#just Usopp's relationship with the entire crew is something so special to me

[kozuki-hiyori]

Usopp's character arc between Alabasta and Enies Lobby, my beloved

(Sorry, I've been re-reading OP over the course of the past few months and his progression really sticks out... although, maybe that's just my love of him)

Obvi, he joins the crew as such a coward, we all know that (gotta love him for that too) But after speaking to the giants in Alabasta he really does grow!! The fight with him and Chopper against Mrs. Merry Christmas and Mr. 4 (and their dog) with that first instance of bravery that is really, really him standing up and deciding to be brave for his crew (even if that bravery only lasted a few seconds) You just can't help but cheer for him!! He's so joke-y all the time and his sudden instances of conviction are briefs, but they're there all the same!! Through Skypeia and Long Ring Long Land, he does at least try to fight and support his crewmates!

And then, of course Water 7!

How all of this bravery he can't find in himself, but is still there, comes crashing down, because he knows he's the most scared and cowardly and is still, truly, weak, and how he worries about being dispensable because of that. How he's the one who gets beat up, again and again, and how his strong connection to the Merry brings this all out. And although he is brave in his persona of Sniper King, he can't quite find the bravery to face his crew without that mask. At least not until he finally asks to rejoin.

It's just so good!! God, I fucking love him!!

[lawsvalentine]

@yuhhvalentine I just thought I another scenario that would be fun when you have the time though. Can I please request NSFW Law x Chef 👩‍🍳 Female reader. With the reader making some sex inducing rice balls as a favor for Ikkaku. But Law steals one without knowing. In the end reader figures it out.

Cee’s note: No way! I was thinking about doing a Law aphrodisiac fic for a minute now, it’s like you read my mind lol. But sure thing love 💓

Tags 🤍: @sanjisblackasswife (🫶🏽 your aphrodisiac series is the best) @3strapstyle @uchihabbynic @pinkcrystal-rose @nympheclipse (my fellow Law girlies and gents ) @roronoaswifey (ily bae) @usopps-devotee (you highkey inspired the mirror sex part)

Consuming an Aphrodisiac Food • Law x Fem!reader • (18+)

CW: Accidental Consumption of Aphrodisiac food, smut (dry humping, fingering, mirror sex, shower sex, praise, overstimulation, dumbification, squirting, multiple creampies), a very horny Law, slight aftercare at the end

*MDNI*

“I’m telling you, the sex is supposed to be MIND BLOWING!”

You chuckled at Ikakku’s words as your hands molded the rice balls into shape. This wasn’t the first time a crew member had requested for you to make them special meals, with you being the ship’s cook and all. However, this was the first time someone requested for you to make sex induced food for them.

But Ikakku was your dear friend. You two were the only women in Law’s crew, so naturally you two became very close. You were more than happy to do this favor for her.

“I still can’t believe you and Penguin are a thing”, you said with a shake of your head. “And please spare me the details about y’alls sex life.”

Ikakku feigned offense with a scoff and a hand to her chest. “Hey! I don’t judge your relationship with our Captain”, she said with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

Your cheeks burned at the mention of your lover. Even though you and Law have been together for a while now, the thought of him still made you feel butterflies in your stomach.

“That’s different! Me and Law are more…private,” you said shyly.

“More like BO-RING!”

“IKKAKU!” You gasped, ready to throw the rice ball at her.

She giggled, holding her hands up in defense, “Look, all I’m saying is maybe you two should spice things up a bit. Wouldn’t hurt for our uptight captain to loosen up.”

With that, Ikakku exited the kitchen, leaving you to your thoughts.

Were we…boring?

Law was a busy man and you a busy woman, with him and his medical studies and you having the responsibility of preparing meals for the entire crew throughout the day. So to balance responsibilities and your relationship, you guys had a schedule for your…alone time.

You weren’t complaining, the routine worked for you too. But now as you were rolling the sticky rice in your hands, you couldn’t shake Ikkaku’s words out of your head.

.

“There! All done”, you wiped your forehead with the back of your arm before reaching behind your back to loosen your apron. There in a metal dish were 6 rice balls sprinkled with the special garnish just as Ikkaku requested. You hung your apron on the rack before heading out the kitchen to fetch your friend to retrieve her “snack”.

After you had exited the kitchen, moments later, your tattooed boyfriend entered in hopes of finding you.

While working, he thought it wouldn’t hurt to take a short break just to fetch something to eat (mostly to see you). He frowned at the empty kitchen, he was sure you would be in here. His disappointment faded once he spotted the rice balls on the kitchen counter.

His lips curled in a smile, cheeks slightly tinted pink as he eyed the dish.

Were these for me?

Rice balls were his favorite snack and you would make it often for him when he would miss out on dinner, too consumed with work. It was one of the things Law most appreciated about you.

Law thought you must’ve known he would come in here for food and left these rice balls for him. He grabbed two of them to take with him back to his office. As he made his way back, he munched on one of them, humming contently at the taste.

It tasted slightly different than the ones you usually made but it was still delicious nonetheless. He made a mental note to “thank you” later for it.

.

After an hour, Law started feeling…strange.

Law’s forehead beaded with sweat droplets. He paused his writing to wipe his forehead with the back of his palm. He then stripped off his hoodie, his tank top sticking to his chest, drenched in sweat.

What the hell?

Law stripped the damp tank from his body leaving his chest bare. He started examining himself, concerned he was starting to catch a fever. After the diagnostic, he came to the conclusion that he wasn’t sick but something was causing him to be all hot and bothered and it was frustrating the hell out of him.

Suddenly a knock sounded at the door, interrupting his thoughts. He yelled a “who is it?” and turned his attention to the door, to find you peeking your head in with a grin. His face softened at the sight of you.

“Hey babe, I have some time to kill before preparing dinner. Mind if I stay here?” You gave him your best puppy dog eyes.

You were so cute, Law wanted to kiss that adorable pout off your face.

Law nodded, beckoning you inside with his hand. You beamed as you entered his office, shutting the door behind you. You went towards the book stand adjacent to Law, back facing him as you scoured the selection for a book to read.

Law couldn’t control his gaze from staring at your ass, admiring how nice it looked in those jeans you were wearing. He could feel his pants get tighter from his growing erection. He pressed a hand to his bulge, scrunching his forehead at his body’s reaction.

He didn’t know why he felt so horny all of a sudden but all he knew is that he needed you and needed you now.

You finally found a book to your liking and was about to sit on his desk but instead you were pulled on top of Law’s lap, straddling his pelvis. Your eyes widened when you felt how hard he was under you.

“L-Law?” A soft moan escaped your lips as Law started littering kisses and bites against the skin above your shirt collar.

“Mmm….wanna thank you for earlier” Law mumbled against your soft skin.

Thank me for earlier?

You had no clue what Law was referring to. You were about to question him more until you felt his lips against yours. His hands snaked around your lower back, squeezing your ass through your jeans. Your lips moved against each other so sensually, soft moans being swallowed by each others mouths.

He pulled away to only latch his mouth back against your neck. Your hands tossed his spotted hat to the side before entangling your fingers in his messy locks . He started bucking his hips up into you, adding pressure from his bulge to your clothed sex.

“You’re so good to me Y/N-ya”, Law said between peppered kisses he was leaving from your neck to your lips, “wanna show you how much I appreciate you”

You didn’t know what had gotten into your usually stoic boyfriend but you were definitely enjoying this side of him.

Your arousal started to build as you two continued grinding against each others fronts, grunts and pants escaping each others lips as you both chased your highs. Your moans became high pitched as you felt your orgasm hit you.

You felt Law groan against your neck as he came right behind you, making a mess inside his pants. Law lifted his head, his darkened eyes meeting your dazed ones.

“Looks like we made a bit of a mess” Law smirked with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Before you knew it, you were being carried out of Law’s study room to the bathroom across. You were surprised by Law’s actions considering he was usually very keen about keeping your relationship private, with little to no PDA. You were loving this sudden spontaneous behavior from your boyfriend, making your core throb even more for him. Once the bathroom door closed between you two, you both couldn’t keep your hands or mouths off each other.

“Law what about dinner? Our schedule?”, you managed to get out between kisses.

“Fuck the schedule” Law prodded and pulled your jeans down your thighs. “Need you so bad right now”

That’s all you needed to hear, completely letting yourself go with him. You both stripped each other’s clothes from your bodies. Law turned you around, your back pressed against his chest as he lifted one of your legs up, your foot resting on the bathroom sink. You both were facing the mirror, your leaking pussy on full display.

Law’s arm wrapped around your front, his tatted “E” and “A” fingers infiltrating your wet hole. You mewl at the stretch of his long digits, as he continued to pump in and out of you.

“You look so hot like this babe, getting fucked by my fingers” he said, eyes strained on the mirror, watching the faces you’re making and the way your arms desperately grasp his arms as his fingers penetrate your cunt.

He swears he can cum alone just from the sight of you falling apart by just his fingers. Suddenly your body starts to writhe as you feel your stomach tightening.

“Law…I can’t it’s too much” You whimper, feeling his fingertips hit your sweet spot over and over again. Law takes his fingers out and starts rubbing your clit violently.

“Yes you can, take it” Law was not letting up, determined to get you to cum.

“Shit..Law…Law..Law”, you chant his name as your legs started to shake as your juices spray all over the mirror like a hose.

Law was mesmerized watching you make a mess all over his fingers and the bathroom sink and mirror.

Your vision was hazy and your chest was heaving as you came down from the most intense orgasm you ever had. You didn’t even realize your limp body was being carried into the shower until you felt the warm water spray down on both of you.

Law lowered you onto his cock, and started bucking his hips up into you. Law usually paced his strokes more thoroughly when you two usually had sex, but at this moment his thrusts were animalistic as he chased his high.

The sound of the shower water barely drowned out your cries and Laws groans alongside the slapping of skin against skin.

The way Law’s cock was hitting your g spot so fast and hard, had tears glossing your eyes. The pain of your overstimulated cunt mixed with pleasure was too much.

Law couldn’t get enough of you. He was drunk off the feeling of your sweet warm walls around him. He emptied his load not once, but twice more. He continued fucking himself into overstimulation. He had one more in him, pushing past his limit. His pace never letting up, determined to fill you up one last time.

“Yes, yes, yes, yes” Was the only word you could say as Law continued abusing your cunt. You had lost count of the amount of orgasms you had, each one more intense than the last.

“Fuck, babe, I love you” Law grunts, before spilling inside you one last time.

.

Your back was pressed against his tattooed chest as he lazily caressed the bar soap over your chest pressing a kiss to your forehead.

After you both calmed down, Law’s sexual drive finally wore off. He drew you two a bath to properly clean yourselves off from the mess you two made.

“That was…” Law paused unable to describe what had just happened.

“Mind blowing”, you finished, and suddenly a switch was flipped in your head and your eyes widened at your revelation.

“Babe, did you happen to eat rice balls that were in the kitchen?” You said, tilting your head back to look at him.

“Yes and they were delicious”, he pressed another kiss to your forehead. “I thought that was clear from my “thank you””, he said with a smirk.

Oh my god

You suddenly burst out laughing, and Law looked at you like you had lost your mind.

“What, Y/N-ya?”

How could you have not seen the signs. Suddenly your boyfriend’s behavior was starting to make s lot more sense.

“See, what had happened was….”

[zorossugarmama]

Established relationships (Part 1???)

Reposting this from AO3!! I may continue with other One Piece characters-- if you want me to do certain ones just comment below :D

Anyways, here's my take on these already established relationships~

Luffy

Honestly he’s pretty nonchalant through the entire relationship. 

He’s focused on achieving his dream and having you by his side is nice and he appreciates you wholeheartedly but sometimes you feel like a second choice to him.

When you do feel this way he makes sure to take extra time the following evening or the next time the crew stops at an island.

He’ll take you out for lunch and give you extra cuddles and kisses.

Most times Nami or Robin will have to hit him on the head when a special holiday comes around. When he does remember he’ll come bounding up to you with a smile and a giggle. 

You’re the one mostly in charge in the relationship, any PDA is started by you. However during the crew's parties he likes to hold you close and show everyone that you're his and his alone. 

He’ll talk nonstop about how he’ll be Pirate King one day to you. You’re really the only one that will listen 24/7. You don’t mind either, you know his dreams will come true. 

When Luffy’s bored you better be prepared to have him right by your side for the entire day. Most times he just wants to start something funny like pranking Usopp or Chopper, maybe even get into Franky’s tools. However, there are times he gets really personal and pulls you closer than normal, his breath sending shivers down your spine.

You're in for a long night if he’s this kinda bored.

Zoro

He may be dumb and gruff on the outside but hes really sweet and soft when it’s just the two of you– he’s still kinda dumb though, but that’s why you adore him.

At some point you decided to try and get him to wear a backpack with a leash on it so he wouldn’t wonder– he hated the idea. You gave up after a month of persistent asking.

He would’ve been cute though.

When it’s just the two of you, you know you’ll be showered in soft kisses all night long. His arms wrapping themselves around you as you two lay in bed.

He likes having you in the crows nest with him. You’ll talk about your recent hobby and he’ll listen along intently while also making sure the horizons are safe.

When the crew stops at an island and you bugger off into the woods ready to explore he’ll make sure to stay close by. The two of you like your space and since he’s not a huge PDA kinda guy you don’t mind that you two don’t cling to each other. 

Although, just because he doesn’t like PDA doesn’t mean he won’t pull you close to his side or give you a forehead kiss if some person was looking at you too closely.

When special holidays come around you two make it a habit to lock yourselves away in a room for the day. It may not be all hot and steamy during the day but when evening falls and the booze hits both your systems you both can’t help but be a little louder than usual.

Sanji sulks the next morning while others snicker. Zoro blushes a little while you giggle, seeing him flustered is cute– yet there is a bit of embarrassment from the previous night when breakfast comes the next morning.

Sanji

I hope you're ready for something completely opposite to private love and courtship. Sanji, although an annoying heart throb at the best of times, solely focuses on you. Even though you’ve both been in a relationship for the better half of your travels he will still court the shit out of you. 

He prides himself on being a proper gentleman and he shows this daily to you.

When you're sick you better know you’re getting the princess treatment at 200%.

Tea, coffee, anything really he will bring it to you if you ask. At one point he even delayed dinner because you wanted to grab something from a vendor but forgot. You were haggling the guy for at least a half hour. Luffy wasn’t happy, but Sanji adored how you took on his cooking spirit.

