#five days

Luffy doesn't bother to try and listen to the rest of the argument. Not caring to confirm the rumor. Dragon is only his father in blood.  Luffy has met him once and even during that meeting the only words he spoke to him was to ask where Sabo was. Dragon wouldn't care that he's currently being held captive by S.W.O.R.D. Wouldn't care in the least his captors have put him in a cell that seemed specifically designed to torture Devil-Fruit users. The cell is filled with a thin layer of sea water at the bottom. Making even laying down hurt. And at random times some type of sprinkler goes off in the ceiling, pouring sea water down all throughout the cell.

Luffy would rather be forced to fight his tormentors than just suffer this. Everything aches. His body keeps tensing every time he hears a click form above. Constantly worried about water pouring over him. He wonders if the randomness of the sprinkler is part of the torture. Never knowing when he'd get doused in water again.

His mind wanders from the timing on the sprinklers to his crew. And X-Drake as well. Honestly, Luffy really didn't even have X-Drake on his radar at first. In Wano he seemed such a non-threat Luffy didn't bother arguing with him about being allies. X-Drake was a no-one to him. If he suddenly wanted to "help" him, Luffy wasn't going to tell him no. Too busy with the thought of fighting Kaido, saying yes to him felt insignificant. Zoro didn't see it that way. Something he made very clear later when the two of them finally got a moment in private.

Luffy didn't regret his decision. Even after his conversation with Zoro. Luffy was the Captain. He got to have final say. Even if Zoro didn't like it, he begrudgingly admitted the fact.  After Wano, they managed to come in contact with X-Drake again. It was a random island. They were just restocking for supplies. Fresh off a fight with another pirate crew. They had to fully dock to take care of damages the ship sustained. X-Drake appeared out of the blue. Asking for a favor. Needing a ship to take him to another island. And Zoro already looked murderous just seeing X-Drake.  Luffy can just feel the lecture coming. The discussion he'd have to endure. Luffy thinks on Zoro's would be reaction if he says yes. If he agrees to help X-Drake out. Luffy, despite what others might say, doesn't go looking for fights.  So Luffy was really going to say no. Just refuse the request. He owes nothing to X-Drake. Has no need to save him or make sure hes ok. No loyalty to him. It'll be easy to say no to him. And too hard to say yes.

Before Luffy can say no to him though, an attack happens. Or almost happens. The defeated pirate crew wasn't so defeated after all. An explosion happens in the distance. And a lone survivor has a gun. Its aimed at Luffy. And its not like Luffy was in danger. it was a regular bullet, it would have bounced off. Its not like Zoro couldn't easily slice the bullet in half without breaking a sweat. But either X-Drake was really worried about Luffy, or maybe just wanted to make Luffy be in his debt. Because X-Drake uses his devil-fruit to turn into a dinosaur and goes after the lone survivor. And, it shouldn't be impressive. Luffy was never in danger. Luffy didn't need protection. X-Drake is still too unkown, too much of a risk to let aboard the Sunny. Zoro would be very upset if Luffy let X-Drake on board the ship. Theres lots of reasons to tell X-Drake no.

But, all Luffy can think of is that X-Drake can turn into a dinosaur. And dinosaurs are really really cool. Luffy never had a dinosaur aboard the ship. Luffy mind soon fills with thoughts of dinosaurs and thoughts of Zoro's reaction gets tossed out his head. Before Zoro, or anyone else on the crew, can stop him, Luffy already jumping on top of X–Drake. Excitedly agreeing to help him. Asking a million questions about how he fights, can he fly, can he lay eggs, can they keep the eggs, and many more.

By the time the ship is ready to leave, X-Drake, who still staying in his dinosaur form due to Luffy's insistence, has already answered many many personal questons. And had to stop Luffy several times from trying to rip out his teeth. Luffy wanted to see if they can grow back as fast as shark teeth.

And theres a vague worry in the back of his head about what Zoro will say when they're alone. How Zoro still doesn't trust X-Drake, still sees him as an enemy, thinks Luffy making a big mistake by letting him aboard the ship. And normally Luffy would be more intune with Zoro. Take Zoro concerns more to heart. But it's not every day a dinosaur gets to board their ship. Luffy might not get the chance for a long time to ride around on one. Even if its just in circles around the deck. So Luffy pushes thoughts of Zoro to the back of his head. Focuses on trying to rip a scale or tooth out to keep as a souvenir and enjoys the excitement of everything.

It takes a couple days to get to the island X-Drake needs to get to. Days that are filled with Luffy asking an increasingly embarrassed X-Drake if he can lay an egg for them. Luffy really wants a dinosaur as a pet now. With the rest of the crew trying to avoid being within earshot of the awkward questions Luffy keeps asking X-Drake and the murderous aura Zoro giving off.

They find the island without trouble. It’s meant to be easy from there. Drop off X-Drake in a secluded port, where his fellow S.W.O.R.D. members are supposed to be waiting for him. Members who X-Drake trusts and calls his friends. But instead of trusted members it’s just betrayal waiting for both X-Drake and the Straw Hat crew.

