Hello everyone! Here's chapter 14! Not much to say, beyond sorry for the wait, so, hope you enjoy!

I don't own One Piece. This fanfic was written purely for amusement.

Chapter 14

"What?!" I yelped. "You can't be serious, Pops!"

Pops nodded. "I'm deadly serious, Zia. And this is important, so try to keep the squabbling with Ace to a minimum."

I grumbled under my breath. This was what I was afraid of. I knew Pops thought I was acting childish over Firefist, so I guess it was only a matter of time before he shoved the two of us together on an assignment.

"So, do you understand the mission, Zia?" Pops asked, eyebrow raised.

I sighed, and shot Firefist a glare.

He hadn't said anything yet. He was just sitting there. I was just getting less and less comfortable with him as the weeks went by. And what was worse, he seemed to be getting along with everyone else, too. He was even chatting amiably with Cynthia the other day. Not that that bothered me much, Cynthia has a good head on her shoulders and wouldn't go slobbering over Ace anyway, but it still astonished me.

I nodded to Pops. "Yeah, we need to sail to the northern reaches of our territory to meet with Captain Bay. She's having some problems with a group of pirates lead by a guy called Ramba. We're to take him out and get him to ally with us if possible. Have I gotten that right?"

Pops nodded. "Yes. And I have utmost confidence in you and your team."

Irritated, I shook my head. "Very well, we'll be off at first light tomorrow." Then, I turned on my heels and walked off. I didn't want to spend any more time in that room with Firefist than I had to. When I closed the door, I was met with a familiar figure. "Okay, Thatch, I know you have something smart to say, so out with it." I grumbled.

Thatch laughed out loud. "Ah, c'mon Zia, at least act like you're looking forward to doing a mission with me and Izo. I mean, Ace isn't the only guy you'll be sailing with."

I sighed. That was true. And I was grateful for their company, otherwise I might end up pushing Firefist into the ocean.

It was at that moment that Firefist walked out of the meeting room, deep in conversation with Flossy, and he was lighting the air around him on fire.

I felt my neck muscles start to give again. The nerve of that guy! "What do you think you're doing?!" I snapped, storming over to him, "I can't believe I have to explain this to you, but don't play with fire! Don't you have any functioning brain cells!?"

Firefist took a step back. "Uh, well, I-"

Flossy stepped toward me angrily. "Zia! Why do you have to be so callous! Can't you just be nice for once?!"

I sighed angrily. "Oh, I'm sorry. Forgive me for getting after him for playing with fire inside a wooden ship." I wasn't ready to get into this argument with Flossy. I did like her, and since we shared a room, peace needs to be kept. "Hey, Firefist, don't act like that on Whitey Bay's ship. She'll probably kick you off, and I won't dive in to help you this time. Bay's usual territory is pretty far north, so it's too cold for my taste."

It seemed that the moment of tension would escalate, until Thatch chuckled. "Hey, I'm going to get some food ready. Join me, Zia?" It was painfully obvious what he was going for, but under the circumstances...

I nodded. "Sure. I'll join you." I shot Firefist another withering glance, wishing that I could see him just so I could see the look in his eyes. "See you later, Flossy." I said. I fell into step beside Thatch.

"You're pretty rough on him, you know that?" Thatch finally said when we stepped into the galley. "Sometimes I worry that you might rip his throat out." He nudged me in the ribs with his elbow. I knew what he was up to. He was trying to get me to loosen up a bit.

"Did you see him throwing that fire around like it was a juggling ball?" I growled.

Thatch sighed and patted me on the head. "I know how you feel about fire, but you're kinda damaging the guy." He stepped behind the counter, and picked up a meat cleaver. He flipped it up the air and caught it between his fingers. "You hungry?"

I frowned and hopped onto my usual stool, and propped my elbows on the counter. "Sure, why not?" I said. I put my head in my hands. "I'll try to at least ignore Firefist this trip, Thatch, for the sake of the mission, but if you can, can you keep him distracted? You're the social butterfly after all."

Thatch chuckled. "I sure am! And yeah, I get what you're saying." He pulled a rack of meat out of the fridge, and threw it onto a chopping block. "You've gotta keep your cool, though, okay?"

