At one point of time, everything was going smoothly. There were no major fall outs or incidents that were too out of the ordinary, no fights or important events that were life changing.
But, of course the smooth sailing didn't last, not between Doflamingo and Anberlyn. If it wasn't one thing, it was always another and this time it was something out of the ordinary, something that would happen a few more times over the course of the years, though once was far more than enough.
With a set jaw and quick, shallow breaths warm blankets and heavy limbs of the man beside her were thrown from her body as Anberlyn scrambled out of the bed and raced to the bathroom, her hands covering her mouth, praying to god that she would make it in time. As she ran, her feet kept slipping out from under her, causing her to stumble and nearly crash into the wooden boards underfoot.
She fell to her knees before the white basin just before the contents of her stomach poured from her mouth and nose with an awful retching noise.
Even after the toilet was flushed and only the stench and the burning acid at the back of her throat remained, Anberlyn stayed there, crouched over the toilet, the nausea still lingering. The last place Anberlyn wanted to be in such a moment of weakness was anywhere near anyone.
Thankfully, god, or whatever divine power was watching over her and the crew, heard her prayers and not only did the nausea slowly ebb away, but, no one approached her or the bathroom. When she was sure enough that the episode was over, she rose to her feet and shakily gulped down handful after handful of water, hoping to wash away the acid still lingering at the back of her throat. When it was apparent that wasn't going to make much of a difference, Anberlyn stumbled out of Doflamingo's quarters and to her own room where she could be as miserable as she wanted and not have to worry about being bothered or seen.
Once she reached her room, Anberlyn leaned heavily against the closed door and sunk down to the ground, tears streaming down her face. They weren't due to the misery sickness always caused her, or from self-pity.
For the past week, she had been increasingly irate and moody, which would have been all fine and dandy but, her period was several days late. As if that weren't bad enough, she was now sick. And maybe she was just jumping to conclusions and being paranoid, but there weren't many other things those two symptoms could possibly mean.
Despite the glaring facts, Anberlyn didn't want to admit to herself what she feared most, and she didn't even want to think of what would happen if she were to tell Doflamingo. Even though she never really acted it, there were some parts of her that feared the man and the idea of his reaction to the words 'I'm pregnant' terrified her.
"Please no." Anberlyn murmured aloud, touching her hand to her stomach, fear overwhelming her.
Anberlyn didn't know how long she sat there, shifting between crying, praying and nodding off, but, eventually the door behind her back started scooting her across the floor. Then came the words,
"Let me in Anberlyn-ya."
It was Trafalgar.
"Leave me alone." She grumbled at him, trying to wipe the tears out of her eyes and scrub any traces of them off of her face. There was no hiding the wet splotches on her knees, but maybe he wouldn't notice. Who was she kidding, that was the first thing he would notice.
Despite her words however, she scooted out of the way of the door and looked up as the door swung inwards and Trafalgar stepped into the room, noticing her presence at his side.
"Why are you crying?" He asked, though he didn't sound the least bit interested.
None too happy at the blunt question, she snapped, "Because I feel like it."
He nodded, as if her explanation explained something more than absolutely nothing. "Baby 5-ya thought you might be hungry." He hadn't a say in the matter. The woman had given him the plate of food and told him to find Anberlyn. Law stooped low and sat the plate at his feet, not far from her and as he stood up said, "So here."
"Thanks." She muttered, reaching for the fork and starting to push the food around the plate. Through bleary eyes, she looked up at Trafalgar and said, "Can you not tell anyone about this please?"
"Keep your health up. Doflamingo-ya wouldn't be happy if his precious Sweetheart let herself go to waste." And with that, Law stepped out of her room, quietly closing the door to her room and leaving the woman alone with whatever was driving her to tears.
Anberlyn was thankful for Trafalgar's ability to listen and respect her wishes even though he didn't have to. She was also thankful that Baby 5 had thought about her enough to send her breakfast, or was it supposed to be dinner? Regardless of what it was supposed to be, it was the thought that counted, because even though she hadn't eaten all day and had emptied her stomach last night, she was far from hungry.
As the shadows in her room made their way across the room, Anberlyn lost herself in the raging storm of her thoughts, not bothering to return to her spot prior to Trafalgar's brief entry.
