Chapter Text
Just hit me hard
'Cause it's the silence that scares me now
And as long
As you're still screaming at me
Yeah, it's the silence that makes me bleed
And I don't know what you need
Is there part of you that still cares about me?
[The Silence That Scares Me Now - The Coronas]
Law turned the perforated straw hat in his hands and peered over its edge towards the Polar Tang in the distance. The hat had taken quite a beating during the battle at Marineford, but that was nothing compared to what its owner had endured. It was almost a miracle that he had still been alive by the time his crew had arrived there. And without the powers of his Devil Fruit, he would have likely followed his brother to the realm of the dead very quickly.
This boy must have been truly blessed with an incredible amount of luck from the universe. Law couldn't explain otherwise how he could pull off such a risky move right in the middle of a war and still survive. Monkey D. Luffy had many people who had put their lives on the line for him, and Law was now part of this obviously not-so-small group of people.
He was aware that the small rescue mission had put him and his crew squarely on the radar of the Marines. Until he could execute his next plan, they would have to be much more cautious than usual, but here on Amazon Lily, they were safe—at least as long as he could prevent Shachi and Penguin from setting foot on the mainland. He wasn't sure if he could spread his Room quickly enough across the entire island before their bodies would be pierced by multiple arrows from the Kuja.
»Captain?«
Penguin had appeared next to him. Without Law saying a word, he began listing off the updated readings of the straw hat. »Oxygen saturation is good. He seems to have recovered«, he concluded the medical report, adjusting the hat on his head slightly. »Now he just needs to wake up«
Law nodded slightly.»Good. Thank you, Penguin«, he replied, and as his vice-captain was already turning to leave, he added: »Send Bepo to inform Boa Hancock that he is improving« He had no idea how Straw Hat Luffy had managed to captivate the Pirate Empress to such an extent. She seemed very concerned about him, at least she had more or less threatened Law and his crew to be thrown to the wild animals in the jungle if she was not immediately informed of any news. Law didn't think much of these empty threats — she was hardly foolish enough to remove him from his post as the treating doctor before the treatment was completed —, but he reluctantly complied with her will because he had little desire for her to turn most of his crew into stone. The men were all infatuated with her, which was also why he sent Bepo to her and not anyone else.
Penguin seemed very disappointed by this decision, but he didn't say anything further before disappearing back into the submarine.
He clicked his tongue in frustration as he surveyed the damage to the Polar Tang. A huge hole gaped in the roof of the otherwise sturdy submarine, but it was nothing he couldn't fix in no time with the help of his Devil Fruit power. He could see Ikkaku standing in the hallway beneath the hole, already working to repair the gaping breach in the floor. »It should be fixed in a few days, Captain«, she informed him, wiping sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. Law sighed. Fortunately, they had to stay on Amazon Lily for a few more days anyway because of the Straw Hat, but he hated seeing his ship damaged like this.
A noise behind him announced Jinbe's return from the jungle, and judging by the double number of footsteps, he hadn't returned alone. The Straw Hat trailed behind him, his gaze lowered. »Room. Shambles«, Law commanded, holding the emergency first aid kit in his hand as he approached the fishman and the younger captain. Luffy looked up as his feet came into view.
»Sit down. I need to make sure your wound doesn't reopen« Law told him, placing a hand on his shoulder to gently, but firmly push him to the ground. »We don't have enough blood reserves left to treat you a second time«
»Thank you for saving me«, the boy mumbled. Law couldn't bear to look him directly in the eyes. His sad gaze stirred up memories of losses he really didn't want to think about right now. »I'm sorry about your ship«
»It's okay« It really wasn't, but it's not like he intentionally wrecked his ship. If anyone understood this mix of blind rage, overwhelming grief, and denial of the unfathomable, it was Law himself.
