Chapter 12: Deep Waters

Why did this have to happen?

"I'm not a baby! I'm a man!"

No, you're still just a child. A child that he was responsible for.

"If you're that upset then just make sure to come back fast!"

Maybe… but I can't risk it leaving you here alone and I'm not taking you with me.

"I know that Ace could find him!"

Don't remind me! I know I can but…?!

"Luffy, we just got CPS off our backs and if word gets back to them that I left you alone, even for one night, they could be back! And then they'll really will take you away!"

Ace regretted his words the second they were spoken. He hadn't meant to scare his brother like that, especially since he knew how sensitive Luffy had been about the whole idea of being taken away. But with Ace's own frustrations growing and his brother unknowingly voicing some of his own thoughts, they slipped out before he could get his temper under control.

He could only watch how tears formed in the kid's eyes before he ran back to his room, leaving Ace on the floor, feeling like total scum for how much he upset his little brother. Yet, as much as he hated to admit it, there were no other options. Ace trusted his friends and he knew they'd be fine without him. They would be able to find Thatch, right?

No sense in worrying himself over 'what ifs' he decided to try and make himself useful by making calls to everyone he could think of. For the next hour he just sat there, calling up every single person he could think of, trying to find anyone who knew something…?

"No? Okay, thanks for trying Makino, you just stay safe. Make sure to stop by when you get back in town, I know Luffy'd be happy to see you again," Ace said, trying to stay optimistic but his hopes were quickly being dashed with every failed call and text message he read.

He had all but given up before another text came through on their WB Group Chat… from Thatch's number!

At that, Ace almost dropped his phone from his excitement, thinking that it was all ok…? He was just thinking of giving that idiot a proper beat down the next time he visited for worrying them over nothing but…?

When Ace pulled up the group chat, he could only freeze at what was there. Instead of some kind of apology from Thatch or a string of nonsensical emotes that he usually replied with… instead was a single photo of an old warehouse. He didn't recognize the building but it looked to him that it had to be somewhere on the outskirts of town by the looks of it…?

For about two minutes, there was nothing but stunned silence as Ace stared at it before the group chat started blowing up.

"I know that area! Isn't that part of the abandoned warehouse district?"

"I think so! Wait, why would Thatch send something like that to us?"

"Idiot! It's obvious that he didn't! Someone sent that to us from his phone! They're letting us know where he is if we want to try and rescue him!"

"Well, what are we waiting for?! Let's head over there!"

"That place is full of abandoned warehouses though? Which one?"

Ace scrolled back up to stare at the picture, trying to pick out any details that could help them. He enlarged the picture, scanning over every square inch. It was difficult though to really pick up any details since the photo was taken when it was already pretty dark. He squinted at the screen, trying to make out any clues…?

He gritted his teeth, wondering what the hell was going on.

He went back to the chat as literally hundreds of messages were coming in, including many who thought they recognized the place.

"I'm pretty sure that's an old water purification plant. I remember watching a documentary about it once. It's on the outskirts of the old district."

"Why'd they shut it down?"

"Just that it got too old. They built another one in one of the newer districts that's a lot more high-tech and this one was just left abandoned."

"Well, let's go!"

"You trying to get yourself killed? Can you not see it has to be a trap? Thatch is one of Pop's commanders! His face is known! He must've been kidnapped by a rival gang and now they're trying to drag us all in!"

"Even if that's true, we can't just leave him…?"

Ace watched the exchange for a time, everyone making fair points on what they should do. In the end, it was decided that about ten of them would head out to check out the area. Since they didn't know who were behind this ambush, or how many people they were waiting for them, it was smart if they went in with a smaller group and have everyone else on standby should something serious happen.

Already people were volunteering but Ace was left torn. He wanted to go and help rescue Thatch.

But that would mean leaving Luffy here alone…?

The thought made him feel like his heart was being squeezed.

But… he knew that if he didn't go, he'd regret it for the rest of his life. Especially if something happened to Thatch and he wasn't there to try and help…?

He gritted his teeth as he inwardly screamed, not sure what to do anymore. He felt like he was about to lose his mind, wanted to just tear out his hair and scream into the void until there wasn't anything left of him. But that wasn't going to help anyone if he lost it now. He had to decide, and soon, what he was going to do if he wanted to be of use to anyone.

