"No kidding, you were a marine?"

"Hey hey, should I be taking offence?"

Laughing at his wide grin, Nayla set her drink comfortably onto her lap. "Well no it's just the…Well, you don't really look like the marine type, for some reason."

Chuckling as she pointedly looked at his longish-hair, the piercing in his left ear and the prominent tattoo creeping up the side his neck in one sweep, he took a sip of his beer before mirroring her pose, leaning his side against the back of the sofa as he turned to face her more fully.

"Well, you're right there I guess. Not allowed to grow this out too long-" He ruffled his dark blonde locks. "-can't even have facial hair 'less it's a tash for some weird reason and definitely no visible tats or piercings. Or at least you can't get away with that stuff until you've built enough rep and climbed the ranks a bit. Makes for very boring late teens when you have to go for the squeaky clean, militant look to pass enlistment and drafting though, ya know?"

"So the second you left you did all this?" She asked in amusement, gesturing to the arm he'd leant onto the top of the seating between them at the additional tattoos peering out from under his partially rolled up sweater sleeve.

"Yeah pretty much, call it a late rebellious stage I guess." Smiling as she gently peeled up the thick fabric a little more to see the rest of the still slightly healing design, he felt a distinct prickle on the back of his neck that made him want to turn towards the table he'd seen Trafalgar Law at…though his better judgement told him not to…In fact, his better judgement told him to stay away from the girl altogether but she'd given him such an inviting smile when he'd turned away from the bar with his drink, inviting him over with a pat on the vacant sofa cushion beside her, how could he refuse?

"And you work for a delivery company now?" Refocusing on Nayla from his minor inner wave of anxiety, he watched her pull her hand away and settle her elbow atop the back of the sofa, resting her cheek to her palm as she smiled at him.

"Sorta, had always wanted to be a marine so I don't have any other education or training under my belt. For the moment, I'm just taking odd jobs that require muscle, seeing as it's all I'm good for right now until I can figure out which way to go from here, ya know?"

Glancing at the impressive amount of said muscle apparent even though his heavy top, she nodded in understanding, more than able empathise with his situation. With the insecurity, uncertainty and the sensation of being completely lost that a drastic change of life plans could cause. She'd basically fallen into her own job the same way, taking advantage of an existing skill to make a living until she could decide on another path she wanted to follow.

"So, what made you decide to leave the marines in the first place?"

"…Couldn't really stomach that war to be honest. In my opinion, the whole point of the marines is to protect lives - provoking a war on purpose that was bound from the start to waste them on both sides? I didn't want to be a part of it, I didn't buy into that 'it's for the greater good' crap…I resigned the day they confirmed they were gonna go through with it." He sighed.

Deciding he wasn't lying to impress or win her over from his gaze or body language, she found herself in genuine awe of his conviction to have left the only thing he'd ever wanted to be because of how strongly it disagreed with his admirable moral code. "Hmm, isn't there like, a desertion or prison penalty for leaving?"

"My contract was nearly up anyway, only had a couple of months left to serve before I was due to renew it. Was on good terms with my superior officer, he didn't raise a fuss when I requested my leave, he was a good man."

Not missing the past tense or sobering tone, she watched him lean forward and set his finished bottle onto the coffee table. "Was, huh."

"Yeah…Lost a lot of good friends of mine that day." He glanced briefly over his shoulder at the tables attended by white boilersuits as he resettled comfortably.

"I'm sorry."

"Nah, don't be. They were willing to lay down their lives for what they felt was a good cause and they did just that. It's what we sign up for." He turned his attention back to her with a reassuring smile.

"…Do you hate pirates?"

Watching him furrow his brows in thought for a moment as he rest his thigh up onto the sofa more comfortably, Nayla waited patiently for him to choose the right words, guessing he assumed she was fond of them and trying not to offend her.

"…No, not really….At least not all of 'em and it wasn't like they started that war…I guess it's better to say I hate what they do. They're as human as the rest of us…for the most part." Smiling when she laughed at that and took a sip of her drink, he nodded in the direction of the crewmembers in the bar. "Friends of yours?"

"Hmm, yeah you could say that. Unlikely and unexpected travel companions would be a good way to put it, but they've – well most of them have been lovely to me, even though I'm not actually a pirate myself."

"Never woulda figured the Heart Pirates to be the friendly type, never heard of any pirates that would be kind enough to take aboard any 'hitchhikers.'" He prodded carefully, genuinely curious and a little worried as to how she'd found herself aboard a ship full of dangerous men having heard horror stories of abducted women and what usually happened to them aboard pirate ships in his previous job.

"Well, they're kinder than most I guess." She offered in explanation with a nonchalant shrug.

"That right, heard nothing but bad rumours about them at HQs…Real bad things about Trafalgar." He scratched his stubbled chin in thought, trying to recall if he'd ever heard anything positive about them.

"I'll bet you did." Nayla muttered bitterly, taking another sip of her drink.

Raising his brows at how quickly her fond smile when talking about the crew had dipped into a frown of annoyance at the mention of the pirate captain, he took that as a cue to move their conversation along swiftly. "Well, enough about that. Tell me about you."

Smiling as he shuffled a little closer and flashed her a wide grin, she couldn't help but laugh a little. "Like what? My star sign? Blood type? Or would you prefer to nod attentively and pretend to be interested in hearing about my family or my job?"

Chuckling at the jaded response of a woman that had apparently been hit on in bars plenty of times before; he tapped his chin in thought. "Alright, how about something simple that I don't have to fake interest in, like where does your name come from?"

"I would have thought that was a pretty nice and unique 'get to know you' question…if I didn't already know you were only asking it because you want a chance to explain your weird name away."

Raising his brows in surprise before grinning again, he leaned in a little closer. "Oh a smart chick, huh?"

"Is it a turn off?" She mocked, undisturbed by his increasing closeness, their elbows nearly touching.

"Not at all, not a lot of point in having such a pretty face when there's nothing going on behind it. So, humour me, what does your name mean first?"

"Actually, I'm not sure. When I did try to look it up, it seemed to have different meanings depending on which culture it comes from. Seems to have roots in two or three different ones but my parents weren't from any of them, so I don't know if they intentionally meant it to reflect one of its meanings or if it was just a name they liked the sound of it and it has none."

"You never asked them?"

