Luffy might seem kind of out of character in this chapter. But hopefully he's in character in his out of character-ness. It would be weird if his personality didn't change at all even with everything going on.
Warning for mentions of torture
XXX
Everything was blurry at first and he groaned, his arms trying to pull himself up. He felt truly awful, but at last the headache was gone. He hadn't even realized how bad it had steadily gotten. Like an ever-constant nail being drilled slowly into his head at the temples. But right now, he felt clearer than he had in months. Clearer on everything.
He tried to pull himself up noticing the weight on his stomach for the first time.
"Ace?" He shook his shoulder, gently first and then more insistently.
"Ace!" He said again managing to pull himself up on the second attempt. The other's head fell from Sabo's stomach onto his thigh. Normally the movement would wake a person up but Ace seemed content to keep sleeping. He must have been truly exhausted. Sabo would have liked to let him sleep but they didn't have time for this. He shook his shoulder harder and practically yelled his name into his ear.
Ace shot up startled, and then startling himself again when he saw Sabo was awake. He jumped out of his chair and the shock on his face quickly turned to relief.
"Thank god!" Ace said as he put his hand on the blonde's head. "I was really starting to think you would never wake up." Ace wrapped his other arm around his messy hair and pulled the extremely surprised Sabo against his chest.
"I'm glad you're okay," Ace said squeezing him tighter yet again before letting go. He certainly had changed since they were kid's hadn't he? Sabo, who honestly didn't think Ace had that in him, couldn't think of anything to say so he remained silent.
And then more on brand for him Ace punched his shoulder as hard as he could. Sabo fell back onto the bed with a pained hiss.
"You Stupid IDIOT!" Ace snapped.
"OUCH!" Sabo said as he pulled himself up once more only for Ace to punch him again. He managed to stay up this time, catching the fist that came at him once more.
"Quit it!
"Make me!"
Yep, this was definitely the Ace he remembered. Not the huggy one who looked like he was about to cry.
"Marco told me what happened," Ace told him as he pulled his fist out of Sabo's grip. "Why would you try and hide that from me?"
"Because you would have left me behind!" Sabo told him. "Besides I thought it would just go away on it's own."
"I Can Tell When Your Lying!" Ace snapped. 'Dammit,' Sabo kept forgetting that. "And I would have been right to leave you behind! It would have been better than watching you walk right off a roof!"
Sabo didn't remember that part. "Is that what happened?"
"We were sleeping," Ace told him. "When you stood up it woke me up, I thought you were just going back to bed, but you went the wrong way. When I realized what you were doing I tried to grab you but it was too late. You hit the side of the building before dragging me with you. I saved us from going splat but I think your ankle might have gotten injured in the fall."
It had felt a little bit sore.
"Thank you," Sabo said honestly.
"Shut up," He answered still angry. "I went to get Marco and he told me that there was something wrong with your head. You kept having nosebleeds and dizziness." The man was sharp that was for sure. But towards the end Sabo had gotten sloppy at hiding it.
"You wouldn't wake up and we couldn't see anything wrong with you, so we had to take you to a doctor."
"What was wrong with me?"
"You had brain swelling," Ace explained. "At least that's what the doctors said. You apparently have some scarred tissue from the accident?"
Sabo nodded. He knew about that. They had told him that was what had caused his amnesia.
"Well apparently that was pressing against your… um I don't know some brain thing and causing your headaches. But you just kept ignoring it so it only got worse until your nosebleeds and blackouts started happening and then you walked right off a roof."
It had been a hallucination. But he kept that to himself. That made sense in a way. Sabo had gotten a concussion a few times and he figured this was a bit like that. When your head started hurting you had to quit what you were doing so wouldn't hurt yourself more. Only in this case Ace had been the trigger and Sabo had been relentlessly chasing his past memories even if his head had been trying to get him to stop.
"How long have I been here?"
"Three days."
Sabo's face paled. "Your joking! Please tell me your joking!"
"Marco left two days ago," Ace continued on. "He wanted me to tell you that; if you were going to kill yourself anyways the bet was pointless."
"How thoughtful of him," Sabo said. "But Ace what are you still doing here! Why didn't you go with him!"
