Chapter Text
“Alright, we’re drawing sticks for who stays!” Nami announced, her hand full of skewers as she emerged from the kitchen.
The Sunny had docked at a new island that morning after a week or so of sailing. The seas were calm, the weather was sunny and warm – the perfect day to do some exploring and sightseeing on the island, check out the nearby towns and villages, not to mention stock up on supplies like food and medical bits and bobs.
Nami offered the skewers out, bypassing Sanji, who had already mentioned the need for restocking the fridge and pantry, thanks to Luffy’s eating habits.
“Aww! Mine’s tiny!” Luffy wailed after drawing what was likely the smallest skewer, “I don’t wanna stay on the ship, that’s too boring!”
“I’d be quite happy to exchange places with the Captain,” Robin offered with a smile, setting her teacup down on her saucer, “I have some reading I’d quite like to catch up on.”
Luffy cheered loudly, jumping down onto the dock beneath the Sunny, starting to make his way into the town.
“Lucky day for you then,” Nami rolled her eyes, sighing as Sanji tailed Luffy to keep an eye on him.
“I’m staying too,” Zoro spoke up, crossing over to head back up to the crows nest – where he’d been all day.
“Not so fast, you have an appointment in town today.” She held out an arm in front of him.
“Says who?” he scowled.
“Says me,” Nami snapped, crossing her arms. The decision was final.
You wandered up beside them, gently tapping Zoro’s shoulder. “Sorry, mister, I requested that I steal you for today.” You grinned sheepishly, smoothing down your clothes.
“Whatever,” Zoro grumbled, making his way to the men’s chambers to change his clothes.
Nami shot you a glance with a tiny salute, “Good luck with your plan.”
“I’m sure I won’t need it,” you chuckled.
“You say that now…”
— — — — — — — — —
This little plan of yours had been brewing in your brain for quite a while, but it had taken a while for you to actually work up the courage to kick it off, being that you were worried that your concern would come off the wrong way to Zoro – who this plan revolved around.
More specifically his bathing habits, or lack thereof.
Since you had joined the crew and had the pleasure of living up close and personal on Nami’s stolen Buggy sloop and the rowboat Luffy and Zoro had been getting around in, you could tell that both of those boys were on the stinkier side when it came to staying clean. Luffy straight up smelled like meat and fish (something about hiding in a barrel in the days before you met) and Zoro had the not-so pleasant aroma of his own sweat, mixed with mild body odour and an overwhelming undertone of steel. Unfortunately at the time of your meeting, he was also spurting blood from a stab wound, which likely didn’t help.
As time passed, and the crew grew, they continued to be the stinkiest crewmates aboard the ship. Being the only two that showered a maximum of once weekly (aside from Brook, who you could forgive as he didn’t perspirate), often they were forced to wash. Luffy was easy enough, sometimes reminding him to wash was enough, other times he could be bribed with meat or other things that sparked his interest, or even just giving him a bucket of soapy water, or, as a last resort, dumping said bucket over his head.
Recently, the crew had had to resort to that with Zoro quite a few times. The swordsman just seemed to repel most thoughts of bathing.
The final straw was last week. You had climbed up to the crows nest to call Zoro down for dinner as per Sanji’s request, only to open the hatch and be hit with hot, stale, sweaty air.
It had initially sent you reeling until you took a deep breath and quickly told Zoro dinner was ready, before escaping back down to the deck.
“You alright?” Nami had asked you when you returned to the dining area.
You bit your lip, sinking into your chair at the table, before saying, “I feel really awful, but please tell me if Zoro stinks or I’m just being rude.”
That got a laugh from most of the crew.
“Don’t feel bad, you know that guy doesn’t wash,” Sanji set some plates of food down on the table, “he probably does stink.”
This erupted more laughter, but you could tell that your concern was correct as Chopper started squirming and screwing his face up, his little nose twitching madly. Zoro had clearly made his way down to the deck.
“Ew, that does smell,” he shivered, “is that Zoro?”
You laughed softly, looking down at Chopper from your seat next to him, “Maybe, I can’t smell anything yet though.”
