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itsthemoofacewriting · 4 years ago

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My 2020 Writer Wrap-up

I spent my day doing this instead of working on my WIPs… why am I like this?

Anyway, it’s under the cut because this turned out to be really long but it’s kinda fun. Sorry for posting this on my writing blog but considering it’s about my year in writing it seemed kinda fitting but also another reason it’s under the cut is so you can ignore if you’re only here for writing.

I didn’t tag anyone, but I implore you to do it! It’s so fun and please tag me! I wanna read them!

It really depends on my mood. I’m kinda down for all types and have written them all, but I don’t post some of my sadder stuff.

But my favourite has to be Straw-hat madness mixed in with romance. It’s fun to write and adds more flavour.

Which fic of yours was the hardest to write?

Has to be ‘Delayed’ and ‘Is it okay if I take my time’. Neither of them really wanted to be written and I had to wrangle them more than my other fics.

Which was the easiest?

‘Black Cat’, I’ve never had a story that just flowed through my fingers like that since, ‘Potato peeling’, ‘Feel the burn’, ‘The stars will guide you’. So really, excluding Black Cat, anything that’s quite light and fluffy. Don’t have to watch out for plot, you see.

Favourite story you’ve ever written?

This sounds like such a cop out, but I love all of my stories. I’ve written every single one for a reason and they’ve scratched the itch in my head.

But, if I have to pick (and yes, I will pick multiple, one from each ship) it’s ‘Delayed’ and “I know you’re tired (Why don’t we go back home)’.

Do you write from start to finish or do you hop around?

The way I write has changed a lot over the course of the year I’ve been writing again. I used to write start to finish but I hop around now. Write the scene(/s) I’m really feeling and build or connect from there. Found it helps me write quicker and solve any plot blocks.

Have you ever deleted a published fic?

Nope and I never plan to. My older stuff on FFN is probably frustrating to people as it’s not finished but I like to keep it as a reminder of how far I’ve come.

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?

It was before I got back into writing fanfic again and I was reading a Tumblr post that basically said none of this matters. Whether your fanfic is amazing or awful, it literally doesn’t matter because at least one person will love it and cherish it. It helped me a lot because I used to get so hung up on the reviews/attention when I was younger that I lost sight of what I really enjoyed.

Also, to write how you want to write. Don’t listen to the rules. Rules are made to be broken and when you start to ignore them, you end up producing your best pieces. I agree with this wholeheartedly. I find myself doing a mixture of both and it’s helped a lot.

Another was by a lovely reviewer fairly recently. I was starting to beat myself down again like I did when I was younger, it may have come across, and they just reminded me this is for fun, no one is expecting me to be an award-winning writer and that this is for fun. I remind myself of this constantly and I’ve never looked back since.

Sorry, loads of advice but I use it a lot to keep me in the right mind frame and remind myself that I write to escape life.

What’s the worst?

Anything that’s the opposite of the above. I remember reading a post about grammar etc and I do use that/read them to improve my writing but the tone of it was judgemental and it irked me.

Have you ever collabed with another writer?

No, but I’d absolutely love to if it was the right person.

How many WIPS do you have right now?

*sobs* So, so many. Some of them I’ve used to get me out of writers block and probably won’t ever post but some others are WIPs that I feel in love with and then promptly fell back out of love with. I’ll work on those again at some point.

I’ve got about four right now that I’m actively working on (it helps me to jump about sometimes).

Story you are most proud of?

It’s always going to be ‘Black Cat’. I go back and read it and cringe at the wording/grammar etc but it was my first ever big, plotted story that just swept me away for over a month. I lived in that world and I was so sad when I finished it.

There’s another huge one I’m working on and I think I’ll be proud when I finish that, but we’ll see. This one’s a bit harder.

Best review you’ve ever gotten?

I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to pick one. Honestly, I love every single review, obviously I love the more detailed ones, but it always gets me that someone took the time to not only read my stuff but also leave lovely words! So nope, not singling any of them out. Just a huge thank you to everyone that leaves them.

Worse review you’ve ever gotten?

Now, this I will do. They are so far and few between (there’s literally none). I can only think of like three?

But I think one of them basically reviewed that it was an awful ship�� that was it. It didn’t even upset me, I laughed. Because they took the time to say that, but didn’t criticise the plot or my writing, so I’m taking it as a win that they enjoyed everything else but the ship.

Do you reread your own stories?

Hell yeah, I do! I reread them all the time. I write most of them for myself anyway, so I always enjoy it… and I use it to pick up where I could improve.

Do you want to be published some day?

Nope, but I have no plans of leaving fanfic behind. I enjoy it too much.

Favourite character to write?

Nami. Goes without saying.

Least favourite character to write?

God, don’t come at me. But Franky and Brook. I just can’t grasp much from them. Wish I could figure out Franky so I could write some Frobin.

Do you set yourself deadlines or goals?

Hmmm, occasionally. It’s only if I’m writing for an event or certain holiday, otherwise not really.

Is there a trop you’ve never written but want to try?

So many and I think about it all the time, normally when I’m thinking of fic ideas.

Royalty AU- one for SaNami and ZoNami. I’m currently plotting for both.

Like to write a slow burn at some point.

Witch AU

Basically lots of AUs.

Maybe another big, plotted piece if I can think of something.

Is there a trope you will never write?

Nothing tragic or sad that I can’t fix.

How long have you been a writer?

Think I started writing in 2010/2011, so about 10 years. I may not have written anything in my huge hiatus, but I daydreamed a lot, so I’m counting it.

Hardest part of writing?

When you get to a tough bit, or halfway through when you’ve had enough but you also want to finish it.

Procrastinating.

Editing.

Easiest part of writing?

Dialogue. I have so much fun writing dialogue. And descriptions and thoughts.

Best part of writing fanfic?

Finally posting it and sharing it with everyone. Especially when it’s a piece I’m excited about.

Share the plot of a WIP you haven’t published yet

Oh man. I reaallly try not to do this. Because if I do, I hit a roadblock or change my mind and never post it.

Tell us something unique that you bring to all of your stories!

…I don’t think I do?

So instead, a fun fact! I have both my title and summary written out before I start the fic.

If you’re still here

Dude, I admire your concentration. Even I checked out about halfway through. But, as you are, a huge thank you, once again, for such a fun year! Thank you for reading and sharing this experience with me. I’ve had the best time and I have no plans to stop. So let’s roll on 2021.

#not writing #AO3 wrapped

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pingo1387 · 5 years ago

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Monochrome

Written for @rudimentaryflair for @opvalentines 2020! Canonverse, Soulmate AU ZoSan, side Frobin, mention of aroace Luffy

The left eye held your eye color, and the right eye held your soulmate’s. When you first made eye contact with your soulmate, your right eye would change to its own color. That was what Kuina had told Zoro long ago. He never questioned it at the time, didn’t ask what that word “color” meant, but he did check his eyes in a mirror after that. They were identical as always.

Kuina died with heterochromia. Somewhere in the world, her soulmate would live on with two brown eyes, one lighter than the other.

“Sensei,” Zoro said one day after a frustrating training exercise. “What’s color?”

Koshiro was taken aback by the question, and struggled to answer, eventually standing, leaving, and then returning with two large leaves. “Do you see the difference between these?”

“Sure.” Zoro pointed to one. “This one’s darker.”

“Yes. This one is red, and this one is green. Red and green are two colors.”

Zoro was stumped. “Then, is everything just different shades of red and green?”

Koshiro let the leaves flutter away in the wind and placed his hands in his lap. “Zoro, you may be color blind.”

“What’s that?”

Zoro only sort-of understood after Koshiro did his best to explain it to him. Afterwards, he looked at his eyes in the mirror again. According to Koshiro, colors would almost always have different shades of lightness and darkness, even in his “monochrome” vision (Zoro struggled to pronounce the word, even in his head), but his eyes were both the same shade as always.

And that was fine. Zoro knew some people didn’t have soulmates, something else Kuina had whispered to him, and that was fine. He put down the mirror and folded his arms. No soulmate meant no one getting in the way of his dream.

When Zoro locked eyes with the dark-eyed boy wearing the straw hat, he narrowed his eyes. Those eyes, full of youth and optimism, had changed to a lighter shade, the same one Zoro always saw in the mirror.

“Hey,” he said while they were sailing away. “I’ve got a question.”

“Shoot,” the boy, Luffy, said.

“Your eyes, they changed color, didn’t they? But mine are . . .”

