This story is co-written by both Syrisna and Rose7anne101, you are welcome to check our other works.
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The chapter was beta'd by the wonderful Black' Victor Cachat, he had written some amazing stories, go check it yourself.
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Our awesome story image is done by Syrisna. :)
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This story will be posted in both of our accounts.
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We don't own One Piece (things would be different if we did).
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UniLiliCornia – (as I can't send you a PM).
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Sabo saw her before she saw him.
The children crowded her as they dragged her towards the harbour, a bottle of rum still in her hand. She had probably been putting the stock in place when the eager kids arrived and dragged her here without even letting her put it down, he assumed.
Makino looked the same as she did ten years ago. Her green hair was longer now, tied together in a low ponytail beneath a yellow bandana with some patterns on it that he couldn't make out while her smile was as gentle as he remembered. The only real difference between then and now was that he was taller than her, and had to look down instead of looking up.
She was smiling and trying to make sense of what the kids were bubbling excitedly about, gesturing in the general direction of where they stood.
Sabo tilted his hat down to hide his eyes, feeling anxious suddenly. Maybe I shouldn't have made this trip...he thought, second-guessing his decision to come to Foosha.
"Sabo? Are you okay?" Koala asked, concerned at his sudden change in attitude, but Sabo didn't hear her. She called him again and again, her voice getting louder with each time as with concern but no response came.
While his head was lowered, he failed to see the shocked, unbelieving look Makino wore when she heard the brunette call his name or the searching look she assessed his figure with.
The shattering of glass on concrete snapped him out of his thoughts, and he looked up to see Makino covering her mouth with both hands, tears glistening as they rolled down her cheeks.
"Sabo-kun…?" She asked uncertainly, her voice wavering. Her mind raced with jumbled thoughts. She was sure she had heard one of the newcomers call the man with the familiar top-hat 'Sabo', but it couldn't be the Sabo she knew. That Sabo had died ten years ago. Although they never found his body but ...it couldn't be! She dared not hope...Her heart was still aching from Ace's recent demise. Had God took pity on her?
She repeated his name louder like a prayer.
The sight rendered Sabo speechless. On the way here, he had thought a lot about each encounter he was going to have on the island, imagining every scenario down to the smallest detail, but no amount of imagination and planning could have prepared him for this.
He opened his mouth, but no words came out, and unconsciously, he took a step back.
He was looking at his feet, confused as to why they had moved on their own when he saw droplets falling to the ground.
Reaching up, his hand was met with wetness.
I'm crying…? He wondered as he tried to wipe it away using his hands the way a child would.
"Sabo-kun, is that really you?" Makino asked, the hope colouring her voice would have painted a rainbow.
"Makino-san…" Sabo mumbled as he rubbed at his eyes furiously-he didn't want her to see him in this embarrassing state (I'm a grown man for god's sake, the chief of staff of the one and only Revolutionary Army!)-and that was all the affirmation she needed.
Too busy trying to hide his tears, he didn't notice Makino running at him until he felt a warm solid body colliding into him.
A warmth that belonged to the green-haired woman who was holding onto him for dear life and openly crying now.
Sabo was paralyzed, but he managed to get himself together and did the only thing he could think of.
He hugged her back.
After their tearful reunion at the harbour, Makino had brought him to the Party's Bar while Koala and Hack had stayed behind to check out the village.
Makino had closed the bar despite his objections and they were now sitting at the counter, the barmaid having brought out several plates of his favourite foods after a quick trip to the kitchen. She sat next to him, watching as Sabo scarfed down the food.
Makino didn't ask or prompt him to speak, but her calm, gentle gaze which looked at him in pure happiness without judgement nor questioning made him want to share with her his past, to tell her all of what he had gone through.
His two companions were taking their time, even though they'd said that they would meet him at the bar after they looked around town. However, Sabo knew that that was just an excuse to give him and Makino some privacy and the two were probably hanging around somewhere in the village.
Sabo opened his mouth to fill the silence and only closed it after two hours. Everything had spilled out so naturally in front of her.
"I see, so that's what happened." Makino said after he had finished telling her the shortened version of the past ten years. He'd told her about how Dragon had rescued him and brought him to Baltigo, and the ten years he had spent there. Sabo told her all that he had experienced, the many places he had visited and things that he had learned. He even told Makino about his missions, although he left out the details like the who, when and where due to protocol. Makino took it all in stride, quietly listening to him as he retold the past decade of his life.
He felt safe telling her about his life, maybe because it was Makino or maybe because he somehow felt like he was telling a story, ('An adventure!' He imagined Luffy's smiling face shouting).
