#seastone

“Very, um, interesting. Different from the last one that was also a spiral but with a cannon in the middle. But, Ace, can we pack up?” you asked, wringing your hands. You didn’t think Sabo’s ship was on the horizon but you itched to check with your magnification. Ace tilted his head quizzically.

“Pack?... oh, right. You wanna head out before Sabo comes, yeah. Sure, we gotta check on Striker first. Sabo’s been running it every so often but with how much he’s been gone lately it might need some minor maintenance. It’s on the far beach, we can look at it now,” Ace said, already brushing off his yukata from the dirt and soot he’d accumulated burning the plants. Ace waited for you as you ran up to where he was in the smoking field in front of the house. The smell of charred vegetation permeated the area as you walked side by side down the rocky path towards the far beach. Ace had a bounce in his step and was humming to some unknown tune while you walked together. 

“Thank you,” Ace said, facing forward while he walked next to you.

“Ah, you’re welcome. I’m glad it all worked out,” you replied happily, patting his back affectionately. You hoped your paths crossed again once you were free, you’d come to enjoy Ace’s company a lot during your stay on the island.

“I won’t tell anyone how I got my powers back. I’ll leave it as another unsolved mystery on the Grand Line. Because, you know, if anyone found out, well…your life would be even more over than it already is,” Ace said with a smile while your own dropped.

“W-what? What do you mean?” you asked, kicking a pebble down the path.

“Well, what do you think would happen if the Marines found out you’d made a Logia devil fruit? Or Kaido? Or Big Mom? I think even Shanks would be interested. Now that you’ve made one fruit, the possibilities are endless, right? You could make any kind of fruit, or anything else, really. You’re a powerful resource to have control over,” Ace said, pushing his hair back from his forehead. You felt sweat trickling down your back as your heart rate increased. In your haste to get away from the island, you’d been short sighted in your thinking. Ace was right, if anyone - if the World Government found out - you shuddered thinking of the possibilities. Your vision narrowed as you thought about the implications of your completed work. What had you been thinking, bringing another devil fruit into the world? You’d already caused so much destruction and devastation and now you’d provided the means for even more. 

“But you s-said you wouldn’t -” you whispered, grabbing Ace’s bicep and stopping him mid step along the path. 

“And I won’t, I promise. I can keep a secret, trust me. Almost nobody knew I was Gol D. Roger’s son until I was executed for it.” Ace said, his hand on the back of your neck as he looked you in the eyes. You had grown to trust Ace, you wanted to believe his promise but you weren’t sure how far he’d go against his own brother. He pushed your neck so your head leaned forward, placing his forehead gently against your own.

“I’m gonna help you, you don’t have to worry. Me ‘n Sabo are gonna keep you safe, no matter what,” Ace said, his hand keeping your foreheads touching. Ace’s words felt like a solemn vow more than a promise. Your anxiety churned as he mentioned Sabo, his brother’s return souring your mood even further. Ace’s casual acceptance of your desire to get off the island had you worried - either he wasn’t really going to help you or he truly didn’t think you’d get far from the island. You pulled back with your neck and Ace released you, giving you another smile as you grimaced.

“ ‘Course I’m gonna help ya, you’ve given me my life back. ‘N I’m stronger than I was before I died, I’ve been working on my haki. So with that, my power, and Sabo, no one’s ever gonna hurt you again. And just wait till you meet Luffy, he’s gonna love you too,” Ace said, his smile widening across his freckled cheeks. You bit your bottom lip as you heard the conviction in his voice. It felt like the net around you had tightened even as Ace was bringing you to his boat.

Approaching the shore, your heart sank as you saw the small craft bobbing gently on the waves. It was a fine boat but it was tiny . You only saw a single seat, directly over a charred metal pit caked in soot. The pit was likely the means of propulsion for the craft, powered by the Mera Mera user. Which left…not much room for you to sit. Not only that but prior experience told you that the smaller the craft was, the worse your sea sickness would be. You’d been so ill on the larger ship with Sabo, you couldn’t imagine what a multi-day journey on Striker would be like for you. But if you wanted your freedom, you were going to have to try. Ace had waded into the water where Striker was anchored and was admiring his boat, running his hands over the hull.

“Isn’t it awesome? Survived Marineford, too. Deuce ‘n me made it together, I’ve told you about him. I can’t wait to introduce you two, I know he’d like you. Sabo won’t admit it, but I’m the better sailor of the two of us. Like yeah, he stole that ship when we were 10 -”

“What?” you tried to interject. Stole a ship? As a child? You knew your question wouldn’t be answered anytime soon since Ace was already fixated on a subject and yammering. You’d have to clarify what he meant later, after Ace’s thought had run its course. 

