concoursec | (no subject)

Current Mood: curious

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(no subject)

Characters: Ace, Marco, Thatch, Grell, Espio, Toby, Namur, Open
Location: Quad, Marco/Grell's room, who knows where else.
Rating: PG +, never can tell with this family
Summary: Ace just arrived and needs to meet the rest of his wonderful family. That includes the rest of Garden too.

It had been a few crazy days to say the least. Ace had gone from a near death experience to being dragged through time and space to a completely new place unrelated to his own world. After take a few days to get rested up, learn the ropes of Garden, and enroll in classes he finally felt as though he could hold his own here.

So here he stood outside of his room waiting patiently for Marco to come along and get him. The blond had asked him to meet up with him so he could introduce him to the rest of the family. Ace had to admit it. He was curious about Marco's child. What would he be like and would he accept Ace as his uncle? He took a deep breath and leaned against the wall. Marco sure as hell better hurry up before he got bored of waiting and wandered off.

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Marco fidgeted in exasperation at the reminders to calm down, but they worked and he let his rage slowly fade.

"Things changed."

What else was he supposed to say to that? Ace died so how was he going to be captain? Namur needed him to be captain, just like he was back in their time? Grell and Espio did too, in order to bridge the difference of generations. And because they were his nakama. Hadn't Grell already said these things? He was tired of it all. And tired in general.

Thatch winced a little at Ace's words. It felt a little like a betrayal in a sense. He didn't want to be captain, he said... But they'd all been behind him before, even to push him up to Pirate King and now--everything was changed. Because of one goddamn knife wound. Things changed. As if that made a difference. As if that should.

But it had. And there was nothing he could think of to do about it.Ace was stuck here, too. Without a dream. Without-- He swallowed everything back, settling himself before he punched one of them off the roof. At Ace for being so stupid for going after Marshall like that. For Marco to be so stupid to let him. For himself to have let his guard down so damn easily.

"Sorry, Sparks." He let them go, running a hand through his hair and then pulling it back irritably. He had to say something. Think of something. But he could only shake his head. He should be the strong one here but he'd be damned if he could even think of what to say.

Ace didn't want to be captain because he didn't think he deserved that honor after everything that happened. Truth was he had heard a little about what was going on the day he arrived but due to all the other things happening, he had let it slip. He wasn't 100% sure what was going on at all. He knew the changed symbol meant something, but not what. He also knew Marco had mentioned something about being Captain, and how he would let Ace take over.

Ace just sighed. This was all too damn much to deal with. Though it was kind of hard for a dead man walking to be Captain. He didn't know what to say. He didn't know what to do. He was lost and he needed someone to show him a way out because he couldn't find it. Ace was wandering lost in his own emotions and thoughts unable to escape the guilt of things Marco accused were out of his control. They probably were out of his control. But worst still, in the inability to cope with this shock quickly, he had pissed Marco off to the point of violence and he could still fell the tension and anger wafting from the blond, even with Thatch in the middle.

It was hard. So hard. Probably one of the hardest things he had ever dealt with. He ran a hand through his own hair and hung his head. Why had it all happened this way? Why had he let his anger get the better of him? Because that's who he is. Because he doesn't let anyone say anything hurtful or negative about anyone he cares about. So he did what Ace did. He stood by his father and his family and he took on an Admiral and lost defending the one thing in the world that meant more to him then Whitebeard and his other brothers.

Luffy was alone now. No. No he wasn't. Luffy had an amazing crew. He had met them himself. Charged them formally with taking care of his bumbling baby brother. Luffy would be fine. He was strong enough to overcome this. Strong enough to not want revenge.

"Hey, Thatch. I know I screwed up against Teach. But I promise when I get home..I'll haunt his ass for the rest of his miserable and hopefully short life."

He didn't get it. He just didn't get it.

The rage coursed through Marco all over again. He screwed up against Teach so he was going to do the exact same thing all over again? His only screw up was in thinking that they felt he was responsible for Teach. For thinking he was responsible for Teach. For going at it alone instead of staying with his nakama where they needed him.

But it was good, wasn't it? Ace clearly had no regrets.

Marco wrenched himself away from both of them with a growl, his anger still wafting off him in waves.

