PART THREE: Baratie
Hobbling sideways in between the overstocked kitchen counters stationed upon the floating restaurant Baratie, Sanji grimaced as each chef he passed stacked an additional pan on top of the massive pile he was already struggling to carry. As he reached the sink and delicately set the pile down the man working the station dropped a massive pot into the soapy basin and sloshed water down Sanji's clothes.
"Hey! Watch it!" He glowered, picking a piece of soggy pasta out of his hair.
"Sorry kid." The man shrugged as he lit up a smoke. "Didn't see you there."
"Spare one of those?" Sanji pointed at the cigarette.
"Don't let Zeff see you." The man shrugged as he reluctantly offered up one of his smokes.
Sanji retreated from the mess of steam and cutlery that was the kitchen during the dinner hour and disappeared onto the back deck. He had to be quick. He had maybe five minutes before their head chef Zeff noticed Sanji wasn't running dishes back and forth between stations and he needed every second to appreciate the tobacco. His lungs weren't accustomed to the habit yet and half of every smoke break he spent coughing, but it was worth it to feel like a real part of the restaurant's team.
He sat down carefully by the edge of the walkway and let his sore legs swing free over the side as he smoked. He wanted more than anything else to relax in a warm bath and let his bruised lower body soak, but he knew that wasn't likely to happen. After the restaurant closed, he had an hour of cleaning to do in the kitchen before Zeff would call him for their evening Blackfoot training session. After that concluded he had six hours of freedom before prep began in the kitchen the following morning, and every moment of sleep he could scrounge was precious if he wanted to be alert for his next training session at dawn.
Sanji took a long drag on his smoke as the warm sea breeze caught his blonde hair and he let out a quick barrage of coughs. Zeff would probably have him slicing onions all week if he caught him smoking again. He had explained to him it would ruin his taste buds, and that anyone who sought recognition as a masterclass chef had to have a refined, untainted palate, but Sanji was willing to take the risk. Aside from making him feel included, he hadn't failed to notice most of the gentlemen who came into the restaurant with beautiful ladies on their arm tended to smoke, and Sanji definitely wanted to attract some beautiful ladies when he grew up.
He coughed again as he finished his cigarette and tossed it into the sea. As he made to stand up, he paused. He could have sworn he heard another small cough from behind him. It sounded muffled, as though someone was trying to hide that they were close by.
He stood up and walked over to a crate filled with emergency life vests and peered around the side. Crouched in an awkward, timid position was a young girl with green hair wearing one of the Baratie chef's coats like a jacket.
Her eyes went wide when he noticed her and Sanji immediately took a few steps back to show he hadn't meant to startle her.
"Who are you?" He asked in complete bewilderment. There hadn't been any patrons with children that day, and even if there were, the only way to access this side of the deck was by walking through the kitchens.
"How did you get here?" He tried again, but the young girl didn't respond. It took him a moment to realize her mouth was full. When she finished chewing, she raised a finger to her lips and indicated for him to be quiet.
"I just needed to eat something." She whispered. "I'll be gone by tomorrow."
The girl had a very slow and cautious manner of speech and hadn't blinked once since Sanji had found her. Her hair was cut boyishly short and her arms and hands seemed delicate and frail like they hadn't had real strength behind them for a long while. She reminded him of a mouse trapped in a snake's cage, delicately watching wherever she set her foot down so as not to alert the vicious beast, but at the same time still driven by the hope that she would breath free air again.
"What are you eating?" Sanji asked. The girl had been careful to keep her meal hidden safely between her clasped hands, but he could tell by the smell it wasn't fresh.
"I'll be gone by tomorrow." She repeated. "Just don't tell anyone-"
"I can get you something better than that!" Sanji blurted out in annoyance as he finally realized she had been digging around in the discarded produce bin and found the better half of an old potato.
Without pausing for a response Sanji ran back to the kitchen and returned three minutes later with one plate stacked high with freshly baked bread, steamed halibut, rice and vegetables, and the second plate of shrimp jambalaya.
"Here… don't move…" He instructed her. "I forgot utensils. And a chair. And you need something to drink." He stood up again and ran back to the kitchen. By the time he was back the stowaway had inhaled most of the food using her bare hands.
"Here." Sanji smirked as he produced a stool for her to sit on. "I found some clean silverware and some tea." He set down the tokens of good faith on the crate next to her.
"You didn't have to dig through the trash if you wanted something to eat." He continued. "We would have fed you even if you don't have money."
The girl gave him a suspicious look as she continued eating, barely pausing to take a breath between her sips of tea and mouthfuls of fresh, warm food.
"I'm Sanji." He said as he sat down across from her. "What's your name? How did you get here?"
She paused as she looked back at him with an expression of confused dismay on her face. "I'm Marion. I don't know…" She whispered after a moment. "I… made myself fly…."
"Huh?" Sanji asked. "What does that mean?"
