Work Text:
“idiot.” deuce reprimanded ace, the latter covered in fresh wounds, most of which would probably scar and bruise. ace had once again leapt into action without thinking, earning the scorn of some nobody pirate who had decided to pick a fight with him. ace had obviously won, as he always did, but not without paying the price.
deuce could only rub his temples and stare at his captain, before grabbing his wrist and pulling him towards the small room on their ship that served as a med bay, a place deuce had gotten well accustomed with. it was an unspoken rule between the spades that the med bay was deuce’s domain, even if they didn’t have respect for his writing, they had respect for his medical knowledge — no matter how shoddy, so no one was allowed to enter without deuce’s explicit permission.
the room wasn’t all that lavish, the crew usually opted to spend the money they gathered on food and booze, so deuce was only able to get what he truly believed were necessities. he pulled ace into the room and gestured for him to sit on the makeshift hospital bed. as he walked away from ace he let out a soft sigh, “ace you can’t keep charging into fights. one day you’re gonna start a fight you can’t finish.” there was no response from ace, just a sucking of his teeth.
deuce continued as he walked back with the first said kit, “you know that i’m right.” ace averted his gaze, “i know i can’t win them all, but i can try. i’m going to become bigger than the pirate king,” he gripped his thighs, “i can’t do that without taking a few risks.” he turned back to deuce and let out a soft chuckle, “besides, you’ll be there to patch me up right?” deuce couldn’t muster up a rebuttal, the words stuck in his mouth. he supported ace and his goals, wholeheartedly, when he got off that island he decided to dedicate his life, his entire being to this man. how could he stand in the way of his goals?
ace’s future shone so brightly, even if deuce tried to dissuade his reckless behavior he knew it would fall on deaf ears, ace would do what he wanted to do. there is no one who could make him bend to their will. instead, deuce knelt down, placing his forehead on ace’s knee, “i know, and i will be. but at least just promise to be safer. i know nothing i say or do will change your mind or what you want in the end, all i ask is that you treat yourself better. the crew can’t go on without you captain, i can’t go on without you.” deuce’s eyes fluttered up to look at ace through his lashes, the latter biting his lip pensively. “i’ll try.”