Chapter Text
Two years–for two long grueling years Sanji had been trapped in hell. Maybe it had been from literally being run ragged as he chased okama up and down the island for their recipes, or dodging being shoved into the single most hideous dress he’d ever seen, or perhaps it was the relentless worry of his other crewmates that grinded the gears in the back of his mind–but regardless of which one had done him in the worst, he was exhausted. Stronger yes, but still exhausted.
The exhaustion though didn’t quell the excitement that was bubbled up in his chest. He wanted to see the girls again, to dote on them as he always had and…Zoro. He wanted his swordsman back, he wanted to see if the two year separation had been kind to him or if… A bitter thought drug itself forward–the looming fear that the passage of time had severed what beginnings of a relationship that they had started. It hadn’t helped that to keep the Okama off his back literally and figuratively he had lied and said that they were engaged. A wanted poster was enough to get zealous and jealous coos, though Sanji wasn’t sure over which one of them.
The archipelago hadn’t changed much either in two years. Still a dangerous over-glorified tourist trap, it seemed frozen in time, as if none of the events of the rest of the world had touched it. Of course, being a place that would receive the scum of humanity in multiple forms, it was hard to see why it wouldn’t be kept as their playground. It was this danger that worried Sanji the most. Zoro's habit of getting lost had crossed his path with a Celestial Dragon once. To do so a second time without the rest of the crew would be unwise.
Sanji sighed as he tugged on the collar of his shirt and found a quiet spot to tuck up into while he waited. Fingers fumbled in his suit pocket as he pulled a cigarette and match, putting it to his lips for a slow inhale. He couldn’t get the idiot out of his damn head, a warmth flooding his body as he thought back to beginning. Hands around his waist, teeth in his neck, the cold focus of a man who knew what he wanted and what he was doing…
A shiver ran up his spine and a soft sound escaped from Sanji’s lips at the memory. He really had it bad didn’t he? To allow such a reaction from a mere memory. Another drag, inhale, exhale–he could still feel his nerves almost humming in anticipation. Sanji wanted his friends and family, his real family back. He wanted to hear them carrying on in the dining area as he cooked, to yell at them while they begged for more.
He hoped that they hadn’t been captured or worse. The bounties on their heads had likely skyrocketed since the Summit War and wouldn’t surprise him if more bounty hunters tried to cash in on that. So for now all he could do was smoke and wait, hoping for the best.
It wasn’t long though before he heard someone call his name. Sanji turned and immediately stiffened, a snarl fixed upon his face. His sister stood there before him, a soft smile playing on her lips.
“Found you.” Reiju’s tone was almost playful as she studied her younger brother, “You don’t know how difficult it’s been to track you down.”
Sanji scoffed, choosing to look away from her and towards the busy street. “I have no idea why, I was disowned, remember? Not exactly expecting Judge to suddenly have a change of heart.”
Saying his father’s name almost made him want to puke as rage and resentment bubbled up. He still loved Reiju dearly–she had, after all, freed him from their father’s grasp. It didn’t mean though he wasn’t suspicious of her motives.
“He hasn’t. Well, in a sense he hasn’t.” Reiju replied, “But he wants you to come home. I know you won’t do so without force, but I thought perhaps…” She tilted her head to the side to study him, looking at the way he had filled out and grown. It was hard to imagine the little crybaby brother of her’s was now a member of the most wanted crew in the world. She could feel a swell of pride, but she had to tamp it down for the time being.
“Perhaps…maybe if I asked you would.” She finished, meeting his gaze with a sweet smile, “It’s important, just one thing and then you can go back to your crew.”
Sanji frowned, looking away again. Where the fuck are you, Marimo? he thought, trying not to let Reiju get under his skin, “The answer is no. Tell dad to fuck off while you’re at it too. I have a life, I have a fiancé, who despite being a fucking brute, I actually really love.”
