Work Text:
Law looked into the mirror, adjusting his glamour. He frowned. Did his human ears look bigger than usual? He wasn’t sure. He had been applying the same glamour for the last twenty years, with some minor variation as he grew up, and yet now the ears looked completely foreign to him.
Maybe it was just the same phenomenon that could make a word he’d read and written hundreds of times suddenly look strange when he started thinking about it too hard. He shook his head towards the bathroom mirror, then turned to leave the bathroom and head to work.
The streets outside were bustling, full of people hurrying to work and school, and Law kept his tail low and as close to his body as possible so no one would run into it. It was glamoured too, but simply to be invisible. The glamour on his head was far more complicated, and a bit of a pain to cast twice a day. Still, Law kept it up. He had every reason to want to stay hidden, after all.
When he got to the hospital he greeted the lady by the entrance desk, like he usually did. She didn’t answer immediately, just looked up at him with a confused frown for a moment, before smiling.
“Oh, it’s you, Doctor! Sorry, for a moment I thought…” She trailed off, shaking her head. “Nevermind, I must be tired.”
Law didn’t think too much of it, and continued his day as usual. Something strange was definitely happening, though. More than one person gave him odd looks as he walked by, but when he checked the mirror, his glamour seemed fine.
His last patient just before lunch, coming in for a post-surgery checkup, looked at him strangely the entire visit, and when they were just finishing up said:
“I’m sorry, I just- Are you wearing cat ears?”
Law was surprised. It was incredibly rare that anyone saw through his glamour, and this patient certainly never had before.
“Oh!” Law said, touching his head and feigning a laugh. “I was entertaining the kids in the paediatric ward earlier and must have forgotten them on. How embarrassing!”
His patient laughed with him and nodded, accepting the lie. When he left, Law breathed a sigh of relief, at least until he checked the mirror and found the glamour flimmering. He swore to himself. No wonder his patient had seen through it.
Usually a glamour would last an entire day, though he tended to recast it in the middle of his longer shifts just in case. This time it had only been five hours and the glamour had already all but dissipated.
He luckily kept the supplies he needed in his office, and could easily recast it. Still, it was strange. Nothing like that had ever happened before. Not since he was young and just learning how to cast it.
With Doflamingo standing over his shoulder, instructing and criticising him. Ironic, Law supposed, that the spell he himself had taught Law was keeping Law safe from him now.
***
His workday passed without further incident. Law left the hospital late in the evening, tired, hungry and looking forward to sitting down on the couch with a book. He stood at the bus stop outside the hospital, waiting for the bus to come. Having worked overtime, he had missed the previous bus by only a few minutes, and now he was stuck waiting for the next one.
He didn’t see anyone giving him odd looks at the bus, at least, which was a relief. He stepped out at an earlier stop than usual to go past the grocery store before heading home. He was out of coffee, he remembered when he walked inside. What else did he need? He should have written a list.
Suddenly there was a shriek beside him, and Law turned to see an old woman pointing at him with an expression of pure horror. “You! Demon! What’s wrong with your face?”
“Are you alright, Ma’m?” another bystander asked the lady. “Everything is fine, he’s…”
He trailed off, looking at Law with a frown. Law cursed inwardly. The glamour must be failing again.
“It’s alright, I’ll leave. It might calm her down,” he said, turning to hastily walk away from them. He pulled up the hood on his jacket to cover himself further as he hurried down the streets, heart beating fast in his chest. How was this happening? He had done the spell the same way he always did, the same way he had done it thousands of times over the years. Why was it failing him now?
As an experiment, he recast it again when he got home, then checked the mirror regularly. It started flimmering after less than two hours. It wasn’t just his face, either. The glamour on his tail did the same, though slower.
Why? It must be his supplies, Law couldn’t come up with any better reason. It was the same stuff he had used the day before, with no issues at all, but maybe they had a best-before date he hadn’t been informed of?
Law cursed to himself. He could recast it every hour on days like today had been, but on busy days or during surgeries that was impossible.
He had no choice then, he supposed. He checked the time, seeing that it was past midnight. That was fine. The Night Market was called that for a reason, and Law’s usual supplier would be open until sunrise, assuming they were still in business. It had been almost a year since he was there last. He preferred to have as little to do with the Other World as possible.
He recast the glamour again, just as a precaution, then put on his hat, pulled up his hood, and headed outside. It was dark, and he had to walk for almost an hour to get to an Entrance Point he knew of. It was situated in a park, and Law walked past a group of very drunk men hollering after him.
“Hey, pretty boy! Let me pull that tail!”
Law grumbled under his breath but didn’t stop. Apparently the glamour hadn’t even lasted an hour this time.
He reached the spot he was aiming for, a swing set under a broken street light. Law sat down in the left swing, and moved around thirteen times lockwise. Then he stopped, sighed, and said: “I swear not to hurt any sentient being during my visit.” He let go, and spun back counterclockwise fast enough to make himself dizzy.
It was with unsteady steps he got off the swing and entered the Night Market. It was buzzling as usual, full of people going from tent to tent looking for enchanted objects, magical supplies, specific food, fortunes and much more. The “tents” weren’t really tents, of course, but gateways to stores all around the world. The Night Market itself was a Hidden Place “beyond the veil” as the fae folk put it. All kinds of people came here, some human, but most not, or at least not completely. Some had long-standing feuds with each other. That’s why the incantation to gain entrance included a vow of non-violence, extending into the Doorways of the shops..
Law ignored the people around him, hurrying straight towards the spot his supplier’s tent had been a year prior. It had been a small shop run by an older gentleman, and the tent had been simple and grey.
The tent that met him now was large, red, and richly decorated with gold embroidery. He frowned, hesitating for a moment. This didn’t look like the right place, but it could be. With some trepidation, he entered the tent.
There was a sound like a bell ringing as the gold-trimmed fabric fell away around him, leaving him standing in what he would have described as a gaudy, over the top magic shop aimed at rich suburban women seeking some extra spice in their life. If he hadn’t come from the Night Market, he would have assumed the business to be a fraud.
“Welcome, welcome,” a pleasant voice said nearby, and Law saw a woman coming towards him, dressed like the postcard version of a mystic from Wano. His distaste grew, but the woman’s smile was slightly too wide and her eyes didn’t blink, so that lent her some legitimacy at least.
“I was looking for Crocus’ shop,” Law said. “I guess you’ve taken over his old spot.”
“Ah yes, I heard the old man retired. We’ve had this spot for almost ten months now,” she said. “But perhaps I can help you instead?”
Law glanced around the store, at the displays of crystals of no particular power, herbs one might make tea with, symbols from a variety of religions including some fictional, cheap jewellery made of plastic beads…
The woman saw his look, and laughed. “It pays the bills,” she said. “Our real inventory is in the back, if you’ll follow me.”
