The last chapter! Thanks a lot, everyone! Man, I'm gonna miss writing this :/

Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece.

YXYXYXYXYXYXYXYXYX

Chapter 10 – Talks

„In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit." - Albert Schweizer

It was a few days later when Luffy found himself sitting on Sunny's head, enjoying the beautiful bright day. His gaze wandered around, watching the small waves lapping the ship as if to tickle it, and Luffy smiled. He didn't need a special reason after all. It was just that a true smile found its way easily to Luffy's face; it was just the kind of person he was.

He watched some fishes swimming by and briefly wondered when Sanji would call for dinner. He was getting quite hungry already. Luffy's smile grew even wider as he thought about the huge amount he could eat tonight. No stomach ache, just a content, full feeling inside. Yeah, that sounded great.

Finally, he was fully recovered. He could run, fight, shout, laugh, jump, eat, bounce around and sling-shot himself all over the deck without feeling dizzy or nauseas. He felt as if the heavy chains from his wrists and ankles had been unlocked. The air around him was light and fresh, it was easy to breathe and talking was no problem. He didn't feel too warm or too cold. Everything was perfect the way it was. His friends were doing things they enjoyed, like repairing stuff, training, reading or cooking. Everything was peaceful and calm, and Luffy didn't feel anything like lonely. Since the day he came back to his friends, everything had somewhat changed for the better.

If there was one thing Luffy would remember for sure when he looked back to this day, was how his friends all craved to talk to him. Each of them visited him at one point or would pretend to randomly say something to him, playing it off as a spontaneous thought that had in truth been hiding inside them all the time.

Luffy pretended he didn't notice and just played along. He thought it was actually really nice and enjoyed talking to them. How he had missed that! Though, none of them reacted in the same way, they all dealed with his recovery differently.

Robin, for example, just casually walked by and exchanged a few words with him about the weather. Nothing special, but after a few minutes she seemed genuinely happy. Luffy loved it when his friends were so happy.

Though, there were three talks Luffy would always remember. The first one was with Sanji, the night after his awakening. As Luffy had begun to pick up his old habit of raiding the kitchen, Sanji naturally found him before the damage was done. But instead of getting angry, the cook had said nothing as if he'd expected Luffy to come, and instead prepared him something quick, much to Luffy's surprise. After that, the two of them sat down at the table, Luffy eating and Sanji watching. And then, Sanji began to speak.

"You know, this is an expectation. If I find you ever raiding my fridge again, I'll seriously kick your stupid butt. Got that? I don't want you to think I'll cook you something each night."

Luffy munched on a piece of meat, looking up. "I gnow dat, Snachi."

Sanji looked quite irritated at this and whacked Luffy over the head. "Manners, idiot! Swallow first and then you can speak." Luffy whined, but swallowed.

"I know that, Sanji. Don't worry!" Luffy grinned. "But it'd be really nice to get a small midnight snack every-",

"NO!"

Luffy pouted. "Then I have to raid the kitchen."

Sanji's left eye twitched in annoyance and he looked ready to strangle his captain. "Luffyyy...!" Then he sighed and slumped back into his seat, feeling very tired all of sudden. Sanji knew exactly that no matter what kind of threat he would use, Luffy would continue to steal food in the middle of the night. Truth be told, at the moment Sanji was actually incredibly relieved Luffy did so.

"Whatever, just clean up when you've finished." With that said, Sanji got up and turned to leave. Luffy blinked in wonder. He hadn't expected Sanji to just leave like that, since Luffy could still raid the kitchen afterwards.

"Eh? Sanji, is something wrong?"

The cook halted. "I'm tired. Isn't that obvious?"

Luffy shrugged. "I was just wondering since normally, you would beat me up or at least give me a lecture. But you've been behaving oddly these past days. Is it because you have no packs of cigarettes anymore?"

Sanji shot around, pissed. "No, it's not because of these goddamned cigarettes! Luffy, you damn moron, how can you be so insensitive? In case you didn't notice, you nearly fucking died a few days ago!"