"Why Do You Think!"
"But Luffy-"
"I didn't know what was wrong with you!" Ace interrupted him. "The doctors said you have brain swelling. You were in a COMA for Three Days! They didn't know if you were going to wake up or not! How could I have just left you!"
Sabo was silent for a moment. "Ace I'm really sorry." He knew how worried Ace was about Luffy. The last thing he needed was something else to worry about.
Ace shrugged off his apology. "Marco promised me he would get Luffy and look after him until I could get there. Or at least until I knew you weren't going to die while I was gone." He ambled around under the bed for his backpack. Pulling it across his shoulder he leaned over to ruffle Sabo's hair affectionately and the blond was stunned into silence once more. For months Ace had thought of nothing but saving Luffy and now that he was finally in reach Ace had entrusted him to his friend to stay with Sabo. He couldn't imagine how much that must have tortured him to sit patiently in his seat, watching the minutes tick by, knowing he needed to be somewhere else. Sabo didn't know how to respond to that, so he said nothing at all.
"But you're okay now?" Ace asked noticing the others silence.
Sabo nodded.
"Good!" Ace smiled at him. "I need to go then. But I'll be back when I have Luffy. Feel better all right."
Sabo opened his mouth.
"-And before you ask your not coming with me!" Ace cut him off. "You were literally in a coma up until five minutes ago! Give it a few days at least!"
"Ace, he's my brother too," Sabo reminded him softly. "I love him as well."
Ace's eyes widened slightly. He had clearly not been expecting that response. Which was fair as up until a few days ago Sabo's argument had been one of logic. 'You need me strategically,' not so much one of emotion. Which was a bit stupid when he thought about it because Sabo had never been doing this as a strategic move. He was doing this because, even the way he had been, he couldn't bear the thought of that bruised boy from the docks getting hurt anymore.
Ace recovered a moment later, staying firm. "You can tell him that yourself in a few days alright. A week or two tops. I can't risk you feinting on me again in enemy territory. If you really want to help me at least get discharged by the doctors first and then you can meet us. I won't let anything happen to Lu if that's what your worried about."
"I know you won't," Sabo told him softly. He pulled himself up from the bed to sit on the edge crossing his legs under him. He motioned for the other to come closer and Ace did, somewhat reluctantly.
"Listen to me, I need to tell you something."
"You can't come-" Ace began only to have Sabo cover his mouth.
He was coming all right, there wasn't going to be any negotiation about that. Besides Ace needed him, even if he didn't know it. Sabo knew now that Ace probably didn't really think he was going to come back. His life for Luffy's that probably seemed fair to him. But Sabo was going to find a way out of this, for all of them. He was the smart one afterall.
"I never forgot you two," He told him, and Ace's eyes widened once more in shock. He tried to say something, but Sabo tightened his hand around his mouth. "Not fully at least. I don't think I ever could."
As a kid he had always been so protective of his food, even though no one tried to steal it. During thunderstorms he would automatically move over in his bed to leave space on one side. On kitchen duty he would sometimes swipe food from the kitchen and hide it in his pockets for later only to realize he had carried it around all day to share it with nobody. And he had once bought a pair of binoculars for no reason other than they had little monkeys on the.
"I meant what I told you. You two were my treasure." He said smiling softly at the other one. Ace stared back at him, his grey eyes full of shock and surprise.
"This is hard to say," He told him. "Not just because you and I hate this kind of thing but also because you are drooling all over my hand and it's super gross." He pulled back his hand to wipe it on the blanket below him.
Ace still looked like a stupid stunned puppy. It would have made Sabo laugh if he didn't feel like crying. But there was a point to be made in all of this.
"-So Luffy is my little brother too," he told him. "I love him same as you. So let's go get him together."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"How long will we be here anyways?"
"The officer said not that much longer. I think their transferring us back to headquarters in a few days."
"Thank god." The man said. "I can't stand this place. It's always so freaking cold."
"Tell me about it."
Luffy rolled over, or at least he tried to. He had a chain wrapped around his ankle which gave him a narrow radius around the cell.
