Kissing the Commanders (Whitebeard Pirates x Reader) - Part 2
One Piece | Marco, Ace, Izou, Thatch | 3.9k | Masterlist
On days when your body struggled to recover from a night with almost no sleep, you always found yourself drawn to the galley.
The heat from the ovens wrapped through the room in heavy waves, warming your skin long before you stepped fully inside. Somebody was always moving here. Boots against wood, knives against chopping boards, the low murmur of fourth division voices drifting beneath the steady groan of the ship itself. It never felt like a place where you had to think too carefully about where you stood or what you said.
You shuffled a little closer to the preparation tables with your legs crossed, reached out slowly and huffed when Thatch immediately slid his chopping board further out of your reach.
“You’re so mean to me,” you said.
He gave you a disbelieving look but fell for the comment regardless, holding out a slice of what he’d been chopping. “Mean to you?” he repeated. “Sugar, if I didn’t protect my ingredients, we would have nothing left for dinner.”
“I’m making sure nobody’s trying to poison you,” you said. “I promise.”
“Of course. That’s a genuine threat we face on this ship.”
“On every ship.”
Thatch laughed softly under his breath, shaking his head as he stepped close, reaching past you to take a pan from the cabinet behind you. His arm brushed against your shoulder, warmth lingering briefly through the thin fabric of your shirt while the scent of sugar and spice clung faintly to him. You allowed yourself one brief moment to appreciate the easy curve of his smile from this close.
Just for a second before he moved back to his kitchen with a smug smile. “You know. One day, I’ll find out how to convince you to join our crew.”
“When I’m in desperate need of stable employment?”
“When you figure out there are few things in life as addictive as excellent food,” he said. “And I suppose I could throw in very good hugs as a bonus.”
You laughed. “Hugs only? Here I thought the food was part of some elaborate seduction strategy.”
“Elaborate? Nah. I cook, you smile at me, I fall deeper in love. Pretty straightforward. I’ve been workin’ on it for years already.”
“Years?” you teased. “It’s a complicated strategy then.”
“Very slow progress,” he agreed with a dramatic sigh. “But it’s alright. I think I might get to you when I start proposing publicly.”
“Will you survive the rejection?”
“I’m very committed to the fantasy that this works out for me eventually.”
You couldn’t help but smile, shaking your head. “One day, I’m going to say yes and you’re going to not know what to do,” you warned him.
Before he could respond with whatever line you saw glinting in his eyes, the door swung open and the second division stepped in. They carried supply crates on their shoulders and Thatch squeezed your knee before he moved to direct them to the right store cupboards.
You immediately took the opportunity to reach over to the chopping board and swipe a few more snacks from it.
A loud, booming chuckle told you that you’d been spotted and you immediately looked to the source. Teach was impossible to ignore when he chose to make himself known.
“I had been feeling like we had a little less food lately,” he commented. “Looks like the kitchen has a mouse.”
You flashed him a pleased smile and held up a finger to your lips. “Maybe we can make a deal,” you whispered. “For your silence.”
He laughed again. “Ah, maybe. Maybe.”
Teach left his crate, one of the largest brought in, just outside the storeroom rather than carrying it the rest of the way himself before smacking his hands together. Dust flicked onto the ground but he didn’t follow the rest of his division out, stepping aside instead to let the other members past.
“Rumour had it you were disappearing yesterday,” he commented.
“Not quite yet. Much to the dismay of some,” you answered.
Teach was a strange man. You never knew quite what to make of him but he always had a broad smile stretched across his face and a jovial tone. He wasn’t particularly interesting to you and nor you to him but you’d spoken enough to know he was odd and somewhat lacking in any kind of motivation.
He shrugged. “Certainly not everyone. I think I can name a handful of others who ought to be happy to keep you.”
You looked to Thatch automatically and even busy with sorting, he looked over to you with such a genuine smile that your heart throbbed. “Absolutely,” he said. “Don’t let Marco give you too much trouble. He gets in his own head.”
