DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ONE PIECE. I ONLY OWN THE PLOT AND MY OC'S, WHICH ARE THE CHARACTERS THAT YOU DON'T RECOGNIZE. I OBVIOUSLY HAVE TOO MANY TO NAME, AS THERE HAVE BEEN SMALL CHARACTERS, AS WELL AS BIG CHARACTERS, SO DEAL WITH IT.

Chapter Twenty-Five

"What are you talking about? Straw hat could beat Eustass Kidd in a fight any day! Kidd needs metal to really fight, but Luffy is pure power—he's a monster!"

There was a scoff in response. "Yeah right! Kidd is a monster too! He may have a Devil Fruit that requires metal, but he's still strong as hell!"

"Luffy is training with Silvers Rayleigh, who was the First Mate of Gol D. Roger's crew. He's gonna be unbeatable when all that is over—so I win."

"No you don't! I'm telling you—Kidd would win."

When is this going to end?

I had been in the room, laying on the bed and thinking about life, when I had some intrusions. Nate was away doing whatever the hell he does on the ship, so I was enjoying the peace while I had it. Then Penguin and Shachi burst into the room, bugging me to play some poker with them. I declined and turned away from the two of them, hoping they would take the hint and get out.

Oh, I was so wrong about that.

Instead of leaving, they took it upon themselves to keep me company, arguing the whole time. Penguin was sitting on my bed, right on the edge now from how heated the argument had gotten. Shachi was on Nate's bed, laying down on his back, but had slowly been lifting himself up on his elbows the angrier he got.

I was busy trying not to smother myself with my pillows.

They had literally been talking about what was for dinner a few minutes ago, and suddenly they were trying to decide who the strongest Supernova was. I didn't ask, but they explained why I wasn't being included in the possibilities.

Apparently, they were only arguing about the male Supernova's. If it was a contest between the women—which would only include me and Jewelry Bonney—I would obviously win.

They were actually nearing the end of their debate—the final three were Luffy, Kidd, and Law. Whoever would win out of Luffy and Kidd would be 'pitted' against Law, and then the process would repeat so that they could find out who would be the best.

To be honest, I would probably kill myself before that would happen.

A sharp laugh came from Penguin, and it jolted the whole bed. My eye twitched in anger and I gripped my pillow tightly in my arms. "I told you, moron! So that means that it's Luffy against Law! Now, I think that Law would be able to just cut him up and win right then and there."

"But Straw Hat's rubber, so what if cutting him won't work?"

"Why wouldn't it work?"

"Well, you see—"

I couldn't take it anymore.

Finally reaching my boiling point, I sat up and reached out, grabbing Penguin by the front of his uniform and pulling him close to me. He seemed shocked, his hat falling from his head and revealing his wide hazel eyes.

"If you guys are going to discuss this shit, do it somewhere else." I growled through gritted teeth, tightening my hold on Penguin's clothes. "What the hell are you guys doing in here anyways?"

Shachi seemed afraid now and hurried to explain him and Penguin's presence. "W—We thought that you would want some company. Nate has been busy today, so we—" When my eyes cut to him, he gulped loudly before continuing. "We thought you would want some company!"

I took a moment to decipher the words, as he yelled them out all jumbled together, but when I did, I sighed and released the poor man that I was holding hostage. He leaned away and fell from the bed, landing on his stomach with a groan. I rubbed my face, feeling that damned scar once again, and moved so my feet hung from the bed and touched the floor.

"I'm sorry guys..." I muttered, burying my face in my hands and taking deep breaths.

Penguin recovered from his fall and got back up on my bed, albeit hesitantly, and chuckled nervously. "You don't have to apologize, Mara."

I shook my head and laughed without humor. "I've just been on edge lately." I explained, leaving my face in my hands and shaking it back and forth slowly. "I mean, I don't know... I don't know what's going to happen when we get there."

We were on our way to Kuraigana, believe it or not. After I explained to Law the other what was happening, he took it upon himself to steal the Eternal Pose from me and set our course to Mihawk's island. I wondered why he was helping me, but he explained with his smirk that he wanted to meet Mihawk and get some information about the New World from the Shichibukai.

I tried to tell him that it wouldn't work—getting information from him, that is—but then he asked how I would know.

Not wanting to tell him that I knew Mihawk personally, I just shook my head and said that I didn't know.

"Well, I know what will happen!" Shachi exclaimed, leading to me bringing my face out of my hands and looking at him curiously. "We're gonna go there and talk to Hawk-Eyes, and we're gonna kill that other guy."

I shook my head and frowned. Law had told the crew that we were going there mainly for information—and supplies—but that I also had a personal vendetta against someone who would be there. When everyone inquired what was going on, I didn't want to explain. I couldn't bring myself to look even weaker than I already did, especially in front of the whole crew.

Nate had my back and told everyone to mind their business. His protectiveness brought a smile to my face, which he made fun of.

I hadn't seen him since then—and that was yesterday.

