I don't like you! by BloodyMarryMe

As promised, I published another one today since it took me so long to publish before today. Though I barely managed since my net is still sucky and dying every few seconds. -.- (I wanna kick my internet)

So once again, I want to thank everything for the nice comments and reviews. :) You guys really make my day. ^^ And I hope I make yours at least a little with my stories. ;)

Well then, let's beguin!

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of its characters but I do own the OC Suzune Miyako.

CHAPTER 19

Miyako awoke the next day to the sound of chirping birds and the morning sun shining brightly into her eyes. She awoke still sitting at the desk, leaning on the table and on the scattered letters she was reading before slumber took over. It took some time to remember where she was and what happened when she saw a big bedroom instead of her usual little metal room on the submarine.

Before she had time to wake up properly, a loud knock was heard on the doors. Miyako blinked at first, but then stood up and quickly started tidying the mess she made on the desk. She put all the letters in one heap and put it aside, for later. She still needed to show this to her captain.

"Come in!" Her voice chimed and suddenly the room was filled with people, which she didn't take a liking to. There were two maids and after them came Charles. Miyako realized she was still in her nightgown which made her a bit embarrassed, but Charles didn't even seem to notice or rather he acted completely professional. He was the head of the staff after all.

"Good morning Miss Suzune." He said with a bright smile. It couldn't be more than 8am and yet he looked all fresh and ready for the new day. Meanwhile the maids were preparing some clothes and fidgeting around the room with a serious face, like robots, not giving the girl a second glance. They did however made a confused face when they went to make the bed just to see it was barely touched and everything was still in place like no one slept in it. Little did they know, that was exactly the case and Miyako had her sore and stiff body to prove it.

"Are you ready for the big day?" Charles asked, but before she could answer the maids were leading her somewhere down the hall, almost pushing and pulling at her as they went.

"Hey, wait a minute! What are you-" Miyako tried protesting, but stopped when she was led into the biggest bathroom she has ever seen. It was the size of public bathhouses they had in Wano, but this was just for one person, Shiori. *Why does someone need such a big bathroom all for themselves?*

Before she could think of an answer for her own question, she was pushed inside and to her horror she realized she was being undressed. "Hey, whoa, whoa, WHOA! Wait a second!" She protested and somehow managed to get away from their grasp and take a few steps back.

The maids looked at her in confusion. "But Miss, you have to take your bath." One girl said a bit uncertain. Miyako could see the maid girl was uncomfortable, but she couldn't tell if that was from the fact that Miyako was a pirate or because she looked so much like their Lady.

"I don't object to the bath, but why are you here with me?" Miyako asked with a confused look and pointed at the maids.

The servant girls looked at each other puzzled, which only made Miyako more baffled. So here they were, Miyako clinging to the remains of her clothes, the maids clutching at their dresses and sleeves nervously, the three of them staring at each other, each one puzzled more than the other.

"W-well, we always helped Lady Shiori wash herself. Who would wash her back otherwise?"

Miyako's eyes almost fell out of her sockets from the surprise. "Say, is there anything that girl does for herself!?"

"P-Please, don't disrespect Lady Shiori. She is a kind and gentle soul!" The younger of the maids said softly but firmly, though it was obvious she feared the consequences of her outburst and the other maid elbowed her slightly in the ribs as a warning to hold her tongue.

Miyako sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She let out a long sigh. After a while of complete silence, the Wano girl spoke. "Alright, look…Firstly, I won't do anything to you so please stop being so scared. I don't bite." She added a small smile to show she meant it and the girls seemed to relax, though only a little. "And secondly, I'm fully capable of bathing myself so please make an exception and wait for me outside. I'll be fine." Miyako really, really hoped they would listen to her.

"B-But our orders…" One of them started and Miyako put a sole finger in the air, stopping her.

"If you don't tell, I won't either. It'll be out little secret." She grinned.

The girls still looked uncertain and unconvinced, and Miyako actually thought about pulling the pirate card on them and threaten them to leave her alone, because she really didn't want to have company while bathing even if they were girls. In the end, however, she decided not to frighten the poor girls any more than they already were. To her relief, the girls gave her a barely visible smile and nodded.