It felt like he was narrating a book.
Maybe his childish dream to sail the sea and write a book about all his adventures that he had finally remembered with all his other new-old memories was still throbbing in some hidden place deep inside of him.
Maybe it was always there, hidden inside.
Never gone, just forgotten.
"I'm glad." The barmaid suddenly said aloud.
"Hmm?" Sabo turned to look at her, confused by her declaration.
"I'm really glad that you weren't alone…" She stopped herself, taking a deep breath before she continued.
"When I heard that you died, what hurt me the most was the thought that you were all alone in those last moments, that you ..." wouldn't come back later. The barmaid bit down on her lips as the memory surfaced.
Makino had wanted to rush up the mountains after people suddenly stumbled into the village from the forest shouting about fire, some injured and coughing. She was worried to death and was hoping that the three boys were safe and sound. But the mayor had stopped her, saying it was too dangerous to go up the mountains at night, especially when the situation on the other side was unknown.
Makino busied herself in helping the few miserable people that were able to survive and arrive to their village. They were all in bad physical shape, trembling, unable to speak coherently. They needed help to eat and drink. It was clear that their bad shape was not only because of the recent fire but also from years of negligence and malnourishment.
When they could speak, they painted a frightening picture of what had occurred, but the only thing she could focus on was that the fire was far from the bandit's hideout, so they should all be safe. The boys had probably been in their tree house in the forest (if not in the hideout), and they were smart enough to stay away from such danger, but she couldn't shake the bad feeling she had. Thus, she had stayed up, sleep eluded her as doubts and fears kept plunging her.
The woman had rushed out first thing in the morning, heading up familiar trails to the bandit's hut. Makino was expecting to see the trio welcoming her with bright, sunny smiles. Instead, she found Luffy sitting in a corner of in the bandit's hut, silently holding onto his hat. Ace and Sabo were nowhere to be seen and so was Dadan. Magra had pulled her aside, softly telling her the events that had transpired the previous night and everything that had led up to it. The barmaid had been utterly heart-broken when Dogra arrived later, bringing the news of Sabo's death at the hands of the Celestial Dragons.
"When I heard of Ace's death, I remembered all the sadness and anger I felt when I heard of your supposed death, and all I could do to console myself is think that at least Ace was not alone, he had Luffy, his crew and friends ..." Her gaze was downcast. "It's pathetic and selfish...and horrible ... because Luffy had to watch his brother die."
Sabo flinched, his face getting pale as his knuckles clutched the table. His younger brother had to watch Ace die while Sabo didn't even know. What he was doing when Ace died? Was he laughing? Happy about some silly thing? He couldn't seem to remember right now. His mouth felt dry like a blistering desert. He remained silent as Makino continued.
"Even though it broke my heart, the sadness I felt couldn't possibly amount to what Luffy must have felt." Her hands were clenched together tightly. "I know it's selfish of me to say this, but I really am happy that you weren't alone, that you were safe and had people to take care of you, that you grew up to become this healthy, strong, adult in front of me….and that you came back."
Sabo lowered his eyes, unable to respond.
Speaking with someone who had known Ace and Luffy as he had and understood the scorching pain in his heart...it was different.
He was somehow relieved -though tainted with guilt it may be- to hear Makino say this.
Makino reached out, covering his hands with her own as she looked him in the eyes.
"You have to find Luffy." It wasn't a question or an order. It was merely a statement.
"You have to find him, so he would know that he isn't alone."
"Aren't you angry with me?" Sabo whispered. He couldn't stop the wavering in his voice. He didn't need to look at the mirror to know that his face was wearing all his fears and vulnerabilities to the naked eye. The shame and regret he was trying to keep at bay suddenly descended on him with all its choking weight.
"Why would I be?"
"I didn't come back until now."
I didn't come back in time to be of any help, to save Ace. To make sure that Luffy was safe, that he wasn't alone.
The barmaid chuckled and bonked him lightly on the head, faintly smiling.
"Silly boy. I just said I was happy that you came back, didn't I? Besides, you had amnesia, it wasn't your fault you couldn't remember."
"Yes, no, I meant when I first woke up after the accident, they asked me if they should look for my family in Goa, but I ...I refused."
"And good thing you did, you found a new place to belong."
"But maybe if I hadn't, I would have found my brothers …. I would have been able to do something when Ace was captured."
"Or maybe you would have died, or made it worse and get Luffy killed ...You can't live with 'what ifs.' I know it hurts and you hate yourself for it, but the best you can do is live in the present. You still have one brother, and he needs his big brother; you can continue Ace's legacy." Makino smiled as she remembered the two boys who were too active for their own good.
