Author's Note: What's this? Two story updates in one day? Welp, that's what happens when you're stuck on a particular chapter...you work on other stories lol. I'm pretty hyped about where this one's going, so I hope ya'll enjoy it as much as I do!

To Guest: I know, me either (and I wrote it)! As an author, I am always willing to provide sustenance lol. My poor poor boys :( but it'll bet better because I love Ace, Sabo, and Lu, they're my favorites XD

To fluffypuppies: Gotta love multiple updates! Haha I seem to be on a roll with the cliffhangers lately. Poor Lu :( he's so easy to mess with, but also easy to cuddle with once it's all over. Lol, whether he knows it or now, Luffy's got the whole citadel wrapped around his little finger. As I said in the other update today, I'm always here to cheer my readers up and give them something fun (if a bit dark lol) to read. LONG LIVE DARK FLUFF! See you next time!

To Hinakudo: Lu is the cutest thing ever. I'm so glad you like it so much! All of the compliments always make me smile XD Definitely lots of intrigue. Thanks for the review!

To jack: Here's the update for you!

To RIAEVANS: Thanks so much and I hope you enjoy the new chapter!

To Guest 2: Here's an update for you :)

WARNINGS:

- VERY POSSESSIVE ACE AND SABO

- Lu has been through a lot

- Many emotions

"So…let me get this straight." Kidd said in a low tone from where he was seated at the head of the table, "A group of ten humans escaped and found a way to remove their tags but were ambushed by a hunting party from Upper Yard." Marco nodded, making Ace tense up.

He hadn't felt this nervous in a long time, and he wasn't the only one. Law, the pureblood Second, Doma, and even Thatch were all far from relaxed. Only Ace's sire appeared completely calm.

"Most of them were killed though you were able to recover one…but only after demolishing any and all friendly relations with the citadel."

"That's correct." Marco affirmed, "Thankfully, Law and I are on friendly terms with Charlotte Katakuri. He was a great help in convincing Enel to return our property."

"…and the boy? He's in solitary right now?"

"Yes, yoi. His wound has been treated and his life is no longer in danger."

Kidd hummed and clasped his hands together on the table in front of him, obviously in deep thought. The silence was nerve racking, especially for Ace who knew his turn was coming soon. There was no way Marco hadn't recognized Luffy from those initial scouting pictures…

While he was grateful Lu was going to be okay (though it took all of his self-control to not rush to his side…or hunt down those responsible), why had he run off in the first place? He'd received only the best treatment from both him and Law.

'I bet those other humans in his cell convinced him.' He thought with a scowl, 'Damn it! Maybe if I'd kept him close and out of sight, none of this would've happened!'

Maybe Luffy would still have his arm.

"I apologize." The Second whispered, speaking up and drawing the Lord's attention, "Had I been more attentive…" The pureblood grit his teeth and looked down, definitely frustrated, as anyone would be in his situation. He was in charge when it happened after all.

"Don't blame yourself, Sabo." Kidd stated firmly, straightening up, "These things happen, and frankly, I don't think it's a big deal."

"Really, yoi?" Marco put in with a raised eyebrow. Even Law who stood with his back to the wall looked up at the Lord's statement. Kidd shrugged.

"Considering I wasn't planning on being friendly with Upper Yard to begin with, and they were in the wrong, no harm no foul." He frowned and leaned forward, "However, I am interested to hear how such a large group of humans escaped. Losing nine, including two females, is going to put a sizable dent in our livestock count."

The room was silent for a moment as everyone thought carefully about how to respond. Unfortunately, Kidd was right. They'd never lost so many humans all at once before, at least, not to Ace's knowledge.

"It was my fault." Doma interjected, standing up to bow, "Their leader took a close friend of mine hostage…I felt that I had no choice but to do what they ordered." At his words, the monkey climbed off the vampire's shoulder to bow as well, whimpering softly.

"…and this is your friend?" Kidd questioned, motioning to the monkey.

"Yes, we have been together for many years now."

The Lord snorted in disbelief and ran a hand through his hair.

"Okay…just…keep a closer eye on him next time." Ace was actually surprised at the pureblood's response. He had been expecting Doma to be severely ridiculed or punished for what many would call a foolish action. The vampire thanked Kidd and sat back down, exhaling sharply in relief.

