Adult-FanFiction.org : Anime

Suppressed	By : nekked Category: +M to R > One Piece Views: 8384 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, nor do I receive any money while writing for it.

Chapter List
- 13
- 14
Suppressed

Chapter 14: Ways

"It's sundown. I'll have to escort you back to your home once these are back inside," the guard pointed out, helping the woman carry into the palace and put the last of the baby animals in their cages. Though Hancock wasn't fond of them, dogs were good for tracking and hunting, and cats kept mice out of the palace. Women with shops also used them to keep mice out of grain stores. The woman in charge of the animals, though Hancock's decree that everyone stay in their homes as much as possible now that she'd "contained the disease", had just delivered a litter of kittens and had taken extra care when transporting them back. It was now past curfew.

"Um, excuse me," Nyon said from the doorway, night time shadowing her fatigued and ornery face. "I understand Hebihime-sama gave strict instructions about who was allowed inside-"

"Nyon baa-san, she specifically instructed us not to let you inside no matter what," the guard sighed tiredly.

"That is because she has made up her mind to do something unnecessary and she knows I want to nag her," Nyon said gruffly, letting the guard and the girl in charge of the animal's usher her outside.

"When Hebihime-sama finishes the ritual all these strange things will leave," the woman said matter-of-factly with an admiring hand on her cheek. "Hebihime-sama takes excellent care of us. I'm sure Roronoa-san will be cured soon and the plague among us will disperse."

The noticeable problem on this island was that it was an island of maidens. The women with children might've caught onto the obvious flaw in Hancock's logic that an evil spirit was the cause of all the havoc if they'd had more information, but they were probably just as desperate to stop the madness as anyone. And who dared defy the great Pirate Empress? No one who valued their life. In which case everyone probably considered Nyon suicidal.

I thought I might have more time to play around and do Hancock a favor with the swordsman, but it seems it's time to send the Straw Hat pirates on their way.

Romance in modesty was key. And gosh if she hadn't seen the "modesty" flowing out of Margaret's pores that morning before she'd been ripped from her archery lesson to sit in jail as a suspected infected in the search for cock sickness hosts. Monkey D. Luffy sure knew how to rain on his own parade. Wondering how that whole relationship had blossomed, she recalled the night Luffy had discovered his brother was to be executed. It put a bit of a damper on her mission to break in and counsel Hancock.

"Would you like an escort back to your home, Nyon baa-san?" the guard asked, Nyon blinking out of her daze. She nodded and grinned tiredly.

"Yes, that's fine by me. I wouldn't want you to get in trouble for not following through."

"We're all just trying to do our best," the guard said with a bit of cheerfulness. Nyon wondered if Hancock could really see how much they all trusted her to make good decisions.

…Well, she could dream.

Luffy hadn't really thought coming here would make him feel any better, but it was kind of nostalgic. He sat underneath the huge, worn rock and stared out at the calm belt, wondering why the wind didn't like this place. It was more distracting like this. He heard every single bug, every frog croaking, every Usopp coming out of the bushes…

"I'm sorry, alright," he said low and apologetic, putting his hands on his hips and staring at Luffy over his nose. "I didn't expect Sanji to take the hat, but in my defense, you've done an awful lot of evading since we got here."

Luffy gave him a tired look. "Huh?"

Usopp looked a little unsure of how to continue now that Luffy had already broken what the sniper had assumed would be a long yelling match about what a jerk he'd been to give up his hat so easily. He didn't really have a plan B.

"That's why you came out here, right? You're mad that I couldn't hide the fact that you bailed?"

"Naw," Luffy muttered, moving over so his best friend could plop down next to him. "Sanji won't do anything anyway."

Usopp smirked and said, "You're so trusting." Luffy stuck his tongue out and scratched his head with a grin.

"It doesn't really matter who found it or who ended up with it. Any of you guys would've kept it for me."

"No, seriously, you're gonna make me cry," Usopp sniffed, face greying with emotion and snot struggling to flow. Luffy laughed and elbowed him.

"I thought you were asleep."

"I was, and then I thought it was kind of weird that one of your limbs didn't whack me in the face after I'd gotten comfortable."

They smiled at each other, then fell into giggling against the rock.

"You know," Usopp mumbled, shaking his head, "a lot of crazy stuff has happened since we arrived here. We're bound to have crazy times wherever we go. I just want you to know, we're all here to talk about…stuff. Especially if it's noticeably different than the stuff…you're probably used to."

