"Zoro, kill me, please! You promised to protect me."
"Right, to protect. Not kill, you know."
"Please... I'm so, so sorry it had to be you. I know it's hard for you. I'm so sorry for appearing in your life."
Tears falling down continuously down her precious face, she closed her eyes one more time, not wanting to see the people she owed her life to. Zoro grabbed onto his sword, and Luffy glanced at him doing so, a shadow cast over his face.
"Luffy. Give him the command. Remember? When we first met, you told Zoro to kill me."
"Right...."
"Just like that. Just say the word."
It only took a few words for Zoro to take action against her, she recalled, wanting to hear the words all over again. Why won't he kill me? Why won't he just close his eyes and strike me like he had struck multiple people?
Luffy frowned hard, not knowing what to do in this situation. To order a crew mate to kill another crew mate... All these were too painful for him to handle. Losing a loved one was something Luffy knew he could not bear to witness, even if she were to come back to life. Those few split seconds, and the ambiguity of the outcome, tore his heart in pieces just by picturing it.
Zoro's grip on his sword tightened, unsure if he should do as told. He heaved a heavy sigh, looking at the woman who had strengthened him multiple folds. She was in the same position, her arms stretched out and feet rooted firmly into the ground.
"Shanks. Do it for Shanks then, Luffy. I forgot he is my father, but the witch said you were his favourite. If I come back to life, Shanks will remember me, and I can see my parents again."
"You want me to face Shanks after killing his daughter once?"
"Luffy..."
She did not know how to respond. Sanji was already on his third cigarette, he himself thinking of his terrible childhood that he did not deserve at all. Everyone watched from afar, not daring to say a word.
"Okay. Fine."
She finally put her hands down, and walked towards Zoro. Her footsteps were unstable, her eyes glued to the ground. Holding onto Zoro's right hand, she looked up at the rest of the Strawhats, forcing her voice out.
"Everyone... Let this be between us only. Luffy, I know you can't bear to watch. Please... go back to the Sunny."
No one moved an inch— the air was too tense and still, as if a single word or movement could shatter the entire earth into pieces. She averted her eyes back to Zoro, and forced the sword out of the casing by a little bit.
"Zoro. You want to be the world's greatest swordsman."
"....Yeah."
"Would he hesitate to kill a woman?"
"Yes. Not when she is his wife."
"Especially since she is your wife, Zoro. Your sword can revive a person. Do you realise that? You'll be the only swordsman who can slash a person to make them come back to life."
A little convinced by her logic, Zoro cleared his throat, turning back to see the rest of the crew mates still standing nearby. Luffy's dejected voice commanded everyone to leave, and the place was only left with Zoro and his wife.
"Zoro."
"I... I really can't."
"The sun is setting. If you don't kill me before that, I'll kill myself. Since a life of not being able to undo my curse... I'd rather die."
"Hey."
"I'm so sorry for putting you in a spot. But I'll stand here, and wait for time to pass."
Letting go of his hand, she returned to her original place, a few feet away from Zoro. The setting sun's orange, warm hues were a contrast to the cold air that surrounded them. Zoro continued staring at her, before walking towards her to grab her sword.
"I can't bear to kill you with my own sword."
"Whatever you feel the most comfortable with."
Giving him a grin, she watched Zoro place one foot in front of the other, the sword firmly in his two hands.
"I'm sure Rosie wouldn't want this, either, but."
"Thank you. See you later, Zoro."
"...I really..."
"Maybe when I open my eyes again, you'll be in love with me."
Smiling through her anxiety of feeling a pain enough to stop her heartbeat, she raised her two arms again, shutting her eyes. Zoro took in a deep breath, his arms not moving despite his heart telling him to just do it. He knew this wouldn't end without some sort of action, and he felt Rosie fit into his palm nicely, almost as if it had a mind of its own. Looking down at the sword she's decorated with yet another red ribbon, Zoro took in a deep breath, closing his eyes.
Hearing the metal clashing sound that she's heard countless times being around Zoro, she continued smiling, her body tensed up. Zoro remembered her figure— a feminine and strong body that carried more resolution than he thought a heartbroken person could have.
"Don't move."
Zoro's deep voice rang through her ears, and she swallowed her saliva, engaging every muscle in her body. Zoro could now see her figure through his closed eyes, and he located her heart accurately as if he was looking at a X-Ray. There, that spot. Rosie, guide me there. Zoro thought, putting his entire concentration into the moment.
A few seconds passed, the sun threatening to set anytime soon. Zoro only opened his eyes for a split second to make sure his target was still there, and with closed eyes, he pierced right through her heart in a second. It was swift, as fast as Luffy's voice first telling him to kill her when they first met. It took that one slash, that one moment of determination, that one moment of her desire, his promise, and the sword's direction unified into one.
She was finally dead. The one thing she desired for her entire life. A life without a mother, without a father, without friends. A life plastered with human greed, selfishness and loneliness. She fell onto the ground with a tud, and Zoro lost his fighting stance, and dropped the sword onto the ground. His eyes still closed, he began shedding tears quietly.
