Update! :D (My second one today, too... I'm working oddly fast right now o.o) Anyways, hopefully this chapter clears some things up. And judging from the reviews last chapter, I think what I'll do for the next really long bonus us post it in 2 or 3 parts. People seemed to have trouble with the length so I figure if I do that you'll be able to stop at different points if you feel like it, you know? So tell me what you guys think about that. I can always do it in another large lump if you like :)
Oh! And someone has begun translating the story into German! (I forgot to mention it before. Sorry Lina ;_;) So if you're a German reader and have trouble with mine, you can always read her translation of it! www .fanfiktion. de/ s/ 51606c9b000094ef06604651 (take out spaces)
Disclaimer: I think you know by now :)
Wide-eyed and dumbfounded, Ace froze where he was, watching as the redhead smothered the flames on her arm. When the fire was out he saw red, charred, damaged skin all around her forearm. She clenched her teeth, biting back the pain as she sat there in the center of the floor.
What had he done?
Swallowing heavily, Ace took in the image. He did that. It was his fault she was hurt. Because he was scared, he…
Before Nami has a chance to rise, Ace bolted out of the room, pushing past the doctor on the other side of the door.
"Ace!" Nami called after him, hoping he would return. He didn't, though, and instead she was met with the worried look on Chopper's face.
"What happened?" he asked, gently grabbing her arm to analyze the damage.
"I… I don't know. He just…"
Ace dashed across the ship and somehow found himself in the storeroom on the lower level. He ran in and shut the door behind him, met with almost perfect darkness. Sliding onto the cold, moist ground, he took a deep breath, running a hand through his sweat-coated hair. He felt something odd on his forehead, though. Rubbing the tips of his fingers over the area, he realized that whatever it was, it wrapped around his head. Bandages…
He fell earlier, before he slept. Did they… help him?
Biting his lip, he slammed his fist into the floor. Of course they did. They always did, ever since he met them. So why was he so scared? Why did he hurt Nami?
Forget…
His eyes widened. Did… Did the dream…?
Chopper pulled the wrappings taut as he finished treating Nami's burns. After that, he looked at her other arm and neck, just as a precaution.
"How is it?" the navigator asked.
Chopper breathed a sigh of relief. "Most of it is only second degree burns, but there may be some scarring."
Nami smiled. "That's alright. Thanks, Chopper."
The doctor smiled and blushed in his usual show of flattery, wriggling around happily but forgoing his usual comments. Then he snapped back to the topic at hand and stared up at his crewmate with big, round eyes. "Oh, right. Why did he attack you?"
Nami's smile faded and she lowered her head to stare at the stark-white cloth covering her wound. "…I'm not sure. I think he was scared."
"Of you?"
"Yeah. It's weird; he just freaked out when he saw me."
Chopper lowered his eyebrows into a look of deep concentration. "Then…"
"It's my fault. He was backing away but I kept getting closer. I should have stopped when I noticed how scared he was. But…"
"What is it?"
"Well…" She rubbed the space above her injury. "He seemed worried after it happened. I didn't get a good look but he looked upset. I don't think he wanted to hurt me."
Sanji was standing next to the stove, chopping up some vegetables for the crew's dinner. On the stove were two pots, each with different ingredients. He was sure to make something special for Luffy, to help him get back his strength should he wake. He'd never admit it, but he worried a lot about that shitty captain of his. Where would they be without Luffy? He wasn't even sure the Baratie would still be floating if it wasn't for him. After all, who was it that took out Don Krieg?
As he cut into some celery, he wondered about that. Where would they all be? Zoro might have died—from what he heard, Luffy saved him from execution. Then again maybe that stupid marimo would have gotten out of it somehow. But then where would he be? Nami would still be under the control of that bastard Arlong, no doubt—pissed him off thinking about such a lovely beauty being at the mercy of such a filthy criminal. Well, they were criminals, too, but a different kind. At least to him, they were. He would never hurt a lady, after all.
Robin… she would have been executed by the World Government. Or, maybe, she'd still be working under Crocodile as Miss All Sunday. Either way, it didn't look good. Brook would be floating around without a shadow still, Chopper would be stuck on that island unable to help people the way he wanted, Franky would have likely been murdered by CP9, Usopp wouldn't have been able to set sail like his father…
His mental wanderings were interrupted by the sound of the kitchen door opening. What was he going on about the past like that for? The shitty captain had him all sentimental. He'd have to give him a good kick when he woke up.
