Chapter Text
“ Ask the wrong question,
they'll take your tongue.
They've shattered love,
and stolen our young.”
The crew have been happy since Ace joined them. The firecracker was easy to love and the crew was eager to love. Everyone was happier than they had been since the last time someone joined.
That didn’t mean that there wasn’t something off with Ace. There were certain behaviors that just never made sense.
Whitebeard noticed it first.
“Oi, Birdie!”
“It’s not Birdie!”
It happened more times than he could count. Ace has never grown out of that nickname, no matter how much Marco snapped back.
But it wasn’t just with Marco. Whitebeard also got his own pseudonyms.
“Hey, Old Man!”
“Leader of this circus!”
And notably, “Tall Fucker!”
He always laughed it off but it made him curious. The crew would correct Ace but he would never use the captain’s name.
At first, he thought it was some form of childish rebellion. Then he remembered something from long ago, with grinning silver eyes.
“Hey, Quake-boy!”
“Crescent-Stache! You made it!”
“No-beard, want to fight?!”
Gol D. Roger. The man never did refer to Whitebeard by name. Sure, he called him that when they first met but the longer they sailed, the more creative the nickname became.
Whitebeard looked at Ace and his silver eyes and wondered if the nickname-thing was genetic.
It didn’t bother the old captain much.
“Call me Pops!”
Afterall, Ace did only call him Pops after he joined.
But Whitebeard was not the only one to notice. Thatch noticed it quickly when Ace came into the kitchen more often.
Thatch wondered if he was scared to cook. Ace avoided all of the pans and the pots, whether they had touched the stove or not. Strange that the fire-logia seemed to be scared to get burned.
Ace also seemed to be a pescetarian. He really only ever ate the salads and the grilled fish. Ace avoided the vegetable casseroles. He even gave Thatch a weird look when Thatch tried to reassure him there was no meat. He didn’t eat it.
Thatch was worried but Ace was eating and they had pickier eaters. Thatch had to drag Ace out of the pantry a couple of times but the days after that, Ace looked so tired. From then on, Thatch let him think he was sneaking by and simply catalog what was taken. He’d ensure they’d have enough of that to keep Ace happy.
Ace might be strange but he was Thatch’s brother and Thatch was not going to bring up something that might be traumatic or force him to change his diet.
Haruta was concerned.
Their division was considered when Ace’s placement in the crew was brought up, and that was reasonable. The kid was able to get in and out of marine bases like it was childsplay.
They had no idea that Ace was just so bad at lying. Whenever he answered the den-den, he couldn’t even give the trick answer to ward off unwanted callers. He just immediately said that this was Whitebeard’s crew.
Ace couldn’t come up with an excuse either! When information brokers or questionable allies asked him why he wanted to know something, he always snapped that it wasn’t any of their business!
Haruta had to smooth a lot of feathers after Ace’s trial day.
And it wasn’t that Ace couldn’t deceive someone! That boy was terrifying at poker and would mislead marines during their questioning. And Ace did it without ever telling an outright lie! He just let people assume something completely untrue!
Haruta wondered if he just hated the idea of telling lies. Maybe Ace was just one of those people who couldn’t tell an outright lie without laughing or grimacing or something?
Either way, no matter how much they like their new brother, Haruta hopes that he does not get assigned under their division. Who knows what Ace might spill?!
Izou, on the other hand, noticed something entirely different.
Ace doesn’t like owing people favors.
Maybe it stems from trust issues. Izou knows some of their siblings grew up around people who would abuse debts or simply ignore them. Either way, Ace never owed a debt to anyone.
When Thatch made Ace an entire plate of grilled fish, a new pot was left in front of his door.
When Marco healed Ace after a nasty fight, Marco woke up to all of his paperwork completed.
When Izou patched up Ace’s hat after a Marine shot it, a new set of sewing needles were by their door in the morning.
