DISCLAIMER: EIICHIRO ODA OWNS ONE PIECE, I DO NOT! I OWN THIS STORYLINE THOUGH.
It was euphoria. Moments after the numbness settled in, it morphed into pleasure. He stopped questioning. A dopey smile spread across Luffy's face, as a sudden burst of warm heat spread across his stomach.
He kept forgetting. More and more, he forgot. Luffy closed his eyes before opening them again. He saw a strange necklace (pendant) dangling from his finger. He frowned, forcing the pleasure out of his mind for a moment. What was that? It was important, that he knew. He had a niggling feeling… He was forgetting something.
Luffy's eyes snapped open in realization and suddenly all the warm pleasure turned into cold agony. No! he thrashed around, clenching his fist, holding his pendant tight, Let me go! He tried to open his mouth but no words came out. He twisted around, and on pure instinct, he rubbed his fingers together and generated a light flame.
It was more than enough.
Immediately, he was spit out, and the deathly air around Omatsuri bit into his exposed innards. Luffy looked up at the sky, and sucked in a long breath, the memories running back to him at high speed. He remembered.
The straw-hatted teen let out a broken laugh-sob. He remembered. Oh, god, how close was he to dying? Who… where…? Then, he remembered what he was doing. The Lily Carnation. He was fighting the Lily Carnation. He turned around, digging his toes into the Earth.
The Lily Carnation rose up, petals shuddering and sharp teeth bared. What are you doing? It's presence seemed to question, Come back to me. I'll give you endless pleasure. Whatever your heart desires.
Luffy got up and cried as his body slowly, mechanically started to move towards the Lily Carnation against his will.
Yes, its presence purred, Come back to me.
Luffy shook his head vehemently, but his body just would not stop moving. "Stop." He said hoarsely, "I'm begging you." He didn't even have the will left to use his King's Disposition. Then, he felt Jimbei's voice float around his head again.
"It's not over yet! Remember what you still have!"
Luffy turned his attention towards his pendant desperately. Over the years, the endless, endless years, Jimbei's voice had become something of a curse to him. He hated it. He hated himself for thinking of Jimbei like that.
But when he remembered Jimbei saying those words… It reminded him… It reminded him much too much of how many times he'd lost.
Although, no matter how many times he tried, he could not find the strength within himself to clench his fist and shatter the pendant. He just couldn't. He kept walking towards the Lily Carnation. Soon, he felt himself stop just before the Bloody Flower.
Good child, The Flower seemed to shudder in delight, Now, step back in, and let me please you.
Luffy stepped forward, into the flower's mouth, and sat. He watched, helplessly as the petals closed, and he was submerged in darkness once more.
3 hours later, Monkey D. Luffy was no more. Just another bag of bones on the Island. Another nameless corpse. He didn't die screaming, as one would've thought. He died quietly, lamenting what he did wrong.
Of the millions upon millions of Worlds he'd lived through, this was the first that he ended via Death.
And oh, how he wished it was the last.
0~o~0
Zeff jolted when he saw the expression on the kid's face when the pendant fell. It cycled through many emotions, he could only catch a few. The first expression was numb shock. Then it went to fear. Then there was tiredness. And then, there was indescribable rage. And then, a few more expressions he couldn't name.
Then there was unbearable pain.
A heavy aura settled over the Baratie and Galleon. An aura of depression. The pendant rolled on the ground, falling down and down the broken pieces of wood, before stopping just at Sanji's feet.
"What…?" Sanji's hand twitched, as he fought against the urge to pick the pendant up and roll it between his fingers. He grit his teeth. Why does it have such a beckoning aura…?
Zeff stared at the interaction contemplatively. That pendant is no doubt important. It probably holds the key to finishing the fight up there, but… he looked up, and eyed Don Krieg, who seemed to be just getting over the sudden depression, and reloading his weaponry, If we don't get it up there now, the victor of this fight will be Krieg. He stared at the pendant again, Although… I don't feel much of a connection with it… Sanji, however… and so, the beginnings of a plan formulated in his mind.
"Sanji." He called out. The blonde's staring contest with the pendant broke, and he turned his attention to Zeff.
"Yeah?" he chewed his cigarette.
Zeff felt just a little guilty for suddenly dumping this task on Sanji, but then again… He was a pirate, long ago, and most pirates weren't really… good with their emotions. Or tact for that matter.
"Get that pendant up there to the Straw Hat kid." He jutted his chin over to the top of the broken, still crumbling galleon. "And get it there fast. Otherwise Krieg will win this fight."