Luffy swallowed, taken aback. "Sanji...," He hadn't expected such an outburst and was somewhat speechless. He hadn't thought the others would still take it that bad! Weren't things back to how they used to be now? He looked down. "But I'm fine now."

"I can see that! But we have to come to terms with this situation first of all! These past days were a load of crap for us, too! We can't just play it off as if nothing serious happened. This crew nearly broke apart and you nearly lost your life! That's a lot of shit to deal with!" Sanji all but shouted. He was fuming, and Luffy could see his fists shaking in anger. The captain frowned, his meal forgotten over the cook's wrath.

Was he still causing them so much distress? Luffy had hoped he could lighten up the mood by pretending nothing happened and just tried to act childish and like his old self. Apparently, the others were still pretty shaken. He sighed, hating how everyone fussed about him. "Sorry. But it's all in the past now. I'm not sick anymore and we-",

"Darn, what would you do if you were in our shoes? Think about it, Luffy! What would you do if one of us would be so sick all of sudden?" Sanji asked heatedly, not waiting for Luffy to finish. He didn't need to hear it.

Luffy only watched him, before replying in a mutter, "I don't know." Scenes of when Nami became sick flashed before his inner eyes and he bit his lip.

Sanji glared at him. "See? We didn't know what to do, either. None of us could cope with the situation, that's why we began to fight."

Now it was Luffy's time to glare at Sanji, and the cook took a step back in reflex. "What did that help?! It only made everything worse! You should have sticked together, like you always do!"

All anger drained from Sanji's face and he muttered, "Easier said than done."

Luffy calmed down a bit. "Sanji. If we want to aim for the top, then we have to be stronger than that. If one of us should leave -whatever the reason- the others shouldn't shut themselves down and avoid everything around them. Now, for the first time in all our lives, we have people around us who feel the same, who understand us, who can comfort us! There's no need to go through hard times alone. Why should that go to waste?"

Sanji nibbled on his cigarette, hating how dumb he felt all of sudden. This was Luffy lecturing him of all people, and the cook felt slightly awkward. Luffy spoke again.

„Why always drowning in self-pity? I mean, I'm no stranger to loss. But I'm a friend to happiness." He said with an utter honesty it made Sanji shudder.

"...right." Sanji answered uncertainly after a while, taking a deep drag of his cigarette. Slowly, the words sunk in. He knew everything Luffy said was true, but maybe he needed to hear it from someone else first. "I guess that's a good attitude. If something like this should happen again, then we may know how to deal with it properly now."

Luffy didn't respond. Sanji shook his head after watching him for a while, then he responded with a laugh,

"You actually stopped eating."

"Huh?" Luffy blinked, profoundly confused. He looked down as if he'd seen the meat for the first time in his life, and then he squeaked. "Ah! My midnight snack!" He swallowed it whole, not caring that it was already cold.

"Thanks for the little talk, captain." Sanji ruffled his hair. Since it's already dawning outside, I'll go and make you dumb asses breakfast now, so get the hell out" The cook went to the oven.

Luffy looked after him in slight wonder, before he turned around and vanished through the kitchen door with an "Ouh!" He knew Sanji didn't really mean it when he scolded them, and that thought made him smile.

Since Luffy was already wide awake, he didn't return to his hammock. He could sleep after breakfast if he wanted to. One hour later, his sniper found his way up onto deck and joined his captain in watching the sunrise.

"Hey Luffy." Usopp's voice sounded from behind, and Luffy turned his head to grin at his friend. Here we go again, Luffy thought and snickered.

"What's so funny?" Usopp asked slightly amused, both eyebrows raised.

Luffy giggled. "Nothing."

"Ah, okay...", Usopp shrugged it off. "Anyways, how are ya?"

"I'm fine. It's not like I'll break if I fall down." Luffy rolled his eyes.

Usopp didn't think this was funny and frowned at his friend. " You sure looked like that a few days ago."

Luffy's smile faded and he turned to the ocean again. "Sorry."

Usopp sat down beside him. "It's alright. It's not like you did that on purpose, eh?"

Luffy nodded. "Yeah. It was really annoying not to be able to do anything." he pouted, making Usopp snicker at the childish expression.

