Chapter Text
When Zoro woke up the first thing that made itself known was the pounding feeling in his head. As soon as he opened his eye, he shut it again. Groaning to himself, he put his hands over his face and sighed. It wasn’t often he got a hangover due to his usual alcohol tolerance. He’d never admit it to the doctor’s face, but he should’ve listened to him.
He opened his eye again and looked over to the other side of the bed. The cook lay there, turned away from him. Suddenly the memories of the night before came flooding back and Zoro had to restrain himself from groaning again.
The blonde was such an anomaly sometimes. Yes, the two understand each other on a deeper level than what people would usually assume.. but when it comes to situations like what happened last night? Zoro was lost.
He sat up and swung himself over the side of the bed, shivering once making contact with the cold floor. He tugged on his boots and attached his swords to his side before turning around. Giving the other man one last look to make sure he was asleep before heading out of their bedroom.
This pounding headache was really getting on his nerves. While yes, he could just plow through and ignore it all day.. he didn’t want to. So, he made his way over to where Chopper’s room should be.
After wandering around for a bit he opened the door to find he’d walked into the kitchen instead.
“What…” He looked around, confused. When focusing on what was going on inside the kitchen though he saw a figure moving around. Hey, wait! Something was eating their food!!
He stepped inside and as his eyes adjusted to the unlit room it was made clear to him what was really going on.
Zoro’s eyes widened as he ran up to the younger man. “Luffy?! You can’t eat all that, we need a non-poisoned supply of food!!”
“Oh, Zoro!” Luffy turned his head, focusing on the swordsman rather than the crate of fruit in front of him. He stood up and pulled Zoro closer with a stretchy arm and shook his head with a smirk. “Zoro… me? eating all the food? Why would you think such a thing?”
Zoro narrowed his eyes and ignored his worsening headache. “I know your appetite. There’s a reason for the lock Franky put on the fridge.”
Luffy’s expression fell, remembering the lock on the Sunny’s fridge, his over exaggerated frown was quickly replaced by another playful smile though. “I really wish I had some bacon right now… but I just ate a few apples. Don’t worry Zoro, I won’t let you get poisoned again!”
Zoro held back a smile. Their captain was a lot smarter than people give him credit for. “Don’t need to worry about me. Just saying, cook’s not gonna be happy if he sees you’ve eaten our supply of food. Actually, I won’t be too happy either. Don’t really wanna eat the poisoned food again.”
Luffy detached himself from the swordsman to go put the top of the crate back on. “Oh, yeah! How are things between you and Sanji?”
Zoro’s headache made itself very apparent again. “Let’s not talk about me and him right now.”
Luffy kicked the top of the crate to make sure the lid was back on. He turned back around, a serious glint in his eye despite the smile still on his face. “This is a tricky situation for both of you, y’know. Go easy on eachother.”
The swordsman, funnily enough, felt a little lost. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Luffy shook his head. “You two need to talk it out. I can't give you all the answers.”
Zoro wasn’t completely certain how he and the cook would talk it out. Whatever “it” was anyway, but if Luffy believes in him he’ll hopefully be able to figure this all out.
Seemingly done with the current subject matter, his captain switched the topic. “Zoro… did you get lost again?” Luffy’s playful smile was back. He poked the swordsman on the forehead in between his eyebrows. “Do you need help getting where you need to go?”
Zoro grumbled and pushed his captain’s hand off. “…I was going to find Chopper… I have a hangover.”
Luffy blinked at him. “You? A hangover? Weird… well okay!” He slapped the swordsman on the back and began to lead him out of the kitchen. “Let’s go find Chopper!”
______
The swordsman didn’t see Sanji again until breakfast. The man looked a little less put together than usual and Zoro could tell he most definitely had a hangover too. If that stuff affected him as much as it did, it definitely affected Sanji too.
The crew all sat at the table as the cook placed plate after plate piled high with food at the center of the table. Usopp was currently wrangling Luffy, holding him back from getting any of the bacon he so badly wanted.
Zoro took the more savory options on the table as the cook made his way to his seat in between him and Nami. When the blonde sat down he let his head fall forward, hitting the table with a thud that had Nami eyeing them wearily.
Zoro snorted. He actually had been feeling much better after getting headache medicine from Chopper so getting to make fun of the cook for his lesser alcohol tolerance was currently high on his list of things he wanted to do today. “Hangover?” He asked while smirking.
“Be happy that food isn’t poisoned too.” Sanji grumbled out before sitting back up. Zoro rolled his eyes and went back to his plate, secretly relieved the cook was still choosing to interact with him after the awkward situation they had last night.
Idle small talk was made amongst the crew as they ate and slowly woke up more and more. All was well and it was almost as if they weren’t still on this stupid creepy winter island until one of the princesses' few maids entered the room.
A woman who seemed to be very young despite her job nodded her head at the crew as she entered, seemingly too nervous to make eye contact with any of them. “I- um.. on behalf of the princess I apologize. She has… business to attend to today and can’t be with you all as originally planned.”
The woman waited for a moment and when nobody said anything she nodded her head at them before making her way out.
Zoro and Sanji discreetly gave each other a look. The other crew members were doing the same too.
“I’m a little worried about where the princess always disappears to if I’m being honest.” Nami shared to the table.
Zoro realized then that he might actually know just where she went every day she seemed to disappear. “I think she goes to the basement the days we don’t see her.”
Everyone looked at him confused. “And.. why would she do that?” Nami questioned.
“I’m not sure…” Zoro crossed his arms over his chest. “But… she did tell me not to go down there and she kind of threatened to hurt me if I did.”
“What?!” Sanji’s eyes went wide.
Luffy laughed from his side of the table as he stuffed more food in his mouth. “Hah! She seems strong but I know she can’t hurt you Zoro! You’d think she knew that too!”
The swordsman shook his head.
“Hey…” Luffy had a mischievous glint in his eye now. “Don’t you kind of want to know what’s down there? I think you and Sanji should go look.”
“Why me and the cook?!” Zoro sputtered.
“Actually…” Sanji nudged the swordsman’s side. “I kind of want to know what’s down there to be honest.”
