Disclaimer: I don't have the time for this tonight :P
Ace stood peering over the counter, watching Sanji cook. He'd never been allowed in the kitchen while the cook was doing his work, but the blonde had made an exception just that once. The whole crew realized how awkward he'd been around Luffy during the morning and thought it best to keep the boy occupied. It was uncomfortable for them to be around him as well, seeing as they had all realized that he really was Fire Fist, but it couldn't compare to how the two themselves must have felt.
In all honesty, Ace himself didn't know what was going on. He noticed that he had acted odd the night before and had taken note of the strange things the Pirate King said to him before bed, but didn't know what all of it meant. Judging by the stares he was getting, Sanji knew what was going on. He didn't say, though. So, frustrated as he was, he simply watched the man make lunch.
That wasn't what was bothering him, though. Well, it was part of it, but he was more concerned with what he said to Luffy in the morning. After dreaming of the woman he used to know, he divulged to the pirate that he thought she might have been his mother. He didn't remember much, but they were always together. Still, he never remembered hearing her speak, so it was all speculation. He never referred to her as Mother back then, but he didn't understand language – titles like "mother", "father", or "brother" – until recently. What's worse was that he knew Luffy would be curious about him. He didn't want to talk about his past on that island, and certainly would not drudge up memories from before he dropped there. So, to avoid an interrogation, he watched Sanji cook.
The blonde couldn't help but laugh as he saw the great Fire Fist Ace struggle to see over the countertop. Oh how strange it was. As amusing as his tiny size was, it made Sanji feel sick. He knew very well that the boy was far too small for his age – which he assumed was around nine or ten based on the time Portgas died – because of the malnutrition. When they first found the brat he remembered Luffy thinking the child was around that age, but he certainly didn't look it. A lucky guess, maybe? He hadn't said anything back then, but Ace's height equated to that of a six or seven-year-old. At around eight he should have had a large growth spurt, which was undoubtedly skipped over because of his lack of calories and nutrients. That meant that his body was in a state of distress for many, many years. Made him sick.
Ace growled under his breath, irritated by his lacking height and the chuckles coming from the cook. He momentarily pondered kicking the man's shin, feeling that he could take on anyone now that he had eaten the Mera Mera no Mi, but passed the thought when he remembered that this was the same man who made his meals. So he just watched as the blonde shuffled over to the far wall and kicked something in his direction. Looking down, he spotted a footstool. He didn't know whether to happily accept or be embarrassed.
"Use that," Sanji commanded in an uncharacteristically gentle tone. It was strange to use that type of speech to him of all people. They had only met once before he died but he found Fire Fist to be a very likable guy, far more reliable and mature than his idiot brother. Now, however, he had been reduced to a small, rather weak, child.
Ace propped himself up onto the stool and continued to watch Sanji adjust the sizzling meat on the stove. His mouth watered as the scent wafted his nose, knowing just how amazing Sanji's food was. The cook looked at him from the corner of his eye.
"Hungry?" he asked. The boy nodded reluctantly, still trying to adjust himself to one of the Straw Hat crew he didn't know very well. Though he was one of the first people he met, they hadn't spoken much. "It won't be much longer." And then the cook decided to bring up something that had been bothering him since earlier in the day. "So why are you avoiding Luffy?"
"Because he's avoiding me."
"Hm?"
Ace was reluctant to explain himself to the blonde but decided it best not to lie to the person who fed him. So, Ace being Ace, he fumbled with his thoughts for a while to think up how to explain without saying much. He still didn't like talking to anyone besides the Pirate King. "He's hiding something from me. Since he's such a bad liar, he's avoiding me so that he doesn't let it slip."
Sanji knew exactly what he was talking about but decided it best to play innocent. After all, he didn't need the kid pestering him about it. "Like what?"
"I know you know," Ace began, sighing at how bad the pirates were at feigning ignorance, "but I won't ask. I'll wait until Luffy decides to tell me himself."
Sanji couldn't help but feel a sense of maturity emanate from the boy, something he would have expected from Luffy's older brother. He smiled at that, seeing the boy's old self shine through. With that, he turned back to the meal and began seasoning the meat and stirring the stew.
"I do have a question, though."
"What is it?"
"Where did Luffy get that scar? The one on his chest."
