Luffy moaned when heLuffy moaned when he felt his arm being shaken. He wished Teach and the crazy doctor would just leave him alone. There wasn't much left they could do to him that they hadn't already done.
"Luffy, wake up." A weight shifted near his feet and the bed dipped. He felt someone run fingers through his hair much too gently to be one of the Blackbeards.
"You're such an idiot Luffy."
Fighting the pull of the drugs Luffy opened his eyes trying to sit up only to be gently pushed back down.
"Thatch?"
The man gave him a small smile as he felt his forehead.
"Are you feeling better?" Luffy asked his voice coming off a little hoarse. Probably from swallowing a few mouthfuls of seawater.
Thatch nodded, "my fever broke a few hours ago. I'm no longer crazy. And I'm told I had you to thank for that."
Luffy did his best to keep up with the conversation. "What did I do?"
Thatch looked at him in concern. "You broke free remember? And you little idiot you, you came back for me."
It was hard to concentrate on what Thatch was saying when it felt like he was going to be sick with every other word.
"You shouldn't have done that," Thatch told him softly.
"You're my friend," Luffy told him simply as he sat up slowly, this time the man didn't stop him. "Friends don't turn their backs on each other." If he did that he would be no better than Teach… well he would still be a bit better but not by much.
"You were so close to being free," Thatch argued.
"And you were so close to death," Luffy growled through gritted teeth as his stomach rolled. "What's wrong with me?"
"How do you feel?"
"Kinda sick." Which almost never happened unless he got hit in the tummy too hard.
Thatch nodded understandingly. "I think some of the blood is draining into your stomach. Try to bear with it buddy. It will pass."
Luffy flopped back onto the bed looking around. The two of them seemed to be finally free of the torturous dark rooms. Now it looked like they were in one of the cabins, which were big enough for a bed and not much else. There was no window and the door looked to be triple-bolted but anything was better than the flooded crate. And on the bright side, they hadn't put the sea stone cuffs back on. But Luffy still felt the bone-aching weariness that came with them. He looked down at his feet noticing the shiny metal cuff on his ankle chaining him to the wall. He groaned loudly.
Luffy was quickly coming to realize he didn't like the feeling of being tied up. He had realized this in childhood as well but the point had never really been nailed in as much as it was now as what used to be a rare occurrence had quickly become a constant presence hanging over him. There were three things he hated in this world; losing his freedom, people trying to hurt his brother and, assholes who would stoop so low as to betray their own nakama. And so far Teach had done all of those things. Screw that guy.
A steady hand on his shoulder brought him back to reality.
"Seriously bud I don't know how to thank you. You deserve so much better than this."
Luffy had been thinking the same of Thatch. He wished he could help the man get back to his family. He could tell he really missed them. For now, he was just happy he seemed to be doing better. He gave Thatch a big smile unaware that his teeth were blood-stained and not in the least bit reassuring.
"It's nothing," He promised. "Besides you should thank your dad. He told me what to give you."
Thatch straitened instantly at that.
"What did you say?"
"The guy with the big voice," Luffy explained "I talked to him on the phone. He said he was your dad then he told me which bottles would help you."
Thatch grabbed Luffy's shoulders forcing him to meet his gaze, "Luffy when did you talk to Oyaji?"
Luffy shrugged unsure of why Thatch seemed so serious all of a sudden. "I dunno right before I came and saw you I guess." He had no clue how long he had been asleep.
"Did he say anything else to you?"
He thought back, "I don't think so. He sounded really worried about you. He got kind of mad at me but now I think he's okay."
Thatch sighed as he leaned back running his hands through his hair, "He didn't mention tracking us?"
"I don't think so?" Not that he recalled at least.
"But he doesn't need to track us, I told him where we were."
Thatch shot up again like a pop-up toy. Luffy would have laughed if he thought he could manage it without throwing up.
"YOU DID!"
Luffy nodded.
