A/N: All I can say about this thing right now is holy shit.

Two

Luckily, the Thousand Sunny was not too terribly far from where the Polar Tang had landed and was able to make the trip over in a relatively short amount of time, arriving just before dinner. It was all the Straw Hats could do to stop Luffy from breaking down the door to the submarine, the teen absolutely panicked about the state their friend was now in. They had elected to not move him from the table in the mess hall, instead putting a blanket over him and his bunched-up hooded sweatshirt under his head as a pillow for the time being.

"Hmm… I don't know if I've ever seen anything like this," Chopper frowned. It filled the Heart Pirates with dread—it wasn't good when the reindeer looked puzzled, let alone admitted it. He had been briefed on everything that had happened and still it seemed like he had no answers. "I'll have to cross-reference his collection and my own when it comes to parasites. Jean Bart?"

"Yes, Doctor Chopper?"

"How did the device work that took these things off the slaves in Mary Geoise?"

"It went between the person and the creature and seemed to forcibly rip it off—many people were injured when going through the process because of how it holds on the face." He grew quiet, unnerved by the situation. "What do you suggest for now?"

"Well, we need to get him out of the mess hall for one," Chopper decided. "I'm glad you didn't move him until I made my preliminary assessment. He needs to get into the medbay with at least a sodium lactate drip. When was the last time he ate?"

"Last we're aware: lunch yesterday," Shachi noted. The reindeer's eyes bugged and he shrugged guiltily. "Getting him to eat is sometimes an issue. You know how it is."

"No, I don't." Chopper gestured to Luffy, who was crying in worry for his friend while still double-fisting slabs of meat that he was hoovering up like a menace. Oh, yeah, that was definitely a completely different sort of problem. "Do you have any TPN prepped?" Crickets. "You know: total parenteral nutrition? To make sure he's getting regular nutrients while his esophagus is blocked?"

"You make it sound like there's more doctors on the ship than just the captain," Clione stated. Chopper groaned and transformed into Heavy Point, gingerly picking up Law. "We can help, but none of us are… you know…" Chopper tried to not roll his eyes—expecting too much medically out of Law's crew was tantamount to expecting medical assistance out of the Straw Hats, which was anywhere from adequate to… lacking, to say the least.

"I'm going to get him set up—Robin, could you please get some TPN bags from the fridge in the Sunny? Everyone else, I'm going to need some space in order to take care of him properly. He's allowed two visitors at a time, okay?"

"Torao…get better soon!" Luffy demanded as Zoro carried him out of the mess hall, still attempting to eat. Bepo and Jean Bart led Chopper to the medbay, where the younger doctor placed his colleague on the bed.

"Where does he keep his medical volumes?" Chopper asked.

"They're in his room—I can bring you there once we're sure he's stable," Bepo said. Jean Bart looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Sorry, but I think the captain will understand."

"I'm sure he will," Jean Bart nodded. The pair helped Chopper get acclimated to their medbay and watched as he hooked up Law to a couple monitors and put the IV in his forearm, the sodium lactate drip going almost as soon as Robin arrived.

"Here you are, Chopper," she said, using her Devil Fruit ability to hold three bags in three separate hands. "I got more than one since I don't think this is going to be solved within a day."

"Thanks; you can put the others in the fridge there," Chopper said, taking one of the bags and gesturing towards the wall. Robin put the spare bags in the refrigerator and watched in silence as Chopper connected the bag to the IV line. Jean Bart noticed her stare and things clicked into place.

"I'm going to make sure that everyone is keeping a cool head," he decided out loud. "Both our crews are fond of the captain for good reason. Have Bepo fetch me if I'm needed."

"Thanks!" Chopper seemed genuinely thankful, which put the man at-ease. Once he had left, Robin moved into the space he had occupied. She stared at Law contemplatively and it caught the attention of the Mink.

"Are you okay, Miss Robin?" Bepo wondered. She nodded.

"He looks… wrong."