I shrugged. "I'll do my utmost." I paused, and just listened to Thatch cutting through the meat with the cleaver. "I haven't seen Bay in a while, though. I'm looking forward to talking to her again." I ventured. I had met Whitey Bay once, and we had hit it off pretty well. She runs a good ship, and she's got a sense of humour on her. She's also pretty laid-back.

"Yeah, and she's pretty easy on the eyes, too!" Thatch laughed.

I rolled my eyes. "Right, Thatch. I'll take your word for it. I'm sure she has beautifully coloured hair." I chuckled.

"Oh, yeah, she does." I wasn't sure if Thatch had caught on to my sarcasm. He leaned over the counter and ruffled my hair. "Ah, I'm just messing with you, Zia. Here." He tossed me something.

I shifted backward and caught the squishy ball of dough between my hands.

"Could you knead that for me?" he asked, turning back to the meat he was working with.

I started kneading the dough, my face quirking in concentration. I did like kneading dough, it was beating something to a pulp, but still coming out with something that tastes good once it's been baked. "So, is Izo ready to go?"

As if on cue, the doors to the galley banged open, and Izo stormed in. "Erhem!" A deliberate clearing of the throat, with the fist to the mouth and everything. "Zia, we need to talk."

I turned on my stool, and rested my forearm on the counter. "Hey, Izo." I said, a sudden need to tease him taking hold. "This doesn't happen to happen to have anything to do with my clothes, does it?"

Izo folded his arms across his chest. "You know very well, Zia." he said sharply, "I'm not letting you go and meet with one of our allies in those rags."

Thatch turned to his stove, covering his mouth to stifle his laughter.

I sighed. Izo had been bugging me to get new clothes fitted since before we picked up Firefist and his crew. I was never huge on having new clothes made, but I had been getting a bit uncomfortable with having to avoid conversation with Izo because of it. Might as well get it over with. "Yeah, yeah..." I said, and I hopped off the stool.

"So, this Ramba is a swordsman, isn't he?" Ace asked, trying to make conversation. The trip in the small boat so far had been deadly silent. He was sitting at the stern, watching the waves lap against the side of the boat. This was by far the most uncomfortable he'd felt since joining the Whitebeard Pirates, and that included sleeping in a large dorm with Thatch and a bunch of other sweaty guys who snored, tossed, or -in extreme cases- sang in their sleep. It had taken Ace weeks to get used to it.

Thatch, who Ace had pegged as being a motormouth, was completely silent, sitting at the bow next to Zia, his right heel resting on his left knee, leaning back against the side of the boat, mouth open, drooling. It hadn't taken him long to fall asleep.

Izo wasn't much better. Even though he was sitting right next to Ace, he was sitting, stiff as a board, with his eyes closed. His twin flintlock pistols were resting across his knees.

Zia was the only one who looked at all alert. She was leaning against the side of the boat, glaring out at the ocean ahead. Now and then she would chew her lip, or scratch at her nose, or straighten. She would occasionally turn to Thatch, seemingly checking to see that he wouldn't fall overboard, but she payed Ace no attention whatsoever.

She looked different today. She was dressed in a blue crop top with a purple swirl design across the front, with dark brown cargo pants held up by a black belt made of a tightly wound fabric, and black combat boots that looked pretty heavy duty, like they could be used for stomping on faces. Ace had never seen her in anything other than her slightly battered sky blue t-shirt and blue jeans. The combat boots looked new too, since her old ones had been falling apart at the seams.

Ace made to speak to her again, but she turned to him, and he found that the words died in his throat. She had a very strange way of raising her left eyebrow and screwing up her mouth, scrutinizing him.

She brushed a stray strand of her hair out of her eyes. Then, noticing that neither Thatch nor Izo were really up to answer, she sighed in irritation and said, "Yeah. I believe he uses a rapier. That's a weapon that requires a bit of finesse. It's not the sort of weapon that can cut through people's armour. He's built up quite a name for himself on the New World. As far as I know, he didn't come from paradise, he's just been terrorizing parts of the new world on the fringes of Pops' territory for about six months. This is the first time he's actually caused any trouble, though."

