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Running Up That Hill
By : yinneko23
Category: +M to R > One Piece
Views: 11948 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece or make any money from this fic.
Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
It�s gratifying to see his new crew properly appreciate their gift from Kaya. Usopp hates to leave her behind, he really does, and he knows Luffy would let her come along if he asked, but Kaya is still frail and has her own dream to follow. So Usopp boards the Going Merry, waving until his dear lady is just a smudge on the coast. He sighs wistfully.
�Aw, c�mon. Smile!� Fingers clamp over his cheeks and pull so his lips curl up in a gross caricature of a smile.
Usopp splutters, reaching back to beat ineffectually at his captor�s skull. His flailing sends Luffy�s hat flying across the deck, and the rubberman releases him to run after it. �Don�t stretch my face! What if it got stuck?�
�Stuck?� Luffy claps the straw hat to his head. �That can happen?!�
�If a strong wind blows the moment you make a strange expression, it�ll get stuck that way forever.� Luffy gasps in what Usopp assumes is sheer terror, but then he rearranges his face into something that is truly inhuman and turns into the breeze as if hoping it�ll get stuck.

What an idiot, Usopp thinks, and grins, because damn if he isn�t going to have fun with this. Sailing under Luffy might be his best idea yet; he gets starry eyed as he imagines all the ingenious pranks they�ll pull together.
Nami, who�s been watching from behind her newspaper, rolls her eyes at them and says, �Luffy, he�s lying. You could stand there all day and your face won�t stay like that.�
Luffy makes a muffled, questioning sound. The sniper actually hopes he�ll listen to Nami - seeing someone�s bottom lip stretched over their nose and their eyelids rolled back to fully expose the swiveling eyeball beneath is really quite disturbing. There�s an odd noise from the upper deck. Usopp looks around to see Zoro torn between hilarity and horror, choking on a laugh from behind his shielding hand. When Luffy doesn�t seem inclined to put his face back to normal the swordsman wanders down to do it for him.
As grateful as Usopp is that he no longer has to keep catching accidental glimpses of monstrosity, there is a calculating air about Zoro that worries him. He has a feeling he�s about to be revenged upon for scarring the swordsman beyond forgiveness. He�s certainly not expecting Zoro to take Luffy by the shoulders, bend him over, and kiss him full on the mouth.
It�s pretty intense for mere visual revenge - Zoro bites and slicks his tongue across Luffy�s lips, delving inside for a lengthy taste of whatever their captain had for lunch. Luffy is giggling and wrapping his arms around Zoro�s neck and decidedly not punching him into the ocean. Fingers are tangled in hair. Pleased, hungry noises drift on the breeze.
�I�m plenty scarred. You can stop now,� Usopp says, loudly. �Scarred FOR LIFE.�
They ignore him.
He turns to Nami, seeking support. She stares at Usopp blankly, sighs and goes back to her newspaper as if this is an everyday occurrence.
An. everyday. occurrence.
Slowly, ever so slowly, his gaze returns to where Zoro now has Luffy pinned to the floor, hand sliding up the leg of his shorts.
�DRINKS! DRINKS TO CELEBRATE OUR NEW SHIP!� Usopp screams in desperation.
It does the trick. Luffy shoves Zoro away and races towards the kitchen. �We gotta kanpai! Zoro, come help me find the sake.�
Zoro gets up to follow, but not without a glare so lethal Usopp can almost feel the blades of a thousand swords prodding at his vital organs. It�s entirely possible Usopp is going to die. Maybe he should�ve just taken Zoro�s vengeance like a man.
Well, it�s not Usopp�s fault the guy didn�t choose revenge he...enjoyed a little less.
Their celebration is deceptively peaceful. Nami joins them with a smile that promises she�s going to drink someone under the table before the day is through, Luffy hugs him, then again and again and again until Usopp isn�t sure he�s not in on Zoro�s diabolical plot, and Zoro settles in to watch them over the rim of his mug. It�s all quite nice until Luffy makes himself comfy in the swordsman�s lap.
Zoro nuzzles at Luffy�s neck, slipping his vest to the side and littering the skin there with small kiss marks. Sharp teeth scrape along the curve of his shoulder, prompting a hum of pleasure from the rubberman. Through it all Zoro never takes his dark, heavy stare from Usopp�s face. Not once. Goosebumps erupt across his arms. His cheeks grow hot.
