Chapter Text
It was a raging war between his head and his heart. The former reasoned that if he never wants his comrades to fight alone, they wouldn’t want him to do the same. The latter took a turn to gain his favor, arguing that giving himself up to Basco would keep his teammates safe. That it would keep Ahim safe. He gripped the ledge of the crow’s nest until his knuckles turned white, clenching his eyes shut and attempting to push the thought of her away, but to no avail. His heart always twinged at the sight of small cuts and bruises that littered her skin after every battle the Gokaigers fought. If these were the wounds she received from some amateur Zangyack, he couldn’t bear the thought of the kind of injuries Basco was capable of inflicting on the others let alone the princess. A gentle breeze ruffled his hair, and Marvelous slowly opened his eyes. That reason alone was more than enough to convince him to act on his final decision. A decision that was fueled solely by his heart, no sense of logic in sight.
Believing he stalled long enough into the night to ensure that everyone drifted off to sleep at this point, Marvelous quietly shuffled down the stairs from the crow’s nest. He squinted as his eyes slowly, but barely adjusted to the darkness that flooded the common room, moonlight peeking through the windows. Nevertheless, he knew the Galleon like the back of his hand, preparing himself to bee-line for the exit with ease before-
A small sigh broke the silence of the night. Startled, Marvelous whipped his head to face the source of the noise. His breath hitched when his line of sight focused and settled on a sleeping figure on the couch. His eyes softened when he realized that it was none other than Ahim, and he felt his heart sink when it dawned on him the reason as to why the princess rejected the warmth of her bed to settle for something this uncomfortable. Ahim shifted in her sleep and slightly curled into herself, subconsciously chasing after any warmth that the thin blanket hardly provided.
Marvelous couldn’t help but let out a quiet, amused huff. He silently made his way over, careful not to wake her or Navi. After adjusting the blanket to cover Ahim more comfortably, he slipped off his red coat and draped it over her. Pleased that she would now be warm, or at least warmer than before, Marvelous finally let himself gaze longingly at the princess’s face, gently brushing aside her flyaway hairs.
“I’m sorry, Ahim,” he whispered, feeling his throat close up, quickly looking away from her and straightening up to resume towards the exit.
He didn’t get far though because something was tugging him back by his sleeve. He glanced back to the source, surprised to lock eyes with a groggy Ahim, who blinked back at him with half-lidded eyes, sluggishly propping herself up on one arm. “Then don’t go,” her voice cracked, and he felt his heart break.
“You know that I can’t let him hurt you.”
She lowered her eyes, momentarily trapping her bottom lip between her teeth and pondered his statement. Finally, she nodded in agreement, meeting his gaze once more, “Will you at least stay with me until I fall asleep?”
Marvelous raised an eyebrow and curiously watched as she shifted over to make room for him on the couch. She looked back up at him expectantly to which he awkwardly coughed, but abided by her request nonetheless. They laid side by side on their backs, hands brushing lightly against each other. Marvelous couldn’t think; he didn’t know what to think. He even momentarily forgot the mission he tasked himself to go on.
A giggle shattered the chaos brewing in his head, and he turned his head to face Ahim who was trying to muffle it with her hand. He felt his lip curl into a small grin and nudged her playfully.
“Who would’ve thought that our captain was quite shy in a relationship,” she teased, taking it upon herself to lift his arm and duck under it to comfortably rest her head on his shoulder. She draped an arm over his chest, sighing contently as the sound of his heartbeat soothed her.
Marvelous hummed, “Being a pirate always came easy to me. Love on the other hand, not so much.” Silence briefly occupies the room as he thought back to the debate between his head and heart. “I didn’t realize how strong love could be until I met you.”
“Is… that why you are willing to sacrifice yourself and your dream?”
“If all I can think about is you when making my decision, don’t you think I have a new dream?” He lowered his head to look down at her, “And like the World’s Greatest Treasure, I’d do anything to protect it.”
Ahim smiled at his words, leaning up just enough to press a chaste kiss on his lips before settling back into his arms, allowing his warmth to encase her once again. Marvelous felt his heart skip a beat, pursing his lips in an attempt to hide his own smile. He leaned into her, resting the side of his head on top of hers and shutting his eyes to rest for a bit.
“You promise that you won’t leave until I fall asleep?”
“I promise, Ahim.”
“That is wonderful news because I actually took an afternoon nap earlier today, so we can stay up all night together!”
He jolted back to hold her at arms-length, eyes wide in shock at her statement and ready to protest, “Ahim-”
“You once told me you wouldn’t let me die alone fighting Zatsurigu,” she placed a finger up to his lips to shush him, “What made you think I wouldn’t do the same for you?”
Marvelous stared back at her for a moment, not knowing that it was possible to love her more than he already did. He pulled her back to hug her against his chest, lowering his head to place a kiss on her forehead.
“I love you Ahim,” he whispered, "... and touché."