When he really misbehaved, they would usually tie him to the support beam and cover his mouth so he couldn't bite anyone, which he did a lot. He hated those times, for a lot of reasons. First it was uncomfortable, they would also leave him like that far longer than they needed too. But lately he didn't have the energy to do that, so they just kept his ankle tethered to the wall on a short leash.
His new cell was somewhere in the basement of the base, near where he had gotten 'interrogated'. He hated it down here. It was always freezing. The entire base was freezing but not like it was down here. Whatever strength he had left got sapped by the cold. It was also always so dark. The last place had been dark but the new one was pitch black inside. He didn't mind it so much at first but now it was starting to bother him. It was always hard to tell when he was sleeping or awake. Luffy didn't think people were made to be kept in the dark. He wasn't a bat after all, he was a person. Or he was supposed to be.
He hadn't really realized how much Thatch had been taking care of him until he was gone. Thatch had been giving him food and water, taking care of his injuries, trying to keep him warm and most of all stopping the lackies from beating him. It was odd because Luffy didn't usually depend on people outside his rag tag family. At least not in this way. He had been raised with the principals of being able to take care of yourself if you needed too, because he knew his situation could change at any moment. If he had forgotten the lesson over the years this was a painful reminder. He wished he could thank the man. But stupid Teach said that was impossible. He was told that he would never see Thatch again.
They were talking again. They were annoying with their constant talking. And to think, Gramps had always told him that Marines didn't gossip, because they were above that. At least they were occasionally nicer to him then Teach's lackies. Most of the newer ones were surprised to see him. Apparently, criminals deserving of CP-0's interrogation tactics were usually older and more sinister looking then Luffy was.
"Trust me, don't go in there. He's a murderer. I heard he kills marines for fun. Why do you think he's locked up here?"
"That's ridiculous." The other voice scoffed. "Look at him, he's just a kid. How could he do that?"
"He's got some sort of freaky power or something."
"He's wearing sea stone."
"Well he was wearing it when he killed one of Blackbeard's underlings. I heard he did it with his bare hands!"
"That's just a rumor."
"It's not!" The man argued.
"Did you actually see it happen?"
"No," The man admitted. "But I heard the story."
"Blackbeard's crew are always spreading rumors. They just hate the kid. They will make up any story about him just to scare us."
"Yesterday Len was feeding him and got to close. The kid tried to rip his throat out with his Teeth! He's still in the infirmary recovering. You can't tell me that's made up! Plus, like three other guys nearly got their fingers bitten off"
"He's just scared," The man reasoned.
"He's not scared he's feral."
"Your all far to mean to him."
"I'm warning you don't go near him."
The advice was ignored apparently as the shuffle of feet came closer, pausing to open the cell door with a loud creaking groan. Luffy stayed on his side, trying his best to go back to sleep despite the noise. But the man was insistent.
"Hey there um… you?"
They all tried to talk to him. Usually with a lot more swearing and violence. He liked it best when the guards gave up and ignored him all together. But the man didn't give up and his footsteps came nearer still.
"Man, I mean it stop! Think of your kid!" The other Marine snapped from the other side of the cell. His concern only grew as his friend passed the somewhat faded chalk circle that represented the 'prisoners' radius. Luffy could only go so far with the chain on his ankle. But anyone who ventured inside his range usually got attacked.
"I am thinking of my kid," The man responded lightly. No concern in his voice as he walked right up to where Luffy had been laying and knelt down beside him.
Deciding that ignoring him wasn't an option Luffy pushed himself up, wearily turning around to face him. He knew from experience that when they got this close it meant trouble.
"Hey there," The man said again, somewhat awkwardly. "You must be so bored in here?"
Luffy just blinked at him. Being bored was the least of his problems. Although to be fair yes, he was. Very bored. But whatever horrible thing the man was about to suggest wasn't going to help.
"-Well, I know you don't know me." The man rambled nervously, obviously feeling the tension between them. Unbeknownst to him Luffy was gearing up for an attack, expecting an assault at any moment, and unknown to Luffy, the man was trying to be nice. It had been so long since it happened, he was out of practice with recognizing the signs.
"Things are a little rough for you right now huh?" That felt like an understatement.
