Chapter Twenty-One : Fear
"What's happening!?" Ace inquired as soon as he was within earshot of the bandits outside.
Ace was never the one to worry nor panic. He was calm whenever there was danger. But right now, seeing the fire slowly burn everything worried him. It was a blazing inferno. A literal hell.
All of the bandits were present outside. Some were even on the roof trying to get a better view. No one would have ever been asleep because of it. Their eyes were wide as they stared. They had never seen a fire this big. This was the first time for all of them.
"Is it from the town?" Roger also asked.
"No... it's from Gray Terminal." Magra answered him after recovering from the shock.
"Most of the trash there is flammable. The fire's spreading at an alarming rate." Dadan angrily scoffed.
"Will it reach this hut?" Ace inquired again.
"It's too far, brat. No need to worry." She replied before gritting her teeth.
"Ace..."
Ace turned and saw Luffy who was slowly walking. Luffy was busy staring at the fire with wide eyes. Ace hated to see those eyes on him. Luffy's whole body was shaking rapidly. He was slow on his steps as he approached his older brother.
"Do you... Do you think Sabo is there...?" Luffy mumbled, finally staring at him straight in the eye wanting to have an answer.
Ace stopped breathing. He bit his lips, hoping to calm himself. He hated to see Luffy that way. His younger brother was never the one to frown. But now, as they lost a brother, they cannot stop thinking about him.
Whenever Luffy was worried about something, Sabo was the one who was there to help him. Ace was always harsh in his ways. The exact opposite of Sabo. But still, Sabo was not here. Ace was alone to comfort Luffy because that was what Sabo will want.
"Don't worry. Sabo's not there. I don't sense his presence." Roger answered him. A small smile formed on his lips.
Relief washed over Ace's body. The safety of Sabo mattered the most. He cannot worry about both of his brothers now. He needed to focus on their younger one.
"Really?" Luffy gawked, looking up.
"Sabo will not like that if we're worried about him. I already told you that he's strong, right?" Ace forced a smile.
He pinched Luffy's nose making him yelp in pain. Luffy pouted, not really enjoying whenever his brother teased him. But for Ace, seeing a pouting expression from him was better than a frowning one.
Ace took a hold of Luffy's hand as they continue to stare at the fire. Sabo had explained it to Ace not long ago. Luffy always loved it when his older brothers hold his hands. It gave him a distraction. Sabo noticed the weirdest things about Luffy. Ace was never that attentive. It seemed to have worked though. Luffy's shaking stopped as he tightened his hold on Ace's hand.
"Let's go back to your room, you two." Roger ushered away with a soft tone. The two boys started walking back inside.
"He's right. It's not like you can't do anything about that fire." Dadan said with a scoff.
"Can you stay with us tonight, Roger?" Luffy asked, looking up with hopeful eyes.
Ace stopped in his tracks. Roger did not answer right away. He stared at Ace first as if asking for his permission about the matter. Sighing, Ace slowly nodded his head. If it was to make Luffy happy, he was willing to agree.
"As long as you guys don't snore." Roger grinned as he teased.
"That's not me. It's Ace!" Luffy replied, offended.
"I don't!" He quickly retaliated.
"Do too! You just don't realize it since you're sleeping!"
"As if you don't hug me every night!"
"Okay, okay. I get it." Roger laughed, liking their brotherly banter.
Having Roger around, made Ace feel somehow safe. He remembered how much hostile he was months ago towards his father. But now, he couldn't imagine not having him around.
With one final look, they started walking back to their room.
"I can't sleep..." Luffy complained, after trying to find the most suitable position.
"Me neither." Ace replied as he rubbed his eyes.
"Nothing works as a distraction, huh?" Roger sighed loudly. He was sitting close to the window as he stared outside.
Luffy was laying on the mattress next to Ace. They were trying to sleep for more than thirty minutes now but to no avail. It was past their normal sleeping schedule. Even after hearing more stories from Roger, Luffy just kept remembering the fire. It was hard not to. Even if it was meters away. Anyone can smell the smoke and hear the crackling of the fire.
Luffy sat and made eye contact with Roger. "Sleep with us?"
Luffy did not hear Ace's screams of protest so he thought that he was okay with it. Roger's eyes widened for a moment. With a soft sigh, he stood up and approach. He lied down between Ace and Luffy.
"Now, close your eyes," Roger ordered in a soft tone. "Just imagine you're in a ship. Hearing the waves crashing and the chirps of the seagulls..."
Luffy did not hear the rest of what Roger was saying. Almost like magic, he finally got a good night's sleep.
