Chapter Text
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"Hello, boys. Long time no see, eh?"
Ace stares at the old man five feet away from them.
He stares at the man who'd taken him on the day he was born into a world that would despise him, who had gone against protocol, the world and power he served, to give him a chance.
The man who had left him in the mountains to live with bandits who'd wanted nothing to do with him. Who would hunt him through the jungles with a Fist of Love or Justice and call it 'training'.
The man who had dropped a bomb on his head and tore his world asunder, his father's name hollow on his lips.
The man who couldn't give him an answer to the question that haunted his every waking moment, but could drop another child with stretchy skin and a big mouth into his lap and call him his new little brother. The man who readily accepted the blond, smart-mouthed kid into their broken, dysfunctional family with a round of Fists of Love that had left sprained bones and glaring welts.
Ace stares at Monkey D. Garp, the man who had looked at Ace once and made him his.
"... 'long time no see'?" His voice sounds flat, unnatural even to his ears. He feels Luffy and Sabo shift, feels their stares.
Garp's expression doesn't change, but his brow twitches, perplexed.
That has Ace seething.
"That's all you have to say? 'Long time no see' my ass, are you kidding me?!"
His shout bounces off the trees and stones, echoing across the clearing like a gunshot.
He stomps the distance between them, an inferno climbing up his arms. He ignores the shock on the old bastard's face as he snags Garp by the front of his neatly pressed shirt, yanking him close enough to knock their foreheads painfully.
Ace glares into the eyes of the man who had saved and abandoned him and lets everything, five years worth of it and more, pour out.
"Where the hell were you?!" he cries. Blood trickles thinly down their faces from the torn skin, and Ace tastes metal for the first time in days. "We waited for you! Days, weeks, months, we waited for you to find us, use that Marine 'power' you're so goddamn proud of to bring us home, but you never did! I had to tell Luffy and Sabo to their faces that you weren't coming, that no one was coming to save us, that we were on our own! No deadbeat bandits, Marine granddads or parents—Sabo's parents were the ones who sold us out, did you know that?! Did your 'Naval Intelligence' tell you that, or did you have to wait 'til Makino gave you the news that we were gone, and you weren't there?!"
Garp's face doesn't change.
Rage turns Ace's fists into smouldering coals as he shoves the old man back, only to start throwing punches at Garp's broad chest, one after the other. Garp grunts but barely moves.
He should stop, Ace thinks somewhere in the back of his mind. This isn't fair, Shanks had told him how hard he'd searched, the strings he'd pulled, the lengths he'd gone to be here at all. But he can't stop. He takes his blows, curse after curse, ten years of grief, anger, and fear, and hurls it at the Marine.
"They branded us—!" punch, "—they put a collar around Luffy's neck like a freakin' dog, made him mute—!" punch, punch, "—Sabo had to crawl on his hands and knees and beg for our lives—!" punch punch punch "—they force-fed me a devil fruit, dressed me up like a slut and looked at me like an object! We had to save ourselves! Sabo killed a man, Luffy was too afraid to cry, and I lost the only other person who gave a damn about me! I loved her, and I lost her—!"
The punches grow weaker. Then they stop, fingers clenched tight into the singed fabric of Garp's uniform. Ace's tears fall like rain, chest burning. He feels Garp's heartbeat as he presses his head against his chest.
"... we needed you," he croaks. His shoulders quake. "... We—we needed you, and you weren't there. I—I wanted to hate you. I did hate you, but... But I—I wanted—"
He lifts his face, stained with blood and tears, and screams—
"Why did you leave us?! Why didn't you save us?! Why did you leave me?!"
Two meaty hands grasp Ace's wrists and tear his hands away from Garp's burnt shirt. Ace chokes on a gasp, hands trapped in giant fists now coated with a sheen of Haki. He has a split-second to meet Garp's blazing eyes and brace for impact.
It never comes.
The hands yank him forward. He stumbles face-first into Garp's chest, the breath crushed from him as two impossibly strong arms encircle him.
