Hey, all! I know I should have finished the epilogue to Falling to Pieces before I posted this, but this idea has been sitting in the back of my head for a while now, and I was really inspired to write this. I already know where I'm taking it, and I've already written the ending to the whole story, I just have to write the rest of it. Heh... But I'm really excited about this one. This first chapter is a bit odd, and nothing is really explained and there really isn't any action or anything, but it's still an important first impression. I really hope everyone likes it!
Disclaimer: I do NOT own One Piece or it's characters. I do own the plot to the story. I make no monetary gain from posting this.
Word Count: 2,029
Chapter Rating: T
The day Kid was transferred from the prison to the asylum could arguably have been the worst and best day of his life. He was losing all of his freedom, giving up his rights as a human being, would be subjected to possibly painful tests and examinations to determine whether there was something wrong with his brain, was labeled insane, and would be forced to eat shitty food. His life had been turned upside down.
When he got there and was exposed to the grand architecture of the brand new establishment, the marble staircase in the main foyer, the gargoyles on the roof, the arching ceilings, he couldn't be bothered to look at them more closely. The nurse and guard guiding him around his new 'home' were thrown off by his lack of astonishment. Most of the other patients they had dealt with had begged to pause and ogle the decorations. Every person at least experienced some awe-inspiring sensations.
As they began their tour, the first room they stopped in was the Recreation Room. The nurse told him the residents liked to call it the Sun Room because it was one of the only places in the building that got a lot of sun. There were always patients sitting around there, talking or playing card games.
As they moved on, Kid caught sight of a lone figure sitting in a metal and plastic-cushioned chair. From his perspective, the only thing he could tell about the person was that it was a younger male with raven black hair. His elbow was resting on the metal arm of the chair, his chin presumably resting in the upturned palm, and he was facing the open window staring out into the world outside.
It wasn't a particularly nice day out. It was rain season, after all. There was a light rain falling, and the clouds were getting darker by the minute, yet the man still stared outside. As if he sensed Kid watching him, the raven haired man turned his head, revealing bored gray eyes. They were rimmed with the tell-tale signs of many sleepless nights, and Kid found it rather creepy. The slighter male smiled and turned back to his window viewing. Fucking strange, Kid thought as he moved on with the prompting from the guard.
﴾•﴿
By the time they finally got to his room, it was nearly dinner time. The nurse told him to settle in and that she and the guard would be back in a little while to escort him to his very own private dining room. They all knew that was just a nice way of saying that he couldn't be trusted to eat in the main dining hall with the other patients.
When Kid entered the room he would now call his, he stopped in his tracks. On one of the beds, the strange guy from earlier was resting while reading a thick tome. From here, Kid could see that the guy looked a little older than himself, but his body was still small enough that the guy could have passed for a teenager. Kid opened his mouth to say something to get the bastard's attention, but was cut off as the guy beat him to it.
"Hold on, I'm almost done with this chapter." And with that, he turned the yellowed page. Kid gaped at his new roommate. He wasn't intimidated in the least? Normally Kid's hulking figure and the permanent scowl marring his face were enough to drive even the most confident bastard away. He didn't know whether to be annoyed or impressed, so he settled for going over to what would be his side of the room, and throwing himself tiredly down on the creaky, shitty mattress.
About two minutes and the crinkling of another turned page later, Kid's roommate sighed contently and put his book to the side. He sat up from his slouched position against the metal headboard. The three pillows he had stacked behind him fell to the mattress as soon as he sat up. The young-looking man turned his head to blink lazily at Kid, then at the pillow that had come to rest against his back.
"Oh, yeah," he muttered, grabbing the pillow and throwing it at Kid. "That one's yours. THere hasn't been anyone in that bed for so long I forgot it wasn't mine. My apologies." Kid caught the pillow, though it felt more like a thin piece of foam than anything else, and grunted insipidly. "My name is Trafalgar Law," his new roommate continued. Kid had to wonder if he was always this talkative. He belatedly noticed the other man had stopped talking and was staring at him expectantly.
"Kid," he said, "Eustass Kid." Law nodded his approval.
"Well, Mister Eustass, I hope we can make this living arrangement bearable." Kis just stared at Law for a few beats before nodding reluctantly. "You don't talk much, do you?"
"So far, you're doing enough talking for the both of us." His monotonous tone usually pissed people off, but the bastard in front of him had the gall to fucking smile!
"So it does talk," Law chirped excitedly, "and it has a sense of humor, too!" Kid could practically feel the sarcasm dripping from his new roommate. "It's only because I was so excited to finally be living with someone again. The novelty will wear off in a few hours, I assure you." Kid scoffed and began rummaging around in the small bag he was allowed to keep with him. The two small suitcases with his clothes had been confiscated and relocated to a communal storage room with every other patient's belongings.
