Face forward and march.

Shelby Hartford had lived by this strict rule for years. It had helped her in every big decision she's made. Just face forward and march.

She currently found her self doing just that - albeit unwillingly.

"Lillianne Sarafina Bohemia, if you don't stop pushing me right now, I will slaughter you so bad, they'll have to identify the body through blood tests!" Shell complained loudly.

"Have a little faith in my skills! It's not like you can complain anyhow! I already picked out the dress, and unless you wanna leave him standing at the alter just cause you didn't like my choice, you have to wear it! Now scooch ya' booch so we can put the damn dress on you and have it sized!"Lily roughly shoved Shell forward into a curtained doorway, effectively tripping her. Shell picked herself up and scowled back at the tittering girl. Rolling her eyes, she turned to face the professional-looking woman beside a 3-piece mirror who held a clear bag with white cloth inside. 'Well, this should at least be interesting...' She thought aimlessly before stepping up onto a small platform and stripping off her clothing.

Shell flopped down into the black Cafe chair and sighed contentedly as though the chair were the softest seat she had ever had the pleasure to place herself in.

"Goddess, that was exhausting...especially since you kept whining about them pricking you!" Lily collapsed into a chair across from Shell at the small glass table sitting outside of their favorite cafe. "I don't get it," she continued, "how can someone so strong and calm most of the time be a complete pansy in the dressing room?" Lily shot the older woman a look and tilted her head back, sighing.

Shell glared at the lazy girl before she retorted, "I don't see how it's a problem! I swear that one dresser had it out for me, and was pricking me on purpose."

Lily had a flat expression. "You knew he had fangirls when you got with him, Shell-sama. I have to deal with them, you have to deal with them, anyone who's with anyone from their world has to deal with them." She giggled and sat up completely turned to face her Captain and went on, "I bet that chick was one of those fangirls that goes home and cries because she cant have what she wants!" She laughed hard as their usual waitress came over.

"Hello! Here for the usual Tuesday visit?" Makino exclaimed with enthusiasm.

"Yeah," Shell replied boredly. Lillianne and Shelby ordered their usual Coffees-with-extra-creamer-and-don't-forget-to-add-the-whipped-cream-but-not-too-much-because-I'm-still-watching-my-thighs-like-a-hawk. As Makingo skipped away, Shell turned back to Lily. "Lillianne, how long did you-"

"-say I had to wait until I saw Shell?" Doflamingo wailed as he lounged back in the armchair on Trafalgar Law's sub.

"Until the wedding. It's considered bad luck to see the bride one week before the wedding." Law replied in a bored tone. He crossed his arms and huffed for the umpteenth time that day. It wasn't helping his attitude at all that his flower had told him not to see her for one week as well, saying 'we should celbrate the wedding by sharing the usual wedding customs the bride and groom usually partake in! We can't see each other for a week, ok?~' And ofcourse, he couldn't say no to her, not unless it generally hurt her. And it wouldn't hurt to be without her for a week. But, Gods, it was Hell Week, the week right before the wedding. And it wasn't even his wedding! It was Shelby and Doflamingo's wedding, and his delicate flower was doing all the preparation, leaving Doflamingo and himself very bored.

Law was brought out of his musing by a scoff coming from Doflamingo. "That's a-"

"-stupid custom!" Shell sighed in frustration and gripped her coffee as she lay her head down on the glass surface. Lily patted her shoulder, then leaned back into her seat and gulped down her cooled coffee. As she went inside and up to the counter to pay for their usual drinks, she wondered briefly what she would design the clearing to look like...

Oh yes, did I forget to mention? Shell refused to marry in a church. It was too cliche' and stuffy. Especially with all the people that would be attending. Shell specifically told Lily that since she wanted to do all the wedding planning, she needed to make the wedding in a place that was large, open, and beautiful. She didn't care what the colors were, as long as they matched. She didn't care who she invited, as long as they didn't ruin the wedding...too much. She knew she might invite Luffy, simply out of respect, and with that guy always came catastrophe. Finally, Shell didn't want a Bible wedding. She had Lily meet up with Law to discuss the vows they would exchange. It would be an improv wedding. Shell wanted to be surprised. She wanted to be...impressed. Naturally, though, she automatically knew anything Lily did would impress her. She had a way of surprising her.

