Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“What the fuck is that?” Yasopp commented out of the blue as his eyes focused on something that seemed to be flying through the skies towards the Red Force, his words caught the attention of Beck and Limejuice since he was already having a discussion with them.

The three men had been conversing about the upcoming war, the trio worried for the Firefly who had searched them out just to thank their Captain for saving his little brothers life so many years ago. Said little brother was also one of the conversation topics since they'd heard rumours of something happening on Sabaody a few days ago, but they hadn't had the opportunity to get a newscoo to find out what exactly had happened.

“Watch out!” Beck called out in alarm and immediately dived to knock one of their newest members out of the way as the figure crashed against the floor of the Red Force but didn’t seem to damage the ship apart from an indentation that looked like a giant paw print.

Beck immediately removed his pistol, aiming it at the projectile when he noticed that the figure was someone unknown, although, Beck easily noted that whoever it was, was young. His attention pulled away before he could take a better look at the unconscious person that was sprawled out on the deck of the Force.

“Incoming!” Yasopp called out to Beck considering he’d kept his attention on the horizon from where the first figure had been spotted, Beck gestured for two of the newer crew to keep their attentions of the softly groaning body that was already on the ship. His own attention moving to the second person that seemed to crash against the deck, he could sense his husband heading out of his cabin due to the ruckus.

Beck froze the moment he made out who the new figure was on their ship, his heart stuttering before he shot forward and hit his knees hard to check for a pulse on the rubber boy they hadn’t seen in years. The sight of his husbands Straw Hat cradled protectively against the boys chest made him feel fond, but that fondness was overshadowed by the worry he felt.

“Luffy!” Lucky cried out in shock as he took in who was with them, his eyes switched to the unknown before he froze and glanced up at their sniper who was looking for any other figures being sent their way “Hey Yas... You might want to get over here”

Yasopp looked over at Lucky confused, he’d barely registered Lucky’s call of who the first figure was since he was focused on the horizon, he glanced to where the first figure lay with two of their newer crew watching over them. When he moved to Lucky’s side, Yasopp froze in shock and fear before, unknowingly, mirroring Beck’s actions and dropping down to his knees to check his sons pulse.

“Usopp!” Yasopp whispered frantically, barely relaxing at the feel of the pulse under his fingertips, he glanced go his left and spotted Luffy and Beck; his eyes moving to where Shanks was frozen in the doorway to the cabins. Usopp was injured, he could see that from just a glance, but he wasn't sure just how bad. “Someone get Hongo!”

Shanks was the first one to move as he spun on his heel and darted back through the doorway to the cabins, racing through to get their doctor.

Looking over his son, Yasopp could tell that his son had taken after him in a lot of things, his hair held the same curls as he did when he didn't have his hair in dreads; the boy had his bone structure but the very obvious thing was the nose that he had inherited from his mother. The Akagami sniper couldn't help but snort in weak amusement at the sight of the slingshot at Usopp's waist, one he would need to check over considering the little cracks he noted.

Beck grimaced at the injuries that he could see on their Anchor, Hongo was the best person to call considering the two looked like they'd been through the ringer. He gave a weak smile when he noticed Luffy groaning and opening his eyes a little, relief washing through him that the boy was able to wake a little; especially since Usopp was still unconscious. He noticed the panic in Luffy's eyes almost immediately and caught the boys wrists so he didn’t lash out and injure anyone or himself any further, “Easy Anchor, your safe. Sleep, it’s okay”

A small whimper had Beck straining a little to make out what the boy was saying considering his voice was so weak and quiet, but he made out the word ‘crew’. This was definitely the showing of Luffy's strength as a Captain, he was more worried about his crew than he was off his own safety; however, Luffy should instinctively know he was safe with him and the Force. The Force was always a presence in the young boys life when Luffy was still a brat, often commenting about something out of the corner of his eyes whenever Luffy was allowed on the deck.

Shanks had been happy when he heard that, knowing that their anchor was in tune enough with the Force for him to sense Red's Klaubautermann, her essence; it meant that Red had accepted Luffy as Shanks'.

“Usopp is here too, he’s safe with his Da” Beck responded carefully, reassuring Luffy about the one that they also had with them, unsure about where the others could have ended up. But, at least Luffy had one of his crew with him right now.

The Akagami Kaizoku had been setting sail towards some of Whitebeards territories in the New World, the ones surrounding the area of Wano to keep the Beast Pirates at bay while the old man set out to gather allies for the war to save Ace. Shanks wanted to join the war to protect their anchors older brother, but they also knew that the old man shouldn’t really need the help.

Although, Shanks had been torn between protecting the islands or joining Whitebeard almost immediately since Whitebeard wasn’t as young as he used to be and Shanks didn’t want to risk Ace to the man’s suicide plans. The former cabin boy knew how prideful Whitebeard could be, and also knew that the old man wasn’t in his prime anymore; he would use this war as a way to go out with a bang.

The only reason Shanks hadn’t outright joined the allies was because he knew he’d lose his temper with the old Captain. Whitebeard was an old ally, but Shanks had many reservations about the man; he knew Marco had been on the railing about staying with his Pops the last decade or so due to the attitude the man had gained; but Marco still held himself in debt to the old man and also tried to hold the belief he always had in his Pops.

Maybe the possible loss of Ace would help the Phoenix make his decision about leaving the Whitebeards.

Shanks was slightly worried that the only reason Whitebeard took Ace into his crew was because the man knew that he was losing Marco, and with Marco went the rest of the commanders; Ace intrigued Marco from the moment they met which resulted in Marco staying for Ace’s sake.

Beck carefully shifted Luffy into his arms and moved him over to where Usopp was, now being propped up by Yasopp, the young man still out of it while Yasopp tried his hardest not to have a panic attack at the state of his son and the Red Force’s Anchor. The rest of the senior crew were shifting with worry at the sight of Luffy, and of Usopp since they all knew about the boy from Yasopp's drunken rambling over the years; while the crew members they'd gathered since Luffy, were all sent to work.

“Can someone translate chief’s panicked babble of ‘anchors falling from the sky’, please?” Hongo requested in exasperation as he exited the doorway, his medical bag in his hand with Shanks behind him; although, he stiffened the moment he caught sight of the two boys on the deck that were being propped up by their first mate and sniper.

“Kinda what happened Doc” Beck informed the medic dryly, as he gently lay Luffy back on the deck, this time within arms reach of Usopp, something that seemed to make the unconscious boy relax even without knowing he was there. Hongo immediately moving to kneel between the two teenagers, the doctor was shocked by how much Luffy had grown since they last saw him. “Usopp landed first, then Lu... Lu was conscious for a brief moment. Usopp hasn’t woken at all. Both boys look as though they’ve been through things.”

“They have” Rockstar spoke up from where he’d managed to appear without anyone seeing him, a small smirk on his lips at how he gave Limejuice a jump scare.

The man's eyes were on his husband as Hongo first started checking over Usopp since Luffy was rubber and Usopp looked to be the most injured of the two. Although, Rockstar hadn’t met Luffy yet, he did know many stories about the boy from the senior members of the crew, his husband would often speak wistfully about the little boy that had stolen their hearts in the East Blue. “Finally managed to get caught up on the events since the announcement of the execution date, everything in Sabaody that involves your boy... Seems your anchor punched a Tenryubito, he crashed an auction and punched Saint Charlos after the man tried to buy a mermaid who is Anchor’s friend. Yasopp’s boy crashed through the roof onto another one... They then faced Admiral Kizaru and some weapon of the Government, no idea how they got here but the whole crew is missing.”

“Of course he did” Hongo grumbled fondly as he made sure Usopp was checked over, he flicked his head lightly at Beck, gesturing for the man to move to Shanks who looked like he was about to have a panic attack at the state of Luffy, as well as the information about what the boy had recently done. The two of them knew that Luffy was a soft spot for Shanks, the man thinking of Luffy as his son ever since meeting him on Dawn island with Makino. Hongo moved his attention from Usopp to Luffy, Usopp wasn't in immediate danger and thankfully neither was Luffy. “Lime, think you could carry Anchor to the infirmary, Yas, you got your boy?”

Both men immediately nodded in agreement as they lifted the teenagers into their arms and moved passed the curious crew that had gone back to work. The senior members who knew Luffy personally all looked panicked and itching to see the boy, but they stayed in place with a stern look from Hongo.

Hongo moved from where he was knelt on the deck, his destination was to stand in front of Shanks and flick his forehead lightly to get his attention, and hopefully pull him out of his panic. “Luffy is going to be fine, he’s probably going to need a lot of food and a lot of rest, just like he did when he was a brat.” Hongo informed Shanks firmly, something that made the Captain and first mate grimace because it meant needed to restock as soon as possible. They remembered what a seven year old Luffy ate and that was ten years ago. “Chief, you need to figure out what you want to do about Ace... Luffy is going to want to save his brother, we can’t keep this from him, nor can we leave him to his own devices”

Shanks grimaced once more at the reminder of the upcoming war and execution attempt.

“We make our way to Marineford, but we drop off our flags at the islands in between here and Fishman Island, our own allies can choose an island to protect if its people accept our protection while Whitebeard is elsewhere” Shanks decided, making sure his voice was heard so his men readied for whatever was coming their way “I have a feeling that if we don’t watch him, Luffy will try to get to the prison to break his brother out... We need to keep him in our sights, need to keep him safe until Marineford”

“And when we get there?” Beck questioned carefully. Taking Luffy into an ordinary war was one thing, but taking him in into a war to save Ace was another thing, they all knew that the boy would do anything for Ace considering the stories that they'd heard from said boy.

“Sengoku knows better than to go against me” Shanks pointed out simply, the Fleet Admiral was one of the few alive that knew the power of Shanks’ full Haki being released. It was why he was left alone as much as he was, that and the fact that his biological family apparently had pull. Although, Shanks still hadn’t ever met the ones he shared blood with, his Captain was his father and Rogue his mother. They were the only parents he needed, plus, he did still have Rayleigh in some capacity.

Shanks had forgiven Rayleigh when the man had broken down one night, during a visit, and the red-hair captain learned that his Uncle had tried to find Red and Blue the entire time between Roger giving himself up and the execution. It was after the execution that the man gave himself up to the bottle, Rayleigh breaking even more after learning that they were at Logue Town and witnessed it all before splitting up themselves. Rayleigh had managed to locate information on Red, but Blue evaded him until his first bounty as Buggy the Clown in Orange Town.

During one of the few instances where Shanks had managed to bump into his brother, he had told Buggy the truth about Rayleigh; the younger man dismissed it, but Shanks knew that Buggy forgave their Uncle too. Shanks had that thought confirmed when Rayleigh informed him that Blue had reached out to him in secret.

“We’ll need to keep Luffy ship bound or held back with some of our backup” Beck pointed out to his husband carefully and sighed at the slight nod of acknowledgement before Shanks slipped away to go to the infirmary to keep an eye on the two boys alongside Yasopp.

“Boss” Rockstar hummed lightly as he appeared beside Beck like a shadow, a pout on his lips at the fact that Beck didn’t even flinch, far to used to it with Makino back on Dawn. “Thought you should know that Silver is on the den den for either you or Chief”

Beck grumbled under his breath as he left their communications officer on the deck and ducked through the corridors until he reached the room he needed. The first mate hated using the den den, it meant he needed to talk with people; usually he let the others do that for him.

“What’s going on?” Beck questioned carefully when he noticed the worry on the face of the den den that looked like his husband’s Uncle. He was grateful that Rockstar knew who Silver was when it came to code-names, it meant their communications officer never immediately hung-up when someone was trying to contact him or Shanks outright.

“It’s about your anchor” Rayleigh started warily, hating the idea of informing Beck and Shanks that their unofficial kid was missing, pausing at the sigh that Beck released to interrupt him.

“It’s fine, we managed to catch our anchor before it ended up in the sea, Yasopp’s nose nearly ended up stuck in the deck too” Beck grumbled out lightly as he tried to figure out how to reassure Rayleigh that they had Usopp with them too. The slight slump of the snail reassured Beck that Rayleigh could decode the message considering the man had faced many of Yasopp’s drunken ramblings about his wife and son. Beck wasn't used to using code words, unless he had Shanks or Rocks to help him. “although, six links are missing... Any ideas?”

Rayleigh hummed lightly in response, he had asked Kuma what was going on but he didn’t really know the trajectory of the crew. All he knew was that they were being sent places that could help them get stronger, Kuma also wanting to keep Luffy out of the upcoming war, but the warlord didn’t realize that Shanks would take him into the war.

“They’ve been sent to be strengthened by a rebellious bear, I don’t know where, but I can find out”  Rayleigh offered, his voice soft and considerate.

“Thanks Silver. I might have an idea about one of them... Listen, something you need to know, there was a hibiscus bud blooming in the East that was from a rare South Blue flower; the seagulls are determined to destroy the last bud.” Beck informed the man carefully, a little guilty at the sharp intake of breath from the other side of the calm “We’re going to go to lengths to keep it blooming. Figured you should know”

“Thank you Beckman” Rayleigh offered quietly, his voice breaking before the den den was hung up.

Talking in code wasn’t one of Beck’s strong points but he could make up words if he needed to. Shanks had been keeping Ace’s heritage quiet from his Uncle due to respect for Ace, but if Rayleigh decided to join the war as well, it meant that there was less chance of collateral damage. Beck would request forgiveness from Shanks and Ace after everything calmed down.

Better to ask forgiveness than permission, it was something he knew Shanks lived by considering the amount of trouble his husband got into on a daily basis.

Following his thought process about one of his anchor's crew, he took a deep breath, ringing one of the few numbers he knew by heart and waited until the snail shifted into the third in his marriage.

“Any chance you’ve gained a hatchling?” Beck hummed curiously, easily noting the tired look in Mihawk’s eyes, however, he frowned as the tiredness turned into confusion “Baby, have you been home at all in the last couple of weeks?”

“I have been requested many times this past month, so have yet to return home. What is going on?” Mihawk informed Beck bluntly before demanding information, something that Beck found endearing and smiled lightly even with the circumstances they were facing. Especially when he noted that the den den seemed to relax slightly at the pet name that Beck often used for the Warlord.

“We had an issue with an anchor. It came flying out of the air and nearly crashed through our deck... Its links are missing, all but one anyway but that one nearly took Yasopp’s nose off” Beck listed off, using the same kind of code as he used with Rayleigh, something Mihawk should be able to pick up on as well. And, given the worry that appeared on the snails features, Beck knew their partner picked up on the fact that the Straw Hats were scattered and missing. “Was wondering if the hatchling that had been making its nest with our anchor, had relocated to your place?”

Mihawk stayed silent as he worked out the meaning of Beck’s words. Shanks and Beck had been teasing their third since the day he gave them Luffy’s bounty poster; the man had spoken, almost, fondly of the swordsman that wanted to beat him and take his title. The two men had called Roronoa Zoro a hatchling more than once because of Mihawk’s epithet. Something Mihawk stopped denying after the news of Enies Lobby was released and the swordsman was stopped by his lovers from tracking down the young swordsman and scolding him thoroughly for his decisions. Even though Beck and Shanks were also itching to give their anchor a piece of their minds too, unfortunately, the men weren’t sure if Luffy saw them in the same light as they saw him, so they didn’t want to overstep.

Mihawk had originally wanted to remain stoic and silent in the face of the young swordsman who had been so determined to best him at the Baratie, he wanted to remain impassive and leave the boy to it; but watching the newscoo for the boy had changed that. The boy was a strong one, stubborn in his actions to keep his crew safe and keep his loyalty sure with Luffy. The boy reminded Mihawk of himself when he was a young man before he met Shanks and Beckman, the elder of the duo knocking sense into Mihawk more than once when wrapping up injuries. If it wasn't for Beckman and Shanks being rocks in his life, Mihawk would have probably fallen prey to one of the many wounds he gained from his fights.

“I have yet to return home. I have been summoned to Marineford and was in the South when summoned.” Mihawk admitted, annoyance in his tone as well as a hint of apology because he would be there when Ace was in danger but couldn’t do anything. The Warlord learning about the Firefly from his husbands, and also meeting him a few times while the young man was on missions for Whitebeard.

“We’re heading that way, we could probably check” Beck sighed before smiled lightly at the startle of surprise, until Mihawk realized that they would be at the war and smiled lightly. “I have to go, need to check on the idiots... Be safe Hawk”

“You too Beck” Mihawk responded softly before the den den went back to sleep.

Beck let out a deep breath, exhaustion washing over him at the new situation they found themselves in. The original plan was to try and protect the islands closest to Wano while Whitebeard was away from the territory, then head to Marineford as fast as they could to help end the war before Ace was lost to the Locker. Beck knew his husband was determined that Whitebeard would try and pull some suicide stunts which Beck would try and avoid because Ace didn’t need that kind of guilt on his shoulders, should they succeed in getting him to safety.

Now it seemed that their plans were going to change.

The sharpshooter already knew that they were going to have issues with Luffy trying to get to the prison, while also trying to get away from Shanks because both males were idiots and didn’t think through the wording of their promise. Beck knocked some sense into Shanks the first time his husband lamented about not being able to see Luffy until he became a great pirate, but, the red head knew that Luffy wouldn’t believe him if he was the one to tell him. Which meant that either Beck or Hongo needed to be the one to reason with the boy.

Luffy being around would be hard since the boy was used to being a Captain, but this wasn’t his ship, and he only had Usopp with him from his own crew. Which put Beck in another bind, they needed to learn where the rest of the group was, a small hum filled the communication room as an idea came to mind and he dialled the number of his lovers permanent home.

It took sometime for the den den to connect, getting to the point where Beck was tempted to hang up; until the snail connected to the home of his little bird which solidified his thought process of someone being sent to Mihawk's home.

“Who is this?” A female voice questioned sharply which had Beck frowning, that wasn't Zoro.

“I believe that’s the question that I should be asking lass, seeing as that castle should currently be unoccupied due to its owner being elsewhere in the Seas” Beck returned just as sharply and had to bite back the smirk at the inhale from the woman in Mihawk’s castle.

“I...” the woman seemed to pause as she tried to come up with a reason, her voice still sharp but also unsure. “I was sent here by some uncute brute... Another just landed here too. We won’t be banished from here, right? The other here is injured...”

Beck frowned at the wary note to the young woman’s voice, he recognised the voice but barely which meant it was probably someone he met in passing. The fact that she was worried about the other person on the island made him bite back a groan at how soft Luffy had made him for kids over the years. It was no wonder the men tended to tease Beck and Shanks about being dads without their kid around. Lucky often joked that they needed to send Makino money for keeping their kid fed and alive, something that Shanks had been tempted to do more than once until Beck pointed out that a newscoo couldn’t take enough treasure to feed Luffy and his appetite just for a week. They also never had the chance to send Makino a snail until recently, with the help of Mihawk, updating her on some of the hidden information that the marines didn't want getting out there.

“Green hair and has a love of katanas?” Beck questioned gently and smiled in relief at the startled look from the young woman's features on the snail in front of him “It’s okay, he’s safe there, as are you... Would you be okay looking after him until the owner of the island returns? I’ll either be with him or following after him but I’ll reassure him that you mean no trouble.”

“I can look after him” The voice assured quietly, her words and how she spoke making Beck wonder just how old the young woman was because she sounded so vulnerable.

“What’s your name darlin?” Beck prompted gently, maybe he could find out who she was via the boys if she was worried about Zoro and somehow knew him.

“Perona...”

“Beck” Beckman offered in return, making sure she knew that he was a safe person. “We’ll be out of contact for a little while, but if the boy wakes, tell him his hat and little king are safe. I know the message makes no sense, but he should understand it. Tell him they’ll be visiting within the month”

“I can do that” Perona informed him resolutely, there was some confusion in her voice but he guessed that was because of his message to Zoro.

“I have to go, be safe lass” Beck gave a farewell before he hung up and grumbled as he called his third once again “You have two hatchlings at your place, one we expected while the other is new but not a threat to the feisty one”

“Understood” Mihawk confirmed in relief before he hung up the den den, which made Beck wonder if his man was arriving in Marineford; or already there.

Grumbling lightly as he got up from the chair, Beck clicked his neck and lit a well needed cigarette as he left the room, he clocked Rockstar at the railing watching the horizon while he left Beck to his calls.

“Rock, can you start trying to locate the Straw Hats?” Beck requested from his most talented with information networks, especially since he had one spanning the New World and Grand Line that even outshone Buggy’s from the East. “Usopp and Zoro don’t need a location, Zoro is on Mihawk’s island; we’ll be heading there once we manage to grab Ace, going beforehand would result in more teens in a war”

Beck knew that Mihawk’s home was close enough to the justice triangle that they could probably drop Luffy and Usopp off there before going after Ace. But, he knew that doing that would be a bad idea, Luffy would probably try to get to the prison or try to get to the war; and his two crew members would probably follow after him.

“On it boss” Rockstar confirmed with a mock salute and playful grin before he darted back to his domain while Beck walked across the deck and into the corridors towards the domain of Hongo 

When Beck entered the infirmary, he let out a noise of sadness at the sight of Yasopp and Shanks sat beside their sons while Hongo looked through his supplies. Both boys were still unconscious, the two men looked near breaking while Hongo was focused on his supplies after he’d bandaged the two boys and depleted a good bit of his stock to make sure Usopp's wounds didn't end up infected. “How’s everything?”

“We’ll need to stop at the nearest island to restock, Luffy’s been through quite a bit but with his healing he should be fine after a decent meal. Usopp is going to be sore but his injuries are mainly surface wounds, I need to do a couple of stitches but that was all.” Hongo informed Beck in doctor mode as his eyes flickered to his nephew and potential nephew. The first mate could easily spot the worry in the doctor's eyes as he watched the four males in his domain, Usopp and Luffy laying motionless in the infirmary beds while Yasopp and Shanks hovered with creased eyes.

“Zoro is in Mihawk’s, but Hawk hasn’t had a chance to visit his place for a month or so... A young woman answered the den den, she’s going to look out for the hatchling while we’re away. But we’ll be heading there straight after getting Ace safe” Beck hummed lightly, he noted his husband shifting a little to listen to the conversation but most of the captain’s attention was on the teenagers on the bed. “Zoro is injured but he should be okay until we get there... I’ve told Ray about Ace, he deserved to have the choice to save his nephew”

Shanks stiffened at his husbands admission before he slumped a little and nodded minutely, if they did lose Ace and Shanks never even had a chance to try; it would hurt like the Locker. His Uncle deserved the opportunity to help or make the choice to stay behind. The captain’s attention was primarily on the young man in the bed in front of him, seeing Luffy again brought so many emotions to the surface and he was struggling with how to handle it all.

Although, he was definitely going to be lecturing the brat about punching a bastard Noble.

“I’ll try and call ‘Kino tomorrow, she’s probably worried about Lu, especially if information about Ace is out there” Shanks spoke in an almost whisper, his fingers moving to run through Luffy’s hair carefully. The boy was older, but still looked like the little brat they left on the docks of Foosha ten years ago. Hearing about some of his know antics since setting off from Foosha on his birthday, Shanks was close to going grey on many occasions. 

“You’re definitely on den den duty tomorrow” Beck grumbled, a huff escaping him at the sudden look when Hongo realized he was smoking in the infirmary. The first mate refused to admit that he was pouting, putting his cigarette out, as he moved to lean against his husband’s chair and watch over the kid that was their son in all but blood. “You know how much I hate talking over them...”

The twitch of his captain’s cheek clued Beck into the fact that Shanks was smirking at his complaint. Beck flicked the back of the blood red head of hair before he ran his fingers through Shanks’ hair to soothe him from his anxiety; the way the captain held himself was evident of the stress and worry.

The four men were pulled out of their heads by a small groan from in front of Yasopp, one that made the sniper sit up straight as his eyes narrowed in on his son.

“Usopp” Yasopp murmured carefully as he noticed his son beginning to wake; Hongo shifted, wanting to move forward but knowing that the youngster would need familiarity rather than someone unknown around him when he woke. “Come now, muṱuku, it’s time to wake”

Yasopp repeated the whispers carefully as Usopp started to come back to the land of the living.

“Baba?”

A sharp intake of breath showed how affected Yasopp was by the use of the title that he hadn’t heard in so many years. The three men noted that the Akagami sniper was close to tears as he continued to stroke his fingers through his sons hair carefully.

“Right here, muṱuku, I’m right here.” Yasopp reassured him as Usopp’s eyes flickered open before he suddenly jolted with a gasp of fear and alarm.

“The crew! Where’s my crew!” Usopp questioned quickly, alarm in his tone before he noticed Luffy “Luffy! What happened? What’s going on?” Usopp’s attention finally caught up to him and he froze at the sight of his father in front of him “Baba?”

“Damn Yas, he’s so much like you” Hongo laughed lightly before his attention was drawn to Luffy who was watching in silence “Anchor, you know that’s creepy, you need to speak up when you’re awake”

Shanks yelped lightly when he glanced down and noticed the younger captain awake and watching carefully. The sound of Shanks’ yelp made Luffy snicker lightly, and Beck chuckle in amusement before the first mate focused on the rubber boy.

“What’s going on?” Luffy questioned as he sat up, he ignored his injuries and slipped off of the cot that he’d been placed on to sit next to Usopp.

Without saying a word, Luffy wrapped his arms around Usopp and held the elder boy close to him, gripping onto him as Usopp’ shook and tried not to freak out at the loss of the other crew members.

“Usopp came sailing through the air and landed on deck about an hour ago, it was barely five minutes before you appeared then Lu” Beck informed the boy, he was proud of Luffy focusing on his crew mate rather than the promise that was still lingering between the two Captain’s aboard the Red Force right now.

“If I made out the message right, you were sent flying by Kuma’s devil fruit,” At the nod from Luffy, Beck continued “The rest of your crew were sent flying too, we’ve located Zoro, he’s on Mihawk’s home island with a young woman named Perona. We’ll be heading there soon, but we have something else to do first.”

Luffy frowned at the information, the bear guy had sent him to the two men that would  help make him stronger and keep him safe. Not only was he sent to them, but one of his crew were with him as well because of Yas; something was strange about that but he welcomed the help considering how badly he messed up with his crews safety. At least he knew Zoro was safe, but they needed to get back to Sabaody, he didn’t know how long they had until their three days were up. He had no idea who this Perona was though.

“Sopp... Perona?” Luffy questioned softly, hoping the other boy had an idea.

“Ghost girl in pink from Thriller Bark. The one that made everyone say the bad things” Usopp explained to Luffy after racking his brain for the information that his captain needed, he glanced over at his father who was watching the two boys closely. Usopp tensed a little at the attention before relaxing as Luffy tightened his grip around him and held him closer, Luffy always seemed to know what they needed in moments of emotional vulnerability. “Zoro will be able to handle her if he needs to”

“I know” Luffy mumbled, knowing that his best friend was strong; even when injured.

“Luffy, there’s something else that we need to tell you” Beck spoke up, knowing that Shanks doing the explaining would just cause the boy to get stressed; he always seemed to get stressed by Shanks. But, it was often a good stressed, one that resulted in familial teasings from the crew “Ace is in trouble”

They all noticed how stiff both boys went at the news, which meant that Usopp had been lucky enough to meet Ace too.

“He’s currently in the custody of the marines, but, Ace’s Captain is getting ready for a war” Beck barrelled on, making sure to catch Luffy’s attention and keep it from overwhelming him with potential outcomes of Ace being captured “We’re already heading there, we need to restock and stop briefly at a few islands but we should be in time to get to Marineford by the start of the war. You can come with us, but you need to listen to us, we outrank you on this ship”

“Anchor... The marines will announce Ace’s Da to the world... And probably yours if you end up joining the war.” Shanks informed the young captain, it was something that Shanks already knew was going to happen with Ace; but Luffy was already a danger to the marines and they, no doubt, know who Luffy’s parents are too. Shanks wasn’t sure who the boy was born to though. “However, if we take you, you stay back from the front line. It would be too dangerous for you right now, you definitely need more training; particularly in Haki”

“What’s Haki?” Luffy and Usopp question in unison which made the four men sweatdrop at the fact that the boys had gotten so far without even knowing what haki was.

“This is going to be a long journey” Beck sighed lightly. Although, it should only take a week for them to get to Marineford, especially if they only made brief stops on the islands.

Chapter Text

“Anchor!” The senior crew members all called eagerly as a familiar snicker filled the air, after the small group appeared on deck, the rubber boy looking to Usopp who nodded before his captain shot off to have a group hug with everyone he’d met before; other than Hongo and Yasopp who stayed by Usopp, Shanks and Beck.

Lucky Roo immediately wrapped his arms around their rubber anchor, holding the snickering boy closely as the rest of the senior commanders converged on them into a massive group hug. Monkey clinging to Luffy's ankle with happy chitters while the younger crew members looked on in confusion.

“Captain Shanks, sir?” Usopp spoke up carefully, his eyes focused on Luffy but he still noticed the slight stiffen of the red head that had given his father adventure in his life after his mother gave him the go ahead; the same captain that inadvertently gave Usopp the opportunity to meet Luffy and find his own purpose.

Usopp was close to a panic attack, one that was simmering under his skin as he tried not to focus on so many big names and strong pirates around him, his Baba beside him for the first time since he was a toddler, and their crew scattered across the seas. But, the sniper kept it under control while Luffy was able to reunite with the pirate family he had before the Straw Hats; Usopp couldn't destroy his captain's chance to be reunited with his family without worrying about him.

“No need to call me sir, nor captain, kid” Shanks assured Usopp, glancing down at the Yasopp mini-me before turning his attention back to Luffy who was stiffer than normal but still grinning his grin while the senior crew fawned over him. Monster scuttling up Luffy's body until he was resting on the teenagers shoulder.

“Luffy is going to need you, promise be damned” Usopp told him quietly, making sure Luffy couldn’t overhear, it would just make his Captain upset that Usopp was worrying about him. The only ones that had been able to get away worrying about Luffy with the Captain's knowledge was Zoro and Robin. “He was the last one to be sent away, he had to watch as we were overpowered by Kizaru and Kuma. Old man Ray tried to help, but we were pathetically unprepared... He’s going to blame himself and if we lose Ace too... He needs you.”

Shanks grimaced at the information he was being offered, his eyes tracking the teenager he’d lost his arm for; noting just how fake the grin was on his face. There had been very few times that Shanks had been able to realize that something was wrong with their anchor, the boy was a really bad liar but he was really good at keeping his own emotions hidden. Back when Luffy was a boy, Shanks was the only one able to call Luffy out without the boy huffing and storming off; even Beck couldn't get the boy to admit when there was something wrong.

“The promise was that I wouldn’t have the hat back until he was a great pirate. Not that I wouldn’t see or speak to him” Shanks made a point of saying his words loud enough that Luffy could hear him if he was paying attention, and the slight falter in Luffy’s words as he seemed to pause in what he was saying to Lucky, made it clear to Shanks that he wasn’t completely unfocused on Usopp and the men around him. It made him proud of the Captain that Luffy had become. “Beck made me realize that, but we weren’t able to get a den den to Makino back then, otherwise we would have contacted him sooner. And newscoos aren’t the most reliable to not be intercepted, we didn’t want to risk him being caught to have control over m-“

Shanks’ last words were interrupted with a grunt as a body slammed into him and Luffy wrapped his arms around the Captain with his head buried against the man’s stomach. The captain knocked the straw hat off of Luffy's head gently before moving his hand to rest on the nape of the teenagers neck, scraping his nails against the skin gently to offer the same comfort he used to settle with as a brat.

Usopp smiled fondly at the sight of Luffy clinging onto his father figure, startling a little as a hand came to rest on his shoulder before he was pulled back into a hesitant hug from his Baba. Pausing briefly before he relaxed into the backwards hug, allowing his body to relax enough that he didn’t devolve into the panic and stress that he was keeping a tight lid on. A hold that he knew was slipping but he was trying to keep it intact while faced with the Akagami Kaizoku, his Baba's crew; he didn't want to seem like a weakling to his Baba and his crew.

Many of the teenage duo’s nightly talks on Merry, before Water-7, were about the times that the Akagami Kaizoku were docked at Foosha with Luffy, merely days away from Usopp's own home. The younger boy would tell Usopp tales that Shanks had relayed to him, and had also spoken about how fond Yasopp was of Usopp and his mother; but, Yasopp had admitted more than once that he was scared of returning home just in case his wife and son hated him for sailing. Usopp understood that feeling, it was a feeling he’d had building inside of him in relation to Kaya. He didn’t know what he would do once their journey was complete, but his heart still ached for the blonde beauty that had ensnared him back when they were brats.

The sniper knew his dad loved him, he wouldn’t have lamented about being away from them so much if he didn't’. But, he also knew that Shanks and Beck had basically become fathers to Luffy without Luffy even knowing what a father was. It was something the crew had talked to their Captain about after Water-7, when they’d found out about Dragon.

“Hey Lu, do you think the marines would announce the asshole that abandoned you, as your dad, or your dad’s of choice?” Usopp questioned curiously, something that had the men around them go solid and turn their attentions to Luffy as the rubber boy seemed to be deep in thought. The rubber boy pulling away from the hug with Shanks with a thoughtful look on his face, a rare sight for the boy.

“Gramps probably didn’t tell them about my Papai and Da, so probably the ass” Luffy finally answered, causing Usopp to snort since Luffy rarely cussed, and when he did it was only something small. The snort quickly turned into laughter as the men around them looked very confused at who they were talking about, something they could play about with in the future.

Unfortunately, the laughter soon moved from a humorous one to a hysterical one as the budding panic attack slipped through Usopp’s attempt of keeping it locked down. His breathing beginning to get hard and painful while it felt like his throat was closing up and his chest was crushing in. Usopp quickly shut his eyes to try and keep from panicking more at the darkness enclosing on his vision, and to also limit how many tears he shed as a familiar rubber arm gently removed him from his Baba’s hold and into their own.

“It’s okay Usopp” Luffy whispered to him reassuringly as he held his friend close to his chest, resting his temple against Usopp’s head as he wrapped his arms around the boy multiple times to provide a tight hold that usually helped calm the other down from a panic attack.

Waiting for Usopp’s break down was the only thing keeping Luffy from panicking at the situation they’d found themselves in. His heart aching and mind whirling with thoughts on the rest of the crew and where they could have ended up. He was scared for Nami and Chopper because they were the easiest to become afraid other than Usopp. He was worried about Brook since the man had been alone for so long before joining their crew, and now he was going to be alone again until they could meet up. Zoro was safe, but was Sanji? Would his chef be okay without them around to keep him grounded without his believed purpose to feed them? Sanji’s purpose wasn’t to feed them, but the blonde still slipped into that thought process if they weren’t there to distract him. Would Franky be okay? Would he be able to find enough cola to keep him safe? And would Robin be safe? Would she fall back onto her old thought process if they weren’t with her to remind her that she was their family?

“Gather up all of your crew” Luffy began to sing softly, unknown to everyone, Luffy was able to hold a tune but not when he was being loud and distracting. Usopp and Zoro knew because the two of them had walked on deck on more than one occasion when Luffy was singing softly. It became a habit for the young captain to reassure them both whenever they were struggling, he would sing as they lay against him and often fall asleep with him. “It’s time to ship out Bink’s Brew. Sea wind blows, to where who knows? The waves will be our guide”

Ignoring the surprise on everyone’s faces as Luffy sang softly to Usopp, the young captain just continued the song as he kept his tight hold on the other seventeen-year-old. He would allow himself time to break with his own thoughts later, but right now he needed to focus on Usopp as the boy’s hysterical laughter tapered off into gasping sobs. The song managing to ease some of the tightness in Usopp’s chest as he curled in on Luffy and continued to sob, allowing the fear of it all to engulf him while he knew that his captain was there to protect him.

It took three renditions, of their favourite song, for Usopp’s sobs to quieten, in that time the crew had been put to work while some of the senior crew stuck around to keep an eye on the boys. Beck had sat to check over their stock list but kept shifting his focus to Luffy and Usopp while Shanks, Hongo and Yasopp stayed where they were, Yasopp itching to hold his son but deferring to Luffy as his sons' Captain.

Luffy continued to hum the tune that made his heart hurt for his crew, noting that Usopp’s breathing had settled to a level that signalled that his friend had cried himself to sleep while standing up. Slowly removing his hold, Luffy gave Yasopp a weighted look to take Usopp from him, something that the man did without hesitation, cradling his son to his chest as he wiped the tears from the boys' cheeks gently.

“He’s been holding that in since Cami was taken” Luffy spoke, his voice almost a whisper, watching how Yasopp cradled his friend lovingly; something that caused him to relax slightly. “He needs his Da right now... Stay with him please Yas?”

“You don’t even need to ask Anchor” Yasopp promised him firmly before he turned on his heel and carried Usopp through to the bunks so he could nap and watch over the boy.

“What about you Lu?” Hongo questioned with worry in his tone, noting that Luffy still held himself rigidly. Hongo wondered if they would need to get a den den call set up with whoever Luffy saw as his father’s, they weren’t sure who the men were though.

Luffy hesitated, he wanted to remain strong in front of Shanks after being separated for so long, he wanted to prove to the man that he had gotten stronger since they last met and he wasn’t some cry-baby anymore. Except, everything was beginning to settle on him, and he didn’t have the familiar presence of Zoro by his side, the older boy always knowing when Luffy was close to breaking and giving him support every time. The amount of times that Luffy had ended up locking himself away with Zoro to break down after a bad decision or fight was numerous, but his first mate never said a word unless it was to reassure him that everything was going to be okay.

The familiar feel of a hat on his head, one that was pushed down over his eyes, made him look up as he was pulled out of his thoughts. Shanks smiling down at him with clear worry in his eyes as he kept his hand on Luffy’s head.

“C’mon Anchor, let’s go talk in my cabin, like old times yeah?” Shanks offered to the teenager gently and released the hat from his hold as Luffy gave a short, hesitant, nod in agreement.

Hongo gave them both a searching look before he nodded, accepting that Shanks and Beck would have a handle on Luffy and his possible break-down. “I’ll go tell Lucky to make a list of pantry stock so we can make the stop at the next island quick and simple.”

Luffy didn’t look as Hongo walked off, keeping his attention on Shanks, he noticed Beck getting up to join him and Shanks as they walked through to the Captain’s cabin.

The room hadn’t changed much since Luffy was last there, the bed seemed to be a little bigger but other than that it was like he was six years old all over again; and being allowed to stay the night on the Force with the men who had become so much to him.

The moment the door clicked behind them, an arm wrapped around him and pulled him into a tight hug, his face full of fabric that held the comforting scent of sea salt, sake and a faint hint of smoke; one that he always linked to Shanks. Another figure wrapped their arms around him from behind and the smell of smoke and nicotine got stronger, alongside the smell of rum. Luffy hesitated before he gripped onto the fabric like he used to as a kid and broke.

He couldn’t hold back his tears any longer, letting them flow down his cheeks and soak the shirt he was pressed against as sobs of pain, loneliness and despair ripped passed his lips. Thoughts of his other nakama, alone because of his weakness and cockiness, battered against his thoughts which caused his cries to get harsher as Shanks tightened his grip on Luffy.

In his despair, Luffy lost track of time as he accepted the comfort from the two men that had been his everything for a year.

After meeting Ace and Sabo, the two had questioned Luffy about his own family situation, neither of them phased by his lack of family since they were in the same boat. But, it took Sabo explaining what a dad actually was for him to realize that he'd had two for a brief time.

Ace was the one that solidified that Shanks and Beck had been his dad’s since the day they’d met on the docks of Foosha. They had been sharing stories of scars, and when Luffy told him about his cheek, his elder brother had called him an idiot but asked what happened after. Finding out that Shanks and Beck had both scolded the boy thoroughly before showering him with comfort and attention, made the elder realize that Luffy actually had good dads; even if they couldn’t be around.

It was to the sound of one of his most cherished lullabies, that Luffy came back to the present. His head was killing him, his eyes were stinging and his throat was sore; but he was still curled against Shanks. Except, the two men had managed to shift them to lay on the bed, Luffy was practically laying on top of Shanks, with Beck behind him to keep him stable.

Shanks was the one singing the lullaby softly while Beck was tracing shapes against the boys back to reassure him he wasn’t alone. Beck wasn't one for singing, only ever humming or softly singing a tune in a gravelly tone when his husband was the one who needed to be soothed. Although, the man had actually sung to Luffy once before they'd left him on Foosha, it was after Shanks had lost his arm and Luffy was having constant nightmares which made him go two days without sleep.

The red head once admitted to Luffy that the song wasn’t meant to be a lullaby, but it was one of his Ma’s favourite songs and the way she sung it was soft and would easily help him and his brother sleep; which it continued to do with Luffy too. It was about the daughter of a pirate Captain and her raise into infamy as a pirate in her own rights; apparently, his Ma loved turning shanties into soft tunes that helped her sons sleep.

“She was the Captain’s daughter, sea salt in her blood” Shanks sung softly, repeating the song again as he noticed Luffy starting to calm down and come back to the present, the song had always been one of Luffy's favourites; there was also the tale of a haunted ship on the seas and surprisingly a song about love that always reminded Shanks of his Ma and Da. The one he sang and the haunted ship were his Ma's favourites songs while love song was, surprisingly, his Da's. “Born on the high sea waters, Rose like a rising flood”

Luffy settled and just listened to Shanks’ voice as he finished the song, Beck had noticed that the teenager had calmed down too and came back to himself; but, he continued to trace shapes on the boys back to keep contact with the kid. When Luffy broke down into Shanks' hold, the older man felt his own heart break and nearly crumbled at the sight of their anchor being weighted down by panic and guilt. Moving the three of them to the bed was easy considering Beck was able to pick the boy up while he clung to Shanks, carrying Luffy to the bed where Shanks curled up; sliding in behind the two as he offered Shanks comfort too.

“I missed that song” Luffy whispered, his voice was hoarse and cracked considering how sore his throat was; something that Shanks remedied by reaching over to grab the water glass from beside him and held it in front of the boy.

“You didn’t make ‘Kino sing it for you every night like you swore you would?” Shanks teased lightly as he moved the glass back to the desk and watched in worry as Luffy glanced up at him with red rimmed, puffy, eyes. “Beck, can you grab a cold, wet, cloth?”

Beck made a noise of confirmation as he got up from the bed, grimacing at the pull of his muscles and the pop of his joints that had him groaning like an old man; while Shanks watched Luffy closely after he shook his head in denial of the question.

“Gramps took me from ‘Kino after you left” Luffy informed Shanks and settled back against the man’s chest, listening to the heartbeat under his ear; a heartbeat that faltered at the admittance that Luffy was removed from Makino's care. He flinched and whined softly with a pout as he was nudged back a little so the cold cloth could be placed over his eyes; the pout slipping away with a small sigh of relief the moment he felt the cold soothe the pain of his eyes. “Took me up to Dadan in the mountains, she’s a bandit leader. Dadan was raising Ace already so I met Ace there..."

Luffy's voice trailed off at the mention of Ace, his voice holding a question in it since Shanks and Beck had known to tell Luffy about Ace being in trouble. They also knew who Ace truly was, especially considering they had told him that the marines would tell the world about Ace's parentage.

“Firefly came to find us after he passed the Red Line” Shanks informed Luffy with a small hum as he stroked the raven locks under his hand, watching the young boy with a cloth over his eyes. “Wanted to thank me for saving your life back then, I recognised him straight away but didn’t tell him until just before he left us... It was a shock for him, but I think he was grateful that I didn't bring it up earlier.”

Luffy let the information settle in his mind and stayed quiet as he sunk into the comfort of the two men that he had missed for so long, it had been ten years since he felt the arms of his fathers holding him, ten years since he smelt the scent that had always clung to them; it made him nearly cry. By the time the cloth had started getting uncomfortable on his face, he was ready to keep talking, his emotions settling; so removed the cloth and looked up at Shanks with a small scowl that shocked the elder captain.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were on Roger’s ship?!” He accused the red-head which had Shanks blinking in surprise before he threw his head back and laughed, Beck chuckling lightly by his side which had Luffy pouting some more. As the laughter filled the room, Shanks thought over the stories he would tell Luffy and he realised that he never actually named his crew or his captain, he just called the main ones Da, Ma or Uncle.

“I never realized I didn’t tell you the crew, Anchor, all the stories I told you about my childhood was on the Oro” Shanks chuckled as his laughter calmed and he grinned down at the pouting young captain “I didn’t keep it from you on purpose, I swear it.”

Luffy continued to pout but accepted the excuse from Shanks, he sighed and laid his head back down against Shanks’ chest to hear his heartbeat under him. Whenever Shanks swore about something, it was the truth, it meant that Shanks wasn't lying or telling him any tall tales; they used to swear it on the hat, but now the hat was Luffy's.

“Anchor... Usopp mentioned Papai and Da, do you want us to call them so you can tell them you’re okay?” Beck approached carefully, his voice low and cautious, he bit back the grimace at how much it pained Shanks to hear that their anchor had found two others to call fathers. However, the two of them would accept whoever Luffy called his own, no matter how much it pained them to not be those men.

Luffy frowned in confusion, he looked between the two men with his eyebrows furrowed before something seemed to click in his head and he started snickering. “Don’t need to, they already know” Luffy informed them, trying to bite back a grin, he wanted to see if the two men realized that they were Papai and Da; he'd have to make a bet with Usopp.

Shanks and Beck shared a confused look between them before raising an eyebrow at Luffy, hoping he would answer them properly, it used to be that he would crumble at said looks from the two men. But, Luffy just started snickering more before he burst into laughter as the confusion grew between the two men, the two of them sharing a look with no idea what was going on.

Deciding to have some fun, Luffy climbed up from the bed and darted out of the room, ignoring the cursing from Shanks after Luffy accidentally hit him in the crotch with his elbow; something he did many times when he was a brat. Shanks didn't seem to learn to keep Luffy away from that area. He made it out onto the deck and smiled when he saw Usopp had woken and managed to calm too since he was sat with his Baba by the railing, Yasopp listening to one of Usopp's tales from his childhood.

“You look like you’re causing trouble” Usopp stated bluntly pausing in his story, a little wariness in his tone as his Baba snorted and the two of them watched Luffy closely. Yasopp spotting a look he knew all too well from when the boy was an even smaller brat causing mischief for the crew alongside Monster.

“Got asked if I wanna contact Papai and Da to tell them I’m okay” Luffy informed Usopp with a smile, the dim light in Luffy's eyes made Ussop smile a little; the light was dim but at least it was there. “Told them they already know... They don’t get it”

Usopp seemed to blank at the information before he groaned under his breath about idiots, although, he noticed that his Baba figured out who Luffy was on about and snorted.

“They are such idiots” Yasopp huffed, his words were fond as he beckoned Luffy over and tugged the boy into a tight hug, grinning as Luffy melted into the hug, arms he hadn't felt around him in years; along with the scent of gunpowder and rum. The boy had managed to hug all of the other senior members except for Hongo and Yasopp; he just needed to find Hongo now and he would have completed the set of hugs from the senior crew. “Hongo is in the galley if you want to go see him”

Luffy stiffened and nodded quickly before taking off towards the kitchen, he knew Lucky would probably have some meat he could have too because the chef always had food on hand that he would give him when he was little.

“Hongo!” Luffy greeted brightly as soon as he spotted the doctor in the kitchen with Lucky, he shot forward and collided with the man without a care. Something that made Hongo grumble fondly before hugging the boy back; his senses overwhelmed with antiseptic and herbs that always soothed Luffy. Even though Luffy used to hate doctors, Hongo was the only one that Luffy trusted before Chopper.

The doctor was amused that Luffy was close to his height, yet still seemed to weigh barely anything as he picked the teenager up a couple of inches from the floor, while he was still wrapped around him, so he could take them to the table. His instincts to move were right when he noticed Lucky pulling out a plate that would class as a full meal for any normal man, but a light snack for their anchor.

Luffy grinned brightly at the food but didn’t move from where he was clinging to the doctor of the Red Force, not caring that he would be mirroring a scene from when he was a brat; he may be grown but he would accept all comfort from his family. When he got his crew back, he would need to introduce Chopper to Hongo, his doctor would learn so much from his Tio Hongo.

“How are you feeling Luf?” Hongo questioned lightly as he gave into the pleading eyes, lifting Luffy to sit in his lap as the teenager focused on the food in front of him, but still got to stay close to Hongo. He shot a glare at Lucky when the man snorted at how easy Hongo gave into Luffy’s wide eyes, the whole senior crew were suckers for the boy; not just Hongo.

“Tired” Luffy admitted, swallowing the large amount of food in his mouth before speaking since he knew Hongo would scold him if he didn’t. The man was scarier than Nami when it came to him speaking with his mouth full, he hoped that none of his crew would tell his Tio about the amount of times that Luffy nearly choked because he talked with his mouth full. Hongo frowned at the answer before looking at Luffy closer and noticing the hint of red and puffiness around his eyes as well as the fading tear tracks down his cheeks, he knew the breakdown was inevitable; but it was obviously a big one.

“Do you want me to get you something for the headache?” Whenever one of the men hit a point of breaking because of taking a life, or because of family issues, they always ended up with a killer headache. Yasopp’s boy had already taken some painkillers because of his own break down and it was inevitable for Luffy to have one; especially if what Usopp said was true and he’d witnessed all his crew disappearing before he was sent flying.

Luffy shook his head lightly, relaxing as Hongo’s hands found their way to his hair and began to massage at his head, moving from above his ears, to the bottom of his skull and back. “M’okay, Beck gave me a wet cloth for my eyes... Head will get better after meat.”

Hongo and Lucky both smiled at the familiar comment from their anchor, it used to stress Hongo out when the boy would get injured making mischief, only to bounce right back after eating his fill. Makino used to say it was his genes, that his grandfather was the same; then they were chased by Garp and it made things make sense. Garp confused them all when the man finished chasing them all down, he'd knocked Shanks around a bit before surprising them all as he settled down to talk with the crew that had looked after his grandson for a year. 

The man had scolded the captain thoroughly about the dagger incident, furious that Luffy was scarred because the men didn't watch the boy close enough; yet, he was also understanding since he knew Luffy was trouble. Garp settled on the deck, he was banged up a little too, and then he started wolfing down food that both the marine chef and Lucky provided; which gave him his energy back like with Luffy.

That was Hongo's first time meeting the Vice Admiral, but it clearly wasn't Shanks' as the captain seemed to slip into a younger mindset as he argued with the marine like a brat arguing with their Uncle. It didn't surprise those around the two when Shanks slipped up and called Garp 'Tio' while Garp just huffed and called the captain 'Red' before leaving with one last punch to Shanks' head.

It was a 'Fist of' something, but none of them could make out what he'd said. Hongo immediately moved to Shanks to check on him, but the Captain just groaned lightly in response and waved Hongo off, saying he was used to it when he was a brat; the pain would go away soon.

“How do your doctor and chef cope with you, huh?” Lucky teased the boy, and both of them noticed the light that appeared in Luffy’s eyes at the mention of his crew. Hongo worried that mentioning the crew would be a bad thing, but it seemed that the youngster brightened instead.

“Chopper is the best” Luffy told them both with love very clear in his voice for his little Doctor. “He’s a reindeer that ate a devil fruit! He wants to be able to cure everything on the seas, that’s his dream and he’s so smart that I know he’ll manage it in the future... And Sanji! He’s amazing Lucky! He makes food that’s almost better than ‘Kino’s... He’s one of my best friends, my left. He’s going to find the All Blue one day, I just know he will. He doesn’t fight with his hands, they are his treasures so he uses his feet like his Da”

While Luffy gushed about his doctor and chef, he didn’t notice the door open to admit Shanks, Beck, Yasopp and Usopp. Usopp smiled fondly at the sight of his captain grinning and gushing over their crew; while Shanks and Beck watched with curiosity. Shanks wanted to know all about their anchor’s crew, especially after the bounty’s were released for Enies Lobby.

“Don’t forget that he’s the third of the ‘Monster Trio’” Usopp commented as he continued into the kitchen, waving shyly at the other two men before settling in the chair next to where Luffy was ignoring his food to talk about their nakama. “Sanji and Zoro are constantly arguing, it’s so funny”

Luffy grinned even brighter at the sight of Usopp, his grin having a hint of sheepishness as Usopp nudged the plate of food closer to Luffy so he would eat rather than focus on talking about his treasures.

“How about we take the food out on the deck and you tell us about your crew, Anchor?” Shanks offered, curious about the friends the boy had gathered. His mind also running in circles as to who the boy called his dad’s as well; maybe, the stories about his crew could help him figure it out.

Chapter Text

Settling down with some food and good weather on the deck of the Red Force, Luffy and Usopp had taken turns regaling the Akagami Kaizoku with tales of their nakama, Luffy initiating it as he spoke of how he met the first two of his crew until Usopp picked up.

To start his tales, Luffy spoke about Koby, telling Shanks an the crew all about the pink-haired boy who dreamed about becoming a marine, but was hostage to an East Blue pirate. Shanks was intrigued by the young boy already, it only crew when Luffy mentioned that Koby would pop up later too. He then went on to tell his Pai's nakama about Zoro and how they’d defeated a corrupt Marine Captain which resulted in Koby joining the marines and then becoming a cadet under his Gramps. Shanks was originally worried about Zoro when he first heard about his son's crew from Mihawk, since he'd already heard about the Pirate Hunter of the East Blue; but the boy had already proved his loyalty to Luffy.

The second of the crew was Nami. These were stories that Usopp listened to curiously since he didn't truly know much about the trio before Syrup, he knew the basics, but Luffy was going deeper into their adventures as a duo and then a trio; tales that he didn't really hear about after thy set off on their own adventures.

