Hello everyone, here is the next chapter!

This is a bit of this and that

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Marco hummed as he sent a message to Trevor, as the class to Ace and Thatch would have the day off on Friday, since the teachers there would have a meeting, so he needed to have someone watch Ace. Thatch would head to a friend, and Ace could join, but when he had mentioned this to Ace, he had seemed hesitant, so Marco said he could ask Trevor, which made Ace happy. Trevor answered fast and said he would love to watch Ace, he was going to be at the gym for most of the day, and Ace was of course welcomed. That was good to know.

When Friday came, he dropped Ace off at the gym, Trevor meeting them by the car and Ace seemed very excited. Then Marco went to work, and he had meetings all day. But during the third meeting, when the clock was almost noon, Marco moved his phone up when he felt it vibrate and blinked when he saw it was a notification from the doorbell camera. He frowned as opened the app to see who it was. He blinked more when he saw it was Ace, who were supposed to be with Trevor at the gym, but frowned more when he saw a person was with Ace, but couldn't see who it was as the person had a hoodie on, a red one, and he could see some black hair, so he knew this wasn't Trevor. Marco felt shocked and unsure, not sure who Ace was with. He moved to call the landline to the house, but as it didn't connect he remembered today was the day they fixed something so none of the landlines on the street worked.

He then got up and excused himself from the meeting and started to rush home. When he got to the car and started to drive, he called Whitebeard and updated him, and he sounded worried as well. Ace had been through enough. When he got home, he parked and rushed inside and called out for Ace, before he heard Ace respond with "Marco?" and it came from the living room. Marco rushed there and blinked when he saw Ace sitting by the table, Mika with him, and on the table was empty, half empty, and full sushi boxes. Ace looked confused and looked at the clock they had, before back at him. "Did the meeting end early?" Marco blinked. "No. I just saw you on the doorbell camera with someone that wasn't Trevor, yoi. Where is he?" Ace blinked. "Oh. He managed to fall and break a rib most likely. Mika sent him to the ER and took me back here to eat sushi. She didn't want me to be stuck in the ER with him. Do you want some?"

Marco blinked and moved to sit down and look at the sushi. "I didn't know you liked sushi, Ace." Not many children did. Ace shrugged. "I do. Mika knows the best places." Marco nodded and looked at the amount. "It seems like a lot, yoi." Mika chuckled. "I know it might not look like it, but I eat a hella lot of food. I also train a lot, so I burn through it fast. I need to eat a large amount to not lose weight, I like my size. Feel free to take some. We have a bit of everything. I also did not mean to scare you that I was here. I had no idea you had a ring door camera. You could have called, I saw a landline." Marco nodded. "I tried to call, but today happens to be a day they do maintenance, none of the landlines on the street works." Mika blinked. "I had no idea. I did not mean to scare you." Marco shook his head. "No, it is okay. I am glad it was only you, yoi." Mika then looked at him. "If you want to, I can leave, seeing as you are here now." Marco smiled at Mika. "You can stay longer if you like, yoi. No need to rush out." Mika smiled, seeming glad. Marco then sent a message to Whitebeard that everything was fine, which he quickly got a response that that was good.

Marco then moved and sat down as well, and they chatted a bit as they ate the sushi. After maybe half an hour, Mika's phone rang and she answered it after seeing the caller Id. "Trevor, if the doctors want to keep you there for the night, I am not busting you out." He heard the other line speak, and Mika chuckled after a while. "I know, let me have fun. How bad was it?" The other line spoke again and Mika nodded. "Nice. Want me to come over?" The other line spoke again and Mika hummed. "Apparently, there is a doorbell cam and I wore my hoodie, and the landline is down. Marco is here. I might have given him a heart attack by accident." The other line spoke and he could hear Trevor laughing, before Mika chuckled. "I know. Speak later. Bye."

