FugaciousPrompt: mihawk X Zoro angst.Warnings: implied sexual content, both zoro and mihawk are stubborn bastards, bad at feelings, upset perona, bittersweet feelings.
Fugacious; adjective: tending to disappear, fleeting.
...
Hair as green as a luscious forest. Eyes as silver as the swords the man wields. The scar he gave upon their meeting peeking out from the edge of the frilly shirt he gave the man to wear.
An image that refused to leave from Mihawk's subconscious. It was not like he wanted all thoughts of his green haired rival to escape his mind. In fact, in an almost sick way he almost enjoyed the man's rather persistent existence in his mind. Maybe it was the thrill of a challenge, the temptation of who would crumble first, whose mind would be devoured first.
The Physical devouring on the other hand was of little consequence to the challenge, after all, roronoa quite liked impaling himself on mihawk's other sword .
Soft and delicate touches between hard and powerful thrusts, heated glances that did not read of bloodlust, but perhaps, a different kind of lust. The gasps and moans of the younger man, his hands grabbing mihawk's back careful so as to not leave marks.
Scars on a swordsman's back are his greatest shame.
Mihawk's teeth sinking deep into the other's shoulders, alternating between hard bites and soft, suckling kisses, each action leaving zoro to shudder violently under Mihawk, squeezing around Mihawk's dick in the perfect way.
Zoro tries to get Mihawk in deeper, which prompts Mihawk to let out a low growl and grab Zoro's thighs to still him. Zoro smiles, the same cocky smile mihawk saw when he first met Zoro, but this time there was something deeper underneath it. Mihawk does not wish to uncover the meaning, nor does he try. They both do not need to complicate things more so than it already has.
Their lovemaking resembles their swordplay in a twisted way, graceful and powerful, hidden with underlying meanings. Complimenting each other in a perfect way. A sword and sheath (heh)
The implications are not lost on them, nor is the obvious refusal to acknowledge that what they're doing is not out of boredom. Nor is it meaningless.
Time is fleeting however, and some things are better left unsaid.
The weak rays of the sun enter the room as day breaks, and words that they would rather conceal slip out. It's almost irresistible, a test infinitely cruel. But they are not men of lesser control. They won't go back on their promise. No matter the complications.
"You're going to become the man who will take my title."
"I know."
"I don't want to fight you."
"I… I know."
"But I will."
"So will I."
Ahh. Swordsmen are very stubborn creatures, huh?
...
Perona doesn't get why they don't acknowledge that they live for each other, that the red string of fate binds them together. That they love each other. They pay her no heed. She is not a swordsman, she will never understand. She wants to know why they are so stubborn.
Destroying oneself internally is not cute.
"Ne, do you love the grumpy old man?"
Zoro stops momentarily, the question piercing his concentration, before returning back to practicing his downwards swing for the umpteenth time.
"Why did you ask that all of a sudden?"
"Just answer it already. Making a lady wait is so not cute."
Zoro scoffs, but doesn't stop practicing. He doesn't need to think about the question, he knows it in his heart, he always did. Something's should not be uttered.
"Of course I do."
Perona stills. She knew the answer, obviously. They both made it very apparent from the start. Yet, they never tell It to each other. Never in front of each other. Even if perona has little to no social cues, she could figure it out just by the way they look at each other, the way they interact. She hates it. Hates the way they suffer silently, the way they want to confess their mutual love but absolutely refuse to. The way they are so keen on destroying each other.
"So why don't you just tell him?"
She didn't mean for her voice to crack at the sentence but it did. She didn't mean for the tears to fall but they did. Clearly nothing goes her way on this island. She doesn't want to see these two stubborn idiots break each other but by bit.
Zoro doesn't look up, and perona knows that he knows she's crying, but he doesn't even console her. Stupid fucking idiotic swordsman.
"It's more complicated than that."
She storms off. She knows it's complicated, she knows that they can't say it. But it just hurts.
Stupid swordsmen and their stupid fucking codes. Hurting inside is not cute dammit.
...
She doesn't get it. She knows she doesn't need to get it. Two years pass by in the blink of an eye, and she's gotten used to the public displays of affection, used to the moans that echo down the empty corridors at night. Used to the words that hand in the air. Curiousity doesn't die down so easily however. She still wants to know why. Even if she has to ask hawk eyes himself.
He knows she's approaching him before she even opens the door. Observation haki is way too useful, and after zoro learning it as well she cannot sneak up on him anymore.
"What do you want ghost girl?"
She scowls faintly, clearly disappointed that even after two years of slinking around the castle he never bothers to remember her name.
"I want an explanation."
He sighs and outs down the glass of wine on the table. And looks up, the golden eyes clearly not in the mood. Was it because it was zoro's last few days on the island? Perhaps.
"Then ask. But make it quick. I need to check up on roronoa before he leaves."
"Why.. why do you not say that you love him?" The scowl on mihawk's face deepens.
"It's more complicated than tha-"
"I KNOW IT IS! I KNOW YOU BOTH HAVE A STUPID CODE, I KNOW YOU ARE TOO STUBBORN TO ADMIT IT, I GET THAT. DON'T YOU BOTH IDIOTS REALISE, THIS ISN'T A COMPETITION, THIS ISN'T A CHALLENGE, YOU'RE HURTING EACH OTHER! YOU'RE BOUND BY THE STRING OF FATE, SO WHY DON'T YOU JUST ADMIT IT? Why… why must you hurt like this?"
Her frustrations finally took the reins, she finally let it all out. All the bitterness that stemmed from their hardheadedness finally erupted. And to all that, the as apathetic as ever so called greatest swordsman in the world simply continued staring.
"It's not about a challenge anymore. It's more about keeping a promise" he continued, sipping his wine slowly.
"What?"
"I promised I would wait for roronoa at the top. He promised that he would defeat me and take my title. I, we, cannot let complications deviate us from our goal."
"But fate binds you toget-"
"We are swordsmen. If the string of fate binds us together we will simply cut it. Emotions are objects that are meant for interference. I cannot allow emotions to cloud my judgement." He takes another sip, this time his glance lingering over the sloshing of the dark red liquid and continues.
"The situations are different. And time passed by quickly. He will find another lover perhaps, and that would be the best for both of us. Some things are better left unsaid."
She doesn't know what to say anymore, what to do. She knows that they've made up their mind, she knows that even he's aware of the bitterness coated in his words. But she can't say anything anymore. It's too complicated dammit.
"You should also get prepared, ghost girl. You need to drop roronoa at sabaody.
"Aren't you going to drop him off?"
"No. I can't."
She pauses a bit, but waits for him to continue. Waits for him to be a bit truthful.
"I won't be able to let go."
Mihawk pays little attention to the sound of the door shutting behind him as the ghost girl slinks away, and simply looks out the window. He is not a fool. He knows that he wouldn't be able to let go of roronoa, he knows that the depraved part of him wants to keep roronoa with him forever, to not let him go. But mihawk is a man of control. He cannot be selfish.
The memories won't linger on for too long. He hopes. He knows that they will. Time is fleeting.
It won't matter soon.
Promises are meant to be kept.
I'm probably going to get started on the requests you lot have sent me soon! I hope you like this chapter cause I love this pairing way too much. I'm definitely gonna start writing the requests next chapter onwards, I just wrote this beforehand and stuck it in lol.