Happy Weekend for everybody,

mine is tbh not that great (just heard that my exam will be postponed for another month and I'm stuck in an online annual meeting, that will probably last all day, while the sun is shining outside...) so I chose to make the best of it by posting the next chapter^^
Thank you for joining me on this little journey and now let's see who, besides Zoro, might had a rough day ;-)

See you next weekend^^

Chapter 1

Some days it was just smarter to stay in bed. Some days one should definitely avoid getting up. On such days it was best to bury the head beneath the pillow and continue to sleep.

Today was such a day.

Sanji had slept badly, confused dreams of the Baratié and dark forebodings had exhausted him. Now he sat on his bunk, legs on the firm ground, and rubbed his face with both hands. He was so tired, as if he hadn't gone to bed at all.

His exhausted gaze wandered over the other berths.

Usopp above him, as well as Franky and Chopper to his left were still peacefully sleeping. Luffy to his right, too. However, the bunk below his captain was empty, untouched. Zoro had obviously not gone to bed yet.

Since it had not been the Marimo's turn for night watch, only two other possibilities were left. Either Sanji had woken up far too early or that idiot was still training and had forgotten time while lifting his stupid weights.

Slowly he got up and stretched. Presumably it was the latter, as often.

After a quick catlick and changing clothes, Sanji set off into his realm, the galley. He was not surprised that the darkness of the night was illuminated only by the sparse light from the lookout.

It was often like this. When he got up it was usually time for the Marimo to go to bed, regardless of whether one of them had night watch or not. Sometimes the other would sit down briefly with him in the dining room, sometimes they would talk for a few minutes, with a glass of sake or a cup of coffee. These moments were probably the only ones in which they actually got along, just among themselves, undisturbed by stranger's eyes, who might notice that they actually did not hate another.

But today Zoro did not come and that was for the better. Sanji was in an unbelievably bad mood and really had no patience left for the other. Especially because nothing wanted to work out this morning.

He looked disheartened at the loaf of bread he had baked the previous day for today's breakfast. It had sunken in and was stone hard. Something had probably gone wrong, but he was quite sure that he had precisely followed the recipe, as he had done countless times before.

Sanji sighed. Today really didn't seem like a good day.

Just before the first coffee was ready, Robin appeared, as she did every morning. They greeted each other briefly before the dark-haired beauty began to set the table. A job that she always liked to do despite Sanji's objections.

Just seconds later, Brook also stepped through the door, humming a cheerful song. Although it had been his turn to be on night watch, he still seemed to be in a cheerful mood and took some plates to help Robin setting the table.

The three attendees spoke calmly about the past quiet night and enjoyed the minutes before the ship would be filled by the loud hustle and bustle. A short time later, Nami came in, followed by Franky. The others would have to be woken up as always.

It used to be part of Sanji's regular daily routine, but since Brook was on board, he was only too happy to leave it to the musician. But given that Brook had just spent the whole night guarding the ship, it didn't bother Sanji to take care of it for today. But today, of all things, he was unlucky that the moment he stepped outside, a seagull dropped its number two just above him.

Today really wasn't his day. Angry, he woke the rest of the crew and changed into clean clothes, before heading back to the galley. Would he ever get that stain out of his shirt again?

Except for the Marimo, the others scuffed in one by one. As every morning, the sleep-drunk captain of the crew turned into an over-the-top gummy bear as soon as he noted the smell of food.

Seconds later, a real battle for survival began.

The breakfast went on as usual. Robin kept glancing at Sanji, and he knew full well that she was asking him to save some leftovers for the swordsman, who once again was taking his sweet time to escape his dream world.

After the rest of the crew were done with the most important meal of the day and Sanji had cleaned up the battlefield, he decided to wake up the sleepyhead of a swordsman. After all, the sun had already risen long ago and the Marimo himself was to blame if he stayed up until the early hours of the morning.

With determined steps, Sanji went to the men's room again, but paused as he opened the door. Rarely he had seen something that worried him as much as in that moment.

