let me carry your scars by arkhamsjason

• word count : 1.7k
• tags : #hurt/comfort
• rating : ★★★★★
• notes : really short 'n sweet fic about zolu being vulnerable with each other. they're soulmates your honor

inseparable on the face of impossibility by the11thhour

• word count : 25.9k
• tags : #established relationship #angst #fluff #hurt/comfort #protective roronoa zoro #luffy gets kidnapped
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : one of my favorite things about reading op fics is when the author takes the liberty to do some world-building on their own and create mini adventures for the straw hats (kinda like a filler). this fic does that really well! i don't usually read fics where the pairing is already in an established relationship, but i thought this one was really nice

zephyr by nevermordor

• word count : 5.5k
• tags : #friends to lovers #idiots in love #first kiss #fluff
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : if zolu are anything it's that they truly are Idiots in Love

riptide by nevermordor

• word count : 6.7k
• tags : #first date #humor #fluff #idiots in love
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : (un)coincidentally, this fic follows zolu from the previous fic, but as the author states, each one can be read on their own. if you happened to already read the first part of the series, then not much changes in terms of zolu's relationship and overall characterization—just some more silliness.

a gamble on love by snailorbee

• word count: 4.2k
• tags : #pre-time skip #established relationship #fluff #bets and wagers
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : your local straw hat crew pre-ts make bets on whether their captain and his first mate are A Thing. lots of typical silliness ensue

sorry for hitting you with my car (my bad) by happychi

• word count : 7.2k
• tags : #modern au #college au #first meetings #meet cute #humor #fluff #strangers to lovers
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : this one was really cute. there aren't many modern au op fics (understandably. i mean just look at the opverse), but i think this one is well done for a short oneshot

to fall apart; to be put back together by lunarblossoms

• word count : 6.6k
• tags : #hurt/comfort #accidental confessions #fluff #the straw hats take care of their captain after a devil fruit mishap: the fic
• rating : ★★★★★
• notes : i really loved how the author wrote luffy in this fic. tbh i just love introspection luffy fics in general because i feel like we don't get enough of them despite him being a character that deserves them. he's more than just a happy-go-lucky boy to #me

the one who can say no by arkhamsjason

• word count : 5.2k
• tags : #pov outsider #tfw the bond between a captain and his first mate is so intriguing you need to launch your own personal investigation and involve your less-intrigued crewmates
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : one of those zolu fics where an outsider (usually one of the straw hats) finally stop to think to themself: wow. luffy and zoro are so heavily tethered to each other. their bond is so deep and inexplicable. wow. that's beautiful.

dormant by kurgaya

• word count : 10.2k
• tags : #canon divergence #one piece film: z #hurt/comfort #established relationship #trans!zoro #agender!luffy #protective monkey d. luffy
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : transgender zoro my beloved... ough. i suggest you read aether above (i actually already recommended it under my misc op list) prior to reading this one because it establishes how zoro discovered he's trans in the author's op stories (they have a series, all of which include trans!zoro). queer piece i love you

feed your plants a little sunlight by swordsmans

• word count : 4.2k
• tags : #slice of life #established relationship #fluff
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : zoro becomes an impromptu errand boy for the straw hats when he just wants to take a nap. he is not happy about it ("not"). the zolu moment at the end is so cute (and is from artwork that actually inspired the fic!)

wood is a living creature by swordsmans

• word count : 3.3k
• tags : #pov outsider
• rating : ★★★★★
• notes : another work from ao3 user swordsmans quick act surprise. okay but this fic made me surprisingly emotional? and idk why?? i didn't think reading in the pov of the klabautermann of zolu's first dinghy would make me wanna cry at the end but alas. it could also be because the author's writing is beautiful and of course i'm a sucker for great writing

mithridatism by swordsmans (series) ❤

• step 1: die (part 1 of 2)
  • word count : 11.3k (out of 30.3k)
  • tags : #pov outsider #angst #hurt/comfort #introspection
  • rating : ★★★★★
  • notes : this isn't so much a zolu fic as it is a sanji introspection fic that just also happens to deal with zoro and luffy (you'll understand if you read), but either way, this fic will hurt. sure, there's comfort, but there's hurt. the way that the author captures sanji's turmoil and internal conflict in regards to the situation (explaining this vaguely on purpose) is just so perfect and it's just so. fuck. fuuuuck. (as you can see i can be quite eloquent with these notes.)
• step 2: survive anyway (part 2 of 2)
  • word count : 19k (out of 30.3k)
  • tags : #angst #hurt/comfort #roronoa "self-sacrificing" zoro #introspection #zoro would seriously do anything for luffy if it meant that he could ease his pain or lighten his burden and it makes me want to rip my own heart out because i think that would hurt less than to read about it
  • rating : ★★★★★
  • notes : genuinely felt like i was reading this entire fic with a knife wrenched deep into my gut and every time a particularly hard-hitting line or paragraph hit me the knife just got wedged deeper. yeah. (i'm so normal about zolu and zoro's scarily bottomless devotion to luffy.) the writing is incredibly beautiful and, like i said, there are very many lines and paragraphs that will make you want to bang your head against a wall (in a positive way, of course. obviously.)