"Ace took his promise to you seriously, you know? He told me about it, that he had promised to be the best brother to Luffy. He even came to me, asking me to teach him manners so he could thank Shanks for saving Luffy."
"That's great." Sabo paused and did a doubletake. "Wait. What?! Ace learned manners?"
"Yes. I was so surprised."
"You're kidding, aren't you, Makino-san?"
"Nope." She replied, popping the 'p'. "Luffy even joined us for a few lessons."
"Now that is even less believable." The revolutionary muttered to himself. Trying to imagine his two brothers sitting and listening in attention to 'etiquette lessons' and failing. It was just unbelievable; it was easier to believe that devil fruit users could swim.
"Well...at least Luffy tried. Although he would only stay focused for a few minutes at most before losing interest and complaining to Ace. Most of the time, Ace would get distracted eventually and then they would leave to go do something fun, usually involving food."
Both Sabo and Makino laughed. When they calmed down, the green-haired woman gave the blonde's hands a light squeeze.
"Ace did all of that because he wanted to be the best brother, so he could fill your role too. He would want you to do the same, don't you think?"
"When you put it like that, I can imagine that unimpressed frown of his, not understanding why I'm simply sulking and not doing anything."
"Exactly. So, stop blaming yourself, Sabo."
Sabo smiled sheepishly. "Thanks, Makino-san."
The two fell into a comfortable silence, basking in the presence of the other. Makino, on a whim, reached out to stroke Sabo's curly hair. It had been a long time since she had done this, and his hair was much longer than it used to be.
At that precise moment, Koala and Hack stepped into the bar, eyes widening slightly at the scene before them.
Sensing them, Sabo quickly turned towards them, his face bright red with embarrassment while Makino, shocked by their sudden appearance, automatically retracted her hand.
"Um...are we interrupting something?" Koala asked, not sure if she should just turn and leave.
Makino quickly recovered, and smiled brightly at the other two revolutionaries. "No, no, not at all! Do come in!" She invited, then turned to Sabo. "Sabo, why don't you introduce your friends?"
Before their leader could, Koala stepped up, hand outstretched towards Makino.
"Hi, miss...uh…"
"Makino. Just Makino is fine."
"Ok...Hi, Makino, I'm Koala, this idiot's second-in-command."
Makino barely stifled a giggle. "Nice to meet you, Koala-chan. And the gentleman behind you?"
The gentleman behind koala turned to look behind him in surprise. He hadn't heard the door creak again.
Sabo and Koala, who knew whom the barmaid was referring to were snickering openly while Makino looked confused.
Hack turned back, finally realizing who was the gentleman she spoke of. His hand rubbing the back of his head while his cheeks were tainted pink. He cleared his throat quietly mumbling 'gentleman' to himself.
"Oh, that's Hack. He's our fishman karate instructor." Koala introduced taking pity on the flustered Hack.
Hearing his name, Hack shook himself, stood straight and came to attention with military precision, shaking the barmaid's hand vigorously.
"Pleased to meet you ma'am." He said, shyly and sincerely. It wasn't every day that he, a fishman, got called a gentleman by a human so naturally. Taken by surprise by the green-haired woman, Hack found himself liking her a lot. It was rare for his people to receive such equal treatment, and they were in the East Blue, where prejudice against fishmen were even worse than on the Grand Line. The fact that she had taken care of their leader when he was young, only earned her more brownie points in his books.
This village was kind of strange. The people here asked a lot of ridiculous questions and even pointed at him, their gazes not leaving him (which wasn't what was strange, that was the normal state of things), but the underlying scorn, distrust and hate were missing. It was pure curiosity, the kind that vanished with exposure. He was beginning to like it here more and more.
Makino beamed at them and said.
"I bet you are hungry after such a long journey, how about an early lunch?"
Koala tried to decline, not wanting to trouble the kindly barmaid, but eventually gave in under the pressure of Makino's ever-present smile.
While Makino went into the kitchen to prepare their meal, Koala and Hack joined Sabo at the counter, sitting on opposite sides of their chief.
"So…this is where you grew up." Koala started, looking around the bar.
"Nope." Sabo replied, loosening his cravat so it wasn't as stuffy.
"But I thought you said…?"
"I said 'I grew up on Dawn Island'." He grinned playfully. "I never specified where."
"Oh really?" Koala drawled. "How'd you get to know Makino then?"
One word said it all. "Luffy."
"Oh."
