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fallen-savior-mmz · 1 year

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Fallen Savior Chapter 3;

As long as he's safe...-

X stood by Zero’s capsule, watching him as he slept.

The last conflict he had had with Omega left him needing longer repairs than normal, and their opponent would not wait for Zero to recover.

X knew what he had to do, but now being faced with the task at hand, he was having trouble finding the courage to do so.

“Axl, I’m sorry to ask you to do this.” X started, still looking down at his sleeping husband, his new armor looking so different than he was used to, yet still somehow fitting.

Even with almost an entirely new body, he was still Zero.

“But you need to take Zero and run. You have an hour, gather everything you need, anything you absolutely have to take with you. You can’t stay here, and neither can he.” X finally looked to Axl, the young hunter staring in shock at him.

“X, are you crazy? Omega will kill you, and if he doesn’t, the Dark Elf will. You can’t stay here by yourself!” Axl exclaimed, incredibility written all over his face.

“There’s a chance that the Dark Elf could possess me, and use me to destroy everything. Zero is the only one who could stop me at that point, and I won’t be responsible for everyone’s deaths like that. Yours included.” he turned to face the reploid that he called family.

“I can buy you and Zero time to get away, to hide so Zero can repair himself, and so you can repair yourself too. But you have to leave now Axl, find somewhere remote, somewhere far away. You can’t tell me where you go, they could use me to find you. Leave here and save yourselves.” X finished, his heart breaking with every word.

Axl put a hand to his head, trying desperately to think of a way out of leaving, “X, I can’t leave you here, you’ll die! There’s gotta be another way, when Zero wakes up we can-”

“AXL, THERE’S NO TIME!” X’s shout startled the young hunter, staring wide eyed at his father figure.

With a shaky breath, he walked forward, hugging Axl against his body.

“Axl, I’m not commanding you to do this. I’m not asking as your mentor, your leader, your father. Nothing like that. I’m asking you as your friend. Please, take Zero and hide, don’t return until it’s safe.” X stepped back, looking into the young reploid’s eyes.

Axl’s eyes watered, but he nodded, stepping towards Zero’s capsule to begin getting it loaded onto a transport for them.

X turned to leave, unable to watch the two people he cared about most in the world get sent away.

“X, what about you?” Axl called after him, his voice uneven as if he was trying to keep from crying.

X straightened his back, pulling himself together before turning to look at Axl one last time.

“As long as you both are safe, I’ll be fine.” he spoke with conviction, willing to do anything to ensure their safety.

As long as he’s safe.

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X cried out as he slammed into the ground, his armor sparking and melting where Omega’s plasma saber had sliced him.

The reploid with his husband’s face grinned wildly, holding his hands out to each side.

“X, why can’t you see what I’m doing? I’m trying to save you! Every single being on this planet is capable of sin and evil, you all cause pain and suffering!” Omega spun around, facing the setting sun.

X tried sitting up, his body protesting as he did. He just had to keep Omega monologuing long enough for his self repair to kick in, give him time to escape.

“If I kill everyone, no one can hurt anymore! You won’t hurt anymore X, I can free you!” he looked back at his opponent, his face split with a smile of pure glee.

“I AM THIS WORLD’S SAVIOR, X, I AM YOUR SAVIOR! I AM THE MESSIAH! LET ME SHOW YOU A GLIMPSE OF THE WORLD I HAVE ENVISIONED!” Omega called out to the sky, his head tipped back as he laughed.

The Dark Elf revealed herself above him, spreading her “wings” and opening her eyes.

X watched in horror as she opened her mouth, her scream piercing through his head. Everything felt like it was on fire, the pain so great that he thought for sure it would kill him.

He didn’t know when he had lost consciousness, merely realizing it when he finally opened his eyes.

Omega and the Dark Elf were gone, X was laying on his side in the dirt and rubble of whatever city this had used to be. It was well past midnight at this point, judging by how dark it was.

With a groan, X sat up, unsurprised to find his body protesting any movement at all.

“Alia? Are you there? I need a status report, where did Omega go?” the android pulled himself to his feet, his head throbbing from residual pain.

He trudged forward, not heading in any particular direction. He just needed some shelter, to get himself repaired a bit while he waited for evac.

X waited for a response, but was met with silence.

“Alia? Come in Alia, I need help.”

Nothing.

Panic began to rise in his chest, Alia was always there when he called!

“Maverick Hunter HQ, please respond, I need assistance.”

Silence.

X shuddered, his panic getting harder and harder to push down.

