This Is Not My Life: Part I
So, here it is! My first multi-chapter story on livejournal... *checks again* yep, first one. Only oneshots to the moment. It's hard to explain where did inspiration for this come from... partly from watching too many episodes of Supernatural with AUs in them (last one: The French Mistake, which was awesome! Loved Misha XD) and partly from re-watching the Dice Killing arc from Higurashi (Rika beating up Satoko with the chair has got to be one of the best scenes from the series... I still like Satoko, of course!).
Either way, I really hope you enjoy it and, if possible, give me your opinion. I really appreciate it because it gives me the chance to grow, check what I did wrong so I can correct it and avoid the mistake, and so on. I'm really excited about this idea and I hope to update soon. Bye bye!
Title: This Is Not My Life
Part: I
Fandom: One Piece
Pairing: Zoro/Nami (the story is actually more Zoro-centric, though)
Words: 4915
Rating: T
Summary: The story follows the life of Zoro Roronoa, a young man who is tired of his life and can't keep going anymore. But, just what did he get himself into?
Warnings: Modern day!AU. Cussing and insults... kind of everywhere. Mild violence towards Nami by the end, but nothing serious to be honest...
The alarm clock rang and he wished he had his sword on his hand to cut it in half. But since he didn't, he had no other option but to stand up, set off the clock and return to bed.
But of course, the second alarm clock had to arrive.
"Get up, idiot!" yelled the pinkette. "Time to go!"
The form on the bed just kept sleeping, unaffected by the yelling. The teenager by the bed felt her face glow red in anger; this idiot was going to be the death of her!
"I said, get up! You'll be late!" she delivered a direct kick to the moving sheets. "Get up, get up, get up!" three more kicks.
"I'm going to slice you in half, Perona!" he yelled back, raising from the sheets in anger.
She smirked. "Good, you're up Zoro. Don't take more than five minutes in getting dressed or you'll walk."
The seventeen-year-old teen left the room, her particular laughter still clearly audible from the hallway. 'Well, I might as well leave now' he sighed, slowly standing up.
Zoro Roronoa was a green-haired, twenty one-years-old, dark-eyed, sword-obsessed, sleepy, lazy, permanently-lost, but reliable young man. Or so he was described by the people who knew him. Not like he cared much about his reputation or what they said about him to change that description. Partly because most of it was true. Except for the permanently-lost part. He had no clue where people got that idea from.
As he got to the closet, he checked the wardrove for a moment before finding a pair of jeans that appeared to be clean and a plain, white t-shirt that fitted him well. Combined with some white socks and black shoes, he was ready to go in less than five minutes. He smirked at the thought, he was going to rub that on Perona's face for sure.
He brushed his teeth in the blink of an eye, threw his bag over his shoulder, grabbed a few text books he found scattered over the place, and left his room.
At the kitchen, his adoptive father Dracule Mihawk sat down sipping on his usual morning coffee and checking the morning paper. He took him in after he was found by the police officer 'Axe-hand' Morgan around the neightborhood and was about to be sent to foster care. Not that Mihawk had a soft spot for the young boy, but he found interesting that the kid was by that time five and could hold his ground pretty decently in a sword fight, as he proved against Morgan's son Helmeppo.
Mihawk was a man on his fourties and considered the best swordsman in the world. He ran a dojo where he taught kids the significance of swordsmanship and what it meant to be a true swordsman, not just an idiot with a sword. Zoro worked part-time there too. His only daughter, Perona, had been raised without a mother; Mihawk once mentioned that she died giving birth but Zoro didn't raise much questions on the subject. However, she was still a spoiled, whiny little girl that could produce a headache in a matter of seconds. She had a thing for gothic stuff and had a phase where she dressed as an emo lolita. Luckily, she moved on, but some aspects of that personality still remained. Her hair, for example, which she dyed pink when she was fourteen. Now she had it long, curly and reached below her waist, but it still was weird to his brother.
Not like he had much say in the matter, since he had natural green hair...
"Oh Zoro, that was quick." she looked at her clock and smirked. "Six minutes. Horohorohorohorohoro."
"Shut up."
"Good morning, Roronoa." said Mihawk, not lifting his look from the newspaper.
"Morning." replied Zoro lazily, throwing himself on the empty chair in front of him.
"Here you go." Perona delivered some toasted bread in front of him and sat with the little tea that was left on her cup. "We're leaving in a while. Be quick."
"I still don't get it, why does she get to have a car?" complained the green-haired man.
Mihawk rose an eyebrow at him. "Because you failed the driving test three times and she passed on the first try, perhaps?"
"... I'll definitely pass next time!"
"Horohorohorohorohoro."
"Shut up."
"It's not my fault you got lost on your way to the exam." laughed the pinkette.
"That was just the first time." replied his brother.
"Oh, right. The other two you got lost during the exam. Where did you end up in last year? San Francisco?"
"Miami." he corrected. "And that's not the point! The point is, I'll pass the next time, it's in a couple of weeks you know."
"If you pass your exams, maybe." Mihawk shifted the newspaper's page. "I'm not paying again for you to fail."
"What makes you think I won't pass my exams?"
"The fact that you hate your career."
Oh, that.
Since he wanted to dedicate his life to swordsmanship, he didn't really care for a career, but Mihawk insisted so badly that he got a proper education that he signed up for the first career he found. Architecture. It was alright, but it wasn't his thing. But since he was already there and Mihawk kept bothering him to finish his studies, he had no choice but to keep going.
Well, at least his friends went to the same college.
"Why are we still wasting time here? Let's go now!" screamed Perona, looking at her clock in horror.
"Have a good day." saluted Mihawk without much enthusiasm, returning to the paper.
"Bye."
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
"So, why did we go the slow way?" asked Zoro. "I know a shortcut."
"I'm not taking your shortcut. We usually end up on the other side of the country."
"Don't exaggerate."
"Remember when we almost visited Canada last month?"
"Shut up. We're finally here."
Perona stopped the car on the entrance of the Grand Line University.
It was a huge place, the biggest college on the state, and probably on the country too. The main building was at the entrance, and it was a two-story, grey edification where people went to sign up to enter the educational system. The principal's office is located here, as well as the library; and there's a sliding glass door that leads to the campus, a large, grassy area with big trees and some park benches where students can pass their free time relaxing, chatting, eating lunch, or even studying under the shade of a big tree. There's even a fountain on the center.
To its' right and left rose various buildings, in which the different careers were taught and learned. There's also an underground passage that connects all of these buildings, which is specially convenient during summer since it's equiped with air conditioner.
Perona waved her hand at him and was soon on her way towards the East Blue High School. Zoro nodded at her before she disappeared; he just wanted to get to the classroom and get some decent sleep for a change...
