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being the saviour of a country was not on sanjis bucket list for the days following his reunion with his crew, yet here he was, being hailed for possessing basic human decency.
it’s not as if he minded, zou was a beautiful place. he would often dream about tropical islands just like zou when he resided in the cold year-round winters of the north blue. he yearned for tropical flowers and sweet smells and for heat to constantly wrap itself around him instead of having to desperately chase after it. he had dreamt of zou and now he walked across its pebbled skin, as a saviour.
it seemed he had also dreamt of the people. he always had an affection for animals, the mice and cats of germa kept him company (though he was less fond of the aggressively trained dogs that had a tendency to hound him). they were quiet, warm and soft which was all he had needed while in his childhood home.
however, like everything else, these companions were wrenched away from him and having a pet in the baratie was out of the question for a restaurant.
(well there was a rat in baraties kitchen in the early days that he took to feeding, which was as close to a pet as he could get there. he cried until he hurled when he found out the traps carne had set up had done their job.)
this was not to say that the minks were pets but zou was full of people like this, soft and warm- though rarely quiet. sanji did not mind though and accepted their affections readily, especially from the lady minks. furry coats and excited wet tongues were almost constantly present on the cooks skin.
he had come to terms with the fact accepting affecting was hard for him, but this, be found he could accept quite easily.
until the gifts started. to give a gift in mink culture was a way of expressing gratitude, or so he had been told. the more extravagant the gift, the stronger the feelings being conveyed.
money and jewellery and artefacts of all shapes, sizes, colours and prices were showered upon him at every point of the day. taking such valuables from them after the tragedy they had experienced left a bad taste in his mouth.
this did not apply to nami-swan of course, she deserved the jewels
for her efforts and looked divine being covered head to toe in them.
sanji refused them profusely at every opportunity they were given, which resulted in a lot of dejected and heartbroken looking minks. this confused sanji immensely. the same could be said when he refused “garchus” from the giddy male minks. whenever he denied them they would skulk away, depressed.
i mean sure it was their culture, but was there a need for such an extreme reaction? they seemed especially bummed out when he was quick to favour the ladies to them, going out of his way to garchu the ladies instead of them.
however, nothing seemed to dishearten them more when sanji accepted affection from the jaguar mink pedro, who he had grown quite close to quickly.
pedro was not excessive or demanding in his displays, a quick rub against his temple and some kind words were the most he gave and sanji was more than happy with that. he even considered them to be friends and began to return his garchus, much to the dismay and betrayal of the other minks.
pedro was quiet, polite and warm and sanji would often find himself laughing at his antics, mostly his obsession with being up high.
he and pedro began to spend time together. the captain would accompany him when he was off guard and would show him the many fruits and yields of zou which sanji was all too happy with.
at one point zunesha had ventured to a cold area of sea and pedro had provided sanji with his coat. it was long and grey with heaps of warm fur sewn into it, and despite being far too big, it did the job and sanji happily wore it after pedro insisted that his own fur was more than enough to keep him warm.
(sanji did not notice the whines of the male minks that watched the two nor the way pedro stifled his shivers, as the cook was far too engrossed in the new ingredients)
“he’s trying to court you-gara, you-gara know” shishilian had spurted one day, after having his garchu rejected by the cook while approaching him in the market and noticing the he was wearing pedros coat.
“,,court?,,,who?” sanji asked sceptically, fake-observing a peach he had dipped under shishillains huge body to get to in order to avoid the affection from the lion mink.
shishilian looked at sanjis nimble hand which gently held the fruit and noticed a thin woven bracelet wrapped around his pale wrist. pedros handiwork. another courting gift.
“pedro!” the musketeer sighed, exasperated, as if the name was scrawled across his forehead and the cook was pointedly ignoring. “he wishes to court you-gara!”
sanji blinked slowly at him and curled his lips back in an ‘i don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about’ look. the lion mink actually growled in frustration.
“pedro likes you-gara, sanji!” shishillian tried again, flailing his paws in an attempt to get the point across.
