Hello everyone, here is the next chapter
This is a bit of this and that
Hope you enjoy
Read and relax
Whitebeard was sitting in the galley with most of his children, breakfast being now. They were talking about this and that, and as they were just enjoying the morning, they got into the topic of Ace, Trevor, and Mika's work, Thatch asking a question the captain wondered a bit about himself. "How do we know who we speak to? You or the assassin?" Trevor hummed. "The main difference you might notice is that we don't use contractions. We avoid them when we're in assassin mode. Aside from that, it's the way we hold ourselves, many say our eyes show power and are darker than usual." All of them nodded, Thatch speaking first. "I can understand that. We've really never seen you two in action or in assassin mode. But we've seen Ace. We probably shouldn't mess with assassin you." The assassins nodded, Ace chuckling. "Well, seeing how I almost killed Thatch once I returned from a foul assignment, you should know that." Thatch blinked. "Wait, what?" Ace looked at the fourth commander. "Don't tell me you've forgotten. It might have been months ago, but I remember you were terrified, you were for days. The time I almost stabbed you." Thatch seemed to think, before he blinked. "Oh, right. I forgot about it." Trevor had a frown as he looked at Ace. "How did you manage that?" Ace shrugged. "Flashbang. Had no idea where I was when I appeared, and then someone touches my shoulder, so I just reacted." That was right, that had been long ago, the captain remembering how Ace had seemed then and how terrified Thatch had been. Ace had been a bloody mess when he appeared, showing the assignment had gone by foul.
Trevor chuckled. "Well, seeing how Thatch apparently barely remembers it, it couldn't have been that bad." Thatch shrugged. "I don't remember everything. I remember it when Ace mentions it. You did scare me, since you actually stabbed me." Trevor blinked. "Wait, Bunny hit you?" Ace nodded. "I did. It was thankfully just a graze, but I did." Trevor whistled. "Wow. Were you going to kill him?" Ace nodded. "That was my thought." That had Thatch bring his hands up. "Woah, what? You were going to kill me?!" Ace nodded. "You scared me too. So I reacted. Hadn't Marco yelled out, you would have been dead. I thought you knew that." Thatch blinked. "Well, I didn't! You were going to kill me!" Ace shrugged. "You didn't die, it went fine." Thatch moved a hand to his chest. "You almost killed me!" Ace just shrugged, not saying anything. Trevor however, chuckled. "Don't feel bad. Bunny has killed people by accident." Thatch clapped his hand. "Does not make this any easier!" Trevor chuckled. "Not trying to make it easier." Trevor then looked at Ace. "Next time, don't appear on the boat when you get hit by a flashbang." Ace sighed. "I panicked, I didn't think. I should have gone to an uninhabited island." Whitebeard got that thought, but he didn't want Ace to avoid the ship either. "We know now, if you come back bloody, we won't touch you right away." Trevor blinked. "You were bloody?" Ace nodded. "A bloody mess." Trevor looked at Thatch. "Well, you deserved it then. You don't touch someone covered in blood. That's just no, especially if you haven't made contact." Thatch sighed. "I know now, I didn't think."
Ace let out a chuckle. "It's all in the past. It went fine. Thankfully." Trevor nodded as well, not saying anything. The captain did remember the ordeal, and Marco had been the one to handle it. Thatch had been scared of Ace a bit after it, but it blew over, thankfully.
They then sat and spoke about this and that, just relaxing for now. They were heading towards a sizable island and he hoped it would be a friendly one. But seeing how neither of the assassins had said anything, he believed it would be. When they did dock hours later, they were met with kind inhabitants, who said they were welcomed as long as they acted nice, which they would. He enjoyed this, to visit new islands and feel adventurous. They would stay for a couple to a few days, until their logpose reset.
As they were docked, it seemed the island was preparing for some festivities, which had the captain ask what they were celebrating, which had the man shocked, surprised they didn't know, before he started to explain. "We celebrate something called Christmas. It's the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ." The man then went on about how two people, Maria and Joseph went on a journey, and then there was no place in the inns, which had them stay in a barn, where Jesus Christ was born, and 3 wise men came with explained how they presented the gifts during their celebration to loved ones during this time. How they had a man called Saint Nick, or Santa Claus, deliver gifts to children, although it was all something the parents did, to give joy and love to each other. It sounded interesting, and it had all of his children listening in, obviously loving the idea of giving presents to each other. There were obviously a few who already knew this, but the captain had never heard about this holiday before, though he had a feeling they would celebrate it, seeing how it sounded to be a family thing.