Law remained where he was. “I’d prefer to stay in the Doorway, if you don’t mind.”
She laughed again. “So cautious. But I suppose, as they say, curiosity may kill the cat.” She smiled at her own joke, but Law was less amused. He flicked his tail in irritation.
“My glamour is failing. I suspect the fault lies with my supplies,” he said, and gave her a brief explanation of what had happened. She listened intently, or at least it seemed that way by her unblinking stare.
“Oh, poor little kitten,” she said sweetly, reaching out for him, but Law took a step back. “I would love to sell you new supplies, but I wouldn’t dream of swindling a customer, especially not such a delicious-looking one. The problem is not with your spell-components.”
“Then what is it?” Law asked, and she leaned forward, smiling even wider. Law could feel his hair rising slightly, and he pulled his ears backwards.
“I run a business here, kitten,” she said. “If you want something, you need to pay.”
Law should have expected this, really. He studied her for a moment. Could he trust her? Absolutely not, but he had already told her his problem, and the fewer people from the Night Market he interacted with, the better.
“Very well,” Law said. “How much is this information worth to you?”
“To me? Not much. But to you… ” she gave him a meaningful look. “I imagine it’s worth a great deal.”
Fuck. He was desperate, and she knew it. Hardly a surprise, really, given his current, glamourless state.
Law took out his wallet, counted the bills, and handed them over. “Will this do?”
She seemed unimpressed. “Paper money. Seems a paltry sum for such a big secret.”
“I will shop around if I have to,” Law said. “I’m asking you to explain it, not solve it. It won’t cost you more than a few breaths of air.” He raised his eyebrows. “This seems more than fair a price for that.”
She studied him, as if considering calling his bluff. Law kept her unblinking gaze steadily. He wasn’t bluffing. As much as he preferred not to go look for another shop at the Night Market, he wasn’t fool enough to trade anything but money without knowing what he was bargaining for.
“As you wish, kitten,” she sighed, and took the money. “The problem isn’t the supplies, or the glamour itself. The problem is you. ”
Law frowned. “Meaning?”
“Your magic isn’t strong enough. Someone, somewhere is trying to make you reveal yourself, and they are more powerful than your little glamours can withstand.” She seemed positively delighted, giving him a predatory smile. “Someone wants you, little kitten. And I think I can see why. You’re something special aren’t you?”
“I am what you see,” Law said, increasingly uncomfortable with the looks she was giving him. “I don’t suppose you know how I could protect myself.”
“Oh, I do,” she said. “But it will cost you.”
“I see,” Law nodded. “I’ll be in touch.”
He turned around and walked back the way he came before she could answer. Once he was outside the tent, he took a deep breath and smoothed his hair back down. Maybe he should have asked further, but he was pretty sure she would have tried to eat him if he had stepped away from the protection of the Doorway. Now, back at the Night Market, he didn’t have to worry about that , at least, but it still left him with his other problem.
He was being hunted. Someone powerful, and Law had a pretty good idea who, was looking for him. Trying to make him reveal himself. Law buried his head in his hands. He had hoped to solve this tonight, and go back to work tomorrow like nothing had happened, but there was no chance of that, was there?
He would have to call in sick, and hope he could get this solved before anyone got suspicious. Or before he got fired.
Law briefly exited the market to make the call, then hurried back inside to think things through carefully now that he had bought himself some time. He had two options, he supposed: find some kind of protection, stay hidden, and continue life as he had done this last decade, or find Doflamingo before Doflamingo found him, and put an end to it all. One way or the other.
Cora would have wanted him to choose the first option. He had told Law to be free, to live a normal life, to be happy , and Law had tried. He had stayed hidden and glamoured for well over a decade, trying to live his life. But Doflamingo, it seemed, wasn’t done with him yet.
Despite Law preferring to stay away from the Hidden Places, he was somewhat safe in the Night Market. In addition to the vow taken upon entering, the place was teeming with protective spells. Unless Doflamingo actually physically came to the Night Market, he wouldn’t be able to find Law here.
Unfortunately, Law also couldn’t recast his glamour in here, so there was a risk of someone seeing him and reporting back to Doflamingo. Or someone else might be interested in eating or selling him. At a glance, most people here would dismiss him as nekomata or werecat or something similar, but the older, more knowledgeable people might recognise him as Flevian when they saw, or smelled, him. And therein lay the danger.
Flevance had been a Hidden Place. Law had been born there, and grew up with a loving family and a small, tight-knit community. Unlike the Fairy Court or similar places, Flevance didn’t play with mortals' lives for fun. Any lost mortals who found themselves there were swiftly returned. If they were injured, they were nursed back to health first. The Flevians were healers and miners, first and foremost. They kept to their own.
It hadn’t saved them in the end.
Law shook his head. Reflecting on the past would do nothing but bring him misery, and he needed a clear head if he was going to figure out what to do.
He came to the conclusion that he needed protection first, regardless of anything else. If he wanted to move around in the world, he needed a glamour, and a way to stay hidden that wasn’t just sitting around in the Night Market.
He looked around at the tents, wishing there were signs. But no, that was the way of things in Hidden Places; you either already knew where to go, were introduced by someone who did, or had to stumble blindly around, hoping whoever was on the other side of the tent wouldn’t eat you, or worse. The protection of the Night Market only extended as far as the Doorway, after all.
He could go back to the shop from earlier, but he suspected she wouldn’t let him go a second time. If he knew where old Crocus had retired to, he might have gone to look for him for help. Then again, if he remembered the old dryad’s personality right, he had probably taken root somewhere by the sea, blooming out while watching the whales.
Law shook his head. He would have to take a chance, then, based on nothing but the look of the tents. Law walked around, watching people enter and exit, and trying to determine what kind of purchase they had made. It was futile. Customers at the Night Market were discreet by nature.
Finally, Law chose a tent. It was well kept but simple, having no extra ornaments or decorations. Law had seen one person exit, looking satisfied as far as Law could tell, so probably not an immediate death trap. Then again, the chances of it actually being the kind of place he was seeking was small.
Still he felt a pull towards it, and hoped it was the Night Market responding to his desire for help, rather than their potential desire to eat him.
He walked into the tent, and the simple fabric fell away to reveal a… restaurant? Law frowned as he looked around. No, not just a restaurant. There were tables and some people eating in a corner, as well as a bardisk, but behind the bardisk there were also a bunch of keys hanging on the wall. Like an old-fashioned hotel.
“Welcome to the Going Merry,” a bright voice said, and Law turned to see a young, red-headed woman walking towards him. “Are you here for the lunch special, or would you like a room?”
