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Chapter Text

When most people looked at Akagami no Shanks when he left Dawn Island, they would say that he had lost a lot. His treasured hat, the devil fruit he had acquired, a year of time, and even his arm. What most people didn’t know was how much Shanks gained on that sleepy little island. He had gained a hope for the future, a promise, and above all a son . 

Shanks stood at the docks, a crying little rubber boy wrapped in his only remaining arm, Shanks’ fath– captains- straw hat perched on his little head. 

“Now Anchor, Luffy , I need you to look at me,” Shanks said, crouching to put himself at Luffy’s eye level.

Luffy looked up, quieting his sniffles, he knew how important it was when Shanks used his actual name.

“Now Anchor, I know how your little brain works, so I want to make this very clear,” Luffy couldn’t hold back the wet giggle as Shanks tapped his nose. “This promise does not mean that we can’t see each other, I’m too selfish to go that long without seeing my kid after all.” Luffy giggled again at the possessiveness in Shanks teasing tone. “Now, I’ve left my Den-Den number with Makino, I’ll call as often as I can and I’ll come back to see you again. It may not be very soon, but I promise you Anchor, I am not leaving you.”

Shanks barely managed to keep his footing as Luffy launched himself at the pirate. Luffy wrapped his arms around Shanks neck, Shanks hand on the back of the boys neck to hold him close. 

“I love you,” Shanks murmured.

“I love you too, Shanks.”

They stayed there for another moment before Luffy let go. He backed up, wiped his tears away and stood up proudly. “When you come back I’ll be so much stronger! I’ll prove it to you!” 

Shanks smiled and ruffled Luffy’s hair, “I know you will, Anchor. We’ll see each other again before you know it.” 

And so they left. The crew of the Red Force yelling and waving at the people who had gathered to see them off, but most of them only had eyes for the little ball of sunshine waving with all his might, straw hat falling into his eyes. 

Shanks sighed and slumped against the railing one they were out of sight. He didn’t even budge when Beckman came up beside him.

“It’s better this way, Chief, the seas are too dangerous for a kid,” Beckman stated.

“Why does it sound like you’re trying to convince yourself as much as you’re trying to convince me, Beck” Shanks said with a sigh.

“Because he is,” Lucky said from not too far off, “we all are, honestly.”

Shanks just sighed and slouched further, resting his cheek on the railing. Even the Red Force seemed like she was fighting going out to sea. 

“We’ll be back,” Shanks said, “at least once more before he sets out on his own.” With that, Shanks stood up to his full height. He took a deep breath and steadied himself. He was on the sea again, the one place he thought truly had his heart, but now he knew. He was leaving his heart in the safe hands of a little rubber boy on a little sleepy island. He would be back, not to take it back, no, he could never take his love away from him, but he would be back. But the sea called his name, like it called every member of his crew, like it called his son, and they would all answer that call gladly.

0808

Shanks called as often as he could, once a week to start with, then longer stretches once Garp, fucking Garp , took Luffy up into the mountains, then the calls stretched to about once a month. He got to hear about his adventures in the jungle though, stories about his new friend Ace, who really didn’t seem like much of a friend, and then Sabo when the other boy joined. He heard too late about Porchemy, and didn’t that just fill Shanks with anger and pride. Anger that someone would dare touch what was his , but pride that Luffy stood firm to protect the people his son claimed as his own. But it did lead to a talk about how to protect oneself and that there was a line between loyalty and stupidity. Luffy’s answer nearly broke Shanks' heart though.

I’d rather hurt than be alone, Shanks. I don’t like being alone.

It took every ounce of Shanks self control, as well as Beckman’s stern look, to not order the ship to be turned around. 

But then he got to hear about Luffy’s brothers. The boys that became Shanks by association. He got to talk to the boys a few times, Sabo sounding so polite, yet with a steel undertone and wit beyond his age. Ace had a sharp tongue and a temper to match, but Shanks could tell that they were fierce, and they were his, whether they knew it yet or not.  

Shanks ended the call the same way every time, with a promise from both of them to stay safe and an ‘I love you.’

There were always a few teasing remarks from the crew after every call, light hearted ribbing about how much of a dad the yonko was, but they were all wrapped around that little rubber finger, none of them could wait until the day they would go back.

0808

Shanks wasn’t sure what it was, but something had him on edge. There hadn’t been any Marine ships around lately, no new rookies had come trying for a challenge and the weather seemed clear. There was nothing on the sea that should have had him so agitated, and yet. 

Shanks caught himself looking eastwards more than usual, not just him, most of the crew had spent the day looking over their shoulders, watching the ocean at their backs.

Shanks had talked to Luffy last week, it wasn’t a great talk, but not all of them were. He had seemed distracted, quieter than normal. All he would say when asked was that there was something going on with Sabo, but he couldn’t talk about it. Shanks knew there wasn’t much he could do about it, so he just did his best to comfort his kid and tell him about his journey. Maybe that was what had him so uneasy?

By mid-day Shanks couldn’t handle it anymore. He looked towards Beckman, sharing a look across the ship. After this many years together they could read each other easily, not to mention when Shanks reached out his Haki, he could feel the same unease coming from his first mate. Beckman nodded and Shanks turned to the crew.

“Building Snake, set a course for Foosha, fastest one you can,” Shank hollered.

It showed the feelings of the whole crew as the order was followed silently. There were no cheers at heading back, no teasing jabs about Shanks being a doting father, just the sound of pulling ropes as the Red Force turned around. Shanks jumped onto the figurehead, watching the waters and praying to whatever god that would listen that he had heeded whatever warning the sea was giving him in time.

0808

As soon as Dawn came into view, the entire crew went from unease to near panic. Dawn was on fire. All they could see was smoke and the stench of burnt trash, along with burnt flesh, was overwhelming even from this distance. 

“Beckman, Hongo, Yassop, Roux, with me! The rest of you get the ship docked and wait for orders!” Shanks yelled. He leaped into one of the rowboats, knowing this could get them in faster. He went as far as to cut the lines holding the small boat up, too impatient to wait to be lowered gently. 

The group rowed in silence, as fast as they could, tension thick in the air.

As soon as they were close enough Shanks flung himself off the boat and onto the docks. He tried not to panic, not even as the smoke and the smells got worse. He tried to move at a normal pace to the Party Bar, but by the feelings he was getting from his observation Haki, he wasn’t quite successful.

When he got to the bar the sliver of hope he had that everything would be just fine was dashed like the waves on the shore. The bar was empty, Makino was the only inhabitant and when her head jerked up and the door opening, Shanks could see tears in her eyes.

“Makino,” Shanks breathed, “what is going on?”

Shanks felt the breath get knocked out of his chest as the small woman crashed into him with a cry, something in the back of his mind said that either she gave Luffy that trait, or his little Anchor was a trend setter, he shook the thought away for another time.

“Shanks! It’s horrible! They’re burning the Gray Terminal and everyone inside! The boys, they play there so often and I can’t get ahold of Dadan!” Makino sobbed into the pirates chest and Shanks had to stop himself from freezing.

Shanks forced the wave of panic down. “Hey, Makino, I’m sure everything is fine. I bet the boys are out hiding in the jungle and giving the bandits a hard time, that’s why they’re not answering. I’ll go check on them, you’ll see.” Shanks vaguely remembered Miss Rogue taking a similar tone when Blue got taken, the same forced levity, telling him the Captain was out looking for his brother and there was nothing to worry about.

Makino nodded and stepped back, her brave face showing that while she didn’t totally believe him, she trusted him. He really hoped this trust wasn’t misplaced.

0808

Shanks wasn’t entirely sure how he ended up in Hightown, he wasn’t sure if he was looking for the gate that he knew was there or if it was just fate, all he knew was that he stretched his Will and started moving. His surroundings blurred as he moved, completely focused on finding his son until a voice broke through.

“ACE! LUFFY! YOU HAVE TO LET THEM OUT!”

“Hey! Stay away from the lock!” 

Shanks knew that voice, had spoken with him several times, this was Sabo.

Shanks came around the corner in time to see some masked guards toss the small blond boy away. Shanks said a prayer to the Seas that he was fast enough to grab his son, Luffy had claimed the boy meaning that he was Shanks as well, out of the air to hold him to his chest. 

“Shanks?” Sabo whispered, awe in his weak voice.

“I’m here, Sabs, don’t worry,” Shanks said, gently setting Sabo down. “Now, I don’t know who you think you are, but no one hurts my kids and gets away with it.” 

“Shanks, wait,” Sabo cried, hurling himself at the pirates legs. And oh the way these guards trembled realizing who was in front of them brought great joy to the blood-thirsty part of his soul. “Ace and Luffy are in the Terminal, I know it! You have to help them!”

That froze Shanks. His head snapped towards the raging inferno and he forced his Will out. Forced his Haki to find his sons. After a moment of focus he found Luffy, hurt and scared, but alive.

“Okay Sabo, I need you to do something for me, okay?” Shanks crouched down to meet Sabo’s eyes and waited for the boy to nod. “You know where Makino’s is, right?” another nod. “Go to Makino’s, tell Hongo to patch you up and to be ready for us.”

“But–” Sabo started to protest.

“Sabo, I promise you I will get them, okay? Luffy told you how seriously I take promises right? Well I promise I will get them. Now go.”

In the time it took for Shanks to have that small conversation and watch the boy run off towards the bar, the guards had run off. Unfortunately for Shanks, but probably for the better.

He cleared the wall separating him from his remaining two kids in a single jump, all concentration on the flickering Voice of his Anchor. 

Shanks' panic increased tenfold when he finally got within sight of the boys. One was being held by a man so much larger than him, screaming and thrashing, while Luffy, because Shanks would be able to recognize that boy anywhere, was writing on the ground, a sword held over his little body.

Shanks opened his mouth, he had to say or do something, anything , but before he could something else happened.

“Don’t. Touch. Luffy!!” and Shanks could feel the boys will .

It was young, inexperienced, barely enough to make Shanks wobble, yet strong enough that most of the thugs holding them dropped instantly. Only the one Shanks assumed to be the leader was left standing, but even he had a slight tremble in his frame. (Shanks didn’t notice how familiar the Voice felt, his only focus on the two boys now in slightly less danger.)

When Shanks landed down after his final jump, he landed between the boys and the one lone threatening figure, his back to the thug.

“Oh, boys,” he sighed in relief, “I’m so glad I got to you in time.”

Ace, because it had to be Ace, took half a step to stand protectively over Luffy’s still prone form. Shanks was impressed, not only by how protective this boy was over his little brother, but that he was still standing after what had to be his first use of Conquerors Haki. 

“Shanks?” Luffy whimpered, eyes cracking open.

“I’m here, kiddo,” Shanks said, he saw Ace drop his stance, weariness flooding his little frame.

Shanks heard a shuffle of steps and before Ace could say what he had opened his mouth to warn him about, Shanks had locked his eyes onto the thug. He could barely contain his own Haki as he looked at the pathetic excuse for a man.

“ I will deal with you in a moment,” Shanks snarled. He could tell the thug barely managed to avoid falling to his knees at the overwhelming fear that gripped him.

Shanks crouched down once more, these kids were just so damn small, and smiled.

“Ace, what you just did there was very special, you did a great job protecting Anchor,” Shanks smiled and swore he saw Ace’s eyes get a little watery, but that may have just been the heat. “Now, how about I get you both over to Makino’s, huh? She was very worried, and I have the crew there waiting for you, Anchor. Sabo is even on his way there.”

“Sabo?! But he–”

“Anchor, I promise I will listen to whatever is going on between you three when you are safe , right now all you need to know is that Sabo is safe and on his way to Makino’s. He was worried about you both too,” Shanks was worried about how much blood was flowing from the gash on his forehead, and he could tell by looking at them both that they had been in this fire for far too long. 

“Shanks, I appreciate everything you’ve done for Luffy. Please take him to Makino, but I can’t leave until I’ve dealt with this fucker,” Ace snarled, he picked up a pipe that Shanks hadn’t noticed and started stalking to the man still on the ground.

Shanks held up his arm, stopping him. Ace turned his snarl to the red-haired pirate, but stopped when he saw the burning look in his eyes.

0808

Ace wasn’t used to adults standing up for him, people trying to protect him, so when this strange red-haired man dropped, seemingly from out of the sky, Ace was wary. Then this man, Shanks, praised him , he told Ace that he had done a good job, even though it was his fault Luffy was hurt. And then when Ace tried to finish the job, this man stopped him. Ace was confused and frustrated and tired and hurt , but when he looked into Shanks’ eyes, he felt like he was understood.

“Shanks, Bluejam, he actually set the fires. He hurt Luffy and he made Sabo go back to his family ,” Ace spat the word, trying to make Shanks understand. “He can’t just go .”

“Ace, I’ll be honest. I have no idea what you have been through up to this point, but I’m sure there haven’t been a lot of adults around to help you. I am here now,” Shanks eyes burned in a way Ace had never seen before. “Let me be very clear to you,” Shanks voice rose, Ace knew Bluejam could hear him now. “Luffy is my son, and he has claimed you and Sabo, which makes you mine . And no one gets away with hurting what is mine , you understand?”

Usually the possessiveness would piss Ace off. He wasn’t a thing, he was a person and he was free . But Ace could tell, he could tell that the way this man said it, he wasn’t claiming him as the nobles claimed their money or their things. He wasn’t claiming them like Sabo’s father claimed him. No, when Shanks said ‘mine,’ he said it like Ace said his treasure was his . Like how he said his brothers were his . Like Ace was precious to him.

So Ace nodded and he moved to bundle Luffy to his chest, Luffy who was hurt and bleeding. He positioned his little brother in a way that he couldn’t see the violence about to happen, if Shanks was anything like him, then that fire in his eyes said this wasn’t going to be pretty, but Ace had to see.

Ace watched Shanks walk up to Bluejam, watched Bluejam finally fall to his knees and shake in fear as the yonko got nearer.

“Does it make you feel better to pick on children? Make you feel more like a man? More like a pirate ?” Ace could just barely make out Shanks' words over the sounds of the fire and Bluejam’s pleas for mercy.

Shanks drew his sword and almost faster than Ace could follow had it stabbed down through Bluejam’s leg. 

Bluejam screamed .

Ace watched as Shanks withdrew his sword and raised his foot, kicking the other pirate onto his back. Shanks leaned over, the roar of the fire too loud to hear his voice and the red hair too thick of a curtain for Ace to tell what he said, but it was clear by the look on Bluejam’s face that he said something. Shanks stabbed his sword through Bluejam’s shoulder, just a quick harsh jab, before sheathing it and stalking back towards the boys.

“How is Luffy?” 

“I think he’s unconscious,” Ace responded, Luffy didn’t stir, proving him right.

Shanks scowled, “Not a good thing, but probably for the best at this moment. He won’t survive the fire, I made sure of it, and that is a more brutal death than I would have time for anyways. Now come one, you’ve both been here far too long.”

Shanks easily gathered Luffy and Ace in his arm, Ace had a brief thought of wonder at how strong Shanks would be if he had both arms, and started running. It only took a moment, between the strong arm around him and the steady heartbeat at his ear telling him he was safe , before he passed out as well. 

Chapter Text

Shanks paced the deck of the Red Force angrily, Haki barely under control, and none of the crew dared to stop him.

By the time he had made it back to the Party Bar, after running into the bandits that called themselves the boys guardians and sending them on to either head back or help others, Hongo had already started first-aid on Sabo and the men had just gotten the ship docked. 

Sabo had let out a heart-wrenching cry at the sight of his brothers, struggling to get out of the chair Hongo had him sat in. Beckman had put his hand on the young boy's shoulder, whispering something as Hongo stood.

“Ace was lucid up until just a moment ago,” Shanks reported, “Anchor passed out while we were still in there, I’m worried about the head wound.”

Hongo nodded and Makino gasped in horror.

“I’ll get some towels, you can lay them on the table for now,” Makino left no time for arguments as she rushed into the bar, Shanks and the doctor following quickly behind.

Time moved in a blur after that, Hongo had muttered things about smoke inhalation and burns. Once the gangplank was down they moved all three boys over to the med-bay where they could be kept under better watch. Once they were settled, Sabo having fallen asleep draped over Ace’s bed, Shanks had taken up pacing, which is where he still was hours later. 

Shanks could not tell you how long he had been here, he barely noticed the sun rising in the sky, all he could focus on was that he was almost too late . So focused in on his anger he made another mistake.

“Shanks? Sir?” A small voice called.

“What?” Shanks snarled, Haki whipping violently around him, only to come to a complete halt when he turned and saw Sabo behind him. His tophat in his hands over his chest and tears in his eyes and damn Shanks felt like a piece of shit.

He took a deep breath before dropping to his knees. “Sabo? I’m sorry, that was uncalled for. I am not upset with you, and I shouldn’t have snapped. I’m not very good at this parenting thing yet, am I?” Shanks gave the boy a shaky smile.

Sabo shuffled his feet for a second before whispering, “Maybe you should be.”

Shanks tilted his head in confusion. “Maybe I should be what, Sabs? Better at parenting? Yeah probably.” Shanks laughed, hoping to bring some levity to the situation.

“You should be mad at me, this is all my fault,” Sabo said, a single tear falling down his cheek. 

Shanks frowned before standing up and offering Sabo his hand. Sabo looked at it in confusion.

“Come on, let’s go back down to the infirmary. Being around Anchor always makes me feel better, even when he’s asleep, I’m sure it does the same for you,” Shanks was rewarded for being right as Sabo shyly took his hand and followed him down into the belly of the ship. 

Ace and Luffy were still asleep when they got there, Hongo had said they would probably sleep most of the day, so Shanks tried not to worry. Hongo was also still in there, hovering in a way he didn’t usually.

“Can we get some privacy for a bit, Hongs?” Shanks asked, he forced his voice to stay cheery even as the sight of the boys still covered in soot and bandages put a claw of fear in his belly.

“Of course, Chief. Just…..just holler if either of them wake up.” Shanks could tell that Hongo’s hesitance to leave was all about the sleeping boys and not because his entire crew were gossip hounds, which they were but now wasn’t the time.

Shanks pulled up two chairs, letting Sabo sit in the one closer to Ace. He let Sabo get comfortable, noticing how he refused to meet the pirates eyes as he fiddled with his hat.

“What happened, kiddo?” Shanks asked quietly when it was clear that Sabo wasn’t going to start the conversation.

“Well I– I mean– we,” Sabo tripped over his words while Shanks waited patiently. Sabo took a deep breath and rubbed his eye.

“My parents are nobles. I’m a noble, but I hate it. They don’t care about me, I’m not a person to them, just a status symbol. I ran away from them. I didn’t want to be a part of that life, I wanted to be free. I met Ace in the Gray Terminal, and through Ace I met Luffy and they cared about me more than anyone else, they became my brothers and I wanted to be with them forever. One day when we were in Hightown my dad saw me. Apparently things weren’t going great with their new heir so he wanted me back. He paid Bluejam a stupid amount of money to catch the three of us. Outlook, my father , paid Bluejam to catch the three of us. He grabbed me and told me that he didn’t care what happened to Ace or Luffy, but agreed that if I went back with him he’d leave them alone, but I don’t think Bluejam left them alone. Then the nobles set the Gray Terminal on fire, they knowingly killed everyone in there for what?” Sabo started crying, tears running down his face, Shanks waited. “I’m a noble, doesn’t that make it my fault? Ace and Luffy were hurt and I couldn’t do anything. I bet they hate me anyways, I left them.”

Shanks looked at Sabo with a critical eye, the boy squirming in his seat. “Did you ask to be a noble, Sabo? Did you choose to be born to that family?” 

Sabo blinked in confusion, “I–what? No, I didn’t have any choice.”

“Did you pay Bluejam to start the fires?”

“No of course not!” Sabo looked offended that Shanks would even think that. 

“Then how is the fire your fault? What specific choice did you make that directly led to the fire?” Sabo was quiet at that question, fingers fiddling with his hat. “Sabo, it is not your fault. There is nothing you could have done to stop it if the king of this country decided that it was going to happen.”

Shanks gave it a few moments for that to sink in before he addressed the final part of Sabo’s little rant. 

“Sabo, how long ago did you go back with your birth father?” Shanks asked quietly.

“About a month ago,” Sabo whispered.

“Well, Sabo, I just talked to Luffy last week. He was obviously upset, you know as well as I do that he can’t hide anything,” the truth of that made Sabo chuckle, “and when I asked him what was wrong do you know what he said?” 

Sabo shook his head, wide eyed.

“He told me that his big brother Sabo was having a hard time, but he was going to fix it because now it was his turn to be there for him. Ace had agreed, you know, he yelled something about stupid brothers thinking they were so smart all the time,” Shanks smirked at the boy and Sabo just cried harder.

“Why would they still say that?” He whimpered, “I abandoned them.”

“Because we love you, idiot,” Ace grumbled, eyes barely open. His voice was rough and the sentence ended with a round of coughing that sounded painful. 

“ACE!” Sabo cried, nearly throwing himself at the other boy.

Ace hugged him back with a smile, “Seas, Sabs, for someone so smart you sure are fucking stupid. Am I going to have to start calling you crybaby now too?”

Shanks couldn’t help but laugh as the older boys started bickering.

“Now, boys, Luffy is still asleep and you’re both still pretty hurt. I’m going to go grab Hongo, but you two need to take it easy.” 

They older boys sobered quickly at the reminder that the youngest was still unwell, Sabo climbing into the bed with Ace. Shanks turned and very gently ran a hand through Luffy’s dark hair, sighing at the lack of response from the little rubber boy.

“Is he going to be okay?” Ace asked, voice shaking slightly.

Shanks smiled at the boys, Ace had his arms wrapped around Sabo and both stared at Luffy as though waiting for him to wake up. Shanks reached out to Ace but paused before he made contact.

“Can I?” He asked, Ace just blinked at him in confusion a few times before nodding. Once given permission, Shanks reached out and ruffled Ace’s hair.

“Hongo says he should be fine, you are both going to be sore for a few days and you might have a hard time breathing, but you’ll be okay,” Shanks explained quietly.

“Anchor is just exhausted for the most part,” said man interjected, walking in the door. “I told you to come get me if they woke up.”

Shanks held up his hand in surrender, “I was just getting ready to come get you, Hongo, really!”

Hongo rolled his eyes at his captain before turning to Ace. “How do you feel, kid? And you can be honest here, no judgment for feeling like shit.”

Ace gave a surreptitious glance at Shanks, who pretended to be distracted by the medical file sitting by Luffy’s bed.

“My chest hurts and it feels like I have glass in my throat,” he said after a moment. 

Hongo nodded and poured a cup of water from the pitcher on the table between the beds. “Drink it slowly. You’ve got a few burns, luckily none worse than first degree, and your ankle is sprained. You’ll need some rest but you’ll recover quickly if you’re anything like Anchor.”

Shanks could feel Beckman coming down the steps and stopping outside the door to the infirmary. He ran his fingers through Luffy’s hair one more time before standing and going to meet his first mate. 

Beckman fell into step behind Shanks as he quickly walked up the steps. “We’re staying until they’re healed.” The captain's voice held no room for arguments.

Shanks knew there wasn’t going to be any protests by the way Beckman hummed, as though it was something they had all already agreed on. 

0808

 It had been several days since the Red Hair pirates arrived. The fires had been put out in the Gray Terminal, though no survivors were found. Shanks had a feeling the Revolutionaries had been by, but he had no solid proof so he kept quiet about it.

Luffy had woken up a few hours after Ace to a new round of tears from Sabo. Luffy’s only response had been a rough giggle and a “silly Sabo.” 

Shanks had kept the boys on the Red Force, trying unsuccessfully to keep the brothers from roughhousing with their injuries. All three boys were constantly on the move as long as they were awake and with all of them having only partially healed injuries the crew was going out of their minds trying to keep them occupied. Luckily they had figured out more than a few things about the boys over the few days.

They all knew that a good story could keep Luffy occupied for at least an hour, once Bonk Punch managed a truly magnificent ballad that kept all three boys enraptured for almost three hours. Sabo could be distracted for a decent amount of time going over maps with Building Snake, talking about currents and islands, explaining the Log Pose and how to navigate around difficult weather conditions. Ace was interested in the maps but it was the weather that fascinated him. He hung off of every word Building Snake said about how to read the clouds, about barometric pressure, the winds. He was a natural at it too, Ace’s instincts were keen after years of fending for himself and now he had words to put to the way his stomach dropping meant a huge storm.

The crew had given up for the moment on keeping the boys still and quiet, the brothers currently rolling around the deck in a tangle of limbs while Luffy’s laughter rang out above it. They were all watching the older boys seemed to be evenly matched, but Luffy kept ducking in to poke prod and distract whichever one seemed to be winning so the other could get the upper hand, only to turn around and do it to the other brother. 

“You know, with some training they would really be a force to be reckoned with,” Gab muttered. Shanks could only nod in agreement before all hell broke loose. 

“Captain! Captain!” Lime Juice shouted down from the crows nest. “Bad news!”

The gravity in his voice even made the boys pause. “What’s going on?” Shanks hollered back.

“World Noble ship on the horizon! Two marine ships with it! We haven’t been noticed yet!” 

“Fuck! Boys, get below deck now ,” the Haki infused in his command making the boys run “Riggers get those sails furled immediately, make sure the roger can’t be seen. Anyone not helping with that get low and stay out of the way. Lime, keep an eye on it.”

Shanks only watched long enough to make sure that his orders were being followed before he sank down into a cross-legged seat. He took a deep breath and forced himself to focus, he reached his Haki out and wrapped it around the whole ship, blanketing it in his protection. He forced himself to visualize his Will, a sheen that wrapped around his ship and those under his protection on it, and saw the sheen turn opaque. He slowed his breathing, the light around them almost seeming to dim as he hid them. 

Shanks wasn’t sure how long he sat like that, full concentration on trying to keep his men safe, the crew barely daring to breathe as the ship docked at the other side of the island.

“Coast is clear, ship has been fully docked, no sign that we were noticed,” Lime Juice’s voice rang out and the men let out a collective breath. 

Shanks nearly fell backwards as he released his hold, hand going to rub his forehead at the oncoming headache. He rolled his neck, feeling the vertebrae pop, and stood up.

“Everyone, lay low until they’re gone,” Shank ordered and slowly life came back to the deck of the Red Force, though more subdued. Shanks started to walk over to where they had more booze hidden away, still rubbing his neck. Even after all of his training and his sheer force of will, a move like that still took a lot out of him and left him tired and on the verge of a migraine. 

He was halfway there when he was stopped by a small shadow. “How could you just hide from them? They are everything wrong with this world and you just let them sail right past you?” Sabo hissed, eyes burning.

Shanks sighed, his hopes for booze and avoiding that migrain out the window. 

“Sabo, I am going to teach you a very important lesson. Ace, Luffy, you too. I’m only going to explain this once.” Shanks waited until they were all in front of him. Shanks could tell that Ace was also furious with him, though Luffy just seemed curious. Once he had their attention, he crouched down and spoke, low and serious.

“I hate the World Government. Sabo I would even go as far as to agree with you that they are everything wrong with the world. If I were on my own I may have gone after that ship, but I am not alone,” Shanks met each of their eyes, making sure they were paying attention. “I am a captain. I am the captain of this ship and the crew that mans it . They follow my orders because I am their captain, because they trust me to make the decisions. And to honor that trust I have to make good decisions . If I were to attack that ship, I could probably kill the noble with no problem, but then we would be the targets of not just the two marine ships that were with him, but the whole world government. Right now we are not in a good position to put those targets on our backs. Not to mention the marines won’t care about the battle ground we are on to get to us, meaning that the people of Foosha would be in danger, as well as the three of you. You boys are under my protection, that means if I make a decision that puts you in danger that is 100% my fault. Do you understand me?”

Sabo and Ace dropped their heads in understanding, a small bit of shame in their outburst leaving them unable to meet the captain's eyes.

“The lesson here is this, boys: sometimes you have to make choices you don’t necessarily agree with for the safety of others. I will fully admit to being a reckless pirate who jumps head first into trouble, but I am also a captain with a responsibility to my crew,” Shanks finished.

“I apologize,” Sabo whispered. “I understand what you’re saying and I’m sorry I doubted you.”

Shanks let himself smile. “Thank you, Sabo. Now I’m telling you this because you all have said you want to go to sea, you all want to be captains in your own rights. So I need you to take this to heart, a good captain puts the needs of their crew before their own.” 

The boys were all quiet, even Luffy seemed in contemplation. Luffy very gently wrapped his arms around Shanks neck as he stood, and even with a headache he wasn’t about to withhold affection from his son.

“‘M sorry we questioned you, Shanks,” Luffy’s voice was oddly quiet, “and I’m sorry you’ve got a headache now.”

“It’s fine, Anchor,” Shanks wasn’t sure how Luffy knew he had a headache, but the kids has always been oddly perceptive. Shanks sat down in a shaded chair on the deck, Luffy still wrapped around him. “You don’t know something until you’ve been taught.” 

Luffy just hummed and nodded against Shanks neck.

Shanks had only meant to close his eyes for a few moments, just long enough to soothe the pounding in his head, but when he woke the sun was much lower in the sky. Luffy was still wrapped around his neck, breathing quietly. Sabo and Ace were both asleep curled up against his right side, somehow one of the boys had gotten their hands on a pipe and Sabo held it loosely as he slept. 

Luffy stirred as Shanks sat up, pulling back to look at Shanks’ face.

“Are you feeling better?” Luffy asked, voice still quiet.

Shanks blinked for a second, noticing that his headache was, in fact, gone.

“Yeah, Anchor, I am.”

Luffy gave him his trademark grin before launching himself off of Shanks and onto his sleeping brother, starting a new round of bickering as they woke up with a start. Luffy giggling while Ace pulled at his cheeks and Sabo glared. Shanks couldn’t help but smile.

Beckman walked up beside Shanks as they both watched the boys. Lucky came over to give his advice as the bickering turned into a brawl, the rest of the crew just laughing at the boy's antics.

“They were protecting you,” Beckman said suddenly, startling Shanks.

“Huh?”

“The boys,” Beckman continued. “As soon as you closed your eyes Ace and Sabo planted themselves on your bad side and snarled at anyone who started walking your way. I think they felt like it was their way of paying you back.”

Shanks couldn’t help but smile. He understood now why his Anchor had chosen them, the type of people that once you gained their respect they were unfailingly loyal. Shanks wasn’t going to be the one to tell them that he could more than take care of himself, he was just going to appreciate their form of love.

Chapter Text

The Red Force had been docked in Foosha for long enough that the Gray Terminal had been cleaned up and the dumping resumed, the World Noble had left, and the boys were cleared to go back on their way. They had no real reason to stay now, and yet, Shanks drug his feet. He kept finding excuses not to leave just yet, reasons they should delay their departure just a few days longer. It didn’t take a genius for them to know why Shanks didn’t want to leave.

That was why Shanks could now be found in the War Room with all of the senior officers. The sun had long since set and the brothers were asleep, or supposed to be anyways.

“Chief, we all know why you want to stay,” Lime Juice said.

Shanks just sighed, he knew this was coming and his biggest lesson was coming back to bite him in the ass. 

“I know,” Shanks sighed again.

“Shanks, you have a rule,” Beckman stated.

Shanks dropped his head into his hand. “I know , Beckman. I know, no kids on the Red Force.” 

With his head dropped Shanks didn’t see the look his officers shared.

“You should bring them with us.” Beckman said and Shanks froze.

“What?” Shanks lifted his head, eyes sharp.

“We all agree. The boys should come with us,” Lucky Roux spoke up this time. “Not only do those boys need someone who cares about them around, but they grow on you.”

Shanks shook his head. “The sea is no place for kids, I should know better than anyone. It is not safe for kids out there.”

“It’s not safe for those kids here, Chief,” Bonk Punch argued back. “Have you seen those animals they hunt? They’re the size of houses and those boys have been fighting them on their own. From what they’ve said Ace has been fending for himself since he was four and Luffy had to join him when he moved out there.”

Shanks blinked. “They’ve been what?”

Beckman nodded, ash falling from his cigarette at the movement. “I went with them yesterday. Couldn’t believe those boys could fight them all alone, but they did it like it was second nature. The choice is your, Chief, but we think the boys would be better off with us. Even with all the dangers.”

Shanks frowned, he had some thinking he had to do.

0808

The next morning, Shanks decided he needed to talk to the boys. He managed to gather them and convinced them to go on a walk with him, Luffy leading them to a small cliff that overlooked the docks.

Luffy had been clinging to him like usual until they sat down, then he suddenly went quiet.

“Shanks, are we here so you can tell us you’re leaving?” Luffy asked, eyes downcast.

Shanks could help but laugh even as his heart was breaking. “Kinda but not really,” he answered. He laughed again as all three of the boys cocked their heads in confusion.

He sat down on a fallen log, the boys taking up seats around him.

“Now, I need you all to listen and think closely about this. This island has been your home your whole lives, I wouldn’t ask you to leave if I really didn’t mean this. The seas are dangerous, even for adults who have been on them most of their lives, it truly is no place for kids,” Shanks held up his hand to stop the boys from interrupting him. “I’m saying all of this to tell you that I have really thought about this.”

He looked at the brothers making sure they were really listening to what he had to say. The boys were watching him, seemingly bracing themselves for bad news.

“I want you three to come with us when we leave. The whole crew wants you to come with us.”

“What?! Really?!” Luffy launched himself at Shanks and the man was barely able to keep his balance.

“Really, Anchor,” Shanks laughed. Then he got serious again. “I need you to understand though, if you come, it’s not going to be fun and games. You will be cabin boys, meaning you won’t be a full member of the crew. This means that some day, when you boys are ready, you can go off with your own crews without worrying about leaving the Red Hairs. But this also means that there will be a lot of work for you to do. You will have daily chores to do and things to learn, by the time you leave us, you will be more or less completely ready to be on your own.”

Shanks' words didn’t put any sort of damper on the stars in Luffy’s eyes.

“No matter how serious or fun this sounds, I need you to take this seriously. All of you. I am not accepting an answer today, no matter what.” 

Shanks saw Ace and Sabo meet eyes, a silent conversation, before Ace grabbed Luffy and took off into the woods.

“We, we’re going to go talk about this, if that’s okay,” Sabo said. Shanks could tell that he, at least, was being serious.

“Take your time, just be back to the ship by nightfall.”

With that, the third brother ran into the woods. 

0808

Shanks hadn’t seen the boys since they ran off into the woods that morning, but he wasn’t concerned even after the sun had set. He knew the boys could take care of themselves in those woods, no matter how worried the rest of the crew was about it. 

Shanks let his Haki unfurl, counting his crew and checking in. His Will unfolding to flow through the whole ship. He noticed Sabo and Luffy in the beds they had been given for their stay, but Ace wasn’t with them. Humming Shanks extended his Will over the deck before finally finding the boy.

Shanks made his way out of his quarters, looking for his wayward child and finding him on the deck where Shanks thought he was. Ace was sitting with his feet dangling over the edge of the ship, looking out towards the water.

“What’s up, Firecracker?” Shanks asked. He knew whatever was bothering the boy was serious when he didn’t glare at Shanks for the new nickname.

“Shanks, do you know my full name?” Ace asked after a moment of silence.

“Nope, why?” Shanks wasn’t sure what to think about that. He only knew Luffy’s last name because Garp came after him after he left Foosha the first time.

Shanks let the silence stretch out for a few moments until Ace spoke again, voice low and broken. “Hey Shanks, if Gol D. Roger had a kid, would he deserve to live?” 

Shanks' heart shattered as the pieces clicked together, why that smile and those freckles looked so familiar.

“Oh, Ace,” Shanks sighed. He sat down next to the boy, the boy he has chosen as his son, and let his feet dangle as well. 

“Let me tell you a story, Ace. Many many years ago, there was a man. A man who said he was going to be free, the freest person alive. He got a group of people together and took off to the seas. He did just about whatever he wanted, he partied and fought and drank and sailed the seas for many years. Then one day they found a box. They thought it was treasure, something precious, and when the captain opened it, he said it was the most precious thing he had ever seen. It was a baby and the captain decided right then that he was going to raise that child. So the child grew up under the protection of his captain and the crew and when he was around nine the captain found him a brother. A brother who also had nowhere to go and was just as lost and broken as the boy was. Even though they bickered and fought, they were a family, those two boys their captain and his crew. Several years after that, the captain had been in a bar playing cards, one of his favorite things to do. He thought he could outsmart the woman he was playing with, thought he was just so clever. Well, when she caught him cheating she pulled a knife out of her boot and stuck his jacket sleeve to the table, right through the ace he had hidden. The captain fell head over heels in love with her at that moment and convinced her to go back to the ship with him to meet his crew. She was far too good for him, the whole crew knew it as soon as she stepped foot onboard. She was witty and clever and far too pretty for the likes of their captain. They all loved her too. Then she met the boys, scolded them for their lack of manners, taught them how to play cards and cheat at them better than their captain. She decided to stay, bringing her own few crew members aboard. She was staying for the boys, she told him, but everyone could tell they loved each other. They sailed together for a long time, and the boy thought he could be there forever with his family.” Shanks had been smiling through the story, but his face fell as he got to the end. “But then tragedy struck. The captain got sick, very sick, and his crew was so well known that they would be hunted no matter what. So he turned himself in. He made them promise that if he went with them, they would leave his family alone. So he went with them, and they killed him. His crew scattered, leaving the boy all alone. He found out years later that the woman his captain loved, the woman he loved as a mother, was killed in the search for anything left of his captain. He had suspected that his captain and her had a kid together, he had wanted to meet that child more than anything, to tell them stories about the father that they shared, but when he heard that news, he knew he was alone.” They sat quietly for several minutes, a single tear drying on Shanks’ face, Shanks refusing to look at the boy next to him.

“Shanks,” Ace whispered.

“Ace, can you figure out who the story was about?” Shanks asked quietly.

Ace sat quietly and when Shanks looked over, the boy looked like his whole world was turned upside down.

“I didn’t know,” Shanks said, “I didn’t know your name or who your parents were until you asked. I thought you looked familiar, but you look enough like Luffy that I didn’t question it. You look like her though, Miss Rouge, you have her freckles and hair texture. Her attitude too, really, she was one hell of a firecracker too. But your eyes, your eyes are all Captain.” Shanks reached out to touch Ace’s face but froze before making contact.

Ace slowly tilted his head to let Shanks' hand make contact with his face. Shanks smiled and ran his finger over Ace’s freckles, then into his hair. Shanks pulled Ace into a hug, Ace tucking his head under the pirate’s chin.

“I am so sorry, Ace, that the world has told you that your father–that our father– was such a terrible person that you didn’t deserve to even be alive. You deserve to be here no matter who your father was, but Roger was not a bad man. He was a free man, one who loved those around him with everything and would burn the world down for them. He loved your mother, he loved me and Blue, and I know he loved you. Even if he died not knowing that you existed, he loved the idea of you. And Rouge loved you more than anything, she loved her kids so much that I know she loved you down to the very marrow of her bones, Ace. And now I get the chance to love you. In another world we would have been brothers, but when Captain died, he left me two of his most precious treasures and I didn’t even know it.” 

Shanks could feel Ace shaking in his arm, could feel the tears soaking into his shirt as the boy cried.

“I’m sorry, I–”

“Shh, it’s okay, Ace. I’ve got you.” Shanks couldn’t help his own tears. Just two lost boys, grieving the loss of the father they lost, one before he had even really known.

0808

Later Shanks brought them into his cabin, after a quick stop at the kitchens. Now they sat at the table in Shanks room, eyes red rimmed and on shaky footing.

Ace fiddled with the cup of water in his hands, trying to meet Shanks' eyes. “So, what now?”

Shanks raised an eyebrow and took a drink of his water, he had almost reached for the rum, but figured he still needed his head on straight for this conversation. 

“Depends on what you mean,” Shanks set his cup back down.

“Do you still want me to come with you?” Ace’s voice sounded more confident than his posture showed.

“Of course, Ace.” Ace still refused to look at the pirate. Shanks sighed. “Ace, I invited you to come as Luffy’s brother, your parentage had nothing to do with it. Hell if you want that is a fact you can keep between you and me, no one else needs to know if you don’t want them to.”

Ace’s head jerked up to meet Shanks’. “You would really keep that a secret?”

Shanks shrugged. “The only people on the ship that really know that I grew up on the Oro Jackson is Beckman. The others know but they don’t really care or have forgotten.”

Ace was quiet again and Shanks let him be for a few minutes. 

“Would you tell me about them sometime? My parents, I mean,” he finally asked.

Shanks smiled, “Of course, any time you want.”

Ace squared his shoulder and looked up, “I want to come with you. Not because of Roger, but because you act like you care. But I can’t leave Luffy or Sabo behind, so if they come, I’m coming.”

Shanks nodded and leaned forward over the table. “Are you sure, Ace? If you come with me it’s not going to be all fun and games. We’ll teach you what you need to know, but you’ll have to work for your keep.”

“I’ve been working to keep myself alive my whole life, I’m not afraid of hard work,” Ace answered fiercely.

“You’ll have to listen to me as your captain while you’re here. That means what I say goes, no arguments. If you disagree with something I do or say you can come to me about it in private to discuss it and how things will go in the future, but when I give an order I expect it to be obeyed unless it would directly hurt yourself or another crew member.”

Ace stopped to think about it, which Shanks appreciated, he didn’t want them to take this life lightly.

“I….I can’t always promise to hold my temper, but I promise to try, if you’ll take that,” Ace said after a few moments.

Shanks grinned. “I think I can accept that promise to try. Most pirates are hot headed on a good day, you just have to talk to us. Think we can make a deal, Gol Ace?”

Ace blushed up to his ears and mumbled something under his breath.

“Hmm? I didn’t catch that.”

“Portgas,” Ace said a bit louder, “Portgas D. Ace, I’ve always gone by moms name.”

Shanks’ smile softened, “Portgas D. Ace, I am so happy to meet you.”

Ace’s smile was soft and almost dreamy, only broken by a yawn.

Shanks laughed, “Come on, Firecracker, let’s get you to bed, it’s late.”

Ace didn’t move for a moment, head ducked, embarrassed. “Can I stay here tonight? I was out there because I had a–you know what, never mind.” Ace stood up quickly, too embarrassed to finish his thought.

Ace squeaked, though he would forever deny it, when Shanks scooped him up. Shanks let himself flop onto his back in his bed, adjusting Ace so he was comfortable on his chest. 

Ace was stiff for a moment before he melted. Shanks couldn’t help but wonder for a moment, if the kids were a bit touch starved. Sabo and Ace always shied away from initiating contact but were incredibly receptive when physical affection was given. Even Luffy was like that, to a degree. It would have to be something they kept an eye on going forward, even growing up under Rogers flag, Shanks had never been denied affection or made to feel bad for needing it.

“Thank you, Shanks,” Ace whispered.

“You’re my kid now, Firecracker, and I am always going to be here for my kids,” Shanks whispered back. 

Shanks ran his fingers through Ace’s hair until the boy fell asleep, breath puffing softly against his neck. 

“Thank you, thank you for bringing me to them. I promise I will watch over them for as long as they will let me. I won’t let you down again, Mom, Dad.” Shanks whisper was directed to a box, hidden away under a floor board. A box that contained a dried hibiscus flower and a sketch of a pirate crew with two boys sitting on the captain’s knee and a smiling woman at his shoulder.

A couple hours later, Shanks was pulled out of his light doze as his door opened. He pretended to still be asleep as he heard the two boys who opened it.

“See? I told you they’d be here,” Luffy whispered, a little louder than he probably thought he was being.

“Do you think everything is okay?” Sabo whispered back.

Shanks didn’t hear a response, just felt Luffy’s weight crawl up onto the bed and settle against his side. Shanks waited long enough that he was afraid he’d have to break his ruse to get the last brother to come cuddle, but finally, hesitantly, Sabo joined them. 

Shanks fell asleep wrapped in the arms of his boys, and for the first time in nearly a decade, Shanks felt like his broken heart might finally be able to mend.

And if in the morning Beckman barged into his captain’s room to scold him for oversleeping again only to stop and demand a camera, that was no one's business but his own. And maybe for blackmail usage once the boys got a bit older. (It would be added to Shank’s keepsakes one day, alongside the memories of his father and mother.) But for now, he let the boys sleep.