She shook her head, pushing down the small twinge of regret that surfaced. "No, never asked them whilst I had the chance. Probably just a name they heard somewhere and liked the sound of…How about your name, Miles?"

"Well, my dad used to be a marine too and my mother is a civilian – they still live here on Ashibumi but a lot further inland. Dad was away on duty a lot, in fact, he found out when he was offshore that mom was pregnant with me. She wanted to name me 'Miles' because I was the one thing that connected her to her hubby most strongly across them and dad loved it. Corny, eh?"

"Aww no, that's incredibly sweet. Though I imagine you had plenty of teasing for it growing up." She laughed.

"Sure did, they didn't think that one through too well." He murmured through his smile.

"Well I think it's really nice. It's like a keepsake of your parents' love for each other, you should be proud of it, not trying to justify or explain it away so that it doesn't sound so random."

Enjoying the feel of the reassuring hand she'd placed on his thigh, he looked back up at her from it, watching her take another sip of the thick, creamy liquid in her glass.

"Are you really drinking hot chocolate in a bar?" He mocked lightly.

"I'll have you know that there's a very generous dollop of hard liquor in this glass."

"...Really?"

Smiling at his surprised expression, she tilted the drink to him in offering. "Mhmm, give it a try."

"There's not much left, I don't wanna finish it for ya." The ex-marine looked at the waning contents of her glass unsurely.

"You'll just have to treat me to another."

Giving her a lopsided grin at her cheekiness, he reached for it, letting his warm fingers lingers over hers briefly before pulling it away. Turning the glass around, he kept her eye contact as he deliberately placed his lips over the print her own red ones had left.

Though his suggestive gesture was short-lived as the fluid touched his tongue and he raised his brows in surprise. "Damn…that is nice. Been coming here for ages, never knew."

She laughed, watching him tilt the glass back and finish the last mouthful. "Well, I'm not surprised you never tried it. Guys suffer the unfortunate stigma of being labelled a 'pansy' for ordering the nicer, sweeter tasting things at a bar. I pity a gender that is confined to sour-tasting beers and ales to keep up appearances."

Chuckling he leant forward and grabbed his empty beer bottle from the table with his free hand, moving to get up. "You got that right, can't exactly maintain your 'manliness' by strolling into a bar and ordering a fruity cocktail with a pretty parasol in it, no matter how good it tastes. I'll go grab you another." He raised the hand holding her glass in gesture.

Feeling a subtle but familiar sense of foreboding, Nayla chanced a look Law's way, finding that his gaze seemed to be on Miles, though it was difficult to tell from that distance and from the shadows that fell from beneath the brim of his hat. Suddenly feeling a little concerned for the man's wellbeing, she got up as well. "I'll come with."

Raising a brow but saying nothing, he motioned for her to leave the space between the sofa and coffee table ahead of him. Straightening her skirt out a bit, she walked with him to the bar, still sensing the distinct feeling of grey eyes watching her every move.

Leaning against the edge of the wood, Miles stood beside her, flagging down the bartender, placing their orders and setting the money onto the counter.

Maybe Law wasn't even looking their way, it was probably just her tiredness catching up and playing tricks on her mind. Either way, the sooner she got upstairs the better...She was probably just being a little paranoid. 'And hopeful? - No, definitely just paranoid. Easy to do when you can feel sets of eyes on you all day.'

Glancing at the other side of the bar where Stravia and Illias were sat, she scowled at them as they laughed loudly, gossiping between themselves whilst openly looking her way. 'Annoying, childish bitches.'

Choosing to ignore them - again, and at least try taking the high road, Nayla turned away with a long, heavy sigh.

"Wow, tired or just bored of my company already?"

Smiling a little at the light jostle Miles gave her with his shoulder to regain her attention; she looked up at him in time to see his gaze flit from the two women to her, obviously able to tell what had really been the cause of her sigh.

"A little tired actually." She admitted, noticing his side was still touching hers but finding his physical contact pleasant. "I was actually thinking of going to bed before you showed up."

"Oh? And what made you change your mind?" He teased, turning to lean his side to the bar to face her fully.

Giggling a little at the flirtatious edge in his voice and the cheeky glint to his deep, brown eyes, she smiled slyly, unable to resist a small tease back. "I didn't, I'm going straight to bed after this drink."

"Oh…Well that's a shame. I'll miss your company."

Smiling wider as he tried not to let the disappointment show on his face as he turned away, she placed a hand onto his forearm, leaning in closely to him to speak quietly as he turned back to her. "That would be difficult to do, considering we'd be in the same bed."

Raising his brows at the honeyed tone, lidded eyes and devious smile on her face before matching it with his own, he lifted the hand she'd placed on him, holding it gently as he leant his face closer to hers. "Maybe we should skip these last drinks then, I didn't really want that beer anyway."

"Well that was silly, what did you order it for then?"

"Just for an excuse to spend more time with you." He admitted shamelessly, using his other hand to gently tilt her chin up, as he leant in, closing his eyes. Smiling, Nayla did the same, enjoying the gentle squeeze he gave the hand he held.

Startled by the sound and the sensation of something hard slamming against the bar between their bodies, Nayla opened her eyes and looked down, barely having enough time to process the all too familiar design of Law's sheath before it swiftly pressed against her stomach, pulling her back into an all too familiar hard chest behind her.

Breathing heavily in her shock, she quickly got over it as her anger bubbled to the surface, whipping her head up to look behind her at Law. He wasn't even looking at her, instead staring right at the man in front of her, whose horrified expression she could only imagine.

"Why don't you introduce me to your new friend, Nayla-ya."

Gritting her teeth at his annoyingly calm tone and when he didn't even look down to address her, she placed her hands onto the sheath holding her against him, trying to push it away. "Oh but of course, how rude of me. Law this is Miles, Miles, Law." She seethed in mock politeness, her anger only rising when he placed his other hand to his sheath, locking her securely in place between his arms.

Feeling rather than hearing him scoff – at the man's name or at her response in general she wasn't sure; she looked back at the ex-marine to find him unsurprisingly a few shades lighter than she remembered him.

"It's getting late Nayla-ya, perhaps you should go to bed."

"Oh, I couldn't agree more." Finally prompting him to pull his intimidating stare off of the poor man, Law raised a brow as she managed to push his sheath out of one of his hands. Looking down and noting she'd pulled her sweater sleeve over her own, undoubtedly to use her ability discreetly to do so.

