Work Text:
A salty sea breeze ruffles the sails of the Going Merry, the Strawhat Jolly Roger smiling at the vast open scapes of water. The warm sun peaks from out of the gathering clouds, bathing the brown wooden floor panels of the deck. Usopp captivates Luffy and Chopper with wild tales of his adventures. Nami sits on a chair soaking in the sun while charting their course. To her left, Zoro cleans his swords, inspecting them as they glint in the sunlight for scratches and chips. Sanji remains in the kitchen, pleasant aromas of lunch wafting out the open door leading to the deck.
“There should be a storm approaching.” Nami comments casually.
Zoro looks up. The blue sky spotted with a few fluffy clouds. He knows she’s probably right but he assumes he has time to finish taking care of his swords. Luffy and the others remain oblivious, Nami’s words lost in the breeze.
The sun hides behind the clouds as Usopp reaches the climax of his story. Luffy bounces up and down with excitement, Chopper watching in awe. The wind picks up, hitting the sails, Zoro’s head snapping towards the loud sound.
“Reduce the sails.” Nami instructs, closing her book of sketched maps, saving them from the sprinkle of raindrops starting to fall from the sky.
The clouds have thickened and loom grey and ominous above their ship. Zoro sheaths his swords, leaving them on his seat. He grabs the ropes and reduces the sails, fighting against the wind. He hates to admit it – and he’ll never say it out loud – but it definitely is easier to do this when Sanji is around to help. It’s almost unfair that the stupid cook is left to do whatever he wants inside while Zoro’s outside fighting against the sails. As he makes his way to the other side to check the other ropes and knots, Nami reminding him of all the steps he already knew he needed to take, he tries not to snap at her. Everything seems to be in order.
“Lunch is ready!” Sanji’s voice echoes from inside and Luffy cheers.
A harsh wind hits the crew and a wave smacks against the hull, some of the water spilling over the wooden flooring. Nami makes her way inside with Chopper and Usopp. Zoro follows along but hesitates. Where’s Luffy?
He turns around to see Luffy, tripping over himself and running to the railing after his hat that had been knocked off by the gust of wind. The hat is just out of his reach. He leans over the railing, stretching out his rubber arm towards his hat, leaning further and further.
“Luffy!” Zoro calls out, watching his idiot of a captain fall over board. He glances over at his swords and then back at the rough water, just barely seeing the tips of Luffy’s fingers as he sinks into the ocean. There’s no time.
He sprints to the railing with an annoyed grunt and dives in, hearing someone shout his name from the doorway. The water is icy and knocks Zoro around. He can barely see Luffy but can make out his form, the sea water stinging his eyes. He pushes himself off the boat, not wanting to end up underneath it and propels himself with the motion towards his captain. He grabs Luffy by his red vest and starts swimming back up to the surface. He takes a deep breath as he surfaces, bobbing up and down in the waves , trying to keep himself and Luffy afloat as he treads water.
He blinks a few times, his eyes stinging, squinting at the Going Merry as it rocks and bobs a few meters away. Keeping Luffy’s head above the water, he can hear him coughing up water and is relieved to see that he’s breathing. Zoro begins to paddle with one arm, kicking under the water to move slowly towards the boat. The currents are strong but someone seems to be steering the Merry towards them.
“HOLY SHIT!” Usopp screams from the boat, pointing at them.
Zoro pays it no mind but there’s a nagging feeling in his gut when the rest of the crew starts yelling incoherently at him. He can’t make out what they’re saying as they all yell over each other and the roaring winds.
He makes it to the Merry and Sanji helps pull Luffy onto the deck while Zoro pushes him upwards. He bobs under the water, the waves growing and Usopp grabs his arm, frantically trying to bring him back on board. The wind bites into his flesh that resides above the water, his sopping shirt icy as it sticks to his skin. The water itself is cold too but not as cold as being half out of the water. He’s not sure what the rush is and Usopp isn’t really much help trying to pull him up.