The lack of hostility in her voice caught Ace off guard. What had changed? He hadn't done anything different, and he figured she would be more than willing to bite his head off after he had tried to show Flossy his stuff. Now, she seemed like she was being friendly, though begrudgingly.

This was making him even more nervous than ever, so to give himself something to do, his willed his hands to turn to fire and willed it to condense into a sphere between his hands.

"Hey," he said, finally looking back at Zia, "so what is it with you, anyway? Why is it that we can't have a decent conversation until now?"

He immediately knew that he had overstepped whatever boundary she may have set.

Zia stiffened, and her mouth set in a hard line. Instead of hitting him, though, she turned to face the front again, and ignored him.

"Hey, don't give me the cold shoulder!" Ace said. His confusion was starting to wear away to annoyance. He reached out to... he didn't know what, take her shoulder or something? He wasn't sure, just anything that would make her turn around. Things had been going so... comparatively well up until then.

Fortunately -or unfortunately, Ace wasn't sure which - that was the moment that Thatch gapped and stretched, and opened his eyes. "Oh!" he said, looking confused. "Did I fall asleep?" He took in the scene in front of him, blinking like an owl in bright sunlight. Then, he studied Ace's position, Zia's expression, and something seemed to click behind his eyes. He smirked.

Ace was about to ask him what Zia's deal was when Thatch cut him off.

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

Ace's mouth fell open. That wasn't exactly what he was expecting.

Zia turned abruptly, with an expression that couldn't be anything but incredulity. But, she didn't say anything to his face for a while.

So the uncomfortable silence just hung in the air. Thatch was still smirking knowingly. The bastard was really enjoying this. Ace couldn't help but wonder what he was hiding behind that smirk.

Finally, Zia broke the silence. She simply said, "Thanks for keeping up your end of the deal, Thatch." With that, she turned to face the endless sea again.

That made Thatch squirm a bit.

Ace blinked in confusion. This wasn't going so well. He looked over at Izo, whose eyes were still closed, but he didn't look quite as tranquil as before. Ace didn't blame the guy for faking sleep.

That was torture. First Thatch and Izo had to go and fall asleep, leaving me to do the navigating. Good thing I know my way around with a log pose fairly well, or we would have been screwed. Then, Firefist decided to start talking, and I, remembering my deal with Thatch, thought that maybe, I could be a bit friendlier to the guy. I mean, he couldn't be that much of an inconsiderate blockhead, could he? Of course, he decided to prove me wrong pretty much right away. Just, playing with fire for fun! Of course, Thatch woke up and decided to rib us with a juvenile display of mockery.

I gritted my teeth and focussed on the horizon, trying to ignore all the people in the boat. I worried my lower lip. Oh God... my hands were shaking.

Thatch turned to me, and his expression softened a bit. He put his hand on my shoulder. "You all right there?" he asked.

I blinked hard, and nodded. "Yeah." I said. I just want this damn voyage to be over.

Finally, Izo spoke up from the back. "Hey. Looks like we've made it."

I'm not sure how the hell I didn't notice before. I'm the one who's supposed to have the sharper observation senses, so I should have been able to sense that battle coming from miles off. I shook my head violently. Come on, Zia. Snap out of it. Just because there's still fire raging behind you doesn't mean that you can afford to slack off. We have an ally to look out for.

A battle between two new world pirate crews was not something to be missed. They were always impressive. Whitey Bay's huge ice breaker and Rama's galleon were locked in combat, cannons firing, crews hollering, the sea churning beneath them. Every now and then a group of pirates would swing from one ship to the other, clashing in midair and landing on the other deck, or being knocked, shrieking into the waves.

When we were about fifty feet off, I stood up. "Okay guys, last one on the ship is a rotten egg!" I stepped to the side of the boat, and smirked. "Geppo." I launched off the side of the boat, making the boat lurch a bit. The crackling of flames behind me signaled that Firefist wasn't too far behind.

