Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece.
He blinks once, twice to make sure he's heard it right. Nothing indicates the opposite so he decides to answer. '' They won't pick you up. You have to climb on them – that's why we use saddles. Also because it's more comfortable that way.''
''Oh'' he nods. ''But we don't have one, do we?''
''That's the problem there, but getting saddles are easier than getting horses. We have to manage without that though, at least until we get to the next town.'' Would be a little obvious if two strangers purchased two saddles the day two horses went missing, wouldn't it? Just a little, really.
''So how do I get on it?''
'' You stay off of them for a while'' he says, walking over to greet the horse properly, patting him. He puts his two palms on the back of it, experimentally adding some of his weight.
He swings his leg over its back when he's sure that it won't run off in the critical moment, mounting it. He reaches out an open palm for Luffy to take it, and when the dragon takes it, Law pulls him up so that he sits behind him.
''We won't go fast but you might want to hold on to me tight – falling off of a horse ain't pretty.'' he says casually, feeling a pair of skinny yet unreasonably strong arms around him.
It feels nice, having Luffy's arms wrapped unnecessarily tight around his waist – true to his word, the horse isn't even galloping, only trotting- , along with his nose poking his spine through the fabric of his surcoat below where his forehead is pressed against Law's back. It could be fairy-tale like, were he not an oath breaker knight or were Luffy not a dragon, gender be damned as it is, but he'll settle with sappy for now.
Love and the other shit are not really his thing, really, albeit he's begun question that after sporadically appearing, uncharacteristically romantic thoughts - that are no doubt tied to the sudden appearance of Luffy in his life - wormed themselves into his head. He can't even bring himself to be bothered by his newfound corniness, that is when he isn't absorbed into his mental list of 'why not to fall in love with a giant fucking lizard'.
He wouldn't though, change a thing about that warm body nicely pressed against his back, even if it's still the middle of summer and boiling hot there. He allows himself to have the moment, which is, as it turns out the right thing to do.
''We should stop here'' Law says, sliding down of the horse and walking over to help Luffy down.
They've been working on Luffy's riding skills in the past few days, weeks maybe, who knows? Law surely not. The point is, that they've made quite a good progress as Luffy can ride just fine, without a saddle Law must add, although he must be put on the back of the horse first, and would probably spend the night there if he wasn't helped down.
Or he would just jump down and scare the poor horse off - the animals are still a bit reluctant towards Luffy, but their initial fear has been reduced to only trying to take off when Luffy makes any threatening move, like jumping suddenly while walking next to them. (That still means more frequent freak-outs than Law would prefer.)
They camp out before the sun begins to set, leaving enough time to collect firewood and get everything settled by the time night falls. The scenery around them gradually changed, is still changing- it's a bit rougher now, less and less trees are seen and the drier everything seems.
He leaves the horses on a loose rope so that they can walk around a bit and graze enough and he also makes sure they get more water as a compensation for the hardships they were put through. He noticed that they have difficulties coping with the changes as they are nearing Alabasta, he has really taken pity to them when he saw them sweltering under the cruel ray of sun.
They're suffering now, he knows that and he's also aware that they should be replaced with camels soon if they're going to cross the desert. Albeit he doesn't like that idea one bit, if Luffy's taking him into the right direction and Sabaody is really that way, it really can't be helped.
Too bad he can't send a camel instead of himself.
It's in the middle of the night when he's awaken, he can't really tell by what, he just somehow knows that something is off. His body's wide awake but his mind has yet to catch up, though something urges him to come to his senses already, scolding him for being so slow.
The fire is out and Luffy's sleeping on his stomach, which admittedly isn't one of the most comfortable positions, but it worked out for the past weeks so he doubts that it would have started bothering him now and disturb his sleep. He looks around, eyes adjusting to the night only lit by the stars and once they do, his body shots up and Luffy's head hits the ground.
The rope lays discarded on the ground, the knot untied and no horses are in sight. Luffy emerges, looking like he's simmering and Law presumes that he's indignant at the harsh method he used to wake him up. He'll make it up to him later, he vows to himself before hopping on his feet.
