#sanji needs a knee brace

[mcparkdraws]

40 year old Sanji. His soul is lighter and happier but his back and knee pains are starting to catch up to him.

[heartpiratedrabbles]

Indifference

Prompt: Sanji starts treating you differently from normal and it's taking a toll. It all comes to a head when you get hurt.

~~ Part 2

Sanji X Fem Reader

You’d been on board the Sunny for a while now. Enough to know all your crew mates’ personalities. Enough to brace for impact when you hear your captain yell your name, strike a pose when the shipwright yells super, even joining the helmsmen to meditate every now and then. Reading a book just to discuss it with Robin or discussing fashion with Nami. Eagerly sitting and listening to Usopp’s stories, or waking the swordsman up for dinner, even along to music played by a Skeleton were common days for you. Chopper loving your company in the med bay when you sneak him more Candy than the chef would like.

         And then there was the chef. The curly browed, blonde-haired chef. You had heard warnings of him before joining the crew, how his nose bleeds came from his perverted thoughts. How he doted on any female in his sights. Even Nami had pulled you to the side to tell you how to kick or slap him away if you felt it got to much. Robin giving the advice to just ignore it.

         The first couple of weeks you had proven those rumors true. Sanji would go out of his way to make sure you felt comfortable, making you snacks and drinks constantly and praising the very land you stood on. At first you were taken aback by it, but quickly realized that it was just who he was. He treated you the same as Nami and Robin and it brought you comfort that, while a little strange, it wasn’t different from others.

         You’d even join him to help prep the food or wash the dishes, he protested at first, but never truly tried to stop you. The gentle humming you’d hear as you peeled the vegetables or set the table would sometimes make your heart skip a beat. He’d always turn around to have you taste his food prematurely, his cooing as you gladly took the spoonful.

         Maybe that was your problem. Maybe you had fallen too hard for the stupid chef. Going out of your way to wake up earlier to help him with breakfast, or staying up late at night to see him prepare a snack for your gluttonous captain. Making sure you could spend as much of your precious time with him while attempting to make it seem like a coincidence.

         But now here you were, staring at the man cooking with his back turned to you. It started about 2 months ago. His indifference to your presence. The way he’d barely glance at you, sharing only the bare minimum of words needed to not ignore you completely. The silence in the kitchen hung on your heart as you stared at the back of the chef in front of you. It started slow, but now it was hard to avoid. Sanji had just asked you to stop coming to his kitchen. His voice had been low, and he hadn’t even turned his head to talk to you, You swallowed the lump in your throat, deciding not to speak as you listen to his words.

         Deciding to go to the aquarium instead. It’d be quiet there around this time of day, with the rest of the crew distracted in their own daily routines. Holding your breath as to not let a single cry out as your chest burned. You sat against one of the couches, staring at the fish swimming buy thinking about what happened.

You noticed right away when he stopped fawning over you, the praising tones towards Robin and Nami seemingly falling flat as he would turn to you. And you noticed how the dishes and drinks you got no longer were presented with perfection, often getting a closer presentation to Luffy or Zoro. The sing-song voice slowly turning mono-tone towards you over the weeks. Last week he had stopped talking to you in the kitchen, opting instead to just place your task on the opposite end of the kitchen from him but still saying thanks as you finished.

You brought your knees to your chest, biting your lip hard to remain quiet as his last words to you echo in your mind. The dry tone telling you to leave. You could feel your nails starting to break the skin on your palm and the subtle taste of copper on your tongue. Maybe you weren’t welcomed. Maybe everything had been an illusion and Sanji was just the first one to give up the act.

You were quickly snapped out of your mind with the sudden jerk of the ship, falling at the unmistakable feeling of a cannon ball hitting. Your mind going into action mode, forgetting all about your feelings as you go to the deck. The captain and his wings were already on the attack as Franky was switching the ships mode for battle, and you join the line-up to help the fight.

At one-point Marines had started to board the ship. You fought them off as quickly as the came aboard, slashing and dodging as fast as you could. At one point you had been surrounded, a marine attempting to disarm you by grabbing your wrist, forcing you to turn away from most of the enemies before you fell to the ground. You broke free from the grasp quickly enough, slashing at their ankles as you stand back up. The blood in your veins burning as the fight raged on.

         By the end of it, everyone was exhausted. 5 marine ships surrounding the Sunny in hopes to sink it. The adrenaline had kicked in quickly for you with the shaking of the ship and the movement of fighting. You breathe out a huge sigh of relief as Zoro and Sanji take care of the stragglers, throwing them overboard as you slump against the mast, sinking into the grass beneath. Now that the fight was over it was harder to breathe.

         Franky and Usopp going to fix the ship right away, as Jimbei jumped in the water to see if there was damage to the hull. Chopper complained about the smell of blood but chocked it up to the marines Zoro took care of as Nami and Robin whisked him away to clean up in the bathhouse. You glance up as Zoro heads to the crows’ nest to keep watch for a bit while Brook follows Luffy and Sanji into the dining hall, the captain yelling for food.

         Standing up, you notice a stain of red on the mast and grass from where you sat. You felt the shreds of your shirt on your back when you fell but now you could feel the warm liquid dripping down your back and legs. The stinging pain hitting you as you try to straighten your back a bit more, before quickly heading to the med-bay.

         You could hear through the walls Sanji yelling at Luffy to not eat raw meat as you grabbed some bandages and anti-septic. You didn’t want to bother Chopper, Robin had probably made a bubble bath for the cotton-candy lover. It took longer than you would have thought to find the bottle that was sure to sting, and grabbed a clean cloth, wetting it with the liquid. The cheerful laughter in the other room ringing around you as you prepare yourself to clean the wound you couldn’t see.

