~~~

Here we are, don't turn away now,

We are the warriors that built this town

Here we are, don't turn away now

We are the warriors that built this town

From dust.

~~~

"Sweet. You are up to it?" Luffy's decision spiked a subtle reaction from the redhead, while a bizarre picture of Five Night's at Freddy's appeared in my mind. My gut sure wasn't ready for the extreme plan the others were plotting.

Kid turned to the greenette, his sneer spread from one corner of the face to the other, stretching the lingering scars that were going down his eye. "Hear that Bartolomeo, Capone? I know you don't like to drag things up, but is it necessary to go into business right away? Isn't this a perfect opportunity to see what they are made of? Throw some punches there and here, testing them out."

"Hell no." I hissed. Whatever the male said in response, it was lost in a whiny complaining.

"Why not Y/n? It sounds like fun!"

I made a face at Luffy and put a hand on his arm, tightening the grip to show at least a bit of impact in my next words. "But it won't be. And you just came. That's a big disadvantage for us."

That almost made Luffy rethink his statement. Almost. His frown let me know he was deep in thoughts, something that he rarely did or was capable of.

"Yes, babies need some beauty sleep." From nowhere, Bartolomeo decided to interfere and add fuel to the fire. He mockingly gestured towards us while his laughter filled the stiff room.

"That's it!" Franky yelled, theatrically sliding down his shades and siding besides Luffy. "Were doing this NOW! I'm super pissed off!" While my body froze at the remark, my stare dug deep into his wild expression, so by the time he realized he was in trouble, the male had shut up and said no more.

Kid beside me chuckled lowly, the rumble breaking my chain of sighs, which only increased the frustration that oozed from me. Of course, that brought even more amusement to the guy. Allegedly, he cared less what the outcome would be. Not going anywhere and staying safe behind four walls must have driven him crazy to the point of bestowing an actual compliment. "Respect. You!" The redhead pointed at the male that tried to blend in with the bookcase and huge plant.

"M-me?" Usopp stuttered, the poor guy emerging from his spot and stepping closer to his friends. He was struggling to find a point to stare at but failed when his and the redhead's eyes met.

"Who else?! What are you good at, except for hiding behind your momma's skirt?" The redhead spat.

"S-shooting." He squinted when Kid showed off his bare teeth.

"Laser tag doesn't count, nerd. What else?!"

"It's not that... What I meant... I'm a good archer..." The long-nose mumbled.

"Hmmm...Good. You are next, Orange. "

"I have a name." Nami's eyes looked like they might pop out. With fists clenched and red face, it seemed as if she was ready to attack anyone who was close to her.

"Don't care. Again, specialty."

"Thieving." She murmured. That received an arched non-existent brow, but luckily all comments were detained, so no harm was done.

"Marimo, Cyborg-guy, Spiky bluenette, Mimosa girl."

In comparison to the first two, the blunt trio quickly and without complaints answered to the required question. "Swordsmanship."

"Robotics."

Robin was a bit reluctant, however that didn't show whatsoever in her nonchalant posture. "Hacking."

Then when all attention shifted to the shy Vivi, she averted her gaze down to her feet. "Athletics and agility." She whispered.

Kid, his face expressed by the slightest curve at the mouth's corner and brute confidence, nodded and turned to the remaining guys. "I not going to ask you three brothers what you're capable of. Surprise me. So, what do you think, Capone? If we are putting someone in danger, let's see if they are worth the trouble of saving."

"If this won't take long... I see no objections from my side. You Cannibal?"

He was plain bone-idle lazy, yawning while openly picking his nose. No wonder why Nami maintained minimal contact with the older male. "Nope."

"Hell yeah! Trafalgar, would you do the honour?"

The raven slumped his shoulders and lifelessly screwed up his face, obviously fed up with being ordered around. "Just don't destroy my place, Eustass-ya. Ok, let's get this over with...Strange part of the group...follow me. And don't touch a single thing. I'm especially referring this to you, Strawhat-ya."

Luffy puckered his lips, murmuring under his breath something apprehensively. "Such a party-pooper."

Fiddling with his keys, Law ignored the protest and nudged towards the girls. "I'll leave you all to Bonney."

"Where are we going?" I asked, having a difficulty placing myself beside Nami and Robin with all the ruckus.

The room was slightly cold, so it pleasantly surprised me when I got aware of the heat on my back. I reluctantly shifted, only to bump into a hard surface and serious expression. "You aren't going anywhere yet." Kid whispered, deliberately blowing into my ear to seize the last part of my concentration. He slipped his hand under my arm and tugged me closer. "She and I have things to discuss."

"Kid?" The blonde halted at the doorway, letting his covered eyes roam the room before anyone noticed and surreptitiously expected an order.

"Killer, go. It won't take long."

