myzmsandraa99: No, it's one sided. Ace has a crush on Marco, but Marco isn't returning it. On ao3 I put one-sided love, so it isn't a spoiler.
sairakanzaki: Wait and you may find something like that happens. ;)
Son of Whitebeard: Yeah, Ace needs some happiness considering his constant anxiety. Poor guy.
School starts next week. I'm so nervous! There is some medical stuff in this chapter, I tried to keep it realistic as I could. Enjoy~
The moment Luffy woke up, he remembered his dream. For some reason, the last couple of days he had remembered all of his dreams. They were all fun, and the last one was helpful. He hadn't flown in the dream, but maybe he could make his own wings now! His dream version did, after all.
He noticed that Ace was still in the room, but awake and at the edge of their bed, reading a book in his own fire light. Sabo wasn't in the room, or anyone else either. Luffy slowly and sneakily crawled to the end of the bed and jumped on Ace, shouting, "Boo!"
Ace had heard the rustling of the blankets and slight creaking of the bed and knew what Luffy was doing, so, when the boy pounced, Ace pretended to be shocked and jumped. Luffy erupted into giggles. "I got you!" he cheered. Ace smiled at him fondly and ruffled his hair. "Guess what? I had a dream about making wings."
Ace reclined against the foot of the bed and patted his lap for Luffy to come and sit. "I saw your dream, like Sabo did last night. It's very interesting," the older brother said. "Do you like remembering your dreams?" Luffy nodded, and exclaimed that they were fun and now he gets to share them with Ace and Sabo.
"Do you wanna remember yours? I wanna see Ace and Sabo's dreams!" he gushed, throwing his hands wide. Ace frowned softly.
"I don't think you would wanna see my dreams, Lu. I have bad ones sometimes. It wouldn't be fun for anyone to see," he said honestly. Luffy looked at him sadly. He never liked seeing other people sad, especially Ace or Sabo.
"I will chase them away," the vampire child said with conviction, sounding especially determined. Ace smile softly, and whispered, "You already do, Luffy." Luffy smiled at this, glad he could help his favorite people ever. "You're the best thing to ever happen to us." Ace hugged Luffy close. "Love you."
Luffy hugged Ace back with a smile. "Ace and Sabo are the best. I love you, too," the boy replied.
Ace suddenly felt strange. Tired and droopy. He wondered if it was Luffy doing something, but he wouldn't know what. Another new power? To make him fall asleep? But Ace didn't want to fall asleep. He was the only one in the room to supervise Luffy. Sabo and the others had left half an hour ago to talk to the pirates about maybe sharing some duties, as the Spades who weren't supervising Luffy were feeling quite useless and like freeloaders.
The world around Ace blurred and sound started to disappear, and he couldn't focus on what Luffy was babbling about anymore, before he finally slumped to the side, hitting the wooden floor hard. If he wasn't a logia, it probably would have hurt.
Luffy hit the floor with an "Oof" when he fell with Ace. The big brother's arm cushioned Luffy's head, so he didn't feel any pain. "Ace?" the boy asked. When Ace didn't reply, just stayed still, Luffy tried shaking him awake, but Ace continued to sleep. So, Luffy started wailing and sobbing extremely loudly, shouting Ace's name in panic and fear. He didn't register the light snores in his panic. Ace just collapsed and wouldn't wake up.
-x-
Haruta was walking through the halls, heading to the bathhouse, when he heard screaming and crying. Only one voice would sound so high and loud. Luffy was crying. At first, he thought that one of his brothers would help him, but then he heard the boy shouting his brother's name, and Haruta sped down the hall and to the Spades' room. He opened the door to see Luffy kneeling next to an unconscious Ace.
"Ace!" Luffy cried, before turning to the door and shouting. "Haru, save Ace!" Haruta didn't wait to ask any questions, just scooped the human up easily and sprinted down the halls and to the infirmary, Luffy just barely able to keep up. Haruta was sure Ace was asleep, but too deeply to be normal.
A few pirates were shoved out of the way and Haruta made his way to the infirmary. He said nothing when they ran into Marco, who asked what was wrong with Ace. Haruta just kept running. He could hear Marco behind him, now carrying the still crying child.
