Chapter Seven: Burning Lake

We explored the labs, he broke many test tubes, and I was surprised to find secret cupboards I hadn't known about before.

We strolled through the botanical gardens and I had to stop him from ingesting a leaf of Remura, which would have killed him in seconds, and order him to grab his ears again. He was entranced with the smell of the silver fern which he assured made him think of meat. He startled when the Helicopter Plant spun on itself at his touch, retracting back into a seed in an instant, as if it were shy. I wasn't a botanist, but his reactions made me proud in a strange way. I always thought that what we had here at the Academy could amaze anyone; it was nice to see that even Luffy, who'd have undoubtedly traveled a lot, wasn't immune to it.

We went to the Library, but he wasn't impressed by the number of books and demanded we left after approximately five seconds. We went to the Astronomy room, which he liked best of all. He thought the planets hanging from the domed ceiling made great swings and started flying around the room, swinging from one to the next, cackling maniacally like the monkey he was. It took all my persuasion, bribery and finally threatening skills to get him down.

How did I manage to hide him from everyone else? I didn't. I merely gave him my cloak, a long, dark cloak which covered him to his knees and had a hood. It didn't cover his hat, and he refused to part with it, but it was enough to hide his face in shadow and, though it drew suspicious glances, the few people we came across didn't try to stop us.

I think I only managed to tear him away from the Academy because he was hungry. We made our trip by boat back to Limerick when the sun was already setting. The golden and red of the sky reflected on the Mirror Lake, making it seem as if our boat was floating in the midst of a sea of fire. Luffy looked at it for a moment, stood up, spread out his arms and laughed, like an earthquake shaking his entire body. I had never heard a laugh so wild and carefree before, nor have I since.

"Come to the sea with me," he said, turning towards me, and though I couldn't see his face since the burning lake was behind him, I could hear the wide grin in his voice. "This place is nice, but there are many things out there that your Academy doesn't have. The sea is an exciting adventure, there are amazing islands like you can't imagine. Reading about it in a book is nothing compared to seeing it with your own eyes."

I felt odd looking at Straw Hat then, his face still in shadow, the cloak flapping around his shoulders, the sky and the water tainted a blood red behind him. It was as if the sound of his voice muffled everything around us, as if the world was hanging from his breath. "I can't," I replied, my mouth dry. "I have my research."

Flashes of a peculiar light reflected in his eyes. "I have seen dragons," he continued. "I have rescued Kings. I have met giants. I have tamed the scariest monsters in the Grand Line. I have been to an island in the sky, where I have fought God, and won. I have gone back in time, escaped prisons, and found treasures that you wouldn't even dream about." I realized I'd stopped breathing. His grin widened even more, showing all his teeth. "Come to the sea with me."

In that moment he looked like... it's difficult to describe. He looked dangerous. Like a sharp cliff and a drawn blade and a dark shadow all into one. But he also looked like fearlessness, like he wasn't afraid of any of those things.

He looked like a man who had stared Death in the face and laughed.

My heart was pounding hard, my palms sweaty, my eyes wide. I could feel myself being pulled towards him inevitably, the way the moon pulls the tides. If you have never met Straw Hat Luffy, I don't expect you to understand it.

Only my hand accidentally brushing my stone purse stopped me. I looked down, frowning. In the space of one heartbeat I was an Alchemist, and my mind was my own again, and that was enough for the magic to break. "I can't," I repeated, with more conviction this time, annoyed at myself for the slip in my control. "I have to finish my Potential Heimeter."

His arms dropped, the sun finished setting, and I could see his face again, pouting childishly. "You're no fun," he whined, and jumped out of the boat, running to the nearest tavern. I followed him, my legs feeling a little shaky.

So this was a pirate.

We talked over a meal big enough for twelve people. It was rather me doing the talking, and Luffy wolfing down everything within his reach as if he hadn't eaten in weeks.

"So," I said, as he swallowed a plate of beef whole. And when I say whole, I mean whole, the plate included. "Since I showed you around, you owe me a favor."

He nodded as he ate. "Msh guesh that's fair."

I brought out the wine bottle from underneath the table and set it between us. "I need you to help me break into Almer's mansion and put this in his room."

He paused eating momentarily. "Isn't that the coward guy? Why do you want to give him a gift?"

"It's not a gift. It's poison. Nothing that will kill him, mind you." I grinned. "It just might have some troublesome effects for a while."

"That's cowardly. Just punch him."

We eyed each other across the table seriously. "He started it," I said slowly. "And you owe me. And, there's plenty of treasure in that mansion." Like I hoped, his eyes lit up at the mention of treasure, and any qualms he might have had were blown out of his mind. I smiled. "Besides, the security there is the tightest in the whole island. Won't it be fun trying to break in?"

"Yeah! Okay, I'll help you!" He abruptly stood up, grabbed my hand and dragged me out of the restaurant.

I got a sinking feeling in my stomach. He'd agreed way too easily. "Hey, Luffy... We haven't paid."

He grinned back at me, then his eyes widened and he started running. "RUN!" he laughed, as, behind us, the owner emerged and started chasing, waving a piece of wood around and shouting insults.

We managed to lose him in the end, stopping behind a clothes shop to catch our breath. I was feeling guilty until I decided that I hadn't technically stolen anything, since I hadn't been the one eating. If anybody should be suffering a beating from their conscience, it was Straw Hat.

My eyes ran over the costumes displayed on the shop, and suddenly I had an idea. "Hey, Luffy."

"What?" He'd climbed up on the roof of the building and was looking around with a hand over his eyes.

