Chapter Text
They’re well into the celebration party when Zoro finds himself tripping over a pair of legs.
He’s drunk enough to not care, even when he narrowly avoids falling on his face, but not so far gone as to move on without investigating the obstacle.
Turns out it’s Law, leaning against the giant mast of the Yontamaria with an empty mug and plate beside him as he glares at Zoro balefully.
Zoro squints. “You been here this whole time?”
Law scowls. “No.” He sounds petulant. Also like he’s lying.
Zoro stares for a moment, then checks his mug. He just had a refill so…
Deftly, he sits down on the other man’s right, his back against the sweet-smelling oak of the ship. He realizes his mistake almost immediately—Law’s in his blind spot, and he has to turn his head awkwardly if he wants to look at the guy directly.
Stupid eye. It’s fucking annoying sometimes.
But his Haki is strong enough that he can sense it when the captain glares at him, clearly not interested in socializing. Zoro ignores him, settling in to doze off a bit. It’s weird how much Law reminds him of himself, back before the crew forced affection and lasting social bonds from him. Zoro’s not really the best person to comfort others, and he’s a little too tipsy to want to carry a conversation with anyone, but he knows better than most that it can be nice to have company sometimes, even if it’s silent. The fact that Law hasn’t left yet kind of speaks for itself.
“We should plan for Kaido,” Law says after a moment, gathering his katana across his lap. It’s not the first time Zoro has noticed the quality of the blade, but he’s hit again with a wave of curiosity about it when Kitetsu wails in irritation.
“We’re partying, and we’re missing half our crew and all of yours anyway,” Zoro replies, and tilts his mug up to his mouth. The alcohol is a little sweet for his taste, goes down too easy, but Zoro’s not one to complain, even if he’d prefer sake. “Most of us are drunk, too.”
He even saw Robin drinking earlier, and Zoro can count the number of times she’s imbibed earnestly on one hand.
Law huffs in irritation. “Kaido—”
“We’re going to meet up with Rooster’s crew tomorrow,” Zoro reminds him. “We can talk about it then.”
Zoro hears Law’s glare, but he doesn’t push further. Night has long-since fallen, and the deck is lit mostly with kerosene lamps and fire pits. The atmosphere is warm, still, strangely intimate for a party. It’s even quieted down by now, the low rumble of voices a far cry from the unruly cheers from earlier. The waves rock gently beneath the ship, as if the sea itself is rewarding them with calm.
Yep, Zoro could nap now. Definitely.
And he probably would if he didn’t hear a very familiar voice call his name just then.
“Zooorrroooo!” Lucy calls. Zoro looks up to see her waving from the other side of the deck. Her arm stretches out toward him and Zoro braces himself instinctively.
“Lucy don’t—”
But it’s a bit too late for protest because Lucy’s hand wraps around his shoulder and Zoro feels the recoil pull against him in crisp, clumsy action.
On his left Law swears loudly and shifts over another three feet, but it kind of proves futile when Lucy crashes face-first into the mast behind Zoro and manages to elbow him in the eye just barely manages to clip Law in the head with her heel.
“Ow!” Zoro complains as Lucy rights herself beside him. He hears her giggle, high-pitched and just a little off, and Zoro scowls at her, irritated.
Lucy is sprawled out against him and the mast, slouching uncharacteristically. She kicks Law in the leg a few times as she tries to push herself up. She’s got a big, stupid grin on her face and Zoro is about to ream her out for not being careful when he gets a whiff of her breath.
Zoro blinks, surprised, and looks to her left hand to find a mostly-empty mug gripped securely in her hand. He’s pretty sure she sloshed most of the contents over herself, but judging from the slightly unfocused look to her eyes, she’s managed to drink plenty.
“You’re drinking?” He asks. Lucy doesn’t usually indulge, and when she does it’s rarely been enough for her to get tipsy.
Lucy’s face pinches in unfocused annoyance. “Not sake. Don’t want to be fleet commander person whatever.” Lucy shows him the mug. “It’s juice.”
He gently reaches over to pry it out of her hand. “Lucy, that’s beer.”
“Nuh-uh,” Lucy denies, shaking her head back and forth emphatically, but she releases the mug without resistance. “It’s sweet. Beer tastes bad.”
Zoro quirks an eyebrow. “Really? You’re arguing with me about alcohol?”
Lucy considers that for a second, her head tilted to the side at an angle that would probably be painful if she didn’t literally have rubber bones. “…Oh.”
“Oh,” Zoro agrees. “How many have you had?”
Lucy’s face scrunches up and starts ticking off fingers. She gets to three, and then makes a frustrated noise. “I dunno. Lots.”
