Note: THIS IS IMPORTANT TO READ TO UNDERSTAND HOW IT DIFFERS FROM THE ORIGINAL FIRE. When Luffy died, he did not die from his legs getting crushed. He died from blood loss from excessive physical activity (slamming his body into doors, running, etc.). In this, he was not shot or stabbed. Therefore, he was able to help escape faster with Bellamy...for the most part. He did what Bellamy did for him, shoving him out of the way of the ceiling, except where Luffy died in chapter 25, not where Bellamy died.

Warnings: Violence, cursing, fluff, angst

Disclaimer: Eiichiro Oda owns One Piece, not me.

Bonus: An Alternate Ending

"Hold on Luffy! Don't you dare die on me now!"

Bellamy was screaming at him, trying to keep him awake, trying to save him. His fingers were digging into the burning ceiling that had fallen on Luffy, trying with all of his might to lift it off at the other teen. Luffy, himself, was trying to free himself.

Luffy clutched at the floorboards, his fingers digging deep into the burning wood. He tried to pull himself but only left his hands a bloody, burned mess. He coughed violently, the poisonous fumes irritating his lungs.

This can't be happening! We're so close!

The door was literally right there, just a few feet away from his outstretched hand.

"Bellamy! Get out of here!" Luffy yelled desperately before breaking into another violent coughing fit. Bellamy stared down at him in shock before anger overcame his features. He lifted the other teen's torso and grabbed at the front of Luffy's shirt and shook him, tears in his eyes.

"You think I'm just going to leave you here?! No fucking way! Just shut up and let me work!"

He let go of Luffy and the teen fell to the ground, grunting slightly before turning angered and desperate eyes up to the blond. Luffy kept trying to tell him to run, but Bellamy didn't leave. He just let the fire continue to burn away at his body as he tried to lift the heavy weight off of Luffy's legs.

Then there were bangs on the door, making the burning frames shudder. Luffy watched through his blurry vision as the doors were knocked down and men ran in and over to him. A mask was placed on his face as they began to yell between each other. They did the same to Bellamy and dragged the other boy out, kicking and screaming, protesting.

We're going to be okay…

Finally, Luffy passed out from the pain in his legs, unaware to anything else that happened around him.

The morning sky poured outside of the window to the bright white hospital room. Inside were seven people – an unconscious teenager on a bed, both of his legs heavily bandaged; another blond teenager sitting up in his own bed, bandages covering his minor burn wounds as he stared down at the sheets he clutched tightly in his fists; a woman sitting by the unconscious boy's side, her hand resting on his face as her eyes worriedly looked over his form; a man on the unconscious boy's other side, holding his hand; two younger teens, standing in the room and staring at the last person, a tall and old woman in doctors attire.

"Your son will live," She continued after having listed off several of the injuries and problems that had been fixed in surgery. "However, the chances of him ever being able to walk again are slim."

Rouge allowed a few tears to slip down her face as she looked at her son's face, her hand trembling slightly against his cheek. Across from her, Roger gripped his hand tighter, rubbing his thumb over the back of it in a soothing motion he did for the boy when he was younger. Bellamy closed his eyes and bit his lip until it bled, cursing himself and that damn bird for everything that had happened.

A nurse called the doctor out of the room and she gave one last glance at the family before leaving, once again, to the Emergency Room.

Ace's hands clenched into fists, his knuckles becoming white from the strain on them. Sabo was pale as he stared at the unconscious form of his brother.

Suddenly, Ace stormed out of the room. Bellamy watched with sad eyes as Sabo called his name and ran after him down the halls until he managed to catch up to him in an elevator. "Ace."

"No, Sabo," Ace cut him off, his back facing the blond. Sabo stared at his twin's back in concern, already sensing the regret and guilt Ace was feeling. It was silent as the elevator slowly brought them to the bottom. When they sensed it was about to stop, Ace spoke.

"I'm not going back."

Sabo's eyes widened as Ace bolted out of the elevator.

"Ace! Wait! Don't do this!" Sabo cried out as he chased after his brother. Ace, however, was faster. "Ace!" By the time Sabo was out the door, Ace was already long gone in the pouring rain. "ACE!"

He didn't go back.

Ace walked into their unlocked house, drenched in the water of the rain falling outside. He closed the door behind him and slowly slid down it. He brought his hands up and stared at them.

"I don't understand why Mom and Dad didn't just give you to the orphanage after they found you that night."

He clenched his fists as tears began to fall from his eyes. He curled into a ball and gripped his hair, yanking on it harshly.

"Luffy…"

Six days later, Luffy woke up. His eyes snapped open and he tried to move, only to groan and lay back down.

"Luffy!"

He looked to the side, his eyes widening and a smile overcoming his face at the sight of his mom.

"Mom!" She grabbed him in a tight hug, her arms encircling him in a warm embrace. He brought his own arms up and clutched her tightly to him. After a few moments, all of the memories bombarded him. He gulped, holding onto her more, and she hugged back just as securely.

She pulled back from him, tears in her eyes, put her hands on both sides of his head, and kissed his forehead. She pulled back and smiled at him. "Luffy," He looked at her with a slightly guilty smile. "Don't ever do something so reckless again," She mumbled, hugging him once again. Her tears fell and he felt them on his shoulder. He looked at her with a worried expression before he smiled and hugged her again, his own tears falling.

"I won't," He said, bury his face into her shoulder and relaxing for what felt like the first time in months.

"Luffy, you're awake!" They pulled away from each other and Luffy grinned widely.

"Dad!"

The man strode across the room and grabbed his son, pulling him into a bone-crushing son.

"Such an idiot son I have. Tell us when you're in danger, you fool!" He whispered into Luffy's hair. Luffy smiled and nodded, hugging his father back with the same strength.

