North: A Matter of Blood

Snow was coming down harder than before, it was as if rocks were being thrown against her window. Even though a blizzard was hitting the area, nothing could prevent her unwanted guests from arriving. Trafalgar Meuse anxiously rubbed her hands together in front of the fireplace. The midnight blue tea gown she wore gracefully matched the color of her hair. She spent hours combing the long locks into a bun of perfection, never allowing one strand of hair to hang free. Despite the fact that Meuse was notoriously known to be a beautiful woman, she had the most hideous scowl on her face. She was dreading this long overdue visit.

Any minute now, a high official from the World Government would enter through the large wooden doors below, requesting to speak with her. She knew exactly why they were coming and what they planned to discuss with: her late husband and the unfinished business he left behind. Meuse quietly cursed the day she married that worthless man. He was the one who was suppose to free her family from monstrous debt, not burying her more into it. Although they came from two very different classes, Meuse and Liston needed one another in order to fulfill their needs and wished.

Liston came from a long line of doctors; both his grandfather and father were doctors in the village he grew up in. Liston was a man born to succeed in the medical world, however, being from a low class family, he was very limited in what he could accomplish in. Liston wanted to be the world's greatest surgeon, but he knew that title only belonged to the Elite Head Surgeon working for the World Government. The only way someone could be allowed into an "Elite" position working for the Government, they had to of come from a "Blue Blood" family. To come from "Blue Blood" meant you came from a class of people only a step away from World Nobles themselves. "Blue Bloods" were the only type of people World Nobles would ever consider meeting to their level. This, of course, meant in order to be "Blue Blood" you had to come from a family of nobility and great wealth.

Meuse's came from a "Blue Blood" family, however, they were a family at risk of losing their inheritance and their social status. A family known for its gambling problems and poor spend, generations of debt had finally caught up with them. They need someone to pull them out of debt, however, they were all too spoiled to actually get a job and work. This was how the beauty of this union came to be. Liston would marry into "Blue Blood", inherit the Trafalgar name and Meuse could pay off the tremendous debt her family owed. The grand wealth Liston would make becoming the future Elite Head Surgeon for the Government was more than enough to pay off such debt and then some. It was undoubtedly a win-win situation in both accounts.

Although the mixing of two very different classes was usually frown upon, many high officials from the Government welcomed this union with open arms. They saw the potential Liston had and there was no doubt that he would become one of the greatest surgeons of his era. The Government needed a man like him on their side. It was a nasty shock to all when they discovered his dead body slumped over his lab floor one hot summer morning. The autopsy came to show the cause of death was in fact a heart attack. Liston was young, but his body was weak and his heart was too sensitive. The immense stress he underwent to achieve his dream eventually became the beast that killed him. He didn't even last working one full year for the World Government. His sudden death left a heavy burden over both Meuse and the World Government. Meuse and her family were not shy in spending all their new wealth. The old debts they were able to pay off were now replaced with new ones due to their feverous spending. Liston's death also meant leaving some very expensive projects incomplete. The Government spent a fortune in such projects and now they were left with nothing. Things were not looking good for the Trafalgar family.

I wish that bastard were alive now, thought Meuse, rubbing her hands closer together. So I can strangle him to death myself.

The sudden knock at her door pulled Meuse from her morbid fantasies. She turned away from the fireplace and brushed off any ashes that might of flown onto her dress.

"Yes?"

"Madame Trafalgar, the Government Official is here," said a voice behind her closed wooden door.

It was Mavin, one of the last few butlers she had working for her. She had to release most of her staff after the death of her husband, the few that remained were split between her and her family.

"Tell him that I will be down in a moment."

Meuse walked over to her dimly lit mirror to allow herself one more overlook before heading down. Her hair was perfect, her dress spotless, but she could not wipe that ugly scowl from her face. It would have to do.

She walked down the stairs and saw an older man wearing a large white lab coat and light blue surgical gloves. On the left side of his coat, a chest full of medals shined and dangled with pride. He had dark sunglasses on and a scarf wrapped around his mouth. A light blue scrub cap could be seen on top of his head, clearly untouched by the violent storm outside. It took her a while to process this man's appearance, but once it occurred to her who he was, she immediately bit her lower lip.

That's the current Elite Head Surgeon! What on earth is he doing here?

Once she walked down her final step, she instantly bowed her head to the man, trying hard not to fall onto her face.

"Madame Trafalgar," said older man, giving her a small nod. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you."

"Oh my, the pleasure, of course, is all mine," gushed out Meuse, fighting the frown on her face with a smile. "I am pleased that you were able to make it through the storm unharmed. Please do sit down."

The surgeon gave another nod as he walked toward the chairs in the middle of the parlor room. Meuse still couldn't shake off the fact that the Government sent the Elite Head Surgeon to her home, he indeed was much too important to be paying her a visit. After settling in their seats, the surgeon was the first to speak.

"I'm sure you know that the sudden death of your husband, Doctor Liston, was devastating blow for all of us," said the man, reaching into his lad coat and pulling out a briar pipe. "I hand picked him myself to become my successor."

Meuse just kept her mouth shut and shook her head in agreement. It was probably a bad idea for her to start shooting things out of her mouth in front of this man. The Elite Head Surgeon nuzzled the freshly lit pipe under his scarf and began to take solid puffs.

"What an unfortunate waste," expressed the doctor, allowing smoke to seep through the fabric of his scarf. "He left so much unfinished."