"Roger."

~~~

After the last person left, I immediately jumped into the argument, crossing my arms over my chest. "What do you think you are doing, Kid? What's all this secrecy about? I swear if you do something to my friends..."

He stepped towards me. "Then what, mousey? Finish that threat." Kid took another step forward, backing me against the bookshelves. The light ominous aura subconsciously forced my hands to fall on my sides as he put his hands on the edge of each shelf behind me, capturing me in between. And as he leaned forward, I could smell the familiar metallic, fresh scent of his hair and clothes. "What are you going to do?" The male whispered, his breath sending a warm chill down my spine. The sudden proximity confused me to the point of staying mute and gazing back at him with cow eyes.

"Exactly my point. Nothing. So just trust me, ok?! Shit, I'm not going to blow up anything..."

Yet. He forgot to say 'yet'.

I crunched my forehead. "I do trust you but..."

"What?" His voice was harder now, with an edge.

By that point, my heart was galloping like crazy, while he relaxingly gave of the predator's atmosphere. I felt the soft panic that could have grown or fade, depending on what I was to do next. "Under one condition... I won't bloody hell stand aside. Understand? Look." I carefully raised my hand. "The wound is healed. There's no reason to hold back. I can fight. Heck, even I know some moves. They don't just give black belts to anyone. I earned it for a specific reason."

The left side of his faint black lip tugged upwards creating a sinister smirk on his god like face. His attribute gradually turned into something that resembled a deep rumbling laughter. "Mousey, you spread your wings while I was tolerant towards your behaviour. I like that. But if you get a single scratch, be prepared for punishment. Till now I've been playing this little game of yours, however..." He grabbed the palm of my hand and elevated it above my head while his other sneakily hugged my waist and pressed me to his chest. "All well healed, aren't ya? No restrictions from now on then?" I felt a hot breath on my neck, then the tender brush of lips. Burning as they made contact with my sensitive skin.

A gentle flush of pink had arisen in my cheeks. "N-not now...S-someone might come..."

"Are you perhaps inviting yourself for later? Mousey is all bold now, huh? Don't you worry, this is just the beginning. Watch me, and only me, Y/n." He grabbed the tip of my chin and tilted it upwards, averting my gaze from the floor.

Now staring deep in his eyes while he was grinning, Kid slurred: "Let me fill you with all possible feelings until you beg me to stop. Now, get ready. I want to see you fight. Make me regret ever doubting in you."

I was frozen to the spot. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. "Yes...I mean...Roger, Kid."

"And if you'll even once start thinking about backing away or giving up... Beware. There's no place for cowards. Got it?"

"Got it." I sensed, rather than saw, him smile.

"Good girl. Now go before I rampage you." That was my cue to leave before an additional thought was conceived in the redhead's mind.

But...

I took a deep breath at the exit. Quickly spinning on my heels and marching back to the bewildered male, I leaned up on the tips of my toes and tentatively pressed my lips to his.

.

.

.

"Why do I feel like barfing whenever Eustass is...in a good mood?" Bartolomeo murmured, flipping another strand of his wild hair to its rightful place.

"Mind your own business, nosey bitch. And you!" He barked at the raven. "What are you looking at, ass?!"

"That was my line, Eustass-ya. I don't see why I would ever lower myself to your level of brain-cell shortage."

Even in the dim light, they saw Kid's bared teeth. It was a cheshire grin of sorts, the kind that was so wide it was more as if he wanted to eat everyone. "Nice comeback, bastard. Shall we see if I can change that?"

"I'm even amazed that you have any at all. Considering the fact that you're getting jealous over bunch of kids... Seriously Eustass-ya, that must be a new low for you, ha."

"Who said anything about being jealous?!"

"Did I hit a nerve, perhaps? Usually you have that awful mug plastered all over. Now it is readable like an open book."

Kid clicked his mouth and stomped to the doctor, grabbing a handful amount of fabric from his shirt. "Oh yeah, then can you read this?!" The redhead's clenched fist would have almost collided with Law's jaw, if it weren't for Capone, meddling in between the rivals.

"Even though I enjoy watching a good fight, this isn't the right place. Your bloodlusts are too strong for those children, got that? Settle it outside or surpass the urge for killing. Seriously, if this were a one-man operation, I would have dumped you ages ago." The older man spat.

"Tch, shitty old geezer." Kid said and took a brusque step behind, avoiding the sharp knife that instead of burying itself deep into his flesh and harming the redhead, got stuck in the wall.

"Next time, it will be your head, Eustass. Watch your tongue."

"No gun? And a warning?" The mischievous male whistled. "Must be a nice day for you not to murderer me right away. It's too bad I don't have the same resistance as you do."

"That would certainly be a blessing to all of us. Maybe then you wouldn't be indebted for vandalism."

"It was a one-time thing, let it go."

Capone gritted his teeth. "I will when someone decides to pay up the damage. And I'm not sure what 'one time' in your vocabulary means. That idiotic pranks had cost me a sum of money and reliable men."

"If they are dead, my hands are tied. But if it's connected with finances and crap like that, I advise you to have a nice chat with Heat." Kid said while bandaging up his wrists.

"Why are you grinning?" Bartolomeo asked, suspiciously eyeing the content male.

"I'll finally beat something up."

Breath hissed through Law's teeth. "Shit, I knew this was a bad idea. Penguin, give me my phone. I'm calling Bonney."

"Relax, doc. You'll be there. You can just stitched them up and they'll be like new. Simple."

"Your logic never seizes to amaze me." Murmured the raven.

Everyone in the room could tell when Kid was getting into the game. His arms went all rigid and his muscles popped right out. "Weaklings can't choose how they die. I do. So shut it and move." His shoulder deliberately bumped into the raven's, consequently exposing his bare back to the participants. The scars covered the skin like a hundred silvery pink snakes. Yet, there was one that was unmistakably the most evident. It was broad and rough. Whatever had caused this old wound was blunt and the injury had never been stitched or treated properly.

"I want to have my fun."

To be continued ...