Authors' Note: Hey everyone! Hope you're enjoying the summer, while it lasts ;) Here's Chapter Eighteen! Enjoy!
Review Responses:
Jordansdevil: Yes, he definitely does. No one handles Lu better (except maybe Sabo). Thanks for the review!
yukino76: Yep, you always gotta watch out for the small, cute ones. They'll getcha. Hope you like the chapter! ;)
B.A Victoria: Thank you so much! They are indeed adorable and we love them XD
WARNINGS:
- Blobfish
- Onesies
- Cuddles
- Suspicious Persons
- Pouting
- Some violence
KATAKURI'S POV
"HA! I KNEW IT WOULD BE ME!" Cracker exclaimed happily as he pulled the marked paper from the hat. Katakuri groaned, knowing the movie for the monthly family movie night would be something quite obscure and most likely boring.
"YOU JERKS TRIED TO HIDE IT, BUT I FOUND IT! MY BLOBFISH DOCUMENTARY!" Cracker yelled as he waved his winnings around in his siblings' faces.
"...I thought I burned that…darn…" Katakuri thought, disappointed in himself for missing one of Cracker's unfortunate movies.
The next few minutes consisted of all of the family members changing into their respective sleepwear. Katakuri decided to wear a simple grey t-shirt and navy sweatpants. As they all crowded together on the couches in the media room, Katakuri looked around for the familiar raven hair and fluffy tail.
"Where's Luffy?" He thought as he made himself comfortable next to a suspiciously smiley Brulee.
"KURI! I didn't know you had a cool movie room!" Katakuri's eyes widened as Luffy bounded into the room, and plopped himself down in the man's lap. Of course, Katakuri's current concern was not where the boy was sitting, it was what he was wearing. The kid was dressed in what could only be described as a cinnamon twist donut onesie. Now, Brulee's smug look made sense.
"L-luffy, what are you wearing!?" The boy tilted his head, causing the hood to flop over a bit.
"I'm wearing my jammies, Kuri. Do you not like them?" Katakuri could hear Cracker trying to stifle a laugh while the rest of his siblings suddenly found the TV very interesting.
"Yes, I do like them. Very much. Did you receive them from Brulee?" The man sneaked a glance to his sister who was discussing the impressive properties of a blobfish with Mont D'or.
"Yep! She said you would like them, and they're super comfy! Why don't you have one, Kuri? I'm sure Brulee can make you one!" Katakuri stopped glances, and turned his entire body to glare at his sister, who only smiled.
"Of course, brother. I will have a matching one made in, say, a week?" The man buried his face in his hand and grumbled,
"Just start the darn movie." As expected, Cracker's choice of films really sucked and most of the siblings fell asleep in the first thirty minutes. Katakuri fought to stay awake, and Luffy turned his shoulder into a pillow within ten minutes. Brulee stood and approached with a blanket in hand that the man took gladly.
"You know, Luffy was very excited to show you his onesie. How fortunate, for you, that your reaction was so positive." Sometimes, his sister scared him. Katakuri sighed and readjusted the snoozing boy on his lap.
"Good night, Brulee." His sister held up a mug of coffee.
"I'm not going to bed just yet. Not until Cracker finally loses interest in the blobfish." Eventually, the soothing motion of Luffy's breathing, and the boring narration of the documentary, lulled Katakuri into a peaceful slumber.
When the man awoke, he was met with Luffy's drooling face, the boy's body splayed wildly in every direction. Katakuri gently removed the kid from his chest and placed him on the couch where some of his other siblings still slept. He then, stumbled into the kitchen, where Brulee had a cup of hot coffee waiting for him.
"Sleep well?" She asked lightly, before continuing, "Also, I took the liberty of having this printed for you. You're welcome." Katakuri took the picture and almost spit his coffee all over his sister. The photo was of himself and Luffy sleeping soundly together from the night before.
"Brulee… when did she…?"
Still, the man didn't complain and folded the picture so it would be small enough to put in his wallet. As Katakuri sat with Brulee and sipped his drink in silence, he thought about how Luffy would be leaving soon. With his transformations finally stabilizing, there was no reason for him to stay. Except that the man really wanted him to.
LUFFY'S POV
Luffy was confused. He'd been wandering around Kuri's house for awhile now, and couldn't find anyone. Normally, the home was always bustling with activity, but not today. Everyone avoided him and he was pretty sure, something was going on.
"Ah, Luffy." The boy's ears perked up and he turned to face Brulee who had called him. "Katakuri needs you in the backyard. Why don't we go and see what he wants, hmmmm?" Luffy smiled brightly, nodded, and trotted off with his tail swishing behind him.
To his surprise, when he walked out the back door, there was a loud,
"SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LUFFY!" The boy gaped as he took in the completely full backyard. He saw Kuri, along with all of his siblings, who were all smiling at him. But also, to his surprise, he saw his brothers along with Thatch and Marco, who looked a bit uncomfortable, but happy nonetheless. And, next to them, was Zoro who was holding Sanji the puppy under one arm.
"I-I… w-what?" Luffy stuttered, still in shock. Kuri walked up and put a hand on his shoulder.
"It's your birthday party, Luffy." The boy glanced up at the large man, his eyes watering.
"B-but, my birthdays not important…" Kuri pulled him into a bone crushing hug.