"I was…" Marion pointed out at the horizon. "I was out on a ship, and I was hungry, and this boat smelled really good, so I closed my eyes and… then I was here. I made myself fly…"
"I don't get it." Sanji made a perplexed face. "You flew here like a seagull?"
"No…" She shook her head. "I just… was here."
"Why didn't you fly back?" He asked.
"I… couldn't." Her voice quivered after a long pause.
"When was this?" Sanji tried. "When you first flew here?"
The girl paused to think. "There was a big pot of soup…."
"Thursday?" Sanji's jaw dropped in astonishment. "You've been here nearly five days, and no one has seen you? You've been eating trash this whole time?"
She gave him a shameful look, as though she realized she had been acting irresponsibly, and he quickly changed his tone of voice.
"I mean, I'm not mad at you for stealing food or anything, I just wish I had found you sooner so I could feed you!"
Her spirits seemed to lift at that.
"Where are you going tomorrow?" He asked.
"Nowhere." She admitted. "I don't know how to leave or where to go. I just said that so you would leave me alone."
As Marion became more animated and shifted her weight on the deck, Sanji noticed faded bruises on her ankles as she crossed her legs in front of her.
"This ship you were on… Did it have blue and white sails?" He tried.
She looked up from her meal and caught his eye. "Why?"
"You were on that Navy ship," Sanji spoke aloud in revelation, more to himself than to her. "The Vice Admiral came on board. He mentioned to Zeff he was carrying prisoners. Did they have you chained up?"
The frightened look appeared in her eye again.
"That's why you stayed hidden this whole time. You thought we'd turn you back over to the Navy if we found you." Sanji continued without waiting for an answer.
"I thought this was a Navy station." She admitted. "By the time I realized it wasn't I had stolen too much food."
"What did you do?" Sanji asked. "You're just a kid. Why would they chain you up?"
She hesitated and took another swig of tea. "You won't tell anyone Sanji?" She looked sideways at him again, her face revealing hints that she wanted to trust him.
He nodded his head.
"I stole this really important fruit. I was hungry." She stated without much remorse. "Apparently it was very valuable. I only took one bite, but suddenly everyone began to look at me like I was a monster. They took me from my parents and locked me up before putting me on the ship."
"A Devil Fruit?" He asked, a cold pit of concern starting to settle in his stomach. Sanji remembered what he had read about the pirates with Devil Fruit abilities on the Grand Line when he was researching the All Blue.
She shrugged. "I lived on a very small island. Nothing grew there. We relied on Navy ships coming to supply us with goods in exchange for our working on their ships. I was always hungry. I saw a piece of fruit, and now I'm a criminal."
"No, you're not." Sanji shook his head. "You're a scared, hungry kid. They should have never done that to you, no matter what you stole."
She smiled at him as the door swung open and Zeff clomped out onto the deck, his wooden leg pounding the planks beneath him as if he were driving in nails.
"Sanji!" He bellowed, and the young boy shot to his feet immediately.
"What are you doing eating alone out here? Eat in the kitchen! There's work to do."
His head chef paused. "Have you been smoking again?"
Sanji glanced around in a panic to discover Marion had vanished, as if into thin air. He was so relieved all he could think to say as he turned back to look Zeff in the eye was: "Yep."
Zeff rolled his eyes. "I may as well remove your tongue since you care so little about it, but then you wouldn't be able to read the specials to the customers. I'm forbidding the staff from sharing with you anymore. Finish up and get back inside!"
"Yes sir." Sanji acknowledged as Zeff turned around and marched back into the kitchen.
He turned back just in time to see Marion reappear next to him as if walking through an invisible door.
"Did you make yourself fly just now?" He asked.
She nodded, a bread roll still clenched between her teeth and her teacup still gripped in her hand.
Sanji was suddenly able to piece together how Marion had managed to escape her shackles and board the floating restaurant without disembarking from the Navy ship. The Devil Fruit she had eaten allowed her to teleport. To alter her location based on line-of-sight.
He smirked and reached out to take his hand in hers. "Looks like we'll be able to help each other out. You'll be safe here with me, Marion. I promise."
She swallowed her food and for the first time cracked a smile wide enough to show her teeth. "Thank you, Sanji. Do you have any clothes I could borrow?"
He smirked. "I'm the only one on board in your size. Want to try on a suit jacket?"
Sanji wiped the sweat from his brow as Zeff set four watermelons atop four different barrels scattered around the deck. Most of the morning they had been working on accuracy. Zeff would randomly toss a piece of old fruit or spoiled vegetables up into the air and instruct Sanji to strike with his right or left foot. He had succeeded in every challenge that had been assigned to him that morning but was suddenly confused about why Zeff would have him targeting stationary objects.
He had developed enough leg strength where kicking through three watermelons lined up in a row was easy, so if this wasn't a test of power or accuracy, what was the old man planning?
"Range…" Zeff answered his unspoken question. "Destroy all four melons with one blow, without knocking over the barrels."
