WhiteyWolf26: What would the crew think if they saw a paper like that? Hmm.

Simitria: Omg, thank you for all of the reviews! It will be a little while until the Teach incident. Gotta butter it up by making him seem super likeable to Ace. Mwahaha. And Aioba is the shittiest character I've ever written, but was fun!

The next day, he fetched the piece of paper and brought it to Thatch in the kitchen after he'd cleaned up breakfast and before starting lunch. "Thatch, I wrote down everything weird," he said, and laid the paper out on the counter. Thatch took it and read the list.

"Wow, I didn't realize it was this much. Wait, what's the second division commander part?" he wondered, and Ace put his face in his hands, irritated with himself. Well, there was no way he could just tell Thatch to forget about it.

He sighed and explained, "Sometimes that just pops into my head. And I keep thinking the office is 'mine'. I don't know what it means, and I rarely get any context surrounding it. Just the stupid words pop into my head." Thatch looked surprised.

"Well, maybe you'll become the commander some day, who knows?" Ace pointed out that he wasn't commander quality. He wasn't courageous enough. "Well, it doesn't mean it happens soon, right?" the chef offered helpfully. "I wouldn't think too hard about that one, Ace."

Ace nodded, and said he wouldn't. Thatch then asked about "Master Zeke". "That's the guy I am sure taught me mapping and charting. I have no doubt it was him, if that ever actually happened."

Thatch gave him the list back, and Ace folded it up before putting it in his pocket. "I think you should continue keeping track of that. It might be helpful in the future," he said, and Ace agreed. He didn't know how it would be or when, but it would possibly be helpful. "Also, I'd keep that someplace safe. Someone could find it and think something strange about it."

"I will. I already found a hiding place for it," Ace replied. Thatch said that was good, and reminded Ace that Shanks would be arriving some time that day. Ace nodded, not having forgotten. He didn't remember meeting Shanks, so he wanted to see him himself, see who Luffy admired so much.

Saber had told him he'd thanked Shanks for saving and influencing Luffy, so he wouldn't do it again. That'd be embarrassing. Ace and Thatch left the kitchen and Ace went to hide the list before he joined his brothers out on deck, waiting for the other yonko to arrive. And it didn't take too long before his ship arrived. Ace didn't recognize it at all.

When both ships were parallel, they both furled the sails and dropped anchor, the smallest yonko of the bunch walking onto the deck. Suddenly, people started collapsing besides the commanders, Ace and Deuce. Teach was up as well. But everyone else was knocked out. Thatch patted his back, saying Shanks used conqueror's haki to knock them out.

Ace's face went white, remembering using something similar when he was protecting Luffy from Bluejam when they were kids. He vaguely heard muffled voices, giving him suggestions on how to use it. But he didn't know if he'd ever be able to, and didn't care. He just didn't care. Haruta complimented Ace and Deuce for staying conscious.

Ace's orange hat was extremely recognizable, and Shanks saw him before he even looked at Whitebeard. "Oh, it's Ace! Long time no see! I didn't know you joined Whitebeard. Your ambition gone?" he asked in a teasing way.

The teen felt incredibly awkward. "Um, nice to see you again, too. Yeah, I've changed since then," he replied. Marco was grimacing at the interaction.

Shanks frowned. "Why are you acting like we've never met? You'll hurt my feelings," he joked.

"I've lost the memories of the last two years of my life. I don't remember ever meeting you. Sorry," Ace explained stiffly. Shanks blinked a few times before frowning. He apologized, saying that was a heavy loss. "Thanks," Ace said with a small smile. Shanks seemed nice so far. He then brought his massive bottle of sake to Whitebeard, and Ace got very bored while they had the conversation.

He eventually went inside and to the library to finish the book he'd left last night. The commanders were all required out on deck, and Ace wasn't. Yet.

"Shut up…" Ace grumbled. He went to the book and immersed himself in the story, not even noticing he fell asleep, losing the page he was on. When he woke up, someone had put a blanket over him, even if he didn't get hot. But it was nice, and he didn't know who'd done it so he couldn't thank anybody.

When he went back out of the library, Shanks was still there, but the crew was all awake now. He got nasty and suspicious looks a lot, and it tanked his mood. He eventually just went to the office and sat behind the desk, just wanting to be alone. He didn't want to be glared at anymore. He wiped under his eyes, not wanting to cry.

