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It was… weird. The polished stairs, the crystal chandeliers, the fluffy carpets and fountains of champagne. The suits, the silk dresses, the scarred men, who fluctuated between enemies and friends, all gathered in this palace, at this conference. Absolutely weird. As he was checked in, with his full name, mind you, he could not believe all these.
It was so embarrassing to button up a white shirt, to shake hands with shady admirals, to be expected to engage in small talk, when he clashed with these hands and mouths in combat before.
“Captain Trafalgar Law?”
A voice appeared by his side. He just stepped in, into the white-gold ballroom, with these ridiculous cakes and stiff waiters and already, already, someone was talking to him. He turned towards the source of the sound. A pleasant face greeted him with soft eyes.
“Jinbei, son of the… sea,” he uttered. The other man nodded respectfully.
“I welcome you among the Warlords,” he spoke.
“Yeah…,” Law nodded.
Jinbei handed him a champagne flute full of yellow, sparkling fluid. Even from such a small movement, a powerful smell erupted from the glass. Law scrunched his nose, and Jinbei chuckled.
“I know, it’s a little overwhelming, this whole charade,” Jinbei said with an apologetic smile, “but, it’s a rare occasion for everybody to gather like this. You know, the Navy, the Government, Warlords…”
“Yeah, I thought so,” Law uttered.
Jinbei chuckled yet again. “You will get used to it. Just make sure not to get into any conflicts here.”
“I highly doubt it,” Law thought.
“Gentlemen,” the two were approached suddenly by another, very bored man.
“Sir Mihawk,” Jinbei said greetingly. Law bowed his head slightly, acknowledging the presence.
“I see that you continue to be the uncle that every new Warlord needs,” Mihawk stated. Jinbei laughed, while Law averted his eyes.
“Someone has to, considering that the peace among the Warlords is crucial,” the fishman laughed.
“Doing the god’s work,” Mihawk snorted, “so, Law, how do you find yourself here?” the swordsman asked. Law rubbed his neck.
“To be honest, I do not find myself anywhere here.”
Mihawk snorted, “Aight, you will fit right in.”
A sudden rush by stairs caught the attention of men. Jinbei took a deep breath.
“Doflamingo…” he exhaled.
“Okay, time to go play the roles in this shitty theater,” Mihawk suddenly rubbed his hands with a tired expression. “Do me a favour, yeah, Law guy?”
Law looked at the men with suspicion. “What?”
“Do me a favour and… do not start any shit with the bird's wife, will you?”
Law’s eyes widened in sudden realization but Mihawk was already gone. Jinbei sighed.
“He is right, Law,” he coughed, “it’s best not to do… anything around this woman. I mean, be polite and stuff if you must, but just… leave her be, okay?”
Jinbei’s words drowned somewhere in Law’s mind. He was there, with his champagne flute, his shitty title and he was about to be treated as a part of the elite but his mind just…
He swallowed hard. The crowd suddenly intensified, pushing itself deeper into the palace; Jinbei touched his arm, his primitive instincts pulling him with the current, but his mind was almost shut down. LIke a frenzied animal, who sought their haven, the little hole under some rock, he was suddenly engulfed in a sense of primal danger. Jinbei told him something, he did not comprehend but he was swept with the current down the hall, watching for the predator so urgently, so impatiently.
Until he saw them.
Doflamingo, in his all tower infamy in a white suit, his arms covered with his pink fur, any by his arm…
Hs heart sank.
She was there, in the white silk dress, covered with pink diamonds, walking hand in hand with a man who destroyed innocent beings for his own twisted sense of pleasure. It was her face, albeit a little older, but she still had the same kind eyes, the same soft features.
Jinbei pulled him by his elbow, letting the pair pass. Doflamingo grinned at his face, walking proudly further in silence and her…
She noticed him too. Her eyes widened, her face twisted in a mixture of shock and relief. She wanted to stop, he could see it in her face. But she didn't let herself stop. Still hooked on the monster’s arm, she walked with him down the hall, turning her gaze away. The Doquixote family tattoo on her back between her shoulder blades brought so much pain into his mind, that he had to bend down, just to stare at the shiny floor.
He thought he… prepared himself. He thought he could have taken it but her eyes…
“I told you not to bother Doffy when he is working, did I?’
Oh, her gentle eyes…
“I know, I know, it’s okay, you can sleep with me, okay little guy? Baby number 5 has had scary a nightmare too!”
