A/N : please o please check out my tumblr (hackdrawer) to see amazing art by Mazout for Under the Dome and the first chapter of this fic! It's glorious!
Naghi-Tan: It gets better :D
9: Oh, If the Right One Came
Staring at the foam that slowly dissipated against the walls of the mug, Law tuned out the noises behind him. Shachi was talking animatedly about Moonpies while Penguin grumbled, Jean Bart serving customers that approached. Law's mind was running through the encounter with a mixture of unsettling feelings that he had trouble separating. His one true regret about it was avoiding the intended physical contact. Every time he thought of it, it made him cringe. He palmed his face with a slight slap, drawing his palm down the length of it before rubbing at his goatee.
Why'd I jump? He thought with irritation. He was aware he gave mixed signals – the waiter had teased him about it. Privately, Law added to the thought with a troubled expression directed to the mirror behind the bar. Affection was given privately because of those times…we had to hide who we were. Unlike today's…
Law felt immensely troubled by his own old-fashioned views. But he'd regretted turning away physical affection. It was time, it was okay – it would not be the waiter's touch, but it was okay for another to touch him. This was a new and different sort of touch – it was welcomed but why couldn't he just relax and invite it? He was behaving like some scared virgin, and it irritated the fuck out of him. When would he stop being so fucking annoying?
Stop being such a fucking baby, he thought of himself impatiently. He looked at his hand – he could still feel Sanji's sweaty grasp on his fingers. His skin tingled with the memory. A missed opportunity…
He slapped that hand down on the bar, startling the pair next to him.
"What's your problem?" Penguin demanded, lowering his mug with a clatter while Shachi held a hand to his chest, breathing theatrically.
"This thing," Law murmured, unable to talk to them about his private affairs, "still needs to be found."
"Then why are we still sitting here?"
"Revitalizing," Shachi answered, drinking before releasing a belch and setting his mug down. He pushed his large glasses up his noise, blinking lazily. "The bodies were dehydrated. Now that we are properly hydrated, we can think better. Jean Bart! Weed!"
"No weed," Jean Bart told him with a shake of his head.
"Why can't we smoke while we're indulging in the many servings you provide us with?" Shachi asked in a disgusted whisper. "Alcohol is a sin, too! Properly sinning requires the use of hallucinogenics to complete the experience - !"
Penguin pushed his head away to interrupt him, then said to Law, "The thing was quite aware of us in the first place. You pissed it off. It took on your form. Therefore, you made it your problem. Now we got to fix it."
"Twitter, Penguin, Twitter," Shachi commented lightly, Penguin turning to give him a ferocious glare.
"Reconsider your layers," Law murmured, folding his hands in front of him.
"Reconsider your responsibility," Penguin hissed at him, Law scowling deeply. Penguin twisted in his stool, scanning the bar. "Where is that guy? I haven't heard you snap at that kid in a while – he gone, too?"
"He left," Law answered bitterly. His hands tightened. "Some time ago with the kid. I am trusting that both are simply returning home, where it is safe."
"And you just let him, knowing that we're in this mess? We need him to see and hear things."
"Like we haven't been doing this sort of thing since forever ago," Shachi pointed out, causing Penguin to scowl, "so why rely on a newbie that's sensitive? You cried about being referred to as a pussy, and here you are…getting all demanding…"
"Penguin," Jean Bart reminded the man firmly, "remember that?"
"Man…"
Law didn't answer, but swept his mug aside. Jean Bart took their empty mugs and shook his head to indicate that they were done. Penguin gave Law a pointed look, then slouched over the countertop while Shachi fluffed at his red hair, achieving further satisfaction on his feathered hair.
"If we can lure the thing in to us," Law said slowly, "provide it bait – "
"Shachi."
"NO, man, NO! I'd die!"
" – then I can kill it. Simple. But it seems to know that. This sword was forged by supposed demon killers off a small island in Japan," Law continued, pulling his banner case over his lap and smoothing a palm along the length of it, "and is capable of 'killing' supernatural entities. Considering that, the demon knows this. It's attempting to grow stronger by feeding off negative energy from the ghosts left behind in this city."
"This guy, Gin," Shachi spoke up, leaning in over Penguin's back to be heard, "is as demonic as it gets."
"We know what he looks like, why not keep an eye out for him?" Penguin asked.
"Because he's not showing his face," Robin answered from behind them, startling Law. He looked back at her with surprise, the pair jerking around in their stools with a sense of alarm once they saw his reaction. But they couldn't see her, and Law noticed that her fabric-made gleam seemed more brilliant than before –her dress seemed to glow. "Because he's not the one you actively seek."
"Where've you been?" Law muttered.
"Watching." Robin then turned away to look at the door with a pensive frown. Moments later, Sanji and Luffy ambled in. The blonde's appearance was noticeably different, and it almost gave Law a heart attack. Without his glasses and his hair noticeably shorter and actually combed into place, he almost resembled the waiter. Law then noticed immediately the shift in facial features, the unnatural press of his lips. He rose from the stool in alarm, banner case opened.
"I don't know what's happening," Luffy confessed with bewilderment, standing at Sanji's side as he approached the bar. Sanji looked to Robin with seemingly unrecognizable examination before looking to Law.
