As someone who's not the biggest fan of romance or OCs (not shaming anyone who likes to write OCs or read them, just not personally my thing), who would've thought I'd put both in my story. Honestly I did my best to write Lizzy as a realistic and likable character who would fit into the One Piece world. Whether or not I succeeded is up to you. I actually had to write several OCs for this story considering there aren't actually that many characters in Luffy's backstory aside from the bandits, the pirates and of course Garp and Makino. In any case, none of them are meant to be too overly critical to the plot and mainly serve to drive Luffy and Ace's characters through the story. As it is, I hope you enjoy.
Chapter 2: A Meeting in the Rain
Ace was staring at the ceiling of the mini fort he and Luffy had built just beside Dadan's hut. There was no noise aside from the gentle pattering of the rain which had been falling steadily for two days now and the soft slow breathing of his little brother as he slept. It had been a few days now since the chase in the alleyway that had resulted in his injury and the small boy was confined to his room until it healed. However Luffy refused to stay put and rest unless Ace was there with him. If Ace thought Luffy was clingy as a child, it had been even worse ever since they had lost Sabo. Even though Ace had promised the seven year old at the time that he wouldn't die, Luffy hated to see him leave his sights for anything longer than a few hours at a time. Ace sighed, Luffy could be such a pain in the ass sometimes. He looked down at his little brother who was resting his head upon Ace's chest and was clinging slightly to his shirt, his fingers wrapped firmly around the thin fabric. Ace couldn't help but smile as he felt the steady rise and fall of his body and the warmth of his presence.
"You are such a nuisance," he muttered warmly, feeling an odd surge of affection bubbling up inside him and he gently ruffled his hair. Luffy mumbled something in his sleep, it was mostly unintelligible but Ace swore he heard the word meat in there somewhere. He chuckled to himself. As much as the boy could be infuriatingly clingy and maddeningly reckless, he was his little brother and Ace wouldn't change a thing about him. He just hoped that Luffy would be able to maintain that intangible quality, that innate Luffy-ness that was indescribable by words. The odd paradox of selfish selflessness and stubborn determination mixed with childish wonder that had endeared him to the boy. He had a radiant smile that never failed to draw out his own and a laugh so contagious it spread like wildfire.
But as much as Ace loved his brother he had grown tired of staying here by his side for so long. He was getting restless, and he couldn't stay cooped up in this room for three more days which was the estimated time it would take for Luffy's arms to fully heal. Ace studied his brother's sleeping face, he was deep in slumber and most likely would be for another several hours. If all Luffy was going to do was sleep, there was no need for Ace to be there was there? He would simply head down to grey terminal for a few hours and be back before Luffy even knew he was gone.
Slowly and carefully, he began to unwrap himself from the boy's grasp. When finally he had removed his shirt from the tangled grip Luffy had held him in, he slowly began to slide out from under him, gently lowering his head to the ground. Ace knew that Luffy was a fairly deep sleeper and it would take a lot more than that to wake him up, but he couldn't help but be gentle to the small boy who seemed so vulnerable as he slept, his upper body wrapped in slightly red-tinged bandages. Ace sighed in relief as he was finally free of the kid, and he had continued to sleep peacefully, just barely stirring. Not taking his eyes off of him until he closed the curtain behind him, Ace crept out of the room while Luffy stayed blissfully unaware of his brother's absence.
Now out in the open rain, Ace stretched and leaned back his head, allowing the cooling liquid to run down his face. He inhaled deeply and relished the earthy scent of the jungle as it rained. It smelled of damp wood and healthy soil, and of course it carried the cool scent of storm clouds and fog. Ace wasn't one to enjoy rainy days or cold weather, but even he had to appreciate the serene and free atmosphere brought on by the storm. Thunder gently rumbled in the distance as he began the long hike down the mountain to the grey terminal outside of the Goa Kingdom. His boots were getting caked with mud but he didn't care, his mind was preoccupied with other thoughts. He felt his heart racing faster and faster with every step he took toward the trash heap.
A twig snapped behind him and he whirled around his face turning red. What if Luffy was following him. Oh he would never live it down if Luffy found out about her. He would laugh for days as he had when they were kids whenever they saw Makino and Ace couldn't hide his feelings. He wanted to punch his younger self for being an idiot, developing a crush on an older girl and being so obvious about it made him feel retroactively humiliated. They hadn't seen Makino in ages and Ace still wasn't sure if he could face his former crush despite the fact that his heart now belonged to another woman.
