Doflamingo had expected many things from the Heart Pirate captain he had practically blackmailed into returning to his crew. Hell, Doflamingo had even anticipated Law being a bit of a brat about being dragged off from his crewmate earlier, and being some sort of a nuisance for awhile longer, but this? The older pirate felt Law's arms tighten around his ankles, and Doflamingo's smile turned into a displeased frown. This was something that Doflamingo had not anticipated, and he was furious that Law had the gall to cling to his legs in such a way. Doflamingo knew that the dark haired pirate that clung doggedly to his legs had to have known what would happen for such an interference. After all, as soon as Doflamingo had caught sight of Luffy hurtling through the air at him, Law's intentions became perfectly clear to him. It did not please Doflamingo in the least bit.

The Heart Pirate was trying to allow Straw Hat to get a direct hit on him, despite knowing what the consequences would be.

Doflamingo sneered. What a shame. It seemed that Law still hadn't learned his lesson. Perhaps he should have killed Penguin in front of Law as a warning to not do exactly what he was doing right now. Doflamingo supposed he had been a little lenient because he had wanted to get going, and at the time Law had come along back to his ship without too much complaint. Apparently, the other pirate had been holding back on him. And as much as he wanted to do something about it, Doflamingo could not take the time at that very moment to correct Law's behavior. Doflamingo knew for a fact that at any moment the marines would show themselves, as they have proven to be very persistent in their pursuit. It was Fujitora's doing, no doubt after learning more of the older blond's plans behind Dressrosa. Doflamingo withheld a sigh, as if he found the marines pursuing him to be very inconvenient due to being caught after ten years of flying under the radar. Most unfortunately, Doflamingo was now forced to find a way to hide away from the marines until they became lax in their search. Being held up by a bunch of brats and dealing with them was not on his list of things to do. Doflamingo's gaze flicked up to the blur flying toward him through the air.

And speaking of brats...

"I hope you know what is going to happen once I have dealt with Straw Hat Luffy, Law." Doflamingo said softly, his words full of menace as he glared down at the younger man that still clung to his legs. The blond haired pirate's smile deepened as he turned his attention to Luffy for the moment. He had ample time to prevent the Straw Hat captain from landing the unprovoked attack on him, and did so by freeing one long leg from Law's grasp as he braced himself on the deck, ready for the strike. Doflamingo knew that the previous swipe of his hand with string had injured the dark haired pirate's arms so that they were not able to get quite as good a grip. But even with the dark haired pirate's arms weakened from the gashes, Doflamingo could feel Law merely rewrap his arms around one of the blond's legs.

Doflamingo honestly didn't see the point, but refrained from kicking Law for now. It was kind of entertaining that Law thought that he was doing anything of use by grappling his legs. With his brow furrowed and his features a nasty smile, Doflamingo brought one arm up and used armament haki to block Luffy's incoming attack, though he did get sent back a foot or so from the force with which Luffy had struck him, before Doflamingo could dig his heels in. It was a bit difficult to do so with Law still clinging to one of his legs like a limpet. Doflamingo kept his arm up and grinned past his forearm at the younger captain, "Straw Hat Luffy, I could have sworn I had beaten you earlier, back on Dressrosa." With a careless flick of his arm, Doflamingo sent Luffy flying backward across the deck of his ship, his grin deepening in its intensity as Luffy merely landed lightly on the deck of the ship and struck a fighting stance.

"Those marines interrupted us back then." Luffy said, cracking his knuckles. "We weren't done with our fight."

Doflamingo laughed again at that. It amused him that Luffy thought that he was his equal in a fight. It really was laughable, "Fufufufu. It wouldn't have mattered either way. You still would have lost had they not come." The older pirate tilted his upper body to one side as Luffy went careening past him again, his attack completely missing this time. Doflamingo watched Luffy land, and as much as he'd rather deal with the fool himself, he wanted to get his crew out of range of the marine admirals that were no doubt bearing down on them at this very moment. However, that did not mean that Doflamingo was going to allow Luffy and his crew to remain in tact if he could help it. His own personal touch could come later should they get away again. Doflamingo just couldn't be bothered to use his powers at the moment.