To be honest Sanji may be annoyingly in love with you but he for some reason can’t help but wait for the perfect moment to have you. He’s nervous because he wants it to be perfect. You tried, but all you got was a lusty night of just kisses and cuddling. You will wait though because you think it's really adorable how careful he wants to be with you.

The two of you work seamlessly in the kitchen together. He’ll reach from behind you to grab something while planting a kiss on your head before turning back to his duties. 

Special holidays? Those are everyday sweetie. Little treats, flowers, or trinkets (you adore these the most) are left outside your door every morning. A little present to start off the day.

During the calm days when Luffy wasn’t stirring shit up you two find yourselves resting on the deck. You’ll have a book in your hand while Sanji brings tea and biscuits. He’ll lay beside you and read the newspaper, though he's probably thinking about you or what to prepare for the next meal.

Since he takes such delicate care of his hands you know they feel like velvet over your own skin when he rubs your back, arms, or tummy. He’ll trace his fingers over your skin so mindlessly that you sometimes have to stop him so you can leave.

Usopp

This relationship honestly is probably the best one you’ll have. It's fun, romantic, and supportive all the time.

You adored him before leaving for two years, but after? You thought you were dreaming. He’s so fine (yes, i'm an Usopp girlie and totally not being biassed here)

You two love going out on walks whether that's to explore an island or on the streets of a nearby town. He’ll ask Nami for extra berries so he can treat you to snacks and fluffy toys. 

Speaking of fluffy toys, you had to convince him to let you keep the giant teddy in your room. It would leave Usopp with a fraction of space, but he was the one to buy it for you so he really couldn’t argue.

He may be a coward sometimes but for you he’ll pretty much sacrifice himself so that you're safe all the time.

Special holidays are super special. Not only do you get his undivided attention from dawn until dusk but he knows exactly what you like and don’t like. When evening falls and the crew is finally asleep he’ll pull a sly smile and reach around your waist and pull you close. 

He’ll trail kisses from your jaw down to your collarbone.

Outside of the bedroom he’s a little more reserved but hand holding and pecks on the cheek are always a must.

Surprisingly, fishing is something you two love to do. You still outnumber him in catches caught in one day– he’s a little miffed but oh well, you're too cute to stay annoyed with.

Law

PDA? Who's that? We don’t know her.

For real though, at one point you had to convince yourself that you were in fact together. You made sure he got an earful back on the ship.

Don’t worry though, Law is such a soft man when it’s just the two of you– strictly just the two of you. If anyone else is within the vicinity but out of sight he’s still reserved.

You like laying on his chest and listening to his heart beat. It's reassuring and it makes it better when he runs his hands through your hair. 

He will talk to you softly when you’re alone, sometimes its just nonsense, de stressing from his recent adventures with the strawhat crew or just random stories he thinks of.

He doesn’t like putting too much effort into special holidays. A quiet dinner, a gift and an evening together doing whatever you wanted.

When you’re both laying in bed he’ll look down at you, his eyes soft and caring. He thinks about you almost all the time when you’re not together. 

When fighting, he can’t help but stress a little about your well being, but you’ll always be fine. You're strong, and even if you weren’t he’d do anything to keep you safe.

He lets you take care of his shaggy hair when it gets too long. It's time spent together that means a lot to you and him. The New World is scary, and this is a place where peace can be felt.

Kid

Not gonna lie, he’s a little sadistic when it comes to your relationship. He’ll kiss you but after tormenting you a little bit. 

He flicks you on the forehead a lot too.

PDA isn’t an issue, in fact, he loves it when you sit on his lap at dinner in front of everyone. You’ll lay your head on his shoulder as he laughs and chugs back alcohol.

Don’t touch his hair, seriously, no one touches it. Yet one time you couldn’t help yourself and when he was sleeping you got up and touched it. You wondered what he used to keep it that way? It was because it wasn’t hard but it wasn’t soft enough to lose its shape…

Gifts are plenty, anything that he was able to plunder a large portion of it goes to you in either the form of berries, clothes, or whatever your heart desires. He may be sadistic at times but he does care for you.

He's a hard love kinda guy. He won’t baby you, and though it's a little hurtful you know why. The New World has no place for someone who can’t hold their own.

When you two are alone in his room he's a little aggressive when it comes to lustful moments. He cradles your head in his hand and he uses his body to trap you under him. 

He’ll use your weaknesses to ease you into bed, but he’ll always listen to your safe word if he gets too much for you.

You like his goggles and it took some prodding before he felt like letting you wear them, the same with his red coat. He finally at one point during your relationship had one made for you, now you too matched when sailing the seas.

[sanjisprincesswifey]

the kind of presents they get you

summary: the kind of gifts these op characters get you for your birthday

♡: with sanji, zoro, luffy, usopp, nami, robin, franky, ace, sabo, shanks, & law. 1,060+ words. sfw content.

don’t put it past him that he wouldn’t buy you almost everything that catches your eye in every store you two visit, but sanji buys you the classic combo of flowers, balloons, and fancy jewelry for your birthday. that is just the tip of the iceberg with the lovesick cook, of course. you’re the most spoiled partner on your birthday, there is nothing sanji won’t get for you, even if that means handing luffy over to the marines for his bounty reward.

it's not surprising when zoro’s only present for you is a sword that he hand-picked himself from a swords shop. he doesn’t know much about relationships, but he likes to think he’s okay at gift-giving and by that, it means he assumes you’ll like a gift you two could do together. unlike sanji, zoro doesn’t understand the sentiment of getting you a personalized gift you’d enjoy on your own. instead, he finds you a sword so he can spar with you; it’s romantic to him, give him a break.

like the child he is, luffy opts for something homemade or perhaps an experience. not like usopp or franky who put delicate time and effort into something nice, luffy scraps something together with little to no effort. birthdays aren’t about gifts, to him it’s about celebrating your life and how lucky he is to have you. he might take you to the beach or on an adventure to explore a new city. and he might see a pretty flower on the ground, pluck it, and give it to you. just don’t forget your wallet for lunch because the chance of luffy remembering his is very unlikely, even on your birthday, sorry.

usopp is an amazing gift-giver and you cannot convince me otherwise! he can’t give much, but what usopp lacks in quantity, he makes up for in quality. drawings, poetry, love letters, handmade flower bouquets even; gifts that took him time and care are what he specializes in. what most don’t know is that usopp is incredibly romantic and has a beautiful way with words too!

something the others have a hard time believing is that nami is not cheap when it comes to you. sure, she still haggles and tries to get the lowest price possible, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t willing to spend some money on you. she’s a classy girl so her go-to gift would be jewelry, something tasteful, of course. it’ll be a simple piece, one that goes with her collection so that the two of you can match. she won’t outrightly say that’s what her plan is, but you catch on quickly.

another incredibly thoughtful gift-giver in the strawhat crew, robin enjoys giving you things that would be sentimental to you. what robin gives you on your birthday is your favorite book; she knows you’ve reread it a million times and will probably a million times more, and she’s even read it to you a couple of times (which is what you prefer to be honest). instead of giving you another copy, she’ll annotate inside of it. make doodles, highlight her favorite parts, and even note parts that remind her of you. she loves sharing your favorite things with you.

he has the ability to create anything in the entire world, with his skill and capabilities nothing is out of reach for him and franky decides to write you a song and plays it for you on his guitar with accompaniment from brook’s violin. it’ll be a little bit cheesy and sort of dumb, it’s franky what do you expect, but it’s also romantic. don’t be surprised when he throws a line in there about how good your sex is, because there’s no doubt that he will.

ace doesn’t know much about the art of gift-giving; in fact, he’s pretty much clueless when it comes to anyone but you. you’re his favorite person, his whole world even, and he knows everything about you. he’s strategic and plans your present weeks in advance. what ace plans to do is give you a gift every hour of the day, he literally sets an alarm so he can give you a new gift at every hour, on the hour. these gifts range from jewelry to that cute sweater you saw last week to your favorite snack. they’re all carefully picked and suited to your tastes; plus, it’s really cute when you watch him light up and explain why he picked that present for you.

out of all three siblings, sabo is the most sentimental asl brother, as well as a handmade gift connoisseur. he LOVES making them for you and he loves seeing your expression when you open them. he’s really creative too; his favorite? scrapbooks! now, you wouldn’t imagine sabo being the type to gift you something like this and that makes it even more fun for him. each page has pictures, poems, doodles, tokens from the many dates you’ve had, and even petals from old flowers he’s given you. sabo loves watching you flip through the pages, probably more excited to be honest.

he’s not completely devoid of sentiment, but shanks never has a gift prepared for you. he does have a plan though. since he’s got money, ya know being a yonko and all, he’d rather take you shopping. literally hands you his wallet and says go nuts. instead of getting you some hideously ugly jewelry or the tackiest pair of shoes you’ve ever seen that he knows you won’t like (but still had the audacity to buy you), he’d rather see you happy and who knows what you’d like more than you?

it's not that he can’t be bothered, but law doesn’t see the point in a gift. as previously mentioned, law doesn’t really enjoy birthdays. he doesn’t even know where to start looking in regard to finding one, sure he may be your boyfriend but shopping? it’s like his natural enemy; not to mention that he hates shopping. what he ends up getting you is something of a sentiment you didn’t expect from him. when you open the box to see a soft, fluffy blanket of your favorite color, you’re confused. “it’s for my office…when you take naps in there,” he mumbles. he’s already embarrassed, but now even more so when you’re peppering his face with lots of kisses.

like, reblogs, and comments are always appreciated! (✿◠‿◠)

[imanonymousfanfic]

How do you think the strawhat would be with a crewmate who has a cat (or like three) ?

I am so sorry this took so long to answer. I've had university deadlines.

Anyway

This is my personal take on the characters. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I had fun writing this. Thank you anon ❤️

Luffy would LOVE to have cats aboard!! Luffy would be giggling childishly after hearing the new crew mate has cats, unless that’s why he asked for them to join in the first place (no surprise there). Since it’s Luffy, and he’s oblivious as hell, he’ll probably do a couple things that would get them feisty, earning him a good cat fight. He’d end up looking like he does after Nami has a go at him. Luffy’s love will go on endlessly, as they’re not part of the StrawHat family. Before the cats can explore the ship, the idea of teaching the fur balls some “cool tricks” will come up, maybe even plotting to sneak some meat behind Sanji’s back. Maybe it’ll work, maybe it won’t... probably not, knowing Luffy. He’s good company for them, a good partner to play with if he has a feather stick. You will find them resting on his belly as they both nap in the sun on Sunny's head. And without a doubt, ass will be kicked if a single whisker on their faces is touched out of malice.

For a brief second, Zoro will question the cats safety: traveling on water, but at the end of the day it’s not his problem… kinda. Despite his stiff “cool guy” exterior, the swords man would definitely jump in after any of the cuties that have gone over board. He will angrily mutter about their reckless climbing and playfulness as he rushes them out of the water. I mean he does the same for Luffy, so what’s new? He’d give them some small here and there, nothing too special. Their compatibility will really shine when they crawl all over the man during his meditation, they will have fun tapping at his gold earrings, and as much as he would like his silence, the cats company will make him smile. There’s no doubt about it, Zoro loves them, he just expresses his affection to his crew own way. They’re part of the family and their silly antics will make his night shifts a lot more entertaining.

Sanji will ban any cats from the kitchen right away, which is entirely understandable. Cats shed like crazy and don’t think about where their paws have been. They would knock over things carelessly, even on purpose at times when they want attention. That will irk Sanji. Should it ever happen, though, he’d take the opportunity to show off his cool moves in front of Robin and Nami. His envy would melt the man, seeing them curled up in the ladies laps too, but that’s just Sanji being himself. Since are respectable for the most part, and for this reason Sanji wouldn’t treat them any less than he would the rest of the crew. He’ll work hard on their meals, spoiling their little toe beans off.

Chopper will be the CUTEST with cats, he will be befriend them on an emotional level much faster than the others as he’s one himself. He’s in tune with them, and since he’s a doctor, he will be eager to pick up on veterinary studies to care for them. You will find him often studying their anatomy, even physically studying the little fur balls himself. He’d play with them lots, mostly with him originally chasing them, but knowing Chopper, they will turn that around. You’ll catch Chopper reading books with the cats crawling over him and covering his desk. An adorable sight to see.

Franky is definitely more a dog person, but he won’t reject the adorable purring of a cat. He’ll walk around with one or two of them perched on his shoulders, the height and the stability of Franky is a fun place to hang out. They see lots, and he’s a fun person. When not busy, Franky will take a moment to give out some pets, maybe even making some kissy noises at them. He’ll incorporate some kind of play pen or netted area so they can play safely. You’ll definitely catch him blubbering emotionally about them at some point. It’s Franky, after all, he’s a ginormous softie. When maintaining the ship, he’ll keep the cats locked away for their safety, all the heavy materials and tools could be dangerous, and the last thing he wants is them hurt while they get a little too curious. Let’s hope whenever they crawl over him, none of their claws have a scratch at his banana hammock.

100% Robin is a cat mom, calling it immediately. She’s elegant and has that cheekiness that cats posses too. She likes to soak up some sun, explore her surroundings to understand them better, and is intelligent with a talent in sneaking around. Robin confirmed to be a human-cat? All jokes aside, Robin’s companionship with the cats is calm, just like how many of them like it. They’d be spoiled with lap cuddles, and her devil fruit will make sure none of them are left feeling jealous. Her and Chopper will be often spotted hanging together, or helping the vet check ups.

For some reason, I have a hunch Brook is scared of cats and his hair would pop off seeing them. He’d jump behind one of the crew members, his bones rattling loudly as you hear his cheerful voice pronounce his fear. Luckily for him they’re not dogs, his femur would be gone in seconds if they were. He’d be nervous around the little things at first but with time he will open up to them. Seeing how the crew plays and cuddles with them will make him step out of his comfort zone, and next thing you know, they’re huddled around him as he plays the violin. Music, after all, is calming for cats. He will have his own furry fans to give him all of the love, which will warm his heart (if he had one).

Nami will think they’re super cute, but wouldn’t be quite as enthusiastic as some of the other crew members. That’s just Nami though. She’d definitely be cracking some skulls if you hurt any of them, and she’s a very protective cat mom. She might not be the super cuddly type, but she doesn’t care about them any less than the rest of the crew. She’d save a little bit of money on the side for some nicely made collars, which will be a BIG deal coming from her. They’d be gold plated, or something nice along the lines which is definitely her way of showing affection. No matter how cute they are, however, they won’t be caught in her cartography space - their paws are chaotic and Nami needs her maps to be pristine. As cute as inky paw prints are, she rather not have them.

