It took a little while, but here's the second chapter! :D I hope you'll all enjoy!

I'm just gonna upload every chapter as soon as it is done and beta'd and not use a set time I should update, because my study work will suffer from it if I do. I will assure you, however, I will never ever abandon anything I've started. I hate unfinished fics, so I will not let that happen. If I haven't updated a story at least once within three months, you can safely assume something terrible happened to me :P

That said, Thanks to my beta's Aerle and Thérèse! Also, the cover image for this chapter (as it'll be for all even chapters) was made by SophieStaar! :D

Please all enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 2:

You're the princess

"Hello?" The genie waved a hand in front of my face, but I was still too flabbergasted to respond. The man in front of me looked around as if he searched for something, but didn't find it. When his gaze turned back to me, he looked worried. "Oi, kid, you're the one who freed me from this lamp, right?"

I snapped out of my trance. "I'm not a kid! I'm twenty."

The man smiled. "Ah, so you haven't lost your tongue."

I snorted in response. "So, eh, you're a genie?" I asked nonchalantly.

The man spread his arms to give me a good look of him. "Do I look like a genie to you?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. I've never seen one before."

The brunet sighed. "Yes, I am a genie. And now you are my master. You can call me Thatch."

"Thatch?" I parroted, still not really sure what to think of this whole situation.

"Yes, that is my name. You've got one too? Or should I call you 'master'?"

A smirk formed itself on my lips. "I like that." But when I saw his disappointed face, I couldn't help but laugh. "The name's Ace."

Thatch grinned. "Well, Ace, I'll explain to you how this works."

"Oh, don't bother," I told him before he could really start. "I know the rules. I get three wishes, you're gonna let them come true and after that, you're free of any attachments, right?"

The brown haired man scratched the back of his head. "Well, yeah, though we usually don't really put much focus on the last part. People don't like to lose their chance to wish for something important, so they often don't wish more than two things, if they know that," the genie explained.

I laughed again. "Don't expect me to be any different, 'cause they're right."

Thatch grinned. "Yeah, that's what I thought. But I quite like you, so it might not be so bad." He sat down in the windowsill. "So let me know if you've thought of a wish."

I snorted. "How can you say you like me? You don't know me," I said, shaking my head.

Thatch smiled at me. "Just a feeling."

I stared at him. He would change his mind about that soon enough, I was sure. Only now, in this light, I saw that the man was still slightly see-through, the only clue that he was a genie and not human.

I sighed. It wasn't hard to think of a wish. In fact, I already knew what I wished for, but I didn't know if that was even possible. Besides, could I trust this genie? If I told him my wish and he opened his mouth to others about it… "Do you work for the government?" I plainly asked.

Thatch raised his eyebrows. "Are you kidding me? I despise the government. I wouldn't grant them a wish even if they would have been the one to free me from the lamp."

I chuckled. "Can you do that? Denying wishes, that is."

"Not really, but I could try," he said grinning.

Laughing, I sat down next to him. "So if I told you some sort of super-secret, you wouldn't tell anyone?"

"I'm very good at keeping secrets," he answered.

My lips curled into a smile. Somehow I knew I could trust him. "You'd better be, 'cause if you'd tell, I would have to kill you."

My genie laughed out loud. "I'd love to see you try." He laid his hand down on my shoulder. It felt like a real hand, but when I looked at it, I could still see my shoulder through it. "You can't kill me; I'm a genie. But I like your attitude."

"Huh, there must be a way to get rid of you," I mumbled, but then continued to speak aloud again. "So, why don't you like the government?" I asked just to be sure.

Thatch seemed to think about this for a little before answering. "I've heard and seen enough of their actions to hate them. Besides, they want to get a hold on every genie that's out there," he explained. "So it was pretty brave of that market man to sell us so openly. And I'm very glad you stole my lamp."

"How'd you know I didn't buy you?" I asked a little suspicious.

"I can hear everything that happens around my lamp, so it was pretty obvious." The brunet crossed his arms. "So, are you gonna tell me that secret or not?"

I looked at the clear blue sky. "I wish to have a conversation with my father."

Thatch remained silent for a few seconds. Then he unfolded his arms and suddenly had a bottle in his hands – containing alcohol, by the smell of it. Where the bottle had come from all of a sudden was a mystery to me. "Who's your father?" he asked after which he took a gulp of the liquor.

I looked at him for a moment, still not sure if I should tell him. Also, still wondering where the hell the bottle had come from. I shook my head, but told him anyway. "Gol D. Roger."

