A/N: As always, thank you my dear readers for sticking with this story and I hope you enjoy this chapter :)

Law cracked his knuckles as he left his ship, he had no time to search for her and he had no desire to let that damn old man find her first… He knew he wasn't supposed to do this here but right now, he really didn't give a damn. "Room."

The transparent blue dome spread out quickly, he knew if he sent it out to its max range most won't even realize they're in it… there'd be no hiding it from the Admirals though. Oh well. "Shambles."


Akainu paused as he felt an itching run up his spine… this feeling… It didn't take him long to figure it out. That damn boy was meddling again.

He produced a transponder snail as he spat out his cigar, he didn't have the patience for this. The moment it picked up he growled into the receiver without waiting for the person on the other end to answer. "Secure Coracias immediately!"


Tucker breathed a sigh of relief as he watched her coax another bird onto her hand, he had to admit he was glad she was back. He looked at his watch, the Admiral should be here soon. The area was cleared per his request… hm? He blinked and suddenly she was gone… no… what the hell!

The young marine began to panic as he looked around, he was no longer in the arboretum, this was the docks where the warlords had their ships docked… how the hell did this happen?!

Oh, no… "Miss Cora!" He turned on his heel and ran back into the compound, he had to get back to her. There's no way he was going to let her disappear while he was supposed to be guarding her again, he didn't doubt the Fleet Admiral would literally roast him alive it that happened.


Cora gave a startled gasp as the birds suddenly took off and her vision was blurred by wings and falling feathers, what was that just now? She thought she felt a chill but it was gone just as quickly as it happened… hm?

She looked up to where Tucker had been and realized the person standing there was no longer the young marine but instead it was Law, she was shocked but couldn't deny that she was happy to see him. She missed him badly and there was so much she wanted to tell him now. Most of all, she couldn't wait to be able to talk to him!

Law's eyes grew wide, she looked unharmed but her outfit… it was something he knew came from Dressrosa and on top of that she wore a white feather coat… everything about it was mocking him. Joker did this on purpose just to spite him didn't he… "Cora, we're leaving."

She was going to call out to him but just as she opened her mouth he shouted that, why did he look so serious… and why did he want to leave now, there was things she wanted to do still and others she wanted to talk too.

Trafalgar closed the distance between them quickly, his room was still active so now he just needed to find an object to switch positions with near the port. He could see her confused look and knew she didn't understand his urgency, but he didn't doubt there would be marines here at any moment to stop him from leaving and that's not something he was willing to deal with right now. "We'll talk on the ship but now we have to go." He spoke sternly as he grabbed her hand and pulled her in, his mind distracted by the need to find two objects relatively close to each other… there!

She blinked and realized she was no longer in the arboretum, the sound of the ocean was much clearer now… the docks? How did they get here? Before she could fully process everything she felt a tugging on her arm, law had grabbed her again to pull her towards the submarine, but he had a hold of her bruised limb. She doubted he realized he had hurt her before but that didn't make it hurt any less now.

Law gave a frustrated sigh as he felt her struggling against him. "Please Cora! Don't fight with me right now!" He didn't have time for her stubbornness.

"You're hurting me!"

He stopped dead in his tracks, his heart nearly jumped into his throat, and with wide eyes he turned to look at her. "Did you…"

"La-kun…" She said his name calmly. "Please, let go…"

Again, his heart thumped heavily, she was really speaking… he saw her face wince in pain and he suddenly realized how hard he was holding on to her. He let go and took a step back. "You can talk?" His voice was steadier than he expected it to be, he suspected that she just chose not to speak but after that shockwave in the meeting room he figured that was why… so what changed… hm? He just noticed the odd necklace she was wearing, it wasn't new and fine like the rest of her outfit… could it be...

She smiled a little. "With this I can." She touched the necklace gently. "Doffy-kun said it has as a sea prism stone in it…"

His heart sank, and he didn't hear the rest of her explanation. "Don't call him that…" He spoke through clenched teeth, his fists tightened so bad he half expected his nails to be drawing blood from his palm. He could handle a lot of things but hearing her say that name… made his blood boil.

She blinked a little in confusion, she didn't remember ever seeing him with such a scary look on his face…

"His name..." Law spoke again, still seething with anger. He couldn't stand to hear her say that name with such a happy look on her face. "Is 'Doflamingo'… Don't ever call him anything else."

Cora was going to argue but she stopped when he raised his head and looked at her… she had never seen so much pain in a person's eyes before… "I… I'm sorry…" She didn't even know why she was apologizing.

"How long…"

"Huh?" She didn't quite know what he meant.