Glancing at the door, he was met with Robin's tall, slender figure. Being sure to finish cutting first, he spun around energetically, swooning over her beauty as he so often did. "Robin-chwan~"
The ebony-haired woman gave him a soft, small smile before seating herself at the large table at the other end of the room. She placed a book on the table in front of her, letting out a tired breath in the process.
Sanji arrived promptly at her side, tray in hand. He leaned in and placed an iced glass of one of his latest recipes in front of her, receiving a grateful nod in reply. But it seemed the scholastic beauty lacked her usual brightness. It wasn't surprising under the circumstances. "Is something bothering you, Robin?"
She looked at him, blue eyes meeting his as she forced an exhausted smile. "Perhaps, Cook. I'll be fine, though."
Sanji returned to an upright position, removing a cigarette from its pack and placing it taut between his lips as he searched his pocket for a lighter. "What is it?"
Robin caressed the glass gently with both hands and ran her index finger along its rim. She stared into the orange liquid, wondering what to say. Finally she closed her eyes and took a small sip. "I'm concerned about Ace."
"The runt?"
She nodded. "His outburst from earlier worries me."
"It was a panic attack, wasn't it?"
"Yes. I'm more concerned with why it happened, though."
The blonde turned around to lean against the table as he lit his cigarette, inhaling the toxins as he thought about those words. He returned his lighter to his pocket and bit down a little harder on his cancer stick. "Is it really something to worry about? People sometimes get them without warning, right?"
"But he started to panic after seeing Luffy's face."
Sanji took the cigarette between his figures and exhaled a puff of smoke. He had to admit, the timing was pretty odd if it was random. While mauling that over in his head, he glanced over at the book on the table. It was a psychology text—one he was unfamiliar with. He wasn't surprised Robin had it, though; she began studying far more than just history many years earlier. Still, it showed just how serious she was.
Before he could say any more, he heard the creak of the knob being turned again. Once more he faced the door, this time greeted with the figure of the navigator. He smiled at her, stood straight and ran over, twirling around her with excitement. "Nami-swan~"
She looked at him but seemed to be thinking about something else. "Hey, Sanji," she greeted.
It didn't take him long to notice the wrappings on her arm. Gentle he grabbed her hand, pulling it closer for inspection. "What happened to your arm?"
"Oh, well…" She thought about what to say.
Sanji released her and headed over to the other side of the kitchen to prepare her a drink as well, checking the pots on the stove and the tray in the oven as he listened for her explanation.
"Ace burned me."
His head shot around, a look of anger rising to his eyes. "He what? When I get my hands on that little shit…"
Nami raised her hands in a placating fashion, a nervous smile on her face. "He didn't mean it, Sanji. He was just scared."
"Scared?" Robin questioned, gesturing for her to continue.
"He was terrified of me for some reason. It was like he didn't recognize me."
The dark-haired woman narrowed her eyes, taking in that new information. She raised her finger and thumb to her chin as she thought. "Where is he now?"
"Huh?" Nami blinked. "He ran out of the room… He could be anywhere."
"I think we should leave him until Captain wakes up. Still, we should keep an eye on him, just in case."
Nami tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
The blonde placed a glass in front of the redhead and leaned over the table, waiting for Robin to explain.
"You say he didn't recognize you?"
"Well, I don't think he did. He was really shaken up… Why?"
"Maybe…"
It was Usopp's turn to keep an eye on Luffy. Chopper was getting tired and, like the admirable warrior he was, he offered to take his place! But… it was more depressing than he thought it would be. Seeing his buddy there, motionless, almost proved to be too much. He was never out that long. And the way he looked… he was so pale. It was unnerving. But he supposed that's what seastone would do if it entered a user's body. It was a scary thought—the mighty Pirate King being taken out by something like that. He was the strongest man alive and yet there he was, laying half-dead and unconscious. They let their guard down because they attained the title of the strongest pirate crew.
The sniper pouted as he stared into the face of his captain, sipping from the glass in his hand. For a moment he thought he saw something—a twitch. When his finger moved he damn near spit his drink across the room.
In an instant he was at Luffy's bedside, staring with anticipation as he watched his eyelids shake, fluttering open slowly. A smile tugged at his mouth as the patient woke, sending a jolt of relief through his body.
"Oi, Luffy, you awake?" he asked in an excited, slightly raised voice. Quickly he slapped his hands over his mouth, knowing that the last thing the Pirate King needed was for him to yell in his ear.
