One Piece Storybook: The Little Mermaid, Section IX
Title: One Piece Storybook-The Little Mermaid (In which I join with the mer!Sanji trend)
Fandom: One Piece
Pairing: Zoro x Sanji
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: One Piece, The Little Mermaid, and their characters do not belong to me.
A/N: *sigh* Almost done. One more part to go!
IX.
While the next several days of wedding plans went by like a blur to Prince Zoro, they felt long and hellish to Sanji. The two men were almost constantly kept apart, so that the prince could be properly measured and fitted and prodded and bothered. Sanji’s presence would only serve as a distraction. He ended up spending most of the time in his room where Luffy tried, in vain, to comfort him.
The significance of this turn of events had not been lost on the seagull. As soon as the wedding was announced, he’d hurriedly passed the message on to every creature he came in contact with, until it reached Chopper and Franky. With this news, their concern for Sanji grew with each passing day, until it was the third and final week, and they sadly abandoned any hope of seeing their friend-as something other than sea foam-ever again.
On the fourth day of the third week, the waters of All Blue were extremely violent, for King Zeff was in a considerably foul mood. The search party he’d sent out to scour the seas for his son had returned with absolutely nothing. He was furious, though not at the search party and not at his son. He was furious at himself. He regretted the angry way he’d tossed Sanji out and then forced himself to forget about the boy’s existence for many days. Now he was gone, and dinner was awful, because his daughters made horrible cooks. He didn’t know what to do.
But his daughters did. All it took was a gentle coo of, “Chopper, Franky, could we have a word with you?” and the two instantly burst into tears, crying something about legs and sea foam, which wasn’t terribly helpful. But when they led the three girls to the sea witch’s lair, everything became frighteningly clear.
“No.”
“‘No’?” Nami frowned at the sea witch, warily eyeing her tentacles. “What do you mean, ‘no’?”
“I mean,” Kureha started, while rummaging around for a new bottle, “no, there is not a way to call off the potion’s spell. Your brother knew that when he agreed to it, so leave him to whatever his fate may be, and move on.”
“But you don’t understand,” Vivi said. “The prince is getting married! Sanji doesn’t have a chance now!”
“There must be something a witch of your caliber could do for him,” Robin implored.
Kureha grinned when she found a bottle, uncorking it and taking a swig. When she lowered it from her mouth, she looked thoughtfully at the three girls.
“Well…I suppose there is something I can do. But I require payment.”
Nami’s expression darkened at that.
“How much?”
“No, no, I don’t want money.”
The money-loving princess smiled with relief.
“But I will take all your hair.”
“What?!”
“Yes,” Kureha affirmed, nodding decidedly. “You see, I’m not as young as I look. But if I have the hair of you three, I will always look beautiful. So, do we have a deal?”
Nami and Robin hesitated, but would have agreed, for they loved their brother very much. But Vivi, though she was sometimes clumsy and too kind, was a clever mermaid.
“Oh, but the hair you have now is already so luxurious! And it looks so silky soft, as well!”
Kureha reached up to run her fingers through her hair and muttered, “It is quite soft, now that you mention it… You really think it’s luxurious?”
“Oh, yes,” Vivi nodded quickly. “It’s very beautiful! You don’t look a day over twenty!”
Kureha leaned her head back and cackled heartily. She lifted her bottle and pointed it at the blue-haired princess.
“You know what? I like you. All right, you can all keep your hair.”
Nami cheered and Robin gave her young sister a grateful smile.
“So let’s talk cash.”
Nami’s expression turned cold as ice and Vivi, squeaking in fear, hid behind Robin. She could only hope that saving Sanji would delay the receiving of her sister’s wrath.
Prince Zoro, ignoring the sound of Usopp calling after him, made a swift escape from the marriage madness, climbing over the castle walls and heading down to the beach. He just had to get away. It seemed like he never had a moment alone. There was always something to be done. His suit had to be made, the flowers had to be bought, the cake had to be made, the invitations had to be approved; everyone was asking for his input, for his advice. He didn’t want any part in it. He didn’t even want to be married. But what could he do? He had to ascend to the throne at some point, after all, and he didn’t have an excuse for not marrying the princess Tashigi. At least, he didn’t have an excuse that would be accepted.
He’d been so busy that he hadn’t trained in days, and it seemed like it had been forever since he spent time with his silent companion. So he couldn’t help the small smile that graced his face when he saw the other man walking along the shore, in the same spot he’d first met him, two weeks ago.
