Chapter Text
They said a god lived in the temple on top of the hill.
Zoro had no use for gods – they’d certainly never done anything for him – except to defeat one and prove without a doubt he was the strongest of them all.
So when he did finally arrive at Shimotsuki Village, he made his way up the hill with the group of worshippers, entered the temple under the guise of needing a blessing, and when everyone else was busy with praying, he snuck away to look for this god.
He ended up in one of the gardens surrounding the temple. It was huge, green plants taking up almost every space, the only bare part the thin stone paths crisscrossing through it. He’d never left his tiny little village on the outskirts of the desert before, never seen so much green ever in his life, and he could only stare, transfixed by all the plantlife as he ran a hand through his dark hair in awe.
Was this the god?
“Who are you?”
Zoro turned as he was startled out of his musings, hand quickly going to his sword, but it wasn’t one of the temple guards. It was a boy around his own age dressed all in white, with golden hair, bright blue eyes, and an amusing curl at the end of his eyebrows.
“I know all of the temple guards,” the boy continued, “and the visitors aren’t allowed back here, so who are you?”
“I’m looking for the god,” he answered.
The boy laughed, a light musical sound that reminded him of windchimes on a summer night, “Isn’t everyone? But you won’t find any gods out here.”
Zoro glanced between the lush greenery and the beautiful boy and had his doubts. If the gods did exist, surely it would be here.
“Why are you looking for the god anyway?” The boy smirked, “Looking for a special blessing, or perhaps a miracle?”
“I don’t need any of that,” he answered, tapping the hilt of his sword, “I’m gonna fight it and defeat it.”
The boy stared at him, his face going from shock to mirth as he laughed loudly.
“You really think you can defeat a god?” He asked when he’d calmed down.
Zoro ignored his laughter – he’d heard that and much worse in his village – and said, “I made a promise to someone to become the strongest. I don’t care if you laugh at me or don’t believe me, I’m gonna do it. Besides,” he shrugged, “I won’t know until I try.”
“A promise, huh?” The boy’s face went soft before his mouth twisted into a playful smirk, “I doubt you can beat a god. You probably can’t even beat me.”
Zoro knew a challenge when he heard it. His grin grew feral as he drew his sword, “Let’s find out. When I beat you, you take me to see the god, Curly.”
“Oh?” he tilted his head, smirking at the nickname, “And what will I get when I beat you?”
“You won’t,” he laughed at the boy’s fierce scowl, “but, fine, if you beat me, what do you want?”
He pursed his lips as he thought about it, then blushed and shyly asked, “How about…you be my friend?”
“Sure,” Zoro grinned, knowing that however this turned out he’d be his friend. He didn’t have many friends himself – his last one, Kuina, who he’d made that promise to, died years ago – and this boy was too interesting to give up, “I’ll be your friend. But only if you win.”
The boy grinned back, and took up a fighting stance.
Zoro waited a beat, then lashed out with a slash towards his torso. He blocked it with a kick, stopping the blade in its tracks with a surprising amount of strength. They stood like that for a bit, pressing back against each other, trying and failing to gain ground, but they were both too evenly matched.
They sprung apart simultaneously, each panting slightly as they sized the other up in a new light.
Zoro’s grin grew. It had been ages since he’d had a good fight, since he found someone who could match him. He was definitely going to see this boy again, one way or the other.
They lunged at each other again, and continued the fight.
Zoro was not sure how long it lasted, but he had a busted lip and a bruised rib and the boy had a slash on his leg and a cut on his forehead by the time the temple guards finally found them.
“Your Worship!” The head guard shouted, dragging the boy behind him as the rest of the guards surrounded Zoro, holding him at swordpoint.
Zoro snarled at them. The fight was just getting good, and these jerks just had to interrupt. He panted, his eyes roaming over the stony faces as he tried to figure out the best way to take them all down.
“No!” The boy shouted as he tugged at the head guard’s sleeve, “Don’t hurt him!”
“He hurt you,” the head guard said as he drew his sword, a sharp curved thing that could take Zoro’s head off in an instant, “The only punishment suited for spilling your divine blood over these sacred gardens can be death.”