tidings of war, tidings of joy by queerweather (M)

• word count : 8.1k
• tags : #post-wano arc #power struggle #guilt #possessive behavior #nakamaship #character study
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : this was honestly really interesting to read because i never thought about the possibility that zoro would have trouble coexisting with luffy after gaining conqueror's haki, especially since he can't control it like the latter can. also i just eat up any fic where zoro proves (yet again) how he's incredibly weak he is in the face of luffy. good shit

too close to the sun by tibuki

• word count : 7.4k
• tags : #canon compliant #post-timeskip #pining #getting together #first kiss #religious imagery & symbolism
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : i honestly read so many fics similar to this one in that it follows zoro from kuraigana onward where he attempts to deal with the revelation that he might very much be in love with his captain but doesn't want to do anything about it for the fear that it'll ruin what they already have but. it's so good. Every Time

when the dew falls up by louluna

• word count : 10.9k
• tags : #post-timeskip #time travel #not a fix-it
• rating : ★★★★★
• notes : time travel fics are always a fun time (lol) because you can do so much with this trope. this one is really light-hearted and is literally just zoro being sent back a bit in time with a slightly younger straw hat crew and stuff occurs because. y'know. two zoros!

oh, achilles! by swordsmans (series) ❤

• poly philtatos (the most loved by far) (part 1 of 2)
  • word count : 24.8k (out of 27.5k)
  • tags : #post-timeskip #time travel #not a fix-it #light angst #(emotional) hurt/comfort #nakamaship #reunions #mcd (but not really) ((don't worry))
  • rating : ★★★★★
  • notes : absolutely phenomenal. beautiful. so well-done. almost made me cry at one point because of how well the author conveyed the characters' emotions. this is actually the first zolu fic i've read that has any amount of angst, and even though i did tag it as light, it kinda sits with you for a bit until everything is resolved. please just give this a read
• alleluia (part 2 of 2)
  • word count : 2.6k (out of 27.5k)
  • tags : #pov multiple #nakamaship #religious imagery & symbolism
  • rating : ★★★★★
  • notes : disclaimer: this fic is not a zolu fic but a general luffy & straw hats appreciation fic. i included it in the zolu list because the author put this fic and the one above as one series, and though they say this one can be read standalone, i think it goes really well with its part 1. anyway, as for this fic, it's (unsurprisingly) beautiful. i've said this in another notes section of some other rec (or probably multiple at this point. who's keeping count), but i love fics that are literally just love letters to luffy made from the povs of the straw hats. this one has its own twist considering it's post-g5, so there's a whole other layer that's added onto the straw hats' typical devotion to luffy

lion-skinned by kurgaya

• word count : 10.6k
• tags : #canon divergence #established relationship #nakamship #hurt/comfort
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : all i'm gonna say is that the devil fruit reveal is pretty badass (and it got me thinking how cool it would be if it was canon)

oh temptation (i could be a part of you) by meteorablues

• word count : 5.9k
• tags : #established relationship #love confessions #fluff
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : i think any average zolu fan understands how the two of them love each other without having to verbally communicate it, but this fic essentially challenges that and the outcome of the confession is so cute. if you look at the tags, you'll understand once you're like. 75% of the way through the fic

bleed like an idiot by augment (M)

• word count : 13.8k
• tags : #(emotional) hurt/comfort #miscommunication #undying devotion #the usual
• rating : ★★★★☆
• notes : me when i read my 45th zolu fic tagged with undying devotion: spectacular give me 52 (more) of them

but patience boasts by augment

• word count : 9.4k
• tags : #post-timeskip #getting together #light angst #zoro and the hc that he's an emotionally constipated individual #sanji: let me fix that
• rating : ★★★★★
• notes : icl sometimes i think i like zosan's friendship more than i like them as a romantic ship (totally not biased) ((i'm a little biased)) BUT. that is not to say both aren't great. okay this is supposed to be about zolu my bad. the zolu isn't actually the main focus of the fic i would say (oops) because it focuses pretty heavily on zoro and sanji trying to sort their shit out after wci. the zolu happens mostly at the end once everything is sorted out. but either way, i really like how the author wrote the dynamic between zosan and how it inevitably leads to zoro confronting his feelings about luffy (see!! we get there eventually!!!) because sanji helps him learn to be emotionally vulnerable :)

everything rots in the sun by swordsmans

• word count : 17k
• tags : #canon timeline #death loop #angst #happy ending
• rating : ★★★★★
• notes : this one is soo interesting omg. i love the concept and how the author executed their idea—it's just? so creative? and it was so fun to be able to fill in the blanks the author purposefully put in (you'll understand if you read). also, irrelevant to the actual story, but the artist that the author collaborated with happens to be my favorite zolu artist and incorporated some of their pieces into the story itself. i felt like a baby who was given crack