They pulled away from each other and immediately the three launched into conversation. Luffy told them everything that he remembered from the fire. When he asked them what had happened while he was asleep, they went over many things. All of his friends, Rayleigh, Shanks and his crew, and Ace and Sabo's friends had come to visit him while he was unconscious. But then, they had to tell him the worst news.

"Unable to walk?" He mouthed the words, barely making a sound, as he took in the information.

"Yes. They said you may be able to walk again, but it will take time and it will be very painful-"

"I don't care. I learned to do it once, I can learn to do it again," Luffy said, determination shining in his eyes. Rouge smiled at him with a knowing, accepting smile.

"I don't see why I doubted you would want to do it. I'm glad, Luffy." Roger was smiling approvingly and ruffled his son's hair. Then, he asked a question they didn't want to hear.

"Mom, Dad, what happened to Bellamy?"

They looked at each other worriedly before turning to him and spoke the words that made his heart stop.

"He what?!"

Bellamy sat on his bed, staring down at the sketchbook in his hands and the drawings on them. He had never really had a hobby before, so all of this was new to him. Heck, since when had he even been able to draw?

But…it felt nice. Sure, his drawings looked like absolute shit, but it was oddly calming for him to be able to draw like that. There was nothing violent about it, and that was probably his favorite thing about it.

A knock on the door made him look up and then a young, blond woman entered the room. He gave a small smile and a nod.

"Hi, Conis."

"Hello, Bellamy," She said with a smile, looking down at the clipboard she held in her hands. "You have therapy in a few minutes. Would you like me to walk you there?"

"Sure. I don't remember where it is," Bellamy said as he stood, following after her as they talked about small things, things that didn't matter.

"Why would he do that?! He's not insane!" Luffy looked utterly confused as he stared at his parents. His mother looked sad and his father had a serious look he rarely ever saw on his face.

"He may not be insane, but he does have a mental illness. He asked to be brought there after telling the police everything he could about Doflamingo. He had plenty of evidence to prove his claims of MPD as well…"

"Will he have to stay there for a while?" Luffy asked nervously. His mother shrugged.

"We don't know. But, the doctors said that you two will be allowed to visit each other. They said it will be important for both of your recoveries."

Luffy sighed.

"Mom, Dad, how long do I have to stay here?"

Rouge's eyes were downcast as she answered. "A few months, maybe even more."

Luffy sighed in annoyance. But, to his parents surprise, he smiled right over at them.

"I'll do everything I can to get better and get back home with you guys as fast as I can," Luffy grinned widely at them. Rouge's eyes widened in shock and tears fell from her eyes as she pulled her son into a tight hug. Roger's eyes softened as he ran a hand through Luffy's hair, smiling fondly at the boy.

Even if it took a while, everything would turn out okay.

Luffy sighed as he stared down at the papers he had. It was all schoolwork that he had to do. He grumbled about it, annoyed. He knew that kids in hospitals got tutors, but it hadn't even been a week since he woke up! Couldn't they wait a few more days? Still, it wasn't like he had anything better to do. The clicker was out of his reach so he couldn't watch TV and no one else was there for him to talk to.

He brought his pencil across the page as he tried to understand what the hell his math homework was saying. He was fine at the beginning of the year when it was all factoring and variables, but he hated trigonometry. It was a triangle, it had three sides. Why did he need to learn how to measure the stupid sides when he would never need this again after high school?

There was a knock on his door and he looked up, expecting it was the tutor returning, but a large grin came over his face when it wasn't.

"Zoro!"

The green haired teen grinned as he walked over, picking up and iPad from the desk next to the immobile teen and tapping him over the head with it.

"Yo, Luffy. What's up?" He asked as he pulled a chair up and sat down. Luffy pouted at him.

"Zoro, will you do my math for me?"

"No."

"But Zoroooo, I don't like it."

"Too bad, I'm not doing it for you."

Luffy stuck his tongue out at him, but Zoro only gave a small smile as he went back to finish his math work, which hopefully wouldn't take too long. It had been four days since the boy had woken up. It made him happy, to see him so carefree. Zoro couldn't help but remember how relieved they were when they saw him the first time after he had woken up.

Usopp was bouncing from foot to foot next to him, biting his lip from frayed nerves. Nami was clutching the strap of her purse, within which were several tangerines she had snuck in. Sanji was tapping his foot impatiently, annoyed that he wasn't allowed to smoke inside the hospital. Robin appeared as calm as ever as she held the iPad in her hands, but Zoro could tell even she was slightly nervous, but mostly relieved. Zoro, himself, had his arms crossed tightly over his chest. He watched the numbers of the elevator slowly change and let out a silent sigh.

It had been annoyingly difficult to even get to see Luffy. Security in the hospital was fierce due to the fact that such a dangerous man was after Luffy. Heck, even though they were on the allowed visitors list, they still had to call Luffy's parent's for confirmation. Zoro understood they were trying to keep the boy safe, but it was still irritating. They were his friends! His extremely worried friends that just wanted to see with their own eyes that Luffy really was awake.

The elevator stopped and the doors opened slowly. Normally, Zoro was patient, but this was just way too slow. Then, when the doors finally opened, there were police officers at every single door in the hall.

Usopp gulped, shaking, because it wasn't as if the five of them (six if you counted Luffy) were well liked by the towns police. Hell, they'd done at least fifty eat'n'runs in the past two years, they'd trespassed on construction territory, they'd gotten into fights and beaten the shit out of some arrogant asshole (and almost got caught doing so), and pulled countless stunts in town. It didn't help that he always got lost, then he and swirly-brow would make a scene fighting which would make Nami punch them and then everyone would stare at her lecturing them. Or the ero-cook would start flirting with women who would sometimes scream for the police. And then all of them except Nami and Robin had broken at least twenty things around town…Needless to say the police didn't like them. And it was pretty obvious by the way some of them were giving them annoyed looks.