They sat in silence for a minute, not knowing how to continue the conversation. Both Koala and Hack knew Sabo well enough to see that he was still distracted, maybe even more so than when he had been on the ship, but they chalked it down to him being "home" for the first time in ten years.
Without any conversation, the only sound in the bar was the sound of cooking from the kitchen and the tell-tale sizzling of food on a hot pan.
"By the way," Koala started, breaking the silence. "I'm going to assume you didn't see that huge ass sign outside, did you?"
"What sign?"
Leaving Hack in the shop, Koala dragged her superior out into the streets and pointed at the large sign that had been planted some ways away from the bar.
"That sign."
Paling considerably as he read the warning on the sign, Sabo gulped, suddenly feeling a little apprehensive. A cold sweat broke out as he remembered the training sessions (torture) he had been subjected to long ago.
Turning stiffly, he made his way back to the bar with Koala trailing alongside him, just in time to see Makino bring out several plates of food.
While Koala and Hack ate, Sabo sat quietly next to them, deep in thought.
"Makino, aren't you going to eat?" The brunette suddenly spoke, looking up at the green-haired barmaid who was wiping some mugs behind the counter.
"Oh, don't worry about me. Just enjoy your meal." Makino answered with a faint smile.
But when they did not resume eating, she added while sighing.
"I wasn't feeling very well this morning, and my appetite is acting a little strange. It's probably just a cold or something."
"Maybe you should see a doctor?" Hack suggested.
"No need," She waved away their concern. "I took some medicine earlier before you guys came. It's probably worn off by now, but thanks for your concern."
They nodded and resumed eating.
Sabo was still lost in his head and didn't hear this small exchange, so Koala and Hack resolved to not say anything. Makino probably wouldn't want to worry him.
"We're leaving after this." He announced as soon as they finished their meal.
"What?!" Koala exclaimed. "But we already found a place to stay!" It hadn't taken them even 5 minutes to do really. It wasn't that hard considering there was only one small inn that was apparently also part-time meeting hall and wedding hall.
Sabo frowned, slightly annoyed at the way things were turning out.
"You got mad when we came here, and now that I decide to go you want to stay?"
"But, but…" The brunette pouted at him. "The villagers were so nice! We didn't even have to ask!"
"And here I thought you'd want to finish what we came to do first, turns out I was wrong." Sabo snapped, standing up, his fist clenched beside him. He felt anger rising inside of him, he knew he wasn't angry with Koala (he would have to apologize later), but he wasn't sure what was it that made him this angry exactly: being back here when none of his brothers were present-Ace would never be back-facing the fears and anger this place evoked in him, the old m... Garp, the whole blasted situation. He just wanted to do something, beat something, he wanted things to go his way.
From behind the counter, Makino watched on worriedly, hoping that their disagreement would be resolved.
"...we can't join them now! The others have already arrived...why are you in such a hurry to leave anyway?" Koala yelled, standing up to face Sabo, hands planted firmly on her hips as she glared at him.
The blonde didn't answer, averting his eyes so that his hat hid them from sight. There was simply no way he was going to tell his friends (and Makino) that he was deathly scared of Garp and that sign out there just solidified the fear that he might run into the vice-admiral. Sabo had had half a mind to go looking for the man to confront him about what happened at the war, but he wasn't in much of a position to say anything when he hadn't been present at all.
A small voice inside him was shouting 'that at least Sabo didn't know! What was the bastard's excuse?'
"Sabo, will you be going to visit Dadan?" Makino interrupted.
Both Koala and Sabo turned to her, momentarily forgetting their argument, the tension in their bodies leaving when faced with Makino's calm demeanour.
"...yes?" He replied hesitantly.
The barmaid smiled a slightly sad smile at his answer. "That's good. She was really upset when...when he died." She said, her voice barely a whisper at the end. "She drank so much she nearly got alcohol poisoning…"
Stepping out from behind the counter, Makino walked over to Sabo and reached up to caress his face. Her fingers brushed against the scar tissue on the left, feeling the rough texture that surrounded most of his left eye and extended behind his ears.
"I think Dadan will be happy to know that another of her sons is still alive."
Sabo blushed furiously. "I'm not…!" He tried to deny it, but couldn't get anything out past his stammering.
"You're their brother, aren't you?" The green-haired woman smiled, receiving a nod in reply. "Then you're her son."
That…makes sense. The young blonde thought. Ace and Luffy did say she was their foster mother…or was it a caretaker?
"She reacted really badly, you know." Makino said as she drew her hand back, snapping Sabo out of his thoughts. He looked down at her, surprised by the sadness that suddenly appeared in her eyes.