"We will be waiting outside Lady Miyako, take your time."

Miyako was delighted and bowed her head lightly in appreciation. That surprised the maids since usually they were the ones bowing down, but they didn't comment as they left the bathroom.

Miyako sighed in relief and closed her eyes for a while, enjoying the fresh hot water on her skin as she began her ministrations.

Not long after, the doors of the bathroom opened once again and Miyako came out with a smile. "Ok, I'm don-" She didn't have time to finish though as she was once again led by her hand back to her room.

"We need to hurry Miss Miyako, breakfast will be ready soon."

Before she could understand what was happening, she was pulled behind a dressing screen. Miyako recognized it as a Shoji screen, which was the name for it they used in Wano. Before she could say anything else, once again she was being undressed and a new piece of clothing was put on her. But a piece of clothing she never wore before…it was a crimson Victorian style dress with a corset as the upper part. Miyako took a sharp intake of breaths as the maid pulled the laces tightly, making the corset viciously grasp her upper body. Miyako could barely move, let alone breathe.

"Are you ok, Miss Miyako?" A voice called from the other side and she realized that Charles was waiting for them in the room.

"I think your maids are trying to kill me with suffocation. I can't breathe." She said it in a joking manner, but the last part was definitely true.

"This is how nobles dress. This dress is of the latest fashion on Howl's Island."

"Well women on Howl's Island must have learned not to breathe." Miyako answered, still out of breath. She realized she could only take in shallow breaths as she tried getting used to the clenching feeling.

However, the torture did not end there. To Miyako's dismay it was only the beginning. Next, the maids helped the girl in dark red high heel strap sandals, and she had to hold to the wall for balance as to keep herself from falling instantly. Finally Charles came up to her and put a brightly shining silver necklace around her neck, with a heart that glistened on the morning sun. "May I?" He then asked and Miyako blinked at first, confused as to what he was referring to while he kept looking at her hair. Then she remembered she still had her red ribbon tying it and nodded. She always tied her hair before starting the day, as a habit. Her long hair would get into her face while fighting otherwise and she already had that problem with her slightly too long bangs. *I think I need a haircut soon.* she thought with a sweat-drop.

Charles pulled her out of her thoughts like the ribbon he pulled out of her hair, making the strands fall down. Miyako was then seated in front of the make-up stand and she grimaced, realizing what was coming next. *This is going to be a looong day.*

~…~

Law tapped impatiently at the wooden railing of the main staircase with his fingers. He was standing at the bottom of it, along with his first mate Bepo, who was silently standing on the side holding his nodachi. Everyone else were already at the dining room yet he had to wait for his crew member to finally get ready. "What is taking her so long? Usually it takes her 20 minutes to get ready for the work in the galley." He muttered under his breath, losing his patience which was slowly being replaced with annoyance.

Then just as if on cue, Charles appeared and cleared his throat. "Miss Suzune Miyako!" He announced rather formally.

Law's eyes widened only slightly at the unexpected sight. At first it was hard to recognize the person who appeared, as it was everything but what Law would ever expect from the tomboyish Miyako to ever look like. He could hear Bepo's surprised gasp behind him, but his eyes stayed focused on the sight in front of him.

Miyako had a long crimson dress with small black decorative patterns. The upper body part was a corset that followed the curve of her body perfectly and showed off her slim waist. He could see her bare milky shoulders and upper chest area which were exposed. The lower part was wide and falling down to the floor in waves of decorated crimson cloth, covering her feet, though he could see high-heel sandals as she made her first step. There were long silk white gloves covering her hands and going up her forearms. A shining heart-shaped necklace around her throat sparkled in the light. She wasn't wearing much make-up, since she was against putting any of it. In the end she managed to make a compromise with Charles so there was only a light red color lipstick on her lips. Even without mascara, Miyako had long voluminous eyelashes and even without blush she had a natural rosy color to her cheeks. Though it was slightly brighter than usual as she was feeling a bit embarrassed by everyone looking at her, while she carefully walked down the stairs. Her hair was falling down her back, lacking the usual red ribbon she wore.

