"How do you know them again?" asked Yassop, once the were accommodated in the Mugiwara´s hidden house.
"The Ds, well it happened a long time ago…" begin the redhead.
-Flashback-
Shanks have escaped from the Italians across the sea and reached America in a few days. Have he been human, his eyes would be red and puffy, as he wanted to cry… a lot. He have just lost Mihawk, the love of his life, and was on a flee.
"What could I do now?" asked in a loud voice. Then he went deeper into the land and found a tribe of very powerful people that called themselves Ds. They took care of him and even told him where to feed so none know he was there. He made good friends with them, especially with the Monkey D family.
A few years later he came back as a pirate with treasure enough to gift his friends with that, along with his vampire crew: Yassop, Lucky Roo and Benn. At first the other undead were pretty amazed that their boss have human friends. And they have a big surprise waiting for them in the house.
"Hello, Garp, Dragon! How are little Ace and Sabo doing? Are they fine?" said him with a smile on his face. He knew all of them practically since born, except the blond.
"Shanks! Come here so I can say hello!" said the hurricane that was the older Monkey D.
"All of us fine, thanks. And look at these" said Dragon coming with a little bundle in his arms. It was a tiny baby with brown eyes.
"How pretty, what is his name?" asked him, trying to touch the baby with his hand, but finally decided against it. He was a vampire after all.
"That´s what we want to talk about with you. In our tribe there is a tradition about letting someone out of the family name the children and we want you to be that one"
"What?"
"They are asking you to be the baby´s godfather, boss" said Benn.
"Really?"
"Yes, we thought about it a lot, but finally it was unanimous. We want you to name him" said Dragon bouncing the baby a little.
"And Ace and Sabo?"
"They don´t care, and even if adopted, they are a part of the family"
"I…."
"Just say yes, boss" said Yassop.
"Okay, yes. I will be honored to give him his name"
"So… do you have a name for these little one?" asked Dragon, giving the little kid to his father.
"What about… Luffy?"
"Luffy?" asked the crew.
"Yes, I have just invented it" said Shanks, smiling proudly.
"I think it´s a great name" said Dragon, recovering his child. "Then, do you want to hold little Luffy, Shanks?"
"Are you sure? Remember that I am a vampire"
"Don´t be ridiculous and take him" intervened Garp, taking the child off his son´s arms and putting it on the vampire´s. The tiny thing didn´t cry or was uncomfortable for the coldness of his godfather´s body and was looking at him very curious. Then he laughed.
"So cute" murmured Shanks. Dragon smiled, he didn´t have any more biological children. Ace was adopted from a family of Ds that died when he was a newborn and were Garp´s friends and Sabo was a white European child that got lost into their territory one day and made friends with Ace. They adopted him without a blink. The new baby was a great happiness for all.
Soon Shanks and his crew have to go back to the sea, but they returned a lot of times with treasures and toys for the boys. Little Luffy was growing up so fine and his big brothers took care of him as he was the greatest treasure. Their grandpa still gave them the fist of love treatment, like he did with their father, but none of them died.
In the last one of his visits, when Luffy was seventeen, he got an even greater surprise. The D tribe was practically annihilated by a unknown disease that attacked the lungs, brought by the white people to the country. He walked towards his friends house only to find the family about to die from that.
"They are very ill, boss" said Benn.
"Yes, they couldn't even open their eyes for the fever they have" said Yassop, putting a hand in Dragon´s face, reddened by the fever.
"It´s a deadly disease like they told us in the shore, they don´t have much time"
"No, they won´t die" said Shanks, getting closer to his nearly breathless godson and then bite him in the neck.
"Boss!" yelled the other vampires when he separated himself from the young man´s throat, who started to move in pain.
"We don´t have much time. Now, Benn, take care of Garp, Yassop, you with Dragon, Lucky Roo, Ace and I will work with Sabo"
"Boss, how do you know these is going to work?" asked the first mate.
"They have a strong will" answered the redhead and all of them put hands to work. The Ds have a fast transformation, only two days. The morning of the second Garp woke up feeling the terrible thirst of the new vampires in his throat.