Half of the drink came back out while Thatch choked on the other half in shock. It took him some time to get his voice back. "You're Roger's son?!"

I rolled my eyes. For sure he would change his mind about liking me now. "Unfortunately, yes."

He gave me a scrutinizing look. "I guess you do have some similarities."

What?! That damn genie could better be lying! I had always hoped I didn't look a thing like him.

Thatch suddenly looked a bit intimidated. "Not that many, though. You probably resemble your mother way more."

I calmed down a little. "So are you gonna grant me my wish or not?"

Thatch sighed. "I can't."

"Of course you can't," I said with a healthy dose of sarcasm to my voice. "It's my own fault, I shouldn't have been Roger's son."

"It's not because of who he was, let alone who you are!" the brown haired man protested. "It is because he was. Is not anymore. I can't resurrect the dead. I can't bring back anyone who has passed. Even if you were the king, I couldn't get your father here. " Thatch sighed. "People often want genies to bring back their loved ones, but that's just not within our power. We can't kill people and can't get people back from the death. We also cannot turn someone's heart to love or hate. And that means no world peace either." He looked me in the eyes. "Can't you just wish to be rich or something?"

"Why would I want that?"

He looked around the room. "Well, you look like you could use some more money."

"And then?" I asked a little annoyed. "What do I do when I'm rich?"

Thatch laughed. "I've never been asked that question before!" He shook his head. "What do you think about buying everything you want, going everywhere you want, never ever have to worry about anything anymore… Oh, and I forget the most important: You can get any girl you want." He winked at me.

I couldn't help but chuckle. If one thing, at least this genie knew how to cheer me up. "Dear Thatch, have you ever looked at me? I already can get every girl I want."

The brunet screened me over and then shrugged. "I guess so."

I thought about it for a while. A careless life did sound sort of nice…. Though, boring as well. Maybe I could wish for some carelessness?

"Want some?" Thatch held out the bottle of liquor he had been drinking from.

I took it from him and sniffed cautiously at it. "Where did you get that?"

The man looked at me as if I had just asked the most stupid question ever. "I'm a genie. I can get a bottle of whiskey from wherever I want."

Satisfied with that explanation I took a gulp of the beverage. I enjoyed the burning sensation it gave down my throat. It had been a while.

Suddenly it hit me. I took another sip of the whiskey and then handed the bottle back. "I have an idea. If I would wish I'd be protected from the government inside this building forever, would that mean it couldn't collapse either?"

The genie seemed to think about my question. "I guess so. If it would collapse, you couldn't be inside it anymore, so you couldn't be safe inside it either."

"Alright, then that's my first wish," I said confidently. At least I'd have a place I would always be safe. Maybe I could start calling it a home then, after all.

Thatch grinned. "Your wish is my command!" He snapped his fingers.

I didn't see anything happen and after a few seconds I looked at him. "Did it work?"

The brunet frowned. "Of course. Don't question my powers."

"It's so good to finally be out again," Thatch said.

Somehow he had managed to convince me in taking him with me the next morning. I was planning to go out on my own, but apparently I was wrong. I had taken the lamp with me too though, since Thatch couldn't move outside a range of two hundred yards of it, but mainly so that he could go back any time if someone came too close. Currently we were just walking through an deserted alley, however, so no problem there.

"You've always been in this city?" I asked him.

"No, no, it's been a very long time since I've been in Alubarna," he answered. "But it seems like nothing has changed much."

I looked curiously at him. "How old are you?"

The genie shrugged. "Dunno, it's hard to keep track when you're locked inside a lamp half of the time. Pretty old, I guess." He smirked. "But you wouldn't tell, right? I still look like I'm eighteen."

The laugh left my lips before I could suppress it. "Yeah, sure, Thatch."

We reached one of the main street. "You gotta go back now," I told him.

"Nooo, people won't notice!" the brown haired man tried, giving me a face as if I had just suggested the weirdest thing ever.

"Thatch, you're see-through." I got the lamp out of my bag. He sighed, but did what I said after all. Within a few seconds he had disappeared.

I walked into the street in search for something worth stealing, something that could get me through at least the next few days. When I looked around, I almost immediately spotted two men dealing something. The tallest of the two gave the other some money and got a mysterious little bag in return. For a moment I was torn between going after the mystery-bag or the purse of the shorter man. However, I had no idea what was inside that little bag, so I decided to go for the money.

I walked up to the man as if I wanted to ask him something. He looked curiously at me, but before he knew it, I had already pulled the purse off his belt and ran.

I soon noticed how he began to run after me and that he was pretty fast too. But I was faster.