“i should damn hope so” sanji grumbled matter of factly, putting the peach down in favour of another more colourful fruit. “i did save his sorry ass”
“sanji” the musketeer said seriously, holding sanji by both of his shoulders with wide furry paws that rested heavily atop the cooks arms. his face was grave and sincere as it came far too close to sanjis own. “i am forever grateful to you and harbour a great respect for what you for have done for us, but when it comes to advances from others, you are completely dense”
with that, the lion mink took off, his long red mane and cape billowing dramatically in a wind that had somehow miraculously appeared at his departure.
sanji watched after him, utterly bewildered. court? advances? he couldn’t think for long as after shishillian had left, he noticed a new presence from high in the trees. wonder who that could be.
sanji pretended not to notice as pedro descended as stealthily as possible down from the trees, only reacting when he felt the jaguars furry muzzle rub against his cheek.
“garchu, sanji” pedro rumbled pleasantly, the warm metal balls of his necklace perched on the smaller mans shoulder.
“garchu, pedro” sanji said knowingly, leaning into the touch in acknowledgment, not looking up from the array of fruits he was examining.
pedro didn’t linger on sanji, pulling away politely after the cook had returned his greeting.
“you just missed shishillian” sanji told him, playing along with the charade that pedro had been
sneaky enough to evade the strawhats notice.
“shame” the jaguar mink snuffed, his nose wrinkling slightly at the mention of his fellow guardian.
the two walked together, filing through the sparse market stalls in the minks hideout. sanji would occasionally pitch a recipe about a certain ingredient and pedro would agree enthusiastically, sometimes even throwing in his own ideas.
“hey, why don’t you come to my hut for dinner” the blonde suggested, handing a bubbly hyena mink a few berries for cut of wany meat.
he had said it so casually, yet it set pedros heart alight. his mate had invited him to his house- no not his mate. not yet.
“i would like that” the captain said courteously, trying to conceal the excited shiver in his voice.
*****
a knock was heard on sanjis door, a short but rhythmic thing. definitely pedro.
“come in pedro, doors open!” sanji called, unable to step away from his stove as he stir-fried an array of zou vegetables.
the door opened silently as the jaguar mink stepped into the hut, wiping his feet on the doormat as he did so. he hung his cloak upon the wooden rack next to the coat he had gifted sanji. he held bad a purr upon seeing the garment, happy knowing sanji had kept it. he adjusted his satchel before he made made his way to the kitchen.
he had to duck in order to avoid knocking his head on the door frame as he entered the kitchen where sanji was.
the cook was as poised as ever, his posture always perfect except for where his neck seemed to constantly slouch. he gripped a pan tactfully as he quickly stirred the colourful vegetables inside, making sure that not a single shred stuck to the side and burned. pedros heart squeezed a little as he noticed the band around sanjis wrist was still there even as he cooked.
pedro couldn’t help himself, he shuffled over to sanji as slowly as his overjoyed brain could manage to slot his head onto sanjis shoulder. he rubbed his head up along the cooks neck to just below his ear and back down again.
“garchu, sanji” he said softly, his mates soft skin against his fur making him feel complete.
“garchu, pedro” sanji welcomed, parroting pedros tone as he lifted two nimble fingers up to scratch behind the minks ear before he could pull away from the exchange.
pure electricity shot up pedros spine and if he hadn’t admired the crescent moon on his walk to sanjis hut, he would have thought he was beginning to go sulong. caught off guard, he melted into the touch, unconsciously butting his head further into sanjis precious hand.
sanji huffed out of his nose, amused at the fact that pedro was more cat-like than he had initially led on. pedro panicked slightly at the sound of the cook laughing but as he happily scritched at his ear a bit more. it felt so domestic, resting on his mates shoulder as he cooked and scratched his ears. his heart pounded a bit harder.
pedro removed himself after a few more moments, feeling he had overstayed his welcome on his hosts shoulder but he immediately regretted parting so soon as he watched sanjis hand drift down to his side again.
