aphrodite, subtle of soul and deathless

Toothbrush in hand, you strutted out of the bathroom and opened the blinds, letting the blinding light burn your retinas and ensure you would need some form of corrective surgery to heal this scalding damage. “On second thought,” you muttered, blinking slowly as your eyes adjusted to the light, “I think I’ll be okay.”

You checked the time on your phone to ensure you’d be brushing for precisely two minutes and began cleaning your pearly whites, pacing around the dorm in your flip flops impatiently.

The room was all but silent except for the quiet buzzing of your toothbrush, which went well with the occasional snore coming from the top bunk of Nami and Vivi’s bed. Oh, shit. “N’mi?!” you spluttered out from behind your toothbrush, climbing up the ladder and using your free hand to shake her body. 

All you got in return was a groan as Nami turned her body away from you, curling deeper into her blankets. Her silk sleeping mask remained snug over her eyes, rendering the sun unable to awaken her from her slumber. 

Of course, the fact that she clearly forgot to set an alarm didn't help. Why didn't she wake up to yours either? Why did you have to be the one to rouse Miss “Never-Disrupt-My-Slumber"?

"Nami,” you whispered, carefully poking her freckled arm with the tip of your finger, “it's time to wake up…”

Another groan.

“Please wake up, Nami,” you begged, speaking just a hair louder. “We've both got classes and still need to eat breakfast, and if I don't do this now, I know I'll hear about it later.”

“‘m not gonna do it…” Nami snored, “I don’ wanna do it…”

In a fit of frustration mixed with partial desperation, you began rattling the top bunk with increasing fervor, praying that she wouldn't mistake the vibrations as a nice massage.

A sharp gasp from Nami made your heart soar with glee as the ginger soared straight out of her bed, the sleeping mask still covering her eyes.

"What the fuck, ____!” Nami hissed, yanking the silken eye cover over her head. “I swear, you better have—”

“It's eight o’clock, Nami.”

The two of you stared at each other for a solid ten seconds as Nami registered your words, a face of panic swiftly overtaking her momentary anger as she leaped off the bed and beelined for the bathroom. “Oh fuck! I am so fucking fucked right now!” Nami screamed from behind the bathroom door. You could hear the cacophony of bottles flying and electronics being plugged in as Nami was clearly rushing to get ready.

“Your class is at ten, right, Nam?” you called out to her as you rustled through her closet. “You've still got a whole hour, plus some change. Want me to grab you anything to wear?”

“Orange jersey—it's the one with the blue print on it—lightwash denim shorts, and the toffee sandals on the far left of the closet!” Nami yelled back as you searched through her expansive wardrobe to complete the noble quest you've taken upon your oh-so caring shoulders.

“Got it on the bed for you, Nam,” you said, fumbling through the closet until you found what she had asked for.

“Thank you, thank you, thank—hey, have you seen my Dolce Light Blue perfume—”

“Top shelf in the cabinet, behind the deodorant.” You flopped onto the bean bag, grabbing your phone to doomscroll while Nami finished gussying up. Several new messages caught your eye as you unlocked your phone—though “several” was the understatement of the century.

| Straw Hat: Hi | Straw Hat: Hi | Straw Hat: Hi | Straw Hat: Hi | Straw Hat: Attachment (1) Image | Straw Hat: Oops | Straw Hat: Hi | Straw Hat: Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii Read 8:28 AM

The image Luffy had sent was an extreme close-up of his face, which—even if he hadn't sent the follow-up message—you would have immediately clocked as Luffy accidentally opening his camera and taking an extremely unflattering selfie. His final message to you included some sort of laser effect attached to it, making your phone glow and buzz obnoxiously. You didn't know who taught Luffy this power, but you were going to beat their ass later.

Scrolling through the rest of your new messages, you noticed a group chat had been made by Vivi about an hour and a half ago.

The Straw Hats

| Vivi created a new chat: “The Straw Hats” | Vivi: Hello! I made this group chat so that we could converse with more ease! | Vivi: I hope that the name is OK, but if anyone has any suggestions, please feel free to change it! | Zoro named the chat: “Fuck Sanji” | Mr. Prince named the chat: “Fuck Zoro” | Zoro named the chat: “Fuck Sanji” | Mr. Prince named the chat: “Fuck Zoro” | Straw Hat named the chat: “Baconeggsricepancakeswafflesmeatporkbeeframe” | Straw Hat: Why cant i type more | Usopp: You hit the word count Luffy | Straw Hat: Stupid | Zoro: your stupid | Mr. Prince: It's spelled ‘you're,’ mosshead. | Mr. Prince: We're on our way to breakfast, my dear ladies! ♡ | Straw Hat: I want breakfast now | Vivi: Nami and ____ are still sleeping in the dorm, but I will greet you all at the cafeteria when you arrive! | Straw Hat: I want breakfast now | Zoro: kk need 2 grab chopper otw c u soon | Zoro: fuck u sanji | Usopp named the chat: “Usopp Fans” Read 8:29 AM

You sighed, massaging your scalp and temples as you processed the clusterfuck of the new group chat.

“They're all at the cafeteria right now, Nami,” you said, tucking your phone into your pocket. “You good to go now?”

Nami nodded halfheartedly, strapping her foot into her sandal and grabbing her nearby backpack. You could tell she was still tired, despite the surge of manic energy she had immediately after waking up.

Her job must be really demanding, you thought, shrugging your own backpack over your shoulder and walking out of the dorm with Nami.

