@melpcmene Said: Was It You? Did You Do All This? (baby Sanji) / [ ]

@melpcmene said: ❛ was it you? did you do all this? ❜ (baby sanji) / [𝟐𝟎𝟎 𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐌 𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐔𝐄 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐓𝐒]

　❝ uh-huh! i hope i won't get you in trouble, but a kiddo like you shouldn't be stuck clearing tables on a nice day like this. don't they give you days off here? ❞

　rosinante was a slow eater. well, he could eat fast if he were in a rushーbut that was generally a bad idea. his gag reflex was sensitive, but especially so when eating or drinking too fast. he needed to allot more time in between bites, aiding himself with copious amounts of water, otherwise he would choke or spit things up. it was a trait about himself that he still genuinely found embarrassing, whereas his clumsiness was something he had grown to accept.

eating as slow as he needed to sometimes guaranteed he had been the last person in the dining area on at least a couple of occasions, late enough for him to start taking notice of the routine the workers would do when clearing plates and changing tablecloths in between mealtimes. he figured he would give it a try.

@akagamiko said: “ there are times where i can’t see things that i should. ” // [ 𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐈𝐀 (𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟏) ]

❝ out of willful ignorance, or because you realized it too late? ❞

　even if rosinante repeated his life another thousand times, not doomed to repeat his mistakes but instead free to change things as he wished, he still never would have expected this day to transpire the way that it has. he was just fishing one moment, alone on the furthest corner of a secluded spit of beach, and suddenly he was approached, out of the blue, by one of the most terrifying pirates alive, redhaired shanks.

or, that's what he thought; although it had been several years since rosinante had submitted his 'indefinite leave of absence' to the marines (long enough ago to, at this point, be understood as a resignation in everything but name) he still remembered the things that were repeatedly drilled into his head. specifically, a list of pirates not to engage with, under any circumstances, if they happened to cross paths. not without proper authorization. not without a full squadron, preferably with several devil fruit users and an admiral or two. never alone. you will die, they told him. you are unprepared.

it was a lot of scary talk for a guy who, now that the two were sitting beside one another, ultimately just seemed like... a guy. he was surprised at first, of course he was; he expected to be completely alone, and even enveloped himself with his silence technique for added concentration while fishing. he got too concentrated, it seems, being so surprised when shanks shook his shoulder (presumably after several failed attempts to shout through his soundproof wall) and he jumped out of his skinーoff the dock into the water. thank the seas this man seemed to realize intuitively that he was a devil fruit eater, and therefore would drown without his help. rosinante couldn't help but wonder if he had rescued poor souls like that before.

and now they were just... sitting there, having a conversation together, rosinante looking like a wet dog and too self-conscious to shed his clothing despite how weak the seawater-soaked clothes clinging to his skin made him feel. he hadn't noticed that shanks and his crew had set themselves up on the beach. so it was true; shanks, despite his fearsome reputation, really did just... drink & party a lot, huh?

　　　　　　❝ you don't seem like either type. ❞

Sorry, Rosinante. He filled this out with the very specific intent of not checking the "cool devil fruit" box. It's his given right as the OG troll child. (He still loves you though.)

bet he'll feel real bad one of these days when rosinante decides to act like a troll back and pretend to start crying when law calls him lame.

is ace child ...

ace is child! he is goofier than law, and he is so excited.

uta is sorry she isn't law but she's small and cute

he will accept that she doesn't like law right now, but this is gonna have to change. guess it's time for the 'get along' shirt.

　　　　　❝ i believe i am. ❞

　the question stumped him for a moment. was he? law had mentioned something about rosinante being a central inspiration behind his crew’s name & jolly roger—a fact that, to be clear, had him over the moon after a solid decade convincing himself he didn’t leave enough of an impression to be worth remembering—so, did that make him one? in a roundabout way? sure. yes. by technicality, he supposed he was a heart.

ah, so this person also had no idea what he and rosinante was meant to be doing here. fantastic. okay, they met—mission accomplished. what exactly were they supposed to do now, and how long was rosinante meant to stay? seas, law, it wouldn’t have killed you to write down some basic instructions to be opened once he met who he was supposed to meet, would it?

the older man was so preoccupied with these runaway thoughts he neglected to mind where he stepped. fatal mistake. stepping out of the boat, his bad foot snagged the underside of the gunwale and he went down, only able to brace himself with one hand while his other clung tight to the mooring line.

it didn't seem to phase him, though. at least not outwardly. just another sunday. nothing to see here. fell? huh? what are you talking about? he bounded to his feet surprisingly fast, a slight breathiness in his voice that could be attributed to either the pain of the fall, or the relief of narrowly avoiding stumbling into the water, a devil fruit user's biggest nightmare.

❝ i’m... not sure what my business is. i was just asked to meet somebody—you... i’m assuming? since you know the name of law’s crew. ❞

SINCE  THE  VERY  DAY  ace  was  put  under  the  surgeon's  care  he  did  not  ask  any  questions.  he's  put  his  life,  heart  into  the  tattooed,  cold  hands  of  a  doctor  trying  every  day  to  bring  back  a  beating  into  his  heart.  as  the  final  day  came  and  many  things  unfolded  during  the  war,  the  fire  fist  needed  his  time  to  come  in  terms  to  many  damage  that  was  done.  within  the  mere  safety  provided  by  the  island  and  a  hiding  spot  for  ace  and  the  heart's  crew  he  had  time  to  recover,  sit  back  and  take  his  time  day  by  day  to  get  back  in  shape.

this  time  it  was  different,  surprising  to  know  that  anyone  else  would  come  across  their  little  heaven  where  none  of  the  marines  could  sniff  them  out.  but  if  law  really  did  trust  this  person,  ace  followed  his  words  blindly.  loyal,  to  his  doctor.  there  was  a  specific  time,  date  where  he  was  supposed  to  sit  on  the  beach  and  look  out  for  a  ship  to  dock  ashore.  he  had  no  idea  who  it  might  be,  but  this  did  not  mean  he  could  drop  his  guard  down  in  any  case.  he  wasn't  ready  to  fight  anyone  yet,  much  less  if  this  was  just  an  unfortunate  trap  set  for  law.  oh  how  much  ace  hoped  his  throughts  were  wrong.

as  soon  as  the  ship  arrived  at  the  horizon  of  the  sea,  and  reflected  within  the  brown  irises,  the  jumped  off  a  nearby  rock.  guessing  it  was  the  one  he  was  supposed  to  wait  for.  after  all,  none  of  the  ships  ever  would  come  across  this  specific  place  of  the  island.  they  all  aimed  their  destination  towards  the  main  town,  where  pirates  were  unwelcomed.  as  soon  as  he  notieced  the  man's  tall  figure,  he  approached.  the  brim  of  his  hat  hanging  low  over  his  gaze.  ❝  state  your  business,  man.  yer  the  one  of  the  hearts  ?  ❞  his  voice  fell  deep,  raspy.  visibly  cautious  about  approaching  without  no  more  knowledge  than  what  law  provided  him.