He needed to talk to Luffy.

Ace wearily got back to his feet, shaking slightly since his legs had fallen asleep from where he sat for so long, before making his way to Luffy's room. He knocked softly before poking his head inside. There was a lump under the covers and he couldn't help but smile at the sight as he entered.

At first, he couldn't say anything as he crossed over to the bed and sat down at the end, staring at the lump, before gently coaxing his brother to come out so they could talk. When he saw his little brother's brown eyes looking back from under the covers, Ace had to come to a painful realization before he committed to anything else here.

He loved Luffy more than anything. He'd gladly take a bullet for this little guy. He would've been fine with going out and fighting anyone and everyone if it meant keeping him safe and he knows he cannot breathe easy in a world where he wasn't there.

But there was no denying one thing… Ace loved to fight as well. He was no stranger to violence and he truly did enjoy the rush of running around with Whitebeard's crew. Truth be told, he wouldn't mind staying with them… even when the day came that Luffy was grown up and didn't need his protection anymore… Ace suspected that he may just stay with Whitebeard's crew, though that was still far off in the future.

He wanted it both ways but he knew that it was going to be difficult, if not impossible, to have both—at least not right now. So he decided to leave the choice to his little brother. Had Luffy begged him to stay with him then Ace would have done it… he wouldn't have felt guilty over the idea of leaving him alone…? Thatch would've understood… right?

But no, like he thought, Luffy encouraged him to go and look for their friend and that he'd be just fine on his own for one night.

So, with his heart heavy, he took the time to at least tuck Luffy into bed, promising a trip to the beach in the near future. Though Luffy always loved the ocean, they sadly never had the chance to take the trip there. By way of making it up to him though, he vowed that once he got his motorcycle, he'd take them up to the ocean at long last. He could already imagine Luffy building sandcastles and running in the surf…? Most likely ending with Ace being forced to dive in after when he inevitably went out too far and drag him back to the shore…?

Ace smirked at the thought and wondered if it wasn't too late to sign the kid up for swimming lessons somewhere?

Either way, when Luffy held out his pinky, making sure that Ace kept his promise, he was only too happy to do so.

Finally, after asking Jimbei to look after Luffy for him, he set his phone down on the bedside table, promising that the others would know about this as soon as possible. He went through all the things he could think of to make sure Luffy would be safe and warm while he was away, making him promise to not leave the house before he ran out of things to say.

"Just promise me you'll find Thatch and be careful," Luffy said.

"I promise," Ace vowed again, bumping his knuckles against Luffy's forehead, making him smile again, "I'll make sure to drag him back home no matter what. And I'll give him a good telling off when I find him. You just focus on staying safe here."

Ace gave him a quick kiss on the forehead before he bent down to plug in the nightlight and crossed the room to the door. Before he turned the light off, he looked back at Luffy, snug under his blanket and felt his heart ache at the thought of leaving him here alone.

It was too late to back down now though, so he forced a smile he didn't feel before he turned off the light and shut the door, already getting ready to leave.

After he pulled on his long, dark coat—he was out the door, making sure to lock it behind him, before he went running out into a sea of snow. The wind was already picking up as he crossed the front yard, and reached the disappearing sidewalk. After running underneath a nearby streetlight, he raced off in the direction of the warehouse district—hoping that Thatch would be alive long enough for him to get there.

Luckily for him, he didn't have to run the entire way there when Marco pulled up. His car shone lights from behind and stopped dead when they saw him—almost crashing the car in the process.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Marco snapped at him as Ace shivered in the seat next to him. "I thought Izo told you we could take care of this?"

"I just wanted to help," Ace retorted as he held his hands up to the heater to warm them up.

"It's not that we don't appreciate the thought, but we got this covered," Marco reminded him as he suddenly blinked, and Ace could see the gears turning in his head once the pieces of what Ace had to have done to be here, fit together. Ace braced himself for the worse and sure enough: "If you're here… who's looking after Luffy?"

Ace didn't want to look at him and Marco could only swear out loud upon realizing what he did. He spent a few minutes calling Ace every name under the sun, even threatening to turn around and take him straight home, before Ace barked at him to just shut up and to keep going forward.

