Somehow I made it back to the ship in time for coffee. Unfortunately for me, I did not have time to get rid of my jacket. Or my shoes. Or anything to make it look like I had stayed on the ship.
Law crossed his arms, leaning against the wall. All the lights were on in the dining room and kitchen. "Did you find them?"
"No." I mumbled. My back itched and burned and my legs were lead weights. I flumped down in the nearest chair and buried my head in my arms. "Found Yan, though."
He sighed and sat across from me and leaned forward. "Your Haki is nearly depleted. What happened?"
I shook my head. What was I going to say? That we argued about Mom, just like always? That he asked me about Serina? And then of course, I would have to explain why I traveled with a Celestial Dragon and how I hadn't been physically branded. Captain Speckle wouldn't be satisfied with 'I traded services for safe passage'. I just didn't have the energy.
"Nothing out of the ordinary for us." I could feel Law's sharp eyes watching for any sign of dishonesty. I felt a bit guilty for sneaking away. Ungrateful bitch. "Sorry."
"Good." I was too tired to wince at the sharp, angry tone. "I told you to stay on the ship. You disobeyed a direct order."
"I know." Obstinate child. "I'm sorry."
Law's arua shifted. He stepped up beside me and moved my arms to put the back of his hand on my forehead. He was pleasantly cool, but the touch was still painful. Until that moment, I hadn't noticed how uncomfortable my clothes were. They seemed to rub and chafe in the worst way.
He hummed in annoyance. "You have a small fever. I knew there was a reason you were so civil. We'll discuss the consequences tomorrow."
I sighed and climbed to my feet. The ground swam in an unfocused haze. I had to take a half step to stop myself from falling.
"Come here." Law's hand gripped my upper arm and hauled me against his chest.
My legs gave out completely. The last thing I remembered was a pained sigh as Law picked me up. Then my head lolled, eyes closed, and the darkness drug me under.
/-/-/-/
Andromeda's fever hadn't broken by the next morning, and her Haki wasn't replenishing. It was strange, but not altogether worrying. Considering the recent events, it was a wonder the stress hadn't made her sick before now. She also mentioned that she ran into Yan before making her way back home. I could only assume that he was the one she normally pit her strange Haki up against, so her Haki being depleted wasn't surprising.
Knowing that no matter how sorry she said she was, Andromeda was likely to leave the ship by herself again was frustrating, especially when she was unarmed. That needed to change.
Bepo hummed as he walked behind me, swaying from side to side. "Do you think Ikkaku and Andromeda will fall in love?"
I smirked at the idea. Ikkaku was certainly smitten with Andromeda, but the newest Heart Pirate seemed completely oblivious. "I don't know about that, Bepo. The tomato is a bit dense."
It didn't seem to deter him at all. I could practically see flowers blooming behind his head. "Andromeda will get it. I think they're cute together."
I wasn't about to disagree. Besides, with Ikkaku looking out for Andromeda, I didn't have to worry about her as much. At least while they were together. It was a bit harder to have confidence when I had to wonder if the tomato was going to wander off. I needed to put a hard stop to that.
"Trafalgar Water Law." An amused voice cut above the street chatter.
I paused and turned to face him. He leaned back against a light pole. He was slightly taller than me, with black and silver hair and a full, neatly trimmed beard and mustache. Dark eyes were cold and distant.
Bepo shifted beside me, a wary look on his wide, furry face.
"And you are?"
"Watkins Yannick. Captain." He smirked, but made no move to advance.
I mirrored his expression. "The hero of Anba, in the flesh." The words felt like acid on my tongue. Hero. What a load of horse shit. "What can I do for you, Captain?"
Uncomfortable civilians gave us nervous glances and a wide berth.
Yan cracked his neck. "Just keeping tabs on the Supernova in my town."
"Hmmm. A few too many civilians here for any real conversation, wouldn't you say?" I raised an eyebrow, hands in my pockets. There was no reason to think the Captain was here for a fight. There wasn't even any subtle hints of an ambush.
He pressed his lips into a thin line and tilted his head slightly. "Didn't expect you to be so thoughtful. I heard your ship tends to linger, but you've been here for long enough, don't you think?" His words carried a bit more than a suggestion.
I grinned. "Just a hint, captain to captain. Don't tell me what to do."
"Wouldn't dream of it." He straightened his mustache and stroked his beard. "Just a suggestion, from marine to to pirate. Get out of my town."
Bepo growled, but I held up my hand. "Or?"
"Or..." Yan tilted his head side to side, as if he were thinking deeply. "Well, I don't like to make threats." He shrugged and stood straight. He stepped up at me and made as if to put his hand on my shoulder.
"Keep your hands to yourself." I snapped, stepping out of his reach. His skin had taken on a suspicious pallid luster. He was most likely a devil fruit user, and I wasn't keen on finding out what his powers were first hand. I would have to see if Andromeda had any information for me.
He gave me an ugly smirk. "Sure, kiddo. Right up until I arrest you."
I waved the idea away. "Somehow, I doubt you can." Bepo and I strode passed, intent on making it to 'Boots on the Ground' supply chain without further interruptions.
Unfortunately, Yan wasn't finished with our exchange. "That doesn't look like the way to the docks, Trafalgar. Turn around."
"You don't take hints very well, do you, Yan-ya?" I glanced over my shoulder at the marine. "Don't tell me what to do."