“Well then why should I go too?!” Zoro was definitely not pouting right now. “She threatened me! I don’t want to have to deal with her fighting us because I went down some steps!”
The cook smirked at him and Zoro could almost feel his headache coming back. “If the princess catches us she can just take it out on you and I’ll get away without any repercussions. You can be my human shield, moss ball.”
Zoro kicked him under the table. “Fuck off. You’re strong enough to fight for yourself.” Sanji kicked back with extra force, just proving the swordsman’s point even more.
Nami groaned next to them. “Can you two just shut up?!” She pushed around a strawberry on her plate with her fork and mumbled to herself. “Sanji going along with this fake relationship thing was such a bad idea… I should’ve exposed you two when I had the chance… so annoying…”
Robin sprouted a hand to pat the navigator on the back. “The week will be over soon enough. Just hold out a little longer, navigator.” She smiled across the table at Zoro and Sanji while saying this though, clearly trying to cryptically signal something to them that the swordsman wasn't even going to try to understand.
“Fine, whatever.” Zoro grumbled. “Me and the cook will go down to the basement.. But if the princess comes and kills one of you in your sleep because she found me down there you can’t blame me.”
Despite saying this, if the princess even thought about doing such a thing to any of the crew, Zoro would not hesitate to do whatever was necessary to stop that from happening.
______
As Sanji finished up the last of the dishes, Zoro drying them by his side, he became more and more anxious. Yes, the swordsman seemed to be interacting with him as normal, but whatever it was that happened last night was still never resolved.
Maybe Zoro had too much to drink and forgot about it all? Maybe.. but that doesn’t really sound like him. If anything, that would have happened to Sanji. The cook was surprised he remembered that all anyway, the memories only coming back to him once he saw Zoro sitting at the table before breakfast earlier.
Zoro dried the last plate Sanji handed him and turned to the cook with a sigh. “So, we going to the basement or what?”
Sanji dried off his hands with the towel and slowly realized going down there with Zoro would mean the two would be alone again. Oh no. No no no.
That feeling that had nestled it’s way into Sanji’s body and subconscious mind started trying to creep its way back again. This was a dangerous game he and Zoro were playing. And while he wasn’t sure if the swordsman realized that, he sure did.
The swordsman narrowed his eyes. “What’s wrong with you? Suddenly getting cold feet, cook?”
“Oh fuck off.” Despite being stuck in his own head, biting back an insult at the other man was just second nature at this point.
Zoro was still waiting for an answer and Sanji, not wanting to give him one, just hooked a finger in the man’s haramaki and tugged him along as he headed for the kitchen’s exit.
The swordsman allowed himself to be pulled for only a moment before smacking the cook’s hand away. “I can walk just fine, thank you very much.”
Sanji shoved his hands in his pockets to find his lighter and cigarettes, grumbling to himself as he lit one up. “Whatever. Just didn’t want you to wander off again. Not in the mood to go moss hunting today.”
Zoro flipped off Sanji and despite the other man not being able to see it, he still turned his head and glared afterwards.
They fell into a stilted silence for a while that only brought back the memory of how close to each other the two of them were sitting last night. Okay, no. Sanji couldn’t do silence.
“So..” he blew out smoke as he contemplated how to fill the silence. “Do you remember any reason as to why the princess doesn’t want you to go downstairs? Or did your singular brain cell forget already?”
Zoro pushed on the back of Sanji’s knee with his foot, causing the man to almost fall over. Sanji shot up and spun around red faced. “What the fuck?!”
The swordsman shoved at his shoulder, turning the man back around. “My memory’s just fine. And no, she never told me anything.. just threatened me.”
Sanji grumbled to himself as the two stopped at the top of the steps. He reached down, putting his cigarette out on the bottom of his shoe before pocketing it to throw away later. He looked down the winding steps leading into darkness, then at Zoro.
The swordsman blinked at him before holding out his arms towards the stairs, widening his eye in a kind of ‘you go first’ gesture.
The blonde shook his head and grinned to himself, shoulder checking the swordsman as he made his way past.
Despite just having a cigarette, Sanji felt like he needed another. The silence with Zoro was still just bringing up weird memories and thoughts. “So.. what’d ya think we’ll find down here?” He mused out loud.
“Something i’ll wish I didn’t.” Zoro’s monotone voice drawled.
Sanji chuckled at this, the sound echoing through the deep corridor. As they continued walking in silence though, his thoughts shifted from one kind of bad to another. Deep dark basements were never really his thing, especially after what had happened to him when he was little.
While yes, during Wano he was able to come to terms with and heal from his younger years, this still didn’t snuff out the unease he felt the more they made their way down. Why was he even curious about going down here in the first place?! He should’ve remembered sooner that it’d bring up these kinds of memories.
Zoro seemed to have noticed something somehow because he coughed awkwardly behind him before speaking up. “We don’t have to come down here if you don’t want to y’know.”
While a little part of Sanji’s brain wanted to be annoyed and cuss out the swordsman for suggesting they leave for his sake, the other half of him felt somehow comforted that Zoro even suggested such a thing.
Sanji waved him off, happy the other man couldn’t see the mix of emotions on his face. “I’m fine, moss ball. Don’t need to be worrying about me.”
The two continued on silently, the only thing audible being their steps echoing on the stone staircase and their breathing as they walked.
The staircase continued winding and winding until finally they had made it to the basement. Sanji stopped at the bottom of the steps and stared down the hallway in front of them. It was lit by many small lanterns lining both walls and at the end the hall bisected into two new hallways.
Sanji heard as Zoro made his way down the last step. The swordsman shoulder checked him as he walked past. “C'mon. Let’s figure out what the princess is hiding down here and then leave.”
The two kept shoving at each other as they walked towards the end of the hallway. Zoro pushed past him again to try and turn the corner but Sanji grabbed him by the neck of his shirt, yanking him back. The swordsman whipped towards him, face angry in protest, but Sanji pushed a finger to his lips to shush him before he could yell.
“Look closely.” He pointed at the walls of the hallways and on both sides, transponder snails lined the walls.
The both of them peeked around the corner and Zoro sighed. “Shit. Of course they have security cameras down here.”
