Recap
After receiving the mission to assist Commander Rosinante in his infiltration of the Heavenly Demon's crew, Donquixote Doflamingo...
Upon arriving at the Spider Miles base, Mirage demonstrated that he could be a good addition to the crew after a brief confrontation with Doflamingo himself.
After being accepted, Mirage meets the other members of the Family. And during the night, he has his first conversation with his superior on this mission, Rosinante , who tries to make Mirage give up on the mission, but without success
— End of Recap —
A few weeks have passed since Mirage joined the Donquixote Family. And during that time... to be perfectly honest, not much happened
The most interesting event was an attempt to do business with an underworld merchant, but because of Rosinante, it went wrong, as he had tipped off the Marines about the negotiation.
However, this was a good opportunity for Mirage, who knew this would happen. Mirage asked Doflamingo to let him stand guard while the exchange took place.
So, as soon as the Marine ambush team arrived, Mirage quickly alerted the Family and then, alone, held off the marines until the negotiation was finished and they came to pick him up
A few days after that
Mirage was inside the mental mansion of his Devil Fruit, training his copies. But he was interrupted by a commotion happening in front of the base. Wondering what was going on, Mirage goes out there and then... he sees...
>Mirage:'I thought it would take longer for her to show up! But Dami's calculation was right ! And the D.E kept his end of the bargain... He really turned into a woman... it's a woman! And man! She is pretty!'
A girl of at most 12 years old, with medium black hair and equally black eyes. She seemed to be around 1.39m tall and her skin had white patches as if she had vitiligo, but her spots were much stronger, as if paint had been thrown on her. She wore black shorts, a white shirt, and a black and white hat, all of them dirty with dried blood and mud. However... none of that was the most striking thing about the girl's attire; rather, it was the bunch of grenades strapped to her torso
As soon as Mirage arrived, Doflamingo turned to the boy
Doflamingo: "You took your time, Mirage."
Mirage: "Did I? For what, Young Master?"
The Heavenly Demon then points to the girl who was fighting against Diamante . Trebol was also there, but he was just laughing at the girl
Doflamingo: "To see the show that little one was putting on! And Diamante, don't kill her"
The girl, even while in the middle of a sword fight with Diamante, heard their words and looked in their direction to speak .
???: "Show? ... Whatever! But tell me, if I defeat him... will you make me an executive?"
Diamante: "Little girl! Don't underestimate pirates!"
However, the instant she finished speaking those words, Diamante, with a slam from the flat of his sword, sent her small body flying along with the grenades that detached from her clothes. And as soon as she hit the ground, she tried to get up, but her legs refused to listen due to exhaustion and the pain from the fight
Trebol: "Nyeh? You tired already, nyeh?"
???: "No, I—"
But before the girl could finish speaking, Doflamingo cut her off.
Doflamingo: "Fufufufu~ hey Mirage! Since you were the last to arrive, go over there and bring the girl inside."
Mirage: "Of course, Young Master."
At an impressive speed for his age, Mirage appears in front of the girl in the blink of an eye. He went to pick her up, but as soon as Mirage's hand got close, she slapped him while blushing very slightly.
???:"I don't need your help, brat!"
Hearing the girl's response, Mirage understood her situation, so he simply smiled gently at her . Which made her blush a little more
Mirage:"I know... but orders are orders"
Despite the girl's protests, Mirage picked her up princess-style and started walking toward the base.
Mirage:"You must have heard from the Young Master... but I am Yu-. You can just call me Mirage. And you?"
Mirage:'Shit! It's not time yet! Control yourself, man!'
Hearing the "D." momentarily, the girl seemed to instinctively relax a bit, but that didn't mean she stopped squirming to try and get out of Mirage's arms.
Law:"Hump...! Law... that is my name... now let me go!"
Despite Law's request, Mirage didn't let her go and carried her inside the Donquixote base . As soon as the two arrived, Mirage put her down in front of the door, only for Trebol to immediately appear in front of her with a piece of meat on a fork, waving it in her face
Trebol: "Nyeh~ nyeh~ when did you say you were going to die, nyeh~?"
Law: "In three years and two months from now... and that is why..."
Law's eyes shone with immense anger and determination before she spoke her next words.
Law: "I will kill and destroy as much as possible in these three years."
Curious about this statement, Diamante approached her.
Diamante:"Who told you that? A doctor?"
Law: "My father... he was a doctor... so I saw the data on the progression of the Amber Lead"
Diamante:"Uhahaha~ what a smart girl. But that goal... it almost seems like you have a screw loose just like that one over there..."
He pointed his finger in the direction of Mirage, who was still standing there.
Mirage:"I have a screw loose? Says the guy who participates in a pirate crew that accepts children."
Trebol:"Nyeh~ he has a point, Diamante! Even if most end up leaving after two days."
As soon as Trebol finished speaking, two child-like figures appeared at the window: Baby 5 and Buffalo
Buffalo:"Nin! Trebol-Sama! Diamante-Sama!"
Baby 5:"Cora-san is back!"