Chapter Text

Sailing with three unruly boys wasn’t for the weak of heart, Shanks learned quickly, especially not these boys. The ASL trio, as the crew had started calling them, were far too used to being on their own. It caused a few arguments at the beginning, a couple times where Shanks had lost his temper and the boys responded in kind. There was a small scrimmage that the boys had been sent away from, all three arguing that they could fight too until Shanks glared at them. It was then that they learned that those boys could sulk. They also learned rather quickly that Shanks was going to have to differentiate between when he was Akagami no Shanks, captain of the Red Hair Pirates and when he was just Shanks, their guardian. It was when they came up with a schedule that things started to even out.

“Okay boys, let's talk about this, make sure we all understand,” Shanks said one evening as the boys were getting ready for bed. The boys looked at him in confusion, before nodding and coming to sit around Shanks. “So I think we have a plan for the day to day for now. After breakfast you will work on chores around the ship, no arguments, cabin boys earn their stay by working and you’ll need to know how to take care of your own ships in the future. After lunch you’ll team up with different members of the crew to learn, who you will be with will probably change from day to day. It will include learning to read and write for you two,” Shanks pointed at Ace and Luffy, the former blushing angrily at the acknowledgement that no one had taught him. “Then after dinner we can work on combat training and relaxing until bed.” None of the boys seemed to have any real arguments with this arrangement. “Now what this will also mean is that from breakfast until dinner, I am your captain, unless something major happens. Understood?”

“So,” Luffy said, taking this as his chance to jump up and hang off Shanks, “First thing in the morning you’re Dad, then while we’re working you’re Shanks, and then after dinner you’re Dad again?”

Shanks blinked and had to cough to clear his throat, it was the first time Luffy had called him ‘dad’ and after all the chaos they had been under, Shanks hadn’t been sure that Luffy still thought of him that way. 

“Yeah, Anchor, pretty much.” Shanks cleared his throat again. “Now if anything happens that could change, I need to trust you guys to understand that.”

Luffy chewed on his lip but nodded, Sabo nodded and hummed, but Ace huffed out a breath and crossed his arms. 

“I still say we could fight,” he grumbled. 

Shanks sighed, he was still pouting. “Ace, once we get a good grip on how you fight and get some training under your belt, then we can talk about you joining us. Until then I have to make sure you stay safe . Okay? You’re my kids, I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Shanks wasn’t sure if it was the reminder that Shanks really cared about him or the reassurance that they wouldn’t be kept out of combat forever but finally Ace relaxed a little and nodded. 

“Great, now, I’m sure Anchor wants a story, do you want to listen too?” Shanks tickled Luffy to make him squeal. 

Sabo looked at Ace, who refused to look up from his lap. 

“Could you, could you tell a story about my mom?” Ace asked, voice barely audible.

Shanks’ smile softened. “Of course, come on, let’s get comfortable.” Shanks leaned back against the bed and the boys scrambled up to slot into his sides. “Now do you want to hear the story about how Miss Rouge took on a whole crew on her own because someone made fun of Blue’s nose or the time her and Captain danced through a battlefield because they were so disappointed in the challenge?”

Shanks couldn’t help but smile as he saw the stars in his boy's eyes. For the first time in years, he could tell these stories, these events that helped shape him, without feeling like he was drowning.

0808

The boys took to the idea of chores surprisingly well though in practice there were still some struggles. Luffy was excited but clumsy, having come to realize that the Red Force was nakama and thus needed to be taken care of just like everyone else. Only once he tried to use his little rubber powers to speed up a job, but after he was scolded by both Yassop and Lucky for making a bigger mess he promised not to do it again.

Ace had of course been huffy about the chores, but did them without much complaint and he did them well, but only when he wasn’t being watched. It also seemed that he used it as a way to work through his anger on occasion. Yassop had made a comment once that had Ace going red, fists shaking in anger, only for him to storm into the mess hall. He came out two hours later and demanded Yassop have a conversation with him and the captain to discuss why he was so pissed off. Lucky Roux had been afraid to start on meal prep when Ace had walked away, nervous to see the devastation of the room and instead had his jaw drop in surprise. The room gleamed as though Ace had cleaned every damn inch of the room. They all agreed not to mention it to him, not to thank him or bring attention to it in any way, if cleaning was going to be his coping mechanism, they weren’t going to stop him.

Sabo, forever being the brains of their operation, as well as the only one allowed to help in the kitchen, used this as his chance to get his hands on more books. Whenever he was on peeling duty he could be found with a book out in front of him, asking Lucky Roux a thousand questions about where he had been in his travels. 

Then in the afternoon they took to learning the ship like fish to the water. Excitedly learning the different knots, sometimes practicing them of Luffy, which Shanks scolded them for but he laughed while doing it so they weren’t exactly sorry about it. Before long they soared through the rigging like they had been doing it for years, able to raise and lower sails and strap down for a storm. 

Even their evening combat training was going better than expected, for the most part at least. Shanks had partnered Sabo with Hongo in an attempt to teach him how to use the pipe more like a staff than a long club, and Ace had been partnered with Bonk Punch for hand to hand practice. Luffy was the one they were having the most issues teaching, unsurprisingly. None of the crew had Devil Fruits, so teaching Luffy to control his was both the first and hardest step for them. Any time the boy tried to throw a punch he had no control over it, his arm stretching far beyond what he had meant to and completely missing the target. 

After nearly an hour of feeling like they were getting nowhere, Tashi, one of the lower crew, spoke up. “We know he has decent aim when he reaches, why don’t we just work on that first? Then we can gradually go from reaching, to like tapping, to actually hitting.”

Shanks and Lime Juice paused in their spar, Shanks using this time to work with his still shaky-to-him right handed swordwork. “That’s not a terrible idea. We’ll try that tomorrow, I think Anchor is a little too frustrated right now to give it a good go. What do you say, Anchor, ready for a break?”

Luffy pouted and wound himself around Shanks. “Dad! It’s not fair! My fists are like pistols but I just can’t stop stretching!” Luffy complained. 

“Yeah buddy, I bet that’s frustrating,” Shanks chuckled. “We’ll work on it, you’ll show everyone up here soon.”

“Yeah! They’ll see! I’m going to be King of the Pirates after all!” Luffy cheered and the crew cheered with him while Ace and Sabo rolled their eyes, they had smiles on their faces though. 

Another thing the crew learned quickly was that when they allowed the boys to team up for a fight, they were a force to be reckoned with. Much like they had learned on Dawn, they realized that Luffy was very good at being a distraction. His lack of control meant that his hits still missed more often than they landed, but he made up for that by continuously bouncing around and getting in their opponents' way. Meanwhile, Ace and Sabo worked together like a well oiled machine, darting in and out of the areas Luffy was distracting in and managing to get some good hits in.  

Shanks had laughed the first time it happened. “Maybe you should work with them too, Bonk, see if you and Monster can’t get any idea from them.”

Bonk Punch had just laughed, “They really do work wonders together!”

The three hadn’t won the fight, but they sure lasted a whole lot longer than anyone had expected. Eventually Lucky had a giggling Luffy in a headlock, he had Sabo held up by his shirt collar in his other hand and a squirming Ace under his foot.

“You put up a good fight, boys,” Lucky laughed, letting them go. 

“I’ll get you next time, you just wait,” Ace grumbled, brushing the dirt off his clothes. “And quit laughing, Dad! It’s not that funny!”

Shanks quit laughing, it was the first time Ace had called him ‘dad’ and it took everything Shanks had not to run over and cuddle the boy.

“Don’t cry, Shanks, you will embarrass yourself and Ace,” Beckman chucked.

“Shut up, Beck,” Shanks grumbled back, hiding his face behind his tankard. 

0808

And so life on the seas continued. The boys learned and grew in their abilities every day, Luffy finally managing to land a decent punch after weeks of practice. Ace and Sabo had also had steady improvements in their fighting with dedicated tutors to help them, they had even started getting very basic firearm training.  The process of reading and writing was a lot harder for the darker haired brothers, it frustrated Ace to end that he would be on the cusp of understanding something, only for it to fall away at the last moment. 

“I think they have dyslexia,” Sabo confided to Shanks one night after Ace stormed off. “Ace was complaining about getting the letters confused and Luffy said they were dancing.”

Shanks hummed. “I’ll talk to Hongo about it, he may have ideas on how to help. Or he may know of some books to help us teach them easier.”

Sabo nodded. “I just wanted– I didn’t want you to think they were stupid or anything. I mean they are but…” He trailed off when Shanks sat down at the table next to him.

“Sabs, I know very well that some of the smartest people up here,” Shanks tapped Sabo’s forehead, “are the stupidest people around. Not being able to read doesn’t make anyone stupid, hell half the members of the Roger Pirates could barely read and some of them were the wisest people I knew. I’m only making such a big deal out of them learning because I know it will help them going forward. To be a captain you need to be able to read more than just a map most of the time. Okay?”

Sabo let out a breath, “Yeah, okay. I didn’t really think you thought they were, but.”

“But only you can think your brothers are stupid, I get it. I got into more than one fight because someone made fun of Blue and only I was allowed to do that,” Shanks laughed and Sabo smiled.

“Thanks, Dad.” Sabo turned and tucked himself into a hug at Shanks' side.

Shanks couldn’t focus long on the third brother calling him ‘dad,’ because as soon as Luffy saw he shouted out, “Oh, are we hugging Dad now?” and launched himself into Shank’s other side.

Shank had never in a million years expected his life to turn out this way, but now he wouldn’t wish it any other way.

0808

Shanks wasn’t sure what he had done that the Seas cursed him with such hard headed boys but he was sure sorry for it. 

It was supposed to be a quick and easy stop, the boys had been with them for around three months and the island was small and fairly safe, so the boys were allowed to roam while they restocked. It had started off fine, Shanks had reminded Sabo when they needed to be back and had given him a handful of belli for them to buy something if they chose before they ran off.

They had almost finished everything they had needed done, getting ready to settle into the bar near the docks to relax when the commotion started. It started with shouts and then the sounds of a fight started, and then it turned into a brawl with gunfire.

Shanks had looked at Beckman, the first-mate nodding before the took off to see what was going on. What they found left the two frozen for a moment. There were five men laid out on the ground in the middle of the road, knives and guns dropped around them. When Shanks turned his head to look at the other party, he found his children. Luffy had a few cuts, bleeding sluggishly, Sabo’s eye was already darkening and half closed from swelling. Ace stood in front of them both, chest heaving, a gunshot graze across his cheek and several other bleeding wounds.

Shanks had left Beckman there to take care of the mess while he took the boys back to the ship to be looked at. Hongo had barely had a chance to bandage Ace up before he stalked off to the room the brothers shared.

“Captain, don’t be too mad at him,” Sabo said quietly, looking at his fingers in his lap.

Shanks didn’t answer, just looked over the other two before following Ace.

0808

Ace was pacing the floor in anger when Shanks walked in without knocking. He watched for a moment as Ace snarled to himself before he glared at Shanks.

“Who are you here as?” Ace nearly spat the question.

Shanks just raised his eyebrow, “Who would you rather be here?”

Ace raised his head to glare into Shanks’s face. “Captain,” he said firmly, braced for punishment.

Shanks had to sigh, the boy was too much like Roger sometimes, too much like Shanks, really. Would rather take a punishment than talk about his feelings or why something happened.

“In that case, I’m here as your father,” Shanks slid down the door to sit on the floor. “Come here for a second, you and your captain can have an argument when I’m sure you’re okay.”

Ace watched Shanks for several moments, as though waiting for him to yell ‘syke!’ and start berating him. When it was clear Shanks wasn’t going to yell, Ace walked towards Shanks, a slight limp in his step.

“Did they manage to get your leg?” Shanks asked gently, pulling Ace to him.

Ace shook his head. “One of them clubbed me in the hip, but it was just a glance. It’ll bruise but it’s not broken.”

Shanks nodded and tucked Ace under his chin like he did the first time they talked about Roger. Shanks let them sit quietly for a bit, letting the rage disperse.

“Ace, what happened?” Shanks asked softly. Ace stiffened but relaxed a little when Shanks ran his hand through his hair. “I’m not going to promise not to be mad, but I don’t know how mad to be until I know what happened.”

“I–I mean– I,” Ace’s breathing started going rough.

“Breathe, Firecracker,” Shanks murmured, rubbing his back as Ace sucked in a huge breath of air.

“I’ve been trying, really I have been, to not be so…angry when Ro–when my father is mentioned. But today we were on our way back and someone mentioned you and what they said wasn’t great but we were trying to ignore it, well Sabo and I were, Luffy got mad but we were bringing him back anyways. Then they noticed we got annoyed and they started following us, talking about how ‘Red Hair wasn’t shit’ and ‘Red Hair isn’t even all that tough’. Then they said,” Ace had to pause to take a deep breath. “Then they said that you deserved to be hunted down like Roger and ‘that bastard devil child he had.’”

Ace was shaking, though Shanks couldn’t tell if it was in anger or something else. 

“I don’t really know what happened next. I don’t know who threw the first punch, I don’t think it was us, I think Luffy yelled at them and then they swung. I just knew once the fight started I couldn’t let them get away with talking about us like that.”

Shanks continued to sit quietly for a bit, rubbing Ace’s back while he contemplated what he was told.

“I’m sorry, Dad, I know we should watch our tempers better, I just–” Shanks could feel tears soak into his shirt.

“I’m not mad, Ace,” Ace looked up in confusion, “Really, I’m not. It sounds like a couple low-lifes decided they could bully children and didn’t expect consequences. I don’t know that I would have been able to keep a level head either, to be honest.”

“Really?” Ace asked.

Shanks nodded. “We will need to talk at some point about what to do if a similar situation comes up, and I’ll talk to Anchor about his temper, but I’m proud of you for trying to keep a level head. Now tell me, how confident were you that you could win that fight before it started?”

Ace scoffed. “They were weak as shit. The only reason they got a couple hits in is because there were a bunch of people around we didn’t want to get involved. The guy also got a lucky shot, pulled the trigger as Sabo disarmed him and it got me.”

Shanks grinned, “That’s my Firecracker. Now come on, I want Hongo to take a real look at you, just to be sure.”

When Shanks met back up with Beckman, after the boys had been thoroughly checked out, he corroborated their story.

“According to the townsfolk they were a bunch of good-for-nothings who saw your roger on Anchor's back and thought they were easy pickings. The boys did a good job of not paying them any attention until they brought up Roger’s kid. Anchor told them to take it back and one of the idiots kicked him and then the boys went feral,” Beckman laughed at the descriptor. “One woman said she hadn’t seen starving animals fight that fiercely, but they made sure there was no collateral damage.”

Shanks couldn’t stop the grin on his face, “We’ve got great kids, don’t we Beck?”

Beckman just laughed and lit another cigarette. “They sure are something.”

Chapter Text

There was a black cloud around the Red Force and the whole crew could sense it, even the three youngest members could tell something was off. Beckman stood guard outside of the captain’s quarters, dark marks under his eyes showing that he hadn’t slept well. He had been woken up twice to Shanks jolting out of bed with a bitten off scream, one of the reasons he didn’t actually sleep with Shanks very often was to keep Shanks’ guilt to a minimum for waking him when this happened. 

As it was, Shanks had been plagued by nightmares, his stump of an arm ached and his thoughts refused to budge from the past. A tankard full of whiskey, his third of the morning, he thought it was still morning at least, sat in front of him, his breathing ragged from pain as he attempted to drown his thoughts.

Shanks was pulled out of his head by voices at his door.

“Anchor, Captain isn’t really up for visitors right now,” he could hear Beckman’s voice drift in.

“Oh, is he sick?” Luffy’s voice responded.

Shanks couldn’t hear it but he was sure Beckman sighed before answering, “Yeah, kind of.”

Shanks almost had to strain to hear his youngest’s response, “If I promise to be quiet can I go give him a hug?”

“I don’t think–”

“It’s fine, Beck,” Shanks’ voice sounded destroyed even to his own ears.

The door opened and he could see his first mate’s questioning look first, but at a slight nod he opened the door.

Luffy walked in almost silently, he even tried to keep his steps gentle. Once he reached Shanks, he very slowly stretched his arms up, broadcasting his every motion as though he was approaching a wild animal, which Shanks was at this moment. Once his arms were around Shanks, he very slowly reeled himself in to wrap his father in a hug.

“Hey, Anchor,” Shanks sighed, patting Luffy’s back. “I’m not very good company right now, why don’t you go see if Bonk will play a song for you?”

Luffy shook his head, nuzzling it into Shanks neck. “You don’t hafta be good compny when you don’t feel good. You always give us hugs when we’re hurt.”

Shanks didn’t have the energy to argue, not when the constricting feeling inside his chest was starting to let up with the constriction of rubber limbs around his neck. Shanks buried his face in Luffy’s curls, only looking up when he saw the shadows of Ace and Sabo in the door. They took one look at him, before looking at each other and marching off. Shanks barely had time to worry that he had managed to lose the respect of the older two before they were back, arms full of blankets and pillows from their bunk. 

Ace disappeared behind him, though Shanks could hear shuffling, while Sabo came around to him. Sabo held out a hand, expecting Shanks to take it. 

“Sabo,” Shanks sighed.

“Nope, come on,” Sabo said. He reached out and grabbed onto Shanks’ hand and tugged.

Shanks nearly refused, what were three kids going to do to him? They couldn’t force him to move. But he knew that was the petty and angry part of his brain, the part that told him he deserved to feel this way. So he gave in, he let Sabo herd him to where Ace pretty much made a nest of their blankets and laid down where he was directed.

“Boys,” Shanks sighed, irritation leaking into his tone.

“Shut up, Old Man,” Ace snapped, but there was no heat to the words. Ace laid down against his stump and Shanks almost flinched away but stopped at the last second. There was something warm beneath the blankets, and between that and Ace naturally running a bit warmer, the torn, tight, flesh started to relax. Sabo laid down on his other side, leaving Luffy on his chest.

After a few minutes, when it was clear none of them had any intentions of getting up, Shanks spoke up again. “Boys, you don’t have to waste your day away because I’m in a bad mood.”

Sabo sat up and leaned over so his face was in clear view. “We’re family, Shanks,” he said simply.

“Yeah, Dad, and family takes care of each other,” Luffy mumbled into his chest.

“After all these months and all the trouble we’ve caused, it’s our turn to take care of you. So shut up and deal with it,” Ace muttered.

Shanks wanted to laugh at Ace’s tone, wanted to tease the boys about trying to get out of chores. He also, somewhere deep down, wanted to throw the boys out, wanted to yell and scream that this is what he deserved, wanted to drink himself into a stupor and forget the world.

Then Luffy headbutted him. It was gentle, mostly him just setting his forehead against Shanks’, but he let enough weight fall into it that it forced Shanks’ eye to focus back in.

“You’re thinking too much, Dad,” Luffy accused. 

Shanks did laugh this time, a startled, thick, chuckle, before a few tears slipped from his eyes. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right.”

Luffy smiled at him before laying his head back down on Shanks’s chest. Sabo reached over and grabbed the book he had brought with him and started reading it out loud. It was some adventure novel they had picked up at the last island that Shanks had overheard Sabo reading to the other two, who were still struggling with reading. They were about halfway through the book so Shanks wasn’t sure of the plot, but he didn’t really think that it mattered. With the weight and warmth of his boys surrounding him and the steady sound of Sabo’s voicing drifting over him, it wasn’t long before Shanks dozed off.

0808

Benn Beckman had been the first mate of the Red Hair pirates for a long time. He had loved the captain of said pirates for almost as long. He had dealt with his captain's childish antics, fought in many fights and celebrated in many parties with him. He had also been the unfortunate target of his lover’s black moods, as the crew called it. The days when even sleep couldn’t cloud the vision of his father’s head rolling, nothing but booze could drown out the sound of the argument he had with his brother, the one that drove them apart, and the abandonment from the family who swore to protect him. It made Shanks’ already short temper even worse, he was more likely to lash out with words or weapons. On especially bad days he would just go catatonic, only movement would be to drink himself into oblivion. 

Beckman was sure that this mood would be the last one when he woke up from his last bout of fickle sleep to see Shanks sitting with an already half empty tankard of their strongest whiskey. He was surprised that Shanks had allowed the boys in, and though he gave them privacy, he kept his ears out for any raised voices. Around 45 minutes after he saw Ace and Sabo go into the room, Beckman decided he needed to check on them.

If Beckman was a lesser man, the shock of what he saw would have caused his cigarette to fall out of his mouth. Shanks was laying in bed, in a mound of blankets, actually asleep. From the looks of it, it was actually a deep sleep, one not ravaged by nightmares. That was almost as shocking as the rest of the inhabitants of the room. Luffy was silent, he was obviously awake by the gentle swaying of his feet, but he seemed perfectly happy to just lay quietly on Shanks’ chest. Ace and Sabo were having a very quiet discussion on what sounded like weapon types while leaning into Shanks’ sides, a book open on the blond’s lap. Beckman noticed how Ace was very careful with every shift of his weight not to put any weight on Shanks’ bad arm.

All conversation died when Beckman opened the door, even Luffy stilled, though they relaxed when Shanks didn’t so much as stir.

“Hi, Beckman. Are we being too loud?” Sabo whispered.

Beckman rubbed his eyes before looking back at the four. “As long as he’s sleeping through it, no, you’re fine,” he responded after a moment.

Sabo nodded, but put a bookmark in the book and set it aside. “Are you here to kick us out?” Ace asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

Beckman couldn’t help but scoff at that. “You kids are fucking miracle workers. No, as long as Shanks isn’t kicking you out, I’m not kicking you out.”

They were all quiet for a long moment, Beckman just watching his captain sleep.

“Beckman, he was in a lot of pain, is it because of…” Luffy’s voice trailed off, he hadn’t lifted his head either. At first. Beckman thought he was looking at Ace, then he realized what their Anchor was actually looking at.

“It’s not just the arm,” Beckman sighed. “Shanks has had a very hard life, ya know. Sometimes it gets to be too much for him. It just gets worse when his arm hurts too.”

Luffy nodded but still didn’t move.

After a few more moments, when it was clear that Beckman really wasn’t going to chase them off, nor was he leaving, their conversation picked back up.

“Anyways, Sabs, I’m telling you it would make way more sense for him to carry a sword,” Ace said.

Sabo sighed, like this was an ongoing argument. “Maybe logically, but thematically it makes so much more sense for him to be using a bow.”

“Well if he’s going to insist on fighting from the back, he could at least use a gun,” Ace scoffed.

“No, no, he made an oath, remember? No guns,” Sabo answered back. Ace grumbled in what may have been defeat. 

“Will you read some more, Sabs? Please?” Luffy asked, turning his head to give his brother his trademark grin.

Sabo could only smile in response, picking the book back up and continuing to read aloud. 

0808

The constant hustle and bustle of the Red Force nearly came to a complete halt an hour later, when Beckman, the boys and Shanks came out of the captain’s quarters. The last time Shanks had fallen to a black mood it had taken nearly a month for the oppressing aura to dissipate, the least amount that they knew of was two days. And yet, here their captain was, blinking into the bright sunlight of the deck while Luffy bounded off less than 24 hours after the mood had settled in. 

Shanks had flopped himself in a chair on deck, Ace and Sabo had wandered off to whoever they were paired with for the week to start working, and Beckman went below deck. A few moments later Lucky Roux rushed up, a plate of sandwiches in hand, and dropped them in Shanks’ lap before calling for the boys who had missed lunch. Luffy rushed below deck like a maniac while Ace and Sabo bickered and poked at each other on their way down. 

Hongo sighed as he decided to push his luck. He was the ship's doctor, he was also a pirate, it pissed him off when he couldn’t fix something that was wrong with someone, even though he knew there were some things that just weren’t able to be fixed. 

Hongo pulled another chair up to his captain’s. Shanks seemed to pay him no mind, quietly eating and staring at the sun glittering off the sea.

“How are you feeling, Chief?” he asked quietly.

Shanks turned to him and Hongo could still read pain in the pinch of his eyes, but it didn’t seem to be overwhelming. “The heat pack the boys stole from the infirmary helped. Still tight but not nearly as bad.” Shanks actually smiled.

Hongo scoffed, “Stole? From my infirmary? Hardly, Ace barged in this morning and demanded something that would help you and who am I to deny that Firecracker.”

Shanks laughed and the sound washed over the crew, letting them breathe a little easier.

“How are you, really?” Hongo asked, looking past his captain to the sea.

He could hear Shanks take a deep breath. “It’s hard to be stuck in the past when I’m surrounded by such blinding sights for the future,” Shanks said, voice quiet but strong.

Hongo could feel himself smiling. “They’re going to take the world by storm, that’s for sure,” Hongo agreed. 

Shanks lifted his head to let the sun fall on his face, eyes closed, as the sounds of the Red Force washed over them. 

“Hongo? Can you get me a pen and some paper? I think it’s past time I wrote a letter.”

Chapter Text

Buggy sat high in the High Top watching over his men. The acrobats were practicing above him while Cabaji unicycled below, all keeping an eye on each other as it should be. It was a calm day for them, as most were. Buggy didn’t quite go out of his way to stir up trouble, it wasn’t really his style (he would never admit his true reason to not start much). The crew had settled in for a rather relaxed day, until a Newscoo dropped what was decidedly not a newspaper in their captain's lap.

“WHAT?!?!” The high pitched screech from their captain only made a few pause, too used to his dramatics.

“What is it, Captain?” Cabaji called, barely looking at Buggy.

Buggy held the letter tightly in his hands, paper creasing and near ripping, but the words didn’t change.

“Blue,

I hope you’ll forgive me for my handwriting, I’m afraid I’ve had to learn to write with my right hand and it has been a process. 

I wanted you to hear it from me first, I’ve broken my biggest rule. The Sea’s have blessed me with three boys who have accepted me as their father and I see them as my sons. I’ve decided to follow in Captain’s footsteps and have taken them with me as cabin boys. Having them on board has really made me have some sympathy for Captain and Rayleigh for our antics growing up. 

They have also made me look back on us, at our time at sea. I don’t want us to be estranged forever, Blue. I’m still pissed off about what we both said that day, but I don’t want to be mad anymore. We were two scared and grieving kids, with a world that hated everything we stood for. I am in the East Blue, probably still will be for another month or two, the boys aren’t quite ready for a new sea yet. If you would like to meet up, I managed to snag a bottle of Miss Rouge’s favorite brandy and I’ve been saving it for a special occasion. If you aren’t ready, or can’t find it in your heart to forgive the words we both said, I understand.

Forever your brother,

Red”

Buggy read the letter a second time, then a third, the words not changing. It was true, the letter was damn near chicken scratch, but still obviously from Shanks. Shanks, the brother he ran away from, the brother he abandoned knowing full well how afraid he was of being alone. His brother wrote to him.

“Captain?” Cabaji had stopped, meaning the acrobats had also paused, all looking at their captain, even Ritchie had looked up from where he was napping in the sun.

“I…I need to think about something,” Buggy said. He shook his head and got up from his seat and moved to the door to his cabin. He looked over his shoulder, “Find somewhere to drop anchor for a few days. Less populated if possible.”

And Buggy walked away, leaving his crew to look at each other in confusion for a few moments before following orders. 

0808

“We’ll be there in about an hour. Are you sure about this, Captain?” Beckman asked.

He had to go hunting for their captain as they approached the meeting spot, finding him and the kids in the boy’s room.

“Seas no, Beck,” Shanks laughed in a panicked way, “but I have to.”

“What are we doing here, Dad?” Luffy asked, he had been hanging upside down from the rafters but came down as Shanks stood up.

Shanks took a deep breath, looking at the boys. “I’ve told you about my brother, Blue, the one I was a cabin boy with,” the boys all nodded. “Well, after our captain died, we got into a really big fight. We both said a lot of things we shouldn’t have and went our different ways. We haven’t spoken since, but…” Shanks trailed off.

“But you’re both tired of being angry?” Sabo guessed.

Shanks laughed, sadder now. “Yeah. I am at least, I’m hoping that he is too since he agreed to meet.”

“The High Top is in view, Captain,” someone called from above deck and Shanks sucked in a breath.

“Okay boys, I need you all to be on your best behavior but also alert. Blue is still a pirate captain himself. As much as I’d hope he wouldn’t use this as a chance to get us while where vulnerable but–”

“But no need to put ourselves at an unnecessary risk,” Ace finished Shanks’ thought.

“Exactly,” Shanks smiled at his boys. 

Luffy took this as his chance to launch himself at Shanks, making the man laugh. “I love you Dad. And if Uncle Blue makes you cry I’ll kick his ass.”

Shanks couldn’t help but laugh at that, damn near doubling over as Ace and Sabo attempted to scold their younger brother.  

“It’s not funny! My fists are like pistols! I even managed to hit Lime Juice on purpose yesterday!”

Shanks gasped for air, ruffling Luffy’s hair. “I know, Anchor. I don’t think you’ll have to worry about that though.”

Luffy grumbled but got off of Shanks so they could move out to the deck to watch the little uninhabited island that Buggy had found come into view. The High Top had obviously been there for a couple days, signs of fires on the beach, as the Red Force pulled up a decent distance away. Once the gangplank was lowered, Shanks took the boys and Beckmen to meet in the middle of the section of beach between the boats where he could see four figures waiting. 

Once they got close enough to make out the figures, Shanks felt his stomach clench with nerves. It was only when he felt little rubber fingers wrapped around his hand, Luffy giving him his huge smile, could he breathe again and take note of who waited. 

First was a tall thin man, wearing a long overcoat and a scarf around his neck, green hair covering one eye, but clearly alert. The other man was lean, a whip attached to his hip and his white hair styled into…bear ears? There was a large lion next to him that watched them closely as they walked up.

The last man made Shank’s breath catch as he took him in. Buggy was so much taller than Shanks remembered, just barely shorter than Shanks. His long blue hair was tied in a low ponytail, he wore makeup of crossed bones on his forehead, and while he looked stern, Shanks recognized his own nerves in his brother’s eyes.

“Buggy,” Shanks greeted as they met.

“Shanks,” Buggy responded, eyes flicking down to the boys.

“Bugs, this is Benn Beckman, my first mate,” Shanks nodded to Beck, who grunted in response. “And these are my boys, Ace, Sabo and Luffy.” Luffy grinned and waved, Sabo bowed and Ace huffed and scuffed his shoe in the sand. 

“Shanks, what happened to your arm?” Buggy gasped, Shanks cloak had shifted during the introduction. Luffy startled at the question, ducking behind Shanks’ legs and pulling his hat on to cover his eyes. “And is he–”

“It’s a long story, Blu–Buggy. One I’d be happy to tell if…well… we’ll see,” Shanks trailed off, but he smiled.

0808

Buggy blinked at the almost use of his name, mouth gaping until Mohiji coughed.

Buggy cleared his throat, “Yeah, okay. This is Mohiji and Ritchie, first mate, and this is Cabaji.” both pirates nodded.

“Come on, I found somewhere private for us to talk,” Buggy nodded towards the forest beside them. 

Shanks nodded and started to follow but both captains were stopped before they took a few steps. 

“Dad! Wait,” Shanks turned quickly and looked at Ace. Ace who was giving his father his determined face.

“What’s up, Firecracker?” Shanks asked, head tilted. And boy did that throw Buggy through a loop, Shanks being a dad was not something they had ever considered. 

“You can tell him,” Ace said. Whatever this meant, it was obviously a big deal to Shanks and to the boy’s brothers.

“Ace, are you sure?” Shanks had crouched down to get to eye level with the boy.

Ace nodded firmly. “If you, if you trust him to tell him, go ahead. Don’t start with it, obviously, but if he’s your brother,” Ace seemed to trail off.

The smile Shanks gave the boy was so soft, a look Buggy had never seen before on his face. Shanks ruffled his hair. “Thank you, Firecracker. Now go back with Beckman and I swear if you pull anything, any of you, while I’m gone.” The boys laughed while Beckman rolled his eyes. 

Buggy turned to his own entourage. “Go back to the ship, prepare for anything but–”

Buggy knew by the knowing smile Cabaji gave him, he was understood. The seven extra people walked away, leaving two captains to walk into the woods together. 

Buggy led him deeper into the forest where he had set up a table and two chairs for them. Shanks sat in one, leaving the other Buggy and pulled out two bottles of booze. Buggy sat heavily and picked up the bottle to examine it.

“Damn, how’d you manage to get two bottles of Southern Hibiscus brandy, you flashy bastard?” Buggy asked, running his thumb over the label.

“A tiny island in Paradise had them. Beck glared at me for days with how much I spent on them, but,” Shanks trailed off with a sigh before using his teeth to open the bottle.

Buggy smiled. “Well, I’m glad you did,” he said before doing the same to his bottle. He held the bottle out, waiting. Shanks smiled and clinked their bottles together before they both took a swig.

“You want to start with the easier questions and move on to the harder ones once we get drunk?” Shanks asked and Buggy scoffed like the question was an obvious one.

“Is your arm an easier one or one for later?” Buggy asked.

Shanks laughed but it was the one Buggy recognized as his self-deprecating one. “I made a bet on the future generation, but it was also to atone for a mistake.”

Buggy sat quietly and Shanks took that as a request to elaborate. So Buggy sat, eyes getting wider and wider as Shanks told him about meeting Luffy and the bandits and the Fruit and the Sea King and the promise. 

“Damn, so not only are you a flashy bastard, but you’re a stupid one too,” Buggy sighed. 

Shanks laughed, “Beck said the same thing. Now it’s your turn, tell me about your crew.”

So Buggy did, he told him about where he met them and some of the misadventures they had been through. By the time he was done they had gone through half the bottle.

“Why did you take them with you? You were also so sure about never having kids on board, said we were too fucked up to put kids through that,” Buggy’s voice wasn’t accusing, but still Shanks flinched.

“They had no one, Bugs,” Shanks sighed. “These boys are so full of life and wonder and they only had maybe two people on their whole island who cared. Ace and Luffy, their guardian just dropped them off with mountain bandits and they had been fending for themselves for years. Sabo was a runaway after his parents apologized to the noble kid who stabbed him because Sabo was ‘in the way’.  They reminded me too much of us to leave behind, too much of Captain.”

They were silent again, each nursing their bottle.

“Do you think we’ll ever be okay again, Buggy?” Shanks asked quietly. 

“Why do you keep calling me that? I’ve never been ‘Buggy’ to you!” Buggy snapped tears pooling in his eyes but he refused to let them fall.

Shanks looked Buggy dead in the eyes, heartbreak reflected there. Pain shared between brothers.

“I didn’t think I had earned that right again,” Shanks whispered.

“Fuck, Red, what are we even doing?” Buggy asked, angrily wiping his eyes.

“The best we can, Blue. That’s all we can do,” Shanks answered.

“Can we just–is this even something we can move past? Just leave the past in the past and move on?” Buggy went to take another swig and realized that the bottle was empty. 

Shanks was quiet for a bit, seeming to mull over his words. “I think that’s all we can do if we want to move on. We were both fucking assholes, but we were kids. Kids who had just watched our fathers head fall. I think it’s okay that we were both a bit messed up.”

Buggy stood up and marched over to Shanks, forcing the taller man to stand up so Buggy could hug him. 

“I’ve missed you, Red, and I’m sorry. I’ve regretted everything I did and said to you for all these years, but I didn’t think you’d be willing to hear it.”

“I’m sorry too, Blue. I was an ass and then too stubborn to do anything until it was too late. Watching the boys be so dependent on each other, I couldn’t leave things as they were.”

They hugged for a long moment, two brothers reunited after a decade of anger. When they broke apart they sat in companionable silence while the alcohol wore off. Even from this distance Shanks was pretty sure he could hear Luffy’s laughter and Ace’s shouting.

“Those kids sure have made your ship an even louder one,” Buggy observed dryly.

Shanks could only laugh in response before turning to study Buggy.

Buggy blinked, “Is there something on my face?”

Shanks continued to stare. “I know you’re good with secrets, with your whole network and everything, yes I know about the network I always know your handiwork.”

Buggy was even more confused and then he was concerned. “Shanks, please tell me none of those brats are yours ,” Buggy asked desperately.

Shanks laughed darkly. “No, not mine.” He looked Buggy dead in the eyes, his gray eyes sharp enough to cut on their own.

“Then what, Red?” Buggy whispered.

“Blue, Ace is Captain’s kid,” Shanks said. “That’s what he told me I could tell you.”

Buggy gaped at him for a second before getting mad “You’re making fun of me aren’t you. Finding some big lie to throw in my face.”

“Buggy, Blue, look at me, would I really lie to you? Especially about this ?” And that was the thing, Buggy knew Shanks wouldn’t.

Buggy could feel his body fall apart a little, Shanks didn’t respond except to grab a piece of his shoulder that flew a little too far out and put it back.

“How?” Buggy whispered finally. “It couldn’t have been Miss Rouge, the government trashed her whole island and after she died there was no kid. Are you trying to tell that Roger cheated on her? He couldn’t even cheat her at cards .”

Shanks sighed and looked to the sky. “She pulled off another miracle for her kids. Guess she held onto him for almost an extra year before she gave birth to Ace. From what Ace told me, Rouge lasted long enough to hand Ace off to Garp before she passed.” 

They were quiet again before Buggy started laughing. “Of course they fucking named him Ace.” Shanks couldn’t help but laugh with him.

“He was so proud of her for catching that ace, said he loved her from the first stab because of it. He named his fucking sword Ace, and you thought he wouldn’t name his kid that,” Shanks dissolved into laughter. 

Buggy felt so light, like the pieces of his body could just float away as he laughed with his brother again. 

“It’s a sore topic, though,” Shanks’ laughter died down. “People don’t exactly have a lot of nice things to say about Captain. I found out because he asked me if he deserved to live.”

Buggy winced. “Damn, that’s rough.”

Shanks just hummed.

“Come on, Red, I think we’ve been here long enough. Let’s go celebrate in a way Captain would be proud of,” Buggy said, holding out a hand.

Shanks’ eyes lit up, “Are we going to have a rager?”

“We’re going to have a fucking rager,” Buggy agreed with grin. 

0808

When the captains came out of the woods, both crews held their breath. They hadn’t heard any raised voices, hadn’t felt any Haki, but one could never be too sure with a powerhouse like Shanks and a spy like Buggy.

“Men, get those fires going,” Buggy called out.

Both crews cheered, if Shanks had been calling the order it could have meant anything from ‘they managed to barely not kill each other’ to ‘everything went great’. But if Buggy, the one to never stir up trouble, the one to stay in the background of big events, was calling for a party, then everything must be okay. 

Luffy bound over to the men as they walked back. He looked at Buggy, really looked at him, and for a moment Buggy swore that this little boy could see into his soul. Then Luffy blinked and the feeling passed as the little ball of energy bounced on his toes.

“Sabo, can I ask him now? Please Sabo?” Luffy asked, getting more and more excited.

Sabo, who was walking to them at a much slower pace, Ace right behind, just sighed in defeat.

Luffy grinned in victory before turning back to Buggy. “Uncle Blue, can I pet your lion?”

Buggy stared at the little boy in front of him for a moment, with the straw hat on his head, that huge smile, and the stars in his eyes, for a moment Buggy thought Shanks was wrong and the little one was the child of his captain. Then he registered that the kid had called him ‘Uncle Blue’ and he couldn’t help but smile.

“You’ll have to ask Mohji and Ritchie, but if they’re okay then yes,” Buggy answered.

Luffy gasped and grinned again before stretching his arms out and rocketing to the Big Top while Buggy watched wide eyed.

“Wait! Luffy you can’t just–and he’s gone,” Sabo sighed. Sabo continued walking up to Shanks and then walked closer and dropped his head against Shanks’ hip. “The Seas have cursed me with such annoying brothers,” he griped.

Shanks busted up laughing as Ace’s indignant ‘Hey!’ sounded out. 

“Come on now, Pick, don’t be so dramatic,” Shanks laughed. He laughed harder when the little boy turned his head enough to glare at Shanks before closing his eyes and Shanks ruffled his hair. 

“Who are you calling dramatic? You pouted for two hours when Beckman told you we weren’t stopping for more booze last week,” Ace snipped, crossing his arms as he reached them.

Ace looked Buggy up and down and Buggy could read the question in his eyes. Does he know? While Ace studied him, Buggy looked, really looked at Ace and he couldn’t stop a small sad smile. 

“Thank the Seas you have her curls. Captain’s hair texture always made him look like a greaseball with the salt. Couldn’t go more than two days without washing it or it looked hideous. It’s the main reason he wore a hat,” Buggy whispered conspiratorially. 

Ace was shocked for a moment before he laughed. Buggy smiled and for once, felt like he was at home.

Sabo just huffed, “Come on, asshole, let’s go get Luffy before he makes a mess of something.”

Buggy waved his hand. “We’re pirates first, but we are also circus performers, we’re used to chaos,” 

“Yeah, but you’ve never had to deal with Luffy chaos,” Sabo argued.

Just then there was a large crash and a shout from Beckman, then they could hear Luffy whining.

“I think Beck has him,” Shanks laughed.

0808

Hours later, after food had been eaten and most of the crews were deep in their cups, two groups of brothers and a lion sat together. Sabo, Ace, and Luffy were all asleep, stretched out in Ritchie’s coarse fur, all four snoring softly. Shanks and Buggy sat together, legs pressed together as they nursed their drinks.

“Hey, Red, why in the name of the Seas did you try to call Sabo by that ridiculous nickname?” Buggy asked quietly, trying not to wake the boys in front of them.

Shanks laughed quietly. “We’re trying to mostly call them by nicknames, we don’t want to bring any unnecessary attention to them, especially with two of them having fairly recognizable names. We’ve called Anchor Anchor since before he ate his Devil Fruit. We told him it was because he swam like a rock, even before everything, really though it was because he gave us all hope, something to moor ourselves to. Ace has been Firecracker since we asked him to join us, the kid has one hell of a temper. He’s Miss Rouge’s kid, after all. But we’ve had a hard time coming up with something for Sabs. A couple of the guys wanted to call him Blue for his outfit, but that’s always been you. Someone said Tophat for his hat but I thought that was stupid. I’m trying Pick because Sabo is the best pickpocket I’ve ever seen, pretty good with lockpicks too, but yeah. It’s not very good.”

Buggy scoffed, “You were never good at coming up with names Shanks . I bet Benn started Anchor and it caught on.”

Shanks laughed, “It was Lucky Roux, actually.”

“Exactly,” Buggy rolled his eyes. “Anyways, I thought you said Ace went by Portgas. Miss Rouge didn’t use her name all that much.”

Shanks sighed, “Yeah but enough people knew her that I’d rather not bring attention to it. They all want to be captains one day, I don’t want them to get too much attention now that they’ll be hunted as soon as they leave the Red Force.”

Buggy looked at the man next to him. The last time he had really seen him they were both broken teenagers, barely old enough to be on their own and yet being forced to. Now the man he called brother was just that, a full grown man with kids now. Kids that Buggy could call nephews and that he already loved. 

“You really have grown, Red,” Buggy noted.

Shanks chuckled, “I had to. We both had to.”

Buggy nodded. “So what’s Sabo’s name then? You said you had two recognizable names.”

Shanks grinned, eyes flashing with his old mischief, “I have no idea what Sabo’s last name is. He won’t tell me, not that I’ve really asked for it. However I do have Monkey D. Luffy on my ship.”

Buggy spit out the beer he had just put in his mouth. “What?!”

Shanks just laughed, loud enough that Sabo rolled over in his sleep and grumbled something about birds.

“Shanks, you are telling me that that little rubber boy is the son of Dragon the Revolutionary and the grandson of Garp the Fist. Do you have a death wish?”

“To be fair, I didn’t know who he was related to when I claimed him. Besides, Dragon left Luffy with his father when Luffy was a baby, Makino raised Luffy until he was 7. If they want to claim any parental claim on Luffy I’d let Makino have the first swing while I backed her up,” Shanks laughed, though he made a mental note to send the barmaid a letter before they left the East.

They were quiet then, both reflecting on their lives and futures.  

“I’m glad you took them, Red, no kid deserves to grow up unwanted.” Buggy said.

Shanks threw his arm around his brother’s shoulders. They sat there watching the fires die until they drifted off.

0808

Luffy woke up in a daze not too long later, he could swear he heard a woman’s voice talking over where his dad and uncle slept, but when he looked there was no one there. When he closed his eyes again he heard the voice.

