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RUMBLE!	By : TreeStar Category: +M to R > One Piece Views: 7990 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
- 10
RUMBLE!

9

Foreboding

~~~ *** ~~~ *** ~~~

Sanji had just finished cooking dinner. A vegetable pie and, by Usopp�s request (which he almost ignored out of spite), buffalo wings.

He went out back to let everyone know to come in. Most of them did, but Usopp -who had made the request in the first place- was doing something weird with the flame dial and� his hand� and said he would be only another minute.

�What the hell are you doing to yourself?� Sanji demanded.

�I�m not.� Usopp said peevishly, as though what he was really doing was obvious. �I�m cooking Luffy�s giraffe.�

Sanji was momentarily thrown� but then rolled his eyes, �If you�re trying to say �cook his goose�, THAT�s the right way to say it. And if I find out you�ve done anything to him, I promise I�ll kick you off this boat Mr. Fixit.�

�That�s not it,� Usopp continued distractedly, never looking up from his work, �I was playing with clay with Luffy and he made a giraffe. So now I�m trying to heat it until it gets hard.�

Sanji walked closer and stooped beside the marksman, squinting at his palm. ��That�s a giraffe? How can you tell?�

�I couldn�t. Zoro guessed because that�s his favorite animal right now.�

Sanji smiled, �Hmmm? Isn�t that just like Mosshead. So I�m guessing Luffy liked your idea?�

Usopp smiled at him now, �Yeah. He was tired, but he really loved it. He sang a song and everything.� He turned back to his work.

Sanji smiled fully now. Their captain had been happy enough to invent lyrics for the first time since all this started. �There, ya see? You can still spend time with Luffy. He likes it.�

�Not as much as he likes spending time with Zoro��

�Hm.� Sanji reached for his pocket out of reflex. Damn it. He mentally swore. �Well, when you finish that come inside. Dinner�s ready.�

Usopp jumped up, �Wait don�t you wanna hear about-�

�Don�t care.� Sanji disappeared after the others down the stairs, leaving Usopp alone on the deck.

Usopp watched after him for a moment� and then sighed. He was always being ignored�

~~~ *** ~~~ *** ~~~

Sanji headed to the boy�s room to get the last two. Or rather, to see if they planned to eat with the others.

As he expected, upon climbing down the ladder he was met with Zoro�s silent point toward Luffy�s hat. Understanding to be quiet, Sanji pointed up the ladder toward the kitchen in indication of dinner.

Zoro frowned and looked at the hat again. Sanji walked quietly over and peeked over the brim. He smiled a little at what he saw there, and looked back to Zoro. �I�ll make him something later. You want to eat now?�

Zoro shook his head. �I�ll wait to eat with him.�

Figured at much, Sanji frowned. �You could use a break, Big-forehead. Someone else could come down here to be with him while you eat.�

�I said I�ll wait, moron.� Zoro continued to lay back with his eyes closed, pretending to not care what the cook said.

Sanji understood, �You want to be here when he wakes. Ever the vigilant first mate.� Zoro opened one eye in a silent dare, but Sanji only shrugged. �Well, that�s just your way.� He looked toward the hatch again. �I�d say bring him upstairs, but��

Now Zoro closed his eyes again, �He needs to sleep.�

�Right. I guess I could bring something down here.�

Zoro considered this for a moment, then nodded. �Thanks,� he said grudgingly.

