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Battered and bruised, Law’s tattooed fingers tensely traced the ends of Kikoku’s sheath. As it did that, his other hand-carried the nodachi with it slanted against his shoulder. It heavily sat on his shoulder, pushing against it, but the extra weight unbothered him. To him, it was rather comfortable and a reminder of his crew. The same one he was about to leave behind; he hadn’t made that decision lightly.
It came with an excessive amount of time he spent thinking, planning, mapping out each possibility to find out the path that would lead him to what he wanted. What did he want? Oh, that was simple. It was to fulfill Cora-san’s wish, to find out the truth behind the Will of D. But, a part of himself whispered that wasn’t the only reason why.
Despite his reasons for why he made it, his decision was final. If he could Law would bring them: Penguin, Shachi, Bepo, and everyone else. For they were his crew and he was indebted to everyone last one of them, but he was afraid. Afraid that the deeper he would venture into the Grand Line the more trouble they would be in. So, that’s why this would be the safest option for both them and him.
Wandering the halls of the Polar Tang, he thought of the years full of memories as he said to each room. At least he knew with the ship in Bepo’s care, no harm would come to her. The polar bear had been one of his friends for years on end, he trusted more than he ever could. Speaking of which before he left Bepo with the help of the rest of the crew he had gotten one of the biggest bear hugs he ever could. For most of the duration of the hug, the captain couldn’t breathe while most of them had cried out: “We’ll miss you, captain!” Once goodbyes were said and jokes shared, Law left the Polar Tang and headed toward what he guessed to soon be his newest home for quite some time: the Thousand Sunny.
The named ship was now before him, rocking back and forth on its hull. Compared to the memories he had on his ship, the ones he formed on the Sunny were new. Yet, strangely enough, whenever he thought of them an indescribable warmth would fill his stomach.
Pushing away from the thought with a huff, the captain slid Kikoku from his hand and dropped it against his shoulder with a chip. Titling his head up towards the deck of the Thousand Sunny, he then cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled: “Mugiwara-ya, there’s something we need to talk about!”
Up the ship, there were sounds of crashing and then Luffy was peaking over the railings of the ship with his signature smile plastered on his face. It was shining and Law would never admit it, but at that moment, he might have felt his heart beat faster than usual.
“Oh, Toaro!” In the few seconds that followed, there was a loud snapping sound and then Luffy was there, right in front of him. In a flash, the younger captain was on him wrapping his rubbery limbs around Law like a snake with its prey. “Shi shi shi, did you come to say goodbye? We’re just about to leave!”
The hug was tight, but by now Law has used it. Oddly enough, instead of uncomfortable, the hug had become something nice. Slowly he started to catch himself longing for the warmth it gave, but he kept quiet about that.
Burying his head into Luffy’s shoulder he mumbled. “I know, I came to talk with you before you left.”
Steadily keeping his grip on Law, the younger captain cocked his head to the side showing his visible confusion. “About what?”
This was it, all the goodbyes and preparations had a lead about to this spoke. He took in a deep breath, in, out, in, out. He then looked into Luffy’s brown eyes full of wonder and spoke. “Let me join your crew, Luffy. Let me stay with you until you reach Laugh Tale. Don’t worry, I have no interest in becoming the pirate king. That path is for you to take.”
Silently the younger captain’s brown eyes grew serious and he unwrapped from Law to directly look him in the eyes as he spoke. “What about your crew?”
“I can't take them with me, it’s too dangerous for them.”
“So you want to come with me?”
“Don’t make me repeat myself, Luffy.”
“... are we?” he asked with a glint of mischief in his eyes and Law knew was he was asking. “Yes we are.” Looking down at Luffy he watches as he almost exploded with excitement “We’re nakama now!” The young captain cheered and in response, the older man snapped: “Temporarily.”
In turn, Law expected Luffy to bite back, continuing with their small banter, but instead, Luffy giggled. “Shi shi shi. Whatever you say, Law!” The smile that was on his face was brighter than any other that he had seen and that was the moment that made him completely fall for him, Luffy.