Chapter 5 – Waking Up To The Newspaper

A Few Days Earlier – Marineford

Garp slumped in his chair looking at the crumpled newspaper on his desk, he sighed and took a large gulp from his whiskey glass, ignoring the tears trickling down his face. His eyes read the title 'Marines Lose War, Whitebeard Commanded Alive While Shichibukai Blackbeard Dead'. His eyes skimmed the article even though he had read it so many times that he had memorised the content and settled on a single sentence near the bottom of the page, 'Many lives were lost in the recent war, most notably was Rear Admiral Monkey D. Luffy, granddaughter of the Hero Garp the Fist, she was one of many Marines who died in the line of duty.' Next to the column was a small formal photo of Luffy in her Marine uniform staring at the camera with her usual cold expression.

Garp let out a weak chuckle, when he read this. His youngest grandchild was dead and it was his fault. No one but himself, the Admirals and Sengoku knew that she had betrayed them and such a fact was kept under tight wraps since it would damage their reputation, if the press found out that one of their own had helped the prisoner escape. However, he had seen the whole thing from next to the execution platform; all three of his grandchildren had made a break for freedom. While two had succeeded the third, who had stayed behind, had failed. Garp knew that the only reason that Sakazuki had left after Luffy had collapsed was that she was dead. The Admiral was the type of man who didn't stop hunting a pirate until they were dead.

Thinking of his granddaughter made the tears flow harder down Garp's face. He had known that Luffy was unhappy being a Marine, since she always dreamt as a child of being Pirate King. If only he'd kept his mouth shut, but he had been so proud of her when she had managed to defeat the large ape that he had made her fight during the training session he'd put her through, when he had visited her. He cursed himself silently as he thought of her bright cheerful smile that had disappeared when she had become a Marine. He had tried to help train her in Haki and her Devil Fruit abilities but Sengoku had turned him away saying that his methods did more harm than good. Instead he cashed in a favour that his former student owed him, so that he would train his granddaughter instead and try to protect her from the politics that ran thickly in the Marine headquarters.

What Garp truly regretted was that he never again saw Luffy's smile since the day she had been brought to Marineford, either with him or anyone else. Her brothers had been furious at him for putting them in such a mess and even more so when they say the effect that staying in Marineford had had on their little sister. They had demanded answers and had told them that he had wanted them to be Marines not pirates, even if it meant using whatever means possible. He hadn't meant the words which he had shouted at them in the middle of the shouted argument; he only wanted them to be safe, free from the names of their parents. If only he had swallowed his damn pride and apologised, then his dear, sweet Luffy would still be alive.

Garp bent over his desks and his shoulders shook violently.

"Luffy. I'm so sorry." He finally managed to sob out.

Fleet Admiral Sengoku read the newspaper and with a disgusted snort gave it to the goat by his desk to shred.

He had lost his successor.

Monkey D. Luffy was one of the most intelligent people that he had ever met and it was hard to believe that she was indeed blood related to his friend Garp who was impulsive, out-spoken and idiotic. He sighed. The war had been a huge blow not only Marineford but to Impel Down and the World Government since one of their Shichibukai had not betrayed them but had broken out hundreds of highly dangerous criminals including the two former Shichibukai: 'Knight of the Sea' Jinbe and 'Desert King' Sir Crocodile.*

The Government had ordered the mass escape from Impel Down to be hushed up despite that the Marines had only managed to kill the prisoners that had joined Blackbeard's crew as well as Blackbeard himself. Sengoku sighed and looked down at the resignation letter on his desk, he had always been loyal to the World Government and never questioned orders from them. However, not only had he been ordered to cover-up the breakout but he had also been forbidden to pursue the hundreds of criminals that were now freely roaming the world.

He was furious at the order from the Government to suppress knowledge the mass escape incident in Level 6, it was most likely for them to save face and keep the faith of the people, thus placing nations in danger. Sengoku sighed again, and got up from behind his desk. He picked up his resignation letter and set off for the door of his office.

Second Half of the Grand Line – New World

Shank's hand shook violently as he read the paper. He didn't want to believe what he had read. 'Luffy was dead and she had been a Marine?' His first mate Benn looked at his captain worriedly. He and the rest of the crew had also read the article and were shocked to discover that their young friend had died in the recent war. Shanks ran his fingers over the small photo and his eyes soaked in every detail. Her hair had grown out from the short boyish look she had when he had met her as a kid, but the scar under her left was as prominent as it had been eleven years ago. Even to this day he remember when she had stabbed herself in the face to prove that she was as tough as any man, remembering Shanks couldn't stop his lips curling into a smile.

However, what disturbed him most about the photo was not the uniform the Luffy wore but her expression, or lack of. The girl, Shanks knew was always smiling and laughing and would never keep still long enough for a formal photo, that was shown in the newspaper, to be taken. Her eyes gazed coldly from the paper at the reader as if measuring him up for a coffin. Shanks shook his head and read the article for a fifth time but his mind couldn't process what he was reading.