They finally reached Luffy's room and of all the people to be by the door, of course it had to be Smoker. However, to Zoro's slight surprise, the man did nothing other than let them into the room.

Zoro decided to wonder about it later and followed everyone else into the room. He gave a slight smile as they all ran over and crowded around the teen while he called out their names. He moved to stand next to the head of Luffy's bed and put a hand on his head in the middle of his endless chatter with Usopp and Nami. He ruffled the dark locks, earning a laugh from Luffy and a wide grin.

Everything would be okay now.

Feeling more at ease than he had been for a very long time, Zoro moved to sit down, leaning on the wall, and took a nap. The whole time though, his ears were open, making sure he could still hear the shitty cook's swearing, Nami's scolding and then her happiness, Usopp's stories he told Luffy, Robin's occasional input, and of course Luffy's laugh and his voice.

Zoro watched Luffy do his math the whole time, occasionally correcting him when he made a mistake. When Luffy had woken up, he had never been so relived in his life. And although Chopper, Franky, and Brook couldn't get in, they could still talk using the iPad.

"Nah, Zoro?" Luffy asked out of the blue, and from the look on his face, Zoro knew it wasn't a question about math. "Have you seen Ace and Sabo?"

Zoro frowned slightly. From what he had heard from Nami who had heard from an annoyed Kid, Ace was refusing to visit and Sabo refused to visit without his twin. It bothered Zoro to no end, but he didn't want to interfere unless it was asked of him.

"No, I haven't seen them."

Luffy gave a small, weary, regretful smile. "I see."

Zoro really wished he could wipe that look off of his best friend's face.

Luffy was grinning widely at the tan blond who was sitting next to him. Bellamy couldn't bring himself to smile though. He was nervous as hell. What was he supposed to say to this boy who his other side had openly admitted on camera to torturing?

"Hi Bellamy!"

Bellamy blinked, responding slowly. "…hi…"

"How has everything been? Is the food good?"

"Yeah, it's pretty good," Bellamy replied after a moment of slightly stunned silence on his part.

Luffy…he was willingly talking to him.

"That's good. The food here is awful. My friends sneak food in though, so it's okay," Luffy tried to whisper the last part, but he wasn't really good at quiet. Bellamy heard Smoker groan by the door and gave a small grin. From what he had heard, it seemed that everything Luffy did annoyed the man to no end.

"We have to eat a lot of fruit and healthy food during the day but for supper we get a bunch of meat and they always have something good for desert, normally cake."

"You're so lucky!" Luffy moaned, whining as he practically drooled at the thought of the food. Bellamy's grin widened and he gave a small chuckle. "You know what really sucks? They won't let me go outside! I haven't been outside in days! It's so boring in here," Luffy complained, looking and staring out the window.

"I haven't been outside all too much either. They say I have to wait a little while. Don't know why though."

"That's stupid. Doctors are stupid. All I need is meat and adventure and I'll be fine!" Luffy crossed his arms, huffing in annoyance. Bellamy fully relaxed and agreed with the boy. He had never imagined this to be an easy conversation. He always thought it would be awkward, full of hate on Luffy's part. But this…

It made him happy.

It had been three weeks since Luffy had woken up. He was still in the hospital and he was currently bored as hell. He didn't realize it would take so long for his legs to heal. He just wanted to move but he wasn't allowed to walk yet. Last time he tried, he had fallen flat on his face and then doctor Kureha was pissed…

He noted to never piss off the doctor.

It was night now, and he thought back on everything that had happened in the past few weeks. Doflamingo still had yet to be found, much to his and Bellamy's dismay. His schoolwork was actually making sense now that he could focus. One of his friends tried to visit him every day and they always made sure to entertain him in some way, shape or form. His parents would visit every day too. Sometimes it was just Mom or just Dad, but they always tried to come together. Even Lucci had visited him once, which had been strange but welcome.

But he had yet to see his brothers.

Luffy stared out the large window in his room, staring up at the moon high in the sky. He wished he could see them so, so badly. He wanted to apologize, but he had a feeling that wouldn't be happening any time soon. He sighed sadly, looking down at a picture of him and his brothers on the iPad.

"Ace…Sabo…" He whispered, allowing a finger to hover over their pixelated faces.

"Ace! Where are you? Ace!" Sabo cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled for his brother. When he heard no reply, he sighed deeply.

Three weeks. For three weeks, every morning, Ace would go deep into the forest behind their house and hide all day, only coming back late at night. Sabo would spend all day looking for him, but never succeeded in finding the other. He really didn't want to be found.

Sabo had to wonder how Luffy was. In those three weeks, he had visited Luffy once. The older teen had been deep asleep. He had been prepared to talk to the older, to face his guilt…

But one look at the crippled body had broken his resolve. If he had just stopped Ace from saying those things that day, would everything have played out differently? Would his brother still be bedridden like this?

He hadn't visited since, and Ace hadn't visited at all.

He felt unbelievably guilty but couldn't bring himself to do anything about it. At least, not without Ace. He felt his twin needed to see Luffy more than he did but at the same time needed something to lean on. Sabo did too; they would be each other's pillar if they could just gather the courage to step into the room and face the fact that their older brother may be bound to a wheelchair forever. The longer they stalled in this…well…Sabo knew it wasn't going to bring anything good.

Ace looked down from the treetops as his brother called is name for him. He knew he wanted him to go and see Luffy. But Ace…he didn't think he could handle it yet.

He wasn't running away though! He was waiting for the moment to strike…if that made any sense. He just wasn't sure if Luffy would want to see him. Especially after all of that shit that he said. He said so many awful things to his brother and he wanted to make them right but he didn't know how.

He sighed deeply.

He really hated himself sometimes. If only he didn't have that stupid fiery temper then…maybe none of this would've happened! Maybe Luffy wouldn't have gone off and almost gotten killed.

