Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Night had changed to day. The sun was rising, the others were awake and dressed, and Zoro was thinking.

It wasn't something he spent a lot of time doing. Thinking tended to be about what did happen or what could happen, and Zoro was more of a look-straight-ahead kinda guy. He fought, he drank, he slept, he fucked, and he pushed towards his goal for a good number of years.

But things in his life had changed drastically, and that merited thought. A rubber weirdo in a straw hat watched him eat dirt and said "you're mine now." He fought for the sake of other people and not just himself. He met his ultimate rival and absolutely got his shit rocked, making him realize he had way farther to go than initially believed. This journey across the Grand Line had forged connections deeper than he'd thought himself capable of making. All of that change had him considering things he'd never thought he'd consider.

Dominance. Submission. Kink. These things were as ubiquitous in society as romantic relationships, but just like romantic relationships, Zoro had convinced himself there was no room for them in his life. When the shit cook mentioned that he was a switch and was interested in subbing ( "for you, my beautiful Nami-san…and maybe some of you other assholes too, I guess. Don't push your luck"), Zoro had thought of it as a pointless distraction.  They had enough to deal with without throwing dynamics into the mix, but it had worked out for the cook just fine. So now, Zoro was thinking. 

Certainly he'd submit to Luffy, for reasons so painfully simple and yet so complex they could be expounded on for hours, but not just him. It was the whole crew. After all, Luffy had as good as stamped his approval on every one of them, and every one of them had proved themselves worthy of that stamp. As natural as the urge came to protect them with his swords, so too came the urge to be good for them. If he could swallow his pride and allow it.

The moment he stepped into the galley for breakfast, Luffy recognized his new resolve.

"Zoro thought of something! No…Zoro decided something!" He announced around a mouthful of eggs. It was fascinating how this unnervingly perceptive man was the same person who couldn't recognize an enemy if they had a wig on.

"You got me, captain. I've decided to…work with my dynamic more. With everybody," Zoro said, taking a seat and grabbing food.

"Really? That's great!" Chopper chirped, undoubtedly thinking of the health benefits. 

"So you finally pulled your mossy head out of your ass," Sanji said, but without any real bite. 

"What'dyou mean, 'work with it?'" Luffy asked, clearly happy for him but unsure why.

"...I don't actually know yet," Zoro admitted. He hadn't really thought that far ahead.

"A contract, for one thing," Robin said. "If you plan to include all of us, we'll need to go over expectations and boundaries as a group."

Zoro frowned. "That sounds like a hassle. Can't we just play it by ear?"

"Respectfully, this is not the kind of thing one should 'play by ear,'" Robin countered. "I, for one, am not interested in taking wild guesses at what will be healthful or harmful."

Usopp nodded. "I wanna be a part of this, Zoro, but I can't if I don't know ahead of time what's okay. I'd just avoid doing anything in case it's wrong."

"That's ridiculous," Zoro said, rolling his eyes. Why were they making this complicated? "You guys are acting like scene stuff is some kind of psychological minefield and I'll break down if you make one wrong move."

"So you didn't pull it that far out after all," Sanji said, sounding significantly less happy. "Look. Imagine this: you do something that warrants punishment− something you didn't know would warrant punishment, because it wasn't discussed−and the punishment is something physical. We know you're tough, so we decide to hit you at full strength. One of the most common places subs get lashed is the back. We do that and leave massive scars all over your back, because we didn't discuss that not being okay beforehand and now it's too late. That's what 'playing by ear' looks like."

"None of you would do that," Zoro said. "And if you tried, I wouldn't let you."

"It's an example , dipshit."

"Zoro," Luffy said. It was his Serious voice, drawing Zoro's attention like a magnet. "You decided this because you trust us, right? If they say this is important, can you trust that it's true?"

That was…a good point.

"Yeah. Yeah, okay," Zoro said, ducking his head in deference.

"Great! Robin, what are the steps?" Luffy said, all sunshine once again.

The domme nodded. "First, a contract. We already have Cook-san's. It won't take long to draft another with that as a template."

"In the meantime, we can do something small," Nami said. "Join me after breakfast? I have an idea that I think you'll like."

"How much is it gonna cost me?" The swordsman muttered. 

"Ha-ha," the navigator said sarcastically, as if such a thing was out of her character (it wasn't). "Crewmate discount."

Zoro followed Nami into the girls' room, feeling a little nervous. He had no idea what to expect beyond 'small.' Shitty cook was always giving her foot rubs and making her little snacks- what was going to be asked of him? What if he was bad at it? The whole thing about discussion and agreements made more sense now.

"Here." A pillow was pushed into Zoro's arms.

"Huh?"

Nami was already walking to her desk, pulling out inks and a weird wooden triangle thing out of its drawers. "I want you to get comfy and keep me company while I work on this map. You can sit at my feet or lay down somewhere in the room. Just not on the furniture." 

Zoro blinked. "That's it?"

Nami turned back around to approach him. "That's it. It shouldn't surprise you to know I'm a cat person. What does a pet cat do but laze around in your proximity?"

She lifted her hand to cup the side of his face, slowly telegraphing the action to give the other time to duck away. Zoro didn't. He let her softly stroke her thumb along his cheekbone, back and forth. "What do you think? Wanna be my cute, lazy kitty for a while?"

Zoro opened his mouth to respond, but found that words failed him. He nodded, leaning into her touch.

"I'm glad." With nothing more, Nami stepped back and returned to her desk, unwrapping a large scroll and apparently getting to work on a map.

Well, she did say "small." And if his job was to get cozy, he could certainly manage it. The sun was streaming in from the window, illuminating a rectangular patch of carpet that looked too good to resist.

The room was silent, save for the muffled antics of the crew members on the deck and the scratch of Nami's quill. Zoro got comfy on the floor, mulling over his role as a pet cat. It suited him, he thought. Cats napped and hunted, and he was certainly known for both of those things.

The sun gradually rose, migrating the patch of illuminated carpet until it was no longer accessible. Zoro wasn't done being warm and cozy, though. He looked at Nami in her desk chair, building up the courage, until he walked over and set the cushion on the floor by her feet. He knelt awkwardly at her side, unsure if it was okay to make any contact, when she brought down her hand. It petted through his hair, gently pulling at his head until he was leaning against her waist. 

"Pretty kitty," Nami murmured. "Just relax."

He closed his eyes once more. The pets felt wonderful, and when she had to pull away again to work, the tingles from it remained like an echo. Her side was warm against his cheek. He felt…loved.

They remained together in that simple, loving space. Periodically, Nami would return her hand to his hair, or otherwise stroke his face, neck, and ears. Time went syrupy in a way that reminded Zoro of meditation. He was in the present moment, a place where he had no responsibilities beyond sitting with his owner like the sweet kitty he was. That present moment could have lasted a minute or a day, and Zoro's soft, muzzy headspace wouldn't register the difference.

After whatever amount of time had passed, Nami fully turned to face him. She gently tapped his cheekbone to get his attention.

"Feeling good, kitten? You look happy."

"Mm." Zoro hummed in agreement.

"I wanted to ask you a few questions and thought you'd feel more comfortable answering now. The answers don't have to leave this room, and I'll confirm them with you later before anything actionable. Is that okay with you?"

Those were a lot of words, but Zoro pretty much understood. "'Kay."

"Let's see…would you like us to use praise with you?"

Zoro smiled while imagining it. He got praised sometimes, but it usually just happened when he was fighting someone strong or cutting something huge. The cook got praised for little things throughout the day. Normally he wouldn't admit to being weak enough to need that. But in this present moment, his brain was too sludgy for dumb inhibitions.

"Uh-huh."

"What about physical affection?"

"More. Hair. And…touch. Pet." His answer was rewarded with fingernails gently scratching his scalp.

"Of course. Plenty of pets. Does that mean you'd like to be a kitty on a regular basis?"

"Yeah…dunno if all the time."

"That's fine. You'd be a cute puppy too, you know. I'm sure Sanji-kun would love a playmate."

Zoro considered this. He didn't see Sanji-puppy too often, but enough to know what he was like. He was cute and nice. They could wrestle and play tug of war- a soft version of their usual fighting.

"Fun…" he said. 

Nami smiled. "Yeah? That sounds fun?"

"Mmhmm. If…Sanji isn't…um…" He wasn't sure what words were right for his misgivings. It was a few different things.

"We'll talk about it later," Nami promised. "You're doing really well, baby."

Zoro scrunched his face.

"Not my baby?" She asked.

"Is that okay?" He didn't want to disappoint her. If she wanted to call him something, he could suck it up, even if it felt yucky.

"That's completely okay. I won't call you that."

"Thanks," Zoro said with relief.

"And guess what? You just set a boundary! What a good boy!" Nami smiled with pure delight, as if Zoro had done something extraordinary. His insides hummed. Good boy . Those were his favorite words, but they weren't directed at him very often.

"Now, you usually like to train around this time, so I'm sure you want to come back up. Is there anything I can help with? I don't know what you usually do."

Zoro tilted his head. "Do?"

Nami smiled patiently. "To come up from subspace. Is there a routine you like to follow? Do you prefer to wait it out? Is there a trigger?"

"Oh. Come up. Um." The only times in subspace he could remember had to do with sex, and he and his partners parted ways pretty quickly. "They gimme clothes and tell me to leave, so…different stuff. Noise. Grabbing. Going somewhere. Cold. …Doesn't feel good."

Nami looked upset. "That's awful, Zoro. Let's come up in a nice way, instead. Tell me your name."

"It's Zoro." She didn't know that?

"Full name, please."

"Ro…Roronoa Zoro."

"Good. Where are you right now?"

"Ship. Going Merry ."

"Good. What's your dream?"

"Greatest swordsman."

"Tell me more about that. What kind of progress have you made? What have you learned?"

Zoro started talking. Haltingly at first, but with more detail when she gestured for him to go on. He wasn't chatty, but it was easy when it was something he cared about. By the time he finished explaining how he developed Lion's Song, he realized that the fuzzy feeling in his head was all gone. His brain was back.

"...Thanks."

Nami smiled. "No problem at all. It was just supposed to be an exercise to bring you up, but it was also pretty interesting. I learned a lot."

"I meant…for all of it. It was nice." Zoro realized he wasn't as embarrassed as he'd expected to be. Being a kitten for an hour wasn't a waste of time or a sign of weakness. It really was just…nice.

The navigator reached out and touched his arm. "I'm glad. I liked it too. Anytime you want to do that again, just tell me, 'kay?"

"Yeah."

"Now, that'll be 30,000 berries for the hour, plus a surcharge for bringing you back up, so your total comes to-"

" Ack - you tricked me! Greedy witch!"

" I'm kidding!" She laughed at his affronted face, then added with a wink: "The first session's free. After that it'll cost you. I accept cash, treasure, cute kitty behavior, and saving me from danger as forms of payment."

"I think we can work something out."

Nami shared his smile, then made a shooing motion. "Now go lift heavy things and put them down again."

Zoro did.

Chapter Text

Lunchtime rolled around, and when Zoro walked into the galley, the rest of the crew was already there and huddled around a few stacks of paper. Save for Sanji, who was piling up sandwiches on several plates. "Hey. Sit wherever."

Sit wherever…If Zoro was going to do this, he had to be honest about the things he wanted. He gathered his nerve and sat on the floor, right in front of Luffy's chair.

The captain looked down at him, tilting his head in interest. "Hi, Zoro!"

"Hi, captain," Zoro mumbled. The others weren't paying all that much attention, but he still felt on display. 

"If Zoro likes sitting there, he can do it whenever," Luffy announced. 

