Alliegance
Summary: In which Bellamy questions who he wants to follow.
Warning! Spolier for Dressarosa arc, and in particular chapters 759-761.
Bellamy is now a puppet. He feels sick as Doflamingo pulls his strings and forces him to block Strawhat's attack. He can't stop his body from moving, but Strawhat doesn't yell at him to get stronger and stop. (He wonders if this is what Sarquiss felt, if this is why the other struggled to meet his eyes for days afterwards.)
He bragged once, about his strength, about his bounty and his crew.
His crew is gone, unable to survive the trip to the sky islands (Strawhat's survived, and Bellamy wants to be bitter, but he can't, because Strawhat took the same gamble as him, and did it without losing a single person.)
His bounty has gone up, but that means nothing he's learned, when bounties change based on which marine one pissed off (or the world, Strawhat's irregard for the goverment must be genetic).
Even his strength means nothing when there are others like the admirals, warlords, and even some random person you pass on an island, who are stronger than you and just not show it off or brag. (Or who would take hits because they can take them, and throw a punch wthout using their devil fruit powers, just their own unnatural strength that might be inherited from the marine hero.)
Doflamingo told Bellamy he was weak; they are supposed to be allies but Doflamingo abuses him.
Strawhat smiles, and says he got stronger; they are supposed to be enemies, but Strawhat cheers him on.
Bellamy wishes he knew who was right. Doflamingo and Srawhat are both strong, both dangerous, but Doflmingo is pulling strings while Strawhat just calmy turns everything upside down with a smile, breaking things that Bellamy thought couldn't be broken.
Doflamingo calls him trash; Strawhat calls him a friend.
Bellamy doesn't see how. Bartolomeo called him a friend for fighting in the arena with him (a shared experience he said, even though they last fought against each other). He can understand Bartolomeo, even if he thinks the other is a little misguided.
But Strawhat calls him friend when they've only ever fought against each other (though is it really a fight, when one first does't fight back, then ends it with a single punch?) Bellamy can't understand why Strawhat would want to, since he declared his loyalty to Doflamingo when they met again. (But was it really Loyalty, when he refused to kill Strawhat when he was ordered to?)
The old Bellamy already knows how this fight will end, Doflamingo still holding his strings and will never let any of them go free. Doflamingo is strong and ruthless and nothing like Strawhat, not hindered by things like compassion and mercy.
The new Bellamy places everything at Strawhat's feet, and prays for the other to defeat him again, and bring Doflamingo to his knees. Strawhat is strong and compassionate and nothing like Doflamingo, not hindered by any rules save his own.
Maybe Bellamy already knows who he wants to win, afterall.