You shook your head, keen to avoid the topic of Marco in case you allowed yourself to remember what had happened the night before. Unfortunately for your sanity, Teach nodded in agreement.
“He’s been on Ace’s back lately too,” he commented. “So, you’re not alone.”
“Ace?” Thatch asked.
“Yeah, near constant. Mainly ‘cause of the kid’s big crush on her.”
He nodded toward you and you died a little inside. Izou wasn’t the only one who had noticed? You tried to keep your face calm even as your heart lodged itself in your throat in a harsh reminder of the night before and the problems you were avoiding. You had no idea how to even start that conversation.
“Aw, he should lighten up,” Thatch said with a handwave. “It’s sweet. And he’s clearly got good taste.”
You laughed despite yourself, warm affection curling through your chest that at least Thatch wasn’t acting like this was the end of everything onboard.
“Don’t see what all the fuss is about myself,” Teach said with a loud laugh.
You weren’t sure if he was teasing or not but you chose to take it that way, shrugging. “I don’t either,” you admitted. “From what I’ve heard, she’s prone to stealing food.”
Teach chortled while Thatch rolled his eyes. But whatever momentary humour you took in it vanished the second the galley door swung open again.
Ace stepped inside with a supply crate balanced against one shoulder, sea air and sunlight following briefly in behind him before the door shut again. His eyes found yours immediately. The pleased expression appeared fast enough that you couldn’t ignore it anymore. No wonder everybody had seen it. He was the opposite of subtle.
“Ace,” Thatch greeted. “What’s this I’m hearing about you trying to steal my girl, hm?”
“Your girl?” you corrected.
“Ah, you’re right,” he said. “Future girl.”
Heat crawled up the back of your neck and you gave the chef a slightly panicked look that made him frown in response. It was hardly the first time he’d made that joke and yet…
Ace had frozen mid-step, clearly incredibly confused as he looked toward Thatch and Teach who were both laughing. Then, before common sense caught up, he responded, “Not if you’re already too late.”
The words seemed to freeze the entire room the second they left his mouth. Even the steady clatter of preparation behind you faltered for a beat. Your shoulders crept higher as everybody in the kitchen gave him a look, both divisions clearly interested at the very loud challenge.
Ace looked like a man realising he’d just walked into an execution. “I mean – ”
You were going to kill him.
“What was that?” Thatch asked, amusement already beginning to curl into his voice at the teasing material that had just been offered to him.
Ace’s face turned bright red beneath his freckles. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
“Hm…? What did you mean it like?”
He was melting slowly and you would have taken sympathy on him if not for how you were too busy fighting off your own fluster.
“I just meant it normally.”
“Normally?”
Teach threw his head back in boisterous laughter. “You’ve got some competition commander,” he said, clapping Thatch on the shoulder. “Think the kid plans on stealing her out from under you when you’re not looking. Though maybe that’s what makes it fun, eh?”
Ace looked at you, his expression almost desperate for guidance on how to solve this. But you had no idea how to fix this.
You met Teach’s gaze and he looked a little too inquisitive, watching you for a response. You settled for just giving him a mildly unimpressed expression before you turned to Thatch to tell him to lay off Ace.
The chef held up his hands before you even said anything but you could see a strange melancholy lingering in him. “It’s fine,” he said. “I’ve never been scared of a little friendly competition.”
“I’m not fond of it myself,” you commented playfully. “When you try to show off, you always give me the weirdest foods.”
“Hey,” he ribbed. “I do that regardless. You’re my taste tester.”
But Teach clearly wasn’t understanding the way you were trying to move this conversation because he snorted. “Very gracious,” he said. “Not sure Izou will share the same sentiment though.”
You could hear the divisions whispering and sharp looks didn’t do much to stop them.
“Izou?” Ace repeated as though he’d never even heard the name before. “What does he have to do with anything?”
And honestly, that sounded like a great idea.
You hopped off the table, squeezing your way past the fourth division as you hurried to the door. “That reminds me, I did promise to talk to him today. I’ll be back later.”