Ace stiffens. Beneath his ear, Garp's heart pounds. Around him, he can feel the man trembling.
A drop of rain hits the top of his head.
No. Not rain.
"I'm sorry."
Garp's voice is quiet, softer than Ace has ever heard it, like a lullaby. Yet choked, wrecked with what sounds like grief half a decade in the making.
"I'm so damn sorry."
A hand strong enough to crush skulls and toss cannonballs like pebbles strokes Ace's head with a gentleness he has never felt or known, smoothing down the curls he'd inherited from his mother.
The damp patch on Garp's shirt grows with Ace's tears.
"I know we've never gotten along perfect," Garp says. "I know I've screwed up in more ways than I can count, no matter how hard I tried... No. I didn't try hard enough. I realize that now. I've realized quite a lot, actually. Had plenty of time to think these last five years. About you, your brothers, Dadan... About myself, too, if you can imagine. And lemme tell you..."
Garp draws back but doesn't let Ace go. Just gently takes Ace's chin between his fingers and tilts his head up. Now Ace can see the tears leaving their scars down Garp's wrinkled, smiling face.
"Not a day goes by," he says, the calloused pad of his thumb wiping the dampness from Ace's freckled cheek, "not one day where I don't regret not being there to save you. To give you the answers you needed growing up. To guide you the way I should have all your life. All your lives—"
He looks over Ace's head to regard Sabo and Luffy. Ace can't look. It'll break him.
"I kept making excuses why I couldn't raise you myself. Some of them were well-founded thanks to of my job, but only some. And I'd kept my distance. For your safety, I'd figured. And look where that got you."
He looks down at Ace and sighs, mighty shoulders drooping under an unseen weight. "I'm not here to ask forgiveness or justify not breaking every rule I swore to follow to save you. If you tell me to screw myself and leave you alone for the rest of our lives, I'll take it and whatever punches you throw at me. I figure I deserve that much."
Ace stares, arms limp at his sides, tears streaming freely. Garp takes his silence as permission and slowly, carefully cups Ace's face between his hands like he's made of glass, something precious. Another tear slides down his cheek, and his grin wobbles, wide though it is and always has been for as long as Ace has known him.
"I'm just glad," he says, "and so damn grateful you're alive."
Ace looks up at Garp. The man who took him in. The man who had scoured the seas for them. The man who came all this way just to see them.
The old man who loves them. The old man who loves him.
Ace throws himself at Garp, muffling a scream in his grandfather's chest. Garp jumps, startled until Ace can't scream anymore and gives way to sobs instead. And once it starts, Ace can't stop.
It's the day he came clean to Whitebeard all over again, only now, nothing can hold back the wave of emotions tumbling out of him like a tsunami. It's all Ace can do to stay on his feet, even as Garp's mighty hands gently take his shoulders to steady him; if anything, he cries harder, clings tighter, because this—this is all he'd wanted in those wretched five years. This was all he'd ever wanted growing up alone in the jungles. Before Whitebeard and his crew, before Mei, before Sabo and Luffy.
All he'd wanted was his grandpa.
"G-Gramps..."
Garp startles again at Luffy's voice moments before the sobbing rubber boy comes barrelling into them with the force of a bullet. Sabo joins him, tucking himself as close to Ace and Garp as he's able as he lets the tears flow, soaking Ace's shoulder in seconds.
For a moment, it's just the three of them wailing or outright screaming their heartache and relief against the Vice-Admiral, Garp hesitant and silent above them.
Then he laughs.
Garp throws his arms around them, squeezes tight enough to lift them off their feet and laughs. He laughs and laughs, loud and boisterous, even as tears drip onto Ace's head.
Hearing it again after half a decade only makes Ace cry harder as they crumble to their knees.
I missed you, he wants to say. We missed you so much. We love you, I love you, you crazy son of a bitch, I love you—
But he can't. So he doesn't. Neither does Garp, or Luffy, or Sabo. So they hold each other and let the tears and laughter speak for them instead.
