Hey everybody,

so after a long day of practice exam, working, and a little bit of fresh air I finally found the time to upload this new chapter ;-) before going grocery shopping, because that needs to be done too...
I hope you will enjoy this new chapter and wish you all a pleasent weekend ;-)

See you next week!

Chapter 5 - Breakfast

"Oh God, they're delicious!"

After a nerve-wracking morning, Rosinante had earned his breakfast. He had not expected Law to talk about his fears so easily due to a simple question, but it only showed how desperately Law yearned to finally open up to somebody.

It was true, although Rosinante hardly knew the adult Law, he had the strange feeling that Law had not changed as much as Law himself probably feared. Of course he had grown - beard and tattoos did the rest - and of course he had changed, but the way he still turned his gaze away when he wanted to hide something, the way he turned away when he couldn't bear to be seen, but especially the way he looked at Rosinante, quite blatantly, as if Law could see into the depths of his soul, the way he sometimes smiled and the way he spoke matter-of-factly when emotions became too dangerous for him.

All of this was still there, perhaps slightly modified, altered, enhanced, or lessened, but it was still there, Law was still Law.

But it was also true that Rosinante had spent a restless, long night thinking about all of this. He had quickly realized that Law had not been able to fall asleep as easily as he had previously claimed, but to Rosinante's quiet horror, he had not been able to silence the quiet and loud noises of the night.

At first, he had panicked, had wanted to wake Law, but then he had noticed that Law had actually fallen asleep and decided against it. It had confused him - he was still very concerned - but if he was honest, he had already experienced stranger things during the last few hours, so he had decided to let Law sleep and tackle one problem at a time.

So he had spent the night watching Law; he had woken up several times, had turned from left to right, sighed quietly in the short phases of peaceful sleep. Those had been the moments when Rosinante had realized that things hadn't really changed in 17 years. Even then, he had liked to watch Law slumber peacefully, even then he had been worried every time Law had bent over in pain or nightmares, and even then Rosinante had wished for him nothing more than that Law would sleep peacefully.

Like back then, when Law had been haunted by his dreams as a child, Rosinante had offered his hand, and like at that time, Law had grabbed it without even waking up and had slept more peacefully afterwards. At one point, Rosinante had fallen asleep, his hand still clasped by Law.

Now he was sitting here after frantically trying to wash himself in the tiny shower - and only falling down about five times before he had decided to just stay on his knees – and having a brief nostalgic moment with little tears over the pink-hearted shirt, he had decided that a few rice balls from last night weren't enough to satisfy his hunger, so he had followed Law's directions and ended up in a small lounge room with aromatic coffee and a king's breakfast.

The chairs here were also tiny, so he had settled on the back of a small two-seater, the cup of tasty – hot! – coffee on a bookshelf to his right and in his hand a plate with all kinds of delicacies.

Repeatedly his gaze glided over to the table by the window. There, almost innocently, lay a folded newspaper. Rolling his eyes, he focused on his coffee again. On the one hand, he was curious about what had happened in the world, what he had really missed in the last 17 years, but it worried him even more.

So far, the missed 17 years were little more for him than a strange dream in which Law had grown up and his brother was defeated. So far, the only thing he had missed was Law's youth. So far, Law's dark voice and worry lines were the only thing that proved to him that he had missed 17 years. He was afraid that this newspaper would prove to him that it really wasn't a dream. If he reached for it and read the date, the last doubts – the last hope – would be refuted by facts.

Sighing, Rosinante placed the empty plate next to him on the backrest. No, he wouldn't let this fear define him, wouldn't delay the inevitable just because it was easier, because this way he could believe for a few minutes, hours, days longer an insane hope that he had not failed, had not left Law not alone, and had not let his brother get away.

No, he had known for hours that he was responsible for all this because he had not pushed the trigger, because he had not been able to do what he had been told to do. All Law had to go through during the last few years, what the world had to endure because of Doflamingo, all this was his fault and his responsibility and he would not evade it just because he was too cowardly to look at a newspaper.

He emptied his cup – and burned his tongue; why was the coffee so damn hot?! – and pushed himself off the backrest. Suspiciously, he stepped towards the table, and was already able to identify the figures that confirmed the inevitable.

1528

Suddenly the door behind him opened.

"Yes, Ninnin, I know, I know, and... there you are."

He turned around. Law stood in the door frame in his doctor's coat and looked quite as grownup and professional as one would want a doctor to look like. What more evidence did Rosinante actually want?