She might have looked like a princess, but Miyako certainly didn't feel like one. Instead she felt like a person put in some kind of torture device as she felt completely uncomfortable in all this. The pinching dress barely gave her enough free movement and it was impossible for her to walk in her shoes without having to grip the railing so she wouldn't fall down. And most of all, she felt bare without her katana tied to her waist. Despite Miyako's complains, Charles insisted she leaves it in her room because "It wasn't lady-like to have a sword with her," he said. So now her katana was leaning against the wall in Shiori's room, the red ribbon tied tightly around the hilt.

Miyako sighed in relief as she took her final step down and was once again on the even floor, feeling just a little bit safer. Her whole trip down she tried to think of how to act around Law considering what happened last night.

Meanwhile, the pirate captain didn't take long before he regained his composure and had his usual calm expression back. Miyako didn't seem to notice his surprise anyway as she seemed too focused on trying not to fall down the stairs. Law almost chuckled at the girl's small frown and focused expression as she stepped on every step as carefully as possible.

"Captain," Miyako greeted with a nod.

Law cleared his throat a little do dispose of that arising chuckle. "You look…different," he commented.

"This is the most uncomfortable thing I have ever worn. I can hardly breathe." Miyako whispered back in a slight whine.

"I think women here are more concerned how they look than how it feels inside, Miss Miyako." Law smirked at the thought of all those rich women whose image and stature were more important than anything else to them.

"Well I look ridiculous anyway." Miyako added as she started walking towards the dining room or at least tried to. Then her ankle bent to the side as the heel slid on the floor and Miyako stumbled.

Law, quick to react, gripped her wrist to stop her from falling and quickly pulled her towards the other side, towards him. Miyako felt the pressure on her still-sore wrist where he grabbed her yesterday night and made only a slight flinch. However the captain was experienced enough to notice it immediately and he looked at her wrist with a serious but unreadable expression.

Miyako was too busy sighing in relief that she didn't fall down to notice what he was doing. She didn't even realize something was wrong since that flinch was more of a natural reaction to slight pain and she didn't give it a second thought. But Law did.

"Miss Miyako." He started a bit uncertain of what exactly is it he was supposed to say. Well he didn't really think he should be the one to apologize since she was the one who barged in rudely and attacked him with her accusations and opinions nobody asked her to share. But Law also knew she was a part of his crew and as such they have to watch each other's backs at all time, which would be quite impossible if his swordsman (or rather swordswoman) hated him.

"Yes, captain?" The girl asked, still looking down at her feet to examine the path before her, rather than her companion. She realized he was still holding her hand and blushed a bit, though at the moment she actually needed it for balance. It would be safer if he had a firm grip on her in case she starts falling again.

"I'll admit when we first met we got off on the wrong foot."

"Well I think we did, too." Miyako answered glancing at him quickly before returning her focused gaze on the floor. She still remembered their fight and her being captured by a particular smug pirate captain and it still didn't quite sit right with her.

"But as time passed, it appears we managed to get…accustomed to each other." He added, looking at her expression carefully but there was nothing he could use to tell what she was thinking.

"Hm…" She hummed in thought as if remembering the time she spent on the submarine. "Well I still haven't poisoned you...," she mumbled in reflection. Then Miyako looked at him with furrowed eyebrows. "Where are you going with this anyway?"

Law sighed. *I'm not too sure myself.* He cleared his throat and continued. "So it's a shame we had to go and ruin it all last night."

Miyako's eyes widened a bit in realization. "Ooooh. Well I accept your apology."

Law actually blinked in confusion before his brows furrowed ever so slightly and he narrowed his eyes. "Apology? Who said anything about an apology?" If Trafalgar Law didn't do something; it was apologizing. If he did something, he meant to do it and he never regretted any of it later. And this was no exception…was it? "I was simply saying it would be wise for you to respect your captain more so we wouldn't find ourselves in those kinds of situations anymore, like last night."

Miyako frowned and stopped suddenly, making Law and the confused maids and Charles stop behind them. The servants were walking behind them slowly, not too close so they wouldn't overhear their conversation or invade their privacy.

"Wait, so you're telling me yesterday was my fault?" She crossed her arms on her chest.