Luffy allowed himself to be pushed to the ground without resistance and said nothing further as Law carefully removed the bandage around his torso. His eyes glistened, but Law wasn't sure if they were fresh tears or remnants of the ones he had obviously shed earlier. »I'm sorry about your brother«, he began hesitantly. »Losing a loved one isn't easy«
»Yeah...« Luffy's lower lip began to tremble. After a brief pause, he asked: »Have you ever lost someone?«
Again, a hesitation, then Law nodded hesitantly. Luffy seemed to have no sense of tact, or he just didn’t care if it would open any old wounds, because in the next moment, he asked: »And who?«
Everyone who ever meant something to me. Law swallowed. »My sister«
Luffy's eyes widened as he realized that he and Law apparently shared a very similar fate.
»Oh, I'm sorry«, he said softly. From the corner of his eye, Law could see Luffy looking over at Jinbe. »But you still have your crew, don't you?«
Law nodded slowly. »You do too«, he replied cautiously, holding his breath. He hadn't been able to bring himself to ask Luffy directly what had happened to the rest of his crew.
Perhaps he would be more inclined to talk if he asked indirectly...
»Yes, I have« he muttered softly, and Law felt himself sigh in relief. Whatever had happened to them on the Sabaody Archipelago, it hadn't cost them their lives. She was still alive. It wasn't as if Law actively tried to look after Nami - after all, she was a pirate herself and a member of the Straw Hats. She had enough people around her to protect her, he was sure of that... and yet the thought weighed on him that he had been so close while their crew was supposedly wiped out. It had thrown him back to the moment when he had been alone in that treasure chest, just a few meters from Cora-san and with the still fresh powers of the Ope Ope no Mi, without knowing how to use them. The knowledge that he could have changed something about the events if only he had known how to - or if only he had been in the right place ... he shook his head to keep his thoughts from wandering further. He hated getting emotional in front of other people, and he especially wanted to avoid it in front of the Straw Hat at all costs.
»Good. Then please avoid excessive physical activity in the next few days. I don't want to be the one to tell your crew members that you bled out because you couldn't sit still«, Law finally replied, stepping past Jinbe towards the Polar Tang. The Straw Hat was in good hands even without him watching over him. And Law desperately needed to be alone right now.
Two years later
Although his crew usually followed his orders without objections, they didn't seem to like the idea of leaving him alone on Punk Hazard while they were heading to Zou. Especially Penguin, Shachi, and Bepo didn't take the decision well at all, probably because they knew him longer than any other Heart Pirate and therefore knew that there was much more behind the sudden decision than what he had told them. They also didn't miss the fact that he only replied »Be careful« to their »See you soon, Captain!«
Law wasn't a bad liar, but he wasn't sure if his poker face would hold up while promising a soon reunion. Not when he was sending his own crew away as far as possible because he wasn't sure if he himself would survive his plan.
Transporting himself into the secret lab and asking Caesar Clown for a partnership was almost laughably easy. Well, he had to hand over his heart to Caesar to gain his trust, but he gladly took that risk to move freely in the lab.
In the following weeks, he conducted investigations into what exactly was being produced in this lab. He knew Caesar had a reputation for stopping at nothing, but he was still shocked when he encountered the many children in one of the rooms. Apparently, he had told them they were sick and therefore on Punk Hazard, while giving them sweets that caused an almost grotesque growth. Almost, but only almost, Law would have abandoned the mission and instead freed all these children, but he pulled himself together and reminded himself that more children would follow these if the war instigators – and he was clearly thinking of Doflamingo and Kaido – weren't stopped.
So he tried to ignore the presence of the many young souls as much as possible, even though the distant noises and the occasional crying for their parents reminded him of the day Flevance went up in flames. And this time, there was no Bepo, no Shachi, and no Penguin to pull him out of the dark hole that enveloped him every time his past caught up with him.
Of course, the day he wanted to put his plan into action was the day unplanned visitors arrived on the island. The G-5 of the Marines was annoying, but he could have somehow gotten even Smoker out of the way.
He hadn't expected the Straw Hat crew to appear out of nowhere in front of him. After all, the island wasn't marked by any Log Pose in the world...so how had they found their way here? And why were they even here in the first place?
