RelationShipwreck

Chapter 3: Longing for a Different Ocean

The rest of the sailors had left, having finished off every last crumb. Clean up was moving unusually fast, thanks in part to all the extra hands, and in part because time flies when you're having fun. Though Joss and Frey had reacted like typical teenagers when Sanji first ordered them to help, by the time dinner was over they were volunteering their services. Their friends, perhaps two or three years older, stayed as well so they wouldn't be left out. Zoro was still there because Sanji wouldn't let him duck away, and Paul remained to cast a dark cloud over everyone's cheer.

"So, uh… what brings all of you to the glamorous life of legal sailing at your age?" Sanji enquired. The boys exchanged glances, and he realized he might have asked a loaded question.

"I'm here 'cause Dad and Paul are," Frey replied first, gesturing to his brother. "When Mom died there was no one else to leave me with, so Seeker hired me on."

"I'm here because Frey's mom took me in before she got sick," Joss said. He did not elaborate.

Royal, a young man with long black hair tied in a ponytail and ears that stuck out, finished drying the plate he was holding and set it on the stack. "I ran away to see the world," he said dreamily.

The other young man, a gentle giant named Moose, smiled. "I wanted to learn a different craft than farming. I still see my parents and sister whenever we dock back home."

"How about you two?" Paul finally spoke. "How did you end up pirates?"

Sanji chuckled, glancing over at Zoro. "Our captain doesn't take 'no' for an answer."

"He dragged half of us into the crew kicking and screaming." He paused, then smirked. "I seem to recall there was an awful lot crying on your part..."

"WHAT? There was not!" the cook shouted, turning a touch red. "How would you know, you weren't even there!"

"Hmmm, Yosaku might have mentioned it…"

"I'll kill him! You be quiet!" Sanji threatened, gripping onto Zoro's collar when he dared to snort in disbelief. The boys started laughing, their good humor contagious enough to calm the blond down.

One person wasn't laughing, though. "So, what's your sister's name?"

"What? I don't have a—"

"Suzy," Zoro interrupted. Sanji froze as he realized how close he'd come to blowing his cover story.

"Ha ha. Yes. Suzy." He ignored Paul's narrow-eyed stare as he cast about for something else to talk about. Absolutely nothing came to mind.

"So how does your ship deal with pirates?" Zoro asked, even though he probably already knew the answer. Sanji cast him a grateful look before hopping on the subject. "Say, yeah. A merchant ship like this would be a prime target for the raiding type, yet you don't have very many cannons."

"We get by with speed!" Joss said proudly. "This ship is small and light enough to make use of the slightest breeze!"

"And if wind fails, we have the propeller," Moose mentioned quietly.

"Yeah," the others agreed, with far less enthusiasm.

"Propeller?" Sanji groaned. "You mean we could've been moving all this time instead of stuck in dead calm?"

"It's just for emergencies. After all, it takes all of us to operate it." Seeing the blond's blank look, Joss elaborated. "It's human powered. It would weigh the ship down too much and take up too much storage space if it ran on fuel."

"Rabid Dan invented it. It's the only reason Captain Seeker doesn't kick him off," Royal mentioned bitterly. There was a collective sigh.

"Rabid Dan… isn't he the one I just kicked across the room at dinner? The fat, lewd one?"

"That's him, alright," Royal continued, twirling his ponytail around his finger. "He's the reason none of us go anywhere on the ship alone. He's tolerable on land, but a few days at sea and he starts getting an 'itch.' A few more days and anyone our age or pretty enough had better watch their backs."

Zoro opened his mouth to take a jab at Sanji, but stopped. A sour, bitter look had twisted across his features, curly eyebrow drawn tight and lips pursed into a frown. "You just let me know if he tries to pull anything while I'm here," he said. "I'll kick his ass." Zoro stared at his nakama thoughtfully as the boys put away the last of the dishes.

"Well, that's that. You gentlemen have any other duties this evening?"

"No, this is our free time."

"And you spent it on kitchen duty?"

"It's alright, we wanted to talk to you guys more!"

"So generous! Marimo, don't you think so?"

"Hm?" Zoro looked up from the speck on the floor he'd been glaring at, distracted. "Sure."

"It's settled, then. Go show off your swords."

"What?" Zoro's exclamation was drowned out in cheers as he was surrounded. He glared at Sanji over their heads.

"Come on, you know it's what they really wanted!" the cook grinned, waving his hand encouragingly. The boys tugged and pushed Zoro out to the deck, laughing at his discomfort.

"Fine, fine," the swordsman finally caved, his voice drifting in through the door. "You can look, but don't touch."

"Eeeeeeeh?"

"Well… you're definitely not touching Sandai Kitetsu, anyway. It's cursed."

"Woah, really!"

Sanji chucked to himself as he finished wiping off the last counter. He turned around and nearly ran into Paul, who was standing right behind him. Barely restraining from letting out an undignified noise in his surprise, he pasted on an indifferent look. "What?"

