Two bodies in a field, one up the other down. The close of day was coloring the grass in warm orange light and a light breeze was refreshing the two people.
Or one at least. The other was struggling to breath, so tired and so sweaty and so at the end of his life. Usopp was a man beat.
Yes, this is the worst, he thought while trying to raise his head, watching the grinning bastard through half lidded eyes.
"Why...are you...not even...winded...!" He managed to spat
"Mmmh well, you're kinda a pushover." The boy stated with a wide grin. Usopp whined in the dirt.
"More likely you being a monster..." He sullenly muttered as the bastard laughed.
"Nah, you're really weak. You should use a weapon." Usopp blinked.
"A weapon ?" Like a sword ? The thought made him cringed.
"Yep, something you could fight from far far away would suit you."
"...are you mocking me ?"
"No ? Your father does use guns you know."
What
"What ?" Usopp asked "Wait, hold on. You know my father ?"
"Sure. The man could not shut up about his baby son." The bastard beamed.
What
...no. No no nonono
"Why didn't you tell me earlier ?" Usopp shrieked. The bastard stopped smiling and considered him with an intense gaze. Usopp held his breath.
Then the bastard tilted his head and said with a straight face.
"I forgot."
A second passed. Then two.
A minute later Usopp found his voice.
"You-you're such a bastard. The worst." He managed to utter. "I pity your crewmates and anyone related to you. Really." His whine ended muttered as he returned his face to the grass.
"Mmmh I pity them too." Came the leveled yet sad answer. Usopp blinked and lifted his head for the second time.
"Why ?" He asked confused. The bastard smiled, but it was a sad smile he thought.
"I couldn't even fulfill my role in the crew"
"But, but you're so strong and you managed to cure Kayla" he was still a tiny bit bitter that the bastard did it so easily while he couldn't help at all " and you're always smiling and helping ! And you're-" charismatic "-you know, peoplelikeyou" he rushed looking away.
The bastard didn't respond so Usopp uncomfortably cleared his throat.
"Yeah, if they didn't like you. Well, their loss. Right ?" He embarrassedly added.
He was met by silence.
"I mean. You're pretty okay-" he interrupted himself as he turned toward his comrade.
The bastard was gone.
The son of a-
"Why does he get a boat ?" Usopp sulkily asked
They were on the cost where the boat - Going merry Merry helpfully supplied- lay on calm waves. The bastard was laughing happily and actually talking to the boat -the fuck- and the scary swordman (Roronoa Zoro the bounty hunter, Usopp's mind was still reeling from the intoduction. That and his fight with luffy from before. Not that it could really be called a fight, the swordman used a lot of sword techniques that made the ground tremble then split in half-and made Usopp pee his pants- while the bastard merely evaded them with closed eyes. Then when he got bored he yelled -gomu gomu no one punch- and punched the green haired monster into the sky. Usopp thought he died until two hours later the monster came back even more enraged and continued his fight. He flew five times.) was sleeping in a corner on the deck.
Unfair. This whole thing was unfair. Why did Kaya gifted the bastard, who left them for two years for no reason, with such a gift when she absolutely refused for him to go and become a brave man of the seas.
Nevermind that she has been beaming and giggling ever since the Bastard came back. She even hugged him.
Usopp definitely sulked.
« Usopp ! Come on ! » He blinked, everyone was watching him.
« What ? » He felt a little defensive with the two pair of monster directed toward him.
« Well get on, we're leaving »The bastard grinned. Usopp blinked again.
« What ? I'm not leaving, I- » He sputtered turning to Kaya. She smiled.
« It's time for you to become a brave an of the seas. » She said warmly, through to Usopp it seemed a little sad.
« Huh ? But- you- »
« I am not coming, true. However it's just for a few years, when I am ready I will join you. » She affirmed, resolution shining in her eyes. As if she always knew yet never wavered, and Usopp thought of all theses night when she would stay up until late studying medecine.
She was so strong (beautiful)
And then he thought about the boat. Their boat.
« Does this means- I'm the captain ! » Usopp voice rose sqeakily.