Luffy's eyes slid to the man's partner waiting outside the cell, a fearful expression on his face and his hand twitching to his knife. He would no doubt use that if it came down to it. Noticing his gaze, the marine outside seemed to straighten, stepping back from the door like it had burned him. He was too scared to be much good in a fight. That was good. Luffy turned his attention back to the man in front of him who was still rambling awkwardly.
"You probably miss your parents. I bet they miss you too." He said encouragingly. "I'm actually a parent myself!" There was pride in his voice and Luffy blinked in surprise at him. Well maybe this wasn't exactly how the violence usually starts. Come to think of it the people weren't usually this friendly either.
"My baby daughter was just born!" He beamed, sliding his bag off his shoulder.
The action had Luffy scrambling backwards as far as the chain would let him, which wasn't very far.
"No- No!" The man said quickly. "It's okay! Sorry. I shouldn't have done that. It's okay! I'm not going to hurt you. Don't be scared. I just wanted to show you something."
His words did little to comfort him as Luffy brought his knees up to his chest eyeing the man suspiciously. Scared wasn't the right word. After all this time any initial fear was long gone just to be replaced by weariness based off too many painful experiences.
Moving slowly the man opened his bag, rummaging around until he found what he was looking for.
"See!" He said proudly presenting a small glass photo of a toddler. "It's my daughter! Cute isn't she! Happiest kid I've ever seen!" He reached over to hand the picture to Luffy but when he didn't take it the man put it in his hand.
"Be careful with it!" He told him. Luffy looked down at the photo. She didn't really look cute to him. But she did look happy. He guessed that was good. He handed the photograph back and the man's smile grew.
"What's your name?"
"…"
"That's okay," The man said anxiously when it became clear Luffy wasn't going to answer. "I brought you something. But first- you must be hungry right? Every time I pass here, I can hear your stomach growling! I bet they're not feeding you enough right? So I thought I should bring you some extra when I got the chance." He pulled out an oat square offering it to him. "I know it's not the best tasting, but it has to be miles better then what their giving you."
Luffy's gaze trailed from the man's face down to the offered food and then back to his face.
"Hey genius," The Marine outside the cell called. "Have you been paying attention at all? He's hungry because he stopped eating. The guys that feed him have to hold him down and shove the food down his throat." Those were the people that often got their fingers bit off.
"- and even then, he usually just makes himself throw it up right after."
That wasn't true. Luffy didn't intentionally make himself sick. It just happened on it's own. But he didn't bother correcting the man.
The Marine in front of him looked back in concern before turning back to Luffy.
"Better be careful. They say he's getting a taste for human flesh! That's why he bites people!" The man yelled at him, sharing the wild rumors that had been spreading.
Luffy bet the man would resort to biting too if a bunch of people tied him up, stuck their fingers in his mouth and forced him to eat food he didn't want.
The younger Marine didn't seem convinced as he opened the oat square trying to coax Luffy to take it. "Stop it!" He scolded the man lingering at the door. "How can you all say such horrible things about a kid? Look how hurt he is."
"He's not a kid! He's a monster."
That one Luffy had heard before. But he had never really cared what people said or called him. They could think what they wanted.
"Sorry about him," He told Luffy. "He doesn't realize what he's saying." He wiggled the food in front of his face once more temptingly.
"Are you sure you don't want it? Even if you don't feel like it you should eat. At your age you're still growing so you need lots of food. You don't want to stunt your growth or something. Your already so small and skinny!"
'This guy might be an idiot,' Luffy thought. At the very least it didn't seem like he fully understood what was happening here. Did the man think the worst that could happen by not eating was he would stay short? That was the least of Luffy's problems. He was one of the new navy reinforcements though. He hadn't been here long enough to get the whole picture. He probably thought the government was going to release Luffy once he was transferred into their custody. That they would let him see the sky and give him back to his family.
He swatted the food away from his face with irritation as the man tried once more to get him to eat it. Taking that as his cue to give up the marine frowned, rewrapping it for later as he put it in his bag.