Seeing the two, Mirage points at them while looking at Trebol and Diamante
Mirage:"If I have a screw loose... what do those two have?"
Diamante:"Uhahaha~ I guess you have a point, Mirage"
After Diamante finished speaking, Corazon opens the door. As soon as he takes the first step into the room, he slips on nothing, but before he could crash into the floor, Mirage caught him. However, this still caused Buffalo and Baby 5 to start bursting with laughter
As soon as Corazon stood up, he slapped Baby 5 across the face, punched the top of Buffalo's head, and tried to kick Mirage, but the latter dodged. After that, Corazon sat in an armchair and Baby 5 appeared beside him with a cup of tea
Baby 5: "Cora-san, have some tea!"
As soon as Corazon took a sip of the tea, he threw himself backward and spat it all into the air because of something Baby 5 had put in the drink, while she just stood there laughing. Even with this happening, Trebol and Diamante questioned Corazon
Trebol:"Nyeh~ Corazon... did you finish the job?"
Diamante:"Hand over the proceeds. After all, we need to be honest with money"
After that, the two turned back to Law.
Diamante:"Your name is Law? You see that guy who just arrived? He is an executive too... 'Corazon', but he is a clueless idiot."
Trebol:"But he is quite strong, must be because of the blood. After all, he is Captain Doffy's brother. And he can't speak because of a trauma, at least that's what Doffy says."
While they were saying this, Corazon stood up, walked over to Law, and grabbed her head. Seeing this, Diamante and Trebol just laughed lightly while speaking together
Diamante/Trebol:"Oh yeah! There is one more fact about him... Corazon hates children!"
The exact instant the two finished speaking, Corazon dragged Law to the first closed window and threw her against it, sending Law flying toward a mountain of trash at very high speed
Baby 5:"Ahhh! She's going to die!"
Buffalo:"She was thrown against the mountain!"
Already knowing this would happen, Mirage jumped after Law the moment she was thrown against the window. As soon as he reached her, Mirage caught her in his arms and looked at the trash mountain
Mirage:'Shit!'
Because of the force with which Corazon threw Law, even though Mirage went to help quickly, he wouldn't be able to land safely . So Mirage wrapped around Law and turned his back toward the trash mountain to protect her
As the two collided with the ground, Mirage lay there for a moment because the impact broke some of his ribs. Law stood up almost instantly, completely furious, and additionally, her head was bleeding because of the glass shards from the window
Law:"What is that guy's deal! I'm going to ki—"
Before Law could finish speaking, Mirage quickly covered her mouth.
Mirage:"Don't be an idiot! All the executives have a blood pact with Doffy... that means anyone who messes with them will have to deal with the Young Master himself! Especially Corazon-Sama, for being the Young Master's last blood relative."
Listening attentively to what Mirage said, Law simply removed his hand from her mouth and started walking toward the base. But then she stops, turns her head to Mirage, and with a slightly flushed face, she speaks
Law:"Thanks for the warning... and thank you for helping me... I'll take a look at your ribs later."
Seeing Law's reaction, Mirage also blushed a little and smiled, then walked alongside her.
Time Skip (One Week)
During a Donquixote family breakfast, Law reveals how she hid among corpses to cross the Flevance border . And how she was going to get revenge on Corazon for what he had done to her (even though most times, Mirage saved her before she got too hurt)
But even with such a clear threat to his brother, Doflamingo decided to ignore it and not torture or kill Law. Instead, he just decided to continue the day as normal and sent Gladius, Giolla, Lao G, Senor Pink, Machvise, Baby 5, and a few others to the city to do their daily work
After they left to work, those who stayed at the base went to rest. Doflamingo went to take a nap in his office, Corazon went to a place where he could be alone, Buffalo went to play in the trash piles, and Mirage was keeping an eye on Law, who was after Corazon to kill him
Mirage:'It's almost time... this is going to hurt...'
After following Law for a while, she finally found the place where Corazon was reading his newspaper.
Law:'Found you...'
Then she started walking toward Corazon with a short sword in hand.
Law:'My family... and the people from the church... they all died...'
Stopping her walk to run at maximum speed, Law aimed the tip of the sword at Corazon, who still hadn't noticed her—or perhaps was ignoring her on purpose
Law: 'Why the hell did an idiot like you survive?! Fuck it! No one will care if a piece of trash like you disappears!!!'
With that thought... the short sword finally pierced Corazon's flesh... or maybe not... Law didn't look at Corazon after she had stabbed him, because out of the corner of her eye, she saw Buffalo...
Law:'Shit! He saw me...!'
Because of this variable she hadn't imagined, Law ran toward Buffalo without thinking twice . He tried to flee to warn someone about what had occurred. But that doesn't matter right now; instead, we turn back to Corazon, who had created his silence room. Inside, he was agonizing in pain... or maybe not? After all, in his arms was Mirage... bleeding, with the short sword still stuck in his body.
Mirage:"Are you okay, Rosinante?"
'Damn... this hurts more than I thought... I should have used the Neru Neru no mi... no... no use crying over spilled milk...'
Corazon:"Mirage... why did you do that?"
