"You understand?"
"Yes, yes, doctor-captain-swordsman-nurse Law."
Sick of him nagging on and on about having to keep a low profile, Moon rolled her eyes and pushed him away.
The entire morning was spent lecturing her about the obvious; how she had to tell no one she knew what she knew, and how she should not hold anyone hostage anymore. She looked up at Law, putting her arms on her waist.
"Hey. I have been doing this for years."
"Yeah, but that was before you risk being captured, knowing what you know."
"They won't. All the other teachers give no shit about the students. And what does that result in? Neglected students who can barely read or multiply. I'm an asset they won't kill."
Law's inked hands of death landed on her shoulders with a firm grip, his grey eyes burning a hole through her eyes with his glaring gaze. Moon blinked a few times, not losing eye contact.
"Okay. Fine. You dare to banter with a pirate, so I assume you have guts."
"Hey, me minus guts equals..."
Putting her hand out in a showy manner, she tried to get an answer out of Law, but he squeezed her shoulders tight as a reply. She pouted at that, dropping her hand weakly. Her lashes cast a shadow on her disappointed eyes, which made Law click his tongue against the roof of his mouth before giving her a response.
"Equals death. You might have died in the process of someone trying to remove your guts though, due to excessive bleedi—"
"Hey! I don't need doctor-like answers from you. But you're right. Me minus guts equals death. I'll do whatever it takes to keep them safe."
"See, this is where we disagree. Please don't do anything sacrificial."
Seeing how Law was going to start another round of nagging, Moon tried to wiggle out of his hands but failed. Instead, she opened her arms to pull him in for a hug which immediately loosened the captains's unassuming hands. She placed her cheek on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. It was a melodious tune that was best enjoyed right beside the ear. Law just had to let out a chuckle, ruffling her hair up before intertwining his fingers into her thick locks. He pulled her head back with a gentle tug, making her half-lidded eyes look back up into his eyes that were staring deeply into hers. He leaned forward slightly to close the gap between them, his lips enveloping her upper lip, then the lower. She opened her mouth slightly, her hands gripping onto the back of his shirt. She felt herself trembling at little at his gentleness and warmth, her eyes closing completely to indulge in the moment.
Sensing himself getting too into the moment, Law let go of her hair he's been pulling onto with more strength than he liked to handle her with. Forcing himself to open his eyes and gently tear himself away from her, he admired her pink-hued cheeks and lips glistening from the contact.
"You are beautiful, as always."
"Since when were you... I mean, thank you, handsome doctor."
Muffling her face into his chest to hide her face of embarrassment, she rubbed her nose into him a few times before glancing over at the bright skies through the small window that warned her of upcoming departure.
"Come on, I gotta go now. Class is starting soon."
"The Heart Pirates will be around your area at all times. Not that don't trust you, but."
"Yes, I get it. Thank you so much."
"No problem."
Law led her out of the submarine carefully, making sure she didn't have to face the seas that she was so afraid of. Waving her hands cheerily once she was on land, she almost skipped away at the excitement of Law's presence around the area. He has promised her to come up with an idea to help her students, along with her own brainstorming that she has done.
No one, and I mean no one, is going to hurt my loved one.
Although silent, the thoughts that rang in their heads echoed each other's.
//
The following days were pretty calm, to say the least. No one has bothered Moon about the male office worker being missing, which only made her more suspicious about the whole ordeal. Law refused to tell her about how he handled the hostage whom she did not even bother learning the name of, and Law was a shade healthier from the relatively better sleeps he had.
The crew with Moon was gathered at the discussion room, where Ikkaku and the additional brain power were exchanging knowing looks following their reunion that occurred the second Moon stepped foot into the Polar Tang for the second time. The two were hugging for at least a good 3 minutes straight, muttering about how much they missed each other. The rest just had to watch in awe, with Law shaking his head and separating them, which led Bepo to frown cutely at his captain.