~0o0o0~
Whitebeard pauses, lifting his gaze to the sky and smiling. "Marco. Let's take the long way to the Sea Forest."
Marco looks at his father like he's gone mad. "Are you—but Garp—!"
"There's no need to rush, my son. They're fine. Besides, I've always wanted to take a nice, long, relaxing stroll through the forest; it's good for the old bones, they say! Care to indulge your old man?"
"... If you say so, yoi."
~0o0o0~
Garp has never been an affectionate man in the traditional sense.
He'd never held Luffy's hand walking down the winding paths of Windmill Village or hiking up and down mountains. He'd never hugged Luffy, given him goodbye kisses or anything normal grandparents do. Unlike Makino, Shanks, or even Ace and Sabo, Monkey D. Garp operates on a different wavelength, showing affection with his fists, bellowing shouts and threats of violence that he only sometimes carries out.
So when Luffy wakes from a light doze, his head pillowed on his grandfather's leg while his giant hand strokes his hair, he feels a flutter in his chest, warm and fuzzy in a way he hasn't felt since reuniting with Shanks.
Grandpa is a scary bastard. He's loud and mean and has tried everything to beat Luffy's dream out of him, metaphorically and literally. But Luffy knows now the difference between a beating from your abrasive Marine grandpa who loves you in his own chaotic way and the slimy, cold-hearted abuse of a stranger who felt entitled to your existence.
He'd gladly take a thousand Fists of Love than one more brutal yank of a leash. But this is nice, too. Really nice.
He can feel Ace and Sabo nearby; Ace is talking to Garp in low tones, probably to avoid waking Luffy. He can't remember when or how he'd fallen asleep—crying too much, maybe, or from sheer, breathless relief—but he's in no hurry to get up. Gramps is comfy. Sabo must be on Garp's other side, wide awake, but from how Garp's weight shifts, Sabo must be leaning against him, boneless, tired and trusting.
(Sabo never got to know Garp like Ace and Luffy did; only half a year after his 'adoption', they'd been abducted. Maybe this is Sabo—both of them—making up for that lost time.
It's sweet. Sabo deserves it.)
"... and that's about it," Ace is saying. He sounds tired, too. Must've been talking for a long time. "We've been sailing with the Whitebeards for a few months now. Sure you know as much from Shanks, the snitch."
Garp chuckles, softer than usual. "Gotta hand it to the guy; he'd make a damn good spy if it weren't for... well."
"Everything from his shit fashion sense to his shittier personality?" Sabo asks. Garp splutters in surprise. Ace chokes on muffled laughter.
Oof, Luffy thinks. He almost laughs, too, but out of solidarity with Shanks and his desire for pets from Gramps, he keeps his eyes and mouth shut.
(But he's right about the clothes. Luffy's learned a thing or two from Izo, and looking back on what his little self had thought was cool, he cringes.)
"I see you've barely changed from the smart-mouthed little shit I met in Goa!" Garp says. There's a pause, rippling with tension before Garp quietly amends—"Or should I say 'welcome back to being the smart-mouthed little shit I met in Goa'?"
Sabo snickers wetly. "I'll—" his voice cracks. He clears his throat and tries again. "I'll take that. Thanks. Good to be back."
"Hm. And last I heard, Luffy wasn't talkin' at all, sticking to sign language. Guess I missed one hell of a reveal."
Ace's giggle is a delightedly evil thing. "The crew went batshit. Whitebeard cried."
"... see, if you'd told me that Whitebeard cried over a child speaking for the first time a few years ago, I'd have you court-martialed. But that son of a bitch is getting soft in old age, so it doesn't surprise me. The rest of the crew, on the other hand..."
"Never thought I'd see Grand Line pirates burst into tears more than once in two days," Sabo chuckles. "Wish you could've seen it."
"Seen it? Already lived it, you little shit!" Garp laughs, only to be aggressively shushed by Ace and Sabo. Luffy barely holds a giggle, wondering how they haven't caught on that he's already awake.
