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Trafalgar Law knew three things: lying was easy, he owed Cora-san his life, and he’d never be a Marine.
It didn’t matter that Cora-san was his hero or Kuzan was cool and nice or Sengoku was like a weird kind-of-grandpa and none of them were bad people. He wouldn’t be a Marine. Marines worked for the Government. The Government had killed his family and his home after it had gotten them poisoned.
Sengoku didn’t get it, but Cora-san and Kuzan did. Cora-san was a spy, he knew how bad the “good guys” could act. Kuzan used to be a normal vagabond, he knew why some people didn’t like the Government. So whenever other Marines bragged about their kids wanting to join Cora-san just shrugged it off that Law didn’t want to and Kuzan backed him up.
That was why Law was obligated to like Kuzan even if Kuzan liked Cora-san and Law didn’t always like that.
“What are you doing?” Bepo asked.
Bepo was a polar bear, though he called himself a Mink. Law had run into him in a town and brought Bepo home with him. There hadn’t been too much resistance. Kuzan liked bears, apparently.
“Trying to see how long I can hold this Room,” Law said. “Been going over an hour.”
“Hmm. Does is extend into the den?” Bepo asked.
“Yeah, but not much more. It’s pretty small,” Law admitted.
“That’s still pretty good, right?” Bepo asked. “I mean, the really big ones only last a minute or so…”
If Law had to guess, Bepo was a little younger than him. Maybe fourteen. “Yeah, pretty good. Can’t control much more than pulling things apart and putting them back together, though.”
“That’s still pretty cool,” Bepo said, pulling an atlas off the bookshelf.
“You know where Cora-san is?”
“He’s sending a report on the sub to Sengoku,” Bepo said. “Kuzan’s around if you need an adult for something.”
“Nah. Just wondering,” Law said.
.o.o.o.
The base in North Blue was a cold, dreary place.
Law kind of liked it, beyond the fact that it was essentially a cage.
Three years ago Rocinante had fed his superiors some weird story justifying how Law had ended up eating the Devil Fruit the Marines had been willing shell out ten billion for that was so full of bullshit Law marveled to this day that he hadn’t choked on it. Law was deemed an acceptable person to have the thing as he liked studying medicine anyway and was kept in the Navy’s custody to protect him from Doflamingo who would of course want to get him if he ever found out Law had eaten the Op-Op fruit.
So Law wasn’t really allowed to go anywhere on his own unless it was wandering the remote base. Kuzan was there for his protection and Law was pretty sure Rocinante had just asked for ‘which Vice Admiral will my kid not want to kill in a week’ or something because most other Marines pissed him off in a way Kuzan usually avoided.
Still, sixteen and under the watchful eye of a Vice Admiral and a Captain—because somewhere Rocinante had gotten himself a promotion—all the damn time was chafing at best. If he hadn’t picked up Bepo a few months ago for something new Law was sure he’d have cracked. Sure he could bug the engineers for the secret submarine the base was working on or read more medical books or learn fighting from Kuzan or whatever but it got old.
Law turned and headed back to the quarters the four of them shared. Maybe Rocinante would be back and would help him come up with something interesting to do.
Maybe he could dissect a seal?
Something, anything, really.
Law walked in without knocking to see Rocinante on the couch, “Hey, Cora-san, I’m glad you’re back. Kuzan got boring by noon.”
No reaction. That was weird.
“Cora-san?” Law asked, prodding him in the side. “You okay? Cora-san. Dad! Hey!”
“Law, calm down.”
Law turned to see Kuzan in the kitchen, Bepo fussing over some tea behind him. “Oi, Vice-Ice, what’s going on?”
“Bad news,” Kuzan said. He’d even let the ‘boring by noon’ crack slip so it must have been big.
“I’m sorry,” Bepo said quietly.
Law frowned. Everyone he gave a damn about was accounted for except, “Something happen to Sengoku?”
“No,” Kuzan said. “Though your dad might not be on speaking terms with him for a bit…”
Law glared, “Stop beating around the bush and fucking tell me!”
“Language, Law,” Rocinante said sharply, looking up.
Law sighed in relief that his father wasn’t just staring off into nothing anymore, “Cora-san, what happened?”
“My brother has been made a Warlord.”