You didn’t hear Thatch’s usual complaint whenever you fled the galley but you brushed that off as how desperately you were trying to ignore Ace’s fallen expression as you hurried past.
The corridors of the Moby Dick were never fully quiet but you didn’t bump into anybody – hurrying through the halls with your pulse refusing to settle beneath your ribs. Humiliation lingered stubbornly beneath your skin.
Seas, Ace. Did he have to make that comment? Now the entire crew would be whispering.
You pressed the heels of your palms briefly against your eyes as you turned down the hall. Maybe you should change your plan to just telling Izou you were going to jump overboard.
It would be better for your sanity.
“What’s wrong with you?”
The question came from behind you, sharp enough to make you stop abruptly as though you’d been caught doing something wrong. Marco looked very unimpressed as he stepped out of his office that you’d just stormed past.
“Nothing. I’m walking. Don’t you have something important to do?”
His eyes narrowed at the harsh snap but he didn’t speak to it. “Weren’t you just in the galley? Somebody chase you out of there for being in the way?”
“You know, it’s honestly none of your business.”
Marco blinked and stayed silent for a second. He wasn’t used to the hostility brimming from you despite all your usual arguments, you’d never taken such a biting tone with him before. And you knew you ought to have just deflected it: complained that he was hovering like a damned mother hen again and ignored him.
But you were already on edge and now the words were out there.
Marco moved further down the hallway, approaching you. “Fine. Imagining I’m stupid and know nothing’s upsetting you, where were you this morning.”
You almost rolled your eyes at him. “Sleeping. Why do you care?”
“Because you weren’t there for breakfast or for your usual tea with Izou yoi.”
“Guess I didn’t get enough sleep. Or maybe I was actually just avoiding you so I didn’t get interrogated.”
His expression tightened at your comment. “That’s not what this is.”
“Right. You’re questioning my exact movement patterns which is totally normal.”
Confusion flickered briefly through him before his defences began to rise in response to your agitation. “Maybe I wouldn’t need to if you didn’t act guilty about everything.”
“Guilty? Is that why you’re out here? Because you think I’m sneaking around.”
“I thought you were upset, yoi. But then you started responding to me as though I caught you doing something wrong.”
You rolled your eyes. “What do you want me to say, hm? Congratulations, you’ve been right this whole time. I shoved a transponder snail down my top so that the marines could listen in to every conversation the crew has.”
“That’s not what I’ve accused you of.”
“Yeah? Why not?”
“Because I think their ears would bleed from hearing constant bad lines from Thatch. Now what have you been doing that’s riled you like this?”
You crossed your arms. “Guess. I’d love to hear your theories again.”
Genuine regret crossed his face so quickly you almost missed it. Then he exhaled slowly and the tension somewhat left his shoulders. “I’m not trying to start a fight.”
It caught you for a second and you forced the annoyance from your tone.
If it wasn’t for the guilt already twisting in your chest, you may have felt bad for the argument that was clearly being listened in on by multiple crew members down the hall. But you really didn’t have time to spare more regret for your actions.
“Aren’t you always doing that?” you asked.
He didn’t respond for a second and when he did, it was with a slight edge. “What happened?”
“Nothing.”
His jaw tensed and he shook his head. “Right.”
And just like that, the momentary softness vanished and old irritation arose anew. “Oh, don’t do that.”
“Do what?”
“That thing where you decide I’m lying before even bothering to find out what about.”
He shrugged. “You are lying.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I know you better than you think.”
You really didn’t have time to stand here reiterating the same point over and over again. You took a step away, throwing a hand up in the air. “Sure,” you said. “Because you spend so much time talking to me.”
He looked almost hurt at that. You wished you didn’t see that expression on him.
“I’m going to find Izou,” you said stiffly.
“Of course you are.”
Something ugly twisted beneath the words and just as he did so often, he took what good grace you had and destroyed it with one comment.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
He turned away from you, heading back to his office. “Nothing. Go find Izou.”
