Thank you to everybody for your eternal patience.


Dark Truth

Chapter 2: The Nightmares


The night didn't bring rest to the Strawhats. Though each crew member nodded off at some point, the soft creaks and groans of their Thousand Sunny that once soothed them to sleep now startled them awake, fearful that their captain's attacker had returned. Since he was attacked, Luffy had yet to have a peaceful sleep, constantly plagued by nightmares that replayed whatever terrors he had faced that night. The knowledge that Luffy would be thrashing and screaming out his terror at some point that night kept the majority of the crew from rest themselves.

For the moment Luffy seemed at peace. He'd stirred once or twice but Brook had kept vigil at his bedside, and each time he showed signs of waking from his slumber, the skeleton had lilted out a soft sweet melody to lull him back to his dreams. It eased all of their hearts to see Luffy resting soundly, even if it was for just a while.

"Did he talk at all today?" Sanji asked, softly. They were all laid down, scattered around Luffy like a human shield. Sanji had no idea who, if any of his crewmates were awake and so he kept his voice at a mumble, unwilling to disturb any that were lucky enough to catch some shuteye.

"Not a word," Zoro replied solemnly. His words were clipped and hushed, laced with a quiet anger. It wasn't directed at anybody but himself. "What has it been now? Two? Three weeks?"

"Sixteen days," Nami corrected absently. "Counting today." She lay opposite Luffy. Her sleepy brown eyes traced over her slumbering Captain's battered body. "It's just so quiet."

"At least he's not dead," Franky muttered.

"Don't say that!" Usopp snapped suddenly, his voice raised in pitch as tears threatened to fall at the mere thought of losing Luffy.

"Shh!" Chopper hissed back at the marksman, one hoof raised in front of his snout in a gesture for Usopp to keep his voice down. Usopp startled as he realised his mistake and turned to look at Luffy and inspect the damage. Thankfully Robin had anticipated that one of them would have an outburst at such a statement and two disembodied hands gently covered Luffy's ears without disturbing him.

"It's true," Sanji muttered calmly as he sat up and plucked a cigarette from his top pocket. He placed the butt between his teeth and chewed it lightly but didn't light the tip just yet. The smell might wake Luffy. The thought of losing his captain terrified him just as much as it did Usopp, but panic and anger were the last things Luffy needed. "We almost lost him."

"But we didn't," Usopp said back. "He just needs some time to get over it."

"Most people can't just recover from something like that," Franky muttered gravely. He'd seen all too many people broken down and abused in his lifetime, even before Water 7, on the ship he was raised on.

"Luffy-san isn't like 'most people'..." Brook interjected.

"Exactly!" Usopp agreed quietly, but enthusiastically.

"Luffy's in a league all of his own..." Nami whispered. Her eyes never left Luffy's face, staring at him intently as if willing him to believe her words. "He can come back from this."

The infirmary fell quiet once more. Luffy had been through a hell of a lot since their journey begun. He'd beaten the odds time and time again and always came out smiling. Nobody spoke it out loud, but they all felt the same thing. Something was very different this time. Luffy had proven on countless occasions that he could take a beating and come back fighting, this time however it seemed as though something had extinguished the fire in his heart that pushed him forward. A physical beating alone wasn't enough to crush his confidence as it had. Something had happened in the galley that night that had shattered Luffy's confidence. The physical wounds would heal, but only time would tell if the mental scars would fade.

"His wounds are healing up pretty good." Franky spoke up, suddenly. It sounded too loud in the silent room.

"Luffy always heals fast." Chopper replied proudly.

"He has the best doctor!" Usopp said as he reached across and ruffled the top of Chopper's hat affectionately.

"Bastard~!" Chopper lilted as he squirmed a little in place. "That doesn't make me happy at all!"

"Most of the bruises have faded now..." Nami commented.

"That," Zoro said as he gestured to the top of a stitched wound that peeked from Luffy's shirt, "Is going to scar."

"I think so," Chopper replied.

"I know so." Zoro added, smirking. "He's gonna think it's cool."

That comment brought a smile to weary faces of the crew. The thought of Luffy regarding a life threatening wounds scar as cool would normally exasperate them, but they all looked forward to seeing anything resembling normal from the boy any time soon.

"The rest of the puncture wounds should heal without scars though." Chopper added as his mind sifted through Luffy's countless injuries.

"As always." Sanji stated. "Lucky bastard."

"How has his heart been?" Robin asked carefully. That had been the most worrying thing amongst all of Luffy's injuries. Heart damage was something that didn't always recover on its own.

