Law found himself squinting in the deep shadows behind the sky scrapers surrounding him. He was weary of every little skitter of an animal or the scratching of trash flying around in the late evening breeze. His heart beat louder than his feet on the neglected concrete below his shoes. His hands ran against the coarse stones that lined his tight path. It was a bit of a labyrinth, but he had it memorized after all the times he had sneaked out for a breath of fresh air while working alone in his basement.
He went around the corner and stood in front of a rusted metal door that hid in the dark charcoal of night. His small hands grazed against the warm metal. His fingers slipped under a nearly unnoticeable latch. Law lifted the heavy door with all his strength, letting it creak loudly from the stress. The small teen moved under it and slowly lowered it after himself, letting it drop the last bit clanging loudly in the night. The first few times he had done that were nerve wracking, but he had quickly figured out that no one ever patrolled back there. Even if by chance they passed by, the door blended into the building so well that it was hard to distinguish the rusted metal from the red clay of the building.
Trafalgar's body dropped down under the door and stirred up the dust in the small corridor. His lungs burned as he let out a loud cough muffled by his elbow. He slunk his way down the ill-spaced hallway, taking care to avoid the rusted nails and bricks that jutted out from the dilapidated walls. Chips of dry, cracked paint clung to the nice black vest he still wore. Law breathed in against the dress shirt, filtering out what little dust he could.
Once he had shuffled his way down the hallway, it opened up a bit more. He could finally stand comfortably between the walls as the passage continued. There were some crumbling stairs that led upwards. Law's hands pushed against the worn brick walls as he walked upwards. Occasionally a stone step would wiggle and cause him to loose footing. He had mapped out most of the bad spots from all his late night ventures, but there were always a few new ones that caught him by surprise.
A leaky pipe dripped down against the water stained floor at the top of the stairs. A small puddle splashed under Law's feet as he pressed on. The boy ducked and dodged the wires and pipes that held up the small passage around him. His hands were covered in mildew and sweat. He could see a small slit of light up ahead. His eyes adjusted slowly to the neon lights that pierced the dark hall. Law pressed his body against the small crack that let in the light. Small grey eyes flicked back and forth looking into his lab.
The lab was just as empty as always. A few beakers bubbling away since Law had left some solutions filtering while he was gone. The heavy smell of old concrete and steam wafted through the small slit Trafalgar peered through. After a short moment of silence Law figured that, just like all the times before, no one was down in his lab. His slim fingers started to unscrew some bolts from the back side of the wall, loosening the metal cover that hid his secret pathway. Two large screws clattered to the floor in the laboratory. The third stayed up in the left corner, holding the weight of the panel. Law pushed the metal out of his way, once again noticing how odd it was that the fourth bolt never existed.
The large metal panel was gently placed back into it's resting position, ready for use again. Law's breath loudly announced to the neon room that he was back. His heart beat louder than normal. Unsure if he was having anxiety over returning to this cage, or if it was the fear of finally leaving it behind.
The teenager ducked into a small side room filled with dusty glass containers and a few boxes of unused elements. The supply closet was still well stocked from the last time Law asked for items. He dropped to his knees and started to shuffle the boxes around. Far under the back metal shelf, pressed against the wall, was a loose tile that only Law knew was there. His fingers grasped at the smooth surface and it took him a few tries to finally pop it out of place. Underneath was a worn shoe box. Trafalgar fished it out of the hole and slid it out from under the rack. The lid all but burst off as soon as it wasn't constricted.
Trafalgar's eyes lit up as he pulled the cash out and started to count the stacks. He'd done this dozens of times before, but it was an obsession, and addiction really. The bills represented all his dreams and hopes, each one a promise between Cora and him. Each one about to come true. A smile cracked his lips and spread across his face. His hands started frantically grabbing at the stacks left in the box, shoving them in his nice slacks. Even with the spacious pockets, he was still hard pressed to keep all the money in them.
Law rushed to wrap up and kicked the now empty box aside. He rushed out of the storage room and back to the metal panel. Right before he opened the hidden passage, he stopped and looked over his shoulder. Dull teeth dug into the soft flesh of his lower lip. He rolled his head to the side and doubled back. There was just one more thing he had to grab.
