Warning: It is rated at M for other reasons beside sex. This contains yaoi slash, and other things which people might find uncomfortable.
Pairing: Base pairing is KiddxLaw(sub pairings are later revealed)
Late disclaimer: I do not own one piece.
Hope you enjoy thank you for reading :)
Dear Trafalgar,
For the love of sweet Jesus Trafalgar, kindly please stop perfuming the letter that you send to me. I know you're doing it to screw with my patience, and frankly I have enough trouble with managing my men on deck across the coast who, even without your contribution are assuming that I'm having a secret love affair behind their backs already.
Speaking of which, I finally deciphered the stupid note you sent me two months ago saying that it was crucial information which turned out to be the address of a brothel. Thank you very much asshole, with your help, I am going to have an infinite number of roadblocks between me and becoming an admiral.
Now that all mentioned and hoping that you get the angry tone in my writing, I have the things that you requested ready and packed and leaving for Hampshire from Edinburgh tomorrow. The Scottish lady wasn't very happy mind you; if it wasn't for your master's influence I would've had quite a lot of trouble receiving it. I won't ask what you are planning to do with these, but I advise you not to use it in anything that goes against the natural order, I trust your profession although sometimes I do wander very seriously how a complete psycho like you became a doctor. I assume that the package will arrive in Cambridge in about three weeks depending on how much you manage to bribe the mail service with.
I am leaving for Spain in two days, so unfortunately I might not be in Cambridge when you come around for a visit, so do not bother with planning how to make me look like a sodomite this time. Although I will pass on the message that Jewelry Bonnie has invited you around for tea when you pass by the city. I hope you receive good luck on your travels, may fortunes smile on you Trafalgar Law.
Your friend,
X Drake.
Trafalgar frowned slightly, the letter fluttering gently between his fingers as he finished reading it. Tapping his fingers on his crossed thighs, he felt a mischievous smile appear on his bruised lips. Without much effort Law picked up a quill and started scribbling down in his careless handwriting, starting with a 'Dear Drake' on the first paragraph.
Letter writing wasn't one of his greatest of hobbies, but causing Drake to suffer was incredibly satisfying in his mundane life. Law usually kept his letters short and sweet, whilst Drake preferred to stick to formalities. Habits don't change even if you become an adult.
His hand stopped scribbling when he heard rough shuffling noises behind him; Law slowly turned his head around and glanced around the fireplace, the figure who was now sitting up and staring at the ground had a nasty scowl on his face.
Reflected against the sepia fire, the pale man seemed eerie and out of place. His eccentric red hair glowed rich scarlet along with his duller shade of irises, his muscular build gave him an oddly distinguishable posture of strength. When he was not grinning in that madman way and eyes not glaring at him, Law reckoned that the man had a face worthy of praise, it might've been his momentary imagination but for a dangerous criminal, the man had a slight air of nobility around him.
Kidd looked up, and then sideways. A cozy room, scattered with vials, bottles- a desk on the side mounded with paper and the windows all covered by think beige curtains, preventing any sunlight from directly coming into the room.
He blinked a few times at the chains that bound his hands again, and stared at it with dislike.
"I'd rather you not pounce on me again like you did yesterday." yesterday. The doctor's sentence made Kidd realize that he was passed out for a day. The red haired man stared curiously at the doctor, trying to remember what question he was supposed to ask first, until he finally settled with the shortest; "Are you an imbecile, or one of those people who feel superiority by performing what they think is kindness to other people?"
"You sound as if you have not tasted any form of kindness." The doctor's retort makes Kidd give out a dry snigger, Kindness is an illusion.
"Tell me doctor, how is it possible that you were able to cure it?" Genuine curiosity covered up the bitterness behind the criminal's tone, making Law shrug with a cup of coffee in his hand.
"It isn't cured. The disease you have, it's rare enough to be unnamed. The most complex of it's kind, and I'd prefer not to hear how you ended up with it." It certainly was a nasty piece of virus; it doesn't kill its unfortunate victim immediately, but drags on for years, sometimes causing the affected to crack up and end up killing themselves just to be free of it. They were like a parasite that feeds off its host's pain.
