Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece

Memories: Bringing Back the Sun

(Sneak Peek)

Chapter 04

Ann's Son! Luffy is the Father!?

He breathed in the familiar sea-salt breeze he had come to miss during the two years he trained to get stronger after losing his first and most treasured nakama. Monkey D. Luffy watched as the moonlight shined the beautiful dark ocean. A large grin grew upon his lips as he welcomed the familiarity of the ocean.

Two years… the separation between himself and his crew had finally come to an end. The loneliness he bore over those two years was now gone by the warmth of his nakama, except for…

"Didn't ya know? When exchange sake cups, you become brothers. From now onward… we're now brothers!"

"Wait… Aren't ya a girl though, Ann?"

"Yeah! So you can't be our 'brother',"

"…YOU IDIOTS! WE'RE BROTHERS!"

"OW…! THAT HURTS!"

"ANN! BECOME MY FUTURE PIRATE QUEEN!"

"Why are you doing this, Lu!?"

"I'm glad… I am so happy you were born, Ann. I love you so much, nii-chan,"

"So please… please… don't you die too, Ann!"

"Don't be stupid! You should worry about yourself first! You're way weaker than me! Listen up, Luffy!"

"You really are an idiot little brother… I… I love you too, Lu,"

"I'm not gonna die, and don't you forget it!"

"We will definitely live life without regrets!"

"With more freedom than anyone else!"

"Oh, that's right! Where's…? Ah! Found it! Will ya marry me, Ann?"

"…We just finished making sex—I mean, making love, and only now you remember to propose to me (again for that matter)? LUFFY, YOU IDIOT!"

"IIIIIITAI (OW)! Why does that hurt?! I'm made of rubber!"

"Hmph! Still a crybaby as ever,"

"…is that a yes?"

"…baka (stupid), I told you no one will ever replace you. You may be my weak, stupid little brother who always has his older sister to worry… but, I will always love you, Lu. No one can ever replace you,"

"So… that's a yes, right?"

"YOU STUPID IDIOT! You're still not listening! Of course I that's a 'yes'!"

"Shishishi! Just making sure,"

"Stupid… I missed you, Lu. You and your stupid antics,"

"Love you too, nii-chan~!"

"You promised! You promised you wouldn't die…!"

"I'm so sorry, Luffy,"

"Even though… I'm so worthless…

Even though… I carry blood of a demon…

Thank you…

…for loving me!"

Ann…

His older sister…

Fiancé…

Future wife…

…his one and only Queen.

Luffy volunteered himself to take watch tonight instead of Brook (whose turn it was to keep watch over the Thousand Sunny and the rest of the Straw Hats). He knew that if he were to sleep tonight, he knew his nightmares… no… his memories would slip into his dreams.

He worried his bottom lip after flinching upon feeling the familiar heartache and the large emptiness that Ann's warmth… her soft and shy love… once resided. He had to take deep breathes to help subside the pain until it was just a small throb. As he had his hand landed to his beating heart (just a bit above his large "X" shaped scar… the same place where Ann was fisted by the same man, Akainu, magma attack), Luffy could feel the familiar cool (once warm as his Sun's) metals of the chain necklace around his neck and the two rings looped around it. Both rings were different from one another, but no less beautiful. One seemed simple, but held a certain beauty to it. The metal was silver with stem and leaves around the silver ring with a red shining jewel at the center that was shaped of a beautiful hibiscus. The second ring was a beautiful engagement ring, but looked nothing like regular engagement rings. For one thing, the metal that was made of the round ring was reddish-orange much like the colored of Ann's flames from her Devil Fruit. Small tiny rubies surrounded the ring until the center where a hibiscus shaped diamond shined beautifully. In the middle of the diamond hibiscus was a small golden queen-like crown. These two beautiful rings once belonged to Luffy's deceased older sister/fiancé.

Ann treasured these two rings Luffy had given to her from two different timelines in their lives. Just before… just before Ann died, his beautiful Queen placed the two engagement rings around his neck instead of being taken to her grave (wherever it may be in the New World). The young Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates treasured the rings in the same level as his infamous straw hat (maybe… even more so than his treasured hat). The rings were the only objects in the living realm that showed evidence of their bond, their love… and Ann's very existence other than Ann's orange cowboy hat and Luffy's memories. Luffy was relieved the government—the world—failed to wipe any evidence of the older D.'s existence unlike his older brother, Sabo, who was wiped out of existence with no evidence left of him other than the ocean Sabo loved along with his two 'brothers'.

