We Will
Chapter Three
Law leaned against the desk in his room and watched the little girl trying to get comfortable on the sofa. She shifted left and right, trying to stop herself from sinking into the cushions. After a minute or two of wriggling about, she gave up and let the sofa swallow her up.
The fact that Ria knew his secret didn't faze Law at all. It'd been his intention to silence the one who'd overheard his conversation on the den-den mushi but a child was a different matter. She had the potential to unknowingly provide him with a wealth of information that would otherwise take him weeks to gather.
The question was, how should Law go about getting this information?
He excelled in creating the best deals for himself, or slicing up the other party if they refused his demands. But he had no idea how to start a conversation with a child of seven or eight years old. Law had an inkling of an idea, as he'd been seven or eight years old once, but his mental capacity at that age was probably double hers.
The silence stretched out.
Ria fiddled with loose thread on the hem of her dress. She tugged on it a few times and finally said, "Are you a bad man?"
Law blinked out of his thoughts and met her large, wary eyes. They hadn't stopped flicking between his nodaichi or his stony expression since she agreed to talk to him. "I'd tell you to decide for yourself but it seems you've made up your mind. You're afraid of me."
"I'm not scared."
"You shouldn't tell lies."
"I'm not," Ria insisted. "You're a pirate but you weren't mean to us. Lots of people say pirates are bad, but you can't be that bad if you help other people."
"I didn't give the guards new legs because I'm nice. I did it because I received something in return."
"You still helped them. And you're helping your friends too."
"My friends?"
"I was hiding in the pipes when you first came. You told Miss Monet you killed your friends. You were lying, right?"
After Law and Caesar settled the conditions of their deal, Monet offered the Heart Pirates a place to rest and recuperate. When asked of their whereabouts, Law replied, "Weren't you listening when I said I gave the World Government one hundred pirate hearts?"
It'd been too easy to fool Caesar and Monet. But not this child, apparently.
"How astute you are, Miss Ria," Law said. "Miss Monet obviously doesn't understand sarcasm like you do. Now, I have questions of my own to ask. Tell me about the treatment you undergo. What kind of medicine does Caesar give you?"
Ria pulled a face. "Syrups. They taste bad though. Like bitter cherries."
"Anything else?"
"Um… needles." Ria stuck her arms out and showed him the creases of her elbows where colours ranging from blue to green to yellow blotched her skin. "They do it on our bellies too. I don't like it much. I get headaches and feel dizzy, so they don't give me as many needles now. Sometimes they also use these really big things to take skin and stuff off our backs."
Tissue samples?
Law leaned and reached for her neck. Ria brought her arms up in defence and huddled into the cushions with a hiss. Law stopped.
"May I take a look?"
Ria stared at him through the gaps in her arms and when she gave a small nod, Law reached around her neck and pulled down the back of her collar.
He'd seen the scarring pattern before, when he trained as a doctor under Doflamingo. But these ones were far more serious than the ones he left on his own patients. Whoever took tissue samples from Ria's back had done a careless job of it. Law had worked with greater precision than the clumsy fool even at the age of sixteen.
After a quick examination, Law pulled her collar back up and withdrew to the desk again. "It must have hurt."
"It was okay." Ria pushed her fingers to her mouth, muffling her words. "Everyone tries to be nice and if we don't cry then we get candy afterwards. My friend won't eat his so I get to eat it as well."
"Good for you."
Shachi's information network hadn't mentioned anything about children, injections or tissue samples, so it was safe to assume they had nothing to do with Caesar's production of SAD.
Ria continued rambling. "He doesn't like it when I call him that. He gets sulky but I don't care. We're all sticking together so he's still our friend. What about you? What are your friends like?"
"I don't have friends. I have a crew."
"Then what's your crew like? Do they do pirate-y things like singing and dancing?"
"They do too much of it."
"Do they fight with swords?"
"Some of them do. Most fight hand-to-hand."
"You mean with no weapons?"
"Yeah."
Ria swung her legs back and forth, eyes fixed on the ground. "Do you miss them?"
"Haven't you asked enough questions?"
"I wanna know though. You're like us—you're away from the people you like." Ria's right shoe slipped off and she dangled it on her toes. "I miss my friends and my family. I want to go home and see everyone again. Everyone wants to go home. We keep asking Master and Miss Monet but they always say no because they think we're too sick. We feel fine though."
Given Caesar's crazy antics, Law had no trouble believing the children were in perfect health and were nothing more than test subjects.
"Traffy." Ria's voice was so low Law almost missed her next words. "Can you take us back?"
One breath. Two breaths.
"No. I have no obligation to save you."
Ria scrunched up her dress and her cheeks tinged scarlet. "Why not? You're a grown-up. Grown-ups are supposed to help us!"
"I don't help people unless there's profit."
"I'll tell the master you're a spy."
"What makes you think I won't kill you first?" Law tapped Kikoku. "I can behead you before you take two steps towards the door."
Ria glared and jutted her chin out. "Because I told my friend I was looking for you. And I told him if I don't come back then he has to tell the master."
