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arielxlazarus · 3 years

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I almost forgot about that fanfic appreciation week, but I wanted to at least do something for it! So here's a rec list for some of my favorite fics in the one piece fandom!

This list is not at all exhaustive btw (there's still loads of other fics in the fandom that I love), so please don't feel bad if you weren't included! Also if anyone wants more recommendations from me, you can check out my bookmarks on my ao3!

Who Knows (what could happen) by Chromi

Rating: T

Pairing: Masked Deuce/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: For as long as he could remember, he had wanted to set out to sea as an adventurer. His father, unfortunately, dictated that he was to follow the family tradition and become a doctor instead.

Following a lifetime of hurt and sorrow at the hands of his family, he eventually breaks free and takes to the sea alone - determined to keep it that way. Fate has other ideas in store for him; fate crosses his path with Portgas D. Ace's, a brand new pirate.

And what does he hate more than pirates?

Nothing.

Or: from Sixis to the Moby Dick - the lives of the Spade pirates.

First Time by Chromi

Rating: E

Pairing: Masked Deuce/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: "Because it is Ace, and it will only ever be Ace, that he wants to see like this, and he wants to be responsible for unravelling him down to his core and loving him to his very center."

In which Ace and Deuce go all the way for the first time.

@chromiwrites

Seabound by AnkhPosts

Rating: T

Pairing: Masked Deuce/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Ace is a selkie, making one of his periodic stops on land to catch a breather and get some ridiculously tasty human food, maybe see some sights if there are any. His pelt is safely hidden, he'll stay a day or two at most and be on his way.

Deuce is a mer, alone on the sea and traveling as he pleases for the first time in his life, and while he might not be terribly interested in actually interacting with humans it's hard not to see them as fascinating.

Ace meets Deuce. Deuce meets Ace. Neither knows the other isn't human.

@ankhposts

Death is only the beginning by Chizyk

Rating: T

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: “Ankhreshet?” he whipped his head round at the sound of a raspy voice so fast he almost got whiplash. He could feel his body going completely cold as he saw the mummy’s empty eye sockets staring right at him.

@chizyk

I'm Still Here (part of a series) by theprodigypenguin

Rating: M

Pairing: Masked Deuce/Portgas D. Ace (also Izou/Sabo later in the series)

Summary: "When I do die, don't bother burying me in that empty grave. Put my body in a boat and set me out to sea. Let me sleep eternal on the ocean that my father loved so much; because before everything else in this world, I am a child of the sea, and when I die, I want to return to it. Put me in a boat and set it aflame so I can go down in the same fire I lived."

Forget-Me-Not Fall by theprodigypenguin

Rating: M

Pairing: Izou/Sabo

Summary: “Most of the nobles I’ve met tonight look meticulously put together. They look like they were built to portray a certain image paralleled a hundred times over. People who were copied and pasted. Flawless clothes, flawless faces, flawless makeup, flawless hair.”

“Not me though,” Sabo stated, and Izou hummed.

“It’s comforting.”

“Huh?”

Izou met Sabo’s eye. “Everyone else in this place hides their worst attributes with a mask they modified to fit their faces. They don’t seem to comprehend that those perfect masks only make their worst characteristics more pronounced and defined.” His expression was terribly gentle as his eyes wandered across Sabo’s face. “It’s comforting to be approached by someone not trying to be something else.”

Sabo tilted his head. “How do you know I’m not manipulating you like some common Goa aristocrat?”

Izou smiled. “There are a few reasons.”

@theprodigypenguin

A Light To Guide You Home by TheSkyIsMyHome

Rating: T

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: In a world that despises mutants, Ace lives purely to protect his little brother.

Until the flames inside him find their perfect match and opposite, and he doesn't know what to feel anymore.

The Phoenix's Mate by TheSkyIsMyHome

Rating: E

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Marco is a handsome man. Ace really can't be blamed for being attracted to him. Nobody minds, either.

But Marco isn't always a man. Ace still loves him regardless, and his sexual urges are catching up to that fact.

Marco indulges him, but he might just find himself enjoying it more than he thought he would.

@evvazi

ASL in Red (series) by Kereea

Rating: G-T

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace, Monkey D. Luffy/Trafalgar D. Water Law (both asexual), Koala/Sabo, Akagami no Shanks | Red-Haired Shanks/Benn Beckman, Donquixote "Corazon" Rosinante/Aokiji | Kuzan, Roronoa Zoro/Sanji, and several other minor ones

Summary: In an alternate universe, forces conspired to put Ace, Sabo, and Luffy in the care of the Red Hair pirates as children.

The Grand Line would never know what hit it.

Mates (part of a series) by Deubatty

Rating: E

Pairing: Masked Deuce/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Deuce just wanted to go searching for plants! A nice walk in the woods. Except, he ends up becoming the mate to a very persistent naga

His First Mate The Mermaid (part of a series) by Deubatty

Rating: T

Pairing: Masked Deuce/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Instead of finding another person on Sixis, Ace finds a mermaid

@masked-writer

Being Human by MaiKusakabe

Rating: E (no smut)

Pairing: None (heavy focus on the platonic relationships between Marco, Whitebeard, and the rest of the crew as they form)

Summary: The line that differentiates human from object appears to be clear, but sometimes it blurs to the point where it is impossible to tell where one ends and the other begins.

The Unknown Devil by MaiKusakabe

Rating: E

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Ace hadn’t expected his last week of imprisonment before his execution to be any different from all the years preceding it. Then again, he hadn’t expected to have Marco the Phoenix as a cellmate for that week, or that Marco’s presence would shake his bleak world so much.

Ripple Effect by MaiKusakabe

Rating: E

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: After the incident with Shanks, Garp didn't take Luffy to Dadan's, unaware of how much that would change the life of his other grandson.

@maisstories

To Build a Home by endlessblankpages

Rating: G

Pairing: None (heavy focus on the platonic relationships between the ASL bros and the Whitebeard Pirates)

Summary: The ASL pirates are used to being accused of crimes they didn't commit. But when they're accused of destroying a small village in the New World, it sends them hurtling toward a deadly confrontation with the strongest man in the world, Whitebeard. The results are not what they were expecting.

Persistence & The Impossible (part of a series) by dragonsfall

Rating: T

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: In order to keep himself from losing his job, Ace takes on an impossible story. Get an interview with the ever-elusive Phoenix. Guess he might as well kiss his job goodbye.

Self Discovery (part of a series) by dragonsfall

Rating: E

Pairing: Izou/Sabo (sort of, it's technically masturbation)

Summary: Sabo has been waiting for a day like this for a while but it doesn’t go quite how he planned it.

@clockworkpanic

A Breach of Intention by Depths

Rating: T

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: It was unspoken, but some pirate crews and mermaids had an unspoken solidarity. Pirates throw their enemies overboard, and the merfolk will take care of them.

mer!ace au

@leviathiane

Running on All Sixes by lunarshores

Rating: E

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace, minor Izou/Thatch

Summary: The Whitebeard gang might be one of the most influential in the city, but to Marco they're just his family. Though he sometimes wishes they'd just leave him alone, especially when Izo's playing matchmaker, and Ace is his usual oblivious self. When a brother betrays them, they'll have to fight to show why no one ever messes with their family.

nothing is impossible with you by lunarshores

Rating: T

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Five times Ace and Marco accidentally mixed their flames on accident and one time that was entirely on purpose.

@lunarshores

I Want You to Look at Me by shockandlock

Rating: E

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: One night, Marco is missing from dinner, so Ace decides to bring dinner to him. He's surprised to see Marco wearing glasses and now he can't stop thinking about the way he looks. Now with additional chapter(s) including more miscellaneous MarcoAce PWP!

To My Dear Fire (part of a series) by shockandlock

Rating: T

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Living in the city is a new thing for Ace. After being raised near a cozy coastal mountain town through his childhood, it's definitely a change of pace, but it doesn't help when he loses his new job after an unfortunate encounter with actor Marco Newgate. He just wants to live-- and meet his long time pen pal, Phoenix.

Marco knows that being an actor is hard, so he takes the little things when he can: writing his pen pal (and honestly one of his best friends) Fire Fist, flirting with the cute new waiter at his favorite café-- not that he has a chance after a disaster on social media. But maybe fate really does give him a second chance when Ace shows up at Four Emperor Studios...

@shockandlock

Uncharted Territory by silverwolf_fox

Rating: E

Pairing: Masked Deuce/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: This was by far one of Ace's most ridiculous ideas.

When Deuce keeps getting flustered everytime he tries to dominate Ace, they created an opportunity where he didn't have to be afraid of messing up.

Now he's free to do and try whatever he wants...

...so long as Ace doesn't wake up.

Watching the Sunrise (part of a series) by silverwolf_fox

Rating: T

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Many years have passed since Rouge gave up her life for her son’s...except she didn’t die, but she thinks Ace did. Living her life on Baterilla, she’s mourned each and every day until the morning she receives his bounty poster. She sets off immediately to find him, but finds their meeting isn’t as easy as she’d imagined.

@the-devil-fruit-tree

never shall i forget, how you climbed out of a dream by siojo

Rating: T

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: “Kaido,” Ace smirks, flames burning around his feet as he shifts in preparation for Kaido’s next attack, already trying to decide what he’s going to do in response. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it? You’ve seemed to have been enjoying yourself here.”

“I thought you would be smarter than this, Portgas. You’ve never tried to fight another Yonko before, your bounty won’t matter much when you lose.”

Ace barks a laugh, his teeth bared in a facsimile of a grin, “You must have missed out on the brawl I had with Big Mom after she sent two of her daughters and a son for me to consider marrying. This is a bit more personal than that.”

@wordsdrippinginink

Reborn in Fire by aerle

Rating: M

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Fireman Marco has earned the nickname 'the Phoenix' by saving numerous people from a certain death. After an accident however, he has to relearn to walk and gets a new job as arson inspector at a different fire station. There he gets confronted with a boy from his past, now all grown up and gorgeous.

Three's a Crowd, Four's a Double Date by aerle

Rating: M

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace (main), Izou/Thatch (secondary)

Summary: "We're not dating," Marco said definitively. "That we're sharing a bed tonight is a total coincidence."

@aerle

Universal Dive by EmpressKira

Rating: M

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Ace had been making his way through the city to go to one of his favorite cafes. Well, that was until this hole ripped in the sky and some pirate fell out with the flaming bird guy following. Getting targeted, he is dragged into a different world with pirates and everything defying the reality he is used to. Will he make it home? Will he go back when the time comes?

@empresskira

Blue moon (series) by de_Winter

Rating: T-M

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Urban fantasy AU, werewolf Marco and witch Ace

Red Velvet by de_Winter

Rating: E

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: Ace already knew their routine by heart, just from observing them for a couple of mornings when he had early delivery, and from Izou’s daily long winded—and probably sexually frustrated—rants. Big Blond would come out of the bakery wearing a shirt too tight for him and too thin for the weather as soon as he was done setting up the tables inside the storefront, holding a take out cup and a small box in his big hands. They looked really, pleasantly big from where Ace was standing, and he honestly wished he wasn't standing that far away.

@dee-de-winter

We'll Look Back and Laugh at Ourselves by JuHuaTai

Rating: M

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace, minor Gol D. Roger/Portgas D. Rouge

Summary: Between his new boyfriend and his workaholic boss, Marco felt like he was surrounded by family issues of the father and son dispute variety. Maybe it was just a coincidence.

Or maybe he should've listened to the office gossip more. Maybe then he'd figure it out sooner.

Gratitude of the Phoenix (part of a series) by JuHuaTai

Rating: M

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: [Based on 'The Crane Wife' Folklore]

One day, he saved a bird from freezing to death in a trap. Then, a stranger saved him from suffering the same fate, and a request to stay for one night turned into having someone to fill the void left in the small cottage and in his heart ever since his brothers left.

These two incident doesn’t seem to be related to one another, but they both changed Ace’s life in ways he could never have imagined.

Watashitachi wa Roger kaizoku desu (we still stand proud) by stereden

Rating: T

Pairing: None (heavy focus on Buggy, Shanks, and Crocus)

Summary: The Roger Pirates disappeared after their Captain's death, and were happy enough to let the Marines forget about them.

Until the Marines decide to execute their Captain's son, that is.

@stereden

This Bites! by Xomniac

Rating: M

Pairing: None (heavy focus on a main character oc and the strawhat pirates)

Summary: Sea Kings, sea-sickness, sunburns, a 95% genocidal Navy and more than a million and one other assorted ways to die. It's official: Being inserted into an anime sucks ass... Buuut I guess it could be worse. I mean, look on the bright side: At least I'm sailing with the future king of the pirates.

A Fortune that Never Grows Old by imperialmint

Rating: E

Pairing: Marco the Phoenix/Portgas D. Ace

Summary: It's one thing to get butterflies in your stomach when you seen an attractive person but it's another thing entirely for Marco to want to stomp out a courtship ritual and lay foundations for a nest when he meets the navy's new (hot) secret weapon.

@imperialmint

Most of the authors on this list have many other excellent one piece fics I'd definitely suggest checking out! Enjoy your reading and try to show them all some love if you can!

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yukipri · 4 years

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One Piece Mermaid AU!

Featuring Luffy as a rubber mermaid who can’t swim, and Ace who carries her on his back as they pirate together.

＊Genderbend warning, fem!Luffy

Sliding in last minute for MerMay, bc idk about you, but I need something to mark that May has passed this year...

PLEASE DO NOT REPOST, EDIT, TRANSLATE, OR OTHERWISE USE MY ART. To share, please reblog! Reblogs and comments greatly appreciated!!!

Base headcanons for this AU beneath the cut! ↓ ↓ ↓

Luffy's a mermaid who was raised in Fuusha village, just like in canon. And, just like in canon, despite being a mermaid, she SUCKS at swimming, a fact that Shanks finds absolutely hilarious. She still wants to become a pirate, she still eats her devil fruit and becomes a rubber mer(?), she still gets kidnapped by Higuma (who sees her as an excellent way to rake in cash, given how valuable mermaids are on the slave market), and Shanks still gives her his hat.

As a devil fruit user, Luffy's already atrocious swimming skills are now at zero. She can still breathe under water, but will sink like a stone, her strength sapped by the sea, and if she loses consciousness she'll stop breathing too. Needless to say, she stays out of the water, and the villagers come to accept that sometimes, mermaids just live on land.

