A/N: I wrote this hastily after being inspired – please don't ask by what XD

Thanks to all you reviewers! Penumbra, sarge1130, HS and Naghi-tan! Hopefully this chapter recaptures a bit of attention – it was very persistent on being written :D

: : Ten

The meal made was light and quick. It was an easy task for Luffy to go out and borrow ingredients from other homes; occupants gave up their supplies when it was apparent that "no" wasn't an easy answer to give. By the time the others snatched up roasted vegetables with baked potatoes and fish, all of them agreed that Sanji's cooking was a little better than what they received from the other cooks. It was acceptable, but not delicious. It didn't taste of the things that they were used to – it was dull and lifeless, but with more ingredients and spices picked up from the homes around them, Sanji had more to give to these picky eaters.

As they were finishing up, the living room lively with comments and complaints, Law caught sight of Sanji squirming uncomfortably nearby; struggling to reign in his physical desires while being treated to the sight of Kid's shirtless upper torso. It made him frustrated to see that Sanji just did not have control over himself, even with Law's interference. If the four of them were forced to overcome theirs in frustrating ways, Law was sure he could do the same for sanji.

He stood from his chair with a hard frown, abandoning what was left of his meal. Sanji paled at the sight of his expression, shoulders cringing once he saw that Law's expression wasn't as thrilled as the others' were.

Law tossed his spoon into the direction of the bathroom, causing the others to give him puzzled looks. He regarded his food with a heavy frown, picking up a sliver of the fish that lacked the abundancy that his time was worth. He was hungry, but he couldn't keep forcing himself to eat this bland dish. "I miss having those filthy meals they used to give us. This is still crap."

"I want nuggets!" Perona grumbled, chomping noisily on her carrots.

"I don't know, Law, this is really good!" Luffy said, giving him a puzzled look. "I think your taste buds are damaged. Fix them, huh?"

"Hey, maybe the library will have cookbooks or something from our time," Kid said, picking at his fish. He burped, scooping up more potatoes from the pot as he glanced at Sanji. "You can cook from that, right?"

It took a few moments for Sanji to answer softly, "I can read some."

At Kid's startled look to this admission, Sanji looked briefly ashamed. Law interrupted, "Do that. Because I can't continue eating like this."

"You're not the boss of me!" Kid snapped at him. "I'm doing this more for me than for any of you! I'm the hungriest!"

"Not uh!" Luffy cried, already eating off Law's plate. "I am!"

"I was going to eat that, give it back! I'm the biggest!"

As they argued, Perona pushing away from the table to eat hers quickly, Law switched Sanji with the spoon and walked away. The blond was fearful of him, already whining low as he kept a safe distance from the tub. Locking the door behind him, Law frowned at the man that trembled violently near the far corner of the room. He looked to the tub, feeling the weight of his dinner in his stomach.

He indicated that Sanji get in, and Sanji was frozen for those moments. Absolute terror registered in his features as Law turned from him, releasing the stopper from the tub and running the faucet. At the sound of movement behind him, he lifted a hand and moved the metal shelf near the wall over the door. Then returned to the water, checking the temperature.

"You stink like shit," Law grumbled. He had been unable to bear the combination of smells of the man while they were in the kitchen, Luffy complaining about it when he came in to supervise. Law remembered that it had been some time before he had found Sanji – he'd probably had plenty of visitors, he imagined, to make that smell unpleasant. "I find it necessary for you to bathe properly."

Cautiously, Sanji watched him. After all that had happened, he felt that this was a trick to get him close so Law could half drown him again. His fear of mistreatment grew as Law found the water satisfactory, flinging his hand about to dry it. He turned to look at Sanji, then pointed at the tub. Seeing his caution, Law stepped away to seat himself on the toilet nearby. After several long moments of apprehension, Sanji approached the tub. He was shaking as he regarded the visible steam that arose from the faucet, and didn't want to turn his back on the man behind him. But his body was warming at the thought that perhaps following his order would be a good thing. Maybe Law would treat him better if he did this.

