Okay, this should have been up hours ago, or at least about 28 minutes ago in Scottish time xD But for most of you this might actually be on time for Friday the 13th :D It's possibly a bit rushed because I only thought of it like the day before? o.o I was so excited to write this though xD
(Kitty AU)
"EEK! ACE DON'T WALK PAST ME!" Thatch screeched.
"Huh?" Ace blinked.
His baby brother looked so confused, so innocent, but Thatch was on to him, oh yes, he knew the danger their youngest possessed on this special day. Marco was a fool, standing right by Ace's side, he could end up accidentally walking past Ace at any moment and then where would he be?
Honestly, his brothers were idiots sometimes.
"What are you going on about Thatch?" Izo sighed.
"It's Friday the 13th, my dear brothers and sisters!" Thatch declared. "This is a day where bad luck strikes you at every turn. Break any mirrors and oh ho, you're in for a messy seven years. Spill the salt? You better throw it over your shoulder. None of you jerks better spill my salt though. It's my damn kitchen!"
"Guararara, ah, I forgot about Friday the 13th," Pops chuckled.
"You should know better. You've been on these seas for years, Pops!" Thatch complained. "Now, we all know Ace is a black cat, so nobody can walk past him without receiving some bad luck."
"Really?" Ace groaned. "You know I'm not really a cat right?"
Thatch shook his head. "Who knows, maybe your family were cats first and started turning into humans later on. I don't know and neither do you, so I'm not taking that chance, oh dear baby brother of mine. Nope. I love you but I'm not walking past you today of all days."
"And what about all the other days?" Izo asked dryly.
"I can handle that bit of bad luck for my baby brother, but not today, not when bad luck is like doubled, or tripled. Today it just too serious to ignore!" Thatch pointed dramatically at Ace. "So you, Portgas D. Ace, should just stay in your room for the rest of the day so you don't cross anyone's path!"
"Y'know, when people call me a devil child I didn't except it to be due to bad luck..." Ace grumbled quietly, but Thatch managed to over hear it and frowned.
"You tell big brother who has been calling you that so I can rip out their tongues, yeah?" Thatch said.
"There are too many people to count," Ace frowned.
"Then I've got a lot of tongue ripping to do."
"No going on a murder spree, Thatch," Izo sighed.
"It's not a murder spree. I'm just tearing out tongues," Thatch pointed out happily.
"That will probably kill them."
"Nonsense!"
"How are they going to eat?" Izo raised a brow.
"They can drink lots of soups for all I care."
"I don't wanna be sent to my room," Ace pouted, and it made Thatch want to coo and pinch his cheeks.
"Guararara, how about you come sit with me then, son?" Pops grinned. "I'll tell you some stories."
"Okay!" Ace smiled, that sun shine happy smile and Thatch felt his heart melt.
He had to protect that smile.
He froze though when Ace began to walk.
"Ace, be careful!" Thatch stressed, anxious. "You almost walked by Haruta!"
"I don't believe in bad luck, loser," Haruta smirked, and deliberately walked by Ace.
Thatch sobbed, his poor, naïve Haruta, how the clueless always suffered so. Especially considering how for the rest of the day Haruta's paperwork kept going missing, how Haruta kept tripping up, and spilt coffee during lunch and even at dinner time.
Everybody steered clear of Ace for the rest of the day except Marco and Pops. Pops happily kept Ace close by, warning the nurses off about having Ace pass them if they tried to take his alcohol.
Ace however had merely transformed into his cat form and spent the day curled up on Pops' lap, snuggled beneath Pops' purple cloth belt.
Thatch had taken a lot of pictures on his visual den den mushi, and recorded when Ace let out those little cat snores, until Marco, the spoilsport, kicked him away.