Law’s blood ran cold. “No…you…this isn’t a funny joke, Cora-san.”
“He’s not lying,” Kuzan said. “Doflamingo just took over a small country and right before we’d have nailed him…word from the World Government. He’s a Warlord. Can’t touch him.”
“How? Why?” Law yelled. “He’s a psycho! Those idiots in charge have to know they can’t trust him, even if they are the biggest idiots ever!”
“I don’t know,” Rocinante said. “I really don’t know.”
“I…what do we…what about me?” Law asked quietly.
“You’re safe here,” Kuzan said. “Warlords can’t attack the Government or the Marines and this is a Marine building even if you aren’t one.”
“If he can make the Government make him a Warlord he can ignore that!” Law said.
“He can’t just attack a Navy base, though,” Kuzan said.
“So I’m stuck here? Locked up?” Law demanded.
“No,” Rocinante said. “We’ll…we’ll find a way to work it into his Warlord agreement that you are off-limits. We can do things like that. You’re not going to be put in a cage, Law.”
“Don’t lie to me, you know it won’t work,” Law said.
“We’ll figure something out, kid,” Kuzan said. “You’re too-”
“Valuable. I know. I’m quite the commodity,” Law snapped, turning on his heel and slamming the door to his room behind him.
.o.o.o.
“Law, you okay?” Rocinante asked, nudging the door open and leaving a tray of food on Law’s desk.
“I don’t want to be locked up forever,” Law mumbled into his sheets.
“You won’t be, I promise,” Rocinante said. “You’re getting stronger, soon you can go places on your own because we’ll know you can hold out long enough to get backup if something happens.”
“Go to Marine-controlled places. Probably from a list. Can’t lose the Op-Op fruit—oh, sorry, the kid who ate it.” Law’s voice was deeply bitter.
“…Probably,” Rocinante admitted. “But that won’t be forever. You’ve got one of the strongest powers on the sea, Law. One day, no one will be able to even touch you. I don’t think anyone will be able to tell you what to do then.”
“Cora-san, I’m going nuts cooped up like this!” Law said, sitting up.
“I know, and I’m sorry. Sometimes I wish I’d found a way off Minion Island without hailing Tsuru and making up shit so we didn’t get in trouble,” Rocinante said.
“Isn’t there anything we can do?” Law complained.
“Kuzan’s got some time off coming up, we can go somewhere with him. He’s more than enough to kick Doffy’s ass, it’ll be safe.”
Currently Law’s only option for any kind of freedom was to join the Marines as Kuzan’s subordinate, then he could go where Kuzan did. The Government would be assured of his—or more accurately his powers’—safety that way. But Law would never, ever join the Marines. The fact that he didn’t hate Rocinante, Kuzan, and Sengoku merely by association was a miracle in itself.
“…Can we go anywhere?”
“Anywhere,” Rocinante promised. “I’ll talk him into it.”
Law snorted, “Yeah, talk.”
Rocinante rolled his eyes. Teenagers. “Yes, talk. If I have to seduce him into something you’ll be informed so you know how much you owe me.”
“The fuck would I owe you for seducing your own boyfriend?”
“Language,” Rocinante said. “Just because you’re not a cadet doesn’t mean I won’t wash your mouth with soap.”
“Please. Kuzan swears, you swear, hell, Bepo swears!” Law said.
“I have never heard f-u-c-k come out of that bear’s mouth, nor mine,” Rocinante said. “And Kuzan outranks me so I can’t scrub his mouth with soap. It has crossed my mind to try but I don’t like frostbite.”
“Yeah but if he gives your frostbite you can make him sleep on the couch,” Law suggested.
“Eat your dinner, Law,” Rocinante said, ruffling his hair. “Good night.”
.o.o.o.
“All right, show me what you’ve got!” Kuzan said.
“You sure about this?” Law asked, eyeing the knife.
“I’m a logia, I can put myself back together if you screw up. Come on now!” Kuzan said.
“All right,” Law said. “Room. Amputate.”
Kuzan’s arm was wrenched off.
“Good, good,” Kuzan said. “Notice any difference with that knife than your scalpel?”
“Little weird feeling. Probably because I’m not used to it,” Law said, giving him the arm back. “Can I try a sword?”