No matter how happy Luffy may be from being reunited with his precious nakama and being in another adventure together after two years since the tragic event in Sabaoda that didn't mean the pain and guilt of Ann's death was gone… Their last adventure in Fisherman Island brought too many memories of his older sister and of his failure to save his precious Queen had him feel that familiar painful ache in his heart… his soul.

No matter how much time passed by, the pain of losing Portgas D. Ann will never cease to exist. It had been his training with Rayleigh had been the only thing that kept the memories at bay, and was able to ignore the large evidence of his half empty soul and where his eldest sibling occupied his heart. The safety and comfort he always felt from Ann and the belief in her promise to never die was now gone… taken brutally by that bastard Admiral, Akainu.

Just the mere thought of his Sun's murder, besides Blackbeard helping drown the brilliant light and warmth of Luffy's Queen, boiled the Future Pirate King's blood in rage which overwhelmed the small fear of the Magma Logia Marine. In a way, he was relieved Whitebeard didn't destroy Akainu because Luffy wanted to be the one to get rid of Ann's murderer.

After calming down his boiling anger for the Admiral Marine and having the sea breeze cool down his face, Luffy allowed his thoughts go back to his nakama.

His nakama… they may have helped ease the pain a bit, especially the loneliness where the space Ann and Sabo have saved him from 12 years ago. The emptiness where Ann occupied may have been eased a bit, but it wasn't only heartbreak the pain came from; it was also guilt and grief. No matter how hard his precious crew may try easing the pain, it would always remain just like the scar on his chest. It would remain until the end of his days.

He moved his hand from where his beating heart was to grip the rings that was resting on the warm skin of his chest to the palm of his hand, and looked down to watch the two beautiful rings glow by the moonlight of the full midnight moon. Luffy gritted his teeth before shaking his head violently as if to shake away his unusual dark thoughts to get his grief away.

(Ugh… thinking deeply hurt his head. For a painful moment Luffy could almost hear the faint beautiful sound of Ann's laughter along the teasing tone of her voice saying, "You, thinking? Lu, you never think. Why are you starting now, otouto? You're going to hurt yourself,")

Luffy looked up at the beautiful starry night with a determined expression in his eyes while his lips split into his familiar large grin. He could just imagine Ann stare down with her signature soft smirk; looking expectedly at her little brother. Waiting to hear what she knew Luffy was going to promise to her.

"I promise… I will become King of the Pirates, Ann!" Luffy proclaimed.

The image of his older sister merely gave him one of her proud and lovingly warm smile (the special smile that were only given to Luffy) brought the familiar warmth spread through his being.

The large grin decreased into a small, gentle and sad smile, but his eyes expressed with so much tenderness and love for his fallen Sun that would have shocked many who knew him.

(Except for Sabo, the Dadan bandit Family, Makino, Garp and Woop Slap, who all witnessed the close relationship [both as siblings and romantic] between the D. "brothers".)

Luffy kept guard as he sat on Sunny's head while watching the peaceful night. After the next hour, he noticed the powerful presence before he took note of the smaller ship ahead of him and Sunny. The once carefree expression on the Straw Hat Captain left to a serious expression upon feeling the strong will within the boat. If it were an enemy Luffy would make sure to protect his nakama.

(And make sure to never lose anyone else again like her… like his "brothers")

As the ship came closer to a clearer range view, he was surprised to see the Jolly Rogers of the Spades and Whitebeard Pirates. This was something he didn't expect. He only let out a small wince upon seeing both Jolly Rogers that reminded him too much of his older sister. Despite this, Luffy couldn't help but grin. He could feel himself shake with excitement. He just knew instinctively that a whole new adventure awaited them from within that ship.

\\Ann|Luffy/

A smirk appeared upon her ruby lips upon seeing the familiar Jolly Roger that belong to the infamous Straw Hats. Arthur could feel the weight of her last promise to her Taicho finally lifted from her heart in relief.

"Finally! Geez, Taicho was not joking when she said her little brother's excitement to go further through the Grandline in order to find One Piece," Arthur said with amusement. "Well, better go wake the kid,"

With that said, the new Second Whitebeard Commander under her new Captain, Marco the Phoenix, headed inside the small ship. After two years, Ann's final wish and Arthur's promise was finally going to be fulfilled.

(It was finally time to bring both father and son to meet for the first time.)

\\Ann|Luffy/

Hope you all enjoyed the sneak peek for the next chapter of my Acelu (Annlu) One Piece fanfiction! =^^= The new update won't be coming up until I have everything sort since I'm finishing college and are now heading toward my internship! WHOOP! =3 So please hang in there, for now I give you this sneak peek for the teaser of the upcoming new chapter!

First featured in my tumblr page (xxhinaangel .tumblr .com)!