Be My Everything
Fandom: One Piece
Setting: Post-Timeskip, Zou Arc
Couple: Death Lion | Trafalgar D. Water Law×Monkey D. Nero (OC)
Tags: Mentions of past abuse, panic attack, angst, hurt/comfort, Law is so much better written than in the original fic from like 5 years ago, cc×oc
18th February 1524
After the Strawhats had split up on Dress Rosa, Nero tagged along with his brother's crew. He wanted to travel with them some more until he figured out where he wanted to go or what he wanted to do. Perhaps meeting up with Nekomamushi and the others would be of help with that.
And as old friends of the Whitebeard Pirates, there was a slim chance that the Mink knew something about Marco's whereabouts.
For now, he sat outside on the grass, enjoying the cool, fresh air, whereas Ruffy, Nami, Chopper, and some of the Mink were inside. Their heated discussions got only muffled by the half-shut door, the light from the Guardians' residential building falling through the crack.
Zorro was outside with his captain's brother, sitting on a bench. Arms crossed behind his back, his swords resting next to him, eyes closed.
"Garchu~♡", a young cat Mink purred and greeted Nero in a stormy manner.
Licking and nibbling on his cheek before cuddling against his other side.
"I want to hear the story from your-teia story, too, please!".
The Black Lion was about to read a story about a princess who had been kidnapped as a child and locked inside a high tower out loud to a couple of feline Minks gathered around him.
Since his glasses had slipped down the bridge of his nose from the little one having tackled him, he pushed them back up.
A soft laugh escaped his lips upon her words, and he cuddled with the oversized cats around him. Apparently, the feline Minks seemed to favour him while most of their canine siblings preferred to keep their distance. The younger ones enjoyed the playful hunting and fighting he agreed to.
Before he continued to read, the raven smiled: "Sure, I haven't really started yet, so you haven't missed anything.".
With a calm, soft voice, he started reading. The few Minks huddled around him listened intently, ears perking up every now and then. Some of them used him as a pillow, using a curled up Jaguar Mink as one himself.
A small leopard Mink sat on his lap, resting her back against his chest. Her big, chocolate brown eyes travelled over the pretty lettering and colourful paintings on each page he flipped on. Her soft blonde hair and the fur on her ears tickled his neck and chin occasionally.
Suddenly, the calm atmosphere was interrupted by Pekoms yelling from inside the house: "Stay here, Strawhat!".
The captain stormed outside just a few seconds later. He only stopped in his tracks because he noticed his vice on the bench right next to the entrance.
"Hm? Zorro! Did you eavesdrop on our conversation?".
"Yes, I did.". The King of Hell's answer was short, but the frown on his face spoke for itself.
Ruffy chuckled: "You're worried about Sanji, right? Shishishi!".
With a roll of his eye, Zorro looked aside. "Don't make me laugh. I told you to leave this idiot alone.".
Overhearing that, he only shook his head with a smile tugging on the corners of his lips. Regardless, he continued to read to the Minks gathered around him. Gently petting their soft fur to calm them down again or to simply feel it tickle against his skin.
Soon, a group of seven closed in on the building.
"Heeeey! Ruffy!! Zorro!!", Chopper called out as he waved with both of his small arms, "How's Pekoms doing..?!".
"Ah, Chopper!! He's in pain, hits his head against the wall and keeps shouting! Hurry up and heal him!!", Dragon's younger son shouted back, waving back at his doctor.
"EEEEEEHHHHH?! What are those weird symptoms?! I'll better take a look at him!!".
Behind the group, a bass-filled voice spoke up: "Ohhh, so you're the glorious Strawhat Ruffy! I've searched for you-cha!".
It was the Ruler of the Night on Zou, wrapped in bandages.
"Ehhhhhhhh?! Why are you following us?! Go back to your bed!!", the reindeer demanded, equally shocked as Usopp next to him. "Doctor's orders!!".
The large cat Mink cracked a smile: "Well, I am suddenly feeling perfectly fine again! How stubborn you are!".
Chopper repeated the last statement, absolutely shocked. His voice grew high-pitched, and he clasped one of his front hooves over his chest.
While Nekomamushi and the Strawhats argued, Nero closed the book with a sigh. The child resting on top of him had fallen asleep, not a single muscle was tense in their small body. The girls to each of his side also appeared to be kind of sleepy in spite of the noise around them. The old jaguar man in his back was still wide awake though. He only frowned upon the sudden increase in volume.
