Flaming Emotions, Burning Passions
By YaoiFanLady2
Hello hello…Hahahaaa "eeeexcellent…" (Burns Style). Chapter 4! Onwards!
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 4-More Than Just 'Slightly' Unstable, Usopp!
Nami found Zolo sitting up in the newly repaired crows nest, fully clothed and looking touchy. The pleasant weather was bringing a refreshing wind with it, and Zolo was staring out to sea with a brooding expression apparent on his chiselled features. He turned abruptly when Nami climbed up into the nest and, seeing that it wasn't Sanji, sighed in what Nami understood as relief and looked back out to the bay.
The breeze was carrying with it the drifting sounds of the town; shouts and laughter; the clinking of bells and the clutter of hooves and feet filled the air. However, the exultant cheers of laughter and loud conversation of the two mischievous men who were placing small red and black balls of explosives on the ram head of the Merry Go was drowning most of the noises out. Nami was ignoring them and instead sat down opposite from the grouchy swordsman, silently waiting for the other individual to talk first.
Zolo sat up straighter and sighed. "Before you ask, it's not what you think." He fixed Nami with a sharp, although half-hearted stare. "He came onto me…I mean, cummon! I…I didn't want it, I swear…" he blushed and trailed off, diverting his gaze back out to sea.
Nami remained silent, pondering the situation and trying to think of something she could say to allow the proud swordsman to retain some of his masculinity and dignity, while still allowing for some prodding questions.
"Well, of course not. I never said that, Zolo." She smiled understandingly. "After all, we all know how strange and…well…sexual Sanji can get when he gets a little too drunk, right?"
"…Yeah, I guess..."
"So don't dwell on it."
She shrugged and Zolo couldn't help but smile at his crewmate, who he knew was being so comfortable with it so that he could calm down himself. She was sitting with her legs stretched out, her arms behind her head and was leaning casually against the railing. Her fiery crimson hair seemed to sparkle as it was tossed in the wind, and Zolo felt the tension and anger seep out of his muscles. She was being calm for him, and he appreciated her coming up to speak to him, otherwise he probably would have punched something by now.
She turned and looked at him piercingly, her voice hardening. "Just don't let your problems with Sanji get in the way of doing your job on this ship or you fulfilling your dream. Deal?"
"Deal."
There was silence as Zolo resumed staring away into nothing, until Nami couldn't hold the question she'd been dying to ask in any longer.
"So did he use his tongue?" she blurted out, stifling a laugh when the swordsman turned and stared at her in shock, his face slowly reddening.
"NAMI!" Zolo yelled, his face colouring to a fetching shade of red.
She smirked playfully at his expression. "Is that a yes?"
"N-no!"
"He did, didn't he!"
She giggled as Zolo spluttered and then tried to look at anything besides her knowing face. Eventually, he found the shoelace of his boot interesting enough to divert his attention to and Nami managed to reduce herself to a laughing smile, watching him out of the corner of her eye.
He glanced up at her and Nami noticed that he looked like he wanted to say something; not wanting him to keep it to himself, she controlled herself and fell expectantly yet encouragingly silent. Moments passed until the swordsman finally looked up and blushed, his hands fidgeting with the black bandana that he had tied around his bicep.
"You know Nami, now that I think about it…"
"Hmmm?"
"Sanji's not that bad a kisser." He coughed and added hurriedly, "I mean, it wasn't like I enjoyed it or anything, but it was pretty good I gue-"
His sentence was cut short as an explosion of excessive proportions went off at the head of the ship, a series of bright lights and large amounts of propelled flames lighting the area with a red glow. Pieces of wood and metal flew through the air and the Merry Go shook violently in the shockwave. The crow's nest rocked back and forwards as the ship heaved through the water, and Zolo and Nami grabbed onto the closest things they could as they were thrown around in the aftermath of the explosion.
A look of intense ferocity twisting her womanly features, Nami leapt to her feet and bent over the railing to see Luffy and Usopp ducking for cover behind the mast, doubled over and almost crying in laughter. Their features were grey and covered in ash and charcoal. Silently fuming at their impeccable timing, she saw the two delinquents come out from behind their cover and stand at the edge of the demolition site; Luffy had a look of fun-loving amusement plastered all over his young face and Usopp was staring proudly at the explosion his bullets had produced, laughing as the last remnants of the ram's horn fell onto deck with a crunch.
