20.02.2014
Belated Happy Valentine's Day! I'm fucking pissed right now! So mother fucking angry! I'm bout to bust some shit up in this bitch! But no, ima just sit my happy ass down and hurt myself containing in my misery. This was supposed to be up days ago! Like, iuno? On the 11th? But nooo~. I had to get distracted and go on holiday and shit. I'm not happy with how Day 4 progressed so ima do my best to fix it here. My bad. Anyway here's Day 4 part 2. Enjoy~!
Warnings:
Cursing, Nihongo, and Zoro's take on the day. Maybe some Sanji POV too? Not sure yet, we'll see.., i guess. This might be short.
Chapter 6 - Day 4: Different Point of View pt II
Zoro wasn't the type of man to let his feelings show. He wasn't the kind of guy that admitted most of his emotions. He was the kind of guy that kept whatever he was feeling locked away deep, deep down inside, keeping his face cool and collected, especially in front of an enemy. The only time he ever found it necessary to show any sort of emotion was when it was, well, necessary.
So this was why he was having a hard time understanding why he was smiling so much today. He had never thought of the cook as a friend before today, a nakama? Yes, absolutely. But today? Today was just so different than the others. Everything the skinny blonde said was funny, he was thoughtful and didn't bite Zoro's head off when he messed up a cut or when he put too much strength behind his slice and broke the beast's vertebrae. They were bonding and not at each other's throat for once. It was a nice change. They hadn't fought with each other at all, not since the Davy Back Fight. They bickered and shoved each other around, but nothing out of hand. They used to rough house around so much that they ended up breaking things and have his debt increased by the sea witch. Now, the insults were more playful and halfhearted than before. It was like things had gotten better between them, for what reason he didn't know, but he was definitely glad for it.
He also started to notice things about the blonde. He was always very perceptive of the people around him, which he thought was stupid of him for not noticing before. They were pretty damn obvious. He noticed the cook's knife handling, how every move he made seemed to be graceful, those super long legs. Legs so strong and powerful, he had seen them snap a marine's neck in half. Sanji merely sucked on his cigarette and flashed him a lecherous grin. Zoro had to admit it was impressive, but he would never tell the man.
He sees Sanji climb up over the railing, his tight pants constricting around his lean thighs, and jumps down to the sea king's open form. Somewhere in the back of his mind an image of those lethal limbs wrapped around him steadily ripples to the front and he can almost imagine their strength clenching into his waist, the feel of Sanj-
Zoro shakes his head wildly. 'Shit! Not again! I have got to stop thinking about him like that.'
Zoro had just finished setting up the smoker Usopp had built them back in East Blue when Sanji throws a sack at him. "Here, rub this on all the cuts for me while I pack bones for stock." Zoro opens the sack and looks at the brownish, blackish, reddish powder with a dubious look. "It's my own blend of seasoning salt, aho. Just massage it into the meat." Sanji lights another coffin nail and hops over the rail with a bag in hand. "… And try not to get it in your eye." he cautions with a slightly scrunched up face.
"What happens if I do?" the swordsman curiously asks, eying the powder with a wary glare.
Sanji scuffs at the ridiculous question. "Go ahead and find out. Don't say I didn't warn you." and he sets out to sever the sea king's skeleton.
Zoro shrugs and grabs a handful of the spice. It smells earthy and spicy. 'Nope, this shit ain't getting into my eyes.' He kneels down and slathers it over the flesh. 'Why have I never done this with the cook before? Sure, it's actual work and I could be training or getting a good four hour nap- meditation session in right now, but … this is kind of … fun? Well, maybe not fun, but enjoyable nonetheless. The cook could be annoying at times, but he's been less of an ass lately and more of a normal person. If you can call curly eyebrows and excessive womanizing normal.'
He glances over his shoulder and finds the rest of the crew staring at him from the prow*. 'Oh great. I've become a fucking side-show act for a bunch of circus freaks.' He grabs more of the spice and stares at it for a moment before continuing. 'Maybe I should rub this into Usopp's face?' He glances at the long nose, he's sticking his head up over Chopper's pink hat, watching the swordsman warily, as if sizing him up and trying to determine if the swordsman has lost his mind or not. Maybe he ought to give that tabasco boshi* bastard a taste of his own medicine.
'Whatever, what do they know? Okay, yeah. It's really weird that I'm doing this. I don't even know why I'm helping the ero-cook, but … shit. No sense worrying over it. I got two bottles of good sake last night just for peeling potatoes. Who knows what I'll get after this. Fuck, I've become this guru-yaro's dog…
… Meh…'
The whole day had been tiring, what with all the training and napping - Hey! I was meditating! It's training for the mind and spirit! - training and "meditating". Then a sea king shows up and he has a whole new set of chores to do on top of his regular ship duties. With the last of the meat that wasn't in the smoker safely tucked away in the storeroom, Zoro leans against the forecastle* deck railing next to Luffy, who was laying upside down on Merry's head, and closes his eyes.
