Of Straw and Steel

Summary: Zoro was always warned of the dangers of falling for the Captain's daughter. He just never imagined the dangers that came with falling for the Captain herself. Oneshot series on people's reaction to the Captain and First Mate's relationship.

Chapter Warnings: Maybe OOC? Lemme know if it is, please? Here's Tashigi's.

Tashigi wanted to scream, wanted to laugh. She did laugh, though it might have sounded half crazed.

She knew, from the moment she heard that Roronoa was here, that something bad was surely going to happen.

Still, she went about her day in the usual fashion. Perhaps she had lowered her guard too much. She had allowed herself to become distracted, had forgot her goal. It was hard not to, though.

The strange, three sword wielding man's show had rendered her speechless. She had thought she had doomed him in that moment, urged him towards what would definitely be his end. Then the blade, cursed as it might be, had fallen. It moved so quickly, surely... surely, he would lose his arm? Or worse?

But he hadn't. The sword passed, rolling past his skin and instead targeting the soft wood of the floor. Inch by inch it slid in, and Tashigi dropped to her knees in awe. This man, brash and rude as he might be, was something.

What he was, she's didn't know. But he was out of her league and surprisingly, she felt no need to rip the precious swords away from him.

It took her ages to collect herself, slowly lifting herself from the shop's floor. By then, the man had already disappeared with his two new swords. Tashigi spent a moment to calm herself before retrieving her sword and paying the store owner.

She imagined after two chance meetings, there was no way a third could possibly happen. She wasn't sure if she even wanted to meet him a third time.

Maybe it was fate, playing games and tricks and forcing them into yet another meeting.

She barely paid attention, she would admit, to the she-pirate's execution. It wasn't important to her, not at the time. Not when he stood nearby, grinning as he sliced down opponents without hesitation. She felt fury boil within her. Not only at him, but at herself for being such a fool.

He was the only person she had ever heard of that dared use three swords in such a way. How had she not known, not recognized him? She had been so distracted, so awed, she let the thought slip through her fingers before she dared entertain it. How could someone so talented be so evil? The two simply didn't click, didn't equate in her mind.

Then she had watched him as the captain, grinning as she was, declared her own she saw was not what she had expected. He was not angry, his face was not twisted into an evil leer as he watched his captain's head roll. He looked scared.

Tashigi found, even as Smoker barked an order at her, she could not pull her eyes away from the pirate hunter gone pirate.

His face was pale - so pale - as he stared at the platform, knowing it was too late to save the straw hat pirate. That didn't stop him from charging forward, yelling her name in an anguished cry as he began to slice blindly, barely paying any attention to his opponents and staring at her, only her.

Tashigi had seen the look before. Many people had worn it, watching as their loved ones were ripped away from them by the cruelty of the world. It was what hurt the most about being in the marines. Casualties were not uncommon and Tashigi was aware of this fact. She accepted it as necessary for justice. Delivering the news to the families, however, was much more difficult. It was also what she fought for, so that many didn't have to watch their families be torn apart.

But she had, until this day, never seen it on a pirate.

She found herself unable to move, even as Luffy climbed to her feet, completely unharmed. It was a miracle, but after what she had seen today...

She watched as the three pirates escaped the square, twisting through the streets and disappearing.

"Tashigi!" Smoker had finally yelled, snapping her out of her thoughts and awe. She stumbled, before straightening and saluting her commander.

"I'll go after them!"

She had not thought defeat to be an option at that point.

Swords had met in a way that was second nature to her at first. He met each blow with a defence of his own, his grin only growing as she became more desperate. The second sword came into the fight and she knew she was no match for him.

Defeat had hurt, stung her pride far deeper than she dare to admit.

"I can never lose this katana... No matter what. " He had told her, and she knew it was more than just a weapon to him. He cherished it. Then his face had cleared back into a blank, unreadable slate. He had walked away, leaving her to wallow in defeat. Leaving her alive.

"Why didn't you kill me!?" She shouted after him, ignoring the fear inside her. No, it was quickly replaced with rage that decided to boil over at that moment. "Is is because I'm a woman!?"

He had stopped, listened as she ranted. He listened to her speak her mind, scorn him for not knowing the struggle of women who pursue swordsmanship. Again, his reaction had surprised him as he turned on her.

"I can't even stand the fact you exist!" He shouted, and the words stung for reasons she did not know. "Listen! That face of yours... It's exactly like an old friend of mine who died. And now you're even saying the stuff she did! Stop imitating her, you copy-cat woman!"

"What? What a childish, rude thing to say!" Tashigi argued. "I don't know what kind of person your friend was, but I'm the one who regrets this! I will take those swords from you, Roronoa Zoro."

The man stepped back, still glaring at her.

"Tck. I need these swords to fulfill the promise I made," Zoro said, and she noticed how he grasped the beautiful white handled blade. The words took Tashigi of guard and she stumbled away from him, trying to reach for her blade. "I will succeed in my goal and until that day, protect my captain with these swords. You won't take them away."

Tashigi froze only mere inches from her blade as she reached for it. Zoro didn't hesitate to take off after that, leaving her alone with her confusion.

Never before had she met someone who infuriated her so much. Such a noble goal... he couldn't possibly be being honest. That's what pirates did after all. They lied and cheated and yet... The look he had given his captain as she had nearly faced death...

She had no doubt that he very well would go to the ends of the world to protect Luffy.

She frowned. As much as she loathed it, she knew those swords were in good hands. The man who carried them fought for reasons beyond wealth, fame and selfish greed. He cherished the swords and fought for what ever pirate fought for - his treasure.

The realization struck her deep inside. To Roronoa Zoro, Monkey D. Luffy was more than a captain...

And she laughed.

I feel like Tashigi's just really conflicted.

I don't usually do AN's but if you guys want to see anyone besides the crews' and Luffy's families' reactions, lemme know and I'll work it in.