zosanauzine - Tumblr blog

zosanauzine · 4 months

Text

Of Murder bunnies and stray marimos

Second of my @zosanauzine fics! This one is a part of the digital NSFW add-on~ (Even though they only kiss and say fuck a lot, sorry xD)

The aftersales are still going and B/C grade books are in stock now too so check it out if you haven't!! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

[ READ ON AO3 | KO-FI ]

—————

The sun was setting.

The sun was really fucking setting.

They were supposed to have met up hours ago; even Luffy had made it back to the Sunny on time—if only because Nami had told him to be back an hour earlier than everyone else—yet, the stupid swordsman was nowhere to be found.

Not that anyone was surprised but hunting for his… directionally-challenged ass all over the island was always such a waste of time. Not for the first time, Sanji wondered whether they shouldn’t just get a leash for him and tie him to the Sunny’s main mast. Limit his area of unsupervised operations.

Sadly, knowing the Marimo and his track record of making Chopper cry by removing his bandages, he’d just end up chewing through the leash and getting lost anyway.

“Nami~! Let me go explore more,” Luffy whined, drooping over the railing with a pout.

“No,” Nami refused without even looking up from her cartographic notes. “We don’t need two lost children to worry about.”

At that, Luffy stuck his bottom lip out even more. “But I’m so bored!”

“Let’s just leave Zoro here,” Usopp sighed from where he was laying sprawled on the lawn.

“I second that,” Sanji joined in without missing a beat.

More and more voices of agreement started joining in, including the Heart Pirates who had accompanied them on the journey between Wano and the next island, and Nami groaned, “I wish.” She paused to rub the bridge of her nose. “Anyone wanna go look for the idiot?”

“Sanji,” Usopp decided immediately.

Sanji froze in the middle of serving coffee to Robin before he turned to stare at the sniper. “Why the fuck should I go? Do it yourself,” he hissed, then turned back to the most important matter at hand. “Here you go, Robin-chan.”

Robin smiled, accepting the cup. “Thank you. But Usopp is right. You do have the uncanny ability to somehow find Zoro every time.”

"It's not like I—"

"Please, Sanji," Nami said then, giving Sanji an adorable pleading look.

Sanji knew it was on purpose.

He knew she knew he couldn't say no to a lady's request.

But somehow, Sanji couldn’t bring himself to care. He was a proud slave to love, after all. "Of course, Nami-san."

Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Usopp quickly covering his mouth to stifle his snort; Sanji simply clicked his tongue and threw his serving tray at his head. He was only slightly disappointed when Usopp barely managed to avoid the projectile before finally bursting out in uncontrollable laughter.

Bastard.

—————

Sanji grumbled to himself as he made his way through the jungle. It wasn’t that hard to follow the trail of cut off branches and dead or unconscious animals but he couldn’t help but wonder; why him?

Why did he always have to be the one to go look for Zoro?

“Man, this is so fucking annoying!” he snapped, throwing a kick at the next animal to attack him. As if the stupid wandering mosshead wasn’t enough, why did he have to deal with the aggressive wildlife on top of that?

He was really quite done with this island; it had offered a nice variety of cooking ingredients but the bloodthirsty, man-eating bunnies got really old, really fast.

“Oi, Marimo! I know you’re around here! We need to set sail already!”

Silence. Sanji couldn’t say he was surprised.

He lit himself a cigarette, taking a few drags before he tried again, “Hey, Number 32!”

“What did you just call me, shitty Cook?!”

There we go, Sanji thought to himself, quickly wiping the smile that pulled on his lips off his face. He did not just think Zoro was cute for immediately raising up to the challenge.

Absolutely not.

So, instead he put on an annoyed expression before making his way through the bushes in the direction the voice had come from.

“There you are, stray Marimo,” he sighed when he made it to the other side and the Marimo in question came to view.

He was standing there, a few of the murder bunnies lying at his feet, a defiant look on his face as he asked, "What do you want, Curly?"

Sanji raised an eyebrow. "Do you realise what time it is? We were supposed to be long gone by now."

"It's not my fault you moved the ship," Zoro snapped.

He obviously tried to sound angry, but at the same time, his eyes veered off to the side, the man refusing to look at Sanji as his ears turned red—although that might have just been the setting sun playing tricks, Sanji chose to believe otherwise. Zoro crossed his arms over his chest before he grumbled something about hopeless crewmates who always got lost the second Zoro took his eyes off them.

Sanji rolled his eyes, biting back the laugh that threatened to bubble out of his chest. Always the same story, always the same excuse.

"The ship hasn't moved since this morning," Sanji said matter-of-factly. "Can't you just admit you're completely fucking lost?"

"No." He sounded so much like a petulant child that this time…

This time Sanji couldn't hold the laughter back. Shaking his head, he sighed, amusement still clear in his voice, “You’re hopeless.”

“Shut up! I’m gonna cut you,” Zoro growled, obviously not happy with Sanji’s teasing—or his glee—while his hand reached for Enma.

Sanji snorted before taking a slow drag of his cigarette, his lips twisting into a challenging smirk as he stepped forward, coming to stand right in front of the swordsman. “As if you could even find me, with your sense of direction.”

“As if I need to look for your ass when you’re right next to me!” Zoro shot back just before the tell-tale metallic sound of a katana leaving its scabbard reached Sanji’s ears.

Taking that as his cue, Sanji moved quickly. He bent his knees slightly, lowering his centre of gravity before shooting forward. Quickly taking his cigarette out of his mouth, he stepped far into Zoro’s personal space, then straightened up, pressing his lips to Zoro’s in a quick kiss.

Zoro froze, his reaction making a smirk pull on Sanji’s lips. “I win.”

Finally, Zoro woke up; resheathing Enma in the most unhappy fashion that he possibly could, the Marimo clicked his tongue in annoyance before he hissed, “That was dirty.”

“I don’t remember there being any rules against it,” Sanji said with a shrug. “Now come on, the others are waiting.”