When they reached the infirmary, Haruta shouted for the nurses and laid Ace on one of the empty beds. Luffy was still crying when Marco reached the room. Ace was already being tended to. Marco set Luffy down, who ran to Ace and continued asking if Ace was okay. It was a sad sight.
"Haruta, go find Sabo," Marco said in a low voice, low enough for Haruta to hear from across the room. Though, Luffy could probably hear it too. He was still part vampire, after all. The nurses found nothing wrong. Ace had no fever, or looked sickly. It just seemed like he fell asleep. Marco turned to Luffy and crouched in front of him. "Luffy, what happened?" he asked kindly.
Through sniffles and tears, Luffy explained that he and Ace were talking and then Ace just fell asleep and wouldn't wake up. Marco didn't reassure him because he didn't want anything to end up being a lie. If Ace really was very sick, he didn't want to tell Luffy everything would be okay. Sabo could decide whether to say that or not.
Marco heard thundering footsteps a few minutes after Haruta left, and Sabo and some of his crew ran in, freezing at seeing Ace unconscious on the bed, Luffy crying next to him. "What happened?" Sabo demanded.
"Sabo! Ace fell asleep and won't wake up!" Luffy cried, running to his other brother, who picked him up and held him close. "We were just talking and then he fell over." Sabo looked extremely terrified for just a second before he hid the fear behind a mask, not wanting to scare Luffy. When Ace woke up, he'd be angry if Sabo had made it worse.
"It's okay, Lu. I'm sure Ace will be fine." But he wasn't sure. Ace had gotten a lot of sleep that day. Maybe something medical happened? Or someone drugged him? But, he couldn't see Thatch drugging Ace, and no one else would have gotten close enough to do so, so the teen pushed that suspicion out of his mind. He didn't need to start being suspecting of everyone around him besides his crew and family.
Aggie 68 was asked to tell the nurses Ace's medical history, as something might clue them in on what happened. But, Aggie 68 rarely took care of Ace. He was very healthy, and never got injured due to his logia power. He quietly said he knew nothing of the brothers' family history.
Tami, one of the nurses, turned to Sabo with a stern look. "I need to know family medical history to better help Ace and know what the condition is." Sabo looked uncomfortable. It wasn't as if Sabo and Ace didn't want anyone to know anything, they didn't know anything. Their extended family disowned their mother before Ace and Sabo were even born. They also knew nothing of their father's family medical history either, as he wasn't in their life for more than a few weeks. That bastard.
"We don't know anything about family medical history," Sabo answered truthfully. Haruta and Marco could both tell that he wasn't lying based on the speed of his heart beat. Marco gave a meaningful nod to the nurse, who sighed. This was inconvenient, but she didn't press the matter further.
"Then we will continue to observe him until he wakes up. He isn't in a coma, so don't worry about that," Tami assured the brothers and their crew. Sabo still looked uneasy when Luffy wasn't looking at his face. The group of pirates and sailors waited anxiously for Ace to wake up.
He did wake up around fifteen minutes after he fell asleep. It had felt like hours to his brothers. Marco was the first to notice Ace's breathing pick up, and walked over to him, but Ace wasn't moving. His eyes were open and he looked absolutely panicked, before seeming to look at something behind Marco and be in even more fear.
"Ace, you okay?" Marco asked, alerting Sabo and Luffy that their brother had woken up. Luffy wriggled out of Sabo's arms and ran to Ace. He stood on his tiptoes to see Ace's face.
"Ace?" Luffy asked worriedly. Ace seemed scared, so Luffy reached up and grabbed his hand. Almost immediately, Ace's breathing slowed and he didn't look so scared. Then, he jerked upright and looked absolutely terrified, though not at something in the room anymore.
Tami walked over and asked how he felt. If he remembered what had happened before he passed out. "I was with Luffy, and then I just got so tired and fell asleep. I… I couldn't move," he said in a hushed voice. "An-and there was something behind Marco, but it's gone now." The teen reached to the side and picked Luffy up and hugged him tightly. "I'm okay now, though," he added, probably just to soothe his brothers. Sabo was looking at him in concern and worry.