He�s seriously starting to question Zoro�s intentions.
Usopp knows he is mind-bogglingly handsome - a brave warrior of the sea who�s had women and men alike beg on hand and knee for his heart, who lost his virginity at the tender age of fourteen to a buxom beauty driven to the height of desire by rumors of his many heroic efforts...
If Zoro is, uh, overcome with lust at his presence Usopp can totally understand why, even if he wishes with every fiber of his being it wasn�t so. Zoro is big and bulgy with muscle and thinks copious blood loss is some sort of joke - to sum it up, he�s a frightening human being. And very, very male.
While Usopp prides himself on being a breast man, he�s got no problem with those of a different persuasion. In fact, when Zoro sits back and Luffy slumps boneless on his chest, nose tucked under his chin, they make a sweet pair. As long as the two aren�t actively trying to get it on in front of him, Usopp is happy to leave them be.
Heck, Zoro looks so content to have Luffy in his arms that Usopp begins to believe he imagined the whole thing.
The rest of the afternoon passes without incident. He and Luffy explore Merry from top to bottom - play hide and seek in the storage room, start a tickle war in the crow�s nest (a war Usopp would�ve won except Luffy is a cheating cheater who cheats with his stupid rubber fingers and unfair strength), climb down the men�s cabin stairs to collapse in a sweaty heap of heaving laughter. Usopp takes it on himself to regale his friend with a silly anecdote until Luffy is shaking so hard he can�t breathe and tears stream down his cheeks and catch in his eyelashes, which Usopp distantly acknowledges are kinda long up close.
Nami finds them in the middle of choosing their hammocks. �Luffy, I hope you aren�t getting comfortable.�
�Why not?� Luffy dangles from the hammock upside down, one hand holding his hat in place. He sticks his tongue out at the navigator. Usopp stifles the snickers threatening to burst free from his stomach in fear of her wrath.
�Because this is the men�s cabin,� Nami says, and Usopp�s mind snags on the strange emphasis. �You aren�t meant to sleep in here.�
Perhaps it�s because Luffy is captain? If that�s the case Usopp doesn�t know what Nami is going on about - there aren�t any special captain�s quarters on Merry.
�Captain or not, Luffy belongs with Zoro and myself,� Usopp butts in. If Luffy sleeps somewhere else, who will listen to his late night ghost stories?
The orange-haired woman frowns. �You don�t mind if Luffy stays?�
�Nope.�
�Well, I guess it�s okay if there�s only the three of you.� Nami raises her hands in defeat. �But you should really think about what you�ll do when the crew grows, Luffy. Not everyone may be happy with this arrangement.�
�Yes they willlllll,� Luffy drawls, more interested in the way he�s accidentally gotten his limbs knotted in the hammock rope. The idiot is so tangled Usopp can�t tell the difference between leg and arm. What might be the edge of his sandal protrudes from a coil of indistinct flesh.
Nami shakes her head and leaves.
They stay up late, the three of them, talking about what kinds of fun the Grand Line will be - Luffy and Zoro talk mostly about finding strong enemies to fight, the sort of fight Usopp imagines you�re as likely to win as lose and the bloodshed reaches apocalyptic levels. It�s a subject which with he, as the only sane man in the room, has very little experience, but he�s hypnotized by the casually violent chat of two men who don�t know what �defeat� means.
They are what Usopp has always wanted to become. Fearless.
He appreciates why Nami calls them monsters.
Eventually, Luffy sneaks out to steal a snack. He�s not thinking about how this is the first time he�s been alone with Zoro all day until the swordsman shifts out of his lazy couch hogging sprawl to watch Usopp with half-lidded eyes and suddenly he is. Zoro�s fingers tap against his bare abdomen. A smirk lifts the corner of his mouth.
Sweat prickles at Usopp�s hairline in tiny beads that tickle as they march around the bend of his ear and drip across his neck.
