Hello! *ducks to avoid objects being thrown*

I'm so sorry this chapter is so late! Waah! *gets into dogeza position* PLEASE FORGIVE ME!

I don't really have any excuses other than I had to get a new laptop and also I had no internet for a short time but here's a super long chapter from me to compensate! ^.^ (seriously it's really long)

Note:

"speech out loud"

"speech in a different language"

thoughts

'speech telepathically'

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing about One Piece except my shitty fanfictions that you poor souls are reading.

Sanji sighed. After running around most of the ship and half the island, he is now currently hiding out in the kitchen, crouching in a small ball just out of sight. If you didn't know where to look for him, you wouldn't be able to see him. The only source of light in the dark room, were the floating blue orbs that glowed softly around the blond haired cook.

This is pathetic, why am I hiding? Sanji thought. This is ridiculous, Sanji you are a coward!

Despite berating himself Sanji can't find the motivation to move. He sighed again and buried his face into his knees, his tails curling around him protectively and ears drooping sadly.

One of his ears flicked up when he heard the creak of the door open, tensing slightly before his ears drooped again when he didn't hear the tell-tale noise of heavy boots that belonged to a certain marimo. At first he wanted to stay absolutely silent and hope the person who came in would get what they need and go away. He was half tempted to place an invisibility illusion on himself to stay hidden but looks like the world has decided today is 'Lets fuck with Sanji day!' and it had to be the one person on this whole ship who can find him no matter what.

"Little duck? I know you're here." A familiar voice called out. "We need to talk."

Sanji's ears flicked, as he slowly unravelled himself from a self-made cacoon of tails. He knew his sister only used that nickname when she wants him to listen to her with no questions. He made a noise like a dying animal to indicate where he was before curling into a ball again.

"Oh Sanji, are you really going to keep this habit?" Sami sighed as she turned around the corner of the small bar that lead to the kitchen and caught the sight of her brother. "You do realise that no matter how many times you become a ball it won't help."

"It makes me feel better and it's not like I stay like this forever." Sanji mumbled; voice muffled from burying his face in his knees. "It's either I get over it myself or you interrupt my 'pity self-time' and force me to be happy again."

"If you know that then get off your ass already, we need to talk and I can't talk to a fur-ball." Sami poked her brother's tails to prove her point. Sanji didn't move. "Are you really going to ignore a lady's wishes?"

That did it. "Ok, fine." Sanji grumbled, slowly getting up and brushing himself off. "But I don't see what we need to talk about, if the shitty swordsman likes you then he likes you, I understand it perfectly. If he's was only half-assed about it we'll just-"

"Edamame head wasn't confessing to me."

Sanji stared at Sami, confused. "…but I would have sworn that I heard…"

"Well, yes you heard correctly, but that confession wasn't meant for me." Sami explained, she sighed exasperatedly when Sanji only got more confused. "Stupid, he was practicing on how to confess."

"Oh" Sanji breathed out before frowning in confusion again. "To who?"

"To you, ditzy brains!" Sami exclaimed and rubbed her forehead, feeling a headache coming. "He was practicing with me because I look nearly identical to you and he didn't want to fumble over his words and chicken out at the last minute when he tries confessing to the real thing. So I told him he can practice with me."

"To me?" Sanji was incredulous, staring at his sister. "He was practicing with you, so he could confess to me?"

"No shit, Sherlock." Sami replied blandly, swishing her tails in irritation.

Sanji started staring off into space, looking rather dazed. Zoro was going to confess to him? Never in his wildest dreams, had he ever thought that Zoro would try to confess to anyone. He didn't even think the swordsman would even think about having a romantic relationship with anyone. Or could. If the swordsman ever settles down it would be with someone pretty damn special.

And the Shitty Marimo chose him?

Sami clucked her tongue, before raising an eyebrow as she saw the gears in Sanji's head turning to process the information. In 5…4…3…2…1…

Sanji's eye widened in realisation, before flushing bright red. Well that was embarrassing, he completely misunderstood the situation. And in the clique way of those romance novels too! Argh what did he do to deserve this?

"Finally got it?" Sami asked, in monotone.