Turning around, Sanji started heading back the way he came but before he could so much as reach the nearest tree, a hand on his wrist stopped him. He paused, his eyes dropping to where Zoro's fingers held onto his hand before slowly looking up at Zoro questioningly.

He was looking straight at Sanji, an unreadable expression on his face as his grip only tightened. Sanji wanted to ask what was wrong but as soon as he opened his mouth, he closed it again. Seconds passed while the two of them simply stared at each other, neither saying anything, unspoken tension rising until Zoro finally moved.

Or more accurately, pulled on Sanji's hand until he stumbled forward, nearly tripping over his own feet and tumbling to the ground.

Catching himself at the last second, Sanji glared at Zoro. "Oi, Marimo, what the fuck are you—"

Before he could finish the sentence, all words were stolen straight from his mouth when warm lips pressed against his own. Sanji's eyes widened in surprise; for a moment, he couldn't even process what was happening, much less react in any way. He simply stood there, letting Zoro kiss him, the hand that had been gripping his wrist releasing its grip to instead slide down Sanji's palm to lace their fingers together.

It was only when Zoro’s tongue ran over his lips that Sanji’s mind caught up. “What are you doing?” he asked, his voice deceivingly level considering the speed at which his heart was racing.

“What do you think?” Zoro said while rolling his good eye. He didn’t move away the slightest bit either and Sanji could feel every word, every breath on his skin, sending shivers down his spine. “If you were going to do it, you should have done it right.” As soon as Zoro finished talking, he leaned forward, closing the distance again.

This time, Sanji didn’t protest.

He returned the kiss easily, a small laugh escaping him as their lips moved against each other with practised ease, his cigarette slipping through his fingers and falling to the ground when Sanji’s hands automatically wrapped around Zoro’s shoulders. He’d have to remember to pick it up later… but right now, all thought escaped him.

The shitty swordsman was the only thing on his mind; the taste, the smell, the feeling of Zoro against him was familiar, warm and comforting, and it was something Sanji would honestly never get tired of. Just like he would never get tired of the butterflies that fluttered in his stomach every time Zoro touched him like this—not that he'd ever admit to there being any butterflies.

Sanji welcomed the hand that soon found its way on his hip, pushing him back and guiding him until his back hit a tree. Sanji gasped at the impact, a curse on his lips that got swallowed by the tongue that slipped past them. Sanji couldn’t say he was complaining.

Not breaking their kiss, Zoro let go of Sanji’s hand to instead reach upward. Seconds later, warm fingers brushed Sanji's cheek; he had to stop himself from moaning when Zoro buried his fingers in his hair, scratching the scalp slightly.

Zoro was absolutely doing it on purpose, Sanji knew.

When he cracked his eyes open a little to glare at his partner only to see the cheeky glint in Zoro's gaze, Sanji decided it was high time to push back.

He pulled away slightly, just enough for Zoro to let him go, before going straight for Zoro's neck. Weak point for weak point, right?

Sanji relished in the gasp that Zoro couldn't bite back as soon as Sanji started sucking and licking at the skin just below the swordsman's ear.

But that wasn't enough for Sanji.

He let his hands trace the hems of Zoro's coat before finally slipping them inside, running them over the warm skin of his stomach, then his sides, pushing Zoro's coat open more and more.

Every sharp breath Zoro took, every slight tug on his hair… it was all just making him feel hotter, his skin tingling all over.

If they didn't stop soon…

Suddenly, something rustled behind them.

“Fucking seriously?!” Zoro groaned and Sanji could do nothing but agree with the sentiment.

Moving in tandem, both Zoro and Sanji pulled away from each other, Enma leaving its scabbard at an impossible speed while Sanji’s leg shot out, scalding blue flames licking at his foot. It took only a second for all the fucking bunnies who had attacked all at once to fall to the ground, whimpering after the pirates’ joint attack.

A single second… yet even that was enough to completely murder the mood.

Sanji sighed deeply, pulling out a new cigarette and lighting it, taking a long, long drag. Then another and another. Finally, after most of it was gone, he felt the frustration subside. He turned to look at Zoro, who was still standing there with his katana in hand, looking like he was about to slaughter the entire bunny population on this goddamned island.

Sighing again, Sanji took the few steps that separated them now. Closing his hand into a fist, he sharply knocked Zoro over the head. “Let’s go, Marimo. Or the ship will leave without us.”

It took Zoro a moment to move, but then he slowly put Enma away, his face twisted in annoyance as he looked back at Sanji. “You’re making this up to me later.”

“For what, the fucking bunnies? Forget it,” Sanji hissed before he turned around to lead the way back.

“For getting me all worked up for nothing, you ass,” Zoro grumbled and Sanji could only roll his eyes. "You're worse than the damn bunnies—"

“Not my fault you’re such a horny Marimo. Also—where are you going?”

Zoro froze at his words, slowly turning around, obviously searching for where the hell Sanji was talking from. Only when their eyes met, did he open his mouth to reply. “To the ship.” He sounded so confident when he said it, too.

Sanji wanted to rip his hair out.

“I’m literally leading the way! What are you, a toddler?!”

“What did you just say?!”

—————

It was almost dark already by the time two animal noses twitched on the decks of the allied pirate ships.

“Captain, Black Leg and Roronoa are back!” Bepo called from the Tang.

At the same time, Chopper rushed off from where he was playing with Usopp and Penguin, jumping onto the Sunny’s railing to look out towards the island, waving one of his hoofed hands at the two. “Sanji! Zoro! You’re late!” He sounded entirely too cute considering the scolding tone in his voice.

“Fucking finally,” Law muttered to himself, prompting Straw Hat and Nico Robin—who were the closest to him—to snicker at his suffering. As if it was his fault that he had been forced to sit there doing nothing for hours.

“Chopper, can you throw us the ladder?” Black Leg called toward the little reindeer who immediately tapped his forehead with his hoof and ran off.

“What, not gonna show off with your Sky Walk?” Zoro asked.

As expected, Black Leg immediately snapped back, “Are you asking me to carry you up there, princess Marimo?”

