Props to Anyone Who Knows Where The Title Originates...

[mettathron.livejournal.com]

Part of a series of OP drabbles I'm working on-- this week's topic just gives me an excuse to start posting them. Kudos to anyone who can tell me where the title of the drabble comes from.

Title: The Custom of the Sea
Series: Morbid Curiosity
Topic: Secret Fears
Word Count: 277
Pairing: Leading to SanZo
Rating: PG





It doesn’t happen too often, but the frequency is still too high for Zoro’s comfort. Still, they are pirates, and in the end they are at the mercy of the sea. Rationing works most of the time, but there come days when they’ve been away from land a long time and that look comes to Sanji’s face. It’s a vulnerable, worried look, calculating and cautious, withdrawn from the exuberance of the rest of the crew. It means they’re almost out of food. Again.

Zoro takes to fishing while napping, but too often the things edible swim too deep and are too large to be caught so easily. Sometimes he goes after something with his swords, but often it comes to this.

They have an unspoken arrangement. When Sanji gets that look, he wakes up during Zoro’s watch and comes out to the deck, the largest of his kitchen knives in hand and old ghosts in his eye. He salutes, and dives below the waves.

Zoro’s a strong swimmer, but Sanji can dive deeper and, surprisingly, can hold his breath longer than anyone in the crew. His eyes are more adjusted to the salt in the sea; he moves through the water like a fast and deadly fish. And when he surfaces, the waves are tinted red with blood.

Zoro helps him bring the fish on board before anything else is drawn to the blood in the water and is rewarded with a bottle of rum for his aid and silence. He’ll never say it, but sometimes the swordsman sees the scarlet ocean under the silver moon and wonders if this will be the time Sanji doesn’t surface.

Comments

[lacquerdragon.livejournal.com]

Ooh. <3 I can see Zoro fearing the ocean -- he's basically the only one that didn't grow up fairly near water, except for Chopper. I can see him and Sanji having that kind of relationship, outside all their squabbles.

[lacquerdragon.livejournal.com]

Ahaha. I said "I can see" twice. Whoops. It's kinda late.

[mettathron.livejournal.com]

No worries. I'm glad it works.

[akayalovesyaoi.livejournal.com]

Very good, and very sentimental I could imagine this in real OP.

[mettathron.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much.

[mango-32.livejournal.com]

"...the largest of his kitchen knives in hand and old ghosts in his eye. He salutes, and dives below the waves."

I LOVE this line.^^ It's like Sanji's respect for the ocean.

And although the end feels a bit sad, it's still really really nice. This is so like One Piece.(I know I'm not making sense here.)

[mettathron.livejournal.com]

Thanks! It's okay, I wasn't sure I was making much sense when I wrote it, either. I'm glad you enjoyed!

[ying87.livejournal.com]

I don't know why, but this fic touches me deeply.. It's love. *hands you a cookie*

[mettathron.livejournal.com]

*nibbles cookie* Yum. Thank you!

[paxnirvana.livejournal.com]

I'm a sucker for anything Sanji-related, but this hit right in the gut as a 'real' way to get Zoro hooked on Sanji.

Loved it!

[shymagical.livejournal.com]

:waves hand: Maa maa, don't say "hooked" when it's half about fishing. XD

[mettathron.livejournal.com]

Heheh. Glad you enjoyed! I have a weakness for him, too. The series this is going to be part of are all based off events in the series that make me pause and go, "huh?" about Sanji.

[arelente2.livejournal.com]

wow. this is a real relationship between these two kinds of men. especially if driven by hunger

[mettathron.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much!

[mettathron.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much!

[monimonika.livejournal.com]

Oooh, you so got the Zoro & Sanji dynamic down pat! I absolutely love this type of drabble/fic. Makes me feel and think.

I tried a Google search, and came up with "Custom of the Sea" by Neil Hanson. Do I get props?

I've done a cannibalism themed drabble involving Sanji before (that I'm now proud of), but am really interested in the rest of your series of drabbles. (I was a Sanji-fan-at-first-sight the first time I saw the anime opening for One Piece. Yes, the opening alone was enough to make me a fan. I didn't even know his name at the time!)

[mettathron.livejournal.com]

Thanks! It was a lot of hard work because I wanted Sanji and Zoro to be as "in-character" as possible, and this is actually one of the first things I wrote. I'm so new. T-T

And yes, that's where the title comes from. I saw this title on the book in the library and wondered what it was about. Wrong thing to open right after breakfast. *hands props* To you!

Sanji seems to get a lot of stuff dealing with that taboo around him, probably because of his backstory. I also have a longer story with that theme getting posted in my journal because it's too "general" for the yaoi board and I'm too scared to post anywhere but here. The rest of this series will be out soon, as soon as I finish polishing them. I hope you'll enjoy them too!