Zoro couldn't sleep. He had lost track of time for just how long he had stared at the ceiling of the sleeping quarters. He didn't feel tired despite his strenuous workout just a few hours prior. His mind was restless and racing with thoughts he hardly could concentrate on.

When the cabin door opened Zoro almost breathed a sigh of relief. He sat up to see Sanji. His relief was stained a bit by the sight of the cook, but regardless he got out of bed and grabbed for his swords.

"My turn for watch?" Zoro asked.

"You're actually up?" Sanji questioned through his yawn as he stripped himself of his black jacket and necktie. "That's a shock. You're a little late, though. Chopper's already out there."

Zoro let out a long sigh. He decided regardless if it wasn't his duty he was going to lose his mind if he stayed put in the cabin for any longer.

"Screw it," Zoro said as he made his way for the door.

"It's cold out," Sanji warned as Zoro went for the door. "Hey, maybe if you ask Chopper'll cuddle you to keep you warm. I won't tattle if you do."

"Piss off," Zoro said.

The swordsman felt Sanji snicker and once again the swordsman felt a flare of irritation rise in his chest. It was at least the third time that day Sanji had made some sort of remark about Chopper. He always snickered in the same way after he finished taunting, and it was beginning to piss Zoro off. Sanji was teasing Zoro, yet the swordsman couldn't figure out why. He had taunted Zoro before about how he acted around Chopper, but it was never as ruthless as it had been the past few days.

Zoro exited the cabin only to realize Sanji hadn't been lying about the cold. His breath was visible. The sky was black and without any stars. A cloudy, dark, and cold night. Still, Zoro wasn't in the cabin anymore. His mind started to settle down and already he was feeling calm. He struggled to shake Sanji's teasing words about Chopper. The swordsman stared at his feet and wondered if he should simply avoid the reindeer if only to spite the cook. It took him only a few moments of consideration before he realized that was a stupid idea and took off in search of his friend.

It only took Zoro a few minutes to spot Chopper. The reindeer was sitting on the railing just next to the large lion head that fronted their ship. He was gazing outward toward the sea. Zoro noticed an assortment of medical books scattered behind the railing. All of them were so far unopened. He approached the reindeer cautiously, but as his last foot set down on the final step it made a loud creak. Chopper's ear twitched and the reindeer turned his head.

Zoro wasn't positive why, but seeing Chopper smile relaxed him.

"Why are you up?" Chopper asked with a giggle.

"Couldn't sleep," Zoro said. He approached Chopper with an exhausted yawn. The reindeer allowed him to run his hand under his hat and feel the fuzzy tufts of fur on his head. Instantly Zoro felt warmth come from the reindeer. His hand which had been near numb with cold was now beginning to feel again. He was reminded again of Sanji's words and pulled his hand away.

"It's not healthy for you to stay up so late," Chopper said. "Especially with how hard you trained earlier."

"I could say the same for you, furball," Zoro taunted. He leaned on the railing just beside Chopper until his elbow was almost pressed to the reindeer's side. "How's your body holding up?"

Zoro had kept up his training with Chopper for the past several days. Of course, the reindeer's body was not anywhere near Zoro's own in terms of strength. While Zoro worked out everyday Chopper had to stick to every other in order to give his body time to recover. Still, he was improving, and he never complained. Slowing himself down in order to assist Chopper made his progress slower, yet for once Zoro didn't mind as much.

"I'm fine," Chopper said. "A little sore, but it's not as bad as the first day."

"Probably means we need to work you harder," Zoro said with a taunting tone and nudged his elbow into Chopper's side. "Pretty soon all the girl reindeer are gonna be flocking to you."

Chopper's eyes widened for a brief moment at those words. Then, the reindeer looked down. He was still smiling but Zoro instantly felt as though he had said something wrong by the way the reindeer tensed up.

"Yeah," Chopper said in a small voice.

There was newfound tension in the air. The two grew silent as they both stared out into the dark. A harsh wind blew at Zoro's hair and the swordsman shivered. He watched Chopper close his eyes and then breath in slowly. He didn't seem to be affected at all by the cold or even notice it.

"Sanji's really been busting my ass about you lately," Zoro said with an annoyed tone as he tried to quickly change the topic. "He thinks I'm going soft cause I spend so much time with you or something."

Out of the corner of his eye Zoro saw Chopper tense for just a moment. He blinked and it was gone, making the swordsman think he had imagined it.

"Really?" Chopper asked in a quick, panicked voice. "Do you… think that?"

"Screw Sanji," Zoro grumbled. "You're my friend. I'll spend time with you if I want."

"Mmm," Chopper made a noise and continued to stare down. His legs were hanging off of the railing and he lightly kicked at them. Zoro watched the reindeer's face. It was difficult to read his emotions, but Zoro could tell something was on the reindeer's mind. Another cold wind blew at Zoro and his arms erupted with goosebumps. He swore under his breath and rubbed gently on his arms.

Zoro stared at Chopper, who didn't meet his eye. He watched his fur lightly sway in the wind. The swordsman decided it wasn't worth whatever game Sanji had been playing with him to attempt to keep it up and did something drastic. He wrapped his arms around Chopper from behind and tugged him close to his chest. Instantly the reindeer let out a surprised squeak but didn't seem to try and struggle away.

"Zo-Zoro?" Chopper asked.