Anberlyn decided that once she could come to terms with the idea of being pregnant without bursting into tears, she would tell Doflamingo. There was no use in waiting and it wasn't as though she had slept with anyone else lately.
But, first, Anberlyn had to be able to think the thought without tears pricking at her eyes and trickling down her cheeks.
Doflamingo woke the following morning, his bed just as empty of the maroon haired woman as it had been yesterday morning despite the fact that she had fallen asleep next to him the night before.
And, even though he wondered, he didn't think much about not having heard a single peep or having a single glimpse of her for twenty four hours. Even as the sun arced across the sky and she was once again absent from all hours, minutes and seconds of the day, Doflamingo didn't worry. He was, after all, confident that they were past the stage where the only thing on her mind was escape or killing him.
But, finally, as the sun began sinking down below the horizon, Doflamingo headed for her room, deciding that since she wasn't in the infirmary, according to Law, and was most certainly no in his room, that she would be there. And, as he suspected, she was but, not on her bed. Instead he found her sitting next to the door, under the light switch, with her knees drawn up and her head bowed, the plate of hardly touched food beside her, only inches from being smashed.
"Go away." She grumbled into her knees, her voice muffled.
Doflamingo stepped over the plate of food and crouched down in front of Anberlyn, and promptly ignoring her demand, asked, "Sweetheart, what's the matter?"
He was used to her being mad at him, that was nothing new and something he could handle just fine. But, Doflamingo wasn't used to seeing Anberlyn like this. And by like this, he meant mopey and depressed. Sure, there were a few times that he could name that she had been depressed, but those times seemed different. It was doubtful that as simply, two worded order was going to rectify anything.
They had been doing so well for so long; there was no need for Anberlyn to fall apart now.
"Nothing," She muttered. "Just leave me alone please."
Please was supposed to be a magic word, so maybe if she used it he would take a hint and get lost.
But, that was just wishful thinking. Doflamingo did no such thing.
"Anberlyn, look at me." He demanded none too forcefully. When she didn't move, he simply used his devil fruit strings and forced her to raise her head and look at him. Surprisingly enough, there were bags under her eyes and the ghosts of tears trailing down her cheeks. He reached forwards and stroked his thumb across the damp streak and asked once again, "What's the matter Sweetheart?"
Rare were the times that he had seen her cry, she was usually so strong, so stubborn. And, so, Doflamingo was having a hard time trying to figure out what would cause a woman like Anberlyn to be driven to tears.
Turning her head to the side, Anberlyn muttered some kind of response that, despite their close proximity, he failed to catch. And when he asked her to repeat herself, she merely spat,
"Would it kill you to leave me alone for once?"
She was so tempted to just tell him, even if the only evidence she had was nothing but two missed periods and a feeling of dread and fear. Maybe when he heard the news that blasted smile of his would fall from his face and she'd have the satisfaction of watching the man scramble for some kind of response. Or, maybe he would find some kind of explanation that would simply gloss over her fears, or even better yet, completely smother them.
"Now you know I can't just do that." He crooned, grabbing her chin and forcing the eye contact she was so set on avoiding.
None too happily Anberlyn grumbled, "Why not?" Doflamingo opened his mouth to give her an answer but, before he could, she said, "I was sick the other night and haven't slept in two days ok? Pardon my bitchiness."
Instead of nodding and walking out like Trafalgar had so kindly done, or trying to put as much space between the healthy and the sick as he could, Doflamingo reached out, gathered her in his arms and walked out of her room, carrying her out of her sanctuary against her will.
"Hiding won't make you any better Sweetheart." He told her, lightly scolding Anberlyn for just holing herself up in her room and hoping that she would get better by herself.
"Do you want to get sick too?" Anberlyn snapped, squeezing her eyes shut and trying to push down the sudden nausea that came with the sudden, unwelcome movement of being carried around.
Even though what she had wasn't exactly contagious, she was hoping that the threat to his health was enough to make him put her back in her room, or at least down. All he offered in terms of a response however, was an arrogant smile that told her that she had nothing to worry about. He had no plans of getting sick, and because of that, he would not catch whatever it was she had.
The nausea mounted and mounted with every step Doflamingo took towards wherever it was he was taking her.
