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Luffy turned to come back inside. As much as he wanted to see his old friends he knew it could wait. He had things to do today after all.
Sabo, his brother was starving and they had run out of blood a while ago. With everything that had happened Luffy hadn't remembered to restock it and of course Sabo hadn't said anything.
They could go get him some deer blood? Or a squirrel or something. But no that wouldn't work with how starved he had to be. No the only thing that would help right now was Luffy-blood. But the problem with that was he didn't have a lot to give. Between the start of the mission and then when he had been forcibly drained Luffy could feel that he didn't have a lot to give. Over the years he had grown used to the signs of being literally drained and he had been feeling it for days; lightheaded, dizzy and lethargic. He could only give so much more before he too needed a blood transfusion. They would have to come up with something else soon.
Mulling it over Luffy closed the door behind him, unsurprised to see that Ace still here and leaning against the ladder that led to the loft.
"Where's Sabo?"
Ace jutted his finger upstairs to their bedroom.
"He's okay right?"
Ace nodded, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Did he wake up?"
The other shook his head.
Luffy tried to duck around him to get to the ladder to go check on him but Ace's strong arm reached out to block his path.
"What?" He asked innocently trying again only to be stopped once more.
"Don't what me." Ace said his tone cold. He was mad.
"Wha'd I do?"
"Think hard." His voice was still icy and Luffy realized Ace wasn't just mad, he was furious.
"I didn't do anything!" He protested. At least nothing today, well nothing that would make Ace this angry.
"Stop being a jerk and let me up!"
The next second Luffy felt strong arms close around his shoulders as he was shoved against the ladder with a painful jolt that was sure to leave a nasty bruise.
He cried out in pained surprise but when the other still didn't let go he pushed back against his chest. Still Ace kept him pinned.
"Let me go!" He demanded.
"You going to make me?"
They both knew he couldn't. But Luffy would never admit defeat out loud as he kept pushing against him.
"What's with you?"
"You really don't know," Ace snarled shoving him back harder then he meant too as Luffy grunted again from the impact of the wooden steps. But by this point he was too angry to register the pain as he snapped back.
"I know your being stupid. Let go so I can see Sabo!"
"So he can take your side."
"My side of what! I want to help him."
Ace's eyes narrowed challenging Luffy to disagree with him. "Like you care!"
Of everything he had been expecting his brother to say that caught him completely off guard. They stared at each other for a second before Luffy felt a second rush of anger at that.
He yelled in protest as he tried once more to break free of the others iron hold. He pushed forward blindly trying to twist and squirm away. But everything he tried was pointless as Ace kept his grip easily, watching him struggle.
That had been an unfair dig and both of them knew it. But as Ace had pointed out, and was currently demonstrating, there was nothing Luffy could do about it.
"You-," Luffy hissed between his attacks, "- are a stupid, mean, jerk-face." Even at his angriest his insults sucked.
Ace slammed him into the ladder once more, wordlessly threatening him to stop struggling.
"Soon you won't have to deal with me right! So what do you care if I am a jerk." He said over Luffy's pained gasp.
"What are you talking about?"
"You know what I'm talking about."
"No?"
"The human village!" Ace growled. "You're going to leave us to go live with-with humans!" He said the word as if it tasted bitter on his tongue.
And suddenly Luffy understood. He had forgotten Ace had been listening. The anger now made sense. By now Luffy knew his brother pretty well. He knew that what Shanks brought up had touched on one of Ace's deepest and rawest fears.
Luffy forced himself to calm down with a sigh. He paused his struggling and instead rested his palms against Ace's cheeks, forcing him to meet his eyes.
"Ace," He started using the most serious-adult tone he had. "You're a jerk-," He was still mad after all. "-but I'm not going anywhere. You and Sabo are my family. I don't care where I am as long as I can stay with you guys."
Shanks had said it himself. Luffy had been so young and small when he lived in the human town and he was still very young when he had left. He had lived half his life in these woods, and it had been the happier half of his life. His brothers were all he had. Them and the fading memory of a long dead mother. It hurt a bit that his big brother thought he would give that up. Throw them away the very first chance he got.
Ace stared back at him. His face still cold with betrayal. He reached up to pull Luffy's hands away but didn't immediately let go of them.
"That's not what you said to the hunter!"
"I didn't Say Yes!" Luffy said his anger returning as Ace still tried to accuse him of something he would never do. He tried to pull his hands back but the other tightened his grip on his wrists warningly.
Those words seemed to bring back all of the anger that had been quelled by Luffy's reassurance that he was going to stay. Now every bit as angry as he had been a few moments ago Ace slammed his wrists against the worn wood, pinning them there with unnecessary force.
"YOU DIDN'T SAY NO!"
He hadn't said no. He hadn't really said anything. Luffy struggled to try and free himself, not appreciating the power imbalance while they fought. But he was forced to give up as Ace showed no sign of letting go of him. The teen forced his tense muscles to relax as he met the others furious gaze head on.
"I'm saying No now!"