"What are you doing?" I asked, momentarily amused.

"Checking to see that the old guy from the tavern isn't following us."

I rolled my eyes. "You realize you're very easy to spot up there, don't you?"

"But I can't see him from the street."

Two of my stones clicked together inside my purse. I uttered a chain and he fell, landing face-first on the ground in front of me. I ignored his moans of pain and turned to face the shop again. "Listen. We're not going to invade the mansion, alright? We're going to infiltrate it. With disguises."

I somehow got him to think that it was a very elaborate ninja strategy and that simply barging in through the front door was not cool. He surprisingly agreed with this idea, though he kept making ninja poses in his waiter's costume which made him look extremely stupid. Well, more stupid than usual.

There were many fences surrounding the Almer mansion. They had Alchemy wards set up, so I couldn't simply fly us over them using my stones. Perhaps, with enough time, I could have disabled the wards, but the agents in the wine got easily destroyed by high temperatures, and the night was warm. I needed to get Almer to drink it before they all denaturalised. Luffy offered to propel us, but after I got him to admit he couldn't really control where we landed, not when he was carrying someone else, we agreed that the best way was to stick to our original plan and make use of the disguises.

The first two fences we passed more easily than I'd expected. My maid uniform showed quite a bit of cleavage, and after I made dew eyes and batted my eyelashes a bit the guards let us through without many questions. The third fence, however, was more like a wall, made of solid stone, and the guards at the gates looked much more disciplined and professional. I knew instantly we wouldn't fool them.

"Alright," I said to Luffy in a whisper. "I can't use my Alchemy, so you're going to have to take care of them. Remember, ninja-style. Don't make any noise at all."

It was, of course, useless. He made as much of a racket as he possibly could have. I slapped my head into my hand and groaned. Whatever made me think that relying on this guy was a good idea? Luckily, it was over quickly, and it didn't look like any of them had time to alert the mansion by den-den mushi. But still, maybe someone inside had heard us...

My palms were sweaty again. I had never really stopped to consider what would happen if we were caught. Maybe Luffy could get us out – that bounty had to mean something – but if Almer realized I'd been the one to poison his wine, I was dead.

"Hey, I'm done," Luffy called. "What now?"

I considered turning back, but we were too far in already. I glanced anxiously towards the mansion. Still no movement. Swallowing, I replied, "We go in. As if we were servants, okay? And let me do all the talking."

I'd originally planned to get into Almer's room from his window, but the building was full of windows, and there was no way to guess which was the right one. Besides, there were too many guards patrolling for us to check each of them. And if Luffy tried to take them out, those inside would hear. So I quickly ushered him in through a back door from which I'd seen other servants come out before.

It was, apparently, the kitchen back entrance, and it wasn't empty. I stood frozen for a couple of seconds like a deer in the headlights, watching the bustling cooks and maids prepare dinner. We would be caught. We would be caught. We would be…

"What are you doing there standing like a moron?" Somebody slammed a tray into my hands. "Go take that up to Christian's rooms. He'll finish his sword practice soon and he'll want to have dinner."

My mind kicked into action. "Sorry," I replied, giving the fat woman a timid smile. "I'm new. I don't remember where his rooms are."

"Hum." She looked me up and down, assessing my outfit, and her eyes stopped at the wine bottle peeking from the bag at my side. "What's that?"

"Oh." I juggled the tray on one hand and brought it out to show her. "Somebody asked me to get it from the cellar. I think it was meant to go with his dinner, too."

She nodded approvingly. "Alright. Main hall, left staircase, second corridor, first door on the right are his quarters. Hurry up."

I thanked her and smiled. I turned to ask Luffy to accompany me, but he wasn't there anymore. My heart started beating loudly. I looked around for him, and found him being yelled at by one of the cooks. Shit. How did I get him out of there?

"What are you waiting for?" the woman frowned. "Go."

I shifted nervously. "Sorry. I spaced out." Luffy would have to take care of himself. I left the kitchen and followed the woman's directions through corridors lined with fancy furniture and statues that rivaled in beauty those at the Academy. The curtains on the windows were embedded with pearls. I could have discretely pulled one of those pearls out, and it would have paid my tuition for a whole year, but I didn't. I wasn't a thief.

Finally I arrived to my destination, which was an ornate red door with a silver knob the shape of a lion. I pushed on it, praying it wasn't locked, but of course it was. I was sweating in rivulets now. He'll finish his practice soon.

A passing manservant spotted me. "What are you doing?"

I smiled nervously, waving my full hands, as if that were the reason I couldn't open the door. He smiled back. He was actually quite handsome. "Oh, I see. Let me help." He got out a key and held the door open for me with an exaggerated movement. "My lady," he invited, a twinkle in his eye.

I smiled more honestly this time. "Thanks." I stood still, looking around the room for a moment. There was no bed, just lots of fancy furniture, a window, and a door at the other side of the room. I was confused. This was like a dining-room, not a bedroom, but then I realized that Christian's quarters could have more than one room.

I set the tray and the wine on the long, dark wooden table and started arranging silverware, not like I had any idea of what I was doing. The manservant watched me for a few seconds in silence before someone from the outside called him and he left. I breathed out, relieved. I checked that the bottle didn't seem suspicious in any way, then stepped back, and looked around the room once more.

There was an ornate cupboard, a mirror, and various other pieces of furniture. I considered doing some mischief while I was here, but truly, now that I had completed my task all I wanted was to get out as soon as possible. I was turning towards the door when I heard voices in the corridor.

A voice.

Almer's voice.