“Oh dear, I think he heard us,” a woman laughed.

A man laughed with her, it was unfamiliar yet Luffy felt like he knew it deep down. “It wouldn’t surprise me. That brat always knew how to find trouble.”

“I’m just happy to see them together again. See them all together. Maybe now you can rest, love.” 

“No, not yet. Besides I won’t be able to rest without you and I know you won’t leave them yet.”

“True,” the woman giggled, “but I may not need to stay for too much longer. They have a wonderful little protector here.” Luffy felt like someone brushed a hand over his hair. “You’ll watch over my boys, won’t you? I can feel it in your spirit.”

Luffy opened his and felt his breath catch in his chest. The woman in front of him was mostly see through, she had bright eyes that were almost red, wavy blond hair and freckles. Ace’s freckles. Luffy blinked and looked behind her at the tall man standing there with dark slicked back hair and Ace’s silver eyes, he had a hand on Shanks’ and Buggy’s shoulders. Luffy knew exactly who and what he was looking at.

“You didn’t have to ask,” Luffy whispered, “but I promise anyways.”

Portas D. Rouge’s eyes widened before settling in a soft smile, Gol D. Roger laughing behind her. She leaned down and kissed Ace on the forehead before getting up and walking back over to Roger. She kissed her older boy’s heads as well, then she took Rogers hand and they faded away. 

Luffy fell back asleep with a smile, rubber arms wrapped around his brothers. In the morning he would convince himself it was a dream, but for the moment it was nice to know that the parents of two of his favorite people in the world trusted him to protect them. 

Chapter Text

After almost a year aboard the Red Force, Shanks should have realized that trouble always seemed to find his boys. The first real fight the boys had taken part in should have never happened, at least the boys shouldn’t have been involved. A group of pirates who didn’t recognize the Red Hair jolly roger decided that they would be easy pickings. They were smart enough that they waited until nightfall before trying to attack, Shanks would give them that, though the rainstorm that started was what really threw a wrench in the Red Hair’s crew. Between the sounds of fighting and thunder and the curtain of rain, no one saw the small group slip below deck in search of hidden treasure. 

It wasn't until they heard Ace cursing in Eastern and Luffy laughing did the Shanks notice what was going on. 

When he turned, easily dispatching his current foe, he saw four men with his kids. One man had both Ace and Sabo by the back of their necks while a second held Luffy by his collar. There were two swords and a gun pointed at his kids, but Shanks just rolled his eyes.

“What are you boys doing?” Shanks asked, he sidestepped, barely paid attention as another sword flew at him.

“But Dad, you said we weren’t allowed to fight,” Luffy commented, cocking his head in confusion. 

Shanks sighed as he turned to parry a different blade. “Order rescinded, boys, defend yourselves and stick to enemies you know you can handle,” Shanks called over his shoulder. He wondered for a brief moment if he had made a mistake when three identical feral smiles spread across his kids' faces.

Shanks saw Lime Juice laugh and sheath his sword out of the corner of his eye. He turned to question the man, but stopped when a rubber fist flew past both of them and clocked the enemy running towards him square in the jaw. 

Shanks glanced back over and saw that the four men who tried to hold his children ransom were already out cold. A vicious bite on the arm of the guy who was holding Luffy and a couple joints bent in the wrong direction. 

All Shanks could do was laugh and follow in his crew's footsteps, sheathing his sword and watching his three battle hungry kids go to town on the pitiful crew that had attacked them. 

Sabo still fought with that pipe he brought with him, metal gleaming even in rain as he kneecapped one man just to bring it around violently into the ribs of another. Shanks could almost see the calculations and strategies running behind those eyes. 

“Firecracker, Anchor, fireworks?” Sabo called.

“Hell yes!” Ace called back, rushing to his brother's side, Luffy giggling and rocketing himself there too. 

Sabo laced his fingers together and crouched while Ace, never even pausing in his steps, stepped into them and went flying. Using the momentum from throwing Ace, Sabo launched into a back handspring into Luffy’s waiting hands to be flung the other direction. Shanks could only watch with raised eyebrows as the two older boys jumped from combatant to combatant, using the height and the surprise to knock them around. Any time they seemed to lose momentum, Luffy was there tossing them airborne again. That isn’t to say that was all Luffy was doing, no, he was doing what he did best by keeping everyone's attention down low where he was sweeping legs and landing punches. 

Within a few minutes the boys had cleaned up the rest of the group. They had grouped back up in front of Shanks, hair and clothes plastered to their skin from the rain but not a single injury on them. 

“A couple notes,” Shanks said, hand on his hip. “One: do not ever let someone try to take you without fighting back. Two: do not do aerial stunts on a ship in a storm. I don’t know what Blue has taught you, that is a great way to fall overboard. And three,” Shanks could stop his smile from breaking out now, “that was an awesome job and deserves a party once we get dry!” 

The whole crew roared in excitement, bundling up the lot of pirates to be dropped back on their ship. Shanks doubted that they would have much treasure to acquire, but anything helped pad their coffers, especially now that they’ve added three bottomless pits to their food budget.

“Does this mean we can fight now?” Ace asked, he tried to act like the answer didn’t matter, but Shanks could hear the whine in his voice.

“Yes, Firecracker, but,” Shanks cut off their cheers, “if something breaks out I don’t think you can handle I will order you down. Not because I don’t trust you or believe in you, just because I don’t want to see you hurt unnecessarily.”

The kids grumbled but nodded before heading below deck to clean up just as the rain began to let up. Perfect weather for a party to celebrate the boy’s most recent milestone in their pirate journey.

0808

Law wasn’t entirely sure how he ended up in the East Blue, though he wasn’t necessarily worried about how far off course he was. The way he had been running from trading ship to trading ship to get away he couldn’t claim to be surprised by his location. He was still sick, he knew this. In the 6 months since Cora-san died, Law had only managed to cut out enough Amber Lead Disease that it was no longer an immediate threat. It took him longer than he would have liked to get enough control of the Fruit to even start the process, but even after that the process was painful, even for Law’s pain tolerance, and required a decent amount of recovery time. Recovery time that he didn’t have as a stow-away on a trade ship. So no, he couldn’t say that he was surprised he had managed to get so far away, what did surprise him was the complete and utter chaos that broke out less than 24 hours after he arrived. 

Law had noticed when he arrived that the marines seemed to have set up a new base in the area, a base that looked an awful lot like a laboratory, so Law had decided to leave as soon as possible. At least, that was the plan, until a huge ship pulled into the docks. It was clearly a pirate ship, though Law didn’t recognize the jolly roger that flew proudly on the forsail. Then again, Law wasn’t very familiar with any crews that didn’t deal directly with the Family. 

Even if Law didn’t recognize them as a group that had direct dealings with Doffy, didn’t mean that they didn’t deal with them in some way, or heard about his escape. So to be safe, Law hid among the many crates on the dock and decided to just, wait for them to leave. Leave or get slaughtered by the marines. 

Law expected the men that came down the gangplank, all armed to the teeth with guns and swords, what he didn’t expect were the three kids that joined them. The one who was obviously the youngest was hanging off the arm of a man with long black hair, a huge rifle, and a cigarette hanging from his mouth. It seemed like the man was scolding him while a man with long red hair talked to the older two. It was when the man handed the blond kid a pouch Law noticed something concerning about him, his cloak shifted and Law saw that the sleeve on his left arm was tied off and obviously empty. 

Suddenly the man stopped, clearly the captain by the way the crew looked at him. He looked towards the town and started talking quickly. Law couldn’t hear what he was saying, but he could tell he was unhappy. The kids looked confused, but a blond man patted the captain on the shoulder and the two older boys fell into step behind him as he went into the town. The younger boy pouted but dropped down off of the man and started walking with the captain. 

They walked past Law’s hiding spot and Law held his breath, trying not to make a sound as the two walked. Law was sure for a second that he was spotted as the young boy, probably not older than nine, Law noted, stopped to look into the stack of crates. He peered into the dark stack and tilted his head, like he was looking for something. Law gripped his pitiful dagger in case he would have to fight.

“Anchor, come on. We don’t have time to explore, I’ve got a bad feeling about this place,” the red-haired man called.

The boy turned away, “Coming, Chief!” He glanced back into the crates before running off to catch up with the man, Law let out the breath he had been holding. 

Law settled back into his hiding place and tried to get the image of those big black eyes staring right into him out of his head.

0808

Several hours later, Law was contemplating making a dash from his spot to steal some food and water. He was tired and sore and just generally unwell, but it was still miles better than how he felt six months ago. 

He had watched the captain and the young boy walk back to the ship. The boy had been talking a mile a minute, arms waving frantically as he told his story. Law couldn’t help but watch them, because they were a threat, he told himself, not because the boys looked genuinely happy to be traveling with a bunch of pirates. The pirate reached down and Law had to brace himself, expecting the kid to be tossed away or hit for talking too much, instead the man just ruffled the boy’s hair with a laugh Law could hear even from his hiding spot.

Law could only blink in confusion at the smile on both of their faces. “How are they happy?” Law muttered darkly.

Then, chaos. Next thing Law knew the dark haired older kid was rushing to the docks. “Chief!” he yelled. The kid and the captain both looked up. “Chief! Trouble! Hongo’s down and I’ve got a tail!” The kid held a new(?) orange cowboy hat to his head and just as he got to the men an absolute hoard of marines followed in, guns drawn.

“What did you do , Firecracker?” the captain yelled, the younger boy just laughed.

“Nothing, Chief, I swear !” the kid yelled back.

The captain swore, “Lime Juice, Building Snake, go find Hongo and Shade. Everyone else hold your ground.”

Then the battle started and all Law could do was watch. The pirates fought ferociously, but Law was surprised to see that most didn’t go for an unnecessary kill, if the marine dropped they just left them to move on. He couldn’t keep track of the kids, though, they were too small and moved too fast, weaving in and out of the marines. 

He wished he had been paying more attention, though, when a new face showed in front of his face. His crate pile had been jostled enough that he had been spotted.

“Another fucking brat,” the marine snarled. He raised his sword to strike Law and in a panic, Law froze. Then a small fist appeared in the marines jaw, knocking him down as a small body took his place. 

“I thought you were hiding there! Are you okay?” the boy asked.

Law could only stare before his brain kicked back in. “Watch out!” He called as the marine the kid punched got back up and swung at the kid.

Law’s warning was enough that the blade only nicked the boy before the kid knocked his feet out from under him. Once the marine was on the ground again the kid punched him in the face twice, Law was sure the guys nose was horribly broken, before the kid stood back up. He dusted his hands off and turned to Law again with a smile.

The kid’s smile dropped when Law only stared at him, the battle around them dying down as the marines lay in heaps.

“What’s wrong? You’re safe now,” the kid said tilting his head.

Law couldn’t help but scoff, safe? Law hadn’t been safe in years.

“Anchor? Where’d you go?”

“Here, Chief!” the kid called back. Law wanted to be angry that the kid had brought the captain's attention over to him, but just then the kid started to sway.

“Hey, are you okay?” Law asked.

“I….I don’t know,” the kid answered.

Just then the captain came around the corner. “Hey, Anchor, what are you– Luffy!” The kid collapsed, barely being caught by the captain.

“Dad? I don’t feel very good,” the kid murmured.

“Chief! I have bad news! The marines here were dealing in,” the blond kid came into sight now and gasped out the last word at the sight of the boy, “poisons. Luffy?”

The captain held the small boy close. “Sabo, focus,” he ordered. “How is Hongo, can he help?”

The blond kid shook his head quickly. “He got knocked out with some gas, he’s alive but deep asleep. Dad, what are we going to do?”

“We’ll figure it out, he’ll be okay. Go get Ace, get him on the ship,” the captain stood up turning away. 

He hadn’t even acknowledged Law, he could just leave. But there was something about that little family that made Law pause. Something away that boy smiled and told Law he was safe. It reminded him of Cora-san.

“I can help him,” Law said, making them pause, “I’m a doctor.”

The captain turned and looked him up and down. “No offense kid, but that’s a little hard to believe.”

And Law understood, he really did. He was scrawny from lack of proper nutrition and continued illness, he was still covered in Amber Lead scars and he was sure he looked like he hadn’t slept in months. Law chewed on the inside of his lip, something told him that if he didn’t do something now, he would regret it.

“I know I don’t look like much, but I have the Op Op Fruit and I do have medical training. I can help,” Law felt his determination rise as he spoke.

The captain looked at him again, then down at the boy who called him dad who was now struggling to breathe.

“Come on. If you try anything stupid, it will be your head.” The captain turned and Law followed, he could feel the eyes of the blond on the back of his head but he ignored it. When they approached the ship the crew went silent at the sight of the boy being carried. “Beck, get us ready to sail but don’t lift anchor yet.”

“Aye,” the man the young boy was hanging on earlier replied. His eyes flicked from the boy to Law to the captain, then he walked away. 

Law followed the man down to the infirmary, very well stocked and cared for, Law noted. He closed the door behind them before setting the boy down on the cot.

“I’m not stupid enough to ask you to leave,” Law said, “but I will ask that you step back a couple steps.”

Shanks regarded him cautiously as Law stepped up beside the kid. Before he could argue or refuse, the boy opened his eyes.

“Hey, it’s you!” he breathed. “You don’t have to look scared anymore! I told you you were safe.” The boy smiled and the captain let out a harsh breath and stepped back.

Law took a deep breath and focused. “ Room, ” he murmured. He didn’t have enough control or stamina for a big one, but luckily the boy was small. “Anything I need to know immediately?”

“He’s rubber,” the captain said, “ate the Gum Gum Fruit almost two years ago.”

Law nodded and focused in. Luckily Law had gotten enough practice with his Fruit that he could recognize the poison in the kid’s body, not he just had to focus on cleaning it. He forced his breathing to stay even as he forced the poison to gather in his liver, somewhere in the background he heard someone else being brought in, but they didn’t bother him so he ignored it. 

Once he had it gathered, he made a small incision to cut it out, as soon as it was out the boys breathing evened. Law dropped his Room and barely managed not to stagger back as the exhaustion hit him. 

“He’ll be tired for a few days, but there shouldn’t be any ill effects,” Law managed before he stumbled backwards onto an empty bed.

That was all it took for the captain to rush forward, checking the kid over with his own eyes. “Luffy?”

The kid, Luffy, opened his eyes, but just barely. “Dad shouldn’t look so sad, why is Dad sad?”

The captain just laughed, Law could tell it bordered on hysterical. “You gave me a scare, Anchor. How are you feeling?”

“Sleepy,” Luffy answered.

The captain smiled, “Go ahead and sleep, I’m sure your brothers will be here soon to keep you company.” 

“They’ll hav–”

“They’ll be gentle,” the captain interrupted. “Those boys would die before they hurt him. Now come on, let’s get you some food. You look like you’re about to drop.”

Law wanted to argue, but he knew he was exhausted and if the pirates were going to offer him food he would take it. 

“Yes, sir” Law answered, getting up to follow him.

The captain laughed, a little easier this time, “It’s just Shanks, kid. Chief if you’re on the crew.” They walked for a few moments, Law didn’t realize how steep the steps were on the way down. “What can I call you, kid?”

Law noticed the out he was being given, Shanks didn’t ask for his name , just what he wanted to be called. He chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment before deciding. “Just Law is fine.”

They stepped back out into the sun, the man Shanks had referred to as Beck walking up to them

“Anchor will be fine,” Shanks told him with a smile. Law saw the shoulders of every member of the crew drop in relief, he saw the two older boys take off in a mad dash to the steps, only slowing when the captain shot them a glare. “Law is this Benn Beckman, my first mate. Beck this is Law, apparently an up-and-coming doctor.”

Law met the first mate’s gray eyes and the man smiled. “Well then, thank you.”

“Come on, I’m going to have Lucky fix him something to eat and I can tell you want to talk,” Shanks led the way into the mess hall, Law and Beckman following close behind. 

“The ship is ready to sail as soon as you give the command,” Beckman reported.

Shanks hummed. “Lucky, care to whip our guest up a snack?”

Law saw a large man peak around the door to the kitchen and look him up and down. “How long has it been since you’ve had an actual meal, kid?” the guy Shanks called Lucky asked.

“Excuse me?” Law asked indignantly.

Lucky just raised an eyebrow. “Kid, no offense here, but you are skin and bones. I just don’t want to make you something you’ll just throw right back up.”

Law crossed his arms and turned his head, “Something light would be great.”

Lucky just snorted and ducked back into the kitchen. Shanks sat down at a table and gestured for Law to join him. 

“I only have one question for you right now, Law,” Shanks said, he didn’t continue until Law looked up to meet his eyes. “Did you run to this island, or are you just running?”

Law froze, jaw tight. If he really tried he could probably use a Room to get away from the captain, but he’d never make it off the ship before he was stopped.

“Whoa! Settle down,” Shanks said, hand raised. “I mean no harm, I’m not out to get you. I’m only asking to make sure you don’t object to us leaving this island with you. Otherwise it’ll be food to go, but honestly I think the least we can do for you for saving my son is give you someplace to lay low for a bit.”

“But it was my fault!” The words launched themselves from his throat before he could stop them. “I had been hiding in those crates all day, but that fucker saw me and assumed I was with you. The kid, Luffy, he got hurt because he decided to protect me!”

Shanks laughed and Beckman smiled. Law just shrunk into his seat.

“Yeah, sounds like Anchor. Once he sees something he thinks deserves protecting he won’t quit till he’s decided it’s safe. You got chosen, kid, deal with it,” Beckman laughed, patting Law’s shoulder.

Law just blinked in confusion. Nothing on this damn pirate ship made a lick of sense, and yet this was the safest he had felt since Cora-san. “I’m just…I’m just on the move. No real destination at the moment, no reason to stay.”

Shanks nodded, “Beck, set sail. Get us far away from here.”

Beckman nodded and left, leaving just Law and Shanks alone. Law picked at his fingers and avoided looking at the captain.

“Law,” Shanks said quietly, “you have Amber Lead Disease, don’t you?”

“I’m not contagious,” Law spat, standing up so fast the chair fell behind him and his head spun.

“Hey, I never said you were. Come on, sit down. It’s okay, I know,” Shanks spoke softly, trying to soothe the boy about ready to dart. 

Law stared at Shanks, chest heaving. “How do you–” Law couldn’t even finish the sentence.

“We met someone, several years ago. He was from Flevance, before everything went to shit but after everyone was infected. We learned about it after he died, and being as the whole crew was around him and no one else got sick, it was pretty clear the government was full of shit.” Shanks explained. He very softly and gently guided Law back into his chair as Lucky brought out a bowl of soup.

“Here, should be light enough that your stomach can handle it but hearty enough to get your strength back. I’m sorry to say, but if Anchor chose you, you’re going to be around for a bit,” Lucky laughed.

Law took a cautious sip of the soup and was almost surprised at how good it tasted. He had to force himself not to scarf the whole thing down. Shanks just sat and watched for a while, until the door opened again.

“How are you feeling, Hongo?” Shanks asked, glancing over his shoulder.

Law turned to see the blond man from earlier walking in holding his head. 

“Like I was hit by that train in Water 7. This the new doctor I’ve been hearing about?” Hongo asked, coming around to sit in front of Law.

“Sure is, this is Law. Law, this is Hongo, the ship’s doctor,” Shanks introduced.

“Did I hear correctly that he–”

“Yes, Hongo. You heard correctly,” Shanks interrupted.

Hongo snorted. “Explains why you’re not dead from your disease then. How long have you had the Fruit? Better question, how long have you been on the run being this sick?”

Law dropped his eyes and scowled, staring at a knot on the table. “That’s a hard question to answer and it’s not exactly your business.”

Hongo snorted and Shanks smiled. “I guess that’s fair enough,” Hongo sighed. “If you’re going to be sailing with us, you’re going to be spending some time under my watch. If you can keep yourself from dying then you’re not leaving this ship until you’re healthy.”

Law looked up in confusion and Hongo just smiled, though it was a tad bit threatening in Law’s opinion. Law wondered for just a moment, if he was prepared for what he had accidentally signed himself up for.

Chapter Text

Garp knew something was not right when he docked in Foosha. None of the people at the docks would meet his eyes, like they knew something he didn’t, but he brushed it off. It had been a little over a year since he was here last, maybe his grandkids were just causing more problems, he had heard about the third boy joining them after all. So he just smiled and whistled and made his way up the old trail to Dadan’s hut.

Garp’s confusion mounted when he got to the clearing and found the hut long since abandoned. There was no sign of a struggle, nothing left behind, just an empty hut. Brows furrowed he took off into the jungle. The bandit had mentioned a treehouse the boys had built in her last letter, even if that had been a year and a half ago, he was sure the boys were there. As far as the bandits, well, maybe they just needed to relocate.

It took Garp longer than he would ever admit to find the treehouse but even that gave him no answers. The treehouse had also been abandoned, for over a year if Garp had to guess by the way the hideout was falling apart.

Disguising his panic with anger, he marched back down into the windmill village. He marched his way straight to the Party Bar and threw the door open. It was early enough in the day that the only occupant was the bartender herself.

Makino glared up at the noise, ready to scold whatever patron thought that they could treat her building with disrespect like that. Her glare twisted into a sidelong look as she realized who was at her door..

“Garp,” she greeted, setting a glass down and resting her elbows on the bar.

“Makino,” Garp brought himself to his full height, “where are my grandsons?”

“Not here,” she answered flippantly.

“What do you mean ‘not here’” Garp continued, anger building.

“They’re not here. They haven’t been here for a year. Shanks took them,” Makino answered. She met Garp’s eyes for just a moment before looking back down at the glass she had been cleaning when she was interrupted.

“Took them where, Makino?” Garp was barely holding back his rage.

“Shanks took the boys to sea with them, they’ve been doing very well from what I’ve heard,” Makino still didn’t look at Garp. It wasn’t in fear, Garp realized, it was in disdain .

Garp stalked up to the bar. “Doing well? It is not safe on those waters for kids!”

“It wasn’t safe here for those kids, Garp!” Makino slammed her hand on the bar and glared at the marine, glass shattering as she dropped it.

“What—”

“It wasn’t safe! And you are never here! Did you know Luffy got tortured by a thug in the Grey Terminal? Did you know that the boys had to completely fend for themselves out there? That they fought those giant tigers for fun . Did you know that they burned the Grey Terminal with everyone inside? Did you know that we almost lost Ace and Luffy because they were inside when the king demanded the fires started? No, Garp, you didn’t,” Makino’s voice had raised to a shout.

Garp looked at her, mouth hanging open. Makino had never spoken to anyone like this for as long as Garp had known the girl. “I—”

“If Shanks hadn’t shown up when he did, Ace and Luffy would be dead, I’m sure of it. He got the boys out and his whole crew agreed that it was better for the boys to be on the sea than stay here. Do you know why that was, Garp the Fist?” Makino glared at Garp. “Shanks has given those boys structure, he’s teaching them how to sail and defend themselves. He’s teaching Ace and Luffy to read and write, Garp. Did you know they couldn’t? Dadan hadn’t bothered to teach Ace and Seas knows I tried to teach Luffy before you took him from me , but I had a bar to run and didn’t know how to teach a dyslexic child.” Makino pulled out a few pieces of paper from under the bar and slammed them down. “Shanks loves those boys. He loves them and cares for them and shows them the affection that no one in this damned town was allowed to.”

Makino had tears in her eyes as she watched the huge marine shrink into himself more and more with every sentence. Garp could tell that she was almost out of steam, but smartly refrained from saying anything until she was truly done.

“What would you have done, Garp, if Shanks hadn’t fallen in love with your grandson? Because you’d be storming into my bar today to hear that the grandsons you claimed to love had been dead for a year because I had no way to get ahold of you.” Makino glared at Garp for another moment before she turned on her heel and stormed off to the back. Garp could hear the steps on the stairs as she left him truly alone in the bar.

Garp picked up the papers with shaking hands, they were letters, two just barely better than chicken scratch and one in a flowing script. Garp picked up the worst of the letters first.

Makino,

This is the first letter I’ve written by myself! Aren’t you proud of me? Dad is still here helping me, spelling is hard and I keep getting confused with some of the letters. Did you know that Dad’s brother was a clown? We got to meet him! Uncle Blue is so cool and taught us some cool stuff. He also gave me a book to help me practice reading! We’ve been going on some really cool adventures, even though Dad says we can’t fight yet it’s been really fun! I miss you lots, but soon I’ll be strong enough that I can do whatever I want!

Love you!

Benn D. Luffy.

“Benn?” Garp murmured, getting to the end of the letter.

“Shanks told him his name wasn’t safe,” Makino said. Garp jumped, he hadn’t heard her return with the broom.

“What do you mean?”

Makino sighed, sweeping up the broken glass. “Shanks is trying to keep as much attention off of the boys as he can, that way when they all set off on their own they won’t be chased for whatever they get up to on the Red Force. He also doesn’t want anyone to make the connection between Luffy and Dragon. They told me in the last letter that Luffy wanted to go by his dad’s name, but Shanks doesn’t have a last name, so Benn Beckman was the next best.”

Garp didn’t respond, just looked at the next letter.

Makino,

Now that this is getting a bit easier, I wanted to say thank you for all that you did. I was always so angry when we were there, I always assumed you had some other motive. Dad and I have been talking about a lot of things and I realized that you were always trying to help just because you were kind. I’m trying to take that to heart a bit more, that people can be kind to me just to be kind and that I deserve kindness, but it’s still hard. But I wanted you to know that I can see that now, and I appreciate it. I think Dad is hoping to leave the East soon, so I don’t know when we will get to write again. Just know that Sabo and I are watching out for Luffy just as much as we all look out for each other.

Yours,

Portgas D. Ace.

Makino,

I hope the pictures got to you okay, I thought you would enjoy seeing the smoke coming from Ace and Luffy’s ears while they tried to write your letters without help. That being said, they are doing very well now that we’ve got some better tricks for dealing with their dyslexia. Dad has decided that we should all go by nicknames for the time being, I’m sure you would recognize us anyways but I wanted to keep you as updated as I could. Luffy is Anchor, obviously, Shanks started calling Ace Firecracker and I think it’s stuck no matter how annoyed Ace pretends to be. Unfortunately Blue called me a shade when we met up and it made Dad laugh so hard that I think it’s going to stay around. We are doing really well, though. I think this is the happiest any of us has ever been. So, thank you. Thank you for letting Luffy meet Shanks, thank you for giving us a better life, even indirectly.

Sincerely,

Sabo

Garp just sat and stared at the letters for several long minutes, tears gathering in his eyes. “There were pictures?” He asked finally.

“Yes, and you can’t see them,” Makino informed him, crossing her arms.

Garp shrunk down further. “I fucked up, didn’t I?” Garp traced Luffy’s signature, the Benn staring back at him mockingly.

“You fucked up, Garp,” she agreed. “And I swear by the Seas, if you do something to purposefully wreck their happiness, you will never be allowed on this island again.”

“What? You can’t—”

“Watch me, Monkey D. Garp,” Makino threatened. “I’m pretty sure the Seas like Luffy more than they like you anyways, so I’m sure She’ll help.”

Garp couldn’t argue, he was sure he was right. He didn’t flinch when Makino took the letters out of his hand, though he was surprised when she replaced it with a tankard of ale. Garp drank it slowly and then left, leaving the money for it on the table. Makino was truly a kind woman, it was why he left Luffy with her in the first place, but he was sure he had pushed her kindness to the limit.

Once Garp had left, Makino let out a rough breath and wiped away the tears of anger and frustration. She lifted the glass covering on the shelf below the bar to put the letters back with the pictures, she kept them where she needed to smile the most. The first two were from Sabo, one was Ace and Luffy at a large table, Luffy had his tongue between his teeth as he focused on the paper in front of him while Ace had a hand in his hair and a scowl as he was obviously deep in thought. Shanks hovered behind them with the softest smile Makino had ever seen on his face. The  second one was in the same location, but Ace had Luffy in a headlock and was giving him a noogie while Shanks laughed in the background. The third picture had come with a simple “Thank you” note in Shanks’ handwriting. It was a picture taken on the deck of the Red Force at night, Shanks was front and center, head tilted back as he pointed to the sky, his mouth was open mid sentence, likely a story about the constellation he was pointing out. All three boys were with him, Luffy was leaned back against his chest, eyes wide as he looked where Shanks was pointing. Sabo had a soft smile on his face as he leaned on Shanks’ right side, he was looking up at Shanks’ face as he spoke. Ace was laying down on Shanks’ left side, head pillowed on his thigh next to Luffy, obviously deep asleep. Written on the back was a simple label, “A Dad and his Sons, 11, 11, 8”.

0808

“You’ve gotten soft, Chief,” Beckman said, coming to sit beside Shanks in the mess hall.

Shanks snorted in response, “You telling me you would have kicked him off looking like he was going to drop dead at the first breeze?”

Beckman chuckled, “I think Hongo would have skinned you alive if you tried.”

They looked over to where the two people they were talking about were. Law was sitting across from Hongo, a scowl on his face as he used his hands for emphasis on whatever they were talking about. Hongo was nodding occasionally, seemingly fine with letting the teen rant about whatever. 

Hongo had quickly pulled Law under his wing, allowing him to read through the medical journals he had and talking theory. The doctor had not allowed him to do any operations using his Fruit, not even on himself, until his baseline health was a bit better, though Shanks knew Hongo would have to relent soon. As much as Law had improved during his month on the Red Force, it was clear even to them that the illness was starting to wear on the boy. 

“He’s hiding something,” Beckman whispered.

Shanks sighed, “Show me one person on the sea that doesn’t have a secret and I’ll be worried.”

Beckman glared at Shanks, who just shrugged in response. 

“It’s fine, Beck, kid has obviously been through hell and isn’t ready to share yet. I’m sure he will before long, though, then if you’re still worried we can discuss,” Shanks soothed his first mate.

“How can you be so sure?” 

“Because Anchor has decided that Law is one of his ,” Shanks said with a smirk. 

As though he were summoned, Luffy stretched out his arms out to the seat next to Law and snapped into the chair. Law scowled at the younger boy, though Shanks noticed it wasn’t nearly as harsh as what he gave the crew members that he found annoying. Law slapped away the hand that reached towards his plate, rolling his eyes when Luffy pouted. Ace shouted and rushed over to pull at Luffy’s face when Luffy redirected from Law’s plate to his oldest brother. Sabo joined soon after, wrapping Law into the bickering and reaching hands. When Law started coughing, the boys subtly toned down the argument, Shanks wasn’t even sure that they realized how they accommodated the oldest boy. 

“Yeah,” Beckman agreed, “he’s one of them.”

The joy of the moment ended quickly for the whole crew with a single call.

“Chief, the Doghouse is approaching,” one of the lower crew called.

Shanks felt a shiver go up his spine, memories from his cabin boy days, but it was quickly replaced by anger when he saw the terrified look on his boys faces.  

“Law, Hongo, take the trio into the infirmary, do not leave until you are called for. Understood?” Shanks ordered.

“Understood, Chief,” Hongo answered while all four boys nodded.

Shanks waited until they were out of view before turning to the rest of the crew. 

“Gab, get to the crows nest. Lucky, join him.” Both men took up their weapons and got up from the table. “Lime, Snake, get on deck but out of sight. Bonk, get the cannons ready. Beckman, stay with me,” Shanks watched his men move to follow his orders.

“Expecting trouble?” Beckman asked, he slung his rifle over his shoulder and they stepped onto the deck.

“Well, I’m sure as hell not letting my boys go back with him and I’m not expecting him to take that as an answer,” Shanks answered, face serious.

“He’ll have to go through us first,” Beckman snarled.

Shanks just hummed in agreement, marching over to the gunwale. Shanks brought himself to his full height. His 6’6” height might not be much compared to Garp’s 9’5” mountain of a body, but he would be damned if he would cowl before the marine, not anymore.

Shanks waited until he could see Garp at the bow of the Doghouse before he moved.

“You are not welcome here, Garp the Fist,” Shanks called, making the marine pause. Shanks had never denied him before, even Roger had never turned Garp away. 

“I only wish to talk, Red Hair,” Garp called back. 

Something in Garp’s voice made Shanks look to his first mate. Beckman tilted his head, enough to let Shanks know that they were ready. 

“We can talk from here, Garp, I do not want you on my ship,” Shanks announced.

Shanks watched as Garp seemed to crumble. “I wanted to–I just needed to apologize, Red Hair.” He took a deep breath, “Shanks, I wanted to say I was sorry to your children.”

Shanks’ eyebrows raised in surprise, Beckman’s eyes narrowed. 

“It has been brought to my attention that while what I did may have been decent for the boy’s physical safety, it was detrimental to their mental and emotional well being,” Garp looked up and Shanks could see the tears running down his face. “I never wanted to hurt them, Shanks.”

Shanks sighed and ran his hand over his face. “What you wanted to do doesn’t matter, Garp. You hurt those boys, you left them in dangerous situations and with unfit guardians. I may not be much better than the bandits, but at least I’m trying.”

“I know that now. Just….just take care of them. Raise your sons better than I raised mine, would you?” Garp gave Shanks a shaky smile.

Shanks raised his head proudly, “I will raise my boys to be strong enough to go where the Sea takes them, kind enough to spread Her blessings, and wise enough to read Her winds. I will protect them from Her anger, and soothe them in Her sorrow. As long as I stand, those who wish to send them to Her before their time will have to fight through their Father’s shield. This I Vow.” The wind blew through Shanks’ hair and a wave crashed against the bow hard enough to send seasalt on his face. The Sea had been witness to this promise. 

Garp swallowed hard and nodded. He turned and motioned for the Doghouse to leave. “So you know, Red Hair, the name Benn has no connection to me. It seems my son’s only child has gone missing and is presumed dead. May the Sea take you where you need to be and the winds be in your favor.”

Shanks let out a breath and looked at Beckman before looking back. He just barely caught three little heads duck behind the door to the stairs. “Hold on, Garp, I think the boys want to say something.”

Garp froze as the boys called out, mostly complaining at being caught. 

“You should know you can’t hide from me, boys. I thought I told you to stay down with Hongo,” Shanks scolded.

“Sorry Dad, I just wanted to make sure no one started fighting,” Luffy wouldn’t meet Shanks eyes.

“I’m not mad, Anchor, I just worry,” Shanks sighed.

“Hey, Shitty Gramps, I’m pissed you never told me anything decent about my father, but I understand why,” Ace called. “I don’t hate you.”

“We’re happy here, we’re free here! Thank you!” Sabo called next.

“Hey Gramps!” Luffy’s voice actually made Garp turn around. “You’ll always be our Gramps, and we are going to do great things!” Luffy’s grin finally brought a real smile to Garp’s face.

Garp nodded and jumped back onto the deck of the Doghouse. “See you around, brats,” Garp called, waving over his shoulder. 

Shanks smiled, looking at his kids. He turned around to see Law standing behind them, looking more determined than Shanks had seen him yet, as though he had made his decision. 

“Akagmi no Shanks, I request a meeting with you, your first mate, and your medical officer,” Law requested formally. 

Shanks looked at the teenager critically. “We will meet in the war room in 15 minutes. Crew dismissed,” Shanks called. He could feel the tension on the ship dissipate as they went back to their duties and the Doghouse sailed out of sight. Law nodded and turned, Shanks could see the tension in the kids shoulders as he made his way below deck.

“You think you called it?” Beckman asked.

“Brace yourself, I have a feeling this isn’t going to be a fun talk,” Shanks responded. He wasn’t sure he wanted to know what Law had to tell them, but he knew it was important, and he knew he needed to hear it.

“You know, this ship didn’t used to have so much drama,” Beck sighed.

Shanks laughed, “Yes, but it also didn’t used to have so much joy. They’re worth it.”

Beckman’s smile was all the answer he needed as they made their way to ready the war room.

Chapter Text

Lime Juice had set up a smaller table in the war room, a circular one with enough room that the four chairs around it had enough room. Shanks was seated across from Law with Beckman on his left, always protecting his bad side, and Hongo on his right. Law had his hat pulled low, covering his eyes, his hands were clenched so tightly on the table Shanks was surprised it didn’t draw blood. 

Shanks reached over and gently pried Law’s hand open. Law jerked his head up in surprise, Shanks didn’t pull his hand away, gently holding it.

“You don’t have to tell us anything yet, Law. If you don’t trust us yet, I understand,” Shanks assured.

Law shook his head, the Father’s Promise ringing in his ears. He didn't understand it, but he had felt the weight of it. “You need to know what dangers I’ve brought to those stupid kids just by being here.” Law took a deep breath. 

They were quiet for a few moments while Law gathered his thoughts. “You said you knew about Flevance, right?” At Shanks’ nod, Law launched into the terrible story. 

He told Shanks about the illness, about the government and the quarantines, about the fires and the hospital. He told them about Lami and his parents, and it took everything Shanks had not to reach across and pull Law into his arms. 

Then he told Shanks about the Family. About having a clock ticking down to his death and wanting to make the world hurt like he did. Told him about Doffy and Diamante, about Buffalo and Baby 5. And he told him about Corazon, oh did he tell Shanks about Cora. He told Shanks about how the timer started ticking down and how Cora stole him away, he brushed over the hospitals, every single one turning them away. Then there was the Op-Op Fruit and Cora’s death. 

Shanks stopped holding back. Before he even really knew he was going to, he was around the table pulling Law in as tight of a hug as he was able. He held Law close, hiding his face from the other eyes in the room while he cried. 

“I am so sorry,” Shanks breathed. “I am so sorry that you have had to go through this.”

Law hid his face in Shanks shirt while he tried to settle his breathing. “He’s going to come for me someday,” he whispered. “I understand if you want me to leave, I can get off at the next island. I am a danger to your sons, just by being here. I can’t let you break that promise because of me.”

Shanks pushed Law back to look him in the eye. “Trafalgar D. Water Law, if you think for one second that I am going make you leave you are an idiot.”

Law just blinked in surprise, “But, my being here puts them in danger.”

Shanks sighed, “Beckman, will you go get the boys? I can’t tell him without their permission.”

Beckman stood up, grumbling under his breath about Shanks being soft. Shanks gasped in a theatrical way and clutched Law to his chest at the accusation, it made Law chuckle, which seemed to have been the goal. Once Law’s breathing evened out, Shanks released him, stepping back to return to his chair and give Law the semblance of control back.

A few moments later, Ace led the way into the war room, followed closely by Luffy and Sabo. He stood tall and proud, but Shanks could see the apprehension in his eyes. Luffy immediately launched himself onto Law, wrapping his rubber limbs around him. Law rolled his eyes but didn’t shove the young boy off, Shanks was sure that Law got the same comfort out of Luffy’s quiet moments that everyone else did.

“Boys,” Shanks addressed them. “Law has informed us that a very dangerous pirate family may be coming after him. He has offered to leave to keep you safe,” Ace snorted at this. “I wanted to call you in to get your opinions.”

Shanks looked them each in the eyes, trying to make it clear. Whatever they wanted to divulge was up to them. Ace stared back at him defiantly, Sabo cautiously, and Luffy with a huge smile. It was just like his boys.

“Luffy, get over here,” Ace ordered. Luffy whined and grumbled but climbed off Law to join Ace. Law looked devastated for just a moment before he could school his face back into his normal scowl.

“Law,” Ace’s voice was firm and Law met his eyes, ready to snarl and defend himself from whatever vitriol the gray eyed boy said, only for his jaw to drop in shock when Ace continued. “My real full name is Gol D. Ace. My mother was the Red Flower of the South, Portgas D. Rouge and my father was Gol D. Roger. So whatever bullshit you’ve got after you is nothing compared to what would happen if people found out I was even alive.”

“My name is Monkey D. Luffy!” Luffy pipped in, grin huge. “Shanks says my ‘real’ dad is some big leader in the Revolutionary Army, I think he’s silly because I didn’t even know I had a dad until Makino called Shanks my dad!”

Law looked at Sabo next, who just shrugged. “I’m just a runaway noble, my parents hopefully think I died the night I ran off the last time. Even if they didn't, I'm pretty sure they don’t have enough power to do anything about me now,” Sabo explained flippantly. 

Law looked at Shanks, “Is this your way of saying I’m not bringing any extra danger here?”

Shanks grinned, “Pretty much. My kids have danger coming after them no matter what, what’s one more?”

“One more kid or one more danger?” Beckman grumbled.

“Why not both?” Shanks answered. Shanks just grinned as Law stared at him in disbelief, Beckman grumbled and Luffy giggled. 

“Sounds like you're stuck with us, Torao,” Ace smirked while Luffy jumped back onto Law’s back.

“Yeah! You can stay with us!” Luffy agreed.

Law just ducked his head, unable to find an answer.

“Welcome to the Red Force, Doc, if you want” Shanks smiled gently while Luffy giggled and Law rubbed at his face. 

0808

Hongo had finally allowed Law to start working on himself again, declaring that the teenager had gotten as healthy as he could with the Amber Lead coming back. He had stayed with Law during the operation, mostly as quiet moral support, but occasionally offering advice if Law seemed uncertain. When Law was finished, Hongo was there when he nearly collapsed. Law’s breathing was rough and between the exertion and the pain he was barely conscious. Hongo gently helped to clean Law up and ushered him into bed.

“You’re a good doctor,” Law mumbled. He had been completely wrapped in blankets to keep him warm with a cool cloth on his forehead in case he got feverish.

Hongo snorted, “I was a doctor first before I became a pirate, and you deserve to be taken care of. You’re not alone now, Law.”

“I’ve been alone for so long, and the last time I wasn’t it didn’t last long. I don’t want to be alone anymore,” Law breathed.

Hongo went to respond, but Law was already asleep. Hongo just frowned and sat next to Law, running his fingers through his hair. Hongo wasn’t sure Law was even aware of what he said.

A few moments later, there was a knock on the door, Shanks popping his head in when there was no response.

“How is he?”

“Physically? Everything went fine. Mentally?” Hongo sighed, “Kid’s had a rough life. He’s a fighter but I think he’s got a major chip on his shoulder.”

Shanks frowned but didn’t seem surprised. “Don’t know that I could live his life and not feel the same. I’ve asked Blue to very subtly keep some eyes on Doflamingo, just to see if he could give us a heads up if he starts sniffing this way.”

Hongo nodded, “Did he also call you soft?”

Shanks gasped in offense, “Mutiny! Absolute mutiny!”

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Hongo laughed.

Both men went quiet when Law stirred, grumbling incoherently. Shanks moved over and pulled off the cloth, gently running his hand over the boy’s forehead to check his temperature.

“Why don’t you go take a break, Hongs, I’ll keep him company for a bit,” Shanks said quietly.

Hongo looked at Shanks, who just smiled softly back at him. After a moment, Hongo nodded. He picked up a journal off the table and left the captain to his vigil. He looked over his shoulder before he walked out the door, watching Shanks pull a chair next to Law’s bed and start stroking the teen’s hair. He could feel, even from the door, Shanks reach his Haki out and wrap it around the boy, wrapping him in warmth and safety. Hongo left, knowing that Law was in good hands.

0808

Law woke slowly, the fingers in his hair kept pulling him back under into the sea of slumber. Law wasn’t sure how long he hung there, in between the dream world and wakefulness.

“Cora?” he croaked as he started to tip into the land of the living.

“No, Law, I’m sorry,” Shanks answered and Law’s eyes snapped open.

The red-haired captain was in a chair by his head, there was a table that had also been pulled over, a large folder open in front of him. His hand was still, hovering just above Law’s head where he stopped when Law spoke.

“No,” Law cleared his throat, “no, of course not.” Law struggled to sit up, choosing not to notice how Shanks’ hand hovered at his back, ready to help if Law lost his balance. “How long have I been out?”

“About a day,” Shanks answered. He handed Law a cup of water when he started clearing his throat again. “Hongo and I have been taking turns sitting in here, figured you’d rest a bit easier if you had someone watching out for you.”

Law nodded but didn’t respond for a few long minutes. Shanks had gone back to looking through whatever was in the folder in front of him, giving Law the illusion of privacy. Law stared down at the cup of water, he was so confused at how his life led here. He was a bringer of death, everyone he loved died on him, and yet.

And yet this captain made him feel safe, made him feel seen . He was given sanctuary before they knew who he was, given friendship by the brothers without his consent, and now he was invited to stay.