His footsteps echoed in the room as he walked over to his desk. Many a long day was spent pouring over each textbook he got his hands on. Several notebooks filled with coded sprawling that only Law could read. Still though, the teen's hands gently picked up a small yellow notebook towards the bottom of his stack. On the front cover, written in sloppy black marker, were the words "For Lammy". Fingers gently caressed the worn down cardboard cover. He had one more promise he wanted to keep. Even if it took him his whole life, he would figure out how he could have cured his sister and put it towards future treatments.
"Hiya Law!" A playful voice rang out behind him.
Law turned on his heels, startled. His breath caught in his throat as he stared down the intruder. Baby Five was happily prancing over to him. She didn't seem to be worried or on edge by Law's presence there. Then again, maybe Doflamingo hadn't figured out their plan yet. As far as she knew, he could be there naturally just like every other day. "H-hi." His voice failed to keep up with this line of reasoning. Damn, he was acting super suspicious.
"I didn't know you had come in already. Doffy said it may be awhile before we saw you again. Something about a long mission." Baby's dorky smile splayed across her face as she chatted. "That's good though. I was going to miss you."
"I'm still on my mission." Law grasped at straws. The gears in his mind grinding together as he lied. "I just had to come back for a few things. Important stuff for my mission. I have to go back so I'll be quick about it."
"Well will you stick around for a bit? Being down in your lab is super weird when you're not around. I just gotta grab some stuff for Doffy and I'll be out of your hair."
"Yeah that's fine." Law swallowed and thought harder on his lie. He couldn't leave while Baby Five was there anyway. She didn't know about the secret exit. It would be far too suspicious to not go out from the lobby like any other time. Damn it.
"I can help you grab whatever you need. Just do me a favor and don't tell anyone you saw me. I'm supposed to be undercover right now and I don't wanna get in trouble." That was a bold faced lie and Law's heart skipped a beat as he wondered if she'd fall for something so dumb.
"hmmmmm..." She puffed out her cheeks and crossed her arms as she looked him over.
"Come one, please? I'll make it up to you. I'll play with you more, any game."
"Aaaaany game?" She let the words convey just how broad his promise was. "Even if it's something girly?"
"Ew, ah, I mean sure." Law swallowed the feeling of anxiety that crept up his spine. "Anything."
Baby Five looked him over some more before finally nodding her head solemnly. "It's a deal. All I gotta grab is your notebooks anyway. I guess I got the better side of things." She gloated as her legs carried her towards Law's messy desk.
"My notebooks?" Law asked "What does Doflamingo want with those?"
"Dunno, didn't ask." She started to pick up the notebooks from the leaning stack. Her eyes read over the messy marker on each one as she piled them in her arms. "They're super boring sounding. Can't imagine there's anything good here."
"Yeah, it's science..." Law dryly remarked. He couldn't quite decide if he would just let it go or try to take his hard work with him. No, there was no way of getting all his notes through the passage way with him. Not to mention there wasn't a whole lot of room left in the bag. He grit his teeth and tried to mentally detach those books from himself. He didn't need them anyway. It was all just drug calculations and experiments. It was best to leave them behind with the rest of his gang life.
Baby balanced the notebooks in her arms and turned to leave. "Well, I'm glad I got to see you again and say goodbye." She smiled and started for the door.
"Yeah, uh, you too." The words tumbled past Law's lips awkwardly. There was a moment of silence as he watched her walk away. It was almost, sad. Like loosing a sister he didn't really want. It wasn't as heart breaking as Lammy, but melancholy none the less. "Hey, Baby." He started before really knowing what he would say next.
She stopped and turned around to face him, just steps away from the stairs.
"I, uh, I just wanted to say it was nice seeing you again. I'm going to miss you too." His hands grasped the sides of the yellow notebook in his hands. "Thanks for the nice, being nice, I mean?" Okay, yeah, that's not how to words good. His eyes scrunched closed melting in embarrassment. The last thing he'll ever say to her and it was just word soup.
"Hey Law." She placed her stack of books on the steps and wandered back towards him. If she thought he was saying something so stupid or sappy again, than she was dead wrong. "What's that?"
"I-! You heard me!" His face flushed as his stance tensed up.
"No you nerd. I mean can I see that?" She gestured to Law's hands and the cardboard backing of the notebook he held to his chest.
Law was caught off guard and lowered it down, letting her see the bright yellow cover and spirals that glinted against the neon lights. "This?"
Baby Five's hands wrapped around it and swiftly stole it from his grasped. "Oh good! I almost forgot one. Doffywouldn't be too happy if I missed one." She once again turned away from Law and made her way to the stairs.
