My Heart Is Still Beating (But I Lost It Long Ago)

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at http://archiveofourown.org/works/46100035.

Rating: Explicit
Archive Warning: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Category: M/M
Fandom: One Piece (Anime & Manga)
Relationship: Monkey D. Luffy/Trafalgar D. Water Law, Donquixote
Doflamingo/Trafalgar D. Water Law
Character: Trafalgar D. Water Law, Monkey D. Luffy, Mugiwara Kaizoku | Strawhat
Pirates, Heart Pirates, Donquixote Doflamingo
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Post-Apocalypse, Alternate Universe - Zombie
Apocalypse, Bottom Trafalgar D. Water Law, Hurt/Comfort, the
doflamingo/law is very much not consensual, no beta i have no lawlu
friends
Language: English
Stats: Published: 2023-03-29 Words: 27,097 Chapters: 1/1

My Heart Is Still Beating (But I Lost It Long Ago)

by betsib

Summary

Law is travelling alone between quarantine zones when he comes across a young man with
three bullets in his torso and an unflinching look in is eyes.

Notes

This was meant to be just a silly little self-indulgent au but it kinda grew.

...it's still extremely self-indulgent though.

See the end of the work for more notes

Law was miserable.

His throat was dry. His stomach was empty and screaming for food. His feet hurt. He was
exhausted from barely sleeping for days. The sun was in his eyes. And it was already autumn, so
why was the weather so fucking hot?

Law had been walking for the better part of a week, slowly making his way east by following
smaller country roads and half-overgrown dirt paths. He was deliberately staying away from the
bigger roads that were still used by trading caravans and travellers, but were also a target for
raiders. That’s why he was walking in the first place.

After the Outbreak five years ago, Law and his roommates had spent a few months fighting to
survive, before eventually making their way to one of the newly established quarantine zones, built
in the outskirts of old Sabaody, SB QZ for short. They were lucky. The first days of the Outbreak
had decimated practically all hospitals on the continent, so doctors and nurses were short supply,
and Law’s medical licence had let them pass right by the queues of hundreds waiting to be let into
the QZ, and had allowed them to start a clinic and have steady employment in a place where most
people were desperate for work.

Things had stabilised over the years, to the point that when Law had been offered an opportunity to
spend a year in the doctorless PH QZ in exchange for a lucrative trade deal for SB QZ, he took it
without hesitation. He had been working hard to establish a clinic in PH QZ, training former
pharmacists, veterinarians and lab technicians to take care of patients. On paper the situation was
ridiculous, he had only had his licence for two years when the Outbreak happened, and many of his
trainees where older and more experienced than him, but Law had been running his own clinic
successfully for a few years at that point. When the year was up, he left the now established clinic
in the hands of his students, and joined a trading caravan back to SB QZ.

They didn’t even make it halfway. On the second day of travel, the caravan was attacked. As far as
Law knew, he was the only one to escape.

Now, a week later, with barely any water left and no food except what he could scavenge from the
surrounding forests, no weapon save a small knife and a hastily made wooden spear, and shoes that
were starting fall apart under his feet, Law wondered if running away from the raiders had been a
mistake. They probably wouldn’t have killed him, at least not if he played the “Doctor”-card.

Then again, he wasn’t interested in becoming the pet physician of some remote raider town.

Not that he may have much of a choice, at this rate. Law was in a bad situation, and he knew it. His
best bet for survival was to find people. Or, failing that, a place where people used to be. It had
been years since he had had to personally deal with the undead, but he was used to dealing with the
living, and frankly, the living were worse.

A sudden gunshot rang through the air.

Law forced himself not to panic. The shot was close, but not close enough to have been aimed at
him. It was quickly followed by several more shots, from different guns if Law heard correctly. A
shootout then, probably. Most likely raiders again.

Law smiled grimly. For better or worse, he had found people. He turned away from the road,
heading into the forest in the direction of the shots.

Best case scenario they all killed each other, leaving Law to pick up the spoils, but that was
unlikely. He would have to wait it out, get close enough to assess the situation, then offer to patch
up the victors. Or, alternatively, stay hidden until the raiders had left and then pick up any supplies
they missed. There was always something.

The shooting trickled off before he got there, but he continued in the same direction, staying low
and hidden, until eventually he came to a clearing. There was a small hunter’s cabin with a sad
excuse for a dirt road leading up to it, and it was littered with corpses. He could see at least seven
dead people, spread around the cabin, geared like raiders. All aiming towards the cabin. And at the
cabin itself…
Law saw a figure exiting with a shotgun in hand and a straw hat on his head. He looked around,
then took a few more steps before collapsing on the porch. Law waited. The clearing was still, no
more movements came from either side, no allies moving in to join the fight or tend to the
wounded. It was over.

Law cautiously entered the clearing and slowly approached the figure on the ground. His straw hat
had fallen off, leaving his face visible. He was still breathing, but the blood pooling under him
didn’t look good. Law couldn’t even tell how many injuries there were, his chest was a mess of red,
bleeding out quickly.

He only had minutes left to live if no one helped him. Maybe even if someone did.

It was the best case scenario for Law, wasn’t it? With everyone dead, he could take what he
needed and move on. Except…

The boy on the ground was looking at him, reaching for the gun he had dropped in his fall. His
eyes held no fear, only determination. He was prepared to continue his fight even now. Even in this
condition.

“It’s alright,” Law heard himself say. “I’m a doctor.”

Straw Hat’s eyes went wide, and he let his arm relax again, leaving the gun be. Trusting him
immediately. Not that he had much choice at this point.

Law sighed and went to work. He quickly removed his backpack and reached for his emergency
medical kit. It wasn’t ideal, but it was all he had, so it would have to be enough.

“I can’t guarantee anything, understand?” he said, but Straw Hat didn’t answer. “Hey, stay with
me. It’s going to hurt, but you have a better chance if you stay awake.”

A quick inspection showed he had been shot no less than three times. Abdomen, chest, shoulder.
Law glared at the wounds. There was no way he was surviving this. Law was wasting his time.

But he was a doctor.

Applying pressure to the wounds to stop the bleeding on all three wounds was a hassle, and had
him having to use his own leg as an extra arm. As he started inspecting the wounds, he raised
Straw Hat’s chances of survival to about 5 percent. The boy had the devil’s luck. The bullet in his
chest had lodged itself in a rib, cracking the bone, but leaving lungs and heart unharmed. But it was
perilously close, and would have to be removed before it did further damage.

The bullet in his abdomen had missed the stomach, instead burying into muscle, deep enough that
it was hard to remove, but not life threatening under normal circumstances. The shoulder wound
looked similar, though the bullet had burrowed deeper, and would be a bitch to remove without
leaving fragments.

The real issue was the blood loss. Even after he had managed to stop the bleeding for the most
part, all Law could do was patch him up and disinfect him. Without a blood transfusion the guy’s
chances were still abysmally low. Law’s emergency kit did have the tools for it, but even if he
himself had been willing to donate, he would just make things worse if their blood types didn’t
match. And with B+, the chances of matching were not good.

Still, he had come this far.. He removed two bullets without much issue. He concentrated on
getting the last bullet out, figuring he could deal with the blood situation after he got the guy
patched up. At least he was still breathing.
He almost missed the steps behind him, but when he turned around to look he found himself
staring down the barrel of a gun. A tall, heavyset man had somehow managed to sneak up on him
without him noticing, and Law cursed himself. He knew better than to let down his guard like this.

“What are you doing to Luffy?” the man demanded, but there was an uncertainty in his voice.
Understandable, if he was friends with Law’s patient and had come back to find a strange man
operating on him in the middle of the porch, surrounded by dead raiders.

“Trying to save his life,” Law said. He turned back to his patient, Luffy he supposed, and finally
managed to get a grip on the bullet. “Do you know his blood type?”

There was a pause behind him. “B-, same as mine.”

That meant Law’s blood was out of the question. “Would you be willing to donate?”

“Yes.”

No hesitation. That was good at least. Law finished patching Luffy up, then turned to the big guy.

“Help me carry him inside,” Law ordered. “ Carefully .”

The big guy agreed without a word. Once they had gotten Luffy inside and placed on a bed, Law
set up the transfusion, really wishing he had access to a clinic’s worth of equipment right now. Law
was used to working in fairly primitive conditions, by old world standards, but this was extreme
even for him.

He was monitoring Luffy’s condition as the blood ran into him, looking for signs anything was
wrong. Considering the circumstances, he seemed to be doing well.

“Are you a friend of Luffy’s?” the big guy asked when Law finally removed the tube, deeming it
enough. The last thing he needed was two patients with severe blood loss on his hands.

“No,” Law said. “I have never met him before today. I just heard the gunshots and found him.”

The big guy stared at him, wide eyed, and Law looked back.

“Then…why?” the big guy asked. “You could have taken what you needed and left. Instead, you
went out of your way to help him.”

Law turned away from him, looking at Luffy instead. Why indeed? He had no good reason. No
reason but a pair of eyes glowing with unflinching determination in face of certain death.

“Call it a whim,” Law sighed, finally allowing himself to lean back and take a deep breath.
Looking around, the cabin was ridiculously well stocked, but not very organised. It looked like a
temporary base, probably for more than just two people.

“A whim,” the big guy repeated slowly, then started to laugh. “My name is Jinbe.”

“Law,” Law introduced himself. “How did you guys get all this stuff?” He gestured vaguely
towards the supplies.

“We’re scavengers. It’s what we do,” Jinbe said, standing up before Law could stop him.

“You should rest longer. You lost a fair amount of blood.”

“I’m fine,” he said dismissively. “How do you feel about dinner? Any allergies?”
“I can’t have gluten,” Law said. Jinbe nodded and headed towards the corner of the cabin that
served as a kitchen. It had a wood stove, Law noticed.

“It’ll take a bit, but I’ll warm up some soup. They are past best before-date, but they should be
fine. ”

Law nodded. “If you could boil some water too, that would be great. I have instruments to sterilise
if I want to be able to use them again.” Not the ideal way to do it, but the only way under these
circumstances. As an afterthought, he added: “And I could use something to drink.”

“Of course,” Jinbe said. He came back with a bottle of water before heading back to the kitchen.
“Where are you from, Law?”

“SB QZ, though I had been staying in PH QZ for a while,” Law said. He took a few greedy
mouthfuls of water, then looked over at Luffy again. What he wouldn’t give for a heart rate
monitor. “I was heading back with a trade caravan when we got attacked by raiders.”

“Seems to be a lot of that around these parts,” Jinbe said. “We came from the southeast, it’s much
calmer over there.”

“Why was he alone?” Law asked, nodding in Luffy’s direction.

“Drew the short straw on guarding the supplies, we weren’t expecting anything to happen here.
The rest of us went scavenging in the town southwest,” Jinbe said. “There was less trouble than
anticipated, so I came back early. The rest should be here tomorrow.”

“How many?”

“Eleven, counting us as well,” Jinbe said.

Law narrowed his eyes. “Did you include me in that?”

“Shouldn’t I?” Jinbe said. “You’re staying with us for the moment at least.”

Law sighed. “Just until I know my patient will be okay,” he said. “Or until he dies.”

“He would already be dead if not for you,” Jinbe said. “So thank you.”

“Thank me after he’s in the clear,” Law said, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. He was
exhausted. He wasn’t naive enough to think he was safe, but he was safer than he had been for a
week.

“I’m going to rest for a bit,” he said. “Wake me when the water boils.”

Jinbe said something that sounded affirmative, but Law was already drifting off to sleep.

He was woken up what felt like seconds later, and sterilised his instruments in a daze, then checked
on his patient. Luffy’s condition was unchanged, which at this point was a good thing. If he made
it through the night, Law estimated his chances were actually pretty high.

Jinbe served him soup, and Law forced himself to eat slowly rather than just gulp the whole thing
down. He fell asleep again afterwards.
“MEAT!”

Law woke with a start, fight or flight response kicking in before the strange words registered. He
couldn’t see Jinbe, but Luffy was awake. And attempting to get up. Like an idiot.

“Absolutely not,” Law swore, moving over to Luffy and pushing him down on the bed again. “I did
not spend all that effort just to have you reopen your wounds, you moron! Hold still! ”

Luffy blinked up at him. “But I’m hungry.”

That was a good sign. If an irritating one. “I will get you something to eat,” Law grumbled. “But
you are to stay in bed. Stop fucking moving! ”

The door opened, and Jinbe stormed into the house, probably summoned by the screaming.

“Luffy! You’re awake!”

“Hi, Jinbe!” Luffy said, grinning widely. “I’m hungry.”

Jinbe looked at Law for confirmation, at least. Law sighed.

“Yes, he can have food. Preferably liquids, but whatever you have that is easily digestible,” he
said, then looked back at Luffy. “If you promise to stop moving I will let you sit up in bed.”

“Who are you again?” Luffy asked, blinking up at him like his presence had only now registered.

“Trafalgar Law. I’m a doctor,” Law said, somewhat gratified that Luffy finally seemed to
cooperate, but whether it was his doctor title or or the promise of food was anyone’s guess.

“He saved your life yesterday,” Jinbe said. “You got shot.”

“Really?” Luffy asked. “Thanks, Torao.”

“That’s not even close to my name,” Law said. “And I wouldn't have bothered if I knew you were
going to undo all my work the moment you woke up.”

Luffy, the asshole, had the audacity to laugh. At least he stopped a moment later. “That actually
really hurts,” he said. “Makes sense if I got shot.”

“You don’t remember?” Law asked.

“Not really,” Luffy said. “There were raiders, and I couldn’t let them take our supplies, so we
fought. Then it was over and I couldn’t move, and then-” he looked up at Law, eyes bright. “You
turned up!”

“Sounds about right,” Law said. “You got shot here, here and here.” He pointed at the wounds, and
heard Jinbe fumble by the stove.

“Three times?” he exclaimed. It took Law a moment to remember he had only seen Law dig out one
bullet.

“You were extremely lucky that none of them hit anything essential,” Law said. “And that Jinbe
offered to give you some of his blood.”
“Thanks, Jinbe,” Luffy exclaimed, instead of contemplating how close he had gotten to dying.

“So, and I cannot stress this enough, don’t move around! ” Law said. “I’m honestly surprised
you’re awake already, not to mention able to move, but you should get more sleep after you’ve
eaten.”

“If Torao says so,” Luffy said, yawing widely as if the suggestion of sleep had made him tired.

“It’s Law,” Law said, but he was starting to think it was a losing battle. Jinbe gave him a
sympathetic clap on the shoulder as he arrived with more soup.

“Do you want to feed him or should I?”

“Be my guest,” Law said. “I need some fresh air.”

“I cleaned up outside, all the stuff I got from the raiders are outside on the porch,” Jinbe said. “Feel
free to grab anything you need. There’s rainwater in a barrel if you want to wash.”

Law gave him a nod of acknowledgement, then headed outside. He did want to wash. After a week
on the road, and then getting practically covered in Luffy’s blood, he was in need of a bath, but
buckets of rainwater would have to do.

Law’s clothes were beyond saving. He mourned his favourite jeans, but at least Jinbe gave him his
pick of the clothes they had scavenged, and Law found a pair of black jeans and a yellow
sweatshirt that didn’t exactly fit, but close enough. Clean, fed, and well rested, Law felt more
human than he had for a long time.

He checked on his patient again, but Luffy was taking a nap after eating and wasn’t currently about
to kill himself, so Law left him be. He spent the afternoon talking with Jinbe, then headed outside
for some fresh air.

After just taking a moment to breathe, he heard a sound behind him.

“Who the fuck are you?”

Law looked back and found himself at gunpoint for the second time in two days. He sighed,
wondering if all that time in the relative safety of the QZs had really made him so complacent. He
very slowly turned around, hands in the air.

“Trafalgar Law. Who the fuck are you?” he said, looking at the people behind him. A blonde slim
guy was aiming a handgun at him, flanked by a muscular man with a scar over one eye and a
greenish tint to his hair.

Both of them ignored his question.

“There’s blood all over the ground, but no bodies,” the green guy said. “What the hell happened
here?”

“Let me guess, Luffy’s crew?” Law asked, watching both their reactions. By the looks they
exchanged, it seemed like he was right. “He and Jinbe are inside.”

They hesitated, seemingly having an entire conversation by looks and frowns alone.

“You first,” the blonde guy eventually said, gesturing towards the cabin with the gun. Law
shrugged, but kept his hands up and visible as he walked to the cabin and opened the door.
“Do you guys know a blonde guy and green haired guy?” he asked as he entered.

“Oh, it’s just Sanji and Zoro,” Jinbe said, as they cautiously entered behind him, gun still aimed at
Law.

“Welcome back!” Luffy said from the bed, apparently awake again, ready to be a danger to
himself. “Sanji, why are you threatening Torao? He’s part of the crew.”

They didn’t look entirely convinced, but the blonde guy, Sanji, put the gun away nonetheless.

“It’s Law,” Law protested. “And I’m not part of the crew.”

“Sure you’re not,” the green guy, Zoro presumably, said as he walked past Law towards Luffy.
“What happened?”

“Raiders. I won but I got shot.”