Luffy curled his lips inside themselves and blinked, his classic doll face throwing Usopp off even more. "Like what stuff?"

"To be blunt, the touching stuff," he came right out with, both hands making air chops at his own over-alled bits. "You and…Margaret…are involved in some heavy stuff, and I don't think you've got a full handle on what you're doing to each other."

Now Luffy frowned, shaking his head and pushing off of his legs to stand while Usopp watched. "I don't feel like talking about it." And he thought he didn't. It was hard to explain. He'd come out here in the first place so he could think about it alone. He gathered enough that, because it was something that was between the two of them, he'd probably end up having to talk it out with her anyway. If anything, they could all be grateful she wasn't in the crew and they wouldn't have to go through the same drama as when he'd had a falling out with the very guy sitting with him. Though, that was hardly a fair comparison. Usopp'd had his reasons. This thing he had with Margaret…it was…different.

"I didn't know I could feel stuff like that, Usopp," Luffy murmured, ignoring his own policy and questing for an outside opinion. He looked down at his hands like he was seeing them for the first time. "Skin feels different. It's so much different than…and things look different…I do stuff differently…"

Usopp couldn't help but smile. Luffy wasn't too difficult to figure out. Only to himself. And if all he needed to do was talk it out with someone…

"I don't like fighting with my friends," he admitted quietly. His voice hitched a little, "I want her to smile at me."

"But you want her to come to you because she's the one that got mad," Usopp reasoned, smiling at the familiar scenario. "Nothing we haven't seen before, eh?"

"Yeah, but she's a girl," Luffy choked, bratty, tired little crocodile tears threatening to tarnish his otherwise manly face. "And it's not like if she doesn't apologize she doesn't have a place to go. She lives here. She might never talk to me again."

"That's a little melodramatic don't you think?" Usopp teased, Luffy sulking down until he was sitting by him again. He paused to give him a suspicious side glance before continuing, "And seriously, if I didn't know any better, you sound like your balls dropped literally today."

"What are you talking about," Luffy grumbled, head falling back and eyes closing to signal he was done thinking about heavy things for a while. "You can't drop them. They're attached." He blinked his eyes open again to stare suspiciously at his pants and asked, "Right? I mean, they don't come off…right? I already told Margaret they don't-"

"I don't even wanna know," Usopp deadpanned, getting up to take his leave. If a mutual ignorance about balls was at the core of this relationship, it was probably best to just let that lead where it might. More than likely, straight into a pregnancy. Would serve him right.

Luffy smiled a little as he watched him get up. "Oi. Usopp."

The sniper turned to give him a sleepy eyebrow over his retreating shoulder. "Hm?"

"Heh. Thanks. For listening."

Usopp wondered if God himself could resist that smile. Jerk. It was too late to be feeling this fuzzy...

They were both taken by surprise when Margaret materialized out of the shadows of the trees, mirroring their shock. It only took a moment of speechlessness and brief eye contact with Luffy for it to be replaced by flustered embarrassment.

"I…I'm sorry…I…"

"What're you doing out here?" Luffy questioned mildly, still rested against the rock with his hands folded behind his head. "I thought you went back home after you yelled at me."

Usopp sweat dropped at how bluntly he'd said it. He could almost see the arrow of shame stab Margaret in the heart.

"I'll leave first," he offered calmly, waving back to them as he disappeared into the woods and shook his head. Then he snorted.

Luffy wasn't the type to hold a grudge against a friend. And if Usopp remembered correctly, he'd just explained himself that this was what he wanted. She'd practically fallen into his lap out of nowhere. For whatever reason, the heavens didn't seem to be objecting that they reconcile as quickly as possible. Besides that, the night was nice. It was better to get out of there before they started making up. And whatever else that implied...

"I AM LITERALLY GOING TO STAB YOU TO DEATH."

"Good luck while you're like this."

"YOU BETTER HOPE I STAY LIKE THIS FOREVER, THEN. I'LL CHASE YOU INTO THE DARKEST CAVERNS OF HELL-"

"I don't doubt it. Hurry up and tell me which way the kitchen is…"

"AS IF I WOULD HELP YOU."

The way Zoro saw it, he was just improvising. A hungry man's gotta do what a hungry man's gotta do. So after he'd subdued his frantic assassin and tied her up, he'd taken a nap until she woke back up from her unexplained unconsciousness so she could help him find some food...