“And just how are you used to a sword?” Kuzan asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Days in the Donquixote gang,” Law replied. “Swords, guns, strategy…I remember it pretty well.”
“Remind me how old you were when that started?”
“Ten.”
“Jeez, no wonder you know how to fight. Dracule Mihawk says he’s been sword fighting since he was six,” Kuzan said, digging a tanto out of a weapons chest as Law gave him his other arm back. “This looks about right.”
“I’m five foot six, it’s too short,” Law complained.
“You can get a bigger sword later, kid, all the katana and so on are people’s personal weapons,” Kuzan said. “All right, again.”
Law quickly unsheathed the blade and Kuzan lost three limbs, left standing on only his left leg.
“You didn’t say the technique name that time.”
“Don’t need to,” Law said. “Easier to focus with swords.”
“And here Roci thought you might be a gunslinger,” Kuzan chuckled.
“I could only perfectly control the bullet within a Room,” Law said. “My range would be limited far shorter than a good sniper’s.”
“I don’t know, these things seem to be getting bigger and stronger all the time,” Kuzan said, nodding at the blue sphere. “Now you going to give me my limbs back or I have to fight you for them?”
Law smirked, “Let’s go, Vice-Ice.”
.o.o.o.
“Cora-san! Cora-san!”
Rocinante was nearly knocked off his feet by Law, “Whoa, whoa, where’s the fire?”
“I can switch stuff!”
“…Pardon?”
“Within my Rooms! I can take one thing, and one other thing, and switch them!” Law said breathlessly. “I did it on accident at first but now I can do it on purpose! Watch! Room, Shambles!”
Rocinante suddenly found himself staring at Kuzan, who had taken Law’s place. Kuzan turned down the hall and scolded, “You can warn a person!”
And then Law was back and Kuzan was gone again. “Isn’t it cool?”
“It’s cooler when you warn people!” came from down the hall.
“I’ll make it up to you!” Law yelled. “It’s that amazing? The medical applications alone…”
“I’m sure you will have a lot of fun with it but sit down, you’re swaying on your feet,” Rocinante said.
“Damn it. Stupid power being tiring…” Law muttered.
“Better than when you used to pass out,” Kuzan said. “Roci, tell your kid to warn people before he randomly changes their location. It’s disorienting.”
“Law, remember it’s disorienting,” Rocinante said.
“Yeah, that’s good for if I have to sue it in a fight.”
“Brat,” Kuzan said affectionately. “I’m going to go patrol the area, see you in a bit.”
He kissed Rocinante and Law groaned loudly.
Rocinante frowned, “Did you just kiss me to get revenge on my kid?”
“…Maybe,” Kuzan admitted before heading out.
.o.o.o.
“What was that about?” Bepo asked when Rocinante put down the Den Den Mushi with a sigh.
“I’ve been summoned to Marinford,” Rocinante said. “No guesses why.”
“Asshole,” Kuzan sighed. “Got to rub it in, does he?”
“Do you have to go?” Law asked.
“Yeah,” Rocinante sighed. “This is not going to be fun…”
“Take Kuzan.”
“…Kiddo, Kuzan’s a Vice Admiral, he outranks me,” Rocinante joked. “I can’t make him go.”
“I need to stay here since you’re here and letting Doflamingo get you is a big tactical misstep, beyond it just not being okay,” Kuzan said.
“Just act like I went to Marinford with you and am hanging around somewhere he won’t find me,” Law said. “You need to go. Doflamingo’s psycho. You need to keep Cora-san safe.”
“I can handle my brother, Law,” Rocinante said.
“You can’t handle stairs some days,” Law replied. “I’ll be fine. I’ll stay with Bepo and bug the engineers. I’d rather not be worrying about you the whole time.”
“I guess he’s got a point, I’d be worried too,” Kuzan said.
“Right! So you go and I’ll lay low here!” Law said.
Kuzan turned to Rocinante, “I guess that sounds all right? We’ll go, your brother can act like the jackass he is while we imply Law’s in the building, and then we’ll come back and take a vacation. Come up with where you want to go yet, Law?”
“Maybe Sabaody Archipelago?” Law asked. “I hear it has a cool amusement park.”
“Ooh, with a Ferris wheel? I like Ferris wheels!” Bepo said.
