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“It’s for Ahim.”
Marvelous never batted an eye whenever the others questioned as to why he was doing or purchasing something out of his norm. It seemed like he didn’t notice either because he would consistently answer them with the same response, donning an absentminded grin. The other four pirates caught on rather quickly and all came to the same conclusion that there could only be one underlying reason for their captain’s peculiar actions. Though of course, to prove their theory, they needed to show their work.
Don and Gai managed to convince Marvelous to join them on their biweekly grocery runs, and to no one’s surprise, he provided little to no help to them. While his two crew mates meticulously shopped for ingredients, Marvelous was idly browsing through some of the other aisles. Something caught his eye and he straightened his composure to grab the item off the shelf, subconsciously letting out a small chuckle as he admired the product. He made his way back to the others and casually placed the newfound treasure into their cart. The green and silver Gokaigers peered in, simultaneously tilting their heads in bewilderment as they read the label. Gai blinked, squinted, and even grabbed the box to get a closer look to convince himself that he wasn’t going crazy.
Don turned to find Marvelous having already moved on to the meats section. He grabbed the item from Gai’s hands, holding it up in the air and called out to the captain. “Marvelous, what do you need tea leaves for?”
“It’s for Ahim,” Marvelous responded nonchalantly as he bent down to gawk at the marbling of the beef. “Hey, Doc, don’t forget to pick up some of this for dinner."
As he does every early morning, Joe starts his day going through his exercise regimen. He concentrated on keeping both feet flat on the ground while lifting and lowering the upper half of his body. He focused on the gentle hum of the Galleon as he continued his sit-ups, basking in the silence that he would rarely get when his teammates were awake. Though eventually, Joe did hear sounds of swishing on deck, but did not think much of it. Marvelous and Luka would definitely not be awake this early, much less sweep or perform basically any house cleaning work willingly. It had to be Don, Ahim, or Gai as they are the only other members that would be out and about at this time. The sweeping approached, and Joe stood up, turning to greet-
“Marvelous?”
“Mornin’,” the captain grinned at him as he repositioned his grip on the broom and brushed past his second-in-command to resume cleaning.
Joe watched in awe as Marvelous thoroughly swept every nook and cranny of the room, humming as he went about the chore. “Why are you up this early… and sweeping?”
“Huh?” Marvelous straightened up, peering down at the broom in his grasp before glancing over his shoulder at the ex-soldier with a grin. “Oh, I thought I'd start on some of the cleaning for Ahim.”
Navi, perched on Marvelous’s seat, woke from her slumber at the sound of their voices. Naturally, she flew over to rest on Joe’s shoulder as she did at the start of each day to bid him a good morning. “Morning —” Navi raised a wing before freezing in shock because she made eye contact with someone she was not expecting to see yet.
A moment of silence passes.
“You see him too, right?” Navi finally whispered, to which Joe stiffly nodded in response, mind still processing what he was seeing.
Another one of Navi’s riddles prompted the group of pirates to team up in pairs and search for… well, they don’t even know. Marvelous continued on through the aisles of vendors with a sulking Luka in tow. She knew that they were in search of some magical stone, but how could she focus when there were so many shiny jewels around her. She pouted as she lazily trudged behind the captain, who suddenly seemed to power through with more determination than ever towards a stand.
Luka’s eyes widened, mouth curling into a bright smile as she giddily bounded over to his side. “Are we buying something?”
She scanned the table, occasionally glancing back and forth between the rows of glittery trinkets and Marvelous who seemed to be concentrating hard. Luka watched with excitement when he finally made his next move, only to furrow her eyebrows in confusion when he picked up a dainty hair accessory. Though Luka did admire the handiwork of the jeweler, who delicately pieced together rose-quartz stones to produce flower-like shapes on the ornament, she was stunned by the fact that Marvelous was interested in such a piece. She watched him admire it for a moment before making the purchase, eyes robotically following his hand give some of their money away.
“Are we using that to find the stone Navi prophesied?” Luka caught up to Marvelous, who had resumed his trek.
He glanced at her once she matched his pace and shrugged, “Nah, it’s for Ahim. I feel bad that the Zangyack had broken one of her hair pieces when they abducted her that one time.’
Before Marvelous could take another step, Luka skidded to a stop and grabbed his elbow to turn him to face her. He raised an eyebrow questioningly, waiting for her to say whatever it is that had gotten the gears in her head churning. The pickpocket squinted back at him, opening her mouth to say something but then deciding that maybe it was best to keep it to herself.
“Alright, Luka, spit it out,” Marvelous crossed his arms and gave her an expectant look.
“You have feelings for Ahim, don’t you?” She was surprised that her question didn’t faze him because he continued to stand there with the same expression on his face.
“Yes, I do,” Marvelous casually answered and before Luka could react to the confession, “I know the rest of you have an inkling about my feelings towards her, but I need you all to pretend otherwise.”
His shoulders deflated, and Luka watched him sigh and turn his back to her, “If the Zangyack or Basco find out about this, they will try to hurt her to get to me. I can't let that happen.”
The sun was beginning to set and without saying another word, Marvelous decided it was time to turn in for the day. Luka silently followed him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder as the two headed back to the Galleon to meet with the others.
Each time the crew reunited with one another at the end of the day, Marvelous’s eyes always searched for Ahim’s first. As always, she greeted him happily, welcoming him home. Although he returned her smile, his eyes reflected sadness and longing for the princess. Little did Marvelous know his feelings were reciprocated. Ahim knew he was not one to hold back his thoughts, and understood that he was likely keeping them from her for a reason. Maybe someday, when this is all over, they will get the chance to fall in love like other couples. But for now, the two were content simply being in each other’s presence.
Ahim often chided him for doing her chores or spending money on her, so when he revealed the newest purchase he made, she pouted at him. She was truly touched and grateful, though, because her smile returned as she marveled at the accessory he had picked out for her.
“For me?”
“Anything for you, Ahim.”