"Okay. Thanks," Zoro said. Really, he could stop all this complicated stuff right there. It already felt like he'd received more than enough with that one privilege.

Then again, the stuff with Nami was great too. And if there's one thing being a pirate had taught him, it was that there was nothing wrong with a little greed.

Having handed everyone their sandwiches, Sanji grabbed one of his floor cushions and tossed it at his face. "Don't let your butt go numb."

Zoro considered throwing it back on principle, but decided it was a little too childish even for him. The zabuton was better than sitting on a wooden floor.

"We need to get him his own as soon as possible," the cook said, crossing his arms. "I don't want marimo stink on my things."

"Don't complain when you're the one who gave it to me," Zoro groused.

"Let's start a shopping list," Usopp interjected before an argument could break out. "We might need a few more things."

" A collar− " Zoro said, saying it much louder and more abruptly than he'd meant to in his excitement. It had been a vague pipe dream since the day he'd met Luffy. "A collar would, uh−be good."

"Aw, we can put a little tag on it! It'll say ZORO in big letters," Luffy said, holding out his hands as if to manifest it. "And then on the other side, something like…um…"

"'If Lost, Return to the Straw Hat Pirates,'" Usopp suggested.

"Yeah! Zoro gets lost a lot, so that's handy."

"I do not!" Zoro protested, though it was solely out of habit. He was still picturing the collar. Something thick and substantial, not like the little fancy chokers the cook wore. At least one ring for a leash, maybe more. Green would be nice.

If Lost, Return to the Straw Hat Pirates. He liked that. He was theirs, and if they were separated for any reason, he knew they'd make sure to get him back.

"If we're getting started, the first section here is 'roles,'" Robin said. Zoro couldn't really see her from his spot on the floor, but was sure she looked the very picture of professionalism.

"What d'you mean roles?" Zoro asked.

"It's reasonable to have different expectations with different people," Nami said. "That's how it is with Sanji. Robin and I are his Mistresses, while Usopp and Luffy are more like…sitters, I guess you could say. They play with him and take care of him, but without full-time responsibilities or the authority to administer punishment. And then you and Chopper aren't involved beyond some general etiquette."

Zoro nodded. He didn't scene with Sanji, but had his does-and-don'ts: don't touch without permission, don't make fun of his behaviors, do speak gently if he's in subspace, do report distress or misbehavior if you see it.

"Luffy's my Master," he started, because that one was obvious. The man in question smiled, ruffling Zoro's hair with both hands.

"Uh, sitters or whatever…I guess all of you. Except Chopper. Sorry, Chop, it just feels weird. You're like…my kid brother."

"I'm not a kid!" The reindeer pouted, in true adult fashion, "...But yeah, I understand. I don't think I would be comfortable with it either."

"Wait, I'm a sitter? So…you're okay with me being…in charge of you?" Sanji said hesitantly. It was a reasonable question, given their day-to-day dynamic.

Zoro nodded, feeling a little embarrassed. "Just don't… be mean about it," Zoro mumbled. It was hard to admit such a weakness, but necessary. "I'm…it's still…it's new."

 "Of course. I know how it feels, you know. Especially at the start. I'm glad to…I mean, I'll− you'll have an easier time. I'll help," Sanji stammered. It was a relief to see that he was just as awkward about this. They were actually communicating their thoughts and feelings with each other, and it felt downright bizarre.

"Good job, precious," Robin said. "I know that was difficult."

Sanji squirmed, smiling shyly. Zoro never knew which things prompted such a normal response and which ones prompted the noodle arms and wailing, but Robin always seemed to.

“Another important topic to address is sex,” the archaeologist then said. The others all grimaced, save for Luffy who just continued to lick traces of mustard and crumbs from his plate. The source of their discomfort scoffed in annoyance.

“Oh, for– you guys do get that I’m a doctor, right?” The little reindeer said. “I know what sex is. You can talk about it in front of me.”

“Yeah, but like– there's medical sex talk and there's…y’know,” Usopp said haltingly.

“Respectfully, Chopper, you are a child. A very brilliant child, but even so,” Nami said gently. “I think we’d all be more comfortable if you kept watch on the deck for a while. Someone probably should anyway.”

“ Fine . It's not like I like hearing about human mating,” the reindeer acquiesced, hopping down from his chair. “But that squeamishness had better not keep you guys from asking for help! For example, removing foreign objects from your rectum can cause damage if you don't know what you're doing!”

“Noted! Please stop!” Usopp yelled.

The crew breathed a sigh of relief as the galley door closed.

"Anyway. Sex," Nami stated. "What's its relationship with kink for you and how do you want it to work here?"

Zoro hummed in thought. He really should've anticipated some of these questions and thought them through ahead of time.

"My experience with kink in the past always had to do with sex, but it's not inherently sexual for me. I wouldn't be against including sex-related stuff, but…maybe farther down the road? Let's revisit it once we're all more settled in."

The others stared at him, somewhat wide-eyed.

"Does anyone else find it a little creepy when he's articulate?" Usopp whispered.

"Definitely," Sanji whispered back.

"Hey! I-"

"Zoro shouldn't have sex with anyone else!" Luffy blurted out of nowhere.

"Huh?" the crew responded collectively− save for Robin, who probably had her pen at the ready.

"Sometimes Zoro goes off and has sex with random people, and I don't like it," the captain said, crossing his arms. "If I'm his Master or owner or whatever, then he should have to get my permission! And I can say no if I want to!"

Heat bloomed in Zoro's chest, spreading rapidly through his entire body.

"Oi, Luffy, you can't just decide that yourself," Usopp countered, but the rubber man didn't back down.

"Zoro should only get fucked on my ship, where I'm in charge. Zoro doesn't need to feel good unless I give permission."

"That's…that's a good rule, captain," Zoro breathed. His head was spinning a bit. He couldn't have predicted Luffy giving two shits about who he fucked, and the knowledge that he did (and was adamant about it) was dizzying. It made him want to nuzzle his head against his captain's knee, to show gratitude that Master cared so much about him.

"Aw, cute," Luffy said, petting Zoro's face. Oops. He'd ended up doing it.

"So, for clarity, permission isn't necessary for sexual play with crew members?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, I trust you guys. But…oh, what about this? Zoro's gotta ask if he wants to have sex with himself. " Luffy's grin was downright impish.

"Zoro? Your thoughts?" Robin prompted.

Zoro considered. He didn't masturbate all that often, but anytime he did want to…it wasn't like Luffy would try to be discreet or respectful about it. 

"Oh, sure! Zoro can jerk off!" On the deck, full volume. Embarrassing.

"Yeah, sounds good," the swordsman said. ,"I'm guessing you get to say no then, too?'

"Yep!"

"Noted. Next… Zoro, are you okay with me going over the things we did and talked about this morning?" Nami asked. Sanji grimaced minutely, to Zoro's great satisfaction. He almost wanted to say no just to leave the pervert guessing what they did. But in the end he nodded. Transparency and all that.

"First of all, you guys should probably know that Zoro seems to enter subspace on his own pretty easily. After an hour of kneeling and some light physical affection, he was down−not super deep, but definitely a different headspace. So we'll need to pay attention to that."

Was that…not typical? Zoro had had nothing to compare it to, but he figured his relationship with subspace was pretty much like everyone else's. What did it say about him that it was inordinately easy for his brain to go mushy? He risked a glance at Sanji, anticipating some kind of sneer or joke about him having moss brains or something. The cook just nodded with everyone else.

"As far as forms of address, he liked good boy, puppy, and kitty, but disliked baby."

The others nodded, and Robin wrote.

"What about other pet names?" Usopp pondered aloud.

"Like what?" Zoro asked. What else even was there?

"Sweetheart, precious, lovely, bunny, cutie, cutie pie, sweet cheeks, muffin, darling, love, pumpkin, little one, honey, angel, handsome, my special boy, hot stuff, prince, princess, sugar-" Usopp rattled off until Zoro had enough and cut him off, realizing this could go on forever. 

  "Um…if you gimme a list later. I'll look at 'em and think about it," Zoro said, and the sniper quickly started scribbling. Most of those were stupid, but there were a few he liked. Admitting that out loud was…difficult. This conversation was difficult enough, so he'd take shortcuts where he could.

There was at least a hilarious distraction in the form of Sanji, who looked like he was going to explode. Undoubtedly he'd already been on the receiving end of Usopp's creativity.

Noon stretched into afternoon as Zoro answered more kink-related questions than he thought existed in the universe. Most of them were things he'd never even thought about before ("what check-in methods do you prefer during periods of emotional vulnerability?"), and some were things he'd thought about way too much ("how do you feel about eating on the floor during meals?"). Most of it was answered with "I don't really know, I'd have to try it first," which to him was exactly the same as playing by ear, but what the hell did he know. By the time they were finished, Zoro's brain felt like a wrung-out towel and Luffy was practically vibrating from sitting still for so long. 

"I think that's everything for now," Robin said. "If you could all sign here, stating you agree to these terms?"

Zoro had always signed everything with the East kanji for "sword" in the past as a way to stay anonymous, but apparently that wasn't acceptable this time. He wrote ゾロ in unnecessarily large letters as silent protest. It did not escape his notice that Robin's signature had a doodle of a weird cat next to it. It escaped absolutely no one's notice that Sanji apparently had to kiss the fucking paper in order to sign it, because what the fuck. 

"We're done now?" Luffy asked after being shown how to write his name instead of the word "me."

"Yes, I believe-"

The rubber man zipped out of the room so quickly that he left a Luffy-shaped cloud behind. "FREEDOM!! CHOPPER, LET'S GO FISHING!!!"

The others laughed at his eagerness to move on to something more exciting, but Zoro didn't find it quite so funny. Instead, it made him reexamine this whole venture from his captain's perspective.

After the one interjection at the beginning, Luffy had stayed uncharacteristically silent through the negotiations. He'd bounced his leg like a jackrabbit, chewed on his fingernails, and doodled on a spare piece of paper Robin had given him. In summary, bored out of his mind. The only thing keeping him in his chair was likely the snacks Sanji kept coming.

Come to think of it, was Luffy interested in kink at all? If memory served…

"Any animal? …Probably a tiger shark. They look cool and I wouldn't need a boat to get around," Zoro said, leaning against the side of the dinghy with his arms crossed behind his head. It was too hot for a nap, but he kind of wanted to take one anyway. 

"I think I'd pick monkey. Having a tail looks like it's a lot of fun," Luffy replied wistfully.

"A lot of animals have tails. Did you just pick monkey 'cause it's in your name?" Zoro snorted.

"No! Monkeys are great! They can swing through trees and throw their own poop!" the rubber man said defensively.

"You can already do that as you are now."

"...That's a good point," the other answered. "Hm…okay, it's your turn to ask something!"

The swordsman racked his brain. He wasn't really a conversationalist. There wasn't much use for that skill in his line of work.

"Uh…I dunno. You got a dynamic?" He tried. Luffy just tilted his head. "Y'know, dom, sub, all those…"

"Oh! …No clue." Luffy said, smiling.

"You know what they are, but you don't know if you have one?"

Luffy shrugged. "Never thought about it."

That sounded about right.

Zoro spread his arms in a 'well, here we are' gesture. "Now's as good a time as any. Not like we're going anywhere."

Luffy scrunched up his face in concentration. "Okay, so how do I figure it out? What did Zoro do?"

"Nothing, really. Gettin' told what to do just felt right. I don't even remember when I first figured it out; it wasn't a big discovery or anything." Zoro knew some people had an issue with male submissives, especially ones that weren't cute little twinks. But if Luffy thought it was gross, he certainly didn't show it.

"I think I'd go nuts if I had to do whatever anybody told me," Luffy said, wrinkling his nose.