So she wasn't as simple-minded as Law thought she was.
"It makes no difference either way. My crew can sail from Zo to Punk Hazard in a matter of weeks but what good will that do when the submarine can't house all you children, least of all the giants?" A sadistic smirk crossed Law's face. "On the other hand, I could let you, and you alone, to come on board. You can save yourself. How does that sound?"
Ria brought her hand to her mouth again and this time, Law saw the flash of white teeth gnawing on the skin between her thumb and wrist. Both of her hands were swollen, bruised and covered in bite marks. Law attributed this to high levels of stress and bad habits. She'd have to manage her anxieties in a different manner before she chewed off her hands.
"No." Ria removed her hand from her mouth. "We're all leaving together. That's what we decided."
She showed impressive resolve, but that resolve didn't mean anything when there was no way out of her predicament.
"You can't escape," Law said. "Guards surround the grounds but I'll give you benefit of doubt. Assuming you manage to bypass them, you won't last a second against the elements without proper clothing. But let's say you came across the necessary gear to survive the weather. You'd lose your fingers and toes due to frostbite, and become disfigured through third degree burns from fire and lava. If you live through that, you'd need a ship to get off the island, which is impossible because no-one willingly comes near this place unless they're prepared to die. You're not escaping by anything short of a miracle."
"We'll find a way to get home," Ria snapped. Her anger was more amusing than alarming and Law compressed a smile so as not to agitate her further. "We'll do it. It'll happen if we wish hard enough."
A harsh laugh tore itself from Law's throat.
What a naïve outlook on the world and the people that lived on it, to think pirates were good people and that wishes came true. Experience told Law that pirates were one of the cruellest monsters on the seas and wishes weren't granted by genies. Anything that anyone wanted had to be earned and the higher the value, the higher the price. If something warranted wishing, it warranted blood, sweat and tears.
Law smothered his laughter and pulled off his hat by the bill. "Something like that has no basis in logic or reasoning. It's a foolish way to think."
"No, it's not. You think you're smarter than me but you're not. I know we can get out of here."
"If you insist," Law snickered.
Ria shot him a dirty look. "Everyone thinks you're cool but you're just a stupid idiot."
"I couldn't care less what you think about me."
"You can't visit us in the Biscuit Room again. Mocha and everyone would be too sad if you told them you wouldn't save them. So don't visit."
Ria jumped off the sofa and started for the door, shuffling in her oversized shoes. Law slammed his nodaichi into the ground, blocking her way.
"Where do you think you're going?" Law coldly asked. He uncrossed his legs and stood in front of her. "I can't let you leave when you know my secret."
Ria bared her pointy white fangs and crouched—
Clang. Clang. Clang. Clang.
"HWOOOOOOOOOH!"
Law and Ria spun to face the roof where the yell originated. A mess of coloured cloth shot through the air vent and the two of them jumped back, coughing in the cloud of dust that flew up. Ria hissed at the intruder who landed in a mess of dirt and grime.
The figure on the floor groaned and untangled themselves from the mess of arms and legs to become a short boy in a pink kimono. He stood in between Law and Ria and shouted, "Pirate filth! Keep your hands off innocents!"
"Momonosuke? W-What are you…" Ria stammered, hand over her chest. Then her eyes narrowed, she clenched her jaw and began slapping him around the knot on his head. "Idiot Momonosuke! You were supposed to stay up there!"
"I refuse to stand by while he threatens you." The boy grabbed her arm, ran for the door and jerked on the handle. It rattled up and down but the latch didn't give way. "He locked it!"
Ria stood on her tip-toes, hands waving in the air and fingers curling to try and grab the handle but she was too short to reach the doorknob, let alone the lock.
"Ria, get on my shoulders and open the door."
"You'll look up my dress!"
"Huh? N-No I won't!"
Law brushed the dust from his shoulders, taking his time to summarise everything that had just happened. He'd been caught infiltrating a secret research facility. The one who caught him was a child. The child's friend crashed through the air vent and insulted him in a show of bravery. Now they were too short to escape.
The Grand Line was strange, the New World was stranger but Punk Hazard took first place for ridiculousness.
"Now we're both stuck in here, you moose!"
"You should not have followed him, worms for brains!"
"I'd be safe if you'd stuck to the plan!"
Momonosuke's grand entrance was likely to have been noticed by the guards—air vents were notoriously noisy, and their shouting match increasingly escalated until their shrieks reverberated through the room. The walls were thick, but they weren't soundproof.
Law took three steps across the floor and hauled Momonosuke up by the back of his kimono. The boy yelped and the volume of his cries diminished. Law listened for the sound of running footsteps but heard nothing. Yet.
He shook the boy. "Don't you know it's rude to interrupt a conversation?"
"Unhand me, pirate filth! How dare you show such disrespect to a samurai of Wano Country!"
Law held the thrashing boy at arm's length and addressed Ria. "If this is the friend you're talking about, then things aren't looking too good for you, are they?"
