Thinking About How 25apcsb Act 1 Is Just Oh How Silly, A Little Show About 12 Year Olds In A Small Local

Chilaios Reincarnation AU

 I haven’t seen all of the story yet I’m watching the Anime and slowly gathering a Manga Collection. So Apologies for anything that couldn’t comply with Canon

So we know Chilchuck’s Lifespan is already gonna be shorter than Laios due to Race but also because he’s basically Middle-aged on top of that so just, in post canon he is sadly gonna be the first to go of the Party, and I think that because of the Winged Lion maybe somehow Laios is also lasting longer just cause of some curse shenanigans.

So what if Chilchuck passes and is later reincarnated as another Half foot who has heard the legends of The King of Golden Country who had a party that surrounded him. Who had a Halffoot that he held dear to him. Which this new iteration of Chilchuck has been told he looks very similar to. Maybe this Incarnation meets with Laios before he passes and Laios gets a look in his eyes of recognition, But just moves on sullenly never addressing it, and leaving Chilchuck with a feeling in him that he never could place. Maybe when Laios passes he Reincarnates and the new incarnations meet once again very similar circumstances but once again the age gap causes Chilchuck to leave him once again. And this happens over and over again where they reincarnate and keep meeting briefly and have their relationships but just keep missing and one of them leaves too early. But finally in a more modern time, the golden country’s story and reemergence has become more legend than history, but the story of the King, his lover and his party are still deeply engraved in history. And maybe finally in this modern world half foots live as long as Tallmen, and finally Chilchuck and Laios are together for the entirety of their lifespans no longer leaving the other too soon for them to follow. 

TL;DR: Chilaios au: where Chilchuck and Laios always meet when reincarnated, but keep barely missing each other, and finally, after a long time, they can spend the rest of their lives together. 

old man zolu and the contrast between their combat and domestic life. i adore it so dearly.

the king of the pirates and the world's greatest swordsman; something so regularly mentioned yet something i never sit with and truly dwell on how powerful that is. to be incomparable in the one piece universe, to sit atop every enemy without question, and to sit there together? that’s unquantifiably strong. powerful in the way rayleigh's name alone evokes a fear and respect that shakes whoever hears it, causes even the most spontaneous and arrogant characters' movements to halt, to re-question their decision to fight. they will be that and so much more.

but then, the domestic side. days spent in each other's arms on the sunny's deck, bedtimes spent grumbling about sore backs and muscles. reaching for reading glasses on the bedside table, zoro asking luffy to grab something from the highest cupboard because he doesn't feel like doing so himself. zolu who can no longer spend hours uncomfortably wrapped around each other or else zoro’s ankles will begin to ache unbearably, so they found new positions to accommodate it, and they wrap around each other in different ways instead. the baffling opposition, terrifying and idyllic, i can't get enough.

luffy, with salt & pepper hair and encompassing hugs that remind everyone of a bear, who could near slaughter a man with a targeted glance. zoro, with gentle peace and happiness in his eyes, who's kill count got lost in the thousands many years ago. luffy and zoro who spend their days adventuring, soft, relaxed, but they can switch so uncannily and destroy world renown figures without an hour’s planning. covered in blood and looking forward to that evening's sunset together. just so sinister and so softly sweet, they’re perfect

i adore how zoro and luffy are oftentimes put on an equal level.

like initially, their main parallels exist in shanks and mihawks. even if you remove their connections to zoro and luffy, both interpersonal and as their heroes/fated rivals/some indescribable in between, and how eventually both of zoro and luffy’s narratives will circle back to them respectively; they are blatant parallels to one another on even a character trait level. mihawk and shanks, who were always equally matched in combat, are zoro and luffy's counterparts.

next is how they are each other's weaknesses. luffy is famously, and terrifyingly, susceptible to cutting attacks. after the strawhats have achieved their goals, in concept, luffy's ultimate weakness would be zoro; the world's greatest swordsman. luffy's first mate is his achilles heel. but of course that will never matter, because what would have been his ultimate threat is his strongest companion, his most devote follower, of whom there is no one he trusts more to eternally stand by his side. zoro is equivalent; he is a power focused fighter, strong and fatal, and luffy is agile and inventive, his natural opposite.

additionally is how their dreams balance. luffy, the captain, and his dream that yearns for unparalleled freedom. zoro, the swordsman, who's dream aches for untouchable power. zoro facilitates and protects luffy's dream of ultimate freedom, using his drive of power to be his dearest soldier. while luffy catalysed zoro's direction and puts him in positions to closer attain ultimate strength every day, whereas he existed in limbo without him. luffy's drive of freedom rid zoro of his aimlessness.