The word ‘fiancé’ made Reiju raise an eyebrow and purse her lips. “That’s…well, problematic. Father isn’t going to like that news.” She covered her mouth for a moment in thought, tapping her foot on the ground. She knew he had attachments amongst the Straw Hats, but a fiancé that would be difficult to handle.
“I don’t give a shit what that fascist fuck has to say on the matter.” Sanji snapped at her, bristling “Go home, Reiju, it’s bad enough he’s late or lost, now I have to deal with something I thought was done and over with cropping up again.”
He?! Reiju blinked in surprise, Sanji’s sudden reveal made things even more interesting. “I didn’t think…oh Sanji.” She laughed, daring to ruffle his hair only to get a low grumble in return. “As your sister I think I should meet the man who stole your heart at least.”
“No, and no.”
“I’m older, you can’t tell me what to do, little brother.” Reiju laughed. Both knew this was play acting, falling into the familiar even though they hadn’t spoken in years. She wished she could hug him, to give him her blessing, but she couldn’t disobey, “Let me meet him and I’ll leave.”
“...fine.”
Two hellish, uphill, sloggy years. Zoro hadn't even attempted to try and divide the time up by task to mark its passage easier. Instead, he'd put himself fully at Mihawk’s mercy (or lack thereof). Whatever happened would happened. Time would pass. He just wouldn't think about it. No sense in stressing over what one couldn't change.
And that worked for most of it.
However, with about a week to go, Zoro began to get a little…unhinged.
While Mihawk found the immediate upswing in hygiene as a kind improvement, he wasn’t entirely sure it was worth the trade off of over an hour a day lost to the younger swordsman as he locked himself in.
Honestly, Mihawk couldn’t tell if Zoro was falling asleep in the bath or not, as he rarely answered if hailed. But after that had come questions. Strange, highly specific–and, but of course– hypothetical questions.
No, Roronoa, I don’t know how to gauge that sort of interest at a glance .
No, Roronoa, I am not interested in sharing bullet points on rekindling anything but a literal fire.
Roronoa, is this going somewhere or are you going to try and needle out my deadened and rotting experiences as a relationship partner? Again ?
While he wished Zoro well, honestly it was refreshing to have the gnat out of his ear.
What on earth had gotten into that boy? Perona was kind enough to assist Zoro to the archipelago, but from there it had driven Zoro back into his own head…
Would Sanji still be okay with…you know…them as…you know?? With a two year divide firmly between them, who was to say the cook hadn’t outgrown him somehow? The man’s tastes were a lot more refined–it was always a possibility. But the more Zoro thought about it and knew that, were the worst–a complete turn down–to happen, he’d take it with grace because that’s what he’d always been prepared for. But Sanji didn’t talk out his ass about romance and love. That was his fucking lifeblood. He said it, he meant it!
And if– if something had changed, it didn’t negate anything that had happened before!! And…and…
He really was giving himself the worst pep talk ever.
Then, care of Shakky, he found out he’d been the first to arrive at all.
What a pain in the fucking ass.
He could have sat and waited around in the bar, but restless legs and heart to match made him wander. His friends–his family were going to show up at any moment and–
He caught a wisp of smoke on the air and stopped cold. Twice now he’d caught sight of the same only to find himself duped by fucking food trucks burning something. The reaction was downright laughable, but still…
Still he tracked it to its source.
A wisp of blonde. A slim silhouette cut in black. The telltale cigarette dangling from his lips.
F-fuck.
His immediate reaction was to jump. Just get up in Sanji’s business like they’d never been apart a day. Then the recollection surged back of all the tics and flinches Zoro'd had to work through just to be able to touch the man's hands, let alone his naked body. Then he realized they were all insanely wanted people and even without the emotional brewhaha, playing sillybuggers with other man would likely get him pummeled with whatever supercharged kicks he’d managed to perfect in the last two years.
Yeah, Zoro missed all of the contact and even some of the kicks, but he wasn’t really feeling into the latter...
Then he noticed the woman.
Oh right. Compulsive womanizer wannabe.
Welp, it was time to bet on love and ruin that party.