As ideas of what to do other than firing cannons at the other ship, Doflamingo froze as something dug into his bare shin. As pain began to register in his mind, Doflamingo slowly brought his gaze down briefly to be greeted with the sight of a grim faced Law. A grim faced Law who currently held a dagger by its hilt, and from the looks of it, had plunged the blade into the blond's skin with more force then was necessary. Doflamingo's jaw set against the burn that began to rise from the wound, and inwardly wondered where the fuck the damn brat had sneaked the dagger from. He had an inkling, and was displeased that he would have to have another conversation with Baby 5 about letting people talk her into giving them things. In fact, Doflamingo ought to keep them separated until he didn't have to worry about Law filching weapons to use against him.

"Mingo!"

Doflamingo leaned his head to the right as Luffy narrowly missed clipping his jaw, and made a incensed sound in the back of his throat. Luffy was not important at the moment. Law was, as the fucking brat had just stabbed him, and apparently from the curl of his lip, had enjoyed it. That was something that Doflamingo was not going to wait to address. Especially when Law shoved the blade in a tad deeper. If that brat had hit an artery or bone...

"Doffy?"

Doflamingo slid a glance to the side, momentarily distracted from the searing burn in his shin, "Didn't I tell you lot to open fire on Straw Hat Luffy's ship?" The blond haired pirate stiffened as Trebol was suddenly right in front of him, presumably to see if Doflamingo needed any assistance with a surly, stab-prone dark haired pirate.

"Hey, hey, what's Law doing?"

Doflamingo absently pressed his free foot down on Law's nearest arm, which caused an immediate hiss of pain as Law was forced to drop his hand from the dagger's hilt if he didn't want his arm crushed. Satisfied that he had temporarily stopped Law, Doflamingo addressed Trebol, "You're too close. And I am dealing with this one my own. Concern yourself with getting those cannons to fire at the masts of Straw Hat's ship."

Trebol considered Doflamingo's words before he nodded and moved off, even if he had seen Law inching his non trapped hand back toward the dagger's hilt. As he went, Trebol wrangled Lao G and a few of the nearest of the crew to continue to launch an assault on the Thousand Sunny.

As soon as Trebol had gone, Diamante had taken his place, though he did not bother himself with looking down at Law. He obviously felt Doflamingo had the situation under control as he gave a brief overview of the start of their fight with the other crew, "They're cutting and striking the cannons down. We have a surplus of cannons, but it would be a waste if none of them made contact. Should we switch tactics?"

Doflamingo's brow had creased in slight pain, as he felt Law shift and use his other hand to draw the dagger out and go in for another stab. Doflamingo flicked a finger in Law's general direction, and knew from the curse and lack of new pain that he had caught and now had Law in place with his Devil Fruit. Which he should have done in the first place. That accomplished, Doflamingo's smile returned as he addressed the other man that had spoken, "A genius such as yourself should need no other order than to attack the enemy, isn't that right, Diamante?"

"Come now, Doffy, don't say that, I am not that good with..."

"But you are a genius. Remember the coliseum?" Doflamingo said, his grin wider as he amused himself with teasing his crewmate a little, "I wouldn't let you have as much free reign otherwise if I didn't trust your judgment."

"You can't be serious though..."

Doflamingo gave a little shrug, as if changing his mind, "Well then, I take it..."

"Fine! If you insist that I am a genius when it comes to attacking the enemy as asked, I am!" Emboldened, Diamante strolled off and began to rearrange the cannons, shouting at a few of the other crew on the higher up deck to switch to smaller projectiles that would be harder to strike out of the air.

Doflamingo's voice was taut as he addressed Law, as if he were holding back a great rage, his fingers angling slightly to make the string that held Law in place cut into the skin. "I won't forget that, Law." Doflamingo indicated the wound in his shin that was bleeding, "I hope you enjoyed your little outburst while you could." Doflamingo turned and flexed his other hand at Luffy as he halted the teen in the air mid punch. Doflamingo spoke to Law without bothering to look at him, "Stay down there and behave. This will all be over soon."