“Two questions,” Law said slowly. “Where are we geographically, and what kind of protections do you have?”
She looked a little surprised. “We’re on Drum Island currently, though we’re planning on moving again in the evening. We rarely stay anywhere longer than a day or two.”
Law looked around again. It made sense, he supposed. This didn’t quite feel like a Hidden Place, but it wasn’t entirely moored in the mundane world either. “And protective spells?”
She frowned. “We’re protected from the standard stuff, people can’t scry on us or enter without going through the doors or the Night Market.”
Law supposed that was about as good as he could hope for. Besides, even if Doflamingo’s magic could reach him here, he would be harder to find if the hotel moved around. Law glanced at the woman again. She looked human, but that didn’t make him any less suspicious. Could he trust her?
Sighing, he took a step forward, leaving the Doorway behind. He was going to have to trust someone . “I’ll take a room. What’s for lunch?”
If she was surprised by him taking a room with no luggage, she didn’t show it, but she offered to sell him basic toiletries, which he accepted despite the inflated price. Half an hour later he had showered and was eating lunch (breakfast? very very late dinner?) in the dining area. It was probably the best fish soup he’d ever eaten, and yet his stomach was in knots.
Assuming the woman behind the counter wasn’t planning on capturing him and selling him, or chopping him up for dinner, he had found a reasonably safe place to stay for a while. That meant he needed to start thinking about the next step.
Doflamingo was planning to take over the black market in Dressrosa, last time Law heard anything about it. That had been thirteen years ago, though, so he may have moved on already. Still, it was a place to start.
But how? It had been years since he had any involvement in that world, except a bi-annual trip to the Night Market for spell components
He glanced up from his soup as a skeleton walked through the room, before sitting down by the piano in the corner. Law stared at it. He knew this place was connected to the Night Market, but he didn’t expect anything this blatantly supernatural. Then again, Law had been sitting around with no glamour. It would be hypocritical to complain. Besides, for someone with no lungs or lips, the skeleton was a pretty good singer.
With his stomach full of food, Law was starting to feel how tired he was. It had been a very long, very tiresome day. Law yawned widely, covering his mouth with a hand, and stretched slightly where he sat. Maybe it was time to go to sleep. Tomorrow, he would have a clearer head to plan with.
***
After about six hours of restless sleep, Law headed down the stairs again. He quickly realised the hotel must be following a different time zone than Law did, because the lobby was quiet and the dining area was empty. The only other person around was a green-haired, muscular guy shamelessly asleep behind the counter, though he stirred as Law walked closer, and looked up at him with a curious eye. The other eye was closed, with a scar running right over it.
“Cat?” He frowned with a slight wrinkle of his nose.
“As you can see,” Law said dryly, wiggling his ears twice as in demonstration.
The guy frowned deeper. “You don’t smell like the usual cats.”
Ah. A werewolf, probably.
“I’m not a usual cat,” Law said. “Are we still on Drum Island?”
The guy shook his head. “We’re in South Blue. I forgot what the place was called.”
“Do you actually control where this place goes or is it random?” Law asked curiously. It would be a very convenient way to get to Dressrosa if that was the case.
“Bit of both,” the guy yawned. “Nami can steer it, but mostly Luffy thinks it’s more fun to just go wherever.”
“I see,” Law nodded, looking over the room. It was almost eerily quiet after seeming so lively a few hours ago.
“Our tent at the Night Market is closed. Are you planning on checking out?” the guy at the counter asked.
Law shook his head. “No, just stretching my legs.”
“The cook should be up in about three hours, but we’ve got booze and snacks if you want them.”
Law shook his head again, The last thing he wanted was to get drunk. “Do you have a phone charger I could borrow?”
As Law sat in the lobby, waiting for his phone to charge, he wondered if he could risk heading out into Wherever, South Blue long enough to get himself a change of clothes. He was starting to feel a bit disgusting wearing the same clothes as yesterday. Even if his glamour didn’t hold, he could wear his hat and hide his tail under his jacket. It wouldn’t be comfortable, but it was doable. Assuming the hotel wouldn’t leave without him.
As he was considering this, the front door opened and two young men stumbled inside. Both were dripping wet, but from what Law could see of the outside before the door closed behind them, it wasn’t raining.
“Zoro!” one of them shouted happily. “Look at this seashell I found!”
He looked human, as far as Law could see, but there was something a little bit…off. A tickle in the back of Law’s mind, warning him that something was strange. Well, something in addition to the wet clothes.
“Did you fall into the sea?” the green haired probably-werewolf, probably-Zoro asked, and the guy laughed.
“Yeah, but Usopp helped me up.”
“I almost thought we’d both drown,” the other guy, presumably Usopp, said. He seemed fully human, at least. “Far away from home, all alone, with no one to help us…”
“Hey!” the first guy exclaimed, interrupting his friend. He had noticed Law sitting by one of the electric sockets in the lobby, and bounced over in his direction, sending droplets of seawater everywhere. “You’re the cat-guy! Nami told us about you!” He sat down beside Law on the couch, apparently not realising or not caring that he was making the seat wet. “I’m Luffy!”
“Trafalgar Law,” Law said, leaning away from him and lowering his ears. It didn’t seem to discourage Luffy in the slightest.
“Your ears and tail are so fluffy!” he grinned. “We met a nekomata some years back and they weren’t nearly as fluffy!”
Law made a non-committal noise, though it came out more like an annoyed grunt.
“Nami said you asked about protection spells,” Usopp said. “Are you in trouble?”
So nosey, figuratively and literally. “Yes,” Law said, and left it at that. He looked back down at his phone. It was charging so slowly.
“Oh, what kind of trouble?” Luffy asked, then frowned, tilting his head to the side. “Hey. I know you.”
“We all know him, Luffy, we talked about-” the other guy said, but Luffy shook his head.
“I know you!” he exclaimed, face breaking out into the biggest, happiest, shiniest grin Law had ever seen, like the sun was beaming out from his smile. “It is you, isn’t it?”
Law was a little alarmed. “What do you mean, you talked about me? ”
“Oh. There’s a price on your head so we were discussing what to do with that. We were gonna wait until you woke up,” Luffy said dismissively. “But I didn’t realise it was you! I didn’t recognise you with the ears!”
Law looked back at him, trying to remember what he was talking about. There was…something familiar about his face, but Law couldn’t quite place him. “There’s a price on my head?” he repeated instead. That was the important part. Still, Luffy was definitely familiar, but from where?
“So, he’s a friend?” the probably-werewolf, Zoro, asked, ignoring Law’s question, and Luffy laughed and nodded.
“Yeah! He saved my life!”
