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“Oh my god, Ace! You’re huge!” said Tashigi in awe as they met up with her on the bank of the beach
“I suuuuure am” replied Ace, Smoker could hear the exhausting in his voice
“Hina said she wished she could come. But it would they wouldn’t give us both the leave”
Smoker nodded, not surprised to hear that
In general, the Brass also liked keeping them apart as much as possible
Ace merely grunted; Smoker could tell that he was using all his energy to stay as human as he possibly could. He was too close to giving birth and it was ridiculously hard for him to not be in full wolf form
Smoker merely pulled him in closer, hoping that his scent would calm Ace down
“Shall we go?” offered Tashigi, clapping her hands together
Smoker sighed in relief, glad that Tashigi caught on to Ace’s state so quickly
Ace had been not only falling asleep in his food lately, but also mid-conversation
“Before we do that” started Smoker as Marco walked up to the group “This is Marco, he’ll be assisting with the birth”
“Marco? O-OH! Yeah! Of course! Perfect choice” blurted out Tashigi, clearly the gears running in her head
Tashigi caught on quickly. Unlike last night when the news had been broken to the other Whitebeards
They all wanted to throw a party for Ace, to wish him luck and such – but they didn’t realize that they wouldn’t be seeing Ace until at least a week after the birth
Smoker had noticed that Ace was getting more and more irritated, snappy and prone to be hostile – which that’s how he knew that Ace was just about ready to give birth
The omega becomes violent and overprotective, just like any animal about to give birth in the wild
But Werewolves were a particular kind of angry
So, Smoker sat Ace down and explained that there was a high likelihood that while he was giving birth that he might attack everyone in the den with him. It wasn’t an issue for him and Tashigi, it was one of the reasons they had regenerative abilities – but normal humans shouldn’t be present
Ace had pointed out that Marco would be fine, which was true, and he was a doctor and did have experience with being present at a birth, which honestly brought up more questions for Smoker than he thought he ever would
Who the fuck gave birth on the Whitebeard’s ship??
They had brought it up to Marco who was delighted, and oddly amused, at the idea
Marco had said that the possibility of being violently attacked by a werewolf in the middle of birth sounded ‘fun’
Smoker was started to suspect that the 2nd in Command of the Whitebeard Pirates was unhinged
The other Whitebeards though, seemed offended that they couldn’t be present
Which made Smoker think that the rest of the Whitebeards were as unhinged as their acting Captain – why would so many people want to watch a birth?!
“Sorry guys, I can’t risk accidentally killing you” waved off Ace, sitting cutely in his Wolf-like state, with merely the ears, tail, claws, and fangs
They had presented Ace with a bunch of gifts and tons of food to bring with him, embarrassing the hell out of Ace
It was clear that Ace still wasn’t used to everyone showing him clear affection for him and Ace still had trouble accepting it
Unfortunately, Ace had become the darling of the Whitebeards, so he was going to have to get used to it and fast
The next morning, they had gone to the shores to welcome Tashigi, and here they were now
“It’s a pleasure to meet you Tashigi-yoi!” said Marco warmly, holding out his hand
Smoker could smell the discomfort off of Tashigi, who clearly didn’t know how to feel about shaking the hand of such a high ranking wanted pirate, but she did so anyways
“Have you assisted to one of these before-yoi?” asked Marco as he walked along side Tashigi as they started to make their way over to the den
Smoker and Ace walked in front of them, both of them knowing the way
“Oh yes, lots of time! When I was a whelp myself!” confirmed Tashigi, fiddling with her glasses “But not since I lost my original pack”
Marco nodded
“Have you seen human births? Are they similar-yoi?”
“No, not really. It’s more like how a wolf or a dog gives birth” corrected Tashigi “Just, much bigger of course”
“Ha ha! Of course!” laughed Marco “That makes sense-yoi!”
Smoker was relieved that they were actually getting along
“What about you, sir? How has your last week been?” asked Tashigi
“You call him sir?” asked Marco, surprised
Tashigi yiped, surprised at being called out on it
“I-It’s a rank thing! He’s above me, so I could never!” rambled on Tashigi, uncomfortable
“It’s never wise to show familiarity when out on duty” explained Smoker, rubbing the back of his neck “Never know when scum would use that to their advantage”
“Ohh, that makes sense-yoi” pointed out Marco “And now it’s probably a force of habit!”