He gritted his teeth and shot her a glare. "How long have you been with him?!" He said that louder than he meant to, but he couldn't help how livid he was, could she really have been working with him this entire time? Was her memory loss just an act? He had thought that she had been kidnapped, that Joker stole her away and she was in danger… but instead she comes back calling him such an endearing name and dressed like one of his family… was everything… a lie?

She recoiled a bit, he had never yelled at her in that tone of voice before… there were so many things that she needed to talk to him about. Things that Doffy had told her and only Law could give her the answers she wanted but with the way he was acting… "La-kun, let's go back to our room." She turned a little and pointed towards the base, she knew if they talked he would calm down. "I need to talk to you…"

"Our room is there!" He cut her off and thrusted a finger towards the submarine. "Or have you forgotten about that too?" He grabbed her arms again and gave her a shake. "Or was it all an act to get closer to me for him!"

Her eyes went wide and she could feel the tears brimming, there was so much pain in his face, why… "La…"

"That's enough Tralfagar Law."

The sound of guns clicking to their ready positions filled the air, their time for escape was lost.


"Fufufu…" Doflamingo chuckled to himself as he watched the monitor, his agent holding the visual Den-Den Mushi on the other end picked a wonderful spot to watch the whole affair.

Seeing Law look so deliciously distraught was a treat, he only wished he could be there in person to get the full effect, but it was still too soon for that.

He gave a little sigh as he touched the screen, while he was enjoying Law's misery he did regret having to put Cora through this. "I'm sorry, my lovely Dove… just bear with it a little longer." He'll have to remember the next time he saw Law to remove one of his arms though, seeing how he was so quick to hurt her arms…


Akainu stood with is hand clenched at his sides. He wasn't sure on what had happened before he arrived but from the looks of it relations between those two were falling apart… Good. "Let her go, can't you see you're hurting her." He used his best 'professional' voice, but he couldn't deny what he saw in front of him pissed him off… He did not like seeing that look on her face…

What?... Law looked down and realized just how hard he was gripping her arms and only then saw the look on her face…

"Oye oye Law-kun." Borsalino walked up with a sigh. "Look how scared she is."

Fear…Law's heart ached. She was looking at him… with fear in her eyes… With a start he let her go and took a step back, he was so angry just a moment ago… but he couldn't handle that look. No, she wasn't acting… he was just being stupid and over reacting… "Cora…"

She was stunned for a moment, there was so much she had to register. The agony on Law's face, all these guns now pointed at them, even Sakazuki looked so mad… she couldn't let this get any worse. "Pl.. Please stop!" She called out and put her hands up. "Please don't fight!"

What? Akainu eyes widened for a moment… He could feel a vibration in his ear drums when she raised her voice but that's all… Why is it she can speak so freely now but when she barely uttered a syllable last time it sent them reeling…

"Ooooh?" Kizaru tilted his head a little. "This is so surprising Hana-neeee."

"I'm sorry!" She clasped her hands in front of her and bowed deeply. "I'm sorry for being selfish and running off like I did and causing you to worry!"

Law took a deep breath, yea… there was no way she could be one of his…

Sakazuki's stern look did not diminish in the least, as surprising as this new-found ability of hers was it did not change the fact of what Trafalgar was attempting to do. "Your actions are inexcusable, Trafalgar Law. You know it's forbidden to use your devil fruit powers here, more so in an attempt to take this woman against her will… kidnapping, I believe the term is."

"Tch!" The younger man spat, he knew there'd be repercussions for trying to take her… he didn't want to lose his position as a Warlord just yet… but he would have no regrets if it meant losing it for her.

Cora gasped a little, it really was starting to sound like Law would get into a lot of trouble because of her. No, she couldn't let that happen… "Wait, Saka-kun." She mustered up her courage and stepped in between them, her eyes darting to the guns still pointing at Law and then back to the Fleet Admiral. "Please don't punish him, this is all my fault for being stupid and I do want to go with La-kun and talk to him so he's not kidnapping me at all."

He looked down to meet her eyes and that pleading look of hers, he did not like the she said she wished to go along with the boy… those words stirred an unease in his chest but at the same time he was not surprised she would choose him…

"But…" Her words unknowingly interrupted his internal turmoil. "I want to talk to you too, there's these… flashes in my head…" she touched her temple a bit, the dull ache that had been bothering her since her talk with Doffy was still there. She shook her head and returned her gaze to his again. "I know I can still be useful to help find those rogue pirates."

For a moment he wasn't sure what she was talking about, his mind had been so distracted by the thoughts of her being taken by these two rivals of his he had momentarily forgotten the whole purpose of wanting her, originally, was to gain knowledge of the island attack.

