An appearance of Dark Luffy! Enjoy~
Over the next three days, Luffy continued to be extremely awkward with everyone on the ship besides Ace, who payed attention to him when Luffy was okay with it. They hadn't talked about Dark Luffy at all, since he was awake a lot of the time due to him now feeling stressed after hearing the next island was a little over two weeks away.
Luffy did his best to stay away from Marco and Whitebeard, and Ace tried to keep them not in the same room, and wasn't looking suspicious at all. Luffy had had another panic attack, but not everyone saw it since he went to hide in a closet he'd found once Dark Luffy started berating him with insults and commands Luffy couldn't bring himself to do.
Things had never been worse for Luffy. He was constantly so stressed he was on the verge of vomiting multiple times. He felt sick and so tired. He felt insecure while Dark Luffy laughed at him or yelled at him to grow up and stop being a baby. That it didn't matter if Luffy was a little kid because he had Dark Luffy inside of him, and he hated kids.
Dark Luffy didn't grow suspicious even when Ace was giving him understanding looks every time Luffy visibly cringed or grimaced, looking utterly miserable. The others just thought he was extremely socially awkward and suffered from intense anxiety.
However, one person was noticing how strange Luffy acted, and how his actions and the way he moved. Luffy didn't just suffer from anxiety. There was something deeper wrong with him, and he could see that Ace knew more than he was letting on. Did the child talk to him about something? Whitebeard payed attention to Ace and Luffy whenever they were near, and saw Ace pat Luffy's shoulder comfortingly when Luffy even made the slightest pained twitch on his face.
Whitebeard had considered Luffy had a mental illness, maybe schizophrenia, but with the way Ace interacted with him, it was not a mental illness.
Finally, Dark Luffy was messing with Luffy's head, absolutely fed up with Luffy's mindset and perpetual fear. He pretended to leave, to make Luffy calm the hell down. It was hard for Dark Luffy to conceal his feelings when Marco walked past. Luffy was heading to Ace, positive Dark Luffy was asleep.
He found Ace in his room reading, the door opened just a little bit. Luffy knocked his small hand on the open door. Ace looked up and smiled.
"He's gone," Luffy said quietly. Ace told him to come on in and lock the door behind him. Luffy walked to Ace's big bed and sat on it. "... He's getting really stressed. I don't know what to do. He's never gotten like this," Luffy mumbled, but loud enough for Ace to hear. Ace stood and walked over to the young boy and rubbed his hand on his upper back.
"Is he still terrified of pops and Marco?" Luffy nodded, looking at his hands.
"Every time I see them, my heart beats really fast and I feel like I'm going to pass out, and then he gets mad at me about it, even though it's his fault-" Luffy stopped talking with a horrified face.
"Talking about me behind my back, Luffy?" Luffy began to breathe quickly.
Ace looked angry and guarded when Luffy began to talk to himself. The monster was back. "I- Ace won't tell anyone, he promised," Luffy said quickly, still breathing quickly. "I thought you were asleep… I- I just needed someone to talk to!"
"You can always talk to me you know. I'm always here to help you," the voice in Luffy's head taunted.
"No! You always kill people and are mean to me," Luffy mumbled, but he felt the darkness clouding his head, and soon things were black, and he was gone.
Ace was startled by the blast of the most evil feeling haki he'd ever encountered. It gave him the chills, and no doubt alerted the whole crew.
"So, has Luffy been talking to you about me too much?" Luffy's voice said, sounding smug and just wrong. "I can't let that go. You'll have to die. Sorry about that," the evil thing that had been ruining Luffy said.
"Yes, he has been talking to me a lot. And you can't kill me. I've never told Luffy how to. Apparently, you werent listening when I told him I could easily beat you. Leave his body, now and bring him back!" Ace said angrily.
"He's in here somewhere. He won't remember this though, so if I kill his only friend, at least he won't remember it," Dark Luffy said, in a cruel voice. "And he doesn't know what I can do." Luffy's fingers turned sharp and his pupils grew. His body swiped at Ace, trying to slice his throat quickly, so the man couldn't call for help, not that Ace was going to.
Luffy's face scowled when his fingers went right through Ace's fire body. "Hmm. Well that's new," Dark Luffy said with a curious look on. He knew he had the upper hand, even if he couldn't kill Ace.
Ace's hands turned into flames as he approached the little possessed boy.
"Ah ah. Would you hurt poor little Luffy's body?" Dark Luffy taunted, causing Ace to pause and frown. But then he continued to walk with the fire flickering on his palms and fingers.
