Hi everyone! This is my first fanfic of One Piece, and also my first fanfic in English so I hope I didn't make too many mistakes as English is not my first language! I started watching One Piece again after what… 5 years? plus the live action, so it made me want to write in this fandom even if my other fanfics are not finished (haha TT) This fic is really self-indulgent, but I wanted to write it, and maybe people out there (you) will also like it so… (I didn't find that much OC/Zoro so here we go!)
This fic is supposed to happen sometime between Alabasta and Skypiea, but I didn't watch after the time-skip, so if there are inaccuracies please ignore them (there are some inaccuracies that I did on purpose though, because it was more convenient for me)
I made a drawing of my OC that you can find on the cover of this fic, so I hope you like it (and like her).
Enjoy !
Chapter 1: The Rebel and the Pirate
She didn't sign for this, she really didn't sign for this, Kahli thought while peering around the corner.
Fuck.
Those assholes were still a bit far, but she knew she was surrounded, and the drug was starting to go to her head. In this state and without her sword, she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do. A bead of sweat trickled down her forehead and she adjusted her scarf over her head.
"Aaah, where is this damn port?" someone muttered behind her, making her jump. She hadn't heard him come, but at first glance, he only seemed like a lost foreigner.
"This way," she automatically pointed over her shoulder, barely sparing him a glance. She couldn't afford to take her eyes off the street. They were closing in on her.
"Ah, uh, thanks…" the stranger replied, and Kahli nodded distractedly, trying to stay focused on the sound of the Guard coming.
Nobody was in this part of the town at this hour; people preferred to stay inside in the cool air of their home, except to go to the market or the public baths. If he headed toward the port, the Guard would most likely let him pass. Clearly, they wouldn't do the same if she tried.
It was getting too hot, even for a summer day in Helia, and Kahli briefly closed her eyes to ground herself. They snapped open not even one second later when she felt like falling and her hand caught the wall just before she could collapse.
Fuck, the drug was really starting to take effect, and she was still very far from where it would be safe to pass out.
She vaguely heard the stranger ask her something -she thought he had left already?-, and suddenly there was a warm hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, …-ing alright?"
What? Their eyes met, and when she had said that her day couldn't get any worse, it was supposed to be a fact, not a challenge! A deep warmth had spread in her chest, a warmth that had nothing to do with the stifling heat of the sun or the drugs. She had heard her brother gush about the sensation enough to recognize what it felt like to meet your fated mate for the first time.
It took some time to register, but to her credit, the guy looked as shocked as she was.
FUUUUUUUUUCKKKKKKK NOT NOWW!
She had never wanted to meet her fated mate, but now of all time! It was the worst timing, and- wait, is he Roronoa Zoro?! She had seen the new wanted poster not even two days ago, she was sure of it. And now there was absolutely no way she was going to have anything to do with this pirate. If she had learned something in life, it was that this story of fated mates was a load of bullshit.
"You-" her mate started, his grip tightening around her shoulder, but Kahli reacted instinctively, and that meant elbowing him in the throat.
She had to get the fuck out of here, right now. The guy was wheezing on the ground, having been caught off guard and she darted away. The drug was definitely messing her up now because she didn't sidestep when he grabbed her ankle, and she fell face first in the dirt. Ouch.
"Wait," he growled, and Kahli kicked his hand hard in panic. Helia's forces were closing in from around the corner. If she didn't get rid of this fucking pirate, she as good as dead.
"Let me go, you asshole," she hissed and to her surprise, he complied.
They both leaped to their feet, glaring at each other. Yeah, definitely a pirate, and a nasty one at that.
"She's here!" someone cried out behind her and she stole a glance above her shoulder.
It was too late to escape now, the Guard was already there. Maybe if she stole one of those three swords he had, she could stand a chance… Who needed three swords anyway? Somehow, she doubted that her mate would lend her one even if she asked nicely, but if she was a good judge of character -and she was-, it was no use trying to steal one either. He didn't exactly look weak. Her mate had followed her gaze to the Guard and had the audacity to smirk.
"Got yourself into trouble, Khadija?" he taunted and Kahli wished she could elbow him in the throat once more. Or twice more.
"Don't call me that," she snarled, trying to keep an eye on both the guards and the pirate, but her focus was really starting to weaken. It was taking up every ounce of strength she still had left not to stagger.
"We got you cornered, Kahlivati!" this fucking Djaris announced when he was a few meters from them, and nobody called her that, but it was still better than what her mate had said.
