By Lady Kasha

One Piece is not mine. It is the great and powerful Eiichiro Oda.

You Thought yours was bad?

Ace did not like this situation one bit. He had no fucking clue how the events of the past few weeks had led up to this. He had no idea, not one. He was currently sitting against the side of Whitebeard's ship, Moby Dick. His captain was sitting in his chair out in the middle of the deck. In front of his captain was the only other man who he ever thought about taking orders from. Ace did not know why Smoker was here, but he was, and Whitebeard had let him come. He had allowed the marine on his ship.

The whole situation did not make any sense. Ace would like to have added a few expletives before sense, but his brain could not handle it. The news of Smoker's ship heading this way had been days old. Luffy had fought some stupid battle with some overly powerful person. Consequently, Smoker had shot ahead of his brother going deeper into the New World. Passing by Luffy and heading for Whitebeard. Whitebeard when he heard the news that the White Hunter was heading for him had commanded the ship forward in order to meet the Marine. This of course set the Marines that were stationed out here into a panic. They had no idea what was happening. Smoker truly was acting alone.

The news just caused an explosion of laughter to erupt from his captain. Ace wanted to race off and tell his lover to turn back, but his captain had looked to him. Whitebeard said that this had nothing to do with Ace. Ace was not sure if he liked that or not. His captain seemed almost, pleased with the White Hunter's approach.

Smoker had moved past the other Marines as if it were nothing, but children. His ship came to a halt a little ways away from Whitebeard's massive ship. It was obvious Smoker's men had little a clue what he was doing. He heard the orders coming from all around as men dropped like flies. Smoker told Tashigi to turn the ship around and head back to the other side of the line. She tried to protest, but Smoker was no longer there, but a cloud of smoke.

The Marine rematerialized on the deck tossing out the cigars behind him into the sea. He was moving in front of Whitebeard as if it was the most normal thing for a marine to do. A cloud of smoke still surrounding his form as he moved in front of my captain no cigars, no way out, and no back up in sight. I had never seen my captain so happy before in all the time I served under him. Smoker smirked and let the rest of the smoke materialize revealing a rather large barrel.

"Still your favorite?" Smoker asked looking extremely bored. Whitebeard crushed the cup in his hand. Shards of the broken cup shot everywhere, others dodged, but Smoker let the fragments pass straight through him. Whitebeard smiled and moved forward from his chair grabbing the barrel from the deck. The Nurses began throwing a fit at the captain. Smoker just shook his head at the sight. Whitebeard opened the barrel and inhaled deeply. The older man was pleased.

"In my desk there is a wood box, get it now!" Whitebeard commanded grabbing the barrel up and taking a swig. Whitebeard relaxed visibly. Smoker just raked his hand through his own off white hair. Ace could feel the tension begin to slip away, but Smoker kept glancing back at his ship. Ace smirked. I knew there was a reason I liked Tashigi, she makes Smoker worry she will pull some of his shit.

"You have not changed at all." Smoker stated tearing his gaze away from his fading ship and focusing on Whitebeard. Whitebeard snorted over his drink placing the barrel down eying Smoker with a lazy stare.

"You're a few decades too young to be saying that brat." Whitebeard said with no malice in his voice. Ace was in one word, shocked. He was expecting his lover's dead body to be hanging from the bow, not some sort of conversation between his captain and his lover.

"You are almost as old as he was…" Smoker looked toward the sea his ship no longer in sight. Smoker finally relaxed. Whitebeard snorted again picking up the barrel and taking a swig.

"Sir, you really should not…" One of the nurses tried to stop him, but she was quickly tossed aside in the Captain's rage.

"Where is the box?" Whitebeard was fuming. He had given and order and he yet to see results. "When a son returns to his father and brings him his finest Sake, the father should at least offer his son his finest cigars. Get them NOW!" His captain bellowed. Ace had never seen him so angry. He felt like running to find those damned cigars himself. He could not move though, not from his spot. He had to watch this play out. He had to listen to the words these two men spoke.