“....X….come in X…”

A voice came over his comm, not Alia, or a voice he recognized, but a voice nonetheless.

“Yes! Yes, I’m here, please, I need a report, what’s going on?” X was almost breathless with relief, leaning against some shattered remains of a wall.

“X? Oh thank god, we need help! Omega did something, we’re getting reports of mass casualties!” the mystery navigator sounded tearful, their voice breaking over the radio.

“W...what do you mean mass casualties…?” X’s words shook, panic taking hold of him again.

This couldn’t be happening.

Omega’s words rang out to him, letting X see a glimpse of his world.

Was this what that meant?

“Hunter casualties are at ninety five percent, they’re all gone, they’re all dead! The commander, all the navigators, everyone’s dead! We’re getting reports of civilian casualties too, the numbers won’t stop going up! Reploids everywhere are dead!” the voice broke down, sobbing as they exclaimed their horror.

X fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face.

Dead?

Everyone?

Where was Signas? Or Alia?

Did this person really say all navigators?

“What’s the percentage of casualties all together…” X whispered, unable to make himself louder.

There was silence over the line for a moment as whoever else was there gathered themselves as much as they could.

“Reploid casualties en masse are at eighty-seven percent, they’re still going up.” The voice was small, clearly just barely holding themselves together.

“X...what do we do?” the voice asked.

X didn’t answer. How could he? What could he say?

“X….please….”

Axl....Zero...did they make it out? Were they okay? Nothing felt real, it had to all be a lie. Omega and the Dark Elf couldn’t have killed that many people remotely...could they?

In one agonizing moment, X realized that not only could they, but they did. Everyone was dead, they were all gone. Alia, Layer, Palette, Signas, Douglas, Axl…

Zero.

X fell forward and screamed until he couldn’t scream anymore.

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Was that a dream...or a memory? He couldn’t be sure. All he could feel was the pain of the memory as he floated in some void of awareness.

X drifted in and out of consciousness, hyper aware of the pain his body was experiencing in the moments of lucidity before blacking out again

He could feel someone touching him, something that made his mind recoil in disgust and rage. He didn’t want anyone to touch him, never again.

X really couldn’t do anything about that however, his body refusing to move. He supposed he would have to handle it once he could move again.

If he could move again. This might be the last time he was even alive enough to care.

Only time would tell.

He drifted back out of consciousness.

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“Damn...that kid looks rough, is he the one you pulled out of the ocean?”

A voice woke X this time, his pain receptors flaring up to remind him that he still was very much NOT okay.

“Yeah, he is, and I’d show a little respect, Doigt, that’s no kid. That’s Mega Man X.”

Another voice, this one much closer. He must be the one touching X, another fact he was being made unfortunately aware of.

“Holy shit...that beaten up reploid is X? What about the one we saw makin’ that announcement this morning? Was that not X?”

The first voice, Doigt, sounded astonished. X wondered what he looked like right now to make them not recognize him.

“Cerveau...what does this mean? What are you going to do?”

A female voice this time, she sounded so solemn.

X wanted to say something, to move, to do anything.

He wanted Zero.

“Z...ze…” his voice was hoarse, words not forming properly. It seemed that the beginning of his husband’s name would be all he could manage, as his mind faded into blackness again.

He didn’t hear his rescuers' responses.

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X’s eyes blinked open slowly when he woke this time, adjusting to the light directly above him. He didn’t feel as immediately panicked as he had when he woke on Weil’s lab table, but the fear was still there.

He turned his head as carefully as he could manage, trying to gauge his surroundings in case he needed to make another run for it.

He was met with a reploid’s face looking back at him, having the appearance of a middle aged human.

X grimaced for a moment, trying to get the pain in his head to dampen for a moment so he could attempt a conversation with this person.

“Well, good morning to you too.” the man huffed, folding his arms in front of his chest.

“What are you...doing to me…?” X’s voice was scratchy, either from trauma or misuse, he didn’t know.

“Saving your life, trying to put your organs back where they belong.” the man spoke, a note of sympathy lacing his voice.

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say someone was trying to strip you for parts, and while you were still alive.”

X winced, sucking in a sharp breath at the memory of Weil’s hands pulling him apart. The memory felt too fresh in his mind still.

“Hey, shit I’m sorry, that wasn’t very smart of me. Look, my name is Cerveau. I’m an engineer from the lower districts of Neo Arcadia.” The reploid, Cerveau, drew the conversation away from X’s memories, bringing him back to the present.