As they spoke about Christmas after the man left, Trevor came out on deck, blinking when he heard what they were speaking about. "You're going to do Christmas?" Whitebeard nodded. "We think so. It sounds to be a thing for families. We might not be very religious, but most of us are christians." They were, so it was a bit surprising they had never heard about it. Or the few who had said they didn't want to push their religion on them. But, it had Trevor sigh. "Okay. If you're going to do Christmas, don't go overboard. Try and do it calmly." It had them frown, Izou speaking first. "Why? It sounds so cool!" It did, and it sounded to be a family thing too, to give away presents to those you loved and cared for. Trevor gave another sigh. "7 years ago, Ace found out about Christmas too, and loved it. We all did. But 3 years ago, something happened with Christmas for Ace. I would have told you what if I knew, but I don't. But, something bad happened and Ace handles Christmas badly now. Most of it is a bad memory because of that. He can tackle it if you guys don't go overboard." Whitebeard nodded. "I understand. You really don't know why it's such a bad memory for Ace?" Trevor shook his head. "I don't. I wished I did, so I could understand why myself, but I don't." Whitebeard didn't question that, and thought it had to be bad for Trevor to not know. He knew Ace well, and Ace did trust Trevor with things like this. "We will try and not go overboard. But what is overboard? How much can we do?" Trevor hummed. "He can handle presents well, same with most ornaments. He can tackle a Christmas tree really well for some reason. But songs, Ace does not handle those well. Even humming to it. Just try and keep away from suits, like Santa Claus, elves and such. Those are bad for him. I don't know which ornaments are the worst or not, so you just need to try it out carefully. This is a thing I know very little about." Whitebeard nodded and could see his commanders nodding too, and the captain had a feeling his commanders would do their best to keep this at a level which was okay for Ace, and they would be sure to keep everyone else in check too, so no one went overboard.
As time moved by, no one did anything bad or too much about this Christmas thing. It was still new, and it would take time to learn it all. But as dinner passed, they headed to the meeting room for the usual scheduled meeting. And as it was going along, Thatch looked over at Ace, who was drinking something from a bottle. It wasn't a vodka or booze bottle, so he hadn't thought much of it. "What are you drinking?" Ace gave a hum. "Called adult eggnog. Eggnog with vodka." It had Thatch blink. "Should you be drinking? I mean, this is a meeting." That was true, and before the captain could speak his mind, Ace moved a hand to the table. "Okay, here's how it's going to be. If you're going to do Christmas, I will do eggnog. Either that, or I leave until Christmas is over. You choose." Whitebeard blinked, not expecting Ace to be so forward about it. Whitebeard could see his children looking at him for an answer, all of them looking unsure. "It's okay, you can do eggnog." Whitebeard didn't want Ace to leave, and if that meant letting him drink, it was fine. The fact Trevor and Mika seemed to agree with him made him more certain in his judgement. His children did look unsure, aside from Marco, who probably knew about this, maybe even on why Christmas was such a bad thing for Ace.
Thatch still had his frown. "Is your plan to just be drunk through Christmas?" Ace shook his head. "No, just be pleasantly buzzed through it." Thatch blinked. "And we're okay with that?" Ace shrugged. "I don't care. You can't order me around." Thatch turned to look at him, obviously no idea what to do or say and looked for guidance. "We're okay with that." started the captain, "As long as you're not drunk. You have your own reasons." He then looked at everyone. "I won't allow it normally, but everyone understands this is something we need to accept right now. If we do Christmas, Ace is allowed to drink. Either that or not do Christmas." That had everyone nod, seeming to understand it and accept it for now. He was sure he would get visits later on where the others would be worried for Ace. But, he would handle that when that time came.
-x-
"Hey," said Marco as he walked into Ace's room, seeing the other standing by his desk. The meeting they had had just ended, and Marco was wondering how Ace was doing. "How are you doing?" Asked Marco, making Ace sigh. "Okay, I'm doing okay." Marco nodded, sitting down on the bed and patting the space beside him. "Come sit." Ace did, and when he was seated, Marco moved his hand to Ace's holding it. "Why… Why is Christmas so bad? Help me understand, please, yoi." Ace sighed, a hand moving to his head, seeming to think. "It's complicated." Marco nodded. "That's fine. Just, I don't need to know everything, but why is it so bad, yoi?" Ace sighed again, giving a breath after it. "It was this place… This building. It was a maze, filled with horrors of every kind. Music blasting on the speakers in it. I thankfully don't remember everything, but things make me remember. I was all alone, and each second of the 3 days I was there was horrible. I wish I could remember none of it; I wish I could just forget, all the screams, the sounds… smells..." Ace gave a sigh, not continuing, making Marco squeeze the hand he held. "It's okay. I don't need more, yoi. I just wanted something." Ace nodded, giving him a smile, which had Marco squeeze Ace's hand again. "I'm glad you told me something. Just something is all I ask, yoi." Ace nodded, seeming to be fine. Marco was just glad Ace was opening up, even though it would take time. He didn't mind that it would take time.
"What can I do to help, yoi?" Asked Marco, hoping he could do something. Ace sighed. "I don't know. I really don't. Keep music away? Same with suits?" Marco nodded. "I can do that, yoi. I will try my best." Ace nodded. "That's everything. I know everyone is really excited for Christmas, but I… I just can't." Marco nodded. "We get it, yoi. You have your own reasons. We will do our best to help you too." Ace nodded with a smile to him. "Thanks." Marco smiled, before he remembered something else he wanted to ask. "I know you're not drunk and just pleasantly buzzed, but will you get a hangover from that, yoi?" Ace hummed. "I hope not. There is a thin line I'm trying to stay on, where I'm buzzed enough to be fine, but not so much I get a hangover." That made sense and had Marco nod. "That's good. The others are worried." Ace chuckled. "I can imagine, but it's not that bad. I will just be a bit buzzed, I can still do my duties and training and everything." Marco nodded. "I know that, yoi. But I'm not sure about the rest." It had Ace nod. "I can imagine. Try and keep them calm. Everything is normal, I just won't work." Marco blinked. "You won't?" Ace nodded. "I won't. I might have my mind with me while buzzed, but I will not work in the field." That made sense and made him glad, so Ace wouldn't be in a bad situation while buzzed. "Are you heading to train today?" Ace nodded. "I am, and I should head off now actually." Marco nodded and Ace moved to leave, Marco giving a goodbye.