"You know...", Usopp began, and Luffy turned to watch his face in curiosity.

"What?"

"We were just a bunch of idiots. I'm really sorry for not coming back to you sooner. Things might have gone differently if we had supported you from the start." Usopp didn't dare to meet Luffy's eyes, and it was hard for him to speak about that matter. But he just needed to get it off his chest for once and all.

Luffy blinked, then his expression turned calm as fond eyes watched the sniper. "You guys did pull yourself together, and that's all that matters. It's like you got lost on the way, but in the end you found your aim."

"Right." Usopp said, rubbing furiously at his eyes. Luffy laughed.

"Sheesh, Usopp, cheer up!" he slapped the other boy's back, attempting to lift the slightly sour mood. He was fed up with such depressed surroundings.

Usopp coughed at that but recovered instantly. "I-I'm already cheering up!" Crimson flushed his cheeks as he hit Luffy back. The captain only laughed more at that.

"Besides, I heard you were the one to speak them out of their depression, weren't you?" Luffy suddenly blurted out, still smiling. Usopp halted in his movements, slightly stunned. Then he grinned proudly.

"Uhm, I guess." He rubbed his nose. "If the captain falls ill, then it's the job of a brave warrior to rescue the rest of the crew!"

"Yeah. You did well, Usopp! Shishishi! I always knew you had it in you." Luffy smirked and clasped Usopp on the back again.

"Luffy...", Usopp smiled wearily, looking close to tears again, but before they could roll down his cheeks he rubbed them away. "That's right. I'm stronger now."

"We all are." Luffy said confidently, and Usopp only nodded.

"Luffy, we were jerks... we should have kept our optimistic nature. At least, the others should have, because I always have the negative thoughts in the crew."

Luffy shrugged, ignoring the slight irony at the end of the sentence. "It's not like we can change it now."

„I know... still, I've come to a conclusion. Blind optimism is just as bad as endless depression. But at least it makes you feel more secure." Usopp said, and Luffy giggled.

„You sound like some sort of philosophic."

Usopp gaped at his captain, all seriousness forgotten. „Where did you get that word from?"

„Robin mentioned it before. I don't know what it means, did I use it wrong?" Luffy blinked back at him with those huge innocent eyes, and Usopp just smirked.

„For a moment I thought the fever had done some serious brain damage." Usopp replied while chuckling, knowing he wouldn't hurt his friend by saying that.

"I don't know what this is, but I'm pretty sure I don't have that." Luffy chirped back and the sniper laughed again.

"Nope, you don't have that." With that said, the two friends continued to watch the sky change colors, shoulder by shoulder.

-Y-X-Y-X-Y-

The last one was Zoro. He was the one person Luffy could aways speak openly with. Of course he would never lie to his friends and always be blunt, but only with Zoro he discussed his weak and insecure side. It was vice versa, and nothing would change about that. Call it a captain-first mate thing.

When everyone was back in their quarters, Luffy was still sitting on Sunny's head, watching the stars. He was waiting. Only a bit later, his ears perked up at the sound of familiar boots crushing the soft grass of Sunny's deck. Luffy inhaled deeply. Zoro had arrived. Both of them had wanted to talk, needed it. Both had something on their mind that wouldn't let them go to sleep at night, something still nagging at their minds. But they also knew to wait for the right time. Now was this time. Now they would talk.

Without a word, Zoro stood beside his captain, arms crossed over his chest. Luffy didn't need to turn around. The swordsman waited patiently for Luffy to begin talking, because Zoro knew he had to speak first. After only a minute, Luffy sighed as he fully acknowledged his friend. "Zoro."

"Yes." A short while passed, the tensing air between the two increased, and Luffy began to speak.

„You know what?" Luffy inhaled deeply, „I'm not going to stop fighting for my life. Never. I'm alive and I'm not stopping. I won't. Why should I give in if people tell me it's impossible?" Zoro's mind was tumbling down from what he'd heard and the only thing he could do was stare. He hadn't known what to expect Luffy to say, but this was definitely the last thing on Zoro's list.