Back to the conversation at present, I shook my head again, the frown still on my face. "What if I'm not ready to kill him? I mean, what if I end up getting killed?"

"We're not going to let some crazy ex-boyfriend kill you, Mara." Why did everyone think he was my ex? Did it just give off that sort of vibe when everything was explained, or did they all just think weird? "Law wouldn't let you die, anyways. He's worked so hard to keep you alive so far, so why would he let you die after all this?"

I shrugged and took his words to heart. Maybe he was right, but I still doubted everything. I didn't know how strong Raven was now. What if he had some more dirty tricks up his sleeve? I was almost at full health, and I would still have time to heal when we arrived at Kuraigana before Raven got there, but was I really able to do what I needed to?

Would I really be able to kill someone?

Would I be able to kill him?

Without my knowledge, the two of them continued talking about their stupid debate about Law versus Luffy. Penguin seemed to be vouching for Law—he was telling how powerful Law's Devil Fruit was and how he's never lost to anyone. Shachi was on Luffy's side, saying that it was hard to cut rubber and that Law would lose.

"What did I say about this conversation?" I growled, leaping from my spot on the bed and jumping on Penguin, who screamed a rather girlish scream and fell to the floor with me on top of him. Shachi started laughing as I started to hit Penguin, lightly slapping his cheeks with my hands while he tried to block my attacks.

Shachi was also being an instigator, cheering me on from his place on Nate's bed, jumping up and down in excitement. "Get him, Mara! Come on; use your Devil Fruit or something! He's weak—he's too weak to defeat you!"

I laughed and turned to Shachi, giving him a look that translated into a playful 'what the hell are you talking about?' Penguin was struggling to get up, so I leaned forward more and started to slap at the man again. "Next time, you'll listen, huh? Next time, you'll leave the room to talk about the stupid stuff that you two talk about!"

Shachi yelled in protest then, saying that their debates were very smart and they weren't stupid at all. Then he started to cheer for me again, which showed that he wasn't mad about my comment.

"Give him the chair! Give him the chair!"

What chair was he talking about?

"What the hell is going on in here?" I almost didn't hear the voice over Shachi's yells, but I did. When I turned to the door, I was pleasantly surprised to find Nate and Law, standing there and looking at everyone. Well, they were looking at me and Penguin.

I was happy to see them—well, I was happy to see Nate. I didn't really care if I saw Law or not, so I wasn't disappointed to see him.

That was when I noticed the faces that they were making.

Nate was wide-eyed and seemed genuinely shocked. His face was also beet red and he seemed rather embarrassed about something.

Law, on the other hand, was seething. His smirk was gone, but he didn't frown. His mouth was in a straight line—the kind of line that someone has when they're disappointed in you. He was also glaring, his gray eyes boring into mine with a look that translated to death.

"Miss Mara, would you care to explain what's going on?"

I cocked my head to the side, and wondered what was wrong. We were all just playing around, and I was wrestling Penguin on the floor—

Oh shit...

Looking down at the man under me, I realized that he had a stream of blood coming from his nose, and he was blushing like a school girl with a crush. My hands were on his shoulders and my knees were on either side of his body—I was straddling the poor man. I was also leaning forward a little bit, as I was trying to trap him on the floor, which leads to my breasts nearly touching his chest.

I was almost lying on top of Penguin.

Now I was embarrassed, so I quickly jumped up and fixed my clothes, clasping my hands behind my back and giving a cheeky grin.

"Oh, we were just playing."

Nate sighed and slapped his forehead with his hand, shaking his head slowly back and forth. Law's jaw tightened and he seemed to be even angrier with my response. What the hell?

A silence fell upon the room, and in that time, Shachi walked over to Penguin and kicked him in the side, trying to snap the man out of his stupor. I grabbed his hat from my bed, scrunching my face when my back was to everyone else, and then threw the hat on his face.

That woke him up, and he looked around awkwardly as he stood from the floor, trying hard not to stare at my chest.

"Well..." Nate started, clearing his throat and looked down at Law from the corner of his eyes. I never noticed before, but Nate was a lot taller than Law, which I found amusing. I would have laughed if the situation wasn't so weird. "We were coming to tell you that we're going to be there tomorrow."

My eyebrows rose and I nodded. "We were really that close already?" Nate nodded and Law's glare intensified. "Well, I guess... I guess that's good..."

Oh God, this was super weird.

"Miss Mara, I would like to speak with you." Law sounded so mad...

He stepped into the room and looked at Penguin and Shachi, giving them a look that seemed to give them the hint that he wanted to speak to me alone. The two of them scurried around me, rushing out the door, and running down the hallway. Nate gave me a pained look from out the door before he closed it and left us alone.

Law didn't waste any time as he stepped forward and loomed over me. I almost shrunk away, but didn't want to lose that last shred of dignity I had, so I held my place. Law didn't touch me, but he didn't have to. I already feared for my life and all he did was step forward.

Why was he so mad all the time?