"You must be really sick huh?" He said apologetically. The sympathy in his tone catching Luffy off guard a bit. Maybe the Marine was a bit naïve, but this was the nicest someone had been to him in who knows how long.
"I told you I have something for you!" He said reaching into his bag once more and whatever Luffy had been expecting it was most certainly not this. The man proudly offered a stuffed animal to him. It looked like a teddy bear with little button eyes.
"I thought it might make you feel better." He shook it insistently when Luffy hesitated to take it. Eventually he did but only because the man didn't seem like he was going to give up any time soon. He looked down at it, unsure of what he was supposed to do with it. Luffy didn't think he had ever had a stuffed animal as a kid, not even when he was really young. Not that he had ever wanted one. After all you couldn't eat it.
"He doesn't want that!" The man outside said, echoing Luffy's exact thoughts. "He's a human eating, violent feral thing. Besides why do you even have that?"
"It's my daughters," the man admitted. "She gave it to me before I left. She said it would keep me safe." Luffy held it out to him, wanting the man to take it back but he just shook his head.
"No, you keep it. I know she will understand." He smiled. "Besides I promised to get her a new one when I get back. You need it more than I do right now."
The last thing Luffy needed was a stuffed bear. But the man wouldn't take it back.
"If you get lonely and start to miss your family give it a squeeze. It will help. It always did for me."
Luffy looked down at its button eyes wondering if that was true. He doubted it. But then again, he had never had one so how was he supposed to know? Maybe they were popular for a reason. He brought it to his chest, giving it a tight hug, holding on for a few seconds before letting it go.
It didn't help.
Oblivious to his thoughts the man before him smiled. Even the one outside seemed surprised as he finally surrendered and joined the two. Apparently watching Luffy hug a toy was enough to convince him that some of the rumors might not be true.
"Feel better?"
"No," Luffy told them honestly. His voice was hoarse, but it was enough to make the second Marine jump.
"You will!" He encouraged.
He didn't think so.
"I have to go," He told him. "But hang in there all right. I know things must seem hard for you but wait it out. I'm sure the world government will let you go back to your parents soon enough."
Yep, this guy was an idiot all right. That was very much not what was going on right now. What was the point in correcting him? Let him think whatever he wanted about his employers.
He reached out to pat his head and Luffy let him. Only because, stupid or not, he had been nice to him.
As the men left they shut the door, once more leaving him in complete darkness.
He squeezed the bear again still not feeling any better.
XXX
He didn't know how long it had been before the door opened again. He had found it was impossible to tell time in the darkness. At first, he had listened to the guards changing their shifts outside, but he quickly gave up on trying all together.
"You still alive?" He didn't even have to look up to know who it was. Teach's doctor always greeted him like that since his heart had stopped. He thought it was funny.
"Look you have another friend," Doc Q said looking at the teddy bear sitting forgotten against the pole. Luffy didn't say anything as the man set down his tools besides him. Motioning for him to sit up. He did, but only because if he didn't the guards lingering in the doorway would make him. They were back up to the Doc, he brought them with him to deal with Luffy when he was being 'uncooperative'. Which was a lot.
"If you don't start eating on your own, you're going to die."
Luffy said nothing and the doctor began to unbutton his shirt. He slapped his hands away which caused the men in the door to take a menacing step forwards, but the doctor waived them off. He reached into his bag for the syringe, already loaded, showing it to Luffy.
"You know what this is right?"
Luffy turned his head away but let the man finish unbuttoning so he could take a look at the damage.
"You must be hungry?" He said as he poked and prodded the dark purple bruises on his stomach.
"Is this about the rat poisoning? Because they won't do it again.
Back when Luffy had first woken up they had fed him soup and one of the lackies, the one whose nose he had broken, had thought adding rat poison would be a good way to get him back. But the man had put far more then he should have. If Luffy didn't have a stomach made out of steel that might have killed him. While he survived it had made him extremely sick.
That had not helped his current eating situation. But no. He shook his head and the man sighed.
"Your quieter than you used to be," he remarked. "I guess it's to be expected right? Still though, if you really won't start eating on your own they're going to have to use other methods, and you won't like it trust me. Now hold out your arm."