Of course, not everything went as planned.
"Hey Zoro!" waved Luffy D. Monkey, running towards his friend.
"Luffy, what are you doing here?" asked Zoro. The young boy was younger than him, just one year older than Perona; he was still in high school after repeating last year though, so it was weird to see him in college.
"Oh, I came with Ace! So I'm waiting for him!" explained his self-proclaimed friend with a grin.
"Aren't you worried you're missing classes?"
"No. You got early. That's weird! Didn't you get lost?"
"No, I did not. Perona brought me."
"Ah, so that's why you..."
"Hey guys!"
Of course people just had to keep coming. Usopp Sogeking and Sanji Prince marched towards them. Even if the three of them were in different careers and therefore classes, the fact that they shared high school made them stick together for some reason. It had been Usopp who had yelled after them.
"Hey Usopp! Sanji! Why are you here?" asked Luffy, completing forgetting the fact that he was the only one supposed not to be there.
"We study here." Sanji reminded him in a matter-of-factly tone.
"If you call cooking studying..." commented Zoro.
"What was that, shithead?"
"Wanna fight, pervert cook?"
"You started it, shitty swordsman, now you're going to suffer!"
"Bring it on, you curly brow!"
"Luffy, shouldn't we stop them?" asked Usopp, hiding behind said young man.
"Why?"
"Oh my, things seem really lively today."
The two stopped their bickering to turn around. Or rather, Sanji stopped giving attention to the green-haired man to noodle-dance around a beautiful brunette that had approached the group.
"Robin Nico! Of course they're lively with a beauty like you around to praise!" complimented the blonde.
"Wait, are you serious?" Usopp was the first one to notice the enormous book held between Robin's hands. "Are you really reading that book? It's huge!"
"Of course not." replied Robin, pointing at the purple bag she had with her thumb. "There's three more tomes in here that must be finished too."
"You never cease to amaze me, my darling angel!"
"Wow, you're really weird woman."
"Dare to say that again, marimo-head!"
"Oh hey Usopp, I just remembered something!" said Luffy suddenly.
"Yes, what is it?"
"Um... I forgot."
"Don't tell me then , you idiot!"
"Um, oh, right! I had something to tell you!" Luffy scratched his head. "I think... it was something about Kaya... she said she's heading towards class, she got tired of waiting..."
"I totally forgot about her! Damn, I should text her..."
"She then left with that guy who has a cool panda pet!"
"... you mean Law Trafalgar?" asked Sanji. Usopp had frozen.
"Who's that?" asked Robin.
"Some guy who's popular with the ladies. He's a medicine student, just like gorgeous Miss Kaya and this idio... where did he go?"
"I think the correct expression is 'ran as fast as humanly possible to his lover's side'." Robin frowned. "I still do not comprehend why they remain as friends if she admitted she wanted to become more than that."
"Who knows, maybe Usopp's too stupid. Just like this other shithead." Sanji pointed at Zoro.
"Eh? The hell did I say?"
"Nothing. Your face is just stupid."
"So is your eyebrow, shitty cook."
"Zoro, can we go eat now? I'm hungry!" interrupted Luffy.
"Why should I care?"
"Come on! Come on, come on, come on!" the raven-haired teen looked at the blonde. "Sanji, can you make us some food?"
"Why would I do that, shitty kid? It's eight am! You can't be hungry now, you just had breakfast!"
"Awww but Sanjiiiiiiii..."
"Eight? Shit, I'm going to be late!"
"Bye Zoro!"
"I'll slice all of you in half if I get late because I ran into you!"
"You won't make it, you'll get lost shitty swordsman."
"Good luck in 'Folding Napkins 101', pervert."
"Marimo!"
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
"Mr. Roronoa, you're late." informed the obese, black-haired teacher, Miss Alvida, as he entered the classroom. "Half an hour late, to be precise. Class starts at eight."
"Sorry, got lost on the way."
It was a sad excuse. It was sadder because it was true.
"That's a pathetic excuse. Now, take a sit." she instructed, returning to the board.
As he sat down, he noticed this class was getting even more boring every passing second. Since he was at a seat that couldn't easily be seen by the teacher, perhaps he could get some sleep now, he had only slept five hours at home now that he remembered and he was getting sleepy...
"Good morning Zoro."
Shit. He had forgotten he sat down next to devil's incarnation.
As always, she was looking down at him with a triumphant smirk, one that dared him everytime their eyes met. There she was, with her short orange hair, a look of superiority, a smirk, and her pages on the table ready for her to take notes.
Yep, Nami never changed. Unfortunately.
"Did I miss anything?"
"Alvida tried to kill some guy from the first row with her iron maze." replied Nami lazily, picking up her pen and starting to copy what the teacher wrote on the blackboard. "Other than that, not much."
Just then, Zoro noticed a crack on the wooden floor where a bench should be. He shrugged as he dragged some books out and proceeded to use them as an improvised pillow.
"You'll miss all the notes." commented Nami as she wrote everything down.
"Not interested." he replied lazily.
"How do you think you'll pass the exams without taking notes?"
"I'll just borrow them from you, witch, now let me sleep!" protested Zoro as low as he could in order to avoid being caught.
She smirked as a thought appeared on her head. "One hundred beris."
"What?"
"One hundred beris. That's what I'm charging you from lending you my notes later." she smiled evily. "Oh, how didn't I think of it earlier? It's perfect! I win money, you win notes, we all win!"
"I won't pay you one hundred beris just to take a copy of some notes I'm not even interested in. Aren't you supposed to be my friend?"
"Aren't you supposed to pay your debt someday?"
"I'll pay when I get the money, ok?"
"Miss Swan." Alvida's voice directed towards them interrupted the discussion. "Since you're so busy arguing with Mr. Roronoa, I suppose you couldn't possibly tell me when was Bacon's Castle built and where, am I right?"
Nami stood up to address the professor.
"It was built in 1665 and it's still standing in the state of Virgina, in Surry to be more accurate." answered Nami, as if she was reading it from a textbook.
Alvida's eyes widened slightly and a few giggles could be heard, but apart from that, Alvida kept her composture.
"Very well, Miss Swan. Now, let's return to what's important." she cracked into an umpleasant smile. "Who's the most beautiful woman in this classroom?"
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
Classes had gone by. The first three period weren't all that bad, but thanks to Nami -who was constantly asking the teacher questions and bothering him whenever she could- Zoro didn't get the chance to get some decent sleep like he wished.
However, now in lunch break, things were different. He was resting against a big tree, far away from any other human being. He had an hour to himself, and he wasn't even hungry, so it was the perfect time to rest. He closed his eyes and unplugged himself from the world...