Even his mannerisms were that of another person. Sanji smelled like a different man – of sweat, sun and something metallic. When he spoke, his voice was low and grim. He stood inches in front of Law with such a confrontative stance that it automatically made Law bristle, Penguin rising from his stool with a, "Hey, hey, hey!"
"Am I tripping out, or is he another dude that looks like Sanji?" Shachi asked with alarm, braced against the counter.
"You the one that supposed to fix all this?" Sanji asked Law gruffly. The slope of his shoulders were straight and rigid, head tilted forward – but Law noticed his hand seeking the comfort of something in his ever-present bag.
"This is Gin," Robin reported gravely, her face painted with slight disdain.
"I got this reputation that wasn't mine to begin with," Sanji told the others with remorse. "So I understand the mood."
"Jean Bart."
Upon the given order from Law, the taller man nodded. He set about to the various customers that wore surprised expressions upon being told the bar was closing unexpectedly. Seeing the activity, Sanji glanced around him. The ghosts that made the bar their last home were noticeably disturbed – they hastily made themselves scarce. His lips curled in an unfamiliar smirk once he noticed their expressions turned towards him. Luffy watched with mute surprise, eyebrows lifted. Sanji then took a seat upon one of the stools, back presented to them.
Twenty minutes later, Jean Bart locked the door and dimmed the lights, closing the blinds over the window.
"The dog you're looking for ain't anything natural on this Earth," Sanji murmured, comfortable with his back to them. Occasionally, he'd glance at the mirror behind the bar to determine the expressions of those standing behind them. Luffy was wearing a confused face while Robin looked cross, Law with sword over one shoulder while the other three stood pensively off to the side. "It belonged to the land. It was unfortunate that it was I that crossed its path when I did. Killed my dog. Took on my form. Been caught between waking and sleep all this time. I saw what it did. Been natural that I was blamed for its crimes."
"Then how are you here in individual form without that thing?" Law asked him. "Remove yourself from your vessel."
Sanji – Gin – shook his finger. "Don't take me as a threat. I'm not the one to fear. I was used. I'm ensuring my safety."
"We don't know that for certain."
"In your business, there is a lot of questions that need a universal answer, but have they really been answered?" Gin asked. "I find myself with familiarity in the subject, yet…I sees memories differently from what was experienced. I have a chance to explain myself, and be heard."
"Each time a possession takes place," Robin stated slowly, arms crossed over her chest, "memories and comprehension can be warped. You are mistaking his feelings for yours. Both of you. You are still a threat."
"None of you know me any personally. That's the problem," Gin answered. "My reputation was left in shambles because of this. I appeal to you all to hear me out."
"Then take a step out and present yourself as yourself," Law snapped at him. "You don't need him to do it. Not here."
"Oh, this is what's going on," Shachi whispered to Penguin, Luffy looking in their direction. "Some dude took over on Sanji-dude and that dude is the one we were looking for."
"Thank you for that, Captain Obvious," Penguin murmured with annoyance.
"Oh, no problems, bro."
"Is that what's happening?" Luffy whispered back with incredulity. He looked back at Sanji with distress. "I thought he was just upset!"
"They can't hear you," Robin reminded the boy gently. Luffy made an exasperated sound, fist upon palm as he belatedly remembered this.
"Unfortunately," Gin murmured, turning his head ever so slightly to address Law's demand, "I also see how you remove ghosts. That's a problem."
"Remove yourself from him if you are innocent," Robin commanded forcefully, dress ruffling ever so slightly. "Or we continue to take your inaction as a threat."
Gin turned on the stool to face them, elbows resting back on the countertop. While wearing Sanji's persona in visible comfort, every feature was distorted by a noticeable difference.
"Robin," he said low, "it's important to give a guy a chance to speak his side. Otherwise, you're killing just to kill. How does that make it any different from what I was blamed for? Fighting a demon without any knowledge of the demon in the first place would be your undoing. You've removed some questionable demons in this world," he then said to Law, "but this one is quite different. As I was its only vessel, powerless in its grasp, I was but a vulnerable man taken advantage of. My own family rejected me – my own friend was a dog."
"Oh, puppy," Shachi whispered with emotion, hands to his mouth while Penguin gave him a disgusted look.
"That dog was the only one to accept me in this world," Gin stated. "And he was killed unnecessarily by this thing. I want to avenge his death. And this man is the only one to understand that. By the way…"
He looked directly at Law. "We just had this talk, so you should understand what I mean. I am appealing to you to trust me. Mother never allowed me a chance."
Law's face tightened with revulsion.
Luffy pushed the sleeves up his arms. "Okay guys, stand by. I'll remove this guy. All I have to do is fight him, right?"
Robin gently held onto his shoulders, steadying him. "Gin," she said while the boy scowled, "you say you understand this creature. So you'll explain why you met it the way that you did on the train."
Gin noticeably stilled, but he caught himself by straightening atop of the stool. He then slithered off, shaking his head grimly. His mouth tightened and relaxed a few times, blinking hastily before his facial expression lightened up to near calm state. He gave a limp shrug.
