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D’s are the enemies of the Gods, and it’s not because most of them eat enough for 10 mortal men or are generally stronger. That does add to it, but the main reason was that as long as there was a D on the battlefield all the others had a live feed as to what was going on.
They almost seemed to have a hive mind, if one were to believe such a thing.
Stories would pop up now and again, when D’s weren’t all that present in the general on-goings of the world. They were believed to be myths and legends, until just after the Void Century when they seemed to be popping up just about anywhere.
When Rocks D. Xebec and Gol D. Roger roaming the seas as Pirates, while Jaguar D. Saul and Monkey D. Garp joined the marines, it almost seemed that the D-clan would be decided, except they weren’t. Any and all altercations between either of them always ended in a draw. With a good laugh and a toast to another battle in the future. Garp and Saul had been reprimanded about it, but neither seemed inclined to actually change their ways in dealing with their kin.
Despite those stories, things did get even weirder.
Marines present at God Valley would swear on Calypso, Nika and Gaia that the moment Garp and Gol D. Roger arrived at the battle, Rocks’ demeanor changed. It was as if hits didn’t fall, like they knew what the other men were doing.
It became even worse when the reveal came that Garp’s son, Dragon, was also close by. He didn’t enter the battle, but he was close and that seemed to be enough for them to have an extra pair of eyes. As every other attack didn’t hit any of them.
Not even when the Elders got involved and the nightmare that was the black specter tried to get a hold of one of the D’s on the scaffold. It wouldn’t stick, nothing could be done and before long they were free. Running into the same direction and being welcomed into the sea as if they belonged there.
The world was told that Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp protected the Celestial Dragons from Rocks D. Xebec. But those there, and those who had seen the D-clan interact knew that the chance of them actually defeating the other were non-existent. No one said a word about that and with the disbanding of the Rocks Pirates, people believed that he had been killed. When, in reality, he had just decided to hide away from the world and get stronger once more.
Years later, Gol D. Roger would be killed in an altercation with Monkey D. Garp a couple of years after he reached the end of the line. Garp had been happy to share the last words of the King, proclaiming that the treasure was still there, people just had to find it. The World Government wasn’t happy about that, but Garp had given them proof Roger was killed, so they couldn’t quite complain.
Looking back, that had to have been their first warning that there was something special about the Clan of D.
—
Ace grew up with two loving parents who both carried the initial D. Rouge and Roger explained to him, once he was old enough, that they were in hiding here on Dawn Island as people were looking for his papa and wanted to kill him. He hadn’t even done anything truly bad, but he didn’t adhere to the expectations of the World Government (like no true D would ever do) and they didn’t like him because of that.
“Your Uncle Garp made sure that we could hide away here, on his home island, watching over it and the East Blue in his stead while he makes sure that your Uncle Xebec keeps his head down in the West Blue and does the same. No one can know we survived, Ace, that’s the most important secret you’ll have to keep,” Roger had told his son.
They explain it carefully, why Ace can see what is around him and at the same time; how he has an echo of what happens somewhere else. How D’s are different like that, connected in a way no one else is. It takes a while before he can understand and knows that they are a family in ways that others wouldn’t understand.
Rouge smiles when he asks about the Ds currently around. Humming as she goes over them all, mentioning whose eyes he is looking through and what that person did at one point in time. He knows them all by name now; Xebec, Teach, Garp, Dragon, Saul, Nicolas, Law, Lammy, Cobra and his parents. Not as many as there had been once upon a time, but still enough people that they could keep on relying on each other.
His dad is the one to tell him he can’t ever tell anyone not a D about Cobra and any children he might have, “They are Royals and came into their title because they hid their initials. The World Government doesn’t like us, they don’t know how we operate and they are scared of what we might do.”
He’d been in awe at that, about how they were all connected and he loved that about the clan.
What he loved even more, was a new line being formed. He’d been sitting with his parents on an early day in May when it felt like the universe expanded and in a way it did. A new D was born, and they partied for a new line in their clan. When another one was added a year later, they rejoiced once more, looking forward to meeting those others out there on the seas.
Sadly, there was also a downside to the connection. When one of them got hurt, they all felt it. Nicolas seemed to be erratic and the hurt they felt from him is what had several of the others gearing up to go and help. Being able to have an insight into other people’s feelings and what they saw did help in getting them out of there. Nicolas’ wife, not a D, died when the Marines attacked Flevance. He survived, as did his two children.
