And so we are back with a holiday update! Didn't have to wait that long this time, did ya? Sadly I don't know how my update schedule will be over the next few months because of the big bang, but I'll do my best to update these stories whenever I can find time. Happy holidays~

Having poured all of his concentration, all of his effort into learning the material he needed for the test on Monday, Law found the evening hours fading into night. His head felt sufficiently fried, having combed through not only his textbook and notes but all of the homework he'd been left with as well—and did he ever mention how positively pointless he found homework to be? The only problem now was, well… he'd just opened his eyes to streams of daylight filtering in from the window by his desk.

He had fallen asleep.

With a soft groan he rubbed his head and stood, leaving behind the finished work on his desk to shuffle out of the room. But he stopped when his foot hit something soft and plush, and he stared down with soft eyes at a stray pillow. Law grabbed it and tossed it amongst the rest in the nest his guest had made—and where was his guest?

A pang of dread in his thoughts, he shuffled out of the room and down the stairs. "Sabo?" he called, met with only silence. That didn't bode well, and he quickened his steps. "Sabo," he called again, a bit louder this time, and bit his lip when met with not even the faintest of replies.

He looked over the rest of the mansion—and it took a while, what with so many rooms—but there was no sign of the dragon aside from a few notches in the floor left by his claws digging into the wood and a stray blue feather by the back door.

Law released a tense breath, dragging himself into the kitchen to prepare yet another pot of coffee; he'd had a lot of it during the night. That was… fine. Perfectly fine. Sabo wanted to leave, so he left. He didn't want to stay, and well… Law couldn't fault him for that. His dragon fr—acquaintance made it explicitly clear that he was in a place very unlike the home he was used to, that he wanted to return to his real nest, and that was perfectly understandable.

He could have said 'goodbye', though…

With a sigh Law grabbed his coffee and laptop and slumped down onto the living room sofa, checking his phone as he waited for his computer to boot up. There was a text from Ace, sent the night before. He'd never gotten around to giving it a read...

"So was that the 'girlfriend'?"

A red tint bloomed across his face and with a scowl he closed his messenger, cursing his classmate—but wait, Ace had seen Sabo. That wasn't good. That wasn't good at all. Some blond boy with horns and wings… This didn't bode well, and he dreaded Monday morning when his classmate would have all the time he wanted to bombard him with questions. He hoped Ace would wave it off, since it was so unbelievable. Maybe he'd think it was just an outfit, or…

On the internet that would probably pass. But in real life? Somehow he doubted it.

A twinge of curiosity had him opening up the gallery on his phone, a few pictures he'd snagged of his guest the first to meet his eye. He'd taken them during breaks throughout the night, the dragon's complaints of boredom pulling him from his studies on several occasions. He'd shown Sabo what the camera on his phone could do, up until Sabo wanted to try taking pictures himself and, well… Law was protective of his things, and Sabo had long claws. Long, sharp claws that could easily ruin his touch screen.

An idea formed in his head then, and when his laptop started up he found himself posting one of his pictures to his blog—or almost did, but hesitated. He was certain people would think it was fake. He was sure they'd dismiss it as that and not give it a second thought, but… what if they didn't?

With a frown he cancelled the post and heaved a sigh, checking his email absently as he wondered what to do for breakfast—until there was a sound from the back of the house, a door followed by scuffling across the floor, and instantly his body melted into the sofa. So Sabo was back, then. The relief he felt at that was… frightening, in a way.

His euphoric state was quick to fade when he heard… chirping. As far as he knew, dragons didn't chirp.

"S'okay," he heard that unique voice murmur, the sound quickly becoming familiar even over just those few short days, "the human'll help. He does these things."

Law frowned at that. What, exactly, was he supposed to be helping? And who?

When the dragon stepped in Law's jaw went slack at the sheer amount of blood he saw, coating the blond's arms and legs, his chest and… mouth. The sight made him feel sick, but concern overpowered nausea and he rose, hastily approaching Sabo to look him over. "Are you—hurt?" he asked tentatively, eyeing each of the blond's limbs with a critical eye—but he noticed something, and it had his eyes widened.