Izou simply smiled at Ace in thanks. If Ace chooses to immediately repay favors, it is not a problem. Izou will simply accept and reassure Ace that he doesn’t have to owe them anything, no matter how confused it makes Ace.
Marco, though, wass thoroughly confused.
Ace was like a force of nature. He could read a storm hours before it forms, even with the unpredictability of the Grandline. Marco would have accepted that but knowing a rookie ship is approaching before anyone can see was remarkable.
Marco swore he heard Ace talking with the fish but that would be impossible. Maybe he’s just really good with Observation Haki? Ace called Shanks coming far too early, though, and Marco knew Shanks could hide his ship from Observation Haki.
And then there’s the whole conversation Ace had with Shanks. Marco wasn’t even aware they knew each other!
“Hey, Red!”
“Firecracker! Did the Old Man get you after all? Is he yours now?”
Ace went bright red and yelled back, “Like you can talk! You’re Luffy’s!”
Shanks just laughed and Marco couldn’t figure out what for. Is this Luffy one of Shank’s crewmates? Is that why Ace knows Shanks?
Frankly, Marco had too much to worry about to worry about what crazy code they could be talking in. Nothing was on fire and there didn’t seem to be any immediate danger. Any other strange thing could go to the back of the line.
Teach thought that Commander Ace was onto him. The commander was very cold to him.
He wasn’t like that at first. In fact, Commander Ace actually gave him a bouquet of flowers! He didn’t do that for anyone else but seemed pretty insistent on giving it to Teach. The tiny red star-like ones were around these red stalk-like ones that reminded Teach of lavender, only with less buds on a stalk. Pink balls of almost flat flowers poked out around the stalks. Teach recognized the smell of the small white flowers in the bunch of red. It was coriander, he thought. It was all bound with another stalk-like flower wrapped around it, only this one was fuller and with larger, thin-petal buds colored with pink veins.
Ace seemed happy when he accepted it and seemed to hang around Teach for a while. A month passed and another bouquet was given, but left at his door this time.
It had a large long-stemmed sunflower. The sunflowers were surrounded by lavender. As an almost third tier, white poppies and orange round flowers in a dark, eye-like center were clustered around the base of the lavender. There were small pink flowers, whose petals twisted like windmills. They were bound with the same pink-veined flower.
Commander Ace was cold after that, never acknowledging him outside the assignments or work. Even when he did that, the commander had this blank look that had none of the brightness he had shown for the last month. It was as if a switch was flipped.
Teach was worried that the commander had figured out that he was lying. He took the D name because everyone important had that initial. He thought it was unfair that he didn’t, so he just took it! He was a pirate after all! Pirates take what they want!
Then, they met a Lloy D. Issac. He was on one of the islands they were stopped at and a lot of the crew were having fun in a tavern. Teach was in the far corner away from Commander Ace, but watching him. And the commander was happy until this blond pirate with tan skin and dark brown eyes entered the bar. Commander Ace wasn’t tense but he did track the guy with his eyes. He was absently nodding to the conversation he was having with Commander Haruta, eyes glued to the pirate talking with Commanders Marco and Namur.
Then, Teach heard what would change everything.
The guy introduced himself. “Hey, I don’t think I introduced myself! My name is Lloy D. Issac. May I have your names?”
Before the commanders could answer, Commander Ace growled something that rose the hair on Teach’s arms. He almost pounced toward the man, grabbing the back collar of his coat and hissing, “You can’t have their names!”
Commander Ace dragged the guy out the door and the other commanders scrambled to follow him, calling for him to calm down.
Teach stayed in the tavern and tried to calm his racing heart. That answered everything. Commander Ace treated him coldly because he was a D. They must be possessive or something and the commander must see his presence as a threat.
No matter, he would just have to keep away until his plans fell into place. Commander Ace’s strange behaviors could be something the rest of the crew has to deal with.
And deal with them, the crew did. No matter how strange Ace was, he was their family, their little brother. They would love him and his little oddities.