"Hey, WAIT!" Law shouted as he raced after, grasping her shoulder a bit tighter than he meant to. "You can't have that one!"
"Doffy wants it. I'm sure he'll give them back eventually." She tried to shake Law off of her.
"No, you can't have that one. It's important to me."
"But, but, Doffy asked me to get these. He NEEDS me to take all your notebooks up to him." Her grip tightened on the book, bending the pages in her hands.
"Not that one. Just pretend you didn't see it. I'm taking it with me anyway. He won't know." Law's hands had twisted Baby around and clung to the book as well. The two started tugging at it, trying to wrench it away from the other.
"Doffy NEEDS it!" Baby reiterated as she leaned back, using her full weight to pry it away from Law. The two fell away from each other and Baby snatched the book up. Her hair whipped behind her as she turned and ran towards the stairs.
"STOP!" Law shouted as he lunged again for the book in her hands. He toppled her to the ground and wrestled with her, bending and wrinkling the notebook in the struggle.
"Get off me!" Baby screeched as her legs started flailing. "You're heavy!"
"Then let GO!" As he said that, Baby Five was able to roll over and fling Law off her, slamming him into the wall. She struggled to get up and rush away again. Law's hands grasped at the bottom of the girl's dress, clinging to it and stopping her. There was a loud tearing sound as the seams along the dress gave out. He gave it a good yank and Baby went flying backwards, further than what Law intended.
The heavy marble table stopped her in midair, catching her back on the corner. She screamed out in pain. Trafalgar jumped to his feet and ran past her. He threw caution to the wind at this point and decided to rush out his secret passage.
Small fingers encircled his ankle as he rushed by. He grabbed at the marble table that Baby had just fallen into. The whole structure shook violently and some of the test tubes and glasses fell over. Shrill clinking sang a warning just a little too late as one of his bigger beakers fell off the equipment it rested on. It clattered to the marble surface and shattered. The thin, clear, liquid in it made a mess and dripped off the table. Baby reacted too slowly. The liquid spilled all over her arms and dress. A strong stench hit her nose, stinging her eyes as it wafted around her.
Baby screeched louder than she ever had before. The young girl rolled around on the concrete floor only making it worse as the puddle latched onto her dress and hair. She let out another ear piercing scream as she held the arm that got the full brunt of the liquid treatment.
"Oh crap! Baby, I'm so sorry." Law quickly turned back and reached out to grab her. He had to get her in the shower down here immediately. As his fingers brushed against her dry arm, she rolled away from his touch. "Wait! I'm just trying to help!" Law called out as Baby frantically rushed to her feet and fled up the staircase, still screaming and crying.
The teen boy was left alone in the suddenly quiet lab. Her scream echoed off the walls and in Law's head. He wanted so desperately to help her, but it was too sticky of a situation. Tears pricked his eyes as he rushed off in the other direction, fleeing through his secret tunnel.
Making his way out was a blur. He had slipped on the broken stairs and was covered in rust coloured water. His clothes were torn on the nails that jutted out of the walls. His hands were all messed up from trying to quickly force his way out. Somehow, Law had come to the heavy exit door. He shoved the metal up and wiggled up and out of the hole. The dirt clung to his bloody hands and tear stained face. He struggled under the metal door and let it slam shut behind him.
Pure adrenaline fueled him now. He scrambled to his feet, kicking up dirt and trash as he raced through the back alley. His momentum carried him forward faster than he could run. Several times he fell half way down, only catching himself with a hand and forcing himself up so he could carry on. Maybe some one had seen him, maybe some of the grunts were running after him in the pitch black alley way. He knew for sure that the loud echos of Baby Five's screams were following him, on top of him and weight down his shoulders. It threatened to push him down and down him in the solid asphalt below his feet.
Somehow, in all the blind commotion, Law had made his way back to the abandoned building. His feet trembled as he slowed. Out of breath, out of steady nerves, and out of that fucking cage. He rested his head against the metal door. Trafalgar stopped with his eyes closed trying to calm himself down. He took a few breaths and pushed open the door.
Corazon had been watching what little he could from his vantage point on the rooftop. Too quickly did the streets grow silent and the sky darkened. He had been anxiously sitting alone, watching the inky darkness. He couldn't really even see the street at this point. His worry quelled as the door slowly opened out onto the roof top. He jumped up and rushed over, overjoyed by the return of the young teen.