"I don't have to, I choose to. The person and the situation are important."

"Oh! And I'm Zoro's captain," Luffy said with dawning realization. "Does that mean you'll do what I tell you?"

Warmth started to seep into Zoro's stomach. He hadn't really thought about that. He sorta had a Master now, didn't he? And not for a short while, either− he'd sworn his loyalty to this man until they achieved their dreams. Who knew how long that would take?

"Yeah…I will," he said quietly.

"Really!? Then…Zoro, I order you to…come over here!" He punctuated the words with a dramatic point of his finger, like he was casting some kind of spell. It was kinda cute.

"Aye, captain." Zoro sat up on his haunches, then made his way to the other side of the boat on his hands and knees. The rocking of the little dinghy made it less graceful than he'd like.

Luffy stared wide-eyed at the swordsman, who stopped a respectful distance away. "Zoro…crawled? Why?"

Zoro tried to will the blush away from his face. He refused to be embarrassed when he hadn't done anything wrong. "If you tell a sub to go somewhere, they're gonna assume you want them to do it on all fours."

"Oh. Neat," the rubber man said. He was still staring.

"So…? What'd you think?" Zoro asked.

"About what?"

"Commanding me. Wasn't that so you could figure out if you were a Dom?"

Luffy dropped his fist into his palm. "Oh, that's a good idea! Zoro's smart!"

The sub sighed, feeling a little like a patient parent. "Sure. So. Did you like it? If you did, there's a fair chance you're a Dom."

Luffy hummed thoughtfully. "It felt weird. But not bad-weird. I don't really know. I guess it's a mystery! Anyway, it's my turn now. What's your favorite season? I think mine's summer, because that's the best time for barbecue."

Zoro had to blink a few times from the sudden topic change. The non-answer was a little disappointing, but whatever. If Luffy was over it, so was he. They both had their dreams to chase, anyway. A dynamic would've just complicated things.

"...Autumn, I think. I like seeing the leaves change." 

Whether he was a Dom or not, it clearly wasn't a priority for Luffy, and Zoro had just made it one. Guilt pooled in Zoro's stomach. He hadn't actually asked Luffy if he wanted the responsibility of being an owner. It wasn't in Luffy's character to do something purely for someone else's sake, so most likely he was just going with the flow without really understanding what was being asked of him. Once the weight of it dawned on him… well, freedom was what Luffy valued most. A leash was a chain, regardless of what side of it you're on. And Zoro had just chained him down without a second thought.

Was it too late to take it all back? It was a waste of time and paper, and they'd already all signed it, but surely the crew would understand. It was the right thing to do. At the very least, they could revise it to give Luffy a more hands-off role. It definitely wouldn't feel the same, but relationships were about compromise.

So what if Luffy didn't want him?

(Just thinking the words made Zoro feel a little sick. He needed to toughen up.)

"...Luffy? Can I talk to you for a second? In private."

He'd ended up putting it off all the way until after dinner. The troubling thoughts kinda ruined what should have been an exciting "first official meal as a pet." Sanji had given him a water bowl to drink out of and everything.

"Sure, what's up?" Luffy easily followed him to the boy's room, licking sauce off of his fingers. Zoro gestured for him to sit on the couch so he could kneel on the floor. It seemed appropriate for penitence.

"I…wanted to apologize," Zoro said. He refused to divert eye contact, no matter how tempting. "I forced you into a 24/7 dynamic without considering your feelings. I know you don't especially care about this kind of thing."

Luffy tilted his head. "What'dya mean?"

"That whole 'kink' thing. When we were in the galley making that contract, remember? I could tell you didn't care, but you sat through it anyway. Which was nice, don't get me wrong, but I don't want you to feel like you have to do something you aren't interested in."

"Zoro's not making any sense. I cared about all of that." Luffy said, sounding somewhat confused but moreso annoyed. 

Zoro snorted. "I know what it looks like when you care about things, Luff. And it's not sitting all nice and quiet while bouncing your leg."

"That's stupid. And not fair at all," Luffy huffed, crossing his arms.

"I don't know about any of this stuff, Zoro. When I don't know stuff, I rely on the smart people on my crew. Usually if what they're saying is too mysterious, I just leave it to them. But Zoro said I'm his owner. I have to know this stuff so I can do it right. Because Zoro is important and Zoro trusts me to take care of him."

So, Luffy was being quiet because he was actually paying attention to something that wasn't food or adventure. For once, he was trying to understand a complicated concept instead of blowing it off.

"I'm sorry, captain," he said, dropping his head. 

"Poor Zoro," Luffy sighed. "You just can't believe I'd want to be your owner, huh?"

As it often did, Luffy's laser accuracy cut him to the core. He couldn't deny it. 

"I'll say it a zillion times. Zoro is mine. My kitty, my puppy, my swordsman, my person. You've been mine since I stole you from that cross like a treasure. I already own you, I've just been nice about it because I want my friends to be free. But. You're. Mine. And I'm gonna do a good job keeping you."

The words poured over Zoro like a waterfall− intense, all-encompassing, cleansing. He knew he belonged to Luffy. But he never knew the extent of his captain's feelings. 

"I know I don't act like how Nami and Robin do with Sanji, and I don't wanna do some of that stuff either. I'll take care of Zoro my way, like what we talked about in the thing. And if Zoro thinks I don't care, he's gotta ask instead of deciding for me. I'm the captain, so I decide. Got it?"

"Of course, captain. I'm sorry for overstepping."

Luffy hummed thoughtfully.

"If Zoro thinks I'm not interested in this, I guess I have to prove you wrong. And Zoro was being dumb, so I'll do it with a punishment."

Zoro's heart leapt. A punishment…when was the last time he'd been Reinforced? Let alone by someone who actually cared?

"Whatever you see fit, captain," he said humbly.

"Good. Put your face on my foot."

Huh?

At his confusion, Luffy smiled and pointed at the top of his left foot. "Face. Goes there. You gotta get down on the floor."

Zoro had left the punishments to the others' discretion (with limits) during negotiations, mostly because he wasn't very creative. He trusted that whatever Luffy had in mind, it would be within the parameters they'd set. He had been listening, after all.

He lowered himself onto his stomach, scooching forward until he could rest the side of his face on top of Luffy's foot. The sour, unwashed smell was inescapable and the straps of his sandals dug into Zoro's cheek.

"Zoro thinks I'm not interested in this stuff," Luffy mused. "But I don't think that's true. Because I've thought about Zoro being under me just like this. Ever since it was just us on the boat together and you crawled to me. Dunno why. I'm gonna step on you now, 'kay?"

"Yes, captain," Zoro breathed. His heart was pounding despite doing nothing but lying there.

The other sandaled foot pressed down on his opposite cheek, applying pressure that bordered on pain. His head was fully trapped between his captain's feet.

"Shi shi shi, Zoro sandwich," Luffy giggled, moving his feet a bit to twist the submissive's head from side to side. With his strength, he could all too easily snap Zoro's neck this way. That fact was intoxicating.

"Zoro made a mistake. You were dumb and thought I wouldn't want to own you. That's why I really really really really want to leave a shoe print on your face. Then everyone can see that Zoro has an owner. And that Zoro, who's so big and tough and cool, lets his owner step on him when he's bad. But also I just wanted to see you like this."

The sandal pressed down harder, which in turn pressed Zoro harder into the straps on the other foot. A sole print on one cheek, sandal straps on the other. It'd be pretty easy for people to figure out who was responsible for the marks.

"Zoro's face is so soft on top of my foot," Luffy sighed happily. "I can feel your little breaths on my skin. It kinda tickles."

With a little bit of straining, Zoro managed to press his lips to the top of his captain's rubbery foot. It felt right, with how thoughtful his Master had been in deciding this punishment.

"Aw, was that a kiss? That felt nice…okay, I've decided. Zoro should kiss my feet more!" The shoe ground down harder in excitement.

"Of course, captain," Zoro said, a little strained from the unrelenting pressure on his head. "Isn't that how subjects show fealty to their king?"

The pressure disappeared. Zoro glanced upward, a little concerned he'd done something wrong. Luffy's eyes were dark and intense in a way the swordsman had never seen outside of battle.

" Zoro ," the rubber man said, just barely above a whisper."Zoro, I− you− this feeling is weird− I…it was never like this with Sanji…" 

His hands were trembling. Luffy was…hesitant. It didn't suit him one bit.

"It's okay, Luffy," Zoro said softly. He rose to his knees, taking the other's hands. "I think I know what's going on. Just some big feelings, okay? Don't hold 'em back."

Those big doe eyes squeezed shut. "It…you were under my foot and you kissed it and called me your king and all the sudden I…I…wanted to smash your head and hug you and lock you away and cover you in jewelry and touch you and hurt you and show you to the world and tell you how beautiful you are and tie you up and pet your hair and make you eat my socks and give you a big scar like Hawk Guy did and it just all happened at the same time, it's still happening, I…I just want you . Really bad."

"You have me. You have me, Luffy, in any way you need me." Zoro nuzzled against the Dom's denim-clad thigh.

"Zoro…" Luffy opened his eyes again, and they were shiny. "Can I stop the punishment? I wanna be done."

"Of course, captain. I learned my lesson, I promise."

"Good. C'mere." Luffy opened his arms, and what else could Zoro do but fall into them? They wrapped around and around and squeezed Zoro so tightly he could hardly breathe, and there was no place he would rather be.

They sat in silence together, rocking back and forth. Zoro made a mental note to refer Luffy to Robin so they could talk about whatever it was Doms talked about. This whole "taking care of you" thing went both ways, after all. But that was a thought for later. For now…

"Luffy?"

"Mm?"

"How am I supposed to eat your socks if you don't wear any?"

Chapter Text

With negotiations finished, a new chapter had begun in Zoro's life. There were new expectations, both for the crew and himself. One of them was a daily "homework assignment;" to try something that he had put down as a 'maybe' on the kink checklist. Yesterday's had ended up being the thing with Luffy− what or how many boxes that checked, he wasn't really sure. But today…

"Cook, got a minute?" Zoro asked, stepping into the galley.

"...Why?" The other asked suspiciously. He was rolling some kind of doughy thing into little balls.

"I…" Come on. Confidence. "Ya need an ashtray?"

Sanji's eyes lit up with interest. "I'll be done here in a second if you want to wait."

"Fine."

Zoro parked on the couch, watching with vague interest as the cook dropped the little balls into boiling water and stirred them around for a while. Only once they were on skewers did he recognize them. Dango. Come to think of it, he'd remembered hauling a shitload of rice flour the other day since there'd been a sale or something.

It didn't take long for the dango to be cooked, skewered, and laid out to cool. Then the cook was all his.

"Been a while since I've done this," Sanji mused, kicking back on the couch. Zoro knelt on the floor in front of him. "Where do you want the ash?"

"Mouth."

"No half-measures with you, huh?" Sanji laughed. "Well, that's fine. Just make sure not to swallow. Chopper will flay me if he hears I let you eat ashes. Use your hands to collect the drool."

The sight of the cook pulling out a cigarette, flipping open that gaudy lighter, and flicking the wheel with his thumb was a familiar one, but something about this context made each action look elegant. The tobacco caught the flame, and the first traces of that acrid smell began to fill the air. Zoro was alone in this (and he'd never say it), but he actually liked the smell. It reminded him of the shitty dive bars where he spent most of his bounty hunter days.

Sanji took a drag, his eyelids fluttering slightly in satisfaction as the nicotine hit his brain. Did that always happen? Zoro had never noticed, but he'd never looked that closely, either.

