Another fix it story, but a LOT different from my other ones. There's a lot of angst for Ace in this one for various reasons that will become clear later. Also some mystery about why Ace does what he does. I hope everyone enjoys it, it's almost 80,000 words (done but not fully edited at this time. 200+ pages sucks to edit -_-) So, enjoy~
Ace's gray eyes opened slowly, feeling slightly ill. The first thing he realized was that his head hurt, and the next was that he was in a dark room, feeling sore and achy. He sat up slowly, feeling the bandages on his chest, but knowing whatever wounds he had weren't too bad, or had healed a lot already.
Where was he? Moby Dick. He looked around, confused as to where he was. What was the Moby Dick? How did he know where he was? He sat up further, and swung his legs out of bed. Home. Why was he thinking this was home? Where was home? His ship… what ship? Deuce… who was Deuce? He was so confused, not knowing what was going on.
Why were his thoughts so jumbled? Best to figure out firsthand where he was and what was going on instead of trying to sort out confusing thoughts. Maybe it was from his headache. Hopefully it would go away soon.
He stood and found his boots by the door, putting them on before walking outside. He was indeed on a ship, but he was a pirate, so what was weird about that? He was a pirate. Commander… no, captain. He was a captain. What was a commander? Why was he thinking like this? Was he drugged? He hoped not.
He walked into the bright sunlight, but it didn't cause his headache to get worse, thankfully. He stood at the railing, looking at the endless horizon, seeing from this side that there was no island in view. He sat down against the railing, back leaning against it and putting his head in his hands, trying to think.
What was going on? He felt… wrong. He felt confused, when he knew he shouldn't be. Should he? He didn't remember much of what happened the day before, or how he got here. He was distracted from his confused thoughts when someone walked over to him, smiling.
"Yo, I'm-" the guy started to say, and Ace knew him somehow. He didn't remember meeting him, but knew his name.
"Thatch…" Thatch looked surprised with Ace knowing his name, confused, but interested. He sat on the railing, looking at Ace in intrigue. The young captain didn't know why, all he'd said was his name. Surely he'd told him before. Why would Ace know his name otherwise?
"Yeah… How'd you know my name?" the guy asked curiously, not a trace of suspicion in his voice. Ace looked at his feet, his head in his hands again. He answered honestly.
"I… I don't know," he said quietly, but loud enough for Thatch to hear. Thatch looked even more interested. He asked if he remembered what had happened a few days before, since Ace was clearly confused, looking lost. He didn't sound like he was pitying Ace, which he was grateful for. Ace didn't like pity, it made him angry and feel weak. "No. What happened?" he asked.
Thatch started to look concerned. "You got in a battle with Pops, got pretty injured. We took you onto this ship, the Moby Dick," he explained slowly. Ace looked back down, trying to remember what happened. Why the hell couldn't he remember two days ago? It was… two days ago. He should remember.
Now he was really worried.
"Perhaps you hit your head in the fight?" Thatch suggested. That didn't seem right. Why would a head injury make Ace know Thatch's name? He looked around, seeming to recognize where he was, but still couldn't remember the day before. He didn't remember the fight that had injured him.
Ace shook his head. "I don't think that's it… I feel weird," Ace said. Thatch commented that he was acting much different than the day before, when he was angry and defiant. "I was? Why?"
Thatch said, "You got in a battle with Pops and he offered for you to join us. You were really pissy about it! It was funny. Then you passed out so we took you and your crew. They're okay. A little bruised, but nothing too bad," Thatch explained. "How about we get your head checked out? Maybe you can get some meds to help out?" He sounded very friendly. Friend… Thatch is my friend.
But he didn't remember meeting him. Why would they be friends already? Ace didn't remember ever making friends easily. At least he remembered himself. He remembered Luffy and Sabo, but nothing in the near past. Not his last adventure with his crew. He didn't even remember the names and faces of them, which made him horrified.
Well, he remembered one. With blue hair and a mask. Deuce. At least he remembered somebody. Ace stood up and walked with Thatch through the ship, people looking at him strangely, probably because he was holding his head again, like that would help him think straight - normally.
He didn't notice walking in front of Thatch through the ship and to the infirmary. He didn't even notice he knew where he was going. Thatch did, though. "Hey, how do you know where to go?" he asked in pure curiosity and confusion. Ace frowned, and asked what he meant. "You're walking straight to the infirmary, but you've never been on this ship before! I think we'd know if you'd been on here before."