Zoro’s eyes went wide as they slid back to the boy. He didn’t know what he was expecting the god to look like, tall and imposing probably, something radiating power and strength, certainly not a scrawny boy with a crooked scowl and beautiful eyes.
How was he the god?
“You can’t kill him!” The boy – the god? – lunged forward, throwing himself between Zoro and the head guard with his arms held wide, “I won’t allow it! He’s my friend!”
“Friend?” The head guard scoffed as he looked him over, no doubt taking in his ragged appearance, his dark scruffy hair, torn clothes, the dirt that seemed permanently caked onto his skin, and finding him beneath his notice, “Him?”
“Yes,” the god said in a tone that brooked no argument, “Him.”
The head guard looked taken aback, “If you require companionship, Your Worship, surely there are better candidates than some mannerless, unwashed street urchin.”
“I don’t care if there are,” he snarled, a fire and determination in his eyes that made Zoro’s heart skip a beat, “I chose him.”
“Very well, Your Worship,” the head guard signaled to the others, causing them to back down and sheath their swords.
Zoro sheathed his as well, then shouted as he was grabbed roughly by the arms.
“Friend of yours or not, it is still forbidden for outsiders to enter the sacred gardens,” the head guard said as he stared icily at Zoro, “He will have to leave.”
“But,” the god turned him, and no matter how hard he looked at him Zoro could only see a normal boy worried about his friend, “can he come back?”
“I’m afraid not,” the head guard said in a tone that was anything but apologetic as he sneered down at Zoro, “Unless he somehow miraculously becomes a temple guard.”
Zoro snarled at the head guard as they dragged him away, glancing back over his shoulder for one last look at his new friend.
“I’ll see you again, Curly,” he shouted, “I promise.”
And from the way his eyes widened and he nodded in understanding, he could tell he believed him.
“Come along, Sanji,” the head guard said, still glaring down Zoro as he placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder and guided him away, “Let’s get you cleaned up.”
As the guards dragged him to the temple entrance, Zoro asked, “Hey, how do you become a temple guard?”
“The temple guards are the most elite warriors around,” the guard scoffed, “Only the most blessed and righteous among us are deemed worthy of protecting one so sacred.”
“It takes decades of training to even be considered,” the other guard said as they tossed him out, “For someone like you it’d take about a hundred years.” He laughed, “Perhaps in your next life, maybe.”
Zoro growled after them, a new spark of determination igniting inside of him.
It took three years for Zoro to become a temple guard, and one day to be assigned to Sanji’s personal guard.
Miraculous, the other guards called it. Chosen, they called him.
Zoro scoffed. His ascent had nothing to do with divine influence and everything to do with his determination and skill.
After all, he was just keeping his promise to his friend.
Sanji, according to the priests, was the human form of the god of the sea.
His blue eyes were said to hold the very essence of the sea itself, his golden hair its endless bounties, his curled eyebrows the ever shifting tides and currents.
He was divine, they insisted, knew ever since they’d found him along the shore as a child. He could be nothing else.
Everyone here treated him like he was divine, some untouchable deity to be put on a pedestal and worshiped.
To Zoro, Sanji was an asshole.
He was a beautiful asshole – don’t get him wrong – his silky blond hair, his deep blue eyes, and the grace and poise that he always held himself with made him exceptionally beautiful, but it didn’t change the fact that he was an asshole.
A completely human asshole, who would go against every single thing Zoro told him to do, would challenge him over the stupidest shit, who fought with him tooth and nail about anything and everything, who swooned over the priestesses and cursed out the priests and the guards, who lost his temper at the drop of hat and swore worse than a sailor.
He was also the best friend he’d ever had, the only person since Kuina who could keep up with him, the only person who could make him laugh with abandon or smile.
Because, despite being worshiped as the incarnation of a deity, Sanji was very down to earth, never letting any of that get to his head, and incredibly kind, going out of his way to make food and snacks for all the guards and the temple visitors.