He strode up, a relaxed grin on his face, more happy to share space with his nakama than he was anxious about getting dumped. Not…that they’d ever been incredibly official??
Bah!
“Hey princess twirlybrows. Miss me?”
Both Sanji and Reiju turned at the call, Reiju’s expression baring much more annoyance compared to Sanji’s. His face lit up with relief that not only the most important person had shown up but he was no longer in a position where she could strongarm him. Without hesitation or missing a beat, Sanji wrapped his arms around Zoro’s neck.
“Believe it or not, yeah I did.” He murmured, grinning stupidly, “Zoro, this is my…sister Reiju. Reiju, this is my fiancé Zoro.”
The word was said without any explicit explanation, the cook just kept himself firmly planted, as tight against Zoro as he could get. Reiju for all her worth had recovered from the insult with a soft smile. She eyed the pair up and down for a moment, before shrugging.
“You're marrying the kitchen cabbage then I see.” She scoffed, realizing now that her attempt to bring her brother home would amount to much more kicking and screaming then she had hoped. “Sanji…”
Part of her wanted to wish her brother well and just go back home, to just lie. Vinsmoke Judge though was not a man who took failure or lies kindly. Her lips pursed in thought and she sighed.
“Lovely to meet you then, I assume Sanji has told you all about his family?” It was a cheap dig, but it was enough to make Sanji stiffen up, almost bristling.
“Reiju…leave.” He hissed, unintentionally tightening his grip on Zoro, “I’m serious.”
He had no intention of putting up a fight for multiple reasons. With her taking the low blows as she was, Sanji wasn’t a hundred percent sure how Zoro would react. Maybe he would behave, maybe he wouldn’t take this as a challenge to make good on things he had said before.
No snarking, no gnashing of teeth–just arms locked around his neck and–and…
Hells, he really hadn’t been prepared to see Sanji up close so immediately. Still lean, trimmed neatly of some of his old baby fat like a well-prepared cut ready for the grill. Shit–his cheekbones were sharper, sculpting his face without making him gaunt. He’d die the next time he got to see those leg out of those slacks and–
Wait. Fiancé.
Wait. WAIT.
Well, the touching was kind of indicative that things were still greenlit. He…didn’t have any recollection of talking to the man about marriage, but…hey, not an awful idea. It wasn’t something high on his to-do list, but if Mister Romantic wanted a wedding as show of devotion, Zoro would dive through rings like a trained seal if it meant he got to spend the rest of his life with the asshole.
Something was wrong though.
Sanji loved women. Even women they had to fight, he refused to raise a fist, or rather, foot to. This–who the hell was she? It took a moment to reregister everything, as he honestly hadn’t been able to fully focus. Sanji had said sister …hadn’t he? He had to tilt his head to get a better look past Sanji to her.
Huh…her eyebrows swirled a different way…
But Sanji kept his body angled sharply against Zoro’s, barely affording Reiju a scant glance, his back and shoulders knit with tension, where normal teasing and digs immediately bounced off the cook when they came from women. Frankly, if her presence did this to Sanji, Zoro didn’t give a shit who she was, curls or no curls.
He wrapped an arm snugly around Sanji’s waist, unable to deride any pleasure from the way they neatly slotted together, thanks to the bristle of anger that had begun prickling up in his skull.
“‘m a marimo . Not a cabbage.” He grunted, a thumb slipping under the guard of Shusui–stilled but and ready to draw, even offhanded. “--and he asked you to leave. The last time we were here, we brought enough trouble to draw out an admiral and a wave of pacifista.” His grip tightened, pivoting at the hips to angle Sanji aside. His brows furrowed. “Don’t think we won’t again.”
Reiju’s hands went up in a show of submission, the soft smile never leaving her face. It would have been serene, had her eyes not hardened slightly. She didn’t want to fight, even more so now that her brother’s fiancé decided to turn into a guard dog.
“As you wish.” She sighed, bowing slightly, “Eventually he will have to come back to us, but I suppose I can go home empty handed for now.”