“Cora made the same promise,” Law said after several minutes. He could hear the shuffle of Shanks putting down the papers and turning to him, but he didn’t look up. “One night when he thought I was asleep. He had called someone, I assume it was his adoptive father, and they were arguing about me. I was really sick and probably more than a bit delirious and I couldn’t make out everything, but I heard him. Cora-san made the same promise to whoever he was talking to that you made to that marine yesterday.”

“Do you know what that promise means, Law?” Shanks asked quietly. Law shook his head, so Shanks continued. “That was a very traditional oath, one that goes back probably before the Void Century. It is a promise made from a father to his children, one that they say the Sea takes very seriously. When I made that oath to Garp about the boys, I told the Sea that I chose these boys as my children and I will do everything in my power to raise them to the best of my ability and to protect them with my life. Many people consider that oath as more binding than legal adoption. So in the eyes of the Sea, my crew, and Garp, I have declared Ace, Sabo, and Luffy as my children in everything but blood. If your Cora made that oath to someone he saw worthy of respect at any time, he was saying that he was going to put you above everything else like a true father should. It tells me that he knew the old ways and respected them, but it also tells me that Cora loved you. I’m going to choose to believe that his oath brought you to me, the same way the Seas brought me to the boys.”

Silent tears ran down Law’s face as Shanks spoke. “He felt like that and I went and got him killed,” Law’s voice wobbled.

“Oh, oh no. Law, please tell me you don’t really believe that?” Shanks forced Law to scoot over so he could sit beside him.

“But it’s true, isn’t it?” Law looked up at Shanks. “If it weren’t for how sick I was, Cora would still be alive. If I had chosen any other person to go to, Vergo wouldn’t have told Joker. Because of my decisions, a man who was willing to be a father to me is dead.”

Shanks pulled Law into his lap, the fourteen year old almost too big to fit but Shanks didn’t care. He tucked Law’s head under his chin the same way he did for Ace while he debated how to respond to Law’s emotions. He knew the answer he wanted to give, but he knew he would have to be cautious of how he worded it. Ace and Luffy were so much more emotional in their thinking, even Sabo leaned more that was when he was truly upset, but Law was a creature of logic.

“Law,” Shanks finally spoke, “you said yourself, Cora wasn’t going to last undercover much longer. Do you really think Doflamingo would have let his brother go once he found out he wasn’t loyal? Do you think he wouldn’t have done something terrible to either keep Cora under his thumb if he didn’t just kill him outright?”

Law froze, Shanks’ words a surprise. “I—I don’t—”

“As far as I can tell, you gave Cora back his life and gave him an out. You reminded him why he was there in the first place and gave him a reason to get out. He took you with him because you gave him life again, life he was more than willing to give up for you. As a father who has also made a vow, I would give anything and everything to save my boys. Hell I gave up an arm for Anchor before I had fully claimed him. It made me understand a lot more why Captain gave up his life for Blue and I, even if I’m still not happy about it.”

They sat curled together for a while, both thinking about the fathers they lost.

“Does it ever get any easier, Shanks?” Law’s voice was barely a whisper.

Shanks let out a rough breath. “I hate to say it, but not really,” Shanks admitted. “It will always hurt, somewhere deep down, but you can learn to live with it. You can learn to let the pain drive you forward into a life that would make them proud or you can choose to let it keep you back forever.”

“I don’t know how to live with this,” Law nearly sobbed, fingers clenched in Shanks’ shirt.

Shanks squeezed his arm around the teen. “Then just focus on surviving for right now,” Shanks murmured into Law’s hair. “You can learn to live again, we can help if you want or need us to, but just take it day by day for right now.”

0808

Time waits for no one, not even on the Red Force. So time keeps moving forward, now with four cabin boys among the Red Hair’s. Law had been fully folded under Hongo’s wing, a second desk added to the infirmary and another bookshelf overflowing with medical texts and notebooks for Law’s own research. He had even brought his own thoughts to the table, Hongo eager to listen as Law laid out ideas to help with the ASL trio’s bottomless stomachs and random sleep attacks.

“I think a big part of it is,” Law had started. He had discussed it with Hongo first, who had thought the idea had some merit, so now he was sitting with Shanks, Beckman, and Lucky Roux to explain. “I think Luffy’s Devil Fruit causes him to burn more calories even at rest. Since he’s rubber and not flesh, even breathing causes him to stretch. Most Devil Fruits really depend on their owners stamina and physicality, Paramecia body modification types especially, so I imagine his body is having a hard time fueling itself.”

“I could understand that, but he’s always eaten way more than anyone else, even before he ate the Fruit. And that wouldn’t explain how Ace and Sabo eat double what most of us do,” Shanks pointed out.

“Yes, but from what you’ve said and what answers we’ve gotten from Makino, the boys have pretty much been on their own for their food since they were very young. I can almost guarantee their diets weren’t varied or nutritious, on top of that they’ve always been on the move. Either with training that Garp gave them or just to survive, their bodies never learned how to store energy,” Law argued back.

Lucky Roux shrugged, “I mean, it’s worth a try. Not like this would raise our food bill much and if it gets the boys healthier I’m all for it.”

“Well, go see what you two can work out then and let me know when you have a list,” Beckman said.

The cook and the young doctor got up, discussing snack options and calorie counts as they left. Once they were out of earshot, Hongo let out a sigh.

“I hadn’t really considered that the kids may have been damn near starving,” he ran a hand roughly over his face. “If this works I’m going to feel terrible .”

Shanks shook his head, “I didn’t think about it either, I just assumed it was just part of who they were. Be it some weird D. thing or just something from Dawn.”

They sat quietly for a moment, lost in thought, until a crash and raised voices drifted in from beyond the door. They could hear Ace and Luffy laughing while someone scolded them.

“We’re going to have to figure something out for them,” Beckman sighed. “They’re getting too antsy on the ship all the time.”

“But we can’t just let them run wild, not if we don’t want them to be harassed the second they leave. We have to come up with some way to hide their identities while they’re here.” Shanks let his head fall onto the table.

“Chief? There’s a package that just got dropped for you,” Building Snake said, poking his head into the room.

“A package?” Shanks questioned, turning his head but not lifting it up off the table.

Beckman accepted the box, opening it cautiously. The laughter that rang out once the box was open made Shanks sit up.

“I think your brother solved our problem,” Beckman said, tipping out the contents of the package.

What fell out of the box were four beautifully hand painted domino style masks. Shanks picked them up one by one to inspect them, awed by the details.

The first mask was black with fireworks painted on. The bright colors were in the shapes of card suits, a diamond at a diagonal over the left eye and a club over the right. The heart and spade on either side of the eyes, Shanks was also pretty sure he could see what looked like a hibiscus flower among the splashes of color.

The second mask was dark blue with swirls of black and gold. At first glance the swirls had no real pattern, but on a closer look Shanks could see coins and vague outlines of weapons in the gold and outlines of people in the black.

The third mask was an ocean blue color with an iron chain running along it in wave patterns until it hit a large anchor on the left side of the mask. The anchor had a red ribbon wrapped around it that floated over to cross over the left eye.

The final mask may have been the most interesting. It was white with scalpels and blood splatters, there were other bits of doctor’s paraphernalia tossed in, but they were not the focus. It was by far the simplest of masks, but Shanks was sure it was only because Blue hadn’t gotten the chance to meet Law yet. Even so, the mask sure did fit the façade the young doctor always tried to put on.

Shanks couldn’t help but grin as he looked at the gift from his brother. Blue may have always claimed to not care about family, may have tried to seem unaffected by his nephews, but this showed in a way that no one could doubt that he loved all four of those boys.

“You are both going soft,” Beckman scoffed. “Look, they all have a version of your mark.”

Sure enough, when Shanks looked closer, all four masks had three lines over the left eye, matching his scars. Ace’s were the lines of the diamond as well as another firework, Sabo’s had two lines of gold that met up over the cheekbone in a coin and a line of black on his, Luffy’s had the red ribbon off the anchor as well as section of chain, and Law’s had three lines of blood splatter.

“Not just that,” Shanks laughed, grabbing the last bag that had tumbled out of the box. A bag holding what seemed to be several bottles of red hair dye. “Guess they’ll really be Red Hairs for a while.”

And so three brunettes and a blond became four red headed children. Any time they were off the Red Force they had masks on and hats left in their room, hiding in plain sight. Life continuing on as the Seas demanded, on towards the Red Line and what lay beyond it.  

Chapter Text

Marco the Phoenix truly wasn’t sure what to make of the reports that he had been getting. He had known Shanks for long enough that he thought the red-haired man was unable to surprise him anymore. Apparently, he was very wrong. 

The Red Hair pirates went underground over two years ago after a huge marine raid, only popping up again in the East in short little bursts after a year, then they went silent again. In all that time there had been no mention of new members, no major news of kidnappings or women on board, nothing out of the ordinary for Shanks. Then they popped up in Paradise with little to no preamble with cabin boys of all things.

The media had taken to calling the boys the Red Devils, four red headed, masked boys that seemed to be thick as thieves and caused trouble everywhere they went. In the six months since they had appeared they had been at the center of two full scale revolutions, three marine laboratory raids, and had decimated a whole crew on their own for underestimating them. It seemed that Anchor and Firecracker were the more chaotic ones of the four, while Shade and Doc seemed to be either the brains behind the operation or the ones trying to drag them out. In every picture of them Shanks seemed to alternate between finding their antics hilarious or looking like Pops when Thatch started pranking people again. 

Pops was far too entertained by the whole situation, hoping that since both crews were in Paradise they’d be able to meet up so he could meet the kids that must have impressed Shanks. Marco wasn’t sure what he thought of the situation, but he was sure whatever it was, for Shanks to go back on his “no kids” rule, it had to be important.   

As it was, Marco hadn’t heard anything about the Red Hair’s in several weeks. They seemed to have gone quiet again after getting into a major scuffle after the island the boys had decided to aid in their revolution brought in the marines. So Marco sat perched on his father’s shoulder, flipping through paperwork, as the crew started hauling cargo onto the dock of the island to sell.

They were all brought to a rather abrupt halt when a cursing child caught their attention, when Marco noticed four children he joined the crowd.

There at the end of the gangplank were the Red Devils. Firecracker was carrying an unconscious Anchor while Shade and Doc leaned on each other heavily.

“Shut up Firecracker. If this is how we get back we're taking it ,” Shade snarled before looking up at the ship. “Whitebeard, we are injured and mean you no harm. Our Captain has said that you are a trustworthy captain, we ask for aid and sanctuary until we can reunite with our crew.”

Marco’s eyebrow raised in surprise at the polite request, then his other eyebrow joined it as he realized just how injured the boys were. Doc was leaning so hard on Shade because he was holding his leg at an awkward angle, Shade’s shirt was ripped to show a bleeding gash along his ribs. Marco wasn’t sure what was wrong with Anchor, but the kid being unconscious wasn’t a good sign, and Firecracker’s arm that wasn’t holding the youngest was hanging uselessly at his side. 

“Pops,” Marco turned to say something, anything really, only to be met with a nod.

That nod was all they needed for the few with medical training on the deck to rush down to the children. The relief must have hit them hard, because the second they got to the boys, Doc and Shade collapsed. Marco let his siblings take those two while he made a beeline for Firecracker.

“May I take him?” Marco asked, gesturing for Anchor. He could see the mistrust and the look of a cornered feral animal in his eyes. He knew better, as an older brother himself, than to just take the boy.

Firecracker just looked at him for a moment, he could tell that he was being judged harshly by those slate gray eyes. He must have been deemed to be okay, because the boy nodded and shifted so Marco could take the youngest. Before he could lead the way onto the ship, figuring Firecracker got his name for a reason and wouldn’t appreciate being carried if he could walk, he was stopped by a strong grip on his wrist. He turned back to the kid, and he really was just a kid, Marco could tell even through the mask, and met his eyes.

“If you hurt my brothers or take off the masks, I will cut your hands off. It may not affect you for long, Phoenix, but my knife is Sea Stone so it’ll hurt,” he swore. 

Marco crouched in front of him. “I am an older brother too, Firecracker. I swear to you that I will not intentionally cause any harm to your brothers and I will leave your identity intact.” 

Firecracker nodded once and followed the crew onto the ship and down into the infirmary. The room was already a flurry of activity, the nurses running wild trying to get the three unconscious children into beds and diagnosed. He handed Anchor off to Tate as she walked up, clearly concerned. He then turned back to Firecracker, leading him to another bed and getting him sat down.

“Can you tell me some of what happened?” Marco asked, he started trying to gently figure out what was wrong with his arm.

“Shoulder’s dislocated,” he said instead, making Marco pause.

“Are you sure?” Marco felt along the shoulder and would agree to the statement.

“Doc diagnosed it yesterday when it happened, we’ve been on the run though so we haven’t had a chance to do anything about it–” Firecracker gasped in pain as Marco used his distraction to twist his shoulder back into socket.

“Sorry,” Marco apologized, he twisted to grab an ice pack to place on the shoulder. “Anything you can tell us about their injuries then?”

Firecracker nodded, Marco could tell he was fighting down the pain. “Doc’s leg is broken. He said it’s a minor fracture, we had it splinted until this morning when it broke. Shade has fractured ribs on his left side, I don’t know about the cut, it just happened. Anchor should just have bruises and scrapes left. Any time we had for first aid got spent on him.”

Marco nodded and left the boy to watch over the room as he moved from bed to bed to do his own triaging. 

0808

It had been several hours since the children were brought on board the Moby Dick and Firecracker was still refusing to sleep. The other three boys had tilted from unconscious to just resting fairly quickly, which helped settle Marco and the nurses, though the gray-eyed boy kept vigil.

Marco had just come back down to the infirmary from the comms room. 

“We got a hold of your captain,” Marco told him, sitting beside the boy on the cot. “We’re heading out to meet with them at an island a couple days from here.”

Firecracker nodded, but didn’t speak.

Marco sat quietly, sure that the kids would speak when they were good and ready and not a moment before hand.

Marco didn’t have to wait long as Doc groaned from his cot, hands coming up to rub at his face.

“Oi, Doc, you willing to have the braincell?” Firecracker called.

“Fuck you, Firecracker. I always have the fucking braincell, you reckless piece of shit,” Doc grumbled back. His eyes opened to look for the brother he was arguing with, Marco only had time to be surprised for a moment by how gold they were before the other shoe dropped.

“Thank fuck,” Firecracker gasped, “it’s your turn to sit with them.” Then he started coughing, a rough bubbling cough, before his eyes rolled back and he passed out.

Marco jumped up at the same time Doc’s feet swung over the side of the bed. Marco had two fingers on Firecracker’s neck, finding a pulse by the time Doc had hobbled his way over, breathing quickly from the pain.

“He only said he had a dislocated shoulder,” Marco growled as he tried to find what was wrong with the kid just by looking.

“Did you ask if that was the extent of his injuries or is that just what he offered up?” Doc asked and seemed to know the answer from Marco’s silence. Doc looked at Marco closely before looking around the room. It was still just as empty as it had been when Marco walked in, they had been trying to keep it quiet so the kids could rest.

Marco was shocked when Doc grabbed Marco’s wrist, looking at him in astonishment.

“You cannot tell anyone what I am about to do, got it?” Doc didn’t wait for a response before pulling away. He held a hand over the younger boy’s chest and with a muttered word a blue field came to life around them. “Scan,” Doc muttered, before his eyes darted across Firecracker’s chest as though it were a book to be read. He relaxed, sighing in relief, before sitting at his brother’s hip.

“Two broken ribs on the right, his left wrist is broken and his right ankle is sprained. No internal bleeding, he’s just in a lot of pain, not that he’ll admit it. Thank the Seas,” Doc reported. 

Marco nodded, calling for one of the nurses to get an IV for painkillers. When he turned back around it was to see Doc tossing what looked like a pen onto his bed. He raised his hand and this time Marco could hear the ‘room’ that brought out the blue field.

“Shables,” Doc muttered and Marco could only blink as Doc and the pen switched places. A second mutter replaced the pen with Anchor.

“Why did you–”

“If you don’t want them both waking from nightmares, it’s best to make sure they have contact. Shade should really be in there too, but I’m not certain the extent of his injuries and Anchor is somehow really good at avoiding sore spots.” Doc explained flippantly, examining the cast they put on him.

Marco debated on asking questions, but he had been on the seas for many years. He could ask, but that would run the risk of the boys shutting down. If he wanted any answers from them, or if he wanted to keep what little trust he had with Shanks, he would let them come to him on their own time.

“I had told Firecracker right before you woke up, we got a hold of Shanks. We’ll be meeting with him on an island a couple days from here.”

Doc nodded before looking back at Marco. Marco had never felt so judged as he did by these literal children.

“If we’re gonna have to make nice for a few days, would you mind if I raided your library?” Doc asked with a smirk.

A give and take, Marco could work with that. He pulled a chair next to Doc’s bed, finally noticing that the kid couldn’t be older than 16 at the max. “I’ll talk to Pops about gettin you free reign of the library once your brothers are up, if you tell me how you ended up here.”

Doc snorted. “Those three are brothers, I’m just the add on. Brother in arms maybe.” He took a deep breath, knowing the deflection wouldn’t help. “We got separated,” he said, eyes flicking to watch the nurses start doing rounds, making sure they weren’t staying long enough to listen in. “A couple weeks ago we stopped at this pitiful little island. Anchor and Shade got in their heads that we could help, we had helped before, but the nobles had called the marines the second they saw Chief’s jolly roger. They had managed to separate us from the rest of the crew, they thought if they could get us, they could get Chief. We got free of them on the next island, but not before they broke Anchor’s wrist. He heals abnormally fast, so between that and my Fruit we got him patched up, but it slowed us down enough that they caught up. So then we had to fight our way out and stow away on different ships until we could get somewhere safe enough to call for backup. Chief and Beckman have always spoken highly of Whitebeard and you, so when we saw that this island was under your protection, we thought we were safe, but it turns out even when under a pirates protection, some people still frown on kids stealing to survive.”

Marco hadn’t noticed Whitebeard join them until he was startled by his father’s voice.

“What do you mean by that, son?” Whitebeard’s normally booming voice was oddly quiet.

“I am not your son, I would ask that you remember that,” Doc answered. His tone was polite, even though his words weren’t, so Marco let it go. “We hadn’t eaten in several days. Anchor got caught stealing fruit and the town’s militia hunted us down. They must have had some Sea Stone weapons, because whatever they hit Anchor with knocked him out. Shade and Firecracker juggled who carried him because my leg was already broken. I imagine Fire got injured protecting Anchor.”

Marco could tell that Whitebeard was seething, he couldn’t stand kids hurting, and to find out that people in his territories had done that, well, Marco was sure one of the commanders would be sent out to have a talk with the island leaders.

“I’ll have Thatch fix something for you to eat and I’ll have him get something ready for the others when they wake. Anything you guys can’t have?” Marco asked. He had a lot to process and felt like he had to be moving.

Doc blinked at him behind the mask. “I hate bread,” he said after a moment, “the boys will eat anything but they need a lot of protein and they’ll eat double to triple what a normal person eats.”

Marco nodded and turned to leave, noticing his father trailing along behind them.

“They are strong kids,” Whitebeard murmured.

“Too strong,” Marco sighed back. 

Whitebeard hummed, “What makes you say that, son?”

“From what Doc was saying, the three younger ones are pretty much codependent with a trauma filled past, and if I’m right, Doc is recovering from a long term illness. Not to mention I am almost positive that he has the Op Op Fruit,” Marco explained. He made sure that no one was around to hear the final bit, understanding that while it may have been out of necessity, it was also an act of trust that had Doc using his abilities in front of him.

Marco left Whitebeard at his chair as he went into the mess hall to talk to Thatch. The cook was just as angry as Marco and their father that starving children were hurt and dove head first into making a snack for the four boys. 

When he returned, he used his wings to settle back onto his father’s shoulder, watching the sea pass by them as they made their way out.

“They’re a special group of kids,” Marco said after a few moments.

“We knew that from the moment we found out Red Hair had picked them up,” Whitebeard responded. 

Marco hummed, he couldn’t stop thinking about Firecracker. He had known very few people who would put their loved ones that high above them, willing to sit in what had to be agony for hours until someone he trusted could watch over his brothers. 

“We can’t keep them,” Marco said, knowing he was saying it for his own sake as well as scolding his father for his surprise adopting tendencies.

Whitebeard huffed in defeat, making Marco laugh.

By the time Thatch was done and taking food down to the boys, Marco felt much more steady, following his brother into the infirmary. When they got closer, Marco could hear voices coming through the door.

“Anchor, what is the first rule in the infirmary?” they could hear Doc ask.

“Keep my voice down and don’t pester,” the voice that had to be Anchor’s, answered back, sounding petulant. “But Torao, this isn’t your infirmary!”

“I don’t care,” Doc snapped back.

It was then that Marco decided they had waited long enough, pushing the door open. Marco had expected to see the young boy bouncing around the room, the way Doc had scolded him, but Anchor was still lying curled up with Firecracker where Doc had left him. Marco noticed how carefully Anchor was laying, his head rested on his brother's uninjured shoulder and his hands were sat lightly above the broken rib. Somehow Doc had ended up in the bed with Shade, the younger boy twisted onto his uninjured side with his head resting against Doc’s hip.

“Doc, this is my brother, Thatch, we bring gifts,” Marco announced.

Anchor looked at them, and if Marco thought Firecracker looked right through him, it was nothing compared to the way those big brown eyes stared into his soul. Then Anchor blinked and the feeling went away as he tilted his head. 

“Your head looks like a pineapple, and yours looks like bread,” Anchor announced, pointing at Marco and Thatch.

“Anchor,” Doc scolded while Thatch gasped and Marco just laughed.

“Well,” Thatch sniffed dramatically, “see if I share my snacks with you now.”

“No! I’m sorry Bread-Guy! Please share your food!” Anchor cried out, making Doc roll his eyes. 

“I’m just teasing, of course I’ll share. Can’t have our guests go hungry now, can we?” Thatch said. 

Marco had pulled a small table over next to Doc and sat down his bowl while Thatch did the same for Anchor, the other two bowls set aside for later. 

“We don’t know if he’s just terrible with names or if he just chooses not to use them unless it’s important,” Doc informed dryly, inspecting the stew in his bowl. He hummed as he took a bite, seemingly pleased with the food. 

Marco wasn’t sure if it was the smell of the food or Anchor’s voice, but Marco looked over to see Shade starting to stir.

“La–” the sleepy grumble was cut off when Doc tapped Shade’s mask, making him blink in surprise. “Doc?”

“Yeah. We’re on the Whitebeard’s ship, they’re taking us to meet up with Shanks,” Doc told him. 

Shade groaned as he rolled onto his back. “Why do I feel like Lucky Roux is sitting on my chest?”

“That would probably be the broken ribs,” Marco answered.

“Yeah, that would do it,” Shade coughed. “Anchor? Firecracker?”

“I’m here Shade!” Anchor chirped back. “Firecracker is still asleep though.”

“How bad is he, Doc?” Shade asked. 

Marco was surprised how much these boys trusted the teen as a doctor. Turning to him far before they were willing to turn to the nurses hovering around. Marco wasn’t sure if it was just because they knew Doc, or if it was because they truly trusted his medical knowledge.

“Dumbass got pretty battered. Couple broken bones, sprained ankle, dislocated shoulder. Recovery will be a bitch but he’ll be fine,” Doc reported.

Shade tried to snort but it got broken off into a wince. 

“Come on, get up and eat something, then we can get you some painkillers, broken ribs fucking suck,” Doc said, glancing at Marco out of the corner of his eye.

Marco nodded and waved Tate over as she walked by, giving her quiet instructions to get pain meds for the three boys. She nodded and went to get into the locked cabinet to gather what she needed while Thatch took one of the bowls to Shade.

“Who’s turn is it?” Shade asked, gasping at the pain as he got sat up. 

Doc sat close, letting Shade lean against him while he ate. “Still mine,” he answered. “I’m the least injured outside of Anchor and I wouldn’t sleep anyways.”

“I could take a turn,” Anchor piped up, looking too serious for a kid his age.

Doc and Shade both shook their heads. “You know the deal, besides, right now I think Firecracker needs a nap buddy,” Shade said gently.

As though he were summoned, Firecracker moaned in pain and shifted. Anchor set the long finished soup bowl aside and laid back down on his brother, they all sat with baited breath until Firecracker settled back into sleep.

“See,” Shade said, as though the other brother had done it on purpose to prove his point.

Anchor just hummed and settled against Firecracker’s side.

Once Shade was done with his bowl Tate brought over a couple pills. Shade swallowed them down with a glass of water after Doc had given them a once over. He settled back down, breathing shallowly until the meds kicked in.

“Do you want help back over to your bed before you take something yourself?” Marco offered. He pretended not to see Shade stiffen at the offer.

Doc glanced over at him, then at the empty bed. “Nah. If you bring me a crutch I can hobble back over later. I’ll also pass on medication, this is nothing compared to what I’ve been through.”

Marco nodded and walked to another cabinet on the wall. He pulled a bottle and two books out of it before taking them back over to the teenager. “Mild pain medication and these are two books that I had just picked up for myself.”

Doc nodded, picking up one of the books as the Whitebeard pirates left them be. 

“What are you thinking?” Thatch asked when they had returned above deck.

“I think we’re going to have our hands full for the next few days,” Marco answered.

Chapter Text

When Marco told Thatch they would have their hands full, he didn’t mean it as a challenge. The couple day trip ended up being closer to a week and a half, they had hit a terrible headwind and it majorly slowed their progress. But that was plenty of time for two 11 year old and an 8 year old to get restless, even if one was supposed to be mostly bed bound. 

They learned in that week that Anchor was loud and bubbly and bright, almost always greeting someone with a smile and a giggle. He was constantly bouncing from person to person on deck, chittering away. Pops was a typical victim, not that he would call himself that, of Anchor’s attention. The young boy took to climbing the huge man to sit on his shoulder, which delighted Whitebeard to no end. Marco was also sure that Anchor had a Devil Fruit, though he wasn’t sure which one, he had only come to this conclusion when the necklace Anchor had hidden under his shirt shifted and the anchor charm had bumped Marco’s shoulder, making him jump from the sudden sap of strength. Anchor had only responded with an ‘Oops, sorry Pineapple-head,’ before tucking it back into his shirt and going on his way. So Marco was sure he had a Devil Fruit, but whatever it was, they were hiding it very carefully. 

Doc, they learned, was more than happy to snark and snap at everyone, but he was incredibly intelligent. Marco once walked in on Doc and Tate having an in depth conversation about medical practices, techniques, and curiosities. Marco was allowed to join in when he had countered a point Doc had made by referencing a different journal, which he then brought out to show the teenager where it was found. He was still snarky and sarcastic, but Marco realized it was more to protect himself from being underestimated due to his age. He also had several thousand questions about the logistics of phoenix fire, as well as Marco’s own physicality, that he took very careful note of. 

Firecracker, on the other hand, seemed to be prickly for the sake of being prickly. He was deeply distrustful of everyone that wasn’t his brothers, snarling and snapping at anyone who came too close. His temper wasn’t just for those he didn’t know, either. Several times they had caught Firecracker cussing and snarling at the other three, who all just rolled their eyes and bullied him into either taking medication or a nap. Marco wanted to think that Firecracker was like that to protect his own emotions, especially since the ray of sunshine that was Anchor was so attached to him, but he wasn’t entirely sure. For some reason he seemed to tolerate Marco, though, toning back the sass and even allowing the other pirate to engage him in casual conversation. 

Marco learned that Shade was the one to keep an eye on. Even when using Observation Haki, Shade seemed to sneak up on people. The intelligence that sparked in those dark eyes behind the mask made Marco choose his words carefully. Aware that anything and everything said around that child would be tucked away for later use. Shade was capable of far more than just filing information away though, Izou had come back from grabbing a few bandages laughing about the million questions Shade threw at him about where he was from and what he did on the ship. He was then drawn into a long conversation about different cultures around the Blues and what the East was like. Izou seemed oddly impressed by the child in a way that made Marco nervous.

They had also come to learn that Firecracker and Shade were almost attached at the hip, and both needed to be where they could keep an eye on Anchor. The first time they realized how severe it was, was the day after they got there. They had told Anchor he could come on deck while the older boys slept to give them some quiet and run off some of his energy. Doc had opened one eye to look at them and shook his head in warning, a warning they disregarded. About twenty minutes later they heard snarling coming from below deck, like a feral animal had gotten onto the ship, but what they found were Firecracker and Shade stumbling up the steps. Both were wide eyed in panic and fury as they disregarded their injuries to find the youngest. They only calmed when said youngest skidded to a halt in front of them, huge grin in place, and was ushered back below deck. When they dared to venture back into the infirmary fifteen minutes later, it was to Firecracker and Shade out cold sitting side by side, heads leaned together and each with a hand resting on Anchor, who was laying between them on his stomach with paper and a pen. 

“I tried to warn you,” Doc said. He had taken over one of the desks and had several medical journals and his own notepad spread in front of him. Marco also noticed fresh gauze and splint materials on his other side. 

“I didn’t realize they were that co-dependant,” Marco responded.

Doc snorted, not looking away from the notes he was making. “They’re not usually this bad, but they are injured on an unfamiliar ship surrounded by people we don’t know. No matter how nicely Chief may have spoken about you, they run on instinct first and logical thought second.” Doc looked at them out of the corner of his eye, gaze sharp as any scalpel, “Don’t force us apart if you don’t want bloodshed.”

And that was that. Any time they had invited Anchor on deck, the other three followed. A few chairs had been set up so that Firecracker and Doc could elevate their injuries, Firecracker also had his left arm in a sling to rest the shoulder and keep him from using his casted left wrist. Shade often sat with the older two, generally reading something out loud in an attempt to keep Firecracker entertained. They could all tell when someone's injuries or anxieties started amping up, Anchor would go quiet, stream of chatter breaking off as he left whichever pirate had his attention, before going to curl up in one of his brothers laps. More often than not, it was Firecracker who was snuggled up with the youngest. Anchor carefully tucked into his right side with his head hidden in Anchor’s hair. 

After near a week, Marco felt like the boys were slowly opening up to them, but he could also tell by the way they watched the sea, they were anxious to get back to their captain. It made something in Marco’s heart warm to see how much the four adored Shanks. Doc had admitted that Shanks took him in when he had nowhere else to go, gave him somewhere to learn and grow until he was ready to go off on his own. It seemed so much more mature than the party happy, but guilt ridden, man that Shanks had been for the last twelve years, he wondered what had happened to cause that change. He guessed he’d find out soon enough.

0808

All four boys were quiet as they got closer to the meeting point. Even Anchor seemed subdued as they all sat on deck, eyes firmly plastered to the horizon. 

“Do you think they’re nervous about meeting back up with Red Hair?” Thatch asked.

Marco looked up from the paperwork he had been reading through. “I don’t think nervous is quite the right word,” he responded, looking over to the boys. 

Before Thatch could respond there was a burst of unfamiliar Haki. Marco lurched to his feet, as did most of his siblings, and surprisingly the Red Devils.

Marco looked over to see all four boys on their feet, tears starting to stream down Anchor’s face as they rushed forward. At the same time a voice called down from the crows nest.

“Red Force in sight!” they called out.

Almost as soon as the words finished, there was a loud thump and Akagami no Shanks stood before them. Marco readied himself for a fight, he and Shanks may have been something close to friends once but Shanks was unpredictable.

Even less so, Marco realized, as Shanks fell to his knees at the sight of the Red Devils.

“Dad!” Anchor cried as he launched himself in Shanks’ arms. Arm, Marco noted in confusion. 

“My boys,” Shanks breathed, face tearstained already. “Oh, my boys.”

And then the three younger ones were wrapped in their captains embrace, quiet sobs all that could be heard.

“Apologies, Whitebeard, permission to come aboard?” In the confusion they didn’t notice the Red Force come up beside the Moby Dick until Benn Beckman spoke. 

“No apologies necessary, Benn,” Whitebeard laughed, “I understand the sentiment. You are welcome aboard.”

When Marco looked back over at Shanks, he had released Shade and Firecracker and had pulled Doc into a hug. 

“I’m so glad you’re all safe. I am so proud of you all,” he murmured before pulling back to look at them. He started looking over them, as if to catalog injuries, starting with Doc.

“Just a fracture, mostly healed now,” Doc said softly when Shanks gently touched the cast on his right leg.

“Is that the extent or what you’re willing to divulge,” Benn asked, joining the group.

Marco could feel the ‘see, this is what I meant’ look Doc gave him more than he could see it.

“That’s the extent, Beckman. I can give you a rundown of everyone's injuries when we're back on the ship,” Doc promised.

Shanks let out a rough breath and managed to pull all four kids into a hug. “Thank you,” Shanks said, looking at Marco over their heads. “Thank you for helping my boys and keeping them safe,” that was directed to Whitebeard who was loitering on the edge of the group.

“From one father to another, it was my pleasure.”

Shanks nodded and stood, Anchor clinging around his neck and Firecracker in his arm. Benn had hoisted Doc up, though the teenager looked rather disgruntled about it. 

“Let me get them settled back on Red, then we can talk,” Shanks promised.

“Take your time, Red Hair, reunite with your sons. We can talk this evening,” Whitebeard assured.

0808

Shanks had never been as stressed as he had since he had been separated from the boys. He knew they had broken free from the marines, he knew they could handle themselves, but the longer their absence stretched the more concerned he got. He wasn’t the only one, Beckman had stopped smoking, Lucky was barely eating, and Building Snake hadn’t left the navigation room in days.

When he had gotten the call from the Whitebeards, from Marco, telling him that they had his sons, injured but whole, and wanting to meet up to return them, well Shanks wasn’t the only one to break down in relief. 

He couldn’t help but cry when he saw his boys, Ace hobbling on a wrapped up ankle with a casted arm in a sling, Sabo moving in a way that indicated busted up ribs, and Law with a casted leg. Luffy was the only one that appeared unharmed, though his right wrist seemed to bother him and he could see a peak at new stitches under his mask that he knew no one else would notice. 

But now they were home, masks set aside the second they got below deck so that Hongo could check them over. Law just handed him a folder that Shanks assumed had all their medical information by the way the doctor nodded, before dropping into one of the beds in the infirmary.

“When was the last time you slept more than an hour?” Shanks asked him, setting Ace down into another bed. He knew Law’s insomnia acted up under stress, even worse when he felt like he had to be on high alert.

Law groaned, throwing an arm over his eyes. “How long ago did we split?” he asked as though it would answer the question, which it did.

“Well,” Shanks ran his fingers through Law’s hair as he passed by him to grab the water pitcher, “you’re safe now. Get some rest, we’ll keep someone on guard while we’re still near the Whitebeards.”

“They’re not too bad,” Sabo admitted, Ace grumbling in agreement.

“They’re all too loud,” Law groaned.

“It’s just because there are so many of them,” Shanks laughed. He sat down on Ace’s bed, leaning against the headboard. Ace shuffled to rest his head on Shanks’ thigh, Luffy still clung around his neck, sniffling every now and then. Sabo joined the group once Hongo had looked at the stitches in his side. He looked longingly at the spot on Shanks’ right, where he normally claimed as his spot, but Shanks could tell that the idea of laying on his busted and stitched ribs wasn’t appealing. Before Shanks could offer a solution, Sabo had carefully climbed over Ace’s bandaged legs to curl up between his brother and the wall. Within moments all four children were sleeping peacefully.

“What are we looking at, Hongo?” Shanks asked, his voice barely a whisper, as he saw the doctor looking through the folder.

Hongo sighed harshly. “They’re all rough,” he started. “Luffy broke his wrist in the original escape, but between Law’s quick thinking and Luffy’s insane healing factor it healed up quickly. He also got a pretty bad cut on his cheek when someone tried to take his mask off with a knife. Sabo got it cleaned up quickly and Law stitched it best he could on the run and then re-did them on the Moby.  Law had a fractured tibia that had mostly healed and then refractured when they had to run again, and he had some bruising. Sabo has two broken ribs on the left and four stitches, happened at different times. Ace,” Hongo had to pause and rub his eyes, Shanks was the only one who could tell he was doing that to keep from crying. “Ace has a broken wrist, had dislocated his left shoulder, two broken ribs on the right and a sprained right ankle. The rib barely missed puncturing his lung.”

Shanks stopped breathing for a second, it was that or let out a sob. “Hongo, did I make a mistake bringing them with us?” Shanks asked, voice shaky with unshed tears.

The shuddering of his breathing must have been enough to rouse Luffy, who raised his head off Shanks shoulder.

“Dad? Wass wrong?” He asked, words slurring with sleep.

“Nothing, Anchor,” Shanks soothed, wiping away a tear. “I’m just really happy you’re home.”

Luffy gave Shanks a sleepy smile. “I’m happy I’m home, too. Captain Moustache and Pineapple-head are cool, but I missed you. It wasn’t so bad though, I knew you would come get us, no matter what.”

“I missed you too, Luffy,” Shanks sniffled. Luffy put his head back down and was quickly asleep again.

“I think you have your answer, Chief,” Hongo said.

Shanks just sat and breathed for a minute, Haki stretched out to wrap around his kids, feeling their relief to be back home.

“Once they’re healed up, we start training them,” Shanks announced. “Full training, Haki and all. If they’re going to be here they need to be able to fight back. I will not have them hurt again.”

“Aye, Chief,” Hongo replied.

0808

Usually, Akagami no Shanks is the life of the party. Usually he’s the first one to raise a glass and keeping up with everyone drink for drink, but tonight he was subdued. He had a drink in hand, though Marco was pretty sure it was still his first one, and Marco could tell that most of his attention was elsewhere. 

When Shanks came back on the ship after dinner, he and Pops disappeared into the captain's room for a while, at least thirty minutes, when they had come out the signal had been given and the sake was brought out. Normally by this point Shanks was tipping over into drunk and singing the praises of his first mate and lover and trying to convince Marco to jump ship and join the Red Hairs.

“I never thought I would see the day that you became a dad ,” Marco teased, joining Shanks at the railing.

Shanks laughed, bright and open, like he did before Roger. “I didn’t mean to. Anchor has a way of wrapping you around his little finger though.”

Marco couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah, all of those kids are something special,” he agreed. 

“You don’t know the half of it,” Shanks’ smile was soft.

“I’ve also noticed you’re short a sniper,” Marco said.

“Hm? Oh, Yassop,” Shanks' smile was sad. “Before we left the East Blue he wanted to stop in, see his wife and kid. He has a kid around Anchor’s age, left when he was two to follow my dumb ass around. He had always intended on checking in more often, but things happened and we didn’t prioritize it until it was too late. He found out his wife passed last year and we didn’t know, decided right then and there he was staying with his kid, like we were going to try to talk him out of it. He’ll be back someday, his kid wants to sail the seas like his old man and Anchor has already claimed him.” Shanks looked through Marco like he wasn’t even there, mind lost in more regrets piled on his shoulders.

“You don’t have to be here, if you’d rather be with the boys, I think we’d understand,” Marco offered, but Shanks just shook his head.

“Doc and Shade were already scolding me for hovering. Hongo is watching them so Firecracker and Doc can get some more sleep anyways.”

“I,” Marco started. He took a breath and then started again. “I have theories.”

Shanks sighed and turned to lean his back against the gunwale. “I’d rather you keep them to yourself, to be honest,” he said. “I consider you a friend, Marco, I don’t want to be in a position where I have to lie to you. Their stories are not mine to tell, nor are they safe to be told out in the open.”

Marco blinked in surprise, before he nodded with a smile. “Fair enough,” he laughed. “Not like most of us don’t have secrets we don’t want to get out.”

They sat and watched the party for a while before Shanks stood up quickly.

“Well, there’s my cue,” he said, looking towards the Red Force.

“Wait, do you have your Observation on your kids?” Marco asked, astonished.

“Of course I do,” Shanks responded, the ‘duh’ clear in his voice. “You think Whitebeard doesn’t keep tabs on all of you all the time?”

Shanks just waved over his shoulder before jumping down, back onto the deck of his ship, and back towards his kids. Not long later, Hongo pulled himself onto the deck. He smiled as he was greeted by several Whitebeard pirates and accepted the drink he was handed before he made eye contact with Marco. 

 “Phoenix,” Hongo greeted, taking his captain's spot beside him.

“Hongo,” Marco returned. He hadn’t had much interaction with the other doctor, the other pirate preferring to keep to his own crew. That’s not to say Marco didn’t respect Hongo, they had bonded a bit with quiet eye rolls as their respective crews got injured in drunken stupors too many times to not at least be friendly.

“I’m sure Chief has said it, but still. Thank you for taking care of them,” Hongo didn’t look at Marco as he spoke, just watched over the crowd of drinking men.

“I didn’t do that much,” Marco dismissed.

Hongo scoffed. “I know that stitch work on Shade’s ribs was all you, and the fact that Firecracker didn’t fuck up his ankle worse is a miracle. Last time he had a leg injury we had to tie him down to keep him off of it. Hell, the kid practically sings your praises.”

Marco looked at Hongo in confusion. “I find that hard to believe, he acted like he barely tolerated me over the rest of the crew,” he said.

Hongo barked out a laugh. “For Firecracker that’s almost a declaration of love. Kid’s prickly as fuck, but he’s earned the right with the life he’s had. Hell you probably heard the way he talks to his brothers, half the time it sounds like he despises them, but really they’re the reason the sun even bothers to rise in the morning to him.” 

Marco looked over the crowd again and nodded, he could relate to that sentiment. Before he could respond though, a blue field flickered to life, followed by Shanks being dropped right in front of them, stumbling onto his ass as though he had been sitting previously.

Hongo nearly doubled over in laughter at the offended look on his captain’s face, even Marco couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up,” Shanks griped as he stood, brushing the dust off of his pants.

Hongo actually wiped away a tear as he straightened up. “You knew Doc was getting tired of your mother hen-ing,” he accused.

“Yeah, but Anchor had a nightmare,” Shanks shot back.

“And his brothers are there for him, as well as Lime. They know they’re safe and you know Doc wants to act like he doesn’t need us. I’m sure he is also well aware you’re keeping tabs on them, so relax a little,” Hongo smiled.

“Beckman! Hongo and the kids are bullying me!” Shanks cried dramatically as his first mate joined the little huddle.

“Doc kicked you out for hovering, didn’t he?” Beckman guessed with a sigh.

“Not you too! You’re supposed to love me!” Shanks accused, poking Beckman in the chest.

“And I do, as do the boys, but Doc is fifteen and Fire and Shade are eleven. Even if we know how they are, doesn’t mean they want to show weakness around others,” Beckman reminded. 

“Like father like sons,” Marco chimed in. “You remember that time you busted your wrist and Roger tried–.”

Marco was stopped by a hand over his mouth, Shanks glaring at him with pink cheeks.

“We do not speak of that, you blue chicken,” Shanks muttered in embarrassment.

Marco just laughed, feeling something in his soul click back into place. He hadn’t enjoyed bantering with Shanks in years . The captain’s edges too raw for lighthearted bickering, too many sore spots that could be hit and turn him from a laid back party animal to a feral cat, hissing and spitting. But here and now, with four kids in his care, Shanks’ eyes were clear and bright, a joy Marco hadn’t seen since Roger and Rogue lighting them up.

Those kids were going to take the world by storm and Marco couldn’t wait. 

Chapter Text

Time continued to flow on as easily as it could for a crew of pirates and four kids. The recovery after the Whitebeard incident, as the kids had taken to calling it, was a fucking bitch. Broken ribs were hard enough on their own for Ace and Sabo, add in Ace’s ankle and wrist and the boy was pricklier than a porcupine. He snarled and growled at everyone, including Luffy and Sabo, especially Luffy and Sabo.

Luffy had curled up in Shanks’ lap a few days after parting ways from the Whitebeards. Ace had just finished another round of vitriol directed at everyone in the infirmary, including Luffy, and it had shanken the boy, his voice was so quiet and timid, so unlike himself, as he whispered his fears and guilt.

“It’s my fault, Dad,” Luffy hid his face in Shanks’ shirt. “It’s my fault Ace is so hurt, all of them are hurt.”

“Anchor, Luffy, you know that isn’t true, don’t you?” Shanks had tried to soothe his youngest.