Sanji looked at him like he was crazy. "How am I supposed to do that? They're spread too far apart. I can't stretch myself like an elastic man."
"What? Do you think your opponents are going to line up within your leg reach and wait to be struck? Blackfoot style's only weakness is the restriction of movement. Of relying too heavily on the expectation of close combat. You must turn that weakness into strength. Extend yourself beyond the length of your legs. Astound your enemy with the infinite range of your limited reach."
"Well, I'm not going to jump if all you're packing in my chute are vague instructions, old man." Sanji countered defiantly.
Above them, thunder reverberated its way across the sky.
"Blackfoot style more than any other requires a literal leap of faith." Zeff responded. "A swordmaster may teach you the way of the blade. An archer may instruct you on the flight of an arrow, but I cannot instruct you how to use your own legs. You know better than anyone their full potential, and what may work for one man may not be effective for another. I can only assign you the target to aim for. You must bridge the gap. There is no single right answer."
"My legs say I'm only human." Sanji retorted.
"Are you?" Zeff replied with authority. "It does not require a Devil Fruit to perform feats of great strength and skill. But if you choose to decide you are only capable of average human abilities, then you shall forever remain trapped to compete on that playing field."
Sanji rolled his eyes. He stared at all four melons carefully for a few moments and then charged forward. He flipped himself onto his hands, swung his right leg in a wide arc and extended it as far as he could. His heel grazed three, leaving shallow imprints on the outer skin. The fourth remained untouched.
Sanji flipped himself back onto his feet. "Doing it in four swipes would be easy. But one? How am I supposed to accomplish that?"
Zeff shrugged and pivoted on his wooden leg. "That's for you to solve. Let's see if you can succeed before the rain begins to fall."
The master chef returned into the kitchen and shut the door behind him. Sanji hissed with irritation as he turned back to look at the melons.
"You need to be faster." A voice came from above.
Sanji turned and glanced upward. Marion sat on the deck above wearing one of his pinstriped suits, his favorite blue necktie tie hanging crookedly from her slender neck as she kicked her legs. She beamed happily as she took a drag on her cigarette and exhaled a puff of smoke.
"What does being faster have to do with extending the reach of my leg?" Sanji asked as he crossed his arms. "Did you bring any smokes for me?"
She winked and teleported herself down next to him and handed him two cigarettes.
"Got them from the crew's quarters." She explained. "You were right. Only swiping two or three at a time will prevent anyone from noticing."
Sanji stuck one of the smokes behind his ear for later and lit up the second with the lighter kept in his back pocket.
"Still, best to pick a different bunk every time. They'll catch on after a while" She blew a smoke cloud into the air above her head as the thunder boomed again.
"What were you saying about being faster?"
Marion bent forward and placed her hands on the deck, mimicking what Sanji had attempted to do before.
"He said one single blow. He didn't mention anything about how to use your arms. You planted your arms like posts and swung your leg around by pivoting your body. Walk across the deck a few steps using the palms of your hands and follow through with a longer swing of your leg." She instructed him as she straightened up.
She pointed towards the melons as she continued: "Don't aim for the first one. Aim for the second two. The first will just get caught in you lining up the kick."
Sanji raised an eyebrow. "I've never tried moving on my hands that way."
"People move their legs to better throw a punch. You need to do the reverse when you swing your legs." She explained like it was the easiest thing in the world to contemplate.
"What about the fourth melon?" He asked.
"Worry about the first three for now." She suggested. "The fourth can wait."
Sanji spent the next twenty minutes walking across the deck on his hands, balancing on one palm and the other, Marion helping him occasionally by holding his heels to help him keep his balance.
"Honestly…" She teased him. "How would you have accomplished any of this without me?"
Sanji glanced up as her from his inverted position. "Maybe I wouldn't." He admitted. "Maybe you're the one that'll help me be more than just human."
"Baked Alaska for dessert tonight?" She asked excitedly as he jumped back onto his feet and checked his hands for splinters.
"The quicker I smash some melons the quicker we can eat." He confirmed.
The rain began to sprinkle upon the deck, and both instinctively shielded their cigarettes with their hands.
"Then hurry up before we get soaked." She insisted.
"Hold this." He handed her is smoke and then lined himself up on the deck.
"I have to do this quick before the deck gets too slippery."
Sanji took two long strides and then flipped himself forward onto his hands. Winding his lower body up like a pitcher at the plate, he danced a few paces forward nimbly on his hands and followed through. His swing knocked the first and second melons off and nudged the third as well but didn't come anywhere near the fourth.
In rapid succession, Marion teleported across the deck and replaced the fallen melons with fresh ones before reappearing at his side.
"You can teleport with melons now?" Sanji raised a curly eyebrow.
"Yep." She smirked as she exhaled a ring of smoke. "I've been getting better at it."
He reached out to her for his cigarette back, but she stubbed it out on the railing instead. "Not until you get this. I want dessert."
She smirked and teleported herself back up to the deck above to watch.