“But that barely counts, I was the Commander of the navigation division for Whitebeard, that’s gotta count for something. Had like 200 crew working under me, navigating the main ship and all the smaller craft too. And I took Striker to Wano and back, sailed all over the world, Alabasta, everywhere,” Ace continued talking as you chewed on a fingernail. You’d never really put thought into what it meant to be a Yonko Commander but it made sense Ace would be in charge of others. He’d also mentioned being the Captain of his own crew during some of the stories he’d told you about his life. You could see why people were drawn to him - to his charisma, his charm, his easy but firm leadership style. You’d grown attached to him yourself but that didn’t mean you wanted to spend the rest of your life together.

“Yeah, she’s gonna need a touch of work, not too bad though. We gotta go back to the house anyway, gotta pack things for the trip. Gonna need food, water, clothes, things like that. Don’t need any blankets anymore though, you got me to keep you warm,” Ace said, beaming at you. You were now chewing through another nail as you thought of the long journey ahead of you. 

“Where’re we going, anyway?” Ace asked, walking through the water back to shore. Your mouth twisted in thought as you realized your plan had more holes than a sieve. You couldn’t go to your home island as you didn’t want anything to happen to your family when Sabo came looking for you. You might be able to go to an island with a  Marine base, but it’s not like Ace could drop you off at their front door given his background. You could get dropped at a random island but you didn’t have any money to get back to a Marine base and you weren’t sure Ace had any either. While scrambling to think of alternatives, Ace ruffled your hair.

“Eh, we can go find Law, he’ll know what to do. You might be able to hitch a ride with him for a while until Sabo finds you,” Ace suggested. You perked up at the idea of staying with Law on his submarine. Maybe he’d discuss the applications of his fruit with you…or maybe the two of you could work on combining your powers and doing something really interesting…maybe you could publish your findings…your name next to Law’s on an article would really boost your career…

“You might want to get those hearts out of your eyes. He’s dating Luffy now,” Ace teased, shaking off his wet feet on the beach.

“I wasn’t thinking about kissing him!” you scoffed as your face heated at Ace’s suggestion.

“Nah, you were probably thinking about asking to write an article together,” Ace correctly guessed, making you flush even harder. “Actually, maybe we should find Luff first, I’m not sure what Law told him or didn’t tell him, he likes to maintain an air of mystery,” Ace said, rolling his eyes. “But no matter where we’re going, we have to hit the house first, I gotta get my clothes, my hat, my Log Pose, lotsa stuff,” Ace said. 

“Hey Ace, um, you should know, I get seasick when I’m on boats,” you said, hugging your arms across your chest.

“Ah, that’s no big deal, lotsa people do. Half an hour after we set sail you won’t feel it anymore. I’m a great sailor, you’ll see,” Ace declared. You hummed - you had plenty of confidence in Ace’s ability to pilot his boat but not so much in your own ability to remain conscious during the duration of the voyage. It was a calculated risk you had to take to get off the island. Heading back to the house on the worn path, Ace started walking faster and faster until he was practically running back to the house. 

“C’mon! Let’s go!” Ace cheered happily, urging you to also go quicker. Even though this was all part of your plan, your feet felt like lead as you plodded back to the house.

Sabo’s POV

Things were different than Sabo had expected upon his return to the island. Sabo knew you weren’t going to run up and kiss him (though he’d imagined it many times) but he didn’t think he would be greeted by…no one. Walking up to the house, he saw charred vegetation along the path, reminding him of what his room at the RA had looked like before he’d gained full control of his powers. The porch was likewise scorched, though Sabo didn’t remember leaving it in such a state. Setting the crate he was carrying on the wooden slats, Sabo was about to push in the door to the house when he saw…Ace…on Striker…zooming by on the far side of the shore. Sabo blinked. He was dreaming, he must still be back on the ship and in his bed.

Ace kept sailing by, passing the RA boat Sabo had sailed on during the voyage. He pulled Striker to a stop, hailing the ship. Shortly thereafter, he turned the boat towards the shore and turned his legs to fire to start the engine. Even from afar, Sabo could tell he was shirtless and wearing his iconic orange cowboy hat, his hand keeping the hat from flying away in the wind as his smile shined so bright it rivaled the sun itself. Sabo laughed, this was a great dream. He didn’t think Ace would want to hear about it but he’d write it down when he woke up so he could reflect on it later. 