Chopper and Zorro continued to bicker with Nekomamushi, with the swordsman suddenly having joined the argument. Usopp tried to calm them down, but he got ignored.
//Never a single silent moment, ever the noisy ones...//, Nero thought to himself and chided the troublemakers while pointing down at the resting youngling: "Can't you tone it down a notch? Please.".
And just a few moments later, Trafalgar Law entered the scene. He didn't even bother to try to hide his irritation and confusion about the ruckus.
"What's all this noise about anyway?".
//Oh stars. There he is- C'mon, be a man! It might be your last chance to do this! Well now or- Nevermind..//, Nero's thoughts raced in his mind.
Ruffy, jumping onto Nekomamushi's back, responded to the Hearts' captain first: "Ah, Torao! Is that your crew~?".
"Yeah. All twenty of them. I brought them here for you guys to meet.".
While speaking, he pointed at his crewmates behind him.
The Heart Pirates excitedly struck all kinds of silly poses. In perfect synchronicity, they greeted the other crew with a "Nice to meet you, Strawhat!!".
"Yo~!", Ruffy grinned back at them, waving them hello.
Amidst their conversation, Nero got up and gently placed the leopard Mink on the soft grass, cautious not to wake them up. He walked over to the Surgeon of Death before his brother could chime in once more. Although he seemed to be busy connecting with the Hearts.
"Hey, Law? Can... we talk for a moment? In private? There's something I... need to tell you.".
Nero managed to come off so cool for sure. Or so he thought. His palms were sweaty, his heterochromatic eyes stared nervously up at the taller raven. His pulse hammered in his ears. He fumbled his words. Yeah. So cool. Totally.
"Sure. After that, I have something to discuss with your brother", the golden-eyed man responded, nodding towards Ruffy who only chuckled in response.
With that, the two ravens headed off side by side. With each step, the former Whitebeard's nervosity grew. Anxiety, too.
//Oh. Oh shit. Shit shit shit! Am I really gonna do this-? Should I just ask him something stupid instead? Oh staaaars, please help me!//.
He had been through all of this years ago. But that hadn't ended well. Actually, he was glad that he had been out with his crew and that some of them had found him at just the right time to help him out of the mess.
The trauma Ragnar gave him was deeply engraved into his brain since that day. His ex scared him off from men. Terrified him off from falling in love again.
He wasn't too sure if Law would be the same as Rockbreaker. He'd gotten to know him on a slightly deeper level before, at least, but given how closed-off Trafalgar was, it was merely surface level. So he really hoped that even though the Surgeon of Death had him wrapped around his finger, he would be less deadly.
Soon, the two reached a clearing not too far away from the building the others located in. They stopped at its border. Trafalgar leaned against a nearby tree, resting Kikoku against his shoulder. His golden eyes were fixed on the younger man.
Nero tried figure out what Law's blank expression hid. Curiosity, boredom, or maybe annoyance? He just couldn't tell.
"So? What did you want to talk about?", he asked flatly.
"Umm.. You know, it's actually that.. I've been thinking about this for quite a while.. Hell, I'm so shit at this-".
Nero fumbled his words once again, stumbled over his tongue. His heartbeat drumming in his ears. The unruly beast in his chest raged against his ribcage as if trying to break out. He was sure the other man could hear it. A lump formed in his throat. His mouth went dry. His jaw tensed. His breath came out in short, airy puffs. Every noise felt distant. The edges of his vision blurred and darkened.
His mind raced with thoughts just like back when he finally admitted to himself that he had fallen for the Hearts' captain. Raced with negative thoughts of made-up scenarios and answers the man could use to reject him. Memories of Ragnar using and abusing him. Memories he had long tried to bury. Thoughts and memories that had kept him up so many nights.
"ro..? Focus. Take a deep breath. In", Law guided him after lifting an eyebrow. He signaled Nero to hold his breath.
"And out.".
Less shaky than before, the shorter raven released the breath held in his lungs. He hadn't even registered that he must have had a panic attack.
"Better?".
"Aye, thank you..".
"Okay, so?".
The Black Lion gathered all of his courage to speak up: "I honestly didn't want to think about that anymore because of some... bad experience but.. I have fallen you over the last two years. I know it sounds stupid but I- I love you. With all my heart!".
Silence. An uncomfortable one. Not even a single facial muscle of Law twitched.
His face turned red. His cheeks heated up. His heart sank. Probably even skipped a beat or two. He averted his mismatched gaze glistening with tears. His body started trembling. His bottom lip quivered.