“Oi!” He called in greeting as he picked up his pace, just a little bit, and came to stand beside him. “What are you doing out here?”
Sanji shrugged and gestured to the sea. He’d come to the shore, hoping that Chopper and Franky would show up. He hadn’t seen them in such a long time. Zoro looked out at the water and didn’t say anything for a while. When he did speak, his voice was a quiet rumble, very different from the somewhat gruff and straightforward way he usually talked.
“I fell overboard once, during a storm. The water was crazy and I got disoriented…almost drowned. Someone saved me.” He stopped when he noticed his friend’s body go very tense. “What’s wrong?” He shook his head, and after a pause, Zoro went on. “I don’t know who it was, though. I was unconscious. When I started to come to, there was this pain in my chest, and I figured I’d died… But then I heard this voice saying, ‘Shitty marimo’.”
Sanji jerked a bit with restrained laughter, but managed to sober up quickly.
“I don’t know what that was supposed to mean. When I sat up and looked, there was no one there.” He stopped talking and fell into silence once more. After a few minutes, he sighed and ran a hand through his hair, aggravated. “I don’t know why I told you that. It wasn’t what I wanted to say.”
Sanji’s eyes widened a bit when Zoro turned his head to look at him, his eyes dark and searching. The moment felt far too serious for Sanji, so he kicked him.
Usopp came for Zoro eventually, and Sanji was left alone on the beach. He didn’t know what to make of what the prince had said. He was pleased that Zoro had remembered his voice, though he wished he’d said something other than “shitty marimo”, which wasn’t all that romantic.
More than anything, he wanted to know what Zoro had wanted to say.
He was sitting on the shore, letting the waves wash over his bare feet, when three very beautiful, very familiar figures broke the water’s surface.
“Sanji!” His sisters’ voices sounded like the loveliest music in his ears, his face lighting up with pure joy at the sight of them.
He opened his mouth to speak to them, but his brow creased in frustration when he remembered he couldn’t.
“It’s okay, Sanji,” Vivi soothed. “We know you’re happy to see us.”
“We have something for you,” Robin said, holding her hands out from underneath the water to hand him something wrapped in seaweed.
Carefully-since any gift from his sisters was precious-Sanji folded back the seaweed wrapping to see a shiny, gem-encrusted dagger.
“It’s a magic dagger from the sea witch,” Nami explained. “You can turn back into a merman, return to the sea and stay with us again, if-if…”
“If you use it to kill the prince,” Robin finished solemnly.
Sanji’s heart almost stopped. Vivi looked at him sadly and reached out to place her hand over his, comfortingly.
“We know you love him, Sanji, but please, consider it, at least. We don’t want to lose you for nothing.”
Sanji nodded and, after receiving sweet kisses on his cheek, watched as the three sparkling fins disappeared under the water.
Sanji kept the dagger hidden beneath his bed and on the night before the wedding-after seeing Zoro only twice by that time and not getting any closer to being kissed by him-he took it out and tucked it into his pocket, before making his way, sneakily, to the prince’s room. He opened the door slowly and, finding Zoro asleep on his bed, entered the bedchamber, bare feet making close to no noise on the floor. He paused when he reached the edge of the bed, unsure of his next move. He reached into his pocket, felt out the hilt of the dagger, hesitated a moment or two, and finally pulled it out. Using the flexibility and balance he’d gotten with his human legs, he managed to climb onto the bed, knees on either side of the prince’s waist, while still managing to keep from actually touching Zoro’s body. He gripped the dagger, pointed it down at the prince’s chest, and…and…didn’t do anything. He couldn’t do anything. He knew, when he accepted the potion, that there was a very good chance Zoro might not have fallen for him. He had taken that chance, and he wasn’t going to punish Zoro for something he decided all on his own.
Blinking back the annoyingly hot and bitter tears that stung at the corners of his eyes, he returned the dagger to his pocket and made a move to climb off-but there were suddenly strong hands holding him in place.
“What are you doing?”
Sanji stared down at him, eyes wide with surprise, and the embarrassment of getting caught making his face flush. Zoro’s stare was hard, but also confused, and he looked like he was actually waiting for an answer, even though Sanji couldn’t give him one. He moved his hands up Sanji’s arms, over his shoulders and up his neck, to touch the blond hair that fell around his face. Sanji felt his entire body go warm and he jerked away from the touch on instinct, jumped off the bed, heedless of the “wait!” that sounded after him as he went, running through the corridors, running, running, until his feet touched sand, and he gripped the sand in his hands angrily, yelling without words, without sound, as the sun started to slowly rise.
