Title: Almost Easy
Author: kikokus (AoiTsukikage)
Rating: NC-17 overall
Characters/Pairing: Zoro/Sanji, Law/Sanji, Law/Zoro/Sanji
Chapter: 6/?
Word Count: 4120
Summary: Sequel to 'So Good So Far.' Everything was supposed to get easier after Dressrosa – at least, that's what Sanji had assumed. He was wrong. .
Spoilers: Up to chapter 773.

Chapter Six

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?" Zoro asked, sitting at the counter and idly peeling potatoes. Sanji had put him to work since he'd insisted on just skulking about the galley once the cook had returned from his walk on the beach. He was handy enough with a blade, after all.

"That you used me as some sort of…incentive to keep Law alive on the way over here," he wasn't really mad about it, per say, because after the day before he'd at least mostly convinced himself that it wasn't worth it to freak out over people seeing him as far more important than he'd ever consider himself, but he still couldn't say he liked it.

"I didn't do it to keep him alive," Zoro grunted. "I just told him you'd kick his ass if he died," he looked up, and Sanji tried to figure out the logic in that one before giving up because there really wasn't any. "Look, I didn't know what else to do…I mean, you were the one thing I knew he'd want to live for."

Zoro didn't seem to realize he was only digging himself into a hole that was getting increasingly deeper and deeper. Sanji turned from where he was getting things ready on the counter, crossing his arms. "What about his crew, dumbass? He hadn't seen them in a year," he pointed out, and Zoro shrugged.

"I don't know his crew or how he feels about them. I mean, not really well, anyway," he never stopped peeling, slotting himself into a rhythm that had him moving through the massive pile rather quickly. "I know how he feels about you."

Okay, Zoro had a point, but it was still skirting far too close to territory that Sanji didn't want to explore again, especially after his near-breakdown the day before. "Whatever," he decided, knowing it was cowardly to deflect the topic again but honestly, it wasn't something he could be okay with yet. Law was just…so fucking much, he was so important: Captain and Warlord and in possession of one of the most coveted and powerful abilities in the whole world…and Sanji was just a cook, damn it, so by all rights Law should have never spared him a second glance.

He guessed that some people might feel privileged in his position, but he just felt unworthy. Even after everything Zoro and Law had told him, that wasn't something he could change overnight. And yes, he knew how low Law's own self-esteem was, but that didn't make him feel better about anything at the moment.

"Hey," Zoro said, and Sanji shook himself out of his thoughts and turned to look over his shoulder. "I know how you feel about…that, but…fuck," he sighed and stood up, moving to stand beside the cook. "It was bad. He had a fever, and he couldn't stay awake long enough to actually do anything to patch himself up, and he was delirious half the time. I don't get scared often, but every morning when I went in there I didn't expect him to have made it through the night. I didn't sleep much, so when his fever finally broke I think I just kind of passed out beside him," he muttered, looking down at the counter. "By the time I woke up he was pretty much back to himself, so I dunno how much of what I told him he even heard, but he…thanked me, and then kind of just…" he paused and waved his hand, blushing, and even though Sanji was a little shaken hearing Zoro say that it was that bad, (considering that he'd said the thing with Kuma was 'nothing', Sanji as a little afraid to find out what constituted 'something' when it came to injuries), he couldn't help but smile and jab Zoro in the ribs with his elbow after that last comment.

"I knew it. You fucking cuddled."

"He really needed it and I was just happy he woke up," Zoro mumbled, obviously trying to play it off as something entirely related to the situation, but Sanji knew better. Yes, he was sure that heightened emotions probably had something to do with it, but from now on the two of them could hardly claim to be awkward around each other because Sanji knew it wasn't the truth.

Sanji finished with his own vegetables, setting them aside, and went to get some fresh fish fillets out of the refrigerator. With the number of people likely eating dinner on the Sunny that night, he didn't want to spend too much time on a fancy main dish and grilled fish was easy enough to orchestrate. He set the first one on the counter, starting to de-bone it expertly as Zoro watched over his shoulder.