Watching her escape his grasp, she took the ex-marine's hand, to begin leading him away. "In fact I was just on my way there."

Turning fully to glare at Law in warning when she felt his grip on her sweater between her shoulder blades, she fought back the overwhelming urge to attempt to punch him in the face.

"Go to bed to sleep. You have an important day tomorrow and I want you in top form. You haven't slept well in two nights."

Swatting his grip off of her clothing with one hand and releasing the dumbstruck man's with her other she pointed a finger to Law's chest as she hissed angrily, finding his entirely neutral expression even more irritating than his usual smirk would have been. "And who's fault was that?!"

"Um, Imma…I mean, sorry. I didn't know, she said there wasn't anything going on between you two." They both turned their attention to Miles as he spoke up for the first time, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck in discomfort.

"There isn't."

"There i-"

"Do NOT. Do not even! It is NOT cute when you do it, Law!" Nayla rounded back on him, poking his chest again.

Finally breaking into his trademark expression at her absolute fury, he chuckled, setting his nodachi to his shoulder comfortably and keeping his eyes on her despite speaking to the man behind her. "It was nice meeting you, Miles-ya."

Hearing the obvious hint to leave, Miles looked between the two of them as they stared each other down, feeling his uncertainty as to the nature of her 'travelling' with the Heart Pirates resurface. He'd pushed it aside as none of his business and information not conducive to…what he'd been talking to her for in the first place…or to his health.

Sighing heavily to himself for his upcoming idiocy as he ran a hand through his hair, he spoke up. "Listen, Nayla…There are some buddies of mine at Kattou right now…Say the word and they'll be here in twelve hours."

Turning back around, she locked eyes with him, shocked that he'd make such a blatant offer to help her right in front of Law – even if he had spoken in vague code as Law didn't know his 'buddies' were marines.

Brought back from her surprise by the sinisterly amused chuckle Law emitted at the man's indirect threat against him, she could only imagine that he was entirely unworried and more than happy to meet this man's 'buddies.' Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath before putting on what she hoped was a somewhat convincing smile.

"It's ok, Miles. It's not like that, it won't be necessary but thank you. It really was nice meeting you." She reassured, hopeful he wouldn't put in a call to whatever unfortunate marines he'd send this way to get mangled by Law. It sounded like he'd lost enough of his friends already.

Obviously not buying it but sighing in defeat, he shoved his hands into his pockets as he looked at her sadly. "Yeah, same…Take care, Nayla."

"Leave."

His eyes left hers to glance up at Law at the barked order before he hesitantly began to move, pausing beside Nayla in slight indecision before he leant a hand to her cheek and a small kiss to her forehead.

Stiffening as she heard Law's grip on his weapon tighten behind her, she hoped the man wouldn't feel any braver and/or stupider and just leave without provoking the pirate any further so that he wouldn't end up diced into pieces.

The ex-marine pulled away and walked towards the bar door, pulling his coat and hat off the rack by it before making his way outside, giving her one last look back before shutting the door behind him.

Releasing the breath she'd held, she closed her eyes in relief, the tension she felt for the man's safety beginning to melt away as her anger came back full circle.

"That was really fucking petty of you." She hissed, at Law as she turned back to him.

Feeling his frown lessen as he looked at her, Law took in the rage in her narrowed eyes, her tense posture and her clenched fists. She was absolutely furious with him – and rightfully so. Turning back to the bar with a small smirk, he nestled his weapon securely between his arm and neck. "What was, ensuring you got a good night's rest for when you work for me tomorrow?"

Watching him pick up the drinks Miles had paid for, she wondered briefly when the bartender had set them down before feeling her temper spike as Law casually sipped the man's untouched beer. "That is not what this was about."

"Then what was it about, Nayla-ya?" He taunted, grin widening as he walked past her.

"Jealous. Flat out. 'Awkward psycho with a crush' theory, back in full force." She immediately retorted, following him.

"Oh, you added 'psycho' to your theory title, did you?" He chuckled, making his way back to the booth he'd been sitting at, the crewmembers there that had been watching the show hurriedly turning away as she glared at them.

"Then you're just being vindictive about last night – I said I was sorry!"

"You said you didn't mean it." He placed the drinks onto the table as he slid back into his seat.

"I said I didn't mean it as much as I should but I really was sorry!" Chuckling again, he set his weapon to the ground and leant it against the seating. "This isn't funny, Law!"

"Come finish your drink then go to bed, it'd be a shame to let it go to waste. Besides, the crew have missed your company this evening." He gestured to the fresh hot chocolate liquor and the men at the table casually.

Placing the edge of her hand over her closed eyes, she rubbed them tiredly with thumb and index finger, suddenly feeling a huge headache coming on. "…Fucking asshole." She muttered under her breath, sighing as she reluctantly took the seat beside him, as physically far from him as the space allowed and moodily slid her drink over, ignoring his amused gaze as he draped an arm over the back of her seat.

Lifting the glass to her lips and deciding to drown out her rage with more booze before she killed someone, Nayla looked up at the quiet clear of a throat.

"Yo, lil lady." Jeff greeted unsurely from across the table.

"Hey Jeff." She managed out, in no mood to converse with the other three men at the table but trying her best not to take out her irate mood on them either.

"Whatcha got there?" Penguin asked from beside him, eyeing her drink curiously.

"Oh, nothing…Just cream liquor in hot chocolate, wanna try i-?"

"Hey, Neela – was it?"

Halting pushing her drink across the table towards him, she closed her eyes in irritation, feeling her pulse beginning to thump even more heavily through her temples at the sound of that voice. Nothing good was going to come out of this.

Lazily looking up over her shoulder as Stravia approached – somewhat wobbly, Nayla chose not to bother responding, instead waiting for the woman to make her purpose known. Naturally she must have seen what Law had just done and it had probably provoked her into feeling the need to say something.

Nayla could feel the tension of the other men in the booth rising as they quietened and stilled, watching as the blonde came to a stop beside their table and rest a hand to its surface as she turned to her.

They seemed to have a vague understanding of the situation. Though no one on the crew had spoken to her about what exactly had gone on last night, between the members that had seen her disappear, their captain return with her shortly after, the way Stravia had stormed out and the animosity between them in the morning and this evening, they seemed to have pieced together enough of the scenario amongst themselves to know they would be wise not to ask her or their captain about it. Not anytime soon anyway.