Shanks cackled in amusement at the mention of Orange Town, he had to explain to Luffy that Buggy was Blue, that the man wasn’t really the villain he seemed like; he was just an over eccentric pirate that knew the dangers of the Grand Line and New World. The red-head already knew that Luffy had fought against Buggy, the bounty poster had informed him of that months ago, but he didn't know how annoyed he was supposed to be with his brother until now. Luffy was slightly cautious about the revealed link, but he noted that Buggy could have easily used haki or seastone on them at Orange Town but he gave them a decent fight which managed to make them work well together. Although, Shanks wasn’t impressed with his brother damaging the hat, even if Bug didn’t realize who Luffy was to him at the time.

That's probably changed since the first meeting, his brother definitely knew who Luffy was to Shanks these days.

Usopp was next up to take over with telling the tale when they reached Syrup, he kept his exaggerations to a minimum since he wanted his Baba to be proud of him for his actual deeds rather than his lies; although, he did tell the truth about how he was known for his tall tales. Telling him about Kaya made him blush lightly but Yasopp was excited to know his son had a girl back home, especially one he knew since Yasopp was once acquaintances with Merry and Kaya’s parents.

When the Baratie was mentioned, Lucky seemed to straighten from where he was at, gnawing on his ham as he always was; also offering Luffy another leg for another snack. The cook seemed to get more and more excited, distracting Luffy and Usopp, until he admitted that he knew Red-Leg Zeff; the man had been his mentor when he was younger. The Akagamai Kaizoku had also gone to visit once or twice before they left the East Blue and had met Sanji when he was still a shy little stick. Something that Luffy was eager to share with Sanji when they met up again, now he had two links to Shanks' crew.

The two boys glossed over the fight between Mihawk and Zoro, hesitating to do so until they admitted to Shanks that it wasn't really their story to tell, something that Shanks waved off and mentioned that Mihawk had already told them.

That got Luffy pausing and staring at Shanks intently before he suddenly brightened and cackled, his joy causing the whole crew to be confused, but they still seemed to bright at the sound of the laughter. Whatever the boy found funny was lost on Shanks and Beck, but Yasopp and Usopp shook their heads fondly.

It was just after the fight with Don Kreig, at the Baratie, that Shanks decided to call it a night as the sun was beginning to dim and the boys were beginning to lose steam too. They had already eaten since Lucky had slipped away between the point where they met Klahadore and got the Merry so he could whip up some food for the ships inhabitants that wasn't just snacks for Lu. Thankfully, Luffy's usual volume meant that Lucky could still hear he important parts of the tales.

Luffy had hesitated when it was announced that it was time for bed, not knowing if he wanted to go with Usopp, or stay with Shanks and Beck since they had been a safety for him ever since he was a brat. Usopp gave a weak smile of understanding at the hesitation from his Captain before he pushed the Straw Hat down over the other teens eyes to get the other boy to try and smile.

“Is it okay if I stay with my Baba, Captain?” Usopp questioned carefully, reassurance clear in his tone so that Luffy knew that Usopp understood what the other needed; especially since Usopp needed it too. Usopp instinctively needed reassurance that he was somewhere safe after the danger and drop he'd faced in the past week, and without the rest of the crew around him, his Baba was a safety. Luffy needed the same as Usopp did, and while Luffy was a safety for Usopp, Usopp didn't think that he was strong enough to be a safety for Luffy and didn't want his Captain to have nightmares.

Plus, after the break downs that both boys had had earlier in the day, being with their fathers was needed, it would be hard for Usopp to be separated from his Captain; but his Captain needed his sleep too.

Luffy hesitated and made a small noise of confusion and worry, he eyed Usopp closely and noticed that his friend was still holding himself stiffly, he was scared that he wasn't enough. Usopp was one of his nakama, the one who was closest to Luffy in age and always humoured him with games and stories; but, they rarely slept in a room together without anyone else around. Even when they fell asleep on the deck, Zoro was usually around them.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to protect us...” Luffy whispered to the other boy, something had everyone stiffening in shock and confusion as Usopp’s face fell; instantly realizing Luffy's thought process.

The sniper immediately pulled his captain into a tight hug, holding him close as he tried not to cry again, guilt heavy in his heart at being the cause of their sunshine's hurt. He had never heard Luffy so scared, even when they had fought because of Merry, Luffy was upset but still hopeful to have Usopp return.

“None of this is your fault Lu” Usopp growled out to Luffy as he clung to him tightly, determination filling him as Luffy automatically gripped him to hold him close. Feeling the wet patches grow against his shirt made him feel even guiltier but also even more determined to get some sense into his friends head, “I asked because I thought you might want to stay with your Papai and Da, and, I didn’t think you would feel safe with just me around rather than all of us...” Usopp promised him, ignoring how both Shanks and Beck stiffened at learning exactly who Luffy meant when he'd mentioned his dads. The fun was over with how much Luffy was blaming himself, the crew may have made bad calls but Luffy wasn't at fault with what's happened. “I don’t blame you Captain, no one on our crew will blame you for us being separated; we blame the navy and warlords. You did what you needed to do to save Cami and protect Hatchan, those bastards deserved more than just a punch to the face; we were all unable to do anything...

“Zoro was still injured Loof, do you blame him for not being able to help because he wouldn’t let himself heal? Sanji wasn’t fast enough to escape either? Do you blame him? Or Robin? Chopper wasn’t able to do anything even after going monster mode again, is that his fault? What about me? I couldn’t even protect Zoro...”

Luffy immediately began shaking his head against Usopp's chest, denying any blame on his crew for not being able to help; his tears still falling even as they soaked into the fabric that hid his face. He knew that Usopp didn’t blame the others either, his sniper may be a coward at times but he was a good judge of character most of the time.

“I’m the Captain...”

“Anchor” Shanks started soothingly as he glanced to Usopp for permission to take his son into his arm, a permission that was given after some hesitation from the elder teen. Shanks immediately pulled Luffy close and accepted the clingy monkey, grimacing at the tears that began to soak his shirt instead; he could tell his husband and the rest of the commanders were itching to soothe their monkey as well. “Every Captain makes decisions that can cause some damage, I did the same when I jumped into the sea to save you; I didn’t think of asking the crew for help and I paid the price. A price I would pay over and over again if it means your safety.

“But, that’s the burden of Captain, it doesn’t mean that the crew blames you though. Beck doesn’t blame me for the month’s after the accident where he had to help me with every little thing. Hongo doesn’t blame me for the amount of trouble the injury caused us all; just like the others don’t blame me for the injuries that they gained during raids from other ships because I wasn’t completely healthy to help.”

“You aren’t at fault here sunshine” Beck continued from his husband as he knelt down next to Luffy so he could make eye contact with the boy when the teen turned his head to look at his Da. “You made it to Sabaody without knowing anything about Haki, you destroyed Enies Lobby for Seas sake... You are all so strong... But there will always be people out there that are stronger. The best thing to do is to take time to get stronger, make sure something like this can’t happen again”

“Lime? What’s the weather set to be like?” Yasopp questioned suddenly, which caught everyone off guard as they stared at Yasopp in confusion, Luffy accepting the distraction as an opportunity to quickly scrub his eyes with his vest.

“clear skies” Limejuice answered automatically after a glance at the skies, although the confusion was evident in his tone as he turned his attention to their sniper.

Yasopp hummed lightly with a small nod before he turned his attention to his Captain, his hand moving to his sons shoulder to pull him close and offer him comfort too. “How about we do a deck sleep-out, Chief?” 

The rest of the crew got excited at the suggestion, they hadn't had the chance to do a deck sleep-out in so long, Usopp curled against his Baba's chest, guilt heavy in his heart at inadvertently upsetting his captain. He didn't want to upset Luffy when he asked his best friend if he could stay with his Baba for the night, he was worried that Luffy wanted to stay with Shanks and Beck but was guilty about it.

Yasopp let out a silent sigh as he wrapped a second arm around Usopp and pulled him tight against his chest, pressing a light kiss to the youngsters crown and smiling lightly at the grateful look that Usopp aimed his way.

“That sounds like a good idea” Shanks agreed with a grateful look towards his sniper and left hand, he also sent a reassuring look to Usopp so that the boy didn't think that he was to blame for Luffy's upset.

“I’d best go get the Captain’s mattress then, he gets all crabby if he doesn’t get his comfort” Beck joked to Luffy with a wink as he got up, keeping it to himself that Shanks needed his mattress so that he could have a buffer between the wooden floor and the stump of his arm. The captain still struggled with his injury even after so long, the scar tissue was something that Hongo had been struggling with for years even with his magnitude of experience.

The only one that Hongo thought could help his Captain, was the upcoming supernova who seemed to be the holder of the Ope-Ope No Mi fruit; although, Hongo also theorized that the young surgeon could possibly give his captain an arm back too. He would need to track down the lad sooner or later, especially considering his link to the boy

Shanks gave Beck a mock wounded look at the teasing, but grinned as Luffy curled back against the elder Captain with a weak giggle; Usopp moved forward from his father hold and took Luffy’s hand in his to squeeze it gently in reassurance.

“We don’t blame you Captain, I’m sure everyone agrees with me, none of us blame you for this” Usopp repeated firmly as he squeezed the boys hand, making a point to call Luffy by his title to reassure him that he was still their captain; he glanced at his father who had moved to set up a hammock for the two of them while Beck carried the mattress out to place in the middle of the deck for the rest of the crew to settle around

Shanks led the younger captain to the mattress and settled down on it while Luffy curled up on his chest with Beck beside him like they used to do back on Foosha. For once, none of the Red Force crew were using alcohol as a crutch to settle themselves for the evening; they were all feeling the left over joy from the excitement the boys showed as they told their tale.

“Papai... Can you sing?” Luffy requested quietly as he gripped onto Shanks’ shirt, his gaze moving up to plead with him with wide eyes.

Shanks melted the moment he saw the wide puppy eyes from the boy, as well as heard the paternal name from him for the first time. He sent a small glare over at Beck when his husband snorted at how quick he melted, although, the older man knew that he would do the same when Luffy sent the look his way.

“I’ll swim and sail on savage seas, with never a fear of drowning, and gladly ride the waves of life. If you would marry me” Shanks started softly, his voice low but melodic as he carefully took the straw-hat from Luffy’s head, placing it next to them; his hand moving through Luffy’s hair softly to offer comfort. “no scorching sun or freezing cold, will stop me on my journey. If you will promise me your heart, and love me for eternity”

Beck watched his husband with a soft look on his face, this was his husband's family's song, well, it was actually the way that Shanks had proposed to Beck when he asked him to marry him. Not only was it their proposal song, but Roger had proposed to Rogue in the same way; one day, Beck was sure that Luffy would use it to propose if he ever found someone he loved with his entire heart.

The rest of the crew settled down around them on the deck, some of them gathered hammocks like Yasopp had; while others were comfortable enough to lay on the deck without much under them, even Hongo decided to join the sleep-out. Many of the crew stared at Shanks in surprise when they heard the soft tune slipping past his lips, a tune that didn't make their ears bleed like he usually did while drunk. But the Captain’s voice easily soothed a number of his men, and the two teenagers, to sleep by the time his second repeat ended; especially since it was a small song.

Shanks continued to hum the tune when he noticed his son fast asleep, resting his head against his husband as Beck shifted closer to offer him a better pillow and some more heat even though the temperature was decent but not too warm.

“we’re going to need to help him with his guilt” Beck sighed and frowned at the small nod of agreement from his husband, he had hoped that he was overthinking things but obviously not. “I’ll try and contact Perona in the morning, to see if Zoro is awake, Rocks is looking out for the others”

“They’d be somewhere that would make them stronger” Shanks whispered as he tapered off with his tune, his fingers still carding through the teenagers hair as Luffy clung to him and nuzzled against his chest. From what he made out so far, Luffy and Usopp were sent to be with their dad’s, Shanks and Yasopp could easily work with the duo to make them stronger; plus, if his assumptions were correct, his Uncle would appear at some point to offer training to Lu. Zoro was sent to Mihawk, the man who he wanted to best, but also the man who would be intrigued by the idea of training said swordsman to protect one of Shanks’ treasures. “Lu and Usopp are here... Zoro with Hawky...we need to think along those lines.”

“If that’s the case, their doctor should have either been sent to Marco, or Doctor Kureha” Beck pointed out quietly, he knew that Hongo was an incredible doctor, but if they wanted to keep a low profile then a third straw hat with them wasn’t a good idea. “Same with Sanji being sent to Zeff. But Rocks checked with Kureha and Zeff while we were calming Lu down... Kureha because of her knowledge in medicine and Zeff since the blonde straw hat chef shows similar fighting styles. They're pretty worried about their kids, turns out Chopper was Hiriluk’s son on Drum before he died, Chopper was then fostered by Kureha. Zeff has many threats our way about finding his kid and treating him right, also worried about Lu too."

“The Luffy effect” Shanks stated fondly, his eyes gazing up at the constellations above him, he never thought he would have a chance to spend time with his kid like this again. And yet, Kuma had given the opportunity but also the task of healing the guilty conscious of the young Captain.

He was torn between happiness and worry.

“Sleep Minha Vida” Beck ordered, pressing his lips to Shanks’ temple lightly; using his husbands language from his father’s side to show his affection. “Our son is here, safe, we’ll get firefly and we’ll help them all get stronger.”

“Even if I have to go against Whitebeard, I’m taking Firefly for a time, even if it’s just for Luffy” Shanks mumbled to his husband, scowling lightly at the dirty trick the man was pulling by running his fingers through Shanks’ hair, a move that always sent him drifting to sleep.

Beck just smirked in response to the scowl he gained from the man he loved, and watched as his little family slept, keeping his attention on the surroundings so the others of their crew could sleep peacefully. Beck never minded taking first watch for the crew to sleep, especially since he wanted to protect his son and husband with his everything.

-

“Perona?” Beck spoke up carefully when he heard a shout in the background of Mihawk’s home den den, he was worried about the girl considering the monkey things that Mihawk had inhabiting the island.

“I’m here... He’s awake but panicking, I can’t get him to calm down” Perona informed Beck, panic in her own voice and it seemed small as if she was afraid to draw attention to her. “I could calm him, but it would mean using my devil fruit on him and I don’t know if that would be a good idea with his injuries”

The next morning had Luffy waking him and acting like his usual hyper self, something that worried the fathers and doctor on the Red Force; but no one spoke up because they didn't want the boy to become full of guilt once more. Beck had slipped away from the crew as Usopp and Luffy continued on with their tales, he was already close to a potential heart attack with just Luffy fighting Arlong, he needed a break before Shanks could catch him up to speed later on. So, he decided to relieve Rockstar of his shift and took over waiting for any information; he could still hear Luffy’s voice as he cackled and eagerly shared his travels so Beck wasn’t really missing much.

It was after he heard the tale of Whiskey Peak that Beck decided to call Perona and find out how she and Zoro were faring. They had been surprised when Luffy said that he had attacked Zoro for attacking the citizens of Whiskey Peak, until the boy admitted to learning that the island was full of bounty hunters wanting to either kill or turn them in.

“Take the den den to him darling” Beck soothed carefully, remembering how to approach a worried woman without making them panic more. Makino was strong and scary, but even she had moments where Shanks or Beck had to step in and calm her and the young woman on the end of the den den was just a teenager like his son. “Tell him it’s about his hat”

Listening closely to the den den, he still heard snippets about Little Garden and he wondered how Brogy and Dorry were doing. The crew hadn't been around Little Garden for a few years, and the last time they saw the warring giants, they were still fighting; it amused Beck that his son had met their old friends. He wasn't surprised that Usopp admired the duo, Yasopp was the same.

“What?!” An irritated, male, voice snapped Beck out of his thoughts, his eyes focusing back on the den den that had gained features that looked like the bounty poster of their anchors first mate.

The sharpshooter had to bite his tongue from snapping back for the boy to watch his tone if he wanted information, but he knew that Luffy would be upset with him if he upset his sons first mate.

“He’s safe” Beck informed the boy simply and grimaced at the sharp breath over the other end of the line, he would have reacted the same way if it was Shanks in danger. “Arrived to his Papai and I alongside his cousin”

Beck knew it was a reach for Zoro to figure out who he meant by calling Usopp Luffy’s cousin, but considering Luffy had started calling the senior members of the crew ‘uncle’, it was easier than code names. Plus, from what Beck gathered, Zoro was in the know with Usopp’s father being on the same crew as Luffy’s father figures.

“His cousin is safe too, the both of them are a bit banged up, they’ve had a couple of tears; but they are okay. They need to know if you’re okay too kid” Beck sighed as he watched the den den, he would be terrified if his Captain was missing from him, especially if he'd witnessed his captain and crew being forcefully removed from him in fear and pain. “The castle you’ve landed at... It belongs to a very high calibre swordsman who’s away on business right now. Those who believe in justice are trying to put out a fire that is very important to my son.”

The next intake of breath reassured Beck that the boy wasn’t as slow as the marines information stated. Zoro understood what Beck was telling him, even if it was a bit all over the place. “My son is coming with us to keep the fire burning, but he knows you’re not letting yourself relax enough to heal, we’ll be at the island once we’ve kept the fire alight, can you rest up and wait for us?”

“The others?” Zoro asked in a small voice after some moments of silence. A small voice that reminded Beck that the swordsman wasn't long into adulthood himself, the boy was still in his teens and had been alone for most of his life until Luffy gave him a home with the rest of his crew.

“No information yet, but we’ve got information networks every where. We’ll find them, we won't let you all remain alone” Beck promised, his voice like stone as he meant the promise he spoke; it wasn’t just Luffy missing the crew, they were a family and each of them would be worried about the others.

“Ghost girl is trying to keep me resting...” Zoro admitted, is voice was quiet and careful, feeling a little guilty at how he was giving the young woman so much trouble. However, he also remembered how her hosts made him feel, and how she was against them on Thriller Bark; except, since he'd been awake, she'd been more scared than anything. Scared of being alone like his Captain was. “I’ll listen to her, for now... Tell them I’m okay? And that I’m sorry I couldn’t protect them... I’ll get stronger...”

“My son said the exact same thing” There was no doubt that Zoro was the first mate with his first words to his Captain being a reassurance and then an immediate apology, Beck would have said the exact same thing to Shanks if they were in the same position as the youngsters. In fact, Beck apologized constantly to Shanks for months after the sea king incident, he’d even offered to step down as first mate; which resulted in his husband knocking him on his ass and knocking some sense into him before showing him how much he forgave him for everything.

It became a very good weekend.

“We’re nearly five days away from the pests nest” Beck told Zoro, his voice low as he hoped that no one would think him an idiot for his code words. “It shouldn’t take long for us to leave, we’ll be about a day or two away from you, if the weather permits. Take that time to rest and recover kid, you need it considering how clingy the monkey is”

Zoro snorted lightly at him calling Luffy a monkey, he gave a short nod before slipping away from the den den which shifted to show Perona on the other side once again, the nervous look on her face was obvious.

“Be safe darling, we should be there in just over a week. You can handle everything until then?” Beck questioned gently, not wanting to jar the young woman. He hadn’t even met the girl and he was already feeling protective of her, he blamed Luffy being around, the boy always made him a softie.

Although, if Perona was sent to Mihawk by Kuma, there was a likelihood that the warlord thought that Mihawk was the best person to send the girl too. It also meant that there was a chance that Beck, Shanks and Mihawk were about to be come fathers to two boys and a young woman; a young woman that Beck was already becoming protective of.

“Thanks to you” Perona confirmed with a weak smile before she gave a small goodbye and hung up.

The Akagami first mate sighed lightly as he stood up and stretched, he moved to the window of the communications room and watched fondly as Luffy and Usopp continued telling their tales. It seemed that they were acting out their take down of Sir Crocodile in Alabasta. While the marines kept that quiet, the pirates who knew how the marines worked could all tell that the Straw Hats were the true heroes of Alabasta and Crocodile was the villain considering the raise in bounties; as well as Crocodile being imprisoned soon after.

Another den den call pulled his attention back to the table and Beck answered curiously, not many people knew their ships den den number unless they'd given it out. Although, their number was floating a bit more considering their need for information about the straw hats.

“Red Force, Beckman speaking” Beck answered gruffly since it was the ships snail and not one that needed to be encrypted like Mihawk’s or Makino's. If the marines did manage to get a hold of their den den number, there wouldn’t be much that they could make out with it.

“Got information on two of the brats” Rayleigh’s voice came over the snail calmly, Beck frowned when he heard arguing in the background, sure that he could hear a couple of familiar voices from the New World. “Zeff’s lad landed on Momoiro. The second oldest is in Karakuri”

“Could you get numbers for us?” Beck questioned lightly, wanting to know if his son would be able to contact his cook and shipwright any time soon. He knew having Zoro talk to Luffy would usually be a good thing, but not before the elder boy managed to heal, and not while they were worried about getting to Ace.

“I can try. Seagulls would probably be too distracted to attack the coos for a while.” Rayleigh hummed lightly before hanging up without saying anything else, something that made Beckman roll his eyes before leaving the comms room; this time keeping the snail with him so he didn’t have to worry about missing a call while still spending time with his family.

Beck smiled lightly when he noticed Rockstar sat in Hongo’s lap, leaning back against his husband as he napped in the sunlight while Hongo listened to Luffy and Usopp. When Rockstar joined the crew of the Red Force, it was always amusing to see the youngster interact with the middle aged doctor, younger would get flustered and act like a teenager with a crush. It became even more amusing when Hongo took the first step and yanked the boy into a desperate kiss when Rocks was attacked during a marine raid.

Since then, the duo had become unstoppable and inseparable like Shanks and Beck, something that caused many of the senior commanders to lament about the unfairness of the world that they now had to deal with two couples.

“Lu” Beck interrupted when they reached a lull after Luffy and Usopp told them about their friend, Bon Clay, giving himself up to help the Straw Hats get away from the marines. “Zoro is awake, and okay, Perona is making him rest until we can get to him after saving Ace. Ray has also found Sanji and Franky... But, the two of them will be out of our reach for a couple of weeks. We’re going to try and get a den den to them, but for now, just know they are safe on islands that aren’t a danger to them”

Beck knew that Sanji would probably be struggling on the island he ended up on, unless he was in the same situation as it’s inhabitants; but, given the personality they’d heard about, the boy would spend his time running. Which would help his stamina and keep his legs strong. Franky would be able to work on his cybernetics considering Vegapunk used to reside on Karakuri; Beck remembered the boy from Water-7 before the railroad was finished.

Luffy hesitated to continue his tales, emotions welling up with the information about three of his crew; having information about three is better than having no information at all. He glanced over at Usopp who grinned shakily, the two of them taking a deep breath before nodding and turning their attention back to Shanks and the rest of the crew so they could continue with their stories. Telling them about finding the sunken ship and learning about Skypia. However, Luffy did shift closer to Beck and curled into the mans lap like Rockstar was curled into Hongo, although, Beck had to sometimes dodge out of the way of Luffy's hands as he gestured.

Hearing that Nico Robin had joined the Straw Hats, after Luffy saved her life, made Shanks relax a little. Relief washing over him, he remembered when Robin’s bounty had been released to the world; it wasn’t long after his father had been lost to him. She was only nine years younger than him and yet was being hunted because of her ability to read a language that should be extinct. Shanks wasn’t stupid, he knew the truth of Ohara; he knew that Robin was chased for her ability to ready the Ponoglyphs, but, he was never able to locate her to help her since he was still running himself.

The Akagami Captain was excited to learn what Luffy thought about Skypia. He had visited there once when he was a cabin boy, with his father, so knew that the legends were truth. Hearing about the take over from Gan Fall by a devil fruit using charlatan made Shanks furious, but he kept his anger pushed down as he listened intently to Luffy’s fight. Yasopp had grabbed Usopp the moment he heard that his son was taken out of the fight by electricity, and almost asked Hongo to check him over even if it was months ago.

“And you still hadn’t gained your next two crew members?” Shanks couldn’t help but be impressed by the strength of his sons crew. Anyone else would probably call the two teens, liars, but Shanks knew that Luffy couldn’t lie for shit so believed him completely. The fact that the men under the ‘God’ used haki and yet were still beaten by Luffy and the others baffled them, but Shanks kept his mouth shut about them facing Haki already. He needed his son and nephew to be going into their teachings with fresh eyes, not with the hype of kids who had already beaten it early into their pirate career.

The whole breakout of a naval base after hiding as marines was very Luffy. He also knew that the base in question was a strong one and had been rumoured to be struggling until the last few months where they gained further funding due to their actions with pirates.

“Uh huh... Franky is next. We found him when we got to Water-7” Luffy confirmed with a grin before his excitement faltered and he glanced over at Usopp who was looking down at his lap guiltily. “Franky was mean to start with, hurt one of my treasures but he also helped me get one of my treasures back. He’s made up for it all...”

“Water-7 is where we found out that Merry wasn’t going to be able to make the rest of the journey with us” Usopp mentioned quietly, something that worried Yasopp and had the sniper wrapping his arms around his son tightly. Especially since Merry was a reminder of home, she was a gift from Usopp’s girl; a part of their nakama.

Beck frowned lightly before prompting the boys to continue with their journey, wanting to know exactly what caused the Straw Hats to destroy Enies Lobby without hesitation.

Learning that Luffy did it for Robin made Shanks feel so proud of his son. Hearing the fight between Usopp and Luffy had them all shocked since the two of them seemed so in tune with each other, they were thick as thieves and it was like Luffy refused to be out of eyeline of Usopp and vice versa; and yet, Usopp had basically mutinied.

The Akagami Kaizoku kept their minds open as Luffy and Usopp continued their tale, it was easy to note that Usopp was shocked when Luffy called him Sniper King, which also made Yasopp excited because he remembered seeing the snipers bounty poster being released alongside Luffy’s. Now he understood why his son had hidden his identity during that particular adventure.

-

It took until the middle of the fifth day of Luffy and Usopp being on the Red Force, for the boys to finish their tales; since they were interrupted by arrivals at islands, islands that both boys refused to even set their eyes on without their crews.

Learning about Perona through Usopp and Luffy's eyes was intriguing for Beck, although, he also noticed how upset Yasopp was getting with learning about how low Usopp felt about himself. There was a likelihood that Hongo would be called in on that aspect so that he could talk through the dark thoughts and help Usopp see himself in a better light.

When they finished telling their tale of Sabaody, with Kuma sending them all flying on by one, Shanks had waited a beat before lifting his son over his shoulder, ignoring the surprised yelp that Luffy released while Yasopp did the same with Usopp; both men headed to their cabin/dorm while Beck chuckled in amusement and stayed where he was.

“Chief finally snapped I see” Hongo hummed lightly as he watched as the door closed behind the two men, his hand wrapped around a glass of whiskey that he had been craving since he heard the story of the first fight that his nephews had faced. Most of the crew had abstained from alcohol since Luffy and Usopp appeared, but now they were all craving the buzz to reduce their worry for the kids they claimed as their own.

“Luffy is just as reckless and dedicated to his treasures as he always was” Beck responded as he put his last cigarette out and took a drag of his rum while he turned his attention to their doctor. The man looking as wrung out as Beck felt, something he wasn't surprised about considering how dedicated the man was about Luffy's health when the boy was little.

The Red Force was restocked the best they could be, with Luffy around, until they got to Sabaody and they were only a few hours away from Fishman Island. They wouldn’t be making a proper stop at said island since they needed to get to Marineford as soon as possible, plus, Luffy refused to leave the cabin whenever they visited an island because he wanted to see them with his crew for the first time; not with his father’s. “Shanks has been getting stressed learning about the details of why his bounty is as high as it is... Same as Yas, I think the boys need to be reminded that they have brains that they can use before making idiotic decisions that puts just themselves at risk. I think Yas is scolding Usopp because of the mutiny too”

“Because it’s lingering on the boys mind?”

Hongo knew how Yasopp’s mind worked and if his son took after him in other ways too, then the boy was still holding guilt over the fight with Luffy even if Luffy promised he didn’t hold it against him. Beck nodded lightly in confirmation, Yasopp scolding the boy would help Usopp release that last bit of guilt and would hopefully help the boy out with focusing on his future rather than his past. None of the crew were entirely surprised that Usopp was so protective over the Going Merry, especially if Luffy was as blunt as he usually was when mentioning finding a new ship to transport them through the rest of the Grand Line; none of them held the mutiny against the boy, he was still so young; he felt his emotions a lot harder than others.

“Good” Hongo hummed lightly as he took a drag of his whiskey, humming contently at the burn it left lingering on his throat while his gaze moved to the horizon. He was very glad that he had his own stash of South Blue Whiskey considering the anxiety attacks that his nephew was giving him on a constant basis; he was already anxious about the bounty when they first saw it, and now learning about it all was making it worse.

Hearing Luffy call the senior crew ‘Tio’ from the second day with them, and onwards, had made them all falter whenever Luffy wanted something from them. They had missed their ball of sunshine something chronic, over the years, and often sulked around Shanks for keeping them away from the kid when he was growing up. A decision they were all pretty sure Shanks lamented on considering the upbringing that Luffy was faced with for the ten years after they left.

They were all grateful that Makino had been able to visit the boy in the forest he'd been taken to, but they also knew that it wasn’t the same for her either; Luffy was her baby brother. However, Hongo had a feeling that they would be returning to Dawn sometime in the future so they could meet Ace and Luffy’s Mamae. Makino easily being labelled as sister to the youngsters, and Shanks wanted to see the young barmaid that had become a sister to him too.

“You should call Makino while we’re making the pitstop at Fishman” Hongo suggested to Beck, none of them had actually contacted the barmaid since Luffy arrived. Something that had Beck grimacing since the woman can be terrifying when they've gotten on her bad side.

They’d had Luffy safe with them for six days and none of the crew had contacted Makino about it, she was seriously going to murder them for waiting for so long. According to Luffy, he’d been flying for days as it was so by the time they reached Marineford, with the delay at Fishman Island, they should get there a few moments after Whitebeard.

“I’ll contact her” Beck grumbled lightly, already resigned to being delegated to den den duty to update the young woman about Luffy. He grumbled as he pushed himself up from the chair “Best I warn her now so she can get the bandit there too. Lu will need his Mamae and sister”

“Good idea” Hongo conceded with a small smirk of amusement, knowing that Beck hated speaking over the den dens. The first mate had been attached to them lately to try and get information about the rest of Luffy’s crew.

Rockstar had managed to locate Nami in Weatheria, but because it was a sky island they were having trouble getting a connection to her. Another of Rocks contacts had heard about a talking skeleton on Namakura Island, something that made Luffy relax when he learned that Brook was safe even if he was close to the Florian Triangle again. The only ones missing were Chopper and Robin which was worrying Luffy and Usopp, Luffy because he was scared that Robin was alone, and Usopp because Chopper was so young.

However, there were rumours among Rockstar’s network that there had been whispers with the revolutionary army spotting Nico Robin at a spot where they were already positioned. It was a rumour that Rocks was keeping his ears locked on, if the revolutionary army were about to break down an operation and Robin was there, it meant Kuma had a plan in mind for the young woman.

Maybe the army could help her get stronger, especially with their abilities to remain undetected, something that she was very good at doing considering she had managed to remain out of the marines grasp for so many years. Rocks had also heard other whisperings surrounding Nico Olivia and the Revolutionary Dragon before Ohara had fallen, but he couldn’t find any solid information about that.

He wondered if Kuma knew the truth which is why he sent Robin to an area that was about to be saved by his group.

Everything, including the rumours, had been relayed to Hongo and Beck; keeping Shanks out of the equation due to the man focusing more on Luffy and Usopp than anything else. It also helped that during the moments where Luffy’s energy overloaded and he was too hyper to continue his tale, Shanks took him aside and began to train him with Haki basics.

Beck sent Hongo a small glare as he moved back to the Comms room, he gave a small nod to Rockstar who was also working on finding out what allies were with Whitebeard and what plans the marines may have on their side. The man was lucky to have Luffy around when the young captain told the man about the Pacifista’s; the man delving into research and sending what he’d found through to Haruta so the other researcher could work around it and make battle plans.

Gathering their newest den den, one they'd picked up two islands ago because of the amount of calls needed, he dialled Makino’s number from memory; smiling lightly at the near immediate answer from the young woman.

“Beckman!” Makino greeted brightly, but Beck could easily note the worry in his tone as well, she was exactly like Luffy and Shanks with hiding emotions from everyone around them.

“He’s safe Maki” Beck immediately reassured the young barmaid, noting the snail slump lightly in relief, he was grateful that they had a baby snail on Makino's end to encrypt the data and protect her. “He’s with us, he and Yas’s kid appeared with us a couple of days ago. We’ll be passing through an island to help out with our firefly, our boy prefers to remain hidden near islands; think you could get his Mamae on the snail in a couple of hours?”

The den den was silent for a moment before it breathed a sigh of relief, tears of relief and joy in the eyes of the snail that emulated her on the other side. 

“I won’t need to, she’s been heading down every evening looking for information because of the merchants and newscoo's that I get here. Are you sure he’s okay?” Makino questioned softly, worry in her tone for her cousin/baby brother. She had followed the newscoos closely, reading between all the lines, and knew that the Straw Hats had been separated and knowing Luffy, he was probably last to see it. Luffy seemed to also be the cause of the separation if his rising bounty was anything to go by.

“Feeling guilty but healing” Beck promised her lightly, knowing that Makino was well aware of how Luffy was and how hard he took things. He also knew that Makino was able to find information with the contacts she had through her bar and suppliers. “Physically fine, he’s had his emotional breakdown, both boys have, but we’re helping him through it and have also found all but two of his nakama. We just need to get den den numbers from them so he can talk to them. Yas’s mini has gone through the same too... But we’re getting there.”

“I’m surprised he’s not attached to you right now” Makino admitted with amusement in her tone, a smile very obvious on her face.

Beck smirked lightly at the reminder that his son was getting a lecture from his husband. It was always amusing when people thought that Shanks was a playful idiot that was no danger to them, but he was the second to snap and scold their younger crew members when they risked their lives; Hongo was the first one. “The boys just finished the in depth explanation of their journey so far, they are currently getting thorough scoldings from their Pai’s on being so reckless with their lives”

Makino giggled softly over the den den, knowing just how stern Shanks could be since he’d sat Luffy down at the bar after the dagger incident and lectured the boy for close to an hour, which had many of the patrons and Makino watching in shocked awe. It was also one of the things that caused Shanks to become respected in Foosha, he proved that he cared for Luffy and didn’t hesitate to tell the seven year old off for idiocy.

“Poor sunshine” Makino sighed fondly with a shake of her head “Thank you Beck, I’ll keep the den den on me and wait for your call later... You’ll definitely be helping with our firefly?”

“You know we will” Beck pointed out to her firmly, smiling to himself as Makino gave a small hum before hanging up.

Chapter Text

When Yasopp and Shanks emerged an hour later, they were trailed by two sheepish looking teenagers that were still blushing red, something that amused the senior crew greatly; and made a number of the younger crew members grimace in sympathy. Shanks may have been viewed as a laid back pirate Captain, but when one of the younger members of the crew did something stupid, the man could scold like there was no tomorrow; even Beck couldn't scold as scarily as Shanks.

Considering the scolding that still rang in the boy's ears, Luffy had decided to stick close to Beck for the rest of the afternoon, pulling Usopp with him which the sniper had no arguments about as he tried to avoid his Baba; something that had Yasopp pouting but sent the rest of the crew off into snickers whenever they noticed the pout.

Even with the company, Beck went about his usual duties, making sure the paperwork for everything was done since they always needed to make sure their territories were safe and well stocked, as well as the Force. Luffy looked intrigued and was soon settled with his Da to watch over the running of the allied territories.

The Straw hat Captain admitted to his Da that they didn’t really have any paperwork with their own allies. Alabasta didn’t need it since they were hidden allies while Cobra was still under the ‘protection’ of the World Government, but the rubber boy did admit that they’d had one or two coos since leaving the island to ask opinions about decisions. Something that Nami answered because she had the best knowledge, along with input from Robin. Who had been forgiven by the royal family after Nami had told them about Enies Lobby and what they’d learned about her since she joined, with her permission of course.

The Straw Hats hadn’t really claimed any islands since then, never thinking about offering their flag to the places they’d stopped. They hadn’t even left a flag with Alabasta either since they hadn’t had time to make one for their unofficial member when they left her on the sandy island.

Although, Beckman amusedly pointed out to the boy that he had many territories that were technically under his protection. The Baratie belonged to his chef’s Da and was protected from Don Kreig by Luffy, Cocoyashi was saved from Arlong by the Straw Hats and was the home of Nami, same as Syrup with Usopp and Klahadore. 

Orange Town was Buggy’s, even if the village acted like they wanted the clown gone. Luffy had been surprised when he learned that Buggy stuck around East to make sure pirates going to the Grand Line were strong enough, although, he did wonder why the clown pulled the stunt he did at Loguetown. Something Shanks wondered too but couldn’t ask since Buggy was doing his own rescue mission in Impel Down, apparently the clown had a past with Crocodile and wanted him to be out of shackles even if he had to keep the former Warlord close to keep him from hunting Luffy down.

In Paradise, Luffy has become a hidden ally to Alabasta, Drum Island, Skypia and probably Water-7. Drum was Choppers home and he’d helped remove Wapol from the equation, while Water-7 was because he’d saved Iceberg’s life as well as found Franky a purpose, and took him to find his dream which the elder brother was probably grateful for.

Luffy hummed softly at the explanation from his Da, his eyes had moved to Usopp who was listening in surprise. They knew they’d helped a bunch of places, but they hadn’t expected the Akagami Kaizoku first mate to explain that they had unofficial territories. 

The boys then decided that Usopp would use the left over time, between where they were and Marineford, to make jolly rogers for the islands that they’d saved. Even if they just kept them as back-ups just in case the World Government tried something; especially once Luffy actually gained a name for himself and grew stronger.

Beck smiled and agreed to provide Usopp with the items he needed to make said jolly roger. It was an agreement that made Luffy go silent briefly before he got up to locate his Papai, leaving Usopp and Beck a little confused as they continued their own conversation, moving from jolly Rogers and onto sharpshooting.

“No longer avoiding me Anchor?” Shanks questioned with amusement as he noticed his son appearing out of the corner of his eye, although, he faltered when his son suddenly bowed to him “Anchor?”

“Captain Shanks” Luffy started formally, something that had the surrounding crew pause in their duties and watch curiously, it was also a tone that had Shanks stiffening and shifting into his Captain persona, his hand moving to the hit of Gryphon as he watched the other captain carefully. The teenager was still bowed as he took a deep breath to calm his hectic thoughts and try and make some sense to his words  “I come before you with a request and offer...”

As Luffy hesitated, Shanks couldn’t stop the smile that appeared at how grown up his kid was, and also how awkward the boy felt being so formal, Shanks was the same when it came to Captain’s he was familiar with. “Speak Captain Luffy, I’ll listen, and please stand up properly, you have no need to bow to me”

Luffy remained bowed for a few more moments before he stood up straighter, something that revealed to the crew how uncomfortable Luffy was with being so restrained. They could see it clear as day on his face as he tried to keep from slumping or fidgeting.

“I wish to...um... Offer... No... Request?” Luffy started, trying to figure out how to say what he wanted to say and sound like a captain should, before he groaned and covered his eyes in frustration.

“Anchor, just ask buddy, you don’t need to be all formal” Shanks chuckled softly as he moved forward and patted the hatted head lightly to get the boys attention. “If it was any other crew, you probably would need to be formal, but you’re my son. You don’t have to worry about all that around me. Besides, any pirate that knows you well enough, knows that the usual formality just doesn’t suit you”

The Straw Hat Captain glanced up from below the brim of his hat at his Papai, searching for the truthfulness of his words before he slumped in relief. He really hated being so stuffy and formal, if he could get away with not being that way, then he would. That’s why he usually let Nami and Robin do the talking, they wouldn’t mess up like he would because his mind is running around in circles and words get muddled up as he speaks them.

“I was wondering if you would consider being allies?” Luffy offered up to his Papai softly, something that had Shanks melting a little at how cute but grown up his son was. “I know that one day we’ll fight against each other because I wanna become an Emperor like you and find the One Piece first...  But, until then, I was wondering if you would help me get stronger to help protect my treasures better.”

“Where did this question come from bud?” Shanks hummed curiously as he gestured for everyone to get back to work, although, he could already hear the whispers about them being allied with the Straw Hats until Luffy was ready to face them as rivals. The Luffy Effect was in motion with how excited the younger crew members were becoming, they were almost as enamoured with his son as his senior crew were.

“Da was showing me the paperwork he does” Luffy explained as he knocked his hat back, rolling his eyes a little as Shanks’ automatically began to run his fingers through Luffy’s hair to help tame the messy locks. “Usopp and I mentioned that the only real territory we could say we have is Alabasta if they wanted to drop the World Governments protection... Da pointed out that technically we have seven cause of where my crew come from and how we helped the islands against bad pirates or saved the leaders. I’m not strong enough to claim Foosha... Although, I’m pretty sure you have our home”

Shanks blinked in surprise at the last comment from his son, and flicked his sons forehead at the small smirk that appeared on Luffy’s lips. Foosha wasn’t officially claimed by Shanks because it was mainly under the protection of the Monkey D. Family, but Makino did have his jolly roger hidden away for if she ever needed it.

“’Kino does have my flag hidden away” Shanks confirmed with a small huff at how amused Luffy was “But, it’s under your Gramps’ protection more than mine right now. Seas forbid, your Gramps ever passes, or loses his influence; ‘Kino has a back-up. But yes, anchor, I would be honoured to consider you as an ally until the moment you’re ready to go against me”

Luffy threw his arms around his Papai at the agreement to be allies, and also in gratitude for offering their home protection while Luffy couldn’t. When he is stronger, Dawn would be one of the most protected islands in the Blues with the flag of an emperor and the future pirate king, as well as the protection of the Hero of the Marines.

“After I beat you, can we be allies again?” Luffy questioned which had Shanks laughing at the audacity. Although, the red-head had no delusions that his son wouldn’t get strong enough to beat him one day; Shanks was just hoping it was far into the future.

“If you best me, yes we can go back to being allies. You’re my son, anchor. You’ll always be my ally even when we’re fighting... Just don’t go easy on me and I won’t go easy on you” 

Luffy gave his Papai a bright grin before nodding enthusiastically.

“Promise” Luffy agreed firmly as he released his Papai, the grin still on his lips as he noticed his family were still watching them fondly, although they were also making it look like they were working. “Usopp is going to be making jolly rogers while you’re going under the Red Line...”

“You better get back to my cabin then, we’re readying to dive” Shanks prompted his son when he realized that he’d completely forgotten about the sight of the red line ahead of them while he was talking with his son.

Luffy immediately gave a quick nod before darting back to his Papai’s cabin where Usopp had already been given the things he needed and was starting to work on the flags they needed to send out. His Da was putting away his own work when Luffy entered the cabin again.

“What got you so rattled, sunshine?” Beck questioned curiously as Luffy hugged him, from the scenery outside the cabin window, they were readying to dive so Beck needed to light the lanterns for the boys and go help his husband and crew.

“Papai’s agreed to be allies until we fight, and then we’ll be allies after I win” Luffy informed the two in the cabin. Usopp sighed fondly with a roll of his eyes, not surprised by the decision and slightly grateful that he would have his Baba as an ally. Beck faltered only briefly before he gave a fond shake of his head and pressed a soft kiss to his sons temple, he wouldn’t be surprised when Luffy beat his husband in the future; their anchor was strong already and he was only going to get stronger.

“I can’t wait to see that” Beck promised Luffy as he removed the boy from the hug and moved to light the lanterns before pulling the curtain down so the boys wouldn’t get the underwater trip spoiled for them before they got to do it with their crew. He took the den den from his pocket and ignored the curious look on Luffy’s face as he dialled the familiar number, leaving a second number on the table. “I’ll have Lucky send some food later, but I’ve got someone who wants to talk to you. And a number I want you to dial later”

As the den den shifted to familiar features, Beck smiled and handed the snail over to the shell-shocked teenager and left the room.

Moving to his husband, he stood beside him without saying a word, only raising an eyebrow in question when Shanks moved his attention to him after giving orders to activate the bubbly coral that they had access to. Shanks was lucky that he had so many allies and gathered stocks of said coral because coating the Force would take up time that they didn’t have.

“We both know he will be a strong ally in the future” Shanks pointed out to his husband and first mate as the sea began to raise around them “And until then, we can help train him to get to that strength. We’ve already offered both boys training to help get stronger, Luffy understands that he’s not ready for the New World Seas yet.”

“Good reasoning” Beck huffed a laugh as he pressed a quick kiss to his husbands lips before moving to direct their crew in their jobs while Shanks watched their surroundings carefully.

-

Luffy looked at his Da in confusion at the den den, his eyes going wide at the change before he shakily took the snail from the elder man as he left.

“Maki?” he questioned hesitantly, Usopp glancing over curiously until he heard the name and offered a small smile of reassurance that he wasn’t alone for whatever conversations were due.

“Luffy” Makino’s voice came over the den den, relief clear in her voice as she seemed to slump as if the strong holding her up had been cut. 

Luffy sat in his Papai’s bed, holding the den den carefully as he remained wide-eyed at the opportunity to talk to his big sister for the first time in months. There were so many things he wanted to tell his sister, he wanted to tell her about his adventures, about his crew and about meeting with his Papai again. But, the guilt also hit him at his nakama being lost to him, and the reminder that his big brother was also on danger.

“Monkey D. Luffy, you troublesome brat!” A voice scolded that pulled Luffy out of his little guilt spiral and even startled Usopp enough that he nearly tipped the paint he was using.

The snail shifted into familiar features which had Luffy grimace a little, but also happy to hear his Mamae’s voice.

“Hi Mamae”  Luffy offered weakly, and bit back a grin at he spluttering that came from the bandit. 

When Ace and Sabo had explained what a dad was supposed to be, to Luffy, they also went about explaining what a mum was too. Originally, when they were talking about what a mum was, Makino was the first thing that came to mind until the boys also mentioned how a mum would become stern when needed and did other things that Makino didn’t do. Luffy realized that Makino was like Ace and Sabo, she wasn’t his mum but was his big sister; it barely took five minutes for Luffy to realize that the three of them had a mum and didn’t notice.

Ace had spluttered and called Luffy an idiot when the rubber boy pointed out that their mum was Dadan. The older boy admitting years later that he had always thought of Dadan as a mum but couldn’t bring himself to call her such until Luffy started; his big brother was scared of being rejected by the woman who raised him.

Dadan had had a baby dumped in her arms by Garp, two decades ago, a baby she wanted to hate and use to hunt or pick pocket; but also a baby she came to adore as her own in secret, within a month of having him. And then, Garp dumped Luffy with her nine years later, and she ended up becoming a mum of three, with Sabo added, rather than a mum of none like she always thought she would be.

The bandit leader never knew that Luffy had overheard her and Makino one night, the both women were drinking and just talking like they always did when Makino visited. Except, it was later than usual and all the men had gone to sleep. Luffy had heard soft tears which was why he had moved silently to watch the women, Ace was still asleep but Dadan was the one crying. A first for the little boy to witness. It wasn’t long after Sabo, Dadan had admitted to Makino that she had been a mother once, with a man that didn’t deserve to be called a man, the baby was lost to her barely a day after having her due to how early she was born. She had called herself a mother of none.

Luffy wanted nothing more than to go to her and hug her tight, but, he knew deep down that she didn’t want him to know so he went back to curl up with Ace and left Makino to comfort her. However, Luffy did make a point of calling her ‘Mamae’ every time he talked with her, something that Ace picked up and continued with.
They’d already been calling her Mamae since the conversation about what a dad was, but it was rare to call her it to her face until it became normal for them.

It may have become normal for them, but Dadan still spluttered and protested, except Luffy always noticed how misty her eyes went afterwards.

“Don’t you ‘Hi Mamae’ me, you brat, you and your brother are in so much trouble! When I get my hands on you I’m going to wring your scrawny little necks! Maybe take a leaf out of my own Ma’s book and find a wooden spoon!” Dadan threatened Luffy, and the boy had to bite back a grin at the familiar threat from his Mum.

When she’d first used the threat, his older brothers had immediately hidden Luffy behind them and argued with her, explaining to Luffy what she meant later on. But, as the years passed, and she used the threat more often, Ace and Luffy knew that she would never follow through and just used it to seem scary but it meant that she was worried about them.

“I’ve missed you too Mamae” Luffy interrupted her as she continued ranting and threatening Ace and him. 

The den den went silent before Luffy frowned as he heard the start of soft sobs, and noticed the tears in the snails eyes which signalled that his Mae was crying.

“I’m safe with Papai and Da” Luffy reassured her straight away, offering a small smile to Usopp so his friend knew everything was okay. “My crew are scattered but we know where a lot of them are, we’re on our way to save Ace... I won’t let him die, Mamae”

Luffy sighed lightly as the sobs increased, he settled in before he started to tell his Mamae and sister about his adventures, hoping that the stories would help his Mamae settle.

-

“You better listen to your Pai in that war, brat” Dadan warned him after a few hours of Luffy relaying tales of the main islands to them, Makino and her piping up every so often with small scolds or praises for his actions. He kept his worst ones to himself, he didn’t need to be lectured thoroughly like his Pai did, Usopp piped up every so often too which meant his sniper was introduced to his sister and Mamae. Makino was excited to introduce herself to Yasopp’s son which reminded Usopp that his Baba would ramble about him often when he was a kid.

“I will” Luffy promised her firmly, he knew there was going to be a risk with going into the war, but his Papai was going to be there with him. Shanks wouldn’t let Ace die if he could do anything about it.

He also knew that his Da had taken a few ideas from his time in the G-2 base and relayed them to Rayleigh as a suggestion to get someone on the inside so they have back-ups. Something that Whitebeard, apparently, didn’t think of.

There was a pause of silence in the cabin before Dadan sighed morosely over the line “Brat... I gotta go, there’s a lot that needs to be done”

With her tone of voice, Luffy easily figured out that she was hesitant, she wanted to stay on the den den with him. But, they had already been talking for hours, Makino had already opened the bar and left the den den with Dadan; some of the villagers popping over to say hello every once in a while. The Foosha villagers had listened as he talked about his adventures, and the mayor had scolded Luffy just as Dadan had.

That was until Luffy called him Grandpa Woop and he went silent before huffing about ‘mischievous brats’ and walked off for a drink.

“Love you Mamae” Luffy promised softly, “And ‘Kino”

Since the news of Ace had hit him, Luffy realized he’d never really gotten the chance to tell Ace that he loved him. The elder boy was his big brother, his saviour and his best friend for a decade; and neither of them spoke the words. They both knew that the other loved them, they showed it in actions rather than in words, but Luffy realized that it wasn’t just Ace that he’d never really said the words too.

A huff came over the line and Luffy smiled lightly as Makino’s voice called through that she loved him too.

“Yeah yeah... Love you too brat. Make sure you get your brother out of shit like usual. And call so I can give him a telling off... Three years on the seas and not once does he call or send a message and then goes and gets himself slated for execution” Dadan grumbled, it was to her usual empty threat that the den den was hung up on; and Luffy actually wondered if it wasn’t an empty one this time. Ace was terrifying them all because of his reckless determination for revenge.

“Your family are nice” Usopp hummed lightly as he sat against the wall of the cabin on the bed beside his Captain. He’d finished the jolly Rogers a few hours into the tales that Luffy was telling his family; he’d even done a special one for Shanks, with Shanks’ scars running over the eye of their own symbol.

“They’re the best” Luffy agreed, smiling over at his friend before he grabbed some water and leaves for the den den and also the other number that had been provided for them. “Maybe Da can find a number for Kaya and you can talk to her soon?”

Usopp stiffened at the offer, eyeing his friend closely before sighing with a small shrug; he wasn’t sure if he wanted to talk with Kaya while he was still so weak.

“Maybe” Usopp mumbled lightly and ignored the sad look that Luffy gave him, as if the younger boy already knew what was going through Usopp’s mind.

Once the snail was fed and watered, Luffy carefully entered the den den number that his Da had left, the two waiting curiously to see who would answer on the other side. Until, they gaped at the blonde hair and curly eyebrows that appeared.

“Sanji!” Luffy and Usopp shouted in happiness and shock, something that caused a surprised but happy look to appear on the snail.

“Luffy... Usopp” Sanji greeted in tired relief as if he was slumped down on the ground and couldn’t believe that he was hearing the voices of their youngest crew mates (bar Chopper).

“Da got you a den den?” Luffy questioned eagerly “Are you okay? Where are you? Are you hurt? I’m sorry for everything Sanji... I promise I’ll get stronger for us”

Usopp grimaced and shifted over to Luffy, pulling the boy into his lap and hugging him tightly as he noticed the tears of guilt already flowing down the boys cheeks as his voice got weaker. Something he knew Sanji would pick up on since the cook was pretty good with hidden cues that signified upset.

“Hey, shitty rubber” Sanji huffed sternly, although there was a fondness in his usual ‘insult’ for Luffy, “We all need to get stronger, you let your temper best you, we all do that. You saved Hatchan and Cami at the same time, and you took those assholes down a peg or two... None of us blame you Lu. We were faced with an Admiral, we’d already faced Aokiji and now Kizaru too, it just proves that we need to get stronger but it doesn’t put any blame on you. You did your best Captain and none of us are upset with you for it”

Luffy whined softly at the reassurance from Sanji, but tears continued to fall as he curled up against Usopp and watched the snail closely.

“Where did you two land? Have you heard from any of the others?” Sanji questioned curiously, his attention mainly on Usopp so they could let their Captain gather his emotions again.

“We were sent to the Red Force” Usopp explained lightly as he kept his arms around Luffy while the other boy cried lightly at the lack of blame he was getting from his Left. “Baba and Lu’s Papai and Da are here. Not sure if you’ve heard but Ace is set to be executed in a few days, we’re heading to Marineford with the Akagami Kaizoku to aid in his rescue”

Sanji’s breath caught in his throat at the mention of Ace being set for execution, he liked the older boy; adored how the elder brother looked after Luffy. Ace was what an elder brother was supposed to be, and it warmed Sanji to know that there is such a thing as a good brother in the world.