Sanji stammered for a little while, muttering complete gibberish that Sami wasn't even going to bother to interpret. Sami was the closest person to Sanji there is, she knows all of his habits and is always the first person to see that he's upset; he just needs to let it out if his system and then he'll think rationally again. Sure enough, Sanji gained back his normal skin colour and was no longer muttering gibberish. Only he seemed rather depressed now, with his ears drooping again and tails twitching to cacoon himself again, an action that Sami has seen a few times before. Oh no, not gonna happen, Sami is not letting him push away something he deserves again because of some stupid reason that only makes sense to him.

"I know that look; it's your 'I'm going to give something up because it's for the best' look, what's the problem?" Sami asked, leaning against the counter, her ears turned in the direction of her brother. "I swear if it's going to be another bullshit reason I will bitch slap you so hard in the face you'll be seeing stars for weeks. Then try to reason with you that you're being stupid."

Can't you reason with me first? Sanji sweat dropped and he shook his head. "Sami, I know you're good at reading people's personalities; you tell me, that Marimo Swordsman would never last in relationship. He would be too caught up in achieving his dream and a relationship would just get in his way. He doesn't need distractions nor does he want to anything straying him from his path of achieving his dream. Plus, there's also always the chance that his feelings would fade. But me? The moment I fall I will stay that way and I'm already aware that I feel an attraction towards him for quite some time now. If this attraction of mine goes any further I will be treading in dangerous waters, Sami. We're not normal humans, we're artificial demons with the nature of an animal. Once we fall in love there's no going back."

After Sanji finished explaining, Sami went quiet for a while. Then she went and slapped him on his head. Again.

"Ow! Will you please stop slapping me out of nowhere?" Sanji rubbed the back of his head.

"No." Sami stated, deadpanned. Sanji sweat dropped again.

"You were the one that said I'm good at reading personalities and I can tell you that what you're thinking is wrong." Sami smiled at her brother. "While yes, that lost case of a directionless swordsman is extremely dedicated to his swordsmanship and his dream, I've seen him to be extremely loyal, someone who would put their all in everything they do without a fail. If greenie gets into a relationship, he will always be there for you. Besides I believe it will do both of you good if you have a shoulder to lean on when things get too tough. Having a lover will not hinder the mosshead one bit, little duck, it will help him."

"How on earth does having a distraction help the Marimo's dream?" Sanji asked, still apprehensive about what his sister told him.

"First of all, the swordsman having a lover is not a distraction. It only gives the broccoli all the more reason to be stronger so that he will be able to protect his loved ones." Sami saw Sanji beginning to protest and continued on before he could say anything. "I know what you're going to say, that you don't need protecting and that you can take care of yourself but it's a human instinct to protect your loved ones from harm in any way you can. From what I've seen these people they are unlike the most of the human race, they don't seem to have a proper sense of 'flee or fight' so they would always want to look out for others first. This includes the greenhead, Sanji. So, lost child gaining a lover will not hinder him, it will only motivate him to become stronger. Do you hear me, little duck? If you become Zoro's lover you will not be a distraction but a motivation."

"But there's still the case of-" Sanji began to argue.

"Yes, I know." Sami interrupted in a firm tone, silencing all the words that were coming out of Sanji's mouth. "I know that getting into a relationship for us is dangerous territory. After all we can only fall in love once and it's literally handing our heart over in the care of someone else. If they break it, we can't piece it back together like others. You'll be surprised how heartbreak can ruin a person." Sami took on a bitter tone, causing Sanji to flinch, before she become normal again.

"I know that this is going against everything you've been trying to prevent which is falling in love, but." Sami smiled sadly and took Sanji's hands in hers, smaller hands in bigger hands, each equally calloused as the other from handling different knives for different purposes. "Trust me on this one. I'm your sister; I only want the best for you. It makes me sad to see you to give everything away and not get anything in return. And believe me you deserve a lot, and falling in love is only a small piece of what you deserve."

"…What if his feelings do fade? Are they even there in the first place? What would happen to me if I do fall? I've seen what love can do to a person and honestly?" Sanji said quietly, eyes lowering before whispering.

"I'm scared."

"Take it slow." Sami placed a hand on Sanji's cheek and turned his head so he would look at her in the eye. "I can tell you now that if you think it's not gonna work, you two would need to talk. Relationships aren't a joke, sure it might feel good to have someone to turn to when you're down, but it's no good if there's no solid ground to stand on. The best way to fix problems is to talk it out, start off slow. Don't rush it; if you do, it will be too much of an emotional toll on the both of you. There is no 'girl' or 'boy' in relationships like yours; you don't need to degrade yourself to childish nonsense like that. It's fine to pour your hearts out to each other, to see each other's tears, to look for comfort and support. Lovers are meant to be there for you no matter what; don't let something as dumb as pride and stubbornness get in your way. Listen to your heart, not just your brain. Whether it's going to be a relationship that lasts or not is up to the both of you; he seems to be the type who can balance it out between his dreams and spending times with his loved ones.""