Sanji shook his head. “I mean, at least they can’t seem to hear us considering the fact that if they did we already would’ve been caught..” he sighed. “But, if we still wanna explore down here we’re gonna have to find a way around this.”
Zoro let a hand fall on the hilt of Wado. “I can just cut them up.”
“And let Angie get mad at you for destroying her stuff?!” The cook narrowed his eyes. “I thought you didn’t want to cause any problems with her!”
“Ok then what do you suggest, blondie?!”
Sanji ignored the nickname he’d just been called and tried to stop and think instead.
A thought popped into his head but he quickly ignored it. No no no. Well… maybe….
He looked back at Zoro again. “We should go check out everything down here and when someone inevitably comes to stop us we just.. pretend like we didn’t realize where we were.”
The swordsman looked at him like he was stupid. “How is that going to work?” He deadpanned.
Sanji waved a hand at him. “It’s just the vague version of my plan. Don’t worry, it’ll work out in the end. Now anyways, which way should we go first?”
Zoro looked towards both hallways and nodded. “Left is always right.”
He then proceeded to go the opposite direction.
Sanji snagged him by the collar again to tug the man towards what actually was the left hallway, sighing as he did so.
Zoro smacked his hand off and the two made their way down the dark hallway. As soon as they turned the corner though, Sanji put his arm through Zoro’s and leaned in close. The swordsman seemed slightly startled but clearly he didn’t understand his plan. The transponder snail's heads turned back towards where the two men were and they immediately locked on to their movement.
Zoro looked the cook up and down with a confused expression.“What are you doing?” He hissed.
Sanji brought his face a little closer and the other man almost seemed flustered as he did so. “Just pretend like you're too absorbed with looking at me to realize where we are heading.”
Zoro smacked his forehead into Sanji’s so the two were as close as they could be now. This was nothing new though considering they often did the exact same while fighting. The swordsman’s eyes had an almost challenging glint in them though, challenging him to do what Sanji was unsure. “So.” Zoro spoke up. “This is what your genius plan was?”
“Just part of it.” Sanji took joy in seeing the gears turn in the swordsman’s mind as he tried to decipher what the rest of his plan could be. He smirked at the other man, feeling self satisfied. The moment was short lived though because they made it to the large door at the end of the hall.
The cook pulled away ever so slightly and reached blindly for the door handle to lead him and the swordsman inside the room. He shut the door immediately upon entering and breathed a sigh of relief.
He stepped away from Zoro quickly, not wanting the man to get weirded out by him still being so close but also because the room they'd just entered was not what he was expecting. It seemed more a dimly lit large storage closet than a full on room and the walls were lined with, of all things, swords.
Sanji stared in awe at the amount of weapons hanging up. Each sword was unsheathed for some reason but they all sat in their own glass case and each one had a rose incorporated into the design.
Zoro hummed next to him and Sanji turned to gauge his reaction. “Angie said these blades run in the family.” He moved up closer to inspect each case and whistled to himself. “Man. The craftsmanship on these is insane. You think there’s an alarm system in these cases?”
Sanji balked at him. “Are you thinking of stealing one?! I thought you didn’t want to cause any trouble!”
“Nah just…” the swordsman ran his hand along the side of the case, flipping a lock which opened the case easily. He held the sword firmly in his hand, pulling it out to stare at it in all its glory. “Wanted to test one out.”
The cook stood with a hand on his hip and stared unimpressed. “There’s not enough room in here for you to fight with me if that’s what you're proposing.”
Zoro wasn’t listening. He felt around on the hilt of the sword until Sanji heard a clicking sound. Suddenly, somehow, the sword's blade retracted in on itself and just like that it’d disappeared into the part that looked like a rose.
“How did it-“ Sanji cut himself off as Zoro made the sword come back out again.
“Not sure to be honest.” He went to put the sword back in its rightful case and Sanji watched his delicate handling of the object closely. “The princess showed me her sword on the first day we were here. I’ve been curious about it this whole time but I’m honestly not sure she’d tell me more if I asked.”
The swordsman ran his hand down the lower half of the sword, still admiring the craftsmanship and maybe even trying to figure out whatever secret he wanted to know. The moment didn’t last much longer though as he quickly closed the case back up, relatching the front to make it seem hopefully untampered with.
Some odd part of the cook’s brain couldn’t help but make him aware of the fact that the swordsman looked kind of good in the dim light. He had a small, thoughtful kind of smile while studying the sword that had Sanji’s eyes linger there longer. The light sort of accentuated his features too.
Just as he was about to admire- no, look at the way his earrings glinted in the light, Zoro turned back around. Sanji, who frankly did not want to get caught staring just now, instead looked back towards all the swords lining the walls.
God that was weird. He keeps catching himself admiring Zoro in a way that’s less surface level than just sexual attraction. He was just about to begin trying to push away any reason his brain could come up with for why this was, but both men stopped.
Footsteps. A group of people. They weren’t just walking, they were running. The sound was faint and definitely pretty far away right now but this could only mean one thing.
“Shit, they found us already?!” Zoro went to head for the door. “We still have another room to look in!”
Sanji put out a hand to stop him. “Moss head. You still stand by the rules we made when we first agreed to this fake relationship, right?”
The swordsman seemed extremely confused now but nodded, his expression serious.
“Just hear me out here. I think I know a way to get out of this.”
Zoro sighed. “Whatever will keep us from experiencing Angie’s wrath is fine with me.”
“Ok, let’s head out to the hall. Like I said earlier, we’re going to make it seem like we didn’t mean to end up here but you have to promise me you won’t freak out.”
The man rolled his eyes and went for the door handle again. “Funny to think you’d be able to freak me out, cook.”
As soon as Zoro had opened the door Sanji closed in on him. He stepped close and brought his arms to the other’s shoulders to push him back a few steps before turning him and effectively shoving him into the wall.
He was a little bit harsher than originally intended for this specific scenario, but oh well. The look of extreme and utter confusion on Zoro’s face was worth it.
The footsteps on the spiral stairs were getting louder and the transponder snails which previously seemed to have been unattended or turned off whirred back to life. Sanji decided I’d be best for him to explain himself now.
