Hello again to any new people who have taken to reading this. I'm glad you're here. Sorry this took so long. Some crazy things happened to me this week!

To the sweet guest who reviewed Chapter Six, Zoro and Lithium have not given up on trying to tell people, they just got distracted by other things. For Lith, it was her past coming up. For Zoro...well, Lithium herself is the distraction.


Zoro has lost track of how many times he started cursing while training that evening. While to a degree, his training was second nature, he still needed to count the repetitions. He was failing miserably at that. His mind was still trying to wrap around the strange little roommate of his, making even basic tasks difficult.

The day the crew had heard of her past, there had been only some last-minute shopping done before they had set off for Sea Angel Island. They were a week into travel and Lithium had fallen easily into the crew's routine, though the fact that she took two night watch shifts did mess with some sleep schedules.

It only made sense though, since she did have near-perfect night vision. She took the darkest hours when anyone else needed a lamp just to see their hands in front of their faces on starless nights.

During the day, she busied herself readying her new little brew station Franky built for her the first day out, or entertaining Luffy with various bizarre shifts. He found himself watching the spectacle rather than napping more often than not. On the sunnier days, she would often curl up not far from him and catch a nap herself, but it was not like she was everywhere he was though.

That did not help his issue. Even when they were not in the same part of the ship, his mind kept coming back to her. He did not have time for distractions. He had goals in life and if he did not have his wits about him, there seemed to be no way he would achieve them.

But the fact that she was incredibly generous with her time and alcohol made her difficult to ignore. There was not a job on the ship she had not assisted with in the week. She even gave over her personal stock to him. If he had been more like the love-drunk cook, he would have proposed for real right there.

It also did not help that his near-daily arguments with said cook revolved around Lithium. The idiot was convinced that in one way or another he was treating her badly and had to be told off about it.

If it were not for the fact that Sanji's accusations were always of a perverted nature, it would be easier to let it slide. It still sounded like an attack on his honor. He would never dream of doing something against her will.

Not that he had not had some thoughts of a sexual nature toward her. They were hard to avoid when he woke up every morning with the cute woman snuggled up to him, wearing only a large teeshirt and underwear.

Most of the time he was the surprised little spoon when he woke up for his watch shift. This morning though, he woke up with her head tucked under his chin, his arms around her, her leg resting over his hip.

He did not know how it happened, but he was more than willing to linger there a little while, maybe pull her a little closer. That was until he remembered what morning usually did to a certain part of his anatomy when it brushed against her leg.

He could not have jumped from bed any faster if it had been on fire.

The rest of the day he was a distracted mess, though he doubted it showed to anyone but possibly the eerily observant archeologist. Even his usual naps were filled with images of her peaceful sleeping face and the soft warmth of her in his arms.

The hell is my problem? I really need to get one of the others to understand what actually happened and soon...or else I may actually fall for her...

Zoro nearly dropped the weights he was using when he sensed another presence in the crow's nest with him. It jarred him from his thoughts and he looked up sharply, regaining his grip on the massive weights.

"Ah, Zoro, did I startle you?"

Lithium stood by the ladder, her head tilted quizzically to the side. Unlike earlier, she was in a loose pair of shorts, a worn green teeshirt and was barefoot.

Dammit...she's cute like this...

"A little." He smiled a little, and set the weights down. "You're early for your watch."

She stared at her toes, her ears drooping a little. A week watching her had taught him this was a sign she was embarrassed or nervous, so long as it the gesture was slight. Otherwise it expressed sadness.

"I was actually wondering if you would spar with me."

He blinked a few times. "You...want to spar...with me?"

"You don't have to if you don't want to..." A slight pink blush bloomed on her cheeks. It was too cute for him to refuse, and he was not sure he was okay with that.

"I'm fine with that." He smiled a little more. "Though if you get hurt, that idiot cook won't let me hear the end of it."

Lithium rolled her eyes with a sigh. "He worries too much. I'm not...what is it he calls me? Ah, a delicate flower. I'm made of tougher stuff than that."

Zoro chuckled, more than a little amused at this. "He didn't see you fight. He's in for a surprise when he does see it."

Despite saying this, he was concerned he would hurt her. He knew she could handle herself against her own enemies, but he also was well aware of what he could do. Yet the idea of learning what strength lay hidden in her was too good to pass up.

"I don't care if I get hurt. I'm just out of practice in combat and I doubt anyone else would be a good fit for a sparring partner." Her jaw was set a little stubbornly as she said this. "Not that I don't think they're strong, but you would benefit the most from it as well...unless I'm wrong..."

No fair, woman...you're cute and I'm weak to it...

"I already said yes, Lithium. You don't have to explain yourself."

Her pink-tinged cheeks went red. "Ah...yeah...sorry..."

