The next morning was awkward to put it simply. Even though no-one spoke of the middle of the night wake up you gave them all. You knew it was on everyone's minds, you sat quietly during breakfast as everyone chatted about what to do during the morning before heading home, Thatch places a plate of pancakes in front of you effectively snapping you out of your thoughts. A small smile flickers across your face noting that it's set out the same way as the last time he made you some, you offer him a silent thank you which he returns with a smile before taking a seat beside you,

"Are you going to go see your Mother again before we head home?"

"Ah, yes, I'd like to. I'm not going to see her until Christmas, I know it's only a month away but..."

"But you will still miss her," he nods, "I'd like to accompany you today if that's alright with you?"

"Of course, I think my mother would like to thank you personally for bringing me,"

"Good, we'll drag the rest of my brothers along too," he ruffles your hair, "I'm sure the others will behave for an hour or two hmm," he chuckles amused looking around the lively group,

"Well, I think as long as Luffy is with us, the others shouldn't have too much trouble as long as Zoro doesn't wander off," the pair of you giggle together, laughing harder when Zoro grumbles irritated after having heard you.

So, after breakfast and cleaning up, you headed out with the boys and the others were left to make sure they were packed and ready to leave by the time you came back. Your Mother was happy to see you again and enjoyed teasing you along with the boys, confusing Luffy even more. If you were honest with yourself, you were with Luffy on this. You were confused. Last night changed things between you and Ace, but you weren't exactly sure what they had changed to. You were definitely closer, he knew now about the cause of your night terrors, he knew you more than anyone else at this point. But neither of you had spoken about it when you woke up, maybe it was because you were far too embarrassed about having fallen asleep cuddled up to him, made worse by his teasing and the fact you found his just woken up voice far too pleasing to your ears. Just thinking about it brought a blush to your face. One thing you definitely were coming away from this weekend with was the knowledge you definitely could no longer deny that you had feelings for the freckled goon. You were pretty sure everyone was aware of it too.

The journey home went much quicker, Thatch and Marco decided to just do the drive straight through with no stops, taking equal amounts of time driving since everyone had school or work the next day. You sat beside Ace who was discreetly holding your hand as the conversation flowed, jokes were made and teasing was had. Nami had questioned if Sabo and Koala were together which made the two laugh and insist, they were just good friends, Koala even adding, "He totally has a crush on this girl who works at a bookshop on the high street," which caused the blonde to turn red and his brothers want to know more details,

"At least we know you're interested in something," Nami giggled, "whereas greeny here," she jerked her thumb at Zoro who glared at her, "he said there was someone he wanted to ask to homecoming, but he ended up solo,"

"Probably because they worked that night," you piped up, all eyes had turned to you, Zoro's expression almost horrified,

"Wait, you know?" Nami had her usual gleam in her eyes, "Tell me!" Zoro had sent you a look you couldn't quite read, so you turned to Nami and simply responded,

"How much are you willing to pay for that kind of information?" You had grinned as she scoffed and nearly everyone laughed, since it's exactly the sort of thing she would have done.

You arrived home in the extreme early hours of Monday morning, school was definitely going to suck. You said your goodbyes to the others before heading inside, your Aunt gave you a hug as you got in and sent you straight to bed. As you dropped on the bed you checked your phone noting you had two new messages, one from Zoro and one from Ace. You quickly respond to Zoro's with a giggle,

Zoro – Do you actually know?

(Y/N) - That you like Sakura from Double Dan's yup, you made it so obvious.

You then check over Ace's message and smile, he was just reminding you that you could call him if you had any bad dreams. With a sigh you set your phone to the side and got ready for bed. Despite everything that happened this weekend, and how confused you felt, you also felt a lot happier, and a lot calmer.