“Well go,” Rocinante decided. “Come on, Kuzan, if we’re taking your bike to the nearest port we’ll have to leave soon.”
As they finished packing, Law lingered outside Rocinante’s room.
“Something wrong?” Rocinante asked.
“…He’s going to be really mad at you,” Law said quietly. “I’m nervous.”
“Don’t be nervous. About anything,” Rocinante said. He bent down to look Law in the eye. “I can handle Doffy. Everything will go well. Okay?”
“Okay,” Law said, hugging him. “I love you, Dad.”
“Love you too. You and Bepo play nice while we’re gone.”
“Promise.”
.o.o.o.
“Law, why are you crying?” Bepo asked as they watched Rocinante and Kuzan leave.
Law could feel himself smile, a painful, bitter thing. “Because I’m a liar. Come on, we have to get ready.”
.o.o.o.
Rocinante glared at his brother as he entered the room, “Heard you wanted to see me.”
“Of course I did!” Doffy was as theatrical as ever. That shouldn’t have been as weirdly comforting as it was. “You’re my little brother, I’m always concerned for your wellbeing.”
“Uh…huh,” Rocinante said. He was pretty sure Doffy would have killed him on Minion Island if they’d run into each other.
“How are things? You, a military man. Never would have guessed. You’re so soft,” Doflamino said.
“Things are fine and I like my job. Apparently piracy is working well for you.”
“Oh, it is,” Doflamingo said with a toothy grin. “So, how is Law? Op-Op Fruit treating him well, I hope?”
Shit. They’d been worried Doflamingo would find out and he already knew. Probably a spy somewhere…Rocinante would have to deal with that…but for now… “You won’t touch Law.”
“So sure of that, are you?” Doflamingo asked.
“Very.” And he is, in fact. On this one thing, Rocinante will not give his brother an inch.
“You really think he’ll become a Marine? Him? With all the Government’s taken from him?” Doflamingo asked. “No, he’ll turn pirate soon enough, Rocinante. And he’ll be fair game.”
“I said you won’t touch him.” Rocinante may have been the good brother, the kind one, but he was perfectly capable of being nasty when someone actually managed to set his ire blazing. “And I’m not asking, Doffy. I’m telling you.”
“Telling me?” Doflamingo asked, laughing.
“I’ve been studying my abilities. There’s a lot I can do,” Rocinante said. “I could find a way to strip your sense of hearing before you went into a fight. I could make it so you never utter sound again, never hear again, both. I could bomb every ship off Dressrosa without anyone hearing a thing to suspect something was wrong. I’m telling you this so you know if you go after Law, I will deal with you.”
“You’re not allowed to anymore.”
“Since when did you care about what people were allowed?” Rocinante returned.
“Since it worked to my advantage,” Doflamingo admitted. “You’ve always cared, though. It’s why in the end those threats are empty.”
“Doffy, I don’t know what you did to become a Warlord and I don’t care,” Rocinante said. “I am a spy. I will find out what it is, I will get it yanked out from under you, and I will laugh when it happens.”
“Oh, I’m sure you will,” Doflamingo said, voice patronizing in every possible way a voice could be.
Rocinante still had one card left to play, “Honestly, what our mother would think of—urk!”
Doflamingo’s hand tightened on his throat, “Don’t you fucking talk about-”
An airborne icicle knocked his sunglasses off.
“Put Captain Donquixote down, Warlord,” Kuzan said. “Or that commission might get some rethinking.”
Rocinante smiled. He hadn’t snapped first. He’d won.
“You little sneak,” Doflamingo said, a string retrieving his glasses. Rocinante would never forget the look in his brother’s eyes, a combination of hate and joy that made him want to shudder. “I’m almost impressed! Say hi to Law for me, little brother, but them I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot of each other in the next few years.”
“…I want to freeze over his whole ship so badly,” Kuzan said as Rocinante dusted himself off and cast a small silence bubble.
“My brother has that effect on people,” Rocinante agreed. “Well, the meeting’s over, let’s go home.”
.o.o.o.
“I’m going to need that vacation,” Rocinante groused as they neared home.
“Why? Because your brother’s an unrepentant criminal asshole or because our superiors will absolutely make you talk to him again?” Kuzan asked.
“Both, really. Stop depressing me and just pedal,” Rocinante said.