Garp still comes back, and is still furious at her wanting to become a pirate (and inwardly, extremely concerned that a bandit tried to catch and sell her), and still takes her to live at Dadan's where she meets Ace.

Ace has no idea what to think of the weird fish-brat who he's now told is gonna be his sibling, and resolutely ignores Luffy. He's inwardly slightly impressed as Luffy continues to follow him through the mountain every day, not even particularly hindered by lack of legs and using a mixture of crawling, squirming, hand-walking, and ricocheting forward with rubber arms to move.

Luffy still meets Sabo the same way as canon, and is still caught by Porchemy, who at first is thrilled because a mer brat! That'll bring in WAY more money than the spare change Ace stole! But in the end, he loses his temper at Luffy's stubbornness and still beats her to a pulp.

Ace and Sabo still rescue Luffy, and they still exchange sake cups and become brothers.

Yes, brothers.

Because at this point, neither Ace nor Sabo nor any of the bandits, nor anyone really on Dawn island save Makino and Garp actually know that Luffy's a girl. Not even Luffy.

The three brothers promise to each other that they'll all leave the island when they turn seventeen, setting out to sea to become pirates (Ace and Sabo are honestly a little concerned, given how often people try to sell Luffy, and how despite aquatic appearances Luffy's vulnerable af in water, but decide to wait and see. They have seven years together, Luffy ten until seventeen, who knows how much stronger their baby brother will get in that time).

Sabo "dies."

Ace and Luffy continue to train, and things don't change until Ace is seventeen, shortly before he sets out to sea.

He's let Luffy crawl into his blanket to sleep with him (partially cold-blooded, Lu gets cold easily when inactive), and Ace realizes that his lil brother's chest feels a bit lumpy.

Concerned, he makes Luffy have it checked out by the bandits, who are shocked to find developing...breasts?

That can't be right...right?

Dadan makes a call to Garp, who snorts and says of COURSE Luffy's a girl, didn't he say granddaughter?

No, he had not, he had only mentioned "grand child."

Everyone is shocked, but none more so than Ace, who really doesn't know what to do with this new information.

(Luffy's not quite sure what a "girl" is, and when she asks Ace, Ace honestly doesn't know how to define "girl" either, so she doesn't get what the big deal is)

Ace realizes he's troubled because he can't remember the number of times he's rescued Luffy from potential traffickers, and the number of times he's heard the lament, "Pity it's not female, it'd be worth quadruple," from the kidnappers before he beats them to a pulp.

He already had doubts about letting Luffy go out to sea alone, three years after he's left. But now knowing that Luffy's a girl, and one of the most sought-after species that traffickers target...he knows the world out there is much bigger than a teeny peaceful East Blue island, and Luffy may not get lucky every time, and may not be strong enough in just three years.

But at the same time, it's not like he can order her to stay here. There's no way Luffy'd listen; the sea calls to her, freedom calls to her, and Ace understands that more than anyone.

Sabo, Ace thinks, what would you do?

The night before he leaves, Ace tells Luffy that there's been a change of plans.

He's still leaving for sea. He's going to get stronger, and work his way towards becoming Pirate King.

BUT, three years later, Luffy will NOT leave Dawn Island alone.

Ace promises that he'll come back, a stronger pirate capable of looking out for his baby brother (because girl or not, they exchanged vows of brotherhood, and that's something that can't be changed).

He refuses to let Luffy be his captain, he's still got his pride, but maybe, maybe if Luffy becomes strong enough, he'll let her be co-Captain.

Luffy is thrilled, because she wanted to be pirates WITH Ace, and grudgingly accepts the compromise, and promises to train and wait for Ace's return.

Ace leaves Dawn island, and makes a name for himself on the Grand Line (he's PISSED when he finds out he's eaten a devil fruit, because now how's he supposed to rescue Lu from drowning when he can't swim himself???).

He even eventually makes it to Whitebeard, and eventually comes to admire the man. Whitebeard invites him to his crew, and Ace honestly replies that a large part of him wants to accept...but he can't. He promised his baby brother that they'll be pirates and co-captains together, and he can't join another pirate crew without Luffy agreeing too. Even so, and he knows it's selfish of him, he wants to call Whitebeard his father.

Whitebeard tells him that Ace is already his son, regardless of where his allegiances lie, and gives him his blessing to return to East Blue to fetch Luffy. Whitebeard laughs that he can't wait to meet the lil brat that Ace speaks so highly of, and for Ace to hurry up and come back to the New World so they can meet.

Ace plans on traveling light, his former crew all choosing to join the Whitebeard pirates except for his first mate, Deuce. Ace loves his crew, but they're also his crew, and knows that he wants to make their crew with Luffy. So he thinks he and Deuce will be a good starting point (You're just bringing me along bc you want someone who can swim on the crew, Deuce accuses).

As they're planning on leaving, Marco lets slip to fellow commander Thatch that he heard that Ace's "little brother" is actually a super cute girl.

The next morning, Thatch shows up too, insisting that he come along, because hey! He's been with the Whitebeards for ages and hasn't been to Paradise in a while, he wants some change! And won't it be nice to have someone as reliable as him along, just until they get back to the New World and reunite with the Whitebeards? Really he has no ulterior motives like wanting to check out Ace's supposedly hyper hot baby brother-sister!

Ace is suspicious, but Thatch is already on board and the other Whitebeards are already waving so he lets it go.

(Shortly after they leave, Thatch discovers a devil fruit. Deuce tells him to sell the damn thing, it'll taste like shit, but Thatch thinks boy wouldn't it be great to be able to woo Ace's hot brother with a really cool devil fruit power. So he eats it, and yeah it tastes like shit, but now he can control Darkness which is sorta badass?)

(Somewhere on the Whitebeard ships, Blackbeard is still waiting for someone to find the darkness devil fruit, and well, it doesn't happen)

Before Ace returns to Dawn Island, part of him still hopes that Luffy looks passably like a guy. Having been to Fishman island, having befriended Jinbe, he knows that while mermen can still be targeted, mermaids are exponentially more vulnerable. He's learned the kinds of clothing that can help conceal tails, and is hoping that there's a slim chance they might be able to be pirates without the world knowing that Lu's a mermaid.

His hopes are shot when Luffy rockets into his arms at the dock, and his face is immediately buried in enormous tits that definitely weren't there three years ago.

Despite Ace's growing concerns (and red face; why does he feel so hot??? It's not his devil fruit...), Ace lets Luffy give Deuce a beating (why me?!) to claim her position as Ace's Co-Captain of the newly established ASL pirates (because if we're pirates together, Sabo has to be with us too!).

Luffy's gotten a lot stronger, but is still utterly ignorant of the outside world and the dangers it holds (such as the drooling Thatch who immediately wins Luffy over with his cooking despite Ace's burning glares). She's reckless and falls into the ocean every damn day, and while Deuce dives in after her and they've discovered her useful ability to talk to fish to ask for help, it still gives Ace heart attacks.

They still pick up more crew members while in East Blue, including Roronoa Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji, a pervy cook who competes daily with Thatch for Luffy's affections through food (Luffy appreciates the food).

At Arlong Park, Luffy encounters fishmen for the first time in her life. Arlong mocks Luffy's choice of friends and family, and invites her to join his crew made of her own kind. Fishmen and mer are the superior race, and Luffy will make a fine wife, Arlong says.

Luffy breaks his nose off, and Nami joins their crew.

Luffy's chosen mode of transportation is on the back of one of her sturdier crew mates, usually Ace, but often Zoro too. She unfortunately hates all the long skirts/robes Ace suggested for her to hide her tail, and so Ace has decided that being as intimidating as possible while carrying his brother glued to his back is the only way to go.

Needless to say, news of the former Spade Pirates Captain + Whitebeard Commander Thatch (are they an extension of the Whitebeards??) establishing the new ASL pirates spreads fast. That, and rumors that there's a beautiful young mermaid on board who can't swim. And despite the strength of the crew and their attempts at vigilance, Luffy's still dumb and gullible, and is kidnapped (and rescued) a dozen times before they're even on the Grand Line.

(after a few times, Luffy's uncharacteristically quiet, and privately asks Ace if they can break up the crew. She's holding Ace back; she not only made him come back to her, but half their adventures just seem to be her crew rescuing her. She's strong enough to defeat enemies, but not save herself. Ace tells her to shut up, and never bring this up again; they're BROTHERS, and he's not going to leave her behind or make her abandon her dreams when she can't accomplish them alone, and that's his choice. Luffy doesn't bring it up again, but works harder than ever to become stronger and earn recognition as co-Captain when the world seems intent on thinking of her as Ace's pet.)

During one of these kidnappings, Luffy's successfully brought all the way to an auction house before her crew can rescue her. An auction house that unbeknownst to them, was under investigation by the Revolutionary Army.

Liberating slaves is an unfortunately common mission for them, and Sabo's doing final sweeps as Koala frees the last of them when he notices a tank stowed away in a corner. He's familiar with these tanks, used to showcase mermaids in the rare occasions one can be caught, and it looks empty but he's still drawn to it for some reason.

It's only when he gets closer that he notices a mermaid crumpled at the bottom of the enclosure. She's completely slumped over, and he's afraid she's already gone, even as something about her screams with familiarity.

He's cracked the tank and has reached in to pull her out, when the wall behind him explodes in flames, revealing a furious Ace who snarls at the strange man with his hands on his baby brother...

...and then Sabo's memories come back.

Something like that???? For an initial HCs dump????

This AU has continued! A LOT! Check out the comics, illustrations, and text stories for this AU under the Mermaid AU section of my One Piece Masterpost!

As always, REBLOGS, tags, asks, and comments greatly appreciated!

Advance posts for this AU and more are on my Patreon! (Patreon(.)com/YukiPri)

#One Piece #MerMay #AceLu #Monkey D. Luffy #One Piece Mermaid AU #Portgas D. Ace #genderbend #YukiPri art #text headcanons #fem!Luffy #Honestly not a CLUE if this is the kind of AU that would interest people ^ ^;#Started on a whim and trying to keep my investment on it light #I have more posts planned for Patreon but idk if they'll be going public #it really depends on response so please let me know if this interests you!#I've been less invested in posting publicly recently and am trying to get that back #but i also know people don't engage in content anymore so...we'll see!!

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tooweirdforyou · 3 years

Text

It’s Fate » Captain Koby

event request for » my sister

pairing : Marine Captain Koby x Fem! Reader

prompt : #1 [ Red String of Fate ]

Trope? / Specifics? : fem! Reader.

note : I did the editing myself on the photo. Yes I know it’s not good.

Summary : On a walk with Koby to get some lunch, a small incident occurs and a moment of realization happens.

“Old man, why don’t you leave Luffy alone?”

Fiddling with a pen and balancing it on your nose, you were just lounging around in Sengoku’s office on his couch, no one else but Garp in the room. Sengoku was currently out.

“What was that?” Garp’s voice rang in the room, him on the other side, across from you on the couch there.

“You keep attacking Luffy whenever you get a chance, reprimanding him for not even seeking you out to converse with, or just bond with.” You point out, sitting up and the pen dropping to the floor.

“I’m just saying, you’re yelling at him for not doing those things, even though he’s a pirate and you’re a marine. Sengoku wouldn’t be too happy.” You sang, picking up the pen again and placing it onto the table.

“Regardless of that fact, I’m his grandpa so he should show some respect and reach out to me.” Garp scoffs, his grin overtaking his tone as he looks over at you.

“Do you do the same to Ace?” You cross one leg over the other and smile at the famed old man. Garp, knowing where you were getting at, just chuckles. “I’ll beat the crap out of him if I ever see him.”

“Heard he’s a division commander for Whitebeard.” You hum. You then grin a bit. “Ace is cute. Too bad he’s a little older. Much more, a pirate.”

“I’ll be damned if you ever date him.”

Laughing softly at Garp, you lean back on the cushion of the couch and lift your hand and look to the faint red string around your finger.

“Speaking of which...”

Garp, who had his eyes originally closed, merely opens an eye at your quietness, before seeing what you were staring at.

“..You’ve yet to meet them?” He guesses, even though he knew.

“I’m eighteen now.. it’s a little more brighter and visible but there hasn’t been any progress.” Pouts can be seen on your face.

Garp just listened intently, because he knew how important the red strings were.

It was a custom of sorts, to be given a red string tied around your finger, and only be visible when you were closer to your destined soulmate. The closer you were, the more visible and brighter the red string would become, and linked right to your given fate.

It was extremely rare for the red string of fate to be wrong, but there were some occasions where the string was cut and eventually, tied once again to another given soulmate though.

“I guess I thought it would be one of the straw hats, when we met them at Island of water, Water 7, since it started to become visible there, but it didn’t fade away once we left. Which sucks, because that swordsman was pretty cute.”

Garp playfully rolls his eyes at your statement, shaking his head as he stands up, his tone calm and serious.

“Give it time. You got plenty of years ahead of you. Besides, you aren’t the only one. That chore boy is the same age as ya and he hasn’t found the one either.” Garp states, picking his nose with his pinky.

“Chore boy? You mean Koby? That apprentice you took in?” You question and Garp nods. “Him. He’s a potential one. Heard he saw it getting a little more brighter too around here.”

“You really are old. You’re losing your memory already, gramps. Koby’s a marine captain now. If you’re losing your memory, you might already be on deaths door.”

“Is he? Boy’s grown fast.” Garp says before he stands up and raises his fist, punching the top of your head and successfully knocked you off the couch.

“And what’s that about my age? I may be old but I’ll still outlive you, you damn brat!” He smirks, seeing the bruise forming on your head, and your teary eyes glaring at him as you held your head at the pain.

Doing your best to ignore the pain, your mind drifted to Koby. You remember seeing him two years ago, when he first joined. The kid was so small, you mistook him for a 10 year old.

But as he continued to train along with the blonde he came with, under Garp, the pinkette was slowly growing more and more taller and much stronger and soon enough, he was taller than you.

He was still the same shy boy that you met though. You haven’t seen him lately other than through a little bit of passing, but you worked in different areas anyway so it made sense it wasn’t often you see him.

“Tch. You damn old man..” you curse under your breath, Garp ready to deliver another punch, when a knock interrupted him.

