Authors' Note: uh...greetings friends...this is Author Lu, the awkward one who never knows what to say in the authors' note...So many people like our story! It's so exciting! Anyway, here's the next chapter!

p.s. If anyone happens to be an amazing artist and wishes to do fanart for Outbreak, we would gratefully accept anything you did! :)

Review Responses:

Jordansdevil: Wow, you were the first one to review! We're so proud of you ;) Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for the feedback! (we love your profile pic btw, it's great)

Jui-Imouto-Chan: Hey Jui, how are you? 'cause we're really great after reading your review XD Katakuri will always be there, even if it means confronting overprotective Ace and Sabo...something we most certainly would not do out of fear for our lives. Thatch...his mind went into the gutter for a split second...shame on him, lol. Marco has too many siblings to care at this point. Luffy is Luffy...and was a bit preoccupied. Law...who knows...we haven't decided on a reaction yet, actually. For request...we suggest checking the end note ;)

Shellina123: Hello again! It means so much to us that you leave reviews! We appreciate every review that we get (thankfully, everyone has been very kind so far but we'd do our best to appreciate harsher reviews too lol) they build our confidence as writers. Luffy is truly adorable and we will never stop writing him as such! :) Much Love, FooandLu

Yukino76: Thanks for the review, glad you keep coming back! We'll get to see Law in this chapter actually. He'll have more screentime later on. Luffy is very safe. No one would be stupid enough to try and hurt him while he's in Kuri's care (ex:Flambe) :)

Final Syai Lunar Generation: We were getting worried about you actually, glad you're okay! XD Yeah, Kuri's a bit possessive but who wouldn't be...well, who isn't...when it comes to Luffy ;) Loved the review, see you next time!

Akdjhs: First of all...wow! We've never felt so appreciated in our lives! So...the reason your first review took a while to show up is that Author Foo forgot to approve it when it first appeared so sorry about that! Yep, Katakuri has quickly become our favorite character, he cares for Luffy more than he knows (or will admit). Yep, when Luffy turned human he did indeed still have the collar on but everyone was a bit too distracted to notice...thankfully. It's probably for the best that the fact that Luffy has been chipped is not mentioned for the time being...his bros would probably have an aneurism. We're glad you appreciate the changes in each character's perspective, we work hard to make sure they are authentic to the character who is speaking/thinking/observing. We feel like we can't properly address everything in your review, it was just so awesome! As for Jimbe...well...
(btw would you happen to be from Southern USA? We noticed, and appreciated, your repeated use of "y'all" as we are from that area XD )

Warnings:

- Mild Ace Angst (we're too mean to this guy...seriously...)
- Doffy is...off...should be concerned
- Vague Mihawk is vague
- Surprise visit
- Mild drug use
- Serious Thatch

LAW'S POV

The zoo, while having quite a few negative factors, also had some positive things, though Law hated to admit it. The food was nice, they never attempted to feed him bread at least (being a carnivore had its perks). Crocodile didn't seem to care that much, probably enjoying the lack of things to do as he lounged in the sun and endured the curious crowds. Kidd was having a great time, apparently bears were quite the attraction and he was very popular with the kids.

"What an idiot."

The one he was really worried about, though he'd never admit it if anyone asked, was his uncle. Even as a flamingo, he was always embroiled in trouble, spending most of his time in solitary confinement. The zookeepers were at a loss. It was unheard of for a flamingo to not want to be around its flock, even if it was a recent addition. The few times Law had seen him, Doffy had seemed...off… Law was very concerned about what would happen if...no...when they turned back. He refused to live the rest of his life so...fuzzy...and on display for the crowds of idiots that made their way through the zoo daily.

His thoughts were interrupted by one of the zoo's vets rolling him onto his other side and he remembered where he was.

"Oh...right, the weekly checkup." he sighed. Law glanced up at the tv, his only entertainment in the bland room, not that he was interested in the weather.

"Breaking news!" the announcer said suddenly, "We have just been given new information on one of the cases we have been following so closely in the past few weeks."

"Oh?" Law twisted his neck a bit to have a better view of the screen as the announcer continued,

"Police have released a statement concerning Mr. Monkey D. Luffy who was abducted from his home a few weeks ago. The young man was located yesterday afternoon and police assure us that he is safe and completely unharmed. As of yet, they have given us no details concerning the culprit or whether or not the victim has been able to return home. We will keep you updated as more information is released."