When he moved out on deck again, most were inside as it was somewhat cold. It wasn't really bad, but the wind had a bite to it, so most were in the galley, Marco heading there, seeing many were there, but many were still missing, probably being in their room and trying to make up things to go along with this Christmas thing. As Marco got inside the galley, he brought out a book he had, moving to sit down on the couch to read, just relax until Ace came back.
-x-
Whitebeard gave a small chuckle as he heard Thatch groan, obviously losing another hand to Trevor, who had a grin as he moved to gather his win in their poker game. It was clear Trevor was good at poker, the captain not really sure how, but he had a strong feeling he could read the others well and know what they had. He heard Marco giving a chuckle too. "You can't win, Thatch. Trevor knows how to play, yoi." Thatch just gave a groan as he moved to play another hand, obviously wanting to win a game. Marco just shook his head, moving a hand to shift the page in the book he read, having moved to have his back against the armrest and legs up on the couch with him and legs a bit bent, seeming to enjoy the silence around, finding the poker game the others had as a nice background noise. After a few minutes, the hand that the card players had coming to an end, the door opened and Ace came in with a breath, obviously tired after today's training. He had been gone for a few hours. As Ace came into the room, he went towards Marco, the captain sure Ace would sit down on the couch next to the first commander. But, when Ace was close to the couch, he moved to sit down in Marco's lap, Ace leaning on the back of the couch, Marco moving his arm that held the book up, before resting his arm on Ace's thigh, the other moving to rest on Ace's hip, going behind his back, moving it comfortingly. Whitebeard still loved to see Ace being comfortable around them, especially Marco as they weren't to open about it out in public.
"So, Bunny!" Started Trevor, moving to up his bet. "Good training day?" Ace snorted. "I swear, I think Moira is trying to murder me." Trevor chuckled. "Training is hard, that's life. Just wait until you get it." Ace gave a breath, moving a bit to rest against Marco's chest, closing his eyes. "That will be years." Trevor just chuckled as he continued the poker game, Ace letting out a breath as he seemed to relax, Marco moving his hand to be on Ace's shoulder, thumb moving slowly, still reading his book, having a smile. After a couple more card games, Trevor moved to look at Ace, who looked relaxed with his eyes closed, before he looked at Marco. "Bunny asleep?" Marco gave a nod. "Yeah, fell asleep a few minutes ago, yoi." Trevor chuckled. "Training is hard, it will probably go better in some days or so. Being buzzed doesn't help either." Marco just gave a nod, moving his free hand to Ace's head, threading it through Ace's hair.
Izou gave a hum as he looked at Trevor. "Is it fine if he sleeps? I mean, it's the middle of the day." Trevor nodded. "Yeah. Just tired from the day and he needs the energy boost. If he doesn't sleep over an hour and half, it goes fine." Izou blinked. "How do you know that? That it's exactly an hour and half." Trevor chuckled. "I know Ace, it was how it was when he was younger, he's still not that old, so I'll go with that." That made sense, and also had the captain wondering something. "Has he trained before?" Trevor nodded, moving to give out another hand of cards. "Yeah, just the basics. When Azuruko found him, he couldn't control anything, could barely teleport when angry or emotional. This is more specific training, based on what he can already do." It sounded interesting and Whitebeard really hoped he would see more of Ace's powers and what he could do; his powers were extraordinary, and everything Ace did with his powers was amazing.
After a few minutes, a few more joining in on the poker game. The times Trevor joined, he often won, or shared a pot, and the captain had a feeling he held a bit back to not win all the time, which would be a bit one-sided. Everyone seemed to have fun. But as about 10 more minutes had passed, Marco moved to sit a bit up, moving Ace a bit before he lifted the young commander. "Naw," started Trevor with a look to them, "You leaving?" Marco nodded. "Heading back to my room, yoi. Better to relax there." Trevor hummed. "That's right, you had the early shift." Marco nodded, starting to head towards the door. "I did, so a bit of time to relax sounds good, yoi." Trevor chuckled. "Enjoy your sleep. Try and keep Bunny from sleeping for more than an hour and half, you can push it to two hours." Marco nodded. "I will." The captain had forgotten that Marco had the early shift, the one that started at 3am, so it was no wonder he wanted to relax a bit himself.
As they left, Thatch gave a sigh. "How do you get so good?" Trevor chuckled. "Reading people, and knowing the chances of winning based on what you have, and also based on what's on the table. Just be smart." Thatch pouted. "Why do I feel you called me stupid in a fancy way." Trevor chuckled. "I didn't say stupid, just naive." Thatch blinked. "That's the same." Trevor chuckled. "No, naive isn't stupid, it's just the lack of information or experience, you'll get it after a while. Try and remember what hands you win with, what you lose with, and how often certain cards show up, that tells you the chance of which cards have the higher chance to appear. Add all those, and you are a long way." Thatch frowned. "Sounds hard…" Trevor chuckled. "Give it time, you won't learn it in one day." Thatch nodded, seeming a bit more cheered up, the captain sure he would try and do what Trevor said. The assassins were always glad to help with small tips like this, which everyone enjoyed.