“Sir? You wanted to see me?”

The voice was soft, sounding familiar.

“Come on in, this isn’t my office.” Garp says, and slowly, the door to Sengoku’s office opened to reveal the voice owner.

“Koby, we were just talking about you.”

Koby blinks for a moment, having just poked his head in before hesitantly stepping fully inside and closed the door behind him.

However, he seemed startled to see you.

“A-Ah, Commodore [Name]!” He quickly saluted to you, fixing his posture as he stood straight, the smallest blush on his cheeks.

“Koby, you don’t have to do that.. we’re the same age.” You sigh, rubbing your head for a brief moment longer and then pulled it down to your lap.

“Right.. haha..” He sheepishly smiles, feeling a bit embarrassed before he widens his eyes a bit.

His eyes seemed focused on a particular thing, glancing back and forth from your hand to his, but he said nothing, just staring wide-eyed.

You didn’t seem to notice, too focused on trying to ease the pain from your head, courtesy of Garp.

Garp, glancing to Koby, notices his shocked expression and smirks when he realized what he was reacting to.

Unfortunately, it seems you’ve yet to notice, despite how vibrant the string was becoming.

“What a coincidence..” he thought, eyeing Koby carefully. He trusted Koby enough to do well with you, and seemed almost relieved that your soulmate was Koby.

“Koby, why don’t you go take [Name] out and eat something at the cafeteria. We’ll discuss our meeting and training another time.”

“Huh?” Both you and Koby look over at Garp, blinking confusedly in unison, causing him to laugh.

“Just go eat something. You can’t train on an empty stomach.” You eye Garp suspiciously, wondering why he was acting strangely suddenly but you couldn’t go wrong on some food at the moment.

“Alright then. Let’s go.” Standing up straight, you offer a smile to the younger rank and began heading to the door.

Dumbfounded, Koby just nods slowly and stares questioningly at Garp as you opened the door and headed out.

Once you were completely out of the room, Garp held his usual grin but his tone went low.

“Good luck.. treat her well.”

Koby widens his eyes once again and felt his blush creeping back onto his cheeks. He rubs the back of his neck a bit shyly as he nods.

“Yes sir.”

With that, he exited the office as well and closed the door behind him, leaving Garp alone.

“These kids are growing up fast..” Staring over at the closed door, Garp sighs as he thought about Ace, Luffy, and even Sabo.

“So.. it’s been a while. How’s your training?”

Koby, lost in thought and staring down at the ground, mostly his fidgety hands, and the red string tied around his finger, didn’t seem to hear you.

“Koby?”

Gently nudging him, Koby blinks as he turns beside you. “Y-Yes?”

“You okay? You seem off.” You say, sparing a glance to him before turning back to the pathway, humming softly to yourself as you thought about what to eat.

“I’m fine!” Koby assures a little quickly before he kept quiet again, turning back to his red string.

Silence overtook the two of you, leaving you to think. You started to think about Koby beside you, and the red strings, even more about what Garp said.

Then, you focused on Koby himself. It’s been a while since you’ve seen him and you had to admit, he grow up well. He was handsome, indeed. Much different from the little boy you recognize just a little over two years ago.

You were busy thinking about how handsome Koby was, you almost didn’t hear Koby call you.

“Hey.. [Name]?”

“...Yeah?”

“.. Did you.. happen to meet your soulmate yet? I mean, do you know who your red string connects to?” Koby asks softly, shoving his hands to his sides and looks at you.

You listen to his question and smile meekly. “I haven’t. You haven’t yet, either. Right?” About to raise your hand to see your string, you and Koby turn the corner.

Just to bump into some people.

“Wa—!”

“[Name]!”

Quickly reacting to catch you, he ended up pulling the big marine coat off your shoulders instead and the two men that walked past also bumped into Koby.

“Woah!-“

The two of you both ended up falling to the ground with a thud, Koby hovering over you.

Koby winces at the pain, opening his eyes just to be face to face with you down below him. His eyes immediately widen as his cheeks began to flush and darken as he quickly jumped back away, his glasses flying off.

You didn’t seem to notice, eyes shut and rubbing your head.

Recovering from the fall, you groaned slightly and shake your head lightly to ease the slight dizziness forming.

“Hey, you alright?” Turning over to Koby, who was turned away from you, you watch him rub his head and sit up. “I-I’m fine.”

Since he was rubbing his head, he seemed to realize something was missing. “Ah!- my glasses are gone.” He voiced, no longer feeling the frames on his forehead.

You awed in realization, also noticing it was missing, and began to look around the ground.

Crawling around, you found the familiar navy blue pair of glasses and pick it up, inspecting it closely to make sure it wasn’t broken.

Using the ends of your shirt to wipe it off, you smile softly to see it was clean and hum. “I found them.”

Koby turns around from where he was searching and smiles a bit in relief. “Did you? Thank you.”

He was glad, because he wasn’t sure if he had time to get a new pair around, especially the customed ones made especially for him.

“Here.” Seeing Koby opening up his hands out for you, you move to kneel in front of him.

Handing it into his opened hands, you gently place it onto his palm and smile softly. “There, I just cleaned it so it should be good.”

Koby felt his glasses and opened them up, before slipping it onto his face, adjusting it.

“T-Thank you.” He shyly expresses, an embarrassed smile forming along with his already flushed, pink cheeks.

He stares up at you, blinking for a moment.

“Your glasses okay? If they don’t work, I can get you some new ones.” You say, still kneeling in front of him and waiting for his answer to see if his glasses were still in good condition.

Hearing your offer, Koby immediately shakes his head, frantically waving his arms.

“No need, these glasses still work just fine! In fact,” he clears his throat as his blush darkens ever so boldly.

“I’m able to see my future wife right in front of me.”

... Huh?...

The pink hue that crept onto your cheeks became much more darker each passing second, all from just the twelve words that Koby said.

It was only then, while you were staring wide-eyed at Koby, did you notice his red string around his finger.

It was knotted around his index finger, and out of instinct, you glance down to see where it led to, just to see your red string exposed, bright as day.

And connected right to him.

Koby seems to have already known this, not seemingly surprised at your blinking reaction to the strings.

Instead, he only kept his brave, yet shy grin, his cheeks still coated with pink as he brings his hands down from the side of his glasses.

“Looks like my statement might be true. It’s fate after all.”

A/N : my first event request done, woo! •u• hope it was good!! :D .... I keep reading this and the more I believe it’s not good :((

this isn’t TOO related to the event prompt but I’m sure my next event post should be more focused on the prompt.

either normal request or event request next, Hmm..

#tooweirdforyou #one piece #one piece x reader #op x reader #x reader #op #one piece writing #koby #koby x reader #coby #coby x reader #one piece coby #one piece koby #one piece marines #vice admiral garp #one piece garp

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imasimpforshanks · 3 years

Note

Hello <3 Can I ask for Angst alphabet with Coby ?~ thanks a lot <3

Angst Alphabet - Coby

a/n: BRUHHHH HIS WAS SO HARD TO DO BC HES SUCH A SWEETIE 😭😭😭😭😭💗 regardless, I hope you like it! x

ALSO - please note reader is a civilian and not a marine (but coby is still a marine). It was just easier for me to write it this way !!

A- Accident (would they blame themselves if you died in an accident?)

Coby wouldn’t exactly blame himself, but he would feel really weak. It would be lots of comments about his own worth and capabilities such as: “I’m still too weak” or I’m never going to be strong enough”. (kind of similar to Zoro in that sense).

B-Break up (How would they break up with you?)

He would try to be as honest and as upfront as possible, but he gets really anxious and just starts stumbling over his words ending every sentence with “ya know?”. In the end, he just uses every cliché in the book because he can’t remember or seem to find the ability to say what he really wanted to.

C-Crying (how would they make you cry?)

This dude is far too much of a sweetheart to ever make you cry. If you were to cry because of him, it’d be because of how much time the two of you have to be away from each other. He hates having to leave you because it’s always a lot of tears on both sides.

D-Death (how would they react to your death?)

He would be devasted. Crying in front of anyone and everyone he doesn’t care. Coby would also become really unmotivated and go through a little bit of an existential crisis like “What’s the point of this anymore?” “what am I even doing?”. Eventually he’d remember how much you believed in him, and how much good he could really do in the world – so, he’d keep going. For you.

E-Emotion (what is one emotion they would try to hide the most and how would they do it?)

Honestly, Coby is someone who is extremely open and expressive. He doesn’t (or maybe it’s more accurate to say he can’t) hide his emotions. That’s just not who he is. He expresses openly whatever emotion it is he is feeling.

F-Fight (do you two ever fight? How big are the fights? What do you fight about? Etc.)

He genuinely tries to avoid fighting with you at all costs. Nothing between the two of you ever escalates that far because Coby manages to talk the two of you out of whatever tension has been built.

G-Guilt (what is the biggest thing they feel guilty about?)

It’s not necessarily guilt, but Coby still feels as though he owes Luffy his life. Because of Luffy, Coby was able to become a marine. It’s because of Luffy that Coby continues to work as hard as he does. Most of what has happened in Coby’s life is all thanks to Luffy and because of that, he feels as though he has a debt he can never repay (even though all of this happened because luffy was just being luffy).

H-Heartbreak (what would cause them pain in the relationship? How would they deal during a break-up?)

Having to be away from you for long periods of time (obviously because he’s a marine) is really painful for the both of you. It can but quite a bit of strain on your relationship as long distance isn’t easy.

During a break-up, his mind would be all over the show. At work, he wouldn’t be able to focus properly which would cause many problems for not only himself, but others around him too.

I-Injured (how would they react if you are badly injured?)

Panic mode: activated. All his focus is shifted to you. He forgets about everything around him and is set on trying to get you help. He doesn’t even try to take down whoever, or whatever, caused your injury. You are his one and only priority in that moment.

J-Jealousy (what do they do if they are jealous?)

The sweetheart would feel so nervous. He’d keep to himself and try to avoid you for a while because he can’t stop thinking about how much better off you would be with literally anyone else.

K-Kill (would they kill for revenge?)

Coby is definitely not the type to kill for revenge. He hates all the killing and death that happens in the world. He’s a person who is all about trying to stop the cycle of hatred. so despite the anger, pain and hurt he would be feeling he would put all of that emotion aside, and settle it a different way.

L-Loss (what is their greatest loss?)

During Marineford when marines (and pirates) were dying left and right, Coby was shocked. It was far too much unnecessary death. Witnessing all that death was an emotional overload, but it did lead to one of the most pivotal moments of his life.

M-Mistake (what is the worst mistake they ever made with you?)

Unfortunately, it was something entirely out of his control. But one time he had to leave for a mission with the Marines in the middle of the night. He couldn’t tell you anything about it or why he was leaving. He just had to up and leave.

N-Nightmares (how often do they have them? What are they about? How do they deal with it?)

Sometimes Coby has nightmares about Marineford. The constant voices and cries of agony form an endless loop in his sleep, gradually getting louder and louder until he screams himself awake. After waking up in a panic he manages to calm his breathing. Then, Coby gives himself a pep talk “that is why you’re working so hard. To become strong enough to be fleet admiral so nothing like that will ever happen again.”

O-Outrage (how and why would they get mad at you?)

As with the fights, I don’t think Coby really gets mad at you. Probably over something minor like you ate the last cookie or something. It’s not anger, he just gets pouty until you say you’ll make it up to him.

P-Past (what has happened in your relationship that changed the way you saw each other?)

Having to do your relationship long distance was a pivotal point for the both of you. For most, it can be a deal breaker and it comes with more negatives than positives. But, for the two of you, it was a wake-up call, and, it was the moment you both realized “I can’t live without you, we will make this work”.

Q-Quality (what is their most dangerous/toxic quality?)

I wouldn’t say this is dangerous or toxic idk (???) but ANWAYSSSSS. Coby lacks certainty in his own decisions. He’s not so bad now, but it used to be a lot worse. He second guesses himself too much, which can be the difference between life and death in a high pressure situation.

R-Rejection (how would they react to you rejecting their confession (or the other way around))

Being rejected by you would definitely impact his self-esteem. It’d bring up a lot of insecurities and feelings of inadequacy. (PLS DON’T REJECT THIS PRECIOUS BOY).

S-Scars (battle or self-inflicted)

Coby does have a scar on his head. It’s not entirely certain when or where he received this scar, but it’s likely to be from his rough training with Garp.

T-Trust (have they ever broken your trust?)

No, Coby has never broken your trust. In fact, your relationship is held up by the unwavering trust the two of you have in one another. It may seem funny to say that, because trust is a vital element of any relationship, but it’s particularly the case for you two. Being a marine means there’s going to be quite a few things he can’t tell you, but you know he can’t tell you and he really appreciates how much you understand that.

U-Urge (how badly do they want to see you after you guys separated?)

He’s had to learn to cope with not seeing you for long periods of time. But, despite all that practice it’s still unbelievably difficult. When he can, he’ll write you letters to keep you informed about his safety. He won’t ask, but he’d really appreciate if you wrote him back.

V-Vicious (what do they do when they lash out on you?)

I genuinely don’t believe he would lash out at you. He just wouldn’t. Maybe, he’s slammed a few doors, but other than that… (sorry I feel like this one is boring af ugh).

W-Weak (what makes them feel weak how do they try to avoid it?)

Coby always felt weak and incapable in his abilities. Sometimes those feelings resurface. But honestly, he trues to avoid this by remembering how and why he is where he is. He thinks of all the people who have helped him along the way (Luffy, Garp etc.) and it motivates him to push forward.

X-X-ray (what do they hate and show it most obviously?)

He hates needless violence. He understands in some situations violence is necessary, but, then there are some situations (like the end of marineford) where lives are being lost for no reason whatsoever.

Y-Yearn (what is one thing that they want but can’t have?)

He wants nothing more than to openly be BFF’s with Luffy. Given the two different worlds they live in, it’s just never going to happen, despite Luffy being a genuinely good person. (I KNOW THIS IS MEAN TO BE ANGSTY BUT I COULDN’T HELP IT LMFAO)

Z-Zero (what do they do/say in your dying moments?)

Oh boy. There would be endless amounts of tears. Through sniffles and snot, he’d be trying to thank you for everything you’ve done for him, all the love and support you’ve shown him.

