Title: Of Dreams and Desires
Pairings: Smoker x Ace, Sanji x Zoro, and other side pairings
Ratings: T - NC-17
Chapter: 54 of ?
Summary: The road to One Piece is a dangerous one and each individual begins at different times and places. Some paths cross for a fleeting moment but the encounter could be so great that it can alter the initial direction. Every meeting is important and is planned by the souls long before the bodies see each other. Follow everyone's story and see what path they take.
Disclaimer: I do not make any profit from this story; all props go to Eiichiro Oda.
Author Note: Ohai everyone, sorry for the delay in updates. I had surgery to get my tonsils removed (finally) and have been in recovery mode. I thank you guys for being with me on this journey and I hope everyone enjoys this chapter!
Shout Outs: Big thanks to Lilshady2123 and gaoyaya76 for adding the story to your alerts list!
Beta Reader: descriptionsalive21, thank you so much!
Don Quixote Rosinante
Rosinante patted himself down, mumbling curses under his breath when he couldn't find his lighter. He hopped down from the examination bed and hurriedly walked across the room towards the cabinets. The search was frantic as drawers were pulled open on his mission of finding anything to light his smoke. When the now-familiar beeping of a badge being scanned sounded, Rosinante rushed back to the bed before the metal doors slid open. Natalya strolled into the room, tapping the screen on the small pad in her hand. Her eyes met her patient's when she looked up, a small smile tugging at her lips as she studied the man's features.
She sat down on an unoccupied stool, pushing some strands of thick purple hair behind her ear, "Rosinante, how do you feel today?"
Said man huffed, "I'd feel better if you'd stop asking me that question every day." Pale fingers raked through blond hair, stopping mid-way when they came across something hard. A small noise of triumph came from him as he pulled the hidden treasure out. Chuckles racked his body as he swiped the tip of the match on a nearby wall, igniting the stick and lighting his addiction.
After a few puffs, he held the cigarette out to the doctor, whose fingers were dancing across the pad again, "Is whatever you're typing in that thing gonna help me get out of here?"
Her tapping abruptly came to a halt at the question. She looked up and observed the cigarette before taking it. Sucking in a few drags herself before she replied, "Why do you talk like you're a prisoner?"
"Why do you always answer my questions with questions?"
The Russian woman let out an elegant laugh as she handed him back his smoke, "You always talk about 'getting out'. It's only been a few months since you've returned to the living. You've settled in here and have become friendly with most of the staff. However, you've consistently been on this never-ending search for information regarding this Law boy you keep mentioning." She pushed her glasses up on the bridge of her nose, "Who is he to you?"
Rosinante tapped his cig's ashes onto the ground, "I will forever be in debt to you for giving me my life back, but stay out of my business."
"What will you say when you meet him?"
He shrugged; there were so many things he wanted to talk to Law about.
"How about the fact you're alive?"
"That can easily be explained."
A small grin formed on her red painted lips, "Can it really be?"
He stared off at nothing in particular as he thought her words through. She sent the high he was living off of crashing to the ground. Law was no longer the boy he once was. Years had passed since he'd died. He couldn't just walk up to him and start a conversation like usual. He'd probably scare the shit out the poor kid.
He looked down at his hands. Hell, I haven't aged either.
Rosinante bounced his finger on his knee as he counted in his head. How old was he now? A heavy sigh escaped him. Thirty-nine…
Seeing that she wasn't going to get an reply from him, Natalya touched the screen of the device in her palm, waking it back up, "Will access to the library satisfy you?"
"No, you daft woman." He flick his spent cigarette at the wall, watching it ricochet to the floor, "I want out. Unless the library is attached to a big ass exit door, I don't give a shit about it."
Ignoring the insult, Natalya smiled and stood from the stool, making her way towards the door, "I think you'll enjoy the library. After you've visited it, go talk to Dr. Nocturne. He wants to speak with you about that devil of yours." Just as she was about to leave the room, she snorted and looked over her shoulder to the young man, "Why do you always catch fire?"
"Huh?" He cocked his head in confusion.
Natalya motioned to his pant leg and, sure enough, there was a small flame burning through his clothes. He jumped out of his seat, yelling curses and shaking his leg. By the time he'd put out the fire, the doctor was already gone.
