Sorry for the delay! This chapter is a bit shorter than usual because I want to fit all of the flashbacks into the next chapter, so hopefully you guys don't mind :) I kind of don't like how this turned out, though... maybe I'll rewrite it at some point.
Also, I started a new story! It's called Within and it's really cliché (typical amnesia story) but maybe some of you will like it.
Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece. It would be a disaster if I did.
Luffy snuck out of the infirmary that morning. He knew perfectly well that Chopper would protest his actions, which is why he was as quiet as he could manage. That room was so boring! All of the walls were white and Zoro—who was supposed to be keeping an eye on Luffy—fell asleep, leaving him with no one to talk to and nothing to do. It was expected that he would leave, wasn't it? Since when did he ever listen to orders? Take it easy? He was the Pirate King! A little liquid seastone couldn't keep him down!
Well, it did stop his heart… but he was still alive either way so what did it matter?
Besides, he was really worried about Ace. It was strange that he hadn't visited him in the infirmary. While he laughed it off when his crew first told him what was going on, it was starting to look more serious. He was told the night before that Ace was so scared of Nami that he set her arm on fire. That wasn't like him at all. While he occasionally burnt the food he was eating and his bedframe had a few scorch marks from nightmares the kid had, he never injured a crewmate. Ace wasn't like that.
He had a good hunch as to where his brother was hiding. With how much time the two spent together, it was pretty predictable. So he went below deck—careful to avoid his crewmembers for fear of being forced back into bed—and arrived at the door of the storage room. He knew Ace would prefer an area like that, with darkness and seclusion. It was likely his attempt at keeping away from the crew—to keep them safe.
Turning the knob, he pushed the door open and simultaneously entered. As the hall light illuminated the area he could see most of the room, along with the boy hiding inside it. The kid was huddled in a corner, a blanket softly caressing his shoulders. There was empty plate at his feet which was a relief because it meant that he'd eaten. Despite that, the boy was asleep. Luffy found that understandable; staying alone in the dark probably got pretty boring, so why not sleep the day away?
Without any concern for the situation, Luffy leisurely approached the boy and took a seat beside him. Without any sort of hesitation he lifted the small body—ignoring the weakness and pain that still ran through his body—and set Ace down in his lap, allowing his head to rest against the Pirate King's chest. The boy snuggled closer to him in his sleep, likely drawn by his warmth.
As the boy slept, Luffy looked him over and smiled. Only then did he realize how much Ace changed since they first found him on that island. His injuries were mostly healed and he was eating properly. He'd even grown a bit, which was great; he was starting to look his age. Physical qualities aside, he was different. He could talk to the crew and stay with them—didn't need Luffy to hide behind anymore. Ace was starting to act more and more like he did before…
But then that his progress was washed away.
Whatever happened to make him hurt Nami had to be serious. It pissed Luffy off. Ace grew a lot—matured—during his stay with the Straw Hat pirates. Something scared him enough to erase that and it had to do with Luffy being attacked. After Marineford, the Pirate King knew how it felt to see someone important to you die. Ace saw his heart stop. So…
The boy stirred. He yawned and his eyes blinked open to the dark of the room. At first he didn't notice Luffy, but then as he felt what he was laying on he jumped, spinning his head until he was face to face with the Pirate King.
Luffy grinned. "Hey," he greeted casually, meeting the boy's unsure gaze with a cheerful one of his own.
For a few moments Ace remained perfectly still. Then the trembling started. His eyes enlarged and he squirmed, backing out of the pirate's grasp in a frantic rush. Luffy stopped him. With a hand around his back, he held him firmly in place. The pleading eyes looking up at him had no effect. Ace became more panicked. His head spun left and right as he clawed at the appendage wrapped around his shoulders.
"It's okay, Ace."
The boy stopped his frantic movements and stared at his lap, his trembling slowing.
"You're not going to hurt me."
Eyes doubling in size, the fire user turned to face the one who held him. Before he could react he was pulled into a hug, held close to the other's chest. Through the silence of the room, Ace could make out a soft patter. Each beat was calm and steady, going strong—Luffy's heart. Hearing it he froze, ceasing any resistance he previously held. Wide-eyed and dumbstruck, he pulled his ear up against Luffy's shirt to hear it better.
When Luffy saw that his brother had calmed he smiled. "I'm alive, see? You don't have to worry anymore." Gently he caressed the boy's back, rubbing soothing circles into the fabric of his shirt. His smile fell when he felt the shaking start up again, but it was different than before. "What are you afraid of?"
Receiving no verbal answer, he felt the boy fist his shirt, holding it tightly in his grasp. They stayed like that in silence, Luffy staring out the small crack in the door, at the only light source the room had.
"Talk to me, Ace."
The boy shook his head.
"Ace," Luffy persisted. He pulled the boy away and forced him to make eye contact. Through the darkness the Pirate King could faintly make out the sheen of the child's eyes as they glossed over, firmly holding back his tears. The pirate's grip softened when he saw that—enough for Ace to pull away and put some distance between them.
Giving himself a moment to calm down, Ace swallowed. "Nami, she…"
Luffy blinked. Well, at least he was talking, though it wasn't exactly what the pirate was hoping for. "She's not mad."
Ace looked up at him, suddenly at full attention.
The Pirate King grinned. "She's not angry at you—no one is."
"But…"
"We wanna help you. You can talk to us."
Ace shook his head. "I can't."
Huffing in irritation, Luffy abruptly stood and marched over to the cowardly form of his younger brother, scooping him up and ignoring his protests. With a pout, he stormed out of the storage room, went down the hall and into the galley. At first his crewmates were surprised, about to order him back to the infirmary, but then spotted the squirming bundle under his arm.