After her small speech Sami gave Sanji a hug, who after a slight moment returned it.

"Wow that was one of the mushiest things I ever said in my two lives. I don't know whether I like it or I should feel grossed out that I can say shit like that." Sami muttered into her brother's shoulder while Sanji laughed before backing up again and smiled brightly at his sister.

"Thanks Swan, I feel a lot better now." Sami smiled at the familiar nickname and remembered to have a slight talk with a certain someone later.

"So do I talk about feelings and shit with the marimo?" Sanji joked.

"Actually, yes you do, you're catching on faster than I thought." Sami replied, not catching the joking tone her brother used, "It may not be comfortable to talk about it but I recommend you try it. Or you can solve it in your own way, you seem to have an interesting chemistry with the edamame head."

Sanji chuckled and froze when he remembered how his last encounter with Zoro ended.

"Shit! Then me running off… oh god, I need to find that shitty moss right now!" He rushed out of the door in search of the lost swordsman.

Sami just sighed and shook her head. Men are idiots.

Zoro panted as he looked around. Where did all the trees come from?

After chasing the cook around the ship and half of the island Zoro had somehow managed to lose sight of the blond hair and is now in the middle of what seems to be a small forest. Can the shit cook teleport now with his new powers?

Either way it was starting to get dark and Zoro doesn't have the time to look for the cook anymore. He needs to get back to the ship.

Ok, it's a good thing I know the island well from running all over the place. I'll go right.

Zoro started walking… in the left direction. It wasn't until an hour later he realised he had no idea where he was. The trees seem denser than before and there were ominous glowing red eyes. Zoro suddenly heard a growling and when he turned in the direction of the noise he saw a large tiger the size of an elephant. It had purple fur and fangs that were as big as Zoro himself. And the thing's slobber was purple? Suddenly a drop of the 'slobber' dripped onto the forest floor and the floor burned and hissed, leaving behind a black scorch mark. Ok then, a poisonous, giant, purple tiger. Lovely.

Zoro smirked as he unsheathed his swords, eyes gaining a red glow of his own. Looks like I've found tonight's dinner.

The tiger flinched and began sweating profusely. Looks like it made a mistake on what type of prey it wanted. All that was heard was a small noise of swords slashing against air and a loud thud.

Now Zoro was lost with a 4 ton tiger being dragged behind him. To top it off it was now completely dark and the amount of growls is increasing and Zoro was not in the mood to clean the blood of the beasts off his swords when he gets back. Zoro stopped when he heard rustling that was closer than comfortable distance, as he crouched down, ready to attack anything that was going to approach him. What actually jumped out at him was not what he expected.

A tiny little golden fox jumped out, with black tipped ears and a tail with glowing blue orbs surrounding it. It crashed into Zoro's face and thanks to the swordsman's quick reflexes he caught it in his hands. Zoro stared, he had a feeling he's seen the fox somewhere before…

"Cook?" Zoro asked cautiously, bringing the little fox, which was definitely smaller than he originally remembered, closer to his face. The fox just rolled its eyes (can foxes roll their eyes?) and nodded stared pointedly into Zoro's eyes. Zoro immediately relaxed before glaring at the fox-cook.

"So, are you going to run and get lost again?" Zoro asked pointedly. At this the cook growled, tails bristling, it looked like the cook was snapping back at him. Only, you know, Zoro can't speak fox. But he has known the cook long enough to guess what he implying.

"I was not the one that got lost! You were the one that ran off, jumping to conclusions!" Zoro snapped. At this Sanji quietened down and looked off to the side sheepishly. Zoro also looked off to the side awkwardly and sighed heavily.

"Look, since I'm pretty sure you know what was going on before; I don't need to say anything do I? You know I may have started to harbour feeling for an idiot like you and I would like to give it a shot whether we'll work out or not. If you think it's not gonna work, that's fine, you can just tell me." Zoro mumbled, sitting down and making sure the little fox as still facing him.

