I wanted to put this out before the start of July, but I was too slow :( 

I'm almost done with my exams, and you know what that means - summer break! As promised, I will update more often these upcoming months. I can't wait to finally be able to focus more on this! 

Prepare yourselves. ANGST incoming, but also a bit of fluff?

×

The strong, almost choking sensation in your gut told you that upon your calm waters, yet another powerful, dark storm rippled and took over completely, after years of settling it. It was no surprise to you whatsoever. It always started with him, and it turns out, it always ends with him, no matter what you do.

Whether it was family or death, his choice never seemed to be you. His pride was too big for his heart to carry, much like the idiocy was too much for his mind.

To say you already planned his final death a hundred times already was an understatement. The dark aura surrounding you managed to act like a shield. People were too afraid to approach you, much less to attack you.

If it weren't for the giant birdcage surrounding the island, thanks to your immeasurable anger, you would've already forgotten about the whole ordeal with Doflamingo.

"Look! It's that (Name) chick!"

"Two hundred million berries for her?"

"H-Hey, I kinda don't want to approach her..."

"Yeah, I'm getting a bad vibe from her too."

"Does he think of me as some sort of joke?!" You finally exploded, making the group of men, who were surrounding you from a distance jump a little. Their grip on weapons tightened, sensing nothing but danger coming their way.

"W-What?" A man dared to reply, not even realizing that the woman standing a few feet away from them still didn't notice their presence - or rather, chose to ignore them.

"I mean - think about it! I thought he was dead for two years and then he just pops out of nowhere like a weed in the garden, only to leave again? Wow, I just had to fall in love with the most insensitive piece of sh-"

"Miss, are you ok?" Another spoke, suddenly feeling a chill in the air, realizing instantaneously that it came from you.

Finally, your eyes met with the group of bounty hunters. Anger surged once more, better than ever. Taking a deep breath, you looked at the sky.

"Ah... It's a good day for killing someone."

"Wh - What?!"

"I'm currently debating a divorce - wait, haha! We're not even married yet!" You began to laugh. "I guess, it makes things easier." You slightly nodded.

"Uh, I think we should look for another bounty..." One of the men said, slowly retreating. The others agreed immediately, following right after him. But before either of them could take another step, you held your hand up.

"Hold it, right there." You said holding your hand up. Their feet stopped halfway through the step and slowly turned their heads around with a gulp. Your eyes were hidden by an ominous shadow.

"Y-You want to fight us?" One of them said 'confidently', holding his weapon towards you. Unfortunately for him, nothing about him emitted confidence - from his cowardly posture to his trembling body. His friends weren't any better.

"Trust me, if I wanted to, all of you would've probably been dead by now. " You laughed lightly. On the other hand, the men slightly shivered as if they heard Death itself knocking at their door. Despite having the sweetest smile on your face, your words were anything but sweet. "You little gang didn't happen to run across Sabo by any chance?"

"Who?" One guy scratched his head, confused, trying to remember where he heard that familiar name.

"Oh, the no. 2 of the Revolutionary Army!" One of them remembered, making the rest let out a long "ohh" as they grinned at him. But their smiles didn't last for long as they remembered you still being in front of them waiting for an answer.

"Uh, n-no." They quickly answered. It was obvious that it was not what you wanted to hear so they quickly corrected their words. "But we can help you find him!" They immediately added.

You smiled brightly at them but the ominous aura around you remained untouched.

"Good." You replied in a sweet tone - except nothing about it was sweet. The men shivered as they scattered away looking for the other man in question.

They felt sorry for this Sabo. Deep down, they hoped to find him before you did - not to capture him but to warn him of your wrath.

×

"Unfortunately, I cannot allow you to go any further." Sabo said, leaning against the pipe he uses as a weapon.

The fire surrounded the area, blocking the access to the Maries to move any further. This not only confused but also angered a certain Marine Admiral.

"Oh? Is it the Revolutionaries' job to provide support to pirates?" Fujitora said taking out his sword.

The flames around began to shrink, allowing more visibility for the others around but still being threatening enough not to take a step further. The heat emitted from them was almost suffocating.

"Naturally! As part of the Revolutionaries, it is my job to make sure you don't pass. Ah - my mistake! It's my job as a brother." Sabo said smugly.

"Oh? And who's brother might you be?" Fujitoro curiously asked, almost in a mocking way. He doesn't like chit-chatting with criminals, especially when there are bigger guns to concern himself with.

But it's not every day you get to learn information about the private lives of the Revolutionaries.

From the large flame, another figure slowly made its way to the fight. It was not distinguishable to the others from that distance, but somehow they all realized in an instant exactly who was coming their way.

"Mine, Luffy's. The three of us are all brothers." Ace said, shocking every marine and person who might still be around.

Everyone recognized in a heartbeat. And how could they not? Two years ago, his execution was broadcasted everywhere around the world. Not only that, some navy present here fought in that very war.

"N-No way!"

"But how?!"