Sanji spent the next two hours in the pouring rain hurling himself forwards, right-side-up, upside-down and sideways at the melons, approaching them from different angles, and every time he destroyed them, Marion would reappear and replace them for him, just to disappear again.
His feet and legs were sore, he was drenched and freezing, and he had melon all over his shoes and pant leg.
"I'm not going to get this!" He raged. "It's not possible!"
From under her umbrella Marion lit up another smoke and contemplated.
"How far could you kick one of those?" She asked him suddenly.
"Why?" He glared up at her. "What difference would that make?"
"Every time you've swung your leg your goal has been to cave in the melons and make them explode. Yeah, I get your legs are strong, but being strong doesn't mean you have to be destructive. You can be delicate and strong at the same time."
Sanji paused as he glanced around the mess of fruit debris all over the deck. He glanced down at the blisters starting to form on his hands, and finally at the fourth melon he had yet to strike. He glanced rapidly across all four, and a knowing smirk formed across his face.
"I get what you're saying."
He ran forward, flipped himself onto his hands, and swung both of his legs in helicopter fashion. Pivoting on his upper body, he swung his legs, scooped up the first two using his toes and heels, adjusted his stance on his hands, and hurled the two he was wielding with his feet at the other two that were stationary. The four melons collided in two great wet crashes and the pieces were hurled overboard into the East Blue.
Sanji flipped himself over and landed on his left foot and right knee.
"One swing with each leg equals one blow. All four targets destroyed. Infinite range with limited reach." He lit up the soaking wet smoke that had been tucked behind his ear and glanced up at Marion.
She was stuffing her face with a plate of Baked Alaska under her umbrella.
"Sorry, I teleported to the kitchen really fast. What did I miss?"
As dawn broke over the horizon Sanji turned off the water in his cabin sink and toweled off his face. He could slice vegetables masterfully upon a cutting board in the kitchens, so it had always annoyed him that he had never really been able to figure out how to shave without cutting himself.
Today was only the second time since he had begun shaving that he had succeeded without nicking himself and he was feeling proud. As he finished buttoning up his shirt and turned to grab his suit jacket, he heard the sheets on his bed shift.
"Hey there, handsome…" A soft voice tickled his ears.
A massive grin broke across his face as he caught sight of her in the mirror and spun around.
"What took you? You've been gone for months!"
Marion casually crossed one leg over the other and leaned forward, one delicate curl of green hair caressing her dimple as she beamed at him. She was wearing a long black trench coat over a strapless red dress and knee-high boots. The dress was doing an excellent job of showcasing her blossoming female curves.
Marion had eventually grown tired of hiding on the floating restaurant and had tearfully told Sanji one evening she needed space to grow and discover the full extent of her Devil Fruit abilities. She had kissed him for the first time on the dock right before she has teleported herself onto a passing merchant ship.
"I promise I'll come back." She had whispered right before she vanished.
Sanji had felt his heart break as the ship had vanished into the sunset. She had reappeared several weeks later with a story about how she had bartered passage on board the ship by teleporting crates of supplies from the hold below to the deck as they were unloading. She earned enough money to buy new clothes and then hopped a new ship and traveled around the East Blue for a while before deciding to return.
She and Sanji had a small celebratory feast and a few days later she had teleported herself onto another ship. So had her pattern of coming and going continued for some time until her being away became more common than her being there with him. She tried to encourage him to leave with her a few times, but he always declined, stating he was happy for her, but he owed Zeff a debt that had yet to be fully repaid.
The last time she had returned she had proudly declared she had joined a crew of pirates and it was their intention to travel to the Grand Line. Sanji had hardly heard her, he had been so mesmerized by her tanned, lean figure and long hair that his jaw had been on the floor and his heart had been racing. That had been the first night they had shared his bed.
"Our crew needs a cook." She had told him as she leaned into him and kissed his chin. "Not someone who can just make rice, like an actual cook. Your Blackfoot style must be formidable by now. You'd fit in perfectly with us."
Sanji stroked her hair. "I appreciate the offer, but I'm not a pirate. I belong here."
"Sanji…." She propped herself up on one elbow. "I know Zeff saved your life, but is it so unthinkable that we could belong together instead?"
He stroked her cheek and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I promise, one day I'll leave here with you, but not as a pirate. I'll leave when I've learned all there is to know about being a master chef. Then we can open our own place."
"What if that's not the life I want?" She asked. "What if I want to see the world and travel the Grand Line? Imagine all the different kinds of cuisine there will be to sample? All kinds of new food to learn how to cook?"
"I admit…" He gave a shy smirk and ruffled his hair. "I do want to do some traveling one day. I want to find the All Blue and explore the variety of fish it has to offer."
"The All Blue?" She snorted playfully. "I'm pretty sure that's just a myth, Sanji, but whatever it takes to get you off this floating buffet."
She had stayed for another couple of days before teleporting away again during the night without saying goodbye, but leaving a note stating she would be back with tales of the Grand Line.
