Steadfast

Characters: Bepo, Shachi, Law. Rating: T. Warnings: blood, injury

Blood had a sharp, unmistakable smell. It smelt of life, but also death, with an underlying tang of something metallic, and the combination offended Bepo's nose. It was not so overpowering he couldn't function at the scent (he'd be a pretty poor warrior if the mere smell of blood shut him down), but it was not pleasant and he didn't like it.

He liked it even less when it belonged to his nakama. Smelling their individual, friendly scent intertwined with the sharp tang of blood could only have one conclusion, and it wasn't one Bepo cared for very much. Usually, it was Shachi who ended up bleeding, but while he hadn't escaped their battle unscathed, he wasn't the one who'd had a sword driven into his flank. A sharp command from Law had had Bepo guarding Shachi's back as he pulled Penguin's too-limp form back towards the Tang.

The battle hadn't taken long to finish up after then, both Law and Bepo's ferocity raising dramatically at the idea that someone had dared hurt their nakama. The rival group – some land-bound gang with bloated egos and just enough battle prowess to back it up – never had a chance to realise what had hit them, and Law and Bepo lingered just long enough to check they wouldn't be coming after them again before hurrying back to the Tang.

"Get us out of here," Law ordered, and Bepo obeyed, peeling off towards the control room as Law followed the trail of tangy metallic blood to the infirmary where Penguin and Shachi were waiting for him. Setting the Tang moving was second nature to the mink by that point, and he paid only enough attention to the displays to check for anomalies as he guided her out of the port and out into the open ocean.

As he sat at the controls, watching the radar flicker away, Bepo felt so very alone. The room seemed huge, too empty and too quiet. Even the rumble of the engines seemed fainter than usual, and he got the sense that the Tang herself was waiting for the news that Penguin was going to be okay.

The uncertainty got too much for him, and he looked around at the controls once more. All was calm, so he lurched to his feet.

"I'm going to the infirmary," he told the empty room, as if there was someone else in there to take over while he was gone. "Don't hit anything." He didn't know if the Tang could hear him, or if she could control herself like that, but the sailors on the Grand Line had spoken about klabautermanns with such conviction that Bepo was willing to trust, just for a little while.

Or maybe he was clutching at straws, searching for any justification to desert his post as he barrelled through the corridors, following the sickening stench of blood to the infirmary, and creeping in through the door carefully, in case Law was still working.

He was, his Room active and his hands covered in blood as he did medical-stuff Bepo didn't understand, putting Penguin back together again. Bepo wanted to help him, wanted to feel useful rather than a dead weight abandoning his duties, but his paws were not made for the delicate work of healing, and he didn't understand anywhere near enough of the human body to be anything more than a hinderance.

The salty smell of tears hung in the air, and he turned his head away from Law's work to focus on Shachi. The ginger was hanging back awkwardly, face sticky with tears. His shades were askew, and Bepo could see one eye, squinted shut against the light. His hat was bundled up harshly in his hands, seams straining with one or two snapped pieces of thread.

Bepo couldn't do anything for Penguin, but Shachi was another story. He walked up behind him, not trying to be sneaky but still catching the ginger by surprise as he wrapped his arms around him tightly, pressing his face into the bright hair. He felt the jolt of surprise and nuzzled him gently, ears pinned back as he waited for a response, hoping that he was helping Shachi, even if it was just a little.

There was no response for several long moments, but just before Bepo gave up a small, scared hand bunched painfully in his fur. It was quivering fiercely, a tremble that spread throughout the human's body until his entire body was shaking. Bepo held him tighter as he twisted in his hold, burying his face in Bepo's shoulder and clinging on tightly to his fur.

Words didn't come to Bepo – even if they had, would they have been the right ones to say? – so he remained silent, repetitively nuzzling Shachi comfortingly instead. His shoulder was growing damp, but he ignored it as he watched Law work steadily. He didn't look concerned, to Bepo's relief, and sure enough, several minutes later the blue Room faded away to nothing.

The sound of latex stretching and clinging to skin to the best of its ability as it was peeled away assaulted his ears, and he met his captain's eyes as Law bunched the blooded gloves up and discarded them. Law looked first shocked, then understanding and finally relieved at his presence.

"He'll be okay, Shachi," he said, and the fingers released their bruising grip on Bepo's fur as the ginger awkwardly turned around in his embrace. Bepo loosened it to make it easier for him.

"He will?" Shachi asked, his voice somehow simultaneously thick with tears and thin with uncertainty.

"He will," Law repeated, and Bepo was forced to release his hold on Shachi suddenly as the ginger ran to the bedside, running fingers across the bandaging lightly, and then through Penguin's hair as though reassuring himself he was still there.

"I'll be in the control room," Law said quietly. Bepo jerked, reminded of his job and where he should be, and began to move to the door. Law's raised hand stopped him. "Stay here with them," his captain told him, his voice too low for Shachi – now talking to Penguin as if he was conscious even though he wasn't – to hear.

"Aye," Bepo agreed, and watched his captain walk out of the door before walking up behind Shachi again, wrapping an arm around him. Shachi didn't jump like had the first time, and Bepo was glad.

"He's going to be okay," the ginger said, leaning into his embrace. "He's gonna be okay, Bepo." Bepo nodded, looking at Penguin's still form on the bed curiously. There was colour in his cheeks again, and he wasn't hooked up to any machines the way Law sometimes did to Shachi if he got hurt too badly.

He wasn't awake, but aside from the smears of blood, he looked like he was just sleeping. His chest rose and fell steadily, and his face wasn't pinched in pain.

"He'll be okay," Bepo agreed.

Sequel to yesterday's Unsteady. Bepo doesn't seem to be capable of much in the infirmary (he didn't do anything with Luffy or Jinbei that I recall), but his presence is still invaluable!

Thanks for reading!
Tsari