"Where are we?"
"Some place called Jaya I guess."
"And you told pops?"
Luffy nodded.
"And Teach doesn't know you told him?"
Luffy shook his head wishing Thatch would stop making him move. "I don't think so." What was this, twenty questions?
"Luffy that's amazing! If Oyaji can catch up with us then we will be free and all of this can be over. You can go back with your brother and we can get out of this hell!"
"Catch up?" Luffy cocked his head. "Did we leave?"
Thatch nodded, "I don't know how long ago. When my fever broke we were already moving. But if there's a way Oyaji will find it!"
Luffy personally didn't feel as enthusiastic as Thatch. If Ace couldn't find him then what was some dad going to do that he couldn't?"
"Besides I don't live with my brother?" When this was over Thatch was going back to his family and Luffy was going back to being alone.
Thatch looked surprised at that. "You don't! Then who do you live with?"
"I live alone."
Well sort of. If Garp asked then he still lived with the bandits. He certainly had dinner with them a few times a month, especially when Makino visited him. But officially Dadan had 'gotten tired of their shit' when Ace turned fifteen and got into a massive fight with her. She had kicked him out and Luffy too while she was at it even though he had been sleeping through a great chunk of the fight. He had woken up to the feeling of being dragged across the floor and the yelling scream of- "And take the obnoxious one with you while you're at it." While that had been one of their worst fights it wasn't like she had never kicked them out before. But something about Ace being fifteen made him decide that he, and by association Luffy no longer needed her help. And even though he was only still eleven and super sleepy Luffy agreed. It wasn't like them to live in one place for so long. Both of them were far too adventurous to allow that without getting bored. And nothing about Dadan's dusty storage attic screamed forever home. So they had fixed up an abandoned hunting cabin in the mountains and lived there for a little while. At least until the forest fires had destroyed it, then it was six weeks back on Dadan's floor before they found a cool cave under a waterfall which was epic. Until the heavy rains came that is. The cycle continued like that until Ace left. Without his big brother around Luffy spent more time with the bandits than either he or Dadan liked. Sure they had become better friends over the years but that didn't mean she liked seeing too much of him. And she was very vocal about what constituted as too much. Before he disappeared Luffy was living with some traveling artists in the tiny camp they had set up at the edge of the forest. They were very friendly and got on well with Luffy. At least until a snake had eaten one of them
"Don't you get lonely?"
"Huh?"
"Living alone?"
Well, he did now that Gerald was being digested. He was the funny one in the group. Although to be fair they had probably moved on by now.
"I guess." Nothing near as bad as when he was a little kid. Before he had met Ace and Sabo. But some nights his stomach felt empty no matter how much food he filled it with. But he liked knowing that Ace was out there. Kicking people's asses and living freely. It made the loneliness worth it.
"Do you have friends or something you can visit?"
Luffy gave Thatch a weird look. The man seemed over-invested in Luffy's life. Way more so than anyone else, except maybe Makino. He even got the same eyebrow crease when Luffy said an answer he didn't like.
Did the bandits count as friends? Luffy thought they did. But at the same time, they would be mad if they overheard him telling people that.
"Kind of? Not."
"What does that mean?"
"Why are you asking me so many questions?" It was hurting his stomach and his head.
"I wouldn't if you didn't make me worry about you. Everything you say makes me want to call someone for you."
Worrying about Luffy's home life seemed kind of silly when his stomach was currently filling up with blood. But he was starting to understand. Thatch was like a Makino type. They weren't nosey just concerned.
"I'm fine," Luffy promised. "I'm pretty sure Dadan was kidding when she said she was going to sell me and I think I'm getting pretty good at eating the non-toxic mushrooms. Plus the giant tigers usually try to stay away from me so I think I'm winning."
That didn't have the effect he was hoping for to calm Thatch down.
"Please tell me your kidding?"
That was exactly what Luffy had asked Dadan after the selling thing.