“I think the princess is onto us.” He lied. “There’s a big chance she’s among that group of people running down here right now and if she sees us we need her to believe we truly are a married couple.”
Maybe Sanji was just imagining it but from the way his and Zoro’s chests were pressed together it almost seemed like the swordsman’s heart rate was rapidly increasing. “..meaning?” He uttered.
Sanji smirked mostly to himself in response, a sick giddy feeling planting itself in his stomach.
Despite half of himself denying wanting this and half of himself trying not to feel this feeling for Zoro of all people, Sanji was curious. He was probably just pent up! That was all this feeling was and because that’s all it was he was allowing himself to give in to his sudden desire.
The eyes of the transponder snail on the ceiling locked onto the two men again as Sanji leaned in close to Zoro. The swordsman’s eyes went wide as he was pushed fully against the wall, the blonde closing him in. A red tint began to splotch his tan skin and Sanji couldn’t help but feel even more giddy at the sight.
“What are you doing?” Zoro growled under his breath. His face at first looked sort of angry but Sanji could see something more in his eyes. If only he knew what.
“Don’t worry, I won’t do anything you wouldn’t allow.”
“I’m not worried you’ll do jack shit!” The swordsman hissed.
Sanji huffed a laugh, eyeing the transponder snail that was still locked onto them. “Good. Now sit still and act like you like this. I need whoever’s watching to believe what’s going on.”
Before Zoro could question what that meant, the cook leaned in closer.
He let his lips softly touch, almost practically ghost over the swordsman’s neck and the other man’s breath hitched as he did so. He wasn’t completely sure if this was a good thing, but based on the fact that Zoro hadn’t pushed him off and tried to slice him in half yet it must be okay.
He remembered the rule they set up after all, no kissing on the mouth because that’d be too real. This was a no strings attached stealth mission and kissing Zoro for real would mean he wanted the relationship to be for real too.
Sanji pulled back now to pat the man’s shoulder. “Come on moss, don’t be so stiff. The people are almost here and we need this to be believable!”
Zoro’s face was definitely very very flushed. That much at least was visible in the dim light. He let out a breath he didn’t seem to realize he was holding in and blinked at Sanji. “So that’s what’s going on here. Huh.”
Suddenly, at the same time, both men realized the footsteps were very close now. Just as the cook was about to lean back in though, Zoro grabbed him by the waist and tugged him forward.
Sanji had half the mind to kick Zoro upside the head for pulling him like that but with the adrenaline rush he got from that and just the situation as a whole, he didn’t want to interrupt what was going on right now. He brought a hand up to tangle into the short hair on the back of the swordsman’s head, Zoro’s hands still on his waist as he let his lips ghost the other man’s neck again.
The footsteps made their way closer then stopped completely, half the group of people letting out an affronted noise. Neither Zoro nor Sanji could sense Angie within that group, but the people here right now would definitely be reporting back to her.
Just because he couldn’t help himself, Sanji went to ever so lightly start to suck a mark on the swordsman’s neck. Zoro couldn’t keep down the startled noise he made when Sanji made contact again.
Sanji heard the other man let out a shaky breath again before he turned his head to the crowd. Said crowd consisted of mostly the small number of maids in the castle but Zoro recognized the people from the courtyard there as well. Must be knights or guards in training or something, he wasn’t sure. He gave a glare that would leave the average person trembling in fear as he finally opened his mouth to talk. “What do you want?”
As the cook continued sucking a mark on Zoro’s neck he smirked to himself, pleased by the fact that the swordsman’s voice was a little shaky despite how menacing he was trying to seem. He licked and kissed at the spot, selfishly appreciating his work as a man from the crowd began to speak up.
“This is a sacred area nobody but the princess is allowed in! You two will vacate the premises immediately or the princess will not hesitate to cut you both down!”
Sanji rolled his eyes, leaning back to get a good look at who was speaking but when he got a good look at the person he stopped. Oh. No way. It was that blue haired guy that was getting all close to Zoro in the courtyard a few days ago. Sanji subconsciously tightened his grip on the swordsman’s shoulder, not realizing it until he grunted under his hold.
As the blonde loosened his grip again Zoro regarded the blue hair man with a glare. “We’re busy. Leave us alone.”
The man scoffed and some of the maids gasped. “Fine.” He spat. “But don’t complain if you or your crew don’t make it to see another day.
Sanji was the one to scoff now. Clearly this man was extremely unaware as to what the straw hats were capable of. Both the swordsman and the cook watched as the group angrily stormed back up the steps. Sanji glanced towards the transponder snail’s which seemed to be off now and sighed as he backed away from Zoro. He straightened out his clothes, trying to release all the extra adrenaline from all of what just happened.
“We better hurry up and check that other room before the princess is after us, right moss?”
Sanji awaited a response but none ever came. He turned his head to see Zoro still up against the wall, frankly looking a little shocked. He wasn’t looking at the cook, staring at the floor with his cheeks still flushed.
“Hey.” Sanji walked up to the other man to poke him between his eyebrows. “C’mon you muscle brained idiot. You’re gonna be my human shield, remember?”
He seemed to snap out of whatever trance he was in because he slapped away Sanji’s hand to push past him, simply grumbling under his breath as he made his way forward.
Sanji followed behind him as they made their way across the hall to the other room. With his back turned to some of the transponder snails, neither man noticed when one lone snail’s eyes locked on them again.
When they reached the other door it seemed pretty much the same as the other except for the lock sitting under the door handle. Zoro shoved the door but it didn’t budge so without a thought he sliced the lock in half.
Sanji’s eyes went wide as he realized what Zoro had just done. “You moron! The princess is gonna realize we tried to break into this room now!”
Not one for admitting when the cook was right, Zoro made a displeased sound in response before pushing the door open. As he walked inside Sanji pocketed the broken lock to hide the evidence before following after the swordsman.
Compared to the storage closet of swords though, this room was completely different.
The room was much much larger, seeming to have a lot of wide open empty space. Sanji couldn’t be sure though because most of the room was covered in thick spiky vines. The only part of the floor not covered in vines was a path from the entryway of the room to what looked to be… a well in the middle of the room?