“Oh, that! Don’t worry about that.” Luffy grinned. “Someone told me it means I don’t have a romantic soulmate, but I have a bunch of platonic ones. My eyes change color all the time if I make eye contact, and they change back after a while.” He stretched, flopping around in the boat. “It doesn’t make anyone else’s eyes change. Yours didn’t.”

“Okay,” Zoro said, staring up at the sky.

They picked up two more, a navigator with an eye for money and a sniper with a mouth for lies. After bumping into some old friends, they reached a seafaring restaurant called the Baratie, and Zoro was itching for a fight. When a waiter with hair covering one side of his face started to serve them, he made eye contact with Zoro, and his eyes widened. Usopp and Nami looked between them, mouths open.

“What?” Zoro said, scratching his head.

“Oh, fuck this,” the waiter said, glowering at Zoro. He seized Luffy around the neck. “Come on, chore boy, back to the kitchen.”

As soon as they left, Nami and Usopp rounded on Zoro.

“What was that about?” Usopp demanded.

“What was what?”

“Why didn’t you say anything to him?”

“Huh?”

“Didn’t you see . . . ?” Nami shook her head. “You’ll figure it out. You poor soul.”

“Figure what out?”

“You are a tragic, tragic man, Zoro,” Usopp cried.

“You looking for a fight?”

The cook Sanji ended up joining their crew, somehow, and he seemed to love picking on Zoro. Every time Zoro so much as tried to speak to him, Sanji would snap and badger until they were sparring, scowling, and seething. During one of their strange matches, Sanji’s hair flew up, and Zoro caught a brief glimpse of a matching set of eyes.

“Do you not have a soulmate?” he asked. Sanji stumbled, caught off guard, and Zoro pinned him to the ground with a sword next to his head.

“I wish I didn’t,” Sanji spat.

Zoro frowned. “So . . . you do. You met them, and you didn’t get along? Isn’t that strange?”

Sanji narrowed his eyes. “What the fuck are you talking about? Don’t you know?”

“I don’t know. I know I don’t have a soulmate.”

Sanji brought his legs up to his torso and kicked hard, sending Zoro flying. As Zoro sat up from the railing, rubbing his head, Sanji yanked his sword out from the deck and tossed it to him. “Yeah,” Sanji said, turning away as Zoro caught the sword. “I guess I don’t, either.”

It had been a perfectly reasonable thing to do. His legs had been stuck in wax. The wax was unbreakable. His legs were breakable. Therefore---

“You’re an idiot.”

Zoro winced as Sanji stuck the needle into his flesh again. “That’s my business,” he said through gritted teeth.

“It becomes my---our business when it affects the crew.” Sanji jabbed the needle in again, perhaps a bit harder than he needed to. “I hate you.”

Zoro folded his arms, staring at Sanji. Sanji looked up again, meeting his eyes, and looked back down.

“I hate you,” Sanji repeated.

“Yeah.” Zoro wiggled his toes, regaining feeling in his feet. “I know. I don’t know why you do, but I know.”

Sanji flinched and snapped off the string, standing. “Rest, and don’t fucking try anything stupid,” he said. “Scratch that. Don’t stand up for at least an hour. I’ll bring you soup.”

Zoro stared after him, and for once, he listened.

“What’d you do to get hurt this bad?” Zoro said, tapping Sanji’s back and making him wince in pain.

“None of your goddamn business,” Sanji said through gritted teeth. “The mountain climb was tougher than it looked.”

Elsewhere on the deck, Luffy and Usopp were throwing their new crewmate, Chopper, into the air. Zoro and Sanji watched them in silence.

“Hey,” Sanji said. “Did you . . . growing up, did you want to meet your soulmate?”

“I told you, I don’t have one,” Zoro grumbled. “But I never wanted one, either.”

“You don’t make any sense, moss-hair,” Sanji said, folding his arms.

“Moss . . . ?” Zoro rubbed the top of his head, his hair smooth and silky and not at all like the rough moss he’d felt on trees. “What are you talking about?”

“Boy, you really are dumb. What were you saying?”

Zoro glowered at him. “I never wanted a soulmate. I didn’t want destiny getting in the way of my dream.”

“That’s---”

“Falling in love is a different story, though. That’s my choice. And I won’t let the person I choose to love, if anyone, get in the way of my dream.”

“Hm.” Sanji shifted, wincing again. Nami and Vivi chatted with Chopper, pulling him away from Luffy’s hyperactivity.

“What about you?”

Sanji sighed “I wanted to meet my soulmate more than anything,” he said, scowling. “I wanted to meet that beautiful lady who I was destined to be with. But then everything went wrong.”

“Wrong how?”

“You’re just winning the prize for biggest moron today, aren’t you?” Sanji snapped, standing. He fell down and tried to cover up his pain when Chopper looked over in concern. “You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

“I don’t.”

Sanji scowled, but his face softened as he met Zoro’s eyes again. “I hate you,” he said, yet again.

Zoro’s chest hurt. “I know.”

Sanji was silent. He soon stood again, using the ship railing for support this time. “Want something to eat?”

“Booze.”

Zoro didn’t hate Sanji, but he hated the way Sanji spun hearts around women, and acted so stupid with them. He hated how Sanji spoke to him, and refused to make eye contact, and did his best to put contempt behind every word. Even now, Sanji was crooning over Robin, the suspicious woman who was their newest crewmate.

“Oh, Cook-san,” she said as he melted before her. “Have you met your soulmate?”

For an instant, Zoro thought he saw Sanji look at him.

“Yes, unfortunately, it hasn’t worked out,” Sanji said sweetly. “And you haven’t, Robin-chan, my dear?”

“Correct. But that’s my business.”

“Of course, of course, forgive me,” Sanji crooned. He turned, Robin watching him go with one dark eye and one light, and he bumped into Zoro.

“The fuck do you want?” he muttered, avoiding looking directly at him, as always.

“Nothing,” Zoro said, rolling his eyes. Sanji pushed past him and went into the kitchen, slamming the door shut. Zoro spotted Robin staring at him and raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“Nothing,” she said, looking away.

Zoro didn’t hate Sanji, but he hated that Sanji didn’t love hated him.

There Zoro was, waking up from Enel’s lightning blast, and there Sanji was close to him, still unconscious. He stared at him for what must have been too long, because suddenly Usopp was saying, “He got hit twice. He saved me and Nami.”

“Oh,” Zoro said. He scooted towards Sanji and pressed his ear to his chest, sighing when he heard the arrhythmic heartbeat. Looking up, he saw Usopp staring at him, and said, “What?”

Usopp rolled his eyes and looked away. Zoro looked back at Sanji’s face, and brushed some ash out of his hair, his fingers lingering on his cheek.

Something happened during the Davy Back Fight. Something happened to Sanji. The way he looked at Zoro when he asked for his help during the Groggy Ring battle, with that stupid ball strapped to his head. The way he slapped Zoro’s shoulders and back during the following celebration party. The way he gave Zoro tentative smiles, as if testing the waters, and the silly way he grinned when Zoro smiled back.

“I hate you,” Sanji said that evening, joining Zoro in the crow’s nest that evening with a bottle of wine.

“Yeah,” Zoro said, looking away. He and Sanji were still covered in bruises from their battle, dark and light patches across their limbs and torsos.

“But I also don’t hate you.”

“Oh?” Zoro’s heart lifted as he looked at Sanji, his chest hurting again but in a completely different way.

“Yeah. Do you hate me?”

“No.” Zoro took the offered bottle, taking a drink straight from the mouth. “I never did.”

“Huh.” Sanji looked down, blinking hard, and brought a hand up to his suddenly bright eyes. “Huh. Is that so?”

“What’s up with you?”

Sanji looked up, swallowing back tears. “You’re just a grade-A moron, aren’t you?”

“I’m not psychic. What are you talking about?”

“Keep the bottle.” Sanji stood. “I’ll come to relieve you in time. See you.”

He vanished down the ropes, and Zoro lifted his head, staring up at the dark, dark sky covered in pale, pale dots.

With their journey through Enies Lobby and Water 7 complete, the Strawhats had lost three treasured crewmates, one for good, and gained three, one brand-new. It wasn’t long before Franky and Robin were performing public displays of affection, nothing more daring than pecks on the cheek and yet things that once would have surely driven Sanji to tears with jealousy. As it was, though, he merely gave them thoughtful glances at most.

“Aren’t you soulmates?” Usopp asked them one day as Zoro lingered nearby and Sanji served them cold drinks, setting Robin’s down lovingly upon a coaster and slamming Franky’s into his hand.

