I'm... Still going? Normally I'd have already lost my drive to write, pfff. Though, I guess it's always because I fall out of the fandom and lose interest. I don't see that happening here for a long while, haha~

Here's to the long haul!

Chapter Two: Cowards

The boys sat across from each other, Alvida in a heap by Luffy, when the Marines boarded the ship.

The blackened limb Luffy was showing Coby - never too early to teach his friend and rival the basics - faded back to the texture-free tanned skin tone, the rubbery fingers flexing reflexively. Coby blinked rapidly, unused to the sight that was so rarely even mentioned in the East Blue, before turning his eyes to the Marines.

The Marine-to-be couldn't believe all he'd seen today; it was like some strange sort of fantasy come to life! For one thing, he was rescued, finally, after two years of practically being a prisoner on this Pirate crew. Luffy had made a comment regarding how he'd been a hostage of his own fear and… he couldn't deny it.

For another thing, his rescuer had taken them out so effortlessly. That was without even using this strange power the man had just been showing him. The ability to… 'Manifest your own willpower'? Whatever it was, Luffy let him feel it, and it was hard as steel! Though, Luffy's actual skin texture was weird itself. A side effect of using this 'Haki' too often, maybe?

Now, the Marines were flooding onto the deck of the cruiser, Luffy waving merrily at them as they took in the scene before them. Every pirate was out cold, left to lay there uselessly. The only one tied up was their captain, who lay beside Luffy's seated form.

The once-King rose from his place in front of Coby, who quickly scrambled up as well. With a quick look over the apparent leader's uniform, the boy huffed before snapping into a salute. He disliked the thought of saluting to a Lieutenant, but it would get his grandfather to stop sniffing him out if the report sent in for his actions was positive. Though, no report at all was still the best option, in his personal opinion.

Maybe a report with 'good behavior would make Gramps think he'd finally caved and gone to be a Marine. Should let him relax a bit.

"Pirate Captain Alvida captured, and hostage recovered." Luffy addressed, gesturing to Coby when he mentioned the hostage. "I believe the civilians aboard this ship had all fled before I arrived, Lieutenant."

Coby starred, a little put off by the sudden change in behaviour. Wasn't this man just saying he'd be a pirate as soon as he found a first mate? That he would be the Pirate King someday? But now he was acting like some... some sort of-!

The young man stuck his tongue out at the pink haired boy once he'd gained access to the Marine patrol ship. With the lower ranked crew members running around, tying up the Pirate crew and dragging them to the lowest level of their ship, Luffy followed the Lieutenant onto the small ship, an arm thrown around Coby's shoulders.

Coby was almost positive this was a dream now.

"You're Vice-Admiral Garp's Grandson!?"

"Aa." Luffy confirmed with a care-free grin, hands braced against his chair between his knees as he tapped his toes against the table legs. "He doesn't know I've set sail for adventures yet, though."

The Marine looked mildly surprised, but accepting enough. When he turned his round eyes to Coby, however, the shock and plain disbelief was still growing on his expression. The look on his face made the rubber-man burst out into laughter.

"'Monkey D' isn't really a common name, Coby!" He finally giggled out, hiding the unnaturally wide stretch of his grin under his hand. "Geezer might be a handful, but he's family." Family that let your bond brother die in every lifetime Luffy shook his head to rid himself of those thoughts. The old man had let him past easily in every life too; even if he didn't do anything to help them, he didn't do much to hinder them either. He still tried harder to stop you than to stop them

The frown on Luffy's face was fleeting, and quickly covered up with a whining comment about how rough Garp's training had been. He barely remembered those days anymore, but he remembered well enough that his muscles twinged in phantom pain at the thought of them. How many insects had he forced himself to eat as a child to stay alive?

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Luffy looked up to the Marine again. "Do you think you could take us to the nearest Naval Base to turn in the bounty? With the Marine-pickup deduction, of course." He was pretty sure that wasn't what it was called, but that's essentially what it was.

"Ah, the Marine assist fee." Luffy laughed internally. Yeah, that. Assist fee. Pffff. "I'm sure since it's simply a drop-off, the Captain will waive the fee for Garp's grandson..." Seeing the brief look of discomfort, Luffy sat back, glad to see they were going where he needed to go.

It would take a few good hours, but it would still be faster than taking that dinghy they took last time. Anything was better than being late here. Anything was better than finding a broken little girl when they arrived.

Turning to Coby, Luffy grinned, already feeling bored after a moment of silence. "Wanna spar on deck?"

Coby really should have tried harder to say no. Apparently stutters equaled 'yes' to the man.

Coby hit the ground for what had to be the hundredth time in the last hour, vision blurring slightly as his head hit the ground. Why was he doing this? "Again!" Oh, right. Luffy had apparently taken it upon himself to train him while they were still together.

The younger and newer Marines had gathered around to watch, wondering about this odd straw hat wearing brat who'd taken down a pirate Captain. They quickly discarded the word 'brat' watching him effortlessly toss the other boy to the ground repeatedly. 'Bully' might have been a better word in their minds.