Law frowned. Was Luffy a former patient? Now that he mentioned it, he had a vague memory of dressing Luffy’s wounds, but under what circumstances…?
Law’s eyes went wide as he remembered. “You’re the kid who went chasing after a demon into its own territory!”
“You did what?” Usopp squawked. “That’s insane, even for you!”
Luffy just grinned. “I didn’t know. I was nine and no one had told me demons were real yet,” he said. “It took my friend, so I went after it. I couldn’t save her,” He turned back towards Law. “But you saved me!”
“I just happened to see it so I ran in after you and got you out. It wasn’t a big deal,” Law said uncomfortably.
Luffy grinned, looking at his friends. “I was almost gobbled up by the demon, but Torao managed to patch me up.”
“ That's where the scar is from?” Zoro raised his eyebrows. “You’re a doctor, Torao? Or a healer?”
“Yes, now,” Law said. “But it was over a decade ago. And I didn’t do much.”
He still remembered it well, though he hadn’t recognised Luffy at first. He remembered it like it was yesterday.
***
Law was sixteen, living with a foster family who didn’t know about his true form and was likely to smoke his spell components if they found them, so Law was keeping the bulk of them hidden in a hollow tree in a nearby forest, only taking what he needed for one week at a time.
He was heading to that spot when he saw a kid pass by, running headfirst into a Doorway to a Hidden Place. And not just any Hidden Place. The corruption of a demon lair was apparent even from a distance. Law’s hair was rising as he approached it. It wasn’t his business. It was absolutely none of his business, but…
The kid reminded him of the friends he’s had in Flevance. Before they died. Like that kid undoubtedly would.
Cursing himself for a fool, Law headed in after him.
The first thing he noticed after entering was a sense of wrong. This Hidden Place was older, much older than he had expected, but something new has made a home in it. Something nasty and hungry, but not something that would usually hunt Law’s kind. He wasn’t safe, but wouldn’t be the demon’s first priority. The human kid would be.
Which meant Law had to find him fast.
Law’s sense of smell wasn’t much better than a regular human’s, but he had grown up in a Hidden Place, and knew how they worked. Every Hidden Place had its own rules, of course, but some things tended to be universal. For example, a reliance on emotion over logic.
The human kid had come looking for something, or someone, and odds were that he would find it. Or what was left of it. The demon was looking for the kid, so it would find him, too. Law just needed to want it more than the demon did.
I want to save him, Law thought, trying to convince the Hidden Place to help him. Show me the way.
Law started running forward, relying on the Hidden Place to lead him right. If the place had been the demon’s own creation, Law wouldn’t have dared, but this place held memories of something else, and Law hoped that something else was inclined to help him.
The place changed as he ran, going from a void to a desolate field of dried out sunflowers. Law got turned around in the maze of dead flowers once, twice, but eventually reached the temple in the middle, a partially ruined ziggurat covered in pieces of flesh and blood. A defiled temple to whomever the place used to belong to, Law suspected. The demon’s feeding ground
He didn’t have much time to think about it. A scream rang out from the building, and Law ran towards it. He was too late. The demon had already found the kid, and-
Law stopped dead in his tracks, staring at the scene in front of him.
The demon had found the kid first, it was true, but the kid was fighting back. And the kid was winning.
In Hidden Places, emotions and willpower were more powerful than might, and the kid’s will was overpowering the demon. It shouldn’t be possible, it wasn’t possible, the kid should be too scared, and the demon should feed on that fear, becoming stronger still.
And yet, the kid was winning.
A single tendril of sunlight slipped through the dark clouds covering the sky, illuminating the fight. When Law glanced back the way he came, he noticed the dead sunflowers had moved. Still dry, still decayed, but all turned towards the temple now.
Law shivered. Whatever had laid dormant in this Hidden Place long enough for a demon to make it their own was now watching the kid with great interest. Perhaps even lending him power. Law wasn’t sure whether to feel relief or pity on the kid’s behalf.
The demon screamed again, an unearthly, guttural sound, then Law saw it turn and flee. It came towards him like dark smoke, engulfing him as it passed him by. Law closed his eyes, and let it pass unhindered. He didn’t fear the fleeing demon, and so it had no power over him.
The kid stood still in the light for a while, but he didn’t look well. He was breathing heavily, looking like he remained standing from willpower alone. And what willpower it was, to have chased away a demon on his own.
Well, on his own, with a little help from the long-forgotten entity who called this place home.
As Law cautiously approached, the kid wobbled, then fell to the ground. Law ran towards him, not fast enough to catch him. The kid was unconscious, shivering, and bleeding from deep gashes into his torso, painting the temple floor with his blood.
Law grit his teeth. The bleeding was the most urgent issue. He could deal with the rest later.
Law had a feeling like he was being watched as he tore parts of his clothes to pieces to create makeshift bandages. He didn’t have the tools to clean the wounds, so stopping the bleeding long enough for him to get the kid to a hospital was the best he could do.
Assuming the Hidden Place would let them leave. From the slight shift in the air when the thought occurred to him, Law suspected it wasn’t an unwarranted fear.
“I’m not going to let him become a sacrifice on your altar,” he said out loud, feeling the air shift again. “You’ve had your fill. ”
The sunlight became almost scorching hot, and Law held up his jacket to shield both himself and the kid. He grit his teeth. The Old Ones were always like this, weren’t they? Greedy and selfish and… Law frowned. And bored.
“If you keep him here, he will die,” Law said. “Where’s the fun in that?”
The air stilled, and the heat subsided. It was almost a question.
“He fought a demon. He ran after a demon to fight it, and he won,” Law said. “Even if you helped him, he won. Wouldn’t it be much more interesting to see what else he can do? How far he can go?” Law paused. “Who he becomes?”
For a moment, nothing happened, then the ruined ziggurat fell away around them, leaving only the void behind. The void, and the exit.
“Thank you,” Law said, and hurriedly collected the kid in his arms, before the Old One could change its mind.
The kid opened his eyes as Law lifted him up. He blinked up at Law, with a confused expression.
“...who?” he managed, and Law just shook his head.
“I’m going to get you to a hospital,” Law said. “Don’t worry, you’ll be alright.”
“I’m not sure we can leave,” the kid said. He must have felt it as well, but things had changed.
“We can, and we will,” Law assured him. “I talked to it.”
The kid didn’t say anything else. When they finally reached the exit and left the place behind, the sunlight was flickering through the clouds, reminding Law of laughter.
***
“Torao?” Luffy asked, shaking Law out of the memory. Law turned towards him, studying him. Human, but not quite. Whatever the Old One was, it had marked him, Law supposed. Or followed him, maybe.
“I didn’t do much,” Law repeated. “Now, what did you mean, a price on my head?”