I kicked off the air, flipped through the air, and landed on the deck of Bay's ice breaker. I caused quite a stir amongst the crew. I stood up to my full height, and took in the battle. Men were pausing their fights across the deck. I guess I must have surprised them a bit.

"Who the hell are you?"

"What's going on?"

"Where did she come from?"

There was a whoosh as Firefist landed beside me and his legs became solid again. Heat licked at my calves as the fire died down. "Trying to outrun me, are you?" he said, his tone playful now.

"Damn." I said, not turning to him, "And here I pegged you for the rottenest of eggs."

Firefist turned and stood back-to-back with me. Was it just me, or was he smiling? "Nope. That honour belongs to either Thatch or Izo." He looked around. "Where'd they get to, anyway?"

I broadened my senses, and searched. I sensed Thatch a good way above us. He already had his swords drawn.

I rolled my eyes. "Well, Commander Thatch is going to make a flashy entrance. That doofus never could resist showing off."

Izo had just jumped on deck off the starboard stern, his pistols drawn and firing already.

Our boat was floating in the chop not too far from the stern.

It was at that moment that Firefist looked up, and his jaw dropped. "Uh, Zia," he ventured, "what the hell is he doing?"

I turned my attention back on Thatch, and I felt the blood drain from my face. He was falling straight towards us, and I judged that his trajectory would have him land right on top of us. "Scatter!" I shouted, and before Firefist could say anything else, I did a roll out of the way and landed on my feet about five feet off.

Thatch landed with a resounding thud on the deck and shouted "The Whitebeard pirates have arrived!" He charged the nearest group of pirates and started whirling and slashing. I kinda felt sorry for Thatch's opponents; Thatch is a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield.

"Well, Thatch," I called, "you're the rotten egg this time!"

"What?!" I could hear from the whirling of Thatch's battle. "That's not cool, Zia! I had the best entrance!"

I grinned despite myself.I charged into the fray, moving towards Ramba's ship. I sensed danger to my left, and ducked under one pirate's club swing.

This guy was quite the hulking fellow - maybe twelve feet tall - and could sure swing his club with a lot of force. Unfortunately for him, strength alone doesn't help much against observation haki.

I bent down and pulled back my fist to punch. "Armament Haki," The familiar cold feeling spread up my arm, stopping at my shoulder. "Stone Breaker!" I launched into the big guy with all the strength I could muster, and drove my fist into his solar plexus. There was a cracking sound as his ribs broke, and a squelching noise as I pulled my fist back.

The man staggered back, coughed up blood, and fell, losing his grip on his club. He hit the ground with a resounding thud!

I caught the club before it could hit the deck, and twirled it a couple of times. "It's in good shape..." I muttered to myself. "A bit heavy for me, though." I let it drop, and continued forward, searching for Whitey Bay among the clashing crowd.

It didn't take me too long to find her. She was locked in combat with Ramba on the deck of his galleon, their swords clashing.

When Bay took notice of us, she pushed Ramba back with a grunt, and jumped to my side. "Well well well, if it isn't Zia!" she said, a ring of amusement in her voice. "It's been too long. And my word, don't you look nice."

"You really think so?" I said, smiling. Normally, I didn't give a damn how I look, but in this case, I didn't mind so much. I turned to face her, and smirked at her. "It's good to know that your sword is still as sharp, and your skills sharper still."

Bay's smile widened. "Zia, you flatter me." she said, "Thatch could learn a thing or two from you."

That made me laugh aloud. "Can you tell him that? He won't believe me if I tell him." I was really enjoying this discussion, until I sensed a bunch of rival pirates surrounding us, preparing to strike. One guy tried to strike at me, and I stepped off to the side, and he crashed into the deck. We both sighed.

"Hey!" I snapped. Bay and I stood back to back, and charged them, fists and sword at the ready. "You're interrupting our conversation!" We sent them flying off the sides of the ship. They all splashed into the water.

I smirked. "Yes! That was awesome!"

Bay smiled. "You've definitely improved since I last saw you. No hesitation at all."

