Into the Town

The island grew larger before their eyes. Within just a few short minutes, the Sunny had glided up to the island and bumped against the rocks where they were docking the ship. The ship rocked before settling into place like it knew that it was suppose to land right where it did.

Neo was lost in a bit of a daze. She focused on the island's flora and fauna while still holding onto Law's hand and resting her head on his shoulder. Part of her was glad that they were finally here. They could finally take the next step and get closer to going home. But part of her was also upset that they had arrive. She forced that part down. She wasn't going to listen to it or think about all the things that could possible go wrong.

"We made it! Dressrosa!" Luffy pumped his fists in the air.

Neo was grateful for the loud distraction. She turned her eyes to Luffy. The rubber man was sailing over the railing and disappeared below the side of the ship. She giggled. "He's so impatient."

"He's so stupid," Law grumbled.

"Luffy! Will you stop shouting?!" Usopp screamed in a hushed tone. He scanned his eyes over their surroundings. There appeared to be nothing but rocks around them, but that didn't mean anything. The enemy could still be hiding nearby. "We're in the enemy's territory now! So keep it down!"

Neo glanced up at the sniper before catching Franky from the corner of her eyes. She turned just in time to see him leaping over the edge. His voice floated back up to them. He said, "This week I'm super! I'm gonna find the factory right away and ka-boom!"

"I just said for Luffy to stop shouting!" Usopp screamed. "Why in the world would you scream, too?!"

"Hey, Neo!" Chopper called. He waved back to her from his spot at the top of the ladder that had been tossed over the edge for them. "Come on!"

"Okay!" Neo replied. She took one step away from Law before he tightened his hold on her hand and pulled her back to him. "Hey!"

"Hold it," Law said.

"What?" Neo asked. She looked up at him. "What is it?"

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Law asked. He tapped his finger on the sheath of his sword.

"I don't think so," Neo replied. She tried to head for the edge of the ship, but was once again pulled back by Law. "Law! Why do you keep doing that?!"

"Don't whine at me, little girl. You know full well what I'm talking about," Law said. He jabbed his sword at her bare feet. "You're not setting foot off this ship without your shoes."

"Ah! I was so close!" Neo whined. She then pooched out her bottom lip at him and batted her eyelashes at him while snuggling into his chest. "Do I have to put them on now? We're just getting off the ship. We're not going into town yet."

Law faltered at her sweet, innocent look for a split second before catching himself. He cleared his throat then said, "Neo, don't look at me like that. You know you have to wear them. We could end up in a fight at any point in time. I want your feet protected."

"I know. I know." Neo looked around the deck, trying to remember where she put her shoes. "Am I going to have to stay on the ship if I don't know where they are?"

"You left them in the bathhouse," Law said.

"I did?" Neo tilted her head. She thought about the day before and how she had chucked her shoes across the bathhouse when her and Law took a bath. She giggled and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Oh. Right. I guess I did leave them in there. Silly me. I forgot."

"Go get them," Law ordered.

"Okay," Neo relented. With her shoulders slumped in defeat, she headed for the stairs when Law finally released her. She rushed up the stairs and all the way to the bathhouse. Once inside of the room, she looked around to find her shoes weren't where she had tossed them. But she easily located them. Someone had sat them up near the vanity in the room and figured it was Robin. She wasn't sure why though. Robin just struck her as the type to do something like that. She walked over to her boots and picked them up. "I wonder if this is what it feels like to have a mother. It just seems this is something a mother would do or, maybe, an older sister? Topaz does this kind of stuff too, but she still holds onto her maid attitude towards me at times. Or maybe my shoes were just in the way. I did just kick them off my feet not caring where they landed. Hm… I guess it doesn't matter. I like Robin either way."

Neo smiled at her thoughts of the older woman and the pleasant conversations they've had. She slipped her boots on then left the room. Once back outside, she summoned a wind crystal and wrapped her winds around her then took to the air. She landed on the deck and was greeted with a frown from Law. She batted her eyelashes at him innocently. She said, "What? Technically, we're at Dressrosa. So I can use my crystals now."

Law rolled his eyes. He walked up to her. Hooking his arm around her waist, he pulled her to his body. "Fine. You win. Listen, Neo, on the chance that something happens and we get separated…"

Neo tilted her head when he paused. "What is it, Law?"

"If you can't get back to me, I want you to stay with the Straw Hats if you come across them. You can sense Straw Hat so he'll probably be the one you go to," Law said. "And I want you to promise me that you won't go wandering off on your own at all."

"I never do that," Neo said. "You know that."

"I know." Law nodded. "But I still want you to promise me. Anything can happen while we're here. I want to make sure you understand the dangers we're stepping into here."

"Of course I understand, Law," Neo said. She kneaded her eyebrows in confusion at the way Law was treating her. "And I promise. If anything happens, and we get separated, I'll be sure to stay with the Straw Hats."

Law studied her eyes before letting his own drop down to her stomach, second-guessing his decision in not telling her about their child. He let them linger there only for a second before looking back at her eyes. "And I want you to listen to them, especially Blackleg and the raccoon."

"Okay. I'll listen to them," Neo replied, growing more confusion. "Chopper's a reindeer. Law, is something wrong?"

"Not really," Law replied. "I'm just worried since this is Doflamingo we're up against. And this is the first time you've been so close to him. I'm afraid he's going to try and take you away from me. You know how much I love you."