"Oye, oye." Kizaru finally spoke up as he brought a fresh cigarette to his lips. "It sounds like this might have been just a misunderstanding. Right, little Hana-neeee?"

She looked back to him with a nod. "Yes, so please. Don't let Law get in trouble for this." She was flat out pleading now, she'd never live with herself if she ruined his life because she was being selfish.

"Sakazuki-kun." The yellow glad Admiral gave him a lazy smile. "Why don't you and little Hana go have that chat while me and these men stay here and keep Law-kun company. If you come back in a better mood, then we can just put this confusion behind us."

Law scoffed at that, he wouldn't be surprised if they blew up his sub the moment she was out of sight, but he really didn't have many options at this point. "Cora-ya, I'll wait for you in our room." He gave her a little nod as he crossed his arms, he just had to trust she'd find her way back to him like she always did… and hope these two-faced bastards didn't kill him beforehand. "And I mean our real room." He added as he shot the two men a glare.

Akainu gave a slight growl, he didn't like these two meddling and making decisions for him but his desire to have a moment alone with her was overruling his pride at the moment. "Fine, follow me." He turned on his heel, the soldiers immediately parting to make way for them.

She gave an affirming nod to Law and followed after Sakazuki without another word, she had to hope that everything would work out. It just had to.

"You know, Law-kun." Kizaru gave him a little smirk as he watched the two disappear down the dock. "It would be a good idea to tell your men to power down those engines, these men might get confused and think you're trying to run. We wouldn't want any accidents, now would we?"

The younger man just gave an annoyed huff and turned towards his sub, he didn't like that man's low-key sadistic side and he had no intention of giving him any excuses. "Bepo…" He called out to the bear as he hopped up onto his deck.

"Aye Captain." The mink stuck his head out and eyed his Captain, they had been watching everything and half expected a battle to break out.

"We're staying, shut down the engines and put everything in stand by."

"What about Miss Cora?"

He sighed a little as he passed his furry companion. "She'll come back… we just have to wait a little bit." He didn't want to say if she'd stay for sure once she came back though, he felt so powerless right now but there was no denying he was at the mercy of the Marines and if they'd let her leave assuming they even gave her the choice…


Cora followed him silently, she could tell he was walking much slower so she could keep up with his long strides but still he was ahead of her. It was only now that she realized that no matter who it was she always ended up falling behind. She couldn't help but wonder if she'd ever be able to walk beside them… any of them…

"Here."

His stern voice caused her to jump as she realized that she had dazed off for a bit, she blinked as she registered her surroundings and the vaguely familiar door he was holding open. "I thought we would be going to the meeting room." She said with a hint of confusion but entered through the door of his home just the same.

"I don't remember saying where we were going at all." He kept his tone casual as he shrugged off his white coat and hung it on the stand buy the entrance.

"That is true." She said with a slight chuckle.

The amused sound she made forced his eyes to her, they had spent all their time in silence when they were together but to finally hear her gentle laugh made him feel… a little more than annoyed that it was only thanks to that feathered bastard that he'd have this chance to listen to her soft-spoken tone.

"I drew some things…" She spoke without realizing she was once again disrupting his mental musings. "Some of the images didn't stick for long but I think these might really be of help…"

He arched a brow as she produced a notebook from that feathered coat she was wearing, it was only now that he really got a look at her outfit… the deeply plunging neckline of the dress exposed far more of her chest that he deemed appropriate and the fact that the entire ensemble came from that man did not sit well with him at all. "I did not bring you here to discuss the rogue pirates." He went to her and gently took the notebook away, laying it on a nearby table before turning back to her. "That can be dealt with later."

She tilted her head a bit as she watched him, his face seemed so… distant. "Saka-kun, what's wrong?"

"This outfit…" He touched the coat with a frown. "It doesn't suit you…"

That caused her to blush a little. "I know but… I had nothing else to wear." She shifted a little a looked down, not wanting to bring up the incident in the meeting room.

With a deepening glower he moved the feathers aside till the coat half slid away, she did not resist him but neither did she look at him. His own eyes were on the bandaged shoulder that he knew full well was hiding the burn that he caused. "Cora…" With the lightest of touches that he could manage he grazed the gauze wrapping with his fingertips. "I… regret this." He was not a man accustomed to apologizing so the act itself was entirely foreign to him, but he meant it sincerely.

She offered up a small smile and touched his hand. "Apology accepted." She looked at their hands together, his being so much bigger than hers. On a whim, she moved his hand to lay against her cheek and closed her eyes. His touch was so warm, and it comforted her in an odd way. She had always known he didn't intentionally hurt her and the fact he was obviously bothered by it reassured her of that.