The days rolled on, and it was safe to say everyone was thankful for the short week when Thanksgiving came. You, your Uncle and Aunt spent a good portion of the day with the Newgate's, having dinner, cooked by Thatch, and playing games with the boys. To your surprise, Law was also there with Cora-san, who happened to be a friend of Thatch and Marco's, even Shanks turned up dragging a man you hadn't yet met but were introduced to by Zoro and Perona, who also came with them, as their adoptive father, Mihawk. You assisted Thatch with the clean up after dinner despite his reluctance to let you,

"You're a guest (Y/N)," he scolds playfully,

"Aww, let her if she wants to," Shanks grins from a seat at the breakfast bar,

"I don't want you backing me up," you pout at Shanks making Thatch laugh,

"Fine, I'll wash, you dry deal?"

"Deal," you grin and take one of the recently washed plates, drying it with a towel,

"Have you enjoyed yourself today?" Thatch asks,

"Yes, very much so. I'm not used to spending Thanksgiving with so many people. Usually Uncle Rayleigh and Aunt Shakky come to Sabaody and spend it with Mother and I, but this is nice," you chuckle, "so much activity, though, honestly, I'm surprised by some of the guests, I didn't realise you were so close with that one," you jerk your thumb at Shanks,

"You love me, you're just in denial," the red head winks making you gag jokingly,

"Well, we've been a pretty tight knit group since high school, the five of us that is, myself, Marco, Shanks, Rosinante and Mihawk," Thatch informs you,

"There was Musa and Bree too," Shanks tells you,

"People actually are able to put up with you, man, they have some killer patience then," you deadpan at him,

"He's basically the Luffy of our group," Marco jokes as he brings in the last of the empty dishes from the dining room,

"Then you all simply had no choice, I feel for you," you shake your head, trying to contain giggles,

"You're so mean to me," Shanks places a hand on his heart, acting hurt, "I think you should give me a hug and a kiss to make me feel better,"

"Yeah... no way pervert, I can however give you a swift kick, show my love that way?" you both grin at one another amused. "I'm curious about something, though I don't think it's my place to question the subject really," you pipe up after a while,

"Ask away darling," Shanks winks, you roll your eyes and glance out the windows to back garden where most of the guests are currently sat around a wood burner laughing and joking,

"Well, you guys aren't that old,"

"Why thank you,"

"Shanks shut up and let me finish," you scowl, "I was just wondering about the story behind those three being adopted," you nod to where Zoro, Perona and Law were handling a very hyped up Luffy,

"Normally, I would suggest you speak with Mihawk and Rosinante, but I'm sure they won't mind too much if we tell you," Thatch smiles while handing you a clean dish, "it came about because of our friend Bree, she had a child at a rather young age you see,"

"Mihawk and Rosi were both head over heels for her," Shanks inputs,

"Yes, well, her parents all but abandoned her when she had the child but we all pitched in to help, those two specifically. Bree wanted to work in childcare, and because she had those two supporting her, she could," Thatch smiles at the memory,

"She ended up working in an orphanage, at some point we've all helped out there too. That's how I met Luffy," Shanks informs you,

"So, what happened then?" you frown, the way the three of them suddenly all looked pained makes you want to drop the subject,

"Well, Bree approached Rosinante shortly after she started working, and asked if he would be willing to foster a child, that child being Law, you will have to speak with them on the details of it all," Thatch dries his hands and leans back against the sink, "there were some complications around it, of course Rosinante took Law in immediately, that guy's always had a big heart. He eventually adopted him. Mihawk with Perona and Zoro happened later. Bree was in an accident," he gives you a sad frown, "and sadly, she didn't survive. Mihawk met those two when he was assisting in clearing out her office at the orphanage, and he brought them home,"

"Not sure why exactly he did it, but it was most likely in her memory yoi, but he's become pretty fond of those two," Marco then heads outside pulling Shanks with him,

"Thank you for telling me, I'm sorry I brought bad memories up," you say to Thatch, he pats your head,

"Remembering those one has lost is necessary, it keeps them alive in our hearts. Bree would have liked you," he winks, "you're very similar to her. Now, come on, we are done here, let's go outside. A certain freckled brother of mine looks like he could use some of your pleasant company," he chuckles as you blush and puff out your cheeks. You turn to follow him outside, hoping you can get to know these people even more, your friends, and the families connected to them. You hope that happy times like this together would continue for a long time.