-x-
Marco blinked as he woke up, feeling more rested than he had, seeing Ace still asleep next to him, Marco looking over to the clock and seeing he had just been asleep for about an hour, which was good. When Marco moved to sit a bit up, he heard a breath being let out next to him, turning to see Ace stretching a bit, before the raven-haired kid looked at him, probably just being half asleep. "It's been a while since I fell asleep one place, and woke up another place." Marco chuckled. "I wanted an hour in bed too, yoi. I couldn't leave you alone on the couch." Ace hummed. "It felt nice, and much better to sleep here than there, I think you're softer than the couch." Marco chuckled, moving a hand to lay on Ace's back as Marco moved rest against the headboard. "I'm not sure if I'm softer, yoi." Ace hummed. "Warmer then. More comfortable." Marco chuckled. "I can go with that." Ace then moved to stand up, stretching again as he did, before he looked at Marco. "I'm heading to get more eggnog, wanna taste?" Marco thought it over, before he nodded. "Sure. I won't get drunk from it." Ace chuckled. "You can taste it without the vodka if you want." Marco hummed. "I think I want to taste both, yoi. It sounds interesting." It did, and he would like to taste it and see what it was about.
The two then headed to the island, heading into a shop and bought some eggnog, Ace having a small bottle of vodka with him. But before he put it in the eggnog, he offered it to him, and after Marco had tasted, he frowned. "It tasted like ice cream, yoi. Melted ice cream. I was sure it would be like warm eggs, yoi." Ace chuckled. "Most do, but it isn't. It's good. Now, try it with the vodka." Ace ten poured some vodka in the eggnog, before offering it again, and after Marco had a taste, he gave a small grimace. "Too much vodka, yoi." Ace chuckled. "I think I'm used to the taste, I barely notice it." Marco nodded. "But then again, you drink vodka pure." Ace nodded. "True, that might have something to do with it." It probably did. Ace had a high tolerance for booze, which didn't surprise him in the business Ace was. It was a cruel world they lived in. As they went out of the shop, they headed back to the boat, where a few from the island were, explaining more about Christmas, which had Ace go to his room, Marco following. He wasn't going to let Ace be alone in this.
When they got to Ace's room, Ace sat down by his desk, bringing some papers out. "Commander's work or something else, yoi?" If it was commander's work, Marco could help out. Ace shook his head. "It's some assignments I'm overlooking. While I won't work, they do it for me, so I check them." Marco nodded. "Anything I can do? Or do you want to do it alone?" Ace moved to give a smile to him. "You can help if you keep it silent. Just check when I am supposed to call, and search for special names. If they are in red, that's special." Marco nodded, taking a folder Ace handed to him. He then looked it over, finding it well-made and easy to check. "This is well made, yoi. You made them?" Ace nodded. "Yeah. I try and keep it simple." Marco nodded. "I see that, but it's detailed perfectly." Ace smiled at him. "Done it for years, you know." Marco nodded, reading the finer details over, finding himself feeling a bit sick to his stomach when he read about a madwoman torturing children and how they were often raped until death, and even after. "Is this regular work?" Ace hummed, moving to read the file over, before he nodded. "Yeah, it is. Too much?" Marco shook his head somewhat. "Just took me by shock. I didn't expect it." Ace nodded. "I get it. You get used to reading it. Just thinking that the people will be dead, usually makes me feel better." Marco nodded and did, and had to say it worked. He did feel better with that.
As he had checked it, he was handed another one, which was somewhat better as it spoke about something called lolitas, or maybe it was better. "What's lolitas?" Ace hummed. "Lolitas are usually children kept for entertainment. They usually aren't tortured or used in sexual favors. Just ordered to dance or sing." That was good to know. It was still bad, but it made him glad to know the people would be dead and the lolitas would be freed. As he had checked it over, not finding anything out of the ordinary and Ace was supposed to call tomorrow, Ace gave a smile to him. "If you want, Ann's heading for some work in a week's time. You could join." Marco blinked. "I can?" Ace nodded. "Yeah. Take Shanks' place. Just watch over and take the fight if it happens. I don't think there will be one, but that's it.'' Marco felt glad Ace asked, having hoped Ace would since he found out Shanks helped out now and then. It made him feel more connected to Ace and his work. He wanted to help Ace out. "Sure, I would love to help." Ace smiled. "Good. Now I don't need to ask Shanks." Marco nodded. "I will always want to help out if I can, yoi. Hopefully making it easier for you." Ace chuckled. "Saves me from going to Shanks. He sometimes makes a fuss, which is annoying. He's so worried all the time." Marco blinked. He hadn't guessed that. Shanks had seemed to handle it fine from what he had seen. "What kind of fuss, yoi?" Marco wanted to know so he wouldn't do it. Ace hummed. "Asks hundreds of times if I'm fine, follows me around when I don't want him to, and often glares at my targets. That makes them mad and makes it harder for me." Marco nodded. He would try and avoid that. It would be interesting to be the one to help Ann out, but he wanted to be there for Ace.