He could hear heavy, hard breathing. In the twilight of the dark room, illuminated only by the daylight of the open door, he saw the strangely crouched figure in the bunk closest to him.

Zoro had only two ways of sleeping, either quiet and straight, like a dead man in his coffin, or snoring loudly and stretching out the limbs in all directions, like a small child.

Very rarely did he move, in fact he was one of the more pleasant roommates, as he neither talked in his sleep nor came up with the idea to sleepwalk to the kitchen.

Slowly, Sanji approached.

With pain-distorted facial features, Zoro pinched his eyes. In a curved posture, his hands clawed into the opposite shoulders. His breath came punchy and tormented, as if he were in severe agony.

Now Sanji was not only worried, but clearly concerned. With gentle hands, he grabbed the other by the shoulders.

"Hey, Marimo, what's going on?" He murmured into the darkness, but the other did not react, just biting his lower lip and ripping his head to the side. "Hey, Zoro, come on, get up!"

The other muttered something under his breath, but it was impossible to understand him and slowly Sanji got scared. He had never seen the other like this. He seemed so young and vulnerable, but the more Sanji wanted to wake him up, the worse it seemed to get.

By now Sanji was shaking him with tight grasps, but it was all in vain. Unnerved and unsettled, Sanji let go of him and got up. He had to be able to do something.

With a desperate sigh, he ruffled his hair and made a decision. One controlled kick into the pit of the stomach later, Zoro flew out of his bunk and smacked with the back of his head against Sanji's own.

Rather surprised than anything else, the elder opened his tired eyes. For a second, he looked around confused, then he seemed to recognize Sanji. Zoro regarded him as well for a long second, before he put on a sinister face.

"What the hell, dartboard brow?" He gnarled.

Relief spread through Sanji as the other reacted exactly as he was used to. Whatever the other had dreamed, it had probably been nothing more than a dream.

"You overslept again, you idiot. Breakfast is already over."

"And why didn't anyone wake me up?" murmured the other, rising cumbersomely. Except for his dark boxer shorts, he was completely naked, probably hadn't even showered this morning after training.

Sanji wrinkled his nose. "I did, along with the others. Not my problem if you don't get up."

The swordsman rolled his eyes and stretched himself extensively before rubbing his neck.

"Nami said you should head for the lookout as soon as you are awake. We're going to reach an island today, she said."

The Marimo only grumbled something in agreement and started to get dressed. With another sigh, Sanji left the men's room. A newly awakened Marimo was not a grateful interlocutor.

A little bit later, the still sleepy looking but finally dressed Marimo appeared in the kitchen and grabbed the small bentobox on the counter, in which Sanji usually kept his breakfast.

The half-murmured, half-swallowed thanks was almost drowned by a loud bang above them, followed by loud roars and even louder laughter. Presumably, one of Usopp's inventions had blown up again.

The two pirates shared a glance and considered whether it required their interference. After a second, they shrugged their shoulders simultaneously and went on with their lives.

While Sanji was already busy with afternoon preparations and lunch snacks, he could not help but ponder about what happened earlier. He had never seen Zoro dream like this, and he believed that the other had seemed even more unnerved and tired than usually after getting up. But then he shook his head and continued to work.

All of them had nightmares every once in a while, and just because the Marimo was some brainless, emotionally limited ice-block didn't mean he wasn't able to have nightmares, too.

That this day wasn't a good one, Sanji had to realize once more as he walked across the deck with a tray of small, pink-purple cocktails to delight the goddesses of his humble existence. The sun was not yet at its zenith, but it seemed to be a beautiful and warm day.

Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper played in a paddling pool on the meadow, Brook sat on the adjacent swing and played an almost gentle tune, which was swallowed only too easily by the loud, cheerful laughter. From the depths of the ship a constant hammering could be heard; Franky was probably busy as often.