Usopp will talk to the cats a lot, befriending them like they’re any other person. Even though they can’t understand him or his exaggerated stories, they’re entertained by him no matter what. He’s enrapturing, able to hold their gaze as they get lost in his enthusiastic tone. They sure feel playful around him too, his goofy behaviour is exactly what they need, but they might end up chasing him across the ship with how much a coward he can be at times. With his ingenious building skills, he’d take the time to make them some cool toys, a crazy laser, a feather toy, who knows what Usopp has up his sleeve. Oh, the ideas are endless and Usopp’s designs will be spoiling their tails off. If only Sniper King is able to see how adorable they are… *wink-wink, nudge-nudge*

As I’m not fully caught up and his character to me is still quite hard to write about, I will try to capture Jinbe to my best understanding of him.

I imagine him to find great companionship with cats, understanding their free will, but sense of loyalty they have. Unlike dogs, who are loyal to nearly anyone, a cats sense of loyalty is out of a devoted love they choose to share. Jinbe holds a similar integrity with the relationships he choose to be a part of. Naturally their natures of being are opposites, as he’s a fish man, strongest when in water, while cats run from it. They share a wholesome companionship. If it isn’t Zoro first in the water to save them, Jinbe will be the next to be a kitty rescuer.

[kaizokuou-ni-naru]

The Voyage So Far: East Blue (Part One)

east blue (1 | 2) || alabasta (1 | 2) || skypiea || water 7 || enies lobby  || thriller bark || paramount war (1 | 2) || fishman island || punk hazard || dressrosa (1 | 2) || whole cake island || wano (1 | 2)

so!! hey folks. as i’ve mentioned before, to mark the upcoming chapter 1000 (holy shit!!) as well as my blog’s first anniversary this december, i decided it would be a good time to go back and put together some highlight reel posts of my favorite panels/moments/scenes from each saga and some commentary about what i think the best parts of each arc and the series as a whole are and why, as a celebration of just how far one piece has come and how many fantastic moments we've had so far! 

this will be quite a series of rather long posts- they’ll all be tagged #the voyage so far, if you’d like to avoid this messy retrospective. i'll be posting one saga a day each day until chapter 1000's official release on january 3rd!

honestly, i’m opening with this panel because it has a special place in my heart: i’m pretty sure it was the first time that one piece ever made me laugh. 

the entire prologue does a really good job of setting up the tone for the entire rest of the story. i think i haven’t really written much about it before, but i really love romance dawn. it hits the exact mix of humorous and serious that’s practically one piece’s trademark tone, and introduces us to some of the main themes of the series: inherited will especially, and the theme of freedom, and the idea of betting your life for what you love. 

technically this isn’t the first time we see luffy as an adult- he punches out the sea king before this- but it is his formal introduction, as well as (in the chapter title) the first time he’s referred to as strawhat luffy/mugiwara no luffy. 

i really like a lot of these very early panels of luffy, really. i’m a writing person, not an art person, so i can’t really explain why, but there’s something about how he’s drawn that i think is just delightful for some reason. i like the earlier one piece art a whole lot in general, even though it’s often much less intricate and more simple than the current artstyle (which is not by any means bad either!! it’s just different). i think it fits the atmosphere of the start of the story very well- a journey just starting out. 

he’s going to be pirate king!!

i’ve complained before about how zoro’s backstory doesn’t really hit the way a lot of the others do, mostly because it goes so fast, and kuina’s death is unfortunately the closest the series comes to fridging, but- that said, i do really like the core of it. i really like zoro being motivated by a promise to the one friend and rival he could never beat, and i love how this moment is what he cites later on while facing mihawk: a promise to a friend. 

i love all the strawhats and their dynamics, and seeing the crew grow and develop and become a family over the course of hundreds of chapters is one of the great joys of one piece, but i think i’ll always have a soft spot for luffy and zoro’s relationship. there’s never really any conflict between them after their very first meeting; there’s loyalty and dedication and understanding there that starts from this moment and never really wavers.

it makes me grin to see the two of them, here at the start of it all. they don’t have a flag or a ship or a destination, yet, but this is the start of the strawhat pirates.

this series will probably reveal that i have a great weakness for group shots, and i think oda is particularly good at them- especially in these earlier arcs, you can usually see every character’s personality and feelings coming through in how they’re placed and what they’re doing. 

i had actually forgotten that usopp did this, and while i know kuro was egging him on on purpose, i feel like he doesn’t get enough credit for being a reckless idiot sometimes. there’s a reason he fits in as a strawhat, after all, even if he himself isn’t always aware of it. 

this is a lovely panel just on its own, but i think it (and all the other appearances of sunrise and dawn in the story) hits different now, with all the 'coming dawn’ theming that’s been established in recent arcs. 

oda often absolutely nails his use of negative space to emphasize heavy little moments like this, and i for one absolutely love it. this one in particular gets me in the heart. 

i like how you can reread some of these early arcs and see nami’s affection for the crew growing in little moments like these, and it’s very sweet, but there’s also a quiet kind of sadness in knowing she’s spending the whole time knowing she’s going to have to betray and leave them eventually. 

i LOVE the new crewmate toasts. they all always look so happy.

also, in my opinion, this is the first time the strawhat pirates feel like a proper crew. they have a SHIP now! and just after this, they get their jolly roger to seal the deal. 

it is my opinion that sanji has one of the best character introductions i’ve ever seen. in just a few chapters we know just about everything we need to know about him: he's not to be fucked with, he has extremely high respect for food and absolutely none for morons, and the first genuine smile we see from him is when he gives a free meal to a starving man. 

i think about this moment a lot, really. luffy knows almost nothing about sanji at this point. he hasn’t tasted his food- he doesn’t even know his name. but he’s seen sanji give free food to gin for no other reason than that he’s hungry and it’s right, and that’s all it takes for luffy to decide that sanji is gonna be his cook. 

baratie is mostly a serious arc (and leads into the even more serious arlong park), but it has some really good funny moments towards the start and this is one of them. you know they’re friends because they all just start roasting luffy without sympathy or hesitation. 

i’ve mentioned before that the zoro and mihawk fight was one of the big things that hooked me on one piece (the other being sanji’s backstory), but the way it ends, especially, is one of my favorite moments in the whole series. i love,, strawhat loyalty moments. carve “any complaints, pirate king?” on my fucking grave. 

sanji has a lot of really great action panels in this arc, but this is one of my favorites mostly because his combat abilities are being revealed to the audience at the same time they’re revealed to a lot of the characters watching. i can’t remember who pointed it out but sanji’s character design (especially pre-timeskip) just really looks like he’s designed for kicking- shiny black shoes, about 70% leg- and it really shows in panels like this. 

sanji and zeff’s chronic inability to communicate is kind of the emotional core of baratie, and i think sanji calling the restaurant zeff’s treasure sums up the entire conflict between them very neatly. of course zeff values sanji way more than the restaurant, but zeff will never tell that to his face and sanji has negative zero self-worth so he’s never going to figure it out on his own. so they’re basically in a stalemate. 

sanji’s backstory is absolutely brutal. we spend a truly agonizing amount of time literally just watching him slowly starve to death. it’s no secret that oda is really amazing at backstories, but i think sanji’s is probably one of the most effective at driving home exactly where his very specific mindset as an adult comes from. it’s hard to even read this section and not come away with at least a little more appreciation for food. 

(to be continued in east blue part two!)

[laws-yellow-submarine]

Uhhhh hi? Lol I dunno if anyone remembers this, but this past May I mentioned I was going through quite a lot, and at the time I had a Hazel-focused Mother's Day angst one-shot half-written, that never got finished.

Well, it's 3:30 am, and it's finished! 😃 this was written on my phone, so it may not be well edited, and I can't guarantee it's 100% in character; but it was cathartic as hell. I won't be including this in Together With Fruit (it just doesn't fit anywhere), but I will say it's 100% canon to Hazel’s character/story. That being said, you don't have to read it if you don't want to - it's a little heavy, imo, and I won't be offended if people skip it.

But without further ado, I present: The Problems with Mother's Day

TW/CW: Parental angst, estranged parent relationships, mentions of death, feelings of inadequacy (if I need to add anything lemme know!)

Word Count: 2,052

-------

From the moment Hazel opened her eyes, she knew it was going to be a long day. The skies were cloudy, the waves choppy, and her roommate’s face was about ten inches away, smiling a little too sweetly.

“Ahh!” she yelled, jumping back in bed. “Nami, what the hell?!”

“Oh good, you’re up!” Nami chirped at her, doing nothing to alleviate the suspicion in Hazel’s gut. “I need a favor!”

“I told you before: if Luffy gets his head stuck between the railings, it’s better to just leave him there or he’ll never learn his lesson.”

“No, no, not that, silly!” Hazel glared further at the young woman, suspicion thoroughly piqued. “See, it’s Mother’s Day! Normally, Nojiko and I have a tradition of cooking a big breakfast, but since she’s obviously not here, I was wondering if you’d like to join me?” and then she flashed the biggest pair of puppy dog eyes Hazel had ever seen. Which was saying something, considering how often Ace had tried to use that on her when they were kids. 

There was just one issue.

“It’s Mother’s Day?” Hazel groaned, rubbing one hand over her face. Nami took her groaning as a sign of tiredness, and enthusiastically nodded her head.

“Please, Hazel? My sister and I do this every year, and I’d really like to share it with you!”

Guilt gnawed at Hazel’s gut. How could she possibly say “no” now?

“Sure, Nami...just,” she sighed, “give me a second to get dressed.” And then Nami let out a squeal, of all things, hugged the purple-haired girl around the shoulders, and bounded up the stairs.

Left alone, Hazel took a deep, shuddery breath. Then she took another one. Then another, on and on until they became steadier, and the world didn’t feel like it’d swallow her up right there. She stood up, padding over to the closet the girls shared, and quickly threw on a plain t-shirt and shorts; something she wouldn’t be upset about getting messy. She threw her curly hair into a messy ponytail, squared her shoulders, and with a firm nod of her head, she followed after Nami.

It was early, enough so that the sun had barely peaked over the horizon. With all the clouds in the sky, the seascape remained a rather dull blue, the orange of the sun’s rays blocked from view. Even Sanji, who normally woke up pretty early to get a start on breakfast, was still nestled deep in his hammock down below.

“How’d you manage to secure the kitchen for the day?” she asked as she entered the galley, deftly catching the apron Nami tossed her way.

“I told Sanji-kun I had something special planned, batted my eyelashes a bit, and he was convinced to sleep in for a day,” Nami explained, pulling the last of the ingredients from the fridge and setting them on the counter. “I’ve got the pancake batter covered, if you wanna get a start on the bacon!”

Hazel slid up to the counter, eyeing the array of food and utensils the navigator had set out. It had been a while since she'd made bacon - Luffy had a habit of stealing the still sizzling strips from the pan - but she dutifully set to work at the stove as Nami chatted on.

"One year, Belle-mere wasn't able to afford our usual breakfast ingredients, so Nojiko and I had to improvise," the younger woman was saying as she steadily dribbled pancake batter onto the skillet. "We snuck into the tangerine grove and picked as many as we could find, but we stuck to the smaller ones so they wouldn't be missed." Hazel hummed in acknowledgement, gut churning. "Nojiko set up an entire tray of tangerines cut into different shapes, but when Belle-mere tried to eat? Her face puckered up like this!"

Nami's face scrunched into an expression that resembled a dried up pufferfish, cheeks sunken in and eyes screwed shut, before she bust out laughing at the memory. Hazel smiled good-naturedly, piling more bacon onto the plate beside her, and Nami launched into another story.

"Oh! And then there was the year I tried to make the pancakes by myself for the first time! Normally that was Nojiko's job, but I convinced her to let me try," the navigator said, eyes far away as she expertly flipped another pancake. "The entire kitchen ended up covered in batter! I'm not even sure how it happened - I thought Belle-mere would be furious! I was so scared I hid in the closet, but I didn't realize I'd tracked flour behind me." Nami shook her head, smiling. "Belle-mere opened the closet door, took one look at me, and grinned this huge grin. She said it was the 'best year ever'..."

Hazel bit her cheek as Nami sighed wistfully. "Belle-mere was always saying that: it was the 'best year ever', no matter how much we ruined breakfast."

"Hm."

"Hazel, are you ok?"

"Huh?" Hazel glanced at her in surprise, then quickly resumed her task, tension coiling in her gut as she nodded. Just breathe, Hazel…

"Are you sure?" Nami asked, worry ringing in her voice. "You don't seem to be having much fun."

"I'm fine, Nami," Hazel grit out, flinching back as a drop of grease jumped out at her.

"No you're not! What's wrong?"

"Look, I said I'm fine, alright?!" Hazel snapped, turning from the bacon to glare at the young girl. "I just don't really give a shit about Mother's Day!"

Nami's gasp was accented by the galley door opening, their crew's footsteps halting as Hazel’s statement hung in the air. All at once, her anger fled, replaced quickly with burning shame at Nami's watery gaze. Swallowing against the lump in her throat, and the warmth growing in her cheeks, Hazel muttered a quick "sorry" before bolting from the room.

The others watched her go, breakfast momentarily forgotten, until the familiar thwap thwap of their captain's flip flops broke the silence, punctuated by Luffy’s excited cry: "Sanji! Food!"

--------

"I just don't get it!" Nami yelled as she sat at the table, anger, embarrassment, and guilt all warring within her. Hazel still hadn't returned to the kitchen. "It's just Mother's Day. It should be a day to celebrate!"

"I'm sure Hazel-chan has her reasons, Nami-san," Sanji said around his cigarette, unhappy that "his girls" were at odds. Luffy scratched under his hat. 

"What's Mother's Day?"

Luckily for him, Luffy was used to the incredulous stares his crew often bestowed on him. Even Zoro was looking at him like he'd grown a second head. Wait. Could he do that?

"Even you should know what Mother's Day is," Nami scolded the boy as he inexplicably began to pull at the skin on his shoulder.

Luffy shrugged. "Nope!"

"It's the day you celebrate your mom!" Nami was met with a blank stare. "You know, the one who provides for you, even if it means she goes without."