''Why are you-'' Luffy begins, voice raised but he's cut off by Law.
''Shh'' he hisses, raising his index finger to his lips. For once, Luffy actually listens and stays silent.
He can't hear rustling and that's far from promising. He looks at Luffy, to see if he caught a whiff or anything clue of the whereabouts of their horses. The dragon's deep in thought, obviously concentrating, eyes fixed on something Law can't see, his posture rigid, frozen in the position his body was in the moment his brain began to function again.
Law has the feeling that if he was in his dragon form, his tail would be sweeping the ground by now. Whatever he senses, it can't be good – Luffy's just too easy-going for his own good, nonchalant even, not many things get him tick like that. It's a new side of him and Law knows that it may not be the best idea to break his concentration, but he can't wait more.
''Well?''
'' They're there'' Luffy answers, tone so low that it's barely above a growl.
It takes him a moment to click into place just who he refers to, and that's the exact moment he feels crippling fear crawling on him. He left Kikoku in Dressrosa, Luffy's injured and Law's completely defenseless. Running is a cowardly thing, but only cowards live to tell tales. He swears to himself to take a fight head-on once the circumstances favors him.
He composes himself as fast as he can, taking a deep breath that he hopes isn't near as loud as it feels to him. ''How many are they?''
'' Not too much. About 10-15. '' Luffy replies completely naturally, like a dozen of armed crusaders were nothing. To him, they probably were, and Law could take them too were his damned sword with him.
He turns his head to the direction Luffy's looking at in a futile attempt to see anything, only watching Luffy's face from the corner of his eyes waiting for a reply when he asks, '' Can you take them out?''
Luffy shakes his head. '' I've gotten unused to fight in this form and my other form is too big for this cleaning''
Your wings, Law adds mentally. They must hurt. '' I left my sword in Dressrosa'' he says, moving up and swiftly packing what little belongings they had. A flint, a wooden vessel and a leather flask is all worth mentioning.
Luffy doesn't answer and Law asks again. ''The horses?''
'' With them, probably. I think it's their smell, but all horses smell roughly the same''
Law can agree with him on that.
''Are we going to run?'' Luffy continues, and Law pauses to think.
'' That'd be too loud. We can't see a thing – well, I can't see a thing. We have to keep the noise level at bait. There's a chance they have yet to notice us''
''That's boring'' Luffy pouts, earning a fierce glare from Law.
'' Don't you dare to' make it fun' '' he warns, reaching for Luffy's hand anyway. ''Lead the way.''
Luffy looks a bit surprised at the contact and by the fact that it was Law who initiated it, but fortunately he doesn't comment on it. Not that it would have mattered – Law has solely tactical reasons for that. Luffy's eyes adapted to the dark a lot better than his own. It's just a happenstance that he kind of enjoys it - it's warm, calloused against his skin and fits in Law's hand perfectly.
Luck is on their side that they reach Alabasta without too many obstacles. They didn't even have to cross the desert as, as it turned out, the city itself does that for them, being located on the river-bank of the river that runs through the desert. Law isn't particularly interested in learning more at the moment about the geography of Alabasta, it's more than enough for him.
It's in the afternoon when they arrive. Although the sun started its daily journey towards West on the horizon, it's still at its peak, shining brightly at the world. They have been padding the road all night, haven't caught any sleep at all after waking up, and haven't eaten either which brought a tantrum on Law's head – Luffy isn't in good terms with skipping meals.
They're both tired, beyond tired – exhausted but not sleepy yet. It's too early to sleep anyway. They decide to look around a bit after Law booked them a room in a neat-looking inn. They eat, and much to Law's dismay Luffy's table manners are even worse compared to when they eat in the open air.
They might not have the opportunity to pick food in the middle of a fucking wood, so they eat whatever they have, but at least Luffy doesn't have the opportunity to grab food from other plates either, just to try them.
Don't get Law wrong, he's all too used to Luffy's void of etiquette, that he has yet to be introduced to utensils and has to be fought to wash his hands before eating - he can't tell the same about other customers though.