Marco could only growl at him before an uncomfortable silence fell between them.

"You left him alone?! What the hell were you thinking?" Marco demanded, eventually breaking the silence, "Leaving a little kid on his own?"

"I know! Quit rubbing it in!" Ace snapped back.

"What are you going to do if something happens to him?" Marco demanded.

"That's why we need to make this fast!"

"Thatch would've been the first person to tell you to stay with Luffy."

"Well, he's the one who got himself kidnapped so I'm not inclined to take what he thinks seriously."

"After just getting CPS off your back?"

"Would you get off my back? Let's just focus on getting Thatch back and then I'll go home!"

Silence fell between them once again as they sat there, both silently fuming.

"Dumbass," was all Marco could say and Ace rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, I get it! I feel terrible! It was a bad situation with no good answer," Ace retorted. "So let's just get this over with! I need to be back before he wakes up!"

In the end, Marco knew there was no point in trying to take Ace back at this point, so he just shoved his own phone into Ace's hands, telling him to text the others and that they would be there soon. After another twenty minutes, they were pulling up just on the outskirts of the abandoned warehouse district, and Ace could see the large silhouettes of old factories and buildings scattered about like empty husks. As he and Marco got out of the car, moving through the darkness as they searched for the right building, Ace felt goosebumps all across his skin that he suspected weren't just from the cold.

He was almost certain that they were being watched.

He pointed this out to Marco in a whisper, who nodded back.

"Yeah, I can feel it too," he confessed, "We're expected. Let's hope the others are alright."

Ace stuck close to Marco as he kept his eyes peeled for any signs of friend or foe. The snow was drifting down a bit heavier than before and the wind was picking up, causing him to shiver uncontrollably. The warehouses were as silent as his old high school's library as they crouched down behind some other nearby abandoned buildings to stake out the area before they eventually ran into Vista and Izo.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Izo hissed the moment he saw Ace. "I thought I told you to stay away tonight."

"Couldn't do it, but you can scold me later," Ace retorted as he jerked his thumb to around the building and asked, "Is this the place?"

Izo looked ready to argue, but seemed to think better on it before begrudgingly nodding, hissing that they'd take about this later.

The four of them moved onwards to another building, this one divided into three sections and with the arrival of Jozu and Atmos, they had a total of six fighters with them. After checking the messages, it looked like others would soon be arriving and they decided that they best use their time in trying to explore the three smaller buildings while the others were arriving. Since there were six of them, they'd split into groups of two, with Ace going to the second building with Jozu, Marco and Izo to the first and Vista and Atmos heading to the third.

"Remember," Jozu informed him as they crept to the building, "If something happens to you, make a noise that the rest of us will hear. Either scream or blow something up."

"Got it," he said as he decided to try his luck around back while Jozu would sneak in from the side. Ace quietly crept across the ground, making sure to keep his coat wrapped around him to try and keep him hidden in the darkness until he managed to make it to a back door. He was breathing hard as his eyes immediately swept his surroundings to try and detect any trace of a trap or camera. But so far, he spotted nothing and that didn't sit right with him.

In either case, he pulled out a small knife to jiggle into the lock on the doorknob. It took him only a few minutes to be able to destroy it as quietly as possible and he slipped inside. He half expected an alarm or some guards to be stationed upon entering… but still, he found nothing.

He was starting to think they were at the wrong location, but the whisper in his gut was telling him two things… that this was the right place… and that something bad about to happen.

Doing his best to stay on alert, he moved forward, heading down a long corridor until he reached another door, this one unlocked, and it opened to a large room. He stepped inside, sticking to the shadows as the old machinery creaked from the wind, causing the sounds to bounce around the large room and echoed back to him in a way that made it sound like the entire building was moaning. Creepy shadows crept across the wall as moonlight shone from the upper windows when stepped across the crunching of broken glass beneath him.

His ears were straining for the tiniest sound but all that he could hear were the sounds of his own footsteps over the moaning of the building. He could see little puffs of his breath in front of him before disappearing as a ghost on the wind, but no signs of anyone else—not even Jozu. He moved on, sticking close to a nearby wall as he looked about for Jozu—thinking he had to have made it inside by now…?