The walk to the cafeteria was quite pleasant, mostly due to the beaming sun and light breeze you could feel on your skin. You hoped the vitamin D would help to wake Nami up, occasionally glancing over to see her soaking it in—she looked like a plant trying to get every last bit, as opposed to those hot surfer babes tanning on the beach. With how fucked up the weather could get in Red Line, you were glad that the weather spirits were feeling kind, especially on today of all days. You were glad you didn't choose to attend Marineford Academy—the killer abs and glutes weren't enough to convince you to do cardio outside, 24/7, in rain, snow, or sun.

You and Nami pushed open the doors to the main entrance of the building, walking up the stairs to get to the cafeteria. Your group was at the usual table, doing the usual things that they usually did.

Like flinging food.

And yelling.

Loudly.

Nami slumped down next to Vivi, immediately using the blue-haired girl's shoulder as a pillow to rest her extremely tired head. Luffy barked out what you could only assume was a “hello,” but his words were muffled by the plethora of food he was still in the middle of chewing.

You set your bag down and walked over to the line to grab your breakfast, deciding to grab a little something for Nami to gnaw on while she caught a couple extra minutes of sleep. Plucking a tangerine from a fruit basket, you walked back to the lunch table.

“Luffy said he tried to text you,” Zoro said, turning to look as you sat down beside him.

“Believe me, I saw,” you chuckled, rolling Nami's tangerine over to Sanji to peel it.

Zoro was in his usual getup—baggy cargos, a fairly plain T-shirt, and a pair of really beaten combat boots. With his green hair, he fit the manic pixie dream girl label way better than you ever could. Surprisingly, he wasn't carrying his flask around with him. Grand Line, unsurprisingly, didn't have clear rules against drinking in public, so seeing students walk around with alcohol of varying strengths and sizes wasn't too out of the ordinary. At least Zoro was discreet enough to keep his in a flask, rather than lug around a bottle of wine as you’d seen others do.

“No booze today, big man?” you asked between bites. Zoro snorted, chowing down on his bowl of rice.

“He tried to take some of my booze last night,” Sanji chimed in, sliding the perfectly peeled and sliced tangerine over to Nami with a flourish. “Drank some [reference] and spat it out like it was garbage!”

“It was garbage.”

“So, as payback, I dumped out his supply. An eye for an eye, as they say.”

You laughed, almost choking on your food as you did so. The two men scowled and spat at each other, arms crossed like they were bitter enemies—which they were, of course.

“There are better things to fight about, boys,” you said, taking another bite of your breakfast. “You like swords, right, Zoro? Bond over that!”

“What the hell's so great about a sword?” Sanji said with a tsk. “Yer feet and hands are all you need—if you’re a real man, that is.”

“Are you gonna start cooking soup in your hands, then?” You snickered, flicking a grain of Zoro's rice at Sanji.

Despite the immense red flush covering his cheeks, Sanji caught the rice between his fingers with ease. He turned his head away, mumbling something under his breath with a small pout.

Zoro grinned, leaning towards Sanji, “The hell you say, chef? Speak up for the ta—”

Sanji lurched across the table and grabbed Zoro's shirt cuff, yanking him onto the ground as the two entered a fistfight, kicking up dust around them as the chant of ‘fight, fight, fight!’ echoed throughout the room. 

“I wanna join too!” Luffy screeched, throwing the rest of his food down his gullet as he jumped directly into the fray, laughing as he was directly socked in the face.

“I would join, but I'm afraid of ruining my hair,” Usopp smirked, running his fingers through his heavy curls with pride.

Nami snorted for a second, then went back to drooling and snoring on Vivi's shoulder.

“Yeah, same here,” you said, turning to Chopper. “Should probably head to class now, right, Chop? I'd like to avoid a bloody nose, if possible.”

Sanji's head popped out of the scuffle, “I would never let—did you just fucking bite my leg, Luffy?!”

“That's our cue, Chopper!” You and Chopper grabbed your bags and waved goodbye to the noncombatants, beginning your trek to the science building.

The building halls were fairly vacant, except for the quiet students studying in rooms and nooks. Your classroom was, thankfully, unused before class time, so you and Chopper could easily walk in and study for a bit without interrupting anyone. 

“Alright, boy-genius, I did have some questions to ask you about Wednesday's lecture,” you began, opening the door to the lecture hall for Chopper. You had expected the room to be empty, which it was, for the most part. The only soul inside the cold room was Law, who was sitting at his own table surrounded by textbooks and papers. His eyes were on the two of you the moment the door opened, and if looks could kill, his would most definitely shoot you dead.

“Well,” Law’s voice broke the awkward silence, “looks like someone decided to be punctual for once.”

You couldn’t help but sneer at his words, squaring your shoulder as you spoke, “I’ll have you know I’ve never been late to a class before, Mr. Leopard Print.”

“What’s with the hostility? You should show more respect to your TA, you know.”

You rolled your eyes and walked to the front of the room to grab two seats. Chopper had a guilty expression on his face, like a child watching his mom and dad argue right in front of them. The thought, however short it was, made you want to puke.

I’d feel bad for whoever that overachieving jackass gets with. You exhaled, grabbing your laptop and notebook from your backpack.

“Alright, Chop,” you turned towards him. “I’m like, only a bit confident in periodic trends. I’ve got atomic radius down, but stuff like electronegativity is—”

“Electronegativity increases from left to right,” Law’s irritating voice called out, slightly echoing in the barren room.

Your body whipped around as you prepared to tell him exactly where he could stuff his electronegativity, but just as your mouth opened, another student walked through the door. Law flashed you a smug smirk as you seethed, clenching your hand around the back of the chair.

You slowly turned back in your chair as more students funneled into the room, signaling the soon-to-be beginning of class. Chopper quietly helped clear up any confusion you had before class actually started, leaving you feeling more prepared—and slightly angry at that leopard print-wearing bastard.