Garp sobers after a moment and his tone changes. "And as for you, boy..."
Luffy hears Ace's heart jolt with anticipation.
"You serious about joining them?"
And there it is. The question Luffy wagers they've been dodging like bullets since the conversation began. Good thing Luffy had woken up just in time; he'd have hated to miss this.
Ace says nothing for several beats, shifting uncomfortably. No one does. The twin's Haki brushes against Luffy's senses, betraying their unease; he wonders if Garp can sense it, too, though it wouldn't surprise him. Overdaring though he is, Garp can be alarmingly observant when you least expect it. It's probably one of the many reasons Luffy brought him to live with Ace and the bandits all those years ago, told Ace to take care of him and called him his little brother. Because in that weird, intuitive way of his, Garp knew Ace needed someone to look after and, in turn, look after him—someone to protect and live for.
It worked. And thank god it did.
So Luffy wonders how his grandfather, with all his 'intuition', will take another grandson wanting to become a pirate. For real, and not just as the naïve fantasy of a ten-year-old boy.
Finally, Ace's Haki shifts, stubborn fire kindling as he asks, "What if I am? What're you gonna do about it, old man?"
Oh goddamnit. Luffy had forgotten about this particular song and dance called 'Ace Deliberately Goads Elders Built Like Brick Shit Houses'. Or the 'Ace Is A Dumbass' for short.
"Ace is a dumbass," Sabo sings under his breath because he's an asshole trying to blow Luffy's cover and make him laugh and miss out on grandad pets. Ace must hit him or something because Sabo squeaks in pain, and Luffy's face twitches against a smile. No one calls him out for being awake, so he must succeed.
(He deserves an award for this, surely. World's Best Pretend Sleeper doesn't beat Pirate King, but it's close.)
Garp's leg twitches under Luffy's head as he laughs—Luffy has missed the sound so much—and slaps his unoccupied knee. "What am I gonna do?" he repeats. "I'll tell you what I'm gonna do!"
He leans forward. "I'm gonna do what I said I'd do when you were ten; hunt you down to the ends of the earth and tan your goddamn hides like the criminal you are!"
The twins are silent while Garp breaks down laughing again. Luffy almost gives up the ruse and opens his eyes to stare at his grandfather because... that didn't sound like a threat or even a promise. It almost sounded like...
"... was that your very violent, roundabout way of giving Ace your blessing?" Sabo asks hesitantly, like even saying the word feels wrong on his lips.
Garp finally catches his breath, stroking Luffy's head again which, yes, please and thank you. "What the hell else do you expect me to say? 'No, you can't join the people who saved and changed your lives for the better? Who succeeded where I'd failed for years?'
Another silence, heavier than the last.
"Ah, don't give me that look; it makes my knees hurt." His jovial tone shifts again to something sombre. His calloused thumb strokes Luffy's brow in soothing circles, almost lulling him back to sleep. "I know I'm a prick, but I ain't heartless. Or blind. Or deaf. It's clear as goddamn day how much you love those fools. And given your story and Shank's testimony, they love you kids to hell and back again. And Vice-Admiral or not, I'm in no position to deny the King of the Sea once he's staked his claim on something he wants more than any pirate wants the One Piece.
Besides, it's high time people stopped making choices for you, even your granddad. You're grown. You're free. As long as that stays the same, I won't complain too much. I don't have to like it—and believe me, I don't like it—but just this once... I'll respect it, whatever path you choose. You deserve that. I dare say I'm even proud you found a path that makes you happy. That's... all I ever really wanted for you. All of you."
Ace's Haki is quiet, barely humming. Then he huffs wetly. Garp leans over Luffy, possibly to reach out and ruffle Ace's head, though from the sound of it, Ace bats his hand away with another wet huff of laughter. Sabo sniffs next to Garp, his soul flush with pride and a new, fragile love.
And—"Shit, Gramps," Luffy says with feeling.
Ace and Sabo jump with twin cries. "Jesus—Luffy!" Sabo curses."How long have you been awake?!"
