Frostbite, Ch. 2
Enjoy!
Sanji blinked. There in front of him was shelter and safety from the storm. Without thinking, he sprinted towards the front door, jostling Zoro but not waking him up. Upon closer inspection, the outside of the cabin was coated in a thin layer of ice, had mucked-up windows, and appeared to be incredibly weather-beaten, but at least it was safe.
Come on, come on, open up! Sanji pounded on the door until he realized that it, too, had been frozen shut. He stepped back and carefully kicked the base of the heavy wood slab, causing the ice to shatter and fall away.
Bingo! The cook grabbed the handle and forced inward, revealing an empty, dusty interior. It was small, cold, and dark, but Sanji practically leaped inside with relief. After sliding Zoro off his back and onto the table, the blonde slammed the door and searched for a lamp in the dim light. Sparking the cloth wick with his beloved lighter, he quickly surveyed the rest of the one-room lodge.
"Let's see…aha! Blankets, perfect!" Sanji called out to deaf ears as he raided the closet he found. Placing the lamp on the table and lowering Zoro onto the blanketed floor, the cook quickly pulled off Zoro's sopping coat, and then his own. Seeing as they were wet all over, both men were in nothing but boxers and blankets soon.
Okay…there's a fireplace and plenty of wood stocked up, so it's fire time. Zoro lay on the floor, blanketed but shivering as Sanji struggled to light the damp fire paper. Finally, it caught, and the room slowly warmed with its glow. Sanji began to speculate.
I wonder if Nami-san or Robin-chan has figured out what happened to us. They will when this stupid blizzard blows over, 'cause until then, Shitty-Marimo and I are stuck here. Sanji placed the wet clothes on a rack by the fire, moved Zoro closer to it, and started to search for food. What was he thinking when we were told to search for a town on our own? That we would think less of him? Zoro started to whimper in his fevered slumber. Damn moss-head, always being so difficult.
Back at the Going Merry
"Sweet!" Usopp cried. "A town! But how are we supposed to get up there?" he motioned toward the high cliff face.
"Simple!" the captain yelled as he stretched his arm to the top.
"Captain-san, I think there is a better way up," Robin cut in. "There is a road further east that we can take up to the top." She smiled and pointed.
"Oh…okay. YOSH! TO THE ROAD!" Luffy gleefully ordered.
"Thank you…" Nami sighed with relief as the ship turned to the eastward dock. When a man was spotted on the planks, Chopper quickly turned to his Speed Point and tried to pass off for a normal reindeer.
"HELLOOOO, OSSAN!" Luffy yelled in joy to the stranger who dropped his rucksack in shock.
"Stupid Luffy!" Usopp hissed as he smothered his spaz-out friend with his hand.
"Hello, sir," Robin calmly greeted him. "Is it okay if we dock here? We need supplies and this is the only island we could find."
"Oh, sure. Wait…from the look of your sail, I believe it's safe to say that you are the infamous Straw Hat Pirates?" he didn't appear freaked-out at all.
"Yosh! We are!" Luffy grinned.
"STUPID LUFFY!" the doctor, navigator, and marksman screamed in unison, beating him to the deck in frustration.
"Oh, cool!" He literally jumped for joy.
"HUH?" the entire crew was baffled, even Robin, who was halfway down the rope ladder.
"Yeah!" Robin noticed that the man was really a teenager, around the age 17 or more. "Pirates rarely ever come here, and to have such epic ones at our little island!" he gasped for breath, he was so excited.
"Wait," Usopp jumped down, "you're not scared? We're wanted men, you must know that!" The teen just grinned and shook his capped head eagerly.
"Oh!" the teen realized something. "My name's Mox, and this frozen hell of an island is the Iced Sky Island, where we welcome all sea travelers!" Mox slung his bag over his shoulder and turned to Luffy and nodded, still smiling.
"W-Wait, Luffy, you can't just trust this guy so suddenly, we don't know him at all!" Nami attempted reason, but her captain placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry, Nami. We can get our supplies and wait for Sanji and Zoro here. Besides, if someone does attack us, I'll kick his ass," Luffy raised a fist to prove the point, which actually reassured the carrot-toped woman, to a point. Nami nodded and shouted,
"Lower the anchor! I have a feeling that we're going to be here for a while!"