         You tried turning your head to look in the mirror but only felt light-headed when you saw how much blood was coming out, your flayed skin curling back from the center of the cuts. Seeing the glimpse of how bad it was seemed to also fully awaken your body to how much it hurt as all of your muscles tensed, every movement now seemingly shooting unbearable pain through your body. You can’t seem to fully move yourself anymore as your throat tightens enough to stop your breathing.

~~~

         Sanji left the kitchen after feeding his wild animal of a Captain. Opting for a smoke after the battle was over. It was tougher than he’d like to admit and he was in a foul mood as Zoro had defeated 3 more marines than him. Walking around a bit to lean on a railing while staring at the half-sunken ships now far behind them.

         Everyone should be in their normal post-battle routines, Food on the table for those who needed the energy, some fixing anything that needed it or cleaning any messes about. And of course, the women and Chopper taking an extra bath to rid themselves of any sprayed blood, dirt, or gunpowder.

Dinner would be soon but Sanji still had a good amount of time before he had to truly start any prep. Especially recently with your help, what would normally take him an hour had been cut down to half that… Smoke blew out past his lips as he remembers how he told you to stop helping just earlier that day. How you hadn’t even responded to him, the silence hanging heavily in the air before he heard your soft footsteps and the door opening and closing. It was for the best that you stayed away, after all he-

         “Hey Sanji, have you seen Y/N? She didn’t join us for a bath.” Nami walked by with slightly damp hair, distracting Sanji from his current thought. He turns around offering her his full attention, shaking his head to her question as he fawned over her new outfit.

Robin holding Chopper who seemed to have fallen asleep, “Perhaps she was too tired to join us. She hasn’t been sleeping well.” The suggestion seemed plausible, at this point everyone knew how you’d walk the ship for hours at night to try and wade your insomnia away. Chopper had even tried giving you some medicine for it, but was woefully out of the primary ingredient needed. Even Sanji had altered your meals to have no caffeine or ingredients that would promote sleep. Not that he’d ever tell you. It came naturally to shift dietary needs to the person no other reason to it.

Nami and Robin starts walking away just as Nami steps in a puddle, “Ew, Sanji didn’t you guys clean the deck? There’s still blood everywhere.”

“I’ll get right on it Nami-swan~” The reaction was immediate and they continued to walk away. But Sanji looks down, he could have sworn he saw Usopp cleaning the deck earlier. Frowning a bit as he sees it’s a trail. A stupid Marine must be hiding on board. Badly at that. The least they could do is hide the fact that they’re bleeding.

Following the trail of still wet drops of blood, some larger pools and some streaks until he’s in front of the med-bay door. Kicking the door open to find their apparent intruder, his foot catching a flame as he peered inside. But instead of seeing a badly injured marine, he saw you. Your frozen stare into the mirror behind you, your arms in the air as your pale face turned towards the startling noise. His cigarette falling from his lips as his leg falters.  He sees a cloth and a fallen bottle of anti-septic, pooling around your feet mixing with blood that was a shade to dark. Glancing back up to the mirror to see the horrific scene on your back as you let out two anguished gasps before falling.

Sanji lunges forward, barely catching you from falling on the floor as he calls for help. Quickly placing you face down on the bed, grabbing anything to apply pressure to the gushing gashes, quick footsteps getting closer as his mind started to race.

[shy-writer-999]

Summary: You and Zoro take advantage of an empty ship. Or at least, you think it’s empty. Ft. a healthy serving of Zosan. I think this is my best for October by far… 3k words.

CW: Afab reader, gendered language (“pretty girl”), non-consensual voyeurism, pathetic horny Sanji behavior, dirty talk, P in V, masturbation.

MINORS DNI. NSFW CONTENT.

Finally, the Thousand Sunny docked on land. The crew was restless to get off the boat and go explore. Nami and Robin were going to go shopping, but you declined, feigning exhaustion. Zoro made the excuse that he was going to stay on the ship and train some more. Properly excused, you and Zoro finally had time alone together. The ship was empty and it was a gorgeous day. You hadn’t had time to sneak off together in a couple days and you both were going crazy with desire.

As soon as the coast was clear, Zoro dragged you to the dimly lit men’s sleeping quarters and crashed his lips onto yours. He closed the door and pinned you up against it, biting on your lip, feeling your waist, hips, and ass, hands reaching upwards to massage your chest, lips wandering to suck harshly on your neck. He was ravenous, starving for you.

Zoro quickly peeled off your top and bra, and you shimmied out of your pants. He freed himself of his clothes and picked you up by your waist, carrying you over to his bed. His starving kisses continued, and he positioned himself on top of you—his hard erection started to rut on your stomach and thighs.

When Zoro pulled away from you, his eyes were on fire with need. He picked up his black bandana from the pile of clothes on the floor. Manhandling you with ease, he maneuvered you up by the headboard. He held your hands together and looped his bandana firmly around them, fixing you to the wood. The position was uncomfortable.

Positioning you just how he wanted, he pushed your thighs and knees up so they were propped and spread, exposing your bare core. You couldn’t move your hands at all with Zoro’s bandana wrapped around them, and your legs were spread so wide that the angle felt embarrassing.

Zoro took in the view, proudly. He leaned forward and braced one hand on the headboard next to yours. Putting his other hand on your waist, he leaned in to kiss you. The shaft of his cock rubed back and forth on your folds, building heat and snagging on your clit.

“Zoro,” you moaned his name as the tip of his cock dragged over your sensitive spot. You were already wet, needy for him after seconds of friction.

“You want it, baby?” His voice was gravelly and deep already, greedy desire seeping through every word.

When you locked eyes with him and nodded vigorously, he lined the red and weeping head of his cock up with your entrance and began to press it into you. He stared at his shaft disappearing inside of you, swallowing up his girth like it was nothing.

The thick wiry hair at the base of his cock finally met with your flesh as he bottomed out inside of you. He let out a loud and delicious groan. “Fuucckkkk.”

As Zoro’s grip on your waist tightened, you pulled on his bandana and struggled, trying to push down on his cock, trying to fuck yourself with it—you were relatively unsuccessful, going crazy with need.

“You look so fuckin’ hot tied up for me,” Zoro purred in your ear as he began to move his hips slowly. You were starting to make a mess of your thighs and his cock, matting down the ring of hair at the base of his shaft with your slick. “Your little cunt is so wet already, baby.”

Zoro picked up the pace and obscene sounds started to echo in the room as his cock rhythmically rammed into you. “Juuuussst like that. You’re takin’ me so well, fuck.”

About fifteen feet away, Sanji stirred awake, roused from sleep by the wet sounds of Zoro fucking your cunt and his deep growls.

Sanji usually wasn’t one for napping, but the night before he had cooked a huge feast and cleaned the whole kitchen. He was exhausted. He planned on sleeping for a few hours before going into town to grab supplies that night—but he was rudely awakened by you and Zoro going at it like animals in heat.

As Sanji’s ears adjusted to the foreign noise, his heart started to beat faster. He realized what it was. Sanji’s breath hitched and blush took over his cheeks—he was shocked. He didn’t want to open his eyes or move to cause attention, so he held still and listened for a moment. He was totally awake by now, and each grunt and slap he heard from the pair of you made him harder. After a few minutes of listening to you have sex, Sanji’s cock was twitching and fully erect, forming a tent in the covers of his bed.

He didn’t know what to do. Should he just lay there until the pair of you were done, and then pretend like he was sleeping the whole time? Or would it be better if he got up and just ran out of the room? His cock was aching already, hard as a rock. He could touch himself right now, and neither of you would know, if he did it carefully…

At one particularly deep grunt from Zoro, Sanji snuck his hand down as inconspicuously as he could to palm his raging boner through his underwear. The friction from the fabric on his cock felt like fire, pleasure increased by the fact that he was touching himself mere feet away from you two, who obviously had the impression that he wasn’t there. He grinded his palm down, over his shaft, producing small waves of euphoria.

He knew it was wrong. He felt disgusted with himself, but he couldn’t stop touching his cock, it felt too good.

Sanji could tell that precum was already seeping out of his tip. His heart started to flutter every time one of you made a noise. He couldn’t take it any longer. He turned his head gently to the side and stared at the pair of you, sneaking a hand into his underwear to stroke his bare shaft while he watched.

“You’re so fucking tight,” Zoro groaned as his cock plunged into you with a squelch. “You like how my cock feels, baby? You wanna cream on it?”

Sanji’s hand grasped the base of his shaft, holding it there for a second, stopping the blood flow so it throbbed and jumped. He felt repulsive for getting off on this, but fuck, it felt good.

“Mmmm, Zoro, please, fuck me harder.” You sighed sweetly and it made Sanji's heart thump.

Zoro’s grunting got Sanji so hard it was unreal. His heart flipped as he watched Zoro’s muscular body roll into yours, admiring how each toned muscle rippled with minimal effort. Zoro’s brows were furrowed, his muscles were tense, flexed, and all his attention was laser focused on you. Likewise, you just looked up at him and begged him to fuck you more, fuck you harder, and fuck you deeper. You were desperate for it, pleading for more of Zoro’s cock.

Sanji’s eyes darted from Zoro’s toned body to your tits bouncing from each thrust of Zoro’s hips. He stared at Zoro’s girthy cock sliding in and out of your glistening core with ease and his eyes widened when he realized how big Zoro’s cock really was. He noticed that you were tied up with Zoro’s bandana and he was shocked but wildly turned on as you struggled against your restraints.

He hadn't known that you and Zoro were actually intimate, but he had long suspected it. This was fulfilling some sort of fantasy for him. Not only was he ferociously attracted to you, but he recently started to get flustered any time the mosshead yelled at him or got up in his face. He was in denial about it, but he sort of, no, he really thought Zoro was hot when he was angry. Seeing the swordsman grunt and plow his cock into your folds made his heart pound.

Sanji didn’t think that seeing you two fuck would have this dramatic of an effect on him, but his hand felt amazing around his cock. Some of it was definitely that neither you nor the swordsman knew that Sanji was getting off on the sight, and that it was sickening of him to indulge in his lust like this… but he was at his wit’s end. He bit his lip to keep the sound in, tried to stifle it as much as he could, but a small, barely audible whine slipped out.

Zoro’s head snapped and pinpointed Sanji immediately, registering that the blonde cook was fucking his hand under the covers. Zoro had half a mind to go over there and wring his neck, but something about being watched made his cock jump. Instead, he smirked and jerked his hips harder.

You were too fucked out at this point to notice. The only thing you could focus on was Zoro’s cock bullying your g-spot relentlessly. You were so overcome with pleasure that you had lost all touch with reality. Your eyes were glossy, your jaw was slack, and the moans tumbled out of your lips in a constant stream.

Each nasty thing Zoro said wrenched more pleasure from both you and Sanji. He needed to rub it in the cook’s face, to rub in the fact that you were his, and to rub in the fact that Sanji talked shit but was masturbating right now like some perverted brat. Was he really that depraved?

“That shitty cook is getting a real good look at you baby, watching me fuck you.” Zoro growled and locked his pussy-drunk eyes with Sanji, who was now stroking his fist shamelessly with the covers pulled away. “Yeah, idiot? Getting off on seeing me fuck her? Pervert.”

Sanji twisted his hand around the head of his cock, swiping up the pooling precum and pulled it down his shaft. He let out another whine at the wet sensation, wishing that he could be buried inside of you right now instead of touching himself.

When Zoro spoke down to him, it got him off. He didn’t know why, but it felt good when the swordsman called him an idiot and a pervert, especially when he could see his cock slide in and out of you. He also didn’t know why Zoro hadn’t come over and attacked him yet.

Zoro doubled down on the dirty talk, addressing you with particularly filthy words. “You’re milking my cock so good in front of him, baby. Get yourself all messy so he can see it.”

His voice was husky and voracious. He was getting wrapped up in the feeling of your walls clenching and throbbing around him, and the sight of Sanji fucking his fist. You hummed in response to Zoro’s praise, cunt clenching around his girth, and it spurred him on.

“Am I making you feel good, pretty girl? Tell me how good it feels so Sanji can hear it.” Zoro emphasized Sanji’s name. The cook’s heart did a flip—his mouth was hanging open now and his cock was pulsing.

While Sanji watched, Zoro reached two fingers and shoved them in your mouth. You were practically drooling from pleasure. He pressed his fingers down your throat so forcefully that you gagged on them.

Zoro groaned—he loved that sound and loved playing with your body like that. When he took his fingers out, a strand of spit connected his fingertips to your lips. He sucked his fingers clean and leaned into your face, fucking you deeper.

“Does it feel good when he watches you, sweetheart? You like the shit cook touching himself while you get fucked dumb by my cock? Getting so wet and dirty for me, I like making you feel good.” Again, Zoro emphasized the last few words. His eyes locked on Sanji’s and the cook’s heart skipped a beat—the last few words of that sentence felt like they were for Sanji, too. Like Zoro liked making Sanji feel good.

The cook stroked himself faster and dug his thumb into his slit a bit, drawing out more pearly white precum. The pressure made his hips buck.

Zoro’s voice got louder as the pace of his hips increased; by now, they were spasming into your cunt, fucking you at breakneck speed. His eyes were riveted on Sanji’s for the good majority of the time. You matched the swordsman’s volume and writhed in ecstasy.

“F-feels good, Zoro. Don’t stop. Feels good.” You keened his name and arched your back.

“Mmhmm? Does it? Cum on my cock, sweetheart. Wanna make that little pussy feel so fucking good. Want Sanji to see how much you like it. Bet he wishes it was him.”

The cook’s heart pattered and you attempted to mewl out a response to Zoro, but you almost couldn’t get out a word. You started babbling incoherent nonsense like the fucked-out wreck you were.

“Your c-cock, ‘Zo, Zoro, feels so—so good I can’t—too good, ‘m gonna cum—make me—fuck.”

“Cream for me, gorgeous. Show Sanji how good you feel.” Zoro’s hips convulsed as your walls clenched around his cock again. He moaned as your walls squeezing him, producing a sound more desperate and feral than Sanji had heard before. “You like that, cook? You like watching us?”

Sanji whimpered with an eager nod out and stroked faster. He felt like he was going to pass out from pleasure—the way Zoro was talking to him felt charged and erotic, like he was trying to get Sanji riled up.

You were at your limit.

“C-cum—fuck, Zoro, cum in me,” you spat out the words with the utmost effort. "'m so close."

One last thrust of Zoro’s cock and you were in toe-curling ecstasy, writhing on his shaft, pulling on the bandana, and mewling so loudly it could have been heard across the whole ship.

“That’s it, just like that, baby, fuck, your pussy is so good, fuck, fuchhhccckkkk.” The sight of you cumming from his cock was the last thing Zoro needed before he joined you in bliss.

Shaking uncontrollably from his orgasm, he pumped milky white ropes inside and you could feel it filling you up. There was so much of his seed that it was starting to drip out of you.

Moments after Zoro, Sanji came. He was thinking about fucking you while Zoro watched, and how that would feel. Would the swordsman sit up in a chair and stroke his cock slowly while you rode Sanji? Would you straddle the cook or wrap your legs around him while Zoro touched himself at the end of the bed? Would he throw his head back and groan as sweetly as he had just now?

Sanji’s mind wandered to previously un-indulged in thoughts—what if Zoro fucked him while you watched and fingered yourself? Would he watch your fingers pass in and out of your cunt while Zoro’s huge cock brushed his g-spot? Would the swordsman encourage or degrade him? What would Zoro feel when his name trickled out of Sanji’s mouth? What would it feel like for the swordsman to fill him with cum?

When the cook came all over his hands and abdomen, his hips jerked up, pulling his pelvis up off the mattress. He came loudly and explosively, letting out a lewd, drawn-out whine. Unbeknownst to him, the sound made Zoro’s cock twitch. The swordsman (in denial) ascribed that to his orgasm (though it had passed already).

Zoro practically fell forward onto you, panting there with heaving breaths before he regained composure and untied your hands.

He kissed you passionately for what felt like a long time, and then stood on shaky legs and scooped you up to take you to the bathroom. “Our turn first, shit cook.” Zoro smirked and carted you off, walking out like nothing weird happened. Your eyes were half-closed and a soft smile played on your lips as you waved bye to Sanji.

The blonde couldn’t even help but admire Zoro’s backside as he walked away. Fuck, he was just so toned and tan and hairy and… manly. His mouth went dry with the realization that damn, he really did want to Zoro to fuck him. Or vice versa. Fuck.

Sanji thought about that incident for months afterwards and developed a habit of touching himself to the scenarios he imagined. He was particularly taken with the idea of Zoro’s cock in him while you finger fucked yourself.

And interestingly enough, when Zoro touched himself he thought of your cunt around his shaft and the sight of Sanji fucking his fist. The cook’s eyes looked animalistic that day, his cock was so red and dripping with precum, your moans had been deafening, Sanji’s whimpers were kind of…

Suffice it to say, the three of you had no problem with this occasion and each of you thought that you would like it to happen again. The only issue was how to go about that.

*whistles* sheesh!! i greatly enjoyed writing this one. i've been looking forward to posting it for ages (๑˃ᴗ˂)ﻭ i hope you enjoyed it!

here's my masterlist and my posting schedule for october!

finally, trick or treat? (tumblr links)

[inuyassa]

HELLO!!! Can i make a Luffy x F!reader (not dating YET but mutual pining) request where the reader gets injured during a fight but hides it from the crew because the victory party started, (and because after everything Luffy has been through recently the reader doesn't want him to worry) BUT she goes down half way through the party?

What is Luffy's reaction??

Angst to comfort ig?? does that make sense???

THANK.

OMG YOU KNOW I LOVE ME SOME ANGST!!!!!!! I hope this is what you were thinking/hoping!!

Luffy x F!Reader

Request

Angst/Comfort

Warnings: Mentions of Death, Blood, and Implied Injury. Some mature language.

Wake Up...

She gripped the edge of the bathroom sink as she placed another round of antiseptic on the wound.  It was a fresh laceration, bright red and still bleeding.  She had only received it a day ago while the crew was ashore and attacked by a local gang.  The fight was short lived, but she still took quite a few hits, and when one came at her with a knife…

It would be so simple to just go to Chopper and ask to be patched up, but by the time everyone made their way back to the ship, the party was underway.  Drinks and food and music, complements of Zoro, Sanji, and Brook respectively.  It was one of the first times since reuniting that the crew was able to celebrate a win together.  Luffy was overjoyed, his smile was back after so much pain…how could she ruin that by making him worry?

After another painful round of wound cleaner, she made her way back onto the deck.  Brook was jamming away on his violin while Sanji pined after Robin and Nami with plates of sweets and mugs of tea.  Zoro laughed through a half drunk bottle of sake while Luffy devoured a full serving of meat on the bone. The sounds of laughter once again filled the deck of the Thousand Sunny.  She smiled, her eyes growing heavy.  She braced herself against the nearby pillar and tried to stop the world from spinning. 

“Hey kiddo, you doing okay?” Franky walked up beside her, he had been making his way to the spread of food when he saw her loose balance.  She looked up at him, his smile faded when he saw how pale she looked, her skin glistening with a thin layer of sweat.  “Woah, buddy, you don’t look too good,” he said, putting a large, strong hand on your shoulder.  “You need me to get Chopper?”

She grinned, feeling the world swallow her up.  “Hey, Franky,” she began.  “Don’t let me hit my head okay?” Her legs buckled beneath her and she fell.  Franky lunged forward to catch her, easing her onto the ground.  “Kid? Kid! Hey, we need help over here!”

Franky’s voice cut through the jovial music, causing Brook to freeze and the rest of the crew to look towards him.  When Luffy saw her on the ground, he rushed over, leaving his half eaten meat behind.  Chopper followed closely behind, grabbing his bag from off the bench.  The rest of the crew shot over, hovering as she lay in Franky’s arms.  Her breath was short and shaky, her brow furrowed in pain.  Luffy looked her over with panic, that’s when he noticed the blood soaking into her shirt.  She was hurt.  He faltered backwards several steps before he fell to his knees, his heart beating loud and fast in his ears, his eyes full of fear.  Zoro noticed his Captain and knelt down in front of him.  “Luffy, you’ve got to stay with us okay?”

“Blood…” Luffy said, his voice hoarse and soft.  “She’s bleeding…”

Zoro grabbed his shoulders.  He might be the future Pirate King, but right now, he was that same little kid who just lost his brother.  “Look at me Luffy,” Zoro said, his voice stern but comforting.  “This is not like then, this is now.  She’s going to be fine.  You won’t lose her, understand?”  That’s when Zoro noticed the tears welling up in Luffy’s eyes.  He stared blankly ahead, his face locked.  “Blood…” he breathed.  “So much blood…”

“We need to get her inside,” Chopper said.  “She’s responsive but in a lot of pain.”  Franky nodded and stood up, slowly cradling her tense body in his arms.  She let out a pained yell as he did, and Luffy’s breath caught in his throat.  He stood up, shoving Zoro out of the way and running towards her.  He was tackled by Usopp who pinned the manic Luffy down.  “Calm down Luffy,” he yelled.  “You won’t be any help to her the way you are now.”

Luffy clawed at the ground, his fists filling with grass and dirt, he yelled for Usopp to get off him.  “I’m your captain,” he screamed, his voice raw.  “You do as I say and get the hell off me!”

A large, leather clad shoe pinned Luffy’s head to the ground.  Sanji stood above him, his eyes filled with rage and worry.  “You need to calm down Luffy,” he sneered.  “This isn’t helping anyone, especially not her!” 

Luffy fought against the pressure, but with his arms bound by Usopp, he wasn’t going anywhere.  His breath became fast and heavy, his body slowly losing the will to fight them off anymore.  Hot tears streamed from his eyes and he sobbed.  He let our months of repressed worry and fear.  Pain he thought he was over all came rushing back into him like a flood he couldn’t control…

