In Dreams
Chapter 2
Sanji
had arrived back at Versailles two days early so as to be completely
prepared for Mademoiselle Nami’s return. When she did not arrive on
schedule, however, Sanji was ready to organize a search party and
send out the hounds ahead of them. “Sanji,
do not overreact. Bad weather passed this way not too long ago, I’m
sure that it is what delayed them. Madame Bellmere would not let her
daughter travel in the rain like that... although I’m sure
Mademoiselle would not have minded so much... but more to the point,
I’m sure Nami is fine and well on her way here.” Sanji
was pacing the corridors. “But how can you take that chance, Usopp?
How can you stand to just sit there and do nothing? She could be in
danger! What if that bad weather has caused her coach to be stranded
in the wilderness?” The look of horror that crossed Sanji’s face
- as he came up with ideas more gruesome and terrible than the next -
showed. “That
is it- I refuse to wait another minute.” He shouted. “I’m going
to find-“ “And
miss Mademoiselle Nami when she returns? What if nothing is wrong?
Imagine if they were simply delayed and she returns. You will be
absent, and the one waiting to welcome her home will be Zoro.”
Usopp said calmly. Sanji
stopped pacing, obviously alarmed that he had not thought of this
himself. “Sacre bleu, you’re right. Why didn’t I think of that?
And where is that idiot anyway? I have not heard one ounce of concern
from him about her delay. What an uncaring, uncivilized, uncouth-“ “Anymore
“un”s and I’ll call you redundant, Monsieur Cuire.” Zoro said
as he came walking down the corridor. “Nami is not just any woman.
She can take care of herself, fine enough. I’m sad to see so little
confidence in the one you... supposedly love.” Zoro did not bother
to look at Sanji while he spoke, but bowed to Usopp. “Monsieur
Usopp, when did you return from Toulouse?” “Ah,
Monsieur Zoro. Not but two days ago. I have only been to court this
day. I hear you’ve been fencing fantastically in my absence.
Duponte, Armand, Beyard, and the infamous Montgomery all have fallen
to your excellent sword.” “Yes,
well, in Mademoiselle Nami’s absence I had to find something to
do.” Zoro winked at Usopp. “If you gentlemen will excuse me...”
Zoro headed off in the direction of the library. Sanji
had not the time to get a word in edgewise. His face was purple with
anger. Usopp looked at the other man wearily. “Eh...
Sanji-“ “Well
of course the bastard is right!” The blond man exploded. “Why
don’t I have more faith in the woman I love? Fine. I’ll not speak
another word until she returns! I’ll be in my chamber until then.”
Sanji stormed off, leaving Usopp quite speechless. Ussop
followed Zoro down to the library. It was one of their favorite
haunts. Most of the other courtiers never bothered to go in there.
They could at least obtain a level of privacy in there that they
could not anywhere else in the palace. When he arrived, Ace and his
younger brother, Monkey D. Luffy, were already sitting in the circle
of chairs by the fireplace with Zoro. “Now
you’ve gone and done it, Zoro.” Usopp said with fake disdain.
“Sanji has sworn to take a vow of silence and lock himself in his
chambers until Mademoiselle Nami returns. You should have seen his
face. It was purple!” Everyone
laughed except Zoro. “Che. The man is an idiot. I’m not after his
precious woman! If he would stop whispering obscenities about me
behind my back maybe I wouldn’t be so inclined to make him look
like a fool.” Ace’s
younger brother looked at Zoro earnestly. “But Zoro, if Sanji is an
idiot, what does that make you?” Ace
and Usopp snickered. “Good point, Luffy. Indeed, Zoro, you’re in
love with an idiot. That must mean you’re not the epitome of wisdom
yourself.” Zoro rolled his eyes at Usopp’s taunt. “You
think I don’t ask myself that question everyday? Why do I love that
love-cook? Maybe I still hold out some hope that somewhere inside
there... he’s like the Sanji I know in my dreams.” “You
can’t love a dream, Zoro.” Ace said, sadly. Zoro
suddenly found himself very interested in a spot on the floor. “I
know.” “Oh!
