Hey there! Yay, one done! I just finished this, yippy! It's one of my projects I was working on. I had a block that I overcame just a day ago, yay!

Anyway, sorry for any mistakes, and thanks for being here to read this little one :) It's already finished, so it's only a matter of uploading the chapters. I have not decided if daily or weekly... They're just four, anyway.

Also, I made a community for MaLu lovers, so check it out on my profile, if you want :P

SUMMARY: Out of all the things that could have happened, Marco thought that being blocked on an island because of a storm was the most unnerving. He was a patient man, but... Five days straight? What a headache...

WARNINGS:

- MarcoxLuffy, boyxboy, you warned.

- I want to try posting an explicit one, so the fourth chapter holds those scenes. I hope you will like them. If not, as per your principles, go back and don't read. I hope this doesn't backfire, it's a bet I'm making... M rated, then.

- For the ones who have read my first ff, this is similar but different. I had the idea reading that one and it's a different way things could have gone.

- Also, there are some warnings I dont want to give you, such as differences from the canon, they would ruin the surprise (I hope they surprise you...) and so... be warned.

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. No One Piece, no cute little Luffy, no thing.

EDIT (07/21/2018): Hyphens to quotation marks, done.

Words: 4341.

Enjoy!

01 – The Black Dragon

Marco sighed. For the eleventh time that day. How the hell did he end up in that situation? Oh, yep, right. The storm. The distance. Sea. Not being able to swim if he fell in it. In less words, not to die.

But, damn it, maybe it would have been better than wait for five fucking days in a not habited island. The rain was crashing down around with thunders roaring strongly. Thank whatever God, the storm did not flood the entire island. He was currently in a shelter of his own making, hidden in the branches of a big tree.

Let's see… How did this mess start? He was returning to Moby Dick after a mission. Some pirates had attacked a city on their turf and were taken care of. On the way back, the sky had suddenly darkened and flying in the storm was highly unrecommended, so he had found rapidly an island and, just as he was landing, rain had started to pour with all its ferocity.

Five days without a single ray of the sun. He was seriously starting to feel annoyed and worried. Worried about his brothers and pops that were probably worried about him. What a fucking joke. And who on earth knew when the heck this damn storm was going to lift.

He sighed again, gathering some woods to lit a fire on the ground, rather easy with his flames, and started cooking a fish he caught in the river below. Luckily, it was blocked in a little pond, maybe because the river was so angry. He could hear it distinctly together with the thunders.

Over all, he liked the rain, its sounds were strangely soothing for him. Thunders, the river, drops of water. He closed his eyes, deciding that being in a foul mood wasn't going to help him, and bathed in the sounds around the tree.

Marco wanted to return to his family, he was starting to feel nostalgic. Five days had done this to him. Five days, and he missed the chaos Thatch was always doing, Izo's smirks, his pops. So badly at that. And the meals, the chance of using a real bathroom. He was becoming more and more like a savage. Really… Only five days. He should work on this, such a disgrace.

He almost fell asleep, but the smell of burnt fish made him snap. He took away the food with a sigh and started eating. Fortunately, the inside was well-cooked and he managed to eat it all.

A sudden crash made him flinch and stand. Then a cracked roar echoed in the night and Marco left the fishbone on the dirt, rapidly extinguishing the little fire with his foot. Other crashes made him flinch again and the pirate decided to quickly investigate.

He walked in the forest, following the noises of broken branches. Again, he heard a roar and a thud. It seemed huge, if the sound was any hint. Marco started running after another roar, more like a whine this time. The lightning gave him light sometimes, but otherwise he was engulfed by obscurity, so he had to call forth some of his flames on the arm.

He stopped abruptly when he came across a black wall. He noticed it and didn't bump into it only because the light of his blue flames wasn't lighting forward. He touched the wall, breath caught in his throat. He felt scales, wet hot scales. He increased his flames, being under a wide tree. The skin was shivering in his blue reflex. It was surely a huge beast, he couldn't see it entirely because the wall took the entire space between the trees.

Marco jumped up on a branch and made his way through. He saw a new clearing, enclosed on three sides by the black wall, and landed there. The sound of a weak breath caught his attention and made him turn around. The side, that he thought was clear, wasn't. A head was laid on the wet grass. His flames lit the feature of scales, horns along the lines of it, some bigger near the neck than those near the mouth, even bigger and bended in the place of eyebrows, and closed eyes. Small puffs of white air dissipated every now and then in front of its nose. Huge wings vibrated suddenly, soaking him wet. Marco shivered as a long, scaled tail snapped in the air.

