Chapter Text
Their first meeting was far from ordinary, but it was emotional. Roronoa Zoro would never forget the sweet blue eyes that looked at him pleadingly, nor that cold hand that cried out for understanding.
The little green-haired boy had gone out to buy some groceries for the dōjo, which in addition to teaching katana handling, received and provided various services to its students. As an orphan, what he was given in lessons, Zoro paid for with work.
He had not even reached the city market when, on the side of the road, he saw several children kicking something. His curiosity was piqued only when he heard that "something" moaning for them to stop.
“Hey!”. Shouted the little swordsman. As he got closer, he could clearly see a blond boy about his age on the ground, curled up in a ball”. It's not polite to pick on people weaker than you.
“It's not polite to get into fights that don't belong to you, either”. A red-haired boy with dark glasses replied as he folded his arms.
At that moment, a blue-haired boy pulled up the scarf around the blond's neck, exerting a force that made him cough.
“Hey, let him go!”. Zoro shouted, enraged.
“Or what will you do, commoner?”. Exclaimed a green-haired one.
Roronoa didn't even have his practice swords, so his first impulse was to pounce on the 3 boys with his fists. He didn't know when, but in a few moments the red-haired one had him pinned down while the blue-haired and green-haired one hit him in the stomach. At that distance, Zoro recognized them when he saw their eyebrows. They were none other than Ichiji, Niji and Yonji Vinsmoke, who were quite talked about in the kingdom's newspapers, prodigy sons of Judge Vinsmoke, their king. And the one on the ground had to be Sanji, the third son who was not much talked about.
He trembled, he couldn't hit the princes, maybe that would cost him his life and his dōjo. A fist went to hit his mouth, so hard that he began to taste his blood.
The blond stood up, his face was full of scrapes and bruises, and his clothes once white were now brown because of the mud, but he looked him in the eyes. He was crying.
“Niji! Ichiji! Yonji! Stop it”. He demanded in a trembling voice. No one heard him. He couldn't even stand.
Zoro looked at that one eye he didn't cover with his golden hair, looked at his curly eyebrow, it seemed absurd to him. He made a last effort and shook himself, when he managed to free his arms from Ichiji's grip and landed his feet on the ground he broke into a run towards the blond and grabbed his hand.
They both ran with all their might.
“What is this place?”. Sanji asked curiously as he looked at the dilapidated roof of the hut they arrived at.
“My shelter”. Zoro whispered as he lifted a wooden bucket. He disappeared behind a door that overlooked a stream. When he returned the bucket was full of cold water.
“It's very pretty”. Sanji said as he sat down on his knees. Zoro knelt in front of him, held his arm, and with a handkerchief he had just wetted began to clean his wounds.
“You don't have to lie, life in the castle of the Germa kingdom must be better than this pigsty”. Zoro replied as he continued to clean his wounds.
“I wish it was”. Zoro looked up and could see a curl on Sanji's lips, a faint smile on his beaten face.
He sighed. “Why do your own brothers beat you?”
“They don't like me. Dad says I'm a disgrace to the family. They like to hit anything that moves and compete, while I like to read to learn how to cook. Thank you for helping me”.
“You must be stronger. You can't live like this”. Zoro began to wipe Sanji's face. His small hands fit perfectly on the blond's cheeks. Again, he saw him smile. He became nervous.
By the time Zoro was done cleaning his own wounds and doing a couple more laps of the stream, the sun was beginning to set. A pair of stars were visible from the broken roof of the hut, Sanji watched them almost mesmerized.
“My mom is there”. He blurted, breaking the silence. His lip began to tremble. “She...she was the only one who wasn't mad that I was different from my brothers”.
Zoro sighed tiredly. Cheesiness wasn't his forte, but he couldn't help but empathize with that little boy, he was just like him.
“My best friend is there too”. He spoke. Catching Sanji's attention. “She and I found this hut to train in. Our goal was to compete for who would become the best swordsman in the world".
“She must be proud of you. I want to find the All Blue; I've only read about it but I know it exists”.
For the next hour the blond talked about a sea that brought together all the seas of the world, the wonders of ingredients that would be found there and a couple of other things. As if he had never talked in his life. At one point, he fell asleep, tired from the day and aspiring to his dreams. Zoro merely listened to him, and subsequently, watched him sleep, peace reflecting on his face.
It was already dark when Sanji woke up, moving to the beat of a walk. The first thing he saw were the stars and then the green hair of his new friend, it looked like seaweed, he said to himself. It was on his back.
“Where are we going?”.
“Back to the castle, where you live”.
“I don't want to go back there, what if I stay with you?”.
The question made him stop, he shook his head and thought for a few moments. Then he continued walking.
“For now, it would be best for you to come back, someday if you still want to, you could live with me”.
“Really?”. He asked enthusiastically, with a twinkle in his eye that Zoro could only see when he talked about his dream.
Zoro nodded. He stopped and put him down, next to one of the castle walls, near a side entrance.
“But for now, you have to become strong, your brothers won't stop teasing you if you continue to be weak”.
“Okay”. The blond ran in the direction of the door. He came back when he was halfway there. “I still don't know your name.
“My name is Zoro, Roronoa Zoro”.
“Well, Zoro, with the head of a marimo. I'll see you here tomorrow at noon”. He said with a smile and left, being led by a guard who ushered him into the castle.
Zoro cocked his head to one side, there was something about that boy that made him gentler than usual. Maybe because of what he conveyed to him, or because he was just as lonely as he was. But feeling that cold hand made him promise to help him.
After all, Kuina had that temperature the day she left.