Witch68 - Yea, this will be a story that definitely won't speak to all. It will grow dark in different ways. As with every story of course, feel free to skip this one! I haven't written everything yet, but with the way i'm planing it, it will go bad for Ace.
There will not be an happy ending for Ace. Doesn't mean Marco will get an happy ending either. But well, even after only the first chapter, i don't think the events can just be brushed of for Ace, and thus Ace will not be able to live a happy life anymore afterwards.

WinterRose61 - It is indeed a very different theme, and will probably be and become one of the darkest theme's in this series. Hope most was clear and that you will enjoy the story! no matter how weird it is to enjoy this one, but well ehm, have a good read!

If anyone has things they want Marco to do to Ace, or Ace trying to do things, let me know! I haven't finished writing this story yet, so who know! Maybe I'll be able to use it in a chapter!

I'll be sure to put warnings in every chapter of things happening in this story, so if it gets too much for anyone, just skip out on the chapter, or even send me a private message if you would like some more knowledge of what will happen before reading it!

Violence is mentioned!

And... Murder/disappearances are insinuated.

Also already mentioning this. This story will NOT have an happy ending. Ace will not magically recover from whatever has happened and will happen.

At the Newgate mansions, Thatch was placing the last dishes on the table for their monthly family dinner.

"Is Marco still not here?"

Different negatives echoed across the table.

"Should we call him maybe? He may have lost track of time or mixed up the dates?" Izou asked from beside Thatch, having helped to carry some things out.

"If you could that would be wonderful, son."

"Alright, we'll let everyone know in a minute then, I left my phone in the kitchen."

With a nod Thatch and Izou disappeared into the kitchen and Izou took the pompadour's phone of the counter, calling the number every brother knew by heart. He put the phone on speaker so the other could listen too.

The call was accepted at the third beep.

"Good evening-yoi, Marco Newgate speaking."

"Marco… You're always so formal, it's just us, you know."

"Well, I wouldn't know since no one has introduced themselves yet."

"…" – "Well then, good evening my very dearest brother, it is I, the most favorite of a-"

"I'm sorry-yoi, forget I asked. What can I do for you two, Izou, Thatch."

"Tch, didn't even let me finish my beautifu-" "We were wondering where you were, Marco." Both the blond and the geisha ignored the whining voice at being interrupted, again.

They both could practically hear an eyebrow being raised, "Where I am? I am home, it's Sunday."

"Yes, it's Sunday indeed. Did you forget anything perhaps?" when the other end of the line stayed silent, Izou continued "Pop's dinner"

"Aaah" the sound of recognition came through, "Right, I'm sorry-yoi, I completely forgot about that since I got a new guest."

Thatch and Izou instantly shared a look before the cook spoke up, "Guest? Ehm… Do you have a colleague over from work?"

"Hmm, no, no, no one I invited over myself." Marco replied casually, "He walked in here by himself last week. Let me go get him for you guys."

"A-ah, no, Marco, it's okay, you don't need t-"

"Nonsense, he'll be staying here for a while, so he can at least say hello to you guys over the phone already."

Both Izou and thatch were getting nervous as they waited in silence, they knew of Marco's….. tendencies…

They heard the creaking of a door followed by a tiny squeak before hearing Marco's muffled voice, obvious that he wasn't speaking to the phone but to his guest. "Ace-yoi, say hello to my family" when silence echoed through the phone, they heard Marco's voice slightly harden compared to the sweet tone of before, "Ace. Say it."

"Marco, it's really okay."

"No." The sound of flesh hitting flesh echoed and a cry of pain accompanied it, "Now, freckles."

They heard some rustling before another voice came through, sounding weak and scared.

"H-hi, I-I am A-Ace. Nice to-to m-meet y-y-you."

"A-ah, ehm, hello Ace" – "…Likewise…" Izou and Thatch both tried to stay neutral, not sound... bothered by what they were releasing was happening at the other end of the phone.

They heard a muffled 'That's a good boy, that wasn't hard now, huh?' - "Then-yoi, if you'll excuse us, I was just about to have dinner with Ace myself."

"O-of course" Izou stuttered out, followed by Thatch trying to keep the normal conversation up, "have a nice meal, Marco… and Ace."

"Thank you, you guys too. Please apologize to Pops for my absence, it fully slipped my mind to cancel."