Looking at it from that distance, he had no more doubts. It was a living, breathing, majestic, black dragon. And said breath was incredibly swallow and weak for such a huge beast. And, here, he was in a pinch. Marco wanted to help it, or him, or her, but what if it got scared of him and attacked? The creature groaned in pain, stirring and gritting its teeth.

To hell his debate, if someone was in need, he would help, that was his way of living. He inched closer and lifted a hand. Then stopped. No, this was not the way, he could startle it too much. Marco pondered his possibilities, he was still trained in always hiding his presence, so he slowly let it go. The pirate watched the beast stir again and its eyes snapped open, searching frantically his surroundings.

Marco lifted both his hands in surrender and the dragon finally saw him. The orbs became two slits of pure threat and it snarled with gritted teeth at him.

"Calm down, yoi." He said, trying to placate it. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Another inhuman and scaring growl rooted him to his spot. The dragon lifted its head. It was then that Marco noticed something darker than the rain dropping. The smell of blood reached his nostrils.

"You're wounded. I'm not an enemy, I only want to help you, yoi."

The head got nearer and Marco thought those eyes were scanning him from his insides. They were searching and digging and making him feel naked. The teeth disappeared slowly after a while under black skin, but the eyes were still fiery.

"Let me help you."

He tried to get near again, and this time came only a little snarl, not like the ones before. It was still a threat, but to not do anything funny.

"Ok, yoi."

Marco inched closer and increased his flames, walking around the head to see better the wound. It was rather nasty and wide, on the shoulder, bleeding profusely over the head, the big arm and paw. He briefly wondered what caused it, but held back his question.

"I don't have any medication, I need to cauterize the wound. It's going to hurt… a lot."

He covered his right hand in flames and waited for a sign. The dragon looked at him for a moment before nodding curtly and turning its head to the other side. Marco placed his flaming hand on the wound and a long, deep, low growl filled the air. While he concentrated on the matter at hand, the sun started its rise, covered by the rainy clouds. It took him many minutes before the blood finally stopped flowing. He called back his flames and looked at the wound, an ugly scar replacing it. The scales weren't there anymore, only burned skin.

"It's okay now, yoi." He smiled.

The dragon turned again and looked with half-lidded eyes at his scar. Then nodded at him, probably in thanks.

"No problem, I'm sorry for the scar, though."

The creature huffed and shrugged. Resting its head on the grass, his eyes didn't lose sight of the man. Marco felt again the scrutinizing look on him, weaker than before, and decided to ignore it. And it was then that he noticed rain had stopped. He looked at the sky and saw clouds were slowly disappearing or going somewhere else. Finally, he could go home.

The pirate looked back at the creature with a smile of happiness. It lost some of his brightness, though, when he understood he would have left it alone. The wound may have been okay, not bleeding anymore, but the possibilities of an infection were high. And he didn't want to further prolong his staying on the island.

He sighed. Marco wanted to go back, but he wanted to be sure the dragon was okay. It was still gazing over him, and was that uncertainty in its eyes? The pirate blinked, shaking his head.

"I need to go back, do you want to come with me?" He suddenly asked, surprising even himself. "There's an infirmary there and my sisters can treat you better than me, yoi."

The creature tilted its head, as if thinking about the offer. Then shook its head and looked at its wings and then at the paw.

"You can't fly, right?"

It nodded. That was definitely a problem. He couldn't lift that weight, it was too much for his form.

"And I can't possibly carry you all over there…" He thought, not noticing he said it.

The dragon tilted its head again and nudged his elbow. Then a blue light engulfed it and the figure slowly became smaller. By the time the light disappeared, the dragon resembled more a puppy than a grown adult. It hissed in discomfort, licking the wound while looking at Marco with an inquisitive look.

The pirate got near and carefully took it in his arms. It was so little and cute that he petted its head with a smile.

"This way is easier, yoi." He put the baby dragon on his back, where he felt claws digging in the violet open shirt. "I'll change form, now." He warned the creature.

Marco checked the vivre card of his pops and morphed into a Phoenix. Blue, not harmful and beautiful flames lingered on his feathery skin. He crooed once before taking flight into the sky. No clouds in sight, he relaxed his muscles, feeling his wings free to flap, and enjoyed the air, still humid because of the heavy and long storm.