He looks up to see Sanji offering him a hand and he grunts in annoyance. However, Sanji’s expression is one of concern. His eyes are wide and keep darting towards the water around Zoro. That sinking feeling in his gut returns and he reaches out, just missing Sanji’s hand as a wave smacks him against the boat, his head hitting solidly against it.
Zoro’s vision starts to blur and there’s a ringing in his ears. His throat burns and he can’t see anything. A rush of panic washes over him and he thrashes around under water. His lungs burn. His head feels like it’s splitting open. The dim light refracting through the water guides him to the surface where he gasps for air, coughing and spluttering. The Merry isn’t too far away and he vaguely sees the crew all lined up at the railing. They’re yelling but he can’t hear them over the ringing in his ears.
Thunder claps above him, and lightning strikes somewhere far, the light sending flashes and fractals of colours burning across his vision. The loud boom sending white hot searing pain through his head. His forehead stings from the salty water and he raises a hand out of the water to press against it, bringing it back to see his palm stained with diluted blood.
How did he even get here? Why is he in the water?
The screaming and commotion from the ship slowly fades in. They’re all yelling and pointing at him. Their words lost in the downpour. Zoro is confused but manages to figure out that he should head back to the ship so he starts swimming towards it. Something moves below him. He grits his teeth and squints, trying to focus on the blurry blob that he assumes is the Going Merry, picking up the pace. He flinches and yelps as something slithers around his ankle.
Zoro thrashes around in the water, kicking his legs to desperately escape whatever curled around his legs. It’s slimy, almost like a tentacle but instead of suction cups it feels like teeth sinking into his flesh. It starts pulling him under the water and he fights with all his might to keep his head above, gasping for air. His chest feels tight and droplets of saltwater get caught in his throat. His leg stings and burns as whatever has ensnared him tightens it’s grip.
He manages to get one last gasp of air before he is fully submerged. A sudden and overwhelming terror sets in as he thrashes and kicks against the water sending shooting pains through his trapped legs as the sharp teeth-like things anchor deeper in his flesh, dragging through his tendons making him let out an involuntary scream. Bubbles of air leave him to escape towards the surface.
He reaches towards his hip for his swords but is met with nothing. The panic spirals further into despair. He looks down, hoping to see what has captured him. All he can see are scales and a slimy tentacle like form in the fractals of light from the surface. The rest of the giant expanse of the ocean is pitch black.
He fights to hold his breath, his mind willing him to breathe but he knows he can’t. His lungs start to burn and he can’t tell if the waves are swaying him or if he’s getting dizzy. There’s a desperate agonising pain in his chest. He needs air. He needs to breathe. He fights the urge as long as he can.
His body can no longer take it and he involuntarily gasps for air, water flooding his throat and lungs. There’s a sharp searing pain in his throat as the water hits it and it spreads as it floods his lungs. He starts coughing and choking, the sounds of his suffering squashed and lost in the never ending expanse of darkness swallowing him. His thrashing starts to slow, his energy rapidly sapping from his body. From every fibre of his being.
His body slowly goes limp, his head angling up, watching the sunlight refract and reflect through the water. He’s not sure where he is anymore. He’s not sure what’s happening. Why is he underwater? Why can’t he move? Where are his swords? He feels like he’s forgetting something important but can’t put his finger on it.
The panic suddenly vanishes. The burning and stinging evaporating with it. A strange dreamlike feeling washes over him. A feeling of peace flows through him, his eyes drooping shut. Everything goes black.
___
“Get up.”
Zoro open’s his eyes, his body stiff and sore. He’s laying flat on his back, the sun blinding him, his bamboo sword discarded in the flowing grass.
Kuina stands over him, her bamboo sword angled at his throat. She nudges him with it, raising an eyebrow. However, Zoro remains laying there. The warmth of the sun bathes him and for once he feels at peace with losing.