So, none too happily, Anberlyn managed the words, "Do you want to get thrown up on? If not-" Unfortunately, opening her mouth to so much as breathe hadn't been too smart of an idea, because before she was able to finish her sentence, there was a repeat of the other night. The main difference between now and then was that instead of the vomit making it into some kind of container, it landed on the deck, splattering onto dark shoes and orange pants.
Anberlyn couldn't believe that the first person she had ever thrown up on was Doflamingo, the proud, royal, Donquixote Doflamingo.
Once her stomach was emptied of the few bites of food she had dared to take from the plate Baby 5 had been generous enough to send Trafalgar to her room with, Anberlyn swiped the back of her hand across her mouth and turned her head so that her face was buried in his chest to shield her vision from his reaction. With shaking shoulders and audible sobs, Anberlyn began murmuring apology after apology.
She was mortified that had just happened and terrified that she was going to face his wrath even though he was technically the one who was at fault for the accident. And even though it was a complete and utter accident, it was doubtful that Doflamingo would see it as such. So, between apologies, she begged for him not to kill her.
Even though Doflamingo was far from pleased, he did have other pairs of shoes, and even if he didn't, they were easy enough to replace, unlike the jacket she had somehow managed to miss. And, even though she had missed his jacket, she had still gotten his feet, pants and legs.
He stroked her damp hair and took her to the infirmary so that Trafalgar could take care of her.
Thankfully Anberlyn had nothing left for her churning stomach to reject, so the trip to the blissfully chill infirmary was perfectly eventless. She was laid down upon the operating table with delicacy she didn't know Doflamingo even possessed.
In complete and utter shame, she covered her face with her arms and sobbed into the crook of her elbow. She couldn't let this man see her in such a weak state, he would think far less of her and she couldn't have that. Her image couldn't be diminished in the eyes of Doflamingo. He was the only one whose opinion of her really mattered.
"Dry your eyes Sweetheart." Doflamingo murmured quietly. "The world's best will be taking care of you."
Unfortunately, the words best was The Surgeon of Death.
Instead of comforting her, as he had intended on doing, Anberlyn's sobs got even worse.
It wasn't that she didn't trust Trafalgar; in fact, he was a really good doctor. But, because he was a really good doctor, he would be quick in piecing the puzzle together and might even go as far as telling Doflamingo, which she couldn't have, not yet. Because even though two days had passed, she still hadn't come to terms with it.
Stooping low, Doflamingo placed a kiss on Anberlyn's forehead and then straightened up in time for the door to open and Trafalgar to walk in with uncanny timing, as always.
After a quick debriefing, Doflamingo left the room.
What Anberlyn didn't know was that she wasn't the only one whose stomach was acting up, she was locked away in the infirmary and then later her own room, unaware of what was going outside of her bubble of miserableness.
The next three days his bed was empty, but, it wasn't only his bed. He did not see or hear from Anberlyn for those three days in which she was taking to recuperate. And even though he knew she needed the time, and even though he knew that she was still on the ship, it didn't mean that Doflamingo was thrilled with the fact that she was not present. Those three days and nights had been quite bland when compared to the days Anberlyn was around.
"This is all your fault!" Anberlyn shouted, absolutely livid as she used not one, but both of her arms to push him away from her. And even though it wasn't near enough force, he decided to humor the woman and stumbled a few steps in the direction she had pushed him.
For the past few days she had been locked away, as sick as a dog, as Law had so delicately put it when he inquired about Anberlyn and how she was doing. And now that she was out and about, the bags having disappeared from around her eyes, the tears gone from her cheeks, the life back in her eyes, he wanted nothing more than to make up for lost time.
Unfortunately, Anberlyn had other ideas.
"What did I do this time Sweetheart?" He asked innocently enough. For once, he didn't have a clue as to what it was he had done. In fact, she should be thanking him for excusing her for vomiting on him and for having Law take such good care of her.
But, it was just like Anberlyn to give him this kind of thanks.
"It's Anberlyn." She growled for the first time in a long while. It had been so long that he had thought that she had given up correcting him.
"Well then, Anberlyn," He put stress on her name, making a point of not using the nickname she so hated, "what is it that has upset you now?"
"You!" She exclaimed. In the three short days she was sick, she had not only come to terms with the fact of the matter, but now, she was angry. There were things he could have done to prevent this, so, she shouted, "You did this!"
"What?"