Zoro didn’t believe Sanji was a god, but the man that he was was certainly something special, and his favorite part of his day was spending time with him.
But there were so many damn rules concerning Sanji.
They were strolling through the sacred gardens, one of the few things Sanji was allowed to do outside of the temple proper.
Zoro eyed the other guard walking a few steps behind them.
Despite being chosen and favored, Zoro was not allowed to be alone with him. Sanji always had at least two guards with him at all times. His status did allow him to spend time off his shift with Sanji, but even then there were always guards about. Since he was technically on duty today there was just one other one, and that was as much privacy as he and Sanji could ever expect.
“What’s on your mind?” Sanji asked, his usual indication for Zoro to start the conversation, since Zoro wasn’t allowed to speak to him unless he was spoken to first.
The other guards were always jealous about how much he did get to speak with Sanji, but that was mostly because they were always kissing his ass and could barely get past ‘yes, Your Worship,’ while Zoro could hold an actual conversation with the guy.
“It’s been getting warmer,” Zoro said as they ducked under an overgrown treebranch, “I’m thinking a trip to the beach might be nice.”
Sanji hummed, “I imagine it would. I hope you have a good time.” He smirked as his eyes slid over to him, “Assuming you can even find it.”
Zoro scowled, not appreciating the jab at his alleged lack of directions. It wasn’t his fault the temple grounds tended to shift around.
But he pressed on anyway, “I think you should come with me.”
The other guard scoffed, probably at his directness, but Zoro was used to ignoring him.
“You know I’m not supposed to leave the temple,” Sanji sighed.
“What kind of sea god can’t even go to the sea?” Zoro smirked, “Or maybe you can use your divine powers to bring the sea here?”
“You ass,” Sanji said, but he was smiling, so Zoro considered it his win.
They stopped in a clearing where the sun peeked through the leaves. Sanji’s smile grew as he looked up, the sunlight bathing him in gold, making every part of him shine, and for a moment Zoro could almost believe he was divine.
He wanted more than anything to reach out to him, to run his hands through his silky hair, to cup his face, to hold him close, to press his lips against his.
But, Zoro was not allowed to touch him. That was a privilege reserved only for the priests and priestesses, and the head guard in an emergency.
It didn’t stop him from wanting, and as time went on it was getting harder and harder to keep his hands to himself.
Because Zoro was irrevocably, unquestionably in love with him.
He couldn’t help it, the way he smiled and laughed was intoxicating, the way he fed him and all the other guards the treats he made himself was touching, and the way he fought – when Zoro was actually allowed to fight him – was exhilarating.
Sanji may not have been a god, but to Zoro he was still something to be worshiped.
“What are you thinking now?” Sanji asked with a soft grin on his face.
I love you, he was thinking, I love you, I love you, I love you.
But, those were words he was never allowed to say.
He was not allowed to love Sanji like that, up close and real and tangible, as a man, as a human. He was only supposed to love him distantly, as an icon, as a god.
“You’re beautiful,” he said instead, because it was true.
Pink dusted his cheeks as he stepped forward into Zoro’s space, “You’re not so bad yourself.”
He tilted his face towards him, his lips coming tantalizingly close. Zoro clenched his hands into fists to keep them at his side, held his breath as his eyes slid shut, and Sanji’s lips came closer and closer and-
The guard cleared his throat loudly behind them and they sprang apart as if burned.
“Perhaps it’s time to take His Worship back inside?” The guard said to Zoro.
“Yes,” Sanji nodded, his face red as he hurried back to the path, “Perhaps it is.”
Zoro watched him walk away for a moment, and felt the familiar frustration bubble up inside him.
Because he was pretty damn sure Sanji loved him too. Not as a god loved their followers, but as a man loved another man.
He groaned and ran a hand down his face. The situation was very aggravating, to have Sanji so close, to be around him all the time and not able to touch him, to kiss him, to say those feelings hidden away in his heart.
But it wasn’t like he could convince these people Sanji wasn’t a god, and there was no other way to be near him. He didn’t want to live a life that Sanji wasn’t a part of in some way, couldn’t imagine going a day without seeing his face or hearing his voice.