Except.

Dream Ace stopped Striker close to the shore and waded to the rocky beach, grinning so wide it almost looked maniacal. Ace’s chest bore the scar of his near-demise but he seemed to be bearing it proudly with his red beaded necklace accentuating the mark. 

“Saaaaaaaabooooooooooo,” Ace called in a sing-song voice, putting his hand by his mouth to accentuate the noise. Sabo started walking towards him, nearly tripping off the porch, flailing slightly. Maybe…he wasn’t hallucinating. Which meant… well, Sabo wasn’t sure what exactly. Sabo thought it was his brother but grabbed his pipe just in case. 

“Saaaaaaaabooooooooooo,” Ace repeated, now jogging towards his sworn brother. 

“Ace, you’re kind of freaking me out, what’s going on? How were you piloting Striker? Where’s Sunny?” Sabo asked, meeting Ace halfway down the path to the beach. Ace gave Sabo a shit eating grin and Sabo knew that he had been up to something big. 

“Nice to see you too, Sa D. Bo,” Ace replied, not answering any of Sabo’s queries. Sabo narrowed his eyes but gave his brother a back breaking hug anyway, laughing when Ace spun him in a circle. The truth would come out eventually and Sabo was happy to see Ace feeling better, smiling, laughing and even wearing his old clothes. Something had shifted for the better during his absence.

“Alright, put me down, shrimp,” Sabo demanded, pushing Ace backwards. 

“You’re only 2 cm taller, baby boy,” Ace replied. He was shifting from foot to foot in his old leather boots, excited about something. Sabo had a feeling he wasn’t going to be as excited when he whatever Ace had cooked up.

“So how were you on Striker? Used a heat dial or something?” Sabo asked, trying to get information out of Ace.

“Or something is right,” Ace said, turning his first two fingers into fire and pushing his cowboy hat further up his head.

“I - Ace - what are - Ace -” Sabo searched Ace’s face to try and understand what was happening. 

“Sunny fixed me! She made me another Mera Mera! Now we can really find out who’s stronger,” Ace said flexing his muscles. Without warning, Sabo’s eyes filled with tears as the enormity of the moment settled on his shoulders. Sabo grabbed Ace and pulled him back into a full body hug, openly crying on his shoulder while Ace patted his back. “ ‘S alright Babo. She really did it, I’m fine. Didn’t blow up or anything. I’m back,” Ace said quietly, comforting his brother. Sabo was still crying as he pushed Ace away and wiped his runny nose on his sleeve. He felt an overwhelming sense of relief, now that Ace had finally turned a corner in his life. They’d made it, they’d suffered for so long together and now Ace could finally move on, they could be together like they used to, just three brothers, nothing standing between them, no amnesia, no dying, no wars, no fruits, nothing but them and Luffy, ready to take on the world.

“A-ace! What the fuck are you talking about?! She made you another fruit? How - why - Ace - that’s so…INCREDIBLY STUPID!” Sabo finished with a yell. His own hands were shaking as he felt anger wash over him despite the sense of felicity he’d felt just moments before. Ace was laughing, his hand scratching the back of his head.

“It’s not funny you shithead! What if you had died -” Sabo pulled his hand back to punch Ace in his stupid face.

“But I didn’t!” Ace giggled, easily dodging the hit.

“What if you’d gotten injured? Or suffered other effects?” Sabo now had his pipe in his hands, approaching his brother in a battle stance.

“But I didn’t!” Ace said, still smiling despite crouching down, happily readying himself for a fight.

“And what about Sunny? How on earth did you get her to agree to this? I know she wouldn’t have done this on her own without you telling her to,” Sabo pushed, wanting to hear the whole story. Ace’s smile faltered and his eyes flicked to the house for a moment. Sabo stood up, anger forgotten for the moment as he started worrying about Sunny again. “Ace, what did you do?” Sabo asked imploringly, now leaning on his pipe.

“ I didn’t do anything, she was the one who came up with the deal,” Ace said, already crossing his arms defensively. Sabo sighed, they were in for a long discussion.

“Ace, please. I need to know what’s going on, don’t leave me in the dark,” Sabo pleaded. “Besides, I brought more coffee for the house, I know the two of you drank through what we had,” Sabo said, trying to bribe Ace into sitting down. They weren’t far from the building but Sabo needed Ace to focus on what was happening, not on his apparent recovery of his power, though that needed quite a bit of discussion as well.