The dismissal stung more than it should have. You hated how he could do that.
You turned sharply and continued the way you were going, practically sliding down the stairs towards the commanders’ quarters. The crew had the wherewithal to move out of your way as you went; the noise of their activity lost beyond the walls until only the groan of the sea remained. Warm light spilled faintly beneath the doorway before you even knocked.
“You’re early,” Izou called.
You stepped in and closed the door behind you; some awful knot tightening in your chest when you looked at him. He sat near the low table by the window, loose fabric pooled around him in soft folds while thread spilled across the wood beside his hands. The room smelled faintly of tea leaves and powder smoke, lanternlight catching warm gold against the dark lacquer of his pistols nearby.
He looked up at you, smile pleasant but prying. “Well,” he said. “I don’t know what happened with you but I imagine I should blame Marco.”
You sighed and stepped closer, dropping onto the bench beside him with significantly less grace than usual and pressed your palms into your eyes. “Not even,” you muttered. “But he doesn’t make things better.”
“I don’t think he knows how to,” Izou said as he set the fabric aside. “Not when it comes to you. Now what did you do that’s so bad?”
“You’re going to laugh at me.”
“Most likely.” His mouth curved faintly. “But you wouldn’t be here if you didn’t want to tell me.”
You groaned softly because he was right. Because if you were going to talk to anybody about this and not have it made into a thing, Izou was perfect. You leaned back against the wall behind you and for a moment, neither of you spoke.
“I kissed Ace.”
Izou stayed silent for a second before he chuckled softly, the sound almost breathless. You gave him a desperately pleading expression but he didn’t appear too horrified. So, it surely couldn’t be as bad as you feared. Right?
“That poor boy,” he said. “No wonder he’s been walking around this morning and staring at walls.”
You sighed heavily. “Have I broken him?”
“Very possibly. I would say almost certainly but there’s a chance he continues on in hopes he might get another one.”
You turned your head to the window, tapping offbeat against the windowsill. “It was stupid,” you admitted. “I… I don’t even know why but I thought, you know, maybe it would be – I don’t know. It didn’t make his interest any better.”
Izou scoffed. “You kissed a man and thought it would make him fall out of love with you? Come now. That’s foolish.”
“He’s not in love,” you complained because you didn’t have another defence. You leaned your head against the glass. “What do I do?”
“About Ace? It depends on what you want from him.”
You didn’t know. You looked toward Izou to make sure he wasn’t judging you but he instead looked a little out of it, carefully examining his sleeve for a missing thread that wasn’t there. He met your eyes and raised an eyebrow. For a while, you stared at each other in silence and then you pushed yourself away from the window.
“This was so stupid,” you said. “We were decent enough friends but then I went and complicated something that had no reason to be complicated.”
He hummed faintly. “Perhaps I may complicate things further for you?”
You frowned. “What do you mean?”
He shifted himself on the bench, a hand coming up to catch your jaw and pull you in, your heart frozen solid in your chest. “By following your example.”
“Izou…”
“Mm?”
Words weren’t fully forming on your tongue.
His lips met yours softly at first, patient enough that for one second you worried he might still pull away. He didn’t.
One hand slipped around your waist, drawing you closer with quiet certainty while the other remained steady against your jaw.
The sudden intensity of it hit like stepping too close to open flame, sharp heat rushing through you so quickly your fingers caught instinctively against the front of his kimono. He kissed with precision, every movement deliberate, devastatingly controlled even as his grip on you tightened.
You made a quiet noise against his lips and felt the faintest hint of satisfaction in the way he exhaled.
When he finally pulled back, it was only far enough for you to feel his breath against your skin.
“There,” he said. “Now things are equally complicated for us.”
You stared at him. Izou looked entirely composed, save for the slight darkening of his eyes and the hand still resting warm against your waist.
“You…”
“Yes?”
“Why?”