“It’s fine. Just don’t touch me anymore. I don't want to be touched.” X mumbled, his face still tight from the phantom feeling of being opened up.

“Right, how am I supposed to repair you from here on then? You may be the legendary Mega Man X, but you aren’t immortal, and right now you’re a mess.” Cerveau snorted, looking X up and down.

X pulled a face, not particularly enjoying this conversation.

“I don’t want you repairing me, I want to be left alone. Go away.” X knew he was acting immature, but something in him really didn’t care. He was tired of being nice when he was uncomfortable.

“Yeah, that’s not happening. I don’t care who you are, Rocinolle and I can’t just let you walk around half dead. You need repairs.” the reploid reached for his tools, clearly ready to get started repairing X again.

“Don’t fucking touch me. I mean it.” X seethed, glaring at Cerveau.

“Look, I’m not real fond of you right now either. Your policies on mavericks and what classifies a maverick got some of my friends killed. A lot of reploids really don't care whether you live or die lately, but…” Cerveau trailed off, looking away from X for a moment.

“I can’t in good conscience let someone die when they’re clearly in need of help. So shut up and let me repair you.” He reached again for his tools, but gave pause when he saw X’s face.

“What do you mean by my policies on maverickism… ” X’s eyes were wide as he looked at the engineer, mind racing.

He hadn’t put any rules or legislation into place on Mavericks, he hadn’t done anything like that in over a century, not since the Maverick Hunters were still around.

Something wasn’t adding up, and X had a nagging feeling he knew who was behind it.

“Any reploid found participating in suspicious behavior was to be brought in for questioning and possible retirement under suspicion of maverickism. It’s been happening for a few years now, but it’s been steadily getting...worse…” Cerveau hesitated, watching X’s face morph from confusion to horror to sickened realization.

“Oh my god, you didn’t know did you...you had no idea this was happening…” The reploid sat back, his tools falling from his hands.

X turned to face the ceiling again, tears falling from his eyes,

“I’m such a fucking fool. This was happening right under my nose, and I was so wrapped up in my own pity, I didn’t even notice.” X hiccuped, his body pulsing in pain from the seal and Weil’s tampering.

Both reploids sat in silence, stewing in their own thoughts. Cerveau was the one to break the unpleasant void they had found themselves in.

“Well shit, there goes my justified anger. Guess we’re all fools then.” Cerveau chuckled darkly, moving to stand up again.

“If you won’t let me repair you, let me at least get the tools you need to do it yourself. I tried to patch out whatever virus that was that's tearing up your code, but nothing would work. I just patched the firewall that was messed with instead.” He explained, walking around the room and gathering various tools and pieces of metals.

“Whatever that thing is, it’s nasty. I’m sure you can feel it breaking you down. It’s gonna keep doing that until it either rewrites your code entirely, or kills you. It’s going to cause you a lot of physical pain, but I can help you fix th-”

“No. I can’t mess with it more than you already have. I’m the only thing keeping her at bay. I’ll survive until I can get the original code back.” X interrupted Cerveau, sitting up and reaching for a soldering iron.

“You idiot, did you not hear what I just said? It’s going to kill you, after putting you through hell and back. Is that what you want?” The engineer grumbled, pushing the equipment closer to X and turning it on.

“Yeah, I heard you, I just don’t give a damn right now. I just need to focus on getting back to the sanctum and fixing all of this.” X grunted, beginning to solder down the wires in his arm, one that had been shredded by the grenade. The wounds looked so old, hadn’t they just happened a day ago?

“How long has it been since you found me in the ocean?” X asked, wincing as the metal and wires began fusing. It wasn’t the first time he had done this, but considering the amount of pain he had been through recently, and the Dark Elf’s influence still harassing his code, he really didn’t find himself caring too much about the sting of heat and metal.

“It’s been about seven months, I honestly thought we were going to lose you there for a while.” Cerveau faced away from X, searching for something.

X paused, processing the absurd amount of time. Seven months? Had he really been gone for so long?

“I’ve...been gone seven months? And no one’s noticed my absence?” He turned to face Cerveau, his mind racing.

In all that time, the Dark Elf’s seal remained closed, how had Weil not busted it open at this point?

“They have a very convincing body double for you, X.” The man shook his head, his own world view being thrown.

“That bastard...I hate him.” X’s voice was dripping with venom, anger flowing through him. Weil truly was something else, and X wasn’t sure how much damage he had let the man get away with at this point.