"Luffy would understand," Ace said grimly, making Dark Luffy's eyes widen. He knew this man would hurt him, regardless of who this body belonged to. And if he got hurt, Dark Luffy would leave and Luffy would come back. The possessed angel darted around Ace and kicked through the wooden wall and into the hallway. He wasn't surprised with all of the people who were heading for Ace's room, where the alarming haki was coming from.
But, as Luffy pushed his way through the crowd, he made everyone flinch as his haki touched them. It felt like a cold burn. Then they saw Ace chasing after him, looking angry, fire flickering off of him. His brothers called for him, asking what was going on, but Ace ignored them. There was no time to explain, he had to get Luffy before this monster did something Luffy couldn't live with.
His little friend had told him once that Dark Luffy only willingly left after appearing was when he killed someone. "Stop him!" Ace shouted as Luffy threw open the door to the deck.
Dark Luffy was about to get higher on the cabin than Ace so he could jump down and push the Devil Fruit user over the edge, killing him by making him drown. But Luffy was so distracted by preparing to ambush his chaser than he didn't notice the giant man who walked up behind him. Dark Luffy cried out angrily as Whitebeard's massive hand clamped around the little boy giving off disturbing haki.
"Let me go!" Luffy's voice shouted angrily. It sounded wrong coming from the mouth of the quiet and meek little kid. "You'll die after Ace if you don't release me!"
"What did you do with Luffy?" Whitebeard growled, suddenly terrifying the monster. Ace ran up the stairs and to his father and the captured Dark Luffy.
"He's gone," he taunted, trying to sound strong. But Ace glared at him and told the truth.
"He's being possessed, pops! Don't kill him, he'll go away from pain and Luffy will come back!" Ace yelled, wanting Whitebeard to be the one to hurt the boy. Ace didn't want to harm him, possessed or not.
Dark Luffy snarled at both men, looking like a cornered rabid animal, but also immensely afraid of Whitebeard. "Is that so?" Whitebeard questioned, glaring at the kid, making Dark Luffy's eyes winden. He tried to fight back by releasing more terrible haki that even Whitebeard wasn't immune to. Holding him like this stung his hand. The giant man began to tighten his hold, squashing Luffy's small frame.
"No!" Dark Luffy screamed angrily as he was painfully squeezed. Finally Luffy's eyes rolled into his head and he slumped back in the large hand, unconscious. Whitebeard relaxed his hand, giving the boy to Ace, who had his arms open for him. He stared at Luffy sadly. The powerful haki had disappeared when Dark Luffy had, and now he was just the six year old again. No feather turned black since no one had been killed, thankfully. Tears ran down from his closed eyes.
But now Luffy's secret was out. What would happen to him? What would the crew do? Everyone on the crew was now on the deck, confused with what had just happened. Ace brought Luffy closer to his chest and he walked past everyone and back into the interior. He snapped at people to stop staring at Luffy.
Ace brought Luffy to his room, knowing that they'd both be fine since Dark Luffy stayed away for awhile once he showed his face, taking over Luffy's body. Luffy had told him that. Luffy had been easily taken over, even after arguing with the evil creature. Was it some sort of demon? Would an exorcist help? But that didn't seem right to him. It was something else. He'd ask Luffy when he woke up.
And what would Ace tell him? Luffy said he never remembered what happened while Dark Luffy was in action. Should he tell the boy what happened? There were bound to be some bruises on him from pops squeezing him in his hand, so how was he supposed to make up a lie about that? And Luffy had to know that Dark Luffy had taken over.
What a messed up situation.
Whitebeard knocked on Ace's room's door softly a couple hours after the fire man had taken Luffy there. He knew the kid was in there because he knew how Ace had been treating the young boy. Almost like how a big brother would treat their little one. Ace obviously cared about Luffy, especially since he'd not harmed the boy even when he knew Dark Luffy would leave if he felt pain.
Luffy was sleeping in Ace's bed, tucked under the covers, which Ace sat a this desk, staring at the flat surface, lost in his thoughts until the captain knocked on the door. Ace got up to open it quietly, and step out into the hallway after looking at Luffy to make sure he was still asleep.
Marco was next to Whitebeard as well, both of them looking at Ace in a way that clearly told him they wanted answers. But Ace said nothing for a little bit.
"Please explain, Ace," the captain said in has deep, serious voice. "What happened to him?" Ace looked down, not wanting to say, but it was an order from his captain, and he had to follow it.