-x

Law knew that it would be all over soon, as Doflamingo had just said, but that didn't mean he was about to allow Doflamingo to have his way. The Heart Pirate had to act now, before the rest of Doflamingo's crew could really begin to attack Straw Hat's ship in earnest. Law carefully tested just how much of a control Doflamingo's Devil Fruit power had over him, and was pleased to find that, while he could not move, he was able to call up on his own Devil Fruit powers. And finding that out wasn't a moment too soon, because as soon as he felt Doflamingo's control over his body leave, Law saw the older blond slash his hand toward Straw Hat with vicious intent. The Heart Pirate hastily used his powers to divert Doflamingo's attacks despite the fact that he knew that the retaliation would be swift. Law also made one more decision that he knew Doflamingo was going to hate him for. But it was necessary for the rest of the Straw Hats to get away, and show up at a better time and place than this. "Room!"

Law twisted his fingers sharply, his eyes on Luffy. He didn't know whether or not Luffy would be compliant in going along with what he was about to do, but Law felt that Straw Hat would just have to deal with it. Law somehow doubted that it would make Luffy disinterested in being frineds with him. No, this was likely only to make things worse in that regard, but Law did so hate to think that Doflamingo could potentially get away with this. "Shambles!" And with that, Law had created a room large enough to swap a barrel on the Thousand Sunny with its captain. Law immediately dropped the room, as he did not want to waste any more energy with what he was sure to follow as soon as Doflamingo's attentions were not on the Thousand Sunny.

The retaliation that Law had expected from Doflamingo was fast in coming, though the dark haired pirate had not anticipated the pain that would accompany the damn string that made him know it was Doflamingo's doing. Law held perfectly still, as he was in no mood to allow the string to cut into his skin any more than it already had. The Heart Pirate had made a gamble and he just knew that from the way that Doflamingo was now considering him with a tilt of his head and a strained smile, that he was in danger of losing consciousness. Which was not a part of the plan Law had come up with just then. No, he still had a bit to say before he allowed Doflamingo to silence him in any way. So, Law looked away from the seething blond and over to Luffy's crew instead, as their captain had just jumped back up, no doubt ready to fling himself over the water again and back at Doflamingo. Which, from the sound of grinding teeth, was not the best of ideas with how angry Doflamingo appeared to be. Law swiftly weighed his options as he felt Doflamingo loom closer, before the dark haired pirate made a decision.

Law called out as loudly as he could to the Straw Hat crew, before Doflamingo could think to stop him, "Straw Hat-ya! Get away from this place! Go to where we spoke of! I will go when I am able to! The marines are coming!" Law could tell right away that Luffy did not want to go, but it was encouraging to see Zoro seize one of Straw Hat's arms to prevent him from jumping ship again. Unfortunately, Law was not able to see whether the rest of the crew had heeded his words, as Doflamingo chose that very moment in the silence following his words to harshly take him down to the deck. Law grimaced in pain at the burning sensation in his upper left arm, and knew that Doflamingo had just slashed him viciously with string. Before Law could try and do something, he felt string tether him to the deck of the ship. The Heart Pirate expected more of a punishment, but heavy footsteps receding it was clear that Doflamingo was more interested in dealing with a potential threat than an uruly subordinate that didn't know his place. Law let out a barely there wheeze of laughter at the very thought. He knew that this wasn't the extent of what Doflamingo had planned, and he menatally began to brace himself, because he knew that if and when Straw Hat and his crew got away, there was going to be hell to pay.

The dark haired pirate spent the next several long minutes going over in his head why he had gone with Doflamingo in the first place. His crew. His crew's safety, as well as Penguin's. He was not going to risk doing anything more after this for fear that Doflamingo may decide that it was more convenient to destroy Law's crew than to let them go free. Law heard several curses from various people running by, but knew that they were not aimed at him. No, everyone knew that Doflamingo was going to be the one to deal with him, so there was really no point in harassing him until after said disciplining had come to pass. Law hated to think that Doflamingo could just drag him back into the crew as if the last ten years of being away from him had just been some rebellious teen phase. The Heart Pirate closed his eyes and took a deep breath, before he let it out slowly.