Robin and Nami lay on their deckchairs, the archaeologist reading a book, the navigator in a bikini enjoying the sun's tender heat; truly a sight for the gods. Sanji was a bit surprised that the two ladies had made themselves comfortable close to the steering wheel and not, as usual, at the main terrace, but he suspected that this way Nami could react quickly if the island appeared earlier than expected or if a storm would surprise them.

After handing out his cocktails, Sanji leaned against the railing to enjoy the view, and lit a relaxation cigarette when a loud crash made him flinch.

Surprised, he stared upwards, just in time to see a dark something - presumably, some of the Marimo's weight - flying over his head and hitting the calm sea's surface. The next moment, a rain of shards pattered down on him and the two ladies. Everyone jumped up, including the three guys on the meadow, who could only guess what was happening.

It was only thanks to Robin's and Brook's attention, as well as Sanji's own quick reflexes, that they passed this unusual weather phenomenon more or less unharmed. But they couldn't avoid some small cuts and scratches on both clothes and skin.

"What the hell...?" Nami exclaimed after the rain had subsided and they were standing in a sea of shattered glass. She pulled Sanji's jacket tighter around her shoulders.

"You guys are all right down there?" A green-haired head up at the outlook poked out of the opening, which had been sealed with glass just a few seconds ago.

It was unusual to hear the swordsman sounding worried, but that wasn't really Sanji's main problem at the moment, while Robin thanked Brook for saving her, which Sanji didn't like at all for he had wanted to be the knight in shining armor.

The next moment, Zoro jumped out of the window of the lookout. Glass broke apart and wood creaked as he landed between them. By now, the rest of the crew members had also gathered around.

"What happened?" Usopp muttered anxiously.

"Did anyone get hurt?" Chopper asked.

"No, I think we were lucky," Robin replied softly, looking more closely at the swordsman who was just straightening up. "Are you okay,...?"

"What the hell did you do to my Sunny?!" With furious steps, Franky stomped up the stairs. However, he did not look quite as threatening as he had probably intended, as his bare feet had to be careful not to step on glass.

For a moment, Sanji had noted Zoro's gaze lying on him while being addressed by Robin, unreadable and obscure, but now he turned to Franky and folded his arms.

"Not like I've done it on purpose. Not my fault when the windows break so easily," he grumbled annoyed, just like one would expect, and that was the last straw. How the hell could he be that oblivious of the danger he had exposed them to?

Sanji could hardly believe how indifferent the Marimo reacted. Nami, Franky, and himself scolded him like the idiot he was. Zoro, however, just shrugged them off and didn't even seem to pay attention. No, he seemed like he wasn't listening to them, as if he didn't even care. The upshot was that Nami forced the idiot to pick up all the shards, while Franky, still grumpy like a thunderstorm, went along with Usopp to do damage limitation.

Sanji, on the other hand, disposed his drinks prepared with extra love. The danger that tiny shards of glass had fallen into them was too great for him to offer them to someone without hesitation.

Chopper, meanwhile, had taken on Robin because of some small, but nastily bleeding cut on her shoulder he at least wanted to disinfect. Brook, in the meantime, offered to carry the women's deckchairs onto the main terrace and followed Nami in a hurry.

So it seemed almost coincidental that Luffy stayed behind with Zoro, but as Sanji turned around at the galley door to make sure the other did what he had been told to, he saw his captain standing behind his first mate with his arms crossed and the straw hat's shadow covering his face.

Zoro didn't seem to notice as he picked up the tiny shards quietly grumbling, but Sanji could clearly feel that something was off. The next moment, however, the shadow disappeared from Luffy's facial features and with a broad grin he began to help the Marimo, or rather bother him.

Sanji shook his head and looked at those two idiots again. Luffy laughed and jumped around Zoro like a rubber ball and spoke enthusiastically about his reinvented, completely pointless game. Had Sanji just imagined what he had seen?

Back in the kitchen, he threw away his unusable drinks with a sigh.

He had some time left before he had to prepare lunch, which he passed with a now honestly deserved cigarette and a quick scan of the current newspaper.