The ram's head itself was still intact, though it wasn't really a ram anymore but more of a sheep since it was now hornless. A blackened scorch mark stretched out in all directions about a foot from the ram and some of the decking was still smouldering.
Luffy turned and slapped Usopp on the shoulder, a conclusive grin curling his mouth. "You know Usopp, I think that was a bit more than just 'slightly' unstable." He said thoughtfully, Usopp nodding in agreement.
"Yeah, your right. Wow."
Nami heard Zolo stand up behind her and follow her suit of looking over the edge of the crow's nest, hands rubbing parts of his body he had bruised in the explosion. Fuming, Nami took a deep breath and saw Zolo stick his fingers in his ears out of the corner of her eye.
"LUFFY! USOPP! YOU MORONS!" she bellowed down at the two men, both of whom jumped and turned around sheepishly, guilty grins on their faces. "WAIT TILL I GET DOWN THERE! YOU ARE BOTH SO DEAD!"
With screams of mock fear, both men turned tail and ran to hide behind the mast again. Nami skimmed quickly down the rope ladder attached to the crows nest and landed on deck with her hands on her hips and her eyes burning in wrath, stalking slowly over to where her newest victims were.
She jumped around to the other side of the main mast and yelled in surprise as Usopp set off a smoke bullet and fogged the entire ship with thick grey smog. With a growl she whipped out the pieces of her staff and, with a flick of her wrists, assembled it and tapped her way to the edge of the ship, managing to see through the haze two blurry outlines hustling down the boarding plank and onto land.
"GET YOUR BUTT'S BACK HERE!" she hollered, following them off of the ship and pursuing them into the town, Luffy's maddening guffaw and Usopp's high-pitched giggle infuriating the navigator further.
Zolo, still up in the crows nest, could see everything that was happening since the fog hadn't reached up to the top of the mast. The mist soon thinned and disappeared, allowing him to see Luffy and Usopp duck into a small tavern located just off from the main street of the town. He shook his head in exasperation and slight amusement as Nami sped right past it, her shouts and threats heard long after she had disappeared amongst the startled townspeople.
He was about to sit back down and have a nap when he heard movement below deck and watched curiously as Sanji burst through the door to the sleeping quarters, hands on his head and a very agitated growl coming from his mouth. He rubbed his eyes and looked warily around the ship, obviously wondering what it was that had woken him up.
Seeing the demolished figurehead that just screamed the words 'Luffy', 'Usopp' and 'ammunition' in the same sentence, Sanji allowed his shoulders to slump and relax at the prospect of no fighting. Stretching liberally, he scratched his chest and shuffled towards the docking plank; Zolo watched intently as Sanji bent tiredly over the rail and gazed out into nothingness, the wind blowing his golden yellow hair attractively in every direction.
Zolo allowed his eyes to wander over Sanji's form, reprimanding himself when his gaze began to return to the same area of the young teen's body. He wasn't wearing a shirt and his pants hung very low on his thin hips thanks to a lack of a belt, so Zolo tried very hard not to watch too closely. He noticed that the blonde also wasn't wearing his shoes or socks, and his pants were crumpled. He looked a bit of a mess, but still Zolo felt a tug at his chest that he didn't like. Not wanting to alert the preoccupied cook to his presence, Zolo remained stock-still and silent until Sanji yawned excessively and dragged his feet back to the door he had come from, disappearing into the darkness below deck.
Pausing only for a second to think back on everything that had happened, Zolo sat back down and leant against the rim of the nest, closing his eyes and breathing in deeply. Within minutes, the swordsman was sound asleep.
The muffled giggles of Luffy and Usopp as they snuck back onto the ship and into the kitchen didn't so much as stir the dozing first-mate. Soon after that, the boom of a small round of ammunition and the crash of a door to a private stash of food being blown off rang around the ship.
Zolo did nothing but snore louder.
There we go. Im so proud of Usopp and Luffy's effort on the ram head.teary sniff that's my boys! And they've got into Sanji's stash of food again! Heheheheee. I love my wrecking boys! Nami should be happy they left her trees alone, that's all I can say.
So what d'you guys think? That's totally a bored Luffy and Usopp for you, ne? Don't worry, the ram gets fixed…just for all you ram lovers out there-don't worry-the ram will live!
Review and I hope to see you all next time!
YFL 2 xoxoxox