Law couldn’t help but roll his eyes. These two really couldn’t go five minutes without fighting—or flirting?—awkwardly, could they?

Before the exchange could escalate, Chopper interrupted the starting fight. “Sorry, here you go!” he called as he dropped down the ladder. “By the way, are you holding hands so Zoro doesn’t get lost again?”

Immediately, complete and utter silence settled over the two ships. It was almost as if even the ocean froze in its tracks, the crashing of the waves fading away while eyes went wide and mouths fell open. Holding hands? Those two?

The same two idiots who had been dancing around each other for as long as Law had known them, the same two idiots who kept making their fighting look like foreplay, the same two idiots who had been filling the Thousand Sunny with unbearable sexual tension constantly? Without ever doing anything about it?

Were the innocent, uninvolved people like Law, the people who were forced to watch them… finally free?

The rope ladder creaked, and the sound echoed around the deck like thunder. No one moved, just waiting quietly in a trance until finally, Black Leg’s head poked out from behind the railing. First his hair, then his face.

His red, burning face.

He looked like a tomato with blond hair and if he wasn’t so stunned, Law would have laughed in his face at the sight he made. As it was, he could only follow the Straw Hats’ lead and stare blankly as the man reached the deck, his eyes glued to the floor; he still refused to look at anyone when he muttered something about dinner and all but ran to the kitchen.

“Impossible,” Nami whispered and suddenly, the spell broke.

“Oh my, I can barely believe my eyes! Although I don’t have eyes!” Brook said.

“We’re getting drunk tonight, oh my god! The tension will finally be gone!” Usopp shouted, his fists shooting high into the air with a relieved laugh and everyone else cheered in agreement.

Just then, Zoro hauled himself over the railing. “Oh, shut up,” he snapped, a highly annoyed expression on his face as he glowered at his crewmates one after the other.

“Hey, man. It’s your own fault we’re super happy about it!” Franky shot back, pointing an accusing finger at Zoro, then at the kitchen to indicate Sanji. “It was high time you two got together.”

Zoro rolled his eyes, opening his mouth to growl something back, but Chopper interrupted him.

“What happened? Why is everyone acting so weird?” he asked innocently.

A few glances were exchanged before Penguin oh-so-helpfully explained, “Because someone finally kissed and made up.”

“Eh?” Chopper let out, his face scrunching up in an adorable, confused frown. “But Zoro and Sanji have kissed before…?”

And the heavy silence was back as this time, everyone stared at Chopper in shock.

“What? What?!” the poor reindeer cried, completely panicked, looking around as if begging for answers.

“You’re fucking kidding me,” Usopp groaned, burying his face in his hands in despair. “Are you telling me we’ve been dealing with all this sexual tension even while it was being resolved? Is there no hope for us?!”

Nami, on the other hand, strode over to Zoro, poking at his chest angrily. “Why didn’t you tell us? When did this start? Do you know how much money I have riding on you idiots?!”

“It’s not my fault you bet on stupid shit!” Zoro hissed back, slapping Nami’s hand away. “And it’s not like we were hiding it when none of you asked!”

“Are you listening to this asshole?” Penguin said, strangely frustrated for a man from a completely different pirate crew.

Law raised his eyebrow while shooting Penguin a look. “You bet on this, didn’t you?”

Penguin only shrugged, not even having the decency to look ashamed. “What can I say, I can never resist drama that doesn’t involve me in any way.”

Law sighed. He was surrounded by idiots.

At that, Straw Hat started laughing. The sound was loud and carefree, reverberating around the entire ship and through Law’s chest from where Luffy was leaning against him, sounding like a happy chime that slowly made everyone relax.

Nami threw her arms into the air and huffed before leaving Zoro alone. Usopp let go of a deep breath and shot Zoro one last glare. Nico Robin only chuckled at the crew’s reactions, looking so relaxed the entire time that Law wondered whether she had had an inkling about Zoro and Black Leg’s relationship.

Even Law felt a tug on the corners of his mouth, a smile trying to force its way on his lips.

But then, something else dawned on him.

“Oh my god,” he groaned, his head falling forward until his face was buried in the crook of Luffy’s neck. “I’m never setting foot in the crow’s nest ever again.”

“Why?” Luffy asked.

Law marvelled at his innocence. “Why? Because they definitely fucked in there!”

“Torao, don’t be a baby,” Nami said, and Law could basically hear her eyes rolling.

“Well, excuse me for not wanting to touch anything that anyone might have fucked on,” Law snapped back, not even bothering to look up and simply hoping his voice would convey the disgust he felt.

A beat of silence passed.

“Torao…” Franky started slowly. “Luffy’s literally sitting on your lap right now.”

“I don’t see your point,” Law muttered back.

Law felt Luffy nod in agreement. “Yeah, we’re not fucking anywhe—mmmfff!”

“Not one more word in front of Chopper,” Nico Robin said firmly, a clear threat in her voice.

“Nico-ya, he’s a doctor. I’m pretty sure he knows how this—” Suddenly, a bodiless hand slapped over his mouth, probably in the same fashion as it did over Luffy’s.

“I don’t care. Not. One. Word.”

Oh, for fuck’s sake…

When Law finally looked up to give her an unimpressed stare, he startled at the glare she was giving him. Suddenly, he remembered who she was—Nico Robin, the Demon Child; someone who had been on the run from the entire world all alone for twenty years. This was a woman who had definitely killed before… and who certainly didn’t look like she was above murder now.

Law was ashamed to admit he was too scared to protest her demands right then.

Thankfully, before anyone else could notice how he froze in fear, a loud yawn attracted everyone’s attention. “If we’re done here, I’m going to take a nap.” Zoro announced, then took a step forward.

Immediately, Nami, Usopp, and Penguin turned to him, identical sharp, positively greedy looks in their eyes.

“Not before we find out who won that bet, you don’t!”

25 notes · View notes

zosanauzine · 4 months

Text

📩First batch of digital goods has been sent!