"Hey Zoro?" He grunts at his Captain to show he's listening. "When will the smoked meat be ready?" Zoro snorts a laugh at his glutton of a leader and stretches his legs out.
"I dono? Cook said something about five hours, so maybe after dinner."
"Can I get a bite of it when Sanji's not looking?" Luffy asks innocently.
This makes Zoro turn around to look at him staring back with large brown glittering eyes. He's a bit taken aback by how much the boy looks like Chopper. "You're … asking me for permission to eat? You getting sick there, Sencho?"
Luffy is momentarily confused by the question before beaming at Zoro. "No, I just figured since you helped Sanji make it, it's half yours. And since you don't beat me for stealing food, I thought I'd ask and maybe getting a bigger piece!"
Zoro shook his head and chuckled at the fool. "It's not mine, Luffy. If you want some ask the cook, not me."
"But you helped! That makes it yours, too! It's like it's your meat baby!" This makes Zoro sputter and gawk at his dim Captain. "C'mon Zoro I really wanna eat it. It'll taste great, right?" Luffy begs, sooner or later Zoro knows the kid is going to start bargaining, or something with him.
"It's not mine!" Zoro screams at him with a light blush blooming on his tan cheek. "Just because I helped doesn't make it mine. And It's Not A Fucking Meat Baby! What The Hell!" Zoro takes a few soothing deep breaths before looking back at him, "If you want some ask the cook, I'm not getting my head kicked in for you and your bottomless pit." And with that he leans back against the rail, crosses his head behind his head and closes his eyes. 'Retard, why would it be mine? All I did was slice up the monster, and will hopefully get good sake out of it.
…
I don't even want to have anything with the ero-cook!
…
Meat baby…
…
He'd would make a great parent…
…
God dammit, Luffy!
Stupid gomu fucker messing with me!
He had been woken from his nap by a nudge on his foot, and looked up to find the cook standing over him with a net sack of onions in his arm.
"C'mon, Marimo. You're gonna watch me cook." the cook had said with a not so hidden smile. "Maybe you'll actually learn something."
"What do I look like to you? You're student?" Zoro retorted as he stood up, obviously not about to resist the offer to watch the cook in action again.
"Ooh~!" Sanji handed Zoro the onions and led him down the steps. "You gonna call me Sensei? 'Sanji-Sensei', that has such a nice ring to it."
"Bite me, Ero-Sensei."
"Psht! You're not even worthy enough to have my beautiful teeth on that nasty skin of yours. Isn't it about time for your weekly washing?" Sanji gave Zoro a swift kick in the shin, not hard enough to trip him, but not exactly gentle.
"Eh?" Zoro countered his kick with a shove to the shoulder, "You starting that shit again, Cook? At least I don't hog the bath for hours twice a day! Besides, I washed yesterday…"
"I do not!" Sanji booted him into the galley, and slammed the door behind him. "And you falling overboard is NOT a bath!" He yanked the sack from the green head and pointed at the couch. "Now sit down and shut up."
"I don't take orders from you, Guru-Mayuge." Zoro snapped as he sunk down to make himself comfortable. 'Might as well stay. Might get a free taste or two."
Zoro got his reward for butchering the sea king in the form of an amazing stew and endless bottles of ale. He could never figure out what it was the cook did to make the simplest of foods taste so amazing. All he had seen Sanji do was mix meat and water then after a few minutes, there was a pot of heavenly smelling soup and baskets of crunchy bread.
"In celebration of our magnificent sea king catch," Sanji cheered, as he emerged from the pantry. "I say let's crack open a few barrels of wine!" and lugged out a large barrel. The drinks poured freely, baskets of bread and corn disappeared almost instantly and the slightly spicy stew warmed them from the inside out.
Zoro and Chopper had been talking, he couldn't remember about what; the little doctor was always talking about something or another. Chopper was excited about a new technique he had missed in one of his older books, and was hoping to test it out on any of their next catches. "Zoro! Okawari kudasai!" He refilled the little doctors bowl before bringing his own to his lips.
'I don't know how he does it, but this sure is amazing.' He feels a drunken burp float up his chest, but holds it in before he spews his dinner everywhere. 'Phew, that was close.' he shovels the rest of his food in before looking over at the cook. His inebriated-ness makes him think a thousand thoughts at once and he smiles at Sanji. 'This is a great end to a great day. Why don't we hang out more often? He's not that big of a pain in the ass. Why haven't I started this a long time ago? He's cute with that drunken blush. Damn, that curly brow is making me dizzy. Hah! He's got crumbs stuck to that stupid scruff on his chin. Hmm, a goatee looks good on him. I wonder what it would look like if it were thicker. Probably like pubic hair! AHAH!'
"Pass me some more bread will ya, Cook." he said, smile curling a little more at the corners. The cook looks at him with a confused look only making him smile more. 'You have no idea what I'm thinking. Not one clue, pube face.' Out of the corner of his eye he sees Robin lean into Nami and whisper something, but he ignores it and continues to enjoy the heavy feeling in his belly.
