Revelations

by Sventastic

Brother, I am fire

Surging under ocean floor

I shall never meet you, brother --

Not for years, anyhow;

Maybe thousands of years, brother.

Then I will warm you,

Hold you close, wrap you in circles,

Use you and change you --

Maybe thousands of years, brother.

- Carl Sandburg, "Kin"

My first thought was that Luffy had really changed.

Well, I hadn't seen him for around three years. The logical part of my brain told me that, yes, duh, of course he's changed, because that's hat people do. I had seen the wanted poster -- 30,000,000 belis already (should I be alarmed, pleased, or disappointed he wasn't worth more?) -- and had seen how much he had matured PHYSICALLY, and had also seen the familiar hat perched upon his head.

But although a picture was worth a thousand words, pictures were worth squat when you could see the real thing. And damn, had Luffy GROWN! Of course I was still taller than him, but there was a little bubble of pride from just seeing him there and seeing how much he had accomplished.

Then my second thought was that he actually hadn't changed at all.

Sure, he was taller. And he was better at using his Devil Fruit powers. But when he had exclaimed my name while wearing the same dorky face I remembered, it seemed like nothing much had become different. It was like being back home, with an irrepressible rubber boy who had breathtakingly large dreams. Ace, I'm going to be the Pirate King, and that's final! He was still an idiot of immense proportions (nicely demonstrated by that fiasco in the restaurant), he was still an even larger glutton than I was (also nicely demonstrated in the same fiasco in the same restaurant)... and he was still my younger brother.

Was I relieved? A little bit. It's nice knowing that somebody you loved has remained fundamentally the same.

I admit it was a bit funny to 'sneak' onto his ship after dealing with the Marines. He was so surprised that I had eaten a Devil Fruit too. I never did tell him (after all, Whitebeard pirates do NOT write letters to their family... it ruins our rep) but I thought that maybe, just maybe, he might've noticed my bounty poster. With all the fire coming out of me. And my nickname.

... he IS an idiot.

Luffy was boasting about how strong I was. It made me swell with pride (didn't hurt my ego either). I could see how much he had grown... he had a ship, a crew, and an infamous name, all in just a few months. Dang, I was proud. So I offered him to join up with me.

He refused.

And I laughed, because it was so expected, so LUFFY, and all of a sudden I was back in Fuschia, sitting under a tree which Luffy was climbing. I'm going to be a pirate just like Shanks, you had said, wearing his hat (your treasure then, and your treasure now). Just you wait Ace! I said that I would be a better one than you, and you swung down in front of me and declared that you would find One Piece. I'm going to be the Pirate King, and that's final!

Three years later you're still the same. I'm glad you're working towards your dream, Luffy. I'm glad you're still the same dreamer I left behind so long ago. I really wanted to tell you how proud I was of you. Couldn't do it. Didn't know how to say it. Didn't have to.

I just thanked your crew, gave you a Vivre card (maybe I should've explained what it was... oh well, you'll find out eventually) and said my goodbyes with promises of reunion. There was no point in telling you now. It'd almost be insulting -- you can do much better. There was no point simply because there was always a 'next time' with you. So when I sailed away and destroyed those silly ships, I couldn't help it but challenge you. Go to the top, Luffy! You can do it! I'll be waiting. It was a challenge you couldn't hear anymore, one you didn't HAVE to hear, because I already heard you accept it back on your ship before I posed it, and it was still ringing in my ears.

"I'm going to be the Pirate King!"

And that's final.