“Law,” Nicolas would moan, “He got away but I can’t see where he went.” The man was anxious, despite being saved. As the loss of his people was too great and Lammy missed her big brother when he didn’t come with them.
Garp was eventually the one to retrieve Law. As they all worked together in finding out where he had gone. It was the name of the blond man Law was with, one Rosinante, that had one of the elder Ds curse before he promised to get the kid out of there. Knowing that he never left the North Blue wasn’t an easy thing to accept, but once he was back with Nicolas (accompanied by a skeleton crew of North Blue kids and a tall, somewhat clumsy blond) things became easier to process.
It was also then that Ace learned that there was such a thing as a claimed D. He didn’t know the schematics of it, but then again, he was only 5. But with Rosinante joining them, and the honest relief Nicolas and Lammy felt at having Law with them again, it wasn’t that surprising when another joined their clan. Law having a devil fruit now also helped, even more so as it was surgery based and the boy did want to become a surgeon.
Rosinante didn’t quite know what to think of it, “What is this,” he asked as he put a hand to his chest.
Nicolas grinned, before sharing what was happening. What he had done for Law and how their clan could recognize that. The blond was shocked and tried to push it all away, going on and on about how he had been born a Celestial Dragon. Just to hear that none of them cared about that, the Celestial Dragons cared for those of the D-clan and feared them most of all. But the other way around wasn’t true.
Rosinante settled soon enough, and in Ace’s mind he couldn’t help but be happy that their clan was growing.
—
Despite having people close to his own age on Dawn, Ace felt that he needed some time away from Law and Lammy now and again. He liked the two of them, they were kin, but it was also clear they had grown up together making their bond that much, more stronger.
Finding out that Law had spent almost a year thinking Lammy had been killed in the hospital fire he had seen happen after the genocide in Flevence didn’t help there. Even if he had seen through her eyes, he hadn’t quite believed it. So, Ace understood, and took his time away from the other kids.
Which is how he met Sabo.
The blond boy ran into the forest without looking back as he had been chased by what seemed to be a band of bandits. His clothes betrayed that he had been a noble at one point, even if it was clear he hadn’t been in Goa for a while now. He looked afraid, and horribly outmatched against the adults chasing him. Which is when Ace stepped in, taking care of the adults foolish enough to set foot into the forests.
Grinning widely at the groaning thugs, he turned towards the blond and grinned, “You looked like you needed the help.”
Sabo nodded, “Thanks, they got the drop on me and I didn’t know what else to do but run. I’m Sabo.”
As Ace shook his hand, he grinned, “Ace, it’s nice to meet you.”
It was clear Sabo didn’t have a lot of positive interactions since leaving wherever he had been before, the smile on his face saying more than enough. It was also more than clear that he was lonely, so Ace did the only thing he could think of which was to invite the boy back to his parents’ place.
Roger and Rouge just looked amused at the little blond who arrived, who looked properly awed at the sight of all of them. Swallowing thickly and obviously recognizing Roger from a wanted poster. Looking as if he had seen a ghost, which had them all laughing.
Rosinante was the one to explain, adding that Ds as a whole had another outlook on life. Enough that he knew none of them knew how to explain how their odd little bunch fit together. He had some help from Penguin and Shachi, who after the time spent with Law had adapted like kids so easily could.
Ace loved having a friend of his own, he had asked for a sibling at one point but had been told that his mom had a lot of trouble getting pregnant with him, so another child wouldn’t be in the stars for them and he had accepted that. He didn’t need it, now that he had Sabo.
Would need it even less once Luffy arrived, about 5 years later.
One of the youngest Ds and Uncle Garp’s grandson, came to them on a sunny morning. Garp arrived with all the grace of a herd of elephants. Glaring at Roger as he pointed at the hat on Luffy’s hat, “Your red-haired menace gave him that, so you better take responsibility there,” he didn’t say anything else. But his dad was overjoyed and kept asking about Shanks whenever he could.
They had all known Luffy had been on the same island, given to a barmaid to raise after Dragon had gotten himself chosen as the new most-wanted man in the world. Because of what he did and where he did it, no one could help him keep it all under wraps either. He was alone and didn’t want his son to be the victim of that, so Garp had taken him. Having explained to Roger that Luffy was too free-spirited to be hiding away in the jungle so he had tried to keep him in, Windmill.
Just for that to blow up in his face once Shanks arrived. Ace had known who Shanks was since he could hear stories about his dad’s former crew. The redhead would have been his big brother and he already adored the man for it. Part of him also envied Luffy for having met him.
