Second Wind

39

It was the calm before the storm.

Beside him, Jewelry Bonney sat in silence as she payed her own respects. She hadn't known Ace for that long, but Luffy could still feel the overwhelming grief radiating from her. After what seemed like hours, Luffy stood up, and Bonney slowly did the same as she wiped a few stray tears from her eyes.

"We have to go," Luffy said somberly. She simply nodded.

"Give that bastard hell, Strawhat," she said with conviction.

Luffy looked at her carefully. "I'm sorry," he said. "I know you wanted to go after him too."

Bonney shrugged nonchalantly, although Luffy could see the disappointment in her eyes. "Can't be helped. Trafalgar's taking heavy heat. One of us has to back him up, and I have no delusions of my crew taking on Blackbeard alone." Her voice was bitter as she said that. She had learned her lesson the last time, and the Yonko crew had gotten far too powerful since then. Still, if Luffy didn't have just as much business with Blackbeard, if not more, than she did, she'd probably be throwing a fit about these arrangements. "Still, I didn't think the remnants of two defeated Yonko crews would band together just to take you down. Big Mom's remaining followers seem relentless."

"That's only natural after I killed their Captain," Luffy said quietly.

Bonney looked at him in slight annoyance. "Will you stop acting guilty? That bitch killed Jinbe. Did you forget?"

"No," Luffy whispered. Jinbe's death was still fresh in his mind, as was their most recent loss. "Ace, Jinbe, and now Marco. I wasn't supposed to let this happen."

"You can't be everywhere at once," Bonney argued. "If you guys hadn't helped us with Big Mom, I'd have bitten the dust. Count your blessings, not your failures." That made Luffy smile. The third member of their alliance had just unwittingly paraphrased the words Jinbe had spoken to him at his darkest hour. "If it enrages you so much, channel that fury and unleash it onto your enemies. I've seen you do it before," she continued.

"And I'll do it again," Luffy said.

Bonney looked at him worriedly. Her eyes were uncharacteristically soft. "But keep an eye out, Strawhat. I have a bad feeling about this one," she said.

"I'd be surprised if you didn't. It's Blackbeard." Luffy replied. Bonney could only nod.

"The balance of power in the world is shifting rapidly. There's no telling what could happen. Just...be careful, alright?" she requested.

Luffy looked at her and smiled. "I'll be coming back, Bonney. You just make sure Trafalguy does the same."

So many broken promises.

Luffy was broken out of his memories as Bonney spoke. "So you're Strawhat," she mused. "You know, for some reason I thought you'd be taller. You sure don't look like someone who could beat Crocodile," she muttered.

Luffy recovered quickly and smiled in good nature. "Looks can be deceiving. Croc learned that the hard way." Around them, murmurings of disbelief were breaking out in the bar. Whispers of "THE Strawhat," and "outrageous rookie" were abundant.

Bonney hummed. "If you say so. I still say it was a fluke."

Luffy simply smiled wider in response to the obvious taunt. "It's hard to fluke your way to victory over a New World veteran, though I'd be the first to admit that it's not impossible. Anyway, you're free to believe whatever you want."