#coby one piece #coby x reader #one piece #one piece x reader #one piece headcanons #one piece imagines #angst alphabet #one piece alphabet

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aty-altiria · 4 years

Text

No 5. WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU’RE GOING?

On the Run | Failed Escape | Rescue

Word count: 2367

Universe: One Piece, Harry Potter

Pairings: Fem!Harry/Portgas D. Ace

Rating: T

Themes: Imprisonment, Soulmate Au - first words, results of torture

Summary: For years, Ace had debated the meaning of that particular sentence. That sentence had been the one etched into the skin of his forearm at birth, and though he didn't know it, had caused his mother to burst out laughing when she'd first held him.

@whumptober2020

Soft footsteps, possibly cloth shoes. The noise was different from what Ace was used to with the guards, causing him to open his eyes. Ace could make out little in the darkness of Impel Down even with his eyes adjusted, there was little to be seen unless the guards were present. The guards didn't think pirates deserved such simple things as 'light,' which was another blatant sign of how the government saw its people. Regardless, the darkness meant Ace was all the more curious because he could hear footsteps in the hallway, but the lights were still off.

Ace scanned the halls outside his cell, looked past the bar for any sign of moments. Ace narrowed his eyes, wishing not for the first time he could pull at his flames. Without the sea-stone, he could have lit up the entire level - and escape, don't forget escape - to reveal who was watching him soundless in the dark. If it was anyone at all. He strained his ears, listening for the sound of shoes on stone, and something shifted to the left of his cell door. Ace shot his eyes that way and found himself staring into a pair of glowing green eyes near the floor. They were like a cat in the way they were slit and were the only thing visible in the darkness. Then, the eyes blinked one slowly and vanished. There was a sound Ace couldn't place, almost like the shift of a sail, like fabric.

A moment later, the area around his cell door burst into light. It was bright enough that Ace flinched back and slammed his eyes closed against it. He winced as it shot a severe pang in his head. Before eventually, he forced his eyes open and met green once more… but they were different. They were no longer slitted, and they were no longer sitting at the height of a small house-cat. Instead, they were in the face of a young woman holding a stick with a lit-up tip.

Ace watched the woman tilt her head and scan him. Her eyes danced up and down, taking in the shackles across his body, the bruises littering his body, and the guards' blatant signs of abuse. Then… she smiled. It was a little blood-thirsty, a little fond, and a promised violence for someone that Ace was suddenly sure wasn't him. He assumed so mostly because her outfit and her presence told him she wasn't, in fact, a guard. Meanwhile, she was in Impel, somehow, illegally. Therefore, she was a potential ally.

And then she spoke.

"Guess I'll have to break that pretty face of yours out of prison."

Ace's wasn't ashamed to admit his heart jumped. No jumped was tame, Ace's heart nearly launched out of his chest. Instinctively at those words, Ace found himself leaning forward; the chains at his wrists, stomach, neck, and ankles pulled. They clanked together and stretched, stopping him long before he could get even remotely close to her, and it caused him to growl at the chains even as he stared. Ace stared because she'd actually said it. This unknown woman within Impel Down had actually said it… sure, Ace had been hoping ever since he'd been captured. Still, he hadn't actually imagined it would happen. Ace had been half-convinced by the second week within Impel down that it would be a guard set to say those words and destroy all his hopes. But… she wasn't. She'd actually come.

So many years, Ace had debated the meaning of those words, of that particular sentence. That sentence had been the ones etched into the skin of his forearm at birth. Though he didn't know it, the ones caused his mother to burst out laughing when she'd first held him. The same words caused Garp to be just a little more worried during Ace's childhood and also caused his insistence of Ace becoming a Marine to become stronger. Those words also caused Luffy and Sabo to endlessly worry over Ace because surely that meant once he started his pirate career that he'd only end up in prison?

After all, why else was his soulmate breaking him out of prison?

'Maybe she's a Marine, and you corrupt her?' Was Sabo's not so helpful thought.

'Sabo is probably laughing himself silly in the afterlife about then.' Ace thought as his soulmates form shifted, and she lifted the stick higher in the air. She flicked it then, and Ace watched three small blue lights, similar to Marco's flame colour, spawn into being and float into the cell with him. They were dimmer than the light on the stick, and Ace was thankful for it when his soulmate suddenly extinguished that particular light. She then pointed it at his cell door and whispered something.

The door opened, and Ace watched her glance his way. Then at his lips with a particular expression- oh. Ace hadn't said anything in return. He hadn't said her words yet. She had no idea he was her soulmate- but what in the gods' name did he say? He could actually choose… this never happened. No one got to choose. The words just showed up… they were predestined, Ace would always say what he'd say here. The words he'd speak had been etched onto her arm from birth, and the pressure was intense.

What had he said? Or will say? Or should say?

Ace internally groaned and blurted the first thing to come to mind. "I'm Portgas D. Ace… your soulmate."

Oh.

She shot him an amused look at Ace would have face-planted if he could have. Those had to be the most straightforward words anyone had ever gotten in the history of the world. He'd blatantly told her his full name; she would have had that from birth, an awareness of who he was for her entire life.

Well, at least he could say it was better than someone of the heavily insulting things the other Whitebeard Pirates had gotten.

"Holly Lily Potter-" She stopped beside him and tapped the stick to his shackles. Each one fell open, and Ace felt his flames rush back in as she did it. "-Black-Peverell-Gaunt-Weasley… resident of Earth, a much different planet from your own, and one Portgas D. Ace's soulmate." Holly then leaned back and offered Ace a hand, which he eagerly took. She pulled him onto his feet and said: "surprisingly, there aren't many people with that particular name, even after travelling between worlds to find you."

Worlds? What did she mean by that?

Ace kept his hand in hers when he watched her nose wrinkle suddenly and nearly tried to wrench it back in apology. Instead, his cheeks heated slightly despite it being something he couldn't help. The same Marines that didn't give them light certainly didn't provide them with a bathroom, shower, or substantial meals either. Ace was relatively sure he was rank. "Sorry, I... I'm probably... It's been a while since I could shower," Ace stuttered out nervously. He recalled Makino's every lesson on how to treat a woman. Everything he'd learned about them had been from Makino. However, the woman had snuck them in since Ace had only truly been interested in thanking Shanks for saving Luffy.

"It's fine," Holly assured him as her eyes burned holes in the chains holding him. They were filthy now and coated in dried blood from his wounds; many had been pulled entirely too tight and had chaffed something fierce when he shifted. There was a reason Ace had brutal marks on his wrists and ankles now. Not to mention the shackle around his middle had kept him from breathing when he'd fallen asleep in the incorrect position, meaning doing anything but sitting perfectly upright. "But some of those look infected…" she eyed the reddened skin on the wrist closest to her, ironically giving her a good look at the words she'd etched across his skin.

It caused her to blush, and Ace found himself tightening his grip on her hand. The subtle smile there transformed her entire visage, and that blush did funny things to his heart. Gods, he'd only just met her, and he was already gone.

"I can heal them," Holly offered as she smothered the blush, "after we escape, though? The Marines likely already know we're here… maybe?"

"There are no alarms, you've been subtle… hold on, we?" Had she come alone? From the wording, Ace assumed not.

"My brothers." Holly explained with a fond smile, "they're searching the level for you, teamwork since this place is huge." They still hadn't let go of each other's hand, Ace didn't want to either. He was enjoying the feel of her skin, even if it was just a hand. Though he really wanted a bit more contact… it would have to wait until he had bathed, but…

He wanted to taste her.

Ace had been imprisoned for weeks, tortured for weeks, left in the dark without his flames for weeks. And now his soulmate was here. His other half, the one everyone looked for, longed for. The one who'd accept him, his blood, and his heritage without fail. The one who'd just freed him before his family could die in order to save him.

And, Ace wanted to taste her.

But it could wait.

"Hey, Holly! Did you find him yet?!"

Holly jerked a bit as a voice called from down the hallway. Shooting a sheepish look his way, she called: "He's over here!"

"The right one!"

"About time too, how many worlds has it been Forge?"

"Oh, dozens."

Two voices, nearly the same, but Ace could definitely make out two. He was proven correct, as a set of perfectly identical twins appeared from the right side of his cell. They looked alike in every way; their similarities went down to their very spirit as he sensed them with his haki. The only difference Ace could really find was the one on the left was a bit… quieter in energy than the other. But that was it. Ace knew twins could be similar, he'd even met several sets, but this was ridiculous.

The two settled their eyes on him, and Ace noted something wild in their eyes. In the same way Holly's eyes seemed like a cat the first time he'd seen them; these two had a bit of a forest in them. "You're him then, Ace?"

"Not bad looking, eh, Holly? He's attractive, innit he?"

The other nodded along as Ace tried to follow their bouncing conversation, "Holly's been looking for her soul mate for years,"

"Our home country has some nonsense laws, and they tried to marry her off,"

"So the family packed up, all of us-" "which is a large amount, we have a big family, don't we Greg?" "-and we left that word,"

"We figured her soul mate had to be around somewhere, helpful that we had his name. So we travelled across different worlds."

"Been to a few, Asgard was nice,"

Holly shot him a look from the side; she looked long used to this act, and since she was his soulmate and these two were his family, he went with it. Ace was sure he'd get the pattern eventually. Haki certainly was already helping him.

"Elemental countries was cool, lots of ninja's,"

"I don't recommend any planet during the apocalypse though; zombies are not fun,"

"Then, we reached this one."

"See we've got this spell to test if someone with the name of Portgas D. Ace exists, developed by our own Holly." Ace looked to Holly again, who nodded with a shrug. As she did, she mouthed that she'd explain a bit better and in more detail later, especially the parts going right over Ace's head.

"But we didn't need it, since we got a paper announcing his execution,"

"We started off to 'Impel Down' right away,"

"No way we're letting our little sister's soul mate die, or anyone with his name."

"Not after all that!"

"She deserves love!"

Holly heaved a put upon sigh as Ace felt his emotions do something funny again. She'd… she'd been looking for him for a while, more than he initially assumed. Then, Holly had also been lucky enough to have his name through… worlds? Had she really passed through worlds? Was that even possible? They were certainly acting like it was.

"Worlds?" he asked, utterly forgetting they should probably be escaping.

"Ah," it was Holly's turn to blush now, "maybe let's escape first before I explain… because this will be a long conversation. Starting with… do you believe in… magic? Because that's sort of crucial… for our future."

Ace blinked once, twice, then gestured to the chains left behind. "I've been to an island where rain falls upward, so… sure?"

"Oh, good." The expression on her face was entirely mischievous and Ace… honestly felt a bit excited to see it; he couldn't wait to devour her- and then the twins to interrupt again. Ace was not the only one to shoot them a dark look for it.

"Hey Holly, if we're going to be pirates now. Can I have a hat?"

"Oh, yes! I need a tricorn with a big feather!"

"And a parrot!"

"And an eye-patch!"

Holly reached for Ace's hand, "okay, that's enough now. Ace, picture… home, I guess, wherever that is for you, as clearly as possible. And… brace yourself, most people throw up the first time."

What?

Ace opened his mouth to ask, and- the world twisted away.

#whumptober2020 #Harry Potter #OP fanfic #Rescue #no.5 #fem!harry potter #Portgas D. Ace #Fem Harry Potter/Portgas D. Ace #Impel Down #Impel Down fixit #fred and george

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atinychai · 5 years

Text

I'm super happy to write this. Format is a little different than usual because it’s all three and their pasts would be connected. It’s also pretty long so the rest is below the cut.

➤These four kids caused so much trouble for Dadan, like this poor bandit just wanted a peaceful mountain life and instead she got four mountain monsters.

➤Luffy gives her a lot of grief because she’s a year younger than him and he was the youngest.

➤Sabo and Ace baby her so much compared to Luffy-who they let a crocodile eat at one point.

➤Despite the fact she’s been raised alongside them and therefor can defend herself, all three brothers are SO protective. They even made a secret vow to never let her marry someone they don’t approve of.

➤When Garp shows up he’s so confused?? He left two and now there’s two more? Are they dividing themselves or just attracting other orphans? Now he has four times as much work to make them all into marines. Unlike the three brothers-he does not hold back on her after hearing she wants to be a pirate as well.

➤In order of protectiveness, Ace is the most protective, Sabo’s in the middle, and Luffy is the least protective because he’s always sneaking off with her to go do dangerous things. She’s just as reckless as him and the two should not be left alone together they will destroy everything and themselves.

Luffy & Strawhats:

➤Their meeting is different because it’s after the two year skip and while he’s so happy to see her he feels so guilty when he sees her too because Ace is gone.

➤Despite how goofy Luffy is the two probably cry and hug for a long time and have a serious chat about Ace and the fact hat he was smiling when it happened so there’s no need to feel guilty-after all, pirates rarely get happy endings and look at how cool Ace was all the way to the end, right?

➤He doesn’t introduce her to the crew right away because the two are caught up in reminiscing about Ace as well as just catching up with each other, in fact the whole strawhat crew goes wild because their captain just never returned to the inn and as crazy as Luffy is he almost always comes back to wherever the group is staying.

➤Of course he’ll ask his sister to join his crew, and of course she’ll have to refuse because she’s a pirate or an informant or something crazy because everybody in this family is insane.

➤When he does introduce her to the crew they all have different reactions, though at first everybody’s shocked because he’s never menttioned having a sister?!?

➤Zoro is pretty indifferent about her, but he’s still surprised by how polite she is compared to Luffy-though after a few days he sees the resemblance because both of them are stupidly reckless.

➤Sanji treats her like a princess as expected and he also yells at Luffy for never telling him he had a sister.

➤Nami and Robin treat her like a younger sister, letting her stay with them while she visits and even taking her out to just do things with them. The two are like the older sisters she’s never had but it’s also strange because they kind of remind her of Ace and Sabo in a sense.

➤Brook is brook and of course, has to ask if he can see her panties which earns him more knocks on the head than usual-Sanji, Nami, Luffy & Sister.

➤She loves chopper. SO MUCH. He’s so cute and she even tries to steal him from the crew.

➤Franky is extremely friendly but she’s a little weirded out by him-even more so because he’s not really wearing pants. That being said she’s impressed with the fact that he built the ship and Franky’s more than happy to eat up all the praise at his handy work.