When Roger woke up the next morning, the right side of his body was sore. True enough, Luffy did like to hug when he was sleeping. On the left side, Ace turned himself away. Even in his sleep, his son liked to avoid him.
Somehow, Roger enjoyed the peaceful looked on their faces. They looked relaxed in their sleep, something both of them needed. He did not like the look of fear on their faces these past days. The two boys had experienced enough. Losing their brother and then seeing a huge fire. True, the boys were strong for their age but not mentally. Trauma could happen to anyone, whatever their age was.
Even if Roger did not like it, he still used his Conqueror's Haki to make them passed out last night. Just enough for those two and do not affect the bandits outside. After that, he came back to his seat next to the window and stared at the fire.
Something was bothering him last night. Enough to make him stay wide awake. Roger could sense every person's presence from Gray Terminal. He was not the one to care if a person was injured or not. He was a pirate through and through. He was not some kind of a hero who will save people when they were in danger.
The fire was huge and yet, he did not sense anyone dying from it.
Shrugging the thought off, he carefully stood up. He cannot bother Ace and Luffy now. He just let the boys sleep. He stretched his arms and suppressed yawning loudly. He went downstairs and see most of the bandits were awake.
"You're up early," Roger commented as he approached Dadan sitting in the corner.
"No one can sleep last night. Not with a deadly fire like that." Dadan replied as she put tea on one of the cups. "I'm surprised those two brats had slept."
"I have my ways." Roger shrugged and smiled at her.
"I ordered some of them earlier to scout Gray Terminal. It was the nobles who did it. It was no accident."
"So it is for the arrival of the Celestial Dragons, then." Roger mused, leaning on the wall.
Dadan nodded. "Guards from High Town are all over the place. Distract Ace and Luffy for now. Don't let them near Gray Terminal."
"I know."
On cue, Ace and Luffy came down running at full speed.
"Oi, oi. What's wrong?" Dadan asked, narrowing her eyes.
Luffy stopped abruptly to answer. "Our Pirate stash!"
"Pirate stash?" Roger echoed, brows were furrowed. He became curious about what they were talking about.
"Our money!" Ace yelled as he continued to run towards the forest. He was forcefully dragging Luffy with him.
"Wait!" Roger called out but the two brothers paid him no mind.
Thinking that there was no way he was gonna let them on their own, Roger ran after them. They were fast though. He cannot see them anymore. Whatever the thing that got them hurried like that, it must be really important.
He heightened his senses. There were more people in the forest than usual. Either the thugs and hoodlums from Gray Terminal or the guards from High Town trying to eliminate them since the fire didn't. Either way, there was no one in the path of Ace and Luffy which was a relief.
After two minutes, they had arrived at their destination. He found Ace and Luffy atop a huge tree. It was close to the site of the fire but surprisingly, it was not burned. Not that he could be focused on that now. Roger's breath was heavy. He put his hands on his chest as his heart continued to thump fast. He coughed and tried to hide it but to no avail.
"Are you alright, Roger?" He heard Luffy asking with obvious concern in his tone.
He looked up. Luffy was staring at him with furrowed eyebrows. He seemed to stop on what he was doing but Ace continued.
"What did I told you, Lu? He's just getting old." Ace said, putting their money in a bag.
"Oh, okay," Luffy accepted the answer and continue working.
Once the irregular fit of coughs had died down, Roger jumped atop the tree. He was stopped momentarily by what he saw. He stared with wide eyes at the treasure Ace and Luffy was putting in their bags. Jewels, gems, silver or gold, anything that was shiny were in there.
He finally understood why those two wanted to save these. By the looks of it, they were collecting it for a long time. The place where they hid it was not visible to others. It was well hidden but they preferred it to be safe.
"Don't just stare. Help us here." Ace said in annoyance.
"Where'd you get those?" Roger asked, still staring at the treasure.
"We stole 'em!" Luffy answered, enthusiastically. He grabbed some and put it up for Roger to look closely.
"Confiscated from thieves, Lu. You're making us sound bad." Ace corrected while rolling his eyes.
"You can't correct a mistake by a mistake..." Roger said but shrugged it off as he realized something. "Who am I kidding here. I have probably stolen treasure more than that!"
"Perfect."
Sabo smiled brightly. He grabbed the paper and put it up. He silently read it, making sure there were no more mistakes in it. He needed it to be perfect. It took him hours though, probably the only thing he did the whole afternoon. The pieces of paper were evident in the trash bin. It was full of crumpled paper that Sabo deemed to be flawed.
After being back in High Town, he spent days formulating a plan.
Tomorrow, he will finally attain his freedom.
A/N: Thanks for the follows, favorites and reviews. See you next week.