Ace looked down and then around. "I feel weird. Like I've been here before, but I don't remember when. I don't remember ever visiting here before," Ace said honestly. He thought he wouldn't have talked like this to a stranger. Thatch is my friend. No, he's not. You don't know him.
"Hmmm… maybe you're from the future!" Thatch exclaimed. Ace looked at him in disbelief. He said he doubted that, pointing out that he didn't have a devil fruit like that. "Well, that's true. I guess we'll just see what happens next. C'mon, let's go get your head checked out." Ace nodded, and this time followed behind Thatch.
As he walked past people in the halls, faces looked familiar, but he couldn't remember names. But just as soon as he recognized the faces, they seemed to fall out of his head. Only Thatch didn't. He remembered his name, and the feeling of friendship, but not much else.
He did remember the name of one huge guy that walked past him. Jozu. But the word friend didn't surface for him. He might have recognized him from a wanted poster, but didn't know. He stared at him as he walked past, with the large man looking at him strangely before passing. Probably because Ace was openly staring at him.
When they entered the infirmary, Ace sat on the nearest bed. "You, Whiskey! Ace needs a check up," Thatch called. When the nurse came out, one word came through Ace's head, but not her name. Scary. Why would she be scary? She was a nurse, weren't doctors supposed to be nice?
"What's up?" she asked, sounding perfectly normal, not scary at all. Why had he thought that? Thatch explained that Ace might have hit his head and was confused, but didn't mention Ace's weird behavior. How he knew Thatch's name and where to go on the ship.
Whiskey got to checking Ace's head, looking for any trauma before giving him a quiz to see if he had a concussion. Thatch sat on a nearby bed, watching Ace with interest. It didn't bother Ace, Thatch was his friend. He couldn't get that feeling to go away, so he just accepted it. "Well, you seem perfectly fine to me. Maybe you're just tired. You do seem a little sleepy."
Ace said, "But, I'm confused."
Whiskey replied, "Being confused doesn't always mean you have a brain injury." Ace frowned, but didn't argue. Scary. He didn't argue again, even though the woman was being perfectly friendly. But Ace trusted that thought. Whiskey was scary, Ace didn't want to anger her, for some reason. He trusted that voice in his head, it sounded truthful, even though it confused him.
"Well, why don't we go get you something to eat first? You went through a five day battle with Jinbei! You have to be starving," Thatch offered. Ace didn't remember going through a battle like that. Five days? Well, he was impressed with himself if that was the truth. He nodded and stood up to follow Thatch.
Halfway through the walk, Thatch stepped behind Ace. "Do you know where the galley is?" he asked excitedly. Ace thought for a moment, before he nodded, saying he thought so. "Then lead the way." Ace nodded again, and walked them to the galley.
When they entered, there were some people eating, but not many. Just a handful scattered about the massive room with huge tables. He looked at one table in particular, and felt he should sit there. But he didn't, and followed Thatch to the kitchen, finding it was massive and had a long bar counter that Ace sat at.
"Man, you're interesting. You even knew how to get to the galley!" Thatch gushed. "Hmm, are you a spy?" Ace frowned.
"I don't think so," he replied honestly. Thatch laughed, saying it wasn't an answer a spy would give, so he crossed that thought out. He cooked Ace some chicken dish, and handed the massive plate to him, a huge amount of chicken over brown rice, drizzled with some kind of sauce. Ace ate it like a starving animal, just realizing he was famished.
Thatch handed him a large glass of lemonade, which Ace drank enthusiastically. He finished the plate in no time, and was full enough to not want seconds at the moment. His headache was still there, but slowly fading. The confusion was still front and center, though. "Sooo, can you recognize anyone in here?" Thatch asked, leaning on the counter with his elbows.
Ace turned around to look, feeling that same sort of recognition before they faded. Only one person stuck out. "Haruta," he said slowly.
"That's right! Hmm, I don't think I'll tell anyone about this. They might think you're a spy, even though I really doubt that. Maybe don't act like you know everybody. They might think it's suspicious," Thatch explained. Ace nodded, though he didn't know if he'd be able to do that. He hadn't even noticed he'd said Thatch's name.
Haruta -friend- walked over, looking at Ace with a smile. "Hey, my name is Haruta. I'm the thirteenth division commander. Man, we've been looking for you for months! Didn't expect to find you fighting Jinbei, though," he said conversationally. Haruta stepped a foot into the kitchen. Thatch's kitchen.
"Hey, my kitchen! You don't get in here!" Thatch said, kicking Haruta away.
"C'mon, do you think everyone in here just teleports food out of the fridge?" Haruta grumbled, rubbing his shin. "A-hole."