Paul was wearing a troubled frown, and looked like he wanted to say something before he changed his mind. "Nothing," he muttered before walking away.

The cook watched him go, picking up the strangest impression that Paul was disappointed in him for some reason.

* * *

"He was a beauty," Zoro said, a touch sadly. His attentive audience leaned forward, hanging on his every word. "But he met his end when I went up against a marine with the devil fruit ability to rust metal."

The green-haired man was sitting cross-legged, leaning against the foremast, surrounded by the four boys. Paul had emerged and once again lurked nearby, listening but not participating. A few other sailors lingered around as well, enjoying his stories. "After that I received this sword as a gift from an honorable warrior," he explained as he held up the dark scabbard covered in peace symbols. "His name is Shuusui." He partially drew the blade, letting them admire its deep, dark colors. "He's in bad temper again today, though, so I'd best keep him sheathed for now." He put it away with a soft click.

"Zoro-san," Frey asked shyly, "how come you call all your swords 'he' accept for the white one?"

"Because their previous owners were male, except for hers," he said as if it were obvious. Bringing out the white-dressed weapon, he gazed at it with a fond look. "Wadō Ichimonji is special. Her late owner was the one I made my vow to: to become the world's greatest swordsman. I have to take her with me all the way to the top."

After a moment of silence, Zoro looked up to realize his audience was getting teary-eyed. "All right, enough show and tell," he said gruffly as he stood. "Time to get back to training."

"But you've done nothing but work out all day!" Joss exclaimed. "Shouldn't you relax before you hit the sack?"

"I can't slack off if I want to keep my promise. Besides, this is how I relax." He gave the young men a nod of dismissal as he walked away, not particularly caring if they stayed to watch or not as long as they were quiet. The ship was woefully lacking in weights for working out with, but he had made due so far by improvising. Since the cannons weren't the first line of defense, Captain Seeker had given him permission to use two of them as long as they didn't get damaged and he put them back properly after each use. Retrieving the long steel pole he had acquired just for this purpose, he slid the barrel of a cannon over each end and bound them in place to keep them from slipping off. Instant barbells. Admittedly they still weren't as heavy as his weights back on the Sunny, but they were solid iron cannons; that had to count for something. Setting his swords reverently aside, he hoisted the contraption in the air and began a set of reps.

Contrary to the opinions of certain condescending, blond-haired idiots, Zoro's mind did not cease to function when he was working out. In fact, it was when he did some of his best thinking; distractions faded into the background as he slipped into his groove, while his mind raced thanks to his increased heart rate and surge of endorphins. As a pleasant burn started to work through his muscles, he let his mind wander and his thoughts ponder over the day's events.

Sanji. Now that he'd relaxed enough to make a few friends, perhaps the cook would stop being so temperamental, looking for judgment in every eye and insinuations on every tongue. Even if the entire crew knew about his crossdressing stint, they wouldn't say anything about it now. They'd seen him and Zoro fight and knew they couldn't compare, and if fear wasn't enough, they'd tasted Sanji's cooking. If they teased the blond about anything now, it would not be in malice. They liked him. Despite his sharp temper, Sanji was a likable person.

As if summoned, the object of his thoughts came up on deck for his evening smoke. Sanji gave him a brief glance before taking a seat on the barrel he had claimed as his chair, leaning back against the railing and watching the low-hanging sun. His legs were crossed casually, his dark suit providing a sharp contrast against the muted colors of the wooden ship.

He looks better this way, Zoro surprised himself by thinking. He may have made a pretty okama, but his stupid tailored suits are better for defining graceful lines and long forms. You wouldn't store a katana in a lumpy leather bag, no matter how fancy the leatherwork might be.

Heh. I wonder what Sanji would think if he knew I was comparing his clothes to a scabbard? It's not that much of a stretch; his body is his weapon, after all.

Completely unbidden, a scene popped into Zoro's head; him sitting cross-legged on the grassy deck of the Thousand Sunny, putting down the oil and powder after giving one of his katanas a thorough cleaning. Suddenly a shirtless Sanji sprawled across his lap, baring his back for Zoro's hands. Twisting his head around to pin Zoro's gaze with a half-lidded eye, he uttered two words.

"Me next."

Zoro very nearly dropped the cannons through the deck.

What.

The.

Hell?

Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes! :D

To answer those who were wondering; don't worry, this story will still be plenty funny. The reason it's categorized as drama instead of humor is because, unlike the crossdressing theme of the prequel, the plot itself is no longer the source of the humor.

And now all the important OCs have been introduced. Don't worry, they won't hog the proverbial camera much. Royal's name actually started as Regal, but mutated halfway down the page and I decided to run with it. And what is Paul's deal? Aren't you intrigued? Don't you want to guess? Don't you want to leave me a review? :P