Heart thumping quietly behind his ribs, Usopp is unreasonably relaxed. For all the intent, he isn�t under the impression that Zoro will seriously attempt to compromise his virtue. Zoro is someone who could snap Usopp's neck with two fingers, but he can convince himself to feel afraid - odd indeed, considering that fear is what Usopp is very, very good at. Every muscle in his body feels loose. Zoro watches Usopp watch him and breathes and doesn�t move. He lays there intently. Intensely. Whatever.
Before he knows it, Usopp is asleep.
Usopp wakes to find the cabin dark. There is a gentle weight across his shoulders, something warm and plush cradling his nose, and soft expulsions of air teasing the crown of his skull. Carefully, he draws his face away to get a better look at whoever climbed into the hammock.
Apparently the cushy things he�d had his nose buried in were breasts. He automatically assumes it�s Nami; she�s the only woman onboard, but the hair Usopp blinks out of his eyes is too short to belong to the navigator, and pitch black in color. The pressure around his shoulders, after a few experimental pokes, reveals itself as an extended arm.
Nami�s insistence makes a lot more sense now.
Luffy is snuggling him.
Luffy is a girl.
Luffy is a girl and snuggling him and his first instinct is to scream and flail and probably break his neck falling from the hammock. But when he jerks away to do just that, there�s a snort from behind.
Usopp twists his head to see Zoro grinning across the room. Enough moonlight flows through the porthole for him to make out the words Zoro mouths -

I don�t do guys

- and Usopp wants to cry. He has been exquisitely, masterfully hazed.
Somehow, Luffy is still asleep. Usopp should probably move to another hammock, except Zoro is already rolling over (to gloat at his victory, that jerk), and it�s comfortable here. The shock drains away as quickly as it came.
He is a breast man, after all.
Luffy�s make particularly nice pillows.
-
Sanji hears it, of course. Hard to ignore a deafening explosion that rattles every dish on the ship. But this is the Baratie - though it sounds as if it was the old man�s room that got blown to smithereens, Sanji shrugs and continues cooking. There isn�t a single chef aboard who�d die from something like that.
Later, he�s vaguely aware of Zeff crashing through the ceiling with whatever enormous idiot put a shiny new hole in the restaurant walls but Sanji is more concerned with the shitty son of a bitch dirtying his floor.
His first real impression of Luffy is one of honest confusion. What the hell sort of pirate thinks serving food to a starving man is a desirable qualification for his nakama? Last Sanji checked, good will wasn�t exactly permissive to pillaging.
The kid is weird. What�s even weirder is the off feeling in the pit of his stomach when Sanji insults him. It�s almost the same instinct that tells him to never hit a woman, only insane and impossible because Luffy isn�t at all feminine. Even his mobile features are boyish.
What�s worse is all the times he�d like to kick the stubborn fool back to wherever he came from and fuck the damage. Luffy will blink or smile or laugh and the muscles in Sanji�s legs go slack and reluctance sweeps through him. It pisses him the hell off because he doesn�t understand.
He knows perfectly well why the air is stolen from his lungs by the mere presence of Luffy�s beautiful navigator. She�s got curves to spare, a laugh more lovely than the tinkle of the world�s finest bells, delicate skin that glows beneath the sunlight. Luffy has none of those things. His laugh is too loud, unfettered and embarrassing. He smells strongly of sea salt and fish. Sanji wouldn�t be surprised if he only bathed once a week.
His legs don�t give a crap whether those things are true or not. He still can�t kick Luffy - he does manage a harsh elbow to the ribs at one point. Luffy�s yelp is gratifying. Listening to the kid call him a bastard and saying something filthy in return, not a hint of conscious anywhere, is even more so, especially when Luffy laughs like it�s the best joke he�s ever heard though Sanji wasn�t trying to be funny. There isn�t a woman in existence who wouldn�t take offense.
He kicks Luffy in the ankle. Lightly.
It�s a start.
With his temporary insanity abating, Sanji focuses on marveling at Luffy�s inability to complete even the simplest job without turning it into a disaster. In one day the pirate shatters more dishes and steals more food from the plates he delivers than any normal waiter would in an entire year. He drives the other chefs up the wall and plays around with his nakama until Sanji has to bite back a smile despite the disruption. It�s fun. They�re fun. For the very first time Sanji begins to regret the promise he made to stay with the old fart. Only a little.
Then Krieg, fuck him to hell and back, shows up and wrecks the Baratie more thoroughly than Luffy ever could.
