A/N: See, this is what happens when I save up my crazy for too long. You get a surplus in your updates.

Also, because someone asked, the age difference between the brothers is greater in this fic than cannon. Let's call it Luffy's fifteen to Ace's twenty-two.

Also also, I have this pretty much planned. I know how it ends, and I know the character roles, for the most part, I just need to know what all happens in between now and the ending…

Quick timeline so far, just for my own (and your) reference: Luffy meets Ace late in the day of Chapter One, sleeps over, and then the events of Chapter two happen, then this chapter is the morning after that. Sorry, just sure-ing the details down in my head and making sure the order of events are sensical.

"…And she told me we needed a ragdoll, a flag pole, and a kimono, when what we actually needed was a box set of Doctor Who, a bicycle, and a microwave oven. We were just lucky we had an accordion with us and that we found that squid in the nick of time. So, that's why I'm stuck making it up to her by cleaning her fish tank, even though that whole debacle was two years ago." Ace paused. "Also, that's why I'm prohibited by law from going back to Norway."

"It's not really illegal for you to go to Norway," Luffy stared at him in awe and disbelief. "Is it?"

"No, seriously, they added it to their constitution. 'Ace er utestengt'."

His younger brother responded with loud peals of laughter. From the next room, Law groaned at them.

"Will you two be quiet?" he complained. "I just so happen to get my hands on one of the genuine first-printed copies of the original Zorro movie from 1920, and you guys talk over the climax?"

"Uh, sorry," Ace apologised as he and Luffy stepped into the living area. "But, how did you get something like that anyway? I didn't know bona fide copies of that from so long ago existed."

"I know a guy," Law replied enigmatically.

"Wait a second," Luffy said, dubious, "The 1920's Mark of Zorro… was a silent movie! How did we talk over a silent movie?"

They both gave him a fixed gaze. Law scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"…I was imagining the characters' voices in my head."

"Wait, so you're saying," Ace started incredulously, "that you're mad at us because we were talking over the voices in your head?"

"Yes."

"That's… That's not healthy."

"Just go clean your fish tank!" Law stood up and physically pushed Ace back into the kitchen. Ace tried to dig his heels into the floor in resistance.

"Wait! I'm a psychology student; I can help you!" Ace yelled as he flailed his arms, attempting to catch himself, ineffectually. Law gave him one last push and he fell to the kitchen floor in a heap.

The med student turned to Luffy. They locked eyes for a while, staring each other down intensely. Luffy swallowed harshly.

"I'm just… going to get a glass of water," he claimed.

"You do that."

"I'll be back, though!"

"I'm sure you will," Law replied. "Now go."

Luffy pouted but trudged into the kitchen anyway. Opening a cupboard, he took out a glass and brought it to the sink to fill it up. When it was halfway full he got distracted by Law's movie and the water overflowed onto his hand, so he had to dump some of the glass' contents back down the drain. Otherwise, it would have spilled the second he tried to walk with it.

He was about to go back to the living area when his eyes stuck upon Ace, who was scrubbing the inside of a fish tank furiously and grumbling incoherently. Looking at the tank, he could almost imagine it as a living scene, pullulating with colourful fish and crystal clear waters, rather than the current barren griminess his older brother was working so hard to cleanse it of.

"Oi, Nii-chan…" He was still just getting used to applying that word to someone, but damn if it didn't feel good. "Can we get a pet?"

Ace paused his work to look up at him. "I think you're more than enough for this household, thanks."

"But, but… please? Please?" He gave his brother his best puppy dog eyes. Maybe they could get him an actual puppy dog.

"Well… fine." Luffy was about to start celebrating when Ace finished, "How's about a pet rock?"

"What? No!" he cried in despair. "Everybody's got a pet rock! It's so unoriginal. Why can't we get a dog? Or a hamster? Or a parrot? Or a rabbit? Or mice? Or a cat? Or a rhinoceros? Or a—"

"Stop, stop!" Ace rubbed his temples. "We couldn't even fit a rhinoceros in here. Do you have any idea much a rhinoceros costs, anyway? I've tried that before; it didn't work out so well."

"Well, what can we get?"

Ace mumbled under his breath, wondering how the issue had changed from whether they could get a pet to what kind of pet they were getting. Then again, though they had only known each other for a couple days now, Ace was shaping up a bad habit of always giving his little brother what he wanted.

