Wrote this literally while on a long ride, because I'm still kinda frazzled from this job irl, and seriously, writing this is like a stress relief for me. Posting it while i (finally) has stable internet because i suddenly had this idea and need to write it down.

This was originally a concept for a(nother) long chaptered story, which, if i can work out some kinks, will really be fleshed out into a full story. Or i might just develop this one further instead, who knows.

As for now, however, it's real quick oneshot at best.

Hope you liked it!

He hasn't even finished pouring his morning tea when the door to his personal quarter was slammed open by a harried crew member, who between his pants and gasp, managed to wheeze out that, "The Captain found an enemy rat on the ship!"

Silvers Rayleigh wasn't one to loose his cool easily, but even he can't help but to be shocked by the suddenness of this news and grimly told the still panting crew member to take him to Roger. Oro Jackson has been sailing in the middle of Grand Line seas for the last couple of days, and for just as long, there has been no sighting of marine ship or any unfriendly pirate crews nearby. The thought of how this 'rat' supposedly got into their ship lead to a more concerning matter about how long he has been here and just how lax their lookouts were if they managed to let someone slip in.

When he reached the halls leading to the barracks on the other side of their ship, Rayleigh could first hear the commotion before he saw them. He easily recognize Roger's voice, almost foreign in that angry and furious tone compared to his usual laid back and playful one, and surprisingly, Ace's voice, shouting for his father and pleading for him to stop. For the life of him, Rayleigh couldn't guess why would the case of an unwanted stowaway cause this much ruckus, and he got his answer, the moment he stepped into the corner and saw it with his own eyes.

There's a thick crowd forming between Roger's easily recognizable form, one that quickly dispersed upon his arrival. Despite seeing Roger first, Rayleigh's eyes were instantly pulled to the sight of Ace a few feet away from his father, held down by Sabo and Shanks as he kept screaming for his father and, once he caught sight of Rayleigh, told him to tell his father to stop what he is doing. Rayleigh would if he knows what he should be stopping Roger from doing, and if he hadn't caught sight of the figure on the floor, loomed over by his captain's angry stance.

The head of blonde was only vaguely familiar at first, but it was the very obvious and very large tattoo on the man's chest that jogged Rayleigh's memory into fully recognizing the 'rat'. Whitebeard's mark was stark on the man's naked chest, only partially hidden by the stained thick gauze that encircled his waist. That sight on its own made him frown even more, because a thick gauze and blood stain means injury, and if there is one thing any pirate worth their salt knows, is that Marco the Phoenix could never be permanently injured.

Suddenly, the question 'Why one of Roger's biggest rival's men was on their ship' was quickly replaced with 'What sort of enemy do we need to prepare for if they can harm a man who cannot be harmed'?

Evidently, Roger doesn't have the same observation as him, because the elderly captain knelt and roughly grabbed a fistful of Marco's hair, forcing him to face the enraged man. The gesture allowed Rayleigh to see a newly forming bruise on the side of the younger man's temple, which made him frown even harder, "Give me one reason why i shouldn't end your miserable existence right this very moment," Roger was not a violent man in his nature, but Rayleigh had seen him call for someone's blood when he was furious enough. Knowing that someone managed to sneak into their ship was grave indeed, but it hardly warranted this sort of reaction.

He didn't have to think hard about what got his captain into this state of rage when he heard Ace shouted again, pleading almost pitifully, "Dad, stop it, please!" he struggled against the two men holding him down, but before Shanks could finish telling him 'Don't make things worse', he broke free, pushing his father away. Roger staggered away, as his son quickly knelt down and pulled Marco into a protective embrace, shielding the blonde and making his back and Roger Pirates's jolly roger stare back at the ship's captain.

The shock on Roger's face was quickly replaced by fury, and it was at this moment that Rayleigh decided to speak, "What's going on in here?"

Roger turned to him so fast, anyone else his age would've gotten a whiplash, but he simply grit his teeth and pointed with full contempt at the figure in Ace's protective hold, "Imagine my surprise, Rayleigh," he began, "When this morning, not only did i found a spy on my ship, i found him in my son's bed of all places,"

Murmurs picked up around them, but Rayleigh paid them no mind, only staring pointedly at the two. He took in the sight of Ace's near bare state, if it wasn't for the thin sheet that's somehow still tied around his waist - albeit very loosely - and towards Marco's lack of shirt and unbuttoned pants. A loud thud from the very end of the hall stole his attention briefly, allowing him to see that it was the door leading to Ace's bedroom finally falling from its hinges, probably also Roger's doing.

"Marco's not a spy!" Ace's outburst stole Rayleigh's attention once more, as he continue to cradle Marco in his arms. The blonde winced, surreptitiously pressing the side of his arm against the area where the bloodstain seems to be the darkest, "He's here because he's injured, and you're making it worse!"

"I don't care if he's half dead, i want to know why he's on my ship and why he was in your bed!"

Rayleigh half expected Ace to dodge the question to at least attempt to give some half-assed excuse that will simply confirm what pretty much everyone watching right now already knows. But then, he won't be Roger's son if he had that sort of survival instinct in the first place,

"Why do you think?! Because i let him in there!"

Amongst the racket, Rayleigh could hear Sabo's muffled 'oh boy', and shared some semblance of sympathy to the young man. At least, he would, if that little sigh didn't just confirm that this means Sabo probably also knows that Marco was on board for who knows how long.

The colour that Roger's face has turned into was the sort of shade that should be impossible to appear on a human skin. He looked like he's about to pop a blood vessel and at his age, it doesn't matter if he's Gol D. Roger, Pirate King, that has to be dangerous. The same could also be said about Marco, however, considering that Roger seems ready to strike at any moment. In fact, Rayleigh's pretty sure that the only thing stopping him from actually doing anything was Ace shielding Marco from him.