"Don't worry—the captain's strong like you wouldn't believe," the bear assured. He placed his paw on her shoulder in solace, though the one who reacted was Chopper.

"What's going on?" he wondered. "Is something wrong?"

"Torao and I… worked closely together while we were headed to Zou and Wano… while you were going to rescue Sanji," Robin stated. Chopper didn't know much about Humans and their emotions, but he was getting better at reading between the lines: something romantic happened at the very least, though to what degree he was unsure. Robin was working through something, though what he didn't want to know unless she specifically opened up about it, and considering she used the voice she did when she didn't want to reveal everything at once… well…

"Oh, I understand," Chopper nodded. He hummed quietly and made a few notes on his chart. "Bepo? Can you show me Torao's library is kept? I should get to work on figuring out what this is; Robin's watched over patients for me before."

The bear quickly obliged, leading Chopper out of the medbay and down the hall. Robin sat quietly with the steady beeping of the monitors; if she concentrated, she could almost hear Law's breathing. She gently picked up his hand in hers and began to lightly trace the blackwork tattoos, glad that Chopper put the IV in his inner forearm to avoid the ink.

"I know you likely can't hear me," she said, "but I want to at least say that Chopper is doing everything in his power to make sure this weird creature doesn't melt your brain or eat your innards." He continued to lay there, immobile and unresponsive. The only comforts she had was that his hand was still warm and the monitors doing their job. "I still don't regret going with Luffy, you know. Maybe next time you'll think before you get into trouble. You of all people know how terrible it is to be left behind."

Law still did not answer.

"If you don't wake up soon, Luffy's going to try to do something about it."

Again, nothing; if anything was to work if he was somehow faking, it would be invoking Luffy. His silence confirmed leagues of information for Robin, though the most troubling fact was something to do with her and nothing else. She hated to see him like this and she had to wonder how deep it truly went. With any luck, she wouldn't have to find out the hard way.

She did not know if she could be left behind again.

Alcohol flowed freely on the Going Luffy-senpai as the newly formed Straw Hat Fleet partied to celebrate having escaped Dressrosa and the certain death that would have welcomed them had they stayed a moment longer. It was a wonderful party, one that easily presented many opportunities to slip away from the main proceedings.

Below deck, Law walked out of the bathroom and looked up and down the corridor to see if there was anyone there—he was alone. That worked in his favor, honestly, as it allowed him to find a bit of peace and quiet to recharge himself with minimal pressure. After having been with the Straw Hats for what felt like ages, plus the varied others who came with them, he needed some time alone before he screamed.

Opening a door, he found that he had only stumbled upon Nico Robin as she studied the contents of the map room. He raised an eyebrow—it looked like she was stealing the only semi-navigable maps the ship possessed.

"I thought it was your crewmate who's a cat burglar," he quipped. She simply smiled.

"Who do you think these are going to once we arrive at Zou?" she replied. Fuck—she had him there. Actually, he wasn't entirely sure if it was the booze or something else, but Nico Robin… she wasn't bad to have around. "Are you doing alright, Torao? You look a bit pale."

"Haven't had that much alcohol in a while," he admitted. "I'm not normally a lightweight, but that idiot with a hard-on for your captain has some strong stuff in his stores."

"Yes, I do give him that." She watched as he closed the door behind him, making it only the two of them in the small room. "Aren't you afraid I'll beat you up?"

"No," he mumbled, avoiding eye contact. His face felt hot from both booze and blush; she was either good at masking being drunk as well, or her tolerance was far beyond his. "I wanted to… uh…" He swallowed hard. "Nico-ya, can I kiss you?"

"An interesting question," she noted. "Might I ask why?"

"I remember seeing your bounty poster as a child, not long after it came out," he said. Fuck, words would not stop spilling out of his mouth, Nika help him, and it was complicating things even more. "The sisters at the school used it to warn us about being naughty, that we'd get a bounty just like you. It terrified my classmates into behaving all the way to the end."