He allowed his head to fall back, hitting the trunk of the tree he leaned against as his legs dangled off either side of the branch. He closed his eyes, thinking deeply, berating himself, whispering to himself.

"Sort your shit out, idiot."

The walls were covered in drawings.

It was sort of an obsession of Bellamy's now to draw. It seemed to grow after Luffy didn't shun him for everything that he did. He drew an array of things – people, landscapes, still life's, cartoons, animals, and so on. He wasn't all to great at it – he was mediocre, average – but the soothing affect it had on him, especially after his nightmares, was something he enjoyed about the activity.

He actually had nightmares every night. He was becoming an insomniac because of it. But it wasn't really his fault that his other self decided to torment him in his sleep.

…That made no sense, did it?

He sighed lightly to himself as he put his new drawing on the wall. At least he didn't have to listen to his other self while he was awake anymore. He seemed to be getting…weaker. He didn't know how it would affect him in the long run – aside from his insomnia – but as long as he didn't have to listen to him too much, he was fine.

He wasn't worried about himself, but he was worried about Luffy.

It had been a month and a half since he had woken up and their nightmare seemed over. At least in the long run. Both were still dealing with the side affects. Bellamy wasn't sure what would've happened to him if it wasn't for the Skypeia Institution. But Luffy…he seemed fine, but Bellamy had always put up an act when he was awake. He knew something was deeply bothering the slightly younger boy. He wasn't sure what it was, but he assumed it had to do with his family. Bellamy remembered how he found out about the boy's issue.

It was Bellamy's one hour to be out of the Institution and with Luffy. He was excited to say the least. Sure, he got to talk about his "feelings" and what not at the Institution, but Luffy didn't always try to make up reasons like some of the doctors did. He just listened and then the two would end up joking around for the rest of the visit.

Bellamy approached the door and saw that the now only one guard wasn't there. But he heard talking inside the room. He moved to knock when his ears suddenly picked up what Luffy was talking about.

"They're not coming this week either?"

"I'm afraid not, Luffy…I'm sorry. They're gone in the morning and in bed by the time we get home."

"It's alright Mom, it's not your fault. It's my fault. I screwed up."

"But, Luffy-"

"I'll just wait until they decide to come in."

"I can tell them to come in. This whole time, neither of them have visited. You must really want to see them, right?"

"Yeah, but if it makes them uncomfortable, I can wait."

"Luffy…"

Bellamy's eyes were downcast at that. He could easily pick up on what they were talking about. That was Rouge, his aunt who he had met a few times, talking to Luffy about his brothers, Ace and Sabo. Had they really not visited all this time?

It really pissed him off, but he put on a smile and knocked on the door, walking in to talk with his brother and aunt and putting the bad thoughts in the back of his mind for later.

Bellamy laid on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He didn't understand why those two weren't visiting Luffy. He figured something had happened before the fire, but he didn't know what was a good enough reason to not visit your brother. He would understand if you were in another country, unable to leave. But they were home, refusing to visit the boy who had probably saved their lives.

Something was wrong and he vowed to find a way to fix it.

Early July.

It was early July when Luffy's legs were healed enough for him to begin to learn how to walk again and for him to be allowed to go outside. Two months. Two unbearably long months inside. The first thing he did was to go outside.

Luffy grinned as he wheeled himself outside, moving to a place where he could get plenty of sunlight and just staying there, reveling in it. Yes, he was annoyed he couldn't go have any adventures, but he had plenty of time left after this. Once he could walk again, that was all he would ever do. Have adventures, live life how he wanted to, listen to no one but himself.

"Luffy!"

For now though, he had to go back inside.

The doctors were still hesitant about letting him outside because of the burn he had on his chest. It was bandaged and he could move, but they didn't want it getting infected. Falling on burning planks of wood had really not been one of his moments, but at least he had saved Bellamy.

"Luffy!"

The teen grumbled as he turned his wheel chair around and emerged from his hiding place. He groaned when he saw the old woman, doctor Kureha, standing there, glaring down at him. When he was close enough she hit him over the head, yelling at him about how he was nowhere near healthy enough to be going out alone. She grabbed the handles and refused to let Luffy try and roll away, listening to him whining the whole time.

When they reached the therapy room, she stood in front of him, arms crossed.

"Are you sure you want to do this? You will fall countless times and it will be painful. If you start, I won't let you give up."

"Who said I would give up?" Luffy yelled, arms crossed, glaring at the old woman with frustration. "I'm a man! I can take it!" Kureha grinned and chuckled.

"Well then, let's get started."

Relearning to walk was a lot harder than Luffy at first thought.

Right after Kureha said they would start, he moved to stand, but the second his foot hit the floor, he lost balance and fell over on his side. Kureha laughed at him for a moment before yanking on his ear and yelling at him for being too fast while ignoring his complaints about his ear.

He first had to learn how to balance. It really sucked. He would be fine while holding something, albeit extremely shaky, but the second he let go his knees would buckle under his weight and he would fall down. It had taken him three weeks to relearn how to just stand.

But it wasn't all that bad.

Mom, Dad, or both would always be there for the lessons. When Kureha had him do stretches, his Mom would cheer him on while his Dad would either laugh his ass off at Luffy or join in. And he did a lot of stretches.

If one of his parents couldn't make it, then another would be right there with them. Zoro would either sleep against the wall or actually join in, claiming it was for training. Usopp would cheer him on, try to do the stretch, fail at the stretch, cheer, then try again until Kureha smacked him over the head and told him to shut up and he was distracting her. Nami would yell at him and punch him to "motivate" him or she would bribe him with meat. When they did this one stretch when he had to pull on bars attached to a string, Nami hung the meat over his face and moved it back until he was practically laying down and then moved it forward again over and over and over until Luffy was begging for it. Sanji would yell at him and try to kick him, only to get kicked by Kureha for hurting his patient (not that Sanji minded, her being a lady and all) and would then tell him that once he relearned to walk, he would make Luffy a feast full of meat. Needless to say Luffy worked ten times harder with that promise. When Robin would come, she would sit by the side and smile. When Luffy was tired from all of the training and he was lying in bed, she would read him a chapter from a pirate book until he fell to sleep, the adventures running through his head.