"We will… goodbye"

"Hmm, you guy's finished the call already, is he coming? ... What's wrong?"

Izou and Thatch pulled Haruta, who had just entered, further into the kitchen and looked at him with wide eyes.

"Guys? What's going on, you are scaring me."

Looking around to see if anyone was close, the two spoke in hushed whispers and fear themselves.

"He got another one, Haruta!"

"God, he sounded so young too!"

"What the hell do we do, we can't let him do this again!"

"We need to do something!"

"Wow wow, calm, what are you two saying?" The smallest one waved arms around, looking confused at the chef and geisha.

"Haruta…" Thatch started, but Izou quickly took over, "Marco somehow got hold of someone else in his new house. He said he walked in himself."

"W-wait, no, he just got released out of the psychiatric institution on good behaviour, he moved to a new place to start anew, he- he hasn't even been there for a week. They, the hospital, they said he was better!"

Everyone was silent for a moment, Izou speaking softly, "... He said the guy just walked in about a week ago, that's around the very first day he went to live there. What… what if he just took one of the movers hostage…?"

"No…" Haruta interfered, "they would have already been filed missing and their delivery points would be the first checked... Marco... is smarter than that."

"Then, can't you try to find who it is?! His name is Ace, a boy, he sounded very young!" Thatch yelled.

Haruta whipped out his phone and started pressing away, only... to come up with nothing.

"I can't find anything, there's no missing reports in that area."

"What do you mean there's nothing!"

"Don't yell at me! I don't know a last name, I don't have an Age, I don't even know what he looks like! The only thing I can do is search the database of missing people and no Ace has been noted missing!"

"… Sorry" – "Yea… we just… we want to help him…"

"…."

Thatch spoke up, "Maybe we can visit? We could see what he looks like, maybe ask Ace some stuff."

"Not an option." Izou deadpanned, "You know that Marco doesn't like visits as long as his… guest… isn't obedient yet…"

"Then what!?"

"Don't freaking yell you idiot, you want the whole family to know."

The cheff apologized again and looked down. They ... they didn't want a repeat of the past.

Haruta suddenly clapped her hands, quietly, "Thatch, you need to act drunk."

"Excuse me?"

"Not right now. But if you act drunk in a few hours, Marco would believe that you are really drunk, since you're always drinking at these get-togheters. You can send him something about Izou, and if he reacts, you can start sending how Izou is the best boyfriend, and no one can top him and bla bla bla. And then send a picture."

Izou gasped, "that's brilliant!"

The other however still looked confused, "I don't get it."

"Like Haruta said, you do all of that. And if Marco really likes… this Ace… he will refute it and tell you that you're wrong and that Ace is the best and send a picture back as proof!"

The chef gasped at it, that really was a good idea "Let's try it."

A few hours later

Having removed themselves a bit from the main party, Izou, Haruta and Thatch were once again gathered together, Thatch's phone in the middle.

"So…"

"Well…"

"I ehm I guess I'll text…"

"Make sure to have spelling mistakes, you never write without them, leave alone when drunk."

"Gee… thanks Izou."

"No problem dear."

Unlocking his phone, he went to the text app and opened his history with 'Marco'. He looked at it sadly. The last texts were of him congratulating him for being released and getting his new house and life together….. They hadn't even had a chance to visit yet...

He quickly put a text together and send it, Marco answering seconds later. They went back and forth, in the end arguing a bit about who was cutest, Izou or Ace. Which was in their luck, if his guest wasn't actually of much interest to Marco... he wouldn't even argue back and agree and... it would also have meant that the guest wouldn't be around for long...

"This is it, Thatch, send a picture of yourself with Izou! Oh and wait" Haruta leaned forward and messed up all of thatch's hair.

"O-Oi!"

"You can't act drunk and send a fully sober pic!"

"….."

"Oh, wait then" Izou said and went away, only to return with a beer.

"Izou, I don't actually need to be drunk…"

"… I know, it's for this."

"AH!"

Izou splashed him with the drink, a small grin on his lips.

"There, you always spill on yourself, now your look is complete. And you can hold the bottle in your picture too."

Even though grumbling, Thatch accepted the bottle and leaned closer to Izou who tried to look as he usually looked, pushing Thatch away and making a grossed out face at his appearance.