"Khadija" was used to describe a young person -often an omega- that had a rebellious attitude. Her mother used to call her that in a teasing way, but since she had joined the Rebellion, only assholes who couldn't bear the idea of having an omega among them had used this nickname. Her last thought before passing out surprisingly wasn't that the Guard was going to kill her or that she had failed her mission. Her last thought was that she got stuck with the most annoying mate in the whole empire.
o
Zoro watched the girl collapse on the ground with an arched brow. So, what was he supposed to do, now? He was pretty sure the girl was his fated mate. This kind of sensation could not be forgotten, and he had heard somewhere -maybe Usopp but in this case it was everything but reliable- that it wasn't impossible to have a second fated mate if the first one passed away. He was also pretty sure the girl was a massive jerk -possibly a criminal one, and already hated his guts. Did it mean he was going to leave her here?
"The drug's finally taken effect, get her," an annoying guy that looked like a captain ordered.
Huh, guess not.
Zoro went to stand between his mate and the guards, after carefully checking that she really was unconscious. The girl looked like a fucking savage, he didn't want to get stabbed in the back no thank you.
"I still have business to deal with her," he stated, and the eye of 'annoying captain' twitched.
"This woman is ours, get the fuck away if you don't want to be killed with her," he said, and if she had to be someone's, she was probably more his than theirs, but it didn't matter. Because even if he didn't intend to have anything to do with this girl, he wasn't going to let his mate die under his eyes either.
Kitetsu was out in the blink of an eye, and the two soldiers that had dared step too close fell to the ground.
"I won't let you touch her."
"If you're so sure about that," the guy replied, as many more soldiers were swarming in the street, and Zoro carefully watched them from the corner of his eye.
Those guys knew how to fight and while there was a high chance he could still beat them all, he was not sure he could do so while protecting the khadija. On top of that, Nami's warning of "if you're not here by noon, we're leaving without you!" kept hanging above his head. Better start running then.
Zoro quickly grabbed the girl, hoisting her over his shoulder, and jumped onto the rooftop. There were soldiers here as well, but fewer, and Zoro made his way through without too much difficulty, grinning when he heard the captain yell on the ground:
"What are you waiting for, idiots! Get them!"
Now he only had to find the port. Well, it shouldn't be too hard, she had said this way, right?
o
Where the fuck was this fucking port? And was this town a Marine base or what? He had stumbled on a group of people, who turned out to be marines (marines that had recognized him at that), then another one, and one of the same Guard which had been chasing him from the beginning. Which meant that now he had a lot of people after him, and not even for the same reason. Plus, it was starting to get a bit difficult to fight with only one katana and a dead weight on his shoulder. A dead weight he couldn't drop.
Zoro finally caught sight of the Going Merry from a rooftop and slashed his way to it.
"Oh, it's Zoro!" he heard Luffy say from there, and he shouted:
"Start the ship!"
"What did you d- WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA," Usopp screamed when he caught sight of everyone running after him. "HURRY, HURRY, HUUUUUUUUUUURRYYYYYYYY!"
Easy to say, Zoro thought. He sliced the marines that had caught up before starting to climb the ladder, and the Merry started moving. He dropped the khadija on the floor as soon as he got on deck, and shook the ladder, making the few guys that had managed to grab it fall in the ocean.
Seriously, what had he gotten himself into?
"Eerm- Zoro? Did you just… kidnap someone?" Nami asked, and when he turned back, the whole crew was gathered around the khadija, Luffy poking at her cheek.
"I didn't kidnap her, I'm helping her!" he protested, and batted Luffy's hand away.
Like fine, it might look bad like that, but have a little faith in a guy! Since when did he kidnap people? He scooped the girl up under his arm, and started to make his way toward the inside, but Chopper tried to stop him.
"Wait, she is unconscious! I have to do a check up on her!"
"It's fine Chopper, she's just drugged," he reassured, and didn't miss the look Nami and Sanji exchanged.
"But-"
"I said it's fine!" he insisted. He didn't want his crew mates to go near her, his still throbbing throat reminded him. Even if he knew most of them could hold their ground, he had a feeling this girl was fucking feral, and his crew mates would underestimate her because she was an omega. In one word, she was dangerous. "I'll just put her in the storage room until she wakes up and then we'll get her back to Helia."
"Hm, guys," intervened Usopp before anyone could protest, "maybe we should just focus on getting out of here!"
Everyone looked where he pointed, and sure enough a Marine's ship was approaching, and a bit closer, two ships with Helia's flag. Wonderful.
o
When Kahli opened her eyes, she felt like an eternity had passed. Her eyes scanned the dark room, which was most likely a storage room, with many crates and boxes pushed against the wall, to make some space for the very old bed she was laying on. She was, fortunately, alone, and the absence of pain in her lower back was comforting, but the unmistakable gentle sway of the sea confirmed that she was on a ship, and this, this was bad news.
