Instincts [Roronoa Zoro x Reader]

Chapter 12

There were often many pirates and little to no Marines around the parts where you lived. It wasn't the safest place, so you had wanted to train and learn to protect yourself.

You were born with poor and deteriorating vision, so your parents would not allow you to train or engage in such activities. They were overprotective, was your first thought. They considered you weak, was your second.

You then met Noah, who often strolled around your area with some stick. You quickly learned that it was a quarterstaff, and he happily taught you how to wield it.

He went easy on you at first, after learning about your vision, but when you told him to not do that, he obliged. He didn't see you as a weak, half-blind girl.

<+>

The quarterstaff was easy to learn, while also being powerful and versatile.

"Have you ever thought about becoming a swordsman?" you asked him once while sparring.

"I have, but...." He pointed out the mistake in your form. "It's easier to draw blood with blades. I don't like blood."

You nodded, taking a swing at him. "I suppose blood does get messy...."

"And this is what I'm used to."

He stopped your swing with his quarterstaff, and grasped yours, sliding it from your hand. Stumbling from the lack of balance, he caught you before you fell.

"Keep a firm grip on it." He smiled. "And the stance while swinging is a bit different from jabbing."

<+>

You were part of a family of fortune tellers.

Real ones. It would explain why your parents were protective of you. They could somewhat see the future held for you if they didn't change it.

That was your reasoning for it, anyway.

They gave you the family heirloom. A small, white crystal. You knew the basics of its powers, but before they could explain it fully, pirates attacked.

<+>

You watched in horror as Noah was stabbed in the chest, holding on to his quarterstaff tightly as he hit his attacker back.

It wasn't real.

But the place he was in was so similar to where you were—dark and humid. You were tied to a chair, gagged. You could feel that you were on a ship, based on the rocking motions.

You cursed yourself for not being able to get your quarterstaff in time. You wanted to show them you could fight. That you weren't some clumsy, weak little girl.

"Where is it?"

You felt a drop of burning liquid on your arm, unwillingly letting out a whimper of pain but saying as confidently as you could, "I don't know."

"That damned woman told us she gave it to you."

A knot formed in your throat. So your mother put this on you. Did she not care about you? Or did they torture her so much she broke?

Either way, you were not weak enough to give in. Not just because of the crystal's powers, but because you were stubborn and not weak. You shut your mouth, refusing to say anything.

They pulled your head back by your hair, making you yelp. There were already tears streaming down your cheeks.

"We'll do this the hard way, then."

One of them moved their hand over your right eye, a drop of acid hanging onto the tip of his finger.

You refused to let them have it. You didn't have much use for your eyes anyway.

<+>

You heard Noah's voice after you regained a bit of consciousness.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't make it in time." He sounded injured, barely able to speak.

All you could hear was silence and a small groan of pain from a pirate.

"I took care of them," Noah murmured. "But I don't think...."

You couldn't see, but you could distinctly hear the raspiness of his voice, and his slowly fading breaths. You felt a large wound on his chest, seemingly where he had been stabbed in your vision.

His last remaining energy went to untying you, but he never finished. Instead, he put a firm, wooden object in your hands as you heard something collapse on the floor.

There were already tears on your cheeks from the pain of the acid, but even more streamed down despite your lack of eyes when you didn't hear him anymore.

Weak. Blind. Clumsy. Useless. Weak.

"I never saw you as weak."

<+>

Trafalgar D. Water Law.

You spoke that name aloud when you heard footsteps coming into the room. You didn't have enough strength to tug yourself free of the ropes, but you had seen a vision of a figure and the name popped into your head.

"How do you know my full name," the person demanded.

You bit your tongue, almost drawing blood when you heard his voice. He was not a good guy. Noah's death would be in vain. You were too weak to even escape from here. You were—.

You flinched when you heard the unsheathing of a sword. Preparing for the worst, you gripped the object in your hands tightly and shut your eyes, sending jolts of pain through you. A moment later you were free.

"You will explain later," the man said firmly. He put your arm around his shoulder and dragged you somewhere. "Is that seastone that rod is made of? Keep it away from me."

<+>

"You were on a Marine ship. We saw it in the middle of nowhere and there wasn't anyone on it, so we decided to take a look around. Found you and a body lying there."

The man, Law, explained to you his case when you had explained yours.

He had helped you, so you decided to trust him. You had a gut feeling he was trustworthy, at least for now.

"A body... how is he?" you asked, panicked.

"He was dead when he got there." He paused, seeing the look on your face, possibly able to read you like a book. He sighed. "We left the ship and it's long gone now."

You stayed silent, thinking about Noah's words. His quarterstaff was in your hands, his last memento. You finally nodded, biting your lower lip to stop it from quivering.

"Just one body? Was there anyone else?"

"No."

They weren't finished... they must have escaped before Law arrived.

Law stayed silent for a moment longer, and you could feel his eyes judging you. He sighed once more, and you heard him stand. "I can make you glass eyes if you'd like. It would look better than stitches over it when the bandages are gone."

You nodded slowly. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it. And don't mention the D in my name."

As you heard him leave, you wondered why he was so concerned over you knowing his name. You had another vision. A boy with a white hat. He looked like the younger version of the man you saw in your previous vision, Law. A pink, feathery cape, donned by a blond man with sunglasses. Another similar man, with a dark red hat, smiling. Will of D.

You heard another voice of his crew talk to him, and you took out the crystal from your pocket. You had kept it in your mouth before, able to conceal it due to its small size but suffering a bit from the sharp edges. You had told Law about its powers, but you knew it wasn't all. You rubbed your fingers over it, thinking.

Despite your anger and frustration towards those pirates that were probably Marines, you could barely feel it due to your grief over Noah.