A/N: so i did some computing and planned out the rest of this fic!! It's gonna *hopefully* end exactly at chapter sixty, so only thirteen chapters left! It feels like forever since I started so it's kind of surreal how it's slowly coming to an end. But between then and now there's a lot to happen, so stay tuned!!
47. Cruel Fate of Reality
Kuraigana is a dark place.
Unlike the brightness of the Going Merry, this new strip club is darker, raunchier, sexier. Sleek black marble on the exterior of the angular building and wide glass doors with red handles made everything look almost stupidly expensive. Lush violet carpeting lines the inside of the building, coupled by black paneling along the walls and gold accented furniture. Blood red lights and hazy smoke near the ceiling made the entire scene look downright salacious.
A large bar was situated on the wall to their left, lit up a pretty gold. Multiple poles, each fit with a dancing stripper, stand on a long, narrow stage that snakes through the booths and tables of the club. A wider stage with even more poles resides opposite of the bar, on the far back wall.
Luffy pushes through the throng of people, vaguely noting how incredibly popular the place must be, tugging on Barty's arm. "Come on. I see an empty seat."
"How? This place is packed," Barty has to practically yell over the volume of the music.
Luffy shrugs and plants himself down into the booth before someone else could claim it. Barty files in after him, looking a bit embarrassed as he takes in his surroundings.
Noticing his reaction, he chuckles. "First time in a strip club?"
"Yeah," Barty nods, blushing as a woman near them jumps into a split on the floor in nothing but a thong and strappy bra. "It's, um. Interesting."
"Hot right?" Luffy grins, soon getting lost in his own memories of his times at the Going Merry. It's almost nostalgic as he watches the dancers on poles further away from them twirl and spin on the pole. "It kinda makes me want to get on a pole myself."
Barty widens his eyes at him, opening his mouth to say something, but Luffy cuts him off with a raised hand. "Don't worry. I'm not really in the mood for something like that right now."
"Oh," Barty breathes, relief sagging his frame.
In the distance, they see a familiar face. Or rather, faces. Luffy feels nothing but pride swell in his chest.
It was Zoro and Sanji.
Though they surely couldn't see him in the darkness of the club, Luffy and Barty could certainly see them. They both dance on pales side by side, making a show of interacting with each other as they worked. The women watching them scream and throw money like it was running out of fashion as they flipped, dipped, and rolled to the beat of the music, muscles flexing with each movement.
Barty stares in awe, and Luffy just nods, already knowing the hold his friends had over others once they were on a stage.
"They're incredible," Barty whispers.
"Right?" Luffy agrees with pride. "They seem to be doing so well here. I'm glad they were able to find another place to dance after the Going Merry burned down."
Barty turns to him. "It's a little strange seeing the men you once kicked ass with dancing almost butt naked, but strangely, I don't feel as weirded out as I thought I would."
"I mean," Luffy shrugs, "that's just how they are, multifaceted. And it helps that they're pretty easy on the eyes, too."
The green haired returns his attention to the stage, where Sanji was easing into a side split before languidly humping the air. He blushes and looks to the ground. "True."
It's then that a pretty young woman walks up to them— long curly dark brown hair, deep amber eyes, a full red smile. She was wearing a uniform of sorts, likely what the workers had to wear, and sported a pen behind her ear.
"Welcome to Kuraigana," she says with a slight Spanish accent. "What can I get for you tonight?"
Luffy leans forward, looking her straight in the eye. "What's the strongest drink you guys have?"
Barty whirls on him. "Luffy!"
The woman smiles at him. "We have our special in house martinis, zombies, jungle juices-"
Luffy waves a hand at her. "Surprise me."
Her smile grows, and she brings her pen down to jot down the order. "Of course, sir. And you?"
Barty looks at Luffy incredulously before sighing. "Just a Shirley Temple, please."
"Understood!" she writes down his drink and tucks the pen back behind her ear. "We'll be right out with it!"
As she leaves, Barty scowls at him. "Surprise you?"
"What's the issue?" Luffy makes a face. "If it makes me forget then I don't care."
The tenseness seeps out of Barty's shoulders. "Luffy, what the heck happened between you and Law?"
Luffy frowns and crosses his arms, brow creasing as he tries to find the right words to describe what exactly went down between him and his lover. It's nothing he wants to discuss while still sober, but with Barty looking at him expectantly, waiting, the words just find themselves materializing on his tongue.
