„You might suffer from concussion. Can you see clearly?"
The palm leafs above his head are kind of blurry. He watches them rock back and forth in the breeze, desperately trying to ignore the blathering next to him.
"Yes."
Kids response sounds lame and indifferent.
Since he's dragged Law over to the sheltered group of palm trees, he's lost track of time.
He still feels the soaked clothes of the smaller man cling to his skin. He still smells the scent that wafted over every now and then. A mixture of salt, sun and some disturbing fragrance that reminded him of disinfectant. Law smells like a dentist practice that was flooded with seawater. Kid decides to detest it for now.
"Are you sure?"
The only response this time is a low grunt.
Law is leaning on his elbow, lying on his side to have a better look at his involuntary patient. He has managed to talk Kid into taking his coat off to be used as a cover they could lie on. He had imagined it to smell of wet dog but all he smells ever since he came close to the redhead is the distinct scent of rusty iron. It pierces his nose but he doesn't mind much. He's smelled things far more rotten before and he's got a strong stomach.
"Look, you shouldn't mess around with a concussion. It can turn worse and we'd need to hospitalize you. Since I'm sure you'd be a nuisance to any doctor, I'd love to prevent that."
By the time Law has finished his sentence, Kid has gladly chosen to ignore the raven-haired doctor and keeps staring up in the sky. He definitely does not suffer from concussion and he's convinced that the throbbing headache just won't fade because of Laws constant babbling.
Even though the surgeons voice is low and calm, it still annoys him. Everything simply annoys him now. It annoys him that he's been ambushed that easily. His ship is torn to pieces and probably somewhere on the ocean floor right now. His crew is fuck knows where and he has a weird feeling in his stomach that some of them might be dead by now. And in order to prevent sand from entering their wounds Law is abusing his coat as a picnic blanket!
"You're ignoring me, right?"
"Right."
Law can't help but show a minimal smile.
"Consider yourself lucky, Trafalgar. Any other guy would be dead by now."
"I know."
Kid glances over, at least for a few seconds, to see Laws face all calm, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. That guy surely is nuts. Men as fucked up as Law are the most dangerous ones.
Still Kid does not feel uneasy around the doctor. In fact he doesn't really give a flying fuck about his companion. He's well aware that the smaller man could kill him in an instant but that works vice versa. It's quite a secure situation. Predictable for both of them since both are too weak and wounded to start a serious fight.
Law tries to make Kid follow his fingers with his eyes one last time but gets no response. The redheads' lips are firmly pressed together, forming a thin line and Law can tell that he's pissing him off.
He sits himself up, clenches his jaw and pulls his injured leg closer to his body. Fortunately most of the sand has washed off due to the water, but the salt stings in the open wound. The sun is already starting to set and examining the wound becomes hard in the fading light. Leaving it until tomorrow could lead to a nasty infection. Treating it now might do too.
"Can I borrow your dagger?"
Kid purses his lips again.
"You wanna stab me?"
"Actually, yes. But not right now."
"What do you need it for?"
"Self-surgery."
"Are you fucking insane?", so much for ignoring Law.
"I'd need your help with it though. This is probably gonna hurt a little and I don't want to draw attention to us."
"What would you want me to do, huh? Gag you?"
"Something along those lines."
Kid smirks like a predator. The chances of Law suffering greatly in a few minutes amuse him to no end and he's not even trying to disguise it.
He probably should be grateful. Law has examined the laceration on his forehead, as well as the numerous bleeding cuts along his chest and neck and so far Kid hasn't even come close to thanking him. He's not planning to either. After all he's never asked for treatment.
Eventually he pulls the dagger from the holster attached to the belt that is currently lying beside him and hands it over to Law, watching him curiously.
"You need to sit behind me. Cover my mouth, but don't choke me. Make sure I don't wince too much."
Again Laws voice sounds calm and carefree and Kid decides not to comment, as he sits himself up and shifts behind the doctor. He's not keen on physical contact usually. He prefers not to touch people. Law on the other hand doesn't seem to mind at all. He skids back right between Kids opened legs until his back hits the redheads' broad chest. Kid grimaces, but doesn't make a sound.
The Captain wrinkles his nose at the touch and the disturbing smell that fills his nostrils again.
"You stink."
"Why, thank you."
Law leans back, putting one of Kids muscular arms around his torso.
"Getting too close for you?"
"Shut the fuck up and get on with it or I'll operate on you myself!"
"Playing doctors and nurses, are we?"
"You have a death wish, right?"