Please check your inbox as well as junk/span folders! If you encounter issues, please contact us ASAP 💚💛

✨LOWER GRADED BOOKS AVAILABLE

Want the Zine and also save a few bucks? 👀

They might have bendy pages but they still look great and the content is just as awesome - get them while there are still a fee around (i've heard they make great presents even after christmas 🤫🎁)

💛💚AFTER SALES ARE OPEN 💚💛

Ready, Set, GO!!

Our aftersales are open, you can find our shop via the following link!

❗️ALL ITEMS ARE LIMITED❗️

Once an Item has sold out, it will NOT be restocked!

zosanauzine.bigcartel.com

Please read the descriptions for each individual item, as well as our Shop FAQ, for more information and orientation.

Orders are generally expected to be shipped within 1 week - so if you're fast, you might make it as a christmas gift! 🎄🎄

💛Full Bundle - 85$💚

!! VERY LIMITED !!

The same as our PreOrder bundle - including both reached stretch goals the Washi Tape and the Standee!

💛Physical Zine only - 35$ - 20$💚

35+ artworks 15 stories up to 3’000 words All kinds of AU’s, head canons, little concepts and a big portion of bickering!

*Note that lower graded books will also be available at a following date (TBA) with shipping early january next year!

💛Digital Zine only 15$💚

35+ artworks 15 stories up to 3’000 words All kinds of AU’s, head canons, little concepts and a big portion of bickering!

There is also an optional NSFW add-on with almost 120 MORE pages of spicy action!

💛Prints 8$💚

Each print is 8$

1) Beautiful wedding print 2) Our Cover Art as a clean, smooth print

💛Postcards 5$ / 7$💚

Doublesided Postcards are 7$ Singlesided Postcards are 5$

1) Demon AU (singlesided) 2) Paris Vacation (doublesided) 3) Coffeeshop (doublesided)

💛Stickersheets 6$💚

Each Stickersheet is 6$

1) Dragon 2) Domestic 3) Dynamic (raid suits)

💛Single Stickers 3$💚

!! some stickers are VERY LIMITED !!

Each Sticker is 3$

1) Tarot Card 2) Moth 3) Back2Back 4) Kitsune and Oni 5) Patchup Kids

💛Bookmarks 4$ / 6$💚

!! some bookmarks are VERY LIMITED !!

Doublesided Bookmarks are 6$ Singlesided Bookmarks are 4$

1) Moonlight (doublesided) 2) Haunted (doublesided) 3) Portrait (singlesided)

💛Buttons 4$💚

Each Button is 4$

1) Rave 2) Horror (vampire+zombie) 3) Chase (police+bandit)

💛Charms 10$ / 12$💚

Doublesided Charms are 10$ Singlesided Bookmarks are 12$

1) Highschool (doublesided) 2) Injury (doublesided) 3) Fantasy

💛Standee 15$💚

!! This Item is VERY LIMITED !!

💛Washi Tape 8$💚

!! This Item is VERY LIMITED !!

#one piece zoro #one piece sanji #op #op fanart #one piece fanart #op fanfic #one piece zine #one piece fanfiction #op fandom #op zine

18 notes · View notes

zosanauzine · 4 months

Text

My full Zoro x Sanji illustration for the “Always With You” One Piece fanzine @zosanauzine. This is part of my collab with @ MercuryMarte on Twitter, who wrote a story based on the Hungry Days AU! ^^

Zine aftersales are currently open, you can find the link to the shop in the comments!

93 notes · View notes

zosanauzine · 5 months

Text

Boycott Love

Characters/Pairings: ZoSan

Rating/Warnings: T

“I was here first, so the bounty is mine.”

“If you want it so damn bad then come get it.”

Vinsmoke Sanji, third prince of Germa, is responsible for bringing in bounties to help fund Germa's growing empire, a job he does and does well. Until the day the runs into a pirate hunter in East Blue that changes him forever.

My contribution to the @zosanauzine ! After sales are open, so check it out for more amazing fics and art!

21 notes · View notes

zosanauzine · 5 months

Text

The Stubborn

This story was written for the amazing @zosanauzine!! You can find it as a part of the main zine :D

It's also a part of the Obstacles soulmate AU verse 👀

This is actually a little bit of an extend version because I needed to cut a scene out for the zine because of word count 😭 there's also a few minor changes because I wrote this way before The Markless so I had to do some edits to make the timeline fit together but shhh

The zine's aftersales are open right now, so don't miss out!! 👀

[ Read on AO3 | Obstacles series | Ko-Fi ]

—————

They say that everyone has a soulmate out there somewhere. There will always be a person matching the mark decorating your skin, you simply have to find them.

Sounds easy enough.

But nothing is ever as easy as it seems when the world is separated into five seas, when it’s nearly impossible to travel through freely unless you have government permission to cross the Red Line and a Navy warship to get you through the Calm Belt. Only the strongest—or absurdly lucky—go wherever they want and survive.

And, even if you overcome all those odds and are able to travel across all the seas to find that person, there can be other obstacles to stand in the way.

Blank skin is one.

Stubbornness another.

—————

“You seriously don’t have a mark?” Usopp asked doubtfully.

Sanji sighed before he lit a cigarette, taking a long drag. Only after a ring of smoke left his mouth did he bother to look at Usopp to reply, “Seriously. And good thing too, it gives me the freedom to love all the ladies.”

“Uh-huh,” Usopp hummed, raising an eyebrow. A person without a soulmate—or at least without a soul mark—wasn’t completely unheard of but they were usually people like Luffy, people without a single ounce of interest in romance or dating. Not… Sanji.

Torao may have put a tiny dent in that theory but the point still stood.

Usopp knew there had to be a catch. Either Sanji was lying, or his mark was so subtle that he mistook it for a regular birthmark. There was simply no way that—

“Ah, crap,” Sanji cursed when he dropped a spatula.

And then, Usopp could only watch as Sanji bent down, the hem of his shirt riding up on his back and exposing a little bit of skin.