"Of course I know how much you love me. You show me that all the time. And no one's going to take me away from you, Law. If he tries to take me away from you, he'll be tangling with nature. I might not be able to take down him, but you know I won't go down without a fight. And I'll definitely give him one heck of a fight if he dares to try and separate us. I'll turn every single one of my crystals on him. He won't know what hit him." Neo smiled when she pulled a chuckle from Law at the image she provided for him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pecked his lips. "Let's go now. Okay? No point in delaying the inevitable and stressing out over what may or may not happen. And I'm keeping your hat while we're in Dressrosa. It's mine."

"Okay. You can keep my hat." Law chuckled. He took her hand in his as she wrapped her winds around them and lifted them off the ship. She lowered them to the ground and followed him when he led her over to Luffy and Zoro.

"So, we're going straight into the town to look for the factory, right?" Luffy asked.

Law nodded at the rubber man. "That's right. Listen, Straw Hat, it's important that you don't let your guard down. If we fail to destroy the factory here, it'll mess up our whole entire plan. We have no second chances here with this."

"Oh yeah! I get it! So don't worry about it! Hey! I just had a good idea! Come with me, Neo!" Luffy grabbed Neo's hand. He jerked her away from Law before either of them could protest the action and pulled her over to the dragon. "Hey! Momo!"

"Not so fast, Luffy!" Neo cried. The toes of her boots caught on each other, causing her to stumble forward. She went to summon her wind crystals to catch herself, but before she could get them out, she bumped into Luffy's chest. The next thing she knew, she found herself being swooped up into Luffy's arms, bridal style, and Law's jealousy pounding in her head. She tensed in his still slightly unfamiliar hold, but her anxiety didn't rise. "Uh, Luffy?"

"Hold on, Neo!" Luffy cried. He leaped into the air, causing Neo to release a startled cry and grab onto his neck, and landed them right onto Momonosuke's back. "All right, go Momo! To the town without stopping! Fly!"

"Ah! Luffy! No!" Neo screamed. She tried to wiggle out of his grip, but he wouldn't release her. "He's just a child!"

"Get off of me, you heavy lout! I cannot fly and I am not going to enter the island! Father has forbid it!" Momonosuke said.

"Luffy! Off!" Neo commanded. She summoned her wind crystals and lifted them both off the boy's back.

"Aw, Neo!" Luffy whined, now sitting on the ground with her in his lap. He tightened his hold on her when she tried to crawl off of him. "I wanted him to fly us!"

"I'm sorry, Momonosuke," Neo said. She smiled at the boy and stroked his dragon head.

"It is all right, Lady Neo. Tis not your fault," Momonosuke said with a sharp glare at Luffy. "It is all his. I cannot fly. And I will not even if I could."

"I understand. You don't have to fly if you don't want to," Neo replied, patting his head affectionately with a sweet smile. "Not everyone likes flying."

"Thank you, milady," Momonosuke said. He bowed his head to her. "You are very kind."

Neo giggled. She moved her hand from his head to under his chin. Working her fingers over his scaly skin, she found his soft spot. His eyes went half lidded as he leaned into her touch. "Your dragon form is kind of cute. A lot cuter than those other dragons back on Punk Hazard."

"Mhmm." Momonosuke hummed contently at her touch.

"Are you seriously saying you can't fly?! What are you talking about?! I saw you fly back on Punk Hazard!" Luffy said. "How do you think we got out of that dump?!"

"I do not know what you are talking about! I cannot fly!" Momonosuke snapped, pulling his head away from Neo's hand.

"But I really saw him flying!" Luffy looked to Robin and Chopper as if it would convince them or help prove his point.

"How is that possible? He doesn't have wings," Robin said. "And he doesn't have control over the wind like Neo."

"That's true," Chopper said. "And don't hold Neo so tightly, Luffy!"

"Why not?! She's my friend!" Luffy replied. He tightened his hold on her even more like he was concerned someone was going to take her away from him.

Neo chuckled at the rubber man's actions, but didn't try to escape from him.

"See? I told you! I do not remember flying! E-even if I did fly I-I'll never do such a dreadful think again! I'm not going to fly in the sky!" Momonosuke insisted.

"Huh? Are you sacred of heights then?" Luffy asked.

"You jerk!" Momonosuke screamed before clamping his jaws down on Luffy's head.

"Ouch!" Luffy cried out. He released his hold on Neo, giving her the chance to slip off his lap, while he grabbed a hold of Momonosuke's jaws. "Let go!"

"Do not disrespect me! We warriors do not get scared of anything!"

"Ow, ow, ow…You! Stop it, you jerk!"

"What do you think you're doing?!"

"Ow, ow, ow…You're unforgivable!"

"Uh." Neo blinked. Her eyes bounced back and forth between the two as they hurled insults, punched, and kicked at each other.

"What the heck are they doing?" Sanji asked. "Hey, Neo, you better come over here so you don't get pulled into their fight."

"Okay." Neo turned and skipped over to Sanji and Brook. She shared a smile with the cook before turning her attention back to the fight.

"Remember, Luffy, he's only eight years old," Brook said.

"I don't think he heard you," Neo said as Luffy and Momonosuke continued hurling insults and punches at each other, seemingly to be unaware of those around them. She tilted her head as she watched the two. A wave of giddiness and nostalgia trickled into her when the fight reminded her of Shachi and Penguin. "They kind of remind me of some of the fights Shachi and Penguin have gotten into."

"You seem to be in a fairly good mood considering where we are," Sanji then said.

"I suppose so." Neo rocked back on her heels. She collapsed her hands behind her back and looked up at the sky. Her eyebrows turned up in worry when her nightmare filtered back into her mind.

