Cuddling is always good, but it's a whole deal better when you're doing it in a comfy bed. Well, it would be a slight exaggeration to call the motel beds comfortable, but it's still somewhat better than the hard ground, he supposes. Albeit the ground does not have stains of unknown origin… and that's when Law wills that train of thought to an abrupt stop. He is not about to ruin such a peaceful morning with the lack of basic hygiene. Who cares anyway, when he's got, they've got way bigger problem than filthy sheets, however unappealing the former may be.

Like the fact that they should be on their way to Sabaody, or well, to anywhere else. Not pretending to be newlyweds on honeymoon.

But running can wait, too, because when the world is at its best with his lover pressed against him, nothing seems urgent enough to make him move

Luffy's purring lazily into his ear, the sound vibrating through him pleasantly. He smiles at his dragon, and he's so smitten and such a sap that were he in just a slightly foul mood, he'd have already made himself vomit. He thinks about yesterday's kisses, sweet and hot and full of love, and his heartbeat gains speed while his chest tightens with untold feelings. It's scary, but isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's just grand, new to him, something that defies logic and makes his heart ache and has him giddy and ridiculous, but it's still somehow good.

Good in the way that the world has never felt better than it is with Luffy in his arm, with his lips pressed against Law's, with his fingers slipped between his own tattooed ones. And that's what makes it frightening too, because the higher you are the bigger your fall will be.

Unconsciously, his grip tightens, and sleepy, black eyes blink at him, confused mostly, but a bit concerned too. Lips open to ask, "Torao?" in a raspy, just woke-up tone. Choosing not to answer verbally, Law just dips his head down, going for a kiss but changes his mind. That just wouldn't do, his gut tells him. Kissing only have a deep meaning in his culture, not in Luffy's. And he wants to convey his feelings to Luffy, so he'll do this in his way.

He brushes his nose against Luffy's, a little awkwardly, but as Luffy goes from initially rigid to lax, then pulls him for a kiss he thinks it's fine. That it's a success. And the dragon's eyes twinkle with happiness, deep and sincere and beautiful and beyond words, and at that exact moment Law knows that he's in love. And consequently, in deep shit too, because being in love with Luffy can only bring trouble on his head. But fuck if he gives a damn about it.

He doesn't care because he honestly can't remember the last time he felt so content with his life.

After a closer inspection of himself in the mirror, Law recoils in horror when he notices that his goatee has slowly but surely grown into an ugly, unkempt beard. He's noticed that his skin itched sometimes, and the stubble felt rough against his hand, but this slovenliness is foreign to him. Why didn't Luffy tell him how shitty he looked all this time? How come he even had the gusto to kiss Law like that?

''I thought you're doing that on purpose'' Luffy replies easily, blinking in confusion when Law comes forward with his question a bit more indignant he's originally planned. It's easy for Luffy, not having to deal with any more hair than he has on the top of his head. It's understandable, that he doesn't need hair when he has scales in his true form, but the knight has to wonder: then why have hair in this form at all?

The first thing Law does, after the new but certainly welcomed routine of morning kisses and cuddles and breakfast is to go find a barber. While he's not stupid enough to not realize that he should not be worrying about such insignificant details when they're being pursued, he just can't help it. He looks ridiculous, long stubble starting under his cheekbone finishing in his trademark goatee. Almost like an actual goat, what the hell. So he'll let his vanity win this round, big deal. He can be the irrational one at times, too.

Luffy accompanies him, of course. He's gotten clingy. And by clingy Law means he sticks like a limpet. Truthfully, he'd rather not leave him without supervision, god knows only what hazardous thoughts would appear in that overly impulsive mind of his. So he has Luffy in an appropriate proximity, but naturally, he doesn't let his favorite dragon to do PDA as he pleases. It doesn't help that the little rascal doesn't have the word 'discretion' in his vocabulary, nor does he respect anything along the lines of 'boundaries' and 'personal space'.

And even if he knew about these things, the tattooed man still doubts that he would give a damn. He just not the type to condemn to social norms, or to care about what others think of him. And, of course, there's still the fact that they're from different species. Cultural differences aren't easy to overcome, but differences between species? He isn't sure what they can do about that. Sure, he is trying, and Luffy must be trying, in his own way, too, but at times he just seems to find humans… ridiculous. It leaves Law vaguely uncomfortable.

