Beauty

Penguin tried to swallow down the lump in his throat. Dinner he could do. He was no gormet chef, but he knew his way around a kitchen. He might even impress her-- okay, doubtful, but a guy could dream of impressing someone like her.

Pretty.

He had one chance to not fuck this up, which meant he better start sooner rather than later. He was weeks past due for a haircut, choosing to cover his untamable mane with his signature hat than do something about it. Finding something suitable to wear that wasn't a grass stained boiler suit would be top of priority as well.

A to-do list began to form in his mind that had him reaching for his hand-dandy clipboard. "Eight? Is eight a good time?"

He would need time to make his to do list, procure an acceptable entree & appetizer, maybe some drinks-- "Do you drink? Wine? Red? White? Red is always heart healthy," he added nervously at the end at a bad attempt at a half-joke.

"Red wine will do." A pause, as Hancock considers – do the Heart Pirates have wine on hand? alcohol in general most likely, they're pirates, but wine specifically? Questionable. And maybe not even a good vintage if they do. She sniffs after another moment of consideration. "I will bring the wine."

At least something will be salvageable that way, should this turn out to be a disaster.

Dazed & baffled from the tall beauty's presence, Penguin wasn't quite sure if he was having an auditory halucination. He tried to remember if he injested something he maybe shouldn't have in the greenhouse earlier today, only because he was sure he hadn't tried smoking anything new.

Of course Cap talked him up, after all, he'd directly asked him to talk him up to some islander cuties. He'd thought someone more... approachable. This must be some kind of joke, because this wasn't just any cutie-- This was The Pirate Empress, most beautiful woman in the entire world talking to him.

Not just talking to him...

Penguin straightened his back, recognizing he was barely suitable to be talking to someone of Boa Hancock's stature. He was sweating under his cap, boiler suit covered in earth & gods knew what else. And he was staring up was staring up at the beauty before him, mouth opening & closing silently as he fought to find words.

She looks Penguin up and down again once more, clearly considering her options.

"All right, all right."

She sighs, pressing a hand to her cheek at the thought. The things she does for him, honestly. Marineford and Impel Down and now this.

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ ❝Please. They're giggling behind her back and counting down to the next cake-worthy occasion,❞ he sighs. Idiots the lot might be, but they're his and not one of them would be there if he thought them capable of hurting another. Difficult to fault her concern for one of their sake's, though - even if it does come at the scrutiny of all the others.

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ A satisfied hum answers when she starts gathering her pieces up, gracious acknowledgement of a match well-played even as they prepare for a second. That he's had his opener planned since they started disassembling the first match's remnants doesn't stop Law from staring unseeingly at the board for a moment, seeming to consider his move and not just the question.

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ His heart had never been in that race. Not really. Besides - he's seen too much at this point, witnessed too many of the Straw Hats and their countless miracles firsthand to credibly even bother denying it anymore.

"I suspect," she adds as she studies the board while he makes his move. "That we'll be hearing of a new king in the near future. And perhaps the conclusion of the Straw Hats' war on the world government."

She can't wait to see it, frankly. Luffy and his cohort had been shaking things up since the boy first set off to sea, and she was sure the conclusion of that journey would be explosive.

Mentor Sentences, Vol. 3

(Sentences for mentor figures giving advice to their mentee. Adjust phrasing where needed)

"Power isn't given. Power is taken."

"Did all those years you spent studying with me do you no good at all?"

"Men will go to great length to prove they're not cowards, especially if they really are."

"Experience isn't something you can buy. It takes time."

"You have a gift. Don't throw it away."

"Power is like a fire. It will warm you and protect you, but if it burns unchecked, it will destroy everything in its path."

"Fear is good. Fear will keep you alive."

"There is no purity in pride. Never forget that."

"Everyone has a use, even if it's far from what they imagined."

"Feelings get you killed."

"Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."

"There comes a moment for each of us when we are tested. What happens in that moment is the true measure of us."

"At some point, you either adapt, or you lose your mind."

"An army cannot sneak up on a man, but a lover can."

"To show you care for something is to show weakness. If you care for something, an enemy can hurt you with it."

"If you can't trust the company a man keeps, you can't trust the man himself."

"What do we say about coincidences?"

"The more we learn, the more we question - and the more we question, the more we see through the lies perpetrated upon us."

"Some things are better kept in your mind than on your tongue."

"There's no such thing as right or wrong. There's no such thing as fair, or moral. Those are words men invented to scare and shame other men."

"What do you want? To change the past? Or to forge a better future?"

"Trust me. Just follow all those instincts that you were born with. I'll be with you every step of the way."

