Chapter Text
[Marineford]
Chaos was everywhere.
Smoke heavily clouded the vast field, dark and prickling to the lungs and eyes of every poor soul who was there. Sparks of gunshots blinked regularly through the thick curtain, reminding everyone that it wasn’t just a clouded day in a random place. This was war. A harsh, intense, bloody war. No one was here to respectfully shake their opposant’s hand at the end of the battle, discussing terms of surrender in a polite manner and part ways to lick their wounds before the next clash. No.
In Marineford, no matter what side you were on, those on the others didn’t plan for their enemies to survive. That was war.
Up on the execution platform, Ace could only helplessly watch the chaos unfold. His hands pulled on the restraints behind his back like a sick habit – as he did ever since the white sails of pirates’ ships had appeared on the horizon line. As if the vision of his comrades, his family, could break him free. But so far, the only thing he could feel was the iron dug painfully on his wrists, the flesh scraped raw to blood and his shoulders crying in strained pain, begging to pop out of their socket in mercy. Still, he couldn’t bring himself to stop fighting, as much as he could.
Wood scraped his knees as he pulled on his neck, straining it to try to see something through the fog. Cold steel threatened to cut his neck sharp at every of his ragged breath, the blades of the stiff marines against his throat encasing him like unwavering judgement.
The world was embodied in chaos and Ace was condemned to being still and watching.
But if watching he was reduced to, then watch he will. Ardently, looking, searching in desperation for a specific familiar face. He had caught a glimpse of a lot of his comrades, of Whitebeard himself, of his enemies, but there was still someone missing. His dark eyes looked around frantically, hoping to catch sight of the face he would recognize even in the darkest night. A face that would bring him hope, like a shining beacon in this absolute hell.
And maybe – just maybe, somewhere deep within his heart, Ace also wished he wouldn’t see you here today.
*
[Then]
Falling in love with Ace had been a rocky road.
When you first met, you wouldn’t have bet on you two becoming an item. Sure, the guy had passion, he was funny and god damn attractive. That’s what you thought first when you met Ace the day he tried to fight Whitebeard – or at least, one of the days he tried. It was the 12th try, if you remember correctly.
Recently having returned from a previous assignment, it had been a few weeks since you had set foot on the Moby Dick – and this update in the usual crew chaos hadn’t reached your ears yet.
So when a black haired dude came flaming up – literally –, crashing on the deck and ready to throw hands with your captain, the first thought you had was Who the fuck is that suicidal man?
While the fight – pretty much a one-sided one – carried on, you had glanced at Marco who only shrugged behind his coffee mug.
“Some kid who tries to fight Pops every once in a while” he had explained with a faint smile. “He’s surprisingly early today.”
You had blinked once. Twice. Maybe you should have blinked a third time at the doctor’s apparent chill despite the situation. And hold on, did he say ‘every once in a while’?
Before you had had the time to react you had felt something barreling into your back, sending you forward with great force. You would have almost fallen across the railing if a strong, warm hand hadn’t gripped your forearm just in time. A firm tug put you back on your feet and turned you around – and came across a pair of obsidian eyes that would make you fall. In this case, they literally did.
The culprit of your almost-fall (and last-second savior) looked as surprised as you – and you had noticed that he was actually younger than you thought. Freckled cheeks were slightly flushed because of the fight, just like his wavy hair was tousled in every direction. He blinked before offering you a light, almost shy chuckle.
“Sorry beautiful, didn’t mean to push you.”
The nickname had made your cheeks flush a little, but before you had registered anything more other than his smile full of candor, the freckled stranger had been hauled in the air by Whitebeard – and thrown overboard without warning.
A splash had echoed. You had turned around to the captain who hadn’t even broken a sweat. Izou and Thatch hadn’t even seemed to have noticed the fight. Marco had shrugged a shoulder again.
“Wait, isn’t that guy a demon fruit user?”
Marco nodded, flipping a page of the journal, “Yeah, fire fruit.”
You had turned to Whitbeard, eyebrow raised, “And you still threw him overboard?”
“The kid’s tough,” he had chuckled, “ and his crew usually fish him out right away.”
You had thrown another glance at the ocean. Ah yes, indeed a small ship was making its way to the Moby Dick ; but it would have been too slow for the poor fool’s crew to arrive on time to get their crewmate on time.
You had sighed ; then you had discarded your shirt, climbed on the railway and dove into the water without a second thought. In a crew full of demon fruit users, you had the advantage of being an excellent swimmer – and thus having become the unofficial lifeguard of the Whitebeard pirates. You had sunk smoothly into the water, easily noticing the drowning man a few feet below. Then you had hauled his arm across your shoulder and brought him back to the surface in a matter of seconds. A rope scale had already been deployed, and the crew had helped you bring up the idiot who had dared to fight against Whitebeard – again.
That’s how you met Portgas D. Ace.
