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As a soldier of Germa, they need to be able to communicate with each other with the least risk of being intercepted, that’s what their father said. It’s why they had classes all about learning the secret codes.
Sanji’s favorite was Morse Code. It was one of the few secret codes that he could understand relatively easily. He wasn’t as good as his siblings with everything else, but morse code is the one thing he’s equal with them.
They were not happy about that, so they resorted to making fun of him in the other secret codes that he couldn’t really understand. But he didn’t let them get to him, it wasn’t like he knew what they were talking about.
Besides, the less time he spent trying to defend himself from his brothers meant more time to practice morse code with Mom. She wasn’t as good as him, but he always taught her all the new things he learned.
Sanji would always tap her wrist with a wide grin. Repeating the same sentence every time he visits her.
.. .-.. --- …- . -.-- --- ..-
Mom always smiled warmly after a few seconds of silence. “I love you too, Sanji.” She would say softly before kissing the top of his head.
He would giggle and throw his little arms over her neck, making her lean in to hug him tight as well. A greeting they always shared before he told her about his day.
Sanji woke up with a gasp, it was the third day since Mom was buried. It was the first time he went back to his room to sleep since then. It wasn’t the first time that he woke up because of a nightmare.
He sniffled and sat up slowly, wiping at his damp eyes. He looked out his window and saw the heavy rain falling. It hadn’t rained when Mom left him forever. He wished it did. No one else cried besides him. It would have been nice to have the sky cry with him.
Drip. Drip-drip. Drip.
Sanji numbly looked at the leak in his room. He should probably tell the maids about that.
Drip. Drip. Drip-drip.
He’ll tell them later. First, he had to get ready for breakfast or else Yonji would dump his food out again.
Drip-drip. Drip.
With a trembling gulp, Sanji swallowed down the urge to cry.
“I told you to stop trying to fight them,” Reiju scolded as she cleaned his wounds.
Sanji sniffled and didn’t answer. He stared out the window, letting his sister patch him up. It was raining again.
Drip. Drip-drip. Drip.
“Father is already mad at you for failing classes, he won’t be happy if he sees you injured like that. Germa soldiers are supposed to be indestructible. If you let him see weakness--”
Drip. Drip. Drip-drip.
“--he’ll double your training and classes. Now, you don’t want that, do you?”
Drip-drip. Drip.
“Sanji? Sanji, are you even listening to me?” Reiju asked, annoyed.
The little blond blinked out of it when Reiju snapped her fingers in front of his face. “Huh?”
Reiju frowned and turned to look at where he was staring. “It’s been raining for quite a while now, hm?” She asked, voice strangely soft, the annoyed crease of her eyebrows disappeared.
Sanji nodded wordlessly. For a moment, there was silence between them while Reiju continued to treat him. The dripping never stopped. Slightly irritated, he turned to Reiju. “Do you have a leak here?” He asked quietly, looking around to find the source of the noise inside his sister’s room.
The pink-haired girl raised an eyebrow as she applied a bandage on his cleaned wound. “No?” She answered, unsure, as she too looked around.
“Ah, I must be hearing things.” Sanji hummed. He then thanked Reiju for tending to his injuries and returned to his room to lay on his bed and stare at the ceiling until he fell asleep.
Sanji couldn’t sleep.
Drip. Drip-drip. Drip.
The rain kept falling.
Drip. Drip. Drip-drip.
The water kept dripping.
Drip-drip. Drip.
And his heart was starting to race for no reason.
It was so quiet. Yet so loud. Where was the dripping coming from? Didn’t he tell the maids he had a leak in his room? Did they not fix it?
The loud knocking on his door startled him so much that he let out a yelp.
“Hey failure! Get your lazy ass out here, you’re late!” Niji’s voice sneered from the outside.
Sanji flinched and jumped out of his bed, scrambling for his yellow shirt and bandana. He couldn’t unhear the dripping even as he ran around the room to get ready for the day.
Turns out he didn’t get to sleep at all.
Tap. Tap-tap. Tap.
Tap. Tap. Tap-tap.
Tap-tap. Tap.
Sanji tapped out the dripping pattern he kept hearing for the past few days, completely deaf to the lesson the tutor was teaching them. His eyes were focused on the window where the rain kept falling.
Drip. Drip-drip. Drip.