"I can't believe you would do that," Hancock muttered, mummified in a bed sheet with only her head sticking out and the rope dragging her behind him through the empty, barely lit halls of the palace. "You would knock out a naked woman…you coward…"

"I don't recall doing any such thing," he said cooly. "I would never knock out a woman. A crazed, anorexic cow on the other hand…"

"Burn in hell."

He came to some stairs and gave her an irritated look over his shoulder. Then he smirked with an idea.

"Rough or gentle."

"What are you muttering about," she growled, looking up at him, now upside down in her flipped vision. She blinked when she noticed the black void behind him that meant they'd come to a stair case. She glared.

"You're not even a man."

"Is that your answer? If that's what you want…"

"YOU'RE SERIOUS? YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS." She wriggled helplessly while he picked her up and held her over the stairs, dark with lack of daylight and significantly creepier now. She turned her head to bite him but he bounced her up in the air and delighted in her terrified shrieking.

"Tell me where the kitchen is. I want dinner."

"You might as well throw me. I don't exactly like being in your company and this way I won't have to look at your face." She smirked at his twitching eyebrow. "You are a heathen, after all. You should be starving yourself so I can purge you of the asshole demon inside of you."

"I'm afraid you're going to be sorely disappointed when I eat and have the patience to explain to you the ways of an average man," he said dangerously, gripping her tighter. "And I hate to tell you, but the asshole demon and myself are the same thing."

"Don't squeeze my butt," she hissed, wriggling without any thought of where she would be going if he let go. "And you won't be eating if you can't even figure out where to go…"

She was interrupted by the inappropriate gurgling of a stomach. Zoro narrowed his eye and watched her face darken with embarassment, knowing that if it hadn't been his stomach, it had to be hers that was protesting.

"You seemed pretty eager to eat when it was my food up for grabs," he said bitterly. "I thought you were done starving yourself."

"What the hell are you talking about?" she said, as if he were stupid. It was his turn to blush now. Of course she wouldn't remember that. He'd dreamed that part.

"I intend to eat, so you might as well tell me quick. My patience isn't exactly the longest fuse I have," he grumbled.

She pouted teasingly, crooning, "And here I thought you were all kinds of soft cuddly. The raccoon thinks you tell an excellent bed time story. He even trusted you to sleep with me."

"The only bed time story you're getting is a eulogy," he said a shade darker, eye blacked out ominously as he lifted her higher over the stairs. "Kitchen. Now, woman."

"Only if you untie me," she tried to persuade seductively, only succeeding in making him look more uncomfortable. They both knew that meant her walking around in the nude.

"I don't want to lose my appetite," he finally coughed out, finding it hard to keep a straight face. "I mean, you look like a burrito right now, so it's kind of hard for me to concentrate…"

"GO DIE."

Perhaps I haven't been acting my age lately…

Robin leaned out over the railing of the ship and stared at the cliff rock, making pictures in her mind and giving herself an excuse to stay outside a little while longer. It seemed that a few other members of the crew were feeling similar. Usopp had dragged himself back from, presumably chasing Luffy, and rejected her offer to stay up and have coffee. So she was sipping alone. Luffy had still not returned. She smiled, thinking this might be how worried parents would deal with their adolescent children. Except he was a grown man and she was too lazy to pace with anxiety. Hopefully he wouldn't get eaten by a wild animal or fall off a cliff and drown without a witness to ever know what became of him...

"Ahem."

She blinked and looked down at the huge, shadowed figure of Franky standing on the edge of the shore right next to the ships hull. How he had gotten there unnoticed was beyond her brains current power to comprehend. When Margaret had left them to return home, it had been an awkward walk back to the ship. Neither of them had said much of anything, though she got the vibe that they were both feeling pretty ashamed. Assuming Margaret had been more in need of advice than a man and woman both many years her senior, the tables had been turned and they'd walked away enlightened about how they should be approaching their own relationship. Neither one had felt like verbalizing it, though. She had pretended to go back to her room, and to her knowledge, he had gone below deck to his work shop.

"You don't have to say anything," he called up loud enough for her to hear. "I've just been working on something and…I wanna give it to you."

Her blue eyes blinked questioningly, then she smiled. "Should I come down there?" she asked, gesturing out to him. He shook his head.

"Actually, where you're at is perfect. Don't even move an inch."

She tilted her head curiously, but kept quiet. Then, she noticed she hadn't been able to see him clearly a minute ago, and he was now walking back a bit so his neck didn't have to crane straight up to see her. He was wearing tights. And not just any tights. The bright blue tights Nami wore with leg warmers and an over sized shirt when she was feeling fat and wanted to do aerobics. Robin cringed slightly, noticing his speedo was worn over them, raising the question of whether he was going commando underneath the stolen garments.

