Flaming Emotions, Burning Passions
By YaoiFanLady2
Hello again, worthy friends. Im gonna cut to the chase so lets get on with da chapter!
YFL2 xoxoxox
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the One Piece stuff, but if I did I'd make Sanji and Zolo all mine! Those two are so yummy…lol DROOL
CHAPTER 3- Waking Up To Reality…Sometimes Really Hurts.
Seconds passed until Zolo finally regained his composure and pulled back from the kiss, a look of wrath on his tanned face. He pulled his fist back and, with a snarl of anger, belted Sanji off of the seat. As the blonde fell with a shocked cry the chair went with him and Zolo was able to stand up, furiously wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
Landing with a thump and falling to a collapsed heap on the floor, Sanji swore gruffly and groaned as the pain registered in his brain. The dispirited cook sat up and massaged his jaw, looking up at his attacker with a rejected look on his face and grumbling edgily to himself.
"You all right Sanji?"
"Huh?" Sanji looked up at the door to see who had spoken to him, only to realise that Luffy was kneeling beside him and that Nami and Usopp where staring at him in shock.
"Are you ok?" Luffy repeated and motioned towards Sanji's jaw questioningly. Nodding that he was fine, Sanji watched as Luffy broke into a grin and then into animated laughter. He slapped Sanji on the back and repositioned his straw hat, grinning down at the sprawled cook. "You know, you probably shouldn't have kissed Zolo, Sanji…But it sure did look funny!"
Nami rolled her eyes and turned to stare at Zolo, who was portraying a set of emotions she hadn't expected. He wasn't as angry as the redhead would have guessed; in truth he looked a lot more humiliated and bewildered than anything else. After a few seconds of listening to Luffy laugh at the top of his lungs and Usopp giggling in the doorway, Zolo let out a frustrated growl and stalked out of the kitchen, disappearing from sight around the corner.
Hauling Sanji to his feet, Nami sat him back down at the table and ignored the stupid grin that was beginning to show on the cook's face. Luffy had calmed down only a little bit and he was now starting to sift through the cupboards looking for something to eat. Usopp noticed the bottle and glass and walked over to them. Picking the large bottle up and seeing that barely any of the wine was left, he turned and held it up for Nami to see.
"Did you drink all of that Sanji?" Usopp asked curiously, watching as Sanji reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a cigarette and lighter. After a few seconds the smell of tobacco drifted through the room and Sanji breathed out, letting his shoulders droop as the new wave of nicotine calmed his body.
"Nah, not all of it. Dat's left ova from lunch…I've only had 'bout half, I'd say…" the blonde said, a goofy grin starting to appear on his face.
"Half? I don't think so, Sanji…" Usopp said, scrutinizing the blondes face. "How alcoholic is this?" He looked down at the bottle in his hands and started to read the label, frowning in concentration.
Sanji broke out in to a chuckle. "Did ya see da look on his face?" He blew out a breath of smoke and put his head on the table, the chuckles slowly giving way to grumbling about a heavy head.
"Great! Our cooks drunk and about to pass out!" Nami said irritably, her frown growing when she noticed Luffy wasn't listening to her, Sanji was dozing off and Usopp was reading the label on the bottle. "HEY! Are you guys listening to me or what!"
"Huh?" Usopp broke concentration and looked up from the bottle.
"…Wha'?" Sanji opened an eye and stared up at the woman beside him. One hand was holding his head with his golden hair entwined in his fingers and the cigarette was hanging loosely from his mouth.
Luffy stopped rummaging through the store cupboards and turned around. "Did you say something, Nami?"
Nami sighed and massaged her temples stressfully. "Yes, Luffy. I was saying that our cooks drunk and about to fall asleep!"
"So…"
"SO HE CAN'T COOK DINNER, YOU IDIOT!"
It took a few seconds to sink in.
"Oh." There was a pause, and then suddenly Luffy leapt over and grabbed an almost sleeping Sanji by the collar of his shirt, shaking him in the chair and yelling in his whining tone. "SANJI, WAKE UP! DON'T PASS OUT! IM STILL HUUUUNGRY! SANJI!"