"…and what did the young Torao believe?" she asked, moving closer to him. She placed her hands on his shoulders, then cradled his face, making him look directly at her. He began to tremble and his voice grew raspy.

"I thought that was the coolest shit ever."

In half a moment, Robin popped up on her toes and leaned in to kiss Law. She materialized an arm out of his back so she could hold his head in place as she ran three hands' worth of fingers in his hair. Two additional false arms pulled him in closer, all while he struggled to figure out how to both kiss back and find an appropriate place for his hands. Their hesitation melted away as they kissed, the pair breathlessly breaking apart only when they realized that they were getting dizzy.

"Here I was afraid you were with Cyborg-ya," he chuckled incredulously. She shook her head.

"Franky? He's just a friend. A very odd friend."

"Then I guess he won't mind if I kiss you again?"

"He doesn't even need to know."

Law took that as his cue and kissed her again, becoming intoxicated from more than just their host's choice in alcohol. He walked Robin back into the wall next to the door, pausing just long enough for her to protest, only to find that she instead pulled him even closer. She slid one of her legs between his and felt his growing erection throb against her, chuckling at her find. "Do you have the necessary equipment to take care of this?"

His brain stalled; the what…? Oh…

"I wasn't even certain that I'd get a kiss. Besides, I…!"

"MISS ROBIN?!" The pair froze at the sound of Bartolomeo's booming voice in the corridor. "MISS ROBIN?! WE'RE ABOUT'TA TELL STORIES DETAILING YOUR VICTORY AT ENIES LOBBY! DIDJA WANNA COME?!"

Robin pressed a finger to Law's lips and suddenly he could hear her voice out in the corridor, leading Bartolomeo away from the map room. Once it sounded like they were out of danger, the pair leaned into one another and giggled quietly. He hesitated before burying his face in her neck, not entirely believing his luck.

"Do you know a place where we're more likely to… be alone…?"

"Why Torao, I thought you'd never ask."

It was lunchtime when Law finally got to sit down and relax, even if it was only for a short time. Penguin, Shachi, and Bepo had joined him in their favorite corner of the cafeteria, the four lazily eating their lunch over a shared break.

"Sooo… the big day's coming up soon, isn't it?" Penguin asked. Law shrugged.

"It's just dinner."

"Yeah, but you're having Robin meet your family—that's kind of a big deal," Penguin replied. "It's actually a pretty huge step if you ask me."

"Why are you afraid of what my family is going to think of my girlfriend?" Law questioned. "I'd say it doesn't concern you."

"Except it does concern us," Shachi said, "because ever since you and Robin started seeing one another, it's like you've been a completely different person. In a good way."

"Yeah, you're living proof that getting kinky pussy on the regular changes a man," Penguin added. "You're not nearly as cranky as before."

"You know, I'd prefer it if we didn't talk about my sex life within potential earshot of people I've known since childhood," Law grumbled. His brain went overtime into thinking about how many of the other hospital staff members there had known him as his parents' son long before he even gained awareness of his surroundings. "You're just jealous I even have one."

"Pffft, nah," Penguin scoffed, shrugging off the accusation.

"We're proud that you have yourself a girlfriend, what do you mean?" Shachi added.

"They're both extremely jealous and wonder what you did to score Robin," Bepo deadpanned through his food. Ah! Fucking traitor! "Very specifically they wonder whose dick you had to suck."

"You two are the worst," Law groaned. Both Penguin and Shachi turned beet red at that, piss completely taken out.

"Hey, come on," Shachi whined. "It's just… like… you're fucking perfect and it's rough on us normies' self-esteem some days."

"Yeah," Penguin added. "You're smart, handsome, tall, got that deep voice and talented hands—no wonder Robin's agreeing to meet your family."

"…and how would you know I've got the kind of 'talented hands' she'd enjoy?"

"Dude, it's completely and totally normal to notice the fact that you've got long fingers when you start twirling a pen or are pointing to incisions on patients," Penguin defended. "Besides, you're only a surgeon because you're good with your hands."