"Stop making me talk," Luffy moaned putting his hands over his mouth and trying to mentally will whatever was in his stomach to stay there.
Thatch winced. "Okay, but we are putting a pin in that and coming back to it later." He rose to get Luffy the trash can from the corner of the room.
He accepted it gratefully pushing his back against the headboard to keep himself upright. It felt like he had swallowed glass. And the sharp stinging didn't lessen even as he puked. He rested his head against the side of the bin trying to control his breathing.
A flash of blue caught his attention temporarily making him forget about being sick. He pulled a pair of goggles from the trash and his brow furrowed in confusion.
He turned them around carefully as his stomach rolled warningly.
"Luffy?"
The strap had been broken and sloppily repaired.
"Kid, what's wrong?" He felt Thatch's warm hands close over his.
"Where did these come from?"
Thatch looked concerned but decided not to say anything. "I think that was your stuff. They threw away your clothes after they fished you out."
Sure enough, Luffy found his shorts under a layer of grimy bandages. They were still soaking wet from the ocean and little more than scraps.
He looked down at his body surprised to see himself dressed in a stained white shirt he hadn't noticed before.
"It's my shirt," Thatch explained. "The gorillas were just going to leave you naked." Thankfully Thatch was much bigger than him
Makino would have been appalled but Luffy didn't even thank the man. He was far too wrapped up in the goggles in his hand.
How was this possible? Stuff from his dead brother didn't just show up in the trash of an evil pirate's ship. They were on him? How? With shaky hands, he reached into the trash to his shorts feeling the soggy paper in his back pocket where he had thoughtlessly tucked it.
The stranger who helped him? But No! That was impossible. Sabo was dead. Dead like he couldn't ever hug Luffy again. Or break up a fight between him and Ace.
He heard Thatch trying to call to him distantly but ignored him for the stinging in his eyes. When he tried to pull the paper out of his pocket it ripped then again as his hands shook.
He laid the pieces out gently on his palm. The ink had gotten blurred in the water, it was nearly illegible now. He remembered that the note had told him to stay put. That the person would be back to help him. And below all of that was a fancy drawn S with a dot in the middle of the curve. It had smeared now under his finger but he could see clearly how neat the writing was. It was an S he would recognize anywhere. After all, he had been forced to copy page upon page of them when he was younger in an attempt to teach him how to write.
Luffy had protested at first. He was made to swing from trees not to sit still and learn reading and writing. But Sabo had insisted on telling him that he couldn't be pirate king if he didn't know how to read. So Luffy had put up with it. He spent a few nights a week sprawled out on the floor to copy Sabo's letter sheets where the alphabet was written out for him with frustrating skill. He had tried marginally hard to get his letters to look like his brothers but he always fell short.
His stomach rolled warningly and he barely had to time to grab the basket before he throw up again. He distantly felt Thatch rubbing his back comfortingly and he rolled his shoulders as blood bubbled up from his throat.
When his stomach was empty again he put the basket down and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
"God Luffy are you okay?" Thatch sounded worried.
Sabo was still alive! Dogra had been wrong. Sabo was okay. And he was here. He had saved Luffy. Even more then that he had tried to help him. And Luffy had run away from his brother who he hadn't seen in eight years. What the hell was wrong with him?
He felt the goggles being slowly pried from his grip and looked up in surprise to see Thatch.
"No," Luffy said tightening his hands.
"It's okay buddy just let go and tell me what's wrong."
Luffy didn't understand Thatch's worry until he felt a wetness on his cheeks and reached up to touch his eye. He was crying. Something no one on this ship had seen him do since he got here. Much to Teach's disappointment he could never get Luffy to do anything other than scream in anger. A fact Thatch was well aware of.
"Does it hurt anywhere?"
Luffy shook his head as yanked the goggles back and tried to catch his breath. He needed to calm down but he couldn't seem to concentrate on anything besides the overwhelming heartache.
