It's well known by now of how soulmates work: when soulmates touch, bright vibrant colors swirl on their skin where they touched. Then happily ever after right?
That's what the media liked to say. Saying they understood, so they could sell romance movies to die hearts who longed for love. Marco will admit, he never cared for soulmates. He'd seen the hurt it could cause. He and his family saw what soulmates could do. They can break you, they can hurt you and they can kill you for not being what they imagined you to be.
Marco was seven when he saw one of the many ways you could find a soulmate.
Izo smiled lovingly down at her tattooed wrist, turning to give thatch a peck on the cheek, "You can be born with a tattoo that's only half complete and it completes itself the moment you find your soulmate." She said this towards Marco who was sitting at the kitchen counter.
He stuck his tongue out as he saw the exchange of affection, "Gross Izo," he whined covering his eyes.
Thatch laughed ruffling his hair, "Better be careful what you say squirt one day you're going to be the icky adult!"
He was ten when he learned not all soulmates liked each other.
Haruta was scribbling fiercely on her skin, a wicked grin taking up her face as she spoke, "Whatever you write on your skin will show up on the same spot on your soul mates."
She cackled as she continued drawing dicks on her arms, "Take that you bastard try getting a job when you're covered head to toes with dicks!"
Marco sent her a deadpanned look trying to hide his smile, "Are you serious what did he ever do to you? You've never met him anyway."
Haurta grew quiet. Putting her marker down she turned to Marco with a serious look in her eyes, "I've been talking with him for long enough to now to know he's bad news. It's a feeling in my gut. You know what Pops says about gut feelings don'tcha?"
He nodded quickly. She smiled for the briefest of moments then went back to looking serious. She stared down at her arms quietly saying, "some of the things he says don't sit well with me. He's becoming pushier lately and wants to know where I live. I don't plan on telling him anytime soon."
Later that year Haruta's soulmate was arrested for drugging one of his female coworkers.
He was Fourteen when he learned soulmates could be friends.
"When soulmates touch your names will show up on each other's bodies permanently, the place it shows up is random," As Vista said this he pulled his shirt collar showing a name tattooed on his body.
"So you guys aren't dating," He asks skeptically reading the name on Vista's chest. The other man only laughed at his look, "We're not dating but she's one hell of a best friend!" Vista ruffled Marco's hair smiling as he watched the younger hit his hand crossing his arms in a huff at the treatment.
"Why didn't you want to date," he asked.
Vista shrugged, "We had a few dates but it was obvious that she was uncomfortable with the idea from the beginning. After I confronted her she confessed that she was aromantic. When I heard that it lifted a weight off my chest. Having her as a friend is the best thing to happen to me yet."
Marco was sixteen when he learned soulmates could die before they met each other.
"Soulmates share strong emotions and physical pain, once you meet them you both can feel even the smallest emotion," Namur nodded sagely as he spoke, a sad look in his eyes as he clutched his chest. Marco sat with him for the rest of the day silently comforting the fishman.
There were many tales his brothers and sisters told but now he had his own story. Not too long ago he met his soulmate, Portagas D. Ace 'prankster extraordinaire.' He thought his soulmate would've had blond hair with bright blue eyes. Just like the man in his dreams, who always called out to him so sweetly.
Ace was the opposite of the man in his dreams. He had dark brown hair and skin with even darker freckles. While the man in his dream was pale a large peach colored burn scar over half of his face.
At first he was worried Ace would be one of those soulmates that try to force things or pretend to like him because soulmates 'always had to like each other.'
He never wanted someone to force themselves to be by his side forever. He wanted them to be there because they liked him, not because of what they thought they had to do.
He learned firsthand that Ace's thoughts where far from that. If Ace didn't like what he was doing he'd call him out on it, he could trust Ace to tell him the truth. He was relived.
If only his nosy siblings weren't there when they found out they were soulmates… The teasing was endless.
It all started with a little spark, Marco held his hand out for Ace to shake in greeting but instead of a normal hand shake, they got a light show.
When their hands connected light blue and orange sparks jumped to life. He remembered jolting, stumbling backwards staring at his palm in open shock.
Ace was no better, his jaw dropping at the occurrence of the sparks.
Thatch had about lost his damn mind, hooting and hollering at their reactions, thinking it was another one of Ace's pranks. Only, it wasn't. It wasn't a prank.
Sparks went flying wherever they touched and he could feel the little sparks land on his skin, they made electric tingles go up his spine sending his heart into over drive.
Ace, to put it nicely, was apprehensive of the idea of soulmates. He knew the only reason Ace agreed to even go on this 'outing' as thatch so smugly put it, was because they weren't going alone.
Thatch's plan for them was simple enough. Go out. Have a good time and get them both to loosen up around each other so they could talk.
What Marco wasn't expecting was this…..
His half lidded gaze went from his siblings, then towards the abandoned mansion, then back to his siblings again. What were they thinking!? Seriously the old 'take your soulmate somewhere scary so you can bond' trick. That doesn't even work it's even worst then the 'trying to put your hand around their shoulder during a scary movie' bit.
He scowled, "Are you two serious, Yoi!" He heard a snort come from Ace causing an embarrassed blush to cover his cheeks. He only scowled harder, glaring at his brother and sister who were trying to hold back their sinkers.
"What does yoi mean anyway," Ace asked, eyes twinkling with mischief.
He pinched the bridge of his nose, explaining it shortly, "It means nothing, it's just a vocal tick. It becomes more apparent when I'm mad or overwhelmed, Yoi" He saw Ace's smirk grow. Dear lord what has he unleashed, why didn't he just try to make something up. Ace was going to use that against him later, he just knew it.