He could not believe he had just killed someone he thought of dearly. He could not believe he had actually used his scary precision to end the life of the innocent. This was not what he trained for, he thought, still keeping his eyes shut and falling onto the ground, not daring to look up at what he had done. The sun had already set, and Zoro was hitting his own chest at the heaviness he felt. It felt as if his capillaries and veins were twisted in the wrong direction, and no oxygen went through his body. He stayed on the ground for a considerable while, his tears stopping soon enough.
At the darkness that came with the sun's absence, Zoro dared to open his eyes a little bit, when he realised she was no longer there. There was no body or traces of blood left to remind him of his doings. He felt his heart pounding painfully again, when a soft light appeared in front of him, almost like a firefly that was floating around the place.
With teary eyes, Zoro opened his eyes fully, when a warmth embraced him from behind. It felt like the hug of a fluffy blanket on a cold, chilly day. He finally relaxed his weight into the embrace, and looked up to see her face smiling down at him, glowing like an angel.
"...Zoro."
"You... You are back!"
"I promised you."
Smiling in between tears, she muffled his face into her embrace, petting his head dearly.
"Zoro... thank you."
"You're back...."
"How hard it must have been for you, Zoro. My precious Zoro."
Treating him like a child that's been left isolated, she continued running her fingers through his hair, her movements slow and deliberate. She refused to let go of his burly body, and instead, hugged him tighter, as if she was sent to comfort the young Zoro that hadn't been able to get a lot of love.
"It's okay... it's all over. Zoro, you're safe now. No more guilt, okay?"
Bursting out in tears, Zoro weeped for a moment in her warmth, letting out all he's been hiding in the facade of being strong and indifferent. Her words reached right through his hardened heart, and Zoro stopped his crying, changing his posture to grab onto her shoulders, his eyes fixated onto her face.
"...Wow."
This was all he could muster out. She was too beautiful, like a field of roses that had bloomed in perfect weather and humidity. Her eyes carried an aura of soft charisma, and her plump lips were curled up at the ends, her nose balancing out her features perfectly. The witch was right. She was shockingly beautiful. Zoro felt an instant attraction beyond her physical beauty, as his brain played a slide show of her kindness all over again. Zoro engulfed her in his embrace, his arms tightly wrapped around her shoulders. It felt surreal to feel this much towards a woman, and Zoro expressed that by making sure he never let go of her.
"I.... I... I love you."
"Really, Zoro?"
"Yes. More than anyone else on this planet. Really, I can guarantee no one loves you more than I do."
"Zoro..."
The curse has been undone. This was all she could think of.
"The curse has been undone... because the man I still love, is telling me he loves me."
"Really? You do?"
"Yes, Zoro."
"Wow..."
All he could do was utter a word of awe. She was almost too beautiful to be true, at least in his eyes. After calming down a little, he embraced her again, taking in her tender skin that bore no hurt, and hair that gently tickled his fingertips.
She let out a chuckle, bursting out into tears again. Zoro petted her back carefully, not wanting to cause any form of hurt. She managed to stop her crying for a while, and got Zoro to stand up along with her, letting out her hand.
"The man that loves me. Care to introduce me to your crew mates?"
"You mean your crew mates?"
"Seriously. They're yours before they're mine."
"I don't care, you're mine for sure and that's all that matters."
"Zoro..."
Her eyes threatening to water again, she halted her weeping as Zoro grabbed onto her wrist, pulling her towards the Sunny. It was only a few seconds that they began running, but all of the Strawhats already had their eyes swollen, running out to give her a hug. She burst out in laughter, giving everyone a pat back. Sanji flew backwards from the nosebleed that burst out upon seeing her beauty, and Luffy's chuckle did not stop. Nami, who could not stop crying, gently hit her in the shoulder, too happy at the return of her favourite younger sister figure. Robin engulfed both of them in a hug, and Chopper climbed onto her head, wrapping his legs around it. Brook was getting his violin ready to play a tune, and Franky was near dehydration from crying too much, along with Usopp who couldn't open his eyes anymore.
"The curse is undone!"
Zoro declared excitedly, holding up his arm. Everyone else raised their arms as well, yelling "yay" in unison. She gave each and every one of them a warm hug, promising them to be useful to the crew.
"Now that you've helped me achieve my dream, I'll help you achieve yours. After all, Shanks... my dad, won't be able to say no to me, and that's a big bonus, right?"
"Yeah! Your memory is back. And so is mine. Ms Pretty, let's go and get Shanks to have an alliance with us! Just like us and Tra-guy. It'll be fun."
"Sure. He won't be able to say no to you either, Luffy."
"I don't know. But... I can't wait to see him again. Let's go!"
Luffy's smile shined brighter than the light coming from the Sunny, and she nodded along, giving Luffy a tight hug. Zoro watched for a while, before separating the two.
"By the way, she's still my wife."
"I hate you so much moss head!"
Sanji ran over to give Zoro a smack on the head, to which the green-haired swordsman let out a hearty chuckle, engulfing her in a hug again. I've missed you so much, he thought, his smile almost bright enough to compete with Luffy's. It was undoubtedly the happiest moment of her life so far.
To be continued!!