Chapter Twenty-Five : Home

"I miss you, S-Sabo..." Luffy quietly said, stuttering. "We thought you d-died!"

He looked up as tears started to well up again. Sabo was still holding him as they arrived back at their treehouse. Sabo was giving him a smile that Luffy had dearly missed. It was the smile Sabo always gives whenever he comforted him. It was a toothy grin that made Sabo looked childish because of the missing tooth. Seeing that smile at his brother's face again, brought relief to the young Luffy.

"Can you just shut up!?" Ace complained with a loud growl. He was in the corner, trying to find clothes for them in the baskets. Most of them were still uncleaned as Luffy and him didn't had the time to do the laundry that week.

"Luffy, I'm here now. No need for that tears." Sabo cooed, slowly rubbing his brother on the back.

"Sabo is alive. He is holding you right now, Lu." Ace scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Stop wasting that tears."

Luffy bit down his lips and gulped. He knew that Ace was right but the tears won't stop pouring out. It only worsen. "B-But..."

The gunshots, commotion, screams, and the burning boat was all Luffy remember vividly. He think about not thinking about the incident but his brain cannot block out the thoughts drowning him in misery. Sure, Sabo was alright but what if he was really in that boat that time? From the looks of the wreckage, it would be a miracle if someone would survive it.

And for the first time in Luffy's life, he realized how scary death is. It would take away someone dearly from you and you wouldn't know when or how it will happen.

"It's okay to cry, Luffy."

Roger said, smiling comfortingly as he stood next to the doorframe. None of them had realize that he had finally arrived. There were no footsteps nor rustling of leaves. Roger was staring at Luffy with a warm and soft eyes.

Ace groaned loudly in exasperation. "Please don't encourage him. Boys never cry!"

"Shedding tears doesn't make you less as a man." Roger continued with a soft tone. "Everyone needs to let it go."

"Oh please, Luffy's crying every time!"

"Well, Luffy will always be our crybaby." Sabo laughed lightly.

Luffy furrowed his eyebrows, a frown forming on his face. He stopped hugging Sabo and stood up abruptly.

"I'm not gonna cry when I turned ten!" Luffy declared while putting his hands on his hips.

"Yeah. We already heard that." Sabo grinned.

"Let's wait and see. But I highly doubt it." Ace taunted with a smirk.

"Someday, I'm gonna make you cry!"

"Have some faith in your little brother, brats." Roger chuckled, clearly enjoying seeing them bantering again.

"Whatever you say, Dad."

Silence ensued as all eyes were turned at Ace. Even Ace himself didn't anticipated it. His gray eyes were wide open— the widest Luffy had ever seen from him. Ace's mouth were opening and closing, trying to find any words to say but no sound came out. The clothes he had been holding were dropped on the floor and scattered.

"Ace, y-you..." Sabo gasped. He slowly put his hands on his mouth.

"D-Did you j-just..." Roger choked on his words as he slowly stepped back.

"You called Roger 'Dad'!" Luffy finished in a happy tone, throwing his arms up in the air.

Luffy fell back on the floor, giggling. Sabo was not doing any better. Both boys were holding their stomachs. The lack of oxygen did not matter for Luffy. His breaths came in quick gasps between his unstoppable giggles. Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes, threatening to spill over. Somehow, laughing again together with his brother felt right. The two enjoyed their brother's misery and embarrassment.

"I didn't!" Ace retaliated. Luffy could tell that Ace didn't mean it. The look of shock on his face and by his cheeks that flushed pink proved that.

"Yes, you did! We heard it!" Sabo appealed between gasps.

"My tongue slipped." Ace angrily snarled with a hint of sarcasm.

"Roger, are you crying?" Luffy innocently asked.

"N-No, am not!" Roger replied as he turned his back. His loud sniffing was heard by them.

"But you told me that it's okay to cry." Luffy pointed out.

"Aww, Ace. You made your Dad cry." Sabo cooed with a teasing tone.

"Goddamnit. Just leave me alone!" Ace shouted as he threw the clothes and medical supplies towards his brothers in irritation.

Luffy watched as Roger grabbed a handkerchief laying on a table. He quickly used it to wipe down his tears and blew his nose. And after that, he gave them a wide smile.

"Anyway," Roger beamed with his usual cheery attitude. "Welcome back, Sabo."

