Pops

The fish fillets sizzled as Cara placed them on the frying pan. Beside her Ace stirred the pot of boiling potatoes. She snuck a glance at him. Since the navy attack yesterday she had been wondering something about him. Ace had a pirate crew of his own before joining Whitebeard. She understood why the old man would want Ace on his crew. But why did Ace join Whitebeard's crew? Did he want to overthrow an emperor? Was it a goal to join an emperor? Or was it something else?

A few minutes later they had their meal on the table. Ace laid his left arm on the table so she could use her right hand to eat. Though on occasion he forgot about the chain and moved to take a drink, which jerked Cara's arm away from her.

"Mind if I ask you a question?" Cara found herself asking.

"Finally curious about me, huh?"

Cara rolled her eyes. "Don't flatter yourself. I was just wondering why you joined Whitebeard in the first place. I remembered you had your own crew. The spade pirates, if I remember correct."

Ace nodded. "That's them, formerly."

"You were a hot rookie. I find it odd that you would join an emperor's crew out of nowhere. You probably could have became an emperor yourself one day."

Ace swallowed his food then downed some water.

"Never mind. I'm not talking about my past so you don't have to talk about yours."

"I don't mind. It's not a secret in the crew. I'm sure you'll hear about it at some point." Ace tilted his head back and closed his eyes.

Cara watched him, noting the freckles on his face gave him boyish look.

He opened his eyes and looked at her. "I didn't want to join Pops in the first place. I actually tried to kill him several times."

"Too bad you didn't succeed," Cara grumbled. Ace gave her a pointed look. "Sorry. Continue."

"I was dealing with an issue involving my biological dad." Ace glared down at his plate.

Cara parted her lips to make a snide comment about him having daddy issues. But the pain and anger in Ace's eyes silenced her. A thickness settled into the galley with them.

"That bastard." Ace clenched his fists.

Cara licked her lips. "Is your dad really that bad?"

"Was that bad. He's been dead for years." Ace gave a humorless chuckle. "Actually, you've probably heard of him. Everyone has. He was the king of pirate."

Cara's fingers fumbled. Her fork fell with a clank on her plate. "Seriously? The king of the pirates really had a child? And that child is you?! You can't be serious."

Ace lifted his eyes to her.

Cara's breath hitched at the storm swirling in his dark eyes. Ace wasn't lying. He really was the son of the pirate king. "But your name on your bounty poster..."

"I took my mother's name." Ace's eyes softened. "She did so much for me while he did nothing. She held me in her stomach for twenty months by sheer will power. As everyone knows, children of pirates are hated. And I was hated despite the fact not many know my bloodline."

Cara took a closer look at the man sitting next to her, trying to find similarities in him and the pirate king. Other than the hair she couldn't see much of a resemblance until she pictured him with a mustache like his dad had. She snorted a laugh.

Ace frowned at her. "What's so funny?"

"Sorry." Cara rubbed her nose. "I was trying to find similarities between you and your dad. I couldn't see it until I pictured his mustache on you."

"Very funny." Ace poked his fork into a green bean. "According to Garp I look more like my mother. I have her freckles. And the waves in my hair come from her too."

"Whoa, whoa! Hold on a second." Cara held up a hand. "You said Garp. As in the marine hero Garp?" Ace nodded. "What does he have to do with any of this?"

"Believe it or not he and Roger had mutual trust in each other despite being a pirate and a marine. Roger told him about me and asked him to take care of me."

"And he did?" Cara leaned closer, more intrigued with Ace's story than she really wanted to be.

"Well, sort of." Ace's smile returned. "He dumped me with some mountain bandits he knows. They raised me. Though Garp did come by often to beat my brothers and myself."

"Brothers? I thought you only had one," Cara said. "And I'm assuming they are adopted?"

"We're brothers by drinking saki. There were three of us. Luffy is the youngest. And Sabo was the same age as me. Garp beat all of us senseless. Or he tried to beat us into being marines." Ace's grin grew. "It didn't work. Luffy and I always wanted to be pirates. Sabo was going to be one but he died by the hands of a Celestial Dragon. Anyway a fight between myself and Jinbe brought Pops around. He pretty much beat the crap out of me and threw me on his ship against my will."

"That sounds like the old man." Cara shook her head, remembering some stories Whitebeard's crew told her about. When he wanted someone on his crew they didn't have much say in the matter.

"One day I revealed who my biological dad was. Much to my surprise Pops didn't care. And, well, here we are."

Cara propped her elbow on the table and rested her chin in her hand as she absorbed all Ace had told her. Ace's loyalty to Whitebeard was starting to make sense. She had to admit, though she hated the thought, that if she were in Ace's shoes she would be doing the same as him. Pirate children were hated not only by marines but by everyone. And the hate for the son of the pirate king... She didn't have words for it. While she wasn't a number one fan for pirates, she didn't like that people blamed kids for the choices of their parents.

Ace didn't say much after that. Neither did Cara. They continued to go through their routine that was forming between them. They cleared the table, washed the dishes, spent some more time outside, and then went to bed. Ace had no problems going to sleep.

Cara did. Her brain was still trying to comprehend everything Ace told her.

"Luffy," Ace mumbled in his sleep. He rolled over, his arm draping over Cara's body again. "Sabo."

Cara turned her eyes to him, not bothering to yell at him to move his arm.