The dragon on his back stretched his limbs and curled, seemingly sleepy. After some minutes, it was soundly asleep, breath even and unmoving, aside from its chest.

He wondered how many chances did he have of finding a living dragon out of nowhere, in the middle of a storm, in the New World, wounded. And it was willing to trust him, too. This was not something to take lightly. Being a myth creature was surely wonderful and made one proud, but the world was not a kind place. Slave traders and poachers were keen on capturing everything worth money, go figures how they would react to the sight of a dragon. A black beautiful dragon like this one.

Maybe that was exactly why he was wounded. A spark of rage flared in his chest at the realization, that he carefully controlled to not awake the dragon. Marco huffed, trying to think of something else.

This was his sixth day, finally free of the storm, but he'd been away from the ship for almost two weeks. Surely, his family was by then searching for him using his vivre card, so he hoped they would be near. The bundle on his back was too hot for his liking. Perhaps he was feverish, so he had to be fast.

The sun was reaching its peak on the sky when he finally sighted the Moby Dick. It was sailing towards him, so he was right. As Marco got over the ship, he moved its shoulders to wake up the dragon.

"Marco's back!" Someone yelled.

He felt it waking up and yawning, so he descended and changed in mid-air, landing on deck with the creature cradled in his arms.

"Hey brother, where have you been?" Izo asked, running towards him.

Thatch was there, too, together with some others. They were asking him a lot of question, but he ignored most of them. Instead, he turned his full attention to the black bundle in his arms. The dragon had tensed up almost impossibly at the sight of all the pirates.

Marco shushed them lifting one hand. "Sorry guys, a storm blocked me on an island, yoi." He said, trying to shield the creature. "Where's pops?"

"On his chair…" The cook said, finally noticing the animal. Izo did, too.

The others scrambled away, satisfied with the explanation and with a pat on Marco's shoulder. The pirate walked to Whitebeard, that was drinking sake from a bottle. The giant man smiled fondly when he saw his son unharmed and again safe on the ship.

"Marco, welcome back. What took you so long?"

"A storm, yoi." He smiled. "But I have a little problem."

The dragon had tensed even more, and he wondered why was he so scared. Marco took away one arm and showed the three other pirates the puppy. Their eyes widened in surprise.

"What the hell!" Thatch screamed.

"How cute!" Izo squealed.

"A dragon?" Whitebeard inquired.

The bundle tried to back away, but he was already against Marco's chest, so he ended up failing and looking up to his face. It seemed some realization downed on it because the dragon jumped on the floor with a growl. It was weak but brought forward the true menace that the bigger form gave.

Marco blinked, trying to understand the sudden threat. He was so trusty seconds before, but seeing the others and pops… Maybe he recognized them? But that was impossible. It was a dragon, not a person… Wait. No, it was possible… If the dragon was… Then maybe… But he had not heard once of this kind and it would surely bring forth a lot of news… Still…

"You're a devil fruit user, yoi." He said, startling everyone.

The dragon growled again and Marco was ready to swear he saw black flames through the gritted teeth. So, he was right. He had just brought who knew who on board, putting everyone in danger. And this person had probably recognized everyone, Marco included, and was wary of them. Scared? Not one bit. He didn't see fear in its blue eyes, only attention, concentration and the scanning look he had already experienced first-hand.

"Interesting…" Whitebeard said with a grin.

Marco kneeled in front of the dragon with a huff. "You're feverish, yoi. Let us treat you, then you'll be free to go away." He said, but the dragon didn't move neither acknowledged him. "I promise."

This seemed to take its attention. The creature sat, scrutinizing him again, then Izo, Thatch, and finally their Captain. He lingered more on the last, giving an annoyed huff. Marco didn't know if it was in approval, but the dragon nodded and he guessed it was that way.

He didn't have the time to process his own pride in being trustworthy for the dragon, because the black bundle collapsed on the floor, breathing heavily. Marco took it in his arms and sighed, bringing it to the infirmary without waiting for his pops' nod, that came nonetheless. The head nurse, Sheila, yelped at the sight of the beast but regained composure quickly and started treating it at his best possibilities… Who in the whole world had ever taken care of a dragon?