Suddenly, he spotted a wide beam of light from around a corner. Seeing that light across the floor surprised him so much that he froze for a moment. Was it off before? He didn't remember it turning on or anything…?

He shook his head, knowing that playing guessing games wasn't going to help him and he decided to investigate.

"Thatch?" he whispered, trying to detect some trace that his friend was here.

The whimper could be heard and he moved closer to the single beam of light, realizing that it came from a doorway off to his right. He clenched his fists, ready for a throwdown, as he moved closer, a series of strange thrashing noises could also be heard in the meantime. He stuck close to the wall, pressed up against it as he prepared for the worse. When he was next to the doorway, he decided to try some movie logic and took off his hat to hold it in front of the door.

Nothing happened.

He had expected someone to start shooting, but he let out a breath of relief before he cautiously moved his head around to get a look at what was inside. It was a large room, about the size of a small house, with only four white walls and what looked like metal pipes jutting out from the floor every few feet. The lights shone from overhead lit up everything with a rather yellowish-white light…? But Ace could only gasp as his heart felt like it was in the death grip of panic when he saw a bleeding Thatch on the ground, bound and gagged.

"Thatch," he breathed before he skidded around the corner and raced towards his friend. He was so focused on helping that he didn't realize how suspicious this all was. He pulled his knife back out to cut the ropes and freed Thatch's mouth, who sucked in air, as if he hadn't been able to breathe properly for the last few hours. He looked terrible, with half his face swollen and bleeding, one eye was sealed shut from the swelling and he could see a bloody lump the size of a golf ball on the side of his head. He must've gotten hit with something hard and heavy to leave damage like this.

"Come on, let's get out of here," Ace said as he wrapped one of Thatch's arms around his neck to help him up. If he could just find Jozu then the two of them should be able to get them out before…? Thatch seemed to realize that he was there though and made a half strangled, gagging noise as he tried to warn him of something. But before Ace could piece together what he was trying to say…?

He turned back to the door just as it came slamming down shut from above and instantly sealed them off. Damn! It was a trap after all! These guys were waiting for him!

At the same moment, water flooded in at a fast rate and before he knew it, it was already past his ankles and rising. He slumped Thatch over his shoulders as he tried to kick the door down but he didn't so much as dent the damn thing. What kind of metal was this made out of? It was practically bolted to the floor now!

"Shit!" he cursed out, a barely conscious Thatch still slumped over his shoulders, searching wildly around for a plan B but coming up empty. His shoes were soaked through and the water was so icy it was like he was walking on hot coals or something as he tried to find something to stand on, but there was literally nothing else but the two of them in this room…?

That was when he remembered he still had Marco's phone and he quickly pulled it out to send a text, explaining that he found Thatch but they were trapped and in danger of drowning. He wasn't able to get an answer back though as the chill of the water was already making his fingers numb and his shaking hands caused him to drop it into the water.

He cursed out even more as he made a wild grab for it, shaking out the water as best he could as he still tried to figure out a way to get out on their own.

"Think…" he whispered to himself, fighting hard not to panic. "Just calm down and think…?"

The problem was that water was already inching towards his knees and it was so cold that it felt like his skin was burning so that thinking of a plan was extremely difficult. Not only that, but Thatch was in no shape to help him figure it out…? Still, there was no way that the people who build this would have such a big room and only one door?

There had to be another way out. He remembered how they said this place used to be some kind of water purification plant or something along those lines… so this room had to be part of that, right? There was no way they would build a room like this just to catch a couple of Whitebeard's men, right? Which meant… they had to have some kind of safety procedure set up should someone get trapped inside…? Or at the very least…? He looked around wildly from everything from the lights bouncing off the concrete walls to the small pipes below him, exploring all of his limited options. The door was sealed shut and there was no way they could hope to escape from the pipes…?

That was when the answer hit him when he squinted up above him, figuring that there had to be another escape route on the ceiling but the lights were making it too hard to see. He tried Marco's phone again, but still there was no reply message and he bit his lip, remembering that everyone kept their phones on silent during raids like this to avoid drawing attention.

He tried kicking again, calling out to Jozu, but still nothing. He wasn't sure where Jozu was in the building yet or if he could even hear him through the thick door?