"It's more than that, but thanks for the vote of confidence," Law replied sarcastically. "I'm just lucky that Robin doesn't hate Sora."

"Yeah! Not even that she doesn't hate it! She doesn't think still being a fan at our age is weird!" Penguin stabbed the air with a fry for emphasis. "Smoking hot, tolerant of hobbies, and smarter than you too! We couldn't get that even in a million years!"

"You're being ridiculous," Law scolded. "You're making it sound like we're some sort of power couple."

"Peng, he's gonna have the smartest, most gorgeous children in all the Cardinal Blues, and he doesn't even realize it," Shachi whined. "Fuck, I wonder what it's like to be that oblivious."

"I'm not oblivious…"

"Dude, you're fucking oblivious," Penguin replied, backing up Shachi. "Tell 'im, Bep."

"You're all oblivious," Bepo said, hitting all three friends' egos with laser-precision. "Law's so stupidly in love that he can't think straight, but he's not the only one. Penguin, don't tell me that you haven't noticed the blond at the gym, and Shachi's had his eye on the lady in the gift shop for a while now."

"You're cruel," Shachi mumbled, absolutely devastated. "To be honest, I don't know who's worse."

"I think after the Captain and Miss Robin get married, I'm gonna go home for a bit," Bepo grumbled. "I wanna meet a cute bear and there's no bears here, let alone any other Minks."

"If you opened up your horizons, there would be plenty in the dating pool," Penguin noted.

"I'm not attracted to Humans and you know that," Bepo whined. He began to argue with Penguin and Shachi, with Law slowly ignoring their words. None of them knew what it was like, and how could they? The goobers only knew lust and Bepo went through puberty far from anyone even capable of catching his eye. He thought of Robin coming back from her conference and how lonely it must have been for her—if only because he knew how lonely it was for himself—and what he might do to welcome her back. He only snapped back to the conversation at-hand when Shachi waved a hand in front of his face and caught his attention.

"Yo, Captain, stop thinking of your other meals and start concentrating on this one," he joked. Law scowled at him—it wasn't funny. "Now, are you going to tell us what the schedule looks like for the outgoing month? I want to see if we can get in a crew camping trip before the snows fly."

Chopper had called a joint meeting of the Straw Hat and Heart Pirates to discuss the situation Law was in. Everyone crammed into the Polar Tang's mess hall, with crews interspersed amongst each other. Although he acknowledged right off the bat that patient privacy was essential under normal conditions, the extenuating circumstances of the situation made this a bit different than usual.

"The thing that's attached to Torao's face is a very rare type of shell-less mollusk that is most-often seen being created via a Devil Fruit," the young doctor said. He placed a book on the table, open to a page with a drawing of another specimen, presumably latched onto the face of a slave. "The good news is that we have the ability to save him; the bad news is that it's very tricky."

"What do you mean tricky?" Sanji wondered. "If it's a mollusk it can be killed and eaten, right? Just throw some salt on it and it shrivels."

"It's not that simple," Chopper explained. "I've corroborated Jean Bart's first-hand accounts with multiple sources of written documentation—this thing does not give up its prey easily and attempts at doing so can be lethal."

"Prey?!" the Heart Pirates panicked.

"Yes—what's happening to Torao is normally a mechanism by which they kill their food, by slowly starving them to death without them even realizing." Chopper brought out another diagram, which was a cross-section of the creature. "While in this form, it's just a parasite, feeding off the nutrients in his bloodstream. It has even grown since I began my observation. By continuing the intravenous care, we can keep both it and Torao alive for as long as we see fit, but that's just it… it's both of them."

"…but what happens if you stop the treatment?" Clione wondered. "It's not like we can keep doing this forever."

"If we stop the treatment, then Torao will slowly die, and when he does, the parasite becomes a scavenger and will feed on his internal organs and use his corpse as a nest," Chopper replied frankly. Everyone in the room went pale—what the fuck? "It's likely used by Celestial Dragons to torture their slaves because of the toxin that it emits while keeping the victim incapacitated. What better way to break someone's spirit but to show them how good their life could be, only to remind them that they're still a slave?"

