#uncalm

[skin-slave]

Sprinkles is molting and I'm so nervous 😢 What if something goes wrong? What if it's not humid enough? What if it's too loud upstairs and he gets stressed out? What if he loses legs? What if he loses his fangs? What if he just gives up and dies bc I'm annoying? 😭😭😭

[slightly-gay-pogohammer]

me calm for cavity check bc im gonna get anesthesia anyway: :)

me remembering just now that you get anesthesia with a syringe,

[makwandis]

calm down lol

i live in a free country i can choose to be calm or not! 😁

[auraguardians]

SO I slightly cleaned up an older sketch I had of Lucario!Riley from his "Mystery Dungeon" Verse because of @redlegend's post!

A few extra notes:

He looks more like a SINNOAN breed of Lucario, which has bigger, fluffier paws (better for traversing snow!)

(Riley's on the TALL AND LEAN side for one, though. That's just how Riley's built!)

He still has strangely aura-blue eyes as a Lucario!

And another Riley specific trait is that his face is a little more fox-like than the average Lucario. It's most noticeable around the ears!

(This is because the ancestor he takes after the most would have DEFINITELY been a Ninetails. So Riley has SOME Kitsune vibes!)

[aquamanandfriends]

Uncalm Communications

| muse: Eve Milne | open to: anyone | sexuality: pansexual | suggested connections: crush, ex, someone she’s hooking up with, lover, co-worker, classmate, maybe someone she met in counseling or rehab, have fun with it.

“Why is this such a big deal to you?” she snapped. “I’m not–I’m not trying to diminish it I just–I don’t get it and you’re not telling me–just fucking talk to me please. I do want to understand.” Eve took a deep breath, trying her best to calm her anger but she was struggling. They’d been going around in circles and she was ready to just walk but she wanted this to work. More than anything she wanted this to work… She took another deep breath. “Just talk to me. Please?”

[starloft-loki]

Mr. Gaiman!! How can you possibly suggest be calm!!

EXTRA! EXTRA! Trailer Tomorrow, Fans Run Frantic With Excitement.

[bei-b]

Minghao's advice makes Coups very uncalm Carat Land 2024 d2

[suhjihanma]

Ghostface Rindou like I’m talkin serial killer Rindou

Apologies for making this a couple days late. Work and getting prepared to travel this weekend has been draining. Hope you like it.

☩Pairing: Rindou Haitani / Female Reader ☩Word Count: 1,045 words ☩Content: Dubious content heading towards non-con, sex with strangers, mask kink, semi-blood play, knife play, hinting of death, drug and alcohol use, intoxicated female reader, characters under the influence, dirty talk, morbid fetishes, unfamiliar environments. ☩Author's Note: So, with kinktober closed and myself barely finishing it, I'm glad that you guys are reblogging and liking my content. I appreciate everyone who looks over my stories. You guys are awesome. This story can contain disturbing imagery so, read at your own risk. As always, minors, ageless blogs, and kink shamers do not interact. Thank you, guys.

The coldness compliments the warmth of two bodies. One that towered above a drugged-out body of a woman drunk in her mindless stupor. The other body, a man towered you with a presence that lingered nothing but caution, yet for some reason the ignorance of your arousal wanted more.

While fondling over the endless bliss of wanting to get handled raw over a rotting tree that stood on its last bits of life, you looked over to the man. Your drunken face quip his uncertainty. The glasses that rested against the bridge of his nose gleamed. Each head movement given to make sense of his environment.

An environment that made you question your gullibleness in people.

The atmosphere became filled with humidity, wet earth, and the lingering cologne that hindered the senses of smell. You wonder about the questionable events being at play. As the moonlight luminates the open space of hidden wetlands to marshes, the effects of the various drugs in your system were beginning to wear off. Looking around your surroundings, you questioned yourself about the situation that you were in.