For sixty seconds.
"Hey Zoro!" greeted Nami, hitting him in the head to get his attention.
"Shit witch, was that even necessary?" he yelled back, visibly mad.
"Look what I've got!" she announced, showing him two heart-shaped boxes wrapped up neatly. "Lunch!"
"Did the pervert make those?"
"Yep. I told him they were for me and Robin, but she's having lunch with Franky, so here you go!" she gave him a purple box. "Your welcome!"
Well, he didn't get the sleep he wished for, but at least he got a free meal. Which was convenient since he had forgotten his money at home. Oh well...
"Hm, it's delicious!" commented Nami as she ate. "What did you get?"
"Chicken and a love letter." replied Zoro. As much as he hated to admit it, the damn cook made excellent food, and he was lucky to get some of it. "'I am graced to see you trying my food.' Seriously, how the hell can you stand it?"
"You get used to it, eventually." said Nami, not giving the issue much relevance. "If you had boobs, I'd teach you how to get him to do anything for you."
"Like what?"
"I could tell you... but there's a price." she winked at him, then laughed. "By the way, are you going to do your driving exam again?"
"How the hell did you know that?"
"Perona told me."
"Of course she did." muttered Zoro, already planning a murder on his head.
"So, are you?"
"What if I am?"
"Nothing, just wanting to make sure you would actually go to the place this time." she stuck her tongue playfully at him. "Maybe I can ask your father to get you a GPS or something for your birthday, it would be convenient."
Zoro decided not to comment any further, and went back to eating his chicken in silence. And when it seemed Nami had ran out of things to talk about and had settled for peacefully finishing her lunch, another voice rang not very far away from them.
"Hey you!"
A young, attractive guy with black, messy hair and freckles sat right next to them, his legs crossed and his shirtless chest for everyone to see. It took him a few seconds, but he eventually identified the man as Ace; Luffy's older brother. Were people going to pop out of nowhere all day long to bother him?
Well, at least he wasn't with...
"There you are! Hey!" waved Luffy, approaching the small group.
Nami was smart and quick enough but Zoro wasn't lucky, and in the blink of an eye his food had been eaten by the younger boy, so fast that it seemed his arms stretched for a moment.
"Ace, why do you have Luffy following you around?" asked Nami. "I mean, doesn't he have to go to his own classes at least one day?"
"Not necessarily." said Ace. "The woman who runs the absents and presents there, Miss Hancock, does everything Luffy says. She seems to have a crush on him."
"So he doesn't need to show up? How convenient." replied the orange-haired woman as Zoro tried to strangle Luffy to death. "So, how are your classes coming?"
"Today I got a B+ in al-"
Before Ace could finish his sentence, he fell, his face directly crashing on the grass. Then a soft snoring could be heard. Nami cussed at his bad manners; falling asleep in the middle of the conversation, how very rude of him. Stupid narcolepsy.
"Oh, look at the time!" exclaimed the woman. "Seems like you'll have to strangle Luffy later, class is about to start."
"I think I'll skip this one..." decided Zoro, releasing him.
"Nonsense, how would you learn? Let's go!"
And just like that, she grabbed him by the collar and lead him towards their next class.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
"Well, that went well..." said Nami, happily admiring her beautiful A+. "How was your test?"
"It's ok, fuck you very much." he cussed, throwing away his big red F.
"Oh, don't be down Zoro. I can blackmail Mr. Spandam into a higher grade if you want."
"Really?
"For one hundred thousand."
"Figures."
"Oh, look, my ride is here!"
Nami raised her hand when she caught sight of a good-looking woman about her same age, with light blue hair that didn't allow her to pass unnoticed. The young lady was Vivi Nefertari, Nami's good friend, and apparently the one stuck with the witch for the day.
Eventually, Vivi saw her, and made her a sign to come closer. She must've parked somewhere nearby.
"Well, bye for now, Zoro." she departed, sticking her tongue to him, towards her friend.
"Does Mr. Swordsman need a ride too, Nami?" asked Vivi when her friend approached.
"Nah, he'll be fine. And you've known him for years, I think you can call him by his name now." she laughed. "So, what did you do today?"
He observed as both women got away together towards the parking lot. Unfortunately, he didn't possess such priviledge, so he had to walk towards Mihawk's dojo, which was about 20 or 25 blocks away. If he did it perfectly, he would be over there before his work even started.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
"Did you get lost, Mr. Roronoa?" asked one of the pupils when the green-haired man entered his class, ten minutes late.
"No." lied Zoro.
He glared at everyone to prevent any further questions. Nobody raised any more questions on the subject; it was clear it hadn't been the happiest day of his life. But at least he got some relaxing time, just teaching a few things here and there with wooden swords, simple, right?
"Well, let's begin then." he decided. "Everyone, grab your wooden swords an-"
"Roronoa!"
That female voice... damn, she couldn't leave him alone for a day, could she?
If there was one female Zoro hated almost as much as Nami, that had to be Tashigi. He met her at a competition at a little town called Loguetown, where Mihawk was invited as special guest and he participated on the amateur category. He fought the finals with her, and of course, he was the one who won the match.
Ever since then, the woman had been bothering him for a rematch. She had even moved to his city to seek revenge, but he had no intention of fighting her, since her skills were very below his level and in the end she would end severely injured. And probably blaming it on him. But Tashigi just didn't listen; instead, she insisted he was a machist and that was the reason why he wouldn't fight her, because of her gender. And again, here she was. To remind him what a pain in the ass she was.
"I'm in the middle of a class." pointed out Zoro.
"They could use a live demonstration." commented Tashigi. "Roronoa! Today will be the day I'll finally get my revenge on you and your stupid machism. Brace yourself!"
Raising her sword, Tashigi charged towards him as she screamed dramatically. However, it should also be noted that she was a quite clumsy woman, and as she headed towards her opponent she slipped and fell with her face to the floor. As the students laughed, Tashigi blindly searched for her glasses, which had fallen and landed somewhere far away from her.
With a sigh, Zoro got down and grabbed her glasses. He proceeded to give them to her, and she angrily took them.
"I didn't ask for pity from my enemy." complained Tashigi.
"It's not pity. It's the fact that you couldn't see your glasses and I could. Now can you go bother somebody else?"
"I said we're having a fight!"
"Seems like there's only a way to solve this..." sighed Zoro.
And with that resolution, he took Tashigi's glasses and put them below one of the cushions where a student, who was absent, should be. Then, while she searched for them, he proceeded to finally begin his class.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
The class was a complete failure. Not only did Tashigi keep bothering him while he talked, attempting to challenge him while partially blinded, but also the kids didn't seem to understand a damn thing of what he was saying, as if he was speaking in another language. When they proceeded to actual practice, none of them were able to perform a simple blow like he had explained. He even yelled so much at one for weilding it like a stick that the little guy was reduced to tears.