Zoro let out a sound of disgust in front of him and kicked at a vine that he stepped a little too close to. “Ugh. Gross.”
Sanji put his hands in his pockets as he and Zoro made their way to the thing at the center of the room. Sanji did his very best to stay on the little path without vines because frankly, it was grossing him out too. “I hate all this freaky poison flower shit..” he mumbled.
The swordsman made it to the well first and stood on the small step in front of it to get a look inside. When he looked though, all he did in response was let out a shocked, unbelieving laugh. “No way.” He looked back towards Sanji, eyes wide.
Sanji’s interest only increased at this, making his way quickly up to the well go look inside too. What he saw had him taking a step back though.
Inside the well was a cesspool of thorn covered vines and in the middle of it all a man was being held by those vines. The man in question was very clearly dead, he probably had been for a while too by the looks of it and worst of all the vines were eating away at him. They were coming out of his mouth to spread farther and wrap around his arms and it was even coming out from a hole cut in his stomach. His entire body was held tight, being squeezed by these vines as it ate away and cut at his skin. The vines were almost pulsating, looking way more alive than they should. And to wrap a neat little bow on whatever was happening here, right in the center of that slit in the man’s stomach was a rose that had sprouted out from his insides.
Looking even further down to the bottom of the well brought them even more unease as deeper and deeper into the darkness held multiple other bodies, all in varying stages of decay. Despite how freshly killed some of the bodies seemed, each one was still enclosed in vines.
Both men stepped back. Zoro brought a hand to his swords and Sanji pulled out a cigarette to try to calm his nerves.
The swordsman’s face was scrunched up in disgust and his hand tightened around the hilt of Wado. “That’s sick.” He spit with venom in his voice.
Sanji’s hands were shaking a little as he brought the cigarette to his lips. As he took a drag and began to try to focus his energy on calming back down, he realized the loud heartbeat he was hearing in his ears wasn’t his own.
Slowly, almost not wanting to find out whatever this really was, he looked up in front of the well. Mixed with the plethora of other vines snaking through each other on the walls sat a clump of green that was shaped uncannily like a human heart. Worst of all, it was beating.
Silently, the cook pointed up in front of him, dropping his cigarette as he dropped his jaw. Zoro was still too stunned to realize for a moment, but when he did, he looked to Sanji before looking in front of himself as well.
The swordsman’s gasp was the only other thing heard in the room besides that beating heart. Both men watched, stunned, as that disgusting lump kept beating like it was really alive. And to be honest, with everything else they’ve witnessed so far, it probably was.
Now they finally started to notice the footsteps coming from outside again. It only seemed like one person which could only mean one thing, the princess had found out.
Zoro turned to run and when Sanji didn’t follow he grabbed him by the sleeve. “C’mon cook. We gotta go.”
Sanji nodded absently and followed after the swordsman without much thought, still too stunned to make sense of everything.
Once outside the room the swordsman slammed the door shut and pulled Sanji along with him until they reached the wall. Mirroring much of what the cook had done earlier, Zoro closed him in. This time the situation and the closeness of the two didn’t spark anything within Sanji though and from the looks of it, the swordsman didn’t feel anything either.
Both of them just stared at each other. Too shell shocked to get in character for their little facade.
Angie’s footsteps sounded much much closer now and only then did the two come to their senses and realize they had to seem as inconspicuous as possible. Zoro brought his head down to the crook of Sanji’s neck but simply dropped his forehead there, not actually touching him anywhere else.
Sanji reacted without really thinking and brought his arms up around the other man, half realizing this was some kind of weird hug they were doing.
The princess ran into the hallway and only then did Zoro bring his arms up to Sanji’s shoulder’s, pretending to mirror what the cook had done to him earlier. Angie ran until she turned the corner to where the two men stood and stomped up to them looking frankly more angry than either man had ever seen.
“What do you think you’re doing?” She spat.
Sanji mentally shook out all the nerves and brought himself back to the present, pushing off the swordsman ever so slightly to look at Angie. “Our apologies princess, is something wrong?”
She stomped forward until she was right next to the two men. “Don’t play dumb with me, cook. I know why you’re down here.”
Sanji looked around, pretending to just realize where they were. “Oh shit. Our bad. Me and the swordsman were trying to find our way to our room but we were kind of.. caught up in something. I guess I can’t trust my husband to be the one to lead us back to our room, can I?”
Sanji hoped his made up story was convincing enough but Angie’s expression never got any less angry. She reached out for Zoro who was still boxing the cook in and pushed him back. He let himself be pushed, not really wanting to make her any more mad.
“Why can’t you both just stay out of this?!” She yelled. She pulled at her now messy hair and shook her head. “I just wanted to do what I was supposed to and get everything over with but you two showed up and just had to ruin it for me!”
Both men glanced at each other, not fully sure what she was talking about.
“I actually trusted you, cook. I really thought you’d stay out of my business unlike the swordsman. I see now that was foolish to even consider.”
Sanji held up his hands, taking a step closer to Angie to maybe comfort her. She smacked his hand away though, taking a step back.
“None of your crew understands what I’m going through!” She yelled. “If I was a stronger woman I’d have already killed the two of you for poking your nose Into things that don’t involve you! You both crossed a line I set and now neither of you are safe anymore! You brought this on yourself!”
Zoro seemed fed up with this whole song and dance now. He glared at the princess as he spoke. “What’s this big secret purpose you seem to have that you keep refusing to tell us, huh? What’s so important that you repeatedly threaten to kill us over it?!”
Angie opened her mouth to speak but before she could say anything she let out a pained groan. She doubled over, clutching her head and shaking it back and forth, almost toppling over as she did so. “I have a headache. I have to go.” So mumbled out.
She turned to stumble away and Sanji went to follow. “Princess, wait! What’s-“
“Don’t follow me!” She slurred out as she turned the corner.
Both men stood in silence and listened to the sound of her uneven footsteps on the stairs getting quieter and quieter. Only once they couldn’t hear her anymore did they begin to make their way out of the basement as well.
