The last thing Brynlee expected upon returning from a wild party in Arlong Park was a visitor awkwardly sitting on the stairs of her humble abode. And not just anyone, no – someone she'd never met, but whom she knew all too well.

"Portgas D. Ace?"

The young man jumped to his feet, startled by her sudden appearance as well as the call of his name. So it really was him, then. Tall, a bit gangly, and a mess of freckles scattered over his face. She'd seen pictures, of course – Sabo never went anywhere without pictures of his brothers – but it was different, seeing him in the flesh.

"Are you Brynlee?"

"Aa." There was a moment of silence, before she offered a small smile. "Wanna come in?"

"Oh, yes. Thank you for having me."

It was almost sweet, really – how awkward he was. Unlike Sabo, who'd learned his manners the hard way, Ace had strived to learn on his own in order to thank some important people, namely Red-Hair Shanks, if she remembered correctly. So, she let him in, ensuring her cloak was still firmly in place before going to sit at the small table, gesturing for him to do the same. But he refused, seeming frozen in place for a moment… before he bowed deeply.

"You know it already, but my name is Portgas D. Ace. Thank you, for bringing my brother back."

"I didn't—"

"I don't know how you did it, but you made him remember, somehow. We thought him dead, but you- you managed to bring him home. So thank you."

"… of course. Come on, sit down so we can speak properly. Cake?"

He didn't refuse her offer, so she quickly pulled a piece of cake out of the fridge while he took a seat, and he murmured another thank you when she served it to him. There was still a weird, awkward tension in the air, so Brynlee decided to speak.

"The name's Lucky D. Brynlee. I don't know what Sabo told you about me, but if he ever said that he's won a bet against me before, then he lied."

Surprised, Ace then barked out a laugh. "Yeah, he might have said something along those lines, once or twice."

"Like I said: lie. I always win."

He chuckled again. "What did he say about me, then?"

"That you're an overprotective wimp who still sleeps with a crocodile plushie your younger brother found for you once."

"Wha—that's not true!"

"I know. I just told you: he's a liar."

Ace laughed once more, and what little tension was left finally vanished.

"So, if you're here, then I'm guessing you're finally setting out?" she guessed.

"Aah. I'll be leaving for the Grand Line soon, but I wanted to stop by here, first. To thank you, and also to take a look at Sabo's second home."

"Not too disappointed he ended up Revolutionary instead of pirate?"

He shrugged. "It's his life. As long as he does what he wants, that's all that matters."

"Fair enough."

"What about you? From what I've heard, you're pretty involved with the Army, too."

"I'm more of a prodigious intern – I'm only helping out while I wait."

"What for?"

"My crew."

"You have a crew already?"

"I will, one day. They're just not ready yet."

"… you're a bit weird, you know that?"

She grinned. "I've heard that once or twice."

Ace ended up staying for a whole week, properly getting to know everyone involved with his brother's upbringing. He mostly hung out with Brynlee, though, and she did her best to give him a proper tour of the place and the people. He'd been a bit wary of the Fishmen pirates and the fake marines at first, but he'd eventually loosened up.

And then, on the last night of his stay, he decided that Brynlee was trustworthy enough to ask something very important.

"Bryn… You said you were waiting for your crew, right?"

"Right."

"Then… When my brother sets out—"

"Sure."

"What—you don't even know what I'm asking you!"

"You want me to join your brother's crew so I can look after him in your stead, right? And also so that if something happens to you, I'll still be there for him."

"That's… scarily accurate, yeah." Without hesitation, Brynlee whacked him behind the head. "Ow! What was that for?"

"You made a promise," she replied, serious. "Keep it."

Ace paled a bit. "How did you—"

"I know some things. And one of those things… is that one day, in the near future, you'll find even more people capable of loving you, no matter how much you might believe yourself unworthy of it." He stiffened, and their eyes met. "I know, Ace. And it's okay. Being born is not a sin, and it never will be."

He sprung to his feet, both angry and horrified and confused and a bunch of other emotions that he clearly couldn't control, and Brynlee tried not to flinch when his fists clenched – she didn't want to hurt him or scare him off, but it needed to be said.

"You don't know anything!"

"Ace… Once you get to the Grand Line, learn what you can about Lunarians. You'll find out that we're not so different, you and I." She looked up at him and offered him a smile. "Take care out there. And don't mess around too much with your fire, okay?"

He shot her an unreadable look, still visibly troubled, and positively confused, and evidently angry too, and he eventually walked away without another word. Brynlee sighed, but didn't move from her spot, knowing there was nothing more she could say right now – outright telling him her secret might put her and everyone else at risk if he told the wrong people, after all, and he was a very bad liar.

So she stayed there, and she watched as, eventually, Ace took off on his boat and began sailing away from the island, vanishing into the night without another look back.

Hopefully, he'd take her advice – and wouldn't end up hating her, either.

Back to present time

Brynlee never told anyone how Ace and her left things off. She simply told them he'd left during the night because he was too much of a wimp to handle goodbyes, and Sabo, knowing his brother, hadn't even questioned it when he dropped by a couple of weeks later.

She simply hoped Ace would be willing to read her letter, now.

[SUBQUEST]

Heart of Gold

There are many people you want to help, but it all starts with one.

Save Thatch's life!

Reward: One (1) SKILL

ACCEPT/REFUSE

She swiftly accepted it, but another window immediately popped up.

[SUBQUEST]

Heart Ablaze!

Being born is not a sin. Everyone deserves a chance to live!

Save Ace's life!

Reward: One (1) Life & 100,000,000 berries

She accepted the second quest as well, although she was a bit puzzled by the first part of the reward – but then a third window popped up.

[WARNING]

Failure to complete the SUBQUEST Heart Ablaze! Will have the following consequences:

Portgas D. Ace's death

Outlook Sabo's death

Monkey D. Luffy's death

Roronoa Zoro's death

Nami's death

Vinsmoke Sanji's death

Usopp's death

[…]

Brynlee's blood went cold as the list of names went on. In the Before, Ace's death hadn't killed any of these people – but then again, in the Before, Sabo didn't remember his brothers, and there was no doubt in her mind that he would go die in Marineford if it meant protecting his family. And with Sabo there, the butterfly effect would be too strong to contain, thus irreversibly bringing about the death of everyone Brynlee knew and cared about.

After a moment of hesitation, she accepted the subquest.

She also used Gambler's Reward to multiply the monetary reward to the max – this was an all-in kind of bet, after all. Because no matter the potential consequences, she'd already decided to save Ace. So, she would, or she'd die trying.

So there, that's how Ace and Brynlee met!