Actually, the whole day had been a failure. How? His lack of sleep, for starters. Perona was annoying as always, over the smallest and most stupid things of course. Luffy, Sanji, Usopp, Robin... they bothered him and didn't allow him to get in time to his class, causing Alvida to yell at him. And let's not forget that Luffy ate his lunch before he could finish it. But the worst of all was the witch, she was hell personified; stupid, crazy, money-loving wit-
"Zoro!" greeted a female voice.
When he turned around and saw Nami running towards him, trying to reach him, he finally snapped.
"I thought I would never caught up with you" panted Nami, catching her breath as she reached him. "Why were you walking so fast, anyway?"
"Why?" he asked. "To get away from you, of course."
"Ha ha, very funny" she faked a laugh.
"I'm not kidding" replied Zoro. "What do you want now?"
"I wanted to ask you somethi-"
Before she could finish, Zoro had pushed her against a nearby wall. Her back was crashed against the rough wall mercilessly, and he positioned his arm to her right to prevent her from escaping. It was dark already, the sun had set, but thanks to the street lights she could see Zoro's angry face; the only word that crossed her mind when she saw it was: dangerous.
"I'm tired of this, Nami" he said in a cruel, icy tone that certainly did not belong to him. "I'm tired of all of this, witch, but specially of your bullshit."
"Zoro, what are yo-" again, she was cut off.
"Don't talk. Don't ask anything more from me. I'm tired of your manipuations, of everyone's manipulations... I'm tired" he glared down at her. "Don't you ever get tired of blackmailing and manipulating, bitch?"
The sound of the slap that followed the insult pierced the serene night, provoking some brids to fly off a nearby tree.
"Zoro... you IDIOT!" yelled Nami with all her lungs, before running off.
Zoro did not regret his actions, nor did he try to chase after Nami. He had nothing to explain, because he hadn't said anything false. All he had spoken was true, he was tired, tired of all of it.
A single raindrop fell on his forehead and Zoro looked up. He hadn't noticed the dark clouds forming on the night sky, eliminating from sight all the stars and the moon to leave nothing but the darkest atmosphere he had seen in days.
"I hate my life..."
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
Nami had arrived home just before the storm started. Her older sister, Nojiko, observed her as she ran upstairs to her room and didn't even attempt to stop her. She knew that, whatever it was that had happened, it had gone terribly wrong; she knew her sister pretty well. It was obvious at plain sight.
"So you couldn't tell him" sighed Nojiko, more to herself than to anyone "could you, Nami?"
The orange-haired woman was sitting on top of her bed, staring at an old photograph she had. In it were a total of six people, which included a younger version of herself, about ten or so years old. She was standing next to Nojiko, and both of them were smiling at the camera and holding tangerines while being hugged by a red-haired older woman. Next to them was a black haired girl, notably younger than them, who had her hair arranged into two ponytails. She was laughing, unlike the green-haired boy next to her, who wore a grumpy expression; obviously not a big fan of photographs. And finally, behind them, was the older man with the hawk-like eyes, who appeared to have been forced into the photograph, judging by the woman's arm pulling him in.
A sad smile appeared on her face when she saw that picture, reminding those days, where everything was much more simple. A single tear rolled down and found its' way to little Zoro's face.
"You really must hate me, huh?" she chuckled, fighting back the tears with all her strenght. "I'm sorry, I just don't know what to do..."
She looked out the window. It was raining heavily outside, and a sudden thunder sent a shiver down her spine. Despite being inside, in her warm room, Nami felt very cold.
"What would you do, Bellemere?"
Nojiko, who was standing outside the room, stopped herself from entering. She sighed, realizing she was right after all, and decided to retreat to the kitchen; the dinner wouldn't cook by itself, after all. Even if it was Bellemere's death anniversary, Nojiko would not allow herself to fall into desperation; she had to keep going...
For Nami.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
Unlike most people, who were rushing inside their houses, Zoro kept walking as normally as he would on a rainy day. He didn't care about the rain, what damage could a little water do to him? Heh, it even seemed that it was over, since he didn't feel the raindrops falling on him.
It wasn't until he noticed that rain was still falling around him that he stopped.
Someone was standing behind him, holding an umbrella on top of him. That person was as silent as a shadow, he didn't even sense him... and tall. Too tall for a normal person. From a reflection in a pond of water in front of him, Zoro saw that his eyes were covered by glasses, and he wore a hat with bear-like ears on the sides. But Zoro didn't care that the weird tall man stood behind him, he just kept glaring at the floor, his hands in his pocket, as the sound of the rain kept ringing in his ears.
Eventually, the man spoke up in a rough, almost robotic voice.
"Where would you like to go?" he asked.
Zoro didn't even think about how weird that question was. He just replied immediately with what came first to his head.
"Away from this world."
There was no response. He just stood there behind him, silently, which was starting to get Zoro impatient. And then, he angrily turned around.
"What the hell do you want, anywa-"
The man had removed the glove from his right hand and was now advancing said hand towards him, which impacted before he could react.
That was the last thing Zoro remembered before losing conciousness.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
AN: Well, that was a long one to write. Either way, cliffhanger! I know you must want to kill me right now, but please understand me... the plot demands me to leave it there or it will be an abnormally huge chapter to read! XD
Now, time for some little clarifications...
Remember when we almost visited Canada...
As explained in the warnings up there, this story is set in an alternate universe (modern day), and from Perona and Zoro's conversations you can deduce this is set in the US. If you did, you were right, but I'm not going to choose a random city to place this because of reasons, so it'll be in an umnamed city of my own creation.
Robin Nico! Of course...
Also, as this is not set in Japan, the people's names are written wester-style (Robin Nico, Zoro Roronoa... you get the idea). Also because of this, there is no reason to go with honorifics (-san, -sensei, -kun, etc) so I'll be replacing them with whatever suits the western world better.
... you mean Law Trafalgar?
And so, a new OT3 is born. In honor to a very good friend of mine who likes Law/Kaya (yay for crack!)
Good luck in 'Folding Napkins 101'...
I have a friend who studies for chef too, and we tease him like this all the time. I figures it's the kind of insult Zoro would use, about his career, which is obviously important to Sanji. And while we're at it, I should tell you: Ace's career is Economics, Vivi is in Lawyery, and Robin studies Archeology (although that one was quite implied). I think every other is explained, but let me know if I forgot some character.
...she's having lunch with Franky, so here you go!
I just couldn't resist it... Frobin hints will be sort of everywhere, so be prepared! :D
...he took Tashigi's glasses and put them below...