Thatch jumped like a startled stout as Luffy started to cry for real. Not stoic manly tears but rather like a child throwing a fit. Big fat tears rolled down his cheeks which he didn't bother trying to wipe away.
"What is it!" Thatch cried equal parts distressed and confused.
"I th-thought he was d-dead." Luffy wailed between hiccups. "I really thought he died then."
Unsure of how to help and upset by Luffy's tears Thatch pulled him to his chest hugging him tightly as he felt Luffy's body shake violently with the force of his sobs.
"I don't u-understand," Luffy stammered as he clutched the goggles hard enough to shatter them.
"Me neither," Thatch told him grimly resting his cheek on Luffy's hair, listening to the younger boy wail like his world had been shattered.
"He was right there! And I left anyway. How could I do that?"
"It's going to be okay," Thatch promised him. He was desperate to know what in the world had happened.
"You're really strong Luffy." And braver than any kid Thatch had met before. Whatever it was he would get through it.
Luffy only shook his head, "I'm not… I'm not strong at all." He couldn't even protect the two people he cared about the most. They did everything for him and he just kept failing them. He couldn't save Sabo and now he was being used to destroy Ace. What was wrong with him?
Thatch just quietly shushed him running his fingers through his hair sympathetically. On some level, Luffy was surprised by him. At this point, he doubted even Sabo would have put up with this much wailing. But Thatch showed no sign of hitting him. Luffy knew he needed to stop being a crybaby. Stay strong and get back to working out a plan to get back to his brothers and free his friend. But for the life of him, he couldn't stop crying because Sabo was Alive! And he wasn't as alone anymore.
XXX
When he heard the door knob rattle Thatch had tensed. Knowing this was not going to be pleasant.
Luffy had fallen asleep hours ago completely exhausted. He had cried so hard he puked yet again and it was only quick reflexes on Thatch's part that saved them both.
After that, he couldn't seem to catch his breath and passed out again in Thatch's arms. Which under different circumstances would have been adorable.
Thatch had been trying for years to convince his brothers and sisters that he was good with kids. No one really believed him since all the village children they encountered only hung around him because he would feed them. Aside from that it was all, 'let's go play with Ace.' And 'What a surprise Ace is good with kids.'
Thatch squeezed Luffy closer to him. For his part, Luffy didn't so much as mumble in his sleep as he was opt to do. His cheeks were still stained and his eyelashes were thick with tears. As Teach dark chuckle filled the room Thatch curled his arm around Luffy's head, which was resting on his shoulder, in a protective sort of way.
"What do you want?" He spat at the man. Hadn't he hurt them enough for one day?
As Teach stepped forward towards them Thatch leaned back against the wall. He reached out with one hand and Thatch flinched back expecting pain. But Teach merely lifted one of his large thumbs and wiped at Luffy's cheek.
"What upset the little kitten?"
Thatch slapped his hand away viciously. "What's it to you?"
"Don't be like that. I just want to know so I can do it again."
"It was nothing you did!" Thatch hissed. "Apparently you are incapable as a villain even to make kids cry."
He got hit for that. He tried his best to hold onto the kid but he was in no shape to do much more than mildly irritate Teach. He ripped them apart easily and in doing so noticed the goggles clutched in Luffy's grip. Luffy had refused to let go of them even after he passed out.
Thatch was helpless as he watched the bad man roughly take them from Luffy like taking candy from a baby. He inspected them curiously and Thatch felt his heart fall as he uselessly tried to retrieve them for Luffy. He received a kick in the ribs for his efforts.
"Tell the kid that if he wants them back then he had better start showing me some goddamn respect."
And with that, he slammed the door and Thatch could hear the locks click behind him. He was hating the man more and more each day, a feat he didn't think was possible.
He had let him take the goggles shit! He glanced back at Luffy who was still dead to the world and unaware he had lost his treasure once again.
"Shit!" Thatch said as he gathered the kid into his arms once more.