So he heaved a heavy sigh and continued down the path after him.
Sanji, it turned out, was very good at losing his guard.
“I’m not really losing my guard,” he insisted as he led Zoro to a secret part of the sacred gardens, “You’re my guard after all, and you’re still here.”
“I should be reporting this,” he reminded him with a smirk, “Who knows what trouble our precious god will get up to all by his lonesome.”
“If you report me, you won’t get any of this,” he gestured with the basket full of food on his arm, “but your loss, I guess.”
Zoro fell into step beside him, and was startled when he felt him grab his gloved hand.
“It should be fine if I’m the one touching you, right?” Sanji said, eyes averted as he blushed, “Besides, you’re wearing gloves. It’s not really touching.”
“I guess not,” he laughed and shifted his grip so their fingers were intertwined.
A small smile spread across Sanji’s face, making Zoro’s stomach swoop and his heart skip a beat.
Sanji eventually led them to a clearing with a pristine pond surrounded by fragrant rose bushes and willow trees, their branches gently stroking the surface of the lake. It was far enough away that they couldn’t even see the temple anymore, and Sanji began setting up his picnic.
“We should have about an hour before the head guard finds us here,” Sanji explained as he started taking out the food, “Come, eat with me. Your god commands it.”
“Not my god,” Zoro clarified as he sat down next to him and took the offered food, “I’m not much for worship.”
“I’ve noticed,” he laughed as Zoro ate the food, his smile growing as he hummed in satisfaction at the delicious flavor, “Strange then, that you picked temple guard as your profession.”
“You know that was just to see you again,” Zoro rolled his eyes, but was surprised to see his face color, “I did promise you I would, after all, and this was the only way.”
Sanji sat in silence for a few moments, playing with the edge of the blanket as Zoro finished his food, “You don’t think I’m a god, do you?”
“No,” he shrugged, “Never really bothered with shit like that. Besides, you’re too much of an ass to be a god.”
Sanji’s head fell to his shoulder, startling Zoro. He felt a long exhale against his neck as Sanji muttered, “Oh thank fuck.”
Zoro hesitated, glancing around quickly to make absolutely sure they were alone, and reached up to rub Sanji’s back.
“The priests here found me shipwrecked when I was a kid,” Sanji breathed into his neck, “My mother…everyone else had died, except me. A miracle, they said. They were convinced that since the ocean brought me to them I was their god.
“I hate it here,” he clenched his shoulders and burrowed further into his neck, “They treat me like an object, put me on a pedestal and refuse to actually talk to me, to listen to me, to let me do anything. They praise me and love me, but always at a distance.”
“Sounds lonely,” Zoro said, his hands running up and down his spine.
“It is, it was,” he pulled away and settled fully into his lap, “But then I met you. You see me, the real me, not some shitty god. You talk to me, you fight with me, you treat me like a person.”
“You are a person,” he muttered, making Sanji beam, “But, if you’re so unhappy here, why don’t you leave?”
His smile fell, gaze darting away as he softly admitted, “I have nowhere else to go. I fled from something much worse up north. Here at least I’m safe. I have plenty to eat and a soft place to sleep. They give me everything I could ever want, except what I crave most.”
“And what’s that?” Zoro asked, determined to give it to him no matter what he said.
“Freedom,” he sighed, leaning all his weight against him, “I want to be free, to travel and see the world. They say there’s a miracle ocean out there where all the fish live together, and I want to find it.
“And I want to be loved,” he ran a hand through Zoro’s dark hair and cupped his face in his hand, “Not this distant worship from afar. Not loved like a deity from people expecting favor and miracles and answers, but honest real love. I want to be loved as a person, for who I am, mess and all.”
“I’ll get you your freedom,” Zoro said as his hands drifted to his hips, “I’m not sure how, but I’ll get you out of here. We’ll find that ocean together, I promise. As for the second one…”
Zoro looked up at him. The sunlight was streaming through the trees, highlighting the gold sheen of his hair, the blue of his eyes, the pink of his lips. This close he could see the freckles scattered across his face, the bend in his nose that had definitely been broken at least once before, the jagged edge of his teeth, the hollowness of his cheeks.