"Anyway, how'd you find out?" the swordsman asked. "Nobody could have known about that if they weren't on the ship."

"Ran into a couple of Luffy's new allies down on the beach, so I invited them for dinner," Sanji replied brusquely, trying not to get distracted and end up with bones in his fish. "Are you done with those potatoes?"

"Hey," Zoro grunted, and Sanji glanced at him, not even that surprised when Zoro used a finger to tip his chin up so they could kiss. Zoro was getting a lot better at being gentle and…well, as romantic as he'd ever get, probably, but he was a quick learner and Sanji was grateful for it. Zoro broke the kiss and grinned at him, rubbing his thumb along the ridge of Sanji's cheekbone and brushing the long fringe of his bangs before he headed back to the island to resume peeling potatoes. "Luffy's allies, huh? Blond pretty guy and a scary-looking green-haired guy?" he asked vaguely.

"Yeah," Sanji agreed with a nod, finishing with the first fillet and turning around before getting started on the next. "Hey, did you know they're…"

"Yup. There wasn't much room on the ship we all took over here, so I guess it's not that surprising they overheard some of the stuff I was saying to Law, and I definitely overheard some of what they got up to. I swear they argue more than us, though, and I didn't even think that was possible," he looked amused and, from what Sanji had seen, he was probably right.

They didn't speak much more as they finished their respective tasks, falling into comfortable silence, but Sanji knew he'd have to talk to Law at some point to let him know his secret was out.

…after he finished de-boning the damn fish, of course.

000

"I'm not going to deny it," Law was still lying on his bed when Sanji went to check on him, and part of him was concerned because he didn't think the other man had moved all day. He knew he shouldn't judge; Law had to deal with what he'd gone through in his own way, but staying in the belly of a submarine for days on end just couldn't be healthy. "Yes, I was rather desperate for human touch and Mr. Zoro is, as you well know, hardly as averse to it as he pretends to be."

"Yeah, so what was up this morning then?" Sanji was sitting beside him, arms looped around his bent knees and unlit cigarette between his lips. "Or do you really think my jealous streak's that big?"

"It's different," Law sighed, closing his eyes. "The situations weren't comparable."

Sanji grunted in lieu of giving an actual answer, because he knew Law was bullshitting but part of him still felt guilty about being too confrontational.

He did have something else he wanted to talk to Law about, though…or thank him for, anyway, since at the time they hadn't had a whole lot of time for that.

"Back at Dressrosa…you saved my life again."

"Yes, more than likely," Law immediately understood what he was talking about, thankfully. "But you saved the life of three of your crewmates and a small child by your actions. It was exceptionally stupid, of course, and with all of the times you lectured me about not doing anything to kill myself you seem to have little inclination to apply that to yourself," he didn't sound angry, at least. "But I cannot fault you for doing it. It's not in your nature to let others take the fall when you can assist them, and in that way we're extremely alike."

"I knew Doflamingo would be strong," Sanji mumbled around the cigarette, rocking back and forth a little on the blankets. "But fuck, I couldn't even move, and it was…knowing I was completely at his mercy was fucking terrifying but all I could think about was making sure Nami-san and the others got away so they wouldn't have to go through the same thing."

He knew he'd been foolish, going up against a Warlord without even having any real understanding of what his ability could do, but again…better him than anybody else, after all.

"It would hardly matter if you were fully prepared. I thought I was, after all," Law glanced at what remained of his right arm again. "I was…scared too, you realize. That attack he was aiming at you sheared off an entire building back in the town," he said it completely deadpan, but Sanji's head snapped up.

"Fuck, he would've cut me in half," he realized, suddenly feeling like he'd been doused in ice water and starting to shiver. If Law had been a second later…

Maybe it was strange, but just because he was willing to die so that the others would be safe, that didn't mean he actually wanted to.

Part of his memory from that day was still a little jumbled, just because everything had happened so fast it was hard to process. Law had been all business, shouting orders and running off to take on Doflamingo head-on without once showing any inkling of emotion toward Sanji, but the blond knew that was deliberate on his part so that Doflamingo wouldn't have known he and Law were anything more than reluctant allies.

