The Day and Start of the Week

Lots of loud growls and roars awoke Law from his somewhat peaceful slumber. Slowly, he sat up and rubbed his eyes to wake up more. When he was able to open them properly, he saw Robin messing around with the door. It looked like she was locking it up.

"Robin-ya, what are you doing?" Law asked in a groggy voice. The sounds outside continued on. It was getting a little unnerving.

"I'm locking the door up," she answered.

"Why?"

"Do you hear the roars, barks, and growls outside?" He nodded in confirmation. "The Kingdom is changing. Today is the day that they change."

"Oh. I've been asleep for a whole day?"

"Yes. I didn't want to bother you. I should've already guessed that they would wake you up anyway." He gave a little nod at her. "I locked up the door for the time being. Until they change completely, we have to stay inside."

"Is there a specific reason for that?"

"Yes. It is very dangerous." He paled at that. "When they're in the middle of changing, they don't quite know what they're doing. They will attack anything around them."

"What about each other?"

"No. They will not attack each other. That's the strange part that we haven't been able to figure out about ourselves. We will attack anything that isn't one of us."

"Then, why does everyone leave the Kingdom?"

"We don't really leave the Kingdom. The whole forest is our Kingdom. Everyone just scatters and find finds an area to protect. When they have a mate, they will protect that area with them." Law raised an eyebrow as she came to sit down next to him. "It will be fine when they are done. They will not attack on sight if we leave here."

"Do you have a mate?" Law decided to ask her that because it made him curious when she mentioned mates to him.

"Yes. His name is Zoro. We have tried to have a child together for a few years now." She was quiet for a moment. He was worried about it. "We have yet to be able to have one."

"I'm...sorry."

She lifted her head with a kind smile on her face. "Don't be. You have nothing to be sorry for. It's not your fault."

"Are you going to try again anytime soon?"

"Yes. We're going to try this coming spring." Law smiled back at her, knowing that they weren't giving up. "Why don't I go get us some tea?" Law agreed before she got up and went across the room. "You seem to be taking the deaths of your people quite well."

Law looked away from her. "There was nothing I could do. I couldn't help them. Hell, I couldn't even take care of myself." He felt the tears coming to his eyes but refused to let them fall. "I wouldn't have been fit to be the King if that wouldn't have happened."

"Don't say that. You would've been a great King," Robin replied. He chuckled a little at hearing her words.

"You say that as if you know me." He could hear her small giggle.

"You would be surprised by how much I know about you." That made him curious.

"What do you mean?"

She came back over with two cups of tea. "That's something I have been asked to not tell you about. I'm sorry but I can only tell you that I have only heard good things about you." That, at least, made him feel a little better.

After a bit, the noise from outside died down. "It seems that they're done," Law pointed out. It was a little reassuring that they weren't howling anymore. It did make it creepy, though, since it was now quiet.

"I'm going to go check." She set her cup aside before going to the door. It was a little unnerving that she was unlocking it. Law was a little nervous for her to do so. He flinched when he heard the door open a bit. Law watched Robin poke her head out and glance around. "Yes. They are off to find their areas."

"That's good." Robin shut the door but didn't lock it this time. "Can you tell me why they do this?"

"I'm afraid that I haven't been too honest with you during this time."

"What do you mean? There's more to what's going on?"

"I'm afraid so." Robin walked back over before sitting down on the edge of the bed. She grabbed her cup and finished off her tea. "I would advise you to not leave this room without me."

"Will something happen if I leave without you?"

"There is a very big possibility that something will happen to you." He watched her take a deep breath. "They will be in their wolf form for about a week."

That made him curious. "So, it's like a time of period?" Law had studied how some animals' lives were like. It was very interesting to him. He was comparing it to a human, though.

"You can say that. They are more aggressive if you encounter them. The reason they find an area to protect is because they are trying to find a place to quietly take care of their mate and themselves. This is a fight for survival between them."

"That sounds horrible."

"Typically, they don't try to provoke each other. That's why they find areas to claim." She looked to the side like she didn't want to say something important to him.

"Is there a specific reason I cannot exit this room without you? Is there one that hangs around here when it's that time?" Robin didn't look at him but nodded her head in confirmation. "Who is it?"

"Kid. He's the one that claims the main part of the Kingdom as his territory." Law was shocked to hear that. "I have asked him many times why he does, but he won't answer me. It's almost like he prefers not to give me an answer about it."