"Luffy-ya, you're safe! Thank the lord." Law breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a weight lift off of his shoulders as the screen showed a man being interviewed, the box underneath the picture declaring him a private investigator by the name of Dracule Mihawk.

"Mr. Mihawk, is there anything you might be able to tell us concerning the rescue that took place?" the reporter asked before a microphone was shoved in the man's face.

"I am unable to share any details." Mihawk said sternly, "Rest assured, the boy is fine and in no danger. He will return home as soon as he is able and police declare it safe for him to do so."

"Can you address the rumors that he was taken by the mob and was to be sold on the black market?" The man's expression soured,

"Rumors, nothing more." he said, apparently disgusted, "The culprit fled the scene and we are pursuing him at this moment. Whether or not he has connections to the mob has yet to be seen. No more questions."

"I get the feeling that he's lying." Law mused, "well, whatever the case, I am glad Luffy-ya is safe….now to figure out how to turn myself back into a human."

SMOKER'S POV

After a long night of patrolling and only three hours of sleep, Smoker was tired. He was on his third cup of coffee, which had done nothing to help the migraine he could feel building, and figured he would need another one...or three...when he got to the station. It was going to be a long day. With the MEs needing all of the help they could get, Smoker was left with nothing to do but patrol and attempt to keep the city relatively under control...or at least...not panicking. They had censored what they told the news in order to maintain some semblance of peace but the people were getting restless and suspicious. The citizens somehow always knew when they were being kept in the dark.

The gangs were being suspiciously quiet. Of course, Dogtooth had other things to be worried about so his activities were the least of Smoker's concerns. He still couldn't believe the kid had turned into a cat...seriously what was the world coming to? As for Doflamingo...who knew where he was. Smoker was beginning to suspect that the man had been turned into some rat and was just walking around the city somewhere...not that he cared that much since his absence meant less work for the police when there was so much else to worry about.

Smoker sighed and walked into the station where he was greeted enthusiastically by Tashigi,

"Good morning, Sir! Ho-"

"No. Tashigi, I am not having a good morning...or week...or month for that matter…" Smoker growled, interrupting her and stalking over to his desk, ignoring the new, hopefully-not-evil, intern that hovered nearby.

"Apologies, Sir." Tashigi answered, not offended in the slightest, "The MEs are looking for you. They requested that you make your way to the lab as soon as possible."

"Requested?" Smoker snorted, "Doctorine wouldn't request anything...she'd throw knives or something…"

"Alright," he said, standing and heading towards the door that led to the part of the building that held the lab, "Intern, make me some coffee and leave it on my desk. Tashigi...make sure he doesn't poison me."

"Yes, Sir!" the intern called after him.

"At least he's respectful." Smoker mused, walking quickly. He wanted to get this over with.

When he opened the door to the lab, he was not expecting to see a massive...fish...person?...sitting on the table calmly.

"Ah, Chase! Good to see you." the fishman said. Smoker's eyes widened

"Jimbei?!" he exclaimed, shocked, "What the heck happened?! You definitely didn't look like that yesterday!"

"Ah, well, I came to the city to help." Jimbei reasoned, "and they said this was the best way to help."

"By being a living science experiment?!" Smoker asked and Jimbei laughed,

"I don't mind it. I think I look rather...majestic! Did you know I'm part shark? That's quite exciting really." Smoker merely gaped at his friend for a moment before shutting his eyes and drawing a calming breath,

"Please tell me they've found a cure…"

"Nope." Doctorine said from the other side of the lab, "This was a complete and utter failure and we are no closer to curing it."

"You've been working on this for a while now, haven't you? Shouldn't you be closer to curing it?" Smoker asked, exasperated,

"We are closer, than when we started at least," Doctorine protested, "but this drug is unlike anything we've ever seen so we need more time than usual...turning people into animals and back again….it's not easy!" Smoker sighed,

"Alright, alright," he conceded, "Just...try to figure this out as fast as you can. The sooner we have a cure the better...I'd like to be able to have a cure on hand when we finally have to tell the public."

ACE'S POV

Ace woke up very well rested, around noon the day after the confrontation with Dogtooth, and was instantly suspicious. He stalked to the kitchen, hair sticking up wildly and glared at Marco and Thatch where they sat at the bar,

"Alright, one of you did something!"

"What are you talking about, Ace?" Marco asked, taking a sip of coffee.

