Work Text:
He had promised Ace to protect his only child.
It was hard to believe, honestly.
[Name] had been pregnant during the entire war, with Ace's child. His brother's kid.
It was a wonder why she didn't show up to the battlefield, fighting alongside the Whitebeard Pirates in their valiant feat to save on of their beloved commanders—he'd expected her to be the center of it all, actually, if not at least one the main game-changers, running straight ahead with no other intention than to bring back her idiot from yet another excursion gone terribly wrong. He could almost see her [hair color] locks amidst the crowd, easily forcing her way through criminals and marines alike; the thought of the furious scolding he knew would await Ace almost brought a smile to his face.
The moment it was revealed to him in the midst of all the chaos that she was with child, however, it all clicked in his head.
And it hurt.
He knew he never had a chance with her from the start. Tried as he might've to push them away when they'd first arisen, even attempting to fight them at some point—a concept that had been explained to him as gently as possible, not that Luffy had listened with his insistence that he'd "beat the crap out of them until they go away!"—they were there to stay, even as he continuously threw himself into a torturous, heart-piercing loop in an ill-advised attempt to rid them quickly.
The signs, though painfully obviously, had been laid bare before him long before he'd gotten the chance to meet her.
[Name], for one, never gave him that same smile she gave Ace, nor the same affectionate punch to his shoulder or stifled laughter of his name that so easily revealed the deep companionship that lay foundation to their strengthened bond. Her eyes sparkled for Ace and Ace alone, teasing and banter included, and no amount of time Luffy'd spend with her, alone or otherwise, would ever come close to it.
To her, he'd always be seen as a friend. A fellow comrade. Ace's little brother.
He already knew that having these feelings for your brother's significant other was undeniable, terribly, horrible wrong. it made him feel like garbage whenever his heart would flutter just at the sight of her. Yet he had always asked himself what Ace had that he didn't. Shame would soon follow, and it'd be banished once again until the next time she did something that would make his strange, unwanted feelings bloom.
It definitely didn't help at all with coping about Ace's death whenever [Name] would wake up screaming his brother's name, arising from yet another terrifying nightmare that had become reality in just a day. On those days, he would be the first one in her room, clutching her small, shaking body into his arms and holding her as if her life depended on him. And it did, from what she'd told him one night as they both laid under tufts of grass in the Amazon Lily watching as the moon shone brightly at them.
A thought that he carried with him with pride whenever he thought of the [hair color] haired pregnant woman.
Her nightmares were always about Ace leaving her and their child—with his brother walking away from them without saying goodbye. And it hurt his heart worse than the thought of Ace's death, watching her breakdown in front of him (it hurt even more knowing that her nightmares was indeed the horrible truth). She was always strong to him, always joking and laughing about anything, and just a natural ball of sunshine. She was just so...amazing, that the remembrance of Ace being her first just by seeing the round of her stomach hit him like a train.
But he never once hated the child inside her, growing with his brother's blood. Not even when a piece of him felt guilty that he wished it was his.
The Navy still hadn't discovered that Gol D. Roger's lineage still lived on, along with his will. And for that, both [Name] and him were grateful. It meant she wouldn't have to hold her child as long as Ace's mother had with him—she wouldn't have to live in constant fear of the Navy showing up on the island to look for her child and take the offspring away from her.
Not that he'd ever let that happen. He'd make sure not a finger was dared lay on [Name], and would fight until he could not longer stand up and protect her.
But there was one thing that he knew he couldn't ever protect her from, so when it happened: he wasn't prepared.
The delivery.
"Ahh!" She cried out in pain, her face scrutinizing in concentration as her breathing became heavily labored. "T-this...this hurts...!"
He stared wide-eyed at her with concern, letting her grip tightly on his hand as he asked, "O-oi, is [Name] going to be okay?"
He'd heard about horror tales on how babies were born based on what Makino had been told in the village. While he hadn't really paid attention to it, seeing as he hadn't been interested at the time to start a family, he only caught that it was was the most painfullest experience a woman could had.
And were they right.
"Of course she is!" The Elder Nyon snapped, looking at the [hair color] haired girl's form as she let out a moan. "Anyways, you're supposed to be supporting her, Luffy. Stay focused on her."
[Name] yelled out in pain, turning her head to the side as she held on tighter to Luffy's hand, completely suffocating it. But he didn't feel a thing, instead his eyes growing worried as he began a few minutes later, "But, are you sure...?"
