Leila stood in a shop, flicking through magazines and books. Law leant against the counter, talking with the clerk about certain items he couldn't find. She was starting to become bored. She had been following Law around all day at his request but her feet were starting to ache. Although she was perfectly happy, she couldn't help but feel slightly fatigued lately. As the clerk disappeared into the back room to search his stock Law glanced back to Leila.

"You doing okay?" He asked her, watching her closely. Leila nodded but gazed outside the shop. They had stopped off at another random town to pick up food and Law had kept her suffocatingly close to him since the newspaper bounty was released.

"Can I wait outside for a bit?" She asked him, slight pleading in her eyes. "It's stuffy in here"

Law paused and seemed to think about it for a moment. He was being so cautious of her being harmed that he was becoming over protective.

"…Law?" She questioned once more, breaking him out of his thoughts. "I promise I won't go far, I'll put my hood up too"

"Alright, but seriously don't wander off" He said with a tentative nod.

"Got it" She confirmed, pulling her hood up and over her head. She stepped into the street, a cool breeze hitting her flushed cheeks. She let out a comfortable sigh, feeling slightly less constrained. She could appreciate why Law was being careful – but she had been careful her whole life. Being beside him wouldn't gaurantee her safety. Besides, It was him who had persuaded her that she could start living her own life without worrying and overthinking.

Leila looked around at the citizens, trying to search for signs of shady business or familiar faces. Alas, she found none. She turned around the corner of the shop into a small alleyway, barely a few feet away and she sunk to her feet, crouching and leaning against the brick wall. She examined her fingernails as she waited for Law to come out, boredom sinking into her. However, she was startled when a tall figure paced through the alley with a stressed expression. His loud footsteps echoing through the confined space made Leila jump, he seemed to smirk.

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you" He tipped his hat down at her in apology. Leila nodded and let her gaze fall to the floor so that her hood would stay down naturally. The man stopped pacing and looked at her for a moment. Leila grew slightly rigid but peeked up at the man with a raised eyebrow.

"Can I help you with something?" She asked calmly, her fingernails gripping into her skin in preparation to draw blood. Suddenly, she wished for Law to hurry up. She stood up in preparation but made it look natural, brushing off her jeans and leaning against the wall.

"Um…" The man murmured, seemingly anxious. Leila didn't recognize him at all and Xander rarely entrusts new men to come find her – it risked letting news of her devil fruit out into the world. Nonetheless, she had been gone for years. There could have been people she wouldn't recognize.

"Sorry for bothering you but do you happen to have a lighter?" The man asked her, making Leila widen her eyes slightly. "My wife's in hospital – we're having a baby…I-I just feel really nervous but I didn't bring my lighter with me"

"No I don't, sorry" Leila smiled at the man, still feeling slightly on edge. The man seemed to exuberate happiness though, his face anxious yet delighted at the same time. Maybe he was telling the truth? Something didn't seem quite right. "Congratulations though"

The man nodded in thanks and Leila began to walk outwards of the alley. She glanced back at the man but he didn't seem to be bothered by her at all – he was staring at the other side of the alley.

'Maybe he is just a worried dad-to-be?' Leila thought, utterly confused by the strange vibes the man had given off. She shrugged it off and as she was almost out of the alley she felt sudden footsteps behind her and a straight edged hand came to cut into the back of her neck – hitting her vagus nerve precisely. Leila felt herself intake a breath suddenly but alas, her vagus nerve that got hit was intensely overstimulated by the precise blow, leading her head to feel woozy.

"L-la…" She began to call out to Law, her desperate plea dying in her throat as she felt her whole world go dark and her knees collapse from underneath her.

The man with the hat caught her instantly, his face clouded over with professionalism. He was quickly assisted by a man dressed in casual clothing, moving next to him to link Leila's arm around his neck.

"That was quick…" The casual clothed man said to his colleague.

"Of course, I hit her pressure point" The man with a hat replied matter of a factly. He looked to his co-worker with a cold gaze. "Can we get a move on?"

"Y-yeah" he replied, holding his hand out as a white glow resonated from his palm. The glow started to consume his palm all the way up to his arm, his limb disappearing as it transitioned. It moved up his body slowly, seemingly eating away at the man.

"Tch" The hat man tutted, unpleased with how slow the process was going. "Hurry up, what if someone sees us mid teleport?"

