Chapter Text
“So your pops hasn’t made you a deputy yet? You’re eighteen, you’d think he’d have you workin’ for him by now.” Chopper asked, hands fast at work while he sterilized medical tools. “I mean, I’m only sixteen and they have me helping here at the office.”
It was times like this when Zoro really wasn’t a fan of Chopper. Well, it’s not like he didn’t like the doctor’s assistant, but the younger didn’t really understand Zoro and his father’s dynamic. There were certain pressures put on Zoro that Chopper would never understand. Being the town’s sheriff was his father’s biggest achievement. Especially since that duty was Zoro’s grandfather’s and even his great grandfather’s career. Coming from a line of sheriffs put a lot of pressure on the boy. The older only sighed and shook his head at Chopper’s question, figuring it was too complicated for him to understand.
Getting the hint, Chopper began to discuss another topic but by now Zoro wasn’t really paying attention. In fact, he was focused on the sight in the street outside. Out in broad daylight was a
man with bright red hair pointing a pistol at another man who held a shotgun. It seemed as if they were in some heated verbal debate. Ignoring Chopper’s rambling, Zoro stepped outside to see what was going on.
“...And all I’m saying is you can’t bring a shotgun to a duel! The deadliness of the two guns is incredibly different!” The man with red hair complained, yet he had an attitude of being only annoyed by the other.
The other man scoffed, raising his shotgun, “It’s a gunfight. We fight with guns. You didn’t say which type.”
“Have you never dueled before? It isn’t honorable to-'' The red haired man began yet he was interrupted with a loud bang. He toppled over to the ground, holding his arm. Blood was pooling around him, just a few shades darker than his hair.
“Hurry! Someone get a doctor! Fuck- You shot his arm off!” A bystander yelled.
Zoro quickly turned on his heel to grab Chopper yet the boy was already rushing through the door towards the man. Zoro watched, frozen as Chopper knelt in chunks of blood to put pressure on the spot where the man’s arm should be. As he looked closer, Zoro realized that the ‘chunks of blood’ were actually chunks of the man’s arm. Bile rose in his throat and Zoro looked away.
“What is the meaning of this?” A voice boomed nearby. It was his father.
“Sheriff they were dueling and- and that man brought a shotgun to a duel and he shot this man’s arm clean off!” Zoro heard Chopper shout anxiously.
“I’m taking the uninjured one into custody. Chopper take that man inside and patch him up. Zoro stop standing around and help Chopper!” His father ordered gruffly.
Zoro’s eyes shot open and he rushed over to Chopper, helping the smaller carry in the man. A boy, probably Zoro’s age or younger rushed up. His hair was a dark black, complementing his tan skin. He moved next to Zoro to help carry away the man, dark brown eyes focused on the missing limb. Zoro noticed a scar under the shorter’s cheek, curiosity creeping in on him. He’d never seen the boy around before. He was clearly a newcomer. Many people passed through the small town Zoro inhabited, but he never felt this drawn to any of them. Still, Zoro pushed those feelings aside and focused on getting the injured man into the doctor’s office.
♢♢♢
Hours had gone by since the man had been taken in. Chopper was in with the doctor. Zoro’s father was processing paperwork on the incident. This left Zoro to sit in the waiting room, the boy from earlier leaning against the wall. He had a straw hat in his hands, picking at the fibers. Zoro eyed the boy’s fidgety movements with intrigue. He could have sworn the hat belonged to the red-haired man. Zoro was curious about their relationship. He didn’t understand why the boy hung around an outlaw, or why he hadn’t left yet. The man would be arrested, and it was likely the boy would be too considering his loyalty to the outlaw.
However Zoro was torn from his thoughts when the boy spoke, “Why do you keep looking at me?”
The boy’s voice wasn’t cruel or accusatory. He didn’t seem to be bothered by Zoro’s constant glances. He just seemed curious, and that was what confused Zoro. He knew most people found staring rude, and weren’t afraid to call someone out on it. However the boy didn’t seem offended. He was just curious.
“Hello? Do you speak?” The boy broke the silence once more, breaking Zoro out of his trance.
‘Oh, er, sorry for staring at you.” Zoro apologized. His father would kill him if he caused any conflict, especially after what had just happened.
“I didn’t ask for an apology. I just wanted to know why.” The boy continued, clearly not picking up on Zoro’s attempt at ending the conversation.
“I just… haven’t seen you around here before.” Zoro responded awkwardly.
Just as the boy was about to respond, the doctor came in to let him know that he could see the red-haired man. Zoro watched the boy leave and looked down at the wood floor. The silence in the waiting room was stifling. Time seemed to go on forever when Zoro didn’t have anything to occupy his mind. He just kept thinking back to the man’s gaping wound, bits of flesh coating the dirt. Zoro felt bile rise in his throat and scrunched his eyes shut. He didn’t understand how Chopper could do it. He tried to think of something else. Anything else. The boy with the scar on his cheek came to the front of his mind. Zoro didn’t know why that was what he thought of. He had no reason to be so fixated on that boy, but there was something about him.
Zoro sighed and figured that once the boy left things would go back to normal. He would begin as a deputy for his father and eventually become a sheriff. Life would go back to normal. But he was brought from his thoughts by Chopper’s voice. Zoro hadn’t even heard the door open, or Chopper’s footsteps when he walked up to him.
“What?” Zoro questioned, not hearing Chopper the first time.
“I said the man is going to have a healthy recovery. Isn’t that great?”
“So he can leave?”
“No? Zoro the man lost his arm. He’ll have to stay in the office for a while. Besides, your father wants to arrest him. He has a pretty high bounty.”
“What? But what about that boy?” Zoro was at a loss for words, unable to comprehend what Chopper told him. He clearly knew the man was an outlaw, and he didn’t know why he cared about the boy. Still, it was infuriating that he would be staying.
“What about him?” Chopper asked, clearly unaware of Zoro’s internal turmoil.
“He’s just- ugh- so infuriating!”
“Why? Did he say something to you?”
“No- it’s just- I don’t know, okay?” Zoro frowned in frustration.
However, as Chopper began to respond, Zoro’s father came into the waiting room. His brown eyes zeroed in on Zoro. He gestured for his son to follow him and Zoro obliged. The two walked over to the sheriff’s office, silence heavy between them. Zoro’s father sat down at his desk and Zoro sat in the chair in front of him. His father sifted through some papers. There was tension between them.
Zoro’s father cleared his throat before finally speaking, “I think you’re ready. To be a deputy, I mean.”
Zoro was at a loss for words. This was what he had always been told he needed to do. To fulfill his part of the family legacy by working his way up to his father’s position. Zoro couldn’t help but feel proud. He was ready to take the next step.
“Okay. What do I need to do first?” Zoro asked cautiously.
“That boy. The one who helped you carry in the outlaw. I need you to get close to him. I want to arrest him too, but I don’t have any evidence of him being a criminal like his counterpart. That’s where you come in. I need you to find that information. I don’t care how. I don’t care if you have to beat the information out of him. But I need it six months from now.”
Zoro swallowed thickly before nodding, “I can do that. I won’t let you down.”
His father smiled, standing up to pat him on the shoulder, “I knew you wouldn’t let me down. Which is good, because he will be staying with us until we can prove he’s a criminal.”
Zoro didn’t know what his father had gotten him into. He didn’t know what the next six months would be like. But Zoro did know that he wanted to make his father proud. So he agreed to spend the next six months with a stranger.