„I used to think, maybe it's okay to die. It's easy to give in to the darkness. Maybe it's gonna be alright, because my friends could be proud of me since they knew, I was a fighter till the end. Shanks would be okay, because my friends would fulfill the task of carrying a promise to where it belonged to. It'd be okay to close my eyes just a little longer, not being afraid of never opening them again. Zoro... I thought it'd be alright to finally let go of everything."

Zoro's body tensed. The blood was rushing in his ears, his heart pounding painfully in his chest. This... this nonsense had to stop. Zoro didn't want to hear it, he didn't want to know the feeling of utter desperation and loneliness and that's why he tried to stop Luffy from talking. He didn't want to hear what Luffy was saying anymore.

„Luffy, stop it. Just stop it! The whole shit is over. You're alive. You're not gonna die. "

Luffy turned to him and fixed him with a look that made Zoro feel like an ignorant child.

Luffy could nearly feel the desperation that vibrated off Zoro and he knew that normally, he didn't need to tell Zoro how life works. Normally, Zoro would give him the right hint and direct him into the right way. Normally, Zoro didn't need someone to comfort him in some kind of manner, but the near-death experience from his captain had changed that, even if it was just for a short time. Luffy knew his first mate as a calm and thoughtful and never wavering guy. Zoro was intelligent, he knew of misery and happiness. He'd witnessed death countless times and he was a strong fighter. But this time, just this time, it was Luffy's place to pull his friend back from denial and remind him,

„I will die, just like you'll die. Everything that resurfaces will drown sooner or later. Some people die, at the same time others are born." Luffy spoke as gently as possible and as firm as he had to. „Because, Zoro, that's just the way it is. Nothing lasts forever."

Zoro knew he was being incredibly stupid and childish, and he shouldn't share his weak and immature side with someone else. Though, a fraction of a second later, when Luffy's eyes shone with brightness enough for both of them, Zoro decided he would share.

"I know. But Luffy... I'd rather die myself than see you dying. And we all thought this was the case, you know. Shit, I was actually afraid. We really thought- I really thought you'd die. I doubted you, Luffy! We all did, and there's nothing to forgive because what we did was unforgivable. We failed you, Pirate King. "

Luffy looked at him for a long time, and when Zoro thought he'd laugh at him for being such a dumb ass, Luffy did the reverse. He shook his head and closed his eyes, and Zoro mistook it for disappointment in his own crew and he bowed his head in shame. They had really hurt Luffy, hadn't they? But Luffy was happy-go-lucky, and he loved his nakama.

"Zoro." He said in a monotone voice that sent a shiver down the other man's spine. The swordsman looked up, prepared for whatever may come. However, what Luffy did next still caught him off guard and he didn't even have time to dodge as a rubbery fist cracked against his skull with a sickening sound. Zoro flew across the deck, surprised by the events and how strong Luffy had actually punched him, and skidded to a halt thanks to the next wall. He had an iron taste on his tongue he quickly spat out.

Dust was in the air, but Zoro didn't need to see as he heard the familiar steps of sandals clicking against the wooden floor nearing.

The first mate rubbed his throbbing cheek – that had really hurt but he'd survive – and stood up to prepare for another hit that may come his way. Luffy had every right to do this. What they did to him had been close to mutiny and every other captain would probably kill his crew for something like this. So Zoro supposed this treatment was nothing. He as the unofficial first mate would take the beatings in the name of the crew. Standing in Luffy's way was unforgivable to Zoro.

Luffy stood before him, panting from the sudden strain on his limbs (he hadn't punched someone in a long time), and roughly grabbed Zoro's collar. They were eye to eye since Luffy stood on tip toes and Zoro's stoic face met Luffy's furious one.

"I know that you are angry, captain, and you have every right to be." Zoro said in his usual deep voice, and it disturbed Luffy. Zoro was such a proud and strong man, he usually wouldn't give himself away for such a beating, would he? Did his loyalty towards him run this deep? Inwardly, half of Luffy felt actually happy about this knowledge. The other part was shocked. It tried to convince him Zoro was still just exhausted from the previous days. Of course he was.