The only memory that you had was that a man in glasses was conversing to you about random things at a gathering. You remembered how his warming, yet not intimidating charisma won you over. A soft smile crept through his face as you talked to him about the dull atmosphere surrounding the party. If memory serves correct, you told him your name and exchanged friendly formalities. Then, those friendly formalities changed into sensual conversing. Body exchanges coming closer as you complimented his costume of choice. You didn’t mind the stench of alcohol that reeked across his breath. A choice that many others like yourself have seen before with given popularity. Hell, you didn’t even seem to notice it until you got closer to his neck and whispered suggestive compliments.

Rindou...

Rindou was his name.

You wondered why costumes like his give off the arousal of the unknown. An unknown face that could be anyone, along with anonymity. It wasn’t something to dwell upon hardly. It was something more of a simple fetish that deemed attractive enough to mindlessly suggest a spot to talk more in “private”. Or, what he says.

Still, it was nice to let a masked person know about your sexual fetishes and how it correlated to his fetishes.

What wasn’t nice is that you were now in a position of something more than hooking up with a random stranger. A random stranger that was fully studying his surroundings. Looking around the dreaded atmosphere, the sounds of crunched, wetted leaves sounded from the bottom of your feet. You readjusted your standing position, unsure about what was going to happen next. The sounds weren’t comfortable at best, but realized now that the man standing above you grew to come closer. The personal space that was present grew to be more slim as the man now studied your frightening stance.

“I won't bite.” He laughs, a soft click of the tongue was made as his breath dances across the goosebumps of your neck. The uncalm nature of your stance was soon to fall as you respectfully joked back. You knew full well that the uneasiness was growing to be more uncomfortable. As you were about to retort with a smart remark of your own, you noticed his eyes grew more narrowed behind his glasses. The brown eyes that you were now enticed with were unrecognizable.

A low chuckle came from his chest as Rindou licked his tongue across the nape of your neck. A rough feeling of sorts, you couldn’t help but to squirm in front of his view. The sexual, yet uneasiness tension is continuing to cloud your hazy judgment as you look at him with a small pout, quite fitting for the moonlight.

“Why is it that I can tell that you’re lying?” You slurred your question, barely knowing that you almost tripped against a rooted tree stump hidden in the leaves. Rindou looks at you with quick concern before grabbing you by your wrist. A meek yelp came from your lips as you reacted from the quickness that came from your body movements.

“Promise. I won't bite.” He repeated his words, this time in a deeper tone of voice. It rumbles against his chest as he brushes something against your legs. While going through guessing games in your head, it was sharp to the touch, and cold. The object carelessly drags across the skin as your breathing begins to hitch. Your breathing begins to come shallow as you are now putting the pieces of what yet is to come. As each breath rises from your opened chest, the pressure from the object becomes harder to your skin. The bluntness of the object that slowly sank to your skin, soon to penetrate your opening layers.

You tried to back into the nearest rotting tree, hopefully the leverage of placing your back against something will hinder the pain but, the constant stabs of the man's knife grew to be unbearable.

A shrill scream came from your hitched voice. The pooling of a warm liquid that came from the open wound slowly ran across the opening layer of your skin, Rindou looked at the wound site, pleased. The sight of a woman in her most vulnerable state sent him to the edge of ecstasy. He continued to mark deep, puncturing wounds in your skin, ignoring the heads of mercy that spilled endlessly from your agape lips.

Each stab made you cry out in fear.

Each stab made Rindou moan out.

“Then again, of all the times I’ve done this with drugged out sluts like you, I probably will.”

The atmosphere filled with ominous sounds overlapped with Rindou’s barking laughter. Hearing it made you wince out in pain, along with fright.

You wanted him to stop, but your begging fell on deaf ears. Rindou wanted this as an opportunity for dominance. Having you fall to your bloody knees, begging for your life while shamelessly suggesting sexual favors was ideal. The thought of a person pleading something so desperate was enough to make the man grow a familiar dent in his jeans.

Even more so to a full-fledged orgasm as the thought of you clinging to the last pieces of life.

Rindou hoped that you wouldn’t pass out before receiving his pleasure.

It just wouldn't be fair.

[link-eats-rocks]

"I want to see that smile with my own eyes"

I'm super sick and stuck on the couch so to cheer myself up, here's a list of my favorite displays of Link and Zelda being in love. I'm just gonna freewrite as they pop in my head.