“We’ll worry about that later. Since you won’t let me help fix you, and I’m guessing you won’t let Rocinolle help either, the least I can do is craft up some new armor for you. You can’t be walking around naked like that.” Cerveau stood, walking towards the door.

“Don’t make it white...I hate white.” X called after the engineer, earning himself a chuckle.

“What, should I make it red? Like the legendary reploid, Zero?” Cerveau called back, looking over his shoulder. X felt his whole body tense up, his husband’s name something he couldn’t say out loud.

“Don’t. Don’t say his name.” X’s voice was barely above a whisper, his hand clenched tightly around the soldering tool.

“Make it blue...I like blue. I miss it…” he wouldn’t look at the engineer. Tears dripped down his cheeks, landing onto his bare lap.

“You got it, blue it is. Your hair is really long too, do you want Rocinolle to cut it for you?” Cerveau’s voice was soft, clearly taking the hint that Zero was a big no-no subject to X.

“No, I want it to stay long. Thank you though.” X reply was final, willing his tears to stop so he didn’t make more of a fool of himself

Cerveau said nothing as he left the room, closing the door to his lab with a quiet click.

X put his tools down, reaching up with his one functioning arm and wiped his tears away.

I swear, I won’t let you make me cry over you anymore Zero. I will not cry over the past anymore.

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Dim electronic lights hummed and crackled overhead, the energy crisis becoming more and more dire everyday. The spartan lab turned personal quarters felt cold and unappealing, dirty silvers and muted greys covering most of the room. The only splash of color was the former leader of Neo Arcadia.

X rolled his shoulders, trying to relieve the pain there. It had been a while since the last flare up, the Dark Elf continually finding ways past his firewalls.

He hoped that nothing would happen today, their last few missions going a little rougher than he had intended.

Cerveau and Rocinolle had done a fine job creating new armor for him, his chest covered in a deep blue vest with an X on the front. His greaves and gauntlet-like armor had been replaced from that irritating white to rolling deep indigo.

X was grateful that his helmet had once again survived the changing of armors, only slightly changed to remove the wings that Neo Arcadia had put there. He had made it a point as well to let his hair stay down, the long black locks drifting down between his shoulders. His bangs were so long that they fell from the front of the helmet, falling over his nose and peeking out from the sides of his face.

It felt right, donning blue armor again and letting his hair fall where HE wanted it to.

He stood, looking around the room.

Maybe it was silly, for an ancient hero like X to have formed a resistance group against the people he was supposed to lead, but Neo Arcadia had forced his hand.

After months of recovering, gathering supplies and rescuing humans and reploids alike, he now had a safe haven for anyone fleeing from Weil and Neo Arcadia’s tyrannical ways. X’s departure from the city had opened the floodgates for even stricter and crueler rules against Reploids, to the point now where even some humans had begun to question the shady behavior.

X shook his head. There wasn’t really anything he could do to change that right now, his main concern was getting people out and getting them the help they needed.

Cerveau had begrudgingly become somewhat of a field medic, assisting Rocinolle in keeping any refugees healthy and in working order. Doigt...helped when he could, X found him more useful in helping run supplies through the base than at Rocinolle’s side. He was a fine budding engineer however, and definitely helped keep Cerveau from drowning in projects, X being his constant headache.

X regretted letting some reploids pick up weapons, but they needed to defend themselves, especially on rescue missions and raids. Young men like Colbor and Milan helped him with missions. It made him sick letting them fight.

He used that anger he felt as fuel to push through the pain of the Dark Elf and his still-healing body, determined to save as many people from his mistakes as possible.

With a huff, and an adjustment of his vest, X retrieved his buster from the table of his room.

He strode briskly through the hallways, lights flickering and the smell of dust filling his nose. Few reploids scurried around, attending to their own tasks to keep the Resistance base in working order. The single elevator in the middle of the base led out to the surface and below to the engine room.

X selected the latter, letting the mechanism lower him deeper into the base. If he wanted to, he could slide down the walls of the elevator shaft, letting the boosters in his legs help him descend faster like he did when he was younger. The thought instead left his legs aching, grumbling to himself that he was too old for that kind of crap.

The elevator stopped with a metallic groan, the doors opening with a squeal. X sighed, he supposed he’d have to look at that and make sure the damn thing wouldn’t fall apart with some unfortunate reploid still inside.

He strode through the engine room, looking over the supplies, doing last checks before their mission. A young woman walked up to him, her long brown hair pulled back by a red headband.

