Chapter 29: Gone
The stars were beautiful. They reminded Mara of Amazon Lily, when she would sleep out on the section of coast they were allowed to camp on. The Grove she was in was darker than some of the others, giving her unrestricted access to the sky.
Two days had passed since Mara left the ship. Two days of sitting, wandering, and fidgeting. What were you supposed to do when you were released from captivity and the only thing holding you to your job was dead?
…Were you supposed to want to go back to your captor?
A sigh escaped her and she squeezed her eyes shut. No, she was certain that wasn't correct solution to draw. That was just stupid. It was also called Stockholm Syndrome, which was most certainly not a good thing to have developed. So all she needed to do was wait it out.
It was all his damn fault anyway. With his smirks, playful taunts, and now that she looked back on it, slightly protective behavior. It wasn't her fault the man saved her from both her coworkers and Eustass Kid. It wasn't her fault that he kissed her on Amazon Lily.
Mara would, however, admit that it was her fault she didn't push him away. That could be considered encouraging behavior, which may have resulted in the second two kisses. She'd be lying if she said she hadn't wanted more. A growl escaped her lips.
Trafalgar Law was a pirate. The sooner her heart learned that, the sooner they could get along happily and cohesively.
"Captain?" The light knocking on his door had persisted for the past several minutes. He could practically see Bepo standing there, worried, as he continued to knock against the metal. He was a very loyal nakama. Law was lucky to have him.
But all he wanted right now was for the bear to go away.
Law rolled onto his side and face the wall next to his bed. It had taken him a while to pin down the emotion he felt. He wasn't pouting. No, that didn't fit the situation at all. Disappointment was better word. A disappointment so intense that he could feel it in his hollow stomach.
From the moment that spirited woman had been bound to him, Law had been certain of one thing: such a woman would be off like a shot into the wild blue yonder if he let her go. He knew it was in her nature, because he had seen so many people with similar spirit. At the time, it truly hadn't mattered. Never once did he consider the possibility of letting her go.
The longer he had spent with her, the more she burrowed her way into his mind. The first few days she was just a form of amusement to him. Obviously. And it was really entertaining to watch the little government dog squirm. She took everything that was thrown at her and sent it right back at him.
Then, as she spent more time around him, he found himself wanting her more and more. More than he had ever wanted a person. He wouldn't call it love. Not the feelings from way back then. The realization of the level of his attachment hit him rather hard when Bepo told him Mara had been kidnapped. No, the word for it wasn't in his mind. But she was.
His single-minded determination to get her back surprised even himself. His desire to kill all the people who could do such a thing in the future was equally strong. That was why he hunted down all the agents tracking the Supernovas, cut off their heads, and placed them in a crate. Hearts wouldn't do. No, he wanted the message of what he had done to ring out loud and clear.
It would be the perfect call to battle for when he took out that superior of hers.
Her callous assumption that he planned to hurt or kill her stung him every single time she said it after that. He knew the feeling was irrational. He was a logical enough person that such emotions didn't completely control his thoughts.
Law was probably the most rational person in the world when it came to love, because that was what it clearly was. It spilled over from his ability to be rational and logical during every other time. The control he had over his own mind was simply stunning.
So when Mara's words stung, he distanced himself. Getting more attached than he had already been was dangerous to everything he lived for. It helped that he knew at that very moment, she was plotting to take his head. The thought helped to keep everything in perspective.
He slept in the kitchen, keeping far away from the cabin the woman rested in. The conversation he heard that night would have hurt if he hadn't heard the doubt in Mara's voice as she spoke to Jean. It made him want to stand up and talk to her. Such a conversation at that time would only lead to arguments and problems.
His emotions remained in check. They did not consume him. His functionality as a pirate and a captain was not lost.
Many of her outbursts were from simple denial. Denial of liking the life of a pirate as opposed to her own. Denial that she wanted to be friends with the people aboard the submarine. Every chance he got, he tried to make her see her that.
No, it wouldn't help him the least bit in the end. But it was a better thought that she wouldn't go back to her job than the idea that she would. He could handle that. So long as she was free to do as she pleased. Because he had known even then, as the war began, that he would let her go.
As things stood now, he would definitely go after her if he left his room right now. That wasn't an option, since it defeated the purpose of letting her go in the first place. If she stayed, he wanted it of her own free will. Which clearly was not going to happen.
Sapphire eyes glinted in the moonlight as Mara looked upon the submarine. The yellow thing was exactly where she had left it days ago, anchored near Grove Seven. It didn't look like it had budged an inch. Her head cocked to the side in confusion.
Weren't they just here to resupply or something to that nature? Why the hell hadn't they left yet? If they stayed for too long, the marines or bounty hunters would take notice. She would honestly be surprised if they hadn't already been attacked. It wasn't like he was too low on the food chain to escape notice. Quite the opposite, actually.
