Marineford - Blog Posts

The marineford arc can easily be summed up as

“Oh, Ace is THE losing dog, and he’s got too many ppl betting on him right now….”

someone's beloved brother

love that my first ever post on tumblr is super depressing :D

this is abt post marineford and, spoilers, ace's death haha :,) if you couldnt tell, ace is my fav and this moment has been affecting me for the past few days since i first watched it 😭

i cant even begin to imagine how luffy mustve felt and idek if this piece represents a mere fraction of that grief 😞

sorry if the heart is way off or wtv i tried my best 😅

Luffy may have fought his way out of a horrible prison and through a deadly war just to have Ace die anyway, but god damn it, Luffy's effort to save his brother was not a waste. Ace was treated like a monster by society from the day he was born, to the point that he hated every part of himself too and didn't see a reason for living, but his last words to Luffy were "Thank you for loving me."

Thank you for loving me.

Thank you for loving me.

Luffy's love was never, ever in vain. Portgas D. Ace died knowing that he was loved, his body held securely in the arms of someone who'd spent ten years trying to convince Ace that he was worthy of it.

Love is never wasted.

DAY 2 : Again.

Luffy relives the worst day of his life, over and over again.

I wasn't inspired by today's prompts so I chose one of the alternatives: Time Loop. Since I didn't have time to write everything, I'll post loop by loop as I go along, instead of all at once. This story is quite hard to read (and write), so pay attention to the warnings and take care of yourself above all <3 Trigger Warnings: - Graphic Description of Violence - Blood and Injuries - Burns - Major Character Death Fandom : One Piece (Anime & Manga) Character(s) : Monkey D. Luffy Relationship(s) : Monkey D. Luffy & Portgas D. Ace Words Count : 1,548 No. 2: ALTERNATIVE  Time Loop

First Loop

Luffy struggled to retrieve Ace's Vivre Card that was slipping from his fingers. It was in front of him, just inches away, and yet unreachable. He didn't really know why, but he had to retrieve that Vivre Card. It was important, it was a part of Ace. He couldn't lose it. Nothing else mattered. The outside world faded into the background around him — the screams of agony, the smell of blood and smoke, the corpses he was stepping on to escape — leaving only the small burning piece of paper in his field of vision. 

(Ace had been burned by Akainu. His big brother, the one who always walked two steps ahead of him, unreachable and strong , the living embodiment of fire, had been burned . Sabo had died in the flames of an explosion. Luffy had forgotten it, but big brothers could burn too.)

Luffy's hand finally closed around Ace's Vivre Card and the panic that clouded his mind subdued. He had succeeded, Ace wouldn't leave him.

He had promised.

“You won't leave here alive!”

Luffy looked up and met Ace's desperate gaze. Why was Ace looking at him like that? He should be happy, Luffy had his Vivre Card back.

“Luffy!”

The flaming fist of Absolute Justice charged at him, invading his field of vision until all he could see was flames — stories whispered by a campfire, the burn of the Grey Terminal fire on his skin, Ace's arm around his shoulders in the middle of winter — and bloody red.

Oh.

Luffy wanted to move, should have moved, but he couldn't. The world was so fast when he was so slow, exhaustion slowing all his movements to the very core of his bones.

(If his crew was there, he could have rested for five minutes before going back into battle, but Luffy was alone .)

Suddenly, without Luffy understanding what was happening — he was so tired — Ace was in front of him, smiling sadly. Luffy's eyes widened in horror as he noticed the fist through Ace's body. The smell of burning flesh hit him in the face and Ace vomited blood, a retch shaking his entire body.

Akainu stepped back, removing his fist from Ace's body carelessly, Ace's guts falling to the ground, bloody and steaming. There was a hole in Ace's torso, where his lungs should have been. The skin around the wound was burned raw, sizzling with blisters and peeling away to the bone. And amidst the mess of ruined and damaged flesh, hidden behind his broken ribs, his brother's still beating heart. 

Thud, thud, thud.

Luffy focused on Ace's fading heartbeat, clinging to his brother's last breath of life. Ace wasn't dead yet! Luffy could still save him. Luffy remembered yelling at Akainu who was raising his fist once more to finish Ace off, but he didn't remember Jinbei and Ace's friends intervening.

Everything vanished when Ace fell to his knees in Luffy's arms. Luffy caught him, his hand red, red, red when he looked at it after touching Ace's back. Luffy placed his hand on the wound, trying to stop the endless bleeding. Ace slid into Luffy's arms, his head falling onto his shoulder, and Luffy tightened his grip around Ace, refusing to let him go.

"I'm sorry, Luffy," Ace struggled to say, choking. "I'm so sorry, I stopped you from saving me properly. Forgive me.”

Ace was breathing heavily, just talking, draining him of his meager strength. Blood was dripping down Luffy's shoulder in large drops.

"What are you talking about? Stop talking nonsense!"

Ace wasn't dying, Luffy could still feel his heart beating between his fingers. Ace wasn't dying. He couldn't die. He had promised. He couldn't die.

"Someone!" Luffy begged, screaming until his vocal cords broke, feeling the heat leave Ace's body. “Heal his wounds! Save Ace!”