Tami wrote down what Ace had said, and made a "hmmm..." sound before walking into the back room with her clipboard. Marco followed, leaving the Spades to their captain, asking if he was alright.
"I think I know what's wrong with him," Tami said to Marco as the woman sorted through the desne stack of medical books on the desk. "The symptoms match with a disorder called narcolepsy. The sleep attacks, the sleep paralysis, hallucinations. Luckily, we have some medication for it since Lance has narcolepsy as well. It's actually good that Ace sleeps so much and always wakes up and goes to bed at the same time. Luffy's sleep schedule is convenient for him."
"With whatever happened in their life before they set out to see, having Luffy is probably a blessing," Marco said quietly. The fear he saw in Ace's eyes was terrible. Not only was he paralyzed, but hallucinating. With no possible way to try and get away, unable to move. What a nightmare. Poor kid.
Tami walked out of the back office, Marco following behind, and sat next to the bed that Ace and Luffy were sitting on. "I know what happened, even without any family medical history. It's called narcolepsy. There is no cure, but it can be managed with medications and a slight change in lifestyle," Tami explained. She held up a small bottle, full of small white capsules.
"Narcolepsy is a disorder where your sleep schedule is off, very much. You may pass out from time to time, or wake up and be unable to move. And hallucinations may come as well. But, medication will help with the symptoms. I want you to take two of these, one twice a day. Take it with your breakfast, and then when you are going to bed.
"I know your sleep schedule is different, due to Luffy's, but you should take some naps even during the night when you're usually awake," Tami finished. She felt bad for Ace, who was looking humiliated.
Sabo looked at his brother knowingly. Ace felt weak. It was clear as day. He had to be thinking that he can't protect Luffy if he's passed out. Sabo would reassure him later, in private. Luffy seemed to realize Ace was sad as well and hugged his chest. Ace buried his face in Luffy's fluffy hair. He needed another bath.
What if Ace passed out in the bath? He could die because of this! He was no longer embarrassed, but angry. His body temperature rose a bit, but it didn't burn Luffy, thankfully. That would only make Ace feel worse. Ace reached his hand out for the pill bottle. "Thanks," he mumbled. "Can we go now?"
Tami sighed. "Yes, you can go. Check in with me in a week so I can see how you're feeling with the medication. What time do you usually go to bed?"
"When the sun comes up. So, five something," Sabo replied for Ace. "When should Ace take his rests?"
"In the middle of the night to see how that works. If it's not enough, make it twice a night. You will most likely become sleepier earlier, so taking naps will help with that. There's nothing you can do to change this, and you didn't cause this to happen, so don't feel guilty about something you can't control," Tami said a little harshly. "We already have a crew member with narcolepsy, so you aren't alone. Besides, compared to some of the diseases or disorders on this crew, yours is not nearly debilitating. Check back in with me in a week."
Everyone took this as the time to leave, and the Spades headed to the galley for breakfast. They were now all awake at the same time mostly, besides Aggie 68, and Jojo, who seemed to do fine with not much sleep.
Marco and Haruta both smiled to each other after seeing the little family and how much they cared for their brother and captain. Pops was right about these people being good ones.
-x-
Ace, Luffy, Sabo and the Spades were all in their bedroom. After they ate, and Ace took the pills, he was feeling down and wanted to get away from the stranger/pirates. As a group, they had headed back to the room and all sat down, either on the floor or the beds.
"How do you feel, Ace?" Sabo asked quietly. Ace was looking very tired, even though he had had a full night's rest. Maybe he should have a nap now.
Instead of answering Sabo's question, he dejectedly grumbled, "This is so stupid. I have to take naps like a kid." Luffy frowned, wondering what was so bad about napping.
"Cap, you're not weak for having an uncontrollable disorder. Think of Luffy. He can't go into the sun, or stay awake during the day, but here he is, happy and cheerful almost every night. Everyone has to have some problem, right?" Deuce asked. Ace grumbled unintelligible words.
