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There's not much quiet to be found on Zou as each member of the Straw Hats prepares to part ways. For Nami, the air is sick with a familiar flavour of dread, and she steps aside from the action for a moment to reconcile with it.
She finds a quiet spot against a rock face and lets out a long overdue sigh before leaning back against the cliff and inhaling deeply. The air smells... vacant. There are plenty of scents to take in, of course; the lush plant life that grows upon Zunesha's back is a wonder for the senses. It's the faint odour of smoke normally infesting her lungs that feels so misplaced.
It isn't long before Nami's privacy is broken by a familiar scowling face. Zolo joins her against the wall and, after a moment, turns his gaze in her direction.
"So you really think the cook was lying? He isn't coming back?"
She nods, but doesn't return his gaze. "I could tell. Believe me."
Zolo's stare remains unbroken. "I just have a hard time believing he's capable of lying to you."
Nami is still parsing her response even as she moves to give it. "I think he's capable of just about anything if it involves protecting a woman." She looks skyward. "That, and I think I understand where he's coming from."
Zolo raises an eyebrow at her. "Do tell."
Nami still refuses to look him in the eyes. "It's just— I think it's what I would have done."
"You planning on leaving too?" His tone is clearly sarcastic, but there's a certain weight behind it. He means it; Nami can tell that much.
"Don't be stupid." Finally, she looks back at him. "I just mean that if I were in a position again where I had to leave against my will, that's probably the way I'd do it. I wouldn't want to hurt any of you again. Make you worry."
Zolo looks away, crosses his arms, and closes his eye. "And you think a bald-faced lie is the best way to do that?"
There's a moment of quiet between the two of them. Nami can't tell if it's uncomfortable or therapeutic. Either way, she lets it rest undisturbed.
Zolo is the one to finally break it. "Whatever," he says, pushing himself upright. "Just bring the cook back. Luffy will have a fit if he can't get his fill of meat." He turns and walks away without even a glance back.
Nami watches him go. Something in his gait has shifted. She can see it in him — there's extra tension, even just in the way he stands. When the crew reunited in Sabaody, Zolo was missing a damn eye. Yet, despite that, he never seemed any less aware of his surroundings. But now — now, he's been impaired. It's like he's constantly watching his own back in a way he never used to need to. It seems like that vacant feeling in the air is affecting all of them.
And, of course, she wouldn't mind having her doting servant around again.