-Tangled Web-
A role-play/joint-fic by Digitaldreamer and Constable Remington
Chapter Ten: Motorcycles and Sushi
Woot! Guess who just became a Sophomore and is out of school for the summer? I am! So is Constable, so… I guess that means more role-playing! I think….
Yeah. I'm happy, I'm finally free of school for awhile! Woot! Squee! The reviewers make Digitaldreamer so happy! I'm happy to see you all thought the last chapter was cute
…Um yeah. I got nothing else to say save for enjoy the chapter!
The motorcycle sat quietly in the driveway beside Robin's car and Zoro approached it, digging keys from his pocket. He swung a leg over, sitting comfortably on it, then looked to Luffy. "You really need to hold on tight the whole time," he said seriously. "All right?"
Luffy, who had been staring at the bike with wide eyes the moment he caught sight of it, snapped back to reality and nodded. He slung a leg over the motorcycle as Zoro had done and sitting down behind him. He locked his arms around Zoro's waist tightly, still bouncing in his seat as his legs dangled over the sides of the bike. "This is so cool! I bet this thing can go really fast, right Zoro? Right? We're gonna go really fast, right?" he babbled, sounding like a little kid at Christmas.
Pushing the keys into the ignition, Zoro sighed but nodded. "Sure. We'll go fast, Luffy." Turning the keys, the bike sputtered the life, and within moments, the two were streaking down the highway towards the mall. The wind pushed across his face, and he grinned. He loved his motorcycle... and the pair of arms around his waist wasn't so bad, either.
Luffy was whooping and hollering as they sped down the highway, messy black hair flying in the wind. "WHOOO! This is so cool! Everything's all blurry and we're going so fast and it's all like VROOM and WHOOOOO!" His thrilled cries were mostly lost with the wind, but his complete and utter bliss carried through just the same as his arms unconsciously tightened around the swordsman's waist.
Zoro nearly swerved off the road with Luffy's enthusiasm, and he was quite relieved to safely arrive at the mall within time, parking near the entrance and sliding from the bike. He laughed some at Luffy's lopsided mop, brushing a hand through the soft hair in an attempt to calm it. "You have fun?"
Luffy beamed and nodded. "Yeah, that was awesome! We get to ride home on him too, right?" he asked as he hopped off of the motorcycle, patting it as if it were a living thing.
"Yeah, of course," Zoro answered with a shrug. "We gotta get it back home and everything." Glancing towards the entrance, he noted that Nami and Vivi hadn't arrived yet. Sighing, he began to walk towards it. "I guess we'll just wait out here for them."
Luffy continued his little worship service for the motorcycle for a few more seconds before jogging to catch up with Zoro. As soon as he fell into step beside the older man, his stomach growled loudly. Luffy stopped and blinked down at his stomach before laughing and scratching his head. "Hee hee hee….guess I'm kinda hungry…"
Zoro blinked, eyes widening at the loud grumble Luffy's stomach gave. "Yeah... sounds like it." He grinned a bit, wondering how Luffy could possibly be hungry after all that pizza the night before. "When we meet up with Vivi and Nami, we'll get something to eat, alright?"
"Okay!" Luffy said with a grin. He then promptly plopped down in the middle of the concrete walkway that lead to the entrance of the mall, sitting Indian style on the ground and just watching the cars and people in the huge parking lot. Apparently he didn't notice the large multitude of stares that he was attracting.
Zoro gawked down at the boy before he quickly leaned down, hooking his hands under Luffy's armpits and tugging him back up to a stand. "Luffy, you can't just sit down right in the middle of the ground!" He glanced around the parking lot, trying to nervously smile away the stares. "Here, there's a bench right here. Sit on that instead." He waved Luffy over to the wooden bench. "We shouldn't have to wait long..."
Luffy blinked, a bit confused. "Why can't I sit on the ground? I like sitting on the ground. I'm easier to find there too, so Nami and Vivi will come and we can go eat faster." he explained, turning and trying to head back to the spot.
"No... Luffy, don't--" Zoro attempted to hold him to the bench when he heard girlish giggling from behind. Turning, he looked up to see Vivi, smiling and waving.
"Looks like you have your hands full, Roronoa-san," she commented, and he sighed.
"Oh, he doesn't mind," Nami said with a mischievous grin. "He likes having to keep the kid out of trouble and he knows it."
Luffy spun around to stare blankly at the two girls. Then he grinned, waving enthusiastically. "Hi guys! When did you get here?"