Luffy didn't like the cold. Cold meant being alone in the night, cold meant an empty place in the treehouse. Cold meant Death.

"Luffy stop," Ace said weakly. "My time has come. He burned me from the inside out, I won't make it this time.”

And Ace was never weak. He was bold and brash and mean at times, a raging fire. Never weak, always strong. Ace was the reason Luffy survived Sabo's death. Because Ace was strong where Luffy wasn't, learning to be kind and caring for Luffy.

Ace was strong .

Luffy wasn't.

“No! You promised”! Luffy refused, understanding what his big brother meant. “You told me Ace, right? You said you wouldn't die!”

Because Ace was strong but he was also stupid. He forgot obvious things sometimes and Luffy had to remind him. Like the fact that Luffy loved him. But if Luffy reminded him of his promise, then maybe Ace wouldn't die.

“You promised,” Luffy stopped himself from sobbing. Ace didn't like whiners.

“You know, if it wasn't for Sabo, if I didn't have a little brother like you to watch over. I wouldn't have wanted to live.” Luffy's heart clenched painfully in his chest. “No one wanted me after all. So it's completely normal.”

Ace clung to Luffy like a lifeline, as if Luffy was the only thing keeping him alive. Luffy was terrified that he wouldn’t be enough to keep Ace alive for a little longer.

“Oh right, if you ever run into Dadan again, could you say goodbye for me?” Ace laughed softly, his laughter cut off by a coughing fit. “It’s strange, now that I’m about to die, I feel like I miss her.”

Ace’s breath was labored, his voice hoarse. And Luffy didn’t dare look — because if he did, he’d have to face his big brother’s dying face — but he was pretty sure Ace was crying, his shoulders shaking with silent sobs.

“I only have one regret, and that’s not seeing your dream come true. But I know you, you’ll get there, that’s for sure.” Ace and Sabo had been among the first to hear his dream, among the first to believe in him. “You're my brother after all.”

Luffy had two brothers. One had been dead for over ten years, the other was dying in his arms. Who was going to believe in his dreams now?

And yet Luffy couldn't do anything. He was frozen, afraid that the slightest movement would make things worse. The only thing he could do was hold his brother in his arms as he died, hoping that Ace would feel all the love Luffy had for him.

Ace was loved. He had to know that, right ?

"As we promised each other back then, I have no regrets about the life I led."

This time, Luffy couldn't help but protest. This wasn't how it was going to end. It couldn't be.

(Ace's heartbeat was getting slower and slower, more and more rare.)

"No, you're lying!"

"No, it's true!" Ace insisted, his fingers digging painfully into Luffy's shoulder with a surprising strength for a dead man. “It seems that what I always wanted in the end wasn't fame or glory. But just the answer to my question. Why did I come into this world? "

Ace had always been haunted by his past, by the past of those who had come before him, that of his parents. But Luffy didn't live in the past, he didn't care who Ace's father was. What mattered was the present, what mattered was that Ace was Luffy 's brother.

Ace was Ace and that was all that mattered. Ace had always been enough.

"Luffy, I want you to listen to what I have to say and tell the others afterwards," Luffy knew at that moment that his brother's words would be his last. He wasn't ready for that. “Even though I've been a good-for-nothing my whole life, even though I carry the blood of a demon.”

The fighting raged around them and yet it had never been interrupted. Ace's family fought to give them one last moment, one last hug.

"Thank you for loving me!"

Crying, Ace formed a smile on his lips for the last time. Ace collapsed in Luffy's arms, his hand falling from Luffy's neck where Ace had clung to during his final moments, leaving a trail of blood along Luffy's cheek.

Ace fell to the ground, alive one moment, dead the next, and Luffy screamed out all his pain and sorrow, inaudible amidst the horrors of war. Ace was dead.

Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. 

Ace was dead.

Ace.

Was.

Dead.

Ace was dead.

Years of memories flashed through Luffy's mind in a split second - all ending with the same tragic phrase "thank you for loving me", all ending with Ace's death - shattering his psyche to the last piece.

They were always meant to end up here - Ace, dead and Luffy, helpless - there was nothing Luffy could have done to change things.

“ACE!!!”

In the end, when the darkness reached out to him, Luffy welcomed it willingly. Luffy fell into nothingness, hoping to never come out. Not if it meant living in a world alone.

Click. Again .