"That's sick," Nami frowned. "My question is: how did it get on Torao?"

"I don't know if that's the question we should be asking at this point since it takes away from the fact his life is in danger," Ikkaku said. She grunted as she stared at the anatomical drawing of the creature—it looked nasty as hell. "Jean Bart said he knows these things can come off on their own. Do you know how to do it so we don't hurt him?"

"The creature's toxin can be overcome by the victim under certain circumstances," Chopper said. "They're sensitive to their victim's brainwaves and will detach when it seems like its in danger of regaining awareness. That would surely mean getting hurt, since the victim would most likely try to pry it off and hurt the creature in the process. Hurt it while it's still attached to him and we don't know what kind of damage we'd do to Torao's psyche, let alone if it will just try to hide inside him."

"So Torao just needs to tell it to let him go?" Luffy asked, head cocked to the side as he thought. "I thought he would have done that by now."

"It's not that simple," Chopper said. "According to sources, doing that involves the victim realizing that the dream they are experiencing is not real and using that as a jumping point to shatter that reality. Without that, Torao will keep dreaming until he dies."

"He hasn't been sleeping lately because of dreams," Shachi offered. "The captain's not exactly brimming with warm and fuzzy memories. Whatever has him in there has his ass good."

"What kind of a life is better than this one?" Luffy wondered. Penguin sighed at that; Law was going to kill them all when he woke up.

"It's not really our place to say, especially since I don't know what he's told all of you, but his hometown kind of went through two different genocide events and he's possibly the only survivor. Something tells me that whatever that thing is having the captain see, it's related to that stuff turning out different."

"…but that would mean no Polar Tang! No Heart Pirates!" Uni huffed. "What kind of a life is that?!"

"A normal one," Bepo said sadly. Everyone looked over at him and saw that he was picking at his paws as he stared at a spot on the floor. "Captain's always wanted to be a doctor… maybe he's dreaming about being a successful surgeon after never meeting us…" He sucked in a sniffle—the thought was almost too much to bear.

"Is there anything in your research about what we can do?" Jean Bart asked. Chopper grimaced.

"Yes and no," he replied. "There is some thought to the idea that a victim who is aware of what's going on from the beginning can have an easier time defeating it, but not a lot of research has been done in that regard. I highly doubt Torao knew any of it going in, and getting data on it is risky. The ethics alone surrounding using a control group in an experiment like that is dubious at-best…"

"…but, we might be able to help Torao," Luffy said. "That is what you said, right Chopper?"

"Possibly…? I'm not entirely sure how though…"

"Let me go in." The room went quiet as Robin stepped forward. "I can go into Torao's dream with full knowledge of the parasite and help him escape. If the parasite is showing him what I think it is, then I know what he's feeling—I can help."

"…but Miss Robin," Shachi frowned, "we don't even know why this thing is on the captain."

"You called us for help, correct? The let me help."

"I dunno…" Chopper mused. "This is not a well-tested method. How do you know that you would be accessing Torao's dream and not get sucked into your own?"

"You said it yourself: the creature is growing," she replied. "If it latches onto both of us, it might be able to let me access Torao's dream since it would have to sync our brainwaves in order to handle us both. Wouldn't that make sense?"

"Well, yeah, if we were in a science fiction or fantasy novel…"

"…and if I don't find him, then I escape my dream as quick as I can," she assured.

"It's a better plan than nothing," Penguin said.

"You can't, Robin," Nami scowled. "That thing is killing Torao—if you allow it to touch you, it'll be like signing up for the exact same fate."

"It's a risk I'm willing to take," Robin replied. "It's a risk I'm sure many of us would take considering how Torao has helped us. Whomever goes in has to know what they're doing."

"Robin did pretend she was a bad guy for a long time before we came around," Luffy noted aloud. He then nodded in approval. "But you better come back, okay?"