“Fine, but you’ll have to be quiet, she’s sleeping,” Ace replied, linking his arm in Sabo’s as they ambled the short distance back to the house. Sabo turned his head to Ace, eyebrows drawn.

“Why’s she sleeping? It’s the evening, she never naps now,” Sabo asked as he picked up the crate and brought it inside, putting it by the stairs. 

“Well, uh, I had to um…drug her,” Ace said sheepishly, stomping up the steps to the house and throwing himself on the couch after forgetting his own directive for quiet.

“Drug her? Why? I thought you’ve been keeping her from working too much?” Sabo asked, wondering why he thought Ace was up to the task of preventing someone’s self destructive habits.

“Um, well, see…the thing is…she wouldn’t stop throwing up,” Ace replied uneasily, trying to hide his face from Sabo by pretending to inspect the couch.

“Ace! Why didn’t you ugh that’s serious! Is she sick -” Sabo’s mind was racing with potential viruses and illnesses that Sunny could have contracted on the island.

“Yeah, she got seasick. She told me before I took her on Striker but I didn’t realize how severe it was. I wanted to bring her back earlier but she kept wanting to stay on the boat longer and longer until I put my foot down and brought her back. Even after she was on land, she kept vomiting and vomiting. Had to carry her into the house she was so weak. So I panicked and…drugged her,” Ace said in a hurry, looking upstairs as he spoke.

“That’s not gonna help her you fucking idiot! She needed medicine! And I thought we were done drugging her!” Sabo was frustrated at both of them - Ace for his lack of medical knowledge and Sunny for her stubborn attitude staying out on the boat when she clearly couldn’t handle it.

“I know, I panicked. I didn’t know what all the stuff in the medicine cabinet was for and Sunny was too sick to help me. She’s fine, by the way, I was checking on her,” Ace mumbled, crossing his arms again. Sabo didn’t want Ace to feel worse than he already did, he probably did the best he could under the tense circumstances.

“It’ll be OK, Ace. Thank you for checking on her, I’m sure she’s fine. But we can’t just drug her to sleep to solve all our problems,” Sabo said evenly as Ace snorted.

“How did you get her nails for the vivre card then?” Sabo’s face turned bright red as Ace quirked a brow.

“How do you know I had a vivre card made?”

“Please, Sabo. I’m stupid but I’m not an idiot. You did, didn’t you?” Ace said, tipping his hat back off his head and stretching his feet to rest on the coffee table in front of him.

“I mean yeah, I did,” Sabo huffed, pulling the paper out of his pocket.

“Gimme some of it too, she’s grown on me. She’s like the opposite of me - she’s really smart but she’s also an idiot. Self destructive, can’t fight or defend herself, makes bad choices. Needs watching,” Ace declared. It warmed Sabo’s heart that Ace had taken you under his wing as well, just as he suspected would happen. Sabo ripped the paper in half and handed one to Ace, who folded it and put it in his shorts pocket. Sabo’s attention wandered over to the bar, where there seemed to be some kind of experiment set up with a multitude of cups and bowls filled with liquid.

“What’s she doing over there?” Sabo asked while walking to inspect it himself, curious about the contents of the containers.

“Those are her pets, don’t touch ‘em,” Ace said flatly. Sabo saw that there were several notes scrawled with the words “ ACE DON’T TOUCH >:(“ near the containers. Sabo chuckled as he read the increasingly angry notes from Sunny.

“Let me guess, you touched ‘em,” Sabo said, putting down a note detailing the violence Sunny would inflict upon Ace if he bothered ‘Mita’ and ‘Condra’. 

“How was I supposta know they’re not just water?! I drank a few, so what? She got mad at me, apparently she was messing with them, changing their genes or something,” Ace said, pouting on the couch. Sabo started opening the cupboards, looking to see what needed to be restocked. To his surprise, most staples were still there except for rice and potatoes, which were completely gone.

“Sabo, can you make me something? I’m hungry,” Ace complained. 

“What have you guys been eating? It doesn’t look like much has been touched here -”

“I make potato salad for lunch and Sunny makes jambalaya for dinner,” Ace answered, already salivating at the thought of food. He had come to the island and was leaning on his arms, watching Sabo take ingredients out of the cupboards.

“Those sound good. What else did you guys eat?”

“No, that’s it. Potato salad for lunch, jambalaya for dinner,” Ace stated. Sabo blinked several times, trying to understand.

“You ate…the same thing…every day…for nearly a month? Just potato salad and jambalaya? That’s why there’s no more rice or potatoes?” Sabo inquired, barely able to process the information.