"Settle something for us. Me and Illias-" At her gesture, Nayla glanced behind the blonde briefly at her mentioned, facepalming friend still sat at the bar who clearly didn't think whatever Stravia was about to say was a good idea. "-have a bet going on."

Hearing no reply, she took Nayla's silence as her cue to continue. "Do you just do the whole crew, the captain only or does he like, share you out when he's done with you?"

Feeling her jaw drop at how casually she'd said such a crude thing right in front of all the other people at the table, Nayla heard a couple of gasps from the men across from her.

Shachi being the first one able to find his tongue, started to get up angrily. "Oi! Just who the hell do yo-?!"

"Its fine Shach, just let her get it out of her system." Nayla said in disinterest, not wanting to give the woman the satisfaction of riling anyone up. Apparently, that was what she was there for.

Stravia glanced at him briefly over her shoulder before continuing to speak as though he hadn't just said anything to her. "'Cause she thinks you're just a free-for-all chick but I think Captain gets first dibs. Which one of us is right?"

Seeing the frowns on their faces deepening she couldn't help but feel grateful to them for their upset on her behalf. She didn't bother turning to look at Law beside her because if he had an amused smirk on his face right now, she didn't want to see it.

"Illias has it right. It's pretty much first come, first serve. Though if there's more than a few of them that want in then we use a number ticket system to keep things orderly. Answered your question?"

Blinking in surprise at Nayla's calm answer, her mocking smile was replaced with a scowl as she leant down, talking in a much less cheerful tone. "…Well don't you just think you're Little Miss Sassy. Admitting to being a whore isn't exactly a winning answer."

"Being a whore is better than being a slut. At least I'm smart enough to charge for it, you just give it away for free." Nayla muttered, blowing across the hot surface of her drink calmly before taking a sip, waiting patiently for the woman to stop seething long enough to reply.

"…You wanna take this outside, bitch?" She eventually challenged nastily, leaning her other hand to the table as she hovered over Nayla threateningly.

Scoffing at how the woman had no idea she was picking a fight with a trained fighter - probably assuming she had the advantage due to the height difference, Nayla set her drink back down to the table.

"No, because I honestly don't care. This is all because of him and I already told you he's not mine. Here, all yours have him." She held a hand up to Law beside her. "You got some kind of problem you talk to Law about it, 'cause I don-"

The woman knocked the drink off the edge of the table and onto her lap, the hot liquid making her hiss. "I'm talking to you."

Feeling Law tense beside her, Nayla ran her tongue over her teeth, pulling her gaze from her soaked lap to look at him. "Get your slut under control or I'm gonn-"

As soon as she felt the hand on her cheek, she shot up from her seat and within the same split second had smashed Law's bottle over the woman's head without an ounce of hesitation. A glittering explosion of shattered glass and the fluid it had contained permeated the air the loudly with a resounding smash that silenced the bar, followed by the delayed thump of Stravia as she fell to the floor. There was a tense moment of pause in the tavern, all eyes looking over at the scene and all mouths shut or agape.

Feeling his own jaw slack a little, Law looked at Nayla in genuine disbelief. Clothing soaked in what had been her and now his drink and breathing heavily, looking down at the woman on the floor with an eerily emotionless expression.

Hearing a soft moan and seeing the movement Stravia's legs, Law started leaning over the edge of the booth's seating to see if the woman was coming to on the ground, alarmed when he saw a flash of movement from Nayla as she reached for the table.

"WHOA! Nayla-chan!" Shooting up from his seat, Penguin quickly grabbed the new bottle from her grip before she could bring it down on the woman's head. Undeterred and completely unfazed by the loss of her weapon, she began kneeling down over her, clenching a raised hand into a fist instead.

"Oi!" Quickly discarding it back onto the table, Penguin looped his arms around her waist, pulling her back up to stand, forcing her to release the fistful of the woman's clothing and miss with her punch.

"NAYLA!" Lifting her off of the floor when she immediately lashed out and kicked the woman instead, Penguin backed up a few steps to pull her completely out of range.

"Let go of me!" She finally growled out in frustration, squirming in Penguin's hold and placing her hands onto his arms.

"Lil lady! Take it easy! She's just a civilian!" Jeff left his seat to try to help Penguin diffuse the situation, looking at the woman on the floor when she moaned again. Stravia woozily rolled onto her side – a delicate sound of glass shards falling from her chest to the wooden floor as she did, clutching her bloodied temple with eyes clenched firmly shut in pain.

Hearing Nayla restart her efforts to wriggle out of his crewmate's firm hold, Jeff turned back to her, standing in her line of vision and placing a hand on either of her shoulders. "Hey, come on now, lil lady. You made your point, settle down, ok?"

"But she-!"

"I know, just relax, ok?"

Raising a brow as Jeff pat her head consolingly like one would do to a small, angered, domestic animal – and raising his other when she actually did stop struggling, crossed her arms, pouted and dangled almost comically off the ground in Penguin's hold, Law slid to edge of booth, peering down at the woman and looking at her bleeding scalp.

"You treat her, I swear. I will beat. The shit out of her." Nayla warned darkly.

Looking back up slowly in surprise, Law locked eyes with her. She wasn't even joking, she would do it. She was absolutely livid. He'd honestly never seen such a vicious and violent streak from her before…Yes, the woman had been provoking her since last night but with this level of fury he couldn't help but feel Stravia had taken the brunt of misdirected anger Nayla was feeling towards him right now.

"And what about treating you?" He asked, letting his gaze drop to the blood on Penguin's boilersuit sleeve.

Following his gaze, she looked down at the bloodied fabric in confusion before uncrossing her arms and examining her hands. Swearing softly under her breath when she saw her right palm had glass in it, Penguin set her back down.

"Sorry Pen, didn't see it." She muttered, wincing as she tried pulling out one of the small shards as she turned and began walking away.

"…N-No problem, Nayla-chan."

A quiet murmur picked up in the room as she moved away, a few men from the neighbouring booth and table came over to help the injured woman sit up as they warily watched Nayla make her way over to the bar.

"…God fucking damn…That was hot."

"A-Are you insane?!" Penguin exclaimed looking at Jeff in shock.

"So hot. Like, crazy chick hot." Rolling his eyes at the man's shameless grin and the silence it was met with, Law got up from his seat. "…Hey, I'm just saying what we were all thinking."