"But super," he belted out, her immediately understanding and fighting the urge to laugh, "what light from yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Nico Robin~" he purred for flare, "is the sun."

Robin giggled, admittedly forgiving him a little for his idiocy with just this small piece.

"The moon is super jealous of you," he continued, her giggles getting a bit louder, but still controlled enough to listen. "Because you are more super than it…"

"Blue Fan is taking care of her sick roommate," Margaret began quietly, hands clasped awkwardly behind her back and her eyes on the ground. "So…I offered to take her guard shift for her."

"Mm." Luffy nodded, not bothering to grace her with much more than acknowledgement that she was there. She scuffed the grass with her boot and glanced over at him.

He could tell she felt bad. Every time he thought about letting her off the hook though, he remembered the insult to his genitals and slipped further into depression. He didn't think they looked particularly weird. All guys had them. He couldn't really help how they looked. Okay, yeah, the part where it got bigger and stuff was kind of new and it did look kind of weird, but he couldn't help it. It just did it on its own. His mouth squiggled with resentment, these new feelings suggesting an untouched piece of pride had been pinched a little too hard. He wondered at why it hurt so much, but wondered more at how she planned to obtain his forgiveness.

He listened to her walk over and sit down beside him against the rock, soft eyes studying the moss and vines that had overgrown fallen trees on either side and behind them.

"I think…I must be extremely selfish," she started out, pulling her knees up to her chin and sighing. He didn't say anything, but waited for her to continue.

"I'm happy you came back to see us. Even if it's caused some trouble." She set her quiver of arrows next to her and patted her snakes head. "I will be…" she struggled to not choke or show any excess emotion too soon, "...sad when you leave."

It was short and to the point, even if she hadn't gotten to the apology part yet. But he could appreciate that she wasn't trying to twist it like it was only his fault they were arguing. He gave her a sideways glance.

"We'll come back," he reassured her quietly. "And we've still got a few days."

She shrank within herself further, mumbling over her arms, "Robin-san says that…I'm in love. With you."

They sat in silence for a minute before he gave her a small smile.

"Brook said something like that too. About love."

She felt her face grow warm. "So…you feel that way too?"

"For you," he said with a shrug, "I don't really know what else it could be. I've never done something like this before. Love, I mean. So if it's like that and everyone else can see it, then I guess that's what it is."

She fidgeted shyly under his blunt scrutiny and asked, "Do you hate it? Feeling that way…"

He shook his head. "Nope. It feels good. It's like a weird adventure."

She sweat dropped. "An adventure?"

His nod was confident as he closed his eyes to wait on her inevitable apology. "Mm. People are adventures, too."

Her eyes widened, then crinkled with a warm smile. Luffy's words weren't as fancy, or maybe he wasn't as smart or well thought out as the women she'd learned everything she knew about life from. But her heart never felt as full as it did when he said things. Or even better, when she saw him act on those words so flawlessly. Was it so strange that she be in love with him? And then she flushed like a lobster, realizing suddenly that such an admirable person had just confessed basically the same thing to her. And with so much confidence, she noticed as her head began to smoke with the effort it took to process. Was she anything so special? Perhaps she should quest for an explanation…

…But maybe her initial intentions were where her mind should be. Her heart sank, remembering she'd told Robin she wanted to back track to make it easier on both of them when they finally had to part. She had already been graced with the intuition that they were headed for a rough time if they continued down this naive and temptingly touchy feely path. She enjoyed being friends with him, would do anything to ensure his peace of mind while he headed towards his dream...

"People are adventures, too."

Eventually, adventures reach an end. Whether it was reached happily or tragically was what hung in the balance.

"Luffy," she muttered, moving just a bit closer, "do you think it would be better if…we stopped?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"

"The…the touching," she sputtered, embarrassed, "I just don't want you…" she bit her lip, finally making words out of her feelings, "…I don't want you to think less of me while you're away." He didn't say anything so she mumbled, "I mean…we are nakama, but…it's just different…if we were normal it wouldn't be as hard…"

"That's no good," he said strictly, bringing his hands down to his knees and giving her a hard look. "You mean I'm supposed to pretend I don't wanna touch you. Right?"

