Marco stared at Ace's face as he kept an arm around the teen, the younger man seemed thoughtful but also resigned, and there was a sadness in his eyes that Marco didn't like. The bounty hunter's reaction to Whitebeard had been surprising to say the least, especially considering how well Ace had been getting along with the crew recently.

This led Marco to theorise that Ace's issue wasn't with the crew or even Whitebeard per say but rather with the idea of a father. That lead to more worrying conclusions, the world could be a cruel place and no-one was more aware of the fact than Marco.

Several of the pirates on the crew had shadowy or morally dubious pasts that were usually forgotten, as soon as they accepted Whitebeards mark and joined their new family.

However, in a world where slavery and abuse was so easily overlooked not all the crew members had such easily acceptable pasts, and as the appointed "big brother" of the crew Marco had spent a lot of time helping some of his siblings work through some of their darker demons.

But, Ace wasn't a member of the crew yet and attempting to get him to open up could just result in him trying to push them further away, something Marco was desperately trying to avoid. A small voice drew him away from his thoughts "Thanks Blondie."

Marco smiled down at the brat trying to analyse the odd look on his face, it looked as if Ace had come to a conclusion he wasn't really sure he liked the answer to, and was unsure of how to proceed. "You're welcome brat, now let's get you back to your room." Standing up, Marco offered the teen a hand smirking lightly when the boy took it.

Keeping the younger man's hand in his grasp Marco dragged him back to the spare room Ace had been staying in "Get some rest brat, I need some sleep so I'll see you in the morning." A little bit of Ace's previous fire reappeared in his eyes as he grinned up at the blonde "Of course, after all old men need their rest!"

Marco let out a low growl in annoyance before an idea appeared in his mind. Allowing a smirk onto his face Marco rested his hand on the wall behind Ace on one side of his head so he was leaning over the younger man.

Enjoying the flush on Ace's cheeks at his close proximity, Marco leant down deliberately letting his lips skim Ace's ear before purring out his words in a seductive tone "Who are you calling old, Ace?" Marco's smirk widened at the small moan that escaped Ace's lips, either due to Marco finally calling him by his name or due to the tone he'd said it in.

Pulling away from the wall Marco smirked down at the younger man whose blush had only gotten worse. Ace glared up at the man irritance, as well as desire, clear in his eyes "You're a bastard. You know that?" Marco let out a small chuckle "I regret nothing."

Ace paused, a considering and almost nostalgic look appearing in his eyes then softer than a whisper he spoke "No regrets huh Sabo?" suddenly a determined look appeared in Ace's eyes and before Marco could ask who the hell Sabo was, the younger man's lips had crashed into his own.

There was nothing chaste about the kiss as Marco's hands grabbed at Ace's waist pulling the young man flush against him, while Ace's hands became tangled in Marco's hair. The younger man tasted like smoke and the sea and Marco wanted more.

Nibbling on Ace's lower lip Marco took full advantage of the quiet moans that escaped Ace's mouth and pressed his tongue inside. A battle for dominance was quickly established and just as quickly finished as Marco used his tongue to ravish the younger man's mouth a low moan escaping his throat at the youngers efforts.

Eventually the two came up for air and Ace grinned at Marco a light flush still visible on his cheeks as he licked his lips enjoying how the blondes eyes followed the motion. Cocky little shit. "Not bad for an old man."

Marco smirked in too good a mood to bother being annoyed "likewise brat." Then before he could speak another word Ace had placed a chaste kiss on his lips and slammed the door in his face. Wait what?

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Slamming the door behind him, Ace burst into laughter at the confused look that had appeared on Marco's face. That had been fun. Lying down on his bed Ace couldn't help but stare at the ceiling still feeling wide awake "No regrets huh."

Ace certainly didn't regret kissing the blonde, in fact he'd be more than willing to repeat the action in future. In addition to more. Now that his brief panic was over Ace could look at his situation more rationally and had come to several conclusions.

Firstly, as he had no way off it, he was stuck on this ship for now. Secondly there was no point in trying to actively distance himself from the crew because they would merely track him down again, to see what was wrong.

Thirdly he needed to make sure to avoid giving any personal information out so they wouldn't be able to find him later. And finally, he really needed to get with Marco while he was stuck here, because damn did that man know how to kiss.