Ace & Whitebeard pirates:

➤The second he spots his sister he jumps off the boat and is propelling himself her way with his flames. The crew is completely baffled by the sudden display but they’ll have to wait to question it until they reach the island.

➤He crashes straight into her and the two destroy a house in the process, which they then spend the latter of the day rebuilding. On the bright side as they rebuild it they get to catch up with each other.

➤He’s so happy to see her and hear about how she’s been doing. He’ll ask her about all her adventures and answer any questions she has but then he’ll get serious and ask if she’s seeing anybody. CAN’T HAVE THAT. HE’S TOO PROTECTIVE AND NOT READY TO LET GO OF HIS LITTLE SISTER.

➤When the crew arrives they’re rightfully confused by Ace and the young woman he’s with. Like, he jumped off the ship for her so it’s clear to them she’s important.

➤Whitebeard is the first to figure it out-as Ace talks about his family a lot-and the first thing he says is probably something along the lines of “Ace if you want to protect your sister you shouldn’t fly yourself at her from however many miles away from her they were.”

➤The rest of the crew is just like :OOOOO

➤It’s pretty obvious how protective Ace is of her, and the guys are more than happy to use that to mess with their favorite hot headed commander. Poor girl is getting more attention than she knows what to do with.

➤”Marco don’t you even look at her you pervert.” “Oh, too late we’ve got a date tomorrow night” “I’LL KILL YOU” “How are you going to do that, #2 commander?”

➤Sister catches onto this and happily joins in on the fun, though eventually it dies down and she just continues catching up with Ace. She’s so happy he found a father figure and that he’s so happy with the crew. The two part but not before Ace can give her his vivire card.

➤She’s so happy because now she can find him whenever she wants to visit him.

Sabo & Revolutionaries:

➤He forgot her along with Ace and Luffy and once he calms down and wakes up he’s just a crying mess. Regardless of his injuries back then..how could he have forgotten his family..?

➤When the two do reunite he’s a crying mess for so long. He’s just got his sister locked into a hug while he cries and apologizes for forgetting her-which she doesn’t even hear at first because she’s crying too because SHE THOUGHT HE WAS DEAD?!

➤Once the two calm down-and they eventually do after a few hours,yeah, hours-Sabo explains everything that happened and why he didn’t find them immediately. Since he’s apologizing every other sentence it takes him a while to finish explaining it and by the time they’ve gone over everything a few of the revolutionaries have found their way to them.

➤They can all pretty much guess who the girl is, and Koala is the first to react. She’s so happy for Sabo so she jumps at his sister and hugs her and introduces herself. Almost immediately the sister is making fun of Sabo and Koala, teasing them and asking if they’re together.

➤She’ll stay with them for a few days not really caring if anybody sees her with such well known people-shes a pirate or something herself anyways so it’s not like it makes too much of a difference.

➤A lot of the revolutionaries are caught off guard by Sabo’s sudden protective nature. Like, they’ve never seen such a brotherly side to him before and it’s just so strange. Hack particularly has a hard time with it because he’s seen Sabo do some real damage to enemies and here he is acting like an innocent older brother? That being said, he does like Sabo’s younger sister-even more so when she gets impressed by his fishman karate.

➤After the two go their separate ways Sabo probably calls Dragon all happily-realy he’s supposed to be asking about his next assignment but instead he’s rambling on about his little sister and how happy he is.

#sabo imagine #luffy imagine #one piece imagine #ace imagine #portgas d ace #monkey d luffy #sabo #luffy #one piece #one piece headcanons #op #op imagine #op headcanons #straw hat pirates #whitebeard pirate

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justm3h · 5 years

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Plot - Triskaidekaphobia

Summary: Marco has lived many lives. Lives as a civilian, lives with the Marines, lives as a pirate and the smallest butterfly effect makes each adventure new. But each death has him waking up after eating the first fruit of his life.

Another chance, another life.

One more shot to make things right.

Characters: Marco the Phoenix, Monkey D. Garp, Bell-mere, Donquiote “Corazon” Rosicante, Coby, Gol D. Roger, Silvers Rayleigh, Shanks, Benn Beckman, Makino, Monkey D. Luffy, Edward Newgate, Thatch, Portgas D. Rouge, Portgas D. Ace, Sabo, Monkey D.Dragon, Buggy, Straw Hat Crew, Kureha, Nico Olvia, Marshall D. Teach, Trafalgar D. Water Law

Pairing: Rouge/Roger, slight Makino/Shanks but mostly Gen

1-8

The first life Marco lives is boring and normal. He passes peacefully, a respected but simple village doctor, flames flicker even as he’s eyes fall shut for the last time. Only for that not to be true, as he opens them once again to hands the size of a child and not an old man.

The second life he travels the South Blue. He wants to see what the sea has to offer him and he makes friends and learns so much. He dies this time by drowning, and decides he doesn’t like it very much.

The third time, he starts figuring things out. Each death has him wake up right after eating the worst tasting fruit of his life. He’s grown use to the blue flames that heal and the obsession with cinnamon but the healing is a gift enough.

Marco travels further, learning skills of a sailor. He enjoys navigating the most, for the stars are the only thing that seem to be consistent with every redo.

His third adventure ends, accidentally being eaten in the calm belt. Another mistake he swears to Never Make Again.

The fourth one comes and he realizes he needs to learn how to fight and joins the Marines.

He’s not very good at first, more often than not, he fumbles and fails and it stuck in a lower position for some time. He only hears later of the Summit War and even then it’s just boring news that doesn’t matter on the blues.

One drowning later and Marco becomes a Marine again on count 5. His ‘talent’ is noticed. He’s sent to the Grandline and trains with other fresh recruits. He is in awe as he catches sight of the admirals and of the legendary hero Garp. The Marines try to figure out what fruit he ate but have as much luck as he has in the past. He makes it as far as Captain before dying tragically protecting his men.

6 and 7 are much the same. Joins the Marines and is satisfied with the rank of Captain. He enjoys having the spunky Bell-mere under his tutelage til she is transferred and quit soon after. Marco enjoys seeing Rosicante grow from a brat he babysat to a fine Marine although still a walking disaster.

Marco always takes different posts and assignments, never wanting to have the confusion of knowing something he shouldn’t. It doesn’t stop him from befriending a few of the same people over and over again, but those are just some binds he’s not willing to let go.

But 5 to 7 are also where Marco really starts to notice something wrong with the world. He never noticed on the Blues, too isolated from the Grandline and the Red to pay much mind to it.

There was corruption, Marines taking bribes or turning a blind eye to the pleadings of the people who begged for help. The admirals were bias, unable to get pasted their own convictions to just help.

It caused Bell-mere to leave and Rosicante’s death.

It hurt.

8 seems to hurt the most. He was put under the care of Garp. He learned so much about the Vice Admiral, Garp yelled about his brat grandkids and Fists of Love were a daily occurrence. Regardless of his violence, Garp was what the Marines should have been. Heroes. Marco could see it in the boy and his friend that Garp adopted, made all too clear when the pink haired boy jumped in front of a cannon.

He and Bogard would watch from a distance as the two chore boys trained. Fought for the right to be Marines. Bogard taught Helmeppo, the tall blond better with blades, while Marco taught Coby the basics of hand to hand til Garp took over their training.

Marco always made sure to patch the young men up at the end of the day, a doctors work never done, even after they picked a fight with Garp’s grandson.

“Dumb Brats,” he joking at Garp as he checks over Coby and Helmeppo after their fight.

Marco got a good look at Garp’s grandson, Monkey D. Luffy. He was much like his grandfather, even as they both fell asleep in the middle of their own fight.

But Marco hasn’t seen pirates like these since Roger, despite the Marine propaganda, his cabin boy Shanks, or Whitebeard. Considering the rookie pirate had Red-Haired Shanks’ old straw hat…. Who if all the praises Coby said were true, saved him and a whole town, was more hero than a pirate had the right to be.

Monkey D. Luffy who dreamed of being King of the Pirates. Well, Marco could admit to himself he wouldn’t mind seeing the boy become the second King.

Even if the crew couldn’t handle a few cannonballs from Garp at the moment.

Then Marineford. The stories he had heard in passing before, if he lived long enough to hear them, paled in comparison to the actual event.

It was a massacre. Garp fell and so did his grandson. Whitebeard died on his feet seeing his adopted son and blood son of Gol D. Roger perish under the executioner’s blade. And there impaled on a molten fist was Coby, the boy Garp hoped would continue his legacy.

Marco died, a screech echoing over the battlefield as he flew to attack the lava man, with ice and light ripping through his body.

9 and 1st Time Pirate

9 he wakes to wings not hands and realizes just exactly what the fruit did to him.

Marco does not join the Marines this time, preferring to not think about all the blood and death he still had nightmares about.

This time, he flies and travels. The seas no longer limit him and stars will always be his guide. He doesn’t tire but can just fly for what seems like forever.

The blond witnesses Gol D. Roger’s death, spotting the would be faces of many soon to be known names. It’s curious but Red Hair asks if he wants to join his crew.

“Why?”

“You look interesting!”

Needing something new and knowing full well what kind of pirate the young man is from endless rants from Garp, Marco accepts. Not like he has anything better to do.

It’s maybe the worst decision he’s ever made as the seemingly endless parties usually leave it up to him to keep them on course, unable to get drunk without the help of seastone.

He’s grateful when Benn joins, if not just to keep Shanks somewhat in line for a pirate. There are questions about his knowledge of the Marines and he makes no point to hide that he ‘quit’.

“Being a pirate suit you more?”

“Seems so Cap.”

If more pirates were like Red Hair, he ponders, watching the man make a fool of himself for a pretty green haired girl, then there wouldn’t been so many issues in the world.

Marco meets a young Monkey D. Luffy, still as mischievous as before, and laughs at the reaction Shanks has when he learns the kid he’s taken a shine to is related to Garp.

“He’s got his Grandfather’s smile.”

“I’m concerned how you know that, Marc.”

It goes much like canon, Luffy is kidnapped and is taken to the middle of the bay and Marco is actually the one who flys Shanks out there.

Marco has a first hand experience of watching Shanks lose his arm. He apologizes for not being faster but Shanks just smiles.

“He’s worth it.”

Shanks becomes Emperor, Marco and Benn both arguably first mate but Marco gets his first bounty poster.

“The Phoenix?”

“Pretty on the nose with that one.”

They have many clashes, with pirates and other Marines alike. Marco finds he enjoys the meetings with the man called Whitebeard the most. At worst, they have a fight but usually they are all too hungover by the time it gets to that.

The morning after a rare party between Shanks and Whitebeard, the air was full of the smell of breakfast and hint of something else. It made Marco pause his berated tairaid against Shanks’ stupidity and abruptly walks away. He followed the smell, leading him to the Moby Dicks kitchen where a man in a chefs suit was elbow deep in kneading bread. But the smell. He breathed it in barely noticing Shanks and Benn following.

The chef looks up and smiles.

“Hey! You’re on Shanks crew, right? I’m Thatch, head chef and 3rd commander! Nice to meet you… hey hello? You in there?”

Thatch looks confused as he holds up the cinnamon and Marco’s eyes follow. Left, right, up, down. Thatch eventually hands Marco a fresh roll and he literally coos with joy.

Shanks LOOSES it. Marco screeches, launching at Shanks with a kick. They run out of the kitchen and Thatch is just so confused and Benn is amused.

The Red Force is then on always stocked with Cinnamon and Thatch always gifts Marco with new cinnamon treats to try, a personal challenge of his.

Marineford comes again, Shanks having tried to prevent it but failed. It was hard to hear that Thatch had been killed but Marco keeps focused as they fight Kaido to make it in time to do anything.

By the time they arrive, it’s much the same nightmare as before. Garp survives but both his grandchildren have fallen, Whitebeard stands dead once again with much of his children at his feet. Shanks was able to save Coby, the boy just inches from having a face full of magma. The Marines scream victory but Marco can only feel hollow.

He’s been on both sides of that battlefield now and neither feel like a victory.

The Red Hair pirates help with gathering the dead, Marco keeping watch on everything as much as he can. Garp looks at him with such mistrust it hurts more than anything.

He offers his condolences, something he couldn’t offer a corpse previously. Garp is somber but accepts. The true sadness is when he gives Shanks the straw hat telling him that Luffy would have wanted him to have it.

It’s not til after the funerals that Marco sits with Shanks and Benn. He’s got a sea stone ring on as he drinks and drinks.

He tells them the truth. He’s old and seen this before and nothing changes. Death seems to be the only result.

They talk to him about the Marines, about the first time, about everything.

“I see these things and don’t know how to fix them. All the paths seem to lead to that blasted war.”

Benn looks at him, “Have you really tried?”

Marco stares into his drink. Has he? He’s taken different roads but never really did much to change things did he?

The phoenix finds new determined and confidence in the faith that both of them have in him to fix things. They won’t remember him, no one does, but they were proud to call him nakama for all these years.

“If you ever need us, find us again, tell us something that only we would know and a bottle of booze. We’ll drink together again.” Shanks tells him before stabbing Marco through the heart.

10 and the Guardian

10 and Marco awakes on a mission. He grows just old enough to be accepted as a cabin boy and flies. Flies far, far away from his home to the Grand line. Where he find the Roger pirates, a budding crew well on their way to greatness. He learns from the best, gaining first hand experience on why the Pirate King was so formidable.

Haki is a well worth nightmare to learn from two of its greatest users. Even if it meant that he had to babysit a younger and somehow even more reckless Shanks and fellow cabin boy Buggy.

Marco watches with a whole new level of sadness at Roger’s passing. Shanks again asks for him to join his crew but Marco declines stating that he’s going to travel for a bit and figure out where life takes him.

Where it ends up taking him, is more preset than he would have Shanks believe. He follows Garp to a small island in the South blue where he see Rouge give birth to the little boy named Ace.

Garp confronts the man but Marco has kept his powers a secret from the Marines this time, a fall back for if things got dicey. He follows Garp, bird shaped so know no one is the wiser.

He spends years watching over the boy. Raising him in ways that Garp couldn’t. He’s there for when Garp brings Luffy to the town for Makino to care for. He watches over these boys that are so, so important.

And he meets Shanks again when the Red Hair Pirates come to town.