"There was a bunch of us that day," he muttered. "Traveling from one end to the other. Unfortunately, the one car I boarded was carrying something in a box. Pearl didn't like that box. Kept whining and crying, pushing his face against my leg to pretend it wasn't there. The other guys weren't comfortable around it. I couldn't read. I don't know where it was going or why. To show Pearl it wasn't of any threat, I…I opened the box."
He considered the spotty memory, trying to recall exact moments, images, smells – the weight of his actions. But his mouth opened with nothing more to say but, "That thing grabbed Pearl and just…all I remember is the sound he made. Everything after that…was just death."
"Five men were slaughtered in that car," Robin reported gravely. "The constable reports state the trouble occurred because of a disagreement. Nothing was mentioned of an opened box."
"You a cop?" Gin asked her snidely. His eyes coasted over her form with noticeable consideration. "Don't look like one."
"Answer the question correctly," Law warned him, fingers tightening noticeably around the purple rope.
"Those reports detail who every single man was in that car?" Gin asked Robin. "Personalities and business? They wouldn't, would they? All of us drifters, workers looking for the next coin. Nobody important. Easier to make up a tall tale. Paint us as worthless nobodies."
Robin showed nothing in her expression, lashes fluttering as she blinked. Gin glanced at the others in the room, Sanji's expression reflecting only imagined nuances of the man's face. The crew only knew of the man by an old photo – anything he did could be truth or lie.
"They wouldn't talk about a box that wasn't supposed to be opened," Gin then said gruffly. "I couldn't read. None of us could."
"You're very eloquent for a man that could not read," Robin pointed out.
Gin exhaled, rubbing a hand over his head before shooting her a look that was troubling for the others; as if he were a man that were caught in his own lies, and could only express himself physically without a verbal denial or confirmation. He scanned the troubled faces of those facing him before shaking his head with slight disappointment. His lips were curled with a smile, nonetheless.
After several terse moments, he blinked repeatedly, facial expression relaxing and shifting subtly to reveal Sanji's blooming look of alarm once he realized the tension and the faces of those that watched him. Robin's eyes shot back and forth, darting around the room while Law looked at the reflection of the mirror behind the bar, turning in circles to locate the man that had been speaking to them. But the bar gave them nothing, and Law felt himself worry about not being able to see a ghost.
Touching his face lightly, Sanji stuttered, "Where's my glasses? I can't see…"
Luffy narrowed his eyes. "You're very convincing as a blind man…"
Sanji gave him a stumped look, Robin touching Luffy's shoulder lightly, cradling them against her palms as she faced Sanji. "How do you feel?"
Noticing the lingering tension, Sanji exhaled slowly. "I remember acknowledging what happened. So…it was him, wasn't it?"
His face shifted with alarm as one hand crept to his hair, finding it shorn short and combed. He gasped with horror, Shachi shaking his head ever so slightly.
"I'm so confused," he bemoaned. "Are we pretending we know this person, or is this a different person?"
"Sanji," Penguin stated, hands on his hips, "where did you meet this guy?"
"On the street," Sanji said, locating the mirror behind the bar and gasping again.
"It looks better," Luffy said with uncertainty.
"Yeah, you can tell you cut it with some kid scissors, man," Shachi said with sympathy.
"I can trim it, if you'd like," Jean Bart offered solemnly. "I cut my own hair."
"And that's why you look like a distinguished ape!" Penguin snapped at him before refocusing on Sanji. Jean Bart flipped Penguin off from behind, Shachi tutting at his friend. "And you said nothing about this? Look at the trouble caused - !"
"Before we start in on anything," Law interrupted, sheathing his weapon, "I did not see that man slip away. Nothing. No gleam, no presence – neither of you saw him, did you?"
"He appeared so suddenly next to me when I first met him," Sanji reported with discomforted, palm against his forehead in a show of self-consciousness. "Like he appeared out of thin air…"
"This was different from the time I allowed Eustess in," Sanji then mumbled. "This felt like…a…"
"You wouldn't have the experience to know correctly when you were possessed, and that's how these things get away with doing what they were doing," Law snapped, sheathing his sword with impatience. "That's why I tried to warn you."
"Robin," he then said crossly while Sanji scowled at him, plucking at his hair, "you say you've been watching. How could you not notice him skulking about, watching us?"
Robin smiled thinly at him. "Yet neither of us has noticed that Gin has walked away. Sanji," she said to the blonde while Law scowled, "when you noticed Gin was taking over, what was the first thing you noticed about the occupation?"
"He talked about needing a haircut!" Luffy interrupted. "On the street! He looked at himself in a window and started whining about his hair."
"Gin had very short hair," Robin confirmed while Sanji did remember feeling out of sorts when he saw his reflection in the café window. "It would be the first time he'd seen himself in a very long time. From that point on, what do you remember differently?"
"Feeling like I couldn't breathe in my apartment. I opened every window," Sanji said slowly. "And I was…very hungry. Pretty sure the place is a mess right now. I felt…like a tired man recovering from…intense, emotional shock."
After some contemplation, he added, "we had a conversation when I grew aware of his presence."
Law looked at him sharply, hanging his banner case over one shoulder. "A conversation?"
Sanji nodded slowly. "Both of us addressed each other – "
"Before the layering?"
"No."