Luffy turned his head slightly to face the sniper, eyes still partially-lidded and out of focus. "…Usopp?"
His smile widened. "Yeah, it's me. How you feeling?" A groan was his only response. He chuckled at that, happy just to see him awake. Quickly he hurried to the infirmary door, inhaling deeply. "Oi, he's up!"
"…What happened?" Luffy asked in a quiet, raspy voice.
Usopp scurried back over to the chair nearest to the bed and plopped down on it. "You almost died," he stated in a tone more serious than before.
"…Eh?"
The sniper narrowed his eyes. "Those Marines injected you with liquid seastone. They managed to stop your heart, but Chopper was able to bring you back."
"And where's Ace?"
Usopp flinched. He hoped he wouldn't ask about that. But, of course, Luffy's main concern when waking up was his brother. "W-well…"
"He's sick," Robin declared as she opened the door.
"Luffy!" Chopper shouted as he ran up and hugged his captain excitedly.
Luffy blinked and looked over at the older woman from where he lay. "Sick?"
She nodded. "Not physically, though."
The Pirate King raised an eyebrow. "…I don't get it."
She stepped further into the room, stopping right beside Usopp. Taking even, deep breaths, she mauled over how to phrase it so that her captain would understand. "He saw you 'die' and as a response to that he regressed." Robin, Chopper and Nami spent the last few hours trying to figure out what was wrong. Seeing as they decided it was best not to approach the boy himself, they had little to go on aside from his attack on Nami. And while they were sure they got it right, none of them knew how to deal with it. "While he remembers us just as did before, his body's reacting as it did before he met us. Understand, Captain?"
Luffy pulled his mouth into a taut line. "Nope," he said simply, a bit disappointed by the fact that he had no idea what was going on.
"Remember how he acted when you found him on the island?" Chopper asked as he let go of Luffy's neck. He waited for a nod. "He's gone back to that."
The pirate blinked. "Oh…" His face was blank before, in an instant, his mouth curved into an impossible grin. "Then we'll just have to get him to like us again! Shishishi!"
Usopp and Chopper sighed; only he could be so optimistic.
Suddenly Luffy's laughter broke into a coughing fit. Chopper handed him a glass of water—they prepared it earlier in the case that he woke—and had him drink. "You need to rest, alright Luffy? We'll talk more in the morning."
"But Ace—"
"Rest," he insisted.
With a pout, the Pirate King gave in. "Fine…"
A/N: So yeah, progress :D And see, I told you guys at the beginning of the story that I was going to put the crew in it more later, and this is where that starts, so yay! I just waited until the story developed more. We're somewhere around halfway now, so yeah, yay us! Wonder how long it'll be before this is finished... Actually, We're halfway through Reverse and Skip, too. And almost done To Be a Boy. Let's hope they don't all end around the same time because I still haven't decided which ideas to start next after they're complete... too many to choose ^^;
To my lovelies~
Portgas D. Paula: I had a lot of fun with that part XD
Vanizo: Glad you like~
sess18: Lol I don't kill Luffy off THAT often XD Just for the Platform Drop bonus and Goodbye oneshot.
LinaFair: Glad you enjoyed :) I had a lot of fun with those four. I'm kind of sad I can't write about them anymore, actually. I'm sure you'll do fine! I am better now, luckily. Thought I was never going to get rid of whatever I had.
shimmering shadows: Really happy to hear that you liked it ^^
Neko-VongolaPrimo: Very long! Lol I drank lots of tea when I was sick. Yeah, and I thought it was too long to begin with XD I know what you mean. That's why I think it'd be better if I divide the next really long bonus into parts. It's easy to get lost when there's that much to read and it takes up a lot of time. Well actually there's another reason why Law can't help. After all, Law's a Yonko in this and no longer a shichibukai. But we'll get to that later :) Oh that last bit? Basically Ace was saying that they shouldn't miss them because they are, essentially, the same people, so it would be like missing themselves. Hope that helped!
Bluebird42: Hehe well I'm glad you enjoyed it!
key46812: Glad you do!