He wasn’t perfect, wasn’t divine, was so deliciously human.
And that made him the most beautiful thing Zoro had ever seen.
“You already are.”
Sanji gasped, his eyes going wide as he leaned in and pressed their foreheads together.
“I want to kiss you,” he whispered, his breath dancing tantalizingly across Zoro’s lips.
“Then fucking do it.”
Sanji leaned in and pressed their lips together, stealing the end of the sentence right from his mouth.
The kiss ignited Zoro, every part of him tingling with want as his senses were inundated by everything Sanji, his smell, his taste, his touch.
He gave himself over to the kiss completely, his eyes sliding shut as his hand moved into his hair, pulling him even closer as he deepened it.
Sanji moaned as he pressed forward, causing Zoro to fall onto his back and pull Sanji with him into an ineloquent heap.
Sanji laughed, his hand running through Zoro’s dark hair as he kissed his forehead, his cheeks, his nose, before finally finding his lips again.
“This is definitely touching,” Zoro mumbled between kisses as Sanji’s hands roamed down to his chest.
“I won’t tell if you don’t.”
He could feel Sanji’s smirk against his lips as he leaned up and kissed him again.
A twig snapped nearby, and they came back to themselves enough to fling apart, faces red and chests heaving.
“Sanji!” The head guard shouted, “Sanji! Are you back here?”
Zoro’s eyes found Sanji’s, and he saw a whole slew of emotions in them. Annoyance and worry being the main ones, but he didn’t see regret.
“Get out of here,” Sanji whispered under his breath, “They’ll kick you out if they catch you, and I can’t…I don’t want to lose you.”
Zoro silenced him with a firm kiss, pulling away quickly.
“I understand,” he said, cupping his face and rubbing a thumb across his cheekbone, “I’ll see you later.”
“Tonight?” Sanji asked, eyes wide and voice hopeful.
“I’ll see you tonight,” he confirmed, giving him one last lingering kiss before he ran, hiding himself in the thickest bushes just as the head guard entered the clearing.
“There you are,” he huffed, glancing down at the remains of the picnic, “Your Worship, what on earth are you doing out here by yourself?”
Sanji shrugged, “Just wanted some alone time.”
“A god shouldn’t be eating off the ground like a peasant,” he scoffed, “Come along, you’re needed elsewhere, Your Worship.”
Sanji got up reluctantly as the head guard gathered his things, then silently followed him out of the gardens.
When he was sure they were gone, Zoro crawled out from the bushes, a new determination lighting a fire under him.
He didn’t know how, but he was going to get Sanji out of here.
After all, he had a promise to keep.
Sanji’s room was on the temple's top floor. His door was locked every night while he slept, with guards patrolling the hallways and the stairs leading up to it.
There was one solitary window in Sanji’s room, and a tall tree right outside it, allowing someone — if they were so inclined — to climb the tree to see him at night.
Of course, there was always a guard stationed near the tree, to prevent such heinous actions from occurring.
But if the patrolling guard was the one sneaking in to see Sanji, there was no one who could stop him.
The next night it was Zoro’s turn to guard the window, he scaled the tree and knocked on the glass.
Sanji was there in an instant, opening the window with a scowl, “What took you so long?”
“You climb a tree in the dark and see how long you take,” Zoro said as he held out his hand, “Do you want to get out of here or what?”
They never went far on these secret night outings, too fearful of the consequences of being caught to consider venturing further than the temple grounds, but they did go far enough into the gardens that they weren't spotted by any passing patrols.
This evening they ended up in a wide open clearing, with nothing but soft grass below them and the stars overhead as witnesses.
“I think I've almost got a way to get you out of here,” Zoro said as Sanji settled down in the grass, “It does involve drugging the head guard since he's the biggest obstacle, but if you make him his favorite snack, I think-”
“As much as I appreciate your diligence in this, I don't want to waste our time talking about it tonight,” he pat the ground next to him, “Lay down and look at the stars with me?”