“Marineford is part of the triangle of currents that Nami explained to us when we were going to Enies Lobby, it’s a day or two away from Sabaody... We’re going under the Red Line now, although, we haven’t seen any of the New World apart from empty sea because we want to see it as a family” Usopp continued, pushing past Sanji’s shock so that the blonde didn’t have time to stew on the trouble that their Captain’s second main treasure was in. “The plan is for Luffy to stay behind the front line so he’s not injured too badly, while I’ll be in the crows nest with my Baba to hit people with the ammo I’ve been able to replicate while here.

“Uncle Beck and Uncle Rocks has managed to track down all but Chopper and Robin. They are still looking for them but they have an idea where Robin might be... Zoro ended up on his rivals island with the ghost girl from Thriller Bark, he’s awake and resting so he can heal faster. We’ll be heading there after getting Ace. Nami is on a sky island that specialises in weather... Franky is on a scientists old island so he can upgrade himself if he wants and Brook is on an island just outside the Florian Triangle” Usopp continued to explain carefully as he listed off the information he remembered Rockstar telling him. “Are you okay?”

“The place I ended up is... Different” Sanji grimaced over the snail “It’s full of people like Bon Clay, the Baroque Works agent on Alabasta. They keep trying to get me in a dress and make up”

Luffy giggle lightly at the imagery that Sanji’s admittance caused to appear in his mind, something that had his cook poking his tongue out.

“Have they said why?” Usopp questioned, although, there was humour in his tone as he fought not to laugh at Sanji’s situation.

“They think I belong here and need to let out my true self” Sanji grumbled lightly, although he wasn’t disgusted or offended by their assumptions, he was just tired because they wouldn’t listen to him. Something that made him rethink his attitude around the women of his life. He needed to remember to listen to them. “I have nothing against what they prefer... It did startle me to begin with since I thought I was on an island of beautiful ladies until I noticed the facial hair and Adam’s apples... I would just prefer that they stop trying to dress me up.”

“Have you told them that?” Luffy asked lightly.

“Not much time considering I’m either running or dodging their grabby hands, I don’t want to hurt them by kicking them away from me” Sanji admitted to his Captain, the only good thing so far was that he was able to strengthen his legs and stamina with all the running. However, he was struggling a little because he wasn’t able to get much food and he was running out of cigarettes. “I can’t stop for long without them catching up, which means I’m not able to find much food either”

Luffy glared sternly at the snail, something that had Sanji stiffening on the other side of it. One of the things that the Straw Hat crew  kept to themselves was that their cook was a fantastic chef with no limitations on recipes, yet, he also had trouble with his own eating habits. It was something that they were all trying to get around so their chef didn’t need to rely on cigarettes so much and didn’t face as many health risks in the future. They all knew that it wasn’t Sanji’s fault, they all blamed the three months nearly dying of starvation and whatever past he had before meeting Zeff since Zeff tried his hardest to get Sanji to eat more than one meal a day as well.

“Kick them but hold your full strength, I know you can Sanji” Luffy ordered him sternly, knowing that Sanji was strong enough and knew his own limitations with his strength. “Make them pause before telling them that you aren’t comfortable with them trying to force you, it would be like you making them wear suits... Tell them you’re a chef and try and work things out that way, rather than constantly running you’ll be able to cook and keep your own health too. We’ll be coming to get you as soon as we can but until then you need to survive and actually eat”

“Yes Captain” Sanji mumbled lightly, accepting the order without argument since he knew it was because Luffy was worried about his health.

“Your Da is worried about you” Usopp spoke up to remove the tense silence that came from Luffy giving a rare Captain’s order “Made Uncle Beck promise to track you down and keep you safe after he called to see if you’d been sent there. You might also know one of the crew we’re with right now... Lucky Roo?”

Sanji seemed to perk up at the mention of his Da and Lucky Roo.

“I remember Roo, he used to visit in the Baratie every so often when we were starting up. He said his Captain was exploring the East for a year” Sanji grinned realizing that that was the year Shanks was exploring the East and staying with his own Captain. “He’s a talented chef, used to train under the shitty geezer... Is the old man okay?”

“Worried about you” Luffy confirmed with a hum, settling against Usopp so they could talk and Usopp was reminded he wasn’t on his own on the Red Force. “Call him when you’re not running Sanji... He’ll want to know you’re okay but he’ll be able to tell if you aren’t...”

Chapter Text

After the call with Sanji knocked off, Luffy and Usopp remained in silence, grateful that they’d had the chance to talk with at least one of their nakama. Luffy knew why talking to Zoro was a bad idea before getting there, he knew his best friend and right hand would push himself to get to Marineford at the same time as them. All it would take is for him to hear the worry in Luffy’s voice. It didn’t take long for the duo to fall asleep curled up around each other.

Upon waking, Luffy felt the difference in the way the waves washed against the ships bow, it was like it was welcoming him home where he was strongest. The New World was a sea that wasn’t his home yet, he didn’t feel right on its waves, and the sea wasn’t welcoming to him either until he was strong enough for her waves.

Carefully slipping out of his friends sleeping hold, he moved silently through the corridor until he got to the deck and smiled at the welcoming breeze on his face. He wanted nothing more than to jump up into Red’s figurehead but knew to stay where he was because his Pai would panic and Red would probably huff a little too. The last time Luffy was close to the figurehead was when he’d taken the dagger to his face, the sight of a small figure in the corner of his eye confirmed that Red was watching.

Beck had admitted to him that they hadn’t been able to get the blood out of the wood, it was like Red was keeping a part of him with her. Luffy knew that Merry had done the same, the first time one of them got hurt on her, the blood was permanently etched into the wood; Usopp had panicked but Luffy reassured him that it was okay. It was why Luffy wasn’t surprised when Merry appeared to them the last time, he knew what a spirit was, he just didn’t ever remember what the right name was.

“Awake I see” Shanks hummed as he noticed his son in the doorway, he gestured for Luffy to join him, something that Luffy did immediately and wrapped an arm around his waist to hug his Papai.

“Thank you... For finding a den den for Sanji” Luffy thanked the other Captain, his voice soft and wistful, he wanted to talk to the others but at least he knew Sanji was okay. He leaned his head against Shanks’ side as he gazed around them to see if he could spot anything he knew.

“That was all your Da and Tio Rocks” Shanks waved off easily, he knew what his husband and friend were doing with finding the Straw Hats and keeping them in contact with each other. Shanks was more than happy to let Beck dip on a few of his First Mate duties for their son. “We’re about two days away from Marineford, we won’t have time to actually meet up with the Whitebeards and the allies beforehand...”

“The old man wants to die there, doesn’t he?” Luffy stated, he’d heard his Da talking to Shanks one night when they thought he was fast asleep. When the crew couldn’t do a deck sleep-out, Luffy was reassured that Usopp forgave him, so he ended up with his father’s of choice while Usopp stayed with Yasopp.

Shanks should have been surprised by Luffy’s question, but he knew that his son was observant and very good at eavesdropping when it came to important information. He sighed and gave a brief nod of confirmation.

“We need to make sure he doesn’t, Ace doesn’t deserve that guilt” Luffy basically growled, he wouldn’t accept his brother having to shoulder the guilt of his Captain’s death because the old man wanted to die with a bang. His big brother already had the guilt of his mama’s death, he didn’t need the guilt of the man who had gained his trust enough to call Pops.

Luffy didn’t understand how the old man had gained Ace’s trust enough to be called Pops, his brother had so much darkness on his shoulders and yet Whitebeard had managed to pass it? Luffy wondered if there was something going on, or if it was because of the ‘birdbrain’ his Papai had mentioned to his Da.

“You’ll need to refrain from attacking him the first time you see him Lu” Shanks pointed out to his son, he noted the tilt of head in confusion “stop yourself, you’ll need to stop yourself from attacking him. I know you... I know how protective Ace is of you already which means you’ll be just as bad when facing another Emperor who is risking Ace’s life for a war”

“He could have sent someone into the prison, or could have stopped the marines when they were taking Ace from the prison to the navy” Luffy pointed out. Ever since his Da had mentioned that Ace was in prison, and they had over a week until the actual execution, ideas had been running through his mind.

If he and Usopp had been any closer to Sabaody, the two of them had already spoken about how they would have either broken into Impel Down like they did for Robin with the outer part of Enies Lobby, or they would have pulled a Nami and stolen his brother back from under the navy’s noses.

The worst thing about all the ideas that the teenagers came up with, was that the Straw Hat duo realized that their crew had managed to beat up some of the top names of CP-9. They’d beaten, with help, a whole network of marines so that they could get Robin and Franky back to them. And that was while they were just rookies, none of them knew Haki, none of them had faced such dangers until they were already there. They had faced fishmen strengthened by anger and resentment, faced marines and marine Captains out to get them, faced so many pirates that wanted to hurt them; and had also faced warlords and devil fruit users.

The Whitebeard pirates had decades on them, they were stronger than Luffy, Zoro and Sanji put together and if they cared for Ace half as much as Luffy did, then they should also have the stubbornness to persevere through a jail break or theft of a pirate mid sail.

Shanks grimaced, he knew that Luffy was right, they were ideas that Shanks himself had had. If the Akagami Kaizoku had been any closer to the Red Line when the execution was released by the marines, he and Beck had already spoken about plans to break into the prison themselves or steal Ace back during transport. But, unfortunately, Shanks had a feeling that the Seas had other ideas and so they were waylaid by a storm before making the decision to aid Whitebeards islands.

Then Usopp and Luffy landed on their deck, injured and desperate to find their crew. It was if Mother Ocean was giving them the chance to help Luffy heal and get stronger before the war to save his sake brother.

Something that Shanks kept close to his heart, was that he wondered if Luffy and Ace shared blood too. The boys had so many features that looked similar, any one who didn’t know Luffy’s age could easily assume the boys were blood brothers. There were always whispers on the Oro about his Da and Tio, that they weren’t just brothers of choice because of the battles they’d fought together; but that they were brothers of blood too. His Da had never confirmed nor denied the whispers, neither did his Tio Garp whenever the man heard said whispers during a visit.

His Ma always enhanced the whispers with mischief by embracing Garp as her ‘dear brother’ whenever the two saw each other. It always made Shanks and Buggy laugh because it would send their crew into fearful hysterics at the possibility of Rogers bloodline being mixed with the Monkey D. bloodline.

It would also make sense considering how much Luffy reminded him of his Da, even his Uncle had mentioned that Luffy looked like a mini Roger when he was causing trouble and grinning widely. Rayleigh also admitted that he should have figured out who Luffy’s grandfather was because of how much Luffy looked like Garp when the man was younger as well.

“Hey Lu... You and Usopp said the marines might announce who your father is, did you find out who it is?” Shanks couldn’t help but ask curiously, the men had completely forgotten that their anchor had dropped that little tidbit. They had all been focused on the teenagers’ mental health and then on getting both boys stronger in between learning about their adventures, eating and sleeping.

Luffy cocked his head to the side as he looked up at Shanks, his brow furrowed at the question before he remembered that no one really knew who his parents were. Luffy still didn’t know who his birth mother was, but that didn’t matter because he had Mamae and ‘Kino back home; just like his father’s name didn’t matter because he had his Papai and Da. Plus, he apparently had another Da in Mihawk; which also meant that he’d have a chosen brother in Zoro if the seas were successful in their reasoning to send Zoro to Mihawk to get stronger.

The sea reassured Luffy that his crew were safe enough, he should probably tell his Tio Rocks to look South for Chopper. She reassured him that Chopper was safe, but alone, just as Robin would be safe but was somewhere East for now. There was no point into telling Rocks to look East for Robin because she wasn’t going to stay there.

“Gramps told me on Water-7” Luffy confirmed with a small hum as he leaned back against Shanks, his eyes drifting out over the horizon towards where his brother was going to be held. “’parently cause we made a big mess, they’ll go after me more; ‘specially with my link to him”

Shanks nudged him lightly with his elbow and raised an eyebrow, waiting for a name with a small quirk of his lips; amused at Luffy still not telling him a name.

“Gramps says his name is Dragon, he’s a big rebel guy that the navy hates. Kinda funny that Gramps is known as the Hero of the Marines but he had a big rebel guy as a son and me as a grandson” Luffy shrugged lightly, he didn’t really care much about knowing who his father was. Although, he was surprised that his Papai didn’t know that information.

Shanks balked a little at the casual name drop of the Revolutionary Armies leader, Dragon, being his kids birth father. And possibly Shanks’ cousin via adoption if Garp and Roger really were brothers. Now, it made sense that the man was spotted in Loguetown when Luffy was about to enter the Grand Line.

Shanks had met the leader while he was still a marine, he didn’t know the boys name until later but he remembered his Da stopping to talk to him. A pirate and a marine having a casual conversation was strange, the marine even looked a little embarrassed, though he did give Red a smile when he noticed the five year old hiding behind his Da’s leg. He didn’t remember the conversation, but he remembered the boy because he knew his Da and he was a nice marine that didn’t want to arrest him for being Rogers cabin boy.

“Didn’t realize that’s why my Da stopped to speak to him that day” Shanks mumbled, he gave a small smile to Luffy who looked up curiously “I met your father when I was five, I didn’t know Tio Garp is his father, I just knew that he knew my Da. He was nice... Didn’t try to arrest me for being with Da which was always a good thing”

Luffy snickered lightly at the idea of his five year old Pai getting arrested by a young version of his Father. He had a feeling his vovô would have helped, but if Luffy really was like him, he had a feeling that his vovô would make a game out of it.

Shanks rolled his eyes, although, he did smile because it was nice to hear his son finding humour in things even though he was separated from his crew.

“So you think Sengoku will announce Dragon as your father?” Shanks questioned, he cocked his head to the side when he noted ripples in the sea a mile or so ahead of them. Sending his haki out, he rolled his eyes with a huff at the familiar sense of his Uncle, it seemed the old man must have gotten annoyed by Whitebeard sooner than he thought.

“Probably” Luffy confirmed, he frowned lightly when he spotted the same thing as his Papai, but he knew his own Haki wasn’t strong enough to go further than his arm, so couldn’t do what Shanks did. However, the seas gave a whispering of who it was which made Luffy grin a little “They’ll say Ace’s and mine if they see me in the war. Though, no one has figured out my link to Gramps yet so they’ll probably think that my mom is Gramps’ kid rather than Dragon... Would you be upset if I told them they are wrong? That you and Da are my dads?”

The question had Shanks’ heart skipping a beat as he froze while his mind tried to kick back into sail. With a warm smile, Shanks tugged Luffy closer and gave a small nod.

“Your Da and I have thought of you as our kid since you were a brat, Lu. That will never change and I know your Da would be honoured to be announced as yours, just as I would be.” Shanks promised Luffy firmly and snickered as a prank idea flickered across his mind, he heard the sound of water displacing as his Uncle met the ship quickly and easily climbed up. The man was insane, and yet people always called him the sane one of the Oro. “If you want, we can tease your Gramps with it too, the marines would probably think that I, or your Da, got your mom pregnant and your mom is Garp’s kid”

Luffy thought over the idea and cackled lightly before he waved over at Rayleigh who had settled on the railing of the Red Force, the ropes cracking slightly in greeting to the old coater that often helped her crew get to their home sea.

“Teasing your Tio again?” Rayleigh hummed in greeting as Shanks released Luffy and moved to greet his Uncle warmly.

“Probably better for him” Shanks admitted as he pulled the old man into a tight hug, not even phased by the wet clothes soaking him through in return “It would keep Dragon out of the crossfire as Tio’s son”

Rayleigh startled a little at the information that Dragon was Garp’s kid. The Oro crew knew that the marine hero had a kid, but only Roger and Rogue knew their identity; he never expected a firm marine like Garp to be the father of a major rebel like Dragon. He glanced over at Luffy and huffed, it made sense with how mischievous Luffy was and how it seemed liberating countries was in his genetics.

Luffy hesitated briefly when Shanks and Rayleigh separated before he moved forward and hugged the man as well, surprising the old first mate. Shanks just smiled sadly, he knew that his son was grateful for Rayleigh interfering against Kizaru and helping them escape so that was probably the initial thought process for the hug. Plus, Rayleigh was brought up a lot in stories that Shanks told, so the boy probably saw him as family too.

“Guess I should introduce you two properly” Shanks hummed sheepishly, he remembered telling his Uncle that he’d given his Da’s hat to a pirate of the future, and that he bet his arm on the future too. But, he never told the man that the same kid was someone he viewed as his own. “Uncle Ray, this is my anchor... My kid” he introduced to Rayleigh who just raised an eyebrow in amusement as Luffy snickered “You probably figured out that he’s the one I bet my arm on... Lulu, this is my Uncle Ray, not old man Ray as you and Usopp call him”

Rayleigh gave Luffy a mock insulted look, which had the teenager giggling with a small shrug as he moved to hug his Papai again.

“I’m glad you two are okay” Rayleigh informed Luffy.

“Thank you for helping to find the rest of my nakama” Luffy responded almost immediately with a small bow of respect.

“I’m guessing Ray swam here again” Beck spoke up from their right, pulling their attention to the first mate who had just noticed their new guest. The rest of the crew began to notice the dripping person standing on deck too, many of them whispering and gossiping which had Beck and Shanks rolling through eyes.

“Always” Rayleigh and Shanks spoke up in unison, which had Usopp balking as he arrived after waking up alone in the Captain’s quarters, noticing that Luffy was gone.

“You’re all insane” Usopp informed the crew with a deadpan, something that had Luffy cackling as he shot to cuddle with his ‘cousin’. Something that Usopp barely blinked about as he wrapped his arms around Luffy.

Since the two of them had awoken on the Red Force as the only two members of the Straw Hats together, Usopp and Luffy had gotten closer, the two of them becoming dependent on physical contact as often as possible. Neither of them stayed together in the nights, since they stuck with their fathers, but it wasn’t rare to find the two curled up together for a nap on the deck.

The Red Force crew became suckers for the two boys, easily giving into pleading for food or components for experiments.

Usopp had caused more than one small explosion in a spare room of the Force, something that had Yasopp both proud and exasperated about.

“Says the Sniper King that aided in the take down of Enies Lobby with just an altered slingshot” Rayleigh drawled, smirking lightly at the look on Usopp’s face as the teenager remembered the scolding he’d gotten from Yasopp for the recklessness of using such a simple weapon. However, Yasopp also praised his son highly for his ability to manage such feats with just the slingshot. It was a double edged sword but Usopp knew that his father scolded out of fear than actual anger. “You’re the one who burned the flag, right?”

“At Luffy’s order” Usopp defended himself weakly when he noticed his Baba joining them on the deck. The look he gained from his father made him blush a little and grumble into Luffy’s hair as his Captain continued to cling to him, snickering in amusement.

“Whitebeard stress you out?” Shanks questioned his uncle as he waved for the small group of them to move to the kitchen, he wasn’t surprised when Lucky automatically pulled out a snack for Luffy and Usopp. The chef deciding that Usopp needed some more meat on his bones, something that the crew were also determined about with a training regiment created for the two boys.

The sigh that Rayleigh released was a clear answer to the question from his nephew.

“Your assumptions were right, Newgate won’t hesitate to die if he’s given the opportunity to” Rayleigh informed the small group that had gathered in the kitchen, Lucky frowned at the response but continued to cook for the crew’s supper. He was going to stay out of the way of that bombshell and just remain in the background. “Marco is acting as a Captain more than a first mate right now... Though, I noticed there were moments where he would glance to the side as if he’s used to looking at someone else for advice”

“Probably Ace” Luffy piped up from where he’d detached himself from Usopp to eat what Lucky had offered him “Ace was a Captain himself before the old man got him to join... Ace mentioned the birdie a few times. He likes him.”

“The blonde that Ace gushed about before catching himself?” Usopp asked curiously and grinned a little at the nod that he gained from Luffy in confirmation.

The elder men all snorted at the mention of Ace having a thing for Marco, although, Rayleigh noticed that there was a high likelihood that Marco liked Ace in return.

“One of Roger’s boys actually managed to bag the bird?” Rayleigh laughed, his laugh getting louder at the affronted look that his eldest nephew sent his way, as well as the grumpy look on Beck’s face. “First Blue had the crush, then Red would randomly profess his love for the brat and now the firecracker? That’s brilliant. Roger will be overjoyed in the Locker to hear that the bird is one of his in the end”

Luffy wanted to deny that Roger was Ace’s dad, but, from everything he’d heard from Shanks since he was a kid himself. Plus, the stories that he’s heard since being on the seas, the ones that Shanks would say were too old for him when he was a brat; Roger was a lot like Ace. He was protective of those he deemed his, would destroy anyone and everyone who tried to hurt his treasures; Ace was a lot like the true stories of Roger. There was also the fact that Whitebeard obviously didn’t care enough about Ace to keep the guilt off the boys shoulders if he dies in the war.

“Papai should tell Ace true stories of Vovô, maybe Ace won’t hate himself as much any more” Luffy dropped into the conversation which brought the humour to the end as Shanks had been trying to placate his husband about the crush, and also get his Uncle to stop laughing so much.

Shanks smiled and ruffled Luffy’s hair lightly “I think that would be a good idea, anchor”

Chapter Text

“The rules Luffy?” Shanks questioned when he noticed the light breaking through the surface of the sea above them which signalled that they were closing in on their destination. 

Rockstar had managed to tap into the network for the marines den den signal, they learned that the execution was going to be moved forward and that there were a few surprises in store for the pirates. But, the marines didn’t know that Shanks was appearing in the war. 

From what Rockstar had gleamed since the Red Force had dived, to get the element of surprise, a few hours ago; the marines thought that Shanks was still in the New World as Kaido’ had been sent sailing back to Wano with his tail between his legs. It was a number of Shanks’ allies that had done the fighting, but the marines thought it was Shanks himself; they seemed to forget that he had crews that he aided with his jolly roger but didn’t call them his fleet like Whitebeard did. Buggy had managed to cause a riot in Impel Down, and broke out of the prison, many of the reports seemed to suggest that Luffy was a part of it which confused them all until Usopp remembered that Bon Clay was in Impel Down. 

Luffy had cackled at that but didn’t mind that their friend had used his face to cause mischief, it was very ‘Luffy’ of the okama. 

There was no news on the marines side about where the Straw Hats were, something that made Luffy sigh in relief when Rockstar had reassured the teenagers that their crew were still safe out of the hands of the navy. The main one that the two worried about was Robin, but she seemed to be safe, and still untraceable. 

Luffy looked above them at the question from his Papai and spotted many bottoms of ships which just proved how loved his brother was for so many people to come save him in his time of need. From what he heard from his Pai and Uncle Ray, it wasn’t Whitebeard that the group had come to aid, it was Ace; his brother had made an impression on so many lives that it was heart-warming. 

They had someone on the inside of Marineford too, someone who had told them about Kuma cyborgs that shot lasers, ones which Luffy remembered vividly and nearly had a panic attack about until Shanks reassured him that they were warned and would have dealt with them when they needed to. The spy also told them about the wall that the marines wanted to use, something that was going to be disabled by their ally as soon as possible. 

“Stay away from the main fighting” Luffy stated as he focused back on Shanks, Usopp was up in the crows nest waiting for the bubble to pop and the ship to be above sea once more so could aid in the fight to get Ace safe. “Don’t attack the old man, and also try not to attack Baba Hawk” 

Shanks went a little gooey at the fact that his son had already come up with a name for his other husband, the boy learning about the marriage, properly, on the second night of being on the Red Force. It had amused Shanks and Beck, how red Luffy went as he tried to figure out what exactly the men were explaining; but then he just rolled with it with a shrug. 

“The war might not be so bad with myself and Uncle Ray appearing... But if it does still involve fighting, I need you safe” Shanks sighed lightly as the closed in on the surface of the sea, he knew that there wasn’t going to be much time between the war starting and then appearing. 

Rayleigh moved to stand slightly behind his nephew on his right, while Beck moved to stand slightly behind his son on the left so Shanks and Luffy were shown to be respected for their ranks with two first mates as their left and right. 

The moment the Force broke through the surface of the water, the Akagami Kaizoku, Straw hats and Rayleigh had to blink a little to adjust to the new light as silence fell upon Marineford. It looked like there was just talking going on, a talk that was interrupted by their arrival. 

“Sorry we’re late, got a bit waylaid” Shanks greeted flippantly which had Luffy releasing his signature snicker as the eyes of everyone were drawn to him. 

“Luffy?!” The voices of his brother and grandfather merged together as the two took in the sight of Luffy stood side by side with Shanks. Beck and Rayleigh slightly behind them which had many other marines whispering at the sight of the Dark King Rayleigh on a ship with an Emperor and a Supernova. 

“Ace!” Luffy called with a bright grin that dazzled many and made them extremely confused as to why a rookie pirate was so excited to be in an upcoming war zone “Don’t worry! We’re coming to get you!” 

Marco wanted to scoff at a rookie proclaiming such a thing, and heard many of his brothers doing so, but Marco also knew all the stories about the brat before he had set sail for his own journey. Ace had spent hours talking Marco’s ear off about his ‘adorable ball of sunshine’, a young man that seemed to make everyone around him happier and full of trust for the boy. If Luffy was anything like Ace, then he had no doubts that the youngster would succeed in saving his brother. 

The phoenix was also grateful to see Shanks arriving in the war too. When Rayleigh had appeared on the island, the little brat inside Marco was overjoyed that the man he once saw as an Uncle would be able to help them save Ace; but then Rayleigh got into an argument with his Captain and a few days later he disappeared. Marco wasn’t stupid, he knew his Captain was trying to find a way of going out with a ‘bang’ like his Uncle Roger but saving Ace wasn’t the ‘bang’ he should use. 

He was always confused as to why Red and Blue never called his Captain ‘Uncle’ like Roger had offered to be known as for Marco, Thatch and a few others that had been with Whitebeard since they were small. But, now he understood, Shanks didn’t have as much respect for his Captain as Marco did for Roger; his Captain didn’t really deserve as much either, not from Shanks after the man had warned them about Teach but Edward Newgate had dismissed the warnings and disrespected Shanks in the same breath. Disrespected another Emperor. 

The Whitebeards were lucky that Shanks wasn’t as powerful back then as he is now. 

And now Ace was on the line, a boy who Marco knew had met Shanks prior to meeting them, one that admired Shanks and owed him gratitude for saving his brother as a child. One that, Marco knew, Shanks would protect just because he was the elder brother of his ‘anchor’. 

When Marco had met Shanks the first time after his arm, Shanks had wistfully told him about his ‘anchor’ even if he didn’t go into too much detail. The same boy who he heard more about later on from someone else because of the impact the boy had made on two lives that were important to Marco. 

For the first time in years, Marco shifted into his phoenix form and flew over to Shanks’ ship without his Captain’s permission or suggestion. At the agreeing nod from his old friend, Marco dropped down onto the deck and shifted back into his human form, smirking a little at the awed look from Luffy 

“Got here just in time, we were about to set off some fireworks. Nice to see you-yoi” Marco greeted his old friend and held a hand out for him, grinning lightly at the mutterings from the marines as Shanks huffed in amusement, took his hand and pulled him into a hug. Marco had a feeling that if Shanks hadn’t arrived when he did, they would have been trapped by ice considering his Captain was close to letting loose a tsunami with his devil fruit powers and Aokiji was the only one that could protect Marineford from those kinds of waves with his ice. 

“I won’t let either of them die” Shanks muttered to Marco, something that had Marco stiffening before slumping lightly in relief as he pulled away from Shanks and shifted so he was still slightly in front of the quartet but protecting Luffy from any surprise attacks. 

Beckman gave a wary glare to the phoenix, but Marco just chuckled lightly since he knew that Beck glared because of the crush that Shanks had on him when they were teenagers. Marco gave a small nod of reassurance and instinctively ruffled Luffy’s hair since the boys hat was hanging against his back. It was a big brother move that had Luffy pouting playfully as he batted at the blondes hands; a response he always had with Ace when his big brother tried to tease him. After dodging the hands, Marco shifted to stand next to Beckman who was now watching Luffy fondly, a look that Marco hadn’t seen on his own father’s face in two decades. 

The playful greeting between Marco and Straw Hat Luffy, as well as the familial one between him and Shanks had the marines whispering worried. Marco also felt the glare of his Captain on him, but for the last decade or so Marco had been questioning why he remained as a Whitebeard since his Captain was not the man he remembered agreeing to follow when he was a small boy; fresh from chains. The eldest Emperor was losing his mind a little, becoming possessive and unable to talk with due to his own thoughts and beliefs being the ‘right’ ones. Those thoughts and beliefs resulted in Shanks gaining his infamous scars from Teach who was ‘misunderstood and sorry’ according to his Captain. Edward Newgate was lucky he didn’t call down the wrath of Benn Beckman and Dracule Mihawk after that stunt. 

The only reason Marco, Thatch, Haruta and Izou were still on the Moby was because of Ace. When the feral brat was brought onto the ship two years ago, the four were questioning leaving and maybe joining Shanks on his crew. But, then Ace appeared and Marco was bewitched by the fiery teen, he was originally worried about the age difference but then Ace reciprocated the feelings and Marco was hooked. The phoenix was still surprised that Ace agreed to call Whitebeard, Pops, as well, but the first mate was slightly worried that the old man was still messing about with his haki... Again. 

It was the only explanation as to why a number of the crew were still around on the Moby. The only reason most of the crew called Whitebeard, Pops, these days was because of habit. 

“This isn’t your fight Akagami” Sengoku called out over the den den speaker, interrupting the little bubble of slight peace even as Whitebeard glared over at Shanks from the Moby, pulling Marco from his thoughts as he stayed where he was. The glare aimed at Shanks made Marco wonder if the old man knew his plans were being dashed without any effort put in. 

“That’s where you’re wrong Fleet Admiral” Shanks hummed dismissively, his hand moving back to Gryphon’s hilt as he watched the old marine, relieved that Marco was at his side rather than with Whitebeard; considering the glare the old man was aiming their way. Although, his eyes did flicker briefly to locate his other husband, relaxing a little when he noticed Mihawk watching from amongst the group of Warlords. “You see... You have my sons elder brother up on that stand, and I’m not going to let him die and upset my kid” 

Luffy snickered at the confused mutterings that began to echo around Marineford, mutterings that only increased in numbers and volume when Shanks shifted so he could ruffle Luffy’s hair in the same way as Marco, smirking as the boy huffed with a roll of his eyes and let him. 

“Monkey D. Luffy is the son of the Revolutionary Dragon” Sengoku stated, an anger in his tone that had Shanks, and his little family, wondering if the man was upset that Shanks had actively claimed Luffy as his own. It made Shanks wonder just how much the Fleet Admiral had changed since gaining his post, how far had his Tio’s best friend fallen away from his Tio even with the information Luffy had told them?. Shanks also wondered if claiming Luffy meant that his biological family would take notice and offer a hint of protection with it, he’d have to find out at a later date; although, he would also have to meet them at some point if he wanted help to keep his son safe. 

Shanks’ gaze flickered over to the man he’d been thinking about, the man who had settled himself down beside Ace, as if to offer the boy a minute amount of comfort in the face of his friends dying for him. The Emperor knew that his Tio wouldn’t go against the marines, at least not actively, he couldn’t. Garp still believed in protecting those who couldn’t protect themselves, something Ace could do if he wasn’t in the chains he had around him; and Garp was still protecting Luffy by remaining as a marine. 

That little thought was spoken by Luffy when he’d talked about Water-7. 

- 

“Gramps came to see us, at the place we were staying, after we got back from getting Robin” Luffy snickered lightly as the Shanks stiffened on worry, as did the rest of the Red Force crew that knew who ‘Gramps’ was. “I was sleeping when he arrived, scared my crew a lot when he broke through the wall and started ranting before hitting me with a First of Love”  

Shanks let out an annoyed, but exasperated, groan at Garp’s automatic move being to land a ‘Fist of Love’ on his family when he sees them for the first time in a while. It always made Shanks wonder how his Tio had been raised if that was his go to form of love. At least his Da knew that hugging was a good show of love and affection; the only one he ever greeted with ‘familial violence’ was Garp; which made so much sense now.  

“He wanted to make sure I was okay, he didn’t say that but I knew that was why he was there” Luffy hummed as he continued on, ignoring his Papai’s groan and the incredulous look from Usopp “Gramps has always been bad at showing his worry... But then he told me who my Father is... Don’t really care about him but Gramps was warning me that the marines will try harder against me now.  

“Gramps was going to leave us alone, but Senny made him come back with the Iceguy, made him try and take us out or catch us... Gramps did it because it means that Senny wouldn’t get angrier and tell the people in charge about Dragon... Or put a high ‘Dead Only’ bounty on me or Ace” Luffy continued and noticed how so many people paled at the information from Luffy. Garp had never told Luffy directly that that could happen, but Luffy knew why his Gramps was so scared for Luffy and Ace to become pirates, he’d hinted as the boys grew up that the navy had done those kinds of Bounties before. He couldn’t protect them if they were pirates, he could at least try if they were marines. “Senny has gotten meaner... He isn’t too horrible yet, but he isn’t as nice as he used to be to Gramps. I think if Gramps pushed too hard before Ace and me sailed, Senny would have broken a promise and told people about us... It’s why Gramps only visited a week or two every few months... It’s why he was away for a year when Papai came to Dawn, Senny wasn’t letting him visit cause Dragon was causing trouble and he was taking it out on Gramps”  

“Then why does he stay a marine?” A voice questioned, it was low, a whisper to another crew mate but Luffy and everyone else heard it. Rather than getting annoyed by the question, Luffy gained a soft smile as he thought about his grandfather, a smile that showed how much Luffy loved his grandfather even with how much the man startled him.  

“’Cause Gramps knows how bad the world can be, knows how bad pirates can be... He wants to protect the ones that can’t protect themselves. Those are the marine ideals he holds” Luffy informed the group seriously, even Usopp was caught by surprise by how serious his Captain looked when talking about his grandfather. It reminded Usopp that Garp wasn’t just the scarily strong marine that so many stories made him out to be, he was a grandfather that loved Luffy even if it meant staying away from his boys for them to stay safe “Gramps hates that we’re pirates. Not ‘cause we’re pirates, but ‘cause he can’t protect us like he wished he could if we were marines”  

“Garp knows that even being marines wouldn’t protect you because of your blood, right?” Hongo questioned carefully, ignoring the sharp looks from his crew to not upset Luffy. But, Hongo knew what it was like to have blood that the World Government wanted destroyed, he was one of the only survivors of Flevance, and that was only because he had joined Shanks merely months before. Miraculously, Hongo hadn’t fallen prey to the Amber Lead poisoning that the rest of his family had; he just wished he knew what had happened to his niece considering his nephew had a bounty of his own.   

Hongo couldn’t wait to run into that particular crew.  

“I’d be left alive to be a way of control” Luffy stated bluntly, something that shocked the crew and had Shanks gripping Luffy tight at the thought of his son being used as a bargaining chip. “To control Dragon, and if that didn’t work, a way to control Gramps... Gramps stays as a marine so he can warn me if things are getting too bad. If they are coming after me. Senny didn’t tell anyone about me until I sailed because of a promise... That promise is now ended and Gramps has warned me twice about the marines, about dangers coming for me, and later, Robin.”  

- 

“Dragon would need to actually socialize to be a father” Shanks laughed loudly, something he knew caught his Tio off guard as the man’s snort of amusement was heard over the den den speaker before he tried to hide said amusement from everyone watching between the scaffold and Shanks. “Surely you were told about my year visiting my kid in the East, Fleet Admiral” 

“You lost your arm saving Straw Hat Luffy, an unknown stranger, from a sea king” Sengoku listed, revealing the true reason that Shanks lost his arm to the world and emphasizing the point of Luffy being an unknown stranger; which had Beck, Shanks and Luffy scowling up at the man. The three of them were insulted at Luffy being dismissed as a stranger from someone who didn’t even knew him. Even Mihawk scowled up at the Fleet Admiral since he knew how much Luffy meant to his husbands. 

When Mihawk had met up with Shanks and Beck after their stay in the East, he was immediately frantic at the loss of his younger husbands arm; panicking and then ranting at the red-head who waved it off with a laugh. He wanted to hate the little boy who caused his husband to lose his dominant arm, but then Shanks and Beck told him stories about their ‘anchor’ and Mihawk fell for the boy too. It was the secondary reason that he didn’t kill Zoro when the teen had challenged him. That day on the Baratie, Mihawk wanted to get to know his adopted son, but he couldn’t approach since he didn’t know if Luffy knew about his marriage and he didn’t want to confuse the protective Captain. 

“Papai jumped into the sea and got in the way of King’s teeth cause the stupid coward threw me in the water” Luffy huffed, not even bothered that no one knew who he meant by ‘the stupid coward’, “Was after my fruit so I couldn’t swim, Papai said it was better that he lost his arm than me” 

The best part of Luffy’s words was that they were the truth, and everyone who knew Luffy to a degree, knew that the teenager couldn’t lie which had Sengoku twitching in irritation; a glare being sent the way of his friend who was just blinking in surprise at the reveal in front of him. 

“Why do you think Garp the Marine Hero chased me down for a month, Fleet Admiral? He finally got his hands on knowledge of where I was... He really hated that my husband and I hooked up with his kid” Shanks casually threw out into the silence of Marineford, a lie that had Garp choking in surprise as he glared out at his nephew. While he had used the words ‘hooked up’, Shanks meant no dirty minded insinuations considering his words weren’t truly a lie since he’d met and got ‘hooked’ by Luffy which had him anchored at Dawn and Luffy was Garp’s kid even if he was his grandkid and not his son. Loopholes and spinning truths was always fun for a pirate. 

Garp knew what the brat was doing, he knew that he was protecting Luffy and protecting Garp at the same time, which was something he was extremely grateful for. 

“Another reason why we’re here... I’d like my son back Fleet Admiral” Beckman called out to the Fleet Admiral, a tactic that had Shanks turning to look at his husband to keep from showing his surprise. They hadn’t talked about them using the same tactic with Ace, but it was a good idea considering many already knew that Garp had something to do with Ace with him on the scaffold rather than in the pavilion with the other Vice-Admirals. The marines also knew that Ace and Luffy were brothers thanks to Shanks announcing it when they arrived and Beck was a better liar than Shanks and Luffy were. 

“Portgas D. Ace is the son of Gold Roger, not you Benn Beckman” Sengoku bit out, a growl in his voice that had everyone around them breaking out into shocked conversations as the war remaining in a lull because of the stand off between Shanks, Beck, Luffy and Sengoku. 

“Ace uses avó’s name cause he wants to make a name for himself, not with his Da’s name” Luffy snickered loudly, using his words to tell the truth but leaving information out of the situation. Luffy called Rogue avó because that’s what she was to him , same with Ace using her name because he didn’t want his Da’s name out in the open. The marines just didn’t realize that Luffy was keeping information back so that they thought Beck’s lie was true. “Ace is my brother...” 

Mihawk had to cover his face with his hat as he tried to hide his amusement at how his husbands and adopted son were playing the marines. This was one of the reasons why he fell in love with Shanks over the years after they first met, the younger boy was a devil, but he was so smart when he wanted to be. He was unassuming, a mystery that Mihawk wanted to figure out, and he still hasn’t figured out everything even after fifteen years of marriage. 

“Portgas D. Ace’s age doesn’t match up Beckman” Sengoku tried to get around the lies, frustration clear in his tone as he looked like he was close to getting hysterical. “You and Akagami were married seventeen years ago...” 

“And?” Beck countered with a lazy grin as Marco snickered lightly at his side, knowing full well that Gol D. Roger was really Ace’s father and the two men were just using loopholes and indirect truths to get around Ace being believed as Rogers son “I joined Shanks when he was sixteen, that was a year before Ace was born... He introduced me to a lovely little dove. Although, I’m not one hundred percent sure if the good ol’marine hero was aware of who Ace’s Da was before now.” 

“My husband, annoyingly, waited until I was eighteen before accepting my advances” Shanks easily shrugged when he heard whispers about their relationship considering they’d met when he was so young. Beck was eleven years older than him while Mihawk was five years older than him. Amusingly, Beck called Mihawk his little dove to tease him and be all sappy; something he was sure had their third hiding a blush in amongst the Warlords. 

“You! I should have knocked you around too! That damned Red-Haired menace was already due a walloping! I didn’t think I needed to give you one too!” Garp accused loudly, not even needing the den den speaker as he yelled at Beck. He knew what the men were doing, and he would forever be grateful for them trying to play the marines and make them question their information; but that didn’t mean he wasn’t annoyed that they were bringing him into it. 

Beckman just smirked up at Garp and lit up a cigarette with a raised eyebrow, something that had Shanks rolling his eyes as Luffy cackled in amusement while Ace just sat in shock. He had no idea what was going on, but whatever it was was making the marines below him question everything  

“Whether or not you are speaking the truth, Portgas D. Ace is still a pirate...” Sengoku started, growling under his breath as he was interrupted once more. 

“Ace is our main navigator-yoi” Marco pointed out to the Fleet Admiral, interrupting the spiel that was no doubt going to mention how dangerous his boyfriend was “He hasn’t had a raise in bounty since he joined us, the most he’s done over the years has been dine and dash’s, pick pocketing and vandalism. He’s not a killer, he doesn’t deserve an execution Sengoku-yoi.” 

“Yeah! I’ve done worse than Ace with Enies Lobby!” Luffy shouted out in defence of his brother which had many of the pirates face palming. 

“Captain, that isn’t something they need to be reminded about right now” Usopp called down to Luffy, which pulled people’s attention to him, but he focused on his Captain rather than the increased attention he had on him. They all heard muttered questions about where the rest of their crew was but ignored them as he focused on Luffy and Luffy glanced up at him. “Besides, you don’t want your brother telling you off like Uncle Red did when he found out what happened.” 

Luffy grimaced at the reminder, his eyes flickering up to Ace who was watching the teenagers carefully. Although, both noted the scared and confused mutters at Usopp referring to Shanks as ‘Uncle Red’. 

“Hey Ace!? You’re not going to scold me as well are you?” Luffy questioned curiously, a question that had Shanks laughing loudly considering they were in the beginning of a seas damned war and yet his son was trying to make sure his big brother wouldn’t give him a telling of like Shanks did. 

Ace blanked at everything that was happening around him. Ever since Shanks had appeared with his brother beside him, things had been going so confusing. 

When Whitebeard had appeared he was shocked, slightly overjoyed, but mainly worried about all of his friends dying for him. Worried about his Pop’s- no, the old man dying to get him even though Ace had felt like his head was clearer than it had been for two years while away from the Whitebeards. He had chased after Teach because the man had attacked one of the few on the ship that he liked, Thatch was a friend to him even when he was a feral brat hiding in the depths of the Moby. As he travelled, he began questioning why he had been so loyal to Whitebeard since his kidnapping, his crew were loyal to him and stayed because Ace stayed; but Ace had never really thought he could accept someone in his life as a father figure. Other than Garp. His thoughts had been muddled, and then he ran into Luffy and saw how his brothers crew were so loyal to his baby brother and Luffy was still the goofball he always was which reminded him of Shanks and the crew he’d met when he entered the New World. 

Ace didn’t want to be a Whitebeard any longer... The only thing that was keeping him from leaving the crew was Marco, Thatch, Izou and Haruta.  

When Marco completely dismissed Whitebeard as he flew to greet Shanks, Ace just stared in surprise, but he noticed his boyfriend looked much more relaxed away from the old man; he also noticed that his other friends within the commanders looked jealous that Marco had moved over to Shanks’ ship. 

With Beck suddenly proclaiming Ace as his son, Ace felt like he was going to fall apart because the men genuinely didn’t care to be labelled as Ace’s fathers. A sensation that was new to Ace, Whitebeard called him son as they were all children of the sea but the old man made it feel like they were possessions rather than treasures like Shanks always spoke of Luffy like.  

Tears began to well up, which he tried to hide, even as Garp shifted a little closer to his grandson, worry hidden deep in his eyes before he threatened Beckman to keep the attention away from his eldest. 

At the question from Luffy a startled, broken, laugh escaped Ace that had everyone look at him. 

“You’re damn right I’m going to scold you, you brat!” Ace shouted down to his little brother with a small laugh, grinning in amusement and relief at the safety they were all giving him even though Whitebeard looked close to losing his temper for some reason. Probably because his plans were being foiled by Shanks. Ace knew the man was getting on in years and didn’t want to die like an old man, he wanted to die making a statement and what would the best statement be than a war for his ‘son’. “You’ll be telling me exactly what happened and then you’re in for it Lu!” 

“Mean!” Luffy whined playfully with a small pout, but he brightened at the sound of his brother’s laugh. It was a laugh he hadn’t heard since Sabo was still alive, one that wasn’t weighed down with the thoughts that he was alone in the world other than Luffy. “Oh! By the way! Mamae is really really mad at you! I don’t think the empty threat is empty anymore!” 

Ace balked at the information that his Mamae was mad at him, something that had Garp cackling beside him since they all knew that Dadan was going to lay into Ace the moment she could. And even Garp tried to avoid upsetting the bandit too much because the woman could give a tongue lashing that would smart for days. 

“When did you speak to Mamae?!” Ace questioned, completely forgetting that they were in the beginning of a war for his safety. Although, Sengoku looked like he was about to have a breakdown beside him with all the twitching he was doing. 

“Papai and Da got me a den den to speak to her” Luffy grinned, happiness in his grin that made Ace soften, glad that his brother had had the chance to catch up with Makino and Dadan after being on the seas for a few months with his crew as his company and none of his family around except for when Ace joined them for a few days. 

“Enough!” Sengoku shouted furiously, catching the attention of everyone as he glared between the two brothers and his old friend. The two pirates and marine turned their attention to the Fleet Admiral who was heaving with anger, Ace was honestly surprised that there wasn’t steam coming from the man’s ears with how steamed he was. 

“I think Senny is getting annoyed” Luffy bluntly stated to Shanks who cackled, something Ace tried to smother as well when he noticed the twitch of the mans eye in irritation. 

“Probably, Anchor” Shanks confirmed with a small grin as he patted his son on the shoulder before moving his hand back to the hilt of Gryphon and turned his attention back to Sengoku. “You’ve heard the truth Fleet Admiral, the boy next to you has done nothing to earn this farce of an execution, nor is his blood a reason for you to kill him. In all honesty, if you really wanted to kill the son of the pirate king; that would be me” 

There was a tense hush throughout Marineford, all that knew Shanks from when he was a cabin boy snickered lightly since they also knew how protective Roger was of the two brats that sailed with him. The marines knew that Shanks was powerful, but a large number of them were unaware of his upbringing until he spoke the words out in the open. Shanks also knew that there would be hush falling across the globe for those watching the war; he also hoped that his sons crew were watching too so they knew that Luffy and Usopp were safe with them. 

“You, as well as many of the higher ups, know that I was raised by the man Sengoku. He was my father in all but blood, he taught me everything I know. He is not the devil you portray him to be... If you want to kill the son of the pirate king then come at me. If you want Marineford to remain standing then I suggest you release the young man in your custody” Shanks warned Sengoku as he flicked his wrist slightly and withdrew Gryphon halfway from its sheath. 

The marines all scrambled back at the gesture, even the youngest of those standing for war knew that Shanks was a power house. They weren’t even sure if the Admirals would be a safety for them if he attacked. 

“Papai... Can I try and rocket there while you distract them?” Luffy mumbled in question as he watched Sengoku standing his ground, he knew that he could make the distance, he’d done it on more than one occasion when rocketing his nakama to safety. “Or you could help boost me over...” 

Shanks hesitated as they switched off the speaker den den that they had, he wanted to immediately disagree, but he knew that the Fleet Admiral was getting pissed off that he was being shown up by the Emperor while Whitebeard was seething at the fact that he was losing his standing in the war. The Emperor looked to the side where he noticed Beck listening to the two of them intently, as was Rayleigh and Marco; the three other men knew that Luffy’s idea had merit even if it was dangerous. 

“Marco...” Shanks started carefully as he noticed that Sengoku looked like he was calling for the executioners to make their way to the platform. 

“Light show-yoi?” Marco smirked and grinned at the nod he gained before Shanks turned to his husband and uncle and gave a nod towards the scaffold. 

If they could use Marco, Rayleigh and Beck as distractions, he could help Luffy get some air with one of the blades of wind manoeuvres that he’d perfected when he was younger than Luffy. Hopefully, the light show from Marco’s flames would distract the marines from paying attention to Luffy as his son was rocketed up into the air. 

“Usopp” Luffy called up to his sniper and grinned lightly as his cousin swung down to land beside them without stumbling. Yasopp and Usopp had enjoyed jumping from the mast while clinging to ropes, something Usopp was proud of achieving without hesitation. He kept his eyes on the marines who was watching Usopp and Luffy warily “Rocketing to Ace...” 

Usopp’s eyes widened at the suggestion from his Captain and shifted so that he was slightly behind Luffy, calculating the trajectory, weight and speed that the younger boy needed to reach the scaffold. As Usopp calculated silently, Beck shifted his weight and quickly removed his pistol, shooting at Kizaru as the admiral decided to enter the fight with the signal from Sengoku. 

With the shooting, the war began once more, however, with Shanks at their side, the Whitebeard pirates and allies were bolstered greatly as they fired at the marines. They had no way of fighting in close contact just yet so were happy to fight with their long range weapons for now. The Akagami Kaizoku made a point to fight alongside the other crew as they aimed for those wanting to take the freedom of their anchors brother. 

Within the shooting, Marco took off into the skies, lighting up the sky with his flames as he caused the distraction that Luffy needed to get to Ace without much trouble. 

Usopp quietly listed off numbers to Shanks, knowing that it would go over Luffy’s head, but Shanks would be able to use his blade to push Luffy off. It was something that Zoro had done more than once, even if it wasn’t much power yet; however, they knew their first mate would be able to get more powerful after training. 

Shanks gave a small nod of gratitude to Usopp and watched as the boy scurried back up the crows nest, immediately sniping at the marines with his hot stars and other ammo. Luffy gave his Papai a look as Rayleigh stood beside them, offering more strength since he had his sword as well. 

“Be careful anchor” Shanks warned his son as he handed him a key that should hopefully unlock the shackles. It was a key that Rockstar created during their journey to Marineford since the man had extensive knowledge about lock picking. 

“Always am” Luffy grinned cheekily before he shifted, he jumped and braced his feet on both his Papai and Uncle’s blades before they threw him up, high enough that the marines would only be able to see him if they’d watched him. He found an anchor point and threw his arms out before latching and pulling himself across the air to aim for his brother on the scaffold. 

It was a stroke of luck that none of the marines thought to look up as the war began again, Shanks, Rayleigh, Marco, and Benn were the main distractions until Luffy got to the scaffold. Upon arriving on the stand, on instinct, Luffy ducked from a punch aimed at him from behind and lashed out, knocking the executioners down the stairs before he flicked a strong kick towards where his Gramps was sitting; the man taking a fall with it. 

Luffy knew his Gramps would fake a fall the moment Luffy lashed out, although, Luffy did grimace at the fall from the scaffold that his Gramps faced. He would make it up to the old man the next time they saw each other. 

Glancing to the side, Luffy shot forward when he noticed Sengoku was using his fruit to grow, glad that the man’s fruit had a delay due to how big he grew. He clutched the key tightly and opened his brother’s shackles before pushing his own body to the limit to fling himself and Ace off of the scaffold and away from Sengoku. The Fleet Admiral letting out a scream of rage as he grew, the scaffold creaking under his new weight as the marines attention were drawn towards their boss. 

A cheer went up through Marineford as some of the Whitebeards caught sight of Ace being freed and sailing across the sky in his little brothers holding, a cheer that echoed as others joined the happiness.  

“ Luffy move !!” Usopp screamed out across the pavilion as he fell to his knees clutching his head in agony. The scream shocking many, the pain and fear in the young man’s voice was clear as day. 

“Usopp!” Yasopp cried out in worry as he quickly dropped to his sons side, his hands frantically hovering above his son until he realized that his son had unlocked his observational haki in a burst of fear.  

Before the pirates could celebrate Ace’s rescue truly, a horrific scream of pain echoed through the navy base from the teenager that had managed to beat the marines with a simple idea. Usopp’s warning only just reaching the rubber captain. 

Luffy had spotted a small ball of red hot heat out of the corner of his eye, heard Usopp’s warning and had twisted the moment he noticed his brother was in the impact range. He shifted them and took the brunt of the magma ball that hit his chest and knocked them off course, causing them to plummet down into the freezing seas below them. 

“Anchor!” 

“Luffy!” 

“Ace!” 

Cries of shock and fear rose throughout Marineford, some of the marines noted that there were two youngsters among them that had called Straw Hat by his name, but they were far too distracted by Admiral Akainu as the man smirked smugly at the hit he’d dealt upon the young supernova. 

Shanks had immediately run to the side of the ship, but he knew he was no longer strong enough to dive into the water after his son, the loss of his arm made sure that he couldn’t pull the seventeen year old ashore like he once had. When he spotted his Uncle and husband jumping into the water to get Ace and Luffy, a fury washed over Shanks that made him see red. 

Conquerors Haki bristling off him in waves, controlled enough that his allies weren’t touched but the marines fell like dominoes as he snarled in fury. Gryphon clutched tight in his hand as he began to lash out at the Admiral that had attacked his son, no care for any collateral damage as he ended up creating a trench in the middle of Marineford; causing the headquarters to creak and groan as parts began to collapse in on itself. The brick walls surrounding the pavilion no longer existing as Akainu attempted to block as much as he could with his armament, but a number of the slices broke through and hit him with a grunt; he was lucky that his logia abilities allowed him to heal from the hits as he took damage, and also lucky that he was only facing the blade slices rather than the blade itself. 

The Whitebeards and Akagami Kaizoku knew to move to safety the moment they heard the furious snarl from Shanks, the man barely registering Luffy and Ace being pulled up from the water; he knew that if he looked to his side and saw his son burnt by magma, he would decimate Marineford without remorse; including those that didn’t deserve the deaths that he’d give them. 