He pulled the fag away from his lips, exhaling the smoke with a light puhh sound. Only then did he actually look down at the swordsman. With his free hand, he tapped Zoro's chin, silently encouraging him to open wide. Something about the act made him feel shy, like a virgin spreading their legs for the first time.

 "Would you look at that pretty, pink mouth," Sanji hummed, tracing Zoro's bottom lip with his thumb. "So cute for all the venom it spits at me each day. Now it's all mine for me to use, how lucky."

With a few practiced taps, flakes of warm ash sprinkled the surface of Zoro's tongue. The swordsman resisted the urge to retract the muscle and spit out the bitter, chemical taste. His internal instincts said poison! Do not ingest!  Something even more primal inside him howled for another helping.

"Not very pleasant, huh?" The cook chuckled at Zoro's pinched expression. "As a chef, I'd loathe to serve a person something so unpalatable. It's a good thing you aren't a person."

Zoro hadn't really known what to expect from Sanji as a Dom. Maybe some of that fiery anger he had during their fights, or the cold disregard he leveled at someone who dared to waste food. But as he blew smoke in Zoro's face and denied him personhood, Sanji seemed… happy. It was the same look he had when a freshly-sharpened knife glided easily through vegetables or when a new blender made quick work of a cup of ice.

 Tap tap, went those clever fingers, and more bitterness settled on his taste buds.

"Oh, my good little mossy. So useful for me," Sanji condescended, and Zoro whined helplessly. Useful. What a wonderful thing to be. 

"Yeah? You like being useful? I can think of so many ways we can use you…furniture is always handy, and I'd love a little maid to help serve drinks. But that's just the beginning. Should I ask the others to make use of you as well?"

Zoro nodded, careful not to move too much so that his open mouth remained accessible. More ash, this time an entire chunk instead of a few sprinkles. The hot clump dissolved on his tongue like the worst sugar. Already, a trail of drool was trailing down his chin. He kept his cupped hands at the ready to catch it.

"Usually, I ignore the subs that I use in this way. No need to give an ashtray any attention or even talk to it. But this time, I just can't help myself," the cook said. "If you saw yourself, you'd understand. That splotchy pink face…the tears in your eyes from the smoke… that pretty tongue streaked gray and black with filthy ash…"

His voice shook with the undercurrent of arousal. Zoro wasn't any better, though he only now realized it. During negotiations, they'd agreed that physical reactions were normal, so long as no one got carried away. Zoro really, really wanted Sanji to get carried away. He was at the perfect height with his mouth open and ready to be used. Fuck "waiting to get settled in," he wanted it right fucking now and so did the cook, so what did it matter? The submissive whined loudly, trying to argue his case without closing his mouth to speak. Sanji only laughed at him.

"Needy boy. You're a tempting sight, but I don't think you deserve it yet. Besides, I have my own rules to follow."

The latter was a bad argument, given that Sanji broke that particular rule all the time, but Zoro could accept the former. There was no reason for an ashtray to feel pleasure, even if the musky taste of cum would mix so nicely with the bitter ash.

The galley door opened and closed, interrupting his horny musings. Zoro didn't bother to see who it was− he knew the footfalls of everyone on the crew, even their most recent addition.

"Hungry, Robin-chan?" Sanji asked.

"I was just getting a drink of water. But I see you have something prepared. Would it be inappropriate to take my share early, while I'm here?"

"I could never deny you a thing, my dear. Take as many as you like," the man drawled.

The archeologist took a skewer with her cup, smiling at the pair. "I like your new ashtray. Very cute."

"Isn't he, though? I think I'll keep him," Sanji replied, casually tapping more ash onto Zoro's tongue. The new wave of searing heat and bitterness washed over him, sending his mind out to sea. Horny and brainless and happy.

Robin stepped closer, appraising them both. After a moment's consideration, she poured some of her water directly into Zoro's mouth. He coughed and spluttered a bit in surprise, but maintained position. He felt the ashy liquid dribble trail down his throat and soak his shirt.

"His tongue will dry out if his mouth is left open," the Domme explained. "You'll want to moisten it periodically to mitigate the heat of the ash."

"As always, your wisdom is the sole rival to your beauty," Sanji said, taking a long drag.

"I have to say, dominance is a lovely look on you, Sanji-kun. I hope to see it more in the future."

"Well, that depends on this one," the cook replied, jerking a thumb at Zoro, "but I'll certainly keep that in mind. Yours and Nami's pleasure are my top priority, after all."

It was funny how different Sanji's constant flattery was in "Dom mode." Usually it came off as pathetic and desperate, but the easy confidence he carried now turned the buttery praise into something resembling charisma. Robin was right. It was a good look on him.

"It sounds as though you haven't forgotten your place, either," Robin said warmly, slipping her finger under the lacy choker Sanji had chosen for the day. The color matched his tie, because of course it did. "That's very good."

For a second, Sanji's eyes widened into the helpless mess Zoro was more used to seeing. But it was gone again as Robin stepped away.

"Find us in the girl's room this evening," she called behind her. "We'll celebrate you getting to enjoy the other side of your dynamic."

"I'll be counting the minutes," Sanji said, but she was already gone. As was most of the cigarette, Zoro noticed. Sanji took a long drag, the combustion eating up the last of the tobacco.

"Are we done, or do you want me to ash this?" the cook asked. The dreamy smile from interacting with one of his precious ladies had settled back into that detached fondness. 

Zoro whined and nodded, scooching closer.

"Okay. Stick your tongue out. Farther. Farther." Zoro pushed the muscle as best he could, but Sanji didn't seem satisfied. The cook pulled a handkerchief out of his breast pocket and used it to grip the sub's wet tongue, pulling it as far as the connective tissue would allow.

"Better. Now open nice and wide…" with the speed of a glacier, the fingers holding the cigarette butt entered Zoro's mouth. The swordsman could feel the heat radiating from the end.

"On three, pet. One…two… three ." The hot cherry pressed into Zoro's tongue at the very back of his throat. The searing pain made him spasm, the faint tsss sound of the extinguished ash loud with the proximity to his skull. He groaned around the retreating hand, and Sanji chuckled.

"Good boy." The wet stub was dropped into Zoro's shaky, cupped hands. "Remember, no swallowing. Now stand up."

With Sanji's help, the sub slowly rose to his feet and walked to the sink. A cup was brought to his lips. "Gargle and spit."

Zoro did so, soothed by the cool temperature but startled by the salty taste. It made the burn sting.

"The salt helps with healing," the cook explained, encouraging him to gargle and spit a few more times before taking the butt and washing the ashy drool from the swordsman's hands. The process was more thorough and gentle than it needed to be, ending with lotion and a hand massage. Slowly, the dazed sensation faded from the sub's head. 

"How do you feel?" Sanji said, ending the massage with a kiss to each palm.

"Good," Zoro rasped. Talking made the burn sting. "But why'd you do it so far back?"

Sanji tsked good-naturedly. "This silly marimo forgot his own fighting style. What am I to do with him?"

Oh. Right. Wado Ichimonji's hilt rubbing against a burn wound would not have been good.

"Thank you for looking out for me, um…sir."

Sanji scrunched his nose. "Blech. Don't 'sir' me."

"Yeah, I didn't like it either," Zoro admitted with a grimace. "By the way, uh…why didn't we…"

"Because I know what it's like," Sanji said, turning to the counter to check the temperature of the dango. "You start getting excited from a scene and your head's already all stupid, and then it feels like you'd say yes to anything because it'll feel good and make your Dom happy. Even stuff you'd usually say no to. I wasn't about to push boundaries when you were in that space."

The logic was sound. Now that his head was more clear, he was even grateful. Not like he'd admit it, though.

"So…is that it? We're done?" Zoro tried not to make it sound like a pout. But really, he'd only been an ashtray for all of ten minutes.

Sanji shrugged. "It doesn't take that long to smoke a cigarette. And I don't smoke back-to-back unless I'm stressed the fuck out. I only get so many a day, you know."

That was fair enough, but he was still disappointed. Before he could turn to leave, though, Sanji stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"Now, now, pet," the switch said. "I can still make use of you. These snacks aren't going to deliver themselves− a mobile tray would be very handy, don't you think?"

Zoro was not a stranger to balance. Losing your footing was one of the easiest (and most embarrassing) ways to lose your advantage in swordplay, and none of his more complicated moves were possible without a solid stance. Crawling on his hands and knees with a large tray of food on his back was less familiar, but he was no less confident.

Sanji was walking in front of him, keeping a slower pace to not leave him behind. Zoro felt a familiar pang of yearning for a collar. It would be nice if a leash would guide him where to go, even if it was just out to the deck.

"OI, SHITHEADS! GRUB! Nami-swaaan, we have a snack for you~!" Sanji called, switching (ha!) his tone drastically mid-sentence as always. The 'shitheads' in question came running, excited by the curious mountain of tri-colored treats. Zoro dutifully held still while Usopp, Luffy, and Chopper started grabbing skewers.

"What is it?" Chopper asked, taking a curious bite of the first ball.

"It's called hanami dango," Sanji said. "The green and pink ones are traditionally made with yomogi grass and sakura buds, but I made do with matcha and a bit of strawberry juice."

"Sanji! Did you make any-"

"No, Luffy, I didn't make niku dango. That's a completely different food."

"Shoot. These are still good though. And it's cool that Zoro's serving them!" Luffy said, only now sparing his pet a glance that his cheeks were full.

Sanji grinned. "Yep. His furniture debut is going fabulously so far. First an ashtray, now a table."

"Handy that he's such a big guy, then," Usopp mused around his own dango. "I'd be worried about a tray like this toppling if the table was small."

"Sanji! Can I feed him?" Luffy asked excitedly.

"He's your pet, captain," the cook rejoined, lighting up a cigarette. "Do what you like with him. I just needed a table."

With the enthusiasm of a child offering a leaf to a bug, Luffy held out a dango skewer in front of Zoro's face. The swordsman chewed the sticky dough, closing his eyes to take in the flavor. It was sweet, but not enough to repel him. Beat the hell out of cigarette ash, anyway. He opened his mouth for another, but the stick was already empty.

"Luffy!" Usopp scolded. "You couldn't let him have more than one?"

"Sorry," Luffy said, already grabbing three more skewers. "He took so long to eat that one that I wasn't sure if he even wanted the other two."

"He ate it in like, three seconds. Well, gives me a chance to feed him at least. There there, kitty, I won't let you starve," Usopp cooed, offering the rest of his own dango while keeping a watchful eye for thieving hands. The other flavors were similarly unremarkable, but it was nice to be hand-fed. Especially when Usopp started petting him.

"Shi shi shi, Zoro kinda looks like the little green dango," Luffy snickered.

"And he's just as sweet," Usopp said in a cartoonishly cutesy voice, batting his eyelashes. Luffy rocked back and cackled with his mouth full.

"Disgusting as usual today, are we?" Nami sighed as she came down the steps. "The only thing worse than talking with your mouth full is whatever that is."

"I couldn't agree more, Nami-dear," Sanji schmoozed, stomping Luffy's head into the deck like a hammer on mochigome.

The navigator took a skewer of dango and chewed quietly, humming in enjoyment. The humming stopped when she peered down at Zoro, still on his hands and knees.

"Sanji-kun…" Nami asked sweetly, "where are Zoro's knee pads? You didn't let him walk on his knees, while weighed down by a tray of food, on the wooden floor, right…?"

"Ah− well, Nami-san, that− it really was a very short walk, and−" Sanji stammered, gesticulating nervously while backing away. She advanced on him, empty dango skewer in hand.

"Why don't you come with me for a little while? I need help deciding where I'm gonna shove this," the domme said, grabbing her slave by the arm and striding to the girl's quarters. 