She sits down beside him, her fringe falling over her eyes. He looks over at her watching the features on her face blur and morph. He pushes himself to sit upright, his body bruised and battered. Leaning back on his palms, he feels the blades of grass imprinting onto his palms, looking out at the field outstretched before them. Rich green leaves gently swaying in the breeze. The golden sunlight making them seem like they’re glowing.
“It’s not like you to give up this easily.” Kuina sighs, pulling her legs into a criss cross formation.
“I think I’m just tired.”
“Bullshit.”
Zoro rolls his eyes and leans forwards, sitting upright. He looks down at his palms, tracing over the patterns left from the grass. Then he starts fidgeting with the grass in front of him, picking at them and pulling them from the soil.
“I’m just so far away from my goal. What if I never reach it?” Zoro mumbles, his tone gruff even at such a young age.
“One of us has to do it.” Kuina reminds him, turning to face him, “And I can’t do it anymore. It’s your job. We promised, remember?”
___
Zoro coughs up another mouthful of seawater onto the planks of the Going Merry. The hoofs on his chest stop their compressions and a different set of hands roll him onto his side, keeping him in place. He blinks open his eyes, the light sending shooting pains through his skull. He shuts his eyes tightly. His chest burns and aches as it heaves, more seawater spilling from his lips. He curls into himself, his muscles protesting and a sharp stabbing pain shooting through his leg makes him freeze. He gasps for air, sensing someone sit beside him.
A slight breeze sends a chill through his flesh and muscles down to the bone. His teeth chatter as he gasps for air, his entire body vibrating. He coughs again, this time hard enough to bring up some stomach acid and feels the hands holding him in place faulter for a moment before shifting, moving some straggling pieces of green hair from his forehead. Their hands are wet – maybe they pulled him out of the water – and gentle.
Sound slowly trickles in through his waterlogged ears. Someone calling his name over and over, crouches beside him. Their voice becoming more hopeless and wobbly each time. He opens his eyes, feeling another hand on his shoulder. It’s Luffy.
Zoro’s breathing is still ragged and comes out in wheezing gasps, occasionally interrupted by choking coughs. He feels himself being lifted. Someone grabbing his arms and someone else grabbing his legs. He’s thankful that they avoid the stinging wounds on his shin, wondering how bad they must be.
He finds himself on a bed, feeling something cold and metal against his chest. Chopper’s blurry figure moving around the room shortly after. He tries to move but someone by the doorway walks in and gently stops him. He looks up at the amorphous blob of colours, catching the smell of cigarette smoke. It must be pretty bad if Sanji isn’t berating him. Or maybe he is and he just can’t hear it.
He can sort of understand that Chopper is warning him about his leg and tenses up as he feels something press against it. He inhales sharply through his gritted teeth as pain ignites in his leg. Sanji’s hand on his shoulder grips him tighter, his other hand finding Zoro’s forearm. Zoro closes his eyes, focussing on Sanji’s touch. It’s surprisingly grounding. Sanji’s hands are cold and wet, and as Zoro squints he can tell that Sanji is soaking from head to toe.
The burning starts to subside as Chopper bandages his wounds but a faint stinging remains. His chest still aches but at least he can breathe without choking now. Sanji leaves the room and Chopper remains. He asks Zoro some basic questions:
“Can you hear me?”
Zoro tries to speak but his words come out raspy and sound foreign to himself. He decides to nod instead, his vision swimming.
“What’s your name?”
“Roronoa Zoro” He rasps, his head aching as he thinks.
After Chopper runs through a few more questions, Sanji comes back in, now in dry clothes. He helps Zoro sit up against a pillow that Chopper props up against the headboard. He puts a bowl of soup on Zoro’s lap and sits beside the bed on a chair, letting Chopper leave to go eat his own lunch.
Zoro stares at the soup, knowing it would definitely make him feel better but something inside of him tells him not to rush this. His shaky fingers carefully grasp the spoon and he tries to feed himself. However, he’s shaking too much and the soup falls out. He huffs and discards the spoon, his hands clasping around the bowl as he lifts it to his lips.