As he peered into the jungle he saw that it was just a small stray cat leaping down from the branch of a tree and taking shelter at its base. Ace sighed in relief, he didn't want to have to put up with Luffy's immaturity about romance ever again. He turned back to the path and continued on his way to grey terminal. The walk seemed to take forever as his anticipation at seeing her again stretched the minutes into hours. Finally after what seemed like eternity, the trees began to thin and he found himself at the base of a large pile of both literal and figurative shit. He wrinkled his nose slightly at the smell, if there was something grey terminal wasn't known for, it was it's class.
Ace just hoped she would be here today, though with the weather as dismal as it was there was a good chance she would be back at her own home safe and warm. If she was out here, Ace hoped she had dressed appropriately and wouldn't catch cold in this cool, damp environment. If the rain made the forest seem peaceful, it made grey terminal an even more disgusting and unsanitary place to be. The runoff water disturbed the junk piles causing new odors to emerge and the sewage from the city sometimes overflowed and drained into the junkyard. People were huddling together in makeshift huts, doing their best to keep out of the rain, some of them were so thin and disheveled that Ace would've thought they were corpses if it weren't for their relentless shivering. Overall it was a depressing scene.
Then he saw her. His heart nearly burst out of his chest as his eyes locked onto the one being who had entirely taken up his thoughts and feelings for the past few weeks. She was carrying a large woven basket laden with bread and canned soups. She was wearing a light cream colored scarf over her head to protect her golden hair from the rain and a large billowy soft pink rain jacket that seemed slightly too large for her. In her right hand she held a lavender umbrella which shielded her from the storm and matched her willowy dress. When she turned to face him, two brilliant blue eyes met his from under the shadow of her scarf. A wide smile stretched across her face revealing dimples on either cheek and gleaming white teeth, radiant as the moon.
"Lizzy!" he called and she seemed to swell with joy at the sight of him.
"Ace!" she squealed happily as she rushed toward him and threw her arms around him, tackling him in a hug that rivaled that of Luffy. The heavy basket she was carrying awkwardly whipped around and whacked him in the backside as her momentum accidentally threw it into him. If she had been any ordinary girl he might not have noticed but Lizzy was surprisingly strong and heavy for her size. Ace nearly stumbled back with the force of her hug but was able to catch himself just in time before he fell into the junk pile behind him. He laughed returning the hug and holding her close to him. She stood up on her tiptoes and gave him a long, slow kiss that made his entire body flood with warmth.
"I haven't seen you in ages! Where have you been!?" she exclaimed as she pulled away, looking up at him. She was a foot shorter than he was and had a petite frame that made it even more surprising that she could easily rival him in an arm wrestling match.
"Oh, well you know I was busy all week and then my idiot brother got into some trouble so I had to stay at home and take care of him," Ace shrugged, still smiling. She gave him another big squeeze and laid her head on his chest.
"Just don't do that again! I nearly died of loneliness," she lamented dramatically and Ace laughed. Lizzy was prone to bouts of drama that were often playful in nature but even when serious typically weren't anything to worry over as her mood was quite plastic and malleable.
"I've hardly been gone a week," he chuckled and she shook her head.
"And that's one week too long if you ask me," she answered pulling away. Ace looked down at the woven basket that had nearly knocked the wind out of him, it was much too large to contain a meal for just one person, or even two. She looked to see what he was staring at and gasped in dismay, rushing to close the lid of the basket before the rain ruined the freshly baked bread.
"Are you giving the people here food again?" he asked and her face turned pink and she looked away embarrassed. He sighed and lightly kissed her on the forehead, she was much too kind for her own good. "You do realize that you're just encouraging them to bum off of you, and if the guards catch you feeding the people out here they could arrest you for it," he pointed out and her face shifted from pink to red as an indignant rage overtook her.
"Why should they have to eat garbage just because they're poor, it's not fair Ace! What the nobles do, it's wrong! Why do these people have to live in squalor because the rulers of our country believe they are lesser creatures!" She exclaimed, her voice trembling with rage. She stared up at him defiantly, waiting for him to contradict her. Ace couldn't help glancing around quickly making sure that there weren't any guards in the area who might have overheard her treasonous words, even though he knew he could take care of anyone who did try to hurt her.
"I agree Lizzy, but I don't like it when you come out here alone, you didn't know I'd be coming today but you came anyway and any one of these scumbags could-" he cut himself off at the thought "Just don't come out here without some sort of protection ok!" He snapped and she looked away, pouting slightly.