D.Q.R
The smell of vanilla and almonds filled Rosinante's nose when he entered the old library. He breathed in deeply, relishing in the fragrance as he proceeded deeper into the room. Blue eyes darted around, observing the high ceilings and the books that reached them. He might have bitched about going to the library before, but they've always been some of his favorite places. As a child, he would always run away from his teachers and hide in the family archives, reading up on worldly history and that on his family.
Perhaps that was why his heart was more sympathetic towards others than his brother's was. He shook his head as thoughts of the man filled his mind. He made it an effort not to think about his brother... his killer. Oddly enough, he couldn't remember his last few moments before death. The memories prior with him and Law were strong in his mind but... remembering past that was a feat he hadn't accomplished yet. Doc gave it some fancy ass word but in layman's terms, he had a case of amnesia. Which is he quite alright with having.
So engrossed in his thoughts, he didn't notice the woman standing in front of him. Before he could collide with her, she held out a hand to his chest, "Mr. Don Quixote, welcome. Is there anything I can help you with?"
"Yeah," he eyed the stout woman, "can you show me to the catalogs?"
"Of course, please follow me."
The pair walked through the maze of books until they reached the rear of the library. She gestured her arm in a grand motion, "Here is our new catalog department. Are you familiar with how to perform a search?"
Rosinante picked up a card from one of the boxes, flipping it over, "There's nothing written on it."
She nodded, "That's correct. You will take the card and slide it into this slot here."
The librarian inserted the card into the monitor that rested in the wall. The screen flashed before it displayed a set of letters and digits. "The alphabet is the section and the number is the row."
The ex-spy took the cigarette from behind his ear and lit it, "Why all the extra steps in searching for a book?"
"Dr. Nocturne is slowly introducing advanced technology into each department."
"Right… thanks."
Rosinante sat down in the hard steel chair and puffed on his smoke in thought. His fingers traced over the different catalog boxes before he pulled the box labeled A – F close to him. He flicked through the different tabs until he got to D, finding the card he wanted. The neon blue light from the search screen shone down on his face as he inserted the card into the machine. He balanced his smoke on the edge of the desk while he waited for the results to come through.
Don Quixote Doflamingo
A spinning wheel appeared on the screen before a reference number popped up in the middle of the page. Rosinante clicked his tongue; it didn't give him a section letter, he would have to go searching for the books himself. Jotting down the number, he punched in a few more entries and when he was done, he quickly made his way to the bookshelves. Grabbing the scrolls and tomes he needed, Rosinante found the nearest table and deposited the items in his arms on top of it. He opened the volume closest to him and his blue eyes began scanning the table of contents. Finding a familiar name, the noble flipped through the book until he reached the page he wanted. A smile formed over his face as he looked at the picture on the page.
Old Man.
Sengoku was the fleet admiral now and he still looked the same as Rosinante remembered him from thirteen years ago. He read over the man's accomplishments since his death, chuckling at some of the pictures he came across. Cheerful eyes narrowed after a while and the carefree smile on his face turned into a frown. He skimmed over the other books he'd gotten, reaching out when he saw the title he was looking for. He opened the scroll, running his fingers through his hair as he read over the information.
Doffy's a Shichibukai?
The former pirate shot out of his chair and ran back to the catalogs, frantically searching through the cards. When he found the specific one he needed, he shoved it into the monitor, impatiently tapping his fingers on the counter top. The results came through and he ran to the right isle, scanning the various titles. His search slowed as he came across a massive tome, the words History of Dressrosa printed in bold letters. He plucked the treatise off the shelf and sat down on the carpet covered floor. Another cigarette was lit as he read about the mark on history his brother had made.
A sick feeling settled in Rosinante's belly as he read the title of the next chapter. King Riku Dold III goes mad; Doflamingo saves the people of Dressrosa.
"Bullshit," he muttered around his smoke.
The World Noble shut the book and was about to chunk it when a picture on the back stilled his arm. Slim fingers traced over the image, smiling softly as he considered the face of the boy standing next to his brother. A face he'd never forget.
Law.
D.Q.R
Doctor Nocturne entered the surgical room, hanging back by the door while he watched his wife work. She held out her bloody gloved hand and, without words, she was handed a lancet by an assistant. She began making an incision into the cadaver on the table, addressing her husband, "What can I do for you?"