“Well, I do,” the little reindeer pouted, his sense of smell clearly as sensitive as ever.
The door to the room opened and Zoro marched in. The reaction was subtle but there with Chopper having the most noticeable one. His little ears were twitching as he tried to keep his face neutral.
Nami was the first one to say something as the man in question tried to sit down in a spare seat next to her. She audibly gagged, holding a hand out to stop him from coming any farther.
“Nuh uh, no way,” she shook her head, “you stink.”
Zoro frowned, tilting his head to smell himself.
“So you’re gonna go and bathe, properly,” Nami continued, “then you can come and eat with the rest of us.”
“Can’t I eat now and shower after?”
“Look,” Sanji cut in, finishing setting all the serving plates on the table, “what Nami is trying to tell you, is that no one wants to smell you whilst you eat.”
Zoro scowled, “Shut it, you—!”
“Just look at poor Chopper.” Nami gestured over to the boy in question, who was desperately trying not to offend the swordsman, but looked like he was suffering all the more.
“It’s fine, Zoro!” Chopper piped up, beaming through the stench, “don’t worry about me!”
“See?” Luffy grinned, “Zoro doesn’t smell that bad. Can’t he just eat with us now?”
Nami smacked him.
“I just explained that! He’s gonna wash first and that’s final!” she snapped.
“Yeah, I get it,” Zoro spat, turning on his heel and leaving. Before he passed through the door, he shot you a look that you couldn’t quite read. He promptly left the room after that, but as he left, you could see his ears burned a bright red.
— — —
Zoro didn’t come back down for dinner that night. You didn’t see him again until late at night when you came down to the kitchen for a drink before bed.
Hair damp from the shower, you were clean and fresh after washing off all the dirt and grime of the day.
Zoro was sitting at the table, eating the leftovers you’d managed to pry away from Luffy, with a beer in hand.
“Hi,” you smiled.
He gave you a nod as you moved to grab a glass out of the cupboard and fill it with water. You returned to the table, sitting opposite him and taking a sip of water.
Zoro didn’t say anything, focused on his meal, which was more than likely cold after a few hours of being sat out. Now that you were nearer him, you were getting a faint waft of vanilla and sandalwood from him – he must’ve stolen Sanji’s soap to use.
“Why didn’t you come back for dinner earlier?” you asked quietly.
He chewed his food, swallowing and washing it down with beer.
“Didn’t feel like being laughed at,” he said simply, not looking up.
You pursed your lips, “No one was laughing at you, Zoro.”
“Yeah?” he looked up to meet your eyes. “I bet curly-cook was in hysterics.”
You paused, studying his face. He seemed hurt somehow. He was probably embarrassed. His ears had been bright red last time you remembered.
“Not really,” you shook your head. “The conversation moved on because Luffy started helping himself to Usopp’s plate.”
“Right,” he nodded, his gaze had dropped back down to his meal. “Next time, let me know if I smell that bad.”
Oh, so he was mad at you for not telling him that he smelled? You didn’t realise he even minded that much. He usually didn’t.
“Oh, yeah, okay…” you nodded, sipping your water, “sorry.”
Zoro breathed out through his nose in what sounded like a laugh. “Quit apologisin’. If I really cared about that, then I would’a said earlier. I just don’t need the witch or the shitty cook yellin’ at me.”
“Right.”
The two of you sat in silence, only broken up by the sound of Zoro’s cutlery scraping against his plate and setting his beer bottle down every time he took a drink.
“Why is it that you bathe so little?” you asked tentatively, “aside from it being a ‘waste of time’.”
“You remember I told you that?” Zoro set his cutlery down on his cleared plate, lifting his beer to his mouth.
You nodded, watching Zoro take a swig of his drink.
He made a noise of acknowledgement, rolling the neck of his bottle between his fingers. Zoro seems to contemplate something, his jaw ticking as he clenches his teeth. He set the bottle down with a sigh, saying, “It’s– Yeah, I don’t have time for it but…” he shook his head. “It’s the soap smell. I don’t like smelling like…” he trailed off. “Like, uh…” he gesticulated, waving his hand around in the air.