Luffy shook his head. “It is true, Dad. If I could have defended myself better they wouldn’t have gotten hurt. At least not hurt as bad.”

Shanks couldn’t argue that, it was true that the boys went out of their way to protect the youngest, taking hits that would have missed them otherwise. “You know they don’t blame you though, right? Those brothers of yours would do anything and everything for you,” Shanks ran his hand down Luffy’s back.

“But I don’t want them to protect me! I want to be strong enough to protect them! Torao too!” Luffy argued.

Shanks couldn’t help but smile, “Then we will work together. We’ll help you get stronger, all four of you. After all, you’re supposed to beat me some day, aren’t you?” 

Shanks laughed as Luffy agreed, tension breaking under the excitement for the future. 

After that, Ace was a lot more careful not to take out his frustrations about being laid up on Luffy. Shanks was sure Sabo had heard, knew the boy was nearby when they had the conversation, but he hadn’t expected Ace to take it to heart. They were all a bit more careful around the youngest, not in a patronizing way, though, they were very careful about that. They were trying to treat him more like the almost 9-year-old he was, and less like a baby, Shanks thought, not that he would ever truly get away from being the baby brother. 

0808

Shanks used the fact that his middle two children were a bit too laid up to run wild to start Haki training the same way he and Blue had started. They had been around Sabo and Ace’s age when they started anyways. 

He sat cross legged in the middle of the deck, all four boys in front of him. Somewhere in the back of his mind he noticed how much the younger three really looked like blood relatives with the red dye. Luffy and Ace had already looked similar in some ways, the same darker skin tone, the freckles that dusted their cheeks, and their dark hair made most see them as biological siblings anyways. Now with the dye darkening his hair, Sabo could really be added to them. His skin had darkened from noble white to a permanent tan from years in the sun, both in the Gray Terminal and now on the Red Force, the sun damage freckles just added credibility to them. Sabo even had the dark eyes to match Luffy.

Law was the odd one out of them, not that he seemed to mind, though. The white patches on his skin had finally recovered, for the most part, now just barely paler than his natural bronze tone, though with his preference to stay in the infirmary and out of the sun he was still just barely darker than Sabo. This made him a stark contrast to the others, not to mention his sharp golden eyes to Ace’s bright silver. To look at them, one would think that Law was their complete counterpoint, calm where they oozed excitement, book smart where they were instinct based creatures, cold where they were warm. Law seemed like the introvert to their extroverts. But that was only until you got to know him. Law may always seem calm, but there was a storm behind his eyes, and once something caught his attention, he threw himself into the need to know everything about it. He may have actually been the most learned of the boys, but his gut was rarely wrong and he wasn’t afraid to argue for it. And though many saw Law’s sharp gaze and prickly demeanor and assumed that the teen was as cold as the Northern winters, but they didn’t get to see the way Law lit up when he found a new medical book, the way he and Hongo would talk for hours about how to be a better doctor, or the way he melted into cuddling with the younger boys or Shanks. He was very much the introvert to the ASL trio’s pure extroverted energy, and while he wasn’t afraid to use that sharp tongue, or Devil Fruit, to protect his boundaries, it was clear to everyone that he loved the brothers. Shanks personally thought he had an extra soft spot for Luffy, not that it wasn’t a common sentiment for everyone who had met the rubber boy. 

“Alright, I am going to start teaching you about something called Haki,” Shanks started, getting their attention. “Haki is an extension of your deepest self, your Will, if you want to think of it that way. There are three ways that this can be manifested, most people can use the first two if trained, but the third can only be accessed by a select few.” 

Shanks was pleased to see that he had the rapt attention of all of them, even some of the crew lingered nearby to hear what their captain was explaining.

“The first one is using your Will to reach out to those around you. You can use this for several reasons, you can use this to get a feel of those you’re fighting to anticipate their movements, you can also use Observation Haki to reach out to those around you. I can reach out now and find every person on this ship and tell you how they’re feeling. Once you awaken yours, you can generally tell when someone else is reaching out for you, not always though. You can also wrap your Haki around yourself to hide your presence.”

Shanks paused for a moment to let that information sink in. Shanks was sure if he had let them, Law and Sabo would have been taking notes.

“The second way is to take your Will and wrap it around a part of yourself or something you’re holding to make it stronger. Armament Haki is just that, adding armor to yourself, in a lot of ways. It is a way to protect yourself, but it also helps make your attacks stronger, not to mention it’s the only thing that can hit a Logia Devil Fruit, outside of Seastone. Using the two together can make someone an incredibly dangerous fighter, but it won’t make you invincible, so the three of you will work on training both of those as well as normal combat training while Ace and I work on the third one together.”

“Me?” Ace gasped, mouth open. “What do you mean?”

Shanks smiled. “The third kind is called Conquer’s Haki, it’s the ability to exert your Will over others. It is very rare, and even harder to activate, but Ace has used it once already.”

Ace just stared at him blankly.

“The night of the fire on Dawn,” Shanks started, “right before I got to you. Someone was about to hurt Luffy.”

Ace blinked in recognition. “I was so mad. I was furious and desperate, all I could think about was getting those dicks out of the way so I could get to Luffy and then…” Ace trailed off.

Shanks nodded, “You activated your Haki, knocked most of them out and gave me time to get to you.”

“I had forgotten about that,” Ace murmured, staring at Shanks in shock.

“Now just because you’ve used it once doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy to do it again. You were under a lot of stress, I doubt you even remember even subconsciously how you did it. But since we know you can, we should be able to figure it out,” Shanks grinned. Shanks saw how the other boys looked at Ace, Law and Sabo with twin looks of grudging respect while Luffy just looked at his brother in awe. Ace was a bit pink in the cheeks, a bit of a pleased flush mixed with the embarrassment of having his brother’s attention. 

“Now,” Shanks pulled their attention back, “this is how we're going to start. I need you all to close your eyes, focus on just the sound of my voice and the sun on your skin. Let everything else blow away on the wind until it’s just us.” He waited a moment, watching them breathe and waiting for Luffy’s fidgeting to settle. He knew this would be the hardest part, it was for him and Blue too. 

“Once your mind is nice and quiet, as quiet as it can be,” Shanks amended, knowing Law’s head was never truly quiet, “start looking into yourself. Look for the flame that makes up who you are, what drives you closer to your dreams. Don’t chase it, just let yourself be drawn to it, the warmth that is your Will. Once you find it, let it warm you from the inside out, and picture it extending past you until it envelops the five of us.” 

Shanks kept his own Observation active as he led them through the meditation, ribbons wrapped around his boys. He could feel the sparks of their Haki attempting to flare up. He could sense the wings Law reached out with, soft with downy feathers and awkward with their inexperience. Ace and Sabo, so alike in so many ways, both breathed life into small embers that were sure to expand into warm bonfires someday, but for now they flickered weakly in the wind. And Luffy, their little ball of energy, Shanks could feel the barely there rays of a sunrise before it was covered by a cloud.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Shanks said, voice loud enough that it startled the four boys. “That was a pretty impressive start. We’ll start doing this every morning for a little bit longer every time. Once you have a base in Observation, we can start trying to work on Armament.”

“But we didn’t do it,” Sabo scowled.

“No, but the more frustrated you get, the harder it is to get a grasp of it. That’s why we’ll start slow and easy,” Shanks smiled, getting up to ruffle Sabo’s hair. “Besides, I’m pretty sure you did better on your first try than I did.”

That sent the younger three into excited chatter, questions and comments overlapping until it was just a cacophony of noise that made Shanks laugh and Law grumble. Shanks sent them off to start on their chores, still smiling.

After so long on the seas, Shanks had an almost constant level of Observation active. The ship was rarely not visible in his mind's eye, his crew all familiar lights. Therefore the flashes of his children's Haki flickering to life throughout the day didn’t escape his notice. 

“Can you feel them, Beck?” Shanks asked after dinner, standing with his first mate at the railing. 

“Hard not to,” Beckman responded. To anyone else the reply would have sounded annoyed, but Shanks could hear the pride under it.

So their morning routine changed a bit. Every morning, Shanks would lead them through the meditation, generally out on deck if the weather was nice, but sometimes they ended up in the mess hall or the infirmary, depending on where was less populated. It took several weeks of Shanks guiding them and them practicing on their own before one of them saw .

Shanks wanted to be surprised that it was Luffy, but between his almost need to be the best, his absolute focus when he knew it was important, and his already perceptive nature it seemed almost inevitable.

Luffy had been hanging off of Law’s back, one of his favorite places, on deck. The doctor had been talking to one of the riggers about an injury and Shanks had thought Luffy was asleep. It certainly wasn’t uncommon for him, everyone knew that Luffy hated being on his own, so he would often just pick a member of his family and nap on them while they continued doing whatever they were before. Shanks was just about to go over and grab his youngest, he needed to go talk to Building Snake about their next course anyways and could move Luffy inside, when the boy jerked his head up with a gasp of awe.

Shanks knew why immediately, breath caught in his throat as he felt like the sun came out from behind the clouds. His own Haki, always active at a low level, reached out the warmth almost on instinct. He only got the warning of Luffy jerking his head around to look at him before he was catching the rubber boy like it was second nature. 

“Everyone is so bright ,” Luffy murmured, awed. 

Shanks clutched the boy close, pride spilling over into his Haki and he was sure Luffy could tell. “They are, the ones you love show up especially bright,” Shanks whispered back. As quickly as it had appeared, Luffy’s Haki faded and Shanks could only laugh at the frustrated look Luffy made. “It takes a lot of practice to keep it active, but you did it!”

Luffy grinned at him in joy and Shanks couldn’t help but smile. He wondered, briefly, if Roger had felt the same way the first time he activated his Haki.

Luffy’s success really lit a fire under the other boys, it became more and more likely to see them sitting and focusing any time they had even a moment of down time. Within days Shanks could feel the feathered wings of Law’s soul brush against his cheek. Never to be out done, the twin flames of Ace and Sabo flared to life almost simultaneously, souls too bright to ever be put out.

Now the training could start in earnest.

0808

The party thrown for Luffy’s 9th birthday in May was a bit subdued, they were on a long stretch between islands fighting a terrible headwind and pesky marines. They had promised to make it up to the youngest at the next island with a huge feast and an adventure into the forest to let the boys run off some energy without causing issues. 

Shanks stretched his Haki over the island from where he was sitting on the beach with Beckman, delighting in feeling his kids respond in kind. The day had been peaceful, the spring island was warm enough for them to all laze about but not so hot that they felt that was their only option. Beckman was sitting on a fallen log by the fire pit while Shanks sat on the ground between his legs, almost dozing as his lover ran his fingers through his red hair. Shanks allowed himself to float in the haze of peace, this half of the island was uninhabited, Beckman and a couple other crew members had gone over to the small village to assure them that the pirates weren’t here to cause trouble and would stick to the other side of the island, his children weren’t causing problems themselves, Shanks could still feel them in his Haki, and Beckman was scratching his scalp in a way that always turned him to putty. 

Shanks allowed himself the relaxation, teasing Beckman that he was a single father of 4 and thus deserved the break just to watch his first mate roll his eyes and tug on his hair teasingly. 

Everything was perfect, until it wasn't. 

At the very edge of his Haki Shanks could feel a ship coming towards them. The ship felt like a storm with a being of lightning at its center. Between one breath and the next, Shanks went from a house cat lounging in the sun, to a tiger, crouched and ready to pounce. His Haki flared out and he felt the boys respond, both with a flare of their own and by rushing to join the adults. By the time the ship came into view they were all on high alert. Shanks stood with Ace, Sabo, and Luffy behind him. Law stood on his left, hands tight around the hilt of his odachi while Beckman stood to his right, rifle slung over his shoulder.

By the time the ship reached the shore, the whole crew was fanned out around them, posed to act, but not initiating a threat. 

“Akagmi no Shanks, you are a hard man to hunt down,” a man with a voice like thunder said from the bow of the ship. The man was tall and broad, face shadowed by a dark green cloak.

“Well, if I had known I was being looked for I might have slowed down,” Shanks grin was downright predatory. Shanks could see the Chief of Staff, Ivankov, in their feminine form, “Especially if I had known it was the Revolutionary Army.”

He could feel Sabo lean around his legs at the address, he was sure the boy would be interested in talking with them as long as they were here peacefully.

“I believe you have my son, Red Hair,” The man responded, even the jump down to the beach didn’t dislodge the hood from covering his eyes. All four boys took a half step closer to Shanks.

“I think you’re mistaken. These are my children, none of whom have been stolen from anywhere,” Shanks eyed the man dangerously. He held onto his Haki by a thread, eyes dark.

The man finally removed his hood and Shanks realized he was face to face with Monkey D. Dragon. Shanks barely bit back a snarl as he looked at the man who seemed to be here to take his son away.

“Wait a second,” Sabo gasped, leaning around Shanks’ legs. “He was there that night!”

“What are you talking about, Shade?” Beckman asked.

Sabo looked between Shanks and Dragon. “He was there the night the Gray Terminal burned! I ran into him on my way to Makino’s. He tried to help me up and offered to take me somewhere but I told him I had somewhere to be,” Sabo explained.

“So, you are telling me you do not have Monkey D. Luffy on your ship?” Dragon accused. Luffy stiffened behind him.

Shanks stood taller, he may be shorter than the Revolutionary leader, but he could feel his Haki wrapped around him. “I do not have anyone with the surname Monkey on my ship. And even if I did, I vowed to the Sea that these are my children. A vow spoken in front of Vice Admiral Garp, so by the Sea and the government these are my sons, and you will not take them from me,” Shanks voice dropped into a snarl, eyes not leaving the man in front of him.

He could see the uncomfortable shifting of the revolutionaries on the ship out of the corner of his eye, but his focus was on the man staring at him with a blank expression.

Shanks was only pulled out of his staring match when there was a tug on his shirt. He looked down to see Luffy looking nervous, but determined.

“I think it’s okay, Dad,” he said quietly.

Shanks leaned down to pick him up, holding him tightly to his chest. “What do you mean, Anchor?”

Luffy wiggled until he could meet Shanks’ eyes. “I don’t think he’s here to take me away, not now anyways.”

Shanks looked between his youngest and the man standing a good distance away. “Are you sure?”

Luffy nodded and Shanks sighed in defeat. He set Luffy down and looked over at Law, who nodded, letting go of the sword with one hand to prepare for a Room if needed. 

Luffy walked forward several steps, but he was careful to stay close enough that he could be easily reached. “My name is Benn D. Luffy, and this is my family,” Luffy introduced.

“Benn?” Dragon questioned, he walked towards the boy and Shanks tried not to lunge.

Luffy nodded. “Shanks is my dad, but since Shanks doesn’t have a last name I decided to use Beckman’s.” 

Shanks may not have been able to see Luffy’s face, but he could tell by the slight squirm in Dragon’s face that his son was eyeing him up. The critical look that seemed so out of place on his jovial face that pierced you to your core. 

“I’m sure you had good reasons, but you left me alone. Shanks makes sure I’m not alone, he takes care of me and has taught me lots. You can be family, but you can’t be my dad because Shanks is my dad. You seem cool though!” 

Shanks felt the anxiety he didn’t even realize he had released in a sigh. He didn’t realize how afraid he was of Luffy wanting to go with his biological father until the situation was dropped on him. 

Luffy stretched his arms and rocketed himself back into Shanks arm, his brothers relaxing their stances slightly as he was back in range. 

“I–,” Shanks saw the Revolutionary leader struggle to find words. “I see, I suppose I was mistaken.”

“Dragon-boy,” Ivankov called, but Dragon just shook his head and started walking back to his ship. 

Shanks cursed at himself and mentally accused the boys for making him soft. “Dragon, wait.”

The Revolutionary gave him an unimpressed look over his shoulder, no doubt thinking Shanks wanted to brag.

“I’m sure the Revs don’t get a lot of downtime. It’s a beautiful day and we’ve promised Luffy a feast for his birthday. Why don’t you stick around for a bit?” Shanks offered. He could hear Beckman grumbling beside him, but Luffy just looked up with stars in his eyes.

“Yeah!” Luffy called. “That would be so cool!”

“I hope you know what you’re doing,” Beckman gumbled as Dragon looked back to his ship.

“Do I ever?” Shanks asked with a cheeky grin.

“No,” Beckman answered, rolling his eyes at Shanks' gasp of outrage.

“If we would not be intruding, we will stay,” Dragon answered after a short conversation with his chief of staff.

“Yosh!” Luffy crowed before throwing himself out of Shanks’ arm and into Sabo’s. He was already chattering a mile a minute as his older brother rolled his eyes and stalked off with the other red-heads.

0808

Hours later, Shanks was once again sitting by the fire pit, fire now blazing, as his crew and the Revolutionaries mingled together. He had seen Sabo bouncing from person to person, Shanks was sure his little anarchist heart would be full to bursting after today and that he would have to keep a close leash on him at the next few islands if he didn’t want full on revolutionary wars. He could see Law and Ivankov deep in conversation, likely about the effect of hormones. If Shanks had to guess, he’d bet that Law would have a full notebook full of theories by the end of the night. Shanks also noticed Ace distracting Luffy off to the side. Shanks had noticed that every time Luffy tried to go near the Revolutionaries, one of his brothers would appear by his side, pulling his attention elsewhere. As much as they were enjoying the company of the Revs, they didn’t trust them. And Shanks couldn’t blame them, his own Haki had been on high alert since he first noticed the ship. As such, he wasn’t surprised when Dragon sat on the log beside him, eyes locked onto the flames.

“I never wanted to leave Luffy,” Dragon said after several minutes.

Shanks doesn’t look over at him. “Like Luffy said, and like I told your father, you may have your reasons, but your intent doesn’t change the outcome.”

“Was he really that unhappy?” Dragon murmured.

Shanks let the question sit for a moment, flaring his Haki again to find his kids. Luffy had joined Law with Ivankov, both brushing back against him in acknowledgment. Ace and Sabo were talking to someone in what seemed to be recognition, Haki bright and bold as ever. Shanks also did a headcount of his crew, making sure they were all close at hand.

“When I met Luffy,” Shanks started, “he was six and his only friend was Makino. He was so excited when we showed up, adults who were willing to pay attention to him, who listened to him. We stayed there for almost a full year, it was actually my fault he ate the Gum Gum Fruit, but he attached to us so hard because we showed that we loved him. In that year, do you know how many adults tried to check on him when he was off wandering the jungles of Dawn by himself?”

He waited a moment to see if Dragon would respond before continuing. “It was just us. No one else in Foosha bothered and Makino was too busy. The poor girl cried when we asked her why she was the only one looking out for him. I guess Garp had told them that Luffy was going to grow up to be a marine and so he needed to learn to be strong on his own, no one but Makino was allowed to help him. Good thing I’m a pirate and I don’t follow marine orders, huh,” Shanks gave Dragon a dark smirk, noticing the look of horror on his face.

“When we left Garp took him up to the mountain bandits, I think Ace said her name was Dadan. Said Maki was too soft on him–”

“He was seven! ” Dragon said, outrage clear.

“Ace had been there since he was a newborn,” Shanks responded, watching Dragon out of the corner of his eye. “That’s where the three met. Ace and Sabo tried to kill Luffy at first, Luffy latches on and doesn’t let go, and he’s more than a bit of a crier, they didn’t like that. By the time they started warming up to him, Luffy was getting tortured on their behalf.” Shanks ignored the sharp intake of breath. “Kid has abandonment issues to the point he would rather be beaten with spiked gloves than risk losing those boys. After that they told me they stole the bandit’s sake and drank it to become brothers. They lived in a treehouse they made themselves and hunted for their own food. They generally managed to sneak down to Makino’s about once a month to call me.”

Shanks looked over to where he knew Luffy was, he had found a beetle and was studying it intently. Ace was not too far away, leaned against a tree with his frankly lurid hat tipped over his eyes. To anyone just glancing at him, it would look like the boy was asleep, but Shanks knew better. Law and Hongo were a little further up the beach, talking to what looked like the medical officer for the Revs. Shanks only knew where Sabo was because of how familiar he was with the boy, he had taken the lessons on hiding his Haki better than anyone Shanks had ever seen. He would bet every bit of treasure they had that the Revs would be chomping at the bit for him in a few years when they realized that the Red Devil Shade had been sitting behind Dragon the Revolutionary for the last five minutes and no one caught it.

“Their stories are theirs to share, it’s not my place to tell you Ace, Sabo, or Law’s past, though I’m sure with your network you have some ideas. I am only telling you Luffy’s because you are his father,” Shanks stopped there for a moment. He debated on what to say for a time, Dragon quiet, absorbing what he had been told.

Finally Shanks whipped his arm out, catching Sabo around the waist and making the boy squawk in alarm as Shanks pulled him into his lap.

“What the–” Dragon gasped in surprise as Sabo grumbled.

“You know you can’t hide from me, Sabs,” Shanks laughed.

“Yeah, but I hid from him,” Sabo sassed back, pointing a thumb over to Dragon. 

“How long have you been using Haki?” Dragon asked, unnerved.

“A couple months,” Sabo responded, tone flippant but grin sharp.

“You’re not joining the Revs,” Shanks cut in, making Sabo glare at him. “You’re twelve, we agreed you aren’t leaving for another five years.”

“I don’t even know that I would want to join the Revs,” Sabo scoffed, glaring at Dragon.

“Doesn’t matter, I am not talking about you leaving right now, you’ll break my heart,” Shanks responded, throwing his arm over his face in a dramatic effect. While Sabo was rolling his eyes, Shanks attacked his side, tickling him to make his son yelp and giggle, squirming his way out of Shanks lap. 

“Go get your brothers, it’s time for you four to get ready for bed,” Shanks told him, letting the boy go.

“Dad,” Sabo groaned.

“Go on, it’s past Luffy’s bedtime and it looks like Law has reached the end of his social battery. You’d be doing him a favor,” Shanks tried to bargain.

Sabo’s eyes glinted at the idea of the older boy owing him a favor. He nodded and turned on his heel.

“Luf, come on, it’s time to head in. I promised I’d finish that book for you,” Sabo called.

Luffy whined but joined Sabo anyways, wrapping his limbs around him so he didn’t have to walk. Ace and Law had both joined them, Law looking quietly relieved to be leaving the mingling group and Shanks could feel Ace’s Haki finally die down a bit as they moved back to familiar territory. 

Luffy dropped off of Sabo in a way that made the whole group stop and see what had gotten the youngest’s attention. Luffy turned and ran to give Shanks a hug, which in of itself isn’t unusual, but the force in which Shanks was wrapped up was.

“What’s up, Anchor?” Shanks asked concerned. 

Luffy was quiet for long enough that the other boys came over to check and for Shanks’ worry to ratchet up several notches.

Luffy squeezed Shanks again before turning his head to look at Dragon.

“Thank you for checking on me, but I’m happy here. We’re all happy here. Dad makes sure we know that we’re not alone and that we are safe and loved. That’s all we ever wanted,” Luffy told his father.

“Luffy–” Dragon started but was cut off when Luffy shook his head.

“Shanks is my dad, and I’m staying with him until I can be a captain myself.”

Dragon’s frame relaxed in a way Shanks hadn’t seen yet and he smiled gently at Luffy. “Of course. Thank you for reassuring me.”

Luffy grinned at him, gave Shanks one last hug, and then took off towards the Red Force, leaving his brothers to chase after him with shouts and threats. Shanks could only smile as he watched the force of nature both men called their son run off.

Chapter Text

Having a contact within the Revolutionary Army in their back pocket turned out to be a pretty useful tool. After the kids had gone to bed, Shanks and Dragon had a very long, personal, conversation. Some of it was about Luffy, but most of it was about how Shanks was planning on moving forward with the boys. 

Dragon had offered the illusion of an alliance, a way to let the Red Devils “graduate” from being cabin boys while keeping the government’s eyes off of their actual selves. It was an appealing idea, in truth, but not one he was willing to commit to at the time. It would be something that would need to be talked about with the boys, he was sure Sabo would be over the moon with the opportunity, unless Dragon being a bit of a deadbeat dad gave him the ick too bad.

Now though, now Shanks had a destination in mind. A destination that was both exciting and nerve wracking. 

“What is he like?” Ace asked. He sounded as nervous as Shanks felt, being told what their heading was.

“He was always the more serious one,” Shanks answered. Like usual, he leaned back against the wall at the head of a bed in the boy’s bunk room. Ace was sitting between his legs, leaning back against Shanks’ chest. Luffy leaned against his left side while Sabo laid sideways on the bed, head hanging upside down. Law was sitting at his desk doing his best to pretend that he was making notes in a book, but Shanks was well aware that he hadn’t turned a page in at least five minutes.

“In most cases, Rayleigh was the one that people had to watch out for. Captain was just as likely to laugh off an insult as he was to do something about it, but Rayleigh always noticed. And he never forgot either. He’s the one who taught Blue and I to read and how to use Haki. Captain was a natural so he was shit at teaching us,” Shanks said with a laugh. “He also taught Blue everything he knows about being underhanded to get what he needed.”

“Sounds a bit like Beckman,” Sabo said, rolling over onto his stomach as his face got red.

“A little,” Shanks laughed.

“How long has it been since you’ve seen him?” Ace asked quietly, as though he was afraid of the answer.

Shanks sighed sadly. “At least ten years,” he said after a moment, “and it didn’t go very well.”

“Oh,” Ace breathed, curling in on himself slightly.

“I was still very hurt by everything that happened after Captain passed and we were both drunk. I was drunk at least.” Shanks had been very open with the boys about his less than ideal coping mechanisms. As much as he had wanted to hide the unsavory parts of himself from his kids, he knew that they needed to know what he could be like. He wanted them to be better than he was, and he knew to do that, he would have to come to terms with his own vices.

“He’s still one of your dads,” Luffy said softly.

“Yeah,” Shanks sighed. 

“Do you think he’ll react well to us?” Law asked, notebook forgotten as he studied Shanks.

That, at least, made Shanks smile. “Yeah, I think he’ll love you guys. And not just because of the reason you think, Firecracker.”

Ace rolled his eyes, but smiled, actually looking forward to meeting more people that would have once been family.

0808

Shakky’s Rip-Off Bar was the same as the last time Shanks was there. The only occupant when he opened the door was the tall thin woman behind the door, who smiled brightly when he walked in.

“Shanks, how lovely to see you,” she greeted.

“Shakky, you are as lovely as ever I see,” Shanks smiled.

“Oh, well who are these darling things?” she cooed as the boys peaked in around his legs.

Shanks opened the door further and led the boys into the bar. “Shakky, these are my boys. The Red Devils, Doc, Firecracker, Shade, and Anchor. Law, Ace, Sabo, Luffy, this is Shakky. Owner of this lovely establishment and wife of the man we are looking for.”

Shakky looked over the four boys she had read about. Doc, Law, stood in a typical teenager's slouch, hands tucked into the pockets of his dark pants. His dark red hair was mussed, as though he had been wearing a hat recently and he had his chin tucked into the black feathered collar of the jacket he wore. If Shakky couldn’t see the way his golden eye jumped around the bar, assessing exits if she had to guess, she’s say he was completely uninterested.

Ace was the next one her eyes landed on. In the complete opposite stance from the oldest, he stood with his hands laced behind his head, he looked completely confident and bored by what he saw. Shakky could tell it was bravado, she had seen too many people oozing false confidence to be fooled by the child, but she appreciated the attempt. His hair was just long enough to show the curls in it, it gave him a bit of charm, Shakky thought, and showed how his face was losing the last of the baby fat that stuck to his cheeks. The way he tapped the toe of his combat boots made the belts hanging off his dark shorts jingle. He did seem to take solace in how the eldest stood just slightly at his back. When Ace’s silver eyes met hers, the fire she saw behind them, even through the nerves, told her why they called the boy Firecracker.

If it wasn’t for the fact that Shanks was presenting his children to her, her eyes would have slipped right over Sabo. Everything about how he stood there was a testament to how this was a purposeful act. His red hair, longer and just a little less curly than Ace’s, laid flat and well groomed against his head, though Shakky could see just a hint of blond at the roots. His blue shirt and gray pants were nondescript, there was nothing about his appearance that was enough to be memorable. Even his Haki was wrapped so tightly around himself that Shakky had a hard time getting a read on it. If this is how she felt looking at the boy she knew was there, she understood why they called him Shade, and from the look in his dark eyes, he knew it.

Then her eyes finally flipped to the last one. Where everything about Sabo was meant for eyes to slide right off of him, Luffy drew the eye like a sunrise. From the loud clothes, bright red shirt with ‘brat’ written in yellow lettering and yellow shorts, to the huge smile on his face. Luffy stood at the front of the V that made up the younger three, not an ounce of false confidence in his little body as he grinned at her. 

Then her eyes slid up to the man behind them all. She had known Shanks briefly during his time as a cabin boy under her husband, had seen the mess they all had become after Roger’s death. The last time she had seen the young man, he was nearly blackout drunk with a chip on his shoulder and darkness in his heart. When Rayleigh had tried to reach out to the boy he had helped raise, he was met with harsh words and a clash of Haki so intense it rattled the bottles on the shelves before they both left. 

She eyed the man that stood before her now, and what she saw softened her smile further. The man before her was not the Akagami no Shanks she read about in the papers, nor was he Red, the lost and angry former cabin boy. No, here stood Shanks. A man who had fought to be where he was, but seemed to have lessened the weight of grief and regret that clung to his shoulders. Shakky was sure it was mostly due to these four children with him by the way he watched them. A proud smile that looked so much like her husbands, so much like their captains.

“Well, any family of Shanks is welcome here. Come in, come in, make yourselves comfortable,” Shakky waved them in. 

Luffy bounded in, straight over to sit in front of Shakky at the bar, while the others followed at a slower pace. Law and Sabo moving over to sit on the padded bench in the corner, where they could keep an eye on both doors, Shakky noticed, while Ace stuck to Shanks’ side.

“Dad said that you used to be a pirate! Is that true?” Luffy asked, nearly bouncing in his seat.

“It was,” Shakky responded, still smiling. Years of practice the only thing that kept her surprise off of her face at Shanks being called ‘dad’ and not just allowing it, but almost preening under it. 

“Whoa,” Luffy whispered, stars in his eyes. “Will you tell us about it?”

Shakky laughed. “I would love to, dear one, but perhaps later. It looks like your father is here for a reason.”

“I can’t hide anything from you, can I?” Shanks chuckled.

Shakky just smiled. “Ray took a coating job this morning, he should be back shortly. Until then, why don’t you tell me about your adventures?” Shakky couldn't stop the true smile from breaking free as the four children soaked in the attention of a new adult who actually listened to them. Though Law was quiet and sullen seeming, though he was quick to open up when asked about the specific medicine he was studying. Sabo was quick to tell her about the research he was doing on the government and places around the world. Luffy talked about sailing and bugs and adventures, voice and Haki so bright Shakky felt like she was basking in it. Ace was the only one who didn’t seem to have much to say, but the way he nervously played with the hem of his shirt told Shakky that whatever reason Shanks had to find his former first mate involved him, at least a little. 

Before Shakky could start trying to cajole the freckled redhead into another conversation, the door opened.

0808

Rayleigh froze when he opened the door to the bar. He knew there were a few people in there, could feel four unfamiliar Haki signatures and one that felt familiar but he couldn’t quite place. Now that he could see them, he almost wished he had taken a moment to prepare. He saw the four Red Devils that his son had picked up, all without their masks, and their captain at his wife’s bar.

“Welcome home, Ray. I hope you don’t mind, but I invited our guests to stay for the evening,” Shakky greeted him. Rayleigh could see the mischief in her smile.

“Of course,” Rayleigh just said. His smile was just slightly too sharp as he looked at the group. 

He hadn’t seen Red– Shanks – in many many years. After their last disastrous meeting, Shanks had the Red Force permanently coated so he wouldn’t have to stop in Sabaody again and Rayleigh had honestly believed he would never speak to the boy, always a boy to him, again. And yet here he was, sitting in Shakky’s bar with four literal children with him.

Rayleigh just raised an eyebrow as one of the boys stalked his way over to him, Firecracker, if Rayleigh was remembering the bounty poster correctly.

“You’re Silvers Rayleigh, right?” He asked. The boy barely came up to his hip.

“I am,” Rayleigh confirmed.

“My name is,” and the boy stopped, looking over his shoulder at Shanks. Shanks just gave him a smile and a small nod and Rayleigh had a hard time believing that this was the same brat he helped raise, the same brat he saw all those years ago.

With the nod from Shanks, the kid stood taller, his shoulders squared and he raised his chin. “Silvers Rayleigh, my name is Gol D. Ace.”

Rayleigh’s other brow rose into his hairline as he crouched in front of the boy to take him in easier. “And who was your mother?” He asked, he needed to be sure. He didn’t think Shanks would fuck with him like this, but he had to know. 

“Mom was the Red Flower of the South, Portgas D. Rouge. She gave her life to keep me from being born for an extra year, then she gave me to Garp, Luffy’s Gramps, to raise me, and now,” the boy’s–Ace’s–voice trailed off.

Rayleigh looked into Ace’s silver eyes, and then over to meet Shanks, who just nodded, eyes sad. 

Rayleigh looked back at Ace and finally took in the face in front of him. The bright silver eyes, like his captain, the smattering of freckles that was all Rouge. Even his nose had been broken and set in the same way Roger’s had when they were young. So in awe of this boy in front of him, it took him a moment to notice that Ace’s shaking hands were clenched into fists tight enough to draw blood.

“Ace, it is very nice to meet you, nephew,” Rayleigh murmured.

If Rayleigh was startled by the way Ace sniffled and threw his arms around the older man’s neck, he didn’t show it. Just wrapped Ace into a hug, for just a moment he thought he could hear his friend’s laugh echo around him.

With the act of acceptance, Rayleigh could feel the tension he hadn’t even noticed bleed out of the air. He glanced up to see the eldest boy close his hand, a soft flicker of blue going out at the action. The youngest was wrapped around Shanks' back and assessed Rayleigh with dark brown eyes. Rayleigh only noticed the last one because of Shanks’ hand on his shoulder, but Rayleigh couldn’t tell if the hand was for support or to keep the boy in place. 

“Well Shakky,” Rayleigh said once Ace had released him, “I think family coming together is a pretty good reason to celebrate, don’t you?”

A couple hours later and Rayleigh couldn’t wipe the genuine smile off his face, and he could tell Shakky felt the same, as he watched the family.

Law looked far too smug as he held a tankard of ale, while Shanks argued with Ace and Sabo.

“Law is 16 now, you are both 12. Give it a few more years, then we can discuss you drinking,” Shanks scolded. 

Rayleigh smirked, opening his mouth to inform Shanks that he remembered him and Blue breaking into his liquor stash when they were 13, but ended up just laughing as Shanks glared at him. 

“I don’t know why you want that stuff anyways, it’s gross,” Luffy chimed in, sticking his tongue out.

“It’s the principle of the matter, Luffy!” Sabo argued while Ace just nodded. 

This just led the three of them into a bickering match that Law got pulled into. After a few moments the bickering turned into shoves, which turned into punches, which ended up in the ASL trio tumbling around on the ground in a brawl while Law lazily brought a Room to life and started switching body parts around.

“Law, don’t do anything you can’t undo,” Shanks sighed.

“Yes, Dad ,” Law sighed, eyes rolling. 

“You know,” Rayleigh started quietly, figuring now would be a good time to say this while the kids were distracted. “I’ve heard the name Trafalgar Law thrown around a bit at the auction house. Someone in the underground wants the kid pretty bad.”

Shanks sighed and knocked back the last of his whiskey. “I know, we know. But we couldn’t leave him any more than we could leave the other three.”

Rayleigh nodded, remembering how they had felt the same way when they found the little red haired baby, all alone and quietly crying with no hope left that he would be found. The way they felt a second time when a little boy with blue hair who was clearly terrified but still tried to stab Roger when he came too close, who admitted that he had no home to return to and no one looking for him. 

“The dye was a good idea,” Rayleigh nodded, “between that and the age he doesn’t fit the profile.”

“It was Blue’s idea, so were the masks,” Shanks smiled, eyes glinting.

That made the breath catch in Rayleigh’s throat. “So, you’ve seen him recently?” he asked, clearing his throat.  He had heard about the fight the two had in bits and pieces, first from contacts he had around the world, then in the screaming match he himself had had with Shanks a couple years later.

“Yeah, he sends his love. He doesn’t leave the East often, but he promised he’d stop by if he’s ever in the area,” Shanks grinned, looking truly happy. Or at least he was until the voices raised even higher and a body bumped into Shanks’ stool.

Rayleigh laughed as Shanks’ eye twitched in annoyance before he looked at the boys tussling on the ground. 

“Boys, enough,” Shanks said. His tone wasn’t sharp, nor did he raise his voice, but it was certainly said in a way that booked no arguments. 

“Sorry, Dad,” all four kids chimed. Luffy pouted while Ace and Sabo scowled, Law blushed as though embarrassed that he had gotten caught up enough with the younger kids to need a scolding. 

Shanks just sighed again as when the boys went to stand up, Ace immediately dropped back to the floor, fast asleep.

“Did Ace skip his nap today?” Shanks asked, resigned.

“Yep,” Sabo said, popping the ‘p’. 

“Is he…?” Rayleigh started, watching Sabo and Luffy drag Ace over to the cushioned booth while Law just rolled his eyes and sipped his beer.

“Narcoleptic? Yeah. Worse than Captain, if you’d believe that. Law has him medicated, and it helps a lot, but he usually ends up passing out at some point if he doesn’t take a short nap,” Shanks explained.

“Or if he’s super stressed he’ll have a sleep attack,” Luffy chimed in.

Within minutes the three boys were curled up together sleeping quietly in a heap. Shanks just smiled, taking off his cloak and handing it to Law. Law took the cloak and his beer over to the table with the boys, he spread the cloak over the sleeping kids before sitting down beside them. Rayleigh wasn’t sure where Law was keeping it, but suddenly he had a book in one hand while he stroked Luffy’s hair with the other.

“You really love those boys, don’t you Red,” Rayleigh murmured.

“I do, Ray, with my whole heart,” Shanks answered.

“Fatherhood looks good on you,” Rayleigh chuckled. 

They sat quietly for a moment, Shanks running his thumb over the rim of his glass in an unusually nervous gesture.

“I Vowed to them, Ray,” Shanks admitted quietly. His voice as fragile as it was when he was just a kid, coming to Rayleigh ashamed to admit that he was afraid of the world.

“Oh?” Rayleigh knew he only had one shot to get this right, especially after the last time they met.

Shanks nodded. He looked over his shoulder and Rayleigh joined him. Law had also dozed off, Luffy’s head now in his lap and the book left open on the table. Even Shakky had left, leaving the two with their privacy. 

“They gave me life, gave me hope . It was like I didn’t realize I was drowning until Luffy took me by the hand and suddenly I was above water again. It made me understand a lot of what you and Captain and Miss Rouge did. But I still don’t–I still can’t,” Shanks’ voice thick with emotion, broke, and so did Rayleigh.

“Oh, my boy,” Rayleigh breathed. He stood, drink abandoned, to wrap Shanks in a hug. Shanks buried his face in Rayleigh’s chest, just like when he was young. “I am so sorry, Shanks.” 

Shanks fingers dug into Rayleigh’s back, and Rayleigh was sure the way he was clutching the back of Shanks’ head wasn’t comfortable, but he couldn’t bring himself to soften his grip.

“I am so sorry for everything, Shanks,” Rayleigh whispered into Shanks’ hair. “There is nothing I can say or do that would excuse what I did to you. I was so caught up in my own anger and grief, and you were alway so bright , I figured you would be okay. And it was wrong of me, I knew, I knew how afraid you were of being alone. By the time I realized how terribly wrong I was, it was far too late. Then you were here and you were hurting so badly and I didn’t know how to fix it, it wasn’t the same hurts as before. I made a complete fool of myself and hurt you worse by pretending that it was something I could fix.” Rayleigh held Shanks tighter, if possible, as they both shook. “I am so sorry, Son, that I let you forget that you were the pride of the Oro Jackson. You and Blue were the best treasures that the Roger Pirates ever stole. I have kept tabs on every success you both have made and I’ve been so proud of you. And you are doing a great job with those kids, I can tell. Those kids are happy and healthy and loved and they love you. And they’re strong, I can already tell, strong enough to surpass us.”

Shanks chuckled, voice wet, “Luffy says he’s going to be the next King.”

 “I believe it,” Rayleigh laughed as well. 

They stayed there, relishing in the warmth of the other, until the boys started to stir from their impromptu nap. If they noticed the wet patch in Rayleigh’s shirt or the red rims of both of their eyes, they kept it to themselves.

Chapter Text

As much as it made Shanks, and Law, a touch nervous, they decided to stay in Saboady for at least a week. Give the men a break and a chance for shore leave while the boys and Shanks, and Beckman by default, spent some time with Rayleigh and Shakky. Shakky’s Rip-Off Bar wasn’t too busy anyways, mostly it was just a front for Rayleigh to not be noticed, so it wasn’t a big deal that they were closing it down for a few days. Shakky had long ago set up a system to lock away the booze so the boys were free to more or less camp out at night, giving them a small sense of freedom they didn’t usually have on the Force. It also gave Shanks the chance to gift Law his birthday present. Shanks had always done something for the boys for their birthdays, but with Law wanting to leave the next year, and the fact that he would be off the Red Force more than he was on it, meant that Shanks wanted to do something a bit special.

For his fifteenth birthday, they had taken him to get his ears pierced, something he had expressed interest previously, only to have it become a near obsession. Two months after he had gotten his lobes pierced, he disappeared for a few hours during a restock only to show back up with a sharp grin and a second set of hoops in his ears. Shanks had just sighed at the time, figured in the grand scheme of things the earrings wouldn't give up his identity too easily, but he had put his foot down when Law had started talking about tattoos. Not because he had anything against them, solely because it would make him recognizable as Law when he was gone. 

Shanks had been very vocal about how against it he was in front of Law, which made it even more special when he showed the eldest his surprise. 

“Where are we going, Old Man?” Law grumbled, hands shoved deep in his pockets. Shanks had led him around in what felt like circles for the last 45 minutes, and Law was starting to get a touch annoyed. 

“If I told you it wouldn’t be a surprise,” Shanks responded in a sing-song tone that had Law rolling his eyes.

Law just muttered, it was mostly a front, though. He enjoyed getting to spend some alone time with his third father figure, especially without the younger boys. Shanks was quieter when it was just the two of them, he understood Law’s desire for solitude and never made him feel less for it, just casually inviting him along for whatever captain’s duties needed done. Today, though, he had grabbed Law pretty much the moment he walked out of Shakky’s, saying he had a surprise and they were going on an adventure just the two of them. Law had done his duty of teenage protesting about hanging out with his dad , but they both knew it had no heat. Now almost an hour later, Law had to stop his eyes from bugging out of his head when he realized where Shanks had brought him.

“No way,” he breathed, staring at the sign in front of him. The window read The Inked Raven in big bold print, with stereotypical roses and birds around it. 

“Happy birthday, Law,” Shanks grinned.

Law looked at him in disbelief, “You said no.”

Shanks shrugged. “I say a lot of things. Seriously though, you’re going to be out on your own soon. No more dye, no more mask, just you. So I wanted to give you something to remind you that I’m with you always, we all are. It’s whatever you want.”

And so they went in, a smiling woman covered in tattoos, including an octopus tentacle wrapped around her throat, greeted them. 

“Shanks, I heard you were in town. I’m surprised to see you here though,” she greeted.

“Mara,” Shanks grinned back. “I didn’t even know you still had a shop here until the old man mentioned it.”

“I don’t know why you’d care,” she laughed, “I know this isn’t really your style.”

Shanks laughed, “No, not on me at least. But there is no one I’d trust more with a needle and my son has been asking for a tattoo for years. I figured since we were here it would be a good sixteenth birthday present.”

“Sixteen, huh,” Mara turned her attention to Law. “That’s a little young isn’t it?”

“Considering the way you’re talking to him and the state of healing on your arm you got your first one at what? Fourteen?” Law almost grimaced at himself. The backsass came so instinctively that he spoke before he had processed it, not good considering he was wanting this woman to tattoo him.

Luckily for Law, Mara just laughed, actually cackling may have been the better term for the way she threw her head back and laughed.

“Oh I like you kid, you’ve got some fire in you. And I was twelve for the record. Come on back, I’m sure you have ideas and questions,” Mara led them behind a divider.