I grinned. "I've been training every day. Just because I said I wasn't ready to take the position of commander doesn't mean that I don't have to work to be as strong as one." I bent down a bit in my fighting stance and gazed across to the deck of the galleon. "Now, let's get this done, shall we?"

There was a whoosh and a thud as Firefist and Izo landed beside me.

"I've got an idea." Firefist said. "Hey, Izo, will you watch my back?"

Izo shot him a glance, but nodded all the same. He turned to face the battle that was taking place behind us and cocked his pistols.

Firefist took a step back and pulled back his fist. "I'll handle this! Fire Fist!" His arm turned to flame, and he punched at Ramba's ship.

I felt the hairs on my arms stand on end. Before he could finish his punch, I dashed to his side, moving on instinct, and kicked his arm.

His attack just barely missed the main mast of Ramba's ship. Firefist turned to me, presumably in incredulity, as my Armament Haki faded from my leg. "What do you think you're doing?" he snapped. "I just had it!"

"Are you out of your mind?!" I snapped. Now that he had stopped, the full weight of just how close to fire I was was starting to sink in. I clenched my fists in an attempt to keep my hands from shaking. "Did you not listen to Pops at all? Frying everyone on board that ship won't do us any favours in securing a new ally!" I turned from him. "Watch and learn, Rookie. Hey, Thatch!" I called.

There was an oof, and then Thatch landed beside me. "What's the deal, Zia? I was kicking some serious ass over there."

"I need a distraction for the big guy." I pointed to the large man who had just taken position beside Ramba. He was even taller than the guy I had knocked out earlier. And taking him out myself would be a pain.

Thatch raised an eyebrow, then he grinned. "Sure. You trying to show off for the new guy?"
I made a face at him. "Hush. I'm teaching the newbie how we do things here." I bent down, and propelled myself into the air with Geppo. I launched into the air, kicked off the air for effect, and landed right in front of Rama. "Hey," I said, "I represent the Whitebeard Pirates. Would you like to surrender now, or shall I fight you first?"

Ramba frowned at me through his helmet, didn't say anything, and pointed his sword at me.

I shrugged. "Eh, I don't know what else I would have expected. En guarde!" Before he could charge, I activated my Armament Haki, feeling the chill rise up to my shoulders. I charged, and made to punch at him.

Ramba stabbed at me with his rapier. He shifted his right foot, and made to stab me at an odd angle.

I turned on the ball of my right foot at the last minute, wincing as my ankle twisted painfully, and caught his sword between my hands. My armament haki didn't completely protect me from the sharp edge of the blade, but it was enough to keep me from getting anything close to hurt. I clutched the blade a bit tighter with one hand, and slid the other one down the blade. With one swift motion, I brought the flat of the blade down on my knee.

The blade snapped clean in two.

Rama's eyes widened, and he tried to take a step back.

I didn't let him get very far, though. I slammed my fist into the side of his helmet, and he crumpled to the ground, a severe dent in his helm.

The cry of "Captain!" came from across the deck.

I bent down, and poked Ramba in the side of the helmet. "Oi. You doing okay there, buddy?"

Ramba grunted, and glared at me. "Why don't you just kill me, Whitebeard Pirate?"

I smirked. "That's not how we do things. Yes, we pound our enemies into the dust, but we also give some of them a chance. You have a competent crew, and a good grasp of your sword. So, Pops gave us the task of offering to take you into our family. Become an ally of Whitebeard."

Ramba blinked. There was a long pause. I could feel Thatch and Ace's eyes on this scene. This was it.

Finally, Ramba hauled himself up off the ground, and held his hand out to me. "Very well, young one. I will meet with Whitebeard to discuss becoming his ally."

I was really glad that my back was to Firefist, because I didn't want him to see my face. I couldn't help the goofy grin that was spreading across my face. I shook Ramba's hand. "That's good to hear."

Thatch sauntered over after Ramba went to talk to his crew and prepare them for the voyage, and rested his forearm on my head. "Not bad there, kid." he said. He ruffled my hair, threw back his head, and laughed.

I rolled my eyes and pushed his hand off my head. "Do you mind not doing that when we're on an allied ship? I do have my dignity as a Whitebeard Pirate to think about."