Deciding he'd thought out as much as he could be bothered too Ace decided that sleep was the best option for now. Afterall he'd have most of tomorrow to think things through as well. Deciding in his plan for tomorrow Ace drifted off into a peaceful slumber.

Unfortunately, Ace and plans were never supposed to work well together, and when Ace woke up the next morning it was to the sound of gunfire and curses. Shit. Marines. Quickly getting up, Ace cautiously made his way onto the deck making sure to stick to the shadows.

While he could openly admit to liking some of the pirates onboard Ace knew that being seen to be fighting with them was a sure-fire way to crush any chance at a normal life after he left the Whitebeards.

Ace clenched his fists as he noticed more marines starting to board the ship, like it or not he was currently a guest on the Moby and he was not enjoying seeing the marines take it over. All of a sudden, a cry of pain echoed close by, drawing Ace's attention to it. Craig.

The usually cheerful pirate was cursing loudly, face pale and clutching his side clearly attempting to limit the blood loss from the stab wound on his side, while a marine with a sadistic smile and a bloody sword drew closer. Ace saw red.

Moving faster than he thought possible Ace punched the marine overboard before turning to face the pirate "Craig, you alright?" Craig gave a weak nod before collapsing onto the deck "Shit." throwing the man over his shoulder Ace moved towards the infirmary while his mind mulled over the ramifications of what he had done.

"Shit." He had interfered in a battle between the pirates and the marines, and had actively chosen to take the pirates side. Putting the possible consequences out of his mind for now, Ace deposited Craig on a free infirmary bed.

"What happened?" Ace spun around to meet the sight of a stern looking woman, Hannah her name badge told him, in a nurse uniform "I think he was stabbed in the side though I'm not sure if he has any other wounds besides the obvious." The woman nodded "Name and division?"

"His names Craig he's second division." The woman nodded again and grabbed what appeared to be a medical folder from one of the large filing cabinets in the room "Thanks for your help as long as you're uninjured, feel free to go back to the battle, it should be winding down anyway."

Ace nodded and slowly returned to the deck trying to keep a low profile. As he had only taken out the one marine, who he was pretty certain had drowned anyway, Ace was hoping that his brief interference had been overlooked and would not label him as a criminal for life.

Letting out a sigh Ace couldn't help the cynical belief that with his terrible luck he'd somehow end up with a bounty regardless. Emerging on deck again Ace noticed the lack of marines and gave a small sigh of relief.

Suddenly a hand was clasped on his shoulder and Ace stared up in surprise at the grinning fourth division commander "Hey Thatch. Should you be up and about?" The older man grinned "Yup the nurses cleared me earlier so I even took part in the fighting, but anyway I need to ask a favour..."

Ace stared at the sheepish expression on the other man's face and couldn't decide whether or not he should be nervous or excited. Over the past few days Ace and Thatch had formed a secret partnership to prank Haruta's division which had led to a sort of friendship? between the two but that didn't stop Ace's wariness at Thatch's mischief making.

"Depends what it is?" Thatch let out a fully fledged grin "I need you to distract Marco for an hour or two and keep him far far away from his room." Ace looked at him considering "Why? And what do I get out of it?"

Thatch's grin widened "Secret for now. And as for what you get out of it I'll offer you your choice of dessert for three days next week!" Ace paused "Make it five days and you have a deal."

Thatch shook his hand, a childlike glee visible in his eyes "Deal! Now you go find the pineapple and I'll grab Haruta for some help." Ace rolled his eyes at the nickname before letting his eyes wander until they settled on the blonde a sharp grin emerging on his face.

Now for the real question, did he reveal Thatch's plan to Marco and risk being pranked in retaliation, or did he let Thatch do whatever he was up to and risk being punished as an accomplice? Meh free dessert was worth more than Marco's wrath. This would be fun.

Authors note

I finally made ten chapters! Sorry this chapters a little later than it normally is I've had some exams recently, but they're mostly done now! This is the first time I've ever tried to write a kissing scene so I hope it didn't come off too unnatural or forced? Please leave comments so I know how you feel, and I hope you enjoyed, next chapter will be out next week!