Cold Comfort

[prpl_pen]

Title: Cold Comfort
Fandom: One Piece [MM canon]
Character/Pairing: Usopp & Lucci
Rating: PG
Word Count: ~3700
Notes: All right, so this will require a little explanation. This fic is based on mallowmateys canon (an RP I'm in). The biggest thing to know about that is that Lucci is reformed and a member of the Strawhats now; the Lucci in this fic is heavily based on the MM version of him. I realize if you don't know that, the fic makes little sense. Anyway, that's the big difference from canon; there are a few small references to other game-specific things, but nothing that should be a big deal if you aren't familiar with it. I totally wrote this as a gift for runic_binary, who plays Lucci in MM.


Cold Comfort
Usopp had done more than his fair share of fishing Luffy out of the water when his captain managed to fall in (or, on a few specific occasions, when he got over-excited and jumped in on his own), so he knew it was no easy task.

In a lot of ways, Lucci was worse. He was a lot bigger than Luffy, for one, which made him harder to manage in the water while still swimming, and also made him heavier. What made him heavier still were the clothes he wore: a suit and overcoat were able to soak up a much greater quantity of water than a simple vest and pair of cut-off jean shorts. At least Lucci had the good sense to remain still while Usopp tugged him ashore. Luffy had a tendency to try to flail, however ineffectually, as soon as his head was above water, until he had absolutely no energy left. Still, Lucci's eyes had held a wild, panicked look that surprised Usopp when he reached him, and he'd thrust out his hand and grabbed Usopp's arm, fingers digging in painfully for a moment until he relaxed and let Usopp pull him to the surface.

Sunny and the pursuing Marine ships were already specks on the horizon when their heads broke through the water, so Usopp began to swim for shore. He was grateful that they were close to the small island, since he didn't know how long he'd last treading water while also keeping Lucci's head above water--though the covering island was also the reason the Marines had been able to get the jump on them in the first place. Usopp felt a little guilty for abandoning the cannons, but there hadn't been time when Lucci when overboard; any hesitation would have seen Sunny too far ahead to reach him in time. Usopp thought it was a small miracle that the Marines hadn't shot him when he jumped into the water; perhaps the way he'd flung himself bonelessly overboard combined with the ketchup star he'd smashed against his chest had been enough to convince them he was already a goner, or perhaps they simply hadn't noticed him. The result was the same.

The swim to shore, towing Lucci after him, seemed to take forever, especially after Lucci lost consciousness. Usopp was exhausted by the time his boots finally scraped rock. He couldn't rest yet, though. He flipped Lucci over on shore, checking his vitals--still strong, thankfully--and trying to get him to cough up some of the sea water he'd swallowed. Finally satisfied, he began the even more challenging task of dragging Lucci further inland, heading for the sheltering woods, in case the Marines returned before Luffy and the rest. Right now Usopp's limbs felt like lead after the long swim, and Lucci seemed twice as heavy. Thankfully, the ground was relatively even and free of obstructions, rolling very gradually uphill from the beach.

Usopp finally decided they were far enough into the trees to be fine (not least because he wasn't sure he could drag Lucci another step). He was tempted to just collapse then and there, but he realized he was cold. Thankfully this wasn't a winter island, but the air was still a bit chilly, and the sun would set soon, so it'd only get colder. The long swim in the cold ocean hadn't helped matters either. With a sigh, Usopp stumbled around the immediate area, gathering some wood to start a fire.

Usopp was grateful for his habit of always taking the time to package the supplies in his bag in a waterproof fashion. A little oil and some fire powder applied to the wood he'd gathered, and he didn't even have to bother with tinder. That would do for starters, but it amounted to little more than a few burning branches and wouldn't last too long. He'd need to gather more wood to get them through the night, assuming they were here that long, and Usopp figured it would be best to get it over with now, while there was still light. Besides, if he sat down to rest now, he wasn't sure he'd be able to get back up again.

Before leaving, he removed Lucci's soaked overcoat and suit jacket and slung them over some low-hanging tree branches so they could dry, then, after thinking about it for a moment, took off his shoes as well. Water streamed out as he tipped them upside down, setting them near the fire to dry. Finally, he rolled Lucci closer to the warmth of the campfire as well, noticing he gave a small groan as he moved him. Hopefully he'd wake up soon. Satisfied, Usopp set deeper into the woods, hoping there weren't any ferocious animals lurking in the shadows.