He looked between the fish tank in front of him and the glass of water in Luffy's hand as he was hit in the face with a brick of inspiration so heavy it nearly broke his nose. Reaching in with his hand, he scooped a little bit of the fuzzy green stuff that grew on the bottom of the tank and dropped it into Luffy's glass. The boy blinked in surprise. "There! How's that for an original pet?"

"A… moss ball?" Luffy asked, incredulous as Ace nodded. "Well…" He trailed off, sneaking a glance into the living area, where the Mark of Zorro was still playing. "I'm going to name him Zoro!" he announced happily after a small amount of deliberation.

Ace chuckled as he watched his brother tapping on the glass, chanting, "Zoro-pi*, Zoro-pi, Zoro-pi my marimo…" He was glad Luffy didn't seem too bothered by being short-changed in the pet department. Maybe they could get a real one some day.

Until then, 'Zoro' would do.

Special Extra! Luffy's First Night Over!

"Here we go," Ace said quietly as he unfolded the couch into a bed. "This is good enough for tonight, but we'll make sure to get you your own proper bed later."

"Thanks," Luffy stage whispered back. They couldn't be too loud; Law was trying to sleep just a few rooms away. He had an early morning the next day.

Ace smiled as he watched Luffy dive under the covers enthusiastically. The boy declared, "This is so much better than the beds at the Centre."

"So you're okay then," Ace confirmed to himself as he turned to go back to his own room. "Sleep tight."

"Wait!" Luffy called. His older brother looked back at him curiously. He shifted nervously under the scrutiny. "Um… Can you… sing a lullaby?" he asked feebly.

"Well… sure," Ace replied, bewildered. He reached in his mind for a moment, but there was only one song he actually knew. As he cleared his throat, he made a mental note to learn some new songs.

When he finished, Luffy was grinning like the idiot he was. "I like that song."

"Yeah, so do I," Ace leaned over to ruffle his hair. "So, good night then."

"Already?" the boy gaped, aghast. "But…"

"Go to bed, kiddo. You need your rest," Ace instructed as he stood to leave.

"Wait!" Luffy implored again, catching him by his wrist. Ace got the feeling he just didn't want to be left alone. "Aren't you going to check under the bed for monsters?"

"Monsters?" he repeated, raising an eyebrow. "You want me to check for monsters?"

Luffy nodded frantically, shooting him a look with big, pleading eyes. "Please?"

He looked so very small in that moment, sitting on the bed and gazing up at him, eyes wide and round, begging and watery…

Ace melted.

"Alright," he said confidently, "let's check this puppy."

He kneeled down on the floor, scanning under the couch/bed. Nothing. Nonetheless, he made a couple 'hmm' and 'haaw' noises, just to play along.

When he glanced back at Luffy, his younger brother was peeking over the edge to watch him. "I don't see any."

"Of course not!" Luffy scoffed. "That's 'cause they're invisible! Even I know that."

"Well then," Ace said ominously, "Wait exactly where you are." With that, he rushed into the kitchen for some makeshift tools.

When he returned, he wore an oven mitt on one hand and carried a spatula in the other. On his head, a spaghetti strainer sat as a helmet.

"What are you…?" Luffy began, but stopped as he took in the ridiculousness.

"Vanquishing evil!" Ace proclaimed. With a battle cry, he stuck the spatula under the couch/bed and jiggled it around a little bit. Suddenly, his arm froze. "Oh no! It's got me!" He pretended to be struggling to keep his arm from being sucked under.

"No!" Luffy panicked. He shouted, "I'll save you!" and jumped off the bed, landing directly on Ace, who exclaimed in surprise and pain.

They both worked together to 'save' Ace from being pulled into the monster's clutches, making a lot of noise as they did so.

They had completely forgotten about not waking Law up.

"What are you two dumbasses doing?"

Ace had half his arm jammed under the couch, and his free hand was covered in a purple oven mitt. Luffy had his arms wrapped around Ace's torso from behind, and Ace was wearing a colander on his head, of all things.

"…Smiting monsters?" Ace offered pathetically.

Law wasn't impressed. "You look like a Pastafarian."

And once again, Luffy just laughed.

A/N: Wow, sorry for the wait. All my attention was taken by this one shot I've been working on, it's turning out to be really long. Like, I haven't even introduced most of the characters yet.

Also sorry for the lack of actual chapter in this chapter, it's more like a scene in between. I did introduce Zoro, though, so that's good. I threw in that extra for you, too, so hopefully no one is too angry.

*Translation note: -pi = an honorific added to the names of small pets.