So more LaNa interaction, and we finally get contact with the Straw Hats! Those wondering about the mystery attacker, you'll finally see him and get something of a description in the next chapter, again I'll be giving little bits and pieces on him as the story goes, but the end you'll know more about his motives and history.
Oh, and again since we only have a small hint on Law's past concerning Doflamingo, I'm assuming he joined the crew around the age of 10, maybe a little older, considering Velgo's comment of him getting bigger making it sound like he had known him since he was just a kid. It works for his relationship with Nami in this story, so I'm standing by that reasoning... I can't wait to find out his entire past, though!
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or the characters, they belong to Eiichiro Oda (only he can make Law be badass and kind of an idiot in one panel- seriously, don't call the guy with your heart stupid! You're just asking for whatever happens next. I had to lol at that one, poor Law, he's getting so beaten up right now).
As afternoon neared the day after the impromptu poker tournament; and Law's unfortunate experience with a cat thief, the Heart captain found himself once again wandering the halls. This time the doctor was actually looking for the troublesome woman who had taken over his thoughts since first arrival. When he had gone to check on her before lunch, he came to find the navigator missing from her room. He went to check the kitchen to see if she could be eating with the crew, but found her absent from the meal, as well. Luckily his cook had pointed him towards their own navigator's work room, where he found Nami deeply engrossed in a sketching of the island they had only briefly visited before her bout of induced hallucinations.
Law let himself into the room, taking a seat on the opposite side of the drawing desk while taking a peek at her work. He let himself sit quietly and watch as she used notes and measurements his crew member had taken, meticulously calculating and scaling with the information to create an extremely accurate, if incomplete, map of the port area of the island. As she furiously sketched small details of the town they docked at onto the map, the doctor took notice of the untouched sandwich sitting beside her, frowning at the fact that she hadn't eaten since breakfast hours earlier.
"You need to eat something, Nami-ya," he chastised, successfully getting her attention as her head whipped up to take in his presence with wide eyes.
"When did you get here?"
"A while ago," Law answered with an amused smirk on his face, surprised that he had somehow managed to sneak up on the normally cautious woman, "since you were working on the currents."
"Hmm, sorry," Nami said as she stretched her tense back, relaxing again as she moved to eat her forgotten sandwich, "I'm just so used to always being interrupted when I'm working that I just took advantage of the peaceful atmosphere, I guess."
"That's understandable," he replied, leaning forward to slide the map closer to get a better look. "You're certainly talented. Did you draw the landmarks of the town from memory?"
Nami sent him a quick nod as she ate before swallowing to explain her process a bit. "Your navigator took some decent notes, especially on the currents in the area, but without the proper surveying equipment I really only had my memory to go off of for the island. Hopefully I can get back there someday to complete it properly, but for now this will do."
"I knew you had a sixth sense when it came to weather and navigation, I guess it shouldn't come as a surprise that you're a skilled cartographer, too. I can see why Mugiwara-ya wouldn't want to give you up."
Law moved to hand the map back to the navigator across from him before leaning back in his chair to watch her as she ate.
"I'm curious, it must have taken years to develop the skills you have, how long have you been mapping?" He asked after a few moments in silence, surprising the woman with his sudden inquisitiveness.
"I've really always had a talent for it," Nami answered quietly, looking down to pick at the chips on her plate as she seemed to decide how much she wanted to tell him. "I drew my first accurate map when I was only 10 years old…"
"Quite young," Law interjected as the navigator paused, urging her on to possibly divulge a little more about her past.
"… It's how I became a part of Arlong's crew," she finished so faintly he almost missed it.
Nami watched as her companion was shocked by the unexpected information, his eyes widening as he stared back at her. For whatever reason she felt like she could be honest with this man, maybe not be completely open and frank about her past, but she at least felt comfortable enough with dropping a hint here and there. In this case, she knew he would have a better understanding of her considering his own early entrance into the pirating world as a part of Doflamingo's crew.
"I guess, in a way, we have something in common; don't we, Nami-ya?" he idly asked, his normal smug smirk crossing his face as he relaxed again, leaning back in his chair to take in the sight of the navigator again.
Unfortunately the peaceful atmosphere in the room was broken, right as Nami was preparing to speak again, when Jean Bart came barging into the room, breathing hard as his determined eyes set on the pair.
"We found them," he began, pausing for another breathe, "we found Mugiwara!"
"Luffy, we're almost to the next island," Robin addressed the captain sitting somberly on the ship's figurehead, her only answer was a short nod from the young man as he looked straight ahead at the sea. "We'll find her, Luffy."
"Luffy! Robin-chan!" Sanji suddenly called out from the kitchen, "come quick! We're getting a call on the Den Den Mushi!"
The Straw Hat captain didn't waste any time in rocketing himself across the ship and into the galley, staring expectantly at the small snail communicator as it buzzed to life.
"Bzzzz… Mugiwara… Bzzz," the message called out, cutting in and out as the man spoke, "This is Jean Bart… Bzzzz… Heart Pirates…. Bzzzz."
"Law's crew?" Sanji muttered in question around his freshly lit cigarette, glancing at Robin as she walked in to join the rest of the crew.
"This is Usopp," the sniper who took the call answered back into the Den Den Mushi, "what is it?"
"We…Bzzzz…. Nami…" Jean Bart's voice once again cut through the interference.
"Nami!" Luffy hollered out, grabbing the receiver from his crewmate. "What about Nami? Do you have her?"
"Nami… Bzzz… injured…" he continued, his words still mangled as they came through, "Captain… Bzzzz… care… Bzzzz… safe…. Bzzzz"
With that last word the transmission cut out completely, sinking into static and white noise as they once again left their communicator's range.
The crew looked at their captain's shadowed face, waiting for him to speak up as he continued to stare at the receiver in his hand.
"So, what do we do from here?" Zoro calmly asked.
"It's quite possible the Heart Pirates are on the next island, and it sounds like they have Nami with them, or at least know something about her," Robin reasoned, still watching Luffy expectantly.
"We continue on to the island, then," was the captain's low remark as he stood up, setting aside the snail transponder as he prepared to walk out of the room, "if she's with Traffy, then I know she's safe."
The crew was left to watch his retreating back, the man solemnly tipping his trademark hat over his face as he returned to his post at the head of the ship. They marveled at his show of faith in his fellow pirate captain, but couldn't help but worry over the little bit of information they had just received. They had just heard that she had been injured, and though she may be safe now, there was no telling how deep her wounds ran.
"I lost the signal after that," Jean Bart explained to his captain after replaying the transmission recording for him, the large man glancing at the somber woman standing behind Law. "But, from what I can tell, it looks like they're heading to an island not far from us, probably only a day out of our way."
"Then change course for that island," Law ordered, turning to face Nami in time to see her fearful eyes, still full of hope at the prospect of seeing her friends again. "We have to find them before he does."
As the captain began to walk out of the communication room, he put a hand on Nami's shoulder, quietly guiding her out with him to lead her back to the work room she had been in before. Once comfortably seated again, the navigator could only give the man across from her a questioning look as he leaned over the table.
"Might as well take advantage of the peace while it lasts, Nami-ya," he explained while pushing a fresh sheet of cartography paper her way, "if all goes well, you may not get the chance to work like this for a while."
Nami let herself laugh quietly at him, taking the offered paper and starting a new sketch, enjoying the doctor's silent company as she worked.
"By the way, Nami-ya," Law spoke again a few minutes later, smirking when she glanced up at him, "I'd like that camera back before you go."
Review please!