But, he adapted, which came easy as Luffy loved everything around him. He took such joy in what happened and with the amount of Ds now around he thrived under attention he didn’t have before. Additionally, as he also had a devil fruit, the sturdiness of other Ds helped him in training it.
—
Luffy loved his family, once he knew he had more than just his grandfather.
He had known there were others, had been told about the clan of D and how he could look and feel others within the same clan. But that didn’t mean he could actually interact with them all. At least until Shanks left and Gramps took him away to go and live with Uncle Roger and Auntie Rouge. He had Ace and Sabo, who quickly became his big brothers.
Law and Lammy, who were his cousins or something close to that and their dad, Uncle Nicolas. He also had Uncle Xebec and Cousin Teach, but he had never seen them before.
There was also Rosinante, Shachi, Penguin and Bepo, who were a part of Law’s family and if the older boy had a say in it, his crew once he set out to become a pirate.
And that had to be the reason he loved his family all that much more. They all had been Pirates, or wanted to become one. Except for Uncle Nicolas and Lammy. But they were doctors who treated anyone and didn’t care about which alignment they had.
Uncle Roger had been Pirate King, or was Pirate King still, had sailed all the way to the end of the line and Luffy couldn’t wait to do the same thing once he was old enough.
Because of the people he now lived with, he even got to meet his dad. The man who was the worst criminal in the world, according to the World Government at least, and who had given him to Gramps to protect him.
When Sabo had been taken back by his stupid dad, Uncle Rosi and Auntie Rouge sprung into action to get him back. Eventually reaching out to Dragon, his dad, once they all saw him looking at Sabo after having saved him. Sabo was brought back to them, where Law and Uncle Nicolas took over his care. Making sure he was healing well and all waiting with baited breath if he would be alright once he woke up. His dad had said that his own doctors feared his head might be damaged and that alone was enough for them to fear he had lost (part of) his memories.
He did, but seeing them all brought them right back.
The following years passed easily, with all of them training and making sure they were ready for when they set out. Luffy pouted when Law announced he’d be leaving back to the North Blue to get his affairs in order and set out on his own.
Ace, and Sabo, said the same thing. Except Ace would be leaving to become a Pirate, but Sabo had changed his mind and would be leaving to become a Revolutionary. Something that did ease their mind as they all would be able to look on through other’s eyes as the oldest of the brood settled into their own paths.
Something that became even more of a blessing, as Cousin Teach was on the same ship as Ace eventually ended up at.
Both Uncle Xebec and Uncle Roger would call at least once a week to brag about their sons, and complain about a man they called Eddy for stealing said sons for his own crew.
Giggling, Luffy didn’t care, only looking forward to the time he turned 17 and could set out on his own.
—
It had been amazing to set out, until it was not.
Until he met Law again, but he had hit one of the Celestial Dragons and as such had an Admiral called. Kizaru almost took out his crew, and when he didn’t do that, he did herd them into the direction of a Warlord who did.
The only consolement Luffy had was that the Warlord had at one point been a Rev and knew his dad.
When he came to, he was alone. Finding out Ace had been captured and was slated for execution made it all that much worse. He didn’t know what to do, and while he could sense the others moving to come to their aid, he didn’t know if it would be enough.
Luffy almost threw it all away, negotiating help from a Warlord to get into Impel Down to get Ace out. Being too late and almost losing his life, until he was falling from a warship onto the battlefield where they would kill his brother.
The prisoners he had freed helped him too, aiding him in any way they could until they were all left on their own. He could recognize the man they called Eddy, and the crew he called his own. Saw Teach standing there and felt Law and Uncle Rosi just outside of his reach. He wasn’t alone anymore and that would have to do.
It all went to shit when they tried to kill Ace anyway, because more than one blast of powerful haki ran over the battlefield and knocked out a fair share of Marines.
He didn’t stand alone then, two men, two legends, on either side of him demanding Ace to be released. Giving Seagull guy an ultimatum of releasing Ace or having to fight the entirety of the D-clan. Gramps was the only one left on their side, after all, and he just shook his head when Marines turned to look at him. He would do a lot, but he wouldn’t fight kin like this.
Ace was released, almost making it to their side of the bay until one of the Admirals couldn’t let it sit and attacked. He never reached them, Uncle Xebec and Uncle Roger more than willing to show the world why they had once been feared as Auntie Rouge hugged Ace close. They all left on the Moby Dick, Eddy’s ship, and the world (as well as the World Government) was reminded of why they feared the Clan of D.