No, Doflamingo didn't think that way. After all, he had said it himself that Law had been holding a grudge against him that he had no right to have in the first place.

Law grit his teeth as more cannon fire went off, accompanied by some laughs. He hated that he was back on this man's ship. Law wanted to get as far away from Doflamingo as he could, but in the end, here he was, back to a place he never thought he would be again. But this time, he was not willing to be there. Not anymore. He had good reason to be as far away from Doflamingo as possible, but Doflamingo had landed on the one thing that Law couldn't bear to lose now.

His crew.

And damn him for taking advantage of it.

Law opened his eyes and stared blankly at the deck of the ship. He was out of options at the moment, as he really did not want to think about Doflamingo cheerfully going to slaughter his crew if he decided Law's actions were enough to warrant it. But only if he could find them. Only if he could...

Shit.

The dark haired pirate held perfectly still as he realized with dread that he still had a vivre card on him that was linked to his crew. In his pocket. In the pants he happened to be wearing right now.

No...

Law cursed inwardly and dearly hoped that what he had done just now had not set Doflamingo off in that he would find a way to locate his crew and make an example of them for Law's insubordination. Even if Law did not consider himself a part of Doflamingo's crew in any way. Just as Law was desperately trying to figure out how to dispose of the vivre card discreetly, he heard Doflamingo curse, and then heard the heavy footsteps return.

"You certainly made a mess of things, you damn brat."

Oh boy, the demotion from his given name to brat. That did not bode well for him at all. But from the displeasure in Doflamingo's voice, at the very least it let Law know that Luffy and his crew had made the smart move and had retreated for the time being. Which was a big surprise in and of itself. Even though Law doubted that Luffy would have wanted to go in the first place. Law remained still as he felt the string leave his body, but the dark haired pirate didn't dare move, since he was not sure of Doflamingo's mood. But he soon was, as Law felt Doflamingo nudge him none too gently in the side.

"Get up."

The flat tone was not at all reassuring, but then again, nothing about Doflamingo ever was. Law couldn't believe that he had ever wanted to willingly be around this man.

Law rose slowly, acutely aware of the fact that he was in trouble, but at the same time he did not give a damn. His crew was safe so long as he stayed away and so did they, and as long as Doflamingo did not find the vivre card in his pocket. Straw Hat and his crew were safe as well too, for now. Law didn't bother trying to walk away, and merely followed after Doflamingo to the nearest cabin. He didn't, however, like how silent the rest of the crew was, nor the way Baby 5 had teared up and hugged Buffalo. It made the dark haired wonder just how angry Doflamingo was if this was the way the other members of his 'family' were reacting. The 'nice knowing you' from Trebol made Law do one last act of rebellion. He flipped the other man off, and winced as a large hand seized him firmly by the scruff of his neck (though at least Doflamingo had gotten a handful of clothing as well) and dragged him into the cabin, the door slamming shut. Law felt it had been worth it though, to see the clearly surprised look on Trebol's face. He supposed that the other had thought that Law would tread lightly, but really, he should have known better than that.

The dark haired pirate hated that he was being treated as a child as he was tugged along by Doflamingo into one of the cabins in the back if the ship, until they had reached what Law presumed was Doflamingo's personal cabin, from the spacious interior and suspiciously pink themed room. Had Law not feared for his life, or at the very least, his limbs, he may have been tempted to tease the older man about the choice of décor. Law could have sworn he had seen a damn flamingo before Doflamingo let go of him with a heavy shove. Law stumbled further into the large room, and even though he supposed that Doflamingo wanted him to end up on the ground, Law refused to do so, and instead straightened up. He didn't turn around though. If Doflamingo wanted him to look at him, he could damn well walk around to face him. Law now fully anticipated the coming punishment for what he had said and done. But the dark haired man had no regrets, and was not afraid as the door to the cabin closed behind him. The lock, however, made him inwardly squirm, even though he knew Doflamingo's intentions were nothing but punishment and discipline. It didn't mean he couldn't be at least slightly intimidated.