It felt like Usopp’s jaw hit the floor when his mind processed just what he was looking at. There was a mark. The mark. The exact soul mark that Sanji claimed he didn’t have. And its shape was—

Usopp had to rub at his eyes to make sure he wasn’t seeing things but no. It really was three crossed swords, the one in the middle suspiciously resembling Wado Ichimonji.

Immediately, Usopp’s mind flashed to all the times their local Three Sword Style expert pointedly ignored any and all questions about his soulmate. He remembered all the fights that used to abuse the Going Merry and that still continued to abuse the Thousand Sunny to this day. He could practically see the face Zoro made everytime Sanji would go off to hit on yet another random, beautiful woman.

And suddenly, it all made sense.

Gulping heavily, Usopp bit hard on his bottom lip to keep his voice level as he addressed Sanji, who was now scrubbing his dropped spatula in the sink. “Hey, Sanji,” he started slowly. “There’s something on your back.”

Sanji paused at his words, turning his head to look at Usopp, then craning his neck to see his backside. He struggled for a few seconds, even reaching with his hand to blindly try and brush the non-existent dirt off of himself, completely misunderstanding what Usopp had meant.

“I can’t see, can you get it for me?” Sanji asked, frustration clear in his voice.

And Usopp… had to struggle very, very hard to not start laughing as he complied, making a show of ‘cleaning’ Sanji’s shirt.

This was seriously getting better and better. Not only had he learned some wonderful, sweet information that Nami would pay good money for—maybe even forgive the interest on the money he had borrowed from her if he played his cards right—but Sanji also didn’t know about any of this because he couldn’t see his back.

The peaceful days on the Sunny were about to get a lot more interesting.

—————

Zoro didn’t understand. It was as if overnight, the rest of the crew had collectively decided to become a complete pain in his ass. He could simply be training and minding his own damn business, and suddenly, Nami would start loudly complimenting the cook’s new pants, saying how well they fit him. The stupid love-cook wasn’t able to form a single sentence the rest of the day; the only things that came out of his mouth were incoherent mumbles and sighs of ‘Nami-swan’, which only annoyed Zoro more. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to cut Sanji or Nami for that.

Or he could be sitting in the kitchen, trying to eat his late breakfast in peace when Robin would walk in. She’d look at Zoro, then Twirly standing at the stove and smile, only to note how ‘sweet’ the atmosphere was.

Zoro had nearly choked on his rice.

One time, he was even asleep when Franky had decided to loudly drop one of his creations right next to him. Zoro had startled awake, thinking they were under attack but then Franky’s laughter filled his ears.

“Hey, Zoro! You look super tired!” he said. “You should get some sleep, man.”

“Shut up,” Zoro replied with a yawn. This guy, seriously; what did he think Zoro was trying to be doing?

Franky grinned with a suspicious spark in his eyes, like he was dying to make fun of Zoro further but desperately trying to hold back. “You should ask Sanji to help you sleep.”

Zoro’s eyebrows shot up. What the fuck was this cyborg even saying? “What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked finally, after what felt like an eternity of them just staring at each other, trying to gauge each other’s thoughts.

“Who knows?” Franky shrugged, his teasing grin only widening. “But Sanji’s our super cook and he spent two years learning new recipes. I’m sure he can whip up something nice especially for you.”

Zoro blinked, giving Franky one last blank look before deciding to ignore this entire exchange and go back to sleep. There was no point pursuing this further; he was sure he wouldn’t get anything else out of the shipwright that would make any sense.

But there were many more instances like this; Usopp noting how ‘amazing’ Eyebrows was at random times. Brook telling him to cherish his soulmate after reminiscing about the time he had spent with his own. Jinbe earnestly wishing him good luck for no reason. Nami threatening to charge him if she was ever ‘subjected to hearing things’, whatever that meant.

There was something off about the whole thing. It was as if…

No, it couldn't be. There was no way the idiots had somehow learned about Zoro’s soulmate�� situation. After all, he’d made both Luffy and Chopper swear to not blab out anything stupid and he always made sure to wear his haramaki to keep his mark perfectly hidden. After all, there was no need for anyone to know, no need for anyone to see the stupid spiral on his hip—least of all, the shitty cook it belonged to.

Closing his eyes, Zoro cursed internally; the universe really had a sick sense of humour. Of all people, of literally all the people in the world, his soulmate just had to be someone infuriating. The only saving grace was that the idiot was too stupid to realise.

Seriously, it was ridiculous. Who even missed something like a soulmark? How did that happen? He might have expected something like that from Luffy but not the cook; he might have been absolutely maddening but he wasn’t dumb. He had saved the crew several times by using his brain before but apparently, finding something on your own skin was a more challenging task than outsmarting the navy headquarters at Enies Lobby.

Zoro startled at the chuckle that easily passed his lips at the thought. Stupid Mr Nosebleed making him feel all these things. It would have been so much easier if he was just an annoyance or just an endearing idiot but no, he had to be both. Making Zoro want to kill him and kiss him and then kill him again all in the span of five seconds just by breathing and it was driving Zoro absolutely insane.

“You’d think I’d get used to all this by now,” Zoro growled, ruffling his hair in frustration.

“Is this about Sanji?” A soft chuckle accompanied the words just before someone sat on the barrel next to him.

Zoro sighed. “Why do I get a feeling no matter what I say, you’re not going to believe me?”

“Because you’re not a very good liar,” Robin laughed, crossing her legs and leaning back against the railing behind her.

“Shut up,” Zoro could only grumble before looking away. At least he could confidently say he was still better at it than Luffy. It was just that nothing seemed to get past this woman.

“You two are so cute. You do know you could just talk to each other, right?” Robin was quite obviously holding back laughter as she asked, even having to raise her hand to hide her mouth when Zoro shot her a glare.

“As if I could just bring that up!” he snapped. “What would I even say? Shitty cook doesn’t even know.”

Robin smiled at him gently. “Doesn’t he?”