After an excruciating 50 minutes of lecture, you made sure to pack up extra quickly, even helping Chopper pack up his own stuff, much to his confusion.

“W-We still have ten minutes to get to our next classes, ____,” Chopper said, staring as you chucked his textbook into his bag.

“Ten minutes to escape the gloomy bastard and his obnoxious taunts,” you hissed, making glances towards Law’s table. He wasn’t looking up at you, instead reading over some papers and jotting something down occasionally. 

“Time to make our escape, Chop,” you whispered, quickly dashing towards the exit with him in tow.

Just as you got one foot out the door, you heard a deep voice call out, “Have a good weekend.” It could have been directed towards any of the students, hell, maybe even to the professor. But the singsong tone of his voice felt particularly taunting towards you, and you couldn’t help but stomp out the rest of the way as Chopper attempted to console you.

“Biology can’t be as shitty as chem was,” you prayed out loud, setting your bag down as you took a seat. Chopper wasn’t here to provide company, and you didn’t really know anyone else in this class, making it an extra boring experience to have to sit through. On the other hand, you didn’t have a weird TA giving you extra obnoxious attention. Which was absolutely a win, no matter how small.

You were thrown out of your thoughts by a loud thump beside you, turning to see the green-haired man who had thrown his shit on the table and taken a seat.

Wait, you knew that green hair.

“What the hell are you doing in here, Zoro?” you asked in surprise.

Zoro sighed, kicking his feet up on the table, “Exercise science major—it’s required.”

“But you weren’t here on Wednesday.”

“I was hungover.”

The two of you stared at each other for a couple of seconds while your brain rebooted itself. You hadn’t forgotten Zoro’s major, or that he needed to take biology for it. Instead, you were absolutely flabbergasted that he would be skipping such an intensive, high-strung class that demanded—suddenly, you understood his thought process.

You sighed, pushing Zoro’s stuff to make some room for your own. “Did you at least do any of the reading you missed? Or check the slides?”

Zoro stared at you in reply, which you took to mean “I didn’t know we had readings.”

With an even heavier sigh, you flipped through your notebook and pushed it over to Zoro. “I take notes on my laptop first and then transcribe them, so just start copying into your notebook, and you can copy today’s notes during lunch later, ‘kay?”

Zoro frowned as he flipped through your notebook, and you could tell he wanted to toss it away and just roll with life. But, as a good, intelligent, and caring friend, you were not about to watch as Zoro failed this class out of pure laziness.

“Listen, Zoro. I’ll buy you a beer if you just take these notes, alright?”

“Two beers.”

“Deal!” You said cheerily, leaning back in your seat. You hadn’t expected Zoro to fold so quickly, but given how much alcohol he drank daily, it made sense he’d request booze, of all things.

During the lecture, you’d occasionally peek at Zoro as he painstakingly scribbled in his notebook, eyes darting between your neat notes and his own messy ones. At the very least, he seemed motivated enough to be transcribing your notes, which helped raise the hope you had in his grade point average. 

I wonder if I could find him a tutor, you thought. Chopper was an obvious candidate, but you weren’t sure if he would be a great match for Zoro. You worried that Zoro could take advantage of Chopper’s naivety and get out of actually studying, but it was worth a shot. At the very least, you could at least look into it.

As the lecture came to a close, you looked over to see Zoro’s progress. Unfortunately, he still had about a page of notes left to transcribe, and he looked absolutely sick of it. Other students had begun packing up and funneling out of the room, leaving you and Zoro alone. You couldn’t help but sigh and grab your phone, pulling up Chopper’s contact.

| You: hi chopchop!! are you still in the science building? Read 11:55 AM | Chopper: Hello! Yes, I’m on the 3rd floor! | You: zoro’s just finishing up w/ his notes and then we’ll probably go get lunch if you want to come? ilyk our room number if you want to stop by | Chopper reacted with a ‘thumbs-up’ emoji

You tucked your writing supplies back into your bag, then reached up to grab your laptop and do the same. Zoro reacted to your own packing, reaching for his own notebook to pull into his bag. You quickly slapped a hand on his, halting his movements as he stared in surprise, clearly having not expected you to, well, slap his hand.

“We’re not leaving until you finish your notes,” you scolded. “I know you’re going to put it off until the last minute if you don’t get it done now, so go back to writing.”

Zoro scowled, grumbled something under his breath, and went back to writing. You felt a buzz from your phone, looking back down at your new messages.

| Sabo: Hi ____! It’s Sabo, Luf gave me your number! :wink: Read 11:57 AM | You: hi sabo!! | You: i’ll be asking you psych questions now btw lol | Sabo: Luf wanted me to let you know that he broke his phone playing basketball. | You reacted with an ‘interrobang’ emoji | You: ?????? | You: wtf how  | You: also you two play basketball? | Sabo: Luffy’s more into it than Ace or I, but I’ll never pass on a chance to beat Luffy’s ass in something. | Sabo: Also, I have no idea how he broke it. I think he might have chucked a basketball into it? | Sabo: I had my back turned, then all I heard was “oh yeah!” followed by what I can only describe as the sound of a very cheap phone breaking. | You: lmaooo, ok i’ll start collecting everyone’s numbers to give to luffy, thanks for the heads up sabo! | Sabo: No problem! See you in psych! :smile: :heart:

You lowered your phone as the door of the lecture hall opened, seeing Chopper’s short frame peer in, glancing between you and Zoro as you waved at him. Zoro huffed, throwing his pencil into his bag and abruptly standing up from his seat.