“You don’t know?” Usopp asked, and Law glared at him.
“Obviously not,” he said. “I knew someone was looking for me, but I didn’t know there was a hit on me.”
“If it makes you feel better, they want your head still attached to your body, and alive,” Zoro said. He took a paper from behind the counter, and handed it to Law.
Trafalgar Law, 5 million beri, ONLY ALIVE , accompanied by a slightly blurry photo of him, probably taken from the security camera at the shop he had visited the night before. Law grit his teeth and moved his tail nervously. That fucking snake woman! She must have realised someone powerful was after him and made inquiries. Good thing he hadn’t left the Doorway.
Under the picture there was no name, just a phone number as contact information. Law looked at it, then turned towards the others. “Did you call already?”
Luffy shook his head. “Nah. Like I said, we were waiting to see what you said when you woke up.”
“But one of our customers might have called, so we moved earlier than usual,” Usopp added, looking at Law. “So, what did you do?”
“Nothing,” Law said, but Usopp and Zoro looked suspiciously at him.
“Nobody pays 5 million for nothing, ” Zoro pointed out.
“I ran away fifteen years ago,” Law hissed. “It’s not about what I did , it’s about what I am. ”
Luffy frowned. “I don’t think that’s true.”
“What?” Law asked angrily, looking at him.
“Why would it take fifteen years if it was just about what you are?” Luffy said.
Usopp huffed. “Once in a blue moon he says something that makes sense,” he said, turning towards Law again. “He’s right. What changed?”
“Nothing,” Law said again. “I’ve been living peacefully in the mundane world for 15 years. I keep my head down, I only come to the Night Market for spell components every other year. Absolutely nothing-”
He interrupted himself as a thought occurred to him. “Nothing changed on my end,” he repeated slowly. “But maybe something changed on his.”
“Meaning?” Zoro asked, and Law took a deep breath. He had a hunch, but…
“Does it matter?” he asked. “Will it change what you guys will do?”
“Torao,” Luffy said sternly. “We’re not going to sell you out. If you need help, just ask.”
“You owe me nothing,” Law said. It would be easier if he did, Law supposed, but what little help he had given Luffy all those years ago had been voluntary and unasked for, and not something Law could demand a return favour for.
Luffy watched him in silence for a moment, then smiled. “Alright. You don’t have to ask. We’ll help anyway.”
Law gave him a look of disbelief, but he needed the help, and he knew it.
“Alright,” he said slowly. “Okay. In that case, I need you to get me to Dressrosa.”
“Should be easy, once Nami wakes up,” Luffy said easily. “Why do you wanna go there? Is the guy who’s looking for you there?”
Law nodded. “I believe so.” The area code on the phone number pretty much confirmed it.
They decided to wait for the others to wake up before ironing out the plan. Luffy, after quickly changing into dry clothes on Law’s insistence, joined Law outside to buy a change of clothes on his own.
“Just in case, since you won’t be protected from any spells on the outside,” he grinned as they left the safety of the hotel behind. “But you could just borrow stuff from us.”
“I appreciate it, but I need to make holes for my tail,” Law said. “And I’m not about to borrow anyone’s underwear.”
Luffy just laughed. “I wouldn’t mind.”
“I would ,” Law said, pulling his hat further down on his head. “Let’s just find a shop and be done with it.”
Fortunately they seemed to have arrived in a pretty big city, wherever they were. Law didn’t see any signs actually naming the location, but he didn’t particularly care. He walked into the first clothing shop he saw, and found what he needed without trying anything on. A pair of jeans, two shirts and some underwear and socks, all black and honestly pretty boring, but he didn’t have time to try another store for something more his style. They needed to be quick.
Something tickled in Law’s skin as they headed back towards the hotel, and a shiver creeped down his spine, making his hair rise.
“What’s wrong, Torao?” Luffy asked, giving him a look that was half curiosity, half concern.
“I think they just found me,” Law said. “Run!”
Luffy didn’t need to be told twice. He grabbed Law’s hand and started booking it towards the hotel, dragging Law along. At first Law was annoyed at the hand holding, feeling like he was being treated like a child, then he realised it was more than that. Luffy’s hand was warm in his, warmer than it should have been, and the heat moved up from Law’s hand into his arm and further into his chest. Protection. Not a spell, exactly, nothing so tangible. Something leftover from the Old God that had chosen Luffy, perhaps, but protection nonetheless. Law accepted it greedily as they kept running down the street. He could use all the help he could get, after all. And the heat felt comforting.
They reached the door to the hotel, and slammed it shut behind them as they entered.
“We should leave. Wake Nami!” Luffy shouted as soon as they were inside. He still hadn’t let go of Law’s hand, and Law found himself reluctant to do it either. He liked the warmth. It reminded him of the feeling of having a nap in the sunlight on a warm summer day.
“I’m already awake,” a voice said, and Law saw the redhead who had welcomed him to the hotel the day before, standing there in pyjamas and a tired expression on her face. “Usopp figured this would happen so he woke me up as soon as you left.”
Luffy grinned. “So, Dressroba?”
“Dressrosa,” Law said, then turned to Nami. “If you please.”
“I take it we’re not going there for the dancing,” Nami sighed. “Fine. Hold on to your stomach.”
She disappeared into the back of the hotel, and a minute later, the building shook around them. Not violently, just a low vibration, and despite things appearing to stand still Law had a sudden feeling of intense vertigo.
Luffy squeezed his hand. “You’ll get used to it.”
Law didn’t answer. He wasn’t sticking around to get used to it. In fact, this was probably his final journey.
But he wasn’t about to die in dirty underwear, so as soon as the hotel, and Law’s stomach, settled, he headed upstairs to his room to take a shower and change clothes. He felt a bit more like himself when he headed downstairs again, but at the same time, he felt like a version of himself he had tried not to be for the last decade.
He was going to confront Doflamingo. He was going to kill Doflamingo. Or die trying. Which was, unfortunately, the most likely outcome. Still, better that than looking over his shoulder for the rest of his life.
Luffy’s friends were all assembled in the dining area when Law joined them. There were more of them than Law expected. He counted ten in total, including the walking skeleton. A few of them had tea or coffee, and the blonde guy Law recognised as the chef from yesterday offered Law a cup as he sat down by Luffy’s table. Law accepted the coffee. At least it would give his hands something to do while having this, undoubtedly, very awkward conversation.
“I’ve told them who you are and that we’re going to help you,” Luffy smiled towards Law.
“Very light on the details, mind you,” the long nosed guy from yesterday, Usopp, said. “We still have no idea what we’re doing.”