People didn't usually come there, but commanders could still come over and find him with haki. He leaned against the desk, looking at the wall across from him. He wasn't visible from the door or hallway.

Eventually, someone did come in, and sat next to him, leaning against the desk, too. It was Marco, and he asked Ace if he was okay, since the teen was hunched over in a ball, his arms wrapped around his knees. "Not really," Ace answered honestly. Marco frowned and put his arm around Ace's shoulders.

"I'll talk to my division, and maybe have Pops talk to everyone," Marco offered. "I'm sorry they've reacted so badly. I don't think you are a spy. I know you aren't. And I know you're missing two years of your life, so you could have learned by someone else and don't remember it. Like learning about mapping and chart making."

Ace replied, "It was your move. I don't think others would copy it like that and then teach someone else."

"Then I'm not sure where it came from," Marco said quietly. Ace laughed humorously.

"The future you taught me," he said, trying to joke but telling what he truly thought. He expected Marco to chuckle or point out that was impossible, but he took it seriously.

The first mate responded, "Well, that would make more sense than you being a spy. At least in my eyes. Weird shit happens in the Grand Line, who knows if time-travel is possible?" he asked, sounding quite serious. Ace looked at him in shock, and then glanced at the wall that held his paper. Marco was taking him seriously. Would he believe what Ace thought? What he remembered?

Ace stood up and walked to his hiding place, making Marco watch, and pulled the folded paper out of the narrow crack in between boards, and brought it back to him, sitting back down, and handing Marco the piece of paper, looking away immediately, face red and heart beating quickly. Marco looked down at it and unfolded it, reading down the list. He didn't really show any reaction, unreadable to Ace.

"This is all stuff you know that you don't remember learning?" Ace nodded silently. "Do you have memories you shouldn't?" Marco asked, taking this all seriously, not brushing him off and not looking at him like he was an idiot or freak. Just looked concerned and serious.

The teen nodded. "Just small things. Short dialogues. Except the man who I learned mapping from. I met him on the island. He didn't know me but I knew all about him. That's why I was freaking out on the mountain. I didn't know what to think. I never went through any of that. And my old crew said I was never good at mapping, even when I tried. Said I never learned when we were sailing," he explained quietly.

Marco folded the paper back up. "That's why you know things you've never learned? Because you didn't remember learning and it wasn't in the last two years?" Ace nodded again. "You knew things about the Moby Dick the first day you were here?"

"Yeah. I knew peoples' names and faces, where the infirmary and kitchen was. I knew small things that Thatch said I shouldn't. Like rude nicknames for you, or Izo hating when someone touches him. And the whole paint prank thing Thatch and Haruta do. I wasn't sure what was going on, so Thatch had known from the beginning ," Ace explained quietly. More like a whisper. "I knew when the island had a plague on it. It wasn't Thatch that had a dream about it, I told him I had a bad feeling about it and he didn't give me away."

Marco smiled softly. "Thatch really is a good man," he sighed. Ace agreed.

"He's been my lifeline through all of this stuff. It's hard, not saying stuff I know I shouldn't. I don't like drinking anymore because I'm afraid I'll be drunk and say something I shouldn't," Ace replied. "Thatch thinks I came from the future. And that's why I have memories of things that haven't happened yet."

Marco put a hand on Ace's shoulder. "I believe you, and will support you as best as I can. And I won't tell anyone, not even Pops. I swear." Ace had tears down his cheeks and wiped them away, trying to stop them. "Thank you for telling me. It means a lot that you trust me like this, and I understand why you've kept it a secret." Ace smiled at him and nodded once.

"And I'm sorry you lost all of that time, and instead know things that you shouldn't. I'd much rather know my past than the future," Marco said quietly. "Why don't we put that somewhere nobody will find it?" he asked, gesturing to the piece of paper Ace was now holding. "Nobody dares to go into our bedrooms. I can hide it there."

Ace accepted the offer, and the two of them got up and walked to Marco's room. "What did you write about the second division commander?" he wondered while he hid the paper inside the base of the lamp near his bed.

The youngest shrugged. "That's the most annoying one. Sometimes I'll just hear 'second division commander' in my head with zero context. I don't like hearing voices in my head. Makes me feel crazy," he confessed.