"The one we retrieved, was he worth the trouble?" Ace's gaze immediately moved back to the pureblood Lord, "It sounds like we lost a lot more than we gained, and yet you all seem pleased that one human child was re-captured."

"I don't know about everyone else," Doma began, "but I personally feel that I owe him. When the other humans in his group left me for dead, he stepped in and saved my life." Kidd raised an eyebrow.

"Is that so?"

"Simply put," Marco interjected, motioning for Doma to sit back, "The boy is special, in more ways than one, yoi. From what Law and I have deduced, his blood has rare healing properties that make him a valuable resource for the citadel."

Ace blinked. That was news to him…he knew Luffy's blood was different, but the ability to heal vampires? Really?

"So, you all believe he's valuable enough to make up for what we lost?"

"Yes." The Second, Sabo put in while ringing his hands together, "Though I didn't know about his blood till today, I've spent a great deal of time with him over the past few weeks and have come to enjoy his company."

Kidd smirked.

"Even you, Sabo?"

The other pureblood cleared his throat and blushed.

"Luffy is adorable, Eustass. I imagine when you meet him, you'll agree with me."

Ace took a second to process had just been said. Sabo had been "spending time" with his Lu? He thought he was adorable? WHAT THE FREAKING HELL!?

The conversation came to an abrupt halt when Ace's shoulders burst into flames.

While everyone immediately leapt up, Sabo didn't move, fixed in place by the freckled vampire's furious gaze. Ace was growling at him like a wild animal! Had he said something to offend him?

More importantly, WHY WAS HE ON FIRE!?

Lord Phoenix whispered a curse under his breath and motioned for everyone to step back.

"Sabo, yoi. Don't. Move."

Inclined to follow the ancient vampire's instructions, he swallowed and held Ace's fiery gaze as calmly as he could. As a pureblood, he shouldn't be intimidated by a turned, but Sabo most certainly was.

Ace looked like a fiery demon ready to devour him whole.

"What the hell is going on, Phoenix?" Kidd hissed, hand coming up to one of his pistols. Marco frowned as he slowly approached Ace, Thatch coming closer on the other side of the fiery vampire.

"His mark needs to be renewed, yoi."

"What?"

"Long story short," Thatch put in with a shaky smile, "Acey's body rejects Marco's blood, always has. Sometimes, when he goes too long without it being re-done…stuff like this happens. Don't worry, it's a pretty easy fix…so long as no one makes any sudden movements."

Sabo continued to stay stock still, gaze never dropping from Ace's now scarlet one. He felt that if he averted his eyes, the beast would pounce.

Suddenly, Thatch rushed forward and forced the younger vampire's chest onto the table. Ace immediately snarled and thrashed, nearly throwing off the older one's hold. But when Law and Doma both joined in, his movements were finally restrained.

Marco wasted no time in ripping Ace's shirt off, cutting his hand, and allowing the blood to flow down his back. Curious (and now no longer in danger), Sabo got up and jogged over to see exactly what was being done.

On Ace's back was Whitebeard's mark that glowed red as it accepted the blood, drinking it greedily. Before returning to its original color, a circle of some kind appeared, spun around, and re-settled onto the tan skin. Almost immediately, the flames died down and Ace went limp, gasping for air. Everyone relaxed, confident the vampire wasn't a threat anymore.

"You okay there, fledgling?" Thatch asked, leaning against the table and patting Ace's head.

"Y-Yeah…what-" The freckled vampire sat as he coughed but went stock still when he registered Sabo a few feet away, "You…what did you do to Lu!?" It seems the vampire remembered why he was pissed at Sabo and lunged for him, only to be stopped by Marco.

Ace flailed around in the elder vampire's grip, to no avail.

"Calm down, yoi!"

"I can't calm down!" He screeched, clawing at the arms holding him, "Luffy's mine, not his! How dare you try to steal him from me!" Sabo frowned, processing the words. 'Luffy' could only be one person…and considering his previous observation of Ace's apparent connection to the boy, it would seem he was a bit…jealous.

"Luffy doesn't belong to you." Sabo said carefully, earning a strained snarl, "He's property of the citadel, and I have as much right as anyone to enjoy his presence."

"LIKE HELL YOU DO!" Ace snapped, "We have a special connection-"

"Special connection? You just don't want to share!"