Zoro froze at her words, but before he could so much as ask what that was supposed to mean, Robin continued, “The connection doesn’t appear for no reason. It doesn’t have to be that difficult, you know.”

Zoro didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t like she was wrong but it didn’t seem right either. They hated each other. They couldn’t say good morning without it turning into a fight. And yet, this woman was basically saying it was all in his head.

“Easy for you to say…”

Letting go of a deep sigh, Zoro let his head fall back. He couldn’t help but note what a beautiful day it was. Almost too beautiful. They must have been close to a spring island.

If only everything was as simple as the cloudless blue skies.

—————

“I’m off! I’ll make sure to pick out only the best ingredients for you, ladies.” Sanji bowed before he turned around to leave.

The Sunny had docked at a spring island earlier that morning and after some preparations—namely Luffy insisting on getting his pirate lunch-box before going anywhere—the crew was ready to go check out the port town. It didn’t really matter to Nami what any of them did there, as long as Luffy didn’t manage to set the town on fire before lunch but…

As funny as the whole thing was at first, she was also getting a little tired of it.

“Sanji!” Nami called after their retreating cook. “Take Zoro with you!”

Both Zoro and Sanji froze, whipping around to stare at her with open mouths.

“Why would I want to bring the idiot mosshead?!”

“Why would I want to go with the idiot love-cook?!”

Nami sighed deeply before pointing at Zoro. “Because I don’t want you to get lost and—” she paused to point at Sanji— “because I don’t want you to get distracted.”

It was a lie, a transparent one. It wasn’t like this was the first island, the first city where they would each go their separate ways with no idea what the rest were doing. As much as she was right about Zoro’s sense of direction and Sanji’s tendency to chase after women, she had never gone out of her way to force them to stay together for no apparent reason. But if she didn’t step in, they would never get anywhere and she was done watching these two dance around each other like a couple of idiots.

“Oi, Nami,” Zoro hissed but a single stern look from her was enough to end the argument before it even began.

They were going to go together and talk and there was nothing either man could do about it.

—————

Automatically grabbing the bag that was handed to him, Zoro wondered why he had even agreed to this. He wanted to say it was because of the kindness of his heart, because he took pity on the cook, because he had nothing better to do. He didn’t want to admit it was because he was scared of Nami or worse, that he wanted to spend time with Curly. Absolutely not.

But there was a damn limit, alright?

“Hey, Cook,” Zoro growled when he was handed yet another bag. “Just how much stuff do you want me to carry for you?”

Brow raised, Sanji put down the apple he was examining to look at Zoro instead. “What else are you here for? Don’t tell me this is too much for a muscle-head like you.”

“That’s not the point! You carry something, too!” Zoro snapped back because really, it wasn’t like it was heavy but why was he carrying all of the thirty shopping bags?

“Why should I? Plus, I need both hands to choose the highest quality food for Nami and Robin.”

Sanji’s snarky tone softened as soon as he thought of the girls and Zoro hated how much that change irritated him. Why did he have to get stuck with this womaniser for a soulmate? “It’s always about the women,” Zoro muttered bitterly.

“What?” There was a mix of annoyance and honest confusion in Prince’s voice and somehow, that only made Zoro angrier.

“You heard me,” he said curtly, looking straight at Cook in a direct challenge.

There was a moment of silence while Sanji stared back, then wordlessly lit a cigarette. Closing his eyes momentarily, he took a moment to blow out the smoke before he glared at Zoro. “Are you picking a fight? Who do you think all the rice is for, huh?!”

“For me, so the razorblades have flavour!” Zoro shot back, already reaching for Enma despite all the bags in his hands.

“You asked for those!” Sanji’s foot was on fire now, slowly rising up to return Zoro’s attack… but then it froze in mid-air, the flames dying as Browgoro blinked, his mouth falling open, cigarette dropping. “Wait, you actually ate that?”

Suddenly, it felt like the flames from Sanji’s attack jumped over to Zoro’s face; he wasn’t sure why he was embarrassed—he had been very proud back on Punk Hazard for managing to digest those, just like he had claimed he could…

So, why did he feel like disappearing off the face of the earth now?

He couldn’t even look at Dart-brow when he replied, his voice a quiet mumble, “We can’t waste food, right?”

Grave silence settled over the two of them at his words; it was like everyone at the market had disappeared, leaving only Sanji, Zoro, and his increasing sense of mortification.

It felt like several long, agonising hours later that Sanji finally let out a long-suffering groan and buried his face in his hands. “Why did I have to get stuck with this Marimo for a soulmate…”

Immediately, Zoro’s good eye widened.

“You knew?!” he asked in horror. Curly had always claimed he didn’t have a soul mark, that he was ‘free to love all the ladies’, so what the hell was he saying right now?!

Sanji visibly froze; he obviously didn’t think before speaking, was probably just as shocked as Zoro to hear his own voice forming the words.

They stared at each other for a moment, both too stunned to even blink. It took a laughing child crashing right into Zoro to get time to move again… only it felt like it sped up a little too much. Zoro’s head was spinning. He barely knew what was going on anymore, only that he needed to do something. Anything. But… He was never one to think too deeply about things.

That was what Sanji was there for and look where that got them.

Clenching his jaw, Zoro decided.

Fuck it.

He took the two steps that separated them, grabbing Sanji’s arm without a word to drag him away. He didn’t know where he was going, he didn’t know what he was going to do…

But if, at the end of it, he finally learns what Sanji’s lips taste like, that was perfectly fine by him.

—————

“How did it go?” Usopp asked casually when the two of them got back.

“We got everything for your special tangerine sauce, Nami!” Sanji called, completely ignoring Usopp in favour of waving to the navigator. No surprise there.

Zoro clicked his tongue at the cook’s antics, simply walking by while carrying all of the many shopping bags. “Sanji, I’m gonna drop these in the kitchen. Put the shit away yourself.”

“As if I’d let you mess around my kitchen anyway!” Sanji snapped back immediately.

Yep, nothing’s changed. Usopp wasn’t surprised Nami’s plan didn’t work; if forcing them to be alone was enough, then they wouldn’t be—

Wait.