"Is Ace sleepy now?" Luffy wondered innocently. Ace shook his head defiantly. He didn't want to sleep, it wasn't even close to bed time! But, he could barely keep his eyes open.
"Ace, just go to sleep. Don't you want to be awake with you time with Lu?" Sabo asked, an eyebrow raised. Ace scowled, but then got up and climbed under the covers. Luffy wasn't sleepy, but he didn't want to leave Ace alone in the room.
The boy wandered the Ace and pat his head once. "No bad dreams," he said sternly, something Luffy rarely sounded. Ace smiled, and mumbled, "I'll try, Lu," and fell asleep. Sabo dimmed the lights a bit, though they were still on enough to see each other. Jojo was asked to get Luffy his candies, and she came back a few minutes later with the big bag of homemade candies. By the time she was back, all the others besides Deuce had left the room, apparently going to go bathe.
Luffy and Sabo were going to bathe after Ace's nap was over. Jojo sometimes wished she wasn't the only girl on their crew. Taking baths alone were boring. She hadn't talked to any of the other few females on the ship yet, as they spent most of their time below deck in the infirmary. With a ship with over a thousand people in it, they must be quite busy quite often. The Spades were surprised with how empty the infirmary had been.
But, she was used to being only around men her whole life. She just hoped the people on Whitebeard's ship would treat her as well as the Spades crew did. Jojo left the room with a wave to go to the women's bath, which she would have all to herself since she assumed the other nurses besides Tami were asleep, as they hadn't been in the infirmary.
"Sabo? Will Ace be okay?" Luffy asked suddenly, wringing his hands in worry. "I love Ace a lot, I don't like seeing him sad." Sabo crouched in front of the four year old and assured him that Ace would be fine, just more sleepy now.
"But what about the bad dreams?"
"Ace is tough. He'll be okay. And he has us to help him if he is having a hard time," Sabo replied kindly. "Do you want to draw while we wait for him to wake up?" Luffy agreed, and the two drew pictures on sketch pads that came from the Spades poor injured ship. The four year old drew like your usual four year old would. Unintelligible, but Sabo complimented them anyways. Ace woke up only half an hour after he fell asleep, and luckily didn't hallucinate. Maybe Luffy had some other power to repel bad dreams? If so, then Ace was grateful for it.
The teen sat up and yawned, slightly embarrassed by the whole thing. "I'm awake," he said quietly, though Sabo and Luffy could hear. "Thanks, Lu. I didn't have any bad dreams," Ace told him, ruffling his hair.
"We're gonna all go take a bath, now," Sabo announced. Ace nodded and grabbed a wad of clean clothes to change into after done bathing. Luffy cheered happily, liking the massive bathtub and bathing with his brothers.
What they hadn't been counting on was other people being there. Ace and Sabo were thoroughly uncomfortable bathing with strangers. Ace held Luffy back from undressing and running into the water. "What's wrong? Aren't we gonna take a bath?" Luffy wondered, confused. His voice brought attention to the three, awkwardly standing in front of at least a dozen naked strangers. Both teens' faces were bright red. Someone took pity on them.
"Would you like to use the more private bathroom?" a random pirate asked. Sabo nodded and thanked the man, looking away as he got out and dressed to lead them to a more secluded bath. "This one isn't used much, but it still works. It has a habit of overflowing, but hopefully it won't with you three. Your crew already left the bathhouse, by the way. Just thought you should know."
"Thanks," Ace mumbled. The handles to the bath squeaked obnoxiously, and cold water came out of the tap. Luffy was wandering around the room, half clothed, looking for bubbles or some soaps and hair products. He couldn't reach the cabinet that he could smell soap from, so he made a wooden box and climbed on top of that to reach the cupboard's handle.
He came back a few minutes later, arms full of soaps and shampoos. Sadly, he couldn't find any bubbles. "I found stuff!" he declared and dumped the products into the rising bath water. He discarded the rest of his clothes and jumped into the tub, making some waves. Ace was last to enter, and sat in the more shallow areas. He wished he could swim with Sabo and Luffy, but this was the price he paid for being a devil fruit user.