XXX
Hey guys We are quickly reaching the stories midpoint and I really appreciate all of your support. Originally I had Ace and Sabo's murder attempt in here but it was getting too long so I am saving it for next chapter. So instead we just got a lot of Luffy and Thatch which apparently everyone has been waiting for so I really hope you guys liked it even if not much happened except Luffy breaking down for the first time. I am really excited about the next two chapters so I am currently writing them!
You guys are awesome!
I started doing some illustrations for the story because I need to work on my ink layout skills. Ace and Sabo's reunion was supposed to be first but I drew it about three times and wasn't satisfied so stay tuned for updates on that. So far I just have Luffy in the crate from chapter nine but I am planning on adding more. If there is anything you want to see just tell me and I will get on it. If you want to see them they are here on the deviant art account I made when I was twelve: vi-va-la-vida. Just type that into the deviant art search bar. When I make them I will post them to my Defenders Without Fear folder.
JUST SET ME ON FIRE: Thank you
GreenDrkness: And the writes I shall
Blackthorn Ashe: I'm glad you liked it. And yes they do suck. It was super fun but now I'm broke again. Poor Luffy indeed, he is going to be so upset. And totally I think the story you are thinking of is Burning Rubber which is a favorite of mine. But I actually got the idea from Zootopia Lol. I'm so happy you approve and hopefully will like this chapter as well.
Mel72000:
xxSnowxxAngelxx: Don't fret! Luffy finds them anyway. And I updated another chapter in under a month! I'm really excited about the next chapter so it will be hopefully soon as well. It is kind of dark? I don't know why that's always seems to happen to my stories.
Typhlosion8: Yay! Thank you for the support I will do my best to keep chugging along.
Excalibur98: More Sabo and Ace moments next chapter. I originally put it here but this chapter was getting too long so soon
SoulMore:
DemonKittyAngel: Seriously. No self-preservation on that one. It's a good thing he's cute and friendly. Thank you for saying Sabo is cool. I like to think so. More on the murder attempt next chapter but Ace now has Sabo and Sabo always has a plan. Don't worry Luffy got the goggles back (sort of). Your review was the first one I got and it brightened my day thank you for being awesome!
TifaCAT: Awww. Thank you for the support! I'm seriously glad people are reading my wacky tales of fanfic.
duda15: That's so sweet. I spent all of last night planning the future chapters and Dragon finding out is penciled in around chapter twenty! He starts to wonder where Sabo went.
Fangirl: You are one of the first people to tell me it's cute. I get a lot of people saying it went of the darkend but thank you update I shall.
Wordlet: Thank you Atlas Luffy is still breathing. And more on Ace and Sabo next chapter. Until then Thatch to the rescue!
leafpool5: Thank you! I wanted him to outsmart them but I figured he wasn't smart enough to come up with it on his own. I'm glad Teach is coming across properly evil, screw that guy. Thank you for the compliment
In paragraph 27 Luffy was referencing his and Sabo's kidnapping. Which gets kind of confusing because it skips around a lot. I probably should have used italics. He is trying to remember what Sabo did when they called his bluff which is why it's Sabo not Luffy who looks up at the men and its Sabo's cold smile. Luffy didn't try and imitate the smile just the threats. Sorry about that.
More Ace and Sabo later! They are just going to keep being cute together while tricking everyone like BAMF.
Thank you for recognizing Luffy's kick assness. He hits a bit of a breaking point in this chapter though. And wait no longer for Luffy and Thatch's reunion atlas they are being cute together again.
Thank you for your review It really warmed my little ol'heart.
Guest #1: THANK YOU
CelinaB: Of course! X2
Hypnotic doll: Thank you for the support
RedHeadsRock1010: DON"T WORRY THATCH HAS HIM!
Astoria Lilika: I love that idea! Thank you. You are awesome!
xXxWolvesInTheNightxXx: Your amazing!