"Law just isn't being completely open with me anymore," Luffy says, watching Zoro dance lazily, hand resting on his cheek. "Or I guess, he was never really that open with me about everything from the start."
Barty is quiet and attentive as he speaks, not wanting to interrupt until he's heard the full story. Luffy sighs. "Like, we both nearly died, and Law still hadn't brought the truth about himself to the table. And we've been dating for forever now it seems. It's like he doesn't trust me or something."
"Did he have a good reason at least?" Barty asks. "Like would something change drastically if you knew, or would you be put in danger?"
"Here's your drinks!"
Luffy and Barty watch as the waitress from before returns quickly and sets their drinks down before them, smile dazzling as she pulls away.
"Thank you," Barty says with a small smile, taking his drink and downing three large swallows. The raven haired eyes the red drink before him curiously. He takes a tentative sip, and the woman smiles as the liquid makes its way down his throat.
"It's a mix of red wine and other spirits, along with some soda and a dash of honey," the waitress explains. "We call it Déesse."
"It's so good," Luffy marvels, taking another sip. "Holy shit, it's like juice."
She turns to walk away, grinning to herself. "I would drink slowly if I were you! It's very inebriating."
"I'll watch out for him," Barty assures her.
"Great!" She gives them a wink then makes her way to other customers.
Luffy watches after her in a slight daze. The woman was right— he was already feeling the alcohol buzz through his system with the numbing sensation that he craved. He takes another gulp and his heart starts pounding. A couple more sips and his head is spinning.
"God, this is perfect," Luffy murmurs, licking his lips.
Barty frowns in his direction. "You heard what she said, Luffy. Take it easy."
"How can I?" he asks sadly, "Law is being mean to me."
Barty takes a swig of the Shirley and wipes the excess off with the back of his hand. "You still haven't answered my earlier question about whether or not it was dangerous to know."
Luffy takes a swig of his own drink. "Law's not dangerous."
"Um," Barty starts, eyebrows raised, "I may not know him like you do, but even I know that's not totally true. Sabo told me once when he looked into Law that he-"
"Woo! Go Zoro!" Luffy laughs drunkenly, fist pumping the air as Zoro dances particularly suggestively for his crowd. His brain was starting to stutter, the drink having made its rounds around his system, warming him up, loosening the knots in his mind. "That's hot!"
"Luffy! We were having a conversation! And people are staring," Barty whispers hastily, hand cupped to his mouth.
"I don't care, let 'em stare! Not like I'm not used to that feeling, anyway!" Luffy suddenly makes a pitched noise and laughs boisterously. "Atta boy Sanji! You're killing it out there!"
"They can barely hear you over the music! Pipe down!" Barty tugs on his arm until Luffy's sitting back in his seat, squirming but relatively still.
He downs another quarter of the Dèesse and Barty frowns at him. "You seem out of it. Maybe it's time to go home."
"Go home?" Luffy yells, eyes wide like it was the stupidest proposal he's ever heard. "But we just got here! The night is just starting!"
Another quarter goes down, and now the drink is empty. Luffy giggles and pushes the glass away from him. "I want another! The red drink, what was it called?"
The green haired groans. "Oh god, you're really drunk. We'll talk about Law later, it's time to go."
Luffy blinks and there's suddenly two of Barty. "Which one are you? There's two Bartys. Or is that three?"
"Now you're seeing multiples of me?" He feels something or someone pull him up by the elbow. "Come on. We're definitely leaving."
At the sudden change in elevation, Luffy feels his stomach churn obscenely. The bile comes up in a rush, and he bends away from Barty to throw up to the side, spilling over on the edge of the booth and onto the floor.
"Oh what?" Barty's expression crumples as he takes in the mess. "Gross. Luffy, just how far gone are you?"
"Oh dear!" the woman who served them comes back and dances around the mess, looking up at Luffy in concern. "Are you quite alright, sir?"
"He's had too much to drink," Barty answers for him. "I'm so sorry."
"That's fine!" she chirps. "There's a room in the back of the club where he can rest, if you would like to take him there for a moment."
Barty hooks an arm around Luffy's middle and places the younger's arm over his shoulders. "That's okay, I'll just take this guy home."
"Nonsense!" she cuts, coming close and putting an endearing hand on Luffy's cheek. "It's of no concern to me, really."
Barty starts to back away. "No, I-"
Before he could register anything, a rough fist connects with his gut, and Luffy slips from his arms as he doubles over in pain. The waitress catches Luffy in her hands and smirking evilly down at him.
"This was almost too easy," she says, hoisting Luffy onto her back. "Diamante truly has the best ideas."