When he didn't the man grabbed it, sticking the i.v. into his arm. Luffy turned away as he did it. He had lost his trust in needles a while ago and preferred not too look anymore.
"You know," The doctor continued. "I worked this crap job once and one of the guys there had this pet fish. He shouldn't be responsible for so much as a dog flea let alone a fish, but he bought it anyways. This freaking fish was so full of it. But I think it was also smarter than he was. So the man would forget to clean it's tank and the water would get all moldy and filled with algae and nasty. So the fish would refuse to eat unless it's tank was clean… I think that's why you won't eat."
"Because I'm a fish?" Luffy asked confused.
"Ah, you can still talk." The doc said. "And you're as stupid as ever. You're not a fish, what you are is unhappy. But this," He tapped the i.v. line. "Isn't going to save you. Now I don't care what you do, as long as you don't die in the next few days. After that you're the World Governments problem. And trust me their less lazy then I am. So-," He put the thermos in front of Luffy. "If I were you I would try a bit harder. Look it's soup. Nice and warm, hopefully thin enough so your stomach can handle it. And no poison, promise. Take your pick."
Luffy chose the soup.
"What's going to happen to me?" He asked as he sipped it gingerly. Doc Q had been right, it was warm. It felt nice in a way and his throat had been so dry. But it sat uncomfortably in his stomach.
"When the government takes you? You'll probably go to impel down. It's their prison," he explained to Luffy's blank look. "And once you're there the chances of you seeing daylight again are impossible. Nobody leaves that place. And no one can escape."
Luffy was silent for a long moment before asking, "Is Thatch okay?"
"I guess, for now at least."
"Can I say goodbye?"
"No, Teach already told ya. Stop asking!"
"What's going to happen to him?"
The man shrugged, "Boss will probably use him until he gets what he wants from the old man, then kill him."
"You can't let him!" Luffy told him.
"Kid, I'm not on your side." The Doc reminded him. "Honestly I don't care what happens to either of you. As far as I can tell it's up to fate. And it has not been kind to you but what can you do." He shrugged again.
"I don't believe in fate," Luffy told him sullenly. This wasn't the work of fate. People did this to him.
"Your interesting," The doctor told him. "Interesting people give me a headache. I will be glad when we are rid of you." Luffy fell silent once more, leaning back against the pillar and turning his head away from the doctor.
"Take the food slow alright," The man told him. "Don't worry the World Government won't let you die… even if you might want to." He patted his shoulder in mock comfort as he packed up his tools, exiting the room murmuring instructions to the lackies that hung in the doorway.
He was wrong. Luffy didn't want to die. He just didn't want to be here. Or with them. This last… little while he had felt a little off. He had felt this way ever since he had died. He didn't remember much about it aside from everything being really-really bright and this feeling, like a warm feeling, where he knew everything was going to be okay. And then he woke up, and everything just seemed wrong.
They had told him what happened. That the interrogator had gone too far and his body couldn't take the blood loss and shut down. Teach had been livid. Luffy was told that he should be grateful that they were able to bring him back. It felt hard to be grateful some days.
But it wasn't the doctor's choice, it was his. He remembered that at least. Even if it was only little bits of it. He knew that, no matter what they told him, somewhere out their Ace was alive looking for him.
And Luffy wanted to be here when Ace found him.
XXX
It was dark by the time they finally made it there. Just like they had planned. Breaking into this place during the day would have been impossible. But in the dark, it was simply very hard. They had to stick to the shadows, careful to avoid the search light that spun around the rock like a lighthouse. And somehow manage to keep the waves from smashing the small boat into the sharp rocks that littered the island.
"This place looks miserable!" Haruta said as they pulled the boat onto the rocks. All of their pants soaked from the long trudge to shore. "I can't believe Thatch had to stay here."
"We need to break the heel of the boat to sink it," Izo responded. "If they find the remains, they will know someone was here."
"It looks like a horror novel took place here," Juzo grumbled staring up at the sheer cliff face above them.
"Do you think he's all right?"
"There is no point in asking," Juzo answered. They watched Izo shoot three holes against the base of the boat.
"We'll find out soon enough. It was our failure for not being able to find him sooner," He said honestly.