The girl that he had thought of as a daughter was dead. Shanks held the paper held the paper over his face to hide his tears but his shaking shoulders showed Benn that his captain was crying. The rest of the crew also watched Shanks with worried expressions, since they had known how close Shanks and Luffy were and they didn't know how their captain would react to the news.

After a few moments Shanks took a deep breath to calm down and turned to his first mate. "Set course for Whitebeard. The Marines right now are too disorganised after the war to keep an eye out for two Yonko meeting up. I want to see how he is since he managed to get his commander back."

The crew ran about the deck changing the ship's direction and as Shanks watched them he felt his anger growing. He knew Luffy's Grandfather had wanted her to be a Marine and it seemed he had gotten his wish, and because of it Luffy was dead. Shanks swore to himself that if he ever saw the old man he would personally see to it that Garp's head would be delivered as an offering to Luffy's grave.

Present – Moby Dick

"Where… where am I?"

Marco looked at the girl looking at him from the bed before calling one of the nurses to check on her. She looked disoriented gazing around the sick bay but her gaze always returned to him.

"We're in the Infirmary on the Moby Dick-yoi."

She looked more confused, but when she tried to reply she started coughing drying, Marco accepted the glass of water from the nurse that had been checking the equipment and gently removed her oxygen mask. He put his hand behind her head and held the cups to her lips so that she could drink small sips of water, which he was glad she accepted since he was a pirate and she was Marine. When her throat didn't feel like sand paper Luffy tried talking again.

"What happened? Why am I here? Where are my brothers and Thatch?" She spoke in a soft croaky voice that was a result of not talking any using the oxygen mask for the past week.

Marco placed the glass on the bedside table puzzled, and thought carefully before answering, "What's the last thing you remember-yoi?"

Luffy frowned, trying to remember. "We were running across the battlefield… I was on Ace's back so that I could concentrate and make sure none of the Marines could injure us. Akainu came… then… Blackbeard showed up." Luffy paused a few moments desperately trying to remember the last few moments of when she had been conscious. "I think… I made all the Marines attack him. After that, everything is black."

"That's not surprising." Selma said, joining the conversation. She took the clipboard from the nurse and read through her notes before continuing, her eyes never leaving the girl's face. "You overused you Devil Fruit abilities. Your brain shut down in order to save itself and your body went into shock as a result. If you had gotten to us only minutes later you would be dead."

'Selma was isn't a person to soften her words, even if they are a pirate, Marine or even Oyaji' Marco thought absently as he watched the Head Nurse and he couldn't help but flinch a little as she turned her direct gaze at him.

"Go wake her brothers and Thatch or all three be whining at me like little brats if we don't tell them immediately that the girl has woken up. While you're doing that I want to run a couple tests on her to see if there are any side effects from this brat being reckless. Oh, and tell Oyaji, while you're at it"

Marco quickly made his way out of the Infirmary and to the of the former second commander's cabin which had loaned out to the two brothers. He knocked as he entered the room, not caring to wait for their answer if they were awake, which was unlikely considering how exhausted they were. He was right, both pirates we sprawled across their beds snoring. Marco felt guilty about waking them since they both need their sleep but Selma was right. If they found out that their sister had woken up and they hadn't been immediately told, Marco had a feeling that the brothers could make their lives very difficult. With a chuckle he kicked them both causing them to fall unceremoniously out of bed with a thud, causing them to glare daggers at him while they rubbed bruised body parts.

Marco ignored the glares and smiled. "Your sister woke up-yoi."

He had barely finished the sentence when both dashed out the door to run headlong down the corridor to the infirmary. He then headed to the kitchen where Thatch would most likely be to give him the good news. Popping his head through the galley door he saw his brother chatting to several other commanders while he absently peeled potatoes into a large bowl, and called out to him.

"Oi Thatch, the Marine girl woke up-yoi!"

Thatch dropped his knife and potato to run up to Marco and barrage him with questions. "Is she okay? When did she wake up? Are there any problems? Does-"

Marco quickly cut him off when he saw that Thatch wasn't going to stop, "She woke up just now and you can go check on her yourself to get your answers." Thatch nodded and ran off to the Infirmary like the two siblings. Marco waved at when Vista, Haruta and Izo who had been sitting chatting to Thatch before making his way to Whitebeard's cabin.

He knocked on the door and waited for his captain to reply, when he heard of "Enter!" he opened the door and entered the cabin.

"What is it my son?" Whitebeard asked from his sitting position on his huge bed. He took a swig of sake from the bottle and grimaced as the various tubes he was attached to tugged at him.

"The Marine girl just woke up." Marco paused a moment, considering his words "Oyaji, what do you plan on doing with the three brats-yoi?"

