Sanji gazed out at the vast expanse of blue sea before him. He'd spent so much of his time like this, staring out over the railing or through the portholes of a ship, admiring the textures and colors of the sea. He'd been on it his whole life, or at least the most important years of it. He didn't know how anyone could live anywhere else.

The calm blue waters stretched on into unpredictable futures; places Sanji hoped he'd see one day but couldn't even imagine right now. What that future would bring, he could never say. The sea was wild and unpredictable; calm and still one moment, glistening in the light of the sun, and in the next rolling and swirling in deadly waves. It was deadly, dangerous and uncontrollable, and yet it provided and could be so gentle and kind as well. In a way, Sanji could relate.

Sanji moved along the railing, a cigarette perched between his lips, his eyes never leaving the horizon. His foot caught on something unexpectedly, and he stumbled forward, barely catching himself on the railing to avoid a fall.

"Watch it, Marimo!" He growled.

Zoro peeked up at him through closed eyes from his resting place - inconveniently against the rail and in the way - and let out an irritated snort.

"Watch yourself, Cook," the swordsman said.

Zoro wasn't like the sea at all. The opposite, actually. He was solid and unyielding, an immovable mass of land, complete with a mossy crown, Sanji mused.

It was true, though. Zoro was focused, steady, he couldn't, or wouldn't, be swayed by the slightest whims. He wouldn't be deterred, moving forward only towards his goal. He was calm, settled, strong. He wasn't as fluid or emotional as the sea, but he was reliable, protective, and good.

Sanji prepared to give that moss covered lump of rock a piece of his mind, but his captain's voice interrupted.

"Zoro! Sanji!" Luffy called from the ram shaped figure head of the Going Merry. He was reclined back, arms crossed behind his head as he observed the sky above. He tipped his head backwards far enough to see the two men below him. "Wanna play a game?"

Sanji was sure he and Zoro would never get along if it wasn't for Luffy. Luffy was like the sky above them. Reaching to impossible heights, a dreamer's paradise, an impossible span of blue beyond the reach of most people.

Luffy was the breath of fresh air that could calm Sanji when a storm was brewing in his mind. He could also be the hurricane that drove Sanji mad with fury.

Luffy could even, with time, batter down even the strongest of Zoro's defenses. He was strong, undeniable, and refreshing. There was nothing that could contain Luffy indefinitely, he was wild, and he was freedom.

"Come on!" Luffy shouted in warning before two rubbery arms flung out and clutched at both Zoro and Sanji's shoulders. Both men tried to raise protest, but it was too late, and a rubbery, surprisingly heavy body launched itself at them.

They landed in a tangled pile, Zoro and Sanji knocked together by the blow, while Luffy laughed cheerfully above them. Despite their irritation, their captain's laugher was contagious, and they couldn't help but to be caught up in his whirlwind.