He didn't fucking get it. He had no fucking clue what it was like to have to live on and face Teach. To not be allowed to seek vengeance for the sake of dead men like him. To watch as Marshall D. Teach took all his knowledge of Pops' islands, of the Whitebeard pirates, of everything Marco had worked decades for alongside Teach, alongside his father, building the crew, the reputation, the protection of the very islands he had to lose, all to watch that crumble as he clung desperately on?

Fuck you Ace. He wanted to say it, but he couldn't even do that much. Couldn't even throw his bitterness in his little brother's face.

To die a hero, to have everyone miss him as they lived on, to die saving them, just like his father, just like Ace.

Marco was incredibly jealous. And he blamed, and hated Ace for it.

Ace got to die a hero, seek his vengeance and do whatever he wanted, so he was the true pirate. Marco couldn't take those kinds of risks, wouldn't let himself risk everything, his nakama were his treasure and he wanted to protect them. He admired Ace's reckless bravery, but he would never be able to match it. And he was insanely jealous of that.

It was one thing to say he'd haunt Teach, it was quite another to have to live the reality of the situation.

"I'm going to get a drink," Marco coldly announced. His face was deadpan, but his tone was still too angry.

There were probably a million reasons why Marco was pissed and Thatch couldn't deal with any of them. One thing at a time and the one thing right now was holding himself back from shaking Ace for missing the point entirely. He couldn't help it. He was Ace. And getting mad at him would only drive the wedge in further.

"Look, forget Marshall. Fuck Marshall. He's not even here and he's still tearing us apart." And he sent a glare between Marco's shoulder blades, knowing he could feel it. "Are we really that weak that we're so shaken up by that asshole?" Okay he sounded angrier than he meant-- so he reigned himself in and got to what was important.

He took Ace's chin so the kid would meet his eyes.

"Listen, it wasn't your fault. What he did. That you went after him. Even that you--that you died, okay? It happened. Maybe Marco will rip him apart a few years from now. Maybe he'll die a happy man in bed. I don't give a good goddamn. All I care about is the nakama I have right now. I'm alive. You're alive. And the sparkly chicken better sit his ass right the fuck back down and act like the captain we need."

Ace heaved a very deep and long sigh. They didn't get what he was needing, but that was fine. He supposed they really weren't the right people for that anyway. Marco didn't care what was done as long as the person doing it believed wholly in what they were doing. He hated wishy-washyness. And Thatch well, he probably understood a bit, but he was dealing with his own issues at the moment.

"Thanks. Both of you." He said doing his absolute best to sound normal again. Change the subject, advert the problem and do something else. He was trying to do that anyway. "Come on Thatch...let's go. Marco's right. We should get some drinks; maybe even pick up some girls." Mask firmly in place...he was ready to fake being happy as long as he needed too.

"You knock that shit off right now, Ace." Thatch said in a low growl, not letting him go. "What's with that grin? Are you trying to run away from this? No way in hell am I letting you. You keep backing away the more I'll hound you til we figure out how this damn thing is supposed to work."

Thatch, at least, was calming Marco down. Like he always knew what to say, when to say it, how to say it. Marco let out a breath, and went to his pocket for a cigarette. Figures. He'd stopped smoking years ago, with Grell around to soothe his nerves, he hadn't often wanted one. So he tossed Thatch a glance. "Got a smoke?"

And Ace...

Well, Ace just fired up his temper all over again. Blue eyes flashed dangerously as he considered punching Ace, kicking him, kissing him, SOMETHING to get through that thick D skull. "Freckles," a warning growl, but he used the nickname to remind his little brother that it didn't matter how angry he got, they were still tight. "Don't." He was supposed to be trusted to handle Ace's darkside, but maybe Marco couldn't. If he got violent and temperamental over the idiot's guilt, then how could Ace trust Marco enough to expose it.

Ace was even more of an idiot if he thought he could hide it, however.

"Ace... Look." He went into Thatch's pockets, took out a cigar and lit up desperately. "What Thatch said, is what I've been trying to say. You keep beating yourself up for shit that was never your fault. You're doing it now! And you have no idea what that means for the rest of us, eh? If you are even the slightest bit responsible? Then we are ten times more responsible." He pauses to chomp on the cigar and breathe. The words are tumbling out, but that doesn't mean that they're right, or they're good, or that they'll help in the least. "I can't deal with that kind of pressure."