Their father would be angry, but at least they had a better idea of the situation. A guard dog could be taken out after all, be it with a muzzle or bullet. There were also other contingency plans in place in case Sanji decided to not cooperate with their wishes. She gave a little wave as she turned to head into the street and vanished into the crowd.
Pressed up against Zoro, Sanji could feel the tension knotting up in his stomach. “Thanks Marimo.” He sighed, pulling away only to realize his hands were shaking. “You…you showed up at the right time and right place.”
He wasn’t a fan of deferring to the swordsman, he could fight his own battles. This though, it wasn’t exactly ideal for what was supposed to be a reunion for all of them and well…seeing if whatever the two of them had was still viable. The protective stance though seemed to be a good indication that things were still good, but Zoro was also protective of all the crew.
“I have no idea why the fuck she was here.” There was a small nervous laugh that followed, as Sanji was finally able to fully look over his unknowing fiancé’s body. “You’ve um…filled out.” A bright red flush colored his face, the tension from earlier finally fading, “--by a lot…”
A gaze as tempered as steel faded away as she took her leave, and an air of nonchalance returned to the swordsman. “Oh yeah. I was training with Mihawk.” Like it nothing.
Now that he had a grip on Sanji, he wasn’t entirely sure he was going to let him go. The man seemed okay, the pretense of defense had dropped. If the other had no reason to remain on alert, neither did Zoro. And no longer eager to draw, Zoro cupped a full hand of ass and gave an exploratory squeeze, trying to peer down over Sanji’s shoulder to see. “You too.” He didn’t exactly let go there either, though there was no lust or heat to his voice–just the smug satisfaction of having the other back and pinned. “Missed you. Still gonna feed me sushi on deck like you promised or is that off the table?”
There was still the matter of engagement. How fucking wild...
Part of Sanji wanted to be mad–the absolute dumbass flavored audacity that Zoro could be was absolutely outstanding at times. Whatever reasoning skills that he used to process that Sanji was in some sort of distress absolutely evaporated the moment said distress seemed to pass. It made the cook want to scream and chew on his face in frustration. Instead he settled for just kicking him in the shin with a rage-filled chant of “Idiot, stupid, moron!”
He was going to fight the ass squeeze, the fact that he was enjoying adding a little more force to each kick, “ Yes of course I am!”
Another flurry of strikes and insults followed. Anger finally shimmering though Sanji huffed, the sound exasperated more than anything else. Without thinking, he grabbed the front of Zoro’s shirt and pulled the man into him, kissing him hard on the mouth.
“Missed you too, Marimo.”
In the distance Zoro was laughing, grappling a leggy blonde– their leggy blonde, in his arms. Sanji wriggled and kicked, but gave no indication that his temper tantrum was anything but a fleeting, passing rain. When the two shifted into a kiss, swiftly deepening, Nami sighed through her smile, a hand set upon her hip. “You know, I don’t think they heard us.”
Luffy, undaunted, cupped his hands, bellowing more loudly than before. “Zorooooooo! Sanjiiiii!”
The cries were lost easily in the hustle and bustle of the amusement park, even as the gap between the two groups lessened. Their captain, practically inflating with the draw of breath he took for his next effort, choked and sputtered as Usopp began clamoring up him.
“No, no! Wait! I have an idea, let me try–”
The sound that came wailing out of him snapped Zoro’s head so hard, it could have given him whiplash.
“ZORO! KISS THE HOMIES GOODNIGHT!!”
A kill switch activated. After that one misbegotten breakfast years ago, Zoro had received no end of requests–nay, demands for goodnight kisses from the Sunny’s collection of absolute chucklefucks who found his budding relationship with Sanji worth a giggle. It had happened so many times, he’d been forced to reroute his evenings around the new tradition so he’d make it up to his new, makeshift room in the crows nest in time to coincide with Sanji’s return after the cook finished up for the night in the kitchen and had showered.