“Three times,” Jinbe added, giving the new guys a meaningful look. “I was too late. If Torao
hadn’t arrived when he did…”

“My name is literally three letters. It’s not hard.”

“You a doctor, Torao?” Zoro asked, and Law wanted to scream.

“Yes,” he said instead. “Not that anyone listens to me. You should still be sleeping.”

“Yes, but I’m hungy,” Luffy said. “Sanji, fooooooood!”

“Got it,” Sanji said. “Any allergies, Torao?”

Law glared at him.

“He can’t have gluten,” Jinbe added helpfully.

“Not a problem,” Sanji said, heading towards the stove.

“Do not make him anything that’s hard to digest. No sugar, no salt, no red or fatty meats,” Law
said, then ignored Luffy’s protests and fled out of the cabin again, not waiting to see if his orders
were followed. He sat down on the porch, with his head in his hands.

He had been in charge of people for too long, he realised. So used to being respected, at least
within his own circle. It had been a long time since people last ignored his orders. At least it didn’t
feel malicious, but it was still annoying.

The door opened a few moments later, and Zoro exited.

“I’m going to get the others,” he said by way of explanation. “You okay there, Torao?”

Law considered not answering out of pure pettiness, then sighed. “I’ll be fine.”

“Good. You’ll get used to it,” Zoro said, then headed off without another word.

Law didn’t think he wanted to get used to it, but he didn’t exactly have to. Another day or two, to
make sure his patient didn’t kill himself, then he could leave instructions to his crew and wash his
hands of this entire situation.
Zoro came back a few minutes later, with a colourful group in tow, each leading a bicycle beside
them. Smart, Law supposed. Bikes were probably the most reliable forms of transportation left,
with gas having broken down years ago and few outside QZ governments having access to a steady
supply of biofuel or electricity for cars. A few of the bikes had little wagons attached to them, for
supplies, it seemed. Not glamorous, but functional.

Zoro quickly introduced him to them all, and Law retained absolutely none of their names. They
walked past him into the cabin, all except the youngest, a brown-haired boy who could have been
anywhere between 12 and 18.

“Did you really remove three bullets from Luffy?” he asked, eyes wide.

Law briefly considered lying to the kid, to soften it, bu t fuck it, if he moved with scavengers he
could probably handle it. “Yes,” he simply said.

“That is amazing!” the kid said enthusiastically. “Could you tell me more about it? Where were
they located? How did you get them out? How did you stop the bleeding?”

Law blinked. “I can walk you through it if you want, but why do you want to know?”

“I want to be a doctor,” the kid said. “I grab books from every abandoned town we find, and I treat
the group when they get hurt or sick, but I haven’t met an actual doctor in years. ”

That last bit was alarming. Or would have been, if the world still made any sense. Actual, licensed
doctors were few and far between these days, Law only knew a handful others within a reasonably
travelable distance. That was the whole reason he had gone to PH QZ at all.

“How old are you?” Law asked.

“Fifteen,” the kid said. “I know you think I’m young, but I want to learn.”

Fifteen. Law had been fifteen when he started university, years ahead of his peers, and was
promised a good future if he was willing to work for it. He had worked for it, had worked hard for
it, and the future went to shit anyways.

“Alright,” Law said, getting on his feet. “Come with me. I should change Luffy’s bandages
anyways, since I doubt that idiot has gone to sleep like I told him to. You can give me a hand and
see the wounds for yourself.”

The kid actually looked excited at that, and Law had a weird feeling of looking into a mirror before
he turned on his heel and walked into the cabin.

The group started discussing their plans for the immediate future while Law and the kid, Chopper
apparently, weird name, changed Luffy’s bandages. Law was glad for the help, as torso wounds
required moving Luffy more than Law would have liked. At least the wounds themselves looked
fine, or as fine as could be expected given the circumstances. No sign of infection yet, which was
Law’s biggest worry at this stage.

Well, the biggest worry apart from Luffy himself.

“We should keep moving,” someone in the group said, catching Law’s attention.

“No,” he said out loud, and the room got quiet for a moment. “My patient is not moving
anywhere.”

“We can’t stay here. Those raiders may have had friends that will come looking for them,” the red-
haired woman argued.

“I’m aware, but it doesn’t matter. He can’t be moved yet,” Law said tiredly. “If I could, I would
have had him drugged longer to prevent him moving at all so soon after the surgery. He needs at
least a few days of bedrest, preferably more.”

“I’m fine. It hurts, but I’m okay,” Luffy said, and Law glared at him.

“You’re okay because I gave you the strongest painkillers I have access to,” Law said. The only
painkillers he had access to, but the point still stood. “Look, obviously I can’t stop you, but you
could end up killing him. He can’t afford for those wounds to reopen, and I would prefer not to
have his death on my conscience. Would you?”

There was a moment of silence in the room, then a snort from the big muscular guy with the blue
hair. “Anyone ever tell you you have terrible bedside manners, doc?”

“All the fucking time,” Law agreed, and the tension in the room eased as people chuckled.

“It’s fine,” Luffy eventually said. “I’ll stay here like Torao says. Everyone else can stay in town
that long. You said it was fairly safe, right?”

“I’ll stay here,” Zoro said. “You’re not fighting off any more raiders alone, especially if you can
barely leave the bed.”

There was agreement all around, so now they were apparently staying eleven people in a tiny one-
room cabin.

Law hated everything. His only spot of comfort was the medical books Chopper had gathered in
their latest run to town. Gynecology wasn’t really his field, though he had had to deal with his fair
share of pregnancies and childbirths in the past few years, so the refresher was appreciated. He,
Chopper and a dark haired woman called Robin formed their own little island of peace in a sea of
insanity. Or attempted to, at least. The other two were definitely used to it all in a way he wasn’t.

He was spoiled, he supposed. Not many people could afford to live alone these days, but Law’s
position had provided him with his own apartment in SB QZ. It had been small, sure, smaller still
in PH QZ, but he hadn’t needed to share with anyone for years. Not since he, Bepo, Shachi and
Penguin first made their way to the newly established SB QZ five years ago.

They had been on a fishing trip of all things when the Outbreak happened. It had been Penguin’s
idea, after his and Shachi had been almost simultaneously dumped by their girlfriends and decided
they needed “guy time with just guys doing guy things”. Law had been dragged along, not kicking
and screaming but not enthusiastic either.

That fishing trip had been a disaster, but it had saved their lives. Being out of service meant Law
had missed the calls from the hospital, hadn’t tried to help the first victims, hadn’t gotten infected
through bite or blood or been torn apart by their patients the way so many of his profession had
during the first days.

By the time they returned to society and realised what was going on, the world had already ended.
After that, every day was a struggle to survive. Shachi would have gotten bit on the third day if
Law had hesitated to bash a man’s skull in with a shovel. Penguin would have died a week in if
Law hadn’t learned how to reassemble a rifle when he was eleven. Bepo would have died after
thirteen days if Law hadn’t ruthlessly shot a fellow survivor desperate for supplies.

Law wouldn’t have made it a day without them.

Every day was a struggle. For the second time in his life, Law was forced to steal from dead bodies
to survive. At night, he was back in Flevance, ten years old and surrounded by death and fire.
When he woke up, the world was still burning, and sometimes he was happy. After what had
happened to Law’s home, to his people, his family, didn’t the world deserve to burn?

Then he would look at Bepo, Shachi and Penguin, huddled together and crying, remembering yet
another person they would likely never see again. They didn’t deserve it.

Over those first few months, they saw a side of Law he would have preferred to keep buried
forever, but they stuck with him. He was their best chance of survival, he had acknowledged as
much, but he welcomed them. They kept him, if not sane, at least somewhat stable.

When they finally reached SB QZ, he had told the people in charge that his friends were med
students, so they could pass the que with him. They weren’t, but they learned quickly on the job,
and continued to stay by his side. Sometimes he feared he had trapped them there.

By the time PH QZ had negotiated for Law to stay there for a year to train up a medical team of
their own, his friends had the clinic well under control, together with the others who had joined
over the years. Part of the reason he left was to give them a chance to get away from him, if they
wanted. Instead, they had insisted on staying in contact as much as possible, invading the QZ radio
towers every week, officially to discuss the clinic, but in practice it was nothing but catching up,
gossiping about mutual friends and sharing stories of their lives. They no longer needed him, but
they still wanted him around.

Law missed them so much.

The text in front of him was blurry when a laugh shook him back to the present. He gave up on the
book, looking around instead. Sanji was still moving around the kitchen, humming off-key while
pots and pans clinked together. Jinbe was having a conversation with the skinny, tall guy with the
afro, who was tuning an acoustic guitar by ear. The red-headed woman was taking inventory of
supplies together with the long-nosed guy and the big muscular guy, the process occasionally
devolving into laughter or small arguments. Somehow, Luffy had managed to fall asleep despite all
the noise. Zoro sat on the floor by Luffy’s bed, cross legged and also fast asleep, mouth slightly
open and snoring loudly.

“A lively bunch, aren’t they?” Robin said quietly, returning Law’s attention to their own little
group. She gave him a knowing smile.

“Putting it mildly,” Law agreed. “You all seem to know each other well.”

Robin nodded. “Most of us joined in the first year after the outbreak,” she said. “Well, Zoro knew
Luffy longer than that.”

“Luffy is the leader?” Law guessed, and she nodded. “He seems young.”

“He is 21,” Robin confirmed. “But he has a way of making people want to follow him. You’ll see.”

“Doubt it. I’m not joining your group,” Law said firmly. “I’m just staying until Luffy is out of
danger, then I need to move on.”

“Luffy will insist on helping you,” Chopper said, looking up from his book on medicinal plants.
“As soon as he is allowed to move, that is.”

“ Allowed ,” Law repeated with a sigh. “You two know the guy. How long until he will insist on
moving no matter what I say?”

“Honestly?” Robin smiled. “I’m surprised you’ve managed to keep him in bed all day.”

Law buried his face in his hands. “I should just have left him to bleed out.”

Robin chuckled, and he felt her gently patting his shoulder. “We are all glad you didn’t,” she said.
“Don’t worry, we will do what we can to distract him and keep him as still as possible.”

That was reassuring, at least.

Law was giving Luffy a check-up the following day. They were alone in the cabin for once, but the
others were just outside, stretching their legs and enjoying fresh air and sunlight. Law had heard
something about making Usopp climb the highest tree to look around, and frankly Law wanted no
part of that.

“So what does my heart sound like?” Luffy asked, clearly bored. Robin and the others had kept
their promise of keeping him distracted, but right now, Law was on Luffy-watch.

“I’m not listening to your heart. Deep breath,” Law said. “Your lungs sound fine.”

“Can I listen?” Luffy asked, and Law wordlessly moved the stethoscope from his ears to Luffy’s.
He grinned, then frowned after listening for a while.

“I sound weird.”

“You don’t. That’s normal,” Law said. “If you want your heart, it’s here.”

He moved the head of the stethoscope above Luffy’s heart.

“It’s like a drum. A slow drum,” Luffy grinned. “Chopper picked up one of these things way back,
and he went around listening to all of us, but he said he doesn't know how to tell if anything is
wrong.”

“It comes with practice,” Law said. “I can tell him what to listen for, but unless you actually hear it
it’s hard to describe.”

Luffy laughed. “He is so excited you joined the crew,” he said. “You’re all he talks about.”

“For the last time, I’m not joining your crew,” Law said sternly. “I need to head back to SB QZ!”

Luffy made a face at that, and Law sighed.

“Look, I know most Quarantine governments are…honestly, fucking terrible. SB QZ is better than
most, but no exception,” he said. “But my friends are there. My crew. And they probably think I’m
dead.”

Luffy looked at him, then slowly started grinning. “You’re a good guy, Torao.”

“I doubt that,” Law scoffed. “But you see why I need to go back, right?”

“Sure,” Luffy nodded. “We’ll get you back there.”

“You really don’t have to. I can make my own way,” Law said. “I just need some supplies.”

“Nah, we’ve been considering it for the winter, anyways,” Luffy said dismissively. “We were
going to go on for a bit longer, but if it’s Torao’s QZ, it’s fine.”

“Well, I should be able to get you inside easily enough,” Law said, a little baffled.

“Then it’s decided!” Luffy grinned. “I’ll tell the others when they get back.”

“Think they’ll protest?”

“They may grumble but they will go along with it. I’m the captain.”

“Dictator, you mean,” Law chuckled.

Luffy laughed. “It’s fine. They trust me to make the right decision,” he said. “Aren’t your crew the
same?”

“Yes,” Law agreed. “But that’s because I’m the only one with an actual medical degree.”

“I don’t even know them and I can tell you that’s not the only reason.”

“Go to sleep,” Law said, instead of conceding the point. Luffy just laughed.

Two days later, Law was forced to give up.

“Yes, we can move,” Law conceded, grabbing Luffy’s arm to stop him from immediately
attempting to run out. “ Slowly and carefully . You will be in the cart or sitting behind someone.
You will not pedal yourself, nor will you walk for more than a few minutes at a time. Are we
clear?”

“So pushy, Torao,” Luffy complained, but Law ignored him, looking at the others instead.

“He can be in my cart,” Franky said. “Are you taking his bike, Torao?”

Law blinked. He hadn’t actually considered that.

“I…guess?”

“You can ride a bike, right?” Usopp asked, and that was a good question, wasn’t it?

“I haven’t sat on a bike since I was ten years old,” he confessed. Ten years old, back in Flevance,
visiting his sister in the hospital after school. Law shook his head before he spiralled down into
memories better left forgotten. “I’m sure it can’t be that hard.”
“You’ll remember in no time. It’s like riding a bike!” Usopp said, then paused. “Um, I mean…”

“Eloquent,” he smirked in Usopp’s direction. “Alright. Which bike is Luffy’s? And please tell me
it has an adjustable saddle.”

Ten hands pointed towards a red and blue, not very well maintained, bike. It had 5 gears, but
seemed stuck on the first one. The saddle was, to Law’s great dismay, rusted in place. When he
tried it, he felt very much like an adult on a child’s bike.

“If someone could just shoot me now, that would be great,” Law said, and Luffy snickered.

“It’s not that bad, your legs are just too long,” Luffy said.

“My legs are perfectly normal, thank you very much,” Law said. It probably wasn’t that
convincing, considering his borrowed jeans were a little too short.

“I’ll see if I can fix it for you when we stop,” Franky said. “We won’t be going that far today,
anyway. Right, doc?”

“Right,” Law sighed. “Let’s go.”

It took him a few wobbly seconds to find his balance, but it really wasn’t that hard to bike again.
He vaguely remembered being able to do it without holding on to the handles as a child, but he
didn’t think he would be repeating that trick anytime soon. Not on a bike as ill-suited for him as
this one, at least.

They stopped every half hour or so for Law to check on Luffy. He was holding up well, but was
clearly getting tired after only a few hours, so Law called for a stop after less than half a day’s
travel. No one complained, at least.

They took their bikes off the road and into the forest for some cover, then started raising tents, two
yellow ones and a red one. Not the most subtle colours, but they seemed spacious, if not quite
enough for eleven people.

“We’ll keep two people on watch throughout the night,” Jinbe said when he saw Law looking.
“Excluding you and Luffy for now.”

“I can take a watch,” Luffy pouted. “I’ve been sitting all day.”

“And you will continue to sit, or I will tie you up for the foreseeable future,” Law said. “But I can
take a watch, I don’t sleep a lot in general.”

Jinbe hesitated, and Law narrowed his eyes. “Unless of course you don’t trust me.”

“Sorry, we just don’t know you very well yet,” Jinbe said.

“Torao is fine, he’s not going to betray us,” Luffy said. “Right, Torao?”

“No, I have no reason to do so,” Law sighed. “But I guess I can understand your caution.”

“Give him a break, he’s been babysitting Luffy for days now,” Sanji said, looking up from his
dinner preparations. “And he’s been yelling half the time. Would make the world's worst spy.”

“I’m a doctor, not a fucking wetnurse,” Law grumbled.

“Careful, all that frowning is going to give you wrinkles,” Nami said with a teasing smile. "How
old are you anyways, Torao?"

Law resisted the urge to check his forehead. "28."

"You're young for a doctor, unless you got your licence after the outbreak " Robin said. It was a
statement, not a question, but the quizzical looks he got from the others made him feel compelled
to answer.

"I got my licence at 21," Law said. "Which is very young, yes."

"Ooh, Torao was a prodiny!" Luffy exclaimed, then furrowed his brow. “Prodigny?”

“Prodigy?” Usopp suggested helpfully.

Law huffed. "Hardly. I was just very motivated and very stubborn," he said. "My parents were
doctors, and I started stealing their journals basically as soon as I could read."

"You were like Chopper," Luffy laughed.

"Pretty much, but Chopper is far nicer than I've ever been," Law smirked.

"That doesn't make me happy," Chopper said, a blush on his far too happy-looking face.

Usopp just gave Law a look. “See, it’s statements like that that makes you hard to trust,” he said.
“What do you even mean by claiming you’re not nice? And what kind of doctor has “death”
tattooed on his knuckles?”