He smiled at her professional demeanor, "You've spoken to Rosinante today?"
Setting the scalpel down, the doctor picked up the oscillating saw, waiting to answer until she opened the body's sternum and turned the buzzing machine off, "I did."
Nocturne raised his eyebrows when she didn't elaborate, "And?"
Natalya placed the retractor in the corpse's chest and cranked the handle to widen the opening, "I sent him to the library."
"Natalya." His voice held the silent command for attention.
The scientist looked up at her husband, sighing, "Darling, he's physically fine. I don't know what more you want me to report."
"What about his mental state?"
She shrugged her shoulders, "He's fucked up, but what more do you expect from a World Noble made outcast then turned spy who was brutally murdered by his own sibling? I'm not a phycologist, so I can't diagnose him like you want."
Nocturne chuckled at her bluntness, "I'll keep that in mind, dear. You say he's at the library?"
Seeing the affirmative nod from his wife, Nocturne left her in search for his creation. The doctor snorted, maybe he shouldn't be so bold as to call him "his creation". Those words made him feel like he was God and that wasn't what he was going for. He simply wanted to understand God's creation process. A coy smile formed on his lips; it was safe to say he completely understood the human body and how to bring back life.
A loud bang greeted him when he walked into the library and the smell of burning tobacco filled his nose. He sighed as he followed the foul stench towards the back of the spacious room. Hearing someone muttering behind a bookcase, he went down the next isle over, careful of the scrolls scattered about on the floor. He tripped over a thick tome but caught himself before his face ate carpet. A deep chuckle bounced off the walls, persuading the Russian to look all around him.
"I'm not helping your old ass up if you fall."
Nocturne huffed, cursing him in Russian and muttering "Fucking brat" as he stepped over copious stacks of paper on his way to Rosinante, "Why are you making a mess?"
"I was doing research," the blond waved his hand in a shooing motion, "I'll clean it up."
"What are you looking for?"
Rosinante used the remnants of his current cigarette to light a fresh smoke before butting the spent one out, "My brother."
The older man sat down on the floor across from the former Marine, "Did you find what you needed?"
The question pulled a scoff from the man, "More than what I needed." He leaned his head back against the case behind him, breathing smoke out his nose as he eyed the doctor, "When can I leave?"
"Where would you go?"
"Ugh, you're just like your wife. Always answering my questions with questions." Rosinante stood, attempting to give his limbs some life after being cramped up on the floor, "I need to find someone."
Nocturne looked at the open scrolls around him and hummed. He flipped through the pages of one of the open books, "Why is Trafalgar Law important to you?"
"None of your damn business."
A low chuckle came from the scientist, "Maybe not. I did some research myself about him; he's quite the pirate." Nocturne stood and his old bones popped in relief from being off the hard floor, "He's a part of this group the news calls the worst generation." He stroked his beard, "Do you know where pirates meet when they reach the end of Paradise?"
Rosinante's eyes darted to the doctor as a smile spread over his face, "Sabaody Archipelago!" He laughed as he began to gather the books and scrolls scattered about, "You're a genius!"
Nocturne watched him clean up after himself and sighed, "If I let you go, will you come back?"
Those words halted the excited blond. He straightened his bent form, tilting his head to the side, "Why would I come back?"
"Answering questions with questions, I see."
Rosinante grinned and Nocturne shook his head, "When you come back, I'll have your devil fruit ready for you."
"You found Nagi?"
"Doctor Blackbeard will be arriving within a few days to deliver it." Nocturne traced the spine of the book nearest to him as he started to walk away, "Don't forget to grab a mushi and answer it when we call."
Before he could slip out of the isle, Rosinante questioned one more time, just for clarity's sake, "You're seriously going to let me leave?"
Waving his thick hand in the air, the doctor answered, "I'll be awaiting your return."
A smile spread across Rosinante's face and he did a little victory dance. I'm coming, Law.
You know, thinking back on it, I have no idea why I fell in love with Rosinante's character. Probably his kind heart and swagger. Anyone else cried when he was holding on for life while Law got away? No? K. Lol, stay tune for the next chapter: Bartholomew Kuma - Huredhiel