Kept me sharp, kept me independent — things I thought I'd need to see my promises through.
[Zoro rarely offers more information about himself than absolutely necessary. It's not that he's unwilling to share, but K will need to delve a little deeper if he wants to unearth more personal details.]
[Concise, but sincere. He considers asking more - the detective in him is always interested in knowing more - but lets the moment hang instead before he breaks the silence again.]
[He inclines his head ever so slightly, a silent acknowledgement of the other man's condolences. There's little room for sentimentality in his work, but Zoro still appreciates a gesture of kindness in the hardened landscape of his life.
Quietly, he answers:]
Not in the way I envisioned. But my oaths haven't been broken, and I won't turn back.
["Mastery comes from adapting," his sensei used to say. "Flow with the fight, don't get stuck in patterns. It's not weakness, Zoro, it's the mark of a true swordsman."
Vrenille and I crossed paths at the lighthouse, not long after I got here. The place needed lamp oil. Turned out we both had the same job.
[In hindsight, that was a weird conversation. Something in the fuel compelled Zoro to admit to shitting in something that, according to Nami, was not a toilet. Vrenille took it in stride and didn't hold it over him, even though he easily could have.]
Since then, it seems like we keep running into each other. Either he'd check in on me, or I'd get pointed his way for work, and he'd lend a hand.
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Why, then?
[He's been attentive all along of course, but now there's a subtle... settling of focus.]
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[Zoro rarely offers more information about himself than absolutely necessary. It's not that he's unwilling to share, but K will need to delve a little deeper if he wants to unearth more personal details.]
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Now is no different.]
Promises to whom?
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... Someone I lost a long time ago.
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[Concise, but sincere. He considers asking more - the detective in him is always interested in knowing more - but lets the moment hang instead before he breaks the silence again.]
Were you able to keep your promises?
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Quietly, he answers:]
Not in the way I envisioned. But my oaths haven't been broken, and I won't turn back.
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He considers what he's seeing for several long, thoughtful seconds, then nods.]
Adaptability is the earmark of survival.
Being here probably doesn't make that any easier.
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Zoro gives K a light shrug.]
Nothing lasts forever.
[His voice is steady and sure.]
I can take it.
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[And he's not. Some people are much better suited to the particular challenge that is the LIES program than others.]
How did you meet Vrenille?
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[In hindsight, that was a weird conversation. Something in the fuel compelled Zoro to admit to shitting in something that, according to Nami, was not a toilet. Vrenille took it in stride and didn't hold it over him, even though he easily could have.]
Since then, it seems like we keep running into each other. Either he'd check in on me, or I'd get pointed his way for work, and he'd lend a hand.
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But you've been getting along.
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He's got a way about him — tough, even in this mess.