Marco set the lamp back down, now completely hiding the piece of paper. "I don't think you're crazy. And maybe you'll become a commander in the future." Ace pointed out that was what Thatch had said and said he wouldn't make a good commander. "Perhaps, I guess we'll just see, right?" Marco asked with a smile. Ace nodded, and the two left the room. "If you want to write on the list again if anything new comes up, I give you permission to go get it if I'm not around, okay?"

Ace thanked him. "Thank you, for being understanding and taking me seriously." Marco put his arm around Ace's shoulders and thanked him for confiding in him. "Now Thatch is gonna be upset he'd not be the only one who knows everything."

"Most likely," Marco agreed.

-x-

"Nooo! Whyyy?" Thatch lamented when Marco and Ace walked over and told him their secret was now shared between four, though Thatch and Marco knew everything.

Ace said, "It just felt right to tell him. Who knows, maybe he could help out figuring out what's up?" He didn't want Thatch to feel bad. Thatch crossed his arms and glared at Marco.

"I'm still his favorite brother," he huffed, and Marco chuckled. Ace just laughed and nodded. Thatch would always have a special place in his heart. But after that, Marco started hanging out with both of them more. Since Ace now had two people to tell, it was easier to tell them at the same time. Marco and Thatch were close, but had different jobs so they weren't together too much during the day.

Ace wasn't in charge of anything, so he could chill with Thatch more. And people noticed. They didn't glare when Marco or Thatch was with him, and when Marco had told his division that he did not approve of the way they were treating Ace, the glares faded a bit.

But, predictably, there was one who looked for any chance to break Marco's trust in Ace, and that was Aioba. Only he had far reaching consequences. Going after Ace, saying rude things despite Ace being firm for him to stop, telling him his works weren't the best, had alienated him from much of their division.

Ace had been told that before he came, Aioba still had attitude problems, but Ace exacerbated them and caused them to be more pronounced. It was when Jozu was leader of the division for that week when Ace finally exposed that he had made sea charts in his sleep. It wasn't just the first anymore, he'd made two more charts over the last couple of weeks.

It was only when he forgot to lock his bedroom door when he got out. Otherwise, he'd usually still be in his bed while sometimes leaning against the door. It made his back stiff when he fell asleep on the floor, but there wasn't much he could do about it. The sleeping medicine made him feel nauseous in the morning, so locking his door was the best chance.

So, when he told Jozu that he wanted to take striker out to measure the currents, Jozu had asked why. "I can make sea charts, too. In my sleep, but I want to see if I can do it while awake."

"You liar! You're too young to have learned to make sea charts," Aioba said, and those around sighed, but said nothing. Jozu looked at him with a raised eyebrow, and asked why Ace would lie. He couldn't fake making a sea chart.

"I don't see why not, Ace. We're stopping here for the day while the sails are being repaired, so go ahead. Just be careful," the large commander said. Ace thanked him and nodded, not sparing a glance at his "bully". He heard light scolding from the room before he got the help of Deuce to get striker out and into the water.

He wasn't sure what to do, so he just let his body take over, and spent a good seven hours out there, somehow not falling asleep even though he was tired by the end. He followed the eternal pose back and called down for someone to lower ropes to help bring the vessel back up. His watermelon backpack was full of equipment, and he climbed up the rope ladder lowered down before helping pull striker up.

He got an apple to eat before heading to his temporary office and started charting. Like the last map he made, which was now a few weeks ago, he let himself zone out as his hands did the work for him, making smooth lines that he had observed and measured, looking at his notes as he did so. It was finished before Thatch came and got him, ordering him to take a break and get food.

"Okay, I'm done anyway," Ace said with a satisfied smile.

"Ooh, let me see," Thatch said and hurried in to look at the neat and clean chart. "Wow, it looks so professional." Ace pointed out that there was nothing to compare it to so he didn't know if it was accurate. "And you learned this from Master Zeke?" Ace nodded.

"If my flash forwards were right, he taught me. I don't know why I was there so long, but I did learn from him. He could be a jerk," Ace said, but sounded fond. Thatch pointed that out, and Ace said he thought he got along with him well. When he met him he felt happiness and fondness at seeing him "again".