Sanji's cigarette fell out of his mouth, "What the hell, geezer? You want me to die or something?! I can't get it up there!"
"Do you want to see Krieg or Straw Hat win?" Zeff interrupted ruthlessly, "The victor will be decided by your actions now." He added, in a slightly softer tone.
Sanji hesitated for a moment, looking up at Don Krieg and Luffy, before steeling himself. He bent down and grasped the pendant between his fingers, and stepped forward. Then, he went spiraling back into a memories that weren't his.
0~o~0
"Sanji." Luffy smiled, "Hello." This was… the Baratie? Faces flashed all around the blonde man. People he knew and people he didn't know, and people he knew, but only for a moment. They kept circling him.
Then the scenery changed, and his father—oh god, his father—was coming at him with a scythe, and Sanji—Sanji was so sure that it would cleave him in two, but at the last second, he felt a heavy hand grasp his arm and pull him away. Then the surroundings became whitewashed.
"Hey, Garbage Cook." A moss-headed man, so similar to the one Mihawk fought, yet so, so different, said fondly roughly, "Let's go home."
0~o~0
When Sanji came to, it was when he was at the top of the Galleon, wrapping the Pendant around Luffy's neck, and Don Krieg watching helplessly as he bled from a deep gash in his side.
The moment he strung the bead-like jewel on Luffy's neck, the fog in his eyes cleared. "Sanji?" he said weakly, reaching out, and Sanji didn't know what to say. "Are you…" real was left unsaid. Then his eyes widened, "The pendant." He said numbly, "It came off. You—Are you alright?"
"…" Sanji didn't know what to say, instead letting his hands drop to his side, "Just beat Don Krieg. Then we'll talk." He finally murmured, "And by the looks of things, we have a lot to talk about."
Luffy winced, "I… no, I didn't want you to find out this way." He muttered.
Sanji shook his head, "I didn't even agree to be part of your crew." He pointed out, "I don't need you to explain yourself to me. All I really need right now is for you to shape up and defeat Don Krieg. Then we'll talk. Right now is not the time."
Luffy nodded painfully, before turning his attention to Don Krieg. Taking that as a cue to leave, Sanji dove off the edge of the ship and swam back to the Baratie. Zeff stared at Sanji blankly, as the young blonde hoisted himself up on the restaurant.
"What was that?" he questioned.
Sanji raised a brow in confusion, "What do you mean?"
"Sanji…" Zeff closed his eyes, "The moment you touched that pendant, it turned you into a different person. You weren't the same. You were…" a monster. A demon. A God. All of that was left unsaid.
Sanji chewed his tongue a little, idly wishing for a cigarette, "I don't know," he said finally, "I just…" he sighed and looked up at Luffy, who was facing off with Don Krieg, this time with a look of death incarnate on his face, "I'll find out when Straw-Hat wins. He'll explain it."
Zeff's face went carefully blank, "For all our sakes, I hope so."
0-o-0
Luffy was tired. He just went through a flashback of that accursed island, realized that Sanji (oh, god, of all people, why did it have to be Sanji-) pick up his pendant and carry it back to him. What did he see? It took all Luffy had, to not ditch the fight and run to Sanji. Is he okay? Why is he pensive? What did he see?
Luffy bit his lip, and growled a little. He eyed Don Krieg disdainfully, This all happened because of him. A voice in his head whispered, coiling around his being like dark, wispy tendrils, Kill him. Kill him. You know you want to. Luffy cocked his fist back, Armament Haki ghosting over it.
"…" Luffy looked down at Krieg coldly, He doesn't deserve the honor of last words. Him and Kuro both. His eyes narrowed dangerously, and Krieg flinched, I hate them. He didn't take the opportunity to murmur out a Move Name. (That would be giving Krieg importance).
Instead, he punched. Blood flew. Krieg fell. And the spear rolled on the boards. It rolled, and rolled, and kept on rolling until it stopped at Gin's feet. Luffy felt a pool of guilt well up inside him, before it dried up.
He felt sorry for putting that look of abject horror on Gin's face. Not why he did it.
Luffy idly flicked his fist, blood droplets flying through the air, staining the ground. The same scenery. Luffy thought unwillingly, Through hundreds of worlds… blood stains the ground. It happened so many times, yet I can't help but wonder… Was it my blood? Or was it my crew's?
He stared at the blood a little longer, before snapping back to reality and jumping down to the Baratie. "It's done, old man. My debt's paid off." He paused, before turning to Sanji, "You have questions." He said apathetically, "Ask me, and I will answer to the best of my ability."