Her gentle hands…
“It was a mistake, Doffy. Law would never betray you. Look, you can punish me, instead, okay? I will take the extra work you wanted Cora to do!”
His mind was flooded with images.
“Law, get it together man!” Jinbei hissed. “They are going to toast without us!”
Law shook his head - suddenly, he was over the water again. He looked at Jinbei’s confused expression, embarrassment pinching his gut.
“I am sorry, let’s go.”
The crowd was dense. He pushed and pushed until he reached the center, where all of the other warlords gathered in a circle to toast the occasion.
“For peace!”
Sengoku raised his glass. All of the guests cheered, sipping their champagne. Law could not bring himself to move. Doflamingo was right there, right before his eyes, smirking aggressively and…
And hugging her to his massive hip so tightly, that she winced briefly. She glanced at him warily too, as if to ask him not to start anything. Oh, how trained were they in their little nonverbal conversations. Another toast was raised, Jinbei poked his side.
“Drink the champagne and stop staring at her!” he whispered. Law suddenly averted his gaze, bringing the crystal flute to his lips.
He only took a sip and yet… he felt so absolutely delirious. The entire evening, he tried to push these thoughts aside, to shake this feeling off of his head. At some point, he even spoke with others, watched some entertainment events, ate a piece of cake with Jinbei and still…
At some point, even the ‘uncle’ Jinbei decided to chat with someone else and Law decided to sneak out to the garden. It was already very late and the people were significantly tipsier. He collapsed onto a bench somewhere under a tree in the garden. Fresh air invaded his nose, cutting through his foggy brain.
She was… she was there. And she was beautiful. Dressed in silk and jewels, in black heels and make up, she was now a woman who was now a King’s woman. He snorted mentally. She knew that Doflamingo did not make her a ‘Queen’ by any sort, his pride would never let him do that. She was his woman - nothing more, nothing less.
A stray leaf was blown on by a gentle wind. Law sighed.
She was already Doflamingo’s woman when Law had joined them all these years ago. She was so young back then, younger than Doflamingo but still a young adult. Law never dared to ask her how that came to be. How did it happen that she became his woman. And why did Cora allow this. Why did Cora… how could he watch them together, then he loved that woman so dearly it hurt. Law also loved her so… dearly. So, so dearly!
“Law, don’t poke Cora too much, or he will bite!”
His soul smiled at the memory; he could still remember their little shenanigans. How Corazon was once fed up with her worrying so much, that he wrote a note saying: “chill, mom”, and made her so angry.
Yeah, he slipped a few times, called her ‘mom’.
“Doffy, can you order them to eat, please? The kids are so stubborn and they are not listening to me, even though they have not eaten anything for three days because of some stupid bet or something!”
Oh, how troublesome it was back then. Her worrying, her gentle eyes, her ability to coax Doflamingo, to speak with him so freely, to report their stupid little ideas and whatnot. And, Doflamingo always listened to her. Always gave them lighter punishments when she reported them. She was truly…
He sighed yet again.
***
She unclipped the heavy diamond necklace and placed it gently on the silver tray. Grunting quietly, she stretched her neck slightly, closing her eyes for a brief moment.
The suite they provided was truly beautiful, albeit a little stuffy. The silence was much needed though, after such a loud day. One by one, other pieces of jewellery were placed on the silver tray: pink earrings and the tennis bracelet all joined together in a pink union, blissfully sparkling under the remaining light in the room. Sadness was starting to creep into her thoughts. She saw… Law…
The bathroom doors violently swung open; the large man stepped out of the steamy room completely naked, drying his hair with one of the provided towels. She shuddered slightly.
“Why so jumpy? Have you not seen a real man before?”
His irony stung. She instantly got up and moved towards the wardrobe.
“I am sorry,” she responded quickly, reaching for the sleeping dress she brought from Dressrosa, “it’s been a long day, master.”
He snorted ironically. She stood quiet, freeing herself from the dress.
“You know, I thought you would have more to say about your former pseudo-son.”
Oh, it hurt. It hurt like hell to hear him say that. An image of an empty heart throne flashed in her mind. She swallowed hard, as the sleeping dress passed her head and arms, flowing freely down her body.
“It’s just…,” she started shyly, just to speak within the imaginary ‘time limit’, “he is… grown now. He is not a child anymore.”
He chuckled. Not a good sign.
Fully dressed in the sleeping garments, she turned around towards the bed. Doflamingo, still a little bit wet from the shower, put on some underwear and decided to sit down on the giant bed.