"You're supposed to be here to help her, not make her worry more! Show some composure!" Nyon turned to look back under at [Name], with the blanket covering her up. "This much pain would be unbearable to any man! But women are strong!"
Reluctantly, Luffy turned to [Name] once again, watching as she took a second to breathe, her eyes still shut tight. Beads of sweat began to go down his face as he clenched his teeth, thinking inwardly, 'Hang in there, [Name].' He hated to see her in such pain, and just wanted it all to end for her.
He looked at the bulge in [Name]'s stomach, silently adding, 'Hang in there, Sabo.' It was the name [Name] had said before that Ace had wanted to call him if it were a boy, Rouge if it were a girl—both named after incredible people in his life.
Even if he didn't know why, Luffy had a gut feeling that it would be a boy and began calling the unborn babe as such.
His thoughts were broken by [Name]'s suppressed screams, as she turned her head to the other side. She let out a cry of pain, her forehead beaded with sweat as her [hair color] hair was spread out everywhere on the bed.
He had never felt so helpless in his life, watching her laying in agony on that bed. He had the power to beat navy soldiers, destroy buildings, beat the strongest of foes—but even with that strength, he still couldn't have done anything to prevent that sort of pain. And only in that moment did he feel a much stronger urge to get stronger.
And then, the (almost) best news of his life was heard: "The head is out! You're almost done, [Name]!"
These words were followed by another woman from the Amazon who had been helping Nyon since the beginning of the delivery, her mouth covered by a surgical mask as she said, "Hang in there, [Name]-san!"
[Name] only continued to push, twisting her head side to side as she yelled out in pain. Luffy looked at [Name] and then back to her stomach, saying quietly, "Come on, Sabo—you're almost there."
Moments later, [Name]'s screams grew increasingly louder, as did her grip on him as she pushed as hard as she could, more so than he had ever seen in the past hours.
Nyon continued to look down at the almost-new mother, her eyes narrowing slightly for a few moments.
And then wails were heard in the room. A baby's wails.
"Hot water!" Nyon immediately commanded, with the nurse assistant gave her a quick nod and did so.
The next few moments were a blur to Luffy: he got to see the child first—Ace's child—and saw its dark tufts of hair as it was wiped clean with a cloth after they had cut the cord. It's wail never ceasing as it was wrapped in a blanket, with Nyon instructing him on how to hold it.
And when he did, it was the most odd, yet wonderful feeling in the world.
He couldn't help but stare wide-eyed at the child, the way it's eyes were shut closed as it cried out softly, not as loud and hysterical as it did before. It felt so...foreign to him. And in all honesty, at that moment, he felt afraid.
Such a small, fragile life was born. It was born into the Pirate Era, where dreams were followed and darkness lurked. Could it possibly survive in a world like that?
But only one thought clouded his mind above all that worry.
Ace's son was finally born...a piece of his brother was in there.
And at that realization, tears began to fall from his face and onto the child's face. Luffy held onto the babe, making sure that it was warm and alive as he continued to cry in both anguish and happiness.
This...this being, this small baby was all it took to make him start bawling like a child. And he wasn't one bit ashamed of it.
"Ace...ace," he whispered to himself, closing his eyes. It was an indescribable feeling he felt; he didn't know what it was that made him so happy and relieved. Seeing the little babe in his arms, knowing that it was his brother's, it made him feel like he wasn't alone anymore. He hadn't failed. He hadn't lost Ace completely. His brother's memory hadn't gone out of existence.
He hadn't failed Ace.
"H-hey, Luffy." Luffy stopped for a moment, tears still falling from his cheeks as he turned to [Name], her eyes shone with both happiness and restlessness. The young woman gave a small, albeit weak smile, saying, "Can I...can I see him?"
He was right, it was a boy. Luffy hadn't honestly remembered Nyon say anything...
Luffy sniffled, giving her a huge smile that reached his eyes, saying softly, "Yeah, here he is." He walked over to the weak mother, sitting on a stool beside her as he held on to the baby properly, and let [Name] have a peek at the child.
At the sight of her son, [Name] said quietly, a small smile on her face as her eyes lit up for the first time in a long while, "So we finally meet...Sabo." Her eyes slowly began to well-up with tears as Luffy gently handed her the babe, with the child's soft wails reaching [Name]'s ears.
The young, new mother closed her eyes content, as tears fell from her cheeks. She began to say softly, "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for you...how long we've been waiting for you." At the indirect mention of his name, [Name] felt a lump in her throat, despite holding a smile. She pulled her child close to her cheek, nuzzling the rosy child as he wailed.