It was the last thing he wanted to do, but what choice did he have? There's no way he'd be able to climb the flat walls on his own, especially with Thatch… meaning that he had no choice but wait for the water to fill up and get them close to the ceiling where he could try and find another door.

The waiting was these most painful thing he ever had to go through.

Every second he was filled with pain as he tried to fight the cold. He was even praying that the room would fill faster just so that they could get out sooner. The water was soon up his legs and to his waist, leaving him unable to hold Thatch up above him any longer and soon his friend was shivering with him. He hoped the water would be enough to wake him up but the guy's face was practically smashed in and it was hard to tell if he was even aware of what was going on. Ace tried pacing, but it was only making things worse as he splashed everywhere and soon enough the water rose up to his chest and then to his neck. Ace was eventually forced to kick off from the ground to try and keep his head above water as the room, and air, was starting to run low.

He was also forced to get rid of his long coat, unable to keep himself afloat with it dragging him down and his legs entangling in it every few seconds. But god this was torture at its absolute worse! If the running out of room didn't kill them then this cold certainly would! But he kept at it though, the ceiling slowly coming closer and closer. He was wondering if the others realized that something happened and at least zeroed in on this building… maybe their back-up was outside looking for them…? He could only hope. But in any case, this wasn't a time where he could only sit back and hope to be rescued.

He was kicking with all this strength but he was quickly burning energy as the ice water made him feel as though he was submerged within a living flame with how badly it burned. Ice was quickly attaching to his hair and freezing it solid and he could see that his skin was quickly turning blue. His body was so numb that it was like he had thousands of knife cuts all over him. But they were close to the ceiling! He was sure a door had to be here! There had to be! if there wasn't… then he was completely at a loss to what to do.

He somehow found a second wind and began kicking harder than ever, trying to trick his body into thinking if it worked hard enough then he'd somehow warm up. But his teeth were chattering so hard that he was afraid to speak least he accidently cut his own tongue in half.

It could've been minutes or hours… he wasn't sure. Just that every second felt like it lasted for an eternity too long. But at last, they had only a few feet of air left to go and he was searching desperately around even as his taking a single breath was agony. There had to be…?

Ah! He spotted it at last. It was hidden among the tiles on the ceiling but there was no doubt that there was a door handle! He kicked his way over to it and tried to open it. He stuttered out another few choice words of profanity when he realized that it was locked. Of course it was…?

Like hell that was gonna stop him now though. So he spun under the water so that his leg was up and he began kicking at the door. It left deep, echoing booming noises that told him that there was space just on the other side!

Yet he couldn't properly kick like this…? Especially with trying to keep Thatch's head above water…?

He frowned, knowing that there was only one thing to do. He had no choice but to let Thatch go, letting him slowly sink beneath the water as Ace twisted about and began to furiously kick. They were almost out of space… he had to do this! He was completely upside down now with his head underwater and holding his breath as both legs kicked with all their might at the door, over and over again until he finally succeed in breaking the hinges off.

Without wasting anymore time, he dove back down and grabbed hold of a quickly sinking Thatch by the wrist before heaving him up until their heads broke the surface and they were back in the rest of the warehouse. He dragged his friend to the edge and heaved them up onto dry land before collapsing onto the dusty floor, breathing hard and shaking.

He did it. He got them out.

Just barely, but he did it. If they could just get back outside to the others then they could take them to a hospital to get warmed up or something. When he did get home, he was planning on taking a long, hot bath…?

That was it… think warm thoughts. That should help them through this, right?

"C-C-Come o-on," he gasped through chattering lips as he grabbed hold of Thatch, who's lips were turning blue from the cold.

He gritted his teeth, knowing that they had to get out. Ace pushed himself up onto his shaking limbs, knowing that they were sure to die soon if they didn't get help. Ace could barely walk as he heaved Thatch back over his shoulder and made their way along the metal walkway, still coughing up water from his lungs.

Thatch moaned next to him, barely conscious as a dribble of blood dripped from his lips. Ace tried to think, knowing that Law was the best person to treat him but knew that they were almost on the other side of town! Getting there wasn't going to be easy… but if Thatch could hold on long enough for them to get outside then they could call an ambulance…?