'No! No, don't think that I don't want this to work, I do!' The cook's panicked voice rang out in Zoro's head. 'Sami helped clear my head and I want to try to see if we could work out!'

Zoro was surprised at the answer he was provided. He was so sure the cook would tell him that them being in a relationship would never work and that it would hinder the crew and make things awkward but turns out the cook is not only willingly to go along with the idea but he was panicking that Zoro had changed his mind.

'…So you're not mad that I ran off?' The cook's voice asked after a slight tense silence between them.

Zoro shook his head to answer the cook's answer and the little fox visibly relaxed. "I was mad, not anymore though." Zoro grumbled, "I want to be mad but I see no point."

Zoro smiled slightly, even though the cook's voice was in his head he can hear the sheepish tone ringing out, it was just like listening to the cook talk out loud. He began petting the cook's head, scratching behind the ears every now and then. Soon enough Zoro heard a familiar purring noise coming from the cook again as the little fox completely relaxed in Zoro's lap.

"So, are we gonna talk about how this is going to work? Or do you just want to sit here forever in silence?" Zoro asked out loud. The little fox opened one of his eyes (when did they close?) and sat up again.

'Well, I'm relatively new to this relationship business so do you know how to start?' Sanji asked telepathically.

"You're asking me? There's a reason I call you love-cook you know?" Zoro replied back, deadpanned. "Of all people out there I thought that you would know the most about being in a relationship."

'I've seen people in relationships, never been in one. All I see is either lovey-dovey mush or heartbreak and fights. I know about as much as you when it comes to this. I can flirt, I can get someone's attention but the problem is keeping that attention and making it evolve into to something more.' Sanji replied back, his tails swishing behind him. 'All I know is what Sami told me and I can tell you now, just by listening to what she said about relationships, it's not going to be easy. Are you still willing to try this with me?'

"I would never bring this up if I didn't know the complications that come with doing this?" Zoro smirked and gave a rough pat on the cook's head which resulted in gaining a very annoyed look from the little fox. "I'm not as stupid you think; I know what I'm getting into besides I like a challenge. So where do we start?"

'Well I suppose we start off with saying our feelings?' Sanji suggested weakly unsure himself and grimaced at how stupid it sounded. Zoro seems to agree, giving him a very unimpressed look.

"Really?" Zoro asked rhetorically. "That's the best you can come up with Ero-Cook? I thought you were smarter than that."

'Well I don't know, unless you have better ideas Shitty Marimo, I don't know how else to start!' Sanji snapped back, the blue orbs that were glowing softly around Sanji suddenly burned brighter, looking like blue fireballs surrounding him. 'God you frustrate me so much!'

'And you know what? Despite finding you one of the most irritating thing on the planet, you the one I'm actually considering to give my heart to!' Suddenly it all came out in a rush, like a dam that had burst and all the thoughts that Sanji had of Zoro since they've met and some others that he wasn't even aware of was all said in Zoro's head. 'Ever since I first met you, you had my attention, ever since we our first fight after only knowing each other for 5 fucking minutes I had found you the most infuriating thing in existence, normally I don't bother with people who try to piss me off but you, you somehow managed to make me angry in 2 seconds flat no matter how I felt previously and somehow manage to drag me into every single one of our pointless fights. You refuse to even acknowledge my cooking just to piss me off and guess what? Because of that it aspired me to make your food a shitty good as possible. Heck, your food is probably around the standards of Nami-san's or Robin-chan's meals, sometimes possibly even better than theirs and you still don't say anything! Not a single sound that indicates that it's good or not and it frustrates me so much. You're annoying, rude, lazy, you probably have more muscle than brain and a complete slob and Neanderthal and yet...'

Sanji's voice suddenly went soft, the blue orbs floating around him slowly dimming back to its soft warm blue colour, 'no matter how annoying I find you, no matter how many times you make my blood boil, I know just hearing one compliment from you for my cooking would make my day. You somehow managed to convince me to just have a normal conversation over sake together. After a whole entire day of fighting and shouting at each other we still somehow end up having quiet conversations about anything and everything. While you can make me angry you can also make me feel calm, relaxed and at peace. When I saw you get sliced in half by Mihawk I thought you were insane and crazy…and yet deep down I felt admiration for you, and that admiration only grew ever since I joined this crazy crew. I trust you more than anyone to watch my back in battles and it's honestly thrilling to be able to fight together with you. Fighting each other is one thing but when we fight together? I get a high that I never get in any other situation. I hate you, I respect you, I admire you, I want to kick you into bloody oblivion most of the damn time, you somehow managed to fuel my want to become better at cooking just by annoying me and I am starting to believe I might be feeling something else that might be defined as love, whether I've already felt like this before or it still needs to grow more, I know these feelings I have for you are for you and for you alone.'