"Nu-uh," the dragon shook his head, clutching a pillow close to his chest, blood smeared and staining the white fabric. Apparently he'd taken it with him. "But Lu is. Fix him?"

Law had to pry his eyes away from the very clearly altered body of his acquaintance to stare questioningly at blue irises. "What? Lu? Who…" And it was only then that he became aware of the tiny red bird standing atop the pillow, peering up at him with a tilted head. "...A bird?" A cardinal, to be exact. Just why Sabo had one of those with him, already named, no less…

Sabo gave a curt nod, holding the pillow out for Law to take. "Fix him."

"...Fix him?" he repeated, rather perplexed until he noticed the quivering, limp wing hanging at Lu's side. That explained a few things… But honestly, he wasn't nearly qualified enough to repair whatever damage was done to an actual bird. Even Sabo should have gone to a professional… but what professional was there to treat the injuries of a goddamn dragon? He'd no choice in trying to repair it himself, even with the limited knowledge he possessed and the sheer amount of guesswork that needed to be done.

But no, this was a good chance: if he used this bird as an excuse to go to the vet he could inquire about Sabo's injury as well. He could use this…

Pulling his mouth taut, Law sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "We'll get him looked at," he muttered, dragging himself out into the hall and down the basement stairwell, Sabo following close behind. His father had always been fond of birds and they'd kept a few when he was younger, so with any luck…

Just as he thought, there was an old bird cage shoved onto one of the shelves along the wall. It was aged, but a quick glance-over showed that it was still in good condition, at least. So, an impatient blond still following his every move, he went back upstairs and started filling it with bedding—which in this case was nothing more than rags because he honestly had nothing else—doing his best to ignore the dragon hovering over him and sniffing the contraption with intrigue. When it was ready he met Sabo's eyes. "We'll put him in here and bring him to the vet."

Immediately his command was met with a hiss, Sabo snatching the tiny creature away and holding it protectively to his chest. "No cages."

Law stared. They were really doing this right now? He didn't have the patience to deal with that at the moment… "I know how you feel, but it's either this or his wing doesn't get fixed. It's your choice."

Sabo's eyes widened and he let out a low whine, expressing his confliction as he stared down at his new friend and sighed. After a moment Lu was brought into the cage, settling on one of the low perches and preening his feathers as the wire door closed shut.

"...He can come out later?" the blond tried, his posture oozing guilt and, when he thought about it, Law could honestly say that he understood. Sabo was being chased and he'd already expressed just how much he hated being caged. It was natural.

With a sigh—and knowing he was going to regret this later—the teen gave a nod. "We can let him out when we get back, if we can keep him from trying to fly. But more importantly…" Golden eyes lifted to Sabo, and he couldn't help but stare. "...A human form?"

The dragon blinked, looking down at himself a moment before nodding. "Mm. Thought it'd be less scary that way, 'cause of all the blood."

Why Sabo was suddenly worried about scaring him, he hadn't the faintest, but his attention didn't linger over that, instead fixed the now very… normal looking mythical creature seated across from him. The tail and wings were gone, the horns and feathers as well, giving way to pale skin. Sabo's feathered ears were now smooth, though still a little pointed—nothing noticeable enough to really pay any mind—and in some ways it… didn't look like Sabo. His features were all there, the same eyes and face, the same height and hair, but… it just felt off.

He shook his head. There was no point in lingering on it. "Get yourself cleaned up. I'll get you some clothes to wear—don't give me that face, Sabo, or you're not coming."

"Fine," Sabo spat, crossing his arms and childishly turning away, "Dinner."

When would he stop thinking of Law as a portable meal? "We'll go buy some food while we're out. And—" He pursed his lips, giving it a moment of thought before nodding to himself. "If you're good I'll get you a treat."

Blue eyes stared up at him curiously. "What treat?"