***

“You gave us all quite a scare,” Chopper lectured her as he changed her bandages.  It had been two days since she collapsed at the party, and in that short amount of time, Chopper’s treatment had all but healed her.  “You’ll have a nasty scar, but other than that, your wound looks really good!”

She smiled, caressing the small doctor’s cheek.  “Looks like I owe you my life yet again Doctor.” Chopper began to blush, assuring her that her compliments could not fool him, and that she was a liar.  She laughed.  “Is Luffy around?  I haven’t seen him since I woke up.”

Chopper paused.  “He hasn’t really talked much to anyone on board.  He just sits at the helm and looks out at the sea…we’re all sort of worried about him.”

She sighed, looking out the small window at the ocean.  In an attempt to save Luffy the pain of seeing her hurt, she ended up making the situation much worse…

*** 

Luffy sat cross-legged, letting the sea breeze run its invisible fingers through his hair, his hat dangling around his neck.  The sun was getting ready to set, that would mean three days since he last saw her…

”Is this seat taken?”  Luffy’s head shot around to see her standing behind him, a small blanket wrapped around her.  His heart dropped to his stomach.  She looked so tired…

She must have taken his silence as a response and lowered herself down next to him.  His eyes never left her, afraid that if he so much as blinked she would disappear forever. “You don’t need to blame yourself, you know,” she began.  “I hid it from everyone.  I didn’t want to make you worry.  I guess that plan sort of backfired though huh?”

Luffy still only stared at her…”You were bleeding,” he began.  “And then you collapsed…just like he did.”

She looked at him.  “Luffy…”

“I thought you weren’t going to wake up too…”

Before he could say anything else she threw her arms around him, pulling him into her arms.  Luffy held onto her tight, burrowing his face in between her neck and shoulder.  She felt his body shake with silent sobs.  “I’m right here,” she whispered.  “I’m right here.  I’m not going anywhere I promise…”

[somanyratsinthewalls]

Hello there! For the celebration, can I request Caramel and Maple, please? o///o

Thank you so much for requesting :) This one is juicy and fast paced.

Pairing: Sanji x Afab!Reader

WC: 1200

Prompt: “They’re right outside that door, baby, you don’t want them to hear you like this, right?”

— —

“If you had 4 swords, would one go in your butt?” A wildly drunk Usopp asked the moss haired swordsman across the table from him. You and Nami meet each others gaze across the dining table and both of your eyes widen. You both snort and choke on your beers. 

“WHAT DID YOU JUST ASK ME?” Zoro rises from his seat on the bench. Usopp stutters and tries to change the subject. To avoid any further involvement, you stand up and move towards the galley. 

“Well, um, how about more beers?” You smile at the group and hurry off towards the kitchen. You slip through the swinging galley door and find your handsome blonde lover washing dishes at the sink. 

“Hi love!” You chirp at him in a sing song voice as you skip towards him. You don’t hesitate to wrap your arms around his abdomen and nuzzle your face in his back. 

“Mon amour! What a nice surprise!” Sanji coos at you as you release him and walk towards the fridge. 

“I’m just grabbing more beers. Won’t you come join us soon?” 

“You know… there’s something I need in the pantry. Can you head in there and grab an extra dish sponge? That would really help me, darling.” Sanji asks you.

“Mmhmm!” You nod your head and change your course from the fridge to the pantry. You open the pantry door and step inside and pull the cord to turn on the light bulb. 

“hmmm… sponges… if I was a sponge where would I be….” You ponder as you peruse the shelves. Suddenly, you feel a body behind yours and the pantry door slam shut. Your body shoots up and you two firm hands grab your hips. 

“Ah!!” You yelp. 

“Shh… it’s just me, my love…” You feel Sanji’s thumbs slide into the waistband of your jeans, slightly pulling them down. Sanji leans over you and begins to kiss your neck. “I was going to wait until later tonight to take you, but the way you look right now I… I just needed you now…” Sanji unbuttons and unzips your jeans and slides his soft hand down the front of them. 

“Sanji! We can’t do this… here!” You breath out as he tries to distract you with his fingers slipping past your panties to cup your sex. He begins rubbing firm circles over your clit. 

“It’s my kitchen, mon amour… I’m the boss here. If I want to fuck you in the pantry, I can.” Suddenly his hand moves further down and he slips two digits into your warm hole. You gasp at the intrusion. 

“Fuck!” You throw your head back against Sanji’s broad chest. You felt a chuckle rumble low in his chest as he realized he wore you down so easily. With his hand that wasn’t knuckle deep on you, he pulled your top down roughly making your breasts spill out of the stretched neck. Once your tits were exposed, Sanji groped and squeezed at your nipple as he continued to stretch you out with his other hand. 

“Shit, Sanji..” You felt yourself being brought to the edge of pleasure so quickly by your adept lover. Abruptly, Sanji removes his hand from your pants and brings it back over your head to his mouth. He sucks his fingers greedily. 

“Mmm… so sweet, my darling, as always.” He uses both of his hands to pull your pants and panties down to your knees in a swift motion. Sanji presses down on your shoulders to force your upper body forward, exposing your now soaking pussy to him fully. 

“We eat here, Sanji!” You continue to protest, but your body was giving away your true feelings. Your arms braced yourself on the wooden shelves of the pantry as you heard your lover unbuckle his belt and unzip his dress slacks behind you. 

“Yes love and I’d gladly eat you here and now but unfortunately I’ll have to make this quick.” Sanji huffs out as he slips his hard cock out of his briefs and drags the tip against your wet folds. “Now just relax and let me please you…” 

Sanji pushes himself inside you at a painfully slow pace. You hear his heavy panting breaths over you as you moan out and clench around his length. You whimper as Sanji bottoms out. 

“Fuck, love, you look so pretty right now. All bent over and grabbing at the walls… you must really love this more than you’re saying… you’re practically dripping onto the floor…” Sanji teases you as he begins pumping his cock in and out of you, pelvis sending ripples through the fat of your ass as he meets the flesh with his thrusts. You purse your lips trying to keep any moans as far inside as possible so that your crew mates wouldn’t hear your desperate mewls for Sanji’s dick. 

Sanji could sense you were holding back and he took his right arm and hooked it under your knee, lifting your body to penetrate you at a new angle. 

“Oh my god! There!” You cry out and a silky, delicate hand slams over your mouth. 

“They’re right outside that door, baby, you don’t want them to hear you like this, right?” Sanji leans forward, still pistoling his cock straight into your sweet spot, and whispers in your ear. “A big bad pirate to them… don’t want them to know you’re in here sobbing over my cock. Such an obedient girl for me and no one else…”

You groan into Sanji’s hand, feeling your pleasure reach it’s peak. You bite down on his fingers to suppress your moan as you cum all over your love cook. 

“There it is, that’s my pretty girl. I feel you squeezing me so nicely…” Sanji praises you while he chases his own high. Your head swims as your lover grunts and pants while slamming his length into your spent pussy. Your knees startled buckling as you felt his thrusts pick up speed and lose their steady pacing. 

“Take it like you always do, love, my perfect girl…” Sanji punctuates his sentence with a violent thrust into you and you feel him shooting ropes into your womb. 

You catch your breath and rest your cheek on the pantry shelf as Sanji pulls out of you. In your dick-drunk state you feel him bring up your pants and panties and push your breasts back into your top. He fixes his own trousers before turning you around and pulling you into his chest. 

“I love you, my darling.” He kisses the top of your head. 

“I love you too, asshole. I need to get back out there before they wonder what happened.” You huff out as you pass him to open the pantry door. Sanji gives you a playful smack on the ass as you both exit the pantry. He returns to his place at the sink and you go back into the dining room and sit down at the table. 

“Are we out of beer?” Zoro asks you. 

“What? I don’t know, why?” You question him. 

“Didn’t you just leave to go get beer…?” Usopp probes. 

“Oh! Yeah hold on!” Embarrassed, you hop up again and rush towards the galley. Nami grabs your shoulder. Her eyes scan your disheveled appearance. “You guys are so gross. You’re lucky everyone here is an idiot.” She sneers at you. 

You laugh as you head back into the galley, hopefully being able to access the fridge without any interruptions this time. 

xx Mo

[pampushky]

Creature (Both Haunted & Holy)

Vinsmoke Sanji/Reader - Chapter 23 - 4.3k

You enter a race against time to save your dearest friend, accompanied by Sanji and Luffy, only to realize that a great sacrifice might be the only way to help your friend recover.

ao3 | series masterlist | masterlist | next part

“Wait— why don’t you need a coat?! That’s so unfair!” Luffy shrieks as he watches you push off the railing of the boat, landing safely in the snow along the bank of the river where you’ve docked, deciding to stay away from the main ports, after hearing a few clicks and whistles under the water from a passing nomadic selken pod. 

Drum Island, while known for its previously robust healthcare, was in shambles, not only after the deposition of its former king, but also after an attack from a band of pirates– with now only a single, albeit genius, doctor on the entire island. 

Danger. Old king– he hunts us. One older selkie, the matriarch of the pod, had warned you, her eyes pale with cataracts, but her claws still flashing dangerously at her hands as she continued to rumble to you, her pod swarming around as you conversed, keeping a defensive line, Wapol. Hippo-Man. The island is weakened. Stay safe, little leopard. 

Pod, need to harbor, where? You let out a little rumble at that, watching as the matriarch swims around you, dwarfing you in your selken form, one of her hands gently resting on the top of your head, before guiding you to a deeper river, hidden from view of the port village by a dense forest. 

Good pod, strong, the matriarch hummed, nudging you gently with her head —the traditional sign of respect from a ringed seal—  before rumbling her parting as she swam away, the faint trail of bubbles being the last thing you see of her as you surface to lead the Going Merry. 

You look back to the Going Merry lips pursed as you watch Luffy launch himself to land next to you, only wearing one of Nami’s spare jackets to get warmer. 

“Luffy– I have blubber, I’m physically adapted to the cold,” You let out a huff, watching as he follows your exact footsteps, stepping into the indents in the snow you leave behind as you make your way forward, undeterred. “Go back to the ship and get boots and pants.”

“Cold-schmold,” Luffy grumbles back, and you can’t help but feel a bit annoyed, making sure to flick a bit of snow in his face when he stops to examine an interesting stick he’s found snickering when he yelps. 

No sooner does he yelp, do you feel something shift in the air, turning and hitting the sides of your arms together in an upward motion, slamming two walls of snow together just in time to block a volley of shots at yourself and Luffy, dropping onto one of yours knees as you hold the wall, before flicking your wrists forward, arms still pressed together in front of you. The wall pushes its way through the forest, knocking down several trees and revealing nearly two dozen soldiers in the process. 

“Luffy—!”

“On it!”

You watch as your captain flings his arm forward, crushing the group together with this whip-like motion, leaving them dazed on the ground as Zoro and Sanji brace themselves on the ship. There’s a heavy silence, interrupted only by your panting, the groans of the now incapacitated soldiers, and the crunch of snow as Sanji leaps down to stand behind Luffy and you, watching the treeline for more soldiers. 

“Everyone okay?” Luffy calls out, retracting his arm back into his body. 

“I’m— gonna need a breather,” you let yourself fall back in the snow, bringing both of your palms to your eyes, rubbing sweat from your face. “Snow— snow’s fucking hard to move, like that. I think— think I just gave myself a hernia.”

Luffy lets out a huffing laugh, and Sanji plops down next to you, pinching your cheek fondly, until his head snaps up again, eyes on the treeline. 

“There’s someone there,” He stands up slowly, frowning as he does so. You only groan, pushing yourself back up, a bit lightheaded as you do so. You sniff at the air, though, and let out a warning rumble. 

“It smells– it smells like a bison,” you frown, confused. It doesn’t smell quite right. There’s an undeniably human tang to it, sitting on your tongue bitterly as you shake your head. “It’s…. It’s not that though, it can’t be…. it smells human, too.”

You think back to the matriarch’s warning, looking at the treeline with Sanji. The sun glints off of the snow, and you let out a hiss, wishing for the snow goggles of your native island, making it easy to prevent snow blindness and for anyone to sneak up on a selkie in their native element. But the smell— it’s still there, getting stronger, if anything. 

“I can’t smell a bison,” Luffy looks at you, with a confused smile on his lips, pointing towards the tree line, “But I can see a guy, he’s like, really big, maybe you can smell him?”

Before you can even think to clobber your captain, said large man enters the little clearing along the bank with his hands up, palms out. He towers over your entire group. 

 “I believe, we may have gotten off on the wrong foot,” He speaks, oddly soft-spoken for someone of his size, “I am Dalton, may I ask what your business is here, on Drum Island?” 

The information spills forth after that, and before you know it, you’re carefully transporting Nami to the town of Bighorn, hopefully, to be seen by the rumored doctor of the island. 

Nami doesn’t feel the familiar, warm pulsing anymore, and she almost misses it. Wherever she is now, it’s quiet, and it’s warm— a dry warmth, from a constant fire, one that sucks the moisture from the air, and chaps her lips. She knows she has a heavy quilt, something heavier than the one she has in the women’s dorms. Something cool is on her head, sticky and damp.

And you’re there too. Sounding exhausted, as you speak to who Nami can only assume is the leader of wherever they are. Perhaps the next island? If you’re the one steering the ship, she can imagine that you followed her logs and the map, following the currents under the ship easily as she followed the wind and guided it into the sails. 

“It’s in my blood,” You whisper, looking at your hands. Your palms are the same milky gray as the patch that pales your face, and slides down your neck onto your chest, bright against the deep gray dapples of the rest of your skin. “The ocean is with me, always, it’s an old friend of mine— one that I will always be able to return to,” 

You haven’t lost the hope in your voice yet. Your dark eyes still have anger in them, every time you see Arlong pass, every time he drags you out of the cell he keeps you in. You’ve not been beaten down, not yet.

“Nami, when we get out of here, will you sail with me?” You look at her so calmly, so lovingly as she wraps a wound on your arm, a punishment for lashing out at Arlong. Your only other ally, in the camp of fishmen, your closest friend, “We could be merchants. Free.”

She laughs at that, causing you to laugh as well, leaning into her shoulder when she finished attending to your arm. “Sure. We can sell whatever my sister makes, and bring money to the village. We could even bring your pod into it.”

“I think my mothers would love you,” You laugh into her shoulder, lacing your hand in hers. 

“Yeah?”

“Mhm. My Mam especially. She likes tough people.”

“She sounds like a bad bitch.”

“Oh, she is. She’s got the biggest Selken form I’ve ever seen, the size of a giant grouper.”

Nami listens to you ramble, and feels the thump of her heart against her ribcage as you speak to her about your pod. There’s still hope when you look at the ocean. 

This stops the moment Arlong casually tosses a woven bracelet into your cell after you bite him, as he tries to relieve his stress one night after an unsuccessful raid against some local marine base. He cackles when you start to scream until your voice fails you. There isn’t any resistance the next time he comes onto you, and Nami finds you, with dead eyes, clutching the bracelet tightly. 

“It was my Baba’s,” you whisper, thumb stroking across a mottled-gray strip of leather. “It— it was a wedding gift, from my grandmother. It has a strip of her pelt in it, from their wedding. He never took it off, even when he slept and swam.” 

“He could still be alive, you don’t know that for certain—” Nami tries to comfort you, but you just lay there, shaking your head. 

“No. I can feel it,” You start to shake, and Nami realizes you’re crying, too exhausted to even let tears fall. “He’s dead. They took this from his corpse— that’s the only way they could have taken it from him.”

“I’m not asking for when the doctor will be here– I’m asking where she is so I can find her myself,” You sound just as exhausted as you did that day, and Nami knows you’re looking at whatever unfortunate person with murderous intent. There’s a shift in the room, and Nami can hear how some of the crew move to either stand where she lays or to go behind you, based on the sounds of boots scraping the floor. 

“I understand that,” It’s a man’s voice, deep and apologetic, “But– it’s a hike up the mountain, and from there, you’ll need to climb the mountain itself to get to her, I’m telling you, it’s safer to wait and see if she’s going to come here.” 

You rumble, deep and angry, before letting out a deep sigh, and Nami feels herself get lifted, with your arms around her legs. Something gets slipped on her back, and she feels warmth seep into her bones, the chill that had settled on her fading. She curls into your back and you can feel her breath against your neck, making you let out a much gentler rumble to reassure her that you’re there. There are other voices, and Nami can feel something tying her gently to your back to make sure that she’s secure there. 

Sanji watches with a worried frown on his face as you drape your pelt on Nami’s shoulders, carefully threading her arms through the sleeves and ensuring her arms are wrapped loosely around your neck, able to feel the shallow breaths against your back making you shudder. 

“S’okay, Nami, it’s gonna be okay,” You murmur to her, keeping her close, tightening your grip on her legs. “I’ll be able to get up the mountain quickly if I go alone,” you look at the rest of your party, a serious frown on your face. 

“I’m not letting you go alone,” Sanji shakes his head, and stands, looking down at you with an intense expression of worry. 

“Yeah, me neither,” Luffy folds his arms tightly, “You’re still acting weird from last week.”

“I am not,” You snarl, with Luffy pressing his forehead against yours. The frustration is potent in the air, from not only the risk now posed at Nami’s life, but the anger between yourself and your captain. Sanji, luckily, steps between the two of you, serving as a barrier. “We’ll all go, the three of us.”

His tone leaves no room for discussion, looking at the two of you rather than his lover and the captain of his crew respectively, but as bickering siblings, even making the two of you shake hands, though Sanji can feel your fury through the bond. 

“I…. can’t help but agree, that it’s probably better for all three of you to go,” Dalton gently interrupts, looking at the little argument starting to form. “With two of you defending, and one of you carrying, that’s the best chance at survival for your navigator,”

You feel the hair rise on the back of your neck. 

“It’ll be even higher considering I’ll be healing her on the way as well,” You look at Dalton, almost like it’s a challenge. 

“Ott, no ,” Sanji takes you by your shoulders, looking at you with wide eyes. His shock and terror are potent throughout the bond, “You’re already exhausted from moving the snow and all the healing you’ve been doing— I won’t allow it.”

“I wasn’t asking permission!”

“It’s her choice,” Luffy speaks, uncharacteristically quiet, with his eyes shadowed by his hat. “What matters is getting Nami up there.”

“Exactly,” You step away from Sanji, and hold Nami close, already halfway to the door by the time Sanji can process what exactly is happening. “We need to move. Now.”

The hike up the trail is quick, at first. The snow is natural for you to run in, with Sanji silently leading your little line of travel, each stepping in the other’s footsteps. The tension in the air is thick, and you can feel some anger from Sanji– prickly and hot, like a match that burns just a bit too close to your fingertips but doesn’t quite burn you. 

From you, it’s mostly the same. Anger like nettles, poking under his skin, and warm like just-about-to-boil water. He doesn’t turn back to check on you, even when he hears you kiss your teeth over something, because he knows you’ll end up snapping at him, as much as he wants to. 

But this dedication to Nami— it’s not that he’s jealous— he’s a bit… worried, about it, rather. Sanji knows that recovery is a long, and often swirling path, overlapping and turning back, but he hated how stiff you had gotten when Nami entered the storage room. And Sanji knows PTSD responses— his childhood therapist had coached him and then Zeff about how to properly address these when they popped up— and Sanji did not go through nearly seven years of therapy to watch you, the wonderful selkie who had planted herself rather firmly in his heart from the moment he saw you ball up your emotions like they meant nothing the moment that Nami was in trouble.

And he knows it’s a lot more complicated than that. Gods, does he know it. But it’s also not. It’s as simple as letting someone walk over you for the sake of their feelings over your own. It enrages him to see you do this— not at you, never, could he be mad at you— but at the circumstances that encourage such coping mechanisms to bloom. All that Sanji wants is for you— and Nami— to heal, but not at the cost of the other’s mental well-being. 

It’s codependency, plain and simple. Something unavoidable in a situation like the two of you had been stuck in. Nami had been the only semi-safe space that existed in your life for the past two years. You had been the only person to understand the responsibility Nami held on her shoulders and the fears that consumed her every move. 

Sanji recognizes that had Zeff not gotten him the therapy and help he needed, he would be in the same boat, probably a very different person, and still clinging to Zeff like a life raft. But that isn’t the case, luckily. Because Sanji knows what a healthy coping mechanism is meant to look like— in theory, at least, Zoro’s little confrontation about his isolation all the way back at Reverse Mountain still rings annoyingly in his ears— and the blond can say with a rather high degree of confidence that Nami and yourself haven't had the time nor place to really develop those adult skills and mechanisms. 

Behind him, Sanji heard you let out another deep grumble, yet you continued mumbling and humming to yourself, the sound of your constant healing of Nami at the same low drone it’s been for the past two weeks at sea. He only looks back for a second, just to check on you, and sees how foggy your expression is as you continue your chants,

“How is she holding up?” Sanji feels the wind rip the words right from his mouth, muffled by the harsh howling and icy flakes snapping into his cheeks. You look up at him, momentarily startled out of your trance, before pursing your lips and keeping your eyes down. “She’s— she’s breathing, but we need to get there soon,” Your voice is distant, despite being just a foot behind him. Your cheeks are flushed, and despite the cold, Sanji can see the sweat on your brow. Your hair has even come fluttering out of the loose ponytail you’ve managed to throw it into, whipping around your face wildly as you look back at Luffy. “I— I’m worried.”

“Hold on,” Luffy shouts from behind the three of you, and marches in front of you, scowling into the white void before you, one of his arms placed protectively before you. Sanji tilts his head at his captain and then follows his gaze. Dalton had told them about some of the wildlife– hiking bears, reindeer, and the occasional fox— and of course, lapahns. Giant, territorial rabbits that hated whenever someone encroached on their territory, willing to defend it to the point of death. You let out a low, warning rumble. It’s dark out now, hard for Sanji and Luffy to see, but easy for you. 