lastly, there are so many small moments where they are intended to be viewed as coequal, something closer to partners. them both dying in onigashima then waking up in the same moment, them both being supernovas, kuma accepting zoro's life instead of luffy; equating them in value in thriller bark, them both having supreme king haki, etc. is there nothing more indicative of being equals than two conquerors, harmonious together?

i think a lot of it stems from how zoro's devotion is an outlier. zoro's devotion, at it's foundations, is something so precious because he doesn't need to be luffy's follower, but he wants to be. every enemy pre-timeskip is confused that zoro is the one taking orders, his sheer power and 'kingly qualities' could make him an infamous captain in his own right, and that's a constant theme in his worship. zoro wants to follow, he loves answering to and trusting luffy to make the decisions that's best for them. if zoro had the gnaw for leadership he would thrive doing so, and that makes his loyalty all the more momentous. they could be equals, and there are so many subtle moments where they are shown to be as such, but zoro doesn't want that. he happily stands on the stair beneath luffy just to have the privilege of being allowed to look up at him.

i adore how zoro and luffy are oftentimes put on an equal level, but zoro chooses to revere and follow regardless.

luffy being akin to the sky (sun god), zoro being akin to the ground (king of hell), and them meeting & spending their lives together at sea. they complete each other, and what they lacked, they found in each other.

They have come a long way 😢

zoro coming back after the timeskip with a red sash as a part of his iconic, base outfit is something i am fascinated by.

red, a colour so uncommonly associated with zoro; it’s the antithesis of him. the only time we see zoro intertwined with red is when he is decorated in blood, whether it’s his own or countless others. red is just not a character colour of zoro's, like we see all the strawhats lend themselves to colour palettes and personal preferences. as a character he is shrouded in black and green, with blue and white as secondary variations when the arc calls for an outfit change. he is peaceful like a winter's breeze, grass tipped in frost, and dark like the grim reaper's cold embrace.

zoro is not red, he is about as red as he is light pink or neon orange. red is, while also opposite to green on the colour wheel, opposite to his characteristics. yet for return to sabaody and onigashima he seems to wear it like a good luck charm. always when the situation is planned and monumental will we see zoro have a small token of red with him each time. quite unarguably, red means one thing in one piece. even more, red means one thing to zoro. red means luffy.

so a red sash? coming back after the timeskip shrouded in green and black, understandably for zoro, with an additional searing red sash around his middle. dressing for the final battle against kaidou and all his men, adding a contrasting red sash to his entirely black outfit. zoro wears red in significant yet small ways like it's something he doesn't own. zoro wears red like it's something to always bring with him, not like a fashion choice.

and that makes so much sense. zoro, sentimental and loving, would wear the colour of his captain at the centre of his outfit like a medal. he would long to be reminded of luffy, especially during those two years apart. zoro follows luffy with such eagerness i can see him already, choosing his outfits with purposeful swelling and devotion in his heart. zoro wears red, not because it's his own, but because it is luffy.

the situations and how he wears it are additionally significant. zoro wears red for the strawhat’s most important ordeals, like a symbol of his loyalty, a subtle sign of pride and alignment. he also wears it in his core outfit more than anything, like it’s a fragment of his very foundations. red is an intrinsic piece of his identity, luffy will always be integrated in his heart, eternally a part of him. lastly, he wears it as a sash; what holds his swords. it's like zoro's tying everything precious to him, his captain and kuina held against him, luffy holding onto wado. his two treasures.

zoro's red sash is a small detail i really love.

platonically or romantically luffy n zoro ARE soulmates and just the first arc is enough for me bc you’re telling me luffy (who goes w the flow and finds his crewmates through his journeys) heard roronoa zoro’s name and decided “I want him on my crew” and actively sought him out? that they fought immediately in sync as if muscle memory of lifetimes together came back in an instant? that the demon of the east blue, a man so feared the entire town shakes at his name, sprawled out across from luffy at a restaurant took one look at the tiny dinghy in the harbor and laughed and hasn’t stopped laughing w luffy since? that in zoro’s highly romanticized memory of their first meeting luffy brings COLOR into his life? enough! enough!!

i like when they have the same or similar reactions to things

Drew more horror craft grian cause he is gremlin baby ft. His parrot ari, sorry if I didn’t get the colors right

Au by @pastel-mumbo (this person is an amazing artist so please check them out if you haven’t!)

there isn’t a reality where i can imagine luffy or zoro existing without each other. they’ve found each other, and now they will never lose each other.

and in the same way they slept next to each other and woke up at the same time after wano concluded, in some far future, i can see them falling asleep and not waking back up together too.