“We’re not sure,” Robin admitted. Her eyes hadn’t changed from the moment she had threatened them in the glow of the remains of Igaram’s ship: One was light, and one was dark.

“I had to rebuild my eyes while modifying my body,” Franky explained. “It’s a shame, but I don’t remember the exact colors they were. In any case, since they’re super-artificial and the same color, they wouldn’t change with eye contact.”

“So, we’re not sure,” Robin repeated. “But we love each other, and if he’s not my soulmate and I meet them one day, they’ll have to put up with him as well.”

“What do you mean, put up with?” Franky demanded.

Zoro stared at Sanji from across the deck, looking away as soon as he noticed.

Thriller Bark brought them a zany new member of the family, a talking skeleton who was older than dirt and far too cheery. Thriller Bark brought them a dangerous new enemy, a Warlord with the ability to repel just about anything. Thriller Bark brought them a Zoro who claimed to have lost his memory of his fight with Kuma, but who remembered the sleeping face of his captain, the cold eyes of his enemy, and the desperate, pained face of his . . .

Zoro thought he had finally escaped. Between Chopper trying to mummify him in bandages and the others badgering him to take it easy, he thought he had found refuge in the library, where no one would think to look for him. He lay on his back, pedalling his feet in the air to stretch his legs, as he’d been unable to sneak his weights into the room without drawing attention to himself.

“There you are.”

He groaned and dropped his legs as Sanji entered. “Can’t I have peace for one minute?” he said, sitting up. He frowned, seeing Sanji’s face. “What is it?”

“I don’t hate you,” Sanji said.

“Oh,” Zoro said, his chest hurting in that good way just hearing the words. “Right. And?”

“I tried to hate you, Zoro. I really did.” Sanji sat next to him, staring at the floor. “I didn’t want to feel this way about you. I wanted to feel this way about a pretty girl. But I can’t help it. Zoro, I love you. You’re a fucking callous moron, and I don’t know if you love me, too, but---fuck, you have every right not to after the way I’ve treated---”

“I do love you.”

Sanji looked up at him, lips parted and breath shallow. “But you---”

“I love you,” Zoro repeated. “You’ve always been a bitch, but that was the only thing---I can’t help it.” He looked down, wiggling his toes on the floor and staring at the scars on his shins. “I think I’ve loved you for a while. Maybe since I realized the only thing I really hated about you was that you didn’t love me.”

“But I do love you. I really tried not to,” Sanji repeated, running his hands through his hair in frustration. “I can’t help it, either. Especially with you spouting off those nasty words about not having a soulmate---”

“I don’t have a soulmate.”

“Fine. Whatever you say. But you love me, right?”

Zoro nodded.

“Then that works for me.” Sanji touched Zoro’s shoulder. “When you were . . . just lying there, unconscious . . . I realized I had to tell you as soon as you woke up. We live dangerous lives. I had to tell you as soon as possible.”

Zoro smiled, placing his hand over Sanji’s on his shoulder, his heart soaring through the sky. “No regrets, right?”

Sanji held Zoro’s cheek in one hand, looking him in the eyes. “No regrets.”

Sabaody brought them turmoil, and a crew torn apart. The war brought them pain, and news of a bloodline with an early demise.

The next two years brought them patience, and forced it upon them, day by day.

Zoro spotted a familiar head of pale hair in the distance, and grinned, jumping off of the broken ship to stride towards him.

“I liked you better without the goatee,” he said, stopping in front of Sanji.

Sanji looked him up and down. “I liked you better with both your eyes.”

They seized each other and hugged, hoping to never let go.

It happened on what should have been an ordinary morning during their trip to Dressrosa. Kin’emon and Mononosuke were having what they called a “Private Father-Son Meeting” in the aquarium room, so everyone else was banned from it for the time being. Zoro and Sanji were sparring on the deck, testing their skills and banter honed after two years, and Luffy was hanging out next to Law on a railing. Nami was drawing maps in her room, Usopp was in his workshop, and Robin and Franky were at the bow, keeping an eye on the ship’s course. Chopper and Brook were cheering on Zoro and Sanji, alternating the names every so often, to their annoyance.

Luffy leaned over to Law and whispered something, holding up something in his hand. Law took it, nodded, and raised his hand. In an instant, Zoro and Sanji fell over, caught off-balance.

“What did you do?” Chopper exclaimed as they sat up, shaking their heads.

“Oh me, oh my, we’re stuck in this situation again,” Brook remarked. “Why did you do that, Law-san?”

“I got paid,” Law said, flashing the coin at him.

Two yells echoed across the deck. Used to this, no one was drawn out from inside the ship, and Robin and Franky stayed at the bow with barely a glance behind them.

“Why is it so bright?!” Zoro in Sanji’s body yelled, covering his eyes. “Do you guys see this all the time?!”

“Law, swap us back right now,” Sanji in Zoro’s body snapped. “I think I gave this idiot a concussion. I can’t see any color.”

“Of course you can’t, I’m color blind,” Zoro said. He rubbed his eyes, staring at Sanji in his body. “Is that what I look like?”

“Wait, what?” Luffy said, coming over with Chopper and Brook. Law hung back, folding his arms and leaning against the railing

“Is that what I look like?” Zoro repeated. “What color is my hair?”

“Green,” Sanji said.

“Wait, that’s besides the point!” Chopper exclaimed. “You’re color blind?!”

“Yeah,” Zoro said. “Did it never come up?”

“No!” Sanji exclaimed. “No, it didn’t!”

“What’s the big deal? I’ve never needed to see color to get by.” Zoro stared at his hands and stood, looking around and taking in the colors of his crewmates. “Someone get me a mirror. I wanna see the cook.”

Brook dug around in his pockets while Luffy laughed. “No wonder you never got why Sanji calls you moss-hair!”

“Why?” Zoro said.

“Your hair’s the same color as moss!”

Zoro gave Sanji a look as Brook passed him a small handheld mirror. As he studied himself (or rather, Sanji) in the mirror, Sanji stood and stared at him, blinking.

“Zoro,” he said. “Pass me that mirror when you’re done.”

“Sure. What color are your eyes?”

“I’m going to talk to you about this later,” Chopper threatened. Luffy wandered away again to bother Law, Zoro too absorbed in the new spectrum available to him to pay much attention.

“They’re blue,” Sanji said. “Light blue. And my hair’s yellow. Blonde.”

“Huh.” Zoro twisted the mirror this way and that. “It’s pretty.”

“Give it!”

Zoro handed him the mirror, and Sanji stood next to him, staring at his (Zoro’s) one eye and his (Sanji’s) one visible one.

“Oh,” he said. “Oh, Zoro.”

He passed the mirror back to Brook and pulled Zoro by the hand up to the stern to have more privacy. As soon as they were alone, he looked at Zoro, opened his mouth, and started laughing.

“What?” Zoro said, annoyed.

“Zoro,” Sanji said, his eye starting to tear up. “I thought this whole time you were just obtuse, or plain rude. But you literally didn’t see it.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Your eyes---rather, eye, is silver. Grey,” Sanji said, pointing.

“Huh,” Zoro said, staring his body in the eye. “Looks the same as before.”

“Exactly.” Sanji wiped at the tears threatening to spill down his cheek. “Zoro, I used to have one blue eye and one silver eye. Before we met, you had one silver eye, and one blue eye.”

“Before we met?”

“Zoro.” Sanji took his hands, grinning. “We’re soulmates. You didn’t notice because my eye color looks the same as yours in monochrome.”

“I . . . what?”

“I was so angry. Not just because I wanted my soulmate to be a girl---I thought you were pretending to not notice, or you were really that stupid. But you just didn’t see.”

“Oh.” Reeling, Zoro stared at Sanji, staring at that one grey eye. “Oh. That. Does that matter?”

“You had no idea we were soulmates. You didn’t see it, and also, you’re an idiot.” Sanji leaned into Zoro’s shoulder, wrapping his arms around him. “I knew, and I tried to hate you, but I couldn’t. I think I would’ve fallen for you even if I was color blind, or just blind. It doesn’t matter.”

“Right.” Zoro hugged Sanji back, and they stood in silence for a minute. Then---

“Let’s get that dick to change us back,” Sanji said, pulling away. He grinned, the wide smile odd on Zoro’s face. “It’s weird hugging myself. Are you going to miss colors?”