"Attack him!" Momonosuke yelled. "Kick him between the legs and we'll escape!"
"Be quiet." Law released his grip and the boy thudded to the floor. "Fortunately for you, I don't make a habit of cutting up bothersome children, though it's something to put into consideration."
Ria cautiously stepped forward and helped her friend to his feet. They backed away to the door, hunching together with their teeth showing and ready to bite him bloody.
"I don't care if you tell Caesar I'm a pirate spy. He has no reason to believe or trust children. He'll think you're making up tall tales to satisfy your boredom." Law reached over their heads, flicked the lock and opened the door. "Miss Ria, I'll make a deal with you. I won't go back to the Biscuit Room if you won't disturb me again. You're a nuisance."
Ria stuck her tongue out. "I hope the master kicks your butt!"
Law jabbed them in the back with his nodaichi and threw them outside. The children ran down the corridor back to the Biscuit Room and when they were gone, Law shut the door and fell into the sofa. The strain of losing his heart hadn't fully worn off and although he hated to admit it, he needed to rest.
Law raised his hand to the light, inspecting the strand of brown hair he'd plucked from Ria's head when he reached out to unlock the door. This was the sort of information he was looking for. He placed it in between the front covers of a book and retrieved his den-den mushi, dialling his crew once more.
"Heart Pirates. Penguin speaking."
"It's me."
"Captain!" Relief saturated Penguin's voice. "What happened earlier?"
"False alarm. It was just a child trying to find her way home."
"There's a child on Punk Hazard? You're joking, right?"
Had Penguin ever heard him crack a joke? "There are children on Punk Hazard," Law corrected.
"Under Caesar Clown's care?"
"Correct. I don't think it has anything to do with Doflamingo, so it's best not to interfere. But extra information won't hurt. I want Shachi to investigate this. Tell him to talk to his contacts about missing children, ages zero to ten. Inquire about the transport of giant children in particular. That's the most promising lead."
"I'll let him know. He's training outside right now."
"What about Bepo?" Law ran his fingers over the fur of his hat.
"He fell asleep about ten minutes ago. Do you want me to wake him up?" Penguin asked. "He was pretty upset he didn't get the chance to talk to you earlier. I think he'll be even more depressed when he finds out he missed your call again."
"Don't bother. I'll call again soon."
The crew made a game out of waking Bepo up and had so far failed miserably. There was that one time Shachi claimed he saw a female bear, and Bepo roused long enough to ascertain it was a lie before going back to sleep. No-one counted it as a victory.
"I have more opportunities to do so now."
"All right. Just be careful. I don't like the sound of what's going on over there. I mean, children? That's ringing a bit close to home."
"I don't know what Caesar does to them but they seem happy enough."
"How happy can they be if they want to go home?" Penguin asked. "You know better than anyone else what it's like to be trapped in a place you don't want to be. It's not… right."
"Let's not go there."
Penguin ignored the bite in Law's voice and pressed on.
"It's not something we can ignore. What if Caesar talks to Doflamingo and draws a parallel between what happened to you and what's happening to the children? Don't take this so lightly. Caesar is just as dangerous as any other opponent we've faced. He can't have any advantages over you."
Law decided to keep silent about his heart. "Caesar is an idiot. The only reason he's not dead yet is because Doflamingo's protecting him, and I'm ready to face Doflamingo."
Penguin sighed. "Yeah."
"What's the matter? You were begging me to leave Paradise and now it sounds like you want to drag me back."
"You know I'll follow you to the ends of the seas. But taking on Doflamingo isn't something I'm too fond of. I'll be frank, Law. The man still scares me."
Law opened his mouth to respond, then Penguin's words clicked and his words died in his throat.
Penguin called him Law.
When was the last time Penguin called him Law?
"The things he did… they come back to me sometimes. I'm terrified if he catches you, he'll do it again and I don't think I can live through it."
"Stop." The words came out colder than Law expected but it successfully cut Penguin off. Law knew his first mate would work himself into anxiety and he didn't need the risk of him getting worked up about it either. "We said we wouldn't talk about that again."
Law's hand strayed to his chest. He knew where each of his scars were, how deep they were and how each one had been inflicted. The memories left physical marks on his body, or maybe it was the other way around, and no matter how hard he tried, he could not eradicate it completely.
"We will destroy Doflamingo."
The memories were too ugly to look back on and when they were younger, Law vowed to obliterate them because it made him ugly too. So he covered them up by making his own mark upon it.
"We will win."
He would pave over the ugliest parts of himself as he took down the Four Emperors.
"We will take our place on the top of the world."
A.N.
As I was writing, I found myself wanting to do a thing. If anyone's interested, I've inserted a movie reference in the next chapter and the first three people to correctly say:
(1) which movie it came from and
(2) which characters said it
You can ask for an interaction between certain characters or a certain event happening, and I'll write it into the story (just keep it K-rated).
You lovely people are the reason this story exists and I want to give something back to show how much I appreciate you taking the time to read it.
I'd be super grateful if you could leave a review :)