With a bellow Sanji leapt sluggishly out of the chair and in a cloud of cigarette smoke and a blur of black, the agitated cook forcefully kicked Luffy through the kitchen door and out onto the deck. Skidding to a halt, Luffy sat up with one hand firmly clamped onto his symbolic straw hat and broke into a grin.
"Hey Sanji! You're awake!"
"Yes I'm awake, ya rubber-brained idiot! And now I hav' a headache, no thanks ta you!" Sanji shouted back at him, one hand still clutching his head.
He sat back down and started to grumble to himself, reaching over and seizing the bottle out of Usopp's hands. He took the cigarette out of his mouth, took a gulp and resumed his agitated muttering.
"…Stupid…bloody…kid…yellin' in my ear…stupid swordsman…punch me why dontcha…"
Before Nami could stop him, he knocked back the rest of the bottle and threw it into the sink where it landed with a clunk. She shook her head disapprovingly and snatched the cigarette out of his hand, earning a delayed cry of protest from the drowsy blonde.
"Stop smoking, Sanji…and stop drinking too." Nami scolded him as she stubbed and threw the cigarette into the trash. She glanced towards Usopp, who smiled slightly and nodded back. "I think you should go to bed and sleep the alcohol off before Luffy goes nuts looking for something to eat. Usopp, can you…? I need to talk to Zolo…"
"Yeah, I'll help…come here, you." Usopp tapped Sanji on the shoulder and slid an arm around the thin waist, hauling the protesting man out of the seat. Sanji grumbled and then started to trudge out of the door, with Usopp walking behind him for support. Usopp helped Sanji through the door to the sleeping quarters, talking to Sanji in a persuading manner. "That's a good cook. Cummon lets get u into bed-ah, watch out for that ledge. Go to sleep, so that u can wake up sober and feed us!"
A few moments later Usopp walked back into the kitchen and breathed out deeply. "He's in bed. He was snoring as I left." He chuckled and then paused, glancing nervously at his crewmate, who was chewing her lip deep in thought. "So…what are you gonna do about Zolo?"
"I don't know. All I know at the moment is that I need you to keep Luffy preoccupied for me while I find Zolo and then have a little chat with him. The last thing I need is Luffy to be in Zolo's face laughing at how embarrassed he looked…or something like that." She started to walk out of the room but stopped in the doorway and turned back around, fixing the ship's gunner with a mistrustful and poisonous glare. "Just don't touch a single one of my tangerine trees! I don't care what else you demolish, but wipe out just one of my trees again and you'll be paying it for it for the rest of your life! Got it?"
Usopp gulped. "Uh…s-sure thing Nami! You can c-count on me!"
Satisfied with the answer, Nami broke out into a sparkling smile and walked out of the kitchen, leaving Usopp wondering what she would do to them if he and Luffy blew up another tree. He decided to not even bother tempting fate-he liked his head on his shoulders.
Walking out of the kitchen and locating Luffy sitting on what was left of the ram's head, Usopp repeated Nami's 'Do And Die' lecture and listened with a grin as Luffy laughed and patted the figurehead he was sitting on.
"Hey Usopp, do you think the ram would look better with both horns missing?"
Usopp chortled and pulled out some of his newest prototype bullets from his pockets. Luffy leapt down from the new test-dummy figurehead and looked curiously at the red and black ammunition. He grinned and watched as Usopp turned them over cautiously in his fingers, noticing the careful and delicate way the gunner was treating them.
"Highly explosive?"
"Yup." Usopp handed a few to his captain, who was nearly bouncing in excitement. He bit back a laugh and added thoughtfully, "Well, more like slightly unstable."
"So?" Luffy hooted with laughter and looked mischievously at the ram head. "Lets see if I'm right!"
Well well well…don't ya just gotta loooove Usopp and Luffy's goofy tendencies? What do you think is gonna happen with the rams head? Poor thing…
Where do you think Zolo disappeared too? What's Nami gonna say to him? Will Sanji wake up in time (and sober enough) to cook dinner for the ever-hungry Luffy? Review, and if I get enough I'll post the next chapter and you can find out! Grin
YFL2 xoxoxox