Zoro! What did you dream about last night?” Luffy said, suddenly
excited. The younger brother of Ace was still very much considered a
boy, still in his teen years. But Ace and Luffy’s parents had long
since passed away, and there was no other place for the younger
member of the D family to stay. He was beloved of the royal family,
the king finding his honesty refreshing, and the queen admiring his
child like wit. He was much like the pet of Versailles, spoiled in
every way, and loved by everyone. Zoro
smiled. He held much affection in his heart for Luffy. He and Ace
were much like the family he never had. “Last
night was the one about the pirates again. I have that dream more and
more these days.” “And
I’m the captain!” Luffy punched the air enthusiastically. “Yes,
you are. And Usopp is the liar-“ “I
still don’t understand why a pirate crew would need a professional
liar.” Usopp was never quite happy to hear of his role in
this version of Zoro’s dreams. “And
your brother is apart of another pirate crew, and they call him Fire
Fist Ace. I’m the first mate and swordsman of your crew, Luffy.
Mademoiselle Nami is the navigator on our ship. Sanji is the chef.
Mademoiselle Robin...” Zoro
went into great detail about his dream, describing adventures they
had been through, other pirates they had fought, treasures they had
found. Ace fell asleep several times, and during the course of the
several hours of entertaining themselves, they found they were apart
of a separate world, one infinitely more fulfilling and adventurous
then the one they currently found themselves in. “Tell
me... yawn just one... more... please...” Luffy’s head drooped
onto his brother’s shoulder and he drifted off into sleep. It was
late, as it usually was after Zoro’s story time. “Better
get him to bed. Usopp, could you take him to his room? I need a word
with Monsieur Swordsman.” Ace said. Usopp
smiled. “Of course.” Usopp pulled Luffy up and shook him awake
just enough for the boy to wrap his arm around Usopp’s neck. He
guided him gently from the room. “What
is it, Ace?” The
older D. brother got up and went to a section of the wall where the
books on geography were placed. He pulled out a black book with gold
lettering on it that said, “Africa.” “I
don’t know when, though sooner rather than later, I’m going to
leave Versailles. I’m leaving France. I’ve been offered the
chance to journey on an expedition to the darkest wilds of Africa.”
He held up the book to show Zoro. “They want me to go to Asia after
that. If all goes accordingly to plan, I won’t be coming back.” Zoro
looked at his friend. “I... I see. Palace life was never your
forte, Ace.” Ace
looked at Zoro, smiling. “Nor yours, I would suspect. But I’m
glad you understand. Luffy... won’t be coming with me. He has to
find his own adventure. After I’m gone, you’ll look after him,
won’t you? Don’t let him continue being the pampered palace brat.
He belongs out there, in the world, heh... flying on dragons and
swimming in the deepest oceans...” Sanji
paced the floor of his room bitterly. /Of
course he’s right. He’s always right. Ah I just don’t
understand! Nami is so beautiful! And if it is what people say it is,
that muscle head should be thanking his lucky stars that Nami even
LOOKS at him. / /But
why? What does that moron have that I don’t? He doesn’t love her,
that much is obvious! Why would she love someone who did not love her
in return/ Unaware
of the irony of his current line of thought, Sanji threw himself on
his bed and toed off his boots. He ran his hands through his chin
length blond hair before reaching into his pocket for a cigarette. It
was difficult to go the whole day without smoking, but he considered
it rude to do so in front of women. Naturally, he spent his whole day
mostly with other women, so it was hard to find time to indulge. He
was lucky if he could find the time to sneak off to the parlor and
have a glass of wine with Ace or perhaps Usopp. No one else was worth
conversing with. His
nerves were frayed after spending the day worrying about his love,
then that insolent barbarian showed up and made a fool of him. Again. /It’s
almost as though he looks down on the rest of us./ He took a
long, thoughtful drag off his smoke. /Like he knows something we
don’t, or rather, we’re wasting our time with things like love./ “But
what else is there!” He argued to himself, sitting up suddenly.
“Love is everything! And everything else is nothing. At least, it’s
not worth my attention when there is a beautiful woman like
Nami to occupy my time!” Sanji
thought back on simpler days, when he was just a chef in Lyon. He
didn’t make much money, but he worked for the best chef in all of
France, Monsieur Zeff du Cuire. That was where Sanji attained his
last name from. He was an orphan by right, and Zeff had taken him in,
taught him everything he knew, then kicked his ass at the end of the
day and called him “Eggplant”. Right before Zeff died, he told
Sanji that he had been a chef for the king and queen some years ago
and moved out to Lyon to retire after many years of service. He had
not intended to take up a useless child such as Sanji, but he wanted
someone to teach his techniques after he was gone. His dying request
was that Sanji go to Versailles and be a chef for the king and queen
for a time. Not forever, but for as long as it took for Sanji to gain
some standing in the courts. And he had. Even now he would sometimes
wander into the kitchen and scare the assistant chefs into a frenzy.
