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It's with an ornery titter that Luffy knocks Ace's hat off his head. The familiar look of exasperation he's given is undercut by an even more familiar fondness and Luffy revels in it no matter how fleeting a thing it is. Ace's gentle affections – Luffy has missed them; he's missed Ace.
So of course when Ace rolls his eyes and puts his hat back on, Luffy bounces back to him. Lunging forward to knock Ace's hat off once more before side skipping away, cackling in that cheeky way little brothers do when they're being annoying and preening when he steals Ace's attention and keeps it.
Luffy slips out of Ace's reach, batting away his hand and falling into a soft fit of laughter when Ace bats him back. It's too hot to mess around too much, but they still play like they used to. Halfhearted roughhousing and quipped banter that makes them both smile.
For all the warnings he was given about the Alabasta desert being unforgiving, Luffy doesn't notice it. Not when Ace shares his water when Luffy is thirsty; not when Ace carries Luffy on his back when he's tired.
'So you're why he's so spoiled,' His crew teases them and Ace laughs, sheepish and shameless all at once.
'Because I'm his big brother,' Ace tells them. From where Luffy rests his head on Ace's shoulder, he can see the pride in Ace's smile. Soft and gentle; warm and wonderful. Luffy might feel just as sheepish, just as shameless as he kicks out his legs, toes curled into his sandals and cheeks flushed with contentment as he ducks his face into the back of Ace's neck. Smile wide where it presses against Ace's skin.
Ace readjusts his grip on him, bouncing Luffy up his back. Luffy lets himself be jostled, content to be spoiled while he has the chance. Hooking his chin over Ace's shoulder to talk to him for some time, then knocking Ace's hat off again when Luffy wants to rile him, slipping from Ace's back and catching said hat before it has a chance to hit the ground and bounding off.
Not far though, given how sand catches between his foot and sandal, leaving Luffy tripping. He careens forward, catching himself for all of a moment before scrambling about, free hand slipping through sand until Luffy rights himself and bounces upright. Looking back at Ace with a brilliant smile as Ace laughs under his breath.
It's a wonderful thing to see. Delightful. Distracting.
"You gonna give that back?" It sounds like a challenge.
Luffy shakes his head, resolute. Determined because Luffy can't help but remember back to when they were young. How the sun used to stain Ace's skin with red burns across his shoulders and cheeks; the back of his neck and the bridge of his nose. It was funny. Sweet. It's another missed something between them.
"Your sunburns always made you look like a strawberry."
It's a silly thing to remember and hold onto, but it stands out in Luffy's memory the same as crying over scraped knees and having splinters picked from his palms and the warmth of a brother's back carrying him home.
Ace looks at him, as incredulous as he is amused, "You want me to burn?"
And Luffy laughs despite the crude accusation because, "Yeah, kind of."
"Menace." Ace calls him, an endearment if Luffy's ever heard one.
When Luffy trips again, Ace catches him. He takes his hat back, then promptly drops Luffy into the sand and snickers at the affronted expression that startles across Luffy's face.
"I don't get sunburned anymore." Ace snickers down at him, fire licking at his cheek before it's whisked away into the desert heat. "Tough luck, Lu—oof!"
The loss of strawberry sunburns is a devastating hit, but Luffy has always been one to rally. Cheated as he feels, he doesn't take any loss lying down. With no preamble, he snags the string affixed to Ace's hat and tugs his brother forward into the sand with him. Pulling him close enough for their noses to brush together, for Luffy to kiss Ace's cheek - smiling wide and laughing before he ever pulls away because Luffy can already feel it — Ace's blush; a stain of heat across his cheeks, a flush of color like sweet strawberries.