Stolen // One Piece

chapter thirty-four

The third time Luffy awoke, he had been feeling much better, and even managed to sit up. He laughed at the dumb jokes Chopper had made while tending to his now-healing wounds, and he chattered away about everything and nothing at all to his older brothers while they drank their (now cold) coffee. The morning sunlight filtered through the porthole and bathed the room in a soft pink light, dancing across Luffy's signature grin, making him seem like the child he had been before his life had been turned upside down two years ago. He laughed lightly, wholeheartedly.

Chopper found it nice to hear that laugh again.

The other Straw-Hats were still sleeping, this early in the morning. Seagulls called loudly to each other in the sky, singing their off-key musical greetings as if all was right with the world. And, though Chopper knew that the world really wasn't alright, he felt maybe it could be, even for just a moment, while Luffy was catching up to his brothers. The reindeer felt warm and fuzzy inside.

After a while, there was some commotion in the kitchen, which indicated that Sanji was up and making breakfast. Chopper went to greet him, excitedly explaining that Luffy was awake and able to talk, if Sanji wanted to, of course.

The chef practically threw the utensils he was rinsing down into the sink, sending a sharp cling into the air as he all but sprinted into the medical bay.

Luffy was an idiot, of course. He was reckless, and often unprepared, but he was Captain. He was family. Sanji had, like the others, missed him dearly.

As he threw open the door, the three brothers whipped their heads around to look at him. Luffy's grin suddenly split even wider, as he spread his arms in expectancy. Sanji wasted no time stepping over to the bed to toss himself into the arms of his companion. Ace and Sabo turned to speak to each other, doing what they could to give the two some form of privacy. The pirate chef held his beloved captain tight against his body, burying his face into the brunet's bandaged shoulder. He was surprised to find a wetness on his own shoulder and a wetness on his face.

He sniffed, but didn't pull away. Sanji inhaled deeply, filling his nose with the wondrous familiarity of ocean, and wood, and fire. The blond wasn't usually one for showing so much sentiment toward other men, especially in front of other men, but this was different. Luffy had almost died. He did die. Briefly. But he was okay now, squeezing his friend so tight he might pop, laughing through his tears.

"Thank god you're okay," he mumbled, before gently disentangling himself from his captain's embrace and wiping his eyes. He swiped the hair from his eyes briefly, and Luffy got a slight glimpse at the man's familiar swirly-brow. The inky-haired boy smiled at him, filling the hole in his heart with the warmth of pure joy. Sanji laughed. The older two were still kindly ignoring the interaction in front of them.

"You hungry, Cap'n?" the royal asked, carefully tousling his shaggy black hair, a fond smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. Luffy sniffed, wiped away the tears on his face, and nodded up at him, before squeezing his hand. "I'll whip up a breakfast fit only for the future King of the Pirates." He hesitated for a moment before leaving the small room.

Sanji was sure to discuss with Chopper what Luffy's limits were, so he could plan out how much food to prepare.

He figured Nami wouldn't mind such a large meal, because of how many new passengers the ship carried. Sanji began preparing the breakfast, and while the fish was simmering on the stove, he began calculating just how many people he would need to feed. He thought for a moment before retrieving twelve plates from the cabinets.

~   ~   •   ~   ~

Robin was the second to visit the young captain. She had been reading a novel on the grass, in the rising dawn, when she had heard muffled laughter from below the deck.

Ever curious, the archeologist had climbed the ladder down into the kitchen, where she was greeted by an unusually joyous Sanji, humming to himself a silly tune with a contented smile on his handsomely boyish face. When she had said good morning, he hadn't swooned, he grinned from ear to ear.

"Good morning, Robin! Breakfast should be done shortly!" Although it was odd, she wasn't too off-put by his behavior. He turned back to the stove, where various pots and pans were set, boiling and sizzling. He seemed to remember something, as he suddenly turned back to her, with a loud Oh. "Luffy's awake!" Robin, who didn't usually feel as strongly about things like her fellow crew-mates did, felt an overwhelming wave of... something pleasant. It was not calm, nor peace. It was... excitement.

She was excited. Her captain had healed to a point where he could laugh and talk! That's what she had heard this morning! She turned to the door and quickly stalked into the medical bay, where Luffy was yet again speaking to his brothers. They all turned toward her when she stepped in. She froze in the door frame. She found it slightly difficult to speak. Her cheeks tinged the slightest shade of pink. She knew that Luffy needed this time with his brothers, the reunion would most certainly heal some of his mental injuries.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry, I hadn't meant to interrupt—," she began, but Ace had cut her off with a chuckle.

"No need to apologize, you weren't interrupting anything." He and Sabo stood, before taking turns patting their youngest brother on the head as they walked past her into the kitchen, bowing slightly and muttering polite "excuse me's."

When they had left, Robin hurried to the bedside of her captain. She felt what she had assumed was referred to as "motherly instincts," as she wanted to examine all of the young boy's injuries and ailments, and make them leave him. She longed to cradle him against her, and weep over the months she hadn't been able to protect him from. However, she had settled for carefully reaching out a hand to lightly push the locks of black hair from his eyes and tuck them behind his ears. Robin softly cupped his jaw with both hands to look at him.

He looked up at her, with large deep brown eyes that somehow still held a sparkle, despite the horrors that he had endured during his captivity (Kaito had kindly filled her in when her worry had gotten the best of her; knowing did not help). Robin's own eyes flooded with tears.

"Why are you crying?" Luffy had only seen Robin cry once before, when she had finally admitted that she wanted to live. Seeing anyone on his crew cry filled him with an anxiety so strong that it physically pained him. But Robin? Robin crying was like watching the world implode. She was like his mom, you don't necessarily get used to it when your mom starts crying. Though technically Dadan was his actual fake mom, and she cried a lot.

Luffy began panicking.

"Are you mad at me? I'm sorry I stepped off the ship and got kidnapped, I didn't mean for any of it to happen, I'm sorry," he said quickly, trying to appease her so she stopped crying. Her tears were making his stomach sick with guilt. Robin's hands were still on his face, and she hurriedly shook her head at his apologies.

"No, no I'm not mad at you. Why would I be mad at you? You did nothing wrong," she soothed, her voice choked with emotion. She hated that he thought she was mad at him. "I'm just so glad to see that you're okay, Luffy," she added, pushing his hair back again, peering at the bandage wrapped along his forehead. He offered her a small smile, which she happily returned. "We missed you so much."

"I missed you too," he replied, before pulling himself from her hands and wrapping his own arms around her torso to give her an actual hug. Robin hesitated only a moment before doing the same, holding him tight like it might be the last time she ever saw him. She said a wordless prayer to whoever or whatever was listening, that she would never be parted from her captain for so long ever again. When she had finally regained her composure, she slowly released him, before giving him a careful peck on the top of his head. He snorted and pulled away, laughing at the random affection she had displayed. She chuckled softly in return, wiping her eyes on the back of her bare wrist.

For once in nearly five months, Robin felt like everything was going to be okay.