Sanji didn't like being mad at his brother, but it could easily be said that he was disappointed in his lack of motivation to save his savior. All the blond mermaid could think about were the words he'd been told about Marco's experience, and how the freckled man had gone above and beyond himself to save the life of a creature he wasn't even obligated to help.

Admittedly, his brother was a lot more docile then he was, but Sanji wanted things to move fast. There wasn't time to be swimming home to ask their father for advice. He was a man of action and stubbornness. So, leaving his brother, Sanji soared through the water, his powerful tail propelling him forward. He wanted to get there fast. Surely the green bastard who had promised him was already gone and had done his work, but if he could provide any assistance in the water portion of a getaway plan, he was more than willing.

He was not, however, expecting what he saw. As Sanji's head peeked out from under the surface, his heart sunk and perhaps, as he was having second thoughts, Marco was smart to go get his own assistance. His brilliant plan was going into the sand and fast, seeing as he hadn't actually entered the fucking building yet.

Granted, Sanji was probably gone ten minutes, fifteen tops, but it angered him something fierce to see the moron standing outside of the building, a frustrated expression on his face as he moved, seemingly confused on which door to go in. Were all human's this... dumb? And he had the nerve to call him a stupid fish!

But the man seemed stressed and conflicted. Sanji wasn't exactly asking him to do an easy task. He would be risking a lot to do it. The blond merman glanced around; he doubted he could chuck a rock so far... How else was he supposed to get the other's attention.

He took a deep breath, finding himself in his least favorite spot, but a spot of habit nonetheless, propped up against the pier. Using his elbows to stabilize himself, he moved his hands, allowing them to cuff around his mouth.

"Oi! Earth to Marimo."

Zoro was getting pissed. He had been here a few weeks already as a new guy and he would have thought by fucking now they'd stop this idiotic prank of changing storage rooms. He'd been in three already that looked exactly the same and it wasn't doing anything but dampening his heroic mood. He took a deep breath, running his fingers through his hair.

There was no way in hell he could back out of this now. He just had to make a promise to that stupid mermaid guy...

His head jerked up, a shiver running down his spine as the distant sound of a voice met his ears.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me..." Zoro mumbled to himself, turning to look.

Surely, that asshole wasn't stupid enough to freaking scream from the ocean to get his attention and almost get both of them caught. Sure enough, at the end of the pier, was Sanji. It felt weird and personal now knowing his name, but even so he still wanted to kick his fish ass... err tail.

His brows furrowed as he watched the blond bastard's lips shift into a toothy grin, obviously satisfied at grabbing his attention.

Sanji tilted his head a little, his tail peeking out behind him in the water almost iconic. This was fun, having a human to troll and living life on the edge by being so close to a mermaid slave house. He freed one of his hands from under his chin and waved.

Zoro honestly wanted to strangle the swirly bastard. Before he knew it, he was stomping over, glaring down at the fish.

By the time the moss head had reached the end of the pier though, he had to stop a few feet early, a feeling of pure awe smacking him in the face. For once Sanji had actually been able to pull himself up and out of the water, working his way down it a few feet so that his whole body lay exposed and out of the water, droplets racing down his exposed skin and scales.

He was so long and magnificent that Zoro almost, keyword almost, felt inferior. It was like earlier when he had lifted him up from the water, but from this different angle it was.. just.. indescribable.

However proud he might have been of the fish for taking his first roll out of the water, the way Sanji seemed to lack air concerned him. Zoro wasn't some kind of ocean scientist, he didn't know how mermaids did that thing where they switched from gills to lungs and vice versa, but he couldn't imagine it being a very fun process.

"Are you trying to wake everyone up? Seriously, you are going to be fucking rotten sushi, I swear." Zoro painted his face back to a scowl, approaching the merman once again. "I told you to swim and tell your brother I'm going to save Ace."

Sanji took a deep breath, gathering himself. It was odd, there was so much gravity without water around and he actually felt sort of heavy. He glanced up at the human, not sure what an Ace was but didn't question it.

"I did, asshole." Sanji tried to explain. "But then I came back. Glad I did, what the fuck is this?" He gestured toward Zoro with his hand. "Why aren't you doing what you said? Get your ass in there."

"I'm trying to, okay?! Shit, why am I taking this from you? I can't find where they put him. They keep hiding him."

Sanji narrowed his eyes. Crafty bastards.

"Then you have to look again!"

"Oi, don't go telling me what to do. How am I supposed to do that when every time I turn around, there's some fish out here calling my name. Which, by the way, the hell did you call me?"

Sanji face palmed, his tail rising and falling against the planks with a loud thump. He was regretting not going solo more and more.

"Alright fine, here's what we'll do, moss face. I'll go with you to find him and help you get him out. I'll be your look out."

Zoro stared at him blankly for a few moments. Had he just been ignored? Bossy little shit wasn't he?

"How exactly do you plan to do that? You can't exactly walk." Zoro challenged, reminding him of his biggest disability.

Sanji's grin returned and his tail curled inward, the end of his tail fin gently brushing against the human's leg.

"Carry me."