Shown clear as day to you, standing just out of their line of sight, are a pack of lapahns, numbering around fifty, waiting for your little group to cross into their territory. 

“Lapahns,” you breathe out, and for the first time in the two hours you’ve been hiking, the group stops. 

“I could rocket us over,” Luffy cranes his neck upward as he looks at the blurry image of the mountains in front of him. 

“And risk hurting Nami in the process?” Sanji shakes his head. “We’ll need to fight our way out. Because we don’t have the time to find a way around the fucking territory.”

“So we need to fight?”

“Looks like it,” Luffy cracks his knuckles, and lets out a deep breath, watching it billow out in a big cloud around his mouth. “Sanji, you on the right, me on the left?”

“As long as we keep moving,” Sanji lets out a grunt, cracking his neck. 

The three of you dive forward, met with a heavy assault the moment you step over whatever invisible boundary existed that the rabbits were so territorial over. And all you do is stay focused on sprinting as much as you can through the snow, feeling it slip into your boots as Luffy and Sanji seem to fly in front of you, dancing across your vision. 

And then you see it. One smaller rabbit, staring directly at you, standing beside what looks like a prepared pile of rubble, with chunks of glacier, rocks, and snow. It’s obviously a younger one, probably just barely out of whatever age range was similar to the humanoid 6-7-year-old. And it looked at you in utter terror and hatred.

Nothing else. Just those two, utterly despicable emotions. You feel the shadow of Arlong creep up your spine, shuddering as the little rabbit glances at the pile again, and then at you. 

Before kicking it, hard.

You know what that’ll do. You’d be warned of it countless times, during the deepest parts of winter in the Isles. How important careful movements were, especially without snow shoes to aid your steps. A stray yelp or a much-to-quick slide to the right could trigger an avalanche, even in the clearest conditions. There’d been axolotl hounds trained to rescue these people, paired with the selkenfolk who were blessed as you were to be so connected with water, regardless of the form.

But that was then. Where there was a whole group of professionals ready to get into action at a moment's notice. 

There weren’t any trained professionals. 

Just you, your boyfriend, your captain, and your deathly ill friend, an avalanche threatening to drown you all where you stand, with dozens of lapahns around you. 

Sanji looks your way, for just a second, and that’s all it takes for a gigantic lapahn to land a blow, straight into his lower back. You hear the crack in his back as it hits, and can feel the pain through the bond, even when Sanji manages to land a kick on the rabbit, sending it flying. 

For a moment, you feel like the world has frozen. Snowflakes freeze midair, your scream of anguish the only thing you can hear. The wave of snow and rubble is just ten feet away, swift-moving and destructive, and in the wake of it all, you see the little rabbit, eyes wide in fear, seeming to realize what it’s done as it barrels towards its family and your group, clinging terrified to a log 

You don’t think. You just act. 

Your scream somehow gets louder, and louder, until you swear your voice is thunder. The world is moving now, though it’s as if you hadn’t seen how slowly everything had moved. There is a deep trench, with you at the end of it, on your knees, panting. Trees, boulders, rabbits, and more— all strewn into the opposite sides of the trench. It looks as though a giant, singular claw had raked through the mountain straight in front of you.

“Holy shit,” It’s Luffy who speaks first after that, his hat hanging around his neck in the wind, his cheeks, ears, and the tips of his fingers tinted a violent red. “How did you do that?”

“I…. Don’t know,” you slump forward, groaning. Your head pounds, and you feel as though you’ve just been punched repeatedly in the gut. The weight of Nami disappears from your shoulders, and just as you’re about to protest, you can feel Sanji’s concern wash over you, despite the obvious pain he’s in, making you shudder as he hoists you upwards, letting you lean on him. You let out another groan, trying to reach towards his back, to at least soothe the pain. He shakes his head and nudges your hand away, though you see how he grits his teeth. Everything feels too calm. The wind whips around you, sending powdered snow into your face. The deep divot you’ve just created lays before you, pieces of the ice still crumbling as you look at it. The smell of freshly-revealed earth fills your nose, and you feel sick. Something’s not right. The spell is broken, however, when Sanji calls your name, looking down at you. His eyes are awash with exhaustion, the wind blowing the hair from both of his eyes. You let out a low, tired rumble, and bump your head against his chest.

After just a minute like that, you both nod to Luffy, dragging yourselves through the snow towards the peak. 

There’s a loud whimper, and you notice the little rabbit again, pulling on a white tuft of fur, buried deep in the snow. You don’t think, you just mumble Luffy’s name, and jut your chin towards the little creature. He doesn’t hesitate, even when it growls, and eventually nips at him. He just clears away as much snow as possible and eventually manages to pull the buried rabbit from the snow, looking down at the little one with a stoic expression before calling for yourself and Sanji, and trekking forward. 

Sanji starts to weaken, just a few hundred meters further, and by the time you reach the giant chasm, he loses consciousness, slumping heavily against you. Luffy is fighting the cold now, the tips of his fingers starting to darken even further. Nami’s breathing is shallow on his back.

And you let out an angry wail, falling to your knees as you look at the chasm and the high peak before you. 

What was the reason behind all of this?

For one crew of a ship— for just one person on that crew— to have gone through so much?

You curse the gods. Curse the devils that make merry with your misery. You scream and cry, and claw at your hair as you wail. Luffy stands numbly beside you. 

Damn the gods and their ineffable, never to stray from the path plans. You look at your captain, who looks back at you, and then he nods. Luffy understands. He knows your anger right now. 

And he watches as you pound your fists into the snow, screaming until your throat is raw, and the tips of your fingers start to bleed as you claw into the deeper layers of snow. 

“Fuck you, you stupid fucking gods, wherever you are !” You scream this, as you claw at the snow, finding the dirt that lays beneath it. 

“ I will live the life I want to! ” You bring your arms to your side, and pull one fist up, as though you’re readying a punch. Luffy’s eyes widen, as you punch into the frozen dirt, hard.

“I’ll fucking choose when and where I will die!”

Punch

“I’ll protect my pod!”

Punch

“Your plans are bullshit anyway, you assholes!”

Punch punch

“ SO! FUCK! YOU !”

With a final, solid hit, you feel some pressure build up underneath you, shaking the ground, until you get thrown into the air, Luffy, Sanji, and Nami beside you. The peak gets closer, closer, and closer until you feel one of Luffy’s arms wrap tightly around you, crushing you into Sanji, with his other arm slingshotting towards the foggy outline of a castle. 

You glance over your shoulders to see what had pushed you into the air, seeing what looks like a gigantic hand of snow, still posed as though it had lifted you. For a brief moment, you swear you can see the visage of an old selkie, with bright white hair and sun-dappled skin grinning at you in the snow squalls in the air. But you blink, and it’s gone, replaced by Luffy breaking your landing as you hit the peak. 

Everything goes black, and the last thing you see is Luffy, dragging you towards the castle, his fingertips and nose nearly the same color as his hair while he promises that he will not fail you.

[thegreatcaptainusopp]

The Separation

Ao3 link

The Seer, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5

Chapter 6: Usopp

Usopp had promised, when Luffy was soaring over with them to Vance’s ship, that he would never fly again.

That promise had lasted all of a couple days.

He had known the instant that Sanji had vanished in front of him that it was over for him. That realization had completely shattered his connection over his Haki, the Haki he’d been using to try something, anything, to get what was happening to stop.

He hadn’t even known it was Kuma until his Haki has fully activated, and by then Brook, Franky, and Robin had all disappeared.

So, when everything went dark and nothing again, and Luffy and Zoro and Nami were screaming his name, Usopp had known that he was finished. There was only one thing to do, at that point: take a deep breath, straighten his back, and face it head on, and think Goodbye.

He had not expected the flying, though: days and days of it, or so it had felt like, seeing nothing at all and not knowing when it was going to end. All he could do was scream and pray please please please.

At some point, he had thought maybe he was already dead. Maybe this is it, flying for eternity.

At some point, however, much to his great relief, his flight path changes. His stomach drops, a telltale sign of descent, and he braces himself just before everything stops and he hits solid ground.

He lies there, dazed, before scrambling shakily to his knees. He crouches down over the ground, hands digging into soft soil and breathing in the scent of dirt and grass and solidity.

Usopp stays there for a while, breathing in until he’s calm enough to slowly emerge from his crouch. He’s aching everywhere, the tension from his trip and the fall and everything that’s been going non stop since Vance had shown up hitting him all at once.

He collapses back down to the ground, taking some more shuddering breaths. It seems that for now, he’s safe, and can finally just—

Everything hits him all over again, and he feels like he’s been zapped by Enel a second time. He bolts up into place, so fast he almost falls over. Where am I? He thanks frantically, moving his head from side to side even though he can’t see anything. And how do I find out?

The movement makes something on his neck tickle, and he realizes with another shock to the system that he’s still wearing Hat, stuck firmly to the top of his head. He raises his hands, clamping down on the brim as a new fear begins to flood through his veins because oh God what happened to everyone what happened what happened what happened…

Because, God, almost everyone got hit didn’t they? Almost everyone, even Sanji, it’s just Nami and Zoro and Luffy left as far as he knows, what could’ve happened…

Usopp’s train of thought grinds to a halt. Maybe…he got hit, and he’s fine, right? So maybe…

His arm start to ache, so he drops them back down to the dirt. He clears his throat. “Hello?” He croaks out, voice sounding so loud in the dark. “Hello? Is…is anyone else here? Guys? Hello?”

He waits, fidgeting a little, concern only growing the longer he hears nothing back. Is it possible everyone actually is here, but they’re too hurt to say something? Or do anything?

He’d like to check, but…but.

A new problem presents itself. Usopp remembers last time he’d been alone since getting blinded, waiting on the shores of the Marineford base while the rest of the crew made its way to him. He’d lost all connection to the outside world and had been stuck in the dark but at least he’d known where he was, and that everyone was coming for him. Here, though…

Here, he’s never been more in the dark. Even in the worst moments, the lowest moments, he’d had someone around. He’d had some connection to his surroundings. But, as it stands…he doesn’t know where he is and who he’s with. He doesn’t know if his crew needs his help. And at the moment, he doesn’t know if he can find out.

Usopp feels his head begun to spiral, and quickly pinches his arm. Pull yourself together, He says, struggling to maintain his composure. Focus. Calm down so you can use your Haki, then you’ll get out of this.

He takes a slow, deliberate, breath, trying to center himself. If he takes some time, then maybe…

A chill runs up his spine, breaking his concentration. He’s well aware enough at this point to know that this means—

“Who are you?”

Usopp flinches, scrambling back to the opposite direction from where the voice came from. “Um,” He stammers, trying not to think about how vulnerable he is at the moment. “Well, you know, sorry, I just kind of found myself here, and—”

He hears something rustle, and the voice starts to draw closer. “Calm down,” It says in a strict baritone. A sharp tapping follows his words as he walks. “Stop for a moment, please. Explain who you are, and why you are here.”

The voice isn’t familiar, and Usopp knows that he can’t trust it. “Um,” He says, mind racing to come up with an answer. “Sorry. I actually don’t know where I am, I got…turned around, so I’m completely lost. Can you tell me who you are, Mr…?”

There’s a short pause, then:

“Issho,” The voice says, less stern now. “I’m Issho. You got lost, you say? Do you remember where you were, before you ended up here?”

“Well,” Usopp says, feeling himself start to sweat nervously. “…no, not really. I can’t really, well,” He points at his eyes, where he can still feel the bandages. “I can’t really give you any landmarks or anything like that. So.”

“Why not?” Issho asks, sounding curious now.

Usopp tilts his head in confusion. Wasn’t it obvious? “I’m…I’m blind,” Usopp says, voice soft. It’s the first time since he was on Vance’s ship that he’s said that statement, he thinks. “These bandages…it’s cause I’m blind. I can’t see anything.”

There’s a quick intake of breath, then: “Ah,” Issho says, lighter now. “Apologies, I didn’t…well, I wasn’t paying attention to the details. It seems we have something in common, Mr…?”

Usopp recognizes his own name tactic used against him, then takes the risk. “Usopp,” He finally admits, heart beating fast.

“Usopp,” Issho says, and Usopp hears his voice draw closer. “I am also blind, you see. I meant no offense.”

Usopp’s mouth drops open. “You too?” He squeaks out. “That’s…”

There’s a quick burst of laughter. “Well,” Issho chuckles out. “We make quite the pair, Usopp. Up on your feet, now. Let’s get you back to where you need to be.”

The seems much too easy to be real. Usopp thinks for a moment. I don’t really have a choice, do I?

He grips at the earth, then slowly levers himself up to his feet. “I’m up,” He says, remembering that Issho is blind too. “Where should we go?”

“What’s the last thing you remember?” Issho asks, and Usopp hears the swish of fabric on ground. “Were you perhaps in the town square and took a wrong turn? I’m not all that close by there, but if you walked a long way then perhaps…”

Usopp clears his throat. “Um,” He says, trying to pick up an audio clues he can find about Issho’s position. “No, I…Hey, can you tell me the island name? And where we are?”

The movement stops, and Usopp hears a tone of surprise attached to Issho’s next sentence. “What? Do you not even know where you are?”

Usopp rubs the back of his head nervously. “Um…you see…”

He’s interrupted by a sigh. “No matter,” Issho says. “We’re on Tiger Island, in Paradise. The Grand Line. My residence is right in front of you, and behind is the path to the main town. If we go there together, we might find a way to get you back to where you need to go.”

Really, he’s lucky Issho isn’t pushing further. “Yes,” Usopp says, steeling himself. “Let’s go. Lead the way.”

“Sure,” Issho says, and then Usopp hears him turn and start to move further away.

Oh. That may be…oh.

Usopp takes a hesitant step forward, fumbling through the dark. Then another, slowly trying to sweep the area ahead of him with his foot.

The footsteps stop again. “What is it?” Issho asks, sounding concerned.

Usopp feels a flush of embarrassment and shame rising in his cheeks. “Um,” He begins. “Sorry. I might need some…I’m having some trouble navigating, is all.”

“Ah,” Issho says, and Usopp hears him double back before feeling a hand clamp down on his shoulder. “You’re wearing bandages, you said?”

Usopp stumbles forward, trying his best to keep Issho’s pace “Yes?” he says, almost a question.

“How long has it been?” Issho continues, slowly leading Usopp through the terrain. “Since you lost your sight?”

Usopp shrugs, knowing Issho will feel it. “A couple weeks, probably,” He responds.

He feels the hand on his shoulder clench tighter. “It’s new to you, then.” Issho says. “That explains it. Well, in that case, it’s best we stop by the doctor first, yes?”

Usopp’s stomach tightens. “But…”

“Just to make sure,” Issho interrupts. “That everything is on the mend. After that, we’ll continue the original plan.”

He doesn’t have a choice, really. “Sure,” He says, vaguely defeated, using the pressure of Issho’s hand on his shoulder or ground him.

They start making their way to the town in earnest, Usopp trying his best to concentrate on the route. Minutes pass before Issho clears his throat. “I like your hat.”

“Oh,” Usopp says, reaching up to touch the brim. “Thank you. It’s…it’s not mine. But it’s special.”

He gets a thoughtful “hmm” in response and tries not to dwell on it too hard, until…

“Hey,” Usopp says slowly. “How did you…I mean, you haven’t even touched the hat. How do you know it’s there?”

Haki? His brain tells him.

A quiet chuckle meets him in response. “You’ll know, soon enough.” Issho says. “Soon enough.”

-

“Running a school for the blind, there, Issho?”

Usopp flinches at the words as he feels gloved hands tug at his bandages, almost falling off the medical cot. “Hey,” The doctor says, not unkindly, as he steadies Usopp in place. “It’s okay, kid. This’ll only take a couple minutes.”

“Wafer,” Issho replies, stern. “I won’t have any of that talk. Leave him be. Just check on the wound, please.”

Usopp takes in a quick breath as the last of the bandages fall away, exposing his ruined eyes to the cold air. “I’m hurt,” Wafer says, and Usopp feels him very gently prodding around his eyes. “This is just the first time the stray you’ve taken in is also blind, you know. And recently, at that. He’s going to need some support.”

“I’m fine,” Usopp says indignantly. “I’m figuring everything out okay.”

“Didn’t say you weren’t,” Wafer says, then “You’re going to feel something cold,” Before he presses something gently over Usopp’s eyes.

“Anyway,” He continues, barely missing a beat. “It’s clear that this only just happened, in the grand scheme of things. It’ll take a while to learn how to manage: ask Issho over there, he’ll tell you.”

“It’s true. The good doctor here has known me for a long time, so he’s correct,” Issho confirms, and then asks. “How are the wounds?”

Usopp feels the pressure from his eyes lift. “It’s healing well, just needs some monitoring. You’re going to need to find ways to protect your eyes from debris particles too: I recommend some good sunglasses.”

“Naturally,” Issho responds icily. “Is that it, then?”

“Indeed,” Usopp hears, and feels the whoosh of Wafer pulling back. “The bandages can stay off now, even. Now…where are you headed, Usopp?”

Usopp is too caught up in no bandages to really take in the question. “Um,” He says. “Well. I need to get out of here. And back to my,” He hesitates for a beat. “My friends.”

“Whereabouts are they?” Issho asks, and there’s the tapping sound again. A staff of some sort, Usopp realizes.

He clears his throat. “Sabaody,” he says. “That’s where we were last.”

“Sabaody?” Wafer asks, sounding surprised. “I mean, that’s not terribly far away, but it’s not exactly right next door either. How did you get from there to here without knowing where you were?”

Usopp opens his mouth, hoping a good answer will come out, before he’s interrupted by Issho. “It’s probably to do with the fact that you’re a pirate, right Usopp?”

Usopp’s mouth clicks back shut in shock.

“A pirate?” Wafer asks. “How did you know that?”

“It was simple enough,” Issho’s voice sounds confident, but not angry. “Firstly, Sabaody is a pirate haven. Secondly, and more importantly…I know that hat. Only a pirate would be the wearer of that hat. I must say, Usopp, I’m curious to know how you came to be in possession of it.”

Usopp can’t do anything but let out a nervous laugh. “Can’t really deny it anymore, huh?” He asks.

“No,” Issho says. “So. Elaborate, please.”

Usopp sighs. “Well,” He says. “Firstly, yeah. I’m a pirate. The hat belongs to my Captain, it’s not mine. I’m just…looking after it for a while.”

Issho lets out a hmm of interest. “Your captain’s name?”

Usopp hesitates. Would this count as giving Luffy away?

“Don’t worry,” Wafer cuts in. “Issho doesn’t really…well, he doesn’t love pirates, but as long as you’re not actively causing harm to anything, he doesn’t really care. And he’s no government snitch, so.”

Issho just sighs. “I will not turn you or your captain in anywhere,” He says. “Anyway. I already have an idea of who it might be, and I have no quarrel with him.”

Oh. That’s different then. “Monkey D. Luffy,” Usopp says, resigned but also with a hint of pride. “He’s my captain.”

“I thought so,” Issho says, sounding satisfied. “In that case, would you also be willing to let us know how you ended up in front of my house, and how you left a large crater there, if you please?”

“Crater?” Usopp asks. “I didn’t know there was a…wait, how did you know?”

“I’ll get to that later,” Issho says enigmatically. “Anyway. Do you have any explanations for this?”

Well. He’s all in, anyway. “Kuma,” Usopp finally admits, feeling a little ashamed. This pair had played him masterfully. “Bartholomew Kuma. He attacked us and…sent us away. It’s why I have to get back. I have to know that they’re okay.”

“Kuma?” Issho asks, sounding shocked. “The warlord?”

“Don’t get him started,” Wafer mutters.

“The warlord!” Issho repeats. “Why would he…why would he send you to me? I have no love lost for warlords, that’s true enough. So why…”

Usopp waits nervously for the rest of the sentence, but it never comes. “Why what?” He asks. “Do you have an idea of why he would send me here?”

“He’s thinking,” Wafer’s voice breaks in helpfully. “It’s…unusual, that’s for sure. Kuma doesn’t do anything without a reason, so—”

“Correct,” Issho says gravely. “He does not. So…sending you here, in your condition, seems like a very deliberate move. Tell me, Usopp, why would the warlord Kuma try to help you?”

“Help me?” Usopp squeaks out. “How did he…”

“He sent you here,” Issho says slowly. “To me. He did not kill you, when it sounds like he very well could have. He even gave you a way back.”

Usopp’s brows furrow. “He did what?”

“The piece of paper in your left pocket,” Issho says. “That should be what leads you to your destination, I believe.”

“The—” Usopp digs a hand into the pocket, then pulls out a piece of paper. “Whoa. What is this?”

“Wafer?” Issho prompts.

Usopp hears an “I’m gonna check that out, Usopp,” before fingers brush at his hand, taking the paper. “You’re right Issho,” Wafer says. “This is a Vivre Card.”

“A Vivre card? How did…” Usopp trails off. “Hey. How did you even know that was there?”

Yeah. Definitely Haki.

Issho just chuckles. “I said we’d get to that eventually, don’t worry,” He says. “Anyway. It seems that, as you don’t know what the card leads to, that Kuma might’ve given you this as well. Meaning, he went out of his way to help you. You said the rest of your crew is also gone?”

Usopp is just barely keeping up with the conversation. “Yeah, Kuma got most of us til I got hit.”

“Then it’s probably the same with them,” Issho says. “So, if this can ease your burden, I hope it can be helpful. Your crew is probably like you: safe, and with a life line back.”

The conviction in Issho’s voice is so, so easy to believe. “You think so?” Usopp breathes out, trying to keep it together. “You think they’re fine?”

“Yes,” Issho says. “But, the question now is this. What do we do with you? Because I recommend waiting at least a few months before making your way back.”

Usopp’s mind is still on his crew, still full of go back go back go back go back. “Why?” He asks impatiently. “If we have everything, then…”

“Kuma removed you from the island,” Issho says. “I’m assuming that meant it got dangerous for you there. Am I right?”

Usopp thinks of Marineford. “Probably,” He says.

“Then,” Issho continues. “Lie low for a bit. Your crewmates are probably doing the same. Wait until it’s safe, then go. You can stay with me in the meantime.”

Usopp shakes his head again. “But—”

“It’s your choice, of course,” Issho interrupts. “However, I would strongly suggest to stay. I can teach you how to navigate the world like I do. And I’m far away from the town, so you can stay hidden.”