"That seemed like a little much," Zoro muttered. "My knees are fine."

"Well, you know how Nami is," Usopp said with a shrug. "If she's in the mood to punish him, she'll come up with something."

"Why did she need help deciding where to put the stick? She can just put it back on the…" Chopper started, then his eyes widened. "Nami, no! Whatever it is you're gonna do, stop! I have a very strong suspicion that it's something really bad!!!"

The doctor chased after them at top speed.

Zoro felt a rubbery thumb against his cheek. Luffy was smiling down at him like a benevolent god like a really happy guy. "Zoro asked to play with Sanji?"

He nodded.

"And he took good care of you?"

Zoro nodded again.

Luffy's smile widened. "I'm so glad."

"I'm glad too, captain," Zoro said, melting under the happiness of his Master.

"And I'm glad three," Usopp interjected. "Y'know, in case you were wondering."

Luffy started laughing again, echoing beautifully over the waters. The sound of laughter. The sensation of the platter on his back, reminding him of his purpose. The taste of ash and dango. 

Zoro had a feeling he'd remember this day for a long time.

Chapter Text

"SANJI!!!" Luffy yelled, jolting Zoro awake from an amazing dream about...damn. There it went. "I GOT A CIGARETTE FROM NAMI!!! CAN YOU DO THE THING NOW!!?"

Zoro yawned, his eyes instinctively following his captain as he bounded across the deck, Chopper following behind. The cook was on his knees, scrubbing at a blood stain with a soapy brush. Like he usually did while cleaning, he was wearing a simple cotton dress. Something about a North Blue fairy tale.

"FIVE MINUTE SMOKE BREAK, BITCH! USE IT OR LOSE IT!" Nami called from the tangerine grove.

"THANK YOU, MISTRESS!" Cook shouted back.

Great, let's all yell, Zoro thought grumpily.

"C'mon, Sanji, show us the thing!" Luffy waved the cigarette in the other's face. Chopper was literally bouncing up and down.

"Alright, alright, settle down." Sanji set down the scrubber and tilted his head back, letting Luffy rest the cigarette on the bridge of his nose.

"Stay…staaaaaaaay…" the captain said, holding up his palms. "Now!"

Sanji tilted his head down slightly, letting the cigarette roll downward, before sharply flicking it back up to send it sailing into the air. With practiced ease, he caught it perfectly between his lips, filter-side out.

"So cool!" Chopper and Luffy cried with stars in their eyes, just as they always did. For the life of him, Zoro didn't know what was so amazing about it. The cook did way cooler shit while fighting.

"Sanji-puppy knows so many neat tricks!" Luffy said, ruffling the other's hair.

Sanji smirked as he lit the fag. "Naturally. What kind of show dog would I be without a few crowd-pleasers?"

The whole "show dog" thing had come from their stop at Logue Town. Zoro had been busy looking for a sword shop at the time, but apparently they give you a giant tuna if you do a good enough job at prancing around like an asshole. The blue ribbon was still affixed to the fridge.

There was more ooh-ing and aah-ing, probably over some kind of fancy smoke ring trick, but Zoro was already rolling over to go back to sleep. Not like it mattered to him. At all. Didn't affect him whatsoever.

Yeah, okay, so he was full of shit.

Zoro's whole "pet" thing had a snag. He was a cat, certainly− took to that like a fish to water− but that wasn't all he was. However… the crew already had a puppy. An experienced one. And while Zoro was usually happy to compete with the ero-cook, no matter the handicap, this was one fight he was scared reluctant to lose. If he wasn't good at tricks, if his bark came out stupid, if his walk was too awkward and ungainly…why would they ever want to play with him if Sanji was right there?

Being a kitty was much safer. Besides, he liked it. There was no reason to humiliate himself by extending beyond his scope. It was just…a little disappointing, knowing there were some things he'd just have to keep to himself. But Zoro could deal.

-

On a small ship, night watch tended to be the only time and place that offered a reasonable amount of privacy. With the others asleep below deck and the crashing waves to drown you out (for the most part), you could indulge yourself for those spare hours during your shift. Zoro was pretty sure most of the crew used that time to jerk off. He didn't.

"Woof."

"Rrr-uff!"

"Aough-Aough!"

At first he went about it methodically, working through a range of pitches and tones. Should he aim for realism, or go for something cute like "wan-wan?" Was it okay if it sounded like Sanji's, or should he make an effort to differentiate? 

Eventually, though, he stopped putting much thought into it. One after another, his barks escaped into the night air, shifting minutely until it settled into something comfortable and natural. He was just doing it to do it, not worrying whether it-

"Oh, Zoro! So that noise was you after−WAAAUGH!!" 

Zoro whirled around at the sudden noise, swords drawn and ready for blood. He successfully scared the everloving shit out of Usopp who then cowered behind the lip of the crow's nest.

"I-I-I was just coming up to relieve you for night watch I swear, please don't kill me I'm sorry for interrupting you just please spare my life I have a wife and four beautiful−"

"Usopp. Relax." Zoro wasn't sure which was more embarrassing−being caught making dog noises to himself or having so little awareness of his surroundings. If Usopp were an enemy, he'd probably be dead.

"You got it. Relaxing. Pulse slowing as we speak," the sniper said weakly as he climbed into the crow's nest. "Uh…you okay?"

Zoro looked away. He was good at schooling his expression, but controlling the blood flow to his cheeks was still a work in progress. "Fine. It's nothing."

"I get it," Usopp said, sliding down to get comfortable on the wooden floor. "You were practicing your bark and didn't want anyone to hear it before it was ready, right?" When Zoro said nothing in response, he continued. 

"For what it's worth, I like what you have so far.  Uh−but− I swear I'll purge it from my memory! And I'll act super surprised when you unveil it for real!"

Something in Zoro's gut tightened. 

"I'm not unveiling anything. This was− it was just a mistake."

This was dumb. Why did he care so much? Sanji was the crew's dog. Zoro had been there for longer, but he'd wasted his headstart. The slot was filled. There was no point practicing something that no one was ever going to hear.

Usopp frowned. "What's a mistake?"

Damn. He was asking for it with that half-baked answer. Skillful verbal evasion wasn't his strong suit, so instead he started climbing out the crow's nest. First watch over.

But a hand grabbed his wrist to halt him.

"Zoro," Usopp said. His tone was even and serious. "I know you like to deal with things by yourself. But we all agreed, together, in writing, that communication is everything. If you can't talk about it with me, then talk about it with someone else. But you don't get to sit on it. Not with this stuff."

Zoro could easily just lie and say he'd talk about it later. Or insist that it really was nothing. But…he was supposed to be good, wasn't he? They had rules, and Zoro had to obey them if he wanted to be a good boy. And good boys didn't lie.

"...Does Luffy really need two dogs?" he asked. His tone was cowardly. Faltering. Maybe that's why Usopp seemed to understand straightaway.

"Nobody needs two dogs, Zoro. Nobody even needs one dog. You get pets because they're cute and fun to have as a companion− and because it feels good to take care of something and watch it thrive. Some people are satisfied with one pet, some people go crazy with it. Back in Syrup Village, one of the grannies had six cats. She didn't need any of 'em, I can tell you that much.

"And Luffy? You know Luffy better than any of us. Has he ever said 'hmm, we could have more of this thing, but we don't need it, so let's be practical and stick with just one.' No! He's a greedy bastard! He tries to steal our dinners every day because he already ate his and wants more! 

"Sanji's a great puppy. And we love her a lot. We also love you. There's no reason you couldn't both be puppies. In fact, Sanji's been talking my ear off about how excited he is to play with you."

"He is?" Nami had mentioned something like that, but Zoro figured it was more of a hypothetical than a reality.

Usopp grinned. "He's got this whole thing in his head about teaching you how to do things the way an older dog teaches a pup. And which toys she's willing to share and which ones we need to get just for you. It's actually really cute. He'll go on and on, and then catch herself and say something like 'or whatever. Not like I care what that marimo does!'"

Zoro had to chuckle a little at the goofy impression with a mimed cigarette.

"Anyway. To wrap it up in a bow…Luffy would be delighted to have two dogs. We all would. And if we don't have two, that's okay, but your reason had better be something like 'I don't want to' and not some weird self-doubting bullshit. Leave the self-doubting bullshit to the professionals!" Usopp declared, gesturing grandly at himself as if he hadn't just said something concerning. That was a discussion that probably needed to be had in the near future.

"I know saying all that doesn't magically solve everything. But really, I feel like you just need a little confidence. Maybe some practice in a safe place would help?" Usopp offered. 

"...Whatd'you mean 'safe?'"

"Well, no one would bother you in my workshop," the sniper said. "And I wouldn't mind the company."

His "workshop" was the fore gun deck. After one too many Luffy-related incidents, the necessity for a secluded space where Usopp could work on his inventions in peace became apparent. No one but Usopp was allowed in there− mostly because Luffy would whine about being left out otherwise.

"Is that okay?" Intruding on the other's space for something like this felt like a lot to ask.

"Of course it is. I'm not a Dom or anything, but you're still my pet, not to mention my friend. If there's something I can do to help care for you, then I want to do it."

"Thanks. I'm in your care, then."

"...Yeah, no problem," Usopp said, sounding a little awkward. The silence stretched between them, which Zoro generally didn't mind, but it was clearly making the sniper uncomfortable.

"I'm gonna-" Zoro pointed down at the deck.
"Yeah, go ahead, I got it from here," Usopp replied.

His night watch was over, but Zoro barely slept a wink, mind reeling with "what-ifs."

-

They'd started their little "practice sessions" the very next day. Sometimes Usopp petted him or went through simple tricks, but most of the time he just sketched and tinkered at his desk. Zoro appreciated the lack of scrutiny. If only he could stop scrutinizing himself.

Finding pet space was harder than he'd expected. It was one thing to curl up on a cushion and sarcastically meow at people, but trying to actually get out of his head and let himself be…rambunctious…was something else entirely. Zoro remembered the number of times he'd internally rolled his eyes at the cook bouncing around and yipping excitedly in broad daylight− only now did he appreciate how impressive it was to reach that point of unself-consciousness.

He wanted to play. He really, really wanted to play, but every time he started nosing a tennis ball around or chewing on one of Curly's old (heavily sanitized) toys, a little voice would remind him how stupid he looked.  Like he was trying to be something he wasn't.

Zoro sighed, dropping back down on the little nest of blankets in the corner. Maybe this kind of thing just wasn't meant for someone like him. Reality was just disappointing sometimes. Your first time having sex isn't that great, punches don't make loud and satisfying ka-pow noises, and your dream of being a puppy is just a dream.

"You okay, puppy? You look a little down," Usopp asked from his chair. Zoro just grunted. He didn't really feel like talking.

The sniper got up and crossed the room, bending over to put his hands on his knees. "Poor thing, did you get lonely? Was I ignoring you too much?"

Zoro shook his head, a little confused. He was pretty sure Usopp knew what was bothering him. Why was he pretending otherwise?

"I thought so!" the liar said brightly. "Well, it's a good time for me to take a break anyway. Let's play!"

"I can't," Zoro muttered, but he was mostly focused on Usopp blatantly misinterpreting his head shake. What was going on?

"Sorry, what was that? I didn't think dogs used words," Usopp said, cocking his head in mock confusion. It wasn't anything close to a reprimand, but Zoro still felt a little cowed.

"W-woof," he barked softly. It was stilted and way too quiet, but Usopp beamed like it was the best bark he'd ever heard.

"Good boy!" He shouted with delight. "Let's see, what do we want to play…ah! How about this?"

