A/N: The more I think about the plot and characters, the more I want to change as much as possible. I really need to catch up with the anime... I will be changing everything I'm not satisfied with, so there will be quite a lot. If you like the story, you might want to reread it.

Edited: July 23, 2016

"Get back inside, you idiot!" Smoker roared.

The girl only blinked blankly, surveying the bloody battle on the deck. Her eyes shifted longingly over the scenery before her, so close, yet out of reach. For a moment, she wondered why she didn't just leap out into the fray, escape into the confusion and out into freedom. It wasn't like she was physically leashed—physical bindings were another matter—nor did she have strong emotional bonds to anyone or anything on the marine ship.

Perhaps if Smoker hadn't yelled, none of the pirates would have noticed the single figure standing motionless on the deck, clad all in white. As it was, none of the Heart Pirates paid the female any attention.

Except, of course, the Surgeon of Death.

He smirked. Perfect. In the split second during which Smoker had been distracted, he moved behind the girl, the blade of his nodachi pressing into her throat, easily slicing through the white material she wore, but not quite yet breaking skin. At the back of his mind, he noticed that his shirt was getting soaked from her wet hair.

Smoker let out a string of curse words, glaring at the pirate. His every muscle tensed, unwilling to attack lest the pirate harmed the girl, yet unwilling to just let the pirates go either. Seeing the marine's indecision, Trafalgar Law's smirk only grew wider.

"Hakuryou-ya, why don't you order your crew to stop fighting?" Trafalgar Law suggested, the tone of his voice making it clear that it was not a suggestion, but rather an order.

Smoker only growled, his urge to kill the upstart pirate quickly tilting the scales on his mental balance. The glare on his face grew darker, and he took a threatening step towards the pirate and his hostage. Law sighed dramatically, and smirked at the marine captain, his gaze full of mockery towards the man. He considered himself lucky that they encountered Smoker, of all marines. Unlike most of the marine trash, that man had a strict sense of justice that he followed no matter what. Law's lips turned in a vicious sneer. So which would it be? His absolute pursuit of pirates? Or the woman's—most likely a civilian—life?

"Mesu," Law stated, and the girl's heart popped out of her chest, landing in his outstretched hand.

"Trafalgar Law!" Smoker snarled, outraged.

Law hummed in amusement. He did so enjoy riling up his opponents, but unfortunately Smoker seemed to know about his abilities. Otherwise, he suspected the man would be at his throat already. As it was, Smoker already looked ready to pounce and tear out Law's throat.

Law glanced down at the girl, studying her. Hostage situations only worked if the hostage's life was worth more than the criminal's. The girl seemed to be important enough that Smoker would not risk her death. Otherwise, Smoker would have attacked without regard for her life, and justified her death with Law's capture.

The girl still hadn't reacted to having a hole torn out of her chest. She merely stared blankly down at the place where her heart was supposed to be. As if suddenly realizing that a vital organ was missing, her eyes widened. But rather than terror, her heartbeat remained steady in Law's hand, even as she poked her hand through the hole and glanced over her shoulder to see her fingers emerge from the other side. She wriggled her fingers, still wide eyed, and poked Law's chest a few times before taking her hand out of her chest.

"Hm," was all she could say.

Law's eyes flicked to her outfit once again, and a brow shifted upwards in mild curiosity. He would have to take a proper look at what she was wearing later. It looked a little too much like bondage. Or even a straitjacket.

"Trafalgar Law, release her immediately and surrender," Smoker demanded with a scowl.

"I don't think you're in a position to make demands," Law replied, voice laced with dark amusement. "She's my hostage now."

As if to prove his absolute power over the marine, he lowered his nodachi from the girl's throat, and held up her heart instead. Smoker's hands tightened around his own weapons, but he made no move. He got the message loud and clear—Law held more power over the girl's life now, because while a weapon could have been knocked away, Law now merely had to squeeze the heart to kill the girl.

Law felt the girl shuffle around. He tensed for a moment as her hands delved into her pockets. A weapon? But she only brought out a pen and notepad, scribbling something on a fresh page. Law felt a little more curiosity. His suspicions were confirmed. Her outfit served to gag her.

She held up the pad. 'You know, you're really good looking. But I don't like being treated as a toy. Can I have my heart back, Dr. Heart Stealer?'

Law's eyes met hers for a moment, and his brows rose for a moment, before his mind filled in the blanks and he reached the most logical conclusion. He turned his gaze away, dismissing the girl. Other than the peculiar reaction to having her heart torn out, he had seen plenty of women like her, who practically radiated sexuality. Women like her reacted to danger by using their sexuality to get out of bad situations. He was willing to bet that she would try and bed him if he kidnapped her…

He glanced back up at Smoker. Considering Smoker's reaction, was she his whore? Or rather, Law mused, considering Smoker's reaction, he probably loved the girl, whore or not. Law's bored look turned into a smirk once again. Perfect.