The pretty navigator runs off with Luffy�s ship. It doesn�t faze him in the least.
Mihawk appears out of everloving nowhere and gets in a fight with Luffy�s swordsman, a shitty green bastard who doesn�t seem to share Sanji�s belief that dreams aren�t everything, and it�s almost interesting to see just how dangerous the situation has to get before even Luffy can�t take it anymore. He freaks out, launches himself at Mihawk.
The golden eyed man must be feeling generous - Luffy doesn�t get sliced to pieces and the marimo is still breathing. Zoro is bleeding freaking everywhere, but he still finds it within himself to make a ridiculous declaration about his dreams. It�s the showiest confession of love Sanji�s ever seen. The two bounty hunters and the sniper take off after their wayward woman. Luffy stays behind to beat the crap out of Krieg.
And when Luffy starts fighting, Sanji is beyond amazed. He�s never seen such a fearless, reckless person before in his whole damn life, and that really is saying something. The old man is unhelpful, going on about spears and shit while Sanji�s nerves are jumping from �rattled� to �JESUS FUCKING CHRIST�. Eventually he has his own enemies to deal with, and then Sanji ends up shedding his shoes and jacket and diving in after Luffy because he�s the biggest idiot Sanji�s ever met and the cook couldn�t stand it if he died.
Gin - still alive, that bastard - takes Krieg away while he has the chance, but not without a request that reminds Sanji that it�s time for Luffy to leave. The Grand Line awaits.
After Gin has disappeared into the distance, Sanji slings Luffy over his shoulder and retreats to his room to treat the injured pirate. Luffy�s arms are covered in goosebumps from the chill of his sodden clothes so Sanji peels those off first, spreading the worn material across the windowsill to dry.
It�s strange how fragile Luffy seems laying half naked on Sanji�s bed, covered only by boxers and a swath of soft cloth bandages, skinny body bruised and battered but hiding a truly fucking ridiculous amount of strength. You wouldn�t know from looking at him - hell, if Sanji hadn�t seen that fight with his own eyes he�d laugh in the face of anyone who so much as suggested Luffy was maybe possibly as strong or stronger than Sanji himself.
Someone worthy to sail under. Someone who could carry him to All Blue.
�Don�t even goddamn think about it,� Sanji mutters, a warning aimed at both himself and the prone form snoring away on his dampening mattress.
Putting it out of his mind, Sanji sits on the edge of the bed and picks at the wet, loose bandages wrapped around Luffy�s chest. He pulls at them with great care - who knows what stupid sort of wound this guy could have - something he is very, very glad for when they unravel in his hands and, rather than a horrific injury, there are lovely curves peeking out at him instead.
�Damn shitty fucking god, of all people to secretly be a woman�
Yet hadn�t he been unwilling to kick Luffy because deep deep down he�d known there was something off about the pirate? At least this explained the conflict he�d been feeling since Luffy first blinked up at him with that stupid, confused expression stamped over her oddly attractive face.
Sanji waits for the usual crazy fluttering to sweep him up in it�s unrelenting grasp as he numbly tends to Luffy�s most painful looking cuts. He averts his eyes from her chest, smoothing a band-aid across the bridge of her nose - there�s a trickle of blood dripping from his own, not that anyone could blame him.
He lifts her gently and tugs the sheets free from her weight. Luffy�s skin is sticky with salt but almost dry from the breeze blowing through his open window. Sanji retrieves a clean sheet from the closet, tucking it under her feet so she�ll be warm. He sets her clothes outside where they can more fully soak in the sun. Propping one leg on the windowsill, Sanji lights a cigarette and wonders where the madness is.
Everything is quiet. Sanji sits and watches the sky, blowing idle smoke rings until Luffy stirs with a loud snort. He smiles a little at how unladylike she is.