“Bring me wine,” he ordered.
“Yes, master.”
She moved quietly towards the other side of the room and took a wine glass from one of the cabinets. She opened the wine cooler and grabbed the tangy red wine and poured it into the glass. He wordlessly stretched his hand out, taking the glass. She left the bottle on his night stand.
“Say, how much have we been together?”
The question was loaded with unspoken anger. She silently sat down by the little vanity near the bathroom and started her skincare.
“17 years, master.”
He hummed, swirling the wine around.
“And tell me, who is responsible for all of this shit?”
It burned. It burned in the back of her eyes, it burned in the back of her throat, it burned in the back of her heart.
“Cora is, master.”
He hummed again and she almost wanted to scream. She knew the sight of Law did something to him. It stirred something inside him and pushed him, that’s why he was that much more awful and malicious than usual.
“Who do you belong to?”
“You, master.”
She saw his face twist in the mirror; he gestured to her to join him on the bed. She stood up and walked towards the bed, climbing onto the spot beside him and knelt, whilst looking at him.
“How does it feel knowing that you loved that brat and now he betrayed you?”
Oh, there it was, she knew it. He was going to pour everything onto her, just to make himself feel better.
“Master-”
“How does it feel, woman? How does it feel to nurture and then be betrayed?”
A single tear dropped from her eye. A wide smile crossed his face; he briefly brought himself up, just to pin her under him. She whined quietly.
“How does it feel to know you made the right choice?” He breathed into her neck. “How do the velvets and diamonds feel? How does it feel to be with the King of Dressrosa?’
She sighed and moaned, when his tongue glided up her neck. Another tear fell from her eye, which he licked away.
“I will give you another brat, even tonight,” he breathed, unclothing her chest, “I will buy you more jewels, I will wipe out any nation you wish.”
His fingers tightened on her nipple, making her moan.
“I will give the brat you seem so desperately to desire,” he growled, suddenly squeezing her breast, "I will gift him to you here, in Mary Geoise, so you remember that you carry the royalty.”
The sound of torn fabric echoed in the room, but she could not hear it.
“You are mine, you were mine before that brat and you will be mine after I destroy him to pieces, do you understand?!”
A loud moan escaped her lips as his teeth sank into the skin of her neck.
“Yes, Doffy!” he whined. “Thank you for making me yours!”
He smiled into the crook of her neck, as her pleasure and tears mixed on her face.
***
The sun was rising, at last. Law’s tired eyes cracked open, as the cool breeze engulfed the entire room. The dreams attacked him relentlessly through the entire night, even though he has not had them for years. He so foolishly thought that meeting her again would be easy after all these years. How stupid that was.
He got up from his bed with the dawn, going straight to the window. He saw someone in the back garden, tucked under the tree he sat down on yesterday.. The jump was a natural reflex; he landed smoothly on the hedge and quietly stepped towards the bench. His mind was racing; it was… her.
“Big… sis,” he whispered.
He turned her tired eyes towards him and smiled. His hands trembled, as he suddenly looked around them with worry.
“Doffy is not here,” she stated calmly, “he gave me permission to talk to you, don’t worry.”
She answered the questions lingering in his mind; it made his heart ache. He sat down beside her, watching her intently. Only from there was he able to see her bruised neck and swollen lips.
“So, you are a warlord now, huh?”
He nodded slightly.
“Congrats,” she smiled, “it’s well deserved.”
“How do you know it’s deserved if we did not talk for so many years?” He retorted. She chuckled. “Fair point.”
He swallowed the lump in his throat.
“Big sis, I don’t know what… where to even start with all of that.”
She smiled sheepishly.
“I think I am going to have a baby next year, Law.”
His eyes widened.
“What? What baby?” He asked frantically. “You are… with him?!”
“Not yet, no,” she sighed, “but I will be. Doffy is…”
The words died on her lips, as a tear fell down her eye.
“You know, Law,” she shot him a wide, warm smile, “Cora would be so proud. He loved you so much.”
“He loved you, Big Sis.” His mind was screaming. All these emotions made him tremble even more. He so desperately wanted to take her away from that monster.
“I only have my eyes on my King,” she responded, as if reading his thoughts. “King of Dressrosa, Doflamingo.”
His knuckles became white from anger. She closed her eyes.
“I hope that… one day…” she whispered, “we will sit down at one table, laugh and drink one for Cora.”