“I think it’s cool,” Luffy grinned. “Do you have other ones?”

“I do. Several,” Law said, pausing as all eyes were on him. “What? I’m not going to strip for you
guys.”

“Such a shame,” Robin said mildly, and Law wasn't sure if she was joking or not.

“You’re just not going to explain it, then?” Usopp asked, flinching as Law glared at him.

“There’s nothing to explain. It’s just a tattoo,” Law sighed. “We wore gloves in the hospital
anyways.”

It was mostly a lie, he had his own reasons for the tattoo, but he wasn't about to share his life’s
story. Besides, it sounded better than “fuck off, I’m not telling you shit”.

They travelled a little longer the next day, following Nami’s directions. They eventually stopped at
what looked like an abandoned summer camp, a big gathering house and several small cabins by a
lake. A faded poster from five years ago called it the Supernova Summer Camp. Aimed at pre-
teens, it seemed.

"We will check the house first, then the cabins," Zoro said. "Stay with Luffy, Torao."

"Don't tell me what to do," Law muttered, but in truth he had nothing against that plan. He was sore
and his ass hurt from biking all day, and even if he wasn't, he would rather avoid fighting pre-teen
undead if he could.

Nami seemed to agree, and stayed back with them.

"It's not a bad setup, as far as I can see," she said, looking over the camp. "You could fit a lot of
people here, if you made it a base."

"Lake's too small for much fish, and the ground is rocky," Law commented. "You'd have an easier
time with actual farmland."

"It's too hard to defend, too," Luffy added. "But we could make it work."

Nami shook her head. "No, we'll keep looking."

"You're searching for a permanent base?" Law asked.

"It's the end goal, yes," Nami nodded. "After five years, decent supplies are getting harder to find.
Scavenging was never a long term solution. "

Luffy smiled. "It's an adventure. We're looking for the perfect place," he said. "Someplace we can
make ours , not the way the QZs do it."

It was an admirable goal, Law supposed. The QZ governments certainly weren't known to be
humanitarian or democratic. Things had been getting better, at least in SB QZ, but there were many
problems left to solve.

"Just for the ten of you?" Law asked.

"No, it wouldn't be so hard if it was just us," Nami said. "We have met so many people over the
years who couldn't travel with us the way we do, but would join us if we had a permanent place to
stay."

Law had the feeling she was talking about someone specific, but it wasn't his place to ask.

“You and your crew should join us, too,” Luffy said, and Law smiled in amusement.

“How about you find this place first, and then I’ll consider it.”

Luffy grinned like the matter was settled, and Law vaguely wondered if he had just made a
mistake. Nami just clapped his shoulder in sympathy.

Eventually the others came back, some with black stains on their clothes.

“It’s all clear now,” Zoro said. “The house had some useful supplies, but it was occupied so we are
not staying there. Most of the cabins were free.”

“We left the doors open to five of them to freshen up the air, but they look fine,” Sanji said. “Looks
like we’re sleeping in actual beds tonight, people! Anyone want to share?”

He was looking at Nami and Robin, but they seemed to already be taking their bikes away to a
cabin. Sanji pouted at being ignored, but it seemed more like banter than actual hurt feelings.

“Sucks to be you,” Zoro said with a laugh. “Chopper, you in?”

“I hate you,” Sanji told Zoro, even as Chopper agreed. The others paired off quickly, with Brook,
Franky and Sanji sharing one cabin, leaving Law with Luffy.
“I’m starting to think they are pawning you off on me on purpose,” Law said as they entered the
cabin. Luffy laughed at him.

“It’s fine, isn’t it?” he said. “I usually share with Zoro, but since you’re my doctor now, this makes
sense.”

“I suppose,” Law agreed. “My back will appreciate sleeping on a bed, at least.”

“You sound like an old man,” Luffy laughed at him.

“Shut it, you brat,” Law shot back, causing Luffy to laugh even harder.

Law woke up with a start, only to see Luffy hovering above him, hand on his shoulder.

“What are you doing?”

Luffy just frowned.“You were screaming in your sleep.”

Ah. That explained it. That was another reason Law preferred to live alone.

“Sorry,” he said. “Did I wake you?”

“Yeah, but it’s fine,” Luffy shrugged. "Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine," Law muttered.

"Alright," Luffy said simply, and returned to the bed on the other side of the room.

"...aren't you going to ask?" Law said, a little surprised, but Luffy just shook his head.

"Nah, everyone has nightmares," he said. "If you want to talk about it you can, but I don't need to
know."

Law considered that. "Unexpectedly mature of you."

"I'm not a kid," Luffy pouted.

"No, I suppose you're not," Law agreed. "You can go back to sleep. Thanks for waking me."

Luffy gave him a grin. "You keep telling me to sleep."

"Because you should. It's good for your healing."

"Are you going to sleep?"

Law made a face. "I won't be able to for a bit," he admitted. Back in the day he would have just
called it a night and made it through the day on caffeine. In the QZs he did the same, provided he
had access to coffee. He tended to go through his rationed supply very quickly.

"Then let's stay up!" Luffy said enthusiastically. "It will be like a sleepover."

"A sleepover," Law repeated, deadpan.

"Well, it's a summer camp! It's what you're supposed to do," Luffy grinned. "I think. I never went
to any."

"Me neither," Law said. "From what I gathered from movies it was less about sleepovers and more
about sneaking off to have sex or get brutally murdered. Usually both."

There was pause.

"And we're not doing that," Law added, just in case it wasn't clear.

Luffy laughed. "I wouldn't let you get murdered, Torao."

“Maybe I’m the secret murderer,” Law joked.

“A murderer wouldn’t have worked so hard to keep me alive,” Luffy grinned.

“Maybe it was just an excuse to poke around in your insides,” Law said, laughing when Luffy
made a face at him, though it quickly turned back into a smile.

“You have a nice laugh, Torao. You should laugh more,” Luffy said, like that was a normal thing
to say. Law felt his face heat up.

“Shut it,” he muttered.

“Have you killed anyone?” Luffy asked out of the blue. Or perhaps not that unexpected, given their
previous conversation.

“Yes,” Law said honestly. “I doubt there are many people left who have no blood on their hands at
all.”

Law’s hands had been bloody far longer than that, but he didn’t want to talk about it. He really was
the secret murderer, he supposed. For a moment, he could hear Doflamingo laughing in the back of
his mind.

“I wouldn’t have thought you needed to, as a doctor in a QZ,” Luffy said.

Law snorted. “Who do you think euthanizes everyone who’s been infected before they turn?” he
said, watching Luffy’s eyes widen in understanding. “It’s been happening less and less,
thankfully.”

“Franky got bit once,” Luffy said quietly. “He didn’t turn.”

“The missing arm?” Law asked, and Luffy nodded. “If you can amputate quick enough there is a
chance, yes, but it goes from about 90 percent to 30 in the first five minutes. I’ve done my fair
share, but by the time they get to me it’s mostly too late.”

“He cut it off himself,” Luffy said. “He was sick for a week, but he got better.”

“He is lucky he didn’t die from infection. The regular kind,” Law said. “Which is still a danger for
you, by the way.”

“I’ll be fine. I have you and Chopper taking care of me,” Luffy grinned.

“We’re doing what we can, but we can’t guarantee anything.,” Law pointed out. “Even in a sterile
hospital environment there is a risk.”
“No point worrying about it. It will happen or it won’t,” Luffy said with a big yawn, stretching out
a bit, before crumpling back into a ball. “Ow. I forgot I shouldn’t do that.”

“Quick pain or lasting?”

“It’s fine now,” Luffy said. “It always hurts a bit but I can kinda forget about it.”

“Good,” Law nodded. “And how is-”

“No,” Luffy said, one finger up. “No doctoring right now. We’re having a sleepover.”

Law huffed. “Are you still on that?”

“Well, we haven’t gone back to sleep yet, so it’s still going.”

“So what do you want to do?” Law asked. “Should we braid each other’s hair and talk about cute
boys?”

“I don’t think either of us has enough hair for a braid, but you can try if you want.”

“It was a joke, Straw Hat,” Law sighed.

“So you don’t want to talk about boys.”

“I genuinely cannot tell if you are fucking with me,” Law sighed. “But no. The only boys we both
know are your friends, and that would just be weird.”

“I don’t know, I think most of them are pretty enough,” Luffy said. “Though I’ve been told I'm not
great at determining that.”

“If you think someone’s attractive, that’s your opinion,” Law said. “It’s not really the kind of thing
you can be wrong about.”

“People have said I’m wrong before,” Luffy said. “Oh! But I told Nami I think you are very pretty
and she agreed.”

Law stared at him. His face heat up again. Who just says shit like that?

“If you’re trying to fuck me, stop it,” Law gumbled. “Your wounds can't take it.”

If not for that, Law might have considered it. It had been a while, and “you’re very pretty” was
definitely a better line than anything Eustass had spewed out the last time they got drunk together,
and they had still ended up in bed.

Luffy laughed. “Nah, I’m just saying. I like your face.”

Said face felt like it was going to melt off with how hot it was. “Thanks, I guess,” Law muttered.
He let himself fall down on the bed.

“You going to try and sleep again?” Luffy asked.

“Might as well,” Law said. All the insanity had distracted him from his nightmares at least.

“Alright, but when I’m better we need to have another sleepover,” Luffy said. “I just remembered
the best part of them.”
“Which is?”

“Pillow fights!”

Law groaned. “Just go to sleep.”

They stayed another day at the summer camp, to recuperate and relax. Law would have preferred
to carry on, he was eager to get back to SB QZ as soon as possible, but he knew he had a better
chance if he stayed with the group. Besides, it had already been two weeks since the attack on the
caravan. Another day or two was not going to make a difference.

The Straw Hats were treating it like a vacation, lounging around by the lake, swimming, gathering
firewood for a bonfire in the evening. Looking at the lake, he had to admit a swim sounded nice.
His opportunities to wash himself had been severely limited since they left the cabin.

Law got undressed down to his underwear and joined the others in the lake. Some of them, like
Franky, clearly had no concerns for modesty, but most of them were in their underwear as well.

Franky gave a low whistle as Law walked into the water. “Damn, check out the ink on you!”

Law was about to respond when he noticed Franky was still wearing his prosthetic, held by straps
to his elbow.

“Should you be getting that wet?” he asked instead.

“Relax, doc, it’s fine,” Franky laughed. “It’s durable, and I need it to win the water war.”

Law blinked. “The what?”

A wave cascaded over both of them. On the other side was Jinbe, threading water and looking
sheepish.

“Apologies, Torao. I was aiming for Franky.”

“He cheats. I don’t know how, but he cheats,” Franky told Law with a grin, then started splashing
in Jinbe’s general direction. “WATER WAR!”

Law watched in silence for a moment, remembering both of them were at least ten years older than
him. There was a chuckle behind him, and Law turned to see Robin sitting in the shallows,
watching the whole thing with amusement.

“Not joining the war, Torao?” she asked. Her eyes wandered over him unabashedly, and he felt a
sudden urge to hide. Not that he had anything to be ashamed of, but her gaze was piercing,
somehow.

“I could ask you the same,” he said, opting to sit down by her instead.

“I will join if someone asks for my help,” Robin smiled. “Who are you rooting for?”

“I just hope no one drowns,” Law said. “I refuse to give CPR to any of them.”
Robin laughed. “It would be unfortunate if a monster rose from the mud on the bottom of the lake,
to attack those who disturbed its peace.”

Law blinked, then laughed despite himself. “It would, wouldn’t it?” he grinned. “Especially if it
dragged them down to the bottom of the lake.”

Robin smiled at him.

“Um, guys. I’ve got can’t-go-in-the-water disease,” Usopps said. He, Nami and Chopper had been
on their way into the lake, but were now standing at the edge, looking suspiciously at it. Brook had
been with them, but was wadinging into the water, paying no heed to monsters.

“Why are you both like this?” Nami asked with a sigh, looking in Law and Robin’s direction. Law
just shrugged.

“There’s not…actually a monster in there, is there?” Chopper asked, looking over the lake.

“Well, Franky is in there, but-,” Law started to joke, then stopped himself. “Hang on. I thought
Luffy was with you guys?”

“He was going to hang with Sanji while he cooked,” Chopper said.

“Sanji and Zoro just joined the water war,” Law said, gesturing towards the small geyser of water
being splashed around further down the lake. He sighed, then got up from the water. “I’ll go look
for him.”

“I told him not to get his bandages wet,” Chopper said. “Maybe he went back to the cabin.”

He hadn’t. Law found him after just a minute or two walking around the lake, coming out of what
Law presumed was a boat shed, carrying a fishing pole. He looked up as Law approached,
apparently hesitating for a moment before a smile filled his face.

“Torao!” Luffy exclaimed. “I almost didn’t recognise you all naked.”

“I’m not naked,” Law said, though in wet underwear, he supposed he might as well be. “Are you
going fishing?”

“Well, Chopper said you had forbidden me from going swimming,” Luffy said, with a face that
said he disapproved.

“You can go swimming after you heal up,” Law said.

“I can’t actually swim at all,” Luffy said, looking over at Law. “I guess you know how.”

“I’m a shit swimmer,” Law admitted. “But I can keep myself alive, at least.”

“Hmm,” Luffy glanced at him.

“What?”

“I like your tattoos,” Luffy grinned. “Especially this one.” He poked Law in the chest, at the
outline of the biggest heart. “I always wanted one, but Ace said I couldn’t have any until I was
sixteen, and then the Outbreak happened.”

“Ace?” Law asked.

“My older brother,” Luffy said. “I haven't seen him in a few years now. He lives at a power plant
down south with his crew.”

“Isn’t that the sort of thing you guys were looking to do?” Law asked.

“Yeah, but old man Whitebeard is the leader there,” Luffy said. “We don’t want anyone to be in
charge, you know?”

“I was under the impression you were in charge.”

“Yeah, while we’re adventuring, but I’m not going to become a- a governor or something. That
would be boring,” Luffy said. “Nami, Jinbe and Robin have some form of “democratic leadership
model” all worked out anyway. It will be fine.”

Well, if Law had to trust any of them with politics, he supposed it would be those three.
Increasingly splashy water war notwithstanding.

Rather than subject himself to death by water, Law followed Luffy to a few large rocks by the
shore going into the lake. Luffy sat down to fish, and Law stretched out beside him, enjoying
sunlight in his face and the warm rock at his back. It felt like the Outbreak never happened, and he
was on a trip with his roommates, not-so-forcibly dragged along to some beach.

He had tried to keep his distance from people at first, with the ever looming threat of Doflamingo
over his head, and a natural aversion to social interaction, but Shachi and Penguin never accepted
that, and Law had never been able to say no to Bepo. After years of being roommates, and then
surviving the Outbreak together, Law would go as far as to call them his family. Not that he would
admit it out loud.

He missed them.

Law waved the thoughts away before he could get too sentimental, and opened his eyes to find
Luffy looking at him.

“What?”

“I was just wondering,” Luffy said, head tilted to the side. “Are the hearts because you’re a
doctor?”

Law looked down at his chest where Luffy was pointing.

“Sort of. Not exactly,” Law said. “It’s- I lost someone. It’s a reminder.”

“Oh. I’m sorry,” Luffy said. It wasn’t the “sorry I brought up an uncomfortable topic”-sorry, but
rather a very sincere one. Law wasn’t sure how to feel about it.

“It was a long time ago,” he finally settled on, and pushed himself up on his elbows. “Nothing
biting?”

“Not yet, but it will,” Luffy said enthusiastically. “I found the biggest worm, so I’m gonna catch
something for sure.”

“Just one?”

“Yeah, fishing gets boring after a while,” Luffy laughed. “But just you wait! I will catch one!”

Law couldn’t help but smile at his confidence.

About a week after they left the cabin, they finally reached their destination. The walls of SB QZ
were rising in the distance, in all their dreary grayness. Law felt a pang in his chest. He was almost
there. After over a year away, he was almost back. He wondered if his friends had missed him.
Well, he knew for a fact Bepo, Shachi and Penguin had, he had radioed them during the past year,
but what about the others? He would find out, he supposed.

Looking around him, Law found he was the only one happy to see the QZ.

“They really make them as unappealing as possible, don’t they?” Nami said, nose wrinkled.

“It was built shortly after the outbreak. Aesthetics wasn’t really a priority,” Law pointed out, but he
couldn’t really argue with her. For a place he considered “home”, it sure was ugly.

The wall was surrounded by about a hundred meters of open space followed by a wire fence, to
make it as defensible as possible.The only opening in the fence was guarded by two soldiers,
armed with shotguns and radios.

“Keep your hands visible,” Law told the group as they approached. Things should be fine, but he
didn’t recognize these two, and approaching people with guns would never stop being dangerous.

“Don’t worry, we’ve done this before,” Robin said reassuringly.

“Stop right there!” one of the guards shouted as they approached. “Identify yourselves.”

“I’m Trafalgar Law. I used to be a doctor here, but I’ve been away for a year,” Law said. “These
are friends of mine.”

“Are any of you injured?”

“One of us is recovering from gunshot wounds from about two weeks back,” Law said. “No
infected.”