Then Mika hung up and looked at Ace. "He didn't break a rib, he just got a hard landing. Might have a small fracture, but not a fully broken rib. He is okay and on his way home, and is already feeling much better, just a bit bruised, mostly his ego." Ace nodded. "That's good." Mika nodded. "It is. Next time, he knows not to show off if he can't do it." Ace chuckled, and Marco asked what had happened, to which Ace said Trevor tried to do first do a pull up on the monkey bars, before he would move himself to be over it and then do a sort of push up on it, then repeat. When Trevor tried to get on top, he lost his grip and fell down and hit another bar on his way down, before he hit the floor. The floor did have some padding, but the bar didn't. Marco nodded and said it was good he hadn't broken anything, to which Ace and Mika nodded.

Mika then stayed a bit, before she left, taking most of the sushi with her. She had offered for them to keep half, but very few in the household like sushi, but it was good to know Ace liked it. The day then went on, and on Saturday, he took Ace and Thatch to go to the park to meet Law and Corazon. Ace was very excited for it. They were a bit early so Thatch and Ace played a bit around.

After a bit, he saw Law being dropped off and he moved over with Thatch, to meet on neutral ground and introduce Thatch now. Thatch seemed excited, as he liked to make new friends, and he liked Ace, and wanted to get to know him better. Thatch moved first and walked closer to Law and held his hand out to say hi, and Law looked uncomfortable, when Ace stepped forward. "Thatch, no! Law doesn't like touch! He doesn't like physical contact." Thatch blinked and instantly took his hand back. "I am so sorry. We can wave!" Thatch said as he gave a wave. "I am Thatch!" Law gave a small wave. "I'm Law." Thatch smiled. "Do you have anything you like to do?" Law seemed unsure and fidgeted a bit, so Corazon spoke. "Why don't you go to the swing set? That's fun. I will be here with Marco." The kids nodded and went to the swing set, Law training a bit behind, probably just unsure. Then the kids started to swing and he spoke a bit with Corazon, who was a nice man.

Corazon also shared some tips he had learned with Law, like how they had once a week, they had a talk time, where they spoke for half an hour, if they had nothing huge to speak about, they just spoke about normal things, but it had helped Law bring things up. And Marco had to say he liked that idea and would do it for his kids. They were at the park for a couple hours, before Corazon needed to leave, Law said goodbye to Ace and Thatch, and Thatch was very excited and waved goodbye, hoping they would meet again. Law waved a bit more unsure, and Ace smiled and said goodbye, before Corazon and Law left. As they were gone, Thatch spoke. "I like him! He seems awesome!" Ace smiled. "Yeah, he does. I like him too." Marco was glad about that. And would try that next time, Ace and Law could meet alone. He was very glad Ace was getting along with his new family, but he also wanted Ace to get friends outside, like the others had. Ace had some issues making friends, but the lies Akainu had said were still plaguing him, which he got, and it was a long road.

On Monday, he got a call from Ace's psychiatrist who asked him to drop by the next day if he had the time, alone, which Marco did. When he got there and sat down in the chair in the office, the psychiatrist gave a breath. "I have some news, and I want to tell you first." Marco nodded and the psychiatrist continued. "Due to some personal things, and I am about to become a father for the first time, I am going to go on a year's leave, starting in 2 weeks. We caught the pregnancy very late, and my wife is due in 3 weeks. It was a huge shock for both of us." Marco blinked. "Congratulations, yoi. I don't mean to sound unhappy for you, but what about Ace?" The psychiatrist nodded. "The reason I asked you here. I have talked with my team, and we think we have another psychiatrist who will be able to help Ace very much, as he, just like me, has a lot of experience with children who have a tough past. Should you feel it is not a fit, all you have to do is tell him and he will assign a new one. But I think it will go fine."

Marco nodded. "Okay, I just, Ace isn't that good with change I feel, yoi." The psychiatrist nodded. "And I get that and agree, but unfortunately, this is something I can't change. I am going to be away for a year." Marco nodded. "Yes, I get that, you should be home when you get a child, yoi. Thank you for telling me." The psychiatrist nodded. "When you come for your meeting with Ace on Wednesday, my colleague will be here as well, so the first meeting is with me there." Marco nodded, that sounded smart. He would tell Ace about this when he got home from school. He shared a few more words with the psychiatrist, before Marco left, and when he got home and they had eaten dinner, he asked to speak with Ace, who seemed worried, and Marco took a breath. "Ace, you know your psychiatrist?" Ace nodded, which had Marco continue. "He is going on a leave, so you will get a new one for a bit, yoi." Ace blinked, looking at him with unsure eyes. "Why..?" Marco hummed. "He is going to get a child, and he needs to be home with that child, yoi."