But no matter what they might have thought, Coby just kept getting back up, and Luffy was proud. He knew Coby was reaching his boundary, a hurdle that would take a long time before he learned to fight past it, but he was still getting up and throwing those sloppy punches. None of them hit Luffy, but that was fine. He was getting back up, and that was all that mattered.

It probably helped that he wasn't hitting Coby himself, just tossing him or sweeping his legs out.

Eventually, Coby hit that wall, and Luffy didn't have to stick his leg out for him to trip and fall, falling flat on his face. A few chuckles came from their little audience, and Luffy shot them all a look that had them taking a step back.

"Not bad, Coby. You lasted a lot longer than I thought you would!" He finally said with a laugh when he couldn't stand up on his own. The Pirate offered his hand to the downed boy, helping him up and taking the weight he couldn't support.

For a moment, Coby was ashamed that he couldn't even get one hit in, but quickly shook it off remembering what he'd seen and been told. Able to take out Alvida in two hits, and 'training longer than you've been alive!' came to mind, then the Haki and the fact that Luffy hadn't used it.

No, he had no reason to be ashamed. But how had Luffy dodged every single one of his hits? He hadn't even felt the need to block any, just twisting out of the way or side stepping! Was it that Haki stuff he mentioned earlier?

So he asked. "Luffy, were you using that other Haki you mentioned?" It had something to do with foresight, right?

The man blinked. "Observation Haki? Nah, people in the Blues are usually slow enough that I can keep up without it easy." Somehow, instead of being insulted by the ease Luffy could take him on, he felt lightened. After all, everyone in the East Blue was in this category for him, even Alvida was! "Everyone on this ship is probably really slow! Shishishi~"

Some of the watching crewmates called foul, taking offense to what the thin boy said. A few even stepped forward, hands tightly clenched and told him to talk with his fists.

Coby watched worriedly. Would Luffy beat down this crew as easily as the last? Would it be such a good idea to do so? What if the Lieutenant came out and thought they were assaulting naval officers!

It seemed Luffy, however, wasn't done with his surprises. He sent a bored look over the hot-heads, frowning slightly as he walked towards them. The Marines, some Luffy's age, most older, tensed when he got close, but…

He walked right past them, headed for the bow of the ship. "You guys aren't worth the time." He stated bluntly. Coby felt like crying as the Marines' nervousness faded back into offence.

"Try and say that with my fist in your gut!" One bellowed, but didn't act. No matter their bark, they seemed to know on a very primal level that Luffy's bite was far stronger than their own. It seemed Luffy knew it too, seeing as he didn't bother to reply, sitting on top of the canon at the head of the ship like nothing happened.

The next few hours passed rather uneventfully, even if some of the Pirates below deck were waking up and having a shouting match with the one in charge of watching them. Occasionally Luffy would snicker, somehow hearing what was said down there, but for the most part, he stared over the water's surface silently, a small smile on his face.

It took him a while, but eventually Coby realized that Luffy was staring out over the horizon in the direction of Loguetown, or more accurately, the entrance to the Grand Line. What he didn't know, was that Luffy was practically vibrating with excitement, only dampened by the lingering doubt and fear his last two tries had left him with. He couldn't wait to see his family again, even if he had to earn their trust back again. Even if they didn't know him like he knew them. He couldn't wait to see Ace alive, laughing, and dining and dashing to his heart's content. He couldn't wait to see both of his brothers alive together.

It wasn't long before they docked, the Marines carting out the Pirate crew, while Luffy carried Alvida on his shoulder. That got him a few odd looks, but he was past caring; he'd never see most of these people again, if he remembered right. Even if he did, it's not like he's ever cared about first impressions… There were only four people in this village that mattered to him in the slightest anyways.

Walking through the town was strange. What he remembered being an almost-lively town seemed too quiet, and the Marines looked uncomfortable walking through the quiet town. While Luffy frowned, eyes darting from one side of the road to the other, Coby was the one who brought it up.

"Where are all the civilians?" The question wasn't answered, the Marines acting like they hadn't heard it, but the looks on their faces, eyes staring up at the Naval Base, and the tense muscles in their shoulders was answer enough for Luffy.

He was slightly disappointed he hadn't realized it instantly. With the townsfolk terrified of their own captain, the Marine patrol coming back had them hiding as soon as they saw it at the dock. The fact that it was early because of them likely didn't help their anxiety.

Right, so that didn't change, of course. He'd still have to kick Morgan's ass.

When they reached the gate, Luffy almost unceremoniously dropped Alvida to the ground. He had a swordsman to look for after all! But he was early enough that he could spare the time, and Nami would be happy to have a few extra Beli in her pocket when they got her. Besides, he wanted to see what was up with that statue he kept breaking this time.

So, for the first time in three lifetimes, Luffy walked through the front door of a Marine base without being forced.

And he felt bored almost as soon as he stepped inside. Everything was white and bland, and while he knew it was probably the Captain's fault, there was nothing personal about the base; It looked like it had just been painted days ago it was so clean and bare. Even the outside was more exciting to look at than the inside!