It was definitely one of the more humiliating points in Zoro's life. He'd rather be spending the evening cleaning thousands upon thousands of mess hall dishes than be caught dead with his new and improved mermaid backpack. It was the weirdest thing he'd ever experienced in his life, and it didn't help that the guy on his back was positively giddy about it.

Sanji's arms were holding securely around Zoro's neck, his body curling around his side like a snake. It was definitely weird to Zoro, giving someone a piggy back ride with no legs, just a fin that his arm wrapped around like some carpet he was transporting under his arm. It took resistance not to be perplexed, his flesh meeting with scales in awkward surprise. It wasn't as rough and slimey as he would have imagined.. It was far more detailed on closer inspection and actually, warm.

The blond's head was peeking over top of his though, a note he nearly forgot when he went through the first door of the complex. He couldn't help but smirk at Sanji's grumbles, feeling they were the result of a well deserved revenge.

It was short lived, though, when a man fish who had never even been inside the complex before started correcting him on his direction, with a tug to his earrings when he went the wrong way and a snort when they ended up in the same place again. They both froze though, awkwardly, when they entered a certain room that was illuminated by a large aquarium tank.

Zoro didn't have to look, but he imagined Sanji's face had probably paled in understanding of how real the danger here was.

"See that. I could put you in there and walk off with a bonus that'd last me for weeks."

Sanji could hear his heart beating in his ears, staring at it, trying to piece together his thoughts and growing fears. He was stupid, he knew that now, but that was the least of his thoughts. All he could think was imagining what it must have been like for Marco, to have been stolen from their home and placed here like an expensive pet until a purchase date. The water was stale and unmoving, lifeless. It made Sanji internally cringe, clenching his teeth, glancing down at the moss head who had practically obeyed his every word up until this point, bewitched by infatuation or not.

Zoro turned his head slightly, gazing up at him with a stern gaze. He wasn't kidding either, he could run a bar tab for miles just for this. But even behind the serious expression he was surprised, Sanji returned it back just as strong.

"You won't."
Sure he was putting a lot of trust in a stranger, but Sanji was certain he could trust the human. He wouldn't have gone out of his way to help him, asked several times for him to swim to safety, if he did not value the blond's life even a bit.

"I know you won't. Let's just find him."

Zoro pursed his lips... That was surprising and not the reaction he had been expecting. He was waiting to hear pleas, or demands to turn around and take him back to the sea, but none came. Instead, Sanji yet again looked into the eye of the storm, went headfirst with instinct. It made Zoro wonder. Did he reek of some trusting vibe or something?

"Zoro...?"

They were pulled away from their staring contest to the tank, anxiety still rummaging in their chests. They hadn't expected to hear another voice and Sanji tightened his grip around his human without a second thought. He trusted this moss brain, but not so much anyone else they could run into. He didn't care if they were all supposed to be asleep, the thought of meeting another non-marimo human invoked a nervous fear.

Still, flushing slightly cause he didn't purposely do that, it was just a jerk reaction, Sanji moved his arms and looked over to the source of the noise. They had said something... Zoro?

Zoro's skin crawled and he was yet again reminded why he didn't particularly like his employers. They were awful and now he could see where they had decided to leave Ace for the night.

Ace had just gotten a mild beating in their co-workers opinions, resulting in the bruising on his face. His skin was covered in dirt and scratches. The real fun was being kept off until tomorrow after everyone could sleep and think of wonderful torture techniques. That was if Ace made it that far. After beating him, they tied his hands behind him and left him uncomfortable close to the water on the very platform he dared steal the precious cargo from. If he even tried to drift off or move, he risked falling into the tank and drowning.

He was exhausted, that much they could already tell, as he held his face up, staring at Zoro horrified. It wasn't a pretty picture to explain on his end either. Zoro, dragging in a mermaid, part of the species Ace had pleaded with him to understand. Was his friend really just the opposite, like the other men in this camp who would do such horrible things? Did Zoro approve of his treatment?

But something was off. This mermaid wasn't in restraints and did not look horrified. If anything he looked more calm, yet furious.

"Zoro, why did you bring a mermaid here?" He coughed out, his throat more than a little parched.

Sanji tilted his head looking back to his human.

"Zoro? What kind of name is that-"
"It's a long story." Zoro grunted, cutting Sanji off and moving towards the tank. "But we're getting you out of here."

That seemed to excite the mermaid. If they were freeing this guy, it could only mean one thing; this was the man who had saved his brother. As Zoro approached, he was beginning to see the resemblance in the description. Illuminated by the tank light, he could barely make out the freckles on his face. He had half of a mind to see why his brother was so interested, but a jerk from Zoro made him change his mind.

Slowly, making sure his cargo didn't end up sliding off, the marimo walked up the metal stairs to the platform with caution. From there he saw more than he expected and it made him absolutely sick to his stomach. Their dear employers had thought ahead enough to actually go as far as to tie weights down with the rope, so if Ace did fall into the water, he wouldn't be resurfacing.

"So this is how you treat your heroes." Sanji whispered under his breath.

