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Believing in these change of events didn't come naturally to Doflamingo. For all that he remembered, the autumnal aura felt by the seashore should bring out only the worst in him.
Right now, he couldn't get enough of it.
Maybe it was the making of his brother, currently chain smoking on this lovely, cloudy day, sitting criss-cross on a wrinkled picnic blanket next to him.
Doflamingo once again took the time to glance over and marvel at the well-made, leather oxford shoes Rosinante probably polished to perfection a day or two ago, now inevitably sprinkled with salty sand. These were good shoes and he must have been taught to care for them.
"I'm glad you made it this far, you know."
Rosinante's soft, sea-centered gaze shifted to a confused look that landed on his brother's face. "Hmm? What do you mean?" His posture relaxed as he turned back to watching the sea.
Doffy chuckled. "Just in general." He sipped from the unscrewed thermos cup, steam flowing around his cheekbones, carried by the wind. "You managed. Somebody took care of you. That is all that matters."
Rosi nodded. "Glad I found you in one piece, too." A gentle exhale. "But why now?"
"It's silly."
"No, do tell..."
"I like your shoes. Very nice."
"H-huh? Wh- But I've had them all this time!"
"Yes. But only now I can see them up close." Doflamingo half-smiled at his brother, pictures of the past shuffling in his mind. "Remember when we used to wear flip-flops?"
"Mm, which ones?" Rosi let out a puff of smoke.
"The ones mother ordered to be made for us were fine after all-"
"Yeah, I'm so glad she did," Rosi could not help but smile. "Such a heathen, breaking that law."
Doffy shook his head. "What law?" Rosi looked at him with an almost indignant stare.
"The seventeenth commandment?" His brother blinked. "Thou shalt not walk on this filthy earth with your feet barren, for that is unbecoming of a God?"
"Ahhh, that one!" Did he really forget this? All while Rosi remembered so well...?
A small nod. "I don't know how the other kids managed to play in the sand in these... pointy things, all that high heel and shank," Rosi shook his head and poured himself some tea to the lid. "Though the golden buckles were unasked for, they weighed a ton. I swear I wouldn't trip that much if..."
"You would, deal with it," Doflamingo took away the cup from him to steal another sip, "you always did and you always will. It's written into each cell of your body, I'm afraid."
"Honestly, I'd agree if I didn't know... Better shoes," Corazón's painted smile turned melancholic.
"For example?"
"Hm," his gaze drifted off to the horizon as he slowly placed his head on bent knees, "like the flip flops you made me on Downs. I never tripped in them, you know?"
"No way, the straw abominations?" Doflamingo laughed out loud. "Nah, it must've happened a time or two."
Rosinante's vigorous head shake begged to differ.
Nah, of course he wanted to claw at the remnants of dignity. But that simply wasn't true.
"I saw what you did. Maybe that made an impact," Rosi huffed.
"Huh? What... What do you mean?" Now that piqued his attention.
"Oh, you really forgot?" A mischievous grin wasn't something Doflamingo could tolerate on his brother for long. Not when it was mocking him.
"Nothing extraordinary in them, stop pulling my leg." Enough of this.
"So you really forgot. What a shame." Rosinante turned his face to him, a sudden smile as bright as sunlight, "You waved me a four-leaf clover in."
No. That... wasn't true? "In your dreams, maybe."
"Nuh-uh. Besides... I really liked them. Cried for two days straight when Sengoku found and threw away the only one left."
Doffy's eyes widened behind the glasses.
"You still had them back then?!"
"Remains of them would be a better word." A dry chuckle left his lips, along with a stream of smoke. "But I didn't want to break Doffy's rule number seventeen."
Silence kept filling in the small space between them, background howls of wind only pushing Doflamingo further into his own uneasiness. "Can you remind me?"
"The ground is dangerous because of sharp objects. Wear your damn flip-flops."
"Rosi..." Doflamingo cooed, feeling the urge to grab him into an embrace.
"Yeah, thanks for that, I guess..." A gentle pat on Doflamingo's arm indicated more genuineness behind the words than the usual flat tone of Corazón's voice. "Your rules made much more sense. Your shoes too." The smoke died out when Corazón put out the cigarette, rubbing it in the wet sand. "Joints are itchy, I can feel the rain coming. We should go soon." They didn't have much to pack but it was better to reach home quickly.
Doffy helped him up, as per usual, and soon they were ready to return. "Yea, they said it will rain heavily for a few days straight." Ugh, gloomy week at home, less than perfect...
He stopped for a moment and smiled, as an idea popped up.
Rosi finished shaking the sand off of the blanket. "What? Something on your mind?"
"Wanna weave together some flip-flops at home?"
"You heathen." Rosinante flashed an amused smile. "Why not."