A/N: its been so looong! omg. seven chapters left~
53. Just A Bit Longer
A Little After 5 PM
The Don Quixote Mansion
When Luffy comes to, the pain has lessened. It's still there, and it makes his head woozy with it, but there's been something administered to lessen the pain, so he's alright. Somewhat.
He shudders a bit from the drugs in his system and stirs, head rolling off to the side and onto something soft. A pillow. Judging from his blurry surroundings, he's still in his room. He was situated back in his bed, chair where he was chained down to empty and off to the side. He could probably guess who moved him and gave him pain medicine; Baby 5 was the only one who showed him even an ounce of compassion during this whole fiasco. It's ironic how his captor was the only ray of hope he had in a situation like this.
Luffy groans and sits up, chest screaming with the movement. He jerks and grazes the scarred skin gingerly, frowning at the ache that came with the touch. He's in so much pain it wasn't even funny. It's all he thinks about, it consumes his mind, breaks his spirit. If he were a stronger man he might not have cried, but the tears find their way down his face anyway. It hurt so much. And not only did it hurt, but he was alone and hurt. That somehow made it worse.
He glances around the room to the clock sitting innocently in the corner. It's just after five, meaning Law would be here in less than two hours. The thought comes with relief, and tears prick at his eyes. Happy tears. His boyfriend would come and set things right, everything would be fine.
At least, that's what he tells himself.
The front door suddenly opens, and Luffy turns to it with his heart thumping wildly in his chest. It's Violeta, baring a plate of food, looking strangely apologetic.
"You're awake." Her tone is that of only mild surprise.
Luffy shrugs, averting his eyes. "I am."
"Huh." She enters without his consent, setting the plate down on his nightstand, then stands, wringing her hands together.
Luffy eyes the food with suspicion, then scoffs at her coy act. "What is that?"
"The food? It's for you," she says, nodding over to the plate full of meat. His favorite. "Eat up. You've been through a lot."
"Why do you care?" Luffy grumbles, ignoring the pointed growl his stomach gave.
Violeta sighs. "I don't. But my brothers, they...they tend to go overboard. When they're really passionate about what they want, they'll go to the extreme. I hope you understand, no?"
"I don't," Luffy grits, baring canines at the woman. "And I never will."
Violeta only gives him a look of warning before rolling her eyes. "Then that sounds like a you problem."
Luffy can't believe his ears. What the fuck? He just went through hell and this woman was spouting pure bullshit to him, like her brothers didn't just give him a lifelong scar on his chest. God, he wanted Law to come there quickly. He needed to escape from this place or else he was going to go crazy.
The woman continues in a softer voice. "Despite our appearances, not all of us are as cold blooded as you think. I feel bad for you."
Luffy snorts, but Violeta shakes her head. "I do. You just so happened to get involved with our brother, Law. That's your only mistake."
"If you know that, then why are you going this far?" Luffy questions, eyes wild with both physical and emotional pain. "Kidnapping me? Hurting me? Making me feel safe in a situation where I'm anything but?"
She studies him. "It's not that simple. Just getting involved with any one of us comes with all sorts of consequences. Why do you think Law doesn't like social activities? Doesn't like getting involved with others? At least, that's how I last remember him."
Luffy thinks back to when he first met Law, and how people's eyes would draw away from the man without him even doing anything. As if they knew getting involved would lead to something along the lines of his current situation. Luffy just didn't see the obvious warnings.
"He knows what happens when people get too close to him," Violeta states, "yet he allowed you into his life. He really is getting soft."
She comes close and motions to the healing scar on Luffy's chest. "That was necessary to bring the beast back out of him again."
"My boyfriend is not a beast," Luffy bites back venomously, "he's not your tool, either."
Violeta turns to leave, but glances over her shoulder to Luffy with an unreadable expression. "The Law I know and the Law you know are two different people. Even you will be surprised to see just how monstrous he can become."
