At Peace

A strike of lightning.

Beast pirates yelling.

A very angry Kaido.

And Ace and Yamato.

Ace hadn't left Wano when Kaido got back. A huge problem for the fire boy, but a slightly smaller one for Yamato as well. It should be a very easy decision. Your father, or a stranger you met this morning. The problem here, of course, was that Kaido was a very bad father. And Ace just happened to be one hell of a stranger. So let's re-evaluate the decision. An abusive parent, or an incredibly beautiful man, with a personality to back it up.

If only she could go with him.

Ace was used to women falling over themselves for him, that came with being unquestionably sexy. He knew what to look for, and he knew how to stop before he went too far. At some point with Yamato though, he skipped the stopping point entirely. Maybe it's because he had too much to drink, but if he didn't like her anyway he wouldn't have let himself get drunk with her.

Something about her was different.

"I WILL HAVE NEWGATE'S HEAD FOR THIS" Screamed the world's strongest creature, gaining fearful looks from his subordinates. The nerve of that boy was absurd. First he snuck onto Wano, and gave hope to the people, something Kaido had no interest in dealing with, then he broke onto Onigashima and beat up Jack. 'And last but not least' Kaido thought angrily, 'He seduced my daughter and ran off with her!' At least they couldn't leave, not unless the boy had advanced his haki.

Kaido sincerely hoped he hadn't.

Yamato led Ace through the woods of Onigashima. She was sure she could hide the two of them well enough, given her time exploring these woods as a child. When Kaido had left her alone, she had spent her time enjoying the outdoors, even erecting her own little house inside a hollowed out skull. The skull itself was, of course, smaller than the one her father built his castle in, but she considered it cozier, plus it was next to a river in Onigashima's forest and the sound of the water helped her fall asleep when she was younger. The best part about her house though, was that it was a secret. So when Yamato brought it up to Ace, she was one hundred percent confident that they wouldn't be found.

Ace sat down on the floor in Yamato's house and popped open a drink. He smirked at the incredulous look Yamato gave him.

"...yes?" he inquired, the smirk still plastered on his handsome face

"We were just running for our lives from two billion beri bounty pirates and you're drinking?"

"Yep. you said no one can find us here, and i trust you."He said and offered her a beer. She looked at it like it would try to strangle her, causing Ace to giggle a little.

"Drink up" he urged "We beat a man worth a billion beris today. That's worth celebrating."

Yamato accepted, but remained reserved in her drinking. Ace on the other hand, did not, and was drunk off his ass within fifteen minutes. Yamato watched the Whitebeard pirate with a sigh. She would give anything to go with him when he left, not caring what her father would do to her. She closed her eyes and thought about what her life could be. Freedom. Adventure. Ace. If not for her chains, she could have all of those and more.

"I love your hair Yamato"

Yamato looked up, surprised at how close he'd gotten. Ace was now sitting next to Yamato, her hair in between his fingers. Yamato had clearly zoned out for a second, or she wouldn't have let him get so close. She told herself that, but didn't believe it in the slightest.

"Ace? What's gotten into you?"

"Your hair's beautiful. It reminds me of snow. Soft, white and pretty."

Yamato blushed a bit at the compliment. Even when drunk, Ace sure was good with words. Too good perhaps, cause it was taking all of her willpower not to melt into him right that instant. She'd fallen hard for him, and from what she could tell, the feelings were mutual, at least when he was drunk. All she could do at this point was hope he felt the same way sober. She watched him play with her hair, wrapping and unwrapping it around his fingers, feeling every inch of every strand. It was hypnotizing in a way, the flow of her hair in his hands. He was right, her hair was beautiful, and Ace as a backdrop made it look even better.

Ace stroked her hair playfully, running it between his fingers, wrapping it around his hands, everything he did pleased him. He watched her watch his hands, getting a good look at her face. Her beauty surprised him, not that it was unexpected she was pretty, but the fact that he hadn't noticed it before. Thatch always said he liked him better drunk, and Ace sort of understood why now. His judgment was much, much better. Yamato caught him watching her, causing her to blush and look away. It was the cutest thing he'd ever seen. At that moment Ace wouldn't've traded his position for anywhere, no matter who her father was. Ace was then struck with a wonderful idea, and he started to stand up...

Yamato felt the heat rising in her cheeks. Ace had been watching her face intently, with a look that made Yamato gasp inwardly. It was a look of love, something her father, nor any of the beast pirates, had ever given her. Yamato looked down, only to look back up a second later, when Ace had lifted her up off the bench. Yamato yelped, and instinctively wrapped her legs around him, causing Ace giggle with happiness. The fire boy then began to walk over to her bed...

Ace sat down on the bed, facing the stunning oni. Yamato was staring at him with a look of wonder on her face as he held her close, hands up in her hair. For a moment, she considered letting him do whatever it was he was going to do, but in the end common sense won out.

"Ace" Yamato started to say please stop but he cut her off

"I love it when you say my name"

Common sense be damned, this boy could do as he pleased with her. One sentence had changed her perspective entirely, and the worst part is, he probably did it by accident. At this point though, Yamato was done resisting her urges, and let instinct take over. She finally returned his hug, inhaling the smell of charcoal and sea water that came with him.

For the first time in a long time, Yamato felt at peace.

For all Kaido would do to her later, Yamato felt at peace.

Even after he left, nothing could ruin her good mood.

Besides, he promised he'd come back, right?