Sanji didn�t reply, as none was needed, and left the room silently.

~~~ *** ~~~ *** ~~~

Chopper came down the hatch a few minutes later with a plate of food, and Zoro smiled as he crossed the room. �Hey Chopper. Thanks.�

Chopper giggled and set the plate down in front of him beside Luffy�s bed, and then glimpsed over the bed in awe. �That�s a nice bed, Zoro. You should have Luffy show it to Nami and Robin. I bet he�d like that.�

Zoro took a bite of food and didn�t answer. Chopper continued, �It smells like everyone. There�s you and Luffy and Nami and Robin and Sanji� we�re all in there. How did you make it?�

Zoro choked on his pie.

�Are you okay?� Chopper began to fuss worriedly. Zoro quickly hushed him before we got panicky and loud. �I�m fine. Just� wrong pipe.�

�Ohhh�� Chopper sighed in relief. For a moment there he�d been afraid that he would have to call for a doctor!

�Sooo�� Zoro said, trying to distract, �Did you already eat?�

�Oh! No, I should get back up there. Sanji just wanted me to let you know to bring Luffy up to eat when he wakes, and that you�re doing the dishes tonight since you wouldn�t eat at his table.�

Zoro frowned, �Asshole.� Chopper froze in panic. �Not you, Chopper.�

�Ohhh. You mean Sanji. Okay.� Chopper breathed again.

�Who has Watch tonight?�

�Ummm, I know I have Second. Normally you would have First, but Nami said she would take it for you for a price.�

Zoro frowned, �That woman is evil��

�Well, she said she would keep it low if Luffy said he wanted to stay with you for the night�because he�s sick, I think�� He watched Zoro ponder this for a moment before looking back to Luffy. �I can�t believe how deeply under he is. Na Zoro, how is he doing? Really.�

Zoro looked at his captain, so vulnerable. He knew that Chopper was only worried, but with the reindeer unable to do anything, Luffy wouldn�t want him to know.

--�Zoro. Don�t tell anyone, okay?�--

He turned back to Chopper with a shrug, �Don�t ask me.�

Chopper sighed and nodded sadly before heading up the ladder. Sanji had hinted to as much. None of them would be allowed to know more than they observed themselves unless Luffy told them personally. Zoro would never betray his captain�s confidence. No fair� he wasn�t just Zoro�s.

Once Chopper had headed out, Zoro ate his food quietly. It was good. He would never verbalize it, but Sanji�s food was always good. Luffy had a rare talent for finding the perfect person that would fill each individual role on his ship without disrupting the harmony that they all got along in. Unless one counted how Zoro and Sanji fought all the time, but that wasn�t so much �fighting� as it was �manly competition�. Luffy knew he had this talent, too, and always pronounced his separate crew members �the best in the world�.

The swordsman finished and watched Luffy sleep in peaceful silence. At that moment he felt that he could do this all day. Their captain really was strong. He could be happy no matter what; find the good points in every situation. Zoro supposed that was what had first attracted him to the boy on the day they met. When Luffy had picked up that rice ball and fed it to him, and then smiled in understanding, something had passed between them. Something that told each of them that the man in front of him was a person that fate would unavoidably draw together in the end.

Luffy had showed him right away that his own greatest strength came from depending on others. It had admittedly been a new concept to Zoro. The swordsman had always been depended on by various people for protection for short periods of time, and his nakama now depended on him in every fight, but he had felt that to depend on another was kind of out there for a pirate captain, and it definitely wasn�t the Zoro�s thing.

What had interested him more about Luffy was that he simply didn�t needed help in battle often, yet he still insisted that he wasn�t strong enough without his nakama. Zoro had wondered what he how he made Luffy stronger for a while, but eventually he had just let it go.

He understood that Luffy didn�t depend on the swordsman to protect him from the evils of the world, or from the guy over there with the big cannon, like the others did. It was a different type of reliance, but his dependence on the sword fighter was no less strong then the others� was.

Since Luffy had fallen in-Rumble, Zoro had felt his captain�s need for him rise significantly, and Zoro had seen Luffy�s strength through his sudden weakness. Now he understood better than he had before, what Luffy meant by saying that he was nothing without them. Right now, if it weren�t for the rest of the crew, Luffy wouldn�t have a chance. If this had happened the other way around and he had kept his strength and lost his nakama, Luffy would truly have lost everything. He would be no one.

Luffy had been able to abandon his pride to depend wholey on his nakama. That was something that Zoro would never be able to do� To be forced to abandon every claim to strength as Luffy had, and then to have the courage to admit that he was completely helpless� and that he needed another just so that he wouldn�t lose himself to unfamiliar fear was something that Zoro would just never be able to do. Not at all. He�d managed to keep his mind focused even after Kuina died by telling himself that he didn�t need anyone, and he�d never been able to let his guard down so much around another to rely on their strength more than his own. And here was Luffy, trusting Zoro alone to take watch over him always, even if it�s just to be there for him.

So, if that was the case, then maybe Luffy was stronger than he was. At least in that regard. Zoro felt that he could handle that. If there had to be only one man in the world stronger than him, then as long as it was the man he sailed under, that would be acceptable. It had to be, because nothing in this world could make Zoro admit that he needed someone else so badly.