The boy is fascinated with everything concerning humans, and he takes every opportunity to see 'what funny thing they're up to'. The knight isn't sure if he feels miffed or amused – likely a mixture of both – that through the eyes of a dragon how strange humans seem. Then again, he supposes that is fair like that – it's not like he doesn't find Luffy's habits odd, animalistic even. His infatuation with Luffy isn't always enough to completely suppress stray thoughts along the lines of 'beast' or 'animal', however terrible is it to think about his lover like that.

And usually, just as if the dragon had an ability to read Law's thoughts, Luffy gifts him with a brilliant smile full of trust and innocence, and then he feels guilty. But those thoughts must be okay, or not okay but natural. Must be one of those unnecessarily mean thoughts that are eerily similar to what social norms decree, to what you're supposed to think despite what you actually think. After all, Law would not harbor romantic feelings for him if he really thought that Luffy was just a savage, would he?

He doesn't have the opportunity to answer himself as they arrive to the barber's. The dragon nearly bounces around in excitement, but what for, the knight doesn't understand.

''It's an adventure'', Luffy says, but how could getting a haircut be one remains a mystery to Law.

It does turn, to be one, for Luffy at least. A pretty boring one at that. The dragon attempts to sneak away, but he's so fucking clumsy that Law doesn't even need the mirror in front of him to tell about his intentions.

''And where are you going?'' he asks, with a warm towel pressed against his face. The long stubble was already trimmed, now it's time to soften the hairs. The barber works fast, there are no chit-chats, he doesn't pry, and Law's grateful for that. He doesn't like unnecessary talks, and would rather not engage in conversations beyond the necessary how long you want it to be. Though his constant humming and foot tapping gets on the knight's nerve.

He noticed as they were waiting that his lover fidgeted way too much, likely having to force himself to stay in one place. The first few minutes spent in the salon were awkward for all of them, even for the previous client, as Luffy had been watching intently with huge eyes the barber work. Despite the awkwardness, Law almost found himself chuckling. It had to be nerve-straining, working wordlessly while someone stares at you from the other side of the room.

Still, the man said nothing about it. His body language didn't change at all, he kept his rhythmic movements. It was a bit like as if he was dancing, doing ballet perhaps. Law found it odd, still finds the man odd in general. But he isn't one to judge, not with his companion.

When the dragon got too annoying, the barber's hands twitched. He was probably thinking about cutting Luffy up, Law assumes, and Law honestly can't blame him for it. There's no harm to it, until he doesn't act on his violent impulses.

''Just to… piss. Yeah, just I'm just going to piss'' Luffy lies, and Law blinks. He's seen bad liars, but it certainly tops everything. The dragon can't even look into his direction, let alone into his eyes, and for fuck's sake, his hands are trembling so noticeably Law would have to be blind to not notice it.

''Is that so?'' he drawls. '' You're not planning to wander off when you're done, are you?"

''N-no!''

''Luffy.''

''…. Okay.'' The boy says, resigned. '' I'm going to explore.''

The reply is instant, spoken in a firm voice. ''No.''

''Yes.'' Luffy says, voice hard. Determined. Which means it's no use to fight, because he'll do whatever he wants anyway. It'd only attract unnecessary attention.

Law sighs. ''Just…don't get in trouble. You can do that?''

The dragons face lights up, and without any further words, he's out of the building.

Letting Luffy loose was not a good idea, he thinks bitterly while running for his life, and wistfully wonders about how their day could have turned out. The naïve fool he is dared to hope to spend at least this day in peace, resting a bit and generally romancing around with Luffy, but since when does anything go as he plans with his dearest around? That's right, it never did, it does not, and it never will, most likely. Certainly not in the foreseeable future.

While Luffy's sincerity and straightforwardness is endearing in a lot of situations, there should be a limit to it. What he's getting at, that while morals and telling the truth are valuable qualities, that little thing called survival instinct should also take part in making decisions and should also filter what comes out of one's mouth.

What happens with Luffy though, that his filter is either broken or doesn't exist at all.

It's just basic common sense, in Law's opinion, that you shouldn't steal if you don't have to, unless you can pull it off without being caught. Now, if you are stupid enough to steal and get caught, then please don't fucking tell the vendor you stole from that you can't work to compensate the damage you made because you currently have crusaders on your tail.