"No one was thinking that. Geez…that was scary, not hot." Penguin muttered, starting to cross his arms but pausing as he looked at the blood on his sleeve.

"No kidding, zero to one hundred in one second flat…" Shachi remarked, finally finding his voice.

"Shach, come on, tell me that did nothing for you." Jeff teased with a knowing smile.

"W-Well…"

"Degenerate." Penguin muttered, watching his friend blush with a guilty expression on his face.

"Man, here I was just hoping for a coupla slaps, a bit of hair pulling - ya know, a lil cat fight. Damn this was way better, that wild streak. That has got to translate to the bedr-where ya going, Captain?"

Ignoring the question, Law strode past him with a sigh and approached the bar; he could see the tender behind it was red in the face in his own anger, placing his palms to the counter and leaning forward menacingly at Nayla. "-First Aid Kit, for you?! She's the one flat out and you want it?!"

"Yeah yeah, I know she's a friend or regular slutbag customer of yours or whatever you bias prick but she fucking started it - just hand it over already!" Nayla yelled impatiently, clutching her injured hand.

"Prick?! I oughta…"

Turning around when the bartender paled and trailed off, Nayla watched Law come to a stop behind her. "A First Aid Kit, if you'd be so kind, Bartender-ya."

Annoyed at how quickly the bartender shut up, stooped down under the counter and pulled open a cupboard to comply, she scowled up at the pirate behind her. "I don't need your help."

Opening his mouth to reply, she cut him off before he could, peering around his side to yell across the bar loudly. "Get back in your seats!"

"Yes ma'am!" Throwing his hands up in submission and backing away from Stravia, still clutching the napkins he'd been leaning down to offer Illias to help clean her friend up, Jeff retook his seat. Quickly followed by Penguin and Shachi, trying not to get themselves or the woman killed for being seen to be helping her in any way.

Law watched in mild bewilderment as his crew followed her barked order without hesitation; attention brought back to the bar as the man behind it set a small plastic box onto its surface. Reaching for it, Nayla snatched it before he could pick it up, glaring at him before beginning to walk away – stopping momentarily to yell at the woman crouched next to her friend. "That fucking thing better not be here when I come back or I'll take the trash out myself."

Eyes widening at the open threat, Illias hurriedly looped her friend's arm over her shoulders, her other side quickly supported by another customer as they helped the drowsy woman to her feet.

Receiving one last dirty look, Law watched as Nayla turned and began making her way towards the women's bathroom, hating to admit that some part of him had to agree with Jeff. Some...deranged, low-functioning part of him found her aggressive side strangely attractive. Grinning to himself, he watched her reach the door, clutching the kit in her uninjured hand and pushing it open with her shoulder so as not to bloody it.


'That fucking asshole,' seething as she held her bleeding palm under the gentle stream of cool water, she examined her reflection, scowling as she came to the conclusion that she had no choice but to shower again before going to bed.

This was not what she'd had planned for her evening. She'd had such a fun day and had gotten so relaxed by the fire – minding her own business, unwinding with a delicious, warm drink and had been super lucky to have run into Miles again. Spending the evening with him would have been the perfect nightcap to her day.

'Then that fucking asshole has to go be a vindictive jerk about it.' Experimentally removing her hand from under the tap, she frowned as new streaks of watery red began running down her skin and placed it back under, waiting patiently for it to stop.

She hadn't planned on having to deal with the scorned woman Law had burned last night either…It really was a shame about Miles, he seemed like a genuinely kind guy, handsome too…It was beyond nice of him to stick his neck out to try and help her get away from that fucki-

"Nayla-ya."

"Get out." Chuckling, Law closed the door behind him, making his way over to the sink she was currently using. "This is the ladies room, anyone could come in. Get out."

Setting his weapon against the one beside her own, he shot her an amused smirk extending an upturned palm. "After what you just did out there I don't think any other woman here will want to use these facilities until they've see you leave them. Let me take a look."

"Are you fucking deaf?! Get. Out."

Grabbing her wrist, he pulled her hand up to his eye level to inspect it. "I'm not very good at taking orders, Nayla-ya. You ought to have noticed that by now."

"Not good at it or refuse to try? I'm sure you could manage if you did." She said, half-heartedly attempting to tug her hand from his grip but as always, he simply responded by tightening it.

There were a few small, brown, glass fragments embedded in her skin, nothing too deep, too large or too serious, though the cuts were still oozing blood readily. Humming in thought Law released her, turning his attention to the small First Aid Kit she'd set beside the tap.

"Rinse it clean until it stops bleeding. Hopefully this has a pair of tweezers in it." He muttered more seriously, popping the plastic clasp of the kit open and inspecting its contents.

"I don't know how much clearer to make myself, Law. I don't want your help, I don't even want to see your face right now. Get the fuck out!"

"I thought I made myself clear, Nayla. Do not give me orders." He snapped, tiring of her stubbornness and attitude.

"This wouldn't have even fucking happened if you'd just spoken to that crazy bitch earlier! Why should I have to pay the price for your shitty behaviour?!"

"…She's the crazy one."

"She IS! Apparently you can't tell an insane chick from a regular one – which makes you a lot damn stupider than I gave you credit for OR you just have a thing for crazy chicks!"

Running his eyes up and down her form silently before resettling them to her own - practically alight in her fury as she glared at him, again, Law couldn't for the life of him decide what it was exactly about the sight of her being angry that he found so strangely appealing. With her hair clinging to the right side of her neck – slicked to her skin by the beer spilled from the bottle she'd broken, her chest heaving from her screaming – which he was sure half the bar could hear, and with what she had just done to the woman outside, it really was out of place for her to accuse anyone else of being crazy.

"…So it would seem."

Shocked silent by his unexpected, suggestive reply, Nayla promptly shut her mouth, turned around and placed her hand back under the running water, trying to shake off the flush she could feel rising as his husky tone resonated in her ears.

Chuckling at her response earned him a glare in the mirror above the sink as he approached her from behind, the act reminding her of a shark that had just sniffed blood in the water and was going in for a leisurely kill.

Peeling her wet hair aside from her soaked neck and placing his other hand to her waist, Law smirked as she tensed and glanced back up at him in the mirror. "I don't think I've ever seen you this angry before, Nayla-ya." He purred into her ear before running his tongue over her skin, tasting the beer he hadn't had the chance to enjoy.