He didn't want to live through losing everyone. His jealousy spikes even more and Marco sits down on the roof and spreads on staring up at the clouds and focusing on the smoke. "Talk to him Thatch. I can't." He wanted to be an assassin, he wanted to get revenge, to not have to fight to protect everyone and everything and fail time and time again. Because it was an impossible goal. He wanted to stop time. And this was the only place where that worked.

The smile was gone almost as soon as he put it on his face. He jerked away from Thatch and glared at Marco once the other finished speaking. "What the hell do you want from me then? I can't be guilty, I can't be apologetic, I can't be sad, I can't be happy! What they hell am I supposed to be?! I'm hurting! It hurts so much I can hardly breathe and all I wanna do is scream forever until I can't anymore." Ace's hand went to his chest, over his heart. "But you're both so angry and I hate that even more! I don't know what to do...I don't know what to say! Tell me, please! What do you need from me to make you happy again?"

"Hurt. Be yourself. Go through it and stop trying to please us. We don't care about us as much as we care about you, dumbass. Scream if you want to, fight with Marco. Burn as dark as you want and trust us to take care of you."

He kept Ace's eyes as he spoke.

"It's not going to be easy. Maybe we'll get mad or get hurt and fight and bitch, but that's part of life, too. That's part of healing. People have to be who they are. They have to hurt how they hurt and rage how they rage and still weather the storm together.

So go through it, Freckles." He reached out and tweaked a strand of hair. "Run yourself raw if you have to. We'll be here for you, and on the other side."

"Aye," Marco frowned and puffed up on the cigar. "Do you think we don't hurt with you? That it doesn't hurt to see your nakama in pain? How would you feel if it was Luffy?" A sigh and Marco traced the clouds. "If you're happy, be happy, but don't you dare fake it for our sake. We're not stupid and it won't make us happy. You're trying to sacrifice yourself so much that you never stop to think if we want that. Would you appreciate it if Straw Hat did that for you? You yelled at him for coming to rescue you and called us your nakama. What do you think that means? What will it take for us to to convince you that you don't have to earn our love or respect? If you trust us, you don't have to earn your place with us. We're all in this together, stupid. If you hurt, we hurt. That doesn't mean you have to hide it. It means you have to get through it." Another sigh. Shit he hated this.

"No, it means, trust us to get through it with you and stop being a coward about it, eh?" Too blunt. He needed to pull back. Argh.

"You want to know your one mistake? It wasn't leaving, it wasn't losing to Teach, it was thinking you weren't worth all that. You don't get to decide that. Thatch doesn't get to decide that he's not worth getting revenge for. Neither of you get to decide that. Got it? Your mistake in apologizing," the reason Marco go so furious that he got violent, the reason he completely lost all his cool, "Is is in suggesting you had the right to decide our actions, our emotions, our decisions. Rather than respect what that meant, and where it came from. We respected you enough to make your own decisions, Ace. We always have, and we still do. Don't ever try to decide that I made the wrong choice. Ever. You think you're not worth it? Well, that's because you're a fucking idiot. I know better. So just trust me to know that, stupid."

Marco twirled the cigar in his hand and passed it back to Thatch. Too heavy for him, he preferred the lighter cigarettes. "If you can't trust yourself, trust me. That was Squardo's mistake too. Thinking what he did was so unforgivable -- tch."

Ace sighed and flopped back down beside Thatch. "I don't know what they hell to do." He said running his hands through his hair. He moved, crawling over Thatch and sliding in between them, wrapping an arm around both of theirs and holding on tightly. "Don't leave me alone. Please." He didn't want to be alone anymore. Impel Down and the war...and then finding out what had happened, he didn't know what to do but he was afraid of being alone.

"Never." He put the cigar in his mouth and in a few movements, hauled Ace and Marco both into his lap, wrapping his arms around them and resting his chin between them. If they were a little cramped, they could deal with it.

"We're a family full of fucked up bastards but we're still a family." And if Namur was here, he would cuddle him, too, damnit. Or Grell or Toby or hell, even Espio despite how much the chameleon would complian. Maybe he'd just let Marco hold on to him.