His scowl darkened. "Don't call me so familiarly, boy. That's Watkins-san to you."
"I don't think so." I smirked and held up one hand. "Enjoy the sun, Yan-ya."
/-/-/-/
Andromeda had a dazed smile plastered on her face. Her deep brown eyes were dull and unfocused, and I couldn't be sure she was actually seeing me. I pet her hand with a small smile of my own.
"You were saying something before I came in." I pressed. "What was it?"
"Болить." she murmured serenely. "Все болит."
I exhaled through pursed lips. "Alright. So whatever you're saying isn't bad, I guess. People don't smile when something's wrong." But that conclusion didn't feel right. Before I came into the room, I swear she was crying.
Dry eyes and pale cheeks contradicted my gut feeling. The only color seemed to be from her fever. Captain told me not to worry, that it was just stress, but I worried anyway.
"Где Пингвин и Шачи?" Andromeda perked up slightly at the end of her question. The unfocused look sharpened noticeably. "Они дома?"
"Peng-ven..." My eyes widened and I almost laughed. "You're worried about the wrong people. Penguin and Shachi are fine." No sense of preservation. She was sick enough that Trafalgar had decided to put off her punishment, something he rarely did, and she was still asking about those two goons.
The way the light hit her face almost made it seem as though half of it was much, much paler than the other. It almost looked porcelain white. Andromeda's shoulders fell again. "Они дома?"
"I don't have any idea what you're asking." I admitted with a shake of my head. "Why are you so worried about them."
"Не дома..." She sighed and laid back in the bed.
I pulled the blankets back up around her shoulders and tucked them in. "Okay, Sweetie, I'm going to start lunch. Since Captain's gone for the day, I'm making sandwiches."
Andromeda scrunched up her nose. Her voice was still too high pitched and placid, but it was a bit stronger and more certain about her next words. "Не ем хлеб."
"Excuse me?" I blinked. "That is the same damn face Captain makes around bread. Don't you dare tell me that-"
"Я не ем хлеб."
I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Great. Well, I'm still making sandwiches, because I love bread. Eat or starve." I wouldn't actually hold her to that, especially not while she was sick, but I was damn sure making myself a sandwich!
"Буду голодать."
"Great." I muttered to myself as I sifted through the ingredients. I didn't have the perishables that I wanted, but fortunately Jean was looking for a town-buddy. With everything that had happened to Andromeda, Captain had us all roaming in pairs for safety. It didn't take any effort to convince Jean to go with me.
"And then!" I continued my rant at the giant man as we crunched through town. "She says 'ne yem hleb' or something like that, with Captain's bread face!"
Jean chuckled. "Well, you should have expected it with how well they get along. They must have something in common."
I rolled my eyes and snorted. Those two got along stupidly well, and it was hilarious to watch, especially because captain had no idea what to do with her. She was adorably childish, but could also manipulate a board game like a war-time general, and even Trafalgar could only beat her in card games half of the time. It was obvious that in the short amount of time Andromeda had been with us, Trafalgar had formed quite a bond with her.
"You know, sometimes I wonder how often Law uses 'tomato' when he means 'little sister'." Jean's thoughtful comment was exactly where I had been going in my own mind.
"Probably most of the time." I grinned. "But they're both so oblivious to people loving them that I don't think either of them notice."
He patted me on the head as we turned the corner to the Saturday market. "Speaking of Andromeda being oblivious, how are you two doing?"
"Bah." I waved him away. Before I could complain that I didn't think I could be any more obvious, a woman with short, spiky blonde hair approached us.
Her violet eyes had a slow burning gleam and lit up as she neared. "Heey~ You two are Heart Pirates, right?"
Jean and I exchanged glances, but she grabbed my hand before I could confirm her suspicion. "You must be! Whoever picked your uniform has terrible taste. It must have been those two."
"Those two?" I blinked at her. She had a cute round face and a thin nose between large violet eyes. She had a stylized Captain's Cape draped around her shoulders and her skin was pink with cold where her shimmering lace lingerie didn't cover. She was clearly a dancer, leaving 'those two' to be: "Penguin and Shachi?"
She gave an exasperated sigh. "They finally passed out like twenty minute ago and I was able to slip away. You wouldn't mind coming to pick them up, would you?"
I rolled my eyes. "Of course. Jean, would you mind grabbing me some-"
"No!" The blonde snapped. Something behind her eyes sharpened and ignited. It probably wasn't a good sign. The two of us stared at her until her eyes softened again. "I mean, they were pretty clear that you're supposed to be using the buddy system. I think it's cute!"
"Sure..." I muttered to myself, but motioned for Jean to come with me. The woman made me slightly suspicious. She seemed to want specifically Jean and me, seeing as how there was no way she hadn't run into Captain and Bepo somewhere between the club and the bookstore.
I let her lead me down the streets, hyper aware that we never took the main road. She didn't have much to say, and didn't offer an explanation as to why we weren't going to the strip club. She seemed to want to stay in quieter parts of town, and I didn't even hear the normal afternoon chatter.
After a few minutes of alley hopping, I turned to see if Jean had the same suspicions that I did. I stopped dead in my tracks.
Jean was gone.
The woman jerked back around to face me, grinning from ear to ear.
'What the f...' My eyes widened, mouth falling slack. I couldn't hear my own voice. How did I not notice?
It wasn't just quiet: it was silent.