Making sure the picture was a bit blurry, drunks can't hold a phone still, he sent it away.

Minutes passed and nothing happened … they almost gave up and went back to the party when his phone lit up, not with a preview of a text, but a tiny picture.

"! I got a picture!"

"Show us!" the others called together.

Thatch opened it and instantly downloaded it, just in case Marco deleted it. Opening the picture, he turned his phone to show the others. All their eyes turned sad and lips turned down.

In the picture was a teenager, he had black hair, sun kissed skin and freckles all over his cheeks, they would be surprised if he was over 20. He had tears in his eyes and fear was obviously visible in them even if there seemed to be a forced smile on his lips. One eye was a bit more closed than the other… it also seems to be turning blue and starting to swell…

"I ehm… I guess we know where Marco hit him before…"

No one reacted as they continued to study the picture. The kid, Ace, also had a split lip and a cut on his temple, some blood dribbled down from it. At the bottom they could barely see a hand... Marco's hand… squeezing around his neck. Probably to keep him still for the picture.
Next to the teen, was Marco, his same carefree face as always… no… he… he actually looked happy? … The blond... he was ...

"Is … is Marco smiling?"

"… He is… I… is that good?"

Marco almost never smiled, if he did, it was a fake one, an act to appear normal. Even as a kid he had been... weird. Mimicking others in day to day activities to know how he should be reacting. So, getting a picture of him genuinely seeming happy, without someone else there expressing the same thing, without someone there to judge him, it was non-excitant…

"I.. I don't know... but ehm.. the pic is good ... right Haruta?"

"ehm yea….. he's… recognizable… I should be able to find something with this."

In silence Thatch sent the pic to Haruta, letting him get to work on his laptop. None knew how to react to this, especially not seeing their brother happy.

"We…. We can't help Ace."

Izou and Thatch shot up from the table, both almost falling asleep from waiting.

"What do you mean we can't help Ace?" – "We have to help him, someone must be looking for him!"

Haruta looked at them sadly, "I.. I don't think anyone is."

Izou looked flabbergasted, "He is a teenager, some parents out there must be looking for their baby, what are you saying Haruta!"

"… The last file I found about him was a yearly doctors check-up…"

"That's perfect, isn't it! We can find out his info from that!"

"It's … from an orphanage, in the next town over."

"Nothing wrong with that, they must have already told the police he's missing right, we can return him. This is good news!"

"I… no" Haruta looked lost at her computer "They haven't filed anything… no one has been reported missing... they won't care…"

"W-why not?"

"Portgas D. Ace, has been in the system practically since birth, mother died at childbirth, father has been missing since he was 2 months old, no one has come forward as a family-member since he was found in the baby-box at the local fire station. He turned 18 the first day of this year. Last year, when 17, he had his last doctor's appointment, and those are literally the last documents that exist of him. There's nothing. No adoption papers, no phone number, no card for money in his name, nothing…."

"…He outgrew the system" Thatch whispered and they all looked down. With almost all of them having been adopted by pops, they knew how it went. As soon ad you were 18, you were kicked out into the streets. At most given a yelled 'Goodluck' by the other children as they closed the door on you forever.

"Yes…" Haruta spoke solemnly "Even… Even if we get him out. There's nowhere for him to go. No one for him to rely on or go to for help. He will need a doctor, he won't have money for it, let alone have enough for therapy that he will definitely need. He won't have a roof above his head, he won't have food or water… He won't want help from us, from his …. Kidnapper's family… so… if we get him out… he… We would be sending him to the grave quicker… quicker than Marco would."

Thatch spoke, his voice holding nothing but sadness. "Are…. Are we really just… just going to leave him…?"

"We… We don't have a choice… unless you want his death on our hands, and turn Marco in to the police…"

The table grew silent… was there really nothing they could do… for once they found out early on Marco that had gotten someone again… and yet… there's still nothing they can do… Ace has no one to go to if they get him out. And Marco… even if he's a psychopath… they don't want him locked up… he's still their older brother...

One collective thought went around the table as a few silent tears fell, -Forgive us, Ace-

Only Izou, Haruta and Thatch really know of Marco's… psychopath stuff.
Besides them, Pops knows some things too, but he thinks Marco's really changed this time and believes in him.

Once again, be sure to leave suggestions to things you may want to happen!