Tap. Tap-tap. Tap.
Drip. Drip. Drip-drip.
Tap. Tap. Tap-tap.
Drip-drip. Drip.
Tap-tap. Tap.
“Idiot! Stop daydreaming and answer the damn question!”
Sanji jumped up from his seat in surprise, the shock caused him to get hit by a book square in the face because he wasn’t able to dodge. He scowled at the snickering Yonji with all the venom he could muster, only to look away when he caught Reiju’s disapproving glare.
“Now, now, no need to throw books at your brother,” the tutor reprimanded lightly. Ah, she must be new. No one tells the Germa Princes what to do. Well, all the Germa Princes except for Sanji. Apparently.
As expected, Yonji turned to give her a mean look. “I can do whatever I want!” He declared with a scoff.
The tutor opened her mouth to chide his rude behavior, but Sanji decided to save her the headache. And the inevitable body pain she’ll receive if she continues to defy his siblings. They may be children, but they were ruthless. And they were ridiculously strong.
“No, please, it’s okay. Sorry for spacing out, can you please repeat the question?” He mumbled. It was definitely not okay. The book’s spine hit his nose, it hurt really bad. It was a good thing it didn’t bleed, or else Reiju will be mad again.
The tutor looked conflicted, but in the end, she made the right choice and repeated the question.
Sanji’s answer was incorrect. He got another book to the face.
He was thrown into the dungeon.
Why? What did he do wrong? Did he cry too much? Did he bleed too much? Did he take up too much space? Was he too weak? Too stupid? A failure?
Yes, he’s known that from the very start.
He can’t breathe.
Please. Please take it off. Take it off, take it off, take it off--
Sanji let out a strangled noise as he tried and failed to take off the metal mask over and over and over again, to no avail. He tried pleading for help. He tried calling out for his father, for Reiju, for anyone. Yet, no one came.
It was suffocating.
The mask was heavy. The walls were much too close to each other. The bars wouldn’t budge. He’s alone.
He’s alone and it was cold and dark and it was quiet.
Drip. Drip-drip. Drip.
There it was again. The dripping.
Drip. Drip. Drip-drip.
He can hear it.
Drip-drip. Drip.
But what does it mean?
It didn’t stop. Not on the first day Sanji was put in the dungeon. Not on his second day. Not his third, fourth, or even fifth. It only stopped when the rain subsided, but it had been raining non-stop for quite a while now. It was almost maddening. But after one month, Sanji had grown accustomed to it.
He tapped out the pattern, again and again and again, until he realized what it meant.
For years he practiced one secret code. The one he taught his mother how to understand. The one he taught himself how to become better at it. Morse code. Because it was the one thing he’s good at.
One drip for a dot, two consecutive drips for a dash. He held his breath and listened.
Drip. Drip-drip. Drip.
R
Drip. Drip. Drip-drip.
U
Drip-drip. Drip.
N
The realization hit him like a punch in the gut. It sent chills down his spine, causing him to look back and forth to see if there was anything to run from. There was nothing.
But the dripping never stopped.
The rain kept telling him to run.
Run from what? To where? And why?
He took in a shuddering breath and curled up into a ball in the far corner of his cell. It was dark, suffocating, and cold. It was quiet.
Still, the rain never stopped dripping.
Run, it said.
Sanji has never been more afraid than that very moment. Clueless and lost.
When his brothers found out where he was, he suddenly understood why he needed to run. He understood what-- who he was supposed to run from.
It wasn’t until they traveled to East Blue that he knew where to run to.
“ Run !” His sister yelled. “Don’t ever come back!”
Sanji cried as he ran as fast as he could, intending to keep his untold promise to her. He will never return.
In the Orbit, the dripping finally stopped. Sanji felt calm again. He felt safe. Happy, even.
He still couldn’t figure out why or how the rain told him to run, but he didn’t let himself dwell on it. That is, until the dripping started again.
For two years, Sanji lived happily. He wasn’t pleased about the fact that his peace was being threatened. He chalked it up to fear. He must be hearing things, his brain was too afraid to finally settle down and have a normal life so it’s making things up.
He ignored the dripping. Only to realize he shouldn’t have done that. Now he was trapped on a rock with a filthy pirate with too little food. He was going to die.
