One Step Behind

Running from the problems

"You never explained how you knew Fire Fist-ya."

"Hm?" Strauss glanced up from where she had been organizing files. "Does that really matter?"

Law reclined back on a chair flipping through a ring binder. "Considering we are about to sail into what can only be described as the most dangerous location on this side of the Red Line, I would say yes. It does matter."

"True. But it isn't as if my connection with him would change anything." Taking a step back, she took a moment to admire her handiwork. "I owed him a favour so here I am repaying it. That's all there is to it really."

Law's... unique filing system took some getting used to. Especially since he seemed to consider the floor as an appropriate storage device. The small perfectionist inside of her really wanted to properly stack them on shelves with some hierarchy or order to them, but that wasn't her call. This was Law's space, so she would respect his habits. If he was used to this, then he was used to it. No two ways about it.

Otherwise she may find her head detached from her body and sent to play with the fishes.

"You don't take me as the kind of fool who would sacrifice their life for someone they barely knew, even for a so called favour. There must be something more behind your actions. Oh." A tattooed hand gestured in the air. "Can you get me the info on-"

Without even blinking she slid the Tarai Current folder into his grip.

"Perfect."

"Then I guess I'm a fool." Strauss leant back against the wall, close enough to the door to give Law some space and far enough away that she could still keep an eye on him. "Look, I'm not entirely sure what you're expecting to hear from me, but it's honestly not that big a deal. Ace did me a massive solid getting from Alabasta to Water 7... with a few fun hijinks along the way." She winced. "But we still ended up getting pretty close. You can't spend so much time in a small space with someone without feeling attached to them."

"I see." Law's finger froze over a line of text, tapping idly on the offending word. "So there really is no other connection between you and Fire Fist-ya?"

"No. Why?"

"Oh I was considering other possibilities." Reaching for a small pad of paper he began to make a few notes. "For such a large world, it can seem incredibly small sometimes. Perhaps you were long lost siblings... lovers... childhood friends... etcetera."

"You have a very wild imagination."

"I prefer to think of it as preparing for every eventuality. Hmm... Now I need the-"

'Gates of Justice' were removed from the shelves and placed in the outstretched hand.

"Thank you. But please stop doing that."

"Did I get the wrong file."

"No." He begrudgingly admitted. "However I feel slightly unnerved that you seem to know precisely what file I need before I do myself."

"Point taken." Strauss picked her own folder off the floor and began thumbing through the pages. "I wasn't trying to be creepy. But I figured that from there were only so many logical topics you could go to from researching the Tarai Current. And since the Marineford and Impel Down files are on your desk I went for the next likely logic jump."

"Impressive..." Flicking to the page he wanted, Law quickly read the first few words and let out a loud hiss. "This, on the other hand, is problematic."

She arched a brow. "How so?"

"Simply speaking, it is unlikely we can rescue Fire Fist-ya from Impel Down itself. There is so much that is unknown about the prison, and very little chance that we can sneak in. Which means we have to hope for that war at Marineford. Bepo-ya was hoping to use the Tarai Current to get us there as fast as possible, however it seems as if the Gates of Justice stretch all the way to the sea floor." He groaned, leaning back in his chair and pinching the brow of his nose. "Which means that it is impossible to use the Polar Tang to go under the Gates themselves."