She then remembered the seal she was supposed to protect and breathed a little easier when she felt it safely tucked in her sash belt. At least one thing she hadn't messed up.
Alright.
The wood creaked under her foot when she got up from the bed, and she winced. She wasn't an idiot, she perfectly remembered how the government of Helia had turned against them, lacing her food with a sleeping potion to steal the seal. And there she thought they all wanted to end the tyranny of the Empress… Guess that wasn't the case for all of them.
She had quickly sensed that something was off, and when she had found her escort, they had all been slaughtered or captured. The only chance left was fleeing, even without her sword, confiscated by the Guard before her meeting with the King of Helia.
She slowly opened the door, checking that no one was there before making her way on the deck.
And then, she had found her fated mate, which meant she was most likely on his ship, she guessed, glaring at the Jolly Roger on the mast.
It was still early morning, nobody was outside, except for the guy in the crow's nest, but he wasn't looking under his feet. Still, she tried to stay out of his sight.
The ocean was everywhere around them, no sight of any island or Helia, and she realized she was really, really screwed. Sure, she was not dead yet, no doubt thanks to this guy, but being the prisoner of pirates, of her mate, wasn't thrilling. She had seen what had happened to her brother. If this mate of hers even tried to get close to her, she wouldn't hesitate. Kill or be killed, the choice was easily made.
So she had to make them come back to Helia before one of those happened.
She quietly made her way to the galley and slipped inside. A blond alpha was already there, humming while peeling some apples, and he looked above his shoulder when the door closed behind her.
"Oh, you're awake! You must be hungry, have a seat, I'll make something for you," he immediately declared and disappeared into a small room on the side.
Kahli smoothly moved toward the drawers and stole a long butcher knife, holding it behind her thigh. She waited until the pirate was back, arms full of food and flashing her a grin, and once he had his back turned, she drew the blade to the cook's throat.
"Now, now, these are not good manners from a pretty omega like you," he said, frowning.
He had stopped getting spices out of his bag, but otherwise didn't seem very worried.
"You're going to get back to Helia and drop me there," Kahli ordered, and the cook checked the label on one of his boxes of spices.
"Sadly, this is not possible. We were chased by some of your "friends" until we lost sight of Helia, so unless you have a very well hidden Eternal Pose on you, we cannot get back. Trust me, some of us really tried," he calmly replied, and Kahli grimaced. Apparently her mate's decision of getting her on board hadn't been well received by everyone.
So what now? Could she trust him? He didn't look threatening and it looked like he was just the cook of the crew… Maybe he could help her?
She was about to lower her knife when the door slammed open and she jumped, grazing the cook's throat.
"Oi Cook! I'm hung-"
Kahli didn't think. She grabbed a plate and flung it at her mate. The alpha managed to avoid it by jumping to the side and the cook took advantage of her distraction to kick the knife out of her hand.
"Don't come closer!" she growled at her mate while taking a few steps back.
Shit, he looked angry. While flinging plates at people tended to have this kind of effect, Kahli preferred risking the wrath of her mate than going down without a fight. She wouldn't let a pirate get his way with her. If she had been ready to maybe give him the benefit of the doubt, it had ended when he had kidnapped her without any way of return.
"Hey, not in my kitchen !" the cook yelled when her mate unsheathed two of his swords and Kahli grabbed the first thing she had within reach, which was… a fork.
Yes… I hate my life.
She didn't have the time to cry though. Zoro lunged at her, and she dodged the attack, running toward the door and she burst onto the deck. She knew she couldn't escape, what with being in the middle of the ocean and all, but at least here she wouldn't be as restrained in her moves. While she was pretty sure he overpowered her in terms of sheer physical strength, she was faster. That was her only advantage in a fight where he had two katanas and she had a fucking fork.
I'm so, so dead.
"Drop your "weapon", Khadija," he ordered, his voice dripping with sarcasm, and it only infuriated her more, "and I won't have to hurt you."
Yeah, totally credible from a pirate with two swords and a terrifying smile. This guy totally underestimated her, and even though it was quite justified considering the position she was in, it was now a challenge. The fear was gone, replaced by determination. She would show him what she could do with her "weapon".
"Why, scared of a fork?"
His smile broadened and he raised his swords a bit more.
"Oi, Zoro! Don't you dare damage the Merry again!" the guy from the crow's nest yelled. Her mate barely tilted his head in acknowledgement.
Never mind, everybody on this ship thought it was normal for their crew mate to kill a kidnapped girl. They were pirates after all.