“Nah. It’s too bright.” Zoro held his hand. “And I’ve never needed color anyway.”

#opvd 2020 #zosan #frobin #opfanfic #writing adventures

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nanamis-bigtie · 4 years ago

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Canon ship anon here. Nono, didn't specifically mean if you've written something just, if you generally ship someone in One Piece. Like, I dunno, Zoro x Luffy or Robin x Franky or Luffy x Nami, that kinda stuff. Doesn't matter if you've written anything or not :)

Ahhh,okay! Sorry, I somehow understood you completely other way xD

Hm.

Not really?

I don’t seek for shipping content and I tend to avoid shipping circles as much as I can, because well, previous fandom left many scars on me and now I am overly cautious with everything. Who once found themselves a victim of tumblr drama and poorly executed “cancel culture”, will know what I mean.

There are some ships I enjoy seeing more (like frobin, sanuso, acesan, saboala, zolaw, zolu, navi) and ships I kind of developed allergy for (zosan, kidlaw, lawlu, zorobin, lawbin), but honestly, I’m more type of a person who leans towards personal interpretation of a ship rather than seeking for ship content as a main factor.

I guess it’s because I need a lot of chemistry to ship characters like hard. And Oda on purpose avoids romance as if it was a plague. Of course, romance is present in One Piece, but it was never the main or even important topic. Love is shown in countless different ways, from love of biological family, through love between friends, love coming from sacrifice, love between adopted parents and children, love being a result of respect, sexual love, platonic love, toxic love, lack of love, excess of love, love for freedom, self-love, to simple love for daily pleasures. And I can’t express how much I respect Oda for this.

I just can’t look at ships the same way as shippers do. When I read longass analysis on “canon reasons” behind dunno, zosan or lawlu, I can’t help but frown: do you guys think romance is the only emotional explaination of this situation?

The closest to “real ship” in OP I have is frobin, I guess? And it’s still less “chemistry” and more “the way they are resonating with each other is really appealing”. Second place would be for saboala, because the plot potential for a love story between them is really thrilling for me as a writer. And well, there’s zolaw, for absolutely self-indulgent reasons.

And all 3 of them are among planned, multi-chapter fics. Modern au for frobin, in canon for saboala and cyberpunk au for zolaw :3

#bas answers #Anonymous

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laws-yellow-submarine · 5 years ago

Text

The Rubber Band

So uhhh…that Rock Band AU thing that I kept coming up with headcanons for? Yeah…I ran with it lmao though I’m establishing now that this in no way is meant to be GOOD and is instead meant to be SILLY and ENJOYABLE and FUN! I had fun writing it, even if it only took me like 2 hours haha

Credit goes to @ohpineapples for the initial idea (also 2 OCs make a very brief cameo in this, though I only own one, but for the sake of this AU they exist in the same universe and are best friends, if for no other reason than because Skylar definitely would take one look at Sophie and say “We’re best friends now”. She’s the extrovert I wish I was lmao)

Also featured: slight Frobin, because I can’t leave well enough alone lol

Word Count: 1674, will include a read more but they hardly ever work on mobile so RIP sorry in advance lol

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the silliness! (all lyrics are taken straight from the One Piece wiki so if anything’s incorrect I apologize!)

Battle of the Bands: Sabaody Park City! Prizes awarded to the Top 3 bands! 1st Place awarded title of “Best Band Ever”.

…

Zoro was by far the easiest to recruit.

When Luffy had strolled into the music shop, old-as-shit hand-me-down guitar strung across his shoulders, the green-haired percussionist hadn’t had much thought beyond “drumsticks”. This is, of course, because he hadn’t even noticed the other boy come in, an amazing feat considering the volume he exuded; but when Zoro was focused on something, it took a lot to break that focus. In this case, that focus lay on a set of 5B, dark oak, drumsticks. Zoro fumbled with the almost-matching stick in his pocket, older now but no less powerful, similar build though lighter in color. These would go perfectly with it.

And so it didn’t take much to convince Zoro to join; especially after Luffy helped him “borrow” the set.

…

They tried to recruit a band manager next, eager to get the show on the road, but the orange-haired prospect they’d met at the local carnival practically laughed in their faces.

“You call this a band? There’s two of you! That guitar’s strings are tied in place! I’m not throwing my weight behind a couple of idiots who don’t even know how to maintain their instruments! Do you even know how to write songs?” “Why write them? It’ll come to us when we play!” Nami threw her hand over her face. “See, this is why we need you!” The boy smiled at her, brighter than the sun, and she sighed.

“What do you even call this ‘band’?”

“The Rubber Band!”

She walked away.

…

They’d returned to her days later, a long-nosed, bass-playing, songwriter and a curly-browed keyboardist in tow, guitar strings neatly replaced. She sized them up, weighing the pros and cons, and crunching the numbers, in her head. Finally, she spoke up, dollar signs in her eyes.

“My rate is 70% of everything you make, plus a fee of $500 for every event I land you.”

“Hey isn’t that-”

“Of course, Nami-swan!~ Whatever you want dear! Nothing is too unreasonable for you, my love!~” The blond, Sanji, twirled around her, hearts in his eyes as he continued asking if he could make her anything to eat. She could get used to that.

Luffy agreed as well, not seeing a problem with it, as of course they’d make plenty of money as they journeyed to become the Best Band Ever. Usopp was the only one to voice any concerns, saying that “clearly as the true leader of this band”, they should negotiate for a lower price. Nami’s glare quickly silenced any further complaint.

…

They played a few local venues, and along the way picked up a curious reindeer with an affinity for the tambourine. Growth was, unfortunately, scarce though, as Nami brought up one day after receiving a call for a gig in the big city.

“Well we’re not getting anywhere without transportation.” She was right. Usopp’s beaten up car had finally quit on them only the week before, and they’d yet to find something up to the task. They sat around a table at the bar they’d just performed at, munching on snacks that Sanji had snuck in. Usopp was working on some new material, as well as their logo (a pirate’s jolly roger with a straw hat, for personality, and to dissuade those who thought Chopper was their mascot), and Zoro placed his freshly polished drumsticks pristinely in their case. Their attention was diverted when a woman approached them, smiling in a way that set them both at ease and on edge at the same time.

“Hello, I just wanted to congratulate you on your set. You played very well, especially you young man,” She said, particularly speaking to Chopper, the inexplicable reindeer.

“I don’t need your compliments, you dummy,” The boy gushed, blushing at the woman’s words. For her part she didn’t appear offended, and even chuckled slightly at his antics.

“My name is Robin. I overheard you need a way to get around?” Nami eyed her warily.

“Yes…we do, but there’s not enough in the budget to purchase a whole new vehicle.”

“Oh, my husband owns a tour bus. He used to travel with his own group before we met. If it’s no trouble for you, we’d be happy to help.” As she spoke, a large, bright blue headed man walked up, startling the group with his rather eccentric look.

“It would be SUPER no big deal! We’ve been wanting to travel for a while ourselves!”

Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, the band quickly said yes, and so finally began their trip to Sabaody Park City for the Battle of the Bands tournament.

…

They’d made only one stop for fuel on the way to the city, inadvertently picking up a probably homeless man named Brook, who was hoping to meet a friend in the city. Though most of the group had warned Luffy against it, there was no convincing the boy otherwise, and so far it had actually proved a fruitful venture. The man, thin as a skeleton, was proficient in music as well, and assisted Usopp with writing songs for the next show.

When they’d finally made it, their first real stop was the venue Nami had booked, in hopes of making some quick cash to prepare for the tournament. Robin had assisted with setting up the stage, helping to fight off Franky from installing pyrotechnics (“We can’t afford to pay for fire damages!” Nami had screamed), and despite Luffy’s insistence she stayed well away from the stage while they played. Along the way, they’d discovered she had a rather lovely voice, and seeing as how Luffy’s voice tended to sound like two whales fighting during a car wreck in the middle of a bagpipe festival, they’d tried to convince her to become the official lead singer. So far she’d shrugged them off, saying she wasn’t one for the spotlight.

For the next week, Nami continued booking gigs, somehow extorting extra money out of each new venue owner, until finally the day of the tournament had arrived. They’d walked in as a group, filing past dozens of other bands. They shuffled up to the signin, Luffy writing in big, bold letters “THE RUBBER BAND” across the paper, taking up at least five slots. They ignored the event coordinators’ griping in favor of finding a seat, as they waited for the event to start.