He allowed her to place her cheek within his palm, such a gentle action was unfamiliar to him. It wasn't a surprise that tenderness was not his forte, so this moment was one he did not know how to react to. With his other hand he stroked her hair and relished in how it felt, her willingness to allow him these actions was causing a stirring in him he had long disregarded. As a man he wanted to take her in a fashion that would fervently express his desire to have her for himself but as a Fleet Admiral he could not allow himself such brash actions considering her affiliations and age.

Cora smiled a little, he had never been like this with her before. His actions were so soothing and sweet, emitting a warmth she didn't realize she wanted. With dealing with Doffy's… interest and Law's fear she unknowingly needed a bit of calm to collect her emotions.

There she goes… looking so peaceful in his presence as if she had no fear of him at all. Akainu could not understand her, he knew she was hurting because of him and yet she disregarded it completely. Why? The hand he used to stroke her hair moved up to the clip keeping it bound up in that silly bun. "This… doesn't suit you either."

"Hm?" She looked up to him a little confused just as her hair fell around her, so… he was talking about that. She had to agree that it felt much better having it down, but it was interesting to her to know his preference. "Is this…" She tucked a few strands back behind her ear. "What you like?"

That caused his cheeks to warm and he stepped back from her, what foolishness had gotten into him. "Your appearance is for you to decide…" He scratched his chin a bit. "But should you wish to change… I prepared an outfit for you."

She blinked a few times, stunned by that. "Why would you…"

"I only wished to replace the gift I ruined." He said sternly as her turned from her, he had to stop letting those emotions cloud his judgement. He motioned to his room with a nod. "There's a box beside my futon, you'll find the outfit in there. If you wish to change then do so."

She knew he was trying to sound harsh on purpose, she didn't know why but being close to her seemed to make him uncomfortable… but something told her that it might have been because he was a little shy. "Thank you, Saka-kun." She said with a smile as she walked past him, glad that he was kind enough to replace the kimono. "I won't be long." With that she entered his room and shut the door, while it was kind of Doffy to give her this dress it wasn't something she felt comfortable in.

He brought a cigar to his lips, lighting it and relishing in the flavorful smoke that filled his lungs. He was being a fool and his own actions were nothing but shameful… when she finished changing it would be best to go over those sketches and be done with this encounter… even if the thought of asking her to stay still gnawed at him. How could he word it to not make it sound like he wanted her to remain because he wished to continue being in her presence…


With a little sigh she sat down on his bedding, what was she supposed to do? So much about her life had changed since coming to this place… she no longer acted like a starry-eyed child but there was still so much she needed to wrap her head around. She was terribly confused before and with all the things Doffy told her it just made it worse, then there were Dra-kun's words that stuck with her…

'You do have something that men crave…'

At the time she had no idea what he meant but spending that time on Doffy's ship gave her an idea… Did Sakazuki want to do to her the same things that Doffy did?... No, he didn't seem like that kind of man, but she also couldn't convince herself that all he wanted was help with the rogue pirates. If that was the case, he wouldn't have stopped her from talking about those pictures she drew…

Again, she breathed a sigh as she opened the box he had laying there, perhaps it would be best not to think on it too much. Her attention turned to the fabric in front of her as she pulled out the new kimono, it was in the style she liked but the colors were not a soft pastel like last time. It was silk dyed navy blue, accented with gold and a black obi, it was breathtakingly beautiful, but she couldn't help but wonder how much he spent on it…

She slipped out of the long dress and feathered coat but took care to fold them up nicely, even if she didn't care much for them it would still be rude to treat them poorly. With a smooth motion she pulled the kimono on, the cool cloth making her shiver a little, but it felt nice to have it against her skin. She brought it around her with a heavier sigh, no matter how much she tried not to think about it she couldn't help wondering how Sakazuki felt about her… or how she felt about him. She had heard the occasional whispers around the base about how ruthless he could be… and from getting a hint of his temper from arguing with Law she really could see it… but when they were alone like this… he might have been a bit stand-offish, but he was generally kind to her…

A heavy knock at the door startled her and she turned quickly but her feet tangled and slipped in the clothes she had folded at her feet and her body took an unceremonious decent to the floor.


"Cora?" Sakazuki arched a brow as he heard a heavy thud coming from behind the door, he had knocked because she was taking quite a while but what was going on now? Without a second thought he slid the door open and paused as he eyed her, sitting in a disheveled mess of jumbled cloth with the kimono he got for her falling off her shoulders resulting in her breasts being dangerously close to exposure. "I heard a crash." He turned his head away as he blurted out his reasoning for intrusion.