"Luffy told me he has a monster living inside of him. It takes over and kills people, and when he wakes up he doesn't remember any of it. Everytime Dark Luffy kills anyone, one of his feathers turns black," Ace explained unwillingly.
Marco frowned. "It that why he's so messed up all the time?" Ace frowned.
"It's not his fault he's been affected by trauma. Wouldn't you eventually be broken if a monster talked to you in your head all the time? Threatening Luffy to get him to follow the orders the monster gives? I know I'd be messed up," Ace told them, voice hard.
"Why didn't you tell us this?" Whitebeard asked. Ace frowned.
"Because Luffy asked me not to. Dark Luffy, which is what the thing's name is, didn't even know Luffy was talking to me. He only came out because he found out Luffy had been talking about him. This thing is slowly killing him by driving him mad." Ace was silent for a few moments. "Are you going to get rid of him?" he asked nervously. He really wanted to help Luffy.
"Not yet. There isn't really any place to drop him off, and we won't throw him overboard. And it would be hypocritical. I've said your blood doesn't matter, who you are as a person does. It's clearly not Luffy's fault this happens to him. And I know you would be furious if we were to get rid of him because of this," Whitebeard finished.
"Why is he so scared of us? He looks like he's gonna pee himself every time I look at him. Same with pops," Marco observed.
"He said Dark Luffy is afraid of both of you. That's why he's having panic attacks and under so much stress. He can feel the unease and fear by the monster. It makes him afraid of you two as well. Dark Luffy told him to be careful of you two," Ace confessed. He really didn't like telling them all about Luffy without his permission. He felt like he was betraying the boy. Why did he care so much about him? It was strange, and Marco and Whitebeard thought the same thing.
"Ace, why do you like him so much? You act like an older brother, but you've known him for only a couple days…" Marco said. Ace frowned, trying to come up with a reason. The only thing he could come up with that sounded right was that Luffy trusted him, and had opened up to the fire user.
"He trusts me. But he'll probably be upset with me telling you all this." Ace sighed. "I don't know why I care about him so much…" Ace sighed. "Can you tell the crew to not look at him like he's a crazed monster."
Whitebeard nodded. "I'll do it, but you know many won't be able to help it. We all felt that horrific burst of haki. Even made my skin tingle. They won't be able to help it, but I'll make them try their best. I won't tell them what you've told me. That doesn't need to spread around the crew."
Whitebeard turned to leave, but Marco stayed. "Tell him pops and I won't just attack him for no reason. And we won't kill him, even if he's in that evil state. Good luck," he added before turning and walking the same direction his father and captain had.
Just as Ace was about to open the bedroom door again, it creaked open by Luffy, who was looking confused. He didn't know how he got here. All he remembered was arguing with Dark Luffy. Maybe he fell asleep and was brought to bed. But there was no voice in his head. He knew what had to have happened.
Ace smiled down at him kindly. "Let's go back inside and we can talk," the man said, closing the door behind both of them. Luffy cringed as he sat on the bed. His sides, arms and legs hurt. He looked down at his arm and saw they were pink and red. They stung to touch.
"...What happened?" Luffy asked quietly, looking at his feet hanging over the side of the bed. Before Ace could answer, Luffy asked another question. "He came out, didn't he?" Neither needed clarification of who "he" was.
"Yeah, he did. But no one got hurt or killed. Pops caught you in his hand and squeezed until Dark Luffy was gone. You'll have some big bruises, but it was better than me burning you." He paused. "Everyone on the ship knows something happened to you. When he came out, this dangerous and terrible haki came off of you, and woke everyone up.
"I'm sorry, but I had to tell pops about some of what you told me. Marco told you to not be afraid of both of them. That they won't just harm you for no reason," Ace told him nicely. "I'm sorry about what happened. It's because you talked to me that he came out."
"No… I'm glad I talked to you. He pretended to be asleep, but he got mad when he heard us talk about him. He's gonna be mad everyone knows. That Whitebeard and Marco know…" Luffy looked miserable. "Do you regret picking me up now?" He was surprised when Ace answered immediately.
"No, I don't. I'm going to help you. I don't know how, but I'm going to help you no matter what. We just have to make sure you stay on this ship and don't run away." Luffy looked at him in awe before his face fell again and his miserable look returned.
"Everyone on this ship is going to die." He just sounded so detached. "You shoulda' killed me." Ace almost slapped him to try and shock him out of his depressing mood, but he didn't, and instead kneeled down in front of him and took his hands.
