Wishfull-star: Thank you!
just1randomhooman: There's still way too much of the story to have them discovered by the family yet! At least, not anyone but Izo.
Marco sat in the meeting room with his family and Vivi, all of them looking nervous. Pops seemed worried, so they were worried as well. He began almost immediately once everybody was seated. Marco held Vivi's hand to reinforce the notion that they were together to Pops and Thatch, even though Izo knew that it was a lie.
"King Riku has sent me a letter and photos of a troublesome issue going on in his kingdom. He was unable to make it to give us the briefing in person, so he sent a detailed letter. Apparently, there is a dangerous man going around Dressrosa and hunting down anything related to magical creatures.
"Both Marco and Ace's dragon are in danger, so I don't want you leaving the palace for a while," he said, looking at Marco. He was very upset at this, unable to see Ace, then. But he was more troubled by the fact that he was in danger, which meant Ace was in danger. He was a phoenix, too, after all. But he couldn't get Ace into the castle for that reason because nobody but Marco knew about what he was.
But Pops fixed that, and said he'd like to take care of Spade there, just as a precaution. And Marco knew Spade was a baby, despite his large size. It would be worrisome for a baby dragon to be flying off daily, and in a house that was easily broken into by prisoners.
"Who is it?"
"A man named Teach, but he goes by Blackbeard," the king explained. "We'll have patrols and authorities searching the forests daily and nightly just in case. I'd like one of you to go contact Ace and tell him about this." Marco offered to go, as he'd get there faster than on a horse. "That is fine. I'd like you to do it as soon as possible.
"King Riku told me that Blackbeard is very strong, and has slayed the dragon living in their mountains." The others gasped, shocked that he'd killed a dragon. Marco announced he was going to get Ace now. He would be coming too, as Spade would definitely not stay there without Ace.
Pops nodded, and Marco hurried away to find Ace. He flew to the house and landed in the window of Ace's room, where he was still sleeping. It was early, after all. He walked to Ace, Spade jerking awake, but they laid his head back down when he saw who it was. "Ace, baby," Marco said, gently waking his lover up.
The teen shot up, sitting up and banging his forehead into Marco's, though neither of them hurt by it. "Marco?" he asked with a wide yawn, and then questioned what he was doing there so early. He didn't usually drop food off that early.
Marco sat on his bed, seeing the hickeys he'd left the night before along his shoulder and collar bone. He blushed at the sight before getting his thoughts back on the situation. "Pops requested you come stay in the palace for now. There's a dangerous man going around slaying magical creatures. He killed a dragon. I'm homebound for safety reasons."
"So you won't be able to come to me?" Ace asked. Marco nodded sadly. Ace got up and started pulling things out of the dressers. Marco asked what he was doing. "Packing. I… don't want to be restricted from seeing you, even if the palace makes me uncomfortable and nervous."
Marco looked at him with such love. Ace had immediately accepted going to the palace as long as he wasn't separated from Marco for a while. He was putting himself way out of his comfort zone only to not have to miss Marco for a long period of time. Ace collected his things and got dressed with what seemed to be the last outfit in his dresser.
He had a large sack in the room. He stopped and looked at the floor, looking like he was contemplating. Marco asked what was wrong. Ace shook his head, saying it was nothing, and then pulled one of the floorboards up and started collecting things. Then he flew up to the rafter and pulled out a piece of paper.
"It's my dad's will, giving me the house. I don't want to risk them searching my room while I'm gone." Marco was sad that Ace had to hide precious objects, the things under his floor, because he didn't trust his step family to not harm them, like they'd ripped apart like the suit Izo had made him.
Ace went downstairs and banged on Alvida's door. She took awhile, so Ace banged on it again. She yanked it open, looking tired and angry that Ace woke her up so early. Marco was standing in the hallway, out of sight but able to listen to the conversation.
"I'm going to live in the palace for awhile. Don't damage the house while I'm gone," he said in a flat voice. Spade was resting on his shoulder. Alvida clearly didn't believe him, and was laughing in a rude way.
"And why would you go to the palace? Hmm?" she asked, sounding cruel. Marco decided to step out. He was wearing more plain clothes, nothing fancy. After all, he left home immediately, and the three princes often wore comfortable clothes at home, not anything that looked like royal clothing.
Marco said, "You don't need to know. He'll be staying with us for now." Alvida was clearly shocked by the appearance of the prince. It was strange after all, to have a prince come and decide to take a teenager to the palace suddenly.
"Well, I'm off," Ace said, and went to the front door to get a jacket and his boots. He went out of the kitchen door and got Chopper. Ace said there was no way he'd leave his precious horse there without him to watch him and make sure he was fed and taken care of. He got on the horse, Spade on his shoulder, and Marco climbed on after him.
Alvida was watching from the front doorway, looking furious. Probably because her detested step son was one to be affiliated with royalty for some unknown reason, and not her own bratty kids. Marco didn't like them because of the things Ace told them they did. Well, he wouldn't have to be around them for awhile. However long it took to find Blackbeard. It might actually not be that long.