Law stared at him with confusion, while Sanji explained, "All he talked about was getting revenge for his dog. That he shouldn't be blamed for the crimes he'd supposedly committed. I feel like…he's telling the truth. The feelings behind it was all so raw and real…."
"Any ghost would convince you that they were if they felt it strongly enough, but he - !"
Robin cleared her throat delicately. Law gave an impatient sigh.
With some visible struggle, he muttered, "It's good to have a different perspective in something like this."
Sanji watched him cautiously for a few moments, then said quietly, "I understand my boundaries. I want to abide by your caution, but…if this thing is as separate as he says, then perhaps we should try to understand that he's telling the truth."
"Law," Robin said before the older man could speak, "trust."
"The only way we can be sure of this is if both of them were in the same place at the same time," Luffy insisted, hands in his pockets while wearing a confused frown. "So…how should we do that? He's mad at you, isn't he? That's why he came up to the place where we were."
"How did it know that's where you all were to attempt to cause a scene?" Law asked him.
"Because it's following you around, stupid. Jeez, for a supposedly smart guy, you act dumb."
Law's face reddened as Luffy gave an impatient shake of his head. Sanji pulled his lips between his teeth to avoid showing expression. Penguin stared at Law with slow moving disdain while Shachi stared up at the bar's ceiling lights, enraptured by them.
"All I'm suggesting," Law said tightly, "is that both of them seem to be in the same vicinity as the other, and is aware of the other's presence, which goes without explanation that our levels of suspicion should be unwavered."
"Take a breath, sometimes, old man," Luffy sighed. "Stop using such big words to sound impressive."
"Get me a lock box," Law hissed at Penguin furiously, who wiped his face with a surprised complaint.
"Say it, don't spray it!"
Hands up to placate the situation, Sanji eased between the older man and the teen that rubbed at his nose without any indication of distress to the man's growing temper. "Both of you are right in your own ways," he said slowly. "Luffy, Law is allowed his suspicions because of his experience, and Luffy, you're right – Law, it's following you around because it used you to impersonate. This other person – "
"What's the kid saying?" Shachi asked curiously. "Because Law never really gets that pissed unless he's being outmastered by some clever dude."
"You think I'm clever?" Luffy cried happily. "I think I just made a friend!"
"Wonderful!" Robin said with a bright smile.
"His name is Gin," Robin then supplied to Sanji.
Sanji nodded to thank her. "Gin…well, he was in the area when the tire went flat. But the other thing is a beast that uses shadows to keep its form – "
"But neither of you guys were actually looking for it, because you were both busy having some kind of heart to heart," Penguin pointed out impatiently. Sanji gave him a long, irritated stare. "…I've beaten men for friendlier stares than that, punk."
"Stop the violence!" Shachi cried, hugging him from behind.
"We don't know for sure if they are separate entities," Jean Bart supplied over their rising voices. He wore a troubled expression, trying to follow the voices of the living to create an understanding of the matter. "That's the quandary, here. If they/it/he is upset at Law…then perhaps Trafalgar should make himself available for a conversation with either."
"That's right, give away our plans," Penguin snapped at him, hand thrusting in the air, "because it sounds to me like they're hanging around us, all invisible, and seem to know what we're trying to do!"
"That's the problem," Robin said with a sigh.
"You said you were watching – were you watching him?" Law asked her. "Gin?"
"No."
"You were watching over me," Sanji said, sensing her lack of explanation was attributed to her method of, "don't ask, don't tell". "Robin, when you questioned him over the train situation, what were you alluding to?"
"There is a library downtown that has the archives you should seek," Robin said lightly. "Your answers could be found there. For me to give them aloud would be dangerous."
"Then we go to the library, because there's an answer there we should know about," Law said with some relief.
"It's so weird listening to a one-sided conversation," Shachi commented, scratching at his ear. "Because I hear two dudes talking in such a way that I get the gist of the subject, but not the context."
"This is why I'm so angry all the time," Penguin snarled, fists at his sides.
"Somehow, it's the government's fault, man! They're making us bonkers!"
Jean Bart sighed lightly.
"God, books," Luffy complained. "I hated libraries. Man, I hope you don't expect me to help in this part."
"Why can't you just flush the guy out again, kill him, then wait and see if the other thing shows up? If that thing doesn't show up, then we did our part!" Penguin cried impatiently. "What does a library have to do with this mess?"
"It's a good thing your group relies on your decisions," Robin told Law, turning away from them to walk through a nearby wall.
Law inhaled and exhaled patiently. "First…bathroom break. All that beer caught up."
"Finally, man, I was dying," Shachi complained, prancing from foot to foot.
"Second, Jean Bart, layers. At this time, the library will be closed, and Shachi's expertise with technology will be valuable, at this point, in breaking into a locked facility."
"It's so amazing that I can be so smart," Shachi whispered with awe, fingers pressed to his mouth while Penguin groaned noisily.
"Penguin…your negativity will be useful," Law said slowly. "It's strong enough for that thing to be interested."
"Thanks….I think," Penguin muttered with a confused frown.
Law looked at Luffy, scowling down at the teen while Luffy looked up at him with a serious frown. "And you…make a point of noticing things. Be useful."
"I don't even know what this guy looks like, but I guess I can pick out a stalker," Luffy said with a lack of confidence.