After all, Law had narrowly avoided any disciplining in the past through pure luck. And right now? Law highly doubted that Doflamingo was going to cause him any lasting harm. For the time being, he was far too valuable for that. Unless, of course, he pressed Doflamingo's buttons too much and changed the other man's mind. Law hoped that that time hadn't already arrived, but if nothing else, he was in for something painful, according to the rest of the crew. The dark haired pirate's thoughts fled as a hefty shove between his shoulder blades from Doflamingo sent him stumbling forward until he bumped into the nearest wall of the cabin.

No, it seemed to Law that Doflamingo had a mind to discipline him. Which he knew that the older man was more than happy to dish out without the danger of going too far.

-x

"You're remarkably calm considering the circumstances." Doflamingo commented lightly as he watched Law about face and press his back up against the wall of the cabin.

Law's lips curled, "Would it help if I weren't? Would you prefer me to cower?" The dark haired man's voice made it obvious that he would do no such thing.

"Hm, it would certainly would help. How else would I be able to tell whether I am able to get through to you or not?" Doflamingo flicked his fingers at the dark haired pirate, and in a matter of seconds, had pierced the brat's limbs through with string to the cabin wall behind him. The choke of pain and disbelief at his actions made Doflamingo laugh darkly, "Fufufufu. Did you not think I would harm you?" Doflamingo languidly went up to Law to lean over him, testing the strings that had gone through Law's limbs, drawing out a harsh intake of breath. The older pirate flashed his teeth in a nasty smile, "If you thought that, you are a fool. A physical reminder makes a verbal reprimand much more effective. It keeps one's attention focused." Doflamingo's hand curled beneath Law's chin to tilt his head up so that he could look the dark haired man in the eyes. He laughed at the hate he could see in Law's eyes, "No matter how much you say or imply that you have changed, you still have a similar look in your eyes. That you hate the world around you."

Law jerked his head away from Doflamingo's hand, and the blond allowed it.

For now.

Doflamingo backed up a few steps before he began to pace back and forth in front of the tethered Heart Pirate, silent for a moment as he gathered his thoughts. He glanced out of the corner of his eyes, pleased that his glasses hid the action for the most part. From what he could see, Law was trying his hardest not to move lest he make the string that had pinned his arms and legs, as well as shoulders, to the wall. Doflamingo knew that it would hurt if there were any sudden movements and that was specifically why he chose to do things this way than with sea stone shackles. Not that Law seemed to have realized he could use his powers to escape the string. Maybe the brat was smarter than Doflamingo gave him credit for.

The older pirate spoke calmly as he continued inspecting his captive for any sudden movements, "I'm wondering, Law, what was the point of all that? You knew that you would not be allowed to get away with interfering, so why do it in the first place? I had thought you'd learned that when your crewmate decided to try and save you." Doflamingo grinned at the pained gasp, as Law had twitched at the comment. Doflamingo waited for the dark haired pirate to settle against the wall with a pained grimace before continuing, "Do you think that I won't go after your crew if you keep acting like this?"

"You will never find them." Law said, his breath coming out in a gasp. "And I won't tell you where they might be."

Doflamingo grinned, "Don't try to play grown up with me, Law. You will fail. You don't think I won't be able to use my resources to find them should you continue to be so difficult?" Doflamingo noted that Law's left hand twitched against his pants, and the older pirate's smile sharpened, "You need to work on schooling your body's reactions. You are making this too easy for me."

"I don't know what you are talking about." Law's fist clenched, but not fast enough to hide the slight shake, and it wasn't from the pain.

Doflamingo chuckled darkly as he approached Law again, "Well, well, what have we here? Are you hiding something from me?" Doflamingo smiled at the way that Law would not meet his eyes. "You are, aren't you?" Doflamingo's hand reached for the pocket, though his paused when Law's hand snapped over the pocket, despite making the string dig into his forearm and shoulder, which only caused him more pain. Doflamingo's hand moved in and gripped Law's, laughing, "Fufufu. There's no use in trying to hide it, whatever it is. You already gave it up as soon as you twitched your hand moments ago."