Their house, which Zelda has breathed life into, adding flowers and books and pretties. Link's house is filled with Zelda. He is surrounded by her. Zelda being his life, that must be his favorite place in the world.

Those final scenes in BotW where Link holds Zelda while she cries, and then Zelda holds Link while begging him to be okay. I'm a hopeless romantic, and in general few things twist my heart like those scenes.

The last mission of TotK being "Find Zelda", as that is the ultimate goal for Link. He's defeated Ganon and saved the kingdom, but now it's time for his paramount goal.

Also that entire scene like him pouring everything he's got into restoring his Zelda to human form, and then reaching for her and finally catching her to resolve the whole -series since Skyward Sword- I mean game and then holding her close, cradling her head, keeping her safe.

Zelda's first word after eons of mindless pain being "Link".

Link following the quests with Penn to search for Zelda from "sightings", whether he's done the Dragon Tears quest or not. Either way, I sense desperation.

Zelda's face both when talking about and when talking to Link.

The slow up and down look she gives him after some keese fly at him.

Zelda's powers only activating in a moment of passion over Link being in mortal danger.

Okay I am too sleepy to go on. That cheered me up. My ship is so canon 🥰😴

Feel free to add more for me to read while I'm trying not to toss my cookies

Oh! Edit adding:

Warm loving embrace

Warm loving embrace

Warm loving embrace

Warm loving embrace?

Warm loving embrace

[eldr1tchterror]

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I am so uncalm about this I just cannot be normal about it

[yes-this-account-is-alive]

"Omen! Just the person I was looking for!"

His head snaps to your direction with no delay, every particle of his being rippling at your presence. The smile you have is radiant, terribly so. It causes him to burn from the inside out with immense joy, a feeling he thought he had long lost along with his human body. He feels his head buzzing as you compliment the half knitted beanie he was working on (it's for you), praising the intricately woven patterns. Something inside him pulses in response as he recalls you referring to him as a person, not a monster.

Zillions of responses pop in and out of him but the only thing he musters is a quiet "...thank you." Almost bashful in tone, even with his gravelly voice. Amazingly (to him at least), your grin grows wider. You stare at him as he continues to knit, he really can't handle the undivided attention. The buzzing gets more intense as seconds tick by, his bandages straining to contain the energetic particles within them.

"...so, what did you need?" he starts in hopes to turn your gaze off his hands before he completely loses control of himself.

"Oh! I... was wondering if you were free tonight," you look up at him, staring directly into his hood.

He wavers upon making 'direct eye contact'. He thinks he might not last the whole interaction, being uncalm makes it hard for him to stay corporeal. Yet, the brimming excitement is also what forces him to keep himself together. Last thing he wants to do is embarrass himself in front of you.

"You see... I was hoping we could watch some documentaries, together-"

"Yes."

He nearly explodes upon blurting that out, he didn't even let you finish asking! But the delightful spark that lights your eyes up takes him by surprise, he is unable to curse at himself for the blunder. Gleefully, you hop down from the sofa and head off, though not before letting him know the time and place.

"My room, 8pm!"

And as soon as you are out of sight, he lets out a strangled noise. His form deflates as he catches his breath. The happiness within him simmers down into a sense of accomplishment. Though, it quickly boils back up as he registers that you just invited him to a documentary date. He teleports off into his room to steel himself before he sees you again at night. Truly, a hopeless mess.

[danrifics]

NO SIGNAL DNP VIDEO THOUGHTS

okay

1 dan you don’t need twinks you have a twink right next to you??

2 i assumed this was gonna be alcohol .. but we’re drinking licorice and soup?? okay girl

3. HONEY THATS KETCHUP DAN WTF DONT JUST DROP HONEY LIKE THAT BYE

4 bitch you did those flashlights at the exact same time come on now

5 licorice nut….????

6. ready for a little tongue adventure.. girl stop

7 dan hiding his face while licking the licorice im dying. you’re so right we don’t need a banana repeat 👀

8. dans trump impression?? why was it so good???