“Touchy. Look, I’m sure Law will be glad to…see...shit.”
They could see the base form here and it looked like something had ripped the gates to the hangar clean off.
“LAW!” Rocinante yelled as Kuzan extended the bridge to the island and increased his speed.
“Damn it, this is why we told that kid not to stay alone!” Kuzan said.
“What the hell happened here?” Rocinante asked. The doors were ripped open but otherwise…everything was intact in the main dock. “Where is everyone?”
“The Den Den Mushi feeds are cut,” Kuzan said.
“We need to find someone to tell us what’s going on,” Kuzan said.
“Assuming they weren’t all murdered or kidnapped,” Rocinante said. “All right, I’ll go to the residential area, you keep look around here and-”
A loud banging noise drew their attention. They rushed over to one of the locked storage room and Kuzan froze the door to weaken the metal before shattering it.
Every single employee of the base was in there…except Law and Bepo.
“What the hell happened?” Rocinante demanded.
“Sir…Law and the bear…they stole the submarine,” one of the men said.
“What are you talking about?” Kuzan asked. “They just walked you all in here, locked you in, and then got it out all by themselves?”
“We were testing the docking procedures,” the head engineer said. “Law and Bepo were hanging around in the control room, said they were curious about how things worked, like they always are. Suddenly Law created this big blue sphere that enveloped the whole dock and next thing we knew we were all in here. It sounded like something tore the doors down, we’re guessing it’s something like how he moved us.”
“I didn’t know Law was that powerful…” Kuzan said.
“We’re Marines. Why would he tell us?” Rocinante asked humorlessly.
“Roci…” Kuzan said, turning to his partner.
“Just…I need some time. Go tell Sengoku.”
“I’ll call it in as a probable joyride because he’s pissed off,” Kuzan said as they walked away from the rest. “He’s a teenager after all. It might have just been on impulse and he’ll be back in a week.”
“He asked you to go to Marinford,” Rocinante said. “He planned this.”
“Roci, you need to breathe and…shit,” Kuzan said as they reached their quarters.
They looked like they had been ransacked. The cupboards were all ripped open and cleared of food, Kuzan could see Law’s medical books missing from the shelves…
There was a note on the table, held in place with a snow globe.
“‘You…you can’t take out the monster. I can. A pirate can. I’ll finish your job for you, Cora-san, and keep myself safe too,” Rocinante read shakily. “Bepo’s with me. We’ll get stronger and kill Doflamingo. I promise. You and Vice-Ice stay safe.’ Oh Law!”
“That little idiot,” Kuzan breathed, ducking a swing from Rocinante, “Don’t take this out on me!”
“We’ve got to stop him,” Rocinante said.
“He’ll get arrested,” Kuzan said. “He went pirate.”
“It’s a joyride,” Rocinante said. “You never saw this note. We’ll find them in a few days. Right now, we think he’s being a silly teenager.”
“Right,” Kuzan said. “I’ll go see if he’s nearby. I’ll use Ice Age. If anyone other than Sengoku asks, I’m just practicing it. I’ll catch Law, smack him upside the head, and bring him back here.”
“We’ll have to talk him into staying.”
Kuzan knew they were both lying. Law would know to get far, far away to avoid the Ice Age, and even if they got him back he’d run again and again. The only way they’d keep him was with seastone shackles and locked doors.
The cage he’d seen coming a mile away.
“Take some time, Roci,” Kuzan said. “I’ll handle Sengoku and then go looking for Law.”
“Thank you,” Rocinante said tightly. “I…I need some. Time that is.”
Kuzan went into his room for the phone and sighed at the sudden silence from the den as Rocinante was no doubt using his powers before breaking everything available. “Fleet Commander? I need to speak with you, it’s personal.”
.o.o.o.
“You okay?”
Law rubbed his head, “Did we make it?”
“You blacked out about a minute after ripping the doors off. I managed to steer it on my own though, it has one person controls,” Bepo said. “I…I went where you said.”
“Good. They won’t look for me here.”
“Why?” Bepo asked.
“Because it physically hurts being here,” Law said, looking at the shell that was once Flevance. “They won’t look here. We can hide for a while.”
“Then what?”
“Well…I guess we’re pirates now. We’ll get started on that next,” Law said, rubbing his arms.
“Law…are you okay?”