And then…no, he really didn't want to remember that.

"Is there a…" Law paused, sounding unsure. "You can…come closer. If you want."

Sanji glanced at him, a little surprised. Law had been emitting a pretty big vibe that he wanted his space, so Sanji had stayed at the other end of the bed. "You're kind of giving off your death aura again," he mentioned, and Law blinked at him.

"Sorry. I think I do it involuntarily whenever Doflamingo's name gets mentioned," he rolled onto his side. "It's something I don't think will ever go away, if I'm being completely honest."

"I can't exactly blame you," Sanji unfurled his legs and moved closer, leaning his back against the headboard. Law threw his arm over the cook's hips, cheek resting on his stomach, and Sanji thought it was amazing how much Law's body relaxed just from that contact. "But since we're on the topic…I was kind of in the middle of a conference call with everybody when he shot you."

"Fuck," Law tensed up, entirely still for a few breaths. He nudged against the hem of Sanji's shirt, nosing it up until he could reach bare skin, and pressed a kiss against the other man's stomach.

"I don't think I started breathing again until Luffy said that you were still alive," he whispered, fingers finding Law's hair and stroking through it.

"It was a bad day," Law decided, and Sanji thought that was the understatement of the fucking century. "So can we agree not to mention it anymore?"

"Yeah. Of course," Sanji nodded, because that was fine with him as well. "I'm just…I'm really fucking glad you're alive," he'd thought it so many times since they'd all met up again but hadn't said it outright, and while he was pretty sure Law knew, he wanted to say it anyway.

"I can't go through something like that again," Law sounded young, and completely honest. "I can't…"

"You won't have to," Sanji promised, but that more than anything made Cavendish's words come back to him: Law wasn't a typical prate, and while people like Luffy and Zoro would gleefully head back into battle after almost dying, Law up until now had only done so with his goal in mind, and without that, there was no real motivation for him to continue putting such strain on his body.

"You don't know that," Law sighed heavily and pushed himself upright. "I should take a shower and get outside or something, shouldn't I?"

"You're the doctor," Sanji pointed out, pulling Law closer to kiss him. He must have been feeling off, because normally Law was as meticulous about hygiene as Sanji himself was. "But honestly, you kind of smell."

"Thanks," Law snorted, but he was smiling, and Sanji yanked him closer and buried his nose against Law's shoulder. "Thought I smelled."

"Hey, I'm used to Zoro only showering once a week. You're not nearly that bad yet." He felt Law's arm come around his back to hold him, fingers curling into his shirt. There was still something of the remnants of last night's sex clinging to his skin, all sweat-salt and musk

"Shower," Law mumbled, pushing himself away with obvious reluctance and getting off of the bed. He shuffled into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. Sanji glanced around the room, examining things more closely for really the first time, although if he was looking for secrets about Law he was going to be sorely disappointed.

There was nothing: no pictures on the walls or propped up on furniture, no closet aside from a trunk that Sanji had seen Law grab clothes out of the day before, not even a book laying around to give the cook some insight as to what interests he had besides medical ones.

He could always snoop through the dresser, he supposed, but that seemed invasive…

There was a rattling from one of the drawers and he nearly jumped out of his skin, although that was certainly an excuse to look around a little. He got off of the bed slowly, crossing the room, and yanked open the still-vibrating drawer. Inside was a box about the length of his forearm. It was locked with a heavy padlock, though with the way it was jumping Sanji wasn't too keen on opening it even if he could have.

He lifted it out, trying to figure out what exactly was making the noise, and heard something aside from the frantic scrabbling: a steady thumping, almost like a heartbeat, and he dropped the box and recoiled in horror because fuck, that was disturbing.

So that's where Law was keeping Doflamingo's heart…and, apparently, his hand, since that's what was obviously skittering around in the box. Sanji shivered and replaced it, preparing to close the drawer when he caught sight of something else. It looked like a picture frame, face-down and the same color as the drawer bottom so that Sanji nearly missed it.