Usopp take a deep breath. “I’m going to need a second,” He says, head spinning. “I need some time to think about it.”

“You have time,” Issho says, neutrally serene.

“You’re not wanted, are you, Usopp?” Wafer asks thoughtfully “I don’t remember seeing your name on any poster.”

“Um,” Usopp responds. “I, as Usopp, am not wanted, no. On the other hand, Sogeking, one of my identities, is—”

“Why, Wafer,” Issho interrupts blandly. “I believe I may be going deaf as well as blind, because I didn’t hear that just then.”

“Fancy that,” Wafer replies. “I think I’m going deaf too, because I didn’t hear it either. Oh well. It couldn’t have been that important. Then, Usopp, there’s no objection from our end with you staying either.”

“Right, then,” Issho says, and Usopp hears the telltale scrape of a chair being pushed back. “Let’s make our way back. We have a lot to get started on, Usopp.”

Usopp hears someone approach him, then Wafer’s voice says “I’m going to help you up” before he feels a hand grip his forearm, helping him off of the cot. “Let’s go.”

He can’t hold it in anymore. “Why?”

The sounds of moving comes to a sudden stop. “Hm?” Issho asks. “Why what?”

“Why are you helping me?” Usopp asks. “I don’t understand.”

There’s a short pause, then—

“It’s the right thing to do,” Issho says. “It’s the just thing to do.”

-

Usopp’s first day of his new training is not at all what he expects.

He had woken up the next day, not aware (will never be aware again) of what time it was, and stumbled around until he had managed to find his way out of the room he had been placed in. Issho had, upon their return from town, directed him to the room and let him know how to find the house’s main area.

Somehow, slowly, he had found his way out of the room, and had slowly navigated around the main room with careful, cautious steps. Issho has been waiting for him, and declared that he was now ready to begin his training.

He had been, honestly, excited as they made their way outside. For the first time since being captured by Vance, he’d felt that maybe he had some hope to figure out how to really deal with his current situation.

So, he waits expectantly as he hears Issho’s staff thud around the area, eventually settling at a spot a few feet away at his left. “Now,” Issho’s voice rings out. “Let’s begin.”

Usopp clenches his fists and lifts them to his chest in excitement. “Yes!” He cheers. “What are we starting with? Fighting? You have a staff, is that what you fight with? Am I getting one?”

“You are,” Issho’s amused voice rings out in the wide space. “One moment…here.”

Usopp feels Issho tap at his hand. He lifts it up, feeling something wooden and cylindrical placed in it.

“That’s it!” Usopp says, excited, then. “Hey, this is heavy. And big! What the hell? How tall are you?”

The only reply he gets is the tapping of a staff away from his general direction. “Hey,” He says again. “Am I…am I going to be fighting with this?”

“No,” Issho says, and there’s the distinct thump of someone taking a seat. “You’re going to walk with it.”

“Okay,” Usopp says suspiciously. “Walk with it in order to…?”

“To walk,” Issho says. “You’re going to have to find a way to navigate the world without your sight. This is how.”

Usopp’s hand clenches on the staff. “But,” He says. “You can…”

“I have other methods, yes,” Issho says. “But you have to know how to manage regardless. You never know what could happen, and you need to know how to rely on yourself fully.”

Usopo remembers how it felt, waking up in the Vance ship’s medbay and the sick realization that everything he took for granted will never come back…

He sighs, shoulders drooping. “You’re right,” He admits. “I…I want to manage. On my own. So. Can you teach me?”

He can practically hear the smile in Issho’s voice. “Of course,” He says. “Now…let’s start with walking.”

-

In theory, Usopp has been through harder times. The saga of events that led him here rank high up there, and all the pain and the fear and the waiting still keeps him up at night sometimes (all the time).

In practice…

Usopp has never felt less…able, than he is now. Everything is a struggle, down to the things he used to do daily with no issue: walking, checking the time, reading, drawing…all his basic skills seem to have vanished into thin air. Some, he’s never going to get back. Others, he has to learn to do all over again.

And so, for the first few months, this is exactly what he does.

Issho takes him, step through painful step, how to manage again. How to use a cane or staff to make his way around a space. How to manage getting stuck in the dark. How to occupy his time and learn to listen to his surroundings.

It’s also during this time that Usopp realizes that he hasn’t told a story in months. They whisper in his head, sometimes, but he pays them no attention: he swallows them up and keeps going, keeps living without them.

He doesn’t really know how to feel about that: on one hand, it still scares him. He still can’t quite come to terms with the fact that everything he’d been doing all those years wasn’t, in fact, a fun creative exercise. Instead, it had been his latent abilities trying to speak with him, and what did that say about him? About his creativity? His identity as liar? Was that all fake?

Did that mean that Vance, despite not getting the details correct, had been right all along?

On the other hand, though. His access to storytelling, although the inadvertent cause of his blindness, is the one piece of himself he still has left. It’s the only thing that’s stayed the same about him, that’s notably Usopp. It also, through the Haki that he uses to access it, represents the new way he can be useful now. What if…what if he ignores a story, and something bad happens? Something he could have changed?

And if he doesn’t have that anymore, if he refuses to listen to it anymore…then how can he find his usefulness again?

-

“You’re ready,” Issho says.

Usopp, about to get off of the chair, sits back down in shock. “What?”

“It’s been a few months,” Issho says. “And you’ve gotten your basic skills down. I think it’s time for you to go to the next level.”

Usopp grips at the dining table. Finally. “Yes!” He cheers. “I’m ready! I promise!”

He hears Issho give a soft, almost imperceptible chuckle. “Well,” He says. “You may have noticed that I have an…ability to sense things, more so than an every day individual.”

Usopp nods. “Yeah,” He says. “Um, actually. I think…I have an idea of how you’re doing it. Haki, right?”

There’s a beat of silence. Usopp can hear a quick, surprised breath.

“It seems,” Issho says. “That my reveal is superfluous. I’m assuming you’re already aware of what Haki is, and what it does?”

Usopp tries to ignore the guilty feeling bubbling up in his chest. “Yeah,” He says. “Someone gave us an explanation already. That is, um…you’re using Observation Haki, right?”

“I am indeed,” Issho says, a little stiffly.

“So,” Usopp says, months of curiosity finally bursting free. “How are you—I mean, as far as I’ve experienced, Observation Haki doesn’t give you as much detail as you’re getting. It’s like…I don’t know, sometimes it’s like you’re not even blind. Other times it’s like you can see things beyond what people with sight can. How do you do it constantly without it wearing you out?”

Issho gives a thoughtful hm before responding “Usopp, have you been able to access your Observation Haki? Have you tried using it to navigate as I do?”

Usopp fidgets uncomfortably. “Um,” He says. “Yeah. I mean,” He hastily adds. “not these last few months! I know it was important to learn how to not rely on it. But, yeah. Before that. It worked a couples times but I couldn’t maintain it. And it’s kinda difficult getting it without being under intense stress.”

“This makes things easier, actually,” Issho says, and Usopp almost physically slumps over in relief. “Right, so do you know the different types of Observation Haki?”

“There’s different types?” Usopp asks, surprised. Rayleigh hadn’t mentioned that.

“Not officially, I suppose,” Issho says. “But as a foremost expert on the topic, I can say that Observation Haki generally tends to work in two directions: physical and temporal. In essence, physical use allows you to access greater distance and through barriers, while temporal allows you access to some level of future sight.”

Usopp’s heart starts racing at future sight. “Is it possible to have both?”

“Of course,” Issho says. “But if you try using both at the same time, it makes it difficult to maintain concentration. So we can start with that. I’ll teach you how to use them separately at first, and we can build our way up from there. If I may ask: what have you been able to do?”

“Um,” Usopp says, trying to figure out exactly how to put it. “I guess…there’s been a couple times where I manage to like. Get a sense of a place and where everyone is but without seeing any details? Like silhouettes. And then there’s other times where, um…”

He trails off. He thinks he can trust Issho by now, but still. His experience with Vance hangs in the back of his mind, taunting him.

“Before you continue,” Issho cuts in. “The first thing you describe is what I do to get around: Observation Haki by distance. Since you’ve already accessed this space, we should be able to get you back in, no problem. This way, we can start building up your stamina to maintain it.”

Usopp shakes the image of Vance to ask. “Stamina? So I need to train my stamina in Haki?”

“Yes,” Issho says. “You see, the very root of Haki, the very thing that makes it work, is willpower. And you need to find the space in your head where your willpower is and live in that. Only after you do that can you keep your Observation Haki on, and you’ll be able to be a sniper again.”

Usopp shakes his head. “Have you ever heard of a blind sniper?” He asks a little desperately. “How can I…how can I get back to how I was?”

“Have you ever heard of a blind swordsman?” Issho counters. “No? Well, here I am regardless. And you can be that too, you know. You can be the first.”

He’s never been the first at anything before.

“Try it now,” Issho says. “Access that place, the one that you go to when you’re desperate. Observe the room. See it, through your Haki.”

Usopp takes a deep breath, crossing his arms tightly. He tries to concentrate, and then…

Something familiar clicks into place.

“Holy shit!” He yelps. “You are tall. Like, super tall! Oh my god, what the hell? How is your table short enough that I can reach it?”

Issho chuckles. Usopp can see his silhouette, and even that looks amused. “There,” He says. “This what I see all the time. I can help you stay that way, and I can make you do it better.”

Usopp nods, and new fiery resolve building in his chest. “Okay,” He says, gripping Hat, always on his head. “Okay. Let’s do this.”

-

“Issho! Usopp!”

Usopp’s head swivels towards the voice. “Huh? Wafer?”

Issho sighs, and Usopp hears the clink of mug hitting table. “What is it, Wafer? Is anything wrong?”

“Yeah!” And there’s a swish of paper. “This!”

There’s a short silence, then. “Is there, perhaps, something on that paper that you would like to tell us about?”

“Oh,” Wafer says, and there’s some rustling as he clearly picks it back up. “Um. Sorry. Anyway. It’s the newspaper, I picked it up the other day. Actually, I have two: an older one, and a newer one. Usopp, the older one has your captain in it.”

Usopp practically shoots up in place. “Luffy?” He asks, voice quivering. “Is he okay? What does the article say? Is there a picture? How does he look?”

“He’s fine,” Wafer says. “There’s…actually, I’ll describe it to you later. But, more importantly…”

The sound of another piece of paper hitting the table reverberates across the room.

Issho sighs. “Wafer,” He says. “The dramatic impact of this is significantly lessened when everyone else in the room is blind.”

“I know,” Wafer says, a grin apparent in his voice. “That was for me. Anyway. Usopp, guess what? You have a bounty now!”

Usopp freezes. He feels his heart start to pound, and his hand travels up the Hat, pressing down on the brim.

If there is one thing about Issho he’d learned during his months here, it’s this: He hates injustice. He hates it. If there is one thing he cannot forgive, it’s those who hurt others for their own purposes.

And Usopp finally getting a bounty... That shows that he has, in fact, caused harm to others, doesn’t it?

There is also the fact that. Well. He has killed someone. He has caused an irreparable harm like that. Luffy and Nami had both said that he didn’t have a choice, and maybe he didn’t. But that doesn’t change the fact that killed someone anyway, and on purpose.

And Issho knows nothing about it.

“Usopp?” And that’s Issho. Usopp slips into his Observation space, and notes that Issho is facing his direction.

Wafer clears his throat. “You know what they’re calling you?” He asks. “You’re Seer Usopp, isn’t that strange? The picture they have of you too…it looks recent, and it looks like you’re yelling through a Den-Den Mushi. You still have the hat on, too.”

Usopp sucks in a breath. You’re a Seer, Vance whispers in his head. You’re a Seer

“Oh,” He says. “Um. Okay, I guess I should…I guess I should explain.”

“Hey,” Wafer says, laughing nervously. “Don’t worry about it. I come from a family of pirates, you know. We’re not afraid of them over here. And…hey, we won’t turn you in for the money. Even though they didn’t mess around with the amount, huh?”

Usopp tries a smile, and he can feel by the way it pulls at his mouth that it doesn’t look very real. “No,” He says. “Um. I know that. Thank you. It’s just…The Seer. The title. There’s a reason for that.”

Issho is still facing his direction, still silent.

Usopp barrels on. “My Observation Haki,” He begins, palms sweating. “It’s…advanced. Scary advanced, temporally speaking. I’ve been using it without knowing all my life. I’ve been…predicting futures, all my life. Far futures. And I can’t control it.”

He can see Issho’s silhouette turn back down to the table. His Observation space flickers then fades: he can’t hold it any longer.

He sits there, back in the dark, breathing hard. He couldn’t…he can’t. He can’t reveal that he killed Vance yet. But this…maybe this. Maybe he can trust them with this.

Issho breaks the silence. “Interesting,” He says “I’ve never heard of anything like this. Extraordinary.”

“I’m sorry,” Usopp bursts out. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier. But…” He thinks of Vance’s face, of the last thing he ever saw: the cold stare, followed by the descent of knives. “This information…it got me hurt. It got others hurt. I felt like it would’ve been a better idea for everyone if I didn’t tell you about this.”

“That’s understandable,” Issho says, to Usopp’s shock. “I can see why you kept this silent. However…Usopp, the implications for this are far-reaching, and I would like to discuss it with you further. But for now…let us continue with your training.”

Usopp is quiet for moment, hand gently placed on Hat. Then, he places his hand back on the table.

“Thank you,” He says quietly, then. “Wafer. Can you tell me what Luffy’s picture looked like? On the newspaper?”

“Oh. Sure,” Wafer says, and Usopp gasps as he describes it further.

-

The guilt builds up and up and up in Usopp’s head.

He knows, he knows, that he might be putting himself at risk if he reveals that he’s killed someone.

But. Still. Issho had taken him in under the pretense of doing the right thing. Wouldn’t it be wrong to not let him know the person he’s actually helping? Wouldn’t this make his whole existence here a lie?

It turns out he is a liar, after all.

The thoughts scream at him daily, and it inevitably starts to show.

“It’s not fair,” Usopp says, clenching his fists. He has one hand on Hat, and the other clutching Kabuto. “You have a devil fruit and Haki, surely you can’t expect me to actually have a shot here.”

He can sense Issho sheath his sword, crossing his arms. “That’s who you’ll have to face when you leave,” He says shortly. “You can’t expect the fights to be fair. You don’t have the advantage of devil fruit powers, so you have to be ready to handle those too.”

Usopp blows a frustrated breath. “Maybe if I could still make my weapons, I could make something to counteract—”

“Who says you can’t?” Issho asks. His arms are still crossed. “Maybe it’ll take some time to figure out how to do so, but surely…”

“I just can’t,” Usopp finally snaps, everything pouring out of him at once. “I’m…I’m not capable of everything, you know. I’m just Usopp. At some point, there is a limit to what I can actually do.”

Issho finally uncrosses his arms. “What’s going on with you?” He asks. “You’ve been quite clear about needing to be stronger for your crew. This…this is not the person that made the request. What is on your mind?”

Usopp can practically feel the weight of his guilt on his shoulders, holding him down. There’s nothing he can do. He has to say something.

“I killed someone,” He admits, clenching his fist.

He deliberately leaves his Haki space, not wanting to even sense Issho’s reactions. “The man who I killed. He kidnapped me, then he blinded me. He came back, and he attacked my crew to try to get to me again, and I killed him.”

He’s back in the dark, and sits there. He’s terrified, yes, but at the same time…he’s ready. He’s ready to take the consequences for it. None of the crew would give it to him so maybe…maybe Issho finally would.

Issho doesn’t take long to respond, and Usopp flinches in surprise at his words. “Were you perhaps,” He says. “Under the impression that I am a pacifist? Because I assure you, I am not. I am a warrior, and I know what it means to need to fight. I know what it means to feel the need to take a life.”

Usopp shakes his head. “But—”

“Usopp,” Issho says. “This world is unjust. Painfully unjust. It makes good people do terrible things and then pay for it. It makes bad people continue to do bad things without consequence. The only thing we can do is whatever we can to alleviate that. Even if just by a little bit.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that—” Usopp begins, voice breaking.

“No, it doesn’t,” Issho interrupts. “You will have to live with it. As I do. And then do what you can. As I do.” He chuckles without humor. “You know. You were blinded by someone else, but me? I did it to myself. I couldn’t stand this world, and decided I would rather not see it.”

Usopp draws a quick breath. “You did what?” His thoughts race. “All of this, everything we both had to relearn…you did it to yourself? On purpose?”

Usopp can’t imagine that. He can’t imagine doing something so…he can’t even describe it. He doesn’t know if it’s monumentally stupid or monumentally honorable. Maybe it’s both. Maybe it’s neither.

“I can’t believe it. I can’t..” He shakes his head. The guilt still whispers in his ears, but there’s something else there too. And now, finally, he listens again.

“Did you know,” He pivots. “About the kingdom that will no longer exist?”

If Issho is surprised by the change in topic, it doesn’t show in his voice. “No,” He says. “I do not.”

“Well,” Usopp begins, caught in the current of the story, and he knows, he knows, what’s happening. “There is a kingdom, you see. A kingdom in paradise, but also too close to powerful beings for its own good. It’s citizens, living under tyranny, will try to make life better for themselves, but it won’t be enough. They will find freedom, but only temporarily: the kingdom will be gone forever in an instant soon after.”

He feels Hat start to tip off his head, and hurriedly reaches to grab it. He steadies it back, patting it in apology.

“That was it!”

Usopp flinches back. “What?”

“That was it, wasn’t it?” And Issho is much more animated now, in a way Usopp had never seen before. “This is what you were talking about. Your future sight? That is impressive indeed. And unlike anything I’ve ever encountered before.”

Usopp can’t help but feel a little embarrassed. “Um, sorry,” He stammers. “I didn’t mean to…I mean, sometimes this just happens, and—”

“That was…” Issho says, voice awed. “The furthest I’ve managed future sight is a few minutes. You’ve been doing it years in advance, and without even trying.” His tone turns thoughtful. “A kingdom, huh? I’ll keep that in mind, Usopp. And like I said before, I wish to speak with you further about this aspect of your Haki. It is…unusual.”

“Oh…” Usopp says, taken aback. “Um. Sure. Let’s…let’s do that.”

“And,” Issho’s voice takes a serious turn. “To go back to what we were saying earlier. Yes, I blinded myself. Yes, you killed someone. As did I. But those things are the past, and we both need to figure out how to proceed from here. It’s only after you get over this block you’ve put on yourself that you may find out what is happening with your Haki.”

Usopp realizes he’s still clutching Kabuto in a sweaty grasp. “What do you mean?” He asks, slowly lowering it to the ground. “What does that have to do with my Haki?”

Issho sighs audibly. “Remember,” He says. “All those months ago, when you first arrived here? And I told you that Haki functions from a place of will? Will is all mental, you know: it’s a manifestation of confidence and drive. If you’re held back emotionally, if you’re nervous and uncertain, then you will not be able to access it properly.”

“Okay,” Usopp says slowly. “So…what do I do? What do I have to do to get better at that?”

“Just answer a simple question,” Issho says. “And it’s this: what do you want?”

Usopp’s confusion grows. “What do you mean?”

“I mean,” Issho says, voice as serious as he’s ever heard it. “You need a goal. You need the will to achieve something greater, and you need to want it with everything you’ve got. That will, that place in you where you say I will do this? That’s Haki. That’s where you have to go to get your power.”

Usopp thinks what do I want?

A jumble of things emerge in his mind. The faces of his crew, of Kaya, flash through his brain in high definition. I want you to be okay.

His mother, I want to honor you

His father, I want you back.

Usopp’s hand slowly travels back to Hat’s brim. “There’s so much that I want,” He says. “How do I…how do I decide it? How do I know?”

“That hat,” Issho says, and Usopp grips it harder. “Is for the dreamers. It’s for those with the strongest will. And as the current holder, you will need to embody that too. It’s only then that you will succeed. So…that’s how you know. What is the hat protecting?”

What do I want?

Usopp thinks of all the times he’s entered his Haki space. Every time he’s found the thing that gets him in, that he wants strong enough that he’s being let in.

It’s…it’s all of it. It’s all of the above, tied under a single goal, a single dream, a single will. Safetyhonorreturn all under a similar banner, and the need he has to keep them all with his own two hands. There’s only one thing, one thing that will ensure that everything he wants will happen again.

“So, Usopp,” Issho says again, and there’s a note of finality to the words. “What do you want?”

Usopp takes a deep breath. The conviction in his chest boils over into his words “I want to be a brave warrior of the sea!”

-

One day, a little over a year in, everything changes.

Usopp had been working on his physical stamina. Issho has been giving him some pointers on how to physically stronger, to recover the muscles that he’d lost and then some. So, he hadn’t been laying much attention to his surroundings, as he’d been so focused on his exercise that he didn’t see it coming before it was too late.

He hadn’t been expecting anyone for a while, anyway. Issho has told him he was going to be in the town all day, assisting some building project or the other there.

He’d been finishing up a stretch, when something tugs at the back of his mind, right at his Observation space. Startles, he takes a quick, focused breath and dives in, trying to see what set off his instincts.

He expands beyond the room, to the exterior of Issho’s house, and…

And a figure is running up to the house, arms pumping, breathing hard.

Usopp jumps up instantly, trying to scramble back into the hiding spot under the floorboard Issho had shown him. Had someone in the town found out about his existence? He hadn’t gone there in months, and wore a disguise at that…

He quickly lowers himself into the shallow area, the reaches to put the floorboard back over him. It’s not much protecting against an advanced Haki user, but maybe enough to—

“Usopp!”

And that’s Wafer’s voice, and Usopp breathes a sigh of relief. “Wafe—”

He cuts off. Why does Wafer sound so…desperate?

The door slams open and he can hear Wafer rush in. “Usopp!” He pants. “Quickly. You have to leave. You have to leave now.”

“What?” Usopp asks, bewildered. He can sense Wafer dart from the room and run towards his. “Why? What happened? Go where?”

He makes his way towards his room, and enters to the thud of a bag being deposited on the ground. “What—”

“Pack your belongings,” Wafer says hurriedly. “I’ll help you. But you need to go.”