"YOSH!"
"Shhhh, it's okay Zoro, it's okay," Sanji tried to comfort his ill lover with little result. The cook had found dried meat and simple canned food in a cabinet, and was trying his best to create an edible dish while tending to Zoro.
"I'm no doctor," Sanji muttered, " but I'd say that you're getting worse… Damn it all to Hell." He removed the wet towel on the swordsman's forehead as the windows rattled with the wind. The cook carefully tipped spoon of what was basically heated water down the swordsman's throat.
"Nnngh…" Zoro groaned in his sleep and curled towards Sanji. He brushed the sleeping man's cheek with his hand and held him closer. Sanji could feel Zoro shaking between their tarp-like wraps and started to worry again.
C'mon, wake up! Tell me we something, anything that means your all right! God, Chopper better be able to fix him. Zoro groaned again
"Sssh, it's alright. Just hang on a little longer and you'll be fine."
Sanji could only hope.
"So tell me, Mox, why is this island called the Iced Sky Island?" Robin began small talk with their new friend as they crew ambled up the salted street.
"Oh, it's kinda obvious when the blizzards aren't raging across the southern side of the island." Mox stopped and pointed upwards. "There is a super-high mountain in the center of this island and it's always got snow clouds swirling around it, so the sky looks iced. Thusly, it's the Iced Sky Island." Robin nodded her head and smiled.
"Well, that makes sense. Are blizzard's a normal thing here?"
"Actually, you came here in the middle of the season, and so many people come from the south side that we have special emergency cabins for lost travelers."
"Really?" Honestly, there was no doubt in Robin's mind that he was telling the truth, but she wanted to learn more.
"Yeah…" Mox suddenly seemed upset.
"What's wrong?" The rest of the crew was starting to catch up.
"Oh, it's just that the storms can completely reshape the terrain until it thaws, and not everybody makes here in one piece." Robin mentally paled.
Are they alright out there? Usopp cut off her thought.
"Hey, how big is this island, anyhow?"
"Not very big, but it's very high above sea-level. So much so that no one's ever reached the peak of the mountain and survived. The legend says it's an evil spirit who claims the peak as it's own and kills all who lay eyes on it." Mox made a spooky face and laughed.
"Let me guess, that's why the clouds are always around it?" Robin inquired.
"Exactly."
"D-Don't tell Luffy, or we'll never leave without going to the top," Usopp was worried as Hell.
"Hey! Nami called from behind. "Is that the town?" She pointed ahead of them.
"Yup! My home village, Mushi-Mushi!" A small, snow-covered settlement came into view and Mox sped up the path. He stopped and cupped his hands around his mouth.
"ROXI! WE HAVE GUESTS!" Mox turned around. "Roxi is my older sister. Will you stay with us for the evening? I assume you used a Log Pose, and it takes about two and a half days before it can set. Three if you want to be safe." Nami was about to decline, still wary about the teenager, but Luffy was to excited.
"Yosh! As long as you have meat!" Mox looked like he was about to cry with joy.
"Sweet~! We have plenty of snow beef. My house is just a little further," he continued onto the main street. Despite the freezing temperature, the inhabitants of Mushi-Mushi went about their days like any other community. Suddenly, a young woman covered in a massive coat ran up to the crew and their new companion.
"Mox! How many times do I have to tell you? Don't scream for me like that!" She noticed the pirates standing behind the boy. "Uhh…are these your new friends?"
"This is my sister, Roxi. Roxi, these are the Straw Hat Pirates. They'll be staying with us for the night until their Log Pose sets." Roxi studied them all carefully and made a face.
"Where's Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro? And all the stories say that there's a blonde man with legs of steel. You're crew's short two." Nami shifted from foot to foot.
"They are somewhere between the south side of the island and here." Chopper answered. Roxi didn't seem surprised that a reindeer had just spoken to her.
Just like her little brother.
"Well, in that case, you must stay with us until they arrive."
That is, if they ever arrive. Usopp thought.
Woohoo! I updated!
Doing my best, so please review! I write faster when I get them! And if you'll notice, I cut the usage of 'seme' and 'uke'.
Fishy-Neko-Fangirl