"I can take care of myself you know!" He did know that, quite well actually. But he couldn't help but feel nervous about her coming here without his protection. There was always the chance that she would be outnumbered, or taken by surprise. There was an unprecedented amount of thugs in the area and it was rife with failed pirates who had taken the place of the now deceased Bluejam crew. Ace had even heard rumors of slavers in the area and it would be just their luck to catch a lovely young woman like Lizzy for the market. Just the thought of it made Ace's blood run cold. But he knew that she wouldn't listen to him, Lizzy was too stubborn for her own good, much like him he supposed.
Oddly enough, this was how Ace and Lizzy had first met. Ace had gone into grey terminal to find Luffy a gift in the junkyard for his birthday. He was sure there were at least a few perfectly good toys that some spoiled rich kid had thrown out, and he was hoping to find a really cool one that would blow Luffy's mind. As he had been rummaging through the junk, Lizzy had approached him with a delicious meal, offering it to him. At first he had been so overwhelmed by her beauty that he hadn't been able to do anything but stare at her. The first thing he noticed was how much she stood out against the filth of grey terminal. She was wearing fine fabrics and lace, all well kept and neat and she seemed well fed despite her small size. But she had insisted on him taking the food, and when a lovely girl offers you food, you don't deny it. She had stayed beside him as he ate, introducing herself, asking him questions about his life outside the Goa kingdom.
There was no mistaking that she was from the city. But she was never condescending, she never acted like Ace was beneath her, and soon he found himself incapable of staying away from her. He would sneak away several times a week to meet her, doing his best to keep her a secret from Luffy. It had been a long time since he felt so good, there was a strange warmth in his chest and face whenever he saw her and an odd butterfly sensation in his stomach. Just being around her was enough to put him in a better mood. Before he knew it, he was head over heels in love with her.
"Have you ever considered wearing a hat?" she asked him, as he assisted her in ladling out bowls of soup for a family who was nearly in tears at the sight of a fresh meal.
"What?" he asked nearly dropping the bowl. She bonked him gently on the head with the end of the ladle.
"Be more careful," she scolded, as he had almost spilled the contents all over the ground "And I was asking if you'd ever considered wearing a hat," she paused looking him over "I think it would suit you." He shrugged, he'd never really thought of himself as a hat person, that was more of his brother's thing.
"You think so?" he asked and she put one hand on her chin as she thought it over, still staring at him contemplatively. She nodded slightly.
"Yes, I think orange would be your color… you have a very bright personality," she replied turning back to the starving family. "How's the food!?" She asked cheerfully, giving them a dazzling smile that was unlike anything anyone here in the terminal could give.
"Thank you so much! It's delicious! No one has ever given us anything so good or done something so kind for us!" The father exclaimed fighting back tears of joy as he fed his children for the first time in months. Lizzy said nothing, she simply smiled and put the remaining soup and bread back into the basket before turning to leave. Ace followed after her, loving the truly joyful grin on her face.
The final family they fed consisted of only three. Despite the delicious meal, they still seemed quite distraught. Though they were not ungrateful, both Lizzy and Ace could tell that there was something wrong. When Lizzy asked the father what it was, he simply pointed to his young daughter who was hardly four years old. She had dark circles under her eyes and she was extremely pale and she hadn't even touched her food. It was quite clear that although she seemed strong enough to walk the poor thing had caught the summer sickness that was known to spread through these parts this time of year. Ace was glad that he and Luffy had never caught cold, because even the slightest hint of illness could lead to the deadly plague catching hold of you. It was ultimately incurable.
"I see," Lizzy said softly, she tried offering the food in front of her again but the little girl just shook her head. Lizzy sighed and put the bowl down. She began rummaging around in her basket as if searching for something but he saw her clench her teeth in frustration as she seemed unable to find it. Finally she put the basket down and removed her rain jacket and handed it to the little girl. The girl's eyes went wide as she took hold of the expensive fabric.
"Fit for a princess huh?" Lizzy asked and the girl smiled, her eyes gleaming with delight. Lizzy helped her as the child eagerly dawned her new luxurious clothing. Well it was luxurious compared to the potato sack the girl had re-purposed into a dress.
"Thank you," the little girl whispered, Lizzy said nothing. Ace was watching the entire scene with shock. If there was one flaw that Lizzy had, it was her vanity. She loved to look nice and he was surprised to see her willingly part with part of her outfit. Suddenly Lizzy turned and left the hut, Ace followed close behind.
"I hate this Ace," she said softly, stopping just a few feet ahead of him.