Marco decided to focus all of his attention on the mansion. The first thing he noticed was the bad feeling the place gave him. He learned early on to trust his gut, Pop's always said to believe in your gut and it saved him more than once.
The old mansion was bad news, he didn't know why but it was. The building itself looked like your run of the mill abandoned building. The weeds were as tall as Haruta, the paint was peeling off the walls and the wood looked like it would crack if you stepped on it wrong.
The longer he looked at the place the more he felt a head ache coming on. The mansion seemed to warp in front of his eyes, showing him what it looked like in its glory days. He heard Ace draw in a sharp breath he turned to watch Ace as the other kept his eyes firmly on the mansion, with a look of wonder on his face. When Marco turned back to look at the building everything was back to its normal broken down state. There was a nagging feeling in the back of his head. He was forgetting something but he couldn't remember what it was.
He had the sudden overwhelming feeling to run away from this place; something told him what happened inside was less than pleasant. He did his best to squash the feeling down. There was a brief second where he swore he saw fire.
He shook his head trying to get the picture out of his mind. Glancing at Ace he watched the others brows furrow, as he studied the house. Did he see what Marco saw?
"Ace you okay?" He asked, nudging Ace to see if he would respond.
Ace shook his head just like Marco had done a few second ago. He easily slipped back into his teasing, "Yeah I'm all good but what about you? Are You scared to go in~"
He gave the other a deadpanned look, which wasn't that different from his resting face. His annoyance could clearly be felt as he spoke in monotone, "druggies stay away from this place and that's saying something since they'd shoot up anyway remotely abandoned."
Marco's sound words were ignored in favor of Thatch teasing him, cooing out, "What? Are you too chicken mamma bird? Are you just going to let your soulmate go in there all by himself?"
He felt his eye twitch, he glared at Thatch who only grinned back, Ace along with Haruta were nudging him in the ribs teasingly. It's amazing that his two siblings are older than him.
"Come on mamma bird~ just go in it won't hurt you," Ace was unable to hold back his laughter as he spoke. Well at least his soulmate was having a grand old time.
Looked like thatch was right about one thing, it was losing the other up, he wasn't as stiff as he was before when he found out Marco was his soulmate. He found himself smiling softly at the others laughter even though it was aimed at him and his ridiculous nickname.
"Yeah mamma or do you actually believe the ghost stories?" Haruta giggled, covering her mouth staring impishly up at him. At that accusation the fuzzy feelings he was having for Ace fled in favor of annoyance. He rolling his eyes at his sisters words like he would believe that bullshit. The stories were used to keep kids away from the place so they wouldn't go in and get themselves hurt doing something stupid. Looks like he was about to be that stupid kid if those three continued on like this.
"You three seriously think I'll go in there?"
"Awwww come oooon don't be a kill joy," the three chorused.
"If you're so scared about it we'll go in first to show you it's safe," thatch added.
He huffed as they intensively poked and prodded him. His temper was already short due to being overworked at school and work so it didn't take long for him to snap, "Fine I'll go in!"
Stomping up the path way he stopped half way staring at the looming door. His gut was screaming at him to turn back, he hesitated which was long enough for him to catch a glimpse of a face in the window. The persons face showed wide eyed surprise, they quickly fled, letting the darkness swallow them.
"What the hell," he muttered squinting at the window. He knew he wasn't imagining it he saw a face, someone was in there, someone achingly familiar.
He flew up the pathway, reaching the door he flung it open, hurrying inside. He squashed the feeling in his gut as the door slammed shut behind him. His mind whirled as he raced in, ignoring the confused shouts his siblings yelled after him.
He stopped, finding himself standing in the middle of a large front room, moth worn red rug lay on the ground with a twinkling chandler above. He could faintly hear the sound of a piano playing, He closed his eyes concentrating on trying to pin point where the sound was coming from.
The sound of stomping feet broke his concentration as Ace came towards him looking ready to chew him out.
"Marco what the hell are you-" Ace cut himself off, gaping at the size of the place from within his face turned from wonderment to puzzled, "Why does this- this place It feels-"
"Familiar," he interrupt him.
Ace gave him a quizzical look, nodding slowly, "yeah it feels familiar like I've… Marco I don't like this."
Marco grabbed Ace's hand sending a calming feeling towards him with the sparks. Unlike all the other times they touched the sparks where smaller and less noticeable. Ace relaxed at the touch allowing Marco to pull him along towards the sound of a piano.
"Marco…. can you hear it," Ace asked.
Marco nodded, squeezing Ace's hand as they went up the winding steps. At the top they were meet with a long hallway, the sound of the piano was louder now.
"It's not just me then? Maybe this place really is haunted," Ace mumbled to himself, clutching onto Marco's hand. The sparks grew when Marco stopped thinking calm thoughts, growing wilder with the prolonged contact, their clasped hands could almost be used as a flash light were it not for the pulsing flickers.
Suddenly Marco saw the image of a blond haired man smiling at them sweetly beckoning them forward. The sudden… Memory? Made him flustered for reasons unknown. The blond man looked to be the one in his dreams. His eyes widened at the realization as it clicked.
He hurriedly said, "No Ace, places aren't haunted, people are haunted."
He couldn't explain it all in what little time they had, he knew by then it was too late. He could only hope Ace understood the meaning behind his words before they were caught.
"Marco what are you-"
A screech pierced the air, grating against their ears. The room started to spin, making the pair lose their balance. They held onto each other for dear life as they were thrown into the dark unknown.
Authors note: This fanfic is my special baby I have so many plans for it... I hope you guys will stick along for the ride to see where this fic takes us!