sousie: Thank you!

phoenix: Yeah, it's definitely not what I usually write

Wow, a very short chapter. Enjoy~

Luffy rocked back and forth in the corner of their bedroom, hands over his ears. Sabo was there trying to sooth him out of the flashback he was experiencing. Ace was out of the room because he was the one who accidentally set Luffy off. He bit on his tongue and it caused a little blood to be at the corner of his mouth.

The youngest was instantly seeing young Ace with blood seeping out of his face. Sabo took a risk and put his hand on Luffy's shoulder, but it caused him to scream. "Lu, shhhh, you're fine, Ace is fine," he said loudly, but Luffy wasn't having any of it. Then Ace came in and ran to him, kneeling in front of him.

"Luffy, look, I'm okay. I only bit my tongue, I'm fine," Ace said, putting his hands over Luffy's and gently pulling them away from over his ears. "I'm here, I'm fine. I'm alive and healthy. I won't ever leave you again, we're all okay." Luffy stopped screaming Ace tightly, fisting his hand in the back of Ace's shirt.

Sabo watched with sad eyes. For multiple reasons. The first was that Luffy was still suffering eight years after Ace's death. And the other… Ace really was the favorite. Sabo understood, Luffy had grown attached to Ace after Sabo's death and then Ace died himself, but it still hurt. He always chose Ace over him.

The blonde knew Luffy loved him, but he knew he'd always be second best to Ace. it hurt, but he never let it show. He didn't want Luffy to feel guilt. He may not even notice the favoritism. Ace did, and sent Sabo an apologetic look that was also twinged with pity. Sabo waited on the bed for Luffy to take all the comfort from Ace that Sabo couldn't give.

Sometimes he thought there was something wrong with him. He didn't know what, but maybe there was some other reason Luffy didn't choose him. Was it because the first day they woke up, came back to life, Ace was the one to provide immediate comfort, and not Sabo. Maybe if he had been the one to do it, he could be loved by Luffy as much as he loved Ace.

Luffy finally was calm, and looked humiliated. "I'm sorry," he apologized, tears of a new feeling in his eyes. Sabo was quick to comfort him, and put his hand on his head, putting pressure on it. Luffy like that, it grounded him.

"No one looks down on you because of your PTSD," Sabo said strongly. Ace nodded in agreement, and pressed the strawhat on Luffy's head from the table. Luffy raised his hands to the hat and breathed out slowly. The hat had been nailed to his headstone when he was buried, so it was there for him when he came back. But he didn't wear it out in public. He was afraid to lose it.

The youngest didn't know it, but all of the crew was looking for any sign that Shanks was around. Luffy had wanted to see him more than Garp, who now knew for sure that his grandsons were alive. That picture and the names were pretty clear that they were both alive and kicking, strongly. Kicking against the marines and world government.

Even after all three of them had died, they still became pirates. It was almost funny, but also sad. Though them being known to be dead so long made sure they were never beaten by Garp, who had no one to visit. He didn't even visit their graves. Maybe he did before they woke up, but never had he arrived in the seven years after their resurrections.

It had been over a week since their bounties were sent out, and their bump of happiness was still going steady, but was starting to show the usual signs of fizzling. Since the reset was almost exactly every two weeks, much of that time was negative, the couple days leading up to the brothers incident.

The thing that kept them all going strong was the complete support they were given by the others in their crew. They helped to comfort them, clean up their bodies, be kind and caring afterward, help Luffy not look at Ace when he was dead and Luffy started suffocating.

It had been over a year and their crew still were supportive and not judgmental. They didn't look at the three like they were freaks. Didn't look at them like their existence was wrong. They were just happy that the deaths were not permanent. Happy their captains and first mate were alive and would stay alive.

It was a real family on the ship. They embraced oen another and formed a blanket of strong support for one another, including the brothers towards the others. It didn't go just one way. All of their crew members had pasts that weren't too good, and they all knew them well enough to know when to do something. Tells that showed anxiety or stress. They were probably closer than many biological families were. Though the brothers had never put much in blood ties.

Dinner was a bit subdued because Luffy was not in a good mood, and picked at his food. Everyone shot up and ran outside when they felt a mass of presences coming towards their ship. It was foggy, so it was hard to see the ship before it was right on top of them. It was bigger than the PoS by far and there were many more people on this ship.