Law took a sip of his coffee. Brewed to perfection. “As we proved just now, I can’t go outside without protection. So, if you’re able, I want you to find out where a certain man lives, or where I can find him, and then leave me behind while you go somewhere else, anywhere else, and call that number to tell him you’ve captured me.”
Usopp visibly relaxed. “Oh, that’s all? Well, we can do that.”
“That’s not all,” Luffy said. “We’re going to help Torao against the guy who’s looking for him.”
“And this is how you do that,” Law said sternly. “Currently, I need information. Then, I’ll need a distraction. If they think they know where I am, they won’t actively look for me, which will give me a window of time to act in.”
“ Act ,” a dark-haired woman sitting opposite him repeated. She had a calm smile and eyes that seemed to look right through him. “So you’re not plotting murder?”
“Why not?” Law sighed, lowering his ears. He would have preferred to not admit it out loud. They probably weren’t going to help him after this. “ He is. I’m just hoping to be faster.”
“The poser says “only alive”,” the blonde chef said. “Why do you think he is planning to murder you?”
Law hesitated. Trusting them not to give him up was one thing, but could he really trust them with this?
“You’re Flevian, aren’t you?” the dark-haired woman said, and Law sighed. No point in hiding what they already knew.
“You’re well informed,” he nodded. “Yes. The last one, as far as I know.”
“What does that mean?” Luffy asked. “Is that the type of cat Torao is?”
Law made a face. “Not the way I would have put it, but essentially yes.”
“So what does that have to do with him murdering you?” Usopp asked, and Law glanced at the dark-haired woman again. She just kept smiling mysteriously at him, but Law had no doubt that she knew. Maybe she was giving him the choice to tell them himself. Or the illusion of choice, at least.
“Flevians can make humans immortal,” Law sighed, keeping it vague. “Though it will kill us.”
“So you think this guy wants you to make him immortal, and then kill you,” Usopp summarised, and Law nodded. Close enough, he supposed.
Luffy tilted his head to the side. “Can’t you just say no?”
“No. It is, unfortunately, something he could do by force,” Law said, glancing at the woman again. “But it’s not a very well known secret, so any would-be bounty hunters are unlikely to know about it.”
“Still, you’d think he wouldn’t risk it,” Nami pondered. “True immortality is an incredibly rare thing.”
“He didn’t risk it,” Law said. “I escaped him over fifteen years ago, and have stayed hidden since then. If he’s been trying to find me, and I suspect he has, it has been through mundane, discreet means.”
“So why the sudden change?” Nami asked, then frowned. “You think-”
Law nodded. “Yeah. I think his time is running out.”
“So your plan is to deliver yourself straight to him?” Usopp asked. “Sorry, but that seems dumb. Wouldn’t it be better to just stay hidden until he, whoever he is, dies on his own?”
“And how long will that be?” Law asked. “He may be desperate enough to take bigger risks to find me, but that doesn’t mean he’s dying . He could be having a midlife crisis, for all I know. And even if he is dying, he’s a powerful wizard. There are plenty of ways to prolong his life. How long do you expect me to stay hidden?”
Usopp held up his hands, conceding the point.
“So how hasn’t he found you yet?” the chef asked.
“I’ve been glamoured basically full time, I have a different legal name, and I live on the other side of the world from him,” Law said. “My only contact with the Other World has been visiting the Night Market every other year for spell components. I made damn sure I wasn’t easy to find.”
“That’s not entirely true,” Luffy pointed out. “You saved me.”
“It was a whim,” Law insisted. “And an exception.”
“And one we appreciate,” the dark-haired woman said. “We’re all very grateful to have Luffy in our lives, so part of that gratefulness extends to you.”
“So you’ll help me?” Law asked.
“Not so fast,” the werewolf, Zoro said. “We keep talking around it. Who is it that wants you dead?”
Law felt every single eye on him, waiting for his answer. Even Luffy looked curious. He took a deep breath. “Have you heard of Donquixote Doflamingo?”
Judging by the intake of breath, at least some of them had. When he looked at Luffy, an angry expression met him, fury like a raging inferno, and Law instinctively leaned away from him.
“Mingo?” Luffy repeated. “The bastard who kidnapped Camie?”
“He owned the auction house that tried to sell her, yes,” Nami said, but Law couldn’t quite look away from Luffy yet. Not because he didn’t dare, he was sure Luffy wouldn’t hurt him but… well, his gaze was always drawn to the fire, even when it hurt his eyes.
“If it’s that bastard, I’d be happy to help you kill him,” the chef said. “My poor, beautiful Camie. She was so scared.”
“It’s decided. Let’s finally take Mingo down,” Luffy said, to sounds of agreement all around. Law breathed out.
Maybe he had a chance, after all.
***
Law spent the next two days cooped up in the hotel, bored out of his mind. He was used to a fairly hectic schedule at the hospital, and wasn’t made for just sitting around, waiting while other people did his work for him.
At least they did their job well. They found out where Doflamingo was staying after the first day, and spent the second gathering more information. Law studied the information they brought him, as well as maps of Dressrosa in general, but on the whole he felt pretty useless.
Luffy spent a lot of time keeping him company, and that made it all both more and less bearable. He was a ray of sunshine, but an irritating one.
“Stop moving around,” Law grumbled at him. They were in Law’s room, just the two of them. Law had been sitting on the bed, trying to distract himself with a novel, and Luffy was distracting him from his distraction. He kept changing positions, getting up and looking at something and then sitting down again. He was as restless as Law was, Law supposed, but worse at keeping it contained.
“I’m bored, Torao,” he complained. “We know where Mingo is. Can’t we just go fight him already?”
“ We are not fighting anyone,” Law said. “We still need information, it’s not my fault your friends told you to stay behind.”
Luffy made a face. “I could get information if I wanted to,” he said petulantly. “But I think staying here with you is better.”
“They shouldn’t be able to find me in this place,” Law said, but Luffy shook his head.
“I know that. But you’re acting weird,” Luffy said. “So I’m keeping an eye on you.”
“You don’t know me,” Law pointed out. “We met once over a decade ago, and you were unconscious for most of it. You have no way of knowing if I’m acting weird or not.”
“Nah,” Luffy said, flopping down to sit on the foot of the bed with his legs crossed. “I know you well enough. And you’re acting weird.”
“I’m about to go kill someone. Maybe tomorrow,” Law said. “Wouldn’t that make anyone act weird?”
“It would. But that’s not it,” Luffy said. “I’m not going to let you die, you know.”
Law scoffed. “I’m not planning to die.”
“Yeah, you are,” Luffy said. “And I’m not gonna let you.”
Law huffed a laugh. “I keep telling you: you owe me nothing.”
“It’s not about owing something,” Luffy said. “You’re my friend. So you don’t get to die.”