Stunned still the by action and by the incredible tingle it caused when his tongue reached her ear, she instinctively began raising her injured, dominant hand to push him away but was preemptively stopped from doing so as he moved his own to hold it under the running water, pressing his body against her back, trapping her against the edge of the basin as he sucked her ear lobe, closing his eyes at the sweet sound of her gasp.

Feeling herself starting to sink into his touch, she growled in annoyance, managing to turn around and break his hold before he quickly slammed a hand to either side of the enamel edge behind her, not allowing her to escape him just yet.

Just as she opened her mouth to, undoubtedly, yell at him, he leant in and crashed his lips to hers, muffling her startled protest with his tongue as he forced it between her parted lips. Raising her hands to his chest, he pushed her injured one back down to the sink behind her, again holding it under the running water as she used her other to fist the fabric of his hoodie tightly.

Lifting his other hand to the back of her head as he felt the push on his chest weaken, Law tilted it back as he deepened their kiss, savouring her sweetness that had so very nearly been enjoyed by someone else tonight. The feel of her body against his, the soft sounds of him inside of her mingled with the lingering taste of their drinks on their tongues, everything blended into an intoxicating entwinement of flavours and sensations that went straight to his head, sating the intense craving for her that had been plaguing him since last night.

Hearing her muffled groan of defeat and frustration, he couldn't help but smile into their kiss as he felt her give in and reciprocate his sudden intrusion into her mouth, feeling her tongue press firmly against his own. 'This is more like it,' meeting her heated challenge whole heartedly, he could sense her growing irritation at his relentless domination as she gripped his top more tightly, pulling him closer as she kissed him with more fervour. Growling lowly at the arousal her aggression caused, he released her hand, using his own to instead press her lower back and crush her against him. An unjustified surge of possessiveness taking him as he thought of how close he'd been to letting another man have her, followed by a wave of annoyance and confusion at the unwanted and unwarranted feeling.

Her injured hand gripped his top to steady herself as he pushed her back further, pushed himself deeper and ignored the feel of moisture soaking into the fabric over his chest.

Unable to stop the moan that left her as she felt the powerful stir of lust his increased passion caused, Nayla matched his intensity, this kiss now far outclassing the raw heat of the one they had shared on his bed and that one had been overwhelming enough to empty her mind of coherent thought.

Fighting every reentry of his tongue between the smacks of their lips parting for split seconds at a time for broken pants, Nayla could only briefly enter his mouth before he overpowered her again – she hated herself for being so eager to taste him after all he'd done.

Finding their staggered breaths growing more and more inadequate, Law finally pulled away, chuckling at the vengeful, though gentle, bite his tongue received on its way out of her mouth for his victory.

Chest heaving, Nayla glared at him angrily - feeling much more annoyed at her response to his actions than at his actual actions as he placed his hands on her hips, smiling smugly at her before leaning his mouth to the crook of her neck, immediately provoking her to hold onto either of his arms as he began sliding his hands down her skirt to her thighs. Kissing her soaked skin, he began pushing them up her skirt, gliding over her tights, feeling the straps of her panties beneath them and wondering if he'd recognise this pair as one that had graced his bathroom rail to torment him earlier that week.

"What-" Nayla cleared her throat and tried again when she heard how weak and breathless her voice suddenly sounded. "What are you doing?" She asked more firmly.

"…Seeing if your thighs are burnt from the hot drink you had spilt on you, Nayla."

Thankful he couldn't see the way his hot breath gliding over her moist flesh had made her eyes close, she felt his fingers curl over the waistband of her tights on either hip, the possible ulterior motive for him removing that piece of her clothing making her heart race even faster as his fingers crept beneath the fragile material. Opening her eyes as he pulled away, she swallowed slightly as he looked at her with unashamed desire, beginning to crouch in front of her as he slid his hands down her thighs slowly.

Pulling his gaze off of her, he lowered it to her exposed skin, running his fingers softly over the thigh that had taken the brunt of the hot spill, smiling as the underlying muscle tensed involuntarily under his touch and examining the slightly pink hue of her flesh carefully.

"It…just feels a little warm and tender, it doesn't really hurt or anything."

Giving an agreeing hum, he focused his attention on her uninjured thigh. "Just a mild burn, a cold compress will ease the inflammation. Soak a paper towel in cold water." Flitting his gaze to the dispenser suspended on the wall to the side of the mirror, she turned slightly to look at it too.

Reaching up and pulling a sheet out she gasped, whipping her head back to him when she felt his tongue, her breath catching in her throat as she watched Law lap her flesh, curling his hand around the back of her thigh as he pressed his lips to her skin, laying gentle kisses as he made his way around to the inner side. Crushing the paper in her hand against the enamel behind her, she gripped the edge of the sink tightly, honestly feeling weak at the knees as he looked up at her, paralysed by his lustful gaze as he ran the length of his hot, wet appendage teasingly slowly up her leg.

Snapping from her surprise as it began disappearing under the hem of her skirt she grit her teeth and planted a hand to the top of his head to stop him getting any higher. "Do you have a death wish?" She hissed at him breathily, feeling his smirk grow against the side of leg.

"You offered Miles-ya and even Penguin a taste of your drink, I can't help but sense a preferential treatment here, Nayla." He taunted, feeling her fingers curl into the fabric of his hat in her anger.

"From. A. Glass." She grit out, realising he was tasting the sweet liquid that had spilt onto her skin.

"I'm sure it tastes better from here." He purred, sucking her flesh into her mouth and eliciting a small squeal from her - a mixture of shock and indignation, at the feel of his teeth on her sensitive inner thigh.

"Knock it off you fucking pervert!"

Holding the healthy hand she'd tried to contact his face with, he chuckled and stood, enjoying the blush on her face openly as he took the paper towel from it and leant his arm around her to soak it under the still-running water.

Narrowing her eyes at his proximity and unnecessary bodily contact, she glared up at him. "You could have just asked me to move or used a different sink?"

"Could have." He agreed, grinning unashamedly as he turned off the tap, pulled back and gently placed the cold, wet paper towel to her slightly scalded thigh.

Finding it admittedly soothing, she frowned when he didn't allow her to take over holding it there, each attempt provoking him into raising his hand higher and higher up her inner thigh in retaliation. Reluctantly giving up and crossing her arms with a sigh, Nayla leant her weight against the washbasin behind her as she stared at him. He looked beyond amused, his devious intent and laughter clear in his steel eyes as he smiled down at her.