“Nope,” Law said, smiling the smile that hurt again. “But that’s fine.”
.o.o.o.
Eight Years Later
“A lot of new pirates seem to be congregating on Sabaody…flipping Sabaody,” Rocinante said. “And some of the New World’s major players. They want us to head over, me to investigate, you for extra security.”
“We know any of these new players?” Kuzan asked.
“Of course we do,” Rocinante said, tossing the wanted poster at Kuzan.
Kuzan looked it over, “Up to two hundred thousand. He’s been busy.”
Law was smirking in the picture and Kuzan couldn’t help but remember every time the kid had corrected him on a medical fact. Still the same snarky bookworm, he was sure. “Eight years and all we have is wanted posters. Didn’t know you taught him to hide that well.”
“Neither did I.”
“…I don’t want to catch him,” Kuzan admitted. “But we have to. He’d never take a Warlord commission.”
“I know,” Rocinante said.
.o.o.o.
Of course he found Law. Of course.
Law was taller now. Skinnier too, as if he could have gotten more like a scarecrow. He made Kizaru look like there was meat on his bones.
“Fuck!” the kid—was he still a kid, he was twenty four now, right?—swore upon seeing Kuzan. “Had to punch a fucking Celestial Dragon, Straw Hat!”
There were tattoos, too, covering his hands an exposed forearms. It made the scars less obvious, that was for sure, but Kuzan knew Rocinante would have a heart attack that his kid had “Death” stamped on one hand, to say nothing of the other ink.
“You said it was great like ten minutes ago!” the boy with the straw hat argued.
“That was before the fucking Admiral showed up!”
“That is Admiral Aokiji to you, Law,” Kuzan said.
“Fuck you, Kuzan!”
Brat. “Someone’s gotten a foul mouth while out on his own.”
“You know him too?” Straw Hat asked as the Pirate Hunter groaned, “Great, another captain with angry Marine relatives…”
Oh, right, Straw Hat and Gentleman were Garp’s grandkids…huh, where was Fire First?
.o.o.o.
Law tried not to show it, but he was scared out of his mind. He knew Kuzan would bring him in. Kuzan didn’t want to, but he would. He knew he’d get locked up for the rest of his life unless he broke and did what the Government wanted.
The Straw Hat swordsman yelped as he was suddenly shoved by Kuma. Their numbers were dropping. He was down to Jean Bart, Bepo, and Penguin. Straw Hat was down to three as well as his brother was next, Straw Hat screaming “SABO!” at the top of his lungs.
They needed a distraction so they could get out of here.
And Law had just the thing.
.o.o.o.
“HEY!”
Kuzan turned and his heart dropped. “Shit. Law, put it down.”
“You need me alive,” Law said firmly, nodachi unsheathed about a foot in order to press to his throat. “But I’m not going to get captured. Not happening.”
“Law, drop the sword!” Kuzan yelled.
“Captain!” Bepo yelled.
“I’m not going to be locked up again!”
No Room around, this was real. He’d do it. Stupid Ds, being so calm about death… “Law…please…”
Law’s and Straw Hat’s remaining crew were escaping but that didn’t matter. Law was the priority in this situation, for Kuzan and the Navy.
“Don’t move!” he ordered Sentomaru and Kuma. “Law, put down the sword.”
He could probably freeze him in time. He’d have to be careful about it, but-
Law was suddenly yanked out of his line of sight by a rubbery arm.
“Straw Hat!” Sentomaru yelled as the younger pirate and Law tried to run. Law was making a Room too, one good Shambles and he’d be gone-
Suddenly Kuma was moving and Kuzan had barely opened his mouth to order him to stop before Law and Straw Hat were shoved across the horizon.
“You idiot!” he yelled. “We needed Law! We had him!”
Kuma looked at him, “…My apologies. I thought we could keep him alive by sending him elsewhere. The stress of the fight would be gone and he would cease his suicidal actions. He can be taken by surprise later, perhaps.”
“Well where’d you send him?”
“That way,” Kuma said, pointing.
Helpful. Kuzan rubbed his temples. “Kuma…you just fucked up a major operation!”
“My apologies.”
Kuzan hoped Law hadn’t landed in the water… His portable Den Den Mushi buzzed. “What?”
“You sound upset.”