"Just now!" Vivi answered, returning his enthusiasm. Zoro frowned towards Nami, but decided just not to respond. He'd probably say something wrong and fuel the fire or something.
"Luffy's hungry," he finally said, "So we're gonna get something to eat. You wanna come?"
"Yay, food!" Luffy cheered.
Nami frowned thoughtfully for a moment, then grinned. "Sure, why not? Can't let you boys have all the time to yourselves," she said, her heels clicking as she walked over to them.
Zoro shrugged, turning to begin to walk inside. Vivi followed, giggling a bit. She seemed to find Luffy and Zoro's strange relationship quite entertaining. The group entered into the noisy, bustling food court and Zoro looked around.
"I'm not hungry," he said with a shrug. "But you can get whatever you want."
Luffy's eyes widened. "Anything I want?" he repeated.
Nami groaned, slapping her forehead. Damn you Zoro and your unconscious woo-ing of the same sex! There was no way Zoro would have any cash to mooch from by the time this was done.
Luffy gazed around the food court, the bright neon signs reflecting in his wide eyes. After a few moments he pointed at the sushi bar across the room from the entrance to the food court. "Ouuu, that place looks cool! Let's eat there!" he cried, jumping up and down.
"All right, all right..." Zoro sighed. It was a good thing he hadn't spent the money from his last job, that was for sure. The group walked forward until the arrived at the tiny bar. Zoro took a seat, Vivi sliding down as well, making sure that she left a space for Luffy to sit beside the swordsman.
Luffy hopped into the seat between Zoro and Vivi, still bouncing up and down. Nami sat down next to Vivi, leaning forward so she could look down the table at Zoro and Luffy. A waiter came to hand out menus and take their drink orders.
Luffy frowned as the various sodas were listed off. "What's a mountain dew?" he asked.
Nami's eyes widened as she thought of how energetic the boy already was, and what a hefty amount of caffeine and sugar would do. She could already picture it…the mall in flames, people running around and screaming in terror… noodles. She immediately leaned over Vivi so she could cover Luffy's mouth. "He wants….um…tea," she said over Luffy's muffled cries, nodding feverishly.
The man rose an eyebrow at her, then at the struggling Luffy. "Can't he tell me himself what he wa-"
"He wants tea," Nami insisted in a syrupy tone, giving her most winning smile. "And I'll have a Diet Pepsi."
"Ah…okay," the man said, brows furrowing in confusion. "What do you want, ma'am?" he asked, glancing at Vivi.
"Oh... I'll have the same," she said with a smile, leaning her head towards Nami. "A Diet Pepsi." She took a moment now to glance over the menu.
"I'll take water," Zoro muttered. His eyes met Nami's and he mouthed a quick 'thank you' in response to her saving of his sanity. Luffy on caffeine was not a good idea.
"Okay, I'll be back in a minute with drinks and to take your order," the man said as he scrawled the drinks onto a notepad and walked away.
Nami released Luffy's mouth and nodded at Zoro, winking. 'Since you're paying I'll let this one slide,' she mouthed back.
Luffy had apparently forgotten that he was missing out on mountain dew, as he was too busy looking over the menu. "Ouuuuuuuuu, what's tempora? I don't care, it looks yummy, we should get that! And California rolls! And rainbow rolls! And lot's of sushi even though I have no idea what it is!" he babbled as he grinned from ear to ear.
"Oi, Vivi, you want to just get a sushi platter to share? It comes with miso soup and I'm not too hungry," Nami said as she glanced at Vivi.
Zoro had almost objected when Nami had said he way paying, as he certainly hadn't been planning on paying for them. But he calmed once he heard Nami's order and Vivi nodded happily in agreement. That wasn't so expensive. Turning his attention on Luffy, however, Zoro sighed. "Yeah... sure kid, get what you want. At least I know it won't go to waste. Just remember that we still need money to buy you clothes."
Luffy nodded, glancing over the menu. "Oh yeah, we're here to buy clothes…hmmm…so I guess that means I can't get a whole lot or I'd end up wasting all of your money…." He frowned, scratching his head. "Oh, I know! I'll get that tempora stuff and whatever you're getting!" he said, grinning at Zoro.
Zoro sighed, shaking his head. "I'm not getting anything," he said. "I already told you I wasn't hungry. So you can order something else, if you're that hungry."
"Oh yeah," Luffy said, frowning. Then he shrugged, glancing back at the menu. "Okay then! Can I get tempora and a California roll and the thing Nami and Vivi are having?" he asked, looking to Zoro again.