Quickly I shot into an alley and to my delight I saw a wooden crate standing at the beginning of it. I pulled it to the center of the path and set it on fire. That should slow my pursuer down for at least a bit. And that bit would be enough for me.

I ran further, but suddenly someone came out of a side alley and stopped in front of me. She stood there firmly with her arms spread, blocking my way.

"Miss, you'd better step aside." I didn't want to push her aside if it wasn't strictly necessary.

"No, I will not let you pass!" she yelled back. It surprised me and made me stop in my track. "You're going to return that money to that poor man first." So apparently she had seen me stealing.

I snorted. "Poor man? Don't make me laugh." Slowly I walked towards the girl. I couldn't see her face very well, since a large hood covered her head. I cast a nervous glance over my shoulder. My pursuer wasn't in sight yet, but I could hear some tumult behind my little fire. "Miss, do you have any idea who I am?"

"You're Portgas D. Ace, also known as Fire Fist Ace," she said, still standing with her arms spread.

"And you're not afraid of me?" I asked with an amused smile.

"No," she answered, but as I took another step forward, I could see she was trembling slightly. Though this could, of course, also be because of anger. "You're a thief and you're going to return that purse to its rightful owner."

"Sorry ma'am, no can do," I replied chuckling. Why did she think she could stop me?

Suddenly I heard a hiss behind me. I immediately recognized it as the sound of water ending the fire. "I'm sorry," I said before taking the girl into my arms and jumping up to the roof of one of the surrounding buildings. After crossing a few rooftops, I came to a stop and put the girl down again, with her butt on the hard surface of that roof.

She looked shocked at me, but I was no less surprised than she. Because of the jump, her hood had fallen back, revealing her face and her long, light blue locks.

I took a step back. "Y-you're the princess!" When she didn't say anything, I continued. "What are you doing out in the streets, playing city guard?"

The look in her eyes hardened. "That's none of your business. More important is: why are you stealing?"

Again she surprised me. She was actually interested? Probably not. It sounded more like a rhetoric question anyway. Or she was just scared and said that, hoping I wouldn't kill her. Not that I was planning on that. I had the princess, I could get a lot of money for her return. Still, I sat down next to her. "I don't have a choice." She looked at me, her eyes asking to explain myself. I shook my head. "You wouldn't understand. You sleep on a golden bed with soft pillows and silken sheets. You only have to wave your hand and you get what you want."

"That's not true!" she said, after which she soon fell silent again, a slight blush of embarrassment covering her cheeks. "My bed isn't made of gold…"

I snorted. Spoiled brat.

"But I wouldn't mind sleeping in the same bed as you! Ah, no, I mean…" The blush became deeper. "In the same kind of bed."

I was unimpressed by her Freudian slip. "That is you assuming that I have a bed." I stood up, offering her a hand so she could do the same.

She looked at me in shock, then looked at my hand and cast a look at the sky. I followed her gaze, but there was nothing more than a single falcon swirling beneath the sun. Her look was back on me and her face showed confusion. She remained seated however. "You– you don't have a bed?"

I raised my eyebrows. "What, you think I steal for fun?" Well, a little, I answered my own question in the privacy of my mind. "I steal to survive. I sleep between two thin sheets on a stone floor!"

She covered her mouth with her hand. "Are you serious?" She surprised me with her genuinely worried face. I hadn't expect her to care. "But why don't you just get a job? Like everyone else?"

I shook my head. She didn't understand, but I believed she would, if I just explained it to her. "People wouldn't want to hire me. I've got a reputation. Besides, if they did, they would want to ring me." I had seen those poor bastards with their seastone ring around their neck, totally ripped from their freedom.

"But… then you wouldn't need your powers, right?" the blue haired girl asked cautiously.

"It's wrong to take someone's freedom away, princess." I reached out my hand again. "Come on, you're coming with me."

She looked a little insecure when she looked up at me. "What about your parents?" she asked, slowly getting up by herself, ignoring my offered help completely.

I took my neglected hand back and huffed. "They're dead. Have been, ever since I was born."

"Princess Vivi!" Suddenly there was a gigantic shadow looming over us and the next moment an enormous falcon landed on the rooftop, quickly turning into a man. "Are you alright?" he asked the girl as he rapidly moved her away from me. He pulled his sword and pointed the tip dangerously at me.

"No, Pell! I'm fine!" The princess laid an assuring hand down on her savior's arm. "Let him go."

I scanned the situation. This guy had devil fruit powers, so he was probably a high ranked guard. But this man was a zoan-type and also didn't seem to have anything that could really harm me, so I didn't worry too much.