But his plans were quickly interrupted when he heard a gunshot from close by. He looked up, not able to see anyone but could hear footsteps of multiple people. He heaved Thatch up a little higher and ran with all the energy he had left. They were moving along the overhead but were still in range of someone's gun.

Ace heard another bang but this time he felt a stinging sensation and gasped as he felt the bullet hit the upper part of his shoulder.

He made a choked sound, surprised, and stumbled, almost falling to the ground. But he was so cold at this point that his whole body was numb to the point that he didn't even notice the pain right away. Still, there was an odd ringing in his ears as he felt something warm dripping down his back and knew that he was bleeding out.

If he panicked then it'd be all over and he wasn't going to let a bullet wound slow him down after coming this far.

He made it to the other end of the walkway just as the voices were growing louder behind him. They were still too far from the exit and he knew that they were as good as dead if they didn't get out in the next twenty seconds. That was when he saw the window at the end of another walkway…?

He didn't even think as he ran straight for it, ignoring the shouts from behind him. He let out a cry of pain as he felt more blood leaving him and gave himself the final push he didn't know he was capable of, and went straight for it.

It was their only choice.

That was the only thought that came to his mind as they went crashing through the window and he felt himself falling through the air. He lost his grip on Thatch as everything went blurry and dark before he even hit the ground.

…

…

…

Ace wasn't sure where he was or how long he had been out… his brain didn't seem to be functioning correctly as an odd spectrum of colors and light seemed to be dancing around him. He could still hear a strange kind of beeping noise from close by that accompanied the ringing in his ears as his entire body ached as if he had been jumped and beaten to within an inch of his life down some dark alleyway. Yet, at the same time, it felt strangely numb like getting a shot Novocain at the dentist or something.

Where was he? He didn't know but at least it was warm here, thank god for that.

And what was with that annoying beeping sound? He didn't know what it was, but a rather slow and sluggish noise was beeping close by his ear and he was wishing that it would just stop since it was giving him a headache.

He was constantly shifting between what he could only guess was awake and sleeping…? It was hard to tell. Occasionally, he picked up voices around him and he was sure he recognized some of them, but at one point he was sure he saw bright lights above him as well as a shadowy figure towering over him.

He didn't know who the figure was and tried to raise his arms to fight them off. But Ace was too tired to move as he felt himself drifting back to sleep.

"Ace! Ace-ya! Snap out of it!"

He knew that voice…? But why? Why was he calling him to snap out of it? Was something wrong?

"Come on, Ace-ya! Luffy needs you to pull through!"

Luffy? Who was…? Oh, right! He remembered now! He had a little brother! His foggy mind was having a hard time trying to remember what was going on but…?

Suddenly the image of his little brother was grinning at him in his mind's eye, holding up his hand and Ace taking his pinky with his own. Right… he had a job to do. He had to keep his promise! He couldn't afford to fall asleep here.

The odd beeping noise suddenly grew stronger and the voices were getting excited at that. Why? It was just annoying to him but he heard that voice from before speaking up again.

"His heartrate is picking up! He's still in there! Bring in a bag of blood! We should be able to remove the bullet!"

Bullet? Right… he was… shot…?

"He won't stop moving!"

"He's in pain. I'll up the painkillers."

Pain… right… it hurt. He was slowly remembering what it was like to feel what hurting was like. He tried to speak but he wasn't sure what words came out of his mouth since the ringing was back and he soon gave in to the welcoming comfort of sleep.

…

…

…

It was some unspecific amount of time later did Ace next open his eyes.

Where was he now? Why was it so damn bright? He groaned as he raised an exhausted hand and ran it across his face as he tried to get his sluggish brain to wake up. He was lying in a bed, his arm strapped up to some monitors and he finally realized where that annoying beeping sound was coming from. He blinked up at the white walls, seeing people in scrubs or lab coats through the glass…?

A hospital? Why was he… here? He tried to think, but his memory just wouldn't cooperate with him. The last thing that he remembered was tucking Luffy into bed and…?

Luffy.

He had to get home. He had to get to him…? He remembered that he went out, but was struggling to recall the reason. Well, no matter what, he had to go home. Luffy was probably worried sick. Had Ace been in his right mind, he probably would've just used a call button to get a nurse in here and tell him what was going on or something. But his mind was so muffled that went completely over his head. He sat up and kicked his feet out of bed where he saw his clothes sitting on a chair next to the bed. Was someone here? Judging from the looks of things, several people were here not that long ago…?