When Shanks, Benn, Roo and Yasopp found the time to visit, they would all be there for after the therapy. Kureha said they were all too distracting and she had literally chased them out with a scalpel when they tried to join. They would all goof off in his room. Sometimes they would bring Makino and it felt nice to see her again after so many years. She was kind of like a big sister to him because she always brought him food and always fussed over him but always smiled through it all.

Bellamy, during the start of Luffy's second week of stretching to help regain balance, was allowed to stay with the black haired boy for more than one hour. Kureha would allow him to sit in during their therapy and the two would talk, get yelled at by Kureha, get scared by Kureha, and talk about anything and everything. Kureha would sometimes laugh at their stupidity and, despite the searing pain he could sometimes feel, it was all fun for Luffy.

He was staring up at the ceiling of his room at the moment. His phone, which he had just gotten back, was held loosely in his hand which hung over the side of the bed. The screen was on the all calls screen. In bright lights in the dark room, the only calls that appeared were all calls to his brothers. None had been answered. They had never called back.

Luffy turned his head to the side, staring out the window at the moonless sky as the stars sparkled like the sunlight on the ocean. His face had a blank expression, but his eyes were lonely and longing.

This was all his own stupid fault. He really was an idiot, no matter how much he denied it during his and Ace's once petty fights. But this fight must've broken the final straw or something for neither of his brothers to visit him.

I want to see them.

He swore to himself he wasn't being a crybaby when his tears fell.

He sat in his desk at school, the first week of high school, staring at the back of his black haired friend. Ace had been extremely distant. He rarely smiled anymore and always had a guilty look on his face. He often had narcoleptic attacks in class whereas before he could easily not have one until lunch or the bus came to pick them up to drop them off at home.

Sabo had been off as well. The blond was always staring at his twin, but no one ever noticed. He would smile in front of others and act like his usual polite self, but it wasn't as genuine as it had once been. It bothered Thatch immensely. He wondered if it had to do with what happened to Luffy…it had to do with Luffy, actually, if he really thought about it. Ever since that day in May, the two had never been the same.

The bell signaling lunch rang and Thatch stood fast, grabbing his books and bag and running after his friend.

"Ace! Wait up!" The freckled boy didn't hear him or just ignored him and continued on his way to lunch. Thatch inwardly groaned, cursing the boy's depressed state, and picked up speed. He grabbed his friend by his shoulder as he finally caught up, stopping him.

Ace stood there, unmoving. Soon, the halls filtered out until everyone was in the cafeteria except for them. The sunlight from the window streamed in, shining down on them and casting long shadows over them.

"Ace, you can't keep doing this to yourself," Thatch said, brows furrowed and eyes pleading with him. "You're hurting, aren't you?"

Ace's jaw locked as he grit his teeth. He shoved Thatch off and ran down the hall. Thatch called his name, and ran after him, but he was already long gone down another corridor by the time he reached the end.

Ace had run to an area of the school that was always empty, especially during lunch.

The art room.

The teacher always left the door open just for the sole reason of kids wanting to get away. Ace sat on one of the tables, staring out the window as he took a large bite of his sandwich. Then, he turned his eyes down to his lap. They became half lidded as his brows angle changed, turning downward.

What was he doing? He was such an idiot. He wanted to go and visit Luffy but…what if he turned him away? That was his worst fear, to be turned away by his brother. But after all that he said, it wouldn't really be that surprising, would it?

But he was hurting Sabo with his stupidity. His brother rarely ever smiled anymore and would sigh often when he thought no one saw him.

What was he supposed to do?

"Mrs. Gol?"

The blond woman turned to the teen standing next to her in the elevator, the teen who was also her nephew. She had only learned of their relation after everything had happened in May. She wasn't sure how to feel at first, after everything that had transpired between him and Luffy, but when she heard of what Doflamingo had done to him, all hard feelings had vanished.

Currently, the boy was looking at her with nervous, sad eyes. It concerned her. After everything had happened, Bellamy and Luffy had really gotten along. Bellamy truly cared for Luffy more than himself, much like Luffy cared about his family and friends more than himself. But Luffy was the only person Bellamy was truly close to. He would always show the boy the drawings that he did and the two would always talk and laugh together.

She was getting sidetracked.

"Yes?" She smiled softly at him as his fists clenched.

"Why haven't his brothers come to visit yet?"

Rouge's smile instantly vanished. A regretful look came over her face as she turned, looking at the elevator doors.

"I don't know. All I know is that both are upset and feel guilty. Something was said the day of the fire. Ace won't talk, Sabo always shakes his head and never answers, and Luffy doesn't want to push them. I wish he would though. It's been months since they've seen him."

She saw Bellamy look at her from their reflections in the glossy elevator doors.

"Can I help at all?"

She turned to him and smiled fondly, softly. The boy had truly grown on her these past few months.

"I want you to focus on getting better for now. Then, maybe, you'd like to come live with us?"

Bellamy's eyes widened in shock and he stared at her with awe and disbelief. His mouth moved soundlessly as he tried to say something but failed in doing so. Rouge gave a soft laugh.

"You're family, aren't you? Isn't that what matters most?"

A look of understanding came over his face and he gave her one of the brightest smiles he had worn yet.

"Thank you."

More than four months. It was December already. He had been in the hospital for a grand total of seven months. He wasn't sure how he felt about it. It had its ups and downs. He still had schoolwork to do and his friends and family were constantly visiting. But, he had yet to take his first steps on land.

Yes, on land.