The guard gestured for them to wait while he talked in the radio.

“You said Trafalgar Law?”

“Yes.”

“Clearance code?”

“It’s from a year ago, but 111236,” Law answered.

“You can go on,” the guard said after confirming it. “Because of the manner of your arrival, you
will all need a physical examination, but after that, welcome home!”

The examination went fine, the nurse even commended him for gaining weight, specifically
muscle, since the last time she saw him. He hadn’t really thought about it, but looking at himself in
the mirror, he supposed she was right.

The Straw Hats were dealing with bureaucracy when Law joined them after the examination. They
had a fair amount of “Goods to Declare”, but Nami seemed to be handling the negotiations alone.

Eventually, they were allowed to exit the immigration offices and enter the quarantine zone proper.

“Ah, civilisation,” Nami said. “Or something akin to it. You have running water here, right? I
could kill for a shower.”

“The hot water is pretty limited,” Law warned her. “But it should be-”

“Law!”

Law barely had time to turn around before he found himself with 200 pounds of crying male in his
arms. Bepo was actually hugging him with both feet and arms, and it was all Law could do to
remain standing.

“I’ve missed you too, Bepo,” he said.

*“We heard you were dead ,” Bepo cried, and Law’s heart broke a little.

“He will be if you don’t stop crushing him,” Law heard Shachi’s voice say. Bepo withdrew with a
“Sorry”, and Law was immediately getting crushed again, this time in between Shachi and
Penguin.

“I knew you weren’t dead, you bastard! ” Shachi cried.

“Where have you been?” Penguin asked at the same time. “We got news that the caravan was
attacked!”

“If you three will just let me breathe for five seconds, I’ll explain,” Law said, but he was unable to
keep the fondness out of his voice. Gods, he had missed these three idiots. His three idiots.

He heard a laugh behind him, and turned around to see the Straw Hats grinning at him, though
some, like Robin, at least had the decency to be subtle about it. Luffy on the other hand looked
positively giddy.

“Looks like you are loved, Torao,” he said, grinning so wide his mouth should have gotten stuck
that way.

“Hm? Who are these guys?” Penguin asked.

“A bunch of morons who helped me on the road,” Law sighed. “They’ll be staying here for the
winter.”

“Did you vouch for them?” Bepo asked, and Law nodded.

“Plus they had goods to trade,” he said. “They will be staying with me until they can find places of
their own. Hopefully soon.”

“Don’t worry, Torao,” Nami said sweetly. “If this QZ is anything like the others it won’t be more
than a night or two.”

Law ignored Shachi and Penguins subsequent flirtings with Nami and Robin, like they hadn't been
sharing a bed for four years already. Instead, he gestured for the Straw Hats to follow him, as he
started heading towards the apartments.

“Has anything changed since last time?”

“Your houseplants died. Sorry,” Bepo said. “The cactus is still alive though.”

“You kept houseplants?” Luffy asked, like the concept was foreign to him.

“Just medicinal or spices,” Law said. “And I mostly meant in the QZ. Anything new?”

“They relaxed the curfew,” Shachi said. “It’s midnight to 6 am now.”

Luffy made a face, but he didn’t comment. Law supposed it wasn't worth mentioning that when
they had first arrived here over four years ago, curfew had been from 8 pm to 8am.

“I vouched for you, so don’t start trouble,” he said instead.

“What are they going to do, fire you?” Zoro asked with a grin. Law supposed that was a fair point,
but-

“Don’t push it. They have done fine without me for over a year.”

“Well…” Bepo started, but silenced when Law glared at him. “Sorry.”

Law immediately felt bad, and reached out to throw an arm around Bepo’s shoulders as they
walked. It was an awkward position, with Bepo being bigger and wider than him, but it always
cheered Bepo up. Really, he was like a cuddly bear.

Law’s apartment was much like he had left it, sans a few plants. It was small, one bedroom, one
living room/kitchen, one bathroom. Not great for fitting eleven people into, but the cabin had been
smaller. Though, looking around, he suspected it might actually be fourteen people. Bepo, Shachi
and Penguin didn’t seem to want to let him out of their sight anytime soon.

“Perhaps I should stay with you tonight instead,” he told Bepo. “This looks like it will be a mess.”

To his surprise, Bepo hesitated. “Um, I would love to, but, sorry…”

Law frowned, looking at Shachi instead. “Explain.”

“Bepo lost his apartment. He is staying with us right now,” Shachi said.

“Lost his apartment? But how…” he trailed off. “Who did you give it to?”

“A family from the south. They had two little kids and the wife was pregnant,” Bepo said.

Law looked over at Penguin. “Was it legit?”

“Seems so, the family is still living there,” he said. “But they were far down on the priority list.”

Law sighed, patting Bepo’s head. “You are allowed to have good things. Stop letting other people
take them.”

“Sorry,” Bepo said.

“We’ve been talking around, and we have a few good leads on apartments,” Shachi said. “But I
guess your new friends also need those.”

“They are just staying for the winter, so it would be temporary,” Law said. “If you’re okay to stay
with Shachi and Penguin for now.”

“Sure.”

“Why didn’t you just stay here?” Law asked. “I wouldn’t have minded.”

“It’s your space,” Bepo shook his head. “And then we thought you might be dead, so it just felt…”
He looked like he was going to cry again.

“I’m fine,” Law told him reassuringly.

“What happened? We heard the caravan got attacked by raiders?”

“It did. I managed to get away,” Law said. “Then after a week I ran into Luffy and his gang, and
we’ve travelled together since.”

“He plucked three bullets out of my chest,” Luffy announced happily.

This crew turned to him, wide eyed, and Law sighed. “Speaking of, I need to bring you in for a
proper check up at the clinic soon.”

“Why? I’m fine,” Luffy said. “The lady at the gate said so.”

“She was checking for bites, not much else,” Law pointed out. “And yes, you’re probably fine. I
just want to make sure you’re not going to drop dead from sepsis in the near future.”

“Sepsis?” Luffy asked.

“Blood poisoning due to infection,” Chopper said. He was practically hiding behind Luffy. “Do
you guys really have a clinic?”

“This is Chopper, he’s an aspiring med student,” Law said. “If we have room, we should let him
train with us in the clinic.”

Chopper looked starry-eyed at the suggestion.

“Sure,” Shachi shrugged. “We always need more hands. But I’m warning you kid, it’s a dirty job.”

“I can handle it,” Chopper said. “When can I start? Tomorrow?”

“Why not? We need to get Law up to speed again anyway, so you can join the tour,” Penguin said,
then turned back to Law. “Is this what you were like at that age?”

“No, I was a fucking menance,” Law said truthfully.

“You’re still a fucking menance,” Shachi said, and Law laughed.

It felt so good being home.

True to their word, the Straw Hats moved out only a few days later, leaving Law’s apartment
blissfully silent and strangely empty. He had gotten used to their rowdy company, he supposed,
and having his own space again felt…strange.

Not that they had disappeared from his life or anything. He ran into a few of them daily, in random
places around the QZ, or visiting Chopper at the clinic. The kid was fitting in well and learning
fast. Law’s team already wanted to keep him.

For Law, returning meant work, work and more work. The clinic had been fine in his absence, as
he predicted, but just fine. With their most experienced member back, they could finally start
thriving again. And Law was thriving too, working surgeries and amputations and illnesses. He
came home exhausted every night, but in a good way.

Still, his friends at the QZ had managed to organise a “Welcome home”-party for him a few days
after his return. He really had been missed, he realised. And mourned. Even fucking Eustass
looked happy to see him.

The Straw Hats had been invited, and fit in with his friends like they had always been there. Luffy
and Eustass developed something of a strange rivalry, that Law absolutely refused to get dragged
into, yet somehow ended up in anyways. He blamed the not-at-all-smuggled alcohol.

Afterwards, things became routine. Go to work, occasionally hang out with new or old friends,
come home, go to sleep. He enjoyed it, he realised. His life was far more social now than it had
ever been before the Outbreak, and Law found he didn’t mind. Especially since he had his own
apartment to head home to at the end of the day.

On one such day, he had spent some hours after work hanging with Luffy, Zoro and Sanji at their
apartment. Sanji had cooked dinner, a simple but tasty dish, and he had to physically fight Luffy
off when he tried stealing from Law’s plate. Luffy’s wounds were fully healed, so Law could no
longer doctor-stop him.

Not that it had ever really worked anyways.

“Hey, Torao,” Luffy grinned after dinner. “You still owe me that sleepover.”

Law blinked. “I owe you what now?”

“The sleepover! Remember?” Luffy said. “You promised me we would have a proper one once my
wounds healed.”

It took Law a moment to remember. “Right. I did say that.”

Sanji and Zoro just looked at him in disbelief.

“A sleepover?” Sanji asked. “An adult sleepover?”

“Well, yes, we’re both adults,” Luffy said, but Law just shrugged. Since it was Luffy, he had no
idea what it meant, if he was honest. But he was curious to find out.

“Tomorrow night work for you?” he asked, and Luffy grinned enthusiastically and slung an arm
around Law’s shoulders.

“I’ll bring snacks. And pillows!”

“Pillows?” Sanji asked. He looked vaguely like he was going to have an aneurysm.
“For the pillow fights,” Law nodded, smirking at Sanji’s distress. Zoro on the other hand seemed
completely fine with it.

The rest of the evening passed in a similar manner, with Luffy plastered to Law’s side. Law found
he didn’t mind. It was less irritating now, when Law didn’t have to worry too much about hurting
him, and could just elbow him away when he needed space.

He went home late, though still with time to spare for the curfew. Law smiled to himself as he
entered his apartment, head still full of Luffy’s antics. He hung his hat by the door, then moved
through the living room, planning to do some reading before bed.

It took him a moment to realise something was wrong. That the shape in front of the window was
not furniture, but a man. A very tall man.

His heart stopped.

“Hello, Law, it’s been a long time,” Doflamingo said. Law turned around, running towards the
door in blind panic, but found it blocked by two men he didn’t recognize.

“Where are you going, Law? Aren’t you happy to see me?” Doflamingo sing-songed. “After all the
trouble I went through to find you.”

“What do you-” Law said, then it hit him. “The raiders that attacked the caravan. That was you?”

Doflamingo laughed. “You always were a clever boy.”

“What do you want?” Law asked.

“Can’t you figure that out?”

“No,” Law said. “ I have nothing that would make it worth all the trouble.”

“Don’t think so little of yourself,” Doflamingo said. “You were always very valuable to me, but
especially now.”

“Why?” Law asked.

“I recently happened to gain control of my own little kingdom,” Doflamingo said. “Unfortunately,
I’m missing some key figures in my administration.”

“You killed all the doctors in the QZ you took over,” Law surmised. “But I’m sure you could find
someone willing.”

“I was hoping you would join me. It would make it all much more pleasant.”

Law sensed the guys behind him approach and made an attempt to break through them towards the
door. It was futile, and he found himself pressed down on his knees in front of Doflamingo.

“More pleasant for you, that is,” Doflamingo cackled. “Sweet dreams, Law. I’ll see you at home.”

He felt a sharp prick in his arm, and caught a glimpse of a syringe before everything went black.
Law woke up in an unfamiliar bed. He blinked and sat up, looking around. His vision stayed blurry
longer than he would have liked, and his head was heavy and felt full of fog. Aftereffects of the
drug, most likely. Doflamingo’s drug.

He didn’t panic, which more than anything proved that the sedatives were still in his system.
Instead, he got up from the bed and looked around. He was in a small room, containing nothing but
a bed, a closet, a table and a few chairs. There were two doors, one leading to a bathroom with a
toilet and shower, the other was locked. Heading outside, probably. Law didn’t have the strength to
force it open.

He was dressed in a silk pyjamas that definitely wasn’t his own, and when he opened the closet, he
found an assortment of well made, high quality clothes. A classic, simple style. Utterly boring.

Law slammed the door shut.

The windows gave him a view over a messy QZ, but where the old government logos had been
painted over by Doflamingo’s smiling symbol, mocking Law from every building. He was at least
five stories up, and the windows didn’t open, except for one small one, and he could barely fit his
hand through that.

Law sighed. No escape. He had expected as much, but that didn’t make it less crushing.

With nothing else to do, Law got dressed, then lay back down on the bed, waiting for the rest of
the drug’s effects to subside.

Some time later he heard noise outside the door, and cautiously sat up in bed to await his fate.

Doflamingo entered, with a large, chilling smile on his face.

“Finally! You’re awake,” Doflamingo said. “Good. I was starting to think we had the wrong
dosage.”

“What do you want?” Law said. What point was there in meaningless demands or pleasantries?
Dolfamingo wouldn’t let him go, and Law wasn’t happy to be there. No use in pretending
otherwise.

“Straight to the point, as always. You haven’t changed at all, Law,” Doflamingo cackled. “But I
told you what I wanted, did you forget?”

“A doctor,” Law said. “Are you sick?”

“Me? No, of course not,” Doflamingo said. “But what kind of QZ doesn’t have a doctor?”

“Should have thought of that before you killed them,” Law pointed out. Doflamingo laughed, and
Law found himself slammed against the wall, with enough force to knock the air out of him.
Doflamingo invaded his space, and Law could see his own reflection in Doflamingo’s sunglasses.
He looked like a scared child.

Doflamingo grinned. “You still have your sharp tongue, I see,” he said, uncomfortably close to
Law’s face. “But don’t test me.”

“Why exactly am I here? What do you want me to do?” Law asked. Doflamingo kept him in place
for a few more moments, fingers digging painfully into his shoulder, before finally letting him go.

“Well, if you feel up for it, I could show you your new office,” Doflamingo said. “I’m sure there
are already patient’s lining up to meet their new doctor.”

“Why would there already be…” Law trailed off. Of course there fucking was. Extra pressure on
Law to do as he was told. The “patients” were probably just random people he had rounded up for
this exact purpose, and would likely be hurt if Law refused. If they hadn’t been already, just to give
him some work.

He sighed. “I’m up for it.”

“Good choice,” Doflamingo said, leading Law out of the room with an arm around his shoulder.
Four guards wordlessly fell into step around them as they walked.

The “clinic” as Doflamingo had called it, was just across the street, in a newly repurposed police
station. Doflamingo laughed when he saw Law’s look.

“I knew you would appreciate the irony, Law.”

“DR QZ should have already had a clinic,” Law said instead of acknowledging that. “Why not just
use that one?”

“We would have, but it got a little…torn up,” Doflamingo said, grinning towards him. “They were
hiding important people, you see.”

“How rude of them,” Law said distantly, hearing Doflamingo snicker beside him. He had removed
the arm over Law’s shoulder, but he was still walking close enough for his fucking feather coat to
occationally brush Law’s shoulder.

They walked past the line of (scared, ragged but thankfully not visibly injured) people and into the
clinic. As Law looked around his “office” space, he supposed it could have been worse. He had
access to most of his usual instruments, a laptop for patient files (though he would apparently have
to come up with a system himself) with no network access (he wasn’t sure if they even had a local
network), and an assistant/nurse who was definitely there to spy on him.

“This is Monet,” Doflamingo introduced her. “She will be here to assist you while seeing patients.
And if anyone gets rowdy, the guards are just outside the door.”

So, no escape. It was becoming a trend. Law gritted his teeth.

“Well, doctor Trafalgar?” Monet asked with a smile. “Ready to see your patients?”

He wanted to refuse, but… these people were innocent. And he was a doctor. And someone in that
line might legitimately need treatment. Law remembered how hard it was, to have doctors refuse to
treat him.

So he sighed, and got to work.

”Show the first one in.”

It took two days before Law saw Doflamingo again. Two days of hard work, trying to get the clinic
running smoothly with just him and his “assistant”. At least Monet has experience working in a lab,
so she wasn’t useless. Quite the opposite, actually, she took orders well and learned quickly. Under
different circumstances he would have been thankful for her help.

Setting up the clinic was a smoother process than it had been in PH QZ, partially because of
Monet, but mostly because Law had already done it before. He wondered if Doflamingo had taken
that into account, or if it was pure luck that he was very qualified for the role Doflamingo wanted
him to fill.

Still, it was a laborious process. Law was tired and grumpy, and not at all happy to see Doflamingo
sitting on his bed when the guards had led him back to his room and locked the door behind him.

Doflamingo on the other hand gave him a wide smile as soon as he saw him.

“I’ve been keeping an eye on your progress,” Doflamingo said, getting on his feet to approach
Law. “It’s nice to see you have settled into your role here.”

“Get lost,” Law growled. “I’m doing what you wanted, so I don’t want to see your face.”

“So clever, but you still don’t understand,” Doflamingo towered over him and Law found himself
backing into the wall. Doflamingo kept moving closer, and Law was trapped between him and the
wall. He made an attempt to move to the side, but Doflamingo stopped him with a hand on his
face, almost gently letting his fingers run down Law’s cheek towards his neck.

“You’re mine, Law.”

Law looked up at him, a panic rising as he realised the implication of that. “I don’t like the way he
looks at you,” Corazon had said a lifetime ago, when asked why he took Law away from his
brother. It had been one of many reasons, but the only one Law hadn’t understood, thirteen years
old and not having lost that particular thread of innocence yet.