"...Yeah, yeah, sure," he said, leaning his head back against the chair. The waiter returned just as Zoro had finished, beginning to gather up the menus.
"Are you all ready to order?" he asked, and Vivi nodded, politely giving her and Nami's order, as well as what Luffy had just asked. The waiter nodded, bowing a bit and leaving back to the kitchen.
"So," Vivi asked, mostly to Nami, "where do you think we should look to get clothes for Luffy?"
Nami shrugged, propping her head against her hands. "Oh, we'll see. Anywhere that has something cute and isn't fifty million sizes too big on him like Zoro's old clothes," she said, glancing over at Luffy as she spoke, chuckling a bit at how the sleeves of the t-shirt hung off him and became a small pool of blue fabric on the table-top.
"I like Zoro's old clothes!" Luffy interjected, sipping his tea and making a face at the taste.
Nami rolled her eyes. "That's because you're a boy, you don't know any better. We'll find just the right outfits that will make you look so good it'll cause your gay lover over there nosebleeds," she drawled, pointing at Zoro.
Zoro sputtered into his water, choking on a piece of ice that had suddenly lodged in his throat. He spit it back into the cup, his face glowing red. "I haven't paid for you yet, you know!"
Nami burst into giggles. She laughed for a few moments before grinning mischievously at the swordsman. "You're only mad because you know if we put him in the right outfit you so would be turned on," she said as she waved a hand at him dismissively.
Luffy blinked in confusion. Turned on? What on earth did that mean?
Zoro could hardly answer for a minute. He lifted his hands to cover Luffy's ears. He better not end up having to explain all THIS to the kid! "Damnit, Nami!" he hissed. If this resulted in any trips to goddamn Victoria's Secret or something, Zoro was going to kill something.
Luffy just sort of sat there, blinking in confusion. Why was Zoro covering his ears? Eh, whatever, he was getting that cool under watery feeling in his ears...that was always cool.
Nami rose an eyebrow at this. "What's wrong? Doesn't he understand the whole concept of the birds and the bees yet, or did he forget that too?" she asked, leaning a bit closer to the two boys.
"He doesn't even know what a kiss is!" Zoro replied defensively.
Nami's eyes widened a bit at this. "Oh really?" One could practically hear the gears turning in her head. "So you don't want to have to explain to him that stuff, eh?"
Wondering where all this could possibly be leading, Zoro decided to answer as truthfully as possible, especially since this didn't seem incriminating. "No! How can someone possibly explain that!"
Nami's smirk widened. "Yeah…so maybe that would mean you'd have to show him, hmmmm?"
"He doesn't need to know!" Zoro objected, feeling far-too-warm. He pulled his hands from Luffy's ears, confident he had ended the conversation.
Luffy blinked, looking from Nami's far too wide grin to Zoro's beet red face. Gee, what was that all about? Did it involve the 'turning on' thing?
Fortunately for Zoro, the waiter chose that moment to arrive with the appetizers of miso soup and the tempora.
"Woot, food!" Luffy cried, grabbing one of the bowls of soup and slurping it up. Nami took her own bowl and sipped it daintily, still smiling.
Tasting hers as well, Vivi smiled some and looking at Luffy. "Do you like it?" she asked.
Zoro merely crossed his arms over his chest and glared at his orange-haired friend. She was far too sneaky for her own good. She better not have anything planned.
Luffy nodded as he set the empty bowl down. "That was yummy!" he said with a grin, reaching for the tempora and stuffing it into his mouth at break neck speed.
Nami watched Luffy stuff his face, wrinkling her nose. "Can you even taste it?"
Luffy nodded. "Yeah, it's good!" he said through a mouthful of shrimp.
Vivi laughed a bit, just finishing her soup as Luffy was already done with his shrimp. The waiter came to take the bowls, raising an eyebrow and watching Luffy. Indeed, several people in the restaurant were staring at the group.
Luffy continued to eat, oblivious to the stares. Finally he was down to the last piece. He opened his mouth, about to pop it in, when he noted Zoro. He felt kind of bad since Zoro hadn't even gotten any soup. He stared down at the piece of vegetable tempora for a moment before holding it out to Zoro with a grin. "You're sure you don't even want one piece of tempora?" he asked.
Zoro blinked. As serious as Luffy seemed to be about food, he had to admit that he felt pretty lucky to be offered even a small piece of the boy's meal. "Nah, it's alright," he said, knowing that eating a little bit would make him hungry for more. "You can have it."