She exits without another word, and Luffy watches her go silently. He didn't want to believe her words, but he can't help but think that they rang with even a sliver of truth. The way Law took down Doflamingo was not the way a sane person would do so, and the way he acted out at times brought his mental stability into question…
Luffy shakes his head, sighing deeply and rubbing his temples. He had to get a grip. Doubting Law is what Violeta wants him to do; she wants him to get up in his head and mess with him like they've been doing the whole time he's been here. He can't lose faith in Law now, not when he was on his way.
But yet.
He couldn't help but think that the conversation about Law was only a prelude for what is to come, for the enormous battle that would soon engulf the mansion and take Luffy with it. But of course, he doesn't know the future, and for all he knows, his worries would all be for naught. But yet something has him worried, and it had something to do with Law's arrival and Violeta's words.
Almost 6 PM
Warehouse Seven
"That bastard."
"C- calm down, Sanji," Barty soothes, but the blonde gives him the finger, smoking away angrily.
"No. What the fuck?" he snarls, pacing around his comrades. "I mean, seriously, what the fuck is wrong with that guy?"
Zoro sits down against the wall deep in thought, little wrinkles dimpling the area between his brows.
The two men had woken up not too long ago, to the complete shock that not only were their enemies gone, but so was Law, with them. After Barty caught them up to speed about what happened, the men became livid, Sanji more external and Zoro more internal. It was terrifying, Barty decided, watching these two powerhouses deal with the news in their own way. It was messed up, no doubt, but still. It made for a scary scene to look at.
"Oi," Kidd snaps, and Sanji glares at him. "Walking around and mumbling ain't gonna do shit. Be like your boyfriend here; shut up and think."
"I'll do as I damn well please. And he's not my boyfriend, for god's sake," Sanji groans, carding a hand through his hair. He points an accusatory finger in Kidd's direction. "By the way...why the hell are you here anyway? We were only expecting Barty!"
Kidd scoffs and looks to the side. "It's a long story. Don't worry about it."
Sanji's curly brows rise to his hairline. "Don't worry about-"
"Sanji."
The blonde stops and turns to Zoro, who hoisted himself up from the floor. "We need to figure out what's up with Law. We'll deal with him later."
Sanji purses his lips, sending the red head another glare before sighing. "Fine. Whatever. But keep this in mind— I'm watching you."
Kidd snorts. "I promise you I don't give a shit."
Zoro huffs and looks at Barty. "Just ignore him, Sanji. So Barty, you said Sabo was coming here? What's his ETA?"
Barty brings out his phone and checks the time. "It's nearly six; he should be here any moment now."
As if on cue, a sound in the distance captures everyone's attention. Barty moves to the door leading outside, scanning the skies for any sign of the Revolutionaries. Sure enough, there in the distance, is a helicopter, slowly making its way toward them on the ground. A wide smile breaks across his face. "They're here!"
"Finally," Kidd grunts.
"We need to tell him about Law's betrayal," Sanji announces, hands shoved deep in his pockets. "I still can't believe he just up and left us."
"I can," Zoro grumbles, rolling his eyes as he stands to his feet. "This is Law we're talking about— he's always been a bit suspicious. This was just the final nail in the coffin."
As the helicopter draws closer, Kidd looks over to the two of them. "As much as I hate the bastard, I doubt he would do that without a reason."
"Oh?" Sanji lifts a brow. "And when did you two become so acquainted with each other?"
"We aren't," Kidd snarls, teeth bared. "I'm just looking at it from a different perspective."
"Fuck off, Kidd, you don't even-"
"Guys," Barty interrupts with a wave of the hand. "They're here."
There's a big whooshing of air right outside the door, blades from the heli taking everything in its path up in a circular motion in the parking lot. It slows down to a stop after a stretch of time; the door pops open and out storms Sabo, looking positively livid.
"Barty!" he roars, marching right up the group that have stationed themselves outside.