"Okay. Here's the plan. There's got to be a ship that transports the children to Sabaody. And this place is a maybe one day, two days maximum trip to that Archipelago. Right Bepo?"
"Aye Captain!"
"Plan A is to destroy the ship that transports them, but this means exposing two things."
Law pointed at the board with neat writings written on it, and Moon took in the view of her favourite pirate hard at work.
"First, the fact that we, The Heart Pirates, know of their plans. Unless we make it an accident, but it'd make no sense for us to rescue the children if we feign ignorance. Second, they'll probably link this incident to her one week of absence. This means they'll associate any actions of ours to her. Plus, we'll have to squeeze all the children into our submarine as well."
Everyone paid attention to their captain explaining the plan he has come up with, informing them of the available ports and potential ships and people to look out for. Moon could not tear her eyes away from the tattoos on his chest that peeked out with every subtle movement, his hands that gestured at an appropriate pace, and his face that she could only describe as handsome. His calming yet authoritative voice was a cherry on top.
"Plan B is more complicated. Since Jean was once captured at that horrible place, he knows the ins and outs quite well. We'll make use of this intelligence we have to release them. But this also means we might risk creating chaos there. So we will split into two teams—"
"Law. If I may dare suggest something."
Everyone's eyes turned to Moon once her voice boomed over his. She looked around once before saying out her suggestions without betting an eyelid.
"I will negotiate with them."
"To?"
"I will ask them to release the children in return of taking me."
The air stood still as if someone has sucked the oxygen out of the atmosphere. Everyone wanted to oppose to that idea, but was waiting for Law to show a reaction first. He was surprisingly calm, but a single vein on his temple showed him holding in his temper.
"I expected this. And what if they do not comply?"
"Well. It's not like the celestial dragons are going to be there at the ship. I'm sure we can fight them all, if we use our powers properly."
"And what if they comply?"
"You execute the same plan B, but you rescue me instead of an entire class of children."
Law looked down at the floor for a long while upon hearing that. Honestly, his only interest was to get her to safety and potentially find a way for her to start another life without having to think of her students being slaves. Bepo placed a paw on his captain's hand, his black-lined mouth showing worry.
"And what if they take both you and your children?"
"Then you save all of us at once."
"And what if they kill you?"
"I won't die so easily."
Her posture was confident, voice full of resolution. Law made eyes with the woman whom he would kill anyone for, and once at his trustworthy crew.
"Okay. That's our last resort. But it's better than Plan A for sure, because we can't engage in battle with 25 children onboard the submarine."
"Trust me as much as I trust you and your crew, Law. I have survived multiple bullet wounds on my own."
I know, I know it too well, thought the black-haired captain. He recalled the slash wound on her abdomen, the raised scars that indicated a serious wound and her house that she meticulously tried to hide from the environment. He knew these too well that he just wanted her to sit back and let him do all the work for once. However, there was no denying the strong fighter she is. Nodding his head as a response, he continued his briefing with a heavy heart.
///
"Would they accept my offer?"
Moon was currently on the Polar Tang, with her wounds all healed thanks to Doctor Law's precise treatment and her efforts in keeping to his instructions. Feeling like a new page that's clean from any pencil marks, she grinned at the sight in the mirror— she had sneaked into the washroom to observe herself carefully. Should the worst come to worst, she had to be someone that is worthy of the exchange. Well, she thought that her value was already halfway there due to her devil fruit powers, but she was concerned that they would not take a strong-headed adult in exchange for naive children.
"Bastards... Bastards."
Why am I trying so hard to appeal to a bunch of bastards? Feeling a great sense of disdain, she sighed before releasing the shirt she has lifted earlier, covering her delicate body.
Trudging out of the washroom, she saw Law's room half opened, and knocked on the door carefully. His pleasant voice instructed her to come in, and she took a step in slowly, a smile forming upon seeing the doctor-captain leaning on the chair. Law smirked a little upon seeing her face that looked way too adorable to be a merciless killer, and got up to lead her onto the floor where a white rug rested.
