A/N: For 20 Years at Sea over on Tumblr, Day 8: Tears (cross-posted). Well, at least the angst makes sense with this prompt.
Straw-Hat Tears
Sanji had been a Straw-Hat long enough to know that tears weren't unusual in the crew. Every member cried in front of the others at one point or another.
There was often tears of laughter or happiness, and sometimes those of anger or sadness. There were tears of parting from their homes, tears of frustration and loss. Occasionally there was even those that were a result of a tantrum, when one of the younger crew members wanted something and were denied, for one reason or another.
The ones he was shedding now were those of grief, the type that were only she once in a blue moon on their ship, and they weren't for himself. They were shed on behalf of his Captain. Sanji's eyes, blurred as they were by his tears, were trained on the paper detailing the events that had occurred too far away for him to have known it was happening, let alone taken part in them. It was an article about the series of events that had led to the death of the polite older man that Sanji had only met that once in Alabasta but had obviously loved his younger brother.
The younger brother that was also his stupid, crazy, loyal Captain.
He knew that the paper was missing, or had twisted, events, just by using his common sense but the fact that Luffy was there when his brother had died was enough to have the blonde wishing he could be there for him.
And maybe, just maybe, there was a little frustration at himself mixed in with the grief. That he hadn't been strong enough to stay with his crew, to help in the fight to rescue the brother his Captain so obviously loved. (Not that he would ever admit to that.)
Whatever the truth of his feelings behind his tears, he needed to find a way back to Shabody. Back to his Captain, to the Sunny, to his crew, to his home.