Fuck them, he thinks as he gives up on trying to fight the low chuckle down when a noblewomen stands up, scandalized after a particularly barbaric stunt from Luffy's part – literally licking the plate clear – , dragging her husband while she's at it, and Luffy just eagerly reaches over their booth and finishes her half-eaten meal.
The expression on her face as she turns back, presumably to send another condescending look into their direction, is priceless in his opinion, the honest astonishment mixed with disgust as she finds Luffy crawling towards the food she paid for. He can practically see as the gears in her head turn and she imagines having Luffy climb over her. He thinks it's hilarious, but has better manners than to openly laugh.
He diverts his attention back to their meal after the women leaves and Luffy finishes the food on the other table, to see if there's anything left on theirs.
There's only one chicken leg left, and Law notices that Luffy's eyes flicker over that too. Law's full by now, but his hands shoot out for it, just to get on Luffy's nerves a bit. He's a second faster than Luffy, who looks devastated and a bit angry at the turns of events.
He wiggles the meat in front of his mouth a bit, grinning as Luffy sports his best puppy-eyes and pout at him. He looks good enough to eat, right after lunch, mind you.
''Just teasing. Here'' he says, offering the food to Luffy by holding the end of the bone. He expects the dragon to take out of his hand or something, not to eat it from his hand.
Law blinks, baffled that Luffy actually ate the half of the bone too. ''Thank good my hand wasn't there''' he mutters. Seriously, feeding a horse is less dangerous than feeding Luffy.
''Thanks Torao!'' Luffy beams, leaning towards Law.
His breath hitches as they're only inches away from each other. Luffy has his eyes closed so Law follows his example, feeling the anticipation in every fiber of his body. This is the moment he's been waiting for.
Has he? Since when has he been waiting to be...
Luffy rubs their noses together affectionately then sits back and begins looking for more food.
…kissed.
Law opens his eyes after a few moments, dumbfounded, and feeling like an idiot with a tint of disappointment. The gesture was no doubt adorable, and Luffy obviously had no intention on teasing him, but it wasn't enough. He expected a real kiss, not an eskimo one, damn it.
It's probably for the best, as they have attracted just too much attention already, and the nose rubbing could barely be counted as something normal people do. Faggots end burning, though at the point where you're already running from the church with a dragon it really doesn't matter, he supposes. At least he is going to have a box seat in hell.
He doesn't even understand why he is so upset on having not been kissed anyway.
When it dawns on him, that he actually really likes Luffy, even beyond the 'friend but would take for a spin' category, he's even more upset.
The streets are crowded, vendors, merchants, customers and travelers all over the place, bumping into each other so the way they subtly keep touching each other isn't noticeable. He's only talking about small touches there and there, their arms or the back of their hands brushing together more often that it would be necessary, things like that.
They're in Katorea District, that's mostly renowned for its perfume, and true to that, the air carries the smell of different colognes. It's a bit cloying at first, but nothing that couldn't be used to, for him at least. He isn't so sure about Luffy, although he doesn't seem bothered while he talks Law's ear off about how much he heard of human sweets and how awesome they sound.
He's kind of spacing out, not having a sweet tooth or a particular interest in food, so when Luffy suddenly stops Law doesn't even notice it at first, only after he's a few step ahead of the dragon. He turns back and finds Luffy sniffing the air, head tilted back for a better access.
''What is it?'' he asks, touching Luffy's elbow to snap him out of his momentary stupor.
'' This smell'' Luffy mumbles, deep in thought and for a moment Law feels uneasy. Were the crusaders on their tail again? He thought they lost them in the forest. ''It's…''
His brain reels, different scenarios playing of how they were found out, what to do now, how to escape.'' … honey… ''
Everything stops then, his eye twitches as he understand the meaning of the words. Of course it's food again. There he was the fool who actually believed that Luffy can forget about food for a few hours. His right hand reaches out and slaps Luffy on the nape before he even registers what he does, and Luffy yelps indignantly at that, probably not having the slightest clue that he nearly gave Law a heart attack.
He lets out a sigh, both relieved and frustrated - they're safe and Luffy's an idiot.