Law glanced at Sanji but walked away without saying anything, Shachi crying out in horror over a "group pee". Sanji frowned after him, unsure of what could be said.
: :
The library downtown was closed when they approached it. While the evening had comfortably settled in that streetlights were bright and the sky reflected the light from below with a light layering of clouds, it wasn't dark enough for them to approach without being noticed. Shachi was looking over his laptop – after being layered, he was now "modernized" in a hoodie with a vest, ripped jeans and sneakers, his "butchered" hair all swept back underneath a trucker's hat. He'd disposed of the hideous glasses he was wearing for some polarized Ray Bans and was snapping at some gum while his fingers flew over the laptop. Penguin watched him with a look of revulsion.
"I want to beat you soundly, but I'm not sure why," Penguin murmured with a thoughtful expression. "Nerd."
"Your love speaks volumes, buddy! There's not much of a security system in a library, but it is alarmed," Shachi said assuredly. "There's still a worker present – I hacked into the cameras, and she's hanging out at her desk, looking through Pinterest. The hallway to the archive section is in the basement – that's the only camera. To get there, we need to bypass the main desk where she's hanging out."
"Enhance that picture," Luffy commanded, tapping on the screen. "Enhance…enhance…enhance…"
Shachi then wiggled with discomfort. "My back friggin' hurts, guys. What the hell did you do to me?"
Sanji remembered that Luffy had slapped the man on the back, but he wondered why the redhead hadn't felt the injury until now.
"I told you, some ghost slapped the shit out of you for being a beatnik," Penguin told him impatiently, Shachi blinking at him.
"What's a beatnik?"
"LAW."
"Children, please," Law said, rubbing at his temples. The van was crowded with everyone's presence, and Jean Bart drank calmly from an opened can. He wanted to talk to Sanji, but it seemed that they just couldn't achieve any privacy with so much happening. At the moment, Law was wrestling with himself – he wanted to say something about Sanji's newly cut hair; give him some awkward compliment; express something about his concerns over Gin's appearance; something, anything, but there were too many people around them to say anything. (coward)
As much as he was obsessing over that moment on the sidewalk, it seemed Sanji wasn't taking any offence. He was staring out the window with a frown, occasionally catching his reflection to fiddle with his hair with self-conscious combing and petting. Law could see his movements from the corner of his eye.
They were sitting side by side, and though the concept was very obvious, he wanted to rest his leg against the other's, if only just to touch him casually. But it felt awkward. He felt awkward. Admittedly, it was hard to focus on what they were doing when he was just so aware of the other man next to him.
"It doesn't make sense that we're doing this," Penguin then complained from the front passenger seat, forehead against the closed window. Shachi minimized the window he was watching, revealing an anime girl in a bikini as his wallpaper as he found another window. Luffy looked at him with revulsion as Shachi logged onto Youtube to search for the latest memes. Sanji stared out the window, hands folded in his lap as he struggled not to be drawn into the rising tension within the van. Law was very tense next to him, emitting some powerful strain that made Sanji think he should be on the offence, and he didn't understand why.
"He attacked the van," Jean Bart then said from the driver's seat, watching the main road from the quiet, dimly light area they were parked in. "Shredded a tire so badly so that we were forced to linger in the area. The puncture wasn't caused by a knife or other sharp object, Law. It was shredded right off the rim. There are claw marks visible right on the metal."
Law nodded to acknowledge this. Focus.
"Was it the demon? Or was it Gin? And why do so if he just wanted to talk?" Jean Bart shook his head. "Something fishy here, and I'm just not sure what it is…"
"At this point, we don't know if they're separate entities," Law murmured. "How was he an individual to take over Sanji when the demon was but an animal when it hitched a ride through me? Sanji, you didn't feel like an animal, did you?"
"No…" Sanji answered with a furrowed brow. "I felt very human."
"My audio and scent senses were enhanced, while I was…vaguely agitated," Law mumbled with remembrance over this morning's actions. "But I did not realize what was happening until Sanji brought attention to it."
"Gleams are capable of being layered in such a way that they can piggyback atop of one another, and this is something we already know," Jean Bart said. "Perhaps they were piggybacking atop of each other, with the demon being the stronger being, and perhaps Gin escaped its clutches…but how?"
"Gleams pick off their host's nature," Law then said to Sanji directly, who felt heavy with insecurity and confusion, "and take on those individual quirks. But you mentioned you had a conversation with him while he was layered over you."
"It was a very real thing because my voice changed every time," Sanji said.
"That's impossible."
"It happened. I was facing a mirror. Every time he spoke, my face…did that thing, and his voice was the one coming out of me," Sanji reported with hesitation. "It was very odd…"
"None of the layers Law wore ever did such a thing," Jean Bart said, looking at them through the rearview mirror. "For an entity to have the strength to do that…one has to question whether it was actually Gin or not. You all said it attempted to copy Law's physical form."
"Why can't this broad just be straight up with us?" Penguin asked with impatience, glaring out the window. "Why come to a library to read about some dumb shit?"
"It's an old building," Shachi said, snapping his gum. "It was once part of a property years ago that included an old mill. That place was paved down and removed to what you see now! They bulldozed most of the building down to erect this one in 1990, but the archive is located right where the original foundation was, so it's got history inside of it."
