estoria | I'm a whole lot better [CLOSED]

Who: Zoro

serving_love
When: IC 7/19 during the event
Where: Straw Hat Apartments, Occupancy 2
What: Neither Zoro nor Sanji have ever told anyone else in the crew where they spent their two years training. Spirit fox shenanigans are going to force them to find out each other's secret.
Rating/Warning: nothing I can think of, maybe some sensitive topics discussed?

[Zoro has been on the slightest of edges since the day the world glitched around him, and though he still chalks it up to a technology problem inside ViViD, since it happened while he was in the gravity room, Weiss's information makes him wonder. Was he supposed to be in that train tunnel? Was he supposed to die?

And then this place just gets worse on him today, he wasn't sure for a good number of hours but now he's certain there's a weird white fox trailing him around. Only not a real one, no, it's all wispy and shit, and whenever he turns to look at the flitter of white, gauzy movement in his peripheral sight, it darts away, avoiding his eye. He only saw it once for the fox-shape it is, on his way back from the dojo, and though he hurried his pace to get indoors without it and hopefully trap it outside, he's pretty sure he just saw it drift through the kitchen. Dammit.

He is not drunk enough for this.

He hasn't even hardly settled into the couch cushions and he's up again, pacing, trying to see where the ghostly fox went. Maybe he can chase it out? Maybe he can find a fresh bottle of sake in the kitchen while he's at it. Cook's around, though...]

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[Hey, he was just starting to enjoy that! Zoro is momentarily taken aback by sudden disappearing cook, but mentally smacks himself for fretting when Sanji doesn't go far. While he doesn't get why he needed to pull away, yet, Zoro gives him his space, restraining himself from reaching over and threading finger through his hair. It's tempting, though.

Instead, he straightens his haramaki and then sits flopped, letting his breathing come back down to normal and tasting his lips in curiosity.]

That...uh. That's not bad.

[master of understatement. Behind that idle comment is the sense that he wants to do it again, often, and then some. A sleeping beast deep inside him has awakened, and Zoro wants to know if there's other things he's been casually dismissing as pointless that he really ought to try out. For now, though, he's prepared to treat the cook with a bit of delicacy - he hasn't connected that vision of the pink island with anything, he wouldn't even begin to guess that it might have had more of an effect than making Sanji spout blood around women, but he remembers past comments about not being interested in men. Obviously, this is something different, and it's working out to his benefit, but as he sits there catching his breath and letting the flush of heat fade from his neck, Zoro resolves to let Sanji set the pace.

At least, he thinks he will. His hands might go wandering all on their own without his permission...]

[He actually wouldn't have minded... The hand in his hair, that is.

As it is, he tips his head back onto the couch, craning his neck to look up at Zoro when he speaks. A chuckle bubbles up out of his throat and he digs a hand into his pocket, searching for that cigarette he said he needed.]

Not bad... Yeah, I guess it wasn't.

[He lights up, which means momentarily bending his head forward again, hair falling into his face, but then he rests back against the couch again with a satisfied exhale of smoke up toward the ceiling.

That really was something. More intense than whatever little experience Sanji has had before, and just...good. His heart is still pounding away, partly from their just finished activities but also because there's a smidgeon of apprehension lodging itself in his chest. He can mostly ignore it for now, but wow.

There's no denying he's really fucking turned on from making out with a man. Even more than he thought he'd be when he gave himself the go-ahead to do this. It's a good thing there's not a mirror in front of him because he'd probably be mortified by his mussed up hair and wrinkled shirt that's still somewhat twisted around his torso.]

Not exactly how I thought this shitty day was gonna go when I woke up this morning, I'll tell you that.

[Which reminds him about his stupid fox and the fact that he has no idea where it is right now. Ugh.]

[That gets a laugh out of Zoro, too - one quick, sharp bark of it before he can control it and reduce it to chuckles.]

Tell me about it. Thought I was gonna get a good spar in, see some friends, take a nap...