Now she sat before him on his bed, looking as formidable as any pirate he had ever encountered, but no less gorgeous than she had been when he had last seen her.
His eyes bugged out of his head in shameless attraction and he had nearly floated over to her to give her a long kiss as she stood and embraced him.
After a moment he reached out towards his bedside table drawer and handed her a rose, the stem delicately manicured.
"So happy you're back, beautiful…"
"This is fresh!" She exclaimed as she took the rose and gave him a warm smile. "How did you know I was coming?"
"I didn't. I put a fresh one there every day."
She gave him a long kiss and let her trench coat fall to the ground.
"How was the Grand Line?" He asked between kisses.
"Later…" She replied as she pulled him back onto the bed with her.
Afterward, they both sat smoking on the roof of the restaurant, sunning themselves in the warmth of the new day. Sanji wore only his shorts while Marion wore one of his button-up shirts, the buttons opened a third of the way down so she could maintain her tan.
"I'm the first mate on my crew." She reported as she slipped the rose delicately into her hair. "We were assigned to deliver a shipment of supplies to Drum Island and return to East Blue with payment. Our ship nearly got eaten by a whale when we first arrived."
Sanji was only half paying attention as he gazed at her in dumbstruck awe and admiration, little hearts floating around his head like butterflies.
"I've met a few other Devil Fruit eaters." She continued. "Both pirates and marines alike. I'm pretty sure five of the seven Warlords are Devil Fruit eaters."
She turned to look at him. "Is Zeff going to wonder where you are?"
Sanji shook his head. "I've worked twenty-three days in a row. He's been on me to take a break."
She leaned over to him and lit a new cigarette by pressing it into the tip of his. "I need to quit these…" She sighed. "I can always taste them now. It ruins the flavor of my wine."
Marion let her eyes travel down Sanji's long muscular legs, still lean as beanpoles but tight with years of well-toned muscle.
"Training going well?" She inquired.
"According to the old man I've learned all I can from him."
Marion reached over and took his hand. "Speaking of which, you know what I'm going to ask you next."
Sanji exhaled a plume of smoke into the sea breeze. "I sure do." He admitted.
"Our cook is terrible. Not only does he hate doing it, but he can't even peel a potato." She reported. "Half of the men on board are worthless, Sanji. I need someone who will inspire them, lift group morale with the food. I need someone I can trust."
"How's the captain?" Sanji asked as he extinguished the cigarette on the restaurant's roof.
"He's… well… He enjoys what he does." She admitted. "Some of the crew would prefer if I was in charge. With your support, I could take them with me and captain my own ship. No more deliveries. Just long journeys filled with adventure. I'd really love to have you by my side for all of them. I'll even help you look for the All Blue."
Sanji smirked and leaned over to rest his forehead against hers. "You know what? That sounds great…"
"You mean it?" An excited smile broke across her face more beautiful than any sunrise.
"Give me some time." He responded. "I need to figure out what to tell Zeff, but sure, afterward, I'll go out to sea with you. I'd be honored to have you as my captain."
"Thank you, Sanji…" She beamed.
"Just remember, I'm a cook first, pirate second. And I'm not going to stop wearing ties."
Marion smirked and pulled him in close for another kiss.
"I wouldn't have it any other way…"
That night Sanji was down in the kitchen alone tidying up the prep area. He prepared a tray with tea and cakes for himself and Marion to share up in his cabin and placed another rose beside the teapot.
He lit a new cigarette using the gas burner before shutting it off. Picking up the tray, he was about to turn off the single light shining above the counter when he paused a moment, and carefully set the tray back down.
He heard footsteps walking across the dining room in the direction of the stairs which led up to the old man's office. That didn't make sense to him. They obviously weren't Zeff's footsteps. Sanji could recognize the rhythm of the pounding of the chef's wooden leg from across the restaurant. No one else had any reason to go up there.
Sanji extinguished the light and carefully removed his shoes so he could better move across the wooden dining hall without being heard. He poked his head from out of the kitchen and watched as a figure climbed the spiral stairs rapidly, taking them two at a time, not really attempting to remain quiet and stealthy.
He wasn't anyone Sanji recognized. The man was tall and burly with spikey red hair and an orange vest which was far too small to fasten shut across his broad chest. Keeping to the shadows Sanji followed him carefully up the stairs. Once at the landing he noticed the stranger had two meat cleavers fastened on either side of his belt. They were in terrible condition with chips and rust spots all along the blades and definitely hadn't come from Baratie's kitchen. Was this guy a stowaway? Had he been hiding somewhere out on the docks for night to fall so he could steal food?
No… If he was hungry Sanji would have had no problem feeding him, but this intruder had walked right by the kitchen and storeroom and beelined it upstairs towards the office where Zeff kept all the money the restaurant earned stored in his safe.