"The one who encourages your dreams, and loves you unconditionally," Sanji added, a wistful look in his eye as he flicked his cigarette.

"The one who tells you stories, and tucks you into bed at night," Usopp chimed in, face alight with happy memories.

But Luffy merely raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Hazel already has a birthday, I'm supposed to give her two parties?!"

And then the room grew silent once more as the weight of his question settled on the others' shoulders. Nami felt her stomach clench, threatening to evict a breakfast she hadn't even eaten as she realized what had happened. She pushed herself to her feet, rushing out of the kitchen with barely a word to the others.

She had to find Hazel.

-------

Nami found her standing against the railing, on the complete opposite side of the ship. Hazel’s arms were crossed in front of her, the wind blowing through her loose, purple curls as she gazed out at the sea. The navigator approached slowly, suddenly nervous now that she was here. But before she could utter any apology, Hazel beat her to it.

"I'm sorry for snapping at you. That wasn't very fair, and you didn't deserve it."

Nami's brown eyes snapped up to the other woman's face, still not facing her, and swallowed against the growing lump in her throat.

"I'm the one who should be sorry," she said, leaning on the rail beside her. "I should have asked you first. I shouldn't have assumed you'd be OK with it."

Hazel shrugged. "You had good intentions, at least. It's the thought that counts."

"Is it?" But Hazel didn't answer, and the two slipped into a heavy silence broken only by the crash of waves against the hull. "What happened to her?" Nami finally asked, shoulders tensed as she waited for the older woman to either answer or scold her.

Hazel only sighed. "Honestly?" she clicked her tongue, shrugging her shoulders and biting her lip. "No idea. Don't really remember her."

"But if you don't remember…" Nami started, eyes lighting up as an idea struck her. "Then she could still be out there somewhere! Maybe we'll find her-!"

"I hope she's dead."

The finality of the statement struck Nami dumb, mouth hanging open in shock at the woman's deadened expression. There was no waver in Hazel’s tone, no room for any doubt that she meant it. "What…?"

Hazel laughed through her nose, a bitter sound. "Sounds horrible, right? Especially today of all days? But it's true." Hazel’s jaw clenched, her fists curling around the Merry's railing. "If she's dead, then it wasn't a choice. If she's dead, then she didn't decide to -! She didn't just -!" Her shoulders shook, breaths coming out in ragged gasps, unable to finish the statement.

Nami reacted without thinking, pulling the shaking woman into her arms without hesitation. Hazel's voice broke, heartache echoing between them as she gasped out: "why wasn't I enough?"

"Now you look at me!" Nami cried, pulling back to lock her eyes onto Hazel’s. "Don't you ever think you aren't enough! Just look at everything you've done! We're all here because of you, Hazel!"

Hazel rolled her watery gray eyes. "You're here because of Luffy - I'm just emotional support." But Nami shook her head.

"Luffy may have brought us together, but he only got to where he is because you supported him! He thinks the absolute world of you, he loves you - we all love you! And you've done all of this without her! Screw her!" Hazel dissolved into a new round of tears, and Nami pulled her back into her warm embrace. "New tradition: from now on, let us show you how much we appreciate you, whether that's through breakfast together, or leaving you the hell alone."

Hazel choked out a wet, shaky laugh, fingers clutching tightly to Nami's t-shirt as the tears flowed through her. Finally, they subsided, and as she leaned back Nami helped wipe the remaining tear tracks away. Hazel took a deep breath, then another, feeling lighter than she had all day. Then, her stomach growled.

"I think I'm ready to go back to breakfast," she murmured, too drained to be embarrassed. Nami just smiled, linking their arms together as she led the way back to the others.

When they entered the galley, the pair were separated when a rubbery figure launched itself at Hazel. Luffy wrapped his limbs around his sister, squeezing so tight it was a wonder she didn't break a rib. "Hazel! Sanji made you coffee! He wouldn't let me try it but I did anyway - how do you drink that stuff?!"

Hazel just smiled at his rambling, wiggling her arms free of her brother's embrace, surprising the boy when she hugged him back (almost) as tightly, and kissed him on the forehead. "Heeey!" He whined, pulling away to angrily rub at the spot she'd kissed. "What was that for?!"

"Nothing, just…I'm proud of you, Luff." The boy's face broke into a grin.

"Shishishi! I'm proud of you, too! Now, let's eat!"

Finally, the Straw Hats gathered around the table, digging into their meal with an excited frenzy. Sipping her coffee, Hazel nudged the woman beside her. "Thanks, Nami," she said, smiling easily after the events of that morning. "But, for future reference? On Father's Day, you may just wanna let me stay in bed."

[batfam-nalu-onepiece]

When Brooke awakens his Devil Fruit

Brooke never really thought he could awaken his devil fruit. It’s not like he can turn everything around him to string like Doflamingo. But along his journey and when Luffy becomes King of the Pirates, what he discovers is his awakening allows him to call back the souls of the dead. And he takes full advantage of this.

Brooke specifically waits for the right time to use it for his crew

Luffy:

He waits for Luffy, Sabo, and Garp to be back at their hole town with Makino, Dadan and the other Mountain bandits to have them speak to Ace one last time and tell him he was able to achieve his dream of becoming King of the Pirates. Ace tells Garp that he loves him and that he is sorry for all the pain he has caused him. He is overjoyed to see Sabo alive and thanks him for looking out for Luffy when he couldn’t and Sabo thanks him for the same. Dadan and Makino are overjoyed seeing those three reunited again. Maybe call White beards Soul and Gold Rogers for Ace as well. Roger meeting Luffy and being proud to have someone like Luffy be the next king of the pirates. Luffy made sure to have Shanks and Rayleigh there too so theycan see his old Captain. Roger tells Shanks that he did a job and gave his hat to a worthy man. Rayleigh gets to see his bestfriend one more time and Roger thanks him for helping train Luffy. Roger thanks Garp for taking care of Ace for him and Garp just punches him because he is about to cry (Maybe have Kobe there as a Bonus because Luffy values his friendship and wants to introduce him to his brothers)

Zoro:

They travel to Zoro’s hike town with his sensei and call back Kuina’s soul so he can tell her he achieved his dream and became the worlds greatest swordsman. He tells her that he made sure to take extra care of her sword and that he never forgot their promise to each other and trained hard every day. He even pokes fun at her talking about how Tashigi looks and acts just like her and how she has been chasing him all over the world so it was like Kuina was also chasing after him, trying to achieve her dream which made Zoro train even harder.

Nami:

They return to Cocoyasi Village to meet up with Nojiko and Genzo and call back Bellmere soo they can talk to her again and Nami tells her she achieved her dream of drawing a map of the entire world. She tells her mom about all her travels and how she found a family that can always make her smile. She even shows her the Tangerine trees in the Sunny saying she grows them exactly the same way to make sure her nakama get to have a taste of Bellmere’s tangerines.

Usopp:

They call Usopp’s mom’s soul at his home town so he can tell her he became a brave warrior of the see like his father. He tells her all the adventures he has been on. He starts off by saying “Hi mom. You came back to us” like he used to say about his father. His Dad standing beside him saying that Usopp keep his promise and became a brave pirate, even more great than himself. He introduces his mom and dad to Kaya. His mom absolutely loves her and is happy he found someone. They bond when his mom tells Kaya that it will be hard to love Usopp since he is a pirate and neve home and Kaya responds saying she knows it may be hard, but if Usopp is free, and happy that is all she could ask for. Besides, that the kind of man she fell in love with in the first place.

Sanji:

They meet up with Zeff at the Baratie and call back Sanji’s mom’s soul to tell her that he became and amazing chef and found the all blue. Sanji’s mom thanks Zeff for looking after her son and for teaching him how to be a great chef. Everyone at the Baratie wonder how someone as annoying and argumentative as Sanji could ever come from such a sweet woman. Then Sanji kicks them and they all laugh. (Luffy asked Nami to contact Reiju and tell them to come because he knew she would want to see her kids again and they would love it so Sanji is with his siblings, Judge, and Zeph. Sanji wasn’t happy about it but he realized they were her family too and he couldn’t just keep them from speaking to their mom one more time. Even if most of them are jerks) Sanji shows his mom his cooking by cooking a special meal for her. A variation of the first meal he ever made for her. She says it’s the most wonderful food she has ever tasted and can tell that she actually meant it (i know I know. How can she eat if she’s a soul? Just go with it) Reiju tells her mom she loves her and how sorry she is for not taking better care of Sanji. Her mom tells her what a wonderful job she did and that she loves her. The other brothers finally show emotion that they never knew they could. Seeing their mom again after she died woke something up in them and they apologize for being dicks their entire life and that they love her. She responds by saying that they are her sons and she loves them no matter what. She tells her children what fine and strong people they became. Judge even apologizes to her for everything he’s done (What Sanji did during the Whole Cake Arc really made them reevaluate their life)

Chopper:

They return to The Sakura Kingdome to see Doctor Kureha and Dalton, where they call back Dr. Hiriluk’s should back to tell him that his son went out to see and became an doctor and travelled the seas as a pirate just like Hiriluk wanted. They also recreate his powder again and show him the cherry blossoms one last time before his soul returns to beyond the grave. Chopper even teacher Hiriluk the new things he learned while at sea and all the different diseases and things he has cured. Hiriluk is happy his son went out to sea and thankful when Chopper tells him what Luffy did for him and his flag even before he really knew chopper.

Robin:

Even though they cannot return to Robin’s home, they sail the Sunny to where the island used to be located and call back Robin’s mom and the others archaeologists so Robin can see her mother again and tell them about the lost history. She tells her mom about the Poneglyphs and the other ancient cities she found like Skypiea. As a bonus Brooke also calls back Jaguar D. Saul and Robin tells him that she found her nakama who will protect and cherish her and will never leave her. Saul thanks the Strawhats and after hearing what they did for her at Enies Lobby, he knew she found an amazing crew. He even laughed and smiles at the story saying that Robin has joined one crazy crew. Saul took one last long look at the people who would challenge the world if it meant protecting Robin and knew that she would never be lonely and sad again. Her mother gave her a hug and said she’s happy that she survived the buster call and how proud she is for becoming an archaeologist and finding out the lost history.

Franky:

They return to Water 7 and meet with Granny Kokoro and call back Tom’s soul. Cranky gets to tell him that he created a ship that sailed across the entire world just like he did and is now the shipwright to the new King of the Pirates. Iceberg tells him that he is working on or completed making Water 7 float. Tom is proud of the man iceberg became, and how successful and beloved he is as the mayor of Water 7. Tom takes a look at the Sunny and says it’s even greater than anything he could have built including the Oro Jackson, Roger’s ship. He admires the work and detail Frank put into the ship and could tell that the crew loved their ship very much. Tom meets Nico Robin and apologizing for doubting her and believing she would use her knowledge for evil. Robin smiles and says it’s ok and they talk all night. Tom meets the Franky Family, the people willing to storm Enies Lobby to save Franky. He thanks them and The Strawhats for saving his son hd apologizes to Franky and Iceberg for even putting them through that by passing down the Pluton blueprints. They laugh it off and Franky says he is actually thankful to have had them because without it, he would have never joined the Strawhats and build the ship of his dream.

Jinbe:

They return to Fishman island where they reunite with Shirahoshi, and her family. With Jinbe, the recall Fisher Tiger and Queen Otohime’s soul. They get to tell the two that the relationship between fishmen and humans have gotten better. Jinbe can tell Fisher Tiger all he had accomplished including jointing the Strawhats. Shirahoshi and her family can tell Otohime that they returned to they participate in discussions with the world government and other countries and have a good relationship with humans. Shirahoshi tells her mom about how Luffy taught her to be brave. They both leave knowing their species is in good hands and thank the Strawhats for being the gateway to the fishmen co-existing with humans

Brooke:

When they return and see Laboon again, Brooke calls back the spirits of his old crew so they can all keep their promis to Laboon. They play their music for Laboon again so he can hear the real thing instead of the recording (don’t ask me how they can play jules if if their dead just go along with it. It’s sweeter that way). Brooke can introduce his old crew to his new one, telling his old captain not to worry because even with them gone, he has found a new place he can call home.

Vivi: (and the rest of the crew)

If Vivi’s father dies (because it seems like that may happen) They return to Alabasta and Vivi and Karoo get to see the King Nefertari again and maybe her mom too considering I don’t actually know what happened to her. Vivi is happy to meet to new crew members and love how none of them have changed personality wise. Robin apologizes nonstop and Vivi forgives her in a second. She says that anyone Luffy likes is a good person so Robin doesn’t need to apologize anymore. She even thanks her for not telling Crocodile where Pluton is and for all the times she has saved Luffy. While there at Alabasta, he aslo calls back the spirit of the Going Merry. The very same Klabautermann that saved them time after time. They thought about doing this at Usopp’s village but he said that Vivi was once a part of their crew too and deserves the chance to see the Merry again. The spirit of the merry is happy they found a new ship to call home and is thankful to Franky building the ship. It even says that it knew of the ship because part of her spirit is still with them, on the mini merry and thanks Franky for building it out of her wood. This causes every to cry saying how happy they are that the Merry is still with them (yes even Zoro. He tried to not cry but couldn’t help it. He turned around thinking Sanji would make fun of him But Sanji knew that he could never make fun of him for this). Usopp and Luffy immediately says that the mini merry cannot be in the docking stations anymkre and bring her onto the deck. No one disagrees or argues with them.

Law:

As a thanks to Trafalgar Law for all his help and everything they’ve been through, they call back Corazone’s soul and he tells him that he loves him and is greatful for everything he did for him. He introduces him to the Heart pirates, named in honor of Corazone and shows him that he made the right decision in saving his life. Law also insisted that Sengoku be there because he loved Corazone like a son. Sengoku at this point is retired and he’s never admit this, but he is happy that Law and Luffy met because it gave him another moment with the man he viewed as a son. (Sengoku also couldn’t help but notice how much alike Luffy and Garp are. Especially when Garp was Luffy’s age and laughs knowing how much trouble Luffy will give the Navy considering the amount of trouble Garp gave the Navy and he worked for them)

Rebecca:

They return to Dressrosa and let Rebecca,Kyros, Viola and the other see Scarlett again where she sees that her daughter grew up to be an amazing woman and that Kyros has protected ever since.