"What is these?" asked the old man.
"It was the only way I could save you" answered the captain. When they were all awake, it was obvious that Shanks was not mistaken. Some way, Dragon could make storms appear and Garp could take down a whole mountain only with his fists. Luffy can expand himself like he was of gum and Ace ignited himself on fire.
"Hey, Shanks, look at me!" yelled the happy teen.
"They surely are special" said Benn, trying to cope with the craziness the Ds were. Even as newborns and under their supervision the family of nutcases managed to get into every problem they could… of course excluding the Vultury.
"Do all newborns make their creators work these lot" asked Yassop, putting his rifle in the floor after entertaining Luffy for about an hour.
"Usually no" answered the redhead, feeling tired.
"So we have a bunch of troublemakers in our hands" said Benn, wanting to make the Ds scrub the disaster they made in the deck of their ship.
"Yeah" said all the older vampires.
-End of the flashback-
"Yes, I remember that. They were a pain in the head until they left… and then came Drake and we know what it was like a typical gifted newborn"
"Do you remember when they met?"
"Yes, he was so scared of them, like if they carried some deadly disease like the one that nearly killed them when they were human"
"I´m glad we have saved them back then, I wouldn´t imagine my live without Luffy and his funny occurrences"
"Yeah… funny"
"We´re back!" yelled Luffy, entering with Hancock, Ussop and Chopper, licking his lips.
"I have been questioning me how the world didn´t became dry already with the amount of blood the Ds consumed with their monstrous appetite" said the sharpshooter.
"Yes, they are like endless pits" said Sanji, that was entering that moment with Zoro and Sandersonia. Behind them were Marigold and Nami, talking about dresses.
"Well, we should be arranging ourselves for war" said the oldest Boa sister.
"Yes, talking about that… Luffy, it would be better if you contact him too" said Zoro, touching his three swords.
"Who?" asked the little monkey.
"Who else? Bartolomeo" said the blond.
"Bartolomeo?" asked Shanks.
"He was a member of our coven a few years ago and he idolized Luffy even as a human. He is what other vampires call a shield. A physical one" answered Zoro.
"It was long ago, and he was not exactly the ideal member. He cried all day just for being able to be with us and fight with Hancock a lot"
"He shouldn´t be near my Luffy!" yelled the woman.
"In the end it was unbearable for both parts, so he get away. But he still calls sometimes and it´s a pain. He begin crying as soon as one of us answer the phone" said Ussop.
"Tell me is a lie, son" asked Yassop, not really wanting to deal with a fanboy.
"No, it´s the pure hard truth" answered Nami sighing.
"But we need a shield, the Vultury and their allies have two" said Shanks, he really needed a shield on his team and now he could have one.
"I know where he lives, so me and Shanks could go and try convince him to join our team" said Luffy, then laughed. "Of course he would, he idolized us"
"There won´t be any problems with you know who, Luffy?" asked Zoro worried.
"You know who?" asked Yasopp.
"When he called we heard another voice at the other end of the line and Bartolomeo told us that he just got a mate. We didn´t know anything about these new vampire, only that his name is Cavendish"
"Did he have any powers?" asked the redhead.
"Who knows? Let´s go to see" answered the little monkey.
"Boss?" asked Yassop.
"It´s okay, we will be fine. Me and Luffy are stronger than you or the Vultury can think and his family is already outside of Volterra. Go and watch them. I don´t want Garp to begin the war without me there"
"Come, Shanks!" yelled Luffy from afar.
"Be careful with that fanboy, boss"
"I will" promised Shanks before going with Luffy and they both were off in a minute.
"My beloved Luffy… alone… with the freak" said Hancock, mocking fainting.
"Ane-sama!" yelled her sisters, running to catch her.
"She is faking, vampires don´t faint" said the sharpshooter, taking a hand to his face and moving it.
"Dad, what now?" asked Ussop, moving his weapon much like his father.
"We go to Volterra to meet Garp and the others" answered the older vampire and they all set on moving.