He looks around, wondering where the honey could be. It could be some sweet, or it could be some really heavy perfume too. He decides that if it's the former, then he might treat Luffy with one, even if he doesn't really deserve it after nearly giving Law a heart attack. Law has yet to make up for waking him up so roughly though, so he thinks it's settled then.
Downtown they really do find a vendor with sweets and Luffy instantly gets hooked up with a bar of honeycomb. Law buys two, giving one to his favorite dragon and keeping the spare in his pocket, in case he will have to bribe said favorite dragon later. Food is the easiest way to appease him, that was the first thing he learned about Luffy.
It's new to see Luffy eating something for more than two minutes, and it's been already like five minutes since he got his hand on the sweet. It's almost frightening that he eats something like normal people do – actually leaving time for the honeycomb to melt is a pretty big accomplishment on Luffy's part.
That may be due the fact that it gets into the tooth easily if you chew it, and once it's there it's really irritating to get out, but he isn't about to spoil any celebration. If anything, he hopes that next time they eat out in public they won't have every single person's eyes on them because of Luffy's lack of manners, even if the reactions are kind of funny, that is, if you aren't embarrassed quickly.
The sun at last begins to set and they sit on a bench to watch it, and stay until the orange lit sky slowly turns dark, into dusk. Luffy's leaning on his side, munching on the second piece of honeycomb while keeping Law warm, and Law has his left arm wrapped around Luffy's shoulder loosely.
They're silent, and the milling crowd is quieting now, less and less people are on the streets for what he's thankful for. He doesn't like crowds, he's always easily irritated from being pushed around and touched by strangers. They doesn't need an audience anyway as the act all lovey-dovey, or as close to it as he can get with Luffy. The dragon probably doesn't have the slightest clue about 'love' in human terms.
''Torao''
There goes the silence, Law thinks, smiling inwardly. Of course it's Luffy that can't keep his mouth shut, who else would it be. He may sound snarky but his comment lacks the edge – it was a wonder anyway that his dearest dragon stayed silent for so long. A few more minutes and Law would have grown worried.
''Hmm?''
Luffy shuffles next to him, turning so that he's crouching on the bench, and leans towards him in the same way he did a few hours ago. It's different though, he can't exactly pinpoint what, and perhaps it's just the atmosphere, or that he tilted his head slightly to the side and that the melted honeycomb glistens on his slightly parted lips.
His heartbeat quickens, his fingers itch to touch Luffy, cup his face or grab his arms, shoulders, waist, ass - whatever, just have contact-, and he doesn't know what to do. He isn't about to make a fool out of himself again, yet his eyelids flutter close on their own accord.
A/N: Yaay I managed to update in March ^^ Nothing really happened here, but I hope you liked it. This chapter was more for character development. There will be a bit more action in next chapter :3 Also I lowered the rating to T, for now. I'm not sure if it's going to go up.
Oh! And. I'm looking for a beta, not for this story but for the OP Bigbang one. It's a LawLu story too (what a surprise) and I'm not sure if I can tell more about it before the posting. It has some...darker parts in it. And rated M, for a good reason. If anyone's interested in being my beta please PM me and I'll say more about it :)
And some shameless self-advertising before I get to the reviews: the above mentioned story is coming on the 14th April :D
Reviews:
Paulie MickeyJ: Luffy can do anything and he'll still be adorable, I think. He's so hopeless, forever the obvious and Law's so hopelessly in love with him.
under . that . sun: I was honestly worried that people won't like the squirrel-part, because I can be really, really, disgustingly morbid, but I just couldn't leave that out. I try to make it as realistic as I can even if it's a fantasy story, I'm glad the effort isn't in vain ^^ Worry not, there will be 10+ chapters to this story I think, it's becoming bigger and bigger as I think about it x.x There's still a lot more Law has to learn about dragons and a lot that Luffy has to learn about humans ;)
PS: I hope I got your name well this time x.x
Guest: I'm glad you liked it! :D
LostFairyMantic: Yess dragon AU-s are so rare and I don't understand why? I mean, c'mon people, dragons, don't you love dragons? Who doesn't love dragons? You 're flattering me, I hope I won't disappoint you :)