Momonosuke:

They Return to Wano and Momonosuke, Hiyori, kin and the other Samurai can see Oden again and his wife. Momonosuke can tell his father that he is following in his footsteps in order to become a great Shogun to make sure Wano prospers. Hiyori tells her father that she gave his sword, Enma, to Zoro. She thought he’d be mad so she tried to explain to him that he saved her life, Saved Wano, and is a worthy swordsman but Oden stops her midway saying that he doesn’t care about the sword. He’s just happy his family is safe and that if she gave his sword away, he knows that it would have been for a good cause and to someone worthy. The other Samurai get to tell Oden that they avenged him and saved his country like they promised. They even bring back Yasui so his daughter can see him again. Momonosuke also introduce his father to O-Tama and his father likes her and thinks she’s a good math for his son. Momonosuke blushes but Luffy, Kin, Nami, Robin, Sanji, Zoro and honestly everyone agrees and already consider them as a couple. Brooke even brings back Ryuma so they can clear Zoro’s name of stealing Shisui. Zoro spars with Ryuma and Oden. Their fight changes the geography of Wano a bit.

Carrot:

They go to Zou and call back Pedro’s soul so Carrot and everyone can see him. Carrot thanks him and shows him how strong she became. Luffy thanks him for sacrificing himself for him and Pedro is happy knowing the Dawn of the New World that he believed was coming has finally arrived. He never regretted his sacrifice for a second.

I’m assuming there is a 24 hour limit to each soul called back or something like it. But if not consider that after they each have their own individual heartfelt moment with their loved ones that they lost, the Strawhats bring EVERYONE, and yes I mean everyone that was mentioned, to Laugh Tale for a huge party. All the souls of the departed that where mentioned meet each other and celebrate the Luffy becoming King of the Pirates. Roger, Rayleigh and Whitebeard get to see Oden again. Nami ends up punching Gold Roger for doing something stupid on a reflex thinking it was Luffy. It actually really hurts Roger and as Nami apologizes, Bellmere looks proudly at her. Luffy laughs and Nami beats him up twice as hard. Roger, Whitebeard, Shanks, Oden and Fisher Tiger are now scared of her. They know Luffy has the best Navigator in the world, but are wondering if it’s worth it with him much she has punched Luffy in the short time they’ve know her. All while Brooke and the Rumbar Pirates play Bink’s Sake the entire time.

(If someone wants to make art of this, please do and tag me in it so I can see it and cry of happiness)

[ask-the-marimozoro]

(( Long post, this contains fragments of the manga ))

This is so hard to tell, Zoro (like every other strawhat) has a lot of amazing moments so this is gonna be a bit hard? I’m sorry I cannot choose only one bc they’re so many so here’s a little compilation ;;;;

( First off I'm going to say that EACH and EVERY interaction Zoro has with the strawhats are my favorite moments in One Piece, specially between Zoro and Sanji; leaving to a side the fact that I ship them, how they treat, fight and talk to eachother is incredible and always entertaining. Natural, they are just two dudes that clash with one another and I love it ...Their relationship makes me happy, you have no idea how much. )

- "That's what a captain is. "

These  words, after one of my favorite moments in the whole series, destroy me everytime; literally makes me cry every single time. Zoro's face, Luffy and the others suffering in silence after what's done with Usopp send chills all over my body. I know this is a bit simple to be one of my favorite moments but this is just so... heavy.

- Roronoa Zoro vs Ryuma.

Zoro gained my favorite sword until now by fighting a fucking samurai zombie. No words.

- " So that I may surpass you...!!! "

Knowing the swordsman, we know this was too much to bare for him, to his pride, to his honor; and even with that, he bowed a third time in order to become stronger, not only to reach his goal but for his friends, to not let anything they were going through happen again. He thought next time a situation like this come he'd be strong enough to face anything. Now his dream would be worthless If he cannot protect whats precious for him. Zoro won’t allow himself lose anyone ever again Also he trained with Mihawk r u kidding?!?!?

- Zoro's sacrifice.

I guess this is one of the favorite scenes of most of the One Piece fandom and I am not exeption. Zoro, like Sanji, handling the situation and prepared to die in order to protect the captain and the crew is something that we all love, no matter if you like the character or not. This is one of the best scenes in the entire series and it'd be a shame for the character if I don't mention it in this compilation. The second time he bowed to anyone.

I'm adding this scene too because this is the result of the previous act. Once again, Zoro is willing to die for the sake of their comrades and asks to be left behind to not be a burden to the group, to make sure they’ll live. In this point I want to mention that I love the scenes and fights where the swordsman is really fucked up (like Zoro vs Daz Bones, that fight is G O L D). Not that I like him suffer but because it's so strange now to see him like this, wounded, almost dead, fighting not physically but to survive... Zoro were more human in a certain way and I wish we get to see him having things hard in Wano, I’m sorry.

- "Then I'll be the one to leave the crew this time!"

The weight of these words are another level, who have ever thought that bastard would say such thing? The very idea of the “most loyal” strawhat to Luffy leaving the crew is something terrifyng; Zoro is a prideful man, obviously he wouldn't follow anyone; people mostly think, because he also said so, that he said what he said because he doesn't want to follow someone who's been disgraced but I think he thought more about what the others would say about his captain than about himself. Those words didn't mean only "If you let others step on you, I'll leave" that also meant " If any of you disrespect the captain, I'll leave". They are all friends, that was a way to prove if they really care about their friendship too.

- “ Seems you understimated me, snow woman... “

I’ll be honest, sorry If you don’t think as I do but this is one of the best battles Zoro had post time skip. Personally this gets me a lot. Just that. Monet was so precious and is one of my favorite females characters as well. I love Zoro and Tashigi swordsmanship and watching them fighthing “together” is heaven to my eyes. My main ship is ZoSan but when I think in a more reallistic way and you ask me who’s going to end up with Zoro I can only think on Tashigi....or alone. I don’t think he would “fall” for another woman, idk.

- Zoro in Wano.

I’m not showing any pics of Wano because that’s too recent and I guess some people is still in the past arc but...

Bro, the crew is finally in Wano. Bro, Zoro is going to learn fire blade moves I guess, he said so in Punk Hazzard;;;. Bro, he’s a fucking “Ronin” (samurái without master), Bro, probs we’ll see more about Zoro’s past. Just, bro. Now, finished with my fav Zoro moments, I might say that probably my favorite arcs 'til now are Skypea, Water 7, Ennies lobby, Thriller Bark, Whole cake and, for the little we have, Wano. As I said before, Samurais are my weakness. I hope this is enough for you, thanks for asking!

[ximca]

Evidence.ZIP: Nami's slow descent into love

Before we start I want to make clear a few things. This is not paid work which means it's substandard trash, all of the scans used are unofficial, but all the interpretations are mine.

Ready? Set. Go.

This first panel is not a shipping panel. LuNa or SaNa, it's not. However because it's been some days since Sanji took off, that means between that day and the day Luffy and company arrived, he's been on her mind. Again I stress, this is not a romantic sign or symbol of any note. Her tears are of worry and relief because she's been worried sick for her nakama and relief because finally, Luffy's here, let's get the rescue rolling.

The next two pictures are about Nami being eager to get off their butts and go after Sanji right away. But Luffy and Zoro are in no hurry, and even Chopper and Brook in other panels are just sad that Sanji is gone but they're not like Nami who's gung ho about chasing him right away. Does that mean they’re not worried about Sanji? No, of course they are, but Nami obviously is the most worried here.

Right before everything happened, Nami was pretty belligerent towards Sanji. She's used to everything he does, including his antics. But by no means does that mean she's apathetic to him. After all, even as early as FI our guy Sanji put in the work. In PH even if he didn't like it, he followed Nami's wish to save the kids and his body serendipitously saved Nami from Caesar's explosion. Nami knows that Sanji would save any other of his nakama, but it was only during the time skip that she began to see how much special attention Sanji actually paid her. And she doesn't even know yet, that Sanji gave her body respect when he dived that lake to get Kinemon's torso, when just a few minutes ago he was cupping her breasts like a madlad for a punchline.

Nami also remembers quite clearly what little Sanji told them about his family. It doesn't seem anything special until you realize that when this happened, Nami asked Chopper right before to dig a spot up for gold, and forgot all about it entirely when Sanji was telling them about Liar Norland.

So then Sanji and co. got captured. This is what I think triggered Nami, the "I'll be back but not really" smile she's seen twice in her life now: Sanji's and Bellemere's. She never really knew what she had until he was gone.

In this panel Nami is mad at Zoro for victim blaming Sanji. Both sides have a point, but take note of Luffy. He noticed, as well as I did (and a few others), that Nami was being a teensy bit overreacting at this point. Why I judged that to be his action instead of Luffy observing the back and forth, is because he’s of the same opinion as Zoro...marriages are no big deal, it’s not like somebody won’t return from a marriage. But Nami’s uncomfortable with it, so in order to remedy the problem, he decides to go up to Sanji and ask him to come back, because their navigator was being cranky when he wasn’t around. Also because he didn’t want to be a Big Mom subordinate, but if it was really the basis of his decision then he should have decided the chase before Nami’s overreaction.

The other two victims, Brook and Chopper, had very different stances. Brook was the calm and mature narrator while Chopper just kept apologizing.

See again Luffy in this panel. But, in addition to noticing Nami's vehement objection to Sanji's Vinsmoke lineage, there's also what I call the "wait a minute!" graphic. It's those small lines that form a semicircle near a character when something catches their attention during someone else's monologue. So now he knows something's definitely up with Nami, if he wasn't sure before.

That face isn't a "wait a minute, what are Vinsmokes?" but rather a "wait a minute, why are you objecting?"

For comparison, this is Nami’s “wait a minute, I know who you’re talking about” panel.

After the Jack ownage, Luffy was open to another banquet like he wasn't done with one the night before. Nami feels once is enough, let's get going, and gives her usual excuse of "you can't go anywhere without a navigator" spiel like Luffy doesn't know what she does. Go back to when Luffy visited Pekoms, he was still saying no to her because the fewer the members the higher the chance of stealth. But now all he says is OK. He knows that somebody on his crew can't wait to see Sanji again, and he's all too happy to oblige.

Even in this catfight prelude, Nami wants to hurry up, giddy up. But when Pudding elaborates on her situation...

THIS is where I think Nami caught herself slippin'. Luffy's just happy with someone complimenting his cook, Chopper is concerned with fact checking, but Nami...is concerned about Sanji's emotional well-being? If she really didn't give him the time of day then why the hell does she care whether Sanji marries for love and not just for political reasons? Just Nami well-wishing? Can't be, because well-wishers would not question whether or not the bride loves her groom in a political marriage.

ANYBODY else would give the happy bride-to-be a congratulations but only a "former-gf-who-has-accepted-the-reality-of-the-situation-who-still-has-residual-feelings-of-love" would confirm for herself if the man she left/who left her is being loved by his bride-to-be.

And before someone says “But family members and to an extent nakama would ask that too!”, they won’t question the bride’s/groom’s feelings, but whether or not he/she is ready to take care of their partner for the rest of their life. Nami isn’t asking “Will you take care of Sanji for the rest of his life?”

Also I think this conversation makes One Piece finally fail the Bechdel Test after all these years.

Fast forward to when they caught up with the Germa, that's Nami's face of relief from being worried about not being able to see each other again. If Sanji were his normal self this is probably where he'd ask her Do you love me now, Nami-san? or something. And after Nami fighting about quarter/half of 11 hours vs Cracker (this dude could take several G4 punches too), she'd probably reply to him in kind at that point.

I have no doubt in my mind that this Nami was one who already recognized her feelings and had no problem acting on them.

But reality is cruel...Sanji wasn't taking any chances. Even going as far as mock Luffy for his dream...and she believed it...despite hearing about a week ago from his own mouth that Luffy was going to be PK!

Luffy never believed the cockbull Sanji was cranking out, so why did Nami? Well for starters, Nami never experienced Sanji lying to her. Ever. You can even search the whole manga for a panel up to that point where Sanji lied to her, you won't find it. That's why she believed Sanji's lies so easily.

Do you remember the Usopp vs Luffy fight? The stated reason is because Usopp doesn't want to leave the Merry behind, due to his own insecurity about being weak and his projection onto the boat being useless and needing replacement which snowballed into him cracking. But was that really all it was? Of course not, Usopp wasn't selfish enough to fight for himself. Flee for himself maybe. He wasn't just fighting for the Merry Go, he was also fighting for Kaya because Merry was his reminder of her.

Scour the manga, all of Usopp's most emotional fight moments are because he was fighting for someone else.

Back to Nami, what did the slap mean? Was it anger at beating Luffy up and spitting on his dream? Yes. Was it because of all the stress and worry for him being useless at that point? Yes. But as a natural opposite of Usopp, Nami's most emotional fight moments are about herself.

Nami decided to fight Arlong because of his continued tyranny towards Cocoyashi Village despite her doing her best to pay up their freedom, but the bulk of her anger was about how much Arlong fucked her life up. Thanks to him she never grew up with a normal childhood.

With Nami vs Ms. Doublefinger, I think Nami even decided to leave her to Zoro. However because she was being labeled a weakling (and underestimated), she decided to stay and fight. Nami vs Kalifa was a similar case of underestimation despite her taking the fight because Sanji was useless against Kalifa.

I think Nami was also mad that Sanji wasn't the same man she realized she fell in love with. Gone was the kind, humble, and goofy man who would stick up for his nakama and their dreams. In his place was a snotty brat who acted superior to everything and believed status gave them the right to shit on other people's dreams. Nami thinks Sanji has changed for the worse because of his newfound status, and drops the endearment term “-kun” which she only used for him.

It's framed like in TV dramas where the lady slaps the man out of passion. Yonji even lampshades it: "She's the fiery type!"

The last pic is just Nami’s “oh shit no” look compared to Luffy’s “oh shit” one.

I’m too tired to continue so I’m stopping this here.

Better researchers than I can spot where Nami first got infatuated by Sanji.

All I’m saying is, they don’t really care about us Sanami shippers should not worry about the character development Oda gave Nami in the Year of Sanji. It’s been a long time coming for us but it’s the last stretch before the game ends.

Don’t expect Oda to give them a flashy confession or an extraordinary action to validate the ship.

But if I read Oda right and this is where he wants Sanji and Nami to take the next step into their relationship, we’re in the green.

Naysayers will say things like “but Nami would do the same for the other nakama” or “so and so would act like that too” but take heed and remember, Oda does not write without reason. He MADE Nami overreact because he wants US to care that Sanji was taken from the crew. He WROTE Sanji into catching Nami with both of them sharing a brief smile because he wants US to feel the relief of both parties safe in each other’s hold.