“Did you just call him ‘Sanji’?!”

21 notes · View notes

zosanauzine · 5 months

Text

Blooms In Winter

finally got permission to post our pieces for @zosanauzine so here's mine Also on: AO3 ------------------ Sanji is pissed. No, scratch that. Sanji is outright livid.

It’s like this: today is his first day off in a while, so he’d taken his time enjoying it. He’d treated himself to a nice dinner and had just settled in with a glass of wine, which he hadn’t even taken a sip of before his phone began buzzing. The number that pops up on his screen isn’t one he’s particularly happy to see when he’s trying to have a peaceful night, but Zoro seldom calls him, so Sanji sighs, sets his cup down, and picks up the phone.

“I’m busy, you overgrown hedge,” he says in lieu of a greeting.

There’s a beat of silence on the other end. Sanji pulls the phone away to make sure he hadn’t hung up.

“Uh,” a voice comes, unfamiliar and hesitant, “sorry. This isn’t- your friend is here, but he’s wasted and you’re his emergency contact, so…”

Sanji imagines his evening swirling down the drain. He sighs, dragging himself up from the couch and yanking his sweater back on. The stranger on the other end of the line tells him the bar’s name as Sanji haphazardly shoves his shoes on and snatches up his wallet and keys. He recognizes the name as one of Zoro’s more recent holes in the wall, but he’s only been once.

Stupid plant, Sanji thinks, marching down his icy stairs. It’s just like Zoro to get into trouble in this sort of weather. Sanji is pretty sure plants are supposed to wilt in winter, but here’s his personal one causing problems again. It’s cold as hell, Sanji is pissed, and he doesn’t remember agreeing to be Zoro’s emergency contact, but here he is. If he wasn’t weak to his own pesky feelings, he probably would have asked someone else to pick up their resident houseplant, or at the very least, told him to walk home himself.

The cold air would be sobering, but knowing Zoro, he’s not even dressed for the weather.

Throwing his car door open, Sanji gets in and slams it behind him. He cranks the heater, doesn’t give the engine a chance to warm up, and stews in his anger the entire drive to the bar. It’s out in the middle of nowhere — because of course it is — but the parking lot is nearly empty by the time he arrives. Zoro’s beat-up truck is parked in the corner of the lot, but it’s still visibly off, so Sanji’s eyes scan the building as he pulls up.

Zoro is sitting outside. Not only is Zoro sitting outside, but Zoro is sitting outside, red in the face, with no jacket, a short-sleeve shirt, a busted lip, and a dark bruise cresting the curve of his cheekbone. He’s sulking, hunched up by the entryway like an irritated child being punished.

Sanji throws his car into park despite being anything but in the lines of the parking spot. Exiting the car, he stalks over to Zoro, who looks even less pleased to see him than he had at being stranded in the snow.

“I told ‘em not to call you,” Zoro mumbles, visibly unsteady. “That witch set you as my ‘mergency number.”

Sanji has only seen Zoro wasted one other time, and it hadn’t been a fun one. He doesn’t know what had driven the man to it this time, but frankly, it’s the last thing on his mind right now. As it is, he just wants to get out of the cold, with or without his charge. He’ll ask Nami about the contact situation later, but right now, he doesn’t even care.

“You are the stupidest, biggest pain in my ass. Get in the car.” Sanji jabs a finger at the vehicle. “Did you get into a fight and get kicked out? Are you stupid?”

“He started it,” Zoro huffs.

“Get in the car,” Sanji repeats irritably.

“No,” Zoro glowers, “I can drive myself home. My keys are just inside.”

“Marimo,” Sanji bites out. “Get in the damn car or I’m going to leave you to freeze.”

To prove his point, Sanji whirls around and starts back to the driver's side. Behind him, he hears Zoro take two steps and then promptly stagger. The blond sighs, going back to help his stumbling companion to the car. Once again, he’s quietly surprised to see Zoro so genuinely wasted. His tolerance is notoriously high, so he has to actively make an effort to get this drunk. Still, he grumbles as he helps Zoro into the passenger seat, just to make his irritation known.

The car is dead silent right up until they exit the parking lot, leaving Zoro’s truck behind in the darkness.

“I can’t believe this,” Sanji snaps, irritation bubbling up his throat, “I was having a perfectly good evening to myself, but no, you had to go and be a drunk asshole and get into another bar fight. Haven’t you learned your damn lesson?”

Zoro stays silent, sinking into the passenger seat with his arms crossed and gaze set ahead.

“You’re so irresponsible! You can’t keep getting into fucking fights everywhere and expecting us to bail you out all the time. What would have happened if you’d gotten arrested, huh? Did you even think about that? You don’t even have a job to pay any of us back for bail money!” Sanji glares at the road as he goes on, pretending it’s Zoro. “Not to mention I’m always the one who ends up having to get you out of all of your stupid consequences. I should have left you in the damn snow.”

Zoro, sick of the ranting, throws his hands up. “Don’t act like you’re any better! You woulda gotten into it over some girl faster than I did! I didn’t ask them to call you! I was fucking drunk and the guy took my phone to call you! Also, I do have a job, you’re just the only one who doesn’t know because I didn’t want to deal with you mocking me about it!”

“Why the hell would I mock you over a job, you jerk?!” Sanji demands, slamming one hand on the steering wheel.

“I’m teaching kids over at the dojo on the edge of town. There, happy?” Zoro raises his voice in a mocking pitch of Sanji’s own. “Awe, how cute, little marimo is teaching kids? I never thought I’d see the day!”

God, Sanji thinks, I would kill for a cigarette.

If he’d been pissed off before, now he’s outright livid. Zoro is clearly mocking what he’d thought Sanji would say, and Sanji won’t admit it, but it kind of hurts. He’s in disbelief that Zoro has so little faith in him that he thinks he’d mock him for a job doing what he loves as if that wasn’t what Sanji himself centered his own life around.