Another waiter comes close just as Barty begins to sit up, punching him in the jaw so hard his skull connects with the base of the booth with a sharp clack of bone on metal. "What are you so riled up for, buddy?" the waiter asks, blonde hair long and wavy over dark irises. "Relax."
"Hey Dellinger, don't play with him," the woman carrying Luffy grunts. "We need to hurry and get out of here."
The man narrows his eyes at her. "Shut up Violet, I got this."
Barty groans and holds his head, almost dizzy with pain. "Who the hell are you guys?"
The waiter named Dellinger grins and pulls out a mask with a tube connected to it. "People Law shouldn't have messed with."
He puts the mask on Barty's face and it soon fills with gas. He feels himself falling asleep almost instantly, lids slipping close with exhaustion. Barty groans, fighting the waves of fatigue crashing into him, but it's a losing battle. He turns and sees the blurry images of the blonde and brunette smiling down at him as he slowly loses consciousness. It's frustrating how helpless he is, how easily he was subdued.
Luffy was getting kidnapped, and there was nothing he could do except accept the cruel fate of reality.
Barty curses his luck as darkness takes over his senses, rocking him into a soundless, dreamless sleep.
With the dance portion of the night over, Sanji stands in the back of the club, changing out of his stage wear and into something more comfortable to greet the guests.
"Good job out there," Zoro congratulates as he strips from his own clothing, opting for a top that did wonders for his pecks.
"Thanks, you too," Sanji returns easily, pulling on some shorts that excenchuated his legs.
"No quips today? That's new," Zoro tosses over his shoulder.
Sanji glares at him. "I'm in a good mood tonight because Luffy's here. Not even you could screw that up."
Zoro's expression softens into a smile, and it's honestly a beautiful sight. "That's right, I almost forgot! Did you see him in the audience?"
Sanji holds open the door to the club for Zoro to go out first. "Yeah I did, he was screaming his head off. Think he was drunk or something?"
"Nah, Luffy never drinks."
Sanji chuckles as Zoro walks through the door. "That's true. Now come on, let's go."
The blonde walks through after him, entering the buzz of the main floor. At the sight of them, women and men alike begin cheering, whooping, and holding out wads of cash. Sanji waves a bit sheepishly while Zoro drinks in the attention, grabbing some cash with winks and air kisses.
They make their way down the aisles of table and chairs, stopping to chat with some customers as they went. Mildly disinterested, Sanji keeps them short and sweet, much more excited to go and meet Luffy. Zoro seems to share the same sentiment, his eagerness nowhere near the levels it usually was. When he meets his eyes, they share a common look between them, silent but understanding.
They wanted to get to their friend.
Zoro waves a young man goodbye and swaggers over to Sanji, lightly tapping his shoulder. "Hey let's go, I think I eee Luffy's roommate over there."
Sanji follows his line of sight to a familiar head of green hair, slumped on the table a good few tables away. He crinkles his nose and leaves his customers. "Is that him? Barty?"
"I think so," Zoro murmurs, approaching the table. "He's hammered."
"Yeah," Sanji sighs. "I really hope Luffy comes back from the bathroom or wherever he is soon. I'm not in the mood to deal with his drunk friend at the moment."
"I hate when customers do this," Zoro sighs. "What do they expect, to be teleported home? We aren't a taxi service."
"True," Sanji easily agrees, mind filling with memories of other drunk customers. "It's very annoying."
When they arrive at the table, Zoro first attempts to wake him by his voice alone. "Barty?"
When they don't get an answer, let alone a rouse, he tries again, louder. "Barty? Hello?"
"Think we got the wrong person?" Sanji wonders briefly.
"Nah," Zoro shakes his head. "His hair isn't all that common. And he looks pretty familiar."
"True…" Sanji admits, "but then, why isn't he answering?"
He tries jostling his shoulder, rocking the poor man back and forth helplessly, but that too, reaps no reward. Realizing his efforts were to no avail, Zoro motions for him to stop.
"Hey Sanji…" Zoro trails off, concern crumpling his brow. "Is he...actually okay?"
Sanji looks at him worriedly and glances back down to the fallen form of their comrade. Upon reinspection, he discovers that Barty didn't actually reek of alcohol like he thought. He was simply out like a light, passed out in the middle of a strip club by himself.
That raises red flags in his head.
"He's not drunk," Sanji marvels with rising alarm. "He's just unconscious."