Before Sabo truly lost his temper, Law intervened by stepping in between them.

"Enough, both of you! Arguing like children will get you nowhere." At that, Sabo backed off, taking a moment to straighten his kimono while Ace shook off Marco's now loosened grip. For a few minutes, the room was silent as the two young vampires continued to glare at each other.

Sabo couldn't help but feel…threatened. He'd come to think of Luffy as being something special in his life (his human as accepted by the citadel) and now Ace intended to challenge his claim! So what if he'd known Luffy before him!

"Sit down." Kidd growled, face taut with frustration. From experience, Sabo knew they were pushing the limits of the pureblood's patience. "Ace, explain this 'special connection', unless you prefer I question the human instead?"

Ace went from angry and intimidating to fearful in a split second. He wasted no time sitting down, flanked by Marco and Thatch with Law and Doma ever watchful behind him. Kidd glanced to Sabo and motioned for him to sit as well.

This should be interesting.

Surprising himself, Ace spilled everything. He hadn't been prepared to tell anyone but Marco what had occurred all those weeks ago, but here he was explaining it to the new Lord and even Doma!

He started at the beginning, when he'd spotted Luffy through one of their scout bugs and immediately felt like he knew him. He detailed his confrontation with the human and how he had smuggled him into the citadel.

Ace even told them about his visions and how they intensified when Luffy was around.

When Law's intervention came up, the doctor stepped in and detailed why he had chosen to help him with Lu. It wasn't unknown that Trafalgar had a soft spot for kids, but in front of their new Lord and Second, he apparently felt the need to justify his actions.

Throughout his explanation, all the other vampires were silent. Kidd listened intently; facial expression unreadable. Ace had no idea what would happen. Had Marco still been in charge, he could've predicted his punishment, but now…

"Ace, yoi." His sire whispered, eyes full of disappointment (which hurt more than he thought), "Why did you hide this from me?" Ace swallowed hard.

"I…I-I was afraid…afraid you'd take Lu away from me. And then the sudden change in leadership happened and I kind of panicked." Marco huffed and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay, we'll figure this out, yoi." At that, everyone turned to Kidd, anxious to hear his thoughts on the matter. The red-haired vampire pushed back from his chair so that he was standing over them.

"Interesting story, Ace." He said, eyes more curious than anything, "The human, do you still feel strongly about him? Like you're 'connected'?"

"Yes." He replied without hesitation. Luffy was his special human, there was no doubt about that. Frankly, he wasn't afraid to assert his claim and possessiveness over the boy (especially when a certain pureblood thought it was okay to prance in like he owned him).

"Then I see no problem allowing you to pursue answers, so long as it doesn't interfere with your citadel duties."

Ace's face immediately lit up and his body relaxed. So…neither he nor Lu were going to be punished?

"But, for the offense of mild insubordination, two weeks of cleaning out the depository tanks." Ace's pleased expression quickly morphed into one of disgust, but…it certainly could be worse. "...and no more secrets, yeah?" Thatch clapped him on the shoulder and grinned, making him feel a bit better and completely exhausted.

Marco's emergency renewal had hurt like hell.

"Let's adjourn for now." Kidd stated, observing him closely before turning to the blonde pureblood, "Sabo and I have some things to discuss."

As Ace was assisted out of the room, he couldn't help but wonder what the two vampires were going to talk about…hopefully not him or Lu.

Once they were alone, Kidd fell back in his chair with a huff. He'd known becoming a Lord would be difficult, but it was downright exhausting, especially when your subordinates apparently had no issues keeping secrets.

"Sabo…what do you make of Ace?" He asked, thinking back to their prior confrontation (it'd honestly been a bit of a shock to see his usually dignified and restrained friend lose it like that).

"He's strong, and quite possessive of Luffy." The blonde vampire observed while taking a seat next to him, "To be honest, I dislike him."

"Because you want the brat too?"

"Something like that…" Sabo sighed, slouching a bit, "I worry that if they truly are connected, I may be…left out."

Kidd snorted in amusement. He'd never expected Sabo of all vampires to give in to his more primal, controlling instincts and actually try to claim a human as his own, to the point where he was willing to fight his challenger.

Of course, per citadel policy, that was impossible. No one could officially own a human under Whitebeard's laws, though that wasn't necessarily the case in other parts of the world.