9. top secret dnp project pls reveal yourself (but not until im home from norway pls) i wanna know what it is so bad and immediately i have decided… hard launch

10. nah this cake business okay. wdym dans mum is baking dan a cake (cute) but dan wants to make sure phil can have it so even tho he wants a chocolate cake he can’t have one???? girl you can have whatever cake you want but like that’s cute af like this might be the most married i’ve ever seen them be lmfao

11. i like that every potential sip phil tries to get dan deported by an increasingly more serious government agency

12. good video will watch again when i’m not in the sea and not rocking side to side in uncalm waters

[sun-e-chips]

good morning. today i am going to finish one of my wip drafts or die trying

[curekibouka-writing]

The voice acting in book 7 chapter 5

I have no time to make full posts about any of these 😭 Just know that I’m extremely impressed with the range of tones every character had in this update 😭😭😭

Spoilers under the cut

There’s Baul who’s usually shouting but this time he has to be the voice of reason when Lilia’s uncalm and that’s just so good 😭 He’s so cool when he reasons with Lilia and also take lead of the troop

There’s Meleanor. We first hear her singing a lullaby to Malleus egg which was super soft and gentle, and then suddenly she’s blasting everyone with lightning and sounds incredibly threatening. She continues to switch between the two tones in the middle of sentences throughout the following conversation. Definitely recommend paying attention to her tone changes, they’re very important.

There’s Lilia. Because really since when does Midorikawa ever disappoint? I was most impressed by that one moment when they were escaping through the waterways, and Lilia insists that he should go back to help Meleanor, but after a LOT of convincing from Baul he realised he can’t go back and he wears his mask and takes charge again and the colour of his voice changes completely. He was juggling between a respectful tone and a close friend tone when he talks to Meleanor too. Also note that all of the aforementioned are completely different than the modern Lilia that we know of. The Lilia in Silver’s childhood is also voiced and he’s much sounding closer to our Lilia but still different. Which means in this chapter there are at least four DISTINCT NEW voices that Midorikawa devised for Lilia.

And then there’s Silver. The contrast with his normal self… HELP. Silver weeping is already heartbreaking enough, but wait till Silver YELLS at full volume how he’s a child of the enemy and how he doesn’t deserve to be loved by Lilia or Malleus. There’s also some parts where Silver sounds like he’s given up on everything and he has no energy to go on but it still somehow sound different from his usual sleepy voice. Also there was a very short part with younger Silver and Sebek? I’m guessing around 13-14 years old. They were learning levitation magic. Shimazaki voiced that Silver too and somehow he can be excited while still sounding sleepy??? WHAT KIND OF MAGIC IS THIS JEJCHSVDKHCHWJDKF

But above all that, this time I was actually most impressed by Sebek?!!??? The amount of tone changes he had in this one update is INSANE. I know he’s a man of many emotions but this is so insane that I can’t even list it out. There’s determined Sebek, embarrassed Sebek, smug Sebek, sarcastic Sebek, proud Sebek, thoughtful Sebek, 14yo Sebek and 12yo-ish Sebek voiced by the same person but sound different, there’s also Sebek crying and yelling at Silver saying he’s an idiot if he thinks Lilia doesn’t love him. He never has a giant switch moment where he doesn’t talk like himself the way Lilia and Silver did, he’s pretty much always his arrogant noisy self, but the amount of nuances his arrogant noisy self can have was just insanely impressive.

Also Meleanor sang and Lilia sang and Malleus also sang… oh yes I forgot to talk about Malleus. I missed hearing him gentle and happy with his found family 😭 He sounded like a big brother to Silver and Sebek in Lilia’s memories. Also not his awkward first encounter with Silver help me……

In conclusion this update is nothing without voice so I beg everyone please please please please please read it with voice pleaseeeeee 😭😭😭

[chaosteddybear]

Smut prompt for Sasli or Hexx (your choice) & Raphael: 'i'm not jealous.'