Hongo rushed to Luffy’s side, worry gripping his heart as he knew that his own medical expertise wasn’t enough to save his nephews life. Not even Marco’s help would keep the boy going as his breath stuttered. 

“Over here!” A voice called out from the side of the Red Force, one that had an accent that Hongo was all too familiar with. Glancing up, he relaxed almost immediately  

“Law” he breathed out in relief before he looked over at Beckman “He can save him...” 

“Go, take Rockstar with you, keep us up to date” Beckman ordered, his voice was as cold as steel as he gripped his pistol tight in hand, his glare aimed at Kizaru who was aiding Akainu with deflecting Shank’s fury. The pavilion was now open and weak to hits as Shanks destroyed their defences, it would be a good place to fight if they needed to continue; but his husband was more than capable and needed to release his anger. 

Beck looked around Marineford and noticed that the majority of the marines were retreating, the ones that were still able to move were fleeing from the carnage. Some were aiding others while some were left to die while unconscious from Shanks’ Haki. He clocked Garp as the man stared wide-eyed and broken at where Luffy and Ace had landed in the water, Sengoku was beside him, holding him down against the floor which solidified that the man definitely held no care for his old friend. 

Beck snarled as a bullet of light nearly hit his husband but was deflected by Rayleigh. The two men glanced at each other before giving the other a blood thirsty grin as they began to fight back, the three men now taking the initiative to skywalk over to the pavilion so that they were in close quarters with the Admirals and those brave and stupid enough to continue fighting. 

Hongo immediately gathered Luffy into his arms as carefully as he could before he jumped off of the Red Force, acknowledging the crack of ropes that signified her displeasure, and landed on the outer ledge of the submarine that his nephew Captained. 

Rockstar immediately followed after him with Ace in his arms and Marco behind them as Law froze with wide eyes. It took a brief moment for Law’s mind to catch up with him before he gestured for Hongo to head into the submarine with the precious cargo he had. 

Chapter Text

“Onkel?” Law whispered tiredly after spending hours working on Straw Hat Luffy, keeping him alive by using his hand to keep the younger mans heart beating, shock was still running through him as everything finally caught up to him. He had gone to Marineford on a whim after hearing rumours from one of the bar owners that Portgas D. Ace was the brother of Straw Hat Luffy. The woman had given Law a glance that seemed to be daring him to head to the war to see the carnage that Straw Hat would inevitably wreck.

The Hearts assumed that the woman had already met the Straw Hats considering the look she had levelled the crew; but Bepo also found out that her husband was linked to the crew and had decided to aid in the retrieval of the young Whitebeard pirate as well.

Law hadn’t expected to watch as Luffy managed to save his brother from the man that Cora-ya always had so much respect for, he hadn’t expected to see the younger Captain escape with his passenger only to get hit with a ball of magma and find himself plummeting into the sea. He immediately ordered Bepo to rise to the surface, knowing that they were close to the numerous ships that had sailed to protect the Whitebeard Pirate that Luffy was determined to save.

Law was already surprised to see Straw Hat there in the first place considering the younger male had been sent flying by Bartholomew Kuma alongside his crew. It seemed to be pure luck that the young man had been sent to the ship of an Emperor, one he apparently had family ties too.

The main thing that Law hadn’t expected, was to come face to face with his maternal uncle, a man he hadn’t seen since before the destruction of Flevance; after his Mama and Uncle had an argument which resulted in his Uncle joining a pirate crew. It may have been over a decade since he’d last seen the man, but he hadn’t changed at all; it seemed that he was still the man who would sit with Law and read with him, teach him how to pronounce difficult medical words and also snuck him scalpels and stitching kits so he could work on his techniques with fruit or animals he found already dead.

He was a morbid kid and his Uncle encouraged it with a laugh every time Law showed him a stitch or autopsy with a bright grin.

It was Hongo that gave him his hat, one of the few things he’d been able to save during the destruction of his home, one of the only things he treasured which was something he understood with Luffy and the straw hat he coveted.

Even though Law knew that his Uncle was a skilled doctor himself, he couldn’t agree to the man being in the same room as him while he was working on Straw Hat. He could easily tell that his Uncle had a personal connection to the other supernova, and his worry would cloud his judgement so he asked him to check on Ace instead; the former prisoner needed to be checked over because of seastone exposure and the dip in the sea. Law also wanted to be sure that the Navigator wasn't also hit with the magma that had collided with the younger brother.

Seeing his Uncle and sending him away was hours ago, hours of silence and stress, but, Luffy was finally stable even though Law had to manually keep the younger boys heart beating in his hand. His devil fruit being the only thing that was keeping Luffy alive and stopping Red Haired Shanks from going on an all out killing spree with the marines according to his first mate.

Bepo had shuffled into the operating room, mid-surgery, he was sent to check on Straw Hat for his Uncle and for the Akagami Kaizoku who were on the den den. The city of Marineford was barely standing, the island almost as bad, while Akainu was dead after Shanks had unleashed his fury upon the bastard and then managed to get the walking dead man into the sea. Keeping anyone from going after the Admiral to save him, he made sure that the man wouldn’t survive his trip into the ocean; the only one who even tried to keep Akainu from his watery grave was Kizaru and Beckman made sure the light logia wasn't able to move without having the seastone bullets removed from his spine first. Shanks’ fury only grew stronger when Blackbeard appeared, the man had made a vague comment towards Shanks about former meetings and also mentioned meeting Straw Hat, which had Shanks acting on impulse and severing the man’s head from his body before he could blink; kicking his corpse into the sea so he couldn’t be saved via his devil fruit. The Akagami Kaizoku and commanders of the Whitebeard pirates took great pleasure in cutting down the rest of the Blackbeard Pirates, none of them believing that the crew deserved to live considering the atrocities that they’d done in their lives.

Those watching the carnage on the, still running, visual den dens had managed to witness the love of a father defending his son; along with the marines and warlords failing to keep their promises of peace as a Marine Admiral attacked an unarmed teenager while a Warlord had broken out high bountied murderers and former marines to join his journey of destruction and fear mongering.

Law was also informed that Whitebeard collapsed under the weight of Shanks’ Haki being thrown violently around Marineford, a collapse that wasn't caught on den den as they were far too focused on Shanks but there was a high likelihood that the old emperor wasn’t going to wake up. Something that many of the mans own crew, surprisingly, didn’t seem to care about. It made Law question whether or not Doflamingo’s mutterings about coercive Haki was true.

Hongo jolted to his feet at the sound of his nephew's voice, startling his husband awake as Rockstar fell to the floor which resulted in Ace and Marco waking up too. The four men had been sat outside the operating room ever since Hongo had checked Ace over and the young pirate had awoken. Ace had flickering's of burns from spatters of magma but they were easy to treat for Hongo which left them hours to wait for word from the young Surgeon of Death; Rockstar had fallen asleep first since he'd spent the previous night making the key for Ace's cuffs, followed by Marco and then Ace.

Without hesitation, Hongo marched forward and pulled his nephew into a tight hug, something that had the Heart crew about to protest to, until Law seemed to sink into the hold and gripped at his Uncle’s shirt. It was a move that had the Hearts freezing in surprise before glancing to Bepo for understanding but the mink waved them off.

“He should be okay” Law muttered to his uncle as he clung to him, he tried to keep his tears at bay when the realization that he finally had a member of his family in front of him; alive and healthy, hit him. There were no signs of Amber Lead spots on Hongo’s skin, and his uncle seemed happy and healthy. “Dropping into the water helped him, it stopped the continued burning of the magma, and the hardened magma meant that he wasn’t going to bleed out-“

“Breathe kleiner Arzt, you can tell me after you’ve slept, or I can look at your charts” Hongo shushed lightly, easily slipping back into the mindset of a soothing Uncle rather than a frantic doctor; seeing the tell tale signs of tears had Hongo focusing more on Law than anything. He knew that Luffy was hard to knock down, that didn’t mean he wasn’t terrified, but at least he knew his chosen nephew was in good hands with his biological nephew. Hongo didn’t hesitate when he felt Law slump against him, he immediately hoisted the young man into his arms and gave a look to the mink for him to show him the way to Law’s quarters. “Sleep kleiner Arzt, I’m not going anywhere”

Law blushed at the small whine that slipped past his lips at the reassurance as Hongo carried him through the corridors without struggling, he wanted to fight against the exhaustion that was plaguing him but the stern raise of an eyebrow from his Uncle made him grumble lightly as he was settled onto the bed and pulled against his uncles chest when the man joined him on the bed.

“Please don’t be a dream” Law muttered tiredly as his exhaustion caught up with him and he slipped into darkness, not noticing the heartbreak he caused his Uncle.

Hongo shut his eyes to keep his own tears at bay. He hated when he had to leave Law on Flevance, he had practially raised the youngster while Hongo's sister was recovering from a difficult pregnancy with the boy and Law's father was being the highly desired doctor that he was. Then came Lami. and Hongo became the primary care giver since his sister was weak but also focusing more on Lami who was born early and had some difficulties. But, his sister raised a good point when she had sent him away; Law wasn't his child, only his nephew.

Even though he required sleep as well, Hongo made himself stay awake as he focused on every part of Law, taking in how his facial structure had barely changed, he'd just lost his baby fat. His hair was still longer than what his sister preferred, which was nice; while the tattoo's would have been something that his sister and brother-in-law would have despised. Hongo liked them though, they suited his nephew.

When Law woke up, it was to a lullaby that he hadn’t heard since his Mama sang it to Lami when his little sister was ill from a fever, only a week before the destruction of his home. The sound of his uncles rough voice, soothing him as fingers ran through his hair made Law lose the iron tight control he usually had on his emotions and he began to cry silently as he gripped onto Hongo; burying his face against his uncle's chest.

Hongo noticed the moment Law woke up but didn’t move from where he had been soothing the young man. His husband had popped by a few hours ago to tell him that Luffy was still stable and Ace and Marco were watching over him, Rockstar was going to find somewhere to sleep and also going to reassure Law’s crew that he wasn’t a threat since they were all wary that Hongo was alone with Law. Hongo gave permission for them to know the relationship between himself and Law so that they were aware that Hongo wasn’t a danger to their Captain.

Shanks and Beck had calmed knowing that Luffy was out of the woods and had promised to meet up at Mihawk’s island, the two men still wanting to be with their son but accepting the need to keep Luffy in the sterile environment of the submarine. The Whitebeards had decided to sail to an island in the calm belt so that they could make Whitebeard comfortable, with Thatch and Izou taking leadership for the time being. Marco and Ace already knew a number of the crew would leave the Whitebeards with the old man's control slipping in his unconscious state, but most were whispering that they would be staying if Marco and Ace took over as Captain’s instead.

It proved that Luffy was right when he’d mentioned that Marco was probably looking to Ace for advice even if Ace wasn’t there, when Rayleigh had mentioned it back on the Red Force.

Hongo continued to hum the lullaby softly as he stroked his fingers through Law’s unkempt hair, it made the elder doctor wonder if his nephew was still prone to bouts of hyper fixations and insomnia filled nights of research rather than looking after himself. The damp patch forming on his chest wasn't unexpected but Hongo made no move to mention it or let Law know he'd noticed it either. When Law managed to get control of his emotions once more, Hongo smiled down at him gently as the young man looked up to make sure that Hongo was really there and not a tired hallucination. It was the kind of hallucination that both Hongo and Law had had previously.

“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it, kleiner Arzt?” Hongo hummed softly, amusement in his tone at the disgruntled glare he got from his nephew. He wasn’t sure what got Law glaring at him, but it was a situation he was in often when the boy was still small; it could also be because of his old nickname. The amusement slowly slipped away as he took a breath and continued to run his fingers through the dark locks under his hand “I didn’t know where you were... I didn’t know that you’d survived until your latest bounty was released. It was around the time that my Captain was digging through the newscoo for Lu’s latest one and I found yours... I’ve been hoping to run into your crew since then”

“You really didn’t know?” Law questioned after a few minutes of silence filling the Captain’s cabin. Law taking a few moments to understand the fact that his uncle thought he was alone in the world as well. The only survivor of Flevance, which was no longer true.

Hongo shook his head in response, he had been worried about Law’s reaction to seeing him because he wasn’t sure if Law knew that he was still alive on the seas and hadn’t come to find him. Or, that Law thought that he was avoiding tracking his nephew down because of him surviving Flevance and not his sister or niece. Law never did understand what he meant to Hongo, the youngster always believed that Hongo stuck around him because he had to but it was always because he wanted to be there with him.

“If I’d known you’d survived Law, I would have tracked you down the moment I learned about your survival. I would have left my crew to be there for you... I wouldn’t have left you alone” Hongo told Law firmly, making sure his nephew was looking in his eyes to know the truth was clear. “My captain would have understood, he knows how important family is...”

Law made a small noise of shock and despair as he buried his head back against Hongo’s chest, tears flowing once more as Hongo sighed tiredly and just settled to continue soothing the young man. The two of them grieving their losses as well as the time they had lost together because of inability to communicate with each other; it was something that Law used to hate his mother for when she sent Hongo away without letting him say goodbye or giving them a way to talk to him either.

Chapter Text

“We’re about two days out Chief” Hongo informed Shanks over the den den as he noticed the worry in the snails eyes that was an obvious reflection of his Captain’s emotions from miles away.

After waking up, it had taken another few hours for Law to manage to handle his emotions enough for him to be comfortable enough to leave the Captain’s quarters, without needing to cling to his only family member left alive in the world. Introducing Law to Rockstar had sent Hongo into a fit of laughter when his nephew seemed to glitch in his brain at the fact that his Uncle was not only gay, but married to a younger man. Hongo knew that his nephew was definitely not completely straight, there had been signs since the boy was young, so he knew that the brain glitch wasn’t because of that.

It was probably because he’d never seen his uncle with anyone in his love life, it was one of the factors that added to the argument between Hongo and his sister.

After exiting the cabin and finding the closest source of information, Hongo had found out that Whitebeard had passed on during the hours that he held Law while the young man wrangled his emotions, a passing that resulted in Marco and Ace making the decision to continue their crew but under their flag instead. The two men deciding to become co-captains and changing their jolly roger back to that of the Spades but with a couple of edits that included Marco’s fire. They were discussing names when Hongo and Law entered the kitchen, the two were currently debating on the Fire Spades, something that Hongo nope'd out of helping with because he didn’t want to have anything to do with idiots and their inability to name things.

Luffy was still passed out in the recovery room of the Polar Tang, but Law had given him a quick check over, between his cabin and the kitchen, and theorized that the younger boy would probably be unconscious for another day or two considering he was in top shape before the hit but had had major surgery. It was the hit and the surgery that was the underlying issue for Luffy’s length of sleep, something Hongo confirmed to Ace when the elder brother asked.

“Lulu should either be waking up around the time we get to the island, or he’ll already be awake but not by much” Hongo continued explaining as he nodding in gratitude to Rockstar for grabbing a plate of food for him, especially since Shanks had listed off a number of frantic questions before he even had a chance to grab some food; the man had heard Hongo's voice and immediately jumped at his doctor. The Captain had been on the den den with Rocks when he’d arrived in the kitchen and Hongo had glared playfully at his husband when the man immediately handed him the snail so he could escape their Captain’s worry. “Yes, Ace didn’t lie, he’s in the clear; he was just dealing with some superficial cuts and seastone exposure along with the dip into the sea but he’s healed and slowly accepting the fact that he’s got two new dads in his life”  

“Hongo!” Ace protested from the background, where he had been stuffing his face with food Rocks had made since he was a better cook than the Hearts, which had Hongo smirking; automatically lifting his arm as Law hesitated beside him before he curled against his Uncle with his own plate of food to pick at. Law wanted to try and show a strong mask for his crew, but they all knew how harsh Law's life had been before he met them.

“Deal with it brat” Hongo sniped back at Ace without looking, his smirk growing as Marco snickered beside his boyfriend; the mock outrage was clear in Ace's voice that reminded him of the young man that first arrived on the Moby Dick. “The Chief and Beck didn’t lie when they called you family, you’re stuck with them and Beck won’t let his newfound son disappear so easily after all the shit we went through to get you to safety. Besides, you won’t upset Lulu by denying the claim, will you? This increases his claim to you as a brother considering the marriage between the Chief and Beck.”  

Ace immediately spluttered a denial and clammed up with a pout at the fact that the doctor had used his little brother against him, something that had Law looking at the two of them analytically. Law couldn't remember being so close with Lami, but seeing how determined Luffy was through the den den and then Ace's adoration for his little brother... it was strange to him.

“I don’t know why you’re snickering, you flaming turkey, you now have to face Chief and Beck as prospective fathers-in-law rather than your cousin and his husband” Hongo drawled which had Marco shutting his mouth with a clack as all his humour disappeared within seconds, Marco remembering how protective Roger used to be with his boys and how protective Shanks was with Blue; he was screwed. It was going to be hilarious then the two former Whitebeard pirates realized that they were now son/son-in-law to a throple, rather than just Shanks and Beck. The only one laughing now was Shanks on the other side of the den den, but Hongo could pick out Beck’s laughter too which made Hongo think ‘mission accomplished’ with making his Captain laugh and lose his worry for now. “And Chief, the reason I knew that Captain Trafalgar would be able to save Lu without us meeting him before is because he’s my nephew... My sister’s lad”  

Shanks’ humour quietened at the information but a small smile appeared on the snail and Hongo knew that Shanks wouldn’t question Law’s abilities any further because Hongo had told Shanks many stories about his niece and nephew over the years; mostly when the two of them were drinking and reminiscing about those they’d left behind. Sometimes Yasopp joined them too. The crew always knew to clear the deck when Yasopp began lamenting about missing his son, but when Shanks and Hongo joined in, they scarpered and wouldn't appear until snores echoed through the night.

Beck always watched on fondly, but remained sober when those nights happened because he knew his husband and friends needed those nights from time to time.

“I can’t wait to meet you Captain Trafalgar, your Uncle has told us a lot about you” Shanks greeted, a comment that made Law glance up at Hongo in surprise but Hongo just blushed lightly and glared weakly at the snail; the doctor grumbling about bad tasting medicine and payback under his breath. “Thank you for saving my son, I am in your debt...”  

“I'm not just a pirate, I’m a doctor too, saving people is part of my job” Law shook his head in denial, his eyes glancing to the door towards the recovery room where he knew Luffy was safely sleeping through his injuries. “Besides... Straw Hat-Ya is going to cause havoc when he’s stronger, I want to see what he can do”  

The look in Law’s eyes was very familiar to the two couples in the kitchen which had the four men share knowing looks but they stayed silent, noting that the mink and the one in the penguin hat also noticed the looks, they all knew that the two boys would probably get to know each other in the future and didn’t need any nudges just yet.  

“Don’t we all” Shanks sighed fondly before a noise caught his attention and he hung up, without warning, leaving the inhabitants of Polar Tang to their own devices.  

“So... An Emperor’s crew?” Law questioned carefully as the small group sat to eat the food that Rockstar had pulled together, the Hearts other than Bepo and Penguin were working around the Polar Tang while his first mate and left hand were with him to make sure he was safe. Bepo, Penguin and Shachi knew all about Flevance, knew about Law's history; they also knew the name of his Uncle too.

“Aye” Hongo confirmed with a grin as he settled to picking his food, ignoring the pokes to his side from his husband to keep eating considering Hongo hadn’t eaten much since touching ground on the submarine with Luffy in his arms. And Hongo wouldn’t eat properly until he knew that both his nephews were safe and settled with their family on Mihawk's island; Mihawk's island was a safety for him even though he trusted his nephew.

Law gave his Uncle a sour look as Hongo didn't seem to want to continue with the answer of the crew that he was on.

“Your Uncle is his head doctor, and the only one keeping the Chief’s liver from failing from excessive alcohol” Rockstar informed Law with a small grin of pride towards his husband, knowing that the man was being coy with the information because he didn't want to seem too prideful. “He’s also the one that keeps us all healthy and alive, and from what I've been told, the minimal scar on Luffy's cheek should have been worse if it wasn't for your Uncle.”  

Hongo rolled his eyes and kicked his husband lightly under the table before focusing back on his nephew, even noting that Ace was paying attention too; probably because of the mention of Luffy. Although, it was slightly true since Luffy's wound was very deep and should have been worse if it wasn't for Hongo's attention to stitches.

“I joined Shanks not long after the argument I had with your mother” Hongo sighed, careful in his tone as he brought up his sister.

The argument that made him leave was a rough one, he was arguing that Law should be allowed more freedom with his studies, that they were treating him with kids gloves when the mature pre-teen was gifted. But, it wasn’t just that that had come up between himself and his sister, his sister was pushing for him to ‘settle down with a nice girl’, wanted him to have his own family. Hongo had accused her of trying to rid herself of him, especially since she knew that he wasn’t inclined to women.  

His sister had always told him that she accepted him the way he was, that she didn’t care that he preferred men to women; but as she got older and further into her own life, she changed and started becoming hostile to him. He wasn’t sure if it was because of Law’s father, or if it was her own beliefs just making their way to the top, but it led to the breakdown of their relationship. It wasn’t even a week after the argument that he had met Shanks and agreed to join his crew without hesitation.  

The only regret that Hongo ever had was that he couldn’t be there for his nephew when the young boy became the only survivor of the destruction of Flevance. But, joining the Akagami Kaizoku resulted in him meeting his second family, meeting Luffy and then meeting his husband.  

Rockstar was his light in the darkness, Hongo’s life, and mindset, getting darker as the years passed with no one to call his own. He was able to hide it from all but the cocky communications officer that joined them a few years after leaving the East, and Rockstar just... He became his reason for living.  

“The Chief offered me a chance to see the Seas, to explore and live life to the fullest, to try and find a cure for Amber Lead poisoning...” Hongo continued, so he didn’t fall into the darkness of his thoughts surrounding his sister and the time before his crew and Rocks. “The only hesitation I had was leaving you... But your mama made it clear that she didn’t want me around you anymore... So, I joined and I’ve sailed across the Seas, visited every Blue and helped cause mischief with my immature Captain. I’ve never once forgot you and Lami, Law; I mourned your parents and the two of you for so long, even with the rift that grew between your Mama and me”  

Law went silent at the mention of his sister and mother before he leaned closer into his Uncle, old guilt resurfacing. “I tried to save Lami... But I failed. Mama and Papa were already... I failed Onkel... I’m sorry”  

Hongo sighed before he removed his nephews hat and gave him a soft smack across the back of his head then returned the hat back with ease; a move that had Law yelping lightly in surprise and everyone staring at Hongo in shock as Law pouted and rubbed the back of his head with a sullen scowl. The pout immediately disappeared when he remembered that his Left and Right were still in the kitchen with them, as were Marco and Ace; although, Ace just offered him a look of understanding and solidarity.

“You were a child Trafalgar Water Law” Hongo scolded Law firmly, keeping back the ‘D’ initial that the boy obviously kept hidden considering his Bounty didn’t hold it. “It is a miracle that you survived, I will not allow you to wallow in the guilt of not being able to save your parents or sister. As much as I adored your sister, I fear the journey from Flevance to safety would have been too much for her, she was much sicker than you were as a child... She would never have survived until you got your devil fruit.”  

Law paled at the reality check that his Uncle gave him, it was the truth but one that Law never considered as he grew up. He was angry at the world, angry at everyone around him which was why he joined Doflamingo, the bastard offered him a chance to cause destruction until he dies. Cora had given him a small bit of a childhood back, he showed him love like his Onkel did when he was little. Cora reminded Law of Hongo at times. Law never thought on whether or not Lami could survive the journey, if she would have survived the first week after the destruction of their home; his Uncle was right that Lami was weaker than he was, she was much more sickly and effected by the Amber Lead poison in her system.  

Hongo sighed at the flicker of emotions running over Law’s face before he abandoned his food, he shifted out from the table and hoisted his nephew over his shoulder; ignoring the yelp from Law and the snickering from the others. He turned to his husband with a reassuring smile “I’ll be by to check on Lu and you later, baby, I just need to get my nephew’s head on straight”  

“Take your time, if he’s as stubborn as you, I wish you luck but also want to laugh because you have to face the same as I do every time you get in a funk” Rockstar hummed with a smirk at the dangerous look his husband gave him.  

“I’ll get you back for that” Hongo promised him before turning on his heel.  

“I’ll be waiting!” Rockstar called down the hall and cackled lightly at the multiple ‘ew’ that came from the youngsters around him.  

He really really loved his husband, and he was so glad that Hongo had Law back in his life.  

Chapter Text

Crashing was what Hongo awoke to the morning of their arrival to Mihawk’s island, Rockstar barely stirred from his arms which had Hongo rolling his eyes fondly at his husband before he slipped from behind him. Grabbing a pair of sleep pants and foregoing a shirt, Hongo padded carefully through the Tang until he found the cause of the noise and sighed with exasperation at the sight of Luffy clinging to his elder brother like the rubber monkey he was.  

His nephew was glaring at Luffy for the destruction around them, wires dangling from the walls and ceilings from where Luffy had ripped out all the equipment. He was probably terrified of the loss of Ace and reacted before waking properly. While Law was glaring at Luffy, Hongo easily noted the relief in the elder Captain’s eyes at the fact that Luffy was awake and apparently lively enough to cause chaos even after having a lava ball half way through his chest. 

“Monkey D. Luffy! That is enough” Hongo scolded the young Captain tiredly as he noted that Law was beginning to get irritated and uncomfortable while Ace was slowly turning blue with lack of air since Luffy was clinging to him so tightly. Although, Marco was watching in amusement rather than trying to get his boyfriend out of his predicament.  

As expected, Luffy immediately retracted his limbs and blinked owlishly at Hongo as the rest of the group noted that he’d arrived to the little gathering. However, Hongo had forgotten that he should have grabbed a shirt considering the marks his husband had left on him through the night, the sight of Law blushing bright red but also looking ill as he turned away, as well as the snickering from Ace and Marco, reminded him of his state of undress. 

“Did you annoy Uncle Rocks again?” Luffy questioned bluntly which had Hongo groaning in resignation while Ace and Marco began cackling and Law looked like he wanted to run away as far and fast as he could. 

Why people thought Luffy was an oblivious virgin, Hongo never knew. The boy was raised in the forest, he knew what mating was from when the crew had arrived at Dawn because Luffy had witnessed mating season with one of the animals groups on accident. Shanks was slightly scarred from that conversation since Makino had smirked and left it to the Captain to explain. Most of the crew had assumed that Shanks would tell the boy that they were fighting or something kid friendly, but then he actually talked about how the animals were mating to create babies. 

Everyone was mad at the Captain for that, but Luffy just stared for a moment before shrugging and asking Makino for food. Shanks was very lucky that Woop Slap and Makino didn’t gut him that day but it did result in them not really needing to have the talk at a later time. 

Hongo ignored the question and moved to Luffy’s side, holding a hand out for the boy to take so he was able to stand; something that allowed Law to check the young man over due to the injuries. 

“He’s not just a D. But a Monkey D... Sleep and food will be just as good as medicine for him” Hongo explained to Law when he noticed his nephew’s surprise at how well Luffy was able to move considering the healing wound across his chest. “Although, extra medicine wouldn’t do any harm either, medicine he will take” 

Luffy swallowed nervously at the raised eyebrow from his Uncle, hearing the warning in his tone at the mention of taking medicine which had him nodding immediately. He glanced to the side and spotted Trafalgar Law for the first time since he woke up. 

“It’s you!” Luffy grinning widely “You got away from the marines okay?” 

“Some idiot drew the fire from us” Law drawled, he planned for his tone to be cutting, but surprised himself when it came out a little playful and amused. Something that had Hongo hiding a small grin as he wrapped his arms around Luffy and tugged the boy back against his chest. The boy could still look at Law but Hongo got his hug at the same time to remind himself that Luffy was alive. 

“I see you’ve met my nephew before Lu” Hongo hummed lightly, he knew that the two had met, it was obvious with how Law had said that Luffy was sure to make the future interesting, but it was a way for him to acknowledge that Law was his nephew for Luffy to learn too. 

Luffy glanced up with a confused expression, before his gaze flicked over to Law, the elder Captain was watching them curiously since he knew that Luffy was classed as a nephew of choice for his Onkel. Law was surprised that he hadn’t felt any jealousy towards the younger boy for having his Uncle in his life when Law had no one; but, he also acknowledged how Hongo cared for both of them and made a point of showing said care. 

“You used to tell me about him” Luffy grinned lightly as he realized that his Uncle had his ‘little doctor’ back in his life. He remembered Hongo used to say that he was glad that Luffy couldn’t cause his ‘little nephew’ any trouble with his chaos. That memory caused Luffy to start snickering with a bright grin that had Hongo watching him warily. “I’ve already brought him into ‘my brand of chaos’ Tio, and there will be more in the future!” 

Hongo huffed fondly at the reminder of his lamenting back when Luffy was a brat, he ruffled the boys hair before glancing around the room at the other pirates. Ace was watching his brother fondly while curled against Marco, the two new Captain’s finally relaxing at the fact that Luffy was awake and healing as well as he usually did as a brat. Law was blinking in surprise at the fact that his Onkel had told the younger boy about him when he was a kid, he was also surprised that the young man planned to drag him into his chaos more in the future. 

Glancing over Luffy curiously, Law couldn’t help but admit to himself that he was looking forward to the future if it was as lively as it had been the past two weeks. Although, he wouldn’t let them know that, he would probably protest and grump through it all if the boy really was chaos incarnate. 

He wondered if Straw Hat Luffy could be helpful against Doflamingo, since he knew the boy had gone against three Warlords and survived already. Even if those ‘survivals’ were by the skin of his teeth. 

“What makes you think I’d want to be brought into your brand of chaos more often, Straw Hat-Ya?” Law drawled with a raise of an eyebrow that was eerily similar to his Uncle. An uncle who seemed to be attempting to smother a grin at the banter. 

“’Cause life on the sea is chaotic” Luffy stated brightly as he ignored the drawl but focused on Law’s golden eyes. Eyes he found very pretty and would probably get lost in if he wasn’t careful; blinking for a moment before focusing on Law’s hat instead “A boring life on sea isn’t worth living... Might as well stay on land if you want boring and un...un...” 

“Uneventful?” Hongo offered Luffy and chuckled at the grin he gained from the boy. This was a sentiment that Shanks shared with Luffy when the boy was small, a sentiment that Luffy seemed to live by now that he was older. 

“Yeah that!” Luffy confirmed with a grin and a nod of his head “To be a pirate means to be free, Traffy” Luffy continued and ignored the splutter from Law at the butchering of his name while Ace and Marco were trying their hardest to stifled their snickers; sharing knowing looks with Hongo at the interaction between the two young men. “The weird helmet people back at the auction place want to get rid of freedom... You helped me after the marines came after us. I know you’re good for a pirate. I’d like to meet up more once I’m stronger... My Papai is going to help me get stronger... I can’t lose my nakama again” 

When Hongo noticed Luffy’s voice beginning to falter and become guilt ridden, he wrapped his arms around the boy tightly and held him against his chest. He made sure not to touch the new scar that the boy carried with him as he gave him the support he needed without Usopp on board. 

He wondered how Usopp was holding up without his ‘cousin’ with him. 

Law watched Luffy carefully, he could see that the younger Captain was feeling the loss of his crew greatly, but he could also see the future potential in the rubber Captain and his crew. “One day in the future, Straw Hat-Ya, I may need assistance, would you be open to an alliance?” 

It was a reach, but he couldn’t help the small smile that appeared at the wide grin that appeared. He was glad to be able to remove the sad look from the Captain’s eyes since it seemed wrong for the ball of sunshine to ever be upset. 

“Captain, we’re about to reach the coordinates that we received from Akagami No Shanks” Penguin’s voice came over he speakers of the submarine and Luffy glanced up at Hongo in confusion. 

“We’re about to reach your Baba’s island” Hongo explained and immediately tightened his hold with a roll of his eyes when Luffy tried to dart out of his hold and the room “You have to wait Luffy, we’re underwater in this ship... We have to wait until we break the surface.” 

“Then can we go to the exit?” Luffy inquired with his wide puppy eyes that none of the crew were able to say no to. They blamed Makino for that, Shanks’ chosen sister was just as bad when she wanted one of the Red Pirates to do something back on Dawn. Hongo glanced at the other occupants of the room and snorted lightly at how Ace had already melted a little at Luffy’s pleading look and Marco wasn’t that far off; even Law looked like he wasn’t immune to the gaze. 

“You need to go get changed. Ace managed to get some clothes you’d like. I also need to go get changed and I need to get your Tio Rockstar out of bed too; you know how deep a sleeper he is” Hongo informed him sternly, although, the comment about his husband was fond as he noticed the amusement in Luffy’s eyes “ And, before we leave the submarine, you will be having a full check up with Law and if he says you need to limit movement or take pain killers then you will be doing so. Am I understood?” 

Luffy pouted at the order but gave a nod anyway since he knew he wouldn’t be able to change his uncles mind. 

“Good. Now off you go” 

Luffy gave his uncle a bright grin before he immediately latched onto the hand that his brother held out for him. The three devil fruit users disappearing from the room to get ready to rise out of the sea while Hongo sighed fondly and gave his nephew a small knowing look. 

“He’s chaos, but he’s got a good heart” Hongo hummed lightly, watching Law carefully before opening his arms and accepting his brat into a hug as Law clung to him now that Luffy was awake and his nerves could relax. Hongo held his nephew tight, allowing Law to get the comfort he needed from him while there was no one else around. 

The Akagami doctor knew that Law was struggling, he had been alone for half of his life, running from people who wanted to kill him or capture him; all while thinking he had no one while Hongo was still out there. Although, Hongo also thought that he had no one out there from his blood family, not until Shanks started looking through Bounty’s every coo for news of their anchor. 

“If my Captain is open to it, would you be interested in allying with us like Luffy is... Spending some time getting stronger before the new world?” Hongo proposed to the young man in his arms, hoping with all he had that Law would say yes because it meant that he would be able to spend time with his nephew. Get to know him for the amazing young man that he was today. It also meant that Luffy could spend time with Law and Law would get used to the brand of chaos that the ball of sunshine dragged around with him. 

Law froze at the offer, staying silent for a few moments as he mulled over the offer. He knew it wasn’t an offer that was set in stone, but, Law was tempted. The offer meant that he could stick around his uncle, that he could get to know the man that Hongo truly was rather than the one that hid his heart because of his mother’s outdated ideals. The weird thing was that Law grieved his parents, but it was the loss of his uncle that he grieved more when Hongo was initially banned from coming around anymore. Law grieved Lami the most, but Hongo understood him, he taught him and let him be himself while his parents tried to smother his abilities saying that he was far too young for the levels that he wanted to study at. 

Hongo was more of a father to Law in the years that he spent with him, mainly because his parents were sought out doctors who sometimes prioritised their job or Lami over him; while Hongo always prioritised him. 

“I’d need to talk to my crew” Law hesitated, his voice thick as he realized that his friends may say no. 

“We’re sticking with Luffy for a bit on the island, you can talk to them and give me your answer before we leave” Hongo eased as he pulled away and gave Law a fond smile “I know there’s another patient on the island so I need to check him over... Luffy’s first mate Zoro, he was subjected to Warlord Kuma’s alternate power which resulted in all of Luffy’s pain being pulled from him and forced into Zoro in one go. Luffy is rubber and has a high pain tolerance as it is... Zoro isn’t” 

“They are all idiots” Law deadpanned as he took a step back, which caused Hongo to snort “I’ll take a look at him too, my fruit makes it easier because he can’t hide anything from me” 

“A warning though, the island belongs to Dracule Mihawk... He’d probably be intrigued by your blade and your abilities.” 

Law blinked owlishly at the information before he sighed and just resigned himself to the insanity that surrounded the Straw Hatted Captain and his crew. 

“Go get dressed Onkel, Onkel Rocks did quite a number on you and I don’t want to see just how much he likes to maul you” Law shot at Hongo before he walked off, his uncle cackling behind him since Hongo never had any shame when it came to Rockstar and the marks his husband left on him; just as Rockstar was. Amusingly, Shanks and Beck were similar while Mihawk always ended up a blushing mess when he was teased by his husbands. 

Hongo hummed to himself as he padded through the corridors of the Polar Tang, he belatedly remembered that he wanted ask Law what kind of help he would need from Luffy in the future, but decided to ask him later on. When he arrived back at the cabin that Law had given him and Rockstar, he smiled fondly at the sight of his husband still sprawled out on the bed, barely stirring after Hongo had slipped out from behind him. If he had time, he would have woken his husband up in a sinful way, but he had a feeling that they would be breaking the surface before his idea would find its end. 

Which would result in Luffy hunting them down because he wouldn’t leave the submarine without Hongo’s permission. 

Sighing with a small pout, Hongo moved into the room before perching on the edge of the bed near his husbands hair where he ran his fingers through the strands gently. 

“Rocks, baby, you need to wake up now” Hongo spoke lightly, drawing his husband out of the land of sleep with soft touches and words since giving the man a jump scare was always a bad idea. Luffy learned that the hard way when the ball of rubber jumped on the bed to wake Hongo up and then ended up pinned to the floor in a choke hold. 

Luffy had found it hilarious while Rockstar panicked about it until Shanks scolded Luffy , instead of his communications office. Rockstar was extremely confused until Beck just sighed, as Hongo cackled and Shanks scolded Luffy, and explained to the younger man that Luffy was used to rough housing and also should know better than jumping on people to wake them. 

It took a few repeats of that morning for Rockstar to understand how Luffy worked, he still woke up defensively with Luffy jumping on them but he didn’t panic anymore and just went back to sleep while Shanks scolded the kid. 

“W’s going on Mein Schatz?” Rockstar mumbled tiredly as he woke, his eyes automatically focusing on his husband. 

“We’re docking” Hongo hummed softly and smiled as Rockstar woke up completely, his husband was getting antsy being on a submarine rather than an actual ship so docking was a good thing. “Lulu is awake too” 

“Chaos is coming then” Rockstar quipped as he climbed out of bed and stretched with a yawn. 

“Always” Hongo laughed as he moved to get ready, hoping that Law would accept the alliance since he knew Shanks would because Law saved Luffy’s life and was also Hongo’s only family. 

Chapter Text

“Luffy! Ace!” Shanks called out, relief and exhaustion were clear in his voice as he vaulted over the railing of the Red Force and landed knee deep in the water before rushing to where the Polar Tang had surfaced in a little cove; close enough to an embankment that meant the group could depart from the Tang with only a little risk of getting wet. It was also easier to transport the small group over to the dry part of the island, away from the water; something Law did the moment he knew that Luffy was safe. Ace and Marco both gave Law a small glare at the shift of placement for them. 

Shanks was grateful when Hongo caught Luffy around the middle before the teenager could rocket himself across the distance between them, his doctor lifting Luffy into his arms before following his Captain’s lead and jumping down into the water; making sure that Luffy remained dry as he waded to his friend. Shanks immediately clung to the younger captain as Luffy sighed in relief at being reunited with his Papai. 

A yelp drew Hongo’s attention behind him where Beck seemed to have snuck up on Ace on the island. Their first mate had given the young man a smack across the back of the head, after sneaking up on him, before he pulled the twenty-year-old into a tight hug. While Ace wasn’t the one hit with a ball of magma, Hongo knew that the crew were worried about the young man due to seastone exposure, his dip into the sea and his mindset after Luffy had gotten injured to save him. There was a reason that Beck decided to announce to the world that he was Ace’s dad, he enjoyed the young man’s company when the boy met up with them and spent the night drinking. When Shanks was indisposed, Beck was the only one awake and Ace was dealing with insomnia that particular day so they’s silent the night talking as Ace relayed more stories about Luffy to Beck while also, inadvertently, telling the man stories about himself too. 

It was during that night that Beck realized that he would do anything he could to keep the eldest brother safe, just like they would do for Luffy. 

Marco was snickering at the weak glare that his boyfriend was sending his way, but the phoenix was also looking on fondly as Ace seemed to melt into the tight grip of one of the men that had, inadvertently, resulted in him meeting Luffy and allowing him to know how to love and be loved. Marco knew that he was in for one or two terrifying shovel talks from his oldest friend and partner but he didn’t care because it meant that his partner was loved . 

“I’m okay Papai” Luffy promised Shanks firmly as he shifted so he could cling to his dad of choice, letting the man hide his head against Luffy’s neck so the others didn’t see him cry from the worry of nearly losing his son. Even though Luffy could see a number of his Uncle’s had tears trailing down their own cheeks. Luffy had been the same the moment he realized that he’d succeeded in saving Ace when he woke up, and Ace wasn’t hit by magma like he was so he could forgive his family for being crybabies in this instance and wouldn’t point it out. 

Luffy closed his eyes and took a deep breath, his head tilting lightly as he managed to hear the sea once more. The Polar Tang had made her muffled so Luffy hadn’t been able to catch up on anything in the time he’d been awake, something that was making him fidget quite often because he’d heard her since he was small and then suddenly couldn’t. As Shanks tried to manage his emotions while he clung to Luffy, the young captain smiled lightly as he learned what he’d missed while he’d been unconscious and buried behind the metal sheets that allowed him under the waves without drowning or getting wet. The Sea seemed to miss Luffy as much as he missed Her, it was nice considering she once hated him for the first few months after he’d accidentally eaten the Devil Fruit; it wasn’t until the both of them got used to things that She said that the fruit was meant for him even if She wished he wasn’t lost from Her waves. 

He was glad that the old man that wanted to upset Ace was gone, the Sea was glad too, the man was keeping too many of Her children locked away like objects; now they could be free to sail Her waters. Luffy was also informed that Shanks killed the guy that had injured him, made the man regret his actions before he found his end, Shanks had also proved to the world that Luffy was one of his coveted treasures. Blackbeard was also sent to the depths of the Sea after he tried to taunt his Papai with Luffy’s injuries; the slimy man having appeared thinking that Ace would be dead and Whitebeard would be weak or dead as well. 

The last bits of information that Luffy gained was that Mother Ocean was leading his Uncle Blue to the island with allies and a future nakama for him, Bon Clay had nearly been trapped in Impel Down but one of the other assassins and his Uncle had grabbed them before they could sacrifice themselves. She also informed him that Robin was safe away from where she had been sent and was no longer in the East but on her way to him with another ally that Luffy would be happy to see.  

“Luffy!” A voice called that had Luffy immediately shooting his head up to locate the missed voice, the Sea going silent with a whisper of amusement in Her waves as Luffy tried to wriggle out of Shanks’ hold but the man was using Haki to keep him gripped against him. It didn’t help that Shanks was still thigh deep in the oceans waves which meant that Luffy was in danger of exposure to the sea water. 

“Zoro!” Luffy exclaimed in excitement before sending his Papai a pout with a small scowl at being held still even as the man chuckled wetly. 

Shanks quickly used Luffy’s vest to wipe at his eyes before he gave into the pout and began to wade back towards the beach, keeping a tight grip on his son so that the young man couldn’t stretch his injuries to get to his first mate. 

Beck was still holding Ace close, and from the shaking of the logia’s shoulders in the corner of his eye, Shanks could tell that Ace was allowing himself to break with someone that wasn’t Marco. The whole crew had been waiting by the den den since they had set sail from the destruction of Marineford, Shanks had to be dragged away by Beck because of the blood, ash and dust that covered him after the loss of his temper; but the rest of the crew waited desperately for updates.  

Yasopp was the only one that didn’t focus on the den den, his own focus lay with Usopp who had to be sedated by one of Hongo’s helpers because of the overwhelming awakening of his observational Haki. None of them were sure if Usopp would be able to use it to glance the future, or if it was purely because of the trajectory and mathematics of the lava being aimed at his own Captain. Yasopp knew that Usopp would be able to use it with his sniping, but even he couldn’t glance into the future. 

The moment Shanks was in reach of Zoro, the green-haired swordsman gripped onto the young Captain’s arm which made Shanks reluctantly relinquish his hold on his son so that Zoro could be reassured that Luffy was okay; as his clingy monkey easily shifted onto his swordsman’s side while he still kept a grip on his Papai’s shirt. 

In the days that it took them to get from Marineford to Mihawk’s island, the newscoo had already released that Luffy had been gravelly injured by the, now, deceased Admiral Akainu. The story was an amusing one that Shanks couldn’t help but cackle at after he found out that Luffy was stable from his Doctor, Big News Morgan was obviously bias towards his son as he wrote how Luffy had managed to blindside the entire marines to steal Ace out from under their noses. The journalist had only used Luffy’s injuries as a way to write about how Shanks had destroyed Marineford because of the injuries that Akainu had dealt to the rubber Captain; Morgan had taken great enjoyment in writing how Shanks and Beckman claimed the two boys as their own while making the marines look like assholes that cared little for the safety of innocents. (Shanks’s words not Morgan’s since the journalist knew not to outright insult the marines and world government without disappearing. The male had managed to write everything that had happened while still seemingly neutral, yet all that knew to look closely could see that the coo favoured Luffy and his actions in keeping his brother safe) 

Big News Morgan had made it known to those who read between the lines, that the newscoo were excited to see what Luffy would bring to the world even with the injuries that he was dealt with. They had released that Beckman was now officially known to be the father of Portgas D. Ace while Shanks was the known father of Monkey D. Luffy, with the teenager being the grandson of the Marine Hero; Morgan had gleefully recounted how Shanks had managed to tempt the Marine Hero’s daughter and gained a son from the union. Neither boy’s mothers were released but it gave the two of them protection against the marines who wanted them destroyed for their apparent bloodlines, Ace no longer had Gol D. Roger linked to him while Luffy could no longer be claimed as the son of the leader of the Revolutionaries but the nephew of him instead. It was also released that Rayleigh was present in the fight and had made it known that Luffy was considered to be family considering how furiously he joined in the fray when Luffy was safely in the hands of the ‘Surgeon of Death’ 

However, while the coo stated more about the fight than anything else, there was still the fact that Luffy was injured, so Shanks had to contact all the Straw Hats they had the numbers for so that he could reassure them that Luffy was stable and safe with someone who could help him. 

Sanji felt broken at the fact that the youngster was injured and in a healing coma and he couldn’t do anything to protect him, add to the fact that Usopp was sedated, it hurt Sanji a great deal and he was itching to be reunited with his crew. Something that made Shanks promise the young blonde that he would make happen as quickly as possible which resulted in him requesting his husband to go collect the blonde with Hitsugibune since the vessel was small and agile. Limejuice calculated that they could possibly get Sanji to Mihawk’s island two days after they arrived themselves. 

Mihawk was willing to wait two more days before reuniting with his husbands if it meant gaining points in Luffy’s book considering he’d been in Marineford to aid in the death of his big brother. 

Rayleigh had taken the hours after the fight to scour his sources to get the den den numbers for as many of the Straw Hats as he could find. Succeeding in reaching out to Franky and Nami and reassuring them that Luffy was safe but sleeping, as was Usopp. 

Zoro was the worry since they’d originally planned on Mihawk being there to break the news to the swordsman about his Captain’s injuries, but Mihawk was elsewhere collecting Sanji so it left Beck telling him and Perona what had happened; Perona needed to use her devil fruit to keep Zoro from losing his temper completely. Although, Mihawk needed to redecorating two of his rooms now. 

“Thank the Seas you’re okay Lu” Zoro mumbled against Luffy’s neck as he clung to the rubber teenager. 

Ever since they’d been split Zoro had been panicking about his Captain since he knew that Luffy hated being alone, the younger always needing someone with him even in sleep; it was a relief when he found out that Usopp was with Luffy and the two boys were with their fathers. When he found out about Ace, and then about the island he’d found himself on, it took all he had not to try and swim for his Captain to try and help; Perona had been scary and kept Zoro resting with the help of Beckman’s ‘dad glare’ through the den den. 

When Beckman had called to tell him what had happened, Zoro had broken, he’d then destroyed two rooms of Mihawk’s castle before he ended up curled with his head in Perona’s lap as he tried not to overthink the injuries that his Captain, his little brother, had sustained because he couldn’t be there to protect him. Perona had managed to keep him calm and to help him through his thoughts, reminding him that Luffy was alive , he had been injured but he was alive . 

Seeing his Captain wrapped around the unknown made his heart lurch, but the hair colour and description matched the stories from Luffy which clued him in on the fact that this was Luffy’s Papai which meant the one holding Ace was Beckman; who Zoro needed to avoid for a little bit considering he’d overwhelmed himself a little with the destruction of the two rooms. 

“Roronoa Zoro” Shanks greeted warmly with a nod of his head when he noticed Zoro watching him even as he clung tightly to Luffy. The teenager not phased as he wrapped himself tight around Zoro. 

“Captain Shanks” Zoro returned the greeting as formally as he could manage with the rubber monkey wrapped around him, he opened his mouth to express his gratitude to the man before a grunt escaped him as Zoro and Luffy hit the floor. Zoro bracing Luffy carefully before realizing that Usopp was the projectile that hit them. The sniper clinging to the two and sobbing as Zoro sighed fondly and just allowed the teenagers to cling to him like barnacles. 

Shanks snorted at the fond look and knew that his son was in good hands, although, he didn’t leave he just settled to sit next to the trio as Zoro and Usopp reassured themselves that Luffy was safe in their grasp. 

“Sanji will be here in a few days” Shanks offered offhandedly which had him laughing as three heads shot up in shock “Hawky has gone to get him, wants to make up for his part in Marineford.” 

“Baba Hawk didn’t do nothing though” Luffy grumbled, although he was happy to know that his chef wasn’t going to be alone for much longer, he glanced at Zoro when he felt his first mate stiffen at his referral to Mihawk “S’okay Ro, you can still beat Baba Hawk for your title... Just can’t kill him anymore... Though I think we might be brothers properly soon” 

Shanks cackled at the shocked look on Zoro’s face, tears streaming down his cheeks as the rest of the crew watched on fondly  

“Welcome to the family kid. Good luck” Lucky Roo offered to Zoro and laughed lightly at the startled look he gained before deciding to set up a grill on the beach to sort out food for the large gathering. 

Chapter Text

Usopp had climbed back up to the crow's nest and watched with bated breath as Luffy used the momentum from Uncle Red’s sword along with Great Uncle Ray’s, his eyes tracking his Captain and cousin across the skies as he sailed through the air to where Ace was waiting for a rescue. He knew that Luffy could make the distance between them and the platform that Ace was locked to, he knew because of his calculations, and he’d seen Luffy reach distances on pure determination alone.  

Ace was a good man in Usopp’s eyes, he could see how devoted the older boy was to Luffy when they originally met him in Alabasta, the man went against Captain Smoker without a thought and then continued to fight with them until a lead went dead and he had to separate to continue his own journey. The whole crew could tell that Ace was hesitant to separate from his little brother since they were reunited after three years apart, but they could also tell that the elder brother had found their crew to be one he could trust to keep Luffy safe.  

And yet, they nearly broke that trust more than once.  

Usopp knew what Zoro had done with Kuma and his powers, taking on Luffy’s pain and injuries so that their Captain could keep going. He wasn’t awake when it had happened, but he had overheard Sanji and Zoro more than once to pick up what had occurred on Thriller Bark. But they still couldn’t help Luffy as he got as beat up as he did, Zoro was the saving grace at that point and yet it also caused their crew to be down one of their strongest fighters.  

Then there was Sabaody.  

None of them blamed Luffy for his loss of temper with the Noble, not with Cami on the line and Hatchan bleeding from bullet wounds just because he was a Fishman. One that dared to set foot on land even though there was nothing wrong with him being on land in the Straw Hat’s eyes.  

But none of them could fight back either, Usopp knew that he wasn’t the only one feeling guilty about the fact that Luffy had to watch all of them being sent away; none of them knowing if Kuma was killing their crew mates or just making them vanish. Usopp had watched Luffy’s face fall with every crew mate disappearing, he saw the devastation as their numbers decreased one by one.  

It was pure luck that Usopp was the one that ended up on the Red Force alongside Luffy. And he would offer his gratitude to Kuma the next time he saw the true buccaneer, Luffy hated being alone, but he had Usopp with him at least. Usopp wasn’t the strongest on the crew, he wasn’t the bravest, nor was he the smartest; but at least he was closer to Luffy’s age than the others and knew the feeling of being alone and scared.  

Being reunited with his Baba was a massive thing for the younger sniper, but Usopp focused more on Luffy than he did training properly on the Red Force, he wanted to make sure that whenever Luffy wasn’t with his Da or Papai, then he was with Usopp so that he had a constant reminder that his crew were okay. They may have been separated but they were okay because Usopp was okay even though he had been sent flying too. Sticking close to Luffy gave the younger boy a sense of purpose, Usopp wasn’t the strongest or bravest so in Luffy’s eyes, he needed to protect his sniper even when around their own little family; Usopp was okay with that if it meant Luffy wasn’t drowning in the dark thoughts that Usopp was all too familiar with.  

Next to him, Yasopp was firing his gun at any marine that even dared to aim at Luffy on the scaffold, the older sniper had followed his nephews progress just like his son had. If Usopp noticed someone his Baba didn’t, then he shot his own ammo at the unlucky bastards, filling their eyes with hot sauce or a burst of flames; but his focus was on Luffy, especially as he readied to shoot through the air again.  

Usopp’s gaze remained on Luffy as his captain flew through the sky, Ace wrapped tightly in his rubber arms. The pirates around them were cheering in success as they watched Luffy and Ace moving away from the marines and towards safety on the Red Force, a cheer that had his own spirits raising; even though there was a dark forboding pressing down on him.  

It was if instinct was showing Usopp what could happen, he spotted the anger literally pouring off one of the men in front of the scaffold, a man who was with the two admirals that Usopp had met before; easily filling in that the man was an Admiral too. The man was glaring at the duo in the sky and Usopp watched in horror as he began to form a giant ball of magma in his arms. A devil fruit user, another one that could harm his captain like Aokiji and Kizaru had both done previously.  