He did not need to listen to Kizaru’s shit right now. “Kuma fucked up and we lost Law. You?”
“Have the interesting news. The plan at the bar worked better than we thought. We’ve got the Phoenix and Fire Fist.”
Shit. Two Emperor’s kids? “That doesn’t sound good.”
“Well we’ve got them now, so help me get them to Impel Down.”
.o.o.o
“What the hell was that thing back on Sabaody, anyway?” Luffy asked as they settled in for the night.
“Lots of things happened on Sabaody,” Law replied. “What do you mean?”
“You trying to cut your head off.”
Law shuddered, “I’m not getting captured. Not ever.”
“But…you’re going to Impel Down with me tomorrow.”
“To assure your success. I’m not ever going to be locked up again. If I don’t get locked up, we can win. As well as to send a message: if I can break out of Impel Down…if I can get out of there, then they can never hold me and they’ll know it.”
“But why’d you try to cut your head off?”
“Because they want me alive—more accurately they want my Devil Fruit power and it’s better to keep me alive for it,” Law said. “The Op-Op fruit is extremely powerful. I’ve barely unlocked any of its real potential.”
“Wow, tossing around people like you were is the low end? Cool,” Luffy said. “I’m always finding out neat stuff about my Gum-Gum powers.”
“They won’t risk me killing myself and Kuzan knows I’ll do it rather than get locked in a cell forever.”
“You can’t! Traffy, you’re too cool to die!”
“Aw, trying to sweet talk me now that you’ve decided we’re boyfriends?” Law mocked.
Luffy didn’t seem to notice the sarcasm. “I mean it! You can’t treat dying like that!”
“I’m not afraid to die!” Law barked.
“Neither am I, that doesn’t mean I go looking for it!” Luffy argued. “Don’t make plans that have you trying to kill yourself as a major part, that’s stupid and defeatist and…stupid!”
“I’d rather die than be captured.”
“But if you get captured someone can rescue you, like we’re going to with Ace and his boyfriend!”
“I never said I was being rational,” Law hedged. “I just react badly to the idea of being caged.”
“Okay, but no more ‘gonna pretend to kill myself’ plans Traffy, got it?”
“This is an alliance, Luffy-ya, you don’t order me around.”
“Yeah, but as your boyfriend I get to try and keep you alive, so there!”
“You are milking this.”
“Well, yeah. Traffy’s awesome, I want to keep him around,” Luffy said.
“Awesome he says,” Law chuckled, rolling his eyes.
Luffy jabbed him in the side, “I saw that. It’s dark but I saw that.”
“Shut up, I’m trying to sleep!”
“Not until you admit you’re awesome!”
“I’m downright incredible, Straw Hat-ya, now let me sleep!”
“Better,” Luffy said.
“You will be the fucking death of me.”
Luffy hit him with a pillow. “I just said no dying!”
“Arg!”
.o.o.o.
In the depths of Impel Down, hiding in a secret okama land that apparently existed, waiting for Luffy to recover as he tried to plan out a proper escape with Bentham, Law was struck with a sudden thought.
He honestly thought they’d get out of here, pull off that miracle.
“Just what are you?” he asked Luffy.
“Hmm?” Bentham asked.
“Luffy. He’s…something.”
“Insane,” Buggy offered grouchily.
“…Maybe,” Law conceded. “But it’s an…interesting insanity.”
“Damn, you’ve got it bad,” Buggy muttered.
“Shush you, it’s lovely,” Bentham said, wagging a finger.
Law wondered what his life even was anymore.
.o.o.o.
Law woke up and wondered where the hell he was.
Oh, Red Haired Shanks’ ship. That was right, the sub was being used for everyone injured at Marinford, so Luffy had brought him here to sleep off the exhaustion of operating on Ace.
And there Luffy was, snuggled into his chest and wrapped around him like an octopus.
Law was relatively sure this was not how relationships were supposed to work. He had trouble remembering his birth parents, especially without pain, but he was pretty sure they’d been the standard ‘meet, date, engage, marry’ types. Cora-san and Kuzan were…well, more dancing around each other, “friends with benefits” types but it he had watched them do it for years so maybe they’d upgraded while he was gone.