And he DREW Pudding being jealous because that’s how some other ships feel about this arc. jk ilu guise this is just banter

Thanks for reading.

[kyutoryu]

Swan Song’s Heist [zolu week]

Fandom: One PIece

Pairing: Zoro/Luffy

Rating: T

Summary:  The masquerade is the site of both robbery and a murder mystery, but Zoro finds the real crime is Nami meddling in his love life.

extra: ME AND @asexualzoro wrote this for free space day for zolu week! we tried to fit like. every prompt in this so YEAH

[FF.NET LINK] [AO3 LINK]

or just click that read more

"Listen up, everyone. I want to go over the plan one more time. Everyone at this party is rich, so there's a lot to gain. I don't want to mess this up," Nami says. She looks in the rear view mirror at her friends in the back of the car to make sure they're paying attention. A sharp glare towards Usopp and Luffy, who are busy shoving at each other's faces, makes them both freeze up and direct their gazes toward her. Satisfied, she looks back at the road in front, "I'll be doing all the robbing. I've been posing as a maid here over the past week, so no one will suspect me moving around. Even so, these are nobles, they’ve always been paranoid, so all of you need to be my distraction so no one notices what I'm doing. I want this to work, okay?" Nami glances in the rear view mirror again, then taps the fox-themed mask on her face, "Remember not to remove your masks once we enter. This is a masquerade, and the police have been plastering our faces on every news channel for weeks. Stick to your characters, too, and try not to call each other by name. You all remember your characters?"

"Nami, I wanna wear the hero mask," Luffy complains loudly, ignoring her, "why does Usopp get it? Let me!"

"Your mask is fine, Luffy. I picked it out, special." Nami says, "Usopp's mask has a big hole in it for his nose, anyway. You don't want it."

"And a dragon is cool!" Usopp grabs Luffy's draconic mask by the corners, then snaps it against his face. The little red scales decorating the mask shine in the light of streetlamps that pass by their cars as he does, the design of it poking into his cheeks a bit. Its angular shape to match the shape of a dragon’s face doesn’t necessarily feel nice against his skin, especially not when snapped back on. Luffy shoves at Usopp’s hands, ready to start something in defiance.

"Okay, roles," Nami repeats loudly, stopping that before it started. Snapping her fingers, She continues, "This is a huge job for us! I don't want to fuck it up and I've already got Vivi covering for us back at home. So, I'm a maid, and Robin is..."

"A detective," Robin finishes smoothly, sitting in the back of the large van. It's the only thing that can somewhat fit their group, "A private one; to be specific. That's just if anyone asks."

"I'm a construction worker," Franky says, though it's unlikely anyone will ask him, as he won't be in the ballroom. In the seat next to him, Chopper speaks up.

"I'm a doctor! Or at least, learning to be one," Chopper says, “Which...isn’t that far off from the truth.”

"I'm a... what am I again?" Usopp blinks, confused, "besides a totally badass hero?"

"I'm a cook," Sanji interjects, "But that's not any different. Tonight I shall woo all the ladies of the party as a distraction for my lovely Nami!"

He grins, squished in the seat with Usopp and Luffy. Zoro in the front passenger seat spares Nami a glance, to which she just shrugs.

"Brook's working as a musician, so he's already at the party," Nami explains. The mansion, large and impressive even in the dark, comes into view. Nami pulls up a long driveway, and after she parks she turns to face Zoro and Luffy, "Luffy and Zoro, you two need to be ready to cover our retreat in case things go south so we can get out alright. Don't break character."

"What's our character again?" Luffy says, messing with his mask. He and Nami are the only ones already wearing theirs, as most everyone else had left theirs off in their laps for the ride over.

"Newlyweds," Zoro answers, staring at the fake ring on his finger, "Me and you are newlyweds, Luffy."

"Oh, right," Luffy says, looking at his own ring. The diamonds are plastic, Nami didn't want to spend much on their disguises. Hopefully no one will look to hard at them.

"Zoro, Luffy, don't leave each other's sides. You need to stick together in case something happens," Nami says, "Zoro, you also need to make sure Luffy doesn't cause any trouble that would jeopardize the plan. And be convincing! You're supposed to be soulmates, act like you love each other!"

Zoro frowns. Goddamn Nami, setting them to this role as to 'push things along.' How could this push anything along? Sure, he's got something bad for Luffy, but he doesn't need help and he doesn't need it like this!

"I'm gonna stick to the food bar," Luffy grins, unaware of Zoro's thoughts, "That'll be easy, right?"

"We're just there to mill around while Nami steals shit," Zoro shrugs, twisting the ring absently. How the hell is he supposed to make this convincing?

"Yeah, so don't mess it up. If Luffy sticks to the food bar, you'd better stick to him. Just enjoy the party, you two," Nami says, "The rest of you know the distraction plan already, so if there aren't any more questions, we can head inside. If this works out, we're going to be rich!"

They pile out of the car, filtering inside. Zoro puts on his mask, waiting for Luffy to come to him. Since he has to be married to Luffy for the night, he may as well walk in with Luffy.

Everyone at the party is dressed to the nines, and the crew is no exception. The party is a fantasy-themed masquerade, hosted by and for elites. The wealthy and the noble fill the ballroom, as do their security guards. This makes it an operation of high risk and, if successful, high reward.

"So me and Zoro are married," Luffy says as they approach the front door, "That's kinda weird!"

"I don't know where she comes up with this stuff," Zoro says as he holds out his arm for Luffy to take, "If we're going to be married, you should hold onto me. Couples hold hands and shit, right?"

"Sure!" Luffy grabs onto Zoro's arm, "I dunno, I've never been in a relationship!"

"Of course you have, we're married. You must've dated me at some point," Zoro says, grinning. He leads Luffy into the mansion by the arm.

The ballroom is lit up brightly, decorated heavily. People in fantastical masks mill around, barely paying any attention to those entering. Luffy smiles at the party aspect of it all, but the whole... stuck-up rich person, not-really-a-banquet vibe doesn't really get with him.

Zoro watches Luffy, letting his smiling faux-husband lead him to the food table. Luffy immediately releases Zoro's arm, instead grabbing a plate to start piling it high with food. Zoro continues to watch Luffy as he grabs food upon food to eat. Zoro turns away briefly, awkward. Is this where they starts acting like they're married?

"Slow down, uh... honey. Don't want to grab more than you can eat," Zoro says.

"...Honey?" Luffy snickers, barely holding back full blown laughter.

"We're in love. I'm acting like it," Zoro mutters, grabbing his own plate, "You know, pet names."

"Okay Zoro, Whatever you say," Luffy continues to huff a bit of laughter under his breath as he grabs more food.

"If you dislike the pet names, I'll drop them," Zoro says.

"Hmm..." Luffy hums, shoving an appetizer into his mouth, "Nah, we're married. So it's ok," He grins.

"Alright, but if you're going to laugh every time, I’m stopping," Zoro says. It isn't much of a threat, though, as Luffy seems indifferent to them and they just embarrass Zoro.

"I won't!" Luffy takes his plate and stands against the wall, Zoro following, "How long is Nami gonna take?"

"I don't know. Probably a while," Zoro says, "We'll probably be here a few hours, so just relax."

"Boring," Luffy pokes at his food, looking at Zoro now. "Zoro's got a cool mask, but I'm cooler. I'm a dragon."

"What, demons aren't cool?" Zoro asks, "Demons are way cooler. If a demon and a dragon fought, I bet the demon would win."

"Nah, dragons are cooler and much stronger, so there’s no way they’d lose," Luffy taps on his mask, feeling the fake scales, "I'm a dragon."

"You sure are," Zoro says, reaching up a bit to rest an arm on top of Luffy’s head, "Smallest dragon I've ever seen. Aren’t they supposed to tower over their enemies?”

"Dragons bite," Luffy warns, "Zoro's demon mask is pretty nice, though. He's got horns."

Zoro grins, turning his head to show off. The horns are long and black, and though they're heavy, they're impressive enough that it's worth it.

"Pretty damn cool, right?" Zoro asks. Luffy reaches up, tugging on the horn.

"Nami said I couldn't have anything like these, I'd break 'em," Luffy says.

"You do break a lot of stuff," Zoro says.

"It's fine." Luffy dumps the food into his mouth, going back for more. Zoro watches Luffy go from the wall, awaiting his return. He’s not sure if Luffy feels this, but conversation with him feels so much more awkward now that they’re pretending to be a couple. Conversations used to move so smoothly with Luffy, but now everything he’s saying feels… forced. Zoro picks at his suit jacket, wondering if pretending to date will hurt their relationship more than it helps.

The lapse of silence that follows as Luffy eats and Zoro struggles to find a topic to talk about is interrupted by a very triumphant tone cutting into all other conversations, stopping nobles dancing and people mingling alike.

"I'm a world-renowned sharpshooter! So famous, they call me the King of Snipers!" Usopp says to the pink-haired man listening to him, loud enough to draw the attention of a few other attendants than just the one he's speaking to, "I could shoot a mouse's eye a hundred yards away! I could do it with my eyes closed, even! You'll never meet a sniper half as skilled as me!"

Usopp makes grand gestures as he speaks, keeping the attention of the small crowd he'd gathered with his words, spinning fantastical stories to impress his listeners. Whether or not they believe him, though, is a different matter entirely.

"Really?! A mouse's eye?!" Chopper exclaims, easily amused and happy to listen to Usopp's tales.

"Of course!" Usopp slams a fist on his chest with confidence, "Hell, I could kill it with a knife, fired straight from my slingshot!"

"That's amazing!" Chopper cries, believing every word. Usopp seems to soak up the attention he gets for his story, though it's hard to tell given that his mask covers his whole face. He continues entertaining those who are close enough to hear in stories of his past feats, all heavily exaggerated.

Luffy stands next to Zoro, eating absently as they watch the crowds mingle and move. His attention is drawn back to the present as Zoro notices a girl eying him from across the room. She wears a heavily decorated mask and a very large blue dress which shimmers in the light. Soon she’s striding forth, coming across the way to talk.

"Hello," She curtsies upon walking up to him, smiling. "Are you enjoying the party?"

It's clear she's only talking to Zoro.

"I'm having fun," Zoro says, nodding. She's probably around his age, and by her jewelry, definitely rich. With her obvious money and elaborate dress, she may as well be royalty. Zoro stares at her a moment, recognizing her to be Shalulia. She's the daughter of Roswald, an incredibly rich nobleman and the host of the party.

"It's quite the night, isn't it?” Shalulia says, looking around, "Your mask is very... intricate."

Luffy pauses from his motions of shoving food into his face next to Zoro, staring at Shalulia.

"One hell of a mask for one hell of a party," Zoro says, "But yours is just as intricate as mine."

"Mine, too," Luffy butts in, getting closer to Zoro. He gets a bad feeling from this girl. Shalulia barely regards Luffy, a passing glance before focusing on Zoro again.

"Can you guess what I am?" She asks, spinning around, "I had this custom made, you see. The mask, too!"

"You're a princess, right?" Zoro asks. He's pretty sure she's flirting with him, and he's not all that interested. He looks to Luffy, quickly taking Luffy's hand as he looks at Luffy's face, "What do you think, love?"

The pet names still feel alien in Zoro's mouth, but he wants to get his point across.

"I think she looks dumb," Luffy mutters, stepping closer to Zoro.

"I... sorry, what?" She looks at their linked hands. "Love?"

"Love," Zoro says. He brings their linked hands up, "This is my... husband."

"I'm the husband," Luffy says quickly, staring at her.

"Oh... you're..." Shalulia seems to flounder, pulling at her dress a bit, "You're married?"

"Yes, happily married," Zoro says, still watching Luffy. He lets go of Luffy's hand and hesitantly pulls Luffy close to himself, "Very happy, very married. Right, dear?"

The stiffness and awkwardness that Zoro had felt before is back again, but this time amplified everytime he drops a pet name.

"M...married. Yeah," Luffy nods, lips pursing in that way they do when he's lying.

"Oh." Shalulia looks disappointed, "That's, uh... how long?"

"Not long. We're on our honeymoon. Right, honey?" Zoro says.

"Yeah," Luffy responds, squeezing Zoro's hand. Zoro looks a bit surprised, looking at their hands.

"Uh... you’re sure?" Shalulia asks, a little suspicious, catching onto the way Zoro’s looked at their hands then to his ‘husband’s’ face, as if he wasn’t expecting that.

"We're... still getting used to it. The wedding was so... amazing, it's hard to believe it was real," Zoro explains, poorly. Stirring up this story was harder than once thought...

"Was really big," Luffy says quickly, "Uh, we...had...a lot of food there! And--and...a big party!"

She doesn't seem convinced.

"May I see your ring?" She asks, looking at Zoro.

"Sure," Zoro nods, holding his hand out. Zoro has a wedding band, while Luffy got the engagement ring and wedding band combo.

"This seems fake," she says, "Is it... plastic?"

"Uh, well... we kinda had to go cheap," Zoro says, "blew a shit ton on setup."

"Right..." Shalulia says, "How long have you two been together?"

"Two years," Zoro says. It's how long he's known Luffy for. He looks down at his pretend partner and tells Shalulia the first true thing he's said all night, "I've loved him since the day we met."

"Two years?" She questions, "And you just got married? Pretty fast, if you ask me."

"Neither of us asked you." Luffy turns his head toward her, the blank stare he gives her almost threatening. She falters, moving back a bit out of instinct.

"I didn't-- I've just never heard of anyone marrying after only two years," she says.

"I love him a lot, so we got married," Luffy says.

"I..." Shalulia plays with her hair more, floundering, "You're very lucky, then."

Luffy looks up at Zoro.

"With him by my side, I'm the luckiest on earth," Luffy says. Zoro's surprised by the sincerity. When did Luffy learn to lie? He sounds like he means it, and Zoro would like to think he does... Zoro gets the gut wrenching urge to push the mask up off Luffy's face and kiss him, just to see how he'd react. His hair pushed back from the mask being moved, his lips slightly open from surprise... Zoro cuts off the thoughts. As if he'd be able to do that. He focuses back on the matter, Luffy can lie and get away with it.

"I'm the luckiest," Zoro says quietly, "...Anyway, yeah. This is my husband."

"Right. Your husband," Shalulia says. She looks Luffy up and down, then looks back to Zoro, "Guess you would say no if I asked you to dance?"