~~~ *** ~~~ *** ~~~

Luffy awoke slowly in a nice soft place. It was comfy and warm. Mmmm� they would have to get a nice bed like this on the Merry someday. That would just be pie.

Once it clicked that he didn�t know where he was, he froze. His mind raced as he tried to place himself in a time frame, but he wasn�t really good with time�

�Luffy, you awake?�

That was Zoro! �Zoro!� he rolled onto his back in the bed with a shout, sitting up quickly to find the source of the voice� and saw his swordsman laying down on the couch that was next to� the table that his hat was on. That�s right� he remembered now.

He sighed and flopped back on the bed again, reflexively reaching for the blanket because it was much colder in the room than it had been under the covers. He was never gonna get the hang of this. It wouldn�t be a big deal if he could just remember where he was when he first woke up. The thing was, normally this wouldn�t bother him in the least! Waking up in a strange place is just part of being a pirate and it happened to him now and again.

Luffy�s problem with all this was that he was waking up on his own ship, and it was unfamiliar. Every time he awoke thinking he would be able to tell the others about the outrageous dream he�d had, he found that the dream was all too real, and that he had a while to go yet before it released him.

�Luffy, you okay?� Zoro was again speaking softly, thank goodness.

Luffy relaxed for a few moments, then answered, �Yeah. I�m fine.� He sat up again, blanket still covering his legs, �How long was I out?�

�Little while. Couple hours, maybe. I�m surprised you woke up again tonight. I half expected you to sleep �til morning.�

Luffy smiled, �That�s not so bad. Think Sanji has finished dinner yet?�

There was the question Zoro had been waiting for. �I�m sure he has. Most everyone has already eaten.�

Luffy was shocked. �I slept through dinner?�

Zoro nodded, �Chopper brought me a plate down, so you�re the only one who hasn�t eaten.�

Luffy looked over to see the plate for the first time. Then he quickly scoured the hammocks for life. �It�s not too late to eat, right? They aren�t in bed yet.�

�Sanji said he�d fix something up for you when you woke.� Zoro finally sat up on the couch and leaned over the boy. �You know he won�t make you go to bed hungry.�

Luffy smiled at this and stood, �Let�s go up and see them, then!�

Zoro nodded, �You wanna bring your giraffe upstairs, too?� He pointed at something next to his hat, and Luffy followed his finger to see his sculpture on the table nearby.

Hopping out of his hat and stopping next to it, he bent and picked up his solid white�giraffe. It was one long piece of clay that had been bent so that it had a middle, a long fat tail, a neck that was longer than the rest of it, with one nubby thing on top that could have represented either the head or the horns that giraffes had. The neck was heavier than the rest of the body and always made the statue fall on it�s nose when Luffy tried to stand it on its three legs. �Haha!� he laughed as he looked over it. It was perfect. Usopp had done a good job cooking it for him. Luffy would have to thank him.

As he inspected his art, Zoro swooped his palm under Luffy�s legs so that he fell back into it with a surprised yelp that soon turned into a laugh as the swordsman started walking to the ladder with him. Now he could show everyone his piece! He anticipated doing so, knowing that even if they didn�t like it, it was still very good. Nothing would get him down as he merrily picked up his song again:

�Ohhh while Robin studies history,

And while Nami counts the treasury,

And while Sanji does inventory,

I�ll have something neat for them to see!�

Zoro didn�t bother hiding his smile. Wasn�t it just like Luffy to single out the one moment in the day that everyone would be the most busy, and then pester them all? I guess he thinks it cheers them up� And to think before this he had thought his captain�s immaculate timing to be unintentional�

The first thing they noticed upon reaching the deck was that the temperature had dropped. Severely. It seemed another cold night was underway. �Brrrr!� Luffy snuggled up close, again hating the thinness of his current �clothes�. Zoro blocked the cold as best he could with both hands and made the trip short.

They walked through the galley door to find that everyone was in there, having a gay old time with various chores... It was pretty quiet actually, because the scene was basically exactly how Luffy had described it would be. Sanji was scouring over the fridge and cabinets, taking stock of everything they had and everything they most distinctly didn�t. This was typically the first visible hint that they would be reaching an island soon.

Chopper was making some kind of a poultice for Usopp because he had burned his hand while cooking Luffy�s giraffe. Usopp suffered in silence like a true man. Robin was reading.