Law chuckles. Considering that he's going to operate on his own leg in a minute, he seems to be in a pretty good mood. Kid warily watches the back of the doctors' head. Law reminds him once more to make him shut up and Kid sighs in response, indicating that actually he still doesn't give a shit. It's Laws leg after all and if he felt like slicing it open without anesthetics that would be his fucking problem.
The first cut is the deepest.
The splinters are numerous, some deeper than others. He has no water to wash the blood off. He can barely see in the slowly fading sunlight. He's in so much pain that soon the cover over his mouth won't suffice anymore. Law feels his head spin as he fights unconsciousness. He has to remove at least some splinters, otherwise he can forget about his leg.
Kid watches the blood run down and drip into the sand. He seems fascinated. A coppery reek fills the air. The redhead, unconcerned by Laws pain, only snaps back from his rigor as Law vigorously bites down on his hand to guzzle a scream.
As the blade moves through skin, tissue and flesh, picking up splinters here and there, tears form in Laws eyes but he doesn't shed any of them. Instead he sinks his teeth deeper in Kids hand, tearing the skin until he tastes blood on his tongue. No sound emerges from the Captain however. Instead he holds the trembling torso in a firm, nearly breathtaking grip and calmly watches the scenario.
Darkness is creeping over the island and the full moon shines down, delivering at least a little light.
Law has curled up into a ball, pieces of his remaining trouser wrapped around the heavily bleeding wound. He shivers and feels his temperature rise. Clearly he underestimated the chill of the night.
"If my muscles keep contracting like that, the blood flow will never stop."
He's more or less talking to himself, he knows. Since the surgery, Kid had gone back to his disinterested state, occasionally casting a glance at the blood stained cloth. Law can tell that the beast next to him is highly amused, even though he doesn't admit it. It's a dangerous sparkle hidden in the crimson eyes.
"Does that mean you're gonna die?"
"Not too soon."
Kid sighs, nearly sounding disappointed.
"I wanna make a deal with you."
"Huh?"
The redhead lazily turns his face and examines the trembling doctor.
"You're a big guy, right? Your body stores loads of energy to keep you warm. How about I offer my medical services to you and in return you be my personal radiator until we reach a village?"
Kid backs off a few centimeters, clearly displeased by the offer. He remembers Law as being blunt but asking for physical contact that ruthlessly takes him aback for a moment. No one ever had the guts to simply ask something like that from Eustass Captain Kid. No one.
"There's not many who want to touch me by choice, you know?"
The confusion is perfectly covered by a brutish smirk, clearly put on to frighten Law off.
"You don't need to do anything. Just stay the way you are right now."
Kid eyes him suspiciously, doesn't complain anymore though. Simply considering it as a silent agreement, Law shifts closer and curls up against the bare, broad chest. As soon as he feels the heat radiating from the muscular torso, he closes his eyes and falls asleep within a few minutes.
Meanwhile a shadow has left its hideout, moving around a sleeping town. Only a few kilometers from the beach lays a small fishing village, occasionally granting shelter to travelers and pirates alike. The bars are empty but a couple of stores are still lit up.
"Thank you very much. The supplies should be sufficient."
Penguins voice sounds muffled. The band collar of his suit reaches up to his nose, his eyes are hidden under the familiar bonnet with his name boldly written on it. A reminder of the days when he first joined Laws crew and Casquette would keep nicking his stuff. He stuffs his pockets with bandages and antibiotics as the chemist smiles at the young man.
"It's an unusual hour for a major shop like that."
"Yes, my apologies. It's a bit of an emergency."
"I won't ask. Us village folk is not very curious, you know?"
"Ah."
The old man can't see him smile, which doesn't concern him though.
He inhales deeply as he steps out on the streets again and flinches the next moment. Since he got washed up on shore about two days ago he managed to find a cheap hostel and after close self-examination he noticed that he ruptured at least two ribs during the attack on their submarine. Equipped with bandages, medicine and a splint he heads back to he hostel.
Just a few yards from his place to crash he notices a figure leaning against a wall, well hidden in the shadow of a rundown tavern. The man breathes heavily and every breath evokes a shallow whistling, as if he were blowing through holes.
"Who's there?"
Neither his face nor his composure show any fear as Penguin glances into the dark. He'd know how to defend himself, even with cracked ribs.
He steps closer towards the dark and his eyes widen in shock as he recognizes the man, heavily leaning against the wall. He bleeds severely from various wounds, barely able to stand up.
"Oi… aren't you one of Eustass Kids' crew?"