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Penguin wakes with a violent jolt. His heart is slamming against his ribs and his lungs aren’t getting the memo to breathe. His eyes dart around in the dark in a panic. Walls look familiar, quilt looks familiar, mattress feels familiar, Sora poster on the opposite wall looks familiar…he’s in his bunk in the shared room in Wolf’s house.
Penguin pushes himself up to a sitting position and looks over the side of the top bunk. Shachi is sound asleep in the bunk below and Bepo is curled up in the bottom bunk across the room, the top bunk empty. A faint glow trickles in from the slightly ajar door, likely from Law reading in the living room at the bottom of the stairs.
Penguin resumes a neutral sitting position and breathes a sigh of relief.
He’s not locked in the cold basement of that god forsaken house.
He’s not in a barely functional shack he and Shachi built in the middle of the woods.
Shachi’s not wasting away before his eyes.
Penguin looks over the side of his bunk to take another look at Shachi. His limbs are splayed on the bottom bunk and half tangled in the sheets with his shirt hiked up. His cheeks lost that sunken in look and the spaces between his ribs have long since filled in.
He’s not whittling away like he was at his uncle’s, he’s safe and healthy, Penguin tells himself again.
Penguin’s heart starts to slow down. All is well, he and Shachi are safe at Wolf’s house with Bepo and Law. He forces himself to breathe a little slower and a little deeper.
He quietly climbs down from his bunk and throws on his robe before tip-toeing out of the room and down the stairs. He probably just needs some chamomile tea and he’ll be sound asleep again. Penguin steps off the last stair and starts towards the dark kitchen.
“Can’t sleep?” A voice inquires.
Penguin turns towards the living room and, sure enough, Law is stretched across the couch, his torso propped up on the armrest. There’s a stack of books on the coffee table as well as one in his hands that he’s looking up from. The lamp is turned to a dim setting on the side table, casting a warm glow across the room.
“You’re one to talk.” Penguin chuckles lightly as he crosses the room and takes a seat on the opposite end of the couch.
“Never said it was a bad thing.” Law responds before turning back to his book.
Penguin eyes the cover. It’s a medical textbook of some kind, full of stuff that’ll probably fly over his head but the distraction is wanted.
“Whatcha reading about?” He asks.
“Autoimmune disorders,” Law replies, not looking up from the page. “The fact that I’m almost fifteen and haven’t shown any signs of hitting puberty or at least a growth spurt is…concerning. I highly suspect it’s lingering damage from Amber Lead but the exact nature of it is unknown. At first I thought it was a thyroid problem but between my Scan technique and the blood tests I ran at the doctor’s office, I haven’t found anything abnormal so I’m investigating autoimmune disorders.”
“I thought you removed all the lead from your system. Is it still causing issues?” Penguin asks.
Law looks up at him and nods. His eyes are dark. “I was experiencing slow motion multi-system organ failure before I removed all the lead deposits around my body. Something like that is bound to cause issues even after being removed. My problem is I’m the only person diagnosed with Amber Lead Disease that’s lived beyond their prognosis so all the medical literature on it says there’s no cure and that I’m supposed to be dead.”
There’s a long silence. Penguin knows all of this-Law told him, Shachi, and Bepo about Flevence, the Doflamingo Family, and Cora-san a few months after they all settled in together-but hearing Law talk about it so bluntly is still jarring.
“Call me clueless but,” Penguin starts. “what exactly do you mean by autoimmune disorders?”
Law shakes his head. “It’s not a stupid question if you’re not studying this stuff. You know how a healthy immune system is only supposed to attack cells that are causing harm?”
Penguin nods.
“Autoimmune disorders are when the immune system attacks healthy cells. It’s an umbrella term for a whole bunch of conditions: inflammatory bowel diseases attack the lining of the intestines and cause inflammation, rheumatoid arthritis causes inflammation of the joints…you get the idea?”
“Yeah, makes sense. Didn’t you say the Amber Lead was hereditary?” Penguin confirms.
“Yeah, my generation was supposed to be the last one it killed because the disease becomes symptomatic at a younger age with each generation. It was literally in my genetic code to die at thirteen so for all I know I might be permanently stuck at this height.” Law responds.
Law adjusts his position so he’s now cross-legged. He balances his chin in his palm as he rests his elbow on his knee. His gaze is focused on nowhere in particular.
“Would be nice to have genetics that aren’t totally fucked.” He says.
Penguin shifts on the couch. “What are you going to do if you don’t hit puberty?”
Law shrugs. “I’ll probably need to manually induce it with testosterone shots if it doesn’t come naturally. Sometimes late puberty is hereditary but it’s not like I have any relatives to ask.”
Penguin is taken aback by the mention of Law’s family. Law simply continues to read.
“Am I making you uncomfortable asking all of these questions?” Penguin asks.
Law shakes his head. “No. I don’t mind the company this late. Am I keeping you up?”