"Forgive me if I don't return the sentiment." Law shrugged, levelling a bored look at the redhead.
"Hey, I'm guessing it was either here or that overcrowded prison in Sabody, right? You'll come to find that the Impel Down Asylum isn't so awful. Establish your dominance early, and you won't even get beaten up when the guards turn their backs." That made Kid pause in his aimless search. That happened? The doctors let that happen? The inmates let that happen? That bastard Smoker, who had arrested him in the first place, told him that some of the most infamous criminally insane were sent here, the most dangerous. Would those people really just lie there and take it?
He didn't have much more time to think it over, as a knock had sounded at the door. Kid had nearly forgot about dinner. Law turned his gaze to the small barred window set about three quarters of the way up the door, eyes questioning what the staff would want with the redhead at this time of the evening.
"Dinner," Kid grunted, getting to his feet as the door opened. He turned to Law, expecting him to follow. When the black haired man did not, Kid spared him a slightly incredulous look. Where he came from, dinnertime created a stampede.
"All of us ordinary patients ate already. You're special, and you arrived here rather late in the first place." That made sense. The nurse did say he wasn't allowed to eat with the others yet. She had given some polite reason, the guard having quickly disproved that by stating bluntly that they were afraid he was still prone to violence. Go figure. Burn down a house once, and they think you'll do it a hundred times over.
Without saying anything more, he turned back toward the door and left with one of the security guards and a different nurse than the one who had accompanied him on his tour. The guard closed the door behind him and they set off down the hallway.
﴾•﴿
The food, Kid found, was not as terrible as he had expected. Better than prison food was supposed to be, anyway, though it still wasn't anything to write home about. It was already eight thirty by the time he left the dining room. The guard had remained with him through his meal, though the nurse had left. The one who came to pick him up this time was a man. A doctor.
"My name is Tony Tony Chopper," he had introduced himself happily. The man was rather young. Kid was instantly irritated by his overly happy attitude and his ever-present smile. "I'm going to be your doctor from now on. Our meetings will be every Wednesday starting this coming week." Seeing as it was only Friday, Kid began to wonder what the weekend would entail. He mindlessly followed Chopper down the hall and back toward his room.
They stood outside the door, waiting for the guard to unlock it. Chopper seemed uncomfortable with the heavy silence, as he had begun to fidget slightly where he stood. He reached his hand up to fiddle with the brim of his odd pink hat. He had noticed that, aside from the standard white lab coats and white nurses' outfits, there wasn't too strict of a dress code among the staff. A few of them wore hats or other identifying articles like brightly colored scarves or shirts.
"Well, it was nice meeting you, Mister Eustass," the doctor said. The words reminded him briefly of what Law had said to him earlier. He shook his head to dispel those thoughts.
"Yeah, right," Kid said shortly. The guard had unlocked the door at this point. "Can I go into my room now?" He was in no mood to stand around and talk to a shrink, even if he would be expected to 'open up to him' in their coming sessions.
"Right, of course. Have a good night." And with that, the doctor turned and left. Kid went through the door and the guard closed it after him. He heard the tell-tale click of a lock sliding into place, heavy footsteps echoing down the hall shortly after.
Law was sitting up in his bed, nose buried in that same book Kid had seen him reading earlier. This time, though, instead of being a quarter of the way through the book, the guy was nearly finished. Kid rolled his eyes as he made his way over to his bed, flopping down as the last page was turned in the other man's thick novel. With his eyes closed, Kid could hear when the back cover was shut with a soft gush of air, and his roommate let out a positively happy sigh.
"There really is nothing like a good book," he said, mostly to himself. Kid laughed at that.
"Sure, if you can read." Law turned in the bed to face Kid, staring at him with a serious but fond expression.
"You know, I was responsible for teaching my brothers how to read. I would be willing to teach you, as well." Kid let out a bark of a laugh, but Law's expression did not change. "It would really come in handy, Eustass-ya."
"'Ya'? What a strange way to address someone." He gave off a careless attitude, but the prospect of being able to read in the future was nearly too good to pass up. At the same time, he was wondering if it would be worth it. Would he even be getting out of here? What if they kept him locked up here for the rest of his natural born life? Damn, he really hoped they wouldn't. He could not fathom dying in this place.
"Just keep it in mind. Learning wouldn't hurt, regardless of where you end up." With that, Law picked up one of the books stacked on the floor by his bed, opened up the front cover and began reading. Kid just stared at him.
He realized he had been doing that a lot since he met this guy. He couldn't really help it; Law was easy on the eyes, and Kid had long since known that he had no interest in women. It was then he understood why he had been staring at Law so much. He wanted the slighter man to be his. In that moment, he resolved to make it so. If nothing else, his time at the Impel Down Asylum would be interesting.