The man holds up two hands in defense as the blonde gets right up in his personal space. "I-"
"What the fuck happened to my brother?!" he spits, normally large eyes narrowed into unforgiving slits.
"It's a long story," Barty repeats from their earlier conversation, "seriously, it's gonna take forever to explain."
"I don't care," Sabo yells, hands thrown in the air. "You said you'd explain when I got here, so get to talking!"
"Wait, tell us while we're en route," a new voice offers.
They turn to the woman exiting the helicopter, Koala, with various looks of surprise. She chuckles softly at their expressions, then puts a light hand on Sabo's shoulder.
"Luffy is in trouble. Now is not the best time to be arguing amongst ourselves."
Sabo's brows buckle. "But-"
"No buts," Koala says, squeezing his shoulder pointedly. "We're wasting time out here talking— lets converse on the road."
Sabo frowns deeply but relents, turning on one heel and making his way back to their ride. "Come on you guys," he bodes with the curl of a finger. "This thing isn't going to fly itself."
Barty looks between himself and the other men with him, then makes his way after the blonde. Dreading the conversation to come, he follows begrudgingly, slow and steady as to delay their talk for as long as possible. He just knows that once he tells him the details of Luffy's situation, Sabo would take out his frustrations on the people surrounding him...including himself. Koala being there would help with that, but all in all, it was he that would take most of the heat.
Sighing, he enters the vehicle and sits down in one of the comfortable chairs available, closer to the front as to tell Sabo about Luffy's dire straits. Zoro, Sanji, and Kidd file in quickly after, but not without bickering between the three; mostly over Law's decision.
Once everyone is filed in, the revolutionaries in the front seats and the others in the back, Koala turns around and gets everyone's attention.
"So there's been a small mistake in our plans," she starts, a little wary. She pulls up her phone and taps into it. "We thought it would only be an hour until Dressrosa, but it'll actually be two."
"Two hours?!" Zoro exclaims, "what the hell?"
"We won't know Luffy's well-being for two whole hours?" Kidd spits, shaking his head. "How did that happen?"
"Someone miscalculated how long the detour to pick them up would take," Sabo says under his breath, staring directly at Barty.
The green haired rubs the back of his neck. "Oh really?"
"Yes," Koala sighs, "so now we have to make up an hour. That's why I wanted to get on the road asap."
"I'm sorry."
"It's fine," Koala bodes, motioning to their pilot to get them up and in the air, "we'll get there around eight. Hopefully Luffy is okay and things haven't gotten too out of hand by then."
"Yeah," Barty says as they begin their journey. "Let's hope."
Almost 7 PM
In Law's Helicopter - En Route to Dressrosa
They were almost there.
Law could feel jitters from head to toe as that familiar mansion in the middle of Dressrosa bode closer and closer. He hasn't been able to shut up about Luffy for the past couple of hours— he almost felt bad for Baby 5 and Buffalo, who had to be there through all of his rants and raves about the guy. Almost.
"Are you sure?" Law asks for what seems like the umpteenth time that ride.
"Yes," Buffalo nods exasperatedly, "honest."
"We weren't in the room when they were doing whatever they were doing to Luffy," Baby 5 drawls, lounging backwards in her chair, "so we don't know how he's doing right now."
Law purses his lips and presses his eyes close in annoyance. "So you know nothing."
"Like I've said a million times before," Baby 5 sighs, "what I do know is that Diamante and Pica are the ones behind it all. Everyone else in the Family were just puppets for their plan."
Unsatisfied with the answer, Law simply sits back in his chair, hand itching on the trigger of his gun, already ready to shoot someone down. He's been doing a great job of keeping his anger in check, but the more the castle loomed on the horizon, the more he ached to unleash chaos.
"Oh and by the way," Buffalo adds in, looking in the rear view mirror to Law. "Our lives are spared, right?"
"Oh, yes!" Baby 5 adds in with violent little nods. "We didn't have anything to do with Luffy's kidnapping, and we actually helped him!"