Mirage:"Why...? Isn't it obvious? Even if you have a shitty personality with kids... I know you only do it to protect them... Now... take me to the nurse, okay? This hurts like hell!"
Corazon:"Sure, Mirage... and thanks..."
So the two go to the base's infirmary. After administering first aid to Mirage, Doflamingo called everyone to finally decide what to do with Law. This took a while because the girl with Amber Lead Syndrome tried to flee after attempting to bribe Buffalo with ice cream. But before she could reach the port, Giolla and Machvise caught her and brought her back to the base.
Giolla: "The girl was really determined to escape!"
Machvise: "Yeah! She ran all the way to the port"
Seeing there was no turning back, Law looked around and saw Corazon... he showed no damage.
Law:'He's alive... am I going to die for nothing?! I thought bribing Buffalo would work... but that bastard snitched to his brother! But I know the sword pierced him... so why is he acting all tough?! Um... wait... where is Mirage?'
During her train of thought, Law was expecting Doflamingo to order her death, but that didn't happen
Doflamingo:"I called you here... because I decided... you will become an official member of the Donquixote Pirates!!"
Giolla: Oh-hohohohoho~ how lucky, girl! The Young Master must expect great things from you!"
While Doflamingo spoke, Law was incredulous... she swore Corazon had informed his brother about the assassination attempt, but that wasn't the case... apparently, Corazon hadn't said anything about the incident... which left Law confused . But even so, she focused on the conversation with Doflamingo again.
Law:"Expect great things? I don't know what you expect from me... I only have 3 years to live, remember?"
Doflamingo:"Fufufufu~ that is what your luck will answer! In the black market, there is always a thing or two about Devil Fruits... and one important thing about them is that they can do anything, so there must be one that saves your life! "
Law:"Akuma no mi?"
Doflamingo:"The Devil Fruit... things that carry powers beyond imagination... so if we find one that cures you... I will give you 10 years of training for you to become my right hand!"
With that informed, all executives and officers were dismissed. As soon as he was dismissed, Corazon went to the infirmary, which Doflamingo found a bit strange since he didn't seem injured . So, as the infirmary was in the direction of his office, he passed by there along with Law, and there... the two saw Corazon tending to Mirage's wound.
Doflamingo:"So that's why Mirage wasn't at the meeting... what happened?"
Hearing his brother's voice, Corazon took a paper and wrote "Enemy" in big letters. Seeing that, Law became a bit thoughtful, since she had been the only one to attack him.
Law:"And how did he get hurt? Mirage doesn't seem the type to get hurt by just anyone."
Law:'Why would he be defending me? He knows it was me... why?'
Doflamingo:"Fufufufu~ for someone who said they didn't care about anything... you seem interested in the boy."
Blushing a little, Law ignored Doflamingo's provocative words and just focused on the letters Corazon was writing... and they were
"Surprise attack... he protected me."
This made Law's expression darken a bit; she understood... Mirage had protected Corazon from the attempt to kill him. She hurt one of the few people who had been nice to her because of anger and revenge.
Law:"Let me see his wound... I have good medical knowledge."
Doflamingo:"Fufufufu~ yeah, little brother! Let her take care of him! After all, knowing you... it's more likely you'll end up killing him after the first moan of pain because you squeezed his wound."
Nodding his head, Corazon simply left the infirmary and went to the balcony to smoke and yes... he ended up setting himself on fire again.
Doflamingo, who wanted to talk to Law about her routine as a new crew member, decided to do so after she took care of Mirage.
Having stayed in the infirmary, Law goes to the bed where Mirage was sleeping. As soon as she arrives, Mirage opens his eyes and starts to sit up
Mirage:"Ouch... so? Did the Young Master let you in?"
Law:"How did you know?"
Mirage:"That's simple! When Corazon-Sama brought me here, I heard the Young Master calling everyone via the Den Den Mushi."
Law:"Ah... yes, Doflamingo asked me to be his right hand."
Mirage:"Really?! That's cool!"
As he sat up, Law helped him take off his shirt. After removing it, Law sees Corazon's passable work, but far from a good job.
Law:"It was me, wasn't it?"
Before answering, Mirage, using one of the copies from his Devil Fruit, created a sound barrier around the two.
Mirage:"It was... but it's okay... Corazon-Sama can be a pain in the ass sometimes, but I couldn't let you put your life on the line like that"
Hearing these words, Law feels her eyes tearing up a bit. But she quickly dries them and starts treating Mirage's wound
Law:"But... I hurt you... and besides... I'm going to die in 3 years anyway! Why care about me!?"
Mirage:"And why wouldn't I care? We are friends, aren't we?"
Law:"You... did that... just because we are friends? Just for that?"
Mirage:"And do I need more reasons than that?"
Surprised by these words, Law smiled for the first time since she saw her whole family die
Law:'I will survive! I will find that Devil Fruit that will save me! And I will repay this favor to Mirage!!!'
It might seem a bit silly, but that affection she felt from Mirage, however little, was enough to warm her heart, which had been frozen by the pain of losing everyone around her. For the first time since she lost everyone... she felt at home
To be continued