Infuriating

Characters: Law, Kid. Rating: K+. Warnings: None

The first time Law met Eustass Kid, his opinion of the man was very low. For such an impressive bounty, he was crass, obnoxious and self-important. Boringly predictable. The fact that he had the gall to imply that Law needed someone else to 'save' him and his crew was the figurative nail in the coffin.

He hated the man. Child. Whatever he was.

Being able to fling metal around was nothing overly impressive, either, although Law wasn't so biased not to realise the threat it nonetheless held – having a ship made entirely of metal meant that Eustass-ya could potentially do a lot of damage very quickly. Keeping the other pirate away from the Polar Tang became a point of priority in Law's mind. He didn't recall seeing the other docked anywhere near his own ship, and unlike the rest he didn't need to wait for a coater to finish before he could continue his journey.

The Polar Tang was well hidden for that exact reason. So close to Fishman Island and the imperative underwater route, it was inevitable that his submarine would be an enticing target for many. That, and the need for a potentially quick getaway if events at the Auction House went sour (with Doflamingo's influence around, Law was expecting it to), was why most of his crew were on board the submarine, leaving him with just his three closest nakama for support.

It was difficult to make a 'quick' getaway when some red-haired self-important idiot insisted on pressing Law's buttons and winding him up. He heard Penguin whine about him going overboard when his crew finally decided to leave the building and join with him but ignored it. At least the other two crews were similarly unimpressed with their captains.

Having to fight alongside Eustass-ya again less than five minutes later left a sour taste in his mouth, although his attention was far more focused on the way Penguin, Shachi and Bepo were being tossed around like rag dolls. He regretted not insisting Penguin and Shachi bring their weapons, although with Eustass-ya flinging any and all metal in the vicinity around at his whim, perhaps it was for the best after all. Kikoku was difficult to keep hold of, and he knew her curse was binding her to him to stop her from being so easily stolen.

Eustass-ya made an appalling ally. Mugiwara-ya had been both more entertaining, and easier to work with (even with his habit of flinging cannon balls around erratically). When the opportunity finally arose for him to get his crew, one more in number than when he'd arrived at the Auction House (and a very useful addition indeed he mused as he watched Jean Bart subtly keep Shachi on his feet as they ran, a limping Bepo extending a similar courtesy to Penguin), he took it.

Leaving Sabaody undetected had only worked because he'd been prepared for pursuit, but Law chose to hang around, safely submerged, a few miles from the coast instead. He wanted the other Supernovas – especially the infuriating Eustass Kid – to go on ahead and stay out of his way. He was watching over his shoulder enough already, he didn't need to add the zealous idiot to the list.

Sadly, fate was not kind to Law. While Paradise's set-up had meant that he'd been on a different path to Eustass-ya (although not Drake; he'd met the man several times on his journey), the New World had different rules, and different ideas. It was as if the sea somehow knew that Eustass Kid was the last person he wanted to re-encounter, because despite delaying his entry for several months, he met the man almost immediately after entering, and was forced to suffer the idiot's presence and ego until Eustass-ya finally got bored and moved on (or got dragged away by Killer, as appeared more likely).

For several months, Law began to fear that Eustass-ya had somehow got his hands on his vivre card and was actively pursuing him, because they met everywhere. Eventually, it reached more luck than skill that he'd never laid eyes on the Polar Tang (although Law was very aware that his entrance to Marineford had probably been filmed and broadcast, so it was more important to keep Eustass-ya away from discovering just how vulnerable the submarine was to his abilities than anything else).

Then Law didn't see him for several more months and finally breathed a sigh of relief. Collecting hearts was difficult when he was around someone so eager to kill everything to prove himself. The peace wasn't to last, of course (when would Law's life ever let him have a break), but the next time they met there was a very obviously metal arm in place of what had once been a flesh and blood left arm, with angry scars to match.

Law wished he'd been there to see the idiot get his comeuppance.

Metal ship+Eustass Kid seems like a combination to avoid, especially when its captain can't stand him. Looking forwards to their reunion on Wano!

Thanks for reading!
Tsari