Thatch crossed his arms. "Well, as long as I'm here nobody but myself and my sous chefs get in here. You should know that by now. Dumbass," he said, though there wasn't too much anger in his voice, mostly sounding taunting.
Ace stood up, and said that he was going to try and sleep, surprising Haruta. "You've been sleeping for like, two days straight," he pointed out. Ace said he was still tired. "Why don't you talk to Pops first? Whitebeard."
The fire user started to sway, and he remembered he had narcolepsy. How could he forget that? But he was out like a light, head slamming into the table. Thatch shouted his name, and shook him, trying to wake him. Only he then noticed that he was asleep once he heard the snoring. "The hell?"
Haruta said, "Hey, Jonsi has this, right? Narcolepsy." Thatch frowned, and wondered why Ace hadn't said anything. But then he had a look of realization on, and looked concerned not much long after.
"Well, I'll take him to the room he'll be staying in for now," Thatch said. He picked Ace up and walked him back to his room. Ace didn't wake up on the way, but Thatch put him on his bed, and waited in the corner for him to wake.
He did, maybe ten minutes later, sitting up slowly. He saw Thatch in the corner. "You have narcolepsy?" he asked. Ace nodded, saying he forgot, and putting his head back in his hands. "Do you know other things you've forgotten?" he asked slowly, looking worried and wary.
Ace nodded, and sighed. "I can't remember the names and faces of my crew," he said quietly. "Only one, but I can't even remember meeting him, how we met." Thatch gasped, horrified and Ace flinched, feeling evil for forgetting his own crew. They were supposed to be his second family.
"I'm so sorry," Thatch replied quietly. Ace nodded, but was still curled up under the covers. "Is that all you can't remember?" he asked hesitantly, probably not wanting to make Ace even more upset. Ace shook his head, saying he couldn't remember forgetting anything else. He probably had.
Ace lamented, "I don't know what's wrong with me. You said I was acting a lot differently the other day?" Thatch nodded, saying he was a lot angrier, but the situation was a lot different. But that he had remembered the names of his crew, having told them to leave him to save them. "I can't face them. They'd be so hurt I forgot them."
Thatch nodded, agreeing. Ace wasn't hurt by that. Anyone would feel that was the truth. "Well, maybe after some time goes by, they'll come back to you. Why don't you rest in here for a bit? Then I can come get you to talk to Pops about what to do next?" Ace looked up, confused, and asked what they'd need to talk about. "About you joining. That's why we took you in the first place," Thatch explained.
Ace frowned. "I didn't join already?" he asked quietly, not meaning to say it aloud. Thatch furrowed his brows, looking confused.
"You haven't even officially met Pops yet, Ace," he said slowly. He sounded suspicious now, but not in a bad way. Not in a way that he didn't trust Ace, which he was thankful for. "Only a few days ago, you refused vehemently. We thought it would be a lot harder for you to agree… Ace, do you really think you've been here before?"
Ace nodded. "I feel like I've been here a long time." He noticed things becoming clearer about things that hadn't happened, while nothing of his past was coming back at all. Only Deuce and his childhood were there. The rest was blank. Like he'd skipped from being with Luffy to suddenly being here, his whole journey as a captain gone.
"That's so weird," Thatch whispered. "You remember people, or places? Or events that happened?"
"Only some stuff. Not a lot. Just some people. Marco… birdbrain?" he asked, confused as to why that was there. Why would he ever think something like that? Surely it would get him in trouble if he ever said something like that. He remembered small things like that, some snippets of events that were a bit fuzzy. "Pranks… paint, all over the place. A guy with long hair, he hates people touching his… kimono?"
He looked up, and Thatch's eyes were huge, his face in shock. "I remember weird things like that. I don't know why." Thatch looked down.
He said, "You shouldn't know stuff like that, Ace. Even if you were a spy, you shouldn't know things like that. We call Marco birdbrain to piss him off. Me and Haruta experiment with paint to prank people all the time. Izo hates people touching him at all, threatens us with a gun if we touch his clothes."
Ace was so confused and concerned. He just wanted to remember his life. Not stupid things like this. He wanted to remember his crew. He wanted to remember the adventures they'd had. That's why he set out to be a pirate! To be strong, have adventures, and he'd forgotten all of it! "I want to remember my crew. I don't want to know stupid stuff like that," he said sadly.
