Jungle Life
ZoNami Week – Day 07: Jungle // Tiger VS Dragon
Rating: K (more fluff!?)
Summary: AU – Human. Nature. That obnoxious cry. (A parody of the Tarzan 2016 tagline)
Word Count: 1,649 words
PLEASE NOTE: The soundtrack for Disney’s soundtrack really helped me right this, but more than anything, it’s clear that “Trashin’ the Camp” worked best for this scene. Enjoy!
‘What a strange place.’ He couldn’t help but think as he spied the stationed encampment in his jungle. For years he had lived amongst the wildlife, surrounded by nature, living off of the land, and never before had Zoro come across such a strange set-up that was the fabric-made huts and the strange wooden surfaces and the odd objects that were built from materials that were suddenly placed before him. Such foreign items were resting oh so casually in his territory and it was difficult to decipher whether or not this worried him or excited him.
Franky and Robin would not be happy to know that he came here, but he had simply spied the newly founded nest while swinging upon vines, wandering aimlessly. How was he to know that there would be something new and utterly shocking to be found? This would be something that Luffy and Usopp would love to see, too. He could have just as easily gone to retrieve them…but it would be better for everyone if he surveyed the place before luring his friends or his parents to such an unfamiliar location.
Deciding on his course of action, Zoro slipped through the bamboo stocks and cautiously stepped out into the open. His eyes scanned the land, his nose rose into the air, and both of his senses were immediately overwhelmed with unfamiliarity. So much nature had been cleared away for these encroachers to create their base, the land desecrated down to the very dirt beneath his feet. The sun’s warmth appraised his tanned skin kindly due to such a massive opening in the jungle’s forestry, only further angering the unsanctioned protector.
Many shelters were standing tall – like the ones that he helped create for his family whenever there was stormy weather to endure – however, he did not know of the crop that created them. Wooden tools resembling the trio of sharp-sticks he had fashioned for hunting were positioned all throughout the area, or rather, he assumed that that was what they were. The array of objects and things he had never witnessed before confused him greatly and he could not afford to wonder what their purpose was, for he would instantly be distracted by something else—
Such as the creature that revealed itself from one of the shelters…who looked more like him than anything else he had ever seen in his life. “AH!” Screamed the creature, scrambling away from him the moment their eyes met.
Zoro grunted and took a step backwards in response. He slipped into his combative stance, yet the typical combative urge he felt when faced with a foe was not present. Of course it wasn’t, when there was suddenly a creature of his species standing before him.
They were both frozen in place, assessing the other with distrusting eyes, a trace of curiosity glinting in their gazes. From what he could tell, the creature before him seemed…cleaner, as if the encampment allowed for more bathing somehow. Unlike his single string of cloth across his ‘manly spear’, the creature was covered from top to bottom in strange layers of textures and colours that were not natural to the jungle, especially the tone of the vine-length hair.
It resembled the setting sun, and that soothed him, oddly enough.
“W-Who are you?” Demanded the creature, voice shaken. Zoro cocked his head at the language spoken to him, for he could not understand the meaning. He could communicate with most animals easily, yet the one who looked most like him spoke in a tongue he did not know?
This encounter was so astounding to him, for his mother and father promised him that there were no others like him – he was unique to their band, their monkey family, and he should revel in that fact. There were times when he did not notice the difference in skin between himself and his furry siblings, but how was he to ignore the very real, very similar creature before him now? It was almost too much to stand there, ignoring his heart which demanded to know more.
So, he chose not to waste another second. “H-Hold on!” Shouted the creature, removing those crossed arms from the collar of those heavy layers of cloth and revealing an impressively curvy chest; the muscles this creature must possess! “D-Don’t come any closer, or I’ll—!”
Since he could not make heads or tails of what was being said, Zoro simply obeyed his instinct and began to judge the flowery scent that wafted off of the creature. He walked in a circle in order to assess every detailing of this otherwise skinny figure, which contradicted the massive muscle he observed in the chest area. Nevertheless, from their posture to the make of their hands, they were the same.
When he attempted to compare their fingers, the creature raised that very hand in order to slap him. “Hey! Don’t just grab me—!” Quickly, without much thought, he caught the dainty wrist of the assailing hand and prevented it from hitting him. It took little to no effort, and that did not surprise him based off of the bony body that put in the effort to strike him.