"Are you feeling okay?" Sanji asked. "Are you feeling nauseous or anything since you've eaten that broth? You look a bit pale."

"Yeah, I feel okay. I don't feel sick at all." Neo looked at Sanji with a bright smile. "I'm a bit nervous, but I think I'm ready for this. I know Law has prepared me as much as he could. I can handle this. I'm just a bit worried about my nightmare, that's all."

"Yeah," Sanji said. "Law told us some of your nightmares have come true before. But try not to worry about it. You'll only stress yourself out if you do."

"I'll try not to," Neo said in a low tone. Her eyes locked onto Law. He was discussing something with Zoro and didn't notice she was looking at him. She was staring at him and thinking of her nightmare so hard that her right arm actually started throbbing, or she thought it did. Law never looked over at her so she assumed that the pain was just in her head. Still, she rubbed her arm as if it was hurting.

"Hey! Neo!" Luffy called, pulling her out of her thoughts. He ran over to her and got right up in her face, causing her to bend backwards.

"Don't get so close, you idiot!" Sanji growled. He dropped his foot on Luffy's head, but the captain didn't seem to notice, or care.

"Are you ready for some fun?!" Luffy asked. "We're about to go into Dressrosa!"

"Will you stop shouting? She right in front of you," Sanji said with a sigh. He moved from Neo's left side to her right so she would be upwind of his smoke.

"Yeah! I know! I can see her!" Luffy said, his voice still high, but not at a yell.

"You are being so silly, Luffy!" Neo giggled. She took a hold of his cheeks and playfully tugged on them. "Are you done fighting with Momonosuke now?"

"I guess so. He was just being a brat. But you're here now," Luffy said. He looked over to Momonosuke.

Neo followed his gaze and noticed that the young boy was now snuggling up to Nami while she soothed him from his and Luffy's fight much to the dismay of Sanji, Brook, and Kin'emon. She sighed. "They're fighting again."

Luffy laughed. "They're funny!"

"You're so weird," Neo said. She grabbed Luffy's hand and pulled his towards the arguing trio. "Come on. Let's stop it. We have more important things to worry about."

"Okay." Luffy shrugged. He closed his fingers around Neo's hand and allowed her to lead him where she desired.

"Life father, like son! All you warriors are just bursting with lechery!" Sanji said as the two pirates approached them.

"He's right! You people are perverts, not warriors!" Brook growled.

"H-how dare you say that!" Kin'emon protested. "I object to this insult!"

"All right, that's enough fighting," Neo said. She placed her free hand on her hip and gave the arguing trio a pointed look. "We need to proceed with our plans."

"She's right. So let's go to the town already, Kin'emon!" Franky said while he walked over to the group. "How should we pervert… I mean, what style of clothing do they wear in this country? We need something so we'll fit in."

"Oh yes! Of course!" Kin'emon said. He shoved his hands into his kimono and pulled out a picture of a man in a suit and a woman wearing a mini leaf skirt around her hips. "This is how people dress in Dressrosa! Men wear dress shirts! While women let it all hang out! I will change you all so you can fit in with the locals!"

"Dressrosa is absolutely the best ever!" Sanji said with hearts pulsing in his eyes.

"Yeah!" Brook agreed.

"Indeed it is." Kin'emon nodded. He then turned his eyes to Neo and eyed her figure. "Even for one as small as you this style will be lovely."

"You want me to wear that?" Neo asked.

"What?! Of course not! You're wearing nothing of the sort! I won't stand for it!" Sanji shrieked. He then glared at Kin'emon. "How dare you say such a thing?!"

"But it is true!" Kin'emon insisted. He pointed repetitively at the picture he was holding. "If you want the young lady to blend in with this country, then she must wear this!"

"That doesn't strike me as true. But I've never been to this country. Is that really what they wear here?" Neo asked. The samurai nodded rapidly to her question. She turned to Luffy when he hummed. "That's just a little less than what the Kuja wear. And I never would have guessed they wore the clothes they did if we didn't visit that country."

"I dunno. But if that's what Kin says they wear here," Luffy replied, eyeing the picture. He then turned his eyes to Neo and eyed her. "I don't think Shanks would approve of you wearing something like that. I'm not so sure I approve of you wearing clothes like that. So you're not going to wear them. You can wear what you're wearing."

"I know Law wouldn't approve of me wearing something like that. So no worries there," Neo said, glancing over at Law. She knew before she even looked that he had noticed everything that time. There was a dark aura around him. His eyes were covered in dark shadows and murderous thoughts were parading through his head of how, and how many times, he was going to murder Kin'emon for suggesting she wear nothing.

"Stop lying, you idiot!" Nami growled while she slammed her fist on top of the three perverts heads. "You just about confused Neo into thinking you were serious!"

"Uh." Neo blinked at the now unconscious Sanji, Brook, and Kin'emon laying on the ground with large bumps on their heads. She wondered if she should heal them with her solar crystals, but the thought faded when she sense Law walking towards them.

Law's murderous thoughts slowly began to fade away when he walked over to them. He was satisfied that Nami had hit Kin'emon and decided that would be a suitable punishment for now since he still needed the man for his plans. He looked over at Neo. The whole wearing nothing thing had left her mind. She was now distracted by Luffy who was talking animatedly to her while still holding her hand. Another wave of jealousy wash over him when his eyes locked onto their still connected hands, but he quickly pushed it aside since he knew Neo and Luffy were just friends and had similar childlike qualities. That plus their connection to Red Hair, it was natural they'd get along so well. He reached into his pocket, pulled out Bepo's vivre card, and held it out to Nami. "Hey. I want you to keep this with you."