With an aggravated growl, she turned on her heel and stormed away. Only, instead of letting the woman cool down elsewhere, by herself, Doflamingo followed her. Once they were standing in her room she turned on him with blazing eyes.
"I'm a month late." She bluntly told him now that there were no prying ears. The last thing she needed was anyone overhearing their conversation. Now that she was mad instead of sad, she had no reservations about telling him exactly what was going on and why she was none too pleased.
The ironic thing was that he knew exactly what she meant by that. But, not seeing her point, or how the blame could possibly fall on him, because a month or two without bleeding wasn't too terribly uncommon, even if Anberlyn was typically regular, Doflamingo asked, "And?"
"I've yet to start this month."
"And that's my fault how?"
"Two missed months in a row, daily sickness-" Before she could say anything else, Doflamingo burst out laughing, suddenly understanding what was going on. For a good, solid minute, his laughter poured from his mouth, like vomit had from hers, his hands clutching at his stomach.
"Sweetheart, you're not pregnant." He told her.
Only, instead of invoking a sense of relief, he succeeded in making her even angrier than before.
"How are you, a man, going to tell me, a woman, if I pregnant or not?!" Anberlyn roared, her clenched fists shaking at her sides, somewhere beyond the point of being livid.
Getting only a portion of his laughter under control, Doflamingo managed the explanation, "It was bad seafood that upset your stomach." When it was clear that she didn't believe him, he added, "Only those who went to that one tavern, Sea King's Tavern, were sick. It's also possible that you got a stomach bug from someone on top of that."
"How can you know for sure?" Anberlyn whispered, afraid to accept the ray of hope Doflamingo had just shone upon her. Because, Anberlyn didn't know what the hell she would do if she were in fact pregnant.
The logical thing would be to kill it before life could even be gifted to it. There was nothing good this world would have to offer the child of Doflamingo Donquixote and herself. Not only that, but she wouldn't be able to handle it, not mentally at least, and most certainly not while living on a pirate ship. If she were to leave the ship and therefore lose sight of Doflamingo than she might never accomplish her goal of bringing about his demise and she had already worked so hard to take him down even if there was nothing to show for her work except for a wanted poster and an ever increasing bounty. And if those things weren't reason enough, she did not want Doflamingo to father any kid of hers, point blank.
Hell, she didn't even want kids, not after what she had become.
Anberlyn stood before him, so very vulnerable, with both parties were acutely aware of this fact. The woman Doflamingo knew and loved so, was not standing before him. Instead, it was a maroon haired girl whose dark eyes held not only fear but also, uncertainty. Both of the occupants of Anberlyn's room were just as aware of the power that he currently held over her.
But, instead of abusing it, like he so often did when he was granted a certain amount of power, he merely pulled Anberlyn close and into her hair said, "Just trust me ok?"
Anberlyn's first response was to deny the simple request because as she had said, what would he know about her being pregnant. They both knew very well that they took next to no preventative measures, so it wasn't such a far-fetched idea. But, then again, Anberlyn would rather not be pregnant, so she nodded her head and murmured,
"I hope you're right."
For the past few days to a week she had been miserable under false pretenses. And of course she could be accepting false hope, but there was only one way to find out and unfortunately that way was simply time.
The good news was that not three days later, Doflamingo's sheets were ruined. Anberlyn was, for once, thrilled about it, of course meaning that he had been right and she had been right to trust him.
On the flipside, that would not be the only scare she would have, that was just the first.
The fact that she had even trusted him scared her greatly. Because even though Anberlyn had gained his trust, she had never intended on trusting in him in turn.
A/n: I had no intention of writing a chapter like this until Jymmie21 said that 'a pregnancy scare would be epic' (though i doubt this chapter is epic). I hope I have not disappointed you Jymmie21 b/c this chapter is more or less for you :D So I hope you and everyone else enjoy it.
Man…now we know how Law joined the crew... Damn he was one demented kid. Thank god Corazon saved him. Oh! On that note, because of recent cannon events and revelations I have gone back and tweaked chapters 10 and 11 to fit a little better. Nothing major so no worries. Just something to get the smaller details right.
Review please. I would be delighted to hear your thoughts and opinions. Please, if you think that I have gotten anyone OOC, tells me. Thank you much for reading and I hope to see you next chapter.