"Miss Mara, I would appreciate it if you didn't let things like that happen on my ship." I almost asked what he was talking about, but held my tongue. "I don't want my men touching you."

The words made me blush, and I looked down so I could hide this fact from him. What did he mean he didn't want his men to touch me? I mean, me and Penguin were just playing around! It's not like we were making out in the middle of the room and half naked! Well, I was wearing some shorts that I made by cutting Law's flannel pants, and a large white shirt that nearly went past the shorts on my thighs.

As I thought of what I was wearing, I started to blush even more. Then I took into account how close we were, and now I really wanted to back away from him.

"I don't know what you did before you got on my ship, but you will not let anyone touch you while you're with me. Do you understand me, Miss Mara?"

What did he mean while I was with him? He was talking about how I was on his ship, right?

A hand came into my field of vision, blocking my view of my feet, and I flinched. I really thought he was going to choke me out—I mean he just seemed like he was that pissed about everything. Instead, that hand went up to my chin and tilted my head so that I was forced to look at him.

His face was the epitome of anger, and I wanted to look away again.

"I said—do you understand me, Miss Mara?"

I nodded quickly, hoping his hand would fall from my chin.

It didn't...

I saw something change then. Law's face became softer. Don't get me wrong—he was still pretty angry and looked like he was about to kill someone, but his eyes seemed to soften slightly when they met mine.

Then he started to lean in.

I started to freak out on the inside. Why was he doing this? Why was his other arm grabbing onto my arm, gripping my bicep with bruising strength?

Was he going to...?

"L—Law..." He hummed in response, but he didn't stop moving closer. I was still looking at his eyes, but his seemed to be flicking back and forth between my own brown eyes and my lips. I wanted to make him stop—I really did! But something was stopping me. Something inside of me kind of...wanted this to happen.

Wait—what the hell am I talking about? I don't want this! He's the man that didn't let me leave to save Ace and Luffy! He's the man that hates me because of all the problems that I've caused him! He hates me, and I hate him! That's just how things work, and there is no in between!

Now he was dangerously close. So close that his breath was tickling my lips, and it made me shiver. We were separated by a hair—one false move and we would be locking lips.

"L—Law, please..." My hands went up to his arm that was holding my chin, and I latched on. He exhaled once more and seemed to be ready to move in for the kill, but I gripped him hard and jerked back. "Please...please just stop..."

His hand released my arm and, in turn, I released my hold on his arm. I was looking at my feet—I couldn't bring myself to look at his face. However you looked at it, I was doing two bad things at that point in time.

I was telling him what to do, and I was rejecting him.

Those two things could get me killed.

When I was ready for those feet to walk closer to me, I was shocked when they turned on their heels and started for the door. "Dinner will be ready soon." He sounded so casual, as if he wasn't mad or hurt or anything.

When the door closed behind him, I brought my fingers to my lips and just stood there. What the fuck just happened? Did he...was he really trying to kiss me? Why would he do that? I mean, he hates me, right? And I hate him! I know that I hate him! He's mean to me and is a manipulative son of a bitch, and I would leave this ship if I didn't owe him my life for several different occasions. So why would he try to kiss me?

I don't know how long I was standing there—I was simply standing and thinking about everything. I didn't even think about dinner, which he casually mentioned on the way out. How could I eat after that? I felt like throwing up from just thinking about it!

"Hey Mara, we—"

The door swung open and Nate walked in. I jerked my head up and looked at him, my face flushed and my fingers still resting on my lips. He stopped in his tracks, glaring at me for a moment before recognition flashed in his eyes and he turned red as well.

"Mara...did you and the Captain...?"

I frowned and walked forward, pushing on his chest so I could get out of the room. "Hell no, we didn't do anything! I was just thinking—that's all!" I yelled at him, glaring up at him from the doorway. He didn't look convinced to say the least. "There's no way that I would ever think of doing anything with him. He's just too... He's too much of an asshole."

And I was being honest. I wouldn't think of doing anything with Trafalgar Law. I would much rather bury myself in an ant pile covered in honey. I hate Trafalgar Law. I hate him so much.

I... I do hate him, right...?

[A/N:] Yay, I've made my first really awkward Law and Mara moment! *VICTORY DANCE, BITCHES*

Okay, I realized that I didn't write an Author's Note in my last chapter, and it made me feel weird, so I'm making sure that I include it in this chapter.

I literally just wrote this whole chapter in one go because it just came to me how it should pan out, so I went with it. I apologize for spelling errors and if it sucks. I really am trying!

Anyways, how was everyone's 4th of July? And if you don't live in America, how was your week? (See? I don't discriminate!) I hope you all had fun! I would have gone to the Freedom Fest, but we just found these abandoned kittens and we didn't want to leave them alone for that long. They're so cute! They had their umbilical cords when we found them, and we have to bottle feed them ^_^

Sorry for rambling .-.

Love you guys, as always, and I hope you liked this chapter! See you soon~!

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