"Is that a vivre card?" Nami asked, taking the piece Law held out to her.

"Yes. It points towards the island Zou that we talked about earlier," Law replied. "If anything happens to us, go straight there."

"Huh? Are we finally starting with the plan?" Luffy asked. He led Neo over to Law where the older captain had pulled out a map and unrolled it on the ground.

Neo twitched nervously when she noticed that everyone had gathered around them. This was the first time she had been surrounded by them all at the same time. She knew she could trust them, but still a slight touch of fear bubbled up in her chest at being surrounded until Sanji shifted his position. She looked at him. He had taken a step back from where he was standing beside her. This move opened up a bigger space for her to escape from if she needed it. She gave him a grateful smile before turning her eyes back to the map.

"W-wait a second!" Usopp shrieked. "What do you mean by that?! Is something going to happen that we should know about?!"

"I dunno," Law said, casually. He looked up and locked eyes with Neo. Both were thinking about her nightmare. 'It's all right, my love.'

'I know.' Neo nodded. 'It's possible that it was only a bad dream. I'm holding on to that.'

'Good girl.'

"What's that?" Luffy asked while he took a glance at the map.

"This is a map of Dressrosa that our crew drew for us," Law replied from his spot on the ground.

"What an awful map," Nami said. She placed her hands on her knees and bent over to observe the map before her.

"You think so?" Neo asked, eyeing the map that was drawn in crayon. Bepo's paw print was also on it with a couple of tears taped up. "I think it looks cute. Bepo drew it."

"Bepo?" Nami turned her eyes to Neo.

"He's our navigator. He's a mink. A polar bear mink," Neo said. She then giggled while thinking about the bear. "He's so cute. He talks in his sleep a lot. I carried on a five minute conversation with him one time while he was taking a nap."

"Seriously?" Nami asked.

"Yup!" Neo nodded.

"We're docked right around here, at the west coast of Dressrosa." Law pointed at the map. "Doflamingo's palace is at the center of Dressrosa, here. The SMILE manufacturing factory must be somewhere on the island. We don't have much time. The Factory Destroying Team must move quickly."

Neo was staring down at the map, lost in Law's voice, when she caught movement from the corner of her eye. She turned to find that Sanji was walking off from the group. Without thinking, she followed after him. And since she was still holding onto Luffy's hand, he followed her without question. They separated from the group and followed after Sanji as he started to weave through the rock formations they had docked near. "Hey, Sanji, where are you going?"

"Don't you smell that?" Sanji asked, sniffing the air.

"I smell something," Luffy said. He sniffed the air. "It smells so good! Let's go check it out!"

"I do smell something. And it smells great. But shouldn't we tell the others that we're going into town?" Neo asked. She looked around the rock formations that now surrounded them.

"Don't worry about it. We're already this far," Zoro said.

Neo looked up at the swordsman. She noticed that he, Franky, and Kin'emon had followed after them at some point. She looked back and saw that they were no longer in view of the others. All she could see was rocks. She could tell that Law hadn't noticed she had wandered off. She wondered if she should contact him and tell him that they were already heading into the town. She then noticed something else. She had wandered away from Law for the very first, without telling him where she was going. A short stab of panic ran through her before she remembered that he had said, sort of, that it would be fine if she got separated from him as long as she was with one of the Straw Hats. And, technically, that did happen and she was with four of the Straw Hats and one samurai. So this should be fine, right?

Sanji was still sniffing the air while he weaved in and out of the small trails between the rock formations. He knew the smell. It was of beautiful women and perfume and spices from local foods. He couldn't wait to see what the local women looked like here. He bet they were very beautiful, extremely beautiful. His heart thumped with joy. That's when, for some reason, he turned his eyes to Neo. He noticed Neo was staring in the direction they had come, her eyes filled with worry. He remembered Law's concern over keeping her away from Doflamingo. He had hoped that Luffy would have held to his word and kidnap Neo so he could play with her while in Dressrosa. Never would he have guessed that it would be him that led Neo away from Law. He never would have guessed she would ever walk away from Law. But she did. It was clear that she didn't realize what she did until just now, but she was away from the warlord. They got lucky.

Now all he had to do was make sure Neo was fine with heading into town. He slowed his pace and stepped beside her. Casually, he said, "Don't worry about the others. We were heading into town anyway. So they already know where we are. Besides, Law can sense where you are. As long as he can do that, and knows you're with us, there won't be a problem."

"I guess so," Neo said. She glanced back over her shoulder. "But this is the first time I've been on an island without him or one of our crew beside me. He might get upset with me for wandering off like this. I can't believe I actually took off like that."

"Huh? Really? Is it bothering you?" Luffy asked.

"A bit," Neo replied. She looked back ahead of her so she wouldn't trip over anything. "Like I said, this is the first time I've done this. I usually tell Law where I'm going. And I'm always with one of the crew or him."

"Don't worry about it. It'll be fine," Luffy said. He tugged on her hand and pulled her into a run. "Tra won't mind at all."

"Besides, a little rebellion never hurt anyone. It's actually good for you. You can always tell Trafalgar about this," Franky said. "You said you can contact each other, right?"

"Well, that's true," Neo said, thoughtfully. "I suppose this is all right after all. It's not like I wandered off completely on my own."

"So you're going to stay with us?" Sanji asked, hoping her answer would be the one he wanted to hear.

"Yeah." Neo nodded. "At least for a while. I would like to explore Dressrosa for a bit. I can meet up with Law when the deal's about to go down."