It’s embarrassing how easy they get ambushed. Luffy too busy pleading with X-Drake to lay an egg really quick before he leaves, and Zoro too busy being upset, and the rest of the crew are too exhausted from the tension on the ship. Luffy goes down first, then its Zoro then Robin. Then it’s too chaotic to keep track of who goes down next.

Luffy wakes up in a damp cell. Water coming down from above. With guards outside arguing about who his dad is. And Luffy sore and tired and cold. His breath comes out in shaky gasps. His eyelids feel heavy. The arguing annoys him. He doesn’t want to hear or think about his dad. A dad who never raised him, a dad he doesn’t  even think about. Luffy wants to go back to thinking of dinosaurs.

Luffy keeps falling asleep. Only waking when the water, the freezing water, from above splashes him. Drenches his body completely. Hearing bits of the guards conversations.

“If Dragon shows up- fuck if Garp shows up I’m leaving. Fuck- there’s not enough berri in the world to make me fight them.”

Luffy wants to laugh at the absurdity of the statement. The misplaced fear. Dragon not coming. Garp’s definitely not coming. Zoro will come though. Zoro always comes. Zoro will never not come. Luffy just has to wait. Has to endure. Zoro will come.

And it’s probably a good thing Luffy keeps falling asleep. It makes the time go by faster. Before he knows it’s Luffy awakes to screams and the sounds of bodies hitting the floor. Soon Zoro next to him. Undoing the cuffs on his arms. Helping him up, letting him lean on his body as they walk out the cell. Sadly, taking out the guards did little to squelch the anger Zoro feeling.

“- and it was an obvious fucking trap. And you weren’t thinking. You weren’t acting like a captain, but like a - “

And Luffy glad that it takes so much effort to walk, even with an arm over Zoro, that he misses the ending of the sentence. Misses most of Zoro’s ranting. Luffy has to focus on the difficulty of walking. Of staying conscious. And they walk for a long time. Still trapped on the bottom floor. With nothing but rows of empty cells that all look the same. Giving them no sense of direction.

Zoro about to just give up and start slicing walls down when Luffy gets enough energy to put together a sentence. Or half a sentence.

“We need to find-,” and the coughing fit takes over the end of his sentence. Makes it so he has to lean more on Zoro. Luffy feels Zoro grip around him tighten.

“The crew fine. Jinbei and Franky are getting everyone else to the ship. We need to-,”

“X-Drake, we need to find X-Drake too.”

And the sudden stop makes his lungs hurt. Makes everything hurt more. Luffy can feel it coming already. Can feel the nails dig in more to his side. The drop in temperature around them.

“Are you fucking serious,”

“We promised him-,”

“Are you fucking serious right now.” Luffy feels his body get turned to meet Zoro’s gaze. Feels Zoro grip on his face.

“You can barely walk and you still want to help him.”

“We promised him-,”

“I didn’t promise him shit-“

“I promised him and-,”

And Luffy struggling to stay up. Struggling to stay alert. His head is pounding. His clothes are still dripping with sea water. Making it hard for him to focus. He misses most of Zoro response. Just barely catches the ending.

“- you need to start acting like a fucking  captain and-“

And Luffy still dripping wet. Still sore and in pain. Still mad about not getting a dinosaur egg.  Still an idiot and can’t stop himself for what he does next. Breaks out of Zoro grip, uses what little energy he has left to say the next sentence.

“And you need to start acting like a fucking  first-mate and listen to your fucking captain.”

And what happens next is a blur. Luffy forgets the order of things. Of what happens first exactly. Was it the slap or shove that knocked him to the ground? Which kick came first, the one to the face or the one to the stomach? How many failed attempts of trying to get Zoro off him before he just gave up?

Day Two

Over the course of his stay at Bank Top Byre, James had grown used to waking with the sunrise. In Derbyshire in February, that was still eight am, so hardly obnoxiously early, and true to form, it was daylight when he woke after his night on the sofa. His neck ached, and his hips had seized, but he had slept—for a while at least. Between the howling winds outside and his unexpected houseguest inside, not to mention his less-than-ideal bed for the night, it had been well into the small hours before his eyes had finally fallen closed. 

The first thing he noticed was the quiet; much to his relief, the previous night’s storm had passed. The only sound was Lily’s slow, steady breathing, a barely audible soundtrack underpinning the morning peace. He was glad she was still asleep—maybe at least one of them had got some rest, he thought, wryly. 

The second thing he noticed was the strange, muted quality of the morning light. In his experience, Derbyshire mornings in midwinter brought either bright, crisp skies or dark and brooding cloudscapes. This was neither; this was something else entirely. Puzzled, James turned his head towards the enormous window but without his glasses, he could see nothing but white. That was confusing too - white meant sun, and yet the room was in shadow. 

His glasses were on the coffee table next to him, so he jammed them onto his face and turned back towards the windo—- “Holy fuck!”