Luffy stared at Zoro for a moment, then shrugged. "Okay!" He said, popping the piece of tempora into his mouth and swallowing it, a satisfied grin on his face. Then he frowned. "…I'm still hungry!" he whined.
Nami rolled her eyes. "Maybe because the real food's not here yet?" she suggested.
"Calm down, calm down," Zoro said, ruffling Luffy's hair affectionately. "It'll be here soon enough."
Luffy pouted. "But it should be here now, cause I'm hungry now!" he declared, folding his arms and sulking like a little kid.
Nami sweatdropped. "What, do you expect it to just come now because you said that?"
"Yes."
And low and behold, at that moment the waiter showed up with their food.
"Whoo, food!" Luffy cried, punching his fists into the air as the sushi platter was placed in front of him. Nami just stared, mouth agape.
"That was just lucky," Zoro remarked, though his tone held a bit of amusement. He definitely enjoyed Nami being the confused one for once.
Nami finally forced her jaw shut as Luffy began to shovel the sushi into his mouth. "R-right…wow…quite the coincidence…" she muttered as she pulled apart her chopsticks and began to eat her half of the sushi platter.
Vivi had already started to eat, quietly. She finished a piece, and then turned a bit to smile up at Zoro. "Thanks for paying, Roronoa-san."
"...Yeah, yeah." He sighed, brushing a hand through Luffy's hair boredly. "You like it, kid?"
Luffy nodded as he grinned widely around a mouthful of sushi, a few stray grains of rice around his mouth. "Yup!" He swallowed before considering and adding what Vivi had said since it sounded like the right thing to say. "Thank you for paying, Zoro!"
Blushing a little, Zoro nodded, reaching a hand up to allow his thumb to trail across Luffy's lips and chin and brush the stray rice away. "Yeah, sure."
Luffy just grinned. In the background Nami had to turn away so Zoro couldn't see her cracking up.
"Look at them! Zoro is so in denial!" she whispered into Vivi's ear as she elbowed her in the side.
Vivi couldn't help but giggle a bit as well, nodding some. Zoro's hand still lingered for a moment on Luffy's chin, and she whispered quickly to Nami, "Well, it does look like he's about to pull him in for a kiss..."
Nami giggled again. "He so wants to, he just doesn't want to admit it."
Luffy blinked up at Zoro in confusion as the swordsman's hand stayed on his chin, feeling his heart thump in his chest. Why is he…why do I feel all warm and tingly? It's like that one time when we kissed…and there's that mystery feeling again...
Similar thoughts seemed to be running through Zoro's mind as he stared seriously into Luffy's shining eyes, but, suddenly remembering where he was, he quickly pulled his hand away and blushed, turning slightly away from his little friend. "Hurry and finish so we can get you some clothes."
Luffy blinked, the spell broken. He grinned again, turning back to his food. "Okay!" he said, beginning to eat at lighting speed again.
Nami snapped her fingers. "Damnit, so close!" she hissed, eating one of the last pieces of sushi.
Setting down her chopsticks, Vivi laughed a bit, amused that Nami had taken such a serious position in Zoro's relationship affairs. Zoro, meanwhile, pretended he hadn't heard her, having finished his water and grabbed up Luffy's mostly-full glass to take a drink.
Luffy didn't really seem to mind that Zoro was drinking his tea; he had decided that tea tasted nasty anyway. He opened his mouth to eat another piece of sushi…and his mouth closed around an empty pair of chopsticks. He blinked in confusion, pulling them out to stare at them for a moment before looking down at the empty platter.
"Awww…" he sighed, setting down his chopsticks and rocking back and forth on his stool. "Ah well…that was yummy!"
Nami set down her chopsticks. "Yes, it was good. Thank you for buying, Zoro!" she said, sounding genuinely thankful. She glanced down at the other three at the table. "Ready to pay and go pick out some clothes then?" she asked.
"Yeah!" Luffy cried, bouncing up and down and taking the stool with him as he bounced.
Zoro chanced a wary glance to Luffy, making a face. The waiter quickly brought the check as he saw Luffy begin to get restful, and Zoro left the money on the bar, standing from his stool. "All right, all right, let's start moving before Luffy goes crazy."
"Yosh!" Luffy cried, jumping up from his seat.
Nami shook her head, but she smiled as she stood. "Right, let's get going."