"And so?"
"Leftover paranormal residue, my angry dude. Residue reacts with certain personalities," Shachi stressed, thumb indicating the pair behind him.
"But Robin had to leave town to find out her information," Law said with uncertainty. "She didn't find it here."
"Then this building is a mystery!" Shachi exclaimed, muting his video.
"Maybe we're not reading something," Sanji said slowly, "but meeting someone who knows better."
"If we meet another weirdo, I swear to god…" Penguin mumbled, fixing his hair.
"Surely your past adventures brought you to the place already," Sanji said. "So shouldn't you know who is there?"
"No, because we're usually just killing," Penguin muttered against the glass, fogging it ever so slightly with his breath.
"How many boxes do we have left?" Law asked Jean Bart.
"After inventory, after Shachi, about twenty," Jean Bart replied. "The ones we've lost have definitely put a hole in the supply."
Wearing a pensive expression, Law considered his options. Sanji furrowed his brow. "That time I was in there, there were rows upon rows of boxes…"
"Many have faded, and I'm using the oldest ones we have. Naturally…they find their way," Law murmured. "Whomever it was that destroyed the layers I was wearing that night…destroyed all of them. Which added to the hole."
I don't get it, Sanji thought with a bewildered face. If gleams naturally fade…then why hasn't Robin vanished? Or Gin?
He then pressed a hand to his chest, feeling alarmed. Is he absolutely positive he's gone…? What if I'm him and don't realize it…?
Is it okay that one's interest resembles the last? Law wondered with indecision. Is it okay to admire someone just because he looks like him? It isn't him, though, so what if it's only misunderstood…? Am I an asshole?
"She's leaving," Shachi reported, glancing out the window. All of them watched as the lights dimmed considerably within the building, and the last worker walked briskly to her car in the parking lot nearby. Shachi pulled up his screens, Luffy looking over his shoulder skeptically. "In ten minutes, I will turn off the alarms and buzz out that camera facing the archives door. Then it's all up to you."
"I brought along extras," Jean Bart assured Law. "In the back."
Law exhaled uneasily. Sanji could see that he was visibly wrestling with himself.
"Did you piss enough, or do you gotta do it again?" he asked with irritation, because the man's tension was driving him insane. "Because you're so tense that it's suspicious…"
I needed that, Law thought with relief. His body relaxed ever so slightly, and he could feel it in the relaxation of his shoulders and legs. I needed him to say something.
"What I don't get is if they were watching us," Penguin mumbled, combing his hair thoughtfully over his face, "is why they just don't mob in and kick our ass? Why draw it out?"
"How many cases have we completed throughout the years, bro?" Shachi asked him, Ray Bans shoved up his nose as he snapped at his gum.
"A lot," Penguin stressed.
"And sometimes, ghost-bros comment on that they knew who we were, right?"
"…Yeah…I guess…"
"So, goes to say that dude knows who we are. Our rep extends through the otherworld to make ghosts uneasy. This guy knows our rep – be best to stand by and prepare instead."
"Makes sense…"
"Probably makes it a little more difficult knowing that there is someone that can touch them like they're still alive," Jean Bart added.
"Ripping ghostie hearts out like freaking Scorpion!" Shachi laughed, reaching over Law to push Sanji's shoulder while Sanji cringed at the memory, prompting him to wipe his hand on his jeans. Luffy looked at the blond with wide eyes.
Hand on his chest, he asked Sanji, "you can do that?"
"Let's get this over with," Law muttered, pushing at Shachi to let them out.
: :
Fifteen minutes later, Luffy stared at Law with mute silence while Sanji uncomfortably shrugged on the long black jacket Law often coated himself with. This Law in front of them was pulling on the brown jacket Sanji was wearing with a satisfied exhale. The man, once layered with the gleams Jean Bart had brought along, had taken on a different stance and manner that made the younger pair uncomfortable.
He'd slicked his hair back with hair gel Jean Bart kept in the glove compartment, teeth clamped around a toothpick. His chin jutted out ever so slightly, shoulders up and back with a rigid stance. He'd removed his tie and unbuttoned his shirt to show off his tattoos. Shachi held onto his laptop with an embarrassed cringe while Penguin's lips were curled with disgust.
"Who's this guy?" Luffy asked. Law looked down at him – a dart of his eyes to take in the boy's appearance with nothing more than dismissal. He then looked around himself with consideration, adjusting the jacket subtly at his shoulders.
"This place stinks," Law muttered, toothpick fluttering at his lips. "What a shit house. At least the sea masks those smells…"
"Sir, your shirt's rather…slovenly," Penguin pointed out dully.
"You giving me fashion tips, son?"
Southern accent? Sanji wondered, furrowing his brow as he focused on the sound.
Penguin's chin lifted ever so slightly. "There's that strange urge to beat someone to a pulp again…it gets stronger every time I look at you."
"I'd like to see it happen. You'll find yourself walking away with a shaved head, and I promise you, I do not have a knife on me. I'll just use my di – "
"SCIENCE says you can't actually do that," Shachi interjected hastily once he recognized where this was going.
"I was going to say teeth, son. Don't get your moist panties in a wad."