I know it was a bit mean to Tash, but keep in mind Zoro was having a bad day and wasn't in the best mood... at least no one got hurt ^.^
Hope you enjoyed it all, and see you on the second part soon!
Either way, I really hope you enjoy it and, if possible, give me your opinion. I really appreciate it because it gives me the chance to grow, check what I did wrong so I can correct it and avoid the mistake, and so on. I'm really excited about this idea and I hope to update soon. Bye bye!
Title: This Is Not My Life
Part: I
Fandom: One Piece
Pairing: Zoro/Nami (the story is actually more Zoro-centric, though)
Words: 4915
Rating: T
Summary: The story follows the life of Zoro Roronoa, a young man who is tired of his life and can't keep going anymore. But, just what did he get himself into?
Warnings: Modern day!AU. Cussing and insults... kind of everywhere. Mild violence towards Nami by the end, but nothing serious to be honest...
The alarm clock rang and he wished he had his sword on his hand to cut it in half. But since he didn't, he had no other option but to stand up, set off the clock and return to bed.
But of course, the second alarm clock had to arrive.
"Get up, idiot!" yelled the pinkette. "Time to go!"
The form on the bed just kept sleeping, unaffected by the yelling. The teenager by the bed felt her face glow red in anger; this idiot was going to be the death of her!
"I said, get up! You'll be late!" she delivered a direct kick to the moving sheets. "Get up, get up, get up!" three more kicks.
"I'm going to slice you in half, Perona!" he yelled back, raising from the sheets in anger.
She smirked. "Good, you're up Zoro. Don't take more than five minutes in getting dressed or you'll walk."
The seventeen-year-old teen left the room, her particular laughter still clearly audible from the hallway. 'Well, I might as well leave now' he sighed, slowly standing up.
Zoro Roronoa was a green-haired, twenty one-years-old, dark-eyed, sword-obsessed, sleepy, lazy, permanently-lost, but reliable young man. Or so he was described by the people who knew him. Not like he cared much about his reputation or what they said about him to change that description. Partly because most of it was true. Except for the permanently-lost part. He had no clue where people got that idea from.
As he got to the closet, he checked the wardrove for a moment before finding a pair of jeans that appeared to be clean and a plain, white t-shirt that fitted him well. Combined with some white socks and black shoes, he was ready to go in less than five minutes. He smirked at the thought, he was going to rub that on Perona's face for sure.
He brushed his teeth in the blink of an eye, threw his bag over his shoulder, grabbed a few text books he found scattered over the place, and left his room.
At the kitchen, his adoptive father Dracule Mihawk sat down sipping on his usual morning coffee and checking the morning paper. He took him in after he was found by the police officer 'Axe-hand' Morgan around the neightborhood and was about to be sent to foster care. Not that Mihawk had a soft spot for the young boy, but he found interesting that the kid was by that time five and could hold his ground pretty decently in a sword fight, as he proved against Morgan's son Helmeppo.
Mihawk was a man on his fourties and considered the best swordsman in the world. He ran a dojo where he taught kids the significance of swordsmanship and what it meant to be a true swordsman, not just an idiot with a sword. Zoro worked part-time there too. His only daughter, Perona, had been raised without a mother; Mihawk once mentioned that she died giving birth but Zoro didn't raise much questions on the subject. However, she was still a spoiled, whiny little girl that could produce a headache in a matter of seconds. She had a thing for gothic stuff and had a phase where she dressed as an emo lolita. Luckily, she moved on, but some aspects of that personality still remained. Her hair, for example, which she dyed pink when she was fourteen. Now she had it long, curly and reached below her waist, but it still was weird to his brother.
Not like he had much say in the matter, since he had natural green hair...
"Oh Zoro, that was quick." she looked at her clock and smirked. "Six minutes. Horohorohorohorohoro."
"Shut up."
"Good morning, Roronoa." said Mihawk, not lifting his look from the newspaper.
"Morning." replied Zoro lazily, throwing himself on the empty chair in front of him.
"Here you go." Perona delivered some toasted bread in front of him and sat with the little tea that was left on her cup. "We're leaving in a while. Be quick."
"I still don't get it, why does she get to have a car?" complained the green-haired man.
Mihawk rose an eyebrow at him. "Because you failed the driving test three times and she passed on the first try, perhaps?"
"... I'll definitely pass next time!"
"Horohorohorohorohoro."
"Shut up."
"It's not my fault you got lost on your way to the exam." laughed the pinkette.
"That was just the first time." replied his brother.
"Oh, right. The other two you got lost during the exam. Where did you end up in last year? San Francisco?"
"Miami." he corrected. "And that's not the point! The point is, I'll pass the next time, it's in a couple of weeks you know."
"If you pass your exams, maybe." Mihawk shifted the newspaper's page. "I'm not paying again for you to fail."
"What makes you think I won't pass my exams?"
"The fact that you hate your career."
Oh, that.
Since he wanted to dedicate his life to swordsmanship, he didn't really care for a career, but Mihawk insisted so badly that he got a proper education that he signed up for the first career he found. Architecture. It was alright, but it wasn't his thing. But since he was already there and Mihawk kept bothering him to finish his studies, he had no choice but to keep going.
Well, at least his friends went to the same college.
"Why are we still wasting time here? Let's go now!" screamed Perona, looking at her clock in horror.
"Have a good day." saluted Mihawk without much enthusiasm, returning to the paper.
"Bye."
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
"So, why did we go the slow way?" asked Zoro. "I know a shortcut."
"I'm not taking your shortcut. We usually end up on the other side of the country."
"Don't exaggerate."
"Remember when we almost visited Canada last month?"
"Shut up. We're finally here."
Perona stopped the car on the entrance of the Grand Line University.
It was a huge place, the biggest college on the state, and probably on the country too. The main building was at the entrance, and it was a two-story, grey edification where people went to sign up to enter the educational system. The principal's office is located here, as well as the library; and there's a sliding glass door that leads to the campus, a large, grassy area with big trees and some park benches where students can pass their free time relaxing, chatting, eating lunch, or even studying under the shade of a big tree. There's even a fountain on the center.
To its' right and left rose various buildings, in which the different careers were taught and learned. There's also an underground passage that connects all of these buildings, which is specially convenient during summer since it's equiped with air conditioner.
Perona waved her hand at him and was soon on her way towards the East Blue High School. Zoro nodded at her before she disappeared; he just wanted to get to the classroom and get some decent sleep for a change...
Of course, not everything went as planned.
"Hey Zoro!" waved Luffy D. Monkey, running towards his friend.
"Luffy, what are you doing here?" asked Zoro. The young boy was younger than him, just one year older than Perona; he was still in high school after repeating last year though, so it was weird to see him in college.