He understood it now. Even with the sunglasses covering his eyes, Law didn’t like the way
Doflamingo was looking at him.

“Don’t,” he said, but it was a mistake. Doflamingo’s hand curled around his throat, squeezing
hard.

“Rosi tried to take you from me, but you were always mine, ” Doflamingo said, leaning into him
and Law couldn’t breathe. “It took me a while, but I found you again, all grown up.”

Black spots danced in front of Law’s eyes as he clawed at Doflamingo’s arm, trying to free himself,
but Doflamingo held on. “Then the world ended, but I knew you had survived. You were always a
survivor. Like me .”

Doflamingo turned them around, then gave him a push, sending Law crashing into the bed, but he
could finally breathe. Every breath hurt, and he barely had time to react before Doflamingo was on
him again.

“I made you what you are, Law,” Doflamingo said, pushing him down into the mattress. “You are
mine! Say it!”

Law spit in his face.

It was another mistake, he knew it, and he didn’t care. He was unsurprised when Doflamingo
laughed, even less when he punched him in the face, sending him crashing into the headboard of
the bed. There was a ringing in his ears and his vision got blurry, but at least the punch and the
following pain and dizziness made him less aware of everything that followed. He fought back, as
much as he could, but his movement’s were sluggish and distant, and Doflamingo had him pinned
down, completely at his mercy for any and all abuse and, even worse, endearments.

For a blessing, he passed out in the middle of it all.

Law was alone when he woke up.

The room was dark, and it hurt to move. It hurt to breathe. Everything just fucking hurt. His head
was killing him.

Law made an attempt to get up, and the world tilted, causing him to fall in a heap on the floor by
the bed. He stared down at his traitorous legs. Naked. Bruised.

Sticky.

A wave of nausea hit him. He didn’t make it to the bathroom, but just barely managed to grab a
nearby trash can to empty his stomach into. He puked until he had nothing left, and then continued
to try.

It took an eternity for the world to return. It wasn’t long enough.

Okay , he thought to himself, forcing his thoughts to clear. Don’t think about what happened. What
can you do right now? Make a plan. Follow it.

Step 1: Get to the bathroom. Get cleaned up.

Step 2: Check for injuries, open wounds or broken bones.

Step 3: Check for a concussion.

Step 4: Drink something.

Step 5: Put on clothes.

Step 6: Switch or get rid of the bedsheets.

Step 7: Go back to sleep.

Step 1 took the longest. He ran out of warm water long before he felt clean enough to stop, and
when he did stop, it was only to not risk hypothermia on top of everything else. At least he mostly
seemed bruised rather than injured, although he did have to wash away blood from places he didn’t
want to think about. Not much, thankfully. Should recover in a day or two. No stitches needed,
which probably meant Doflamingo had-

Don’t think about it.

The concussion test was inconclusive. If it was a concussion, it was mild, but Law would still order
a few days of rest if it was his patient. Head traumas were no joke, he could end up a vegetable if
he wasn’t careful not to let his brains get tossed around like that again. Thought, it might be
preferable, if-
Don’t fucking think about it!

The tap water was drinkable, so that would have to do for step 4. Law would have liked to brush
his teeth properly, but he was quickly running out of energy, and his head was pulsating with pain.
He basically just shoved some toothpaste in his mouth and rinsed it out again, to get rid of the
worst of the taste.

He finally made it out of the bathroom, only to see an orange glow starting to rise outside the
window. It was too fucking soon. Someone would likely come get him in an hour or two, at most.

Law took a deep breath. He had a plan. He still had steps left.

He found a shirt and some trousers. They felt warm but restrictive, uncomfortable in a way he had
never experienced before, but he forced himself to wear them.

If Doflamingo came by again, he wasn’t going to find Law naked.

Stop!

Last few steps. Law ripped the sheets off the bed without looking at them, sending them crumpled
to the floor. He didn’t have enough energy left to look for replacements, if there even were any in
the apartment. Instead he just fell down on the bed and closed his eyes.

He woke up what felt like five minutes later, by the sound of the door opening. Law looked up,
then scrambled to his feet as fast as he could. His entire body screamed in pain, but Law ignored it,
and swallowed down the nausea that threatened to surface again.

Doflamingo smiled as he approached. “Well, look who is awake!” he drawled, like nothing had
happened last night. Like the room wasn’t full of reminders. Like Law himself wasn’t one.

Law just glared at him.

“You fell asleep so early yesterday,” Doflamingo leered. “I thought we should catch up before
work.”

“No,” Law said.

“Oh? And why is that?”

“Because you gave me a fucking concussion,” Law spat. Doflamingo actually hesitated at that, like
he hadn’t expected it, but it only lasted a second.

“Poor Law,” Doflamingo said. “So fragile. Maybe we should both stay here today then, and I’ll
take care of you.”

Absolutely fucking not.

“I can work,” Law said. He shouldn’t, but it was better than the alternative. “But I’ll need time to
rest, enough sleep at night, and to avoid strenuous physical activity and risks of further head
trauma.”

Doflamingo actually looked amused. “Oh? How very convenient, Law.”

“You brought me here to be a doctor, so let me be a fucking doctor,” Law said, forcing his voice
steady. “What’s the point of bringing me here if you’re just going to ignore my diagnoses?”
Doflamingo was still. Law watched him as he considered Law’s words. He didn’t like being talked
back to, but Law always had, even as a child. And Doflamingo still liked him. Unfortunately.

Finally a smile spread on Doflamingo’s face. “Very well, Law,” he said. “You can have tonight to
rest your little head. I wouldn’t want to break my doctor so soon. I’ll come see you tomorrow
night.”

It wasn’t nearly enough, but it was better than Law had hoped for. “Fine.”

He flinched as Doflamingo stroked his cheek in a mockingly gentle manner before turning around
and walking out. As soon as the door closed behind him, Law’s legs gave out, leaving him
crumbling to the floor.

Monet took one look at him in the morning and immediately handed him some painkillers.

“You’re making this harder for yourself than it needs to be,” she said, and Law flipped her off
before swallowing three of them and called the first patient in.

It was a long, excruciating day. He was worse off than most of his patients, and many of them gave
him looks of concern, but no one dared comment. When it was finally over, Monet took pity on
him and let him bring a package of painkillers back to the apartment with him. It wasn’t enough to
kill him even if he tried, but it helped dull the headache that threatened to overwhelm him all day.

When he finally got back to the apartment he noticed someone had been in there, to clean up and
change the sheets. Law didn’t bother getting undressed before he stumbled to the bed and fell
asleep within minutes. He was roughly shaken awake the following morning by the guard that
usually took him to work.

He worked as long as he could, putting off the inevitable as much as he was able, but eventually
the guards threatened to just drag him back to the apartment by force, so Law reluctantly went with
them. Every step closer was heavier than the last, and the guards had to push him forward more
than once.

As he had expected, Doflamingo was waiting for him when he walked through the door, sitting by
the table with a drink in hand. The table was dressed for a fancy dinner for two, as if this was a
restaurant, not a jail cell masquerading as an apartment.

“You kept me waiting, Law” Doflamingo said, raising his glass in Law’s direction. Red wine. And
steak, judging by the smell. Law’s stomach lurched, in a way that made it hard to tell if he was
hungry or nauseous. Probably a bit of both.

“I’m trying to get the clinic running smoothly. It’s not that easy,” Law said. The guard pushed him
in Doflamingo’s direction, then left, but Law opted to stand by the table rather than sit down. Even
though the table was set for two.

“And here I thought you might be avoiding me,” Doflaming said.

“Like you would give me that choice.”

Doflamingo laughed. “You know me,” he said. “Sit down, Law. Your dinner is getting cold.”
Law thought about refusing, but what was the point, really? Did he really want to be manhandled
and force fed? Not with the lingering concussion, he definitely didn’t.

“I see taking over the QZ has afforded you some privileges,” Law said, nodding towards the steak.
It was already cut into smaller pieces, like it was being served to a child, and the only utensil was a
plastic fork. They didn’t dare give him an actual knife yet, it seemed.

“My family eats well,” Doflamingo said. “I thought I would let you have a taste. I suspect you
haven’t seen food like this since the Outbreak.”

Not presented like this, no, but Sanji had performed culinary miracles on the road. The memory of
his time with the Straw Hats hit hard, especially considering his current company. Did they miss
him, he wondered. Luffy had probably looked for him in SB QZ, but they wouldn’t have a clue
where he was. And even if they did…

Gods, Law hoped they wouldn’t come looking.

“Not to your taste, Law?” Doflamingo asked dangerously, and Law realised he had spaced out. Not
a good idea in front of this man.

“It brought back better times,” he said instead, forcing himself to take a bite. “It’s good.”

Doflamingo chuckled. “You really have no appreciation for the finer things in life, do you?”

“Does that surprise you?” Law asked. “I was the same as a child, wasn’t I?”

“True. Nose always stuck in a book, paying no heed to what you ate,” Doflamingo said. “You were
so cute back then. So small and angry at the world.”

I don’t like the way he looks at you.

“I grew up,” Law said simply.

“So you did,” Doflamingo grinned. “We found you, you know. As soon as you started working in
that hospital.”

Cold shivers ran down his spine, but he tried not to show it. “I worked there for over two years,”
Law said. “What were you waiting for?”

“An opportune time,” Doflamingo said dismissively, taking another sip of his wine. “You were
working so hard, I thought I’d let you get some more experience. But seriously, Law. You had no
life. Just work, work and more work.”

“That’s the reason I became a doctor so young,” Law pointed out.

“Indeed. My hardworking little Law,” Doflamingo said, having the audacity to sound proud . “But
no lovers longer than a night or two? No friends except your idiot roommates? It’s like you were
just waiting for me to come bring you back.”

“The thought had occurred to me,” Law bit. It wasn’t the only reason, he was a natural loner, but
he would be lying if he said part of the reason he kept people at arm's length was so Doflamingo
couldn’t use them against him if he ever found him again. Which he had, so Law supposed it
wasn’t just paranoia.

“As I recall, you wanted to be a surgeon,” Doflamingo said, like he was making normal dinner
conversation and hadn’t just admitted to spying on Law for years. Then again, that probably was
normal conversation for him.

“I did,” Law agreed testily. “And it has been part of my duties pretty much since the outbreak, so I
would say I achieved it.”

Doflamingo raised his eyebrows. “Even without the formal instructions for it?”

“I had started the path at the hospital, and you know as well as I do that I already knew the basics
when I was eleven years old,” Law said. “It’s the apocalypse. Someone with a bullet in his chest is
not going to ask for credentials.”

“That’s what you’ve been doing the last four years? Picking bullets out of idiots?” Doflamingo
asked, distaste in his voice. Like saving lives was beneath him.

“Not exactly,” Law said, suddenly remembering Luffy’s unyielding eyes the day they met. “I
thought you were keeping tabs on me.”

“I lost many family members during the outbreak,” Doflamingo said, having the gall to look
genuinely sad. “We weren’t in any position to look for missing ones until fairly recently. And I
admit, we found you by coincidence.” He smiled. “Or perhaps fate.”

Law tried to think how it could have happened, when it hit him. “You overheard me talking with
my crew over the radio.”

“Clever, as always,” Doflamingo said approvingly. “Imagine my excitement to hear you were alive,
and practically gift-wrapped for me in that small trading caravan.”

The trading caravan that had been decimated by raiders.

“Did you leave anyone alive?” Law asked.

Doflamingo snorted. “I had no use for them.”

Law gritted his teeth. “Of course.”

“Tell me, Law,” Dolamingo said, leaning forward at the table. “How did you get away?”

“Luck,” Law said honestly. “The noise drew undead to the place, and your raiders got distracted. I
told everyone else to scatter and hide, but…” he sighed. “I guess I was the only one who got
away.”

Doflamingo laughed. He sounded fucking delighted. “My little Law, you always had a gift for
survival.”

Law looked down at his half-eaten plate. A gift, or a curse?

Judging by Doflamingo’s smile, definitely the latter.

“Since you don’t look like you’re going to finish that,” Doflamingo said, getting on his feet. “How
about dessert?” By the way he leaned into Law’s space, he didn’t mean food.

“I’m still eating,” Law tried, but Doflamingo just chuckled.

“You’re stalling, Law,” he said, pushing Law’s plate away from him. “I already gave you
yesterday night, and my patience is running out.”
Law remained where he was, trying not to panic. “Why are you doing this?”

“Come now, Law. You’re no blushing virgin,” Doflaming laughed. “You know how this works.”

“You could easily get someone who is actually willing,” Law said. “Or is that the fun part for
you?”

“The fun part,” Doflamingo said, face uncomfortably close to Law’s, “is you , Law. Because
you’re mine .”

“Stop it,” Law said. “I can’t take another head trauma.”

Doflamingo chuckled dangerously, his hand caressing Law’s face. “Then, little Law, I suggest you
be a good boy and do as you’re told.”

Fuck it.

“I’ve never been good at taking orders.”

Doflamingo grinned, then Law flew backwards towards the bed, landing in a heap on the mattress.
Someone had changed the sheets again, he noticed, in the split second before Doflamingo was on
him. Law attempted to kick him in the groin, but missed, hitting a thigh instead. Probably still hurt,
at least, though Doflamingo just kept laughing as Law struggled beneath him.

“You can’t win, Law. You know you can’t,” he said, like it amused him. “I always get what I want,
one way or another.”

He was right, but hell if Law was going to make it easy for him. He tried rolling away, but
Doflamingo yanked him back. He tried hitting, biting, kicking, anything he could think of, but
Doflamingo took it in stride, laughing at his efforts. Eventually he seemed to tire of the games, and
got a hold of Law’s throat again, pinning him to the bed. There was only so much struggling he
could do when he couldn’t breathe. He still tried, though. He tried until black dots covered his
vision and his consciousness was slipping away.

He would have preferred it to slip away completely. Instead, he slowly returned, to find his hands
tied to the headboard and his clothes in the process of being ripped away. He tried to kick in
Doflamingo’s direction, but it was a weak, pathetic attempt. What strength remained to him was
focused on just breathing.

“Glad you’re awake,” Doflamingo laughed. “Let’s make a night to remember, shall we?”

Breathe , Law thought. Just concentrate on that. Nothing else matters.

There was nothing else he could do.

“Next!” Law called, massaging his throat. His voice was still rough, and it hurt to speak for long,
but this was better than staying at the apartment, just dreading the next time Doflamingo would
decide to visit. And he would, Law had no illusions about anything else. He had been there every
night for the last week.

The door opened, and a dark haired woman walked in, a small smile on her lips. Law blinked in
surprise as he recognised Nico Robin, then quickly schooled his features, forcing himself to remain
calm. He was under surveillance, after all.

“Good morning,” he said neutrally. “What is your name and what brings you here today?”

“Good morning, doctor,” she said, showing no signs of recognising him. “My name is Maria
Ivanova. I’ve been having these terrible chest pains lately, and my family are insisting I come here,
now that we finally have a doctor in town again.”

“Could be the heart,” Law said, “Please remove your coat so I can listen.”

He had no idea what to do. He had never been one for small talk with the patents, so it would look
incredibly suspicious if he started now. But how was he going to tell Robin to just get the hell out
of town as soon as she could without painting a target on her back?

“You’re newly arrived in town, right? Have you had time to take in any of the sights?” Robin asked
as she took her coat off and hung it up near the door.

“I’ve been so busy I haven’t seen more than this office and my apartment,” Law said, readying his
stethoscope and placing it above her heart. “Deep breaths.”

Her heart sounded normal. Almost too normal, considering the situation. “Your heart sounds fine,”
he said, withdrawing. “Have you been able to eat normally lately?”

“I sometimes forget, but my friends look out for me,” Robin said.

Law understood. He did. Our friends are here and want to help you. But how? Law was constantly
monitored, but even if he managed to escape, Doflamingo would just come after him again. He had
been ruthless even when there were laws to protect people, and now…

Law needed Robin and their friends to leave. To be safe.

He asked a few more questions regarding her, hopefully fake, chest pains, and did some other
simple tests. In the old world he would have told her to get blood tests and possibly prescribed
something, but his options were limited.

“I realise you may not have much of a choice, but try and decrease your intake of salty and greasy
foods,” he said.

“Should I come back if it gets worse?” Robin asked.

“I don’t think that will be necessary,” he said, as close to a “get out” as he dared to go. She gave
him a look, the first time her mask slipped, and it was one of understanding and sympathy.

Law felt hollow as he called the next patient in. She understood, at least. That didn’t mean the
others would.

There was a spider on his ceiling.

Law watched it build its web with detached fascination as Doflamingo pushed into him. Again.
And again. And again. He was the fly in Doflamingo’s web, he supposed.
He had stopped resisting about a week ago. It was futile, anyways. Even if he somehow managed
to win against the man, his guards would be on him in seconds. It would be worth it, if he could
get a killing blow, but so far he hadn’t found a single opportunity.

Law was patient. Eventually, Doflamingo’s guard would slip, and he would take advantage of it.
No matter how long it took. But for that, he needed his body functional. Another concussion would
not help.