Law resisted the other mans grip, his lips drawn into a thin line and his brow furrowed in pain.

"It's useless, Law." Doflamingo commented, as he let go of the dark haired pirate's hand and flicked a finger, and used string to forcefully drag Law's hand from his pocket, resulting in a pained groan. Doflamingo ignored Law in favor of the other pirate's pocket, and dipped a few fingers into it. His fingertips closed on a paper, and he figured he knew what it was by the slight trepidation in Law's expression that was mixed in with the agony of having his arm so roughly treated. Doflamingo drew out his prize, and grinned as he saw the small scarp of paper. It was as he thought.

A vivre card.

Doflamingo held the paper between thumb and forefinger, and watched as the little scrap of paper fluttered to the right that his ship was currently headed. Doflamingo's grin grew cruel as he looked down at Law, waving the vivre card, "I thought you knew better, Law, then to leave anything so important lying in plain sight. But then again, I guess I had never had anyone in the family train you in what to do should you be kidnapped or captured. We would have gotten to that eventually had you not run out on us. But it works out for me now, doesn't it?" Doflamingo's expression grew thoughtful, before he positively beamed at Law in quite a terrifying way, "I just had a wonderful thought. Why don't we test out a theory?"

When Law said nothing and merely settled for glowering at him, Doflamingo continued, anticipating getting quite a response out of the other pirate, "I think I will anchor my ship at the closest island, and see if your crew is following us. That'd be one way to see if they are smarter than you. That they should know when to quit, but..." Doflamingo shrugged carelessly, "I somehow doubt they're ones to just let things stay as they are. I know for a fact that...Penguin, was it? He won't leave you with me. I am sure that you know of his past. Perhaps you were even the one to drag that miserable fool from a life of slavery, but then again, maybe he just came crawling to you in the hopes that someone would make sure that his former masters would not be able to find him. I heard the people running that particular 'work group' are quite keen on getting their hands on him. And have been for nearly ten years." Doflamingo loved the look of horror spreading across Law's face, "Maybe I will contact them if I happen to have your foolish crewmate in my grasp again. They do have other slaves working on something, and they were apparently wanting to shove a former slave recaptured, and made an example of, if any of them thought it would be clever to try and run."

Law's voice had dropped into an icy tone of utter fury, "I will kill you if you get anywhere near him again."

Doflamingo turned away from Law, dismissing the threat completely, "You already had your chance to kill me. And guess what, Law? You failed. There is nothing you can do to stop me if I chose to pursue that particular train of thought. If nothing else, I think it would be good to see some consequences come from running around free for these past ten years, thinking that you can just come in and uproot my power I built up without thinking that there might be any fallout from doing so. But for now, I believe that this little game..." The older blond waved the vivre card, "...should make you realize that it is not a good idea to go against me. And if this doesn't stick, I think I will find a way to get your friend shipped off to be executed, and I'll take you with me for a front row seat. When I'm through with you, you may even enjoy the sight." Doflamingo shook his head as he sighed wistfully, "You used to be so hateful and cruel. It's such a shame that my little brother somehow made you such a spineless coward."

Doflamingo didn't bother to look back to see what that comment had brought forth, and instead closed the cabin door to leave Law to strew in his own guilt. Doflamingo went to locate his navigator to change their course with the thought that he would deal with Law after he had a new course set. That last little comment that he had received from Law had been said with enough spite that Doflamingo supposed he would have to be a little heavy handed to get his point across.

Inside the cabin, Law desperately hoped that his crew had enough sense to stay away, because right now, there was nothing he could do to protect them should Doflamingo decide that something needed to be done about them.

-x

Shachi paused on his way to the deck of the ship. He hadn't expected to be stopped, but it was kind of hard to not notice a piece of paper directly in front of his face. The redhead reached up and took the sheet of paper. He briefly made eye contact with Penguin, before he read what the other man had written.

'Have we figured out where the captain is?'