Thatch snorted. Then, he turned to Firefist, who was walking up to us with Bay. The two of them seemed to have been talking amicably. "You got that there, Ace? That's how it's done! So, even a first time recruiter like Zia can get it."

I punched Thatch in the arm. "Anyway," I said, trying not to snap, "we'd better get back, guys. Pops probably wants an update."

Thatch saluted mockingly. "Hey, Izo!" he called. "Better get the boat! We gotta go soon!" He turned to Whitey Bay, and bowed flamboyantly. "Until we meet again, Captain Bay."

Bay rolled her eyes, but stuck her tongue out at him playfully. She turned to Firefist, and said, "It was nice to meet you, Ace. Good luck with the Whitebeard pirates. I'm looking forward to working with you further."

Firefist bowed. "I look forward to it." He started after Thatch, then he turned. "Hey, Zia, you coming?"

I frowned that he could be so familiar with me, but I tried for a smile. "I'll be along in a minute."

Firefist nodded, and continued towards the boat.

Bay turned to me and held out her hand, and smiled when I took it. "It was so good to see you again, Zia. You've gotten quite good, haven't you? Don't give the rest of them too hard a time." She grinned jokingly.

I grinned right back. "I won't let them get too far behind." I joked. I stepped toward the boat, then turned to her, and said, "See you next time, Bay!"

She mock saluted. "See you later!"

I vaulted over the side of her ship, and landed on the boat, making it lurch.

"Oi!" Izo yelped, holding onto the side of the boat. "Control your descent, Zia!"

I grinned and flopped down next to Thatch. "Alright. Let's go home."

Zia was the first off the boat when they got back to the Moby Dick. She shot off her seat, and landed on top of the rail. Then, she jumped down to the deck, and stretched. She seemed to be taking in the scene as Ramba got off his ship and met with Whitebeard.

The two of them went to the stern to talk, and normal ship activity commenced.

Ace smirked and lifted off the boat, his legs turning to fire and propelling him into the air. He landed beside her, and finally, he decided to say what had been on his mind since he saw Zia take Ramba out pretty much single handedly. "That was a pretty impressive take down back there." he said.

She nodded. Hoo boy. The ice walls were up again.

"You want to spar sometime? It'd be great to test my fire against your haki." He had seen Zia spar with many people in the crew, mainly Marco, Thatch, and Haruta, and she always seemed right at home. So, he figured she might at least give it some thought. It might be a great way to get her to lower those ice walls she stubbornly kept up around him.

The reaction he got shouldn't have surprised him, but still took him aback. She turned and stomped right up to him, so close that she was almost stepping on his feet. "You haven't learned anything, have you?" she snapped.

Ace raised an eyebrow. "What?!" he snapped. "What did I do this time?"

"You just throw your fire around whenever it suits your fancy." She leaned in even closer, and Ace caught something on her face just before she pulled away. "So no, Firefist. I won't spar with you. I guess I was right two weeks ago. You'll never change." she turned away, and stomped over to the galley.

Ace just stood there, gaping for a moment. He shook his head. But there was one thing he noticed. Zia had countless minuscule scars around her eyes. They were barely imperceptible, but they were there, framing her eyes.

Now he was curious. He couldn't talk to Zia right now, she was too riled up. But he could talk to Marco. If anyone knew Zia, it was Marco.

"Zia's scars?" Marco asked, regarding Ace calmly, "Right. I'd forgotten. They're kinda hard to see."

"Do you know where they came from?" Ace asked.

Marco smiled. This poor kid was trying really hard. "Why don't you ask her?"

Ace looked sheepish. "I think that might be a bit dangerous right now."

Marco chuckled. "Ah yes, the 'you just won't learn' argument, was it?"

Ace raised an eyebrow. "Wait, how did you know?"

"I heard Zia muttering as she passed me. You've been driving her up the wall over the past few months, but I don't think I've seen her so hostile since you joined the crew two weeks ago." He leaned over to Ace and smirked. "So, what did you say?"