She had Law take a seat and was kind enough to answer his thousands of questions as well as walk him through what she was doing as she was gathering her supplies. She didn’t even take offense when Law eyed her cautiously as she cleaned her needles.

Before long Law was watching in an almost awed silence as Mara’s needles punctured the skin of his hands, leaving behind the dark block letters he had requested. 

“I’m surprised you wanted your hands done first, kid. It’s generally a pretty painful place to get inked,” she commented quietly, not looking up from Law’s still hands.

“I have a pretty high pain tolerance,” Law answered.

“I can tell,” she chuckled.

For the most part, Law just sat quietly. The needles didn’t hurt too bad, not after everything he had been through, though the vibrations it sent through his bones were harder to get used to. It rattled his nerves in a way that almost sent him into a trance, senses hazy as his world focused in on the A Mara was tracing into his left middle finger. He could hear Shanks and Mara talking, though he couldn’t for the life of him tell anyone what they had talked about.

Three hours later, Law walked out of the Inked Raven feeling almost high with DEATH written across both hands. He also, after talking it over with Shanks and Mara, had a small altered version of the Red Hair jolly roger tattooed on the outside of his right hip. 

Shanks had nearly teared up when Law had brought it up, a way to connect him to the Red Devils once he no longer had to keep up the appearance. With Shanks input they had created a design. The backdrop was a light blue circle around a spade, on the actual skull they had replaced one of the swords with a pipe and on top of the skull, right above Shanks mark, sat a straw hat. An element for each of them, Law’s Room, Ace’s favorite playing card suite, Sabo’s weapon of choice, and Luffy’s hat. The whole thing was no bigger than a coin and sat on the outside of his hip bone, right below where the waistband of his pants sat. It was as close as Law could get to putting his living heart in ink on his body. 

Shanks had stopped them on the way back to pick up a pair of beautiful, leather, fingerless gloves. 

“I can’t promise to stay out of trouble until my hands heal enough to wear these,” Law teased. He had tried to smirk at Shanks, but the giddiness bubbling in his chest made the smile more heartfelt than he intended.

Shanks just smiled back, letting them lapse into silence for the walk. Shortly before they got back to Shakky’s, Shanks stopped him with a hand on Law’s shoulder. Law just looked at him in confusion, watching the expressions change on Shanks’ face until he decided on what to say.

“I’m proud of you, you know?” Shanks finally said.

Law’s breath caught in his throat. “What?” he choked out.

“I just,” Shanks rubbed the back of his neck. “I feel like I haven’t told you that enough. I know I’m not your father, and I’m not Corazon, and I’ve never wanted to replace them in your life, but I do see you as one of my kids. I’ve gotten to see you grow a lot over the last two years, not just like how you shot up like a fucking weed,” Shanks chuckled at himself. “I know we agreed that you were going to be off on your own a lot this year before you’re officially on your own, and I needed you to know that I’m not worried about you. I mean I am, in the way that I worry about you taking care of yourself and sleeping regularly, but I know you’re going to be amazing out there. I’m just, I’m proud of you Law.”

Law lunged forward and hid his face in Shanks’ chest, his hands clenched into the back of his shirt like a lifeline. Shanks rested his cheek on top of Law’s head, holding him back just as tightly. 

“Thank you, Dad,” Law murmured.

“You’re a great kid, Law,” Shanks responded. “You’re going to be a great man and a good captain.”

Law took a deep breath, breathing in the scent of seawater, brine, the faint smell of Beckman’s cherry tobacco cigarettes, and Shanks’ favorite whiskey. “I’m going to miss you,” Law admitted.

“I’m going to miss you too,” Shanks responded, squeezing him. “But you’re taking a piece of us with you, now you just have a physical mark to remind you.”

Law didn’t answer, just took another deep breath to center himself before pulling back. He tried to discreetly wipe his eye, and pretended he succeeded.

“Come on, let’s go make sure your brothers-in-arms didn’t get up to too much trouble while we were gone,”  Shanks said, also pretending he didn’t notice Law’s emotions. 

By the time they returned to the bar Law had managed to collect himself and had regained his usual emotionless expressions. 

“Wow! That’s so cool Torao!” Luffy had one of Law’s hands in his, gently turning it this way and that to get a better look. “Do they mean anything?”

“They mean ‘death’, Luf,” Ace scoffed with an eye roll. Ace and Sabo had his other hand, studying the way the letters were already starting to scab up. 

“They’re to remind everyone that I bring death to whatever I want,” Law answered with a smirk. Luffy frowned, but Law was so caught up in the excitement that he didn’t notice.

“Didn’t that hurt?” Sabo asked.

Law shrugged. “Not really. I mean, it was worse than the one on my hip, but not by much as far as I’m concerned,” he admitted. All three boys stopped.

“The one on your hip?” Ace asked.

Law smirked, he took his hands back and turned his side to them. He pulled the waistband of his pants down enough to show them the coin-sized tattoo.

“It’s us,” Luffy gasped. “It’s for all of us.”

“I want it,” Sabo whispered, awed. “Before we go out I want that too.”

Law’s smirk softened, but he didn’t respond. 

By the end of the day, Law felt like he should be exhausted. Pretty much every member of the Red Hair pirates had stopped by to ooh and ahh over Law’s new ink, and no matter how much he loved them, they were draining. And the sting and ache of the abused skin wore on his energy, it may have been nothing compared to him cutting his own illness out of his body, but it was still something he had to heal from. But no matter how much he should be ready to sleep, curled up in the nest of blankets where the ASL brothers snored softly, his brain just would not shut off. So instead, he sat at the bar, a hooded lantern lit but almost completely closed so the light wouldn’t spread too far. In theory, he was trying to read. He had gotten his hands on a novel he had actually been looking forward to reading but he couldn’t bring himself to focus on it. He kept getting distracted by the block letters when he would go to turn the page, which would lead him down thought paths he was trying to ignore. 

He was so lost in his own head, he didn’t notice Luffy until the boy sat down next to him.

Law cleared his throat, trying not to show how startled he was.

“Sorry, Lu-ya, did I wake you?,” Law flinched at himself. He must be further in his head than he thought if his vocal tic was coming out.

Luffy sat silently for a moment, just observing Law before he spoke. “I’m not stupid, Torao,” he said softly. It wasn’t an accusation or an argument, just a fact.

Law frowned and looked at the boy, seeing him have an oddly serious look on his face. “I know that, Lu, did someone say something?”

Luffy shook his head. “May I?” he asked, holding his hand out for one of Law’s.

Law set his hand in Luffy’s, confusion evident in his face but needing to see what Luffy was so serious about. 

Luffy gently traced the letters with a finger, touch feather light to not cause any pain. The touch was a bit soothing, if Law was being honest, and neither seemed to want to go out of their way to break the moment.

“I think I understand,” Luffy said, breaking the silence.

“Understand what?”

“You told us once,” Luffy started, seemingly on a different topic, “back when you first explained to us what kind of doctor you wanted to be. You said that your dad told you that a surgeon always had to have steady hands, that they trusted you to hold their lives in your hands and you had to respect that trust. I know that you think death follows you, but I also know that that thought is something you keep hidden far away from everyone. So maybe it’s not completely untrue that you did this to be scary, but I think you did it to remind yourself who you are and what is on the line out there.”

Luffy finally looked up and met Law’s eyes and the raw emotion nearly brought Law to tears. Luffy was never one to hide his emotions, he was by far the most emotionally intelligent one of the four of them and he never let anyone around him feel bad about their emotions. Law had heard the other talk about these moments, the ones where Luffy just seemed to look into the heart of the matter. The look that said he saw through every lie you had ever told and dared you to try to believe them. Now Luffy almost forced Law to keep eye contact, dark brown eyes burning, forcing Law to confront his thoughts.

Law let out a harsh breath, “I’m surprised you remembered that.”

Luffy’s eyes softened, “It was important to Torao, of course I remembered it.”

Luffy let go of Law’s hand and chewed on the inside of his lip, like he was trying to decide something.

“Hey now, don’t go acting all shy on me after reading me for filth,” Law chuckled. “What’s on your mind?”

“I’m not shy,” Luffy argued. “I just don’t know how to say it. I’ve never told anyone about it before.”

Law furrowed his brows in confusion. “Well, you have my interest now, so now you have to tell me.”

“You’re going to think I’m stupid,” Luffy complained.

“I already told you, you are not stupid. Just tell me, I promise I’ll keep an open mind,” Law soothed. 

“I see people, sometimes. People that I know are gone. I don’t see them often, sometimes they leave and never come back, sometimes they hang around for a while, they don’t generally talk to me either. But they’re always important to my nakama , so I pay attention to them,” Luffy paused again.

“Luffy, who are you telling me you saw?” Law didn’t want to believe the boy. Wanted to believe that it was an act of Luffy’s overactive imagination, but Luffy had never been able to lie. Not only that, but he would never make up anything about people he saw as important.

Luffy bit his lip again. “I can’t tell you all of them, it’s not fair to the people they came to see, but that day when you first helped me, I think I saw your Cora.”

Law stopped breathing for a moment, just staring at Luffy. Luffy took that as his sign to continue.

“I didn’t realize he wasn’t actually there when I woke up, I was still feeling kinda dizzy and he was sitting on the bed with you. He was huge, bigger than dad, he was wearing a big black feathery cloak and had his makeup done weird.  Like he had an upside down crown under his eye. I asked him if he was your dad and he seemed really surprised I could see him, that’s when I realized he wasn’t there there. He told me he just wanted to make sure you were safe, he asked me some questions about where we were, asked questions about Dad and about Ace Sabo and I. He told me your name, and that you had been running for a long time. I didn’t talk to him after that, but he was with you all the time for a while. He talked to you a lot, I don’t think you heard him, but I think you still listened.”

“What do you mean?” 

Luffy had a small smile on his face as he answered. “You would get scared by something and he would tell you you were safe and you’d relax. One time he was walking in front of you and tripped and you didn’t even look down to step around him.”

Law had to think about that, it had been over two years since Cora had died, had he felt Cora? He could vaguely recall moments during those six months between Law running and him landing on the Red Force. Moments where he maybe felt a hand on his shoulder, or a nudge in one direction or another. He could remember hearing the whisper of Cora’s voice, could remember smelling the light menthol tobacco Cora preferred, but he assumed he was just so deep in his grief that he had imagined it. Law didn’t realize he was crying until he felt a drop land on his hand, right over the ‘E’ on his right hand.

“He left a little after you agreed to stay with us,” Luffy whispered. “That day Gramps showed up, he stood out there with Dad. He seemed really happy about what Dad said. Then after you did your first surgery on yourself, he stopped coming by. I think he could tell that you were safe and happy with us, happy enough that he moved on.”

“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” Law wasn’t sure what his tone was anymore. He wasn’t sure if he was angry or grief stricken, or indifferent.  

Luffy crawled from his seat into Law’s lap, wrapping his arms around his neck and not moving until Law hugged him back.

“Would have wanted to hear it before? Even if you did believe me?” 

Law huffed out a breath and just held Luffy for a bit. He could feel Luffy’s sunshine Haki wrap around him, love and safety bold where it touched Law. Law could only respond with his own Hiki, the dark feathered wings he envisioned when they first training with it wrapped around Luffy the same way Cora’s coat enveloped him when he was younger. He could only hope Luffy felt the same sense of safety in Law’s feathers as Law felt wrapped in Cora’s. 

After a few more minutes of silence, Law let out a long harsh breath. He was truly exhausted now and he could tell Luffy was half asleep in his arms. Law twisted in his seat to extinguish the lanturn before standing up, Luffy whining slightly.

“Come on, Sunflower, let’s get some sleep,” Law murmured.

“Sunflower?” Luffy parroted and Law flinched. “I like it.” 

Law just smiled and laid down in the pile of blankets. Like magnets, the other two boys shifted in their sleep, allowing Law to join the puppy pile, where he fell asleep easily.

When Shanks popped his head in to check on them he couldn’t help but smile. Ace was asleep on one end, flat on his back with his arms spread wide. Sabo was curled into Luffy’s back while Luffy had his face buried in Law’s chest. Law had one arm under his head and the other stretched across the boys, hand resting on Ace’s stomach, while his face was hidden in Luffy’s curls. It was an adorable sight and he wished he had a camera. Instead he just closed the door as quietly as he had opened it, letting the boys sleep. 

0808

A few days after Law got his tattoos, the six of them were out and about, just doing some shopping. Luffy was riding on Beckman’s shoulders, giggling and pointing out everything that looked fun. Ace and Sabo were bickering as usual, occasionally hip checking each other just to be annoying while Shanks just smiled fondly, and Law followed behind a couple steps, tattooed hands shoved in his hoodie pocket. 

They hadn't intended on going by the bounty board, but their aimless wandering led them in that direction anyways. As soon as Luffy caught sight of the board he was demanding to see it.

“Anchor, you already know you have a bounty, why do you need to see them now?” Beckman asked.

“What if they got updated, Beck?” Luffy responded excitedly. “We haven’t gotten a newspaper in ages !”

Shanks just shrugged when Beckman looked to his partner for direction. “Never hurts to see what’s out there.”

“Can we?” Sabo asked, looking ahead.

“Go ahead,” Shanks sighed. He laughed as the two took off to the board, followed quickly by Luffy dropping off of Beckman to trail behind. Law just rolled his eyes, but quickened his pace to keep the younger three in his sights.

They were in a slightly more lawless area, enough so that the sight of the six of them in front of the bounty board was completely ignored as the kids looked at their own posters with stars in their eyes. 

All four of them had a bounty, which Shanks felt was inevitable with the chaos they brought, no matter how much he had wanted to avoid it. They weren’t huge bounties, but still enough to get them noticed. To Shanks’ surprise, they actually had been updated since the last time they saw their own posters. 

All four were hung up together, as they should be, Shanks thought. Up first was Red Devil: Doc. Law was obviously mid fight, a dagger in one hand and blood splatter on his face, making it match his mask. He was looking at the camera out of the corner of his eye, other hand turned to flip it the bird. His bounty was listed at 20,000,000, a respectable amount, especially for someone under the age of eighteen. 

Firecracker and Shade were listed side by side, seeming like they couldn’t decide which one was older which the boys found hilarious, their pictures even taken together. 

Red Devil: Firecracker. He was standing back to back with Sabo, back hunched ready to strike, the smile on his face showed far too many teeth to have anything but bloodlust behind it and even in the picture his eyes gleamed in feral joy. With a knife in both hands and a pistol hanging at his waist he looked just barely more civilized than the jungle boy he was. 

Red Devil: Shade was just beside it. It was the opposite side of Ace’s picture, Sabo standing straight up, pipe mid twirl. Half of his face was hidden in shadow, leaving one eye and the edge of a smirk visible. At a glance, he had the posturing and arrogance of the noble he was raised to be, until one noticed the red that soaked into the once white shirt he wore.

Both boys had a bounty of 10,000,000.

Finally, Red Devil: Anchor. Luffy had a huge grin on his face, eyes scrunched up in joy, giving the photographer a peace sign. It would have looked like a normal picture of a happy boy, if it weren’t for the dagger at his hip and the fallen man behind him. Or from the blood coating his teeth and clothes. The bounty listed at the bottom said 5,000,000.

Shanks whistled, “An increase for all of you, not too shabby.” He smiled and ruffled Ace’s hair as the boy grinned at him.

“Mine is still so low,” Luffy pouted.

“It’s just because you’re so young,” Beckman soothed. He picked Luffy up and put him back on his shoulders, “Once you’re out on your own I’m sure yours will shoot up too.”

Luffy giggled, starting to say something else, until something caught his eye. Now that he was up so much higher, he was able to see some of the posters he hadn’t earlier. An old one, half hidden behind a newer one of Marco the Phoenix, caught his eye. He reached forward and plucked them both off the board, letting the new one flutter down into Ace’s hands, not that he would ever admit that he caught and kept it, before turning it to Shanks. 

“She looks my age, what did she do that she has such a high bounty?” Most people would have thought there was a hint of a whine in Luffy’s voice, feeling left behind, but his family knew better. They had taught Luffy about the bounty system, had long talks about why certain people were higher than others due to their deeds. For this girl that looked to be Luffy’s age to have a bounty of 79,000,000 she either had to be horrible, or the government was hunting her for a very specific reason.

Shanks had to take a deep breath when he saw the bounty Luffy was showing him, the picture of an eight-year-old Nico Robin staring back at him. 

“I can’t talk about it Anchor,” Shanks said sadly.

“But Dad–”

“Not here, not now,” a tint of Chief slipped into his voice, a command.

Luffy clutched Nico Robin’s poster close to his chest while the other three banded together.

“Anchor, you know there are some things that we can’t talk about in the open, some things that can be very dangerous if other people hear,” Beckman said, squeezing Luffy’s ankle.

“And this is one of those times, isn’t it?” Sabo guessed.

Shanks took another breath, “I promise I will tell you, but not right now.”

Luffy met Shanks eyes for a brief moment, before he nodded. He folded up the page and twisted so he could put it in his pocket, a move that told Shanks he wasn’t going to be able to avoid this conversation.

They continued on with their wandering, though with much less enthusiasm than before. 

0808

Later that evening, after the dinner dishes had been put away, Luffy spread the bounty poster out on the table. He gave Shanks a look that said he wasn’t going to give in and the other boys sat around him. 

Shanks sighed, knocking back the last of his whiskey before pouring himself another glass and handing the bottle to Shakky. He sat down and pulled the photo of Nico Robin closer.

“I don’t know the full details, but I can tell you what I do know,” Shanks said. “There was an island in the West called Ohara. It was home to a ton of intellectuals, scholars and the like. All they wanted to do was learn, they wanted to know about everything . Well, the World Government doesn’t want us to know certain things. They must have discovered something the government really didn’t want them to know, or they had known for a while and the government finally did something about it,” Shanks stopped for a moment to breathe.

“Dad,” Sabo’s eyes were wide, “you said there was an island.”

“Yeah,” Shanks dropped his head into his hand for a moment. “Eleven years ago there was a buster call.” Law went still.

“Torao, what does that mean,” Luffy asked, slightly panicked at the way Law froze.

Law swallowed thickly. “A buster call is the marines ‘absolute justice,’” he started. “They call in a fleet of battleships and five vice admirals and they bomb the island. No one survives.”

“What?” Sabo asked sharply.

Law just nodded. He reached over and stole Shanks’ drink, the man not moving to stop him as Law downed it. “I heard some soldiers talking about it on Flevance. Obviously they decided we were all dying anyways and it wasn’t worth it.”

“No one is supposed to survive,” Shanks agreed, “but Nico Robin did. And now they’re hunting her. Her only crime is existing.” Shanks looked at Ace. “And she holds the weight of a dead island on her back.” Law wouldn’t meet Shanks’ eyes. 

“That’s,” all eyes were on Luffy now. Luffy whose hands were shaking in rage and eyes pooling with tears. “That’s so cruel. She hasn’t done anything wrong! At least we’re fighting people! She just didn’t die when the government told her to!” Luffy had huge tears streaming down his face. “She must be so lonely.”

“Yeah, Lu, I bet she is,” Ace murmured, wrapping an arm around him. 

“Do you think,” Luffy sniffled, “if I find her she might join my crew? Maybe I could help her be less lonely, like you do for me.”

“Lu,” Law started, looking unsure.

“I’m sure if anyone could, it would be you, Luffy,” Shanks said.

“Yeah, Sunbeam,” Sabo grinned, though Shanks could still see the anger behind it. “No one can really be lonely with you around.”

Luffy giggled as Ace ruffled his hair. He rubbed his arm over his eyes, wiping away the tears, before looking at Shanks, determination burning in his eyes. Sabo had a similar fire, and Shanks was sure he knew where that was going to go. Shanks smiled gently, these boys and their huge hearts, he just hoped it wouldn’t get them hurt someday.

Chapter Text

The Red Hair pirates didn’t claim many territories, it just wasn’t something Shanks was that interested in. His crew stayed small enough that it didn’t generally make sense to send people out to check on islands all over the Blues, nor did they have enough allied crews to keep track of things. He did have a few officially protected islands, though, as well as several ‘unofficial’ that he kept tabs on, as well as a decent number of allies. So when one called, it wasn’t all that much of a surprise, what was a surprise was how he dealt with it.

Law had been sitting in the infirmary, he had three books and two of his own journals open in front of him. He had been looking into how Devil Fruits affected healing factors, he noticed how he and Luffy seemed to heal faster than the others. He felt like he was on the edge of a breakthrough that was just out of reach. He had been at this for days, his hair was a tangled greasy mess from running his fingers through it, and the ASL trio had been firmly avoiding the area after they had been dismembered several times. 

“Hey, Doc?” Lime Juice cautiously leaned his head around the door frame.

“What?” Law snarled, Room flickering to life.

“Chief’s needing to see you in the comms room,” Lime said before making a very tactical retreat.

It only took Law a moment to parse together what he crewmate had said. He sighed and shambled his notes back onto the shelf, realizing that Lime had specifically said ‘Doc’ and ‘Chief’. Shanks had also been avoiding the infirmary, recognizing the research rabbit hole as something he didn’t want to get into. 

Law debated trying to make himself look more presentable as he stepped out onto the deck. He knew his hair was greasy on top of being knotted, this hyperfixation had left him no room to shower and only minimal room for eating and sleeping. He settled for just trying to comb through his hair with his fingers as he paused at the door. He figured Shanks had seen him in worse shape.

He rapped his knuckles on the door before entering. “You wanted to see me, Chief?” Law questioned. He winced as he realized how rough his voice sounded.

 Shanks gave Law a look over, raising his eyebrow when Law refused to meet his eye, flushing slightly. 

“I have a mission for you,” Shanks said, “if you’re feeling up for it.”

“A mission, Chief?” Law asked. He must have fallen asleep at his desk, there’s no way he was being offered something.

Shanks just hummed and gestured for Law to sit. “The first mate of the Shadow Moon pirates, one of our allies, contacted us. They’re having some issues with a group harassing one of their territories and asked for backup. They’re going to meet up with us tomorrow, I’m planning on sending a couple members with them, mostly as a way to remind people that they’re under our flag.” Shanks leaned forward, “I want you to go with them.”

“Chief, I–” Law wasn’t sure how to respond.

“We talked about it before, you need a chance to branch out a little while still being safe. You won’t be going by yourself, I’ll be sending a couple members of the lower crew too, but I want you to lead them. You don’t have to, but I think it will be a good opportunity for you,” Shanks explained.

“Are you sure,” Law took a sharp breath, “are you sure I’m ready for that?” Law wished his voice didn’t sound as small as it did, but he was acutely aware of how he currently looked. He had gotten so lost in a fixation that he hadn’t eaten, slept, or bathed in days and yet Shanks was trusting him with something?

“Hey,” Shanks said quietly, making Law look at him. “Are you asking your captain or your dad?”

Law chewed on his lip for a moment. “Dad?” Law said, voice breaking.

“Oh, Law,” Shanks breathed. He stood and moved around the table to wrap Law in a hug, Law hiding his face in Shanks’ shirt. “What’s going on in your head?” he asked after a few moments. 

Law barked out a laugh. “Look at me,” Law said, pulling away. “I’m a fucking mess and you’re telling me you think Iead this. I’m just going to embarrass you!”

Law dug his hands into his hair and pulled at it, closing his eyes tightly.

“Law,” Shanks murmured. He crouched down and very gently pulled one of Law’s hands out of his hair, holding it loosely. “Law, look at me.” 

Shanks waited a few seconds, waiting until Law opened his eyes. He waited with a patience he had never been known for, waiting for Law to get the courage to meet his eyes again. It took a few minutes, with Shanks kneeling in front of his eldest son, gently rubbing the palm of his hand, before Law could pull himself together.

“Law, I have gone weeks where I have refused to speak to anyone besides Beckman. There have been weeks where I got so wrapped up in my own head I threatened and screamed at the entire crew. There have been times I let my past catch up to me so badly that I did nothing but drink until I was drunk enough to pass out for days . I can be an absolute terror to be around, and yet my crew still trusts me. I can trust myself because I know it’s not just me. I know when I get like that, Beckman can pick up my slack. The crew knows that I value them above everything and I know they support me. You are not alone, Trafalgar Law,” Shanks’ eyes never left Law’s. 

Law’s breath hitched and he dug the heel of his hands into his eyes, trying to ward off the tears. Shanks just pulled him back into his chest.

“Someday, you will have a crew that understands and supports you. They’ll know that you get so wrapped up in your thoughts that you lose track of everything, and they will understand. A captain may be the backbone of a crew, but without the muscles, sinew, and nerves, it’s just a bone,” Shanks said softly. 

Law laughed, a little wetly, and wrapped his arms around Shanks. They sat together for a little while, Shanks very gently running his fingers through Law’s hair, being careful not to hit any snags, while he waited for Law to decide. Law took another deep breath and pulled back, pulling himself to his full height.

“You really think I’m up for it, Chief?” he asked.

Shanks beamed. “Like I said, it’s mostly a political move. Have a couple Red Hairs with them to remind people that I still hold sway. What’s a bigger statement than me sending my eldest son? You’re high profile enough that anyone who knows anything knows who you are, and I trust you enough that you can handle it if anything goes wrong. You’re ready to start getting out there, and I need to stop holding you back.”

Law met Shanks’ eyes, the fire behind them familiar and strong as Law nodded.

“You can count on me, Chief,” Law promised.

“I know I can,” Shanks assured. “Go take a bath and get some rest, we have a little while before we meet up.”

Law winced at the reminder and nodded. He stood and stretched and this time Shanks winced as Law’s back popped several times in succession. 

“Alright, alright,” Law sighed. “I’m going.”

Now that Law was up and moving, heading to his room, the exhaustion washed over him. He opened the door to the room he shared with the boys a little too roughly and he grimaced when all three boys turned to look at him.

He was given the option, over a year ago, to move into a single room. For privacy, Beckman had said, completely non judgemental, or just to get away from the constant energy. But Law really didn’t mind, he spent most of his time in the infirmary anyways. He also just didn’t want to be alone, if he was being honest. It wasn’t uncommon to find the four kids bunking together in any combinations of duos, nightmares didn’t feel so syrupy when you had someone with you to remind you where you were, and nightmares were commonplace in this room.

“Sorry,” Law murmured, closing the door gently behind him. 

“Are you done with your research, Torao?” Luffy asked. The tone was curious, not accusatory, and yet it still made Law flinch a little.

“No,” Law answered honestly. “But I’m not going to get any closer going like I was, and Chief has a job for me, so it’s time to set it aside.” Law grabbed a pair of sweatpants and a ratty t-shirt from his dresser. “I’m going to shower and then sleep,” he announced before carefully opening the door and walking back out.

When Law came back into the room, hair damp and feeling slightly more human, he was greeted by Ace standing defiantly at the door. Law just raised his eyebrow, he was expecting Ace to lash out, expected him to be just as much of a dick to Law as Law had been to them over the last few days. 

Instead, Ace bullied his way into giving Law a hug. It was firm and warm and Law couldn’t help but sink into it, wrapping his arms around the younger boy. Law couldn’t help but be grateful that Ace and Sabo hadn’t caught up with him in height, Law still able to duck his face into Ace’s hair.

“I’m sorry,” Law murmured, “to all three of you. I’m sorry I was such a dick.” 

Law didn’t apologize often, not verbally at least, but it didn’t seem to throw the boys off in the slightest.

“We know what you’re like, Torao, we don’t take it personally,” Sabo smiled. “Come on, we got the nest set up.” 

Law snorted at the term before looking in the corner of the room, where sure enough, every spare mat, blanket, and pillow had been piled together. Ace released Law so the oldest boy could go over and flop backwards into the pile, the breath getting knocked out of him when Luffy landed on his stomach when he jumped in. Law grumbled as he grabbed the rubber boy around the waist and manhandled him into a better cuddling position, Luffy giggling the whole time. Once Law and Luffy were settled, the other two joined. Law let out a sigh as he felt his muscles finally relax as Sabo pulled one of the blankets over the group.

“You’re going away, aren’t you?” Luffy said quietly after they settled in.

“Yeah,” Law breathed. “I’ll be going with the Shadow Moons for a little while, help them with a situation and remind everyone that they’re Red Hair allies.”

“At least you won’t make stupid reckless choices,” Ace muttered. Law knew them well enough to read the ‘You’ll be careful, right?’ in between the lines.

“Yeah, unlike you,” Law knew Ace would understand that as ‘Of course, you will too, right?’.

Law heard Sabo huff in annoyance, more than likely at the two boys who refused to say what they meant, and smiled. He was going to take advantage of the last time he could sleep comfortably and safely for who knows how long.

0808

When Law woke with a stiff neck, the kind from sleeping too deeply for too long, and a mild headache. The next thing he registered was the sun streaming in through the porthole, followed by the fact that he was alone. He stood and stretched with a groan, allowing his Observation to flare up and reach out. He let himself register the crew as his wings stretched over the deck, smiling as those who had Haki flared back up to greet him. He could sense a few unfamiliar signatures, though, and that was enough to have him reaching for his mask before he even bothered with a fresh set of clothes. The thin wire latching system wrapped snugly around his ears and clicking the mask firmly into place felt just as much like putting on armor as getting dressed did. 

Finally, Law stepped out onto the deck, squinting in the sunlight. He tried to mentally figure out how long he had crashed for, but he couldn’t remember what time it was when he fell asleep. It had been at least a day, he figured. 

His Observation Haki, and years of practice honestly, was the only reason he didn’t get knocked over by the nine-year-old projectile that was launched into him.

“Torao!” Luffy grinned. 

“Anchor,” Law greeted. Law always thought it was a bit sad that the mask covered up the way Luffy’s eyes crinkled when he grinned like that. 

“I was actually on my way to wake you up!” Luffy said, crawling up Law’s legs until Law pulled him into a piggy back ride. “Chief said the Moons are here and you needed to eat before introductions.”

Law just hummed and altered his course from the war room to the mess hall. Lucky, Seas bless him, already had a meal ready for him and a snack for Luffy when Law walked in. 

“Lucky, have I ever told you that you were my favorite?” Law teased, stomach growling as he picked up the bowl of rice.

“Don’t let Hongo hear you say that, or your father for that matter,” Lucky laughed. “I already filled them in on your dietary restrictions, they said it wouldn’t be any issue, but I’m going to pack you up some stuff that won’t go bad, just in case.”

This kind of care was still something that was hard for Law to get used to. Not just the teasing reminder that he had people who adored him, but making sure people were aware of his intolerances and even going so far as to make sure to pack him food that he could eat.

Law cleared his throat. “Thank you,” he said simply, shoving a mouthful of stir-fried vegetables in his mouth to avoid having to talk any more.

It took until Law was nearly finished with his meal to realize that Luffy had been silent the whole time. Law reached his Haki out to brush against Luffy, the silent question apparent in his Haki and gaze.

Luffy just smiled at him, though it wasn’t his big happy grin, and flared his own Haki out.

Law frowned, turning in his seat to face the youngest. 

“Anchor, Sunflower, you know I’m not leaving forever, right?” Law asked gently.

“Maybe not this time, but you’re going to be leaving soon. You’ve got adventures you have to go on,” Luffy pouted. “Just promise you won’t forget me?”

Law sighed and pulled his leg to the other side so he was straddling the bench. He reached over and pulled at Luffy’s necklace string, pulling the little seastone charm away from his skin, before Law pulled at Luffy’s cheek. Luffy made an offended squawking noise before he started giggling when Law let the rubber skin snap back into place.

“As if I could ever forget you, idiot,” Law sighed. “Even after I actually leave, I’ll still keep in touch. And I’ll always have a piece of you with me, right?” Law tapped his hip, right over his tattoo.

That finally made Luffy smile. He jumped into Law’s arms again, giggling up a storm, as Law just sighed and stood. Overly used to juggling around the rubber boy, Law dug his gloves out of his pockets and pulled them on as he came back out on deck. 

“Oi! Anchor! Come on, we’ve got shit to do!” Ace called.

Luffy looked between Ace and Law for a moment.

“Go,” Law said. “I’ll find you before I leave, promise.”

Luffy grinned and took off towards his brothers with a loud laugh. A thump sounding when Luffy inevitably knocked one of them to the ground with him in his enthusiasm. Law scoffed and rolled his eyes, pretending he wasn’t going to miss that while he was gone. 

Law came up to the war room as two figures were stepping out. Shanks seemed at ease, all bright smiles and teasing words, but Law could see that he was on guard in his even steps and the way he wore his cloak to hide his lack of an arm. The woman he was with was taller than Law but shorter than Shanks, probably in her late 20’s if Law had to guess, with pin straight blonde hair and dark blue eyes. She had a scimitar at her waist and a pistol in a thigh holster. 

“Chief,” Law greeted, slotting easily into his usual place on Shanks’ right side.

“Ah, Doc,” Shanks smiled at him. “I was worried Anchor got lost trying to find you.” His tone was teasing but Law understood the question, did he actually have to wake you? Are you okay? Law wondered when he got so good at reading these people that he could have an entirely separate conversation than what was actually being said. 

“Lucky Roux stopped me, wanted to have a word before I found you.” I’m fine, I was awake and I ate something.

“Good, good. Doc, this is Cordya, captain of the Shadow Moon pirates. Coryda, this is my eldest son, Doc,” Shanks introduced. 

Law let himself slouch a little as the other captain eyed him up. “A pleasure,” he said simply, inclining his head slightly. He could tell that she was sizing him up, trying to determine if his reputation was deserved. 

“The pleasure is mine,” she responded, seemingly undecided in her survey. 

Law gave her a smile that showed just a few too many teeth to be seen as just polite.

“So the plan is,” Shanks interrupted their staredown purposely and Law turned to give his captain his full attention. “You, Tashi, and Mariah will be going with Cordya and her crew to Cho Island. There are a couple rookies causing issues a little too close for comfort and they need to be taken down a peg or two. You will be there as my representative and to provide backup as needed. Understood?” 

“Understood, Chief,” Law nodded. “Have the others already been told or do they need to be rounded up?”

“They should be on their way up. The boys are gathering your things for the trip as well,” Shanks answered.

Law grimaced, “When you say ‘boys’....”

Shanks laughed, “I mean Shade.”

Law took a deep breath and straightened up. He turned back to Cordya, who seemed unoffended at Law brushing her off, and offered his hand. “I look forward to working with you, Captain Cordya,” Law said genuinely.

The woman smiled, still a tad sharp but relaxing. “Likewise, Doc,” she took his hand. 

“I’ll have them ready to go in the next hour,” Shanks said. “Come on, Doc, I have a few things for you before you go.”

Shanks and the other captain nodded at each other before going in separate directions, Cordya back to her ship and Shanks leading Law to the captain’s quarters. 

Beckman was waiting for them when they got there, his face was as stern as always, but his eyes shone with pride. “You handled yourself very well with her,” he commented.

Law relaxed a fraction. “I was worried I went a bit too far,” he admitted.

“Nah,” Shanks waved him off, moving to stand in front of him. “You’re in a place of power over her, despite your age, it’s not bad to remind her of that.”

Law sighed, “I hate pirate politics.”

“Yeah, but they can be fun sometimes,” Shanks laughed. “Now come here, I really do have something for you and a couple reminders.”

Law furrowed his brow but let himself be led to sit at the table with Beckman. He was surprised when Beckman grabbed his hand, flipping it open so Shanks could deposit a baby Den Den Mushi in his hand.

“I meant what I said,” Shanks said, “you are my representative and there for a little backup. I trust you can handle yourself if something goes wrong, but if shit goes sideways I want you to contact me immediately , you understand?”

“I–,” Law swallowed, “I understand.”

Just as Shanks nodded, the door opened and the boys walked in. Ace was carrying a backpack, Sabo had a satchel, both full of something, and Luffy was carrying…something. I was long, taller than Luffy was, and wrapped in a blanket. 

“Your clothes,” Ace said, handing him the backpack.

“Your food,” Sabo continued, handing his bag to Law in a way that it didn’t pass the other boys.

“And a gift!” Luffy chirped, setting his package on the table. 

Law raised his eyebrow. He tucked the bag of rations into his backpack and reached out to the gift. “What’s the occasion?” he asked, half teasing, half uncertain.

“Because we love you, idiot,” Ace answered, crossing his arms. “Just open it.”

For half a moment, Law considered being a brat and refusing, or taking his time, but he was truly just as impatient as the rest of them when it came down to it.

Law gasped as the blanket fell away to reveal the sword. The material around the crossguard looked fuzzy and soft to the touch and the blade gleamed when he unsheathed it slightly. 

“It’s beautiful,” Law breathed.

“It’s cursed,” Ace said smugly.

“Her name is Kikoku,” Luffy added. 

“Kikoku,” Law murmured and the blade almost seemed to thrum in his hold. “How long have you been hiding this?”

“Not long,” Sabo admitted. “We found it at the last island. We knew you were going to be leaving soon, so the three of us wanted to get you something.”

“You bought this?” Law asked, shocked. They were given a bit of an ‘allowance’ at every island, and they were always told they could keep what treasure they found, or stole, on their own, but this must have cost a small fortune. 

“Well, if you want to get technical, Dad paid for it because the guy wouldn’t let kids buy a weapon,” Sabo rolled his eyes.

“But we’re the ones who saved up for it,” Luffy continued, proudly.

“You like it, don’t you?” Ace’s uncertain tone is what finally kicked Law into gear.

Law moved around the table in quick steps, pulling Ace and Sabo into a hug. 

“Thank you,” he whispered, smiling when Luffy jumped on his back, using his rubber arms to wrap around all of them. “I love it, thank you for thinking of me.”

An hour later saw Law standing on the deck of an unfamiliar ship, surrounded by people he didn’t know, watching the ALS trio wave to him from the deck of the Red Force. He had a backpack full of clothes, supplies, and food, slung over his left shoulder while he rested Kikoku’s hilt on his left. He knew he would be back in a few weeks, knew this was a temporary separation, but he couldn’t help but think that soon, soon he would be leaving the Red Force permanently. 

Chapter Text

Law had been on the Moon Beam for two days now. He had been introduced to the majority of the crew right after they separated from the Red Force and while they seemed nice enough, Law could feel the purposeful distance everyone kept between them. The cook, a man by the name of Killian, thankfully had experience with gluten intolerance and was more than happy to accommodate Law. That alone made Law feel a lot safer on the allied pirate’s ship.

Law was sitting on the floorboards on the deck, back resting against the foremast and Kikoku against his shoulder. He breathed in the cool night air and watched the waves pass them by, Observation Haki up more out of habit than because he felt it was needed. As such, he didn’t even turn his head when Akira, the first mate, spoke behind him.

“I trust you’re not out here because you’ve found your bunk to be lacking?” he asked, the tone genuine.

Law hummed, still not looking up. He had been given access to a hammock in the men's quarters, as well as a foot locker for his things. “The bunk is fine,” Law assures. “I fear you’ve just found yourself saddled with an insomniac.”

Akira leaned against the mast beside Law. “Your Observation seems to be very well developed, especially for someone your age,” he noted. Law was listening closely for scorn or disrespect, but found none.

“Believe it or not, Anchor has the best grasp of it out of the four of us.” Law turned his head enough that he could see the first mate out of the corner of his eye. “He’s nine.”

“Damn,” he sighed. “You kids sure are something.”

“We are chosen children of Akagami no Shanks. We’ve worked our asses off to be able to stand at his side,” Law said simply, standing up to face the other man.  “Anyways, tell me more about what we’re going into. I know you were the one who contacted Chief anyways and I haven’t had a chance to get any more information.”

“Yeah, sure. So the situation is like this, there is a newer crew, they call themselves the Silver Lions. They’ve been doing hit and runs on an island we cover, burning farms, destroying homes, the usual. We were going to handle it ourselves, but they burned down the clinic on the island with the doctors and patients in it. That was when we decided we needed a bit of backup. We left Anders, our medical officer, there until we handled them and got a new doctor to take up the position,” Law listened to what the first mate had to say, silently tucking away pertinent information as well as watching the man.

Law made the first mate uncomfortable. He could tell in the way that the man rarely let his eyes meet Law’s, in the way he kept glancing over his mask. It wasn’t his age, Law determined, or at least that wasn’t the whole problem. If it were he wouldn’t be so willing to give Law the details. Law wasn’t quite sure if it was the hidden identity that was setting him off kilter, Law had only taken the mask off long enough to wash his face in the morning and only when only the other Red Hairs were around and they were keeping watch. 

Once they had finished going over the rival crew, Law decided the attitude chafed him the wrong way.

“Akira, tell me,” Law said, sounding bored, “what about me unsettles you so badly?”

“I–well, I mean we–”

“You intimidate us, Red Devil,” the first mate’s stammering was cut off by the captain’s voice.

Law still didn’t turn to greet her, nor did he seem surprised that she had joined them.

“I do, do I?” Law hummed.

“Your reputation precedes you and we were shocked by how young you were. The fact that you have so thoroughly hidden your face and name just compounds it,” Cordya explained. “We are all trying to figure out how dangerous you actually are.”

“I see,” he responded, barely holding back a laugh. “Well I do hope you get your answer sooner rather than later.”

And with that, Law stood. He purposefully made the movement as fluid as possible, like a dancer with full control of his every motion, knowing he was being watched. He knew he could take on most of this crew without much issue, especially if he decided to use his Fruit, and he didn’t think it would hurt too much to show the crew that he thought that. 

“Good night, Captain, Akira,” Law waved over his shoulder as he retreated into the men’s bunk room. 

0808

Ace knew it was going to be a rough day when he woke up to the cold, hard, twisting , something in his chest. It made him want to curl up in his bunk and not move, made him consider floating away into nothingness. 

Ace considered staying in bed, letting himself float in the sea of numbness he woke up in. Luffy and Sabo were already out of the room, Ace could still see their masks sitting on the rack though, so he assumed they were at breakfast. 

If he didn’t show up at breakfast, Shanks would come looking for him, Ace thought. And if Shanks thought that Ace wasn’t feeling well, he’d make Hongo come check him over. Hongo was busy enough right now with Law being gone – Law being gone – and while he would come fuss over Ace, Ace couldn’t bring himself to be a burden to his family.

Back on Dawn, he wouldn’t be able to just lay an wallow, he told himself. Food had to be hunted and cooked, work had to be done, and Luffy had to be watched over. So Ace drug himself out of bed and into fresh clothes, thankful that his current fashion tastes leaned towards opened shirts as the brush of fabric over his neck and legs were already sending him into an angry form of overstimulation. He couldn’t imagine how choked he’d feel with a shirt collar wrapped around his throat. 

Ace managed to make it to the galley, scowling as the numbness twisted into embers of irritation at the noise level in the room. 

“You doing okay?” Sabo asked as Ace sat next to him, plate in hand.

“Fine,” Ace grunted, picking at his breakfast. The food tasted like ash on his tongue and that just fanned the flames of agitation higher. “Where’s Luffy?”

“Already out causing problems,” Sabo sighed. “Dad said something about a prank for Beck and they both left right before you came in.”

Ace sighed in relief. Luffy tended to avoid him when Ace got like this, at Ace’s own request. Ace ate what he could stomach, not even a quarter of what he usually ate, and left to start on his chores. He either didn’t notice or he flat out ignored the concerned eyes on his back as he left. 

Ace tried to let himself get lost in the tedium of swabbing the deck. He had learned early on the Red Force that the single mindedness of cleaning could help to clear his head, but that seemed to only translate to actual anger, not….this. This burning cold twisting thing that wraps its way around his chest on occasion. Every time he managed to tame the anger the nothingness would slot its way back in, and the only way he found to break through the fog was the anger. It always left Ace feeling off kilter and just tired . 

When he finished his section for the day, he felt no closer to feeling okay than he was when he woke up. 

“Yo, Firecracker, want a go in the ring?” Ace was stopped when he went to put his supplies away. 

Tanner, one of the gunners, had been the one to call out to him. Behind him was the area of the ship they sectioned off every week for hand to hand sparring practice. 

For a moment, the fire in Ace’s blood surged. He longed for a fight, something to feed the anger and dispel the numbness. On Dawn he would be sneaking down to the Gray Terminal, looking to start a fight. Something to make him bleed and cause others to bleed back. His teeth almost ached for a brawl. But the moment passed. These weren’t drunks in a seedy bar, they weren’t people who laughed at him, at his misfortune, and deserved the beating they got. These were people he called friends and family, they didn’t deserve to be the fuel to his self-hateful fire.