« Hell no. » « Not mine though. »
He sulked.
« Why did ya become a cook ? »
The annoying monkey was back, not even bothering to wash the dishes with him. Sanji wanted to ignore him, but the silence usually made the brat even more annoying.
« 'Cause » He replied, hoping the menace would leave him alone, like he did to the rest of the staff. (why was he special ? He didn't even treated the brat differently at first !)
Though hope eluded him, as always.
« 'cause what ? »
« 'cause. » Sanji greeted his teeth. He wouldn't humour a brat who obviously couldn't understand loss, sacrifice or hunger. A brat who acted as freely as the wind and who couldn't even imagine the consequences of his actions.
« Hmmm. Maybe young you tried to cook to make others happy, but you fled because they were not so happy. Then a big scary old man with a mustache saved you and you have been working under him to repay him. »
He blinked. The brat didn't have his infuriating smile.
« Why would you say that ? » His voice didn't waver. His hands wouldn't temble, not after all this time. The brat shrugged.
« You seemed the type. » Sanji's eyebrow twitched. He wouldn't take the bait, he wouldn't-
« What type ? » Damnit. The brat beamed as bright as the sun. His joy was almost contagious.
« The type who cares, the type to be a good cook ! » And Sanji almost gaped then immediately turned his head away because he refused to blush in front of the brat.
This was why he was such a menace, because even with all the childishness the brat was always so honest that no one in the restaurant could stay mad at him for too long. Not even after he destroyed half the roof by falling from god knows where.
« I want to find Blue sea » The words escaped his mouth before he could even think of it. The Brat tilted his head.
« What's that ? »
« Well, it's said to be a legend but- »
And he talked, talked about his dream while the boy listened, sometimes adding something. And for hours they conversed about everything and nothing, they laughed and maybe he realized that it was the first time he opened so much to someone. Maybe because at the Baratie he had no one he could really relate to, because there were no one close his age or because no one could be bothered by his dream or wishes.
But the strawhat boy weren't a coworker nor a boss, no one he owed. So talking to him was like breathing, easy and freeing.
And if he was smiling all the way, well no one was there to witness it anyway.
The man was lying on the merry merry deck with his straw hat covering his face. A growl echoed in the air.
« I'm hungry » Whined the man. The green haired swordman across him gave a glare.
« Then you shouldn't have eaten all our provisions on the first day. » Which was more the first hour actually. The Strawhat groaned.
« I wished Sanji were here.. »
« Who's that ? »
« Our cook » Zero raised an eyebrow.
« We got a cook ? »
« Sure... He just doesn't know it yet » At that the swordman gave a snort.
A loud noise boomed on the deck.
« ...What was that ? »
« Usopp destroying an island with our canon. » A blink.
« Isn't that actually dangerous ? »
« 's okay, we got lemons. »
«...What have lemons got to do with this ? »
« It's good for health. »
The Baratie is a peaceful establishment. Well peaceful enough counting the fights and the rude clients, the point is it has never been a war zone nor had hosted chaos in any way. Except one time when a boy fell from apparently the sky, broke half of the roof and was forced -though the boy didn't mind- to work for one year.
Zeff let him go after two weeks without protesting, and no one talked about the time they harbored the boy.
Not ever.
So when Sanji bumped his toes on the corner of his bed this morning then knocked his head after showering and broke a plate while cooking, he felt disturbed enough to become paranoid. Because the last time it happened a strawhat terror had been haunting the restaurant.
That was probably why when in the afternoon an enormous shatter thundered through the restarant, he was one of a few who weren't surprised to discover a late teenager with a strawhat in the rubbles of a broken roof.
(And maybe the odd feeling in his chest might have been something different from disturbance.
Something like exitement.)
EXTRA
« You realize that you'll have to work here again in order to repay that roof, hmm ? » The head chief stated to the strawhat.
« Sure, two weeks like last time. » The cook snorted.
« More like a year, kid »
« Huh huh, one week and half »
« Six months »
« One week »
«...You know this is not the way of bargaining, right ? » The strawhat beamed.
« I've never had to bargain in my life »
« ...One week will be fine »