Swords were out and guns pointing at the pirate before Luffy saw the jolly roger and beamed. "Don't, stop, it's Shanks! Shanks is here!" Luffy shouted, jumping up and down. The weapons were lowered, and Ace and Sabo were grinning. When they all set out, Luffy had said one of his goals as a pirate was to find Shanks. Not give him his hat back, but to see him.

A plank was attached to both ships, and everyone but Luffy was nervous. Beckman came down, then with Lucky Roo and Yassop. Then Shanks came, running down the ramp and stopping in front of Luffy. The teen was beaming and was surprised when Shanks hugged him. Ace glared, brother complex kicking in, but Sabo grabbed his arm and shook his head. The steam that was coming off of him evaporated.

"Luffy, how are you alive? Garp said both you and Ace had died," Shanks said, in confusion but with a bright smile on his face.

"Um, it's hard to explain," Luffy replied. He looked to Ace and Sabo for permission to tell them the truth, what happened to them and what continues to happen to them. Sabo gave a nod, while Ace looked uneasy.

"Ace, Shanks saved Luffy's life, he deserves to know the truth," Sabo said quietly, and Ace nodded, knowing Sabo was right.

Deuce said, "Why don't we go inside? It's cold out here." The officers and captain of the Red Hair pirates followed them inside, through their cozy ship and into the galley. The crew sat in various places around the room or at the table. Luffy sat on his patch of carpet. The guest pirates sat on the main couch.

Luffy started explaining immediately after everyone was settled. "So, I died, and Ace and Sabo died. But then we woke up! And now we die again a lot, all the time." Sabo and Ace both put their hands to their faces. They knew one of them would be doing the explaining from the start. Shanks was smiling at Luffy fondly, clearly happy the boy was alive, however it had happened.

Sabo decided to speak, to explain. "I died, then Ace died and then Luffy died. It was over a year after Luffy died that we woke up. Ace and I were able to get out of the ground and then pull Luffy out. But we still have strong and negative consequences for whatever happened, no matter how grateful we are for it.

"Every two weeks on the dime, we all die in the same way we originally died. I die first, then both of them with Luffy last. We wake up a couple hours later, just fine. Our crew cleans us up while we're out." Shanks looked confused, so Sabo added, "We didn't all die in a… clean way."

The pirates understood what Sabo meant. They didn't ask too many questions about that subject, but then Shanks asked Luffy to tell him all about what being a pirate was like. Luffy spoke very animatedly, arms flailing around when he talked excitedly. Shanks was grinning widely the whole time. He was clearly so happy Luffy was alive.

It was probably the best night Luffy had had in a long time, and the pirates drank heavily with Shanks. "I was savin' this sake for someone else, but I think this deserves some pretty tasty booze." And he toasted the lives of the three anomalies in front of him. Luffy grinned and drank some. They were pirates, and Luffy didn't drink much anyway. He didn't like the taste but never wanted to be left out.

The party was loud and fun, the yonko crew celebrating Luffy being alive. They thought he was dead for a long time. Luffy clung onto Shanks back, something that surprised the pirates. Sabo said, "After everything, Luffy is a lot more clingy. Don't let it bother you."

Shanks shook his head and said, "I don't mind. I'm just happy he's alive. Have you told Garp?" he asked as Luffy jumped off and ran to cling to Ace. Sabo hid the hurt expertly, and no one saw it.

They shook their heads. "Gramps would probably send us to some lab to see what made us come back and stay back. We lost our chance at freedom once, we won't be giving it up a second time," Ace replied, ruffling his brother's hair fondly.

"Well, everyone knows we're alive now. Grandpa must have seen our cool bounty poster. I don't really want to see him. He was mean after Ace died and I was all alone," Luffy said in a grumpy voice. Sabo and Ace shared a sad look. Garp hadn't been mean by forcing Luffy to eat and drink. He had been trying to keep his only remaining grandson alive and well.

Shanks smiled. "I'm sure he's happy you're both alive. As am I. Your bounty poster was the best thing I've seen in years, Luffy. I'm glad you're alive and living out your dream." Luffy took his hat and held it to his chest.

"I'm not the pirate king yet, so can I keep the hat a little longer?" he asked, voice tinged with worry. Just a little, but it was definitely there. Shanks grinned and nodded, then bursting into laughter, which echoed around the ship. It was a nice night, full of happiness and celebration. It was probably one of the best nights the Spades had had in awhile.