Fandom: One Piece
Pairing: Zoro x Sanji
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: One Piece, The Little Mermaid, and their characters do not belong to me.
A/N: *sigh* Almost done. One more part to go!
IX.
While the next several days of wedding plans went by like a blur to Prince Zoro, they felt long and hellish to Sanji. The two men were almost constantly kept apart, so that the prince could be properly measured and fitted and prodded and bothered. Sanji’s presence would only serve as a distraction. He ended up spending most of the time in his room where Luffy tried, in vain, to comfort him.
The significance of this turn of events had not been lost on the seagull. As soon as the wedding was announced, he’d hurriedly passed the message on to every creature he came in contact with, until it reached Chopper and Franky. With this news, their concern for Sanji grew with each passing day, until it was the third and final week, and they sadly abandoned any hope of seeing their friend-as something other than sea foam-ever again.
On the fourth day of the third week, the waters of All Blue were extremely violent, for King Zeff was in a considerably foul mood. The search party he’d sent out to scour the seas for his son had returned with absolutely nothing. He was furious, though not at the search party and not at his son. He was furious at himself. He regretted the angry way he’d tossed Sanji out and then forced himself to forget about the boy’s existence for many days. Now he was gone, and dinner was awful, because his daughters made horrible cooks. He didn’t know what to do.
But his daughters did. All it took was a gentle coo of, “Chopper, Franky, could we have a word with you?” and the two instantly burst into tears, crying something about legs and sea foam, which wasn’t terribly helpful. But when they led the three girls to the sea witch’s lair, everything became frighteningly clear.
“No.”
“‘No’?” Nami frowned at the sea witch, warily eyeing her tentacles. “What do you mean, ‘no’?”
“I mean,” Kureha started, while rummaging around for a new bottle, “no, there is not a way to call off the potion’s spell. Your brother knew that when he agreed to it, so leave him to whatever his fate may be, and move on.”
“But you don’t understand,” Vivi said. “The prince is getting married! Sanji doesn’t have a chance now!”
“There must be something a witch of your caliber could do for him,” Robin implored.
Kureha grinned when she found a bottle, uncorking it and taking a swig. When she lowered it from her mouth, she looked thoughtfully at the three girls.
“Well…I suppose there is something I can do. But I require payment.”
Nami’s expression darkened at that.
“How much?”
“No, no, I don’t want money.”
The money-loving princess smiled with relief.
“But I will take all your hair.”
“What?!”
“Yes,” Kureha affirmed, nodding decidedly. “You see, I’m not as young as I look. But if I have the hair of you three, I will always look beautiful. So, do we have a deal?”
Nami and Robin hesitated, but would have agreed, for they loved their brother very much. But Vivi, though she was sometimes clumsy and too kind, was a clever mermaid.
“Oh, but the hair you have now is already so luxurious! And it looks so silky soft, as well!”
Kureha reached up to run her fingers through her hair and muttered, “It is quite soft, now that you mention it… You really think it’s luxurious?”
“Oh, yes,” Vivi nodded quickly. “It’s very beautiful! You don’t look a day over twenty!”
Kureha leaned her head back and cackled heartily. She lifted her bottle and pointed it at the blue-haired princess.
“You know what? I like you. All right, you can all keep your hair.”
Nami cheered and Robin gave her young sister a grateful smile.
“So let’s talk cash.”
Nami’s expression turned cold as ice and Vivi, squeaking in fear, hid behind Robin. She could only hope that saving Sanji would delay the receiving of her sister’s wrath.
Prince Zoro, ignoring the sound of Usopp calling after him, made a swift escape from the marriage madness, climbing over the castle walls and heading down to the beach. He just had to get away. It seemed like he never had a moment alone. There was always something to be done. His suit had to be made, the flowers had to be bought, the cake had to be made, the invitations had to be approved; everyone was asking for his input, for his advice. He didn’t want any part in it. He didn’t even want to be married. But what could he do? He had to ascend to the throne at some point, after all, and he didn’t have an excuse for not marrying the princess Tashigi. At least, he didn’t have an excuse that would be accepted.
He’d been so busy that he hadn’t trained in days, and it seemed like it had been forever since he spent time with his silent companion. So he couldn’t help the small smile that graced his face when he saw the other man walking along the shore, in the same spot he’d first met him, two weeks ago.
“Oi!” He called in greeting as he picked up his pace, just a little bit, and came to stand beside him. “What are you doing out here?”