"But Your Highness,…" the bird-guy protested.

"Let him go for now," the royal heir said with a stern voice. "He didn't harm me. And I want to go home."

The man gave me a warning look, but then put his sword away. He turned into his falcon form again, let the princess climb his back and stretched his wings. Within a few seconds they were out of sight.

Well, it was unfortunate my planned hostage had gotten away, but at least I still had the money. I looked over the edge of the rooftop to check whether the ground was clear and jumped down when I didn't see anybody.

I waited a few seconds for my eyes to get accustomed to the darkness of yet another shadowed alley. I loved it that Alubarna had so many dark alleyways, which made it easy to navigate through the city without being noticed.

Suddenly I heard an appraising whistle behind me. When I turned around I saw a black haired woman coming out of the shadows, walking towards me. She looked me over – definitely liking what she saw, if her face was anything to go by – so I decided upon doing the same. She was not extraordinary pretty. Even though she wore quite a lot of make-up, she couldn't hide her rather masculine features. She also wore Eastern looking clothes, making her stand out more.

She licked her lips seductively. "Well, look at you."

I almost choked because of the surprise. That voice was definitely one that belonged to a man. But she still looked like a woman.

"What does a handsome guy like you do, sneaking around in a dark alley?"

I looked dumbfounded at him/her. She was flirting with me, so she was probably a woman… though not necessarily. There was only one way to find out… okay, maybe two. "Are you a man or a woman?" I asked cautiously.

The other was standing right before me now and quickly got a folded fan from out of her kimono – was that what it was called? – that collided with my head within a second. It hurt more than I had expected.

"How dare you ask such a question?!" he/she said offended.

I rubbed the painful spot on my head. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to know… but now I see clearly that you are a woman." Though a very flat-chested one, I thought after further inspection.

I received another hit with the fan. "You should think less gender-specific! I'm both man and woman, but my body is male."

"Ouw! I'm sorry!" I apologized, though I was annoyed he had to hit me all the time. "So what do you want from me?" I asked, wanting to go home before my earlier pursuers came after me again.

The transvestite smiled. "Oh, I would like a whole lot of things from you, Ace," he said with a wink. I kept looking impatiently, not impressed that he knew my name. I was infamous after all. But seriously, did he think he could seduce me or anything?

When I didn't respond, he sighed. "What is your relationship with the princess?"

I frowned. "What are you talking about?"

The man rolled his eyes. "I saw you on the roof. Why did she stop the royal guard from attacking you?"

"How should I know?" I said shrugging. "Maybe she realized he couldn't win and would only end up as a roasted bird?" I suggested. "Why do you want to know? Who are you anyway?"

He brushed a strand of black hair behind his ear and smiled. "My name's Izo. But the princess seemed to like you – I mean, duh, you're hot – so… if she likes you, or even if she just has sympathy for you, we could make use of that. We could –"

"I didn't ask what your name was, I asked who you are!" I snapped. What the hell was this guy babbling about?

The cross dresser looked taken aback. "I'm just like you… living from the street, stealing to get by."

Knowing this made me relieved, since he wasn't working for or with the government in any way, but at the same time it made me cautious. Thieves weren't the most trustworthy people, after all.

"Is that what you wanted to know?" Izo asked, cocking his eyebrow.

I nodded. "For now."

"Alright. Now, about the princess… You could become friends with her and get access to the palace and all its gold, and we could be rich within no time."

Sucking on my lip, I thought about this. "It isn't a very bad idea. But… why would I need you for that?"

Izo looked surprised. "Because together we stand stronger! We can back each other up."

I raised my eyebrows. "I'm not convinced."

Suddenly the man pulled a gun out of nowhere and placed it against the underside of my chin, before I could react. "Think again. You need someone to help you, if something goes wrong."

"Bullets won't hurt me, you know that," I said, giving him a look as if he were stupid.

He brought his face close to mine. "You've never tasted these bullets before, honey." He looked deadly serious, not a single trace of insecurity in his eyes. What was so special about those bullets of his? Did they have some kind of seastone in it? Did seastone bullets even exist? Izo was probably just bluffing. But still… what if he wasn't? I didn't want to take the risk.

Sighing I gave in. "Alright. We'll work together in operation Princess."

TBC~

aah, so, still no Marco (as I had said), but hopefully you liked Vivi and Izo ^^ (and Thatch of course, since he wasn't properly introduced in the last chapter)

Please leave a review to tell what you thought about the chapter~! It encourages me to write faster :P