Usopp held up a rubber ball. It had a little bell inside that jingled loudly when it rattled around. Like Sanji's other noise-making toys, Luffy's overuse had gotten it banned. 

Zoro had always liked the jingling sound. It reminded him of the way his earrings chimed, and he'd been happy to see it had been squirreled away in the workshop instead of tossed overboard. It was one of the first toys he'd tried to play with.

The look on Zoro's face was likely not very positive, but Usopp continued to ignore it in favor of shaking the ball, making it jingle. In spite of himself, the swordsman's eyes tracked the movement.

"You ready, boy?" Usopp reared back, aiming toward the opposite corner of the room. "Fetch!"

The ball bounced along the floor and against the wall before rolling to a stop. Zoro watched it almost helplessly. He was supposed to go get it. He wanted to go get it. But he'd already missed his cue, and he still wasn't good at moving quickly on all fours, even with Sanji's spare knee pads. It would just be awkward to get it now.  In the back of his head, a tiny voice wondered if Usopp just wanted to embarrass him.

Usopp turned back to face him, eyebrows furrowed together. Zoro wanted to sink into the blankets. He'd messed up. Usopp probably thought he was being bad on purpose, or simply didn't care. The submissive hunched his shoulders a little and whined, trying to show how sorry he was. It wasn't Usopp's fault that he was bad at this.

But the sniper wasn't angry with him. Actually, he looked almost sheepish.

"Sorry, puppy, I forgot that I didn't teach you that one yet. Poor guy, you're all like 'what do you want from me, dude?' Let's start from the beginning."

He turned back around and retrieved the ball himself. Again, Usopp was intentionally misinterpreting what was going on. As the guilt eased, Zoro slowly began to understand. Usopp was playing a game that Zoro couldn't lose.

"C'mere, boy!" The sniper called, patting his knees despite being all of four feet away. "If you wanna play, you gotta come here!"

Zoro rose to his hands and knees, slowly and deliberately crossing the short distance. He'd had enough experience in the bedroom to know how to make that look good. Sexy, even. That was definitely lost on Usopp, though.

"There we go. Good job!" From seemingly nowhere, the man pulled out a bag of shredded squid jerky and offered a small piece. Zoro gently took it between his teeth and chewed, savoring the rich umami.

"Yummy, huh? You can have another one, but you gotta take this first." Usopp held the bag behind his back and offered the ball. "Paws or mouth, whichever you prefer." 

Zoro opened wide, taking the rubber ball between his jaws. As with most things that weren't steel, he had to remind himself not to bite down too hard.

"Good! Now drop it…" Usopp commanded gently, tilting up the last two words expectantly. Zoro let go, allowing the ball to drop to the floor.

"Good boy! Oh, such a good boy, Zoro!" he gushed, rubbing the submissive's head with one hand and offering a second treat with the other. Zoro found himself grinning as he chewed. This game was great.

"Okay, now stay…stay…" Usopp held up one palm and stepped backward several paces. "Good. Can you bring the ball to me?"

Easy enough. Zoro dropped his head to grab the ball between his teeth and crawled forward. It made a light jingling sound as he went. When he reached Usopp, the man held out his palm. "Drop it…"

Zoro dropped the ball into his hand, feeling only slightly self-conscious about the drool left behind.

"Very good! Yosh-yosh-yosh," Usopp praised, offering a larger piece of squid this time. As he chewed, Zoro noticed a strange feeling in his stomach, like there was a firefly or something inside him. Taking in Usopp's praise and treats was making it glow brighter, sending a weird, good feeling through his body.

"Okay, puppy, are you ready to try something new?" the sniper asked, gently waving the ball to get Zoro's attention. The submissive nodded, unconsciously dropping his chest in a play bow. The glowy feeling was making him excited to see what would happen next.

"You see the ball? When I throw it, you have to bring it back, okay? If you can do it in…hm," Usopp rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "three seconds, you'll get an extra big treat. You think you can do it?"

Zoro barked excitedly, practically vibrating in place from the glowy feeling. He could do it. He could do anything!

"Ready…fetch!" Usopp tossed the ball gently, just a little to Zoro's left. The swordsman didn't even let it hit the floor. In one swift lunge, he snatched it from the air with his jaws, landing gracefully on all fours. He bounded back to Usopp, triumphant. Less than a second.

"You caught it! That's amazing!" the sniper cheered, taking the ball back and tossing the largest piece of squid yet. Zoro caught it in his mouth just like he had with the ball. "That was your first 'fetch,' Zoro! And you did so well! You're such a clever boy, learning so fast!"

Objectively, Zoro really hadn't done anything that impressive, but Usopp clearly thought differently. The glowiness felt the same way, growing with each new praise until it overwhelmed him. With nowhere for the energy to go, it exploded out of him in sheer excitement.

Zoro pounced onto Usopp, barking excitedly and kissing whatever he could reach. The poor sniper was knocked back on his ass, laughing breathlessly and tilting his head back to dodge the swordsman's eager tongue. He rubbed and petted Zoro's hair, face, arms, leaving happy glowy feelings and the scent of gunpowder wherever his hands went.

"Awww, my doggy loves me a whole lot, huh? I get it, I'm pretty much the best, right?" Usopp beamed proudly. 

Zoro barked a loud affirmative before immediately going back on the attack, pinning him down to the floor and licking his face furiously. He tasted like jojoba oil.

"Oi, don't get me wrong, this is super adorable…but you're so heavy. And you have squid breath," Usopp complained, squirming and pushing at Zoro's face. "Down, boy!"

Reluctantly, Zoro settled back on his haunches, still bouncing with excitement. Distantly, he could feel his tongue hanging out of his mouth as he panted.

"Glad to see you're finally having fun," Usopp laughed as he got back to his feet, rubbing saliva off of his face. "I'm guessing you wanna play some more?"

"Woof!"

"Thought so. Ready…fetch!"

-

After breaking that first barrier, it got easier and easier. The old toys were thoroughly tested, and new ones started joining the roster. Zoro's favorite was the fishing pole with different attachments at the end of the line. Sometimes he was pouncing after colorful streamers, other times sea kings with little squeakers or treats inside. One attachment was a cloth doll of Sanji, created upon Zoro's request. Usopp had hemmed and hawed over whether that was mean, but gave in when the swordsman pointed out the cook's heavily-chewed green "marimo" ball. 

Exploring pet space and what it meant to him had taught Zoro a lot. For example, how enmeshed his kitty and puppy selves were. He'd agonized over it for a while, trying to create solid borders between the two, until Usopp successfully convinced him there was no need.

"If Sanji can be a girl and a boy at the same time, why can't you be a cat and a dog at the same time?"

Zoro couldn't argue with this logic, and so he learned to let himself meow and bark as the mood struck him.

After only a few more days of "training," Zoro was ready to share this part of himself with the rest of the crew. As he probably should've expected, they welcomed him with open arms− especially Luffy, who'd been deprived of his favorite source of entertainment for a few hours each day. Talks were had about a formal introduction between Sanji-puppy and himself. Really, it was better than he could've hoped for.

"Hey. Nami said you wanted to show me something?" Zoro hovered at the doorway of the workshop, unsure if he was still allowed to enter now that training was over. Usopp waved him in.

"I know we haven't had any luck so far with these islands," the man said, leaning back against his desk with one arm behind his back.. "So, uh…here. Figured this was better than nothing. Just until we find a proper shop."

Slowly, as though it pained him to do so, Usopp revealed his hand. In it was a simple black collar with a double strap, allowing for a D-ring and a tag. Just eyeballing it, Zoro could tell it was his size.

Zoro looked down at the collar, taking it in his hands. "You made this?"

"Yeah," Usopp said, looking embarrassed. "The material's from an old purse strap−sorry, I know you wanted green− I just trimmed and sewed it to make top and bottom straps. Then I fed through a metal rod and bent it with pliers for the ring. And then the tag is just a spare weld tab."

He looked at the tag. Rather than being engraved, his name was scratched on the surface in jagged letters. There were a lot of scratches− it had clearly taken a lot of time and work to gouge it deep enough to be readable.

"I know it looks…really rough…but it's just a placeholder. But obviously you don't have to wear it, I totally understand, it's pretty cheap leather so it probably wouldn't be comfortable either, and besides, you definitely deserve something a lot nicer," Usopp mumbled. His hands were twitching like he was ready to grab it back.

"Can you put it on me?" Zoro asked. Usopp blinked.

"Really? You're…wearing it?"

Zoro scowled at him. "That's what it's for, right? Why wouldn't I wear it?"

"Right. Yeah. Okay. I just… I dunno, even if you− I just thought you'd want Luffy to do that, or maybe put it on your-"

"No. You do it."

"Okay, okay, jeez…" 

Zoro knelt on the floor, closing his eyes to better take in the sensations. Usopp's soft hands brushed against the sensitive skin of his throat as he looped and buckled the collar. The sniper's fingers slipped underneath to check the fit. Secure, but not tight. The solid metal of the weld tab weighed it down slightly, placing gentle pressure on the back of neck. Finally, finally, he was collared.

"Thank you," Zoro sighed, falling forward to drop his head against Usopp's chest. "I love it already."

He could feel the nervous laughter as well as he heard it. "You don't have to say that. I know it's a slipshod job."

"You're kinda pissing me off," Zoro grumbled. "You made somethin' just for me and keep trying to shit on it. I don't get it. Curly never does that when he cooks for us."

"Sanji's a good cook."

"And you're a good craftsman. I don't know anybody who can make all the different things you do. I like the collar, deal with it." He punctuated his point by aggressively nuzzling against Usopp's chest. Maybe the idiot could absorb his affection with enough sheer force.

"Okay, easy! You're gonna break my ribs with that thick fivehead of yours," Usopp wheezed dramatically. 

Zoro was in a good enough mood that he was willing to let that one slide. 

"Just…thanks. For all of it. You were amazing." he mumbled into Usopp's shirt.

"...Of course. I was happy to do it," Usopp said, and Zoro thought he could read the awkwardness in it this time. It was the silent utterance of the words Usopp didn't say, all the lies he told himself that only he believed. Since they weren't said aloud, Zoro couldn't tell him that they weren't true.

"Is it okay if I still visit you here sometimes?" he asked. "Not just for pet stuff. I promise I'll be quiet."

"Uh… sure. If you want to." Zoro could almost hear it that time, that quiet 'why would you want to?' 

Because I like being around you, stupid. Because you're my friend. But without the question, he couldn't really give the answer. 

So he licked Usopp's cheek instead.

"Okay, we really need to have a conversation about that, because if you try to lick Nami she might actually kill you. Learn human kisses for your health and safety."

"Mm. I'll think about it."

"Don't think about it, do about it!" Usopp exclaimed, but if he said anything else, Zoro wasn't listening. He was warm and cozy and soothed by the collar around his neck, and it was making him sleepy. He dozed off to the scent of jojoba oil and gunpowder.

Chapter Text

The walk back to the Merry from Mocktown was done in complete silence, broken only once the other crew members caught sight of them.

"Woah! What happened to you guys!?" Usopp startled, taking in the bloody and bedraggled Zoro and Luffy returning to the ship. "Was there a warlord on that island or something!? Are we under attack!!?"

"AAAGHHH! There's so much blood! Somebody get a doctor!!"

"That's you, Chopper," Zoro said, rubbing away some of the blood dripping into his eye. "And no. Just a few lowlifes, Usopp. Nothing to worry about."

"A few lowlifes did this? To you two?" Sanji asked skeptically, eyeing their swollen faces and dripping cuts. "How the hell does that happen?"

"Yes, Luffy," Nami asked. Her voice was dripping with venom. "How does that happen?"