Law looked at him in surprise. He was once again hit with the feeling that while Luffy looked human, there was something older and more powerful within him. He thought back towards the night they had first met, the night Luffy had been claimed by an Old God. A shiver ran down his spine as he wondered if maybe Luffy hadn’t been the only one claimed that night.
“Luffy,” he said slowly, ears low. “Just how much of you is still the kid I rescued?”
Luffy blinked, then smiled. “It’s just me,” he said. “I know what you mean, and he’s in here, but I’m still me. Nami says we have a symphonic relationship.”
“Symbiotic?” Law suggested, and Luffy nodded.
“Yeah, that’s the one,” he said. “I can’t really talk to him, he doesn’t work that way, but I know what he feels, and what he wants.”
“And he wants… me?” Law asked, very hesitant.
“Yeah, but that doesn’t matter,” Luffy said, and Law was almost relieved before he continued. “Because I saw you first.”
“I’m… not sure that’s true,” Law said.
“This time around, it is,” Luffy said. “But the point is, you don’t get to die.”
“You don’t own me,” Law said, and Luffy just looked confused.
“I know that. You can’t own people,” he said. “But you’re my friend, like I said.”
Law looked at him, at the complete sincerity and determination on his face, and just sighed deeply.
“I can’t win, can I?”
“Yeah, you can. I’ll help you,” Luffy grinned, misinterpreting his meaning. “We’ll kick Mingo’s ass!”
Law just shook his head, and let him be.
***
They put the plan into motion the following night.
With the help of Luffy’s friends, Law had the location of Doflamingo’s manor, and a way inside. And back out. In theory.
Despite Law’s protests, Luffy was going with him, while Robin and Zoro would be keeping watch outside. The rest of them were going to leave for a random location and call Doflamingo’s number as soon as the others were out the door.
Law had prepared to cast a glamour the moment before they exited. It wouldn’t last long, he supposed, but it should last long enough to afford him a few extra minutes, long enough for the others to draw Doflamingo’s attention elsewhere.
“Good luck,” was all Luffy’s friends said, and Law gave them a nod before he cast the glamour and headed out the door. Luffy, Robin and Zoro followed him. A few seconds after the door closed behind them, it disappeared, leaving only a smooth wall behind.
They were silent as they made their way to Doflamingo’s manor. Law had heard the others describe the route, but it was his first time seeing it. Dressrosa was a beautiful city, and under different circumstances Law might have enjoyed the visit. Now, though, he only had one thing on his mind.
As they got close to the manor, Robin and Zoro left to take up their positions, leaving Law and Luffy alone. They must trust Luffy a lot, Law reflected absently, to trust him alone like this. Or trust him with Law, for that matter.
“You ready, Torao?” Luffy asked, and Law took a deep breath. Was he ready? Probably not, but it was now or never.
“We don’t know exactly where we will end up, or what we will face,” Law reminded him. “Last chance to back out.”
Luffy almost looked offended as he grabbed a hold of Law’s arm without a word. Law huffed, and cast the spell he and Robin had prepared together, transporting them directly into the manor.
They landed in an empty bathroom on the second floor, barely avoiding hitting the toilet. Lucky, Law supposed. Exploding plumbing would definitely have drawn attention.
“Good thing there wasn’t anyone pooping,” Luffy laughed. “Could you imagine?”
Law could imagine, though he didn’t particularly want to. Instead he headed towards the door, listening for a few seconds before opening it slightly and looking outside.
“It’s clear,” he whispered. “Stay close to me, and be quiet.”
They started heading down the empty corridor, looking for Doflamingo’s room. The house seemed quiet, though. Law frowned. This was going smoother than expected. Law was getting a bad feeling as they hurried through the corridor.
From what he knew from Robin’s intel, the master bedroom was at the end of the corridor. They didn’t necessarily expect to find Doflamingo there, of course, but it was a good place to start.
They reached the door, and Law carefully opened it, being as silent as possible. He almost startled seeing a familiar shape sitting by a desk in front of them, with his back turned towards the door. Seemingly unaware of their presence.
No. This was wrong. It was too easy. It was-
“Mingo!” Luffy shouted, kicking the door open before Law could stop him. The moment he did, a spider web of stings engulfed them both.
A trap. Of course it was a trap.
“Welcome home, kitten,” Doflamingo said with a wide grin on his face as he turned around in his chair to face them. “You took your time.”
Law swore and made an effort to free himself of the web they were caught in, but he knew it was futile. He remembered being caught in this spell once as a child, and there had been no way out then, either.
“Mingo!” Luffy shouted. “Let us out and fight us!”
Doflamingo ignored him, keeping his attention on Law
“Did you think I didn’t know you were coming?” Doflamingo laughed as armed guards appeared from the surrounding rooms, having apparently been waiting for the trap to spring. “I know you, Law. I made you. I knew you would come straight to me.”
Law seethed with rage. Of course Doflamingo predicted his response. He was so stupid! Booksmart, intelligent, but never able to outplay Doflamingo.
“Torao!” Luffy yelled, but Doflamingo barely gave him a glance before ordering his guards to take him away.
“I’ll deal with him later,” he said, turning back towards Law with a grin. “I have more important things to worry about.”
Law grit his teeth as the guards cut him down from the trap, and bound his hands behind his back before dragging after Doflamingo into another room. Doflamingo’s study, Law supposed, given the amount of books, alchemical components and various artefacts laying around.
The guard pushed him forward, and Law fell onto the ground, scraping his knees a bit.
“That will be all,” Doflamingo told the guard. “Make sure no one disturbs me.”
The guard gave a short bow, then left and closed the door behind him. Law made an attempt to get up, but he didn’t even get on his knees before Doflamingo pushed him down again.
“None of that, kitten,” he laughed. “You should know when you’ve been beaten.”
He did know. That didn’t mean he wanted to make it easy for Doflamingo. With his hands bound and on the floor, however, there wasn’t much he could do to prevent Doflamingo from straddling him and pushing him down with a hand on his chest. Even after all these years, he was much bigger and stronger than Law.
“I would love to take a moment to chat,” Doflamingo said above him. “Reminisce about old times, that sort of thing. But we both know what I want.”
“And we both know I won’t give it willingly,” Law said through gritted teeth. He made an effort to move, to attack, but it was futile.
“You would have, if you had stayed,” Doflamingo sighed. “If Rosi hadn’t stolen you away.”
“If he hadn’t saved me, you mean,” Law hissed. “If he hadn’t told me what you were really after.”
“The heart of an adult Flevian,” Doflamingo sighed. In one movement, he ripped open Law’s shirt, exposing Law’s tattooed chest. He looked surprised for a moment, then laughed.