“Master X, I have the latest information from the scouts, the refugee targets are three reploids, one child repoloid and a human girl.” The woman spoke, reading out from a small datapad in her hands.

“What? A human girl? Why would a human be with a group of reploids to be executed?” X faced the woman, his brows knit in confusion.

“I don’t know, she was seen holding the little reploid girl, and she appeared to be trying to protect the other reploids. One of the Four Guardians apprehended her, according to reports.” She shrugged, looking distraught at the mention of the Guardians.

“Thank you Rouge, I appreciate the reports. I’ll be heading out soon.” X watched her leave with a dip of her head and a look of gratitude on her face, wincing at the subtle spike in pain in his body.

“And when you return, I’m taking another look at your back, Master X.” A voice chided behind him.

“Cerveau, I’m really not in the mood to hear you lecture me about this again.” X grimaced, turning to face the man as he walked out of his lab, Doigt trailing behind.

“Regardless of whether you’re in the mood or not, Old Man, you are still healing, and pushing yourself like this will only get you killed. After this mission, we’re looking at your back again.” Cerveau crossed his arms, the only one in the entire base brave enough to talk to X like that.

Probably because he had basically brought him back from the dead.

X sneered lightly at being called ‘Old Man’, but let it slide.

“I’ll get to my back when I damn well please, Cerveau. And if it kills me, then good, maybe then I can rest for a while without someone breathing down my goddamned neck all the time.” The android sassed back, turning and walking back towards the elevator.

He could vaguely hear Cerveau insult him before the door closed, Doigt waving goodbye and smiling sheepishly next to the engineer’s angry shouts.

X knew Cerveau was right, but he couldn’t really stop to care about himself now. There were too many innocents suffering because of his mistakes, and he would fix them even if it put him in the ground.

The elevator rode up the shaft, taking him to the Trans-Server room. When it opened, X made a note in his head again to make sure to look at it at some point when he got back and moved away from it.

Milan, the ever faithful young man, jumped up from his spot on the floor, the other reploids following suit, when they saw X step out.

“Commander X! We’re ready to deploy, Joan already gave me our report.” Milan trailed behind X, going over their own details of the mission they had received.

X was reminded momentarily of Tria, walking him through their patrol route before being murdered in cold-blood in front of his eyes. That wasn’t a fun thought to have before starting another mission.

“Thank you Milan. I want you and your squad to deploy first. I’ll follow behind and get to the captives. Keep them busy.” X spoke, his buster humming as he prepared it for battle. He didn’t look Milan in the eyes as he gave him his orders, best to keep him at arm's length.

Milan nodded, signalling to his other squadmates to head through the Trans-Server. He watched them as one by one they deployed into Neo Arcadia’s holding cells, ready to engage with his city as ‘terrorists’.

Once all of the reploids disappeared, X stepped forward, readying his buster. With a sigh, his boosters in his legs hummed to life, ready to dash immediately as he arrived.

“Transfer!”

A beam of light struck the android, and in a split second, he was gone.

#fs-chapter archive #ch. 3 #fs-chapter update #mega man zero #xzero

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brainfuzzz · 2 years

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A Happier Life Ch. 3 "A Day In The Life"

This is a fic where Luffy is 7 and living with Crocodile in Alabasta. Baroque Works knows that Crocodile is the boss and so does everyone else. Crocodile struggles to be a villain while raising a goodhearted Luffy and being involved with a Revolutionary. This fic is for my pure enjoyment of crocomom and wanting to create a much happier timeline. Some chapters will have more plot than others. Some chapters will only exist for fluff or very mild smut. I never go to graphic but who knows. All straw hat ages are younger and based around Luffy's except for Robin who I made 14 and Franky 16. Brook stays the same along with Jinbei. Most backstories will be rewritten to make them happier with some exceptions. Oh, and Crocodile is Whitebeard's son.

NSFW Chapter

Bacon accompanied by a sweet syrupy scent hangs in the air lulling Crocodile out of his sleep. He first instinctively reaches for Luffy to pull him close. When his hand finds nothing but the empty bed, he jolts awake. He sits up, eyes scanning the room for his son. Then he hears his laugh coming from the kitchen accompanied by the sounds of dishes clanking together. Then a deeper laugh of a man followed by Robin’s voice. Crocodile’s shoulders relax as he lets out a relieved breath. He slowly slides out from under the sheets and covers himself with a silk navy blue robe.