"Is he always like that?"

"Yes. He doesn't like people to know what's going through his mind. We respect his wishes and don't press him for anything." Law nodded.

The two of them talked for a little while. Robin stopped long enough to make them something to eat before continuing where they left off. It was pleasant because he didn't have many people to talk to when he was at his old home.

Robin got up and asked him to stay in the room. Law agreed to stay in the room but asked if he could walk around. "I think a little movement will help you with getting better. A little bit of exercise is healthy when you're healing."

With that, she left out the door. Law moved the blankets back before swinging his legs off of it and struggling to his feet. The pressure hurt his side and made him wince at the sharp pain shot through his side.

Bearing through the pain, he walked to the fire that was on the other side of the room. It was comfortable, but it reminded him of that night. He, warily, backed off from it to go somewhere else. Law chose to check out the other rooms connected to this one.

In one place, he found a small area that looked very close to a lab. There were a number of shelves of bottles with many different coloured liquids in them. A desk was against the wall. Papers were scattered across it.

Walking up to the desk, he picked up one of the papers. Law began to read it aloud. "I still haven't found it. It's frustrating to me. Robin says that I'm very close. I have to agree with her. I'm going to try a different herb than the rosemary. It's similar but much more potent than it. I hope it works."

Law placed the page back down and picked up another. It was similar but talked about him. He guessed that it was Chopper that wrote them. The mention of Robin and 'being close' was a dead giveaway.

Finished with inspecting the papers, Law left that room. He wanted to go check out the only other room. Going next door, he opened the door. He was surprised to find another bedroom. It was fit for about three or four more people. It was cozy and felt welcoming. Law smiled at seeing it.

Deciding to check on Robin, he left that room as well. Getting back to the main room, he found that Robin wasn't back yet. "Where could she have gone? What did she leave to go get?" he asked himself aloud.

Suddenly, a loud growl sounded right outside the door. It made him jump before wincing and grabbing his side from the sudden movements. Cautiously, he went to see what was there. He was concerned for Robin's safety.

Law grabbed the knob before pulling it open just a bit. He gasped when he saw what was there. Robin was nowhere in sight but there was a pitch-black wolf that was sniffing around. I thought Robin-ya said that Kid-ya was the only one that was around here. Why is this one here?

After a minute, he paled and almost screamed in terror when the wolf lifted its head and stared directly at him. Quickly, he slammed the door shut. Not even a minute later, something very heavy slammed into the door. It almost threw him on the ground with how sudden it was and how much force was put behind it.

Not knowing what to do, Law screamed for help. "Robin-ya! Where are you?! I need you! Right now!" He was freaking out because he didn't know what would happen if the wolf got inside with him.

Desperately, he tried holding the door shut to fend off the wolf. Law chalked it up to him being hurt and trying to regain his strength, but he wasn't able to hold the door anymore after about five minutes. A sudden slam into the door threw it open and knocked him onto the ground. He groaned at the pain that flooded his senses.

Sniffing sounded right in his ear. Nervously, Law moved his head to see what was going on. He froze at what he saw. The wolf was towering over him, sniffing at him like it was confused and curious at the same time. It disturbed him a little.

It pressed its nose into his cheek while still sniffing at him like it was trying to figure something out. Law flinched as it growled when he moved just a little. He hoped that Robin would get back soon to help him out. To be honest, Law was almost on the verge of having a panic attack because he was told that there was no one there expect Kid. Now, there was a large wolf sniffing at him.

I didn't even leave the room. I just peeked out to see what was taking her so long. Fuck me for being curious. It made him yelp when a lick was made up his cheek. The feeling was a little unnerving but not completely unfamiliar. Law had a pet dog before. He loved dogs.

A loud, deep, pissed-sounding growl sounded behind the one over him. It made him freeze and the one above him look toward it. To his surprise, the black wolf cowered away from whatever it was. For a moment, Law thought he could make out something like speech going on between them. It wasn't intelligible but still could be considered as speech.

Almost frantically, the wolf above him scurried away from him. He watched it run off before disappearing around the corner. Law hadn't been expecting that. After a minute or so, another one came up to him. He cowered away because he didn't know what its intentions were.

It sniffed at him before nudging him. Shakily, he turned to look at it. He gasped. Very familiar, golden eyes stared at him in a face covered in blood-red, fiery fur. Law knew those eyes all too well.