"Good," Chopper replied with a smile. The crew visibly sagged with relief. "Luffy has a strong heart."

"He does." Robin agreed with a fond smile.

"He lost his lunch again." Sanji remarked absently, as he stared at the stained spot where Luffy threw up earlier. The concern was evident in Sanji's eyes as he rolled the cigarette between his lips. Luffy had barely eaten anything since that night and what he did eat usually wasn't kept down for long. He was already dehydrated, exhausted and injured. Sanji didn't know how much more his weakened body could take. He didn't voice his thoughts however. The last time he'd shown any sign of losing faith in Luffy, Zoro and slugged him across the face and sworn he'd throw his sorry ass off the ship if he said anything more on the matter. They had to believe in Luffy, he'd said. He tried his best, but nothing he prepared seemed destined to stay put in Luffy's stomach. The cook vowed to himself that he would find better supplies when they docked – he'd puree or mash or liquefy anything it took to give Luffy a little bit of strength back.

"At least he's sleeping..." Nami answered quietly.

Sanji studied Nami's face for a moment. None of them had got much sleep over the past few weeks, but Nami looked even wearier than the rest of them. Tentatively, he called, "Nami-san?" and when she hummed a response, asked, "You look tired. Don't you think you should try to sleep?"

"I'm okay Sanji-kun…" she answered slowly. "I just… the nightmares of Luffy and…"

Nami trailed off and Sanji didn't even need to hear the end of her sentence to know what she was talking about. Nami had been the one to find Luffy after all.

Nami yawned and stretched with a soft mewl as she climbed out of bed. It was earlier than she usually got up and a glance at the clock beside her bed told her that even Sanji wouldn't be up at this hour. With a smile she exited the cabin intent on pouring herself some coffee for a nice and quiet morning before the boys woke up.

Nami hurriedly jogged across the deck towards the galley. She was barefoot and the chilly morning air froze her toes. As she scooted past the watch tower, Robin made her way down to enjoy her own early morning coffee. She had been on watch last night and smiled at Nami as their eyes met.

"Quiet night?" Nami asked the older woman.

Robin nodded back with a smile. "Mm, aside from Luffy-san hunting for a midnight snack." She answered with a small chuckle.

"Ehh?" Nami noised, "Again!?"

"Mhm," Robin answered. "He's yet to come out, so I expect he's either been caught in one of Sanji-san's traps or has been successful. Fufu..."

"That little...!" Nami threatened as she stomped towards the galley. "When I get my hands on him, he's so...!" she flung the galley door open intent on chewing out her thieving captain, but as she saw the carnage laid out before her, all that escaped was a shrill scream.

Robin ran to her side, eyes wide as she too took in the bloody mess in the middle of the galley. Nami's hands shook as she stepped back, revolted by the sight. Her heart clenched painfully and she prayed to whatever gods there were that this was all a horrible nightmare, but no matter how hard she pinched her skin she didn't wake up. The blood spattered, crushed straw hat beside his head left no doubt to whom the ravaged body belonged to.

"LUFFY!"

Sanji clenched his teeth around the unlit cigarette and almost bit it in half. He couldn't imagine how she must have felt seeing that. There was nothing he or any of them could do; what had happened was in the past and couldn't be changed. Luffy would have to come out of this or call it quits and the blonde was hoping with every fibre of his being it wouldn't be the latter. Luffy may not have been the best captain, often childish and more than once he'd sent them off on a hazardous 'adventure' on some stupid whim, but he was the only captain Sanji would ever follow. He was a straw hat pirate until death.

"Shit," he muttered as he rested his head in his hands.

Nobody had time to question Sanji's small outburst as Luffy suddenly gave a groan and shifted on the thin mattress. The crew became alert in a heartbeat, each sat up slowly, attentive of the stirring boy. Nami scooted back away from Luffy at Zoro's urging. Despite his weakness Luffy could still deal significant damage when panicked in the throes of a nightmare. The shift came just on time as Luffy suddenly sucked in a deep breath and let out a piercing shriek. The crew swarmed in as his body suddenly bucked and thrashed, striking out at invisible enemies. Before they could reach him he'd rolled to his feet with a stagger.

"Be careful," Zoro warned as he circled Luffy warily. This wasn't the first time this had happened. Luffy often fought the demons that plagued his nightmares when his body was weakened. The only problem was that he fought them outside of his dreams too.