He shouldn't, and he knew it, but curiosity got the better of him and he picked it up, turning it over and feeling his breath catch in his throat. The picture itself looked like it had been through a lot, the edges tattered and the color faded, large creases in the middle showing that it had been folded more than once. It was of a family…Law's family, he realized with a start…his mother and father in white coats, smiling broadly, and their two kids looking just as happy clinging to them.

Law himself looked to be maybe nine or ten, so it must have been taken fairly soon before Flevance had been razed, but Sanji was drawn to the image of a younger Law. The smile on his face was pure, unguarded, and while he still had those shadows under his eyes he looked so much freer. His sister was the picture of childlike innocence, clinging to her mother's arm with a look of wonder and simple youthful reverence on her face. It was the idyllic family portrait, showing nothing of the poisoning slowly killing all of them, and Sanji was sure that's why Law had chosen to try and preserve it.

"What's that?"

Sanji spun around, hiding the picture to his chest, and let out a breath when he saw it was Zoro. He wasn't sure if Law would be okay with Zoro knowing, but well, he also knew the swordsman wouldn't let up until Sanji showed him, so he held it out.

Zoro glanced at it, his eye widening, and then looked back to Sanji.

"Is that…"

"Yeah," Sanji nodded.

"Did you know?"

"I know what happened to them," Sanji replied shortly, because it wasn't his place to say anything more than that.

"I didn't know he'd had a sister," Zoro frowned, and Sanji knew that he was probably thinking about the girl he'd known, the one who'd owned the white sword, who was also taken far before her time.

"Her name was Lamie."

They both whipped around then, but Law didn't look angry. He just looked…tired, dressed in a pair of tight jeans and with his hair still shower-damp and . "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have…"

"It's fine. You of all people should know that," Law waved his hand before padding over and taking the picture. "I haven't looked at this in years," he murmured, rubbing his thumb down the glass on the front of the frame. "Too many ghosts, but…sometimes I wonder what she would have grown up to be."

"Did she want to be a doctor, too?" Sanji asked, and Law shrugged.

"She was too young to think about that yet. All she really wanted to do was go to whatever festival was in town at the time. She was always a lot more carefree than I, even as a child. My parents always said I wanted to know too much for my age, but they taught me anyway, and if they hadn't I doubt I'd be able to do half of what I can medically. I probably knew more about surgery and medicine by the time I was ten than most people know in their entire lives," he set the picture back in the drawer, leaving it face-up this time, before sneering at the shaking box and thumping it with the heel of his hand. "Keep trying. You'll never get out."

"Is that…" Zoro pointed, and Sanji realized he'd probably seen Law take the…items from Doflamingo, so he nodded. Zoro made a face that was halfway between horror and outright disgust, and Sanji had to snicker at that one because it wasn't something he'd seen often from the normally rather stoic man.

Law had gone over to the trunk of clothes he had, rummaging through it and pulling out another T-shirt with his Jolly Roger on (Sanji wondered sometimes if he owned any clothing that didn't have it). He ran his hand through his hair once he'd put it on, fluffing it a little. Fuck, he was attractive, and all the more so because he didn't seem to realize it at all. He walked back over, looking at the picture one last time before he closed the drawer. "Well, we can't change the past."

"No. I'm sorry about…whatever happened to them," Zoro sounded extremely awkward saying that, and Law let his hand rest on Zoro's shoulder and nodded.

"I appreciate it. I do hope they'd be proud of what I've become, even if it's, I'm sure, not what they wanted for me. My father…before he died, he was trying to get the government to aid us in researching the amber lead poisoning, and he was brilliant enough that, I believe, if they had cooperated instead of deciding to wipe us all off the face of the planet, he would have succeeded," he patted Zoro's shoulder and then took his hand away, leaving the swordsman looking more confused than ever.