"Watch!" Luffy suddenly shouted as he made his hands float on the water's surface and had foamy bubbles erupt out of his hands. It soon enveloped the entire tub and over flowed over the sides and onto the tile.
Neither Ace nor Sabo told him not to. After all, it would disappear in a little while. Luffy flailed around in the bubbles, laughing loudly. Sabo parted the bubbles around him and waded to the side of the tub and rested up against it next to Ace. Luffy continued to use his mysterious powers and soon the tub was full of bath toys. It was too bad the illusions didn't last, or else they could have endless amounts of money and resources.
Sabo noticed that Ace was looking down, staring at the foamy water in front of him, trusting Sabo to keep his eyes on their little brother, who was playing with all of his new, temporary toys. "Don't feel bad, Ace. Deuce was right. Look at Luffy. He has all these restraints but still lives happily," Sabo tried to convince. Ace gave him a frown.
"Deuce meant well, but Luffy and my case are completely different, and in no way comparable. Luffy is four. I'm the captain, older brother. I gotta look out for you and Lu, but now I have this… this stupid problem which will mess with all of the good things we have built in the past two years," Ace grumbled. Sabo sighed.
Sabo was never fond of Ace's pessimism, even before Luffy was born or even conceived. Ace was never the glass half full one of the family. It got a lot worse after what happened with Luffy's birth, but when Lu learned to talk, Ace got much happier. Even when they were on the sea, struggling to afford anything, Ace was happy. Now, the ship's condition and his new health problems were dragging him down. Well, Sabo wouldn't let it.
"You don't have a terminal illness, okay? You aren't going to die just because you get tired more than you did before. And it's a good thing we have two captains, right? You don't have to shoulder all the responsibility. Besides, we have a good crew that we can trust to protect Luffy if the need ever arises. Stop beating yourself up about something you didn't cause and quit moping. It's bothering the crew and Luffy." Ace flinched after hearing he was bothering Luffy with his behavior. Sabo knew it was a low blow. But he wanted Ace to get a grip. Plus, it really was troubling Luffy, regardless of whether he showed it all of the time or not.
Said vampire waded over to them to show all of his new, temporary toys off. "Very cool, Lu. You're getting the hang of your new powers very fast. Remember when Ace got his power and kept catching the deck on fire?" Sabo teased. Ace weakly shoved his arm, drained from the water he was sitting in.
Sabo began to wash Luffy's hair as the boy played with the bubbles that hadn't dissipated yet and were still very foamy, unlike a regular bubble bath would be. Luffy hummed to himself while he was being washed. "I like the peoples here," he suddenly declared. "They helped Ace, an' I get to be with Ace and Sabo at the same time!"
Ace and Sabo froze. "Don't you want to go home, Lu? Back to our ship?" Luffy thought for a moment, not sure what the answer was.
"Hum… I like new people and the big place and being with Ace and Sabo, but I miss my room. But, as long as I get to be with Ace and Sabo, I'm happy. I just wanna meet new people more," Luffy answered. "I like being with you and our family most of all. I never got to see them before, all at the same time," Luffy replied with a bright smile.
Sabo smiled at this, but noticed Ace looked extremely uncomfortable, but was trying to hide his feelings behind a strained smile. Luffy didn't notice, but Sabo definitely did. He let out a tiny sigh, but distracted Luffy by asking for him to clean his hair, and so Luffy thoroughly scrubbed Sabo's hair. A little too hard for comfort, but not painful, so Sabo didn't stop him.
Ace was still moping, slowly washing his own hair, thinking about things his family wouldn't want him to. Luffy liked these people, and this ship. What if he'd rather be with the Whitebeards and not the Spades? And if Luffy wanted to stay with the Whitebeards, they would let Sabo stay as well, no doubt. But… what about Ace? What if they knew what he'd done? That he'd killed two people. Both of his parents no matter how much he hated his biological father. Ace stabbed both of them to death with a broken broom stick.
With a crew that clearly has strong familial bonds, would Ace be welcome after he murdered his own and left him and his brothers to be orphans? Sabo had told him not to kill Makino. Maybe they could have gotten Lu away, and let Makino change and they could have waited it out for her to get control. Luffy would have a mother to grow up with and be loved.