He sat and helped Ace for about an hour, before Trevor came and asked Ace to join him in going to the town, to check something out. As Ace left, Marco headed to his room, just going through his latest commander work, before he headed out, just to be out on the ship. He was really glad Ace had included him in his work. It meant a lot to him. He was also sure Pops would let him go for an hour or two while he helped Ace, sure the man wanted them to be able to help Ace with his assassin's work whenever they could.
-x-
Whitebeard sat out on deck, just enjoying the day. His children were all speaking about Christmas and were excited about it. He had told them to not go overboard, and they said they would try. But, as Ace wasn't close by, they could half go somewhat overboard, and cool down when Ace returned. Marco had said he was with Trevor, doing something. As the day rolled by, Whitebeard headed to the meeting room with a few of his commanders, a few of them having some issues they would like to speak about. But as they were, the door opened and Trevor came in, alone, which had him speak up. "Where is Ace?" Trevor sighed. "He left." Whitebeard blinked. Ace had what? "Why? He said he would stay." Trevor sighed again, a hand moving to his face. "Someone didn't let up on singing a Christmas song and used Acey when speaking with Ace. He doesn't handle either well, especially directed at him. He'll be back when Christmas is over, so he'll be back in a week and half. Unless we move away earlier." Whitebeard nodded. He got Ace left because of that. They wouldn't stay here for a week and half, and would be sure they stopped the Christmas things when they were away, for Ace. Trevor then headed towards the door. "And now, I'm going to call Daisuke, so he can check on Ace." Whitebeard frowned. "Is Ace with him?" Trevor shook his head, halting in his steps. "No, or maybe. He was with Ace that Christmas 3 years ago; he knows why he hates it and probably where he goes. I just need to know he's okay." Whitebeard agreed and wanted the same, and let Trevor go out the door. When the door closed, Izou spoke up. "Ace actually left?" Whitebeard nodded. "Seems so. Ace has his own reasons." Izou nodded, having an unsure look as most of the others had too. For now, they would need to wait for Ace to come back. As Trevor was away, they resolved the issue the commanders had, and then waited for Trevor to return.
When Trevor came back half an hour later, he spoke before the captain could. "Ace is okay. He's staying on Amegakure for now." That was good to know. Ace would come back when this was over, and he had a feeling the others wouldn't hold on to this Christmas thing, understanding it was bad for Ace. "Should we just leave?" Said Thatch, having a contemplative look. "So Ace can come back." Trevor sighed. "We can if you want, but Ace is gone anyhow for a couple days, so you choose." Whitebeard was unsure what to choose, knowing he needed a response, seeing how everyone was looking at him for guidance. "We stay for one more day, so when Ace comes back, we're away from the island. Our logpose needs a bit more time." Everyone nodded, seeming okay with the response. Whitebeard had a feeling the others wouldn't be so jolly about the rest of the stay here, seeing how it made Ace need to leave. Ace had never just left like this. "What do you think made him leave the most?" Asked Izou. "The song or Acey?" Trevor sighed. "Not only did he use Acey, he used Acey Ace, which is worse than just Acey, so I think it was calling him that. But, I think the song had a big part too. At the same time, to know he is at a place where most do a thing he can't handle and the thought of facing more songs had him leave and not just head to his room. He can't outrun this here, or at least as long as we stay at this island, so Ace won't be here during this time. He reached his limit and the person pushed him over it." That made sense and had the captain nod. It was bad Ace left, but he probably needed to get away from this right now.
Whitebeard calmed his children down, telling them that Ace would come back when he comes back. For now, they would stay here for today and a bit of tomorrow, before they left, him hoping Ace would come back as fast as possible. It had Thatch let out a breath. "It sounds so cool, Christmas, and a family thing. But, I guess we can't do this." Trevor sighed. "You can keep some of it. Ace handles presents and being together. Just drop the decoration and songs, or make up your own songs and decorations. Many people celebrate Christmas, and many do it differently. Create your own traditions. Create a Whitebeard Christmas." That sounded like a good idea. "We will try and do that, keep the good things. If we do anything bad, will you tell us, Trevor?" Trevor nodded. "I will. I know most of the things that Ace finds bad about it." That was good to know, and it had his children excited again. The commanders then headed out to tell the news to everyone, that they would create their own Christmas. The captain headed out with them, and as he was out and the door about to close, he saw Trevor stopping Marco from leaving, as everyone else did, and he had a feeling Trevor wanted to speak with Marco about Ace.
-x-
Marco blinked when Trevor stopped him, waiting for the rest to clear out, before he spoke. "Did Ace tell you anything about Christmas? If he did, I beg you to tell me, I need to know." Marco sighed. "He mentioned a small bit, but that was it. He said he was trapped in what can be called a nightmare for 3 days." Trevor nodded. "That's more than what I knew. Thanks. Maybe I can get more out of Daisuke." Marco gave a breath. "They weren't together. He said that he was alone. They must have been at different places in the building." It had Trevor nod, looking thoughtful. "I see, that makes sense in a way. They react to different things." That made sense to Marco too. Ace had told him more, but he didn't want to tell everything to Trevor. He should find out by speaking with Ace, like Marco had.
Marco hoped Ace would be fine, and he probably needed to be away for a bit, which he got.