“Not really, I’m not exactly eager to go back to sleep after a nightmare.” Penguin sighs deeply, looking at the floor.
Law is quiet for a few moments. “I can sympathize.”
“Shachi and I moved in well over a year ago but I keep dreaming about the same things-our parents dying, trying not to freeze in the basement Shachi’s uncle kept us in, and seeing Shachi waste away right in front of me.” Penguin grabs the edge of his robe to stop the shaking in his hands.
Law is silent for a few moments before his gaze shifts upward towards Penguin.
“It was awful, Law. We were barely fed in that basement and I had to watch Shachi slowly start to wither away…” Penguin’s breath hitches. “…And I couldn’t do anything about it…”
Penguin looks back up at Law, whose gaze is uncharacteristically soft. His grey eyes are even a little glassy, staring past Penguin into the middle distance as if caught in his own memory.
After what feels like hours, Law’s gaze focuses on Penguin again and he closes his book. He draws in a deep breath.
“From a clinical perspective, you and Shachi physically recovered from your…ordeal quite well. Neither of you have any long-term issues stemming from chronic malnutrition and you’ve hit expected growth spurts within the range of normal.” Law replies. “But being physically recovered is only one part of the issue.”
“Do you have any suggestions for how to mentally recover?” Penguin asks hopefully. “I thought seeing Shachi recovered and healthy would help but the nightmares keep coming back.”
Law sighs. “Unfortunately, that area of medicine is beyond my knowledge. If it makes you feel any better, Shachi’s been down here a couple times in the last few weeks with similar nightmares.”
Penguin’s face falls. “Why isn’t he telling me about this?” He questions.
“My best guess is he doesn’t want to worry you.” Law suggests “I’m sure if something really goes south, you’ll be the first to know-I’m not exactly the pinnacle of emotional sensitivity. For now, you’re both struggling with similar things and you should talk to him about it. I’m sure he’d open up to you.”
Penguin nods.
“I think you’re both so caught up in not wanting each other to worry that it’s hindering your ability to support each other. Again, I’m sure Shachi would open up to you about his nightmares if you told him about yours.” Law continues softly. “He’s also probably a lot better at this than me.” He finishes.
Penguin sharply inhales through his nose in a half-chuckle. He and Law sit in silence for a few moments, the quiet only disrupted by the wind whistling through the trees outside. Penguin lets out a yawn.
“I think I’m going to try to go back to bed now. I have work tomorrow and should probably try to sleep again. Thanks for hearing me out tonight.” Penguin rises from the couch and nods at Law.
The corner of Law’s lip turns up and he nods before opening his book again. Penguin starts walking towards the stairs.
“You know what,” Penguin turns around to face Law again. “Despite your insistence that you’re blunt, cold, and mean, you’re actually a pretty nice guy. You’re still blunt and cold at times, you’re a good guy.”
Law stiffens. He doesn’t look at Penguin. “I did some really awful shit when I thought my days were numbered.” He focuses his gaze on the stack of books on the coffee table as he speaks. “Don’t try to tell me that someone who once wanted to destroy everything he could is ‘a pretty nice guy’.”
Penguin shakes his head. “Shachi and I aren’t proud of some of the stuff we had to do to survive either. The Law you’re talking about isn’t the Law I know. I’m really glad you saved me and Shachi that day.” Penguin smiles softly at Law one last time.
“Thanks again for tonight!” He quietly chirps before climbing back up the stairs to their room.
Shachi and Bepo are still fast asleep when Penguin returns to their room. Penguin hangs up his robe and climbs back into the top bunk. He settles himself on his side and pulls the quilt over himself, letting his eyes close. Sleep comes easily.
~~~
The first rays of the morning filter through the curtains in the room as Penguin’s alarm goes off.
He rubs the sleep from his eyes and climbs down from the top bunk. He pulls his robe back on. Bepo is still asleep, the bunk above him is empty, and Shachi is in denial about it being morning. He yanks the quilt over his head and groans.
“Oh no, you don’t. You have work this morning too.” Penguin laughs and pulls the quilt down below his face. Shachi pouts and attempts to glare at Penguin, but it comes out as more of a groggy squint.
“If you want a warm breakfast, get up now.” Penguin gently nudges Shachi before heading downstairs.
Law is asleep on the couch with an open medical textbook as a pillow. One of the throw blankets is pulled over his legs. Penguin ducks into the kitchen and checks the schedule on the fridge. Everyone except Bepo is scheduled for work. Penguins sighs and shakes his head before heading back over to the couch.
“Hey Law, you fell asleep on the couch again.” Penguin chuckles and shakes Law.
Law opens one eye and groans.
“It’s too early for this shit.” He mumbles and rolls over so his back is to Penguin.
“Sleep if you want but you’ll miss breakfast if you do.” Penguin cautions.
“I’ll take my chances.” Law challenges.
Penguin snickers, classic Law. He turns and heads back into the kitchen, falling into the comforting routine of the morning.