A warm contact laced with youthful foolishness followed by wet and cold reminder of his own mortality. Looking back, this had been a pretty good sum up of his own character, and you should have paid more attention to that.
After you had saved his ass, the Spade pirates had come to gather Ace and begrudgingly take their captain away…until his next try to fight Whitebeard. From that day, his martial visits had become more frequent, much to the entertainment of your crew. As for you, you watched each fight with interest on the sidelines. This man certainly intrigued you ; why was he so adamant on trying to fight a way stronger opponent again and again? Something about becoming stronger or taking the Emperor’s place or something. But what truly made you curious was why did Ace put so much passion into something that sounded so…trivial? Maybe that was curiosity that made you watch most of their confrontations.
Marco had noticed that and loved to tease you on the subject.
“You’re staring again,” he had noted during another one of their fights.
“I’m analyzing,” you had simply said.
The doctor chuckled, “Nah, I call bullshit. You’re hooked on this new kid.”
You had rolled your eyes. Marco had basically seen you grow up, he knew you weren’t the type to fall for a guy that fast. “Why does he insist so much on challenging Pops anyway? He’s stupid at best, suicidal at worst.”
“And you’re soft for him.”
“I’m not,” you deadpanned (even if you had to admit even then, this Ace guy was hot).
Marco raised an amused eyebrow, “You literally saved him from drowning a minute after meeting him.”
You had shrugged. “He saved my life, I saved his. That’s only fair.”
Marco could have replied that even if Ace had thrown you overboard, you wouldn’t have been in danger. But the doctor kept the thought to himself and kept a knowing smile until the daily fight came to an end.
Then Ace and the Spade pirates joined your crew. After a few more confrontations with Withebeard – maybe it had knocked some sense into the young man – you officially got to meet him again.
“I’m Ace,” he had said while shaking your hand, having recently been officially adopted by the crew.
You had given him your name with a soft smile. “I know. We met briefly before.”
His freckled face tilted on the side briefly, wondering where you had met. Then a bright smile stretched his cheeks. “Oh, you’re the pretty lady who saved me from drowning! Thanks a lot by the way, I owe you one!”
“It’s okay,” you had assured him, “it wasn’t a big deal.”
His smile had broadened even more, and he had thrown his arm around your shoulder. “Awe c’mon, it is! And I’ll find a way to pay you back you’ll see, that’s a promise!”
It really wasn’t a big deal. But in that moment, with his warm voice and his friendly sunny energy radiating miles around? You had believed him.
Day after day, you had come to realize that it was just how Ace was.
*
[Marineford]
There was no place where you’d rather be and not be present at the same place.
Until today, you had hoped that you would never set foot in Marineford. You still did, honestly. But the second you heard that Ace was there, you hadn’t wasted a single moment to get there.
High walls and desolate fields in front of you only amplified the anguish twisting your guts. If there was some kind of Hell existing, no doubt it looked close to this. The thick smoke of the first assaults of canon balls and long-range shots clouded your vision, shielding the view. Standing on the upper deck, you squinted your eyes till you felt them burn in fatigue. Yet, you saw nothing – nothing, no one you were desperately looking for. Your observation haki rushed in waves, clinging to the slightest sign that he was still there. Despite years of using and perfectionning it – making you the best user of that haki type in the crew – you felt panic rise as you couldn’t feel anything.
A large hand landed on your shoulder, and you turned to see your captain standing beside you.
“He’s here, girl.” Whitebeard stated gravely. “They won’t execute him if we can’t see him, that’s their whole point.”
The lump in your throat didn’t lessen, but you nodded anyway. This wasn’t entirely reassuring but the captain was right. If the fight was still going on, that meant Ace was still alive. A small highlight in the midst of chaos.
“Focus,” the Emperor mumbled. “Concentrate on Ace’s presence, don’t let the battle around cloud your senses. If anyone can find him, it’s you.”
You gave him another nod, a small hope sparked by his trust. “Yes, Pops.”
Inhaling deeply, you tried to steady your breathing. In, out, in out. Once your breath comes back to a calmer rhythm, you spread out your haki once more. Searching, probing, at every corner of the massive field. You could sense so many people, so much pain – it made you wince every time you could feel someone’s life slip away.
And then, at the very end of the courtyard, you felt it. A warm, familiar presence. Your haki clinged to it, trying to wrap every single one of your senses around it to hold on to it. Teeth greeting you pushed your own haki signature against it, just to signify that you were here–
A gush of wind blew on the field, just enough to brush away the smoke for a moment. Then you saw him. On the execution platform, all the way back on the other side of the field. Chained, on his knees, battered and bruised, and still frantically looking around. Ace.
His name escaped your lips, barely above a whisper yet he seemed to somehow hear it anyway. Dark eyes flickered and once they locked in yours, it finally felt like you could breathe again.