A/N: A little shorter than previous chapters, but it's what I got. Enjoy
Ace was walking through the familiar forest that was his old home on Dawn Island towards a cliff that overlooked the sea. He said nothing as he walked until the cliff came into view with Luffy standing there looking out at sea.
"Hey, Luffy!" Ace called with a smile. "How are things with you?"
"Ace." Luffy responded, but in a sad tone. "I warned you." Ace's smile faded as Luffy continued to stare out at sea.
"Warned me?" Ace asked as he approached Luffy. "What are you talking about Luffy?"
"Why didn't you listen?" Luffy said, his voice sounding broken. Ace walked right up to Luffy and reached out to place his hand on Luffy's shoulder, only for it to completely pass through.
"What?" Ace said, total confusion going through his as he pulled his arm back. "Why can't I touch him?"
"Isn't it obvious?" came a smug voice. Ace eye's widened before he whipped around and glared at the man who had broken the iron rule of his crew.
"Teach!" Ace hissed.
"Been a long time, Commander Ace!" Blackbeard said with a big grin.
"Don't call me Commander!" Ace said. "You lost that right when you killed Thatch."
"My apologies." Blackbeard said. "It's 'Late' Commander Ace." Now Ace was really confused, which was shown when he raised an eyebrow. "Look at the gravestone." Teach said as he pointed towards Luffy. Ace looked past Luffy to see a gravestone on the cliff, with Luffy looking down at it. Ace's eyes widened at the sight of the grave markers on it. A necklace of red beads, a knife in a small, green sheath, and an orange hat with a smile and frown on the rim, each of which were currently on his own body. "The reason you can't touch your brother," Teach said as Ace looked at the name etched onto the stone, his eyes wide in disbelief. "Is because you're already dead!" Ace just stood there while Blackbeard laughed, as if enjoying the scene like it was the funniest thing in the world.
"Why didn't you listen Ace?" Luffy asked, tears running down his face. "I warned you about Blackbeard! You promised, didn't you?!" Luffy then shouted to the Heavens as he cried out, "WHY DID YOU DIE, ACE?!"
"LUFFY!" Ace jumped out of his slumber, his breathing ragged, his eyes full of fear, and his body covered in sweat. He took a few deep breaths and looked around, trying to remember where he was, which was floating in the middle of the sea on his Striker. He quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out his canteen of water before taking a drink.
"What was that?" Ace asked as he wiped the sweat from his face before he gasped.
'Be careful, Ace.'
Luffy's warning buzzed through his head a few times after leaving Luffy's group in Alabasta. Now the sight of Luffy crying, both in his dream and of when they reunited in Alabasta, were now playing in his head. To see his little brother in so much pain felt like a knife in his heart.
"I'll be careful, Luffy." he said before his Striker took off. "I promise." He kept on going before a delicious aroma wafted through his nose. He turned to see a ship off in the distance and turned his Striker towards it. "First some food, then I go back to looking for Teach."
-With the Straw Hats-
The Straw Hats were now under clear skies, far away from the giant shadows that blotted out the sky. Each of them were panting in either fear and/or exhaustion from rowing the boat.
"That...couldn't have been real." Zoro said while Sanji lit a cigarette to calm his nerves before the crew began stating all that had happened from the ship falling out of the sky, to the giant shadows they saw in the clouds after night suddenly fell.
"Well...what do we do now?" Alvida asked, her hand trembling as she tightly held her mace.
"The Log's still pointing up and we have no clue where to go." Nami said as she looked at the Log Pose still pointing up on her wrist.
"Well, we could always follow this Pose." Robin said. Everyone looked at Robin to see her holding up an Eternal Pose. "I swiped it from that monkey man's ship back there." she said as she handed it to Nami. Nami looked at it before she started crying and smiled at Robin.
"We'd be lost without you here." she said.
"Now we won't be going around in circles." Nojiko added while Nami looked at the name on the Pose.
"Hmm. Jaya?" she said aloud.
'zehahaha.'
Luffy's eyes slowly widened.
'ZEHAHAHAHA!'