Nami was working over an abacus and writing numbers down on a paper beside her. They had all that gold from Skypiea, so that meant that, at the next island that had shops and an actual market, they would get ranked shares like a real pirate ship. You see, for the first time since setting sail together, they were rich. It was a pretty sweet feeling.

Zoro sat down on a bench and set Luffy on the table.

�Don�t get comfortable, Skull-face.� Sanji spoke up in greeting, �You have dishes to do.�

Zoro chose to ignore him for the time being, but his valiant show was unrewarded because Luffy distracted everyone�s attention from it. He crossed the table to where Nami was counting. �Hey, Nami! Look at what I made today!� he held his creation proudly aloft.

Nami averted her eyes from her numbers for a moment to settle upon the monstrosity. ��um. Very nice, Luffy. Very unique.�

�Neehee!� Luffy laughed, assuming �unique� meant �interesting�. �Daro? Usopp cooked it for me.� He raised his voice to clearly be heard by everyone in the galley, �He�s the bestest sniper and the bestest inventor in the WHOLE WORLD!�

Usopp, who had been sitting in the corner feeling unappreciated and burned, now looked up and smiled. Luffy always knew when to cheer him up and make him feel important, and he decided to return the favor. �Isn�t it natural, though. After all, I AM a brave sea warrior who sails with the future pirate king. I could only be a man of many talents to hold credentials like that!�

�YEAH!� Luffy cheered happily before bursting into laughter.

Sanji then came over to inspect the work of art, feigning interest in the statue to please his captain. He would never had bothered before, but Luffy needed all the encouragement he could get to keep his spirits high. �So that�s what you did today, huh?�

Luffy grinned up at the chef, �Yep! Can you tell what it is?�

Zoro smirked inwardly. There was no way that this pretty boy would guess what-

�Sure. It�s a giraffe.�

-if Zoro�s glare could have set things ablaze, Sanji would have combusted right there.

Luffy, however, was positively thrilled by the cooks �observation�, and smiled at his statue again. At least someone was able to give off good vibes non-stop, so seeing that Luffy was over the moon about life for the moment, Zoro decided grudgingly that now was a good time to get those stupid dishes done while he had the chance . He rose and walked to the sink to get started, Luffy�s eyes on his back the whole way.

The captain looked like he was ready to follow the swordsman, but Sanji stepped in quickly, placing a reheated plate of dinner on the yellow placemat for him so that he would know that it was his. Distracted by the close smell of the food, Luffy stopped short his launch to Zoro�s back, and turned his attention to Sanji�s actions. �Food!� he cried joyously, jogging to the placemat to begin his late meal.

By the time Luffy had finished picking his way through is food carefully, deciding that everything was okay to gobble except for the buffalo wings which had to be eaten slowly so as not to overkill his taste buds, Zoro had finished the dishes and was waiting only on Luffy�s plate as Robin dried the plates from across the room without looking up from her novel.

Nami finally sighed and pushed her abacus aside. �Shares will be big this time,� she smiled.

�Yosh!� Luffy brushed his hands off and put his fists on his hips, �Now I�ll finally get my bronze statue. I nice big one, just like royalty always get. I�ve decided,� he said decisively. Zoro took his plate.

Nami rolled her eyes, and across the room Usopp was saying �Luffy, I�ve told you! You don�t trade gold for a lesser metal. It defeats the purpose of having it, remember? �Luffy?�

Luffy was playing with Nami�s abacus, sitting on a bead and kicking off from the side to ride it across the bar until it met with the other beads with a tap. It wasn�t a very long ride, but it kept Luffy amused. After all, he was riding an abacus and how often to people get to do that?

Seeing Luffy was off in another world again, Nami grabbed her tea and went to set next to Robin on the step. �They tire me out, Robin-onee-chan��

Robin smiled, �Poor you. But at least everyone�s happy.�

�Hmmm.� Nami sighed tiredly before looking over to the counter, �Zoro, you have first Watch tonight. Wasurenai de ne?�

Luffy was off the abacus like a shot, �Zoro has Watch? Now? But� but it�s cold out�� that meant that Zoro was going to be someplace where Luffy couldn�t stay.