Tashigi nodded, relieved that she didn’t have to answer herself
“I’ve been fine. They put me to work since I’ve arrived, and I’m glad to have been some use”
“Put you to work?”
“Yeah! Smoker was a real help! We’ve been trying to rebuild this village here-yoi, and with his logia he was able to bring men and supplies up to high places, help us transport things and honestly – he’s just really handy with his hands! Afterwards you should see the house he built for Ace! We all offered to help but he would just growl at us, saying he wanted to do it himself-yoi!”
Smoker blushed furiously, embarrassed that he got so mad at the offer to help. He had built the main foundation, but the Whitebeards made a lot of the furniture inside
Honestly, he felt the worst at growling at that small dog with the weird mustache that kept running around whenever he went near the house
Ace had given him shit for ‘bullying Stefan’
“Oh that makes sense! An Alpha can get really defensive about anyone helping him house his mate” explained Tashigi, adjusting her glasses “Don’t take it personally! It’s only because Ace was pregnant with his cubs. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been so mean”
“Tashigi” growled Smoker quietly, knowing she would hear it
“Man, I’m glad to have you around! You’re a real wealth of information-yoi” stated Marco, smiling encouragingly
Smoker sighed, as Tashigi beamed
But Ace’s silence was concerning him – the other hadn’t said a peep and honestly seemed really out of it
“Ace? Are you okay?” asked Smoker quietly, not wanting to alarm the others as he rubbed Ace’s arm
Ace frowned, groaning slightly
“Yeah…I guess…I don’t know. I just feel really shitty” admitted Ace “Like…there’s a pressure in my stomach or something”
“A pressure?” asked Smoker, hearing the conversation behind them stop as they also listened in
“Yeah, like cramps? I don’t know, I think it’s moving or something” explained Ace, groaning slightly
“Ace…Does it feel like…it’s lower-yoi? Like the baby?” asked Marco cautiously
“Yeah! Like I woke up this morning feeling like it moved position and I thought it was just annoyed with me for being human so much” admitted Ace “Because the kid has way more space when I’m not”
Smoker grunted in agreement – it’s why Ace appeared so huge as a human. The cubs didn’t change size, so even though the cubs were only going to be size of a medium sized dog on the small end, it was still pretty big for a human
“Sooo, not to be alarming-yoi” started Marco “But I think you should all become wolves right now, get to the den ASAP and I’ll fly along, okay-yoi?”
“Wha-?” asked Tashigi
“Because it sounds like the baby dropped this morning and your contractions are gonna start soon-yoi” clarified Marco “It’s go time!”
Smoker never shifted so fast in his life
Once they got to the den, Ace immediately went to the pile they had made in the middle and started to burrow, trying to make is as comfortable as possible before he plopped down on his side
It didn’t take his mark to know that Ace was feeling pain
Smoker nuzzled him softly, making Ace growl at first, but then he whined, whimpering when he caught his scent
Tashigi and Marco soon came into the den and Ace lunged up, growling, at both of them – before pausing to realize who they were and dropped back down on the pile
“Whoah, you weren’t kidding-yoi!” remarked Marco with a low whistle
“S-Sorry” muttered Ace, groaning softly
“Have they breached-yoi?” asked Marco as he crouched down, making sure to not appear as a threat
“What?” asked Ace, surprised
“Is one coming out” corrected Smoker
Ace merely shook his head
“You…You can stimulate it” offered Tashigi “By licking! That’s what they always did!”
Ace blinked turned to Smoker and then both nodded. Ace turned to lick himself and Smoker went along to help
Honestly, he didn’t need much prompting to go between Ace’s legs, but with an audience it was a little odd
But it soon paid off when a little tail popped out and Smoker could barely contain the joy in his heart as he let out a loud howl
His cub! His cub was right there!!