Zoro shook his head and leaned down to move the weights back to their place. "Don't worry about it. I haven't sparred without my swords in a while anyway. Should be fun."

That brought a grin to her face. As he walked back to her, he saw her shift into a clearly practiced stance, her weight balanced lightly on the balls of her feet. She broadcasted no other information about what she her first move would be though, already off to a good start in his opinion.

He could feel more than see her eyes looking for tells in him as well, her gaze sharp and intense, her eyes those of a predator.

Quite frankly, he liked it. His rebelling mind pictured that expression looking down on from on top of him before he could stop it. He shook his head slightly, bringing his head back into the game, but a beat too late.

In that instant, she all but disappeared, a soft giggle the only indication of where she had ran. She was to his left, his blind side.

Or so he thought as full weight of a speeding fuzzy woman slammed into his right side.

Heh...this is going to more than fun!

Lithium had a huge grin on her face as she dodged another attack from unarmed swordsman. As she thought, he was still formidable without the blades and she was excited about it.

She had not had a decent sparring partner in years, let alone one she was positive could beat her. Her blood sung in her veins, not a movement wasted save for the grin.

Even knowing he was going easy on her, did not take away from the thrill of pushing this new speed shift to it's limits. She was faster than Zoro naturally, though his superior strength would no doubt make up for it. This shift, a combination of a particularly fast cat species and Sanji's particularly strong leg musculature, was tipping the scale in her favor at the moment though.

That and the priceless look on Zoro's face when she launched one of the cook's spinning kick attacks at him made it well worth the effort learning the shift. She knew her kick was not nearly as powerful as Sanji's, but it threw off Zoro just enough that she was finally able to knock him over.

It was a small victory, but it was hers, even if it did not last long. In the seconds before he hit the floor, he grabbed a hold of her and rolled, pinning her beneath him, holding her wrists over her head.

"Not bad, Lithium. You almost had me distracted."

She growled softly, a smirk on her lips, despite the wild blush that creeped up from her toes. He was leaning over her, so close his scent filled her head, the scent sweat, steel and man almost enough to shake her concentration.

"That's not my only trick, Roronoa Zoro."

The bit of banter bought her the time she needed. Zoro's face was a mixture of surprise and disgust as her wrists were suddenly considerable thinner and slid from his grip before he could tighten it. Her hips did the same and slipped completely from his control. With flexibility no normal human possessed, she tucked her legs under him, her body bulking out with muscles comparable to his own at the last second as she sent him sprawling away from her.

She flipped to her feet, sending him a fanged smirk as he righted himself as well. She was met with an equal smirk to hers.

"Using my muscles again?" He raised an eyebrow at her. "Surprisingly they suit you well. But I know best how to use them."

Lithium knew she was in trouble the moment he seemed to increase his own arm muscles after a similar fashion to her shifting. The only thing that saved her from the punch he threw was her skills in redirecting momentum in her favor.

He did not fall this time, but the stumble she caused, small as it was, bought her time to shift again and lauch herself out of his immediate reach.

"Are you part lizard too, Lith?" The swordsman stared up at her, clinging to the ceiling with shifted gecko pads on her hands and feet.

Lith?

"Who said you could call me that?" She growled, her ears laying back, though not all the way.

"What? Lith?" He quirked an eyebrow. "Is that a problem?"

She frowned, her initial anger at shortening her name waning when he said it again. It sounded right coming from him. "Ah, well...I don't usually like nicknames...but...I know you mean no disrespect by it..."

He frowned slightly, tilting his head a little. "How would that be disrespectful to you?"

"I was a number, Zoro." She growled a little once more, but there was not much force behind it. "LI-36. I gave myself the name Lithium when I was finally free."

Zoro nodded silently, crossing his arms over his bare chest. He seemed to do that every time her past came up in conversation. After a moment like that, he spoke again.

"You sure I can call you that, then?"

Lithium dropped from the ceiling."Yes. You're kinda the first friend I've had since I was fifteen...and I know you weren't saying it to belittle me..."

She felt her face burn a little at that admission. She had avoided making ties after Shinkiro and it required extenuating circumstances for that to change. It sounded pathetic to her ears.

Zoro grinned, uncrossing his arms. "I wouldn't belittle a woman, who, with training, could probably kick my ass."

She thought her face burst into flames right there at that incredible compliment. "You better not just be saying that to humor me..."

"I wouldn't joke about that." He shook his head. "Though you would need to work at it."

She smiled past the near-painful blush. "We should probably finish this spar then so I can work on that."

Zoro laughed heartily, a surprisingly warm sound. "So you want to kick my ass then?"

She giggled. "Only a little."

When Usopp climbed up into the crow's nest to take his turn at watch, their spar ended with Zoro pinning her again.

The sniper shook his head. "Ya' couldn't wait until your watch was done at least?"