Ace chewed his lip. "Well," he said, "I asked her if she wanted to spar with me sometime, since she seems to loosen up whenever she spars with anyone, and-"

"Ah, I see." Marco said, smirking and resting his forearm on Ace's shoulder. "So she found out you were stalking her, then?" He laughed out loud when Ace turned bright red. "I'm just joking, Ace. I think if she thought you were stalking her, she probably would have busted your balls and tossed you overboard, consequences be damned."

Ace turned white as a sheet at that remark. "Oh, learn to take a joke, kid. You'll never survive out here."

Ace shot him a glare. "Anyway, I suggested testing her Haki against my fire. She just kinda exploded after that."

Ah. So that was what all this was about. Marco had suspected it since Ace had joined the crew. "Okay, Ace. I think I know the root of your problem." He sat down, resting his back against the rail. "Sit down."

Ace sat, and regarded Marco almost warily.

"So, I'd say keep your fire to a minimum while you're around her. She isn't much of a fire person."

"Why is that, anyway?" Ace frowned "Does it have something to do with those scars?"

Marco sighed and shook his head. "You'll have to ask her yourself. I'm not saying that you should just stop using your devil fruit powers, that's not fair. But you'll have to tread carefully around Zia."

Ace sighed. "Right. Back to square one, I guess."

"Tell me something, Ace." Marco said. "Why does it matter so much to you, anyway? There are so many people in the crew, why Zia in particular?"

Ace shrugged. "That might take me some time to think of. Because I just don't know. The challenge, I guess. And I hate the way she looks at me."

"So you're trying to befriend her out of spite." Marco said, raising an eyebrow. Then, he threw back his head and laughed. "That's quite the hoot!"

"H-hey! Don't laugh at me." Ace grumbled. "Give me a break..."

Marco punched Ace playfully in the arm. "Ah, don't worry. Zia's working hard to keep her distance. She can't stay that way for long."

"I beg to differ." Ace said, "it seemed like she was loosening up for a second, then I botched it and she snapped again."

"I'll tell you what," Marco said, "I'll try to talk her around. She'll normally listen to me. But listen, Ace," he turned and fixed him with a hard stare, "you're going to have to ask her all of these things yourself. I wish you luck."

"So let me get this straight," I said, frowning at Marco. "You want me to train with Firefist, because it would be a good tolerance exercise? What?"

Marco frowned. "You heard me, Zia. Try it."

"You talked to him yesterday, didn't you?" I said, accusingly. "I'm not training with him."

"Zia," Marco was starting to sound irritated. "You're almost sixteen. You need to stop being childish."

"I'm not being childish." I said defensively. "I'm merely trying to avoid an inferno on the deck of the Moby Dick." I turned on my stool and hopped off. "S'cuse me, Marco. I've got some training to do."

Marco cut me off. "I totally agree with that. You'd better go and track Ace down right now and tell him that you'll train with him for two months."

"Not going to happen." I said shortly.

"Zia, I'm aware of your issues with fire, believe me-"

"I know you're more than aware of it!" I snapped. "Which is why I can't believe you're taking his side on this!"

"I'm not taking his side." Marco said, raising his hands. "I just think that this could be a good way for you to, well, get over some of your fear of-"

"I'm not afraid!" I snapped.

"Hey, hey!" Teech laughed from his place by the counter. "No one's saying that you're scared now."

Thatch leaned over the counter and waved his spatula around. "Besides, Zia. He's cute."

"I'll be sure to let him know you're interested, Thatch." I said. That made Thatch and Teech roar with laughter. "My answer's still no."

"I'm not giving you an option this time, Zia." Marco said. "We need some peace in the crew. I expect more from you as a member of the first division."

I bit my lip. "Marco, you know-"

"Take one for the team, would you?" he finally said. "Just humour him."

I sighed. "Fine, Marco, but I don't have to be friends with him. If you want me to beat the Noob into shape, I'll do it. I'll show him how we do things around here."

"You'll try and build a relationship with our new crew member." Marco corrected. "And keep it civil out there."

I sighed. "Very well." I made my way to the door. "And I'll keep it civil." I walked to the door, and placed my hand on the handle. Then, I paused. "Keep it civil." I repeated. Then, I pushed open the door, and stepped out on deck. I shut the door behind me, then leaned back against the door. "Keep it civil."