"There's no way I would sleep as well as I did last night knowing that Luffy is still in Dogtooth's hands!" Ace informed him, noting that Thatch didn't even look up from his phone.

"Perhaps you simply trust Dogtooth more than you think," Marco mused. Thatch immediately scooted his chair away from the other man as Ace scowled at the blonde,

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Ace roared, "HE GRABBED ME BY THE THROAT!"

"You did call him a rapist, Ace." Sabo pointed out, walking into the kitchen, "and as for why you slept so well, I would assume that it's because Marco drugged you, as he did with me."

Ace dove at Marco, who simply stood to avoid the attack before taking another sip of his coffee.

"You were both so...tense...that you wouldn't have been able to sleep otherwise," Marco informed them, "You're welcome."

"Not to mention that if you two can't sleep you keep the rest of us up too!" Thatch put in helpfully,

"Yeah, yeah," Sabo said, forcing Ace to stop attacking Marco and take a seat, "What are we going to be doing today? Something about Luffy, I hope?"

That got Ace's attention.

"Yeah! We've gotta get him back!" he exclaimed, trying to jump out of his seat and glaring when Sabo pushed him back down, "We can't just let him stay there!"

Marco and Thatch exchanged glances and the blonde reclaimed his seat before he spoke,

"This is a...complicated situation, Ace,"

"We need to be mature in how we go about this," Thatch added, "One wrong move and we're looking at war. We, or rather, you already riled up Dogtooth more than we should've. We should count ourselves lucky that the man's temper is not as quick as yours."

"But-" Ace began but Marco shook his head,

"No, Ace." he interrupted, "You need to admit it. You really messed up. Your actions and words yesterday could...no, should have gotten us all killed. Take responsibility."

Ace was taken aback by the shame and pain that he felt at their words but he knew they were right. Dogtooth, as much as he hated to admit it, had been the better man in their confrontation. If their roles had been switched...he would have killed anyone that dared call him names or speak to him with such disrespect in his own home. Ace sighed, head dropping and refusing to meet anyone's gaze,

"I know...you're right...I was so worried about Luffy that I created a monster in my head that didn't actually exist...I made a mistake and risked everyone's lives. I'm sorry, really, I am." A low chuckle from Thatch drew Ace's eyes from the table to the small smile on the older man's face,

"Apology accepted!" he informed him and Marco sighed, though a half-smile flitted across his own face,

"You're young, Ace, you still have much to learn." he pointed out, "Thank you for your apology." the smile disappeared as he continued, "That being said, we will be dropping some of Luffy's things off at Dogtooth's today and you owe the man an apology as sincere as the one you just gave us." Ace drew back in shock, stuttering out an attempt to excuse himself from even thinking about the humiliating thing. Sabo slapped him on the back, grinning,

"Don't worry, Ace! You've got this!" he exclaimed. His grin fell when Marco gave him an unimpressed look,

"You're going too, Sabo." he informed him and the other man gaped,

"Me?! What did I do?!" he asked, horrified.

Marco didn't answer, merely raising an eyebrow, his eyes daring the younger man to begin making excuses. Sabo sighed,

"Of course...we'll go together, Ace…"

A few hours later, laden with bags of Luffy's clothing, snacks, and the textbooks that Sabo insisted they take, the two of them found themselves on Dogtooth's front porch, knocking on the door. They could feel Marco's and Thatch's stares as they watched from the car to ensure nothing bad happened but they didn't care too much as the door opened.

"What're you two doing here again?" Cracker asked glaring at the two of them, "I do believe that you were told not to return until you were called,"

"Yeah but," Ace began but Cracker cut him off,

"Can't even follow simple orders now?" he asked disdainfully,

"Look-" Sabo tried but the other man kept going,

"My big brother doesn't have the time for idiots like you. You're lucky you weren't shot on sight or taken down to the basement to stay for awhile, especially after how rude you were yesterday." Cracker sniffed, "You-"

"Cracker." Dogtooth's unamused voice sounded from somewhere behind his brother, "Just shut up and let them in."

"...of course." Cracker replied, frowning, "Please do come in," he stepped back and allowed the two inside, shutting the door firmly behind them before leading them down the hall and into what appeared to be Dogtooth's office.

Dogtooth himself sat behind a large desk, looking up from whatever he'd been reading and removing his reading glasses as they entered.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" he asked politely, "I haven't yet contacted you so there must be some...other reason you are here so soon?"