Sanji chewed on his cigarette for a bit, "Why are you so determined to have a cook like me on your crew?" he finally asked.
Luffy jolted, before his face warped back into the apathetic mask again, "You're Sanji." He said monotonously, "You're mine. My precious person. You're worth it." He stared Sanji in the eyes while enunciating every damn word (that little piece of--)
And Sanji?
Sanji cried.
No, well, not really. He didn't actually cry. It was more like… one little sniffle. And one little tear.
"Hey, hey! Blonde brat!" Patty yelled, running over, "Everything okay?" he grabbed Luffy by the shoulders and began shaking the straw-hatted teen back and forth violently, "WHAT DID YOU DO TO THE BLONDE BRAT, CHORE BOY?!" he roared.
Luffy felt as if his head was swimming through cotton. No… What? Memories flashed through his skull, and he couldn't help but feel like he ruined everything. "I did everything." He said hoarsely, and everyone stopped at the sheer agony in his voice, "And yet I did nothing at all.".
After a few moments of pin-drop silence, Patty found his bearings and grabbed the collar of Luffy's shirt, "What do you mean, Chore Boy?!" he growled, rearing his fist back for a punch.
Luffy looked at the cook emotionlessly. I can't touch him. He thought helplessly, even as a small, dark, powerful part of him raged against its chains, I can't touch him, I can't let you touch him. He's Sanji's precious person. Stop. The tiny part of him stopped, stared, and marginally relaxed against the chains, power still brimming underneath its surface.
"I asked you a question!" Patty shouted, his fist jerking forwards and hitting the wall, causing cracks to form from the point of impact.
"And I answered." Luffy dully replied.
"Patty, leave him alone." Sanji murmured.
"But, Sanji—"
"Leave him alone." Sanji stepped forward, "Why are you like this?" he directed the question at Luffy, "Why are you in East Blue? Why are you so determined to make me, of all people, your chef? Why?"
Luffy grinned, and a little bit of light returned to his eyes, "If you join my crew… I'll tell you all you want to know."
Sanji's jaw dropped, and his cigarette dangled from his lip, "You can't be serious." He murmured in disbelief, "After all of this… You still want me as your chef? How? Why?"
Luffy grinned a little wider, "Because! You have a dream!"
Sanji scoffed, "How does my having a dream have anything to do with this?"
Luffy's smile became a little softer at that, "My crew is a crazy one." He said, "Filled with dreamers. Only of dreamers. And you are part of it."
Sanji had nothing to say to that.
A beat of silence passed.
"I'll join your crew."
Luffy perked up.
"On one condition." Sanji stared Luffy in the eye, "I will join your crew on the condition that I can leave whenever I want, wherever I want, however I want. And you cannot stop me.".
It was a painful condition. Luffy had to fight against every fiber of his being to just say 'yes'. But it was necessary. Necessary… The adventure has barely begun… Luffy mused, there is time…
He reached out with his Haki. He sighed slightly. Nami was gone, but that was to be expected. "Let's go." He smiled slightly at Sanji, and walked off, "We need to go save Nami."
Sanji tilted his head and walked after Luffy, "Nami? You mean the beautiful rose part of your crew?" he questioned, his face twisting in mild disgust, "I still don't understand why someone as wonderful as her would follow someone like you."
Luffy smiled somberly, "The same reason you are." Sometimes I feel like everything's crumbling around me and I can't stop it. Why is everything so different?
"So you mean to say she was forced into following you?" Sanji's voice was dryer than the Alabstan desert.
Luffy hummed, and said nothing in return. Sanji sighed at the silence. "Where are we going? At least tell me that." He grumbled.
Luffy smiled, "Arlong park."
Sanji stopped walking, "I'm sorry, did you just say Arlong Park?" a beatific smile stretched across his face, "Please tell me you're lying."
Luffy grinned, "I can't lie! I thought you knew this already." Sanji's face darkened, "Yeah." He muttered, "Unfortunately."
2 HOURS LATER—
Luffy lounged around in the dinghy, waiting for Sanji to finish up and come over. When he saw the man walking over, he straightened himself and smiled, "Sanji! Let's go!"
Sanji nodded slightly, and stepped forward. Each step he took, he felt as if his life was crumbling around him. Memories surrounded him. Some of them were of his time with his… blood relatives. Others were of his time with Zeff (father, father, he is my father-). Others were of his time (short as it may have been) with Luffy.
And some… were hazy memories. Memories that he had not experienced yet. Memories of a soul different to his own, yet so, so similar. Before he knew it, he was already at the edge of the boat, and was about to step in when—
"Hey Brat!" Sanji jolted when he heard Zeff's voice call out, "Don't catch a cold."