He fumbled with his clothes as he undressed, kicking out of his boots and socks before clumsily climbing into the tub. He couldn't remember how to use the handheld shower head, crouching low with a struggle to settle the wicked heat of his body. He could feel the man's eyes on him, watching his every move. It didn't help settle his anticipation for something more than just a shower, but it left a strong unease inside of him to know he could be hurt at any moment. Both feelings were battling for domination, and it made clear thinking difficult.

After a few seconds the handheld showerhead was ripped out of his grasp, Law switching the nozzle to a hard stream once he realized that Sanji couldn't do it himself. Sanji cringed and tensed at the potential weapon in Law's hand as he then turned it onto him. The water hit his skin with a painful intensity, causing him to wince as every scratch, bruise and rash caused by injury tingled under the stream's weight. He kept his knees close to him to somehow hide the half erection that betrayed him, hunching over himself as he felt the handheld move over one shoulder then the next.

Law found himself entranced by the other's body. The formation of his shoulders, his shoulder blades, the rigid tension of his spine – all marred by some form of injury that eased his irritation with the basic task. He usually felt indifferent to that sort of thing when it came to the others, but this felt different when it was Sanji. He felt afraid of these new things that made him focus so intensely on the man because it left his thoughts a muddled mess. The color differences of the other man's tan lines, the flatter of light freckles on his back and shoulders, the soft flicker of brown under his arms; all of it went unmissed. He watched dirt dribble away with the water, collecting near the drain. The light of the bathroom gave him nearly every visible aspect of Sanji, and it struck Law just how focused he was on him. Like a book he didn't want to stop reading, or a move he had to master to better his abilities, he wanted to conquer his knowledge of this man. The smells he carried were being washed away but it left Law burning inside because those smells were the result of other men – doing things to Sanji like that one had Law had interrupted. He imagined that they released their fluids on him freely – Sanji didn't have the presence of mind to become bothered by it, so it was up to Law to feel that.

If this were another man, Law suspected he wouldn't feel these sorts of things. But it was this one – whose head was lowered so his hair covered most of his face, whose fingers trembled as they kept tight grip on his knees; who breathed shallowly as the stream moved from side to side down his back. Law propped an elbow at the edge of the tub to hold his own chin aloft as he watched the water stream move over Sanji.

"Soap," he then said curtly, captivated by the water that caused pale skin to glow red. After some hesitation, Sanji lifted his head to look up, not understanding the order. Law directed the spray at the containers near the shower wall before resuming the wash over Sanji's back. One long arm reached for a bottle, his body still tightly coiled. Once he saw the opening, Law had the water moving over Sanji's neck, his upper chest. The sight of water trailing down a stiff collarbone, dripping down his chest to his stomach was mesmerizing. Sanji's body was defined by the press of bone and muscle against his skin, so differently from Law's own.

A male's body had never made Law's react but just the sight of this one made him burn and ache so badly for things he didn't even recognize that he started to understand why these feelings made Sanji want as he did. Law didn't know what he wanted, but his body was telling him it was craving something. Touch, sensation, movement – he was driven to respond to something but he wasn't sure where to start.

Cautiously, Sanji looked at him from the corner of his eye, a pile of goo in one hand and the other carefully putting the bottle back. He could sense Law's interest in him – recognized the hazy look of desire in his eyes as they coursed over him, but that tight frown of his confused Sanji. He couldn't think too clearly of this, instinct wanting to placate and evade danger, but another wanted to respond to this. He held the goo carefully in one hand, uneasy with any movement as it might cause the other man to react unfavorably to him.

"Use it," Law told him crankily, directing the stream over one arm. Sanji was a little puzzled by the command and the unmoving form of the other man – was he supposed to wash himself under this close of supervision? He was hesitant to do so because he knew touching himself so casually might evoke an unfavorable response from his body, but he didn't want to displease the other man, either. Clumsily he pressed the goo against his chest, sudsing himself with slow action.