�Well,� Nami said a little too eagerly, �I�ll take it from him for 20,000 Beli.�

�Done!� Luffy declared, and Zoro spun around to address Nami directly, �You do know of course that he doesn�t make my decisions for me?� he said in more of a telling tone then an asking one.

�Since when?� Sanji asked rhetorically from the pantry.

Zoro spun on him, �Shut up!�

�Zoro,� Nami regained his attention, �Are you unwilling to make a deal?�

Zoro dried his hands on a towel. �Yes, because I can sit watch just fine.�

�Zoro�� the body builder looked down to see Luffy watching him sadly, �You don�t want to come to bed with me?�

It became instantly silent. Usopp stopped talking mid-sentence with Chopper and didn�t bother closing his mouth. All eyes fell on the first mate.

Zoro turned red as a beet as he desperately searched for an answer. �It�s not that- I mean� Luffy, I- I just- I don�t have any money,� he finally settled on turning the subject back to Nami�s bribery.

�Sure you do,� Nami mercifully allowed the subject to be reverted to one of her own favorites. �I just calculated shares, first subtracting two hundred million for the Merry. Even after I subtracted the value you owe me from before from your own share, you have plenty of money.�

�How much?� Usopp called over, interested.

Nami was quiet for a moment� �Almost 14 million.�

Luffy�s eyes boggled. He knew they were rich, but damn! And that was after taking away Merry�s share. Not bad for a pirate king aspirator�s first load of booty. �More important to Luffy at the moment, though, was whether or not Zoro would be willing to pay to have his watch taken for him now that he had money.

Zoro was quiet for a moment. Luffy was on the edge of the table, looking at him hopefully. His tiny feet were half over the edge, and Zoro instinctively held his hand near the edge so that if the boy fell, he wouldn�t hit the floor. He looked at Nami. �Twenty thousand, then.�

Her eyes narrowed, �Fifty. That ship has sailed.�

�Deal.� he answered before she had the chance to drive it higher. His captain had better appreciate thi-

� ©
©
Zoro ©
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!� Luffy latched onto his shirt like a barnacle. He was so happy. He got to keep his first mate to himself for another night!

The addressee looked down and smiled at his captain, who looked positively overjoyed for� maybe only the third time since this had happened to him. Was this worth fifty thousand Beli? Oh yeah. Would

Zoro ever admit it to anyone? Hell no.

�You know, you never did answer his question,� Sanji prompted just to tease him.

Zoro looked at him smoothly, �I don�t see how his asking me a personal question has anything to do with you. Right Luffy?�

�What question?� Luffy looked between the two.

�There you have it.� Zoro nodded.

�Kay!� Luffy laughed, not following at all.

A sweat drop rolled down Usopp�s face at the antics of his nakama. �They aren�t even making sense�� he mumbled to himself.

Nami rose and walked to the door. �I�m going to soak in the ofuro before I start Watch. I�ll see you guys tomorrow.�

�Good night, Nami!� Luffy hollered.

�Actually, on that note, I should be getting to bed.� Sanji followed her up with as he drifted toward the door.

�Me too,� Usopp murmured absently, holding his poultice in place once Chopper had tied the knot around it, and together the boy and the reindeer followed Sanji. Robin walked out last with a small �Good night.�

Luffy pouted a little. Everyone was going to bed, which meant that he would have to follow them. He had just gotten up, and even though it was late and even though the others kept saying he needed rest, he had hoped that he could do more than just eat dinner before going back to sleep� But as Zoro sighed and he was cupped by the swordsman�s large hand as they followed suit, Luffy realized that this simply would not be happening. Zoro was tired, he could tell, and he didn�t want Zoro to be tired for him.

Out the door they went. It was still cold out, but for some reason it wasn�t as intense for Luffy as it had been a few minutes ago. Luffy looked out over Zoro�s hand into the darkness, and sighed.

Zoro looked down a little to see Luffy looking more bored than exhausted, which was a switch.

Suddenly Luffy seemed to twist in curiosity to look above them� and his jaw dropped in total awe. Zoro followed his gaze and smiled. Of course.

The sword fighter didn�t want to risk the boy having an attack, but when they got down the steps, he ducked around them and lowered himself down in the same place he had been with Luffy yesterday (had it only been yesterday? Whew�).