Certainly he had disgusted Trafalgar now by coming forth with his feelings.
Then, finally. A reaction. Having fully registered the younger one's words, his eyes widened. In shock, but also in confusion.
"I- I'm sorry! Ahh, I'm disgusting.... I shouldn't have- I'll just-", he quickly excused himself.
His voice cracked. The Black Lion turned away from the Surgeon of Death. Too ashamed to face him again. Wished for the ground to break open and swallow him whole.
Nero started running away. Or rather, he tried.
He was tightly grasped before he could get out of reach. Slender, tattooed fingers wrapped around his wrist. Nero's vision blurred slowly.
"No, it's fine. It's better to talk about your feelings than to let them drive you insane.".
Law's response was clinical. His expression back to his usual calm and unreadable one.
"True, I am surprised. I didn't have time to think about romance and all that blurb too deeply before. Why should I have? I'm too busy being a pirate, and that life is dangerous. I have a reputation to uphold, too. Fuck, I don't even know if I swing that or any way. Personal relationships need work, and are exhausting. Are you sure you want to be with someone distant and cold like me? I'm not easy to handle, plus there's a lot of things you don't know about me and might never learn.".
As the shorter man slightly turned his head, the first few tears fell. He just couldn't stop them. Trafalgar's words were like a million needles stabbing his heart.
"But I wouldn't", the golden-eyed man continued with his usual lazy smirk slowly forming on his lips after a short pause, "mind trying it out and gaining some experience with you. We'll see if that's something that works out for both of us, hmm?".
"Eh?".
That was the first thing the younger raven got out. His eyes widened upon processing the doctor's words. That was probably the most he's ever heard him speak in one go.
"Wait, really? I was sure I'd pissed you off or something- I'm willing to put in the work! I'm certainly not easy to be around all of the time, either... Plus I need a lot of reassurance after what happened with.. with Ragnar..".
His green and golden eyes glittered with hope before guilt and fear and pain flickered in them.
"Well, we'll see how it develops, huh?", Law scoffed, not wanting to press the mattee. He'd let Nero open up once he'd be ready to tell him.
"Plus, if you'd disgusted me, I'd already have dissected you. I'm more just intrigued to learn what it is you see in me and like about me, honestly. You did kind of startle me with your confession though.".
The gears in Nero's head started turning.
"Wait.... So, that means- You'll actually give me a chance?!", he eventually blurted out.
Trafalgar chuckled darkly, amused by the younger one's enthusiasm.
//Seems like he really means it, huh?//, he mused to himself.
With a nod, he confirmed: "Sure. You are quite the handful, just like your brother. But nothing I'm not used to thanks to my crew, I suppose. But don't expect me to say any cheesy things. And I'm not too big on that romantic stuff either, really. So if you can live with that, and me needing explanations for certain things, we might just get along fine.".
The Surgeon of Death finally let go of Nero's wrist. He was still tightly gripping it after all. He lifted the same hand to wipe away the leftover tears staining the shorter man's cheeks.
"And if you're patient enough and behave, I might just be nice to you, Lion-ya.".
Law placed the finger under Nero's chin, tipping it up, and he leaned down. Their lips were just a breath away. He could see the way Nero flushed, his pretty heterochromatic, half-lidded eyes still glistening with tears flickering between his own golden eyes and his lips. How the boy's tongue darted across his lips, wetting them. How his Adam's apple bobbed slightly as he swallowed. Could feel his warm breath ghost across his skin.
But just when the Black Lion tried to close the distance to unite their lips in a kiss, Law pulled back. Straightened his posture. A frustrated huff escaped Nero's lips. A pout on his lips.
"Not so fast. The big strong kitty cat will have to be patient for that. Might have to work for it, too", Law teased him about their almost-kiss, "But I promise you'll get one when you've been good. Oh, and we should probably head back. I'd also prefer to keep this matter private.".
"F-fine", the younger man sighed. "Yeah, we should. And thank you for listening and not pushing me away.".
"Don't worry.".
The Whitebeards' cub blushed furiously when Law slung his arm around his shoulder. He didn't even know why it caught him so off guard. It probably was because Trafalgar acted in such an awkward and casual way.
Together, they headed back while talking a bit more about more casual, nonsensical things. Rejoined the others merrily chatting away. They were greeted cheerfully, with Ruffy impatiently complaining about having had to wait for so long to discuss their upcoming plan and alliance.
The two acted as if nothing had happened, although the trained eye could see that they both were a little more excited than before.