The walk back up the steps was filled with just as much loaded silence as when they were still in the basement. So much had just happened in such a short span of time and both men needed a moment for their brains to even catch up with what was happening.
As they made it up to the main floor, Sanji went to head for the steps up to their room, Zoro turned to go the other way. “Moss.” The cook called for him. “Wrong way. Our room is up here.”
Zoro waved him off and continued to walk away. “I know. Not getting lost this time. I’m going on a walk”
“Oh.” The cook stood there for a moment. “Okay.”
______
Zoro walked at random through the castle until he found a door. He didn’t care where it led to, he just needed to be out of the castle right now. The door he’d exited out of led him to an area with a lot of trees and without any regard for the fact that it was probably still on the princess’s property, he pulled out Wado and began slicing them at random as he walked.
There was so much fucked up shit going on in this island. So much.
The thing weighing on his mind most was what they saw back in that room. Sure, Zoro had seen lots of dead bodies before.. but never one that was killed in such a way as that. A worry tugging at the back of his brain reminded him that the entirety of the time he and Sanji were in that room, he was feeling that pain in his chest again. Sure, it wasn’t as bad as usual, most likely due to the work in progress antidote Chopper had given him, but the pain was still there.
The fact that the pain was still there meant those vines were still inside of him. And from what he’s seen today and the day before, if he doesn’t get this poison out of himself he could end up like those people in the basement.
The puzzle pieces of this whole situation were slowly coming together, though they still didn’t have every piece. What Zoro was suspicious about was basically confirmed true at this point, the people of this island were all trying to poison him and the crew and oddly enough, seemed to be poisoning each other as well.
Angie had something to do with this for sure, but her whole part in this was the most unclear thing about the whole situation.
Zoro sighed to himself as he made it out of the trees and into what seemed to be the beginning of the town. As quickly as he could, he slipped into the area consisting mostly of alleyways and backstreets so as to not draw much attention to himself.
Well, now that he’d processed as much of that whole situation as he physically wanted to right now, there was a whole other thing messing with his mind. What the hell was going on with Sanji??!
That whole stunt the cook pulled with him?? What was that?! I mean yeah, they had to act like a couple, but him going as far as to actually touch him?! Zoro wasn't sure if Sanji just wanted to annoy him or maybe try to embarrass him, but whatever reason it was had Zoro’s chest squeezing for a whole other reason than the fact that he was poisoned.
If the cook continued acting that touchy Zoro wasn’t sure what he'd do.
He stopped walking, now in a random alley. He plopped down, crossed legged in the snow and closed his eyes. Yes, meditating will be a good way to clear his head. He’ll go back to the castle as soon as he centers himself and clears his mind.
______
Sanji watched as Zoro wandered off to wherever he planned on going. He sighed and shook his head, pulling out another cigarette. Whatever, he didn’t care where that idiot was running off to. He turned around to start making his way up the steps as he started to get lost in thought.
Everything they just discovered downstairs was pretty big, all things considered. He didn’t want to freak out the whole crew with what he’d just seen, especially not Nami, (Robin probably would just be curious if anything though.) So it’d probably be best if he just let Luffy know what was going on and see where his captain wanted to go from there.
He passed his room, immediately going for Usopp, Chopper, and Luffy’s. Upon knocking though, Usopp was the only one to open the door. “Oh, Sanji!” He smiled at the blonde. “What brings you to our room?” He opened the door fully as a silent suggestion for him to come in.
Sanji stepped in, nodding at the other man as he walked by. He went to their balcony to crack the doors open ever so slightly, not wanting to trap the smoke smell in a room that wasn't his. “I actually came looking for Luffy… where is he anyway?”
Usopp shivered and went to pick up a blanket from his bed to drape around himself before sitting down on said bed. “Chopper’s been all cooped up in the library recently so Luffy wanted to get him out for some fresh air. Robin is out there too right now i'm pretty sure.”
“You didn’t want to tag along?” Sanji questioned the sniper.
The curly haired man shook his head. “Nah. I'm working on fixing up my slingshot a little.” He reached over and held up the slingshot sitting on his bed.
The blonde hummed in response, looking out towards the snow. He savored his cigarette a little longer until it was down to the filter and the chill of the winter air became too much. He stubbed it out on the snowy balcony’s railing before flicking it over the edge. He closed the doors again and put his hands in his pockets and upon doing so, felt the little sliced up lock he still had in there.
Suddenly a rush of memories came back to him and Usopp just seemed to be observant enough to notice something was up because that's when he started speaking again.
“So.. i’m not Luffy or anything but if you wanna talk i’m always here to listen.”
The two of them sat in silence for a moment, Sanji leaning against the balcony doors and Usopp tinkering with his slingshot while on the bed. The cook didn’t believe for one second that Usopp wanted to know what was up just for the sake of helping a friend out though. He knew full well that him and Nami were extreme gossips. (Though when it’s beautiful lovely Nami it's perfectly okay.)
He crossed his arms over his chest. “Cut to the chase, long nose. What do you want?”
Usopp played innocent, closing his eyes with a confident look. “Oh you know, just wondering how you’re handling this whole fake marriage thing. For no reason at all.. Just wondering how you're doing.”
Sanji was very very suspicious. “...i've been doing fine. Thanks.”
Usopp nodded. “Mhm. mhm. So… have you been inclined to give Zoro a big kiss on the lips lately?”
“WHAT?!” The cook’s eyes went wide as Usopp’s question ran it’s way through his brain again and again. He needed another cigarette.
“Woah woah!” The other man held up his hands in a placating gesture. “I don’t know why you’re freaking out. Zoro is objectively very good looking.. Who wouldn’t have the urge to kiss him at least once, hm?”
Before Sanji could answer, Usopp stopped to mumble to himself. “Well… Nami definitely wouldn’t ever want to kiss him but..”
“Weren't you one of the people watching me and him through the galley door back when this all started? I would've thought you heard us saying no kissing was our one rule.” Sanji was getting a little pissed now. Not because of Usopp really, but more because he did actually sometimes maybe just a little bit want to kiss Zoro. Maybe. Kind of. And after what he did to the other man earlier, the way he got so giddy just sucking a mark on his neck, what would more feel like? He was kind of curious..