“I finished the damn notes, so let’s go get some grub,” Zoro grumbled, chucking his bag over his shoulder.

“Usopp, Vivi, and Sanji are already at the cafeteria!” Chopper cut in cheerily, holding his hands behind his back politely.

You joined Zoro in standing, stretching your sore legs. “Alright, let’s get a move on and meet up with them. I don’t care what I eat, as long as it has caffeine in it.” 

“I’m not sure you’ll find much food with caffeine, ____!” Chopper added. “Unless you’re only going to eat chocolate and coffee beans, your best luck would be through teas, sodas, or energy drinks.”

“I’ll improvise,” you deadpanned, walking out of the hall with your two friends in tow.

By the time you arrived at the building, Vivi, Usopp, and Sanji had already reserved the group's usual table. Vivi and Sanji seemed to be bonding over whatever they were drinking, while Usopp was either doodling or writing something in his notebook. Knowing him, it was probably both. 

Chopper took a seat on Vivi and Sanji’s side of the table, while you and Zoro sat across from them with Usopp, much to Sanji’s obvious disappointment.

“My apologies, mon beauté, if I knew you were coming so soon, I would have prepared a seat for you,” Sanji said, trying his best to kiss your hand.

“The hell’s wrong with her seat here?” “It’s next to a green-headed troll.”

You lunged for Zoro's arm, trying to stop the conflict from spiraling into a deathmatch between the two idiots. Zoro's grip on his sword slowly loosened as he sat back down with a huff, crossing his arms as he did so. Sanji, on the other hand, seemed instantly placated by Vivi's gentle touch on his shoulder.

“Ah, mon saphir, your delicate hands could end wars!” he swooned, wiggling around like a worm begging to be grabbed up by a swooping bird.

You looked at Zoro, “I really don't think you should be carrying those around, Zo. It's only a matter of time until something bad happens.”

Zoro scoffed, moving his hand to cover his sword protectively. “It's fine, I had Usopp check that big book of rules when we first got here—the only thing students aren't allowed to carry are cannons.”

“Only cannons?”

“Only cannons.” “And everything else is allowed?”

“Yep.”

You resist the urge to facepalm, instead choosing to bite down on your finger to stifle your frustration with the university legislation. The thought of other people carrying weapons around campus—any kind of weapon, for that matter—was enough to have you subtly checking people’s waistbands from your seat. You hadn’t seen anyone—besides Zoro, obviously—that carried a weapon with them in such a visible way. 

Maybe everyone else is just smart enough to leave the weapons inside their bags, you thought, chewing on your finger.

“Zoro, can you get me some fries?” you asked, still glancing around the expansive room. “And some ketchup,” Usopp chimed in, cowering slightly below the table.

Zoro grumbled, a vein twitching in his forehead as he left to get food for the three of you.

Vivi smiled, turning to look at you, “So, you have your General Psychology class next, ____?”

“Yeah—did you know Luf’s brother was TA-ing for the class? I was kinda surprised to see him there…” You trailed off. A sociology student taking a psychology class wasn’t too crazy of an idea, but you wondered about the circumstances that brought the blond to the classroom.

“Is he anything like Luffy?” Sanji asked, picking at the near-finished salad in front of him. “If he is, then I hope he isn’t too loud during your class. There’s this beautiful girl in my Introduction to Pastries class—she wears her luscious pink hair in these cute, curly pigtails! Not to mention her fashion sense is—”

Sanji was stopped mid-sentence by a french fry-covered tray flying across the table, scattering fries across the surface and even into Sanji’s salad. You and Usopp cheered uproariously, immediately digging into the mountain of fries before you.

Zoro sauntered back over to the table, sitting back down next to you and grabbing a fistful of fries to shovel into his mouth. Sanji frowned, picking a fry out of his salad and flicking it at the swordsman. 

“Positions, Ussop, Vivi!” you yelled, rushing to separate the two men before things got bloody, or worse, loud enough for people to start staring. Unfortunately, the loud tray crashing on the table already did that job. Your fellow students were staring and whispering at the scuffle happening, but, unsurprisingly for a school that allowed unconcealed weapons to be held around campus, the majority of them were egging the two men on and placing bets under not-so-hushed breath.

“Cut him into pieces!”

“Knock his lights out!”

“That seaweed-head guy is so hot!”

Zoro whipped around, “Who the hell said that!” he barked. 

You were currently holding onto Zoro like a koala, trying to wrap your arms around his neck to stop his potential rampage with little success. Sanji, just like when you first arrived, was nuzzling into Vivi’s side while she petted his head. Off to the side, Chopper and Usopp were holding onto each other like two children watching their parents fight. 

“Listen—” you began, doing your best to finish a single sentence as Zoro whipped around wildly, trying to grab his swords despite your kicking and pulling. “I’ve got to get to class, can you—”

You gave Zoro’s hair a hard yank, causing the swordsman to stumble to the floor in a heap. Several disappointed “aws” came from the crowd, who then soon dispersed back to their respective tables, leaving your group with a sedated Sanji and a collapsed Zoro.

“As I was saying,” you continued atop Zoro’s body, “I need to get to my next class, so I’ll see you guys later, okay?”

“Goodbye ____!” Chopper waved, approaching the table and grabbing a fry.

You crawled off of Zoro’s body, muttering apologies and grabbing your bag as you ran out of the cafeteria and off to your next class. Despite having been in the class for three days now, you had yet to form a connection with anyone in the class—besides Sabo, of course. There were benefits to being friends with the TA, though, and you were hoping to make the most of your relationship.

