Disclaimer: Still not mine
"Land ahoy!"
From the place he was seated, Law looked up as the shout reached the deck. Straw Hats paused whatever activities they were doing and lined up by the railing.
"Any signs of the Marines?" Roronoa was still lifting a weight in his hand nonchalantly. Law joined the crew, mindful of the block of metal being slowly pushed up and down in close vicinity of his head.
"Luzie is a small island. Most treat it as a hallway to Dressrosa. No one would have bothered to arm it with a garrison." With a snap of his fingers, he summoned his bag. "Still, I suggest discretion."
A vain effort, probably. Law could only hope that the tight schedule would keep Straw Hats out of troubles.
"You're coming as well?" Sharpshooter pushed up his goggles to take in Law's 'going out' attire, which consisted mainly of whatever unassuming clothing Law managed to find in his sparse luggage. He didn't need any unnecessary attention on himself. Not so close to their goal.
"I have a few things to look for as well." Not that a few hours without Straw Hats' extravagancy would go unwanted. Roronoa was going to stay aboard anyway, so Law could leave Ceasar with at least a bit of assurance that someone competent watches the renegade.
"It looks like this port's secondary speciality is fishing, trade aside." Straw Hats' Cook flitted through the newspaper Law distinctly remembered being just this morning stashed in the buffet. It had greasy fingerprints all over the cover. "There is a seasonal market with buffet stalls. Shops are open in two shifts with a break in the afternoon. I suppose we could take care of supplies there." The Cook raised his other hand to keep away his captain's head, keen to plaster on said paper with premature enthusiasm summoned by the word of fishing. "What do you say, Luffy?"
"We will split and gather back here by sunset," interjected Navigator, batting away captain from the Cook ("Meat!"). Still grinning, Straw Hat poke only slightly battered head into Law's field of vision. "We're going to the stalls! Come with us?"
It was an effort greater than Law thought possible to keep his expression neutral. "No."
"Come with us!" As expected, rubber body joined captain's head as Straw Hat whined.
Only timely intervention of Navigator saved Law. He slid out the deck and heard their bickering for a rest of a journey on land.
In the end they split up on the market itself. Black Leg's gushing over the Navigator and Straw Hat's laughter faded in a hustle of busy citizens. Soon, only Cyborg's looming silhouette over the crowd indicated his and Sharpshooter's whereabouts. Law let himself be carried by a crowd, glancing around occasionally in search of a particular composition of alleys, barred cellar windows and unavoidably bulging gutters. He's been on islands like this one before and knew exactly what to search for.
Finally, he found his destination. He took a turn and disappeared under the passage into the canals.
Chopper was having a great time. The walk down the port lanes quickly resulted in him restocking on essential supplies. Now, freshly split from Franky and Usopp (who, after a heated debate decided to venture further inland for additional repair parts), Chopper was left to cater to his curiosity in the alleys of open stalls, stretching throughout the walks. Surrounding stands tempted him with a smell of delicious food and colourful souvenirs as he trudged down the cobblestoned streets.
He got all he needed in record time. Now all he had to do was to find a antique shop and ask for some books for Robin, who chose to stay behind with Momonosuke and his grumpy father.
A crowd gathered at one end of the street caught his attention. Maneuvering through the forest of legs, bags and –occasionally- canes, he came closer. An elderly man was standing at podium, speaking over the clapping and cheering onlookers. Mesmerized, Chopper stepped forward.
"-apable of complicated tricks and clever performances!" The old man motioned to his left empathically and the cheer rose. A group of otters stopped their performance and bowed down haphazardly to the viewers. The cheers grew louder again.
"Looking for something specific?" A voice shook out Chopper from his thoughts. Pushing away still fresh memory of Breed, the reindeer tore his eyes off the spectacle.
A middle aged man with an inquisitive look and a smile like a pot of honeyed bubble gum was peering down at him. Despite himself, Chopper beamed.
There was a mini-monkey robot perched on his arm.
"You look lost. Can I help you?"
"Um… Yes, I am looking for a book stores." Prying eyes off man's mechanical companion, Chopper thought back to Robin's latest book he has seen her reading. "I need a book on East Blue undersea excavations."
The man scratched his chin, a motion resulting in a raspy sound. "You're looking for Old Downey, then. His store is two streets away…" He brightened up. "But while you're here, may I interest you in this fine handiwork," The monkey jumped down from his arm and robot-spider crawled out onto the man's arm. "I have gifts for every taste and budget," he continued. "This bud here offers sophisticated music skills and lightweigh-"
The voice carried on, and the minutes were passing on.