"We're retreating!" Law yelled to his crew.

Scattered yells of agreement found their way back to his ears, and the crew began to clear a path back to the sub, in a well-practiced formation, carrying the injured. The marines weren't making things easy. Still, Law watched with a semblance of relaxation, as the healthiest fought off the marines while the others escaped onto the sub, before they backed away step by step, still holding off the marines, until they, too, were safe on their vessel.

Law slung the girl over his shoulder—ignoring the yelp as she dropped her notepad—and sneered at Smoker. "Shambles."

"Trafalgar Law!" Smoker bellowed, absolutely livid.

"Tsk tsk. I told you. She is my hostage. Now be a good marine and leave us alone," Law smirked as Smoker roared his rage, the sound cut off by Law slamming the door shut in preparation for the submarine to submerge. With the marine out of sight, Law's smirk disappeared.

"Get the injured to the infirmary," he barked. "And put… this in a cell."

"Captain?" Bepo asked uncertainly, his glance shifting from the girl hanging over Law's shoulder to the heart beating in his hand, then back to his captain.

"This thing is our hostage," Law said dismissively, dropping the girl unceremoniously onto the floor. "Hakuryou-ya won't attack us as long as we have her."

Probably, Law thought, but it wasn't guaranteed. Smoker could decide at any time that it was worth it to sink the submarine, the girl and all. The others on the crew apparently thought the same, as the sub immediately began to submerge, the warning alarm wailing.

It was a relief when no attack struck.

Law glanced at the beating heart as Bepo picked up the girl gingerly and carried the hostage away. This, he would keep until he decided what to do with her.

Actually, he had no clue. What did people normally do with hostages? He had never taken one before—all he had had were prisoners. He usually dissected those, or experimented on them. Hostages, on the other hand, were worth more alive than dead. He could just dump her on the next island, or he could experiment on her and then drop her on an island. He did want to find out why she was gagged, after all, if it wasn't just some kind of sex game. Then Law shook his head at himself. If it was just some kind of fetish, there were better gags that only tied up the mouth. The girl's outfit seemed more like daily wear.

Then Law shrugged. He would find out eventually.

The submarine's cells weren't exactly the best place for a person to live. They were specifically kept for the purpose of taking prisoners or living creatures that Law wanted to keep for an eventual experiment and/or dissection. Until April came aboard two years ago, something or other had always been in the cells. But since she didn't like the cruelty of experimenting on or cutting open living creatures, the cells had been empty. In fact, a few had become storage space.

Bepo put the girl down on the cot, and surveyed the space. Aside from the cot with a thin blanket, there was a particle with a washbasin and a toilet. No bath, but Bepo doubted she would be kept in there that long. Even if she was, they could bring her to one of the bathrooms.

"I know it's not the best place to live, but you'll have to stay in here for a while. It's not very comfortable. I'm sorry," Bepo said.

Her eyes widened, and she gestured quickly, trying to communicate with her hands as well as she could. 'You talk!'

At least that was the message Bepo got from it.

"I'm sorry," Bepo apologized.

She looked perplexed for a moment. Had he misunderstood her?

Bepo put her down and backed out of the cell, closing and locking the door. He glanced uncertainly at the girl once again. She didn't look like a threat. Couldn't she stay somewhere more habitable? There were still a few spare rooms in the sub, and some of those were locked with a key. She could stay in one of those rooms, couldn't she? It would probably work out if Bepo locked the room from outside and carried the key with him.

Then again, that was all up to his captain. And since his captain said she would stay in the cells, she would stay in the cells.

The girl lay back and stared at the ceiling. How did she get into this situation? Just a moment ago she could have escaped into freedom. Now, she was stuck on a pirate ship as their hostage, and said pirates had no idea how to take care of her. She sighed. It was hot too. Probably because it was a submarine and didn't have circulating air. She didn't like the heat. Somewhere wet and cold would be nice.

Her gaze wandered to the sink. Maybe she should dump water all over herself…

She sighed again and rolled off the bed with a thump, and let out a small groan. That had hurt. She blinked once, twice, and froze, eyes looking at an upside-down female. Oh, wait. She was the one upside-down. She flipped onto her stomach, looking up at the female outside the bars. She was quite pretty, with light brown hair that matched the ship.

The brown haired female stared at the girl. Then her face twisted into a scowl. "TRAFALGAR LAW!"