"Kid, is everything alright?" Robin's voice made him look away from the captivating eyes he had stared into only two years before. The woman was walking up to them. "What happened here?"

Not knowing what to say at first, Law just stared at her before turning back to Kid who was in front of him. After a few minutes, he found his voice to speak. "I...I th-thought he was the on-only one h-here," he commented with a shaky voice.

"He's supposed to be." Her expression took on a look of concern. "Can you tell me what happened just now?"

Nodding, Law scooted away from the other before getting up. He didn't know how to feel about what had just happened. "Th-This is Kid-ya?" he asked, gesturing to the wolf.

"Yes. He's the biggest one of us all." Law nodded. The wolf almost didn't fit in the doorway. That was amazing. The thing was that the door was easily about fifteen feet tall and five feet wide. "It seems that he was able to get here before I could."

"Yes." Law agreed before going back over to his bed. He stared at Kid. The other didn't take his eyes off of him, either. "I...I didn't leave the room." That was the first thing that he could muster to say.

"I believe you." She looked back to where he saw the smaller wolf had run off to. "That was one of the younger ones." He heard he sniff before sighing. "He's in heat. No wonder he didn't acknowledge Kid's aura."

"Heat?"

Kid moved into the room. He was almost too big for the room. The wolf moved to lay right next to the bed. Robin followed right after when he was out of the doorway. "Yes. We have heats. That's one of the main reasons that they find areas to claim. It's our week of heat. That is why they are more aggressive. Especially if they don't have a mate." He watched her think. "So, it is almost exactly like you said before. We have periods for a week."

"I vaguely remember reading about something like that," Law commented. It just never said what it was. Kid pressed against his legs. He went to move but Kid just got closer. Law sighed before choosing to ignore him. "Alphas get more aggressive when it's that time."

"You're correct. They try to find a mate so that they can control their urges." Law nodded. He was understanding what she was talking about. His father had been teaching him how to treat not only people but animals as well.

A thought hit him. "Robin-ya, you never answered me yesterday." She looked confused. Kid raised his head before placing it in his lap. Unconsciously, he began to pet the very large head that filled his lap completely.

"Can you ask me the question again?"

"Why is Kid-ya so worried about me? I mean, we only met yesterday."

Robin seemed to think that question over. He wondered if he had asked a question she didn't want to answer. "Kid is, or was, a very close friend of your father." His eyes widened at the information. "From what I remember him telling me, the North King asked him to take care of you if anything was to happen to him or the woman taking care of you. He is trying to fulfill your father's wish." It felt as if she was holding something else back.

"So, that's why he's doing this?"

Robin looked down before laughing. "I believe so. That could be why he protected you from the young one that attacked you." He nodded.

After a bit, he began to doze off. He remembered that he wanted to ask her something. "Why did you leave me earlier?" he asked, still rubbing and petting Kid's head. The wolf-man seemed to be enjoying it.

"I had to go get some things. Chopper wanted me to work on making some more medicine for your side."

"Oh."

"I will have to change your bandages later so the wound doesn't get infected."

"That's fine." He yawned. "I'm tired."

"You can rest. I'll still be here when you get up." Law nodded before he stopped petting Kid. He moved his head to allow him to lay down on the bed. The head was replaced on his stomach as he laid on his back.

"You're a strange person," he said to him. "To be this protective over someone you hardly even know." Kid barked at him, but Law couldn't understand him but smiled regardless. "You don't strike me as being that way. Guess that I have to get used to some things around here." Kid just stared at him as he closed his eyes.

"Get some more rest, Law. You need it to recover fully." Law agreed before placing a hand on Kid's head. He rubbed him until sleep came to claim his mind.

...

The change was excruciating. It always was when this time of the year rolled around. They would change out of their own control and tried to fight it before it could happen. The sounds of his people's howls and roars made him feel bad.

Kid was used to it. He knew that it was going to be worse on the younger, newer ones. That was always how it was for them. It wasn't their fault. Roaring in pain himself, he dropped to his hands and knees right outside the castle.

Slowly, fur as red as his hair began to grow all over his face, his nose became the snout of a wolf, human ears disappeared and wolf ears grew out of the top of his head, hands and feet became large paws, a tail grew out of the lower part of his back, and he grew five times larger than his normal size.