One by one, bands began to play; the audience determining who would move on and who was knocked out. The Rubber Band managed to make it through the first few rounds, fumbling slightly in the round before the finals. Until this point, they’d mostly gotten by through Luffy shredding on his beat-up guitar. His energy was infectious, and if he missed a note or played a weird chord, most didn’t notice; but now it was the big leagues, and the competition was fierce.

It was down to three bands, and they watched as a man with red hair screamed into the mic while a masked blond man played the drums. When they finished, the apparent leader taunted the next performer: a tattooed guitarist with a curly blond drummer and a silver-haired singer (and was that a polar bear playing the triangle?). Overall, the semi-finals passed in a blur, as it became apparent just what they were up against.

Luffy wasn’t discouraged at all, however, and merely used this as fuel to further insist Robin join them on stage. In his mind, if she sang for them they were sure to win! His pleas remained unanswered, until it was once again their turn to take the stage, and the dark haired woman followed them up to the mic. She smiled at Luffy’s excitement, and they all ignored the cries from an earlier band about the “new member”, instead settling into a quick, upbeat rhythm. As the crowd started to get into it, Robin launched into the lyrics.

“Arittake no yume o kaki atsume, Sagashi-mono o sagashi ni yuku no sa, ONE PIECE!”

It was a song she’d memorized after helping the others work so hard to write it, and learn it, specifically for the Battle of the Bands. Robin was nervous, having never purposely put herself in the spotlight like this, especially so literally. But as the crowd grew more enthused, dancing along with their music, she found herself feeling more and more confident, even beginning to sway with the music in her own sort of dance, smile growing wide on her face.

“Arittake no yume o kaki atsume, Sagashi-mono o sagashi ni yuku no sa, poketto no koin, soreto you wanna be my friend? We are, we are on the cruise! WE ARE!”

Before the group knew it they were finished, sweating and panting beneath the stage lights, the crowd roaring in their ears as they yelled “encore! encore!” Luffy raised his arms above his head, the biggest smile stretched across his face as he started cheering along with them. The tournament coordinator’s voice came over the loudspeaker, straining to be heard over the loud cheers.

“Well, I think we have a pretty clear winner, folks! Give it up for The Rubber Band!” The crowd’s screams grew deafening, and in the confusion Luffy had somehow snaked his way through the crowd to drag Nami, Franky, and Brook onto the stage with the others.

“Come on, guys! We did it!”

“Luffy, why did you drag me up here…”

“Shishishi, come on! They want an encore!” He said, ignoring the groans of his exasperated manager. The song started up again, spurred forth by Sanji and Zoro (who seemed to be competing over who could play louder), and those without instruments joined Robin at the front, singing along with the lyrics that, at this point, they all knew by heart.

And with the crowd screaming along, it was pretty clear…

They truly were the Best Band Ever.

#the end lmao #one piece #one piece scenario #one shot #AU #One Piece AU #of course I had to use that song like...I gotta lmao #AUs are fun lol #probably won't post this on ff.net or ao3? but we'll see how I feel in the morning lol #also I learned about different kinds of drumsticks today so that's neat!#also posted this on the correct blog this time cause what's the point of having a writing blog if I post my writing to my main blog?#Again: I don't expect this to be perceived as good but tbh fanfic doesn't have to be good and I had fun lmfao so I hope you did too!#alright Leyna's out goodnight folks

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frobin · 1 year ago

Note

What does FRobin do around the house?

Who does the cooking/cleaning or who’s in charge of which household chore? Any headcannons of their house life? ❤️

Heya Anon! Again sorry for the late reply.

So, modern AU headcanons!

Franky is keeping the house up to code, doing repairs, changeing lightbulbs and also doing most of the cleaning. Because he loves to use the tools you need for all that. He likes to clean, like using a vacuum and see all the dirt being sucked in? Also using a steam deep cleaner for the floor on a regular basis, putting new wax on the wooden floors? using a new steam window cleaner and maybe one of those little robots? That's the thing. They also do have roombas but they don't survive too long because Franky tries to make them better.

He is also the one doing most of the work int he garden. As in, taking care of the trees and mow the lawn... but only from time to time because Robin likes the wild flowers that are growing.

tl;dr Franky: repairs, cleaning, garden

Robin is doing most of the cooking (except for BBQ that is Franky's thing). She enjoys to work in the kitchen and to cook, using all kinds of recipes. They give her structure and safety but she is also learning to change them according to her own taste. She is also responsible for the decorations. She loves to change them according to the time of the year. Spring colours, summer, fall, winter. She mostly shops second hand. They have a collection of ugly cups that Robin loves. While the cutlery and plates are a while mess of styles, the DVD, CD and Book collections are always in order.

Robin is also having a part in the garden work. She has multiple patches with flowers and tends to them. They also have some vegetable patches that she also takes care of.

tl;dr Robin: cooking, decorating, garden

A lot of other things (that I can't think of right now) they do together. Like they go shopping (Robin is the one keeping the grocery list updated while Franky is the one looking for special offers and coupons) and pay the bills together. And of course if needed they do help each other with each task.

I am aware that it's sounds pretty straight forward but in my mind it also makes sense.

I hope you like the answers, anon! Did I forget something?

#Frobin #headcanon #Modern AU #text #ask #reminds me that I should rework my fanfiction

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frobin · 4 years ago

Note

What do you think would've happened if Robin went to water 7 as a child and met Franky and the crew?

Hey anon!

I’m sorry this took so long! (over a month) But I really had no time to get in the zone for this and now I hope I covered everything but I’m always open for more suggestions. And I went way overboard with this.

Have a look at this mindmap. Or here is the link. I also added some notes and again I’m always open to suggestions and if someone is interested I can invite you to edit or add comments.

The most interesting part about Robin appearing at W7 way before canon would be of course the question as to WHEN exactly.

In the mind-map I put out down as “as child”, “as teen”, “as adult”.

Well, let’s focus on child because of course I read the question wrong in the beginning: If she managed to get onto the Grand Line as a child, right after Ohara got destroyed she would be 8/9 while Franky would be 14/15. In case you want to add Robin before Tom was first dragged before the judge that would be when Franky was 12, Robin being 6 so you’d need to make slight adjustments to the canon but I still added that to the mindmap.

I’d say in that age Franky had lost a bit of his anger. Considering Frankys own story of abandonment I guess he would try to be inviting to a new child in the family. Especially one that seems so scared, tired, sad and angry.

Iceburg (who would be 18/19) would probably be annoyed but only because Franky is so exhausting. As soon as Iceburg sees Robins intelligence and how useful she can be he would be welcoming too and probably prefer her as a younger sibling to Franky.

That brings me to a very important point! If that would be the AU chosen, it is up to everyone if they ship Franky and Robin. They might have grown up in a sibling-like relationship. Also the age difference as kids or maybe even Teens (f.e. Robin 16 to Franky 22) could be a bit much in some opinions. But if there was a timeframe in which they haven’t seen each other it would be a different case too. Again that is for everyone to decide.

Because if they met at an older age, as in Robin only came to Water Seven as a teen, I could see a crush becoming ‘more’ in later years. But that is again something everyone has to make up with themselves.

I just had the thought that Franky would basically become the middle child... there are very weird cliches about that... I mean I’m the middle child and I’m the one who is most well behaved so........ take that how you like XD

Anyway I’m sure that Robin would have experienced a very supportive family but the WG might have caught her depending on how exactly the whole situation of Toms capture would have went down. And... no matter how I look at it the drama and heartbreak would be even worse. Franky would still try to stop the Seatrain because he is that kind of idiot.

Robin could have left or stayed in W7 too if she was not caught at that moment too. If she stays with Iceburg, who would do what he did in canon, become a well renown carpenter and shipbuilder and then ultimately the major of Water Seven, she could become his secretary and when Franky later returns and the whole plot of CP9 takes place... it wouldn’t have gone slightly different.

Also it would have been harder on Iceburg if his little sister would try to kill him, I guess Franky would still not have believed her doing that... mostly Robin would have done it to... not do it. Just faking Iceburgs death to save him and Robin giving herself up to safe her small family. Ultimately the story would still go the same. Both Franky and Robin joining the Strawhats.

A good example as to what could happen if Robin joined W7 as a teen is this great fanfiction: [FROBIN AU: A Long Way From Home by PaintMeTheSky] ( @warluigi ) Other possibilities would be that Robin is caught with Tom too, which would be kind of dark.

Or she runs away. Both storylines can then be tracked towards the canon and so create a nice package.