Omg I think I can do them together. I never have before but it would be fun! Canonically their universes don't overlap - or at least if they do, I have never thought about it.... But if Sasli and Hexx existed together, (Hexx being the Haarlep in Sasli's universe ofc)... They would... And it might go.. Like this

"I think..they're jealous.." Sasli grunted into the pillow between the thuds of their bodies meeting. She smiled, instigating uncalm. "Why haven't they joined yet?"

Raphael didn't pause thrusting - his stomach continued to push her tail up from its base with every thrust, exposing her for his hand to reach below and his thumbs to curl between her cheeks, demanding their way in. She yelped as he pressed in with his sharp finger, opening herself for him, leaning into it, sighing in satisfaction.

He hummed and reached forward to pull her hair.

"Is that what you want, you devil?" he accused. "My concubus, jealous?" It was.

She let out a whimper that became a moan, sneaking her tail around his torso and pressing into his mouth, making him shudder and press farther into her with both his dick and thumb, biting down, making her shriek from the pain, the intrusions, the hunger. His hand quickly moved to her throat to silence her, pulling her towards him and forcing her back into an arch. He spat out her tail.

"You might be right," he spoke this time, soothingly, a teasing bite to his words as he enunciated them. She clenched around him with a moan and pulled him down so his body made full contact with hers.

Hexx cleared their throat.

The weight of him made her struggle with muffled sounds, but he didn't stop going, breathing heavily right into her ear now.

"You can be so cruel sometimes." He pressed down on her shoulders, shoving her into the bed with his newly freed hand.

Hexx smirked. He was right, she could..deliciously so.

He turned his head towards the door and eyed the blue devil leaning against the wall, watching them.

"I'm not jealous," Hexx lied and both Raphael and Sasli chuckled. Their ears were fuming. Their tail twitched eagerly. Who was this girl to think she could just insert herself into their perfect life? A gasp interrupted Sasli's savoring amusement as Raphael pressed into her pulse with a sated smile, angering Hexx more.

They walked towards the other two, climbed on the bed, and straddled both of their legs. Leaning over Raphael to line up their bodies, they synced up with his rhythm and spread his cheeks.

"Good boy," Raphael affirmed. Sasli whined. Hess smiled and squeezed his hips.

The next sound was Raphael's grunt as Hexx pressed into him, slowly, their ridged waves and pearls pressing against him and entering in a cruelly slow pace, as Hexx savored every moment of bringing Raphael some painful punishment. His cock pressed farther into Sasli, Raphael still pushing her down with one hand and pulling her hips up with the other, keeping their bodies flush, making hers shake in accordance with his own.

Once finally hilted, Raphael with tears in his eyes, Hexx pulled out just enough to quickly push him into Sasli with a smirk on their face. She screamed and begged, her nails digging holes into the bed, her teeth poking holes into the pillow.

Their tail joined hers around his torso, passed it, and pressed into his throat. Hexx threw their head back to savor the sounds of him choking and her struggling. They reached around him and teased his nipple, making him whimper and drool onto her.

Sasli became Raphael's pin cushion, fully under Hexx's control, just as she wanted.

Hehehehe, that's all for now 🤭 thank you! I write groups a lot but I think this is my first time with no overlapping pronouns 😂😂

I am so sorry for the delay, I had a bunch of travel and it took some time to brainstorm the exact dynamics of this trio.

[cosmiccrushes]

Not Part Of The Crew

Law x OC || 2.4k chapter || 20.4k total

you can read the rest here :)

notes: I had a lot of fun with this chapter! I hope you all enjoy it too :) the story is outlined and it's looking like it'll probably end up in the neighborhood of 30 chapters, ~60k words.

CW: more violence from Law, mentions of vomit, descriptions of injuries || I'm going to be so real, I didn't want to write about medical treatment so I did a scene skip to move past it. Let Trafalgar Law work in peace and quiet, you know. It's none of my business.

CH 9

Law watches the sonar intently, fingers tight around his sheathed sword. 

“Ship ahead!” Penguin calls from his careful monitoring of the screens.  

Law squints at the display, eyes drawn to the ping of movement cresting onto the edge of the map. Finally. Law’s muscles ache from being clenched so tight all these hours they’ve spent giving chase. The feeling of inaction gripping onto his jaw, pressing his teeth hard against each other. 