No, what did shock him though was the black smudges on the creature’s hands.
All of his life, his skin had been tanned but nowhere near dark enough to compare to the padding on the hands of members of his family! And yet the creature before him – the stranger who invaded his jungle and made camp – had both a creamy complexion and the darkened tone that resembled his family’s. Out of all of the sights he had seen today, this was indeed the most captivating, for it had been something he had occasionally longed for, ever since he was an infant.
A moment passed, and when the creature hadn’t yelled or threatened to hit him again, Zoro forced himself to pull away from his fascination. What he found was not anger or hatred, but there was a hint of kindness in an otherwise blank expression. Before another second could pass them by however, it seemed as though the creature followed an instinct of their own and spoke again, “Who are you?”
Again, he cocked his head at her, this time showing a frown at the questioning tone. Furrowed brows, the creature asked again, as if he would suddenly understand, “Who – are –you?”
Once more, he could only offer his greatest show of confusion.
With a heavy sigh of frustration, the creature took advantage of the movement of the hand he was not hold and pointed to themself, only to announce. “Na – mi.”
Was…a name being offered? Was the creature trying to inform him of a name? The three shining rocks around her neck was equally alluring, and he felt simple in his ability to be so easily distracted. It had merely reminded him of his preference of carrying three spears when he hunted, and so he nearly lost himself in the dazzling reflection he saw in the golden stones that dangled above her hand. He grunted with apparent enthusiasm, a cheeky grin on his face. And so, repeating the gesture, he was told was again, “Na – mi.” Then, that instructive hand was placed on his chest. “Zo – ro.” He proclaimed eagerly, hoping he understood the game. “Zo – ro!” The way his name was exclaimed was so exciting, so invigorating! It felt amazing to know that he had communicated with a new breed of animal – one that looked like him! The smile he received confirmed their mutual enthusiasm and it made him feel compelled to learn even more from the creature.
“Nami!? Is that you!?” Out of nowhere, another voice called out the creature’s name, stealing away some of the majesty of the moment. Zoro attempted to step in front of Nami, protecting her from the unknown entity that was approaching.
“Ah, yes! I-I’m fine!” She yelled back, understandably using that unknown language to address the mysterious figure in the jungle. But what was not so easily comprehend was that smudge-bearing hand tugging on Zoro’s shoulder as Nami tried to draw his attention in the opposite direction. Whispering harshly, a warning was given to him, “Go!”
His neck was going to be quite sore from all of the times he had tilted his head in this lone, confusing conversation.
Nami groaned and began tossing her arms in the direction she was hoping he would take a sudden interest in. “Go! Go! GO!”
The shuffling behind them – from the direction of the other possible member of his species – implied that the intruders to their first meeting were very, very close. Zoro was not so unintelligent that he could not decipher her meaning in asking him to leave, and for fear of overstepping his bounds as a member of his own family, he decided to abide by Nami’s wishes and take his leave. One last, firm grunt was the end of their interaction before he took three large steps and found himself in the trees once more.
The rumble of voices grew distant as he traversed the jungle again, almost as if hadn’t just met this Nami. This fascinating creature who had just revealed to him that he was not alone in his kind… Though their strengths could not possibly be measured, her energy was feisty, lively and prominent – she had what it took to survive in a jungle environment, just as he had.
There was so much to learn about Nami, so much more he wanted to discover about the creature who resembled him far more than any other hairy, scaly, or otherwise rough skinned animal in the land he had been raised in, called his home.
A smirk overtook his face as he reached for a vine, taking off into a powerful swing as he screamed at the top of his lungs, “Ahhhh-ah-ah-ahhhhh, ah-ahhh!”
((Please don’t question when jungle animals have English names, or why British people have Japanese ones, ha ha. I am actually going to see the movie this weekend, so I thought I should use the Tarzan yell that Zoro loves to do as a basis for today’s theme! Clearly, I drew inspiration from the Disney version though, ha ha. “Three-pronged Earring” was also one of the themes for the ZoNami Week Poll, so I decided to add that into the mix. This one is my shortest story because I am considering writing this AU out fully, and because I have to prepare for another OTP event for another fandom! Hopefully, this story was still enjoyable, and that you’ll come back again tomorrow for the Bonus Day! ~Maiden))