Taking a seat on the fluffy rug and leaning on the bed, Moon was sitting with her legs out, while Law kept one of his folded. She turned her upper body to face him, and looked up at his face. He stared back curiously, watching her round eyes observe him carefully.
"Are you sure no girl has ever taken an interest in you?"
"Yes."
"You liar."
"If you take me as a liar, I'll take you as one too."
"Hey, what kind of logic is that?"
"Talk about your logic."
This stupid doctor-captain is annoyingly stubborn. Frowning at him, she tucked her legs in to sit cross-legged. Mirroring her, Law also shifted his position a little.
"I'm sure if your students were any older or you were in a place with men, you'll have a long queue in front of you."
"You could just shambles them away, right?"
Law lowered his head, not being able to resist a chuckle. Wanting to see his smile, she sneaked below his face to take a look, and the captain almost burst out in laughter seeing her face pop out all of a sudden. Seeing his shoulders move up and down from holding in his laughter, she grinned widely and pulled up the ends of his mouth. Law ended up laughing for a while, his low and soft laughter infecting her as well.
"You're hopeless."
"So...anyway, you think I'm...like...nice? Nice-looking?"
Not able to call herself pretty so easily, she paraphrased her words slightly, to which Law held onto her cheeks. Her face was squeezed by slightly damp hands, and she struggled to come out of the grip, glaring at him.
"As I have said. I am a man with really high standards. You can ask my crew. No matter what it is, just 'acceptable' is never enough for me."
"You're speaking as if you've even considered other people."
"The funny thing is, I have never done that. The concept of..."
Law suddenly paused his speaking, his eyes fluttering about in embarrassment. She waited patiently for him to continue, her mouth itching to ask if she would be enough to be captured as a slave. She knew she had to keep them in, and smiled bitterly at the red-faced pirate.
"Concept of...love. I guess, or whatever. Has never crossed my mind."
"No wonder you didn't even consider Ikkaku."
"Seriously? She's a sister to me."
Seeing him flare up at the suggestion of a potential romance budding in the Polar Tang, she giggled to herself, before blushing a little. She breathed in quickly, her face flaring up before planting a short peck onto his cheek. Law stared at the wall dumbfounded, his heart beating so rapidly he was close to diagnosing himself as hyperventilating.
"I mean... you said love, so. Not like it's the first time though."
Law's grey eyes finally returned to the smiling lady, his hand gently caressing his cheek that still had the thumping feeling of her soft lips on it. It was like a kiss of a fairy; fleeting and sweet, almost unreal.
"I... I do."
"What?"
"I do. I do love you. I missed you so much."
He has gotten up from leaning on the bed, and was busy fanning himself in an attempt to calm his heart rate down. He was unsure why this small peck made him so flustered, but he was sure that he wanted to feel it again. Sweeping his raven fringe up, he got up to get a piece of paper to fan himself before sitting back down. She stuck close to him to indulge in the cooling wind as well, and he held his breath at her warm body coming into contact with his.
"Don't stop fanning, doctor."
"Okay."
"Since when were you so obedient? Are you broken?"
Going inches away from his face to observe it, she lifted up his tanned and lean arms to see it they were working, she poked various part of him like a curious kitten.
"Hmm... I think doctor-captain is spoilt. Bepo!"
Seeing her call for his navigator, he hurried to cup her mouth from the back, as she bumped her backside on the rug and winced at the pain. Law held her close from behind, being careful to land his arms on her collarbones only. She slowly leaned back, bit by bit, to land on his chest. Resting her head filled with thoughts she wanted to escape from onto his shoulder, she looked up to make eye contact with Law. He looked down at her half-lidded, going in to kiss the lips that brought him only joy, his arms slowly dropping down from her shoulders.
To be continued!
This was uploaded on 24th Dec where I live, and if you happen to be reading it around this time... Merry Christmas! <3 Hope you have a lovely holiday~~~
Image above from Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/833236368544784948/ (not mine!)