When Sanji finished talking, Zoro went quiet for a long time, too shocked to even come up with even a word in response to that. He knew the cook had strong emotions but this was surreal. As the silence continued Sanji turned his face away and stared at the ground, ears flattened against his head and became extremely tense. When Zoro saw this action he was confused but soon realised from the cook's body language that after the cook had said everything he could think of that was what he thought of Zoro, he was giving the swordsman a chance to back out if he wanted too. Yeah, not gonna happen, not after a speech like that.

Zoro started petting Sanji's head awkwardly before grumbling, "Stop being so tense will you? Do you really think I would back away just from listening to your feelings? More like I am going to stay and tackle this head on."

'You're still willing to do this? After all of that?' Sanji asked surprised, ears perking up. 'Do you really feel this strong for me? I thought I was considered an asshole in your books?'

"Yeah, well how to put this into words…uh…" Zoro scratched his head before his face gained a slight pink tinge and he turned his face away before exclaiming, "argh, never mind it's too hard to say it out loud. I'm not like you."

'If it's easier you can think it if you want. I can do telepathy, remember?' Sanji reminded, slightly curious at why Zoro suddenly wouldn't look at him in the eye. At this Zoro's eyebrow slightly twitched, face going a deeper pink which only made Sanji even more curious and also amused. Sanji gained a mischievous glint in his eye that Zoro did not like at all. Suddenly the cook's eyes dilated and flashed yellow and Zoro couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from the cook's. It felt like he was in a daze; it was like when he was meditating, when his brain is in a half aware mode.

Then just like a snap of the fingers Zoro became alert again. It was like be shocked awake out of a dream and the first thing that Zoro saw was the strange look that were in the cook's huge expressive eyes.

"What was that? What did you do? And why are you staring at me like that?" Zoro asked, slightly weirded out by what just happened.

'I just had a peek into your thoughts that's all.' Sanji replied indifferently as if looking into someone else's brain was perfectly normal. He even began to inspect and smooth out his tails which caused Zoro to feel rather pissed off. Unknown to the swordsman, Sanji was feeling rather glad for having a layer of fur to hid the no doubt bright red flush on his face.

"Peek into my thoughts my ass! It was like you suddenly drugged me or something!" Zoro exclaimed at the seemingly all too calm Strawhat Cook completely forgetting the fact the cook may have gained something more personal than expected. "And what do you mean peek into my thoughts?! Isn't that equivalent as invading one's privacy? I should report you!"

All Zoro received was a deadpanned expression from the little fox in his lap.

'I'm a pirate, I don't really have a sense of other's people's privacy much less my own crewmate and possible future lover. Just reminding you, you are as much as a pirate as I am so just who are you going to report me to?' a silence suddenly followed when Sanji finished talking. Sanji looked up, confused why Zoro suddenly went silent after his outburst. He was sure the swordsman would further argue about Sanji invading his privacy.

"…Did you just say I was a possible future lover?" Zoro finally asked.

Oh shit, I said that didn't I? Sanji realised and felt the extreme urge to slam his head on the ground while repeatedly calling himself 'stupid'. Instead Sanji decided to roll with it.

'Yeah I did, I thought that was the whole point of this conversation? To talk about becoming a couple?' Sanji replied, hoping it would smooth things over.

"Yeah I know but lover's a pretty strong word for two people whose only just stumbled into talking about being in a relationship." Zoro felt himself smirking as he saw that Sanji was trying his hardest not to look at Zoro in the eye.

Shit, shit, shit, merde, merde, merde Sanji felt himself panicking.

'Well do you have a problem with that? And I said 'possible future' didn't I?' Sanji asked defensively and hopped off of Zoro's lap in a huff. But before he could fully escape from the swordsman's grasp he found himself being lifted up again and came face to face with Zoro's green eyes. Sanji found himself momentarily distracted for a moment, he's never seen the swordsman up so close before and Sanji began studying Zoro's eyes out of habit. He always found the eyes the most fascinating part of the face, to be able to see all the emotions that flick through the round marbles and to see all different unique colours that belong to the person alone. Up close Sanji could see that Zoro's eye's weren't simply green; there were different shades of green and dashes of brown, it reminded Sanji of a forest described in fairy tales.

