Chapter Text
Something wasn't right. Marco knew that. His instincts were screaming at him that someone was in danger. He had been walking around for hours now, trying to find where this feeling was coming from. He just couldn't ignore it. It was calling him. He had a hunch that it was Ace. He had been gone for four days now. Nobody was able to find him.
Everyone had been concerned about him. He had been acting strange lately. It wasn't the good kind of strange. He was so tense and seemed way more wary of everyone than before. The last person who had seen him was Thatch. Thatch had told him that Ace had jumped him in a hallway. That Ace looked scared and in pain, but Ace was gone before he could help him.
Marco began on top and slowly made his way down the ship. Making sure to check every room or small gap carefully for something abnormal or Ace.
He was walking around the lower part of the ship when he heard it. It was a soft whimper. He stopped dead in his tracks. Had he really heard that? He slowly walked towards the door of what he thought was an old storage room and knocked softly. He didn't want to startle Ace if he was in there.
"Ace, are you in there-yoi?"
Marco didn't get an answer, but he had to look anyway. He carefully slipped the door open. He immediately picked up the sent of an omega, but not really an omega? That didn't matter now though. He pushed the door open further and looked around.
Ace was laying, in what Marco thought was a nest, and covered in wounds.
Had he been attacked? Marco quickly ran over. Ace didn't look very conscious, but he shook him anyway to check. He than turned Ace carefully on his back to see the full damage. He saw Ace's hazy eyes look at him. Ace knew he was here.
"Ace-yoi? What's wrong? Did someone attack you? Do you need help-yoi?" Of course something was wrong aside from the injuries. He just wanted Ace to make it clear what it was.
Marco thought Ace had heard him when Ace managed to push himself up, but it was soon proven wrong when Ace wrapped his arm and legs around him. He felt Ace's hand grab the back of his vest tightly and his feet locked tightly.
Marco seemed to have figured out what was happening. The omega sent, the hazy eyes, the nest and the desperate contact. Ace is an omega, probably prime omega since the symptoms came to quick, that ignored their omega needs.
Ace was touch-starved.
Marco wrapped his arms around him, returning the affection. He picked Ace up and laid him back down in his nest. He made himself comfortable next to Ace and wrapped his arms around him again, pulling him closer to him.
That's how they stayed the entire day and night. Marco shifted a little hourly so his muscles wouldn't be too stiff and he would check with Ace sometimes, but that was it.
Marco awoke still entangled with Ace, who was still asleep. He wanted to take Ace to the infirmary, but he wanted to make sure that Ace was okay with that.
This could all have been avoided if Ace had just told them. He understood why he didn't, but still. To think that Ace thought so lowly of them after two months hurt. They would have given him a private room with building material and they would have checked on him from time to time.
Marco actually wanted to get Ace away from here as fast as possible. The entire room reeked of distressed omega, the nest wasn't comfortable, they didn't have any food or water and there was nobody nearby to help. But Ace had made this his safe space. If he were to wake up somewhere else, Marco feared that Ace would run back here as fast as possible. So he waited.
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About three hours later Ace woke up. He didn't know what was going on. Who was besides him? I smelled like alpha. Ace pulled himself tighter against the warm body next to him.
...alpha? He didn’t have an alpha.
FUCK! He shoved the alpha away as hard as possible. It didn't get him very far since the alpha had a better grip on him than he had strength. "Calm down-yoi. No one is going to hurt you. You're safe." Ace looked up and identified the alpha.
Marco was here. No. That absolutely didn't calm him down. He could smell himself for fucks sake. There is no way the Marco didn't smell him either.
Marco knew.
Ace stiffened in fear. All the bad things that could possibly be done to him ran through his head. "Ace, nobody is going to hurt you. Nobody except me knows and I don't plan on telling anyone without your permission-yoi. Just breath, okay?"
Ace laughed in despair. Nobody know yet. He didn't believe Marco for a second. Of course he is going to tell his captain. Marco wouldn't pass an opportunity to get a prime omega onboard their crew. That's just how it was.