As expected, Luffy charged at his invisible foe straight into the path of Usopp. Zoro skidded between the two and took Luffy's tackle to his own body. Usopp dived aside just before they crashed into the wall and Zoro grunted as he wrapped his arm around Luffy's middle and held him secure so he couldn't move. Robin took the chance to bloom a dozen arms across Luffy's own that held them stationary so he couldn't attack Zoro whilst the swordsman immobilized his movement. For a second it looked as though the situation was under control, but as Zoro opened his mouth to try and wake Luffy from his nightmare the younger boy thrust his head forward and cracked his skull against Zoro's. Dazed, Zoro released his hold on Luffy and the rubber boy staggered backwards.

Chopper rushed to Zoro's side as he crouched down with a curse and clutched his head. Zoro couldn't believe he'd fallen for Luffy's trump card. He stood again slowly and waved off Chopper's fussing with grunt. "I'm fine."

Luffy staggered back and forth in the middle of the room, striking out at nobody they could see, eyes half lidded and glazed. When he got too close to anybody in particular they skilfully dodged the sloppy attack and moved away from him. It was painful to watch.

Usopp, in a rare act of bravery suddenly charged forward and tackled Luffy to the ground from behind. It was risky. Usopp didn't want to hurt Luffy any more than he already was, but if somebody didn't stop him soon Luffy would end up hurting himself with his frenzied attacks. The two toppled to the ground and Usopp winced as Luffy's head smashed into the ground. He knew it wouldn't hurt his rubber friend but the noise still made him cringe. The shock of the fall achieved the desired goal as it startled Luffy awake. Usopp quickly retreated from his captain's fallen form as he realised Luffy was slowly coming to his senses.

Luffy's vision slowly cleared and he blinked once, then twice as he realised he was in the infirmary. He winced as pain burned through his chest. The tackle had busted a couple of his stitches and the bandages slowly reddened as blood seeped fresh from the wound.

"O-Ow..." he mumbled.

The crews eyes widened at the small uttering that swelled hope in their chests. Though it was a mere grunt of a noise, it was something spoken – that single word was a tiny step in the right direction. A collective glance to one another shared a silent message between the crew. Luffy looked as though he hadn't realised he'd let the little word escape his silence and so they wouldn't bring it to his attention.

Luffy lay on the cold wooden floor of the infirmary and looked utterly exhausted. His weary eyes flickered between the crew members in his vision before they slid closed again and he sighed softly. Chopper flitted around him like a skittish butterfly, eager to have a look at what damage had been done but unwilling to touch Luffy without warning. Zoro was the first to act and moved forward as though to pick Luffy up. He assumed the boy had fallen back to sleep from his stillness, but as soon as his fingers touched Luffy's clammy skin the boy twisted and bolted upright, eyes wide and unfocused. He groaned weakly as his chest throbbed with fresh pain and his eyes slid closed again as he willed away the sudden dizziness that threatened to take his consciousness from him.

"Luffy…" Zoro whispered, not sure whether he should try to help the boy or not for fear of hurting him more "C'mon buddy, you can't let this rule you… Let me help you."

Zoro moved forward once again, but Luffy only inched back until his back bumped against the closest wall. Zoro moved back again and tried not to look too dejected. For a few seconds the two stared at one another, Zoro's gaze fixed and intense with an understanding shining there. Luffy's gaze flickered between the walls and Zoro, unwilling to meet his eyes for more than a second. Shakily he got to his feet and stepped forward slowly on trembling legs. He seemed to be heading for the infirmary cot but stopped suddenly, frozen in place. Zoro stepped forward, careful to keep enough distance so as not to make his captain uncomfortable but close enough to catch him if he fell.

"You okay, Luffy?" he asked softly.

Luffy's shoulders began to quiver and Zoro clenched his jaw and averted his eyes. He felt torn as tears splashed from Luffy's chin to the floor and soaked his face. The rest of the crew also felt the dilemma. Luffy's tears were not a common sight – he'd cried for the loss of comrades and was unashamed at those times to let the world bear witness to his grief. This was different. These were tears of shame and humiliation that his entire crew saw now. Zoro turned his face away, not willing to witness it. He knew these were tears of frustration as well as Luffy battled with his own weakness and fear. Zoro knew Luffy saw the hurt and confusion in all of their faces every time he flinched away from them or shied from their touch. Zoro clenched his fist as a strangled sob tore from Luffy's throat.

"Zoro..." Nami whispered with a gentle urgency in her voice.

Zoro barely registered the call, too lost in his own thoughts.

"Zoro-san...!" Brook called, louder this time, more insistent.