She said after sniffling and trying to keep composure, her eyes not once taken off her child as she continued, "Y-your daddy...he's not here with us now...but if he was, I'm sure he'd be all over you by now."
His heart felt that familiar ache, and it took all his willpower not to walk out of the room and run and scream at the world. The wounds were still as fresh as if it were yesterday—but to hear [Name] declare it again was just too much for him to bear, almost knocking the wind out of him.
"His name was Portgas D. Ace...he was an amazing man, your daddy. H-he always wanted to meet you; he told me stories about how he'd spoil you rotten, and make sure...t-that he would always...be there for you..." [Name] bit her lip, as she desperately tried to suppress the oncoming full-on sob that was threatening to unleash. God, how she missed him. All she could think about was how Ace was supposed to be beside her, holding their child and giving her his usual smile. That reassuring smile, the one that always told her that everything was going to be just fine with him beside her.
She sniffled. How pathetic she was, feeling like this when she should be happy about the birth of her child.
Their child.
She took a shuddering breath at the thought, head spinning and hands grabbing at the freshly-delivered blankets as she started once more, "But you know...even if you're real daddy isn't here...there was someone your daddy said he'd choose as a substitute if..." She never finished her sentence, instead turning her attention to Luffy, watching as he was standing beside the door, straw hat shadowing his eyes.
Said rubber man immediately turned to her when she said, "Your daddy said...your oji-san Luffy would be your new daddy if something...ever happened to him."
If there was ever a moment where Luffy had been caught off-guard by yet another batch of unexpected news, this one was it.
Him? The father to Ace's son?
Ace said that?
As if reading his mind, the young woman gave the first genuine laugh at his expression in a long, long while, "Ace to, you know. The first weeks of my pregnancy, he just...randomly brought it up, and he promised me to accept his will..."
She looked at him with soft, iridescent [eye color] eyes that almost made him melt right on the spot. The same guilty feelings for her that he had kept hidden all this time had returned, this time overflowing, and he had no idea how to stop it. "And of course, I said yes."
His eyes, slowly, peeled themselves from her to the source of their conversation.
"Sabo's...dad?" He said, more so to himself. He could see it, imagine the way Ace's smile could grow just as large as his, and, for a fleeting moment, Luffy could faintly hear the whisper of his dead brother telling him eagerly to assume the responsibility. It was a title he hadn't ever put much thought into, not when there wasn't a reason for him to be thinking of kids in general—much less a kid of his own—but standing before the sleeping babe as it lay there vulnerable before him, the honor had never felt so overwhelming.
The look on [Name]'s face when he accepted that role...it made his heart beam in a way that he hadn't for over three months.
As night fell on the Amazon Lily, he was allowed permission to stay in the same room with [Name] and the newborn Sabo. Not that he ever noticed Hancock's jealous fury towards the previously pregnant women, he was still clueless to her (obvious) attraction on him.
He was currently still awake, lying next to the window as the moon's ray gave some light into the otherwise dark room. A sense of purpose washed over him, and he couldn't help but feel the tiniest corners of his lips turn upwards. When he looked up at the moon, he could feel like what had once felt like the entire world melt off his shoulders like fresh-falling snow.
And he was going to keep that promise.
"Luffy..." The strawhat boy was too stunned to respond, his body numb and brain struggling to process the fact that his brother was dying right in his arms. The stench of blood began to fill his nostrils, the nausea suddenly kicking in as a result, but all he could feel was the big, fat tears falling down his cheeks and the way his brother's body was growing cold.
Ace held on to his younger brother tightly, ignoring the fact that the pain was slowly starting to numb away. Something in the back of his head told him it probably wasn't a good thing to further strain himself but goddamnit he needed to at least do this, even if it killed him. He wouldn't be able to pass on, otherwise.
The taste of metallic filled his mouth in his attempt to stave his mouth from drying again, but he managed to speak. He said everything with a crooked smile, tears escaping his eyes at the thought that he wasn't coming back home to the girl he loved, nor would he be able to see his own child be brought into the world. But he didn't regret anything. He didn't regret loving you, or his unborn child.
With the rest of the strength his failing body could possibly muster, he whispered softly, enough so that Luffy could clearly hear despites the cries of war and bloodshed echoing in the background, "...promise me that you'll protect [Name] and my kid, okay? I know she'll kill me for this...but I want you to know, I'm counting on you."
Luffy could only nod numbly, unaware of the better future to come.
"I...promise."