There was absolutely nothing he could do to make Marco not tell them. He wouldn't win a fight in the state he was in and he didn't know what to bribe him with. Marco seemed like a loyal man. Ace didn't have anything with enough value that would make Marco change his mind.
This was it for him.
He felt Marco grab his chin and forced him to look him in the eyes. "Ace, listen to me. Nobody knows except me and I don't plan on telling anybody without you agreeing. I swear on my alpha and my pack-yoi. Does your omega say I'm lying? If it does than feel free to beat me up-yoi. I swear I'm telling the truth."
Promisingor swearing on your alpha and on your pack was serious. It was something that if you fail to do it or break your oath than it could haunt you for the rest for you life. His omega also didn't scream 'lying bitch', so that's also good. Although he didn't know how much he could trust his omega at the moment.
"Yeah, okay. So what do you want? Ace asked.
"First I want to make clear that I don't mean any harm and that everything is okay-yoi. We need to get out of this room. No offense but the room smells like distressed omega. I don't think that can make you very relaxed. I also don't think we have suppressants strong enough for a prime omega. We do have regular ones, but I can't even get you those. Your sent is on me-yoi."
Marco couldn't think of anything that they could do in this situation. Everything smelled like prime omega. The moment they walked into someone Ace would be found out. There was a chance...they would have to take it. "Ace, we can make it back to my room and think there-yoi. I know a way not many people walk and I don't really think we have another option."
Despair gripped Ace's heart. Marco's room? He felt like he wanted to cry, but he couldn't. He didn't have any other choice did he? He was on thin ice. Marco may have said he wouldn't snitch, but one disagreement on his part might change Marco's mind. If he complied than Marco wouldn't tell, right?
Even if that meant giving out his body like that? His body for his freedom. Ace swallowed hard. "Let's go."
Marco let them through hallways Ace knew and didn't knew. Ace was amazed that they didn't run into anyone. Marco was speaking the truth. They walked for fifteen minutes, before reaching Marco's room.
Marco grabbed some perfume and sprayed it around the hallway. Covering up their scents. After that he came back and closed the door behind him. "Okay, so now w-" Marco was cut off by Ace pinning him to the door and kissing him.
Ace may have kissed one or two people. He knew he wasn't that good, but he had heard enough drunken stories to know how this sort of worked. Not to mention the talk he got when he presented. He just hoped it would be enough.
A hand came to rest upon his shoulder and pushed him away. "Ace, what the fuck are you doing-yoi?"
Ace a stone formed in his throat. It wasn't good enough. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you weren't a kissing guy. We can just do it I guess." He put his hat safely on the nightstand behind him.
"No-yoi. What the fuck. Look Ace. I don't know what kind of guy you take me for, but I'm not going to fuck you-yoi."
"Oh." Oh. Than what did Marco want? "I don't understand."
"I didn't bring you here to have sex with you or to claim your in whatever other way for the Whitebeards-yoi. It does make sense now why you are refusing to join. I brought you here because we can now figure out a plan without you feeling on edge, because someone else could have walked in any moment at the other location." Marco explained as he sat down on his chair. "I have many ideas, but everyone of them needs another person here. I laid with you for a whole day-yoi. People are going to smell you on me even if I wash myself ten times. I can't do shit at the moment."
Ace nodded. As much as he dislikes the idea of someone else knowing in this crew he could see why. "So who do you feel most comfortable knowing-yoi?" Marco ended.
Ace was surprise he got to choose. Ace was actually confused by many things. Marco held so much power over him right now and he wasn't using it. He wasn't forcing him to do anything or say anything. He didn't even act different.
"Why are you doing this?" Marco looked up confused. "Why aren't you demanding money or something else for you keeping it a secret? Don't you want a prime omega on your crew?" I don't understand why you aren't blackmailing the shit out of me.
"Ace, again. I don't know what I did to make you think so low of me, but we, as in the Whitebeards, are not going to take away your freedom and lock you up because you are a prime omega. Yes, we do want you to be part of our crew. That’s the main reason you are here. No, we don't care what your secondary gender is-yoi."