"Well, time for dinner anyways, lil' bro," Thatch said, thumping Ace on the back. He put his things away and then walked with Thatch back to the galley, which still had people eating, but was not at full capacity. It was pasta night, with all sorts of pasta dishes. Ace sat next to Marco, who was still eating, reading the paper at the same time.

"Hey, how'd your charting go?" Marco asked, putting the newspaper down to the side of his plate. Ace explained that it was a bit tiring and somewhat boring, but the end was satisfying. "Can I see it?" Marco asked. Ace nodded, said he'd show him later.

Ace froze suddenly, and Marco asked if he was okay. "I… think the next island is on fire," Ace said, holding his head. It felt clearer. Not just a bad feeling. "Not just a bad feeling, I feel like it's on fire." Then he stood up, and hurried outside. Marco followed him, Ace's food forgotten, with Thatch shouting at him to eat in irritation.

The island they were arriving at the next day was not far at all, even if they couldn't see it. If the storm hadn't damaged the moby Dick, they'd have arrived that day. He hurried to the navigation room and got a pair of binoculars. He looked in the direction ahead of them and slightly to the left, and saw a faint plume of smoke. "Marco, there's smoke," Ace said.

Marco took the binoculars from him, and saw the small amount of smoke as well. It wasn't a super helpful "vision" since anyone would notice it eventually, but it did help. It wasn't something useless. "And we need to restock. Shit," Marco said.

Ace commented that he didn't think it would go well. Just by the fact it was burning, it would be dangerous both from inhaling smoke and lighting the ship on fire. He could douse the flames with his own powers, but it could still do damage if it touched the sails.

"Yeah, we can't dock when it's like that. I hope people got away…" It wasn't a protected island under them, but they still hoped the citizens were safe. "Thanks, Ace. Now, go eat while I do something about this."

Ace nodded, and then asked if he could go into his room to write down on his list. Marco nodded, saying he didn't need to ask, and went inside to eat quickly before hurrying out. He walked to the commanders' hall and entered Marco's room, heading to the lamp and unscrewing the bottom of it with a screwdriver Marco told him was in the desk drawer, and took the paper out.

"Ace? What are you doing in Marco's room?" a deep voice behind him asked. It was Rayuko. He was suspicious, since nobody was supposed to even be in this hall. Ace gulped, not wanting to be seen as guilty, even if Marco would assure the other commander that Ace had permission.

He said, "I'm getting something of mine. Marco gave me permission." His voice shook a bit out of nervousness, and Rayuko looked suspicious. He asked what he was doing with the lamp. "The thing was inside it."

"Why?"

"...Um, it's a secret between me and Marco," he replied awkwardly, even if it was the truth. Rayuko didn't believe him. "We can go ask Marco," he offered. Someone guilty would not offer that, and it seemed to surprise the man. "I just gotta write something down and then i'll be out in a second."

The wild-haired man nodded, and turned around so he wouldn't see what Ace was doing. He took a pen from the cup on the desk and wrote fire on island before putting it back. He walked out and he and Rayuko went to find Marco. They walked in silence, and even though Ace knew he wasn't guilty, he was still uncomfortable.

They found Marco on deck speaking to Pops, both frustrated with not being able to dock. There was nothing they could do to help, since the fire was still burning and the smoke was now easily visible from a distance. "Marco, Ace was in your bedroom. He says you gave him permission." Rayuko sounded openly suspicious.

"That's right. He was messing with the bedside lamp, right?" The other commander nodded, brows furrowed. "Yeah, I gave him permission. It's fine," Marco said casually. Pops looked curious and confused, but Marco went back to planning with him on what to do next. Ace slipped away awkwardly, with Rayuko looking at him in curiosity, but then shrugging and went to join the conversation about what to do.

When Ace went back inside, Thatch stormed up to him angrily. "EAT! I order you to eat!" he shouted, making Ace chuckle.

"Yes, sir," he joked and went back to the galley to serve himself another plate, starving after only eating an apple since breakfast. He was mostly alone in the galley when Teach sat next to him. "Hey, Teach. What's up?"

"Me and the guys are gonna have a competition of who can eat the most cherry pies. Wanna join?" he asked, and Ace was more than willing to binge on cherry pies, which Teach was almost unhealthily obsessed with. Maybe that was why he was so large.