Ace let out a harsh breath and shook his head. “Maybe next time, thanks, though.”

The gathered crew watched in uncomfortable silence as Ace made his way back below deck. It’s not that they had never seen the boy in a depressive episode, but in the two years he had been with them, they had never seen him this deep in one. Typically his morning chores and the time in the sun and wind were enough to soothe the frayed edges. If that didn’t work the almost cruel verbal spats Law and Ace engaged in, followed unknowingly by a soft check in to make sure neither had gone too far in their vitriol, or a rough and tumble fight got the light back in his eyes. Today, though, today Ace had barely eaten breakfast, he had skipped lunch, and hadn’t spoken more than a few words at a time all day. Even Luffy and Sabo seemed a bit lost for what to do, whispering quietly with each other and looking towards where their third disappeared. 

“Should we…?” someone finally voiced.

“Give him space,” Shanks said. His voice wasn’t quite an order but the suggestion was followed anyways. No one really knew what to do or say to try and help their Firecracker, though they all wished they did.

A little while later, they saw Shanks head down to the belly of the ship alone, sending Beckman off with a wave of his hand.

Shanks found Ace in a little used storage hold. He was sitting on a crate methodically untangling what had previously been a hopelessly knotted mess of rope by the light of a small lanturn. Ace tensed up, fingers freezing on the rope, when Shanks came in and sat across from him on another crate. 

“We don’t have to talk,” Shanks assured, “I just wanted to sit with you, remind you you weren’t alone.”

Shanks could see Ace swallow sharply before he went back to trying to straighten out the rope. Ace hadn’t looked up at him once, eyes firmly downcast since before Shanks walked in. He seemed so small, Shanks noticed, barely a month away from his thirteenth birthday but sometimes he seemed just as small as the day Shanks stole them off of Dawn.

“You don’t have to coddle me. I know you’ve got shit to do and I’m not nearly important enough for you to be ignoring them for me,” Ace muttered darkly after a few minutes of silence. 

Shanks blinked and frowned. He knew it wasn’t a dig against him or his parenting, he knew Ace knew Shanks loved him, but it was always hard to hear that someone you love values themselves so little.

“How many times have you boys stayed with me through my dark moods, Ace?” Shanks responded softly. “I am right where I want to be, no more and no less.”

Shanks could hear Ace’s shaky breathing loud and clear in the small room, but Shanks could be patient when he needed to be. So he sat quietly while Ace’s trembling fingers picked at a difficult knot. Shanks didn’t want to think that his patience was rewarded, nothing about the situation felt rewarding , but after several minutes of silence, Ace broke. 

His breath caught on an inhale and the exhale came out in a sob. Ace dug the heels of his hands into his eyes and curled in on himself.

“Dad, I-I–”

That was what finally prompted Shanks to move. Between one blink and the next he had moved from his seat to kneel in front of Ace, pulling his face into his chest.

“I’ve got you,” Shanks murmured into Ace’s hair. 

Shanks held him tighter, wishing not for the first time that he had both arms to hold his kids closer, as Ace sobbed hard enough that he couldn’t breathe.

“Breathe with me, Ace,” Shanks said, taking long measured breaths. He made his breaths obvious, rubbing his hand up Ace’s back on the inhale and down on the exhale until Shanks was sure he wasn’t going to pass out from hyperventilating.

“I feel like there’s this thing in my chest,” Ace gasped. “It hurts and it twists everything . Either I feel nothing or I’m so so angry. And even when I’m pissed it’s all just on top, everything underneath is just numb .”

“I know,” Shanks breathed. “I know, I’m sorry.”

Ace sobbed loudly, the sound like his whole chest just cracked open, while Shanks just held him. All Shanks could do was hold his son, whispering soothing words into his hair and just reminding him that Ace wasn’t alone. Shanks held him until his tears calmed and exhaustion mingled with the hollow depression, leaving Ace limp and miserable in Shanks’ arm. 

“Come on, Ace,” Shanks murmured, “let’s get you to bed.”

Ace shook his head. “I’ve still got chores to do,” he muttered. “I can’t be more of a burden.”

“That was a captain’s order, Ace,” Shanks admonished. “You are not now, nor have you ever been a burden. You are sick right now now, yes you are, don’t argue with me, and all you need to focus on is feeling better. The to-do list can either wait or be done by someone who has done half the amount of work you’ve done over the last two years.”

They still sat there, Shanks refusing to let Ace leave his embrace, even as his knees complained about sitting on the unforgiving wood of the storage room. Finally, Ace let out a long harsh breath and sagged against Shanks.

“I’m so tired, Dad,” his voice cracked.

“I know,” Shanks stood and managed to pick Ace up with him, grateful he kept himself in good enough shape that he could still lift the twelve year old easily. “I can’t promise that a nap will help, but I don’t think it will hurt right now. And I’ll stay with you, so you’re not alone.”

Ace shook his head where it rested against Shanks’ shoulder. “You’re busy. I’ll be okay,” Ace’s voice was just barely above a whisper.

“Beckman will come get me if he can’t handle something,” Shanks said. “You need me right now, and that is my top priority.”

“But–”

“Ace,” Shanks interrupted, “my kids come first. You come first. Always.”

Ace didn’t respond, but Shanks accepted it as the best answer he was going to get. He silently moved through the halls of the Red Force until he came to the boys room. He scowled at the door, a dilemma forming, Ace was heavy enough that Shanks needed the full strength of his arm to carry him, not that he was complaining by any means, but it didn’t leave him a free hand to actually open the door. 

He was nearly at the point where he considered putting Ace down, not ideal considering Shanks wasn’t even sure if the boy was awake at this point, when the door opened. Shanks blinked at Luffy, who was standing on the other side, mask in hand, clearly on his way out. Shanks watched as Luffy’s face hardened into a look of determination as he stepped aside, letting the two in. 

“What can I do to help?” Luffy asked, voice firm.

“Go away, Lu,” Ace muttered and Shanks was startled by the almost panic in his tone.

Luffy ignored his brother, looking to Shanks for instruction. 

“Help me get his boots off and then go get us a couple glasses of water, please,” Shanks instructed. He sat down on one of the beds, they all shared so much it didn’t really matter whose bed it was, and adjusted Ace so that Luffy could reach his  feet. 

There was a reason he wore sandals now, Shanks thought as he watched Luffy undo the knots on Ace’s combat boots, laces were far too much of a pain to deal with one handed. But Luffy had over two years of experience with undoing difficult knots and deftly got the boots untied before gently pulling them off while Ace grumbled. Shanks watched as Luffy set Ace’s boots by the door before he slipped out of the room.

While Luffy was gone, Shanks took the time to get Ace under the blankets. Ace struggled to help, or hinder, Shanks wasn’t sure which, until he was situated with his head in Shanks lap. He couldn’t help but feel a bit heartbroken by the empty look in Ace’s silver eyes, a look he had seen in his own eyes too many times before. 

“I wish you didn’t have to go through this, too,” Shanks murmured, running his fingers through Ace’s curls.

“It gets you too?” Ace asked, finally making eye contact.

Shanks hummed, “You’ve seen it, Firecracker. It doesn’t make you any weaker, hell even Captain was caught in it more than a few times that I can remember.”

Ace let out another harsh breath and rolled over to hide his face in Shanks hip. “I hate it,” he muttered.

“I know, kiddo, I do too.” Shanks pretended he didn’t feel the tears that occasionally seeped into his clothes, just continued to sit and be there for his kid. He hummed a low tune and kept his fingers running through the dyed red strands. He knew he couldn’t weather this storm for Ace, but he could be a lighthouse leading him back. 

When Ace woke next, the first thing he noticed was the grittiness and soreness in his eyes. The next thing he noticed was that Shanks was right where he was when Ace fell asleep. He was still humming, and could feel his hand resting on his shoulder. A rubber arm was wrapped tightly around his waist and he could feel Luffy’s steady breathing against his back. He could also feel the spine of a book against his calves where they rested in Sabo’s lap and he could hear the soft sound of pages turning.

He could still feel the thing in his chest, but the thorns had receded. It wrapped around his ribs, but it didn’t crush them anymore. He could still feel the chill in his chest, but it wasn’t suffocating him. Ace let out a breath and let himself doze back off, letting the warmth of his family, just missing Law, fight back against the dark, cold, nothingness. 

He wasn’t alone, and that made all the difference.

Chapter Text

Law had started his morning with a call to the Red Force. He had intended for it to just be a quick check in since he had been gone for three days, but he had ended up squirrelled away in a secluded corner of the ship for over an hour talking about ways to handle depression with Shanks and Ace. Law may not have a lot of experience in psychology, nor did he have much control over his own depression, but it seemed to make Ace feel at least a little better that he wasn’t alone in his mental anguish. By the time they had ended their call, Ace had at least sounded like he was on the road back to being his usual menace self. 

It still felt weird to Law, being an older brother figure again. He couldn’t quite call them brothers, he didn’t feel quite the same about them as he did for Lami, but he cared for them. They were, as Luffy would declare loudly and to everyone, nakama , and maybe that was enough of a descriptor. At the moment, Law guessed it didn’t matter. He mentally shoved the thought into a little box in the corner of his mind to deal with later, or never, probably. He was pretty good about not dealing with things, after all.

By the time Law made it onto the deck, most of the crew had gathered in the galley for breakfast. Law, who had already stolen a large cup of coffee that morning, decided that the empty deck gave him the perfect opportunity. He moved off to the side, somewhere mostly out of the way, and drew Kikoku. The sword was much longer than the blades he usually used and the weight was distributed differently. He didn't trust himself to spar with her yet, the blade pulsed with a craving for violence in the back of his head. He worried that any wrong movement would cause unnecessary bloodshed, either from himself or his sparring partner, but that didn't mean he couldn't get used to her.

He drew his sword and just held it for a moment. Eyes closed and breathing even, just getting a feel for how she rested in his hands. After a minute or so of light meditation, he started to move. Running through drills he had done a million times, giving his muscles a chance to warm up before he amped them up. 

It didn't take long for Law to work up a sweat, moving in graceful steps, Kikoku almost singing in his hands. Time felt meaningless as he danced alone.

A loud pained yelp finally broke him out of his meditative state, blinking as he noticed one of the gunners with red dripping down a cradled hand. Law quickly sheathed his sword, feet taking him over to the man before he had even thought about it. 

“You, come here,” Law ordered, hand already dropping to the pouch strapped to his leg that held a first aid kid.

“W-what?” the man stammered, seemed almost dazed but took a step towards Law.

“Give me your hand,” Law ordered again, snapping when the man just stared at him. “They don’t call me Doc for fun, now give me your hand so I can check it.”

The man slowly held out his hand and Law gently took him by the wrist. He did his inspection quickly, a long deep gash across the meat of his palm, probably something sharp in the rope he had been using. Law prodded at it gently before pulling gauze out of his pack to wrap the wound and try to slow the bleeding. “It’ll need stitches. How well stocked is your infirmary?”

“I-I,” The man stuttered and Law fought the urge to click his tongue. 

“Hey,” Law said, forcing his voice soft and gentle, “I need you to focus on me, okay? Can you look at me?” Law didn’t have the best bedside manners, but he could see the man starting to go into shock. That would be good for nobody.

He jerked his gaze away from his hand to meet Law’s in a wide eyed stare.

“There you are, remind me what your name is,” Law kept pressure on the wound and gently started to guide the man towards the infirmary.

“Kaiden,” he said, breathing starting to even out a bit.

“Alright, Kaiden, I’m going to tell you what we’re going to do,” Law beckoned one of the other crew closer to hear the instructions, hoping they’d pick up on what Law was needing. “I’m going to take you down to the infirmary. While I do that, someone is going to get some whiskey from Killian for you and someone else is going to go tell Akira to check that rope you were working with. Once we can numb the pain a little, I’m going to stitch your hand and then everything will be fine, okay?”

He saw the other crew member nod and take off as Kaiden let out a harsh breath. “Okay,” he agreed.

“Good,” Law started leading him back down to the infirmary, only knowing the location after he demanded during his ‘tour’ of the Moon Beam on his first day. He hadn’t checked the stocks, sure that the medical officer wouldn’t appreciate his nosing when he returned, but now wasn’t the time to worry about it. He needed to get the wound clean and stitched, the open sea was never a good place for infection to take root. 

It took longer than Law would have liked to get down to the infirmary, trying to remember the layout of a ship that wasn’t his own. He sat Kaiden down on the first chair he could see, pulling more gauze out of his pack.

“Hold pressure here for just a minute,” Law ordered, taking Kaiden’s other hand and pressing it where he wanted it. When Kaiden nodded, Law turned and started digging through the cabinets.

By the time Law found everything he was looking for, Captain Cordya had joined them, personally carrying a bottle of whiskey. 

“Let him drink about two shots worth for now, I don’t want him drunk,” Law announced, pulling a table and chair over to Kaiden to lay out his supplies.

Cordya nodded, pouring the glass and handing it over to the injured man as Law unwound the blood-soaked bandages.

“What happened?” she asked, standing at her crew mate's shoulder and inspecting the wound herself.

“Wait,” Law ordered. He pulled on a pair of gloves and watched carefully for the moment Kaiden’s shoulders relaxed a touch. 

“Cordya, stand behind me please,” Law requested quietly. 

“Alright?” Law could tell she was confused, but did as he asked,

“Kaiden,” Law waited until the man looked up at him. “Do not look away from your captain.”

Kaiden furrowed his brow but looked at Cordya. 

“Now he can answer your questions, let me know if he looks like he’s about to pass out,” Law commented quietly. Once they started talking, Law picked up his tools.

He had found a bottle of disinfectant as well as a needle and surgical thread fairly easily. He had hoped for something besides the alcohol to numb the man’s pain, but if the medic had any, it was hidden away somewhere Law couldn’t find easily. Law also wished he could use his Fruit, if he could this would be a whole lot easier, but Law was a doctor with or without the Op Op no Mi.

Kaiden told Cordya about the injury quickly, something sharp in the rope he was hauling, not totally out of the ordinary. Kaiden’s hand just happened to be in a bad spot at the worst moment. 

He worked as gently and as quickly as he could. It didn’t take Law long to finish, taking a small bit of pride in five the straight, even stitches. Kaiden was a bit pale when Law looked up at him, a small bit of sweat clinging around his temples, but his eyes still looked clear and his voice was still steady.

“Alright,” Law said, sitting up straight.

“Oh, wow, you’re done already?” Kaiden asked, genuinely surprised.

“Yes,” Law answered, wrapping the hand in more bandages. “Keep it dry for at least 24 hours. I’ll check it again tomorrow and then, depending on when and where we are, we should be able to remove them in five to seven days. Go eat something, get your blood sugar back up. And let me know if it starts bleeding again or if it hurts more than you think it should.”

Kaiden looked over Law’s shoulder at his captain, who must have made some motion of agreement, before he stood. He seemed a bit wobbly when he first stood, but stabilized quickly before walking out of the room. 

Law stood, ignoring Cordya, as he cleaned and put away his borrowed supplies.

“You keep impressing me, Red Devil,” she commented as Law finished cleaning up. 

Law couldn’t help but snort. “I find it hard to believe that Chief didn’t tell you I was a doctor as well. I assumed it was part of the reason I had been chosen to come since your medical officer is out for the time being.”

“Oh no, your father mentioned, I had just assumed it was a bit exaggerated,” she hummed.

“Oh I’m sure some of it is, especially if you were talking to him as our dad and not the Chief,” Law rolled his eyes and finished washing his hands, “but he means what he says.”

“How long have you been practicing medicine?” Cordya asked, seeming genuinely curious.

“I’ve studied medicine since I was old enough to read. My birth parents were both doctors and made sure I had what I needed to follow them if I so chose, made sure I could do basic first aid and the like as soon as my hands were steady enough to do it,” it never stopped hurting, talking about his parents, but as Shanks had told him years ago, it got easier. “After they passed I had to put theory into practice mostly on my own. Hongo has taught me a lot over the years, though, and there are always injuries to be treated on a Yonko’s ship.”

“Well,” Cordya said, patting Law’s shoulder as she passed, “we’re especially glad to have you, then.”

Law forced himself not to cringe at the casual touch and finish cleaning up. He looked at the infirmary and after a split second to think about it, decided to do an inventory. He had already been on the ship for several days, meaning it would be a several day trip back to the Red Force, and with a potential fight on the horizon and no medic on board, Law would be damned if he couldn’t take care of it. This infirmary was his now.

0808

Hours later, he felt as though he knew where everything was in this infirmary. He had made a firm mental note where every scalpel, needle, bandage, and bottle of disinfectant sat. At some point during his work, Mariah had brought him a bowl of rice and some grilled chicken for lunch. He had had every intention of ignoring both her and the food, but gave in when she gave him a hard stare. He had eaten lunch, sharing a few light hearted quips before they both went back to their own respective tasks. 

When he finally emerged from below deck, the sun was much lower in the sky than he had intended. Oddly enough, it brought him a bit of comfort, reminding him of a normal day on the Red Force. The vastly different population quickly brought him back, though the voice that called out to him was still familiar.

“Hey Doc! Heard you’ve already endeared yourself to the Shadow’s,” Tashi teased.

“How dare you call me endearing,” Law replied in a deadpan, making Tashi and Mariah laugh.

“Awe, don’t pretend you aren’t just as soft as Anchor sometimes,” Mariah crooned, skipping over to poke Law’s cheek. 

Law narrowed his eyes and snapped his hand up to grab Mariah’s wrist. With a quick and sure movement, Law spun around Mariah to pin her arm behind her back.

“Oh, so that’s how you want to play it,” Tashi laughed.

Law let go of Mariah, letting the woman step back to stand beside the other Red Hair. She had a smile on her face and started bouncing on her toes.

“Two on one?” Law raised an eyebrow. “A little unfair, don’t you think?”

“For us, maybe,” Tashi laughed, “but I don’t figure you’d let anyone else here fight.”

Law hummed noncommittally and took a few steps towards the duo, body loose. This wasn’t exactly how he had intended to spend his evening, but he had been sitting for far too long, and he had missed the last several sparring sessions. 

Law could feel the crowd that was starting to take interest in the three of them as he stopped between the two. There was a moment of stillness as Law measured up his opponents before a flurry of activity.

Mariah twisted quickly, throwing a roundhouse kick at Law’s head. Law blocked it with a forearm, twisting enough that Mariah lost her momentum and Law could block Tashi’s kick with his other arm, pushing him away enough to duck below Mariah’s fist. Law used the motion as he came back up to swing his leg up at Tashi, clipping the side of his head. From there, time seemed to fast forward. Law couldn’t track individual movements, everything just blurred together in a dance of fists and feet. Law knew there was a moment where he had grabbed Mariah’s wrist and the way he jabbed his elbow into the back of hers would have broken it if he had actually let the blow connect. Knew there was a moment when Law had one of Tashi’s legs in his hand while Law swept his other foot out from under him. All Law really knows is that by the time he flipped Mariah over his shoulder to land on Tashi, who had been trying to stand back up, he was breathing heavily and his mind was clear for the first time in days. 

“Yield,” Tashi gasped, holding his side where his crewmate landed on him.

“Seconded,” Mariah agreed, rolling her shoulders. 

Law snorted but let the fighting stance drop. He dropped down to sit cross legged behind Mariah, gently running his hand over the arm he had nearly broken, checking for injuries.

“The boys would have gotten up and kept going,” Law commented. He dug his thumb into a knot on the woman’s shoulder, making her groan.

“Yeah, well the boys are fucking crazy,” Tashi muttered.

“You’re not wrong,” Law agreed. “Now shirt off, let me see the damage.”

Tashi cringed, “No need, Doc, I’m fine.”

Law just scowled and raised his hand, the smallest hint of a Room flashing in his palm. Tashi sighed and pulled his shirt off, letting Law examine his bruised side as Mariah got up. She hid among the group of spectators, knowing Law would be unwilling to use his Fruit around so many people.

“Is he always like that?” someone asked, another gunner if Mariah had to guess from the way he hung around the man with the bandaged hand.

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“I mean that was intense,” he answered, gobsmacked.

“Oh that was nothing,” Mariah laughed. “Doc was pulling punches like crazy, the two of us are some of the weaker hand to hand fighters so he goes easy on us. You should see it when all four of them go together, or when he fights Chief.”

Their eyes boggled, looking between Mariah and where Law was still sitting berating Tashi for an injury he hadn’t told Law about. “He spars with Akagami no Shanks?”

Mariah shrugged, “All four of the boys do. It’s usually entertaining to watch Chief pull his own punches while four children pretty much try to kill him.” 

“You want to try to call me a child again without your head?” Law called out, voice clearly annoyed.

Mariah just laughed and darted away as Law stood, staring daggers. The gathered Moon’s Shadow pirates just watched as the sixteen year old they had thought they were babysitting stalked away. 

“Hey, Captain,” someone called, “I think we’re in over our heads.”

Chapter Text

Luffy sat off to the side of the Red Force, fishing pole in hand, talking to himself. It wasn’t such an uncommon sight, Sabo was with Building Snake working on some navigational things that went way over Luffy’s head while Ace and Shanks worked together in the middle of the deck. Add to that Law still being off ship, it left Luffy as a bit of a loose end. So he sat off to the side, enjoying the sun and wind while his dad and brother’s Conqueror’s Haki washed over him. 

Ace had finally gotten enough of a hang of it that they could practice around the rest of the crew without worrying about dropping some of the lower members, which meant Luffy could observe. Luffy equated the feeling of it to a sharper form of their Observation Haki. Shanks’ felt like steel ribbons that could wrap around someone’s throat and force them to follow his command, not that Luffy had ever felt the full force of it directed at him. Ace’s, on the other hand, felt like a bright fire, burning a person to the quick and leaving them at his command. Ace had only slipped up on his control once, in a fit of anger during an argument he had let a command leak into his shout of ‘shut up’ and the guilt he felt afterwards was more than enough to earn forgiveness. Not that Luffy had really blamed him anyways.

But now, Luffy could sit and soak in the feeling of home, the rest of the crew working around him like every other day. He sat by the railing, not on, his family was very firm that he wasn’t to sit on the railing when no one was standing with him, fishing hook in the water and voice rambling on. The crew always just assumed that he was talking to himself, and sometimes he was, but they couldn’t see what he saw.

“Hey, do all ships have people like you?” Luffy asked.

The little figure paused where it was tightening a knot next to the boy, red rain jacket gleaming. “No, not all of them. It takes a very special crew to give us life,” the Klabautermann said. Her voice reminded Luffy of the windchimes Makino hung outside her window, bright and cheery and free.

“Huh? What does that mean, Red?” Luffy frowned.

“Well,” Red hummed, Luffy watched her reach down and tug a rope, moving it away from where Bonk Punch was on a path to trip on it. “A Klabauterman only takes form when a crew loves and cares for a ship enough that they gain their own life. Not every crew cares for their ship in the way my crew does.”

“Eh? Why wouldn’t they care for their ship?” Clearly offended, Luffy turned away from his task to look at Red, who just laughed.

“I never said they didn’t care, it just takes a special kind of care,” Luffy could never see the Klabautermann’s face, but he thought she was smiling. 

“Well,” Luffy huffed, “I’ll make sure my ship will be able to have one.”

Red laughed again, and though they may not be able to really hear it, the whole crew brightened up from it. “I have no doubt of that, my Anchor. I have no doubt.”

Luffy glanced over to watch Shanks and Ace, smiling a little when he noticed the slightly transparent black cloaked figure watching from the sideline, smiling proudly at his sons. 

0808

Law has had a bad feeling since he woke up that morning. He missed home, for one, he had been away for a week now. That was by far the longest he had spent away from the ASL trio in over two years, and as much as he hated to admit it, he missed the little fuckers. He was getting tired of wearing the mask nonstop, to. The hooks around his ears were beginning to chafe from only a few hours of relief a day and it was adding to his overall feeling of unease. Or at least he figured it was. 

It was always possible that the unease was from the communications officer being unable to reach their medic. They were set to reach Cho Island by noon, they could even see the island in the far distance, but they hadn’t been able to reach anyone on the island in over a day. Logically, there could be several reasons for this, but it still had the Shadow Moon pirates on edge. Law could see them watching him out of the corner of their eyes, he just hoped they weren’t going to count on him to win their battle for them. 

All of the factors were enough that Law made sure his baby snail was in his hip pouch and he kept Tashi and Mariah at his flanks, watching his back. 

“You think something bad happened?” Mariah asked, voice quiet so it didn’t carry. 

Law made a noncommittal hum, leaning his hip on the railing. “I think we should be on guard. Not saying anything has happened, but I would rather be ready for anything.”

Law watched silently, unmoving, as the island came closer and closer. He had heard the stories from the Red Hairs about the night they returned to Dawn, the evening the Sea herself urged them back to see the home of their son on fire. Law was sure that this wasn’t the same feeling, the Ocean didn’t seem to call to him in any way and the Moon Beam was nowhere near as…sentient…as the Red Force seemed to be, but he still felt as though he was at a point of no return. 

The snail rang in his pocket as Law started noticing wisps of smoke coming off of the island. Law wished he had his hat, his gut twisted and he was struggling to maintain his deadpan look.

“Doc, report?” Gab ordered as soon as Law answered.

“Cho is in sight. I’ll be honest, it has me on edge,” Law answered as quietly as he could. There was no need to worry the other crew. “If I don’t report back in six hours, do what you have to.”

“Understood,” Gab’s voice was just as serious. “Be safe and be careful.”

Law hung up and stored the snail away quickly. He turned to the others, Mariah was idly flipping a hammer in her hand, the other firmly in its spot at her hip. Tashi was loading his pistol, his scimitar hanging at his waist looking wicked sharp. The readiness of the Red Hairs seemed to finally kick the Shadow Moon’s into high gear, as well as the smell of smoke on the wind.

“Stay close,” Law ordered. “We may be here to help, but at the end of the day, my main concern is our safety. I will do what is needed to keep us safe if I have to.”

“Aye, Cap Junior,” Mariah said. Her tone was teasing, but the way she gripped her hammer told Law she was serious. 

“I mean, that’s the whole point, isn’t it? Get little Doc some captain experience?” Tashi teased back. 

A year ago, Law would have been concerned that their teasing meant that they weren’t taking the mission, or him, seriously, but at this point he understood the Red Hair pirates. The whole crew coped with just about everything with humor and teasing, only truly serious when it was absolutely necessary, or undeniably pissed. He could hear what wasn’t being said, we’re ready, we trust you, you’re doing fine .

“Red Hairs, with me, if you would please,” Cordya called. She was at the bow of the ship with her first mate as well as a few other crew members. 

“Captain,” Law greeted as he approached, Tashi and Mariah still passing quips back and forth.

“I need you to be visible for a while, but, as I am sure you are aware, things are not looking ideal,” Cordya said, her voice was bland, but laced with concern.

Law hummed, “We are prepared to help, be that in a fight or diplomatically. We won’t sacrifice ourselves for you, but I think you expected that.”

“Of course,” Cordya agreed, though Akira looked as though he wanted to argue. 

“Any idea what we’re walking into?” Mariah asked.

“None,” Akira answered. “It doesn’t look like their ship is at the docks, but we don’t know that it isn’t elsewhere on the island.”

Law nodded thoughtfully, before unclasping the small bracelet he wore on his left wrist and handing it to Mariah, who silently clipped it onto her own wrist. He refused to let out the sigh of relief he felt when the seastone charm, a small boat’s wheel to match Anchors, came away from his skin. 

“You sure?” Tashi asked, watching Mariah shake her hand to let the bracelet settle.

“Too many unknowns,” Law answered, rubbing his wrist. “I need to keep every avenue open.” Law ignored the way the other two pirates stared at him, they didn’t need to know his secrets. Really, he only had the charm because he got too used to using his Fruit for mundane things on the Red Force. When he had seen the bracelet, he knew it was a tease as much as an actual helpful bit of equipment, but he wore it dutifully, aware that his mindless habit of dismembering the people that annoyed him could give him away too easily. Law stretched out his fingers, joints popping, and watched as the island came closer into view. 

“You have proven that your Observation is the best of us here, are we close enough that you can feel anything?” Cordya asked. Law could feel her Observation, a wave crashing gently over the ship, though it didn’t manage to go much further. 

“I wouldn’t be able to pick out any of yours,” Law closed his eyes and let himself focus on the smell of the sea, rather than the smoke that threatened to choke him even from this distance. “But I should be able to get an intent.”

Law took another deep breath and forced his Will out. They were still far enough away that the island was on the fringes of Law’s capabilities, but Law wasn’t looking for specifics. The black feathers took flight in his mind's eye, a huge black bird soaring to the island. He circled it, senses extending. He could feel all the lights of all the people who called the island home, he could sense their fear and unease. He circled closer, senses reaching, searching, until finally.

“There,” Law breathed, eyes still closed. He could feel another Haki surge up to meet him, something malicious. He tried to get a sense for how many, or even an exact location, but they were still too far away for Law to get a good grasp. He let the image of the bird fade as he opened his eyes, he could feel the headache simmer around his temples for stretching himself but he ignored it in favor of looking at the captain.

“They’re afraid and I would bet that the cause is what sensed me in the middle of the town. Whoever it is, seemed pissed to find me,” Law took the water canteen from Mariah with a small thanks.

“There a town hall building in the middle of town, if I remember right,” Akria said 

Too many unknowns Law thought to himself. He wished he had the other boys with him. Luffy’s Observation was strong enough that he could get a better idea of how many hostile’s were waiting for them, Sabo would be able to strategize with him for a better plan of attack, and Ace’s casual confidence always spread to him. But this was a test, he wouldn’t have the brothers with him forever, he needed to be able to do this on his own again. He wanted to growl at himself for getting so codependent, but he knew that they were strongest together, knew he would need to depend on his crew in the future. 

He let out a rough breath and folded his Haki around him. He wasn’t nearly as good at it as Sabo was, but he was passable enough that it would make him seem much smaller than he was.  

Law stayed quiet for the rest of the time it took them to get up to the docks, the crew docking as quickly and as loosely as possible in case they had to run quickly. No one came to see them as they did this. Law had docked at many shores in his years on the Red Force, it wasn’t uncommon for the populace to kind of avoid a pirate ship, but usually there would at least be a few. Some traders willing to overlook where the goods came from as long as they were profitable or a few people who showed interest in the outlaw life. But on Cho Island, an island under these pirates' protection , no one came out to greet them. 

Law kept his Haki wrapped around him, feeling the feathers wrap around him like a cloak to keep from reaching out again, as Cordya, Akira, and the Red Hairs disembarked from the ship. He briefly debated pulling an actual cloak on, hiding his face until an opportune moment, but that kind of dramatics felt more in line with Sabo than a real plan of Law’s. 

They followed a dirt road, their every step kicking up dust. Something about it was almost cloying, already making Law’s sinuses feel gunked up. Must be an abnormally dry fall for them, he mused.

He could see movement inside the windows, but still no one came out to greet or warn them.

“Status, Mariah,” Law requested quietly.

“Recognition, little hope, mostly worry. They know Cordya, they know she went to get help, but they’re not sure it will be enough,” she said, eyes darting between doorways.

Law’s fingers flexed on Kikoku’s hilt. These people knew the Shadow Moon’s were Red Hair allies, knew they went to get help from the Red Hair’s, and they still didn’t think it would be enough. He took a deep breath in and let it out slowly, maybe they were just underestimating him. 

Law’s mind whirled as he came up with, and promptly discarded plans. Before he could really come up with something that might work, it was too late. 

“Shadow Moon, I thought we had had enough of you,” a large man called out. He was a big man, as tall as Shanks and as built as Garp, with ugly looking tattoos trailing up his neck. His dark blonde hair looked greasy and unkempt and his teeth were crooked when he grinned at them.

“I take it you are the captain of the Silver Lions?” Cordya asked, sounding unimpressed.

“That I am,” the man said. “Whitlock’s the name, better remember it.”

Law couldn’t help the scoff he let out at the obvious leer the man gave the allied captain. 

“And who might this be?” Whitlock turned his glare to law.

“Ah yes,” Cordya said, as though she had forgotten Law’s presence. “These are members of the Red Hair pirates, they had heard we were having an,” she paused like she was thinking of the word, “issue, if you will, and they wanted to come by and see for themselves.”

“So the mighty Akagami no Shanks sent a brat to check on his allies,” Whitlock scoffed. 

“Either he is so un-intimidated by you he thought real help wasn’t needed, or he trusted his eldest son to be enough to handle this. Either way doesn’t look good for you,” Law said blandly, looking at the man sharply. 

“Eldest son? The fuck are you talking about?” Whitlock laughed.

“Oh, you mean you haven’t heard of the Red Devils? Weird, I thought everyone knew about them, Tashi,” Mariah sounded scandalized.

“Doc, can you believe people don’t recognize you yet?” Tashi continued, making Law roll his eyes.

“Fuck off, you two,” Law sighed. He understood what they were doing, the mix of using their reputation as a ‘party crew’ who didn’t take anything seriously to remind everyone who Law was and try to undermine this other captain. 

“I’m Doc, eldest of the Red Devils, emissary of Akagami no Shanks. We’ve come to remind you that by messing with the Shadow Moon’s territory, you have insulted us. What you do with that information is up to you,” Law said, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

Whitlock laughed and the sound set Law’s teeth on edge. He had to force himself not to stiffen up as three more men came out of a nearby house, one of whom was bound and being shoved around by the others. 

“I don’t think you have much room to be making threats, kid. We have hostages,” Whitlock laughed and Law felt Akira stiffen beside him.

“Captain, Akira,” the bound man nearly whimpered as they came closer and Law could see the mess the man was.

His brown hair was matted with what looked like blood, his lip was split and his face was covered in bruises and scrapes. Law couldn’t tell if the limp the man had was due to something wrong with his leg or just the way the brute was shoving him around.

“Shut up,” one of his captors ordered, elbowing him hard in the side.

“Anders!” Akira called. He jolted forward and only stopped when Cordya put an arm out. 

Law fought to keep his muscles loose or show anything on his face, knowing speed would be of the essence if it came down to it. 

“Do you think I care about hostages that have nothing to do with me?” Law asked, voice deadpan. 

“You may not care,” Whitlock said, and Law didn’t like the sneer on his face, “but I wonder what Akagami would pay to get his son back.”

Law raised an eyebrow, “What makes you think you can get me?”

Suddenly, Mariah gasped, grabbing Law by the shoulder and shoved him down just as a bullet was fired where he was standing, his body kicking up a cloud of dust where he hit the ground.

Law let his Haki flare out, finding them surrounded. He grit his teeth in annoyance as he stood back up. The movement around them enough to kick up dust from the dry dirt roads around them.

“Nice catch,” Law muttered.

“I don’t think you’re going to be nearly as hard to catch as you think you are,” Whitlock taunted.

Law turned back to snarl a response when he noticed his limbs weren’t responding as well as they should. His movement’s sluggish and his thoughts starting to slow. 

He forced himself to keep standing, even as his legs went weak. He snarled as he saw Akira drop out of the corner of his eye, then Mariah. The dirt caked his clothes and made his head swim.

“The dust,” Law gasped as Tashi fell next, he tried to clasp his hand over his nose but even he knew it was too late.

“Clever brat, but why don’t you take a fucking nap,” Whitlock snarled. 

The last thing Law saw before he felt his knees hit the ground, was Whitlock’s cooked smile. 

Chapter Text

The first thing Law was aware of when he regained consciousness was that his head hurt, the second thing was that his arms were bound behind his back. 

He fought the groan down as he peeled his eyes open, memory of the Silver Lions and Whitlock slowly filtering back in as he squinted in the light. He took in the room he was in, it looked like a small jail, likely only used for people who needed somewhere to sober up for the night considering the population of the island. The walls and floors were all cobblestone, Law was handcuffed against the back wall, facing the bars of the cell with Tashi and Mariah slumped together on his right and the beat up Shadow Moon on his left. Law could see through the bars of his cell into the one across from him where Akira and Cordya were tied together. 

Law shifted, fingers flexing as he took stock of his own body.

“Doc, you with us?” Cordya called.

Law didn’t answer at first, letting his Haki slowly expand to make sure they were alone. The nearest signature he could find seemed to be guarding the door.

“I’m here. I can’t tell, is my mask still on?” Law asked, his throat felt thick and rough.

“Yes, they tried to take it off but couldn’t figure out the latching mechanism. They also didn’t check any of us for Devil Fruits, so it’s not Seastone if that is at all helpful,” Cordya responded. 

Law let out a breath and relaxed slightly against the wall. “You managed not to get knocked out?” Law asked, only a little suspicious. 

“Side effect of my Devil Fruit,” she said blandly. “I can’t be rendered unconscious, I don’t sleep more than a few hours a week either. I was paralyzed by whatever affected us, but I was still aware.”

“It’s the butterflies,” Anders muttered, head lolling.

“Anders, it’s good to hear your voice,” Cordya sighed.

“What do you mean?” Law asked.

Anders coughed, the sound was wetter than Law was comfortable with and he could see a bit of blood splatter onto the cobblestone.

“The butterflies here have something weird in their wing scales, something that works as a sedative. It’s usually really mild, the people here use it in medications to make sleep aids that they export, but the Silver Lions figured out how to make it stronger, weaponize it,” Anders’ voice started to wheeze.

Every ounce of doctors' instincts bristle at the sound. He flexed his fingers again, confirming Cordya’s claim of normal shackles. He formed a small Room and swapped the shackles with a loose stone a few feet away. He quickly moved over and laid the injured man down, thankful his hands were bound in front of him.

“Anders, you're the medic, yes? Give me a status,” Law demanded. 

“Dunno,” the man groaned, “everything hurts.”

“Doc, what are you doing?” Mariah groaned, waking up.

“My job, shut up,” Law responded. “ Where does it hurt?”

“Doc,” Mariah stressed.

“Shut the fuck up and keep watch or I will dismember you,” Law snarled, eyes flashing. 

Mariah sighed and shrugged, Haki flaring out, while Cordya watched anxiously at Law’s threat. 

“Anders, babe, where are you hurting at?” Akira called. His voice sounded thick, like he had just woken up, and when Law looked up he saw Cordya whispering to him.

“Akira?” Anders almost whimpered. He started to try to sit up, breathing shallow and rough.

Thinking quickly, Law opened another Room and Shambled Akira into the cell with them.

“Keep him calm and quiet so I can work,” Law instructed. He waited only long enough for Akira to shuffle over to Anders’ head and start talking quietly. 

Once Anders stilled, Law started prodding, attempting to avoid using his power too much. He gently felt along both arms, taking careful note on what spots caused flinching. He moved on from the arms to his legs, finding nothing broken, though the medic’s knee was puffy and hot to the touch. Moving onto the man's chest nearly made Law curse, the low moan and the give on his ribs when Law pressed more than enough to worry him.

“Fuck,” Law muttered, trying to do a Scan to find the issue. “Cordya, did you see if they left my bag in here?” 

“I-I’m not sure,” she answered, voice unsteady for the first time at the sight of Law’s frantic eyes.

Law cursed again before he expanded his Room out, looking for his missing thigh pouch. Instead, he found Kikoku leaned off to the side of the room as well as their other weapons. He looked in the direction of the sword and back to the man under him. The punctured lung he found was bad, bad enough that without intervention soon he would be in grave danger. His supply pack had everything in it needed to do a small surgery, even the things he didn’t really need when using his Room. He really just needed something sharp to act as a conduit, a scalpel was his preferred tool, but would a sword work? He’s used a kitchen knife before as an experiment, and that worked decently. 

“Fuck it,” Law muttered, Shambling Kikoku into his hand and unsheathed it. The blade seemed to vibrate and hum in his Room.

“Doc,” Tashi asked, worry in his tone. 

Ignoring them all, Law let out a slow breath, sterilized the area in his Room and used Kikoku’s blade to focus his power into a single cut. It was the smoothest incision Law had ever made and within moments, Anders’ breathing evened out. 

“Everything else can wait until we get somewhere with a better set up,” Law explained, “but his lung wouldn’t.”

He sealed the incision to the best of his ability with a sigh before he looked thoughtfully at the sword. She still hummed, though for some reason, Law felt like she was pleased with how she was used. Something to think about later, he supposed, turning his attention back to his patient. 

“Anders, is that better? Still have issues breathing?” Law asked, watching the man’s eyes flutter open.

“Better,” he responded, letting out a long, slow breath.

“Good. I will get you out of here and get you taken care of, okay? All of you,” Law promised.

“How can you be so sure?” Anders asked.

Law smirked, “Because if I don’t call the Chief by sunset, he’ll be coming here himself. Not that I think it will be necessary, now that I know their trick I should be fine.”

“What?” Akira breathed.

Law ignored him in favor of standing and stretching out his back, vertebrae popping as Law looked around unconcerned. 

“Did you know about the butterflies, Cordya?” Law asked, studying the lock on the cell.

“I knew the locals used the butterflies, I did not know what for.”

Law hummed and turned back to his own companions, “Are either of you hurt?”

“I’m good, Doc,” Tashi reported. “Head’s a bit fuzzy but other than that I’m fine.”

“Same, but there are people starting to come this direction,” Mariah replied.

Law nodded and gently put his hand on Akira’s shoulder, who was still leaned down with his head pressed to Anders’, talking softly. “I have to send you back to your cell, I promise it won’t be for long,” he said.

Akira took a deep breath and sat up, nodding silently. Law sat down and maneuvered Anders to rest his head in his lap before he opened another Room and put everything back to where it was when he woke up, including the manacles on his own wrists.  

When the doors opened, Law was greeted by the sight of the two men who had led Anders out earlier. Both men were just as ugly as their captain, greasy tangled hair, crooked yellow teeth, and a cruel glint in their eyes.

“Oh good, you’re all awake,” Brute One said, sneering at Law.

“Oh good, you’re not blind,” Law retorted with an eye roll. “Undo my cuffs and bring me my med kit.”

Brute two laughed, “Why the hell would we do that?”

“Because if you don’t, he’ll die,” Law laid the lie out with a blank tone. “Personally, I don’t really care, but as a doctor I have to at least try. By the sound of his breathing you punctured his lung and if something isn’t done he will die.”

“What?!” Law could hear Akira panicking, struggling to his feet to lean heavily on the bars. “You said–you promised !”

Law ignored him as he stared down the brute in front of him. “Well? I’m sure you’ve already ransacked my pouch for anything valuable, and what could I possibly do to you? I’m one sixteen year old kid against two veteran pirates. Or are you embarrassed to admit that you’re afraid of me?”

Law could feel Tashi and Mariah’s eyes on him, they knew he had a silver tongue but had never seen it in action. Not like this at least, the way it struck like a dagger in all the right ways to rile the two up.

“Yeah, well what’s in it for us, huh? We don’t care if he lives or dies,” Brute One argued, the smarter of the two, it seemed.

Law shrugged. “Compliance? Because I promise you, if he dies under my care then I will fight tooth and nail against anything you want me to do.” 

They both scowled before Brute One turned to Two, “Go get our med kit. I’m sure Boss would prefer it if he went along with our plans.”

Brute Two scoffed but ambled off, returning a few minutes later with what Law could tell even from this distance, was a half-assed med kit. 

Law shuffled, gently moving Anders’ head off his legs so he could stand. Both men were much taller than him and had a good 100 pounds on him, but Law could hold his own against Lucky Roux. 

Law moved away from the others as much as he could in the cramped cell as Brute One unlocked the door. Law turned his back to the pirate to give him access to the cuffs. Law gave Mariah a wide, feral, grin as the cuffs came loose. He brought his hands around, rubbing his wrist dramatically before he moved, faster than the Brutes would have ever expected.

Law spun, foot catching the back of Brute One’s ankle, making him lose his balance. Law grabbed him by the face as he fell and slammed his head into the bars. Before Brute One hit the ground, Law was in front of Two. His grin drenched in bloodlust as a Haki coated fist broke the goon's nose. As the goon reached for his face instinctually Law grabbed his shoulders in an iron grip, pulling him down into his knees and forcing the air out of his lungs. Brute Two collapsed to the ground with a breathless groan. Brute One staggered back to his feet, only to be met by a sword tip at his nose and a crazed looking Law on the other side.