Not that cooperating was guaranteed to keep him whole and healthy.

“Where is that fighting spirit, Law?” Doflamingo cooed, his face blocking Law’s spider-show.
“Did you get domesticated already?”

“What am I, a wild horse?” Law drawled. “If you’re trying to ride me, you’re doing it wrong.”

Doflamingo laughed. “ There you are.”

“Congratulations, you found me,” Law said. He could see his own face reflected in those fucking
shades Doflamingo insisted on wearing. Gods, he looked pathetic.

“I will always find you, Law. You’re mine ,” Doflamingo grinned, a hand on Law’s throat again.
“Say it.”

Law hesitated. It would be easy to lie, just to get out of whatever Doflamingo had planned. He
could just say it.

He felt like he would lose something important if he did.

Law kept silent, watching Doflamingo’s grin turn into a laugh as his grip around his neck
tightened and he pushed into Law again, hard.

“What are you trying to prove, you brat?” he said, breath warm and wet against Law’s face. “Or
who are you trying to prove it to?”

Another push.

“Is it Cora? That traitor tried to steal you away from me, but we both know it was only temporary.
We were always going to get you back.”

A cold rage rose up in him, but he couldn’t even retort. Doflamingo was cutting off his airflow
again. If he could just breathe…

“Or is it someone else? Those so-called friends of yours in SB QZ?” Doflamingo laughed. “They
were never family. They have stopped looking for you by now.”

Maybe he would have believed that, if he hadn’t seen Robin. If he hadn’t seen how happy his crew
were having him back, after already believing him lost once. It might be real this time though, if
Doflamingo didn’t let him get air soon.

“Or maybe you found someone out there who captured your heart?” Doflamingo said, amused, and
he finally loosened his grip, letting Law take a breath. “It was never yours to give away, brat. I
made you, and everything you are belongs to me. ”

Doflamingo shuddered above him, and Law looked up at the spider again, pretending he wasn’t
there even as sticky wetness painted his insides.
For a while, there was nothing but breathing, then Dolamingo finally pulled out of him. The wet
sound made Law want to puke.

“Oh, don’t be like that, little Law,” Doflamingo chuckled, still a bit out of breath. He leaned over
Law, giving him a lazy kiss on the mouth like they were actual lovers instead of… this. “You will
learn to love me soon enough.”

Fuck that.

Law didn’t say anything, just remained still as Doflamingo took what he wanted from him.
Eventually Dolfamingo rolled off him, stretching a bit before starting to get dressed.

“Well, I should get back to it,” he said. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Law. I have something special
planned.”

Law flipped him off.

Doflamingo just laughed as he finished getting dressed and headed outside. Law heard the door
lock behind him. He never stayed the night. It was a shame, really. Strangling him in his sleep
would have felt like justice.

Law remained where he was for a few moments, before gathering enough strength to get on his
feet. He felt mostly fine. He had become used to his ass and throat constantly hurting a bit, but
otherwise he was okay. Physically.

He made his way to the shower, cleaning himself as well as he could. He never actually felt clean,
but the warm water running out had become a timer for him to get out. As he was drying himself,
he thought he heard a thud on the other side of the wall.

Law exited the bathroom, a bit confused. There was a commotion outside the door, but when he
checked, the door was locked. As usual. Maybe the guards were arguing.

He started getting dressed, had just gotten into his trousers and was looking for a shirt when the
door blew open.

“TORAO!” Luffy shouted, foot still raised from having kicked the door in. He froze in the
doorway, looking at Law, who looked back, just as stunned.

There was a brief happy smile on Luffy’s face before it changed into an expression of rage. “Who
did that to you?”

Panic rose in his chest as he stared at Luffy. Luffy who was here . Luffy who was in danger.
Because of him.

“You should leave. Now!” Law said, but Luffy didn’t move. Why the fuck didnt he move?

“Robin said you would say that. We’re not leaving without you,” Luffy said, arms crossed.

“You don’t understand, Doflamingo isn’t just any other raider,” Law said, trying to make him
understand. “He will hunt you down and kill everyone you care about. Everyone I care about. You
need to leave. ”

“We understand,” Luffy said calmly. “ We’re not leaving without you. ”

Law hesitated.
“Torao, ” Luffy said. “Do you want to stay here?”

Law met his eyes, seeing that unflinching determination he had seen the first day they met. They
wouldn’t leave. Even if Law refused, they wouldn’t fucking leave. Doflamingo would catch them,
torture them and kill them. And Law would be right where he was, with their deaths on his
conscience.

“...let me get dressed,” Law finally said, and Luffy grinned, almost blindingly bright. At least this
way, they would have a chance. A snowball's chance in hell, but a chance nonetheless.

Law quickly threw on a shirt, coat and shoes, then followed Luffy out the door, quickly greeted by
Zoro and Sanji, and the sight of three of Doflamingo’s guards on the floor, unconscious or dead, he
didn’t know. He didn’t care.

“I hope you have an exit strategy,” Law said, looking at the carnage, and Zoro shrugged.

“Run fast?”

Well, they were all doomed. Despite himself, Law smiled.

Contrary to Zoro’s words, the Straw Hats clearly did have a plan, though Law got the feeling
neither Zoro nor Luffy really understood it. Instead they followed Sanji’s lead, through seemingly
random corridors and later alleyways. Strategic ones, where cameras didn’t exist or had been
blackened out, or where there weren’t that many guards, though Luffy and Zoro still had to take
care of a few.

Usopp and Robin joined them halfway.

“I left Law’s room on a loop, but we don’t have long until they notice you’re gone,” Usopp said.
He was very deliberately not looking at Law.

“I’m surprised they haven’t already,” Law said honestly, instead of processing that there had been a
camera in his room. He should have realised, but- No! There was no time. He could think of that
later.

“We provided a little distraction to keep people busy,” Robin said. “Nothing major, just a burst
sewer pipe.”

That would be enough, Law supposed. The Straw Hats had clearly had this plan in the works for a
while.

Robin gave Law a once-over. “Are you well enough to climb? We need to go through a smugglers’
tunnel to get out of here.”

“I can do it,” Law said. They had come this far, for him . He would be damned if he made their
escape more difficult.

“If he can’t, I will carry him,” Luffy said. “Let’s go.”

They met up with Franky at an abandoned apartment building towards the edge of the QZ, and he
led them inside and down the stairs to the cellars, where a mess of broken furniture covered the
entrance of a tunnel, leading down and under the walls.

“How did you guys find this?” Law asked quietly as they walked.

“I made some friends on the inside,” Robin said. “The smugglers haven’t dared to conduct much
business since Doflamingo took over, but they were pretty sure this tunnel was still secret. It leads
past the fence, but we still need to keep our head down once we exit.”

“Got it,” Law said.

The tunnel was long, dark and hadn’t been maintained well. There was debris littering the floor all
over, making it challenging to pass through, but Law was determined to make it. He was not about
to become a burden for the people risking their lives for him. He refused.

Jinbe was waiting by the exit of the tunnel. Law was out of breath and exhausted, and hurt like hell
in uncomfortable places. It wasn’t a surprise, he supposed. Doflamingo hadn’t really given him any
time to recover in between assaults.

Luffy gave him a worried look. “Are you okay, Torao?”

“I’ll be fine,” Law bit his teeth together.

“Good. We will need to move fast once we exit the tunnel,” Jinbe said. “You can hear the alarm
from here. The QZ has entered full lockdown, but they will be searching outside as well soon
enough.”

“Then let’s keep moving,” Law said. He would have to be able to. He was not going back there.
Not after coming this far.

They followed Jinbe out the tunnel, then quickly from cover to cover, keeping low but moving as
fast as possible. Law fell twice, but Luffy helped him up both times. Eventually, finally , they
reached the forest, and could walk normally for a bit.

Nami and the rest of the Straw Hats were waiting for them with their bikes.

“You made it!” she exclaimed, relieved, as Chopper hurried forward to give Law a hug. Law
couldn’t help but flinch at the sudden physical contact, even from such an innocent source.

“I’m sorry, are you injured?” Chopper asked, stepping back. “Do you need help? Medicine?”

“I’m fine, just bruised,” Law reassured him. “Thanks.” He looked up at the rest of them.

Luffy grinned, but Zoro looked serious. “You can thank us when you’re safely back in SB QZ.”

Law smiled, about to agree, when something hit him. His smile died on his face.

“I can’t go back to SB QZ,” Law said. It hurt to say, but it was true, wasn’t it?

“Why not?” Luffy asked. “Your crew is there. We could defend you.”

“Doflamingo will come after me again, and he won’t be subtle about it next time,” Law said.
“People will get caught in the crossfire.”

“We’re prepared for it.”

“Maybe you are,” Law said. “But what about all the innocent people there?”
If he was honest with himself, he was more concerned with his crew, and Luffy probably realised
that, but Law had a point, and they both knew it.

Law looked at Robin. “You talked to people at DR QZ,” he said. “You know what could happen to
SB.”

Robin’s face was grim, but she nodded. “He’s right. If Doflamingo decides to attack, it will be a
bloodbath.”

Sanji gave Law a doubtful look. “You really think he would risk all that just to get you back?”

“Before all this, I would have said no,” Law said. “But now… Yes, I think he would. He’s insane.”

Luffy nodded. “So we don’t go back to SB,“ he said, like it was settled. “What’s the plan?”

Law tried to think, but he was so tired. “I don’t know. I go somewhere else, and I need Doflamingo
to know that I’m going somewhere else.”

“We can leave enough traces to make it seem accidental,” Robin said. “And point them away from
SB QZ.”

“There used to be a town northeast of here,” Nami said. “We can make it there in a few hours, find
a place to hide for the night and discuss where we’re going.”

“You guys don’t have to come with me,” Law pointed out. “I’m grateful you got me out, but if you
come with me you’re painting a huge target on your backs.”

Zoro snorted. “Now where have I heard that before?”

The Straw Hats actually laughed at that. Law felt like he was missing something when Luffy threw
an arm around his shoulders.

“Let’s go,” he said. “You can ride with me.”

Law wordlessly let himself be led to the bikes as dawn was rising beyond the trees, wondering how
he had ended up with these people.

Wondering what he had done to deserve them.

They reached the outskirts of the village in the late afternoon. They stopped at a decently sized
house that looked mostly intact and undisturbed, and broke in through the back door. Law waited
outside with Chopper and Nami while the others broke in and checked it out.

Law was just about ready to drop. He had been holding on to Luffy for the entire ride, thankfully
not having to pedal himself, but the ride had been bumpy and he was sore and miserable. And so
fucking tired.

Soon enough Luffy bounced back outside.

“It’s clear, there wasn’t even anyone home,” he said happily. “It looks untouched.”
Curious, for a house so close to a QZ, but Law supposed they were well off-road, having gone
through forest instead. They led their bikes inside to not give their position away, then settled into
the house for the night.

Luffy was sharing a room with him, and Law was honestly relieved. Having someone else there
meant he hopefully wouldn’t see Doflamingo in every shadow.

Law lay down on the bed, wincing a bit. The day had been hard on him. Even if he hadn’t been
allowed to pedal himself, he had still spent an entire day on a bike, after enduring Doflamingo’s
affections for weeks. His body was screaming for rest. And painkillers, but he didn’t have access to
those. Unless…

“Could you check the bathroom for any medicine?” Law asked Luffy. “Specifically painkillers, but
if there is something else I want to know.”

“Sure,” Luffy said, bouncing away towards the door. He returned moment’s afterwards with a
bunch of different packages. Including ibuprofen, thank fuck. Expired, but should still be safe. The
other things were cough drops and antihistamines (should be fine, if not very effective),
disinfectant (degraded, not useful) and Benazepril (probably no longer safe, not that he needed it).

“There were some bandaids and bandages as well,” Luffy said. “Do you need them?”

“No, but we should take them with us,” Law said. He took two pills, swallowed them down with a
mouthful of water from the bottle Chopper had handed him earlier.

Luffy hesitated. “You don’t look okay.”

“I’ll be fine. It’s just bruises and exhaustion,” Law said, forcing a smile at Luffy’s doubtful
expression. “I’m a doctor. I can self-diagnose.”

“Is that why Mingo wants you so bad? Because you’re a doctor?”

“No. Or it’s part of it, I suppose,” Law said. “He thinks I’m his .”

“That’s dumb,” Luffy said. “You can’t make someone yours if they don’t want to be.”

“I don’t know, he’s not entirely wrong,” Law said. It was something he would never admit to
Doflamingo, but after everything, Luffy deserved to know. “I was part of his crew when I was a
child. For three years. A lot of what I am is what he made me into.”

“But you left?”

“His brother stole me away when I was thirteen,” Law said. “Doflamingo eventually found us, but
Cora managed to hide me away. Doflamingo murdered him.”

“That’s why he wants you back,” Luffy nodded in understanding. “But why did he try to kill you?”

He pointed at the hand-shaped bruise on Law’s throat, and Law reflexively reached up to cover it,
before he realised how stupid that was.

“He didn’t. This was-” Law hesitated. “Something else.”

Luffy’s eyes widened for a moment, then narrowed again, and Law had a feeling he understood.

“You’re not his,” Luffy said, and there was that look again, the barely contained fury, towards
everyone and anyone who would dare hurt someone he considered a friend.
It was fascinating really, how similar yet fundamentally different Luffy and Doflamingo were.
Doflamingo went to great lengths to protect and avenge “his” people, and had looked for and taken
Law back even after years. Luffy had done similar things, from the stories the others told him.
They were “his” crew.

But Luffy respected the freedom of choice. He was stubborn, and often didn’t listen, but Law had
no doubt in his mind that if he had wanted to stay with Doflamingo, actually wanted to, Luffy
would have let him.

He also wasn’t a homicidal, sadistic maniac.

“I’m not,” he finally agreed, and Luffy smiled brightly in response, then unceremoniously threw
his arms around Law. Law chuckled, returning the hug with a pat on Luffy’s back.

“I’m not yours either, you know,” he added, teasingly.

“No, not yet,” Luffy laughed as he drew back. “But I think we should get married.”

Law stared at him, a million responses running through his brain before it finally settled on:

“Luffy, what the fuck? ”

“Not right now, of course,” Luffy said. “But I think it would be nice.”

“Nice,” Law repeated, baffled, but Luffy just nodded.

“Yeah, because I like you,” he said, like it was the easiest thing in the world to admit.

“And if I say no?”

“Then we don’t,” Luffy said, simple as that. “Are you going to say no?”

“I-” Law started, then buried his face in his hands and let himself fall down on the bed, wimping
slightly as his back hit the mattress. “ Fuck. I can’t handle you right now, Straw Hat.”

Luffy laughed. “You can answer later,” he said. “Should I leave?”

“No,” Law told him. “You should go to sleep.”

“Okay, good night, Torao,” Luffy said, bed bouncing a bit as he flopped down beside Law. “I’m
glad you’re here.”

Law hesitated. “Me too,” he said. “Even if you have shit for timing.”

Law woke up with a start, breathing heavily. Doflamingo's voice still echoed in his ears. "You’ll
never escape. You're mine, Law. Mine ."

It took him a while to notice that the room was quiet, save the soft breathing of someone beside
him.

That more than anything else brought him back to reality. Doflamingo never stayed the night. But
there was a person sleeping beside him.

Luffy.

Somehow Law had managed not to wake him up this time. Law looked down at him, barely visible
in the dark room. He looked so small when asleep. When awake he seemed bigger somehow, by
sheer force of personality.

Law didn't think he would manage to get any more sleep any time soon, but he didn't want to be
alone either. He cautiously lay back down, but in the darkness every vague shape looked like
Doflamingo, coming to take his prized possession back home. Law shuddered.

He turned towards Luffy again, wondering if he would mind, when he remembered that ridiculous
marriage proposal.

Law huffed a laugh despite himself. Well, that probably meant he wouldn't mind, at least.

He moved closer to Luffy, starting with a hand on his shoulder. Predictably, Luffy stirred.

"Hmm? Torao?" Luffy mumbled, still half asleep.

"This okay?" Law asked, slowly wrapping an arm around Luffy and moving close enough to bury
his face in his hair.

"It's fine. It's Torao," Luffy mumbled, then fell back asleep as far as Law could tell.

Law lay awake for a long time, using Luffy's warmth and smell to anchor him to reality. The
reality where he was no longer at Doflamingo's mercy. The reality where Luffy and his friends -
their friends - had come to rescue him, and succeeded. The reality where Luffy had asked him to
marry him, like he was still worth something. Like he was something more than Doflamingo's
leftovers.

Law buried his face deeper into Luffy's hair. He wanted so desperately to stay in this reality.

Doflamingo’s laugh still echoed in his ears.

When Law blinked awake, he was no longer buried in Luffy’s hair. Instead Luffy was lying on his
side, was looking at him.

“What?” Law asked groggily.

“Nothing. You’re very handsome, Torao,” Luffy grinned. If it was anyone else, Law would have
assumed they were making fun of him.

“Yeah? It must be the large bruise on my face, it really enhances my features,” Law said dryly, but
Luffy just chuckled.