“i’m making wany stir fry with jasmine rice” sanji beamed, in that way he always did when he talked about cooking, pedro loved that smile and was always elated when the two got onto the subject because he could see that gleeful expression.
“sounds delicious” pedro smiled, his heart warming as he got to watch sanji in his element. “i’ll set the table”
most of the huts' layouts were the same but sanji had rearranged, a lot, so pedro had to mill around trying to find the appropriate plates and cutlery. they were eventually located and he placed two polished wooden plates next to where sanji was working so he could plate up.
the mink then moved over to the small table, a plain wooden circle with two chairs on each end but with a pretty woven tablecloth draped on top of the smooth surface. he set down two pairs of cutlery for them along with a glass each. just in front of the coconut shell ashtray was a candle, burned down to about a quarter but still there. pedro rubbed his fingers together, generating electricity and lit the wick, watching the flame longingly as it swayed.
pedro noted that the ashtray in the centre of the table was closer to the chair on the right and assuming this meant it was sanjis preferred seat, he opted for the one on the left, hanging his satchel on the back of it. he rummaged around inside before locating a bottle of wine he had brought.
“i brought wine, i’m not sure it will pair well with the meal but i brought it anyway” pedro said, bringing the bottle over for the cook to inspect as he himself was everything but a sommelier. sanji perked up at this, placing the pan he was using on a cool burner and turning to pedro.
“ahh you shouldn’t have!” the smaller said, but he was clearly excited by the local wine. he popped the cork and lifted it to his observant nose with and appreciative hum. “smells gorgeous pedro thank you, i think it’ll suit nicely”
the mink chuffed softly at this, happy that his ma- ,,sanji was pleased with his choice of wine. he came back to the table and poured them two decent servings of the liquid as he heard sanji plating the food.
the cook appeared sporting a wide grin as he expertly balanced their plates on his fingertips, he set them both down and the two sat for their meal. they exchanged pleasant conversation as they ate, pedro told him about nekomamushis recovery and how he was seemingly doing everything in his power to stunt it and sanji told him about his frustrations with ceasar and gushed about nami a normal amount.
the food was delightful of course. the cook had incorporated zous fruits and vegetables into the dish perfectly, making pedro taste the yield of his home in a completely different way. he finished every morsel as usual to sanjis glee.
“shishillian was saying the weirdest shit this morning” sanji chuckled, slightly buzzed from the wine,
“how so?” pedro asked, eager to know what his companion had been saying to his beau.
“something about you trying to court me” sanji snorted, taking another gulp of his drink and pedro froze. he would kill that damn cat tomorrow. “wouldn’t fucking tell me what it meant though”
pedro breathed a sigh of relief at this, knowing shishillians attempt to uncover him prematurely was unsuccessful. “shishillian says a lot of meaningless stuff, i wouldn’t worry”
sanji cleared away the plates, depositing them in the sink to wash at a later time. pedro watched him as he did so, his eyes instinctively watching the blonde much like how one would almost watch a roaring fire, with awe and trepidation. longing to touch but knowing better of it.
he adjusted his gaze back to the candles flame as sanji returned to the table, which had burned down a considerable amount during the meal, almost completely reduced to liquid at this point but the flame remained strong.
“i have a gift for you-gara, sanji” pedro said, quite lowly in a tone that could’ve been interpreted as intimidating if sanji didn’t know the man. he rubbed his fingers together nervously as the cook sat back down, pouring them both another glass of wine.
“oh?” sanji sounded skeptical, hell pedro had practically had to beg sanji to take the worthless bracelet the other day so this would be a task and a half.
it was a small treasure but one of zous finest pieces. pedro took a small box out of his satchel and handed it to sanji. the blonde took the item carefully, clearly aware of how delicate it was by its packaging.
those thin, beautiful fingers opened the box to reveal a pair of gorgeous cufflinks. gold wire was tied into a lovers knot and on each end a dainty pearl was welded there, perfectly circular and polished. they were centuries old and unfathomably valuable but pedro wanted sanji to have them desperately.
pearls and gold were rare on zou, extremely so. the minks had no easy access to minerals due to being located on the back of the elephant so all valuables had to be imported whenever someone would leave and come back making gold a sparse luxury there. zuneshas trunk would also rarely reach the bottom of the ocean making pearls a rare find during eruption rain. they had been given to pedro following his success in a mission and they were the most splendid thing he owned.