Only a couple of students were in the class, reading over their textbooks and filling out the study guide that your professor was kind enough to make for you all. A familiar mop of blond hair stood out near the back tables, sitting alone with papers sprawled around him. His eyes flickered up to meet yours, a smile rising to his face as he brushed some papers out of the way, freeing up the seat next to him.

You smiled back, setting your bag down and pulling out the chair. Sabo’s papers seemed to be a mix of vocabulary and study guides from different sociology courses. Despite the sheer number of them that were laid out on the table, they were seemingly well organized. Each stack had its own folder beneath it, along with carefully highlighted and underlined passages on nearly every page.

“I didn’t take you for a…” You paused, trying to think of a word that wouldn’t come off as backhanded.

Sabo chuckled. “I get it. Most people think I’m a freak of nature when they meet Luffy and Ace first.”

“Really?” you deadpanned. “If anything, it’s the other way around, right? Your brothers aren’t human.”

“We’re more similar than most people think—you’d believe it if you saw us as children. We were real troublemakers.”

You felt a chill run down your spine as you remembered when Ace nearly hit a hockey puck straight through Luffy’s skull, or when he tackled Luffy in broad daylight. If this was how the brothers behaved now, what were they like as children? It was far too terrifying to linger on.

A quiet buzz from your phone freed you from your hypothetical nightmare. Your lockscreen showed a text from Vi, which you opened to check.

| Vivi: Hello ____! I wanted to ask you during lunch, but the fighting caused it to slip my mind | Vivi: Would you like to go downtown to Sabaody Street with Sanji and I? | Vivi: I want to go shopping! Read 2:27 PM | You: hi vi!!! ofc i would love to! <3 | You: what time were u thinking? Vivi is typing… | Vivi: How does four o’clock sound? | Vivi: Sanji suggested that we get drinks later! | You: omg nami and i went to a bar on sabaody st on tuesday it was awesome | You: gimme 1 sec You shared directions to ‘Shakky’s Rip-off Bar’ | Vivi: Thank you so much ____!!!! | Vivi: We will see you at four o’clock! | Vivi: :smile-duck:

“What’cha smiling about?” Sabo’s voice cut in, his face all too close to your own. 

You jumped back in shock, letting out a near-indescribable noise—somewhere near an “ah” and an “ough,” which was also embarrassingly loud enough to draw attention from the other students in the room.

You ducked slightly in your seat, waiting for everyone’s attention to leave your figure. “My friend Vivi just asked to hang out,” you whispered. Being the center of attention felt awkward, but you just couldn’t put your finger on why. It was almost like a mysterious force had disappeared from your—

“Where’s Luffy?” you asked, looking around the room a bit too frantically. You wouldn’t put it past Luffy to engage in guerrilla warfare in a classroom, but you also didn’t know Sabo well enough to know if he’d be willing to provide a distraction for the little shit.

Sabo chuckled. “It‘s alright, I made him go to his own classes today.” He effortlessly twirled his pen between his fingers. “Better for him to at least get a head start on some of his credits than follow Ace and me around like a puppy forever.”

“I thought he didn’t have a major?” You rubbed your temple gently. The longer you thought about Luffy’s college path, the more painful the throbbing in your head became. Perhaps the only people capable of understanding Luffy’s psyche were his brothers.

“Well,” Sabo trailed off, crossing his legs. “We tried to see if he was interested in trade schools, but then we got worried about what would happen if he was around buzzsaws and blowtorches.

“Next, we were going to see if he wanted to join the workforce early. We were hoping he’d be happy hauling around heavy objects and getting paid for it, but he really wanted to go to the same university as his big brothers.” He emphasized his last two words, his smile growing wider. “In the end, we figured he’d be better off in our caring hands than at risk of being picked up to be the muscle by some gang.”

You nodded. “Luf does seem easily influenced.”

“He’s got a good moral compass, at least. You could convince him to climb a building with only five words, but it’d take an army to make him do something he thinks is wrong.”

 Just as Sabo finished talking, the rest of the class began pouring in, filling out the empty chairs and disrupting the formerly quiet room. The professor was the last to enter, walking over to the podium to begin the afternoon’s lecture. You snuck one last peek at your phone, swiping up to reopen your texts with Vivi. Your thumb tapped the edge of the case, drumming rhythmically against the plastic as you debated whether or not you should ask the question on your mind.

With a quick exhale, your finger danced across the keys, shooting one last message to Vivi before you slid your phone away.

| Vivi: We will see you at four o’clock! | Vivi: :smile-duck: | You: is it cool if i bring a friend? Delivered 2:30 PM

“Oh boy, Sabaody! I haven’t been there for a while, you know? I’ve just been so busy! Last time I went was when…”

You were starting to doubt that Sabo wasn’t genetically related to Luffy. At first glance, you thought he’d be the more polished brother between the three. He didn’t look as jockish as Ace or act as clueless as Luffy. But as Sabo told more stories about his life, you were starting to see the familial connection. 

“And then we jumped off the side of the building!”

“Where the fuck were your parents, Sabo!?”

“Oh, Dadan was the one chasing us.”

“Hey, ____!”

You and Sabo looked across the street to see Nami waving excitedly across the street with Vivi and Sanji by her side. The blond was holding three large shopping bags in his arms, doing his best to wave at you as well.

“I am so glad you were able to make it!” Vivi rushed across the street, expertly dodging passersby and running into your arms before turning to the man next to you. “And you must be Sabo!”

“In the flesh,” he said, accentuating his words with a light bow.

You scoffed, “Don’t be fooled, he’s Luffy in sheep’s clothing.”

“Now, now!” Sabo linked his arms with yours and Vivi’s, safely escorting the two of you across the street. “I have twice the social experience as my brothers, mind you.”