Everyone began to mutter, all stunned. After all, it is not every day someone who died on camera, in front of their very eyes comes back to life.

After two years of being presumed dead, you'd think you would lose a bunch of fans. Or so Ace thought. Turns out everyone remembered him very clearly, and not only that but somehow he was even more popular than before.

Sabo couldn't help but facepalm as his brother stood by his side.

"I told you not to get involved!" He couldn't help but yell.

"Huh?! And I told you I'm gonna fight anyways!" Ace yelled back.

"It seems Sakazuki wasn't just paranoid after all." Fajitora said, making the brothers pause and turn their attention back at him.

At that name, Ace couldn't help but cringe.

They weren't exactly on good terms, you see. The last time they spoke, he ended up burning his magma fist through Ace's chest, not before trying to assassin Luffy and all his other friends. After that whole ordeal, Ace was in a coma and recovering for years.

To make things even awkward, he was also his girlfriend's father.

Yikes!

"Akainu, huh? What, did he start getting haunted by my ghost or something?" Ace asked chuckling a little. "Sorry to disappoint, but I'm very much alive."

"So it seems. So that woman did revive you. What a powerful devil fruit." Fujitora massaged his beard.

Ace felt his smile fade a little.

Akainu knew too much already. That's when he remembered what you told him back on that hallway in the castle. That woman who saved him was your mother. No wonder Akainu recognized her and her powers.

Akainu wasn't paranoid. He knew the truth the entire time.

"So you know my entire comeback story already? Bummer. I wanted to waste some time telling you all about it. What a shame." He said, almost sounding disappointed there for a second. The flames around however grew in size as all three men prepared for battle.

Fujitora picked up his sword, Sabo began enhancing his weapon with haki while Ace cracked his knuckles, a smirk slowly forming onto his face.

The real fight was about to begin...

...until...

"See? This is him, right? We can leave now, right?" The man asked, pointing his trembling finger at Sabo.

"Good job, guys. You get to live today. At least you do. I'm not sure about those two yet."

They didn't wait any minute longer to run out of there. Not only the fire around almost burned them to crisps but also the Navy was nearby. And to top it off, you were beginning to get to the peak of anger as you saw just who exactly Ace was up against.

The ominous feeling in his gut returned, and Ace couldn't help but feel a shiver down his spine.

You squinted your eyes as you looked at the scene further away. The fire burned all around the beautiful buildings, which once were the home of beautiful families, with beautiful happy lives.

That beautiful family could've been you two, except your significant other, got on your last nerve, so now you were on your way to murder him.

You decided to wait.

You noticed the fight going on from a distance. It would kinda awkward to barge into the fight only to bring your failed love life into it. You decided to at least give him that decency.

You looked up at the sky that only this morning used to be clear and most importantly cage-less. This morning you also had a different plan in life, but that quickly changed when you reunited with Ace.

You wanted to disappear. That's why you came here. To finally meet up with Luffy and just vanish afterwards with your son. Somewhere no one could recognize you, somewhere you two would be safe.

But knowing Ace, you doubt that he will ever want the same thing as you.

Him walking away from you earlier only confirmed that.

Ace isn't the one to settle. Maybe a lover but not to a place. And you could never ask him such a thing either. At the end of the day, even if he was the biggest idiot you've ever met, he was your idiot. You loved him. You wanted him to be happy.

And right now, you were doubting that you and your son could ever make him as happy as he was right now on that battlefield.

He was a pirate, after all, not a stay-at-home dad.

Perhaps this wasn't the right time or place to talk about this, but you needed to have that conversation right now. Before he meets Kou. Before him or you set different expectations.

He was dead for years after all. Him coming back changed nothing and everything at the same time.

The fight between Pica and Zoro declared a winner, and now the Navy was slowly starting to back away from the fight.

The fire around went out as Ace probably put it out to conserve his energy.

He was fighting an admiral after all. You couldn't help but think of the last time he faced one.

The fire around grew once more, and suddenly the fight was concealed between the big red flames. Even from the top of the building, you couldn't get a good glace at what exactly was going on.

It almost looked like... Ace was concealing the fight from an outsider's view?

×

"We Navy and Doflamingo are out of place. The Navy will never be a hero in this country."

The secret conversation between that admiral earlier shined some light onto Ace's perspective. He never politically looked at things. He never tried to find a deeper meaning in the things he does.

How many people did he help from just beating up the bad guys? And just how many people had to suffer because of his actions?

He couldn't help but empathize with the Navy. They were supposed to be the good guys here, and yet...

"Don't let their words move you too much." Sabo chuckled, seeing the troubled look on Ace's face. "They're in this situation because of their own stupid rules."

"Yeah, I know."

But in his mind, Fujitora's words were kept on repeat.

"By the end of the day, one way or another, he will learn that you are alive. And the same thing goes for her."

"Seems like Pica was taken care of. By their speed, I say we're gonna wrap everything up in like an hour or so." Sabo stretched his arms, interrupting Ace's thoughts.