The Polar Tang is steadily gaining on the other ship. “Captain,” Bepo calls at the helm, studying the readouts. “It looks like they’re altering their course.” 

He confirms his suspicions with his navigator. “Bepo, what’s their new heading?” 

“Their new course appears to be heading back towards Ashita Island.” 

Law knew that would be the answer. Can feel it in every other beat of his heart. Too late. Thump. She’s dead. Thump. You failed again. Thump.  “They’ve found her.” 

“Oh no, oh no,” Bepo frets, worried because Law is worried, given he barely met Cerulean before. 

“Intercept them,” Law orders. “Wait until we’re drawing portside to surface. I want them caught off guard.” I want their ship ripped apart and flooded to the bottom of the ocean. Law doesn’t say that desire aloud. He long ago stopped voicing his most violent thoughts. Discovered there was no need, no point. Not when you have devil fruit powers that can surgically remove people from parts of their body. What were verbal threats to that? Law knows his crew will fight if he says to, but he’d rather avoid any unnecessary bloodshed. 

He addresses the crew. “I’ll go above and handle this. Everyone else stay inside. I don’t plan to turn this into a fight.” 

Clione folds his arms over his chest. “And what if they do intend to turn whatever this is into a fight?” Uni and Ikkaku nod in agreement. 

“Then it will be a short one. For them.” Law knows his crew deserves more of an explanation. Can see their disgruntlement in the rigid lines of Clione’s arms. The Heart Pirates didn't hand out favors or perform special rescues. Law understands why his crew is confused and questioning his actions. He just doesn’t know what to tell them. Or, rather, what to tell them that doesn’t sound as if he’s completely diverged from his typical modus operandi of calm, calculating deduction.

He feels concerningly uncalm and uncalculating right now. Unable to deduce a rationale to explain his behavior to his crew other than “because I want to,” which even to Law’s own ears rings hollow. The Heart Pirates sailed for the New World, like so many others seeking glory and adventure. It was easy to validate actions in the course of this goal. But what Law is doing now? Cerulean Blake isn’t going to help them reach the New World. She’s a detour. Going after a pirate crew to help her is a major detour. Trafalgar Law doesn’t do detours. His crew knows this.   

So Law says nothing. Walks out of the room, heading for a path less traveled- by him at least.  

***

The shouts of alarm ringing out signal that Law’s intention to shock the pirates has been achieved. Good. He walks with long, measured strides to the center of the Polar Tang’s deck, water still draining over the sides. “Who’s the captain?” He raises his voice just enough to get their attention. 

A tall, slim man with a beard steps forward. “I am. Who’s asking?”

Law adopts a bored tone. “Are you asking because you really don’t know or because you think it will give you some measure of an upperhand?” 

A flash of anger crosses the pirate captain’s face. “What does the infamous Trafalgar Law want with us?” Contempt drips from the man’s words, yet his hands do not reach for his sword, they fold across his chest defensively. Trafalgar Law knows he’s already won. This confrontation will end with reluctant cooperation or a swift death for this captain. 

“With you, I want nothing.” He blinks slowly, condescendingly at the pirate. “You have a stowaway.” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Is ignorance a strategy for you or simply unavoidable?” 

The captain’s mustache quivers as his mouth twists in rage, still he doesn’t rise to Law’s bait. Bait that Law is casting much more aggressively than is probably necessary. The rash part of him wants to hook something on his line just so he has a reason to flay it. He forces himself to reel in his ire. A diplomatic solution is the preferable outcome- one that won’t get his crew or Cerulean caught in the crossfire. Law tires again. Opting for formality designed to intimidate. To give these pirates time to become truly afraid, to recognize that coming between Trafalgar Law and what he seeks is a death sentence.

“I have information that a wanted pirate boarded your ship. I’m sure you’ve seen the bounty. That’s my interest.” 

The captain scowls. “So you want us to hand over the reward to you, instead of keeping it for ourselves? Why would we do that?”

Law taps a finger on his sword resting against his shoulder. “No. I want you to hand over the stowaway and consider your reward sailing away from here with your lives.” 