My rankings of one piece arcs + reasons (canon and not including egghead as it’s still ongoing):

1. Marineford (Luffy trying to save ace? ACE IN GENERAL. WHITEBEARD AND HIS CREW <3333 the asl story. Garps internal fight as to betray the marines to save his grandson or leave him as is because he chose to become a pirate knowing the consequences. Conquerors haki from luffy yes please)

2. Wano (Gear 5 + the whole plot of wano. Hiyori and Yamato<3 KidLawLu alliance. Joyboy mentions. Yamato and ace?!! Ace and O-Tama then luffy practically adopting otama and momo. Zoro and Toko i’m gna cry this is literally my second fav arc i cant. even more lore drops the story of oden and the roger pirates and the whitebeard pirates)

3. Water 7 + Enies Lobby (Franky and the story behind the sea train and Tom. The fight for robin and the story of Ohara)

4. Sabaody Archipelago (First appearances with the supernovas and the celestial dragons getting their shit rocked)

5. Alabasta (I just connected with the whole middle eastern vibe of it all and crocodile and GREASY ACE?! Bon clay the goat)

6. Skypeia (The lore drops in this omg and the bell? i love)

7. Return to Sabaody Archipelago (Funniest arc i loved the fake straw hats and luffy flexing his haki against the pacifistas and everyone’s new appearances <3)

8. Dressrosa + Zou (Voice of all things with Luffy and Momonosuke and RAIZO IS SAFE oh my lord and then dressrosa as a whole, laws backstory and corasan and doffy and the appearance of sabo and then the whole straw hat grand fleet apart from the fighting bc it dragged and trebol turned me off my life i think this arc could rank higher but idk rn)

9. Punk hazard (Smokers new appearance MEOWWWW and saving the kids and ceaser clown)

10. East Blue saga (Cute and we get to see the dynamics of the crew for the first time)

11. Little Garden + Drum (Little garden was meh for me but dorry and broggy and ussopp bond yes please and choppers story made me ugly cry)

12. Impel Down (Funny but dragged)

13. Amazon Lily (Kind of dragged but i love the scene where luffy covers Sandersonias (?) back bc he knew they didn’t want anyone to see)

14. Jaya (Kind of hate but the appearance of blackbeard scared me straight out)

15. Fishman Island (Poseidon and joyboys apology and again the voice of all things + luffys haki knocking out almost half of his opps i loved. but sanji genuinely pissed me off in this arc like i love him but omg?)

16. Reverie (didn’t know it was a mixed filler arc so it kind of dragged but i loved all of the people luffy saved interacting)

17. Whole cake island (DRAGGRD DRAGGRD THE FIGHT WITH LUFFY AND KATAKURI SURE WAS GOOD BUT IT DOESNT EXCUSE 15 EPISODES OF FIGHTING. Plus big mom pissed me off but sanji backstory made me cry again)

18. Thriller bark (Worst arc i’ve ever watched literally had it as background noise as i went on my phone the only good thing was that NOTHING happened and brook and laboon)

Eyes as deep as the ocean

totally wasnt based on a tiktok trend ahahah

Ever since she met him, there was something she couldn't deny, how beautiful his eyes were. They were so bright and expressive; she never had trouble figuring out how he felt because his eyes talked for themselves. No matter how hard he tried to hide what he truly felt like, she saw the subtle changes in his gaze, like the subtle changes of the ocean. His eyes even had the same depth, full of mysteries waiting to be solved.

When she'd first met him on his ship, promising his downfall, his eyes had an amused expression as he flickered into a flame. When she lunged to attack, there was a glint of fear as he dodged, but it was soon full of admiration of her power; he knew she'd be a powerful adversary. When she struggled to stay afloat in the choppy waters, she saw something new, something like recognition, but as he turned away, she didn't catch his words.

From then onwards, every time they bumped into each other, she'd see a new side to him, all visible through his eyes. It was sometimes happiness, pure excitement in seeing her; other times, it was annoyance that she was interrupting his meal. It had soon become a small game where she'd track his expressions, guessing how he was feeling. Of course, she had no way of knowing whether she was correct, but it was fun nonetheless.

There were times she'd catch him staring at her, an unreadable look on his face, and it annoyed her that she didn't know what he was thinking. He always looked away when she caught him, and it made her all the more curious about him. She'd asked a friend what it meant if a man kept staring at her and then looked away and if it meant he wanted to fight her. Her friend simply laughed and said sometimes it was hard to forget that she was barely an adult and never really had the time to experience much about being a child. In the end, she was none the wiser of Fire Fist's strange tendencies.

Obviously, that wasn't the reason why she chased him; that was because he was a pirate that deserved to be arrested. Absolutely no other reason. So why was she up at night thinking about him? When she saw a twinge of darkness in his eyes, why was she worried? She found herself constantly thinking about him, that stupid pirate and his stupid hat.

She remembered the time his gaze towards her had suddenly changed. It was after she'd jumped into a lake to save him. When she'd pumped the water out his lungs, and he coughed up the rest, he had stared at her with a whole new expression.

'Why,' his voice was croaky, surely his chest was burning, 'why did you save me?'

'I want to arrest you, I can't do that if you're dead,' she'd answered, tucking a strand of wet hair behind her ear. He watched her hands as they fell back onto her lap before looking back at her. He couldn't quite comprehend why she put herself in danger trying to save him, he who had done nothing to earn her respect.

They parted ways after that; Ace confused about his new feelings for her. The next few times they fought, she found him staring at her more often. 

~ ♡ ~

Ace then stopped staring at her after she'd taken her shirt off, and they made eye contact. His head had turned so fast she was worried he'd break his neck. 

They were trapped in a cave together whilst the rain poured torrentially outside. Isuka had gotten soaked in their attempt to find shelter and desperately wanted to be warm and dry. So she rid herself of her coat and shirt, trying to dry them by the fire.