“That doesn’t matter. Torao is still handsome,” he said.

“Yeah, I’m a catch,” Law groaned as he sat up. Everything still hurt. “Guess you and Doflamingo
agree on something.”
“I don’t want to own you,” Luffy said.

Law raised an eyebrow. “But you want to marry me,” he said. He half-expected Luffy to take it
back, to say it had been a joke, or a mistake, but Luffy just frowned.

“It’s not the same thing,” he said. He looked so serious, for once. Law couldn't help but smile.

“No, you’re right. It’s not,” Law conceded. “Have you actually thought it through? What marriage
means?”

“I’m not stupid. I know what it means,” Luffy said. “I haven’t ever really cared about romance or
sex or stuff like that. I still don’t. But I want to be with you .”

“You want to be with me but you don’t care about sex,” Law surmised. “What if I want to?”

“Then we do it. It’s not like I don't want it,” Luffy said, “but it’s not the point.”

Law considered it. He was actually fucking considering it. “I’m not marrying someone I’ve only
known for a few months,” he finally said.

“That’s fine, we can do it later,” Luffy shrugged. “For now, we should get up. I can hear Sanji
making breakfast downstairs.”

Law blinked. “Sanji’s making breakfast and you’re still here?”

Luffy frowned. “Last time I left you alone, you disappeared,” he said, then smiled. “Come on. I’m
hungry.”

Law let himself be pulled out of bed, baffled by the hurricane that was Luffy.

“So, what’s the plan?” Nami asked.

They had gathered in the living room after breakfast. Law was on the couch between Luffy and
Chopper, while the others were gathered around on armchairs, kitchen chairs and cushions. Nami
had spread out a map on the living room table. It was an old road map, but full of her own notes.

“Where are we?” Law asked. He still felt tired and sore from yesterday, but his head was clearer
than it had been in weeks.

Nami pointed at the map. “Here,” she said, then pointed a bit southwest. “This is DR QZ.” Then
another point further west. “SB QZ is here.”

“What other QZs are nearby?”

“There’s ZU QZ to the east, WN QZ to the northeast and WC QZ to the northwest, and then PH
QZ to the southwest, but they are pretty far,” Nami said, pointing each out in succession.

“We left traces leading east, so our pursuers likely think we’re heading to ZU,” Robin said.
“Assuming they took the bait and aren’t going to SB regardless.”

Law felt cold hearing that. He knew it was a possibility, but the thought of Doflamingo going after
Bepo, or Shachi, or Penguin… He couldn’t think about it. But it did remind him of something.

“How did you find me in the first place?” he asked, looking around. “I was unconscious, but I
didn’t think Doflamingo would leave any traces.”

“We were lucky,” Luffy said. “Jaggy saw you.”

“Jaggy?” Law asked. “Wait, Eustass? How?”

“He was out fixing some of the mechanical traps around the fence,” Robin explained. “He said he
saw some people emerge from nowhere and load a vaguely human-sized cargo into the truck of a
QZ truck.”

“He didn’t care at the time, figured they were smugglers,” Sanji added. “But then you disappeared,
and when he heard about it he put two and two together.”

“He was furious,” Luffy said. “Would probably have come with us if we had let him.”

“Good thing you didn’t, he would have gotten himself killed,” Law said. "Maybe us too."

“That was our impression as well,” Zoro said. “But QZ trucks meant you had been taken to a
nearby QZ. And with QZ government permission, most likely.”

“Which only left so many options,” Robin said. “At first we thought PH QZ wanted you back.”

“And then we heard rumours of DR QZ being taken over by raiders,” Nami. “After that we just
had to find a way in, and find you, and then make a plan.”

“It took forever,” Luffy said. “But we found you.”

“You did,” Law smiled. “I didn’t want anyone to risk themselves for me, but…” He looked down
at his hands. He was losing himself, and he knew it. If they hadn’t come…

Luffy threw an arm around him, pulling him closer with a grin. “It’s all good!” he said. “Now we
just need to get rid of Mingo.”

Law chuckled at his optimism. Get rid of Doflamingo, indeed. Like that was even possible.

Law frowned. Why wouldn’t that be possible? He had been hoping for a chance to kill Doflamingo
for weeks. He had gone through every possible way in his head, and found no way he could hope
to succeed, let alone survive the attempt. But that was when he was imprisoned and at
Doflamingo’s mercy. Now, he had allies. He had room to plan.

“You’re right,” he heard himself say. “We just need to get rid of Doflamingo.”

Luffy grinned, but several of the other Straw Hats didn’t seem as convinced. Law couldn’t really
blame them.

“Do you have a plan?” Robin asked.

“Working on it,” Law said, looking down at the map again. “He is too protected in DR QZ. Even if
we could get back in, we would have no chance. We need to lure him out.”

“I know he is looking for you, but would he really come personally?” Zoro asked, and Law
considered it.
“Not just for aimless searching, but if he thought he knew where I was, or was going to be…” he
trailed off, looking at the map. “We need a place to lay a trap.”

He studied the map closer. “If we can make him think we’re heading to WN QZ, we would have to
pass the bridge, here,” he pointed it out. “There’s only a few buildings there, so it’s probably not
crawling with undead. It could work for an ambush.”

“Can’t we just run away?” Usopp suggested. He met Law’s eyes for half a second before quickly
looking away again. “I mean, we could go all the way to WC QZ, or further north. He wouldn’t
find us.”

“Eventually, he would. We’d be running forever,” Law said. “Or I would. I’m not going to force
anyone to be a part of this.” An idea hit him, looking at Usopp. “But if you’re up for it, I could use
your help.”

“You got something?” Luffy asked.

“Maybe. The bare bones of a plan. Doflamingo knows I would want to kill him, but he is arrogant.
If I can bait him out, he will think I would want to do the honours myself,” Law said slowly,
looking at Usopp. “He wouldn’t think there would be a hidden sniper.”

“You want me to-” Usopp said, finally looking at him.

“Could you do it?” Law asked.

Usopp was quiet for a moment. “Yes. I never miss.”

“This hinges on him coming after we’ve set up, and him feeling confident enough to move out in
the open,” Robin pointed out.

“He needs to believe he’s already won,” Law said, then looked at Franky. “Think we could get a
radio working?”

“Sure, if we can get into town and to a high place I can rig something up that will reach the QZ
network,” Franky said. “What do you have in mind?”

Law grinned.

“This is Trafalgar Law, clearance code 111236, over,” Law said.

“This is SB QZ radio tower,” came the answer. “We read you. Glad you hear you’re alive. Over.”

“Thank you. I’m in some trouble and can’t come back quite yet, so could you please tell the clinic
I’m fine, but they are going to have to make it without me for a while. Over.”

“Copy that. Where are you currently?”

“West of old DR. Heading over to WN QZ,” Law said. “I will contact you again as soon as I get
there. Over.”

“Copy. Good luck out there. Over and out.”

Law sighed and closed the connection.

“You think he’s going to take the bait?” Zoro asked.

“He will expect a trap, he knows that I know he’s tapped into the QZ frequencies. That’s the point.
But he will take it,” Law said. “I just hope he's angry enough to come personally.”

If he wasn’t…Well, then Law was probably fucked.

They knew they didn’t have much time to prepare when they reached the bridge later the same
day. They investigated the buildings, some of which were in less than stable conditions, cleared out
a couple of undead, and found a lookout position for Usopp and Chopper, who would guard his
back. While they prepared, they made sure someone was stationed there at all times, to signal the
moment anyone approached. Franky handed Law the three molotovs he had had time to prepare
and a lighter, and gave him a look.

“We will stay in hiding until you or Usopp gives the signal to attack,” he said. “But you should be
careful. These are my own concoctions. They explode wider than you’d think.”

“I can handle it. Thank you,” Law said.

“I don’t like this plan,” Luffy said, arms crossed. “We should just ambush them together. Throw all
the bottles at them at the same time.”

“We discussed this, Luffy,” Nami said gently. “There will be a lot of them. We’ll be outnumbered.”

"Torao will be even more outnumbered going alone at the start."

“Law’s plan separates them, and will make them think he's alone. It lets us take them by surprise
later, once their leader is gone,” Robin said. “But if you want to go full frontal instead, I’m with
you.”

Luffy hesitated, looking at Law.

“Trust me,” Law said, and Luffy nodded.

“Fine, but if things go bad, I’m not waiting for the signal,” he said. “Are you sure this is how you
want it? You don’t want to do it yourself?”

“As much as I would want to, it’s not important right now,” Law said. He wanted it to be him, he
really, really did, but… He looked around at the others, standing around him. Friends. Who had
risked their lives to save him. He was not going to let them die here.

No one else was dying for him. Ever. Again.

“Are you certain?” Robin said. “This is your only chance for closure.”

“I can get closure in my own way,” Law said. “This is our best chance, because he knows how
much I would want to do it myself. He is not going to expect an impersonal, long distance
approach.” Law looked at Usopp. “You get a clear shot, you take it. No matter what.”
“G-got it,” Usopp said. He looked terrified, which didn’t exactly inspire confidence. Still, Law had
seen him shoot.

“Well, this is it,” Luffy said. “Time to go hunting. And nobody is allowed to die!”

He looked at Law when he said it. Fair, Law supposed. He wasn’t planning to die, but if this didn’t
work…

Well, he wasn’t going to let Doflamingo take him alive.

Law was the bait. As the only one who would, probably, not be shot on sight, he stayed near the
rooftop entrance of the building when he heard the cars approach. Three of them. Doflamingo was
coming in full force, it seemed.

Law threw the bottle over the rooftop towards the first car, watching the explosion of fire that
followed. The cars screeched to a halt, and three men exited the first car in a hurry, to avoid the
flames. Law shot at them, and hit at least one, but he didn’t have much time to check. As expected,
they returned fire, and he could hear the other car doors open and shut, as more people exited
under the cover of gunfire.

He heard shouted orders to enter the building, but it wasn't Doflamingo's voice. It sounded
familiar, but Law couldn’t place it. And he didn’t have much time to think about it.

He ran down into the building, seeing people making their way up the stairs towards him. Law
threw the second bottle down, booking it back up the stairs as it exploded behind him. Angry
shouts and screams of pain followed him as he ran across the roof and towards the next building,
away from the cars. He ran into the second building and down the stairs. He reached the ground
level, and saw people entering behind him, shouting at the sight of him. He threw the last bottle
towards them.

The building shook dangerously.

Law swore to himself as the building started to collapse around him. He hadn’t counted on shitty
construction, but if he could make it out, it could work in his favour. He ran towards the exit,
barely making it out as the door cumbled behind him. He heard screams behind him, but not the
one he had hoped for. Of freaking course not.

He turned a corner, and found himself at gunpoint.

Doflaming stood there, arms crossed with a smile on his face, as fucking Vergo aimed a rifle
towards Law. There were two other guards behind him, guns out, but not aiming at him quite yet.

Law dropped his gun and slowly put his hands up, backing up slowly. He needed them slightly
more in the open, for Usopp to have a shot. Assuming he was in position.

“Where do you think you’re going, Law?” Doflamingo sing-songed. “Do you want a bullet in your
knees?”

Law stopped, but at least Doflamingo was moving towards him, grinning and cocksure as always.
Law’s skin crawled just looking at him.
“Did you really think this would work, Law?” Doflaming asked, towering over him. “A nice little
trap, but surely you can do better than this?”

Law fucking hoped he had, but he wasn’t going to say that. “Guess I didn’t take Vergo into
account. Didn’t know you still kept him around.”

“Show some respect, you brat!”

“Now, now, we can teach him respect later, seeing as my other lessons didn’t stick,” Doflamingo
said. “Trust me when I say the next one will. You’ll be regretting this betrayal for a long time,
Law.”

He reached out for Law, but whether it was a caress or a punch, Law never found out. He watched
as blood and brainmass cascaded out of Doflamingo’s head. He was dead before Law even heard
the shot. Law stood frozen for a second, just staring at him.

So easy. After decades of fear, of nightmares. So fucking easy.

He heard shots as the rest of the Straw Hats leapt into action, and it woke him up just in time to
duck as Vergo screamed and blindly fired a round in Law’s direction. Law grabbed his gun off the
ground, and shot one bullet towards Vergo. It hit him in the chest, and Vergo collapsed on the
ground.

“You-” was all he said, and Law watched as life left him. Law supposed he should have enjoyed it.

He didn’t.

It was over mere minutes later. The last shots echoed out, and the Straw Hat’s shouted all clear.
Law felt numb as he got out of cover, and approached the place where Doflamingo had fallen.

Doflamingo lay still on the ground. Law half expected him to get up again, but he hadn’t been bit,
and even if he had, there was a large hole in his brain. It was strange to realise, that in the end, the
monster from his nightmares had been human all along.

Doflamingo’s sunglasses lay on the ground beside the body, somehow unharmed. Law looked at
them for a moment, then stepped on them, repeatedly crashing the frame and glass under his feet.
Petty, perhaps, but it was all the revenge that remained to him.

He heard steps behind him. Nami approached, looking uncharacteristically gentle.

“Are you alright?”

Law looked down at the pile of glass and metal under his shoe. “Not really,” he admitted.

“It’s a process,” she nodded, then paused, looking at Doflamingo’s corpse. “It was a far kinder fate
than he deserved.”

“It’s better this way. Toying with him would have given him a chance to escape.”

“True,” she paused. “When it was me, I considered taking my anger out on the body. Cutting him
open to see if he had a heart.”

“Doflamingo didn’t,” Law said. “He killed his heart a long time ago.”

Nami was quiet, then placed a hand on his arm. “You’ll be okay. It will take time to sink in, that it
is over, but you’ll be okay.”
He didn’t know how to answer that.

“Torao!” came a yell over the battlefield. Brook was running towards them. “Franky was shot. We
need a doctor!”

Law started running, leaving Doflamingo’s corpse behind.

Two of the three cars Doflamingo’s men left behind were still mostly in good shape. One had
gotten shot, twice, but the damage was cosmetic.

“They should have enough fuel to get us back to DR QZ,” Nami said. “Or, if we want to risk it, we
could head towards SB QZ, but they may not last all the way.”

“Doflamingo’s men still have control over DR QZ, it would be a fight,” Law pointed out.

“SB QZ it is,” Luffy agreed. “We’ll go as far as we can, and bike the rest of the way.”

They drove until nightfall, eventually setting up camp by the road, at an abandoned gas station. It
looked like it had been cleared out at one point or another during the last few years, of supplies and
undead both. The remains of the latter still littered the floor, deteriorated past the point of smell.

They planned to sleep in the cars in shifts. It wasn’t comfortable, but it was safer than the ground,
and they were more waiting for sunlight than actually camping.

Law was walking around outside, stretching his legs, when he saw Usopp sitting alone some ways
away, staring into the distance. He had left his rifle at the car it seemed. Law considered leaving
him be, but he did owe him and he looked miserable. Law carefully approached him.

“Usopp?” Law said. “I just wanted to say-”

“Don’t thank me!” Usopp said. “Please.”

Law frowned. “Are you okay?”

“I know it was the right thing,” Usopp said. “I’ve shot people before. But I’ve never just murdered
someone in cold blood. I- I know what he did, but, but he was still human.”

“Do you?” Law asked. “Do you really know what he did?”

“YES, okay?” Usopp said, hands in the air. “I had to monitor the camera to see when he left your
room! I saw… ”

He trailed off, looking away from Law again. Law had already suspected as much, but getting it
confirmed made him want to scream. Instead he took a shaking breath, trying to regain control of
himself.

“You saw nothing,” Law said.

Usopp nodded. “Right. I saw nothing. Don’t worry, I won’t-”

“No,” Law said sternly. “You saw nothing of what Doflamingo was actually capable of.” He took
another deep breath. “Even long before the world went to shit, he was a crime lord. He dealt in
drugs, trafficking, murder, blackmail… anything you can think of, he did it. He even recruited
children to his “family”, as he called it,” Law paused, but he had come this far. “I was one of them,
at ten years old. His own brother helped me escape in the end, and Doflamingo murdered him for
it. I watched it happen.

Another pause, as Cora’s last smile echoed in his mind. “He has been organising raiders since the
outbreak, and when he decided to take over DR QZ, he killed every single person that opposed
him,” Law continued. “He kidnapped me and raped me every day for weeks. That’s the man you
killed.”

“Please stop,” Usopp whispered. “I understand. I understand all that, but…”

“Fine, ” Law said, then was quiet for a bit. “Thanks for saving me.”

Usopp finally looked up at him with a bewildered expression, like he hadn’t considered that angle
to it all. Law gave him a tired smile.

“If I had ended up back with him I would have taken the first opportunity to kill myself,” Law said.
“So thanks. For me and the DR QZ."

“...you’re welcome,” Usopp finally said, looking a little steadier. Law patted his shoulder in
support, then turned around to leave, only to see Luffy and Nami standing nearby. They probably
heard everything, then.

Nami gave him a smile, briefly touching his arm before moving towards Usopp, but Luffy fell into
step with Law as he walked away. They walked in silence for a while, then Luffy turned around
and kicked a building, hard enough that some of the dried bricks gave way, falling down on the
other side.

