Title: Of Dreams and Desires
Pairings: Smoker x Ace, Sanji x Zoro, and other side pairings
Ratings: T - NC-17
Chapter: 1 of ?
Summary: So It Begins…
Disclaimer: I do not make any profit from this story. All props go to Eiichiro Oda.
Author Note: Hello all, this is my telling of the One Piece Story and some of what you read will follow the original story line but at other times it will not. This is intentional in order for the story to flow how I need it to. I do have my own OC's in this story; let me know how you like them and if you can point them out. If you need any clarification on anything please feel free to leave a review and I'll try to answer to the best of my abilities.
Beta Reader: descriptionsalive21, thank you so much!
Portgas D. Ace
The stench of blood hung thick in the air as the crew of Moby Dick crowded around the entrance to the storage closet hosting that horrible smell. Heavy footsteps made their way down the hall, pausing occasionally before starting again, until the owner of the worn black boots halted by the crowd gathered around the door. The men stepped aside, creating a path for the second division commander to enter. Ace pulled his hat further down on his head as he made his way inside, as if to hide away from the gruesome sight on the floor. The first division commander's sandaled feet came into his view as he squatted down to get a better look of the body. With a sigh, Marco stood and glanced at the blood soaked walls.
Shaking his head, he addressed the others in the room. "Back to your duties; we'll update you as soon as we know what's going on."
The floorboards creaked as multiple feet shuffled about. Whispers from his crew pulled Ace from the trance state he had been in and he cleared his throat before asking, "What do you think happened?"
Marco ran a pale hand through his hair as he spun around to get a full view of the murder scene, his gaze ending at the body on the floor. "Seems Thatch was murdered."
Angry eyes regarded the nonchalant blond in front of him. "Is this some sort of joke to you?"
"Of course not," Marco replied. "Thatch was my friend just as much as he was yours, but I'm not going to make any assumptions as of yet… not until I know more information."
Ace huffed as he watch Marco step out of the room, giving the command for someone to clean the body and prepare it for the passing ceremony. Ace tipped the rim of his hat further down to cover his face, allowing numbness to consume him as he glanced one last time to the deceased. Begrudgingly, he made his way towards the captain's quarters.
A dull roar sounded in the back of Ace's mind then Mera's silky voice whispered out to him. You ok, kid?
Ace stopped at the door separating him from his father and put a hand to his chest, clutching at the medallion as he took a shaky breath. Don't ask me that now. Fighting back the lump in his throat, the second division commander knocked twice before entering the dimly lit room.There, in a massive chair, sat one of the world's most powerful men. Even with all the tubes, oxygen tanks, and IV lines surrounding him, his presence was still magnificent. His sharp yellow eyes pierced into Ace as he drank heavily from his barrel of sake.
"Leave us," he said, his voice barley a whisper as he beckoned Ace closer. Only after the nurses left the room did Ace walk to the window overlooking the black sea, watching the moonlight dance brilliant shimmers of light across the water. There were no words spoken for a while as both men let their grief settle between them.
"I take it you've heard the news." A statement, for Ace knows his captain has.
Whitebeard shifted in his chair, running a weary hand down his face. "I have," he sighed out, pausing to regard Ace as he stared out the window. "You will act." Another statement, for a father knows his son.
A grunt was Ace's reply.
Whitebeard allowed the silence for a while as he stroked his mustache. "The passing ceremony is tomorrow, you can leave only after that."
Ace swiped his finger through some dirt that had accumulated in the cracks of the window. He stared at his now dirty finger for a while before he turned to walk out of the room. As his hand touched the doorknob, Whitebeard's voice hit his ears. "You'll need to let it out, boy, before it kills you."
As Ace turned the knob and pushed the door open, he casted a glance back at his captain. "No idea what you're talking about, Old Man."