"Your outfit isn't that bad without the coat," he offered comfortingly. She turned to glare at him and he saw that there were tears in her eyes.
"Not that you idiot!" she sighed and closed her eyes, clearly trying hard not to cry. Ace bowed his head feeling a bit sheepish that he hadn't caught on to her clear shift in mood. Not only that but it hadn't really occurred to him that as the daughter of relatively wealthy merchants, she wasn't nearly as used to seeing the symptoms of poverty such as plague and starvation as he was. To him, child death was a common occurrence in his environment and he had learned to build a wall and distance himself from the thought. He hadn't considered that maybe she still hadn't come to terms with the nature of the world they lived in as he had long ago. Sometimes it was easy to forget just how young they were as he had to grow up so much faster than others just to keep him and his brother alive.
"What is it then," he asked, already knowing the answer and not sure if he should do something more to comfort her. She hadn't needed to grow up nearly as fast as he had and now he could see her as she was, a young sixteen year old girl who was witnessing life's tragedies and feeling powerless to fix it.
"I hate having all this money and not being able to do jack shit with it!" she exclaimed, her voice breaking slightly, "What am I supposed to do, I can't save that little girl, she's got the plague and no one seems to care, no one is trying to stop it! Do people really believe that she doesn't deserve to live because of where and to whom she was born!? She's gonna die and it's just because she can't afford to live in a nice home like my family can!" She ripped off her scarf and threw it to the ground, as if offended by the idea that she was allowed to have the luxury of owning it when there were people who were literally so poor that they had to wear and eat garbage just to survive. The lovely cream colored scarf sank into the mud and was now little more than another piece of meaningless cloth abandoned in grey terminal.
Lizzy slowly turned and embraced him, no longer able to hold back her tears. Ace was silent, he knew that she was correct. The girl deserved to live, she was going to die, and worst of all was a truth that he had sadly gone numb to: nobody cared. Lizzy was trembling and he couldn't tell if it was in rage or in pain, not that it made any difference as no matter what she felt it wouldn't change a thing. He hated how pessimistic he was, but time and time again, the world he lived in had proven to him that there was no such thing as justice or equality. There were only nobles and the corruption of power that led them to seeing themselves as higher beings than those who had less than them. He wrapped his arms around her gently, allowing her to cry without demanding her to say anything.
"It's not fair!" She cried out miserably into his chest, her voice breaking.
"I know," he answered and gently rested his head on hers, unable to say anything more. Her tears were silent and her sobs nothing more than despaired hiccups that were just enough to make her shoulders bounce gently. He continued to hold her as she let out her despair and frustration at the world's indifference. They stayed like this for several moments until she was able to slow her tears.
"Are you okay?" he finally asked.
"Yeah," she sniffled "I think so," she chuckled a bit. "Ugh I'm a mess...thanks Ace."
"You look miserable," he commented and she laughed, punching him playfully in the shoulder.
Suddenly a loud crash of thunder shook the skies, making both Ace and Lizzy jump. The steady drizzle that had been bearing down on the island for the past several days suddenly erupted into a violent downpour. Lizzy screamed and dropped the now empty basket as a sudden gust of wind blew away her umbrella and she was now open to be thoroughly soaked by the storm. She gave a small gasp of shock as the rain seeped through her clothes leaving her drenched. Ace laughed as he was already soaking wet and she began to laugh too.
Ace threw his head back and spread his arms out wide, embracing the sudden onslaught of rain that had taken their minds off of their shitty reality. If he hadn't closed his eyes he might have noticed the mischievous smile that had overtaken Lizzy's face as she slowly crept closer to him. Without warning she gave him a sharp shove that sent him off balance and tumbling backwards into a large puddle of mud behind him. He landed with a loud ungraceful and undignified splash that caused the parts of him that hadn't fallen in the mud to get covered in it anyway. He gasped as he hit the dirty water, spluttering as some of it ran into his mouth and eyes. Lizzy laughed hysterically as he continued to spit out the disgusting stuff. Once he had gotten over the initial shock he too began to laugh. He scooped a handful of mud into his hands forming a large brown ball and jumped to his feet. Lizzy shrieked and turned to run as he lobbed the thing at her, sadly she was just a second too slow and the large mudball caught her square in the back.
For the next few moments, the lovers chased after each other, pelting one another with mud and laughing when they hit their target. There was a pause as each of them turned to look at the other and could only laugh as they realized they had thoroughly caked the other in the dark sludge. The two of them stood there giggling hysterically, unable to catch their breath as the storm raged on. Finally they each calmed themselves long enough to realize that it was getting late. They looked over at the giant wall that surrounded the majority of the Goa kingdom and saw guards making preparations to shut down operations.