"You'll see. Now get ready."

He just hoped the dragon really did behave.

"And then I hissed and he ran away, yeah? 'Cause I needed to check on the little bird. But he'll be back. His pride was wounded."

Law shook his head in disbelief as they walked alongside one another, Sabo hugging the cage protectively to his chest as they shuffled casually down the path from the plaza. They'd been to the vet and had Luffy's—yes, that was the full name Sabo gave the bird—wing looked at. Broken, as expected. He'd asked a few questions and made mental notes on just how to go about caring for his companion's injury and they moved on to get groceries. Now on the way back the dragon was entertaining him with the story of just how he ended up worrying over some tiny little cardinal. It was amusing, the way he'd bonded with the creature so quickly.

Apparently Luffy had been attacked by a fox while the dragon was out hunting. For some undisclosed reason he'd felt like helping and, well, there they were.

"Sabo," he started with a sigh, "I don't believe the fox sees things the way you do. He was likely looking for a meal—one that you took from him. That's all."

The displeased look he was given had him rolling his eyes and looking instead out to the streets around them. The town Law lived near wasn't an overly large one. In fact it was quite tiny, as just beyond it were acres upon acres of undeveloped land—some of which was owned by his father. That didn't mean there weren't people, though. The strong rush of wind zooming by as cars drove by was proof enough of that. Even without those he could hear the clacking of shoes against cement from behind—two sets of footsteps in tow. They passed many people on their walk, but… none had seemed to notice anything off about Sabo. Sure he looked normal enough, but Law was so sure his behaviour would have given him away. Throughout their entire walk Sabo'd been clingy, practically hanging off of Law while rambling on about this and that, and no one even batted an eye. It was good, of course, very good, but… somewhat frustrating at the same time. Wearing Law's clothes as he was, he blended in absurdly well for a creature so foreign to modern society. Well, excluding the gory talk he'd fall to every once in awhile.

Still, he was behaving, just as he said he would. That meant a treat, didn't it? Law promised.

Handing off the grocery bags, which were getting pretty heavy anyway, he dragged Sabo over to the outer wall of a nearby coffee shop. "Wait here," he commanded, grasping the dragon's shoulders and watching as deep pools of blue stared curiously back at him. "I'm going to step inside a moment."

Those pointed ears twitched, a head tilt following soon after. "...You'll come back? Like from the foods of the groceries?"

Law didn't even bother to roll his eyes at the title bestowed upon the supermarket as he offered the other a curt nod. Really, what a ridiculous creature…

Sabo hummed. "Then… I will wait."

He smiled, "Alright. I'll only be a moment."

Stepping inside Law was met with a rush of cool air, refreshing to the touch as he was freed from the heated noon sun. He relaxed, taking his place at the back of the line, tap-tap-tapping away at the leg of his pants as he gave the menu a thorough look-over. Now, what would Sabo like? Damn it, he should have asked what his tastes were like… But he doubted Sabo drank anything like that before. No, he made it pretty clear with the pizza last night that he'd tried very little human food. So then…

Pressing his lips together as the customer before him placed her order, Law turned to the large windows catching the sun at the front of the shop, his dragon leaning back against them as he sniffed the air. Law's lips curled upward, tension evaporating from his shoulders knowing that Sabo was still listening, just as he had all morning. It brought him comfort, just a smidge, and he stepped up to the cashier.

The brunette before him smiled, leaning forward to press all of her weight on her palms. "What can I get ya?" she asked, amusement in the tone of her voice—and he caught her glancing past to the dragon standing outside for the briefest of moments.

It was enough to bring his nausea bubbling back.

"Coffee, please," he managed to get out after collecting himself, though anxious thoughts were still floating around his head. Did she notice? "Two. Black."

He didn't wait for her to give him the total, already holding out the cash for her to take. They'd met on occasion whenever he dropped by after class and by that point he was just going through the motions, nervously turning to watch his blond through the window—

...His?