Well, at least at that moment, they seemed to want to free the children from Caesar's captivity. That much Law still noticed, even though in the next moment, he couldn't say how many of the Straw Hats were currently present because Nami appeared next to him.
She seemed just as surprised to see him, as she let out a scream when she recognized him. For a moment, they just stared at each other, time seemed to stand still, and Law opened his mouth...
»Hey, you pervert! Stop staring at Nami-san like that!« a voice behind him shouted. Immediately, the owner of said voice appeared beside them and handed her his jacket. Law tried to ignore the cooing noises he made while doing that. Apparently, she had caught herself a clear admirer, and that really didn't interest him.
No, really, not at all.
Before he could say anything, the Straw Hats had spotted the G-5 and quickly disappeared back into the halls of the lab to look for another exit. Law blinked but then quickly reacted himself and opened his Room wide enough to include the Straw Hats.
»Shambles,« he murmured. Maybe not the finest way to move them back, but he didn't care much about that right now. His heart wasn't in his chest at the moment, but he was pretty sure it had skipped a beat when he saw Nami.
For two years, he hadn't known if she had survived the separation of their crew on the Sabaody Archipelago or not. And since he had already spent several weeks on Punk Hazard, where there was neither good reception for Den Den Mushi nor newspaper deliverers who strayed to the island, he hadn't noticed that the Straw Hats had apparently reunited...
Nami was not thrilled to suddenly be in the cyborg's body. He could already see that in her look as he approached her and Luffy after the victory over the Yeti. The icy weather on this side of the island reminded him of the North Blue and the early days when he had met Bepo, Shachi, and Penguin. Back then, he had trudged through the snow for hours, still traumatized and completely alone after Cora-san's death, before somehow steering their small boat towards Shallow Island.
»Stay away from him, Luffy!« a female voice came from the cyborg, undoubtedly belonging to Nami. He wasn't surprised that her voice no longer sounded like he remembered.
He saw Luffy turn to her. »What? Why?«
»Because you can't trust him, that's why!«
Law raised an eyebrow in surprise and was once again glad for his unbeatable poker face that didn't reveal that her words hurt him. »Excuse me?«
Was that...hatred in her eyes?
»Luffy,« she said in a warning tone, completely ignoring Law. He, in turn, felt the anger rising within him.
»I would like to discuss something with you, Straw Hat« he began, making an effort to emphasize the word »Straw Hat« particularly, giving Nami a burning look to show her that she was definitely not involved.
Unfortunately, Luffy had other plans, so with a sigh, he finally relented and explained his plan. He told them what he had discovered on the island and how this information should ultimately lead to the downfall of Doflamingo.
»I propose a pirate alliance between our two crews,« he concluded. »What do you say?«
Luffy didn't get a chance to speak because Nami immediately launched into a tirade of insults. »Are you out of your mind? You want to take on an Emperor?? Do you want to get us all killed?!« Desperately, she turned to Luffy. »Please, Luffy, you can't trust him! He'll just abandon us to save his own skin!«
Law's eyes narrowed. Had he heard that right? Had she really just said that he was the one who abandoned others, even though he had spent six years working towards saving her from Arlong?
It wasn't his fault that Luffy had beaten him to it!
»But Nami, if he wanted to, he could have let me die in Marineford!« Luffy replied, causing Nami to look at him with a confused expression. Apparently, she didn't know what exactly had happened after the war.
Luffy ignored her look and approached him instead.
»Okay,« he replied. »I'm in!«
The rest of his crew was as enthusiastic about the proposal as Nami. Law wasn't sure what worried him more; that they were all so obviously against him, or that Luffy actually interpreted an alliance as another word for friendship.
At the latest, when they tied the raccoon to his hat, he wondered if it wouldn't have been wiser to go through with the plan alone. But there was no turning back now.
»Let's go,« he said, tying the last knot around the raccoon's body to fasten it to Kikoku. »Let's destroy this factory.«