A/N: Whaaaat fourteen reviews on the first chapter? *sniff* I feel so loved...

So this chapter has less brotherly interaction, unfortunately. It does introduce two more characters, though, and they interact plenty. I did try to fit in lots of brothership where I could, so I hope that pleases you.

Marco was already yawning persistently by the time there were only a dozen or so dolls and Lego pieces left by the children on the floor, but it wasn't until he finally finished tidying them up that he realized how heavy his eyelids actually were. Helping Makino take care of all these orphaned kids at the Centre was weighing on him more and more each day; he wasn't as young as he used to be. The bags under his eyes seemed to be a little bigger every time he looked in the mirror, and he just couldn't keep up with the energetic brats like he used to anymore. All he wanted to do was sleep.

He glanced out the window. The sun was almost setting anyway — he figured he deserved a little nap.

His plans for sleep were foiled, however, when a blur of red streaked past him and up the stairs.

He blinked.

He blinked again.

He blinked twice, shook his head back and forth, and rubbed his eyes.

Was that—?

Grumbling, he clambered up the stairs after the boy. He was really too tired to deal with this particular kid now, but who knows what the boy would do if left to his own devices. Honestly, if that Monkey was acting up again…

When he reached the boy's room — a room shared with five other people, all of different ages — he found Luffy crouched by his bunk bed, hastily throwing his possessions into two cardboard boxes. By the excited grin on the young boy's face, it wasn't hard to discern what was going on.

"Finally getting out of here, are you?" Marco asked as he leaned on the doorframe, smiling affectionately at the child he'd known for so many years.

"Yup!" Luffy took one more look around the room. "I think that's everything."

"Really?" He lifted a brow. "You just got here. How did you pack it all so fast?"

"Well, I kinda already packed most of it. Then Makino reminded me that I should make sure he really wants me first…" Luffy hoisted one of the boxes into his arms and stumbled backwards under its weight. "And he does! Move over."

Marco stepped to the side as the gargantuan box-on-legs came shuffling through. It was amusing to watch the small teen try to heft the heavy box — with much difficulty.

It was amusing, that is, until Luffy lost his balance at the top of the stairs.

Luckily, Marco was fast enough to catch him before he fell. They both breathed a simultaneous sigh of relief.

"How about you let me carry that for you," he offered, "before you really hurt yourself."

The teen nodded, and Marco easily scooped the box into his arms. He ambled carefully down the stairs with Luffy following behind him.

When Luffy inevitably opened the front door of the Centre for Marco, the boy rushed into the small parking lot to hug a freckled man standing by a red jalopy. Marco trailed behind at a more leisurely pace.

"Is it just the one?" the freckled man asked when he saw Marco.

"No, there's one more, about the same size as this one," he reassured.

The man nodded. "Well, load it in. The back seat'll do."

Marco nodded back and opened the car's back door. He was startled when he found another man on the far side of the back seat, muttering to himself.

"Uh, there's someone—"

"I know. Just put it in."

Marco blinked. After a second, he shrugged, and pushed the box in as far as it would go, effectively gaining the previously distracted man's attention.

"Hey! It's squishing me!" he yelled.

"Suck it up, you whiner!" the freckled man yelled back.

"Seriously, Ace," the man replied in a warning tone, "I'm not enjoying this!"

"Then get out here and help Lu with the second box!"

"Will do!" the man said, turning cheerful surprisingly quickly. Marco was baffled at the sudden change. The man popped enthusiastically out of the other door and turned to Luffy. "Come, little hat-wearing one! We must fetch your… box!"

"Yeah!" Luffy cheered, pumping his fists. The two of them were about to run back into the Centre when Ace — as was his name — called back to them.

"Wait!" They both turned to him. "While we're here, kiddo, is there anyone you need to say goodbye to, or anything like that?"

"Well," Luffy tapped his lip in thought. "Marco, but he's right there, so I guess I don't really need to look for him or anything… My other friends don't live here, but I should probably tell them… tell him where I'm going."

"Tell whom?" Ace asked, and Marco could see concern edging its way into the corner of the young man's eye.

"Sanji!" he replied happily. "He's probably working right now, but they know me. I could get away with it."

"Do… Don't you have any other friends?" Ace was definitely getting worried now.

"Of course!" You could practically see the tension leaving Ace. "Well, not really. I used to. Maybe we're still friends, but I haven't seen him in so long I can't be sure. He lived across the street with his mum until she died, then he went to live with his dad and they're always moving from country to country."

Ace bit the inside of his cheek. His worries were back with a vengeance. "Well, okay. You go get your stuff, then we'll take you to see this Sanji."

"Okay! Let's go, Law!" Luffy told the other man, who looked just as perturbed as Ace. "I'll race you!"

As the two ran inside, Ace heaved a crestfallen sigh.

"It's really a shame, isn't it?" Marco said suddenly, causing Ace to jump. "He's such a nice kid. He deserves more friends than he has."

"Really, I'm just glad he's not friendless," Ace confessed. "God knows he has more friends than I ever did before sometime during high school."