Zoro helped Sanji do the dishes that night, there wasn't much this time since they had eaten with only bowls. Afterward, the cook grabbed a knife and pulled the swordsman out onto the deck but the wrist. They stayed by the port* railing for a while as the cooked smoked a couple of cigarettes before speaking.
"You ready?"
Zoro looks at him like his pubic chin grew five times in length. "Ready for what?"
"To try the sea king meat we smoked all afternoon. Or did you forget about that?" Sanji teases. "C'mon. I want you to have first taste." Sanji walks over to the smoker set up near the mast and opens up its hatch. "I added some of the cheek in, seasoned it with a different spice blend and I wanted your opinion."
Zoro stops. 'What? My opinion? He wants my opinion?' Sanji looks over at him with a smirk and as if he had read his thoughts, explains as he slices off some cuts.
"I want your opinion because you're the only one on the ship that actually gives me one. Everyone who's ever eaten my cooking only says 'It's great!' or 'It's the best!'. And, yes, it is. I know that-"
"That's very modest of you." Zoro mutters.
"But I want real judgement." Sanji continues. The only evidence he heard Zoro was a kick to the bastard's shin. "Back on the Baratie, everyone always said my cooking tasted like shit. That's just how we do things there. Even jijii did, he rarely told me anything else. It was only when I left that I found out that they all loved my food." He turns to Zoro with a soft smile. "But not you."
Zoro feels a little nerved by the smile and accusation. 'Me? What did I do?' He's thankful Sanji turns back to the smoker so he can't see the uneasy look on his face.
"You actually tell me what you think. You let me know if it's too spicy or if I didn't season it enough, you tell me when you would have prefered different meat. You are the only one in the crew that tells me when you don't like the food. And I appreciate that." He stands fully and points the knife at Zoro, on it's tip is a thick slice of the finished meat.
"I only say those things to get under your skin." Zoro admits. 'Shit! Why am I telling him that?! Why am I being so honest today? And to him?!'
Sanji doesn't notice the swordsman's inner battle with himself and chuckles. "Yes, I know, jackass. But you're mostly right. Every time you say something, I always check and find out, 'Well I'll be damned. That Marimo shit-head was right! It is too salty, it would be better with something else'. Sometimes I wonder if you're a food connoisseur*." he states, giving the man a skeptical looks. "And I know you're just messing with me, I do the same for your sword play. Here, try it." he adds gently waving the blade at him.
'The hell is a con-whatever?' Zoro shugs lopsidedly, takes the meat and stares at it. To Sanji it looks like he's judging its color and texture, but he's really just staring at it blankly while his thoughts get the better of him. 'You don't realize how often you bitching about my Santoryu has saved our asses.' He pops the meat into his mouth, and an explosion of flavor hits him like a blow to the gut. He rolls the flavors over his tongue, slowly chewing the tender flesh. He softly exhales a silent hum and hopes the cook doesn't hear.
"Well~?" Sanji asks expectantly, a hopeful pitch in his voice. "How is it?"
Zoro swallows and looks up at the glowing cook. His deep blue eyes are wide and glittering, eyebrow wound tight, his lips curled up at the corners almost cat like. He's anxious, really anxious to hear Zoro's opinion. And here the man stands, prepared to crush his soul with an iron brick.
"'S aight." the marimo shrugs with an unimpressed expression. He expects to see the guru-cook's face fall right off and start snapping at him, but he doesn't.
"Not too spicy? Is there enough salt? Was the clove overpowering? Did the …" he batters him with a multitude of questions, half of them Zoro doesn't even understand.
"Stop!" Holding up his hands to cease the endless stream of spices and techniques. "No."
"So it's perfect?" It's more of a statement than a question. Sanji leers at him sidelong, as he lights a cigarette, but just before he takes in his first pull the stick is yanked out from his lips and hurled overboard.
"Cocky ass bastard." the swordsman mutters under his breath irritably. "I'm going to bed, why don't you make yourself useful? Like, I don't know, jump ship and not come back." He opens the hatch and climbs down the mast ladder. "Fucking giant headed curly bastard, so fucking full of himself that ero-dumbass…" the stream of insults gets cut off, as Sanji kicks the door shut and lights another stick.
'Yup. He loves my cooking.'
Author Notes and Glossary
Prow - front end up the ship that's above the water. Where the figurehead is
Boshi - star. What Usopp calls his ammo
Forecastle - the upper deck at the prow
Port - the left side of the ship
Connoisseur - an expert judge in matters of taste
By the way, if you didn't figure it out, the sea king was based off of Oblina from AHHH Real Monsters. If I were to compare my sea king to something of our world I would say the Cephadrome from Monster Hunter. You'd think I'd say Plesioth but it looks more bird-like than a fish.
I'm not happy with this either. I think I'm done dragging shit on and will bring in the big bucks next time. Hope you enjoyed the rambling! ^_^