"Law," he replied with a smile, ignoring such gloomy thoughts. He had known what was going to happen, so there was no reason to be overwhelmed by the feeling of helplessness. "You were looking for me?"

The other shrugged and closed the door behind him.

"Not really. I already suspected that you were here and since we have a moment off, I wanted to check on you."

"Are you worried about me?" Rosinante thought it was an unfounded joke as he fetched plate and cup and brought them to the sink. Law's serious facial expression, however, revealed that he had hit the mark. Law did worry about him.

Again, the other shrugged and came to Rosinante to wash his hands at the sink.

"Mrs. Paipai says I should take a few days off," Law muttered without looking up. "She thinks it's good for me because you've finally woken up. I think she's aware that you're not just some patient. She has an eye for something like this and is generally very ..."

"Would you want to do that?" Rosinante asked as Law threatened to stray off topic and dried his cup.

"I don't know," Law admitted, before sighing and rubbing his face and then walking through the room to a chair and settling down. "She's right that I'm not as focused as I should. I mean, I know it's ridiculous, but I imagine thousands of funny scenarios that could happen to you. How am I supposed to focus on paperwork?"

Of course, it was ridiculous for Law to worry about him, but even if Rosinante really wanted to assure him that nothing bad would happen to him, he knew very well that rational words could not soothe irrational fears.

He wanted to tell Law that children shouldn't worry about adults, because he probably would have told him that back then, but Law was no longer a child and for 17 years he had been worried about Rosinante, maybe even longer, and Law was right; he had trusted Rosinante when he had told him that nothing would happen to him, that his brother would not shoot despite all his anger, that Law had nothing to worry about and only had to stay in the box for a few minutes.

No wonder Law was plagued by such fears. Actually, much more astonishing was that Law was so willing to talk about it. But Rosinante suspected that the reason was just as simple. Back then Law had at some point opened up to him, had trusted him at some point, and despite everything that had happened, despite everything that Law had become, this little familiarity seemed to have lasted within his subconscious and still persisted even now.

"But on the other side," Law continued, crossing his legs, and reaching for a rice ball, obviously ignorant of Rosinante's inner emotional chaos, "I also have a responsibility here. Also..." Now Law interrupted himself and looked out the window.

"Also what?" Rosinante asked, leaning against the wall next to the window to keep an eye on Law. He was yearning for a cigarette again, but how could he ask Law for one.

Smiling quietly, Law shook his head.

"You're going to think I'm crazy, even more than already."

"I won't."

The other looked at him briefly and then poured himself some coffee.

"It's pretty contradictory. Although I've been waiting for this for 17 years, waiting for you to come back, hear your voice, see you smile, it's... difficult too." He drank a little sip. "On one hand, I want to spend as much time as possible with you, I want to laugh with you, and I want to hear all your stories. I want it to be the same as it used to be. But on the other hand, I'm afraid of the questions you're going to ask and that it won't be the way it used to be."

"It's not going to be like it used to be," Rosinante said, pushing himself off the wall. In front of Law, he squatted on the other chair, which was simply far too small and uncomfortable, but at least they were now almost on par when he leaned forward. "But that doesn't mean it has to be something bad. You're not the little boy anymore and the world has changed and I'm going to change, that's the course of things."

He smiled at the other and could see that these serious corners of Law's mouth were also twitching.

"I also want to spend time with you, hear your stories, and laugh with you, but I want you to feel good while doing so. You don't have to tell me anything you'd rather not think about, you don't have to reveal anything you don't feel confident about just yet, and if you worry that too much time together at once is too threatening, then we don't have to do that. We have time, Law, as long as you need, as long as you want. Let's start with small steps, a coffee break, dinner, and you can interrupt at any time if it gets too much for you."

For a long time, Law just looked at him, and Rosinante wondered if he had gone too far, whether he had misinterpreted Law's words and gaze.

"Have you always been so incredibly understanding?" Law finally muttered, slightly tilting his head. "Actually, I should be the one to say such things to you. Actually, I should be the one to take care of you. You are the one who was thrown into this time completely unprepared, and yet you are still the more grownup of the two of us."

Law rubbed his face and shook his head again.

"Although I'm now older than you are, you're still the adult and I'm the stupid kid you're taking into consideration."

