A/N: Hey guys! Just wanted everyone to know that schools starting back up this week, so my normal Sunday/Monday updating will probably change to a little later, but I'll try my best to keep it the same! Like I said in the first chapter, I hope to never take longer then two weeks to update, and if I do I'll be sure to make an update telling you guys what's happening so you don't think I went and died or anything. Anyways, without further ado, lets get onto the chapter I know many of you have been waiting for!
P.S. Once again, thanks a million for the reviews, favorites, and followers! I still haven't thanked you all enough for nearly 50 reviews, over 160 favorites, and over 200 follows!
Nami, Usopp, Chopper, Robin, Brook, Franky. The six of them were sitting in the galley, their breakfast long gone and the silence deafening. It was strange, not having their childish Captain shouting and bouncing all over the place, or to not hear Zoro and Sanji fighting over something stupid like who defeated more sea kings.
Nami rested her head on her arms, looking at the log pose, the middle one showing that they were heading in the right direction towards the island, the other two pointing to the far left and right. She sighed for the hundredth time since finishing her food and glanced around the room.
Usopp was playing cards with Chopper and Franky, getting mad when he lost and accusing Franky of cheating. Franky and Chopper merely laughed, Chopper saying that he had been close to winning and Franky denying the accusations of him cheating, distracting both Chopper and Usopp when he told them to push his nose, changing his hair to a giant mohawk and immediately awing his captive audience. Nami shook her head at the three, continuing her scan of the room.
Robin was quietly reading beside her, though she had a small smile on her face, no doubt listening to the conversation that had just taken place in front of them. A few feet away from them was Brook, playing a soft melody on his violin, soothing everyone with the peaceful tune.
Nami closed her eyes, basking in the song, trying to calm down, but with your friends randomly disappearing it was a little unnerving. A sudden wave of exhaustion washed over her and her eyelids felt too heavy to open back up, but she had to. She had to make sure they safely made it to land. She had to make sure the rest of her friends weren't taken. She had to stay awake, alert, but the exhaustion was beginning to win, and any thought of opening her eyes drifted away, a feeling of warmth settling inside her.
Robin had looked up from her book, sensing something was wrong. Looking over at Nami she noticed the orange haired girl had fallen asleep, and further examination showed that Usopp and Chopper had as well.
"Whoa, Chopper-bro, Usopp-bro, what happened?!" Franky asked, having watched the two suddenly slump over and pass out.
"It seems Nami-San has fallen asleep as well." Brook added, abruptly stopping his song.
"They're shimmering." Robin noted in interest. The three stared, all starting to notice the faint shimmer surrounding the passed out members. Franky went to lift Chopper up, only for his hands to faze through the reindeer.
"That was unexpected." Brook said in concern. Robin frowned, noticing that they were slowly fading away.
"This could be what happened to Zoro, Sanji and Luffy." She said.
"Is it a devil fruit?" Franky asked. She shrugged.
"I would have to look, but I don't know what kind of devil fruit would do this. We checked the whole ship, no one was aboard to even use a devil fruit." Robin stated calmly.
"Where are they going?" Brook asked, worried as his nakama slowly faded away.
"I don't know that either. We should go to the library, they've already disappeared." Robin noted with a hint of sadness in her tone. She was worried for her friends, her family, but she wasn't going to show it, she was going to find answers. Franky and Brook nodded, frowns on everyone's faces as they slowly but surely made their way to the library, careful to make sure that there really was no one on board.
It was deathly silent.
So silent, in fact, that you would be able to hear someone whispering below deck.
The future crew sat tensely, eyes closed as memories of the day they found out about MarineFord and Ace's death flashed through their mind. Roronoa clenched his swords tightly, knuckles turning white. Black Leg pinched a cigarette, lighting it and chewing on the end spitefully. Cat Burglar had her eyes shut tight, tears threatening to fall as she held a hand over her mouth. Sniper felt anger well inside him as he remembered eating without a care while his Captain was fighting in a literal war. Tony was sniffling, holding onto his hat as he remembered the pain of knowing Luffy was all alone when everything happened and that as his doctor he couldn't even help mend his wounds.
The crew of the past were a different story. All of them sat in disbelief, not knowing if they should believe what they were just told. That couldn't possibly happen, right? Ace was the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates! If he died... There would be an all out war! But as they scanned the faces of their doubles, they knew that what they had been told was the truth. What confused them more was the immense guilt on all of their faces.
Ace and Luffy, though... They were the most shocked. It felt like the wind had been knocked out of them as things slowly fell into place. The way Monkey had acted when he saw Ace, it was just like when he was a kid and found out Sabo died. The same immense tears, the same disbelief, everything.
"B-but..." Luffy looked absolutely distraught as he looked between Ace and his future self.
"Y-you have to be l-lying, Ace wouldn't... He wouldn't die! He promised!" Luffy said, anger slowly taking over. The past crew looked at him in concern while the future looked on in guilt.