Luffy's eyes glittered as he copied those words. "Welcome back, Sabo!"

"Welcome back." Ace also greeted with a smile.

"I'm home," Sabo said warmly.

Luffy stretched out his arms and grabbed Ace and Roger from the corner. He yanked them all in a rubbery hug. He could hear Ace's protest and Sabo's laughter.

Everything finally felt right.

Ace was not used to not being able to sleep at night.

If he was not hunting or training, he was most likely taking a nap. Sleeping is one of the few luxuries in life that he enjoyed. It allowed him to relax as the voices inside of him drowned in silence. It was also a way for him to escape his problems in the real world. One good sleep was enough to make him feel better.

And yet, it has been days since he last had a good night's sleep. He thought that it was probably because of his anxiety over what happened to Sabo. But that was not the case now. Sabo was finally with them. He was laying next to Luffy.

Ace heaved a heavy sigh as he rubbed the bags under his eyes. He was tired, both physically and mentally. The past few days had been draining. His body was more than ready to sleep but the thoughts in his mind won't let him.

"Cannot sleep?" Sabo asked in a whisper.

"Yeah..." Ace slightly nodded. He turned to face Sabo who was doing no better than him. Sabo was forced to go back in a place where he despised the most. No one would be able to sleep nicely if they were in his shoes.

"Why?"

"You first." Ace replied as he slowly sat on the bed, careful not to wake Luffy who was sleeping heavily next to him.

Sabo did the same. With a soft sigh, he began to speak. "It was just... I cannot help but think about what happened earlier, Ace. I was supposed to be on that boat and be blown up into pieces."

"But you aren't. Stop thinking about it, Bo." Ace's breath hitched, events of earlier still fresh on his mind.

"My mind just keeps on repeating that image," Sabo murmured, looking down on the wooden floor. "Sorry, you had to see that, too..."

"It's not your fault that those nobles aboard are shits."

Sabo smiled a little at those words. "So, what's on your mind?"

"Same as yours."

"The boat exploding, huh?"

Ace nodded weakly. He gazed outside of the window where the stars shined so brightly. He can't look at his brother at that moment as he revealed something.

"I was scared, Sabo."

He was never the one to admit his fears nor to face them. But the fear he felt earlier was different than the others. It made him helpless and weak. Two things Ace despised the most.

Death was something Ace never experience before and he hoped that the time will never come. The mere thought of living without his brothers made Ace melancholic. His brothers are his greatest treasure and nothing will ever change that.

Ace wanted to be there to protect them but he's not naive. Trouble would always find them that will put them into danger worse than the event earlier. But the question in his mind was how and when. It was a ticking time bomb that he will not be able to stop once the time comes.

Sabo stared at him, unsure of what to say.

"I thought I had to choose between you and Luffy earlier..." Ace continued in a weak tone. "I thought that I lost you."

"I don't know what to say..."

"You don't have to. Just listen to what I'll say." Ace murmured, closing his eyes. "I have never been afraid of losing anything before. But I guess things changed..."

"Luffy." Sabo pointed out. "He is the change."

Ace stared at their younger brother. Drool was dripping from his mouth. He was snoring loudly. His arms were stretched and invading their own spaces. Ace adjusted Luffy's blanket, making sure he would not catch a cold.

"Yeah..."

"You changed ever since Luffy and Roger came into our lives, you know," Sabo mumbled, exhaling softly.

"I just want to protect things..." Ace mumbled as he ran his fingers through his hair. "You, Luffy... Heck, maybe even my father! I'm afraid of losing people that I love..."

"You won't, Ace," Sabo answered, gritting his teeth.

"You can't say that." Ace glowered.

"But I can. Listen, we've been training to make ourselves stronger. So no one would ever break our bond."

Ace stared at Sabo's hazel eyes. It showed full determination, something Ace lacked at. There was a fire in Sabo's eyes that Ace always admired. Seeing it once again, made Ace hopeful.

"I guess so..." Ace said, feeling defeated. "Anything else on your mind?"

"I'm thinking about joining the Revolutionary Army."

Ace blinked a few times.

"Do as you like..." Ace agreed with a small smile. "But can you explain to me what do they do?"

"Unlike pirates, the Revolutionary Army directly opposes the government. They want to fight the brutality and tyranny of the nobles that rule the world."