He liked to cook for the royalty on special occasions. He had
intended on preparing a feast for Nami’s arrival this evening... “It
doesn’t matter. She’ll be back tomorrow, for certain. Then I’ll
prepare the feast of my life! Then she will see my heart.” It
just so happened that the next day, Mademoiselle Nami du Diamant made
the most spectacular return to Versailles on a run away carriage, and
it just so happened that Zoro was the first one to greet her and
Mademoiselle Robin upon her return. He escorted the ladies back to
the palace after swearing them to secrecy about the morning’s
activities. And a one Monsieur Jacques the coachman was spared a most
gruesome death by beheading. The
first person to greet the two women and Zoro was Monsieur Usopp, who
promptly was sent to Monsieur Sanji’s room to drag him out of his
pouting. “Really,
Monsieur Usopp, it isn’t necessary to run!” Nami shouted after
him as he ran down the corridors. “Really, I’m sure Sanji isn’t
so eager to see... me...” She sighed and looked towards Zoro for
help. He shrugged. “MADEMOISELLE
NAMI!” Sanji appeared at the top of the stair case, dressed to the
till and sparkling with charm. “Your beauty has only multiplied
since I last saw your heavenly face! I mistook you for a goddess!
Your skin, so radiant, your hair, like the sun-“ “Monsieur
Cuire, it is... good to see you as well..” Nami said delicately to
the man racing down the grand staircase to greet her. Sanji rushed to
her side and was on his knee in an instant, her hand grasped by both
of his, held tightly to his chest. “I
was so worried about you, Mademoiselle. I could scarcely bear the
thought that something might have happened to you on your journey-“ Zoro
excused himself with a cough, not eager to hear the hours upon hours
of cooing and fawning that would be spouted from the other man’s
mouth. Nami gave him a look of absolute betrayal as he left. Zoro
smiled evilly at her. He had business to attend to on this day, as it
were. “There
you are, Monsieur!” “Francois.
You have a letter for me, I hope?” Zoro said, perhaps with a little
too much eagerness in his voice than he would have liked. He looked
around the humble surroundings, feeling much more at home in the
dingy bar tavern than at the palace. “Oui,
Monsieur. And I think you will be pleased to see who it is from! All
the way from Ireland.” The young boy named Francois handed Zoro a
suspiciously thin envelope with a red seal on it bearing the shape of
a cross behind a sword. “So
short a reply for the long letter you wrote, Monsieur Zoro, if you
don’t mind me saying.” Zoro
smiled at the boy. “I know. At least he’s to the point, whatever
he says.” The swordsman’s hands trembled slightly as he tore open
the letter. “Monsieur
Roronoa Zoro, Greetings.
I regret to inform you-“ Zoro
put the letter down and closed his eyes. He felt Francois take the
letter from him. His stomach sank and he slammed his fist down on the
sturdy little wood table. “I
can’t continue to stay here! This place is just making me soft! How
am I supposed to be the best if all my opponents are spoiled royalty
and courtiers! I need-“ “Monsieur
Zoro? What are you talking about? Did you even bother to finish
reading the letter?” The boy said, looking alarmed. Zoro
stopped in the middle of his tirade to look at the boy. “I...