"It's a promise, Captain," Robin smiled. Luffy smiled back, his grin as wide and brilliant as ever.

"Alright! Now, who's up for some lunch? Sanji! I'm hungry!"

Family Dinner Night, was—as it often was—awkward.

It wasn't as though Law did not enjoy spending time with his parents and sister—that wasn't the case. There was simply plenty more he could have been doing, could have been reading, could have been seeing without his family there making conversation as they shared a meal. Three times a week. It was almost too much for him to stomach.

"You should have seen Law-nii!" Lami said excitedly. She was explaining her afternoon to her parents, the pair amused at her enthusiasm. "Any time he had a complication, he used his Devil Fruit and bap! They were stabilized again!"

"I wonder when bap became a technical term," her mother chuckled.

"I dunno, but it's probably around the time our children got old enough for med school," her father teased. He noted that Law was very quiet, picking at his potatoes almost sullenly. "Speaking of med school, I haven't seen that face since before you were enrolled. What's on your mind?"

"Nothing," Law lied. He shoveled up some veg and stuffed it in his mouth. "Just a little lost in thought, I guess."

"He misses Robin and his hand doesn't cut it anymore," Lami quipped. Law sat up straight and kicked his sister in the shin angrily—what the fuck?!

"Nika save us—kids, what have I told you?!" the mother hissed. "You're both adults for seas' sake!"

"Angela, they're siblings. That's what siblings do."

"I know that, Lars, but they are both in their twenties! They should have cut this out a whole decade ago!"

"Relax—just let them be."

"Yeah; it's not my fault that she's jealous I even have someone," Law sniped. Now it was Lami's turn to kick him under the table, which only served to irritate their mother further.

"That's it," she hissed. "Oath or not, I will end both of you if you don't straighten up! It'll be a miracle if either of you don't mess it up at this rate."

"Moer…"

"Don't moer me, young man." Law flinched slightly at how sharp his mother's voice was, instead deciding it was worth spearing a bit of potato and shoving it in his mouth. She let out a breath and shook her head. "Don't make me the bad guy. I don't like being the bad guy."

Law swallowed his food and mumbled, "Sorry I kicked you and reminded everyone you're alone."

Lami shifted in her chair. "Sorry I kicked you and made it clear I can hear you through the walls in the middle of the night."

"I don't know if that's better, but you know what? I'm going to take it." Their mother groaned in frustration before taking a long drink of her water. "Whoever said parenting adult children is easier was lying through their teeth."

"That would be your cousin who, yes, lies through her teeth." Law and Lami exchanged a glance; their father was treading on dangerous territory. Again. Instead of continuing, however, he cleared his throat and picked up his own water glass. "So, kids, any thoughts on the new provost the college is importing? I hear she's going to be a rough one when it comes to academics?"

Yeah, maybe that was going to be a safer topic.

It was after dinner and Law was helping clean up the dishes. His mother and Lami were in the sitting room going over her observation notes from the surgery, while Law and his father were in the kitchen washing dishes. It was usually safer to keep the siblings separated after a spat at dinner and their parents kept to that despite the fact everyone in the house was now an adult. They worked in practiced silence until the sound of Lami's groaning made them both smirk.

"If Lami didn't insist on kicking and screaming and pouting the entire way, she'd already be a medical professional and your moer would be off her back," his father chuckled. Law shook his head.

"I doubt," he replied. Law picked up another dish from the soapy water and scrubbed the crocheted washcloth over it before putting it in the rinse water. "Hey, uh, Vaor?"

"Yes?

"Have you heard anything lately about dream studies from anyone over in neurology?"

His father continued taking dishes out of the rinse water and placing them in the drying rack. "The same-old: no one knows how they originate and interpretation is based on conjecture and bias. Why do you ask? Got someone on your floor insisting otherwise?"

"No… just…" He paused, wondering if he should lie or not. "I've been having some… intense dreams lately."