There was an unsatisfied grunt from inside the chambers and Ace stepped around the nurses passing by him as they rushed to get back into the room to tend to the health of their captain. Once outside on the main deck, he walked over to the side railing and leaned his elbows against it. There was no wind blowing that night, and the sea was deathly still. It is as if she knew a tragedy had occurred and that she would be receiving a gift from the ones who sail her waters. Ace felt a body slide against his, but he did not acknowledge the person. Instead, his gaze fixed on the half-moon in the sky.
There was a huff before a painted white hand touched his back, right below his tattoo. "Thatch was a close friend of yours."
Silence.
"He was the first to befriend you when you came on the ship, even when you were rude and made many attempts to murder our captain."
Another beat of silence.
Izo clicked his tongue before rubbing his red painted lips together as he moved closer to Ace, his body flush against him. "If you want, I can make you forget for the night." He moved a hand over the younger man's shoulder blades as he whispered in his ear. "Only for tonight."
As he moved in for a kiss, Ace took a step back from the rail, his hat casting a shadow over his eyes. "Not tonight, but thank you, Izo," he politely declined. Departing from the deck of the ship, Ace moved as quickly as his feet could take him without running towards his room.
Izo folded his arms into his geisha robes as he watched Ace retreat. He felt more so than saw a certain presence behind him and said, "It's rude to sneak up on people, Marco." Black eyes shot a glare at the first division commander leaning on one of the masts.
Marco studied Izo for a moment before he spoke, "You shouldn't throw yourself at him, especially not at a time such as this."
"What?" He retorted. "As if you wouldn't."
Not gracing the question with a response, Marco followed Ace's tracks into the inner quarters of the ship, forcing his feet to carry him to the second commander's door. He eyed the door in front of him, his sleepy face making him look ten years older than he really was. The tolls of the day made his shoulders heavy. He let out a deep breath then raised a fist to knock at the door. It took six knocks for Ace to open the door, answering in nothing but a towel, his body wet from getting out of the shower. Tired eyes followed a bead of water moving along the other's muscular stomach, watching it disappear under the towel that hung low on the man's slim hips towards his V-line.
Marco's pink tongue swiped over his lips before he looked back up at Ace's eyes, sending the silent request to enter the bedroom. Just by standing in the hall, Marco could feel the noticeably hotter temperature coming from inside the room and it was not due to the shower that the younger male just had. Recognizing the hungry stare, Ace moved back and allowed Marco in before he closed the door.
Ace busied himself with looking through the drawers for a pair of shorts to sleep in and upon finding some, he dropped the towel, standing bare as the day he was born. He slid the shorts up his legs to his hips before he turned to Marco, who had already taken a seat on his bed, his back resting against the headboard. "There a reason you came here?"
"As much as I know what it is I came here for," Marco started then stopped as he watched Ace move to the bed and flop down on it. "I'm just here tonight in case you need anything."
Ace turned onto his side and looked at Marco, who now had crossed his ankles and folded his hands in his lap, his eyes staring at nothing particular. He sighed before saying, "Thatch and I made a good team when we fought against the Decalvan Brothers. He had my back and I his, told myself that I always would after that. Yet I didn't protect him from this…" Ace–who was now on his back with his arm over his eyes and his black hair sprawled out over the pillow beneath him–trailed off because that familiar ache in his chest intensified. Marco waited for him to continue but when he soon realized that he was not going to, the blond sat in silence with Ace.
Marco sensed the room temperature rising again; and as if that was his cue, Marco got off the bed to exit the room that was steadily getting hotter by the second. He paused at the door only to say, "It'll be bad for you to keep it in like that, Ace, I'm here if you need me."
Says the Old Man. Ace thought before he tried to settle himself down so he could repose.
Sleep decided to be a very elusive bitch and because of that, Ace did not rest as planned. He had tossed and turned throughout the hours of the night, clutching at his chest until the sun decided to peek through his windows.