When he steps out of his room, he finds Luffy sitting at the head of the table, bouncing up and down in excitement for breakfast. Crocodile smiles at the sight of Luffy’s bright face. Robin sits next to him sipping her cup of coffee with a book opened in front of her. Then Dragon steps up to the table and slides a tall stack of pancakes towards their son.

“There you go. My famous chocolate strawberry pancakes!” He’s wearing an apron that is covered in flour and wet doughy stains. When Crocodile walks further into the large room that doubles as the living room and kitchen, he discovers the kitchen counters piling with dishes.

“Famous huh? Then why haven’t I heard of them?” Crocodile asks while approaching the espresso machine.

“Because it’s a big revolutionary secret.” He lifts a finger to his lips and gives Luffy a wink. Crocodile finishes making his coffee and leans against the kitchen island. Dragon walks over and does the same across from him, their faces inches apart. They lean in and share a short kiss. When they part, Crocodile wants to pull him back in and devour him right here and now. But he doesn’t. Not with Robin and Luffy only a few feet away. Crocodile tilts his head to peer over Dragon’s shoulder to see Luffy staring at them as he chews a mouth full of pancakes. Crocodile pushes himself away from the island and crosses over to sit next to him.

“You didn’t wake me when you got up.” He says while reaching out to tap the top of his straw hat.

Luffy swallows his massive bite and grins, “Dad told me not to. Said he wanted to surprise you.”

Crocodile glances back at Dragon who shrugs and says, “Turned out that I had a few free days to spare and decided to pop by for a surprise. Plus, I feel bad about yesterday.”

Crocodile leans back in his chair and sips his coffee before saying, “Good.”

Robin gives a soft giggle from behind her book. When the clock strikes 8, she slowly closes the book and reaches for her bag propped against her chair.

“Are you going to school?” Luffy asks with a full mouth.

Robin nods, “Yeah, Mrs. Mayweather should be here soon. I’m going to head up. When I’m finished, I’ll report to your office.”

“That’s fine.” Crocodile nods as she starts for the door. When Crocodile recruited Robin, he made sure that she would be able to continue her studies. But because of her infamous past and large bounty he can’t just send her off to school. So, he hired a private tutor to come and give her lessons during the day. They have classes in a spare room above the casino. Sometimes Miss Goldenweek will join her when she’s not on assignment. She mostly learns from Mr. 3 and so far, doesn’t seem to be falling behind.

Luffy stabs at the remaining pile of pancakes and pouts his lips, “I don’t have to go to school today, do I?”

“I thought you liked school?” Crocodile arches a brow from over his coffee. Dragon gives a soft laugh and joins them. He slides a small stack of pancakes in front of Crocodile. Luffy blows out a puff of air.

“I like hanging out with my friends, but I don’t like sitting still that long. Mr. Gonzo is boring!” He angrily stuffs his mouth with pancakes. Crocodile has to hold his tongue. Had he had it his way, Luffy would be taking classes with Robin upstairs, safe, and under his roof. But Luffy quickly learned that other children get to go to school together and then demanded that he be allowed to attend as well. It was possibly one of the most heated arguments he’s ever had with a 7 year old. In the end, Luffy had won.

“Well, don’t worry.” Crocodile sighs at last. “You’ll get to spend the day with us. But you will go tomorrow, understand?”

“Okay!” Luffy flashes another wide grin and finishes off the last of his pancakes. Crocodile makes him go wash up after he somehow managed to get syrup all over himself. Crocodile sighs and sets his coffee cup down to take a bite out of the pancakes Dragon had prepared. Before he can take the first bite, Dragon slides his hand over Crocodile’s thigh. Crocodile eyes him suspiciously. Dragon props his chin in his other hand with mischievous a grin splayed across his face.

“Our child is in the next room.” Crocodile warns, taking his first bite of breakfast.

Dragon gives a slight shrug. Then he looks down and softly asks, “How long has it been?”

Crocodile sets his fork down. It’s been too long. With Crocodile busy with Baroque Works and Dragon busy with the revolution, they hardly find time to be together. And the few times they are, its usually spending family time with Luffy and Robin. Not much of it can be spent alone together. The heat rushing to Crocodile’s groin is evidence enough that they desperately need to lock themselves in the bedroom. Dragon’s hand slides even higher and squeezes, sending a jolt of pleasure. With the only thing between his hand and Crocodile’s thigh being silk, his heat sends a tingle up Crocodile’s spine. Crocodile turns to face Dragon, his heart racing as he succumbs to the overwhelming urge to have this man, right now. They lean in, hands reaching out for the other and…

“I’m done!” Luffy announces as he reenters the room. In an instant, Crocodile and Dragon part. Crocodile stabs at his pancakes with the clear of his throat as Dragon looks away, suddenly enthralled with the crown molding while trying to discreetly adjust his pants. Luffy looks between them and says, “What’s wrong with you two?”