'I really need to meet this boy.'

Noticing Sabo was a bit antsy, Kidd jumped right to the point of why he wanted to speak to his Second in private.

"Putting the matter of the human aside, you've been doing some reading and research in Whitebeard's library, correct?"

"Yes…why?" Kidd leaned forward.

"See what you can find from Whitebeard himself: diaries, journals, whatever."

"Is there something specific you would like me to find?"

"Anything you can on his past with the D clan."

Sabo's eyes widened and his body tensed up.

"Are you serious!?"

"You know damn well I am." Kidd explained, eyes hard, "Vampires don't just burst into flames, and knowing what we know about Whitebeard, it's possible."

Not long after they'd been assigned to the Moby Dick, Kidd's father, Shanks, had pulled them aside and encouraged them to do some research before getting too involved. Unnervingly enough, there was little to nothing about Whitebeard in the council's records. Even in their textbooks, the vampire hardly ever came up except as a "war-monger" and "disturber of the peace".

They knew that he had been one of the most powerful Lords of the age, until he'd suddenly (and without warning) gone into hibernation, passing his citadel down to Marco the Phoenix, his prized first commander. However, thanks to his father's own collection of books and history, Kidd had discovered an ancient rumor that the pureblood had a propensity for collecting D's.

Not much was known about the D clan other than that they had been around since before the Fall. They were some sort of special breed of human that was said to have been able to kill even a pureblood vampire. Their trademark was their poisonous blood, completely inedible and fatal to those who drank it.

As such, it was impossible to turn them (or so Kidd thought).

The D's became legends, myths to scare fledglings, after the Great Hunt. The council led their most powerful warriors across the newly decimated world, killing them all until none were left. The clan was stubborn though, and Kidd had heard talk that one was seen within the last two decades!

Some were even said to have taken refuge inside vampire citadels, giving up their freedom to keep their lives.

So, from day one, he'd been on the lookout for anything suspicious. Until today, there hadn't been anything aside from general unease and the feeling that their subordinates knew something they didn't (which, frankly, they probably did).

"You think Ace is a D, don't you?" Sabo whispered, face pale with tension. His Second knew very well what would happen should they discover D's in their citadel, it could be bad.

"It's possible, but I don't want to make any judgments without all the facts." Kidd replied, "The only thing I know right now is that he burst into flames, 'Bo, that's not normal."

"But…he's a vampire, a recently turned one. That's impossible, right?" The other pureblood argued, "Their blood is poisonous, supposedly of demonic origin." It was ironic that humans would be given the title of 'demon' over vampires, but that had to be what the D stood for, or at least, that's what Kidd thought.

"Just look into it and let me know what you find."

"All right." Sabo agreed, pushing his chair back to stand up, "I will see what I can do but…what will you do if Ace is a D, or if we find more?"

Kidd had put a lot of thought into that and considering he'd never actually met a D; he wasn't sure how he would react. All the pictures in textbooks depicted them as demons with horns and animalistic posture usually tearing the throat out of some poor, defenseless vampire. That being said, he had promised himself and his father that he wouldn't just bow down to whatever the council decreed. He would forge his own path and make his dream of a restored world come true, with or without their approval.

"Who knows." Kidd smirked, licking over his fangs, "Having a D under my command sounds rather exciting."

A few days later, Ace trudged through the halls smelling like he'd been dunked in the sewers. All the vampires he passed teased him, but he was too tired to care. Cleaning out the blood depositories was a hard job, one he hoped he would never have to do again.

…two weeks of it though…he wasn't sure he could take it.

Ace checked in with Law regularly, hoping every day that Lu would wake up. So far, he was still asleep, his body needing the rest to heal.

More than anything, he wanted to see his poor, injured human. But because he was being held in solitary now, only Law and his team could visit him. The only thing that perked Ace up was the fact that Sabo (that damned pureblood) couldn't see Luffy either.

Lord Second was apparently spending most of his time since the convoy's return in the library doing who knows what. Honestly, Ace was fine with that because it meant he wouldn't be getting close to Lu with his face stuck in some dusty book.

As strange as it was, the citadel was moving back into a routine of normalcy. The warriors and scouts who'd returned quickly fell back into regular training and Kidd was becoming a staple, often training with his men or surveying the still locked up stables.