Zoro rushed to do so, settling down next to him as he reached his hand out to find Sanji’s, holding it in a gentle grip.
Sanji gazed up at the sky, his eyes wide as he took in all the stars, reflecting brightly in his eyes, and Zoro found he couldn't look away.
“What do you think it's like?” Sanji asked, “Up there? With the stars?”
“I don't think there's anything up there,” Zoro said, tearing his eyes away from Sanji to look skyward, “Just the lights and the blackness.”
“If we ever get out of here, I want to go see it for myself.” He laughed and turned to Zoro, “Dance with you between the stars.”
“Okay,” he agreed easily, reaching out and tucking a stray lock of hair behind his ear, “After we find your ocean and get our fill of it, I'll take you to the stars.”
“Idiot,” Sanji laughed, but leaned into his touch, “Don't make me promises you can't keep.”
“I've never made a promise I haven't kept.”
“Then don’t promise me the impossible,” Sanji sighed as he glanced back towards the stars, “I’d hate to be the one to break your streak.”
“You won’t,” Zoro sat up suddenly and pulling Sanji with him.
He glanced around for a bit, trying to come up with some way to convince Sanji how serious he was, that he would give him anything he wanted, anything he asked for, no matter how impossible it seemed.
A slight breeze disturbed the three gold earrings he always wore, making them chime in his ear, and an idea struck him.
“Here,” he reached up and took off one of his earrings and offered it to Sanji, “To seal my vow.”
“Zoro,” Sanji’s voice was soft, “You’ve had those for as long as I’ve known you, they must meant the world to you.”
That was true. The earrings and Kuina’s swords were the only things he had to his name when he came to the temple, and the only things he insisted on keeping.
Sanji shook his head, “I can't accept such a gift.”
“Don't followers give their gods gifts all the time?” Zoro held out the earring again, determined to give a part of himself to Sanji, to physically show how they belonged to one another, wholly and completely in every way that mattered, whether it was allowed or not,“Take it. Please.”
Sanji nodded, tilting his head to give Zoro access to his ear. Much of his ceremonial garb had earrings involved, so it was a simple matter of slipping this earring into the hole in his ear.
When he did so, Zoro pulled away and took Sanji in.
The earring sparkled in the moonlight, somehow making Sanji himself shine even brighter.
Zoro could only stare in awe, doing his best to capture this moment, these feelings, his Sanji, forever.
Sanji touched the earring gently, thumbing over the part where it connected with his ear, “How does it look?”
Zoro reached out and cupped his face, his thumb caresses his cheek, “You look human.”
He leaned in and whispered into his ear, “You look like mine.”
Sanji laughed, a light blush warming his cheeks, “I shouldn’t belong to anyone. That’s heresy.”
“Is it?” he laughed as he shifted, his lips hovering over Sanji’s, “How can I be a heretic when I’m so devoted to my god?”
“Not your god, you said so yourself,” he murmured against his lips, “But in every way that matters, I am yours.”
He sealed their lips together, and Zoro lost himself in the touch and the feel of him, of everything Sanji.
He didn’t know how long they stayed there together, but eventually Sanji stared yawning, and it was time for Zoro to bring him back before the guards were due to switch.
Sanji played with the earring as the stood under the tree by his room, then turned to look at him, “This is enough.”
Zoro’s brow furrowed, “Huh?”
“It’s enough to just have you by my side,” he said, his hand falling away as he smiled at him, “You’re making me such big promises, but it’s fine if we don’t visit the stars. It’s fine if we never find my ocean or even leave here. As long as I get to spend this time with you, that’s enough for me.”
“Sanji,” Zoro stepped closer, holding his face so he could look him in the eye, “I never make a promise I won’t keep. I promised Kuina I’d be the strongest, and I am. I promised you I’d see you again, and I did. I’m promising you I’m gonna get you out of here, find you your ocean, and take you to the stars, and I will.”