Luffy hardly noticed, so entranced was he with the gigantic orb floating through the sky. The moon was a rare orange-red color, and it was absolutely huge! It wasn�t even full yet. Though it probably would be the next night or the night after�

He finally pulled his gaze away to see if Zoro was looking at it, too. He turned to see Zoro smiling at him in a way that was� unusual for Zoro. Unusual but not bad at all. Luffy liked it.

Before he could say a word, the swordsman spoke, �The stars are out too. Can you see them?�

Luffy smiled back, and laid himself down in Zoro�s palm to look at the sky. It was cold, but he knew they wouldn�t be out here long. It just made Zoro seem warmer to him. �Yeah. They�re bright. So beautiful. �Geez our mast is huge�� It was blocking his view of the galaxy!

Zoro snorted at this last disgruntled comment, �You should be grateful the sails are raised for the night.� But Luffy was all smiles again as he looked at the sky, momentary disgruntlement already forgotten.

Luffy was perfectly content to lay out here forever! �as long as forever only went for a couple more minutes, because he had a feeling he was going to get too cold before too long. But out here now, sitting on the deck with his nakama, Luffy felt more normal than he had since this started. Yesterday in this same place, in the bright sun and out of Zoro�s hands, he had been terrified. But aside from the creepy noises, one of which he had figured out was Usopp on Aft deck doing some last-minute thing with the flame dial, it wasn�t so bad right now. Zoro was blocking the cold nicely. He had lifted the boy higher to his chest at the center of his heat, and Luffy had put his feet up against it to keep them warm.

The scenario was mostly nice. The good outweighed the bad, in any case, and he wasn�t even being distracted from his condition.

Watching the stars at night with Zoro. Everyone else someplace that was elsewhere. It was as quiet as it was going to get until he got better. Zoro holding him close� wrapping him in his heat� smiling at him in that unusual-but-nice way�

Luffy blushed at the strange feeling that rose in him so strongly again. What was the matter with him?! This wasn�t normal, was it? Admittedly he had felt this way around his first mate a few times before, more often as of late, but this was� stronger. Just like everything else the Rumble Balls were doing to him. It must just be them then, He decided. �Even though�

This time, when something changed, Luffy felt it. It was almost as though the Rumble balls� shifting aspect came out of dormancy to make a move; as though a button inside of him was physically pushed, and Luffy knew beyond any doubt. �Zoro. I�m going to have an attack.�

Startled by the abrupt statement, and by the surety with which his captain spoke, Zoro looked from the moon to his captain sharply. �You feel it coming, now? Can you tell what kind it is?�

Luffy spoke calmly as he could, �Something changed inside of me. I don�t know what kind yet, but I know it�s coming.� He slumped hard against Zoro�s body, breathing deeply.

Zoro rose quickly and started moving for the hatch again. �I�m taking you inside. Chopper will be there.�

So locked in on the rising warning his body was giving him, Luffy could only nod absently at first, but before Zoro reached the hatch, Luffy called him again. �Zoro? I�m cold. �really cold.� Little eyes raised to meet the swordsman�s imploringly, ��I think it�s getting colder.�

Zoro nodded, internally swearing fluently. He shouldn�t have kept his captain out here. Honestly, what the hell was he thinking about?! He raised the hatch door and was ready to climb down, hesitating when Luffy began to sniffle.

Resigned to his fate, but still wishing this whole mess were over, the small captain had bowed his head against Zoro�s shirt. �No more��

It was a plea Zoro wasn�t sure whether he was supposed to hear or not, and he knew it wasn�t intended for him, but he felt inclined to reassure the boy all the same. �I know it�s hard, but we�ve gotta do it one more time, okay?�

Luffy shook his head in refusal. He was done. He wanted to be done! Oh, how he hated this helplessness.

Zoro sighed when Luffy refused to acknowledge his uninspiring words of �comfort�. He wanted to touch Luffy to make it easier, but he didn�t know if it would end up really making things worse now� Dammit, he had to let Luffy know somehow that he wasn�t alone, but� he was no good with words. Luffy shuddered again, and Zoro threw his inhibitions out the window. ��If it helps, I�m right here with you.�

Luffy didn�t seem to be able to answer him as the color drained from his face and he broke into a cold sweat. Zoro climbed down the ladder rather loudly, which gained him the attention of everyone in the bedroom. His expression was a little frightened, his attention was focused entirely on his hands the whole way, and that is was what made Chopper sit up a little more at the table.