But peace only lasted for a few minutes, as always with this crew. From the deck, he could hear angry voices, and a few seconds later, Usopp rushed through the galley - didn't even look at him - to the sickbay and dragged Chopper along outside.

Stunned, Sanji glanced at Robin, who was standing in the door frame, a huge patch on her shoulder. The sight alone hurt Sanji. He would make the Marimo pay for his carelessness.

But apparently that wasn't necessary anymore. Through the open galley door they heard Chopper's worried and Zoro's annoyed voices, as well as a laughing Luffy and an apologizing Brook.

Just a second later Chopper reappeared pulling Zoro along. The little doctor had grabbed Zoro by the right hand, causing him to bend down.

"Chopper, it's just a scratch," he grumbled calmly.

But that was not the way it looked at all.

Something that might once have been Usopp's headscarf was wrapped around Zoro's left hand. However, the dark red blood had already completely soaked the fabric and the valuable fluid constantly dripped to the ground.

"That's not a scratch," the young doctor replied no less grumpily.

Robin quickly stepped aside, allowing the others to enter the sickbay.

"Stop making such a fuss about this. As if something like that..."

"I'm making a fuss about it if I want to!"

Loudly, the door slammed shut.

"My goodness." Robin seemed more delighted than anxious. "Our young doctor is quite caring today."

Sanji could only agree and decided with a silent sigh that it was probably time to prepare lunch.

"Probably just had a bad night," he muttered thoughtfully, recalling the morning.

"Might be," Robin agreed, and stepped past him for a coffee, "after all, tonight was a full moon."

Sanji only looked at her with a raised eyebrow but said nothing. It was not as if he believed in such things, but after both he and Marimo as well had been visited by unwanted nightmares, he could hardly disagree.

The archaeologist mysteriously winked at him before ascending to the main terrace.

A short time later, the swordsman reappeared, a bandage around his left hand, followed by the youngest crewmember.

"You have to be more careful, Zoro," Chopper warned anxiously.

He sighed. "As I said, Chopper, it was just an accident. Nothing happened."

Sanji did not pay attention to them but continued his work; whatever had happened, it was apparently nothing bad enough to actually worry about. But later, when he turned around to set the table, he had to realize in silent horror that the stupid Marimo had left his makeshift bandage on the table. Within minutes, the blood-soaked headscarf had ruined half the tablecloth.

"Seriously!" He growled, ripping off the now pinkish cloth from the table. Today really wasn't a good day.

At lunch, he confronted the swordsman with the dirty tablecloth, but the other confidently ignored him, as if he weren't even listening to him. Surprisingly, the Marimo didn't seem to be in the mood for a small fight, extremely unusual.

In the afternoon they finally reached the island and all but Usopp and Franky left the Sunny for a short trip. As it turned out, the island was uninhabited, but that did not bother the adventurous spirit of their captain in the least, rather the opposite.

Accordingly, they all followed him more or less enthusiastically. Chopper and Brook were thrilled. Together with Luffy they sang cheerful hiking songs. Nami was far less enthusiastic, after all, she had been looking forward to an extensive shopping trip. Robin was quietly humming, while Zoro next to her looked more like he wanted to hang himself at the next best tree.

Sanji meanwhile felt torn. On the one hand, he had hoped to refill the fridge. On the other hand, their storage was still well stocked, and it was also pleasant to not have something to take care of for once in a while during their short shore leaves.

Much worse was that Nami had exchanged her enchanting bikini for a short skirt and backless blouse. The good thing was that Nami had exchanged her enchanting bikini for a short skirt and backless blouse.

At one point, Luffy, Chopper, and Brook ran far ahead, singing loudly, followed by the grumpy looking Marimo and the lovely Robin. Together with Nami, Sanji brought up the rear and talked animatedly about what had happened in the morning, especially about Zoro's Berserker action.

"Did you listen, Marimo? You could have killed us!" He growled towards the other one.

But Zoro didn't even turn around, just shrugging his shoulders. "Not my problem if you're too stupid to dodge some glass."