Sanji froze. Well, that was unexpected. So the pirate-turned-child wanted to know about the Pirate King's Marineford battle scar? It wasn't hard to see why he was curious, seeing as Luffy often left the front of his shirt open and subconsciously showed it off, but it was awkward. In order to tell him the answer he would have to explain the entire War of the Best to him, including the part about Captain's brother sacrificing himself and Jinbei rescuing Luffy from Akainu. It wasn't his place to say that to him. "Ask the shitty captain."
Ace sighed. "I didn't really expect an answer."
They fell silent for a moment before hearing someone burst in through the door behind them. Both turned their heads to see an energetic redhead smiling their way.
"There you are!"
"What is it, Nami-swan? Would you like a drink?" The cook went giddy as he stared into her beauty but was completely ignored by the woman as she grabbed hold of Ace's wrist and dragged him out of the room, leaving Sanji to blankly gawk at the door, wondering what the hell just happened.
"Hold still," the navigator commanded, adjusting the boy's head. He grumbled in annoyance as she pulled his hair and cut away at it meticulously. Why he needed a haircut he didn't know, but she had practically forced him into the chair and began chopping away at it. "How did you cut your hair before?"
"Knife," he answered simply.
"…Seriously?"
"Mm."
Well, that accounted for how uneven and sloppy it was. She supposed it was the best he could do, seeing as he was completely isolated on that island. With no one to turn to, things like that didn't really matter anyways. The fact that he bothered controlling the length of his hair at all was a big deal. He was always alone…
"Were you lonely?" Her hands stopped and he looked up at her questioningly. He tilted his head when he spotted Nami's worried eyes. "When you were on the island, I mean."
He turned once more to face forward and ponder the question. Really, he wasn't sure. He knew that he missed the woman that was with him before; was that loneliness? His grasp of concepts like that was still rather small. All he knew was that when he had his first conversation with Luffy he felt happy. That happiness increased when he joined the ship and ever since he hadn't been scared like he was when he was alone.
"I think so," he stated, voice quiet as he thought more about it, "but not anymore."
Nami's face lit up at the last bit and she adjusted his head once more, cutting a bit off the top layers. "Good then." She didn't care who he used to be, honestly. Fire Fist was a good man, no doubt, and she held a lot of respect for him, but she didn't want that little boy to be forced to live up to his name. He wasn't Fire Fist – he was Monkey D. Ace, a cherished member of their crew.
As she finished up by combing his hair, Luffy jumped down from the crow's next. He had been talking to Shanks up there in private – the Yonko was leaving soon and he had some last words to say to him. Noticing his navigator and the boy he began approaching but froze dead in his tracks when he took a closer look at brother. Before the kid had greatly resembled Fire Fist, but with his hair cut Ace was like a carbon copy of him. He was taken aback at first but then noticed the boy's curious gaze. Giving him one of his usual smiles, he strode up to the pair and ruffled his hair. "Looks good!"
"Hey! Luffy, I just finished. You already messed it up." She sighed, knowing that she probably should have expected that from Captain.
"Sorry, I couldn't resist," he declared, scratching his head nervously. When the redhead forgave him he turned back to the kid and knelt down to meet his eye level. "Wanna come with me? Shanks is leaving."
"Mm." The boy nodded and grabbed onto Luffy's outstretched hand, hopping off the chair and walking beside the much taller man.
They stopped in front of the Yonko. Shanks gave them a gentle smile as his straggling crewmates headed across to their own ship. "I guess this is goodbye, for now," he stated, looking between the two. Ace nodded shyly, trying to get used to the man in the last few minutes he would see him.
"We'll meet again soon!" Luffy beamed at the older man, not in the least bit sad to see him go. They were used to this routine and, before long, they would be together once more.
"Where are you headed?"
"East Blue."
"Going back to gloat?" he teased.
"Of course!" Both broke out into unceremonious laughter, giving each other pats on the back. Then Shanks crouched down in front of Ace, giving him a knowing grin. He patted him on the head and leaned in close to his ear, whispering.
"Take care of him, ok? Especially during the next week."
"Mm." The boy wasn't sure what, exactly, he was asking him to do but he nodded anyways.
Despite Shanks doing his best to keep quiet, Luffy still heard what he said. He wanted Ace to stick close by him and watch over him as the anniversary of Portgas' death drew nearer. The Yonko probably figured that having the kid with him would put his nerves to rest. Maybe he was right. Even before knowing the child's identity he felt much calmer with him at his side. There was something about him that was…reassuring. Real. And so he wouldn't comment on it, because he knew Shanks was right.