There was no warning before he lunged at her, and Kahli dodged, using the railing for support. It was fine, the swaying was not what she was used to, but she could work with it. She dodged and dodged again, never once trying to attack. The moment she would come in contact with him had to be perfectly calculated: as long as she was out of reach everything would be fine -she wasn't one of the most infamous assassins of the Rebellion for nothing after all-, but as soon as she attacked, he could easily get a hold of her.
Don't mess this up, you don't have the advantage of surprise this time.
She saw from the corner of the eye that the cook had come out of the galley and was carefully watching them. She still didn't know if he would help her, but probably not if she killed her crew mate.
She had to admit, her mate was good. It was easy to blame the drugs when they had "fought" on their first encounter, but even now in a lucid state, he was keeping her on her toes. But hopefully he would tire before her.
Like now.
This time, when Zoro swung at her she caught the blade between the tines of the fork, and followed the movement, flipping the fork and pinning the katana to the floor. She took advantage of the surprise and kicked his other wrist, sending the second katana gliding on the floor.
Now she didn't have a fork anymore but he didn't have his swords either, and she wouldn't give him the time to get them back. She punched him hard in the solar plexus and winced when he got her in the guts. A kick below the knees sent him on the floor but he quickly got back on his feet.
This wasn't going to be easy.
"Whoaaa, Zoro! She is good!" a newcomer with a straw hat yelled, and her mate grimaced.
Judging by their flag, this guy was the captain, and he had a hundred million berries on his head if she recalled correctly. Which meant this was becoming really, really complicated now.
She threw a punch to Zoro's throat, but he caught her wrist and didn't let go, even when she kicked him hard in the side. Instead he grabbed her collar and dragged them across the deck until her lower back met the railing. Suddenly her upper body was dangling over the void.
"Surrender or I swear I'll drop you straight in the sea," he threatened, and she would have been scared if she had something to lose. At least this way they wouldn't find the seal of Spring.
"I'll drag you down with me," she defied, tightening her grip on the front of his shirt, and they glared at each other, daring their mate to call out their bluff. She wasn't taught to surrender.
"I want to play too!" a voice suddenly yelled and Zoro snapped his head so fast she swore she heard his neck crack.
"Gum gum…."
"No wait, Luffy !" her mate shouted in a panicked voice, and she turned her head just in time to see the guy with a straw hat hurtling toward them at full speed, before he sent them flying into the wall. They crashed hard into the wood, and Kahli didn't manage to suppress a cry at the impact.
"I'm going to kill you," the alpha on top of her seethed, and for once it wasn't directed at her.
o
Kahli watched as her left wrist was handcuffed to a metal bar of the bed without saying a word, and maybe she deserved it, but that didn't make her feel better about the fact that she was now completely defenseless against Zoro and his crew-mates.
"Here," her mate said, "now you can't go attack people with a fork."
"You're just pissed that you had a hard time because of an omega with this fork," she replied and he gave her a funny look.
"The fork was a surprise," he said before turning back, gesturing for the cook to get out.
But not the omega part? Kahli frowned.
"You should be careful, this handcuff won't hold me down for long!" she threatened coldly. Zoro only shrugged before closing the door.
Turns out, the handcuff did hold her down for long.
What were they even made of? After trying to break them for fifteen minutes, she resolved to sit on the bed and be ready to kick the shit out of anybody who would come back in this room. If they followed a log pose, the next island should be Red Leaves. She only had to survive ten days until they landed. Then she would escape.
o
"You didn't have to go so hard on her," Sanji said once they were back on deck, and Zoro couldn't believe it.
"I didn't have to go so hard? Did you not see her fight? Hell, she put a knife to your throat!"
When he had entered the galley and saw that, saw the blood on the cook's neck, he had been furious, and even a bit scared. Because he was the one who had brought this threat to the ship. If she hurt one of the crew members, he wouldn't forgive himself.
"She wouldn't have hurt me," the shit-cook shrugged, and it was so typical of him, finding excuses for omegas.
"How would you know?"
"Don't know about you though," he mused, ignoring the question with a long drag from his cigarette, "what did you do for her to hate you like that?"
"I didn't do anything," Zoro huffed, "she's just crazy."
Sanji gave him a nasty side-eye but didn't push.
"Better be careful around her, huh?" he shrugged before walking away, and Zoro had the distinct impression that this was not just advice, but also a warning.
To be continued…
That's it for the first chapter! Please don't hesitate leaving a review (also known as food for the soul), a fav or a follow! If you noticed some grammar mistake, you can also say it in the comments! I happily receive constructive criticism! I think this fic will be about 5-6 chapters long, the next chapter is written so I will post it in a week I think...
Thank you for reading, see you next chapter!