“Seriously?” He spits. “You really think that lowly of me? Do you really think I’d sit here and make fun of you for doing something you love, even if it is with kids? Jesus!”

“Please,” Zoro snaps back, “as if that isn’t what you always do. You’re coming for my throat at every other turn! Why would I ever say something?"

“Oh, so I’m not allowed to share in everyone’s happiness just because you thought I was going to be a jerk about it? Great, good to know! If that’s how you really feel, then why the hell are you even in my car? Maybe you should just walk home!”

Zoro twists to glare at him. “Maybe I should! I don’t know why you came in the first place if you were just going to spend the whole damn ride on my ass. You should have just left me in the snow like you said you were going to! The hell do you care?”

Sanji’s had enough. He’s sick of this argument, he’s sick of Zoro dismissing him, and he’s sick of the pain bubbling up in his chest. He knows Zoro is just being bitter, but the fact that this had come so far that he outright didn’t think Sanji cared even a little about his wellbeing, despite everything they’d been through, is painful. He snaps his head around.

“What do you mean the hell do I care? Aren’t I always the one who comes looking for you when you get lost? Aren’t I always the one there when you need it? Don’t I feed you? Aren’t I the one who always has your back? I care because I’m fucking in love with you, Zoro!”

Zoro’s entire face drops. A horn blares, and Sanji’s gaze snaps back to the road just in time to swerve, narrowly avoiding an oncoming car. His car goes skidding into the ditch, coming to a sharp, abrupt halt as Sanji slams onto the breaks. Both of them remain dead silent, save for their heavy breathing.

The lights on Sanji’s dashboard blink slowly, reminding him that the heater is still on. His knuckles are white in the dim moonlight, still clenched around the curve of the steering wheel. Slowly, he forces his hands to relax, detaching his fingers one by one from the leather. Beside him, Zoro is dead still, but Sanji hears him take a deep, steadying breath.

Sanji trembles as he puts the car in park and turns the headlights off, plunging them into near darkness.

The blond lowers his hands to his lap and lets his head fall back. Neither of them speak until Sanji can’t hear his heart racing in his ears anymore. The roads outside are quiet, save for the winter wind breezing over the hood of the car.

Shit, Sanji thinks as his words finally register. He’d said something he shouldn’t have. He’d said a lot of things he shouldn’t have.

“Zoro,” he finally speaks, voice quiet, even in the near silence. “Why are you at bars getting wasted and getting into fights in the first place?”

Zoro visibly looks more sober. It’s a miracle that he hadn’t been sick, but Sanji isn’t going to jinx that one. He keeps his gaze forward but watches Zoro from his peripherals. The green-haired man keeps his gaze set forward too, hands still clenched on his knees.

“I didn’t start it,” he says again. “I just saw someone getting harassed and told the guy to lay off. S’not like you wouldn’t have done it too. He swung first, so I swung back.”

“You look like shit,” Sanji informs him, finally turning his head to look at the other man.

Zoro cracks a crooked little grin, head lolling aside to look at Sanji. “You should see the other guy.”

Sanji turns his gaze forward again, fixed on the darkness outside. For a moment, they’re both quiet once more.

“Sorry,” Zoro finally mumbles, “for makin’ you come all the way out to get me. I know it was your day off.”

“Well,” Sanji replies, “I wasn’t going to let you actually get stranded out in this weather. Even if it was tempting. You’re a pain in the ass, but you’re my pain in the ass, whether I like it or not.”

The car is warm. Sanji feels the heat prickle up the length of his arms, tucked neatly under his sweater sleeves. He can’t see the frost and flurry through the darkness, but he knows it’s there, blowing circles around the warm vehicle. Sanji can’t feel the cold, but he can feel the warmth of the car’s heat. He can feel Zoro’s presence beside him, a personal furnace, dark eyes still fixed on Sanji’s face.

He doesn’t know what he’s going to say. Sanji thinks that it might be best to ignore his earlier words, but he also knows they’re past that point. He doesn’t know what he’s going to say, but he parts his lips and turns to face Zoro, but by then it doesn’t even matter.

Zoro is already unbuckled. Sanji doesn’t even register it until the other man has practically lunged across the middle console, fingers curling into the collar of Sanji’s sweater to haul him in. Sanji thinks, what?

Zoro kisses him like he’s a breath of fresh air to a drowning man.

It’s uncomfortable: Sanji’s hip digs into the corner of his own seatbelt buckle, and the belt slots itself up against his neck, as if to tell him he should have thought to unbuckle himself too. His knee turns a little awkwardly to move with the rest of his body, Zoro tastes like blood and alcohol, and Sanji is concerned about his sweater’s elasticity. Despite everything, his fingers slide up into the hair over Zoro’s ears and pull him in, thumb dragging over those pesky golden earrings Zoro always wears. It’s a rush of heat, heedless of the cold outside.

Zoro draws back first with a little wince, and Sanji only chases a moment before he halts, taking a slow breath.

“Ouch,” Zoro grunts, releasing Sanji’s sweater in favor of his busted lip like he’d forgotten about it.

Sanji can’t help it. He laughs. Zoro gapes at him as Sanji throws his head back, howling with laughter at the other man’s face.

“God,” he gasps out, “gross. That was so gross.”

Zoro makes a face, but Sanji is already reaching to turn the headlights back on. He puts the car back into drive, and miraculously, it pulls right out of the ditch. Zoro buckles himself back in, but he keeps looking back at Sanji like he wants to say something. He opens his mouth to speak, but Sanji beats him to it.

“Let’s go home,” he says. “I’ll teach you how to kiss better later.”

He offers his hand over middle console. For a long moment, Zoro stares back at him, but finally, finally, he takes it. Zoro’s palm is calloused and rough in his, but Sanji knows his own hands aren’t soft by any means. Still, they fit just right. Had it been any other day, Sanji probably would have been pissed about the cliches, but right now, all he can think is, finally.

Sanji’s fingers are cold, but Zoro’s settle into the space between them, and the feeling vanishes just as soon as it’s come.

60 notes · View notes