“That’s what I’ve been saying,” Ace said, rolling his eyes. “We didn’t know how to make anything else, so that’s what we ate. ‘S pretty good though. Could actually go for some jambalaya right now, do you know how to make it?” Ace asked, rubbing his chin. Sabo closed his eyes, willing himself to drop the issue. He didn’t have it in him to discuss why the two of them ate….he’d teach them how to cook a third dish another time. Sabo opened his eyes and looked at his happy, healthy, hungry brother. They were quiet for a moment, staring at one another.

“So. It worked? The fruit - it’s - it’s the same? You’re back?” Sabo asked hesitatingly, watching the joy rise in Ace’s face as the tension melted away.

“Wanna find out? I know I can kick your ass, I’ve seen you using my moves. Lemme show you how they’re really supposed to be done,” Ace taunted his brother, rising off the couch and stretching as a cocky grin plastered itself on his features.

“Pff. Please, I’ve been doing things you’ve never even dreamed of, Portgas. I’m this close to awakening it before you can,” Sabo said, pinching his forefinger and thumb together. He wasn’t, but he knew it would annoy Ace.

“Is that so? Come outside and say that to my face,” Ace said, spreading his arms wide as he walked towards the exit. Sabo gave Ace a wicked smile and promptly tackled his brother out the door, the two of them on equal footing at last.

Your POV

You dreamed of immense fire, a blaze big enough to swallow the island whole. But no matter how hot the fire became, you were never burned completely. You were so drowsy but at one point you woke to the sounds of Ace and Sabo yelling and fighting. Peeking out the window, you saw the two of them in a completely scorched circle, yelling and ranting at one another.

“Are you kidding?! That’s your hiken? They don’t call me Fire Fart Ace, put muscle into it -” Ace said as he exploded a column of fire towards his brother.

“- shut the fuck up! Unless you want to be thrown by my talons again, get over here you wet rat looking ass!” Sabo yelled at his brother as he ran into Ace, headbutting him in his chest. Ace kicked his brother in the stomach, causing both of them to turn to fire and separate once more.

“Pfff please. Talons or not, you’re never gonna -”

“Otebisha!” Sabo cut off his brother with another hiken followed by a stream of fire that traveled upwards towards the house. Ace watched with his mouth agape, then he grinned. You didn’t like that grin.

“Yeah? Going high up? C’mon Sabo - hikyaku!” Ace’s legs turned to fire as he blasted into the air to continue fighting his brother. You yawned, you still felt woozy from earlier in the day. Maybe they’d kill each other - or not - but you wanted to go back to sleep. You just hoped Ace remembered you were in the house if they burned it down. Laying back down, you closed your eyes and were fast asleep before Sabo’s next counter attack.

At some point, you felt a touch on your forehead, testing your temperature.

“ ‘G’way Ace, don’ wan’ potato salad,” you grumbled. You wanted to go back to sleep, even though you’d been sleeping for hours. 

“I don’t have any to offer you,” a voice replied. Your eyes popped open as you realized it wasn’t Ace with you in the room.

“Hi, Sabo,” you said quietly, moving to sit up in bed. Your voice was scratchy from all the vomiting you’d done that morning.

“Hi, Sunny,” Sabo replied, staring at you as he sat on the bed, arms crossed. You shivered under his gaze, it was colder than you’d remembered. You’d seen this intensity before but it had never been directed at you. He’d never been at a loss for words either, his sudden silence a departure from the chattiness you were used to. “Ace informed me you’ve been quite busy in my absence,” he said, facial expression icy as he spoke.

“Um, yeah, I mean, I think - I guess so. He, um, told you? That I, um, made the, um, Mera Mera?” you stammered out your sentence, bringing a nail to your mouth to chew on. Sabo intercepted your hand and pinned it down to your thigh, preventing you from engaging in your bad habit.

“Mmm. Quite a decision. And his end of the deal was that he was supposed to take you where?” Sabo asked, tilting his head. You bit your lip, your eyes bouncing around Sabo’s face to try to find a shred of mercy in him. 

“Um, I didn’t, um. I didn’t get that far, he - I - um, I didn’t, um, I was on Striker -” Sabo frowned at you and your blood ran cold.

“Stop. I warned you not to try to leave the island, did I not? I warned you not to work too hard, did I not?” Sabo asked, gripping your chin between his gloved fingers. He was forcing you to look into his face as he eviscerated you with his words. You felt tears pricking the corners of your eyes but you willed them not to fall.

