So, I've had this idea floating around in my head since the middle of Dressrosa, and it's only grown and grown over time. I really wanted to write a full fanfic about this idea, but my life has been so full of one thing after another that I haven't had time to write (not to mention having to translate it into English so it can reach more people in the fandom).
With that being the case, I've decided that at the very least I want to explain the idea for this AU (which doesn't have a name yet, so suggestions are welcome), write some scenes if I ever manage to find the time, and let anyone who sees this do whatever they want with it (seriously, if anyone feels inspired by this and wants to write/draw/whatever even remotely based on it, go ahead, you have my permission and it's an honor).
The disclaimer here is that please forgive any mistakes you see, English isn't my first language and what I know of it is from self education. The timeline is probably all over the place because I didn't stop to think about details like that. And the truth is, one of the things that sparked this idea was having made the mistake of checking the comments section of a Doflamingo edit and it really infuriated me how many people summarize his character as "born evil", something I totally disagree with; so this AU is overflowing with feelings and humanity for Doflamingo, which may make him seem out of character to some, but I maintained my vision of what I think his feelings are as well as how both he and Rosi would have changed if their circumstances had been different.
With all that said, let's get to the AU:
Donquixote Brothers AU Part 1: Back to the Holy Land, Slavery, Marines, and Their Place in All Of It
Take the canon and follow it up to the part where Doffy instinctively uses Emperor's Haki to knock out the mob that was about to execute them, only that instead of Trébol and his people finding them, it's officials of the world government and this leads to Doffy actually being granted his wish to return to Mary Geoise. I'll admit I couldn't think of a better idea for this and it's a bit clumsy, but let's assume the government didn't want anyone with that kind of power running around free and they also didn't want to spill the blood of a Celestial Dragon, especially one that was willing to return to the old ways.
Speaking of which, this same treatment was not extended to Homing or Rosinante. While the adult was executed, the child was handed over to the slave market.
It wasn't exactly public knowledge that Rosinante was once a Celestial Dragon (it didn't look good on the image of perfect gods to say that some of their own had defected. I see them as the kind of people who would immediately forget anything that made them look bad or fell outside their self-concept of perfect beings), but those who still remembered the Donquixote family probably had a good idea of who he was and took a sick pleasure in having him as their slave. Needless to say, Rosinante didn't have a pleasant existence during the five years this went on (for now we won't go into details of exactly what they did to him), very often wishing that his brother would come and save him, to protect him as he had done while they were being chased by that angry people who wanted revenge on them for reasons he didn't understand.
For his part, Doffy had returned to everything he had ever wanted: a position with a new adoptive family, having a mother, father, and brother who agreed with his perception of how things should be in the world, with all the luxuries he had been denied, no more hiding, no more hunger and poverty, no more discomfort and pain... and yet, as the days passed, Doffy found that there was a certain restlessness in him.
The Celestial Dragons had told him that his father and brother had not wished to return to the Holy Land, which in his head made sense and at first he had insulted them in his mind calling them stupid.
But thinking about his original family was a minefield: the memories of his mother were very painful, those of his father were stained by everything he had provoked, so his mind focused on the only one whose memories did not raise such a visceral emotional response. He found himself constantly wondering what Rosi was doing, how he was, if he was eating enough or if he had adequate clothes to cover himself from the cold, if he was happy...
His new brother wasn't like Rosi: He wasn't nervous, a crybaby, or clumsy. He wasn't as cute or smile the same way. He didn't bring him flowers picked from the garden or anything else that seemed cute enough to show him. He didn't need his help to get dressed or hold his hand when he got scared. In short: He wasn't the same, and that weighed more and more on his mind.
The point I wish to make here is that while it might seem like Doflamingo just wanted his status and power back, what he really desired was his old life, the one he'd had for ten years, a life he was happy in, and that included his family. All those luxuries and rights were lessened without the family he'd grown up with and loved. He was just a kid who went through a horrific situation and wanted the peace of his old life back. And in this universe, that unease at not having it completely back took another form and built up over five years, weighing down what should have otherwise been a completely happy life. It wasn't enough for him to actively search for his brother, but it was enough for him to, when a chance encounter occurred one night, lead his actions to the path of a traitor to the Celestial Dragons.
