"Do we have to tether you to your bed?" Nami asked, placing her hands on her hips as she tapped her foot impatiently. Zoro scowled.

"What's it to you? The only reason you even care is because you've deluded yourself into thinking that I owe you some huge amount of money!" He frowned, his grip on the enormous boulder not faltering in the slightest as he lifted it over his head easily.

"'Deluded?' If there's anyone who's deluded, it's you, Zoro! You accepted my terms when I lent you the money, it's your fault for not paying me back three-fold immediately. And since you still haven't paid me back, I had to start charging interest!"

"Yeah, but you've promised to forgive my debt several times now. Let's see, there was that one time at Whiskey Peak when you wanted me to go and help Vivi because you were greedy for a reward... uh... oh! Just two days ago, you told me that you'd forgive my debt if I defeated the Mr. 1 pair... And then..." Zoro strained to remember other promises that Nami had made to him, but stopped when she spoke.

"And you didn't, but I still took off half of your tab. You should be grateful! Anyway, you're making me out to me more heartless than I really am! I'd appreciate it if you could at least try to see me as something other than a loan shark!" She said with exasperation, then seemed to realize that she'd said too much. Embarrassed, Nami put a hand to her mouth and tried to stop herself from going red in the face. What exactly do I want him to view me as? She wondered, a blush steadily creeping up her neck.

"Even though that's exactly how you're acting?" Zoro grumbled. He tossed the boulder several meters away, where it landed on the sand and caused a small earthquake that almost made Nami fall over. He stretched out his back muscles, which were now aching with the strain of his workout, and turned to face Nami. "Anyway, I don't see-" Zoro stopped short when he saw Nami's embarrassed expression.

Wait, why is she blushing? Zoro wondered, a little shocked by this uncharacteristic behaviour of Nami's. Was it something she said? Something I said? I dunno... And she's covering her mouth, too... She almost... Oh, damn, I don't even want to think it, but she's... what's the word? Oh, yeah. Cute. Why does Nami suddenly look so damn cute? Zoro felt his own ears go red, and was suddenly reminded of the events of the previous night, where he had woken up only to discover that Nami had been sleeping on top of him.

"W-Well, I mean, it's not as though I really want you to see me as something more, y'know, but I'd appreciate it if you stopped acting like I was your enemy or something." Nami finally articulated, still very pink in the face.

"Er... Have I been acting like that? I didn't think that I was." Zoro replied awkwardly, scratching his head and not quite knowing what else to say.

"Sort of. You're always... prickly whenever I try to talk to you."

"Yeah, well, that's usually because you're trying to get me to do something for you." He sat down cross-legged on the sand and looked out at the horizon, wishing that the awkward atmosphere that had suddenly blossomed between himself and Nami would just disappear.

Nami sat likewise next to him, and their conversation lapsed into silence. Both of them merely stared at the western horizon, watching the Alabastan sunset with only the moaning of the desert wind breaking the quiet.

As the sun sank lower and lower beneath the horizon, the light stained the sky a vibrant and beautiful scarlet, though both pirates were far too distracted by their own thoughts to notice this.

"Ah... I've been meaning to ask you, Nami..." Zoro chanced a glance at his crewmate, though Nami kept her eyes averted.

"Yeah? What is it?" nervously, Nami fiddled with a stray lock of her hair, and Zoro's grey eyes zeroed in on the action, and he blushed even more brilliantly. Nami, for her part, still felt far too embarrassed to even look at Zoro: she, too, was recalling the events of the previous night, and cursing herself for having accidentally fallen asleep while listening to his heartbeat. She continued fiddling with her hair seeming not to notice the effect such an action caused on Zoro.

"Well... er... it's... Say, let's go for a drink. I sure could go for some sake, how about you?" he said, chickening out of asking about the events of the previous night, and laughing nervously.

Nami blinked in surprise, feeling relieved and assuming, (falsely, of course,) that Zoro was still unaware of her little slip-up.. "S-Sake?" She asked. Zoro nodded.

"Yeah. It feels as though I haven't had any in months."

"Yeah, you're right. Fine, let's go. I don't suppose you know of any good bars in Alubarna?"

"Nope. I'm not exactly sure how to get back to the palace, either. Lucky thing you're here." Zoro grinned, somewhat sheepishly as he admitted to his lack of navigational skills, though rather spoiling it by adding, "Probably if anyone else came out here to find me, they'd get lost and who knows how long it would take us to get back there."

"Well, Luffy's still asleep, Sanji-kun and Usopp can't actually walk until they've healed some more, and Chopper and Vivi are stuck at the palace taking care of those three. I was the only one who could leave to come and find you. Don't go blaming it on fate, now." Nami stood up, brushing sand off of her lap and backside, trying, unsuccessfully, to be somewhat covert about it.

Zoro's grin widened. "But fate's a funny thing, now, isn't it?" He nearly laughed as Nami's face contorted into a hugely disapproving expression.

"You're so weird." she said, offering a hand to help him up.

"Maybe. But you're weird, too."

Author's Note: Aww, you're both plenty weird. Anyway, TEN CHAPTERS! HUZZAH! And really now, going for a drink? I think one (or both) of you is going to have to conveniently lose their inhuman alcohol tolerance for the next couple of chapters... Because plot device. Always the plot device. Alcohol is such a good plot device. *Forcibly drags self from evil plotting of adorable ZoNa moments* Ahem. Yes, well, everything's coming along quite nicely, if I do say so myself: Alabasta sure has given me a lot of fuel for this fic, but after that... Ach, I have to bring more of the Strawhats in, don't I?

Zillions of thanks to my lovely reviewers, as well as the numerous (also lovely) people who followed and favourited this! I appreciate it ever so much!

Now I think I could go for some sake myself... or, you know, cheesecake. Same difference, really.

~Lucinda