"All right, enough talking," Zoro said just as they rounded another rock formation. The town came into view when they did. "Let's check this place out."

"Go ahead and tell Law where you are," Sanji said. "I don't want you stressing out over this."

"Right." Neo nodded. She focused her thoughts on her love, and hoped he wouldn't be too upset with her for wondering off. 'Um, Law?'

Sanji took a puff of his cigarette. He glanced at Neo from the corner of his eyes. He knew from the concentrated look on her face that she was talking to Law. Good. Now all we have to worry about is keeping her distracted while Law deals with Doflamingo. If we're lucky, we'll be able to keep her distracted with stuff in the town and with destroying the factory. She won't even have to see Doflamingo. And Doflamingo will never have to know about her pregnancy.

"We, the Caesar Handover Team, will go across Dressrosa and cross the very long bridge to the north and get to Green Bit," Law said, sensing Neo moving away from him. He centered his thoughts and words on his plans. He hated pretending he didn't sense her walking off. He felt like he was deceiving her. But this was what he really wanted after all. He wanted her as far away from Doflamingo as possible while they were in his kingdom. He didn't want her to go to Green Bit with him where they would have to directly confront the man.

"But why do we have to go through Dressrosa?" Usopp asked. "We have the Sunny here. Why don't we just sail over there? All of us together? That would be a whole lot easier and take less time."

"Apparently you can't get there by boat," Law replied, grateful for the distraction of questions from the Straw Hats. He focused his thoughts on them instead of Neo.

"Oh, this sounds like fun," Robin said.

This isn't fun, Law thought. These Straw Hats are crazy.

"J-just make it a safe trip, okay?" Caesar said.

Sure, Caesar. We'll make it a safe trip. Law mentally rolled his eyes.

"Oh no. I have a Fear-of-Dressrosa-itis," Usopp said, speaking as if his nose was congested.

Seriously? Law asked himself. This guy is such a coward. Why in the world did he even become a pirate if all he wants to do is run and hide?

"Kanjuro… I hope he's still alive," Momonosuke said.

"And you all, the Sunny's Security Team, should watch out for the enemy's attack. Don't let them take the ship," Law said. He turned his eyes to the group, minus one, who were standing guard on the Sunny. He mentally sighed. He had to admit to himself that he was glad that Neo was with Blackleg. He was reliable. And she would be safe. Everything would be fine.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

A darkened image of Neo filtered across the back of his eyelids. He saw Neo walk through a dark curtain and stood before him with all of her crystals out. Her crystals were pulsing with their individual glow, beckoning nature to obey them. It did. Vines rose up from the ground around her, cracking the rocks underneath her feet. The snapping crack of the flora resonated in his ears as they lashed out at invisible targets. He felt the fire of her fire crystals as the flames flared up around their glittering hosts. He heard the wind howling at her command as they blew wave after wave onto the shores of Dressrosa. He heard the calls of multiple animals screeching out as they attacked their human victims.

People screamed. The island was crumbling around them. They had nowhere to go.

Then a laugh ran out in the darkness. Cold sweat dripped down his forehead. It was her laugh. Her bells were unmistakable. And she was laughing at the expense of the townspeople trying to escape her unrelenting attack. She was actually enjoying destroying the island, the people, everything.

"What?! What do you mean by that?!"

Law jumped when the Straw Hat navigator's voice shrieked in his ears. With a gasp, he blinked and looked around. He couldn't seen anything but white before him.

"Are they going to attack us?!" a small, younger voice asked next.

Law couldn't place the voice. He knew it wasn't an enemy. He forced himself to draw in a breath. He remembered then. It was the boy, Momonosuke.

"What?! I thought guarding the ship was the safest!" another voice said. "Uh, hey, Mr. Tra, are you all right? You look pale."

"What?" Law managed to ask. He blinked again. His vision came back. He looked around. They were still where they docked the ship and the island was still intact. Neo was still walking away from him, as normal as ever, and not enjoying destroying the island.

"Is something wrong?" Nami asked.

Law finally brought his eyes to the group he was with. All of them were giving him looks of concern.

"No, nothing's wrong," Law's voice said, but his mind was screaming: "Something's not right. We have to get Neo and get the heck out of here."

He shook his head and took a deep breath, running his hand through his hair. Nothing's wrong. Whatever that was… it was nothing. I'm just over reacting. I'm just envisioning the worst case possible. Neo would never destroy another island. And she certainly never would enjoy doing it. I'm just worried. Everything is fine. She's safe. Our child is safe. He turned his attention back to the Straw Hats and tried to focus on what they were saying.

"Guys, we're in the enemy's stronghold. But we're with Sanji so… Huh?! Sanji's not here! Luffy and the others are gone as well! What?! Neo's missing too! She can't go out like that! Not in her condition!" Chopper screeched when he finally noticed the missing pirates. He jumped all over the area, kicking his arms and flapping his arms. "Oh my gosh! We have to go find her! We have to bring her back here!"

Law wondered why it took so long for the animal to noticed their missing crewmembers. The creature was supposed to have a good sense of smell.

"Huh? Condition?" Brook asked. "What condition?"

"Uh… nothing!" Chopper rubbed the back of his head with a nervous laugh. "It's nothing at all! Never mind me! I'm just freaking out a bit! Sanji's suppose to be here with us! That's all!"

"They're the key to this plan! Where did they go?!" Law hissed, pretending he hadn't already known that they had wandered off around the same time that Neo did. His vision hammered his head again. His heart and lungs tightened in his body. Just relax. It was nothing. It's fine. It was nothing. I can always call her back to me if I need to. She's fine. She's safe. Our baby's safe. They're both safe.

