In Memoriam
{ @rubberbastard // x. }
{ ✘ } – Seeing Luffy cry twisted her heart in a way she hadn’t expected. Though she arguably didn’t know him too well, she had spent enough time with him to know that he was a very bright and warm person. To seem him openly shed tears was... heavy.
She watched in silence as he paid respects to each grave. When he spoke to Ace, a part of her felt like she was intruding on a private moment, so she looked away, wet eyes focusing on the ocean and the horizon. When he spoke of Sabo, Akane reflected on her own relationship with the three brothers. While she had been the closest to Ace, she had gotten to know Sabo ever since she started aiding the Revolutionary Army.
She was lucky to know them. All three of them.
While she didn’t understand fully, from what she gathered, Luffy was blaming himself for Ace’s death. If I was as strong as I am now. I was selfish and weak. She was sure that if Ace were here now, he’d get upset.
In truth, for the first few months after his death, Akane had blamed Luffy in a way. She was very angry and depressed, and those overwhelming feelings were displaced everywhere. Anywhere she could find something to put the blame on, because at the time she couldn’t understand the reason behind Ace’s death. A part of her knew, but it was hard for her to accept. She had lost her mother when she protected her, she lost Oyaji when he protected the crew, so losing Ace because he too decided to protect someone was an intensely frustrating thought. Her thoughts at the time were almost like, ‘Why couldn’t they just be more selfish?’ She realized soon after, that out of everyone she had been the most selfish.
He turned to look at her, and her face was pained. Regret anything?
“...I do. I regret a lot. A lot of what I’ve done and felt.” Her voice was airy, cracking a bit. “But I never regretted becoming a pirate and getting to meet everyone.” Her life had been dull before she met the Whitebeard Pirates. Aimless. They changed her. She allowed herself to become a more open and caring person because of them. It was all thanks to them that she was who she was now.