“Like Sanji?” you offered, referring to his current scent.
Zoro scoffed. “I couldn’t find anything else. They were all too flowery or weird. Now I smell like the fucking hobgoblin.”
You laughed at the insult, “That’s a new one.” You took a gulp of water, offering Zoro a smile.
He paused as collecting his thoughts.
“What if you had something fragrance free?” you suggested, crossing your arms on the table.
Zoro shrugged, leaning back in his chair. “Do you think you could find something like that?”
This made a slight frown curl onto your face. Did he expect you to go out and fetch it for him? Certainly not. If you were looking for something to help him. He was coming too.
“I think… we could try and look for something next time we dock somewhere.”
— — — — — — — — —
Zoro emerged from the men’s quarters a moment later, changed into clean(er) clothes, swords at his hip like usual.
“Ready to go?” you shot him a smile.
He gave you a grunt of approval, following as you disembarked from the Sunny.
The town was a pleasant one. It was bright and the people were cheery. There were all sorts of pretty and nice smelling flowers that had sprouted up between cobbles at the edge of roads and paths. Flower beds were scattered around by the buildings, on street corners, dotted around the streets. Each one was filled to the brim with colourful flowers, spreading their sweet scent around in the air.
You and Zoro took to the streets. You were looking for some kind of soap shop – if the town even had one – you’d likely smell it before you saw it.
You stopped by a bed of red and orange chrysanthemums, bending over to inhale their fragrance. You carefully cradled a flower closer to your nose to smell the flower.
A butterfly fluttered over and landed on top of the flower by your face. It was an orange monarch with white spots all over the edges of the wings. They quivered as the butterfly bounced to the next flower. You smiled, a mundane but pleasant sight. You hadn't seen a butterfly in quite a while due to all the sailing.
“Hey, Zoro—!” You cut yourself off, after turning around and seeing the distinct lack of a swordsman. Grumbling, you turned on your heel and began to walk back the path you came.
You found him eventually. He was a lot farther down the path than you initially expected, probably closer to the ship than he was to you. He was coming out of a skinny alleyway that you could see lead down to a thin strip of pebbly beach.
“Where'd you go?” you asked when you'd finally caught up to him.
“I didn't go anywhere,” he retorted, “you disappeared on me, woman.”
You pursed your lips together. Really, you were the fool for expecting anything different from him. Unceremoniously, you linked his left arm with your right one, pulling him closer. “We’ll have to walk like this now. I can’t have you running off again.”
Zoro rolled his eyes, “You make me sound like a child.”
“You have the direction sense of a child,” you muttered under your breath before giving him a bright smile, clinging onto his arm like someone would their lover.
The comparison didn’t go amiss. You felt your face grow hot as the thought marinated in your brain. The fact that you were clutching onto his thick muscular bicep like you were his girlfriend didn't help either. At least Zoro didn't seem to mind – or register your inner turmoil for that matter.
If Zoro was fine with it, there was no need to worry. He would let you know if he wasn't, he always did. Being so close to him meant you got a whiff of his usual musky scent. You didn't mind it at all, nor was it too overwhelming as you knew he had showered a couple of days previously. But honestly, you liked his smell. He didn't bother with any colognes or scented soaps. He just smelled like him. There was no way you'd ever let that information slip to anyone. You don't think you'd ever recover if anyone knew you enjoyed the smell of the swordsman.
You weren't weird about it. At least, you didn't think you were. You didn't go around picking his clothes out of the laundry hamper and huffing them like some kind of deranged pervert, nor did you like it when he got too smelly. Like the time when this little plan of yours formed in your mind.
So the two of you continued walking down the street, with you desperately trying to calm your racing heart. He could probably tell anyway, so you weren’t sure why you were trying, Observation Haki and all that. As an Observation Haki user yourself, you could try to sense his heart rate at the same time if you wanted.
You did so out of pure nerves. It was as steady as ever.
It made you feel a little silly. Maybe you did have some feelings there. So what? You weren't going to act on them, it would put the whole dynamic of the crew in jeopardy as a result if things didn't go well, and that was the last thing you wanted. Along with not wanting to lose Zoro as one of your closest friends, or make him uncomfortable. He had never shown any interest in women, men, or anyone really.