Shachi shook his head, "No, we haven't. Not yet." The red haired Heart Pirate handed the paper back to Penguin, and indicated the door that led to the upper deck. "We surfaced to see where we were and to get our bearings. We were thinking about seeing which island we are closest to with the log pose. Perhaps someone will have seen something."

Penguin followed along after Shachi as he brought the paper up to write again. He avoided other crewmates as he walked, his thoughts his own as scribbled on the piece of paper again.

Both Heart Pirates came out onto the deck, and found the rest of their crewmates milling around. Shachi and Penguin exchange confused glances. There was quite the hubbub, and the only thing that either could think of as the cause was some news of their captain.

Shachi felt Penguin tap him on the shoulder, and after tearing his eyes from the sight of the rest of their crewmates, took the paper again to read it.

'Have you tired Law's transponder snail?'

Shachi shook his head, "No, Penguin. What if Doflamingo picked it up instead of the captain? We shouldn't let either of them know what we are doing." Shachi turned, as he moved his glasses slightly to look at Penguin more closely, his expression one of concern, "Are you sure that you are all right? I would have thought that would have been obvious." Shachi saw Penguin's expression go blank, and wondering if he had offended his friend, hastily added, "I'm not meaning to imply that your injuries have impaired your judgment. You were just hoping that the captain would have kept it hidden from Doflamingo, if he happened to have it with him?"

Still expressionless, Penguin nodded as he reached out and took the piece of paper back from Shachi. It was a bit of a sharper movement that caused his fellow crewmate to flinch. Penguin cleared his throat, before he spoke in a barely there whisper, "…sorry…"

Shachi knew that Penguin meant it, "It's fine. All of us are on edge. It's hard when we don't really know what we are going to do. And we don't have much information to go on other than that the captain is with Doflamingo."

Penguin was about to write something when a momentary hush fell over them before one of their crewmates raised their voice as they caught sight of the other two, "Penguin! Shachi! We just talked to Straw Hat's crew on the transponder snail! They just ran into Doflamingo!"

"Did they see Law?" Shachi asked, and figured that that answered the question of why the rest of the crew had been chattering with one another when he and Penguin had come up on deck.

One of the crew nearest to Shachi spoke, "Yes, and they said that Law had told them to run and meet up at the place we had discussed from before."

"Anything else?" Shachi asked after an exchanged glance with Penguin.

"...only that they told us that we shouldn't go after them unless there are more of us. A woman, Nami, said that Doflamingo looked furious when they got away."

"We have Law's vivre card. We could check things out and see if it is possible to get the captain alone, away from Doflamingo." Shachi held up the piece of paper.

Bepo came over, and looked at the vivre card and the direction it was trying to go in, before checking the log pose. "I think the card is pointing in the direction of that island." Bepo lifted a paw and pointed to a speck of land in the distance.

There was a brief moment of quiet before a few of the Heart Pirates started to laugh. Shachi was confused until they explained themselves.

"We've...we've been trying to figure out how to find the captain..." One of the crew said, before they shook their head, unable to continue.

Another crewmate added, "...and you had that vivre card the whole time?"

More laughter ran throughout the crew, followed by good natured heckling at something so obvious being overlooked, before an unanimous decision was made.

Shachi didn't even have to ask who wanted to go on the island as they sailed in the direction of the vivre card. He had known that nearly all of them wanted to go, save for those they would leave to guard their ship. After all, Law was their captain, and all of them should have a chance to help him, no matter if the dark haired man had wanted them to stay away.

-x

Penguin was worried.

Even after they had anchored and piled out onto the island, none of them had had any good idea of what to do other than to keep quiet and try and scope things out.

"This is a bad idea..." Shachi murmured. "We don't have a plan."

Not that they hadn't tried to make one. It was just difficult to do so when the biggest problem was Doflamingo. And being unsure just how watchful Doflamingo was going to be of Law. Penguin scribbled on a piece of paper and held it up for Shachi to read. 'We need to be extra careful. Who knows how Doflamingo will react if we have the misfortune of coming across him without being able to asses the situation first.'

Shachi nodded and muttered in return, "It would probably be best to avoid the whole crew, just in case."