The last of the light was fading and he was shivering when he stumbled back into their makeshift camp, arms heavily laden with firewood. Lucci was sitting up, just undoing the last of his buttons to shrug out of his wet shirt. He looked up to Usopp with an odd expression on his face, as if he were trying to decide exactly what to say. "Thank you," he finally said in a mild voice, evidentially having decided simplest was best.

"N-no p-p-problem." Usopp's lips fumbled as he spoke, teeth chattering.

Lucci's eyebrows drew lower and he frowned. "Usopp," he started, then sighed and began to get to his feet.

"W-we n-needed firewood," Usopp explained, in order to stave off...well, he wasn't exactly sure, but the look on Lucci's face wasn't very promising. He turned away from it and clumsily knelt next to the fire, the wood he'd gathered tumbling unceremoniously to the ground. He thrust a few of the thicker branches into the campfire to build it up, then began to stack the rest of the wood nearby.

"Never mind that."

Usopp gave a small wince. Lucci's tone wasn't particularly harsh, but he sounded a little annoyed, or perhaps impatient. Usopp's hands blundered a bit as he hurriedly tried to finish stacking the wood. "J-just a secon--" He cut himself off as he felt himself grabbed by the back of his overalls and hauled bodily to his feet--not roughly, but it took him by surprise.

Lucci turned him around, so Usopp could see the way he was frowning deeply. "Get undressed," he said. Usopp wasn't sure exactly how he must have looked in reaction to that, but it was probably an expression approaching complete bemusement. Whatever it was, Lucci's face softened somewhat in response. "Usopp," he began patiently, "the temperature must be in the low forties, you're soaked, and your lips are turning blue. You need to get out of those wet clothes before you go into hypothermic shock. Now strip."

...oh. Usopp had to admit, Lucci made a very good point. He'd remembered to remove Lucci's heavily-soaked clothing, but neglected his own, being too preoccupied with getting the fire going and maintaining it. As if the realization made it worse, Usopp's shivering intensified and he nodded to Lucci. He brought his hands up and fumbled with the buckles of his overall straps.

Lucci was watching him with another odd look on his face that Usopp couldn't place. It made him feel even more self-conscious about the fact that his stupid fingers wouldn't just do what he told them to. He couldn't really feel what he was doing, though. Lucci finally gave a slight shake of his head and pointed to Usopp's sash, which was completely soaked and still dripping a bit. "Untie that instead. Then sit by the fire. You need to get out of those boots. I can hear you squelching when you walk." Come to think of it, it had been a while since Usopp remembered actually feeling his toes. He obeyed, dropping his hands to undo his sash--the knot had tightened a bit, probably as a result of being in the water and swimming so long, but even with his numb and shaking hands, he managed it, the sodden material falling to the ground heavily. Lucci scooped it up as Usopp sat, unfurling it with a few snaps of his wrists and draping it across a branch to join his own clothing.

Usopp was finding his boots more of a challenge. The water had tightened the knots in the laces and they were too small for him to get a good grip on with his numb fingers. He tried to set his jaw and focus, but his teeth wouldn't stop chattering. It was distracting, and a little embarrassing. Lucci seemed just fine, and he was the one who'd been unconscious only a little while ago. Now the other man had returned from hanging Usopp's sash, and dropped to his knees next to Usopp by the campfire, which has begun to blaze quite merrily with the added wood. "I'll untie them," he said, grabbing Usopp's ankles and shifting him so they were facing one another again.

Usopp looked down, feeling slightly shamed, and began working at the buckles of his overalls again. This time he managed, after a moment of awkward floundering. Lucci had his laces undone and began to tug off a boot. "I can d-do that m-myself," Usopp said, sounding a bit more annoyed than he'd intended as he pulled his foot out of Lucci's grasp. It'd just taken him by surprise again--it reminded him of when he was little, the way his mom had gotten him undressed for a bath at the end of the night. No one else had ever tugged off his shoes before.

"Ah. Of course." Now Lucci sounded a little unsure, probably confused by the harshness of Usopp's reaction. "I'm sorry."

Usopp sighed, one boot coming free of his foot, a surprising amount of water and a waterlogged sock along with it. "N-nah, it's fine. I d-didn't--" He cut himself off as he tugged the other boot off, then peeled off the sodden sock that clung to his foot. A fresh wave of shivering coursed through his body and he hugged his arms to his chest, as if that would provide him any warmth. At least he was beginning to feel the heat from the fire, though it seemed too weak compared to the chills he felt through his entire body. Well, Lucci was right, staying in these wet clothes certainly wasn't helping. He began to reach up for his bandanna.

"Leave that," Lucci said, though he didn't move to stop him. "It'll be better to keep your head covered."