Ace laid back and Smoker trotted back to Ace’s head, nuzzling, and licking him, anything to help him along as Ace concentrated
Marco and Tashigi were encouraging Ace at the other end, both on standby in case there was any issues, but Smoker knew that it was largely left to the two of them
It didn’t take long for soon enough, a small pile of fuzz fell into the blankets
Ace, without prompting shifted to grab the bundle and brought it besides his face and started to groom the newborn
Smoker hesitantly moved in, Ace at first freezing up when Smoker did but instantly relaxed when his senses kicked in, realizing who he was
He helped Ace clean up the small ball of fur and felt his heart swell up and the beautiful white fur was clear to everyone in the room
A beautiful, white-furred baby girl lay before them
Smoker was so proud of his mate at that moment, so proud of his child as well!
Ace nuzzled her softly, the baby currently blind and deaf responding eagerly to her mother’s touch
Then Ace suddenly snarled, letting out a gasp
“A-Again?!” cried out Ace, confused
“Oh? Number 2-yoi?”
“Number 2” replied Smoker
Ace chuckled softly
“Guess you were right to always talk about them in plural” sighed Ace
“You doubted me?” teased Smoker, nuzzling Ace softly
“Not really, M-More OW! Myself” admitted Ace “J-Just because it’s the norm doesn’t mean I can do it”
Smoker merely nuzzled Ace again
Soon enough, another bundle was born and Ace brought it besides it’s sister and restarted the whole process of grooming
This was so little compared to her sister, maybe a little over half her size, which worried Smoker
A small bundle of black fur poked out at them, another girl, but she wasn’t moving much
No
No no no no
Ace whined, causing Marco to carefully creep up to them
“Yoi! What’s wrong?”
“She’s…not moving much” admitted Smoker
“Oh no!” gasped Tashigi
Ace whirled back slightly and knocked the cub with his muzzle near the back of her head, hard enough to knock her over and landed on the ground with a soft splat
Smoker looked at Ace stunned
But then his daughter let out of a small cough and suddenly had much more life in her, everyone in the room breathing a sigh of relief
“How did you know to do that?” asked Smoker, shocked
Ace shrugged as much as he could
“I dunno” he admitted “My body was just screaming at me to do it”
Smoker stared dumbstruck at Ace, somehow falling even more in love with him
“Can I-yoi?” asked Marco, pointed to the cubs “Just want to make sure everything is good-yoi”
Ace nodded, exhaling
“Yeah, go for it, I’m done” exclaimed Ace with a tired groan
Smoker looked at Ace, raising a brow
“You’re done?”
Ace chuckled
“Nothing more in me, babe. Are you disappointed?”
Smoker shook his head
“You gave me two beautiful cubs. How could I ever be?” replied Smoker, beaming
“Alright-yoi! They all seem good; breathing is fine for both of them. I think the little one was just suffocating on the placenta, which happens. So, I think we should let the new parents get some rest. I’ll go report back the news to the village, alright-yoi?”
Both Ace and Smoker nodded as Marco turned into a phoenix and flew off
Smoker still couldn’t believe it
There they were – two small bundles of fuzz, sleeping away, tucked up against his mate
Ace had really given him absolutely everything
“They’re so cute!” exclaimed Tashigi, her tail wagging like crazy “I like how they each have your colouring! It really is your cubs in every way!”
Smoker nodded in agreement, himself beyond proud
“What are you going to name them?” asked Tashigi
Oh
Right
Honestly Smoker hadn’t even thought about it – just…overly concerned with Ace
“Is it okay if I name this one after my mother?” asked Ace softly as he nuzzled the black furred one who just crawled up to his snout “She’s a real fighter. Feels right”
“Rouge was her name, right?” asked Smoker, trying to remember the details he heard at Marineford without remembering the disaster
Ace nodded
“Yeah, Portgas D. Rouge. I’d like for her name to live on”
“What a lovely name!” agreed Tashigi “Oh! Smoker! Then maybe we can name the other girl after your mother!”
Ace blinked, looking at Smoker, smiling
“I wouldn’t mind that. What was her name?”
“Blanche. Smoker D. Blanche”
Ace nodded, beaming
“Rouge and Blanche it is”
--
“So how long will they stay wolves?”