The captain goes still. “And if we refuse?” 

“It’s your choice if you want no reward,” Law says mildly. 

For a beat, Law thinks they’ll easily comply. Then the captain’s mouth sets in a thin line and now his hand reaches for his sword. Mistake. 

Law languidly lifts a finger. A hook ready to sink into flesh. “Room.” His power swells out, enveloping the pirates. He makes quick work of relieving his catch of its head. Many heads, in fact. Quite a few appendages too. He boards the ship, tuning out the cacophony of frightened, furious shouts. He descends to the lower decks, certain that Cerulean would have been thrown in the brig upon discovery. At least he knows she’s alive, based on the captain’s anger at having the promise of berry snatched from him. 

He hits the lowest deck and a wave of stale, sour air swirls up, filling his nose. It’s sparsely lit down here, but Law can see a row of iron-barred cells tucked along the backside of the ship, opposite the stairs. As he paces closer, a form huddled on the floor of one cell takes shape. 

Her clothes are a bloody, disheveled mess. The contents of her stomach are heaved upon the floor beside her. Law sees red. Red like the apples she must’ve hidden with. Red like the fire that fills Law’s nightmares. These pirates did this to her. They would deserve the gutting he could give them. Law brings his sword down swiftly against the padlock, bursting it open. He swings the cell door wide and steps inside. Cerulean doesn’t stir. His breath hitches as he bends down, fearful that she’s already succumbed to her wounds. He lays two fingers against the soft skin of her neck. A faint, fluttering pulse. She’s alive. Leaning in closer, he can just make out the nearly imperceptible shallow rise and fall of her chest. 

His medical training kicks into gear. Without knowing what happened to her, what’s wrong, it’s dangerous to unnecessarily move her. But with this disgusting prison cell below and a band of disembodied pirates above, they can hardly stay here. He brushes tangled and blood-matted curls out of her eyes. A gash across her temple is revealed. Her bottom lip is split open and still oozing. The dark purple of bruising already colors under her eyes. She feels feverish beneath his palm. She needs urgent medical care and he can’t do that here. 

He swallows hard. “Cerulean?” He says quietly, in an attempt to rouse her. She doesn’t respond. As gently as the Surgeon of Death can, he loops her arm across his shoulders, scooping his forearms under her knees and back as he lifts her against him. She moans in pain, burying her face against his chest, but doesn’t wake up. “I know. I’m sorry. I should’ve gotten here sooner.” He keeps his footfalls as steady as he can when he ascends back to the upper deck.

He considers outright killing the pirates, but doesn’t want to delay Cerulean’s medical care. Cutting out that many hearts takes time. Another idea comes to him, like a shark gliding through water, scenting blood. He releases his hold, tosses the crew back their bodies. They collapse to the ground in exhausted heaps. Law’s powers will do that to a person. As for the captain- Law carves out a single organ, tosses it into the sea. Let these pirates be a message. How worth it, was one bounty, when the price was your heart?

Looking down at Cerulean’s face scrunched with pain, Law experiences a horrible flickering moment of uncertainty. Was he the one setting the price, or paying it?

*** 

Bepo fusses nervously over Cerulean, trailing Law as he carries her to the medical bay. “Oh dear, what did they do to her?” Law doesn’t respond, just picks up his pace. 

“Set a course away from here, away from Asihta Island. Doesn’t matter where.” Law tells Bepo before stepping over the threshold into the medical suite. Bepo hurries off to fulfill Law’s order. Slowly, Law lays Cerulean down on a metal examination table, doing what he can not to further hurt her. First things first, he needs to determine how bad her head wound is. He felt the damp blood leaking onto his shoulder while he’d carried her. Can see the dampness darkening the curls at the back of her neck.

Trafalgar Law takes a deep, steadying breath. Forging his quiet fury into a razor-edged focus. He can be angry for Cerulean later, if she’ll have it. Right now, he needs to ensure she lives long enough to decide if she’s obliged or offended by his help. 