Usopp nodded, and leaned forward to get to his knees, pulling his overalls down, then went back to a sitting position to kick them the rest of the way off. Finally he pulled off his damp t-shirt and was left in just his boxers. He scooted a little closer to the fire, drawing his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them, his shivering intensifying if anything. He supposed it would take a little while to start really warming up.

Lucci stood again and stooped, picking up Usopp's clothes and hanging them near the rest of their things. As he turned back, he paused, staring for a moment. Usopp blinked, looking down at himself, because there was no doubt that Lucci was staring at him, though he didn't know why. His eyes fell on the still freshly-healed scars on his chest and shoulder, standing out pinkish and puckered in contrast to the darker skin around them...but that wasn't it. Ah. He realized his upper left arm had begun to bruise, rather darkly, where Lucci had grabbed him in the water. "...d-don't worry; it d-doesn't even hurt or anything," he said, suddenly understanding what Lucci was thinking about. It was the truth, too, though Usopp thought that might be more because he was too numb to really feel it right now. Once he thawed out, he imagined it would be really sore for quite a while; Lucci's grip was nothing to sneeze at.

There was a slight pause. "So I did do that."

Usopp shrugged. "Yeah, b-but it's not a big d-deal. You d-d-didn't mean to." Okay, this stuttering of his words due to the cold was really getting annoying. He made his body as small as he could, trying to hold in what warmth his body had left as his hugged his arms more tightly around his knees. He was still shivering. What he needed was a blanket or something.

In his peripheral vision, he saw Lucci bend slightly, and Usopp looked over to see what he was doing. The other man was stepping out of his own slacks, taking a moment to hang them neatly from the branch before crossing back to the fire. He had to be cold too, though he wasn't showing it. He wasn't even shivering, though Usopp supposed the fact that he hadn't been walking around the woods in sodden clothes and boots with several gallons of cold water in them probably helped. He reached the campfire and kept walking, now behind Usopp. Usopp began to turn his head and see what Lucci was up to, but Lucci's voice stopped him.

"It's probably better if you don't look," he said, his voice mild but holding a note of something Usopp couldn't place. He obeyed, though part of him was dying with curiosity now. Then again, if Lucci had said he shouldn't look, he probably didn't want to know. "...and don't panic," Lucci continued after a slight pause. "This is the best way."

Now Usopp really had to look, because in his experience, the words "don't panic" were a perfect indicator that he probably should be panicking, and if he should be panicking he wanted to know why. He turned his head and choked on a small scream of surprise as he found himself eye-to-eye with a leopard.

Apparently it was possible for cats to roll their eyes. "What did I just tell you?" Lucci asked, padding closer.

"Y-you could've j-just warned me!" Usopp said, taking a few long, calming breaths. He'd never actually been this close to Lucci in his leopard form, and it was a little hard to ignore the teeth... He blinked. "What are you d-doing, anyway?"

"Warming you, obviously." Lucci was directly behind him now, his pelt pressed against Usopp's back--the fur was only very slightly damp, and Lucci's body heat more than made up for that. "Here, I'm going to curl around you if I can. Lean into me." Usopp hesitated, unable to get his tensed muscles to relax. "Don't be afraid, Usopp. You know I won't hurt you."

"...I know." Usopp took one more deep breath and leaned back into Lucci, feeling the long feline body wrap itself more closely around him. It was a strange feeling--the fur was too rough to feel like a blanket, and he could feel the rise and fall of Lucci's lungs against him, as well as the powerful subtle slide of muscle beneath the pelt--but it was warmer already. He was still shivering, but they were beginning to subside with Lucci's added body heat.

Lucci had managed to curl his long body in such a way that his head was near Usopp's leg now. "There. Better, I take it?" Usopp nodded. "Good. This is warmer for me, too." He paused, looking up at Usopp. "...I already said so, but thank you. I really thought I might die in the water."

"It's not a b-big deal," Usopp said, averting his gaze. His teeth were finally starting to stop chattering, and he was beginning to really feel the soft warmth of the campfire on his legs and feet, which were closest to it. "Anyway, I t-told you before I wouldn't let you drown. That d-doesn't just apply t-to swimming lessons, you know."

"Mm. So you did." Another pause. "I'm sorry about your arm. I panicked. I suppose it's a good thing I didn't crush the bone."

Usopp began to give a weak laugh, and realized belatedly that Lucci hadn't been joking. He sighed. Lucci was probably one of his closer friends now--and he trusted him; he did--but comments like that and the fact that he couldn't get the image of big, sharp teeth and claws out of his mind made it hard to completely relax. He felt the powerful body wrapped around him shift slightly, probably getting a little more comfortable.