With his mind going a mile a minute, the trajectory of the ball of magma became a physical representation as calculations flickered through his mind. If his captain didn’t move then the magma would hit both males full on, killing them both in an instant before what was left of their bodies would plummet into the Seas and be lost to them.  

“LUFFY MOVE!” Usopp screamed out in instinct as the buzzing in his ears got louder, the screams of everyone around him and the death of voices got louder until they suddenly went silent. He dropped to his knees in pain as he automatically threw his hands over his ears to try and protect himself from the sudden silence that seemed more painful than the shouting previously was.  

“Usopp!” Yasopp shouted in worry as he, too dropped to his knees to check over his son, a cry of pain from Luffy echoed around the area but Usopp could only focus on the pain in his head as Yasopp realized he needed to be his Captain’s Left over a father right now.   

Yasopp got up and immediately began to fire against the marines, he kept his attention flickering between Usopp and the marines as his Captain released his anger on those that dared harm their anchor. The anger of Shanks was thick in the air, a feeling that had Usopp relaxing rather than tensing since the youngster could feel the protection that said anger gave him. The elder sniper watched as Beck and Rayleigh fished the two boys out of the ocean before Hongo took Luffy to a submarine, Yasopp didn’t even dare to aim at the submarine since he knew exactly who the young man was; he trusted Hongo’s nephew to look after their own.  

The moment Yasopp knew that his Captain and First Mate were releasing their fury upon the marines since Luffy was safer, alongside Rayleigh, the sniper immediately dropped to his son’s side; soothing him as best as he could with soft fingers carding through his hair.  

“Breathe muṱuku ” Yasopp whispered gently as he shifted to sit in the crow's nest, drawing his son close as Usopp quietly broke in his arms; he lifted the youngster into his lap and rocked him like he used to do when the boy was just a babe at his mother's breast.  

Given the stress and anguish in Usopp’s voice as he screamed for his captain to move, Yasopp summarised that his son had unlocked his observational Haki like the stories of Shanks’ brother unlocking his at a young age. While Yasopp wasn’t sure what Usopp had been through, he had a feeling that it was like his own observational Haki rather than future sight like Mihawk had; it would explain how the boy was an exceptional sniper like himself.  

Yasopp heard the calls to set up for their retreat, but he stayed where he was, cradling his son in his lap as the teenager buried his head into Yasopp’s chest and smothered his sobs with the fabric. The sniper barely glanced up as he sensed one of his crew arriving at the top of the nest to check on the two and to see where Yas was because he wasn’t helping; he sent Gab a small grimace as Gab caught sight of Usopp in his arms.  

“I’ll let the chief know. He’s worried about Usopp too” Gab mumbled to Yasopp, they had all heard Usopp’s scream for Luffy to move; all of them understanding that their newest nephew had been their anchors saviour with his warning.  

They had all, also, heard the agony in the young man’s voice as he shouted for his cousin to move, it wasn’t just pain for what could happen to Luffy, but physical pain on his own part too.  

Yasopp gave a small nod to Gab in gratitude as he started to hum a lullaby under his breath, keeping his voice low and soothing so he didn’t aggravate the migraine his son probably had; especially since Hongo wasn’t with them.  

It wasn’t long until Usopp had passed out, Yasopp wasn’t sure if it was from pain, emotional exhaustion or just pure exhaustion from the hype of the battle and everything crashing down on the young man’s shoulders. He sighed lightly as he struggled a little to reach for the blankets that they usually kept in the nest for when the two snipers stayed there to watch the stars. It was a few hours later when Beckman climbed up to the nest to check on the two Syrup village natives, the first mate finally calming down enough to check on the other youngster that they’d been housing for the past two weeks.  

“How’s he doing?” Beck questioned, his voice was rough and Yasopp could see the stress that the other father was holding as he gestured for Beck to join him, Beck was currently his friend over his superior and Yasopp knew how it felt to have the worry of a sons safety eating away at you. He shifted Usopp enough that his son was pressed against Beck’s side as well so that the man had a reminder that he wasn’t alone in his grief, and they still had one of their teenagers safe.  

Beck gave Yasopp a grateful look as he shifted closer to be reminded that Usopp was still breathing in his father’s lap, even though he could see the tightness of pain while the youngster was sleeping. He would get a cold compress sorted when he went back down so that Usopp had a bit of relief from his migraine once he woke up.  

“Passed out a little while ago, think he unlocked his observation” Yasopp hummed softly as he continued to card his fingers through his son's hair to remind himself that he was okay. “Lu and Ace?”  

“Rocks called... Lu is still in surgery, there’s been small updates but he’s still being worked on... The magma hit his chest.” Beck spoke; his voice was monotonous and tight as he explained, which meant that he was trying to hold back his temper at the reminder that his son was hurt. Although, Yasopp relaxed at the information that Rockstar was keeping them up to date so they weren’t constantly thinking the worst. “Trafalgar Law has the Ope Ope No Mi, though... So the chances are good. Ace is okay, some seastone sickness and burns that are healing but he’s alive...”  

“For a war, the injuries are minimal” Yasopp pointed out to Beck logically, he knew that it might have been a bad choice of words, but Beck was one of the ones with common sense on their crew; and while Luffy was injured and still in surgery after hours, he was still the only one that was injured past small cuts and bruises. He was a stubborn jungle child who had lived through many injuries, including when he was seven years old and nearly got chomped on by a Sea King; there was nothing that could keep Luffy down, and they all knew that when they weren’t ruled by emotions. “Luffy is your kid... He’s a stubborn, feral, enigma that won’t let anything take him down until after he’s crowned king of the pirates”  

There was silence for a few moments before Beck gave a weak chuckle.  

“Big words there Yas, that’s not like you” Beck teased their third in command and smirked lightly at the insulted look he gained in return. Some of the tightness in Beck’s shoulders slipping away are the reminder of Luffy’s tenacity and dream.  

“Someone has to be the voice of reason after you and the chief went feral on the marines” Yasopp pointed out dryly and offered his friend a small grin as Beck snorted. If they hadn’t gone feral, Yasopp would have been worried that something was wrong with the two; but it also proved to the marines that Luffy was theirs , he wasn’t fair game.  

Beck glanced down at Usopp again before he sighed and climbed up from the floor of the nest, he looked over the side to where his husband was still pacing in worry for their sons; even though they already knew that Ace was awake and okay, and Luffy was stable.  

“I’ll get a cold compress sorted for him” Beck offered with a small nod at Usopp, he remembered the story of when Blue had unlocked his observational haki; his brother-in-law had been bedridden for two days because of the migraine that he was hit with afterwards.  

“I have a bad feeling that he’ll need more” Yasopp admitted to Beck carefully, the sniper grimacing as he gave his friend a serious look.  

Since the two boys had appeared on the deck of the Red Force in the middle of the New World Seas, they were dependent on each other, barely ever being apart when not with their fathers. They needed to be together or at least with one of their parents unless they were asleep; and even when they woke up, they’d search for each other or their fathers.   

Witnessing Luffy getting hit with magma, watching him fall into the sea without their crew around to fish their captain out; Yasopp had a feeling that Usopp was going to end up breaking down more than they could handle without Hongo around. His son was already prone to panic attacks and anxiety, and this was going to push him over the edge when they didn’t have Luffy around to calm him down.  

Beck analysed Yasopp carefully before he sighed and gave a small nod of agreement, he had witnessed the same as Yas with how dependent the boys were on each other. Beck had been beside himself when Shanks had been injured in Foosha, and that was when he had his husband by his side. Usopp was a bag of nerves already, he would struggle without his cousin around.  

“I’ll ask Lime to whip up a sedative, I’ll try and get Sanji on the snail too to see if he can help calm Usopp down or have ideas” Beck promised carefully before he left the two snipers to the silence of the crow's nest and the sea as they’d dived.  

-  

Yasopp and Beck were, unfortunately, right about needing a sedative for the teenager.  

The moment Usopp woke up, the panic attacks hit, the constant memory of his cousin and captain being hit with magma and plummeting into the depths of the ocean barely left his mind as he spiralled into the darkness of ‘what if’s’.  

Yasopp was the first to move into action the moment he noticed the spiral and Usopp’s nails digging into his arms as he tried to use pain to remove the dark memories from his head. Immediately he tried to calm his son down, but when he noticed how blank his son’s eyes were, how zoned out he was in panic; he grabbed the prepped syringe of sedatives and knocked his son out. Not even Sanji’s voice could calm him down as the chef tried his hardest to call through Usopp’s anxiety attack, it then resulted in Beck needing to calm the blonde down when he realized that Usopp had been sedated.  

Shanks watched on in worry, but also jealousy, he couldn’t admit to anyone but his husband that he wished he could be unconscious to the world and events until the moment he found out if their son was still alive. It took Beck an hour after calming Sanji down, to reasure his husband that their son was safe; but Beck also shuffled his husband to their cabin and held him close as Limejuice and Lucky Roo took over keeping the Force sailing to Mihawk;s island.  

When Yasopp heard that Luffy was alive and was probably going to be in a coma until they reached Mihawk’s island, he debated bringing Usopp out of his own sedated state. They already had trouble getting him to eat when they reduced the amount they gave him, Yasopp having to hand feed him because he was the only one that Usopp registered. Shanks having avoided the boy because of how much his state was breaking his heart, Shanks had tried to help originally but he nearly broke at how disassociated Usopp was.  

In the end, Yasopp eased Usopp back into the conscious world when he knew he was only a day away from Mihawk’s home. Usopp had been unconscious for two days, same as Luffy, which had Yasopp on edge the entire time.  

It took two hours for Yasopp to manage to get through to his son, telling him that Luffy was alive, he was safe in the submarine that he’d been rescued in; that he was with Ace, Marco and another pirate crew. Hongo had told them personally that Luffy was out of the woods, but they just needed to wait for him to wake up; that he should be awake before they reach the island so when Usopp next sees Luffy, his captain will be alive and healing.  

Usopp had broken down upon hearing that Luffy was okay, he had curled into his father’s embrace and cried for another hour before he finally ran out of tears and soon became an excited bundle of nerves.  

Most of the Red Force crew watched in fond amusement as Usopp barely sat down, he even kept Yasopp up through the night as Usopp couldn’t settle. Something that could be said for Shanks and Beck as the three men humoured the youngster with stories of their own travels to keep him awake and entertained away from the darkness of his thoughts.  

When the submarine emerged from the water, Usopp remained where he was, his eyes zoned in on Luffy as his Uncle Hongo grabbed him and dropped down into the water to keep the devil fruit user from getting wet; he wanted nothing more than to follow after his Uncles, but he knew the men needed to have Luffy and Ace close by more than he did. Especially when he heard Ace yelp, the two snipers both released soft snickers at Ace’s reaction to Beck.  

“Luffy!”  

When Usopp heard Zoro’s voice, he stiffened and immediately moved his attention to his first mate; the moment he noticed Shanks carrying Luffy to the shore to greet Zoro, he jumped from the ship and wadded through the water before he was throwing himself at the two other boys and sobbing against them.  

Yasopp followed his son and offered Zoro a small nod before he turned his attention to Shanks who was watching the three boys fondly.  

Chapter Text

The day after the Hearts and Akagami Kaizoku arrived at Kuraigana Island, Shanks had settled at his favourite spot on the beach of the island, a place where an incoming ship could settle without too many issues but was still safe for him to relax with the teenagers lounging next to him. Luffy using Zoro as a pillow like a cat curled up on a bed while Usopp was settled against Zoro’s side. Beck was watching over them from a little further away, where he had some targets set up for Ace to aim his fire, with Marco observing. Hongo was with Law in the Tang, keeping his observation open even as he spent time with his nephew while his nephew’s crew did stock in take.

“Incoming” Shanks hummed in amusement as he noticed a spike in his observation Haki, immediately zoning in on his second husband whose emotions shouted ‘exasperation’, but considering the man was a day earlier than they’d calculated, he had a feeling that Sanji had pushed for Mihawk to go faster than usual so they could arrive to the island and their treasures sooner.

Although, given how worried Mihawk had been when he heard that his fledgling was in his castle and injured; Shanks wouldn’t be surprised if Mihawk pushed himself to return faster. The man had spent many days and nights combing through old newscoo’s for information about Zoro, his pirate hunter career and his career as the first mate of the Straw Hats; Shanks knew that Zoro reminded Mihawk of himself when he was a teenager. Shanks had been Mihawk’s saving grace and push to become the strongest, it seemed Luffy was similar to that for the green haired swordsman too. Except, Mihawk became half of Shanks’ heart while Luffy was Zoro’s annoying little brother, something that was plain for the Akagami Kaizoku to see since Luffy and Usopp were reunited with the elder boy.

Ace had the same thought process and admitted to Shanks that Zoro and Sanji were the main reason that he felt safe leaving Luffy alone to continue after Blackbeard, the two boys reminded him of him and Sabo when they were brats.

Luffy, Zoro and Usopp had been inseparable since they’d arrived on the island, always having Ace close as well so that the young man was reassured that Ace was okay and Ace was reassured that Luffy was still alive. The four boys camping out in the room that Zoro had claimed as his own during the previous night, being joined by Marco, Perona, Law and Law’s first mate for the only night that they had been on the island. Shanks was pulled to Mihawk’s bedroom by his eldest husband due to how little sleep he’d already been getting since Luffy’s drop into the ocean, they all knew that Luffy would be safe with the large group of teenagers around him so Shanks ended up sleeping for the first time in days.

When Zoro and Usopp met Law, they were thanking him constantly until Law got fed up and teleported them away from him, something that made Hongo smirk as he playfully scolded his nephew for being so anti-social. Law had just scowled weakly but stayed closer to his uncle for the rest of the evening because Hongo had given the boys one glare and they’d avoided him completely. Usopp already knew that Hongo was a force to be reckoned with and could scold like no tomorrow, while Zoro could tell that the man was someone to avoid getting on the bad side of.

It was an hour after they arrived that Zoro had been forced to sit down by a stern Beckman to face a check up from Hongo’ and Law. Luffy had stuck close to the older boy and reassured Zoro that Law was safe and Uncle Hongo may act mean but he was a softie, something that earned the rubber boy a glare from said softie. Law was able to reassure the group that Zoro’s injuries were all healing steadily and all that was required was rest and relaxation, no extreme training from him.

Shanks also warned Zoro that he wasn’t to attack Mihawk when he arrived, if he attacked the other swordsman then he’d have his swords hidden from him for two weeks. The Emperor also warned the young man that Mihawk would likely show a bit more emotion than normal when he arrives at the island considering the man had been worried about him since hearing about Sabaody and Thriller Bark.

Ace snickered as he pointed out to the swordsman that he was going to be grounded if he didn’t behave, something that had Zoro blanching but huffing in acceptance before he leaned against Luffy instead. Zoro already knew that he was in deep considering he was surrounded by his ‘little brother’s’ adopted family and apparently was also included in said family; including having his nemesis as a possible adopted father.

Shanks had turned around and informed Ace that he had no reason to be snickering since he was grounded already, indefinitely. That had Ace going pale and shutting up before glancing between Shanks and Beckman in horror; Shanks had a stern glare on his face while Beckman was wearing a smug smirk as if daring Ace to argue.

But Ace didn’t argue, he just went silent with a soft pout, and a red blush coming up his neck and cheeks as he realized that he had a family around him; one that wasn’t against telling him off even though he was twenty years old and not ten. Although, Ace also knew that Garp would be arriving soon to scold him too, the man already told him that much in very little words.

Shanks frowned as he noticed a second haki signature that he remembered clearly, a signature that he hadn’t sensed for so many years; this one was surrounded by many others but was closing in on Kuraigana. It was far enough that he could reunite with his husband first, but close enough that Kuraigana. will be having more visitors than it has ever seen before. It was just a good thing that the former Whitebeard pirates were on a different island.

Although, Marco had spoken about requesting permission from Mihawk for three of their commanders to make their way to the island as they were extremely worried for Ace. Shanks knew his husband would gripe about it but would agree nevertheless.

It seemed like he was going to have a bigger family reunion than he planned today.

“You shitty rubber idiot!” A voice shouted clearly over the sea, something that had Luffy perking up and cackling when he spotted his chef on the little coffin shaped boat that his Baba preferred to sail.

“Sanji!” Luffy cheered excitedly, Zoro immediately wrapping an arm around him to keep him from shooting across the sea to their friend. Usopp moved to the side slightly because he knew that he would be hit with a fist accidentally if he wasn’t careful. Shanks offered Zoro a nod of approval and gratitude at grabbing a hold of Luffy before the boy could shoot to Sanji, the boy still wasn’t completely healed so stretching was a big no; and rocketing was a definite no.

The moment Sanji was close enough, he leapt off the boat and immediately rushed through the water until he was colliding with the three boys on the beach that were waiting eagerly for him. Luffy immediately wrapped his arms around the small group of them multiple times while Shanks sat in the sand and watched fondly as he felt the exasperation in Mihawk’s Haki as he got closer. 

The moment he could see his husband clearly, he climbed up from the floor, smiling gently as Beck appeared at his side to help him up. 

Mihawk glanced over the small pile of teenagers with fond exasperation, his eyes lingering on Zoro and Luffy before they moved to where Shanks and Beck waited for him. With practiced ease, he jumped from Hitsugibune and practically glided across the sand until he was clinging to Shanks and Beck; both men gripping onto their third as tight as possible as Mihawk stayed silent and accepted the comfort from his husbands.

Shanks snorted weakly against Mihawk’s neck as he heard the whispers of confusion and shock from those around them, the only ones that knew about the relationship, outside of Shanks’ crew, were Luffy and Usopp. Beck chuckled lightly when he picked up the same but Mihawk just grumbled lightly under his breath even as he clung to the two men he adored with his entire being.

“He’s safe. Both boys are safe, so are you” Shanks reassured his husband quietly as he noticed that Mihawk still held himself stiffly, not wanting to move from where he was clinging to the other two. Those that didn’t know the warlord would assume that it was Beck and Shanks that were refusing to release the swordsman but the Akagami Kaizoku could tell that Mihawk was in need of reassurance from his husbands. “Our three boys are safe” Shanks stressed to Mihawk softly, making sure to include Zoro in the count as well because he knew Mihawk was worried about Zoro too “Zoro had some internal injuries that are healed, he just needs to take time to rest and recover, Ace is recovering from seastone exposure and Luffy is doing well. He’s just not allowed to over tax his body since his stitches aren’t completely healed yet”

Mihawk listened in silence as his youngest husband gave him a small list of injuries, Shanks already knowing that Mihawk will consult Hongo at a later time to learn the limitations of their boys while they were staying with him on his island. They had no doubts that the teenagers would be adamant on training to get stronger so that a repeat of Sabaody never occurred again, Sanji had filled Mihawk in on what had happened, the blonde having a nightmare the night before which had Mihawk prompting the boy to tell him everything.

By the time Mihawk had managed to keep the worry at bay, the four teenagers had gotten over their own teary reunion, Luffy was sporting a new bump to the head but they all knew that Sanji was worried about Luffy for his stunts so the hit wasn’t meant to injure the younger boy. Sanji had been overwhelmed with worry for his Captain as well as the rest of the crew, but Mihawk could tell that it was Luffy that Sanji was the most worried about. The night before the blonde had tiredly admitted that he wasn’t sure if any of them could continue with their journeys and their dreams if they lost their ball of sunshine; the warlord was pretty sure that Sanji didn’t remember that admittance as the boy was half asleep when he spoke it.

When Mihawk was untangled from his husbands, he released a small grunt of surprise as he was collided with and had rubbery limbs wrapping around him.

“Thank you from bringing Sanji home, Baba” Luffy muttered to Mihawk, the swordsman stiffening in surprise at the term of endearment from the young man; but Shanks just gave a fond smile and a nod of encouragement as Mihawk hesitantly wrapped his arms around the teenager.

“I apologise for not acting in Marineford” Mihawk swallowed thickly, guilt still eating at him at how close his husbands had come to losing their anchor after being reunited with him after years apart.

“Silly Hawky, you couldn’t” Luffy snickered wetly as he rested his cheek against Mihawk’s heart, listening to the heartbeat that was faster than it should be as the man hugged him back tightly “Papai explained... Said being a warlord means you’re safe, you and your treasures... Will mean Ghosty is safe too”

Mihawk remained silent as he tried to figure out who Ghosty was, but then he remembered Shanks telling him about the young woman who had found herself on his island too. A daughter that none of them had expected to gain, it seemed that they had all had their hearts stolen by teenage pirates and yet none of them cared. From what Beck had told Mihawk, the girl was with Moria for years which explained how she was also touch starved and looking for acknowledgement.

Beck had taken her under his wing before he had even met her, the young woman initially denying a need for family but then accepting it almost immediately when offered it in person. Ace had taken one look at her and cackled before welcoming her to the elder sibling club where they have to constantly despair about the antics of their youngest siblings. It actually took a few hours for Beck to lose the pink barnacle from him as she clung to Beckman the moment she met him in person.

Zoro had been pretty insulted by that, especially when Perona began to swap tales with Ace about her two weeks looking after Zoro and his seven years of looking after Luffy; but soon, said youngsters, accepted the embarrassment with rolls of their eyes.

Luffy found having another sister pretty cool, especially since he already had Makino. He had eagerly called Makino to introduce her to Perona, the barmaid had scolded Luffy to the point where he was hiding from the snail behind Zoro, Ace quickly joining him when she turned her ire on him; the woman had made them promise to return to Dawn as soon as possible so they could see them in person. Plus, Dadan refused to speak to them over the den den, she was rattled and upset and couldn’t get her words across through the snail.

Shanks had promised the women that he would be cutting through the Calm Belt with the boys as soon as they were healed enough, and as soon as they got the rest of Luffy’s crew together again.

Rayleigh had terrified everyone when he suddenly popped up behind Shanks during the call and asked Makino if Garp’s stories about the animals there were exaggerated . When Makino informed him that they weren’t, the man gained a glint in his eyes that had Shanks itching to run and hide; Rayleigh then decided that he wanted to train Luffy and his crew on Dawn for a little bit before he suggested that they separate for a little time so they can return to where Kuma sent them. Kuma obviously had an idea on how to make the group stronger and Rayleigh believed that the buccaneer had a good plan. This idea had Luffy pausing before glancing between Usopp and Zoro, and nodding in reluctant agreement.

Luffy would be going with Rayleigh, Usopp with his Baba and Zoro with Mihawk. The rest of the crew would be where they originally ended up, except for Robin. The Sea informing Luffy that the person bringing Robin to him would help her get stronger after their time on Dawn.

When Rayleigh made the suggestion, Luffy and Ace shared a look before a feral grin appeared on both their faces, ones that had even Shanks shivering a little. He remembered seeing the aftermath of one of his sons hunting trips, he didn’t want to know what else was there, especially with how insane his Uncle Garp was because of his upbringing.

“Lu... I sense-“ Shanks started and paused at the familiar snickering from his son as Luffy sent him a knowing look.

“I know... Tio Blue is on his way. She says that there are some nakama on the ship too” Luffy informed his Papai, the other Straw Hats glancing between themselves in confusion “We’ll be safe... But Papai needs to send the prisoners away to a close island and not here. Tio Blue, Croco, Bon, One, Three and another Warlord should stay; plus two others but She just says they work with Uncle Dragon”

Shanks hummed in consideration at the lost, he had no idea who Bon, One or Three were, but apparently Usopp, Sanji and Zoro knew who they were considering they relaxed at the first name and were slightly worried about the second. He could assume who the two who worked with Dragon were, because he knew that there were a number of revolutionaries in Impel Down but two were really big names. Shanks also knew which Warlord was in Impel Down to keep him from protecting Ace.

It was beginning to become obvious that his son could understand the Sea and her whispers, he wondered if all Luffy’s quirks were because of said whispers and if it was just the Sea he understood.

“I guess it’s time for another family reunion” Shanks sighed in fond exasperation as Luffy snickered and released Mihawk before jumping on Shanks’ back and wrapping his arms and legs around the man, nuzzling against the side of his head lightly as Shanks huffed fondly.

“Zoro... Sanji... No attacking Tio Blue” Luffy ordered his Left and Right, not even phased by their confusion until Usopp whispered to them that Tio Blue was Buggy the Clown.

That had the two young men grumbling and pouting but they nodded in reluctant acceptance.

“Beck... Lime...”

“I’ll get the safe ones off the ship” Beck hummed lightly as he ruffled Usopp’s hair , passing him with a small smirk at the grumble of playful annoyance as the sniper fixed his hair.

Beck was glad to see Usopp looking much better than he had been, having to sedate the boy while they travelled from Marineford to Mihawk’s had emotionally destroyed many of the crew; especially since they were also worried about Luffy as well. Having Sanji around also seemed to brighten the teenager’s mood which would get better when the Straw Hats were reunited.

“I’ll send the ship towards an island that isn’t currently housing other pirates” Limejuice added as he did the same with Zoro. Ruffling the green hair in amusement as the boy grumbled in response with a  scowl aimed at the navigator before he seemed to eye Mihawk warily. 

Mihawk hummed lightly at the two members of the Akagami Kaizoku moved forward to where the marine ship could be seen approaching them. His eyes flickered to Luffy and Shanks before focusing primarily on the young swordsman that he had been following closely in his journey on the seas; he hesitated before his instincts overwhelmed him and he strode forward to pull the swordsman into a careful hug.

Zoro stiffened at the touch before naturally relaxing into the hold, his hands hesitating before coming up to carefully pat Mihawk on the back. Shanks, Beck, Usopp and Luffy had all commented how worried Mihawk seemed to be over him, especially from the stories that Shanks had told the teens on the Red Force during their journey to Marineford.

Mihawk cleared his throat awkwardly as he took a step back from Zoro and let out a dry huff at the similar awkward look on Zoro’ face.

“Apologies Roronoa” Mihawk offered the swordsman.

“S’fine... Expected it I guess” Zoro waved off, with the stories he’d been told he figured that Mihawk was going to be worried about him for some reason. And considering how clingy Luffy was to Shanks, he reasoned that Mihawk would probably pick up some of Shanks’ habits.

“Red! You flashy idiot! What the seas have you been getting yourself into!” Buggy screeched in annoyance as he flew across the remaining bit of sea until he was in front of his little brother. He immediately whacked his brother across the head which Shanks allowed with a fond smile and Luffy snickered at as well. “And you! You rubber brained moron! What the seas were you doing with that move! Huh?”

Buggy and the other prisoners listened on the den den as the war went to a halt because of Shanks turning up to the war with Luffy at his side. Buggy hadn’t had the chance to see his little brother in years, and while he still held a grudge against the red head; he was worried about him after hearing the claim on Luffy and Ace.

He wasn’t going to be able to compartmentalize Luffy being his family just yet, the boy was a menace and trouble but seemed to take after his little brother completely. He should have known who Luffy was to him the moment he saw the hat, the moment he met the boy and saw how he treated the small crew he’d gathered so far. But Buggy pushed it to the back of his mind, he didn’t want to think of everything he had done to his nephew before now.

However, hearing that the young man had been hit with magma and sent flying into the sea, he felt his heart stop and wanted nothing more than to make sure the boy was safe. His brother didn’t deserve the heartbreak of losing his son.

“Needed to save Ace, Tio Blue” Luffy snickered with his usual joyful grin, barely phased at the sudden shock that went over the clowns face at being called Tio by the youngster. “Better to do that than have any others die because the seagulls are being mean”

“It’s nice to see you too Blue” Shanks snickered slightly in amusement, smirking lightly at the shock on his brother’s face before he stepped forward and tugged his brother into a tight hug. “Are you okay?”

“Stayed away from seastone” Buggy reassured his brother softly as he hesitantly hugged his brother back and managed to hug Luffy as well considering the boy was still clung to Shanks. “Just need some food and to sleep somewhere safe”

“You’ll have it here” Shanks promised as he pulled away from Buggy and checked him over with a quick scan of his eyes, his eyes flickered to where the small group of safe people joined them on the sand with one of them holding Buggy’s feet.

“Bon!” Luffy cheered right into Shanks’ ear, causing Shanks to wince as the teenager released his Papai and raced over to the former baroque agent  who squealed and threw his arms around Luffy.

Luffy was joined by Usopp in the hug as Zoro and Sanji headed over to them as well, the two of them clapping the agent on the shoulders in greeting.

“You’ve gained a new crew I see” Shanks hummed in amusement as the man with a three in his hair placed Buggy’s feet on the floor and his brother righted himself completely. The small group staying back, Three was rolling his eyes at his friends reunion with the Straw Hats, his eyes flickering to Buggy with a hint of worry; while Jinbei conversed with Beck without a care and Crocodile stayed back with Daz, torn between glaring at Shanks and watching Luffy warily.

“The others will come find me” Buggy waved off, although, Shanks could hear the worry in his tone at the mention of his crew “Bon will probably join Ivankov or your son, three will stay with me while Daz will stay with Crocodile. Jinbei seemed taken with he stories of your brat...”

Chapter Text

“So what’s the plan now Red?” Buggy questioned lightly, quiet as the small group of escapees mingled with the Heart pirates and the Akagami Kaizoku.

Law and his crew had been overwhelmed by the new names appearing, Law had been itching to leave the island but had been calmed by Hongo with promises to remain close should his nephew feel out of his depth surrounded by former Warlords and bounty hunters. It didn’t take long for the Hearts to be intrigued by Bon Clay, the former agent was happy to keep the Straw Hat Captain entertained so that he didn’t further injure himself.

Luffy was sat next to a camp fire, his first mate was at his right while Usopp was sat at his left, the two of them acting as buffers for the boy as he curled close to remind himself that he wasn’t alone. The teenager was watching Bon Clay with a bright grin and excited laughter as the okama told the small group stories while using his own devil fruit powers to play all the parts. He was currently in the process of regaling the Hearts, Perona, Ace, Marco and Jinbei with the tale of Alabasta. Ace had settled himself behind Luffy to allow the young teenager to lean against the fire logia for heat and reassurance while Marco was sat with Jinbei to offer support in an unknown situation. Perona had fallen in love with Bon Clay the moment she met them and was eager to learn more about their power, but she also stayed close to Zoro as the swordsman gave up holding himself back and tugged Perona into his side to offer her some comfort as well.

Jinbei was surprised when the Straw Hats barely blinked at the fact that he was a Fishman, Luffy had eagerly sent random questions his way before he was pulled back when they became absurd. Sanji had offered the Warlord a fond apology as Luffy’s attention was pulled elsewhere but Jinbei waved it off with a grin. Now he understood why Bon Clay was so invested in the youngster and his safety. His intrigue with Luffy grew more intense when he found out exactly why Luffy was attacked by Kizaru and Kuma on Sabaody since Hatchan was one of his own friends.

When Luffy suddenly popped up and asked Jinbei to join his crew, everyone around them had expected the fishman to immediately decline, but Jinbei laughed and agreed as long as he was able to tie up a few loose ends first.

Luffy had cheered with an agreement before going back to spending time with his best friends and cousin around the camp fire.

Beck had immediately dragged Mihawk off to the castle, something that had Shanks pouting a little but the Captain knew that he needed to focus more on his brother and he newcomers than he did reassuring his husband that all was forgiven for his being at Marineford. Luffy and Ace had already promised the Warlord that he was forgiven for following orders but the swordsman was still feeling guilty which resulted in Beck taking the decision to drag Mihawk to the castle.

The moment everyone was calm after the appearance of Buggy and the others, Sanji had immediately moved to Lucky Roo, greeting the other chef eagerly as Lucky began to exclaim about how grown up the Baratie’s eggplant was. Sanji was now cooking with Lucky, the two of them sharing recipes and stories of their travels as they cooked; Lucky was amused when Penguin hesitantly joined them to learn some things about cooking since none of their crew were well versed in the art of cooking edible food.

Crocodile had remained in the background of the group, Daz and Three were beside them; along with Ivankov and Inazuma. It seemed that Ivankov was trying to prompt Crocodile to do something but the former Warlord was trying their best to ignore them while they also tried their best to keep from staring at Luffy.

Shanks and Buggy were at the campfire too but far enough that the teenagers didn’t feel smothered.

“We’re going to be going East” Shanks explained to his elder brother with a small hum, his eyes flickering between his son, the okama and the fire as Blue offered him a semblance of comradery. It reminded him of times of joy when he would be sat at a campsite watching his father and mother being lovey dovey, or watching his father being an idiot with the rest of their small family. They were stories that he wanted to share with Ace someday. “Uncle Ray wants the kids to face Dawn like Tio Garp grew up with”

Blue immediately blanched at the mention of Dawn and the way that Garp grew up, no one knew that Blue had actually visited the island when he first went to the East Blue. Years into his stay in the East, he had returned to Dawn and had met a pretty girl who was working at her Ma’s bar, one he knew would be a bombshell when she got older and one whose company he enjoyed, but the clown knew he couldn’t stay on the island just in case his Tio found him there. The island was terrifying with the animals that lived there as well.

“Plus, Lu and Ace need to visit their sister and Mamae” Shanks continued, his voice soft as he kept his gaze on the fire; losing himself in the flames as he basked in the comfort of having his big brother with him once again without Blue throwing half-hearted insults at him “I also don’t want Ace out of my sight for a while... We nearly lost our baby brother because of Teach...”

Blue stiffened at the reminder as his own glaze flickered over to the fire logia who was laughing at a part of the tale being spoken. Blue remembered when the young man had first set off to be a pirate, he was a cocky little bastard but strong and wilful; he was the same after meeting up a few months ago but more mature. He never realised that the young man was his baby brother, not until just before the young man left him the second time and by then the circus captain knew he had no right to say anything so kept quiet.

Blue also remembered when Shanks gained his scars, he was in the East at the time but he heard it through his information network; his little brother had been injured by the slimeball that always creeped them out when they met up with Whitebeard for fights and parties. He wanted to chase down the creep and use him for all the experiments he could think of that would hurt. Then he found out that Benn Beckman, his brother’s first mate, had destroyed a town hunting the bastard down until Teach managed to hide behind the protection of Whitebeard; the elder Oro cabin boy was quick to accept his eldest brother-in-law after hearing that. Plus, he knew Mihawk from years ago and was happy to hear that his brother finally got his swordsman as well, so both his brother-in-laws were accepted by the clown without the risk of shovel talks when they first met.

“Thought he was your kid, not our brother” Blue commented, his voice barely a whisper, although there was a hint of a tease to his voice as well. Ace wasn’t his brother, not really, Blue knew the kinds of stories that the boy was probably raised on; he wouldn’t want to be linked to Roger with those stories. The logia would probably be more open to being known as the son of Beck and Shanks than that of Gol D. Roger.

“He’s both” Shanks stated, his eyes hard as he scowled at the fire, if anyone tried to contradict them, Shanks would remind them how protective the Gol/Monkey D. Family could be of their treasures.

“You sound more and more like Papai every day” Blue commented fondly with a bump of his shoulder against Shanks’.

Shanks seemed to blink back into awareness before he smiled a goofy smile of acceptance at the other former cabin boy.

“Looks like I have his penchant for picking up strays too, although you’re more like Mamae...” Shanks agreed and snorted at the startled laugh that escaped his brother “What happened at Loguetown, Blue?”

Blue sobered up at the mention of Loguetown, he still wasn’t sure what was running through his mind that day. It was close to the anniversary of his Papai’s death, he hadn’t had a chance to talk with his brother in months and he was hurting at the loss to the teenager that reminded him so much of his little brother and his papai. That hurt was twisted into something dark and dangerous upon meeting Alvida and learning that the other pirate had also faced the rubber brat and lost.

“I don’t have a reason or an excuse” Blue admitted, his voice lost as he took his turn staring at the fire and getting lost in the dancing flames. “I was angry... I was upset and I was lost... Your boy reminded me so much of you and Ppaai, when I got to Loguetown, Alvida suggested that I use the platform as a stage and I went with it... I’m sorry Red. I didn’t know he was yours...”

Both men were startled as Buggy let out a surprised grunt when a weight suddenly appeared in his lap, a familiar weight on his head as Buggy noticed Luffy was in his lap without the familiar straw hat on his head. Said Straw hat now rested on the clowns head to offer the same comfort it used to when Red, or his Papai, would do the same so many years ago.

“Tio is thinking too hard” Luffy hummed as he shifted to lean against the clown’s chest, his head leant back against his sternum as he looked up at the man who had tried to defeat him many times in the past six months. Each battle making Luffy and his crew stronger even if it led to small injuries. Buggy hesitantly wrapped his arms around Luffy’s middle, making sure to avoid the bandages as Shanks rolled his eyes fondly and Luffy relaxed against his Papai’s Blue. The other Straw hats barely twitched at Luffy leaving the small group and moving to Buggy and Shanks, they all knew how in tune Luffy was with emotions and even they could see that Buggy was struggling with whatever he and Shanks were talking about.

“Monkey-Benn D. Luffy! You better not have stretched that wound!” Hongo and Law scolded in unison when they both noticed Luffy in Buggy’s lap.

The Hearts all cackled at how Law blushed at the fact he’d spoken in unison with his uncle, while the Akagami Kaizoku laughed and teased Hongo. But the two doctors still focused on Luffy as the teenager sunk into the hold of his Tio to try and avoid the glares

Buggy snorted in amusement but glanced down and over the bandages, content at the lack of any signs of red.

“No signs of blood, Hongo... And mini-Hongo” Buggy called over to the scary doctor, his own doctor was scary but Hiroko was no where near as scary as Hongo. Hongo even managed to get his little brother to behave and Crocus never managed to get that to happen. Even Rayleigh often had times where he struggled to get Red to behave for him when it came to his health. Law glared weakly at the clown for the nickname but he still leaned against his Uncle, slightly happy at being linked to the man that was always more like a father to him than his own.

“Sorry Tio Hongo... Tio Blue needed a hug” Luffy snickered as he noticed the danger slipping away with Law being called ‘mini-hongo’ and distracting the two scary doctors.

“Try and reduce the stretching Lu, or else I’ll put a seastone bracelet on you to keep you still” Hongo threatened the teenager, a threat that had the Straw hats stiffening but Luffy eyed the doctor and noticed the worry that was still hidden in the stiff shoulders and wary eyes of his Uncle. Luffy nodded in acceptance before leaning back against Buggy without a care.

“No more stretching until Robin arrives in two days” Luffy promised, his words causing everyone to stare at the boy with a mixture of surprise and confusion “Gramps will be here tomorrow with Tio Bo, Koby and Helm. She says that they’re not on the Dog but on a small ship to stay hidden. Robin is with someone safe but She won’t tell me who...”

Luffy’s further explanation had Shanks relaxing with a small, fond, huff; he knew where Luffy was getting his information from the moment that he mentioned ‘She’.

“Lucky, best check our supplies for when Tio arrives tomorrow. He’ll eat just as much as Ace and Anchor, especially if he’s hurt or avoiding food so that he can get to the boys faster.”

“On it Chief” Lucky nodded as he looked to Sanji, grinning widely at the immediate agreement from the blonde. “we’ll see what Hawk has got here as well”

“Not much” Perona piped up from where she was still leaning against Zoro, clinging to the physical contact that wasn’t dismissive or painful. Even if the swordsman was mean at first, he had become very protective of Perona in the past few days. “I think it’s because he doesn’t stay here for very long... He just has a lot of wine... Well, he did. But Zoro got into it”

Luffy snickered at his first mate being called out for drinking his Baba’s wine, Shanks released a fond sigh as Hongo and Law grumbled about the actions.

“Moss, you might want to get ready for vigorous training for drinking his wine” Sanji pointed out to his friend, something that had Zoro flipping him off that caused Sanji to laugh lightly.

“You’ll have a warning sign to hide, Hawky will probably yell first” Shanks informed Zoro with a small wink. Shanks had done the same a few times but his husband had his own way of punishing Shanks for drinking his stash, a way that definitely wouldn’t be used with the young straw hat. But Shanks also knew that Mihawk would be protective because Zoro shouldn’t be drinking with his injuries, it was going to be interesting to see how dynamics were going to switch now that they had their four adopted kids around. Two kids being unexpected since Perona was a surprise and Ace was a surprise adoption via Luffy and also Beck’s quick thinking to get the boy to safety from the marines.

“You could always tell Zoro off and tell Baba that it’s been done” Luffy suggested with an innocent grin, a grin that Shanks knew looked innocent to everyone else, but he was aware that it was because Luffy was being a little shit with loopholes. His youngest knew that Shanks’ scolding for drinking Mihawk’s wine would be half-hearted since he had done it before, and Shanks also appreciated the wine collection for its variety.

Buggy snorted at the suggestion, easily figuring out why Luffy had suggested it. The clown removed the hat from his own head and dropped it down onto Luffy’s a little rougher than needed to be before pushing the brim down over the teenagers eyes. “That ain’t fair on your Baba, brat. You know your Papai wouldn’t give the scolding your elder brother deserves, plus, Roronoa shouldn’t have drunk his hosts wine without permission in the first place.’

Luffy pouted as he knocked the hat back, but he was also fighting a smile at the fact that his Tio’s emotions weren’t screaming ‘sad’ anymore. He was also happy to note how Buggy had easily integrated into the role of Tio, also noting that he called Zoro his elder brother as well.

“RORONOA ZORO!”

“Too late... Run kid” Shanks and Buggy spoke in unison to Zoro.

The rest of the crew cackled as Zoro did exactly that, he looked to Luffy quickly who snickered with a small nod before he darted away.

Sanji gave an exasperated sigh “I’ll follow the idiot so he doesn’t get lost”

“No need” Shanks reassured Sanji with a fond grin “Hawky will find him quickly”

Sanji stared analytically at Shanks, trying to figure out the truth in the Captain’s words before he sighed at a hip bump from Lucky. He gave a small nod of acceptance before focusing back on the list of food that Lucky was writing down.

“Da!” Luffy exclaimed with a grin when he noticed Beck approaching them, Buggy immediately wrapped his arms around the teenager to keep him from stretching to his brother-in-law; something that made Hongo and Law give him nods of approval from where they were sat conversing about something.

“Hey anchor” Beck greeted fondly as he sat beside his husband, pressing a light kiss to his lips before accepting his son climbing over Shanks to sit in his lap. Shanks grunting in pain at the action as Buggy snickered in amusement. “Gotta admit, I’m impressed how much the kid drank. Hawky isn’t...”

Beck glanced around him to check on everyone, when he noticed Perona looking a bit lost and also glancing his way every so often. Beck gestured for her to join him with a caring smile, something that she hesitated on doing before giving into her desires and floating over to sit next to Beck.

“Ya doing okay darlin’?” Beck questioned the girl lightly as Shanks smiled in greeting and Buggy looked curiously at the young woman.

“Bit much...” Perona admitted hesitantly before smiling lightly at the hat being placed on her head from her new little brother, and Beck wrapping his arm around her to hold her close like Zoro had been doing. “Ro was being an anchor for me before he had to run... I told him drinking all that wine was a bad idea”

“Little brothers won’t listen to sense, kid” Buggy informed Perona dryly, playfully tugging on Shanks’ hair which caused his brother to pout and try and bat his hand away “You just gotta be there for when they need a hug after being told off... This idiot decided to drink a whole bottle of South blue vodka when he was eleven; stole it from Uncle Ray’s bunk.”

“I remember that” A voice piped up from beside Buggy, causing everyone but Luffy and Buggy to startle as Ray made his presence known beside his eldest nephew “Little shit got alcohol poisoning from it...”

Blue offered his Uncle a tentative smile, rolling his eyes fondly as Rayleigh ignored fears and pulled his nephew into his side for a hug. The clown turned his attention back to Perona who was watching curiously as Luffy snickered, Beck gave his husband a fond look and Shanks sat pouting at the story being told.

“I tried to get Red to see reason, but he was a brat and decided that he was old enough and could handle the vodka. Even though the vodka was also one of the strongest vodka’s in all the Blue’s.” Buggy continued, ignoring the pleading look from his little brother to stop. “I didn’t want to tell on him either, so I stupidly watched as he downed the bottle, it was only when he started throwing up that I went for my Papai.”

“Roger was furious but also panicking like a headless chicken” Rayleigh laughed at the memory, his eyes clocking that Ace had been listening and was curious “Crocus was away for leave at the time so we had no doctor with us other than knowing basic aid. So Roger sat with Red trying to get him to vomit the alcohol from his system while I tried to locate Newgate so his flaming turkey could help”

“Quit calling me that!” Marco protested as he moved behind Ace, his flames flickering in annoyance as Ace laughed. Marco grumbled with a weak scowl at his partner before turning his attention to the group on the other side of the fire. Shanks was turning as red as his hair and pouting “I remember that, Uncle Roger was beside himself, freaking out so much that Captain had to restrain him to actually get him to calm down and explain... In the end I used my flames to burn out the alcohol that was still in Red’s system. If I remember correctly, Red ended up receiving a very detailed explanation on what alcohol poisoning could do to someone’s kidneys, from Whiskey, as well as what alcohol could do to kids in general.”

“It’s a wonder how he still drinks” Rayleigh confirmed, remembering hearing part of the lecture that Whiskey Bay had levelled at his youngest nephew; it made even him turn off alcohol for a week.

“Papai grounded Red for a month after that” Buggy finished the small tale with a smirk at how red his brother had gone. Luffy was snickering in Beck’s lap while Perona was looking intrigued; Ace was also surprised that his biological father was stern enough to ground his kid for drinking. “Kept him at his side for the entire month, Red was only allowed out of his sight to go to the bathroom. Mamai was worse, she gave Red a thorough scolding and more... She was always someone to avoid when mad, something Papai never learned.”

“I remember telling you, Blue, it wasn’t your fault that your brother got into trouble... You couldn’t do anything except physically removing the bottle from him” Rayleigh hummed, knowing the words would be good for the young lady to hear “But, he would need you after it to be a pillar of support.”

“Which resulted in me constantly being at Papai’s side because Red was a barnacle whenever he was in trouble” Buggy confirmed with a fond grin at his brother, the other man was only a few months younger than Buggy, but it always seemed like more with the way the man acted.

“I hate the three of you” Shanks informed his brother, uncle and cousin.

Marco cackled in amusement, fondness washing over him at how his cousin hadn’t changed over the years and was still the little shit he remembered chasing down for pranks he’d pulled during meet ups so that his Uncle Roger and Captain could fight. Marco glanced at his partner who looked slightly lost in his head; he tugged Ace to sit in his lap and wrapped his arms around his firefly before pressing a kiss to his neck. Ignoring Usopp’s playful gagging beside him as the sniper decided to move to sit with his Baba instead.

“I can tell you loads of stories when you want to hear them” Marco whispered to Ace softly “Stories of my Uncle Roger, not the Pirate King... “

Ace hesitated, his eyes moving to where Buggy and Shanks were scowling playfully at Marco before he nodded in agreement. “I think that would be a good idea”

“Oi! Chicken! Stop being all cuddly with my kid/brother!” Red and Blue warned in unison, something that had Marco stiffening and paling a little as he remembered how bad the two could be together.

“Fuck off, he was my boyfriend before you claimed him as your kid” Marco sniped back weakly, something that made Ace snicker in his lap even as a blush was making its way up his neck at being claimed so easily by the three pirates.

“Maybe so, but he was our brother before you even met him, and you knew it” Red pointed out dangerously to his cousin, something that had Marco tightening his arms around Ace as if to keep him close so Red didn’t lunge.

“Nothing you can do will make me stop loving him Red” Marco pointed out to the Emperor, his voice true as his eyes met the red of the other pirate. “I knew who he was the moment I saw the eyes and freckles, but he wasn’t Gol D. Ace or Portgas D. Ace and never has been to me... He’s just Ace. The rebellious little firefly that decided he wanted to spend over three months trying to kill my Captain until he finally gave up and joined. Although, I have a feeling the Captain was up to his old haki tricks there...”

“how many days was it?” Luffy asked curiously, interrupting the emotional talk without a care, something that had Ace groaning lightly with a weak scowl at his little brother. Although, Ace also welcomed the interruption since it meant he was given a break from his heart bouncing at how many people claimed him so easily even knowing who he was born too.

“About a hundred, I think?” Marco offered Luffy, confusion in his voice at the question since he wasn’t sure why it mattered how many days it was.

Luffy immediately started snickering “That makes sense... Hundred loses Ace?”

“Shut it Lu! Like you ever got past twenty wins with either of us!” Ace shot back grumpily.

“I was three years younger! And you two had more training time than me!” Luffy argued back, sticking his tongue out at his elder brother.

“Explanation?” Beck inquired as he glanced between the two East Blue brothers. Everyone watching the argument curiously, even the former Roger pirates had lost their protective glares aimed at Marco. Beck noticed Mihawk arriving at the clearing with Zoro being led by the scruff, the youngest swordsman was bright red which meant that Mihawk had given him a tongue lashing for his thievery and idiocy.

“I wasn’t Luffy’s only brother on Dawn” Ace sighed lightly, a small apologetic smile being sent Luffy’s way as he noticed his little brother curling into Beck. He startled a little at the sight of Mihawk appearing beside Perona and sitting down with Zoro tugged into his lap. The Straw hats first mate grumbling in protest but going along with it, especially when Perona shifted to lean against Zoro instead of Beck. “We had another brother, he was my Blue... A couple of months older than me but my voice of reason as well... He was a former noble who ran away when he was six. He was my best friend, we used to train together to get strong enough to sail the seas as pirates when we turned seventeen; one hundred fights a day... It was rare that we weren’t tied.

“After a few years, Luffy was brought up to the bandit group that raised me, he was left by Gramps. For the first few months I wanted nothing to do with Luffy, spent ages trying to get rid of him until he bumped into me and ... We were talking about our treasure stash and didn’t realize he was there” Ace continued wistfully, ignoring the surprised looks from everyone at the fact that he’d hated Luffy at first and tried to get rid of him. Luffy was grinning sadly at the memories “We tied him up and were talking about killing him to keep our secret safe when we heard one of the men we’d stolen from, trying to find us. Unfortunately, he found Luffy instead. The bastard took Lu to their hideout and beat him for hours, we thought Luffy would rat on where our stash was so we hid it before realizing that Luffy wasn’t anywhere to be found. That’s when we went to try and find him and found him being beaten... We got him out of there and somehow became friends which turned into brothers”

“what happened to the other feral brat?” Buggy couldn’t help but ask, figuring out that the other boy must be feral to keep up with Ace and Luffy.

“His father found him” Luffy was the one to answer the question, his tone was dull as he stared into the flames “Threatened Ace and me for him to go back with him. He did... Then he tried sailing for freedom without us, but a helmet guy was visiting Goa... He shot the boat and killed my brother”

Everyone looked confused at what a helmet guy was until Usopp sighed “Helmet guys are Tenryūbito’s, it’s better than Lu getting stumbled by the name...”

Everyone soon understood another reason for Luffy punching the Tenryūbito in the auction house on Sabaody.

“Lulu” Ace called softly as he noticed his brother was still staring into the flames blankly. He patted his partner’s hand lightly to release him before climbing up from Marco’s lap and moving to stand in front of his baby brother.

Luffy’s attention moved to Ace and he immediately allowed his brother to pull him up into a tight hug. Clinging onto him tightly as he tried not to cry as the loss of his eldest brother was spoken about.

“He’d be proud of you” Ace promised his little brother even as they became the main focus of the gathering, his little brother clinging to him tightly like he once did when they were small and originally dealing with the loss of Sabo “Almost as proud as I am... You’ve come so far and become so strong Lu. You’ve helped people find their freedom and protected them from those that would push them down like They used to do to him... While Mamae might scold you for Enies Lobby and the war, she’s probably so so proud of you too.”

“Mamae told me to stay in the back of the war...” Luffy admitted to his brother, something that had Ace wincing a little with a soft sigh.

“Mamae should know that that was a silly request when it comes to either of us helping the other” Ace pointed out to his little brother softly, reassuring the younger that their Mae and sister wouldn’t be too mad even with Dadan refusing to speak to them on the den den. “Maki knows too... They won’t be too mad.”

“Hope not” Luffy mumbled to his brother.

Chapter Text

“Incoming” Luffy hummed in amusement as he sensed his Gramps arriving to the island, She said he was swimming ahead of the other three of his extra family so that he could see Ace and Luffy sooner.

The Hearts were still all asleep in the Tang, Hongo and Rockstar had decided to sleep in the cabin that Law had provided them with on the initial journey; apparently it was soundproof and their cabin on the Red Force wasn’t. Something that the Akagami Kaizoku was thankfully for because the two were known to be loud when they wanted to be. Law was grateful that his Uncle decided to stay close to him for a little longer, although, he knew that they would need to separate sooner or later but he wanted to use the time he had wisely.

Law was reminded how much of a father Hongo was to him rather than that of an uncle and had to catch himself more than once from calling the man by a paternal term instead of Onkel.

Mihawk had decided to drag Zoro and Perona back into the castle for the night, scolding the both of them for the state that they had left his home in and promising them that they wouldn’t have a moment spare until the castle was the way he had left it when he set off for his ‘jobs’ from the government. Perona had whined a little about the decision, complaining that she didn’t want to change the room, that she had claimed, back to the way it was; something that had Mihawk reassuring her that she can keep her room the way it was while Beck gave her a stern glare and told her to use her manners rather than acting like a brat. Zoro had remained silent since he knew he’d messed up with the destruction he’d wrought upon the castle after hearing about Luffy’s injury. It also meant that Mihawk wasn’t about to start the training he’d decided to put him through for drinking his wine.

Sanji had initially hesitated towards the end of the night, before Luffy shoo’d him away to spend the night in Lucky’s room since the man was close to the kitchen like Sanji preferred. Plus, Lucky reminded Sanji of his Da so the blonde was comfortable and more likely to sleep peacefully for the first time since before the Straw Hats were separated. Usopp was the same, he was torn between staying with Luffy or staying with his Baba, but Luffy flicked his nose and gave a pointed look to Yasopp so that his cousin knew that he was safe to stay with his father rather than clinging to Luffy.