Marco lets Shanks meet Luffy and pulls him aside to take a walk. They walk to the forest where Shanks feels eyes watching. Marco remains calm and jovial even as two young boys attack him with metal pipes.

He easily defeats the two and leaves Shanks stunned for once. He watches as both brats yell at Marco for beating them again as Marco scolds them right back for their poor technique.

The tall blond introduces the two brats as Ace and Sabo, his charges shared under Garp.

“Garp?! That old fart?!”

“Hey! Don’t you call gramps an old fart, dye job!”

“What did you just call me brat?!”

Shanks and Ace bicker with each other as Marco and Sabo watch amused.

Shanks spends most of the walk back grumbling about pain in the ass kids.

“He takes after Roger but I see more of Rouge in him.”

“Ugh he’s just as stubborn as the Cap.. tain.” Shanks pauses… and stares at Marco then back at the forest and the back at Marco. “He- That’s?!”

“You have to swear never to speak of this Shanks… Garp and I have protected him for this long. I would hate to think we failed because you couldn’t keep your mouth shut.”

“Never. For the Captain and Rouge’s son never…. tell me more about him Marco.”

“Let’s go talk over drinks.”

Marco still enjoys getting a shocked face out of Shanks.

For the whole year he’s in the East Blue, he splits his time between Luffy and the two boys on the mountain.

Shanks shares stories of his time as a cabin boy on Roger’s crew, which causes Ace to get mad but then he’s pacified when hearing other tales of his mother.

Ace doesn’t hate his father quite as much this time but still has enough of a stigma to still be angry with him.

But canon has a way of happening and Shanks once again loses an arm for Luffy. Marco watches with sadness knowing his friend will be sailing from the Blue permanently. He bids them a safe journey and for Benn to keep his sanity. Shanks just laugh and they share a hug.

Garp returns, furious that Marco lets his brat grandson be influenced by that damn Red Hair. Marco just shrugs, knowing full well if Garp meant it he would have come back sooner. News of Red Hair being in the East Blue wasn’t hard to find, Marco could clearly remember Garp complaining about it while he was in the Marines. The Phoenix does inform Garp that Shanks knows about Ace and the grandfather sighs.

“He’s got his mother’s freckles as clear as day.”

“Suits him.”

“Aye.”

Luffy befriends the boys who become brothers then canon canon canon. Marco can only do so much good saving Ace and Dudan, and then going to search for Sabo. He finds the boy on a ship in a coma in the hands of…

“Ah, hello Dragon.”

The two talk, Marco explaining who the boy is and his… situation. Marco holds off on moving the boy till he wakes, his injuries far too severe to move him right away.

So Dragon and Marco talk. Marco is kind enough to share stories of Luffy growing up, something the father smiles at. It’s a peace offering.

Sabo awakens with amnesia. He reacts poorly to going home but seems to take pause at the mention of brothers.

“Ace? Luffy?”

“Yes. Those are their names.”

“I have brothers.”

Marco and Sabo go back home, with Dragon leaving Marco with his den den number in case there’s something Garp can’t handle. Ace and Luffy barely let Sabo out of their sight for days but help the boy relearn things and heal.

Years pass and both Ace and Sabo are the age to set sail. Marco stays with Luffy as they watch the boy’s two older brother sail away together. Marco tells them to watch each others backs and keep their wits.

“More than anything stay safe, stay alive.”

“You worry too much Marc, we’ll be fine.“

"I’ll keep him out of trouble Marco.”

“Hey!“

There Marco remains hearing about the two’s adventures with brief updates via the mail. He’s pleased to see both have taken up with Whitebeard. The old man would keep the boys safe.

The day Luffy sets out, Marco goes with him. Luffy pouts but he’s pleased that he’ll have some of his family with him. Marco flies high above enjoying the sun and completely misses the whirlpool until it’s too late. He can only watch as Luffy bobs in the water stuck in a barrel.

Just great.

East Blue basically happens with a plus one Marco. He tries to stay out of the way as much as possible, he’s not Luffy’s crew, these aren’t his fights but seeing all these familiar faces is both nice and painful.

He watches Coby’s beginning and the strength he got from Luffy plus how much Helmeppo changed.

Seeing Buggy, Roger’s other cabin boy, again was interesting.

"Buggy!”

“Oh damn, a flashy idiot from the past.”

“You know this clown?!”

“We were part of the same crew.”

“Did he have the nose then too?”

“ah… ”

“HOW DARE YOU?!”

They travel from one island to the next, picking up a first mate, navigator, and then a sharpshooter. Marco was sad to hear about Usopp’s mother passing, he hadn’t been aware of her death while still traveling with Shanks and as a doctor, it was probably something he could have prevented.

Marco left the Baratie early, flying after Nami with the other boat following his lead.

Marco pats Luffy on the head before he goes, “Stay safe.”

“Yosh~!” He nods at Hawkeye and flys off.

Learning exactly how Bell-mere passed was hard. She died like a hero protecting her girls and he could respect that after now raising so many kids, so many times, himself.

Still he honors Luffy’s claim of dibs but does destroy the Marine ships nearby, earning his bounty to raise once again.

Lougetown was interesting. He has no wish to see the site where Roger died, he’s seen it too many times as is and walks towards a familiar presence on the other side of town. He finds Dragon in a hole in the wall pub and they have drinks.

Small talk is exchanged and the leader of the revolutionary army has some good gossip… and some bad.

“Ace and Sabo have been seen leaving the new world for paradise… its said they are tracking someone named Teach…”

“Damn…”

Their talk is cut short when the wind picks up from a storm rolling in… and a person barges in yelling about an execution in the square.

“Looks like your son found trouble again. Does he get that from you or his mother?”

“No comment.”

Marco rushes ahead, allowing Dragon to slip away into the shadows. He doesn’t do much but does strike some more fear of god into Buggy for messing with his chick.

“I FORGOT HOW PROTECTIVE YOU GET JEEZ.”

They escape with a shared nod between Dragon and Marco.

When they start sharing their dreams on the way up reverse mountain, Marco has a vague one to share “To prevent the future.”

Que the beginning of the Alabasta arc. Past knowledge has always been limited when it comes to Luffy’s journey. It was filled with misinformation and other hole so he was honestly not expecting for there to be a GIANT WHALE. Oh, hi Crocus.

“You know this flower?”

“Reluctantly, yoi.”

“Brat!”

“My name is Crocus, the lighthouse keeper of Twin Capes. I’m 71 years old, a Gemini and type AB blood.”

“ YOU’RE A CAPRICORN YOI.”

They sail away from the capes, experiencing the strange weather of the Grandline for the first time. “It feels like coming home.” The Blues no longer felt quite the home, like the Grandline.

They arrive at Whiskey Peak and Marco is instantly suspicious. He joins the drinking with merry joy. They could try to get him drunk all they wanted but even with a seastone ring, he’s partied with Roger, Shanks and Whitebeard. This was nothing.

He fake passes out with Nami and Zoro, both having caught on to the plot.

Baroque Works reveals themselves and Marco fights the Millions. They are weak even by Grandline standards but their numbers prove to be the most annoying.

As Vivi explains what’s happening to her country and Mr.0 being Crocodile things are starting to become clear on how the Navy originally covered the whole mess up.

Little Garden is basically identical expect Marco is with Sanji as most of this goes down. So he’s not involved with any of it.

When Nami comes down sick, Marco tries to cure her but is unfamiliar with her illness. His memory reminds him of a long since wiped out Disease that it could be but he doesn’t have the ingredients. His flames help keep her fever down but are unable to do much else.

When Marco isn’t looking after Nami, he’s taken over navigation getting them safely to Drum… Mostly, til this hippo gets on deck. Marco has the sick satisfaction of seeing Luffy send the little gremlin flying for eating a chunk of Merry.

Marco would fly Nami all the way to the top but its too snowy and windy for him to make the flight safely with a passenger, especially one as sick as she was. He joins Luffy and Sanji in carrying her up to the top, the cold not really an issue. Luffy tries to fight him on it but Marco hits him on the head with his own Fist of Love.

“She’s Nakama, Luffy. I’m going, yoi.”

“…Fine.”

Marco is the one to carry Sanji to the top while Luffy still has Nami. He’s exhausted but awake when Chopper finds them by the cliff. He heals naturally, bundled up in a blanket by a fire. He hears Dr. Kureha’s story about Chopper and the island, casually wondering if it would have been the same for him had he known from the beginning he could shift into a flaming bird.

Wapol’s arrival at the castle is unwelcomed in his opinion and short lasting at least. He, as always, stays out of the fight, but assists the Doctor in keeping Sanji out of it as well.

lucky:i like how he’s present but not changing things

Wapol is defeated giving Kureha and Marco a chance to chat. It turns into this and that, the will of D., and…

“Your eyes look old.”

“I bet.”

“How many cycles have you gone through, Phoenix?“

”…what?“

"Rebirths? Is that what you call it? Bah. no matter… not everyone can age as gracefully as me.”

She admits that she read about it once briefly in an old medical tomb. A previous user went insane on their 13th rebirth.

“I’m on my 10th, yoi. I don’t even know why it keeps happening.”

“Well you might want to figure that one out soon.”

“Any hints?”

“The book mention they went crazy and burned to ash, nothing about a cure.”

“Fantastic.”

They leave, both merry and somber. Marco won’t abandon Luffy to go hunt for a solution he may not even find.

So the Strawhat crew is finally almost to Alabasta. Mr.2 doesn’t get Marco’s face cause he was in bird form looking down on the shenanigans.

The dock and Marco feels the two familiar presences with a large smile. They meet back up with Ace first then Sabo who was spying as Ace got into trouble with Smoker.

Luffy introduces his two brothers much to the crews shock. Two Whitebeard pirates and they are Luffy’s brothers?! Marco laughs glad to have his boys back in one place if not just for a bit.

Ace and Sabo inform him they’ve been tracking a traitor named Teach. Marco actually pulls them both aside and tells them to be careful and don’t underestimate him.

“Do you know something Marc?”

“…I don’t like this. If he’s underhanded enough to stab a crewmate, who knows what else he has planned.”

“We’ll be careful.”

They travel across the sand and dunes, Marco switching between flight and walking. The heat is aggravating but manageable.

They seem to be on a wild goose chase when the rebel army moved and the rain base is also a dead end. They race to stop Crocodile, Luffy and he crew taking care of the fights while Marco flies the bomb into the middle of the sky to explode.

They rest and recover, Marco getting scolded for once for his recklessness, and finally set sail on Merry on to discover a new crew mate.

Marco isn’t sure what to think about Nico Robin. But she doesn’t seem to have any ill intentions so he accepts her easily enough.

When the log post points up to a sky island, Marco offers to fly up and set it so they can just continue on but Luffy pouts at him, rejecting his proposal to no one’s surprise.

Marco stays on the ship at Mock town, avoiding the encounter with Blackbeard and his crew.

The Skypedia arc goes as well as expected. Marco briefly explains the basics of Haki as Enel tries to strike them again and again with lightning.

Luffy wins, Marco comments on Enel’s poor luck of finding the one man in all the seas immune to his attacks.

Marco can tell something is wrong with Merry. At night he can hear a hammer tapping away. His worst fears are confirmed at Water 7.

The Phoenix can only watch as the crew learns of Merry broken keel and then of Luffy’s fight with Usopp. He can’t condone Usopp’s behavior but understands why the long nose felt so deeply about it.

Because he going to miss Merry too.

Things are only further complicated when Robin leaves along with the arrival of CP9. In his lives, Marco never encountered the Marines spies but had heard enough about them to realize they were bad news. With the reveal of the blueprints for Pluton, Marco is on high alert.

Marco follows the escaping CP9 with the captured Franky and Usopp, flying high above to not be seen.

The crew is all reunited as they approach Enies Lobby. It’s through his travels, Marco has learned a great deal of the corruption of the Marines, but hearing of the truth for the buster call on Robin’s home is sickening.

One by one, the Straw Hats beat CP9, Marco taking care of many of the minions running around the place.

As the buster call arrives, Marco destroys many of the Marine ships until Luffy defeats Lucci. The crew escapes on Merry, Marco watching from the sky’s over head. Even he can’t help but cry when they give her a funeral by fire.

Marco is elated seeing Garp, Coby and Helmeppo again. It’s on friendly terms for the first time since he had been a Marine and he missed their shenanigans. Luffy’s father is no surprise to him and Garp calls him out, Marco admitting he’s met him before.

“Damn annoying brat.”

They set sail on the new Thousand Sunny, Marco knocking away some of Garps cannonballs. Somethings never change.

Thriller Bark is interesting, Marco had heard of Moriah’s island ship but had never seen it and now was wishing he never had the chance. His shadow was never personal stolen from him, Haki keeping it safe from Moriah’s grubby hands.

Brook is about the closest thing Marco has ever seen to his own rebirth powers but quickly discovers that’s not quite right as he could only do it once and he never looped.

Still Marco can’t help but sympathize that the skeleton spent so long by himself.

For all their attempts, the one to finally take down Oars is Marco. He had waited and watched and seen them give it their all but the truth is clear. They can’t quite manage.

But he can.

Still the first time in a while he’s been able to let loose, becoming far too lax this loop to have any time to fight. But Oars falls and Marco feels refreshed.

He worries as Luffy takes so much damage from Moriah and the with the arrival of Kuma he has to step in. Marco is the one to take all of Luffy’s damage instead of Zoro. He knocked both Sanji and Zoro out to do it. Kuma looks at the fallen young men and then at Marco who just smiles.

“You’ve helped raise Dragon’s son into a fine man with a good crew.”

“He did that all by himself, yoi.”

Marco awakens to the worried looks of the Straw Hat crew, all wondering what happened.

He smiles and says it was nothing as both Sanji and Zoro look at him blankly, the area covered in his blood. They can be mad at him all they want, he’d make the same choice every time.

They sail to Sabody and Marco ditches the crew at Shakky’s bar, talking with her over drinks for a bit. He’s informed that Ace and Sabo were not as careful as he had hoped, they were captured and sent to Impel Down.

“Damn those brats. I warned them.”

“It gets worse Marco-kun. Ace has been scheduled for execution.”

“Of course he has.”

Marco is still at Shakky’s when the Straw Hats and Ray return.

“Welcome back Ray-san.”