-x-
"So, Ace, what brings you here?" Asked Benn, looking at Ace who sat on the other side of the table, suddenly showing up in the dead of night. Ace sighed. "I just needed to speak with someone that won't judge or feel bad for me." Benn nodded. "And you couldn't go to the Whitebeards since it's about them." Ace nodded, making Benn let out a breath. "What is it? You should be on the ship, not here." For once, he didn't know why Ace was here. Ace gave a weak chuckle. "They are doing Christmas, so I'm staying away for a few days, they know that." Benn nodded, waiting for Ace to continue, which he did with a sigh. "First things first, Outlook III, Sabo's father, got his hands on Sabo and Luffy." That had Benn blink. "How?" Ace then told of how it had happened, how Outlook had gotten the two kids, before branding Luffy and the time on the Moby. "Okay," started Benn, "It sounds to be fixed now. So what brings you here so late?" Ace sighed. "It's just. Am I doing right?" Benn frowned. "Right? With what? You did handle it right." Ace shook his head. "No, not the Outlook ordeal. But, am I doing right in being on the boat? Did I make the right decision in joining them?" Benn's frown deepened. "Why are you suddenly thinking that?" Ace let out another sigh. "If I hadn't joined, I would have known earlier that Luffy and Sabo had been taken. I would have managed to keep that ordeal from happening. I could have saved them so much earlier, before anything happened. But I didn't since I was on the boat, since I needed to do my duties there, and as an assassin, and training. Had I not been on the boat, things would have been fine." Benn sighed. "No, Ace, no. You shouldn't think like that. What happened, happened. Don't try and think what you could have done differently. You got them out alive. That's all that matters." Benn really hoped he could get Ace's thoughts on better track.
Ace shook his head a bit, looking at him. "Can you look me in the eye, and tell me with one hundred percent certainty that I belong on the boat? That I belong in such a family?" Benn kept looking at Ace, not saying anything. He couldn't do that. Ace wasn't a people person, but he really hoped Ace would stay. As he said nothing, Ace let out a sarcastic chuckle. "I knew it, you can't. How do I know I'm not making a huge mistake?" Benn shook his head. "Easy, you can't know. But, I have a feeling you are doing the right thing. For heaven's sake, you're married. Yes, I know about the elopement. You like it there." Ace snorted. "Then why am I not there? Why do I need to stay away for a few days? Maybe over a week if they stay there." Benn sighed. "There's a good reason for that. I know you can't handle Christmas. Don't bring that into this." Ace shook his head. "How can I not? It just proves I can't always be around them. If I don't stay there, I can focus more on Sabo and Luffy and being an assassin, I can't do everything while on the boat." Benn let out a breath. "Have faith in Sabo and Luffy, Ace. They will be fine. I know myself, you would have been quicker had it happened if you weren't on the boat, but it did happen and that's okay, since it went okay. A brand is livable, you know this." Ace sighed. "I don't know, Benn. I can't help but think I'm making a mistake. That I don't belong in such a family." Benn took a deep breath. How could he get Ace to stay? "You aren't making a mistake. Trust your instincts. If it tells you to leave the family, I can't argue against it." Ace sighed. "I… I don't know. That's why I'm here, I don't know. That's the issue. I feel… divided. I want to stay, but it might do more damage. But if I leave, what if that's a mistake I will regret." Benn shook his head. "I can't answer that, only you can. But I think you should stay." he could only hope Ace would listen to him.
Ace stayed for an hour more, before he left, and when he had left, Benn headed to their communication room, going to do something he had never done before.
-x-
Marco woke up with a start, hearing someone knocking on his door. "Come in?" He managed as he sat up, no idea who it might be. Ace wouldn't knock, so it wasn't him. When the door opened, Claus stood there, unsure. "I'm sorry for waking you, but Benn called, he says it's an emergency." Marco frowned. "Benn from Red-Haired Shanks', yoi?" Claus nodded, making Marco stand up. "Okay. What kind of emergency? Shouldn't you head to Pops, yoi?" Claus shook his head, moving his hand to take a Den Den out. "No, he said he needs to talk to you, only you." Marco nodded, holding his hand out. "Okay. I'll see what he wants." Claus nodded, handing the Den Den over, before he left, Marco closing the door, before he headed to his desk to sit down, placing the Den Den in front of himself. "Benn, yoi?" The Den Den sighed. "Yes. Listen, I very rarely, basically never, tell things Ace tells me, but I can't not tell about this." Marco frowned. "Ace is there, yoi?" The Den Den shook its head. "No, he was. Listen, Ace is divided and unsure, he thinks he's making a mistake." Marco frowned more, not sure what the man meant. "Since he's away for Christmas?" The Den den shook its head again. "No. If he made a mistake joining you. He's thinking of leaving, forever." That had Marco's brain wake up completely. "What, yoi?" The Den Den nodded. "Yeah, that's why I'm calling, Ace just told me. It's because of what happened with Luffy and Sabo, how if he wasn't with you guys, he could have kept it from happening. And since he needs to stay away. I didn't get through to him, but someone needs to. He should stay with you guys. but I can't force him." Marco nodded slowly, taking the information in. Ace was thinking of leaving them? Because of what had happened the last weeks? Marco had no idea what to even say.