I added a lot more of details to this part than I originally planned (shout out to Bakkfity and his awesome Rosinante Slave AU that inspired me so much. If you want to see a story packed with detail, world expansion, and beautiful art, I recommend checking it out here)
So to continue, several of these details are:
— Rosi ran away from his last master, feeling in more danger than the times before, killing him and then escaping before anyone found out what he had done (His master was a somewhat frail old man who lived alone, so it wasn't as difficult as it might have seemed).
(I don't want to go into details, but let's just say there was a very creepy reason why such an old man wanted to be alone with a thirteen year old boy... yeah, that kind of human scum. And while I don't think the Celestial Dragons exactly have laws against it, I do think it must be frowned upon just by the implication of mingling with the common people).
— It was during that escape, late at night, that he ran into Doflamingo, who recognized him immediately and didn't take long to realize what had happened to his brother. He aided him in his escape from Mary Geoise, his guilt growing with each new detail he noticed about Rosi's condition.
— The two of them lived as fugitives for months, something they were both unfortunately experienced at, until they crossed paths with Sengoku, who decided to hide them and adopt them, raising them in the navy while keeping their last name a secret. For once, Doflamingo was more than willing to be a nobody if it kept his brother safe.
— Rosinante had to endure five years as a slave, having multiple masters because he refused to speak (at first out of fear, then it was the only rebellion he allowed himself), which was interpreted as meaning he was mute. He wasn't killed because he was still "serviceable" but his masters tended to resell him after a few months.
— Rosi's decision not to speak had physical consequences: By the time he escaped, he was basically unable to speak due to the atrophy of his vocal cords and also in response to the trauma he suffered as a slave. It was one of the first things Doflamingo noticed upon finding him.
— The two developed a small system of signs and in the absence of paper Doffy became adept at understanding Rosi writing a word on his skin with his finger to communicate.
— Sengoku found someone to help Rosi with his muteness, but it took him years to be able to speak normally, even with the help of therapy.
— The first thing he was able to say clearly was yell "Stop, Doffy!" when his brother was about to beat up some children who had teased him for being mute. He yelled it so loudly that he hurt his throat, and for a couple of weeks he could barely make a sound above a whisper.
— Doflamingo was deeply affected by it, seeing his brother hurt himself because of him. From that moment on, he tried to keep his irascible temper in check and hide it, promising Rosi that he wouldn't get violent with anyone again.
— Despite regaining his voice, Rosinante was very quiet, and it was rare to see him having conversations. This earned him the nickname of "The Silent One". It was almost a joke that the Navy gave him the Nagi-Nagi no Mi when he rose in rank.
— Rosinante's vocalization therapy included singing or saying short rhymes to learn how to pronounce certain words. Because of this, Rosinante developed a fondness for singing, particularly to calm his brother, who always sat with him to listen to his progress, even though his attempts sounded horrible at first.
— I have several songs in my head that Rosinante sings to his brother, but the one that stands out the most is "Calma Vladimir" by El Cuarteto de Nos.
— Doflamingo is blind in his left eye due to an injury he suffered as a child while fleeing from the angry mob. With practice, he's managed to keep it from being too noticeable, and with his sunglasses covering his eyes no one could tell he's partially blind.
— Every time Rosinante sees his brother's blind eye, he's reminded that his father wasn't a bad person or had bad intentions, but that his actions had dire consequences.
— As adults, Rosi can carry his brother, but Doffy can't do the same (which he finds tremendously unfair, because he still remembers when Rosi was a baby he could carry everywhere).
— It's the only good thing that came out of his time as a slave: He developed a lot of strength and practice on strenuous physical labor. His training in the navy helped hone that physique.
In the next part, I want to talk in more detail about the two brothers' lives within the Marines, as well as the feelings and attitudes they developed due to their individual experiences (spoiler: Doflamingo is carrying a huge amount of guilt). I also want to move forward in the timeline, because this isn't just an AU where they're going to stay as Marines. No, no, we still have to talk about Flevance, the government/Navy's involvement in it, and, of course, about Law.
So, if you liked this story I've put together in my head, look forward to more and I'd appreciate any comments, questions, or suggestions. Feel free to ask me questions or send me a private message.
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