"You've got a whole lot stronger than when we were little. I'm sure you'd beat me in a heartbeat if we'd have a one on one like back in the days." Ace laughed, trying to act as if he wasn't bothered by anything.

"In a heartbeat? Nah. But in one minute? Maybe." Sabo laughed along, only to be pushed jokingly by Ace.

"Glad you're both having fun." A voice said, making the two jump.

"OH - Hi, (Name)!" Sabo waved sheepishly, but inside he was terrified - because how in the world did you find them so quickly? Here Sabo thought they had the entire day at their disposal until they had to inevitably meet their doom. He might have miscalculated.

Ace remained quiet. Nor did he seem guilty by his actions or surprised by yours. You two just stared at one another, completely still. You were boiling with rage, not because of his calm attitude but because you couldn't read him anymore.

Back then it was easier, he was like an open book. You could always predict his next move, but right now, you weren't sure what was about to happen.

Sabo immediately read the room. He felt the tension.

"I'm gonna call Koala and see if they finished the mission." He said, getting out of there as soon as possible.

After he left, you two had yet said a word to one another. You wanted to lash out at him, but you couldn't. You forgot everything you wanted to say to him anyway.

"You're mad." He stated the obvious. You couldn't help but scoff.

"You think?" You said quietly.

Why? Why does he keep making you feel this powerless? Even with all the power in the world, you would still be stripped from it the moment your eyes met. You hated this feeling but at the same time, you thrived off of it.

He slowly reached for your hand. He held it gently, he knew you were one word away from snapping.

"I'm sorry I went with Sabo without telling you. It was wrong of me to do that."

"That's what you're gonna tell me every time you do whatever you want? 'I'm sorry'? Don't lie to me telling me that you actually take my opinion in consideration. And even if you did, my opinion holds almost no value to you. The same thing happened two years ago. You pushed me away when all I wanted was to come with you after Blackbeard. In the end, you got captured, and I-" You choked up at the end, not being able to finish the sentence. It felt like an open wound that not even time could heal it. You turned your head away as you felt the tears beginning to form.

Sadness and guilt enveloped him as he watched how you were trying to hide your emotions from him. He always wondered if you blamed him for all that happened, but right now things finally became clear for him. 

For so you didn't blame him but you actully blamed yourself.

Your hands were trembling. You hated this - you hated looking so weak in front of him. But when you tried to take your hands out of his grip, he suddenly pulled your entire being onto his chest. He held you so close, it was almost like was sheltering you from your own emotions. 

"You always tried to move mountains for me, (Name). It's not your fault I ended up the way I did. All of that happened because of my own stupidity. No one could ever blame you." 

"But if I would've just stayed - "

"You would've been captured. If there's one thing I will never apologize about, is sending you back to Pops that day. Till this day, I'm so grateful - so grateful you weren't present for that fight." His hands gently cupped your face. His thumbs slowly wiped away the tears that began to escape your eyes. "I would rather die than to see you hurt." 

You began to sob as his words touched your heartstrings. Damn him and that smooth talk of his!

"Don't you dare talk about death so carelessly." You managed so say, earning a little smile from him.

"But it's true." He chuckled, wiping more of the tears that poured down your cheeks. "I love you, (Name). I don't even remember the last time I ever told you this. But I do. I'm endlessly, unconditionally, stupidly in love with you. And if dying means keeping you and Kou safe, I would do it all over again." 

At the mention of Kou, your eyes lit up. 

"You're ok with it? Being a father?" 

Ace couldn't help but shake his head, as he began to laugh out loud. It was as if he heard the wierdest question. 

"I mean, it's a bit late to worry about, isn't it?" He joked, but seeing the seriousness in your eyes, he sighed and pulled you closer into the hug. "To be honest, I always worried about this - being a father. You know better than anyone else how I felt about mine, and you also know how it's like to have parents that aren't there for you. So naturally, I always dismmissed the idea of me ever becoming a father. But the wierdest thing happened when Marco ended up telling me what had happened. When I heard you were not only missing but also pregnant, I was so worried. Not only for you, but also for the baby. I felt so guilty, because I could imagine was how happy we would've been if none of this would've happened. Just the three of us, living with Pops and the others. Maybe even having a little home somewhere. Just us, being happy as a family."

It was as if all your worries went out the window in that instance. Seeing Ace so sincere really moved you. You knew how much he resented his father, so you always wondered how he would take the news. But seeing him happy about it, really managed to lighten up your heart. 

A smile slowly appeared on your face and although Ace couldn't actually see it from having you in a tight hug at the moment, he could instead feel it. Once again, he took your face away from his chest, and slowly brought his lips onto yours. Your heart was beating so fast, not only from all the emotions it had to go through in a couple of minutes, but also thanks to the heartthrob himself, who continuesly managed to prove himself to be better and better everytime you see him. 

"I still hate you." You managed to say inbetween the kisses. 

"I love you too."