Law just rose an eyebrow and shrugged slightly as if saying; 'Isn't that obvious?'

Miyako's eyes narrowed as she pierced him with her big golden eyes. "You…You're just…just….unbelievable!" Miyako was so angry and frustrated, she was at the loss for words. She pulled her hand out of his and tried to walk away. The emphasized word was on "tried" however, as she stumbled as soon as he let go and almost fell on her face.

"Very graceful," he commented with a smirk.

"Shut up," Miyako mumbled, utterly defeated. And then as if rubbing salt on the wound, she heard him chuckle behind her.

~…..~

She told Law about the letters she found and gave them to him, but when they asked the Ariyaki family about them, they were only confused and appalled by it, not having any idea that Shiori was meeting someone. The servants, who usually knew everything that's going on in the mansion, weren't of much help either.

"You think she eloped with someone?" Penguin had asked over breakfast.

"Hm, but it could've been a trick to kidnap her," Shachi added.

Both of the mechanics looked as if in deep thought. Law did too, as he read the letters. Then he finally started, "If she was kidnapped and the kidnapper is indeed one of the rich families, I'm sure the kidnapper will be very surprised to see Miss Miyako- I mean, Miss Shiori at the Gala Night." Law corrected himself and grinned at Miyako, who was currently trying to listen to the conversation, but it was impossible since Charles was trying to teach her which out of 5 forks she should use next.

"I never thought eating could be this complicated." Cody whispered to Josh, who just nodded while looking at the frustrated girl. He was enjoying her torture though.

"However, if she really did elope with this Red Baron fellow, it will be hard to find her. Who knows if they are even still on the island," Law continued.

"And who knows if she's still alive even." Another pirate added and they all gave him a glare, his friend elbowing him in the ribs. "S-sorry," he quickly apologized.

Shaya Ariyaki started to whimper slightly and her husband had a dark look in his eyes as he bowed his head and gripped the tablecloth in front of him.

"Hm…I don't think they killed her yet. They'll keep her alive until they get all the assets…for insurance in case something goes wrong. At least that's what I would do," the captain shrugged. "Though I still don't know how they plan on making your belongings theirs if you said it is still uncertain who would get it."

The head mistress of the household just shook her head, hiding her face in her hands and crying. Mr. Ariyaki, who Miyako remembered was named Tosuke, thought about Law's words for a while before saying, "If Shiori was married it would all go to her husband, but since that is not the case…It would probably go to our closest relatives, the Kayoru family." Shaya gasped suddenly with a dramatic effect. "Oh, no! They would never do such a thing! There is no way!" She shook her head wildly.

Law finished with his breakfast, though he barely touched the food, and stood up. The rest of the pirates followed suit. "Alright everyone, let's see what we can find out about this Red Barron fellow." He gave specific orders to his crew and separated them into small groups, then sent them throughout the island. Miyako stood up as well, inconspicuously following them out of the room, before she heard Law call out, "Not you Miss Miyako, you stay." Even though she couldn't see his face, the amusement in his voice was obvious.

"Damn it." She cursed under her breath.

"Good luck, Ugly." Josh grinned at her as he passed her by.

"Bye Miyako." Cody said, patting her on the back.

"Um, good luck, Miya-chan." Penguin and Shachi said in unison, trying to hide little blushes they had on their faces, still not used to her graceful-looking appearance.

"Learn well, Miyako." Bepo said, holding Law's nodachi as he exited the room, and Jean Bart just nodded at her, the last one to exit.

When they were all out the doors, Miyako sighed in desperation. Charles cleared his throat to get her attention. "Let us begin Miss Miyako. Follow me."

~…..~

First it was the proper dinning manners where Miyako had to learn all procedures and tableware to use. Then it was the proper speech and manners in the presence of company. Then came the posture practice where Miyako had to walk and stand perfectly straight. After that was learning the whole family tree and family history. So it was no wonder that Miyako was so beat she could hardly stand at the end of the day. And yet, her she was, learning how to dance and waltz to slow classical music with Charles as her partner in the large ballroom. She kept stepping on his feet at first, but little by little she got the hang of it. However she still felt a little uncomfortable.