"Still trying to make up for that?" Smoker asked leaning against planks of the inner part of the ship. Whitebeards eyes shifted to him. Smoker's eyes are closed almost bored with the whole situation.

"My offer still stands." Whitebeard states, Smoker cracks open an eye, locking on to the most powerful pirate in the entire world.

"I'm not a pirate." Smoker stated as the ships doors fly open and a box is presented to the captain by one of his crew.

"Don't pretend like I don't know what you are doing. You're the only marine alive to be on my ship." Whitebeard states opening the cigar box for Smoker. Smoker takes out one cigar reaching into his pocket. "I would even kill Garp and Sendoku on sight." Smoker smiles taking a step back having cut one end of the cigar and lighting the other end with a lighter Ace had never seen before. Whitebeard laughed at Smoker who just smiled around the cigar. "Brought your best toys..."

"Thank you. I forget how good these are." Smoker said looking up to Whitebeard. "I have to bring my best or else you go on a rampage. The marines can not afford to lose anymore bodies…not now." Whitebeard laughed and took another swig out of the barrel.

"Been about five or six years, that's far too long boy." Whitebeard looked down to Smoker, who seemed to shrug off the look he was receiving.

"You know the marines like to keep the wolves on shorter leashes than the dogs. You have a lot of new member it is starting to look like a group of kids." Smoker said with a shrug. Whitebeard laughed aloud with thunderous reverberation.

"Not like you gave them much choice. Named yourself the White Hunter, disobeyed orders, acted on your own, used excessive force, heck if you did not turn in so many pirates they would think you were a spy." Whitebeard chuckled looking down to Smoker, resting his head on an open palm. "Not many pirates last five years, your kind makes sure of that. I'm not having a fleet come here mind you."

"I'll be gone soon enough…no need to worry. The marines could do with some more worry. The spies are much higher rank than I am." Smoker turned to Whitebeard who seemed content able to talk for hours. Ace thought his lover looked very relaxed and sexy with that cigar in his mouth. The thought struck Ace that Smoker looked very reserved, not a look normally possessed by the man. "What type of flowers should I put on that grave for you?"

"Is it really getting to that time again?" Whitebeard smiled looking to the barrel lost in the past. "Ah…I did lilies last year…" Whitebeard looked to the sky. His captain had never spoken of a woman before ever. He had his nurses, but none of those were ever romantic relationship. This woman Smoker mentioned sounded romantic, very romantic. "Would you lay down some Daisies for me? She loved daisies."

"Of course…" Smoker tapped his cigar and turned to the most powerful pirate in the seas and smiled. Whitebeard smiled as well pulling out a weapon from behind him.

"Formalities are over, Son." Whitebeard looked to Smoker who had yet to put his hand on his jitte. Tension swam back over the ship. Ace was worried now. His lover was so going to die. Smoker smiled then sat down. Whitebeard seemed to sigh at the marine, sitting back down letting his weapon fall, tired and seemingly disappointed. "What?"

"You know my hand. I have a request." Smoker said tilting his head to the side as Whitebeard sized him up.

"No wonder you brought the good stuff, you still don't drink do you? Well except for those old anniversaries." Whitebeard chuckled lifting the barrel up for another go. "You also have been acting more civilized than usual." Smoker smiled at Whitebeard's words.

"We can not afford a fight between those families yet." Smoker's voice was dark, Whitebeard tired to give an aura off of disinterest, but Ace could tell Smoker's words struck a cord. "The deck is stacked against all of us. If you draw now all the waiting will have been for not." Smoker eyes had turned to steel. Ace felt like he was intruding, like he was watching something he should never see.

He and Smoker had been involved for a while. Ace was always sneaking around trying to get the marine out of his pants. Whitebeard even knew about his relationship with the Marine. Whitebeard had not cared about it or about the Marine himself. Ace did not recognize the man before him. This marine, the one standing before him, was not his lover.

"Is that your opinion or the government's?" Whitebeard's words caught Ace off guard. He watched amazed as the words struck and smoke poured out of the Marine.

