Kid felt as if all eyes were on him as he stood beside Law, waiting until the border service officers were finished with the brief interrogations and luggage checks. They were inside a building. Other passages on their to the Grand Line were either standing in irritation or sitting down on uncomfortable plastic chairs. One passenger in particular, a woman with long, green hair, was on the phone arguing with someone about being late.

Much to Kid's relief, their mission did not involve an airport, but rather a bus that took them from one border to another. It was easier to get away with things that way, for the luggage did not have to go through advanced detecting machines. However, the memory of Law's sudden break in his calm demeanor informed Kid that the luggage check was far from over.

Smoker, Law had told him later, was a hound. The man made it his mission to not let any law-breakers into the Grand Line. Many rookie smugglers had fallen to his harsh grip due to the overestimation of their own expertise.

"And how you know about this Smoker?" Kid had asked.

Law's answer had been a shake of his head and a sigh."I've outsmarted him once. He never forgot about it." Law had then grinned at Kid. "Don't worry. I'm sure he didn't forget the other part of it, either. I'll make it work out if it comes down to it."

Kid was brought back to the present when he noticed the smell and presence of smoke. It was thick and made his eyes water a bit. He turned to look past Law, and saw the man that Law had told him about. Passengers answered Smoker's questions efficiently and with a glare. A few of them complained about how it was complete misconduct for an border service officer to smoke. The women with green hair got even more irritated with Smoker's interrogation while she was still on the phone. Her interrogation was quickly finished, and she was given the check to retrieve her luggage.

When Smoker came up to Law and Kid to asked them whether or not they had food or any kind of substances in their luggage, Kid saw Law tense up ever so slightly.

"What do we have here?" Smoker said, frowning at Law. "You can't outsmart me twice. You and I both know that."

Law gave Smoker a tight smile. "Whatever do you mean, officer?" Law said.

"You know exactly what I mean."

"I don't follow. How about we get this going? You ask me the questions, and I give you the answers."

"As if you would give any real answers," Smoker replied.

Law continued to play along, acting as if he didn't understand the subtle meaning of Smoker's reply. "Just ask away as procedure entails," Law said. Then, he added in a low, suggestive tone, "Officer."

Kid saw Smoker grit his teeth in attempt to not lose his composure. Something had happened between them, and Kid hated being clueless. From his experience, cluelessness and preparation did not go well together.

"Are you a citizen?" Smoker's attention was suddenly drawn to Kid, as if he noticed him standing beside Law for the first time.

Kid nodded.

"I need a verbal answer."

"Yes," Kid replied, annoyed.

"Where are you headed?"

"Grand Line."

"Why are you headed there?"

Kid was prepared for this question, if not prepared for the truth between what had happened between Law and Smoker. "It's our study break," he replied, turning his head to grin at Law. "We hardly ever get to see each other, so we're gonna spend it together now." He put an arm around Law's shoulder.

"Do you have any consumables in your luggage?"

"No."

Smoker looked between Kid and Law, irritation clear on his face. He then focused on Law. "Are you a citizen," he asked.

"Yes, I'm a citizen, officer."

"Where are you headed?"

"The Grand Line with my partner."

"Why are you headed there?"

"So we could spend time together," Law smiled, leaning in close to Kid. Kid suddenly felt the heat of Law's breath on his neck, and he realized that he was slightly turned on by the strangeness of the situation and the low tone Law had used earlier.

Smoker turned away from them, hand running through his hair. He sighed, and then swiftly walked out of the waiting room.

In Kid's mind, the pieces of the puzzle clicked together.

"A hound, you say?" Kid asked Law. "I can guess why."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Law laughed. Kid noticed that Law's cheeks were slightly tinged red. Then, the blush was gone; his facial expression turned serious. "That's Smoker down, but he has backup. She's just as thorough, but she's immune to certain… charms."

"There can't be a second round of interrogation," Kid replied, surprised.

"No," Law said. "Tashigi doesn't do interrogations. She would be looking over the contents within our luggage."

"Isn't that invasive?"

"We would most likely be filed as suspect by Smoker, so they have every reason to do it."

Kid frowned. "And here I thought our plan was flawless."

"Oh, it is now," Law replied, looking at the vicinity of their luggage. "She won't find anything of suspect. I'm certain of it."

It was then that Kid noticed the woman with green hair. She was hauling his and Law's luggage back into the bus, as if they belonged to her instead.

"Alright," Tashigi told Law and Kid. "Upon request, I have to search your luggage for any suspicious substances. Do you have any objections to this search?"

"No," Law replied. "Go right ahead."

"No," Kid mimicked.

Tashigi nodded, unzipped the luggage, and inspected the contents. After a few minutes, she put everything back and gave Law and Kid the clear.

"Thank you for your cooperation," she told them. "We sincerely apologize for the intrusion, and we hope that you will enjoy your visit to the Grand Line."

Tashigi then dropped the business-like demeanor. She turned to Law, and smiled. "Smoker's still not over you, you know? And asking me to do the search was such an unreasonable thing. I apologize on his behalf, Law."

"It's no problem," Law replied.

"Although I can kind of see why he would lose it," Tashigi continued, adjusting her glasses and looking at Kid with a serious expression. "Be good to Law, alright? He isn't that bad of a person!"

"Don't flatter me, Tashigi," Law chuckled. "And do tell Smoker that sometimes, going with another pack is simply the best option."

Tashigi's frowned, not understanding what Law had meant. "Ah. You did used to always berate him about his brand of smokes."

"I can't believe that I still do," Law replied easily.

When the bus reached the Grand Line, Kid and Law waved for a taxi. The women with green hair, who had introduced herself as Monet, went into the taxi with them. The trip to their hotel was mostly silent, save for Monet giving the driver the name of the hotel.

Once they were out of the taxi, signed into their respective hotel rooms, and finished with unpacking their luggage, Kid began an interrogation of his own.

"I wasn't told about that part of the plan," Kid began. He had not known that Law's plan had a few layers to it. At worst, being uninformed would have gotten them both caught. A lack of communication between accomplices was deadly. From the very beginning, Kid knew that he shouldn't fully trust Law, but after what had happened at the luggage check, that small amount of trust diminished into nothingness. It was a cold bite of reality that Kid had to face, and he was by no means going to remain ignorant if he could help it.

"Neither was I," Law replied calmly. He started to unzip the luggage.

Kid was exasperated. "Really?" To Kid, Law's reply was a good excuse, but not good enough. Kid wasn't that naive. He didn't know why, but he felt a bit hurt that Law would think of him that way.

Before either Kid or law could continue, however, there was a knock at the door.

Law got up and opened it without question, letting Monet enter the room.

"That was unnecessary" Law told Monet as soon as she sat down on a sofa. Law glanced over at Kid. "My partner here is more than annoyed as well."

"Think of it as an 'I owe you one. I needed new clothes, anyway," Monet replied, referring to the men's clothing in her own luggage that she had switched with Kid and Law earlier.

"Know that there's a spending limit," Law reminded her. "And remember that even if you're wearing the new clothing when we're going back, that clothing still counts."

"Yeah, yeah." She then smirked. "And don't deny that you didn't enjoy the time spent with Smoker that time. It was a good distraction for me and for you."

"Still here," Kid spoke up, feeling rather out of place and embarrassed with his previous assumptions. "Let's get some shut-eye and wake up fresh for the next part of the plan tomorrow."

"Not without a shower and a meal," Law shook his head.

"Since it would be a risk to get room service, let's go out." Monet smirked at Kid, and then left the room without a word.

To be continued.