"Oh, I came with Ace! So I'm waiting for him!" explained his self-proclaimed friend with a grin.
"Aren't you worried you're missing classes?"
"No. You got early. That's weird! Didn't you get lost?"
"No, I did not. Perona brought me."
"Ah, so that's why you..."
"Hey guys!"
Of course people just had to keep coming. Usopp Sogeking and Sanji Prince marched towards them. Even if the three of them were in different careers and therefore classes, the fact that they shared high school made them stick together for some reason. It had been Usopp who had yelled after them.
"Hey Usopp! Sanji! Why are you here?" asked Luffy, completing forgetting the fact that he was the only one supposed not to be there.
"We study here." Sanji reminded him in a matter-of-factly tone.
"If you call cooking studying..." commented Zoro.
"What was that, shithead?"
"Wanna fight, pervert cook?"
"You started it, shitty swordsman, now you're going to suffer!"
"Bring it on, you curly brow!"
"Luffy, shouldn't we stop them?" asked Usopp, hiding behind said young man.
"Why?"
"Oh my, things seem really lively today."
The two stopped their bickering to turn around. Or rather, Sanji stopped giving attention to the green-haired man to noodle-dance around a beautiful brunette that had approached the group.
"Robin Nico! Of course they're lively with a beauty like you around to praise!" complimented the blonde.
"Wait, are you serious?" Usopp was the first one to notice the enormous book held between Robin's hands. "Are you really reading that book? It's huge!"
"Of course not." replied Robin, pointing at the purple bag she had with her thumb. "There's three more tomes in here that must be finished too."
"You never cease to amaze me, my darling angel!"
"Wow, you're really weird woman."
"Dare to say that again, marimo-head!"
"Oh hey Usopp, I just remembered something!" said Luffy suddenly.
"Yes, what is it?"
"Um... I forgot."
"Don't tell me then , you idiot!"
"Um, oh, right! I had something to tell you!" Luffy scratched his head. "I think... it was something about Kaya... she said she's heading towards class, she got tired of waiting..."
"I totally forgot about her! Damn, I should text her..."
"She then left with that guy who has a cool panda pet!"
"... you mean Law Trafalgar?" asked Sanji. Usopp had frozen.
"Who's that?" asked Robin.
"Some guy who's popular with the ladies. He's a medicine student, just like gorgeous Miss Kaya and this idio... where did he go?"
"I think the correct expression is 'ran as fast as humanly possible to his lover's side'." Robin frowned. "I still do not comprehend why they remain as friends if she admitted she wanted to become more than that."
"Who knows, maybe Usopp's too stupid. Just like this other shithead." Sanji pointed at Zoro.
"Eh? The hell did I say?"
"Nothing. Your face is just stupid."
"So is your eyebrow, shitty cook."
"Zoro, can we go eat now? I'm hungry!" interrupted Luffy.
"Why should I care?"
"Come on! Come on, come on, come on!" the raven-haired teen looked at the blonde. "Sanji, can you make us some food?"
"Why would I do that, shitty kid? It's eight am! You can't be hungry now, you just had breakfast!"
"Awww but Sanjiiiiiiii..."
"Eight? Shit, I'm going to be late!"
"Bye Zoro!"
"I'll slice all of you in half if I get late because I ran into you!"
"You won't make it, you'll get lost shitty swordsman."
"Good luck in 'Folding Napkins 101', pervert."
"Marimo!"
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
"Mr. Roronoa, you're late." informed the obese, black-haired teacher, Miss Alvida, as he entered the classroom. "Half an hour late, to be precise. Class starts at eight."
"Sorry, got lost on the way."
It was a sad excuse. It was sadder because it was true.
"That's a pathetic excuse. Now, take a sit." she instructed, returning to the board.
As he sat down, he noticed this class was getting even more boring every passing second. Since he was at a seat that couldn't easily be seen by the teacher, perhaps he could get some sleep now, he had only slept five hours at home now that he remembered and he was getting sleepy...
"Good morning Zoro."
Shit. He had forgotten he sat down next to devil's incarnation.
As always, she was looking down at him with a triumphant smirk, one that dared him everytime their eyes met. There she was, with her short orange hair, a look of superiority, a smirk, and her pages on the table ready for her to take notes.
Yep, Nami never changed. Unfortunately.
"Did I miss anything?"
"Alvida tried to kill some guy from the first row with her iron maze." replied Nami lazily, picking up her pen and starting to copy what the teacher wrote on the blackboard. "Other than that, not much."
Just then, Zoro noticed a crack on the wooden floor where a bench should be. He shrugged as he dragged some books out and proceeded to use them as an improvised pillow.
"You'll miss all the notes." commented Nami as she wrote everything down.
"Not interested." he replied lazily.
"How do you think you'll pass the exams without taking notes?"
"I'll just borrow them from you, witch, now let me sleep!" protested Zoro as low as he could in order to avoid being caught.
She smirked as a thought appeared on her head. "One hundred beris."
"What?"
"One hundred beris. That's what I'm charging you from lending you my notes later." she smiled evily. "Oh, how didn't I think of it earlier? It's perfect! I win money, you win notes, we all win!"
"I won't pay you one hundred beris just to take a copy of some notes I'm not even interested in. Aren't you supposed to be my friend?"
"Aren't you supposed to pay your debt someday?"
"I'll pay when I get the money, ok?"
"Miss Swan." Alvida's voice directed towards them interrupted the discussion. "Since you're so busy arguing with Mr. Roronoa, I suppose you couldn't possibly tell me when was Bacon's Castle built and where, am I right?"
Nami stood up to address the professor.
"It was built in 1665 and it's still standing in the state of Virgina, in Surry to be more accurate." answered Nami, as if she was reading it from a textbook.
Alvida's eyes widened slightly and a few giggles could be heard, but apart from that, Alvida kept her composture.
"Very well, Miss Swan. Now, let's return to what's important." she cracked into an umpleasant smile. "Who's the most beautiful woman in this classroom?"
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
Classes had gone by. The first three period weren't all that bad, but thanks to Nami -who was constantly asking the teacher questions and bothering him whenever she could- Zoro didn't get the chance to get some decent sleep like he wished.
However, now in lunch break, things were different. He was resting against a big tree, far away from any other human being. He had an hour to himself, and he wasn't even hungry, so it was the perfect time to rest. He closed his eyes and unplugged himself from the world...
For sixty seconds.
"Hey Zoro!" greeted Nami, hitting him in the head to get his attention.
"Shit witch, was that even necessary?" he yelled back, visibly mad.
"Look what I've got!" she announced, showing him two heart-shaped boxes wrapped up neatly. "Lunch!"