"I'll deal with you two later," Law grunts, eyes zeroing in on the looming rooftop to the Don Quixote mansion.
"No!" Baby 5 moans, expression falling. "But we did so much for you!"
"So much!" Buffalo parrots.
Law side eyes her. "As long as you have that symbol on your back-" he motions to the Doflamingo logo printed on her jacket, "then you can bet your ass that I'm coming for you."
Baby 5 looks at her back and touches the logo thoughtfully. "The one time I wear this symbol to help someone, it also creates a target on my back, hm?" she murmurs to herself.
Law narrows his eyes. "What do you mean, help someone?"
"Remember, I said I helped Luffy," Baby 5 says offhandedly. "I took him on a walk and wore this jacket on purpose so people would recognize it. I know that the public of Dressrosa aren't the only people walking out and about on the streets."
Law's eyes widen. "A spy? Or a secret agent of some sort?"
"Bingo," Buffalo intones from the front seat.
"Someone saw this logo, I don't know who, but they saw it, and know that Luffy is with the Don Quixote Family. They've got to be bringing people," Baby 5 explains. "So this logo has helped."
Law hums in thought. "That makes sense. Maybe I won't kill you two...for now."
"Hey, that's better than right away," Buffalo jokes darkly.
"True," Baby 5 agrees.
"Hold onto your seats guys," Buffalo orders from the pilot seat. "We're landing."
Law grips his weapon and can't help a smile to stretch his face. He's finally at the place where they've taken his love. Adrenaline courses through his veins at the prospect of seeing him again after so long, at doing away with his captors. It makes his head swim, makes him see doubles for a moment. He can't wait to see him.
Luffy was right there.
"Don't worry Luffy," he whispers, quiet enough that Buffalo and Baby 5 can't hear. "I'm here. Just hold on a bit longer."
7 PM
The Don Quixote Mansion
They've moved Luffy from his room to the main hall.
It's the same room he saw while on his walk with Baby 5, the one bare save for the heart, club, spades, and diamond shaped chairs in the middle. They've chained him down to the one of hearts, bound him despite the rampant pain flowing through his veins. His head throbs through it all, eyelids fluttering with ache. Luffy could barely keep his eyes open; he was so tired from all of his ordeals, but he had to push through.
Law was supposedly here.
Going off the hushed whispers from the Family and all the bustling to and fro, something big was about to happen. It was undoubtedly Law coming, and fuck, Luffy was so incredibly excited. Once his boyfriend came, they would be able to finally get out of this mess once and for all. There was just a slight problem.
The Family were trying to ambush him.
They lurked in the shadows of the room, behind furniture and doors and walls, using Luffy as human lure for Law. When the man stepped in the room and found Luffy, he would be riddled with holes before he could even so much as touch him.
And the gag they placed in Luffy's mouth would prevent him from warning Law in time.
It all felt an awful kind of helpless; they would be so close to victory, so close to escaping. But things would simply not work in their favor. Luffy can't help but feel a sense of loss at the entire situation. He feels tears prick at his eyes. The universe surely hated them, and wanted them to suffer. Now he had to bear witness to when Law fell at the hands of the Family. It was too cruel, after all this time of not seeing him, that that is how they'll reunite.
Fate was one mean son of a bitch.
"We have more than enough to handle him," he hears a member say off to the side in quiet tones. "There's no way he's leaving here alive."
"Right," another agrees, "he may be a beast, but with all of us here, even Law doesn't stand a chance."
"We can definitely get him once and for all."
Luffy listens on with attentive ears and shakes his head slightly. Oh Law, he thinks, eyes sliding over to the chuckling Family members, please hurry, come and prove just how wrong they are.
A/N: thanks for reading! until the next!
P.S. i had a lot of trouble writing this chapter;;; hope you enjoyed it regardless!
P.P.S. i love the imagery of luffy being the one tied down in the heart seat instead of law, like in the anime. idk why lol.