"Sure, sounds fun," Ace replied. "When is it?"

"Tonight at the birthday celebration for the fall," Teach explained. Ace told him it might be postponed, since they had to conserve more food. "Why? What happened?" Teach asked, clearly not hearing the news of their skipping the burning land.

Ace explained, "The island we were supposed to dock at and resupply is on fire. You can see the smoke from here." Teach swore, grumbling about looking forward to the party. Ace frowned, wondering if he only cared about that, and not the lives of those on the island. Sure, they were pirates, but it was a little cold. Ace hadn't outwardly shown he was upset, but he did wish for the islanders to have escaped. But how would they put out a fire so big they could see the plume over a mile away?

"Well, rain check, then?" Teach asked happily. Ace nodded, saying, "Sure…" He watched Teach walk away, and frowned at the reaction. Well, he was a pirate. Not all pirates were saints. Ace knew he wasn't. But the others might show some empathy for those on the doomed island. Ace looked away, frowning at his food. He wanted to check on the island. Maybe he could go with Marco.

He stuffed the rest of the food into his mouth and then hurried outside to Pops. "Pops, can I go check on the island? Maybe I can put the fire out," Ace said. Whitebeard asked if he was able to do that. Ace looked at his palms. "I don't know, but I'd like to try. Even if I can't, the fire won't harm me at all."

Pops nodded, saying it was worth a try. Ace thanked him and he and the nearest pirates helped him bring striker back into the water in record time before he jumped off and sped towards the island, a mask over his mouth and nose to help with smoke inhalation. Marco flew after him in full phoenix form to go his fastest. They said nothing on the way until they both reached the burnt docks. Ace swore at the sight of the island.

The fire was hundreds of feet in the air, and he heard faint screaming. Marco flew into the fire to look for survivors while Ace took a deep breath and thrust his hands into the fire, trying to put out the flames, trying to push them away, but that didn't work. Maybe he could consume the fire. He grunted and pictured the fire being sucked into his body.

He screamed at the pain of it, feeling absolutely ill from how much he was absorbing. He didn't know the exact extent of his fire powers besides what his former crew told him he could do. He grit his teeth and scrunched his eyes as he felt his skin start to burn. He snapped his eyes open to see that his skin was just fine. He wasn't burning alive, even though it felt that way.

It was a good fifteen minutes of pain before he noticed the flames shrinking and the height lowering before there was a final whoosh and the fire was gone, revealing burnt forests and broken homes. He fell to his hands and knees, wincing at the feeling of his arms. He coughed on the smoke and finally passed out.

When he woke up, he was in the infirmary, arms burning painfully. He had an oxygen mask on, and coughed, his throat hurting so bad from the smoke. He took it off and saw Thatch and Haruta sleeping on the nearest bed, Thatch's arm on Haruta's face, but neither awake. Ace sat up and took the mask off, coughing again.

There was a large glass of water by the bed, so he drank a lot of it. He looked at his burning arms and saw they were red. Not looking like a burn mark, but pinker than usual. He moved one hand to poke the other arm and hissed, scolding himself internally.

He didn't want to wake his guests, but leaned back in the bed. He was just about to fall asleep before there was a painful, sharp feeling in his head that made him cry out.

We didn't get here fast enough. Everyone is dead.

And the fire is still burning. There's nothing we can do.

Hearing those words caused him pain in his head, the first time any dialogue or words in his head had caused pain. In the words, he gathered that the island had not been put out, and everyone had died. But… that's not what happened. He'd put the fire out, even if it had been very painful.

He didn't know if any of the people living on the island were alive, but he had put the fire out when the words in his mind hinted that he hadn't. He changed something. If they really were things he'd done in the future, was that what happened if he deviated? Had he been doing everything right so far? Even though he had memories of things he didn't end up doing, this hadn't happened before.

He held his head and sighed, closing his eyes. But the headache was there and he wanted some pain medicine, not knowing if it would do any good, but it was better than doing nothing. He said, "Thatch, Haruta," with coughs in between. They both woke up and shouted his name, hurrying over. "My head hurts," he said.

"Pain medicine, right!" Haruta exclaimed. "Sorry," he added when Ace winced at the loud noise. He left to go get something for Ace and Thatch stayed next to him, asking how he felt.

