Enjoy my dear ducks!

Waking up I note that I am on a ship, one that is unfamiliar to me. "You're finally waking up." Chopper says relieved. Sitting up I feel my arm resisting, the bandages limiting my movements. "You'll make a full recovery. You just need to rest a bit. Your shoulder has already mostly healed."

"Thank you doctor." I say smiling at the reindeer. "How long have I been knocked out?" I ask feeling rather restless and bit concerned.

"A week. We had to give you several blood transfusions again, you lost a lot of blood while fighting and then when you were in the water. I also gave you something so you wouldn't have nightmares like you were." Chopper says worriedly. "We got really lucky. Everyone is back now. Robin and Usopp joined the crew again. Franky even joined us, he built us this ship." The doctor says catching me up to speed. I feel relieved to know that they're all together again. "You can walk around if you don't feel too weak, you're probably hungry. I'll let Sanji know that you're up." He says fretting over me. "We can do a checkup after you eat."

"Where's Zoro?" I ask curiously as I get up. I feel a bit weak, but nothing I can't handle.

Chopper shows me out through one door. "Up in the crow's nest. I'll go get him if you'll wait in the kitchen. He'd be way too angry if you tried getting up there." Chopper says dryly as he leads me back into the infirmary and through to the other side. "He made a huge fuss that I had to heal you and make sure nothing was wrong."

I take a seat at the table as Chopper leaves me. I'm not alone for long before Sanji comes in smiling at me rather pleased. "It's good to see you." I tell the cook simply smiling at him gently. "Thank you for everything."

"It's good to see you awake." Sanji replies easily. "Chopper mentioned you might be hungry."

I nod my head sheepishly. This only sends Sanji on a whirlwind of preparing and complimenting me. As food is set down for me I smile at Sanji. "Thank you, this looks delicious." I say feeling a sense of ease that I have not felt in ages. As I take a bite I smile widely at the chef. "Your food never ceases to amaze me. This is tastes amazing."

Before Sanji can say anything Zoro comes in. Without a word uttered between either, Sanji leaves and Zoro takes a seat next to me. Taking the fork from my hand he places more food on it and holds it up to my mouth. I accept the food having a feeling I won't be able to argue this. Even if I was eating with my uninjured arm.

"I told you, you wouldn't be doing a thing after." Zoro mutters in a grumpy kind of way. "Ero-Cook had to give you more blood."

"I'll have to think of something to thank him properly." I say after swallowing my food. Zoro and I don't say anything until I've finished eating. "I need to tell you something. Well explain rather." I say quietly.

"I'm all ears."

I shake my head and glance around the kitchen. "Somewhere a bit more private."

Zoro sighs. Getting up he takes the dishes to the sink and washes them. Walking over to me he nods for me to follow.

Zoro leads me to the foremast, lifting me up onto his back he climbs up. I glance around to see everyone going about their day on the ship, they already seem at home on this new ship. It doesn't take Zoro long to get to the top and to get us to wherever it is he's set on. "This is the crow's nest." I glance around to see that all of Zoro's training equipment is set out here as well. The room seems to suit him perfectly.

Zoro takes a seat on the bench and nods for me to go on.

"Are you really going to trust him with this?" Maki asks. Her voice startles me, I'd nearly forgotten about the other occupant in my head.

I look around the room slightly nervous. We are alone and this is much more private than the dining room had been. "While we were at Enies Lobby and Water 7 a lot of things were brought up and I had to face them." I start. My eyes land back on Zoro and I wonder how he'll react. "When I'd been kidnapped the man there, he knew who I was. Knew who I'd been." I say feeling a sharp pain shoot through me as I think about the few days that I'd been held captive. The mark on my back feels as though it is burning.

"You don't have to explain this." Zoro says gently. Probably sensing how uncomfortable saying all this is making me. Not that I hide it well.

I shake my head. "I do though. If I'm ever going to get over what was done to me I have to talk about it. And in all this time I've never really said a word. My uncle never pressed and he was the only person I was really ever around until now." I take a deep breath and turn around.

As I lift my shirt up Zoro starts stammering. "Oi, Azami, what are you doing?!" He says panicked.

"Just look." I whisper feeling extremely vulnerable for showing someone this. "It is part of what I have to explain."

"This is why you hate showing your back." Zoro says after a moment. Putting my shirt back down I walk over and take a seat next to him. "Azami, what is it?"

"It marks me." I say feeling as though I might be sick. I hate this mark. I hate the people who gave it to me, I hate how horrible and how much power I've let this mark have over me. I hate everything about my past. I hate that it's made me into who I am today.

"Marks you?"

Taking a deep breath and clamping my eyes shut, "It marks me as less than human, less than any regular being." I say feeling shame over take me. "It takes my freedom away from me, it keeps me alone."

Zoro's hand grabs my face and he forces me to face him. "Open your eyes." He says angrily. Hesitantly I do as he says. "What the hell did you just say? Azami, you can't honestly believe that!" Zoro rants angrily. He eventually releases my face and gives me this shocked look. "You can't believe any of what you just said."

"Zoro, I was slave. This mark was seared onto my back when I was bought by a noble. I'd been taken with my family, sold, marked, and then trained. For five years it was beat into me that I wasn't even worthy of being free, that somehow it was all my fault. That I deserved everything that was happening." Zoro looks completely shocked, horrified by this knowledge. "I was forced to do horrible things, I was forced to eat the devil fruit, I had to fight other slaves and I killed them to survive." I say unable to stop the words from coming out. "The reason the marines are after me is because I escaped with a lot of other slaves from Mariejois. The man who bought me wants me back, he thinks he still owns me. He destroyed me. He's the reason I'm terrified of who I am."