Her face burned and her spirit nearly gave out. Not the smoothest fabric in the shop, was he… "I just don't want you to resent me if we keep arguing all the time. We…I'm sure this is how it will go if we continue this-"

"What the hell else am I supposed to do then," he said with surprising levels of irritation, "I can't pretend I don't feel that way if it's the way I'm feeling."

She was suddenly struck with the thought that she was probably hurting his feelings again. Regret swelled up into her throat, searching for some way to make him see it her way. Instead of giving her a chance to talk though, he moved his head over and pressed another inexperienced, nose bending kiss to her lips that made her heart soar and her stomach fuzzy.

He pulled away and glared at her with defiance. "You like those, right?"

She bowed her head and looked up at him ashamedly. She nodded, and he softened his eyes a little.

"I don't wanna pretend I don't like them. Do you?"

"I don't want to pretend either, Luffy," she choked, tears stinging at the corners of her lashes, "but it hurts in a way it didn't before…when you left to go help your brother. It hurts because I know…" She tried to hide her face with her hand but that made it seem a little more dramatic than she wanted, so she pulled at a piece of her hair. "…I won't get to see you for a long time. I don't know if I can take it…"

"Don't be such a baby," he criticized, flicking her forehead and squishing her cheeks between his palms. Her sniffles and the words he'd just uttered reminded him of a similar instance between himself and Ace. So he grinned and pushed her forehead to his.

"Hey," he mumbled, "I'm not gonna die or anything."

"I wasn't thinking that," she quivered, "I just like being around you."

"You have other nakama to hang out with, huh?" he suggested brightly. "I bet it won't hurt so much if you let them cheer you up."

"You won't miss me at all," she deadpanned, pulling away and gathering her things so she could leave. His jaw dropped a little in insulted disbelief at her audacity. "Go back to your ship. I have things to do."

"Oi!" he yelled as she took a few steps and he scrambled up to follow. "You were the one who found me first! We're not done!"

She hadn't meant to twist his meaning around and make him feel bad again, but he was an idiot still. He didn't get it. She would venture on with Hebihime-sama and think on nothing but what he was doing and if he was safe, and she'd sit at the back of his brain like all the other people he left behind, saying, 'I'll come back again'.

Calloused fingers took hold of her wrist, then spun her back around to look at their owner. She was still too ashamed to look him in the eye, and wasn't really sure she would be able to see well through her tears at this point anyway. He was beginning to understand the things she wanted from him, even if she wasn't saying anything. When she wasn't pulling away, like now, it meant she wanted him to say something because she was hurting. Even though she still had a lot to say sorry for too, it was hard to know it was because of something he had (or had not, depending on the situation) said or done.

"I don't do a lot of stuff right," he started off. "I get yelled at a lot. I don't like thinking about stuff and probably hurt people even if I don't mean to..."

"I'm not mad at you," she said loudly, finally crumbling with insecurity, "I just know that I love you a lot and hate to think that you don't feel the same way!"

"I just told you I did, moron!" he screeched, fangs bared. "Why the hell don't you GET IT?"

He pulled her close, making her nearly vomit her own heart, then told her, "All I can think about anymore is the weird stuff we do…the way it feels when you touch me a little…or a lot…how you say stuff all quiet…" he paused a moment, then moaned in her ear, "the way you smell…"

The smelling part wasn't just an exaggeration. It had been more of a mystery to him before the stadium was destroyed, but since their morning frolic in her room, the smell was now a representation of that entire experience. The part of his brain that was probably supposed to identify this 'smell' as a signal that she wanted some TLC was unfortunately still trying to chip at the wall separating it from the group of rare subjects that actually showcased his intelligence. He smelled it in her hair, in the pit of skin created by her clavicle, between her breasts; it was warm and comforting, and it made him horny as fuck. Sadly, he had no way of understanding this. So he cringed, Margaret whimpering with one hand pulling a bit at his shirt and the other moving to his neck, and at the very least figured out they wouldn't be leaving this place without reinforcing the physical aspect of their relationship. So much for sticking it to her.

"You know," he growled, frustrated with himself as he gripped her shoulders and let his accelerated breaths heat her lips, "Your's looks weird too." She wanted to kiss him, but she was a little confused about what he meant.

"…My what looks weird?"

"Your thing. Down there." With his aggravated puffing of the cheeks, she suddenly realized she'd forgotten the most important part of her apology.