"It's not about me, but you've hurt my dear Nami and the sweet Robin."

"Not my problem either."

"What?! You wanna…?"

"Sanji?" Nami suddenly said and glaring at him from the side. "Do you want to say that I'm too stupid to dodge some glass?"

"But no, Nami my dear, I would never..."

"Oh, just shut up," she murmured, folding her arms and closing up on Robin, obviously mad at him. But he hadn't done anything!

"Now look at this, you idiotic mosshead! Because of you, Nami is now mad at me." With furious steps, he caught up with the other and grabbed him by the collar.

With a mixture of boredom and mockery, Zoro stared at him. "That's not my problem either."

"You bastard...!"

"Now just shut the hell up!" With a deliberate punch, the two were silenced by their navigator.

By now they had reached a rather narrow pass between some rock face and the hillside and had to walk the steep stony path one by one.

Sanji was still quite angry with the annoying Marimo, who not only didn't apologize for ruining the tablecloth, but also was at fault for Nami being mad at Sanji.

He stared at the other's broad back, who walked only a few feet in front of him, his gaze just as stubbornly straight ahead. It was always the same with Zoro, he messed up and then didn't even admit to apologize. He was always causing problems, always causing complications and conflict. Sanji was furious just by looking at those shoulders. A small, nasty voice whispered in the back of his mind how easy it would be to push the other. Not even particularly harsh, just a little, close to the brink...

Of course, he would never do such a thing. Zoro was indeed some annoying bastard, but it would be a lie to say that Sanji couldn't stand him at all.

No, only just right now, right now he would really like to throw him down this hillside, at least a tiny little bit, just for a second or so.

Sanji sighed, shook his head, and closed his eyes for a moment. He should not have such negative thoughts. People who thought evil attracted evil and he definitely didn't want to belong to such people. Especially not because of some idiot who probably didn't even knew how negative was spelled.

Suddenly he hit a hard wall of muscles.

"Oi, Marimo, watch out!"

The other looked at him unnerved. "You are the one who ran into me."

"Yes, because you brainless idiot stopped in the middle of the road!"

"Well, so you admit it's your fault?"

"I didn't say that, you bastard!"

With one hand, he pushed the other's shoulder aside to squeeze past him. He just wanted to reach the peak of this stupid mountain so he could back go down again. He really needed a break from this idiocy, and he really needed a nap, and a cigarette, definitely a cigarette, maybe first a cigarette and then a nap.

Annoyingly lifting both hands, Zoro took a step back to maintain his balance.

And suddenly everything went very fast.

Sanji could hear the quiet clatter of rubble and an almost surprised, very quiet "Oh" from his side. He turned around, seeing Zoro fall away from him almost in slow motion, an astonished expression on his face. As fast as Sanji could he reached for the other, but barely touched him.

"Zoro," he whispered, rather bewildered than anything else, and then he shouted his name!

Helplessly, he had to watch Zoro falling down the cliff. He could see the other desperately trying to hold onto something. Not far away, Sanji could hear Robin's voice, seeing flowers emerging from nowhere, whole arms appeared to help.

For a brief moment, her hands grabbed Zoro's shirt, her fingers digging into his flesh, seeming to hold him. But a deafening crack made Sanji's stomach twist as Robin cried out in pain and held her strangely distorted arm. The helping hands disappeared.

The short pull had thrown Zoro backwards, stretching out his hands towards them. Sanji could have sworn that the other, with his bloody, tattered hands, was trying to reach for him as he got closer and closer to the far away ground.

"ZORO!"

Luffy! Finally, Luffy!

The rubber boy threw his hand at the other, stretched it as far as he could, and then time seemed to freeze for a moment. It looked quite weird, as if Zoro was floating, as if the air was stopping him.

But only for a second, because then Sanji realized the stony ground beneath Zoro turned red.

His captain's rubber arm rushed back and paralyzed, they all stood up there staring down the abyss.

Down there, where their swordsman lay.