Marco used a few seconds, thinking what to do, but had no idea. "What should I do, yoi?" The Den Den sighed. "I don't know, but you need to make Ace feel sure of himself, that staying is the right thing. That he's not making a mistake. He feels divided and unsure." Marco nodded. He had no idea what to do. "Will Ace come back, yoi?" Marco didn't want to ask, but had too. The Den Den sighed. "I don't know. I hope so. I hope you get a chance to speak with him. I hope you get a chance to make him stay." Marco hoped so too. But if not, he needed a plan. "How- how long does it take a raven to find Ace, yoi?" The Den Den thought for a second. "A few hours, maybe a day at max. You have any ideas?" Marco shook his head a bit. "Maybe. I need to speak with Pops first, yoi." The Den Den nodded. "Do that. Try and come up with something. You need to act fast." Marco knew that. He only hoped his plan would work. "I have an idea what to do, yoi. I'll call you when I've done it and tell how it went." The Den Den nodded. "Do that. I hope he will stay." Marco did as well. He didn't want to lose Ace now.
As the Den Den went back to sleep, Marco headed out, going to Pops' room and knocking, going inside when he heard a come in, glad the man was awake. As he opened the door, he saw Izou was there, and gave a sigh. "I'm sorry, Izou. But if you're not having a crisis, I'm going to have to ask you to leave, yoi." The cross dresser blinked, before he nodded. "'Course. This sounds more important. I'll come back tomorrow, Pops." The man nodded, and Izou left. As the door closed, Marco brought a hand to his face. "Ace is thinking of leaving us, yoi." Pops blinked, before he frowned. "How do you know?'' Marco gave a sigh, before he explained the talk with Benn, telling what the man had said. It had Pops' frown deepen. "I see. We do need to act and do something." Marco nodded. "We do, I just don't know what exactly. I think we need to do something to show how much he means to us, something to show we need him, but also to show we respect him." Pops nodded. "I agree, we need to do something along those lines. Any ideas on what?" Marco let out a breath. "How about we have a small gathering, yoi. Not a party, but gathering where we just show Ace he means a lot to us, and that even if he has to leave now and then, that's fine, yoi." Pops nodded, thinking it over. "It sounds like a good idea. Who should join? I think the entire crew would be too much." Marco nodded. "Agree. But the commanders, maybe a few from Ace's division, he gets along wellwith a few of them. I'll also go update Trevor, maybe he has an idea, or think this is a stupid idea and say what he thinks, yoi. He knows Ace better." Pops nodded. "To ask Trevor sounds to be the best idea for now, son." Marco had to agree on that. Trevor was their best help in this. "I'll come update you when I've spoken with Trevor." Pops nodded, and Marco headed out, waiting until morning before he went and knocked on Trevor's door, knowing he was most likely awake this early, Marco was sure all the assassins only slept a little.
When Trevor opened and let Marco inside, he quickly updated the man, who nodded, not looking shocked. "I knew it would happen, that he would think that at some point. And I have an idea what to do." That had Marco let out a relieved breath. "What? What do we do?" The man shrugged. "Nothing. We do nothing." Marco blinked. "Nothing? That's your plan, yoi? Ace is thinking of leaving us and you want to do nothing?" Trevor nodded. "Yes. Making a big deal out of this, will make Ace leave. Have a party, Ace will leave. Have a gathering, Ace will leave. You know this. Ace isn't fond of people." That was true and made sense, but still. "We can't do just nothing, yoi." Trevor sighed. "Ace can seem like a complicated person, but he's really not. Why had he been here for so long? Since you've been acting normal. Don't tell anyone else about this, and just go on normally. The most you should do is just be there for him. Don't make a big deal that he needed to leave now, ask about Luffy and Sabo, if they're doing fine. Just be yourself. It's what made Ace stay this long, so it has worked." That was a point. Maybe Trevor was right. "What if he doesn't come back?" Trevor shook his head. "He will come back. He won't just leave without a goodbye. I think nothing will happen, Ace will stay here and things will be normal. I haven't seen anything suggesting anything else." Marco nodded slowly. "I hope you're right, yoi. I don't want to lose Ace now." Trevor shook his head. "Don't worry so much. I know Ace, I know he would never leave just because something like Christmas happened. It is probably just a small crisis. Ace will sort through it." Marco really hoped that Trevor was right.
-x-
Ace moved to crouch down as he walked through a building, having gotten an assignment to help some children escape from it, and he said yes to doing it. He could have sent someone else, but he knew the name of the culprit and it would be bad, so he wanted to do it himself. As he was about to head down a set of stairs, using his powers to appear at the bottom to make as little noise as he could. As he was down, he heard some talking from a door to his left, which had him move to the door, looking through the keyhole, seeing 4 people inside the room. He was glad to see the leader, Roberto Rich, was there. As he found the target, he moved a hand to his mouth, blowing smoke into his hand, before moving his closed hand to the keyhole, blowing the smoke into the room. As he made sure he had all 4 people under his power, he walked into the room, quickly killing the three he didn't care about, putting a bullet through their heads. With Roberto, he made him pass out, and he would head back to deal with Roberto after he had checked the children, not having found them yet. He then walked around and killed a few more as he came across them, nothing really exciting happening. When he had been searching for half an hour, he came across the prison room, searching it, feeling a breath leave him when everyone was dead, or seeming to be dead. He then started the chore of checking all the bodies and placing them in a good resting position, before giving his respect to the dead ones. Ace knew many assassins let out a prayer to the dead, but Ace wasn't religious like that. If there existed a Hell, they were living in it now.