Understanding that sleep was not going to be gracious to him, Ace rolled over and let his feet hit the hard wood floor. He lingered on the edge of the bed for a while then stood up and stretched. Moving to his dresser to pull his normal shorts and pair of socks out of the drawer, tossing them onto the bed. He walked over to the wardrobe and opened it, grabbing the bag he had previously packed the night before for his journey. With his belongings ready for travel, Ace put on all of his accessories then hefted the bag over his shoulder. The last article he grabbed before he left the room was his hat and then he was off towards the deck of the ship, where all the crewmates had already gathered for the passing ceremony.
Ace dropped his bag off to his side as he walked around the end of the plank that the crew placed in the center of the deck for the ceremony. On the slab of wood lay the body of Thatch, former fourth division commander, covered in a hammock sheet and tied down with ropes wrapped on both ends, ensure its security. Ace paused at the sight of his once good friend laying there before he took his place in line between Marco and Third Division Commander Jozu. With his arrival, all fifteen division commanders were now standing behind the plank looking out at the crew. Ace rubbed his pointer finger and thumb together idly, creating a small fire, as the Old Man began his speech to the crew. Instead of sitting in his massive throne like normal, Whitebeard stood in front of them, nearest to the crew but still next to the corpse.
"As you all know," he began, "you all lost a brother yesterday, and I, a son." He paused to look back sadly at the body. "Thatch was a good son, loyal and brave. He was the first to make you laugh and the life of the party. It deeply saddens me to see one of my children dead." Whitebeard turned towards his crew, gazing at everyone with doleful but hardened eyes. "There is one son who is not amongst us today, but it is not due to his death. His involvement in Thatch's murder has caused him to flee like a coward with the prize he dealt a devastating blow for; the devil fruit Yami Yami no Mi."
Collective whispers begun among the mass of people and Ace's small fire started to grow until it formed a modest flame at the tip of his fist. Marco's hand shot out to grab Ace's fist, effectively smothering the fire. He shared a glance with Ace, squeezing his hand. Whitebeard raised his own to cease the collective murmuring before he resumed speaking. "Blackbeard has betrayed us all. His punishment will be delivered by our second commander, Ace." He turned to look at the freckled man with a small smile. "We will be here awaiting your return, my son."
Ace pulled his hand from Marco's and placed it over his chest, bowing his head with acknowledgement to his father. With grace that a man his size should not possess, the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates lift the sake bottle and poured some of the white liquid into a drinking saucer before tipping the contents out over the side of the ship. He then moved over to the plank of wood – which would normally take ten men to maneuver – and began to tilt it with one hand over the rail of the ship, slowly allowing the body to slip off and into the water with a splash.
The Yonko's crew tipped their hats and bowed their heads in a small uniformed prayer to whatever god that watched over pirates. After a while, they all returned to their daily duties. Commanders went to inform their subordinates of the day's agenda, as commanded by Whitebeard; and the subordinates went off to fulfill whatever job assigned to them. Marco and Ace were the last two, along with Whitebeard, left standing on the deck of the Moby Dick. The trio walked to the side of the ship where Ace's personally designed boat made to accommodate his Mera Mera no Mi was waiting for him. Whitebeard and Marco halted just before they approached the gunwale, while Ace pressed on. He approached the opening where the ladder hanging down from the side of the ship.
As he turned back around to say his parting words to the Old Man, he saw his former crewmates, now known as Whitebeard Pirates but formally known as the Spade Pirates. Sadden smiles greeted him as they waved to Ace. He returned the gesture, smiling back at them before returning his attention to Whitebeard.
"I would tell you not to start too much trouble, but I know that's like telling you not to start fires."
Ace pulled a cheeky grin and put one hand on his hip, the other tipping his hat forward. "You know me well, Pops."
Marco and Whitebeard gave light chuckles as Ace hopped over the railing and into his boat. Without looking back, he took off out to the open waters, leaving behind his family in search for a killer.
Hello all! Sorry if you read the previous version, I had to change the tense of the story. Please tell me what you think of it so far, suggestions and flames are more than welcome. Thank you for reading and please stick around for chapter 2: Dracule Mihawk. Please read and review - Huredhiel