"Sh" he replied, shushing the tall man as he concentrated. The glow did seem to increase its pace, slowly moving over his torso and his face. Eventually, it reached Leila, and she too was consumed by the white glow. Lastly, the man with the hat was consumed as well.

Law stepped out the store, the bell chiming as the door opened and closed. He held a small bag with him and looked around, searching for signs of Leila. He walked a couple steps and looked down into an alleyway – empty. Panic started to set in to his bones, chilling him to his core. He didn't want to overreact, surely she was around here somewhere - right? He paced through the street, his eyes flicking over the many people. He had never felt like this before – like he had lost something incredibly important.

'Fuck, fuck fuck' He thought, his heart racing as he began to quicken his pace. He felt his face grow hot and he searched the nearby shops thoroughly, hoping that she just got hungry and went to buy something. But alas, she was nowhere to be found.

As he stood in the middle of the street, searching for her helplessly he felt his hands shake.

"FUCK" He shouted, his eyebrows etched into worry. Onlookers took a cautious step back from him, quickening their pace to move on.

'Please' He begged to himself. 'Please just be on the ship, be alright, please be safe'

Law grabbed ahold of a passerby's arm tightly, making a man eye him up warily.

"Have you seen a young woman, this tall, dark hair, gold eyes?" He questioned the man frantically. The man shook his head and pursed his lips together in confusion.

"No, sorry man"

Law let the man go, feeling utterly lost in what to do.

'I said I would keep her safe. I said she would always be with me' he thought, his mind racing a thousand times a minute. 'How could I let her get taken that fucking easily?'

Law wouldn't want to admit it, but he felt sheer horror inside his heart. He had no idea where she would have been taken, or if she would still be okay when he did find her. He felt like he had failed.

Leila awoke with a groan, her heartbeat pounding into her skull. Her face felt bruised, as if she had been clattered with a steel bar. Her eyes were fuzzy and she tried to recollect herself as she palmed at the floor, pushing herself onto her knees. The floor was damp, with dirt remaining on her hands as she pulled them off the floor. It looked like moss and mold were growing in the corners, with an uncomfortable musk seeping into her lungs. The sensations were all too familiar; it snapped her out of her haziness immediately.

Her eyes widened as she looked at the familiar steel cell bars – tightly packed and tall. She looked down, taking notice of the sea prism handcuffs lacing her wrists and the shackles on her feet. She let out an unsteady sigh, nerves creeping up her spine.

"N-No…" She stammered, her eyes beginning to brim with tears. "For fucks sake…no…"

She collapsed onto the floor, pulling her knees into her chest as her eyes contorted into a frantic panic. Her chest felt tight, as if she couldn't breathe, and her whole world seemed to center on the mud on the floor. It was over. She had been caught. After years, she had been caught. Her mind flittered to Law and then she couldn't help the tears escape her golden eyes.

She thought about how angry he must be with her, how much he probably hated himself for letting her out of his sight. He would no doubt be screaming bloody murder to the crew, urgently looking for traces of her around the large city. Nothing made her more depressed than knowing the effect it would have on Law.

"That goddamn idiot" She sniffed to herself, absolutely inconsolable. "Why did he get involved with me…"

Leila was silenced when she heard a loud door slam shut and firm footsteps making her way towards her cell. The boots clacked with metal and heaviness, although the aura radiating off the new person in that room was heavy enough. Leila shuffled into a corner, her breathing beginning to grow agitated. The footsteps were coming closer.

Thump.

Thump.

Finally, a familiar red cloak drifted into her eyesight, accompanied by the chilling gaze of Xander Brady. He settled in front of the cell, his gaze somewhat delighted as he stared down at the young woman, sheltered in the corner. His large stature towered over her and his sharp jaw stayed tensed throughout their exchange.

Leila's eyes burnt with the fury of hell itself, her gaze depicting a wrathful wish to slaughter him right there. Her fingers tensed as her hands formed fists and she glared up at him with no sign of backing down. Although she sat in the corner, she held her chin high and prideful – refusing to wipe the moisture from her cheeks. It wasn't something to feel shame over.

"Ah" He let out a satisfied sigh, moving towards the cell slowly with a twisted grin on his face. He grasped the cell bars with a tight fist, as if he couldn't wait to get his hands on her. Her fingers trailed over the length of the bars, almost caressing them as his gaze never left hers. "That bruise looks beautiful on you, my dear red princess…"