Garp makes a noise of confusion. "Seriously? Haven't you been training with Whitebeard's brats? He's been awake for the last five minutes!"
Oh. Well, there goes that award.
"What?! Why the hell didn't he say anything?! I can't believe that's something I can say now, by the way."
Garp chuckles, ruffling Luffy's hair. "Because the little bastard wanted pets! Didn't ya, brat?"
Finally prying his eyes open, Luffy shifts to meet Garp's amused stare and nods with a guiltless smile. Years later, he still knows his grandson so well.
Ace's cheeks are wet with remnant tears, but his smile is radiant as he shakes his head. "You cheeky little shit," he admonishes as Luffy sits up, rubbing the crusties from his eyes. "You were just gonna lie there like another lazy cat we know and love and just. Not engage in this emotional, revolutionary conversation, huh?"
Luffy doesn't know what half those words mean, but he nods and says, "Absolutely!" Sabo laughs into his hands, and Ace reaches over to flick Luffy's nose, which is rude, but he allows it.
Garp watches the exchange with a smile softer than Luffy has ever seen from him. It suits him. He should wear it more often.
It morphs into a tired grin when he turns to Sabo. "What about you, punk?" he asks. "Which path are you walking?"
Sabo scoops his hat from the ground and dons it with a flourish that has Ace rolling his eyes hard. "If I told you," he says, lips canted slyly, "I'd have to kill you."
Garp stares at him. He bursts out laughing, looks at Sabo's flattened expression and laughs harder, slapping his knee. Once he's done, he looks at Sabo again and says, "You're serious?"
"Not after that gut punch to my pride," Sabo deadpans. Ace and Luffy snicker. Sabo levels the with a pouty glare. They make hearts with their fingers and thumbs in a show of support. Sabo stares them dead in the eyes and flips them off.
"As for you," Garp says, redirecting their attention to him as he taps Luffy's hat. Luffy looks up at his now exhausted, fondly defeated smile. "I don't even have to ask."
Luffy beams. "W-Want you to anyw-ways!"
"Really?"
"Yep!"
"Do I gotta?"
"Yes," Sabo and Ace chime with devilish grins.
"But it hurts."
"Do it!" all three boys shout.
Garp throws up his hands. "Fine, fine!" Heaving a mighty sigh, Garp squares his shoulders and looks Luffy in the eye like a man gearing up for the fight of his life. Luffy shuffles on the ground to face him properly, hands clenched tight around his ankles to keep him from rocking.
He's been waiting for this for years. He won't waste or half-ass this. By the look of it, neither will Garp, for all he hates it. Luffy loves him more for that alone.
"... Luffy. What do you want to be?"
Luffy leaps up and scurries to stand on a rock jutting out of the dirt. Throwing his fists to the sky, he screams—
"I'M GONNA BE KING OF THE PIRATES!"
(Luffy will never forget the looks on their faces.
The way Sabo's eyes fill as the corners crinkle with the force of his grin. How Ace throws his head back and laughs with a rose-coloured joy Luffy can feel.
How Monkey D. Garp, Vice-Admiral of the Marines and Luffy's number one opposer since day one, meets Luffy's gaze and nods.
It's surreal, it's terrifying, and single-handedly one of the greatest moments of Luffy's freaking life.)
Even so—"Of course it is," Garp rolls his eyes hard enough to see the back of his skull. "Why'd I expect anything different? Couldn't be a Marine or even a merchant, oh no. I'd sooner get the moon shoved up my ass or something less traumatizing than my grandson being pirate king..."
But Luffy sees through his muttering bullshit and hops off the rock to plough into Garp's chest, wrapping his arms around his waist for a hug. Garp barely grunts at the impact, waiting for Ace and Sabo to shuffle into the embrace before putting his arms around them all. He grumbles and mutters about 'criminals' and 'treason', but just as quickly presses brief kisses to their heads.