The speed Zoro disengaged with–it was comparable to Sanji’s dismount when they were discovered on their first night in the kitchen. It was unceremonious and abrupt, but it set the approaching party and their newly formed idiot totem into wild whoops and cheers.
“I’LL SHOW YOU A GODDAMN GOODNIGHT KISS!”
“Aahhhh! I didn’t do anything” Chopper, grabbed by his backpack and yo-yo’d backward, shrieked until he realized he was genuinely getting smooched–once, twice, thrice–then broke into giggles as he was dropped. “It’s Three Kiss Style, run!!”
Franky yelped, guffawing, nailed once on each shoulder blade and another dead between them. An equally confused and delighted “Yohoho-oh!” bubbled out of Brook with one to each lens of his sunglasses and a third into the bouncy curls of his afro.
Somewhere between each was Zoro snarling something about brutally dismembering each of them, but beyond the superficial frustration, it was born of the goodwill of their collective return and turned the rapid fire hit and run into something genuinely joyful and silly.
They were all alive. They were here. They were going to get pounded for being fucking clowns.
Merciful in his attacks, he left Nami and Robin for Sanji to handle, instead, zeroing on the wobbling fool totem. Usopp howled. Luffy beamed, arms rushing out to ensnare their swordsman, even as he rushed the duo.
–the impact of Zoro’s rush and Luffy’s draw collapsed the three and it turned into bedlam made from laughter and flailing limbs.
“Oh no you don’t–you don’t get to fucking escape after that! –ASHURA!”
“Aah! Nami! Robin! Help, he’s–aah!”
“Zoroooo! We missed youuuuu!”
By the end, Zoro was partially certain he’d kissed both on the lips (a product of the struggle), but it felt so unbelievably good to have them all hale and whole and present that he just didn’t care. Luffy clung to him, arms looped around his body multiple times and Usopp lay prone and dazed in the aftermath. Zoro just laughed. It was absurd and just so perfectly them. His nakama. “Hey everybody.” he grinned, just a little out of breath. No point in playing the cool guy now. He’d probably be fine if Luffy hung off him all day. “What took you?”
As his arms locked with Robin and Nani reflexively, Sanji pulled them in close. The deluge of compliments poured from his mouth the instant he had them in reach, the romantic dribble flowing as easily as it always did. Even with his focus on the two girls, he still grinned as he watched Zoro chase the rest of the pack around. It made the sourness from before ease up, though he couldn’t quite get his sister’s words out of the back of his mind.
He’ll have to come back to us at some point.
The words made him want to gag. The idea of being forcefully taken back to a place that was never home to begin with… Here though, with his arms interwoven with two of the smartest, charming, most beautiful women in the fours seas and his absolute moron of a swordsman brutalizing the crew with the most aggressive display of affection ever…this felt nice and complete, everyone together again as they headed home.
“Oy, keep that up and they're gonna think they’re part of this too.” Sanji interjected between the laughter, before planting kisses on each of the girl’s cheeks, “--there, for you both. Because the Marimo forgot who was really deserving of love and affection here.”
“Three each!” Came the snap– Zoro was paying some kind of attention, even if Luffy demanded most of his in the moment. “Don’t short them just because you’re trying to play princely.”
“Ah!” Luffy slapped Zoro’s thigh in excitement and began to unwind, “One more, then I wanna go eat! I’m starving!” Because of course he was.
Again, Zoro grumbled, but returned the request with a mighty squeeze and a fat kiss on a presented and waiting cheek. He was ready to fall back and listen though, and once free of the man’s grasp, let their captain take the lead on where to go and what to do before their return to the Sunny.
Everyone overflowed with new stories of places seen, people met, and trials faced. And while filled with pride over his own achievements, Zoro couldn’t find the effort to gloat.
They all crammed around a picnic table, loaded to the heavens with overpriced fair food, Zoro squeezed in next to Sanji and offered something he’d badgered from a vendor. “It’s cheap shit, but if you want some...” A funnel cake, simple and only a little sweet–sugared on the side closest to Sanji, with a thin drizzle of a mystery fruit syrup loosely zigzagged across its entirety.