"Modern medicine is not known to have a complete cure for that disease."
Eusstass Kidd blinked. The pain in his chest was gone, his head clearer. Usually when the fits start, he passes out for a few days, and his head and body weaker with every passing time. For the first time in years he felt rejuvenated, the jagged pieces of his memories coming together much more clearly than they usually do- sometimes he even forgot about who he was after vomiting out half of his blood to the earth. The only reason he was able to stay alive so long was because of his inhuman ability to recover so quickly.
"Then how did you do it?" The question asks again, leaving Law with that mysterious smile that unnerved Kidd still.
"My master was... special, in ways. He's a collector of a sort you see, collects things that people find disturbing, odd. This also means he collects books. Lot's of books. Some of them were about medical practices which I found absolutely fascinating," The doctor's voice suddenly dropped, as if wandering if he should really continue. It was like telling another an important secret.
"Mister Murderer. Let us just say that... there are some medical practices in this world which fundamentals are too twisted to reveal. But the fruits of their experiments manages to reap ways of creating very rare concoctions of various tonics and cures; in this case- yours."
It was like listening to a quiz for Kidd. He sniffed, his impulsive disorder was settling down now that his mind was calmer than when it was affected by that tormenting illness. Still that didn't stop him feeling agitated by the doctor's presence. The taste of his blood and warm lips still lingered in his mind, his eyes stayed a little longer than necessary at the slender tanned neck.
"So I'm confused. You say there is no cure, then you read it off a book." the hinted sarcasm in Kidd's comment allowed Law to make a soft disapproving click in his tongue.
"The cure is not written. The medicine I gave you was my own creation, merely improvised from the information that I read from that book years ago. While tending to your dozen broken bones, I realized that you had that strange disease lingering with you. Since this medicine expires in a few hours after it's made, just to be sure I had created the medicine each morning."
An awkward silence again took over the room, in which both men wordlessly stared at each other for a few uncomfortable minutes until Kidd finally opened his mouth again in a visible sneer.
"Are you always this kind and caring? Keep it up, and I might just throw up, doctor." He spat the word doctor- the said doctor just smiled.
"Trust me; it wasn't the kindness from the bottom of my heart that saved your life. You tried to kill me twice, including a mild attempted rape. So far, I see no valid reason for me to care for you."
"So, what now? Going to turn me over to the authorities?"
Law did not give an immediate answer; instead he reached for the plate of buttered crackers in front of him and walked up to Kidd, kneeling down to eye level and munched on a cracker. The doctor studied the others eyes for moment, hiding a laugh.
What would Drake say if he told the marine that he just twice saved the life of a dangerous murderer who attempted to rip him apart?
"My name," the doctor starts, a cracker playing between his fingers "is Trafalgar Law. Glad to make your acquaintance."
The red haired man rolls his eyes, a mildly exasperated sigh escaping his lips.
"You should introduce yourself now." Law finished, and left Eusstass briefly wandering if the doctor actually has another facial expression other than smiling. The only time he hasn't seen the other not smiling was when he was feeling pain, and Kidd had that sudden urge to cause pain in order to see his expression change.
"Does it actually matter to you?"
"Well yes, seeing as how we are going to be spending a lot of time around each other now. I can't continue calling you Mister Murderer, unless you'd prefer me referring to you with a series of 'hey', 'you', and 'redhead'." Law mused in his perfectly timed sing-song voice, making Kidd assume his vacant expression before the words sank in. The doctor had an exceptional ability to piss him downright off by just existing.
"I'll make it clearer for you. I'm not going to report you or anything, but I'm certainly not planning to let you loose either. I want you to assist me in my travels."
During his life, Eusstass Kidd heard many things that sounded like a series of barking dogs in his ears. By far, that was best bullshit that he has heard in many years. He clearly wanted to make a point that what the man who introduced himself as Trafalgar Law was saying was utter nonsense, and did not hesitate to show it in his face.
