Ace hit the ground, face first, his tired limbs not willing to support his body. He'd seen Jimbei fall first, so he figured that meant he'd won. The fight had lasted for days. He was tired, and all he wanted to do was close his eyes and fall asleep. A big voice booming over him stopped him though. "Who was the man who wanted my head?" the voice asked.
Ace forced his body to move, and threw up a fire wall to protect his crew, "Run guys. I'll take care of this!" he said. He couldn't see if they were listening, but he hoped they would. He was tired, but he wouldn't give up. He had something to prove. He attacked. Whitebeard sent him flying into the ground. It started. He attacked, and attacked, and was knocked down each time. He growled, and got back up. He wasn't making even a scratch on the huge man. He attacked again, and was knocked back, but this time his narcolepsy sent him into darkness. He couldn't see the light in Whitebeard's eyes as the old man carried him to his ship. He didn't see his crew come back for him, and get rounded up for their troubles. He just slept on.
When he woke up he was in a small wooden room, and the world was rocking. He recognized that it wasn't his ship. He quickly got up and crept out of the room, following the corridor out onto the deck of the ship. The sun was bright, blinding him. "Tch." he groused. He was on the Moby Dick. He crouched down and leaned against the wall. He fell back onto his butt when a blonde pompadour appeared before his eyes, quickly followed by a face that he could by no means call handsome, but wouldn't go as far as to call ugly. "What the fuck?" he bit out as the man laughed out.
"Hiya kiddo! My name's Thatch. I thought that since we'll soon be nakama, we should be friends!" he said. He hopped up onto a wooden crate, his white chef's uniform gleaming in the evening sun. "I'm the commander of the 4th division of the Whitebeard Pirates!" he said grinning, and extending his hand to Ace.
Ace snarled, and batted the hand away from him, pressing closer to the wall. His face was twisted into a snarl. He didn't need friends on this ship. He just needed to kill Whitebeard. Thatch just laughed at him and shrugged. Ace heard him say something that sounded suspiciously like, 'He'll come around.' Ace watched him go and didn't relax until he was out of sight. He buried his head in his arms and sighed. He was hungry, he could hold out he decided. He didn't need their food. He found himself wondering about his crew. He wondered if they had gotten away. He hoped so, seeing as it had been him who had drug them into this mess.
He waited until the sun went down, and snuck into Whitebeard's room. He pulled his knife out and leapt at the sleeping man. Suddenly Whitebeard's eyes snapped open, and Ace found himself flying through the wall of Whitebeard's room, and hitting the wall of the ship, splintering the wood. Ace sat up, and rubbed his back and reached for his knife, only for a pale hand to grab it before he could. He looked up and came face to face with an incredibly sleepy looking blonde. Ace swallowed. He would definitely classify this man as beautiful. Suddenly the blonde looked away from him, and glanced at the other men on the deck. The men quickly left leaving only Ace and the blonde together on deck. Ace glanced around extremely aware that everyone else was suddenly in the bowels of the ship. The blonde turned back to him, and motioned for him to follow him. Ace hesitated, but he wanted his knife back, so he followed the man up the rigging and into the crow's nest.
The man hoisted himself into the bucket like structure, and Ace hesitated again, before joining him in it. He sat down and looked at the sleepy looking blonde who was looking at him. The man was twisting Ace's knife around and around in his hands, his half lidded eyes never leaving him as Ace glared back. "That was cowardly yoi." he said, his hands stilling on the blade.
Ace bristled, "Who are you to say that?!" he hissed out. He didn't know who this man was, but the other men seemed to listen to him. It irritated Ace that he thought to lecture him, but more than that, he was ashamed because he knew the man was right. He really hoped that the blush he was positive was on his face, was actually in his imagination.
The blonde handed him his knife back, "I'm Marco, first division commander yoi." he said. Marco looked at the blushing male in front of him. He hadn't decided if he was a man or a boy. Marco was pretty sure that he was at least 17, but the kid's freckles made him look younger. He watched as Ace processed the information even as he took his knife back. He wouldn't have noticed Ace's flinch as he grabbed the knife, if he hadn't been watching the man so closely. He frowned, "Show me where you're hurt yoi." he said.
Ace glared at him, "I'm not hurt."
"Show me or I will make you yoi." Marco said, not raising his voice. Ace stayed backed up against the wall, and made no move to let Marco help him, so Marco reached for him. Ace burst himself into flames where Marco touched him.
Instead of jumping back like most people Marco stayed where he was, and pulled Ace towards himself. Ace looked down and saw that Marco's hand was encased in blue flames. Instantly Ace pulled his flames back into himself, and wondered at the cool feeling of Marco's fire. It didn't burn him. He reached his hand up, and ran his fingers through the sapphire colored flames. They jumped and danced as he played with them. He couldn't feel the pain in his shoulder anymore.
Marco watched as Ace stared, transfixed, at his flames. He'd never seen anyone have this particular reaction to his fire before. Of course, his own reaction to Ace's fire wasn't normal either. Especially not for him, he wondered if it was the phoenix part of him that craved that heat, craved the feeling of that burning fire caressing him.
Neither man moved for a second, then Marco pulled away from Ace and pulled his fire back in. Ace made a noise of denial until he realized what he was doing. Marco had never seen anyone move so fast before. He watched as Ace jumped out of the crow's nest, and ignore the rigging, instead letting himself freefall before catching himself with his fire. He was gone as soon as his feet touched the deck.
Marco looked at the spot Ace had previously occupied. He had never felt a reaction to something that strongly before. He clenched his fist, and let the blue fire surround it. He'd have to be careful. He didn't need any attachments other than those he had to his brothers and Oyaji. Even as he thought that, he couldn't help but yearn for Ace's fire, or stop his eyes from searching for the boy.