But nobody knew where he was or where he was heading. It was common sense that he wouldn't approach the palace. It would be suicide.
Marco had his arms wrapped around Ace's chest as they rode to the palace. Spade was staring at him suspiciously. Like Marco would hurt Ace. It was silly, how clingy and overprotective Spade was. But at least he let Marco be around Ace now. But he was a baby, so he might have imprinted on Ace. And he'd bitten him and left that mark. Maybe it was some sort of claim or link. Well, time would tell. Probably. They wouldn't tell the others that Spade bit him.
For two reasons. One, it wouldn't look good that Spade had bitten Ace. And two, Ace had no bite mark or wound from it. It would be obvious that something was off if he got bitten but there was no proof of it. Maybe they'd say Ace had the tattoo all along.
When they reached the palace, Ace was clearly nervous. Marco kissed his neck from behind. "Don't worry. I'll make you feel welcome. I won't ignore you, I can always speak to you."
Ace sighed. "But you'll have to pretend you don't love me," he said sadly. Marco hugged him tighter and swore he'd make time to be with him, show him his love. He soothed him and said everything would be fine. And when Blackbeard was captured or killed, he could go back home.
They reached the stables and put Chopper in it. It was much bigger than the one at Ace's home, and the horse got to mingle with the others. Maybe he'd like it. Though he wouldn't stay. Ace and Marco walked into the palace, Marco having a hard time not taking his hand. This could be very challenging.
Spade seemed agitated, maybe sensing Ace's discomfort, and was in his form that was about the size of a large dog. His wing was pressed to Ace's side, who patted his head affectionately. His arm tattoo was covered by his clothes. Marco brought Ace to the guest room he'd be staying in, luckily in the same hall as Marco and Vivi's.
Maybe he could sneak into Ace's room at night and sleep with him how Nami snuck into their room to be with Vivi. Ace was clearly impressed with the bedroom, leagues better than his cold attic room. He had a big bed that wasn't collapsed. "Spade, no getting on the bed, okay? We don't want to break this one, too. You can stay on it in a little form, but not this big."
The dragon turned into the size of a cat and jumped on the bed. Ace smiled and said that was the perfect size. The dragon flew to Ace and rubbed his head on Ace's leg. The teen crouched down and smiled. "Good boy," he said. Spade really seemed to adore Ace. It was cute.
Ace put his clothes into the dresser, and then sat on the bed, looking downcast. Marco had closed the bedroom door. "What's wrong?" Marco asked sitting next to his lover. He sighed and said he didn't want to see Marco act like a stranger. "Neither do I, baby. I won't act cold, I promise." Ace promised he wouldn't give them away again. "Thatch is no way as perceptive as Izo, so you don't have to worry about him too much."
"What about the king?" he asked quietly. Marco knew he would be harder to fool, but he trusted Marco. He wouldn't believe in his deception. It made Marco feel guilty. But he knew it was worth it, and Pops would forgive him eventually if he learned of Ace and him. But Marco would fight for Ace, even if it was with his beloved father.
Since Vivi had said she prioritized Nami over her duty as a princess, it had inspired Marco to fight for Ace. He would be a nightmare for Pops if he found out. He just hoped Ace would be brave enough to fight with him. Marco didn't doubt that Ace would want to stay together, but he was timid sometimes, and just being around Marco's family made him stressed.
There was a knock on the door, and Marco opened it to see Thatch with a plate of sweets that Ace probably recognized from eating them multiple times. "Yo! I made some sweets as a welcome! So you feel more comfortable here. Hopefully, but we'll do our best," Thatch said with conviction.
Ace nodded and thanked him. He asked what his step family had thought of him moving into the palace. "Alvida was really mad about it. She would rather have one of her kids be allowed to be here."
Thatch shook his head, saying he didn't like her much. Or her kids. "Well, you'll be treated a lot better here than there, I can promise that. Did you want a tour of the palace? Since you'll be living here for now." Ace nodded, and stood up. Thatch gave Ace the plate of treats and he ate them as he was shown around the massive place.
Marco had a feeling Ace would get lost in the beginning. Or maybe he wouldn't even go anywhere other than the essentials, not brave enough to do so. The blue phoenix hoped Ace would become comfortable there, for however long he was staying. Spade looked up at the plate longingly. Marco remembered that Ace had given him a sweet the first time they met, but couldn't remember what it had been.
Ace did as he picked out one of the desserts and gave it to the dragon, who ate it happily. When he showed affection to Ace, Marco noticed a light coming from his sleeve. Thatch was ahead of them, showing Ace around. So he wasn't looking when Marco tapped his own arm, but the glowing had stopped.
Light was shining through your shirt.