"If you were being serious, then you're more of a fool than what I expected." Kidd spat.
"I was. You're a welcome addition, considering you can fight and carry things around more efficiently than I can. Of course, what I am really after is the disease you carry." His logical attempt to explain his reason behind the sudden proposition darkened Kidd's face, who replied with two simple words put together- "Fuck you."
"You wish." Law answered casually in return, still munching on his cracker. "As I have already told you, I did not expect for you to live. The reason I helped you was not because I was a compassionate doctor, to me, you are a valuable research material that can provide me with results. Your rare disease fascinates me- the endless possibilities that can come from studying you, I can practically wet myself with ecstasy at the thought."
"I'd rather have you wet with something else preferably you know." Kidd gave a nasty smirk. "You have a disturbed mind, Trafalgar Law."
"And so do you." Law answered, offering Kidd a cracker which he refused.
"What makes you possibly think that I will actually agree to become your lap dog? Even if I did, don't you think it would be rather easy for me to betray you the second later?"
The doctor looked as if he was already expecting that question, which was why he didn't hesitate a moment to think before he opened his mouth to answer nice and clear;
"You have no other choice."
"Try me."
"Well, the crucial part is this; the medicine that I designed for your disease only cures you for a certain period of time, which is exactly 28 hours." Eusstass Kidd flinched faintly at the doctor's words, casting a dark look against the steel grey iris. "In this whole wide world, the reality is that I am the only person capable of creating this medicine of yours. This logically means that if you wish to live, it means you need me."
Kidd couldn't shake off the weird feeling that felt like he was just sentenced to death.
"Besides, I can provide you with easy food and bed."
A victorious smile from reasoning appeared into the doctor's face again, his lips nibbling the corners of the buttered cracker. With soft munching noises audible painfully clear, Kidd felt his mind go blank.
The red haired murderer met many people in his life. Most of whom he ended up driving a knife down their throats, gutting each and last one of them into a pile of entrails and bloodied flesh. He carried sins bigger than what anyone can imagine, his conscience slipping between sanity and insanity with every minute passing. And now in front of him, there was a person like no other, someone who he could not kill, who dared to say that he needed him in order to live. It did not help the fact that Kidd couldn't die yet.
Oh the complications.
How he wished he could just drive his nails down the others throat and be done with it.
Eusstass Kidd hated to admit this- and he would've sacrificed anything to deny the one true fact – he needed the doctor.
"Eusstass Kidd."
The pale man croaked, biting back anything else that tried to follow his answer. "That's my name."
Biting down on the last cracker, Law gave a soft grin.
"We are going to get along just fine."
Dear Drake,
The clouds are fluffy grey, the rain is refreshing, the wind is howling, it is a perfect day to sprinkle some purple Rosalie.
The ginger haired marine face palmed. Drake rubbed the envelope against Bepo, who excitedly started barking; it recognized his master's scent. After the heavy scents of roses were considerably weaker due to the dog odor, Drake continued to read down the letter, chewing the end of his pipe while Bepo desperately tried to jump onto his chair to lick the envelope.
Drake, Drake. How gullible are you? If I was really trying to sabotage your courier, trust me you'd be having a lot more problem trying to forgive me. Like I always used to say my friend, the marines don't suit your style. The day you become an admiral will be the day I become a university professor.
"No Trafalgar. The day you become a university professor is the day I become a general." Drake muttered under his breath, sounding a lot more skeptical then he intended to. A part of him was usually relieved that his childhood friend was still quite the same after all these years, while the other part of him was mildly annoyed that Trafalgar Law still failed to see the world in a more serious point of view. It always seemed to be games for the doctor.
On a more serious note, thank you for the items. I have in need of them quite desperately now, and would appreciate your help if you could get another shipment by the end of next month. Up until now it was just a part of my research, but now I actually have a patient which needs it. Surprise isn't it?