Sanji tensed and was about to confront the man as he prepared to walk through the office door Zeff never had any reason to lock, when a hand suddenly covered his mouth and in a sudden flash he found himself outside on the dock. He gasped and dropped his cigarette as he fell to his knees in bewilderment and panic.
"What the…?" He gasped.
"It's okay…" Marion soothed him with a whisper as she knelt beside him.
"Did… Did you just teleport with me?" Sanji stared at her in amazement as he suddenly found his bearings.
"Yes." She tried pressing her finger to his lips, but he was already climbing back onto his feet.
"You can do that?" He hissed in amazement. Suddenly, the urgency of the matter returned to him. "Who is that guy? What's he doing here?"
Marion immediately took a deep breath laced with guilt. "You weren't supposed to see him. It's okay though, he's with me…"
"What?" Sanji barked. "Why is he going into-"
From the floor above came a roar of fury and a haggard cry. Sanji and Marion spun around towards the noise and suddenly there came a crash followed by the splintering of wood.
Sanji sprinted back up the dock and launched himself towards the restaurant doors, delivering a barefoot kick hard enough to shatter the lock and force them open. The red-haired man had been hurled from the upper balcony and had crashed down onto one of the dining room tables, breaking it in two. Zeff stood on the landing above them besides the broken railing, looking down at the intruder with blood running down his white chef's jacket from a wound under his arm.
"Sanji!" Zeff barked. "Get out of here!"
"Are you all right?" Sanji cried out, but the stranger had climbed back onto his feet and had pulled the meat cleavers from his belt.
"You were supposed to be in bed old man!" he spat, a murderous grin spreading across his crooked face.
Sanji tore forward at the man in fury to deliver a kick, but the pirate noticed him coming and threw half of the broken table towards him, forcing him to dodge sideways and miss his target.
Zeff jumped down from above and landed on his left leg, knee bent with his wooden leg up and pointed forward like a spear. The stranger advanced on him and swung the meat cleavers, Zeff managing to deflect the blows easily with his wooden leg.
Sanji regained his balance and prepared to launch another kick when he heard Marion scream behind him.
"Gunnar! Stand down! No one was supposed to get hurt!"
The red-haired man ignored her and delivered another blow that sliced through Zeff's wooden leg. Nimbly, almost effortlessly, the man scooped up a blade from one of the tables, spun it in his hand between his fingers and buried it in Zeff's side.
Sanji grunted in rage and delivered a blow into the man's ribs that sent him flying through the swinging doors into the kitchen.
Marion teleported herself next to Zeff and tore the tablecloth away from the nearest tabletop to cover his wound.
The man named Gunnar began to laugh maniacally from the kitchen.
"What have you done?" Sanji screamed at Marion as they heard the man regaining his feet and stomping back out towards them.
Marion looked back up at him with crestfallen eyes.
A meat cleaver was hurled out towards Sanji as the doors continued to flap back and forth. The young chef leapt into the air, pivoted his body and kicked the blade downward where it buried itself in the carpet with a hard thud.
"Gunnar!" Marion screamed. "Stop it!"
The man reemerged from the kitchen, blood running down his face from a wound above his eyebrow, wielding in each fist a collection of knives he had stolen from the chopping blocks.
He licked one of the blades and began hurling them at Sanji, one after another in rapid succession.
Sanji kicked himself upwards, spinning his body in a slow circle like a figure skater and landed behind another table which he was able to kick over sideways and use to shield himself. Blade after blade caught themselves in the thick wood as the man continued to hurl his deadly projectiles. Marion appeared beside Sanji and grabbed his arm, and a moment later they had vanished and reappeared outside on the dock again.
"Stay here! I'll take care of him!" Marion drew a long blade she had been hiding under her coat.
Sanji was back on his feet in an instant. "Keep out of my way!" he glared at her.
Gunnar launched himself out of one of the restaurant windows in a shower of glass and landed on the deck across from them. Marion vanished, then reappeared next to him and put the blade to his throat attempting to stop him, but he caught the blade in his jaw and bit it in half like it was a carrot stick. He swung his arm and knocked Marion sideways into a stack of crates.
Sanji sprinted forward and launched another kick at the towering man, but this time Gunnar was ready for him. He grabbed Sanji's outstretched leg and slammed him down into the deck with a bone-jolting slam. He stomped his foot down onto Sanji's chest and the young man felt blood well up in the back of his throat. Gunnar raised the cleaver over his head, ready to bring it down and chop Sanji's face in two when suddenly Marion was there beside them again.
Sanji caught a glimpse of her plunging a fishing spear through Gunnar's upper thigh, a long length of rope attached to its end leading back to one of the cement blocks the restaurant used to keep the crates of food from shifting on deck. Marion swung her arm forward, wrapped it around Gunnar's neck in a headlock, and suddenly, both had vanished along with the length of rope and the stone block.
Sanji heard a splash from far out in the water to his right and Marion appeared back on deck a moment later, drenched and coughing up seawater.