He held his hand out toward her, and she looked up at him. He still wasn't looking at her, so she looked at what he was holding in his hand. It was his shirt.

'Wear it so you don't get cold,' she was startled by his voice; this was the first he had spoken since they entered the cave. He'd silently gathered wood and started the fire, his hat low over his eyes so she couldn't tell what he was thinking.

She accepted the shirt, suddenly aware of how exposed she was in just her bra and shorts, 'thank you.' She put it on; it was warmer than she thought it would be. She did the buttons up, leaving the top two undone. It smelt almost familiar; maybe they fought way too often. 

They continued to sit in silence; they had never had a conversation apart from the insults and comments they made as they fought each other. She stared into the fire: it had been a long time since she'd been this close to an open flame as big as this. It made her sort of nervous, so she sat a small distance away, still grateful for the warmth.

Ace kept stealing glances at her, her small frame in his shirt. The yellow suited her well, the way it hung loosely off her shoulders. Seeing her like that made his feelings clear; he wanted to see her like that more often. This was a feeling she'd never seen in his eyes before; the warmth in his gaze confused her even more. Why was he so at ease with her? So Isuka pretended not to notice the way Ace was glancing at her; he would just stare and smile to himself. 

She hadn't really seen him without his shirt before; he always had it on. It was weird to see him without it, but for some reason, she simply couldn't take her eyes off of him, having to force herself to look away so he wouldn't notice.

There was nothing they could really do, so Ace decided to make himself comfortable and sleep through the storm; hopefully, the skies would clear by the morning. Isuka, on the other hand, was still uneasy around the fire and decided to stay awake. When Ace woke up, the skies had cleared, and he could hear the birds chirping outside. Isuka was gone, his shirt was folded up neatly next to him, and her stuff was gone. The fire must have eventually died as he wasn't keeping it going. 

~ ♡ ~

The next time he saw her was Sabaody, her dedicated self chasing him even while she was on holiday. When they ended up locked together in the Ferris wheel, he could feel her gaze burn into the side of his head, but he kept looking outside. Hearing her story, he cursed fate; how could he fall for her as a pirate who could turn into fire?

When Isuka proposed that he leave the pirate life and join him as a marine, she noticed the change in his eyes. There was a small darkness she'd seen before, and she already knew his answer, so when he jumped out of the capsule, she simply closed the door and sat back down, now facing a terrified Deuce.

Once they reached the bottom, she let him go too. Those on the side of justice shouldn't take hostages.

Two days later, she found out the truth about her life, about the morals she'd lived on for the past decade. She wanted to cry, to let it all out, but she stayed silent, tears streaming down her face as she had a hand on her mouth. She could dimly hear the ongoing battle. She didn't remember when her silent cries had become sobs, but Deuce had mentioned clearly hearing her as he faced Draw. Both Ace and Deuce had fought for their lives as she sat there uselessly, unable to think, let alone stand up.

When she no longer heard the sound of punches being exchanged, she looked up; Ace was offering her a hand. Just when she thought she couldn't laugh again, this man says the most outrageous things. During the fight, there was darkness in his eyes, especially when Draw blamed him for the children being put in danger, but now they were lighter, hopeful she'd take his hand. So she did.

She held on tight as they ran through the back alleys towards the shore, where a fleet of marine ships was making their way towards them. She caught sight of the Spadille as they neared the coast. His crew were shouting at him, asking him to get on, and it suddenly hit her; she couldn't join them; she couldn't do that to them. Ace was kind enough to look past their differences, but she felt bad for his crew. To them, she'd always be a marine, and she knew she wouldn't be able to look past it either. So when he leapt, she didn't; her shaky legs stayed planted on the ground. She almost didn't have the heart to explain when he shouted for her. He deserved all the love in the world.

'Don't die out there, Ace. Thank you,' she smiled as best she could, but she could tell her eyes didn't carry the message. The tears in her eyes clouded her sight, and she couldn't tell what Ace looked like as he disappeared on the horizon. She hoped his eyes were still bright as he looked to the future.

Only Deuce saw the longing in his eyes and the darkness that clouded them. He was always scared he didn't deserve to be loved, Deuce knew this not to be true, but Ace had a pain that couldn't be healed by medicine.

~ ♡ ~

It had been two years since she'd last seen him, he was now a commander in Whitebeard's crew, and she was now a captain. She hoped she'd bump into him in better conditions than this, but escorting him from his cell was not how she imagined their reunion would look like. She'd seen his pictures, how he'd grown, the man he'd become, but now as she held his arm to lead him, he was barely himself.

He refused to make eye contact, but she could see the lifelessness in his eyes; he'd accepted his death, and to her, it seemed almost impossible. The boy she met wouldn't accept his fate so easily.

She walked with him to the ship, letting the other marines take him from there, unable to chain him to his temporary prison. As she went downstairs, he caught her eyes, and she turned away, praying something would happen and he'd be safe.