Let’s have a short look at Robin coming to W7 as an adult without the Strawhats. To fit into canon it needs to happen before her meeting Crocodile or maybe she left Crocodile in between. Either way she would probably arrive there to get information. The more interesting part is does she arrive before or after CP9.

I figured that if CP9 wasn’t around yet she would bring herself in a position that gives her more access to informations, basically making her Iceburgs secretary or opening a bar. She would steal the position of either Kalifa (bringing her nearer to Iceburg) or Blueno (bringing her nearer to Franky).

Either way chances are she is found by CP9 anyway, bringing the plot back on track.

Another interesting idea is Robin arriving after CP9 and so going underground, aligning herself with the Franky Family.

---

That all is a short sketch of what possibilities there are. If any of you want to get inspiration from that feel free to do so. Again, if you want me to add anything or if you want to add something yourself ask for access or send me your ideas. I welcome the inspiration :)

Sorry for any mistakes!

And I hope I could answer your question anon. Again, sorry for the long wait!

#Anonymous #FRobin #answer #Water Seven AU #Alternate Universe #Fanfiction idea #holy shit that took way too long

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pingo1387 · 6 years ago

Text

A Thing Called Love

One Piece Fanfic Frobin, Modern AU Based on the tropes “Oh no, there was only one bed!” “Oh no, they were roommates,” and “Oh no, they were fake-dating.”

The front door slammed open and slammed shut, and Franky barrelled into the apartment with wide eyes and a shout of, “You have to date me!”

“No, I don’t,” Robin said without looking up from her work at the kitchen table. She chewed on the end of her pen, frowning, and then paused and looked up. “What?”

“I—hold on—” Franky bent over, catching his breath. “Hoo! I was talking with Kokoro about Iceburg’s wedding, and she asked if I was bringing anyone, and I wasn’t really paying attention so I just said Yeah, and by the time I realized what she’d said, she’d already talked herself into being so happy for me and all that crap, so now I’d feel terrible for disappointing her, so—”

“—So you want me to pretend to be your girlfriend until the wedding’s over?” Robin finished. “Why don’t you just tell her you made a mistake, or pretend you broke up with your partner before the ceremony?”

“Listen, I’m not that kind of guy! It doesn’t matter that I made a mistake, I told her I’d bring my partner to the wedding, so damn it, I’m going to bring my partner to the wedding!”

“And you want that partner to be me,” Robin said, putting down her pen inside the textbook and closing it. “Why?”

“Why you? Why not you? You’re one of my best friends, and we’re roommates, so we have plenty of time to practice. Besides, everyone always assumes we’re dating anyway.”

“Plenty of time outside of work, maybe.” Robin closed her eyes and sighed. “Okay … I’ll do it. As long as we don’t have to kiss.”

“Hell no. If you’re cool with hugs and dancing, that’s as far as we’ll go.”

“Yes, that’s fine. When’s the wedding?”

“On the eighth next month, two o’clock. We gotta be there early because I’m the best man again. God, thank you so much, you’re the best.”

Robin stared at a wall. “I’ll need to go dress shopping.”

“Yeah, I’ll need a tux top or something.” Franky unbuttoned his shirt, throwing it across the room on the couch and scratching his shoulder under the binder strap. “By the way, we can start practicing real soon.”

“Oh?”

“Kokoro called me a bit after I left to invite me and my partner over for dinner tomorrow night at her and Tom’s place. I guess she told Tom right away, and they both want to meet you.”

Robin sighed and clasped her hands together as if in prayer, resting them on her forehead. “Fine. Fine. What time?”

The front door opened, and Franky and Robin looked down to see Chimney grinning up at them.

“Hi, Uncle Franky!” she yelled. She stared at Robin as Franky picked her up to hug her. “Are you my new aunt?”

“Goodness, no,” Robin said, smiling and shaking her hand. She and Franky stepped inside, Franky hurling Chimney into the couch cushions, making her scream with laughter. “We’re just … dating right now. That doesn’t make me your aunt.”

“Not yet, anyway,” Kokoro said, stepping out of the kitchen with a ladle. She waved at Franky and Robin. “Welcome home, kiddo and kiddo’s girlfriend. Make yourselves comfortable while us old geezers finish up dinner.”

“Thank you,” Robin said as she vanished inside the kitchen again. Franky gestured to the couch and they sat, Chimney crawling onto his lap and playing the knuckle song on his metal legs.

“Robin, this is my niece Chimney,” Franky said, pointing. “Chimney, this is Robin.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Chimney,” Robin said.

“What’re you doing here, squirt?” Franky said. “Is your papa busy?”

“Uh-huh. He told me I gotta stay with Tom and Kokoro a lot while he’s getting ready for the wedding with his friend.”

“Is Gonbe here? Her rabbit,” Franky said at Robin’s curious look.

“He’s in bed, napping.” Chimney got bored of using Franky as an instrument and looked at Robin. “Do you live with Uncle Franky yet?”

“We’ve, uh, been living together for a long time,” Robin said awkwardly. “But we only started dating a little bit ago.”

“Oh, that’s funny.”

“You know how I get paid to go to school?” Franky said. “Robin does, too. She studies languages no one speaks anymore.”

“Why?”

“I like learning about old things,” Robin explained. “I’m a historian. I study history.”

“Then you should talk to Kokoro,” Chimney said wisely. “She’s real old.”

Right on time, Kokoro poked her head out of the kitchen again. “You badmouthing me in there, girl?” she said to Chimney, laughing. “Come on in, you three, soup’s on.”

“Soup!” Chimney cheered, running into the kitchen. Franky and Robin followed, seating themselves at the table which had been hastily cleared of old crosswords and pencils, some still lying on the floor.

“There you are, boy!” Tom exclaimed, grinning. He slapped Franky on the back over Chimney’s head. “You gotten taller?”

“More like you got shorter!” Franky said, smacking Tom back as Chimney dug into her lasagna. Tom winced (metal on skin was hardly a fair fight) and looked at Robin.

“You chose well,” he said with a nod.

“Tom, come on,” Franky said, rolling his eyes. “Uh, so, this is Robin. My … girlfriend. Yeah. And roommate.”

“So nice to meet you both,” Robin said, reaching over the table to shake hands with Kokoro and Tom. “Franky’s told me all about you.”

“Then we’ll have no secrets in this household,” Kokoro said, grinning. “Dig in, you two, don’t be shy.”

The table fell silent save for chewing as everyone began to fill their empty stomachs. Halfway through dinner, Tom looked between Franky and Robin and said, “Tell me, what made you two start dating? Having lived together before then and all that.”

Franky covered his mouth, face turning red and eyes watering as he coughed.

“It was … um …” Robin looked at Franky and started hitting his back. “Oh dear, let me help you with that, honey.”

The pet name only made Franky cough harder.

“Is he dying?” Chimney asked.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full, sweetie,” Kokoro said, handing her a napkin.

“You see, not long ago, we were talking,” Robin said, eyes darting around as she tried to come up with a plausible story while smacking Franky’s back, now clasping her hands together, standing, and pounding them into his spine. “And … we felt some kind of spark. It was like something just … clicked. So … we realized we were … in love … and that was that.”

“How sweet,” Kokoro said, pouring herself some red wine as Franky slowly recovered, now trying not to laugh. “Either of you kids want some?”

“A little, yes,” Robin said. Kokoro poured her a glass.

“Yep!” Franky yelled as soon as he recovered. Robin sat back down. “What she said. That’s definitely how it happened! This is great lasagna!”

“Man, you two are in love,” Tom said, shaking his head. “Robin, Franky and I are gonna head out to the workshop after Kokoro and I finish the dishes. Care to join us?”

“Maybe later,” Robin said, lifting her glass to her lips.

“You gotta come play with me n’ Gonbe, Aunt Robin” Chimney insisted, tugging on her sleeve.

“Chimney, she’s not your aunt yet,” Kokoro said, her cheeks turning pink as she finished off her second glass of wine. “Don’t be rude.”

“Sorry, ma’am. Will you, Aunt Robin?”

“Yes, of course,” Robin said, accepting her new title with raised eyebrows directed at Franky.

“Looking good,” Tom said, examining Franky’s arm extended on the table. He removed the eyepiece, blinking, and made Franky hold out his other arm. “Speaking of looking good …”

“I know I look good,” Franky said, crossing one foot over his knee.

“I meant you and Robin! You’re a good match.”

Franky shifted. “Uh, you think so? Really?”