"Those kids," Sanji realized with a start. "At Punk Hazard, is that why…"

"I would have saved them anyway," Law shrugged. "But yes, partially. If I would have had this fruit as a child, I could have saved my people, so anything I can do to ensure others don't suffer the way we did…I feel I owe it to my father to try," he looked down at his hand and smiled faintly.

"Well," Sanji cleared his throat, slinging his arm around Law's shoulders lifting himself up onto the balls of his feet so he could nuzzle against his temple. "I think you inherited more than your father's brains and love for the medical field," he whispered, wanting to lighten the mood a little, since the last thing any of them needed more of was doom and gloom.

"Are you implying my father was attractive?" Law let out a rather incredulous bark of laughter that he reined in almost immediately. "Sanji…"

"What?" Sanji grinned, kissing Law's cheek and dropping himself back down to stand properly. "It's true."

He glanced over at Zoro, who half-shrugged in a way that said he agreed. Law ducked his head, his cheeks red, but Sanji vowed from now on to remind Law of how hot he was at every opportunity, both because it was true and because it was completely adorable how bashful he got about it.

He still didn't want to embarrass Law too much, so he leaned against Law's shoulder before speaking again, keeping his voice as honest as he could. "They'd be proud of you. So would Corazon," he added, and Law nodded, his eyes a little watery.

Zoro was looking confused again at Corazon's name, brow furrowed, and Sanji heard Law let out a heavy sigh as if he'd just decided something important. "I believe I have some things to tell you, Zoro, if you'd care to listen," he stood a little straighter, lifting his chin, and Sanji blinked because he wasn't sure he'd heard right, but…

"I'm just Zoro now, huh?" Zoro crossed his arms and grinned.

"Yes. I think there's no point in pretending any longer that we're far more than acquaintances, at any rate," he stepped away from Sanji and moved back toward Zoro. "That is, if you…"

He was cut off, just like earlier that day, by Zoro practically assaulting his mouth. Sanji had to roll his eyes at that because for as much progress as Zoro had made in the romance department, he still seemed to forget his own strength sometimes.

Law set his hand on Zoro's jaw, guiding his head and deepening the kiss. When they separated, Law didn't move away, and he trailed his fingers through Zoro's earrings to make them chime together. "Perhaps we should accompany Sanji to the galley and I can fill in the blanks for you while he finishes dinner preparations?"

"Sure," Zoro headed out of the room first, walking heavily along the corridor leading to the upper levels.

Sanji snaked an arm around Law's waist, leaning into him, and felt the taller man press a kiss into his hair. "I'm glad you trust him."

"I've trusted him for a long time, because I trust your judgement implicitly and I know you do," Law murmured. "But I've come to realize talking about my past doesn't make me weak, and in fact it's probably helping to do so after I've held it in for so long."

Sanji knew they should go, that dinner was hardly going to cook itself, but for some reason he was reluctant to leave Law's embrace and the fact that the taller man wasn't pulling away spoke to him feeling the same way.

"Do you suppose the universe is telling us something considering the number of times we've almost lost each other already?" Law asked, half-thoughtful and half-bemused.

Sanji couldn't say he hadn't had similar thoughts, but then, that was the risk they'd both known they were taking living the lives they did. "Yeah," he decided, looking up at Law, "it's telling us that it knows we're both too damn stubborn to ever let it happen."

He heard Law's answering hum, an acknowledgment if not outright agreement, and finally managed to pull himself away from the warmth of Law's body.

Law fell into step with him as they headed toward the Sunny, moving with an easy grace as if he was starting to adjust to his missing arm, and Sanji thought again how fucking adaptable all of them were.

Change was inevitable, but maybe there were some things that never had to.

For today, at least, he found that thought to be the most comforting one of all.

Notes:

1. I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter, because it seemed to take on a life of its own even after I'd initially outlined what I wanted to accomplish here. But it does expand a bit on the Law/Zoro side of things and sets up some plot points that will be relevant later (although I won't give away exactly how, yet…).

2. As always, thank you all so much for continuing to read and leave feedback on this series! I hope you enjoyed this chapter even though it was probably too much talking :)