Blood.

So much blood.

All at once, in perfectly orchestrated unison, the heads of each Marine became detached from their bodies.

In an almost artistic, grotesque display, blood spurted from their necks like lavish fountains, and their bodies fell to create a perfect ring around where I stood, almost like a cage; a prison.

That symbolism quickly snapped me from my shock.

I knew exactly who had 'helped' me.

The low, rumbling beginnings of that familiar laugh seemed to snake up from the icy ground, slithering deep, deep into my chest, constricting every organ that I was most dependent on. That venom I had been so sure I had become resistant to over the past year started filling my veins, weakening me. Paralysing me.

"You didn't think I'd let anyone hurt you, did you, my love..?"

My eyes started at his feet. Those familiar, pointed dress shoes, slowly approaching. My jaw clenched as I forced them to travel upwards, past flamboyant pants, ivory shirt, so many pink feathers. I very nearly dropped to my knees the moment I found that large, sly grin of his, directed at me.

Calm down. Breathe.

Doflamingo halted at the border of his carnage, arms spread wide, as if to welcome me right into them. Expectant. Delusional.
"Let me take a look at you after all this time!" He studied me closely, hidden eyes raking up and down my filthy, banged up form. "As beautiful as the day you were stolen from me. My beautiful girl...I was so worried..."

Don't listen to him. He's lying.

I despised the way my heart stuttered from his declaration, but that was all I would allow, fixing my stance and preparing to take him on if the need arose. I knew it would. There was no way he was going to let me push any further.

"What's wrong..?" That outlandish grin dropped alongside Doflamingo's arms as he realised I wasn't biting his baited hook. "Didn't you miss me, (Y/N)? Too busy playing happy family with Fire Fist and Whitebeard's band of bastards..?" How could he sound so genuinely hurt? So pained by the notion, after everything he had put me through?

"N..Not now, Doffy..." My words came out as a plea, each syllable quivering with discombobulated fear. "I..I need to-"
"Reach him? Your husband? Then what?" The Dressrosian king cut me off with a sharp question, laced with faux concern. "What will you do then? Do you have a key to those shackles? How will you ensure you'll both manage to make it off that platform with your lives? I taught you to be smarter than that, sweetheart."

No, you taught me to be your plaything...

"D..Doffy, if you care for me, even a little...then you'll let me pass..." I spoke as low and as steadily as I could, trying to hide the fact that I was beyond terrified in that moment. Would I have to fight him? The chances of Doflamingo killing, or even hurting me, were extremely low, but I couldn't rule it out altogether. I had seen what he could do to people. I was surrounded by the proof.

"If I care for you..?" Doflamingo frowned, a hand moving to rest against his chest, taking another step forward, the toe of his shoe grazing the corpse of one of the decapitated Marines. "(Y/N), sweetheart...you know I love you. You heard what Sengoku said, that's why I can't let you go."

Hearing those three words made something deep inside of me squeeze tight; pure disgust bubbling up because I didn't hate it. Part of me, still diseased from the past, my world that had been him for so long, clung to those words, and with it came the near overwhelming urge to vomit.

"You're going to have to kill me then, Doffy." I stated shakily, my feet fused to the icy ground. It felt so wrong. The man looming before me had raised me. He had been my everything, yet here I was, desperately sawing away at the tether that bound me to him.

There it was. That bulbous tick in his forehead, pulsing with barely contained fury. He could hit me. He could slice me up with his strings and nobody would say a word about it, since that was his job as a Warlord. However, I knew he wouldn't hurt me. For whatever messed up reason, he was attached to me.

"You..." I could hardly hear him over the violent chaos around us, but I could read his lips despite his clenched teeth. "Is that what you want? You want me to kill you, sweetheart? Do you despise me that much? After all I've done for you?"

All he's done for me..?

Did he even realise what he had done to me? Stolen me to raise as his own, to shape me into his perfect little bride who would fit his ideals? Who would never question him, only obey and support every sick, twisted thing that ran through his head.

My eyes flitted up to where Ace was shackled, bound and broken upon the execution platform. He was watching me, distraught, squirming in his restraints. There wasn't any time to waste, battling my past demons.

"I need...to get to my husband." I spoke through clenched teeth. "There's nothing more to say to each other, Doffy. Move." I could have used my Devil Fruit, but I knew better. Even if I called upon a hundred spectres, it would only take Doflamingo one sweep of his hand to slice them to pieces, and I couldn't risk taking that kind of damage before I could get to Ace.

I went to take a step to the side, but Doflamingo mirrored me, continuing to block my path. There would be no reasoning with him, I knew that from the start.
"You're fit to become a widow, sweetheart. You were the second you decided to run off and abandon me. You and I...we were always meant for each other. You know that, right? You're just confused. Too much excitement, too many broken promises...Let me take you home..."

As his hand reached out towards me, I froze again. I couldn't understand why I couldn't just run, or fight back, or anything to go against him. Was I really that weak? Had he really had that much of an impact on me that I'd let him halt any chances I had of saving Ace?

Squeezing my eyes shut before his palm took up my entire field of vision, I waited for his touch, but it never came. Instead, I felt a slight sting biting at my skin and a rush of hot air, almost dizzying, before my feet momentarily left the ground.

Something told me not to fight it, so I allowed it to carry me until my feet once again touched down upon the icy battlefield. Cracking one eye open, I looked up to see the black material and creamy ruffled fur of a coat collar. A sharp eye glanced down from over a shoulder, smoke billowing from the tip of a lit cigar.
"You good, kid?"

Crocodile..?

I was beyond confused. Crocodile didn't owe me a damn thing, so why did he whisk me away from Doflamingo? Had somebody asked him to? No, he wasn't the type of guy to follow an order. He was an ex warlord, so maybe he had a score to settle? I knew for a fact Doflamingo wasn't well liked amongst his fellow warlords.

"I never thought you'd be one to meddle in other people's affairs, Croccy." My assailant tried to put a playful lilt to his voice, but the agitation was apparent.
"I just wanted to piss you off. Just seeing your face reminded me of how badly I've always wanted to slash it to pieces." Crocodile replied flatly, his stance somewhat wide as though he was shielding me.

My hand moved to my chest, and I gripped and twisted at my shirt as though it would calm down the hammering of my heartbeat. That had been far too close, and taken far too long. Time was running out.
"C..Croc-"
"Go, unless you want to keep dealing with this idiot." He cut me off, not even bothering to look back at me this time.

Thank you...

Refusing to spare Doflamingo so much as another glance, I spun around and continued my sprint towards the execution platform. I had no idea what I was going to do once I got there, but that didn't matter. I had to be with Ace. I couldn't let him be alone any longer.

Hang on, Ace, just a little bit longer...Look at everyone who's fighting for you..! We've got this..!

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I'm so slack with this story because I despise writing Marineford ugh.

Next Time: A Light in the Dark***