"I'll be seeing you, then! And don't forget what we talked about, Luffy!" He waved before going across to his ship. As they watched the Red Hair pirates leave they couldn't help but feel both melancholic and excited; they would part for now, but one day they would meet again.
Ace followed Luffy into what he deemed the conference room – it was just a small space with a desk, two chairs and a den den mushi – after he let on that he would be calling Marco. He didn't know who Marco was, but something told him that he would like the man. He was excited to hear the guy's voice, for one reason or another. The Pirate King, on the other hand, was far less enthusiastic.
"You don't like him?" Ace asked, looking up from his seat next to the man. The pirate just sighed and hunched over the desk to grab hold of the den den mushi.
"I like him a lot, actually."
"Then what's wrong?"
"Marco…" How should he word it? "He doesn't like when other pirates ask him favours."
"Why?"
"Something happened a long time ago and…well…he likes to keep his crew close, to keep them safe. So when people ask for alliances, it puts him in a bad mood."
"What happened?"
How should he answer that? Did he really have to give him a reply? How do you tell your little-big-brother that he died ten years ago along with his father figure? It wasn't something he was comfortable talking about, even over a decade later, and explaining it to that curious boy made it so much harder. You can't just say to a small child "you died" and be done with it.
"He lost people who were really important to him." Ace cringed at that, thinking back to his first arrival on that island. He knew what that felt like. Seeing the boy curl into himself, Luffy placed a gently hand on his shoulder and bent his head down to get a better look at his face. He saw those big eyes glass over with tears, brow furrowed as he tried to hold them back. "Hey, hey…what's wrong?" he asked softly, worrying that he had said something to upset him. Over the last few weeks one difference he saw in the boy and his older brother was that little Ace wasn't able to control his emotions well. He never had to, being alone. It was a bit comforting, though, because he was easier to read than Fire Fist who would keep everything bottled up inside.
"Then…they went to sleep and never woke up?"
"…Yeah." That was unexpected. Even though it was only a little, he was already starting to understand what it meant to lose someone. Which pegged the question: what happened to him on that island?
"…Is that death?"
Luffy tensed at the question. Neither he nor Robin had gotten around to talking to him about that. Was he remembering something from his life as Fire Fist? Did he learn the word from the pirates he said visited his island? Whatever it was, it didn't sit well with him. He wrapped his arm around Ace's back and pulled him closer, assuring him that everything was ok. "Yeah."
After a few minutes of silence Ace wiped his eyes and they put the conversation behind them. Remembering that they were calling Marco cheered the kid up a bit and he eagerly sat in place as the transponder snail did its thing. Before the Yonko had a chance to pick up, Luffy turned to Ace.
"I need you to keep quiet, alright?"
Ace nodded quickly as the man on the other line answered.
The den den mushi started to ring, or make whatever that sound it made was, and Marco looked around the room at the drunken mess of a crew he had working under him. They'd made up some ridiculous excuse to celebrate and drink themselves into a stupor, leaving their captain as one of the few people left who could answer the call. So he did just that.
"Hello?"
"Marco!" shouted a young, unfamiliar voice from the other line. The phoenix blinked a few times as he heard some clatter and shuffling from the other end.
"I told you to keep quiet!" yelled a man in response. That one he recognized – Pirate King.
"But why?" the young one whined.
He heard Luffy groan and mumble something under his breath before replying "It's complicated!" and shuffling around once again. "Ah, Marco?" He finally noticed the snail was transmitting the call, it seemed.
"Who was that, yoi?"
"Nobody."
"But I'm-" The boy was cut off, no doubt muffled by the older one's hand. He chalked it up to Luffy being, well, Luffy, and decided not to press the matter.
"So what's with the sudden call, yoi?" Marco asked, trying to prevent any more sidetracking.
"Oh, right! Where are you right now?"
"On my ship."
"I know that!" You could almost see the Pirate King roll his eyes. "You're in the New World still, right? Where? Location!" he demanded, energetic as usual.
"We're en route to visit Oyaji's and Ace's graves. We should be there for the anniversary, yoi."
"…"
"Luffy?" the young voice questioned, probably worried over the man's sudden silence. Marco knew why he wasn't speaking and just ignored it. They had a similar conversation every year because the Whitebeard pirates had never missed that date yet Luffy always did.