"Some of these gleams haven't been used in a long while," Jean Bart said apologetically to Sanji and Luffy, "and one of them was an old vice admiral from the Navy some years back. We actually removed him an old warship on the east coast years ago…"
"Enough chatter, we got us a job to do," Law snapped, voice surprisingly commanding. Shachi mockingly saluted him, Penguin crossing his arms over his chest with stubborn disdain. "You jokes stay here, watch the perimeters. For fuck's sake, be a man about it. Jean Bart, the vehicle should be running. Considering the adversary, it'd be unwise to be unprepared."
"What do we do, sir?" Luffy asked him tentatively.
Law looked at him and Sanji once again, lip curling. "Bait. Once the shooting starts, either handle it or cover me so I could."
Sanji rolled his eyes while Luffy saluted him clumsily. "Wow. The machismo from all these old eras is one big clusterfuck of shitty combinations..."
"You want me to be more feminine, consider your feelings?" Law asked him, eyebrow lifted as his hands settled at his hips. Sanji couldn't help but briefly admire the sight of his tattooed flesh, incredulous how all those muscles flexed with the simplest of movements. He adjusted his borrowed jacket with embarrassed discomfort (it's been too long…!). "I'll do it when you're dead. More useful to me then. You can take point, know-it-all."
"Lucky bastard," Luffy whispered enviously to Sanji.
"You're a ghost. You can do whatever the fuck you want," Sanji reminded him, Luffy looking at him with a start.
"Just remember," Jean Bart whispered to Sanji, "the stronger the gleam, the stronger he is. You'll be using him to get in and out of the place. Also, don't worry about his attitude, too much. Despite his appearance, he's actually quite just and won't allow harm to come to you."
Sanji looked at Law with doubt, watching him remove the toothpick from his mouth with visible disgust before stuffing it back between his teeth. "But there's more than one layer, so why is one just…taking over?"
"The stronger the gleam…more personality chips will show through, it's not just this one."
Law looked over at them with impatience. After adjusting the banner case strap around his chest, he removed the lid, pulling on the sword's handle to allow it enough room for him to grab comfortably. "Giving away my secrets, corporal? No matter. Let's go. I'm not wasting all my time jabbering away about nothing."
Sanji watched Law and Luffy stalk to the library, Luffy attempting to mimic the rather confident stride the older man had. He rolled his eyes to the sky, but couldn't help but draw the jacket collar up to his nose so he could better inhale the scent lingering on the fabric.
: :
The silence in the library was thick and tense. While it didn't have the same inviting atmosphere as the bookstore, it felt like every room and hall was full of life. Their footsteps were heavy on the gleaming floor, Luffy tripping over various obstacles with light curses. Not that every level was dark – the lights were lit in various panel groups here and there, allowing them enough light to see it all. The library was two stories, broad, but it seemed the shelves of books were overpowered by open areas designated for plays, children's play areas and activity sections. Conference rooms were closed, demanding a key from the librarian to access.
"Scout ahead of us, kid," Law directed Luffy with a wave of his head, indicating a forward direction. He pulled his sword out from the case, brandishing the weapon with a flick before resting it over one shoulder. "I need to speak privately with this one, here."
"Aw, man, don't leave me out of an important conversation!" Luffy complained.
"Ya wanna hear some private stuff? Then stick around."
"Let's not do this right now," Sanji suggested as Luffy made a face and hurried forward. "Whatever is private can wait for an appropriate time."
"This shit is bothering me," Law stressed, stopping in mid-step to look down at him, toothpick flicking from side to side. He wore a reluctant expression as Sanji crossed his arms defensively, frowning at him. His fingers clenched tightly around the purple rope so that it made a slight sound of protest. The blade gleamed brilliantly underneath the dull ceiling lights above them. "I'm too aware of you. This task? Is nothing but background noise until I get this situation right."
Sanji reluctantly considered his words. With some tentative action (for his own concentration really), he reached up and buttoned up the white shirt while the man watched him. Once he had the collar stiffly straightened, he nodded. "Okay. Go ahead. Your man boobs are really distracting. They're too proud."
"I didn't mean to reject you back there," Law told him (quite sternly, his southern accent heavy with remorse), "but don't take it personal. I don't know how to ask for an invitation. I don't know how to accept an invitation. This shit is awkward."
Sanji wasn't sure what to say, wearing a puzzled expression while he understood that this gleam was speaking upon the stronger of Law's quirks. The truth, he realized. This is the truth. But spoken from another man's lips...should I be angry he can only speak truthfully in that sense? No…because I did it, too.
"Different people," Law murmured, toothpick flicking about, "but similarities are present. It freaks me out. Because I know it's different, it's not the same, but I'm not sure if it's okay for me to accept because some mannerisms are similar to his, so…"
"Like cheating on a twin, kiddo," he added awkwardly. "I know I can't be with one, but is it alright to be with another from the same family?"
"Oh, what a question to ask," Sanji murmured with consternation. "Because I don't know how to answer that shit."
"Look." Sword settled over one shoulder, one of Law's palms were upright and out. "Let's get this straight."
"None of this is straight…?"
"Both of us have feelings for each other. That ain't something to deny. It's obvious. You know it, I know it. You think I don't notice that hungry look on your face every time you stare at my impressive chest?"