Marco looked around, noticing that all the beds visible were occupied. He wondered what happened to have the infirmary full, he'd have to ask pops later. Most of his brothers seemed only lightly scratched, but some were in pain.

"Marco." He turned to the head nurse, that was holding the dragon in her arms. "He has an infection going on because of the wound." As he feared… "You did well in cauterizing it. I gave him shots of antibiotic, proteins, vitamins and a bit of sedative."

The pirate nodded. "Him, yoi?"

"Yeah, it's a male."

"Why the sedative?"

"He needs to sleep, and I don't have any free beds here. You take care of him." She gave the dragon back to Marco. "Make sure he's left in peace. Bring him back here tomorrow so I can check him."

"Ok, I'll take him to my room then."

He thanked Sheila and went back on deck with the bundle tangled and soundly asleep. Izo, Thatch and Whitebeard were there, waiting for him.

"So…" The cross-dresser began. "What happened?"

Marco could read utter curiosity and a gleam of understanding in his eyes. "I've been blocked on an island for more than five days by a storm, yoi. That's why I'm late. But, yesterday night, this little one… Well, not so little, crashed on the island where I was staying. He was wounded and let me treat him." He showed them the scarred shoulder. "The storm subsided this morning, but I didn't want to leave him alone and sick, yoi. He understood and became this little, so I carried him here." Marco took a deep breath, he hated talking so much, but it was necessary. "I didn't know he was a devil fruit user, but…"

"His reaction just before betrayed him, uhm?" Thatch finished for his brother, looking at the dragon. "He doesn't seem a threat to me, though. Just wary of us, but… How to explain this…"

"The idiot is trying to say that he didn't feel hate, nor killing intent." Izo helped. "He was just careful and, I must say, he seems tough. Not many people can hold back their own sickness that way."

"I like his eyes." Whitebeard added. "They speaks a lot, of strong will and sad past."

Marco sighed, looking at the creature. "So, a new guest for the time being, pops?"

"Why not. Take care of him and let me know if anything changes." His laughter thundered and the pirate smiled.

"Ok, then." He was going to his cabin when he remembered he had something to ask. "Oh, right, yoi. What happened while I was gone?"

"We had a fight with a fleet of rookies from Paradise." Thatch grinned. "They were strong, a whole bunch, so we had a big skirmish and it was fun." He laughed. "A marine ship was also there, but it disappeared right after."

"And Ace, yoi? I didn't see him, is he out?"

"Yeah, he wanted to chase a ship that escaped. He should be back in a day at max." Izo answered.

"Okay then…"

With that said, Marco went to his cabin. It was a big wooden room, with a white sheets bed against one wall, brown wardrobe and desk, full of papers regarding his division, a chair, a black fitted carpet covering the whole floor, a door to the bathroom and a window covered by black curtains. He took three big pillows from the wardrobe and made a nest, or something like that, on one corner of his bed. The pirate put the creature, or man, on them and smiled seeing him stretch contentedly.

He felt a weight lift from his shoulders as he laid on his bed with sleepy eyes. He was finally home, and that was a feeling he wouldn't give away for anything in the world. The reality of being back downed on him as he fell asleep in the same peaceful way the dragon already was.

A stubborn banging on the door made Marco stir out of his blissfully resting sleep. He yawned and stretched on his bed, sitting with blinking eyes and going at his door. He opened it to see Izo standing in the alleyway.

"Hello, sleeping beauty." He smirked. "You should know it's already morning and you missed two meals yesterday, not counting breakfast, so the grumpy cook is being depressed over being ignored."

Marco blinked again and nodded. Morning. He had sure slept for long. Izo went away so he closed the door and decided to take a shower. Then he abruptly remembered he had a guest sleeping with him. He looked at his bed to see the dragon still asleep, but he wasn't on the pillows. They were scattered on the floor and the creature was sprawled on the sheets.

The pirate huffed, taking clean clothes to the bathroom. He enjoyed the feeling of cold water on his skin and, in a matter of some minutes, he was already dressed again, smelling of lavender. Marco took the black bundle off his bed, a pillow from the floor and carried them to the galley.

The wide room was almost empty, given it was already 11 a.m. Izo, Thatch and Vista were the only ones waiting for him. The cross-dresser was barely keeping in a laughter when Marco joined them with a tray of food. He felt quite hungry. The pirate put the pillow on the table with the tray and deposited the still sleeping creature on the fluffy cloth. He was actually worried if the sedative shouldn't have stopped working already… But he felt a lot colder than the day before, the warmness from his body was good.