The earring caught the starlight and glinted as Sanji shifted forward, capturing Zoro’s lips once more. Zoro gave himself over to the kiss, pouring every hope and desire he had for Sanji, for them, in it.
“Okay,” Sanji said when they pulled away, “I’ll hold you to it then.”
Zoro smiled, giving Sanji once last kiss on his cheek as Sanji climbed up the tree and back into his room.
He’d keep his promises to Sanji, somehow. If not in this life, then the next.
Before he could figure out a way to get Sanji out of the temple, the damn thing was raided.
The attack came in the middle of the night, barbarians from a distant land determined to wipe out any false gods. Zoro didn’t care about their reasons, just knew that they wanted Sanji dead and he would not let that happen.
The temple guards did their duty and laid down their lives for Sanji, even as the invaders slaughtered them, the priests, and priestesses one by one, until all that remained was Zoro, who had refused to leave Sanji’s side.
Zoro fought back against the raiders, slicing and killing anyone who so much as dared to look at Sanji, filling the sacred gardens with blood, both his and theirs.
Eventually the last of the raiders were dead too.
Zoro smiled in relief, he’d done it, he had bested them all, proving he was unquestionably the strongest. He had protected Sanji.
“This is…not how I expected to get my freedom.” Sanji said sadly, his shoes leaving red footprints across the ground as he knelt by the body of the head guard.
He had shoved Sanji at Zoro when the attack began and told him in no uncertain terms to defend him with his life. Zoro didn’t need him to tell him that, but he appreciated the show of trust at the end.
Zoro made to step forward too, but found that he couldn’t, instead collapsing to his knees. He looked down and noticed the huge gash across his chest, his blood spilling out of his body. Between the adrenaline from the fight and his need to protect Sanji, he hadn’t noticed how badly he was injured.
“Sorry, Sanji,” he said, making his tone light as possible even as the bloodloss left him dizzy.
“This wasn’t your fault,” Sanji replied, his back still to him, “You protected me like you were supposed to,” he turned back around, “How is any of this-?”
He froze when he saw the state he was in, “Zoro!”
Sanij rushed to his side, and Zoro gave him his best smile, “I promised I’d go with you to your ocean, but it looks like you’ll have to go alone. That’s one I can’t keep.”
"We're going together," Sanji's voice was determined as he examined Zoro's wounds, "I can fix this, just, just hang in there. Don't die on me."
Zoro nodded, but winced, his hand coming up to hold his head. When he pulled away, it came away with more blood. He blinked, and realized he was missing an eye.
"This is fine," Sanji said, as he dragged him to his feet, "We can fix this, somehow. we just-"
When Zoro was on his feet again, he started coughing, hacking uncontrollably. He pulled his hand away from his mouth and discovered even more blood.
"I don't think I'm going to be okay," Zoro said as his hand fell away. He could feel his life sliding out of him along with his blood, everything grew colder as his vision faded in and out, "Sorry. But I'm not gonna make it."
"No!" Sanji held onto him, and he could see he was trembling, the gold earring still in his ear swaying with his movements, "No, I can't lose you. I won't lose you. I’m supposed to be a shitty god, there must be something I can do! I-"
He stopped his rambling, just staring at Zoro, a determined look in his eyes, "Do you trust me?"
"Yes," Zoro's head lobbed to the side, "Completely."
Sanji scooped him up in his arms and carried him to another part of the garden, the clearing where they’d had their first date. Zoro breathed deeply, smelling the roses and remembering happier times as the slight breeze shifted the willow branches, creating ripples in the pond.
All in all, it was a good place to die.
He lay Zoro gently down next to the edge of the pond and cradled his face, "I-I can't heal you."
Zoro exhaled softly. He figured as much. It had been a short life, but a good one, and he didn't regret one moment of it. At least he’d gotten to meet Sanji, to know him and love him, and he had died protecting him. At least Sanji will get to be free.
"But I can't lose you," Sanji leaned forward and pressed their foreheads together, "Not like this."
"I don't think we have a choice," he whispered softly against his lips.