“Nothing, nothing at all.” Crocodile smiles and stands, abandoning his pancakes. He walks over and kneels down to give Luffy’s cheek a kiss. “I need to get to work. Think you can look after dad for me?”

“Yeah, no problem.” He says nonchalantly. Crocodile smiles and gets to his feet. He gives Dragon a more apologetic smile and turns for the bedroom to get dressed for the day.

Crocodile distracts his thoughts with work. There’s not a day that goes by that he isn’t completely swamped. Sometimes people forget that he’s not only running an elaborate bounty hunter company but also a casino that acts as a hotel and restaurant. There’s always a fire to be put out or some crisis that he needs to handle personally. He delegates as much as he can but its never enough. And on top of all of that, he’s a warlord and has duties to uphold with the World Government.

He sits at his desk, tapping his pen to a sheet of paper he’s been trying to read for the past five minutes but can’t seem to focus long enough to get past the first sentence. He’s staring at his clock but he’s thinking of dates. He’ll have to report to headquarters soon for a warlord meeting. They’re usually pointless. Warlords have no interest in Navy affairs, but they’ll do what they must to keep their title. Truthfully, Crocodile doesn’t mind them. They can be inconvenient because he’s almost always in the middle of something, but it is a nice escape. Sometimes. Other times it just adds to his problems. He rubs his eyes when the image of Doflamingo flashes across his mind and suddenly he has a headache.

He pauses when a tiny hand lifts from the front of his desk with a tiny wooden toy ship in hand. Luffy bounces it in the air as if sailing on waves.

“Hello Mary, where are you off to?” Crocodile props his chin in his hand. Luffy’s head pops up and smiles.

“We’re off to find our crew!” Luffy announces.

“I thought you already found your crew?” Crocodile realizes he won’t be reading this report anytime soon and places the sheet of paper back into the pile.

Luffy frowns while fidgeting with his toy ship, “None of my friends want to become pirates.”

“What about Vivi?” Crocodile rolls his chair out from behind his desk and lets Luffy walk around and climb into his lap. Crocodile gently lifts his hat off Luffy’s head and places it on his desk. “I thought Vivi wanted to join your crew?”

Luffy shakes his head, his fingers still turning the toy around, tracing the lines of the bow, “Sometimes she does and sometimes she doesn’t.”

Crocodile kisses the top of his head, lingering just long enough to take in his scent. He doesn’t know if it’s a maternal parent thing, but he always feels a deep sense of calm whenever he catches Luffy’s scent. It was worse when he was a baby.

Crocodile tilts his head so he can see more of Luffy’s face, “Don’t worry. You’ll find your crew. They’re out there somewhere just waiting for their captain to find them.”

Luffy looks up at him and flashes his signature grin and says, “Yeah!”

The door at the top of the long stairs leading to the casino opens as Mr. 2 steps inside. Luffy wiggles in Crocodile’s lap until he’s hopped off and is running towards the stairs shouting, “Bon!”

“My, if it isn’t Straw Boy.” Mr. 2 puts his hands on his hips with a grin.

Luffy scrunches his face up. “I told you I don’t like that nickname! It’s not cool enough.”

“To bad, so sad.” Mr. 2 shrugs. He approaches Crocodile’s desk while Luffy tries to climb up his legs. “Boss, I am happy to report that the mission went off without a hitch! But was there ever any doubt?”

“Good job,” Crocodile begins riffling through his papers trying to find the one pertaining to Bon Clay’s current assignment. When he finds it, he hands it to him. Mr. 2 takes the papers and crosses over to the long table that they use for meetings to fill out his portion of the report. Crocodile forces himself to return to the paper he had been trying to get through earlier. With both adults consumed with paperwork, Luffy sprawls out on the floor and stares up at the ceiling.

“I’m so bored I’m going to die.” he announces.

“Simply tragic.” Crocodile says while filling out the bottom of the form.

“Always with the dramatics.” Mr. 2 hums. Luffy lets out a huff.

“What’s your father doing?” Crocodile asks when he’s finally finished with the paper. Luffy rolls his head so he’s looking at him.

“He got a call from work and told me to come in here with you.” He explains before rolling his head back so he’s once again staring at the ceiling. Crocodile frowns.