"Throat hurts and arms burn," Ace replied, his voice hoarse. Thatch put his hand through Ace's hair and smiled at him.

"You breathed in a lot of smoke, so your lungs and throat are irritated. You should put the mask back on," he said kindly. "You saved a lot of people. The fire was put out before it burnt ships. The villagers are mostly safe, Marco is working to help them with their injuries on their own ships. Striker is back here, don't worry."

Ace grinned tiredly. "Not very pirate-like, am I?" Thatch chuckled, and adjusted the bed so he was sitting more and could take the pain pills with water. He couldn't tell Thatch what he thought caused the headache because Haruta was there. "How long was I out?"

"Around four hours. You fell unconscious on the island and Marco flew you back. After you were in here, he went back and pulled striker to the ship like a horse in front of a carriage. It was funny," Thatch said, voice quiet to not hurt Ace's head. "While the fire is out and the remaining citizens are safe, we won't be getting any supplies from that island. It's uninhabitable now, so the villagers will be moved to our nearest protected island."

Ace frowned. It was too bad they wouldn't be able to live in their home anymore. So he asked why that was. "All of the vegetation is gone and the water is heavily polluted. They can't live on that island anytime soon. Maybe they'll return some day, that's up to them," Thatch explained. Haruta said he was going to go get Pops and tell them he was awake.

Once he left, Ace said, "I changed what happened. What was supposed to happen, I think. That's why my head hurts."

Thatch frowned, and said, "Haven't you changed things before?"

"I guess nothing worth thinking about. Maybe saving all these people changed something? I just heard me and Marco talking about everyone on the island dead and the fire still burning. Then my heart hurt, like a spike going through it," Ace explained.

Before Thatch could reply, Pops was there, smiling at Ace. Thatch moved away from the bed to give Whitebeard space. "How are you feeling son?" he asked fondly, quietly. No doubt Haruta had told him his head hurt.

"Throat and arms hurt. A little tired," Ace replied honestly. He took another gulp of water before Thatch put the oxygen mask back on for him. Ace relaxed into the soft pillows.

Whitebeard said, "Marco said you looked to be in a lot of pain. He heard you screaming, but by the time he got to you, you were unconscious. You did a good thing, Ace. pirate or not, you are a good person and I'm proud to call you my son." Ace turned red but gave a big smile, shyly thanking him.

"Awww, so cute," Thatch cooed, and Ace sent him a glare, which the chef just laughed at. "Are you hungry, Ace? I can make some soup or something." Ace nodded, saying he was hungry. The nurses weren't there at the moment, taking care of all of the other, worse injured people. Thatch left to go get some food for him.

Whitebeard sat on the nearest bed that was sized for the larger members on the crew, and said, "You know you can tell me anything on your mind, right?" he asked, surprising Ace. Ace furrowed his brows and nodded. "About you knowing Marco's fighting moves, I don't think you are a spy, so try not to be bothered by anyone saying that. Most have calmed down, but I still hear it sometimes."

Ace frowned and nodded. The glares had lessened after Marco said something to his division, but he still got them on occasion. "Thanks. I don't remember learning Marco's moves," he said. It was a half truth. He knew he had been taught by him sometime, but did not remember learning it directly. Not some future memory, if those are what they were.

"I know. I wish your memories would come back, son. It must be hard, to not know things you should," Pops said sadly. Ace nodded in agreement. "I haven't talked to you directly in a bit, so I'm sorry about that." Ace pointed out that there were a lot of people on this ship. "Still, as a newer member, I should be spending more time with you and the former Spades.

"Shanks told me about your brother, Luffy. Tell me about him?" Ace smiled and talked all about Luffy for the next hour, even while eating the soup. He ignored the pain in his throat, opting to talk about Luffy instead. He missed him, wishing he could see him again.

He eventually had a sleep attack while speaking, and when he woke up next, nobody was in there. He'd been out for a while, he assumed. He took another drink of the water, the oxygen mask no longer needed. After the water, he stood up, needing to use the bathroom. His arms had bandages on them, but none of the rest of his body hurt, so he was able to walk to the bathroom easily.

After using it, he went back to the bed, making a mental note to write about his broken memory on his paper. He fell asleep, and didn't wake up until noon of the next day.

And now Marco knows!