"You're quiet," Lucci remarked, a little hesitant.

"...it's just a little weird," Usopp said. No point in denying it.

"It would be more weird for you if I were still in human form, I'm sure." The leopard face somehow managed a smirk, revealing those teeth again, but the expression was so like the one Lucci often wore as a human that Usopp found it oddly comforting. "I suppose it's not too late to try it that way instead. But you need body heat, one way or another."

Usopp shook his head quickly. "This is fine!"

Lucci chuckled, and it rumbled deep in his chest where it was pressed close to Usopp. "I thought so." He shifted again, slightly. "Try to relax. Your muscles are all tensed; you're going to give yourself horrible cramps."

"Easier said than done, I guess..." Usopp murmured. He did feel quite a bit more comfortable, though. He wasn't freezing anymore, for one--though he still felt chilly, the difference was plainly noticeable and he was barely shivering at all anymore. He took another deep breath and willed himself to relax. "You don't mind this?"

Lucci humped up his upper back a little in what must have been the leopard equivalent of a shrug. "Normally I might, but it's fine." Another slight pause; Usopp thought he was going to leave it at that until Lucci began to speak again. "...not just because you're nakama. You're my friend."

Usopp nodded. "You're my friend too, Lucci." He felt the strangest urge to drop a hand to the back of Lucci's neck and pat him, but he didn't think that would actually be a good idea in practice, so he stopped himself.

Lucci must have felt the beginnings of the movement and realized Usopp's intention, however. He gave a low sigh, sounding only slightly put-upon. "Just go ahead," he said. "I'd rather you treat me like an overgrown kitten if it means you'll actually relax a little more. The odds I'll actually bite you aren't very high, unless you try something incredibly stupid and offensive." Despite his words, Lucci sounded rather good-humored, and Usopp relaxed a bit more, dropping his left hand hesitantly down to let it hover for a moment just above Lucci's pelt. Then he let his fingers reach down and stroked them softly against the fur at the base of Lucci's skull, tracing them down his neck a bit. After managing to do that and not be bitten, Usopp relaxed further and got a bit bolder, repeating the motion with a less delicate touch, and soon he was just absently petting Lucci the way he might Ilario.

Granted, it was still a bit strange; he knew, more in an abstract way than in a real sense, that the leopard aspect was just as much a part of Lucci as the human form he was used to dealing with, but he still mostly thought of Lucci as human first, and the idea of petting a friend was, well...weird. Still, he kept his fingers moving against the fur, almost automatically. If he didn't dwell on the fact that it was Lucci he was petting, the action was comforting.

Suddenly he froze, startled out of the lulled state he'd been falling into by an unexpected sound. "...did you just--?"

"...shut up." Lucci sounded a bit petulant.

"You purred!"

Lucci sighed. "Well, that felt nice, what you were doing. And I am a cat. Sue me."

Usopp couldn't help but laugh a little, though it was gentle. "Sorry. I just didn't expect..." Slowly, he brought his hand back to Lucci's head, hovering just above the fur, silently asking if he should continue.

"Go ahead," Lucci said. "I've already embarrassed myself."

Usopp began petting him again, letting his fingertips drag through the rough outer coat to the softer fur beneath. "You don't have to be embarrassed. Anyway, I won't tell anyone." He continued to stroke, letting his hand trail a little lower down to the level of Lucci's powerful shoulders before lifting it back to his head. He realized absently that between the campfire and Lucci's body heat, he no longer felt cold, or at least, not nearly as much as he had.

"You can sleep, you know," Lucci said. "You've warmed up enough now that it won't be dangerous, and I'm sure you're tired after all that swimming. I'll keep watch if you do."

"Oh." Usopp didn't really have a response. He was tired, but he hadn't registered it except for absently until it was pointed out to him. Still, he didn't know that he could sleep right now.

"Actually, I think you should try. It'll be good for you." Lucci stretched one paw out in front of himself and flexed it. "You can lie down against me if it's more comfortable."

"...are you sure you don't mind all this?" Usopp suddenly felt like he was being an incredible burden.

"If I minded, I wouldn't suggest it."

Usopp shrugged, unable to argue with that, and began to rearrange himself somewhat, inclining his body more against Lucci's lean form, so he was leaning his head against his left arm where it rested on Lucci's back. His hand wasn't able to make the trip down Lucci's neck anymore, but he let his fingers continue to work into the fur, absently moving them in place.

He couldn't be sure, but as he began to drift off, Usopp thought there was a soft but steady purr helping to lull him to sleep.