I straightened my shoulders, and shook my head, as though it would shake any doubts from my mind. "Buck up, Zia. You've dealt with him before." With that not very comforting thought in mind, I started for the stern, where I could sense Firefist's presence.

He is nothing, if not confusing, I thought to myself as I picked my way across the deck, weaving between busy crewmen going about their business.

I met with him about halfway, actually. Despite my Observation Haki, we ended up smacking into each other, and I fell backwards a step.

"Oh, sorry." Firefist said, scratching the back of his head. "Guess I didn't see you there."

Once I got my balance back, trying to figure out how to be nice, I shrugged. "To be fair, I didn't see you either."

He laughed nervously. "A blindness joke? Really?"

I shrugged again. "It's my blindness, and I'll make the jokes if I want to."

Firefist managed to crack a smile. He seemed just as nervous as I was. "Uh, so, I was thinking, maybe could you consider sparring with me again? If I, er, smarten up."

My mouth fell open. He actually had the- Oh. Of course. "Marco put you up to this, didn't he?" I asked.

Firefist looked like he was weighing his options. "Uh, yeah." he said sheepishly, "He said I should try again." He chuckled uncomfortably. "I totally get it if you say no."

"You and I are in the same boat, then." I said, chewing my lower lip. "He just told me to find you and agree to spar with you." I paused, and then sighed, "Okay, he actually kind of told me to grow up and try to be civil with you. And this perpetual anger is kinda exhausting. So yeah, I'll spar with you." I held out my hand, and raised an eyebrow at him. "So, what do you say, Firefist? Truce?"

A grin spread across his face. "Yeah. Truce." He took my hand.

I nearly flinched, but his hand seemed normal, not really hot like the fire would suggest.

"Uh, here's to starting over, then." He said.

I nodded. Then, I smirked, and punched at him.
He jumped out of the way just in time, and he landed on the rail. He nearly lost his balance, and windmilled his arms to keep upright. "Hey!" he yelped, regaining his balance, "What gives?!" he snapped. "I thought we just started over!"

I smiled sweetly at him. "You just asked me to spar with you? Did I mistake your intention?"

Then, it was Firefist's turn to let his mouth hang open. Then, he grinned. "You didn't. You won't get the best of me like that again." He hopped off the rail, and sank into a fighting stance. "Get ready, because I'm gonna show you the power that you didn't let me show off last time."

Was it wrong that I was starting to feel fired up?

Thatch leaned against the galley door, watching Zia and Ace sparring around the mast. It was quite entertaining.

Now and then they would shoot into the air, and clash by the crow's nest, giving Haruta quite a scare. Flames would dance in the air, then get blasted into nothing, as the two of them would clash into mid-air.

Thatch smiled as he caught a glance of Zia's face. She was grinning. He knew that grin. It was the same grin that she wore when he and Marco were teaching her Haki nearly four years ago, as well as when she was sparring a new opponent.

Neither of them appeared to be gaining the upper hand in this. Ace would avoid Zia's attacks, only to have her either block or evade his counter strike.

"Enjoying the show?" Marco asked, stepping to his side, and leaning against the door.

Thatch grinned. "They've been at it for well over an hour now." he said, shrugging. "So much for not wanting to be anywhere near each other." He stood up straight and laughed out loud when Zia landed a hit to Ace's solar plexus, and he crashed into the sickbay wall.

"Half an hour, eh?" Marco said, his mouth quirking in a lopsided smile. "So good to see that those kids are growing up, and learning to get along."

Thatch grinned, and chuckled to himself.

"What are you thinking, Thatch?" Marco asked as the wind from the impact of two of their clashing punches tousled his hair.

"This just gave me an idea."

Marco sighed and made to turn away. "Oh dear..."

And that's chapter 14! Zia and Ace have made a truce, and some degree of peace between them has been established. Next update truly starts the two year stretch between Ace joining the Whitebeard Pirates, and the main story of One Piece.

Please review, and see you next chapter!