Week four of living on the Moby Dick. Everyone was terrified of Ace. It was completely accepted that if you were scared of him you were of the normals on the ship, considering Pops was also scared of the man, and anyone who was on Ace's side was insane. Those few people included Oden, Marco, Izou, Bay, and Toki. No one knew why Toki was on his side of the pranks, but she was always an exception, and no one could find any reason as to why.

Everyone on the ship has learned to be on high alert if the ship was too quiet for more than a couple of hours. The first prank Ace, Oden, and Marco had pulled, it stopped every single person on the ship from even thinking of drinking ever again. One night during one of their parties Ace and Oden had put a drug in the alcohol to make even just one drink turn a very sober pirate to a black out drunk in minutes, not even Pops was an exception to it. Then the next morning, when everyone was just waking up, Ace, Oden, and Marco took some of the announcement snails and screamed into the mics. Everyone woke up with the worst ringing in their ears from the hangovers they all had. And Bay couldn't even find herself to step in and help her siblings because if Ace's prank worked, which it did, then she would no longer have to deal with the drunken parties they held, leading to Pop's more than lackluster health he was steering towards.

And the bleeding ears weren't even the worst part. Somehow they had taught Marco how to screech even louder than before leading to deafness for days. And blindness from Ace's and Marco's way too bright flames. Migraines were dealing higher death rates on the ship than marines.

So now everyone poured away all alcoholic drinks, and parties were a hell of a lot more fun because people have become more creative in getting their fun, and of course, getting high. And dear Kami it's full of people getting in debt and going bat shit insane, and thus FAMILY GAME NIGHT became the thing everyone looked forward to. Crippling debt was the most feared enemy of the seas for the poor pirates.

Either way everyone on the ship's skills at poker and fucking each other over got much better. And of course Haki. Dear Kami, Pops prays for those who haven't learned enough observation haki to sense people because they are usually the ones to get the burnt ends of the devils' incarnated pranks.

But besides just the weaker of the crew, the marines also got dealt a shitty hand, cause since they weren't family the pranks were so much worse. Pops had never prayed for the safety and sanity of the marines more than he does now.

—

"Marines are heading our way Pops!"

Everyone was relaxing on the ship when the warning was called out. Pops slammed his hand onto the deck, "DAMMIT WHY CAN'T THOSE IDIOTS COME BACK LATER!" Pops was currently losing, again, to Ace at poker. You'd think that after so many games, at which he has lost multiple times, he would stop, but he doesn't.

Marco was sitting next to Ace and talking back and forth about how to play better when the announcement went out. Marco peered up at their captain, curiosity shining in his eyes, "Pops why would you be mad about the marines coming, maybe they'll have some stolen treasure from other pirates on the ship." That seemed to perk everyone on the ship up, even just a little. Pops for one immediately stood.

"FOR MONEY!"

"YEEEAAAH!"

Pirates from all over the ship spilled out onto the other deck, all hyped up and having fun. Marco, along with most others went to leave and have their fill of the fub, when Ace pulled on his shirt and pulled him back over. "Don't always rush into battle, not every battle must be fought, leave it to the ones that actually need the money." A look of pain and horror was swimming in the depths of Ace's cool grey eyes. Marco stayed.

Listening and watching from the sidelines, his brothers and sisters fighting, was weird, before fighting seemed like a chore, something that was fun but was more for the quick thrill. Now it seemed as though even the smallest of things were picked up on and exploited for the benefit and pleasure of everyone on the pirate side. His family moved together like oil and water, opposites and never forming as one, but they were still in the same space flowing fluidly around each other. And the cracks that once scared and shook the skies, growing spider webs slowly forming and releasing to create the destruction of the Marines ship, were no longer feared by the ones fighting alongside the strongest.

—

The fight was over before anyone really noticed, Marco and Ace still sat, and had never moved. Marco was always in the fights, his fruit allowing him to heal quickly and easily, he had never seen a fight from the outside before. It was chilling. He fought with such strong people and yet he kept up with them. Marco snapped out of his daze at the sound of Ace laughing next to him, "NICE ONE POPS, YOU ACTUALLY GOT THE MONEY BEFORE DESTROYING THE SHIP THIS TIME!" Quickly throwing up a thumbs up.

Pops beamed and laughed along as well, the moment he set foot on deck and sat the sack of treasure down it was every man for himself. People had debts they'd prefer to pay back.

—

Week five of being on the Moby Dick. Ace was furious, he didn't show it though. During lunch eating side by side with Marco and Bay he walked in. The crater of absolute darkness, his shadow seemed to swallow up everything it touched before moving on, following its master around like a cloak of darkness. Teach. Ace had died before he got the chance to see the man kill Pops but that didn't change the fact Ace knew what he did.

Ace may have lost all his hatred for the world, including Teach, but the feeling of that cold vile darkness swallowing him and staying in silence for days before being spit out in front of the Marines was something Ace would never forget.

