A/N Regular text - Story
Italicized text - Thoughts
Chapter 3 - Zoro
Almost 1:30 pm
Of course, Luffy had run off as soon as Nami had been out of sight. I can't believe that witch hasn't learned that rubber idiot will do whatever he wants, and that's that. And what, like she expected me to babysit him? It's as if she doesn't know us at all. Robin was still seated at her usual table with an umbrella, reading that same book she'd been reading for the last few days. The cook had made an ice-cool frufru drink for her sitting to her right, condensation dripping down the side. It must be nice having some chump catering to her every whim. Damn, love-cook didn't ask if I'd like a glass of water, let alone a whole fruity concoction. Not that I need to be waited on, but still, he could ask. Grumbling, I settled against Merry's railing to take a quick nap before the others returned from their various tasks.
I knew immediately that this was no ordinary dream. Usually, I dream of fighting, defeating enemies, and becoming a stronger fighter. I've dreamed of Kuina and my crew in everyday situations. I've dreamed of squaring off against Mihawk, finally defeating him and claiming the title of World's Greatest Swordsman, fulfilling my dream, and finally honoring Kuina's memory.
This dream was not that. It was warm and snuggly. The fuck? Do I even know the word snuggly? I couldn't make out much of the surroundings. Everything was hazy, and the colors were bright and fading into themselves. I made to move in the dream and noticed a slight weight on my arm. Bending my head to the left, bright lilac-colored hair was suddenly tickling my nose, and the smell of daisies was floating around my head. I pulled whoever it was closer and felt all of their curves fit seamlessly against mine. From how we were laying, I'm assuming they would only come up to my shoulder, and from how my arm pulled at her waist, she couldn't have weighed more than 115-120 pounds. I could feel her ribs poking my arms hip against my stomach, letting me know she could use a good meal. Her breaths were deep and even, and everything about it screamed home, safe. I could feel her lips pulled into a small smile, resting softly against my neck, the bottom lip slightly fuller than the top. I wanted to ask questions. Who is she? Where are we? Is this a trick of some kind? But it didn't feel like a trick, and I had never felt so safe. I nuzzled down into her hair and inhaled her vanilla scent. God, has anything ever been this soft, smelled this good? I squeezed her a little, and she let out a sleepy, pleased sigh. The sound made me smile, and I settled down to try and sink deeper into this feeling.
Then, the dream shifted. It was a dizzying shift from the warm salty sea air of Merry's deck. Now, I was sitting in the galley. Confused, I reached to pull the girl closer as if to protect her, only to notice that she was now gone. I looked up from my empty arms, and suddenly the shitty cook was against my front, gripping my white shirt and pulling me into a deep kiss. I gasped into Sanji's mouth out of shock, and he took full advantage, slipping his tongue in to tangle with mine. He tasted like smoke, obviously, but also of sweet blueberries and tart cherries. Probably some frilly desert he was trying. The kiss went on and on, and I wasn't pushing him away for some reason.
Instead, I placed my hands on his narrow waist and pulled him closer. Sanji let out a low moan that caused my brain to almost short-circuit. Holding him like this, I finally noticed how toned his body was. Smaller than mine but still firm and honed to a razor's edge. I also noticed that I was just a few inches taller as he had to stretch to get a good lock with my lips. He'd hate that, considering how competitive we are about everything. It made me smirk into the kiss briefly as I realized I had him beat on something. He seemed to take my smirk as a challenge and reached one hand up into my hair and gave it a good yank, which caused all sorts of pleasant signals to fire across my already scattered mind, and I let out a satisfied grunt. This dream seemed more intense than the previous one. Maybe because I know the cook, I'm not sure, but it still felt right; the word home rang in my ear. I started getting into the kiss when suddenly Sanji's other hand, that wasn't in my hair, slid down my waist to the button of my pants. The second he touched me there, I realized how hard I was, and when his deft fingers slid my zipper down and made to slip inside, I knew the second he touched me, I was going to...
Suddenly, I was kicked awake and flung into Merry's mast. "Wake up, Marimo! Nami is missing!"