Finishing her drink, Vivi stood as well, and the group made their way from the tiny sushi bar out into the busy walkways of the mall. Zoro had pretty much decided that since Nami and Vivi had come, it really wasn't his job to decide where to shop, and he walked casually, not really paying attention to where they were going. Instead he watched Luffy from the corner of his eye.
The way those big dark eyes had sparkled up at him...
Zoro quickly shook his head, deciding that tonight; he was going to need much more sleep.
Luffy was gazing around at the mall, eyes filled with wonder as he stared up at the high ceilings, the fountains, all of the shops, and all of the strange people walking around. It was so cool! He nearly ran into people several times as he was so absorbed in looking around, but fortunately someone would always pull him out of the way before they attracted any more attention to themselves.
Eventually Nami and Vivi must have picked out a store because Nami grabbed Luffy and Zoro's arms and pulled them into a random shop.
Nami immediately began going through the racks, pulling out various articles of clothing before either tossing them away with an angry mumble or shoving them into Zoro's arms as she reached for something else.
Zoro decided not to even watch the clothes that were piling up in his arms, unable to understand some of the weird things people were wearing these days. Still, he was beginning to get rather annoyed that Nami was more or less using him as a shopping cart. He hadn't expected this to really take long -- just to go in, grab something that looked like it fit, buy it and get out. But Nami and Vivi seemed to have a much different idea.
Eventually Nami seemed to decide they had enough things for now and she hauled Luffy off to the dressing rooms. She pushed a horribly confused Luffy into the dressing room.
"Just put it on and come out so we can see, okay?" she said with a grin.
"Um…okay," Luffy said as the door was slammed shut behind him.
Nami grinned at the door as she heard shuffling sounds behind it. "You're so going to love this, Zoro," she said.
Zoro rose an eyebrow, leaning boredly against the wall, but shrugged. "Yeah, whatever," he muttered.
"Nami?" Luffy called from behind the door.
"Yeah?"
"This is…really weird. Are you sure guys are supposed to wear this stuff?"
"Oh don't worry, I'm sure you'll look fine in it, come on out!" Nami said, waving her hand dismissively.
The door cracked open and Luffy walked out…
To be continued…
Ah ha ha ha! Cliffie!
I know, I'm evil. Reviews!
poxmaker: Awwww, the last chapter even made you feel better about having to do homework? Wow, I feel so loved! Glad you like this fic. Thank you so much for your reviews, they make me happy!
Griever5: Heh…yes, what do Ussop and Nami have planned? Mwa ha ha….as for Robin…(cackles insanely) You'll have to keep reading to find out, sha ha ha:3 I'm glad you found Luffy and Zoro's wrestling cute, it was a lot of fun to write.
Mai Hayami: Dude, sushi is like the most awesome food ever. Except for pocky. Pocky is GOD. Glad you like this fic.
Love is for fools: (steals the One Review back) Mine! Yay, we've made you happy with motorcycles and Zoro X Luffy.
Katiiey: Two words; Thank you for your review! Eh, I guess that was longer than two…
Darkday Chaos: Yup, that's what "Yosh!" means. I'm glad we're keeping the characters in-character! It makes me happy. Yeah, quite a few romance fics are like that, I'm glad ours is at least managing not to be like that. (Happy dance) Glad you like the fic!
Griffingurl: Hmmm…will he buy a hat? We'll see! He has to get the hat somehow, ne? As for the flashbacks, there's one coming soon! Yus…everyone wonders what happened to Luffy…and how Kuro is involved, but you won't be finding out for awhile. Sha ha ha! Yes, I'm evil.
Icy Sapphire15: I agree, noon is too early to get up. .O Far too early.
night-chan: Don't worry about reviewing, just do it when you have the time. We always love your reviews 3
KuroKame: X3 But we heart the stupid smile! It means we've done something right, don't hide it! I wish someone would tell me stories about pirates and legendary treasures too.
KairiQueen: Ack! Ihave been tickled! Yay-ness! Darn right, you stay off that motorcycle because Zoro and Luffy need their time alone! X3 I'm happy we made you squee uncontrollably. Yeah, I know the OP story thing was a bit cliché, but hey, it was cute! I made you say yosh? I feel special. And bah, my One Review is still WAY better, cause mine isn't all caps. It's cooler.
Xeora: O.o Eeep, a curse? I'd better update fast then!
Next chapter: Luffy finally gets new clothes, a promise is made, and we finally get around to checking Luffy's records!
Dear Reader,
I have kidnapped the newest Tangled Web chapter. If you want it back, please send me plenty of REVIEWs or you will never see it again.
(Insert maniacal laughter here)