The moon hung low on the horizon, set against the starry sky. A rippled copy of the image was reflected on the ocean. There was no wind to cause the ripples, instead it was a ship's wake that distorted the sea. The vessel was the Thousand Sunny, and the crew was the Straw Hat pirates. On deck Usopp, half awake, was manning the helm.
"I'm sooo tired. Mid-shift sucks. I can't believe I pulled the short straw for watch," he grumbled to no one in particular. Glancing up at another light behind him, higher up on the boat, he muttered again. "And how come he never has to do watch?"
In the room above, a single candle was lit, sitting on a table by the wall. The only occupant was Zoro. Holding a large weight to his chest, he was doing sit-ups, and silently mouthing his count. Once he reached his predetermined number, he moved the weight to the floor beside him, and stood up, stretching. A sound from the door interrupted him. He glanced over.
"Chopper, is that you?" he asked.
A small reindeer that walked like a man shuffled into the room. Chopper looked around nervously before speaking.
"Hi Zoro! How's it going?" the small creature began. Zoro cocked his head slightly.
"It's going just fine, Chopper." Zoro answered. "Did you need something?"
"Well, I couldn't really sleep, not really. I was thinking of that last battle we had on that island. It was, well, you know... I didn't help to much." Chopper walked further into the room, towards Zoro.
As for the swordsman, he stood somewhat awkwardly for just a moment, then relaxed.
"Well," Zoro replied, "That's not really your job on this ship. But if you came here hoping I was going to tell you that you did good, you're really wasting your time."
Chopper shook his head quickly, then said, "No, no, I'm not... I didn't come here for that. I just wanted to ask you if I could... If you would... Could I train here with you?"
Zoro stopped for a moment, then laughed. Stunned, chopper took a step back.
"There's the attitude a man should have. Get knocked down, get back up and come back herder than before. Yeah, you can train here with me." Zoro walked to the table and picked up the towel, and started wiping himself off with it.
Giddy, Chopper looked around with excitment. "Alright! Now I'll... uh... what should I do?"
Zoro sighed. "Well, why don't you start off with some simple leg exercises? Everything in battle will use your legs, so it's a good starting point. Are you going to transform?" He moved to get some weights, and Choppers rushed over to him. On the table, the candle burned steady.
The next morning, Sanji walked out onto the deck holding two large trays.
"All right you lot, breakfast is served." he called out the the others. The rest of the crew quickly came to enjoy the food.
"Aren't we missing someone?" Nami asked.
"If you're asking about that green-haired idiot, he's never on time for his meals. His is in the kitchen still." Sanji replied.
"No no, Chopper isn't here. He never misses meals. Where is he?" Nami said.
"Actually, I haaaahhhh..." Usopp's sentance turned into a yawn. "Sorry. I haven't seen Chopper all morning."
"Should we be worried?" Nami wondered aloud.
"I'm sure he's fine!" Luffy yelled from a ladder a short distance away. "He'll get hungry soon, and then he'll show hinself." With the matter taken care of as far as he was concerned, Luffy began eating his breakfast.
"That's not very responsible... Well, look who I'm talking too. Ugh." Nami complained.
Robin set down her plate and utensils. "Well, I'm done eating, so I'll take Chopper's food and find him. It would be a shame for him to miss out on such a delicious meal."
Sanji went off, but Nami ignored the heart-eyed cook. "That's a good idea. Thanks, Robin."
Robin smiled in response, then picked up Chopper's plate and took it with her into the ship. Only about five minutes passed before she knocked on the door of Zoro's training room.
"Zoro, have you see-oh!" Robin stopped short when she walked in the door. Zoro was passed out in the middle of the room, a towel draped over his face. Nestled against his side, Chopper was also sleeping, using Zoro's chest as a pillow. Weights, bars, and other equipment lay about the normally tidy room. Robin smiled.
"I suppose I should let them sleep. I'll just... put Chopper's meal in the kitchen next to Zoro's." As she turned around and left the room, she couldn't totally suppress the smile. She closed the door completely, letting the pair sleep.