Zoro tried not to wince. Cold fury had been silently radiating off of the navigator since they'd left the bar, and he couldn't exactly blame her for it. No way in hell would he have disobeyed a direct order from his captain, but that had been a hard one to swallow.

"These idiots who didn't believe in dreams tried to start something," Luffy said confidently. "We didn't give 'em the satisfaction."

The other crew members blinked at him in confusion. Chopper returned with his kit and a wet cloth, beckoning the two to sit so he could clean off the blood.

"Sorry, correct me if I'm wrong here−" Usopp asked hesitantly, "Did you let a group of idiots beat the tar out of you…because fighting back would 'give them the satisfaction?' Am I missing something here?"

"No, that's really all there is to it," Nami said. "They mocked us, humiliated us, and physically attacked the two of them, and Luffy just took it. And told Zoro to take it. Who, of course, obeyed."

"He's the captain. What he says goes," Zoro said thickly. He cleared his throat and swallowed down something metallic.

"That doesn't give him license to treat us like shit," Nami said sharply. Her voice was shaking more and more, slowly losing that icy control.

"They weren't worth it!" Luffy insisted, but he sounded less confident.

"I don't know what that means, Luffy. Most of the time I have no idea what goes on in your head, and I've made my peace with that, but whatever logic you're running with needs checked. Big time." She jabbed her finger in Luffy's chest, ignoring Chopper's squeak of alarm.

"Fine. I did what Shanks would do. A real man can laugh it off and not fight when he gets insulted, so that's what I did! If ya got a problem with it, ya got a problem with Shanks!" Luffy yelled, crossing his arms.

"Is that right?" Nami asked shakily. "Is that what Shanks would do?

"I watched you stand there and let Bellamy kick Zoro so hard in the face that he was sent flying, because you told him that he couldn't defend himself. Then that scumbag offered to buy me and you didn't say a goddamn word.  If Red-Haired Shanks is the kind of man who lets people do that to his crew, then I wish I'd never repaired that hat."

Luffy stayed silent. 

Nami wasn't done.

"Look at him, Luffy," she said, gesturing to Zoro. Luffy did. The swordsman felt oddly self-conscious about the blood on his face. "That's your first mate. Your friend. Your submissive, for fuck's sake. Now look at yourself.  What do you think it's like for a guard dog to have to just stand there while his Master gets beaten bloody? For a man who takes pride in protecting us and never backing down from a fight?"

Zoro wanted to come to Luffy's defense, say relax, it's fine, but he couldn't. Because it wasn't fine, even if he was too proud to admit it. Too proud and too hopelessly loyal. But Nami was right. Intentionally losing a fight and forcing himself not to protect his Master hurt like hell. The physical injuries were nothing in comparison.

"No," Luffy finally said. "Shanks wouldn't have done that. He doesn't forgive anyone who messes with his friends."

"That sounds closer to the truth," Nami said. Her voice was thick with angry tears. "I'm not really in the mood to forgive you right now, either. You let those men humiliate me and hurt my precious cat. So why don't you stay out of my sight while I navigate us through your little goose chase, hm?"

She stalked away, Sanji immediately following to comfort her.

Usopp stayed to help Chopper treat the two's wounds, replacing the bowl of water when it ran red.

"...It looks worse than it is, right?" Luffy asked Chopper, who was treating Zoro's injuries.

"I'm pulling splintered wood out of his head, Luffy," the little reindeer said tremulously. It was difficult to tell if he was angry or just upset in general that his friends were hurt. Either way, it hurt Zoro's heart to be the cause of his distress. Sure, he pissed off the doctor all the time by training when he was supposed to rest, but this was different.

"But Zoro's really tough! He's had way worse before! This isn't so bad, right?" Luffy asked, almost sounding desperate.

Zoro opened his mouth to agree. There was a lot of blood, but head wounds bled a lot. It was just a few cuts and bruises. Before he could say anything, Usopp put a hand over his mouth.

"Don't try to let him off the hook, puppy. We don't want to hear it right now." The sniper didn't sound nearly as angry as Nami, but he clearly wasn't happy either.

They set sail once Robin returned from her excursion, bringing with her a lead on someone who might know more about Sky Island. The atmosphere was tense, even if Nami was slightly mollified by the new map and promise of information. Luffy had wisely decided to quietly stay put on Merry's figurehead until things died down.

As for himself, Zoro was lost. His loyalty was to his Master, but also the crew. These two things had never been at odds before, and it left the submissive reeling. Should he sit with Luffy in solidarity? He wasn't nearly as upset about the whole thing as everyone else− just a small pang in his gut when he remembered watching someone break a beer bottle over Luffy's head. Or the vile things those men had said to Nami. Or how they retreated in disgrace.

Okay, maybe less of a pang and more of an ache. A throbbing ache. That also made him a little nauseous. And there was a lump in his throat. That was weird.

The weirdness was starting to morph into an old, familiar feeling that Zoro could never describe as anything beyond 'bad.' When he felt this way, he liked to find somewhere warm, safe, and comfortable. They had a little time before they reached this Noland guy, so Zoro climbed below deck and settled in for a nap in his hammock.

But sleep wouldn't come.

Instead, unpleasant thoughts came and went like flowing water. 

Mock Town might've had a place that sold pet supplies, but we didn't even look. How long will it be before we get another chance? 

Luffy almost started a fight with that guy over pie.What made those jackasses so different? Because that Bellamy guy said it was a test? Since when does Luffy care about that stuff?

I betrayed Nami. I should've defended her honor, but I didn't. And she got upset on my behalf anyway. Why didn't I thank her? Or apologize?

I promised Luffy that I would never lose again. Whether or not it was his will, I still broke that promise to him.

Why am I so fixated on this? A good pet doesn't need to question his Master's decisions. Why can't I let it go?

Why isn't anyone checking on me? I thought they cared, but now I'm all alone. 

That last thought hit him like a kick in the gut. It was so selfish−childish, even. He was a grown man responsible for so many deaths, he'd long since lost count. He was the Demon of the East Blue. And now he was pouting in his hammock because no one was checking on him. He didn't need to be checked on. He didn't deserve to be checked on.

It was just like those walks of shame from back then. The delicious high of a good scene, then the horrible low when he was given his clothes and shown the door. He'd felt unbearably needy then, too. Sometimes he'd be miserable for days if he didn't have Johnny and Yosaku around to comb his hair and sleep on either side of him. That clinginess was the worst part of being a sub.

Maybe he could just distract himself with some training. He got out of his hammock and started for the hatch…only for Chopper to open it.

"There you are!" the little doctor said. "I wanted to talk to you for a second. Is that okay?"

Zoro shrugged and waited for the other to climb down. The soupy haze inside him overpowered any opinion he had about anything. Chopper took his hand in his hoof and guided them toward the comfy couch, looking a little nervous as he did so.

"I just wanted, um…to say…as your doctor, this dynamic stuff has made me really happy," Chopper started, eyes on his hooves that kicked idly over the edge of the seat. "It's only been a few weeks, but there's already been so much improvement in your health! You're sleeping better, you aren't drinking as much, you have a lot more energy− even your skin looks clearer! Doctor Hiruluk and Doctorine always told me that patients with dynamics are at their healthiest when engaging with them, but I never realized it made that much of a difference!"

Was that true? He hadn't felt terribly different, though he also had never given his health that much thought beyond 'in fighting shape' vs 'not in fighting shape.'

"But…" the reindeer trailed off, voice wobbling, "I didn't know that…this kind of stuff could happen. The injuries weren't bad this time, but…Z-Zoro, as your doctor, I− I have to− I can't in good conscience, um−"

"Chopper," Zoro interrupted, hoping to head off a few tears. "It's alright. This didn't happen because of my dynamic. It happened because our captain is stupid and I'm just as stupid. You don't have to give doctor's orders, okay?"

"OH, TH-THA-THANK GOODNESS!!! ZOROOOO!!!!" Chopper sobbed loudly, practically collapsing where he sat.

The swordsman quickly took the reindeer into his arms. Being Chopper's go-to for nightmares, it was practically muscle memory to do so. As he cradled him against his chest, Zoro tried to piece together this outburst. That was way more than just a few tears−what was going on? Was talking about dynamic stuff really that hard for him?

Come to think of it, Chopper was the only member of the crew not part of Zoro's dynamic. The little doctor was still part of their crew− their family, to more accurately put it− but that degree of separation would always be there. It was present enough that trying to give doctor's orders was a stressful experience for Chopper, when it never had been before. Zoro didn't like that. Maybe they shouldn't have been so quick to shoo him out of the room during negotiations as if he didn't belong there. Maybe Zoro wasn't the only one feeling shitty down here.

He rubbed his Chopper's back and removed his hat to better cradle his fuzzy little head. Not for the first time, Zoro marveled at how incredibly soft and squeezable he was. He felt a little guilty for getting so much enjoyment out of his friend's tears, but frankly it was Chopper's fault for being so perfectly designed for snuggling.

Eventually, the sniffles died down, and Chopper peered up at him with wide, watery eyes. "Y-you're not just saying that, right?"

"No, Chop. I'm telling the truth." Dynamic or no, Zoro couldn't picture a universe where he didn't listen to his captain. It was probably going to get him killed, but hey, it had gotten him this far.

Chopper sighed in relief. "Okay, that's good. But! You really shouldn't let people beat you up!"

"Got it. Won't do it again, doctor," Zoro assured him. Sure, he would always listen to his captain, but he wasn't going to blindly obey.

 "Calling me 'doctor' isn't gonna make me happy or anything, you bastard!" Chopper giggled, squirming with obvious delight and half-heartedly fighting the noogie Zoro gave him.

Is this what it's like to have a kid? …Wait, do I want kids?

He tabled that thought for later.

"Listen, Chopper…" Zoro started, petting him more gently once again. "I want you to know you're part of this too. Not 'part-of-it' part of it, but…when I say I belong to this crew, that also means you. So don't feel like it's not your place to talk about this stuff, okay? If you have questions, or you're worried, or there's a change you wanna see happen, we'll listen."

If the others were here, they'd probably make some kind of snarky remark about his careful words being oh-so-uncharacteristic. As if Zoro wasn't capable of being thoughtful or reassuring. Fuck them. He was damn thoughtful when he wanted to be.

"Thanks…" Chopper said, smiling a little. "I don't understand a lot of it, but I don't mind not understanding it. Just that− you're the type that likes to get hurt on purpose, right? That really worries me. Especially since I won't be there if it goes too far and you need help…"

"Okay, I'll stop you there. My 'hurt on purpose' is very unlikely to be the kind of 'hurt on purpose' you need to worry about. 'Specially since I have really smart Doms looking after me. They love me just like you do, y'know? They won't let it go too far." For the sake of honesty, he didn't say I won't let it go too far. If it were only up to him, Chopper would definitely have reason to worry. Mihawk slicing him open had probably been one of the most erotic experiences of his life.

"I dunno if I'd call Luffy a smart Dom…" Chopper said softly, only slightly loud enough to hear. It was obvious he wasn't comfortable saying the words, as if such a thing was simply too disrespectful.

"Yeah, no, Luffy's an idiot," Zoro quickly agreed. "But that's what the others are for, right? You saw how Nami shut him down. And the others were on the same page. Besides, I'm pretty sure he learned his lesson from that. We're all learning. So just…don't be scared, okay? It's only gonna get better from here."

Was he saying this to Chopper or himself? The reassurances that had seemed hollow and far away inside his head felt real once spoken aloud. Maybe it was a little pathetic that the words meant to comfort a naive little reindeer worked just as well on him. But that was arguably less pathetic than sulking and feeling sorry for himself, which is what he'd been doing before.