"Oh, that's not true," Rosinante replied. "You know, of course it hurts that I missed 17 years, missed seeing you grow up, missed what happened in this world and couldn't stop what my brother did, but my suffering is barely a day old, what is that compared to your years of pain? I am not the more grownup of the two of us, Law, I am only the one who needs to heal less from all the wounds, all the suffering, and that is why I can take care of you. Because my pain is endurable, but I can hardly bear to see you suffer like this."

Now the other looked up to him, an almost surprised expression on this adult face.

"I don't know what to answer," Law finally muttered, without interrupting their eye contact for once. "You always say something like that so directly, as if it were the easiest thing in the world. You make it really easy to talk to you, I completely forgot that, completely forgot how easy it is to talk to you."

And then he smiled; a smile for which Rosinante would give everything, would do anything. He seemed truly happy.

"I'm happy about that," Rosinante said, smiling as well. "I am glad that you find it easy to talk to me. You know you can always be honest with me and I promise you that I will never lie to you again."

"That sounds good." Law took a second onigiri.

For a brief moment, the world seemed to be getting a little bit better. Rosinante felt that gradually all things were falling into place. After the deep confusion and emotional moments of the previous day, they both seemed to be looking forward today.

He was pleased – unspeakably happy – to hear from Law what he wanted for his future and that he wanted Rosinante to be a part of it, and now he felt that things might be starting to normalize. Of course, they would not become the same overnight as they had been for Rosinante until a few days ago, of course there was still a lot of things unsaid and unquestioned in the room. But if they were able to deal openly with each other, to trust each other, if this time Rosinante could really dare to be honest with Law... the idea alone made him incredibly happy, and yet...

"What's going on, Cora-san?"

Surprised, he looked up. Law just licked a grain of rice from his fingers and looked at him from big eyes.

"You've got that look again," Law said, leaning over the table and grabbing a cup and coffee pot, "that look when you think about something you couldn't talk to me about back then."

Oh, and he thought he was the one who knew the other well. But it seemed Law knew him all too well, too. It was true that the big eyes of young children saw much more than adults would like to believe, and Law had always been a good observer.

Well, he had pushed himself quite nicely into the corner. Rosinante had been so pleased that Law was opening up to him, had been so relieved that Law had not turned him down, even though he knew Rosinante was a soldier, he had become euphoric about all this, and had completely forgotten that he had been the one who had never been honest, who had lied first to his brother and then to Law. Of course, Law had noticed it back then, he had always been incredibly smart, much smarter than Rosinante himself.

Rosinante had tried to believe that he had done it to protect Law, to save a bit of his childish naivety, but also to not expose himself to his hatred.

But Law was no longer a child, had given up all this childish naivety, but most importantly, he did not hate Rosinante.

So, the whole situation was plainly simple, if he wanted to show Law that he could open up to Rosinante, no matter what atrocities and abysses he hid, Rosinante would have to do the same. If he really wanted to respect the adult Law and did not want to continue to see the boy from back then, then he could not continue to protect Law unquestioned and leave things out. He had to let Law decide for himself how much he wanted to hear or not.

"And? What conclusion did you come to?" Law muttered into his cup, not letting him out of sight for a second, while Rosinante wracked his mind. Things shouldn't be so complicated; he shouldn't have to brood for hours.

"Oh, I think I've dragged myself into a mess," he finally said, looking at the other, who still had this incredibly neutral expression on his face, which Rosinante almost envied. "Yes, it's true, I promised not to ask anything you don't want to answer. Nevertheless, there is something I need an answer to, and you may be the only one who can give it to me. Not that I could ask anyone else," he added quietly.

"Just ask," Law replied, placing his cup on the table. "I knew you'd have a lot of questions and to be honest, so far you've asked a lot less than I expected."

It was true, he had an unbelievable number of questions and he was almost afraid of the answers, but this alone would never have been enough, but he had held back to not make it even more difficult for the little Law when the whole situation was already difficult.

But before him sat not the thirteen-year-old boy he had wanted to protect from the cruelty of the world, but the adult Law, who had probably experienced more than Rosinante had wanted him to, perhaps even more than he had experienced himself.

"Last night," he finally said, looking at his hand, "you slept quite restlessly, and I wanted to make the world a little quieter for you, but I couldn't."

Now he looked at the other again, who did not dodge his gaze.

"Do you know anything about it? Why I can't use my devil powers?"