Though he pointedly looked away after offering, it was impossible to miss his quiet grin. To Sanji, it was trash food, but the attempt was sweet. He obliged with a bite, and the sickly sweet taste he expected followed. Mentally he filed away the thought to try to make that for a dessert back on the ship, maybe with some different dough or sauces. The dough tasted a little stale, so it likely wasn’t fresh but he wasn’t going to be rude and turn away food when offered though.
Shoulder to shoulder, elbow to elbow, and thigh to thigh, they sat–all the way around the table. As things should be.
A delayed epiphany slapped Zoro midway into a bite of unsugared cake, interrupting dueling tales of giant beetles and cyborg animals with a fist to the tabletop. Shit! How could he forget such important news?! This was big stuff! Once in a lifetime stuff for most!
“I almost forgot!” He blurted, “Sanji and I aren’t dating any more!”
Zoro’s words…much like his ill-conceived confession from once upon a time, hit the table like someone had dropped a rancid marlin on it. The crew grew quiet with Nami raised an eyebrow with a look that could only be called apologetic and sympathetic. She didn’t know what it was that she had seen before, but she wouldn’t put it past Zoro to handle a break up with the same delicacy that he had handled his little love confession. A wam blast of heat flooded the space beneath the table and she turned to Sanji, the man busy seething, his teeth gritted on his cigarette. Nami knew what was coming and gently tucked her legs up under her as best she could. Lips pressed together as she predicted the oncoming strikes, looking to Zoro as she mouthed, ‘You dumb motherfucker.’
Sanji slammed his foot down on Zoro’s foot with as much rage as he could muster, “WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT EARLIER THEN?! GRABBING MY ASS LIKE IT MEANT SOMETHING! WHAT THE FUCK!?” Another hard slam followed, with a snarl, “I’ll kick your fucking moss brained ass back to the Sunny! STUPID DUMBASS MARIMO.”
Though he hadn’t admitted it before and likely wouldn’t anytime soon, even the little fussy kicks from earlier had fucking hurt. And a double-strike Diable Jambe made his newly forming bruises pale in comparison.
One man’s temper immediately flared into and fed another’s. “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! OF COURSE IT FUCKING MEANT SOMETHING!”
Meanwhile, while everyone else had begun to mimic Nami’s skillful retreat, including shuffling Chopper to the highground of Robin’s lap, Luffy continued tearing into a turkey leg twice the size of his head without a care in the world.
“As long as Sanji still cooks everything is fine!” No one heard him.
Snarling through gritted teeth, Zoro stood his ground. If Sanji wanted to fucking play dumb and mean, Zoro could match it easily. Two could play at the stampy game. He’d learned to imbue his swords with his will in his time spent abroad. How much more difficult could it be to do the same to save his foot from being crushed? With the rush of armament haki that took all the way up to his knee, the table shook hard enough to bounce a few inches off the ground, leaving everyone to scramble to grab teetering plates and cups, though no one had yet attempted to leave the parade of idiocy. There was a certain amount of fun in watching the train wreck.
Unfinished and snarling, Zoro laid in, “YOU’RE THE ONE GOING AROUND TELLING PEOPLE WE’RE ENGAGED, EVEN THOUGH YOU NEVER FUCKIN BOTHERED TO ASK ME! –I’D HAVE SAID YES, YOU WOMANIZING PIECE OF SHIT COOK! I’D MARRY YOU IN A GODDAMN HEARTBEAT! AND WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU SO PISSED? SINCE WHEN IS DATING AND BEING ENGAGED THE SAME THING? IT’S NOT!”
Oh. Well. There it was. That was a mic drop.
“Oh?” Luffy clapped briefly and waved the leftover bone at them, “Woohoo! Congrats! Free cake!”