By the way, I nearly got murdered twice in the past two weeks. You were this close to losing your best buddy. Thank your lucky stars, Drake. Oh, and tell Bonnie I would love to visit her if she'd just stop trying to feed me until my guts explode, I am worried that her eating habits will put off her suitors in the future.
You are taking a good care of my Bepo right? Hope you are well, be safe and healthy- I have no plans to weep if you are injured.
Hearts and crosses,
Trafalgar Law.
So typical of him, Drake rolled his eyes and gave up the envelope to Bepo who started whining in the corner. It didn't surprise him that Trafalgar Law nearly died twice in a row; the doctor usually had a lot of enemies- most who were made during his academic years.
Now that Drake thought about it, Law wasn't keen on making any friends as far as he was concerned. The doctor seemed afraid of the idea of having connections with other people, including his own patients. Besides, no matter how hard the world tried, it just could not get rid of Trafalgar Law. His life was more elastic than rubber strings attached to a ladies bloomer.
The ginger haired vice admiral was busy looking out the window of his hotel for a brief seconds, sipping his rather weird tasting Latin coffee, the women of Madrid offered some odd tasting beverages. He was interrupted by the sound of his hotel room's opening; Drake wandered if it was the chambermaid and cleared the room divider, only to find Penguin struggling with a tower of boxes.
"Need help?" Drake offered, to which Penguin refused politely with quick shakes of his head- his felt hat slightly tipping down in a diagonal line as he did so. Bepo barked again in a friendly way, nuzzling Penguin's legs who had to be extra careful now not to trod on the huge Samoyed's fluffy white tail.
"The post office will definitely not allow these to pass through, so I'm taking them with me back to England. Hopefully I'll be able to drop them in Hampshire before my doctor leaves for Cambridge." Penguin muttered half to himself, laying the boxes down onto a nearby table. He fiddled with the lids on some of the boxes, a frown slightly covering the visible half of his chin and mouth. As usual Drake noted the affectionate way Penguin referred to Trafalgar- 'my doctor'.
Hard to say where that loyalty came from, but even though Law stopped tutoring the young man, Penguin still looked up to him.
"Any idea why he would need these for?" asked Drake, and Penguin shrugged.
"He said it was for his patient didn't he?"
"That was only three days ago, which he barely mentioned in his letter."
"I wouldn't worry too much Sir Drake, he is a doctor. He would have good reasons." Penguin closed the matter, his voice too thick with trust for Drake to interfere. Of course, it did not mean that Drake did not trust Law's intentions, but rather curious as to as why he was suddenly requesting abnormal materials.
He remembered the last time when they were children where Trafalgar asked Drake to acquire tobacco for him, it didn't end very well. Apparently he was trying to experiment on making relax pills, and the poor butler suffered from hallucinations for a month before he recovered again, with an eternal fear of tobacco. Both of them were punished severely for that little incident.
"That's last of it. Anything you want me to deliver on the way?"
Penguin finished packing the last bits of the boxes, roping them together to make sure he does not forget which box was which. Drake blinked for a few moments, as if to remember something- when he finally did, he pulled out a rather thick volume of a book from his charter table.
The book had a soft rich purple velvet cover, but no title and neither caption on the front. Penguin gave a quizzical stare at the elegant looking book; the rim was decorated with gold linings. The youth with the hat cautiously opened the book to a random page, and recognized that the writing was in complete Spanish. Since Penguin knew he sucked at Spanish, he did not care to read what it was about, and flipped the pages to the front cover- which the title looked vaguely familiar.
"You read classic stories?" the youth asked to Drake, who once again replied with a short shrug of his shoulders.
"It isn't my present. Someone else asked me to send it to him."
"Who?"
"It isn't your business young Penguin." came the reply, which made Penguin huff. Nevertheless he kept the book close to the boxes, still open in the front page. He shuffled away a second later, remembering that he left a few more boxes in the lobby and set to seek them out- quickly losing interest in the foreign book.
Drake set his pipe down aside, and stared at the title of the book for a few moments, repeating the familiar word in a quite mutter.
Don Quixote.