Chapter Text
Ace was terrified. Witnessing the death of your loved ones is never something easy to get over, even if you’re already dead when it happens. God knows why Ace never came to the afterlife after his death a long time ago, instead, his soul stayed in his former devil fruit. That’s bad, as he never gets the chance to see his beloved father again, after all the problems he caused to him.
This must be fate, as the next owner of the fruit turned out to be someone who Ace knew very well. Turned out, his long-lost-supposed-to-be-dead brother, who is half of his soul he thought he had lost twelve years ago, is surprisingly healthy and lively. In addition, he is extremely beautiful too.
Ace would love to have Sabo to consume his former fruit more than anyone else. Because he is his Sabo, and Ace is his.
Along with Sabo, Ace had gone through a lot. The divine being is much smarter than Ace, as most of the time he discusses something with his comrades, they will be something that Ace doesn’t understand. Not like he cares anyway.
His Sabo is far too great for his own good. He saved the world, he saved civilians and saved nations, but he never cared about himself in the first place. Ace wishes he could be there with him, it’s just he couldn’t. If you think about that, Ace would be the last one to complain to Sabo about self-care, but hey, Ace didn’t think about that.
Ace hates the fact that he was there to witness his brother’s death and couldn’t do anything to save him. He even hates the fact that Luffy was there, forced to witness both of his brothers’ deaths more than that.
And above all, he hates the fact that Sabo looks slightly similar to him. He knows damn well that’s because of his death, because he was so stupid and useless that made his brother end up having to cover for him, to love Luffy with both his own part and Ace’s part. And he died looking like that, which he knows tortured Luffy more than anything. Not to mention the fact that he died the exact same way as Ace, just not magma that pierced through his chest.
And all of this was because Ace was so stupid.
Actually, Ace didn’t really have much time to think about it, because as soon as he saw Sabo’s soul went to the afterlife, a mysterious force pulled him somewhere he couldn’t tell.
And suddenly, Ace woke up again, after what felt like an eternity of sleepless nights.
He blinked a few times until he was sure that he could feel his heart beating. He got up from his bed, his hand was shaking, trying his best to touch all over his body, to make sure that there weren't any holes on his chest.
He was so excited that he accidentally burned his bed sheet. Thank god after all his time being a ghost he still remembered how to shut the fire. After all, he has seen Sabo do that a thousand times in that phrase.
It feels weird and wonderful at the same time. Ace found himself with his usual tattoo, but he realized that he is in his usual commander’s room, which means he doesn't have much time left till the betrayal.
But Ace didn’t really think much about it, as he could tell he’s starving. Years of being a ghost gave Ace a habit of not being seen, and years of being a Whitebeard gave Ace a habit of rushing into the kitchen and grabbing whatever he could.
He didn’t really care about his crew’s gazes, as he tried his best to consume the food quickly. They are probably just worried about him, as Ace is rarely that quiet, but they will have to adapt, as he had lived for years without anyone able to hear his sounds, and this is now somehow his habit. He was way too hungry at that point, that he didn’t even realise the chef that gave him food was not any random chef, but Thatch.
That’s actually good, because Ace is sure he could never see Thatch again without bursting into tears. Not after all that happened.
After finishing the meal, Ace went back to his current problem. Ace still has a question lingering in his mind, if he should tell pops about this or not. He doubts that pops will believe his words over a son that has been following him for decades, but he couldn’t think of any other choice.
He could just kill the man, but that would ruin the new born relationship between Ace and his family. It will also put his comrades, the Spade Pirates, into danger, too. He couldn’t risk them.
He missed the time with Sabo. The blonde is always the wiser one of them and he bet his brother could have a solution for this situation. If only he was here with Ace.
And then suddenly a thought came to the man’s mind. He has a plan, even if it’s not really a plan.