No, he had to try and focus on getting home. He had a job to do. He pulled off the ridiculous outfit he was changed into by the hospital staff and pulled on his regular clothes, barely registering the bandages that were wrapped around his arm and shoulder, as well as the thick wad of them wrapped around his head.

Ace forced his weak and stiff body up from the bed and somehow managed to shuffle through the door, not able to think clearly as he struggled down the hallway. No one really noticed him as he moved, almost zombie-like, through the halls. But eventually, he was able to find his way out of the waiting room and outside—though he was sure he heard someone calling out after him. He ignored it, just wanting to get home and sleep somewhere more comfortable.

But damn, what happened? How'd he get here? His head was pounding and his thoughts were slowly starting to clear as the urge to go around and go back to the hospital seemed more and more appealing. Perhaps it was the cold air that helped to clear the fog because after moving a few blocks, he looked around at whiteness around him, realizing that he was moving through a thick layer of snow.

That must've been why he was so cold? Where was his coat? He was sure he had one when he left…? Right…?

He was so out of it that he stopped dead in his tracks and gazed down at it, his mind struggling to register through the confused jumble that was his brain. He found himself stumbling and dragging his feet as his vision only continued to blur and fade about him…? But eventually, his energy completely ran out and he collapsed against a wall. He slid down, unable to fight sleep once again…?

…

…

…

Now what? Why did he keep waking up in unfamiliar places? He blinked, finding himself staring at another unfamiliar ceiling as a sunlight shone from a nearby window. It took him a minute to fully register what was going on and for his mind to finally clear.

That's right…?

Thatch was kidnapped…?

He almost drowned…?

Luffy…?

With a gasp, he finally sat up, his brother's name on his lip as he had to grab hold of something to steady him as a wave of dizziness swept over him. But his mind remained clear this time. He remembered how he almost drowned while escaping with Thatch!

But then…? He didn't know what happened after all that…?

And… how'd he get here? Wherever here was? Ace shook his head to clear out the last of the cobwebs, as his situation hit him like a speeding train. He could only assume that they must've given him some pretty heavy drugs back at the hospital until they were messing with his head. He needed to call Marco and the others…? No, wait, he had to get home first! It was daylight! He promised he'd be back by morning! He had to get back to Luffy and then he could call Marco and…?

"So you're finally awake? It's about time," said a voice and with a great effort, Ace turned his head in the direction it came from. It was here he realized he was laying upon a sagging couch, and a man that looked to be around his age was glaring at him as if he were nothing but a common grub.

Who was this prick? He certainly looked pissed off but Ace couldn't think of what he did to have this guy giving him a death glare?

"W-Who are you? Where am I?" Ace asked, his voice surprisingly hoarse so that he barely recognized it.

The man folded his arms and continued to glare daggers at Ace like he wanted nothing more than to punch his lights out then and there. Seriously, what was with this guy?

Ace eyed him wearily when he saw him lean up against the wall with an old pipe leaning up next to him—about the perfect size to be used as a weapon. Ace was playing around with the thought of maybe making a mad dash for it if he had to if this guy proved to be dangerous…?

But the man's eyes burned with such a livid fury that Ace half expected him to burst into flames. His eyes narrowed dangerously before he asked, "You're Luffy's brother, right? Ace?"

Ace blinked at that and suddenly a fierce wave of protectiveness rose up inside him as he demanded, "How do you know Luffy?!"

"The name's Sabo," the guy grunted, "And I'll be asking the questions here! I got a bone to pick with you."

(Wow, yeah I put Ace through a lot for this chapter. But at least he's alive! That's what matters, and now he and Sabo finally have a chance to meet in person. But how did that happen? I promise you'll find out in the next chapter. And yes, I know that Ace was a Devil Fruit user so he couldn't swim, but before he ate the fruit, he was actually a really good swimmer. Besides, such fruits don't exist in this AU, so sorry about that lol. Some cute Sabo and Luffy bonding moments and the events that led him to meeting Ace again will be coming up next. So look forward to it all.)