Seven Deaths, by X-Parrot (PG-13)
Title: Seven Deaths
Fandom: One Piece
Pairings: technically gen, but excellent as pre-slash Zoro/Sanji
Categories: angst, pre-slash (if you see it that way, and I do), action, drama, hurt/comfort, supernatural and mystery elements
Length: Epic {50,000 words}
Warnings: torture in the name of religion
Author on LJ: xparrot
Website: X-Parrot's Fanpage
Author's Summary: Sanji makes a mistake, and Zoro may be his only chance of surviving the consequences.
Review: I am a wimp when it comes to characters being tortured, especially if the torture is particularly inhumane and continues past the point of endurance. That said, I re-read this fic by X-Parrot periodically, because I've never read a better example of this plot - and praise be, there's a happy ending for nearly everyone.
The situation in the story is more complicated than I've suggested. Sanji is caught inappropriately touching one of the priestesses on an isolated island, and to repent he is asked to endure seven symbolic "deaths". Once he completes them, he can go, and the priestess is "cleansed" of his taint. So far, so clear. Except Sanji wasn't, for once, being a horndog, and the priestess isn't who - or what - you think she is. The goddess the island serves isn't uninvolved, either, to the point that the deaths get very spooky, indeed - and while the deaths are not literal, Zoro (who is sticking by his man friend's side throughout this ordeal, since Sanji won't accept any other witnesses) finds out that no prior penitent has ever survived all seven. The holy order doesn't even enjoy torturing the penitents, since they're more the peace-loving type of religious practitioners, and the custom strikes against their preferences.
The story understandably focuses on Sanji and Zoro, and their characters' development in the face of serious adversity. I see the plot as comfortably pre-slash, since the two get to know each other so well that it makes an excellent foundation for a different kind of relationship, but I can see how it can stand as a simple and deep friendship instead. The other Strawhats don't make much of an appearance, and it would probably be impossible to incorporate the crew into this tale, when the core of Zoro and Sanji's shared experience is that it is both intimate (in the, "I bind your wounds and ease your mind" sort of way) and a secret from the others, who would not, generally, be inclined to allow Sanji to finish the ritual if it meant he would likely die. Zoro understands honor and promises - it's his basic driving principle, after all - and while he does his best to help Sanji survive, he isn't going to force Sanji to stop doing what Sanji thinks is right. Seven Deaths is a gripping and tense read, and it's precisely because of this smooth and natural matching of plot to characterization, which X-Parrot pulls off splendidly. The ending comes across as both a relief from the almost unbearable tension and a satisfactory reward for the characters' perseverance.
Seven Deaths
Fandom: One Piece
Pairings: technically gen, but excellent as pre-slash Zoro/Sanji
Categories: angst, pre-slash (if you see it that way, and I do), action, drama, hurt/comfort, supernatural and mystery elements
Length: Epic {50,000 words}
Warnings: torture in the name of religion
Author on LJ: xparrot
Website: X-Parrot's Fanpage
Author's Summary: Sanji makes a mistake, and Zoro may be his only chance of surviving the consequences.
Review: I am a wimp when it comes to characters being tortured, especially if the torture is particularly inhumane and continues past the point of endurance. That said, I re-read this fic by X-Parrot periodically, because I've never read a better example of this plot - and praise be, there's a happy ending for nearly everyone.
The situation in the story is more complicated than I've suggested. Sanji is caught inappropriately touching one of the priestesses on an isolated island, and to repent he is asked to endure seven symbolic "deaths". Once he completes them, he can go, and the priestess is "cleansed" of his taint. So far, so clear. Except Sanji wasn't, for once, being a horndog, and the priestess isn't who - or what - you think she is. The goddess the island serves isn't uninvolved, either, to the point that the deaths get very spooky, indeed - and while the deaths are not literal, Zoro (who is sticking by his man friend's side throughout this ordeal, since Sanji won't accept any other witnesses) finds out that no prior penitent has ever survived all seven. The holy order doesn't even enjoy torturing the penitents, since they're more the peace-loving type of religious practitioners, and the custom strikes against their preferences.
The story understandably focuses on Sanji and Zoro, and their characters' development in the face of serious adversity. I see the plot as comfortably pre-slash, since the two get to know each other so well that it makes an excellent foundation for a different kind of relationship, but I can see how it can stand as a simple and deep friendship instead. The other Strawhats don't make much of an appearance, and it would probably be impossible to incorporate the crew into this tale, when the core of Zoro and Sanji's shared experience is that it is both intimate (in the, "I bind your wounds and ease your mind" sort of way) and a secret from the others, who would not, generally, be inclined to allow Sanji to finish the ritual if it meant he would likely die. Zoro understands honor and promises - it's his basic driving principle, after all - and while he does his best to help Sanji survive, he isn't going to force Sanji to stop doing what Sanji thinks is right. Seven Deaths is a gripping and tense read, and it's precisely because of this smooth and natural matching of plot to characterization, which X-Parrot pulls off splendidly. The ending comes across as both a relief from the almost unbearable tension and a satisfactory reward for the characters' perseverance.
Seven Deaths