"Why do you ask, yoi?"
He heard a deep sigh over the line. "Meet us there, alright? I have something to talk to you about." Well, that was unexpected. The Pirate King normally spent that day drinking an uncharacteristic amount of alcohol and pummeling anyone who was unfortunate enough to sail near him. What made this year different?
"Why not tell me over the phone?" he questioned, suspicious of the man's intent. Luffy would avoid that island like the plague in any other situation, meaning that whatever he had to talk about was something big enough to force him out of his comfort zone.
"It's important. And, well, there's something I have so show you."
"Very well. I'll only be there that one day, though, so don't miss it, yoi."
"I won't."
"You sure?"
"You have my word as the King of Pirates! Shishishi!"
"Luffy?" the small voice began again in a curious tone. "Why are you laughing?"
"Shhh! Wait a second, 'kay?" Whoever he had with him was starting to pique Marco's interest, but he said nothing. "So I'll see you then!"
"Yeah."
The line went dead.
A/N: So yeah, I got around to that update :D Don't know why I waited until 3am to post it though. Probably should have left it until tomorrow. Ah, well. So how was it? Thoughts? Opinions? It was one of the longer chapters, which was totally not intended XD It just sort of happened.
Now to my lovelies~
sammycircle: Yes :D I'm glad you liked!
Neko-VongolaPrimo: I forget the name of it but it was on YouTube. Send me a PM and I'll give you the link ;) Haha really? Sorry about that! I didn't think it was written very well so I didn't think anyone would cry over it hehe... They say he'll never see him again because, in essence, rebirth kills that person off completely, wiping their slate clean and making somebody completely different. Now, we all know that's not what ended up happening. Ace is just one lucky bastard :P Since a lot of people liked the idea of doing a special using Sabo's POV I'm going to make it. It'll be a really long bonus and I'll put it right after the epilogue, that way it can span the entire story. I'm getting ideas for how to add his father so I MAY do it. I'm glad you like ^^
Kyusee Heiky: Thank you :D
azab: Really? Awesome!
angelrider13: Lol I love you, seriously XD Yeah, really, I think I made Ace too selfless .; Oh well. Thank you!
99 luffy: What sound familiar? o.o;
RexLink: Lol yes! Exactly! I'm making this story much more complicated than it has to be XD Maybe, maybe not. And the link didn't work for me sadly :/
darkfalkon: Well it was going to be added towards the end (I still might add it and make one that fits the story more) but this one is just a bonus and I really wanted to write it so I did :)
Futakomori: That you will have to wait and find out ;) Thank you! Glad you like!
XxSaorixX: Yep! I know, right? I always imagined Ace treating Roger like he does Luffy if they ever met and got to know each other XD Me too ;_; Oda just loves killing off good characters doesn't he? Thank you!
MysteriousEyez: Yeah, I thought so too ^^ And don't worry, that bonus will be updated after I write the epiloque (i.e. once the story's finished)
Son Goshen: Yeah but as Rouge stated he didn't want to remain in a world where he couldn't feel anything. He wanted to live so it wasn't just for Luffy it was for himself as well ^^ Ace's luck is both fucking good as hell and as bad as it can get in this story XD I mean, he is able to retain some of his former self and gets to see Luffy again but he's born a slave and has to- Crap! I almost spoiled something. But yeah, don't know whether to call him a lucky bastard or pity him :P I'll blame you all I want! IT was sad because I knew it wasn't true and that it was just someone's fantasies ;_;
Kitsune Foxfire: I know right? Honestly I probably would have done the same thing, brother or no brother. Send me a PM and I'll send you a link to the doujinshi if you want ;)
ASLfangirl: Awe sorry :( I didn't think it was sad enough to make someone cry. The writing's really...meh. Bonus chapter will be at the very end of the story :)
Cyborgnetics: I'm glad you do :D Thank you for your support!
LoveDragonsForever: Thank you!
(Well, that's everything guys. Hope you liked it! Please share your insights and thoughts and opinions and feels :D This is the first chapter in a while that's focused on little Ace so I hope I didn't get rusty writing about him. Tall me what your favourite parts were and what you liked/didn't like! Now I'm going to go...the lights keep flickering and the last thing I need is for the power to go out before I post this. Adieu~)