Usopp went back to tinkering with his slingshot, seemingly catching onto the cook’s mood. “Just saying..” He spoke a little quieter than before. “There's nothing wrong with having feelings for him, even if this fake relationship is what pushed you to realize that. We all know you’re a womanizing idiot but that doesn’t mean you can’t make room for Zoro in your heart too, right?”
Okay, Usopp definitely heard something he shouldn't have from someone who shouldn't have even said something in the first place.
Sanji pushed off from the balcony doors now, making his way to the door that led him out of the room. “This conversation is over now, long nose. See you later.” He held up a hand to say goodbye while he walked passed.
Usopp waved back with extra vigor, being obviously overdramatic specifically because he realized he ruffled some feathers. “Bye bye Sanji! I’ll miss you!”
The cook grumbled to himself as he closed the door. He liked Usopp but he did not need to hear that from him right now. All he wanted to do originally anyway was tell Luffy about the cesspool of vines and dead bodies in the basement. Whatever. He’d wait until the captain came back inside he supposed.
Once he was back in his room Sanji flopped down onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling with a blank face.
This whole situation was such a mess. He half mindlessly remembered hearing somewhere that fear and arousal can spark the same rush-of-adrenaline type feeling within oneself. Yeah, he guessed that summed up most of what happened in the basement.
He rolled over onto his stomach now, pressing a sigh into the comforter on the bed. Was Angie going to try to kill them for seeing things they shouldn't? Was Zoro going to try to slice him in half for the way he touched him earlier?
Ugh.
Was Zoro mad at him? Is that why he didn’t want to walk back with him? Shit. Oh god. He fucked up, didn’t he? He crossed a boundary and now not only Angie wanted to kill him but Zoro probably did too.
The cook rolled back over on the bed and took the broken lock out of his pocket. He stared at the two pieces, the clean cut that separated the two, and dropped it onto the bed. He stood up, smoothing out his hair and clothes to look as presentable as possible before heading to his door again. What better way to deal with all this stress than by starting on dinner early?
______
Zoro opened his eyes and belatedly realized the sky was significantly darker than it was earlier. After meditating he decided it wouldn’t hurt to nap for a moment but it seems time slipped from him.
Shit. He better get back to the castle. His carelessness might’ve cost him a crew member.
Upon finally seeing the castle in the distance again he finally let out a sigh. Alright, he was here now. He could keep anything Angie tried to do under control. He pushed open the front doors and headed straight for him and the cook’s room. The other man had been here the whole time, so if anything happened he would’ve known. He pushed open the door but ah… this was the kitchen.
The cook turned, eyes wide, and blinked at him. He looked like he’d just been caught doing something he shouldn’t.
Oh. How did Zoro end up in the kitchen? I mean, he was looking for the cook anyway so it didn’t really matter in the end but… and wait, why were the counters covered with-
“What are you doing back here so soon?” The cook questioned him, still looking caught.
Zoro gestured towards the counter space. “What’s with all the onigiri? And hey- I can be here whenever I want!”
Sanji grabbed a plate from the drying rack and put a stack of onigiri on it before shoving it towards the swordsman. “Here, eat.” He looked around at all the rice balls again and sighed before going to put them all away in the castle’s fridge.
The swordsman watched, untouched plate still in hand. Sanji had been stress cooking, hadn’t he? “Is this our dinner for tonight?” He questioned the other man.
He responded without even looking at Zoro. “No, of course not. If I fed you all just rice balls it would not be a very balanced meal.” He turned around now, actually looking at the swordsman while he spoke. “I guess I just got a bit carried away with what I was doing..”
Zoro didn’t say anything more. He didn’t really have anything to say. The silence seemed to bother Sanji though, who shoved at the swordsman’s shoulder and pointed at the plate he’d handed him. “C’mon. Eat.”
He grumbled to himself but didn’t fight back. This was his favorite food after all. As he started eating Sanji seemed to get fidgety again though, he was wiping the counter that was very much clean already.
“Stop that.” Zoro spoke with his mouth still full.
Sanji looked offended but stopped nonetheless. “Why?”
The swordsman narrowed his eyes and swallowed his food. “What’s wrong with you?”
“What?!”
Shit. He didn’t mean to sound so accusatory, he was just genuinely wondering..
He cleared his throat and tried again. “You're all weird.. fidgety. Is it about what we saw in the basement or..?”
Sanji’s eyes flickered to Zoro’s neck for a moment before going back up to his eyes. He hesitated and the swordsman just wished he would explain his odd behavior.
“I mean- yeah.” The cook sighed. “What we saw down there was pretty fucked up. I’ve seen a lot of things in my life but never anything like that.”
Zoro nodded. “I keep thinking about the vines coming out of that guy's stomach. Do you think it’s because of the poisoned food or..”
Something clicked in Sanji’s brain as he smacked a hand down on the table. Zoro popped another rice ball into his mouth as the cook seemed to become more and more worried. “Are you telling me that’s what’s gonna happen to you?! I swear Zoro-“
The swordsman pushed his now empty plate at the cook, trying not to linger on the use of his name. “I’m fine, twirly. I’m stronger than some overgrown plants.” Zoro didn’t feel like mentioning the fact that Chopper had given him that work in progress antidote. If he did tell him, he'd eventually also find out how he shouldn’t have been drinking last night.
Sanji grumbled at him before snatching the plate, heading to the sink to go wash it. “You’re an overgrown plant, you idiot moss.”
Zoro laughed under his breath and watched as Sanji washed the plate before returning it to the drying rack. Something was still bothering the other man though, the tension in the air was still so palpable. Despite knowing this, he waited, not pushing the cook to say something he didn’t want to. If something was bothering him that badly, he would tell him.
He kept staring at Sanji's back as he fidgeted around with the towel again. A beat of silence, and then another, and then one more…
Sanji spun around, brow furrowed and eyes searching. “I overstepped a boundary, didn’t I? You’re mad at me, right? That’s why you left the castle earlier?”
Zoro blinked at him. “..huh?”