To Luffy's dismay, they left the next morning after sharing a breakfast on the Red Force's deck. "I promise we'll keep in touch. Don't do something reckless, anchor, stay safe with your brothers," Shanks said with a grin. Luffy smiled and nodded happily. He was holding onto the straw hat tightly as he watched Shanks and his crew sail away for the second time in almost a decade. Ace and Sabo waved with him as Aggie started cleaning the deck up. Sabo turned around and helped his crew member take the lounge furniture back inside to the storage area.

The youngest watched the Red Force until it was not visible anymore. He had a soft smile on, looking at the endless ocean in front of him. Ace put a hand on his head and ruffled his hair and turned away to go inside. He was hungry, and they had to clean up the galley from the party last night. It wasn't too messy, but it needed to be cleaned nonetheless. Sabo was helping Jojo with the dishes, drying them after she washed.

Luffy was in a glowing mood all day, and didn't have a single depressive bout. It was something to celebrate in and of itself. A happy Luffy made for a happy crew.

-x-

"Why is there so little, red hair brat?" Whitebeard asked when he held the nearly empty bottle of sake. Shanks usually brought tons of alcohol, but this time there was barely any left. Shanks laughed, and Marco thought he was awfully happy for this meeting. And it was strange, about the sake.

Shanks laughed. "I sort of had an impromptu reunion," he replied. Whatever the reunion had been, it must have been a good one based on Shanks demeanor. Pops drank all of the sake in one gulp, Shanks not having any.

Whitebeard then asked about the reunion. Shanks grinned. "A rookie I thought was dead isn't. That has a need for celebration, don't you think?" Marco wondered which rookie, and briefly wondered if it was any of the kids they'd been looking and listening for. The captain nodded. That was indeed a need for celebration.

"How'd you think they'd died?" Pops wondered. Shanks grinned and said it was a secret. The larger yonko barked out a "you damn brat", but there was no heat in it.

-x-

Ace was in the shower when it happened. He was sure it wasn't due for another hour. His legs started to shake and he made his way out of the shower, ripping the curtain off of its bar. He had the displeasure at seeing himself in the mirror. Saw the blood seeping from his face. It was always a very unwanted sight, which was why he and his brothers usually passed in a dark room together.

Ace could see the blood coloring the whites of his eyes as it spread, leaking out of his nose into his already bloody mouth. He didn't last long until he hit the tile hard and stayed down, dead with his eyes open and unseeing.

While he was out, Deuce had entered and dressed Ace before cleaning his face and neck. The doctor sighed, closing his eyes. It had always been hard for him, seeing Ace like that. Ace and he had clicked in the beginning, so it was like an unspoken rule that Deuce was there for Ace, meaning he had to clean up the captain.

The blue haired man picked Ace up and carried his lifeless body back to his bedroom, where Luffy and Sabo were already on their beds. Deuce walked to Luffy and gently closed his eyes for him before tucking them all in. His dead captains and first mate. They'd wake up and probably sleep until morning came. Deuce left the room silently, even though no noise would have stirred them.

When he went back to the galley, everyone else were sitting silently, staring at the floor or their hands. Deuce sat on the recliner with a heavy, tired sigh. "How was Luffy?" he asked, since Ace hadn't been with him when it happened.

Saber replied, "He had a panic attack in the middle of his dying. It was really sad, but we couldn't calm him down before he was gone. Sabo was okay, mostly trying to comfort Luffy. It'll be hard for him in the morning."

The crew stayed quiet for a long time, before Finamore said, "I'm tired of this. But I'd never leave them for it." The others nodded, knowing what he meant. They cared too much about the three to leave them, but it was hard nonetheless. Going through this twice a month. If they each died painlessly and not messy, it'd be so much easier than seeing Sabo bleeding out, and Ace's gruesome death which looked like the most painful of the three. Since Ace became paralyzed and then bled out.

"I think we should go to bed. Who's on watch tonight?" the blue haired man asked. Jojo raised her hand. They each got up and headed to the shared room. Jojo had her own, though it was small compared to the boys' room. It was always hard to fall asleep on the death days, knowing their leaders were not able to do anything. It wasn't that the crew couldn't guard and protect the ship, just that they knew all three felt guilt for being out of action.

More than once, a pirate crew had attacked while they were unable to help. Every time the crew handled it perfectly fine on their own, but the brothers still didn't like it when that happened.