Mid-October was when he was able to take a few shaky steps. For the four weeks prior, he had been having therapy sessions in a pool. Kureha had said that it would help him build up muscle. So, he would be in the water for an hour or more a day.

It was actually a lot easier for him to swim than to walk. Kureha seemed pleased by that. She told him that it would help him build up muscle again, even if he was using his arms most of the time.

His Dad, Shanks, or Bellamy were always there for the swimming lessons. The three would always get in the water with him as well, which made it slightly easier for the teen. By the beginning of November, after six or seven weeks of water therapy, he was able to take wobbly steps in the clear, cool liquid. It was quite the accomplishment for him. Kureha had said that he was healing exceptionally fast, which had made his hopes rise.

By the tenth of December, he had been able to walk fine in water, and he actually was a good swimmer now too. He hadn't tried to walk on land for the whole water regiment, only ever did stretches, but he was excited for the end of December. She said he would probably be able to get some shaky steps on land by then.

He was ecstatic…yet he wasn't.

He had yet to see his brothers.

Currently he was sitting on his bed, staring out at the snow flurry that whizzed by him in the fast wind of the snowstorm. It was the fifteenth of the month. He had a stack of finished paper work on the ground next to him. One hand held his phone in hand, once again open to the "All calls" page, the same situation that had been seen months ago mirrored on the screen. The other lingered over his chest, which was also healing well. The whole reason he was allowed to do water therapy was because it had been healing well. It would, undoubtedly, scar. He didn't care about that though. He cared more about the scars his brother's may have from this.

There was a knock on the door and he grinned, recognizing the rhythm. He turned with a grin as in walked his few hours older, blonder brother. His cheeks and nose were red from the cold despite the scarf wrapped around his neck and shoulders. He wore a thick blue jacket and black jeans, stuffed sloppily into army boots. He smiled at Luffy and walked over, plopping down unceremoniously into a chair next to his bed.

"Yo, Luffy. How's everything?"

Luffy laughed. "Everything's fine. What about you?"

"Well, it's pretty good aside from the fact that they've reduced the number of pills. That little bugger's still back there, ya know?"

Luffy nodded, serious despite the smile on his face. Bellamy smiled back but then his eyes were drawn to the phone held in his brother's hands. He blinked, brows furrowing at the small call icons, and took the phone from the other teens hands. Luffy tried to grab it back, but Bellamy held it out of reach of the bed.

"C'mon Bellamy, give it back," Luffy whined, reaching for it. Bellamy ignored him, staring with disbelief at the screen.

He scrolled down, staring at the five…ten…twenty-five…fifty…eighty-five…more than one hundred calls to Ace and Sabo, all of which went unanswered. He had talked to Zoro and the rest of the group about the twins before, and the green haired teen had said that Sabo was always texting someone, likely Ace, who would always glance at his phone and then stuff it into his pocket, ignoring the jingle or vibrate it would make. He knew the younger boy's had their phones on them at all times as well. Roger and Rouge said that in case Doflamingo made a return, they were always to have it with them and on at all times.

He turned back to the dark haired teen, who had by now given up and was staring at the blankets. Without saying anything, he knew what Bellamy was saying.

"They just won't answer. I'm sure they'll pick up eventually. If not, then I'll see them when I get home," He gave Bellamy a very fake smile. His eyes were shut too tightly and the corners of his mouth were too tense. His brows were also slightly tilted down.

Saying nothing, Bellamy reached out for the other and pulled him over to rest his head on his chest as he moved to sit on the bed. He said nothing when he felt the dampness on his chest.

Zoro stared at the blond in front of him, who had Luffy's phone in hand as he showed him the "All calls" list. Luffy was asleep at the moment, allowing Bellamy to show the green haired teen the phone.

"I have guards waiting for me at the front of the hospital, at the elevator doors, at the car…I can't go there and knock any sense into those two idiots, but I'm pretty sure you can do something about this, right?"

He handed Zoro the phone and allowed him to scroll through himself. At that moment, there was a knock on the door, signaling the end to Bellamy's visit. He gave the sleeping teen's hair a soft ruffle and smiled at him and patted Zoro on the shoulder before walking to the door, being escorted out of the room. Zoro barely noticed though. He was too busy thinking back on everything that had happened. He remembered back when they were just kids…

Zoro hefted the sleeping child further up on his back, grunting slightly when the smaller head knocked into his own. He looked over at the other nine year old who was in a similar position as him, with a six year old kid on his back.

"Do you do this often?" Zoro asked, staring at the sleeping blond on Luffy's back, nuzzling into his older brother's warmth. Luffy just grinned and laughed.

"It's not a big deal. I'd do anything for my brothers!" Luffy exclaimed surprisingly quietly, trying not to wake up the younger boys. Zoro squinted at him as the sun shined behind Luffy's head, framing him.

"You really love them, don't you?" He said. Luffy looked up at him, confused and serious.

"Why wouldn't I?"

Zoro blinked at the shorter boy before grinning that grin he always did when he realized something that made total sense if you thought about it the way Luffy did. Luffy seemed to catch onto him because he only smiled and laughed.

"Even if they hated me, I'd do anything for them. I don't want anything to happen to them. They're my precious treasures, my precious brothers! It's my job to protect them."

Zoro clenched his teeth tightly, his hand fisting tightly around the phone in fury. He put the phone down on the table and stormed to the door, passing by Nami and Usopp without a word despite their calls to him. He had two brats to find and knock some sense into.

To Zoro's dismay, he did not find the boy's that night and he had to leave for a fencing tournament for six days. Luffy had told him he was expecting to see his first place trophy, so he reluctantly went despite his fury. When he did get first place though, he put all of his energy into finding the two boys.

He couldn't find them on the twenty-second or the twenty-third. So, he resorted to the people who always seemed to magically know where they were on the twenty-fourth.

Thatch, Marco, Kid, and Law.