Marco shot the other blond an annoyed look and switched into phoenix so they could cuddle him and he wouldn't be obligated to say anything stupid. Ha had no idea if anything he said sunk in or not. Maybe this was Ace's way of dealing with it. Who knows.

Ace settled further into Thatch's lap, cuddling him. He pulled the bird into his own lap and stroked him lightly as he smiled down at him. It had been entirely too long since he had held Marco like this and he was enjoying it. He relaxed, resting his head on Thatch's shoulder, pressing his lips against his neck in a small kiss as he finally managed to start settling down.

Marco could just go ahead and be annoyed. Thatch didn't know what else to do. He was tired from all this bullshit and feeling worn out in general. All he wanted was his family together. For the people he loved most to stop hurting and blaming themselves for shit that, in this place, didn't matter a good goddamn.

He smiles a little at Ace's kiss and holds them both tighter, putting out his cigar so he can briefly kiss Ace's hair.

"I love you guys so much, you know that right?" he said, his voice gravelly from straining against the emotion that was trying to sweep over him. "Without my family, I would be nothing."

Them, Namur, Grell, even Espio and Toby. If it weren't for them. Living for them. Trying for them and trying (and mostly failing) to give them the best life he could.

"Aye, I know," Marco whistled back, calming down almost instantly and snuggling Thatch and Ace cheerfully. They were both idiots, but they were his idiots and he loved them too. "I love you both too. Tell Ace. Even though I got mad at him."

"Tell him yourself," Thatch said, giving Marco a bland look. If the phoenix was going to say it he was going to say it so everyone could understand, especially the people that needed to.

"Huh? Tell me what?" Ace mumured as he looked between Thatch and Marco. He wasn't sure what was going on. He had never really gotten the hang of understanding Marco's trills and calls. He'd wanted to learn but well, Thatch was way better at it then he was.

"No. If I switch back to human I'll want to peck him stupid," Marco growled irritably.

He grabbed Marco's beak and yanked him closer, looking into his eyes.

"Tell. Him."

Ace watched the scene quietly. It wasn't often that someone told Marco what to do. He looked between them wondering what in the world was going on and maybe that perhaps he should leave. He had really angered Marco and he hadn't done it on purpose. But it seemed the phoenix was still angry. He had to admit, he was curious, but he wouldn't speak just yet. He wanted to let them work out what was happening first.

Edited 2013-09-12 04:41 (UTC)

Marco stilled and froze instantly, looking back into Thatch's eyes for a long time. It was easy to tell Thatch anything. Even the painful truths, even when he was overcome with emotions and all he wanted to do was break everything. Still, Marco was stubborn as fuck, and it wasn't that easy!

He was still mad! He still wanted to kick Ace off the roof just because! Part of him even wanted to peck Thatch for trying to boss him around! Stupid Thatch, who did he think he was? Marco's first mate?

Oh right. That's exactly who he was.

Marco let out an irritated phoenix growl, gave quick jerk back, but switched back into human.

He didn't look at Ace, just moved to the side of him and wrapped his arm hard over Ace's eyes, hooking him in the elbow and locking him there. "I love you. It doesn't matter how mad I get, I'll always love you. Got it?" Another irritated growl. "Fucking idiot."

Marco wasn't used to getting so angry with anyone he didn't want to kill. And he wasn't good at handling it when it did happen. It was too much like dealing with Squardo, or Shanks, or any of them. He didn't always have much of a temper when it did get set off, it blazed as badly as Ace's, but lower and more long lasting.

He wasn't the only fucking idiot. They were all fucking idiots. Thatch lets him say his piece and then slips his hand over Marco's eyes, pulling him back a little and kissing the skin on the top of his head. If Marco couldn't see, he didn't have to think so much. He could just be and let Thatch steer this ship for now.

Oh, that's what this is about. Ace mused to himself as he was nestled into Marco's side rather harshly. Either way those words filled him and he gripped the blonds shirt in his hands, clinging tightly to it as he shook a little bit, emotions welling up in him again. He hated crying. He hated it so much. Yet that was all he seemed to be doing the last few hours.

"Love you too." He whispered to both of them as he tried to get himself under control.