The tension that lined his shoulders was solid and hard. Ace couldn't move, but like hell was he letting that asshole have one up on him. Slowly breathing in huge breaths of air, focused solely on the air around him, he missed the penetrating stare of Bay's eyes.

Once Ace was back on his feet he finished eating and quickly left before he could hear the disembodied laugh of Teach.

—

Ace hated himself. He just fought alongside the man who killed his Captain and Father. Fighting with Teach was terrifying. Constantly watching his back to make sure Teach wouldn't back stab him was something he was scared of because what if he let his guard down.

There had been another group of pirates coming to attack Pops for his title and of course that led to a huge battle, Marco ran off to go fuck with some of the assholes on the other side of the ship with Oden while Ace stayed with Pops on top deck. That was when he felt the back of another touch his, it was Teach.

The fight was horrible after that, the fluid motions of Ace's fire lining his body and coming off in rounds hitting the pirates off the ship soon turned into hazardous ragged movements, like he was on autopilot. Serving kicks after kicks, straight ups and downs, taught to Ace by Marco through months of training, became his safe house. Only using moves that comforted him in bringing the memories of that shitty training room in the back of the ship. The constant of straining muscles. The swift movements of Marcos legs, flames licking at both of their bodies mixing into a beautiful purple light cascading around the room.

CRACK

CRACK

SNAP

The sounds of Ace breaking the bones of the other pirates' bones resounded through the battlefield like an unholy melody. The rhythm of the hits becomes uniform in a jagged dance of movements. When the last pirate fell Ace stood there, back still to Teach, trembling. Ace only snapped out of his trance from Teach slapping him in the back laughing, "WOW YOU'RE A GREAT FIGHTER ACE!"

Ace, so deep into trying to stop himself from throwing up, missed that same comforting purple that licked his body for a few seconds.

—

Edward was astounded by Ace's movements, they were clearly something that had been hammered into him from long training hours. His teacher must have been amazing. The thing that was troubling him the most was the glossed look eyes Ace had like he wasn't quite there, but his tense shoulders and fast rising and falling chest was clearly telling him another story. Ace was terrified.

Ace was known for his great observation haki around the ship. Which was why Edward wanted to know what was causing his son to have such a tense and forbearing look. What could have possibly given him that look?

—

Marco's fight with Oden was over before it started. After quickly dumping the other pirates into the water Oden and Marco quickly ran back over to Ace, one rule everyone on Ace's side quickly figured out was fights were a lot more fun with Ace.

Coming around the corner Marco heard the sound of a bone cracking. Shifting his vision over to Ace and Teach back to back fighting together. Teach was quickly backed out of his thoughts though, only thinking about the beautiful movements Ace was making.

Ace was loosely standing and swaying before a clear swing from the pirate in front of him brought him spinning to the side of the swing, dodging it. Quickly shifting his weight to his left leg allowing for the kick to gracefully swing up before being slammed down onto the head of the other pirate making him fall. Ace, faster than before, turned and hit the pirate once again on his side, easily lifting the pirate into the air and into the water.

Ace jumped and switched his legs in the air before landing and kicking the next pirate overboard with a crunching sound of the other pirate's bones. The fight was over, Ace stood still behind Teach when he hit him on the back and yelled about how great of a fighter Ace was. Marco couldn't agree more, Ace was amazing. Marco was staring, Ace's shoulder length black hair pulled back into a ponytail. His loose white dress shirt, back pants and combat boots would attract many people, but it still didn't deter Marco from catching the light purple flames gracing Ace's body.

—

Ace disappeared for the rest of the afternoon until the evening when he was making his way to the Captain's quarters. Knocking on the door, "hey Pops can I talk for a moment?"

The resounding gruff sound beyond the doors was enough for Ace to open the doors and come in. Facing the huge man in his room without all the hospital equipment was strange, but was a good change. "What do you need Ace?"

Ace lifted his eyes and met Pop's head on. "This place is like a home for me, I love and respect everyone on the ship as my brothers and sisters, but" Ace's eyes turned cold, "I would never and will never trust Marshall D. Teach with my life."

Pop's eyes widened, he searched Ace's eyes for a lie but found none, "may I ask why?"

". . . I have no profound reason as to why, but I know that if I feel a shiver down my spine like a rabbit acknowledging a preying lion, I don't trust the one that gives me that feeling. A wolf in sheep's clothing," Ace's eyes became more clean turning more white than the grey that they were.

". . . I understand, thank you." And Ace left the room. The words he spoke left doubt in his mind. Resounding throughout.

—

After leaving Pop's room with what Ace thought would be an awful conversation Marco jumped on him from the back. Arms circled around his neck and his legs wound themselves around Ace's hips. "ACE TEACH ME HOW TO KICK LIKE YOU DID!"

Marco's laugh that was right next to his ear made Ace smile like an idiot. Grabbing onto Marco's legs and hoisting him up some more Ace responded, "sure thing bird brain."