As usual, the four were found at Marco's house since it was the only place they didn't have to deal with siblings. When his Mom opened to door to a visibly pissed Zoro, she let the boy in without saying a word. She knew him, he'd been over plenty of times with Luffy, so she just assumed it was something having to do with him.

Zoro stormed down into the basement, which was Marco's hideout, and immediately saw them. They were playing some videogame, yelling at each other and laughing, having fun, and it really pissed Zoro off.

The obvious thing for him to do was unplug the console.

Thatch wailed in disbelief, as he had been in first place. Law's eyebrow was glaring at him with murderous eyes while Marco just looked extremely annoyed. Kid turned and looked at him, glowering, before he began screaming at him and cursing him.

Zoro used Nami's punch on them to shut them up.

"Where the hell are Ace and Sabo?"

The four blinked, surprised, and glanced between each other, before Marco turned to him, shrugging.

"Don't know. They said they weren't coming today."

Zoro made an annoyed sound and crossed his arms, glaring down at the younger teens.

Thatch yelped when the older teen grabbed him and threw him over his shoulder. Kid began yelling and screeching when he was grabbed and threw under his arm. Zoro turned his green eyes to Law and Marco, glaring.

"Get up before I kick you in the ass. We're finding those two idiots."

After the two were out the door and they were all outside in the woods behind the Gol D household, Zoro explained the situation. The four all looked between each other, serious, concerned, and angered looks on their faces.

"They've been off ever since the fire," Thatch began, only to get cut off by an irate Zoro.

"Luffy's already over the fire and he was actually in it."

Zoro stormed into the woods and the four looked between each other before following the teen who was known to have horrible direction issues.

Sabo stood under the tree that his brother was in with a blank expression, his form lax. Ace refused to look at him while Sabo bored holes into him, urging him to come down without saying a single word.

"You can't do this forever Ace," Sabo called as he blew warm air into the palms of his hands before rubbing them together. His cheeks were a light pink and his nose was running and red from his cold. Ace was shivering from his place in the tree tops but refused to climb down.

Sabo turned around when he heard voices and saw Marco, Thatch, Law, and Kid along with Zoro. He cocked an eyebrow at the older boy and turned to him as he approached. He quickly noticed the teen's furious expression and took a step back, but he was too and slow to dodge the fist that rammed into his jaw. Sabo fell back into a pile of snow as Zoro grabbed the collar of his shirt and began punching repeatedly at his face before shaking him harshly, muttering under his breath.

It took Kid, Marco, Thatch and Law to pry the oldest off of their blond friend. Zoro didn't struggle, knowing he could easily escape, and chose to instead glare daggers at the younger.

By then, Ace was infuriated. He had started climbing down from the tree when Sabo got punched and now stood in front of his twin, fists raised and eyes hard.

"What the hell are you doing, Zoro? What's wrong with you?!" He yelled as Sabo sat up, holding his bleeding nose and staring at the green haired teen with confused and angered eyes.

"What's wrong with me? You're what's wrong with me!" Zoro yelled at the two. All of the younger teens backed off when Zoro shoved the four off and then took a few steps toward Ace and Sabo. "The fuck is wrong with you idiots! You haven't seen your brother in seven damn months!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, punching Ace across the face and grabbing him before he could fall, shaking him harshly. "He's called you every day, waiting and hoping you two would show up in his doorway."

"Like he'd want to see us, me especially," Ace mumbled. "I said awful things that day that he wouldn't ever be able to forgive me for. Why would he want to see me?!" Ace yelled at Zoro, whose glare only hardened.

"You fucking idiot," Zoro growled out before yanking him up more, almost choking him. "He thinks you're angry at him. He's depressed because neither of you two idiots have had the guts to go see him and apologize! He thinks he's an awful brother! He thinks you two hate him!"

Zoro's scream penetrated the air, followed by a deathly silence. The gray sky continued to drop it's white crystals, falling on their heated faces and melting, dripping down like tears and sweat. The cold air caused the puffs of hot air to cloud their faces as the snow melted around their boots and pants and seeped into the fabrics and leathers, wetting and cooling their skin. Some of them shook from the weather, but all trembled slightly from the impact of the words.

Ace and Sabo stared at Zoro in shocked silence. Zoro made a disgusted grunt and threw Ace down into the snow, the crunching of snow snapping them all out of their reverie.

"I thought you two weren't the type to run away from your problems. Prove to me that I'm wrong not for me, but for your brother."

The sound of his feet crunching in the snow became distant as he walked away, his back turned to them all. None of them moved for a long time. It was Marco who moved first to the brothers, long after Zoro had left.

He approached Ace first, who he knew had the hardest time with this whole tragedy, and grabbed his hands, pulling the shorter teen up.

"He's right, yoi. You never have run away," Marco said with understanding eyes, staring straight into Ace's. The shorter gulped and nodded. Then he looked down at the snow.

For the first time since that day he ran from the hospital, he allowed his tears to fall.

Luffy wasn't really supposed to be doing this.

It was Christmas morning and few people were in the hospital at the moment. Just a few nurses and doctors, roaming the halls and checking in where needed.

Which was perfect for Luffy to practice walking.

He wasn't supposed to, but he really wanted to figure out how to walk again for the New Year. He wanted to be home by then, for his brothers birthday's.

He was leaning against his bed's metal footboard, his hands holding on as he stared straight ahead at the wall that was just three steps away.

Bellamy, Mom, and Dad said they would visit that night with food and gifts, and he also wanted to surprise them in his own way.

He took one shaky step forward, focusing hard on balancing himself. When he didn't fall, he grinned to himself. He took another step forward, shaking a little more before finally rebalancing himself. With his last step, right as he wobbled a little too much, he was able to reach the wall and hold on to stop himself from falling. He cheered to himself, putting his arms in the air and falling over. He groaned to himself before he grabbed the wall, pushing against it at the same time he pushed his legs to stand.