I became disoriented, and it took a minute to fully wake up and shake off the rash of hormones still raging through me. I rubbed my head where I'd hit it and tried to fight the embarrassment of being caught having a sex dream and the raging hard-on that was currently flagging but trying to make a comeback. I ran up to him with my hand on Wado's hilt. "You shitty cook, the hell you kicking me for?" I knew my ears and cheeks were probably bright red. I hoped he thought it was anger and not the sudden burst of arousal I had from being right in his face, ignoring how I suddenly noticed how long his eyelashes were.
Sanji blew a quick stream of smoke from his cigarette at my face, "I told you, Nami is missing! Did that bush on your head sprout roots in your ears?" Still fuming, I backed up a few steps and removed my hand from my sword hilt.
"What do you mean she's missing?" The witch probably ditched him to trick the locals at a bar out of their hard-earned money and left him to carry her junk back. Rolling my eyes, I turned fully towards the cook.
Sanji was flushed, his hair mushed, so both his eyes were almost visible. Has he always looked so fuckable? I shook my head so hard my neck cracked as I thought that. That fucking dream got me all out of wack.
"She disappeared like an hour and a half ago." He looked even more distraught as he said, "Some filthy brute must have taken my sweet Nami-swan while I was too distracted to notice the lack of the sun at my side. I haven't seen her since. How could I have been so stupid as not to give that angel my fullest attention?" He sighed dramatically and hung his head—smoke from the cigarette curling past his ears.
"How do you know she was taken and didn't just ditch you?"
His head snapped up, and he looked pissed. "How dare you talk about Nami like that. She is a lady; ladies do not ditch their friends and disappear!"
I need to get laid badly if I'm having fantasies about this dumbass. He's known Nami for how long and still has these ideals about who he thinks she is instead of seeing reality. I must have snorted a slight laugh as he glared harder at me. I motioned with my hand for him to continue.
"I did find this." He said with a huff while bending down to the mound of packages near his feet. He pulled out a slightly crumpled cowboy hat and went to hand it to me when suddenly the smell of flowers and a freaking arm erupted from my elbow.
"Gah! What the hell, Robin? I've asked you not to do that a dozen times!" I rubbed at my arm, trying to chase the numbness that always follows Robin's spontaneous limbs from my arm while grimacing at the spot her arm had been.
"Shitty moss-head." Sanji went to knock me in the head, but I evaded it. "Don't talk to the lovely Robin-chwan like that!"
I noticed that Robin had laid a trail of arms to bring the hat to her. She looked contemplative.
"Sanji. Where did you get this?"
"Oh, my beauty, I found it on the ground. Let me take it so you don't have to dirty your lovely hands with this filth."
He went to take the hat, but Robin wouldn't let go.
"This is something I'd have picked out. Nami said if she saw something she thought I'd like, she'd grab it for me. What are the odds she'd say that, and then you randomly find this on the ground around where you last saw her, I wonder?" She placed the hand not holding the hat, against her left cheek and stared thoughtfully at the beach.
A cold feeling suddenly traveled up my spine. What if Nami was really in danger? She was nowhere near a strong fighter and so delicate. My hand rested on Wado's hilt and tightened until my knuckles turned white. Sure, Nami is irritating and a money-grubbing brat, but she was a member of my crew—part of the only family I'd ever had. If something had happened to her, I would slice this island into slivers.
"Cook, you sure the witch didn't just wander off?" He looked like he wanted to kick me in the head but must have seen my grip on Wado and my suddenly fierce expression because he backed down.
"She would have told me if she was leaving the area. I know she wouldn't have left, and she's not just lost; she's not directionally challenged like some idiot we all know." I scowled in his direction but kept my comments to myself. If Nami was missing, I could understand him taking his worry and frustration out on me.
"Well, what do we do?" I crossed my arms over my chest and looked Sanji in the eye.
He honestly seemed at a loss. I could see the frustration in his eye and his stance. I watched as he quickly ran a hand through his golden hair. The fuck. Golden? Since when is his hair golden?
"Why don't we go to the last place you saw her and go from there?"
"Oh, Robin-chwan, your beautiful brain saves the day again." Really. Even I could have thought of that—idiot cook. Women make him stupid.