Rayleigh had snuck off once more, disappearing into the forest for something but Shanks knew the moment his uncle set foot on the Red Force. He’d picked up his uncle’s Haki entering the communications room so the man was either contacting his wife or he was still searching for ways to reunite the Straw Hats. Franky had been a difficult one to get away from where he’d landed but he was going to be meeting up with the Red Force on their way to the East Blue since Karakuri Island was close to Reverse Mountain. Brooke had been found but they still weren’t able to contact him and Mihawk had agreed to go collect him and meet up with his husband’s on their way to the East Blue after they set sail from his home island. Nami would be collected by Mihawk as well since they had been trying to find a way to get the young woman down from the sky island safely and it was decided that they would collect her before getting Brooke.

Chopper had finally been located in the South Blue which was probably who Rayleigh was still trying to contact, the former first mate was tempted to go get the young reindeer himself before catching up with his nephew.

Buggy was originally going to offer but he figured the youngster probably wouldn’t react well to his appearing to collect him. Even though he had never met the young doctor, Chopper had no doubt been told stories of him by the others.

Left on the beach that night was Marco, Ace, Shanks, Beck, Buggy and Luffy.

The escaped prisoners and Jinbei were close to joining the group until Mihawk offered them proper rooms to stay in which resulted in them immediately accepting. All but Jinbei who promised Luffy that they would meet again soon, gave Ace a nudge goodbye and then left to head back to Fishman Island since he had no reservations about swimming the distance home.

Ace was hesitant to leave his little brother and newly claimed fathers, his hesitation grew at the lost look that his brother was trying his hardest to hide after Sabo being brought up for the first time in years. Which resulted in the small family camping under the stars. Luffy was sung to sleep with his favourite song once more, this time the voice of his Papai was added to by the voice of his Tio who had stiffened at the first few words before hesitantly joining his brother in aiding the youngest to drift off to sleep. Marco had held Ace close as the logia tried to fight the sleep that was overwhelming him, but the sound of his mother’s favourite song helped knock him into the world of dreamlessness with Marco following soon after; a tear of nostalgia slipping down his cheek at the memories of his Aunt beckoning him over to curl up with his cousins during his darker nights and cradling him to sleep with her soft voice.

That was why it was just the small group on the beach upon receiving the warning of an incoming visitor.

Luffy had woken up before the rest of his family, content to remain curled on his Papai’s chest with Beck’s arms wrapped around the two of them. Ace was next to him with a content smile in his sleep as Marco slept nuzzled into his neck while his Tio Blue was sprawled out across the log above them, his leg acting as a pillow for Shanks and Beck. Buggy was snoring softly, sleeping deeply with how safe he felt with his brother and family around him.

It didn’t take long for Luffy to feel the shift in Shanks to note that his Papai had woken too. Although, it seemed that Shanks was far from ready to leave the peace of the night behind them and start the day anew.

“Your Gramps?” Shanks questioned, his voice was soft so he didn’t wake up the rest of the group, even though he knew Garp’s arrival would probably set them all off.

Luffy gave a short nod before he wriggled out of the hold that Beck and Shanks had on him, he stretched a little before calmly moving to the path of the projectile closing in on the beach. He could see the little ship upon the horizon and had a feeling his Tio Bo would be arriving in an hour or so but first his Gramps would need to be calmed.

His placement was correct when a figure seemed to launch out of the sea before landing directly in front of Luffy. But, before the man could say anything that would wake his family up, Luffy jumped at the marine and wrapped his arms around his grandfather tightly.

“I’m right here Gramps” Luffy promised immediately, his head nestled into the crook of his grandfather’s neck as Garp’s hands raised to hold his grandson close.

Tears mixed with the sea water that was dripping down the marines face from his swim.

“Don’t you ever, ever, do that again to me Monkey-Benn D. Luffy or I swear upon the sea that I will follow through with your Mamae’s threat” Garp gasped through his tears, his voice was hoarse as his grip tightened on his second youngest grandson, Koby was around the same age as Luffy and the kid had grown on him like a barnacle on a ship; just like the blonde that was always by his side.

Luffy scrunched his nose at the promise and knew that it was one that was meant seeing as She gained a little momentum and Her waves crashed harder in agreement. She wasn’t happy with Luffy’s actions either, but it wasn’t like She could do anything in response, other than bring his treasures back to him or send people willing to scold him. He grumbled weakly before resting his head against his Gramp’s shoulder, content at being carried to where the fire still crackled every so often with dying embers.

Shanks was now wide awake, as was Buggy and Beck but Marco and Ace were still lost to the waking world; something that Garp was content to allow for now.

Garp glanced over his nephew’s critically, he took in how thin his eldest nephew was and didn’t like it; but he knew Blue was in Impel Down for a reason and Garp couldn’t begrudge that reason. Shanks was still looking a little tired to Garp but he knew that his youngest nephew was managing to get his emotions under control now considering Luffy was alive and awake.

“You need to eat more” Garp informed Blue bluntly, the clown grimacing at the hidden scolding that he could pick up in the tone.

Buggy hadn’t seen his Tio Garp in years, not since the day he got his Bounty released for his actions in Orange Town. His uncle had arrived unannounced which terrified his entire crew, as well as the village itself; they were all running around like headless chickens except for Buggy. Buggy had just sighed and calmly walked to his Uncle, flinching and bracing himself for he inevitable ‘fist of love’ that landed within seconds of being in range. Garp began scolding Buggy for his taking over of Orange Town and Buggy stood in silence until the man run out of steam, Buggy allowed it as he rubbed at the lump on his head before informing his Uncle about the village welcoming his circus and the protection that came with him being a test for upcoming pirates.

Garp remained silent through the explanation before giving Blue a big grin and telling him that he was proud of him even if he was a pirate and not a marine like Garp had tried to convince the boys to become whenever he met up with Roger and his crew. Buggy just rolled his eyes fondly before inviting the new Vice-Admiral to join them for dinner. It wasn’t the last time that he had seen Garp, but it was the last time that they’d interacted as Blue and his Tio Garp, the two of them distancing after the loss of their father/brother and Garp being the one to bring him in. Although, Garp had made a point of telling his nephew that Roger had asked him to take him in, saying that his brother was the only one he trusted to take him in without violence and ‘accidents’.

“I’m pretty sure Red isn’t going to let me get away without eating more and I’m going to be with him for the next couple of months” Buggy pointed out to the man with a small sigh, especially at the agreeing look that both his brother and his brother-in-law sent him. “You need to eat more and sleep more Tio, you’ve lost weight and look exhausted”

Garp grimaced at the comment, especially when Luffy sent him the wide-eyed look that he always hated seeing on his grandsons face because it made him feel like he’d some how wronged a puppy.

“Needed to get here to check on the boys” Garp waved off, though kept his gaze away from Luffy and Red who were both scowling weakly at him.

“Gramps...” Luffy sighed, he understood why his grandfather wasn’t eating but he was a D, they needed to eat more than normal otherwise they get exhausted much faster than the normal person. Luffy was grateful that Lucky usually made him high calories foods because his appetite had decreased in worry for his nakama while he still needed to eat large amounts. If it wasn’t for those high calorie snacks, Luffy would probably be similar to what his Gramps was right now.

“How did the Fleet Admiral react?” Shanks questioned, worry very evident in his tone and eyes as he glanced over his Uncle to make sure he hadn’t been harmed by the Fleet Admiral for their stunt to get Ace to safety.

Garp visibly slumped as he took a seat in the sand opposite Buggy and Shanks, Luffy was still in his lap as he noticed Ace and Marco stirring with his presence.

“Fleet Admiral Sengoku...” Garp started, and everyone who knew how Garp was with his friends/loved ones and nicknames flinched because of how monotone the marines voice had become and the use of his title rather than ‘Senny’, “...has informed me that I am currently holding onto my position in the marines by the skin of my teeth... That if one more thing occurs, in the next year or so, due to my family then I will be stripped of my rank and my place in the marines as I have done nothing to prevent the two of you from becoming pirates. Not only that, but I am on thin ice due to the rumours of Ace being the son of Gol D. Roger and yet you lot cut through every argument with ease and have made the people question the marines and their practices...”

Garp glanced at Ace with Marco, Luffy in his lap and then at the nephews he had to abandon and ‘chase’ for a large part of their teens. “Red... Thank you” Garp choked out as tears began to form once more and his voice got thick with emotions “You kept our youngest safe, you protected my eldest when I couldn’t and you decimated the bastard that dared attack Luffy. I am in your debt and will do all I can to repay you even if it means I leave the marines to do so...”

“Tio shut up” Shanks bluntly spoke, something that shocked Garp and Ace but those who knew Shanks well enough snickered at how the captain rolled his eyes with a fond smile “You know how possessive Mamae and Papai were, you also know how that possessiveness rubbed off on both Blue and me... Luffy is mine, just as Ace is mine now too.”

“Ours” Beck pointed out dryly as he finally shifted enough so his husband was leaning against him comfortably but he could light up a cigarette without the smoke irritating his family.

“Ours” Shanks corrected himself fondly with a small nod of his head and a silly grin towards his husband before focusing back on Garp “Luffy belongs to the Akagami Kaizoku, he has since he was a brat dangling off our arms demanding stories from our travels; he’s been ours since before we even knew that he was yours too. Ace became ours the moment he became a brother to Luffy, but it solidified when the firefly tracked me down to say thank you for saving his idiot kid brother.

“But you forget Tio... We are yours too, just as much as you are ours” Shanks pointed out to the marine firmly, something he knew his brother agreed with considering the clown was nodding his head in agreement when Garp glanced over at him “We would destroy islands should you ever get hurt, just as I destroyed Marineford when that bastard dared to try to kill my boy. And besides... Ace may be the born son of Gol D. Roger, but he is more the grandson of Monkey D. Garp rather than his nephew. I hope you don’t mind being linked to Beck and me through an imagined daughter though”

“Wait...” Ace interrupted the emotional conversation before Garp could burst into tears “What do you mean nephew?” Ace looked between Shanks and Garp confused “You call Garp Tio because of him being around, right? Just like Ray?”

Shanks and Buggy snorted in amusement, while Shanks had only recently figured out that there was a blood relation between Garp and Roger; Buggy had worked it out ages ago but never cared to comment as his Papai was gone and so was the Tio he remembered fondly.

“Pretty sure Tio Garp and Papai were blood brothers, actual siblings, unlike what Blue and I did years ago” Shanks observed, watching Garp carefully as the man gained a wistful smile even though Luffy looked curious as to why Shanks had emphasised that they were ‘actual siblings’.

“Roger was my little brother” Garp confirmed to the small group, something that made Marco freeze and blink in shock as he’d known both men back before Rogers death and he had no inkling of a thought about that “He was a year younger than me, took on our mother’s name rather than our father’s, I followed our Papai’s line of work as a marine while Roger followed Mamae... She was a Bounty Hunter like Rogue, but also moonlighted as a pirate, pretty sure she was one of the ones that gave Kong one of his chest scars after he tried to arrest and hit on her at the same time

“Papae found it hilarious, more the fact that he’d watched it happen, because he was partners with the former Fleet Admiral before they went up the ranks. Kong was shocked and asked Papae why he didn’t help which had Mamae sauntering to Papai and kissing him” Garp relayed fondly, grinning at the shocked looks on the pirates’ faces “Roger took his ideals from Mamae... I got mine from Papai which resulted in you all gaining a mixture of both from me and Roger”

“But you executed him?” Marco’s voice was small, he remembered the marines and pirate fondly from his childhood after the chains.

His former Captain had truly been what Marco expected from a father back then, and Roger and Garp would often meet up with the growing crew for fights and parties; so Marco got to know them both. He grew to respect and adore Roger as an Uncle, one who would openly allow Marco to hide from his nightmares with him rather than pushing him to get stronger ‘for the family’. Rogue had nearly castrated Edward Newgate when she heard him say that from afar, it took Marco hugging her to calm her, before the woman easily picked the zoan teen up and carried him to join her and her boys for the weekend.

The first time he’d met Garp, he’d had a massive panic attack that had Whitebeard frowning at him, as Thatch immediately tried to calm him through it, he only managed to calm when he was between Red, Blue, Rogue and Roger alongside Thatch. Garp had immediately apologized for setting the panic attack off and promised to remain a safe distance from the teen until Marco felt comfortable around him. Garp had also promised that he would never arrest Marco if he can avoid it, a promise that the marine had kept to this day which often made his siblings think that he was a lucky one because he always managed to avoid ‘The Hero of the Marines’ when they randomly docked on the same island. Marco knew that it was because the man remembered the promise he’d made to the traumatized teenager fresh from chains.

Garp sighed lightly at the small voice from the boy he would have happily claimed as his own if it wasn’t for Whitebeard. He shifted Luffy back into Shanks’ lap before easily hauling both Marco and Ace to where Luffy had originally been sat. Ace squawked a half-hearted protest but Marco remained silent as he kept his gaze on Garp to see why the man had executed his own brother.

“You, of all people, should know that your Uncle Roger was sick, passarinho” Garp pointed out carefully, using the nickname that he’d originally called the blonde before Rogue had claimed it; even in his early years, Garp knew that Marco was strong enough with his devil fruit to sense sickness. “It was a sickness that not even your fruit could cure back then, you were still young and learning. Plus, Edward wouldn’t have allowed it even if he did respect Roger. There were only months left of my brother’s life before he came to me with a plea... He asked me to take him in. He trusted that I would do right by him, that I would keep any ‘accidents’ from happening during his time in my custody. He was the one to choose his execution manner, as well as the place”

“But you were born on Dawn... Grandpa Slap said so...” Luffy stated, intrigued by the information he was gaining but also confused as to why the world thinks that his Vovo was born in Loguetown.

“I was” Garp confirmed, not even phased by Woop Slap becoming a third grandfather to the youngster. Garp left Luffy with Makino and Ol’Slap for a reason. He wasn’t allowed to be close to his grandson because of Dragon, and with Sengoku knowing the link between Garp and his son; his former friend had warned Garp that spending too much time with the lad would result in questions being asked and Sengoku wouldn’t lie for him. “Mamae went into labour coming over Reverse Mountain on the way home to Dawn, Roger was impatient even when he was still in my mother’s body. Loguetown was the closest land that they could reach which resulted in Roger being born there and kept there for a year because it was a hard birth... While Mamae sailed I stayed with Papai on Dawn and when Papai’s leave was up, Mamae would return. If something kept her then I stayed with my own Avo and Vovo”

“Kino’s bisavós?” Luffy asked eagerly which had Garp laughing as Shanks seemed to blink in surprise that Makino and Garp were related as well.

“Yes... Makino’s Ma was my baby sister. She was born after my Papai rejoined the waves, Mamae married her former bounty hunting partner since they were both widowers of the sea and he took on the Monkey name to remove his own family from the situation. It wasn’t long after Makino was born that my sister took over Party’s from Mamae and then Makino took it on from her when Noriko rejoined the waves as well. Mamae and Noriko kept the Monkey name as Gol was beginning to get famous because of Roger.”

“Makino is your niece?” Buggy squeaked, everything hitting him all at once, but he could only focus on the name of the sweet girl he’d met on Dawn so many years ago. She was seventeen when he met her, it was ten years after his Papai’s death and he needed some peace and quiet which resulted in him ending up on Dawn in search of the woman who had given him shelter when he first arrived in the East Blue. But he had found out that Miss Noriko had rejoined the waves the year before and instead ended up meeting her daughter.

“How do you know Makino?” five voices spoke up, a mixture of shock and threatening when they noticed how red the clown was beginning to turn as he blushed .

Shanks was confused and shocked since he was sure his brother had gone into Impel Down for Crocodile because of the old crushes they used to have back when Blue was an awkward teenager and Cee wasn’t their true self. Red, Blue and Marco were the only ones who knew the true Cee before they ran away from the Moby Dick and the metaphorical chains that kept them trapped in a life they didn’t want. Although, remembering Makino and how she could easily hold her own and tease like any pirate could, Shanks wouldn’t be surprised if Blue managed to bag both his crushes since Makino seemed like Cee’s type as well.

Ace and Luffy were watching Buggy with threatening eyes, daring him to even think about admitting that he’d slept with their big sister, while Beck was also sending the same vibe as he scowled at his brother-in-law at the mere mention of Buggy knowing the barmaid that had become treasures by the Akagami Kaizoku.

Garp just looked intrigued, although, he did remember his sister mentioning something about a teenager with blue hair arriving to Dawn many years ago; that the boy seemed lost but she had handled it.

“I ended up on Dawn when I arrived in the East originally” Buggy explained defensively, trying to hide his apprehension from the trio of threatening looks being aimed his way. “I met Miss Noriko and she looked out for me because I’d ended up with a fever from an injury from the marines... I left as soon as I could so Tio didn’t find me. I went back a few years later only to find out she’d rejoined the waves but I met Makino... She was seventeen, I wasn’t going to do anything. Besides, I had more respect for her and Miss Noriko to even do anything above playful flirting”

“You flirted with our sister?!” Ace, Luffy and Beck growled in unison which had Buggy scrambling to back away, only to land next to Shanks instead as his brother snickered at his predicament.

“It wasn’t serious! She deserves better than a failed pirate Captain who can’t even defeat a seventeen year old with a two man crew!” Buggy exclaimed, self-deprecation entering his tone as he tried to get the three protective men off his back. Buggy soon yelped as a fist landed on the crown of his head, one that barely hurt but shocked him enough to look at his Uncle with confused surprise.

“You were the third highest bounty in the East Blue, Portgas-Gol Buggy” Garp scolded the man lightly, startling Ace at the hyphened name that Buggy carried around family “Arlong’s bounty was the highest because he is a Fishman and was a part of the Sun Pirates before he started his own crew. Don Krieg had his high bounty because of the military in his fleet and even then the man couldn’t stomach the Grand Line without crawling back with his tail between his legs.

“You made base at one island, venturing out rarely, you made a name for yourself while still protecting the town that you had made your base. You protected, tested and trained future pirates which the marines never learned about... If they knew what you were doing, your bounty would probably be triple what it was before your escape from Impel Down” Garp scolded and praised at the same time “You are not a failed pirate Captain. If I remember the mutterings, your crew were seen searching for you now that they know you’re safe away from Impel Down... I’m sure Ray will h elp track them down for you. And as for losing against Luffy... He’s a Monkey D, Blue, very little will take him down without a fight. I’m sure he only lost on Sabaody because Kizaru was able to land hits on him and he was also focused on his crew”

Luffy blushed at the hidden praise from his Gramps, he always worried that he wasn’t strong enough which was why his Gramps kept training them. But, it was obvious that his Gramps already thought he was strong but just wanted to get him strong enough to beat people like the sunglasses weirdo.

Buggy was slowly turning red at the praise from his Uncle and turned his head away from the small group as Shanks sent a look of pride towards his elder brother while the rest of their group were distracted by Garp’s spiel to focus on the fact that Buggy had playfully flirted with Makino years ago.

“You’re a strong Captain, Blue. And an even stronger pirate even though I wish you idiots had become marines instead.” Garp continued on, a playful grumble aimed towards them as he sensed Rayleigh appearing behind him; for once not giving any of their boys a jump scare. “Don’t even try it Ray”

“I’m not a fool to think your observation has decreased over the years old man” Rayleigh sniped back to the marines as he sat next to Garp and gave Marco and Ace a crooked grin when he noticed that the two new Captain’s were begrudgingly allowing Garp to continue holding them.

“You’re eleven days younger than me, that’s all Silvers. You’re just as old as I am” Garp sniped back easily, something that had the younger pirates looking surprised.

“Uncle Ray’s birthday is close to ours?” Luffy questioned intrigued, it was always amusing when his Gramps came around during the week of his birthday because his Gramps’ birthday was only three days before his. It was probably why his Gramps hadn’t caught him before he set sail, his Uncle Bo probably gave his Gramps lots of alcohol because Bogard knew that Luffy was always going to be a pirate.

“May 13th” Garp confirmed with a grin at Luffy, especially when he noticed the small frown on his grandsons face which signalled that the boy was trying to remember something.

“Koby’s birthday!” Luffy exclaimed as he realized why he knew the date, an explanation that had Garp blinking in surprise since he hadn’t actually found out his marines birthday yet. Every time he had the thought, he was distracted by one of his other grandsons. Luffy snickered at the look on his Gramps’ face “Koby is younger than me Gramps... He only just turned seventeen when we got to Shells Town. I asked the lady who ran the bar if she could make a small cake for him while Zoro was sleeping”

“It was a nice cake” Koby piped up from behind the small group, something that didn’t suprise anyone considering the marines were quite loud on their feet so that everyone was warned that they were coming.

Luffy snickered and immediately wriggled out of his Papai’s hold, throwing himself at the younger boy carefully as Koby wrapped his arms around Luffy in return.

“You scared us so much Luffy” Koby whispered to his first friend as he clung to him tightly, not surprised as Helmeppo hesitated before he joined the small hug too.

“Didn’t mean to” Luffy promised the pink haired marine and the blonde before pulling back and grinning shyly at the stern look his Uncle Bo was sending his way “Hey Uncle Bo”

“You’re lucky I know Maki is going to be scolding you thoroughly” Bogard informed Luffy dryly before accepting the hug he aimed his way, humming with a fond smile as Luffy clung to him like a Koala, his eyes drifted to Ace who was hiding in Garp’s lap “But you Portgas D. Ace, you will be running laps for me! What kind of stupidity has you going after that slimeball without back-up! And don’t deny that you weren’t actually resigning yourself to the scaffold when your family came to get you!”

Ace blushed and ducked his head with a small whine at the thought of running laps, pouting at Marco as his partner chuckled in amusement. Marco was barely phased by Bogard scolding Ace, it seemed to the logia that Marco had met Bogard before; but considering the man had been by Garp’s side for years, it wouldn’t be a surprise. Marco had known Bogard since the man was a private on Garp’s crew, he was about five to ten years older than Marco himself so it wasn’t a surprise that Bogard knew Ace and Luffy as well. Especially considering how Garp collected strays like Whitebeard did, except Garp did it through respect and not manipulation.

“Brat! Why didn’t you tell me your birthday was close to when I picked you up!” Garp practically demanded from Koby, and it proved how used to the man the pink haired marine was when he just sighed fondly before bowing apologetically.

“It’s on my enrolment papers” Koby pointed out to him, smiling a little at Luffy’s snickers and Garp’s huff.

“Why are all my grandbrats so mouthy?” Garp complained to Rayleigh, noticing Koby and Helmeppo stiffening in surprise “The only one that doesn’t talk back is the blonde, and that’s because the others haven’t corrupted him yet”

“Zoro will when we head to Dawn” Luffy pointed out with a small cackle as the two marines blushed at being viewed as family while Garp pouted at the boys being corrupted by pirates “But don’t worry Gramps, you’ll still have two marine grandsons.”

“Good. You ain’t taking them from me Lulu” Garp warned the youngest pirate playfully.

“They were mine first” Luffy countered poking his tongue out at his grandfather.

Chapter Text

With the arrival of the marines, Shanks had assumed that things were going to get a little lively again, but, strangely he was wrong and it was all quiet.

It seemed that Hongo had warned the Hearts that the Hero of the Marines would be arriving among them, or had already arrived to the island if Rockstar noticed their Haki signatures when he woke up. Law faltered only a little when he left the submarine, until he noticed how at ease the rest of the pirates were, and he allowed his Uncle to lead him to the large campfire that was still crackling lightly.

The first thing that Garp did was bow to Law, thanking him profusely for his quick thinking and saving of his grandson when he was a rival Captain and not an ally. Garp was followed by the other three marines while Luffy rolled his eyes fondly and patted a confused Law lightly on the shoulder to keep him grounded. The Marine Hero promised the surgeon a boon to be cashed in anytime in the future should he ever need help. Garp also offered to talk to the young man about Rosinante, an offer that had Law stiffening as he remembered his saviours birth name over his chosen name; Law hesitantly agreed to hear stories at a later date. That offer also had Hongo intrigued since he wanted to hear about his nephew’s saviour as well, especially when Hongo also learned that Corazon was the adopted son of Sengoku.

Maybe the Fleet Admiral would end up with a heart attack should Law and Luffy truly end up together like the bets were beginning to pile up on. Garp eagerly joined in on the betting pool so he could be even more annoying to his best friend.

When Sanji, Usopp and Zoro appeared, the veteran pirates expected the trio to panic at the sight of the Vice Admiral that had chased them once already, but Zoro immediately zoned in on Koby and Helmeppo; moving to check on the duo who he knew had been in the middle of a war. While Sanji stuck next to Usopp with a small nod of his head to the marines he remembered meeting briefly on Water-Seven. Usopp knew Garp from stories and a brief encounter with the man throwing cannon balls at them, but he also knew that the grandfather wouldn’t harm them.

Koby’s gaze immediately moved to check over Zoro, hearing that his second friend had been injured before Sabaody. Helmeppo hesitated before joining Koby in checking on the swordsman he had been worried about as well. While Zoro rolled his eyes in amusement but allowed their fussing before he checked them over at the same time, he noticed a couple of bruises on Koby and some small cuts on Helmeppo but they looked okay other than tiredness.

Mihawk barely glanced at the newcomers to his island before moving back into his castle to warn Crocodile and the Revolutionaries that Garp was on the island.

Shanks was intrigued when Crocodile left the castle, they seemed to be shrunk in on themselves as they approached the small group; his intrigue only grew when Garp’s eyes widened and the Vice Admiral dragged the former Warlord off into the forest for a chat. Shanks had glanced at his uncle who was watching closely, before his uncle noticed his look and waved him off; whatever business the two had was their own. The two came back a little while later, Crocodile was red in the face but seemed to be walking a little lighter while Garp seemed to be holding in some anger so he didn’t destroy things.

During the day that Garp and his marines were on the island, the pirates were surprisingly calm around them. Ace and Marco had managed to get into contact with Thatch and Izou, informing their brothers that they would be setting off for Dawn Island within the next two days; Marco promised to rejoin with the Moby while Ace was going to be remaining with his little brother on the journey. However, Ace would be visiting them when Marco joined them. Marco was still debating joining the journey to Dawn, but he still had to handle the burial of their Captain; the phoenix was considering burying Newgate and then following after Shanks with whoever wanted to stay on their crew. The co-captains already knew that they would need to re-establish their territories but that could wait as long as they gave them warnings and asked their friends to keep an eye on the islands too.

Ivankov had contacted Dragon about collecting them from Mihawk’s island, along with the prisoners that wanted to join the revolutionaries since they’d still been in contact with the group after leaving the ship to join the family reunion. Garp wanted to have a word with his son, but stayed silent for now. The rest of the prisoners wanted to join Buggy but Buggy was travelling with his brother to the East in hopes to also check on Orange Town and find his crew. Buggy had decided that the prisoners could stay with the Revolutionaries until he was ready to build up a large crew again, something the prisoners were accepting off since it was an order from the ‘great Captain Buggy’; that declaration had Shanks cackling in amusement until his brother dived at him and they ended up wrestling like they used to as kids with Buggy detaching an arm so that they had even standing.

Law watched with hidden amusement until he had a thought, he began speaking with his Uncle about a theory and ended up requesting that he could use his devil fruit on Shanks to check how bad the nerve damage was to his shoulder. He found that the nerves were salvageable, one of the reasons why Shanks often had issues with pain, which then resulted in Law offering to attempt giving an arm back to the Captain. However, it would mean finding someone to take an arm from in the first place; ideally a swordsman so that the muscle memory was there and Shanks wouldn’t have to completely start over with strengthening the arm to a swordsman’s standard.

While Shanks was silent in his shock at the offer, Beck immediately agreed and didn’t hesitate to offer the young man an alliance in return. Law was surprised that it was the first mate to offer the alliance, but he’d seen how dedicated Beck was to his husband so he easily accepted. The Hearts all breathed a sigh of relief at the offer of an alliance when they knew that their Captain had a grudge he wanted to settle and would need help doing so.

Luffy immediately shocked everyone and threw himself at Law, clinging to the doctor tightly as he thanked him repeatedly, even with Law looking slightly uncomfortable. The action reminded the Akagami Kaizoku just how much guilt Luffy had been carrying for the loss of his Papai’s arm, the boy probably never got over it the past ten years. Law was torn between teleporting himself away or allowing the younger captain to cling to him, it was the small wet spot appearing as Luffy tried to hide his face that had Law allowing the koala hug. Law braced his arms under Luffy’s thighs, moving back to the group, before he sat down next to his Uncle as Luffy tried to get a hold of his emotions. Hongo glanced at his nephews in worry before smiling fondly at the two and ruffling both boys hair as Law scowled but kept Luffy in his lap; keeping the younger captain close as Luffy tried to gather his composure.

The adults all glanced at each other, knowingly, at the interaction between the two boys. Shanks wanted to be against the possible match but he couldn’t help but notice how alike Law was to Beck and Hongo versus how alike Luffy was to him. Law would be good for his son if they managed to get past each others walls in the future; walls that Luffy built years ago while Law seemed to have created his walls with the loss of his Uncle.

The day ended up being a calm one after that emotional break, the groups were chatting calmly; some of the elder pirates were teaching the Hearts and the Straw Hat boys different things while Luffy was content to stick with Law for a little longer. Although, he did end up shifting to Hongo’s lap when he noticed Law getting antsy due to his closeness.

Ace wasn’t allowed too far away from his grandfather, something he hesitantly allowed considering how exhausted the old man looked when he’d arrived. Which resulted in Garp getting a sleep attack after a few hours when he’d eaten and his mind and body realized he was safe and his grandsons were too; Ace and Luffy barely hesitated before they both moved to curl up with the old man and nap against him like they used to do on Dawn.

It was a sight that the rest of the pirates couldn’t help but find adorable considering the size difference between Luffy, his brother and their grandfather. Before Luffy had slipped into sleep, he stretched his arm out to grab Koby and drag him to the sleep pile which resulted in Helmeppo being dragged too; followed by Zoro and the other two straw hats when Luffy gave them a small pout to join him.

When Garp woke, he was surprised to find himself comfortably warm with a weight on him. He blinked in surprise at the fact that he was being blanketed by most of the teenagers before he sighed contently and just relaxed while the others slept. Rayleigh was the only one to notice him awake and offered the marine a small nod of acknowledgement before returning to the conversation that he was having with Buggy.

Rayleigh had managed to locate the Big Top and had given them coordinates to follow so that they could meet up with his eldest nephew’s crew when they set off from Mihawk’s island. Buggy was overwhelmed with the idea of being reunited with his crew and ended up leaning against his Uncle for the first time since he was a brat, the two of them sharing quiet stories to pass the time while Beck took advantage of the teens being distracted and hauled his husband to the castle in search of their third.

With the different groups dotted around the beach, Garp smiled lightly, especially when he noticed Bogard talking with Hongo and Law. His second in command wasn’t even phased at being surrounded by pirates, the man just seemed to want to know more about medicines and possibly about Flavence since Garp knew of Hongo’s past as well as Law’s through Sengoku.

It didn’t take long for Garp to fall back asleep surrounded by his grandsons and those his boys classed as safe.

-

The next morning had Luffy bouncing around anxiously, his eyes constantly scanned the horizon while the others of the island tried to distract him; but they couldn’t even use food to distract him.

What none of them knew was that Luffy had been listening to the Sea most of the night since he was awake with anxiety for Robin’s return, hoping that the woman was okay and she wasn’t all dark and sad like she used to be. The Sea had decided to tell Luffy a story about a researcher who sailed her waves for information, one who bumped into many people over the years; but a particular meeting resulted in Robin being born. That meeting was with a recent marine runaway, Monkey D. Dragon.

Robin was Luffy’s sister through blood, not just through choice. It also meant that the girl was also Ace’s family through blood too She told him that Roger was his Great Uncle, which meant that Ace was Dragon’s cousin through blood; resulting in Ace being the second cousin to Luffy and Robin. But Ace was Luffy’s brother, that was the most important thing to the young Captain; and Luffy knew that Robin would do well with blood family and new siblings through their links.

The stories that She told him were interesting and kept him from wandering off or zoning out while everyone around him was asleep. He was struggling not to lose focus and fall into the guilt of losing his nakama while some of them were still apart from him.

“Luffy!” A voice called out in relief and hurt, a tone that had Law acting on instinct as he switched the two newcomers with stones from the beach and watched with a small frown as Nico Robin threw her arms around Luffy and held him tight.

Law also knew that switching them was a good idea because it meant that Luffy wouldn’t stretch to his returned nakama either. Law had also been hearing small tales of what exactly had happened on Enies Lobby, all because of Luffy’s love for his crew and determination to protect Robin from the marines that wanted to imprison and destroy her for a knowledge she shouldn’t have.

Luffy’s arms wrapped around Robin multiple times, holding her close as he hid his face against her shoulder; apologizing repeatedly as she held him just as tight. Those who knew of the events of Sabaody knew that Robin was the last one to disappear in front of Luffy, and it was also the disappearance that hurt him the most because he was so close to reaching the woman before she was sent away. The eldest female, of the straw hat crew, vividly remembered the look of horror and desolation on her Captain’s face and had been desperate to return to him because of it. Robin was unaware of their biological link, but she had been protective of Luffy ever since she had pulled him from the quick sand that Crocodile had sunk the boy into; she had acted as an older sister since deciding to join his crew.

Zoro, Sanji and Usopp barely hesitated before they joined the duo in a hug hug, the three boys encompassing the two others as the other newcomer stood on the edge of the meeting. Zoro kept his grip tight in Robin, he had tried his hardest to protect the women ever since he was too slow to stop her from getting hit with electricity on Skypia; hearing from Beck that she was the last to be sent away in front of Luffy had hurt a lot more than he expected.

“Sabo-boy!” Ivankov called out, in greeting, with glee evident in their voice as they caught sight of the familiar blonde stood awkwardly on the edge of the group. Ivankov had heard from Dragon that their young Chief of Staff had gone a little AWOL from his latest mission saving prisoners that were building a bridge; though the Okama Queen had a feeling that they would need to contact Dragon to let him know that his adopted son was found.

The moment that Ace and Luffy heard the name, the two brothers froze from where they were held amongst their groups.

Marco had his arms around Ace at the time of the reunion between Robin and Luffy, the phoenix had heard a lot about the ‘devil child’; his Captain wanting to search the young girl down and bring her into the family. Thankfully Robin stayed out of the way of Whitebeard so she remained free even if she was on the run from the marines. Feeling his partner stiffening so quickly had Marco worrying, especially when he felt the vibrations running through him and also noticed how worried the Straw Hats had become with Luffy having the same reaction.

Luffy was vibrating with excitement as he wrapped his arms around Robin, especially when she seemed to be happy even if she was worried and anxious as well. Feeling the other three wrapping around them had Robin relaxing into the hold of Luffy as well. That was until Luffy heard Ivankov’s cheerful greeting, and the rubber boy went solid; as if frozen again by Aokiji.

It was Shanks that noticed that Garp and Bogard reacted in a similar manner to his son and brother/adopted child, the emperor was worried as he glanced amongst the three groups and over at the blonde shuffling with his top hat. The fact that the young man was dressed in a top hat and noble clothes was confusing but Shanks overlooked that aspect to watch his sons. The pirates, warlords, and marines were all confused as to what was going on while the Revolutionaries hadn’t even noticed the change in their surroundings as Ivankov moved to greet Sabo.

However, before the greeting, Ivankov was cut off as a blast of fire shot past them, a thud of collision was followed by a yelp echoing around the beach.

“Ace!”

“Sabo-boy!”

The pirates all tried to get Ace to stop from attacking the blonde, fire surrounding them as Sabo used his haki to try and avoid the worst of the hits while he allowed the majority of them to hit. Ivankov was frozen in surprise as they watched Sabo allowing the hits to land since they knew exactly how practiced Sabo was with avoiding hits from Koala. There was a reason that Sabo was their Chief of Staff, he was powerful, slippery and very experienced with combat and evasion.

Bogard had moved his hand to lightly rest on Garp’s wrist as the man stood frozen, as if pulled back into a memory of the past. Koby and Helmeppo were worried for the newcomer but they remained focused on Garp instead, the two of them noticing how stiff the old marine had gone with the name being called out by the revolutionary.

The Straw Hats watched Luffy with worry, the four of them ignoring Ace attacking the newcomer, since their Captain was as stiff as a board in Robin’s arms; until he suddenly snapped out of the shock. He immediately retracted his limbs from around Robin, slipping out of the hole of his crew, before he shot himself into the flame circle and collided with the two boys fighting. A grunt escaped the three of them as they all went rolling across the sand, the flames dying down due to Ace’s concentration being knocked when he went rolling.

Marco took the initiative to fly towards the trio, the first one able to get his bearings; grabbing onto his partner tightly as Ace struggled to get back to attacking to the blonde.

“You bastard! You made us think you were dead!” Ace shouted at the blonde, his voice full of anger and venom, but those who knew him could easily spot the hurt in his tone too. The logia trying his hardest to get back to attacking the blonde who was cradling his head, blood dripping from his nose as Sabo was switching his eyes between Ace and Luffy.

Luffy remained on the floor from where he landed next to Sabo, his eyes glued to the blonde firmly as he took in the similarities and the differences between the ten year old he remembered and the twenty year old in front of him. The thing that stood out the most was the burn that covered the left side of his big brothers face, one that looked painful but old, the blood was normal because Sabo and Ace always fought.

“I didn’t remember!” Sabo informed Ace bluntly, his voice clear as he focused on Ace, he knew that he would need to be blunt with his twin to get him to listen while he was in one of his murderous moods. A mood that he used to be able to get Ace out of easily back when they were kids. “I got hit on the head during the explosion and I lost all my memories. The only thing that I had to know my own name was the cravat that ‘Kino stitched my name onto, all I knew was that something was chasing me away from Goa...”

“What happened?” Luffy questioned, his voice a whisper as he understood why She didn’t tell him about Sabo. It wasn’t the Sabo he knew after the explosion, yet She probably thought that Ace needed to vent because She loved Ace almost as much as she loved Luffy.

Sabo glanced to his baby brother, his whole demeanour softening as he hesitated before opening his arms for the young captain, an offer that Luffy immediately took as he latched onto his elder brother. Something that had Ace relaxing a little in his partner’s arms, he shifted and carefully detangled himself from Marco’s arms before throwing himself at his brother’s to join the hug. The three of them hitting the floor from the addition of Ace.

“When I woke up I was on a ship that belonged to the Revolutionary Army, Iva was one of the ones on the ship along with their leader...” Sabo hesitated before a pinch to his side, from his twin, had him flinching and sighing in resignation. “Dragon saved me, he offered me a place to escape to, practically raised me... I didn’t know who I was or why I felt so lost whenever in the East Blue. Your posters were familiar Ace, and Lu’s when it came out... But it was seeing a coo about the Dog’s attack on Lu that had me losing consciousness for three days and waking with the memories of Dawn. I was at Tequila Wolf when Miss Nico found me and requested assistance in searching for her Captain. I agreed and later learned of the attack, I was lucky to be with Miss Nico when I passed out, she kept me safe as we sailed to where my contacts had said the Straw Hat’s first mate was sent.”

Luffy didn’t really understand much of the explanation as to why Sabo didn’t come home, what he picked up was Sabo forgot about them when he got blown up and then remembered after hearing about the war; but he seemed to also be his brother through his birth dad raising him as well now. But Luffy did understand that it wasn’t Sabo’s fault, and Sabo helped bring his big sister to him too.

Ace held onto his twin tighter before burying his face into the crook of Sabo’s neck and breaking down into silent sobs as his tears soaked the shoulder of Sabo’s coat. Sabo grimaced lightly at his twin breaking down in his arms, he shifted enough that he was sat up on the sand with Ace in his lap and Luffy curled beside him; his eyes roaming around to take in who was around them.

It was when he clocked the marines that he ended up stiffening.

Garp made a small noise, one that sounded like a dying animal before Bogard nudged him forward to join the group. The marine stumbled as he was nudged forward, the rest of the beach’s inhabitants were watching curiously as silent tears ran down Garp’s cheeks as he dropped to his knees and pulled the boys into a hug; a hug that had Sabo stiffening, but then sighing fondly

“I thought Luffy was the crybaby of the family” Sabo spoke dryly, winking at the slightly insulted look that Luffy sent him even as the rubber boy tightened the grip that he had on Sabo’s arm.

“Explanations?” Shanks questioned Bogard lightly as they watched the scene confused, the rest of the group had moved to be in earshot of the only marine that could probably explain things. Bogard seemed to be the only one who actually knew what was happening given the look on his face.

“Sabo is the third feral child” Bogard informed them, his voice loud enough for everyone to hear, and smirked at the insulted look he gained from the middle child of the trio “From what I’ve just heard, when the Celestial Dragon blew his boat up, he got hit across the head and lost his memories, only to be found by Dragon and raised with the RA... Makes sense really, at least Dragon got to be a dad to one of the idiots”

“We’re not idiots” Ace and Sabo spoke in unison with weak scowls at Bogard as Ace wiped his eyes, Luffy stayed silent and just snickered lightly as he moved his other hand to grip at Garp’s shirt to keep his Gramps close too.

Bogard raised an eyebrow at the small group, including his boss/pseudofather in the look too; the man grumbling as he knew that Bogard was about to say something he wouldn’t like. The Vice-Admirals second in command pointed to each individual as he spoke, “Chased after a slimeball who was already an unknown and ended up nearly getting executed. Left home at ten without thinking it through and getting himself blown up by an asshole. Punched a Celestial Dragon after already declaring war on the World Government. And not only raised the leader of the revolutionary army, but also, the biological son of the pirate king who was also his brother, the chief of staff of the revolutionary army; because, yes I know who you are in the army Mr ‘Blue Gentleman’. And also the pirate who has outright destroyed one of the three symbols of justice, while inadvertently destroying the other two because of the loyalty and love he inspires in people”

“The other two Uncle Bo?” Luffy inquired curiously as everyone on the beach just stared in surprise at what was going on, what the hell was this family?

Robin had become sandwiched between Sanji and Usopp, with Zoro stood protectively behind her; though she didn’t seem surprised or confused by the reveals happening. From the intrigue that Sabo had when he woke from his three day coma, she could only assume that there was something more than just normal curiosity; plus she already knew that the blonde was indebted to her Captain’s father.

“Your papai destroyed Marineford after Captain Trafalgar got you away from the danger” Bogard explained to Luffy patiently, with a small smile of fondness; it was easy for everyone to spot the favourite of the man. “And your Tio Blue caused a lot of destruction getting out of Impel Down, alongside your friend who made it look like you were the one to break out of the place. Your friend destroyed the prison in your name while your uncle did it to get to your brother.”

Ace stiffened at the reminder, his eyes moving to Buggy who was trying his hardest not the blush at the attention being aimed at him. Especially when his red-headed brother gave him a nudge and a grin of pride.

Sabo seemed to remember who was around him and grimaced lightly before he wriggled out of the hold of his brother’s and grandfather, he moved to Shanks and immediately bowed in front of him; something that had Ace groaning lightly. However, before he could say anything, a hand landed on his head to get his attention, as his hat has been abandoned on the floor from the collision with Ace.

“If you’re anything like that twin of yours, I’m going to stop you now” Shanks informed Sabo, his dad voice appearing, as he lead him out of the bow with a fond smile; his eyes flickering to Ace who was blushing at the reminder of his first meeting with Shanks. “Anchor was mine, there was no way that I was going to let him get hurt by that Sea King. I think that I should be the one thanking you two for the family that you gave him after I had to leave.”

“He’s our brother... He gave us something to live for, even when I didn’t remember him, I knew that there was something I needed to keep going for” Sabo shook his head to try and deny the thanks, but he was pulled into a tight, one armed, hug by the emperor. “You saved Ace too... Gave him a new reason to keep going...”

“You gave both my boys a reason to keep going too. Their memories of you... You made them feel loved and that’s what is important” Shanks whispered to Sabo and grimaced lightly at how Sabo stiffened before he clung to the hug at the reminder that his brother’s loved him even when they thought he was dead. Shanks apparently had a habit of collecting strays with abandonment issues if Sabo was truly like his brother’s, the Emperor needed to talk with Dragon about custody because he was definitely stealing Sabo for a couple of months to go to Dawn.

“Gramps!” Luffy suddenly exclaimed as Ace moved away from his brother and grandfather, moving to his partner to reassure the zoan that he was okay. The group eyes Luffy in confusion at the sudden exclamation, while Luffy was focused on giving Sabo some time. “Guess what?!”

“What Lulu?” Garp questioned with amusement as he lifted his youngest pirate grandson up to his shoulder, his eyes barely straying from Sabo for too long as he gained comfort from Shanks about something. He needed to call Makino and Dadan to warn the two women, especially since Dadan was currently avoiding talking to the boys over the snails because she wanted to scold them thoroughly in person rather than via den dens.

“She says that we have another link!” Luffy snickered and Garp was glad he understood his grandson when he mentioned a ‘She’. The boy had been mentioning the Sea ever since he was small, even when Luffy didn’t really understand what he was hearing; plus Garp was used to it because his brother heard the whispers when he was a child too. “Dragon had a kid before me! Although, she doesn’t know that she’s his kid... I don’t think he knows he has another kid either... He has three now... But he should know Sabo cause Sabo lives with him...”

“Who’s the other kid Lulu?” Garp asked curiously, although, he did have an idea because there was a person close to his grandson that reminded Garp of his wife. And Dragon took after his mother while Luffy took after his grandfather and great Uncle.

“Dunno if I should say it out loud... She might not be ready to know” Luffy hummed before he blushed at the raised eyebrow from his grandfather, especially considering he had a lot of people’s attention on him; including the revolutionaries. Sabo had moved his attention to Luffy too because Dragon was a private guy, even with him, and Luffy was right with Dragon having three kids now; the man always acted like a father to Sabo when they weren’t with other people. “It’s Robin... She’s my big sister by blood too, not just choice”

A gasp of surprise drew Luffy’s attention to said big sister, who was watching with wide eyes; surprise and hope filling her eyes as she clung to Usopp and Sanji.

“The Sea says that Dragon met Robin’s Mom on a trip and she didn’t tell Dragon about Robin...” Luffy continued softly before he jumped down from his grandfather’s shoulder and moved to where his crew were releasing Robin so that the woman could throw her arms around Luffy and hug him tightly “You’re not alone any more...”

“I haven’t been alone since you found me Captain” Robin whispered to Luffy softly as she tightened her grip on Luffy, accepting the hug he returned to her.

“Welcome to the cluster fuck of a family” Ace commented dryly before he yelped as Beck knocked him on the head.

“Language” Beck scolded playfully with a mock-stern look.

“Standard” Ace shot back at his new father, according to the marines. His tone full of amusement as he cackled lightly when Beck gave him a deadpan look in return.

 Ace wanted to distract the others from where Garp was staring at Robin and Luffy in shock and awe; he had five grandsons via Ace and Luffy (and probably more soon if the whole adopting thing was happening with Zoro being adopted as a brother by Luffy. Garp already knew that Usopp was classed as a cousin). But he’d never thought he’s ever get to say that he had a granddaughter. And the worst thing was that Garp had been ‘chasing’ her since she was nine; although, he now felt ten times better for all the times he coincidentally didn’t see her when she was hiding on islands he’d docked at.

Luffy rolled his eyes and shot an arm over to drag his grandfather to where Robin was still holding him tight.

“Gramps is a good marine” He reassured Robin quietly as he felt her stiffen next to him “Like your old marine friend”

“Saul is a good man” Garp muttered to the two, he knew everything about Aokiji keeping Robin alive after freezing Saul. Which also meant that he knew that Saul was alive and safe on Elbaf because Aokiji refused to kill one of the marines he actually liked within the corporation. Aokiji may be an admiral but he was still the brat that Garp trained to stick by the code of true justice; it was also why the lazy brat never outright killed or arrested Luffy when they first met. “he’s doing well, and loving hearing about your travels”

Robin stiffened at the mention of Saul still among the living, her eyes shot to Garp to see if he was lying but there was nothing but truth in his eyes as he hesitantly drew his biological grandkids into his arms and held them tight. Robin was stiff at first before she melted into the touch, a touch of paternal affection that she hadn’t experienced in years; not since Crocodile on their good days when their dedication to Pluton was on the back burner and they acted like a normal person that wasn’t fuelled by revenge.

“Crocodile is here” Luffy warned Robin lightly as he remembered that Croco had hurt Robin back on Alabasta; he wouldn’t allow Croco to do it again, but he wanted Robin to be warned that they were with them on the island “They won’t hurt you. They’re not as dark and slimey anymore... It’s like their minds are calm”

“The brat has been through a lot in their life... Their actions on Alabasta were a mistake and they understand that” Garp reassured the two as he moved to kneel beside the two so that he was closer to their height. It was part of what he’d spoken to Crocodile about when he’d dragged them into the forest, especially since Garp also knew who Crocodile was before they became a Warlord; Croco had assured Garp that they were going to stay away until the time was right and it would be Shanks that they talked to first. “They want to apologise when you’re ready Lu, but they also want to wait until everything is calmer and you are ready to talk with them about other things.”

Luffy looked a little curious at the ‘other things’ but nodded lightly with a small hum; his eyes glancing to where Croco was watching the small group. Pain was clear in their eyes, but Luffy didn’t know why the former warlord was feeling the pain and could wait until they were ready to tell him.

“Ivankov, could you contact Dragon please? I believe I need to discuss shared custody of his son for the next couple of months. His blonde one” Shanks requested from Ivankov, a light laugh escaping him at the noise of protest that Sabo released.

Sabo immediately moved his attention to Ivankov, who looked like they were about to start laughing because they knew that Sabo was hoping to avoid a thorough scolding from his adoptive father due to being AWOL for the last few days.

“Iva, please, please wait until we’ve left to call him...” Sabo pleaded lightly, his eyes wide as he moved to his old friend and teacher. Inazuma actively chortled since they knew exactly why Sabo was pleading to be away from Iva when their boss was called. Shanks watched curiously, but the shared look with Beck made him nod knowingly, it seemed that Dragon was a good dad to at least one of his kids.

“No can do Sabo-boy, you’ve probably worried him terribly with your disappearing act” Ivankov scolded the young man, Sabo may be the second in command, but he was still the young boy they had come to see as a nephew over the last ten years “Remember the last time you disappeared? He didn’t sleep for the three days that you were missing, nor did he eat unless Koala made him”

Sabo grimaced at the memory of the last time he disappeared, now that Sabo knew his past he realized he’d disappeared on the same day that Ace would have left Dawn to become a pirate. Sabo had just sailed from Baltigo, not knowing why he couldn’t remain landlocked without being physically uncomfortable; he ended up sailing for three days before returning. Only to end up facing a scolding from Dragon, Koala and Hack and then being grounded from off base missions unless Dragon was involved.

Thankfully, the only ones who knew he was grounded were Dragon, Koala, Hack and Iva who had been kept up to date by Koala during his time missing.

“What happened?” Ace inquired curiously, smirking at the look that he got from his brother; knowing that he was going to find the answer hilarious.

“Sabo went missing for three days” Inazuma informed Ace with a small smirk on their lips when Sabo sent them a weak scowl. Inazuma was not against informing the group about this because the group were all family to their little noble-revolutionary. “Three years ago, Iva and I were already in Impel Down then; we were kept up to date by Sabo’s mission partner Koala. When Sabo returned, he wasn’t in the best of health as he hadn’t had the forethought to take food with him and ended up being grounded to Dragon’s side for a few months after thorough scolding’s from Dragon and Sabo’s team members”

“What date was this?” Ace grinned as he heard that it was three years ago, his idea being confirmed at the glare that his brother sent his way.

“I believe it was the beginning of January” Ivankov offered, only to be startled as the three Dawn natives started laughing and even Bogard began chuckling.

“Aw Sabs, you really do care” Ace mock-coo’d and started cackling as he slipped from his partner’s arms and ran off into the forest, closely followed by his cursing brother as Sabo chased after the logia. The blonde grabbing the pipe he’d earlier dropped on the floor as he passed it.

Luffy sighed with a small grin as he leaned against Robin, offering his crew a small smile when they moved to check on him; Luffy then turned his attention to the ones who looked very confused. “Ace set sail to be a pirate on that day three years ago... Sabo would have been with him if he was still with us.”

Understanding filled them all as their eyes drifted to the muffled cursing they heard coming from the forest.

“The humandrills are going to be very happy when we leave this place, they’ll finally have peace and quiet” Mihawk sighed forlornly, his lips twitching in amusement as Perona snickered from beside him.

“We’ll leave tomorrow” Shanks decided as he took a look around him at the large group that had formed to check on his sons since the War. It proved how loved Luffy was and how important he was to the future of the seas with how many lives he’s inadvertently touched in such a short space of time. “East and then training”

Chapter Text

The large, chaotic, family spent their last night on Kuraigana partying and enjoying the peace of not being hunted for a brief moment. It was the next morning when the intrigue began since Shanks had to contact Dragon before leaving since Ace was surprisingly clingy with the blonde revolutionary. It was surprising because it wasn’t Luffy being the clingy one. Luffy was content to just have Sabo in sight while he chatted with his crew, Law and the younger marines.

“Dragon!” Iva exclaimed brightly the moment their friend and boss answered their encrypted den den, an exclamation that had a fond, relieved, sigh coming from the other side of the call.

“Iva” Dragon greeted with relief, a small flicker of a smile appearing on the snail, but those around the okama queen could tell that the man was still holding himself stiffly on the other end. Something Ivankov knew they could remedy pretty quickly.

Garp was eyeing the snail with his own worry since it was rare for his son to show outright emotion, even in the smallest amounts; but it also proved to the old marine that Dragon truly cared for Sabo, and possibly Luffy if they hadn’t learned of his survival yet. The Straw Hats were the only ones informed of Luffy’s survival from the attack, not even the marines knew if the boy was alive or had succumbed to the attack from Akainu.

“Your boys are safe” Ivankov pointed out to Dragon immediately, a hint of scolding in their tone since Iva never knew about Luffy. “Why didn’t you tell me you had a born son too?”