A pause.

"Here," Marco began, pulling his notepad out of his pocket, "I'll give you directions to the Baratie." At Ace's questioning stare, "That's where Sanji works."

"Oh, thanks," the young man said. "So I take it you know this Sanji dude?"

"Yeah. He lived at the Centre, once upon a time. The owner of this restaurant adopted him a few years ago. He never lost touch with the rest of us here, though. Probably because he knew Luffy wouldn't have any friends without him." Or maybe because he knew he wouldn't have any friends without Luffy, but if I said that out loud Sanji would kill me.

"Really?" Ace smiled. "He sounds like a nice guy."

"Oh, no," Marco smirked. "He's a bastard."

Sanji glared at the obstreperous customer who, for his part, glared right back, though less annoyed-ly and more spitefully. It was very clear to Sanji what kind of person this was, and what the best way to deal with the situation was.

Oh yes, goading him would be fun.

"What did you say your shitty name was? Fullbody? Yeah right, you're only half of one. Half a man, specifically," he sneered.

"What?" Half-A-Man shrieked. It was a terribly grating noise. "How dare you—"

"Hey, break it up." Patty muscled himself in-between them. "You're scaring the other customers. Besides, Sanji, there's someone who wants to talk to you in the staff area."

"I hope you get fired, you punk!" Half-A-Man shouted at Sanji as he walked away.

Sanji rolled his eyes — he wasn't getting fired. He was the owner's adoptive son and the restaurant's second best chef, after his father, he couldn't be fired. Besides, Zeff would never ask to talk to him in the staff area.

The staff area was small — just a cubby room for employees to change into their uniforms. The only person he could think of who might want to talk to him there was…

"Sanji!" The exact person he had just been thinking of caught him in a flying-tackle-hug as soon as he opened the door. As usual.

"Hey, shit-for-brains," he greeted. "Not that it isn't great to see you, but what have I said about showing up during business hours?"

"But this is important!" Luffy protested.

"Oh?" Sanji drawled. "What is it?"

"I'm being adopted," the boy declared proudly.

"You're — What? That's — Did Shanks come back? Did he suddenly decide that it wasn't too dangerous for him to adopt you and come back?" Sanji asked suspiciously. He had been very protective of the boy ever since Luffy had become his first real friend when they were young, and took Shanks' claims of adopting his friend of being too dangerous at face value, unlike Luffy himself. Because unlike Luffy, he had been told what Shanks did for a living. "Because if it's Shanks, you shouldn't—"

"It's not Shanks." Luffy pouted at him. Sanji's protective streak got annoying at times.

"It's not?" he back-railed. "Then… who?"

"You're not gonna believe this—"

"If it's related to you, I'm definitely not."

"—But they did some blood tests, and I have a half-brother. And we checked, he wants me! I have a brother, and he wants me! Isn't that just… awesome?" Luffy bounced in place a little.

Sanji gave him an indulgent smile. He better than anyone knew how much Luffy had always wanted family of any kind — in Luffy's mind, this was possibly the best thing that could have happen to him. Hell, in Luffy's mind, this was probably the best thing that would ever happen to him.

In Sanji's mind, however, it was dubious at best. After living for all these years with no family and few friends, a close relation to a stranger is revealed, and the orphan boy who craves familial bonds is whisked off the live his dream life under this 'brother's' care. Highly improbable circumstances — it was something out of a movie! He was going to wait until he got a good look at this 'brother' and his home before he would trust him with Luffy. He had to skirt around the issue for now, though, because contesting the realization of Luffy's wish would only serve to make the boy testy and uncooperative.

"Well, if it's such a big occasion then I'll have to come over some time," Sanji claimed. "I'll make you and your brother a meal, how about it?"

"Yes!" Luffy jumped for joy. "Sanji makes the best food! Oh, but you'd have to cook for his dorm mate, Law, too, or he'll feel left out."

"No problem. I have to work late today and tomorrow, but I'm pretty sure the day after that is fine. I'll call you later to set up the specifics," he told the boy, chuckling, as Luffy was obviously disappointed that he would have to wait. "I only wish I could do it sooner," which was true. The sooner he could determine if this 'brother' was trustworthy or not, the better.

"Okay! Thanks, Sanji!" Luffy gave him one last hug — unreciprocated; Sanji doesn't hug men — before he sped out the door that connected the staff area to an alleyway and out of sight.

Sanji sighed. He pulled out of his own cubby a pack of cigarettes and lit one up. They were always necessary after a conversation with Luffy.

Let's see just how great this 'brother' actually is.

A/N: DUN DUN DUUUUUHHHHHNNN

SLIGHTLY DRAMATIC SITUATIONS OOOOOOHHHHH

So I will be incorporating the Mugiwaras, though they'll appear in no particular order, and you may be surprised by some of their roles. I have a hilarious idea for one of them, but I told myself I can't introduce that plot point until I introduce this plot point, as extra incentive to get this out.

The next chapter will be very funny, I promise.

Toodles!