As he started eating his eggs, Thatch was whining and pouting.

"Stop it, bro, he was obviously tired." Vista said.

The pout didn't falter. Marco sighed, still controlling the dragon.

"I'm sorry, Thatch, yoi. I slept till now, no jokes." He said. "And the little one did, too. I should take him to the infirmary."

Just as he was finishing his sentence, the dragon's eyes slowly opened and he stretched like a cat with a wide yawn. He looked around, sitting on the pillow. His eyes landed on everyone, lingered more carefully on Vista, and then stopped on Marco and his tray. He suddenly jumped, making the cook yelp and fall back with his chair. The creature attacked voraciously the bacon on the plate and gulped the bread and water. He was so fast Marco couldn't believe his own eyes.

Like that, the dragon jumped again towards the counter where trays were filled and started rummaging everything left from breakfast. Marco flinched at the speed food was disappearing. Was he a fucking black hole? He stopped and sat when there was no more and looked around, almost disappointed, licking his paw.

The phoenix stood up, trying to unfreeze from his surprise, and went near him.

"How are you feeling, yoi?"

The dragon looked at him without turning, still licking his paw.

"Your fever has gone down."

He stopped and turned with piercing eyes. Marco could almost see the question lingering on his face.

"Basically, yes, but I'd prefer you visit the nurse first, for a final check-up, and pops, before leaving."

He nodded slowly and jumped on the pirate's shoulder, that waved his hand at his brothers before going away. The little walk to the infirmary was silent, with the dragon sitting straight and warily looking at everyone they passed by.

Sheila was taken aback when she saw the creature looking at her with those eyes and stayed rooted to her place for a full minute. Eventually, the dragon huffed and jumped into her arms. She seemed delighted as they disappeared in a separated room.

Marco, in the meanwhile, was in a blank state. The guest had surely fully recovered so he had no reason to stay any longer. After meeting his pops one last time, he would have gone away and disappear completely. He didn't know why but the thought left an unpleasant taste in his mouth. Did he already become attached to the dragon? Not even knowing his identity... The pirate sighed with closed eyes and shook his head, trying to rid his mind of such things. This was not happening, him bonding with unknown and such.

"He's completely fine." The head nurse's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "He's almost got your own recovering abilities, the scar is even smaller." The dragon jumped back on his shoulder. "He doesn't need any more treatment." She smiled and went back to her room.

Marco thanked her and started walking to the deck. "Happy, little one?"

The dragon sniffed the air proudly, then looked at the man's eyes. He could almost picture a smile on the black skin. In retaliation, his own lips curled up a bit.

His pops was waiting on his huge chair, sipping sake as always. Marco shrugged off the small smile and straightened. Needless to say, the Captain had noticed it.

"Good morning, son." He smiled. "And you, too, little brat."

The pirate greeted back while the dragon growled in a nod.

"He's okay now, yoi."

"Already?" The Captain grinned. "I was right, then, a strong will lies in you." He looked in the creature's eyes. "I'd really like to know who you are, but my son promised you freedom, and I'll oblige. You're free to go."

The dragon stood and jumped on one of Whitebeard's hands. He nodded and started forming something with his paw on the hand. His father's face became slowly serious and grave.

Marco arched a brow, was the dragon writing something? He couldn't see clearly from down there. He crossed his arms, feeling a little put aside, but managed to not seem annoyed. The pirate suppressed a flinch when he felt the creature on its shoulder again. He lifted his arms and the dragon landed there, looking at him.

"So, you're going, yoi." He sighed despite trying not to. "Take care."

The dragon started writing some signs, on his hand this time. It was his thanks and a name. The creature put his paws on Marco's chest and licked his cheek, leaving him startled.

The beast then flapped his wings and jumped up in the sky, becoming bigger and bigger, matching his original size. The figure was lean, muscular, tan and lucent in the sunlight. He roared in the clear sky. The now massive wings brought strong gusts of wind on the deck, where pirates flooded from the inside of the ship. The dragon roared again before heading away on the horizon, black scales reflexing the light.

Marco clenched his fist, where the lines of a name burned his skin, watching the living myth leave. He trusted him enough to give out this little piece of information.

His name was Luffy.

Weeeeell... This is it, for now :P Let me know what you think, thanks for reading till here :D See ya!