Dragon seemed to blank a little at the information before the snail slumped in relief and a hint of tears seemed to appear over the call. Which proved to Shanks that Dragon truly did care for his son, even if he couldn’t show it; although, that was also confirmed when the revolutionary went to Loguetown to see the boy out of the East and saves him from Smoker at the same time.

“He got hurt Iva... When he was with me, he got hurt” Dragon informed his old friend, unaware that they were surrounded by others; including both his sons. “His bearer was told by a spy that our mani was born still, they ran before I could reassure them that it was a lie and I couldn’t find them afterwards. I tried to keep him with me for the first year, but he got hurt when I was caught out by some marines. They didn’t know he was with me, they thought they’d shot me but they shot him... I couldn’t keep him with me any longer Iva... I couldn’t risk him like that. Best he was raised not knowing me than knowing that I couldn’t keep him safe. By the time I managed to get the army safe enough that I could visit without the risk of being caught, he’d been claimed by my little cousin”

It was the first time that anyone, outside of the small circle of friends that Dragon had, managed to hear the man speak anything beyond a few small words. Although, Sabo usually heard Dragon speak long tirades when he was scolding the blonde for one of his stupid stunts that could have gotten him killed. However, Ivankov wasn’t surprised by the explanation, it made sense that Dragon kept his son a secret from everyone if he couldn’t risk spies in their army, especially if a spy had destroyed Luffy’s chance of being with his bearer too.

“Well... Nice to know that you still see that link Dragon” Shanks spoke up with an amused drawl, especially when he heard the exasperated groan from the older man. Probably because Ivankov hadn’t informed his friend and boss that they weren’t alone for their conversation, his amusement grew as Luffy snickered from where he was perched on Shanks’ back. The snicker had Dragon stiffening a little before the snail slumped in resignation “Figured I should let you know, I’m stealing your other son for a couple of months, you can have him back once he’s gotten the scolding he deserves from his sister and Mamae”

“Sabo...” Dragon growled lightly in warning as he figured out that his eldest son was with his cousin.

“I got my memories back” Sabo offered weakly as he still tried to avoid the scowl on the den den’s face. His boss/father wasn’t there with him, but the scowl and tone of voice still made him feel like he did when he was ten and had decided to climb to the top of their headquarters in the middle of a storm. “Nico Robin was on Tequila Wolf, she was desperate to find Luffy so I agreed to take her... I got my memories back while with her... I grew up with Ace and Luffy as their brother, I was trying to escape Goa because of my biological father. I can explain better when I come home...”

Dragon sighed heavily at the explanation from his son, although, his lips twitched lightly at the fact that his eldest son was already a brother to his youngest son. His eyes softened at the fact that Sabo still called Baltigo his home, even with his memories.

“Luffy... Are you okay?” Dragon questioned, his voice was soft and slightly worried; Shanks assumed it was because it was the first time he was talking to his son. Plus, Luffy had been gravelly injured, something Dragon knew because of his spies and because of the news coo.

“I’m okay Uncle Dragon” Luffy promised firmly, a small smile on his lips, he didn’t really know Dragon as a potential father; he already had three fathers in Shanks, Beck and Mihawk, he didn’t need another but he was happy to have another Uncle if Dragon truly did want to be around him. “Thank you for saving me from Smokey, and thank you for saving Sabo and giving him a family.”

“I will never regret taking him in, but I’m sorry I took him from you and your brother” Dragon apologized before he sighed over the den den “Red, you keep my boy safe, and don’t you dare steal him as well... Sabo, I’ll see you soon, maybe I’ll meet you at Dawn but you’re the one who needs to explain to Koala about it all”

Sabo groaned lightly in protest and pouted as Ivankov giggled because of the look on the blonde’s face. “But Da, she’s going to murder me...”

“It’s your own fault” Dragon deadpanned, although they all noticed the red twinge to the den den’s skin which signified that Dragon was blushing and being called Da so easily by the blonde. “Be safe brat”

“Go eat and get some sleep Dragon” Garp ordered his son, something that had the snail stiffening in shock.

“Dad?! You’re with Lu?” Dragon’s den den gaped in shock before he quickly schooled his expression “You can’t tell me what to do, old man”

“I can and I will” Garp stated, his eyes going hard as he gave the den den a ‘dad glare’, something that had all the youngsters shivering and backing away so Garp could scold his son in peace. Even Shanks backed away because he was used to his Uncle’s dad glares over the years and always needed to avoid them.

“Well that was a surprise” Shanks hummed as he carried his son away from the den den considering he had permission to keep Sabo for a time.

It shouldn’t take them too long to get from Kuraigana to Dawn. Luffy originally thought it would when he broached the topic with his papai, but Shanks had to remind his son that Luffy never went straight through the seas during his journey, he’d spent time at multiple islands; some of those visits resulted in them remaining landlocked for days and weeks. Getting to Dawn with only a few stops should only take a month, maybe two.

Mihawk had already separated from his husbands so that he could go collect Brook and Nami before catching up with the Red Force. Crocodile, Daz and Gladino were set to go back to the prison ship the moment that Dragon gave the okay for the large group to head to headquarters to join the army there. Crocodile had silently used Sable the moment they heard that Dragon had tried to find Luffy’s bearer to let them know that Luffy was still alive; the former warlord had been followed by Daz after Buggy gestured for the former assassin to follow them. Bon Clay was already heading to Ivankov’s home island rather than Baltigo, Inazuma deciding to go with them so that Bon was safe since Inazuma didn’t know if their home needed to be checked on while Iva checked in with Dragon.

Law was still on Kuraigana with his crew. He was still trying to figure out what he wanted to do.

Hongo wanted to spend more time with Law, he wanted to get to know his nephew completely rather than just listening to stories and spending the last week with him. However, Hongo knew that he couldn’t abandon his Captain while they were travelling back to the East Blue, plus, Hongo wanted to see Makino again.

Shachi, Penguin and Bepo had seen a different side to their best friend since meeting the elder doctor, they saw the boy that he could have been if Hongo had been able to stay in his life. Their best friend and Captain had managed to weaken his walls enough to allow Luffy close, the younger Captain easily becoming something to the elder supernova even if Law didn’t see it yet. Although they saw a different side to their Captain, they were all getting a little landlocked and wanted to be sailing again, however, they all also knew that they weren’t strong enough to face the New World just yet either.

“Why don’t you all just stick with us until we can find a swordsman that Law can experiment with to get the boss his arm back?” Rockstar suggested lazily from the hammock that he still hadn’t taken down, even though they were all readying to set off for the East. He had seen the struggle his husband and new nephew were dealing with and rolled his eyes at their inability to use their words “There’s a high likelihood that marines will try and get the jump on us as we sail to the East, either marines or other pirates. It would mean there will be a lot of lab rats for our morbid antisocial”

Law scowled at Rockstar’s nickname for him, something his Uncles husband had been calling him for the last few days; he gave into his urges and stuck his tongue out at the man in response. Something that had Rockstar smirking at the surgeon as he swung lightly in the hammock.

“Traffy won’t need sword fighters to test his thing on” Luffy hummed as he rested his chin on Shanks’s shoulder and snickered as Rockstar was swung out of the hammock by Limejuice who ignored him while untying the hammock. “just needs a sword guy when he’s ready to give papai an arm back”

Law glanced at his friends, at Luffy and then at his uncle who shrugged lightly in agreement “He has a point... I think the best thing to do is that my crew and I separate for a time... We’ll catch up when I’m sure everything will work”

Hongo sighed lightly and had to fight back a pout as he moved to his nephew and grabbed him into a tight hug. One that was reciprocated by the supernova as Law gripped onto Hongo tightly, part of him wanted to stay with the Akagami Kaizoku, but he knew he needed to get stronger with his crew. Besides, they needed to keep the marines away from the knowledge that Law was an ally to an Emperor’s crew.

“We’ll meet again soon” Hongo promised his nephew as he pulled away and rested his forehead against Law’s, his voice soft so that only Law could hear him, even Bepo would have trouble picking up his words. “You have my den den number, you’re not losing me again Trafalgar D. Water Law.”

Hongo felt his nephew stiffen at the use of his ‘D’ initial. Hongo knew that Lamy didn’t carry the gene, neither did Law’s father nor his mother; it was Hongo’s side of the family that Law inherited his D genetics.

“I expect you to contact me at least once a fortnight” Hongo warned his nephew sternly, his voice a little louder since he wasn’t going to be using Law’s hidden initial again, plus it meant the boys crew knew that he wanted them to contact him if his nephew ‘forgot’. “If I don’t hear from you then I’m sending Rockstar after your ass and he will drag you by your ear if he has to... Don’t you all snicker, he will do the same with you idiots too if he thinks you need help and aren’t letting anyone in”

Hongo turned to threaten the Hearts, his husband snorted from where he had appeared behind him, as Law watched the man fondly. He knew the threat was a serious one, Hongo was always protective of those he viewed as his, if he inherited any of the D traits, then it was that of a possessiveness. Hongo continued to banter with the Hearts as Penguin and Shachi seemed to make it their personal mission to sass the doctor to see if he would snap, especially since both boys had never really had a responsible adult figure in their lives so we’re unused to the care and threats that came with it.

“Vati enough” Law scolded fondly, a huff of exasperated fondness escaped him. Especially when Hongo froze at the term that Law called him. Law had always called his father, dad, he’d always used the Standard term for the man; he had never picked up using the Flavence term for the man who helped create him, yet he used it freely with Hongo. “We’ll keep in contact when we can, there’s always the possibility that we’re not in range or we’re busy. But we’ll call when we can and try and call at least once every three weeks.”

Hongo blinked in shock before he surged forward and gripped his kid tightly, holding him close as Law grumbled fondly.

Shanks sighed fondly at the display while Luffy snickered in amusement as Law looked moments away from teleporting his way out of Hongo’s grasp. Something Luffy was right about as, Law was suddenly switched with Rockstar, the man easily wrapping his arms around Hongo to keep his husband from chasing after the supernova. Law gave the two men a tip of his head before he smirked at Luffy and teleported his entire crew to the Polar Tang without a word.

Hongo let out a small noise as he watched the Tang sink into the water, readying for whatever adventure his nephew/son was going to be going on. Rockstar sighed fondly and tightened his hold on his husband before he glanced over to where Shanks was with Luffy still on his back. “He’s going to be as bad as you and Yas from now on boss”

Rockstar grunted lightly with a small laugh as an elbow made its way back into his stomach due to his remark. Something that had the rest of the crew chuckling as Garp returned to the group with Sabo, Ivankov making the decision to return to the prisoner ship so that they could make their way to Baltigo.

“You have custody until Dawn. My eldest brat will come collect him... Try not to kill or main him too badly when you see him Red” Garp requested with amusement as Sabo scowled weakly, his ears were still red from the scolding that he had gotten from his dad at his disappearing act. Sabo moved straight to Ace since his ‘twin’ had always been a safe space for him, especially when they were being scolded because he lost his temper easily and distracted Dadan or Makino from him and Luffy.

“No promises” Shanks hummed in response, grinning at the snickering coming from over his shoulder.

Luffy slipped from his papai’s back and stretched, thankful that his chest didn’t hurt as much as it had been whenever he stretched. Plus he didn’t have Law watching him carefully and his uncle was still slightly dazed at being called dad by Law; Luffy was confused as to why Hongo was so shocked but he didn’t say anything as he looked to his Gramps.

”Gramps, can you tell Smokey that I’m okay when you get back?” Luffy questioned, his voice was hesitant in his request and everyone around him was confused, all but the Straw Hats who looked fond at the decision. Luffy knew his Gramps couldn’t travel with them but would probably meet them there like Dragon was doing. “Smokey and his sword lady... They need to know that Ro and I are safe and okay.”

“How come Lulu?” Garp wasn’t surprised that his son seemed to have made other friends in the marines, and he definitely wasn’t surprised by Smoker being one of them. The East Blue brat was racing up the ranks ever since meeting Luffy and chasing after him, Luffy’s saving of islands often resulted in Smoker helping or gaining notoriety for the cleaning up of the aftermath. Although, Garp also knew that Smoker hated that he gained the praise and congratulations of saving Alabasta from Crocodile when it was Luffy and the Straw Hats that saved them.

“Smokey is a good marine... And worries too” Luffy stated easily with a small shrug, something that made the Straw Hats hum with agreement; the marines was a decent one in their eyes and he was probably worried about Luffy. Even if the man states that Luffy needed to be arrested for being a pirate every time they ran into each other. “Sword Lady also focuses on Ro a lot too... She needs to know he’s safe so she can keep fighting him some more whenever we meet”

Zoro snorted in amusement at the statement about Tashigi. The woman still made him wary and confused as to how she looked so similar to Kuina, but it was nice to have someone to fight with again whenever they met.

“we’ve bumped into him a few times, he’s set to try and capture Lu” Sanji explained to the group around them, some of them looking worried about a marine needing to know that Luffy was okay. “But, he’s also helped us out quite a bit whenever we’ve met and been in some kind of struggle. We’ve also helped him out too.”

“I know a marine like that” Ace smirked lightly, remembering Isuka from before joining the Whitebeard pirates; he was curious as to what she was doing these days and if she was at his execution.

“That’s what Uncle Garp and Uncle Roger were like” Marco commented with a light grin, especially when he noticed the fond look on the old marines face. “Looks like marine friends run in the family”

“Yeah, but Smokey isn’t my Garp” Luffy stated bluntly, something that surprised everyone but Zoro who smirked in response; already knowing who Luffy’s ‘Garp’ was when facing the marines. “That’s Koby... If I ever needed to trust anyone like Vovo trusted Gramps, it would be Koby”

The marine in question stiffened at the admission, blushing red at the attention that was being aimed his way; however, his focus remained on Luffy who was earnest in his admission.

“Koby would need to realize, though, that a war bigger than Marineford would happen if you ever went on the execution stand Luffy” Garp pointed out to his grandson carefully his eyes flickering between his two youngest as Luffy gave a brief nod of understanding, as did Koby. Roger hadn’t expected to have a war starting to save him, mainly because his brother had asked his crew and allies to keep away; those in the know were aware that it was because Roger was ill. However, the rest of their allies and friends agreed because of the respect that they had for the man.

“I know that if I ever needed to take Lu in, you would be someone we’d be up against too” Koby promised Garp, something that surprised everyone around him as he turned his attention to his mentor, and possible grandfather considering what had been spoken since arriving on the island. Garp was a marine through and through, but Koby knew that if it was Luffy on that stand, he wouldn’t sit and wait for a miracle like he did with Ace; not with how close the man had already come to losing his youngest grandson. Ace had Whitebeard coming for him and Garp had his loyalty to Sengoku, the marines and his fathers ideals, to think about until the man tore said loyalty to shreds mere minutes after the war ended. “And the only reason I would agree to take Luffy in is if there was no other option, I wouldn’t take him in just because I was ordered too... It would only be if we are protecting our family”

Luffy grinned and snickered as he launched himself at his own ‘twin’, Sabo had made the observation that Koby and Luffy were just like him and Ace with different ages but could easily be classed as brothers by everyone else. Koby sighed fondly and hugged the other boy back, he knew deep down that there was a possibility that he would be in Garp’s place with Luffy in the distance future; but he wouldn’t do it just because.

“It would be an entertaining spectacle, that’s for sure”  Beck commented, especially since he knew that their husband wouldn’t even think to fight on the marine’s side, should their son ever get arrested. From the dedication that he’d seen, Beck also knew that not even a command from their Captain would keep Zoro and Sanji from fighting to save him, same with Robin and probably the rest of the crew too.

Alongside the Straw Hats, the Nefertiti family would probably go against their neutrality to save their saviour. Rayleigh wouldn’t hesitate to come out of retirement to protect his great-nephew, Ace and Marco would probably call their crew and allies to help them too; it also wouldn’t surprise Beck if Dragon would step in as well, alongside Broggy and Drorry. And they were just the allies that Beck could remember off the top of his head.

“You’d already have the Akagami Kaizoku and former Whitebeard pirates to come for you, anchor” Beck pointed out dryly when he noticed the look of curiosity from his son “Plus the Straw Hats, and your Baba... You would also have your Gramps, Mamae and sister coming to fight for you. Not to mention all the allies you’ve already made and whatever ones you make in the future. Add the Dark King Rayleigh and Revolutionary Dragon with his Chief of Staff... I pity the marines if they ever decide to take you in”

“’Kino can’t be in a war!” Luffy immediately protested with a small frown at the thought of his sister getting hurt. He knew that she was strong and very talented with a shotgun, but he would never forgive himself if his sister got hurt for him; he would never forgive himself if his Mamae got hurt either but she was scary and would probably give him a glare that makes him feel like he was six all over again if he tried to disagree with her being there.

“None of us would ever be able to deny her being there for you Anchor” Shanks pointed out, agreeing with his husband that Luffy would have a lot of people going to fight for him if he was ever in trouble; although, he also agreed with Luffy about Makino being in the war but he knew that his sister would terrify anyone and everyone who tried to take her baby brother away from her. “But you know we would protect her with everything we have”

Luffy huffed at the thought and grumbled as he hid his head against Koby’s neck, hugging the boy a little longer since he knew he wouldn’t see Koby for a few weeks and he missed seeing the boy even though he had only known him for a small amount of time. It was like when he met Ace and Sabo all over again. “Will you be okay back in the East?” he mumbled to the marine and relaxed a little when Koby hummed a yes to him. Thankfully he already knew that his dads were going to deal with Alvida when they met up with the Buggy Pirates; the former East Blue captain was dangerous, especially with her trying to influence Buggy to kill Luffy.

Both boys made a noise of surprise as their feet left the ground, Garp’s arms engulfing them tightly as he hugged his youngest two close.

“I have to go Lu...” Garp stated to his grandson hesitantly, and a small smile appeared at the knowing look from his only biological grandson.

“I’ll see you on Dawn, Gramps” Luffy promised the marine with a small snicker as he slipped an arm from around Koby and hooked it around his grandfather to return the hug “Give ‘em all trouble... Though let Smokey know...”

“And don’t go using the same method, as you did with us, to get the boys to call you Grandpa, old man” Ace drawled in amusement as he watched the three hug, he and Sabo were both ready to run the moment his Gramps tried to hug them too. He would either try to hug them or give them a Fist of Love, he wasn’t sure which he preferred yet since hugs had never been Garp’s go to.

There was a reason they were all touch starved idiots, Dadan was hesitant to let any of the boys past her walls, especially after losing Sabo. Makino would give hugs, but it was sparingly since she never managed to get away from the bar too often, and when they went down to her, she was always busy with the patrons; so anything besides a fleeting hug was rare. Luffy latched onto his crew enough that he got his quota of comforting touch, but Ace knew it was still a low amount because his brother wouldn’t want to make any of them uncomfortable. Ace was the lucky one in finding a partner that constantly humoured him and wrapped an arm around him whenever he was near, and out of sight of Whitebeard; tracking down Teach was worse than he thought because he didn’t have Marco.

Shanks and Beck seemed to know exactly when both boys were getting antsy because they needed something to ground them, one of them would just pull Luffy or Ace into a side hug randomly. Although, a lot of time, Luffy would be found clinging to Shanks like a monkey from what Ace had been told by Usopp.

Garp’s eyes flashed a little as he frowned at being called old man by his second eldest brat, Helmeppo now taking the lead. Yet, Garp also knew that Helmeppo acted more like he was Luffy’s age or a little older considering his upbringing. Luffy snickered as Garp placed him and Koby on the floor before advancing on Ace, the logia using his common sense and bolting away from the group, followed by Garp.

“Call me Grandpa you brat! You have been since I got here!” Garp shouted at Ace as he chased him, there was no anger to his tone, more fond exasperation than anything as he kept his speed back enough that Ace thought he was escaping the pursuit.

The group watched amused as Garp chased the logia around the beach, Ace was ducking and rolling to avoid Garp whenever the man lunged for him; but they all knew it would be over the moment Garp decided to end it.

Sabo hummed lightly as he followed Helmeppo to where Luffy was having a soft conversation with Koby. It seemed that his little brother was reassuring the marine that they would all be stronger in the future and Koby would definitely meet his goal of becoming an Admiral; it seemed that Luffy was eager for that because, to him, it meant that the marines would have someone good in their ranks. Helmeppo just seemed to smile as Koby blushed at the praise he was gaining from Luffy.

“You don’t have to call him Gramps if you don’t want to” Sabo stated to the two, his voice soft and careful when he noticed that Koby and Luffy’s conversation had tapered off. A small, sad, smile appeared at the looks he gained from the two marines, worry in their eyes as if they were about to lose something they’d never had before “I’m just saying that if you aren’t comfortable with it, he’d understand... Although, with how protective he is of you two, I’m sure he wouldn’t be surprised if you did actually start calling him Gramps”

“He won’t mind?” Helmeppo questioned carefully, his voice hesitant which reminded Sabo of the information the army had on the two when they first started popping up in the company of Garp the Fist.

“Welcome to the family Helmeppo, you’re stuck with us. Good luck” Sabo smirked at the other blonde and laughed lightly at the pleased flush that appeared on the marine before he went against his own instincts and pulled the elder into a tight hug which was soon joined by Koby and Luffy.

“Koby will need to call Gramps, Gramps, so he can get him to go back to work” Luffy hummed, his tone was knowing since it often took Bogard calling Garp ‘dad’ to get the man to leave Dawn when Garp was feeling too clingy. Especially after the ‘loss’ of Sabo. Bogard rarely pulled the ‘dad’ card since Garp would then cling to him, but the man was a father to him in all but blood during their tenure as marines.

“That will work?” All three boys questioned curiously as they pulled away from the four-way hug to glance at Luffy in confusion.

“It’s usually me calling him dad that gets him back to reality” Bogard spoke up from behind them, something that had the two marines startling as Luffy slipped out of their hold and moved to cling to Bogard to say goodbye “It’s rare that I have to do it, but sometimes his mind doesn’t focus on his job long enough for him to leave, but calling him dad startles him enough that he can reset his thoughts and we can leave. Plus, it reminds him that he still has family by his side*

“Do you call him dad at any other time?” Helmeppo couldn’t help but ask, the question was a quick but booming thought which escaped his lips before his filter could catch it.  Although, Helmeppo wasn’t surprised that the man saw Garp as a father figure, they had learned over the past few months that Garp was a strong pillar of support when he was available and Bogard had been by Garp’s side since he was a little older than Koby.

Bogard was pretty sure that Aokiji would slip up sometimes too, especially since he remembered training side by side with the Admiral.

“In private” Bogard confirmed with a small hum as he hugged Luffy back tightly “Not all the time… when in front of people we don’t trust I remain professional. It’s how I ended up gaining Uncle status from Lulu.”

Koby untangled himself from the hug with Sabo, his eyes flickered between the groups, and he noticed that the pirates had completed the pack up and stocking of the Red Force, most of the crew were watching Garp and Ace from the railings, alongside the Straw Hats.

The only Straw Hat that was still stood on the sand was Robin since she had gained a semblance of trust in the old marine through the night getting to know him. Sabo had informed her that Garp had mentioned to Dragon that he had another Monkey, a little bird that had last been seen with his Chief of Staff; he told her before moving to Luffy and the marines, so she had a little time to process it. Apparently, Dragon was shocked, so it was clear he didn’t know that he had a daughter.

Sabo was sure that if Dragon knew about Robin when Ohara burned, he would have tried to find her even though he was on the run himself for defecting from the marines; the army was still brand new and he didn’t have his home base just yet.

Buggy and Rayleigh were still on the sand, watching with amusement as Garp continued to chase his nephew/grandson, Ace was cackling and clearly having fun as he dodged the old marine. Marco was stood with Beck and Shanks, the blonde looking sadly at the display because he knew that he would have to split up the fun because he needed to get to the Moby Dick and to their primary family; he would have to leave his partner for at least two weeks before catching up to the Force.

“Gramps, we need to go” Koby called to Garp, watching curiously to see how the man would react to being called Gramps by one of his marine brats.

Bogard was correct at how the man would react as he froze where he was and seemed to reset in his mind, something that made Ace snort as he shot to his partner and kissed him lightly.

“C’mon dad, before the Fleet Admiral calls” Bogard added, a small smirk on his lips as Garp continued to blink in shock until he stood straighter and sent a small scowl at his youngest because he knew what Bogard was doing.

Garp huffed lightly before he moved to the small group, hoisting his two marine grandbrats into his arms as he turned to the small group while Bogard decided to get their own boat ready.

“Red… keep them safe. I find any more injuries and I’m taking it out on your ass when I get to Dawn” Garp warned his youngest nephew, chuckling at the panicked look that the red head gained at the threat. Garp turned to the others of his family “I’ll see you all in a couple of weeks. Try not to cause too much trouble with the marines on your journey home”

“We won’t” Shanks, Beck and Luffy spoke up in unison before Shanks continued the thought process “Don’t think I forgot what you said, old man, you said the Fleet Admiral has warned against your family causing trouble for the next few months. We won’t cause you to lose your job because the Fleet Admiral is being an ass”

“Besides, we want Luffy to heal completely before going against Dawn animals again” Beck added with a small grin as Luffy became eager at the chance of going up against the Tiger Lord again. Something that also seemed to cause Ace and Sabo to brighten at too.

“The moment we’re in the East, we’ll be visiting the homes of the Straw Hats to check on them too, plus Luffy wants to leave his flag there too” Shanks continued and smiled at how joyful his son had become at the chance of seeing his allies again.

“We can stop off at Drum, Alabasta, Little Garden and every where else?” Luffy asked eagerly.

“Not for long, but yes. Besides, Kureha can check over Lu’s scar and she needs to see that her own kid is safe. Your royal friends are probably worried, and we can stock up on Little Garden” Shanks hummed in thought and laughed lightly as Luffy gave his marine family and Marco a quick hug before shooting up to the ship.

Robin sighed fondly at her little brother’s eagerness before she nodded to Garp and followed her Captain. Marco hesitated before he was pulled into a fiery kiss from his partner, there were no words as Ace ran his fingers through Marco’s hair before strolling up to the ship, Sabo striding to walk side by side with him, noticing tears in the corner of his twins’ eyes.

“We’ll see you soon tio, look after yourself” Shanks nodded, a small order to his tone as Garp rolled his eyes and turned on his heels to head to the boat that would take them back to Marineford.

“This is going to be one interesting journey” Buggy spoke up fondly as he noticed that Luffy was already causing havoc with how excited he was to sail.

“At least he has his left and right with him, and his sister to keep him entertained.” Beck grumbled in exasperation as they all headed towards the Red Force.

Chapter Text

Leaving Kuraigana was an emotional affair as Marco finally pulled himself away from his partner and cousins, flying off to where he knew where the Moby Dick was docked so that their more loyal allies and the nurses could meet up with them if they wanted to continue flying under the banner of Ace and Marco. The two still hadn’t come up with a name for the new crew, but they also wanted to talk with the rest of the commanders to decide the name and jolly roger that they would sail under.

Garp had to be dragged away by Bogard considering the man was itching to spend more time with his grandchildren even if they were pirates.

Sailing was eventful with Luffy on the ship, no longer worried about his big brother considering all three of his elder brothers and two elder sisters were along for the ride. Perona was given the option to remain on the island if she wanted to, but she had become protective of both Zoro and Luffy in the small time that she had known them; plus, she had ended up latching onto Beckman. And, considering Mihawk was off the island too, she didn’t want to be alone anymore.

Rayleigh had separated from the group within a day so that he could collect Chopper for the small crew. Shanks had made his uncle promise to catch up to them quickly since he and Buggy had fallen into old routines with the man and they didn’t want to lose contact with him again even if he had a reason to return with Chopper.

Zoro and Sanji had started taking turns diving into the water for Luffy whenever he ended up over the railing and in the sea. The captain not even phased as the Sea automatically made him weaken, She hated doing it but it was part of the consequences of eating a devil fruit. Not only did the duo end up in the sea, but so did Beckman and Sabo, until Beck had had enough and threatened Luffy with being grounded to the cabin for two days if he wasn’t careful. That threat gave them two days of swim free time until Luffy and Usopp started getting antsyy and this time both ended up over the railing. Thankfully, Robin had witnessed the events and used her devil fruit to catch the two youngsters, pulling them back up to the deck with a raised eyebrow at her little brother and their sniper.

“I can’t wait until Nami gets here, at least the witch manages to knock some sense into you” Zoro huffed as he cracked an eye open to scowl at his little brother/captain. Ace and Sabo were propped up either side of him as the trio napped in the sun, the logia snorted at the comment from Zoro which made the Straw hats realize that Ace had never seen Nami in action with corralling their Captain. “Nami is as scary as Beck”

Some of the Akagami Kaizoku perked up at the information about the Straw hat navigator, they had heard about her from the tales that Usopp and Luffy regaled them with to distract themselves from Ace’s execution; but none of them realized that the girl could keep Luffy behaving.

“She’s like Mamae and Kino all in one” Luffy shuddered lightly which had Sabo and Ace looking surprised but also intrigued. Ace had met the girl before, but it seemed she was holding herself back from scolding his brother completely in front of him “And is nearly as scary as Da with his stare...”

“I’m scary, anchor?” Beck questioned, amusement heavy in his tone as he made a few of the teenagers jump; although, he was proud to note that Luffy had noticed him, as had Robin.

Luffy just gave his Da a deadpan look, one that spoke volumes to everyone around them which had them laughing softly as Beck shook his head.

“Come on you lot, training time” Beck informed them and grinned at the groaned protests, he gave a whistle for Perona and Sanji to join them too.

The adults on the ship had all decided that they would be spending the journey training the group in Haki. Sabo was already aware of the basics, but he still hadn’t activated his, same with Ace which had Shanks knocking his kid over the head with an armament covered newscoo to prove that the logia wasn’t invincible. Perona hid behind Zoro a little when she informed the group that she also hadn’t been training with Haki even though she worked for a warlord previously; Beck just offered her a small look of reassurance since they knew Gecko Moiria was an idiot and incompetent.

They were all surprised that Robin hadn’t picked up on Haki in her years on the run, but she spent more time running than learning Haki since paradise pirates and marines rarely used it.

Shanks had been keeping an eye on who he needed to train with conquerors haki, right now he knew that Luffy, Ace, and Zoro were the ones he needed to watch. Ace had admitted to using it to protect his brothers against Bluejam, Luffy had used it a few times weakly, while Zoro was just a hunch for Shanks.

Luffy was a natural even though he hadn’t fully awakened his haki, he was always aware of who was around him even if he was focusing completely on what was ahead of him; something Yasopp pointed out could easily be observational haki. The young Straw Hat captain was also able to cause a flickering of black on his hand already, to the annoyance of Ace and Sabo because the brothers were struggling to get their minds to calm enough; Sabo used to be able to meditate until his memories returned and he was overwhelmed with emotions.

Zoro was excellent with his meditation, but he seemed to become distracted easily by his Captain and Sanji, something that was irritating Beck because he still hadn’t found a way to get Zoro to focus on himself and his training. However, the boy was able to keep up with Beck strength wise which was fun. In the end, Shanks and Beck decided that Mihawk would be the main trainer of Zoro, because their husband would probably have better ideas to train their fourth son in haki.

Limejuice was the one to suggest to Shanks that their Captain trained Sanji in the marine techniques that the man had learned from Garp growing up, such as Soru. They also realized that Sanji already had a basic use of observational haki even if he didn’t know what it was; the truth of his past was released merely a week into the journey.

~~

“Sanji?” Hongo approached the chef carefully in the galley while he and Lucky were cooking for their larger crew. The doctor had been meaning to find a time to approach the blonde about observations he had and didn’t know how to until he noticed that Sanji was with Lucky and no one else was with them for once.

Sanji answered the approach with a small hum, prompting Hongo to continue with whatever he wanted to ask him as he focused on the vegetables on the chopping board in front of him.

“Germa?” Hongo wasn’t sure how to start the conversation, he wanted to be delicate, but he also wanted to be blunt because he knew exactly how dangerous the Kingdom of Germa was and the havoc that their King caused for the North Blue. Hongo also knew the rumours surrounding the Queen’s death and the loss of the third prince ten years ago.

The Akagami Kaizuko had learned from a den den call with Red-Leg Zeff, that the old man had taken his Eggplant when Sanji was ten years old, and there had been many bad habits and only mental injuries that he had to struggle to heal; Zeff had requested that Lucky keep an eye out on his kid so that there weren’t any setbacks after nearly losing Luffy.

If it wasn’t for Lucky’s fast reflexes, Sanji would have ended up losing two fingers as the knife slipped in shock at hearing the word. The reaction confirmed what the two North Blue natives had theorised since they realized that Sanji’s quirky eyebrows meant something more than just being an interesting feature.

It was the sudden panic attack that had Hongo calling for Luffy.

While both men were able to pull others out of panic attacks, the moment either of them went anywhere near the blonde, Sanji’s breathing started getting more erratic and his hands gripped tighter in his hair as if he was ready to pull it out so that the pain grounded him to the situation. Sanji had sunk to the ground, trying to curl up into a ball small enough to hide away from everyone.

Luffy had appeared before Hongo had even finished his name, as if he already knew that something was wrong with his chef; he immediately shifted around the table and settled next to Sanji, not touching the blonde but being there as a pillar of support since the elder boy didn’t slip further into the attack when he got close to him.

“What happened?” Luffy questioned, his gaze like ice on his uncle’s and his tone of voice cleared warned the two of them of danger if he didn’t like the answer.

Hongo shared a glance with Lucky before the chef gave a small nod and moved to stand by the door, refusing entry to everyone while they were trying to help Sanji come out of the panic attack and maybe learn about the blonde’s past. If the two of them were right, the blonde had a lineage almost as dangerous as Luffy, Robin, Ace and Shanks’; dangerous for the future as well when the crew entered the New World and Sanji became more known.

“If Zoro wants to come in, let him in” Luffy’s ordered his uncles as Sanji shifted closer to his Captain, accepting the strong aura that brought him comfort. He didn’t even stiffen at the idea of Zoro coming into the galley and potentially learning of his past as Sanji’s breathing started to get calmer with Luffy beside him “What happened?”

“Your Tio Roo and I had an observation” Hongo started carefully as he sunk down to the floor opposite the duo, far enough for Sanji to be comfortable; he noticed the moment when Lucky stiffened before moving to the side to allow Zoro to enter the galley.

The green-haired swordsman took one glance around the room before he moved with purpose to sit the other side of Sanji, bracketing the blonde between himself and Luffy as Sanji seemed to relax a little more.

“As you know Lu, your Tio Roo and I are from the North Blue…” Hongo started and sighed as Luffy gave a small nod but also gave the doctor a look to hurry up with his explanation because he wasn’t happy that the duo had managed to cause Sanji to have a panic attack “There’s a kingdom there, it’s built on a ship…” Seeing Sanji stiffen again as he spoke, trying to curl further in on himself, had Hongo’s heart breaking but Hongo needed to tell Luffy before Luffy took them inciting the panic attack as an attack on his crew. “Ten years ago the queen of the kingdom passed due to illness, and not long after the kingdom also lost its third prince. However, the King is also known to be a tyrant that likes to experiment on people and also is hinted to have experimented on his children to turn them into assassins”

“And why does this involve Sanji?” Zoro cut the doctor off abruptly, pushing him to speak faster before they got defensive. Though, Hongo noticed Sanji look to Zoro in surprise considering the swordsman used his given name rather than any kind of nickname they used for each other.

“The Vinsmoke family have one particular trait that makes them stand out” Hongo pushed on, “You use said trait as a nickname for Sanji... The curl of his eyebrows is a known trait of the family and considering where Zeff found him; all I did was mention the name of the country and he went into the panic attack.”

“Vinsmoke Judge is a known asshole that doesn’t give a shit for his kids unless they benefit him” Lucky spoke over his shoulder carefully; his eyes focused on the crew that realized something was wrong but stayed back since Lucky was playing bodyguard. However, Lucky noticed Monster running to probably grab either Beck or Shanks because Luffy was involved and the monkey was very aware of Luffy’s mood switches. “The third prince was said to be sickly... It wouldn’t surprise us if he made it out that Sanji died rather than have him as a public figure”

Lucky was reaching with calling Sanji the third prince, but considering the reaction that the young man had given to the mention of Germa, it was a reach that Lucky was comfortable making.

“Locked me away” Sanji spoke up, his voice barely a whisper as his hands found their way into his hair again; he flinched but managed to relax as Luffy and Zoro carefully untangled a hand each before keeping their hand in his. He kept his gaze on the wood floor beneath him but was grateful for his friends giving him support and comfort, out of the corner of his eye he caught an ear materializing out of the wood and he had to bite back a fond sigh at how protective Robin was. Although, he also didn’t mention it, it seemed his past was catching up to him and he needed his crew to know. He glanced up to Hongo and Lucky, noticing Shanks and Beck making their way to the galley from behind the chef.

Sanji sighed weakly and squeezed the hands holding his own before he gave a small nod for Shanks and Beck to be let into kitchen. The two men took one quick glance of the kitchen before they joined Hongo on the floor opposite the monster trio.

“Hongo and Lucky figured out my past” Sanji whispered to Shanks and Beck to catch them up a little “My born name is Vinsmoke Sanji... I’m the ‘dead’ third prince of Germa kingdom in the North Blue”

Shanks immediately stiffened at the mention of the Germa kingdom, he knew about the practices of the King and knew the hidden information because of his network of spies. Information that included exactly what had happened to Sanji before the young boy had managed to escape from the floating kingdom.

“I... judge... After...” Sanji groaned and gripped onto his friends tightly as he tried to avoid grabbing his hair in stress.

“Do you want me to tell them?” Shanks questioned Sanji carefully, keeping his eyes locked on the blonde as the boy stiffened and gazed at him in shock “I have spies’ kid, I know what happened... I just never managed to catch up with information on you. Although, your name was never released either...”

“I was a mistake” Sanji croaked out before giving the red head a pleading look and curling closer to his best friends. He wasn’t shocked when Luffy placed his straw hat down on Sanji’s head to hide his face from everyone like he usually did when one of the crew were struggling.

“From my reports... Sanji is the third prince, but he and his three brothers were experimented on by their father before they were born. However, Sanji was the only one the experiments didn’t work on. I don’t know much about him growing up, didn’t even know his name until now, but I know that he was pronounced dead when he was nine. He was locked away in the dungeons with an iron helmet on to keep people from recognising him and managed to escape and disappear until he met Zeff apparently” Shanks explained carefully, his eyes never leaving Sanji as the blonde hid against Luffy, though Shanks was proud of his adopted sons when they both shifted closer to offer Sanji reassurances.

“My sister... She got me out. She wasn’t an experiment... Was locked away after ma mère passed” Sanji whimpered softly at the reminder of his mother’s passing, he knew he wasn’t being the strong left hand that his Captain needed, and it was making him feel worse as he tried not to break due to his last being brought up.

“Guess Sanji’s going to need to be trained just as hard as me” Luffy stated with his familiar snicker of amusement, especially when Sanji’s head shot up to look at his Captain in surprise “We’ll break them like we do everyone who hurts my treasure.”

“Permission to castrate the bastard, Captain?” Zoro hummed lazily, smirking as Sanji’s gaze shot to him this time.

“Only if Sanji gets the first hit” Luffy agreed with a small hum, something that made Shanks snort as he leaned against his husband, proud of his boys for showing the support that Sanji needed even if it was using violence. “I think Robin will want to use her clutch move too...”

Both Sanji and Zoro shuddered and automatically moved their hands as if to protect their crotches at the reminder of Robin’s way of giving Franky a reason to cry when leaving Water-7 without looking ‘weak’. The Akagami Kaizoku looked curious about their reactions before Shanks spotted the ear coming out of the wall and then noticed his own brothers’ ear in his cloak.

“Nico Robin, Gol-Silvers Buggy! It’s not nice to eavesdrop!” Shanks scolded them both loudly, something that caused a yelp of surprise from Buggy, a yelp that caused Sanji to chuckle; surprisingly not feeling upset by the clown checking in on him.

“Lucky... They can come in. It’s okay” Sanji informed the older chef as he realized that Luffy and Zoro had managed to calm him without even trying. He felt tired and drained, but he wasn’t afraid of others seeing him curled up on the floor anymore, not with his Captain’s hat on his head and the two boys bracketing him in to provide warmth and support.

Robin immediately zoned in on the trio as she caused her ear to disappear and moved to sit in Sanji’s lap, wrapping her arms around him tightly and hugging him.

“Welcome to the dangerous past club, we’ll have cookies if you make them” Robin mused which caused Sanji to laugh lightly against her neck as the boys released his hands so he could return the hug.

“Cookies that would be appreciated for the dangerous dad’s club” Shanks added with a playful smirk.

~~

It wasn’t long before Hongo realized that growing up the way he did had Sanji becoming attuned to his surroundings pretty quickly. Add living on the Baratie to the mix and it was clear to all that Observational Haki was going to be Sanji’s speciality.

They’d informed Zeff that night that Sanji’s past may catch up with him one day and Zeff would need to keep an eye out. Said past would be explained to the man when they saw him in a couple of weeks.

Usopp was training primarily on observational Haki, he’d already awakened it to a degree when spotting the trajectory of the lava aimed at his cousin/captain, he agreed to learn armament but he wanted to focus more on his observational first.

Perona and Robin were both struggling with their Haki, something that they were both figuring out together as they sailed. Though, neither were truly bothered by not being as good as the boys with it since Perona planned to stay with Mihawk and Robin knew that her boys would remove the dangers before she would even need to use the skill. Although, she also relied more on her own agility and her powers than on her will.

-

After two weeks on the sea, the pirates were getting a little antsy for some action, the older ones knew that it was a dangerous thing to wish for since they had the rookies on the ship with them. But even Buggy was getting antsy, and that was a rare thing to occur.

It was quiet on the deck when Luffy suddenly shot up from where he was laying with his head in Ace’s lap as the boys napped. Everyone was on edge except for Zoro who immediately snorted.

“You good Anchor?” Shanks questioned curiously as he watched his son scan the horizon before he grimaced.

“Monkey-Benn D. Luffy I’m going to murder you, bring you back to life and then murder you again!” A female voice shouted across the sea, something that caused the crew to perk up curiously.

Shanks and Beck immediately zoned in on the familiar sight of their husband’s little ship and then easily spotted the skeleton that Luffy had been telling them about before the war, and the orange haired navigator that was screeching across the sea.

“Good luck Cap” Zoro hummed as Sanji immediately perked up at the sound of Nami’s voice, although he didn’t start shouting for her like he would have before getting separated from his crew.

“How long do you think I could hide?” Luffy questioned Zoro and Sanji. Robin and Usopp were snickering lightly in amusement as they settled back to what they were already doing.

Shanks had originally been debating going to Water-7 and seeing Iceberg and Paulie to thank them for their help with his son; but they realized that Franky wasn’t with them and it would probably make the Straw Hats feel worse for being on the cyborgs home without him. So they had continued on in their sailing, however, they were now getting close to their ‘stock run’ levels and Alabasta was the closest island that they could stock at.

Luffy had immediately jumped at seeing Vivi again, especially since he knew that his Baba was due to catch up with them by the time they reached Alabasta. Rayleigh was hoping to reach them before they got to Drum so that Chopper could see Doctorine again and Luffy could give both Alabasta and Drum his flag. Seeing Vivi also meant that the Buggy Pirates would have time to meet them and Nami would be distracted by the idea of seeing their friend so she wouldn’t be so mean to Luffy.

Water-7 had been sent his flag discreetly since Iceberg had so many dealings with the marines through the sea train.

“Not long” The straw hats all spoke up in unison, Usopp didn’t even glance up from where he was tinkering with his slingshot and Robin was engrossed in her book.

“Yo ho ho, Captain it’s so good to see you alive and healthy, even though I don’t have eyes to see you!” Brook called to his rubber captain, relaxing at the snickering that proved that his saviour was indeed still alive and not melted due to the lava brats attack. He perked up when he heard the shocked laughs from the other crew, grinning wider at the reminder of more people to creep out with his devil fruit and use his old jokes on.

“Brook!” Luffy called joyfully, he would have shot himself over to where Nami and Brooke were, but he was quickly caught by his Da as Beck wrapped an arm around his middle.

The moment Nami reached the deck of the Force, Beck took a step back and Luffy gained a lump to his head before he found his arms full of a sobbing woman. Nami broke the moment she saw the bandages wrapped around her Captain’s chest, breaking down as the fear and exhaustion finally caught up to her and she knew she was safe within her Captain’s hold.

Luffy flinched at he hit before he grimaced and held onto Nami tightly, wrapping his arms around her multiple times to offer her the tightness that often helped ease her tension when she knew she wasn’t alone.

The young captain gave a small nod to Brook with a light smile as he hummed Binks Sake under his breath to soothe Nami as she sobbed against him. It didn’t surprise the Straw Hats that Nami broke the moment she managed to touch Luffy again after being separated from him; her Captain was her saviour, he was her annoying little brother that barely hesitated to jump into danger if it meant his treasures were safe. Seeing the newscoo almost broke Nami, but then she managed to get a call from Benn Beckman, he had reassured her that her annoying little brother was safe and healing; and that there was someone heading her way to pick her up so they could meet again.

Seeing Dracule Mihawk nearly gave her a panic attack until he asked if she wanted to see her Captain again. She gave up on her fear, especially when Brook was picked up from a circus barely two days later.

“We’re okay” Luffy soothed her softly as he rocked side to side so that he wasn’t stood still as she cried into his chest. “Ace is okay too, I need to introduce you to Sabo... And uncle Lime, Uncle Lime likes electricity and staffs too; he’d probably train you while we head East for a bit… Uncle Snake can teach you Navigation too. We can see windmill guy and your sister again”

Luffy kept babbling softly as he ran his fingers through Nami’s hair gently, easing her slowly as her sobs began to taper off. Most of the occupants of the Red Force deck watched on curiously as Luffy managed to babble softly to the point where Nami was finally calm and just clinging onto Luffy’s vest tightly with her head pressed against the crook of his neck; the Straw Hats knew how easily Luffy could calm one of their crying crewmates, they’d witnessed it a few times since the crew had come together. Brook hummed lightly to himself as he leaned against the mast of the Force, he hadn’t been with the crew long, but he had been worried about his crew; especially seeing their young navigator so antsy and worried since they picked him up.

“Who’s Sabo?” Nami questioned almost silently, her voice was weak and rough from crying as she finally processed the words that Luffy had spoken while she was sobbing against him.

Luffy snickered lightly as he continued to run his fingers through her hair before releasing the tight grip he had on her so that she could pull back when she was ready to. “Sabo is my other big brother, we thought he died when he was ten, but he was saved by my Uncle Dragon; he found Robin and Robin asked him to bring her to me and Ro. He likes navigation like you, would probably help you come up with ideas too cause he used to be the sane one of Ace and me.”

“We’re going back East?” Nami questioned once more, she kept her cheek resting against Luffy’s shoulder even as she released the death grip that she had on her Captain.

Luffy hummed lightly in agreement and nodded in response which had Luffy’s chin brushing against Nami’s hair with each bob of his head. “Old man Ray had an idea that we train for a couple of months on Dawn, it gives Ace and me some time to heal and time with our Mamae and sister… the animals are Grand Line size… after Dawn we’ll be split again.”

Luffy grimaced as Nami stiffened in his arms, he knew that she was also one that couldn’t handle being alone, especially now that she had a family by her side. “We’ll have den dens to keep in contact… Robin says she’s gonna go with Sabo. Usopp will stay with his Baba while Ro will go with our Baba. Not sure about Brook and Sanji yet, but I’m gonna be going with Old man Ray for most of it; but also stay with Papai for while too, to make us stronger and New World ready”

“The sky island was interesting” There was hesitation as Nami spoke, she didn’t want to be separated from her crew; but she also understood where they were coming from with separating to get stronger for the New World.

“Baba will tale you back there” Luffy reassured her softly and grinned as she pulled away, his grin getting bigger when Nami clocked the rest of their crew, her ire growing as she rounded on Sanji and Zoro as if they could do anything to keep Luffy from joining a war when they weren’t even there.

Luffy cackled as Nami advanced on the two other boys, relaxing into his Da when the man stepped up behind him and wrapped an arm around his middle as Shanks moved to greet Mihawk.

~~

“Luffy-bro!” Franky exclaimed cheerfully as he latched onto the rubber captain that had been giving him a purpose for his future.

The Red Force had docked without a flag at the closest dock available to where they would see Vivi again. Nami had been overjoyed at learning that they would be able to see Vivi again and had warned Brook about even thinking about asking her friend about her panties; the joy of the crew grew when they found out that Chopper and Franky were only a few days out with Rayleigh.

Nami had immediately whacked Buggy across the head when she seen him, until Luffy cackled and reassured his navigator that his Uncle Blue meant no harm from now on, which was also a bad idea because Nami suddenly became best friends with Buggy to come up with plans to keep Luffy safe. It also resulted in Nami hearing how her captain was exactly like his Papai, reckless but loving and protective.

After hearing that Luffy was just like Shanks, she had glared at the man before deciding to push for stories on little Luffy for blackmail against the rubber boy. Nami then decided to get advice from Beckman on how to keep Luffy and the boys under control after their time apart to get stronger, something that had the boys grimacing but Beck laughing as he eagerly gave advice.

Buggy had stayed with the Red Force, eagerly awaiting the arrival of his own crew.

“Franky” Luffy snickered and laughed lightly as he was collided with from the side as Chopper joined the hug in his smaller form, crying softly as he scolded his captain through his tears

When they had arrived at Alabasta, Vivi had immediately thrown herself at the disguised pirate, scolding him and crying at the same time as Luffy sighed fondly and allowed her to cling to him. The royal family had decided to house the two pirate crews for the few days that it would take for the Force to be restocked, the day before they were set to leave the island; they were reunited with the final two members of their crew.

“I thought you were joining closer to the mountain?” Luffy laughed lightly as he shifted Chopper so that his doctor was curled up on his hip, the reindeer sobbing against him even as he shifted Luffy’s bandages to check the scarring and healing.

“Started heading to meet you the moment I heard you were safe” Franky informed his captain and Luffy knew that his shipwright was worried about him, worried enough to extend his own journey so that he could meet up with his crew earlier than planned. “Ran into old man Ray and Chop about a day ago, figured it would be SUPER for me to join them on the journey to you”

Luffy shook his head fondly at both his shipwright and his doctor, clinging to the two as he allowed them to cling to him tighter because of the fear that they’d experienced for him.

~~

It took a further month for the Red Force to reach the Calm Belt between the Grand Line and the East Blue. Brook was highly tempted to head to Reverse Mountain so that he could see Laboon again, but the man and the Whale had made the promise that they would see each other once Brook succeeded in circling the world.

The large crew had ended up staying in Alabasta a little longer than planned, but that was mainly because Luffy had some people he was determined to meet further into the desert; something that Ace was also excited to do because he remembered a ‘bounty hunter’ and his children who he needed to check up on.

While sailing away from Alabasta, the Red Force received an encrypted call from Garp, one that had the marine requesting an update on how his grandchildren were doing; something that prompted Robin and Luffy to explain to their crew about their familial link. Garp informed them that the marines were keeping an eye out for the group, but none had sent reports back to headquarters. Smoker had also sent a message with Garp, calling Luffy all the stupid’s under the sun, but everyone could read between the lines that the marine was worried about the young pirate.

During their journey to the East Blue, the Red Force stopped off at Drum Island for a few days, the entire island had hailed Luffy’s return; and none of them seemed phased by Chopper anymore, especially when Doctorine started scolding the reindeer before giving into instinct and hugging the teenager tightly. Still scolding him before turning her scolding towards Luffy while the crews watched in amusement.

Buggy and his crew had decided to sail alongside the Red Force, intrigued to see the Luffy effect in motion.

After Drum, the two ships then stopped off at Little Garden, Shanks had been eager to see his old friends again, something that resulted in the group sticking around the island for a week of partying. Luffy had enjoyed taking the time to fight some dinosaurs while Chopper eagerly looked at the different plants and bugs that were on the island; things he could use in his own experiments while Usopp eagerly listened to tales from Broggy and Drorry.

It took a further month to enter the East Blue once again, a sea that Shanks didn’t think he would visit again for at least a few years after his son became King.

It was time for the Straw Hats to visit home.

Chapter Text

Heading into the East Blue through the Calm Belt was interesting.

Luffy was extremely bored until Shanks had decided that he wanted to train his son and son/brother in conquerors haki the way his Papai taught him; by using the calm belt and sea kings. It also meant that whatever sea king the two caught and killed would be cooked up by Lucky and Sanji, it was something that had Luffy eager to train because he knew how amazing sea king meat was.

Hitsugibune was anchored to the Red Force with Mihawk staying with his husbands for the small journey to Dawn Island, it was an island that Mihawk had always avoided over the years because of the link to Monkey D. Garp. While Mihawk was with his husbands, the Straw Hats could be found sleeping on the deck in a pile, along with Ace, Sabo, and Perona. Perona had managed to easily slip into the family that was created by the Luffy effect.

Somehow it was Luffy that had managed to make sense of their large family, he had laughed when Nami had lamented about the insanity; before he sat on the deck surrounded by the Akagami Kaizoku, Buggy, Mihawk and Rayleigh. He had managed to explain the family relations of the group which all began with Gol D. Roger and Shanks.

Shanks was the chosen son of Gol D. Roger, along with Buggy, which also meant that Silvers Rayleigh was their chosen uncle. Gol D. Roger was the genetic brother of Monkey D. Garp which also made Garp Shanks’ uncle. While Ace was born the son of Gol D. Roger, he was primarily the chosen son of Benn Beckman, so that was the link that they decided to focus on.

Buggy was named Gol-Silvers, primarily because Rayleigh was the one to find him on the streets of an island in Paradise; the Dark King was the one to give him a new life even though Roger was the one to claim him.