"I thought you said you were going to think about it!" Ace shot back refusing to be deterred.
"Shanks told me to think about it!" Luffy protested. "I didn't say I was going to."
"But you Are going to think about it!" He challenged his grip tightening in anger.
Luffy let out a hiss of pain as he tried to distract himself from the tightening pressure.
"Ace let me go!"
"But You Are going to think about it!" He said again.
"Let Go!" Luffy tried once more to rip free of his hold.
"I told you I'm not! Now let me go."
"So you can go!" Ace challenged.
"Yes!" Luffy agreed. "So I can go upstairs! With my other brother, the one who isn't being an idiot."
"Because Sabo is going to let you!" Ace said, bringing back his earlier point.
"There's Nothing to Let me do!" Luffy insisted. "Except make you Leave Me Alone!"
Ace growled at him dangerously. Talking, Luffy realized, wasn't working. It usually didn't when Ace was really upset about something. It was just how he was. If it were as easy as simply using their words then their lives would all be easier and maybe his stupid older brother wouldn't constantly put himself in danger. But that wasn't how Ace worked. So despite Luffy reassuring him that he had no intention of going anywhere without them Ace wasn't listening to him.
"Ace," Luffy tried again, fighting to keep the anger out of his voice. "You have to let me go."
"I don't have to do anything," He shot back.
"Well neither do I!" Luffy said losing control of his temper. "You might be stronger than me but you can't control me! I can do whatever I want."
It turns out that may have been the wrong thing to say as the hands on his wrists tightened until it felt like they would break.
"I WON'T LET YOU!"
"Ahh-," Luffy cried out in surprise. "Stop-Ace Stop! Let-let go. You're hurting me."
Slowly but surely his wrists were released.
Luffy snatched them back, hugging them close to his chest in case Ace changed his mind again.
"Dumb jerk!" Luffy hissed out rubbing his now red wrists.
Ace glared back at him. Still too upset to feel remorse for the pain he had caused by bullying his little foster brother.
Luffy knew he was angry. Angrier then he had been in a very long time. But even at his worst Luffy never feared him. That was the difference between his brothers and the other humans. He knew them, knew what they were capable of. So even though he was a tiny little human with a very pissed off wolf with anger issues currently pinning him down he wasn't scared. The worst his brother would do to him was bite him, as he did all the time when they were fighting as kids, and occasionally now when he was furious at Luffy. Like he was right now.
"If you bite me I'll bite you right back!" He warned him, convinced that was coming next.
Ace didn't respond. Instead he shoved Luffy back into the ladder. He roughly forced the teens head to the side with one hand and felt him flinch underneath him. Undoubtedly expecting the pain of being bitten. But to Luffy's surprise that wasn't what happened.
Ace pressed his face into Luffy's shoulder forcefully but he didn't bite his anger away… Instead he screamed, more like wailed. The anger in his voice quickly turning to something much deeper.
He wasn't actually angry Luffy realized. He was hurt. Incredibly hurt that his little brother would try to leave them. That one of the only people he trusted would pick the humans over him. That he was being abandoned again. Because that's exactly what his first family had done to him whether they meant to or not. They had left him all alone in a world he viewed as hellish. And now the little cub he had taken in, practically raised, and protected even above his own life would do the same thing. Ace couldn't deal with it. He didn't want to deal with it. And no amount of reassurances from Luffy could do away with that horrible pit in his stomach that came from years spent alone. The reminder of what life had been like before Sabo and Luffy. Ace didn't want to go back to that. He didn't think he could anymore.
"Ace…" Luffy's voice was soft now. All of his previous anger was gone as he brought a cautious hand up, intending to comfort the other with it. But before the hand could ever touch him Ace snapped at him. Refusing to be comforted he pulled him from against the ladder and threw him roughly to the floor with a snarl.
Luffy collided with the wooden floor, stunned by the sudden violence. He pushed himself up despite the wind being knocked out of him at the fall.
"Ace!" He called breathlessly.
Ace gave him one more look, the betrayal and hurt clear on his face as he shook his head, turning away as he headed for the door. He slammed it behind him with a deafening sound that vibrated all the way up the support beams.
And Luffy sat, frozen on the floor where he had been thrown. Half of him was still confused on what had just happened and the other half wanted to chase after Ace. Pin him down, shoot him in the leg with his cross bow if he had too, and force him to listen to his words.
But he knew he would never catch Ace on foot. And the longer he sat here the more he felt his shock turn back into anger. Why wouldn't Ace just listen to him? He told him he was going to stay here no matter what. He needed his brothers every bit as much as they needed him, maybe even more.
He pushed his now bruised body to his feet and screamed after Ace knowing full well the other was long out of ear shot.
"SCREW YOU ASSHOLE! I'LL BE HERE WHEN YOU GET BACK! AND THE DAY AFTER THAT AND THE DAY AFTER THAT! THIS IS MY HOME AND I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE!" He turned panting, and stalked up the ladder to their bedroom.
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