“Tashi, how disappointed do you think Dad would be if I killed them?” Law asked, tone conversational, like he was asking about the weather. The goon swallowed roughly as he saw the cruel glint in Law’s eyes.

“At this point,” Tashi started dryly, “I think he would be more disappointed if you didn’t.” 

It was now that everyone who wasn’t one of Law’s crewmates realized: the mask the Red Devil: Doc wore now was much less adorned than the one in his bounty posters, mask more white than blood splattered. As he lunged forward, both hands on his sword, uncaring about the blood that he shed, they knew that the mask was simply clean.

A short while later the mask was still clean, though the same couldn’t be said of his shoes as Law looked down at the bodies in disgust. Law leaned down to start digging in their pockets when the others came back to their senses.

“Anders, is he–” Akira started but stopped when he was waved off.

“I told you, I took care of what was life threatening. It was mostly a bluff,” Law said, clicking his tongue when he didn’t find anything of use in the first set of pockets.

“Why bluff though?” Cordya asked as Law stood with a grin, keys in hand. “You were already loose once and obviously whatever Fruit you have is versatile enough to gain an upper hand.”

Law hummed, helping Mariah and Tashi to their feet and unlocking their cuffs. “My Fruit relies heavily on my stamina and it drains me faster than doing something by hand. Not to mention we try to keep it on the down low so that I continue to be underestimated.”

“It was a good move, though,” Mariah agreed, taking the keys from Law to unlock the other cell and let the Shadow Moon’s free. 

“Yeah man, I’ve never seen you talk like that before,” Tashi said. 

“Yeah, well,” Law didn’t look up from where he was splinting Anders’ knee, “you learn a lot living under a psychopath for three years.” 

Mariah flinched where she was unlocking Cordya’s cuffs, hard enough that the captain noticed, though she didn’t comment. “So, do you have a plan?” she asked instead.

“Four that may work, two more that account for people like Anchor, one last ditch effort,” Law listed off. Law looked up at Cordya, golden eyes sharp and calculating. “You said your Devil Fruit keeps you awake, from the way Akira got up I assume you can wake up others. Can you keep me awake if needed?”

Cordya blinked in surprise. “I–Probably? I’ve neve tried to use it that way,” she said. “I don’t know that you would be willing for me to use it, though.”

Law raised an eyebrow, “Why not?”

“She needs your name,” Anders' voice could barely be heard, but it was enough that everyone looked at him.

Law looked back up, standing up to his full height to look at the captain. “Is this true?”

“Yes, my power activates when I call a name,” she answered.

“And I assume my alias won’t work?” 

Cordya shook her head, “I tried as soon as you started falling unconscious.”

Law drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “How much of my name would you need?”

“The more I have the better it works.”

“Doc? Are you sure?” Mariah’s voice was quiet.

“I’ve made my move,” he said firmly. “They won’t be happy to just capture me now that I’ve killed two of theirs.”

Law strode up to Cordya, eyes still sharp and calculating. “I tell you this, not out of trust, but necessity. My first name is Law, if it becomes necessary, Mariah will tell you my full name.”

“Doc I–”

“My full name , Mariah. I will make the sacrifices I have to to get myself and you two back home. If that takes my anonymity, I’ll take it,” Law said. 

His voice was firm, stance confident. For a moment, Cordya could see him as his own captain, leading his crew with an easy confidence into a fight. 

“I hate how the four of you took Chief’s first lesson so seriously,” Mariah growled. 

Cordya smiled, “You impress me, Red Devil. I will not take advantage of this.”

Law nodded sharply and turned, “We’re going to have to leave Anders here, the four of us can’t protect him like this, but as soon as it is safe we can send the crew to collect him.”

“But–”

“He’s right, Akira. Think past your emotions for a moment,” Cordya interrupted.

“I’ll be fine, Kiki,” Anders said, groaning as said man helped him sit up. “Hand me the fuckers gun and I’ll be even better.” 

Cordya grabbed a gun that the brutes never had a chance to use and checked to make sure it was loaded. The rest pretended to give Akira some privacy as he leaned down to press a kiss to Ander’s bandaged cheek.

“First step,” Law said as he flared his Haki to check for people around the door, “is to avoid the roads. It’s possible that they only trapped that one section of road, but it’s also likely that they did all of the roads and it’s why the people who live here didn’t leave their houses.” He made sure everyone had gathered their weapons as he spoke and gathered what would be useful out of the garbage of a med kit he was brought.

“So stick to the grass where even if it is down the dew should be enough to keep it from getting dusty,” Tashi concluded, making Law nod.

Law opened the door and crept out into the sunlight, a decent bit lower in the sky than it had been when they had been captured, before darting off to a corner of a house off to the side. The grass was dry and crunched a bit when stepped on, but it didn’t kick up any dust as they moved. Law let his Haki guide him, following paths that weren’t being traveled and circling in to the town hall building. 

They were passing under a kitchen window when it opened suddenly and silently. Law looked up in a panic to see an old woman, gray hair twisted back into a tight bun, her blue eye noticing them immediately.

“Come around to the back door,” she hissed. “Hurry!”

Law isn’t ashamed to admit he jumped to obey the old woman, he still remembered the old lady who lived down the road from him Before and she was the scariest thing he had ever encountered.

As soon as they started moving, she closed the window and pulled the curtains closed. The room they were let into was a simple, cozy sitting room. There was a plush looking couch and comfortable armchair with blankets tossed over the back. A basket with yarn and crochet hooks sat on the floor as well as a basket holding wooden blocks, for a grandchild Law assumed. The house was silent, all the curtains drawn and very little movement.

Once the group was in the house and the door was closed behind them, the old woman turned to Cordya.

“Captain, I am so pleased to see you,” she said, pulling Cordya into a hug.

“Miss Megan, I’m glad you’re not hurt,” Cordya responded.

“Who have you brought with you?” Megan asked, looking at Law.

“Red Devil Doc, of the Red Hair pirates, ma’am, and these are my crewmates, Tashi and Mariah,” Law introduced politely. 

The old woman snorts and raises a critical eyebrow, “You’re awfully polite to be one of Akagami’s.”

Mariah let out a giggle that almost verged into hysterical, likely remembering the bloody bodies he left just a few doors down, “He was told to be on his best behavior.”

Law rolled his eyes and ignored her. “What can you tell me about how the Silver Lions are stationed around here?” he asked. 

She huffed out a breath and stalked over to put a kettle on the stove, seemingly more out of habit than to offer any to her impromptu guests. “They’ve trapped us in our own damned houses,” she complained. “The Dust is always bad this time of year, the butterflies hatching season matches with our dry season, usually it just means we need to be a little more careful. Floors are swept and moped more regularly, feet get washed off, but even if you breathe in too much, it usually just makes you a bit drowsy. Whatever they’ve done, I don’t know if it was to the Dust itself or to the butterflies, it’s made it potent just by itself.”

Law drums his fingers on Kikoku’s hilt, taking in what she was saying, but ultimately deciding it was unimportant for the moment. Something interesting to study when the threat was dealt with. 

“Whitlock’s set up shop in the town hall. The building is mostly open, more meeting hall than anything formal, and it’s ventilated,” Megan gave Law a sharp smile as his gaze snapped over to her.

“So if we can get inside the hall, we won’t have to worry about the Dust,” Law surmised. “Is there a way in that isn’t the front door?”

“Technically, no,” Megan smirked. 

“Get on with it, please,” Law sighed. He worried about the angle of the shadows through the curtains and if Whitlock had already attempted to call the Red Force with his snail. He had a plan in place with the Moons if he did, but he would much rather get to them before he made his family worry. 

“There’s a tunnel that connects the town leaders house to the town hall. It’s not in any blueprints and the trap door to the passage is easy to miss unless you know exactly where to look. We got the idea about 20 years ago when an island to the south got trapped in their hall when a fire started,” Megan led them deeper into her home as she explained. She stopped at a closet in her spare bedroom, more kids toys scattered around the floor and the bed, pulling back a rug she revealed a small trapdoor.

Law held back as the others dropped down into the tunnel, eyes shifting over the room.

“Are you going with them, Red Devil?” Megan asked.

Law shifted his weight nervously for a moment before answering quietly. “Are they okay?” he asked.

“Who?” Megan tilted her head and narrowed her eyes.

Law let his eyes drift from the soft pink comforter on the bed, to the mound of stuffed animals in the corner, to the blocks on the floor. 

“The child that usually lives in this room,” he said finally, letting his eye come back to the old woman. 

Megan stiffened for a moment before she sighed and crossed her arms. “Take care of that Whitlock and she’ll be fine. The Dust is hard on young children as it is, with whatever they did, we sent all the kids to the edges of the town where the Dust isn’t as bad.”

Law nodded, satisfied with the answer, and followed the others down the tunnel.

0808

They were silent as they traveled the tunnel. They were led only by the light of Akira’s lighter as they walked, air damp and earthy. Something about it made Law feel safe for some reason, something to think about later.

Slowly, the earth started sloping back upward and voices could be heard from overhead. The words were indistinguishable, though the tone seemed annoyed to Law. 

Akira extinguished the flame as they came up to the thick wooden trap door, flipping the lid closed on the lighter as gently as he could as Law pressed his ear to the door.

Law took the time to expand his Observation, slowly, with every exhale as he tried to listen in to the conversation. When he was comfortable with the fact that there was no one by the door, Law very slowly and quietly pushed it up a few inches. He had to squint, the light nearly blinding after the darkness of the tunnel, to see into the room in front of him. The door seemed to be hidden under a lectern, the gap between the wood and the floor enough that Law could see the main room which was occupied by a large table mostly.

Whitlock was sitting at the table, Law’s snail in front of him as he growled into it. Law could see three other men standing around, one by the door watching the town, one was sitting with Whitlock at the table and the third seemed to be dozing in a chair off to the side. Unprepared, good, Law thought.

“You are going to give me the number for the Red Hairs or I will make sure your captain comes back in pieces,” Whitlock snarled to the snail. 

Law blinked in confusion for a moment, not able to hear the response from what was obviously the Shadow Moon’s ship, before he smirked.

The other crew must have given him the number, as Whitlock hung up and started to dial a new number. 

“Be ready,” Law hissed, opening the door to let a little more light in so his companions wouldn’t be blinded.

0808

The upper crew all gathered in the war room, not even pretending like they were able to get anything done. The snail slept soundly in the middle of the table while Shanks paced the length of the room. Even Ace, Sabo, and Luffy sat quietly off to the side, just watching their captain and father pace in worry for their brother. It had been four hours since Law called, he had two hours left before they changed course.

“There’s no reason to worry yet,” Beckman soothed, even as he was plotting the route to Cho with Building Snake.

“I just can’t help feeling like I’ve sent him into something he wasn’t ready for,” Shanks yanked at his hair as he turned on his heel to continue his path.

“We trained him well, he’s okay,” Hongo tried to be reassuring, but the tapping of his foot showed his own uncertainty.

The whole room froze as the snail woke from its doze, the quiet purupuru casting a spell over the room. A spell that was only broken when Gab reached forward, pulling the receiver off, the gatcha echoing loudly in the room.

“Red Force control,” Gab answered. 

“Ah, Red Hairs. I want to talk to your captain,” A voice that no one recognized said. The snail leered in approximation of the speaker’s face and Shanks scowled.

“And why would you need to speak to the Chief?” Gab questioned, he sounded bored though his face looked furious.

“Because I have something I’ve been brought to believe he wants back,” the voice on the other end taunted and Shanks had to bite back a snarl.

“I’m here, what do you want?” Shanks demanded, stalking to take the receiver from Gab.

“Ah, Akagami, you see I’ve had someone butt their head into my operations. Someone who claims to be your kid. Now, you see, the seas are dangerous for children, don’t you know?”

“Are you threatening me or my son?” Shanks responded, voice dark and even. 

“Well, that is going to depend on–”

“Are you really so afraid of a fair fight that you called to tattle on me to my dad?” the whole room went boneless in relief at the sound of Law’s taunting voice.

“How did you–what the–” the snail hung up with a click.

“Well,” Hongo said after a few moments of silence, “I think he has this handled.”

Shanks could only laugh while the boys smiled at each other. They all knew Law, knew that tone of voice. Law had a plan he was sure was going to work. 

Chapter Text

Law sat in wait as Whitlock dialed on the snail. He smiled when he heard Gab answer, he was sure after his earlier call the whole crew was gathered waiting on his report. 

“Be prepared,” Law whispered. “I’m going to move us into position here in a moment.”

Law listened closely to the conversation. He had hoped to take care of this before Whitlock managed to call the Red Force, but since he had, and Law had given the Shadow Moon’s specific instructions, Law needed to make a strategic move to not panic his family. Law called a Room up silently, waiting. As soon as he heard Shanks’ voice, he moved, Shambling the four of them into the room.

“Are you threatening me or my son?” Law could hear the carefully coiled anger in his dad’s voice, and Law couldn’t help but smile. 

He didn’t hear how Whitlock responded as he Shambled himself right behind the man.

“Are you really so afraid of a fair fight that you called to tattle on me to my dad?” Law taunted, crossing his arms and smirking as the pirate turned in a panic.

“How did you–what the–” Law could only smirk at the near panic as Whitlock slammed the receiver down. 

“Your guards weren’t very effective, and I was more than a bit annoyed at the state I found the Shadow Moon’s medic in, so I figured I should take that up with the captain. But then I got here and found you threatening my family. I don’t take very well to people threatening my family, Whitlock, so I’m giving you this one last chance,” Law stalked forward until he was nose to nose with the other man, breathing in his reeking breath. 

Law could see a nervous look in Whitlock’s eyes and Law thought he understood. He had been told several times that his glare was unnerving, between the color and the intensity. He had met Dracule Mihawk a few times since joining the Red Force and the crew loved to tease about the similarities between the two, namely in the eyes, and the first time the Warlord leveled his gaze at Law, he felt pinned. He hoped Whitlock felt pinned in this moment, hoped he understood how serious Law was. 

 “Leave this island and never bother me or mine again, or die here and now,” Law snarled. 

Law could see Whitlock straighten up, eyes hardening under Law’s glare. Law could hear a scuffle break out behind him as the others started fighting while Law and Whitlock had a staredown.

“I will not be threatened by a pup who hasn’t even lost their spots,” Whitlock growled, standing up to his full height, looming over Law. 

Law couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled up in his chest, harsh and degrading. “Oh you have no idea what spots I’ve already lost,” Law snarked, pulling his arm back and punching Whitlock right in the face. 

The man barely faltered, even as blood dripped down from his now split lip, but that was fine, Law loved a challenge. Whitlock snapped his arm out to grab Law, but the problem with big men is that they’re slow, especially when they aren’t acting seriously. Law knew the power of being small, knew how to use it to his advantage. He dropped down to the floor to dodge Whitlock’s arm and kicked his leg out to sweep the bigger man’s ankle. 

Whitlock grunted as he stumbled, but didn’t fall. “You little shit,” he growled. 

Law used his momentum from the leg sweep to roll back up to standing, landing an elbow into Whitlock’s ribs on the way around and ducking under another wide swing.

“What? Can’t catch a brat?” Law teased, dancing away from another grab. Law knew he was playing a little too much, but the Red Devils were known for it.

Law kept up the game for a while, dancing around the man before he could get a good grasp on him and dealing his own blows where he could. He was sure he had at least bruised a couple of Whitlock’s ribs and fucked up his knee with a well placed kick. He could hear the other fights dying down around them, could hear Mariah laughing and Tashi scolding so he knew his people were okay. 

Law let his Haki flare out, confirming that his allies were still standing, as he backed Whitlock against the table.

“Now, I say again captain , leave or die,” Law was sure his eyes looked half crazed, could tell his smile had passed the point of feral. 

“Oh, you think you’ve won, have you?” Whitlock still smirked at Law. Faster than Law could fully comprehend, Whitlock picked a pistol up off the table. 

Law wasn’t afraid, he had had more guns pointed at him in his life than he could count by the time Cora got him, but the smile, Whitlock’s smile promised enough violence that it made Law concerned that the pirate was playing with him just as much as Law was. When Whitlock pulled the trigger, it wasn’t a bullet that shot out, but Dust.

Thick and cloying, it immediately clogged in his nose and throat, making him cough and choke. He narrowed his eyes at Whitlock, even as the black started to creep around the corners. Law tried to widen his stance to keep from falling, but even he could feel the stumble in his suddenly leaden feet. He could see Whitlock laughing, though he couldn’t hear him over the roar of blood in his ears. 

Law felt his knees hit the floor, could feel a rough hand in his hair at the top of his head as he gasped for air.

“-aw get up,” the voice was quiet, just on the edge of Law’s ability to hear and easy to ignore as the blackness started to take over.

“Trafalgar Law, get up. The Dust doesn’t bother you. Stand up,” Cordya’s voice cut through the roar like a knife. 

Law gasped in a breath, coughing as his airway was suddenly clear as his sight came back. He blinked once, dispersing the last of the black spots and getting his brain back online. 

He moved as quickly as he was able with his body still catching up. He used both hands to press the hand that was in his hair against his skull before he twisted as fast and as hard as he could, ramming his bent elbow into the back of Whitlock’s. Law heard the sickening crunch of Whitlock's arm before he let out a pained cry, fingers spasming before releasing Law's hair.

Law stood, breathing harshly as he could feel something drip from his nose. He wasn’t sure if it was blood or snot or what, but it didn’t matter now.

“I am so fucking tired of this,” Law growled. He was done playing games. His head hurt now, he could feel his mask rubbing against his chafing skin, and his throat felt ruined. He wanted to go home and the only way to do that was to get rid of this fucker.

Whitlock raised his pistol again, eyes wide, finally afraid. Law moved slower than he should have. He had a weapon against the Dust now, even if another cloud was thrown in his face he should be fine. The first inkling that he was wrong, was when Whitlock aimed the barrel to Law’s side, the second was the cruel glint that came back to his eye as he pulled the trigger.  

Law heard the gunshot, heard Mariah scream, heard the sound of a body hitting the floor, and he knew he had fucked up. Law refused to let himself feel any remorse as he disarmed Whitlock, breaking his wrist in the process, and turned the pistol on him.

Law considered giving a witty remark until he heard Mariah's panicked sounds. Instead he looked Whitlock in the eyes, as he fired a bullet into Whitlock’s forehead. 

Before the body could even hit the ground, Law was turning. “Mariah, status?” he demanded, tucking the pistol in the rarely used holster on his belt. His head still swam, vision slightly frayed around the edges from the after effects of the Dust and whatever Cordya’s Fruit did to him, but it was easy to push aside for the moment.

“Law! Law, Tashi–he–” Law had never heard Mariah so frazzled and when his eyes focused, he understood why.

Mariah was leaned over Tashi shirtless as she held the fabric against a rapidly spreading red stain on his abdomen. 

“Shit,” Law cursed, rushing over to kneel on Tashi’s other side. He took the shirt from Mariah’s trembling hand and took over pressure.

“Mariah, Mariah I need you to look at me,” Law ordered. Mariah’s eyes snapped up to his, wide and misty. “I need you to call the Chief, tell him that I’ll call shortly. Cordya, Akira, I need you to go back to the ship. I packed a box in case I needed it, I need one of you to bring it to me. Tell the crew to start cleaning up the stragglers, I don’t care if you get them together for Chief to take care of later or if they’re taken care of now. The other one needs to get the townsfolk together, let them know it’s safe enough and start getting water on the roads.”

For a moment, no one moved. Then Law snapped, “Move! Now!” as a blue field flickered to life and the other three scattered. 

0808

The crew at the Red Force had barely moved since the last call 30 minutes ago. When the snail rang again, it was Shanks that answered.

“Report,” he ordered as the snail's features morphed into Mariah’s, though far more panicked than her captain had ever seen her.

“Mariah reporting,” her voice trembled and it set them all on edge. “Threat eliminated, full report to come. Doc is performing emergency surgery on Tashi, likely outcome is un-unknown.” Her voice broke on the last word.

“Mariah, are you injured as well?” Shanks asked, voice even to get the woman to focus.

“Bruises and scrapes. Doc has a nosebleed, I think from the drug they tried to get him with, but otherwise nothing visual. Tashi,” she sucked in a sharp breath and Shanks could almost see the way she squared her shoulders in the snail’s mimicry. “Tashi took a bullet to the stomach after he shoved me out of the way.”

“Atta girl,” Shanks praised. “How are the Shadow Moons?”

“Their medic was pretty banged up when we got here. Doc got him patched up but from the way Doc was talking he’ll probably need some sort of surgery too.”

“Okay, we’re going to start heading that direction,” he made a motion and Building Snake quickly left the room to start adjusting course. “We’ll discuss details when Doc calls back, but I’d rather have our injured on our ship. Take care of them and we’ll see you soon.”

“Yes sir,” Mariah responded, seeming at least a bit more settled. 

Shanks hung up the receiver and let out a harsh breath. It was supposed to be a simple mission, easy to take care of. He glanced over to where the other three were huddled on the floor, talking quietly.

“You boys just can’t help but find trouble, can you?” he sighed.

“To be fair, I think it usually finds us,” Sabo replied as all three smiled at him. 

“Yeah, you’re not wrong,” Shanks couldn’t help but chuckle. “What am I going to do with you four?” He got out of his chair and moved to ruffle their hair.

“Love us forever?” Luffy giggled.

Shanks smiled and flopped across their legs dramatically, making them all squawk and laugh. “Oh I suppose I must.”

“You’re squishing us, old man!” Ace said through his laughter.

Shanks stayed there for a few minutes, letting the laughter of his boys wash over him and settle the last of his fraying nerves, before he got back up.

“Come on, boys, let’s get moving so we can go pick up that brother of yours.”

They all rose with a chorus of ‘yes Chief,’ and took off to help with the rigging. Shanks watched them go before sliding back into a chair and resting his head in his hand.

“He’s alright, Shanks. And because of him Tashi will be too,” Beckman soothed, gently rubbing Shanks’ neck. 

“I had to let him go, right Beck? I didn’t fuck this up?” Shanks asked, not for the first time in the last week.

“We can’t keep him here forever, he’s already 16 and talking about what he wants to do on the seas. He’s strong and smart, Shanks, he’s taken care of the problem and he’s taking care of the people under his command.”

“I know,” Shanks sighed. “I know. I just won’t feel okay about it until he’s back with us.”

0808

It took four days for the Red Hairs to meet up with them on Cho, though Law wasn’t going to question how they made the trip so quickly. He was running on fumes after doing major surgery to stabilize Tashi, followed by the surgery to fix Anders’ knee and finish the job on his lungs. Then he did a check up on most of the town, mostly the children, to be sure that the Dust hadn’t had too many bad effects on them. So when Luffy launched himself into Law’s arms the second the gangplank was secure, it was like taking a breath of fresh air.

“Hi, Sunflower,” Law murmured into Luffy’s curls.

Luffy pulled back with a huge grin that dimmed slightly as he took in Law’s face. “You look tired, Torao,” he said.

“I am, Anchor,” Law sighed. “But I can rest as soon as I’ve talked to Dad and Hongo.” 

“Your ear was bleeding,” Luffy observed, reaching up to gently touch the raw skin behind Law’s ear.

“It’s fine, the masks just aren't meant to be worn full time like this, so it’s chaffed a little,” Law explained.

“I’ll talk to Blue about that,” Shanks said, startling Law as he hadn’t heard his dad approach. “See if we can’t figure something out for next time, or at least for when Firecracker and Shade take off.”

Law blinked owlishly at Shanks. “You mean I get a next time?” he finally asked.

Then it was Shanks' turn to blink before a smile broke over his face. “Of course you get a next time! You did fine, Doc, made me proud.”

“I can’t fully speak for my pride until I see everything, but I’m sure you have mine as well,” Hongo chimed in, joining them with his hands in his pockets. 

“They’re both set up on the Moon Beam for the time being,” Law reported, setting Luffy down. “I can tell you about their condition on the way.”

When Hongo didn’t start to follow him, Law stopped. 

“Doc, are your notes with them?” Hongo asked, head tilted just a touch.

“Of course,” Law was confused.

“Then, with your permission, will you allow me to take over full care of your patients for the time being?” Hongo was almost startlingly sincere with his request and it froze Law in place for a moment before he felt himself stiffen in indignation. “I have never known your notes to be anything less than perfect and you look like you’re ready to drop. If anything happens, I’ll come get you, but I’m here now to lend a hand.”

And with that, the fight leaves Law with a sigh, “Yeah, yeah alright.” 

Hongo’s smile was just as bright as Shanks’ in that moment. “Good, I’ll go see to them, you go get some rest.”

“Shade and Firecracker should be done with their chores soon, and I’m sure they’d be more than happy to take watch for you so you can get some good sleep,” Shanks ruffled his hair. “Get some rest now, cause we’re going to celebrate later.”

Law rolled his eyes but he couldn’t stop the jaw cracking yawn when it bubbled up. 

“I’m going, I’m going,” he grumbled. He started up the gangplank at the same time that Hongo and Shanks started walking to the Moon Beam moored just down the beach from them. 

The moment he set foot on the Red Force, it was like a weight fell off of his shoulders. He took a deep breath, smelling the cherry tobacco scent that had soaked into wood from Beckman’s cigarettes and he almost swore he could hear a tiny giggle welcoming him back. He let out the breath and closed his eyes for a moment.

“She missed you,” Luffy said solemnly.

“Who?” Law asked, blinking his eyes open.

“Red,” Luffy answered, as though that was a full answer. “She knows we aren’t hers to keep, but she still misses us when we’re gone.”

Law huffed, knowing that was the best answer he was going to get. He ran his hand over the gunwale as he walked over the deck. “Yeah, I missed her too,” he sighed. He waved to Sabo and flipped Ace the bird as he passed them, both boys sticking their tongues out at him in response before he hit the stairs to their room. 

As soon as they were under the shadows of the deck, Law took his mask off with a sigh of relief. He felt Luffy reach up with those stretchy limbs and gently, more gentle than Luffy ever is, hook behind his ears to pull the clasps off. Luffy took Law’s mask when they got to their room, setting them both in their place on the stand as Law stumbled to sit on a bed.

Law quit paying attention to Luffy as he untied the laces on his boots, so he was surprised when his favorite sweatpants and a threadbare tank top was shoved into his hands. 

“Thanks, Lu,” Law smiled what felt like the first genuine smile in days as Luffy just grinned back. “Are you going to go explore?”

“Nah, I missed Torao and he needs to rest,” Luffy said, grin blinding.

“Are you sure, Sunflower?” Law’s brows furrowed in confusion. Luffy hated being below deck when the weather was nice, especially if they were docked.

“Yeah! Ace and Sabo are going to be a while so I can hug Torao and keep watch for him until they’re done,” Luffy answered simply, jumping onto the bed while Law changed.

Law nearly collapsed onto the bed once in comfortable clothes, Luffy giggling as he was squished under Law’s weight. Luffy wiggled until Law sat up so he could sit at the head of the bed. Law dropped his head back down and sighed out a long breath as Luffy started petting his head.

He must have dozed off for a while, because the next thing he knew the bed was dipping as Sabo sat down beside him. He grumbled and groaned as Sabo tried to shove him over.

“Scoot over if you want us to lay down,” Sabo laughed, shoving him again.

Law rolled over to look at Sabo, narrowing his eyes at him. Ace stood behind him obviously trying not to laugh.

“Either scoot over or get up so we can move over to the nest. I was promised a nap and I’ll be really annoying until I–EEP!”  Sabo’s sass was cut off by a squeak as Law wrapped his arm around his waist and rolled over quickly, taking Sabo with him. 

Law manhandled Sabo into a cuddling position while Ace nearly doubled over in laughter and Luffy giggled brightly.

“What? I thought you wanted to cuddle and nap? Is this not what you wanted, pipsqueak?” Law teased, digging his fingers into Sabo’s sides.

“Law! You fucking dick!” Sabo managed to get out between bursts of laughter, squirming until Law let him go, chuckling quietly. 

Law shuffled the two of them closer to the wall, giving Ace room to lay down behind them. He closed his eyes and let his body go limp, burying his nose in Sabo’s curls. His hair had the slight chemical smell of fresh dye, all three of them must have dyed it recently, but under that was the smell of ink and paper. The pillow must have been Ace’s, because Law could smell woodsmoke and fire as Ace curled up behind him, always so warm against the perpetual chill of Law’s skin. Luffy started humming something bright and slightly off tune, legs swinging off the side of the bed as he gently started petting Law’s hair again. Luffy giggled when Law caught his wrist easily when he tried to stretch for something across the room. Law smiled and the sound and the smell of sun warmed grass. Law sighed again, falling asleep with a smile on his face and home on his mind.

Chapter Text

Tashi was still in rough shape when Shanks and Hongo went to visit, sleeping for the most part due to the sheer amount of pain medication Law had him on. Though when he was awake he had only good things to say about the way Law ran the mission. 

“You should have seen him, Chief,” Tashi said. He was still in the medical bay of the Moon Beam, no one wanted to physically move him yet and Law was still too drained to Shambles him over. He was still pale, stomach wrapped in bandages, but he was in good spirits. “He had everything under control the entire time, really acted like a seasoned captain, ya know?”

“You really would have been proud of him, Chief,” Mariah agreed. From what Shanks had heard, she hadn’t left Tashi’s side since Law had moved him to the Moon Beam.

“I’m always proud of him,” Shanks responded honestly, though he smiled at the two. “Though I’m sure he is blaming himself for you getting shot.”

Tashi waved him off weakly. “I don’t think any of us expected the gun to have any actual bullets. The first time he shot it it just sent out that Dust stuff. I’m just glad it was me and not either of them.”

“Tashi!” Mariah scolded as Shanks laughed. 

Shanks hadn’t realized the two were this close when he sent them together, but it didn’t bother him in the slightest. 

“We’ll stick around here until Doc or Hongo clear you to move, so you just focus on resting up,” Shanks smiled, patting Tashi’s foot. 

Shanks peaked over Hongo’s shoulder, eyes skimming over Law’s messy script for anything in the report that would stand out to him, before turning to leave. 

“Wait, Red Hair,” Shanks paused and turned to look at who spoke.

Akira sat next to their medical officer, holding his hand gently as the injured man slept. Anders whole left leg was casted and he had bandages wrapped around his torso and head. Akira himself had a few bandages peeking out from under his sleeves and was sporting a fading black eye.

“Akira, what can I do for you?” Shanks gave him his standard smile.

“I–uh,” Akira paused, ran a thumb over Anders' knuckles, and took a deep breath. “I wanted to say thank you, to you and your son. If we didn’t have him, I don’t think we would have been able to do this without casualties. I don’t think Anders would have made it either.”

Shanks’ smile shifted into something a bit more genuine, “I’m sure you could have told Doc that yourself.”

“I’ve tried,” Akira scoffed. “I’m pretty sure he’s avoiding most of us.”

“Yeah, probably,” Hongo chuckled, flipping a page.

“Wha–?”

“It’s the biggest part of being a doctor he will probably never accept. To him he did his job, nothing more, nothing less. He was sent here to take care of a problem, that was his job from me, so he did it with as little mess as he could within reason. Taking care of the injured is his duty, it’s something he takes great pride in, but he doesn’t do it for anyone's appreciation. If he thought you were going to thank him, he probably did make himself scarce,” Shanks waved his hand while Akira chucked. 

Akira shook his head with a small chuckle. “I guess that makes sense. Just, make sure he knows that we appreciate him, okay?”

Shanks just hummed as he left the med bay. He knew he should go meet up with Cordya, but he wasn’t in a huge hurry to do so, something he knew Beckman would scold him for. That was until he looked over the crew of the Shadow Moons, noticing how few would meet his eyes, a man off to the side with a bandaged hand nearly flinched when Shanks glanced at him. It was enough to make him turn on his heel and head to the captain's quarters, knocking quickly once he got there.

“Enter, Red Hair,” Cordya called.

The room was simple, Shanks thought looking in. A bed against one wall with a chest at the foot of it, a chest of drawers against the opposite wall and a table with two chairs in the middle. Cordya was sitting at the table with a book and pen that she had set aside at his knock. 

“Could you tell me why your crew acts like they are afraid of me? More so than normal, at least,” Shanks’ tone was playful, though he could tell she understood his meaning. 

She sighed and rested her elbows on the table, leaning her head forward to rub her hands through her hair. “There’s alcohol in that drawer there, grab two bottles if you would,” she said, gesturing to the cabinet by the door. 

Shanks raised his eyebrows at the usually put together captain and followed her gesture, picking out two bottles of rum for them. He sat them both on the table before taking the other seat, watching as Cordya opened both bottles before taking a long swig for herself. 

“Your child has made quite the impression and my crew feels guilty,” she said.

“Guilty?” Shanks paused with the bottle half-way to his mouth. 

“Hmm,” she hummed, taking another drink before setting the bottle down with a sigh. “Doc was very clear in his instructions and plans, the crew was not to interfere unless you got here. He was very clear on what he needed them to do. Now they feel because they couldn’t help, one of yours was injured and your son has run himself ragged treating not just Tashi, but Anders and the village as well. I do hope you have managed to get him to rest for a moment, because we sure haven’t been able to.”

Shanks was quiet for a moment before he chuckled, taking a drink of his own bottle. “Yeah, that’s my kid alright. It’s like he’s allergic to both asking for help and accepting gratitude,” he laughed. 

Cordya sighed and shook her head, “He’s a good kid, he’ll be a great captain.”

Shanks looked at the bottle in his hand with a soft smile, “I think so too.”

They were quiet for a few minutes, both finishing up their drinks while Cordya picked her pen back up. “Just so you’re aware, the Shadow Moons and the island of Cho will stand with Trafalgar Law should he ever overcome his allergies,” she said, not looking up from her notes.

Shanks choked on his rum, coughing harshly for a moment. It took him a moment to remember that Law had told Shanks that Cordya knew his name, knew the details were in the notes that both Cordya and Law would be delivering to him shortly. “I see,” he said, once he stopped coughing.

“I’m sure the Red Hairs will always be his first choice of allies,” Cordya said, glancing up from her notes, “but he has endeared himself to us and the island over the course of this mission. Should he ever need us, he only needs to ask.”

Shanks didn’t respond, content to simply drink his rum in silence while Cordya wrote, Haki stretched out to brush over his boys. He smiled as Luffy’s sunshine warmth brushed against him as the other three dozed. 

“He is asleep with the boys,” Shanks said after a while, “in case you were worried.”

He could see Cordya’s relieved smile out of the corner of his eye as he took another drink. He knew his kids were going to be amazing, but it was always nice when others came to the same conclusion.

0808

The celebration that night was much more subdued than a normal party when the Red Hairs were included, but between Tashi still being bed bound and Law still exhausted they decided to take it easy. That being said, taking it easy for the Red Hairs, still meant that the booze flowed freely and music was played joyously. 

The trio were having a great time, they spent the afternoon exploring the island after Law woke up, indulging him in his need for solitude, so they were perfectly happy talking to the villagers. Luffy had been overly excited about the abundance of butterflies, only managing to leave them alone for threat of limb removal and Law’s very stern and worried explanation about them. The town was charmed by his enthusiasm, like most tended to be, as he asked everyone about the bugs of the island. Sabo had been enjoying talking to Megan and some of the other elders about the history of the island and their trade, they ate up his polite questions and genuine curiosity. They laughed when he brought out notebooks and maps to take notes on everything they were willing to tell him. Ace was mostly keeping to himself, he had taken off exploring the island with the rest of them but now that more people are around, his more bashful side started coming out. He seemed perfectly content to sit by the growing bonfire where he could keep an eye on everyone. 

Law had joined Ace there, later in the evening. He had managed to find some cloth to wrap around the edges of his mask and between that and the soft bandages at his temples he was feeling a lot more comfortable. Physically, at least. The Red Hairs could all tell that he was still exhausted and that his social battery was more than a little depleted, but they were pleased to see him. Most of the crew came by to greet him quietly with a pat on the shoulder, Gab went as far as to shove a tankard of whatever booze they were drinking in his hands before ruffling his hair. Law had scowled and swatted at the hand, but took the drink and leaned further into Ace’s side. 

“Get off me,” Ace grumbles with no real heat. Law firmly ignores him in favor of closing his eyes and letting the sound wash over him. 

“Torao! Torao, look!” Law managed to raise his drink out of the way to avoid spilling it as Luffy barreled into him, Ace squawking as it nearly toppled him as well.

“Anchor! Watch what you’re doing,” Ace snapped.

“Shishi, oops, sorry!” Luffy didn’t look very sorry as he focused on Law. “Torao, look! The nice ladies said I could have this! Isn’t it pretty?”

Law gently wrapped a hand around Luffy’s wrist to pull his hand away from his face so he could actually see whatever it was the Luffy had been given. 

“It is very pretty,” Law agreed now that he could see it. And it was, it was an intricately carved wooden butterfly, painted in black and yellow to match some of the species Law had seen around the island. Law didn’t know a whole lot about woodcarving, but even he could tell that it was a very well done work of art.

“The nice ladies told me it was a good luck charm!” Luffy enthused, bouncing on his toes.

“Then you will have to take very good care of it, Anchor. If you break it, who knows what bad luck you’ll end up with,” Law teased, ruffling Luffy’s hair.

Luffy gasped, as though that thought had never occurred to him, before shoving the little wooden butterfly back out to Law. “Will you hold onto it for now? Just until we go back to the ship? Please?” 

Luffy was stupidly good at the puppy dog eyes and Law was a sucker. These were both facts he knew when he held out his palm with a sigh. “Just until we go back to the ship, then you have to find somewhere safe to put it,” he said. 

Luffy cheered and ran off after he dropped the little carving in Law’s hand. Law just shook his head and stuck it in his pocket before taking a drink.

“Do you actually believe in that shit? Good luck charms,” Ace elaborated when Law hummed in confusion. 

Law shrugged and took another drink, feeling the burn of the alcohol.

“I don’t necessarily believe in them, my mom did, though,” he said quietly. “She had a little rock she used to carry around with her all the time and socks she always wore for surgery because she claimed they were lucky.” 

Ace didn’t say anything for a few moments, and then Law chuckled, a bit sadly. “I thought I had forgotten about that,” his voice was barely audible.

“Maybe it’s the belief that makes them lucky, more than the actual thing,” Ace murmured, nudging Law with his shoulder.

“Maybe,” Law agreed. 

They were silent for a good long while, both watching the fire, until two hard thunks rang out. “Keep your fucking hands off my drink!” Law snarled at both Ace and, somehow, Sabo who were clutching the back of their heads.

Shanks just started laughing from where he was sitting with Beckman and Cordya. “Shade you should know better than to try to sneak up on him,” he got out through his laughter.

“Oh, come on Red Hair,” one of the Moons called, “how old are the boys?”

“Thirteen!” Ace and Sabo yelled in unison. 

“Still too young,” Shanks countered flatly. “I have to at least pretend to have good morals for you.”

“Dad!” Sabo whined while Ace crossed his arms and scowled. 

Law just gave them one last glare before he moved to join the captains, sitting down with a huff. 

“What, he have enough of the heart to heart and decided to cause chaos?” Shanks teased. 

“ Any heart to heart is too much for both of us,” Law scoffed, leaning his head onto his hand.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Beckman scoffed right back. He smirked when Law tried to turn that glare on him. 

It was only a few hours later that Luffy dropped himself into Law’s lap and dug his face into Law’s chest.

“You tired, Kiddo?” Shanks asked, reaching over to ruffle Luffy’s hair. He laughed when Luffy just nodded tiredly.

“Doc, would you mind taking him in? Unless you’d rather stay out with the party,” Shanks asked and Law knew an out when he heard one.

“Nah, I’ll take him in,” Law answered, adjusting Luffy’s weight so he could stand up. Luffy easily wrapped his arms around Law’s neck and let himself be lifted. “Night guys.” Law didn’t hang around long enough to hear the chorus respond as he walked towards the Red Force.

“You’re going to get too big for this soon,” Law muttered, twisting the boy around so Luffy was on his back.

“Nuh uh,” Luffy muttered back. “You’ll always be able to carry me around.”

“Spoiled brat,” Law huffed back, but he was smiling. 

By the time he reached the gangplank he was joined by Ace and Sabo, neither looking especially tired but unwilling to split the group. Something in Law’s chest hurt when he remembered that he would be splitting the group permanently before too long.

0808

They had cleared Cho two days later and before anyone was really ready, October rolled around. Law had continued going off on his own over the months as the made their way into the North Blue, though thankfully none were as eventful as the first one. Law was getting used to being away, being in charge, but it still didn’t make it easier. 

Law watched silently as the hair fell around him, Lime Juice expertly wielding the scissors as he trimmed off the reddest parts of Law’s hair. He hadn’t dyed or cut it since before Cho, making use of the cooler weather that wearing a knitted beanie was not unusual. Thankfully he had enough new growth and time had worn down the dye enough that he didn’t have to shave his head or dye it back to his natural color. It still felt like the end of an era though. 

“Have you decided where you want to start?” Shanks asked, his posture was casual even if his voice didn’t quite convey it. 

Law took a deep breath but didn’t respond until Lime had set the scissors down and walked away, declaring his job done with a watery tone. 

Law looked up from the red hair on the ground around them to look up at Shanks and Beckman. They were in Shanks cabin, the porthole open to let in the chilly breeze the North Blue always had. Law had forgotten how cold it was here, how different the sea seemed. For a moment, he felt very young again.

“I want to go to Minion Island,” Law told him, almost begging his voice not to crack. He winced when both men froze to look at him. “I need to go back, I need to be able to face--to say goodbye.”

Law couldn’t read the look that Shanks and Beckman shared before Shanks spoke up again, “Are you sure?”

Law lifted his chin up defiantly, “You’re not going to change my mind.”

“No, that isn’t what we meant,” Beckman sighed as Shanks walked around the table to crouch in front of Law.

“Law, if you feel like you need to go to Minion, we will make sure you get there, I just want to know if you’re sure that’s where you want to start . I also want to be sure you’re okay going alone,” Shanks voice was a near whisper, thumb brushing over the knuckles of Law’s clenched fist.  

“I–I don’t know how good of an idea it would be for everyone to go,” Law admitted quietly.

“Then why don’t just you and I go? We can leave the crew a couple islands away and take a small ship. You and I can go to Minion, then I can drop you off at Swallow before heading back, that sound doable?” Shanks offered. 

“You can’t handle a ship on your own,” Law scoffed. “But, maybe we could bring the boys?”

“We can do that,” Shanks smiled. “Let’s get with Snake and figure out a course and then we can get with the officers to set up the plan.”

Law took a deep breath and smiled, he was as ready as he could be. 

Chapter Text

The day he watched Shanks and the boys sail away from Swallow, arms raised in farewell as their Haki faded from his senses, was a bittersweet memory in his mind. The first month or so was rough, as much as Law hated to admit it, he was used to being around people he trusted. Even when he was out over the last year, it was always with at least one other Red Hair, so it took him a little while to find his feet on his own, insomnia acting up and anxiety barely being kept from paranioa. At least it was until three people rudely inserted themselves in his life.

Law had been sitting at a small diner-like cafe, quietly drinking a cup of coffee while he tried to figure out how he wanted to go about getting off of Swallow, also how he was going to go about getting a crew. He had just laid a map of the area out on the table when he was interrupted. 

“Hey man! I am really sorry to butt in, but I need you to hide me like right now ,” someone said, nearly making Law flinch. The guy looked to be around Law’s age, with red hair and a pink and green hat pulled low over his face.

“Excuse me?” Law replied, eyebrows raised.

“Listen I can’t promise to, like, pay you back or anything, but I can make it worth your while if you just let me hide and pretend you didn’t see me,” the guy said, voice desperate. 

Law rolled his eyes, but lifted the side of the table cloth. The guy’s whole face lit up as he dove under the table and Law adjusted the other chair and his coat to further hide him. 

A few moments later a few official looking people rushed over, weapons drawn and clearly looking for someone. Law didn’t even look up from the map as he let his Observation expand, waiting until the group gave up on this area and started looking further out.

The guy started to crawl out from under the table, but was stopped when Law uncrossed his legs and heavily set one foot on his back in a warning. 

“Now, as much as I would like to do things out of the kindness of my heart, you don’t get to leave until I know why ,” Law said, his tone was conversational but laced with warning.