"Luffy, I didn't mean any of what I said. I was just upset with you, and…" Now that she thought about it, that had probably been a pretty mean thing to say, for sure. Just like Robin and Franky had thought. If he'd said the same thing to her, already so shy, she would never want to let him see it again. "…I'm so sorry. The last thing I want to do is hurt your feelings." Then she paused and shrunk a little. "Does…does it really look strange? I can't see mine…"

"Sort of." He sighed, then parted his lips a bit and leaned into her face, their mouths just barely touching. "Know what, though…I like it…licking it…"

She was pink with their close proximity, but to say something so unabridged…oh, she could just pass out. They were kissing now, but she could barely bring herself to return it. He noticed and made an annoyed face.

"What now…"

"Don't say things like that," she muttered, face falling to his shoulder. "Something like that…it somehow seems wrong…"

"Nope. I meant it," he said bluntly, patting her back. "You're funny, too. When you pull on my hair…" he paused to go into his Lusty Margaret imitation, "…and say stuff like, 'Luffy~ your tongue is good~'…"

She pushed his face away with an angry pout and he laughed, tongue violating her hand so she pulled away with disgust. "Aw, come on, don't be that way. I liked it." He smiled into her ear. "You taste nice."

"I DO NOT," she screeched, dizzy with the heat and embarrassment. "I…THAT…THAT CAN'T…I mean…how does something like that…" She ran a hand through her hair and remembered how ridiculously good it had felt, how she'd gone along with it. Now that she wasn't totally high off of his presence, she had time to reflect on her own shamelessness. The consequences of which were a now super paranoid roommate and another unlocked level of imaginativeness. Oh, and some jail time. She could feel herself getting wet just thinking about her sins.

"Do mine," he said, eyes glittering hopefully. "Please? You said you would…"

She blinked in surprise, damn well near fainting soon. "…You want me to? You're not mad at me because I said it looks weird?"

He shrugged and burrowed into her neck. "You said you were sorry. I just figured…since you said it feels good…"

"It does," she said with soft tenderness at the prospect of making him feel the way she had. Her smile was small and shy. "I'd like that. If you'd let me…"

He gave her a toothy grin and tackled her to the ground, celebrating their plans with dog licks all over her face. She was probably the only person in the world who could take that and label it with a certain level of sexiness.

"By the way," he asked suddenly, pausing in his assault on her body to give her a curious head tilt, "does my voice sound…different to you?"

"I don't know…I don't really care," she admitted with a touch of whininess, pulling his shirt from his shoulders and leaning up to bite his lip.

"As a doctor, I should at least be allowed to see if Zoro's alright," Chopper pleaded with the guards, all sitting around a fire pit and drinking. One patted his hat kindly and gave him a cup of his own, offering him a seat beside her.

"I'm sorry, Chopper-san, but Hebihime-sama's orders are what we are bound to obey. You don't really have to worry about him if he is in her care."

Another guard sighed and looked up at the darkened palace. "Hebihime-sama is truly magnificent, and she is determined to save your swordsman from his curse."

"Right. Curse." The reindeer's face twisted with annoyed sarcasm, then he perked up a little. "Does she really think he has a…a curse? How would she know?"

"Well, we aren't entirely sure," the girl next to him said solemnly, "but it may have something to do with the gorgon eyes on her back…"

Chopper blinked. "Gorgon…eyes? On her back?"

A fat guard threw a small piece of wood into the flames and nodded with a smile. "It is the pride of our nation. The story of how Hebihime-sama and her sisters destroyed a gorgon and were cursed with eyes on their backs. Eyes that would, if not otherwise covered, turn anyone who looked upon them to stone."

"Maybe because Hebihime-sama has dealt with this kind of thing before she can sympathize," the girl next to Chopper explained. "She will absolutely help him."

Chopper's eyes still flickered with naive admiration. "To have eyes on her back and fight that kind of monster…she is very brave, right? I guess I knew she was strong, but that…I wonder if she's told Zoro! He must think that's amazing! We've never even seen one of those things before!"

All the guards laughed and nodded in agreement.

"We could not ask for a better woman to look after us."

Chopper looked over at Sanji, walking smoothly as a note on Brook's violin around the circle of girls with trays of snacks. It had been his idea to inquire about the gravity of what was really going on inside, but he'd been distracted by breasts, er, ladies in need of sustenance again, and had probably completely forgotten the original goal. It was probably for the best. He'd need to rest soon so he could rampage in the morning. Not to mention they still had to finish rebuilding the stadium. Which they couldn't do very easily now since the rest of the island was on lock down. There was going to be a lot to keep busy with.