If you still chose to do all this, do not wonder if you happen to be killed – it's just, you know, how natural selection works.

And the theory would apply, nice and square, and the knight would merely cast a condescending look at the fool, if the knight himself didn't happen to be in love with a certain fool. Dragon, more precisely. Maybe flying is to blame, all that time spent in the sky must have damaged his brain. That shit can't be healthy, anyway.

So he curses his luck, Luffy, dragons in general, his damned feelings and whatever comes to mind. But mostly his feelings. Fucking love and all the shit that comes with it. The person he used to be roughly until three months ago would laugh and spit him in his damned face for what has he become, for letting himself be dragged into the pace of the storm known as Luffy.

They're lucky, so very, very lucky, when after turning on a corner, the barber waits for them. He tells them to follow him, and they do, through the alleys, into the protective walls of the building. God bless the man, seriously, for making Law look like a decent human being, and for saving their asses, of course. Not that they really needed it, because they could have lose their pursuers themselves, but he isn't complaining, he isn't. This just makes shit a whole lot easier.

He has to wonder though, what made the man help them. Surely he and Law didn't bond over some deep, meaningful conversation, as no such thing as even a friendly chat took place, so it makes the knight a bit suspicious. Call him paranoid, but he doesn't think anyone would help them selflessly after their status as heathens has been outed. Not without hoping to gain something from it.

He voices his doubts, and Luffy looks at him like he was the biggest piece of ungrateful shit the world has ever seen. Law promptly ignores him.

''Stop kidding me!" the man yells, and Law nearly takes a step back in surprise at the suddenness of it. '' You paid me more than I normally earn in 3 days! Un, deux, trois,-ah.. what was it, four times the amount you were supposed to pay!'' the man says, yanking his thumb in the direction of the stool that has a small pile of coins in it. ''What do you take me for thinking I won't be helping a friend, hmm?''

Law blanches – it is indeed a lot of money he hastily put there, and it was totally unintentional. He just heard the shouting from outside, and by now he has a built in Luffy-sensor, so he knew, fucking knew that his dearest was in trouble. He was right. So he just ran out, but had first paid like the gentleman he was. It was a small fortune he left here.

Now it makes sense that the barber's helping them.

Money isn't an issue for him, most of the time, really, he isn't fond of flamboyance and too much luxury, so he has more money he can deal with. But the thing is, said money isn't with him at the moment – he had only taken enough with him to travel comfortable, alone. If only he had taken more when he was summoned… but then again, normally it'd have been enough to cover one trip or two.

He couldn't have possibly known how that fateful meeting with Doflamingo would end. And quite possibly, if anyone told him about the outcome, or about dragons and all the supposedly not existing crap, he'd have checked for fever or ask if the person has had recently eaten mushrooms.

''You can leave through the Western gates'' the man continues, gaining Law's attention. He really should learn the man's name, somehow, without offending him. Their fate is kind of at the hands of his mercy, after all. He's sure the man has introduced himself before, but he just… didn't care much to listen. Luffy's rubbing off on him, maybe. Ah, but he should blame everything on him, should he?

Speaking of him, Luffy's… preoccupied with something at the moment, rubbing his belly as if he was trying to soothe the raging hunger. Nevermind that they had breakfast like two hours ago. He blinks, realizing that he's been spacing out again. It's a bad developing habit; he can only hope the barber didn't say anything important, because he can't really count on his dragon to recite it. He probably thinks Law's listening, anyway.

''I suggest you stay here and lay low for a few days.''

Law nods, because that makes sense. The whole town is on alert now, and they doesn't want to cause any more ruckus than they already have. Well he doesn't want to, but Luffy might think otherwise. He probably doesn't give a flying fucks about that. Like he enjoys leaving chaos behind.

And that's why Law's making the major decisions, or so he'd like to think.

'' I understand where are you coming from, but we have to decline. We're in hurry to get… somewhere, and we already wasted too much time here.''

The barber hums, seemingly giving up on making them stay. Law can't blame him. He got free money and he doesn't have to house fugitives either – a pretty good deal indeed. Even so, he seems to be deep in thought. The knight can't really explain it, but it feels as if he really…cares about them. Even beyond being paid. What a weird man…

''I'll accompany you.'' The man says, and it sounds final.