"Zoro." Luffy repeated, and it sounded more urgent, almost desperate. Zoro frowned slightly, noticing how horrified Luffy looked all of sudden. "Zoro, you jerk!"

Zoro was roughly shoved down so that Luffy was sitting on top of his chest, slapping his face again and again. To say this took the swordsman aback was an understatement. But perhaps this was the result of constant bottling up emotions. After all, it may have been hard for the crew, but Zoro didn't want to imagine what it had felt like for the captain – knowing he'd die and leave them behind, that is.

"You stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid asshole!" Luffy yelled, truly pissed off and Zoro had to admit he hadn't expected such a strong reaction. "You don't understand a thing, do you?!"

Zoro was confused by this behavior and just caught Luffy's wrists with ease. He stared up into his captain's pale face, an unreadable expression upon his face. Luffy huffed and panted for a few seconds and Zoro granted him enough time to catch his breath until the captain finally calmed down and started to speak.

"You... don't understand anything." Luffy repeated while still catching his breath, and shot Zoro a strong gaze. "This isn't about punishment or not forgiving."

Zoro only waited patiently for Luffy to continue but he had a feeling he didn't want to hear the rest of it.

"Don't talk about doubting and failing as if you knew what it really means. Don't you dare talk about it as if I weren't here anymore!" Luffy growled, and Zoro widened his eye. He inwardly kicked himself as realization crashed down on him harder than any of Luffy's punches could ever hit him.

'Of course', he thought while frowning. Luffy had spent the better part of the last two years dealing with his so-called failure and all the regret of not being able to protect Ace in the end. Of course it would hurt him like hell if he knew his crew regretted something he had already forgiven them. "Luffy, I'm so-," Zoro started in shame but Luffy beat him to it.

"I can't stand hearing apologies anymore, I'm fed up with them!" Zoro was silent as Luffy glared down at him.

"Zoro. If I ever hear such pointless talk again, then I, as the captain of this ship, am going to confiscate your sake."

For the first time in days, Zoro's face showed true horror. It was the first real emotion the swordsman didn't bother to hide, but only because this news was just too shocking for him. "What- are you serious?!" Zoro sputtered and sat up quickly, knocking Luffy off him in the progress.

Luffy looked at him as if he'd grown a head and burst into laughter. "Shishishi! Zoro, you should see your face! I've never seen you so pale before, ahaha!"

Hearing those words made Zoro blush a little but he quickly got a hold of himself as he stood up, 'hmphing' loudly. "Forget it." he muttered and Luffy did exactly that.

"Yeah!" he agreed and grinned, a small cough following. "We are stronger than that, aren't we?"

Zoro looked at his captain and he could swear that smile just robbed him of his sanity. He couldn't help the twitching in his lips as he replied,

"Of course we are."

"If we can overcome something like this, then nothing is gonna stop us in the future!" Luffy grinned cockily. Zoro loved that and grinned back. The atmosphere was filled with fresh air mixed with strong auras.

"Aye, captain."

Luffy laughed at the short answer. They enjoyed a few minutes of peaceful silence, each of them dwelling on words and thoughts before Luffy spoke up, this time his voice was quiet. He was serious again.

„Hey Zoro... I've come to the decision that what I thought earlier is bullshit. It's not okay for me to die. Not at all. Who would care about pride when they lost their friend? Pride is no comfort. But," Luffy paused; Zoro tensed. „... but sometimes, it can't be helped and we have to bear with circumstances we cannot shoulder."

„Yeah. That's just how it works. I've thought about stuff, too, you know." Zoro said and his voice sounded a bit stronger. Luffy smiled as he saw the fire that returned to his first mates' eye.

„Yeah!" Luffy replied. „Things like death happens. But Zoro, I think it's nice to see your own breath in the air when it's cold. I love the feeling of snowflakes melting on my cheeks. I like the way the wind ruffles my hair and I like seeing the sun up in the sky. I adore how vast the sea and the sky are and it makes me feel as if there's always something new, something that seems unreachable for me to discover and explore. I believe Ace loved that, too. And even though he's dead, even though my only other brother in the world died... I will live for him. Living is much harder than dying but I'll prove him and the world that I'm not afraid to enjoy the things I like about life. I will laugh for Ace, I will cry for him and I will dream for him. That way, there's no one who can take him away from me."

