Warnings: starvation

Disclaimer: Eiichiro Oda owns One Piece, I own my thoughts/plot/words/etc...

10: Hunger Pains

"Get out of here and stay out!"

Zoro was tossed out of the restaurant kitchen and landed on the dirty ground with a thud, the door slamming closed behind him seeming to mock him. Zoro was on his stomach, staring at the dirty puddles on the ground and wishing it was safe to drink. He fell asleep there from pure exhaustion.

He woke up hours later, still on the ground but now it was pouring. He blinked water out of his eyes and slowly got onto his hands and knees, taking in the change. It was night now. He could hear cooks shouting behind him in the restaurant, cars honking on the streets and the sound of hundreds of people walking. In the apartment next to him, he could hear a couple screaming at each other. He frowned, as it reminded him of his father.

Slowly, Zoro stood. He walked to the opposite wall and tore off a broken air vent, reached in and pulled out his three swords. He didn't bother to reattach the air vent. He was not in a good mood. He had no money and he was starving. He had money earlier, but then someone stole his jacket while he was asleep, using it as a blanket.

They dropped the pictures next to him in the mud, but took off with the rest. He was just happy he still had his swords and pictures, but he needed food.

He finally walked out of the backstreets, walking down the main street and getting several looks from the adults around. He was dirty and thin in a world full of rich people. Many of the adults gave him condescending looks. He didn't bother to glare at them, though – they weren't worth his time.

He walked and walked, being pelted by the rain. He walked in the opposite direction of everyone else, surrounded by their rich clothes and their umbrellas and their disgusted looks.

He really hated adults.

Zoro ignored them and, as usual, walked with no destination. Maybe he could find another restaurant, a kinder one that would feed a starving teen. But, then again, that had been the seventh restaurant in three days that kicked him out like that. He wasn't sure if he could go on like this much longer.

As the night wore on, the rain began to fall more than before. He didn't know where he was, all he knew was that he was on the outskirts of the city.

And something smelled delicious.

He took several steps, searching for the source, and stopped in front of a house to his right. Well, it wasn't really a house. It was pretty big, and he saw a sign nearby that said something about an orphanage.

He stared at the home, stomach growling angrily at the smell of the delicious food that wafted out of the open window. The house was brightly light and he could see children running around inside the windows before being told to sit in chairs by some adults. He saw them getting served what seemed to be a delicious meal and he had to force himself not to drool over how good it looked.

"Who are you?" He turned, slightly shocked at the fact someone stood behind him. He didn't even realize it. It was a woman with short brown hair and blue eyes. She wore a green jacket, a white shirt underneath, plain blue jeans and white sneakers. She was the same height as him but seemed so much taller than Zoro at that moment.

The woman was staring at Zoro with concerned eyes, not that he could tell. She knew immediately that this boy had been on the streets. He was wearing a dirty, ripped white t-shirt and even dirtier green cargo pants with black boots that seemed absolutely soaked. He held three swords at his hip, which she found slightly strange, but was not as strange as his green hair, which was matted and sticking to his forehead.

But he was trembling. His skin was a pale color and he was taking deep breaths. His eyes looked weary and he had several cuts and bruises littering his body.

Her frown deepened, but Zoro thought it was out of anger for him being there.

"Sorry, I'll leave…now…" Zoro didn't even get two steps before his legs gave out under him. He heard the woman shout and felt arms grab him, but after that it was all a blur, then black.

He didn't know how long he had been out, but when he woke up, he was staring at a ceiling and he was in a bed and –

He was inside.

He sat up quickly but immediately regretted it when his head spun. He heard someone shout something before someone was at his side, slowly lowering him back onto the bed. He opened his eyes and stared up at the person, a man, above him, who had just stuck a thermometer into his mouth. He waited until the beep and pulled it out, smiling to himself.

"Your fever is getting better, kid. My friend is going to bring some food down here in a few minutes, she just has to heat it up. My name is Thatch, by the way. Ya know, you gave us a right good scare there, boy. Passing out like that with a fever of 104 degrees, 's not healthy, ya know. But, what were you standing out there for anyway? Not many people manage to find there way over here since we're so far away from the city's mainstream, most people don't even know we exist-"

"Thatch, you're gonna make the poor kid want to hit his head on the wall. Stop talking and let 'im rest for a while."

"He's been resting for three days-"

The boy whose name they did not yet know shot up in bed again and stared at them in shock. "Three days?"

"Yeah, three days. Your fever was no joke, kid. Kept going up and down like a roller coaster – ow, Haruta, don't smack me!"

"Sorry for his running mouth. My name is Haruta, you saw me right before you passed out. Would you like some soup?"

He nodded his head in shock and carefully took the bowl. He took a small bite but once he had, he attacked the bowl with enthusiasm. It was as if he hadn't eaten for –

"When was the last time you ate?"

"A few days, probably," He answered while taking a breath, slowing down his eating pace. He immediately went back to eating while Haruta and Thatch looked at him in worry.

"What's your name?" The green haired boy looked at them once more, then back at the soup. He quickly finished the soup before answering them.

"Zoro. Roronoa Zoro."

"Well, Zoro, would you like to stay here for a few days?" Thatch asked Zoro, causing him to blink in confusion. "You're still in no condition to be walking around and you need to rest. What do you say?"

"…Sure."

A/N: The wheels are a rollin'!

inulover305: Most characters will be following a path much like this!

LuciferRin: The supernovas aren't going to be here for a while. Luffy is 10, his brothers 15, the strawhats themselves (except for Robin [16], Brook [50s] and Chopper [6 month old puppy]) are nine. Zoro is 13 I believe.

AaliyaIronHeart: Thanks!

natsuandlucy4ever: Thanks! :) I can't say who it was at the end of that chapter.

Thank you guys so much for reading, I love you! 3