“Bon Clay, do you mind watching Luffy for me?” Crocodile gets to his feet.

“With pleasure.” Mr. 2 smiles over his report. Crocodile leaves Luffy in his care and enters their living quarters. He can hear Dragon’s voice coming from the bedroom. When he enters the room, he finds Dragon sitting on the edge of the bed speaking into a transponder snail. When he notices Crocodile, he gives an apologetic look before nodding and responding to the person on the other side. Crocodile crosses his arms not sure of what to do. On one hand he wants to make Dragon hang up the receiver and go back to spend time with their son. On the other hand, he understands that some things need his attention for things to run properly. Especially when lives are on the line. Needless to say, neither of them has quite found that perfect work life balance.

Then he realizes something and comes up with an evil plan. He quietly shuts the bedroom door and locks it. He peeks over his shoulder to see if Dragon heard the lock, but he’s fully engrossed in what the other man is saying. Crocodile slowly crosses the room and enters the closet. He first removes his hook and then begins to undress. He pauses in front of the closet door. For some reason, he’s starting to get nervous. He banishes the feeling and forces the door open.

Dragon freezes, his eyes wide. Crocodile leans against the doorway, completely naked. He gives a grin that makes Dragon swallow.

“I need to call you back.” Dragon hangs up the receiver before the other person can protest. Crocodile starts to approach Dragon but is intercepted halfway. They kiss, hungry and desperate for the other. Crocodile is pulling his clothes off, not caring if anything gets torn. They stumble back and fall on the floor but make no attempt to stop. Dragon manages to grab onto the sheets on the bed and pull them down, so they aren’t rolling around on the cold tile. Dragon rolls Crocodile over so that he’s on his back and starts kissing his neck. With one hand sliding up Crocodile’s leg, hitching it over his hip, the other slips between Crocodile’s legs. Crocodile lets out a low satisfying moan, his legs opening seemingly on their own, inviting Dragon in. Crocodile reaches for his bedside table. He struggles to open the drawer, causing his book to topple over the side before eventually yanking the entire drawer out to get the bottle of lubricant.

When they were younger, they could have gone all night long. But now? Now they’re lucky if they can do it multiple times in one night. He’s not sure how long this round lasted, but he knows it can’t have been long. Not when they were both pent up, desperate for the others touch. Dragon’s head rests against Crocodile’s chest as Crocodile’s body continues to tremble. Dragon eases out and rolls so that he’s lying next to Crocodile. They say nothing for a moment, the only sounds are of them trying to catch their breaths.

Dragon gives a soft laugh, “You should interrupt my work calls more often.”

Crocodile swallows and runs a hand over his sweaty forehead, “Sure, I’ll just pop into your headquarters naked from time to time. I’m sure no one will mind.”

“I won’t.” Dragon rolls onto his side and props his head on his hand. His other hand lazily trails the lines on Crocodile’s chest. Crocodile tilts his head at him and leans forward to give him a kiss.

“I should get back. I don’t like leaving Luffy alone with Bon Clay for this long.” Crocodile says reluctantly. Dragon rolls on his back with a sigh.

“I should really call them back. It was important.” He rubs his face tiredly. Crocodile gets up first, cursing when he realizes how weak in the knees he is. He manages to slip into the bathroom and clean up quickly. When he steps out of the bathroom, Dragon is waiting and smacks his ass when he starts towards the closet. Crocodile gives him a look but grins when he turns away.

Once he and Dragon are decent once more, Dragon returns to his call and Crocodile leaves to look for their son. Crocodile still fiddles with his neck scarf—struggling to get it to fold correctly—when he steps into his office. He stops dead in his tracks. Bon Clay and Luffy hold pens in their hands having a pretend sword fight. Bon Clay does a ballerina move prompting Luffy to kick his leg. Except Luffy is now rubber, so his leg accidently stretches too far and knocks into Crocodile’s desk. He hits it so hard that it causes all his papers to scatter on the floor. Crocodile stares at the mess and then at Luffy and Bon Clay.

“He did it!” they both say while pointing at the other. Crocodile sighs and realizes he’s not going to be getting much work done today after all.

Read full story HERE on AO3!!!

#A Happier Life #Ch. 3 #A Day In The Life #one piece #sir crocodile #crocodile #crocomom #monkey d. dragon #monkey d. luffy #bon clay #mr. 2 #nico robin #robin #one piece fanfiction #ao3 fanfic #crocodile x dragon

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