Sanji shrugged and gestured to the sea. He’d come to the shore, hoping that Chopper and Franky would show up. He hadn’t seen them in such a long time. Zoro looked out at the water and didn’t say anything for a while. When he did speak, his voice was a quiet rumble, very different from the somewhat gruff and straightforward way he usually talked.
“I fell overboard once, during a storm. The water was crazy and I got disoriented…almost drowned. Someone saved me.” He stopped when he noticed his friend’s body go very tense. “What’s wrong?” He shook his head, and after a pause, Zoro went on. “I don’t know who it was, though. I was unconscious. When I started to come to, there was this pain in my chest, and I figured I’d died… But then I heard this voice saying, ‘Shitty marimo’.”
Sanji jerked a bit with restrained laughter, but managed to sober up quickly.
“I don’t know what that was supposed to mean. When I sat up and looked, there was no one there.” He stopped talking and fell into silence once more. After a few minutes, he sighed and ran a hand through his hair, aggravated. “I don’t know why I told you that. It wasn’t what I wanted to say.”
Sanji’s eyes widened a bit when Zoro turned his head to look at him, his eyes dark and searching. The moment felt far too serious for Sanji, so he kicked him.
Usopp came for Zoro eventually, and Sanji was left alone on the beach. He didn’t know what to make of what the prince had said. He was pleased that Zoro had remembered his voice, though he wished he’d said something other than “shitty marimo”, which wasn’t all that romantic.
More than anything, he wanted to know what Zoro had wanted to say.
He was sitting on the shore, letting the waves wash over his bare feet, when three very beautiful, very familiar figures broke the water’s surface.
“Sanji!” His sisters’ voices sounded like the loveliest music in his ears, his face lighting up with pure joy at the sight of them.
He opened his mouth to speak to them, but his brow creased in frustration when he remembered he couldn’t.
“It’s okay, Sanji,” Vivi soothed. “We know you’re happy to see us.”
“We have something for you,” Robin said, holding her hands out from underneath the water to hand him something wrapped in seaweed.
Carefully-since any gift from his sisters was precious-Sanji folded back the seaweed wrapping to see a shiny, gem-encrusted dagger.
“It’s a magic dagger from the sea witch,” Nami explained. “You can turn back into a merman, return to the sea and stay with us again, if-if…”
“If you use it to kill the prince,” Robin finished solemnly.
Sanji’s heart almost stopped. Vivi looked at him sadly and reached out to place her hand over his, comfortingly.
“We know you love him, Sanji, but please, consider it, at least. We don’t want to lose you for nothing.”
Sanji nodded and, after receiving sweet kisses on his cheek, watched as the three sparkling fins disappeared under the water.
Sanji kept the dagger hidden beneath his bed and on the night before the wedding-after seeing Zoro only twice by that time and not getting any closer to being kissed by him-he took it out and tucked it into his pocket, before making his way, sneakily, to the prince’s room. He opened the door slowly and, finding Zoro asleep on his bed, entered the bedchamber, bare feet making close to no noise on the floor. He paused when he reached the edge of the bed, unsure of his next move. He reached into his pocket, felt out the hilt of the dagger, hesitated a moment or two, and finally pulled it out. Using the flexibility and balance he’d gotten with his human legs, he managed to climb onto the bed, knees on either side of the prince’s waist, while still managing to keep from actually touching Zoro’s body. He gripped the dagger, pointed it down at the prince’s chest, and…and…didn’t do anything. He couldn’t do anything. He knew, when he accepted the potion, that there was a very good chance Zoro might not have fallen for him. He had taken that chance, and he wasn’t going to punish Zoro for something he decided all on his own.
Blinking back the annoyingly hot and bitter tears that stung at the corners of his eyes, he returned the dagger to his pocket and made a move to climb off-but there were suddenly strong hands holding him in place.
“What are you doing?”
Sanji stared down at him, eyes wide with surprise, and the embarrassment of getting caught making his face flush. Zoro’s stare was hard, but also confused, and he looked like he was actually waiting for an answer, even though Sanji couldn’t give him one. He moved his hands up Sanji’s arms, over his shoulders and up his neck, to touch the blond hair that fell around his face. Sanji felt his entire body go warm and he jerked away from the touch on instinct, jumped off the bed, heedless of the “wait!” that sounded after him as he went, running through the corridors, running, running, until his feet touched sand, and he gripped the sand in his hands angrily, yelling without words, without sound, as the sun started to slowly rise.