***

With the aid of his devil fruit powers and medical training, Cerulean’s condition is stabilized. He found a nasty wound on the back of her head- she must’ve taken a blow from behind. She has several fractured ribs, broken fingers on one hand, internal bleeding, another gash requiring stitches at her temple. And more bruising than he could believe. Was one woman, armed with nothing but a shipment of apples, really a threat worth this act of violence? Law is suddenly, murderously happy he left those pirates alive. Let them be a message, indeed. You want Cerulean Blake, you’ll have to go through Trafalgar Law. Maybe his name would finally be good for something. Provided he can convince Cerulean to accept his help this time. To confide in him who the hell these Fang Pirates are and what her master plan is for dealing with them. 

He drags a chair to her bedside, dropping heavily onto the seat. Elbows propped on knees, fingers clasped together, his chin resting on top. He watches Cerulean sleep. Wonders if she'll demand to be dropped off somewhere the second she wakes up. Carefully avoids contemplating why it's so important to him to get her to stay. 

***

At some point Law dozes off, legs stretched in front of him, back slumped against the chair. He realizes this when a shifting of blankets and a low groan rouses him. He swipes a hand down his face, wiping away the sleep. 

“Cerulean?” 

She blinks at him through bleary eyes. “Ah, so this is how it’s going to be.”

Law lifts an eyebrow at her, unsure what she means.

“It would seem that hell likes to listen in while you die. Dirty eavesdroppers!” She raises her voice, directing the last bit at the floor. Grimacing at her own volume. 

Law’s concern for her head injury intensifies. “What are you talking about?” 

“Well, I’m assuming I’m dead and this is my own personal hell-” Law casts his eyes up in mild exasperation. “Because I was thinking about you right before I died and here you are.” 

“You were thinking about me?” Law asks quietly. Unwilling to name the emotion clopping its way through his chest, treacherously akin to hope.  

She glares at him. “Yes. About that judgey eyebrow of yours. And how hilariously ironic it was that the last offer of help I’d refused was from a doctor of all people. Which I very obviously desperately needed because of, you know, the dying. The universe hates me,” she finishes dramatically. 

Amazing, Trafalgar Law thinks, that even recently hovering at death’s door, she manages to cast her aspersions upon the world with such gusto. Admirable from a woman who mere hours ago was all but bleeding out on his operating table. Confirmation that her stubbornness might just get her killed. 

Law knows this conversation should wait for her to heal, but he can't help the accusations climbing up his throat. 

“What were you thinking? Hiding in cargo on a pirate ship?” 

“Well I didn't know it was a pirate ship at the time.” She says indignantly. “It’s not as if I planned exclusively for pirate-destined crates.” 

“That's because your plan was basically non-existent.” 

“My plan wasn't that bad!”

“You ended up on pirate ships twice.” He pauses thoughtfully. “I suppose three times, if you count mine again.”  

“Well, maybe that's not what I'm measuring success by!” She scoffs. 

Law deadpans. “Seems tangentially related to the goal of staying alive. Which you do have, don’t you?” 

“Ha! I did stay alive.” She tosses her head against the pillow, clearly proud of this. “And you're missing an important detail. I successfully snuck onto two pirate ships!” She waggles her index and middle fingers in his face. “Once I work out the kinks in the plan, I've got a new, free, foolproof travel method.” She beams at him. It doesn’t reach her eyes though, rimmed red and squinted with pain. 

“You can't be serious.”

“Like a poison.” 

Law runs a hand through his hair. ���Rue, you cannot do that again. It's too dangerous.” 

The playful shade coloring her smile slips away, her breath goes shallow. Law realizes with a start that this is the first time he’s referred to her as “Rue,” not more formally as “Cerulean.” Perhaps she dislikes this? But no, she told him he could call her that when they met. Law isn’t entirely sure why he hadn’t, why it feels so vulnerable and revealing now. 

He clears his throat, standing. “You need to rest. I was only able to do so much, your body still needs time to recover.” He heads to the door, but her soft voice makes him pause on the threshold. 

“Thank you, Trafalgar Law.” 

He knows what the words must cost her. Knows a debt weighs you down like stones in your pocket. He looks back at her, nods once and leaves.