[Sparring, derailed by foxes. Nap, obviously not happening. And now all of this? What a day.

There's no sign of the ghost fox at all right now, which is fine by him. Hopefully it's hiding in some kind of den or hole, buried under his dirty laundry, whatever. The less he has to worry about Sanji seeing every stupid thing about himself and his life, the better. After a bit, he sits up and leans forward with his elbows on his knees, bringing himself just a smidge closer to the cook.]

It's okay, right?

[dammit, why can't he be cool about this? He shouldn't need reassurance...]

[Sanji glances back at Zoro again, a little surprised to hear that kind of question coming from him. But after a moment, he grins around his cigarette and reaches back to somewhat awkwardly clasp his hand to Zoro's shin.]

It's okay. We're fine.

[He uses his hold on Zoro for leverage, pushing himself up to his feet and then straightening himself out as he finally notices the state of his clothes. Then he props his hands on his hips and looks down at Zoro, hair still a mess.]

We could still spar. Or I could make us dinner.

[The burst of feeling in his chest, at that, almost takes his breath away. We're fine. It's better than any of his best-case scenarios, most of which he imagined still ending with a foot to his face. Zoro steels his face back into something a little less stunned and heaves a sigh.]

Sparring's out until those damn foxes go away. They run around too close, it's too easy for one of us to step on one and then we're down for the count again. Dinner, though...

[he is always up for dinner]

[Makes a face.]

Shit, right. Those things are such a pain in the ass... Okay then. Uh.

[His hands slip into his pockets now, shoulders hunching just a touch.]

You want anything in particular?

[It shouldn't feel weird to ask him that, because it's not like he never has before, but for some reason Sanji feels like he suddenly doesn't know how to act around Zoro.

Even though he just said they're fine.

Which they are, really, but.

Goddammit, he feels ridiculous again. No, everything's cool. Smooth sailing. He blows upward at his bangs in exasperation at himself, then looks expectantly at Zoro.]

[watches the fidgeting, wondering but then leaving it be. This is more like what he would have expected, but it's still not bad. Awkward cook is kind of appealing...]

Hadn't really thought about it. Uh. Donburi?

[he already had onigiri for lunch so...]

I dunno. Whatever you've got, you know I'll eat it.

[Sanji feels his face go warm at that, which is stupid because it wasn't even a compliment. For fuck's sake, get a grip. Zoro basically just said "I eat food!".

He clears his throat.]

Yeah, alright. I can do that.

[But then he pauses before taking a step, giving his path to the kitchen a pointed look.]

Am I clear?

Huh? [RIGHT FOXES. Damn them. Zoro cranes his neck to try to see past Sanji into the kitchen, and then gets up to go and inspect it for himself. Fortunately, as he's poking around, he happens to catch a glimpse of whispy white out of the corner of his good eye - the little jerk eludes him and runs the other way down the hall.]

...yeah, you're good. This shit's gonna get old before today is even over.

[Lets out a noisy sigh as he ambles over.]

Fuck, no kidding.

[His fox chooses that moment to hop up onto the counter, and Sanji swats a hand at it as he walks by which makes it scamper away again.]

Grab us another bottle of sake, I'll have the food ready in a minute.

[he gathers by that gesture exactly which direction Sanji's fox might be, so Zoro carefully gives the invisible thing a wide berth as he sidles past into the kitchen]

You're more than stocked up, good. I have a feeling we're gonna need it.

[although, you know, there were no foxes around while they were in close personal contact, so hey - possible strategy to avoid memory-swaps while getting other benefits?]

[Certainly a strategy worth experimenting with!]

'Course I'm stocked up. You expect anything less?

[Please, marimo.

Anyway. A-cookin' he goes!]

[that gets a small chuckle out of him, as he goes to find the sake and appraise it for quality. Better safe than sorry, with foxes around, Zoro decides to just hang out in the kitchen and quietly watch Sanji cook. No sense in risking memories just to wander around, right? He's got everything he needs right here, anyway.]

I'm a whole lot better [CLOSED]

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