“Ah Marco! Been a while!”

It’s revealed that Marco was also on Roger’s crew along with Ray much to the shock of everyone, including Luffy.

“How was I supposed to know?!”

“I’ve told you enough stories that you should have figured it out, yoi.”

The crew has to make a run for it as they are outclassed and outnumbered by gathering Marine forces. Between Kuma, Pacificas, and the Admiral Kizaru, they stood no chance.

Marco tries to protect the crew from Kuma but fails as he too is blasted away, unable to break out of the paw bubble.

Marco is sent to the Red Force to the shock of its crew. He’s fucking furious, fighting Kaido and flying as fast as he can directly to Marineford but arrives too late.

Now not only were Ace and Luffy dead, but Sabo as well. Marco collapses in grief, dying as magma melts him.

So ends loop 10, probably the harshest yet on his poor heart.

11 and Canon at last

Marco is at a loss for what to do at the start of 11. It feels like he’s missing something and can’t quite figure out what.

He travels to the not yet destroyed island of Ohara, still known for its vast knowledge and thousands of books.

Try as he might, he couldn’t seem to find a single one on helping him. Marco had located the medical book Kureha mentioned but it listed more of what happened should he fail than succeed. Doomed to ash, it seemed was his fate.

While there, he befriends a woman named Olivia, now knowing that this woman was Robin’s mother.

They talk only a handful of times before he departs, but he warns her that Ohara was already suspected to be researching the void century and to be careful.

He flies to Roger, the man still young and not yet a pirate. Roger humors Marco as he asks questions, generally amusing as the boy, still a boy, takes a small comfort in huddling into the man’s side.

“I don’t know how to save them, yoi. Every time I try, they die worse than the last.”

“Maybe it’s not about saving them, but giving them the best chance at survival?”

“What Ray said! I know I’d give up everything to save my crew!”

Rayleigh offers that if what he’s tried so far didn’t work, maybe he could try something else. Marco thinks and there’s one crew directly involved he hasn’t tried yet. He thanks the two and promises they’ll meet again someday and flys to find a young Whitebeard.

Marco joins Whitebeard’s crew, watches as it grows from a handful of men to multiple divisions. It’s hard to call him Pops, having been enemies and only sometimes allies, but Newgate is just as stubborn as Roger in many cases and looks so proud the first time the name slips from his mouth.

He never fights against Roger and his crew, usually brushing past the bewildered pirates with a bottle split between him and Ray, even if he has to deal with the ‘you’re too young for drinking’ comments.

Marco is promoted to first mate and is stunned as that spot has always been Diamond Jozu’s position. But the crew voted and they trust him and he’s their big brother. It makes Marco feel warm.

Marco is the one to recruit Thatch, young and bright not yet with his iconic hairstyle. But his cooking is just what they need on a growing crew and Thatch thrives.

Life continues, and things come to pass just like before. Roger dies and Marco sees first hand the decline of Whitebeard. The realization time is killing his old Captain’s rival is hard, not even his flames can heal old age.

He probably enjoys the fights with Shanks crew the most because he knows what they want, a good drink and maybe a fight. As Pops and Shanks yell and clash he walks up to Benn as offers him a drink and a safe place to watch from. He’ll take every chance he gets to enjoy the company of his friends before its slips away.

It’s been years but it also passed in a blink of an eye as reports of Jinbe fighting an upcoming rookie reaches the deck of the Moby Dick. Marco lets out a breath. Ace.

Marco never saw how Pops took one look at this brat and wanted him on his crew.

Never saw how Thatch’s eyes lit up as Ace snapped back sarcastically and knew he found something fun.

Never saw how the crew slowly adopted this angry child as their own and he gradually accepted them too.

Never saw how Luffy’s first bounty poster made his whole world and how it was all torn down when one of his own division kills Thatch.

Now Marco sees how the once happy family fell, all because of one devil fruit. They only later identify it as the Dark Dark fruit, and reading the far too short description of its powers, leaves Marco wondering what other secrets it had.

So we have canon, Ace goes after Teach despite Marco’s warnings and pleas. He does and Marco can only mentally prepare himself for the worst. Shanks distracts Kaido as they head to war. It’s planned a bit differently than he’s seen it in the past, but that’s what past knowledge gets you.

He goes to war like canon and the war ends like canon. Ace and Pops are dead but Luffy escaped with the help of the up and coming supernova, Trafalgar Law.

It feels like a fever dream as Marco stands in front of the two graves of Ace and Pops, shoulder to shoulder with Shanks once again.

“I could use a drink.”

“Get me a seastone ring and I’ll give you a story too.”

Marco and Shanks drink in quiet in the Captain’s room on the Red Force. It looks nearly identical to the times when he’s been on the crew, even has his wanted poster on the wall.

“Why am I on your walls, Shanks? Trying to get me to join more than just your crew?”

“You know, I put it up when I was smashed and never felt like taking it down. Seemed to belong there.”

“You don’t say.”

They drink and drink til bottles litter the floor. Marco is the only one still going, drinking and talking about everything. Shanks slowed when the bird mentioned his multiple pasts and stopped when Marco said they had once been nakama. It was sobering and he started comforting the man when the tears got to be too much.

“I got so close Shanks. I only have one try left, yoi.”

“Sounds like you got close this time Marc… just… whatever you do next time, do what you want. Make the changes that matter to you.”

Marco waits til Shanks is asleep before taking a nearby knife and plunging it into his heart.

Triskaidekaphobia

12 and one sane life left, Marco awakens on a mission. If this is going to be his last chance… then he’s going to make sure all the people he cares about survive.

He joins Edward Newgate as the very first member of his new crew, easily calling the older man ‘Pops’ and man decides he likes the sound of that.

There’s nothing he can do for Roger, his illness incurable even to his healing blue flames (it was something he tried very early on), but before the man’s death, they drink and Marco tells him all sorts of stories about a boy named Ace and his brothers. Roger laughs till he cries.

“You know something Phoenix, if I ever had a son, he would be named Ace.”

“It’s a good name.”

“It really is.”

He’s sure Roger realizes the truth in the end, telling the Phoenix to look after him and his mother for him.

It took some planing and a lot of luck but after Roger’s execution Marco was able to lead Garp to Rouge faster than previously. It took secret letters and a few other bribes but the Marine was able to smuggle the woman off Baterilla, taking her and the baby she carried to the East Blue where she would be safe.

Marco handled the business on Ohara personally, but when Olivia failed to listen to his warnings, he knocked her out. Shoving her at Saul and Robin, the group escaped the Buster Call but were still tracked by the government for years to come.

Years later, he arrives in the North Blue just in time to save his old ward from several gunshot wounds, helping him and the crying boy to the next town over.

He sends money and a letter to Bell-mere telling her she’s worth more to her girls alive than dead.

Marco clears Tom’s name before Spandam can kill him, Cutty Flam is still presumed dead after attempting to stop the sea train.

The Phoenix sends medicine to Usopp’s mother and prevents the death of Chopper’s mentor Hiluluk.

Marco easily befriends Ace, welcoming him into the new crew. He saves Thatch from death, but for all his careful planning Teach still escapes.

With the war still on, Marco plots and toils.

Upon Shanks’ visit he has both crews agree to be close at hand incase something goes wrong, which it will and does.

Completely cuts the whole confrontation between the two captains having seen it too many times.

“None of us have time for your squabbling, not our crews or Ace, yoi.”

Hearing of the execution, Marco sends out orders to all their allies and just one more.

He calls a number he had memorized long ago. It didn’t pick up the first ring or even the second but on the third…

“Hello Dragon.”

It’s all set as Marco stands on the Moby in the middle of Marineford. He’s done all he could in planning for this.

He watches as Luffy predictable falls from the sky, challenging anyone who dare stands in his way. He watches as the Marines pull out all their tricks to stop Whitebeard. He watches and waits and there.

Ace’s true weakness that he was always too kind, Marco thought as the fire man would not let the taunt go. He stops and that’s all the chance Akainu needed. The admiral attacks but Akainu’s fist impaled not Ace but him. There was a just hiss as flames tried to heal, gasps of Ace and Luffy watched in horror.

“Run, damn brats.”

Marco falls but it’s the first time he’s satisfied. He laughs and fixes a stare at Blackbeard.

“It will never be your age.”

The Phoenix lives and dies in cycles. It brings the dawn, the coming of a new time.

Marco hopes that with his death, it will be their age, Luffy’s or Ace’s or Sabo’s. That’s what he wishes to see. Them to live, them to be free.

Broken Hourglass

Marco awakens to what he assumes with be 13, where he will slowly go mad and lose all sense of reality till he turns to ash.

Instead he’s surrounded by crying faces.

“What?”

“You big feathered idiot!” Cried Thatch rubbing at his face, attempting to hide flowing tears. “What were you thinking?!”

“Wh-“

“I think we all know he wasn’t thinking anything good.” Answered Shanks appearing with a grin just in eyesight.

Marco took the moment to get good look at all the faces surrounding him. There were his boys, Luffy, Ace, and an all grown up Sabo just as much hugging each other as they were to clutching on to his sash.

There was a tall blond man in a pink hat crying next to a much smaller boy with pink hair, a man with a spotted hat giving them awkward comforting pats on the back.

Pops was over to the side with Garp and Rayleigh, the old guard watching over them.

Marco sat up, noticing no hole in his chest and that they were no longer on Marineford. “What happened, yoi?”

“You kinda exploded. Sent Akainu flying back and the battle almost continued if it wasn’t for pinky here. We thought you were dead till the ashes came together and there you were Marc, bird form and all.”

Marco gulped looking at Shanks. “M-Marc?”

“Yeah. We all remember. Some of it? Most of it? Ehhh how did you ever keep it all straight???”

Marco laughs and laughs. Because no one died and that mattered more than anything.

Epilogue

Bell-mare remembers and sees the note and is absolutely gonna punch him when she gets the chance.

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epiphyllous · 5 years

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What if: Marine!Luffy (technically)

I feel like a lot of people have touched on the AU if Luffy ever became a marine instead of a pirate, and I really like reading about them! I watched a video on YT that goes into it pretty in depth (check it out here), and I do agree that some of it is very plausable! But it takes away a lot of what I believe is integral to Luffy’s story (asides from the fact Luffy wants to be a pirate).

Honestly, this stemmed because I don't want Luffy to lose most of the integral part of his life-- which is meeting Shanks.

As stated in the video, it due to Shanks’ influence and Garp's absencenthat sets Luffy on the path to becoming a pirate, and I do see why Shanks has to be out of the picture for Luffy to even consider being a marine.

But what if Luffy raised to be a marine but still maintains his integrity that not everyone is bad just because of what they are? And thus we would still see OUR Luffy but Marine, which makes me happy :)

(Feel free to interact and share your thoughts too! I'm just trying to have fun fleshing my thoughts out. ‘tis long post)

Luffy doesn't grow up wanting to be a marine hero like Garp, bc I still maintain that he doesn't want to be a hero. He should still be a free spirit for the most part, but I think his main goal in this AU at first would be strong-- whether it's to be strong for the sake of being strong or to protect other people.

Or maybe he hears and listens to marine stories and learns how they travel through the Grand Line-- all romanticized, btw, but I do believe marines out there who do fight justice (not that Luffy is interested in that aspect at the age of 6) and go on "adventures" as they put it, making Luffy star eyed about the world. Regardless, he isn't off-put by the marine thing and that's the big point. Maybe if Garp hadn't just forced him to be a marine and instead instilled the aspect of adventure and camaraderie, Luffy wouldn't be so resistant.

When Luffy meets Shanks, I think most of the interaction remains, except Luffy's fascination is replaced with curiosity. Doesn't change much, but it does let Luffy still be as fearless as ever in the face of pirates and want to know more about Shanks. Maybe as a child he DID have the mindset that all pirates are bad, so he tries to fight them off much to Shanks' amusement and eventually realizes after interacting with them that not all pirates are bad after all.

"Take me to sea with you!"

"No way! You're too weak! Besides, aren't you afraid of sailing with a bunch of pirates?"

"Shanks is not a bad pirate!"

"So there are good and bad pirates now?"

"Yeah. Good pirates party all the time and have fun. Bad pirates do bad things," is what I'm sure Luffy at age 6 would think for the most part.

And they'd laugh and tease Luffy for being weak, Luffy would cut his eye to prove he's not, and at this point Shanks is more of a role model rather than a pirate role model: he shows what a man should do, how he should protect his friends, and when to stand up for yourself.

And in saving and sacrificing his arm for a Luffy who doesn't want to be a pirate but a marine, it solidifies the theme that it doesn't matter what you are, but who you are that counts.

And that teaching follows Luffy everywhere he goes for his entire journey.

As for the straw hat, I stubbornly refuse that Shanks does not give it Luffy. As we know, the hat plays in a much larger role than being the crown for the next king of pirates. It's evident in the large straw hat in Mariejoa and the significance the Gorosei puts on a symbol like that. Anyhow, I'm not going to go into that much but REGARDLESS, Shanks gives Luffy the straw hat and to return it to him once he becomes a great (read: powerful, impactful, influential) man.

I think a large bump in the road with this theory is that Luffy would have an insanely harder time in his childhood. As a big-mouthed child, he wouldn't shut up about being the next Marine Admiral (best position of power little does he know; Luffy just knows they tend to be the strongest Marines), and knowing Ace who would never EVER want to be a marine because of his influence with Sabo and his upbringing of bandits, this does not fly well. I could probably entertain that Ace could have been a marine because people hated his father so much, but I think his goal of being more than just his father's son really paves a path for him to be a pirate, regardless of other influences.

So if you think Ace hated Luffy before at this point in time, oh boy.

I mean, Luffy can't just DIE, so really the meeting between him, Ace, and Sabo go relatively the same except Ace and Sabo are much more suspicious of Luffy, which doesn’t really bode well for him. But I’m pretty sure, marine or not, even Ace and Sabo wouldn’t abandon Luffy if he refused to rat them out-- or they might even feel even more incensed that Luffy didn’t say anything because he wants to be a marine.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“If I said anything, you wouldn’t be my friend!”

“We’re going to be pirates; you’re going to be a marine-- we’re not even on the same side! We shouldn’t even be friends!”

“But why does that matter?”

And everything goes well, they become brothers, and Sabo “dies.”