"Did the pervert make those?"
"Yep. I told him they were for me and Robin, but she's having lunch with Franky, so here you go!" she gave him a purple box. "Your welcome!"
Well, he didn't get the sleep he wished for, but at least he got a free meal. Which was convenient since he had forgotten his money at home. Oh well...
"Hm, it's delicious!" commented Nami as she ate. "What did you get?"
"Chicken and a love letter." replied Zoro. As much as he hated to admit it, the damn cook made excellent food, and he was lucky to get some of it. "'I am graced to see you trying my food.' Seriously, how the hell can you stand it?"
"You get used to it, eventually." said Nami, not giving the issue much relevance. "If you had boobs, I'd teach you how to get him to do anything for you."
"Like what?"
"I could tell you... but there's a price." she winked at him, then laughed. "By the way, are you going to do your driving exam again?"
"How the hell did you know that?"
"Perona told me."
"Of course she did." muttered Zoro, already planning a murder on his head.
"So, are you?"
"What if I am?"
"Nothing, just wanting to make sure you would actually go to the place this time." she stuck her tongue playfully at him. "Maybe I can ask your father to get you a GPS or something for your birthday, it would be convenient."
Zoro decided not to comment any further, and went back to eating his chicken in silence. And when it seemed Nami had ran out of things to talk about and had settled for peacefully finishing her lunch, another voice rang not very far away from them.
"Hey you!"
A young, attractive guy with black, messy hair and freckles sat right next to them, his legs crossed and his shirtless chest for everyone to see. It took him a few seconds, but he eventually identified the man as Ace; Luffy's older brother. Were people going to pop out of nowhere all day long to bother him?
Well, at least he wasn't with...
"There you are! Hey!" waved Luffy, approaching the small group.
Nami was smart and quick enough but Zoro wasn't lucky, and in the blink of an eye his food had been eaten by the younger boy, so fast that it seemed his arms stretched for a moment.
"Ace, why do you have Luffy following you around?" asked Nami. "I mean, doesn't he have to go to his own classes at least one day?"
"Not necessarily." said Ace. "The woman who runs the absents and presents there, Miss Hancock, does everything Luffy says. She seems to have a crush on him."
"So he doesn't need to show up? How convenient." replied the orange-haired woman as Zoro tried to strangle Luffy to death. "So, how are your classes coming?"
"Today I got a B+ in al-"
Before Ace could finish his sentence, he fell, his face directly crashing on the grass. Then a soft snoring could be heard. Nami cussed at his bad manners; falling asleep in the middle of the conversation, how very rude of him. Stupid narcolepsy.
"Oh, look at the time!" exclaimed the woman. "Seems like you'll have to strangle Luffy later, class is about to start."
"I think I'll skip this one..." decided Zoro, releasing him.
"Nonsense, how would you learn? Let's go!"
And just like that, she grabbed him by the collar and lead him towards their next class.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
"Well, that went well..." said Nami, happily admiring her beautiful A+. "How was your test?"
"It's ok, fuck you very much." he cussed, throwing away his big red F.
"Oh, don't be down Zoro. I can blackmail Mr. Spandam into a higher grade if you want."
"Really?
"For one hundred thousand."
"Figures."
"Oh, look, my ride is here!"
Nami raised her hand when she caught sight of a good-looking woman about her same age, with light blue hair that didn't allow her to pass unnoticed. The young lady was Vivi Nefertari, Nami's good friend, and apparently the one stuck with the witch for the day.
Eventually, Vivi saw her, and made her a sign to come closer. She must've parked somewhere nearby.
"Well, bye for now, Zoro." she departed, sticking her tongue to him, towards her friend.
"Does Mr. Swordsman need a ride too, Nami?" asked Vivi when her friend approached.
"Nah, he'll be fine. And you've known him for years, I think you can call him by his name now." she laughed. "So, what did you do today?"
He observed as both women got away together towards the parking lot. Unfortunately, he didn't possess such priviledge, so he had to walk towards Mihawk's dojo, which was about 20 or 25 blocks away. If he did it perfectly, he would be over there before his work even started.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
"Did you get lost, Mr. Roronoa?" asked one of the pupils when the green-haired man entered his class, ten minutes late.
"No." lied Zoro.
He glared at everyone to prevent any further questions. Nobody raised any more questions on the subject; it was clear it hadn't been the happiest day of his life. But at least he got some relaxing time, just teaching a few things here and there with wooden swords, simple, right?
"Well, let's begin then." he decided. "Everyone, grab your wooden swords an-"
"Roronoa!"
That female voice... damn, she couldn't leave him alone for a day, could she?
If there was one female Zoro hated almost as much as Nami, that had to be Tashigi. He met her at a competition at a little town called Loguetown, where Mihawk was invited as special guest and he participated on the amateur category. He fought the finals with her, and of course, he was the one who won the match.
Ever since then, the woman had been bothering him for a rematch. She had even moved to his city to seek revenge, but he had no intention of fighting her, since her skills were very below his level and in the end she would end severely injured. And probably blaming it on him. But Tashigi just didn't listen; instead, she insisted he was a machist and that was the reason why he wouldn't fight her, because of her gender. And again, here she was. To remind him what a pain in the ass she was.
"I'm in the middle of a class." pointed out Zoro.
"They could use a live demonstration." commented Tashigi. "Roronoa! Today will be the day I'll finally get my revenge on you and your stupid machism. Brace yourself!"
Raising her sword, Tashigi charged towards him as she screamed dramatically. However, it should also be noted that she was a quite clumsy woman, and as she headed towards her opponent she slipped and fell with her face to the floor. As the students laughed, Tashigi blindly searched for her glasses, which had fallen and landed somewhere far away from her.
With a sigh, Zoro got down and grabbed her glasses. He proceeded to give them to her, and she angrily took them.
"I didn't ask for pity from my enemy." complained Tashigi.
"It's not pity. It's the fact that you couldn't see your glasses and I could. Now can you go bother somebody else?"
"I said we're having a fight!"
"Seems like there's only a way to solve this..." sighed Zoro.
And with that resolution, he took Tashigi's glasses and put them below one of the cushions where a student, who was absent, should be. Then, while she searched for them, he proceeded to finally begin his class.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
The class was a complete failure. Not only did Tashigi keep bothering him while he talked, attempting to challenge him while partially blinded, but also the kids didn't seem to understand a damn thing of what he was saying, as if he was speaking in another language. When they proceeded to actual practice, none of them were able to perform a simple blow like he had explained. He even yelled so much at one for weilding it like a stick that the little guy was reduced to tears.