“Zero times zero is still zero!” Nami cooed, prancing down the sidewalk. 

“Ah, ____, would you like me to carry your bag?” Sanji asked, extending his hand—which was already lined with bags—towards you.

You chuckled, reaching to pat Sanji’s head. “It’s alright, San. I don’t wanna overwork you before Nami’s even started.”

Sanji’s face fell as you stepped away towards Nami, joining the redhead as she peered into nearby store windows. Her face suddenly lit up, pressing her hands closer against the glass. “Oh my gosh, do you see that necklace ____? It’s perfect—the color, the chain, oh my gosh, I need it!” Nami grabbed your wrist, tugging you through the door and into the cool, air-conditioned store.

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"my flower," imu whispered, holding you gently in his arms. "remain by my side, from now to eternity, for there is no being in life or in death that could compare to thou." fire roared around the two of your, blood covering the ground from the bodies that were strewn about. imu had regaled his plan for a new world order before, but it was a different experience standing in the throes of it. "of course, my love." your hands fled to his midsection, lightly touching his injuries. you tried to remain focused on what was directly in front of you, doing your best to ignore the blood that dripped off his towering weapon. his grip on you tightened—squeezing you and burying his head into the crook of your neck. "we shall build an empire to outlast time itself," he murmured. "we shall be beautiful."

at first, it hurt seeing you talk to someone else. then, a new, dirty feeling struck his heart. 'jealousy,' they called it. but in reality, it was merely imu's will asserting what was known to be the truth—that all were ants compared to his might.

all it took was one time for imu to lock you away under the assertion that the outside world was no longer safe. the air was impure, the ground was too dangerous, and the sky held too many possibilities.

imu prepared several rooms for you, focusing on making it as perfect as can be. it marks a new point in your relationship, and imu simply wants to ensure that you both can adapt to this new era.

"i appreciate all of this my lord—" "and within the left hall lies the garden, thou hast an allotment for thy doings—" "imu," you finally asserted yourself, moving to stand in front of him. "what of my old room? what of the garden beneath in mary geoise? am i to abandon it all now? my love, i am not so fragile as to need all this." a frown graced imu's face. it was an impetuous expression that last for but a moment, casted not in your direction, but towards the brilliant light billowing in from an expansive window. "all mu does, my petal," he began, brushing your cheek with a tender softness, "mu does for thou." such a sentiment would have soothed your mind centuries ago, but you were older and wiser now, capable of recognizing the words of a demon whispered in the voice of an angel. a shame, that despite all he had done, you could not bare to strike at his presence in your heart.

in the end, all of the precautions he had taken could not stop imu's fears from dominating your lives. the revolutionaries were determined to destroy the heaven he made for the two of you, while figures of the past were set on repeating dreaded history.

what good is this world, he thinks, if all of its inhabitants intend to separate the two of you? no one can compare to his power, no one can rival his might, and no one can take you away from him.

he held the control of the ancient weapon in his possession, staring down past the clouds and into the brilliant blue sea below. the air may be tainted, the ground may be filthy, and the sky may, one day, fall down. but the ocean would cleanse and purify the world from the obnoxious plague that screams down below.

"you're planning on doing what, imu?" you dropped all titles and formalities, staring forlornly at the man you had once loved. "'tis a long overdue reckoning. to rinse this world of its original sin that continues to plague and bring all to ruin." he turned to face you, and you wished for him to look mad, to have the visage of manic king ravaged by time. but the man standing before you looked more clear, more confident, than he ever had before. "imu, you can't—" in an instant he drew near, lifting your sleeve to trace the mark along your arm. "mu had promised thou eternity," he cooed, turning to face you with the same expression he wielded centuries ago. and, in just the same way he had so long ago, he held you close to his chest. yet now his touch felt foreign and his grasp discomforting. "eternity thou shalt have," imu continued, planting a kiss on the top of your head. "a new world awaits us once more, my petal."

"you're so shiny," luffy panted, squeezing your chest with his left hand and your ass with the other. his eyes were blown wide, enraptured by your glistening body. "and you're all mine." a blissful sigh left your lips as luffy's bulge glided against your slit, in addition to his constant fondling of your body. a wet patch had begun forming on his shorts—mostly due to your own slick, but even he was contributing to the mess. you never expected him to be so entranced by your costume, but perhaps it was his inner pirate speaking. "i'm glad you like it, luf," you said, moving your lips to meet luffy's. if it weren't for the glitter on your skin, you were sure luffy would have left an innumerable number of hickeys across your body. luffy pulled away, a string of saliva connecting the two of you. "i need more," he gasped, seizing your body and pressing you down into the bed. suddenly, the thought of being covered in hickeys didn't seem impossible anymore.

RORONOA ZORO is wrapped up as a mummy, and you're about to raid his tomb!

you knew zoro wasn't going to put any effort into a costume, so it was up to you to find something he wouldn't try to strip out of. zoro was already used to wearing bandages (L) so it wasn't hard to wrap a couple around his arms, legs, and one across his head for good measure. your costume was far more detailed; a high-quality recreation of a certain gun-wielding, tank top wearing archaeologist.

from the start, zoro wasn't able to keep his eyes off you. the way you moved, the way you talked, the way you stood in that outfit was enough to make him twitchy all night (and his costume was not helping his predicament.) some partygoers speak to you normally, while others take daring glances at your costume. zoro is not pleased with either group.

really, the more he thought about it, this whole party and costume thing was your fault. by the time you get back to your shared cabin on the sunny, zoro is already peeling his bandages off, eager to be done with tonight. you, on the other hand, are enthusiastically helping zoro de-bandage himself. after all, it just means he has to help you disrobe afterwards, right?