Law swallowed, running a stressed hand through his hair as he watched the girl prep his order, stepping aside to grant the next customer access to the cashier who took her place. Sabo was right: he was growing attached. But this was ridiculous. He'd never… never…

The way he was acting scared him.

"Here you go! Enjoy your day," a peppy voice chimed, breaking him away from the downward spiral his thoughts had fallen to.

With a muted nod he accepted the drinks and hurried out of the building with his head hung low, willing back his anxiety. He could worry about all of that… later. At home. When he was alone.

...When the dragon was gone.

"Law!" greeted that familiar, melodic tone. And when he raised his eyes—thud. He cursed when a strong body slammed into his, nearly spilling the coffee. "What'd you get me? Is it human food? Human food is tasty. I've decided."

"Damn it, Sabo…" He heaved a sigh and straightened his back, holding out one of the cups and grabbing Luffy's cage to help free one of the dragon's hands. "Here. Coffee. Try it."

Allowing the handles of the bags to slide down his arm Sabo took the cup between both hands and held it close, sniffing experimentally. His face scrunched up in confusion and he eyed it as he followed Law's steps, the student turning to continue on towards the outskirts of town. "Its scent is… odd. What is it?"

"Coffee," he repeated with a sigh as he sipped at his own.

"As you've said," the other muttered with a pout, "but what is it? It doesn't smell as nice as the pizza… I liked that. Can we have more of that?"

"We have some left back home," he stated with a roll of his eyes, "so just give it a try."

It was funny, the look of concentration that crossed Sabo's face as he pressed the rim against his bottom lip, steps slowing as focus increased, and Law found himself subconsciously matching the pace while watching. Finally Sabo took a large gulp, eyes squeezed tightly shut.

"Careful," he cautioned, "it's hot."

A pleasured hum rose up from the dragon's throat and Law half expected his tail to start wagging, momentarily forgetting the form Sabo was using as a guise. Lowering the cup Sabo looked to Law with bright blue eyes, a grin curling his mouth as his steps quickened. "I like this," he stated quietly, taking another sip. "Bitter, but still good. And don't warn a dragon of the heat. I breathe fire; my mouth can handle more than this."

Law gave a soft snort as he turned to face ahead, wordlessly noting that for future reference. "Then just make sure you don't spill it," he muttered, sipping at the beverage in his hand as he once more picked up his pace, Sabo easily keeping up now that his concentration wasn't fully overrun by the foreign substance he'd been given. The walk back to the mansion could be a very long and lonely one. There had been many a day where Law took to looking up, counting the stars faintly shining in the orange and purple skies of dusk to occupy himself. But right in that moment it felt ever so short.

And he still didn't understand why.

Their walk had fallen into a comfortable silence—comfortable for Law, who never turned to look at his companion, simply enjoying their two sets of footsteps shuffling along the gravel. It was a while before he noticed the dragon's shivering breath, the way he was absently tracing the rim of his cup with a dull, human nail.

"...No one is waiting for me."

Law pulled himself from his thoughts, turning to look confusedly at Sabo whose stare was currently boring holes into the coffee lid. "Hm?"

Sabo fidgeted as they walked and Law could see the way his nails began to elongate. He let it go unmentioned and instead pondered in silence, assuming the partial transformation to be an act of anxiety—purely subconscious. That just increased his curiosity. "At the nest," Sabo finally elaborated in a hushed murmur, causing Law's steps to slow. "There's no one there."

Pulling his mouth taut, Law fully faced the dragon with a deep-set frown. "You live alone, then?" He had to wonder why now was the time Sabo decided to disclose this and never before but wouldn't question it. Considering how long it took to get the ass to give away his name, Law certainly wasn't complaining.

Sabo gave a muted nod. It was strange, the way he refused to meet Law's eyes when he was always so in Law's face before. But this display seemed almost out of character, and it garnered the human's attention. "My clan abandoned me as a hatchling. They migrated, and I stayed behind in the nest."