“Really!” Franky pulled back his arm, uncrossing his legs, and Tom knelt to check his legs and feet. “She seems a good fit for you. Even if you ended up friends and nothing else, I bet you could still get married and raise a couple kids, like me and Kokoro.”

“Tom!” Franky sputtered, kicking him in the chin. “Whoops, sorry—you’re getting ahead of things! We only just started—dating!”

Tom laughed, rubbing the spot. “Watch it, bucko!” He smacked Franky’s thigh and went back to checking the prosthetics. “Never hurts to think about a positive future. And damn it, boy, you chose to date her, so you better go all in!”

“I always do everything going all in!”

Tom let out a booming laugh and straightened up. “That’s the spirit! Your limbs look great!”

“Of course they do! I made them! It’s like you think I don’t check them myself!”

“Never hurts to have a second opinion! I’ll check your pacemaker after the wedding. Any idea what you’re going to wear?”

“Tux top and my fanciest underwear.”

“Good man!”

“Listen,” Kokoro said, patting Robin’s shoulder after they’d finished applauding Chimney and Gonbe’s third dance recital. “You’re a good fit for him.”

Robin bit her lip. “Is that so?”

“Yeah. You crazy kids would make good parents.”

“Excuse me, ma’a … miss, but we’ve only been dating for a little while,” Robin reminded her. Chimney and Gonbe ran off while they talked, and a crashing sound came from the living room. “It’s a bit too early to be thinking about children.”

“What about Chimney? If Iceburg and his spouse want a day alone, guess who gets her?”

“You and Tom?”

Kokoro opened her mouth and paused. “Hmm. Yeah, probably!” She laughed. “But it could be you two! Chimney’s already taken a liking to you.”

“I noticed. She’s a sweet girl.”

“She can be. I—”

Another crash came from the living room, and then from Chimney a yell of, “Um, Granny Kokoro?”

“Come help me with this, will you?” Kokoro said, standing and stumbling away. Robin smiled and followed her.

Robin and Franky waved goodbye, climbing into Franky’s car and shutting the doors. Franky drove away, backing out of the driveway and zooming down the street until he hit a stop sign. As the car idled, waiting for traffic to slow, Franky and Robin looked at each other and burst out laughing.

“Tom came out of nowhere with, ‘You two would be great married,’“ Franky exclaimed, grinning. “The nerve of him—”

“Kokoro said we’d be great parents,” Robin said, shaking her head with a big smile. “Do they always jump to conclusions and rush into things?”

“Actually, no,” Franky said, checking the road and turning left. “They can both be a little impulsive, but they usually don’t say things without good reason.”

“Odd …”

“Ready?” Franky asked, approaching the camera.

“It’s already recording,” Robin said, adjusting the tripod so it wouldn’t sink into the grassy dirt.

“Okay!” Franky stepped back and grinned into the camera lens. “This is the Super Sir Franky Kati, Esquire, the Third—”

“You’re a lawyer?”

“What? Is that what Esquire means?”

Robin pressed the button. “Let’s start over.”

“Okay, okay.” Franky brushed back his blue hair with one hand. “Ready?”

“Go.”

Franky grinned into the camera lens. “This is Franky Kati, engineering grad student, and I’m here at Memorial Park to test out this super handmade drone!” He held up the machine and the remote control. “Let’s get going!”

He ran away from the camera, set the drone on the grass, and backed up. At a button press from the remote, the drone rose into the air, and Robin had to move the camera to keep it in view.

“Great!” Franky exclaimed when he’d finished showing off some tricks. He lowered the drone back down into his hand and turned it off, running back to the camera. “That was a demonstration of my super prowess! This is Franky signing off!”

Robin turned off the camera, giving him a thumbs-up. “Great job.”

“Right?! But this isn’t good enough. It needs paint so it looks cool. Maybe some decorations, too …”

Robin stared at him, smiling as he talked. It took her a minute to notice when he stopped talking and started staring back.

“What?” she said, startled.

“What, yourself?” he said. “You zoned out?”

“I think so.” She knelt to fold up the tripod, looking away from him. “Let’s pack up and head back so you can start editing this.”

“Franky?”

Robin straightened up and turned around as Franky exclaimed, “Iceburg?”

“Well, hi,” Iceburg said, coming to a stop in front of them. He tucked a strand of violet hair behind his ear and looked at Robin. “Well, hello, Robin. What are you two doing out here?”

“We’re on a date!” Franky yelled, setting down his machine, grabbing Robin around the shoulders, and embracing her from the side. “We’re definitely on a date!”

“You two started dating?” Iceburg said in surprise.

“Oh,” Franky said, relaxing his hold on Robin. “Kokoro … didn’t tell you. I see.”

“No no, well, that is, congratulations,” Iceburg said with a smile. “To be honest, I thought you two were together at first before it became clear you weren’t. So my hunch was right. You were made for each other.”

“Your parents and daughter said the same thing,” Robin said, holding Franky’s arm to her. “We had dinner at their place the other night.”

“What’re you doing here, Assburg?” Franky said quickly, resting his chin on Robin’s shoulder, where it fit so naturally. “Where’s your fianc—” He went silent when Robin leaned her head against his, and his eyes darted to her.

“Shopping with Chimney and Gonbe. We’re, well, meeting up later.” Iceburg grinned and waved. “Sorry to interrupt your, well, date. I’ll get out of your hair. Glad you two, well, realized your feelings.”

“Yes,” Robin said. “We’re in love. So very in love.”

They waved goodbye as Iceburg departed for the lakeside.

“I guess we should get going,” Robin said, still holding Franky’s arm to her.

“Yeah, definitely,” Franky said, still resting his chin on Robin’s shoulder.

They looked at each other and jumped away as if stabbed. Robin hurried to the tripod and Franky to his drone and remote. As they walked back, they found this and that to talk about, and discussed all manner of subjects that had nothing to do with what had happened at the park.

Little things between them magnified and filled the next few weeks between the present and the wedding. When they found time to make dinner together, their hands would brush and linger reaching for the spices. When Franky drove, Robin would watch him and look away when he glanced at her, and when Robin drove, Franky would watch her and look away when she glanced at him. People had always assumed they were dating, but now when it happened they couldn’t find it in themselves to deny it as sincerely as they had—before.

Before they knew it, the wedding was just a week away, and it was time to go clothes shopping.

“No, no,” Franky insisted to the sales associate, both of them equally exasperated. “A tux top. Just the top. Not the pants. I don’t like pants.”

“Sir, we can’t sell separate pieces of a suit,” she explained with her best cheery voice. Robin, sitting in a chair near the front of the store, rolled her eyes and smiled. “I’m sorry, I don’t know how else to help you. Perhaps you could try a different store?”

“Excuse me, do you offer rentals?” Robin said, raising her voice. The woman nodded. “There you go, Franky, you can rent a suit and just wear the top.”

“Hey, yeah! That’s a great idea! She’s super smart,” Franky said to the relieved woman. “So, what’s up for rental?”

“It’s a good thing you brought your girlfriend shopping, hm?” she said with a smile, leading him to a rack of clothes.

“Yeah. I mean, she’s—” Franky looked back at Robin. “Yeah. Yeah, it’s a good thing.”

Uncomfortable as always with long sleeves, it took some time for Franky to settle on a suit, enough for Robin to have left the store and walk around the block twice.

“Okay,” Franky said, holding the rental and running out to the car, throwing it into the backseat. “Let’s do you now. You got a place in mind?”

Franky fidgeted outside the dressing room as Robin flitted in and out, having pleasant conversation with the store manager and finding the floor fascinating whenever he mentioned her boyfriend. She tried on dress after dress but came out each time with it on her arm again, the garments fitting oddly even with her corset.

“Look,” Franky said when Robin came out of the dressing room yet again. “I’m sorry, but I’m getting hungry. How much longer do you think this is gonna—?”

He turned to look at her and his words died in his throat. The violet dress she wore, held up by a halter top, stretched to her knees and was decorated with cloth flowers on the hem, small yellow centers sewn into each one.

“If you like this one, we can go,” she said, fidgeting and plucking at the fabric. She looked at him, seeing him gaping, and frowned. “What is it? Franky?”

“Wow,” he whispered.

“What?”

“That one’s good! It’s great!” He stood and gestured to all of her. “It looks great on you. I mean, you look great in it! It’s super!”

She turned away. “You don’t have to try that hard.”

He froze. “Uh—what?”

“If this dress is good, we can go,” she repeated, voice tinged with ice. “Don’t over-praise just because you want to leave.”