“Smoker said about two years” explained Ace to Deuce, who was sitting on the ground besides him as they watched the cubs play
Smoker was laying on the floor, fully a wolf as his cubs nipped and bit softly at him, playing with him
They were now four weeks old, both Rouge and Blanche had put on some weight. Rouge, thankfully was closer to her sister’s size now, but still a little smaller. They could both see and hear just fine now and Smoker was extremely enamored with his daughters
Blanche was calmer than her sister, more tactful in her actions and seemed more levelheaded overall. Rouge was a spitfire, always ready to go and brimming with energy
Smoker was so excited to see how they’d look at humans. All he could tell right now is that Rouge had his brown eyes and Blanche had Ace’s black eyes. That both had soft spots in their fur, so they probably had freckles like Ace but everything else at this point was a mystery
Rouge whined softly as she nudged him, wanting attention and Smoker nuzzled her in return
Leaving tomorrow was going to be the hardest thing he’s ever done
“I’ll come see you all as often as I can”
Smoker held his family tighter against his chest. Ace was holding their cubs in his arms, and it was taking everything Smoker had to let them go
Pulling back, Smoker could feel his heart breaking, it had never been so hard to leave
“C’mon loves, say see you soon to Daddy!” stated Ace, as both girls let out a small howl
Smoker paused, raising a brow
“Daddy?”
“Yep! I’m gonna be Pops!” said Ace proudly, grinning “So you’re gonna be Daddy!”
“You’ve decided, huh?” asked Smoker, crossing his arms, but smiling to assure that Ace knew he was fine with it
He wasn’t insulted in any way – Father was too stiff, Dad felt a little odd for toddlers, so it was fine
“It was Marco’s idea!” explained Ace, pointing to the aforementioned jackass sitting on the cliffside nearby
Smoker merely glared in his direction, knowing the other had heard the whole conversation
“Safe trippppp~, Daddy!”
“You can CHOKE!”
Smoker started to walk towards the ship where Tashigi was waiting for him but paused when he heard Ace set the cubs down. Turning around, he saw that Ace was holding each one of their paws, making them wave
Smoker quickly ran back to Ace, grabbing his face and kissing him deeply
--
“C’mon, let’s go show Daddy your cute new clothes and those new limbs of yours!”
Two years had passed since Marineford
Two years had passed since that night under the full moon where they had promised themselves to each other
Smoker had tried to visit at much as he could, but he could only do so much. He was Vice-Admiral now and his fleet was a rather rowdy bunch. It didn’t take long for them to submit to him as their Alpha, and thankfully when they had learned about Ace, they instantly accepted him. If anything, Smoker was suspecting that they might be a little in love with Ace
But as long as they didn’t try anything, Smoker would let them live
Not only were they a little in love with Ace, but they were also all madly in love with Rouge and Blanche. The two girls were easily the darlings of their ship and any occasion that the two girls boarded, the men went wild
All of them started carrying treats for the girls and often got them doodads and knickknacks at different ports
Smoker couldn’t judge them for it because he was the worst out of all of them. In his head, he assumed he’d be a strict parent, but instead, he felt his heart turn to mush when he saw them. As Ace predicted, he was a big old softy
Right now, he felt like his whole insides were melting into mush as his two girls waddled up to him, still not used to their human legs. Ace had called him on the denden mushi to tell him that the two girls had started to shift – first into werewolves and slowly into full humans but this was the first time he would be able to see his little girls as full humans
And there they were
Blanche had a skin complexion more like his own, with stark white hair, thick like his as well. As predicted, both girls had a face full of freckles. Rouge, on the other hand, was the splitting image of Ace. Black wavy hair, beautiful eyes and a full grin like his as well
“Daddy!!” both girls screamed as they reached him
Smoker dropped to his knees and hugged them tight, looking up at Ace in awe
Ace himself had also changed
He had filled out more, looked older now. His hair had gotten longer, which suited him so well and Ace had allowed himself to grow a bit of facial hair. Not to the extent of Roger’s, but enough for it to really shape his face
How Ace got more attractive was honestly a shock to him, but he knew that no matter what – Ace was his
His beautiful mate
With the beautiful family that he gave him
Truly, Smoker would be forever grateful for the Full Moon, and what it gave him