“Mm. Curiosity among other things.” He brushed his thumb lightly against your side. “I’ve captured your attention for so many years, I imagine it would only be fair, no?”
You huffed out a breath, trying very hard to ignore the way your heartbeat had quickened. “You are not helping my situation.”
“No,” Izou agreed smoothly. “I imagine I am making it much worse.”
He sounded entirely too pleased with himself and, despite every warning bell ringing somewhere deep in your chest, you couldn’t quite find it in yourself to regret any part of it.
Interlude
Ace found Teach later that evening near the lower deck, reclining against a stack of crates with a bottle dangling loosely from one hand. The older man raised his eyes immediately when Ace approached and grinned broadly.
“Ah, commander. You’re looking miserable.”
Ace scowled, more on instinct than anything. “I’m not.”
“Suppose you’ve always looked like somebody shot your dog?” he said with a booming laugh before he took a slow, deep drink.
For a moment, Ace just leaned against the railing beside him, staring out across the black stretch of ocean beyond the ship. Moonlight broke silver across the water whenever the Moby Dick shifted with the tide while cold wind pushed restlessly through his hair. The wind cooled some of the lingering heat beneath his skin but not nearly enough.
Unfortunately.
Teach watched him quietly for several seconds before he chuckled under his breath. “So, you’re into her, hey? I can see it. She seems your type.”
Ace nearly choked, coughing loudly. “What?! I don’t – Stop it!”
Teach laughed loudly, the sound booming over the ship. He looked far too pleased with himself.
Ace folded his arms tighter across his chest and glared toward the sea harder. “Doesn’t really matter. I just wanted to ask you something?”
“Me?”
“What did you mean earlier? When you said Izou wouldn’t be happy?”
Teach’s gaze flickered then, something more interested arising behind the lazy cadence of his words. Ace immediately regretted asking.
Teach rolled the bottle between his palms slowly before shrugging one shoulder. “Ah, that. Didn’t mean anything special by it. Everybody knows about Izou and her.”
Ace frowned. “What about them?”
Teach blinked once. “You really don’t know?” He settled back comfortably against the crates. “I mean most people figured if she ever stuck around permanently, it would be for one of the two. Either Thatch or… well, Izou. To be honest, I don’t know many who think Thatch has a real chance.”
Ace hated the way he said it. Like it was an accepted fact. “That’s…” He frowned. “Why?”
Teach barked out a laugh. “Boy, have you ever actually watched the two of them together?”
Ace’s jaw tightened slightly. Not really. You always sat by Izou, always talked to him quietly in whispers interspersed with laughter. Now that he thought about it, maybe a little too much.
“She goes to him with everything,” Teach continued casually. “Always has.”
Something unpleasant twisted in Ace’s chest at the answer. Because that was true, wasn’t it? The second things got uncomfortable earlier, you’d gone straight to Izou.
Teach tilted his head slightly, watching the realization settle over Ace’s face.
“Most of the crew’s been convinced for years that they’ll make a move someday,” he added. “There’s probably still a betting pool somewhere.”
Ace stared at him. “You’re joking. They’re betting on it?”
“I swear it.” Teach looked entirely delighted now. “You should’ve seen the galley after you opened your mouth earlier. Think you scared a few people.”
Ace dropped his face briefly into one hand. He’d inserted himself into some years-long situation the entire crew apparently already knew about. Fantastic. But… you’d kissed him. You’d taken his wrists and brought him closer. You wouldn’t do that if you were already secretly dating one of the others.
After a moment he frowned again, glancing sideways toward Teach.
“Is that why Marco doesn’t like her?”
Teach paused then shrugged. “Nah, I got no clue what that’s about. Don’t think anybody does.”
That somehow did not make Ace feel better.
“But,” Teach added, grin widening, “With all that in mind, you got under everybody’s skin pretty fast. I figure you might even have a chance commander. Maybe I change my money from Izou to you.”
Ace groaned. “You were betting on Izou?”
“’Course. It made a whole lot of sense before you showed up.”
Tags: @miwn8