Meuse shook her head uneasily that time. She knew where this was going and it was the conversation she was dreading to discuss from the very beginning. That ugly frown was easily winning against her phony smile. They just stared at one another for a silent moment before the surgeon began talking again.

"The government has taken an interest in the child of the late doctor," added the Head Surgeon, taking a short pause from his smoking. "From my understanding, you two have a son?"

Meuse almost choked on her breath. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"M-my son?"

"Yes, indeed. I would very much like to see the boy."

Red faced and flustered, Meuse quickly called out to her staff.

"Butler! Butler!"

Mavin quickly ran into the parlor and bow down in front of them.

"Bring me the nurse! Quickly! And the child."

Mavin gave a quick nod and hurried to find Eliza. Meuse couldn't believe her luck, this was not at all what she was expecting. It didn't take long for Eliza to arrive with a sleeping baby boy in her arms. The surgeon stood up to get a better look at the child. He could see a small snot bubble flutter under the sleeping baby's nose.

"I wasn't aware he was still an infant," said the older man disappointedly.

"Oh, he's not too young, he's almost 2 years old."

"He's only 6 months old, Madame Trafalgar," corrected Eliza, quietly rocking her young master.

Meuse shot her ugly scowl at the nurse. Eliza quickly blushed and brought her head down in shame.

"Sorry, Madame Trafalgar."

"Do you mind waking up the child? I would like a better look at him."

"Child! Wake now," yelled Meuse, pointing at the child as if it were her pet.

Eliza gently blew some air against the baby's face to break his sleeping snot bubble. The littlest Trafalgar member woke up in much annoyance, but continued to snuggle up against his nurse like a little cat.

"Child! Up this instant!"

"Is that his name? Child?" asked the confused older man.

Meuse immediately bit her tongue in embarrassment. What is that godforsaken child's name? She didn't know how to tell an Elite how she forgotten her own baby's name.

"No. It's Law," smiled Eliza, rubbing the child's cheek and resting him down onto an empty cushioned seat. "Master Law."

Meuse looked at Eliza with relief, however the nurse mistaken the look as frown and brought her head down once more.

"Sorry, Madame Trafalgar."

The old surgeon quietly picked up Law's small hands. He inspected them thoroughly, as if he was looking for something. Although the baby didn't like the feel of the cold gloves, he just laid back and relaxed during the inspection. He noticed little dark circles already forming under the infant's eyes. He resembled his father so much already. The only thing different was the hair color, which he unmistakably inherited from his mother.

There is no doubt, this boy has the hands of a gifted surgeon, thought the Head Surgeon, taking slow puffs from his pipe. However, there is chance he could be weak and unhealthy like his father.

"So, what do you think?" asked Meuse. All this suspense was really getting to her.

"He definitely has potential," answered the Head Surgeon, releasing the boy's hands. Law turned away from the man and reached up towards his nurse. He obviously had enough of this man's presence and wanted to leave. Before Eliza could pick Law up and calm him down, he fell right back to sleep against the soft seat with a bubble forming under his nose once again.

That smile was finally winning against her frown. Meuse couldn't believe that her child would bring her all this fortune so soon.

"I will report back to the Government my inspection," explained the Head Surgeon. "If everything goes well, we may consider taking the child once he reaches the age of 6."

"Why wait? You should take him now, while he's so fresh to the world," offered Meuse. She knew the sooner the Government took her child, the quicker she would earn all that mountainous wealth.

"May I remind you, Madame Trafalgar, that the Government merely has an interest in the child, nothing is said in stone quite yet."

Meuse turned red from her embarrassment. She was forgetting her place and speaking out of turn. The worried nurse look down at her young master, she couldn't bear the though of the Government putting so much stress on such a little boy. She knew what had happened to Master Trafalgar and now feared the same for Master Law.

The Elite Head Surgeon gave the sleeping child one more quick inspection before leaving the Trafalgar home for good. If things indeed worked out, the child could be a major player for the World Government, even become his own successor. There was so much work unfinished by his father, perhaps the child could continue where he left off. Before Dr. Liston met his sudden death, Dr. Vegapunk was harvesting a special type of Devil Fruit for this young surgeon to consume. It was a unique Devil Fruit, one that could make a man the greatest surgeon that ever lived. There was a good chance this child could be the choosen one to consume such a fruit.

If he's strong enough, perhaps. Time will tell.

The older man tucked away his pipe and prepared to leave for his coach waiting outside.

"The Government will notify you once we've made an executive decision," declared the Elite Head Surgeon, giving Meuse and her sleeping infant one more final nod before he departed. "Until then, keep the child away from danger and in good health."

Phew! Sorry it's taking so long for me to update. Been the busy bee lately. Hopefully this chapter was worth the wait :3 Next time expect a timeskip!

Some quick thank yous are in order:

RussianVodka: I'm so happy you enjoyed the chapter :D I really hope you like what I have planned for Law…so far ;x

mandarina: You are one of the people that encouraged me to write this fic :3 so a thousand thank yous are in order. I'm glad you like the bloody baptism :3 an evil character like him needs that extra little touch. You will see some character development/history from this story influence the future of "The Piece in the East," so you get a little sneak peak on what East Blue is up against when it come to dealing with these two ;x

Moro: I have very good feelings about this review :3

Fishy-Neko-Fangirl: Thank you :3 A crazy character like Kid needs that crazy "urban-myth-like" birth.

sarani sayonara: :3 is what I need to say back. Your review made me blush! You are too kind! I agree, those two need backstories…you hear us, Oda? Make it happen!

Till next time, thanks for reading and reviewing!