"Whatever you believe to be true, assume it isn't and search for the truth."

"Sometimes to achieve something good, we have to manipulate perception a bit."

"No matter what you wish for, you must be prepared for the consequences."

"There are some wars you fight, and some wars you walk away from. This is not the fighting kind."

"You have to trust people that you work with - unless you have a very good reason not to."

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ ❝Flattered.❞ What several of his lovestruck companions (two in particular) would do for that honor - even if it was in jest. It occurs to him he can't honestly tell with her, but amusing as the thought is...❝No need, though. I can appreciate the gesture without taking up the wall space. Good move.❞

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ He takes his time making his own again. The pirate empress makes for a formidable adversary; not once has a match with her failed to keep him on his toes throughout. He enjoys that. And when the conversation shifts, Law feels his lips twitch. There's more to the question than the words suggest and he knows it, but if she only knew what went on in the weeks they spent submerged sometimes...

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ ❝Ikkaku, yeah - that's her. And yes, she finds it tiresome. Frequently, and she takes great pleasure in reminding us at every opportunity. But.❞ He pauses for a moment. Looks up at her again. She could ask the engineer herself and Law had no doubt Ikkaku would tell her all about it - in great and exasperated detail right in front of him, even. And she would mean it - just not in the way Boa Hancock is worried about. ❝She's perfectly capable of kicking the crew's asses into shape if things get too tiresome. They know that. They also know that would be after I'd had my turn if they ever did anything to harm or make her uncomfortable beyond being - how did she put it at dinner the other night? 'The most obnoxious gaggle of rollicking, moronic, juvenile asswipes to ever insult the world with your presence' or something along those lines.❞

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ He places another piece before meeting her stare intently.

His latest move has Boa staring at the board for several long moments, looking for the best angle of attack. He's backed her into a bit of a corner, one she had intended to lure him into, but not quite yet. He'd managed to back her there before she'd finished setting up her trap. How unfortunate.

"Hm. I do believe I've lost this round." She begins removing her pieces to restart the game, already plotting out a new set of moves. "I heard you ceded the search for the One Piece to Luffy."

Their alliance had been such big news, and their ending it had been even bigger news once it began circulating. But so had the news about Dressrosa, and knowing now what she knew about Law – that he had returned one favor owed by conceding defeat in the race to kingship seems very like him. Boa glances up at him, expression carefully blank as she waits for Law to make his first move.

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ Friends, huh? That’s new. Law’s gaze lifts from the board in front of him, a fleeting, level glance at his opponent the only acknowledgement the admission is given before turning back to their game once more.

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ Not a term he’s ever used freely, that. At least not since his childhood. He doesn’t have to ask to know it’s not one the empress throws about easily, either. Especially not to men: especially especially not to men that aren’t Straw Hat Luffy or the Dark King Silvers Rayleigh, though Law suspects even they had not come by that favor effortlessly.

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ But it fits, he acknowledges. Too many shared mannerisms between them not to rankle each other’s nerves occasionally, but for the most part she makes for agreeable company (enjoyable, even - not that he’ll volunteer as much).

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ With a quiet snort, he sets a piece of his own before sitting back to prop his cheek on a fist. ❝Discussion I can handle, ❞ he answers eventually. Wouldn’t complain if the rival-ally captain didn’t work his way into quite so many of their easy conversations, admittedly, but he hasn’t supplied a litany of alternatives either, and as offenses go, it’s hardly the worst thing (even if Law doesn’t get the infatuation for the life of him).

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ ❝I meant more of all that swooning you were doing. ❞ He’s decently sure she was about to start daydreaming about a wedding he’s almost entirely sure is never going to happen again, too. “Besides- you can’t be that surprised anymore, surely: Straw Hat’s been doing things like that since his name hit the papers. Probably before he knew what a paper was, honestly. ❞

‎‏‏‎‏‏‎ Speaking of which… He squints up at her again, suspicious.

"I can add one of yours as well, if you like. A commemoration of our friendship." She'll expect the same in return, of course. Their friendship would certainly demand such reciprocity. She turns her attention down to the board for a moment, studying it as she decides which piece to place down next.

"There is a woman on your crew," she ventures finally. "Ikkaku, I believe? Does she ever find it tiresome to be so surrounded by men?" Is she safe? Do you keep her safe? lurks beneath the words, unspoken but clear regardless. Boa trusts him, as both a man and a captain or she wouldn't consider him a friend but she finds herself wondering all the same. If questioned, would Ikkaku have only positive experiences with this man's crew? Or would questioning her reveal secrets hidden from their own captain?