And above all, I think this moment is a turning point in Luffy’s life (wow he’s having a lot of revelations as a ten-year-old; poor kid) because now he not only recognizes that not all pirates are bad but also know not all marines are good (because how could they be protecting someone who killed his brother?) and their system has a lot of fixing to do.

Ace has a lot of mixed feelings about this, because his baby brother may want to be a marine, but Sabo died from going against the government-- so what does this mean for their future? But in the end, Luffy is still Luffy, and Ace wouldn’t abandon his brother, especially not when after he announced he wasn’t going to die Luffy declares that he was going to be a Marine and destroy the system from within.

Not really sure how small Luffy would put that in words, but the feeling is already there, and that sets his beginning, seven years later.

Some Straw Hats are not going to be with Luffy, and it’s unfortunate but a must. Some will, like Zoro, who Luffy saves at Shell Town-- and honestly, it might just be easier for him to find Mihawk if he’s part of the Marines-- and Nami, whose mother was a marine and the Arlong Pirates never gave her any reason to like pirates anyhow. There is some sticky business considering Nami’s earned treasure was stolen by the marines, but I’m very sure meeting Luffy would definitely convince her that there are good marines out there.

Many of the Straw Hats would have never been pirates if not for Luffy, asides from Usopp and Brook, who were or had aspirations to be a pirate before. As such, Usopp’s village would be saved by Luffy, but he wouldn’t go be a marine because he’s always wanted to be like his father. Brook would probably go back to Laboon after getting back his shadow on Thriller Bark and Luffy wouldn’t have a musician and the One Piece Universe Beyonce would never be born :(

Tbh, there’s a high chance Chopper wouldn’t join either, considering his father-figure waved a pirate flag, but I wouldn’t put it past Luffy to defend that flag anyways because of its significance to Chopper and the bravery that Dr. Hiruluk conveyed through it. But for the sake of this indulgent AU, lets say he does. :))

Robin though... uhhh being a wanted women makes it pretty difficult for her to join Luffy and considering Enies Lobby and the whole Buster Call deal... probably not. I can see her joining the Revolutionary Army pretty early on as a result though, but Luffy’s choice to save her life would not have changed nor would his impact on her change as well. You know, low key, I kinda want her to hide out on Luffy’s ship for a while and his crew being all “wtf captain, she’s a danger to society; isn’t she a bad person?” and Luffy just shrugs and laughs and tells them it’s okay (his original Straw Hat crew that stuck with him as a marine just smh but they know him too well to think he wouldn’t save Robin otherwise) and to have them decide if she’s a bad person or not themselves.

And EVENTUALLY Robin will be recruited into the Revolutionary Army, maybe in like a intense, “You have to go Robin, because even I can’t save you if you stay” sorta deal. (This could also be a chance for Luffy to meet Sabo, but that’s like a whole ‘nother can of worms.)

So Enies Lobby doesn’t happen. Franky doesn’t join either :/ And I don’t see Jimbei becoming a pirate after all the shit that’s happened to him and his bros, and honestly I just ever see him as being a marine, no matter how much he admires Luffy. Maybe they’d be buddies when he’s a Warlord though :))

So Alabasta-- Vivi gets to save her country with actual marine support aka Luffy. He works together with Smoker (heehee!) and Tashigi (god I would die for the interactions between her and Marine!Zoro) and kicks Crocodile’s butt regardless of his title as Warlord. Luffy calls it as he sees it, and violent dictatorship and mistreatment of his friends is a BIG no-no, maybe especially as marine who upholds goodness.

He gets promoted and gets the credit he deserves, though he’s too busy chomping down on food to even notice.

Vivi stays with her people, and they leave.

Meeting Ace during the Alabasta arc would have taken a little more secrecy-- or maybe Ace goes undercover for a brief period of time like Oda drew him a while back; wouldn’t put it past him to meet his little brother while he chases after Blackbeard.

Oh wait, would Sky Island even happen??? Honestly, who knows, but if he fights Bellamy, it would just ruin his redemption arc during Dressrosa bc wouldn’t Luffy just capture him?? or maybe he just punches him and that’s punishment enough who knows I didn’t think about this part in particular

BUT MARINEFORD. oh marineford

You see, I think as a marine, Luffy is completely different from Garp from the fact that he would NEVER put his job over his family. Luffy has already had one brother die, and he isn’t going to let another die if he can help it.

So what does that leave us? Maybe a prison break? Maybe going behind the scenes (as per Nami’s suggestion and implementation bc Luffy can’t be subtle for shit) to rig the execution and fuck up the cannons.

But the real mega problem here, is if Ace dies, I don’t know if Luffy can be a marine anymore, and that’s a big problem. Or maybe in having his brother die in his arms, despite trying to help him escape, will incite him to challenge the system and destroy corruption once and for all. (Demotion be damned.) But when Sabo finds out Luffy let Ace die in front of him, I think the connotations would change with their reunion since Luffy is a marine and thus still, regardless of who Luffy is, “on the other team.”

In fact, the existence of the Marineford Arc makes it extremely difficult for Luffy to continue being a marine, so honestly, at this point, even though it goes against the entire Marine!Luffy AU, I think Luffy could just go rogue, like he was always meant to be in the original One Piece timeline. So maybe it’s a full-circle to Luffy being what he was meant to. Who knowssss but that’s all I’ve got.

Let me know what you think!! If you read this far haha I’m always down to talk about Luffy bc I love him sm.

#one piece #monkey d luffy #marine!luffy au #me rambling #one piece headcanons

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moongothic · 2 months

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This is gonna turn into some Crocodad Propaganda eventually but putting the man aside for a little bit

Let's be real for a moment. Regardless of who Luffy's other biological parent is, regardless of if they're relevant to the story or not, no matter what has become of that person, if they're dead or somewhere out there alive, etc-- I believe Oda "knows the truth".

Although it took One Piece until post-Enies Lobby to reveal some of Luffy's blood relatives to us, Oda had technically introduced both Garp and Dragon to us all the way back in the East Blue saga. And Ace was introduced not too long after in the Baroque Works saga, along with his tattoo which held that secret tribute to Sabo all along. (Also he was introduced as "Portgaz D. Ace" meaning Oda must've intended to make the two non-blood brothers from the get-go.) All this means that Luffy's family, both adopted and blood relatives, have been in Oda's mind from the very begining of the story. And so if Oda had figured out Luffy's grandfather, father and at least one brother (if not both) from the begining, then why would he not have decided what became of the person who gave birth to the idiot as well? Like considdering how detail-oriented and meticulous Oda can be, would it not be unusual for him to essentially forget about a character that important (in the sense that Luffy literally would not exist without them) and just handwave them away without much thought? Would that not be out of character for Oda? As such, I don't think it is not unreasonable for us to believe that Oda would know what happened to Luffy's other bio-parent. Mind you, it really could be just something like "Luffy's mother died of The Disease when Luffy was a baby", or "the mom fell down the stairs" or "was eaten by a bear in the woods" or something, anything, whatever. Even if it truly does not matter to the story one bit, I'm sure Oda knows the truth of what happened and why that character wasn't a part of Luffy's life.

But at the same time, if the identity and the fate of Luffy's birthing parent truly did not matter to the story at all, then why wouldn't Oda just tell us who that was and what happened to them? In an SBS or an interview? It's not like people haven't been asking about it, because fans and staff alike have been asking about it for years. If the information really would not change anything, be it the direction the story will take or how we view the characters, if it really is just worthless trivia, then why keep it away from us?

Now of course, I'm sure you'd want to point out that one time Oda told Mayumi Tanaka that "A young boy's adventure begins after he leaves his mother's arms. I want to tell this young boy's adventure story, so his mom is not part of it." And Oda isn't known for lying, we do kind of want to take what he told Mayumi Tanaka at face value. At the same time though. If Luffy's other parent did become a plot relevant character in like the final 200 chapters of the story, after a 1100 chapters, they and their potential connection to Luffy would not have mattered to the story for 90% of its run. For an overwhealming majority of Luffy's adventure, that person would not have been a part of it. So if that character did become relevant, and Oda was lying, then it'd be a white lie at worst. But also, if Oda did intend to reveal that other parent eventually, when the time was right, then surely he wouldn't want to get people hyped up about it way ahead of time. If it did turn out to be a big plot twist or an otherwise important plot point, Oda would want to keep it under the wraps and a secret until the right time, you don't want to spoil something like that. Not to mention it could end up working like a distraction and make people not focus on the more important things happening in the story currently. So really, I think we'd all forgive him for a white lie there. Not to mention, technically speaking, if Luffy doesn't even have a mom but two dads, then Oda wouldn't really be lying either.

But that does bring up an important thing to considder.

If Crocodile does turn out to be Luffy's other dad, when did Oda get that idea, and when would he have committed to it?

Because, keep in mind, One Piece began back in 1997. Twenty seven whole years ago. Which means there's two things to considder; the evolution of queer rights over the past near three decades, as well as the fact that One Piece has more than surpassed Oda's original plans for the series. We must not forget how for a manga to remain serialized in Weekly Shounen JUMP, you need to perform well in the popularity polls consistently; if your manga starts dropping in popularity, JUMP can cancel it and force you end it prematurely. Of course, Oda arguably does not have to worry about those polls anymore after all these decades, there's no way in hell JUMP would ever cancel fucking One Piece in this day and age. But that might not have been the case 15 years ago, that was not the case 20 years ago, and that was absolutely not the fucking case 25 years ago. Like we all famously know that Oda originally planned One Piece to maybe run for like a year, then five years, then ten etc etc. That really is because at the begining of his career he had no quarantee he'd be able to tell the full story he was slow cooking at the back of his mind. Back in the early days, One Piece could've been canceled and ended prematurely, so Oda smartly chose to write it focusing very specifically on what mattered to the story at that moment, in the short term. Yes, he did start laying out the groundwork for things to come, but he did it so subtly that had OP been forced to end early, the series wouldn't have been left with too many massive, gaping plotholes or unresolved sidestories. Another thing to keep in mind is how comic artists for JUMP do have editors etc who can have a say in what goes into the manga (famously, Sasuke only existed because Matashi Kishimoto's editor suggested it). So again, while Oda might be able to do whatever the hell he pleases in One Piece at this point, that wouldn't have been the case 20+ years ago. He would have been more or less at the whims of his editors back in the day.

So would Oda have thought about giving Luffy, the main character of the series, a transgender father back in the year 2000? Could that really have been the secret plan from the start? And would Oda's editor(s) at JUMP have allowed that? Or, did Oda maybe come up with the idea later?

Now just so we're clear, I am NOT suggesting Crocodad was Oda's original intent and that his editors didn't let him do it or anything like that, my tinfoil hat isn't on that fucking tight. What I do want to suggest, is that it is plausible Crocodile being Luffy's other dad was an idea Oda was playing around with at the back of his mind from the begining, but wasn't sure he'd ever get to, mainly due to the uncertainty of series' future and partially because he could've been unsure if his editors would even allow him to write that story. And IF this was the case, Oda may not have even started committing to to the idea until around the CP9 saga. Or, it's possible Oda only got the idea sometime after the completion of the Alabasta arc/during Skypiea saga, and started laying down the groundwork for during Summit War so that, if he ever got around to it, he'd be able to commit and tell that story.

Regardless, let's be real.

It is interesting and kind of suspicious how Crocodile does just happen to be introduced around the same time the rest of Luffy's family was first shown to us, even if we didn't know Garp and Dragon were Luffy's family yet (this was also the same time the first canon queer character was introduced; Oda was playing around with queer characters during Crocodile's introduction, possibly testing the waters to see what he could get away with?) During the CP9 Saga we got the Miss Goldenweek cover story, where we see what's become of Crocodile after the fall of Baroque Works. This is of course adding to the world building of the CP9 Saga (where we're told the criminals who go through Enies Lobby are either sent to Impel Down or to Marineford; so us finding out Crocodile's gone to ID is playing off of what we knew would become of Robin and Franky and the Strawhats not come to rescue them. AND it's foreshadowing for the Summit War Saga), but also, soon after we were reminded of Crocodile and told where he's been sent off to, we were finally formally introduced to Garp and Dragon (Garp having already been mentioned by Aokiji at the begining of the Saga). And we close off the Saga watching Ace and Blackbeard have their fateful match. So again, Crocodile was on Oda's mind around the same time the rest of Luffy's family was. And indeed, after Thriller Bark we then move onto Summit War proper, where Oda does all The Things we would considder The Groundwork for Crocodad, most important being the introduction of Ivankov and their Devil Fruit. But again, just like before, Crocodile just happens to be there at the same time as this saga, which really heavily focuses on Luffy's family, plays out. While we learn about Dragon's secretive nature and connection to Iva-chan, Garp's feelings for the boys, Ace's struggle with his heritage and Luffy's love for him, Sabo and Garp... Yeah, Crocodile's just... Also there.

Whenever Oda starts dwelling into Luffy's family, Crocodile is always there. It's a bizarre coincidence if nothing else.

(And oh won't you look at that, Crocodile has once again become a plot relevant character, just in time for The Final Saga where Dragon has also started becoming actually plot relevant as well)

All of this to say, again.

The fact that Oda has refused to tell us anything about Luffy's other parent is sus, and to me indicates that either although unusual for him Oda genuinely just doesn't give a damn about Luffy's other parent, or he's been trying to play it safe for years so that if he ever got the opportunity, he could give Luffy two dads. (Or maybe there's some other twist that has nothing to do with Crocodile, that is possible too, I just feel like if that was the case then why hide it for 27 years?)

Whatever the case, I'm sure Oda knows the truth.

And I'm sure we will find out the truth eventually, be it on the pages of the comic or in the SBS.

#Moon posting #OP Meta #Crocodad #This got so fucking long. Under the Read More you go #Hey Anon. Funny you should send that ask about those interviews from Oda when I was literally in the middle of writing this #What're the fucking odds lmao #Anyway Anon I hope you see this because I'm not going to answer to your ask *separately* since this post goes over the same stuff #Like it's not exactly what this post is REALLY about but since I go over it. Yeah discussing it once should be enough lol #The funny thing is that this post really was supposed to be more about how Croc's appearances in the story match the rest of Luffy's family #But I had too many things to say and I figured I might as well put all this shit into one post (for better or for worse)

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