Sanji watches as Zoro cautiously sips at his soup. Making sure he manages to eat all of it and keep it down as per Chopper’s instructions. Zoro’s red tinted eyes are half lidded and slightly glazed over. They roam around the room, slowly taking in what just happened.
“My swords,” Zoro manages to say, his tongue feeling heavy in his mouth, “Where are my swords?”
Sanji sighs and moves the hair that falls over his left eye only for it to fall back over it again. Maybe expecting a thank you from Zoro of all people was too much to hope for. He gets up and grumbles something about Zoro being an ungrateful little shit as he gets up. He remembers that Chopper said that Zoro needs to be supervised and halts at the door.
“Luffy, can you get Zoro his swords?” He calls out down the hallway, unaware that his loud words only amplify the stabbing pains in Zoro’s head.
Luffy comes sprinting down the hall, almost tripping over his own feet and holds out Zoro’s swords. He peeks into the room and smiles widely seeing Zoro sitting upright and no longer choking on seawater. He gives the swords to Sanji and barges into the room, about to jump onto Zoro when Sanji catches him with his free arm, preventing him from causing further injuries. Luffy squirms in Sanji’s hold until his feet meet the ground and he crosses his arms, a little frustrated. He is so relieved and is filled with so much joy, he needs to put it somewhere.
Sanji sets Zoro’s swords down on the foot of the bed and scans over Zoro, ignoring Luffy’s complaints. Zoro is still pale and shivering, his clothes still soaking, the water seeping into the bedsheets.
Against his better judgement, he leaves Luffy with Zoro and walks down the hall to grab Zoro some dry clothes. He comes back relieved to see that Luffy is merely talking to – or more accurately at – Zoro.
“Luffy, there are some leftovers in the kitchen if you want them.” Sanji says, putting the clothes down beside the bed.
Luffy’s eyes light up and he assures Zoro that he’ll be back to check on him later. Zoro nods, trying to keep his eyes open, exhaustion anchoring deeply in his marrow.
Sanji turns around and closes the door, lingering by it. Behind him he can hear Zoro shuffle. A few muffled pained grunts leaving him as he attempts to dress himself. Sanji crosses his arms, staring at the door as he waits, unsure how long this will take. He hopes Zoro doesn’t make his injuries worse while changing but he knows how reckless Zoro is. It’s more likely than not.
“You can turn back around.” Sanji hears weakly from behind and he does. Zoro is sitting on the edge of the bed, his head lulling forwards as he tries to keep his eyes open, avoiding the damp patches on the bed.
Sanji assesses the situation and walks over. “Can you stand?”
Zoro takes a moment to evaluate. He tries to lift himself to his feet, his vision dancing with black spots from the pain shooting up his leg. He cautiously fumbles with his hands behind himself to find the bed and sits back down.
“That’s ok.” Sanji’s words come out unintentionally soft. Both of them internally cringing.
He offers Zoro a hand and Zoro begrudgingly takes it. Sanji helps him up and wraps an arm around him, helping Zoro shuffle a few steps to sit down on the chair in the room. Sanji takes off the bedsheets stained with blood and damp with seawater. He takes some dry bedding from the cabinet in the corner of the room and remakes the bed. He then leaves the room, ducking into the bathroom and comes back with a towel.
He throws the towel onto Zoro’s head and Zoro grumbles in response. Zoro haphazardly rubs the towel over his hair until Sanji snatches it from him.
“You can’t do anything, can you?” Sanji huffs. His fingers gently press through the towel into Zoro’s scalp, absorbing the water and making sure to avoid where he knocked his head against the Merry. Zoro’s eyes fall shut and he involuntarily hums softly and contently. His shoulders slowly dropping.
Sanji puts the towel away and helps Zoro back into bed, throwing the blanket over him. He retakes his seat beside the bed. Keeping an eye on Zoro.
“Thank you.” Zoro whispers, his words thick with exhaustion.