"Owieee…" She gave a little whine as she rubbed her rear. "I was just startled by the knock…" She blushed a little as she realized her clothes were not working as they were intended, she kept her face lowered to hide her reddened face as she pulled the sleeves up a bit and rearranged, so her panties would not be exposed.

"You were taking a while…" He attempted to explain but paused as he gave her a sideways glance and was distracted by a purple color on her arm. "What is that?"

"Hm?" She looked to where his eyes were directed and let out a little gasp as she pulled up the sleeve to cover the bruise, she didn't want other people seeing it. "It's nothing…"

That made him frown as he knelt in front of her and pulled the kimono down off her shoulder, once more she did not resist him, nor did she look at him. "Who did this to you?"

"Please don't worry about it." She placed a hand over his and was shocked by how hot it felt. "Saka…"

"Cora…" He interrupted her sharply but took a deep breath to calm his building rage, it didn't take much to figure out where this mark came from. Law had a habit of grabbing her arm, so this most likely happened the same time he burned her… So, they both ended up hurting her like that pompous ass claimed, but he doubted that boy even realized it. "Do not hide things from me."

For some reason… it hurt to hear him say that. "I didn't mean to… I just don't want people to get upset over an accident…"

He sighed heavily and placed a hand on her head. "Whether it's an accident or not I want you to tell me. If you're sad or hurt, if someone upsets you, if you're happy… I want to know." He felt a little ridiculous saying such things, but it was true… He wanted to know about everything she felt.

"Saka-kun…" She leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face into his chest. What he said just now… made her want to cry. "I promise… I won't hide anything from you."

His body tensed as she pressed herself against him, he doubted she noticed how exposed she was in the kimono she had yet to properly adorn and having her so close he could smell the scent of her hair. This moment was… pleasant. He expected to have some form of interruption, but no knock came to his door, no ringing from a transponder snail. There was nothing that attempted to ruin this moment and for that he was thankful.

Gently he touched the bare skin of her back and pulled her closer to him, wrapping her in a hug that seemed alien to him considering his lack of physical contact with people, but she reciprocated his embrace and he could feel the tender pressure of her own hold. He focused on the feel of her skin beneath his hand and committed this feeling to memory, admitting his own doubts that he would ever get to hold her like this again. "Stay with me." He blurted out those words before he realized what his mouth was doing, it was only supposed to be a wishful thought not an actual proposal.

Her heart gave a heavy thump at what he said, she leaned back a little to look at his face. It was as stoic as ever, but she thought that, maybe just a little, he looked… nervous. "You want me to stay on the base?"

He took a deep breath as he pulled her kimono closed that had become precariously open as she moved back from him, he didn't need any distractions at a time like this. "I want you to stay here…" He motioned to his home, there was no going back now. "With me. I would like to… continue to share meals with you…" That's not really what he wanted but it was the most he was willing to admit for the time being.

Now her heart was pounding so furiously it almost hurt, she never really expected him to extend such an invitation and what should she say? She did enjoy spending time with him and part of her would love to stay… not to mention she knew she would be able to find out more things about her sister here, maybe even help in finding her. Law always said the navy had access to all kinds of resources… but that would mean she wouldn't be able to keep traveling with Law… plus… "I… don't think I'm strong enough to be a marine."

"I'm not asking you to join the navy." He touched her face again. "I'm only asking that you stay with me…" He could see the turmoil in her face and a little part of him believed that she might even consider being with him. "You don't have to answer me now." That seemed to reassure her a little and he stood up and turned from her so not to risk peering at her while barely clothed. "I'll let you finish getting dressed and then we can discuss those pictures you drew." He'll give her time to make a decision, she'd only end up hating him if he forced it.

"Ah… alright." She gave a little nod as she pulled the kimono tighter around her, hugging herself as she chewed on her lip…what should she do? She barely heard the door close as her brain began to overwhelm her with thoughts. So much had happened in such a short amount of time between Doffy and Sakazuki that she could barely register it all… and she still needed to see Law after this… what should she tell him? Everything, of course, but how would he take it and what is he going to want? Well, that was a stupid question… she already knew he would want her to go back to living on the sub with him… she cared about Law so much but would staying with him be for the best?

Her heart ached more than it ever had before, she'd never been faced with so many choices or so many chances to upset people with a single decision…

What should she do?

To Be Continued…

A/N: I decided to focus on just Cora & Akainu this time (which turned out much more innocent then her time with Doffy). As you can assume the next chapter will focus on her & Law then it will be time for the big decision! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next one