"I don't mind… I actually kinda like the sound of it." Zoro confessed softly, rubbing reassuring circles with his thumbs onto Sanji's fur. For the second time within 2 minutes Sanji was ever so glad for having a layer of fur to cover his skin. 'Stupid sentimental marimo' Sanji grumbled and Zoro chuckled.

Shit, I'm in trouble aren't I? Sanji thought but he didn't seem to care anymore. He had already thrown his heart out there. No backing out now. Besides, the marimo can be nice when he wants and Sanji blushed again by Zoro's previous statement.

"By the way, not that I'm questioning why you're currently in fox form but were you this small?" Zoro asked suddenly.

Sanji stared. And stared. And stared. And STARED. Finally he exploded.

"I'VE BEEN TALKING TO YOU FOR THE PAST 60 MINUTES ABOUT FEELINGS AND DEEP SHIT LIKE THAT AND YOU ASK THAT?! LEARN TO READ THE MOOD, YOU IDIOT!" Sanji shouted out of frustration and exasperation. Shitty marimo!

"Ah you're back." Zoro noted. Wait, 60 minutes?

Sure enough right before his outburst, Sanji had changed back into his half fox form out of the pure emotion of being annoyed at Zoro. Sanji glared at the grinning swordsman and felt the urge to kick the grin off and reform the stupid face.

"So is it a kneejerk reaction to change into a kimono instead of your usual prissy suits?" Zoro teased.

"Shut up! First of all, this is not a kimono; this is a yukata! Second of all my suits are not prissy, you just don't have a sense of style considering that you dress like a slob 24/7!" Sanji snapped back, tugging up a slipping sleeve of his beautiful yukata.

"Twenty-four? Seven? What's with the numbers?" Zoro asked, confused, "Wait, who are you calling a slob?!"

"…It doesn't matter." Sanji groaned putting his face in his hands. Typical, this is what I'm considering as a romantic candidate. My taste in lovers are going to be the death of me.

While Sanji was grumbling inside his head, Zoro began to study Sanji's new outfit and had to grudgingly admit that it was very nice. The yukata was black with blue embroidering along the edges and while all the different shades of blue were made to look like fire, it made the cook look like he was wearing water with the fabric rippling with every movement Sanji made. Along with the gleaming gold fox ears and tails and the blue orbs that were floating around, pulsing with a soft glow, Sanji really did look like the mystical creatures from urban legends and stories.

"But, really," Zoro began, making sure he had Sanji's attention again, before continuing. "I really don't mind being called your lover."

Sanji stared and went a brilliant red, this time with no fur to cover the bright colour flushing his face. He looked off to the side and began muttering something about 'stupid marimos' and 'lost national treasures', all the while smiling slightly.

"So, are we now an official couple?" Zoro asked and began petting Sanji again.

"I would like to think yes, otherwise that would make the past hour of talking very awkward." Sanji mused leaning in subconsciously towards the petting.

"So how did we spend an hour talking? I certainly don't remember talking that long." Zoro asked curiously.

"Ah, you probably didn't realise but me delving into your thoughts had spent about 30 minutes." Sanji explained.

"You spent thirty minutes in my head?" Zoro asked Sanji, "How did I not notice?"

"It's similar to falling asleep; when you feel like you've only slept for 5 minutes in reality you been sleeping for about half an hour or so." Sanji replied, "How I try and read someone's thoughts is different with every person but with the same idea: I break down a 'barrier' in the brain and then I can access the thoughts of the person, the stronger the will you have the more difficult it is for me to 'break in' and there are different aspects of the brain I can break into, there are the 'thoughts' of the person which are the easiest to see and the harder parts to see are the 'memories' and 'feelings' of the person. Normally it would only take me around 4 or 5 minutes to 'break in' but you have a will made of steel so it took me about 20 minutes with you."

Zoro felt mystified at Sanji's power, it seemed incredible that the cook possessed powers like these but at the same time he felt sceptical. While yes it is very powerful there has to be a catch, Zoro knew that getting stronger himself needed intense training to compensate for that power and he's pretty sure that the cook's power worked the same way. Zoro's eyes narrowed.