"You're not funny. I really am mad at you."

"I know you are." He chuckled, leaning his weight casually onto his free hand on the surface behind her and using his thumb to stoke back and forth over her leg in an almost soothing manner.

Hearing a knock at the door, they glanced at it as it opened slightly, Dean poking his head in unsurely as he spoke. "Captain? I just got back, Pen told me what happened. You need a hand or anything from the…sub?"

Trailing off in disbelief when he spotted them, he silently took in Nayla's pulled down tights, the location of his captain's hand, his growing smirk and the venomous glower she was giving him in response as they stared at each other.

Clearing his throat awkwardly in his embarrassment, the medic began pulling the door shut as he backed out of the room. "Imma….Imma just -"

"I'd rather you treat me, stay." Nayla said, though she didn't take her eyes off Law as she spoke.

"O-Oh, well-"

"Leave." She felt her jaw clench at Law's clear order, knowing that his crewmember would undoubtedly answer to him.

"Uh…aye aye, Captain. S-Sorry." He apologised when she briefly directed her glare at him as he closed the door and left.

"…There's not a single person on your crew that doesn't believe we aren't having sex, is there." She muttered.

"Unlikely." He smiled, peeling away the paper towel, already seeing the improvement in the reddened colour before replacing it. "Let's see to your palm, shall we?" Law reached over to the First Aid Kit with his free hand.

"I'll do it myself." She said irritably, swatting his hand off her thigh to hold the makeshift compress in place herself.

"It's difficult to use tweezers well with your non-dominant hand." He explained calmly, using the soap dispenser suspended on the tiling above the sink before washing his hands.

"It's difficult to use tweezers with your tongue down my throat." She bit back in annoyance.

Chuckling, he turned off the tap and pulled a couple more paper towels. "Then I'll refrain until I'm done."

"…You say that like you expect to get another chance to." She warily watched his movements as he neared her, dried his hands and tossed the used towels into the trash can in the corner.

Glancing at her with a devilish grin, he pulled one last towel from the dispenser. "I do-"

"You won't." She interrupted, frowning as his gaze flit over her chest.

"-but first things first." Placing the dry, white paper onto the side of the sink, he plucked the pair of tweezers from the open kit – thankfully included, before motioning for her to give him her injured hand.

Sighing, Nayla extended it to him, keeping herself at her full arm's length away from him, almost expecting him to pull her closely for another oral attack. Watching him hold it up slightly under the lighting, able to examine it more easily now that it wasn't bleeding so readily, she was relieved to see him slip into his quiet, attentive doctor mode as he carefully set to work removing the glass for her.

Glimpsing the small amount of blood he had on his hoodie from where she had grabbed it during their kiss, Nayla turned away, deciding to examine the state of her own clothing in the mirrors and wondering where and how she could possibly get them cleaned and dried without having to leave the inn and return to the sub…Focusing on something trivial helped drown out the overwhelming amount of questions that were now running rampant in her mind. 'What the hell did he just do?' – Being the most prominent one. Questionings of her sanity and weakness were close runners-up though.

"That bottle was full."

Looking back at him from examining her soaked skirt in the mirror, she furrowed her brows in confusion, watching as he carefully set another removed fragment onto the towel. Apparently already the third, he'd been so gentle that she hadn't even felt them being removed.

"…Are you trying to say I owe you another or something?"

"No. Being hit over the head with a full bottle carries a higher risk of brain injury than being hit over the head with an empty one." He stated simply, making her briefly wonder if he'd learnt that fact through his own crew being on the delivering or receiving end of similar attacks before she realised where he was going with this and her annoyance resurfaced.

"…And?" She deadpanned at him, making him pause slightly as he removed the last small shard to look up at her in surprise.

"You really don't care if you gave that woman a concussion?" He asked, smiling slightly as he set it and the tweezers down beside the other shards, reaching into the kit for a small sachet.

"Should I? If you care so much then go ahead and go treat her, quack. But if you so much as lay a band-aid on that bitch then I promise you - I promise you Law, I will Fuck. Her. Up if I see her again." Raising a brow at her pointed index finger and how readily her temper returned at the mention of her victim, he pulled the small antiseptic wipe out of its packaging and wiped her cuts clean with a chuckle.

"…This is quite the impressive display of jealousy, Nayla." Grinning wider at her visible bristle at his words, he tossed the used wipe atop the removed fragments before picking up a small dressing pad from the kit.

Heavily annoyed by the satisfaction in his voice, she tutted as he began removing it from its sterile packaging. "It was NOT jealousy Law she hit me! She shoved me, bitched about me, has been glaring at me all day, had the nerve to say what she did, burnt me AND she hit me! Me deciding to knock some sense into her had absolutely nothing to do with you and everything to do with me defending myself so don't get so damn cocky and flattered about it."

"Are you sure? It's a little unusual to break the neck of a glass bottle when you use it as a weapon. You must have been exceptionally angry to have been clenching it with enough force to shatter it in your palm. I honestly don't think you even held back on the poor woman." He cooed mockingly, pressing the adhesive edges of the clean dressing to her skin.

"I'm sure. I don't fight over men. Ever." Snatching her hand away from him in irritation when he ran his thumbs over her palm in a placating manner with that vexing smirk on his lips, she lifted it to her own face, examining it.

"You don't? I find that hard to believe somehow." He set the plastic packaging onto the pile of trash atop the edge of the sink.

Scoffing in disdain, she flexed her fingers experimentally, confirming the lack of glass still remaining in her skin by the lack of pain the action caused. "You shouldn't have to fight for someone's loyalty or attention. If a man can get stolen away from you, then he's not worth keeping in the first place. Fuck him, let him get stolen. The hell do I care."

"I'm not convinced." He teased, watching her remove and toss the makeshift cold compress into the sink and pull her tights up.

"I don't give a damn if you are or aren'-"

Feeling his hand abruptly on her lower back, she looked back up at him as he pulled her against his body, settling his other hand to her cheek as he silenced her grumbling with a kiss.

Refusing to part her lips when she felt him run his tongue over them, she placed her hands to his chest. Her pushing only made him press his hand to her back harder, crushing her to him as he bit her lower lip in annoyance of her stubbornness and sliding his tongue into her mouth as soon as she cried out at the action.