Thatch got up and put his hand on Ace's back. "Maybe if you see them, they'll come back to you," he suggested kindly. Ace shook his head, pointing out that he'd be unable to speak to them if he didn't remember on the spot. "I have an idea!" the commander suddenly said. "All pirates have logbooks, right? If we go back to your ship, we can get them and you can read up on all of the adventures you've had!"
Ace brightened, and nodded. "I want to do that!" he said, feeling happy for the first time since waking up. Thatch stood up, and said they could go now. Ace jumped up and followed after him.
"I gotta tell Pops we're going back to the island. It's not far from here, we haven't gone far. We were planning on going back to your ship to get your belongings once you guys agreed. Man, this has been easier than any of us thought it would!" They hurried to the captain's throne. It was huge, but Ace was not surprised by the size, even though he didn't remember seeing Whitebeard - Pops…
He did not say that aloud. "Son, and Ace," Whitebeard said in surprise when he saw Ace hurrying after Thatch after being a pissy brat a few days before. "How are you feeling?" he asked, a strange look on his face.
"Okay," Ace said, not knowing how to act without seeming suspicious. Thatch was fine with it, but Marco was not as accepting of strange things. He could tell just by his face at seeing Thatch and Ace standing close and Ace not looking angry at all.
"We're going back to his ship to get some important stuff. We're gonna take one of the rafts since it's not too far from the ship," Thatch said immediately, and Pops frowned, probably thinking this was a trick on Ace's part, that he'd just leave once they got back to the island. "Don't worry! He won't run. Well, we'll be back in a bit!" Thatch said, and he and Ace hurried away.
Marco flew after them and landed in front of the two. Ace felt uncomfortable, but not afraid. Friend. He had at least three friends on this ship, even though Thatch was the only one who seemed to return the sentiment, even if he hadn't said it.
"Are you sure about this?" he asked Thatch, looking at Ace curiously.
"Yeah! Don't worry about a thing. We're just getting some important stuff. We'll get the rest another time," Thatch said cheerily. Marco asked if he was taking his swords. "Why would I do that?" the pompadoured man asked in utter confusion. Marco raised a brow. "Oh, Ace won't attack me. He's a good guy."
The blonde was clearly confused by Thatch's behavior, that he'd made friends with Ace just maybe an hour after he woke up. "Well, we'll be back soon. Don't worry, you'll make a bad first impression. He'll think you have a stick up your ass."
Ace could not help but say. "It wouldn't hurt him, though," before he turned pale, and Thatch started cracking up, thumping Ace on the back. He said goodbye, and pulled Ace along with him to lower down one of the escape boats which had a small cabin big enough for three people. It would only take a few hours to get back to the island, so they didn't pack food or anything. Marco watched them from afar, Ace seeing the look of confusion on his face.
-x-
Ace sat in the makeshift bedroom that was clearly a storage room with a crappy mattress, reading through the many thick logbooks his crew had recorded. He didn't remember anything, but felt like it was progress. He was most interested in his adventures in Wano, meeting Tama. He had photos of his crew and tried matching the names to the faces.
Deuce stood out, and he was glad he remembered at least one person. He didn't want to see them yet, hoping he'd remember them with time. They were on one of the other ships to keep them apart. Any other time, in a normal situation, Ace would have been mad to be separated from them. But this time was good. He just couldn't bring himself to face them and not know who they were.
He'd been through a lot with them based on their logbooks. And he'd forgotten them. Thatch brought in food for him at dinner, and asked how it was going. "I still don't remember any of this, but I'm glad to at least know the gist of what's happened," he said, closing the log book he was reading and getting started on the food.
"Thank you. For taking me to my ship. I didn't recognize anything there. It felt so cold and empty," Ace said with a sigh. It hadn't felt like home at all. The Moby Dick felt more like home, but he didn't voice that thought.
Thatch smiled. "No problem! I trust you already. And you're pretty interesting! Hopefully you remember more stuff so we can get to know you better. Though I hope memories returning won't make you leave," he said the last part more sadly.
Ace smiled. "I have a feeling I won't leave. I don't think you should worry," he assured his friend. Thatch grinned, and said he'd bring dessert later, and to just keep reading and nobody would disturb him. "When will I talk to P- Whitebeard?" he asked, catching himself just barely. Thatch didn't seem to notice. Thankfully.
"I told him you were tired today and would talk in the morning," the chef replied. Ace smiled and thanked him, before the man left Ace to eat in the quiet and then continue reading. Thatch came back maybe an hour later and gave him a plate of hot chocolate lava cake that made Ace's mouth water visibly. He took the tray and left Ace to eat the absolutely heavenly desert. Oh god it was good.