Sanji walked away from the sink and back to the island counter where Zoro stood. “Because I gave you a hickey. I know you never specified I wasn’t allowed to do that but we haven’t even been all that physical during this whole thing so I thought-“
The swordsman’s expression stayed stoic but his cheeks were starting to tint red. He wasn’t mad at Sanji but that wouldn't make much sense would it? What excuse could he give?? Because telling him straight up that he didn’t mind, and why he didn't mind, would have the cook kicking him out of the kitchen.
“Be quiet for a second. I'm not mad.”
Sanji’s mouth closed and he blinked at the swordsman.
Zoro brought a hand to rest on Wado, thumbing the hilt as a way to ground himself. “I specifically stated what I did and didn’t want to happen while we're on this island and if I wasn't okay with something you did, I'd make it very clear. I promise.”
He studied the cook’s expression, their eye contact never breaking. He kept looking, searching, until Sanji’s expression softened around the edges and relaxed. Okay, good. He believed him. Having all these talks about feelings with the other man, along with all these other events from the day were starting to wear on him a little though. He’d do what he does best to restore normalcy, annoy the cook.
“Anyways..” He turned to lean his hip against the counter. “You're so shit at everything romance, I could hardly even feel you were touching me.”
Sanji’s expression turned furious in an instant and Zoro couldn’t hide the grin that stretched itself across his face. Despite the island counter between the two, the blonde still grabbed him by the neck of his robe, pulling him in till their foreheads smacked together. “What would you know about romance, you scruffy headed idiot?!”
“A lot more than you would, apparently!” The swordsman’s grin only widened when a smirk began to make its way onto Sanji’s face as well. Zoro brought his hands up to tug at the neck of Sanji’s suit as well.
“You ready to prove that?” Sanji sounded so so smug.
“Are you?”
“I asked you first.”
“What are you implying?” It was Zoro’s turn to sound smug now.
The cook scoffed and opened his mouth to respond but both men stopped, heads turning towards the door as someone knocked on the other side.
Sanji pushed him off and started smoothing out his hair and clothes. “Come in!” He called to whoever was on the other side.
Zoro looked at him, still smirking. “Idiotic horn-dog.”
Sanji stuck out his tongue and shoved at him from across the counter. “Stupid swordsman.”
Said swordsman turned to lean against the counter again, only to belatedly realize it was Angie who was at the door. Oh, great.
She pushed the door open slowly, making her way in almost apprehensively. Surprisingly, she didn’t seem all that mad anymore, Zoro couldn’t be sure though.
“Sorry if I interrupted anything.. again” she cleared her throat and wrung her hands together. “I would like to formally apologize for my behavior earlier today.”
Zoro turned his head to send Sanji a skeptical glance. The blonde merely shrugged, seemingly just as confused with the princess’s sudden attitude switch.
“Well princess,” Sanji spoke up from behind him. “I personally accept your apology. I bet you have very good reasoning for being as mad as you were, even if you feel like you can’t tell us exactly why.”
Zoro rolled his eyes at the sweet tone the cook was using. That same stupid tone he uses when he’s sucking up to any other woman.
“I’m not accepting anything unless you promise you won’t act on all the threats you’ve made.” The swordsman pointed at Angie. “I’m not forgiving someone who still has full intentions of hurting the crew.”
Angie didn’t seem to have a great poker face. Her eyes twitched, eyebrows furrowing for a moment before she quickly recovered. “Yes, of course. Those were empty threats made at a time when I was emotionally vulnerable. But..”
She stopped with her nervous fidgeting now bringing a hand to rest on the hilt of the sword at her hip. “I told you swordsman, don’t go in the basement. You did it anyway despite my warning and then lied about why you were down there and I was pretty clear when you all got here that this island hates liars. Even if I’m not setting out to kill you, your safety here is no longer guaranteed.”
Zoro narrowed his eyes. “And if we leave the island?”
Angie shook her head. “You won’t be able to until the week is up. I wouldn’t even try.”
“Why?”
“Do you really want to find out?”
The two stared at each other. It was completely silent. Despite her earlier fidgeting Angie’s gaze didn’t waver and as much as Zoro was currently expressionless, Angie was too.
There was definitely still something big she wasn’t telling them.
“Anyways, that’s all I have to say.” The princess nodded at them and turned to make her way back out of the room. “Thank you for your time.”
The door closed and the two men sat in a beat of silence before Sanji sighed.
Zoro turned back around to find the cook looking somehow even more disheveled than he had before the princess came into the room. He leaned his arms on the counter to look at Sanji and tried to offer him some hopefully comforting words. “At least she won’t be trying to kill anyone anymore? If the ‘island’ hates liars so much I don’t think she herself would be one.” He said it half for the cook, but half for himself as well.
Sanji ran a hand through his hair, momentarily pushing back his bangs. His hair fell back to normal afterwards but Zoro’s mind lingered on the rare sight of seeing both eyes… and eyebrows, at once.
After a moment more of being stuck in thought, the cook straightened back up and walked over to the castle's fridge. Opening it, he surveyed the ingredients before beginning to pull things out.
Ah, right. The cook had to make dinner. Zoro decided it’d be best for him to quietly make his way out now. As he turned to walk away though, the cook spoke up.
“Get back over here. You’re helping me cook because I’m already behind on preparation.”
Zoro couldn’t help the small smile that made its way onto his face for a moment. Turning back towards Sanji though, he made sure to hide his reaction. He walked over to the sink to wash his hands in preparation, already taught to do so from the few other times he’s helped the cook with dinner prep. As he did this though, he let out a long over dramatic sigh, just to get on the blonde’s nerves.
“If I really have to, I suppose..” he complained.
Sanji looked over at him, unamused, but upon seeing the swordsman’s face he couldn’t help but bark a laugh. “Stop pouting at me, you cactus. I know you don’t have anywhere better to be.”
Zoro grinned at him and dried his hands, stepping a little closer to the cook to receive his first task. Yes, they’d seen some crazy things today. Yes, this entire situation was still a big annoyance…
But these small moments with the cook made it all a little more tolerable. Even if when the week ends the two of them don’t act this way with each other anymore, Zoro will take what he can get while he still can.