Law

Law was very out of it by the time Corazan found him, he wasn't very aware of what was going on around him, only the vaguest idea that he was somehow talking and Corazan was alright. He didn't have much energy to fight as the older man started forcing the fruit down his throat.

That state didn't survive that dreadful taste, or the knowledge that taste seemed to unlock.

With that disgusting fruit coating his tongue and sliding down his throat Law knew. He knew exactly what he had just eaten, how to use it and what it's limits were both now and when he was stronger. He knew that Cora-San was in trouble, that he was hurt and possibly dying and that he was ignoring it all just so that Law could live.

And most importantly Law knew they had to get the hell out of there, now, before it was too late.

Law watched as Cora-San slid sideways as his body gave up its energy when it was so badly hurt. He didn't say a thing, didn't attempt to heal him with his fruit, ignored his father figure when he started to try and get his attention.

No, Law did nothing but calculate in his head the best course of action. Cora-san was a marine (he was an idiot if he thought Law had actually bought his lies) but with his theft of the fruit and feeding it to Law that status meant very little in terms of protection at the moment. Cora-san was trying to tell him about some marine ship nearby, and while they could keep events secret long enough for it to be of use Law knew there was a traitor on that ship (not that he knew how he knew).

Law was sick, Cora-san needed help if not now than at least soon. Law had a fruit that could pull of some pretty impressive things and he knew how to use it, but using his fruit wouldn't come cheap and he needed to decide what was the best use of it at the moment given his failing strength. The Ope Ope no mi may have granted a temporary respite but using it carelessly would cost him the time he had.

Cora-san was still trying to talk him into something, something he hadn't heard a word of, and law decided that now was a good time to tell him exactly what was going on in his head.

'Cora-san,' the man went quiet as Law finally spoke, 'I don't know what it is you want me to do, but I think it can wait until after we have left this island.' Cora-san looked like he wanted to protest, but Law cut him off. 'Even if we have to avoid the Marines in the future once this gets out, something as important as this sounds should probably only be delivered to someone you know you can trust. Please, let's just go, before someone stubbles onto us by accident.'

Cora-san seemed to hesitate for the longest moment, but the look in Law's eyes seemed to convince him that leaving might just be the best option.

Slowly, carefully, the two of them made their stumbling way out of the town. Cora-san might not have liked it, but just like six months ago he was willing to put this little brat before everything else. Law couldn't explain why he felt like they needed to move faster, couldn't say what the urgency was, all he knew was that they were going as fast as they could with Cora-san in the condition he was.

They were close, so, so, close to the edge of town, when the threads came down in front of them like the walls of a bird cage.

'Damn it!' Rocinante shouted from within the safety of his power, collapsing to his knees as he had almost achieved getting Law to freedom only to have it ripped away from him. He gave no thought to his own body as he threw himself towards the strings, didn't take notice as he screamed silently and bashed his hands against the obstacle, in an attempt to tear it down, of the shredded flesh his hands were becoming.

'Cora-san, Cora-san! Stop!' Law's voice, practically the only thing that could have brought him back from the edge of madness where he had found himself. This situation was so eerily similar to all those years ago when he had been tied to the side of building and forced to listen as his father and brother were shot at, not knowing what was happening and doubting they would make it out alive, that similarity had been pushing him closer to something he had sworn long ago he would never become.

He hadn't wanted Law to see him like that. He was getting weaker and if Law had to see him die he would rather the boy's last memory of him would be smiling rather than the sight of desperation he had just displayed.

He could probably still save Law, now if only he could find a chest or something to hide him in …

'Let's go, Cora-san,' Laws quiet voice once again breaking him out of his thoughts. 'If we walk around the edge maybe there's some place to get through?' Rocinante knew there wouldn't be, but he didn't want to take away the boy's hope, besides, he might be able to find that chest.

Careful, silent steps as they both stayed as close to the cage as possible and tried to avoid being seen. This had continued for ten minutes and Rocinante was just starting to worry that the threads would start to contract when Law suddenly broke away and ran to the very edge of the cage, Rocinante shuffling behind, to stare intently at a couple of bits of junk just on the other side.

'Law,' Rocinante muttered, leaning forward as if to gather the boy in his arms and drag him away, though from what he had no idea.

'That should do,' was the response he got, before Law held his hand in a weird position and muttered something that sounded like "room."

And a small, blue, bubble surrounded them and made it just far enough to reach the bits of junk on the other side of the cage. Law's smile was blinding, about as bright as when Corazan had denied being a marine.

The sphere didn't last long, just long enough for Law to get out a shaky "shambles" and switch their places with the pieces of junk so that now they were outside the cage and the junk was inside. Rocinante looked down in utter amazement at the now unconscious child, while learning how to use devils fruit was often almost instinctual, that was too fast and way too controlled for a first-time use.

But he would worry about that later, for now they were free and needed to find some place to hide and patch themselves up until they were strong enough to escape properly, or at least get in touch with one of only two marines he would trust at this point.

Very gently he cradled the small boy in his arms, close to his chest, as the child latched on to his shirt. They would have time while Doffy assumed they were trapped, he wouldn't let it go to waste.

Thirty minutes later Rocinante had found their boat, silenced it, and sailed into a nice secluded cave where they would be very difficult to spot, especially without any sound to give them away. He had even managed to bandage all the annoying wounds he had gotten when his god damned clumsiness had dumped in the middle of those pirates.