Ace was plopped down at the table and the rest of the crew could get a better view of him. His face was ghostly pale as he took in the people in the room. He looked like he was about to bolt out the door—or rather he would have if he wasn't petrified. If they didn't know what was going on they would have thought him ill.
Luffy took a seat beside the boy which seemed to scare him further. The pirate ignored it, though, in favour of turning to the blonde in the room. "Sanji, food!"
The cook stared curiously at the two before placing a cigarette in between his lips. "Yeah, yeah," he replied lazily as he sauntered out of the room, heading for the kitchen.
The captain nodded in approval when he saw Sanji leave then turned to Nami, Franky and Brook who were still in the room. He motioned them over and they complied, taking their seats at the table as well.
Everyone could see Ace silently getting more and more scared. Flames licked his shoulders and arms, waiting for the opportune chance to claim their next victim. Still, they listened to their captain. They knew that, while Luffy wasn't the brightest of men, he would never intentionally scare his brother without reason.
The flames on his form grew more intense and he shut his eyes as if to pretend they weren't there. He was gripping the hem of his shirt tight enough to turn his knuckles white in an effort to stop himself from acting on his fear.
"We're your nakama, Ace," Luffy stated. He glanced down at the boy to see that his eyes were open once more then turned to his crewmembers. "Right?"
"Of course!" Franky replied first, his large arms moving into one of his random poses. He looked at Ace. "You're a part of the Straw Hat pirates, just like the rest of us!"
Ace looked at the three figures that sat across from him, mouth slightly ajar as he took in their smiles. Or, well, two of their smiles—Brook had no skin, so he couldn't exactly change his expression. "…Nakama?"
"That's right, Ace," Nami chimed in, gazing softly at the boy before her. "We're nakama." Slowly she reached across the table with her injured arm, gently patting his head. "And nakama are forever, right Luffy?"
"Of course! Shishishi!"
"We're here for you."
"Yohoho! Such beautiful friendship!" Abruptly the skeleton stood, grabbing his violin from its case resting against one of the support beams. "I shall play us a song!"
Ace turned curiously to Brook as the melodic sound of his violin reached his ears, then back at the others. Luffy wrapped an arm around his shoulders, smiling down at him. "See? You're one of us. You can tell us what's wrong."
The fire user's grip on his shirt tightened but he felt himself relax. The flames vanished and his trembling slowed. Taking deep breaths, he took one last glance at each of the pirate's faces and then stared hard at the wood of the table. He knew the meaning of that word now—the one that eluded him all that time. So, as thanks, maybe he could tell them. "…I-it was like back then."
Luffy tilted his head. "Like what?"
Ace bit his lip. Quiet and shaking, his voice just barely carried through the room. "It was the same. She wouldn't wake up and…" Unable to finish, glossy eyes turned to the Pirate King. "I don't want to be alone."
A/N: So there you go! It's eye-roll worthy but, well, at least its an update, right? I think you guys will enjoy the next arch a lot more. Gotta get through this one first though! Less one's less melodramatic, fortunately...
To my lovelies~
Portgas D Paula: He'll get better :) Can't really move on if he doesn't :P
Honeydee: Well you know the first half of his past. Remember the chapter The Darkest Memoir? That's the first half - most of what happened before he ended up on that island. Yeah, Skip was pretty much made so I could write the epilogue XD Just because, well, I thought the beginning of Resolve should have some sort of explanation. But I've had so many issues writing it... Every time I've tried to work on a new chapter it's ended with me only writing like a paragraph T^T Honestly, most people on this site are sadistic in one way or another, including me XD Glad to see you're enjoying Divide! XD AceLu is so fun to write. Though, well, I haven't gotten to write any strictly AceLu scenes yet...
Neko-VongolaPrimo: Lol it's okay XD Luffy is kind of forcing Ace to get over it hehe... Yeah, life can be rough. Hope things get less busy for you soon!
buslimpan: Haha you flatter me XD
laytonloverdg: Glad you like!
Guest: Yes he can! :D
Guest (2): They're there, they're just hard to fit in... Certain characters seem more likely to help in this situation than others (like how Zoro would just let him work it out himself) so that's why they haven't shown up much. Hope you enjoyed :)
MysterousEyez: You are correct! Though after being alone with his thoughts for a while he started to understand, which is basically what he's going to be talking about. Hehe you guessed right about Luffy XD
Son Goshen: Lol you've made me curious about that article you read XD Luffy will help! But you're right, he's going to need to get through this himself. Talking about it won't get rid of the problem, but at least he's calming down enough to stay in the same room as the others (though he doesn't have much of a choice).
Bluebird42: Hehe that'll be fun for me to write. His past is next chapter!
Kitsune Foxfire: ...Pretty much XD Yeah, Sanji was pretty bad for that. But, well, hopefully he won't forget again in the future. Don't worry, the marines will get what they deserve e_e
azab: Well it's not going to be Ace's memories, it's going to be through his mother's perspective for the most part, but either way it's coming up next chapter :)
spoons-are-evil: Yes, that was his mother. I had a feeling some people would get confused :/ Lol I've wondered about that too XD
(Well that's all for today. I will now work on... nothing. I'm going to eat. Kind of skipped breakfast... and lunch... how did I not realize this sooner?! I blame Sanji. Anyways, hope you enjoyed. And remember to check out my new fic if you like cheesy, cliché, melodramatic amnesia stories! Adieu~)