Ace took that away. Would Luffy hate him if he knew? He'd never tell him. He couldn't imagine Luffy hating him. He was startled out of his brooding thoughts when all of the bubbles disappeared, the conjured toys leaving not long after. Luffy didn't grow upset with it, just had a little pout before moving on. When he started to shiver, Sabo decided that it was getting too cold in the tub and they left. Ace couldn't tell the water was getting cold, as it was impossible for him to grow cold or hot at all due to his devil fruit.
The three brothers weren't unprepared but were also surprised when Thatch met them in the hall, Izo following. Sabo politely asked if they needed something, before Izo crouched and spoke to Luffy.
"Would you like to play dress up, Luffy?" Izo asked sweetly.
"Dress up?" Luffy asked, cocking his head. He'd never played something called "dress up". So, Izo explained that it was putting on many outfits. "I've made many costumes for you to try on. It will be fun!"
"And I've made you some yummy dessert. Have you ever had chocolate cake with glazed juice on it?" Thatch asked with a grin. Sabo and Ace couldn't help but think that that sounded disgusting.
"I wanna try!" Luffy cheered. He liked chocolate, and his juice was yummy, too, so that dessert must be super delicious.
"Do you want to play dress up before or after your cake?" Luffy, predictably, wanted the cake first, as soon as possible. On the group's way to the galley, Thatch explained to the co-captains that he made some regular cake for them as well, as he wouldn't leave them out while Luffy had delicious cake. "I can give Jojo the recipe for them if you like the taste."
Before Ace and Sabo could stop Luffy from saying anything, the boy babbled about the toys and bubbles he'd made in the bath tub, which was super big and fun to play in. It was a lot bigger than the one on his home ship, so he got to bathe with his big brothers.
Thatch hadn't heard about Luffy being the one to conjure all of the puppies and strange illusion that had overtaken the ship not long ago. He was surprised by it, but didn't give that fact away. He wasn't angry about it or anything, just amazed. He just didn't want to make Ace and Sabo uneasy by giving away the fact he hadn't known about it before then.
"You guys used the old bathhouse?" Izo asked curiously. He noticed both Ace and Sabo had pink cheeks, and smirked behind his hand. "Were you uncomfortable bathing with strangers?" he almost teased.
"Shut up," Ace grumbled irritably. "We barely know anyone here. Besides, we don't want full grown strangers bathing with a child," Ace added more quietly, even though Luffy still had good hearing. Though, he was talking with Thatch more now, not paying much attention to Izo and his brother's conversation.
They reached the galley, where there were some vampires and humans, mingling around. They'd passed a few pirates in the halls, but they paid little attention to the group. Ace and Sabo were glad the pirates weren't all wanting to touch Luffy to feel the good feeling he gave off. Luffy may like lots of physical contact, but his big brothers wouldn't allow him doing so with complete strangers.
With someone like these two or Marco, Ace and Sabo trusted them a bit more than everyone else, as they'd spent the most time with those three, and Marco had already proven himself dependable when he returned the wandering Luffy back to Ace.
Marco was a good guy, Ace thought in the back of his head. Then, he switched 180 degrees and thought about the fact that he was a vampire. A very old one. How many humans had he killed? But, could Ace really talk, as he was a murderer himself? He felt so conflicted.
When the three brothers sat at their usual barstools, they were served the cake, which was delicious to all of them. So moist and spongy and wonderful. The glazed blood on Luffy's looked like blood frosting, and the teens wondered how it was made, and that the variety of blood dishes made was impressive.
"Can any of the full vampires eat this?" Sabo wondered, gesturing to Luffy's rapidly disappearing slice of cake.
"No, that's why it's fun cooking for Luffy. I get to make new food that no one else on this ship can eat," Thatch replied. When Luffy thrusted his empty plate into the air, asking for seconds, Sabo was the one to stop him.