Nami buried her face in her hands, pulling at her cheeks in frustration. Of course this would have been preventable if those two hot heads had just…talked for five seconds. Of course, that would be too easy and require for Zoro to rub what collective brain cells he had together and Sanji to not immediately blow his stack when something pissed him off. “I really don’t know how you two worked for those two weeks before we got here originally.” She sighed into her hands, “Whst did you two do for all that time, just blow each other and not talk?”
It wasn’t her fight, but she wasn’t about to ruin their reunion with those two monsters starting a fight with each. Her staff came out and she popped both of them firmly on the head, much like one would tap a dog on the nose with a rolled up newspaper.
Sanji winced, about to open his mouth and say something to her when Zoro’s words finally made sense to his rage-addled brain. “You–YOU MADE IT SOUND LIKE YOU WERE DUMPING ME! HOW THE FUCK COULD I ASK YOU WHEN I WAS IN HELL FOR TWO YEARS? I WAS HUNTED FOR SPORT! ONE OF THE ONLY THINGS KEEPING ME GOING WAS KNOWING I’D GET BACK TO YOU, AND YOU WENT AND ACED LIKE YOU WERE DUMPING ME!!”
Nami groaned again, putting her head down on the table, “Why are you both so stupid?”
“IF HE’D ONLY–” Still flared up, Zoro managed to cut off and quickly reconsidered a tactical change of plans, not exactly looking forward to another sparking love tap from Nami’s staff. Simmering down, he redirected to Sanji and tried again, though was no less gruff about it, “If you’d only stopped for a damn second–I wasn’t done and you went and jumped my ass!”
Somewhere across the table, there was sniggering clown-to-clown communication:
“Wouldn’t be the first time.”
“I know, right?”
Zoro glared and the wayward exchange imploded, letting him space to resume. “Hearing that shit–I got excited okay?” Though the flush in his cheeks was faint, it wasn’t any less real. “I didn’t know if anything changed at all, then you went and dropped that on me. So no shit, I wanna tell everyone here.”
Robin pressed her hands together, resting them against a cheek as she smiled. For all their head butting, the two were still awfully earnest and sweet.
“But,” Zoro continued, finally settled (and aching foot clean of the earlier rush of misused haki) “--if your sister comes back with whatever crap she was peddling before, I’m gonna tell her you’re a shitty husband for breaking my foot.”
Ears around the table perked up.
“You have a sister?”
“She’s here?”
“Yohooo, can I see her panties?”
“Do we still get cake?”
Oh..oh no. Without the necessary context to keep quiet, Sanji should have known that Zoro would have spilled the bit about his sister. His flush darkened and he turned away to hide the fact. He really didn’t want to discuss that his blood family still existed, but he upon reuniting, he hadn’t exactly had the time to be honest and at least attempt to explain why he didn’t want to talk about it.
“Yes, she was, no they’re likely posion and I’ll make you a damn cake when get we get back to the Sunny.” he fired off, exhaling in annoyance as he tried to collect his thoughts and words. He was still mad, madder now when Zoro had managed to pull ahead of the two of them in being rational, but he had least the smug satisfaction that he’d forced the man to resort to using haki to protect his foot.
“And boo hoo, you’re a shitty husband for being a moron.” Sanji snapped, “I thought…I don’t know what I was thinking just…seemed like a good idea at the time. I was being chased by crossdressers who were really into me and I just showed your…wanted poster and said ya know…that we were…”
Fuck, shame made the back of his neck prickle with heat and he excused himself not wanting to dig the hole he was in any deeper. He fumbled for his cigarettes, lighting one and taking a drag to try and just get the nervous feeling out of his stomach. Nami flashed him another sympathetic glance before going to give a look to Zoro that was closer to a scolding.
“You and I are gonna have a talk about this later.” Nami said to Zoro, “--and for the record, the rest of you numbskulls need to leave him alone about this. They don’t have to talk about this in front of the rest of you, especially if they don’t want to.”
That silenced the issue and with little hesitation, the conversation looped back to its earlier destination of tales spent abroad…