“Wha—” Usopp says again, then cuts himself off as a cold realization slithers its way into his mind. “Wafer. Where’s Issho?”

Wafer freezes mid-pack. “Usopp—”

Usopp’s breath hitches. “Where’s Issho?” He repeats, fear coloring his words.

Wafer slams the bag shut. “Issho,” He says. “Is gone. He’s going to be gone for a while.”

“What?” Usopp breathes out. “Why?”

“The World Government,” Wafer says, pushing the bag into Usopp’s hands. “Has instituted a draft. They’re taking in people for mandatory military service, and they can’t say a thing about it. And Issho…Issho has been…”

“They took him?” Usopp springs to his feet. “We have to get him out, right? What do we do?”

Wafer grasps Usopp’s forearm, dragging him to the door. “We can’t,” He says. “We’ll get caught easily. Also, Issho told me not to do anything. He says it’ll be best for everyone if he goes, for now.”

Usopp pulls back, trying to escape Wafer’s grasp. “You know,” He says. “Even if he said that, we still have to try and save him! Especially since…he wouldn’t want to join, you know that!”

Wafer grabs his arm again. “Of course I do!“ He says. “But, listen Usopp. Issho expressly told me his wishes, and I will make sure to follow them as closely as I can. And he told me to make sure you escape. And to let him go, for now.”

Usopp feels himself wilt at the for now. “Why leave?” He asks, as Wafer starts to drag him towards the door. “Can’t we wait for him to be ready and then save him?”

“This area will be crawling with the government soon,” Wafer says, pulling him out the door. “And we’ll all be kept under watch while Issho is in the Marines. And they cannot find you Usopp. They cannot.”

“What?” Usopp says again, stumbling as he’s dragged along. “Why would they—”

Wafer tugs him in the opposite direction of the main town. “You know Issho is strong,” He says. “And his Devil Fruit is nothing to sniff at. He’ll be given a high ranking position, and his hometown will be heavily guarded as a result. And you, Usopp…even if it’s temporary, you’re the wielder of the straw hat. This means you must do whatever you can to not get caught.”

He stops briefly, then presses a piece of paper into his hand. “This is as far as I can take you,” He says. “Issho says you’re ready enough to know how to follow the path to the shore. You’ll find a passenger ship there. Here’s a ticket. Just get on there and go. Don’t try to come back.”

“But—”

Wafer shoves his shoulders lightly. “Go, now,” He says. “Issho also told me to tell you that there’s a lot of moving pieces at stake right now. Behind the scenes is just chaos, and Issho is right in the middle of it. You know him. He made sure to tell me that you would meet again.”

Usopp’s chest tightens. “And you?” He asks.

“Of course, kid,” Wafer says. He pushes him forward again. “Now beat it. Go to your crew. Who knows, maybe I’ll see my own family again some day.”

Usopp furrows his brows, working to access his Haki. He’ll need to be able to tell his surroundings to make it there.

He squeezes the ticket in his hand. “I appreciate it,” He says. “More than you know. Thank you.”

“Kid,” Wafer says, with a hint of sadness in his tone. “We’ll see you again. Now, go.”

Usopp turns and goes.

-

Usopp wanders for a while.

There’s nothing more he can do, really. He has a Vivre card that he can’t read and nine months until he can go back to Sabaody, so that’s out. So, he’d gotten out at the first destination the passenger ship had gone to, and just…walked. And kept going and going and going.

He’d worked all those months for this. To be able to be capable again, to manage on his own, to finally be able to go back to his crew with his head held high.

This is the time for him to put everything into practice. He is truly alone now: no crew, no Issho, not even Vance. Now, he will know if he really is ready to keep going.

And so, he goes. He traverses through one island to the other, both with and without his Haki. He finds his way to ships, keeps on the move, figuring out how to travel on his own.

He even finds himself in a few fights, and, well. They’re nothing on Issho, really: for all his protestations, Issho’s lack of taking it easy had left its mark. Sometimes, it feels like his opponents aren’t even trying at all.

Most of the time, though, he’s just interacting with people. And people, at the heart of it, are fairly decent: they leave him alone, for the most part.

In return, he tells stories. He stops ignoring the whispers, and full embraces them. He tells people of things he can’t quite comprehend himself, and he finds that they mostly enjoy it. They even write them down for him, and he slowly amasses a list to take back to his crew. Who knows, maybe they’ll be useful some day.

He can’t read himself anymore. But he has a crew who can, and he’ll do what he can to get them ready for what’s coming.

At three months to go, Usopp gets an itchy feeling at the back of his skull. He stops where he is, right in the middle of a pathway in the middle of a town.

What is it? He asks himself. What wrong?

The feeling just grows, and he makes his way over to a bench on the side, slowly levering his way into it. He leans his cane against it, then lays a hand on Hat.

The prickling lessens suddenly, just as soon as Usopp gets situated. Hm, He thinks. I’m staying? Should I stay?

Nothing happens, but he hadn’t expected it to.

Something else pings on his Haki: a girl, approaching the bench with intent. “Hello,” She greets him politely. “Um, you look a little lost. Do you need any help?”

“What is this place?” Usopp asks her, and the thing in his brain whispers to him, trying to tell him something important…

“Lulusia.” The girl responds. “You’re in the kingdom of Lulusia.”

-

“It’s the day, Usopp,”

Usopp smiles. “Yeah?” He asks. “Thanks, Moda. I appreciate all your help.”

He’d known already. It’s hard to miss when you’ve been counting the days so closely. But it has been nice of her to let him know anyway.

“So you’re leaving?” Moda asks. Usopp senses her hovering uncertainly near him. “What about…”

He smiles at her. “Hey,” He says. “You remember what we talked about, right?”

She nods quickly. “Yes!”

“Okay,” Usopp says. “Then…everything should be fine. That’s an Usopp guarantee! Just be ready. I’ll keep an ear out for you, okay?”

“Okay,” Moda replies, almost tremulous. “We’ll miss you here, you know.”

“I’ll miss you guys too!” Usopp says, smile growing. “But it’s not forever, right? And you’ll be ready?”

Moda finally smiles back, so evident that he can hear it in her voice. “We’ll be ready.”

Usopp grips at the Vivre Card, the one he knows will lead him to Sabaody. “Me too,” He says, the faces of his crew clear in his mind, even in the dark. “I’ll be ready too.”

[emptystove]

The Long Con - Ch 14

One Piece Fanfic (Romance/Drama/Suspense)

Pairing: Nami x Law

Rating: EXPLICIT, 18+ ONLY

CW: Smutty Smut Smut, light bondage, light dom/sub

Chapter Summary: Nami spends more time with Sanji before finally meeting back up with Law.

Posted to AO3, FanFiction, and Wattpad under HortyCord.

Chapter 14 - Trust

Sanji was already sat leaning against the bars that separated their cells when Nami was returned.

She forced herself to settle in closer to him, leaning against the back wall but still safely out of his reach if he were to try anything. Now that her initial fear had mostly worn off, she allowed herself to really take in his state. His clothing was torn, and there were deep marks where his shackles met the skin on his wrists and ankles. He was a bit gaunt, probably from the lack of regular meals. And when he thought she was looking, he would pull his fingers into tight fists to keep them from shaking.

From the way he was stealing glances of her, Nami was surprised how long he held out before finally speaking.

"Where did they take you?" His brows were knit together over glassy eyes. He was so easy to read. He couldn't help but be an open book, worry etched into every line on his face.

"To the king," she answered. Selling her lies with half truths was a standard trick for Nami, but doing that in front of a Vinsmoke brought her too close to memories of how she was able to trick Ichiji, of what she went through to survive. She was so busy forcing those images out of her mind that she missed his next question.

"What?"

"I asked if you are alright. I mean, did he...," Sanji swallowed hard. His voice was a bit less strained than the last time they spoke, but he still struggled to keep it steady. "What did he do?"

Nami looked away. She remained silent and hugged her knees to her chest. She would let his imagination do the lying for her. Based on how they were torturing him, whatever his mind came up with would sell her story better than she could.

His reaction was surprising, although maybe it shouldn't have been. He was seething. He was more upset by Nami's pain than his own, and she wondered if he was actually as different from his brothers as he claimed to be.

His response reminded her of someone. Someone who was also much softer than his reputation.

She watched him adjust his torn sleeve to recover his tattoo as he looked away from her. She didn't even realize she was staring at it.

He was ashamed of the mark, what it meant, and how people judged him for it. That familiar pain hit her much harder, and she was speaking to him again without even thinking.

"How old were you when they did that?" She asked softly.

She knew he didn't want to talk about it, but she also knew he was still desperate for any type of interaction with her.

"Maybe five? I can't remember."

"I was eight."

Pale blue eyes locked onto her, a mix of confusion and concern.

She turned and lifted her left sleeve as best she could while handcuffed. Even if he didn't recognize who the symbol belonged to, he understood the implication she was making.

"You can tell by the warping of the design when someone got tattooed as a child," she continued softly. "It changes with your body as you grow. Yours was subtle, but I can still tell."

He was staring at her in awe, eyes darting from the slightly skewed swordfish on her arm to the far-off look in her eyes.

Nami was ready to brace herself, to gather her courage to continue, but she was surprised when she didn't feel the need to. Normally, she would be telling lies to seem more relatable to her target, but Sanji was different. He was easy to relate to, and although that made her somewhat uneasy, it also made her relieved to have gotten past her initial fear of him so quickly.

"My name is Nami," she mirrored his words from the first time they spoke. "I don't know what your family did to you, but I'm truly sorry."

"Nami," he rasped almost more to himself than to her. His hands gripped the bars between them as his gaze softened. "Nami," he mumbled again, as if saying her name out loud ensured the person in front of him and the kindness she gave in that moment was truly real.

"Sanji," she whispered, giving him the faintest hint of a smile. "Do they ever turn down these stupid lights?"

He returned the smile as much as his exhausted features would let him. "Sometimes. It's either pitch black or bright as the sun. Whichever they think we don't want. Just another way to try to break us."

She thought about his words. Her mind was starting to wonder what other types of psychological torture they subjected him to. His heart must be strong to last this long, endure so much, and still refuse to submit. If she wasn't careful, she might actually start to like him.

"Nami." She looked up, and he made sure she was listening before he continued. "They aren't going to break us. I promise."

"Good," she whispered back, suddenly feeling desperate to change the subject.

She didn't know exactly what Doflamingo wanted out of him, but he did say he wanted everything. So, Nami decided to go for what she was actually interested in at that moment. A distraction.

She asked him trivial questions about himself, and he was more than happy to answer. They talked for hours. She knew his favorite color, favorite food, and the different types of bait he liked to use while fishing. He knew her favorite music, the types of books she likes, and the best islands for shopping. It was all insignificant based on their situation, but it's what they both needed.

She had to stop herself from saying too much when he started describing an island that sounded a lot like Zou. He could tell she wanted to say something, though, so he watched her expectantly, patiently waiting for any piece of information about herself she was willing to give him.

"Is that where you would go to if you could leave?" She asked instead.

He frowned in thought. "I, uh, I don't know. It would be great to be almost anywhere outside of a dungeon, I guess," he chuckled half-heartedly.

"If you had your freedom - like really had freedom, without the fear of kings or fathers or of anyone knowing your name, what would you do?"

Sanji hummed and scratched the scruff on his chin. "Well, the first thing I would do is smoke a damn cigarette."

Nami giggled. Looking back toward him again, she wondered how much of his shaking hands had to do with nicotine withdrawal.

"After that, I guess I would be cooking. Feeding the hungry... I want to live in a world where borders and treaties and the rich and powerful can't dictate what food is available where and for whom."

She smiled genuinely at him for the first time. "Can you cook anything with mikans?"

"I can cook anything with anything. When we get out of here, I'll cook you anything you like." He was smiling ear to ear now. "What about you? What would you do?"

Nami really wasn't sure anymore. She thought of her sister's freedom. If that wasn't her goal, what would she do? Up until recently, her answer would have been obvious. She wanted to draw a map of the world. She would have answered that way too, if the words didn't die in her mouth before she could speak. She thought back to the last time she was truly happy, and it changed everything she thought she wanted. If someone had told her just months ago that her answer to that question would be on a submarine, she would have laughed in their face. Now though, she couldn't bring herself to dream of freedom without also dreaming about him.

What would freedom even be like with Law? A lot like her time on Zou, she imagined. Without meaning to, her mind flooded with the most stupidly ideal scenario she could think of. Shachi making coffee and tea in the mornings, Nami bonding with Bepo over charts and navigation, and Penguin suddenly becoming very busy every time Nami would bring up collecting his debt. She imagined what it would be like to introduce Law to Nojiko. She would give him such a hard time, even though Nami knew Nojiko would already have decided she approved of him. She imagined Law holding her again, shutting out all of her worries and fears, drifting off in his arms for the rest of her days.

"Nami?" Sanji asked with a touch of concern as he watched a stray tear slip down her cheek.

"Ah, sorry. These stupid lights must be straining my eyes more than I realized," she lied. "Traveling is my dream. I want to make a map of the world. I mean, that was my only dream, but I think now I have another."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I want you to cook for me."

She smirked as he blushed all the way to his ears, and she finally understood that he was telling the truth.

He really wasn't a Vinsmoke.

*****

It was still dark out when Nami made her way back to her room, only a few hours before the sun would peek over the horizon. She was barely in the door before Law pulled her the rest of the way inside, locking it promptly behind her.

"Where have you been?" he demanded, almost desperately.

"What the hell, Law?"

"Were you downstairs all night?"

"Well, it's nice to see you again, too."

Law let out a heavy sign, willing himself to calm down. He knew his pent-up, anxious, sleep-deprived brain wasn't helping him come across the way he intended.

He managed to keep the strain out of his voice, but he couldn't stop himself from demanding all the answers he was craving.

"You're doing another job for Doflamingo then?"

"Yeah, it's the whole reason I'm here." She said it like it was obvious.

"I know you've been meeting with him in his office."

Nami rolled her eyes. "And you think that means what exactly? You think I'm fucking him?"

"Just tell me what-"

"This is ridiculous. I've got questions for you, too, you know." She pushed an accusatory finger into his chest. "You couldn't tell me you wrote a formal report on what we did in Germa? Because it seems like I'm just about the only person here who hasn't read it."

"Nami-ya," he started, but her patience had already run out.

"He questioned me about it. About a lot of things, actually. And no, he didn't touch me, if that's the only thing you are worried about. I don't know what his end game is exactly, but I know a master manipulator when I see one. Speaking of which, exactly how cozy are you getting with Monet?"

"We aren't cozy," Law grimaced. This wasn't how he needed this conversation to go. "We aren't anything. Doflamingo is making her work with me, probably tasked her with keeping an eye on me. If it makes you feel any better, I threatened to kill her the last time she tried to come onto me." He took a step closer, raising his hand to cup her cheek. "I only care about-"

"Who is the Surgeon of Death?"

Law's hand stopped just short of her face. "Who told you about that?"

This was a problem. He suspected Doflamingo was trying to separate them, but it was clear now that wasn't the extent of it. If he was trying to poisoning her against him, Doflamingo knew they had a relationship. The question now was why. Doflamingo could be ruining Law's happiness for his own fun or because he was hurt by their attempt to keep it a secret. He hadn't ever been shy about ruining his family members relationships as he saw fit. Baby 5 knew that better than anyone. The other possibility was that he suspected Law's betrayal. That would be much for dangerous for both of them.

"How long have you known Doflamingo?" She asked, getting more visibly frustrated as he pointedly looked away. "Why should I answer any of your questions when you won't answer mine? Why should I-"

"Because you're fucking with my head!" He whisper-screamed, finally abandoning all attempts at composure. "Ever since I met you, everything is ten times harder. Do you realize that? I had one thing to do. One goal. And now every step I take toward it, I'm, I'm hesitating. I'm missing things. Things I never would normally miss. And the closer I get, the farther I am because all I can fucking think about is you."

"Law..."

She reached for him, but he was already pulling away. It wasn't her pity or empathy that he needed right now. "I made you a promise. I never doubted that I could keep it, but you make it really fucking difficult."

He was pacing, refusing to look at whatever expression she had after his outburst. He didn't need her to argue with him or yell back at him, even if he deserved it. He didn't need her to coddle him. He needed-

"I guess..." She hesitated for a moment, prompting his eyes to come back to her, surprised by her tone. She licked her bottom lip and swiftly replaced tongue with teeth. His eyes locked on her mouth as she released her lip, letting it slide slowly back into place. She looked up at him through heavy lashes. "I guess I've been bad."

Nami struggled to hold back her satisfied grin as she watched him freeze up. Law's expression was guarded, but he was melting fast.

He swallowed thickly and parted his lips, but he couldn't seem to bring himself to speak.

He knew what she was doing. She was giving him back the control she knew he needed, offering him the intimacy with her he craved. She knew him so well. She manipulated him effortlessly, and he fucking loved it.

The next thing he knew, she was whispering in his ear. When had she gotten so close to him? His hand ghosted up her spine, and the last of his resistance finally snapped as she begged him to teach her a lesson.

His fingers tangled in her hair, and he yanked her head back, forcing her to look up into his fiery gaze. He meant to ask her something reasonable, like if she was sure, or if she knew what she was really asking him to do. But when he saw the same burning desire looking back at him all he could manage was, "You drive me fucking insane."

His lips crashed into hers. The warmth that bloomed in his chest spread out like electricity in his veins.

He swallowed every moan and whimper she let out as he manhandled her across the room. She grasped at him feverishly, desperate for more contact, and she gasped when he pushed her off him and onto the bed.

She was panting, trying to catch her breath, eyes wide with excitement as she watched him slowly remove his belt. Instead of continuing to undress, he knelt on the bed beside her. She opened her mouth to speak but snapped it shut when he shot her a warning glare. He knew she liked him being in control as much as he did. She trusted him completely.

He removed her belt next, and she obediently lifted her hips to make it easier without him instructing her to. She was so perfect. If he wasn't already in love with her, he would have fallen for her then and there.

"Strip."

She obeyed.

He climbed on top of her, holding the leather tight in his hands. His lips ghosted over the shell of her ear, and he felt her shudder underneath him.

"Tell me the safe word," he commanded.

"Mikans," she breathed.

"Good girl."

*****

Each of her hands were tied to the headboard with a different belt. The bottom half of her body was held above her, strong hands gripping her hips as her legs curled over his shoulders. She was almost upside down as he effortlessly held her soaked core up against his face. If she wasn't careful, she was going to come undone again. How many times had it been already tonight? She was already fucked out of her mind, and she couldn't blame that on the blood rushing to her head from her current position.

"Please..." she whined between heated breaths.

"Please what?"

She almost thought she imagined his voice, because how could he speak when his tongue was buried so beautifully inside her?

"Ah, Law, p-please."

This time she knew it wasn't her imagination because he pulled away ever so slightly, and she could feel his hot breath teasing her slick folds as he spoke.

"I'll give you anything you want, Love. You just have to say it."

She had to muster every bit of strength she had left to not unravel just from his words.

"Need you, ah, please Law, need you inside, please. Need to cum. Please. Please. -Ah!" She hardly knew what she was saying. Her brain somehow able to form the words she wanted to say and what she knew he wanted to hear.

He dropped her with one swift movement, and he was already climbing on top of her when her body bounced up from the force of her fall against the mattress. She started to wonder how he had managed to last so long pleasing her without losing himself. The ways he touched her, how he moaned into her cunt as he pulled orgasm after orgasm from her.

She gasped and fluttered her eyelids shut as he finally entered her. One agonizingly slow push until he was completely inside her. As much as he had already loosened her up, she was still tight around him.

"So fucking perfect for me," he rasped, and he groaned when his words made her clench harder around him.

Her hands gripped the leather on the belts as he started to move. She wanted to touch him desperately, wanted to feel him with every inch of skin she could. She wrapped her legs around him, her hips moving to meet his as he increased his pace. The only sounds in the room were the slapping of skin on skin, the creaking of leather under her hands, and his soft, low panting next to her ear.

He buried his face in the crook of her neck, nipping and sucking marks into her skin before licking his soft, warm tongue across them.

"Cum for me," he growled against her skin, and she obeyed. Her vision blurring, her whole body tensing and arching as the man above her reached his own peak.

She heard herself whimper as he pulled himself out, cold air almost unpleasant against her noticeably empty hole.

Her eyes were still closed when she felt him unbind her hands. She wrapped them around his neck to pull him close, but he was already moving to hold her again. His skin was so warm under her fingertips, just feeling him as he cradled her, so soft and gentle, had her let out a satisfied sigh.

"I-, mm," he cut off his own words with a tender kiss, "-so much."

"I know," she breathed easily, relaxing further into his touch. "I needed that, too."

He rested his head on her chest, holding tight to her waist as their legs intertwined. She twirled her fingers through his hair, getting closer and closer to sleep until she heard him speak, just barely above a whisper.

"I was 10 years old when I met Doflamingo."

Her hand stilled for half a second before she continued her movements, silently encouraging him to continue. He paused so long, she thought that might be all she was going to get. Though when he started to speak again, it was like he couldn't stop himself.