Since they'd lost a lot of humans, he spent most of his time working to fortify the pens and outer security to ensure such a large breakout didn't happen again.

Who knew the pureblood was so good with his hands?

Ace watched through a window as the red-haired vampire bolted another metal rod onto the outside of a pen to create a crisscross pattern with the bars, shirt off and sweat glistening. He'd only just started the project that morning and was already almost done!? Kidd was impressive.

"Ace-ya, there you are." He turned to face Trafalgar, who was now standing behind him. How long had he been there? "Good news, Luffy-ya is showing signs of waking."

"Really!?" Ace exclaimed, heart leaping in his chest. It'd been so long since he'd seen him, and he wanted nothing more than to cuddle with the small human and make sure he knew that he was there for him. "C-Can…can I see him?"

"Yes, on one condition." Trafalgar said, nose wrinkling in disgust as he got closer, "…well, perhaps two conditions. First, please shower, your stench is absolutely putrid. Second, Marco and I will be there, just in case."

Ace nodded, giddy with excitement. It was actually a great relief that he didn't have to worry about keeping secrets anymore, especially from his sire. Marco's approval meant a lot to him and it had hurt to lie. Just before he could turn the corner, he skidded to a stop, remembering one other thing he wanted to ask the doctor.

"Er, Law, h-have you found anything out yet? I know it's only been a few days but-"

"Patience, Ace-ya." Law huffed, walking towards his clinic, "Go clean yourself up and meet us in the tower." He'd given the doctor some samples and asked that he compare them with blood taken from Luffy. He had no idea what they might find, possibly nothing, but it was the first real step they could take in figuring out how they were connected.

Ace had never taken a shower so fast in his entire life, or at least the small sliver of life he could remember. Barely seven minutes later, he was dashing up the stairs wearing his trusty cargo pants and a black shirt, ready to see Lu. As expected, Marco and Law had beaten him there and were waiting outside the locked cell.

"Much better." Law observed with a short sniff, much to Ace's annoyance. Marco sighed and motioned for the doctor to get on with it, making the tattooed vampire chuckle as he unlocked the door with a key from his belt, stepping aside so they could enter.

"Make sure you thank Kidd and Sabo later, yoi." Marco whispered as they stepped past the threshold, "It was only by their blessing that you get to see him despite solitary precautions still being in place."

'…and by your intervention.' Ace mused, feeling nothing but gratitude for his sire. He knew the elder vampire had been tirelessly advocating for him over the past few days, managing to even convince Sabo to let Ace see Luffy. 'Ha, take that Blondie!'

While this was a small victory, it made his chest swell with confidence.

Ace wasted no time in rushing to the small boy's bed side, immediately falling to his knees next to the bed. Luffy was breathing slowly, his face pale. Worst of all was his arm. Though the stump was wrapped snuggly in bandages, that didn't change the fact that it was gone.

He bit his lip and ran a hand gently over Luffy's hair. The poor thing…he must've been so scared out there all alone.

"Sabo certainly went all out with the decorations…" Marco observed as he came up behind Ace. The freckled vampire just shrugged, deciding to ignore the lavish room for now (though he was sort of pleased Sabo had taken the time to make it less of a cell…it would make Lu's transition easier).

They watched Luffy in silence, waiting for the boy to finally wake. After what felt like ages, the limp hand in Ace's twitched a little.

For a moment, it felt like Luffy was floating, outside of his own body. His mouth felt dry and his eyelids seemed to stick together. Where was he…how…what happened?

"-ffy…Lu…"

The boy groaned, barely registering the voice calling to him. Why did it sound so familiar? He tried to move his limbs, receiving only twitches for his effort. When he finally opened his eyes, he immediately closed them, the bright light blinding him.

"Hey there, Lu." He blinked to focus his gaze, scanning over to the person holding his left hand tightly. It took a few moments to recognize the vampire, his mind foggy and slow.

"…A-A-Ace…?" Luffy whispered before coughing violently. The freckled vampire immediately crowded over him in concern, touching his cheek gently.

"Hey, hey, easy. You've been asleep for almost three days now. Give your body a minute to wake back up." Luffy swallowed and weakly nodded, strangely grateful someone he knew was with him.