Climbing to his feet, Sanji gazed out at the water where he had heard the splash, but the sea was quiet, and no sound echoed back from where the noise had come from.
"He's gone…" Marion coughed. "Sank."
Sanji bent over to take her arm and lift her up, and they both limped back into the kitchen. He helped her to sit down on one of the prep stools and she removed her soaking trench coat and let it drop to the group with a wet splat.
"Zeff!" Sanji called out and ran into the dining room.
The old man was there, being attended to by four other chefs. They had cut off his jacket and removed the knife from his side and were working to staunch the bleeding from his wound.
Sanji heaved a sigh of relief and felt the back of his head where it had struck the dock and it came away wet with blood. Gritting his teeth, he marched back into the kitchen and slammed his fist down on the table beside Marion.
"What did you do?!" he bellowed. "Why did you bring him here?! He nearly killed us!"
Marion wiped the beginning of tears from her eyes, her green hair clinging to her face in wet clumps.
"I'm sorry Sanji. My crew wouldn't reroute our ship back here unless there was something in it for them. They wanted compensation. So, I told them about the safe. I made them swear only one man would come aboard with me, and no one would get hurt."
"You teleported him on board…" Sanji's felt the rage build inside him and threaten to overwhelm his better judgment.
"It was the only way I could get back to you…" She stood up and looked Sanji in the eye. "I wanted you to come to sea with me…"
Sanji saw red and his hand seemed to strike out on its own accord and grabbed her by the throat, forcing her back into the wall.
"I trusted you…" He snarled as a single tear rolled down his cheek and fell from his chin down to the tiled floor below.
"Sanji…" She gasped as her hands grabbed hold of his. "Please… Zeff wasn't supposed to be in his office…."
Sanji reached out and took hold of the teapot he had prepared for them earlier. Grabbing it by the handle he tipped its contents out onto the floor with a loud steamy hiss and then gripped the porcelain firmly like a hammer, imagining striking her with it directly between her eyes over and over again.
As if sensing what he wanted to do, Marion shut her eyes and lowered her hands. She could have teleported herself to safety, but she didn't.
"I'm sorry Sanji…" She whispered.
He swung the pot forward and slammed it against the edge of the counter beside her where it shattered into dozens of pieces. After a moment of deafening silence, he released his hold on her throat and fell backward onto the ground in a sitting position. The blood that had been covering his hand now stained Marion's neck and glimmered in the faint light leaking in from the dining room as she fell forward onto her knees.
Suddenly they were both bathed in light and the door swung open. Zeff stood there, his shirt torn and wound bandaged, limping forward on his good leg while his broken stub of a wooden leg hung useless beside it.
"Sanji!" Zeff barked as he switched on the overhead lights and saw them both on the floor.
"Help the young lady up! She's family."
Sanji immediately obeyed and helped Marion get back to her feet.
"Are you both all right?" Zeff asked.
Sanji nodded without making eye contact. Marion wiped at her eyes.
Zeff turned and called to the men over his shoulder. "Bring me some fresh clothes for the lady and let's get the stoves up and running. We could all use some hot soup."
Sanji stood outside the restaurant entrance in a fresh suit chain-smoking a pack of cigarettes while staring out across the dark water, wondering if the pain in his heart would eventually subside or if he would just have to learn to live with it. The way Zeff had learned to make do with one good leg.
"Are you smoking again String Bean?" The old man muttered as he clomped over to stand next to Sanji, his new wooden leg fastened firmly in place.
"Yep." Sanji muttered.
"You hardly touched your soup." Zeff said as he leaned on the railing next to his young apprentice.
"I wasn't hungry…" Sanji replied.
"Foolish boy. You think we made it because you were hungry? It was comfort food to calm the nerves."
"I don't deserve it." Sanji muttered, unable to look the old man in the eye. "I'm sorry Zeff. It's all my fault you got stabbed. I kept her a secret all these years…"
"She was never a secret." Zeff huffed.
Sanji turned to him in surprise.
"Boy, are you really that thick? I can account for every scrap of food on this barge. Do you think I would overlook you feeding her all that time? Didn't you hear me call her family? She's always been one of us."
"No, she isn't." Sanji gritted his teeth. "I thought she was, but she's gone full pirate. She betrayed me and brought someone on board to steal from us. He nearly killed you."
"It's a scratch…" Zeff shrugged. "I've spoken to her. From what I understand, she did it reluctantly."
"That doesn't matter." Sanji hissed. "She could have gone about it another way. If she had asked, I would have given her my entire pay."
"You don't make enough," Zeff responded without humor. "Are you really upset with her, or are you using that to mask the fury you feel at yourself for what you almost did to her?"
Sanji remembered the tearful conversation he had with his mother all those years ago.
"I'll never hurt anyone like that… especially you…"
"I almost crossed a line." Sanji lowered his head in shame. "I never want to get that close again. It's not about whether they deserve punishment. It can never be by my hand. I made a promise."
Zeff placed a hand on Sanji's back as he choked back sobs.