"The place where I'm from, where I was raised, it's gone now. The people who lived there were slaughtered. Government claimed we were too high of a risk, that we would spread disease to other nations. We were sick, and it was deadly, but it wasn't contagious. Polluted soil from companies that lined the pockets of those in power. It was more lucrative to silence their victims than to stop the suffering they caused. They didn't hold back once the decision was made. Everyone was dead by morning. My neighbors, my classmates, my parents, even my little sister... I shouldn't have survived. I'm not sure why I tried so hard to live, knowing that I was going to die soon anyway. When I met Doflamingo, I had nothing left but hate. I thought he could help me get some sort of revenge on the world that took everything from me. That's when I joined the family."

Nami silently took in his words, her heart breaking for the man in her arms.

"After a while, someone helped me. Took me away to find a cure. After he was gone, I didn't want to go back to Doflamingo. I lost my family a second time, but something was different about me then." He let out a heavy sigh. "I met Bepo not long after, Shachi and Penguin shortly after that."

She peppered soft kisses along his forehead. She wanted to know more, but she knew she was lucky to get that much. A small pang of guilt filled her chest as she thought about the sister he lost, wondering if her improvised cover pretending to be his sister in Germa had hurt him. She held him close, continuing to graze her fingers across his hair and skin until his breathing became slow and steady. There was still a lot she didn't know about him, but it seemed like his secrets were a lot more like hers than she realized.

It was all going to be ok, though.

She was back in his arms, and she still had faith in him. He would tell her everything else when he could.

They still had time.

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[abysmal-black]

I need to be faster. 

His brain's been trained to pick at the fault, ignore the fact his brother was built for speed; Niji's boon is Sanji's deficiency. Dark eyes dart around following the blue after image of his twin, body already braced and mind thinking of a counter. Back crumples in around his brother's assault, body sent careening through a cross section of trees in a blink.

Surely their skirmish has been seen from Germa and Ichiji's forehead vein was in full bloom. If Niji has his way nothing on this island would be salvageable let alone left alive.

Sanji pushes a collection of old trees off with a low grunt, fingers trembling slightly from the jolt. Their suits were rubber insulated, not as much as Niji's but a direct lightning  strike was still hell for delicate craftsmanship. Climbing to his feet the third prince second guesses using his invisibility, the price of pride versus results. Niji wasn't going to let him enter grappling range let alone close enough range to kick him in the head.

Sanji inhales deeply and groans under his breath; it wasn't like Niji will let him live anything down regardless and it wasn't a fair fight as is. Cloaking ripples over his form in a shimmer of reflecting light  before he's on the move again, sound canceling obscuring his debris-aided approach.

Careful to keep his distance, Sanji darts around through his twins peripheral, buying his time before pushing off the ground to land a solid downward kick between his neck and shoulder. Using forward momentum he rolls through the kick and to Niji's front, other leg curling beneath him to sweep across the other's chin, knee first.

It was a good thing the raid suits were designed to nullify fire damage as the dull roar of heat kicked up by Sanji did little more the warm up his insatiable bloodlust further. The building they'd been in grew further away as the pair is cast out into the surrounding wilderness of the surrendered town. It was better this way as the environmental change did provide Niji with some possible options.

Sanji had been among the greatest in terms of close combat but Niji was no slouch in that department. They shared a similar kick based style even though Niji preferred to wield his conductive rapier more often than not. He had no plans of using it yet as there was one thing he wanted to try first and sticking close to Sanji at all times was not what he wanted to do throughout their fight.

"Well, isn't this a pleasant change of scenery? We can burn this entire wilderness down and leave any survivors with fewer resources to scrape together!" Menacing tone was still thinking about upping the number of casualties post-war like a new record in a game. It was always a matter of pride beyond business that Niji has a high body count in any mercenary work he was involved in.

Boots began whirring with power as they aided his legs in the initial separation and subsequent bounding against broad bark to get back at his twin. Bolts warped and burnt wood as he sped up and moved in an unpredictable pattern until he saw an opening he can capitalize on and shoot straight towards Sanji again.

"Isn't this fun Sanji?!"

[strawbewwysamurai]

It is 6am and I haven't slept properly for days and I've decided nothing is real except for my chronic knee pain and need for yogurt

[nekomacheercaptain]

You can’t help but admire your oblivious and handsome boyfriend as he’s humming and talking about you to himself while making food for everyone late one night. So, not being a person to initiate physical affection, Sanji reacts when you suddenly hug him from behind for the first time <3

Word count: 0,8K

Rating: SFW, fluff

Pairing: Sanji x gn! reader

Requested by @kazenomegaminowanpisu

Content: gender neutral reader, romance, established relationship, first time reader has initiated physical affection, nosebleed

Lively and eventful nights were promised on the Sunny, either with a celebration of surviving yet another exciting and dangerous day, or create some life when you had been on the sea too long without much adventure. However, there was always something missing amongst your joyful crewmates on those nights. And that something spent most of his time alone in the kitchen, telling you to go have fun with everyone with a promise of making you the most delicious desserts no one else had the privilege of eating.

Thinking about how the kitchen used to be a place you would avoid like your life depended on it when you got on the ship, you smiled to yourself as you walked down the hallway, inhaling that delicious smell of your boyfriend’s amazing dishes. To think there was a time without him sent shivers down your spine, unable to imagine his absence in your life ever again. Slowly opening the door to his beloved kitchen, his back was turned to you as he was frying something in a pan and cooking something else in a cauldron, too busy to notice his lover’s presence. Low humming followed by murmured praises of worship about you met your ears while the cook stirred the food, making your lips curl into a small embarrassed smile, heat pooling your cheeks.

Taking silent strides towards him, you held your arms open before hugging around him from behind, your face pressed against his back taking in his scent while he gasped, causing the sound of metal clanking to bounce off the walls along with a loud gasp from the cook. Food may have gone astray from your action and his panic, but when he realized what was suddenly so warm and pressed against his back and held a firm grasp around his stomach, he froze. It was you, his love, the star lighting up his night sky, the sun bringing warmth to his life.

But you were so quiet, and hugging him, a small tinge of concern washed over him at your uncharacteristic action, mixed with a little selfishness; he didn’t want you to let go. Sanji had dreamt of the day you came to him with open arms, switching your roles, but he had accepted that initiating affection was something you just didn’t like. Poor cook couldn’t help but worry that something bad had happened, thus not placing his hands over your smaller ones pressing into his skin.

“Y/n, my love, do you need to talk?”

Only a muffled response was elicited from you as he felt your breath through his shirt, causing goosebumps to rise all over his skin, a shudder shooting down his spine.

“I can’t hear you, darling,” he softened his voice, wishing to not scare you away in this vulnerable moment. Why else would you have come to him like this?

But he was stunned when he heard that sweet giggle that echoed in his mind at each possible moment of the day, feeling the vibrations of your chest and voice against his back, cursing at himself when his knees almost trembled. He felt the shift of your head, feeling your soft cheek press against him, knowing you had freed your mouth to speak.

“I just wanted to see you” and by everything he believed and didn’t believe in, you must have wanted to kill him.

“Wha- what?” an audible croak in his voice met you, and you hugged him harder, hearing his heartbeat grow louder and faster.

“I missed you out there, you’re always here in the kitchen alone,” you answered, your thumbs stroking over his shirt in small circles, forcing the cook to brace himself against the counter, nosebleed threatening to soon fall in the food.

“You - y/n-swan - my love - hugging me first - so warm - m’so lucky!” his words were incoherent, making you laugh against him as you felt him tremble under your touch and confession. With a swift move of your head, you kissed his back, making it arch at the affection with a loud gasp, and nosebleed shot out of his nose.

“Oh y/n! I love I love you I love you, pleaseneverstophugging me! Youcanhugandkissmeall youwant,mylove!”

Staying in the kitchen the rest of the night was a good decision, since Sanji had to throw away the food to make more without blood in it. But it was all worth it, the cook now addicted to feel your hands hug his waist while adoring how warm you were against his back.

I love Sanji’s nosebleed (except under the fishman island arc), so I’m keeping that. Anyway thanks for the request, and hope you enjoyed it!

Tags: @benkeibear @hooliescorner @unsuretater-simp @wurm-food

If you want to join my taglist, you can find it here! <3

[lawscorazon]

Hello 👉👈 I'm back because I have a mix of soft horny angst about Sanji today. I just think he deserves much love.

I thought about the angst of having a crush on Sanji but watching him fawn over every woman he sees. Then it got me all sad about jealousy and shit and then I was like WHAT ABOUT FUCKING HIM SO GOOD HE FORGETS EVERY OTHER PERSON THAT EXISTS <3 And now I'm just like. I'd like to sucl his soul out through his dick and kiss him on the forehead as he melts.

i was out and about when i read this initially but oml your mind is so big. it’s the only way fr. sanji can flirt with other girls but needs to know who he really belongs to.

dubcon and nsfw below…

you didn’t mean to ambush him in the kitchen. his safe space. but it was the only place you knew you could be alone with him, having him all to yourself.

you never pegged yourself as the jealous type, but seeing sanji flirt with the other women in the ship made your chest stir with this queasy feelings and you hated it. you hated him for making you feel this way. why couldn’t he see that you were the one for him?

you figured he needed a little persuasion in the matter. which is exactly why you were currently on your knees between sanji’s toned legs shoving his cock down your throat as far as possible, gag reflex be damned. he felt heavy and hot against your tongue, twitching against your soft palette as you choked against his length.

“y-y/n please,” he panted as he braced himself, back against the counter, “what are you doing?? not here. what if someone sees??”

he looked so cute right now all flustered. his mouth was saying one thing, but his cock was saying another. you hoped that someone would come in. maybe nami? maybe robin? show them what a needy mess you were making him and how only you could make him this way.

you hollowed your cheeks against his swollen member and began eagerly bobbing your head around him, swirling your tongue around his leaking tip on your way up.

sanji let out the prettiest moan you ever heard, quickly raising a hand to his mouth to quiet the precious sounds, eyes nervously darting the door.

you felt almost offended? how dare he??? who else could he be thinking about with your mouth sucking his cock?? you increased your pace, jerking him off harder with your wet heat, lewd sounds echoing against the walls of the room.

sanji had to bite down on his hand to keep from screaming as his orgasm hit him with full force, sending ropes of hot, sticky cum down your throat. his pale thighs trembled beneath your hands.

as he panted and whimpered though the aftershocks of pleasure, you stood stood up to plant sweet kisses along this exposed neck sending shivers through the poor cooks body. breathing ghosting over his ears you whispered…

“when you look at the other girls, remember who makes you feel like this. your body is mine, sanji. only mine.”

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[n4kama]

Sanji opened and closed his mouth in response to Zoro, the moment he tore his gaze away from Harry, he locked his eyes with Zoro to try and find any sign of the moss-head making fun of him, teasing him before throwing him into the water around them.

But, the chef was caught off guard when he saw the look in the swordsmans eyes, he looked like a predator hunting his pray, a cat after its meal; and while it was daunting and slightly terrifying, it was also very hot and made Sanji go slightly weak at the knees.

He was extremely lucky that he had the wall to brace himself, especially at the whisper in his ear, he had never expected Zoro to be able to get him as weak as this from just a few words.

Harry chuckled lightly at the show he was being given, his eyes drifting across the both of them as he took in the sight of Sanji being crowded against the wall by Zoro, while Harry and Zoro had made small jokes about adding a third and throwing Sanji's name into the mix to make one another possessive, he had never imagined it actually having a possibility of happening. "I think he needs to be taken down a peg, baby... I'm guessing he's the reason you're currently dripping wet?"

He wasn’t a stranger to sharp things appearing beside his head, not with how many times he pissed Zeff off when he was growing up. However, he was a stranger to being backed up so close to a wall, especially by Zoro of all people.

Usually he was the one that was opposite the wall, but in the very few times that that did happen, Sanji usually ended up with sore knees.

Biting his tongue until he tasted blood to keep from releasing any kinds of noises, Sanji's eyes flickered from the dark gaze of Zoro's to meet the kohl lined eyes of the boy he'd insulted in his panic and he swallowed thickly.

"I don't know Mo ghràdh, if we used that as the first part of the punishment, we'd get to see him all wet" Harry pointed out in amusement as he leaned against the door of the pantry. A few of them had heard Sanji's shouting, but Harry had managed to keep Luffy and Gil back from kicking their chef by pointing out that Zoro would have it under control.

[sylvanfreckles]

Day 01: This Wasn't Supposed to Happen

Fandom: One Piece Rating: G Warnings: none

Summary: In which Roronoa Zoro has a surprisingly normal weakness, and Tony Tony Chopper vows to never give him medicine ever again.

This feeling was familiar. The dark rush of pain, the heat spreading out from the wounds in his side and leg. The hot, heavy silence pulling his mind back under.

“…ear me? Zoro?”

Roronoa Zoro reluctantly pried his eye open and found himself staring past a familiar blue nose into Chopper’s worried eyes. “’M fine.”

The little doctor let out a relieved sigh, then set his features into a sterner expression. “You are not! Your wounds are infected, we need to get you back to the ship.”

He waved to push Chopper out of the way and shoved himself up to a sitting position, pausing as the dark pulse from his wounds made his head spin. “Where’s Luffy?” he asked, scratching the back of his neck. It was raining now, the dampness of his clothes adding to that strange hot/cold flush that came with an infection. Nothing he couldn’t push past, though. Not when his crew was in danger.

“Sanji and Brook went after him, but you should worry about yourself now!” A distant explosion cast the little reindeer’s face in a reddish glow. “Don’t move!”

“I’m fine,” Zoro repeated. He spat out a mouthful of blood and wiped his mouth with the back of one hand. “Really.” He tried to meet Chopper’s stare, but an itch on his forearm distracted him momentarily.

Chopper planted his medicine bag in front of Zoro and began to rummage around in it. “I already gave you a broad-spectrum antibiotic to combat the infection, but I’m not sure how quick it’ll work.”

Zoro grunted and slid around to get one knee under him. He stopped to scratch his ankle, then made a face and tugged his robe open to scratch at his chest.

“Zoro! What are you doing!” Chopper’s hooves were batting at him now, tugging at his arm. “Oh no, this wasn’t supposed to happen!”

“Eh?” Zoro stared down at his arm as Chopper fussed over it. Huh. That wasn’t normal.

He was covered in spots. Big, red, bumpy spots that brought on a horrible, burning itch. Now that he saw it, he could feel them spreading out over his chest, his legs, his face. “It’s no problem.”

“It is! You’re allergic to that medicine!”

“I can ignore it.” He started to stand again, but Chopper shoved him back down. It was only because he was awkwardly braced on one arm in the mud that he sat back down, not because anything was making him weaker than the little doctor.

“It might get worse, just hold on, I have something to treat this.”

Zoro propped an elbow on his knee to lean his chin into his fist as Chopper dug through the bag. The itching really wasn’t that bad, though when he scratched at one of the spots it left a burning pain behind instead of relieving the itch.

“Here we go!” Chopper produced a small vial of yellowish liquid. “This should do it.”

The swordsman took the vial, popped the cork off, and downed the liquid with a quick swallow. Within moments, the itch faded, though his skin still prickled and burned a bit where the raised bumps had been. Zoro closed his eye as the sensations shifted, then opened it again.

“That did it. Thanks, Chopper.” He shoved up to his feet, though he had to pause to steady himself a little. “I’ll rejoin the others.”

“Zoro?”

“I’m fine.”

“You can’t see, can you?”

He paused. While it was true that the world was darker than usual, he was almost certain it wouldn’t be permanent. And besides, it wasn’t like he hadn’t fought at greater disadvantage before. “Don’t need to see.”

“Zoro!” Chopper pounded on his leg as Zoro walked away from him, toward the direction of the explosion from earlier. “Zoro!”

He ignored him, lengthening his stride so Chopper had to trot to keep up.

Chopper was in front of him now, hooves pressing against his legs to push him back. When that didn’t work, he shifted forms and there were hands on Zoro’s shoulders to hold him in place.

“You’re going the wrong way!” Chopper nearly screamed in Zoro’s ear. “That’s the edge of the cliff!”

Zoro paused. If it had been anyone but Chopper, he might have suspected they were trying to trick him into staying put…but the little doctor was far too earnest to think of that. He must have just gotten turned around standing up.

“It’s this way, then?” he asked as he turned around, though Chopper still grabbed his shoulders and didn’t let him walk away without a fight.

“Just…ugh, just hold on. Here, take this.”

Chopper pressed a smooth ball of medicine into his hand. Zoro held it up in front of his unseeing eye, catching the scent of mint and a sharp, unfamiliar herb. “What is it?”

“It’s for inflammation, the drug I gave you to counteract your allergic reaction to the antibiotic must have caused some swelling on your optic nerve.”

“I see.”

Chopper sighed. “No, you don’t, and that’s the problem. Just take it.”

Zoro shrugged and tossed the ball in his mouth, crunching through the hard shell. The herbs were bitter and made his mouth feel dry, though the mint seemed to help a little. Within a few moments, the shadows in his vision were shifting and lightening, and his vision came back just in time for another explosion to brighten up the night sky.

It was off to his left now, so Luffy must have moved the battle.

“Can you see?” Chopper asked, studying Zoro’s face.

For a moment he was completely fascinated by the reindeer’s blue nose. It was shifting a little, like he was looking at it from under water. Maybe the rain was doing it.

“’M fine,” he slurred. His voice didn’t sound right. He cleared his throat and tried again. “I’m fiiiine.”

“Zoro?”

His right knee buckled, and the world swirled around him. The ground seemed to twist up to meet him as Chopper’s arms warped into fuzzy tentacles that snatched at him as he fell. He could feel that the ground was solid, but to his eye it was shifting and heaving like a desert mirage. “Chop’r?”

“Oh no, oh no,” Chopper was back in his usual form, little hooves prodding at Zoro’s face. “It must be because of your alcohol tolerance.”

The world seemed to twist a slow loop around him, and he slammed his eye shut. It didn’t help. The shifting sensation was inside him, not outside.

“It’s too hard to explain, this should help.”

Chopper was pressing another vial into his hands, but Zoro hesitated. “What izzit?”

“The last medicine is effecting your blood pressure; this should help level it out.”

Zoro grunted. Blood pressure. That was one of those doctor things, right? He knew Chopper kept records to track stuff like that, so it made sense he’d have medicine on hand. He drank down the vial of medicine, which had a strong taste of garlic, and rested his forehead in his palm while the world around him slowly spun to a halt.

“Is it working?” Chopper asked, almost timidly.

He cracked his eye open, relieved when the world stayed in one place. “That’s better,” he said, resting his hand on Chopper’s head. “Thanks a lot.”

Normally, he would expect Chopper to blush and stammer that he didn’t need thanks, bastard, but he just looked up at Zoro with big, sad eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“I tried to give you medicine to make you better, but I just made things worse.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Zoro rolled his shoulders and grinned down at Chopper. “Besides, my wounds feel a lot better now.”

It was probably only because the pain was being drowned out by the other side effects, but that was fine. It was all just background noise he could tune out for the battle ahead.

“I’m gonna find the others,” he continued as he pushed himself up to his feet. “We’ll meet back at…”

The world went white and he fell backward, a high-pitched noise ringing in his ears. He was barely aware of hitting the ground as all sensation seemed to fade into that rushing, screaming tone.

“Zoro!” Chopper’s hooves were on his face again, and he blinked as the doctor slowly came back into focus. Tears dripped off the blue nose. “I’m never giving you medicine ever again.”

“I’m fine,” Zoro grunted. He started to roll over but thought better of it when the high-pitched whine threatened to return. “What happened?”

“Your blood pressure must be too low now,” Chopper sobbed. “I’m sorry, I don’t know why everything is just making things worse.”

Chopper had brought his bag over to Zoro’s side and dug out a small bottle of pills. He produced a pill and snapped it in half. “I’m just giving you a little of this to get your pressure up a little bit, then we need to get back to the ship so I can fix everything. I’m so sorry.”

He accepted the pill without a word, swallowing it down dry. They waited for a few moments, but there didn’t seem to be any new side effects. Chopper let out a sigh of relief and started packing his bag up.

Zoro rubbed a hand over his eyes and let out a long sigh. Then paused, staring at his arm as a third explosion rocked the island.

“Hey, Chopper?”

“Yes?”

“Never mind.”

He’d know soon enough anyway. No reason to worry the doctor prematurely. Besides, he was almost certain it was normal for those itchy spots to start turning yellow.

[mugiwara-rosewolf]

what do you think an average day in the strawhat kitchen would be like?

Yay!! My first ask! Thank you so much, Anon! I decided to write about the morning part of the day, if that’s okay. I’m setting this scenario after Water 7 and before Thriller Bark because I forgot about Brook & Jinbe. I hope you enjoy!

Italics = dialogue (including rudimentary French)

Bold Italics = Japanese (spelled out, idk kanji)

Gif by 1997onepiece

An Average Day