“No, I … okay, uh …”

His words died down as Robin disappeared back into the dressing room to change back. When she came out again, the dress on her arm, he mumbled something about the car and left the store while she went to pay.

Franky stood by the front door, checking the clock on the microwave. He tugged on his tux top, imagining tearing off the sleeves and ripping open the front.

“Robin?” he yelled. “Iceburg’s gonna be pissed if we’re late!”

Robin’s door opened and she hurried out, pumps clicking on the floor. “Sorry, sorry,” she said, blinking hard to stop her mascara’d eyelashes sticking together. She wore light purple lipstick and eyeshadow. “I’ve never done foundation before, and I hate these shoes.”

“You don’t have to wear heels,” Franky said, wearing his own shade of bright blue lipstick and thick mascara on his lower eyelashes. He opened the door for her and she hobbled out, slowly regaining her balance and dignity. “I never have. That’s what stilts are for.”

She choked out a laugh, covering her mouth. “Please, Franky. I just need to get used to them.”

He shut the door, ran a hand over his slicked-back hair, and stretched. “Let’s do this.”

They hurried down the stairs, Robin clutching the railing, and got into the car. Robin checked her hair in the mirror as Franky drove, making sure the claw clip still held.

“Did you lock the door?” she asked when they idled at a busy red light. She took out the clip, letting her hair fall.

Franky smacked his forehead, wincing.

“We should probably go back.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine, we’re practically late already,” Franky said, checking the dashboard clock as Robin redid her hair. “What’re the odds we get robbed the one time we forget to lock the door?”

“Nineteen to one.”

“I like those odds.” At Robin’s exasperated look, Franky shrugged with one arm, palm up. “It’s fine! We’re probably okay! There’s not much worth stealing anyway.”

“Some maniac could make off with the stove,” Robin said, a smile creeping onto her face. Franky laughed, and the light finally turned green.

“Well, there you are,” Iceburg said, running into the parking lot as Franky and Robin exited the car. His purple jacket was slung over his shoulder and his dress shirt was partially unbuttoned. As he held out a hand to help Robin out, he said, “You’re running late—”

“I know, I know, traffic was bad,” Franky said, slamming the door shut. “Robin, uh, I gotta help this asshole get ready, you wanna just mill about or—?”

“Is there anything I can do?” she asked Iceburg, shutting her door.

“Well, Kokoro and Chimney are setting up the refreshments for the reception,” Iceburg said. “I’m sure they could use a hand.”

“Are you absolutely sure you’re ready?” Tom asked, holding up the cologne bottle. “I’ve got more of this stuff if you—”

“I’m fine, really.” Iceburg, now in a full suit and tie, batted away the fragrance. “Thank you both. Well, Franky, are you ready? It’s almost time.”

“Yeah, totally! I repurposed my speech from last time. Hope that’s okay.”

Iceburg closed his eyes and sighed. “That’s fine. That’s fine.”

“It’s all ready,” Kokoro said, poking her head into the room and making everyone jump. Robin and Chimney followed after her.

“It’s all set up!” Chimney echoed, bouncing Gonbe in her arms.

“We’re gonna get ourselves chairs, Tom,” Kokoro finished, “so come find us when you’re done.”

“Uh, sorry I can’t sit with you during the thing,” Franky said to Robin, standing and going over to her. “I’ll meet you for the reception. Gotta talk to you about something.”

“Alright,” she said, turning away quickly. With a fleeting look, she followed Kokoro and Chimney out the door again.

Robin, holding Chimney on her lap, watched Franky as he stood by Iceburg, nudging him as they both watched Iceburg’s partner walk up to the altar. Chimney wiggled and moved into Kokoro’s lap as the priest said the traditional words, and the audience applauded as Iceburg and his new spouse kissed, shiny rings on their fingers.

The audience stood and gathered together for drinks, pouring themselves juices and wines. Iceburg’s father-in-law gave a short speech, followed by Iceburg, followed by Franky, whose speech brought out laughter and an eye-roll from Iceburg when he started with, “Welcome back, everyone!”

As soon as the toasts were complete, Chimney ran to join her parents, and Franky ran to join Robin, wiping tears from his eyes.

“Hey,” he said, grinning.

“Hey,” she said, smiling.

“Listen,” he said. The music started playing from speakers and the audience dispersed around the room, talking amongst themselves and dancing. “Remember when we were clothes shopping, and you got mad at me?”

“Yes?” she said, her smile fading.

“I wasn’t—I didn’t say that because I wanted to leave.” He took her hands in his, thumbs on the sides of hers. “I meant it. You were beautiful. You are beautiful, no matter what you’re wearing, and I should’ve realized and told you a long time ago.”

She squeezed his metal hands, staring at them. “Oh.”

“You’re—wonderful,” he said when she fell silent again. “You’re so smart, and clever. Your sense of humor is so weird, and that’s why I like it. You have an amazing sense of style, you—”

“You’re amazing,” she interrupted, looking up at him, her eyes shining with tears. “You’re like a wizard with machines, remember when our dryer was broken, and you fixed it? You’re so confident—”

“—You’re incredible—”

“—You’re funny—”

“—You’re kind—”

“—You’re enthusiastic—”

They fell silent, staring at each other. Both were crying now, drawing whispers from surroundng attendees.

“Remember when you asked me to pretend to be your partner,” Robin said, running her thumbs along Franky’s palms, “and I said yes, as long as we didn’t have to kiss?”

“Yeah?” Franky said, biting his lip to keep from openly sobbing in the middle of the reception hall.

“I don’t want to pretend anymore. And I changed my mind about kissing. Is that okay?”

Franky bent down and Robin tilted her head up, both their arms stretched downward as they kissed.

“I’m sorry for snapping earlier,” Robin said when they pulled away. “I never thought—I never thought anyone—”

“It’s okay, it’s okay,” Franky exclaimed, squeezing her hands gently. He brought up one of his hands to wipe at his face again. “I’m not crying, don’t believe what anyone tells you!”

She laughed through her own tears and stood on tiptoes to kiss his face. “Would you like to dance?”

“Yeah! Yeah,” he said, his mascara starting to run. “Super.”

“I can’t believe we already told everyone we’re dating,” Franky said, breaking the silence of the car ride as they pulled into the parking lot. “Now we don’t get the joy of doing it for real. God damn it, will someone tell me why didn’t I ask you out sooner?!”

“Because you’re an idiot,” Robin said, taking off her shoes and getting out of the car barefoot.

“Oh, yeah!” Franky got out and shut his own door, grinning. “What a party that was.”

“What a party.”

It was a tight fit up the stairs, but they held hands going to their apartment. Franky opened the door and stared inside.

“Oh, right,” he said. “Forgot to lock it. Let’s go check our rooms.”

He and Robin disappeared into their rooms, and soon came out again.

“Everything’s fine!” Franky announced with a relieved grin, which dropped when he saw Robin’s face. “Oh, no, did you—?”

“Someone took my bed,” she said forlornly. She opened her door wider to show Franky. “Just the mattress,” she corrected, as the bedframe was still there and the sheets were crumpled on the floor.

“What kind of asshole just takes the mattress?” Franky exclaimed.

“I’ll just sleep on the couch until I can get a new one,” Robin said, staring sadly into her room.

“Now hold on,” Franky said. He cleared his throat and looked into his room when Robin looked at him. “I’ve still got a mattress.”

“I noticed.”

“No, I mean—you don’t have one. Do you wanna … ?”

He gestured to his room, then himself, then Robin. He gestured to his room, then himself, then Robin again, until Robin’s eyes widened.

“You’re offering to take the couch?” she said in surprise.

“No! I mean, I will if you want me to, but I meant we could … share the bed … ?” He mumbled this last part.

She covered her mouth, hiding a smile. “I guess I have no choice.”

Robin knocked on Franky’s door and entered, fresh out of the shower and wearing a nightshirt and shorts.

“C’mon in,” Franky said, waving. He wore the same thing. Robin tiptoed in, placing her pillow on the bed and getting under the covers.

“Thank you for this,” she whispered.

“Huh, yeah! No problem,” he exclaimed, lowering his voice as he spoke. “Um … yeah.”

They fell silent for a time, listening to each other breathing.

“Robin?” Franky whispered. “I guess you know this, but … I’m really happy we’re together now. I love you.”

Robin was silent, and when Franky looked back to check on her, he found her fast asleep.

“Night,” he whispered.

#frobin #one piece #opfanfic #writing adventures

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