�Is he okay?� Chopper�s voice drifted softly from across the room. He had his books spread out on the table, and a candle was lit on the table. Sanji didn�t say anything, but Zoro saw him roll over in his hammock to face them.

�He�s really cold.� Zoro answered as Luffy continued to tremble and struggle to breathe with his chest trembling so badly.

Chopper nodded in immediate understanding and indicated toward the candle with one hoof, closing his book with the other.

The first mate walked across to the candle and was just moving Luffy closer to the flame when the captain suddenly clutched his two first fingers, and started convulsing.

�Luffy!� Zoro began retracting his hands.

�Keep him near the fire!� Chopper commanded, and Zoro moved his hands back.

Sanji dropped out of his hammock and snatched up his lighter and another candle off one of the dressers before darting across the room and lighting them both. He set the second candle down and held the third flame -the one in his hand- near Luffy�s other side as the raven-haired boy continued cutting the circulation from his swordsman�s fingers.

They all took turns speaking softly, reassuring him that they were there. Chopper had said that Luffy may not be aware of much besides the cold when it was attacking him, but frankly, no one could help it. They were all a little scared; seeing their leader go through spasms wasn�t something anyone could get used to, and they didn�t want Luffy to feel alone if they could help it.

Luffy continued to shake like that for about a minute before his jerky motions slowly died down� and stopped. His arms went limp and dangled from Zoro�s fingers as his breathing slowed.

He felt so dizzy� Even more disturbing was that, for the first time that day, Luffy couldn�t hear anyone. He tried to strain his ears to make out something beyond the incredible rush of blood pumping through them, but they just weren�t ready yet.

Still, he wasn�t that far gone. He knew Zoro still had him; he could feel the rough texture of his first mate�s fingers against his own cheek, and the foreign heartbeat inside of them pressing and releasing against his skin.

He felt strength begin to return slowly to his arms for the third time that day, and thought about how wasn�t something he was going to ever get used to. Now he could hear voices. It took him a second to figure out who was saying what, and even what was being said at all, but the pieces started all falling together.

�Hey hey� I think we�re back.� Okay now, that had been Sanji�

There was some relieved giggling that he could only have belonged to Chopper�

�Don�t open your eyes, yet, buddy. It�s pretty bright.� -There it was! That was the one he�d been listening for! Luffy wasn�t ready to open his eyes yet anyway, but it was nice to have Zoro�s warning. Bright light would be very bad. Now that he was coming �round a little more, he was able to make out the color orange flickering on the other side of his lids, and felt no desire to experience that full-throttle.

He forced his own voice to work, and his first words came out in a slur, �Wha aaen?�

Zoro now deemed it safe to touch the boy, and carefully lifted the tiny leg that had slid out of his palm when Luffy had finally gone limp, laying it back beside his other one. He didn�t think Luffy was okay for having the all fire moved away just yet. No one else seemed too keen on the idea, either.

He began to very gently stroke his thumb back and forth across the tiny captain�s back as Chopper began speaking.

�What happened?� the reindeer started softly, �I was hoping you could tell me. I think you had some kind of attack� You don�t remember?�

Luffy groaned. An attack? That would explain the exhausted feeling.

Geez it was cold! It wasn�t icy cold anymore, but it was still really cold. He wanted to feel someone�s hands again. He wanted to be held closely. Luffy knew it was pathetic for a captain to feel so needy, but he didn�t even care right now. If being needy meant that somebody would hold him warm again and make him feel all better, then so be it.

He wasn�t sure if they were waiting for him to say something again, so he knew he had to answer clearly or they�d worry. Now, what had someone asked him? Oh well, maybe if he just talked that would be enough. �Got cold. It�s fine� it�s over. No more fire��

Sanji snapped his lighter shut. Zoro lifted the boy away from the table, rising again.

Luffy opened his eyes slowly, blinking a lot. He propped himself up on his elbows, but couldn�t raise his head. He was so tired� It was painfully obvious to everyone in the room just how weak Luffy was.

Zoro began to move toward his own hammock despite Chopper�s apparent desire to learn a little more about what had just happened. He knew why the baby Xoan was hesitant to just let this whole thing slide, but it would have to wait until tomorrow. Luffy wouldn�t be answering anything tonight. Sanji went back to his hammock as well, calling Chopper to follow.

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RUMBLE!