The war itself was a horrible memory she never wished to go through again; the inhumane killing sanctioned by the higher-ups made her sick. She was forced to choose sides halfway through the battle, unable to hover between the two sides, and she wanted to rescue Ace. She used the distractions caused by Straw Hat Luffy to her advantage; Ace's eyes were full of fear as he watched his family fight for him. Isuka finally understood why he was ready to die; he was willing to die for those he loved, the stupid fool.

In the end, she could barely remember how they'd actually saved him, he was badly injured, like his brother, but they were safe. She was on the Heart Pirates' submarine, sitting by his bedside, watching him breathe. His eyes were shut, but if they were open, she thought they'd be empty. His captain and father had fought to the death to ensure his safety, and she knew Ace would blame himself.

~ ♡ ~

The next two years were hard. Maintaining his health, both physically and mentally, proved to be a task. When he wasn't being restrained because of his reckless tendencies, he trained with his brother, wanting to get stronger to go after Blackbeard again. She constantly had to tell him not to overwork himself when he was still recovering, but Isuka knew she couldn't stop him. There was a fire in his eyes no one could distinguish.

The one thing she could count on was that Ace returned to her side every night. Now that she was no longer a marine, considering she'd betrayed them to save him, she stayed with him. She planned to continue to stay by his side for as long as she could. The remaining Whitebeard pirates had all journeyed to see him at least once, the Spades had come to stay, and Marco had stayed for extended periods of time to help medically.

She looked up from her book as he entered her room; it was basically his as well, with how much time he spent in it. He smiled at her, and she made space for him next to her on the bed. He took it as an invitation and laid down next to her. They stayed in a comfortable silence until Ace moved her arm to allow him to crawl onto her, and she simply adjusted her position to make it more comfortable for the both of them. He was heavy as his weight pressed her down, but she found herself not minding; it meant that she knew he was there.

'Thank you,' he whispered as he buried his face into her neck; she carefully stroked his hair. He thanked her a lot recently, she wanted to tell him he didn't need to, but he won't stop.

'It's okay,' she whispered back as he fell asleep in her embrace. 

Ace also enjoyed watching her work; whenever she had her books open to conduct research on various things, he sat next to her. She ignored his presence most of the time, especially since he usually fell asleep, but sometimes he stared at her.

'Stop looking at me with those eyes,' she pleaded, his gaze clinging to her. It was hard to concentrate when he looked at her like that.

'What eyes,' he asked innocently as she turned to face him. He looked at her with such pure adoration she didn't need to search his eyes to see what he was feeling. He'd made it clear that he loved her when he'd woken up and seen her passed out by his side, but in no way did he pressure her to return his feelings, just another thing she loved about him.

She leant over and placed a kiss on his lips, and he sighed contently; what an attention-seeking cat. He was resembling Kotatsu and his clingy behaviour more and more every day. But she still loved him more and more. 

Now that she could clearly see his eyes, she didn't need to play guessing games; she didn't have to think about it; all she had to do was love him like he loved her for as long as time allowed her to.

~ ♡ ~

Shichibukai Ace AU

Doflamingo to Ace : Excuse me? Who made you the boss of the group?

Kuma : You did.

Crocodile : It was you.

Mihawk : You said "Ace should be boss."

Hancock : And then you said "let's vote" and it was unanimous.

Jinbe : And then you made him this little plaque that said "Boss of Us" And you put little sparkles on it.

Doflamingo : Valid points, all.

Ace with his "Boss of Us" plaque : "Join the shichibukai it will be good," they were saying.

He was intriguing. That was a word you could describe Trafalgar Law as. With his expression hidden behind that hat and his seemingly elaborate plans, there's no question he is.

At first when you had met him in the bustling groves of the Sabaody Archipelago you wouldnt have guessed he would become an ally.

The crew had split up, exploring the place known to be a stop for both pirates and nobles alike. You had ended up exploring the market for something new to wear, this time with your own money instead of borrowed money from Nami that lead to a perilous amount of interest.

Little did you know that you were as famous as your bounty poster suggested, bumping into crews that not only knew your friends but also you too.

First impressions matter, no matter where you are and who you're dealing with and the first thing you said when your gaze fell on him there was certainly a lasting impression.

The dark circles, the goatee, the large hat and especially the jeans.

The Surgeon of Death

"You look like a backalley doctor."

Not only did he look shocked, but also offended. Mainly because his own crew were hiding their guffaws horribly, seeing the vision of what you meant.

This was before everything had gone haywire and crews were forced to claw their way out of the doors of death from which Admiral Kizaru and the Pacifistas had the keys to.

Now sitting on the chair beside Luffy in the hospital room aboard the Polar Tang, having flashes of the war playing through your mind left you unaware of the footsteps approaching. The so called "Surgeon of death" had become part of your usual routine, mainly checking on your wounds and informing you on your captain's condition.

You watched as he checked Luffy's vitals. You never left your friend's side since that day, not trusting anyone. Afterall, he was the only one in the crew who's state of being you were sure of.

"Are you going to keep glaring at me the whole time?" His voice broke through your thoughts as you absentmindedly watched him take out bandages he would use to redress Luffy's wounds

"Hm?"