“pedro, you know i don’t want-“ sanji began, realising the value of the jewels but was cut off.
“i know you-gara don’t want extravagant gifts, but i need you-gara to have these” pedro insisted, curling his paws around sanjis hands so that they clasped the box of the cufflinks. “they are a precious treasure to us and you-gara deserve them, you saved all of us and i know you hate being hailed but please let me give these to you-gara.”
sanji looked down at where pedro held his hands, the large clawed weapons bracketed so softly around them, holding his treasure as sanji held the minks own. they cradled each other’s valuables with equal care and sanji had always known pedro was gentle but this made him feel like a china doll. he found he didn’t hate it.
“please take them” pedro persisted, squeezing sanjis hands gently around the box, as if trying to imbed his words into the dorsum.
“okay,,” sanjis voice was cracked and quiet, coming out as an ugly wheeze, he cleared his throat and tried again. “okay.”
pedro lit up at this, his sharp teeth coming into show as he smiled tenderly at the blonde, the mink drew his hands back and sanji immediately missed their warmth.
“they’re exquisite pedro, i’ll treasure them forever” sanji guaranteed, grabbing pedros hand before it could fully retreat and squeezing it. “and don’t think you’re getting off that easy, i have something for you too”
pedro skittered at this lightly, he opened his wide mouth to oppose the gift but the withering glare sanji shot him made him shut up immediately. the cook closed the box of the cufflinks gently and took them to his room, leaving pedro to sit awkwardly.
sanji had taken his gift. he grinned giddily to himself and realised that a low rumbling purr was coming from the back of his throat, he stopped it instantly when he realised, fearing he would shake the house if he let himself sound freely.
sanji returned with a black box of his own, flat and wide with an unfamiliar brand name carved in gold at the top. sanji sat down at the table and slid the box over to pedro.
“you gave me something from your home so ill give you something from mine” sanji explained, lifting the lid of the box himself to reveal a lovely folded piece of green silk fabric with golden embellishments in beautiful twisting shapes, it was obviously very expensive. “well not my home but it’s from the north- nothing good comes from my home”
pedro didn’t question the blondes words as sanji walked over to him, removing the fabric from the box to stand in front of him, shaking it out of its square shape to show that it was an neckerchief.
“i’ve never had an opportunity to wear it, even though i bought it years ago” sanjis skillful fingers brought the silk around pedros neck, the feeling of silk against his fur was much like how it felt rubbing up against sanjis skin. the cook tied and folded the fabric swiftly and neatly into his shirt collar and pedro decided he never wanted the blondes hands to leave his neck. “guess i knew it was for you”
pedro did purr at this. his pupils blowing wide as he looked up at sanji. i love this man, he thought. he wanted him to tie his tie every morning, to eat meals together, to go shopping together, he wanted to shower his mate in gifts and hold him close at night.
the wick of the candle hit the melted wax and extinguished.
“shishillian was trying to tell you that i love you-gara” pedro breathed into the dark room, the candle having been their only source of light.
“i know” sanji rasped softly, tucking the loose end of the scarf into pedros shirt and letting his fingers trail up pedros neck to cup his face, angling his jaw up so the two could look at each other as their eyes adjusted.
pedro frenzied into the darkness at the pirates acknowledgement but as his eye began to make out sanjis beautiful features again he saw the smile that adorned sanjis face, that gorgeous, gorgeous smile and his tail nearly rocked the chair for how eagerly it swung back and forth.
he curled his fingers around sanjis wrists as he held his face, cradling each other with nothing but care as they shared a kiss.