"Your birthday is always important. Look how many people came to celebrate you." Luffy sniffled and looked around again at his friends, new and old, and his family, along with all the decorations and presents. Tears started to fall down his face and he tried to hide it by burying himself in Kuri's massive scarf.
Never before had Luffy felt so loved and appreciated. So many people came and hugged him, even Zoro. After having cake and donuts, it was time for presents. From Brulee, Luffy received a smaller version of Kuri's scarf, which he immediately cuddled with. Ace gave him a gift card to his favorite meat shop while Sabo give him a receipt that proved this month's rent had been paid in full.
He received a lot of food from Kuri's family and Cracker gave him the strangest stuffed animal ever (a blobby, apparently), but he thought it was adorable. Amazingly enough, Kuri's neighbors, Franky and Robin, stopped by with a sausage casserole, accompanied by a very bored looking leopard that Luffy immediately latched onto and hugged, despite intense protesting from Ace and Sabo.
As the party was winding down, Kuri pulled him aside and handed him a beautifully wrapped box. Smiling widely, Luffy ripped the paper off and pulled out a familiar choker.
"I had it re-done for you as a true necklace since you loved it so much." The boy held up the choker with the straw hat charm on it and bounced on his heels.
"I love it, Kuri! You're the best!" Luffy exclaimed as he hugged the man around his neck, making sure to pull his scarf down enough to see his scar so that he could nuzzle his face against the rough stitches. When he pulled back, the boy thrust the choker in Kuri's face.
"Will you help me put it on?" The man smiled and nodded before assisting Luffy in securing the necklace. Raising a hand to gently touch the charm, the boy leaned close to Kuri and purred, happy when his friend pulled him close.
What a great day.
KATAKURI'S POV
Finally, the time came for Luffy to return to his normal life with his brothers. Helping the boy pack had been more difficult than he thought.
"Kuri, can you hold Sunny for me while I bring this bag to the car?" The man nodded numbly and clutched the stuffed lion to his chest, somewhat depressed. It was sinking in that his cat… er… Luffy… was going home, and that home was not here.
A few minutes later, he closed the trunk on Fire Fist's car and turned to Luffy.
"Um…. do well in school…. And… uh…" The boy didn't let him finish his pathetic excuse for a goodbye as he leapt into his arms and hugged him tightly.
"Thanks, Kuri, for everything! I'll come and visit all the time!" Katakuri smiled and hugged the boy back tightly, not wanting to let go.
"You ready, Lu?" Blondie asked, "We need to check into the hotel before noon." The boy nodded, but didn't let go of Katakuri. To the man's surprise, Luffy pecked him lightly on the cheek. The mob boss felt a blush spread across his face and he tightened his arms even more, ignoring the shocked glares he was receiving from Luffy's brothers.
"See you later, Kuri." The cat-boy said softly, "Make sure you don't forget me!" Katakuri chuckled at that.
"Who could forget you?" The kid smiled widely before leaping down and scrambling around his fuming brothers to slide into the back seat.
Twenty minutes later, Katakuri still stood on the sidewalk, gazing down the street.
"Uh, Brother? Please come inside." Brulee said somewhat confused, "The neighbors are starting to call." Without responding, the large man returned inside and proceeded to sulk.
"...I miss him…"
UNKNOWN POV
The suspicious figure watched the red car pull away from Dogtooth's base and immediately dialed the boss.
"Sir, they've left. Is the plan a go?"
"Do what you must. Remember, this is your last chance to redeem yourselves. Bring back the boy, or forfeit your lives." The man gulped nervously as he glanced around to the "backup".
"W-we won't fail again, sir."
LUFFY'S POV
Luffy carefully opened the door to the hotel room, trying not to wake any of the occupants. As soon as they had arrived, his brothers, Marco, Thatch, Zoro, and puppy Sanji, had insisted on having a celebration of his return. Now, hours later, he was the only one still awake, the others having drunk a little too much.
Closing the door softly, and chuckling a little at how loud Thatch was snoring, Luffy went in search of a vending machine. As he walked down the hallway, the boy couldn't help but think about when he would see Kuri next. First, he would need to get his life back together, but then, he would head straight back and hug him.
His thoughts were interrupted as he found his target and began to fish coins out of his pocket. Suddenly, Luffy's ears perked up and his senses alerted him that something was… wrong. Spinning around, he smashed his attacker's face into the wall, inadvertently creating a massive crater in the nice wallpaper. Jumping backwards, Luffy's eyes darted around as he marked five suspicious individuals rushing at him with various weapons.
Of course, they were much too slow.
It was a simple thing, to dodge their pathetic attacks and knock them unconscious with a few well placed kicks and punches. Panting slightly, Luffy turned to return to the room, but was thrown backwards when a hand grabbed the back of his shirt. Slightly dazed, the boy looked up at the newcomer, amazed at how large his neck was.
His new assailants, numbering about eight, proved to be more troublesome than the previous wave. They were much larger and could take more hits than their predecessors. After knocking out five of them, and growing tired, Luffy rushed for the nearest enemy, only to be surprised when the man sidestepped and caught him in a headlock.
Before he could react, one of his comrades thrust a black object into his side, and then all Luffy knew was pain. Screaming, the boy convulsed as electricity surged through his body.
"Shut him up!" Someone ordered, and the last thing the boy saw was an elbow coming towards his face.