"I think we shouldn't tell the rest of the crew yet." Sanji suddenly said observing the details of the swordsman's face and quickly sidetracking when he saw the forest green eyes harden, saving himself from a lecture.

Zoro knew Sanji was changing the subject on purpose and wanted to just lecture him anyway but gave up knowing that the cook wasn't stupid and he can take care of himself. Plus he wouldn't listen anyway so Zoro stayed quiet much to Sanji's relief.

"And why aren't we telling the crew?" Zoro opted to ask instead.

"We're still not so sure ourselves whether this will last, but when we are sure that we want this, we'll tell." Sanji mumbled, fiddling with one of his tails.

Zoro noticed the slight emphasis on the word 'when' and he couldn't help but smile despite his earlier annoyance at the cook. Seems the cook wants this to work as much as he does.

The smile he was wearing changed into a smirk when an idea popped in his head. The idea may or may not get him kicked in the face but he might as well do it anyway. Zoro tugged the cook closer, locking his arms around the slender waist and leaned in slowly, making sure his lips brush the furry ear slightly.

"Well I hope it'll be soon, because I want everyone to know that you're mine." Zoro spoke lowly, smirking even more when he felt the ear twitch and heard a slight hitch in breath. "And just warning you, I can be very possessive. You can flirt with the girls all you want but don't expect me not to interfere, alright?"

Zoro leaned in even closer before, somehow managing to make his voice even lower and finished his sentence:

"Mr. Prince."

Sanji was suddenly hyper aware that he is currently straddling the swordsman with Zoro's arms around him and to top it off Zoro called him Mr. Prince in that stupid (sexy) low baritone of his. When Zoro had finished with his little performance Sanji began sputter utter gibberish and nonsense, redder in the face than Zoro has ever seen him and began to laugh.

"Hahaha you should see your face! It's as red as Luffy's vest!" Zoro laughed into Sanji's neck pulling the flustered blonde even closer into the hug despite Sanji's obvious struggles.

"Shut up you Shitty Marimo!" Sanji shouted, cheeks still flaming red he began half-heartedly smacking Zoro. "The fact that you even know what a vest is amazes me! Let go! Lost child! Moss-head! Shitty Swordsman! National Treasure!"

This continued for another five minutes of Zoro laughing his ass off and Sanji screaming profanities at the laughing swordsman, all the while still locked in an embrace that neither moved out of. After both had calmed down they just sat there for a little while enjoying each other's presence before Sanji smacked Zoro one last time and both dragged the 4-ton purple tiger that Zoro killed back to the ship, arguing for the whole trip back. Some things never change.

As they finally neared the ship Zoro was about to jump on board he was stopped by Sanji.

"Oi, Marimo."

"What?" Zoro grunted and turned his head in the direction of the cook.

Suddenly, Sanji leaned in and pressed his lips near the corner of Zoro's mouth. It took Zoro a few moments to register what was happening in his brain before his eyes widened and he dropped the tiger he was carrying with a thud. Sanji made sure to let the kiss linger, lips sinking slightly before finally pulling away with a small smack of lips leaving skin. It was nothing extraordinary, just a simple skin on skin contact, it was only chaste and innocent. Yet it still caused both fully grown men to blush.

"Well? Are you coming Marimo?" Sanji scoffed as he picked up the tiger that Zoro dropped, the only thing that indicated he had kissed Zoro at all was the slight pink tinge to his cheeks, as he jumped onto the ship.

Zoro just continued to stand there, staring into space. Slowly he raised his hand and touched the place the cook had kissed him and smiled softly.

Did I make it too mushy? I think I made it too mushy... oh well

But yay! They're finally in a relationship! Sort of, kind of but a relationship nevertheless so whoo!

Just to inform those who are reading this *shameless self-promoting* I have another fanfic if you are interested it's another ZoSan (cause I'm ZoSan trash) and it's a 2009 Disney's 'The Princess and The Frog' ZoSan Edition! I haven't started the actual thing yet but I do have a ideas collecting chapter where I explain the gist of it and I want your opinions on it! I love hearing your opinions and I might need some help with some character roles and I am open to all ideas. If you're interested the fanfic is called The Curlybrow and The Marimo. Please go have a look and I will be closing to suggestions by the end of this month.

Again I would like to say I'm sorry for such a late update and as always, please leave a review! :D

-Kagu-chan