When the pain subsided, he looked around. Many of his people were already gone. Zoro was still there. He looked at him before rushing off. Kid knew that he was the biggest of them all. It was always like that. The King was always the biggest of their kind.

Glancing around again, he saw Luffy and Nami rushing out of the area. They were going to look for a place to call theirs for the week. It was admirable that they, at least, got along with each other during this time.

When pretty much everyone was gone, Kid began his normal patrolling of the city. He was the one that claimed the whole city as his territory. There was enough of the forest for everyone to claim some part of it. To Kid, the Kingdom was his domain. Nobody fought him over it and that was how he liked it.

It was quiet for a while. He patrolled the whole area about three times. Nobody was crossing into his territory. That was how he liked it. Quiet, peaceful, and empty. The problem was that he didn't have his mate with him.

Sure, Law was in part of the castle, but he wouldn't be able to talk with him and hardly interact with him. He would probably recognize him as well. That was something he didn't think he wanted Law to realize. He didn't want Law to figure out that he was the wolf from two years before. That would probably just make it awkward for them.

Suddenly, on his fifth patrol for the day, he smelled a familiar but unwelcomed scent. It was one of his people, but they were in his territory. He growled before rushing off to find who it was. Then, he heard screaming. Fear and worry gripped him. The fear was from Law. That's what worried him.

Rushing to find him, Kid remembered that Law was in the medical ward. Going as fast as he could, he tried not to let the worry overtake him. After a minute, he heard Law scream in terror and desperation. "Robin-ya! Where are you? I need you! Right now!"

This isn't good. Law's calling for help. What's going on? That made him even more desperate to get to him. When he got to the area that Law was in, he stood there in shock and anger for a minute or so. He found out why he smelled a trespasser in his territory.

There was a small wolf standing over Law. It was a young one. Kid remembered him to be one of his warriors' kids. A new, inexperienced pup. The kid wasn't attacking but the sight still pissed him off greatly. The pup was messing with his mate. Something he could not and would never stand for.

Growling, he got the attention of the young one. It turned to him with a glare before cowering away at the sight of him. "Get away from him," he growled out.

"I...I wasn't going to hurt him," he replied in a whimper.

"I don't give a shit. You are trespassing in my territory and near my mate. Get the fuck out of here before I beat the shit out of you." He was not happy with the younger one. He was messing with his mate and that pissed him off. Law was his. Nobody was allowed to scare him. Nobody was allowed to interact with him unless he said it was okay.

"Y-Yes, sir." The wolf scuttled away in a rushed manner. Kid watched him run away. It made him feel much better. Law was watching the other as well but didn't look at him.

After the other was gone, Kid slowly made his way over to Law. He flinched when the human cowered away from him. It hurt him to think that Law was afraid of him. When he was standing above him, he leaned down before sniffing him. After a second, Kid nudged Law's cheek with his nose to get him to look at him.

Slowly, Law turned to look at him. Their eyes connected and he heard the gasp that left Law's lips. Those beautiful, cool grey eyes were wide as they stared at each other. He was happy to see that Law was fine if a little startled.

"Kid, is everything alright?" Robin's voice surprised him. He hadn't heard her approach them. When Law looked away from him, he looked back at her. "What happened here?"

Looking back to Law, he watched the kid. He looked to be thinking about something. After a minute or so, he looked back at him. A bit later, he answered one of his best friends. "I...I th-thought he was the on-only one h-here," he stuttered, still looking at him.

"He's supposed to be." Kid didn't look at her but could feel her confusion. He was more fixated on seeing how Law reacted to knowing that, though. "Can you tell me what happened just now?"

Law nodded as he scooted away from Kid. It almost made him whine. He thought Law didn't like him. His fears disappeared as he just stood up. Kid could feel the confusion coming from him. "Th-This is Kid-ya?"

"Yes. He's the biggest one of us all." He watched him nod. Kid could tell that Law was studying him from the expression he was giving him. "It seems that he was able to get here before I could."

"Yes." Law agreed with her comment before going to sit on the bed. He was still staring at him. Kid did the same back. "I...I didn't leave the room," he commented. Kid thought it was a strange thing to say to them.

"I believe you." He watched Law look away from him to Robin. He still didn't look away from him. "That was one of the younger ones." The woman sniffed behind him. He knew what she was doing. "He's in heat. No wonder he didn't acknowledge Kid's aura." Kid had already figured that out. It pissed him off even more when he figured that out and the kid tried to attack Law.