"How intense are you talking about?" His father paused to allow him room to elaborate, yet he didn't, causing the older man to lean in a bit closer and drop his voice. "If it's sex dreams about your girlfriend, that's normal even if you're an adult."

"I wish it was that," Law scoffed. He took his hands out of the dishwater and leaned against the counter. Fuck… this was so weird. "It's… have you ever had a dream that took place over a long period of time?"

"Like, a recurring dream…?"

"No, like, you go to sleep and just… live. I recently had a dream where I lived an entirely different life and I don't know what to make of it."

"Mmm. I take it that it's not a pleasant life."

"No." Law could feel himself tremble as he swallowed hard. "I dreamt… I dreamt what would have happened if you and Moer hadn't found the treatment for Amber Lead in time. Everyone was just… gone."

"Gone? You mean, dead? Come on, Law… even all the worst-case scenarios would have left Flevance with a population mostly comprised of first-and-second-generation immigrants. You've seen the data."

"I know, but…" Fuck, this was awkward to the point he wished it was just a sex dream. "In this dream, no one else outside of Flevance believed it was a heavy metal poisoning. They thought it was infectious instead and… and… between the fires and the bullets I was the only one who made it out alive." He turned towards his father, who was looking at him curiously. "Am I going nuts?"

"No, I don't think so," the older man said. He dried his hands on a dishrag before patting his son on the back. The pair were echoes of one another separated by thirty-two years and at that point they really felt it. "Maybe… maybe you're just nervous about Robin coming over once she's back from that conference. It could be that your subconscious is seeing the prospect of settling down and is coming up with different ways your life could have gone. I think it's just going a little overboard because you don't exactly have an ex to wonder about."

"Yeah…?"

"Yeah." Law couldn't help but feel like a child as his father drew him into a hug despite the need to crouch slightly into it. "It's scary to consider that kind of commitment, even if you feel ready." His father then held him at arm's length and smirked knowingly at him. "Did you pick the ring up yet?"

"Yeah, it's in my room." His face flushed hot as he thought of the piece of jewelry—because that's all it really was—and how it was going to change everything… for better or worse. "How did you propose to Moer?"

"I was too chicken to do it directly and slipped the ring in her purse while we were doing clinicals together; took her almost three weeks to find."

"That's kind of pathetic."

"Yeah, but the point is that you can't possibly do it worse than me if you're coming at her face-to-face." His father ruffled his hair and chuckled. "Don't overthink it."

"All I can do is overthink, what, with the weird dreams and all."

"You'll be fine—you'll see." Law's father then gestured back to the sink. "Let's finish these up before the water gets cold, hmm? I think doing something with your hands will help."

"Yeah, something that won't risk traumatizing the neighborhood kids," Lami snarked, standing just outside the kitchen. It was clear that she had just slid into the conversation, so Law took pity on her and when he opened a Room, all he did was switch the dishcloth with a speck of dust over her head and not an entire soapy dish. Who ever said he wasn't charitable?

Twilight had long given way to the dim darkness of the city as Law made his way down the maze of streets that was Flevance, finding his way towards a street settled on either side of a moonlit canal. The night chill made him pull the collar of his coat tighter as he tried to not look like he was suspiciously hurrying. He found a specific door and used the key to enter, then another key at the top of the staircase that led into the flat. The moment he was over the threshold a sort of calm overtook him as it usually did; it was difficult to be on-edge in Robin's place.

Not wanting to fail his original purpose for going, Law shucked off his coat and grabbed the watering can, getting to work on caring for Robin's multitude of plants that were scattered around the studio flat. Could she have left it to one of the downstairs neighbors? Of course she could have, but that would have given him less of an excuse to leave his parents' house… to be in the space that was very, very her. He put down the watering can and picked up one of his hooded sweatshirts from its perch on the battered sofa—one deep breath and he could smell her perfume still on it.

Okay, so he had been planning on jerking it in the flat before his sister mentioned his relationship at dinner, but now the entire idea tasted sour. He put the sweatshirt back down and continued to water the plants, eventually heading back to the sink for a refill once the watering can emptied.