zoro's fingers gripped the band your tight shorts, as if he was about the rip them off, only to squeeze your ass instead with his large hands. despite your request for him to help you undress, he seemed more eager for you to keep the outfit on. "you should wear shit like this more often," he snorted, running one of his hands down your thigh, reaching the thigh strap and sneaking a finger around the elastic. zoro pulled on it, stretching the band and letting it thwack against your flesh. you let out a moan, gritting your teeth at the sweet sting. zoro's hands were already up at your chest, ripping the buttons off your shirt and exposing your chest. a satisfied grin lined his face as he leaned back, bringing your hands down to his zipper. "your turn to help me undress, babe," he said, letting you feel the hard tent forming in his tan pants. you steeled your resolve, accepting that this striptease was only just the beginning of tonight.

VINSMOKE SANJI is disguised as a handsome lion, and you're his ringmaster!

when the idea of a costume party was first conceived, sanji immediately floated matching costume ideas to you. "chef and cupcake" was a cute idea in theory, but you weren't looking forward to the execution. besides, you were incredibly excited to carry sanji by a collar for the night! probably not as excited as he was, however.

sanji behaved like a guard dog the whole night—maybe guard lion would be a better word—chasing off pervs with a nasty look in his eye and giving you a nice, fuzzy shoulder to lean on after you had a couple glasses of punch. of course, mr. lion couldn't stop himself from whispering the pretty plans you two had after the party into your flushed ear.

your hands are all over each other by the time you get back onto the ship. only once you get into your room do your hands slip under the clothes and into the sheets. the costume you received came with some props that you initially had no use for, but sanji can find a use for any tool.

"toys are on the dresser," you gasped out as sanji sucked the side of your neck, the two of you practically stumbling into your room. sanji's shirt had been thrown to the ground while the buttons on your own were popped open, exposing your chest. you threw yourself on the bed, arching your back and waiting for sanji to grab whichever toys interested him the most. seconds later he stood over you, holding a collar and whip in his hands—the latter was a bold choice, you'd never expected him to take that one. "i thought it'd be cute, having the ringmaster be subdued," sanji chuckled, fastening the collar to your neck with a click! "no need to brace yourself either, mon minou, i'd rather die than lay a hand on you." with a skill you didn't know sanji had, he loosely tied the whip around your wrists, securing you to the headboard. "ready, mon amour? we're both in for a long night," he sighed in bliss, straddling himself over your lower half. next year, you were definitely using this costume again.

PORTGAS D. ACE is dressing up as a firefighter, and you're matching as his loyal dalmation!

at first, it was hard to convince ace to dress up as something antithetical to his position as fire fist, but after telling him he could be shirtless for the costume, he was 100% on board! he was also a fan of your costume, flicking your ears up and down and up and—

the party was a blast, and ace was eager to show off your costumes to partygoers, making silly poses and taking plenty of photos. despite being a devil fruit user, ace also insists on being a real firefighter. as such, the deviant carries around a water gun to use whenever and on whoever he sees fit—even spraying you straight in the chest, drenching your spotted costume.

your boyfriend quickly hands over his firefighter jacket, covering your body and escorting you to a bedroom to help dry your shirt off. ace's powers are almost ideal—as long as you keep about 5 feet between you and the fire. luckily, his hands seen warm enough to help. and with a little persuasion, maybe you can find an even warmer part.

"a-are you sure this the best way?" ace stammered, his face so red it matched the beads around his neck. the clearly excited smile on ace's face betrayed his seeming apprehension—the pervert was clearly begging for you to keep going. "maybe you're right," you sighed, pulling his warm hands away from your chest, much to his obvious disappointment. you slid off the bed and saddled yourself on the floor, sitting right between his legs. "you locked the door, right ace?" you said, moving your hands to his zipper. all your boyfriend could do was nod his head frantically, his goofy smile reappearing as he shrugged off his boxers with your help. "god, i fucking love you baby," he sung in pleasure as his cock went into your shirt, feeling his heat spread across your tits. throwing his head back in pleasure, ace made a mental note to dress up more often.

SABO wants to be a knight this evening, and he needs a princess to match!

no one else commits harder to a joke than sabo. and sabo's idea of a joke is wearing a full, authentic suit of armor to a party. likewise, he insists you wear an authentic dress to match. puffy sleeves, real silk, and fine lace adorn your body in such a tight way that it's almost hard to breathe. sabo just slaps your back (with a metal covered hand, ouch) and tells you it'll just be a couple hours. the two of you have done crazier things in the bedroom than this, he says. asshole.

he enjoys keeping his face covered by his helmet, then surprising friends and partygoers by flipping it up. and, as your knight, he insists on being by your side, protecting you from anyone who dare attack his princess! (like the maniac running around with a water gun)

after the party, the two of you are happy to shed your uncomfortable, but still very impressive, costumes. sabo gets his suit of armor off before you can even attempt to shrug off a shoe. but now that he's free from his metal prison, he's more than happy to help his princess undress.

"it would have been fun to try this at the party," sabo chuckled, forcing you to arch your back as he yanked on the lacing of your dress. "oops, that just made it tighter! my bad, sweetie." "asshole," you managed to squeeze out, feeling sabo's bulge press closer against your ass. "just help get your princess out of this contraption." the bastard was getting too big a kick out of this, and all you wanted to do was get out of this damn dress. a hand traveled beneath your skirt, flipping the fabric up and exposing your backside. "theres gotta be a zipper around here somewhere, right baby? any ideas?" sabo whistled, and you couldn't help but snicker at his comment this time. "it's an older model—comes with a keyhole! but you need a pretty big key to get in." you wiggled your ass for emphasis, giggling at your own joke. from behind you heard a hearty laugh, followed by the sound of a buckle being undone. you figured you could stand being in this overly tight silk for just a bit longer. or at least until sabo ripped it off you.