It never crossed Law's mind that he was being inappropriate – he was only focused on Sanji washing himself, his eyes locked in on the way the other man rubbed soap against his skin, drawing attention to the tension on his chest muscles, the way Sanji's fingers flitted over his nipples. He'd stopped moving the shower head, feeling his stomach tighten in response, his fingers clenching tightly. Sanji's hands moved lower to his stomach, running carelessly over slight skin rolls and drawing attention to fresh bruises and scrapes that could have come from Law's boot. Suds drifted down his front to his groin, catching in the soft curls of his pubic hair. Law realized he was staring, that his own skin was burning and he turned his head suddenly. He blinked repeatedly, aware that he was doing something he hated – being monitored by the Marines, hating that they were so intrusive to something that he felt demanded privacy. But they weren't allowed privacy, there. Everything they did was overseen by somebody.

He lowered the shower head to the side of the tub, feeling angry. He had to remind himself that what was normal to them wasn't normal to everyone else. But he felt unwilling to give this man any respectful space – he was drawn to him. His eyes followed him, his mind put away everything that happened between them, and his ears were strained in his direction. He wanted to keep him – like a book he didn't want to return to the library because he wanted to read it again.

But in his mind, if the Marines were no longer there to take away, then he shouldn't have to hold back. If the colony didn't favor the pair, then Law had no fears of them taking Sanji from him. It was the others that he had to be wary of; once they knew he had something he liked, he was sure they'd do something to interfere just to be irritating.

He wiped his mouth, vaguely aware he was salivating. It was embarrassing to recognize. Without any previous experience of these feelings that were in him now, he had no idea of what was "right". Only Corazon's failures with dating.

'I was too nice!'

'I didn't spend enough!'

'I should've been more attentive!'

What was appropriate was elusive to him. But was it proper in this new time with these new settings to be appropriate? When this man could settle for anyone during a full moon?

He recalled Sanji sputtering something about being favored before then – what did that mean? That someone wanted him the way Law wanted him? It still burned him how much he hated the thought of Sanji turning to others for this attention. The thought of someone else touching him, talking to him – he didn't know what the feeling was. He hadn't wanted what others had, no matter how they'd hyped it up, but this felt similar to how they acted when someone had something that looked appealing. He could sort of understand why they'd react as they did. He felt that way now.

He grew aware of Sanji's lack of movement and realized his hands were shaking over his groin. Not touching himself but obviously hesitating to do so with his penis so erect. Waiting for Law to say or do something.

He gave a jerky nod. "Wash," he stammered, surprised at his clumsy response. He repeated himself firmly.

Sanji gave a discomforted sound, his hands moving back up to his knees. He was obviously reluctant to do so because of Law's earlier treatment.

"Touch to clean, not pleasure," Law said tightly. He wiped his face – he felt too hot, sweat gathered at his hairline. Looking at Sanji's clean skin made his stomach flutter and heat to gather in places that made him squirm a little. He had to understand this – had to feel for himself that Sanji's bodily reactions weren't of his control. He couldn't control the way blood pooled to these areas, moving on its own to make his own pants tight and heat to gather under his arms and collar. He flexed his fingers again, looking down at the floor between his boots to breathe slowly.

But what was he supposed to do to satisfy these feelings? What did he want?

He looked at Sanji again, seeing his hesitation. He looked extremely troubled, face paled as water continued to run to the drain. Seeing the way it collected and dribbled through the slots drew Law's attention to Sanji's ass. It was rounded and dimpled at the sides, the ridges of his spine pushing at his skin with invitation for Law to touch. Did he want to? He did have the impulse to trace those ridges with his fingers, to feel soft skin and bone.