Zoro doesn't say anything, but he looks at me finally and it's the same look he's always given me. "I won't let them." He answers firmly. I smile and nod my head. "Never think what that mark stands for is true. You're not less than human Azami."

I nod my head again, I smile at Zoro and lean over and hug him. "I'm not scared anymore. Thank you." I whisper feeling relieved. I'm surprised when I feel him hug me back, his arms wrap around and holding me in place.

"You're not alone anymore." Zoro says in a strangely gentle tone. When he lets go of me Zoro pulls away and cups my face with his hand. This action surprises me with how gentle he is. "I swear. I'm going to protect you." It's a side of Zoro I never considered he had. One I wasn't sure he could have and for this I feel guilty. Zoro protects everyone, he does his best so we don't get hurt.

The words though seem eerily familiar. "It's what I told you when I first appeared." Maki explains quietly. "I'll leave you two alone though. You both seem to be having a moment." She says in a teasing tone, I believe I hear a slight chuckle from her as well.

I flush a deep red at her words. Hesitantly I raise my hand to rest over Zoro's and bring it off my face. Holding Zoro's rough and sturdy hand like this makes me feel shy even though it's just holding his hand. It could be the way Zoro is looking at me, it could be that for the first time since we've met, I'm aware of him in this sort of way. Though our moment doesn't last long as the hatch opens. Zoro and I both pull away and look away from each other. I feel myself blush even more as whoever it is climbs up into the crow's nest with us.

"Azami, Chopper wants to give you a checkup." Usopp says coming in.

Awkwardly I nod my head. As I stand and before I can even take a step towards the hatch Zoro is standing in front of me. "I'll carry you down."

Hesitantly and with Usopp's help I climb onto Zoro's back. As we descend my thoughts drift back to Enies Lobby, I discovered a lot of things. Most of my thoughts though quickly turn towards the small moment we had.

"Oi, Strawberry are you going to get off?" Zoro says ringing through my thoughts. I realize we're in the room I'd woken up in. "Dazing off." Zoro continues to mutters as I get off.

"Thank you." I say unable to look at him. Taking a seat on the bed I glance over at Chopper who forces Zoro to leave the room.

"How are you feeling?" Chopper asks as he scoots a chair closer to me. "Lightheaded, headaches, any sort of pain?" He asks as he inspects my shoulder.

"Not really." I answer quietly. I remember what Chopper said when I first woke up, I find myself curious about the dreams I was apparently having. "I was having nightmares while I was unconscious, right?" I ask in a low voice. I'm hesitant to ask even though I do want to know. Chopper simply nods his head, a serious look coming over him. "Do you know what about?"

Chopper sighs as he sits, "You were screaming a lot the first day. At first I thought it was just from the pain and I was going my best to numb it. You had a lot of things lodged in your wound. There was also a lot of tearing from you pushing yourself." He explains carefully. "But then things just got worse. You kept saying you didn't want to go back, that you needed help. You kept calling for a girl." Chopper says worriedly. "These seemed to be more like night terrors."

"I don't even remember dreaming. The last thing I remember is Zoro pulling me over the edge with him." I confess.

"Azami, you kept calling out the name Maki." Chopper says full of concern. "I don't know what you were dreaming about but you were having violent reactions." I glance away from Chopper and at the floor when he mentions Maki. "Does any of that mean anything to you?"

"It does." I answer heavily. Looking back up Chopper I notice the conflicted look on his face. "I've been struggling with this for years."

"This is what you were talking about before, right? That first night you were with us, and then again after Belle Nige, the nightmares you were having then." Chopper says slowly, I nod my head. "They've gotten worse."

"I faced something that was directly connected with my past." I answer calmly. "I've only really recently been able to even confront this."

"I hope you're able to overcome it." Chopper offers as he hops off the stool. "Just be mindful of your shoulder until it heals completely." He says gently as he leads me out of the infirmary. "Let me know if you notice anything that happens with it, if it starts to hurt, if it feels numb, anything."

I nod my head as I let out a deep breath. "I'll be sure to let you know, Chopper thank you." I tell the little reindeer thankfully.

Nami walks over to me looking completely relieved. "You got to stop doing this to us." She says in a sort of joking tone. "I'll give you a tour." She says taking my good arm and leading the way. She shows me all over the ship telling me things about the ship and what the others have been up to. It isn't until Nami is showing me the library that she stops and looks at me. The look on Nami's face is pained and full of worry as she looks at me. "You've saved me twice now." Before I can say anything Nami shakes her head. "Thank you."

"You've all saved me more than you know." I tell her timidly. "I have a lot of thanks to all of you." I tell her easily. "But Nami I want you to know, anytime. I'll help out however I can." I tell her smiling at her.

The smile Nami gives me is one of thanks and relief. "I hope you stick around. You're one of us."

I glance out the windows and see the open ocean that surrounds us. I see that for now I am free, that for now I am not alone. "I hope I can too." I say quietly and almost afraid to want this. To want to be in this family. If I hope and want, it can all be taken away.

"Well I've shown you everything, you know where it all is?" Nami says while patting my shoulder gently. I nod my head and am rather thankful as she leaves me alone.

"It wouldn't be impossible." Maki says easily. "Staying here with them is possible Azami. It would be good for you." She says rather supportively.

Taking a seat I look out the window I watch the water moving gently, the temperate waters deceiving how unpredictable and dangerous sailing here on the Grand Line actually is. "It would be nice." I murmur quietly.