Whitebeard hummed thoughtfully, during the war he had already made his decision but it seemed that it was time to things into action. "I plan on recruiting them. They helped Thatch escape as well as helping us to retreat. The two of the brats are pirates with large bounties on their heads, once the Marines get their acts together they'll chase them with everything they've got. The problem is the girl." Whitebeard learned over to the bedside table and handed the newspaper on it to Marco. "The paper says that she's dead but knowing Sengoku and Sakazuki they won't stop till she dead." He threw back his head and laughed. "Gurarara. They'll be great additions to the family, they care about each and risked their necks to save a stranger they knew nothing about. They're good honest brats who got caught up in the politics of the Marines."

Marco nodded and made his way to the door and paused, holding up the newspaper he still held, "Mind if I show this to the brats? They probably don't know what happened after the war since they were both focused solely on their sister-yoi."

Whitebeard nodded and after wishing his father figure good night, Marco made his way back to the infirmary, where was greeted with an amusing sight. All three of the people who had made their way to the infirmary after he had talked to them had large, steaming lumps on their heads and were sat on the floor looking like sulking children. Selma stood over them, holding up her clipboard threateningly while glaring daggers at the three supposedly grown men. She shot a final glare at Marco before storming off muttering to herself, where both nurses and patients wisely got out of her way. Luffy watched the entire scene chuckling quietly from where she was sat up propped up against pillows, with a small smile, before turning her attention onto Marco and giving him an awkward small bow from her sitting position.

"Good evening Mr. First Commander, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Marco couldn't help but shiver when he heard her voice. It was cold but there was an undertone from amusement which he guessed was from the scene he had missed with Selma. He smiled and pulled up a chair to sit next to her bed.

"Good evening. Let me introduce myself, I'm-"

"The flaming turkey!" Thatch, Ace and Sabo shouted in unison.

Luffy let out a snort before she could stop herself and tried to desperately hold in her laughter, but it was impossible to completely hide it. Her lips twitched erratically and her shoulders shook with silent laughter. The three who had interrupted had no such reservations and had burst out laughing as they watched Marco's face change from shock to embarrassment to anger. They laughed even louder when he failed to glare menacingly at them due to the pale blush that stained his cheeks.

Once the three troublemakers had calmed down they realised they the Luffy was studying Marco with a serious expression with her head cocked to one side, Sabo frowned and sat on her bed and waited for her talk.

"Sabo-nii, rather than a flaming turkey he resembles a pineapple more." To which her stomach gave a large rumble as she looked at Marco like he had a sticker on his forehead saying; 'Eat me!'

The three broke into uncontrolled laughter, Sabo was bent over double clutching his stomach on the bed while Ace and Thatch rolled around the floor banging the floor with their fists.

Marco jumped back instinctively when his survival instincts kicked in and glared at the three siblings. "What's with you three and trying to eat me!" He accused. His statement made them laugh even harder and even Luffy was laughing as well.

At the sound of their sister's laugher both of the brothers turned to look at her in wonder before pouncing on her to give Luffy bone crushing hugs.

"You laughed!" Ace cried excitedly planting a kiss on Luffy forehead

"It's been four years since we last saw you smile properly, never mind laugh!" Sabo held her head to his chest as his eyes glazed over in unshed tears. "How come you can laugh and you're not in any pain or losing control of your powers?"

Both of the commanders looked at each other with worried expressions, even Thatch who knew more about the three sibling's situation still couldn't believe that a young girl hadn't smiled properly in four years. Marco wasn't head in any better state; he had thought that the muted emotions that the girl displayed were because of her personality, level-headed like he was. Thatch had told him some details about the girl while she was unconscious but had mostly insisted on the siblings telling them themselves when they were ready.

Unaware of the commanders trading looks Luffy nodded to her brothers. "I talked it over with the nurse-lady before you three came barging in." She poked the large lumps on her brother's heads causing them to wince in both pain, remembering the Head Nurse's rage at the three pirates for barging into her domain and causing a ruckus. "After talking to her we came to the conclusion that since I pushed my abilities so far beyond my limits, I can now express more emotion than I did before without it rebounding on me as harshly as it did. She also said that the way I had been trained was also a factor, since my emotions were quite literally beaten out of me the small amounts of emotion I did experience had more of an effect on me."

"So it's almost like building up immunity, so that over time you can show more of your emotions but not blank out like the time I dressed Ace in women's clothes when he was asleep and you passed out after a few seconds of laughing." Sabo put in, trying to work out the new development with their sister.

Luffy nodded with a small smile while Ace blushed and scowled at Sabo for bringing that incident up in front of others. It didn't help that Thatch had burst out laughing and Marco had a smirk on his lips.