Shanks was the nephew of Garp, which made him the little cousin of Monkey D. Dragon, but he wasn’t the only link that the small family had to Dragon. Dragon was the genetic father of Luffy, but the chosen father of Sabo (which had Luffy cackling and calling Sabo a Monkey now), he had decided to give up his parental rights to Luffy the moment he realized that Shanks had claimed the youngest Monkey; although, Luffy was happy to claim him as an uncle instead. Dragon was also the father of Robin who had yet to be claimed as an adopted daughter yet, although Beck seemed very close to doing so during their journey.

Even though Sabo was the chosen son of Dragon, he was the sake brother of Luffy and Ace first; that bond was strong but still made it funny that Dragon had managed to save his son’s elder brother without even knowing.

Through marriage, Mihawk was Luffy’s Baba. The swordsman never expected to be a father but knew that his husbands had adopted a young boy; he hadn’t expected to take a role in the boy’s life until he met him on the Baratie. Mihawk had also gained an overwhelming protective instinct towards Zoro, which resulted in Zoro being unofficially adopted by the trio of pirates and becoming the fourth brother to the ASL trio. Along with Zoro came Perona, which none of the men were upset about since the pink haired girl needed a support network.

Yasopp was a sake brother to Shanks, as he was to the rest of the senior crew to the Akagami Kaizoku which made them Uncles to the ASL trio, Zoro and Perona. This link resulted in Usopp being a cousin to Luffy and the others, technically Law was a cousin too, however all but Luffy knew that there was another link brewing for the future.

Luffy then informed the elder pirates that most of his crew were siblings to him, except Brook who was more like an uncle to the small rookie crew.

Shanks nearly had a heart attack when he realized that he was going to be panicking constantly about his first son and all his claimed kids. Especially after the group went through their trainings and then entered the New World. Thankfully, Shanks knew that Chopper had a parent in Doctorine, just as Franky had his elder brother, Sanji had Zeff and Nami had Genzo.

Beckman had amusingly suggested to Shanks that he set a time and date every month, once the kids are in the New World, so that the parents could lament as a group and drink their worry away. A group that Hongo would be joining the moment Law entered the New World too.

“Home” Sanji whispered in relieved shock as he noticed the Baratie floating contently on the sea, as if there was nothing wrong in the world.

Luffy snickered softly as he leaned against his chef, allowing the blonde to relax against them as the two ships got closer to the restaurant that, he was happy to note, looked unharmed even after the cannon balls into the restaurant six months previously. Calls of surprised voices echoed across the closing distance between them and Luffy knew that the ones on lookout had recognized the flags flying on the Big Top and the Red Force.

“I haven’t had Zeff’s food in ages” Buggy was practically drooling as the smells wafted across the air to them, something that had Shanks snickering, but also agreeing with. Lucky and Zeff may have been trained by Zeff, but the former pirate was an expert in his craft and his mentees hadn’t reached there yet. Something that the both of them said themselves.

“Sanji’s food is better” Luffy hummed, Zeff may have been a better cook to many, but to Luffy, Sanji was the best because his food had love and care made into it. Zeff had care for his food but not for the people he cooked for since he didn’t know any of them.

Sanji sighed fondly and patted Luffy’s hair gently in response to the compliment from his captain, he knew why Luffy had that thought process and while he believed that his dad was the better cook; he appreciated Luffy’s opinion.

They stood in silence as they got closer to the floating restaurant, however, the moment they were close enough to the dock; Sanji leapt off the Red Force, ignoring the scolding shouts from the paternal pirates, before throwing himself into the waiting arms of his old geezer.

Zeff had heard the calls of his scouts informing him that the Akagami Kaizoku and Buggy pirates were closing in on the restaurant. Many of the patrons panicked but Zeff soothed them informing them all that the restaurant was a neutral zone and there would be no fighting there. He hobbled through the restaurant, quicker than any of his workers had ever seen him move outside of a fight, but the old restaurant hands knew that their eggplant was closing in. The former pirate wasn’t surprised when Sanji jumped from the railing of the Red Force before bowling into his open arms, although, he was amused to hear the scolding shouts aimed at his kid for jumping before they were properly docked.

The old chef sighed as he wrapped his arms around his eggplant, running his fingers through the blonde hair gently; something he knew would calm the boy like he used to do when he was small. The way Sanji was holding himself even as he clung to Zeff, the older chef knew that something was wrong other than being away from the Baratie for such a long time.

They had all been watching the newscoo, picking up the information that was hidden within the articles that filled them all with pride. The Straw Hats were strong and good pirates, Zeff had always been proud of his son but he was even prouder now.

“Honestly eggplant” Zeff rumbled, his voice tinged with concern but fondness too as the Red Force docked without a flag, just like the Big Top, and the very large group of pirates disembarked the ships; making their way towards the duo. Behind Zeff stood the older chefs who had watched Sanji grow up from an angsty ten-year-old to a bountied pirate. Even though said bounty was a crude drawing that had made their entire kitchen laugh the moment they saw it. They all watched as their youngest clung to Zeff, the other chefs frowning since they weren’t used to Sanji breaking like that.

It used to be that Sanji would hold his emotions until he and Zeff were alone, and even then, it was rare for the younger blonde to break so much that he hid against the old man.

“Thank you for being my dad” Sanji whispered to Zeff almost silently. It was a whisper that had Zeff stiffening in surprise before he let out a small sigh of resignation and tightened his hold on his son.

Sanji hadn’t really known what a dad was. He knew that Judge was an asshole, but he’d never seen true examples of what a dad was supposed to be until he started sailing on the Red Force. Seeing Shanks and Beck with the ASL trio and Zoro had shown Sanji what a dad was and he knew that the old geezer had been his dad ever since they’d been released from hospital after they were rescued. Shanks and Beck had acted parental to Sanji too, but they’d kept it limited because he already had a dad out there waiting to scold him for his recklessness.

“Always eggplant” Zeff promised him almost as silently, something that had Sanji relaxing but still hiding against the chef. Luffy grinned brightly but didn’t interrupt the reunion, instead he slipped past the duo and headed right into the restaurant; dragging Zoro and Shanks with him because he was hungry.

~

Leaving the Baratie a second time wasn’t as hard as it had originally been for Sanji.

The Baratie chefs had provided the three large crews with a banquet that kept even Ace and Luffy satisfied, Zeff had accepted Sanji helping out as long as his boy ate as well. Zeff had taken one long look at his son before clipping him upside his head with his hand for not eating enough, before dragging him to the kitchen to cook and also to eat. It made the original chefs snicker in amusement before they all playfully teased the youngest of them; something that had Sanji sniping back automatically as he slipped back into his role as the youngest of the group.

Upon learning exactly who his son was to the North Blue, Zeff had promised Sanji that he would watch out for any signs of danger once Sanji entered the New World. He further promised that he would keep his son up to date too so that Sanji knew that his dad was safe even during his training time. Zeff knew all about the Germa Kingdom, the number of times that he had thought of stealing from them was numerous but every time Zeff was reminded of the dangers that the kingdom held due to the King’s habit of human experimentation and general experimentation on weapons.

Luffy left his flag with Zeff, surprisingly shy as he offered help if he ever needed it, and also promising to work harder to protect Sanji in the future. Zeff had rolled his eyes but accepted the flag before dismissing the apology and waving Luffy away with a basket of sweet treats for the rubber captain. None of the Baratie residents blamed their former chore boy for Sanji being separated from his crew, in fact, they thanked Luffy because Sanji had a brightness to him that they hadn’t seen since he was in his early teens; Luffy had given Sanji a new lease of life by offering him a chance to search for the All Blue.

Upon leaving the Baratie, the two ships sailed to Cocoyashi, Nami hadn’t wanted to stay long, just long enough to drop the flag off and see her sister and Genzo. The village hadn’t forgotten her theft of their wallets when she left but none of them had said much as they converged on the small crew of saviours to welcome them back. Both Genzo and Nojiko scolded Luffy for scaring them half to death with his Marineford stunt before promising that they forgave him for Nami being separated from the crew. Genzo was more worried about the guilt that the young Captain seemed to be holding onto, than the young woman he had practically adopted alongside Belle-mere, however, he remained silent as he watched the red haired pirate laughing and joking with their saviour which caused the boys whole self to relax.

Zoro hesitantly requested to return to his own island briefly, one of the main reasons was to visit Kuina’s shrine, while the other was to give his old Sensei their flag for if the marines ever decided to go there because that’s where Zoro was born. He had reluctantly separated from the crews with Mihawk to head to his own island, flag in hand; so that he could see his Sensei again and also give his respects to Kuina’s shrine with his own Baba and sister by his side. Both Mihawk and Perona offered their respects and thanks to Kuina’s shrine for being there for Zoro so he could get strong enough to meet them too.

While Mihawk, Perona and Zoro were at Zoro’s home island, the others went straight to Syrup so Usopp could see Kaya again and Yasopp could see his wife’s grave; the elder sniper was nervous because a number of the villagers probably wanted to scold him for staying away for so long.

None of the Straw hats were surprised when Usopp immediately gave into his instincts and pulled Kaya into a kiss before babbling an apology, blushing bright red as he did; whereas Kaya blushed but laughed and pulled Usopp into another kiss.

Merry sighed fondly before turning his attention to the Straw hats and greeting them with well wishes and saying that they were all grateful that Luffy was safe after his attack in Marineford. Luffy snickered sheepishly before offering his flag, he hadn’t expected so many people to be worried about him after he had been attacked by the Lava man; it always just used to be him and Makino, then his Mamae came along with Ace and Sabo. Shanks was always there worrying but he was so far away that Luffy sometimes thought the man had forgotten about him. Garp always worried, but he could never show the worry like he would want to because his Gramps was watched closely by the marines constantly so couldn’t let his grandsons become something the marines could use against him.

The two crews stayed two nights in syrup village so Yasopp could get to know Kaya properly and Merry could also scold the man for being so scatter-brained, especially since Merry remembered Yasopp from when they were both young and Yas was a speckled teen like Usopp. Shanks had found that hilarious and teased his sake brother for the entire night, also requesting stories from Merry which the man easily gave as a petty punishment towards the eldest sniper.

Shanks had been hesitant after they left Syrup, he wasn’t sure if he wanted his brother to go to Orange Town alone, or if he wanted to go with him; but Luffy, Ace and Sabo were starting to get antsy with how close they were to reuniting with their elder sister and Mamae. The three were still worried about the scoldings that they would be getting from the two main women in their lives, but they just wanted to be in the arms of Makino and Dadan, in the safety they always provided the boys as children.

In the end, Luffy had offered his flag to Buggy to give to the village, only if Buggy wanted to; he also made a point of giving his Tio his flag for his own ship just in case he ever needed it. Buggy and the Buggy Pirates separated from the Red Force when Mihawk reunited with the group with Perona and Zoro in tow. Thankfully Rayleigh decided that he would go with his eldest nephew to soothe Shanks’ worry, Buggy was going to reunite with Shanks on Dawn in a week or so anyway so Rayleigh didn’t mind going with the clown.

“Marco will be arriving on Dawn with some of the commanders a few days after us” Beck informed Shanks softly as he stood next to his husband, the seas were calm and the night was warm as the youngsters curled up on the deck in their sleep pile. He hadn’t long finished his conversation with the phoenix who was worried about how Ace was handling being away from his crew and partner. Thankfully being around Luffy and Sabo was helping but Shanks could see that the firefly was getting irritable with his ‘grounding’.

However, every time the red-haired captain thought about Ace being out of his sight for longer than a few hours, he felt a wave of anxiety washing over him. His thoughts taking him back to Marineford and reminding him what could have happened if they didn’t get there in time, or if Luffy had been sent elsewhere and had actually gone through his first plan of going into Impel Down to save his elder brother.

“Breathe baby” Beck mumbled to Shanks when he noticed that his husband was stiff and having trouble with breathing, the were very few thoughts that Beck could assume was making his husband panic in silence; but the main idea was a thought that Beck had been thinking about himself. “Ace is still with us; he’ll be with us for the next couple of months so we can get used to thoughts of him being out there without us”

Beck shifted closer to his husband and wrapped an arm around him, pulling Shanks close to him and nudging his cheek lightly with his nose.

“Our firefly is strong, minha vida” Beck mumbled to his Captain softly, content with the fact that their crew were calm and seemed to be happy on the seas of the East Blue even if there wasn’t too much action to appease them. “And Marco will be keeping an eye on him too, so will the rest of our family; Ace isn’t alone anymore, and we aren’t the only ones that will be worrying about him in the future”

With every bit of common sense that Beck mumbled to his husband, he noticed that Shanks was calming down and breathing easier, even though his eyes were still focused on the horizon as they sailed. They were waiting for the familiar outline of their year long home to appear ahead of them.

Beck knew that Makino would be one of the only other ones that would be able to calm his husband’s fears, their little sister was no nonsense and knew what she was talking about; she also knew how to get through his husband’s thick head. Plus, Beck missed the barmaid something chronic, she had been a big part of Shanks becoming who he was as an Emperor, protecting the people and providing the small local villages with more profits than they provided the rest of the towns.

And if Shanks ever met someone who reminded him too much of Makino, they would overpay and tip immensely to provide the barmaid with a better income for that small time.

“We’ve only just found him” Shanks whispered, voice cracking even though he didn’t look to his husband but relaxed into the grip around his waist, his head resting against Beck’s head lightly “Our family has become a family Beck…”

“Our family has always been a family” Beck pointed out the Shanks just as quietly, his eyes flickering around the ship to keep an eye on the rest of his people. A small smile flickering a little when he noticed the intense gaze that their youngest son had aimed at Shanks, the worry clear in the young teenagers’ eyes as if he knew that Shanks wasn’t feeling right. “We’ve always had our brothers mein herz, they’ve been ours since you collected them. Mi is ours too, you helped us give him some stability and love. Luf was unexpected but with him came ‘Kino, with him came Ace, Sabo, Zoro and his whole crew… we have always had our family. You haven’t been alone for many years baby… and our boys aren’t alone either. They’ll always have us”

Beck watched as Luffy easily seemed to slip out of the pile of sleeping bodies, only Zoro shifted, but green-haired boy just seemed to open his eye before going back to sleep when he realized Luffy was heading towards their fathers.

Luffy didn’t say a word as he slipped around the other side of Shanks and wrapped his arms around his Papai, resting his head on Shanks’ shoulder, smiling lightly when his Papai tilted his head to rest against his sons rather than his husband’s.

“Papai is thinking too hard” Luffy mumbled softly as he followed the eyeline of the two men, his body stiffening in excitement when he noticed the familiar outline of Dawn slowly appearing on the horizon.

“Papai has a reason to think so much” Shanks mumbled back to Luffy, just as softly, although he felt excitement grow when he noticed the same thing that Luffy did. A smile appearing when he noticed the excited whispers growing from behind him with his brothers spotting Dawn “But that can all wait for later… lets prepare for seeing your ‘Kino”

“She’s gonna be mad” Luffy stated, letting his Papai moving them from the railing so that they could start warning the straw hats about Dawn, especially for them to keep away from Goa. Although, Luffy had a feeling that he and his ‘twin’ brothers would end up there to remind them of the hell that the demons of the Mountain can create. Their Mamae would be upset but she always loved to see the outcome of the boys and their terror on the stuck-up nobles.

“She’ll hug you to death before scolding you” Beck hummed with a smirk, knowing that he was probably the only one that would be safe from Makino’s temper. Shanks was always the one blamed for the influence on Luffy so Beck was always safe

Chapter Text

“You brats!”

It was the first thing that the trio of Dawn born brothers heard the moment that the Red Force was within sight of the dock that Luffy would stand on, eagerly waiting for his Da and Papai to arrive from whatever adventure had drawn them away from Dawn during the year they stayed there.

Luffy and Ace immediately ducked behind the closest person to them, those being Sanji and Zoro. While Sabo remained hidden behind Lucky Roo considering his Mamae and big sister didn’t know that he was still alive. Ace was the one to come to that realization, eagerly pointing out to his twin brother that Sabo could basically be used as a distraction to keep the scolding to get too long.

Beck cut that off with a look at the trio when Sabo agreed without hesitation, the eldest of the ‘parents’ scowling at the trio who were trying to get out of the well deserved scoldings that were due to the boys who had caused everyone so much fear and worry. He knew that Sabo’s appearance would shock Dadan and Makino, but he wasn’t going to let the Portgas-Monkey brothers get away with their life-risking stunts without a well deserved telling off from their maternal family members.

Sanji chuckled fondly as Luffy hid behind him; he knew that the boys weren’t afraid of their ‘Makino and Dadan’ but knew that they were acting like little kids trying to hide from a telling off like he used to do when he was a child with Zeff. Zoro rolled his eyes at Ace’s response but stayed where he was, his arms crossed as his eyes roamed along the island that his best friend and little brother had grown up on.

When Luffy relayed stories about Dawn, about the Lord of the Coast and the Lord of the Forest, he grew increasingly curious and wanted to fight the beasts just like his brothers did when they were kids too.

The Straw Hats all shouted in surprise at the sudden appearance of a Sea King bursting through the water, rearing up beside the Red Force with a growl which had Luffy eagerly looking to his Papai from behind Sanji. Shanks had stiffened at the sight of the Sea King who seemed to be zoning in on himself, as if he could smell the same meat that he had eaten so many years ago.

“Go for it anchor” Beck informed his youngest with a small grin, he knew that Luffy was strong enough to attack the old Sea King and his wounds had healed enough that the stretch wouldn’t hurt enough to debilitate him or decrease his healing time.

Luffy snickered gleefully before he took a running jump, stretching up high and landing a hard right hook to the old Sea King, one reminiscent to what he had dealt the Lord of the Coast seven months ago when he left the island he was born on. He quickly used the falling Sea King to spring board himself up, flipping across the water to land on the very edge of the dock; his hands flailed with a yelp as he started to fall backwards but was quickly caught into a tight hug.

The smell of alcohol and freshly cooked food filled his senses as the arms tightened around him, he eagerly returned the hug and nuzzled into the hold of his big sister as Makino sobbed into his neck.

“I’m so sorry ‘Kino” Luffy whispered to her, his voice sincere and true as he clung to her, reminding her that he was right there in her arms “I’m okay, I’m right here”

A small noise of surprise escaped him as he and Makino were suddenly off the floor with a set of arms wrapping around them and the smell of tobacco and the forest added to his senses.

“I’m right here Mamae” Luffy reassured his mother with a small sigh, shifting an arm from around Makino so that it was wrapped around Dadan’s middle as well, encasing them both so that they were aware that he was right there with them and okay. “Ace will be here any minute now too, you can tell him off when he gets here. We have a surprise as well, our family is growing Maki, we have Gramps arriving soon, and Uncle Dragon”

Luffy used the same babbling technique that he had learned worked on Nami when his sister was scared, talking nonsense as the barmaid and bandit leader tried their hardest not to show everyone around them that they were crying. Well… Dadan was trying to act like she wasn’t crying while Makino didn’t care what anyone thought about her crying at the feel of her little brother alive and in her arms.

It didn’t take long for Makino and Dadan to calm down enough for them to release Luffy, the two of them eyeing him closely, particularly the bandages around his chest which caused him to huff in amusement since it was the same response his crew had had when they reunited with him.

“Uncle Hongo’s nephew, Traffy, looked after me. Traffy is very smart and told Uncle Hongo that I’ll be okay. The scars will be achey for a while and will pull sometimes but my doctor is making a cream up to soothe it” Luffy assured both of the women carefully before turning his attention to his Mamae “I tried staying in the back Mamae” he promised Dadan truthfully “Was just gonna grab Ace and get back, magma guy changed that plan”

Dadan made a noise of pain at the memory of watching her sons getting hit with a massive ball of magma and landing into the sea that would have killed them both if they weren’t grabbed quick enough. She hadn’t seen the two pulled out of the sea, but she did watch as Shanks tore apart the marines headquarters, something she needed to thank the man for after whacking him for taking her youngest to a war zone.

“I’m going to murder your Papai” Makino muttered to Luffy which had the youngest giggling in amusement, his eyes flickering to Dadan before he shifted to lean against the front of the bandit, giving her a grounding force while still holding up her ‘unphased mask’ that she always tried to wear around the village. “Hongo’s nephew survived? He’s the Surgeon of Death that we’ve been hearing about?”

Luffy nodded in confirmation as the Red Force pulled up alongside the dock, Shanks immediately started going about the familiar motions of docking the Force properly and putting the gangplank down so they could all disembark safely.

“Traffy is fun. He’s smart too, I like him” Luffy snickered as he watched his family slowly coming down the gangplank, Ace was at the front being led by the scruff by Beck; the man wasn’t going to let Ace escape. “Mamae… there’s something else…”

Luffy didn’t know how to bring up the subject of Sabo surviving the blast so many years ago, but it turned out he didn’t need to when he heard Makino gasp loudly in shock, her hands jumping to her mouth as her eyes focused on the noble clothes, she remembered fixing a smaller version of so many years ago. Without thinking, Makino shot forward until she was colliding with the young man, sobbing into his chest as Sabo grimaced and patted her on the back lightly, soothing her as he hugged her back.

“Sabo” Dadan breathed in shock when she noticed the same thing that Makino did.

“He didn’t remember us” Luffy told his Mamae softly. “Uncle Dragon saved him from the sea after the blast, took him home and raised him. Sabo remembered after he found out about Ace and me, brought Robin to me… Robin is Uncle Dragon’s daughter too”

Dadan took in the information her youngest was giving her and figured out that he was the surprise that Luffy had spoken about, she also remembered that he mentioned that Dragon and Garp would be heading towards Dawn at some point. Which was good because she was going to be having words with the man she viewed as an annoying little brother/cousin whenever Dragon stayed on Dawn because Garp’s missions were too long or dangerous.

“Another brat, huh?” Dadan grumbled fondly as she wrapped an arm around Luffy’s chest and held him close to her own, the small captain hummed lightly and rested his head back against her stomach “As long as I don’t have to raise this one too”

“Robin don’t need raising, just family”

“That, we can do” Dadan confirmed before she released her youngest, her eyes soon clocked the brat that she had raised since he was barely a month old, a scowl on her face as she marched towards him. She was grateful when the man who claimed her son as his, kept a tight hold on the boy’s neck so that her son couldn’t run away from the scolding that he rightfully deserved. “You! You and me are having words boy. How many times have I had to get it through your thick skull that you ain’t your sperm donor? That you’re mine?!

“Portgas-Benn-Curly D. Ace! You ain’t the son of Gol D. Roger on those seas, yer the son of Blackjack Rogue, Benn Beckman, Red-Haired Shanks and Curly Dadan. You ain’t got demon blood running through your brains like you always claimed” Dadan continued to scold as Ace seemed to shrink in on himself a little, shrinking back against Beck who remained a grounding force for the young man as he faced his irate Mamae. Although, it was very amusing to those watching as Ace shrunk with the sound of his full chosen name. Dadan may have kept most of her opinions and feelings to herself but she always made it clear to the boys that she wouldn’t accept the two of them thinking bad about themselves. “You gave up! You were going to let those bastards kill you! Why?!”

Ace wanted to remain silent as his cheeks went as red as the beads that he wore around his neck, the very beads that his Mamae had given to him before he sailed off on his own adventures. The orange hat was something his brother gave him while his dagger was given to him by his big sister as Makino wanted to provide a way for her little brother to protect himself. The hat and dagger were given back to him by his Gramps before Garp left the group on Mihawk’s island. He used said hat to hide his face before making a noise of protest when Dadan knocked the hat up until it was dangling against his back.

“Why Ace?” Dadan repeated firmly as she stood in front of her eldest, her arms over her chest with a stern scowl; and her foot tapping impatiently for his answer.

“You know why” Ace pointed out to his mother almost silently, his eyes still on the floor as he tried not to look at her; he didn’t want to see the hurt in her eyes as she tried to get answers that she already knew.

Dadan released a noise of exasperation before she reached out and yanked the young man into a tight hug, holding him as tight as possible while he hesitatingly wrapped his own arms around her. Beck took a step back with a nod of solidarity aimed towards Dadan as the woman sighed and hefted Ace up into her arms to cradle him close even though he weakly protested at being carried like a baby.

“Oh hush, you’re staying here” Dadan huffed to the twenty-year-old, holding him close and hiding a smile at the fact that Ace seemed to settle while she held him. “We’ll be continuing this conversation later, when I can whack some sense into that thick head of yours”

“She won’t really whack him” Luffy hummed to Beck as he shifted up to his Da’s side while Makino stood scolding Sabo for his idiocy so many years ago, it was amusing especially when Dadan moved to join the scolding and hugged Sabo to her side as the former noble apologized profusely.

The Straw Hats and Akagami Kaizoku disembarked from the ship, moving around the women until they were on the island, the older crew immediately began to greet their old acquaintances from so many years ago while Shanks stood at railing of his ship to watch over the group. Hongo was the one to start talking to Woop Slap, reassuring the older man that his chosen grandson was okay and was determined to get stronger on Dawn before training with others.

Surprisingly, Woop Slap knew Rayleigh from when Roger visited home a few times to offer respects to his Ma and Da’s graves, it never coincided with Garp’s visits, but Woop Slap remembered the young man that trailed behind the upcoming pirate captain. Makino had never met Rayleigh, but she vaguely remembered meeting Roger once as a toddler before her Ma passed, Makino was pretty sure it was just before her Uncle was executed.

“Mamae threatens it often, always has” Luffy continued as he leaned against Beck, watching as his elder brothers received the comfort that they hadn’t had in so long. “Never followed it through though, even when we caused so much trouble that Gramps had to come. She would always get scolded by Gramps for us causing trouble…”

“Surprised she never followed through considering how much of a pain you are” Beck responded easily, a small smirk appearing at the insulted look that his son aimed his way. “Go reassure your Grandpa Slap that you’re okay”

Luffy glanced around at his parents and siblings on the dock, noticing how sheepish Shanks looked as he was beckoned down to Makino; he chuckled and nodded before darting across the docks and threw himself at the old mayor.

Woop Slap grumbled good-naturedly when he easily caught the brat that had become him grandson so many years ago, even if they never spoke the confirmation. He held the youngster close and hugged him tight. Slap knew that he didn’t need to scold the boy, Dadan would be the one most successful at getting through to Luffy about his safety; as would Shanks and Beck. Shanks and Beck had always been good at managing Luffy and keeping his attention when they needed to.

He pulled back from the boy and gazed over him to see the changes before ruffling the young man’s hair.

“I may not like you being a pirate, brat, but you’re doing us proud with helping all those places out” Slap praised, smiling a little at how Luffy seemed to flush a little “You been keeping yourself safe? Been relying on your friends rather than just yourself?”

Luffy shrugged lightly, he knew that he needed to be better at relying on his crew rather than taking on all the trouble himself. Zoro and Sanji were the ones he relied on the most, and he was getting there with asking the others for help or testing them to protect themselves or himself.

“Been trying... Got us in trouble cause of my temper... Ro and Sanji are my left and right. They look out for me when I need them to. “ Luffy admitted when he noticed the raised eyebrow from his Grandpa Slap. “I protect my friends, my friends protect me if I need them to... Uncle Dragon has another kid Grandpa”

Luffy reached out and pulled Robin close to him, wrapping an arm around her waist and smiling lightly as she shifted to hold him against her side.

“This is Robin, my big sister through choice and blood” Luffy informed Woop Slap with a wide grin, especially when he saw Woop Slap splutter and then heard as his Grandpa Slap started grumbling about Dragon and his bad parenting “Uncle Dragon didn’t know about Robin until we set off East. He’s gonna visit home and meet us soon, ‘specially since Sabo is with us and Uncle Dragon is his Papai, like Papai is mine”

Woop Slap blinked slowly, processing the words before his eyes clocked the blonde that he hadn’t seen in so many years, it was a good thing that the rest of the bandits were around him too because it meant Luffy could give them a brief explanation altogether.

“Sabo lost his memories when he got blown up. Uncle Dragon pulled him from the sea, took him home and gave him a home too. Sabo found Robin and brought her home to me, he remembered when they were sailing to me and has been with us since.” Luffy explained to his large Dawn family, and the villagers because a lot of the villagers and fishermen remembered the two terrors that had made Foosha’s sunshine smile brighter every day since losing Shanks and Beckman to the call of the sea and adventure.

“Dragon and I are going to be having words” Woop Slap grumbled to Luffy before he moved to where Dadan was scolding the twins together. Ace for his idiot thoughts and Sabo for his idiocy in trying to sail away from Dawn rather than coming to her for safety.

Makino was scolding Shanks, hitting him with her bar towel as she did. While Shanks was sheepishly accepting the scolding from his little sister, he knew he deserved to be shouted at for taking Luffy into the war in the first place; it also didn’t help that so many people blamed Shanks for being an influence that resulted in Luffy taking the hits instead of his nakama.

“C’mon, Maki has probably set up some food in the bar” Luffy snickered as he took Nami and Robin’s hands, leading his sisters through to the bar that he practically lived in since he was a toddler. He knew that the elder women of his life would be distracted for a little while longer by his big brothers and Papai.

Taking a quick glance backwards, he noticed that the Akagami Kaizoku were following him too. Lucky knew what he could and couldn’t touch in the kitchen so would easily be able to tell Sanji, and Yasopp and Limejuice had jumped behind the bar to help Makino often enough that they would be able to serve everyone and the regulars while Makino was distracted.

“Like we never left” Yasopp joked to lime as they both automatically moved to the counter, grabbing their crews orders and some sake for Zoro. Lucky immediately went to the kitchen to grab some juice for both Luffy and Chopper while Sanji hesitated before joining Yasopp to make some drinks for his own crew.

Luffy snickered as Nami went to scold the men, his hand squeezing hers as he led his sisters to his favourite table, one that was already spread with food.

“Don’t worry Nami, Tio’s Yas, Lime and Roo have permission from ‘Kino, they’re always allowed to help themselves as long as they serve patrons and also leave money” Luffy explained to her as he offered her an orange. “Sanji won’t get into trouble either, ‘Kino will probably get protective like she does with me. She will with all of you... She’s only a year older than Robin...”

Robin looked intrigued at that, she hadn’t really been able to interact with someone around her own age for years, at least, someone who wasn’t scared of her.

“’Kino will be happy she’s got two little sisters now, she’s never had other women around that aren’t people buying from her” Luffy continued as he ate slowly, making sure his crew had time to grab some food since Makino and Sanji weren’t in the kitchen and he didn’t want the first thing for them to be doing in the bar was cooking for him and the crew. He knew that Sanji was making drinks but that was probably because he was nervous and needed something to do, plus drinks were nothing compared to the foods he makes. Ace and Sabo would probably eat whatever was left on the table, but Luffy was hoping to go hunting by the time they were scolded and hugged.

“Luf, take it easy and you can go” Hongo called to his nephew lightly when he noticed how shifty the young man was getting even though there was food in front of him. Luffy had been ship bound for too long, they all knew that, and they all knew that Luffy knew Dawn like the back of his hand even after being away for so long.

Luffy immediately perked up at the go ahead from his Uncle, he released the girls and ran to give his uncle a hug before glancing around the bar.

“I’m going hunting” he informed his crew, he easily noted that Zoro was intrigued but Luffy shook his head “Need to be quick today Ro, I’ll take you tomorrow, we can go further in then. I just need to get some boar or something”

“They’ll probably be lax as well since you haven’t been around in some time” Hongo commented with a small smile at how much Luffy’s eyes seemed to light up at the prospect of going on a hunt without being watched “Go, before your Papai and Da realize that you’ve gone”

Luffy hugged Hongo once more before darting out of the bar and towards the forest, the crews watched him go before Nami and Robin raised their eyebrows at Hongo, questioning his decision without saying any words; even Chopper seemed to be expecting an answer.

“Luffy knows the forest, and he knows his limits when he’s hunting” Hongo informed them bluntly, something that the senior crew of the Akagami Kaizoku nodded in agreement about since they remembered how predatory Luffy could become when hunting. Even Shanks was pale when he’d come back from a hunting trip with his seven-year-old son, the man didn’t say anything, but he did reach for a drink quickly; one that Makino gave easily with a giggle.

“Who’s hunting?” Shanks questioned as he walked into the bar with Makino under his arm, curled into his side, his eyes washed over the bar, and he groaned lightly at the lack of his son eating. Although, he did huff in amusement when Ace and Sabo made immediate beelines for the table of Makino’s food. Shanks glanced to Hongo “He have permission?”

“I gave him permission to go hunt,” Hongo confirmed as Makino ducked out from under Shanks’ arm and went to hug all the senior crew members who had taken her in as a little sister ten years ago. Hongo grinned as he hugged Makino back and pressed a light kiss to her temple before she slipped past and went to see Yasopp and Limejuice behind the bar “Figured he needs to release some steam, and we need some extra meat too considering who we’re feeding”

“We’ll go hunting for more tomorrow?” Ace offered carefully, his eyes glancing between his Da, his Mamae, and his big sister.

“As long as you stay with your brothers” Beck agreed, glancing to Dadan who hummed around the lip of a bottle of rum before nodding while Makino snickered at how careful Ace was being; his ears were probably still ringing at the scolding from his Mamae.

“You can keep an eye on Moss while you hunt” Sanji pointed out to Ace with a smirk, especially when Ace scowled at Sanji and poked his tongue out at being placed on Zoro duty. Something that made Perona giggle as she hid against Mihawk’s side and waved at Makino when the giggle caught the older woman’s attention to her.

“We should probably explain the new family tree” Yassop pointed out to Shanks when he noticed that Makino had finally taken in who was around her bar.

Shanks sighed before he nodded in agreement and started thinking through his son’s explanation before explaining it to the women in his life

Chapter Text

“What is it with you Gol-Monkey’s?!” Dadan exclaimed, her tone full of scolding the moment she caught sight of Dragon and Garp, the two Monkey men appearing at the same time on the docks of Foosha’ two weeks after Luffy had originally arrived with the Red Force.

The Straw Hats had been scarred for life the day after they’d arrived.

Originally none of them had believed the rumours about the animals on Dawn being similar to that of the Grand Line, that was until Luffy appeared with a boar that was the size of the animals that Sanji and Zoro had hunted on Little Garden. It got even worse when Luffy had snickered as Ace explained that the boar was actually an adolescent, they got bigger but Luffy had taken it easy because he’d promised to do so. The day after, Luffy had fulfilled his promise to take Zoro into the forest to hunt, the small group had been warned not to go too far in just yet because Luffy was still healing and the others were new to it all.

The moment Makino watched them all trail into the bar, she had giggled and made them all strong drinks, bar Usopp and Chopper who were still a little too young for her conscious to serve. Usopp had waved off the alcohol anyway and immediately curled into his Baba’s side as Yasopp consoled his son since he had witnessed his nephew do the same many years ago.

Surprisingly, Zoro went with Luffy a few more times to hunt for more meat. Luffy, Ace and Sabo cleared whatever they’d caught considering they were being fed home cooked meals by their elder sister. Sanji had requested to learn from her and Makino was all too happy to help one of her new little brothers with his passion to learn as many recipes as he could. Makino had eagerly accepted the new siblings and extra family that Luffy had brought along with him, Brook hadn’t held back his question about seeing her panties, something that caused Ace, Luffy, Sabo and Shanks to jump on the skeleton and give him a very large headache while Makino laughed, the old pirate also tried his luck with Dadan before the bandit queen hit the skeleton on the head with her club.

The boys didn’t defend Dadan like they had with Makino, but that was mainly because Dadan had given them a look to stay out of it when they were ready to pounce.

Makino wasn’t surprised, while the Akagami Kaizoku were, when the trio of brothers had slept curled up in Luffy’s old room with Dadan under them on the first night. The woman had grumbled fondly but gave in with a huff as Ace gave her a wide-eyed look that he hadn’t used in many years, Luffy had snickered in amusement while Sabo hooked all their hats up as Dadan settled on the bed. By the end of the night, the Straw Hats had been offered bedrolls to stay in the bar while Makino locked up and joined her brothers and Dadan upstairs.

It took three days of being on Dawn for the Straw Hats to understand why their Captain was the way he was.

Nami, Usopp, Chopper and Brooke all decided that there was no way that they were ever going to go back into the forest. Usopp had claimed illness while Chopper had immediately hidden with Hongo, something that made the doctor sigh fondly but accepted the little reindeer’s presence as he went to the calmer areas of the island to pick herbs and flowers that could be used in medicines. Nami had soon latched onto Limejuice and Snake who had been surprised before giving in and teaching her all they knew about navigation, staff wielding and electricity. It gave Nami a reason not to go back into the forests around them while Brook claimed his bones were far too fragile to enter the dangerous territories around them. Usopp hid with his Baba who had patted his son on the back in solidarity before going through sniper techniques.

Shanks knew that the four thought they were safe with the Akagami Kaizoku keeping them from Luffy’s brand of fun, but he knew that his Uncle would be changing that within days of arriving.

Marco had sent a message that they were being waylaid by a storm but their arrival should only be about a day or two after Garp had announced he would arrive.

Buggy and Rayleigh arrived the day before Garp.

Rayleigh had greeted Woop Slap with a fond smile for the old man that he remembered as a younger mayor when he’d arrived with his sake brother to visit his family. He had taken a quick look at the group of teenagers and nodded with a small smirk of approval when he noticed that they all looked a little stronger and Luffy looked much more energetic which meant he’d been having fun with hunting.

Buggy had greeted his little brother with a small smile, clapping him on the shoulder lightly before his eyes landed on Makino. He gave the barmaid a shy wave, something that was returned with a small smirk from Makino, as if she knew the trouble she could cause with the clown now that she was older. It was also fun because she now knew that Buggy was Shanks’ brother and she could cause some mischief.

Shanks had taken a quick look between the two before groaning and telling them both a half-hearted ‘no’. Something he knew both were going to ignore sooner or later.

Dragon had arrived first, surprising everyone but Shanks, Beck, Yasopp and Luffy, when he appeared almost directly in front of Sabo before knocking his son on the head with a newscoo and then pulling him into a hug without hesitation; Sabo had stiffened in shock for a very brief moment before he tightened his grip on his Papai, the blonde hiding his head against the man’s chest. Sabo may have been on some solo missions since he was seventeen, and group for long periods of time, but he always had contact with Dragon but they had been separated for the last few months with little contact due to travelling. He’d missed the man that showed him what a true father was supposed to be, even if he was a little irritated that the man had abandoned his little brother so many years ago.

Garp had snuck past everyone but the four who’d noticed Dragon before he landed, standing beside Luffy who leaned against him almost immediately, as he watched his son being reunited with his grandson. Garp knew that Dragon loved Luffy with his whole heart, his son always loved with his entire being even if he didn’t show it, but it was nice to see that Dragon had managed to find a son in Sabo while Luffy had Shanks, Beckman and Mihawk.

Both Dragon and Garp stiffened at the exclamation from Dadan, the revolutionary noticing his father in moments of Dadan speaking. Dragon seemed to shift behind Sabo, his eyes flickering between his father, Dadan and the forest ahead of him that he knew like the back of his hand. However, his thoughts seemed to be clear to Dadan as the bandit moved faster than anyone, but her boys, had seen her move and latched onto her little brother/cousin’s ear. Something that caused the leader of the revolutionary to yelp in surprise before he groaned and tried to get her to release him with his hand on her wrist.

“You ain’t escaping me ya brat” Dadan growled out to man as she turned her fiery gaze to Garp. The marine stiffened but didn’t move from where Luffy was leaning against him, however, he was a little confused as to where Luffy, Ace and Sabo had gained popcorn from. The three boys watching eagerly as Dadan geared up to scold someone who wasn’t them. “What the seas is wrong with your family?!”

“Many things...” several of the Straw hats and Akagami Kaizoku muttered under their breaths even though it was spoken with fond looks aimed at Ace and Luffy.

Koby snickered lightly at the sight of his grandfather stiffening at a look from the bandit queen that they’d been told about on their journey from Marineford. Garp had been given leave to ‘grieve’ since Luffy had somehow remained hidden, so no one knew that he was alive, and many believed that Shanks was heading towards the East Blue to bury the young Captain. The Straw Hats had been seen fleetingly so the newscoo had released that the rookie crew were probably going to drift apart now that their Captain was dead. However, Luffy had the, surprisingly smart, idea to take a photo in the next couple of days with him and Ace fighting a Dawn animal to make it look like it was Grand Line size before sending it to Morgan’s to announce his survival.

Bogard, Helmeppo and Koby were the only ones that went all the way to Dawn with Garp, they had sailed on a smaller marine vessel than the Melody. Aokiji knew that Luffy was alive, there was no way that Garp was still with the marines if his grandson had died like everyone had believed, but the Admiral stayed quiet, just asking Garp to send his apologies to Luffy and Robin for his actions.

“You abandoned your son and then adopted mine!?!” Dadan growled at Dragon, pinching his ear and twisting lightly which had the man yelping lightly against his control, the image of a big bad army leader disappearing in one fell swoop due to a bandit queen overwhelmed with irritation. “You took one of my boys and didn’t think to check if he had a family!”

“By the time it was safe to keep nosso sol with me and without risks against him, Red had already adopted him and he’d made a home with ‘Kiki” Dragon explained, his voice was higher than normal and had a hint of a whine to it as he tried to get Dadan to release him; annoyingly it wasn’t the first time that she’d ever done this to him and he never could get out of her grip, not until she was ready to release him. “Lu was shot with me An, has a scar on his leg because of it…”

“Any of you ever call me that, I will spike your food and drink with laxatives” Makino muttered to the group around her as they looked to her curiously with the name that Dragon called her. Dragon was always the only one to ever call her Kiki and she kept it that way, especially since she loved her cousin and kept her memories of him close at hand with said name.

“And Sabo?” Dadan demanded with another pinch to his ear.

Luffy had looked slightly curious about the explanation as to why he had been left with his big sister and grandpa Slap, he knew that he had a scar on his leg, but he never knew where it was from, and She would never tell him either. She always said that he wasn’t old enough to understand, She also says he’s not ready to know who his bearer is until they decide to approach his Papai first. Interestingly, it was Perona who noticed that Luffy was being drawn into his thoughts and followed the same line as her brothers usually did by moving to his side and wrapping an arm around his shoulder to ground him to the situation.

Luffy blinked back to the present before he smiled at Perona and leaned against her in response. Ace and Sabo were still watching the duo with popcorn that Makino had snuck to them with a grin, knowing that her cousin was going to be facing a ‘Dadan scolding’ alongside her Uncle Garp.

Dragon released a soft hiss at the sharp pain running through his ear and the ache starting to grow in his neck from how Dadan was gripping him, while he couldn’t easily escape the grip, he knew she would release him if he squeezed her wrist tight enough. She was decent like that even when scolding him like an elder sister scolding a bratty little sibling, which was exactly what she was doing so he didn’t argue.

“We had business in the East around the time the Saint came here” Dragon explained with a noise of protest which had Dadan easing the pinch slightly “Figured I could check on Lulu since Red had left a couple of months before, we found out about the Terminal fire and decided to rescue everyone we could… I tried to check on you but got distracted in High Town. By the time we were leaving, we watched a little ship being blown up and the youngster on it going flying into the water; I made the decision to keep him with me for a while but then he woke with no memories and an immediate urge to flee. All we knew was his name because of the cravat and I remembered meeting him in High Town where he wanted to escape”

“Got distracted in High Town... we’ll be talking more later idiot.” Dadan huffed with a fond grumble, releasing the man before pulling him into a tight, but quick, hug. Once she released Dragon, she moved her attention to Garp with a firm glare, although her gaze did flicker to Luffy when she noted the ghost girl was grounding him; when noting that Luffy was okay and somehow more of their group had gained popcorn, she moved her glare back to Garp “You! You took my boy onto that scaffold and just sat there!”

Garp sighed as he ran his fingers through Luffy’s hair lightly and focused on Dadan.

“You know Papai’s teachings” Garp pointed out to the bandit queen, she may have been like an elder sister to his son, but she was also looked after by his Mamae whenever her own mother was being difficult; his Mamae had taught her both the teachings of herself and her first husband. “Ace got himself into that position, it was up to him and his chosen family to get himself away. I was already breaking the rules by sitting there rather than joining the others in the pavilion, I’m close to being imprisoned myself Dadan… Anything happens with the brats in the next year or so and I’m done”

“One of the reasons why we’re training the brats for two years” Rayleigh hummed from where he’d slid up beside Shanks and Buggy, he knew that the world would go to the Locker if Garp was dismissed or arrested before his marine grandkids could take over in his stead as a good marine on the seas.

Dadan scowled at Garp before sighing in exasperation. “We’ll be having more words later Garp. Right now I think we all need a drink”

“I’ll meet you at the bar” Dragon informed the group as he moved to his blonde son, his hand landing at the scruff of his son’s neck as Sabo stiffened and gave Dragon a wide-eyed pleading look to drop the issue “My son and I need a conversation”

“My house is empty for the time being” Woop Slap offered with a small smirk when he noticed the betrayed look that Sabo was sending him.

Dragon gave a small nod of gratitude to his ‘uncle’, gripping Sabo lightly at the scruff and leading him away from the group and towards the mayors home so he could scold his son properly. Sabo’s disappearing act had terrified them all, and he was going to make his son realize how loved he was and how worried everyone was for him.

“Poor Sabo” Luffy spoke up, though there was a light snicker at the end of the comment, one that the teenagers shared as the adults rolled their eyes and shuffled them all between the training areas they were splitting between.

Zoro grumbled in commiseration for Sabo as he was lead to a clearing that Mihawk had been teaching him in, he had been banned from drinking by his Baba until he got the hang of his Haki and a few of the moves that the Warlord had been teaching him.

Luffy had been training with Shanks and Rayleigh in Haki, he didn’t use anything else to fight with bar his hands so he didn’t have any other trainers; however, Rayleigh suggested that Garp train Luffy for a while so that the marine could train his grandson to fight with his fists. Although, Buggy was training Luffy about his devil fruit.

Luffy’s comment about Nami working Limejuice and Snake for her staff and electricity skills was genius and she had been stuck by the side of at least one of the men as they trained her in fighting and with navigation. Chopper usually stuck with Hongo while Sanji trained with Lucky and Makino with food but with some of the other Red Force crew since he fought with his feet and there weren’t many others that did.

Robin and Franky didn’t really need much training to fight, neither did Brooke, but the three did enjoy learning his and bobs from everyone else on the island

Ace was training with Beck, Rayleigh, Shanks and Buggy and knew that he would be training more with Marco the moment his partner reunited with them in the East Blue. He was anxiously waiting for his crew to appear, especially since he knew that the Spades were still with the remaining commanders while their allies housed the remaining crew members until Marco and Ace were ready.

“I hope you don’t mind Foosha’ being loud for a couple of days” Shanks commented to Makino and Woop Slap as Garp led Koby and Helmeppo to Party’s; Bogard walking ahead of them with a small smile of fondness at the unchanging village he visited often as a cadet.

“We miss it” Makino shrugged lightly before she slipped away from shanks and sprinted before jumping on Bogard’s back with a giggle. Bogard immediately caught the young woman that was practically his little sister/cousin and rolled his eyes as he kept walking and Makino chattered excitedly to catch Bogard up on everything that had been going on.

“The coo will release Luffy’s survival in the next few days... Will he be ready?” Woop worried lightly as he hobbled alongside Shanks towards the bar that was his second home.

“Even if he’s not, Uncle Ray will make sure he will be in two years”

Chapter Text

Splitting the Straw Hats up nearly made all the men change their minds with their decision.

Ace had been reunited with his crew two days after Garp and Dragon appeared, the logia was immediately knocked to the ground with a soft grunt as he was tackled by multiple bodies crying with relief at the sight of him alive. Thatch was the first one to cling to him, followed closely by Izou and Haruta while his Spades scowled protectively from behind the commanders. Marco stayed back and moved to greet Shanks as he left his partner to deal with the crying commanders since he had been handling them since he reunited with them. It was the former Whitebeard  that brought newscoo's with him announcing new bounties. Luffy had cackled in amusement at the new bounty for his elder brother, Ace now being known as Portgas-Benn D. Ace while Luffy's was Monkey-Benn D. Luffy because the marines refused to use Shanks' chosen name of Gol. It took six months for Shanks to decide to release the grounding of his eldest, six months on Dawn as even the commanders found the animals of Dawn a challenge. In the end Shanks and Marco agreed to an alliance since Marco was nowhere near Emperor level and neither was Ace, there was just going to be a void for now. Although, Ace knew that his brother would probably fill that void in two years or so.

Dragon decided, after two weeks, that Sabo and he needed to return to Baltigo, that they were away too long. This announcement was followed by Dragon suggesting that Sanji return to Iva’s kingdom due to the Attack Cuisine part of Momorio, it was a suggestions that had Sanji paling until he heard of the competition and the kinds of food that could be made. Luffy was the one who urged the blonde to return, as long as he kept his den den on him and kept in contact with the Straw Hats and with his Da. With Sabo and Sanji went Robin as the woman decided she wanted to learn more from the revolutionaries and also was interested in getting to know the man that was her birth father.

Within half a year, Robin had managed to gain multiple siblings through her Captain and crew, but also four fathers in Shanks, Beck, Mihawk and Dragon; even though Luffy called Dragon, Uncle, instead. Robin wanted to get to know the man more and also want to know more about her mother via the man as well. She had also been promised that she could see Saul sometime in the future should they go Elbaf, an island they were welcomed to visit even if it was part of Shanks’ territory.

Mihawk had reluctantly decided to return to Kuraigana the week after Robin and Sanji left, taking Zoro and Perona with him so his primary two could get stronger on his home island with Mihawk having the comforts of home. With the return to Kuraigana came the separation from Nami as well, Mihawk deciding to take the young Navigator back to Weatheria so she could learn all she could about weather and harnessing it.

Franky was the one to decide that he was going to separate from the group around the same time, he built a boat large enough to house Brook and Chopper as well, while still able to sail alone since he decided to drop the two off to where they had been sent. Chopper knew that there were plants there he could use and experiment with, especially since he’d have a direct line to Hongo’ and Law during his time apart from his crew. Law had also promised during one call that he would pop by every now and again to experiment with the reindeer.

Law had debated becoming a Warlord until he spoke with Hongo and found out that he could learn whatever he needed to learn through Garp, Buggy and Rockstar. His Vati had been very stern with the surgeon when he learned that Law was debating going against Doflamingo alone, Luffy had overheard and promised ‘Traffy’ that he would help fight his demon in the future. That cemented the idea of helping Chopper without asking for anything in return.

Brook decided to return because it meant rat he could work on his music and being known so that he could gain a following which could aid them in the New World.

Usopp and Luffy were the last ones to separate.

Buggy had thought things through and chose to remain in the East Blue for a little while longer, particularly on Dawn since he had fallen hard for Makino; although, his crush was still around for Crocodile. A crush that grew larger when the former warlord decided to visit Shanks six months into their stay on Dawn.

Crocodile had pulled Shanks aside and informed the red head that they were Luffy’s bearer and hadn’t known about any of it until they heard the war over the den den. Their feelings growing more complicated after finding out that Dragon wasn’t the asshole that they’d thought him to be after so many years, and that their hatchling had lived and was not born still like they always believed. It was that heart break that had caused Crocodile to go down the road that they had gone down initially, being around robin had softened them a lot since the initial plot began.

Shanks didn’t find it surprising that Luffy was Crocodile’s.

The red head knew that Cee had so many demons in their past and surprised the sand logia when he grabbed their hand the moment the information registered and dragged them to Party’s Bar before informing Luffy of the truth. Luffy had blinked in surprise before shrugging and then asking Crocodile if they minded being called Uncle.

Crocodile had stuttered that they didn’t mind before moving to hide with Buggy. Buggy had patted their arm lightly in solidarity before introducing them to Makino and the rest was history. Crocodile and Buggy were very lucky that Sabo and Ace weren’t still around on Dawn when they started dating Makino, although they had Beck and Dadan being all protective instead.

It was only a week after Crocodile’s news that Rayleigh hesitated before announcing that he thought it was time for Luffy to begin his more intense training, it was an announcement that made the entire bar to go quiet since they all knew that it meant that Luffy would be leaving Dawn and also leaving the East Blue for his training. Shanks wanted to immediately protest, but he knew that Luffy was too strong for the island now, and that he was getting antsy once again.

Usopp knew that he was staying with his Baba, but that didn’t mean he was happy being separated from his cousin.

“Promise me you’ll be safe” Shanks requested firmly as he caught his sons chin in his hand, Law had recently contacted them to set up a meet to give him his other arm back.

“I’m a pirate, Papai, I’m never safe” Luffy pointed out with a soft snicker before he sighed and koala hugged the man that had given him his dream and his heart “I promise that I’ll try... Promise me you’ll always be there?”

“No matter where I am on the seas, I will always be there for you in an instant” Shanks promised his son, his voice thick with emotion as he tried not to break at the thought of losing his son again.

-

An excited snicker echoed around Grove 14 of Sabaody as Luffy fought against the Pacifista’s that had been sent after them, his laughter growing with every member of his crew that appeared beside him.

The Pacifista’s had no chance against them, even though The Flaming Spades were watching the fight from the sidelines, Ace smirking in amusement at how much destruction his baby brother was causing to the marines ‘secret weapons’. Sabo easily slid up to lean against his twin’s side as he watched his extended family destroying everything that the marines thought could destroy the supernova.

None of the observers in the know were surprised when a blue dome appeared around a Pacifista that was trying to hit Luffy from behind while Zoro and Sanji were distracted elsewhere. Law appearing with a smirk at Luffy, one which grew as Luffy gave a bright cheer at the sight of the surgeon.

Ace and Sabo still weren’t sure about the surgeon, especially not with how close he was with their baby brother, but they knew that their elder sister would protect Luffy if she needed to, plus Law was on their good side a little since he gave Shanks an arm back.

The destruction around them, as the battle calmed, made the twins sigh fondly and shake their heads as Luffy gave Law a quick hug before shooting his crew to Sunny and ordering Franky to set off for their next adventure.