The doors opened slowly and Miyako could see Law enter. He asked the staff something to which the maid nodded and walked out of the room. So now there were only the three of them inside and Law leaned against the wall, watching Charles and Miyako dance.

The head butler noticed Miyako's stiff form when she saw Law and smiled a little. "Hm…you seem very tense, Miss Miyako. Perhaps if you tried this with someone you know a bit better or someone your age...," he trailed off, insinuating the meaning behind his words.

Miyako was confused by the old man's suggestion, but then he took her hand gently like a real gentleman would and led her to Law. Law's eyebrows furrowed at first, but then he stepped forward with a sigh. By his expression it was impossible to tell what he felt or thought at that moment when he took Miyako's hand and twirled her one time experimentally.

The girl, on the other hand, had a shocked expression with wide eyes and a dark blush. The switch happened so fast she wasn't sure what had happened at first, let alone had time to protest, but when she did realize the situation, she stiffened even more. Especially when she felt Law's one hand placed on her waist and the other holding her own in the air.

"Relax, Miss Miyako. I don't bite." Law said with a grin that made Miyako not so sure about the truthfulness of his statement.

She did manage to relax a little, taking a deep breath…well as deep as it could be since the corset was barely giving her room to breathe.

However, after a while she begun to relax and move accordingly to the slow music, focusing on it instead of the pirate in front of her. Well, at least she tried to, but it was harder than she thought with his piercing eyes staring right into hers. So even though the rules said you should always watch your dance partner in the eyes, she focused her gaze just above, settling it on Law's fuzzy hat. She had to admit she often wondered how it would feel under her hands since it looked so soft, like Bepo's fur.

"So did you manage to find out anything?" She asked him, hoping the topic would ease her embarrassment.

"Hm," Law hummed in thought and twirled her once more to the rhythm of the music. "I did some research and the one who would inherit everything was Kayoru Gomei, he is Shiori's uncle and Mr. Ariyaki's brother."

"So you think he did it?"

Law shrugged, making him almost look bored and uninterested in the whole topic. *Doesn't he care what happened to Shiori?* Miyako simply couldn't understand his indifference.

"Everything will become clear soon enough. We just have to wait. I've already informed the Ariyakis of everything through that maid I sent." Law simply answered, yet not actually explaining anything.

"What do you mean? Did you figure it out? Wait for what?" Miyako couldn't understand what he was saying, but by his smirk she knew he had no intention of telling her. Her face turned from a confused one to an over-dramatically disappointed one, rising her eyebrow. "Not talking, huh?"

Law's smirk just widened, but he stayed quiet. Instead of an answer, he leaned her gently back and to the side until she was in his arms, which was the only reason she wasn't falling on the floor yet. He timed it perfectly with the end of the music and for a while they stayed like that even after the music was over. It was only a second longer than necessary, but that second seemed like a whole eternity for Miyako as they were only a breath apart, she in his arms and he staring at her eyes with his piercing gaze, never breaking eye contact. Miyako was in such a daze, she even forgot her embarrassment.

Then suddenly Law lifted her back up and moved a step back, letting go of her, and for some reason Miyako felt cold at the loss of contact. She quickly pulled herself out of her daze though as Law cleared his throat. Nobody noticed the butler who still had a slight knowing smile on his face as he stood at the side, watching them.

"Where did you learn to dance like that anyway?" She asked. It seemed quite uncharacteristic for a pirate to know how to dance, especially to slow classical music.

Law just shrugged. "There's a lot you don't know about me, Miss Miyako." With that he turned around and started walking out of the door, leaving the girl standing there in the middle of the brightly decorated ballroom. Miyako stared at Law's leaving back and realized her breathing was rather irregular, although it wasn't because of the dress this time. Yet she decided to blame it on the tight corset around her chest, anyway.

Well this one was more of an improving relationship between Miyako and Law than anything else. I know it's going quite slow and it was time to bring them a bit closed together. Especially after the fight.

So I hope you like it. I'll publish chapter 20 tomorrow (if my internet allows it -.-) Oooh, and I can't wait to publish it, I'm really happy with it, it was fun to write. :D

See ya in the next chapter!