"I can…" he hesitated, but a quick glance down at Zoro's gaping chest firmed his resolve, "There's this ritual I can do, allegedly. To bind us together."
Zoro gave him a look, "Really?"
"The priests said I could," Sanji said as he shifted Zoro's head into his lap, "Since I'm a god. But," he ran hand through his hair, "if I’m not a god, if I’m just a man, it won’t work."
Zoro closed his remaining eye, "What does it do exactly?"
"It'll bind our souls together," he explained, "So that, even if you die in this life, we'll find each other in the next life. We can be together again."
"I see."
He fantasized about it for a bit. Finding Sanji again. Being with him again.
How could he possibly say no?
“The ritual will work.” Zoro grabbed Sanji's hand and threaded their fingers together, "Of course you're a god."
Sanji smiled down at him and stroked his hair. The sunlight beamed down through the trees, haloing him in a blanket of light, and in this moment Zoro wondered how he could be anything else.
"We'll keep meeting each other, in each life," he explained as he let go of Zoro to dip his hands into the pond and rub the water all over them, "There's a way to seal it, to make the bond permanent so we'll never lose each other again, but I'm not sure what it is." He glanced down at him, "We'll have to figure it out as we go."
"How will you find me again until then?" He wondered out loud.
"I'll mark you," he dipped his hand back into the pond and pulled out a perfectly round moss ball, placing it gently against his head, "I'll make your hair green, so next time I know for sure it's you."
"You're making me a moss head?" Zoro frowned.
"I think you'll look good with green hair," Sanji rubbed the moss ball against his hands, then thread them through his hair again, "Very dashing."
His voice was calm, but his hands were shaking. Zoro wanted to offer him comfort, to tell him everything was going to be okay, but how could he when he was dying, and wasn't even sure of that himself?
Sanji pulled a knife out of his boot, and cut the palm of his hand. A few drops of his scarlet blood dripped down his arm and Zoro's eye widened in horror.
"It's alright," Sanji assured him as he reached down to grab his hand once more.
He pressed his bloody hand against Zoro's bloody chest, rubbing it up and down, mixing their blood together, stopping his hand right over his weakly beating heart.
Sanji said some words in a language Zoro didn't understand, but he could almost feel the power rolling off of them, could almost sense the meaning hidden in his tone.
It was a prayer, an oath, something deeper and more meaningful than any promise he'd ever made.
He felt a warmth fill his chest, a tug at something close to his heart, and suddenly it felt like he could feel another heart beating alongside his, could feel Sanji's life pulsing in time with his own fading one.
Or that could have been the blood loss.
Sanji gasped suddenly, and leaned forward, panting heavily as he clutched at Zoro's hand and chest.
"I don't," he swallowed, his worried blue eyes staring into Zoro's, "I don't know if it worked."
"We'll find out soon, one way or the other," Zoro gave him the softest smile he could muster.
Tears started to form in the corner of Sanji's eyes, and Zoro lifted a hand to wipe them away, smearing some of his blood on his cheek.
"I know it did," he said reassuringly.
Zoro was starting to grow numb, unable to feel the soft grass below him or the sunshine above him, nor the warmth of Sanji's lap, or the grip of his hand. His vision was going dark, his whole world becoming just Sanji, only Sanji, the center of the universe
He wasn't long for this world, for this life.
"Will I be able to touch you," he said as he reached up and dragged his hand across his cheek, spreading more of his blood there, "In the next life?"
"Yes," Sanji caught his hand before it fell away, nuzzling his cheek against his hand, "You'll be able to touch me next time. I'm sure of it."
"Good," he smiled and closed his eye, "Biggest regret of this life is not touching you enough. I should’ve touched you more…should’ve kissed you more…should’ve told you…"
"Zoro?" Sanji asked, his voice full of worry, "Zoro stay with me."
"I'm fading fast," he pried his eye open so he could look at Sanji one last time, "I'm not long for this world."
"Zoro..." Sanji squeezed his hand, his tears falling freely as Zoro's hand went limp and his eyes went dark.
"I'll see you in the next life."