The Pirate king waited impatiently for them to sort everything out, leaving it to Coby and the Marine. He never did ask the guy for his name, now that he thought about it. Oh well, there was enough to remember without adding another name.

He heard Garp's name several times, before the nameless Marine came back, handing him a sizable drawstring bag. Taking a peek, he could see a sizable number of 1,000 Beli bill bundles. He didn't bother to do the math on it, knowing it would take him way too long. Where was his Blue Gentleman when his brain was really needed? The Pirate King needed him FAR more than the Revolutionaries did…

Luffy snorted and grinned at his own train of thought, pulling the drawstring closed. There was at least a couple million Beli here, decent for the east blue, but probably the smallest bounty given to people he'd fight from here out.

"Thanks for the help." Luffy clapped the taller man's shoulder, and tied the strings to one of the belt loops on his shorts. "Hope we didn't take your patrol too off track."

"Ah, no sir! It was only a few hours out, no trouble at all!" The Pirate tilted his head at the nervous look on the Marine's face. Was the Base Captain standing behind him or something? A quick look said no, no he was not. Probably just skittish being stuck here and eager to get back to the sea.

Shrugging, Luffy smiled over at Coby, who'd been watching the proceedings with rapt attention; you never knew what job you'd be saddled with in the Marines. "How about you go ahead and join, Coby? I'll go write you a letter of recommendation or something." Never mind that he was terrible at writing anything, let alone something so important and formal. That'd been a pain in his remaining family's ass the last few years.

The Pink haired boy blinked up at Luffy for a moment, before turning to the Lieutenant, blowing low at the waist. "Please let me enlist, Lieutenant Souma!" Luffy huffed hearing the name, knowing it'd stick with him solely because he'd made a point not to learn it.

The Marine looked taken aback, but with a quick look at Luffy, whose grin was proud and expectant, he hesitantly answered the hopefully teen. "I'd have to get it approved with the base Captain…" The man could feel the sweat roll down the side of his face. "If I remember correstly, Captain Morgan is… busy this afternoon, but I should be able to get you some time this evening… if that's alright with you, sir?"

"Huh? Why're you asking me?" The Pirate asked when he realized the Marine was waiting for him to answer. "I mean, yeah, that's fine, we can come back later!" Quickly grabbing Coby with a strained grin, Luffy dragged the boy out while a realization came over him. Something that made him angry and far more determined to send Morgan packing.

These men weren't just afraid of their captain. They were afraid of authority in general now. And with how Helmeppo abused his father's rank, just mentioning a Vice Admiral relative had put them on edge. It made Luffy sick to his stomach. Leadership was not meant to be used the way these people used it.

As soon as they were past the gate, Luffy nudged Coby forward without him. "Luffy? What is it, you're acting a little…" He let the sentence drag, not entirely sure what was wrong. It was just plainly obvious that something was wrong.

"Something's weird about this Base." Was the answer the pink haired boy received, and he furrowed his brow, about to give it proper thought, before there was a bag of Beli being shoved in his face. "Go find a place to eat, I'll catch up. Save me a seat, okay?"

"Luffy…" Not finding a reason to stop him, Coby nodded slowly, watching the strange man walk off around the outside wall of the Base. Frowning, the pink haired boy thought maybe he was forgetting something about this island, before turning around and leaving him to it. Whatever Luffy ran into, or whatever happened, Coby was sure the man could handle it. Even if the one in charge of this base found out he was a Pirate-to-be, be was almost certain Luffy could take them on.

Luffy himself was eager to leave. He was going to ask for permission to explore the base and figure out the story behind that statue, maybe grab Zoro's swords early, but everything about this place went against what he stood for. It made him uncomfortable. Made his hair stand on end and his fingers itch for a fight.

It didn't take long before Luffy could feel the familiar, yet oh so foreign aura of his first-mate beyond the wall, and the rubberman quickly scrambled up the stone, eager for his first look at his best friend in a very long time. Arms keeping him on top of the wall, Luffy let his feet dangle towards the ground as he gazed fondly at the supposed 'demon'.

There he was, tied to the post like some poor, crude crucifix, heels digging into the ground, and forearms dangling weakly. His black bandana hid his green hair from view and shaded his eyes, and while most would find him frightening to look at - part of why he did it - All Luffy could think was how many signs of exhaustion it was probably hiding. He'd already been there far too long, and Luffy felt the guilt drop in his stomach. His one comfort was the heavy rise and fall of his chest, Zoro's breathing focused and meditative.

Still, he couldn't fight the grin that grew on his face. Unlike last time Luffy saw his first-mate tied up like this, Zoro was fine. As long as he got some food and water, as well as a shit ton of sleep, the man would be fine.

Luffy called out, getting his swordsman's attention. "I bet you're itching for some good sake right about now, huh?"

I can't tell you how excited I am for Loguetown! I also get to practice some actual fight scenes soon, YAY