“Y-yes, you did,” you replied as Sabo held you in his gaze for a few moments longer. You desperately wanted to jerk yourself away but you knew better than to play when Sabo was like this. Finally, he let go and sighed, holding his head in his hands. 

“Sunny, what were you thinking?” Sabo asked, exasperated. He picked his head up from his hands and gave you a tired look. You guessed he’d already heard what had happened from Ace but all you felt was relief that the Sabo you knew was present again, not the Flame Emperor that had scared you nearly to tears. “No, really Sunny, what were you thinking? I mean, of course I’m grateful that Ace has his Mera Mera and that he’s got his powers back, but how stupid can you be ?” You winced as Sabo’s words struck your core. 

“I didn’t think -”

“Yeah, I know you didn’t think, that’s the problem. You’ve changed the foundations of the world! If anyone knew what you can do, what you’ve already done - the potential is limitless -”

“-but Ace said he wouldn’t tell anyone,” you said quietly. Sabo rolled his eyes and stood up to pace the room.

“Ace won’t tell anyone, I’m not worried about him. But that doesn’t keep you safe, someone’s going to put everything together. So, unfortunately for you, we’re going to have to go back to the RA headquarters sooner than I anticipated. Ace is planning on leaving the island and you’ve shown me that I can’t leave you here alone,” he said, giving you a pointed look. You looked down at your shaking hands, feeling your anxiety climbing higher the longer Sabo spoke. 

“I already called the ship, they’re waiting for us to get our things together to leave. I brought you more clothes so you don’t have to pack as many as you’d normally need. And, ah, Koala explained to me that bras don’t just come in small, medium, and large, so I hope everything fits,” Sabo explained, a faint blush tinting his cheeks towards the end of his statement. You gave Sabo a small smile, hopeful he was done reprimanding you. He looked at you, almost pityingly, and cupped your cheek with his gloved hand.

“I just…I really am thankful for what you’ve done for Ace. And your accomplishments are…beyond my wildest imagination. I knew you were a genius, but what you’ve created is…astounding Sunny. I just wish you’d done things differently. That you trusted me more, told me what was going on,” he said, rubbing your cheek with his thumb. You felt small and stupid, how could you have thought your plan was going to work? That you’d out maneuver the second in command of the Revolutionary Army? 

Sabo let go of your face and reached into the interior pocket of his suit, revealing a small wooden box. “I had this made for you, I hope you like it,” he said, putting it in your palm. You opened the container gingerly, gasping when you saw what was inside. It was a silver bangle bracelet and the shanks looked like intertwining vines. Adorning the vines were a few stylized flame flowers, like the ones found on the island. Your fingers shook as you picked it up out of the box. You didn’t think you’d ever seen jewelry so fine, much less been given any.

“Oh, Sabo. It’s lovely,” you said, turning the bracelet over in your fingers. “Are you sure it’s for me?” you asked, unsure that you deserved such finery. Sabo’s face softened as he watched your reaction to his present. 

“I’m sure, Love. Here, let me put it on you,” he said as he held his hand out. You delicately placed the band in his palm and held out your wrist. Opening the bracelet, Sabo put your wrist in the middle and closed it, a small snick the indication that the lock had caught. Turning the bracelet over on your wrist you admired its beauty but were struck by a sudden feeling of wrongness. You felt weak, like you were waterlogged and unable to move your limbs. You pulled on the bracelet to open it and take it off. It didn’t budge. 

“Sabo, please take this off,” you said, tugging on the bracelet. It no longer felt like a bracelet, but a shackle. You were getting increasingly frantic, trying to pry open the bracelet where it had locked. Sabo’s frown had returned as you clawed at the bracelet.

“No. I already warned you what would happen if you tried to escape. The bracelet is imbued with seastone and it won’t open without the key. Stop trying to take it off, you’ll only hurt yourself,” Sabo said firmly, unmoved by your distress.

“Sabo, please, I’m sorry - next time I won’t - I won’t try again, please, I’m sorry!” you wailed, now trying to pull the bracelet over your hand, impeded by your thumb joint. Sabo stilled your movements by putting his hand over your wrist.

“I’m glad you’re sorry, but that’s not enough. I told you that if you tried to escape it would make us both unhappy, that I would have to restrict your freedom. Show me you can be good and I’ll consider taking it off. Until then it stays on,” Sabo said, standing up from the bed and crossing the room. 

“I wish you trusted me more. But until you do, this is how things will be,” Sabo said, exiting the room and shutting the door. The sound of a key in the lock was the last thing you heard before you broke down in heavy sobs.