Izo kicked the boat back into the inky dark sea, and they watched as it began to fill with water, slipping back into the open ocean. "We can't change how long we left our nakama with Teach. We need to focus on now." He told them. "We will rescue Thatch, wait for Oyaji and then we will show Teach what happens when you go up against the Whitebeards."
As the mast of the boat slipped below the surface there were two mutters of agreements. They had five days, a week at most, before reinforcements came. They would rescue Thatch, avoid Teach and when those days passed, as they were sure too, then they would give the traitor what he deserved.
After all no one messed with family.
XXX
Hey guys, did I promise you a quick update or what?
Ya' girl wrote this instead of studying. Or doing any of the thousand things she should have been.
So, I apologize one last time for being mean to Luffy. As you might have guessed starting next chapter is the rescue. But Ace getting ahold (hugging the life out of) Luffy happens the chapter after that. And hence forward they will be together again, even with the huge fight coming up. The second part of the story is going to be all about Luffy and co recovering. And there will just be a bunch of chapters of pure Luffy cuddles from Ace/ Sabo/ Thatch.
Because I am DYING to start writing that. I have had thirty-eight chapters worth of time to collect cute head cannons for ASL and the Whitebeards (like Thatch teaching Luffy how to cook) and I am excited to use them damn it! If you guys have any thoughts on the matter, please share.
As always thanks for sticking with me. I will try to have the next few chapters up quickly because I definitely owe it to you guys.
XXX
NeverTooMuchInspiration:
Thanks! Yea, it probably was. I was only seventeen when I started writing this story, so I wasn't very good yet (I'm still not very good), but since then I have gotten so much more experience. I can't read the early chapters though, too much cringe. I have a story on my page from when I was a wee- fourteen-year-old and it just hurts me to read haha. I'm glad you like it though. Hopefully you will like the next bit as well! Thank you for reviewing!
Guest:
Oh no! I know I told people that the reunion would be done already and honestly, I feel so bad about that. Life kind pf gets in the way of my FF writing haha. I truly am sorry though. I really mean it though. Rescue starts next chapter, and reunion the one after that! And from then onwards it will get better. I think it will always be just a little bit sad. It just happens on it's own? But the second half of the story will be all about Luffy feeling better.
Thank you for the nice review though. I'm glad you like it even if it was a bit sad.
And again I am at the last chapter for the moment and Luffy is still not rescued! Noooo!
I love your story and read it before, but stopped about ten chapters back because the situation did not seem to get better. I thought it might be better to wait a few chapters, so I could read to a happy part. Well, I guess that would have been close to the end, that it becomes happy (hopefully), but I just could not wait any longer, when I saw your story again. Great to hear that the next chapter will be the last before it finally gets better for the nice characters! – see you in a happier chapter.
JustCallMeCookie:
I always have so much fun writing the fight scenes haha. The biggest fight I have had all year was about which ice cream flavor is better, so I live for the drama!
Sakihinata: Thank you : ) I'm glad you liked it!
SakuraS41: Of course! I'm glad you liked it. And yes, Sabo is finally back.
yukino76: Of course!
Miqila: Right though.
...Right now all I can think of is that Sabo would make one hell of a mother in law.
xXxWolvesInTheNightxXx: I always feel so bad about the people who have been reading since the beginning like you. Since it's been like four years and Luffy still isn't rescued. I think the flow of the story is fine if you can read right through but otherwise- I am so sorry! I am so happy you are somehow still with me. That is so nice to say, thank you for alleviating my fears!And thanks as always for the review! I promise he's so close!
Guest 2: Aw, thank you. I'm glad you like it. Sorry it is sad. I wish you the best too.
BlueHeartNina: Aww, thanks.
Mel72000:I know, I am really sorry.
Guest #3: Darn it past JC! Stop accidently sitting on your phone and leaving yourself butt-dial reviews.
RIAEVANS: Aw thank you! That is so sweet. I love him too if it shows haha. They always give me feels. I'm really glad you liked it!
Same to you! Hang in there!
SoulMore: Aw, that is the sweetest thing you said to me. Thank you for always reviewing! Stay safe.