"Hey! Wait a second! If Sanji isn't here then who's going to protect us?!" Chopper demanded.

He's just now noticing that? Law asked himself.

'Um, Law?'

'Yes, love?'

'Don't get upset with me, but I kind of wandered off.'

'Neo…'

'You were busy and I noticed Sanji was leaving and I kind of followed him without thinking! Don't worry! I'm not alone or anything! I'm with Luffy, Sanji, Franky, Zoro, and Kin'emon!'

'Neo…'

'I won't leave them! I promise! I'm only going to stay with them for a while. I'll come back to you when you're about to hand over Caesar to Doflamingo!'

'Neo!'

'What?'

'Neo, it's all right. It's fine if you want to explore with them for a while.'

'It… it is?'

Law drew in a breath. He could feel her confusion easily. 'Yes, love. It's fine. Just stay with them. Always remain with at least one of them. Remember, do not go off on your own at any point in time like you promised.'

'I… I won't. I'll keep my promise.'

Law paused. He thought about that vision he had. He carefully searched Neo's feelings. For what, he wasn't sure. He just needed to know she was really fine. She was. There was no malicious intent in her at all.

'Law? Are you okay?'

'Yes. Why?'

'I don't know. You just seem… off.'

'I'm okay. I guess it just unnerved me a bit that you wandered off like that.'

'Yeah. I'm sorry.'

'It's fine. There's nothing for you to apologize for. Just behave yourself. And don't draw an unnecessary attention to yourself.'

'I'll behave, Law. You behave too.'

Law chuckled. 'I will.'

Neo smiled. She felt a bit surprised at how relaxed Law was with her wandering off like she did, but was glad she didn't upset him.

"Feel better?" Sanji's voice asked.

"Yeah." Neo nodded. "I was worried that Law might be upset with me, but he's not."

"That's good to hear," Sanji said just as the sounds from the town entered into their ears as they walked closer to it.

"Finally," Zoro said. "That was a longer walk than I thought it would be."

Nothing else was said as the pirate group, and samurai, stepped into the town. Their faces lit up at the joyous sight in front of them. The town was alive with musicians, women dancing to the upbeat tunes, kids were playing, people were laughing, and the air was filled with so many smells of local delicacies.

"It smells so good!" Luffy, Sanji and Franky exclaimed as they sniffed the smells that mixed in their nostrils.

"Smells so lovely!" Sanji shrieked. Hearts were throbbing in his eyes.

Neo felt like giggling at his expression. She was really starting to enjoy the hopeless flirt's antics when he got around pretty women. Knowing she didn't need to reveal her bells, she forced herself to look away from him. She about squealed when she sensed a dog running towards them. It's been a while since she's seen and got to play with dogs. She took a step towards it, to call it over and play, but stopped when she noticed it was carrying something in its mouth. "Huh?"
"What is it, Neo?" Luffy asked when he heard her.

"Hey! Wait! Give that back!" a voice screamed.

"Huh?" Luffy asked. "What's going on?"

"I'm not really sure," Neo replied. She tilted her head when a yellow haired, red scarfed, black coated, striped arms and legs toy ran after the dog she had sensed.

"Wait! Mario! Hey!" the toy screamed. "Give me back my arm! Boy! You're a bad dog! The cotton's going to fall out!"

"Did that… toy just speak?" Neo asked. She kneaded her eyebrows in confusion. Her eyes automatically followed the toy as it continued to chase after the dog. It passed by another toy, a baby doll of sorts. The baby doll's mouth fell open. It stared in a creepy fashion at her. Feeling unnerved, she took a step closer to Luffy and pinched the tail of his shirt. "Luffy…"

"No! Wait! I got a side stitch! Although there's only cotton inside!" the toy screamed while it and the dog disappeared down the street.

"S-stuffed toys?!" Luffy gasped. "Were those really stuffed toys?!"

"Hello!" a soldier marionette suddenly popped into their view. "I am a soldier!"

"Ah!" Neo screamed. She ducked behind Luffy and clung to the back of his shirt.

"It's all right, Neo. It's just a toy," Sanji replied, patting her back comfortingly.

Neo looked up at the blonde man, who was inspecting the toy, then eyed the toy suspiciously herself. Wondering if she should summon her crystals, she said, "But… but toys can't move on their own. And they certainly can't talk."

"Do you want to go back to Law?" Sanji asked cautiously despite hoping she wouldn't want to.

Neo looked back up at Sanji then back at the toy soldier. She loosened her hold on Luffy's shirt but didn't let him go completely. "No, I don't. I want to stay with you for a while longer. I was just startled. I wasn't expecting him, er, it to pop up like that. And I certainly wasn't expecting a toy to be moving on its own. Sorry I screamed."

"It's all right. I think we all were a bit surprised by the toys," Sanji said. He shoved his hand back into his pocket.

"Oh? Have we met before? Your faces look familiar," the toy asked, leaning closer to Luffy as it spoke. "Oh, yeah! You were in the paper this morning…" The toy suddenly jumped back and spun around multiple times, getting itself tangled in its strings. "Oh no! The strings got tangled up! Help me!"

"Is that thing really a toy?!" Luffy asked, looking like he was trying to dissect the thing with his eyes.

"I'm not sure," Neo replied.

"Hey, Luffy! Look at that!" Zoro called.

Luffy and Neo pulled their eyes from the tangled up toy. They looked up to see Zoro was pointing out into the town. They turned their attention to what Zoro was directing their attention to.