That had him coming to a full halt even as Sabo kept walking, simply staring at the blond's back. That was so… sad. And yet despite that, despite knowing that he would be going home to an empty nest, Sabo wanted to. He'd made that perfectly clear. Law didn't… get it.

Eventually he shook away his feeling of unease and started forward to catch up, their travels bringing them to the forest surrounding his home, and he was grateful for the cool rush that accompanied the shade of the leaves. But he couldn't focus on the oh-so-wonderful escape from the sun as his dragon had yet again gone quiet, looking very much like he had more to say. But Law didn't know how to broach the topic and begrudgingly remained silent.

The house was in view when his companion next spoke, tail now clearly visible, flicking this way and that. Sabo wrung it in his hands anxiously, the cup now emptied, and kept looking ahead. "I've had encounters with humans. All bad. They can be… scary. Like the hunters from the other night."

"...I see." Law's frown deepened as he came up beside Sabo. Admittedly, he was bothered by what was said, but even more so he was relieved, finally getting Sabo to open up—to fill in the gaps and inadvertently tell Law just what happened that night. Now that he knew his theory was accurate, well… he could guess the rest.

Suddenly the blond rounded on him, staring up with large, round eyes. "But the little human is different. Helped me, and… isn't like the others. I thought all humans were like that…" He chanced the faintest of smiles, licking Law's cheek. "I think I could like humans."

Law blinked as he wiped away the slobber, heaving a sigh as he continued on towards the mansion. "Hush, you. I only did what was natural in that situation."

"...Hey, Law?"

"Hm?"

"I'm glad I didn't eat you."

So we end off with a short little chapter more about Law's confusion than anything. I've got the next chapter about half-written and things'll be picking up, but for now I hope you enjoyed and thanks, as always, for reading.

To my lovelies~

Kitsune Foxfire: PFFFT I think Sabo would feel insulted if they got him a chew toy. Even though he could really use one. Actually… you got Law's feelings spot on. Go Beddy!

StarofJems: Hehe you're welcome~

Guest: Sabo's moodswings are in part due to his upbringing and instincts XD He kinda needed to adapt quickly with the situation so he didn't have time for inbetweens.

Hellfire000: You'll be finding out more about Ace next chapter~

cantorahagedoorn: Here's more!

Natalie Laredo: Ahh thank you hun, and you're welcome! .

Guest (2): Sorry but the chapters for this fic aren't going to be the length of some of my others. I just don't have the time to write that much.

Kurogane Tsubasa: Aww X'D Well you can review whenever a new chapter comes out if you'd like!

Mah-Blackberreh: Yee.

BeASlumberingDragon: Well, now you know what Luffy is *cough*

AnyMoreBrightIdeasGenius: Glad you like!

sarge1130: Teddybear Law is best Law. Don't worry, there's plenty of interaction to come!

Guest (3): Yep, there's no hiding anything from Sabo.

Mai Kusakabe: Sabo's appetite is utterly insatiable, I almost feel bad for Law. Well, here's Luffy *cough* And you'll be getting a looooot more info on just what's actually going on next chapter, at least on Law's side of things.

xTheCherryx: Let's just say I have a loooot of plans for Ace and Lu. And other characters. Many other characters… You are very welcome, my dear!

DestyPuffari: Well I'm glad you're enjoying it XD

OuShion: Well yeah, of course I plan on continuing! XD If you're new to my fics then I guess I should mention that I change the characters based on the setting . So in canonverse fics like Until Next Time the characters will be more like themselves, but in fics like this, Divide or Immortality I try to write them more suited to their environment. Sabo has different base instincts because of what he is and he grew up without learning social cues and socially appropriate behaviour (i.e. he never really grew up/matured). He's going to be childish, selfish, snappish, whiny and a bit naive. Law's different, too, though. He's swayed by his emotions and is easily unnerved, and he's quick to embarrass. Ace and Luffy will be OOC to a degree too once we get into their parts of the story :'D

Adieu~