�Oi.� Sanji gestures to her chest, where the bandages are falling away. �You should fix those.�
Luffy stares around dazedly, more interested in finding her hat than covering up. She grabs it off the table and only then registers what Sanji said. �I guess.�
The cook turns his back to give Luffy a semblance of privacy, though he doubts she cares either way. Staring out at the beckoning horizon, Sanji can�t help but say, �You are an idiot. A magnificent, unbelievable idiot. So much of an idiot I don�t know what to make of you.�
Luffy bounds off the bed to stand next to him. �Just think of me as your captain. That�s easy, right?�
�I already explained why I won�t join your crew.�
�Mmh.� She scrunches her mouth in thought. �Are you sure the old man wants you to stay here?�
�Of course not. He�d punt me off in a heartbeat if there was a ship willing to take me,� Sanji snorts.
�I want-� The chef balls up Luffy�s vest and shoves it in her mouth, getting a full two seconds of blessed silence before she spits the material out. He uses those precious seconds to retreat onto the deck. Luffy pulls on her clothes and follows.
Stubborn. Sanji has to admit he likes it that way.
�I�ve got to pay my debt,� he mutters as she hops up to perch on the railing.
�And if you�re the only one who thinks that?�
�As if he doesn�t know that already. Sanji lights another cigarette and switches the subject to one he always enjoys - All Blue. It�s a nice change to chat away about the legendary ocean with someone who listens with interest instead of open disbelief.
Luffy tells him he�ll find it. Sanji can�t help but believe her.
He�s laughing, the sound swept up by the wind, when she asks, �Will you kiss me?�
Sanji nearly drops his lighter. He looks at Luffy - she�s smiling, more calm than he has ever seen her. It hurts a little, thinking of how used to Luffy�s exuberance he�s become. The restaurant will be too quiet.
What can he do, other than pluck the cigarette from his mouth and move closer to the pirate watching him with such steady eyes? Sanji feels surprisingly calm himself; there is none of the usual tittering, no mad tripping of his heart.
That�s not entirely true. As Sanji fits himself between Luffy�s dangling legs he can almost hear his heart crying out, calling him a damn idiot for refusing to sail with this girl and her unthinkingly loyal nakama.
The annoying marimo swordsman. The sharp-tongued and stunning navigator. The long-nosed boy who spun intricate tales of daring on the high seas.
If things were different, perhaps they would be his nakama as well.
There is warm breath against his lips. Luffy twines his tie through her fingers and hangs on, tilting her head back so the angle is right for Sanji to lean down and close the last bit of distance between them.
When their lips touch, Luffy hums softly in what Sanji safely assumes is happiness. He makes no move to deepen the kiss. Just cups her cheeks and holds her there and does his best to tell her how grateful he is, how much he wants to go with her, that he�s sure her missing woman, injured man, and stolen ship are waiting not far away. Sanji will miss her, but Luffy shouldn�t linger here.
The unconventional companionship they�ve shared was special - he can�t remember the last time he�d spoken so openly about his dream without being mocked or scoffed at. This was a memory he would treasure.
They pull apart, foreheads still touching. Sanji traces his thumb across Luffy�s scar, and she says, �I won�t ever forget you.�
He�s never been more glad to have met someone.
But the old fart is a sly man. Given the chance to pursue All Blue and serve aboard Luffy�s ship doing what he loves, Sanji can only set off with the blessing of every shitty chef he calls family.
Fuck it all, he cries. He cries until snot drips down his face and it�s fucking gross but he can�t stop and he�s surely making a spectacle of himself.
His captain doesn�t give a crap. Sanji shakily steps into the boat that will be taking him to his new home. She�s sitting there on the roof, nearly vibrating with anticipation. Still grinning that same grin.
�Let�s go,� she says.
-
And that�s how Luffy became the almost-exception to Sanji�s iron clad rule of women, only�
�Na, Sanji,� Luffy says, propping her elbows on the kitchen counter. Sanji looks up from the tomato he�s slicing, which is the biggest mistake he could have made - his captain is mused, hair wild from the wind or a nap or both, the skin below her eyes pink where she�s knuckled it. His gaze drifts downward and finds her vest undone, bare breasts trapped between her arms to form the most divine cleavage Sanji has seen all week.
He isn�t aware of his mind shorting out yet that�s exactly what happens, and when Luffy smiles to light up the room and asks, �Can I have meat?� she gets what she wants in three seconds flat.
�if Luffy is hungry, all bets are off.
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Running Up That Hill	By : yinneko23 Category: +M to R > One Piece Views: 11948 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece or make any money from this fic.

Running Up That Hill