Lastly, Shell didn't want to know anything about the wedding except what the dress looked like. Lily could pick it out, but the dress had to fit to Shell's form, so she would have seen it at the fitting anyway.

When Lily got back to the table, she was slightly surprised to see Emporio Ivankov sitting there in her seat. Currently, Ivankov was a she, and she sat in her seat.

"Emporio, what are you-"

"-doing here, Mihawk?" Law glared at the swordsman. Doflamingo shifted in his armchair and got up. Mihawk simply strode over without so much as a glance at Law.

"Come with me, now." Mihawk half-turned away from the ten-foot-tall man.

"Where are we going, Hawk-eye? Fufufufu~" Doflamingo slouched down to meet his gaze from behind his purple tinted sunglasses.

"Suits. You can't wear...that to your own wedding." Mihawk eyed his outfit with vaguely hidden disgust and walked back over to Law. "You, too, best man. Neither of you have an incling of what the word 'fashion' means."

Law smirked and replied, "Oh, and you do?"

Mihawk shot him a glare and barely surprised the two with his answer, "No. Sanji will accompany you to the store. I am merely here because I have your respect, and can therefore convince you to come with me willingly." He turned back to the exit and strode on.

Doflamingo looked at Law, who shrugged, and followed with a wide grin plastered on his face. "Well, at least now I won't be-"

"-BORED! I AM ENTIRELY TOO BORED TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION RIGHT NOW!" Shelby never thought she'd see the day when she was flustered by something anyone but Lily said, but Ivankov had to go and say it.

"Darling, there is nothing wrong with talking about our sex lives!" She shook her hand back and forth, gesturing to drop the embarassment.

Shell didn't, though, and her face flushed with heat as she shot back, "No! I don't even talk to Lily about that stuff!" She covered her cheeks and turned away from them, very intent on going...nowhere. She didn't actually have a place to run to, but she had to go...somewhere. Walks helped her think, though they had probably become boring, especially since now her walks all consisted of being beside a certain blonde...

"Captain, just sit, and we can go over this! This way, we'll know what kind of lingerie to get you for the bachelorette party gifts!" Lily whimpered and put on her pouting face.

'Oh no...not the...pouting face!' Shell slowly sulked back over to the red-head and cross-dresser. Then she sat, knowing she was defeated.

"Now, first off, how many times have you had sex?" Shell flushed at Ivankov's calm question. "Ok, since you seem embarassed, let's make this a little more comfortable. I'll go first, then Lily, then you, ok?"Ivankov smiled when Shell nodded her head ashamedly. "Now then, I've had sex-"

"WE DON'T WANNA KNOW!" Lily exclaimed loudly, covering her ears. "LALALALALALALALAAAA~!" She shut her eyes tightly.

"Well, Lily, what about you~?" Ivankov lounged with one leg crossed over the other, smiling at the younger girl.

"Well, me and Law have had a LOT of sex, so I actually don't know." She replied, casually leaning against the back of Shell's seat.

"And you, Shell-bell?" Ivankov directed her gaze to Shelby.

"Erm...well..." She blushed heavily and lowered her head. "I-I...me and Doflamingo...erm...I haven't counted, but I-I think last night was our seven-"

"-tyfive times." Doflamingo's grin couldn't possibly go wider than it was currently.

"Wh-what?" Sanji shriveled where he stood in front of the changing room's curtain as the groom and best-man fitted their tuxedos (chosen courtesy of Lillianne). He jumped back up and continued his questioning. "What about adorable little Lily-swan~?"

