Two Hearts

How Old Are You?

Aisuru pointed her fork at Penguin as she swallowed the chunk of steak. "I'm serious! I mean, it's not like they paraded raw sea-prism stone in front of me and said 'this is what your powers are!'"

He and Shachi tried not to laugh, exchanging glances. Jean just shook his head, arms crossed. "But you touched it, and felt weaker?"

"I was hungry!" she defended, blushing as she moved the fork to point at him, "I've been forced onto a diet of bread, potato, and water for the last few days. The prospect of having real food was... anyway, I didn't even know you could make anything but like, cages and handcuffs out of sea-prism stone!"

Ikkaku leaned over the counter, joining the conversation with a patient smile. "To be fair, guys, none of us knew it could be crafted like that, either."

"See?" Aisuru shoveled more food into her mouth, "She's on my side!"

"Still," Ikkaku put her chin in her hand, "Did no one ever teach you not to talk to strangers?"

Aisuru about fell out of her chair as she swiveled around to glare at the other woman. "First Captain thinks I can't be left alone, and now you're giving me kindergarten lessons? How old do I look to you people?"

Shachi adjusted his hat with a cough. "Not old enough for Captain."

"Probably like, fifteen?" Penguin tried to talk over Shachi, but both voices were heard.

Aisuru puffed out her cheeks. "Well, you're both wrong!"

"How old are you, then?" Jean laughed. "We're all curious now."

She felt her face getting hot as she toyed with the uneaten broccoli on her plate. "I don't know." she mumbled.

"Hah?" Shachi leaned close, cupping his hand around his ear to hear her better, "I didn't quite catch that. What was the number?"

Aisuru scooted away from him with a scowl. "Old enough." Her voice took on a sullen tone, making the crew giggle collectively.

Penguin snickered, "Old enough to what? Tie your shoes?"

"I can even count to ten!" she snapped, crossing her arms and pouting. "Why are you being so rude?" She tapped her foot against the leg of the table.

"Aww," Ikkaku mocked, "Is our beloved princess getting cranky? Is it nap time? Oop!" she closed one bright orange shutter, blocking a blob of broccoli from smashing her in the face. "No, no, no," she waggled her finger, "We don't throw food here, Aisuru."

Aisuru's face was hot. She could feel embarrassed tears trying to escape. "I spent a lot of time sedated, okay?" Her tone was hard. "Sometimes they'd just leave me like that, and I don't know how long I was there, and I don't know the year I was born. So get off my back." She stood, leaving her plate as it was, and stalked out of the cafeteria.

"Oops..." she heard Penguin mumble as the door slammed behind her.

She stormed into Bepo's room, leaning against the door. The bear was sitting on his bed, reading a manga. He looked up at her and blinked. "You didn't knock."

"Sorry," Aisuru deflated, "the crew are being mean. I just thought I would come in here and sit with you for a bit, if that's okay?"

Bepo nodded. "Bepo think's that's okay." He patted the bed, "You can come sit with Bepo! But why not the captain?"

She flopped onto the bed, laying in the bear's lap. "I'm mad at him, too."

"Oh?" Bepo set the book down, patting Aisuru's arm.

"Yeah," she sighed, "He's using my own skills against me, and I'm frustrated with him. But mostly I'm sad, 'cause the crew isn't wrong... Like... It is weird that I don't know exactly how old I am, and that I don't know anything about sea-prism stone... but I don't like the way they're saying things. It makes me feel... Small."

"Oh." He repeated, looking up at the ceiling that Ikkaku had painted for him. The sun was in the middle, where his light was, and it had a sun-dog around it. There were some clouds at the edges, running down the pale blue walls as well. "Sometimes they do that." Bepo admitted, "But they're not trying to be mean. They just want to know things. Bepo wants to read."

"That's fine." Aisuru yawned. "Can I just lay here for a bit?"

Bepo picked his book back up. The two stayed in the quiet for several minutes. Aisuru had never really been comfortable with situations like this before, always needing something to fill the silence, but it was... nice. Being close to Bepo, with no danger or discomfort was heartening. Is this what having a friend feels like?

Someone knocked softly on the door. Bepo looked up, book down. "Sorry, yes, come in?"

Law stepped inside, greeted by Bepo's generally confused look and a suspicious scowl from Aisuru. He addressed the latter. "Aisuru-ya, you need to go finish your food. We don't waste on this ship."

"Someone's sulky." She replied to his toneless order as she sat up.

His eyes narrowed. "I don't want you getting into the habit of throwing food, either. You're twenty four. Act like it."

Aisuru just glared at him, rising to her feet. "And how would you know that? Anyway, you're right. I won't do it again." She tried to push past him, but he stood obstinately in her way.

"The island Keita Shima was destroyed seventeen years ago. You were seven." He studied her for a moment before continuing. "Jean-ya told me what happened. I did some research. Now you know."

She hung her head and mumbled a thank you. 

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Law sat beside Bepo and leaned against him. The bear wrapped his arm around him. "Captain, don't you want to go with her? You haven't eaten yet today..."

The captain's voice was calm but not steady. "Bepo-ya, I came across some interesting things when I investigated Aisuru's story. The island in the South Blue... Doflamingo destroyed it. He crossed the Red Line and went back to the North Blue."

Bepo geckered his understanding. There had to have been a particular reason Doflamingo would make such an arduous journey.

"I remember when he left. I... overheard Doflamingo saying he needed to find a family member who had been taken from them by the Yonko at that time." Law held his face in one hand. "Belov. D Sparrow was Aisuru-ya's mother."

The bear hugged his captain as tightly as he dared. Even as much time as they had known each other, Law was hardly so talkative unless there was a big reason for it.

"Someone in the Donquixote family is Aisuru-ya's father."

That would be a pretty good reason for someone like the Joker to cross the Red Line twice, he guessed, but not a good enough reason for Law to sound so guilty. He nuzzled Law until his hat fell off, and then nuzzled him some more. He didn't really know how his captain felt about that information, but he guessed it was startling... Just not enough for Law to behave like that.

"Bepo-ya... Buffalo, Baby 5, Dellinger... And myself were left on Spider Miles when they went." He groaned. "I... I begged to go with them. Bepo-ya, I almost went on a mission with Doflamingo to destroy everything that Aisuru-ya had."

"But you didn't..." Bepo whimpered as he cuddled him. "Captain, you didn't do anything wrong or bad. And Aisuru knows you were... And she's not mad at you at all, so..."

Law grunted his dismissal of the bear's logic.

Bepo rocked gently, hoping to snap his captain out of his funk. "Caaaaaptaaaaiiiinnnn! Don't be like this. Aisuru really likes you! She's really happy she gets to stay with us, too. And she watches you." He giggled as Law stiffened. "You didn't notice~? Hooowwww? Captain! Aisuru definitely has a crush on you. I bet she's falling in loooooo~ve!"

"Bepo-ya!" He tried to escape the bear's administrations, but it only egged the mink on.

"Tee-hee~!" Bepo squished Law's face with both his paws. "Captain, you're blushing! You like Aisuru, too! I'm gonna tell her~!"

Law growled, trying to sound angry. "Bepo-ya, if you so much as think about it, I'll amputate your tongue!"