Actually, the whole day had been a failure. How? His lack of sleep, for starters. Perona was annoying as always, over the smallest and most stupid things of course. Luffy, Sanji, Usopp, Robin... they bothered him and didn't allow him to get in time to his class, causing Alvida to yell at him. And let's not forget that Luffy ate his lunch before he could finish it. But the worst of all was the witch, she was hell personified; stupid, crazy, money-loving wit-
"Zoro!" greeted a female voice.
When he turned around and saw Nami running towards him, trying to reach him, he finally snapped.
"I thought I would never caught up with you" panted Nami, catching her breath as she reached him. "Why were you walking so fast, anyway?"
"Why?" he asked. "To get away from you, of course."
"Ha ha, very funny" she faked a laugh.
"I'm not kidding" replied Zoro. "What do you want now?"
"I wanted to ask you somethi-"
Before she could finish, Zoro had pushed her against a nearby wall. Her back was crashed against the rough wall mercilessly, and he positioned his arm to her right to prevent her from escaping. It was dark already, the sun had set, but thanks to the street lights she could see Zoro's angry face; the only word that crossed her mind when she saw it was: dangerous.
"I'm tired of this, Nami" he said in a cruel, icy tone that certainly did not belong to him. "I'm tired of all of this, witch, but specially of your bullshit."
"Zoro, what are yo-" again, she was cut off.
"Don't talk. Don't ask anything more from me. I'm tired of your manipuations, of everyone's manipulations... I'm tired" he glared down at her. "Don't you ever get tired of blackmailing and manipulating, bitch?"
The sound of the slap that followed the insult pierced the serene night, provoking some brids to fly off a nearby tree.
"Zoro... you IDIOT!" yelled Nami with all her lungs, before running off.
Zoro did not regret his actions, nor did he try to chase after Nami. He had nothing to explain, because he hadn't said anything false. All he had spoken was true, he was tired, tired of all of it.
A single raindrop fell on his forehead and Zoro looked up. He hadn't noticed the dark clouds forming on the night sky, eliminating from sight all the stars and the moon to leave nothing but the darkest atmosphere he had seen in days.
"I hate my life..."
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
Nami had arrived home just before the storm started. Her older sister, Nojiko, observed her as she ran upstairs to her room and didn't even attempt to stop her. She knew that, whatever it was that had happened, it had gone terribly wrong; she knew her sister pretty well. It was obvious at plain sight.
"So you couldn't tell him" sighed Nojiko, more to herself than to anyone "could you, Nami?"
The orange-haired woman was sitting on top of her bed, staring at an old photograph she had. In it were a total of six people, which included a younger version of herself, about ten or so years old. She was standing next to Nojiko, and both of them were smiling at the camera and holding tangerines while being hugged by a red-haired older woman. Next to them was a black haired girl, notably younger than them, who had her hair arranged into two ponytails. She was laughing, unlike the green-haired boy next to her, who wore a grumpy expression; obviously not a big fan of photographs. And finally, behind them, was the older man with the hawk-like eyes, who appeared to have been forced into the photograph, judging by the woman's arm pulling him in.
A sad smile appeared on her face when she saw that picture, reminding those days, where everything was much more simple. A single tear rolled down and found its' way to little Zoro's face.
"You really must hate me, huh?" she chuckled, fighting back the tears with all her strenght. "I'm sorry, I just don't know what to do..."
She looked out the window. It was raining heavily outside, and a sudden thunder sent a shiver down her spine. Despite being inside, in her warm room, Nami felt very cold.
"What would you do, Bellemere?"
Nojiko, who was standing outside the room, stopped herself from entering. She sighed, realizing she was right after all, and decided to retreat to the kitchen; the dinner wouldn't cook by itself, after all. Even if it was Bellemere's death anniversary, Nojiko would not allow herself to fall into desperation; she had to keep going...
For Nami.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
Unlike most people, who were rushing inside their houses, Zoro kept walking as normally as he would on a rainy day. He didn't care about the rain, what damage could a little water do to him? Heh, it even seemed that it was over, since he didn't feel the raindrops falling on him.
It wasn't until he noticed that rain was still falling around him that he stopped.
Someone was standing behind him, holding an umbrella on top of him. That person was as silent as a shadow, he didn't even sense him... and tall. Too tall for a normal person. From a reflection in a pond of water in front of him, Zoro saw that his eyes were covered by glasses, and he wore a hat with bear-like ears on the sides. But Zoro didn't care that the weird tall man stood behind him, he just kept glaring at the floor, his hands in his pocket, as the sound of the rain kept ringing in his ears.
Eventually, the man spoke up in a rough, almost robotic voice.
"Where would you like to go?" he asked.
Zoro didn't even think about how weird that question was. He just replied immediately with what came first to his head.
"Away from this world."
There was no response. He just stood there behind him, silently, which was starting to get Zoro impatient. And then, he angrily turned around.
"What the hell do you want, anywa-"
The man had removed the glove from his right hand and was now advancing said hand towards him, which impacted before he could react.
That was the last thing Zoro remembered before losing conciousness.
oo00oo00oo00oo00oo00oo
AN: Well, that was a long one to write. Either way, cliffhanger! I know you must want to kill me right now, but please understand me... the plot demands me to leave it there or it will be an abnormally huge chapter to read! XD
Now, time for some little clarifications...
Remember when we almost visited Canada...
As explained in the warnings up there, this story is set in an alternate universe (modern day), and from Perona and Zoro's conversations you can deduce this is set in the US. If you did, you were right, but I'm not going to choose a random city to place this because of reasons, so it'll be in an umnamed city of my own creation.
Robin Nico! Of course...
Also, as this is not set in Japan, the people's names are written wester-style (Robin Nico, Zoro Roronoa... you get the idea). Also because of this, there is no reason to go with honorifics (-san, -sensei, -kun, etc) so I'll be replacing them with whatever suits the western world better.
... you mean Law Trafalgar?
And so, a new OT3 is born. In honor to a very good friend of mine who likes Law/Kaya (yay for crack!)
Good luck in 'Folding Napkins 101'...
I have a friend who studies for chef too, and we tease him like this all the time. I figures it's the kind of insult Zoro would use, about his career, which is obviously important to Sanji. And while we're at it, I should tell you: Ace's career is Economics, Vivi is in Lawyery, and Robin studies Archeology (although that one was quite implied). I think every other is explained, but let me know if I forgot some character.
...she's having lunch with Franky, so here you go!
I just couldn't resist it... Frobin hints will be sort of everywhere, so be prepared! :D
...he took Tashigi's glasses and put them below...
I know it was a bit mean to Tash, but keep in mind Zoro was having a bad day and wasn't in the best mood... at least no one got hurt ^.^
Hope you enjoyed it all, and see you on the second part soon!