"Two hundred thirty eight times and counting" Law replied nonchalantly. "Sanji, why the sudden interest in our sex lives?" Sanji could hear the smirk behind the curious tone.

"T-two...hun...dred..."Sanji collapsed into a puddle of I'm-so-jealous-because-I-haven't-gotten-laid-in-a-really-really-really-long-time. "Guys, why?"

Doflamingo stepped out of the dressing room sporting his pink flamingo print boxer shorts, and handed the tuxedo to a befuddled and slightly pink-cheeked tailor, and shrugged. "Sanji, I don't understand what the problem is. If you're trying to make yourself feel better by asking us about our sex lives, why don't you just make your own? You'll probably get laid at the Bachelor party. Ivankov is planning it, and the bachelorette party, so really, you're complaining for nothing." He turned back into the changing room and pulled the curtain closed behind him.

Sanji picked himself up and sighed. Law stepped out of his room fully dressed and handed the second tailor his tuxedo. Once the boys were dressed, they left the shop and climbed into Doflamingo's limousine. They were headed to a local restaurant to 'eat some damn lunch, dammit!' as Doflamingo had put it. Once they got there, though, since it was a Sunday, they were closed.

Doflamingo seethed with anger."GOD FUCKING D-"

"-AMMIT ALL TO HELL! Iva, please stop poking me in the side everytime I say somethig that amuses you!" Shelby huffed and turned from Ivankov and strut back over to the bed. Currently the three girls sat in the hotel room that Lillianne had booked in order to keep Doflamingo and Shelby seperated.

Shelby paced back and forth, her patience was wearing thin. Lillianne giggled and pulled another dress from the suitcase. The third suitcase out of ten that they had gone trough. All of the suitcases were packed tightly with colorful dress of all shapes, and only Shell's size. "How about this one?" Lily held up a long, green ballgown. How she fit it into the small container, noone knew. She simply could, and did. Iva gasped and awed about how she loved it, as she did with most of the previous dresses. However, Shell merely gave the dress a passing glance and continued pacing, mumbling about how it wasn't right. Lillianne sighed out, "Captain-sama, it's just a bachelorette party! You have to wear something!"

Ivankov got up and crossed the small space with a few strides, then plucked a large pink suitcase from the pile. She set it on the bed and unzipped it, then started rummaging through it and tossing dresses here and there, occasionally mumbling about how it wasn't right. Lily flopped down onto the soft matress and sighed, closing her eyes. Shelby sat in the seat Ivankov had previously been sitting in. The girls were all growing impatient and tired, not to mention cramped.

"Guys," Lily moaned from her spot laying on the bed, "I'm so bored. We need to do something...When's the bachelorette party again...?"

Ivankov answered her, not looking up from the pink suitcase that lay before her, "In exactly six days and two hours. Eight-o-clock sharp! Lily, why don't you deliver invitations to both parties while I find the dress I have in mind...?" Lily nodded her head excitedly and shot up. She sprinted to the closet, pulled out her purse and the messenger back she had all the invitations in and sprinted out of the hotel room, slamming the door behind her.

"Well...she seems happy..."Shelby sank further into her chair. Only six days and seven nights until she saw her beloved flamingo again, yet she didn't know if she could follow Lily's strange customs and rules. All Shell wanted to do was see him, but she knew Lily was going through the exact same thing. Could they really make it that long? Shell didn't know...

"Ah-hah!" Emporio held up the perfect dress that (still currently a she) had been holding. Shell was in awe.

"W-wow..." She sighed softly at the sight she beheld before her. Then smirked as she thought, 'Well, well, well, this ought to make the party more interesting...perhaps I'll wear it for Doflamingo sometime. His reaction should be priceless' She laughed and grabbed the dress from Ivankov, and ran to the bathroom. "You're a life-saver, Iva-san!" She called happily.

"No problem, sweetie!" Ivankov called back, just before Shell slammed the door in excitement, eager to see if she fit what was possibly her new favorite dress.