He rolled up his sleeves, allowing more of those tattoos to be visible as he washed his hands. Your eyes fell on those inked hands that both saved lives as a doctor and the cause of unknown terrors as a pirate.

"You're worried about Strawhat-ya?" He stated, lifting Luffy's body as carefully as he could under your harsh gaze.

"Partly," You began, crossing your arms, " I'm curious. Why?"

Law felt something invisible wrap around his neck as soon as his hands had gone off of your captain. He had heard about one of the strawhats having a mysterious devil fruit. One that didn't need the beholder to even lift a finger.

He smirked, feeling your power pressing harder on his neck and allowing little air to flow through his body,"Why?"

Somehow he kept a somewhat confused expression despite the dire consequences of your actions.

"I'm not playing around, Trafalgar."

"I know you're not."

He had a chance to just throw you and Luffy out into sea. You were both anchors afterall. Turn you in for your bounties. Tortured us for treasure. Cut your organs up for whatever sick operations landed him the title he held.

So many questions in your vigilant mind .

"I felt like it," Law said, not being fully honest but also not lying. His eyes didn't leave your face, gauging out your reaction.

"Sounds like something a backalley doctor would say." You let go of him, watching as he took deep breaths to control the panic that he has hidden behind his calm facade.

"DINNERS READY!" a yell from somewhere aboard the ship had called out.

"Sorry for that." You said, no longer looking at him and instead focusing on your unconscious captain. Your fingers had intertwined with his, feeling his pulse at the wrist with your fingers to remind you that he was still alive, even after all the death and destruction of the war

Law hummed in thought, hands lingering on his neck before letting go of the initial threat to his life." I'll have dinner sent to you."

He walked out of the room to join his crew, leaving you to your thoughts as you guarded Luffy.

Two things were decided. One. You wouldn't leave your captain's side until he would wake up.

Two. Trafalgar Law found you just as intriguing.

Ace x reader

Just me writing something to clear my heartbreak. Cried enough already.

_________________________________________

In another universe...

Where Blackbeard's plans had failed and Luffy managed to save his dear older brother.

In another universe...

Where Akainu couldn't get his last attack in because you managed to block it from hitting either of your favourite boys.

In another universe...

Where you had a df that could heal any injuries. Even if Akainu had placed a large whole in your best friend's body, you could still do something. Recreate all the missing parts and fit them in like they were never burnt to a crisp.

In another universe...

Where Ace could see that he is loved. That he deserves to live. That he is no curse but a blessing in many of the lives of people he met.

The both of you sat at one of the windows of the Polar Tang. Ace's head on your lap and you ruffling his hair. Death was so close to having it's clutches on him.  Now it was time for him to rest from all the emotions experienced on that battlefields.

Whitebeard was dead. His father figure was left to die standing back at Marineford. His crew retreating with tears threatening to spill. If it hadn't been for Shanks appearing out of nowhere there wasn't a doubt that they would have not left the place in a casket.

Luffy was being treated by Law and his crew, his body having caught up to all the energy hormones, the near death experiences, the amount of of power he had to use to try and save Ace. He gave his all. Even when his crew weren't by his side, he tried.

Your eyes trailed over Ace's peaceful state. You had forced him to wear a shirt. Since he had hung onto life by a thread, his power had already left, leaving him to experience temperatures he wasn't used to before eating the devil fruit.

Luffy still thought his brother was dead unfortunately. Everyone did. They hadn't seen him being picked up and healed along the way.

The sound of his steadied breath was comforting.

"Luffy's stable," Law approached the two of you silently, noting that the one was asleep." His body took on a lot. Needs time to repair itself."

"Thank you, Law." You head leaned against the wall as you looked at him, hands absentmindedly playing with Ace's hair.

"You alright? You look worse for wear." The doctor sat beside you.," I don't think reforming organs and tissues was your specialty." His tired eyes trailed over to the bandaged on your fingers.

"I try my best,"

Once Luffy had awoken, his eyes catching a glimpse of a tall dark haired male with freckles arguing with you over wearing a jacket he couldn't believe it.

"You're gonna catch a cold,"

"No, I won't." Cue the sneeze. He reluctantly wore the jacket. He looked away when he knew your face would have an expression that screamed "I told you so.". His eyes met with his younger brother's instead.

"Ace?"

The boy's eyes couldn't believe what they were seeing but his body immediately ran to his brother, tears starting to fall .

"ACE!!!"

They both collapsed onto the floor as they took in each other's presence. It was a happy sight. One that brought a smile onto your face. If it took your hands bleeding to see this kind of exchange, going past your healing capabilities, then it was worth it.

Soon you were pulled into the hug. Being squashed between the two brothers.

"THANK YOU SO MUCH, Y/N!" Luffy screamed into you face, a waterfall of tears going down his cheeks. He continued to spew a thousand words of thanks while still squashing you in a hug.

Law watched from the side, a small smile on his face. Ace catching him in his peripheral before walking to him to talk about something.

But soon the time for everyone to separate came. Rayleigh taking in Luffy to undergo training. Soon you were left alone with your friend, watching as his younger brother retreated.