“A tattooed heart. A bit on the nose, don’t you think, Law?” He chuckled, then moved his hand over Law’s actual heart, pressing down hard. “I’m going to take what should have been mine a long time ago.”
He recited an incantation Law didn’t recognise, but understood the implication of. He tried to wiggle free again, but to know avail. He was trapped, and helpless.
Law screamed as Doflamingo put a hand on his chest and his fingers sank into his flesh. It was magic, and yet physical, with every nerve in his body signalling pain. He felt Doflamingo’s hand around his heart, squeezing as it tried to pump blood.
“We could have avoided all this, Law,” Doflamingo said. “You could have given it to me of your own free will, and there wouldn’t have been pain.”
“Fuck…you…” Law managed, barely catching enough breath to form the words. Doflamingo just grinned at him, and Law felt an excruciating pull as Doflamingo moved to remove his heart.
And stopped.
“What is this?” Doflamingo asked incredulously. “Another claim? There’s another claim on your heart?”
Law stared at him. At first, couldn’t get a grasp on what Doflamingo was saying, too disoriented by the pain, then he understood it.
Luffy.
Or more accurately, the Old God who lived inside him. Did he know about Flevian hearts? Had he planned all along to feed it to Luffy, to make his vessel immortal?
“Well, that complicates things,” Doflamingo said, and finally withdrew his hand from Law’s chest. “No matter. We’re going to have to extract it the old fashioned, mundane way. Which I believe you’re very familiar with, aren’t you, doctor?”
He laughed to himself as Law did his best to catch his breath and find a way out of this. Just as soon as he could move. And that better be soon, as he saw Doflamingo take a sharp knife from one of the cabinets.
“Torao!”
Law looked up in surprise, just in time to see Luffy bursting through the door. He looked a bit worse for the wear, dirty and bruised, and yet barely recognisable with the bright light shining through him, making him glow white.
“Well,” Doflamingo said flatly. “Seems I need to find better guards.”
“What did you do to Torao?” Luffy yelled angrily.
“Less than I intended to, but I will get to it,” Doflamingo said, putting the knife down on the table as he prepared to cast a spell. “After I’ve dealt with you again.”
Luffy screamed, and moved to attack. Doflamingo dodged easily, and went to counterattack. Law tried his best to get on his feet as they fought around him. His heart hurt, making every movement painful, but Doflamingo was fighting Luffy, and Law couldn’t just lie around.
His hands were still bound behind his back, which was a problem. But Law was flexible, and with Doflamingo’s attention elsewhere, he was able to step through his bound arms to get his hands in front. Even with his cat-like flexibility, getting past his long legs was a bit of a struggle, but he got it done before Doflamingo noticed. He wasn’t going to get out of the bonds easily, but at least he had some use of his hands now.
Doflamingo yelled as he hurled another spell in Luffy’s direction, and managed to get a hit. Nothing fatal, not yet, but Luffy yelped and fell to the floor.
Law didn’t have time to second guess himself as Doflamingo moved towards Luffy to deliver the killing blow. The knife Doflamingo had planned to use to cut his heart out was still on the table, and Law grabbed it and moved forward. With his bound hands, he didn’t have much flexibility, but a sharp object was a sharp object. And Law was a surgeon.
It didn’t quite succeed. Doflamingo noticed him a second before he could get close, and hurled a spell in his direction. Law dodged in time, closing the distance between them as he did so. He wasn’t used to putting knives in moving bodies, especially not with his hands bound, but the knife went into Doflamingo’s abdomen, cutting his stomach open, as Law moved away to dodge another blow, pulling the knife back out again.
Doflamingo screamed in pain and fury, and a spell hit Law in the back, sending back down on the floor. He cut his arm on the knife as he fell, but at least he didn’t stab himself. Small favours, he supposed.
“You!” Doflamingo screamed, but his stomach was leaking blood and acid, and he had bigger problems than Law to worry about. Especially since Luffy had taken the opportunity to get back up.
“DON’T TOUCH HIM!” Luffy screamed, looking like he was burning white flames as he attacked Doflamingo again. Doflamingo, slowed down by the wound in his stomach, made an effort to dodge, but too late.
His scream was cut short as the white flames engulfed him.
Law closed his eyes. Things were silent around him. The only things he could hear was his and Luffy’s laboured breathing, the crackling of flames and his own pulse in his ears.
His heart beating.
“Torao! Are you okay?” Luffy asked, and Law wasn’t sure how to answer that. He was silent as Luffy cut Law’s hands loose, staring down at the blood on them, and the ash on Luffy’s. The white flames had burned out, leaving only normal, human-looking Luffy behind.
“Are you hurt?” Luffy asked, and Law was suddenly angry. He grabbed Luffy’s hand, and put it against his own chest. Over his heart.
“Did you know?” he hissed, ears low, but by Luffy’s expression he had no idea what Law was talking about. “Did you know that thing inside you had claimed my heart?”
Luffy frowned, then looked at his hand, slightly pushing it against Law’s chest. “Yeah, I suppose,” he said. “I didn’t think it mattered.”
“Didn’t matter?” Law repeated incredulously. “Why the fuck wouldn’t it matter?”
“Because it’s still yours, right?” Luffy said. “My brothers used to eat the food I had claimed all the time. Claims don’t really mean anything.”
“They do if they are made by Old Gods!” Law practically yelled at him. “Are you planning to eat my heart?”
“What? No, why would I?” Luffy asked, looking honestly confused, and Law felt his anger fade away. The worst of it, anyway.
“That’s what Doflamingo was planning to do,” he explained tiredly. “To become immortal.”
“Oh! That’s how that works?” Luffy said, shaking his head as he moved his hand away from Law’s chest, to close around his hand instead. “Torao, that’s not why he wanted your heart.”
“Isn’t it?” Law asked. “To become immortal-”
“Wouldn’t matter if you were gone,” Luffy said, lightly squeezing Law’s hand. Law could feel that warmth again, spreading through him from where Luffy touched him. Comforting. Like a warm fire on a cold day.
“I see,” Law sighed. “And what about you?”
“That’s not why I want your heart, either,” Luffy said easily. “Though, I’m getting kinda hungry.”
He got on his feet, and pulled Law up with him. “Come on, let’s head back to the hotel.”
Law raised his eyebrows. “Is that all?”
“Nah, but we have time to figure out the rest,” Luffy grinned. “Come on. The others are waiting for us.”
After a moment of hesitation, Law sighed, shook his head, and let himself be led away by Luffy. He was right, Law supposed. They had time.
Law couldn’t help but smile as they walked, leaving Doflamingo’s manor behind. After all these years, he was free. He glanced at Luffy.
Maybe he had lost his heart, after all.