Ace then made his way back to Roberto, trying to think what to do. An hour later, Roberto was placed in the ballroom, putting him on display, a bullet through each of his joints, and a Colombian Necktie performed, which had been the thing killing him, slowly, as he choked on his blood. Ace made sure he was alive for the entire ordeal. Ace really enjoyed killing people who deserved, it, even more when he could kill them like this, torture them and enjoy each second of it. As he was done with that, he left the place, heading back to Amegakure to complete the folder on this assignment, before returning to the ones who had sent them, telling them their children were dead, and if they gave a description of them, he could bring the body back to them to be buried. He was cursed to Hell and back for not being fast enough, but he brought the bodies back. Ace was used to being cursed and hated. That felt better than meeting someone understanding, someone that was happy to get the body back. Ace had been too slow, and he should have been faster to be able to save the children, but he hadn't. As it was over, Ace headed back to Amegakure, just relaxing for the reminder of the day.
As he was relaxing, he thought back to the conversation with Benn. He needed to try and come to a decision there. He was still unsure what to do, but he had a couple days more, knowing the pirates wouldn't stay at the island for much longer, and Ace wanted them to be away from it before he appeared. For now, he would try and come to a conclusion.
-x-
Marco sighed, seeing Ace going about his day normally. Ace had been back for two days now, and he hadn't acted any different. Trevor also hadn't said anything. Marco was glad Ace was here, but he still felt worried Ace might leave. He had spoken with Trevor yesterday, and Trevor hadn't brought it up with Ace, saying things were fine from what he could see and to just go on normally and not mention it. Marco had agreed on it in the moment, but now, a day later, he regretted agreeing, and wanted to speak with Ace about it, which he would. So, when they were in Ace's room as evening came, Marco decided to bring the thing up, and sat down on his bed, patting the spot beside himself.
"Ace, please sit." Ace sat down on the bed, looking at him with a curious look. Marco then crouched down in front of Ace, moving a hand to his. "Listen, Benn called four days ago, he said you were thinking of leaving. Are you? Will you just up and leave us?" Ace sighed, the other hand moving to his face. "I knew something was up. Whitebeard has been giving me looks the last couple of days." Marco had noticed that himself. Ace shook his head, letting out a breath. "I was, I was thinking of leaving. I just… I had a minor crisis because of everything. But, two days ago, when I was just relaxing at Amegakure, I realised I wanted to come back to the boat. And, I can check in with Sabo and Luffy everyday here too. Nothing is stopping me. I just, I don't know, I needed to think a bit."
Marco nodded, letting out a relieved breath. "You have no idea how worried I've been, yoi." Ace chuckled. "I can imagine. I probably sounded really unsure to Benn, the reason he called. But I managed to get the answer a bit later. I just needed some time." Marco got that, and was glad Ace would stay. Ace let out another low chuckle. "Now go tell Whitebeard to stop worrying too. He's looking at me like I will leave right now, just vanish." Marco let out a sigh. "We were worried you might just leave. I was even thinking of sending a bird to get you." Ace lifted an eyebrow. "You were? That would have made me worried." Marco nodded. "I should have done it, it would have made you worried, just as I was. I have been really worried about this." That had Ace laugh. "But I won't leave just like that. And I need to ask Benn about this telling thing." Marco shook his head. "He told me he has never done it before, only on a very rare occasion. And I think he was talking about telling things to Shanks at that moment." Ace nodded. "That makes me glad to know. He's never told people what I say, the reason I speak with him." Marco moved a hand to Ace's. "You know, you can speak with me too." Ace nodded. "I know. But if I told you I wanted to leave you, you would have gotten worried and worked up." That was true, he would have done that, so he got why Ace spoke with Benn about it. "If you want," started Marco, "You can call Benn and tell him you will stay. I promised to call him and tell how this went. He's probably worried." Ace chuckled. "He probably is. No one else knows about it?" Marco hummed. "Trevor does. But he had a feeling you would stay and just had a minor crisis. I guess he was right." Ace chuckled. "Trevor does know me well, so I'm not surprised." Marco nodded. It was clear Trevor knew Ace really well. "Does he know you better than Benn? Right now, it seems so, yoi." Ace hummed. "On some things, yes. But others, no. They both know different things." That made sense.
Marco let out another sigh. "I am glad it was just a minor crisis. Have you sorted through it?" Ace nodded. "I have. I just needed a couple of days. Everything's fine now." Marco was glad about that. He would be sure to drop by Pops after this and explain things were fine. Marco moved his hand to hold Ace's again. "I'm glad you figured it out. I'm glad i have good news for Pops." Ace nodded. "I am too. Now go tell him to stop worrying." Marco chucked. "I will. He will be relieved too." Ace nodded. "I can imagine." Marco then headed out, going to Pops' room, and telling everything was fine with Ace, which had the man glad.
And that's the chapter, hope you enjoyed it
There was a bit of everything in this, and the next chapter will be about Ace's birthday again and more of Ace's work as i haven't had too much of it lately
If you have any scenes or ideas you want to see, don't be afraid to leave a comment
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