No! No. He was not going to die here. He ran away from that hell so he could be free, he won’t let some dumb rocky island kill him just like that. He will survive, and he’ll show the world how he’s too stubborn to die. He still needed to find All Blue, he still needed to become a real chef, he has so much to live for.
Sanji swore under his breath, as he trembled with hunger, the moment he got off his island, he would run. He would run as far as the rain told him to. He will trust it, because it seemed to be the only thing that wanted him to live.
The rain didn’t tell him to run. So he stayed.
He helped Zeff build the floating restaurant, he learned how to cook, he learned how to fight, he learned how to serve, learned how to love, he learned everything from the old geezer.
For the first few years, he was twitchy and jumpy. Zeff thought it was trauma from almost starving to death, well, he wasn’t wrong. For the most part. Sanji was simply afraid.
Every time it rained, he listened. And every time he listened, the rain never told him to run.
The paranoia eventually disappeared as he grew up in Baratie with the head-strong fighting cooks. Nine years have passed and the rain never once told him to run, so he finally relaxed. He thought the floating restaurant was where he belonged, as he seemed to be safer and happier there. But he was wrong.
One day, a rubber boy crashed into Baratie and decided to pull Sanji into an adventure without his permission. He couldn’t say he hated it, to be honest, it was the best decision he had ever made.
To run away with Luffy. To join a pirate crew and pursue his dream of finding the All Blue.
But all good things come to an end.
He really should have known better than to let his guard down.
Before Bege and Pekoms arrived in Zou, it rained.
Drip. Drip-drip. Drip.
Drip. Drip. Drip-drip.
Drip-drip. Drip.
When he heard it, Sanji felt like a cold hand squeezed his heart. He was in the middle of preparing dinner, he had almost chopped off his fingers in shock.
It had been years since he heard that pattern.
Run.
He didn’t know why the rain only decided to warn him now of all times. He was struck by lightning twice, he faced against an ancient giant and almost died to a Warlord (three times), he stormed a World Government territory for a crewmate, he was sent to an Okama Island for two years, he almost died in Fishman Island more than once, he’s broken his bones and escaped death multiple times already as a Strawhat and the rain only tells him to run now?
Sanji knew he swore that he would run if the rain told him, but he couldn’t do that. Not now. He had his nakama to protect. Luffy trusted him to get them to Zou safe and sound. His captain expects to see them all intact on this island.
If he needed to run, that meant something dangerous was going to happen, and he'd be damned if he let anything harm his crew. He will stay and protect them, because they would do the same for him.
In the end, he broke two promises.
One, he stayed. Two, he returned.
He couldn’t look Reiju in the eyes when she greeted him. He could feel her disappointment from a mile away. He was ashamed, but he was also glad. Nothing bad happened to his nakama.
It was better this way.
Pudding was a sweet girl. She was perfect. But Sanji wasn’t the one for her. He can never love her as much as he loves traveling the world with his nakama. And that’s unfair to her. She deserves all the love in the world.
This remained true, even as he listened to her talk about him in such a degrading way. She hated him. And that’s understandable. It hurts, but he’s used to rejection.
It rained as he leaned back on the wall, listening. Hurting.
Run.
He doesn’t have a place to run to. Not anymore. Not after what he did to Luffy.
Run.
He can’t. Where will he go? Who will accept him?
Run.
He’s lost. He lost. There was nothing for him anywhere.
“I’ll be here waiting! Sanji! I CAN’T BECOME THE PIRATE KING WITHOUT YOU!”
With a final decision, he ran.
He wanted to go back.
Back to Sunny. Back to his nakama. Back to his captain. Back to his home.
Sanji has never run so fast in his life. The rain poured heavily as he ran to the field where his captain would be waiting, probably hungry. He held the basket of food in his hand tightly and he ran, intent on feeding that black-hole of a man for probably the last time.
When Luffy punched him in the face, all traces of doubt and fear left him.
He had felt too ashamed to return, but Luffy made sure that he knew he was welcome, and needed. And loved.
Sanji had run all his life.
He was always running away. But for the first time, he wanted to run forward.
Everyone on the crew was always running forward, chasing their dreams. It was time for Sanji to finally let go of the past and run with them without something holding him back.
The rain kept falling. The water kept dripping. With the same word echoing over and over again.
Run.
So he will.
But now, Sanji knew where he was headed.
And it was definitely not back to where he started.