"I can't go back to the city now," she exclaimed, shouting slightly to be heard over the wind and rain, "They close the gates when storms get this bad! Besides, they wouldn't even let me back in being this filthy!"
"I have an idea, come with me!" Ace exclaimed grabbing her by the hand and pulling her in the direction of Mt. Corvo. He couldn't let her stay with Dadan for the night because again Luffy would probably annoy them all night laughing and teasing and generally being the little shit he was, and the mountain bandits might scare her away. But there was one place on the mountain that could house them for the night. The two of them ran through the jungle, the rain coming down harder with every second. They laughed as they splashed through puddles and trudged through muddy slopes. The storm had thoroughly ruined Lizzy's dress but she didn't seem to care as they held hands in the torrential downpour.
Finally they came upon the base of a large tree, Ace hadn't seen this place in years. Not since the night of the fire. He was surprised to see that it still seemed to be in good condition and that years of neglect hadn't left the thing to die. He wasn't too excited to step foot in the fort, as it held too many memories, but he was surprised to find that the ache although still present had diminished somewhat over the years. There was something bittersweet about seeing the building he, Sabo, and Luffy had all worked on together and lived in. Lizzy didn't seem to notice it at first and was looking around in confusion, so he pointed up at the large tree fort that towered above them and she gasped in delight. He couldn't help but smile at that. He leaned in and gave her an affectionate kiss on the lips that lasted slightly longer than normal. She closed her eyes briefly and grinned up at him.
"Let's get out of this rain!" he shouted, the jungle was even louder than usual with all of the trees roaring and swaying in the wind. She nodded and they began climbing up the ladder to the entrance of the fort. Once inside, the loud sounds of the storm were muffled by the thick wooden walls. It was oddly dry and cozy in the fort and now that they were out of the storm, they felt a wave of fatigue wash over them and they collapsed to the ground, dripping all over the dry wooden floor. They sat there for several minutes breathing heavily, trying to catch their breath. Lizzy slumped over and leaned against Ace's shoulder and he felt a tingling sensation spread throughout him and he noticed he had goosebumps as every part of his body came alive at her touch.
"Are you cold?" Lizzy asked, noticing his prickling skin as well. His face went a bit red and he nodded slightly, even though he wasn't really. Ace wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him so that she was practically on his lap. She smiled and gently rested her head back on his chest, closing her eyes. Ace noticed that since she had removed her scarf, her long golden curls had tumbled free, and he soon found himself playing with a lock of her hair while lost in thought. She was so soft and warm and it felt amazing for their bodies to be this close together. He sighed in contentment.
"Is this where you live?" She asked, snapping Ace out of his thoughts. He looked down and saw her wide blue eyes taking in the toys and children's paintings that littered the floor and covered the walls.
"Hm? Oh no, not anymore," he answered "Me and my brothers made it back when we were kids, we used to hang out here all the time," just thinking about the times spent here sent a surge of both nostalgia and sadness through Ace.
"Brothers?" Lizzy asked, catching his mistake. He quickly looked away his eyes darkening, unable to meet her gaze.
"Brother." He corrected. She seemed to understand what he meant and she turned so that she could kiss him. She gently took hold of his face with both of her hands so that she could bring it to her own, he knew once his eyes met hers she could see that pain and sadness in them. He saw the pain he felt become reflected onto her own eyes and she leaned in and kissed him long and softly. When she finally pulled away she gently wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his shoulder, holding him tightly to her.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. Ace said nothing, he just let her hold him, wishing that it was enough to make the hurt go away entirely. They stayed like this for a while as the sun set and the sky began to darken, only illuminated by the flashes of lightning from the storm raging outside.
Ok, so that might be the most romantic chapter in the whole thing. Honestly, I've never written romance so I hope this was convincing and believable and that I didn't lay it on too thick. I just figured that it might be nice to have Ace have a lover before he died, to give him and Lizzy some Roger and Rouge parallels- though Lizzy definitely wasn't pregnant when Ace died. Also having a character who is wealthy for a change might be interesting, Sabo doesn't count because he didn't have access to his wealth and he was already pretty well aware of the suffering of the poor and the depravity of the nobles. It might be fun to write someone who hasn't seen this yet. I don't know. She does have a purpose in this story and it will become clear eventually. As it is, I hope you enjoyed!