He’d kissed Luffy a few days ago. He hadn’t even known Luffy two weeks ago. And somehow Luffy had just…declared them boyfriends and Law…he liked it. He liked being around Luffy, the younger pirate was never boring, was willing to help him with his goal, and he just felt…less like he was just some automaton moving towards the goal of taking out Doflamingo.
He liked it. He liked Luffy. Even if he was sure they were a really weird relationship. Even if Luffy for some reason thought Law was perfect which was laughable, really.
The door opened.
“Okay, no, no. Separate beds.”
Law looked up to see Red Haired Shanks rubbing the bridge of his nose. “…If you can get him off me, okay. I don’t think this position is good for my back anyway.”
Shanks rolled his eyes and reached out, grabbing Luffy by the collar, “Luffy, you’re too young to be in bed with strange men.”
“Nuh-uh. Staying with Traffy,” Luffy mumbled. “He’s warm.”
“Luffy-ya, the other bed has more blankets, you’ll be plenty warm there,” Law asked, helping Shanks extract Luffy from his person.
“But I wanna cuddle cause it’s nice,” Luffy said.
“You’re seventeen. You are not going to bed with guys you pick up for prison breaks,” Shanks said.
“Technically we got pushed off by Kuma t’gether so…so it’s Kuma’s fault,” Luffy yawned.
“Mm-hm,” Law agreed, rolling over. It was totally Kuma’s fault.
Law was suddenly seized and yanked across the cabin to the bed Luffy was now in. “Oh come on!”
“Luffy!” Shanks scolded.
“Traffy’s the best. The best pillow,” Luffy said before snoring.
“…This was not my idea,” Law informed Shanks, having no other clue what to do when faced with the irate Emperor.
“Duly noted,” Shanks said. “Do anything inappropriate and I’ll cut your dick off.”
Law had never been so happy in his life to be asexual and currently unable to envision Luffy in that way at all. “I think you won’t have to worry about that.”
Shanks nodded and left. Law sighed, “Going to get me killed, Luffy-ya.”
“Nope. Not allowed to die.”
“Oh, well excuse me,” Law muttered before falling back asleep.
.o.o.o.
“Did you hear that rubber kid during the fight?” Rocinante asked.
“I think everyone heard him at some point, be more specific,” Kuzan said.
“He said Law is his boyfriend.”
“…Little weird, but I think he might be good for him.”
“Yeah, I thought the same.”
.o.o.o.
“Whoa, your tattoos are awesome!”
Law glanced at Luffy, “Are—are you watching me change?”
“No, but I’m changing in the same room,” Luffy said as he took off his shorts. “They’re really cool, Traffy. So are your spots.”
Law flinched. “Yeah, well, they’re actually scars, so.”
“Scars?” Luffy said.
“I was really sick as a kid. Where these marks are, and some other places, it used to be white and scaly,” Law said.
“…Weird sickness.”
“That’s one way to put it,” Law said.
“So…you’re going to stick around, right?” Luffy asked.
“Well, I have to for a while, your brother needs a lot more care and frankly Tony-ya and Doc-ya will have their hands full with everyone else so I might as well handle the worst patient.”
“Thanks, Traffy. Guess we’ll need to find the rest of our crews soon…and my ship…” Luffy mused. “And not get killed or captured while doing it.”
“I remember the no dying rule, Luffy-ya,” Law said. “And…thanks. For helping me with my ‘getting captured’ issues.”
“Hey, I just made you break into Impel Down with me, no big deal,” Luffy said, grinning.
“Oh, so modest,” Law teased. “But seriously, thank you. It was an inconvenient fear.”
“Glad to help!” Luffy said, grabbing him for a kiss.
“Do you want your fathers to kill me?” Law hissed, glancing at the door.
“They can’t, they need you to help Ace get better.”
Law burst out laughing, trying and failing to muffle it with his hands.
“Shishishi, Traffy has a nice laugh!” Luffy laughed, prying his hands away from his mouth.
Law leaned in and kissed him for real for that one.
.o.o.o.
Trafalgar Law knew four things were true. Lying was easy, but it could hurt so much to do it to people he cared about. He owed his life to Cora-san, and part of him would always belong with him and Kuzan. He’d never be a Marine, no, he’d be one of the men burning the Government down.
And finally, finally…it was too hard to hate himself when he was in love with Luffy.