Zoro looked back, a pang of fear in his heart at Brook's tone of voice, though his eyes widened as he found Luffy stood before him, barely an inch away. For the first time in weeks, Luffy didn't turn away as Zoro looked into his eyes. The swordsman could see his trembling, though whether from fear or sorrow he didn't know. Luffy's breath came in short, nervous pants as he forced himself to remain so close to his first mate. He couldn't stand to see his crew hurting and in that one moment that felt a lifetime, he tried to explain it without words.

I'm trying...

Zoro felt sick to his stomach. As he partook in the silent exchange they'd done a thousand times before he could see the pain and suffering and anguish, but worst of all was what he couldn't see. The unwavering trust that Luffy placed in all of them blindly since the day he met them was extinguished in his captain's eyes. A foreign feeling of panic bubbled to life in Zoro's heart. Before now the fact that he didn't know every detail of that night hadn't bothered him. He focussed on the knowledge that they would hunt down the culprit and make them pay. Now though, his mind whirled with questions of just what could have taken place to shatter the unbreakable bonds of trust Luffy built with his nakama.

Luffy's own heart filled with dread and panic as he saw Zoro's reaction. He could see Zoro's mind working and the question in his eyes, but that wasn't what Luffy had wanted! He'd wanted to put their minds at ease, to reassure them in some way that he could get over this. It was hard right now, but he wasn't going to just give up on them – on their dreams and his own. In a desperate move, Luffy suddenly launched himself at Zoro and wrapped his arms around his swordsman's torso as buried his face in Zoro's shoulder.

Shock stalled Zoro's reaction for a half a second before he returned the embrace, gentler, mindful of Luffy's injuries. As soon as he felt Zoro's arms close around him Luffy's trembling increased. Zoro moved as if to withdraw but Luffy held fast and tightened his own grip, using Zoro as an anchor in the storm of emotions he found himself lost in. Zoro's eyes softened and a smile touched his lips as he relaxed his arms into the embrace once more. Luffy was terrified by the contact he could see, but he was facing it and even though it was the tiniest glimmer in a pool of black, just a glimpse of their Luffy released a quiet explosion of hope amongst the crew.

After a few moments in the embrace Luffy could take no more and he pulled away jerkily. After taking a few moments to compose himself he glanced back at Zoro, relieved to see his swordsman's confident smirk back in place. A worried frown didn't suit him. The atmosphere in the room didn't feel so heavy any more either and Luffy released a quiet, relieved sigh. His body ached something fierce, so he dragged his heavy feet over to the infirmary bed to rest. Chopper would have to tend to the busted stitches anyway – there mere thought sent a shudder through his body. He lay down slowly, resigned to the treatment.

Sanji followed Chopper as the doctor readied his utensils. The crew around them slowly eased into quiet chatter and planned how they would restock their supplies. Sanji and Usopp left the infirmary together for a moment though returned a few minutes later. Usopp joined in the quiet chatter as Sanji made his way over to Luffy.

"You think you can eat just a little for me?" Sanji asked. He kept his distance from the bed as he didn't want to make Luffy uncomfortable. The display of courage on Luffy's part before was encouraging, but Sanji wasn't so stupid to think that things would go right back to normal. For now they had to build Luffy's physical strength back up so that he could be more confident in himself again.

Luffy eyed the food indecisively. Sometimes it didn't seem worth eating at all. He hated throwing up and whenever he ate it seemed that's all he ever did. He stole a quick glance at Sanji and gave a curt nod. Luffy knew despite the chef's complaints that Sanji loved the enthusiasm he had for food. Sanji wasn't used to Luffy rejecting anything at all, let alone his specially prepared emails. Luffy knew rejection wasn't an option. It was just another fight he would keep battling until he won and kept his food down.

Sanji wisely waited for Chopper to patch Luffy up before he attempted to get any food into his captain. Luffy was in a lot of pain and Sanji knew from experience pain alone could cause you to lose your lunch. It was hard to watch as Luffy sank back into the bed and hissed and grunted in pain. Luffy tried not to show it, but the strain in his face was obvious.

When Chopper finished Sanji gave Luffy a few moments to recover and relax. He moved to sit on the edge of the bed and though Luffy did flinch, he didn't inch away. It was obvious his captain was nervous as hell, but if nothing else, Luffy was known for his bravery.

Bite by bite, captain and chef worked their way through the small meal. They took several small breaks to make sure the food had settled but at the end with Sanji sporting an empty plate and Luffy a full stomach, the morale in the room lifted that little bit higher. There was a long race ahead of them but they'd just jumped another hurdle. Tomorrow would prove the hardest yet. When the sun rose they would dock to resupply.


Thank you for reading.