Monkey D. Garp is a complicated abrasive mess of a man; once they leave the shores of Fishman Island, he'll no doubt be on their asses, trying to arrest them like he would any other pirate in the world, ticking to his principles, his dream. Luffy wouldn't want it any other way. And in this moment, this brief pocket of peace and love and acceptance crafted just for them, Luffy loves him beyond words.
Thank you, Grandpa.
Then Garp sighs, looking up to the darkening skies—how that's possible at the bottom of the ocean, Luffy doesn't know and is alright with it. "It's getting late. Bet Whitebeard's wondering where you boys ran off to."
Ace hums, head laying against Garp's chest, eyes shut. "Probably put two and two together after you left his Commanders trampled in the street."
"Ha! I did at that!"
"Guess that means we'd better head back," Sabo says, looking reluctant to move. Luffy understands wholeheartedly. Sabo lifts his chin to meet Garp's gaze and asks, "I don't suppose you wanna stick around and say hi?"
And Garp, surprisingly, considers this for a moment before shrugging. "Not up to me. And I wager his crew won't be too happy to see a Vice-Admiral being all friendly with their Captain—hardly the first time, but eh, pirates are skittish bastards."
"N-no, they're not," Luffy giggles. "Y-you're just a c-crazy... crazy bastard."
"Very true." Garp sighs again. "Well. I suppose there's one thing left to ask."
The boys look up expectantly. "Yeah?" Ace prompts.
Garp's new grin is slow and menacing. Luffy feels primal fear.
"How fast can you bunch of criminals run from my Fist of Love?"
Three pairs of eyes pop open wide.
Oh shit.
"I'll give you a head start. One—!"
They're gone from his arms and the clearing before he reaches 'two'.
~0o0o0~
Marco hears them long before he sees or senses them, and he groans. "Found 'em," he says at length.
Above him, his father chuckles. "Found Garp, too," he says. He shields his eyes with a hand as he squints into the middle distance. "Hm. They're coming in quite fast. I haven't seen Garp this motivated since Roger's days."
'Motivated' isn't the word Marco would use to describe the nine feet of muscle, wrinkles and rage sprinting after the three screaming teenagers heading towards them.
"Pops!" Ace screeches, arms reaching desperately. "Please help us!"
Whitebeard cackles as the trio finally reaches him, breezing past Marco without a glance and hiding behind the Captain's giant boots, clinging to his pants with wailing, theatrical sobs.
"What's gotten into you, boys?" Whitebeard asks, mischief in his twinkling eyes. "Surely you're not afraid of a little old man, are you? Don't be silly now, go and tell your grandfather 'hello'."
"No," Sabo wails, crocodile tears dripping down his chin. Marco bites back a laugh. "He's a goddamn monster! We poured our hearts out to him, and he tried to kill us~!"
"A monster!" Luffy cries. "Please don't let him fist us!"
A pause.
"Let him what?!" Marco chokes.
The twins stop their crying to gape at Luffy, looking very ill. "Luffy! Phrasing!" they squeak. Luffy looks at them both, perplexed. Whitebeard nearly takes a knee in his fit of laughter.
Garp chooses then to skid to a halt before them, dust, sand and—flames?!—flying. Just how fast was he running?
"Ah, Marco, good to see you again," he says with a wave, not the least out of breath. He nods up at Whitebeard. "Newgate."
Whitebeard nods back. "Garp. I see you've found your wayward grandchildren."
Said grandchildren blow raspberries at the Vice-Admiral from behind the pirate captain. Garp, of course, laughs.
"That I have! Shanks pointed me in the right direction. Told me quite a few tales of their misadventures with you and your lot." He cocks a brow, and Marco audibly groans because he knows exactly what happens next. And sure enough—"Don't suppose you'd have me aboard for a drink, eh Newgate? Catch me up on what I've missed these last five years."
Please, god, just this once, do me a favour and don't—
Whitebeard hums, stroking his chin. "I suppose a drink wouldn't hurt."
God is dead.
(He ignores the secret smiles the boys exchange even as they cower behind Whitebeard. Just to be petty.)