"Yes, we brought some of Lu's things that we thought he might be needing during his...stay...with you." Sabo said easily, making Ace jealous of his brother's calm demeanor.

"Oh?" Dogtooth said, "I am sure he will appreciate it. You can put it down on the floor. I will take it to him later."

The brothers heard the dismissal in his tone even as they turned to set their bags down but they knew they couldn't leave...not yet…

"...can't we just lie to Marco?" Ace wondered desperately as he and Sabo stood awkwardly in front of Dogtooth's desk. He hated feeling like a naughty school boy in the principal's office.

"Is there something else?" Dogtooth asked, studying the pair.

"Ace has something to say!" Sabo blurted, elbowing his brother while trying to keep an innocent look on his face.

"...traitor…" Ace muttered, elbowing him back. This would have devolved into a nearly silent argument and/or fist fight had Dogtooth not cleared his throat,

"Gentlemen, I don't have all day." he prompted them and they both straightened immediately.

"Well...we're here now...and we did mess up...and he is being disgustingly polite…" Ace reasoned, taking a deep breath before saying,

"I'm sorry." That got the other man's attention, his eyebrow raised in question before Ace continued, bowing deeply at the waist "I'm sorry for my actions and...losing my temper...and insulting you. Please forgive me."

"I also owe you an apology, Sir." Sabo said, and Ace could see him copying his bow out of the corner of his eye, "I should not have questioned your word or your honor, especially not in your own home after you had endeavored to be hospitable. Please accept my sincerest apologies."

"...how is he so good at this?" Ace thought, "It's that dang accent...makes everything sound sincere…"

For a moment Dogtooth was silent, though they could feel his gaze studying them thoughtfully before he said,

"I am glad that you recognized your misdeeds and I accept your apologies. Though, I would ask that you have a little faith in me. Your younger brother is perfectly safe in my house."

Ace and Sabo straightened as he continued,

"So tell me, what is it you've brought him?"

"Um...well, clothes mainly." Ace admitted, "We thought he might like to not have to wear your shirts like a dress every time he turned human." Dogtooth nodded at this so Ace continued, "We also brought some of his favorite snacks."

"Not that we think you're not feeding him enough," Sabo jumped in quickly, trying to avoid further insult, "but we should inform you that Lu has a metabolic disorder known as hyperthyroidism...basically he continuously feels hungry along with a few other symptoms, which is why the snacks are so important. We also brought all of his medications...you may need to be...er...firm with him...he doesn't like medicine."

"We hide it in his food a lot," Ace offered, "Well, Sabo does, I usually just shove the things down his throat."

"Uh...huh…" Dogtooth said, "...good to know…"

"Oh! Here are his textbooks." Sabo said, lifting one of the larger bags and plopping it onto Dogtooth's desk, "He's a little behind but I took the liberty of explaining...a version...of the situation to his professors. He'll be able to catch up in no time." Dogtooth reached into the bag and pulled out one of the textbooks,

"What exactly does he study to need so many books?" he asked, staring at the massive thing. Ace smiled proudly,

"Kinesiology!" Dogtooth looked up,

"You're kidding."

"No, believe it or not, Ace's telling the truth." Sabo put in, "Lu is smarter than he looks...when he puts his mind to it…now, I think that's all."

The two of them turned to leave but Ace stopped abruptly, turning back to Dogtooth,

"Oh, tell Lu that Sunny's in there too." he said and they left, as quickly as they could without appearing as though they were running away from the situation. Ace and Sabo both gave Marco a thumbs up and a large grin as they made their way to the car.

"Well, I'm glad that's over with." Thatch remarked as the two younger men climbed into the vehicle,

"Yes," Marco agreed, "Good job, both of you. Now that Luffy's safe, we do need to discuss what we're going to do next." The other three looked at him expectantly, waiting for his next words. Marco gave them a smirk,

"It's time we found out what's really going on in this city."

End Note: Author Foo here, don't you guys love how Marco always has to get the last word? He's very dramatic.

Anyway, we have a thing to tell you about...we are going to be posting another story! The idea is that it'll be a series of one shots in the Outbreak universe so if you have a request please let us know! We're up for writing anything that's not...explicit...we like to keep our writing PG-13 lol. The first one shot will be for one Jui-Imouto-Chan, who gave us a fantastic idea in a review (thank you for that!)

Once again, thank you all for reading this story!