Work Text:
“Do you trust me?” Luffy asked.
“With my life,” Law said, “but not with this.”
Luffy was holding a needle, newly sterilized, to Law’s ear. Law had mentioned that he wanted another piercing just twenty minutes ago, and of course Luffy had pounced at the idea. Law should have known better than to say anything in Luffy’s presence, but even after years he still hadn’t learned.
“Come on,” Luffy said with a grin. “I’ll let you do one on me after.”
“I trust you to take care of it properly even less,” Law mumbled but finally shrugged and stilled. “Alright, I’m ready.”
So Luffy pushed the needle through Law’s helix and Law bit down on his lip through the moment of pain.
“Okay, what now?”
“Now put the little stud through that I gave you,” Law instructed.
Luffy did as he was told – another moment of pain, because even while he tried, being gentle was hard when you were giving someone a piercing – and a moment later Law felt him screw the tiny ball onto the starter jewelry. “All done,” Luffy said proudly.
Law slid off the edge of the tub and got up to look at himself in the mirror. There was some blood still that he wiped off easily and then gently applied some disinfecting ointment of his own concoction just to make sure. Then he turned to Luffy with a raised eyebrow. “So, do you really want a piercing or did you just say that so I would let you stab me?”
Luffy grinned. “Well, a pirate needs an earring, right?”
“You’re not wrong,” Law said. He got to work sterilizing the needle again with a sigh. At least he knew they were being more hygienic than most other people. Being a doctor paid off sometimes. (Most of the time.) “Just a lobe piercing or anywhere else?”
“Lobe is fine,” Luffy said, touching his earlobe almost self-consciously. “But having matching piercings with you would be fun.”
Law rolled his eyes. “Let’s get you a regular earring first and then we can talk about it again,” he offered. Luffy seemed to find that acceptable.
Having done this before, Law was little more confident and a lot more efficient than Luffy in placing his piercing, and less than three minutes later he pulled back with some nice little starter jewelry placed in Luffy’s ear. “There you go.” He gently wiped off the blood and gave Luffy’s ear the same treatment he had given his own before letting him look in the mirror.
Luffy had chosen something with a tiny piece of sparkly sea glass in it instead of just a silver stud, and Law had to admit that it looked good on him. Luffy seemed to think so, too.
“Thanks, Torao,” he said with a big grin and threw his arms around Law’s neck to give him a hug. Law let him.
“Go show it off to your crew,” he said finally. He was sure that at least Zoro and Franky would appreciate it.
He didn’t have to tell Luffy twice, and watched fondly as he stormed out of the bathroom already yelling for his crew. Traveling with the Strawhats wasn’t always easy, but it certainly had its perks.