Chapter Text
Okay, look, normally, Luffy was pretty good at entertaining herself. But all the fishermen were gone and Makino was cleaning the bar and even if she wasn't, she kept trying to get Luffy to read things and sound them out because “Luffy, you're growing into a big girl now! You need to learn these skills.” If that was what her Gramps meant when he said big girls had responsibilities, she'd rather go back to being 2 years old, thank you very much. She'd even take stupid Gramps and his stupid fists of love over lying at the docs and waiting for something- anything- to happen.
Well, since clearly everyone who was normally at the docs was too busy for her today, (the sea monster didn't even look at her once!) Luffy decided that checking out the edge of the jungle for cool beetles was next on the “fun things to try” list. She wasn't allowed to actually go past the tree-line, because apparently it was dangerous and she was still too little to take on all the animals in there and even if she was big enough, Makino said she'd get lost faster than she could say “pirate.”
Luffy had been walking along the edge of Windmill Village for a while when something exciting finally happened. She saw Gramps! And, more importantly, he didn't see her. He was focused on whatever was in his arms. Maybe she could finally sneak up on him and avoid his fist of love! She hid in the bushes she was just looking around in and, right when she was gonna jump out and surprise Gramps, the bundle in his arms started making noise. Like, a lot of noise. Was that crying? She decided to get up and walk out of the bushes, and Gramps almost looked startled when he looked down from the bundles in his arms.(Hah! She did surprise him!)
“Gramps, wha's in your arms?” Because it couldn't actually be a baby. Seas knows he was never that gentle with her.
-
Okay, Luffy was a wild card, sure, but dammit- how distracted was he if his 3 year old granddaughter had managed to sneak up on him like that?
“This is Ace. And I'm taking him up the mountain to live with the bandits. Stupid lady owes me a favor and a half anyways.” Garp grumbled the last part to himself, and went back to cooing the babe in his arms. Ace was loud- just like his dad. Hopefully that and the black hair were the only traits he'd get from Roger. Seas knows what'd happen if he looked or acted too much like his pops and people started making the connection.
Dadan may not be the most motherly person out there, but the kid would be a lot safer there than somewhere with people. ‘least until he was a marine.
“Bandits suck though, Gramps! They come down ‘n take over Makino's bar and they're real meant to ‘er an’ they're not cool at all!” Luffy was following him now? Dammit, he didn't have the time to deal with this. What kinda chaos has his island fallen into if his granddaughter was bored enough to follow him anyways? Usually, she avoided him like the plague! Well, she tried to anyway, she wouldn't actually be able to avoid him until she learned what haki was. And even then, no way in hell he'd let this sparky little kid get stronger than him! Wait, did she just say that the bandits come into the village? He stopped walking and turned to face Luffy. She must've seen that this was important, because she did the same.
“Did you just say the bandits come down to Windmill Village, Luffy?” Garp asked.
“Yeah, I did. They're really mean when they do. ‘s not that often though, so Makino says it's easier to just let them do their thing and clean up afterwards. She always sends me upstairs when she sees ‘em comin’.” Luffy said, as if this was some minor annoyance and not a major problem for him.
This was news to Garp. Usually, they stuck to the Goa Kingdom. None of those guys were ever a problem, what with their high hats and silks, believing everything that stupid bird spouts out. Windmill Village though, well the folks there were a tad more skeptical about everything wrong with the marines— everything he wanted to fix—if only because they saw more of the local pirates, and Garp had all but hidden Luffy there after Dragon dropped her off with him.
Makino made him tell ‘er why she was taking care of a baby right after Luffy started walking, and he could see in her eyes the second she stopped fully trusting his crew around the kid. He didn't think they would, and it was a pretty big if, but if any of the bandits spilled anything to the locals, well, he knew Woopslap was no fan of pirates. Not to mention all of the rumors the fishermen exchange. That'd make it at least 3 times as dangerous if Ace's parentage were to get out.
Garp made a decision, then. If he couldn't trust the bandits, well, then he'd trust Luffy.
"If that's how it is, then here. He's your little brother now! Take care of him, ‘cause the next time I come back, it's right back to marine drills, and it'll be for the botha' ya!” He dropped Ace into Luffy's arms, adjusted her grip when she stumbled with the sudden weight she was now holding, and started making his way back down the mountain with his grandkids following him. He'd explain Ace's parentage to Luffy when she was a bit older, and knew how important it was that no one knew whose son he was. Until then, well, he'd seen Luffy be gentle with fragile shells, and cool bugs she'd found. Sure, it always took her a couple tries to realize just how gentle she had to be, but it wasn't like this was her first time seeing a baby. Ace'd be fine.
-
The weather was good today, so all the fishermen were out catching the days haul. Makino took advantage of the fact that her bar was empty to do some of the cleaning she had to keep up on. She had been hoping that Luffy would sit down and practice her letters while Makino wiped down the place, but the girl had run off the second she got the chance. Of course, she was only 3, so it wasn't strictly necessary for her to start learning letters and sounds, but Luffy got more and more wild every year, and Makino had a sneaking suspicion that if she didn't get on it now, Luffy'd never learn to read.
She'd been gone most of the morning, and it was nearing lunch time. The girl never missed a meal, so Makino figured she'd be back soon. Maybe with a new seashell or a cool bug she'd found. She hoped Luffy would bring more shells. Last year, Makino had started teaching her how to make necklaces and paintings with them. Luffy wouldn't wear the necklaces after she broke one running around, but she gave them to other people as gifts. The paintings went up in the bar, and even got sold on occasion! She'd paint a landscape, and Luffy would help glue shells and sand to the oceans and beaches.
Woopslap may have complained about how restless the girl was, but even he couldn't hide the small smile he got whenever he decided to wear the necklace Luffy'd given him.
“MAKINOOOOOO”
Speaking of Luffy.
“Hello dear. You're back earlier than normal. Would you like to paint something with me, or perhaps I can convince you to practice your sounds while I make you lunch?” Makino was talking while mopping the floor behind the bar, so it wasn't until she looked up at the end of her sentence that she saw the bundle in her daughter's arms. “Oh? Who's this little one?” Makino asked, wondering who on earth would've handed a 3-year-old a baby.
"His name's Ace! Gramps said he was my new little brother!” So Garp was the one trusting a rambunctious toddler with a newborn. That made more sense than Makino thought it ought to. “He fell asleep on the way over ‘ere, but he was cryin’ real loud before that! D'you think Gramps fed him enough? I know I wanna cry ev'ry time I'm hungry! Or maybe he was just tired? He did fall ‘sleep pretty quick after Gramps handed him t'me.” Luffy exclaimed the first half all excitedly, and started rambling on about Ace from there.
“Do you think you can sit down with him until I finish making you lunch, Luffy? After that I'll take him, and once you're done eating, we'll go to the market for baby supplies.”
“Baby supplies?”
“Yes, baby supplies. Infants are even more fragile than those beetles you like to pick up, and they're to little to take care of themselves, so adults need ‘baby stuff’ to care for them.” Luffy'd seen babies before, when she tailed after Makino around town, but she'd never really seen one up close, let alone taken care of one. Makino hoped that having Ace around would make Luffy a bit more mature; willing to learn so that she could teach him, a little more careful about where she was running, things like that. Nothing too big.
Makino would, of course, have a stern talking-to with Garp about this. If Dragon was going to keep giving up the children he had, Makino'd go and scold him herself. The babe certainly looked like Luffy's little brother.