"No more sugar tonight, Lu," Sabo said, earning a pout. But, Luffy nodded. "I'm sure you can have some more tomorrow night," the big brother assured, getting an affirmation from Thatch. After Luffy's face was wiped off chocolate, he jumped off the stool and asked Izo when it was dress up time. Said pirate grinned and lead Luffy through the ship to the dressing room that the seamsters made the clothes in.
Many of the clothes worn by the Whitebeards were made on the ship. After all, clothes often became damaged by battles or the wear and tear of being pirates, so replacement clothes were made for them, as they didn't always have access to a town with a clothing store.
Izo and Thatch had been coming up with clothing ideas for the boy, since he seemed to only wear pyjama-like clothes, and they just knew the boy would be adorable in anything they put him in. Ace and Sabo followed, visibly uncomfortable. What kind of outfits were these pirates planning on making the kid wear?
What they didn't know was that the whole ship had been doing a poll on what clothes to make Luffy. Since the brothers stayed with themselves so much when they were active, they never caught on. Even their own crew had voted. Izo and his division had been quite busy.
When the group reached the dressingroom, Ace and Sabo were shocked by the sheer amount of outfits that Luffy was to try on. It must have taken a very long time to make all of them, and the brothers could recognize some of the clothing as miniature versions of some of the commanders' outfits. They also saw a camera-snail was set up in the corner. What was this, some sort of fashion show?
The two wanted to withdraw Luffy, but he was excited to see all of the costumes made for him to try. Deuce had to be involved in this, as he was the one to repair clothes, and had all of Luffy's dimensions. Traitor. Not even telling them about this. Ace would have a talk with his crew. They had to all be in on this, as one of the outfits for Luffy to try on was Sparky's!
Predictably, Luffy needed help with dressing in some of the outfits. Like Haruta's and the chef outfit he couldn't manage to get on by himself. For each outfit Luffy tried on, he'd run out of the stall and pose. Ace and Sabo were just happy he was having fun. Izo and Thatch did seem like good people.
The piece of clothing Ace was most fond of was the captain's coat that had been made for him. It wasn't the same quality of Whitebeard's, but it was made well. Luffy wanted to keep all of the clothes, and of course he could, as it wasn't as if the ship had another four year old to give all of these clothes to.
But then, Izo gave both Ace and Sabo a smirk and pulled out the final two outfits. Both were a replica of one of the brothers' outfits. Equipped with the top hat, though Ace's hat was too unique to recreate. Luffy thought it was so cool to match with Sabo, and asked for a picture with Sabo. Luffy looked tiny in Ace's outfit, which was just regular black shorts and black socks, since shoes were more difficult to make than clothes.
Luffy was very skinny and small for his age, so being shirtless just looked strange. When he began to yawn tiredly, Ace and Sabo helped the sleepy boy change into his original clothes. There was a pile of printed photos next to the camera snail that Izo and Thatch would no doubt show around the ship for everyone. After Luffy ate his dinner, and Ace and Sabo's breakfast, Ace carried Luffy to their room. Zeno and Sparky were both getting ready for bed. Sabo and Ace wondered where they went during the day. What everyone did during the day when they weren't with the brothers.
Part of the two captains missed seeing them all the time on their tiny ship. They wanted it to be repaired already so they could be on their way. They weren't used to so many people, even at night when there were fewer. They had been all alone with each other and their mom for so long, and then two years of isolation while hiding Luffy away from the others on their island.
Ace said nothing about it, but he was growing steadily more uneasy as the days passed and his crew was with the others. Did they prefer Whitebeard's crew? Ace and Sabo were captains, but still teenagers. Did their crew find Whitebeard and his commanders' ages more… reliable than two teens who'd only been sailing one year when they first joined. Whitebeard had been a pirate for a long time. Did they prefer him?
He couldn't let the worry leave him as he laid down in bed next to Luffy, who was very sleepy and had his thumb in his mouth. Luffy seemed clueless most of the time. Innocent and unaware of the big bad world that Ace and Sabo kept him safe from, but sometimes he really knew his brothers. The boy tapped Ace's head and said, "No bad dreams or thoughts." Ace smiled warmly at him.
"Thanks, Lu."
Though, Ace wasn't the one who needed to be told not to have a bad dream.