EUSTASS KID begrudgingly accepts his devil costume, only as long his angel accompanies him!

from the start, kid isn't a fan of wearing a costume. only once you tell him about the party aspect does kid accept the idea of this "costume" you speak of. kid's regular attire fits the description of "devil" well enough, so all you do is add a horned headband and tell him to look extra red and evil for tonight. you, on the other hand, dress in as much white as possible, complete with fluffy wings and a halo to match.

at the party, all kid cares about is getting as hammered as possible. he's laughing with his crew, beer in hand with you sitting on his lap. despite his earlier attitude towards his costume, he seems to get really in character after a few drinks, making comments about how a "devil like him" got with an "angel like you," flicking your wings for extra emphasis.

by the time the party's dispersed, you're dragging an excited kid back to your shared room. he's handsy the whole way through, and his comments about your costumes have gone up a notch, clearly more interested than he was at the start of the night. kid's got plans in his head even before the door closes, and he's ready to enact these new fantasies.

"c'mere babe, 'wanna hold ya," kid laughed, falling into his chair. he patted his thigh, beckoning you over. the horns you made him wear at the start of the party still sat on his head, blending in with his hair and making him look like a real demon. "hold me? like, cuddling?" you replied coyly, doing your best to play the part of "pure angel" as you sat in his lap. given the huge ass grin on his face, you took it as a sign that you were doing a splendid job. "virgin angel needs a devil to teach 'er." kid slipped a hand under your dress, using his other hand to play around with your wings. "could rip these babies off, teach ya about pain and pleasure—the two good things in life." his breath was hot against your ear, and you shuddered as he gave your ass a firm squeeze. "i'm a fast learner," you gasped, leaning into his body. a part of you wondered how far kid would take this roleplay, but an even bigger part of you wondered how much of your costume would be left by the end of this long, long night.

KILLER is decked out as jason, and watch out, you're his final girl!

it's easy to get killer to dress up, mostly because jason's mask also has near identical holes to killer's usual mask. but he also has fun helping you dress up, cutting up and splattering your survivalist outfit with fake blood in order look the part. you have your own fun, playing around with different hairstyles like your boyfriend was your own personal doll. a doll caked in fake blood, that is.

the party was fun, and despite what your costumes suggested, you and killer were attached to each other the whole night. while killer would show everyone his new punishers, replaced with machetes to match his costume, you'd stick a straw through one of his mask holes so that he could sip.

on the way back to the ship with the rest of the crew, killer pulls you off to the side to whisper in your ear. his idea? you get a 30 second head start to run into the island, and then killer will be hot on your trail. a countdown isn't necessary—you start your sprint into the woods while your boyfriend's laugh echoes in the distance.

you gasped for air, ducking under branches and leaping over exposed roots. if it weren't for your combat boots, you'd surely have face-planted about five minutes ago. in the distance you could hear killer approaching, and he was doing it quickly. with a flourish, you threw yourself against a tree, pretending to lean against it for support to catch your breath. in an instant, you felt your chest press against the tree, a large machete cutting into the trunk right beside you. killer's body pressed itself into you, and you could feel something else pressing into your body as well. "caught you," he whispered into your ear, sending a chill down your spine. "you gonna beg for mercy, pretty girl?" killer's knee positioned itself between your legs, and you couldn't help but slightly grind on it. "oh please mr. scary killer! if you let me go, i'll make it worth your while!" you cried out, unable to hide the sly smile on your face. cold metal touched your back as killer's machete cut open the back of your shirt. as eager as you were for the main course, you prayed that killer had something new for you to wear on your walk back to the ship.

TRAFALGAR LAW accepts his position as doctor, but only if he has his trusty nurse!

costumes aren't law's thing—he's the type to value comfort over looks in nearly every situation. but he's already got a stethoscope in the medical bay and a lab coat in his closet, so it was meant to be! after you told ikkaku about your idea, she gleefully fished a skimpy nurse outfit from a box, complete with a nurse cap to match. once law sees you try it on, he no longer complained about having to wear his doctor costume.

law's nursing (lmao) a drink in his hand for nearly the whole event, always trailing behind you like a lost puppy who would rather be at home reading a book. eventually you find a couch you two can cuddle on while also catching up with some old friends. law pouts through most of it, setting his chin on your head while you relax on his lap.

back on the submarine, law just wants to be in his boxers and get to bed. as he's on the side of your bed, kicking off his pants, you approach, sliding yourself on his lap. you fiddle with the collar of his lab coat and run your fingers down his stethoscope, informing him that he needed to complete his physical exam before bed.

"you've got a bit of a fever, doc," you said, pressing the back of your hand against law's forehead. as you did so, you pushed your clothed cunt against the tent in law's boxers, eliciting a low moan from the man. you tutted, "thats not a good sign, mr. trafalgar." you continued grinding against him, pulling gently on his stethoscope. "any idea what it could be, doc? i'd love to help, but it's hard to find the source of this problem." "just," law hissed, his hips twitching upwards into yours, "keep doing that. keep moving your hips." law's mouth swept over your exposed collarbone, peppering harsh kisses into your skin. "you got it, doc!" you said with cheer, slipping a finger into the band of his boxers and yanking them down. law's cock sprang free, and you allowed it to sit snuggly between your ass. if law's grip on your body was anything to go by, you were definitely on the right path for a cure.