"I'm sorry Zeff…" He repeated himself in a hoarse whisper.
"I forgive you." The old man replied. "Now, more importantly, forgive that young woman, and forgive yourself."
As the sun rose Marion stood on the loading dock, trench coat dried and back around her shoulders with a sack of gold in her hand.
Sanji walked out of the back door and stood next to her. They stood in silence for a moment as the wind caught their hair. Sanji offered her a smoke.
"Thanks, but I'm quitting." She said softly.
He lit up his own. "More for me."
After another awkward silence Marion spoke up.
"Zeff gave me half the gold in his safe. I tried to refuse, but he wouldn't let me argue. He said he still had enough to repair the damage and pay his staff, and he didn't want me going back to my crew empty-handed."
"Gold doesn't mean much to him." Sanji shrugged. "People's well being does. Speaking of which, how's your neck?" He half-turned to look at her.
"I've hurt it worse washing my hair." She replied simply.
"There's something I never told you about my parents." Sanji lowered the cigarette away from his lips. "My father was a drunk. A big mean drunk. My mother was this petite, shy, beautiful young woman. When he got drunk, he would strike out at everyone and everything. Most of the time that was me and my mother, and she took every blow meant for me including every one of her own. Most of my childhood was just sitting on her lap and crying, trying to clean the blood off her face, but she never stopped smiling and trying to comfort me."
Sanji paused for a moment and let the lump in his throat fade away.
"Sometimes she would be so sore she couldn't cook for us, so I learned to help her, and eventually, I was doing it on my own. That's where I got my start. I couldn't understand why he would do that to her if he loved her, so I made a promise to her and myself, that no matter the circumstances, I would never grow up to be like him. He hurt her so many times, I figured it was my responsibility to make up for what he did."
"What happened to them?" Marion asked.
Sanji shrugged. "He hurt her again one night. She went to bed. Never woke up."
Marion turned to look at him, her face distraught and horrified.
"Sanji…" She muttered. "I had no idea."
"I ran away." He continued. "I hopped a ship. Wound up with Zeff. You know the rest."
Marion rested her hand on his shoulder.
"I'm so sorry."
He tossed his unfinished cigarette into the ocean.
"No. I'm sorry." He replied. "I'm sorry I grabbed you. I'm sorry I threatened you. And I'm sorry I can't ever be with you again."
Marion dropped her hand from his arm.
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying I don't know how long it will take to forgive you for what you did. Because of you the man who saved my life, gave me everything, made me what I am, nearly died in his own restaurant. The restaurant I belong in. What I'm saying is, after today, don't come back."
Marion stood beside him in silence for a long moment, then she wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand.
"I understand."
She opened her jacket and showed him the rose from beside the teapot tucked in her pocket. "Was this meant for me?" She asked.
Sanji glanced over to her and nodded. "It was."
"I'll hold onto it." She closed her jacket. "Use it to remind myself about the young chef who spent so much time kicking things and made the best food I've ever eaten. The only man I've ever loved."
She wiped at her eyes again and continued.
"I hope you do leave this place one day, Sanji. That you go on adventures and find the All Blue. Find some lucky ladies to sail with that you can take care of and cook for. The Grand Line needs more men like you."
Upon the horizon her ship appeared, lazily swaying with the breeze.
"That's my ride." She sniffed.
"Give 'em hell." Sanji acknowledged.
"I will." She leaned over, grabbed his tie and pulled him in for a quick kiss. "Goodbye, Blackfoot Sanji." She whispered.
And she was gone.
"I love you too…" Sanji replied to the empty air.
He watched the ship for the next quarter of an hour until it disappeared back beyond the horizon line. He couldn't fight back the tears. He was still only human.
Zeff and Sanji stood by the entrance to the restaurant several weeks later as a luxury liner began emptying its passengers onto their dock for a special luncheon.
"You know the menu by heart?" Zeff asked him bluntly.
"Backwards and forwards." Sanji smirked as he exhaled a plume of defiant smoke. "Relax old man, we'll be fine."
"What about the dessert menu? Do you-" But Sanji had stopped paying attention. A very pretty young woman wearing a pink bandana tied amongst her raven dark hair and a golden colored sundress had stepped down from the gangplank onto the dock and Sanji nearly glided over to her, a rose between his teeth and his eyes bugging out in wonder and glee. He immediately went down on one knee before the young woman and introduced himself.
Zeff rolled his eyes. He had worried that after Marion Sanji would never be the same. That the incident between them had cut a wound so deep into his soul that he would never recover and flourish into the man he sought to become, but he had underestimated the boy. His will outweighed his grief, and his heart was large enough to cherish the well-being of numerous women. Possibly all of them. Even those who found him more aggravating than charming.
One day the young man would grow up enough to learn he was better than Baratie, but not yet. He watched as Sanji poured his heart out to the young woman who hid her bewildered smile behind her hand.
He still had a lot of growing up to do.