Sanji froze, then flipped around, bowing at Zeff's feet, "THANK YOU!" he sobbed, "THANK YOU SO MUCH, YOU OLD GEEZER! THANK YOU!"
Luffy smiled, watching the scene, "Finally." He murmured, "I understand what it means to be that grateful. And I have you to thank for that."
When Sanji got into the boat, Luffy said nothing. He said nothing when he let the dinghy loose into the ocean, and leaned over the railing, if only to watch the ocean waves call to him, beckoning for him to come down.
"Do you even know where Arlong Park is?" Sanji questioned, leaning on the rail next to Luffy. Luffy hummed and looked at the ocean, "Not a clue. But I know someone who does."
Sanji raised one of his curly eyebrows, "Oh? And who might that be?"
Luffy smirked, "3…" the water lurched a little, and Sanji felt something intangible swirl in his stomach, "2…" A rising mass seemed to be surfacing from the water slowly. It looked as if the ocean itself was dripping off of it.
Luffy's smile was more teeth than smile at that point, "1."
And the water finished dripping. Sanji's jaw dropped, and his cigarette fell. What stood before him was a Grand Line Sea King. The muscles in his legs went taut, ready to spring at a moment's notice.
"Yo." Luffy saluted childishly and grinned at the Sea King, who blinked disbelievingly, "I don't suppose you could, like, tow us to Arlong Park, yeah?"
The Sea King blinked and opened its mouth in response. Luffy blinked, "Right, Sanji!" Sanji nodded slightly, gaze still locked on the Sea King, "Make this one some food. We need its help to get to Arlong Park."
Sanji stopped, and stared, before ultimately deciding to not question his life. "Got it. I'll go… whip something up real quick." And he went inside.
Luffy smiled and nodded, before turning to the Sea King, "Mohmoo." He said seriously, and the Sea King's attention snapped to Luffy, "How do you feel with Arlong? Tell me, and tell me the truth."
'How can you understand me?' Mohmoo's voice was like a whine in Luffy's head.
"Do not question that yet." Luffy murmured, "Just answer my question."
'…He hurts.' Mohmoo said after a while, 'He hurts me. Hachi helps me. He's nice. But everyone else hurts. Why do you ask this?'
Luffy hummed, "I have an offer for you." He said bluntly, "Take us to Arlong Park, and I will destroy Arlong."
'No, no!' Mohmoo rose up in disbelief, 'You cannot beat Arlong! You are but a twig, you won't even last five seconds against him!'
"Are you going to bring us there, or not?" Luffy interrupted.
Mohmoo calmed down, but had a disgruntled expression on their face, 'I won't enjoy it, but I will. It depends on the food, though. If the food is nice, I will bring you. If it isn't, then I leave you. Clear?'
Luffy smirked, "Crystal."
Sanji came out with a slightly lost look on his face, and held out a small dish.
'…Your chances of me towing you over are dropping into the single digits now.'
Luffy laughed, and Sanji jolted, "It's fine! Just eat it, and I promise." Luffy smirked wickedly, "You'll tow us over."
Sanji looked between the two, completely lost in the situation, "I feel like I should just refrain from questioning anything you do." He murmured, "For my sake."
Luffy nodded happily.
Mohmoo eyed the small dish judgmentally before bending down and flicking their tongue out, carrying and eating the entire dish in one bite.
And really, one bite was all they needed.
'…' Mohmoo sighed, 'That was the best piece of food I've had in years.'
Luffy cleared his throat purposefully and stared victoriously into Mohmoo's annoyed face, 'How fast do you want me to tow you there?'
"As fast as possible."
Sanji just groaned at the seemingly telepathic conversation his… Captain had with the Sea King. "What has my life become?" he bemoaned.
Luffy giggled, "Actually, this is quite mild. Just wait till we hit the Grand Line. Then things will become beautiful."
AN: Haha... So I know I said mid-to-late March, but finals hit me like a brick. I had half this story written out solidly, but then I just decided to take a break from writing altogether, which was a really bad idea. Then there's the fact that my friend group is mildly questionable, and yeah. So far, I've stabilized myself in a fandom for a bit, so I'm not hopping around anymore. And because of that, I'll probably get the patience to shunt myself back into One Piece. Haha, yeah. Anyways. I hath returned. I thank you all for being so patient. This chapter is kind of... weird tbh. But when we get back into the action, all will be good. Have a nice day.
~~Oracle