"I missed you," he said aloud, trying to imagine what he would say to Robin next time he saw her. No… that wasn't right. "How was the conference? Did they like your presentation? I missed you." No, that wasn't right either…

Law put the watering can down on the dining area table and looked around. Their lives were already beginning to meld as his things began to lay about abandoned, often in preparation for them to have sex. Both of their book collections sat on the shelves and in piles everywhere, evidence of many a night they spent together studying and working. Little things here and there made the place their own little haven, and it was something he didn't entirely want to let go.

"Robin, I've been giving it a lot of thought, and…" He trailed off, unsure how to continue. "Robin, I've been giving it a lot of thought and do you want to make this permanent? No… that's fucking stupid." He scratched at his scalp and began to pace, wondering how he was going to do this.

Should he wait a while or ask her right after she returned from her conference? In the flat? At the park? No, nowhere public—he knew better. Should he go down on one knee or hide it in the flat so he could take it out after they had sex? If he hid it, would he keep it within an arm's reach, or would Scrambling it into his hand be enough? Law took the ring box out of his coat pocket and felt its weight in his hand. It was not a heavy box by any means, but it was enough to feel a difference, which was honestly enough.

"Nico Robin, will you do me the hono—no, not that. Robin, will you—no, shit. Do you want to make this permanent? Because I want to make this permanent." He grimaced. "Trafalgar D. Water Law, you are a fucking idiot." He allowed his feet to take him to the bed and he flopped into it, the unmade linens rumpled and askew underneath him, looking up through the skylight at the city-dimmed stars.

"If you know any pointers, I'd like to know," he said to no one in particular. Law kicked off his boots and pulled his legs up into the bed, curling up in the space he was well-acquainted with sharing. It smelled like her soap, the books she was always absorbed in, the coffee that was a staple during their late nights… it was so comforting that he felt like he could sleep there.

"We shouldn't have to be punished for wanting to learn history!"

Law inhaled sharply as his dream came back to him, the words weighing down on his chest. He had said those words, but only in the auspices of his highly-realistic dream… but why? Most Flevench citizens worth their weight in the Amber Lead extracted from their bodies distrusted the central government nearly by default, but in the dream he had been saying it to an Emperor of the Sea as he and some metalhead from the South Blue readied to take her down. Why was he telling a Yonkou that? What knowledge was she keeping under lock and key? The dream was becoming hazy—as all dream did—but that did not mean it wasn't still bothering him.

"Robin," he whispered, "I never want this to end. Can we get married so that it doesn't have to?"

The silence that met him was more assuring than it had any right to be.

Robin flexed her arm as she looked at the IV hookup that was already placed in her forearm as a precaution. Chopper, Bepo, and Jean Bart were in the process of transferring Law to a larger bed, placing him on his side, positioned carefully so that his windpipe remained clear. They were the only ones on the entire Polar Tang, as everyone else had to be sequestered to the Thousand Sunny so that work could get done. It had been less than two days since the Straw Hats had gotten the call and yet they knew that time was extremely important to making sure that not only Law lived, but now Robin as well.

"It looks like everything's set," Chopper said with a nod. He watched as Robin sat down on the edge of the mattress, mentally preparing herself for what was to come. "Last chance: are you sure you want to do this?"

"Yeah—I can still go in and get the Captain," Bepo offered. "He's been my best friend for years."

"Thank you; I think having someone as a backup will be important," she replied. Robin shifted in order to lay down, placing her forehead close to where Law's was underneath the parasite. The creature clicked and purred, reaching out tentatively towards Robin with one of the tentacles on its back. She watched it as it inched closer to her without losing its grip on Law.

'None of it is real,' she thought to herself. 'None of it is real. None of it is real. Everything this thing shows me will not be real…' She took hold of Law's inked hand in hers, hoping it would help ground her.

Nico Robin gasped and the world went dark.