"You know my opinion of the government." Smoker growled smoke still pouring out of him without any form of restraint. Some of the smoke came close enough to Ace to be burned away by his flame. The marine did not react though. Smoker was nothing like he usual self.

"That I do. I also know your opinion of me." Whitebeard moved a hand towards his weapon as Smoker slammed a fist into the deck causing the ship to lurch to the side sending lesser men overboard.

"You killed her! You filthy pirate! You and your chaotic ways killed her!" Smoker was angry. Ace had only seen Smoker angry once before and it was not a pretty sight. When the Marine lost his temper nothing could stop him. The fire within him jumped. It was trying to get its master to run away. The smoke was starting to push against the flame smothering the warmth. Ace did not move. He needed to hear this.

"Is it so hard to call her by her name, even mother would be better." Whitebeard watched as smoke clouded his vision. Things began to shake on his ship moving and crashing into the sea. Medical equipment shattered and burst under the force of Smoker's uncontained rage.

"You have no right to lecture me. You were not there as she died. She cried out for you. Hoping you would appear. Then when you did appear it was only after that man's death. You had the balls to approach me and expected me to go with you." The smoke thickened pouring over the side of the ship, but Smoker still retained standing tall in the middle of it.

"You were too strong though." Whitebeard's words came as a shock. Men turned to the captain even though they could not see him. The smoke stopped growing seeming to calm down at Whitebeard's words. "You hold your morals high. Not even the fruit could turn you against them. Justice is the path you have chosen. Nothing I can do could change that. I will keep my word now get off my ship." Smoker did not even responded finally turning into smoke taking off pouring towards his ship. With a whiff of smoke being all that remained soaring away from Whitebeard, away from Ace, back to Tashigi and back to his Justice.

"Captain?" One nurse dared to ask after minutes of silence.

"Pull back. Get us out of here. As far back as we can manage without stirring those Marines too much. Get us out of their way. Let them pass by." Whitebeard said holding up the barrel to his nose no longer able to stand the smell of the rich drink. Whitebeard pulled it away looking towards where the white cloud had vanished.

"Sir?"

"I said let that idiot and Straw-Hat pass us by. We can let them go unchecked for a little while longer." Whitebeard smiled watching as the Marine sails faded over the horizon.

"But Sir…why captain?" A brave soul asked fear was present in his voice and Whitebeard's presence seemed to fill the ship in an instant.

"Because my son came to see me after five years and he brought me my favorite sake. He even acted nice until I pissed him off. I got good memories out of it. They're worth more than Straw-Hat's life." Whitebeard poured the rest of the sake out on the deck before him, smiling over the new memories he had obtained.

"He's not part of the crew though."

"He is not a son, like the rest of you. He is my son. Born of my late wife, he is my flesh and blood." Whitebeard proclaimed. Ace began to choke on the smoke tinted air around him. He could feel his face turning white. "Don't tell the Marines." Whitebeard burst out laughing the crew just seemed to stare. The marine's White Hunter was the son of the pirate's famed Whitebeard. For some reason that was more frightening.

Ace paled. He was having sex with his captain's son. He was sleeping with his Captain's son. Ace was a dead man. Why was he not dead yet? Oh god, he was royally screwed. He wondered where Smoker was. He needed to talk to the Marine. This was something that the man should have brought up. He was going to hang him for keeping this from him. Screw the Marine.

The next thought hit him like a freight train. Smoker had just shown up, acted civilized to a father he had not seen in five years, brought expensive sake, and begged for Whitebeard to let Luffy, Ace's little brother pass by. Maybe he would not kill the Marine just give him really good sex. Really fucking mind blowing sex that he would use against him the first chance he got.

He needed to see Smoker.

Ace wondered what the hell his captain had been thinking when he told Ace as long as he was getting his worth he did not care. Heck he was a sort of second hand communication between the two. Ace blushed, a violent shade of red, hell Whitebeard probably just wanted to see how his son was doing. His captain did not care about the fact that Ace was sleeping with his son. Hell, what if the marines found out?

Who the hell was a part of this family that Smoker had come to protect?