Title: Calm before the Storm

Summary: A quiet moment, before hell unleashes at Marineford, shared between the most unlikely of enemies. There is always something to be gained. Luffy and Crocodile, character study.

Disclaimer: One Piece will not ever belong to such a small fry as me. Sad, I know, but someday, a manga just as big and fun and colourful will be all mine!

I love Crocodile. So, so much. He's just such a badass, cool, mo-fucking in your face but still grey in-just-the-right-places villain.

So this was born as a muse after Impel Down where they are all cramped in the Marine ship, heading for Marineford. The thing that made me shrivel up a little inside was I was so excited to see Crocodile and Luffy interact after such a long time (because I love Crocodile and he's badass, have I already mentioned that?) and on the ship they didn't have one conversation D,,: No angry glare, no pointed conversation, no rude hand gestures :""C
I had to wait til Marineford for anything!

So here we go, if Luffy and Crocodile had some face time together on the ship. Could be seen as a shipping fic (I think I might have leant towards that category during writing, as I tend to do) but could not. Enjoy!

Crocodile approached the silent paramecia like one would to an exotic animal while still managing to look completely casual about the situation, the future and their current standing. Luffy himself sensed the powerful man's approach, and besides a slight incline of his head, made no other indication towards the man.

He had taken to sitting in the very tip of the bow, the familiar seat bringing him some small note of comfort in light of the recent events of Impel Down, even if the marine ship was wrong; it felt wrong, smelt wrong, looked wrong, and clearly didn't like the sailors it was now transporting. It was a ship that stood for rules and restrictions, not freedom and fun. Luffy detested every single bit of it.

Crocodile stopped next to Luffy, still fairly holding his distance, and with as much dignity and calm as he always had, leant smartly against the railing near the straw hat captain, his gaze fixed lazily out to the brewing figurative storm on the horizon. They had yet to meet eyes.

Luffy shifted, his face stony. The loss of Bon Kurei still echoed painfully throughout his mind, and with no time to mourn properly, along with every single other terrible calamity that had befallen him on thus day (not even mentioning what was going to come) Luffy was in no mood to deal with more disgusting villains until it was necessary to save Ace.

His eyes narrowed, and he turned his face away from the man. Crocodile noted this with a raised eyebrow, then smiled slyly, chewing on his cigar, partially deep in thought, just as Luffy was. Right now Luffy was following the reasoning that if Crocodile had been the one to come to him, then he could very well be the one to start the conversation.

Even though Luffy didn't want to talk to the man. But most surprisingly of all, Crocodile did.

'Been a long time, Monkey D. Luffy,' he apprised quietly. Luffy didn't look at him, but the fact that there was no calculated malice nor mockery within Crocodile's tone (just his usual relaxed smugness) put him slightly at ease.

An acknowledging grunt was heard, but that was it. Crocodile almost smirked, but held it back.

'You've gotten stronger.'

At this, Luffy turned to slowly look at Crocodile, studying him, his gaze guarded. Then a small smile slipped through after again finding no hostility.

'I'd say so too, but I didn't see anything new,' Luffy answered truthfully back, now definitely a lot more relaxed on the comfortable topic of strength. 'Guess you got a bit rusty inside that cell, huh, gator?'

At this, Crocodile rolled his eyes slightly. 'I can see your cheeky disposition has not changed. What a shame.'

With seemingly nothing to say on either side, they fell into an echoing but not entirely uncomfortable silence. It was like a small truce had appeared between them with this small, short talk, and neither cared to break it in the calm before the storm, both anticipating and dreading what would come.

'Ace…' Luffy whispered mostly to himself, as if to remind himself why he was on this fool's errand, and just how far he had to go; a reminder that he was not to give up at any costs.

Crocodile heard, but gave no indication he did. That was, until his curiosity finally pooled, and he asked the question he had been pouring over ever since his crushing defeat in Alabasta.

'How can you push yourself so hard for others? What do you gain from it?' He asked slowly, his eyes still out to sea.

To any passerby, it looked like he had asked no question at all, and was just mumbling lazily to himself.

Luffy frowned at the question; not at the actual question, but how to answer it. He knew Crocodile wasn't just referring to Ace.

He finally settled with 'Because without my friends and family I would be nothing. They are my strength. In return, it's only right I protect them.'

Crocodile tilted his face down, eyes closed. With what emotion, Luffy couldn't make out. 'I see,' he said simply and thoughtfully at the mature answer, before lifting his head up to meet Luffy's eyes evenly. 'But what if you had no-one?'

The question, posed so seriously and quietly to him by the revered ex-warlord, sounded so ridiculous to Luffy he just had to laugh. Clearly and happily. It felt good to make a new friend on the eve of a most vicious war. His thoughts flitted back to Bon Kurei, and his laughter slowly slowed, still highlighted against Crocodile's incredulous face.

'You can't ever be all alone,' Luffy stated firmly, now grinning at the other, older man. It was a far cry from his usual sunshine smile, but it was getting there.

Crocodile snorted gruffly. 'Bullshit,' slipped out before he could catch it, but he wasn't really regretful for it. Luffy blinked at him. So Crocodile repeated it. 'That's bullshit. I'm alone right now. And I was during my whole experience in Impel Down, as I have ever been,' he said, raising one eye in a direct and somewhat childish challenge to Luffy. 'And as are you right now.'

To be having this conversation with Corocdile of all men had Luffy laughing softly again. Crocodile, looking used to it by now, waited silently as he puffed out a few hearty breaths of smoke.

'Well, I'm with you now. And Mr. One,' Luffy said. 'And all the escapees on this ship. We're all in this together, remember?'

'Mr. One is nothing more than a lackey. And you are nothing more than a annoying fly that needs to be swatted.'

'But you're not alone, are you?'

Crocodile paused, seemingly genuinely thrown for a loop. 'So you consider me a friend, Straw hat?'

Luffy face darkened considerably and he regarded Crocodile thoughtfully. 'I will never forgive you for what you did to Vivi,' he told the other man strongly, before the menace faded. 'But you're not so bad now. After all, you're helping me save Ace!'

'You didn't answer the question, Straw Hat.'

Luffy paused, raising his head to the sky and catching sight of a few seagulls dancing around the mast. He followed them for a few moments with his eyes, feeling Crocodile's steady and suddenly intense gaze fixed on him. Just to be sure, for a few more moments he followed the seagulls, pretending to be thinking.

He rocked gently on the spot, clucking his tongue. The seagulls dipped out of his sight when he could no longer push his head back any further without stretching it, and only then did he slowly turn his focused gaze back to Crocodile. The man was still watching him just as intensely, and Luffy, one quite familiar with it, could see the carefully hidden curiosity within the patient man's gaze.

Luffy grinned brightly, meeting Crocodile's eyes head on, deep urban on misty, mysterious grey.

Well, if his former adversary cared that much about his answer, than maybe he could compromise…

'I guess!' he chirruped, holding the other man's gaze for a bit longer before being distracted by a splash below him. When he turned to look, he caught Crocodile relax only slightly out of the corner of is eye.

His grin further brightened. There was another one wrapped around his finger. Crocodile was tough, but Luffy knew he would yield eventually.