"Heat?"

Deciding to move into the room, Kid walked over to the bed and laid down right next to it. He almost took up the whole room. Robin followed in right after he moved out of her way. "Yes. We have heats. That's one of the main reasons that they find areas to claim. It's our week of heat. That is why they are more aggressive. Especially if they don't have a mate." She was quiet for a moment. "So, it's exactly like you said before. We have periods for a week."

"I vaguely remember reading about something like that." Kid chose to push against Law's legs. Just sitting next to him wasn't enough anymore. He needed to touch him. Law went to move away but Kid followed him. He heard the defeated sigh before Law spoke again. "Alphas get more aggressive when it's that time."

"You're correct. They try to find a mate so that they can control their urges." Kid laid his head down since Law wasn't trying to move away from him anymore. That was comforting to be so close to his mate and him not reject him for what he was.

"Robin-ya, you never answered me yesterday." Kid decided he wanted to be closer to him. Lifting his head, Kid placed it in his lap. It felt satisfying when Law began to pet him. He knew that Law wasn't really paying attention, but it was still a giant leap for him.

"Can you ask me the question again?"

"Why is Kid-ya so worried about me? I mean, we only met yesterday." Kid wanted to laugh at the question and comment. Because you're my mate. I'm going to worry about you because I care about you.

The woman didn't answer for a long moment. "Kid is, or was, a very close friend of your father." He had told Robin about his friendship with the old King. The man was nice and very kind to him even with what he was. "From what I remember him telling me, the North King asked him to take care of you if anything was to happen to him or the woman taking care of you. He is trying to fulfill your father's wish." Kid knew that she wouldn't tell him anything about him being his mate. She would allow him to do it himself.

"So, that's why he's doing this?"

Robin's laughter filled the room. It didn't bother him. "I believe so. That could be why he protected you from the young one that attacked you." Kid chuckled to himself. Yep. She's going to leave it to me to tell him myself. I appreciate her for that.

Law continued to stroke and rub his head for a while. During so, he felt Law starting to doze off. The pets were getting sluggish. "Why did you leave me earlier?"

"I had to go get some things. Chopper wanted me to work on making some more medicine for your side."

"Oh."

"I will have to change your bandages later so the wound doesn't get infected." He felt Law tense a bit before relaxing. Kid wondered why he would be nervous about that.

"That's fine." He heard Law yawn. He's sleepy. "I'm tired." That confirmed his thought.

"You can rest. I'll still be here when you get up." After that, he stopped petting Kid. It almost made him whine. Moving his head away, he allowed Law to lay down before placing his head on his stomach while Law laid on his back.

"You're a strange person," Law said to him. "To be this protective over someone you hardly even know."

"That's because I love you. Actually, I've known you for years. You recognized me, didn't you?" he barked at him. He knew that Law couldn't understand him. At least, not yet. It even showed on his face when he gave him a confused expression but smiled at him.

"You don't strike me as being that way. Guess that I have to get used to some things around here." Kid watched him as he closed his eyes.

"Get some more rest, Law. You need it to recover fully." Law agreed with her once again before he reached up and placed a hand on his head. Slowly, he fell asleep, petting and rubbing him again.

When Law was completely asleep, Kid removed his head from under the comforting hand. He didn't want to, but he also didn't want to accidentally wake him up. "you know that he will have a hard time adapting to our ways, right?" Robin asked.

"Yes. It can't be helped. He will have to adapt. It's just how it will be," he answered.

"When do you think you'll change him? He will have to be changed for him to be able to live as long as you."

"I don't know." Kid laid his head on his paws. "I don't want to rush it because he will hate me if I do."

Robin chuckled. "Tak your time. He's eighteen. You've got a few years to make that decision. Take your time."

Kid sighed. "I am." He looked back up at Law. "I'm going to ask him after a while. Let him make that decision."

"That's a better option. Don't force something on the boy." She went to the fireplace and began to prepare a stew. He could smell it and knew it was going to be for Law. "He's a good kid. I saw into his future a little. You do wind up with him, but I don't know when."

"Thanks for the reassurance."

"You're welcome." After that, they talked for a bit while Robin made the stew for his mate to get some energy back. He was waiting for him to get up.

I know that it's been an extremely long time since I updated. I hope you all will forgive me. Let me know what you think of this chapter. Have a gracious day. I love you all. Tatty-bye!