Maybe they should have waited as the barber – Bon Clay – told them to. Law learnt his name, as Luffy had no qualms about asking him. The barber didn't seem offended at them not remembering his name, he even became a good friend of with Luffy. The boy even told Bon Clay about being a dragon, and that he and Law were 'mates', for fuck's sake! The knight's a bit uneasy about that – while the man doesn't seem like a threat, Law's not a very trusting person. He doesn't give out his trust for free.

They don't get very far when a guard notices them, only two street in the direction they're headed. They hide in an alley, not even daring to breathe as the guards run past them. They hear the voices of lots of men, boots meeting the ground in loud trampling. It seems like they're the mice now, in a game of cats and mice.

Law massages the bridge of his nose, trying to come up with a good strategy. They can't go anywhere, there are only houses across the street, with all windows hastily closed at the command of 'get them', and there's square where they'd surely be caught or shot dead, and a church. Now that almost makes him laugh, the irony of it. Under normal circumstances criminals can seek asylum in churches, but what if the church is the enemy itself?

On the other hand… who would think of looking for them there?

They tiptoe further into the alley. The streets are still safer than the being out in the open.

What they didn't expect is, to find a couple making out. The lovebirds let go of each other immediately, and much to Law's surprise, they turn out to be two women. One of them has long, straight blue hair, and she's dressed in a nun's garb. The other has long hair too, but it's wavy and fierce red. Her clothes are rather revealing too – she sport a cleavage no decent women is supposed to. Not like Law cares per see, with his lack of interest in women, he just found the stark contrast between the two of them worthy of mention.

The redhead pulls a knife on them, which is a very interesting first reaction. It talks about experience.

She isn't afraid of using it either, her threatening tone reveals. ''What do you want?''

''We? We're just leaving!'' Luffy says, cheerful. It's weird, how easygoing he's about this. Luffy's exceptional at picking up the change in people's mood, and seeing them for what they're worth. He's a good judge of character. There must be something about this girl that's out of ordinary.

Still, he isn't about to put his head on the line to find it out, so he clamps his hand over Luffy's mouth, pulling the boy into his chest to stop him from struggling. ''Idiot!'' he chides.

Their antics end when Bon Clay sputters. '' Stop kidding me! Vi-Vivi?! The daughter of the bishop? And the Cat Burglar?!''

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece.

Phew. Can't believe it's done. And the story's actually cooperating now, so while I had this written yesterday night (couldn't sleep until it was out of my system), today I had a free class and I wrote ~500 words for the next chapter. Finally getting somewhere with this story, maybe.

Sorry for taking so long again. It's been so long that I actually forgot how do I even update or upload files on FF /shot.

Also how about a slight Nami/Vivi? No? Well, it's only for the next chappy and maybe for one more, and that'll be it, I promise. I'm not very fond of fics that include too many ships either, especially when I don't care for said ships e.e

Reviews:

Paulie MickeyJ: I'm glad you liked it! :D It may be a little overdue, but I'm still sorry for your lost stories, though you have probably rewritten them by now. And there'll be smut, I decided, though it may be not very detailed. (and there might be a little drama around it but shh.)

poyochin: Yes yes, it's alive and kicking! I'm glad you liked it :33

under . that . sun: I'm glad you liked it! :D also hope I managed to get your name right. guess I should have known.
я тоже учу русский язык!
I didn't want to be too mean to Law (that's for later hehe.) The cutest couple ever, yes, I agree. they're so perfect together!

Leska: I'm doing that, I'm doing. Bear with me for being slow please?

koalaiscool: You're making me blush, dammit. Here's the update :3 I'm glad you enjoyed it.

86fran: Well, technically this story should be my priority since I'm not working on anything else but well. I have no excuses for being lazy. Yes, I guess you could say it's a fantasy world, but magic is mostly hidden from people. :3 I'm glad you enjoyed it.

That's it, I guess. Now I'm off to have lunch. Or dinner, because it 5pm. I cooked good food, curry, but it took so long that meanwhile a drank a lot of tea and tasted the food a few times and now when it's done and it's in front of me and I'm not hungry! So annoying.

I'm feeling very talkative now, hehe. Hope ya' guys will be talkative too :3 Just saying, reviews are a pretty good way to guilt-trip me into updating *is totally not hinting anything*