Ace blinked. "Oh… who is the new one?" Marco hummed, he had forgotten to ask for a name. "I don't know, but he is most likely very nice, and when we go to the office on Wednesday, you will meet him, yoi. Your psychiatrist will also be there for that meeting." Ace nodded, looking to be thinking, before he spoke in a small voice. "Is there anything I can do to change this?" Marco shook his head. "No, you can't, unfortunately, yoi. Sometimes, things happen that we can't control, and this is one of those things." Ace nodded a bit, seeming unsure. Ace fidgeted with his hands. "Nothing I can do can change it?" Marco shook his head. "No, unfortunately not. But I will be with you the entire time, until you feel safe, yoi. And if you feel you don't like him at all, we can switch, but you can have the one you have right now, yoi. He needs to be home with his child." Ace nodded, seeming to be in thought. Marco had a feeling Ace felt he could change this if he pleased him, but that wasn't the case.

Marco smiled at Ace. "You're a very good kid, Ace. And we will manage this, okay?" Ace nodded, still seeming unsure, which Marco got. This would be an adjustment for Ace. He asked if Ace wanted to talk more about it, but Ace said no, which Marco accepted. The day then went on.

When Wednesday came, and they were on their way to the psychiatrist office, Ace seemed nervous, which he got. When they got there and were called into the office, a new man was there, who smiled at them, before he spoke. "Hi, my name is Azuruko, I will be taking over for Paul." Ace grabbed his hand, and Marco gave a reassuring squeeze. They then all sat down and Azuruko introduced himself more, before he asked for their names, and Marco said his, before Ace said his, seeming nervous. Azuruko then spoke. "I know this will be new, for both of you, especially for you, Ace. But I promise, we will take it at a pace you are comfortable with." Ace nodded, seeming nervous and unsure, but maybe a bit less now as this was going well and Azuruko seemed nice.

When the meeting was over, and they were in the car to get ice cream, he asked Ace what he thought about Azuruko, and Ace answered "He seems nice…" to which Marco nodded. "He does, yoi. And if you want to, the next meeting, when it is only Azuruko there, I can come in with you if you'd like." Ace nodded. "I might want that…" Marco smiled at Ace. "Why don't you think about it, yoi? If you want me to join, I will join you, I promise." Ace nodded and that seemed to make him feel in a better mood, which was good.

The next few days went by fine, and when the weekend came, Ace spent it with Trevor and Mika, and Ace seemed in a very good mood when he came back from being with them. When Trevor dropped Ace off, Trevor did ask if Ace could visit them on Monday in the coming week, as they were heading to a sushi place for dinner, and Ace would like to join. Marco thought it over and said it was fine, which had Ace and Trevor happy, before the two bid goodbye and Trevor left. It was okay if Ace was with Trevor and Mika on Tuesday as nothing special was happening that day. On Tuesday, Ace had the group, and on Wednesday, Ace had his first appointment with the new psychiatrist. It would be nice.

The rest of the weekend went by fine, and when Monday came, Trevor picked Ace up from school, while Marco did his usual things.

-x-

Ace felt happy as he walked out of the sushi place with Trevor and Mika, having had a great day so far. As they walked a bit around, before they would go to the car and drive Ace home, Ace blinked as he saw someone he knew a bit away and felt excited as he walked towards Law. "Hi!" Said Ace excitedly, and Law turned to him and blinked, before he smiled a bit as Law waved to him. He could see Law's guardian, Corazon, behind Law, smiling at him.

As Ace was close, Ace motioned towards Trevor and Mika. "This is Trevor and Mika. They are awesome." Law looked at them, and Trevor moved first and made a sort of pose. "I am the most awesome guy in the world!" Trevor then stopped the pose and looked at Law with a smile. "Who are you?" Law made a small motion. "I am Law." Trevor smiled, waving his hand a bit. "Nice to meet you, Law. Ace speaks about you now and then, you seem nice." Law nodded, looking a bit unsure. Ace then gave a small sound. "There is one thing I haven't mentioned about Law though." Everyone looked at him, and Ace looked at Mika. "Law is missing his left leg, knee and down."