The day begins early. There’s a thread of light leaking under the door even before dawn. Peeking in, a familiar lanky-noodle of a man can be seen in rumpled clothes, still wiping the sleep from his eyes. The soft clatter of dishes can be heard as his hands shuffle about on autopilot. One fist lifting a pan from a cabinet. Another fidgeting with the silk knot of his tie. A wisp of smoke trails from the corner of his lip and out the porthole window.

Every color of dawn passes through the windows. Dusky grey as the seas and shadows of night give way to light. He readjusts the buttons on his shirt that he missed. Faded indigo grows bright as flares of sunlight scatter across the wide open sky. He settles the loop of his tie under his collared shirt. The knot sits right beneath his throat. By then, the world out the window is nothing but blue.

Freshly pressed and clean as a chef can be, ‘Black Leg’ Sanji sets to work. The sizzling of ingredients over an open flame is enough to draw a few groaning bed-heads and rumbling stomachs into the room. Most are aware enough to mumble a greeting, which the chef appreciates. A small smile tugs at the edge of his cigarette as he registers each voice.

“Good morning, Chef-san,” a sweet voice croons into the room.

The click of recognition in Sanji’s brain is enough to send his heart a-flutter. “Robin-chwan!” Steam erupts from his ears like grease in a hot pan. “What a wonder it is to see you this lovely morning!” he crows. Spinning around on a perfectly-polished heel, he serves his beloved crewmate on the pristine porcelain plate she so admired back in Water 7. “A breakfast sandwich for our lovely nightingale. Bon appetit, mon amie.”

Robin hides a darling chuckle behind a delicate hand. Sanji can feel his knees wanting to crumble under the rush of hearing her laughter. Sparkling joy rushes down his spine. But he quickly shakes himself. There are more meals to be made, after all. And many more crewmates to feed.

Just as the willowy blonde cook turns back to the stove, he hears the crisp clop-clop of hooves on the hardwood floor. “Bon-bonjou--” A bright, squeaky little yawn follows the groaning of the kitchen door. “Bon morning, Sanji~”

The older cook chuckles to himself. “Très bonjour, Chopper,” He says, passing him a little wrapped package from the pantry. “This chocolate has some nuts in it, that okay?” The little reindeer gives a sleepy nod before wandering to sit next to the elegant Robin. Sanji smiles a little, gnawing on his cigarette.

All-too-soon, that chain-smoking cook hears the all-too familiar stomps of boots. The tinkling of scabbards like wind chimes rambles closer and closer until a bulky black shadow stands in the doorway. Sanji grits his teeth, nearly sawing his smoke in half. “Marimo.”

“Curly brow.”

“Go sit down.” The chef ground out. “Your food’s almost ready.”

“I think I’ll just stand here, actually.”

Sanji whirls around towards the swordsman. “You trying to piss me off, moss-hea—“

“Morning, Sanji-kun!”

Suddenly it was as if the clouds parted and the heavens opened up before him. But even the clouds of Skypiea could have hosted such a gorgeous angel. Sanji’s spinning feet nearly collapse underneath him. He pushes himself off the counter, eager to greet the darling of the Strawhat crew.

“Ah, Nami-swan!” He smiles, his heart singing at the sight of her. “What a blinding vision you are, a gift from the sea goddess herself!” He takes her hand in his, as if inviting her to dance. Her fiery sunset hair flares in the early morning light. Her warmth amber eyes dance with flattered mirth. The softness of her hand against his calloused palm has Sanji’s pulse fluttering in his ears. He leads her gracefully to the table, where she’s seated with fresh squeezed orange juice and a bowl of equally-Colorful fruit salad. “Profiter, belle mademoiselle.”

“Merci beaucoup, Sanji-kun!”

If it weren’t for the brooding Marimo glaring a variety of blades into his back, Sanji may have just fainted on the spot. However, determined to maintain his composure, he simply lifted a bento from the table and showed it to the man over his shoulder. “I told you to sit down, Moss-head. You forget where your spot was?”

Zoro grunted. Marching up to the table he swiped the bento from Sanji’s grip and dropped himself down on the dining room bench. The chef huffed. Ungrateful brute. And a messy one at that. Within a moment of sitting down, he has rice grains stuck to his cheeks and chin. Sanji rolled his eyes and returned to work. At least Zoro was enjoying the meal. That was all a good cook could ask for.

“urgh-guh-morning...” the rambling natter of a long-nosed sniper sounds almost gravely at such an early hour. Sanji can hear the soft scritch-scratch of the young man ruffling his mop of unruly curls.

“Mornin’ Long-nose,” he greets the younger man. He thinks he might hear a grumble of protest from the rumpled boy. Sanji chuffs to himself. Wordlessly, he passes Ussop a seafood omelette and a bottle of tabasco on his shuffle to the table. After a moment of hushed tapping, ceramic and silverware and murmurs of morning voices—Sanji blinks. He turns to the sniper once more. “Where’s Franky?”

“Bulled in all-Nighteye in da-shop again,” Ussop slurs. “He’s passed out. Da-sided to let’em sleep this time.”

The chef absorbs this information with a thoughtful nod. He knows there’s another bento box in the cabinet somewhere. He just needs to find one to fit Franky’s appetite. The shop is his anchoring place. Sanji will take the shipwright’s meal down there before washing up. Everybody gets messy in that place.

Speaking of appetite—“SANJI~!!”

Everybody looked up. The cook turned and braced for impact. Sure enough—THWAP! The rubbery captain smacked into him with all the force of a Marine cannonball. Sanji heaved, but managed to stand his ground. All the while, Luffy was chanting.

“Oi, Sanji! I smell food, you got food? I smell meat, do you have meat? I love meat, ‘specially meat on the bone. You got any of that, Sanji?!”

“You bet your ass I do,” Sanji retorted. Pulling open the SUPER deluxe oven Franky made last week, the chef reveals his culinary masterpiece. Three dinosaur-sized legs of meat, with a cleaned bone on one side, just like his captain liked it.

He’d had to let them marinade overnight just to make sure he didn’t make the rubber-twerp sick with undercooked meat. He wasn’t sure the impulsive freak could get sick. But he didn’t want to be the one to test that theory. Franky had to assure him many times over that the oven wouldn’t catch fire if left in attended. Just looking at the finished product, Sanji could feel his tired bones sag with relief.

Luffy had all three ‘meat sticks’ in hand in the blink of an eye. Sanji turned and growled at him. “Go sit and eat at the table, you rubber animal!”

“Course I will, Sanji. I’ll always eat what you cook!” Luffy replies with a beaming grin.

“That’s not what I—”

“Hey Ussop! I got more meat than you!”

“Of course you did, Luffy, you’re a freak of nature.”

“I think you mean force of nature—“ Nami-san commented dryly.

And so their chatter continued. Every voice overlapping and rising in a joyful noise unlike Sanji had ever heard before. Even when he sailed on the Orbit, or with the fighting cooks on the Baratie. The next time he blinked, that thrice-blasted swordsman was in front of him again. Empty bento in hand, mossy green hair mussed in all directions—the stoic fool eyed him with a level stare. Sanji was just about to bark an insult at him when...Zoro’s sash brushed past his arm. He walked just close enough so Sanji could hear:

“Itadaki—merci, Ero-cook. You did good.”

Where little embers of embarrassment were glowing on the swordsman’s ears, Sanji’s face caught fire. He stomped out his cigarette. Then quickly lit another. One deep breath. A plume of smoke follows his exhale like a sleeping dragon.

“De-rien—Dou itashimashite. Anytime, Baka.”

[vannahfanfics]

Could I request a Nami and Bepo friendship fic with the theme "Mittens," please? I'd just love a cute fic starring my two favorite navigators!

Here it is, lovely! I threw some dashes of LawNa in there just because I know you love them so much LOL. Thanks for the wonderful prompts and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it!

EDIT: This lovely image was drawn by @searchfortheonepiece whom from this moment forth has all my love and affection. 

Even Polar Bears Need Mittens, Too!

Nami was painfully aware of two things upon waking up that morning. Dirst, the ordinarily comfortable warmth of her bedroom had been replaced by a bitter, breath-fogging chill. Second, the soothing rocking motion of the waves beating upon the Thousand Sunny was eerily absent. Panicked, she threw the covers off herself. She immediately hissed in displeasure and flung the warm, soft blanket back on as the winter air leaped forward to dig into the sensitive bare flesh of her legs with eager teeth. 

She rubbed her palm over her legs to find that goosebumps had already sprouted. Treading more carefully this time, she gathered the comforter around her body to serve as a fluffy shield from the cold and eased out of bed. She hopped around, not wishing to touch the icy wooden floors with her bare feet for too long until she found the slippers she always kept at her bedside. 

After a few minutes of digging, she was able to procure a set of winter gear— slim-fitting, dark jeans, black combat boots, a maroon knitted sweater, a black overcoat inlaid with ginger faux fur, and a pair of maroon gloves with a matching beanie complete with a black pom-pom. Dark colors absorbed the sunlight better and made Nami’s tresses of tangerine hair pop all the more (because a girl always had to consider her image!). 

She walked out into the hall, and it was no wonder it was so cold. Snow flurries buried themselves into her hair, decorating her like glitter, while others spiraled down the current into the hall to flutter lazily down to the iced-over wooden floors. Shivering, she carefully walked up the icy steps out onto the Thousand Sunny’s main deck.

The Grand Line’s unpredictable weather patterns had struck again; the Sunny looked like it had ventured into the Arctic. Snow was steadily falling from the cloudy heavens. It had piled up on the deck about half a foot deep and decorated the balustrade in a fluffy layer. Everything else was completely encased in a sheath of fine, crystalline ice. It wove fern-like patterns within the glass windowpanes, the only reference to the green world in this universe of white and gray and blue.

“Zoro?” she called as she tromped through the snow. Sinking up to her calves, Nami had to take extra-large steps to keep from tripping in the thick icy fluff. The swordsman was often awake in the wee hours of the morning. Yet, he was usually taking an early morning nap around the time the others were awakening, and Nami knew that the dense man could easily sleep through a snowstorm and awaken with hypothermia or frostbite— if he didn’t just wake up a solid blue corpse. 

Thankfully, it seemed the chill had roused him plenty. He came stomping through the snow dressed in a coat, though the lout insisted on keeping his chest bared to the unforgiving winter’s bite. Sanji, with a small snow shovel propped on his shoulder and wearing a blue winter coat lined with cotton, came tromping along after him.

“Nami-swan! Please tell me you know when this damn blizzard is gonna end!” 

“Why does that matter? We can just sail out of it,” Nami shrugged. 

“Not exactly,” Zoro grunted and gestured to the railing of the ship. Nami sloughed through the snow until she got to the edge of the boat and immediately groaned in annoyance. The sea was frozen over in a solid block of ice. Even if they attacked it with pickaxes and tried to coax the Sunny to the faint line of warm blue water hovering at the ice’s edge, it would take days to do so. Nami grimaced at the thought. Who knows how long that’ll take, and it’s cold as balls out here! 

“Guess we’ll just have to suffer,” she moaned. Raucous laughter at the end of the deck caught her attention; she turned to see Usopp, Chopper, and Luffy gathering up little handfuls of snow and flinging them in each other’s faces. A small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth; they were idiots sometimes, but it always did do her heart good to see them having some good plain fun.

“Hey, why don’t you make us all some hot chocolate?” she called to Sanji. “I’ll see if Law is okay in the submarine, too.” 

While the cook tossed heart eyes her way and dashed off to cater to her whim, Nami walked the edge of the boat until she reached the place that the Polar Tang moored against the Sunny.

After the business in Wano, the Straw Hats and Heart Pirates’ alliance had decided to appreciate their company a little longer (which was more Luffy’s doing than Law’s). Franky had rigged up a handy contraption to allow the submarine to the Sunny without damaging it when they were fully underway, and by combining the natural sailing capability with the submarine’s engine, they had improved their speed by fifty percent as well. 

“Law? Hey, are you guys popsicles in there?” she called as she climbed down the set of ladder rungs leading to the submarine. The soles of her boots striking the surface of the uppermost deck made dull clunking noises. She walked across the deck to the door, preparing to knock, but was startled when it was suddenly thrust open. She instinctively jumped backward.

She pinwheeled as she lost her balance and tipped back, but before she could land on her behind, the submarine’s captain grabbed her firmly by the elbow and hooked his foot under one of hers to brace her. He held her up by the strength of one arm, which brought a hint of rose to Nami’s cheeks and reminded her once more of how strong Law was even though he hid all his muscles under that long coat of his.

“Careful, Nami-ya. I wouldn’t want you hitting that pretty head of yours.” 

Nami’s relationship with Law was an interesting one; one never knew what would come out of their mouths, whether it be purred compliments or insulting jibes. They yipped at each other like a couple of cunning foxes in a perpetual game that dangerously bordered on courtship; it was not uncommon that their words and looks mirrored those of two individuals in a saucy game of “hard-to-get.” 

Sure enough, his mouth curled in that undeniable smirk that just begged Nami to retort with some minxy jibe, but with the persistent cold seeping beneath her coat to nibble at her skin, she decided to save it. Using Law’s grip as a bracer, she straightened herself up and ensured that she had a solid stance on the ice. It was only then that she could get a good look at him and see that he too was not immune to the brisk weather, as he had zipped his coat up to hide his sprawling tattoos and had white gloves on his hands. 

“So, I imagine that we won’t be escaping this climate anytime soon,” he guessed with one glance at the surrounding ice.

“Nope.” She glanced up at the sky to analyze the speed of the clouds. “The system is moving pretty slowly, so I guess that we’ll be trapped in this ice storm for at least a few days or so.”

“Damn… It’s taking our heating system all it can to keep all the metalworks from freezing over…”

Before the two of them could exchange any more words, a snowball exploded in Law’s face and sent him shooting back into the depths of the Polar Tang. The furry bulk of the arriving Bepo provided a soft landing, thankfully. Nami made no attempt to stifle her laughter as the Surgeon of Death came stalking back out, shaking snow out of his face and hair. It didn’t take a genius to figure out who had flung it at him, either. “Straw Hat-ya, you imbecile, now is not the time for games!”

“Trafalguy! Come have a snowball fight with us!”

“Did you not hear me?!”

“A snowball fight?! We wanna play!” came the simultaneous chiming of Penguin and Shachi from the entryway, and Law let out a strangled urk! as the two boys muscles past him to scamper out onto the deck of the Polar Tang. They slid around on the ice like a couple of buffoons for a few minutes trying to reach the ladder, eventually resorting to easing over on their hands and knees.

“Aw, come on, Law, they’re just having fun. We might as well play in the snow; there’s nothing better to do,” she smiled as she listened to his crewmates’ raucous hoots and hollers of laughter drift down from the Thousand Sunny with the occasional stray snowball.

“I don’t play, Nami-ya.”

“Law! Will you come build a snowman with me?” 

As Chopper’s innocent sing-song voice preceded his little furry form and hopeful eyes peeking over the railing of the Sunny, Nami watched Law’s body stiffen. He flushed pink and pulled down his hat, mumbling under his breath for a moment, before he thickly called up, “I’m coming, Chopper-ya…” 

Nami chuckled heartily as she watched Law Room himself up beside Chopper, who jumped up and down and hugged his arm elatedly. Not even the Surgeon of Death can say no to our sweet little Chopper.

“N-Nami?” 

The navigator turned her head as the polar bear Mink abruptly addressed her.

“What’s up, Bepo?” His watery black eyes could not bear to meet hers but flickered downward to train on the intricate icy patterns adorning the wood. His nails clicked lightly as he tapped them together in a nervous fidget. “Would you mind teaching me more about maps?” 

Nami blinked slightly in confusion. In the time that the two crews had spent together, the talented cartographer had been sharing her knowledge of maps with him. Still, she wasn’t sure why he wanted to do such an everyday activity when the opportunity to do something new and fun had presented itself.

“Wouldn’t you like to come play in the snow with us, Bepo?” she suggested with a bright smile. The poor thing couldn’t blush, but she could tell that he was embarrassed from the way he flattened his ears to his head and twitched his massive body.

“I can’t… My paws get cold.” 

Nami had no idea how a polar bear’s paws could freeze but considering the circus troupe of colorful people she sailed with, anything was possible. 

“Everyone else can play just fine because they have mittens, but we’ve never been able to find any in my size,” he lamented while holding up his clawed paws. Naturally, no market would sell mittens for a bear. Poor thing! He doesn’t deserve to have to sit out while everyone else has fun! Nami thought as a pang of pity pierced her heart. She grinned brightly and reached up to grab one of his furry paws with both of her hands.

“Don’t worry, Bepo! Come with me. I’ll whip up some mittens for you!” she assured him before whirling on her heel and pulling him across the deck of the Polar Tang. The bear just silently shuffled along behind her. 

She trekked back through the snow covering the spacious deck of the Sunny. It was falling so heavily that the small trench she had produced just a few minutes ago had already largely filled, forcing Nami to track a new path through the thick fluff. The layer had already thickened up to her knees. Nami pulled out her Climatact to help shovel the snow to wither side to help clear her way, but only with marginal improvement; very soon, her arms were aching. 

“Jeez! You wouldn’t think snow would be so heavy. I’ll have to get Franky to shovel some of this stuff off before our deck collapses!” she panted. Bepo, despite his bulk, seemed to have no problem pushing through the snow; after a moment of watching her struggle, he let out a nervous mumble before lightly tapping her on the shoulder. Nami paused to turn around, leaning on her Climatact for support. His tiny ears fluttered, and his little nails clicked together as he considered something silently for a moment. Then, to Nami’s surprise, he leaned down to pull her gently into his big furry arms.

“U-um, I thought it would be easier this way…” he admitted shyly while scratching the side of his head with one claw. Nami beamed, wrapped her slim arms around his thick neck, and nuzzled her nose into his fluffy cheek.

“How considerate! Thank you, Bepo.” She felt the bear’s skin warm as he did the Mink equivalent of blushing, and his words were an incoherent gush of mumbles. Feeling a burning gaze, Nami glanced over her shoulder to see Law staring intently from across the deck. 

“Jealous?” she called over while sticking out her tongue. Law snorted in derision and pulled his hat down over his face, but Nami could see the haze of pink over his cheeks. “Don’t worry, Law, I’m sure Bepo would carry you too if you asked him!” she laughed while rubbing the top of Bepo’s head through his hat.

“Ugh, Nami-ya, that’s not what I—” he snapped at her, then flushed further. Grumbling under his breath, he whirled around to instead re-focus his energy on the half-finished snowman that Chopper was molding with his hooves. Nami laughed mischievously again before looking back at the polar bear, who was just trying to pretend that Nami hadn’t been so boldly flirting with his captain.

“Mittens, right? Let’s go!”

Bepo carried her the last leg across the deck in record time. He gently set her down on the steps once they arrived, and Nami carefully picked her way down them, holding one hand against the frosty wall to aid her balance. She would hate to ungracefully slip and tumble down the stairs to earn herself a bruised bottom or sprained ankle on a day that promised a lot of fun. 

She led Bepo to her and Robin’s room. His massive frame barely was able to squeeze through the threshold, and he took up a large amount of space, requiring Nami to navigate around him as she searched her belongings for old clothes that she could retrofit into a pair of mittens for him.

“I’m sorry if I’m in the way…” he sighed apologetically and resorted to his nervous tick again. Nami smiled brightly up at him as she rifled through one of her trunks of sweaters.

“There’s nothing to apologize for, Bepo. You’re never a bother!” It was no secret that he was a little insecure, and so Nami always tried to do her best to encourage him. He smiled shyly and shuffled his feet, indicating that Nami’s compliments were warming him a little. 

“Ah-ha!” she cried merrily as she procured a lovely yellow wool sweater patterned with black stripes. “It’ll match your jumpsuit, too!” she grinned as she poked at the jolly roger emblazoned on the fabric as she passed him. She walked over to a small sewing machine situated on a table in the corner. 

With how much Nami loved clothes and saving money, she of course knew how to sew, and with the boys tearing their clothes to shreds all the time, she had invested in the small machine to make quick work of the many repair jobs. Bepo lumbered over to stand over her shoulder to watch her work, ears fluttering in curiosity; smiling, Nami leaned back so that he could observe her handiwork.

“You’re going to make mittens from that sweater?”

“Mhmm. There’s no sense in letting this fabric just collect dust,” Nami nodded as she cut out the patterns of the mittens using a large pair of shearing scissors. Tossing the rest of the fabric aside into a little basket for later use, she turned on the sewing machine and put the fabric in place. She felt Bepo release an awed breath over her shoulder as the needle began punching thread into them at high speeds. 

Nami’s nimble fingers guided the fabric to form the seams. In no time at all, she had produced one bear-sized pair of mittens, complete with holes in the fingertips so his claws wouldn’t shred the fabric. His ears flattened to his head as she whirled around in her little stool to hold them up. “Here you go! Try those on.” He very gently took the mittens in his paws before slipping them on, pushing his claws through the added holes and flexing his hands experimentally. He then gave Nami a huge smile that crinkled his already small eyes.

“Thank you, Nami! They’re wonderful! Now I can play in the snow too!” he rejoiced and jumped from foot to foot. Nami giggled and stood up from her chair.

“I’m so glad you like them.” 

“Nami! Will you make snow angels with me?!”

“Of course!” She grinned, then gasped in alarm as Bepo suddenly took off to squeeze out of the doorway and hurry up the steps. “Hey! Not so fast; you’ll fa—” 

She heard a startled yelp followed by a series of rapid thunks that could only be the polar bear Mink tumbling down the stairs. 

She exhaled deeply with a wan smile, shaking her head before walking out to see if he was all right. She found him on his back at the base of the steps in the process of rolling over; it seemed the fall didn’t do much, as he immediately scrambled back to his paws and went shambling up the stairs with an excited, impatient, “Come on, come on!”

“I’m coming!” she assured with another laugh and carefully followed him back up to the winter wonderland that the Sunny had become. For the next several days, the two crews busied themselves with all sorts of winter revelry, and Bepo made sure he showed everybody the marvelous mittens that the gracious Nami had made for him…

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