Impulse took over, and wet skin and feeling of bone felt wonderful under his fingertips. Sanji stiffened at his touch and that caused muscle to tighten under Law's fingers. All of Sanji was so fascinating – Law watched his fingers move over individual bumps, water beading up with the movement, until he reached the soft sensation of hair just above Sanji's ass – the light growth there was pleasing, encouraging Law to linger with a lazy circle of his fingers there.

Sanji moved suddenly away from him, eking a troubled sound. Law realized what he was doing and quickly drew his hand away with a flustered look.

He made to get up and turn away but his own dick was hard and it was uncomfortable, and he turned his face away, dropping the showerhead into the tub to pool his arms at the edge and rest his head there.

"Just wash!" he ordered in a flustered tone, hearing Sanji moving about. Nearly a minute later, Law heard Sanji retrieve the showerhead, water moving with his gestures. With the fresh scent of the soap, he knew Sanji was following through with the order. He was breathing heavily as he did so, and Law couldn't bring himself to look.

He started to understand why Sanji was so insistent as to being unable to control himself. Another feeling slithered up through him, like understanding regret in a consequence he had to learn the hard way back at the bunker. Before he could try and identify it, he felt Sanji leaning over him, water droplets falling over his exposed neck and hair. He tensed at the feeling.

"I can smell it," he heard him whisper, feeling his wet fingers slowly slide over his arms. To either hold or comfort – it was too confusing to differentiate. But the sound of Sanji's voice so close to his ear gave him an unnatural response – he shivered because of the feeling that coursed through his blood that went straight to his dick. Instead of responding violently as he was trained to do when someone touched him, he felt his fingers clench with anticipation.

The sound of running water continued, interrupting the quiet between them. He could hear the sound of others still arguing with each other over the remains of the food. They sounded so far away.

Sanji leaned over him, crouching to stay level with him. Law could hear sanji smelling him – his hair, the exposed skin of his temple. The wet feeling of the blond's nose brushed against that patch of skin, and it caused another tingle. It was such a different sensation that Law felt apprehension in accepting its presence. It was a good feeling – alien because of its rarity. He felt Sanji's fingers in his hair, his scalp reacting with another response that had him shivering again. He focused hard on that spot between his boots – he expected something to follow after that touch – violence, an inpatient shout, his own angry reaction. But it felt good.

Seeing that Law wasn't going to react negatively to him, Sanji's eagerness to get to that strong, inviting scent had his hands moving from Law's arms to crawling over his broad sides. Encouraging with touch to be invited for more closeness, more sensation. Law felt himself freezing because these hands were gentle and yet bold – moving over him with tenderness. His skin reacted hotly just under the layer of his clothes, muscles trembling slightly. It felt difficult to breathe normally – his lungs felt tight while his heart raced with excitement. His body liked the sensation, judging by the growing want for more. His pants felt uncomfortably tight and unbearable.

He sat up quickly, causing Sanji to shrink away from him as he expected Law to react violently in response to his action. Law stared at the man with a frozen expression while his body strummed with expectation. No one told him these feelings were wrong; but they were wrong of Sanji because Sanji let these things control him.

At this point, though, what was the difference between them? He picked up the showerhead as Sanji cringed, waiting for a blow. Law swallowed tightly, forehead furrowed as he rinsed soap suds from the man. His body ached – he wasn't sure what he wanted. When he was done, he turned the water off and awkwardly searched for a towel.

"Out," he said, his voice raspy. Sanji watched him cautiously before he unfurled himself from the corner of the tub, rising to stand. His hands flitted nervously around his erect penis before covering it with both hands. He waited for Law to give him the towel, but he noticed Law was still. Sanji realized his eyes were on his hands, and he looked oddly flustered.

He could smell the man's arousal and it was strong, heavy and Sanji felt drunk because of it. The man desired him obviously, but it was puzzling how he refused to satisfy it. In a way, Sanji felt Law didn't know what to do – it was in his features, the way he kept looking at him nervously, the way his scent changed. Agitated but aroused.