The cook went into search mode immediately. Tossing me a key, he said, "Oi moss-head, grab the canteens and bento boxes I prepared out of the fridge. I'll grab the spare packs from the bunk room, and then we'll head out." He turned away from me before I had even said a word. Robin was still glancing toward the beach with the hat clutched tightly in her hand. I imagine not many people have bought her presents in her life. It sucks that the first time someone tried, they go missing. She was still so mysterious and hard to read. Yeah, we'd been through a lot together, but I was no closer to understanding her than when she was just Crocodile's head flunky. But from what I could see, she seemed worried, with that slight crinkle between her eyes, the tenseness of her shoulders, and the flat line of her mouth.
Tentatively, I placed my hand on her shoulder. She jumped at the contact, and her anxious gaze met mine. I offered her what I hoped was a reassuring smile, "Don't worry. We will find her. Even if we have to rip this island to pieces." She didn't smile back or share her thoughts with me, but she did pat my hand gently and nod before moving toward the women's quarters. I'd never been the best at being comforting, but something about watching Robin try to close herself back off had made me want to try.
All this mushy thinking is too much for me. I need a stiff drink and a rough fight. Shaking my head with a short snort, I turned toward the galley door, fully intending to snatch a bottle of ale for the journey. As I walked through, I paused momentarily to stare at the table, remembering how, in my dream, Sanji had pressed me against it and touched me so tenderly. Absentmindedly, I reached up and touched my lips, suddenly lost in thought, remembering how soft his lips had been against mine and how silky that mystery girl's lilac hair had been. I hadn't realized how long I was standing there staring off into space until the door smacked me in the back and sent me flying forward.
"Damnit, what are you doing? Every second we waste standing around is another that Nami is in the clutches of god knows who. Get the stuff, and let's go." He slammed the door behind him and stormed back out to the deck. The lack of poetic nonsense surrounding Nami's name and calling me an idiot put a little more pep in my step, and I quickly unlocked the fridge, grabbed everything, and followed Sanji out. He promptly separated the food into six backpacks.
"Why six?"
"We have to find the others while we are out. I don't know what we might encounter, and I want our full strength if it turns into a fight."
That made sense; we always seem to get involved in something. Glad one of us is learning. God, I hope there's a fight. I need to burn off some of this nonsense energy that has been brewing since we got here.
"What do we do about the ship?" Robin still hadn't moved except to turn to look in our direction.
Sani paused in packing the bags and seemed to contemplate that. "I know the Merry is our home and part of the crew, but ships are replaceable. Nami is not. We need our full strength, and the three of us are some of our crew's strongest. We all go. If we come across Usopp and Chopper, we will send them here to guard and get Merry ready in case we have to make a quick getaway."
The plan seemed sound, and Robin and I grabbed packs; Sanji refused to let her carry more than just her one, so I ended up with three slung over my shoulders. Has he forgotten she can grow more hands?
We hopped down onto the rickety dock and moved toward the beach. Various foot trails disappeared into the town and off into the woods. We headed toward the same path Sanji and Nami had taken that morning. I could hear Sanji and Robin making plans and small talk and must have zoned out thinking about what had happened and what we were setting out to do because I was suddenly aware that I couldn't hear them anymore. Looking up, I realized they were no longer in front of me and that I was in the forest, not the town. Damn. What did they walk off and not tell me? Typical, even at a time like this, they wander off and leave me alone.
Around me, I saw nothing except lush palm trees, a ground littered with fronds, and weird red and blue flowers growing everywhere. Scratching my head, I swiveled about, trying to find a landmark or path that I could use to get back to the cook and Robin. I saw a vague outline of a tower and what looked like a large manor off in the distance. I bet I could get a good vantage point from up there.
I set towards the tower, making sure to keep it in my sights at all times lest it move like the surroundings always seem to do around me. I had made it about three feet when I noticed that the plants around me had slowly begun to change from primarily fronds and ferns to a steady path of just those red and blue flowers. I looked farther down and noticed that the flowers continued in an almost straight shot toward that tower. Huh. Weird.
Smiling, I continued my hand on my sword hilt. This is a path that even an idiot could follow.