Zoro was left speechless. Where had that come from? He couldn't form words as his mind was busy progressing Luffy's rare burst of wisdom. It only showed that Luffy wasn't as dumb as he made everyone believe him to be.

This was the answer Luffy had come up with after two long and lonely years, and to Zoro, it sounded great.

Then, as the words slowly sunk in, he looked at the ground again.

He knew what Luffy said was true, and he should've gotten used to it the day Kuina tumbled down the stairs and broke her neck. Still, he was just human and even Zoro had his weak moments. Moments of doubt, uneasiness. Moments where he craved for some sort of comfort, even in small words. But he also knew that Luffy had seen far more than people older than him had, and he had to bear with things he didn't deserve.

On the other hand, Zoro knew if there was someone who could deal with it and still see the blue sky above him, it was Luffy.

He was glad he could talk with Luffy and he thought he understood him a little better after this. Though, now that he finally considered the whole situation, it might be a bit creepy to talk to such a wise Luffy again.

After all, this moment was kinda awkward and Zoro snorted all of sudden. „I have to admit, even you have your bright moments." he said good-naturally and Luffy could only laugh about that last comment.

„Not really! Shishishi!" A loud yawn followed.

Zoro smiled fondly at his captain and stood up. „Go to sleep, idiot. I'll tell the crap cook to fix you something to eat when you wake up."

„Ouh! Thanks, Zoro, you're the best!" Luffy got up and Zoro followed him into the men's quarters.

"Idiot." Zoro muttered under his breath but couldn't hide his smile. The oh-so-wise-Luffy had disappeared as quickly as he had come, and now the old, silly and immature Luffy was back. Zoro thought this Luffy was okay, because it was the one they all followed.

"It's good to have you back, captain."

-Y-X-Y-X-Y-

Luffy grinned as he thought back to the evening three days ago. Zoro had acted as though their talk hadn't happened, but that was okay since Luffy hadn't really expected him to say anything further on this matter. There was no need; everything that had to be said was said.

Luffy supposed things were finally the way they used to be. Though, one really alert person with sharp eyes would notice the a few small changes.

Every now and then, there would be extra meat on Luffy's plate because Sanji never wanted to see such a skinny Luffy again and tried to help him gain his old weight back faster. When he had seen how thin Luffy had gotten, Sanji had been painfully reminded of his own past. And it just didn't suit Luffy to be so skinny and strength less, not at all. Also, when Luffy began to beg for snacks at random times again, the cook didn't throw him out of the kitchen. He just wordlessly handed him an already prepared lunch packet and Luffy knew Sanji was satisfied whenever he returned the empty packet minutes later.

Nami didn't yell at him so often for being so loud while running around the deck, because she couldn't get the image of a completely still Luffy out of her mind and seeing him moving full of energy was quite calming. So, instead of fuming at him for yelling, she leaned back and listened to him sprouting his energy around.

Franky didn't miss a minute to remind his captain of how super everything was, because when Luffy was sick he had missed that chance and he wanted to remind Luffy that he was happy to be part of this journey. Luffy probably already knew that, but Franky just wanted to make sure things were clear. He was a Strawhat pirate til death.

Zoro pretended to be asleep more often when in reality he watched over Luffy during the nights. The swordsman would lie awake and listen to any disharmony in Luffy's soft snores, and perked up his ears at any sharp intake of breath, because it could hint another nightmare. Then he would walk over to Luffy's hammock and wake him, telling him not to snore so loudly. Zoro couldn't forget the fact how deeply hurt Luffy actually still was over his brother's death; the way he had desperately called out Ace's name during that night made Zoro still shudder.

Chopper never missed a second to play with Luffy and Usopp. They often played silly games, laughed a lot and behaved incredibly childish – but who cared? Chopper had nearly forgotten how it was to be able to share their laughter and smiles among each other. And he loved every minute of when Luffy laughed. It fitted his personality much better than lying so quiet in bed.