"Fuck," Zoro grits as he sits him up. Barty moves as limply as a ragdoll, head rolling to the side, eyes closed, shoulders slumped. "What the fuck is he passed out for?"
"You're asking me?" Sanji mutters, "I haven't got the slightest clue."
Zoro looks around them, surveying the crowds. "And where the fuck is Luffy?"
"You know, you've been doing nothing but asking impossible questions," Sanji points out.
"Can you blame me? This is strange!" Zoro retorts with a frown.
"I agree but this is the reality we have to deal with." Sanji hooks an arm around Barty's middle. "Come on, help me move him."
"Move him?" Zoro repeats. "Where?"
Sanji looks at him in exasperation. "Where else? Back to his dorm. I'll make sure to text Luffy. We can't just leave him here."
"...Fine." Zoro comes to the other side of Barty and wraps his arm around him, supportive as they stand together.
They make their way through the throngs of people who were too distracted by the dancers on the poles to pay them much attention. Plus, it was a common occurrence, dragging someone who was too drunk to walk on their own out of the club. So much so that no one so much as batted them an eye as they hauled Barty away.
At the entrance, they're stopped by a smooth voice, and the two freeze in their tracks.
"Sanji. Zoro."
The duo turns to see their boss standing with a goblet of wine, drinking lazily and watching them with his dazzling golden eyes, almost amber in the darkness.
Sanji shifts uncomfortably. "Mihawk."
The man tilts his head curiously. "Is that a friend?"
"Yeah," Zoro answers for him. "Is it possible for us to take him home?"
"He's really drunk," Sanji lies quickly. Barty looked every bit the part, and for all he knew, he really was drunk, and Sanji just missed the smell.
Mihawk eyes them both carefully. "We still need you two for the night. Is it necessary for you both to go?"
"Zoro has the car, and I have the sense of direction," Sanji explains, "he can't go anywhere without me or he'll end up in another country."
Zoro scoffs at him. "Yes I can."
Mihawk purses his lips. "I still think it is best to—"
"Ah, what's the issue?" a new voice drawls. A hand hooks over Mihawk's shoulders and the raven haired sighs deeply, palm coming up to catch his sinking head. "Just let 'em both go already, Hawky."
Zoro and Sanji raise their brows at the nickname. Hawky?
Mihawk scowls at the figure over his shoulder. "Shanks, losing two of my best dancers on a night as busy as this is too-"
The red head kisses his cheek affectionately then rests his chin on Mihawk's shoulder, pouting like a child. "Pleeeeease?"
"Um..." Sanji stares openly at the red head, clearly drunk. "Who is that?"
Mihawk glares at the figure behind him then sighs deeply. "My partner."
"I'm his boyfriend!" Shanks cheers, fist pumping the air.
"He used to be a dance teacher," Mihawk goes on, ignoring him, "but now he works as the House Dad for the dancers here. I believe you've acquainted yourselves before?"
Sanji thinks back to one of his first days in the establishment, to a red head watching them kindly as they auditioned, giving them tips and advice. Sanji blinks the memory away and watches the same man before him, hanging on Mihawks and whining.
"That's him?" Zoro marvels, apparently coming to the same conclusion Sanji did.
"Unfortunately," Mihawk grumbles. "He's really the one you should be going to for excused absences, so if he is okay with it, then I don't mind either."
"Thanks so much," Sanji says, turning with Zoro and Barty to make their way towards the door.
"I'd knew you come around," he hears Shanks drawl from behind him.
"And you need to go back and attend your dancers!"
"But I wanna hang with you!"
"No."
"Please?"
"Shanks, no. Go on, they're waiting."
"Pfft, you're no fun. Fine, I'll go if you kiss me."
A pause. "There, you happy? Now leave you drunk brute!"
"That wasn't on the lips, it doesn't count."
"You never said where, you idiot. Now get a move on!"
Smiling at their antics, Sanji pushes through the front doors of the club, hauling the limp body of Barty with him.
Zoro scours the parking lot for his car, and, upon locating it with a flash of the lights, begins wandering off in the opposite direction.
"Alright, let's get this guy back to his dorm."
"Wrong way, idiot," Sanji snickers, tugging on his sleeve. "You're so hopeless."
"Am not!"
"Totally are. Now let's go. Barty's counting on us."
A/N: thanks for reading! Until the next!
P.S. Déesse is a canon drink.
P.P.S. I've been thinking of doing short drabbles based off this universe once the main storyline ends!! It'll be something I'll have to think about more deeply once the story is actually over though.