He turned to the door. He figured if he could make it there and back, then he would be able to walk again in no time.

He took a step, testing his balance again. He figured it would take ten to twenty steps to get to the door from the wall. He took another step, planting his foot firmly on the floor and shifting his weight like Kureha had taught him to do.

Half way through his journey, which had taken him about five to seven minutes, the door opened. He looked up, managing to keep standing and not lose balance, even when his eyes widened in shock at the sight of who was at the door. Likewise, Ace and Sabo stared with surprise at their brother, who they had heard couldn't walk, trying to walk in their direction.

"Stay right there," Luffy grinned at them, holding up a hand as Luffy took a step forward. He stared right at them as he took his next step, talking and trying to move faster. "I'm really happy you two are here. I was thinking that I wouldn't get to see you two until I returned home."

Ace and Sabo stared right at him as he talked. Sabo gulped, trying not to cry, while Ace clenched his fists hard, ignoring his wet eyes.

"I thought you guys hated me…I'm sorry for everything. For making you say those awful things, for hurting you guys, for ignoring you guys," He was getting closer, and with just a few more steps, he would reach them. "But I want you guys to know that, no matter what you do or say, I'll always love you two."

Right as he reached them, his legs gave out and he fell forward. They both grabbed them and it became a hug, tears dripping from Luffy's eyes as he smiled, burying his face into his brother's hair as they sobbed.

"I'm so sorry Luffy. I'm so sorry!" Ace clutched at the back of his shirt while Sabo buried his face into his shoulder.

"It's okay Ace, it's okay."

"No! I was running away from everything that happened, from you! I was being an idiot and-"

"Stop talking Ace. Everything will be fine now." Luffy just pulled them tighter against him, smiling just being able to see them again, to touch them. It had been far too long. He felt Sabo smile into his shoulder as Ace continued crying and Luffy gave a small chuckle.

Everything will be fine.

Since it was vacation, the two visited Luffy every day until he was discharged, which was at the end of January. He could walk fine and was learning how to run again.

Bellamy was able to leave the Institution in February, but still had to go visit a psychiatrist three times a week. He took up drawing as his hobby. As Rouge had invited him to, he moved into their house, sharing a room with Luffy.

Both Luffy and Bellamy were brought back to the school near the end of the year but welcomed by all the teachers and students.

Luffy visited Franky, Brook and Chopper after being unable to talk to them in person for a long time and their group of nine threw a huge party in their hideout that Robin once used as just a library but had grown over the years.

Shanks went out to captain a ship. He took Luffy to the beach one last time and the black haired teen saw his mentor and friend off. The two agreed to meet again.

Luffy became closer than ever with Ace, Sabo, Rouge, and Roger. And with Bellamy in their family, it became much more important to have their already important family time together.

Doflamingo was killed in the search for him. No one knew how, just that he was dead and could no longer torture innocent souls. His company was shut down, all of his subordinates were convicted and sentenced, and Luffy and Bellamy, along with countless other victims, gave testimony of the torture.

Luffy had subtle differences after everything. He was more careful. He had the obvious scar on his chest. He had moments of silent and seriousness unlike anyone had seen of him before. But he was still kind, foolish, loveable Luffy. And that was all anyone ever wanted and needed him to be.

No matter what happens, if you hate me or not, we'll still be brothers forever and more.

AN: I have no clue how I feel about this bonus...but I think it came out okay. It's still sad, but it's nowhere near as sad as before...at least I think. Sorry it's coming out like an hour before Tuesday (where I am, at least). I just had a really hard time trying to write this out.

Oh, and for last chapter, just incase anyone got confused: This story took place after canon. It was their first rebirth. That was the mystery Luffy was waiting for on the ship in Ace and Sabo's dream. The second part of the epilogue was the second rebirth they had. Luffy dreamed about Ace and Sabo's death's in canon. Ace and Sabo dreamed about Luffy's death in this story.

(By the way, this is fresh off the press with a really fast look through for errors so if you see any mistakes, please tell me!)

spoons-are-evil: I'm really glad you liked it. :) I loved writing the epilogue. And yes, you got it down. And rebirth was the mystery. If I did a sequel, it would probably be plotted out but it would probably focus on his childhood and stop where canon began if I did write one. I'm not sure yet...but I really do want to write a sequel. And I understand. I have to get back to school soon. Getting out of summer schedule's are awful times.

youshouldn'tneedtoknow: In this story, they were the first rebirth after canon. The second scene in the epilogue was their second rebirth after canon. Luffy dreamed about canon Ace and Sabo's death while Ace and Sabo dreamed about this story's Luffy's death. I think you got it right, if that was what you were saying.

0123: I'm glad you liked it and I hoped that this is like what you wanted. I'm not sure how it came out, but I hope you like it!

jam klaoo: I hope you enjoyed this! It's weird that this is the last chapter though...

Lily Noir: I'm glad you liked the rebirth. It was really fun writing that. And yes, they did know that Luffy died for them in the dream. Hahaha I suck at typing on the phone. I like the sound of French though.

FlightWulf: Yay! You're back! I put a lot of angst into this story. The rebirth thing was kind of a whim of mine, but I think it came out pretty good and I enjoyed writing it.

shadowmarialove: Thanks! Glad you liked it! Basically that's what happened. In this story, this was their first rebirth after canon and then the second part of the epilogue was their second rebirth after canon. Luffy dreamed about canon and Ace and Sabo dreamed about this story, but for the most part they say their brother's deaths in those worlds.

I love you guys so much! Honestly, I probably wouldn't have continued this story if it wasn't for you reviewers and followers and fav-ers. You guys really motivated me to finish this. It's so sad that this is the end. :( But, I may or may not do a sequel about the second rebirth they had.

I love you guys! Thank you so much for the support in this story! Hopefully, I'll see you again soon!