"He died. He broke the promise." Monkey said softly, an edge to his tone as he remembered begging Ace not to die, reminding him of that very promise.
"B-But A-Ace wouldn't... Wouldn't..." Looking closer at his future self, he knew the answer. The hollow look, the sadness, the pain, he saw it all, it was himself after all, no matter how much he didn't want it to be true. He looked at Ace, seeing that he was watching him back with much the same pained expression Monkey had.
"Ace!" Luffy cried, wrapping his arms around his brother multiple times, misery building inside him as tears fell.
"... How?" Ace asked softly, causing Monkey's breath to hitch.
"I... I shouldn't say..." He said, tears falling. The future crew was almost thankful that he couldn't tell. They didn't know how Ace had died, and sure they were curious, but they didn't want their Captain to go through anymore pain remembering that horrible day.
"B-but if you tell us... Maybe we could stop it from happening!" Usopp said, trying desperately to be cheerful. Hope filled all of the past Straw Hats, Ace and Luffy included, but Monkey and the future crew shook their heads.
"If we told you... A lot of things wouldn't happen. When Ace... Died... It was horrible, but... Because of it we got stronger and... And something really important happened." Monkey said, remembering when he saw Sabo at the coliseum after all those years, a small smile forming on his face as tears fell harder.
"Can you tell us anything?" Sanji asked, tense and worried for the future that lay ahead of them. The future crew stayed silent for a moment, glancing at each other.
"W-we... We were separated..." Tony said softly, so soft that they almost didn't catch it.
"Separated?" Chopper echoed, confused. They all nodded.
"Long story short, we lost, bad." Roronoa said tersely, shocking the past crew, though they didn't question it, no matter how much they wanted to.
"There was a war. It was... It was Ace's execution..." Sniper continued, also quiet. Ace felt horror fill him. There was a war. Because of him. He could already guess who was participating in said war.
"With the Whitebeards?" Ace questioned quietly. Monkey nodded solemnly.
"Yeah... Ace... You've got good nakama." Monkey said, a small, sad smile on his face. Ace smiled too, despite the circumstances, and nodded.
"They're good guys." He said softly. It was quiet again, everyone processing what had happened.
"Hey... Monkey?" Ace asked, breaking the silence.
"Hm?" He asked, staring at the deck of the Merry.
"How did... How did you get that scar?" He asked, and honestly, the whole crew of the past had been wondering the same thing. The future crew tensed once again, also not really knowing the story of how he had gotten it, but once again, not bothered with not knowing if it meant their Captain didn't relive that horrible time.
"During-... During the war. After you... Died... I was um... I don't know... I think Traffy said my mind snapped and I blacked out to keep myself from feeling anymore pain, but... While I was out Jinbe was taking me back to the ships to leave but... That bastard still chased us. Jinbe tried keeping me safe but I got... I got... Hit... And..." Monkey slowly trailed off, flashes of the war coming back in bits and pieces.
He could see the marines rushing past him as he ran, the Whitebeards by his side, urging him to get to Ace faster, to save him from an execution. Ice surrounded him and there was a chill in the air, but he couldn't feel it. Magma was raining from the sky, landing all around him, melting the ice and leaving holes of water. His heart was pumping, warming him up, fear that he wouldn't make it on time fueling him to move faster, punch harder, dodge quicker. Determination to save his older brother filled him and his eyes narrowed as a dozen more marines swamped him.
They were flying within seconds and he was back to running, flashes of light and blue fire in the corner of his eye clued him in to Marco and Kizaru fighting. He could see his grandfather, he could see Ace, he could see the executioners, and he could see Sengoku, telling him he wouldn't make it, wouldn't save the spawn of the devil himself.
But then he did, he saved Ace, and flames surrounded him, like a protective blanket, and it felt amazing. He was back by his brothers side, he had done it, he had saved him.
And then they were running again.
Running to the safety of the ships. The run flashed, like a montage. 40 feet, 20 feet, 10 feet, and suddenly, Ace wasn't running. The bastard, that damn bastard Akainu, he was taunting him. He begged, pleaded with Ace to run, but he didn't, he never did when he got into a fight, he had to see it through to the end.
His stubborn brother.
Suddenly his legs gave out, his body was exhausted, he could barely move. In the wind he saw Ace's Vivir Card float away, in arms reach, but as he went to grab it there was an immense heat in his face, a harsh contrast to the chill he had felt seconds ago. Something clanked around him, like beads falling, and as he slowly turned his head he saw the magma, the hole, his... Brother.
And then he was screaming. Crying. His heart felt like it was breaking, almost worse then when he found out Sabo had 'died'.
"Thank you for loving me!"
The words rang through his head, loud and clear like a bell, and he couldn't handle it. Ace had promised! Promised he wouldn't die! Promised he would stay alive and protect him! But he had lied, he had broken that promise. He could see his brother, lying on the cold ground, smile on his face, eyes closed, almost peaceful. If it weren't for the blood, the gaping hole in his chest, it would look like he was sleeping. But he knew that wasn't the case.