At this rate he just might be able to get the two of them out alive.

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Law woke up from some very bizarre dreams to the comforting presence of Cora-san's arms wrapped around him, holding him snuggly against the other sleeping man's chest. It wasn't something Law had experienced since he was little boy and his family had still been alive.

Law frowned as he took note of the bandages beneath his hands and around the arms that seemed rather against letting him go. He didn't have much of his energy back, but he could feel that, even without using its power, the Ope Ope no mi would not let him die from his illness. Therefore, he didn't have any reason Cora-san could justify for not doing what he did next.

He watched as Cora-san's eyes opened just as the blue room faded. Law knew he was ginning like an idiot and that his face was covered in sweat from the operation he had just pulled but he just couldn't find it in himself to care. He had Cora-san, and this time nothing was going to take him away.

Cora-san, for his part, looked as if he was going to start shouting at Law for using his devil fruit powers when it was obvious they tired him out so much, especially for a wound that wasn't life threatening when Law had yet to heal his own that obviously was.

However, Law had decided that he was way too cute and too tired to be yelled at for something he considered himself justified in doing, so he just curled back up in Cora-san's arms and went back to sleep. Cora-san must have agreed with him because he just tightened his hold.

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The second time Law woke up Cora-san was in the middle of trying to make a den-den mushi call. The call mustn't have been that important, however, because as soon as he saw that Law was awake he gave up his attempts in favour of fussing about the boy. Somewhere in his new guardian's babbling Law managed to make out that he had been asleep for about four days total since he ate the Ope Ope no mi, so Law guessed he could possibly put up with the fussing if it made the man feel better.

Eventually Cora-san seemed to give up and just sat back before looking Law in the eye as a way of telling him to listen because this was important and something he needed to get of his chest.

'Marine Code 01746, I am marine HQ lieutenant Colonel Rocinante, I am a marine. Sorry for lying … I didn't want you to hate me, you see …'

Law just grinned. 'Knew that, idiot. You're not so good at lying as to deny the obvious.' The way the man deflated with relief was funny to watch.

'Of course,' Cora-san (or should he call him Rocinante?) continued, 'after giving you the Ope Ope no mi the marines are going to be after us so I don't think I can make that claim anymore. So, the question is, what are we going to do now? There are a few people within the marines that I would still trust with my life, now I'm a criminal, that might be able to help us. There's also something I have to report before I walk away from them for good.'

Law bit his lip. Cora-san had given up his job and become a criminal to help him, he had cost this man so much, and he thought the man might have been willing to give up even more if it meant that Law could live.

Dreams, for the last four days while he had been asleep Law had dreamt of things that had made his heart race. They were not things that strung together to give a linear story, no, they were the flashes that made nightmare and memory hard to tell apart, glimpse of what was or what might have been in the way someone still sees something from long ago that they no longer remember well and are the happier for it.

Law had dreamed of Cora-san dying while Law was forced to wait in a chest and listen to it happen, powerless to make a sound himself. He had seen a Rubber boy with a straw hat tear the world apart in revenge for every innocent like the city of Flevance that the government had wronged, he had seen the same boy lying on an operation table with his chest carved open with the flesh all burned. A Marine Vice Admiral named Garp who had managed to hide the son of the Pirate King successfully until the boy was 20 when he was finally executed. His city burning and the smell of the bodies around him as he hid while they removed him with the rest.

He didn't know what it was, but he knew in the same way that he knew how to use his fruit that there were some people out their he would be able to trust, and maybe even follow, if he could just find them. If Cora-san had died than he would have broken, he would be only slightly better than he was after he had finally escaped Flevance; living only to kill but with the crosshairs fixed firmly on Doflamingo.

But Cora-san was still alive, so maybe Law could take a second chance at family, get out of this with his heart intact.

Back to Cora-san's question though …

'If one of those people you are talking about is a person called Garp, he's very good at hiding things even if he doesn't appear capable of keeping his mouth shut.' Law shrugged at Cora-san's look, 'I don't care if we get help from the marines so long as I get to stay with you, just don't expect me to join them, I still want to be a pirate even if I know longer want to destroy the world,' a small smile as he quoted something he had heard from the boy in his dream, 'after all, pirates are free.'

Cora-san blinked, smiled, and went back to his Den-Den mushi call.

'it's me, Sengoku-san,' Cora-san said as soon the call went through, 'I may have stuffed up a little, I kind of need some help.'

What followed was a very long conversation with Cora-san detailing the events that had transpired and giving a summary of the plot by Doflamingo to over throw some poor country by the name of Dressrosa, with promises of the full plan to come.

Eventually they had to involve Garp as he did, in fact, have a good track record of keeping people hidden when he wanted to, even from Sengoku. With that the conversation turned into a lot more random laughing and Law was now apparently a grandson, though he wasn't exactly sure whose. No one mentioned where they would be hidden, or even what on earth Garp was also hiding (but Law knew even if he didn't know how) but it was established that they were to contact Garp as soon as they made it to East Blue where he was stationed.

It took them nearly two years to make it across the Red Line, and another six months after meeting up with Garp to be moved to a place known as Dawn island.

Law wasn't entirely sure what he was expecting, though he had known that there was meant to be at least two, maybe three, other people on the island and one of them was someone who he thought he may have sworn to follow to hell and back (it was one of those new pieces of knowledge that he couldn't explain), but he did know that the fourth person with green hair was not meant to be one of them.