Chopper's smile widened into something more genuine. "Okay! I'll put my trust in you guys!"

"Attaboy. Let's get back up on deck, huh? Bet we're gonna meet this Noland guy any minute now. And after that…"

"The island in the sky!" Chopper shrieked in excitement, leaping off the couch and frantically tugging on Zoro's pant leg. "Come on, come on! Maybe we'll be able to see it in the clouds!"

Zoro didn't know whether sky islands were real or total bullshit. Frankly, it wasn't any of his business. He had more important things to believe in.

Chapter Text

Luffy had been excited about the grand introduction, which was exactly why he wasn't allowed to attend. The setting needed to be calm and low-key, since none of them really knew what to expect. Zoro and the cook didn't hold much real animosity for each other− if they did, the crew probably would have imploded by now. But petspace didn't leave a lot of room in your head for nuance. If Zoro and Sanji fought like cats and dogs on a normal day, what did that say about their relationship as actual cats and dogs?

But the Straw Hat crew was optimistic, and more importantly, willing to take risks. And Zoro wanted a playmate, goddammit.

After breakfast and a brief strategy meeting, they settled on the aft storage deck as neutral territory. Since Sanji had to finish the dishes, Usopp and Zoro had a chance to settle in and wait.

Usopp sat on one of the storage crates, watching Zoro amuse himself with a gunny sack full of rice. It was fun to knead, feeling and hearing the grains shift under his palms through the fabric. He could also push it and make it roll over. The shshshshsh sound of the cascading rice was very satisfying.

"I bring this huge basket with all his toys, and he wants to play with a bag of rice," the sniper groused good-naturedly.  "That's a cat for you."

Zoro paused just long enough to turn and stick his tongue out at him, then went back to it. He was still easing into that comfortable, whimsical space where things were nice and simple. Sounds and sensations. 

A gentle knock sounded on the door, startling him in the quiet. He peered at the source of the noise, and looked to Usopp for reassurance. He knew who it was and why, but his instincts in pet space sometimes put him on high alert. The downside to simplifying your world as a person with violence so deeply ingrained.

"It's alright, sweetheart. Come here to me." The sniper crooked his fingers, and Zoro quickly flattened himself against the crate where he sat, putting his body between Usopp and the door. "Just our friends saying hello, okay? Is it alright for them to come in?"

Zoro nodded, not taking his eyes off the door.

"It's open!" Usopp called. "Nice and gentle approach, okay? Kitty's feeling a little skittish."

The first to step through was Nami, with Sanji crawling behind on a leash. The puppy was wearing fluffy ears that nearly matched his hair, along with a thin little pink collar. The D-ring was heart-shaped and had a few dangling charms attached. It was cute. Usually Sanji-puppy was full of energy, bounding right by Nami's side and yipping for attention, but this time he was following calmly and silently. Even the little thuds of his kneepads and paw-mittens were rather quiet.

"How has Puppy been?" Usopp asked. "I feel like it's been a while since I've seen him, since I've been so busy with this one." He gestured at Zoro.

"Sweet as always, but more excitable than I'd like. He's having trouble keeping his paws off himself again. But," Nami added with a grin, "She's gonna be on her best behavior today. I made sure of it."

Usopp grimaced. "The cage?"

Sanji whined, as if to make clear his opinion on the matter.

"Oh hush," Nami said with an eye-roll. "You've got no one to blame but yourself."

The navigator walked slowly towards the crate, Sanji crawling behind and partially obscured by her legs. She bent down and extended her palm for Zoro to sniff.

"Hi, cutie, remember me?" Nami said, smoothing her hand over his scalp. "I've got someone special here who wants to meet you. Do you wanna say hi?"

Sanji tilted his head out past the side of her leg, eyeing him curiously as if seeing him for the first time. Zoro eyed him back. Nothing in the other's expression indicated that he was about to be attacked or made fun of. They were both taking a risk with this, after all. Showing their most vulnerable selves and trusting that the other won't use it as ammunition when they inevitably started fighting again.

He blinked slowly, and Sanji's shy interest melted into a smile.

"Why don't you show him what you were playing with, Zoro?" Usopp encouraged. "Maybe she'd like to play too."

Hesitantly, the sub crawled over to the gunny sack on the floor. Sanji followed behind after Nami unclipped the leash. Zoro pushed his fist into it, making a dent in the bag. Sanji tilted his head, then did the same. The rice shifted in the silent room.

They did this together until something like a game slowly formed. Each sat in front of one side of the bag, and would use his turn to push as much rice as he could to the other side of the bag. There were no other rules and no way to win. To anyone not in petspace, it would've been unimaginably dull.

Zoro growled. He just finished pushing all the rice to the other side, and now it was on his side again! He'd have to put a stop to that. He pawed at the bag, shifting the mass of rice beneath the fabric over and over until his side was flat and Sanji's side was big. His job done, he sat and watched as the other puppy went to work doing the same thing he did. Now the rice was on his side again! This wouldn't stand!

Suddenly, something bright and yellow flashed into the corner of his eye, diverting his attention. Ball! He hurried after the tennis ball as it bounced through the gun deck, Sanji close on his heels.

"Sorry, I know we're not supposed to interfere," someone said in the background, "but I was sick of watching them do that."

"It's fine, they need to get some energy out," a different voice said.

Despite losing the head start, Sanji ended up getting the ball first. He proudly picked it up with both paws, tucked it in his breast pocket, and crawled back to Nami, who took it and threw it again. Sanji took off, but Zoro was already in the right spot. He leapt and snatched it right out of the air with his mouth.

"Eew-" and "Good boy! What a good catch!" were said in unison. Sanji huffed through his nose in annoyance. He could huff all he wanted− Zoro had the ball!

"Okay, kitty, now you bring it back," Nami said patiently. Zoro stayed put. If he brought it back, the ball wouldn't be his.

Sanji growled in irritation, stalking forward. He was gonna try to take Zoro's ball. No way! The pet clamped it firmly between his teeth and braced for battle.

"Uh… maybe we-"

"Shh. I think they need to figure this out. We'll separate them if it goes south."

Sanji tackled him, rolling them both over and grabbing for the ball. Zoro smacked his arm away, and immediately, the pup yelped and leapt back.

Huh? Had that hurt him? It was a hard smack, but Sanji was tough. He tilted his head, assessing the cradled arm. It wasn't broken. Just a pink mark. Nothing as bad as when they fought.

Slowly, Sanji crawled back towards him, lowered his head, and nipped lightly at Zoro's own arm. It might've hurt a normal person somewhat, but it barely registered to Zoro. Little teeth marks were left behind on his skin, and Sanji licked them. Gentle. Careful.

Blue eyes looked up, wordlessly asking if Zoro understood. He woofed in response, then dropped in a play bow. The ball was still firmly lodged in his mouth. Sanji grinned, and jumped on him again.

Zoro would've never thought there'd be anything fun about fighting with so little of one's strength, but he quickly understood the appeal. It wasn't about hurting the other person, it was about the closeness. Like a hug, but more active. Rolling around on the floor, lightly pummeling his fists and snapping his teeth (the ball had been wrested away and forgotten) while Sanji did the same, was almost soothing. 

"Aw, cute!"

"Luffy! We said just us!"

Zoro immediately perked up. Master was here! He untangled himself from Sanji and followed the source of the sheepish giggling. He meowed to get the man's attention.

Luffy grinned and leaned down to pet Zoro's head. "Shi shi shi, is Zoro having fun?"

He barked in the affirmative. He was having a lot of fun! Had Luffy seen his toys yet? Had Luffy met Zoro's friend? He rubbed the side of his face against Sanji's to indicate who that was.

"You and Sanji-puppy are friends? That's great!"

"It's more than great. It's a massive relief," Usopp said with a dramatic sigh. "Can you imagine if we had to keep them apart any time that they're both pets? Nightmare."

"And now we know they can entertain each other if we're busy," Nami added. "Zoro's still learning how to play with other pups, though, so supervision might be a good idea for a while longer."

"Still learning, huh? Let's see, what about… ooh, tug of war!" Luffy's rubbery arm shot out to grab a knotted rope toy from Zoro's basket. "You guys can do that one together, right? I wanna see you guys do contest games!"

Zoro barked excitedly. He loved tug of war. When he played with Usopp, he could spin him around the room by his teeth. Which was its own kind of fun, but playing with someone as strong as he was would be great too.

"If it's supposed to be a contest, isn't Zoro at a ridiculously unfair advantage?" Usopp piped up. "Them's jaws of steel. Trust me."

"Even if it were safe for human teeth to do that, my little princess is not putting a dirty rope in her mouth," Nami said adamantly. Sanji huffed through his nose in agreement.

Stupid shitty prissy eyebrow cook. He was just scared of losing! Zoro growled and grabbed one end of the rope between his teeth, shaking it back and forth vigorously in front of the other. Sanji growled back, but didn't take the bait. Zoro advanced and shook the rope with more violence. His new goal was to whip Sanji in the face. 

"Zoro! Knock it o-"

"I know! I'll be the rope!" Luffy yelled, fully ignoring the chaos around him and interrupting Nami's reprimand. To his credit, it did make Zoro stop what he was doing.

"I'm scared to ask what that means, but I suppose I must," the sniper sighed.

"It's like this, see?" Luffy took the other end of Zoro's rope in a firm grip. Delighted, the submissive immediately began yanking backward. His Master's elastic arm stretched to accommodate each yank, but not without great effort.

"And then on this side…" Luffy's other arm snaked around Sanji's waist, wrapping around it several times. The pup looked down curiously, then yelped in surprise when Zoro tugged sharply enough to knock Luffy−and by extension Sanji− off-balance. 

"Ya see how it works?" Luffy said, clearly proud of his own genius. "Now try and pull me to your side, Sanji!"

Sanji was way ahead of him. Kicking off with his powerful legs, he lunged in the opposite direction, Luffy's torso in tow. Zoro held his ground, redoubling the force of his bite and flexing his neck tightly. He backed away on his hands and knees, stretching Luffy's wingspan just that much more and increasing the tension. The rubber man cackled with delight, just as he always did when Zoro and Sanji fought.

"I'm starting to get kind of a bad feeling about this," Usopp muttered. If Nami or anyone else responded, Zoro didn't know, because the blood in his ears was getting loud. He was fighting hard not to lose any ground, and it was exciting. He shook his head back and forth like he had before, grunting with exertion and feeling like a wild thing. Master was his!  There was no way he'd give him up! But Sanji definitely wasn't making it easy. Zoro squeezed his eyes shut, tensing every muscle he could tense to pull even harder. No matter what, Zoro was gonna win. He was gonna pull Sanji and Luffy over to his side and Sanji would have to call him the winner and Luffy would rub his head and say "Good job, kitty! You're so strong!" Zoro yanked and growled and braced and yanked−

He heard a snap. When he opened his eyes, there was a massive hole in the side of the ship. Luffy and Sanji were nowhere to be seen. A splintered bit of rope dangled from his mouth.

"Have I mentioned how much I hate being right?" Usopp moaned with his head in his hands.

Zoro whined in distress, realizing what had happened.

"It's alright, kitty, you didn't know any better," Nami sighed, looking similarly miserable. "Come on, let's check the seas from out on deck. I'm sure they're both fine. You got the repairs, Usopp?"

The sniper just moaned again.

They did turn out to be just fine. Sanji had managed to keep Luffy's head above water and doggy-paddled them both back to the ship. He didn't even lose those stupid fake ears since they were so tightly pinned to his head. But apparently they weren't supposed to get wet, so Zoro got bitched at anyway, which then turned into a full-blown fight out on the deck. 

Great first playdate, honestly.