Little stalls dotted the streets all the way up a hill to the town centre. There were all sorts of things on sale, jams, honey; cheeses and hams; straw sunhats and bags; little animal-shaped trinkets made out of nutshells; books with all kinds of contents, some that made you blush and quickly set back before Zoro was able to sneak a peek over your shoulder.
The town centre was situated at the top of the hill. In the main square there was a fountain with an intricate floral design carved out of the stone – it was a perfect match with the flowery nature of the rest of the town that you had seen so far.
“All of this is right up your alley, huh?” Zoro asked, watching you take in the view.
You nodded with a smile, noting how the water in the fountain trickled down ledges shaped like waterfalls and leafy foliage.
“Anyway,” you turned back to Zoro, still holding his arm snugly, “let’s look for a soap shop. That’s what we’re here for.”
His expression immediately fell. “That’s what we’re here for?”
“Yes.” Your reply was slightly irritated. “We did have a conversation about getting you a fragrance free soap.”
“Right.”
“And I said I’d help you find something nice,” you continued.
“Yeah… you did…”
“So that’s what I’m going to do.”
“Alright then.”
It wasn’t long before you found the kind of shop you were looking for. It was a quaint little place with ivy climbing up the walls and colourful buds in the flower beds. You pushed the door open, and there was a small tinkle of a bell ringing.
Inside were rows upon rows of bottles, and bars of soap. There was even a little station to wash your hands and try them out!
Unwinding your arm from Zoro’s, you gave him a little push.
“Go and smell the testers, see if you can find something you like, and, please, don’t leave the store.”
Zoro rolled his eyes, “Yeah, I got it.”
A woman emerged from the back of the shop, her eyes lit up and she came over to speak to you, to ask if you needed any help.
“I was wondering if you had any fragrance free soaps?” you asked politely.
“Of course, come with me.”
The woman led you away towards the back of the store to show you the stock whilst Zoro was wandering around the front of the shop.
He really couldn’t be bothered choosing soaps, but you had gone out of your way to do so. He picked each tester up, working down the row. He sniffed each one, then put it back. None really appealed to him. He just kept reminding himself he was doing it for you, sniffing each one of these soaps because you had asked him to find one he liked.
Zoro picked up another soap and sniffed it. He froze. This scent was familiar. Familiar in a way that was comforting, in a way that made him feel at ease.
He placed the tester back and picked up a box of the soap.
You returned from the back of the store with a few things under your arm. Feeling pleased with your findings, you trotted over to Zoro to share your discovery.
“Okay, so I got some fragrance free soaps for you, there was also oatmeal soaps that looked nice, so I picked those up. They had a deal for shampoo and conditioner too, so…” you showed him the two bottles tucked under your arm.
“I don’t need those,” Zoro said simply.
“No?” you frowned, “do you have some on the ship already?”
“Nah, I just use water. It’s easier. Takes less time.”
You pursed your lips, pausing for a moment. “Okay, I’m definitely gonna get you these. I seriously doubt you know the intricacies of water washing your hair.”
“There’s no point,” Zoro sighed, “I can’t be bothered washing my hair like that.”
“Then maybe if you bathed with – or as often as the other guys – you could ask Chopper or someone to wash your hair.”
He pulled a face, “He wouldn’t do that.”
You matched his expression, “He adores you. I think you’re underestimating how much he’d do for you.” You paused, watching Zoro’s expression.
“Yeah, whatever, woman.”
“What soap did you pick out?” you lead him over to the counter for the saleswoman to pay. You set all the bottles and bars of soap down and motioned for Zoro to put down his pick.
He did so.
Your eyes fell onto the box on the counter, reading the label. Your stomach clenched, feeling all fluttery inside as you tried to contain the warmth sprouting up onto your face again. It made you feel all giddy and lovesick, seeing what he had chosen. That despite all your faults, he clearly thought more of you than you had realised. For the soap that sat on the counter was the exact same scent as the one you washed yourself with everyday.