The feel of a larger hand intertwining with yours caught your attention. Eyes going up to the taller fellow beside you. His face had relieved itself from his carefree smile and had a thoughtful frown.

"You alright?"

No answer. Before you could ask again you were carefully enveloped into a hug. You're head against his chest. A small peck was placed on your forehead.

"Thank you."

Out of context Law and Ace

I’m pretending he isn’t dead

My little meow meows

PAIN + some art

Marineford has me MESSED UP. I took a month's break from one piece then come back to be punched in the gut with this. Not to mention I had just come back from watching Madoka for the second time... it's so much more depressing on rewatch.

I have cute ASL trio stuff coming. Hopefully, nothing horribly traumatic happens to them... I really like Sabo. I hope the little blonde boy will be okay

Marineford is great and all, but it’s missing someone.

I woke up at 2 to draw this be nice to me

ONE PIECE WANO SPOILERS EP 1038

Otama, a nobody little kid told to stay at home while the adults fight the war, barging in with nothing but her guts and unmistakable charisma and single handedly turning the tide of the entire war is such a good parallel to Luffy at Marineford.

This arc is full of such parallels to pre time skip arcs. I’ll probably yap about it fully once I’m actually done with the arc but it’s got me wanting to rewatch the last 1000 episodes.

There is something about Garp and Ace's relationship that is so tragically poetic.

(I need to write a fanfic about this)

The entire events of Marineford have such an incredible double meaning it makes me want to think about it for hours on end.

If you know any kind of work that ressembles this, PLEASE PLEASE TELL ME IM ON MY KNEES

Asexual people opening their tag and seeing that fuck ass character again.

Akainu: We're going to kill every last pirate here!

Koby: PLEASE STOP! THERE'LL BE TOO MANY CASUALTIES!

Borsalino:

No one is more annoying than you tagging your hate. Seeing how you guys act, only Shuggy fans will get my support and other Shanks ships get nothing but my hate. Shuggy fans are truly the only tolerable Shanks shippers. The rest of you need to get your act together or find something else to do because you don’t even understand the story or the characters.

I literally wrote this whole thing about the problems with Shuggy but i got distracted and accidentally closed the app so im just gonna say if you really think that I'm not understanding the point or the story or the characters then you need to reread/rewatch one piece because everything Oda has put out has not been shy or subtle in showing that Buggy is toxic. Buggy stomped and stabbed Luffy's treasure, tried killing him multiple times, then in impel down Luffy forgave and struck a deal with him and Buggy tried to fuck him over again despite acknowledging himself through inner dialogue that Luffy is incredibly trusting and only a monster would betray him, and then shamelessly trying to betray him.

The whole point of his character in Impel down/Marineford is that Buggy is horrible and his karma is that he's forced to help in order to save his own ass since at every corner he's ready to betray, just like Shanks and the Roger Pirates. Shanks tried to be brotherly friends, Buggy felt inferior so he constantly picked fights, The Roger pirates raise Buggy with love, Buggy tries to steal a treasure map and devil fruit so that he can sell the fruit off and go find the treasure for himself and blames Shanks despite the reason Shanks approaches him is to check on Buggy, but Buggy still blamed Shanks despite it being his choice to be an idiot and stuff the fruit in his mouth to hide it while letting go of the map. When the Roger crew disbanded and Roger died Buggy made it about him. He said he was willing to give up "everything" for Shanks or whatever and then Shanks betrayed him and thats the whole reason why Shuggy lovers coddle Buggy and demonize Shanks but Shanks also sacrificed everything basically. He stayed behind for Buggy when Buggy was sick and missed the last of the adventures with his father figure and being able to go to the last island. Shanks sacrifices everything. Buggy was mean to Shanks even before the "betrayal" which was just Shanks saying he didn't want to go for the One Piece.

Then he blames everything on Shanks and leaves Shanks at his most vulnerable time since as the story goes on we're learning more and more that clearly something traumatizing and burdening happened to Shanks that made him give up the One Piece at that time. It was his dream too. He was always so bright and happy and hopeful and he always tried his best yet Buggy was the one who actually betrayed Shanks, running away like a coward because of his inferiority complex when Shanks was doing everything in his power to lift Buggy up. But Buggy doesn't want to be lifted up. No matter how much Shanks tried Buggy always would rather drag Shanks down with him. Now Shanks is alone, he had to go through everything alone and clearly is not okay mentally because of it from his random bouts of melacholy and burden. He longs for some sort of companion but has nothing because Buggy left and he didn't give chase, sacrificing his want for a friend in order to let Buggy leave since Shanks felt that Buggy really must hate him and would be happier leaving, he sacrificed his dominant arm to save Luffy, severely weakening himself, gave what he had left of Roger to Luffy in order to cheer the boy up, another sacrifice. Then you'd think "oh he still has his daughter" and you'd be right, he took care of her when he found her in the chest, sacrificing his youth to take care of a baby on the ship, but he had to leave her. He made himself look like the bad guy to leave her, losing the last bit of compassion in his life.

