out of my debt to Teach. You see, Crocodile is on Teach's…hit list—he hates him, really. And if you were able to forward some good information on him or his business, I may be able to worm out from Teach's anger."

First, a look of confusion took to Luffy's face, followed by slight fear, then anger, and finally understanding. Ace was asking her to spy on Crocodile, pick around for hidden secrets, and report back to him. She brought her hand to the nape of her neck, eyes falling down on the ground as she thought everything over.

I don't want to go back, but if this is the only way to help Ace out…how…how can I say no? She glanced up at her brother, searching his concerned expression. "Ace," she began softly, "I'll…I'll do it." Luffy was ready to head back into pit if it meant saving her brother.

A smile came to him then. "Luffy," he said before quickly calming himself. "Luffy, you can always back out if you get too scared, or if you feel things are not working out for you. Don't go into this if you feel unsure—only do this if you're confident and you believe you can sneak around his stuff unnoticed."

Luffy nodded. "I…I can. When I worked as his maid, I was allowed to go into many of the rooms—unsupervised. And that includes his office. I think if there is anything of value, if would be in there."

Ace shook his head, agreeing. "This very well might be my—our salvation, Luffy." He went to hug her tightly. "You've grown braver since I last saw you."

While that may have been true, Luffy was completely terrified at the thought of going back to that mansion, facing him. She had left in a rather quick haste and she knew what was on Crocodile's mind the night before—he surely mustn't had taken the news too lightly when he found out she left.

Swallowing, Luffy pulled away from the embrace and offered her brother a soft smile. "I'd do anything for you, Ace. Anything."

To be continued…

Next Time: Luffy slinks back to Crocodile's mansion to beg for her job back—but to no surprise, he is in a rather sour mood. What will she have to do to convince him?

Thanks for reading!

Stardustadventurer: I'm so glad you think that! I was nervous I didn't portray that curiosity/fear/interest in her first real sexual encounter properly, but I'm happy that you thought I did! Thank you for sharing your thoughts/views on it; it really pushes up my confidence in writing such scenes!

IMadeThisUp: Haha, thank you so much! I was afraid that the hunting scene was too short after I uploaded the chapter, but I'm glad to see you enjoyed it! Thanks!

Anon: Aw, thanks! I'll try to update as much as I can—and I should really pick it up in about six weeks when I get out of school for summer break. I'm hoping I'll be able to blaze through the rest of the story and finish it by the end of summer. Doflamingo's feathers are breathtaking and sexy and he's just a sexy flamingo. I mean, who would have thought a flamingo could be that wonderfully amazing? Crocodile is not pleased over Luffy's actions, that's all I'll say now. Thanks for the review!

SunaNoToar: Oh yes, Mr. Two! Who could not love him? Yeah, Luffy is going to pay for what she did and will have to deal with Crocodile's wrath. Since I only keep it to Luffy's POV, his face would be more along the lines of "Where the hell is she? It's like two in the morning and she's not here yet? And holy shit…is she even coming?" And then his face would do that weird expression change it did in the anime when Luffy drank all that water from the barrel in the Alabasta arc. Lol okay I'm done. Thanks for reading!

Son of Whitebeard: Haha, yes! Buggy mishaps are one of the best things to write, I've found. Thanks for reading/reviewing!