"I'd say no," Zoro agrees, "A honeymoon is celebrated with the one you married, after all."

"Right. Of course," She says, "Well, this was... fun, but I think we're done here."

Shalulia walks off, deciding to find someone else to talk to.

Sanji peruses the party calmly, searching the ground. He's got a huge grin on his face, waiting to see a beautiful lady to talk to. He sees a girl walking away from Zoro and Luffy, in a huff.

"Mademoiselle!" Sanji calls, practically twirling toward her, "I was frozen by your beauty, o beautiful princess. May we dance?"

"Dance?" Shalulia asks. She looks Sanji over. He's not the same kind of handsome as that last man, but he hasn't got a ring and his princely mask is certainly more appealing... She offers her hand, "Lead the way."

"Wonderful!" Sanji cries, whisking her off to the dance floor, "a beautiful lady such as yourself shouldn't be alone on a night like this. You may call me... Prince."

He would say his real name, but that's the thing with being a wanted criminal, you really shouldn't give that out.

"Prince? Then you may call me Princess," she says. They dance for a little before she speaks again, "You can dance well. Is there any other skills you might want to show me?"

"Ah, I would love to, but I can't here," Sanji smiles, twirling her, "I'm a skilled chef, you see. One of the best, if I may."

"You are? What kind of dish are you best with, then?" she asks. She has to speak up a little, for as they dance they get closer to the band. Brook sits up at front, though he doesn't seem to notice Sanji dancing just in front of him.

"I'm best with seafoods, you see," Sanji explains, "My father trained me when I was young on the best ways to cook. How to cut things, where to do it... it's important to me that my hands are always ready to cook."

"That's very impressive," She says, "If only you could cook for me, I would love to watch those hands at work."

"I-I would love to cook for you!" Sanji looks shocked and excited, the fact that a woman actually is interested in his advances is new and exciting, "I shall impress you with my knife skills and fine cuisine!"

"I look forward to it," She says, grinning.

Zoro watches Shalulia dancing with Sanji a moment, then looks down to Luffy again. Zoro would like to dance with Luffy, and if they're married, they probably should, right? Just imagining holding Luffy close to dance... If Zoro's ever going to dance with Luffy, it'll have to be now.

"Speaking of dancing..." Zoro starts, "We've been standing by this wall for a while. Do you want to dance with me?"

"I can dance!" Luffy says, and it’s in such a burst it’s almost as if he was waiting impatiently the whole entire time for Zoro to ask, pulling Zoro to the floor without any hesitation, "Don't step on my feet, though."

"I'm not going to step on your feet," Zoro says, letting Luffy lead their dancing.

The song is fairly fast, but before Zoro can be thankful they don't have to slow dance, the song fades out. As if Zoro's thoughts summoned it, a far more romantic song begins to play. Zoro looks to the musicians nearby, where he sees Brook grinning at him from under his skeletal mask. Is everyone determined to try to help him and Luffy along?

"I'm going to kill you for this..." Zoro mutters, gaining a look from a few nearby dancers, Luffy included.

"Why's Zoro gonna kill him?" Luffy asks, "We're just dancing."

Luffy doesn't really hide the fact he wants to keep dancing.

"...Right," Zoro says. He continues letting Luffy lead him in silence for a few moments, but the close contact and romantic music have his mind wandering. Luffy was incredibly convincing before with Shalulia, and Zoro wants to know where the ability to do so came from. Zoro soon speaks up, "Hey, Luffy, when did you learn to lie? You even had me fooled for a moment back there with some of the stuff you said, like being the luckiest to have me..."

"I am the luckiest, so it wasn't a lie," Luffy says, squeezing Zoro's hand. "I'm really bad at lying, so I decide to be truthful."

"Oh," Zoro says. His voice is quiet, as the music is soft. Zoro can barely hear the song anymore, though, his focus is on Luffy only, "You know, I wasn't lying about everything, either. I was telling the truth when I said I was the luckiest, too, and... some other stuff."

"I can't tell when Zoro lies," Luffy replies quietly, stopping their swaying for a moment, "What else did Zoro say that was truthful?"

"What else?" Zoro asks. He said he's loved Luffy since they met and he meant it, but should he tell Luffy that?

"Zoro forgot?" Luffy takes his response as confusion, "Then... maybe I can try and show Zoro what I felt when we were talking. Maybe he’ll remember.”

Zoro doesn't know what Luffy means by that, but he nods.

"Show me what you felt," Zoro says.

In the dark of the mansion's basement, Franky opens the door to the fuse box. He uses a light attached to his robotic mask to see, something those upstairs in the ballroom are soon sure to wish they had. The power only needs to be off for a few moments, and hopefully Nami will be able to steal without interference.

Luffy tightens his hold on Zoro, then moves his hands up to Zoro’s cheeks, thumbs under the mask. He slowly pushes it back, onto Zoro’s head, and presses up against Zoro, his hands moving to Zoro’s shoulders. He glances at Zoro’s lips, leaning in, hoping Zoro will get the memo.

Zoro takes a second to realize what's happening, then leans down to reciprocate. Before he can get close enough, the lights suddenly cut. There's a few shouts of shock as those in attendance try to figure out what's happening, and Zoro pulls away from the near-kiss. Suddenly there's a scream, and the music sours with the sudden loss of a violin. It clatters loudly to the ground and Zoro grabs Luffy's waist, pulling him closer, Luffy tightens his hold on Zoro’s shoulder out of shock, twisting the fabric of his suit in his hands. The darkness stretches a moment longer, and when the lights flicker back on, Brook is on the floor. A woman screams, someone in the crowd faints, and the host, Roswald, looks horrified.

“Is he dead!?” He says, “The party is ruined! Get to the bottom of this, someone, right now!”

"Brook!" Luffy yells, shocked, wrenching away from Zoro.

There's blood on his chest, a stab wound in his heart. He was old, sure, so maybe this was bound to happen soon, but nobody wanted it like that!

"S-Stay back!" A pink haired man yells as Luffy rushes toward the body, "Don't touch the body!"

Luffy tries to rush forward anyway but is stopped by Zoro, who grabs him. The pink haired man--the same who Usopp had been talking to earlier--approaches Brook. He's cut off by Chopper, who runs forward.

"I'm a doctor!" Chopper says, "Let me try and help him!"

Chopper kneels down next to the body, checking him over. If it weren't for how serious the situation was, it would almost be laughable to see someone in a reindeer mask kneeling over a bloody body. However, no one finds any comedy in it as he sits up, solemn-faced.

"He's... he's dead." Chopper says, "His pulse is already gone, the wound hit his heart..."

"Let me go!" Luffy is practically wrestling Zoro, "What's wrong with you, Zoro?! Let me go! Who the hell did this?!"

"What're you going to do? You can't help him," Zoro says. He can't let Luffy near Brook and he knows it.

"Who would have done something like this?" Chopper asks.

"Yes, who?" Robin seems to emerge from shadows, smiling, "Clearly this wasn't done alone. The lights went off, and a body appears. Who among us?" She clasps her hands behind her back, and Luffy stares at her, shocked. She looks to the pink haired man, "Well, Mr. Policeman?"

"It's Coby," The pink haired man says, introducing himself, "The weapon was a knife... who could use one? It would have to be someone close..."

"Or someone able to throw one," Chopper offers.

"Let's look at the people nearby, then." Robin says, "Would anyone here have been able to do it?"

"There's the other musicians," Coby says, "They're all close to him."

"Their hands are all full with instruments," Robin says, "They'd have to make an extra hand appear out of thin air to kill him, which isn't something anyone can do."

"Then those on the dance floor," Coby says. "They're close enough to run forward and stab him."

"So up front, our suspects are a hero, a prince, and a princess," Robin says. She doesn't want to accuse Luffy or Zoro, since Zoro is supposed to keep Luffy from getting upset. Luffy could ruin everything, after all, "Would any of them--"

"Wait, there's that demon and dragon couple, too," Coby says, cutting Robin off, "They're just as close as the other three. We can't overlook them."

"Of course, my mistake," Robin says. Fine, then she needs to clear their names before Luffy gets worked up, "As I was saying, would any of them have been able to kill him?"

"The hero could have. He told me earlier, he could throw a knife in the dark accurately. He has the skill to be able to do it," Coby says.

"I didn't mean like this!" Usopp says.

"Could the prince or princess have done it?" Robin asks.

"The prince could have!" Shalulia says, "He broke away from me when it got dark, and he said he was good with a knife!"

"In the kitchen, my dear, not in a murder!" Sanji says, but Shalulia steps further away from him. Luffy finally breaks away from Zoro to run forward, trying to get to Brook again, but is caught around the waist by Robin.

"Let me go!" Luffy scratches at her arm as she pushes him back to Zoro.

"What about the couple?" Coby asks, "Charging at the body is suspicious, are you trying to hide evidence?"

"No! He was my friend!" Luffy says, upset he's even being accused.

"It isn't him. He's not good with knives, anyway," Robin says, "Or with lying."

"But it could be his partner," Shalulia says, "I overheard him when we passed! He threatened the musician when the song changed!"

"And he's good with a sword!" Chopper says, caught up in the excitement of the investigation. Luffy looks back at Zoro, shocked.

"I didn't do it! I was dancing with him the whole time!" Zoro said, pointing to Luffy. "He was holding me. I couldn't have killed anyone without him knowing."

"Zoro didn't." Luffy says slowly, irritated that nobody would let him go back to Brook. "But you two?!" He whirls on Usopp and Sanji, both looking surprised, "What the hell is this?! Who did it?!"

"Come on, Luffy. Let the detectives figure it out." Zoro says, pulling him back a few steps.

Unnoticed by those arguing, a maid in a fox mask makes her way through the crowd, a sheet draped over one arm. She bumps into a few people as she goes, making her way to the front of the ballroom to pass the sheet off to Chopper. He tosses the sheet over Brook, and the maid leaves. With their focuses on the murder, no one in the crowd notices if their pockets are suddenly lighter as she goes by.

"What the hell is your problem?" Luffy whispers harshly, "Brook is dead! Someone killed him--one of our friends! Let me go!"

"Trouble in paradise?" Shalulia sneers, "I still think he killed him!"

"I didn't. You know that," Zoro says, looking at Luffy, "Luffy, do you trust me?"

"Should I?" Luffy seems unsure, holding away from Zoro.

"Please," Zoro says, "Luffy, if you trust me, just sit this one out. Things will be alright, I swear."

"How can I sit this out?!" Luffy demands, shaking his head.

"Luffy, there's nothing you can do. Let those two handle this," Zoro says. He stops holding Luffy so tight and instead cups Luffy's face in his hands. He's become used to casual affection over the course of the night, so it's far more natural. He meets Luffy's eyes, "I'm asking you to trust me. Calm down and wait, things will work out."

Luffy visibly relaxes a fraction of an inch, looking at Brook. Luffy sucks in a breath and tightens his hold on Zoro's shirt, clearly upset. "I'm gonna kill whoever did it."

"I know," Zoro says, nodding. He wraps his arms around Luffy, hoping to ease Luffy's pain. Luffy seems to take comfort in it, turning his face away and into Zoro's chest.

"So the couple didn't do it," Robin says, watching them, "What about you, hero?"

"No, of course not!" Usopp says, "He was my friend! He was both of our friend! Why would we?"

"He's right," Sanji says, "We all know that musician. None of us would kill him!"

"But one of you did." Coby worries at the edge of his jacket, "I'm sorry, but it's true, and this shouldn't just be solved by us."

"What do you mean?" Robin asks, "Who else is supposed to help?"

"The police!" Coby cries, "We shouldn't just be standing here! We should call them right away!"

"That's not necessary," Robin says, "I'm a detective and you're a police officer, we should be able to solve this without help."

"You're not a detective I've ever seen before," Coby says, though her witchy mask does cover most of her face.

"I'm quite private," She explains, "That's why. Come now, let's just solve this." Robin tucks some hair behind her ear, "The couple has an alibi, correct?"

"Like I said," Zoro is keeping Luffy close, "we were holding onto each other the whole time. And with how upset he is? Why the hell would I do it? He was my friend too."

"He was friends with all of you, and still he's dead," Coby says, "That excuse doesn't mean anything, unfortunately."

"He was still holding me," Luffy turns his head, "So it wasn't me or Zoro."

"Zoro? That name's familiar..." Coby says.

"Probably that movie about the swordsman," Zoro says. He really doesn't need to be arrested because Luffy forgot not to say his name in front of a cop, "You have bigger mysteries to solve than where you've heard my name before."

"Right," Coby says slowly, turning to look at the body, "If I can't find something soon, I'm taking you all in for questions. I'm sorry."

Coby starts walking towards Brook, but Robin grabs his arm.

"Aren't we supposed to question them? You don't need to look at the body," She says.

"I need to see if anything on his body will hint at who did it!" Coby insists, "You're the detective!"

"It's faster with a partner," Robin lies easily.

"Inspecting the body will only take a moment and it will make questioning easier," Coby says. Robin lets him go, not wanting to raise suspicion. She watches him lean over Brook, stepping back. Nami better be done, or this was about to be busted if Brook couldn't keep acting dead.

Coby's thankful he wore gloves with his suit, it'll allow him to inspect the murder weapon without leaving finger prints. He pulls back the sheet, then reaches down to pull the knife from the musician's chest when a hand stops him. It's the musician. Coby doesn't have time to scream before the back-from-the-dead man starts laughing at him.

"Brook..." Sanji sighs, frowning. There goes the plan.

"I'm sorry!" Brook laughs, clutching his stomach, "it--it was just so WORTH it!"

"What's going on!?" Coby cries, wrenching his hand away from Brook. He steps back as Brook sits up. Off to the side, Luffy beams. Brook's alright, but why was he playing dead?

"Shit," Zoro groans, leaning his forehead on Luffy's head as he processed the pure stupidity of his crew, "Brook, you idiot! You better hope Nami is done!"

Brook stands, dusting himself off.

"No one answered me, what just happened!?" Coby says.

"I think we're done here," Robin says, ignoring Coby entirely.

"Brook's alive!" Luffy says, trying to look up at Zoro, which is hard considering Zoro still has his head on top of Luffy's.

"He's ruined the plan, that's what he did," Sanji sighs, pushing the mask up his face.

"The 'plan'? You planned this? Was everyone in on this?" Coby says.