He gently rolled his head to the left and noted he was on a bed somewhere unfamiliar. It was pretty nice though…was it somebody's room? Beyond Ace was Torao and the blonde vampire he'd met in the van. They both said nothing, simply observing from afar.

As the minutes ticked by, Luffy's mind began to clear. His memories of what had happened to him came flowing back like a torrent, making him inhale sharply and force himself up into a seated position.

He was vaguely aware of Ace and the other vampires around him saying something, but all he could think of was his arm. Ignoring the way his stomach rolled with the sudden movement, Luffy shakily felt along his right arm, starting at the shoulder.

At first, there was his skin and bandages…but then, it simply dropped off.

Luffy's eyes watered and his bottom lip quivered as he grasped for what was no longer there.

"Luffy…stop that." Ace whispered gently, taking his hand and bringing it away from the stump, "Look at me, you're okay. I'm here." The vampire turned his head by cupping his jaw and wiped away the tears that he couldn't stop from flowing.

Gazing into the familiar silver of the vampire's eyes, all the emotion hit him at once and he fell into Ace's chest, sobbing. All of his pain, agony, fear…he couldn't hold it in anymore. The vampire shushed him like a small child, holding him firmly but delicately so as to not hurt him.

They stayed like that for a while until Ace finally released him and helped him sit back against the headboard. Luffy wiped at his eyes using his left hand, honestly a bit terrified to move the other one. He still had IV's in his arm, but he didn't have the energy to try and mess with them (especially when Torao was standing right there).

"Do you hurt anywhere, Luffy-ya?" The vampire asked, stepping forward. Luffy nodded.

"M-My head…and my…um…"

"Your arm?"

"Mn." He affirmed, unable to make the words form in his terribly dry mouth. As Torao checked him over and adjusted the lines, Ace watched him closely, eyes alternating between sympathetic and harsh, the latter making him shudder.

"Luffy, why did you run away?" He flinched as the question.

"I-I…" Ace's silver eyes were unwavering, making him tremble even more than he already was, "My friends and I w-wanted to be free…but…"

"It didn't go as planned, yoi." The blonde vampire interrupted, earning a curt nod from Luffy. Nothing had gone according to plan, but at least his friends had gotten away. That in and of itself was enough to make everything worthwhile.

Ace brought him back to reality by grabbing his face, this time a bit rougher than he had before.

"Don't do that again, Lu."

He sniffled and whined at the intense contact, but he was too weak to fight back.

"Do you understand?"

"Y-Yes…I won't run again." Luffy managed, voice breaking slightly. Satisfied with his response, Ace released him and flashed a soft smile.

"Good. Don't worry, Lu, we'll take good care of you. You're safe now."

Luffy simply bit his lip, honestly overwhelmed. His body ached terribly, and his emotions were still all over the place. Torao and the blonde vampire, who introduced himself as Marco (Ace's sire apparently), completed a comprehensive exam of his body and lines, giving him some medication for the pain and rebandaging his head.

They also explained his current circumstances and how he would be in solitary confinement as part of his punishment for the time being.

"What about everybody else?" He croaked, glancing out one of the barred windows to the stables below.

"We have restricted their access to the outdoor sections of their cells until further notice." Marco informed him, "However, I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that we have decided not to ration their meals or water thanks to your cooperation, yoi."

He blinked at that. Cooperation?

"You were intending on surrendering had Enel's lackeys not shown up, correct?" Torao put in, making Luffy think back to his time huddled in the underground bunker.

"Erm…yeah, I was…"

"That's why we've been lenient. Well, that and the fact that you saved Doma's life." Luffy let out a sigh of relief. At least the other humans in the citadel wouldn't suffer too much because of their actions.

"Anyway…" Torao continued, pulling out a clipboard, "Now that you're awake, I have something to explain, something I'm sure you will be interested to hear, Ace-ya." The freckled vampire looked up with anxious eyes.

"D-Did you-"

"I did." He stated, glancing between the two of them, "Though I'm honestly a bit annoyed that I didn't think of it in the first place…"

"Just say it!" Ace exclaimed, firmly laying a hand on Luffy's leg, the pressure constant even through the layers of blankets. What were they talking about?

"After comparing your DNA…I have confirmed that you are indeed 'connected', as you keep saying." Torao said, making Luffy's stomach drop. The vampire looked him in the eye before continuing. "You two are siblings."