Law looked uncomfortable, and Ace knew Law didn't like to speak about it or show it, Law had mentioned it carefully once after Ace asked what was wrong with his leg, and Law said he didn't like to speak about it, but there was a reason he said it. Mika blinked and gave a small gasp and lifted her left pant leg. "I do too!" She said as she showed her prosthetic. "We are leg friends!" Mika had on her metal dragon leg, it looked so cool he felt. It was made of a light metal and had a dragon on it that stood out, and some hydraulic thing it looked like where the knee was. It had a normal foot that was in her shoe.

Law blinked and looked at it. "It looks nice. I like the dragon." Mika nodded. "I do too. The joints also move, I love it." Mika showed her point as she lifted her leg and it moved, and Law looked at it in amazement, before he spoke. "I have a basic one the hospital gives." Mika nodded. "I know. The custom made ones cost a small fortune. This one is actually one my grandfather made. He is amazing with making things and has a personal interest in prosthetic legs, he got it when I lost mine." Law blinked. "He has?" Mika nodded. "Yes. Losing a leg is very hard and a huge adjustment, and I had a very hard time accepting it and adjusting. I hated the basic leg, so my grandfather started to make them and that helped a lot. Still took a long while though. My dad has also started a bit, but not as good as my grandfather yet, but still pretty good."

Law nodded. "It helped you? Does it… stop you?" Mika hummed. "No. People have tried to tell me what I can and can't do, I hate it. Nothing stops me, I can do anything anyone can do, it doesn't hold me back. Or actually, there is one thing. I do martial arts, I love it. I like kickboxing and some karate and such, where you use your whole body. When I go into competitions and championships, I am not allowed to use my left leg while I fight. And I do get it, it is metal or wood, it would hurt them a lot and be unfair." Law blinked. "Really?" Mika nodded. "Yes. I have an idea. I can ask my grandfather to give you a leg if you want to?" Law blinked. "I don't know, or what I want?" Mika hummed. "Idea. I don't know if you know, but Ace is a great artist and can draw amazing drawings. How about you tell him what you like, and he can sketch it and you can see how it looks, and he can give it to me when you think it looks good." Law nodded a bit. "I can try." Ace liked that idea.

Mika hummed. "But I need one thing. Where you put the leg on, there are some numbers, I need those numbers as they say the size and length. I do not need them now, but write them down when Ace makes the sketch, okay?" Law nodded, seeming shocked. Ace really hoped that Law could get an awesome leg. Mika had so many awesome and cool ones. Ace looked at law. "Are you coming to the group tomorrow?" Law nodded. "I am, you?" Ace nodded and smiled. "I am. I am excited for it, I like being with you." Law smiled a bit. "I do too. You're nice." Ace smiled, he really liked being with Law. They then shared a few more words, Trevor speaking a bit with Corazon as well as they said hi to each other, before they went on their ways and Trevor and Mika got Ace home before the evening came.

As it was almost bedtime, Marco came and asked if that tomorrow, if Ace wanted to leave a bit early for the group so he could be a bit with Law first, Ace said yes. He really liked hanging out with Law. And Marco said it was fine and Corazon had sent a message to him about it and he would respond that it was fine, which made Ace more excited for tomorrow.

Ace felt things were going okay, he still felt it was a lot of new things and rules, but so far, nothing had hurt him he felt, and no one had had sex with him which was new, but felt very nice. He hated that with Akainu, it always hurt so bad. He was still scared it would change and this was all a false safety, that had happened before. But he knew now he had Trevor again, and Trevor was awesome.

And that's the chapter, hope you enjoyed!

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If you also want to, I have a Twitter/X account, my name is Azuruko, and I have a discord, my tag/username is just azuruko, as well as a server (Instant invite: discord . gg / 6hzMhbR) where everyone is welcomed! Updates is also posted there, both on discord and on twitter