Diclonious57: True XD
Honeydee: Really glad you enjoyed it ^^ I can understand that. I can be pretty impatient myself when waiting for an update. No it wasn't bothering or offending me, I just stated that I was giong to post the bonus next. Sorry if it came out that way, I have trouble expressing myself sometimes ^^; (And yet I write...) And about that, I said that because I do, in fact, have readers who do not like the bonuses. At all. And by your comment I thought you were one of them, so it would have been bad if you didn't like bonuses, clicked on the update and then found out that it wasn't a continuation of the main plot. Sorry if I offended or upset you. I do want you to read my story, but I don't want people who don't like the bonuses to waste their time reading them, you know? Lol Skip will be over within the next two months (likely) so you'll get your answers then. Funny thing is, even though Promised Reunion is the prequel of this story, it's actually more relevant to Skip. But I'll get to that in an update. The reason I don't really feel that Skip should be anyone's favourite it because no matter now much effort I put into it, it still comes out sounding awesome and having a really underdeveloped plot :/ I want to say some things about the ideas you had but if I do there'll be spoilers so I can't e_e; A lot of people seemed to like the idea of that mini-fic so I think I'm going to do it. Eventually. Maybe in-between finishing Skip and starting a new long-fic. To your questions... 1. You'll find out in the next few chapters what happened :) 2. Yep, I almost guarantee there will be another AU in the bonuses of this story before it completes, though the only one I'm working on now is Sabo's Story. Lol yep it was very long and so was this reply XD But nothing wrong with that!
teengens: You didn't offend me, sorry if it came off like you did. I just don't want people forcing themselves to review if they don't want to, you know? Well it wouldn't be an extended version, just a separate shortfic dealing with Ace shrinking and losing his memory. Still not completely sure whether or not I'm going to make it, though. Hehe there probably are some grammatical errors, it's just so long that no one notices :P Thanks!
MysteriousEyez: Well here is an actual update :) I enjoyed writing that part a lot! Though it was kind of weird writing about Ace talking to Ace ^^; Lol honestly that Luffy shouldn't be taking care of anyone...
Son Goshen: Oh god it has! I asked you about it when we first started talking, right? Wow... O.O; As far as that... you'll have to wait and see XD Keep in mind that the bonus took place like a year ahead of where we are now, too :) Well in the beginning it was meant to be confusing. But if it was confusing after that, I'm sorry u_u I never got around to proof-reading it so it's just my raw writing and I guess I might not have been paying attention well.
Kitsune Foxfire: Actually I was thinking of doing that XD I thought of it while writing the Mafia bonus and I was like "I seriously got to do that... either as a bonus or a short fic." So it's almost certain I will :) Hmmm... I shall ponder those. I was actually thinking of doing it in an AU similar to the Mafia one, yet different. But I also really like those ideas... Too many choices! That was my favourite part to write ^^ Bonuses I find more relaxing because there's no pressure to keep it flowing with the rest of the plot and they tend to be a lot more simplistic. I enjoy writing both, but bonuses are like a writing vacation for me XD Yep, doing parts would probably be better for the next time I write something so long. Lol don't worry, Ace is getting to understand that thanks to Marco in cannon. He just needs to work through some things first XD
Sealing Mistress: Actually someone else asked about that, so I'm thinking about it :) Have some ideas written down similar to it, and one I just know I'm going to have to write (long-fic) after I finish one of my ongoing stories, only it's the reverse of that :P Really glad you enjoyed the bonus~
deadlycute17: Glad you did :)
Guest: Well the crew's going to be in the actually story more, so maybe you'll like that. Actually the bonus Sabo's Story that will be placed after the epilogue so you may like that since it's all about what Sabo does (being dead) after Ace is reborn :)
christina: Thank you :)
RoXaS707: Don't worry, there will be many bonuses to come! And here's an update :)
azab: I will~ And glad you like!
buslimpan: Hehe glad you liked it! Don't worry, I'll probably start working on that bonus in a few weeks, about 10 chapters from now (can't have the bonuses too close, after all). It'll be a lot shorter than this, though. Very glad you enjoy my writing! And thank you for taking the time to read my stuff!
gdesertsand: Really glad you like! Hehe that's alright, I'm just happy knowing that you're enjoying it!
darkimpulse: Nope! Ace does not remember in this chapter, sadly.
Doppelganger 5.0: Hehe sorry ^^;
ASLfangirl: Glad you enjoyed and thank you~
Guest (2): I know who Sabo is. In fact, he's a main character in my stories The Divide and Imagined Life as well as a side character in To Be a Boy. Because this story continues from canon, though, I'm not adding him to it :( Sorry. There will be a bonus after the epilogue that's about him in the afterlife, though, so if you like the story and plan on sticking to it until the end you'll get to read about him ^^ And you could always try my other stories that have him in them. Hope that helps!
(And that is everyone XD I hope to see you all next update! Adieu~)