Cloudy morning was still blinding to someone leaving the underground. Clouds rolled in the sky and Law pulled his hat over his eyes, waiting to become accustomed to the sunlight again. The streets appeared to be as busy as he has seen them before. He walked through the crowd, feeling the weight of his new possession in his pocket. The list of tasks was far from over, but with some luck he will be ready to return to Sunny in less than two hours and take over Roronoa's task of guarding Ceasar.
A splash of colour amongst the crowd caught his attention. He halted, intrigued at familiar view.
A red and blue hat was mingling -at admittedly low level- among the crowd. From the distance Law could distinguish white cross and accessory-like horns.
The Straw Hats' Doctor turned into an alley and disappeared from Law's sight. Well built, middle aged man with a robot on his arm followed him through.
Chopper should've followed Usopp and Franky.
It was a valid conclusion, but, like many others, it occurred to the Reindeer too late.
Muffled voices surrounded Chopper. Almost gagging at scent of mould and earth, Chopper winced and tried to raise his surprisingly heavy head. Warm numbness was spreading over his body in sickening waves, making full control over his movements difficult. Confused, he tried to look up only to hit something. Reverberations of pain that followed were enough to force him back down. He massaged the aching spot, waiting for the pain to pass.
And then memories hit him - dusty bookshop; jingling bells; empty court.
Darts.
Panicked, he tried to scramble up, reaching up his neck and side where he remembered prickles of pain had hit him, but his movements were clumsy and sloppy. Tranquilizers? These would definitely explain his condition. The Doctor mode was on – Chopper reached with trembling hands for his essential toolkit stored away in backpack-
-only to find it missing.
Whoever has put him here, he must have took all his belongings as well.
Now that was a reason to panic. Still, Chopper tried to push fear back and reassemble his thoughts. He will be alright. He's not alone. His friends will find him. He pushed himself against the bars of a cage and curled in the corner in fearful anticipation.
"Luffy…"
Chopper didn't wait for too long. Grind of metal and faraway voices indicated newcomers.
He squinted against a ray of light which tried to tear behind his eyelids.
"It's awake." The beam of light lowered and a weathered face levelled with a dazed reindeer.
"It's awake, my ass! Let me out of here or you will regret this!" Losing patience was not Chopper's forte, yet being addressed like a sofa decoration struck nasty cords.
At least he was not wearing dress this time, although the option still appeared available.
"It really talks!" hissed the other one. "Hairy Harry 'll be getting a handsome price for this one. Here, gimme that." The torch was passed and Chopper was finally able to see the first person. He bristled.
"You!" The toy merchant rolled his eyes at the outburst. The sloppy movements and friendly expression were gone now. "I thought you were nice!"
"Seriously… Blame yourself. Don't talk to strangers… Haven't heard of that? Every kid was taught it at some point." The thud of wood being rolled and a grind of metal were the only indications of other man work in the gloom. "Keep calm and you'll see you'll be just fine. Noone's gonna mistreat an upper shelf pet."
His further words were lost to the sound of metal coming with contact with a stone floor. Through the rush of his blood in his ears and the outside noise Chopper barely realised he was being carted away through a rail-like device. The toymaker and his companion were guiding the cart through the stale darkness.
"I'm not a pet! I am a pirate!" roared Chopper. "Let me out of here before I get really mad!" A spasm ran through Chopper as yet another transformation failed. "Let me out!"
His escort wagon shook and the light blinded him. The noise of the crowd and inevitable stink flooded Chopper. He squinted against the light and surrounding noise.
"-enous, unique specimen! Performing manual tasks! With testified ability to speak! Bids from two-"
They were talking about him. Realisation cut Chopper deep and shocked, through the confusion, rage and fear. He was supposed to be over it, he should have been. Still, it stung. They were talking about him like an animal again.
No matter how many seas he travelled, Chopper would always be a clever animal. Not even a monster, just an animal.
He even didn't have his hat to prove it.
The audience roared and Chopper the bids were coming through. His hazy eyes still couldn't make out the numbers on tables, though. He struggled against the bars again.
A point of non-movement caught his attention. A tall man was standing amidst the crowd, hooded in the stuffy gloom. From his place Chopper could not make clearly his face, but he felt the man's gaze almost nailing Chopper to the metal of his cage. It seemed familiar.
Long, staff-like item was propped casually against his shoulder.
The recognition hit Chopper and he felt the air knocked out of him at realisation.
"LAW!?"