Stepping out from the tub, Sanji reached for the towel to cover himself but Law did it himself. His hands trembled as they moved the material over Sanji's shoulders, dropped to swipe over his arms and chest. Sanji watched his face suddenly redden, his hands freezing against him as his arms stiffened.

Hopeful, Sanji dropped his hands, reaching up to take the towel from him. He dropped it to press Law's hands against his own skin, which was suddenly hot upon the sensation. Immediate need had him pushing up against him, needing more of it. His body ached fiercely, burning with strength and intensity as he saw his chance. He rubbed up against him as Law dropped his hands and stumbled with Sanji's weight against him, spell broken.

Before he could push away from him, Sanji's hand was rubbing against his own erection and it caused a satisfying feeling that shot through him with a striking freeze that stopped his intentions with a stunned expression. Sanji's hand was just the right amount of pressure and movement that distracted him from reacting violently because it appeased the hot buildup that had started earlier.

With Sanji's naked body against him, hot and moist against his clothes, Law couldn't think. His hand was persistent and crept past the material of his pants for skin to skin contact. It made him utter such a weird sound that he clamped a hand over his mouth in surprise. Fully heated, overcoming his earlier fears as instinct took off and seeing how easy Law had fallen into his hand, Sanji felt his appetite rise up strongly. He became eager to open his pants, dropping to his knees with an enthusiastic sound. Once he freed Law's erection, he engulfed it hungrily with a swallow. Law muffled his surprised cry with both hands, nearly weak knees as Sanji sucked on him. His mouth was hot and wet, noises leaving him as he swallowed his dick again, nearly retching as his gag reflex was hit. His fingers clasped onto Law's pants, drawing them down as his own dick ached for sensation. Abandoning the task, he reached down to stroke himself along with his oral ministrations, smelling the change of agitation and nervousness to pure want and need.

Law struggled to stay quiet, hunching over awkwardly. The other man's tongue swirled and licked as he heard Luffy laugh noisily, Perona shrieking as Kid shouted out with dismay. Something crashed to the ground as someone set to running – they were suddenly in the bedroom, Perona and Luffy yelling at each other as mattress's creaked under weight. They were chasing each other, scrambling over tables, beds, crashing into the closet because the doors gave a shudder unpin impact.

Kid pounded upon the bathroom door, making Law jump. "I gotta piss!"

Law couldn't answer as Sanji swallowed him again, his throat massaging the length of him before he gagged. He made up for it with some attention to the head, his free hand stroking the length of his dick. It all felt so good, heat building up in his balls, tingling with alarming strength. Law could see Sanji stroking himself, hear his heavy breathing as he continued sucking on him. He remembered he had to answer Kid before the man could move the shelf and barge in.

"Occupied!" he managed to get out, his voice strangled.

"You taking a shit?" Kid asked with a puzzled tone. "Damn, don't force it – eat some damn salad! Hurry up! Drop the load! I gotta go!"

"Go outside!" Law shot back, his voice cracking embarrassingly as Sanji's tongue moved over his balls, nose pressed up against his pubes.

"You're going to get hemorrhoids!" Kid warned before hitting the door again.

He knew he was going to come – it was a feeling that made his body tremble, legs weak but he needed more sensation to get there. Sanji seemed to sense this, both hands coming up to his bare ass and forcing his hips to move. Encouraging him to fuck his mouth without restraint. Because he needed to do this, Law did so until the release came so hard that he groaned loudly, emptying his balls into the welcoming movement of Sanji's throat. Sanji made a sound that made it better, the vibration squeezing the length of his sensitive dick. Panting, Law struggled to stand, hands in Sanji's back as his legs went weak. Sanji's mouth was wet and red, his chin glinting with it as he stroked himself off. When he came, Law watched his body tighten and strain, his shoulders and chest turning red. In the silence afterward, both of them catching their breath, they heard Luffy ask Perona if Law were okay.