Zoro feels a pang of semi-amused sympathy for the hangover she’s going to have in the morning. Lucy hates hangovers, and she has a tendency to crash pretty hard during the actual revelry when she drinks too much. Lucy doesn’t like missing out on a party.
“You’re a lightweight, aren’t you, Straw Hat-ya,” Law asks. He sounds vaguely amused. Or possibly sadistically pleased, considering he’s still trying to stem the blood flow from the unexpected heel-to-the-face
“No,” Lucy denies. She wraps both hands around his bicep and uses him to pull herself up. Zoro takes pity on her and helps her sit up properly. “I’m just not a Zoro-weight. Or a Nami-weight. Or a Franky-weight.”
“I’m not sure your cyborg actually metabolizes alcohol,” Law drawls.
“Exactly,” Lucy agrees with a definitive nod in Law’s direction. Then she points to herself. “Not a Franky-weight.”
Zoro succeeds in emptying Lucy’s mug into his, and sets both cups to his right. “You gonna throw up?”
Lucy experimentally pats her stomach. “…Nah.” She yawns, and presses her cheek to his shoulder. “Tired though.”
“Party’s almost over anyway,” Zoro tells her. There’s probably a solid three or four hours more to go before everyone’s truly tuckered out, but Zoro’s not about to remind her of that.
Lucy hums quietly in agreement, and slips her hand into his. It’s small and deceptively slender, bellying the strength she can wield in her fists even as her callouses speak of training and effort. Lucy’s fingers slot between his with what seems a very deliberate level of effort, and Zoro has to pretend he’s not getting red at the display of affection in front of so many strangers.
Eh. He can blame it on the alcohol.
“Oh, good, she found you,” another voice calls. Zoro looks up to see Robin approaching from the right, and looking at Lucy with something approaching maternal affection. “I didn’t think to tell her what she was drinking,” she says apologetically.
Zoro shrugs one shoulder, careful not to dislodge his girlfriend as she dozes off. He does not fancy the idea of agitating her curiosity and having to follow her around the ship to make sure she doesn’t hurt herself while drunk. “She’ll be fine.”
“Y’h R’bin,” Lucy slurs, “I’ll be f’ne.”
Robin looks at their captain, unbearably fond. “Yes, Sencho.”
“Oh, she finally got tuckered out,” Franky calls, seeming to appear out of thin air with Usopp a couple paces behind. “Tired, Aneki?”
“H’y Franky, Usopp,” Lucy mumbles, not bothering to reply to his question. Franky doesn’t look too surprised by it.
“Are you guys her crewmembers or babysitters?” Law asks. His voice isn’t as derisive as his words suggest. Zoro would even call it amused if he didn’t know better.
“Both,” the four of them reply dryly. Then they share a look that can probably only be described as comradery, but Zoro’s not about to cop to all that mushy crap.
(Considering the way Lucy’s doing her best impression of a kitten while laying claim to his arm, it’s kind of hard to keep up the image of a hardened swordsman, but he’s not self-conscious enough to move her.)
Law snorts quietly, and reaches up to pull his hat over his eyes. “I still can’t believe you didn’t drink the sake, Straw Hat-ya.”
Lucy doesn’t respond, apparently having passed out between one breath and the next. Franky answers on her behalf with an emphatic “I’m not.”
“Lucy’s not into responsibility,” Usopp adds.
Law huffs in something that might be a laugh. “I didn’t notice.”
“It’s good that we’re on our way,” Franky says quietly. Well, quietly for him. “I was gettn’ antsy.”
Zoro considers that. They spent a grand total of four days on Dressrosa, and yet…well, Lucy’s taste for wanderlust is a bit infectious. None of them are quite as restless as she is, but they certainly aren’t as stationary as they used to be, with the possible exception of Robin, whose life is impossibly more settled now than it has been since her early childhood, but Robin is weird.
“Dressrosa was enjoyable,” Robin adds, like all they did was walk on the beach and sample local cuisine. “But I was ready to move on as well.”
“Same,” Usopp agrees, hiding a yawn behind a fist. Law hums, noncommittal.
“Lucy wants to meet up with the others,” Zoro offers. Robin and Usopp both send him knowing glances, like they suspect Lucy is a stand-in for Zoro’s own desires, which. No.
“We’ll be there soon,” Law hums. Lucy kicks his knee in her sleep and he glares down at her. “Zou’s not far.”
Zoro takes another sip of his mug. He doesn’t bother explaining that even two hours would be too long for Lucy. He either gets it or he doesn’t.
Lucy snuffles into his shoulder, warm and content. Robin and Franky and Usopp hunker down next to them, speaking quietly amongst themselves. Zoro drifts off soon after he finishes the beer, the last dregs of tension disappearing with the easy roll of the waves and the sea swallowing Dressrosa in their wake.