"What?!" Luffy asked, finally seeing what they hadn't noticed before.

"That's not possible!" Neo said. All around the town were toys. Toys that were moving around like people. They were sitting at local restaurant tables, some were reading newspapers, some were walking around with people, some where talking, and some were dancing or playing games with kids. "But… this isn't… how could… I… I don't understand."

"You are not alone, my dear," Sanji said, sounding just as perplexed as Neo felt.

"A man has been stabbed!" a voice suddenly shouted out before the group could say anything else. They all turned their attention to a robotic looking toy.

"Oh, again?" the still tangled up soldier toy asked.

"What do you mean by that?" Zoro asked. He looked down at the toy. "Is there a phantom slasher or something?"

"No, nothing like that. Women in this country are just very passionate about love and most are the jealous type. So when a man cheats on a woman, things can get pretty violent," the soldier toy explained.

"Cheats? Why would a man want to cheat on the woman he loves?" Neo asked. "I don't understand."

"Not all men are loyal to their love, Neo," Sanji replied.

"But why not? Law's loyal to me," Neo said. She looked up at Sanji with confusion spinning in her eyes. "And I'm loyal to him."

"I don't think there's an actual answer for that. It's just something that happens. A lot more often then people would like to admit. You and Law are few of the lucky ones," Sanji replied. "Be grateful that you two found each other."

"Yeah." Neo nodded. She did feel luck to have Law, very lucky. Her lips curled into a smile at the thought of everything he has done for her. She had a strong desire to fly back to him, but pushed it aside. She still wanted to stay right where she was. And she was going to do that.

"It's actually very scary. The more beautiful they are, the more likely they are to stab a man," the soldier toy continued.

"That's terrible," Neo said. Tears began to pool in her eyes. She looked at her friends, her gaze settling on Sanji. "I don't want to be here anymore. Can we go somewhere else?"

I know she gets upset over certain things and has issues adjusting to new places, but is that what this is or is this because of her pregnancy? This might just be a mood swing, but I can't really tell. Maybe it's a combination of them both, Sanji thought to himself while studying her eyes. Let's see. What does she enjoy again? Cooking. And… He turned back to the soldier toy and said, "Excuse me. Is there a bookstore around here?"

"Bookstore?" Neo's eyes lit up at the word.

"Of course there is," the soldier toy said. He pointed down the street that the dog had run off in. "Just head straight down this street for about two minutes. You can't miss it. It's a lovely little building with a blue roof."

"Thanks." Sanji waved to the toy.

"Let's go!" Neo cheered. She grabbed Luffy's hand and pulled him in the direction that the toy had pointed.

Luffy laughed as she drug him through the town.

"Why are we going to a bookstore?" Zoro asked as he and the rest of the group trudged along after their resident children. "We're supposed to be looking for the factory."

"We still are. We're just going to let Neo spend a few minutes in the bookstore," Sanji replied. His eyes roamed over every inch of their surroundings. He was carefully looking for the factory while simultaneously looking for any possible threats to Neo and the precious cargo she was carrying inside of her. "After that little, unexpected, encounter with talking toys, I figured it would be best if we put her in an area that she'd enjoy. It'll help ease her nerves so we can continue on with our mission."

"That makes sense," Franky said. He looked ahead of them to find Neo and Luffy had paused at some kind of booth. He couldn't see what they were looking at due a small crowd that was blocking his view, but he could easily see that they were having fun.

"Indeed it does," Kin'emon added. "Lady Neo is rather a delicate little flower. We must be sure to take care with her."

In more ways than one, Sanji thought to himself. He puffed on his cigarette as his eyes lowered to her stomach then back to her face. He smiled at the obvious enjoyment she was having with Luffy. She said something that caused the rubber man to laugh. By the time the four men caught up with the two, Luffy and Neo grabbed each other's hand and proceeded to head for the bookstore.

"I just hope Luffy doesn't pull her into any trouble," Zoro said just as the building they were looking for came into view. Like the soldier toy had said, it was a small building with a blue roof.

"They're just going into a bookstore," Franky said. "How could they possible get into trouble?"

A momentary pause of silence passed between the group before a darkened cloud of despair hovered over Zoro, Sanji, and Franky as their brains automatically went over all the times someone has asked that exact same question and how many times Luffy had gotten into trouble from seemingly harmless situations. Sanji said, "Well, look on the bright side."

"There's a bright side to this?" Zoro and Franky asked at the same time.

"At least Neo has a good head on her shoulders," Sanji said, coming out from underneath the cloud of despair. "She'll keep Luffy out of trouble."

"You're kidding, right?" Zoro and Franky asked. "With how Luffy is? She'll get pulled along with his lunacy just like we do."

"You're right," Sanji said, falling back under the cloud of despair.

Kin'emon blinked at the three standing with their shoulders slumped. With a sweat drop dripping down the back of his head, he asked, "Are you going to follow them into the store or just stand out here all day?"

"Hey! There it is!" Luffy cried out. He pointed to the little shop with a blue roof that held a sign over the door that read: Bookstore.

"Great!" Neo squealed.

Luffy laughed. "You really get excited about books, don't you?"

"I can't help it," Neo replied. "I really love to read. I never got to while growing up. Once Law and the crew started to teach me all that I missed out on, I developed a love for reading. I've also been told I get that from my mother."

"Your mother?" Luffy asked, tilting his head.

"Yeah." Neo nodded. "She loved to read too. My father loved to cook. I like that I inherited some things from my parents. It makes me feel closer to them despite having never met them. Well, except for when I was born. But I don't really think that counts since I don't really remember them."