Zoro ignored it, crouching down and moving his hand to his side, where he kept his knife. He retrieved it, gazing down at the ropes to think how he could do this.

Ace swallowed thickly, turning his head slightly to get a look at the two people behind him. He was thrilled that Zoro came to his aid, he had sworn after seeing his friend look away when they dragged him that he too had turned his back on him. But he was shocked to see him in the company of another mermaid. They were rare, were they not? How was it they seemed to be everywhere in his life now?

Sanji stared back at him blankly, he could feel the human's dark eyes studying him and it annoyed him. It was like some kind of family gathering again, where someone was noting just how alike he did or didn't look like his family members. But perhaps this guy was searching for answers on his face, as if Sanji's eyes could tell him what had happened to Marco after the human was capture. The blond averted his eyes. That was too weird for his tastes.

"You shouldn't have brought him here. What if they see you, you know what they'll do to him." Ace tried to plead. It killed him enough to think of what could have happened to his merman.

Zoro snorted. "He invited himself, it's his problem."

Finally, the rope gave in under Zoro's blade and he huffed triumphantly, this shit had his heart racing in a red wire, blue wire style. He stood back up, holding onto Sanji's lower half tighter and moving backward down the stairs, putting his knife away and giving the raven haired man some space.

Ace wobbled forward toward the water at first, freedom given back to his limbs from his restraints, but finally found his balance, moving up to his feet. It was becoming exhilarating, having been freed in the presence of such an odd pair. Still, he knew time was of the essence. He hurried down the stairs after them, walking up to his comrade who lingered in front of the door, waiting for him.

"Where do we go now?" Ace asked. He knew Zoro was a man of action, but he had a strong feeling a certain someone didn't plan that far ahead.

He wasn't expecting for the mermaid to be running the show and answer, though.

"The sea. My brother will meet us there... hopefully."

"Your brother?" There was a growing hope inside Ace's chest at what this could mean. As in, the blond mermaid he had met? Was he okay? But why would he return?

Sanji nodded, enjoying the small conversation even if Zoro was annoyed and wanted to get this show on the road. Definitely not a fan of small talk.

"The mermaid you saved. That was my brother. I came here for him to rescue you- Oi!"
Zoro rolled his eyes, side stepping and turning toward the door, forcing Sanji away from his conversation.

"We don't have time for this shit, people are going to start waking up and they're going to notice when he's gone..." He grumbled out an explanation, cursing the tug on his hair that kept him in place.

Ace stood still. Rescue him, for his brother... Could that mean...? The mermaid, he wanted to return the favor. The blond wanted to rescue him. It was the most confusing yet hopeful feeling he'd ever experienced in his life. He furrowed his brows, following Zoro because it was true; there wasn't time to be messing around here.

Without them realizing it, though, the door knob shifted and the door opened, the eyes of a random worker growing wide at what he saw. For one, the temporary prisoner he was suppose to be checking up on was no longer in his restraints. Then there was the fact another one of their newbie workers was standing there, a mermaid holding itself around his neck.

"The hell is going on here?!" he demanded.

Zoro's heart sank. Fuck. This was exactly what they needed to avoid. Everything seemed to slow down, as he couldn't react fast enough, watching as the man lifted up the weapon, a rifle, he had to his side to aim right at them.

"Shit!" he breathed quickly, about to hit the deck but he glanced down instead, watching as the tail he'd been holding under his arm protectively slithered out and whipped behind him towards the guard.

Sanji was getting tired of this shit. These landwalkers were confusing as hell. First they wanted to save each other, but couldn't even find the right building. Now they were all about being quick and escaping, but they were going to stand around and play with their shitty weapons? He wasn't going to have that. He snapped his lower half out of Zoro's reach and forward, showing off his magnificent strength by smacking the guard down with his gun in one blow, before securing himself back around Zoro, the sound of a misfire ringing in his ears.

Zoro was still stunned at the performance, but snapped out of it. No doubt everyone had heard that gunshot and they would be waking up now.

"We have to go now!"
"No one's stopping you, moss head. Go! Mush! Fuck!" Sanji jabbed into his back and Zoro kicked and stepped over the guard before he could get up.

He cussed again, about to start on his way down the hallway, but paused, turning back to watch Ace slowly retreating from the room. Had he really not just seen what went down? How they not only almost got caught, but they nearly got shot and now everyone would be waking up. Hell, they could practically hear the stomping of feet above them. He just couldn't get it out of his mind. That mermaid, had wanted to rescue him in return, despite what and who he was.

"You guys go ahead.. I have something to do."

Sanji's mouth nearly dropped. Because yeah, they had only risked their lives or some shit to save him, but that's okay, the savior guy he wanted to get for his brother running off was perfectly okay. It only pissed him off more when Zoro just nodded, agreeing with Ace's request before starting to hustle out.

"What the hell! Why are you letting him get away? We came to get him and now you're just going to let him run off?" Sanji demanded an explanation.

Zoro shook his head.

"We saved him like we said we would. Besides..." Zoro slid on his foot slightly coming to a halt at the end of the hallway. A dead end, go figure. "We have our own problems..."

Written by Turtlefriedrice