Sanji bloomed with color and looked away with mortification. Smirking, Law said, "And you can't pretend that I don't look at you like I'm afraid of losing something. I believe we already made this clear, right?"
Sanji nodded, jaw moving from side to side. He made to hide behind his hair, but it was cut too short for him to find safety behind a frizzy screen. It hung like a blond wall over his glasses and grazed the bridge of his nose and ears like a curtain.
"I'm an awkward man, kid," Law continued with a grim shake of his head, "it's been some time since I allowed myself some softness. Don't let that discourage you."
"But I mean…it'd help if you, no matter how it looks, tried, too," Sanji said slowly, stumbling because this strange man was looking at him from Law's face and it was so very awkward. "Like…sometimes I want to be touched too, y'know? Acknowledged. You try very hard not to, and…sometimes I think if you want to just do it, just…fucking do it."
"You were spoiled rotten by that other guy, weren't ya?" Law asked with thinly disguised disdain.
"I didn't like men until he approached me, so I know for a fact touch is a powerful thing," Sanji snapped at him indignantly. "I went from hating men to being – molested in a back alley and liking it! So, yes, I realize the power of touch, and even if you can't say something, something that's very difficult to say – just…touch me. I'm afraid to touch you because you – act like I've just burnt you, so…I need that reassurance from you, too."
"This is good, see, this communication is good between us," Law encouraged him, unbuttoning his collar to breathe. His accent slipped, Sanji realized, looking at him cautiously. Sure enough, Law's rigid shoulders dropped and he was clasping his hands together (blade of his sword coming dangerously close to his neck!) and he seemed to arch in a feminine manner. "What pitiful fools we are, we deserve all the negativity that happens because we can't even be real with ourselves! I suggest that you go back and do it all over again! None of this is cute!"
He stiffened, then resorted back to the vice admiral while Sanji watched him with goosebumps breaking out over his neck and arms. Fixing his hair, Law resumed his earlier stance like it hadn't happened.
I can't take him seriously, Sanji thought with horror. He cupped his mouth with one hand, trying not to become hysterical.
"Yes, we are fools," he shakily agreed.
"After I say these things, I don't understand why it's that hard to express it in the first place," Law then murmured with difficulty. "It's a relief to get it off my chest."
He unbuttoned a few more buttons from his shirt, the stripes of the heart starting to grow visible. Sanji focused elsewhere to concentrate on the conversation. Studying the other man for a few moments, Law reached out to touch him – Sanji prevented that with a hand to lightly slap it away.
"You're welcome to continue this when you're you," he said firmly. "You're speaking from another's mouth, intending on touching with another's hand, and it's yours I want those things from. Anything else in that form – is disloyalty."
"Fair. I needed to clear the air. I am relieved that it went well. Where's that brat?" Law then asked, looking around for Luffy. "I told him to scout ahead, not hide like an ass."
They continued forward, Sanji exhaling lightly. Once he noticed movement from the other man, he snapped impatiently, "Could you stop undressing yourself?"
"My skin can't breathe." Pausing short, Law tensed ever so slightly while Sanji frowned up at him with bewilderment to that statement. Luffy stepped out from the restroom corridor, face tense with concentration, and Sanji realized that the air had a slight crackling sound in it. It made him think of black tipped hands, and his senses jolted with recognition. He heard something whisper against the carpeted floor nearby, nearly at the same time as sneakers hit the floor. From the corner of his eye, Sanji saw Law turn with sword at defensive angling while Luffy flung himself at them.
Sanji heard a slap of impact, so he whirled around in time to see Luffy launch himself to kick a man right off his feet. At the same time, the telltale hissing of static behind him told him that Law was facing off with the thing that used the shadows around it to build in strength and form.
"Luffy," Law barked, in defensive stance as the demon's spikes began to vibrate with noise, red eyes blooming red as the lights dimmed even further above it.
Seeing his task accomplished, Luffy made a fist then turned to Sanji, fingertips raised and body curved over. "Fusion Dance, Sanji!" he ordered, wiggling his fingers as Gin slowly picked himself up from the floor. "Hurry! Our lives depend on it!"
"Hell no, I'm not doing some dumb dance - !" Sanji started to snarl when Law barked his name with command. With an irritated sigh, Sanji touched Luffy's wiggling fingers. In moments he took on a defensive stance, fists at the ready. "Time to kick some ass and smoke some grass, boys!"
"Not it, punk!" Law snapped at him, the creature lowering itself to snarl viciously at them, Gin watching the men from his position with a hint of a smirk to his lips. "Get serious, you don't know what could happen, here."
"Oh, I'm way serious," Luffy assured him with Sanji's face (jacket flung off and abandoned on the floor). "I can't wait to kick some bony ghost ass! Shit stain on my life right now, because I don't know what I'm doing, but I'm gonna do it with ultimate confidence! This is what I love!"
"You got too much love," Law muttered, toothpick moving from side to side. "Doesn't make sense that you're here without a treasured item like the rest of us."
"Let's not worry about that right now," Luffy told him, grinning. "Inconsequential to the activity at hand!"
Robin, Law thought crossly. Where'd you find this kid?