"So reading gets you excited because you love it and it brings you closer to your mother?" Luffy asked.

"It does." Neo nodded.

"Well, if you're that excited about it, let's go!" Luffy laughed. He reclaimed her hand and tugged her into the small building. He laughed again when Neo squealed with delight at the books before her. Despite how small the building was there were rows and rows of books neatly lined up on shelves while some were piled on tables.

Neo paused for a second. She scanned her eyes around the room. She carefully took in everyone that was inside of the building. She located about ten people and six toys wandering about the books. She looked back over her shoulder to check her exit just as their missing friends finally caught up to them.

"Is something wrong, Lady Neo?" Kin'emon asked when he caught her eye.

"No, nothing's wrong," Neo replied with a smile. "I was just checking my surroundings and the exit."

"Ah, yes, of course." Kin'emon gave a nod of understand upon recalling her story of how she didn't like being cornered and needed to know she had comfort and access to an escape route. "Do not fear anything here, Lady Neo. We will protect you and ensure that the exit remains open for you to escape from at any point in time that you wish."

"Thank you, Kin'emon," Neo replied.

"Hurry up already," Zoro then said. "We don't have all day to spend shopping."

"Shut up, you idiot! We have all the time in the world if she wants it!" Sanji snapped at the swordsman. His voice then turned sweet when he addressed Neo. "Take your time, my dear. We're in no hurry what so ever."

"I won't be long," Neo said before disappearing down an isle.

Luffy tucked his hands behind his head and followed her around like he was her own personal bodyguard. He was getting bored, to the point he was about to fall asleep on his feet, when Neo poked him in the ribs. "Hm? What is it?"

"Look." Neo turned the book she was holding to him. She pointed to the tiger on the page that had a mark over its left eye just like Zoro. "Doesn't this tiger look like Zoro?"

"Hm?" Luffy took a look at the tiger she was pointing at. He stared at the picture for a while before laughing and clapping his hands in enjoyment. "Ha ha! You're right! It does look like Zoro! Especially with that mark over its eye!"

"What are you two children laughing at?" Zoro asked as he walked over to them. Neo and Luffy looked at Zoro then back at the picture and laughed, Neo holding her giggles in as best she could. "What so funny?"

"Nothing!" Luffy said, sounding very unconvincing.

Zoro growled and plucked the book out of Neo's hands. He scanned his eyes over the tiger before looking back at Luffy and Neo. "Seriously… what's so funny?"

"Geez. You're so dense at times," Sanji said, looking over Zoro's shoulder at the tiger. "That tiger looks like you. That's obviously why they are laughing."

"What? It does not," Zoro said, scanning the page again. "It looks nothing like me."

"If you say so," Sanji said, chuckling.

"Whatever." Zoro slammed the book shut and shoved it back on the shelf. "Are you two done yet?"

"Yeah." Neo nodded. "They have some nice books here, but nothing really interests me."

"All right. Let's get out of here then," Sanji said. He turned and led the way back to the exit.

Franky and Kin'emon had separated from the group to look at books themselves. Once they noticed the rest of their crew leaving, they abandoned their books and followed after them. Back outside, they gathered before heading back down the street.

Neo had placed herself between Luffy and Sanji. She was scanning her surroundings, carefully taking everything in, when she suddenly sensed a tiger's presence behind them. Stopping, she whipped around. But looking over everything and everyone, she didn't see a tiger at all. She only saw the townspeople, the town, and the toys. No tiger whatsoever was anywhere for her to see. But she still felt the tiger. Her eyebrows tilted up in confusion. "Huh? That's weird."

"Hey!" Sanji called when he noticed Neo was no longer with them. The men ran back to her. "Don't break away from us like that! You scared me!"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to," Neo said, but she didn't look at them.

"What's wrong?" Zoro asked, noticing her confused expression. He placed his hands on the hilt of his sword and carefully looked around. "Did you see something suspicious?"

"I'm not sure," Neo said. "I sense a tiger."

"A tiger?" Kin'emon asked, his hand too was on the hilt of his sword. He looked around. "What nonsense is this? There is no tiger here. No one is running in fear."

"I know. That's why I'm confused," Neo said. She turned back around and looked at the men. "I know I sense a tiger, but there's not one here. I don't get it."

"Maybe you're just imagining things," Zoro said. He let his hand take a more relaxed position on his sword. "You were having a bit too much fun with that picture of the tiger."

"I suppose you are correct," Neo admitted. She then smiled. "Let's proceed then."

Author's Notes: Thanks all for the reads and reviews. You all are great. Glad you all like my story so much. Hope you'll like my new ones too.

Inazumame1997: Yeah, it is. I'm ready to know what'll happen in One Piece, but then I don't wanna know. XD

JungJaena: Thanks. Glad you like it. I dunno how long Dressrosa's going to be. Guess we'll see. I hope it comes out a decent length.

PuddyKatz: Law already kinda regrets it, but he knows he made the right decision. We'll see how she actually fines out.

Apple Bloom: I'm excited too. And I know what's gonna happen. XD

Rodinaashraf: No worries. I've gone through plenty of finals too. Good luck on them. Study hard. Hope you do well. And bummer on your tablet. Just when I finally get a new Neo/Law story up. Maybe you'll get it back soon. My stories will be here for you. I wonder how many more times Cora is gonna appear. We'll see soon what happens on everything.

Kylnee: Yeah, little baby.

Deideitk: Glad ya like it. I wonder too how Barto will treat her.