"So basically, you want to be a hero."

That statement made Sabo laughed. "In a way, yes, but I can still have a bounty poster. Dragon-san has the highest bounty right now. Even higher than your father."

"That man earlier?" Ace voiced out in shock, eyebrows raised. "Well, he does look like a criminal because of the tattoo..."

Sabo sighed. "And one more thing."

"What?"

"I think he is Luffy's father."

"What!?"

"Shh! Quiet!" Sabo put his fingers in his lips. He had a frown on his face as he glanced over at Luffy, who was still thankfully sleeping.

"Luffy's father..." Ace echoed out in a hushed tone. "But they're nothing alike."

Sabo's frown deepened, eyes twitching. "You and Roger are nothing alike but have you ever heard me commenting about it?"

"Touché." Ace rolled his eyes.

"It's Roger-san who told me but Dragon-san stopped him mid-sentence." Sabo explained. "But by that time, I already know what he meant."

A cold sweat formed in Ace's face as the realization hit him. "If he's the son of one of the most wanted men and the government finds out about his birth..."

"They'll kill Luffy." Sabo finished in a grim look.

Ace gulped. "He's the same as me..."

Ace knew that Luffy was a happy-go-lucky child. He always sees the best in anyone. He was like the sun, shining so brightly. But Ace cannot imagine how Luffy will react once he learned the truth. Still, it was Luffy. He will probably think it was cool. One thing that made it more complicated was Luffy's outspokenness. Sooner or later, he will most definitely slip his heritage to anyone possibly endangering his life.

"Don't mention it to Luffy," Sabo ordered sternly.

"Never, Sabo. But still..." Ace clenched his fist. "Didn't we promise to not lie to each other?"

"But we can't burden Luffy with that." Sabo countered. "Sorry for the words but look at what it did to you."

Ace stopped breathing momentarily. Knowing about his heritage made Ace hate the world and himself. It was hard to imagine Luffy being like him but that was a chance he's not willing to happen. He cannot let Luffy end the same.

"Okay..." Ace agreed as he laid back down on the mattress.

"No more regrets?" Sabo asked.

"No more regrets," Ace promised.

Ace wrapped his arms around Luffy. And as his consciousness slowly faded away, so was his anxiety and fear.

It felt good to wake up next to his brothers. That was what Sabo thought the next morning.

Even if Ace snored loudly or Luffy kept kicking him all night, Sabo had missed even those simple gestures his brothers do. It was the proof that he was back home and it gave him a warm feeling.

Sabo was awoken by the chirping of the birds in the early morning. He was used to it by now. He was always the one to wake up first since his brothers were heavy sleepers. He carefully untangled himself from Luffy's hug. Sabo stood up slowly, not wanting to wake them up.

Then he remembered one thing.

He had sent his brothers a letter that would be delivered at Dadan's this morning.

He kept the urge to groan. He grabbed his hat on the table and put it on. But before he left, he quickly wrote a note about his location so that his brothers wouldn't worry about him. And after that, he quickly rushed towards the bandit's hut.

Sabo arrived on the hut as the first rays of the sun began to emerge. And so, he just sat in the grass and waited there. He yawned loudly as he stretched out his arms. He closed his eyes and allowed himself to take a nap.

"Coo!"

That was the sound that made Sabo yelped in surprise. He looked up and saw the News Coo. It handed him today's newspaper and the letter he had been seeking after. The bird flew away again as fast as that.

"So it's you, brat." The voice behind him acknowledged.

"D-Dadan." Sabo blurted out as he turned to face her. "I'm back...?"

She was standing still, hands on her hips. She also had cigarette lit, huffing out the smoke.

"I know. Roger came here yesterday telling us about it." Dadan said as a matter of fact.

"Oh."

"What's with that letter?" She pointed out.

"Uh..." Sabo hid it behind his back but he knew it was futile. "Nothing?"

Dadan was not amused.

Sabo slowly sighed and began explaining. "I was supposed to leave Dawn Island yesterday. I wrote a letter for Ace and Luffy and decided to send it here."

"What happened then?"

"Well, Roger-san found me, and long story short, he managed to change my mind."

She scoffed. "You brats found yourself a father, eh?"

"Yes." Sabo laughed and gave her a toothy grin. "Yes, we did."

A/N: Honestly, this is one of my favorite chapters ^^

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