"During-... During the war. After you... Died... I was um... I don't know... I think Traffy said my mind snapped and I blacked out to keep me from feeling anymore pain, but... While I was out Jinbe was taking me back to the ships to leave but... That bastard still chased us. Jinbe tried keeping me safe but I got... I got... Hit... And..." They watched as Monkey slowly trailed off, his eyes gaining an almost distant, detached, look. This concerned both crews as they waited for him to speak again, whether it was to finish the story or dismiss it, but he did neither.
His eyes grew wide, his skin got paler, he began sweating, and his breathing got heavier, like he'd just ended a battle with a warlord.
"Monkey?" Nami asked, her concern growing with the rest of the crews. Tony sprung up along with Chopper and they both began examining him, waving their hooves in front of his face, checking his pulse, etc. Roronoa shifted uneasily, wanting to help his Captain, yet unable.
"He's having flashbacks I think, PTSD, I had a feeling he might after bringing up this topic." Tony said worriedly, trying to calm Monkey. Chopper nodded his agreement, seeing Tony already knew what to do and sat back beside Usopp and Nami, though he shifted uneasily, wanting to help as well.
"PTSD?" Cat Burglar asked, shocked, along with the rest of the crew's, past and present, though Roronoa looked unfazed by this answer.
"Mm, after we got back together I had a feeling he might have some sort of mental disorder from everything, and PTSD was one of them. That's why he came to the infirmary every week, whether it was just to talk or for some other type of help. He also talks to Robin and Roronoa about it a lot." Tony informed, all heads swiveling to Roronoa.
"Why didn't you tell us you stupid marimo?" Black Leg asks. Roronoa shrugs.
"There was no need to and it wasn't my place to tell you shitty cook. If he wanted to tell you guys he would." He said simply, crossing his arms, but casting worried eyes on Monkey who was still lost in his flashback. Sanji frowned, though, to his distaste, knew that Roronoa was right.
"So... How do we help him?" Usopp asks, shifting nervously as well, glancing to Tony. Tony shook his head.
"There's no real good way to help someone with PTSD wake up from a flashback, you might end up making them think they're still there, or only do more harm then good. He shouldn't be all that out of it for too much longer." Tony informed with sad eyes, sitting beside Roronoa. It took a few minutes of silence before Monkey finally seemed to snap out of his, breathing heavy with eyes darting around wildly.
"Luffy- er, uh, Monkey? You ok?" Sniper asked softly. Monkey glanced at Usopp, slowly nodding.
"S-sorry..." Monkey stuttered out softly. It was quiet again, no one really knowing what to say.
"W-well... Um... Why don't we work on finding out how you got here?" Nami asks awkwardly. Everyone nodded, though no one really wanted to speak, especially Luffy who had bawling into Ace's shoulder the entire time, though still listening to the conversation. The future crew looked at each other, not really sure.
"The best person for this would probably be Robin..." Cat Burglar said thoughtfully, and the past crew just accepted that they wouldn't know who this future person was unless they met them. The future crew nodded their agreement.
"Yeah, but she's not here." Tony said sadly. They once again nodded.
"What could have brought us back then? We were thinking marines but no one sensed any one. And not to mention we were with Robin, Brooke and Franky when we came here." Sniper said, and once again the past crew was confused, but ignored it.
"Weren't we close to an island?" Monkey asks, remembering his and Roronoa's promise. Cat Burglar nodded.
"We were, before we came here we weren't that far away from it, but I don't know much about it, just its name, Heiwa." Cat Burglar said.
"Maybe it has something to do with the island then. It wouldn't be too far fetched with everything we've been through." Black Leg says thoughtfully, and this time even the past crew agrees with him.
"Cien Fleur Wing!"
"Franky Radical... Cushion!"
"Yohohoho~! This sure is making my heart race- ah! Not that I have a heart to race! Yohohoho~! Skull Joke!"
Everyone looked over in shock, even Luffy who had previously been somber and sniffling, though not crying anymore. The past crew didn't know what was more shocking, the sudden giant red cushion appearing from no where, the wings made out of... Hands? Or the actual, walking, talking, skeleton. The future crew brightened though at the sight of their crewmates, standing to greet them.
"Robin, Franky, Brook!" Monkey exclaimed happily, the sight of all his crew safe with him calming him down exponentially.
"Ah, Luffy-San, we were worried!" Brook said, straightening his clothes.
"Yeah, especially when Nami-sis, Usopp-bro and Chopper-bro disappeared!" Franky said. Robin smiled.
"I was worried that you had died an excruciating death." Robin said calmly.
"Don't say that so calmly!" Usopp shouted. Robin merely chuckled behind her hand.
"I-I don't know what to be shocked about first..." Nami murmured behind them. The future crew turned to look at them, all of their faces masked in shock, even Ace.
"I don't know, you have options Nami, there's a cyborg, a skeleton, and-" Usopp was cut off by Vivi who's shock quickly dissolved into anger.
"Miss All Sunday!"