Law raised an eyebrow as he returned.

“I knew it was bad, but I didn’t realise how bad,” Luffy said. “I wish I could have…”

He trailed off.

“What?”

“Beat him up. Protected you,” Luffy said.

“You got me out of there,” Law pointed out. “I don’t think I would have lasted much longer.” His
confession to Usopp still left him feeling raw. “At least he died not knowing how close he was to
breaking me.”

“He was nowhere near,” Luffy said. “You’re strong, Torao.”

“I’m not. I wasn’t even restisting anymore,” Law said. “I was telling myself I was waiting for an
opportunity, but-”

“An opportunity came. And you took it,” Luffy said, like there was no doubt in his mind.

Law huffed. “I guess that’s true.”

They walked quietly for a while, shoulder to shoulder. It felt good, Law thought, having someone
beside him like that.
“Hey, Luffy?” Law said, hesitating a bit.

“Hm?” Luffy looked up at him, wide eyed and smiling, and Law made a decision.

He leaned down and kissed him.

It wasn't a long or passionate kiss, just a short and deliberate meeting of lips. A promise of more,
should Luffy still want it.

Law withdrew and started walking again, hearing a giggle behind him. An actual, honest to god
giggle. He didn’t turn around, but Luffy’s expression when he caught up with Law again was
almost blindingly joyous.

“Sooooo, does this mean you’re marrying me?” Luffy asked, because of course he did.

“No, it means you can stay with me over the winter,” Law said. “Think of it as a trial run.”

Luffy grinned. “It will be great. You’ll see.”

Law found himself matching his grin. Infectious little bastard.

Law’s second return to SB QZ was a bit different than the last. They were met by the same guards
as last time, one of whom shook his head as they approached.

“Is this going to become a pattern, doctor?”

“I really fucking hope not,” Law said. “Franky got shot in the shoulder two days ago, and the rest
of us all have minor injuries, but no bites.“

“Alright, you can go,” the guards said, waving them past. “And get some rest, doctor. You look
like shit.”

Law couldn’t argue with that.

Some hours later, he found himself in his apartment, in the middle of a pile of Bepo, Shachi and
Penguin. The Straw Hats had headed to their own place, though Luffy promised to come by the
following day.

“We wanted to go with them, when they said they were going after you,” Shachi said quietly. He
was leaning against Law’s shoulder. “Luffy wouldn’t let us.”

“I’m glad he didn’t,” Law said. “I didn’t want you guys in danger.”

“Then how do you think we felt?” Penguin asked against Law’s other shoulder, voice thick. “We
thought you died, and then we got you back, and then you disappeared again! And we couldn’t do
a thing to help you!”

“You’re helping right now,” Law said. “And you were helping by keeping the clinic running.”

“Are you alright, though?” Bebo asked behind him, as Law was leaning on him. “Sorry, I mean, I
can see you’re bruised. Do you need a checkup?”
“No, I’m fine. Although…” Law said, hesitating, but he needed to say it at some point, since he
had to rely on their discretion in the lab. “I’m going to need an STD test.”

All three of them went still.

“I’m fine, ” Law repeated, but they ignored him, holding on tighter instead.

“Law, you don’t have to be fine,” Shachi said. “It’s just us.”

He was right, they had definitely seen Law fall apart before, but he honestly felt okay. Better than
he had in weeks, surrounded by his friends and knowing they were all safe. His friends, who were
oozing with anger on his behalf.

“Who did it?” Penguin asked, barely contained fury.

“He’s dead, Pen. It’s fine now,” Law said.

“Did you kill him?” Bepo asked quietly.

“No, Usopp shot him,” Law said. “What matters is, he is dead.”

“Good,” Penguin said.

They were quiet for a while.Law felt a little bad he had destroyed the easy mood, then he
remembered he had more, better news to share.

“Also, I’m dating Luffy now,” Law said.

Another moment of silence followed.

“What the fuck,” Penguin said.

“When did this happen?” Bepo asked.

“I thought you two were weirdly close,” Shachi pondered. “Even before you got kidnapped.”

Law nodded. “Yeah, it’s not as sudden as it seems.”

“Still, are you sure about this, Law?” Penguin asked. “I mean, after what just happened…”

“Is he taking advantage of my fragile mental state, you mean?” Law asked with a slight smile. The
idea was almost amusing.

“Not exactly but, yes,” Penguin said.

“No, he is not like that. He is weird and infuriating and does whatever he wants regardless of odds
or logic, but he’s not the type to take advantage that way,” Law said, then as an afterthought: “His
timing is terrible, though.”

“He confessed after they got you out?”

“The very night,” Law sighed. “His exact words were “we should get married”.”

“And you’re sure you still want to date him?” Penguin asked, with barely contained laughter.

“ Sure is a strong word,” Law said. “But he’s going to stay with me over the winter, so we’ll see.”
Shachi snorted. “You like him.”

“Law likes someone, the world must be ending,” Penguin grinned. “Oh wait.”

“I’m going to be your best man, right?” Bebo asked, and Law tilted his head back to look at him.

“Bepo, I’m not going to get married,” Law said tiredly.

“And we’ll be your bridesmaids,” Shachi said, arm around Penguin, who just gave Law a thumbs
up and started humming “Here Comes the Bride”.

Law scowled. “Bepo will be my best man, and you two are not invited.”

Indignant shouts followed, and Law leaned back with a smile on his face. Here, surrounded by his
friends, things felt like they would be okay.

Law was busy most of the days, throwing himself back into clinic work. He also contacted the SB
QZ government to reach out to DR QZ, to check the situation and potentially help them out. With
Doflamingo dead, there was no telling what would happen, but the people there were innocent and
in need of medical attention. Law was not about to head back there himself, but as he had pointed
out to Doflamingo, he was hardly the only doctor left.

In the meantime, Luffy moved into Law’s apartment, which basically meant he brought his
backpack over and Law gave him a key. Law wasn’t really sure what he did during the days, but he
seemed to have made it his mission to be home at night. Law wasn’t about to admit it, but he was
grateful for that. While the time to heal and the negative STD test had chased away most of
Doflamingo’s shadow from his waking hours, it still loomed large over his nightmares.

Luffy helped. They had been taking it slow, by Law’s standards. Luffy liked to kiss him, but didn’t
pressure him for more. Law had the distinct feeling Luffy would have been fine just continuing like
this forever, just existing comfortably in each other’s space, sleeping close together, occasionally
making out. Still, Law wanted to at least try something more.

An evening about three weeks after they returned to SB QZ, he decided to bring it up to Luffy. He
had thought about how to do it, but quickly realised anything subtle or coy would just fly right over
Luffy’s head, and any romantic gesture was a waste of time. Law had actually started giggling
while reading a patient’s file when he thought about suggesting a romantic dinner. Like Luffy
would ever treat a dinner like anything but a race to see who can eat the most the fastest.

So, he decided on the direct approach. When Law came home that evening and found Luffy on the
couch, reading a comic book, he just asked:

“Do you want to have sex tonight?”

Luffy blinked in surprise, then smiled brightly. “Sure. Right now or after dinner?” he said. “Sanji
made food. I saved you some.”

It was Law’s turn to blink in surprise. “You saved me food?”

Luffy nodded. Huh. For Luffy, that was romantic. Who knew?
“I’ll eat first and take a shower,” Law said.

“Okay,” Luffy said. “So how come you changed your mind? I thought you didn’t want to.”

“I was just waiting to heal a bit,” Law said. “I wanted the bruises gone before I even considered it.”

“I wouldn’t have minded.”

“I would have,” Law said. He opened the fridge. Sanji had made onigiri, apparently. Law took two
for himself and handed the other two to Luffy, who greedily accepted them.

“I told Sanji you wouldn’t eat more than two, but he insisted you should,” Luffy said with his
mouth full of rice. It was disgusting, really. Since when did Law find it endearing?

“He’s probably right,” Law shrugged. “I’ve never been able to eat much.”

“You’re weird, Torao,” Luffy grinned, his voice full of affection.

After dinner, Law took a shower, to clean himself and get ready. He was nervous in a way he
usually didn’t get before sex. But this wasn’t just some one night stand or drunken repeat offence,
this was Luffy. Someone who actually meant something to him. A lot of something. And he didn’t
want to screw it up.

He walked out of the bathroom with just a towel around his hips. Luffy was back on the couch, but
got up when Law approached. His eyes wandered over Law’s mostly exposed body in a gratifying
way.

“See something you like?” Law teased him, and Luffy grinned back at him.

“I want to see more,” he said, the little shit. Law let his hands glide over Luffy’s shoulders,
stomach and down to his hips, grabbing the edge of his shirt.

“Then strip,” Law said and Luffy happily obliged, unceremoniously throwing his shirt off into a
corner. Law looked at his naked torso in appreciation. He had healed nicely. The scars were there
and visible, but not nearly as bad as they could have been.

“Stop it. You have doctor-face,” Luffy pouted, and Law snorted, leaning down to give Luffy a kiss.

“Occupational hazard,” Law said when he withdrew, but he took Luffy’s hand to lead him towards
the bed. “Come.”

Luffy followed.

“Have you done this before?” Law asked.

“No, but it should be fine. It can’t be that hard, can it?” Luffy said, ever the optimist. Law smiled.

“Then let me take the lead,” Law said. “Lay down.”

Luffy obeyed. Law leaned over him to kiss him, mouth, neck, the scars of each of the bullets, one
after the other. The towel around Law’s hips fell off somewhere in the process, but he didn’t
particularly care.

“Torao,” Luffy moaned.

“Mmm?” Law mumbled, in between kissing his way towards Luffy’s hip band. Luffy was straining
against his pants and gave a small gasp as Law slowly pulled the zipper down.

“I want to touch you too,” Luffy said.

“You will,” Law said, gently kissing Luffy’s erection through his underwear, smiling at the
wordless noise he made.

Law slowly pulled Luffu’s pants and underwear down, freeing his erection from its fabric prison.
He took a moment to just take in the sight of it. He was bigger than Law had expected, if he was
honest. Thinner than Law but longer, nicely shaped. Law’s mouth watered, but if he wanted Luffy
to fuck him, that would have to wait for another day.

He rolled off Luffy to grab the tube of lube from the nightstand.

“What’s that?” Luffy asked, and Law had to remind himself Luffy had spent the later part of his
teenage years with no access to the internet.

“Lubrication,” Law said. “We’re going to use it to make things glide better.”

“Oh, like what you put on bike chains?”

“Yes, but don’t put bike grease up anyone’s ass,” Law said. Just in case.

“Can I do it?” Luffy asked, reaching for the tube. “Not the bike stuff. Can I help putting this stuff
up your ass?”

Well, that was an interesting and slightly terrifying prospect. “Alright,” Law shrugged, handing
over the tube. “Squeeze a little on your finger, and rub it inside me, one finger to begin with.”

Luffy grinned, and followed Law’s instructions.

“Your insides feel funny, Torao.”

“That’s how they are supposed to feel,” Law chuckled. “You can add another one. Move them
around a bit.”

“To make it bigger? You’re so tight, Torao,” Luffy said. “Will it take long?”

“Not that long,” Law said.

“Good. I want to know what you feel like with my dick inside you,” Luffy said, and Law’s own
dick twitched. The simmering want in his stomach grew hotter as he met Luffy’s eyes.

“Soon,” he promised, and Luffy pushed their lips together. He added another finger unprompted,
but Law didn’t mind. Luffy’s tongue was in his mouth and his fingers in his ass, and Law just
wanted more .

Eventually, he deemed it enough. It would have to be, because Law couldn’t stand it anymore. He
pushed Luffy down on the bed with a bit more force than necessary, then climbed on top of him,
legs spread on either side of Luffy’s narrow hips.

“Ready?” he asked, his fingers spreading lube around Luffy’s erection, then guiding it in the right
position, tip right at his hole. Gods, he could feel it, moving against his opening.

Luffy was watching him with wide eyes. “Yes,” he said, barely audible.
Law slowly lowered himself downward, then back up, taking in a little bit more of Luffy each
time.

Gods, he felt good, fitting perfectly inside Law like he was always meant to be there. Law moved
up and down, fucking himself on Luffy’s dick.

After a little while, Luffy sat up beneath him and reached out.

“Can I try something?” Luffy asked, hand on his shoulder.

“Sure,” Law said, not really thinking about it, and then promptly found himself on his back, with
Luffy on top of him, settling in between his legs.

For a second, Law froze. It was the exact position Doflamingo favoured, Law spread beneath him,
so he could see his face. So he could easily grab his throat.

A hand on his face brought him back to the present. Luffy was hovering over him, concern on his
face. Law hadn’t even realised he had stopped.

“What’s wrong?” Luffy asked. He was still hard, but there was no irritation or frustration in his
voice, just concern.

“Nothing,” Law said, sighing when Luffy gave him a disbelieving look. “Just a memory. I’m okay
now.”

Luffy didn’t move. “I think we should stop.”

“No,” Law said, whinier than he meant it. “I want to continue. I feel like, if we don’t-” he looked
into Luffy’s eyes. “I don’t want him to win.”

Luffy nodded, then leaned in for a kiss. Law leaned into it, trying to ground himself in it. This was
him and Luffy. Just him and Luffy.

Eventually Luffy drew back, a smile on his face. “You sure you want to try again?”

“ Yes ,” Law said breathily, and Luffy chuckled as he got back into position. The same position, but
honestly it wasn’t even comparable. Even as Luffy entered him and began moving, Law felt safe
with him. Safe, appreciated, loved.

Luffy wouldn’t hurt him on purpose. Luffy was a stubborn idiot of a man, but he was kind. He took
care of his own. And if Law wanted to stop this, Luffy would let him. If Law wanted to leave,
Luffy would let him. He would protest and complain, but as long as it was what Law wanted, Luffy
would let him.

“Luffy,” Law tried to say, but it came out more like a moan. He reached out blindly, searching for
some way to express his feelings, and Luffy took his hand, squeezing it even as his pace increased.

Reaching his climax felt like falling over the edge, with only Luffy’s hold on his hand as an anchor
barely aware when Luffy followed him over the edge.

The world returned, but it was a world in which Luffy was collapsed on top of him, lazily nuzzling
into his chest. Law gently used his free hand to comb through Luffy’s hair.

“Mmmm,” Luffy mumbled. “I liked that, Torao.”

“Me too,” Law chuckled.

“We should do it again,” Luffy said. “And maybe next time we should switch.”

Law blinked. “Sure, if you want,” he said. “But not today.”

Luffy pouted. “Why not? You looked like you enjoyed it, so I wanna try.”

“Another day,” Law promised. “It takes some preparation, especially if you’re not used to it.”

“Were you used to it?” Luffy asked. “Before?”

“Before Doflamingo?” Law asked, the name leaving a sour taste in his mouth. Luffy’s arm across
his chest held on a little tighter. “Not really. I did it a fair bit back before the world went to shit, but
not really since then. Except for a few drunken nights with Eustass.”

“With Jaggy?” Luffy asked with a frown. “Were you guys together?”

“No, we just hooked up a few times,” Law said.

“Good,” Luffy said, head falling back down on Law’s chest.

“Good?” Law snorted.

“Well, yes. I don’t want to share you,” Luffy said.

Law blinked. “Would you if I asked you to?”

“I mean, I guess,” Luffy said. “But I don’t want to.”

“You still want to marry me and make me all yours?” Law joked.

“Yes,” Luffy said, without hesitation. “I would be yours and you would be mine. That’s how it
works.”

“I’m not marrying you,” Law smiled. “Not yet, anyways.”

“It’s fine. I can wait.”

“Really?” Law teased. “Last time you had to wait for something you got bored after two minutes.”

“I can wait for the important stuff,” Luffy amended.

“Speaking off, what are your plans?” Law asked.

“Plans?”

“SB QZ for the winter, and then?” Law prompted.

“Oh, we haven’t decided yet,” Luffy said. “You’re staying here, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” Law nodded. “If my kidnapping taught me anything, it’s how much the QZs need doctors. I
can do more here than on the road.”

Luffy smiled. “I know.”

“I kinda expected you to fight me on it.”

“I could, but it’s you ,” Luffy said. “I’m not gonna fight you on what makes you you. That would
 be dumb.”

Law felt his heart flutter. “You’re not going to stay, even if I ask you to, are you?”

“No, but we’ll come back,” Luffy said. “And! And, Nami has been looking at the maps, and there
is a promising place up north! We still have to go look at it, but if things work out we could set up
a base there for people to live. A free place!”

“You realise that every place with a lot of people gathered is going to need some sort of
government and structure, right?”

“Yeah, but not like the QZs. We can make it better.”

“Good,” Law nodded, leaning in for a kiss. “You create this place, and I’ll come be the doctor
there. Along with Chopper.”

“He will be so excited,” Luffy laughed. “It’s a deal.”

Law grinned.

He was aware of the dangers, how often plans fell through. But this was Luffy. Law believed in
him.

Imagine that, in the middle of an apocalypse there were still things to believe in.

And look forward to.

End Notes

Thank you for reading.

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