Ace frowned, looking down at Spade, who was still sticking really close to him. He nibbled on Ace's leg, and Ace crouched down. "No biting, okay?" Spade nodded sadly. "Promise?" The dragon nodded.
Marco assumed they had been love bites, since the dragon knew Ace could handle them. The bite hadn't been hard at all, so it hadn't damaged his pants, thankfully. Ace pat his head. Marco was watching out of the corner of his eye.
He really loves you.
Yeah, he does. It makes me happy. Two people love me now.
Marco's heart plummeted at the sound of Ace's voice. Happiness, but also disbelief. He'd been shown no love for years. Surely, it damaged him in some way. Being a child and shown only hatred and contempt, based on what Ace had told him about his teen and older childhood years. You deserve to be loved by many more people, Ace.
Ace didn't reply, just looked at the tiles floor in a sad way. Thatch noticed they had both fallen back, and asked what was wrong. "Spade distracted me," Ace said. It was the truth, just not detailed.
"He seems really affectionate to you. How did you find him again? In the mountain?" Ace nodded in affirmation. "It's so weird. I never thought dragons would be friends with humans. Especially not like this."
Ace replied, "I think he's a baby, despite his size. I visited the cave again with him, and found a big egg shell, and it didn't look too old. He might have latched onto me because of his age." Thatch hummed in interest. He turned around and walked towards Spade, who looked defensive now. He narrowed his eyes at him, and Thatch got the message, but pouted about it. Spade didn't know Thatch, so it made sense he didn't want to be touched by someone unknown.
Well, Ace had been unknown but he got attached to him immediately. Then Thatch noticed Marco was standing closer to the dragon. "Hey, why do you get to be near him?" the chef and prince said in irritation.
Marco replied, "Maybe it's because I'm a phoenix. I don't know." It was a good lie. Spade was fine around Marco because Ace was around him a lot and loved him. He showed it, so Spade trusted Marco, even if he was never affectionate with anybody but Ace. Thatch asked if either of them were afraid of him.
Ace shook his head, saying he knew Spade would never hurt him on purpose. "On purpose? He'd do it by accident?" The teen said that sometimes he was a bit rough with head bumps and rubbing on his legs. "Hmm. I would be scared to have a pet dragon."
"I don't consider him a pet. More like a friend," Ace said with a smile. When he was called a pet, Ace and Marco could both tell he wasn't happy with that term. "He does what I ask, but he still goes off on his own to hunt."
Thatch said that it would be dangerous for him to go off on his own anymore. Especially since he was a baby. Spade seemed sour about this, but Marco had a feeling he understood the situation clearly. It was unsafe for him to go off on his own. He'd heard about Blackbeard slaying an adult dragon, so the baby was understanding about why he would be stuck on the castle grounds.
When they entered the bath house, Ace seemed shocked about how large the tub was. "It looks more like a pool than a bathtub," he said. Thatch grinned and said there were a lot of perks for living in a palace. Marco sent him a warning look.
"Ah, I'm not trying to convince you to stay or anything. I was just saying," Thatch added hastily. Ace nodded, and Spade looked into the tub. It was a tour for him as well as Ace. After the tour of the palace was finished, Marco brought Ace back to his room. He was clearly feeling stressed.
"You okay?" Marco asked in concern. Thatch was there, too, but Marco wasn't showing anything romantic. Ace nodded, and just said it was different. "You don't have to go all over the palace if you don't want to." He nodded again. Spade rubbed his head on Ace's knee, and then shrunk to get onto the bed and seemingly hug the teen.
It was really cute, and Ace hugged him back, a small smile on. Marco thought that they were cute together, and was glad Ace had a strong and very attached bodyguard. He might be a baby, but he was also a dragon with sharp claws and teeth. Thatch asked if Spade could breathe fire.
Ace ran his hand down the smooth back, with only splatters of scales. Most of the skin was leathery besides his stomach. "I don't think so. I think he might be able to use ice when he gets bigger." Marco hadn't heard of this before. He asked how Ace knew that in their heads. The youngest looked a bit alarmed, probably not having meant to say that.
I… don't know. I just feel like that's what will happen. If you touch his stomach, it's colder than the rest of him. I've never thought that before just now.
Maybe it has to do with the tattoo. The mark or whatever it was. Whatever it is.
Thatch asked how he knew that, and Marco watched the wheels turn rapidly behind Ace's eyes as he tried to come up with an answer on the spot. He settled on part of the truth. "I don't know. It's just what I think."
"Hmmm. Well, it'll be interesting if you're right. At least he won't burn down the palace that way!" Thatch said with a loud laugh. Little Spade kept hugging Ace, but his claws started to dig into his shoulders. Luckily, it didn't break the skin. Ace pulled him away and gave him a smile. Marco honestly thought that their relationship was endearing, and was glad Ace had somebody else to love him.
He deserved all of the love in the world.
This isn't a villain centered story, so Teach isn't the driving issue. This is mostly a romance fic with some angst. See you next week!