Giving up he turned to Luffy. "So it'll be like when we kids? You'll be able laugh and cry again?" His tone was almost pleading as if begging for her to return to the way she had been, since it hurt him the most seeing the shell his sister had become.

The smile she gave him was wider and she answered with an amused tone "I won't be a cry-baby or stupid if that's what you're worried about. It may take months or maybe years but I will be able to fully express my emotions eventually. She said that the more I experience, the faster I'll get better and that I shouldn't be left alone since it will cause me to regress."

Ace was happier than he had been since he had surrendered to the Marines, and was embarrassed to feel tears prickling his eyes, to hide them he buried his face in Luffy's hair since Sabo had let her go. Letting her brother hold her a few moments she turned to Marco.

"Thank you for taking us in and giving us shelter. If you hadn't I would have died and for that I'm grateful." Her statement caused both her brothers to hug her. "Was there any particular reason you came to the infirmary or did you simply come by to check on me?"

Marco smiled at the three and he knew Oyaji had been correct. Judging by how clingy the two brothers were to here, when they had barely spoken to the rest of the crew he knew just how badly they needed their sister, and that the week she had been in a coma had given them a bad scare. If she had died Marco knew it would have broken them.

He held out the newspaper to her, "Thought you'd like to know what the world knows of the execution. The broadcast was cut off right after Sengoku announced Thatch had escaped-yoi."

Ace and Sabo sat on either side of Luffy as all three read the long newspaper article, after about ten minutes Luffy finally looked away with a tired sigh and leaned back onto her pillows. The results were better than she had expected. The Government had covered up the mass breakout and so her name and betrayal had been swept under the rug as well. It bought her and her brother's time they needed since many who had been on the battlefield saw her 'die' but she knew that once word got out that she was alive, Akainu would make it his personal mission to kill her. It was time to see whether he gamble that she had set into motion before the beginning of the war had paid off.

She opened her eyes and say Ace and Sabo were still reading while Thatch and Marco watch her with concern in their eyes.

"Do you know where my hat and coat are?"

Marco walked forward and picked up the folded coat with the straw hat on top and gave it to her. She gave him a small smile and picked the hat and ran her fingers over the familiar red band and rough straw and let out a relieved sigh.

"Thank you. This hat is my treasure and I would be devastated if I had lost it."

Marco rubbed the back of his head with a small blush and mumbled about not needing any thanks. Looking at the blushing man Luffy couldn't stop a blush coming up to her own cheeks. Confused she pressed her palms to her face to cool it down while looking down at the coat in her lap. Sabo who had watched the short scene, narrowed his eyes in suspicion. There was something going on between the two neither of them knew was happening and neither did he but he wasn't going to let it go any further. Luffy was his baby sister and no matter how old she may be he had no intention of letting a stranger enter, in some respects he was as bad as Ace in his over-protectiveness. The only difference was that he didn't show it as much, thinking back Sabo remembered how hard it had been to leave Luffy behind on Dawn Island when he and Ace had turned 17. He cursed himself wishing fervently that he hadn't, since if Luffy had travelled with one of them she could have avoided getting captured by the Marines. Looking at Ace he saw he was still absorbed with the newspaper article and grinned internally when he thought about how Ace would react when he found out something was going on between Whitebeard's first division commander and their baby sister. Luffy's voice broke him out of his thoughts.

"Sabo-nii, Ace-nii, I really sorry but could you check the pockets of my coat? My arms feel so heavy that I can barely move them."

They both nodded before picking up the coat that was surprisingly heavy and had strange lumps in the material. Marco and Thatch sat on chairs by the bed and leaned in closer, curious about what was happening. One by one Ace and Sabo delved into the pockets and took out the various objects stored inside. Once they had finished all the eyes that watched were as big as dinner plates as they looked at the items placed on the bottom of the bed after being removed from the coat pockets.

There were: Seven Devil Fruits, five apples, several packets of rice crackers and a large pocket watch had the Spade Pirates Jolly Roger on the front and Top Hat Pirates Jolly Roger on the back.

One of the Devil Fruits in particular caught Thatch's attention; it was dark purple with the usual swirling patterns on it. When he recognised it he jumped off the chair with a yell and pointed to the fruit with a look in his eyes that said he thought the fruit would come alive and eat him.

"That fruit! That's my-! What Teach-! Why do you-?! When did-!" Thatch gave up trying to form a coherent sentence and turned to Luffy with a wild look "Argh! How?!"

Luffy laughed after watching Thatch try to work out how she had the for Shichibukai's Devil Fruit, the expressions on her brothers and Marco's faces were just as hilarious,

"Shishishi." She leaned over and picked up an apple and bit into it, her smiled was bordering predatory as she finally turned to Marco. "Tomorrow if possible, I would like to talk to Whitebeard."

"What for?" He questioned her cautiously.

"So that I can make a deal with him." She took another bite from her apple and snuggled further into her pillow with a grin.