Penguin was about to suggest sending half the crew back if their intention was stealth, when it fled his mind as he saw his crewmate's face become of picture of shock, quickly followed by dread. Penguin turned his head to see what had caught his friend's attention, and froze mid step. However, instead of becoming shocked himself, Penguin found himself to feel extremely bitter. It was as though he had almost expected for Doflamingo to appear out of nowhere. But the sight of the grinning pirate was at the back of his mind as he realized that they were currently only a five minute walk away from their ship.

And the look on Law's face, when Penguin spotted him next to Doflamingo, made a wave of guilt go crashing over the Heart Pirate crewmate. He could see the tortured look on Law's face, as if he couldn't believe that his crew was actually there, as it was obvious from Doflamingo's grin that the older man had expected to find them.

And it was too late to do anything about it.

-x

Doflamingo chuckled darkly at the sight of Law's crew. The older pirate's hand was held out to the side to prevent Law from making a move as he spoke mildly, "I told you that your crew would not stop following after you. They are too loyal, don't you think? It will be quite tiresome if they continue to insist on chasing you. They'll lead the marines right to us."

"Won't…stop…" Penguin managed to say, raspy and with obvious difficulty.

The rest of the crew made murmurs of agreement, despite their discomfort at the sight of the tall pirate. Doflamingo laughed as he turned his head to study Law's crew and in particular, Penguin. Perhaps he would follow through on his threat to ship Penguin off to the very people he had escaped from. It would be fitting, but right now, Doflamingo was pressed for time after Diamante had informed him that a navy ship had been spotted. So he had to make this little exchange take place as quickly as possible. Doflamingo laughed softly, "Very persistent. How unfortunate. I suppose that they'll have to go after all, Law."

The dark haired pirate glanced up at Doflamingo, his voice was low and cautious. "You said that you wouldn't harm them. That none of your crew would touch them. You said that earlier." Despite the steadiness of his voice, Law was clearly worse for the wear, and looked as if he had not had any sleep in the last day. And at the sight of the bandages wrapped around his forearms and likely beneath his pants around his thighs, Law had clearly been injured since the last time Penguin had set eyes on his captain.

Doflamingo grinned down at Law a he considered the dark haired man's words. Law had no idea what was coming, and that made what he was about to do all the more painful for Law, "That still holds true." The older pirate's smile grew menacing as he delivered the blow, "But I never said anything about you dealing with your own crew at the time."

Silence followed that announcement, before Law broke it, his expression stunned. His voice, however, held a hint of dread as the reality of what was about to happen struck him hard, "You tricked me…"

Doflamingo merely let out a laugh at that, and angled his fingers that held Law in the grasp of his Devil Fruit power. "I suppose that I will have you take care of them now." If the other pirate didn't think that he might do this, then Law really didn't remember just how far Doflamingo was willing to go to make a point. And Doflamingo had a very pointed one to make to Law, and hoped that it would be effective in dissuading him of future rebellion on his ship as he looked for a good place to lie low from the marines. Doflamingo's grin was sharp as he forced Law's body into motion against his will, as he gave no time for the other man to even form a protest. Though Law most certainly did start to try and fight back as Doflamingo made him to draw his borrowed blade. Doflamingo merely smiled as the expected protests began while he urged Law along like a puppet, the older pirate's voice deadly as he hissed his next words to accentuate what he was about to make Law do.

"There is nowhere for you to go back to if your crew is dead. Isn't that right, Law?"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

A/N: In the previous chapter, Law was mistaken about Luffy actually hitting Doflamingo. Luffy did hit him in this, but Law just didn't realize that it wasn't as solid a strike as he initially thought.

...I am sorry for ending it on another cliffhanger, but as the next chapter is going to be depressing to write, I don't want to rush typing it up. And because it might be brought up, Kidd will be showing up in the chapter after next, I think. Depending on how long the next chapter is. I do like to write angst even if it gets depressing at times, and the next chapter...Yeah. And there is some more story to get through before Kidd and Law cross paths again. And once they do, they are going to end up being around one another for a longer amount of time. So then it won't be as angst-y.