Sleep well, Zoro. You probably don't need much help with that, though...

Hancock sat at one end of the large dining table, wrapped in the sheet she'd been confined in earlier and staring with suspicious concern at the human being at the other end. She'd taken the liberty of lighting a couple torches, as the ones in the hallway near her room were now confirmed to be the only ones the staff had been courteous enough to leave. Well, it wouldn't be so annoying to her if something caught fire and she was more heavily inconvenienced, but right now that wasn't what she was worried about. She had a different kind of issue on her hands. The kind she hadn't really been faced with before. Funny how it always seemed the same person was involved…

She had finally bothered to tell him where the kitchen was, and after all the trouble he'd gone to and all of the unnecessary acrobatics they'd endured over each other's stubborn pride, it had been her who had literally had to guide him by the arm to their destination. Why she'd had to was beyond her, save the idea he had finally realized his sense of direction was impossibly horrible. Fat chance. He had neither shown particular pleasure upon arrival, nor any significant signs of disgust while being led around. He hadn't shown much of anything since that incident.

Half of his sullen face was orange with illumination, high lighting the hard, thin lines that made up his features; every so often the eyes would soften into something thoughtful. She was used to the fact that she couldn't really hold his attention unless they were screaming at each other, but this was different than him being arrogant and, until otherwise confirmed, of questionable sexuality. It nagged at her mind, eye twitching at how increasingly heavy the air was getting. She glared at her bowl of unfinished rice gruel and plate of sliced pears, the only things she had felt like eating. There hadn't been much to choose from, and she hadn't felt like cooking so late at night. He hadn't eaten as much as she thought he might, but he'd scarfed down some rice and dried strips of fish before settling into his current broody state. Yes, that was a good word. Broody.

He caught her narrowed eyes from across the table and stared for a minute before calling across the void, "What. What is it. Stop staring at me. You're creepy." And then he went back to sighing into the hand propping his face up.

She pouted and grabbed at the sides of her sheet hood, not exactly satisfied with the watery, pussy tone he'd said that with. Like he didn't have half the heart to acknowledge her existence anymore. She wasn't sure why this was so hard to swallow, considering their reasons for being in this place together.

Waking up to find him talking in his sleep and sweating uncomfortably had been alarming enough. She had thought his burn might be infected, so she'd tried to handle that much. The swelling was at the front though, and terrifyingly advanced. Her first thought had been to try to bring it down by rubbing it with ointment, but that had only made it worse. She had recognized a couple symptoms though, and that thought had bugged her the whole time she was caring for him. The fever, the mumbled calling of her name, the clutch to his heart…it made her remember the time she had fallen ill with worry that Luffy might leave her alone.

Was it coincidence that more than one case of this disease had occurred during Luffy's visit to the island? Most definitely not. She suspected more women than herself had caught onto how wonderful he was. The swordsman probably sensed it too. He was her greatest threat; the only one who would be going with Luffy when they left.

She felt a pang in her heart, the prospect of being alone again, with nobody to scream at- no, that wasn't right…nobody to…if Luffy was not around…

She was swallowed up by a soundless darkness, noticing for the first time in almost a week that she and Luffy had spent literally no time together. All of her company had been this broccoli head. Her rival in love, soon to have the upper hand as he and Luffy sailed off into the sunset-

Her hand patted her chest and she breathed deeply. This thought, however misconstrued it seemed to herself, was overshadowed again by the gloominess of the man sitting across from her. Was he feeling the same, even though he was to be accompanying the man her heart belonged to when they said goodbye? How selfish. She would set him straight.

He noticed her advancing over the table, scooting on her barely covered thighs and holding the sheet around the rest of her body. She would stop if she noticed his eyes looking over, and then continue on until he looked again. He blushed despite himself. It was something that would've been cute had it not been her.

"It was not my fault we fell down the stairs, I'm sure you're aware," she started off, getting right to the point, "so I know that is not why you are so upset."

A vein rose over his forehead, all cuteness immediately dissipating when she opened her mouth. "Shut up and leave me alone."

"I will not take you back to your room until you admit that you are in love with Luffy and that you can't stand that he may like me more than you."

He fell out of his chair, then quickly righted himself, getting in her face with gritted teeth. "HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU I DON'T SWING THAT WAY?"