"It's freezing," Zoro grumbled as he put his chin on top of Chopper's hat. "Do you mind?"

After a few moments of silence Chopper silently shook his head back and forth. Zoro sighed and closed his eyes. He could feel the reindeer's tense body slowly loosen. Still, his arms were warming up as well as his chest. Chopper's breathing sounded louder now that he was so close. There was something calming about it. It reminded Zoro of the hours he would spend meditating focusing on nothing but the sound of his own breath and the inner workings of his mind.

"Zoro?" Chopper asked. His voice wasn't panicked and nervous now. Instead it was calm. It didn't make Zoro want to open his eyes.

"Mmm?" Zoro responded.

"Have… Have you ever been in love?"

It was a strange question. Chopper must have known it because Zoro could feel the tension in the small body he held close. Zoro opened his eyes slowly but did not pull away from the small reindeer. He could feel Chopper's heart accelerate from his own hand pressed to the reindeer's chest.

"No," Zoro said plainly.

"Oh," Chopper said.

"I haven't thought about anything like love for all my life," Zoro said. "It would only get in the way of my swordsmanship."

"So… you don't ever want to fall in love?" Chopper asked.

There was something almost melancholy in the reindeer's voice.

"I didn't say that," Zoro said with a shrug. "I just… I dunno, I never thought about it. If I were to fall in love that'd mean I'd have to settle down eventually, right? I'd have to leave the crew. I'd have to leave… you, I guess."

"Mmm," Chopper squirmed in Zoro's arms the tiniest bit. The swordsman could tell the topic made him uncomfortable, yet still Chopper pressed himself onward. "What if you didn't have to settle down? What if… you could still be the greatest swordsman?"

"Why are you asking all of this?" Zoro asked.

Chopper grew quiet.

"Hey," Zoro said. He got up from Chopper's body slightly but still kept a hand on Chopper's back. "Don't go all quiet on me now. I'm not gonna suddenly abandon you and the crew if that's what you're worried about."

"It's not," Chopper said.

Zoro frowned, and Chopper still didn't look his way.

"I…" Chopper said after both of them had remained quiet for quite some time. "I think I'm the reason Sanji's been giving you a hard time."

Zoro finally unwound his arms from Chopper's body and stood up. Chopper still didn't turn around. He simply kept staring out to the sea. After a several long minutes he finally took in a deep breath and turned his body around. His eyes only seemed to manage to look into the swordsman's own for a few moments at a time before he lost his nerve and had to avert them.

"What are you talking about?" Zoro asked. "Sanji always is on my ass. You don't have to blame yourself fo—"

"I told him something stupid!" Chopper interrupted Zoro with a bursting confession. The reindeer's cheeks were suddenly bright pink. "I told him something stupid and… and now he keeps teasing you. He promised me he wouldn't tell anybody."

Chopper looked to be growing more upset by the moment. Tears hadn't spilled from his face yet though he clearly looked close.

"Tell anybody what?" Zoro asked.

Something in Zoro's chest grew tight at Chopper's words. He thought he had overcome fear a long time ago but the way Chopper trembled made him uneasy. The reindeer looked just about ready to burst with emotions that the swordsman had no clue if he could handle. He needed to calm Chopper down somehow, yet his mind simply felt blank when he tried to think of what he could possibly do.

"I… I want to be honest," Chopper said. "But it's scary. It's really, really scary to be honest with you, Zoro."

Zoro remained quiet as he watched Chopper run around his words. He was avoiding something big. The swordsman could tell that much just by how well he knew the reindeer. It made him feel weak to see Chopper helplessly stressed. No amount of physical strength could fix that.

"Even though I'm not a human," Chopper said slowly. "I… I care about you, Zoro. I think about you all the time lately."

Zoro could feel his hand tighten into a fist. For just a second his own breathing became caught in his throat. His mind was spinning with only one answer for where Chopper was headed yet his mind simply refused to allow him to think of the word.

In the distance Zoro saw the faintest light. It distracted him from Chopper. Out here in the middle of this dark ocean a single light illuminated in the distance.

"Which is why… I-I don't want to ruin our friendship by telling you something stupid like I have a crush on you," Chopper said just before he covered his face with his hat.

"Chopper," Zoro said. He stared at the light in the distance. It was growing closer. Why now? Why at this exact moment when Chopper was telling him something so important? The swordsman gripped his swords by the hilt as he saw a massive white sail slip out of the darkness and into view.

"Please, Zoro," Chopper said. "Don't… don't hate me. You can forget I said anything, jus—"

"Chopper!" Zoro snapped louder.

The reindeer looked up. By now tears had fallen from his face. He looked terrified and smaller than he had before. Zoro could feel his own heart pounding with a million different emotions he couldn't figure out how to process. Without word he lifted his hand and pointed out to sea.

Chopper turned just when Zoro spotted the blue anchor on the mast of the ship. The marines were approaching.

Despite everything Chopper had said Zoro couldn't allow himself to think of that now. The reindeer's words rang through his head and left him in a confused, near dizzying state. Still, all he could think about was the danger of being spotted by a marine ship this late in the night with nobody but him and Chopper awake.

"Chopper," Zoro said.

The reindeer turned back to him. Though his eyes were still wet there was a new sense of terror in them. Real fear at the sight of an enemy.

"Go get the others," Zoro said as he unsheathed his white blade and placed it into his mouth. "We have some company."