stopped at...” Francois
laughed and pushed the letter back at the swordsman. “Keep reading,
you baboon!” “I
regret to inform you that due to my service on behalf of England, I
am far from France. It will take me several months to return to
Versailles, but rest assured that I do intend to accept your
challenge. I realize that your service to the kingdom limits your
traveling. I cannot provide a promised time, but please expect me
during the Christmas holidays. I trust you will be prepared for my
sword, as I will be prepared for yours. Javiere
Mihawk” Zoro
stood up, and looked at Francoise, a smile spreading across his face. “This
is it.” Francois
smiled. “So it would seem.” Zoro
was in excellent spirits at the feast that evening in honor of
Mademoiselle Nami’s return. Even the king and queen commented on
Zoro’s change in attitude from his rather subdued demeanor, to a
man who simply could not wipe a grin off his face. “Monsieur
Roronoa Zoro, do tell the rest of us what it is that has you in such
high spirits this evening, besides, of course, Mademoiselle Diamant’s
return.” the queen said loudly, so that the rest of the idle
chatter died down to listen. Zoro only sat a few chairs down from the
queen, but just for show, he stood and bowed. “Your
highness, Javiere Mihawk has accepted my challenge for a duel, and I
will expect his arrival in Versailles in December.” Many gasps and
claps rose up from the other courtiers at the table. “Here
here!” Boasted the king. “Finally! I knew you had it in you,
young man! We’ll make it a tournament! What is the formal date?” Zoro
turned to bow to the king at the other end of the table. “Your
majesty, we have both agreed to informality in the matter. He is in
Ireland doing some service for England. He cannot estimate an exact
arrival, but promises to arrive during the Christmas holidays.” Sanji
scowled. The last thing he needed was for all the attention to be
turned to Roronoa Zoro. He watched Nami sitting next to the queen.
Nami was the court favorite, and always sat next to the queen when
the king did not. She had a very surprised look on her face, and she
turned to Robin and began whispering fervently in her ear, all the
while never taking her eyes off the swordsman. “Well
you should train hard until the holidays then, I should expect.” “Of
course, your majesty. Hopefully Monsieur Cuire would not mind
continuing in the kitchens for a while. His food just might be the
key to my triumph.” Zoro’s eyes sparkled as he sat down and
looked at Sanji. Sanji blushed as the attention of the table was
turned to him. The swordsman had meant it as a good natured
compliment, after all the good mood he was in. The cook, however, did
not take it as such. “Unfortunately
for Monsieur Zoro, I cook for only the gentlewomen of the court.
Perhaps if he wore a dress and grew his hair out, I might change my
mind.” The
table burst out into laughter. Zoro only smiled. “So you would cook
for any woman, Monsieur Cuire? I thought perhaps your most tender
affections were reserved only for Mademoiselle Diamant... of course,
perhaps you cannot put your reputation to rest for any woman. How
unfortunate for Mademoiselle.” Several
of the courtiers laughed, while a few gasped. The king and queen
laughed good humouredly. Sanji's
face reddened, but try as he might, he could not think of a witty
response. At this point, getting up to leave would be an obvious
defeat, but sitting there to stay would simply be too humiliating.
Thankfully, Nami spoke up. "Now
Zoro, who are you to remark on Monsieur Sanji's affairs?" She
smiled with a twinkle in her eye at the swordsman, who knowing paled.
"You have not courted a single woman at all, and not for
lack of interest on the woman's part. I should know!" The
laughter among the courtiers reached new heights. Sanji looked at
Nami, not quite sure what she was implying, but silently thanking
her, for it had shut the other man up well enough. "Now
now, ladies and gentlemen. Let us forget this battle of wits. Dessert
is coming!" The queen said in her matronly manner. Zoro
glared openly at Nami for a moment, before realizing that Sanji was
staring at him with a somewhat perplexed look on his face. Good mood
completely gone, Zoro scowled at the man and would not meet his eye
for the rest of the evening.
A/N:
A couple of corrections: Versailles is one of the most historically rich locations in France. In my earlier notes in Chapter 1, I described it a bit carelessly. Louis the 16th did live there, but only for 20 years or so. It was built by Louis the 14th (Louis the Great, the Sun King) who built it in the 17th century. (This actually means the 1600’s, so my dates are all screwed up. I apologize. Maybe I’ll have the inclination to go back and change it some day.) Louis had one of the longest reigns of any French king (I think...). Versailles is like... the Tower of London or perhaps Buckingham palace in England, or for us uncultured swine of America, it’s like Times Square (XD America is so young) or the White House. So I hope I haven’t offended anyone XP
Nami du Diamanta is incorrect, so it has been changed to Nami du Diamant.
And a historical note: If I were to write this story to the absolute perfection of historical accuracy, Zoro would probably be looked down upon because French nobility had a problem with tans. A tan was a sign that you were a lowly peasant that worked outside a lot. As it is, there are going to be a couple of historical nuances I’m going to have to ignore such as:
•The king was apparently a real ladies man. I don’t even know if he HAD a queen. But this is an AU, so in my story, the king and queen are a nice happy couple and liked to dine with courtiers on a regular basis.
•Zoro’s tan doesn’t matter.
•And palace life is as I write it. I apologize if you're somewhat better educated than myself.