The rapping on the door was followed with, "Did you poop out an intestine? Are you still alive? Hello?"

The irritation law felt wasn't as hot as he felt it would have been if he weren't still riding the waves of the orgasm. But his legs were weak and he needed to sit. He found the toilet and sat heavily, feeling sweat dribbling down his face as he tried to process what had just happened. Puberty had been intense but nothing to this degree – this was actual sex with another person, a sharing of fluids with someone else, someone that had wanted his body for similar satisfaction. It wasn't something he'd imagined doing after all the training and goals they were created for, but he could now understand why Sanji was so needy for it.

He blinked heavy eyelids, feeling a sluggish sort of energy strumming through him. He felt hands on him, looking down to see Sanji crawling on top him, wiping his face.

"More," he whispered eagerly, reaching between them to touch his dick again. "More, more, more!"

There was pounding on the door, accompanied with impatient kicks. "Wipe front to back and hurry the hell up!" Kid shouted. The door creaked under his strength, the shelf jostled noisily. "The hell? The hell was that – did you block the damn door?"

Knowing Kid would make his way in, Law slowly sat up, dropping Sanji from his lap. He felt sticky and sensitive but amazingly refreshed. He had some trouble stuffing himself back into his underwear while Sanji whined restlessly, sitting on the floor with his hands moving over himself.

Law tossed the towel on him, kicked his dirty clothes to the corner of the room. He shifted the metal shelf aside, snapping, "Control your damn self."

Without anymore warning he opened the door, Kid looking at him with a frown. Kid saw Sanji rising from the floor with a towel, looking oddly disoriented and completely naked. His eyes widened as Kid looked at Law with a start as Law asked Luffy for some of his clothes.

"I have some extra, but he needs to be a fox!" Perona said stubbornly as Luffy looked through the pile on his bed.

"What the hell did you do?" Kid hissed at Law as he reached for him. "What were you doing in there?"

Law brushed him off as he ignored the question. Perona looked up with interest as Luffy found what he was looking for, holding up a shirt he didn't plan on wearing and the pants Perona tried forcing on him earlier. Law took them and tossed them into the bathroom before forcing the door shut.

Despite himself, Kid danced in place anxiously. "C'mon! I gotta go!"

"Go outside!" Law snapped at him, moving to the other room with his thoughts scattered in different places. Kid followed after him, causing him severe irritation.

"Pretty suspicious all of a sudden," Kid hissed at him. "Like, suspect. You guys in the bathroom all this time, and he's all – "

Law switched him with the rain barrel next to their neighbor's house, the barrel sloshing over at his feet as Kid's voice disappeared abruptly. He struggled to separate thought from feeling as he heard Perona shriek with laughter as Luffy slammed up against something in the bedroom, the mattress creaking moments later. What had just happened felt intensely amazing – it was a wonder he hadn't thought of it, before. But he recalled just how eager those men were to get to the man in heat, and realized why they'd risk Zoro's wrath just to get to him.

With no other thoughts on the matter, he pushed up from the couch and heard Kid reenter the house with a satisfied sigh, fixing his pants. By this time Sanji was dressed, and Luffy was talking to him from the bathroom doorway – did that kid ever just sit down? – and whatever he was saying made Law feel threatened. He didn't feel tired, and from what he saw, Sanji wasn't sleepy in anyway, so Law glanced at the clock hanging from the wall nearby.

"You're so weird all of a sudden," Kid said as he sunk down onto the couch, arms spread over the back. He watched as Law disappeared into the kitchen, the clunking sound of items on shelves being moved about. "Now what are you doing?"

"Going out," Law told him testily. "Quit watching me."

"You're like one of those hardcore villains up to no good in the movies," Kid complained. "Dressed like one, too. I feel like if we take our eyes off you, you're going to do something stupid against our backs."