From the base of the large tree she stood under, she could see several people on the deck even in this late hour. They wouldn't be able to see her from the shadow the tree was casting, so it was the perfect observational spot.
Mara could just watch them, let her mind ease, then get the hell away. It wasn't like she liked them or anything. Her feet shuffled in the grass lightly. Yep. Watch and then leave. Absolutely nothing was keeping her here.
In no way did she miss that bastards teasing or the way he watched her as if she were the most interesting thing in the area, even when surrounded by who knew how many women. There was no way she missed how close he had been that night or the press of his lips on hers.
Nothing at all kept her here.
Her hands clenched into fists at her sides. There was no way… and yet… she couldn't bring herself to turn her back on the submarine and walk away. Her feet refused to listen to her. All she wanted in that moment was to go onto that ship and find Law.
Snippets of conversation reached her from the deck and though it was quiet, she could hear every word as if they were shouting it at her. The Heart Pirates were leaving tomorrow. They would not return to Sabaody Archipelago for a long while. It killed her to think that he would be leaving without her. Something was stirring in her that she had considered a myth previously.
Mara Reade could not possibly love Trafalgar Law.
But all the evidence was pointing to exactly that, so there was very little she could do to refute it. The realization sunk in slowly. The heart she had gained merely three days previous was beating so loud it drowned out every other sound. It was that sound that made it truly sink in.
Even though Law had given her heart back, it had never left the yellow craft. Law still held it even as it beat in her chest, pounding the finality of her thoughts loud and clear. She loved him. Somewhere along the line, she had fallen for him without even noticing until he was no longer there.
Mara took one last look at the submarine before turning her back on it. Knowing the problem made it easier to deal with, as always.
Time to get back to work.
"Mara!"
Said woman turned around, putting a hand up to shield her eyes from the bright light. Her other hand dropped into her pocket, tucking the folded paper in her grasp out of the way. "Scratch, what are you still doing here?"
'Here' currently consisted of the wreckage that was Marineford. Most of the building were destroyed by something or another, and marines could be seen running around in an attempt to gather what was left. The center of the government was being moved across the Red Line into the New World in light of what had happened.
Scratch, a wiry man with almost florescent red hair and a wide grin, came to a skidding halt from his previous run right in front of her. "I'm helping with the relocation, of course! More importantly, what are you doing here? I heard you'd been captured!"
For a second, she just looked at him. There was a reason she had never interacted with him. He was way to cheerful all the time. It drained her whenever she was around him. "I was, but I managed to get away." No need to say she was let go. "When I got back Commander Virian told me to help with the Cipher Pol offices."
"Wow, you don't waste any time, do you?" Scratch rubbed the back of his head. "I could help, if you like. I just got on break."
Her first instinct was to decline. Then she remembered just how big the offices were and just how much was stored there. "Yeah, sure. I'd love the help."
"Great!" They began the trek to the buildings, occasionally climbing over piles of rubble. "So what happened while you were gone?"
Fell in love with a pirate. "You probably don't want to know. Captain Trafalgar isn't the most sane individual I've met." True, but it hadn't caused much harm to her. Eh. No need to tell him that. "Nothing permanent, luckily." That could be seen, anyway.
"That's good to hear," Scratch commented enthusiastically, always looking on the bright side. His grin slipped momentarily before it was back in place. "Have you heard about Helios?"
Mara rose a brow curiously. "No, I haven't. Did something happen?"
"He's gone missing," the man informed her carefully. He pushed the broken door out of the way and she ducked into the partially destroyed building. "He left a few days ago on a one man ship and no one's heard from him since."
Mara flipped through some papers sitting on a nearby desk, biting back the smirk that was threatening to form. She sent him a concerned look before ducking back behind the papers. "What?! Has anyone tried looking for him?"
Scratch nodded, pulling several log books from the shelves and piling them on the first flat surface he came across, which happened to be a tiny square of floor. "Cipher Pol has sent out a few people, but it's like his ship just vanished. No one's seen it. Not even the dock workers on the nearby islands."
Good. The bastard didn't manage to get saved. "I'm sure he'll be alright. He's strong, after all. Not much can bring him down." Just the captain of the Heart Pirates.
"I'm sure you're right," Scratch agreed cheerfully. He looked around the room and eyed the doors leading to the other offices. "How much of this stuff are you responsible for?"
Mara chewed her lip in thought and pulled the crumpled list from where it was stuck in her back pocket. "These records, I guess." She examined the list as if it were the first time she had bothered to read it. "Damn, these are going to be all over the place."
"Let me see." Scratch lifted the paper from her hand, scanning it quickly. He let out a low whistle. "Yeah, this is going to take some searching. Talk about getting the important stuff first." The list returned to her hand. "Ah, don't worry about it. We'll get all of it loaded up in no time."
Mara stuffed the list back into her pocket. "Yep. Shall we?"