Running his fingers through her hair he held her firmly as he re-explored her at a more leisurely pace, feeling her resistance slacken and wane as he enticed her tongue to play with his by teasingly stroking against it in her mouth.

Chuckling at the annoyed half-sigh half-growl she emitted as her attempts to push him away weakened then stopped altogether, he felt her hands run up the sides of his neck as she began kissing him back. Slowing their pace even further to a deep, steamy passion.

Exhaling audibly as she pressed her chest against him and cupped his cheek, Law allowed her in, feeling her tongue glide over his and her fingers thread into the hair at the base of his neck, beneath the rim of his hat.

Sliding his hand further down her back he squeezed her ass gently as he broke their kiss, the look she gave him as he did doubling his arousal. "…Let's go to bed, Nayla."

Feeling her lips tug into a devious smile, she released him and pulled away, basking in the sound of his husky invitation and the sight of his devilish gaze. "Yeah, I better get to bed so that I can sleep and rest well for the work I'm doing for you tomorrow, right? I'll go hit the hay."

Grabbing her hand as she began walking away, he tugged her to his chest, chuckling at his thrown back words and planting a short kiss to her lips. "Together." He clarified, snaking his hands around her waist.

"No."He kissed her again. "No." She reiterated, smiling into the third convincing kiss he pressed to her lips. "It's still a no you cannot always do what you want and get what you want, pirate."

"Oh? Are you teaching me a lesson? Or punishing me?" He purred teasingly, trailing kisses along her jaw.

"Both. You cannot deliberately – selfishly sabotage my love life and expect me to welcome you with open arms into my bed the same damn night."

"It's not your arms I want open, Nayla."

She was sure he felt the shudder of arousal that coursed through her at the lust-soaked words that met her ear. "You obviously have no idea how angry I am with you right now." She managed out breathily, gripping his arms tightly to anchor herself as he pulled back.

"So you're saying that I'll get a different response when you aren't?" He deduced with a devious grin.

Scoffing in amusement at his expression, she peeled his arms from around her. "Good luck with that, you can't go a single day without pissing me off."

"Then that would be something we have in common." Grinning wider at the annoyed look she gave him at that, he watched her step back and straighten out her clothing. "Will tomorrow count?"

Releasing the hem of the sweater she'd tugged down, she felt her confused brows unknit when she realised what he meant. "You mean the one whole day that I'm spending away from you in Kattou so you can't piss me off? No, it doesn't."

Turning away from him she made her way to the door, reaching a hand up to pull it open and feeling a small stab of guilt hit her as she glanced at the dressing on it, her thoughts of not coming back after tomorrow surfacing to the forefront of her mind.

Biting her lower lip, Nayla glanced back at Law, leant back against the sink with his hands resting on either side of him on its edge, watching her expectantly with a neutral gaze and raised brow.

Lowering her hand, she walked back over to him, placing her hands on his chest and leaning up to kiss him softly on the lips, the lingering thought of it possibility being her last time to do so making her savour him slowly.

"Thank you for treating my hand." She said genuinely, letting him go and returning his smile before making her way back to the door. "…Even if you are an insufferable jackass of a quack that could have easily prevented it from happening in the first place."

"I'm not responsible for that woman or her actions…Besides, she was 'talking to you.'" Chuckling when she glared at him mildly for the deliberate recall of the blonde's words, Law watched her pull open the door.

Still able to feel the lingering softness, affection and almost sadness of her last kiss, he called after her as she stepped over the threshold. "Oh and Nayla?" Turning to face him warily at his seemingly smug tone, she waited silently for him to continue. "…Be sure not to make any 'mistakes' getting on the correct ship back here tomorrow night and try not to make any overly eager attempts for 'fresh air' until I get upstairs. I'll be up shortly."

Narrowing her eyes at his annoyingly accurate perception and unsubtle warning, she stormed out through the open door with an annoyed sigh.

Smiling to himself as she left, he watched the door's pendulous swings back and forth on its hinges slowly lessen and then halt. Looking at it for a moment longer, he turned and balled up the trash on the neighbouring sink and tossed it into the waste bin neatly.

Glimpsing his reflection in the mirror briefly, he raised a brow at the amount of evidence of their entanglement that had been left behind on him, the damp patches her soaked clothing had left on him when he'd held her, the small drops of blood over his chest where she'd grabbed his top and the fresh red smudges on his lips.

Huffing in amusement at those, he picked up his nodachi and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand as he began walking towards the door. Looking forward to tomorrow night and feeling his smirk widen as he decided that red did look far better on him than pink.


Author's Note: Just managed my 7-10 day update schedule. Didn't find anything suitable for my move yet so still looking at possibly delayed updates until I'm settled, sorry in advance about that if it does happen.

branchesofaivie – Funny you said that, she was a lot more 'I am woman, hear me roar – and do not think I'm gonna let your bs slide!' this chapter, lol. A much darker/nastier side of her surfaced in this one…Gotta hand it to her though, say no to Law? She's insane; I couldn't have done it, absolutely no way. I'd have melted into a submissive little puddle under the same circumstances with absolutely no shame what so ever. I'm always happy to hear she's likeable, a bad OC can really tank a story. Thank you for the review!

'Aki' – Thought long and hard about ways to have Law and good 'ol Captain Ben Dover in the same room at the same time for some reason to have someone say "Hey Captain Ben Dover" just for the sake of that moment of confusion between him and Law where they weren't sure if the stripper were being greeted or if someone were asking Law to bend over…Naturally would have meant the latter if I'd had Nayla say it, oh the look on Law's face if she had. Instead of Miles, I nearly had the stripper come to the inn just for that joke but decided it was too silly. This is a respectable and sensible fanfic, we have standards here…*clears throat.*

CaspianOfTheSea - Waiting sure is sad – for me too. If I had more free time I could easily zoom these chapters out because I've known for ages when and where they're gonna end up doing the dirty. Stupid real life, always getting in the damn way and taking up my precious lemon-concocting time. Anyhoo, I hate spoiling upcoming sexy stuffs but I'm looking forward to smuggling more smut in soon, so glad to hear you're enjoying the story and thank you for such a lovely review!

magnacartaelle – I really loved those little fluffy and playful moments as well so I'm glad others enjoyed it too. Looking forward to sneaking in more warm fuzzies here and there as well, thank you for your review!