"No one on this ship would kill you. Now that we know pain will make him go away, it'd be easier to get rid of him without killing you in the process. You might get hurt, but it would be better than killing someone or everyone, right?" Ace asked patiently. The boy just nodded slowly. His stomach grumbled. Dark Luffy took a lot of energy on his rampage.
"Want to go get some food? I'm sure there aren't a lot of people in there for dinner yet," Ace said softly. Luffy nodded and got off the bed and walked to the bedroom door behind Ace. He surprised Ace by reaching up and holding his hand tightly. Ace didn't react other than to hold his hand back. He forgot sometimes that he was only six, because of how mature he acted by the horrors of his life. He felt so bad for him.
Ace stopped outside of the galley door, feeling a lot of the crew inside the large room. "I'll go in and get us something. There's a lot of people in there right now. What do you want to eat?"
"He takes up a lot of energy. So something that will give me energy? Like meat or something…?" Luffy asked, not wanting to be difficult.
"Sure. I'll be right back," Ace replied, planning on just going to make a sandwich with some meat and lettuce or something. Anything quick and simple since he wanted to get to Luffy and he also wasn't a good cook.
He could hear the meeting going on behind him in the dining area, everyone in a group and listening to Whitebeard explain only the necessities to know with dealing with Luffy and his dark partner inside of him.
He could hear some protesting the boy being on the ship after that bout of horrific haki that had given everyone the chills. But Ace was happy to hear more than one person countering their opinions. A lot of them had done a lot of bad things in their lives, and that Luffy didn't mean to.
They also brought up Ace's story. How he'd met Whitebeard only to kill him, yet eventually he became a dear friend and family member. They would just have to be a bit careful around him. But not shun or shame the boy. Others chimed in in agreement, making Ace smile as he walked out of the room with two sandwiches on a plate and some water.
Luffy was sitting across from the door against the wall, his knees pulled up. He wondered how angry Dark Luffy would be when he woke up. But at least right now Luffy knew the bad guy was asleep. When Ace came out, Luffy stood up and took his plate gratefully.
"Why don't we go outside?" Ace asked, leading Luffy through the halls after he agreed to go outside.
"Our chef, Thatch, could have made a lot better sandwiches, but he's injured right now, so nothing really tastes the same at the moment. You've never met him, but I'm sure he'd like you. Even if you have a problem, I think he'd be a good guy about it," Ace said between bites of his simple sandwich.
"How'd he get hurt?" Luffy asked quietly. It was chilly outside, but it felt good and it was nice and quiet. No one was out besides him and Ace.
Ace's face turned into a scowl. "A former-crewmate tried to kill him for a Devil Fruit. His name was Teach, and he had been on the crew for a long time. But he committed the worst crime as a pirate and attacked his crewmate. Family member.
"If Thatch had died, I'd have gone after that asshole. But he lived and the Devil Fruit got stolen by the traitor. I can't believe none of us saw who he really was inside." Ace sighed. "But no one died, and that's what matters. Teach will get what's coming for him some day," he finished, also finishing his sandwich. Luffy ate his food much slower, trying to make it last longer, even though it wouldn't be enough food.
Ace changed the subject. "Do you have any siblings, Luffy?" the young man asked.
"I don't remember. I don't remember ever having a family. The first memory I have that I remember was when Dark Luffy showed up. I don't remember anything before that." Luffy looked at the slowly darkening sky. "He's been here for as long as I can remember," he said softly. "You'd think I would have gotten used to him since him being here is all I've known. But I hate him. Sometimes I dream about being normal. Having fun, having friends. Going places to explore, not to run away from a crime scene."
"When I was younger, I hated my life and myself like you do. My biological father was a criminal. The worst criminal of all time apparently. In my hometown, people would tell me that anyone who was the son of that man didn't deserve to live. I took out my stress by beating the shit out of people and stealing their money.
"I lived with bandits for awhile, but eventually, I left. I went out to sea, and had my own pirate crew. But in the end, I ended up here. It wasn't what I planned in life. Sailing under the flag of someone else," Ace said with a soft smile. "But it was the best choice I've ever made. The funny thing is that I first came to this ship to kill pops. And now I'm one of the main leaders here.
"I'm sure you'll find a place to go some day, where everything is better and you're free. There has to be some way or someone out there to get rid of Dark Luffy. Don't give up hope," Ace told him, bringing a very small smile to Luffy's sad face.
"...Thanks," Luffy said. They were quiet for a while after eating, staring at the ocean, and the moon as it came up into the sky and the stars came out.