"Oh." Ace didn't know how to proceed. He kind of felt like he insulted Marco. He knew the government, big mom or any other crew would have forced him to join. He had expected no different from the Whitebeards, no matter how nice they seemed. "Thatch, I guess?"
Marco nodded. "Okay, so we wait for Thatch now to pass by-yoi."
So they did. It took a few hours for the cook to return to his quarters for something. When he came Marco pulled him into his room. "Thatch, don't freak out. Ace is a prime omega-yoi and we need your help. You can stay here too long other you will also smell like omega. You need to go to the infirmary and get suppressants and some beta perfume and bring it to us-yoi. Succes."
Marco shoved Thatch outside the room again and close the door. It was silent for a minute, before Thatch knocked and asked if he was serious.
"Yeah. Can you please get the suppressants and the perfume-yoi?" Marco asked.
"Yeah. Yeah. I can do that." Thatch said as he walked away.
An hours later he came back. Thatch knocked on the door. "I have the stuff."
"What took you so long-yoi?" Marco asked.
"Izo want to speak to me on the way back."
Marco opened to door for Thatch to give it. He was about to give it to Ace when something came up. "Ace, you've got to promise me something."
Ace tensed. This was the moment. Marco was going to ask something and Ace knew he wouldn't be able to say no. "Promise me to make a nest somewhere. I can point out safe spots where no one goes. You can even use the second division commanders room. I can also provide building material. Also if you need to cuddle or something. You come of me or anyone else you trust-yoi."
They could hear Thatch enthusiastically say "Me! Me!"
"Yeah. Come to me or Thatch or someone else so you won't become touch starved again-yoi. The last one is if you're almost out of suppressants or perfume or any other thing you need. You will notify me or Thatch and we'll get it for you, since you can't without looking suspicious-yoi."
Ace waited for Marco to say more. Maybe a ‘come to my room once a week for sex' or 'you will do anything I say', but Marco didn't continue. "And the rest?" Ace asked in a small voice, not actually wanting to remind Marco that there was more to ask of him.
"There is no rest-yoi."
"Oh. Uh. Okay, I promise."
"Great, take these." Marco handed Ace the supplies. "I'm going to wash up and try to get your sent of me-yoi." Marco almost shut the door to the bathroom, before coming outside again. "Thatch you still there?" He yelled.
"Yeah."
"Can you get Ace a first aid kit and something to eat and drink?"
"Of course!"
"Great."
Thatch left to get that and Marco entered the bathroom. Ace was now alone. He was still shocked by how everything had turned out. It all went so well that it felt surreal. Did that really happen?
It did. The proof was in his hand. He slowly brought the suppressants bottle to eye level and read the prescription and ingredients. They really were suppressants according to the bottle. He took a pill and swallowed it. He than covered himself in perfume. He now had to wait till the pill took effect.
After ten minutes Thatch came back and shoved the first aid kit in the room. "Make sure to let Marco check everything to see if you applied everything right."
"Yeah."
"I need to get started on dinner. I’ll bring some when I’m done. Oh and I'm sure Marco has something for you if you need anything."
Ace took the first aid kit and began patch himself up. After that he sat down on the bed and waited. Maybe the bed wasn't the best place to sit. Ace quickly felt his eyes getting more and more heavy until he fell asleep.
He woke up a few hours later to the sound of writing. He opened in eyes slightly to see Marco doing some paperwork. "You smell like a beta now so it's safe for you to go outside-yoi. Just remembering what we agreed on."
Ace got up and packed his stuff. He huffed slightly. "Yeah, yeah. Just remember that this doesn't make me like you or your crew or anything and I'll still try to get Whitebeards head."
"I didn't expect anything else-yoi. Thatch left you food and water by the way. Make sure to eat it. You look way to boney after four days of not eating and drinking.”
Ace grabbed his food and make his way to the door. He was about to close it, but before he did, he let out an almost silent "Thank you".
Marco smiled as he heard Ace walk away. He couldn't wait for Ace to join their crew. He had a feeling in his gut that it would happen. He just had to be patient with his baby brother.