"You are the test of love I have been sent from the Snake Goddess, and I will rid these feelings from you if it kills me," she said adamantly, looking into his face just as intensely now that he was standing and currently taller than her. "You are testing me. Otherwise…I would not feel this way…"

"Well whatever the hell you're feeling, it's got nothing to do with me," he spat back, her feeling a bit of relief now that he was irritated and back to normal. Then he was back to being strange again, his accidental lingering over the sheet's dip into her chest going undetected by her.

"Can't you even cover yourself properly…"

"You think you're so smart, you fix it for me," she said harshly, starting to take the whole thing off. He pushed it back over her, mouth a squiggle of exhaustion.

"Do you not even see me as a man?"

She blinked in genuine surprise. "…Does it bother you to see me this way?"

The words caught in his throat, suddenly realizing her meaning. "…I suppose it does."

Her heart pounded with questions while he went about fixing her sheet so it covered her better. She had grown comfortable with him seeing her naked, however strange that seemed. He had not bothered to pry into the scar on her back all this time; a courtesy she suddenly wasn't sure she wanted anymore. The one on his chest; she suddenly wanted to know where it had come from. She became aware of the general amount of skin they had shown each other and how little she understood about this person she had grown to liken to wall paper.

His thumb pressed her shoulder a little; why was it so coarse? She looked down at his ankles; how had those gotten there? She tried to imagine watching these things leaving her behind, knowing she had not bothered to know the story behind them. It clenched her in a more disturbing way than when she imagined Luffy moving on. She had felt it would be appropriate to die if he, or rather the glittering idea of him, were to walk away. To die because the man before her left…that prospect was impossible. Instead, something more frightening, like being compelled to live in his absence, waiting to see who had grown more while they were apart…

He brought the hood over her forehead, blinking at the water droplets sliding down his wrist and onto the table. She was shaking.

"Oi," he said with controlled concern, "you crying?"

She wanted to throw up. Unbeknownst to herself, she had come to recognize him as a companion. Someone who would look at her, no matter what stupid thing she did or said, and accept it while thinking that was just the way she was. And be okay with it. Even if she was naked. Even if she had some weird thing on her back that he couldn't explain. Even if she got jealous and tried to stab him into swearing he would never look at Luffy and wish he had the relationship they had. If he was indeed in love with Luffy.

Zoro stood stupidly, watching her swipe silently at the tears falling down her face. He was no good at comforting people, reindeer excluded, but felt like he should offer some kind of gesture or explanation to get her to calm down. He sat back in his chair, scooting until she could look down at his face through her tears, and put both elbows down. Wondering whether he should pat the hand holding the sheet over her crotch, he decided against it and scratched at his neck.

"I guess I was just shook up a little. I don't have a good track record with...stairs," he admitted, her sniffing and listening. "Your snake saved me the trouble of another injury, but…" He cut himself off, embarrassed by his next words. "…I'm just glad you weren't hurt."

"Why are you like this…" she quivered, on the verge of harder tears. "I have done nothing but frighten you with my might and glory since the time we met…"

"You've got it wrong, idiot," he muttered, blinking and raising an eyebrow. "And I guess that's just the way it is between us."

So. They had a way between them. She blushed, embarrassed by her splotched face and shivering body. He was about to ask if she was cold when he felt the strangest thing, almost like she'd leaned down to kiss the top of his head. It indeed looked that way, but his brain refused to believe his eyes, and his face just went ahead and signaled that his ears should pink to cover all bases of unsureness.

How many times had he said her name? Did it just sound more natural when it came out of his mouth? How would his name sound coming from her? Would he even care?

He rose to ask her if she was tired enough to call it a night, then froze when her head dropped to the middle of his chest, hands gripping the fabric in her lap. He caught his breath in his throat when he heard her utter something under her own.

"…Zoro," she said tiredly, comfortably, and as naturally as anything that had ever come to her.

Brook had thought this would be an interesting way to finish off the night, but perhaps he'd bitten off more than he could chew. Though, it's hard to chew when you're made of just bones. Skull joke!

After finishing a particularly satisfying session of watching the two younger Boa sister's taking a late night bath in the public springs in lieu of their temporary displacement from the palace, Brook's spirit was merrily on its way back to his body, when it caught sight of something wholly disturbing near the shore not too far from where the ship was docked. It was a small dinghy, with what looked to be an older man, a younger man around Zoro or Sanji's age, and a woman. They didn't seem to be trying to move with particular stealth, so perhaps they were people who had gotten lucky after a shipwreck and were seeking out assistance? Either way, this was a new development he couldn't really ignore.

I'd better let Robin-san know…this could be interesting.
- 13
- 14
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Suppressed