He took it hard too, Oda drew in a little sbs thing im pretty sure of Shanks despairing over it. Then, canonically, Luffy is Shanks's last hope, for everything. Shanks doesn't have a companion, no little daughter to cheer him up, no lover because he likely doesn't want to bring them into what he has on his shoulders, nothing. Yet Buggy tried to kill that hope, multiple times. And only helped Shanks with Luffy when Shanks had to trick him into it (oh the horror what a devil that redhead/s). Shanks is just a broken Luffy, he was bright and sunny and had hopes but from likely learning about the prophecy or whatever that he was not going to be JoyBoy, so he gave up his dream for the world. All of this. All of these terrible things Shanks has gone through for everyone and everything and how Buggy tries to destroy every single one of it and somehow Shuggy shipper STILL manage to coddle Buggy and treat him like some cute tsundere that was wronged by Shanks and Shanks is the one that needs to chase after Buggy because evil Shanks betrayed him. That Shanks is the stupid longing ex husband that needs his wife back and that he messrd up when Buggy is a terrible friend at the VERY best and an abusive one at worst. That is why i "hate" Shuggy. I don't tag my hate post as Shuggy because i'm some sort of ragebaiter or slanderer trying to take away the happiness that is Shuggy its because I need Shuggy people to realize that the way they portray the ship is so utterly unfair to Shanks. The story goes on and on and you find out more and more about how Shanks sacrificed so much yet you're telling ME that i "don't even understand the story and characters" like the whole dynamic of Buggy isn't that he's horrible and its funny to see him get karma while somehow surviving and that Shanks's role is to be the sacrificial lamb to everything while having no one to take atleast some of the burden off.

Shuggy people and the way they portray it is toxic. Its not just they treat Shanks like the longing ex husband for the comedy, every artwork and fic and story i've seen its always Buggy needing to be apologized to and they're serious in that being the good and what should happen option and not, i don't know, the literal bad guy abusive person being the one to go "oh shit i need to change my ways and I have to apologize and help the friend I abandoned". No its always just adding more shit to Shanks's already about to break apart plate. It's maddening seeing it. It has so much potential to be an amazing ship that can explore the relationship between someone that used to be abusive learning that they arent the victim and atoning while finding love in eachother's comfort but instead its just victim blaming 101. Shanks could end up fucking dying horribly in One Piece while Buggy watches and goes "serves you right" and somehow Shuggy lovers would go "oh nonono its actually just him being a cute tsundere and look he feels bad deep inside so its all forgived and Shanks just dies ig idk anyway poor Buggy." There is so much wrong with the ship and how its treated that all that shit about shuggy haters trying to debunk it using some shitty half assed excuse like its "emotional incest" when theres so many other problems is if i looked at a history book and was like "Yeah the colonizers of the America were definitely wrong because their wigs were weird" like thats completely insignificant! Shuggy and the way its treated as if Buggy is the wronged one and always the loved and longed after while he has his poor hurt heart closed off from years of trauma like abandoning his friend and pillaging and killing innocent civilians while using their wealth to flaunt and pretend like he's big and strong.

Shuggy should not be a fix it via victim blaming Shanks and treating him like some dumb dog that loves Buggy so much it should be using the fact that Buggy has an inferiority complex and that he longs to be in the spotlight that he slowly learns that theres a reason why he's at the bottom. That is my issue. I'm not ignoring the story i am looking st the story with everything i possibly can because I even used to be kinda alrighy with Shuggy. It is literally now that we are learning more about Shanks and that im rereading One piece and remembering how horrible Buggy is that I'm realizing how horribly its treated. I mean look I started this off that I would try and summarize it but its so hard to summarize when theres so much wrong. I'm okay with shipping, i really am, but the ship is toxic, and the "fluffy" stuff is even toxic because its just making Shanks's misery worse. I need yall to realize that. This is not mindless hate.

got to marineford in the manga

Watching marineford rn

ace is such a beautiful character. growing up hearing the world hate his father & hearing how they would harm gol d. roger’s child yet never letting it tear him down makes ace so resilient. he grew up with so much rage & resentment but because of sabo and luffy, he understood what it felt like to have people love you no matter what. all his life, he was wanting to find out if he was worthy of being born. he wanted to become a pirate so he can become something and make a name for himself. despite his self hatred, ace found his way to the whitebeard pirates who made him feel welcomed.

even though ace felt hated by the world, his ability to love was so strong. it takes so much strength to be kind & to love so deeply when all you know is hatred. yet, ace was able to become a captain a few months after sailing the seas. he became a commander with loyal followers. everywhere ace went, there were people who cared about him. ace grew up to be an amazing person who can love & be loved in returned.

in his final moments, ace protects luffy. his little brother, the one who was there with him in his youth, the one person who truly knows ace. even in death, ace chooses to act with love. he was born into the world hated but he died surrounded by people who love him so much. ace was finally able to see his life was worth something. rather than being angry, ace chooses to thank luffy & his crew for loving him. it’s a huge testament to his growth to be full of gratitude in his last moments rather than rage like he once was as a child. it destroyed me watching ace die. he deserved so much more. he deserved to live, to find himself, to grow stronger, to love more.

his character is truly heartbreaking but so beautiful. i will always love ace & miss him so much. <3