He was expecting something different. He had expected Law to become pale, perhaps to lower his gaze, but the other simply looked at him, a slight resignation in those deep eyes. Then Law sighed and poured himself some more coffee, looking even older than he already was.

"I've suspected that," he muttered, and continued to hold Rosinante's gaze with ease, "I think you've lost your devil power, Cora-san. I'm sorry."

"Lost?" He repeated in doubt. "I don't think that's possible. I've never heard of anything like this."

Now Law looked at his cup.

"While I tried to save you, your heart stopped beating several times, sometimes longer than just a few seconds. Of course I didn't know, but I hadn't ruled out the possibility. I think you probably even died and apparently that was enough to lose your power. I am sorry. That's my fault."

Oh.

If Rosinante was honest, he didn't know much about the devil fruits and their powers, little more than what was commonly known, and he knew even less about medical stuff, had no idea how dead one had to be to lose one's devil powers, but Law's words made sense.

"So that means I don't have any devil powers anymore?" he muttered softly, looking at his hands.

"I'm sorry," Law repeated.

"Don't be," he said, looking up. "I'm alive, you don't need to apologize."

Suddenly an odd thought crossed his mind.

"Does that mean I can swim in the sea again?"

Now Law looked at him in amazement, probably rather bewildered.

"Wha... Probably, I guess so. Why?"

The possibilities seemed limitless. Not that he had ever been someone who would have swum a lot, and yet, sometimes one only missed certain things when it became impossible to do them anymore.

Law laughed quietly into his coffee.

"What?"

"Oh nothing." Shaking his head, Law waved off, still with this grin on his lips.

"No, tell me," he urged.

Then the other looked at him warmly smiling and Rosinante felt happiness fill him. Who needed devil powers if Law could smile at him so happily, if he could make Law so happy?

"This island here has a beautiful beach. If I have a day off, we should..."

He interrupted when the door opened, and Mrs. Paipai came in.

"Sorry for the disturbance, but Mr. and Mr. Tautau just came in."

"Oh, of course." Law rose while Mrs. Paipai closed the door again.

"Maybe she's right," Law said now, looking at him with a slight smile, "maybe I should take time off so that our conversations don't get interrupted all the time."

This time, Rosinante waved off.

"No, you have an important job and we have time." He also rose and followed Law out the door, ducking through the low door frame. "However, I have spent enough of hours brooding about life. Law, is there anything meaningful I can do instead of just waiting for you to get off work?"

Law shook his head as they walked down the hallway.

"I can't think of anything, besides, I think you should rest a little bit, after all..."

"Oh nonsense," he interrupted the other as they reached the end of the hallway and he could take a look into the entrance area of the practice for the first time, "I'm fine, thanks to you, and I think it's better for both of us if I don't sit around for hours and wait for you. You can probably concentrate better if you know I'm not wracking my mind because of this situation."

He looked at Law, but from the corners of his eyes he inspected the bright room, the large entrance door, the white counter with neatly sorted stacks of paper, the large windows with the bright curtains and a multitude of doors that probably led to the various practice rooms.

Mrs. Paipai just came back from one of these rooms.

"No, Cora-san, that's really not necessary. You don't need..."

"You could go grocery shopping," the old lady interrupted Law and gave him a telling look. "Doctor Trafalgar may be an excellent doctor, but simple things like grocery shopping or washing clothes seem to overwhelm him. I suspect that he has hardly anything in the fridge and feds on nothing but coffee and fish. Extremely unhealthy, especially for a doctor."

"Mrs. Paipai," Law tried to interrupt her, but the old lady did not let herself be put off.

"You're young and you seem to be fine. You should get some fresh air and move your muscles. In addition, today is the market." Then she turned to Law. "I know you're worried, but you can't lock your friend in forever. If you want to do something good for him and yourself, take a few days off."

With these words, she hushed back into one of the adjoining rooms.

Law sighed slightly.

"She clearly seems to set the tone here," Rosinante laughed, and Law just nodded in agreement.

"But she's right, as always. I'm sorry, Cora-san, it's not as easy as I thought." Law briefly massaged his neck and then looked at him. "So, if you really want to do something, you would help me a lot if you went shopping; the refrigerator is really almost empty. On the small table next to the sofa is money. You just have to follow the street; it will take you to the village's center."

"Then I will do just that."

The other looked away briefly, but then nodded and walked over to the same room where Mrs. Paipai had disappeared into a few seconds ago.

"Okay, see you tonight, Cora-san."

"See you later, Law."