"I wouldn't," Law denied as he found a bag under the sink, flapping it about to rattle the dust from the material. After he filled it with dried food and some useful utensils, he added, "I'd much rather look you in the face as I do something."

"I know! That's what makes you so weird! Because you're not looking me in the face!"

"I'm not tired. We're going to the base."

Kid sat up to give him a look, nose wrinkled. "Figures you'd want to get obsessed with something like that," he muttered. "I know you wanna jump ahead and have something over me, and I'm warning you now – if it's something we're all supposed to know, you better bring it back."

Ignoring him, Law headed into the bedroom, snatching off blankets from his bed and gathering more things. Perona and Luffy watched him with curious expressions, but since they overhead their conversation moments earlier, they said nothing. They weren't interested in his plans as much as they were with their own.

Packing these things tightly, already weathered with outdoor exclusions courtesy of their training, Law pulled on the cloak Perona had made for him.

"The guards are going to get mad at you, again," Perona said, eyeing her needle thoughtfully. "If you continue to upset them, they're going to retaliate."

"You're not weaklings," Law told her peevishly. "I could care less about this colony and their order."

"You're such a rebel!" Luffy yelled, laughing.

'Maybe not against us," Perona pointed out, gesturing with her lips towards Sanji.

Understanding that, Law did give enough pause to acknowledge her warning. The pair of them left, leaving the trio in hard silence. After a few minutes, Kid entered the room with a puzzled expression.

"That guy is up to something, and I don't like it," Kid said. "We're not used to this place, yet. If he fucks it up for all of us, it's going to hurt."

Luffy shrugged a shoulder. "I don't see what the big deal is. I don't care where we live or what we do, as long as there's no one around telling us how or what."

"I don't really care, either," Perona confessed, threading the needle. "But what I do care is how possessive he's being over that fox. My womanly senses are jingling! Jingle jingle jingle!"

"That's just weird because that guy always creeped me out," Kid said, unable to think of Perona's suggestion. "Like, he always struck me as the type to keep his psychotic tendencies hidden before anyone can see them. You saw the way he was with the Marines – it's a serious consideration that he could stab us just to get an advantage ahead of us."

"I don't think so," Perona said lightly. "He's not like us, yeah, but he wouldn't do away with anything that's useful to him. If we're useful, he will use us, but you're stupid if you fall for it."

Kid scowled at her. She was right, of course, as Law wasn't as obvious as they were. But he was manipulative and conniving, and Sengokou had always been uncomfortable with the way the man's mind worked. While he understood that Law found Zoro and Sanji useful, Kid was a little bothered by what he'd seen in the bathroom. By how he saw Law treat Sanji – like they would with something they liked, he was being secretive and clinging to something he considered valuable. It seemed like Law had taken in a pet and was training it to be obedient only to him.

"So, if he took Zoro apart," Kid said slowly, "then he's still out there somewhere, right? Because he didn't come back."

"He would, too," Luffy said seriously. "Because they're best friends and they don't separate very often. You can tell. So if he didn't come back, I bet he can't."

Standing there for a few moments, Kid scowled at the floor. Perona looked at him cautiously, pausing in running the needle through the material she clasped in her fingers.

"Well…I'm not tired anymore," he muttered. To Luffy he asked, "Wanna go look for him?"

"WHOOO! Let's!"

"Why?" Perona asked skeptically. "Like, didn't you go out there to beat him up, or whatever, to prove how big your dick is?"

Kid reddened, clashing with his hair. "NOT LIKE THAT!"

"I meant as a power comparison, idiot. Like I'd want you in any of my gay fantasies," she said haughtily. "Your little hotdog isn't cute at all!"

"You have a hotdog?" Luffy asked Kid hungrily, eyes widening with glee.

"SHUT UP!" Kid bellowed at Perona before stalking back into the other room, looking for his jacket. Remembering he'd lost it somewhere in the streets, he came back, nearly walking over Luffy as the boy made to scramble after him. "I need another shirt!"