"...what happened?" Sabo asked, his voice barely audible. He could feel Koala and Hack's eyes on him, wondering what they were talking about but knew better than to interrupt.
The barmaid wrapped her arms around herself. "She was in here for several days drinking…then Garp-san came."
She paused to take a breath.
"Dadan stormed out of the bar, and started hitting Garp-san, asking him why he didn't save Ace when he was present at the war...she was crying the entire time. The only other time I've ever seen her so upset was when we thought you had died…"
Dadan, the wimpy man-woman, the one that took in three children because she was deathly afraid of Garp that the mere mention of his name made her tremble and whimper. She would have to be extremely drunk to pull something like that or overwhelmingly angry and deep in the sea of sorrow (enough to discard survival instincts), or maybe in this case, both.
He couldn't say that he wouldn't do the same as her. He could imagine himself punching, kicking and screaming at the old man until his fists bled and his breath left him, but it wouldn't change a thing. Ace, his brother, would still be dead. That was why he didn't want to meet the old man (one of the reasons at least, the main one, he stubbornly told himself), he really didn't know what he would do.
If Garp didn't resist or fight back when Dadan punched him -Makino would have said so if he did- it meant he felt guilty. Being there and unable to do anything while it played out in front of his eyes. The helplessness and despair would have been overwhelming. But that was the problem, wasn't it!?
Garp had chosen to do nothing, he chose the marines over his family and that was the one thing Sabo couldn't forgive. Not right now.
Maybe never.
Sabo absently fiddled with the brim of his hat, a habit that came out whenever he was feeling down.
"We caused her a lot of grief, didn't we?" He asked quietly, his voice sounding a little strained as he tried to focus on the conversation at hand.
Makino didn't say anything, only placing a hand on his shoulder in a comforting gesture.
"Is Gran...Garp around a lot?" Sabo asked hesitantly, catching himself before he could habitually call Garp 'Grandpa'. He had to clench his fists under the counter to control the boiling anger inside of him.
Makino nodded absentmindedly, her eyes were unfocused as if remembering something. "Now that he is semi-retired, he does marine inspections sometimes…" she trailed off and eyed Sabo before adding knowingly.
"He left a few days ago, I think it would be a few more weeks until he comes back."
The sober atmosphere was broken when the mayor hobbled inside, shouting out loud for Makino.
"Mayor, here for lunch?" The green-haired woman immediately put on her trademark smile. "What would you like?"
"Lunch sounds good, but actually," The older man lifted his cane, shoving it directly in Sabo's face. "I came for this young lad here."
"For me?" The blonde asked, staring cross-eyed at the cane in his face.
The mayor grunted, then proceeded to drag the much taller man out of the bar by the collar of his coat.
"Yes you...now come!" The remaining occupants heard as the doors swung shut.
Makino laughed sheepishly. "Sorry about the mayor. He has a temper…"
"It's alright, we're used to stuff like this." Koala replied.
"If you say so. Anyway, about your accommodation…"
"Uh...can I ask where we're going?" Sabo asked, still being dragged by the mayor who was surprisingly strong for a man of his stature."
The man hmphed. "Luffy's house."
Sabo's eyes widened in surprise. Luffy's house? Does he mean where Luffy lived before he moved in with Ace? Wait...wouldn't that technically be Shitty Gramp's house too?
Wood Slap didn't elaborate further, continuing to drag him down the road while waving away curious questions from the villagers. (One woman even threatened to cut off the mayor's bread supply for two weeks if he treated their guests wrong. She was the baker's wife, if Sabo wasn't mistaken.)
Not long after, a two-story house with whitewashed walls and a blue roof came into view. A wooden porch lined the perimeter of the house, giving Sabo the impression of a cabin in the forest. The house seemed to be well-maintained (no broken fence or creaky mail-box), even though it obviously hadn't been lived in much. He assumed that this was where that shitty old man stayed whenever he came to Foosha, not that he visited much in the first place according to Luffy. If he had to hazard a guess, he'd say someone came by to clean every once in awhile. Probably Makino or one of the villagers, they seemed like they'd do something like that.
The mayor led him up the short flight of steps, withdrawing a set of keys from his pocket to unlock the door.
"Mayor, why are we here?" The blonde asked, looking up at the building. While the colours gave off a homey kind of feeling, Sabo thought that the house itself seemed rather lonely. Could you even describe a house as lonely?
Wood Slap looked back at him, a hand placed on the doorknob.
"There's something here I thought you should see.".
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