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When the Whitebeard Pirates had arrived on this relatively remote island, they were welcomed with open arms by the local villagers. His reputation as a kind protector of his territories preceded him, and the townspeople were delighted that he and his family had visited their home. The children eagerly stared up in awe at the Yonkou's massive height, and excitedly pleaded with their mothers to play with the pirates; all of the young girls gathered around Izo to admire his outfit and ask to braid his hair. The town's baker refused to take no for an answer when Marco humbly declined the gigantic gift basket filled with pastries in his shop. And to the crew's delight, the local barkeep offered them an evening of free drinks.
While the townspeople and pirates were having a small get-together in the tavern, Thatch nudged Ace and looked across the room. "Is it me," he said with a slight slur, "Or has that girl been staring at us for a full ten minutes?"
Ace raised an eyebrow and subtly followed Thatch's line of sight. There was a young woman that, sure enough, was looking at the two of them with a strange look in her eye that Ace didn't really recognize. She couldn't be older than twenty, and she was fiddling around with a small pocket sewn into her skirt. Ace accidentally made eye contact with her, and a blush spread across her face before she quickly turned away.
Thatch smirked and took another swig of his beer. "I think she likes you," he teased. He put a hand on Ace's shoulder and pushed him forward. "C'mon, go talk to her!"
"How do you know she doesn't like you ?" Ace reached up and flicked his brother's hair. "Maybe she has a thing for guys with hair like a bird's nest!"
Thatch snorted and swatted Ace's hand away. "Nah," he countered, "If that was what she was into, she'd be staring at Marco over there." The two of them looked over at Marco, who was drunkenly singing with Whitey Bay as they swung side-to-side together. Ace and Thatch laughed and then looked back at the young woman across the room. "Well if you won't talk to her, I'll do it for ya," Thatch declared, stumbling a bit as he set his drink down and took a few steps.
Ace quickly followed Thatch to make sure he didn't fall, and the two of them walked arm-over-shoulder to her together. The young woman's eyes widened and she fidgeted with her sleeves. "Um...y-yes?" Thatch cleared his throat and smiled at her.
"I couldn't help but notice you were eyeing my friend over here," he said cheerily, nudging Ace on the shoulder. "I tried to get him to say hi to you before, but he was too much of a chicken to do it alone!"
The young woman raised her eyebrows and looked at Ace, who was grinning a little bashfully. He'd had plenty of people flirt with him before, but he never really knew how to deal with it. "Oh, you noticed me! I guess I wasn't very, ah, subtle." She let out a nervous laugh and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "But to be honest, I was actually looking at both of you."
The two pirates blinked silently, and then looked at each other in surprise and disbelief. Did she mean...she liked both of them? No way. Thatch glanced back at her, unsure of what to say. Given how timid she was, she didn't seem like the type who would be interested in that sort of thing. Still, you never really knew what a person was like by appearance alone...
The young woman bit her lip. "It seemed like you two are both very close to...to Whitebeard," she said, her eyes shining a bit when she said their captain's name. "I was wondering if you would...um…" She reached into her skirt's pocket and handed them an envelope. "If one of you could give this to him. I wanted to do it myself, but I just couldn't get the courage." Her face was bright red at this point, and her lips turned into a small smile. "He's just...He has a very... powerful presence, you know?"
Once Ace took it from her, she quickly whispered a quick "thank you" before immediately shuffling away to pour herself a drink. He turned over the envelope, and he and Thatch were taken aback at what was on the other side. In neat, flowery handwriting, the young woman had written "To Whitebeard", followed by a small drawing of a heart on the center of the envelope. Thatch's mouth dropped, and Ace stared at the envelope with wide eyes. The two of them looked at the envelope, then to where the young girl had been standing, then to Whitebeard, who was laughing and sharing stories with a few of the townspeople while drinking a giant tankard of dark ale. They looked back at the envelope again.
"She knows Pops is in his seventies," Ace said slowly. "Right?"
Thatch smirked and turned around to walk towards Whitebeard. "I don't think that's a problem for her," he replied. Ace followed behind him, still trying to process how a girl his age was so doe-eyed for...well, for Pops! "It's not like this is the first admirer Pops has had. A lot of ladies like him like that--and some men, too."
Ace scoffed. "Are they usually three times younger than him? Or small enough to fit in the palm of his hand? If they were in a bed together, he could kill her just by rolling over during the night!"
Thatch shrugged. "The heart wants want the heart wants," he replied. He held the letter between two of his fingers and quietly explained to Whitebeard what was going on my murmuring in his ear. Whitebeard smiled and nodded, and managed to see the young woman Thatch had described to him watching from the other corner of the room. He gave her a small wave and she almost fainted. Once she gained her composure (and took a swing of her drink for courage), she shyly waved back; her cheeks were still pink, but her eyes were sparkling as she smiled at him. Whitebeard put the letter in his pocket and Ace looked up at his father with a grin. He may be past his prime, he thought, but damn...he's still got it!