Luffy's whole body began to tremble as his hands and face twitched, a look of pain and terror on across his features as a single man came to his mind. One that had been slowly sneaking back since Ace mentioned him in Alabasta.
Marshal D. Teach. Blackbeard.
'ZEHAHAHAHA!'
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"
Everyone turned to see Luffy on his knees, holding his head tightly with both hands and screaming.
"Luffy!" Grace yelled as some of them gathered around him, asking him what was wrong.
"You sick or something Big Bro?" Johnny asked.
"He's sick?! Someone call a doctor!" Chopper yelled in panic.
"That's you." Yosaku said as Luffy's nails dug into the skin on his face and under his hair, causing a few trickles of blood to run down his face.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Luffy yelled before smashing his head into the deck, busting up the wood on impact. "GO AWAY!" BAM! He slammed his head into the deck again each time he screamed. "GO AWAY!" BAM!" "GO Awayyyy." Luffy slurred as Chopper pulled the needle out of him.
"Sedative!" Chopper said as Luffy fell forward fast asleep. The whole crew, Robin included, were now looking at the sleeping, bleeding Luffy.
-Later-
Luffy's eyes slowly opened as he looked around, his vision blurry before he blinked a few times.
"Where...am I?" Luffy asked as his vision returned.
"Luffy!" Luffy turned his head to see Valerie sitting on a bed, a look of relief on her face. "Thank God! I was starting to get worried!"
"What happened?" Luffy asked.
"You tell me." she said. "You just started yelling and slamming your head into the deck. Chopper had to sedate you since you didn't respond to anything we said."
"I did that?" Luffy asked as she gave him his hat.
"That, and started clawing at your head until it started bleeding." Valerie said in a worried voice. "Which is why Chopper bandaged your head. Everyone's outside, waiting to hear when you've woken up."
"Oh." Luffy said as he looked around. "Where am I?"
"The Women's bedroom." Valerie said as she helped Luffy off of his bed.
"What?" Luffy asked before it sunk in. "Oh man! Nami's gonna kick my head in for being in here!"
"Relax. Nami and the others let it slide since this was the only room with a bed." she said before she laughed. "Though Sanji's probably still crying outside from jealousy."
"Why?" Luffy asked, earning a blank stare from Valerie.
"Let's just go." Valerie said before the both of them walked outside. "Everyone! He's awake!" Almost the entire crew surrounded Luffy, hoping that he was alright.
"Nice to see you awake Big Bro!" said Johnny and Yosaku in unison.
"Don't know what was wrong, but next time, try not to take it out on the ship." Usopp said, a few planks of wood under one arm, a hammer in another, and a few nails between his teeth in a smile.
"How's your head Luffy?" Chopper asked.
"I'm alright guys." Luffy said as Robin leaned against the railing. "Sorry for freaking out like that."
"How was it Luffy?" Sanji asked with his head down, which cast a shadow over his eyes. "Being where the gentle flowers of this ship sleep at night and bloom at day?"
"He was in there resting." Nojiko told him. "Resting."
"Resting comfortably in the bed of a woman." Sanji muttered.
"Do we need to throw ice on you or something?" Gin asked while Chopper checked Luffy's head.
"The wounds healed up." Chopper said.
"So, what's on your mind Luffy?" Zoro asked.
"Just...remembering something that I haven't thought about in years." Luffy answered before turning to Nami. "We heading towards Jaya?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah." she said. "We decided to try and find those that Masira guy. Since the Eternal Pose is from his ship, it must be his base of operations. So we're going there."
"Alright." Luffy said with a small smile before walking away. "I'll be on my special seat if you guys need me."
"You were out for awhile." Sanji said, finally getting over his funk. "I'll bring you a snack in a moment."
"No thanks. I'm not hungry." Luffy said. Everyone froze at those words. Every single one of them had seen something strange since entering the Grand Line. But to hear Luffy mutter those three words? All but Robin's jaw practically smashed through the wooden deck as Luffy sat on his special seat and stared out at the sea.
'Luffy...NOT HUNGRY?!' they all thought. They didn't know what was more disturbing: Hearing him say those words, or whatever it was that made him lose his appetite?
A/N: Tell me what you all thought. Please be honest.