"Unfortunately," Sanji says, and Usopp tosses his mask off, "We all are. It's the distraction."

"Wait a minute..." Coby looks to Zoro, "Z-Zoro? Roronoa Zoro?"

"Yes, Roronoa Zoro," Zoro says, "Hope Franky's ready, because we have to go."

"It's that group of thieves!" Roswald yells, pointing, "Somebody get them! Don't let them escape this party!”

"Hey!" Nami yells from an upper balcony in the ballroom, waving her hands, "We're outside! Get going!"

"That's our cue," Zoro says, and without further prompting, the group makes a break for the door. Most of the guests, the nobles and the rich, are too busy checking to see if they still have their valuables in the presence of thieves to stop their escape. The mass of wealthy people in the room stops security from being able to reach the group, and no one wants to be plowed over by Luffy or his friends.

Franky has the car open, valuables piled in the various spaces on the floor. Luffy dives in first with Zoro after him, pulling him in close for protecting. Luffy thinks it's for protection, anyway.

The rest of the group squeezes in as well, though it's more cramped with the ninth member. Nami sits in the driver seat and Robin takes the passenger seat to avoid being squished.

Zoro sits in a seat and holds Luffy in his lap. He tells himself he's making room for Brook, and in the scramble no one seems to notice. Luffy wraps his arms around Zoro, pulling his knees in to accommodate for Brook's longer limbs.

"Brook, why'd you die?" Luffy asks as he snags Zoro's forgotten mask and starts messing with it.

"They were making a scene so I could rob the place without interruption," Nami says as she starts driving.

"I didn't actually die," Brook says, "I faked it."

"Clearly," Zoro says, "or else we'd be talking to a... I don't know, a fucking skeleton."

Brook laughs.

"Wouldn't that be frightening?" He says. Luffy shakes his head.

"I think it'd be cool!" Luffy says, "I want to be friends with a skeleton!"

"And we didn't tell you this plan because you'd be awful at keeping to it." Usopp says, patting Luffy's head.

"I'll tell you what was frightening, Luffy ready to kill one of us when Brook collapsed." Sanji scoffs.

"I thought it was flattering," Brook says.

"I wasn't scared! I'm sure I could take him if we fought!" Usopp says, "But I wouldn't want to."

"Hurting each other isn't what friends do," Luffy says, "I don't want you guys to die or anything."

"You don't have to worry. None of us are dying anytime soon," Sanji says.

"Brook IS pretty old, though..." Zoro comments.

"I still have plenty of life left in me," Brook says, "It'll take a lot to kill this old man."

"Nami, did we get lots of money?" Luffy asks, putting on Zoro's demon mask.

"Yeah, lots of wallets and jewelry. I'm not sure how much it's all worth, but it's easily thousands," Nami says.

"That's good." Luffy leans back. He didn't really care too much about money, but it was nice to have. He absently pats at Zoro’s wrist, bored.

The car ride passes with idle talk, since they were out fast enough that they weren't chased. They reach their hideout in a few more minutes, an abandoned boat tied to an used dock which they'd taken over. Everyone disperses when they arrive, heading off to get changed out of their fancy getups. It's late, so most of them head to bed shortly after. Despite the calm and quiet in the bedroom neither Luffy nor Zoro can sleep, too much on both their minds. Zoro gets Luffy's attention by waving his hand.

"You wanna go to the front?" Zoro whispers to Luffy, referring to the tip of the boat, where Luffy likes to sit. Luffy nods. He heads up to the front of the ship, letting Zoro follow. When he gets there he stops, waiting for Zoro rather than sitting in his spot on the mast.

In the ballroom, during the dance, Luffy almost kissed Zoro. He'd been so caught up in the moment, he hadn't even got a chance to ask if Zoro was alright with that before everything happened. Zoro stops in front of Luffy, lapsing into an awkward silence. They both search for something to say, but Zoro finds something first.

"You... haven't taken the ring off."

"No, I guess I forgot," Luffy says. He looks down at his hand. In the dark, the ring almost looks real, "I like it."

"You never struck me as a jewelry type," Zoro says, stepping a bit closer so he could grab Luffy's hand.

"This is different," Luffy says. He keeps his eyes on his hand in Zoro's.

"The ring, or...?" Zoro looks at Luffy instead of his hand, "or what I'm doing?"

"The ring, but what Zoro is doing is different, too," Luffy says, "I had fun tonight, pretending to be Zoro's husband."

"Did you?" Zoro grins a bit, "you know, you were trying to show me something, but we got interrupted."

"I was going for a kiss," Luffy admits.

"So, you still want to?" Zoro asks, "Kiss, I mean. We don't have to."

"I want to," Luffy says. He reaches up to hold Zoro's face in his hands, "I really, really want to."

"Then we can." Zoro says quietly, putting a hand on Luffy's lower back and splaying it. He leans down and kisses the corner of Luffy's mouth. Zoro pulls back after, but Luffy hugs his neck to stop him from going far.

"Back when that lady was talking to us, Zoro said something that sounded really sincere. He said he'd loved me since the day we met," Luffy says, "Did he mean that?"

"...I meant it," Zoro says, "I have. Ever since I saw you."

"I feel the same. I've always felt the same," Luffy says, "Maybe we really are soulmates."

"Maybe." Zoro says, lifting Luffy up. "Maybe we are."

Luffy grins, wrapping his legs around Zoro's waist to hold himself up.

"I would like that," Luffy says. He holds out his hand, looking at his ring over Zoro's shoulder, "I think I'm going to keep wearing this."

"What, a fake plastic ring?" Zoro snorts, "you just kind of jumped right into marriage again."

"I'm not thinking of it like marriage! It's like a souvenir," Luffy says, "Instead of marriage, it's from the night Zoro first said he loved me."

"An anniversary ring," Zoro says, comfortable holding Luffy, "Maybe I'll keep mine, too."

Luffy leans his head on Zoro's shoulder.

"We'd be matching," Luffy says.

"Do you want to match?" Zoro asks, turning his head and kissing Luffy's nose. Luffy laughs.

"I wouldn't mind matching," Luffy says.

"Then I'll keep it," Zoro says, "I need to thank Nami."

“What for?” Luffy asks.

"She told me she made us the couple so this shit could happen," Zoro sighs.

"Guess I should thank her, too," Luffy says.

"Why didn't we act on this sooner?" Zoro asks, humming.

"Well, I know Zoro's pretty dumb," Luffy says.

"I know you're dumber," Zoro says

"Rude," Luffy says, "Zoro's rude and dumb and I'm in love with him."

"Luffy's rude and dumb and I'm in love with him more," Zoro responds, grinning. Luffy pulls his head off Zoro's shoulder so he can look at Zoro's face.

"If Zoro loves me so much, then why not he kiss me again?" Luffy asks. Zoro leans in and kisses Luffy again, repeating his actions over and over to get the point across. Luffy eventually breaks away, and he leans back in Zoro's arms to look up at the sky. The air's clear, and he can see thousands of stars.

"They're bright," Luffy says. He looks down at Zoro, then grins. To Zoro, that's brighter than anything in the sky, day or night. There's no need for sunshine, not with Luffy so close. Zoro has the sea below him, the stars around him, and Luffy in his arms. He doesn't ever need anything else.

[kaizokunohime]

Black Lines of Distraction Ch. 4

Authors: me and @lululawlawlu-fanfics

It is also on AO3. 

Chapter 4

*☆*:.｡. ✧.｡.:*☆*:.｡. ✧.｡.:*☆*

Pairing: LawLu

Rating: Explicit

*☆*:.｡. ✧.｡.:*☆*:.｡. ✧.｡.:*☆* Law’s POV:

“I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that. It was a mistake,” Law rushed through his words. He snatched up Kikoku, quickly darting out of the room to get as far away from there as possible. He rushed down the hall and nearly flung himself into the bathroom.

Turning on the tap, he tested the water temperature against his fingers. Law cupped his hands under the stream, letting the water pool in his palms before splashing it onto his face. It felt shockingly cold against his skin but he told himself he needed this. He needed something to help calm him down- something to cool him off.

If making out with your ally fell under the list of inappropriate behaviors, then the sexual thoughts Law found filtering into his mind at that moment were undoubtedly on that list as well.

Law leaned back against the wall, running his fingers through his hair. He desperately needed to calm himself but he couldn't push his interaction with Luffy from his mind.

Of all the plans that Law had made, kissing his ally hadn't been one of them. If anything, complicating their relationship would only be a hindrance to his mission in Dressrosa. In short- it was a mistake.

Law knew better than to act so impulsively, but something about the way Luffy had looked at him, so irresistibly alluring with those flushed cheeks and bright, shining eyes, made Law feel it was natural to make a move. Law would be lying if he said kissing Luffy had never crossed his mind before that day. He had a deep respect for Luffy’s dedication to those close to him and he admired Luffy’s tenacity, but a feeling he couldn’t quite place drew him to the younger captain like a moth to a flame. Something about him felt dangerous, thrilling- a bad decision that would feel so good to make but leave him with a wary sense of the impending consequences.

His instincts weren’t wrong. It had been so gratifying to go against his better judgement and give in to his muddled feelings for the younger captain. Kissing him sent a surge of ecstatic energy through Law’s body, prickling at his nerves, making every sensation pure pleasure. The warmth of Luffy's body in his arms, Luffy's soft breath against his lips alone was pure euphoria. But the thought of having Luffy giving himself over so freely was an entirely different high and he revelled in the fantasy of being desired by someone. But was it just that- was it just a fantasy to think that Luffy really desired him?

Luffy had touched him first and he was blushing so adorably, but- but maybe Law had completely misread the situation. Luffy may have just been curious and embarrassed to ask about his tattoos even if he didn't seem like he'd be the type. It wasn't like he'd been asking to be kissed and the last thing Law had ever wanted was to take advantage of him.

In either case, this was not the time, nor the place to be considering Luffy's intentions. This was the time he desperately needed for preparing to set his plans in motion to dethrone Doflamingo.

Little did he know, Law would find out Luffy’s intentions soon enough on his way to Zou.

… … … … … … …

“Put me down, Mugiwara-ya.” Law demanded through clenched teeth.

If he hadn’t still felt tired and worn out from the fight on Dressrosa he’d have already used his powers to escape Luffy. Instead he found himself once again slung over his ally’s shoulder, this time being carried off to the captain’s room of the Barto Club’s ship. The room had been specially vacated for Luffy to use as his own personal space while on the way to Zou but he hadn’t really seemed to take advantage of it before that night.

Luffy didn’t seem to notice nearly bashing Law’s head into the door frame as he staggered into the room. He’d barely had anything to drink- just a single mug of the Barto Club’s own homebrew to wash down his dinner, but the pink of the young pirate’s cheeks betrayed just how much the potency of the alcohol was affecting him.

Initially, Law had thought it cute when Luffy first came stumbling over to him, cheeks flushed, eyes shimmering in the moonlight. But any feeling of endearment Law had toward Luffy was quickly replaced with embarrassment at being grabbed up and carried away by the younger captain. The laughter that the action spawned from the Straw Hat crew, with Usopp’s claims of having ‘known it all along’ didn’t help Law’s growing agitation.

“Put me down right now,” he demanded, as Luffy kicked the door shut behind them.

“Torao,” Luffy spoke his name sternly, as if it was a reprimand. He strode to the bed, throwing Law onto the mattress. “My body feels really weird. You gotta help me,” Luffy continued, climbing onto the bed to sit in the middle.

“That’s probably because of the alcohol. You should just sleep it off,” Law grumbled, pulling himself up from where he’d landed. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I-”

“Don’t go.” Luffy’s fingers reached out to grab Law’s own.

It was difficult to see from the low light shining through the windows, but Luffy’s face seemed even more flushed than before.

“Kiss me, Torao,” he spoke, a slight pout on his lips as he pulled Law down.

“No,” Law sighed through his nose, sitting back down next to Luffy, “you’re drunk.”

“Only a little.”

“The answer is still ‘no’.”

“But I need you to kiss me. Everytime I look at your skin showing like that my body gets all hot, and my heart speeds up, and it actually hurts. I keep thinking about what we did in the library. It wasn’t a mistake. I wanted it. It felt good. Kiss me, Torao. I want it,” Luffy admitted freely, tugging Law back towards him so they were both lying on the bed.

“Not while you’re drunk. For now, how about I hold you until you feel better,” Law tried to compromise as he slipped an arm under Luffy’s neck and pulled him close.

Luffy curled into Law’s body, humming contentedly, a wide smile across his face.

How could anyone be so annoying, yet so unbearably cute, and- dare he think it- attractive? It wasn’t the superficial things about Luffy that made him seem attractive to Law, but the open honesty of wearing his heart on his sleeve, and his readiness to take chances without overthinking the situation.

At the time Law had proposed being allies, he’d imagined Luffy to be a reckless force of nature, always ready to fight for those he cared about. But Luffy had turned out to be so much more. When exactly had Law begun to feel something deeper than admiration for Luffy’s tenacious nature and fighting abilities?

Somehow, the more he got to know Luffy, the more he was drawn to him. Even though he was selfish and impulsive, things always worked out in Luffy’s favour. Impulsivity was something Law had never known in his own life- something he’d never known he needed. It was a strange realization that hadn’t dawned on him before now- he who’d always thought everything through, he who was so completely in control of his feelings that he could channel his ingrained terror into the spiteful vengeance he needed to fight Doflamingo face-to-face.

“Do I feel this way because of your power?” Luffy questioned, interrupting Law’s thoughts.

“You mean, am I purposely making you feel things for me?” Law spoke incredulously, “I can’t do things like that with my power, Mugiwara-ya.”

“Then why do I feel like this?”

“Well, do you feel it when you look at anyone else?”

“No. Just you. And then when I see you- when I see your skin- when I see your tattoos- when I think about your tattoos-” Luffy amended, thinking as he spoke, “it makes me want to touch your body. I want to trace the black lines with my tongue. I want to taste your skin.”

Luffy was starting to ramble now, but Law could understand what he was trying to say.

“Those are generally the kind feelings you have if you're physically attracted to someone,” Law tried to explain. He did consider himself attractive, but it was still flattering to think he could inspire such feelings in the heart of the petite captain in his arms.

“So, you are making me feel like this,”

“I'm not actively doing anything to make you feel that way. Rather, you’re having feelings brought about by your perception of me.”

“I don't really get it but I still want to touch you.” Luffy spoke as he trailed his fingers down Law’s chest.

… … … … …