"In the closet!"

After the pair left, Perona huffed as she looked down at the material in her lap. Thinking about things, her eyes rolled up to the ceiling. She couldn't stop herself from smirking as her mind conjured various pleasing images.

: :

The guards were very upset to find the pair walking up the main street towards the gates, clearly agitated by their earlier confrontation with Law. Kid could see them looking at them with apprehension, pulled away from the gate to confront them. He couldn't teleport them out of there, but height wasn't an issue for Luffy and Kid had no problem with force. So the heavy metal gates weren't something to force them back.

Before anything could be said, a hard push from the side had him stumbling into Luffy, the teen tripping with a startled sound. Kid looked over to see a woman glaring up at him, her presence overwhelming with intensity. She looked heavily cloaked, wearing clothes that were unlike the other women – she still had a backpack over her shoulders, which drew some interest.

"Did you do it?" she demanded.

"Do what?" Kid protested, standing strong in front of her as the guards cautiously set their weapons.

"Take Zoro apart! Which one of you did it? You knew it was a death sentence out there! Leaving him to rot like that! None of you should have been allowed inside these walls!"

"Don't yell at me! I didn't do it! We were just going to go out there and find him! The other guy did it, he has those crazy powers!"

"Viola!" one of the guards called out. "Back to your place, lady."

"Then where is he?" Viola demanded, ignoring the man. "Where is he? He can put him back together, can't he?"

"Yeah - ! Like, we were just going to get him, so – and he should be back whenever, he just left!"

"He's going back to the base, he said he'd be back," Luffy tried to assure her, brushing off his jacket.

"None of you should have come here," Viola hissed at them, turning away. "You're ruining things for them, and for the rest of us!"

"Hey, lady, that's just rude! We were prisoners, too!" Kid exclaimed. "Our first taste of freedom turns into something like this? We didn't expect to wake up to find our world turned into this sort of thing! Plus, it ain't like we're trying to kill those guys – they're cool!"

"Monster!" she snapped over her shoulder, Kid feeling that word in his heart. He gave her an offended look, then strode after her to grab her arm. Alarm rose up in the guards, causing Luffy to warn them of pointing guns at him.

"Then where is he? Zoro?" he demanded of her, holding tightly as she struggle to wrench her arm away. "We'll go get him. Make it easier on us, we don't know where to look."

"He's already here!" she snapped at him. "But it's useless saving him if you can't put him back together!"

"If we did, he'd probably go apeshit here, too! His buddy isn't here!"

Tense, Viola considered this before Kid released her. But she said nothing as she continued striding away, Kid watching her go with a frustrated look. He shrugged, noticing the cold.

"Whatever," he muttered. "Let's go back. If he's here, then there ain't anything we can do for him, then. Not until that bastard comes back."

"Then how about we go after them? They can't be that far away!" Luffy protested, looking unhappy with a missed adventure.

Kid considered it, but he hadn't even thought of packing for a trip properly. The intensity of the night made him a little wary; he wasn't familiar with the area, they didn't know how to hunt, and he sure as hell couldn't survive on berries. Law had done the right thing by taking off with one of the only ones that knew how to survive outside the walls, but it was also suspicious. He couldn't help but feel that Law was up to no good, and he knew the trio wasn't in the man's considerations. They could use Ussop, but Ussop didn't seem as if he had any abilities like the other two.

If Law didn't come back by tomorrow, then they would just have to take Zoro to him.

"No," he said. "We'll wait."

Luffy watched him head back the way they'd come, and frowned. He looked over his shoulder to the wall, the guards still watching him apprehensively, and figured he could catch up to the others. But what if he got lost? He'd surely starve out there in the streets by the time he made his way back, and he didn't feel like experiencing that loss. He was aware that the older pair were having some sort of discord, and he should've paid more attention to it.

With heavy reluctance, he walked away.