Robin had been shocked how quick she had withdrawn herself from the crew the moment Luffy fell sick. Recalling the day he and her other friends rescued her from her darkness clearly, she smiled. From now on, she wanted to make sure to always keep her heart open for her family. She didn't want Luffy to suffer because of them ever again.

Usopp was a tad more thoughtful than before. They all shared a bond that had grown stronger, and in the middle of it there was a tight knot to which everyone else was attached to. The knot was their captain. The sniper looked back and promised himself to always tightly secure their rope, so that this tangled web of friendship never dissolved itself like it nearly did. Whenever the air seemed a bit more tense, Usopp would begin a random tale to lighten the mood again.

Brook swore to himself to never dwell in the past again and let it take control over his mind. The skeleton reached out to his violin, playing a happy tune. Living in the past or pounding on what might happen in the future would do no good. The only thing in live they had control over was the present, so Brook would make sure to seize this chance. He would never forget the face Luffy showed them the moment they came back to him – it had been full of love and affection.

It was great. For all of them. Even though they tried to pretend it never happened, they couldn't completely hide some insecure feelings or how they sometimes worried more than before. But then, it didn't matter anymore. It was okay to show a little more of the care they held for each other, just to make up for the past week when their bond of nakamaship nearly tore apart. It showed them how much their own doubt had affected the whole crew plus their captain.

The crew suddenly were much more aware of the fact that Luffy depended on them just as much as they did depend on him. It made them feel special and it wasn't a bad thing to be reminded of it.

Maybe they had to see the good side to this whole catastrophe – it made them stronger in every aspect. Never again would they allow their own pity to take over their souls because in the end it only destroyed and never helped to fix something. It was okay to pause and cry, to waver and feel insecure. They were just human. But they would always listen to each other and make sure no one was suffering alone. Some things couldn't be changed, but the way they felt about them could be.

And in the end, their strong friendship was the one thing that saved them.

YXYXYXYXYXYXYXYXYX

Yeah, yeah, I know... sappy ending -hides under desk- yeah, Zoro was a little tiny bit out of character here... but I wanted a direkt Zoro-Luffy talk where they truly exchanged their feelings for once. Zoro had been pretty shaken in this whole story, so this is where he erases his doubts and regrets for sure :D Also, I wanted Luffy and Usopp to have a little talk about their parents, because Usopp is always forgotten.

To the reviewers:

Morwyn K: *Cries in happiness* That means a lot to me, thank you! Smiling like a dumbass, huh? Well, I guess you could say this is how I look at the moment xD I'm so glad you think so, thank you! :,)

seblackburn4: I'm relieved, then. :) I wasn't sure about the last chapter, but hearing you say that makes me very happy I didn't change it. Thank you =D

LemondoughnutPXC: *Wipes sweat from the forehead* Phew... Safe again.. Yesh, ASL rules! :D It saved my life :D No need to be ashamed, I mean, who isn't obsessed with Ace? He's the hottest guy in One piece, lol. Though I have to say I'm a bit more obsessed with Luffy xD Bepo? Haha, he's a cool guy! Thanks a lot, your reviews have always made me so happy! You rock :)

Hyousax Wilson Grim: Hello again, and a big, fat thanks for your awesome review! =D *Hands over a handkerchief* Here you go my friend :) *grins like an idiot* Thank you so much, it makes me very happy to hear you enjoyed my story. Thanks!

nani: No problem :) Of course, revenge needed to be taken in that case after all^^ Ah, you guessed right, congrats! :D I just wanted a Zoro-Luffy talk, but since I thought it wouldn't be enough I put in two more talks. Hope it didn't get boring, though. Thank you for all your great reviews, they always made me smile so much! I hope you enjoyed the last chapter, too. =D

Guest: Thank you! Ahaha, that's great then ;)

This is the final chapter, and with that said, I officially call this story complete! I am so happy that so many people got interested and read my story. You have been AMAZING and I love you all for leaving such great and supporting reviews! Without you, I probably wouldn't have come this far. Thanks so much! =D

Take care!

~Neko11