Ace seems to realize this too, because he pulled Marco even closer, probably suffocating the man at this point.

Which is why Rayleigh decided to step in before something fatal could happen to either one of the three in the spotlight, "You can scream at each other again later, but right now, i believe Ace just said that Marco is injured," he turned to Roger, only to show that despite the intervention, he would still defer to his captain, "He's a Phoenix zoan, so this injury could only be caused by seastone or something out of the ordinary. Shall i get Crocus to take a look at him?"

Roger turned to look at him, chest heaving and face still red as he turned towards Ace and Marco, and back at Rayleigh. The air began to stiffen even more, and the bespectacled man added, "I'm sure it would go unappreciated by Whitebeard if we let one of his top men to expire under our watch," he glanced down at said man on the floor, finding hooded eyes clouded with pain staring back at him, "Even if he was trespassing,"

"Why would i want that old coot to appreciate anything?" The greying man scoffed in reply, but despite his word, Rayleigh could hear the agreement, even more so when Roger began to walk away, "The infirmary's for this ship's crew only. If you really wanted to waste resources on the enemy, you can do that in the holding cell, where we keep spies and unwanted guest,"

"You can't do that!"

"You don't get a say in this, young man!" In a blur of black and red, Roger berated his son, who despite the defiant glare on his face, couldn't quite hide the slight tremor at his father's tone and the burst of Haki that suddenly envelops the small hallway. A few men around Rayleigh's periphery stumbled on their foot, grunting and yelping in surprise, "You're coming with me! Let Shanks and Rayleigh handle him," with that, he continued to storm away.

Once Roger was far enough, the glare was back on Ace's face. He opened his mouth, clearly about to defy his father, when Marco clasped his hand on one naked shoulder and shook his head, "Go to him, Ace," he whispered when Ace only gave him a stricken look, "I'll be fine,"

"But—"

"He's gracious enough to toss me to jail instead of tossing me to the ocean after finding us together," the blonde told him with a pained smile, and while Rayleigh didn't think Roger would do that, with Ace involved, he's not entirely sure himself. He had to appreciate the man for realizing that fact, "Let's not push our luck, eh, yoi?"

Knowing Ace, Rayleigh had expected him to argue, but surprisingly enough, he didn't say anything, merely staring sadly to Marco. A loud and angry scream of 'Gol D. Ace, get here now!' broke the moment, and after sending a quick glare at the direction where his father has left to, the young dark haired male bend down slightly to press a loving kiss to the older's lips. Rayleigh raised a brow at the blatant display of affection - especially considering that there's still plenty of Ace's father's men watching - and could hear Shanks whistled lowly.

Ace whispered something - probably promising to see him later - as he helped Marco into a proper sitting position, before finally standing up. When Roger screamed again, he glared to the hall, looking as threatening as someone only covered by a thin blanket could, 'I'm coming! Let me put on some pants first, will you?!" he yelled before stomping back to his bedroom, and mere seconds later emerged with a pair of dark coloured pants. He left after a quick but meaningful glance to Sabo, a hesitant one to Marco, before he finally left and disappear to the corner.

The silence that ensues was broken by a steadily rising laughter, which was easily recognizable as Shanks' even before Rayleigh had to fully see him, 'Oh man, Phoenix, what a shitshow," the red haired man commented, making his way from the sidelines to help the blonde stand up by extending his only arm, "Didn't Whitebeard ever teach you not to sleep with the enemy? Better yet, not sleep with his biggest enemy?"

Marco accepted the hand offered and stood up with a visible wince, clutching his side. Despite his current situation and the obvious pain he's in, he smiled, a rather guarded, but still playful smile, "He never said anything about the kids, yoi,"

That response drew several disgruntled and disapproval stare from the onlookers, but Shanks only laughed harder, even holding onto his convulsing stomach.

When Rayleigh approached, the smile dimmed down, and even Shanks seems to sobered up from the bouts of hilarity, "Dark King," the zoan fruit user greeted respectfully, "Thank you for the intervention,"

"Phoenix," he returned the gesture, smiling in a polite but none too friendly manner in return. He never had a problem with other pirates, not even Whitebeard and his men, but as courteous as he found Marco, he's still a trespasser and thus, as per Roger's command, a prisoner in their territory, "It wasn't for your sake, i assure you. I would like to avoid giving your captain a reason to attack mine anytime soon,"

In their younger years, if there's anything that Rayleigh wouldn't be able to stop Roger from doing, is clashing with Newgate. But back then, they were both virile and on their prime. He had no doubt that Roger and Newgate could probably still cause as much infamy as they used too, but not against each other. He had heard of the captain of Whitebeard pirate's declining health, and he knows how many pills Roger has to take each day just to keep his joints from aching every time he walked too much.

Time truly is the most powerful force of all.

Marco gave a low chuckle, giving an impression that he probably understood what Rayleigh failed to mention. He probably did, the white haired man thought, because young as he was during those glory days, he's still his captain's first mate.

"Well, then," he said after a while, glancing from Marco to Shanks, "To the holding cell it is, Phoenix. I don't need to remind you that running away is a bad idea, do i?"

I'm so used to writing on laptop that writing from my phone is so confusing. I don't even know how long this story actually is. So i'm so sorry if this turns out to be a jumbled mess.

Seriously, i like this job, but there's always going to be aspects of it that drives me nuts. The next time i'm like this, i'm posting something else again haha. Wish i can do this with my updates, but i didn't bring my laptop and all of my ongoing fics are there :(

Anyway, sorry for rambling and thank you so much for reading (both the fic and the ranting haha). See you in the next fic/update!