Chapter 37

The Sound of Wedding Bells

Kim grinned a bit, adjusting her grip on the flowers in her hands.

Loud music trilled ahead of her and the girl counted to five before starting a slow walk toward the source of the music.

As she stepped onto the aisle, she lifted her head and smiled brilliantly as she found the one she was looking for.

Zoro smirked down at her, taking her hand and leading her slowly down the flower covered aisle.

"This was certainly unexpected," she chuckled quietly, lacing her arm through his. "I didn't think I'd ever be a bridesmaid in a stranger's wedding."

Zoro snorted. "It's weird. I don't really like all this hero crap."

Kim's smile widened even further, threatening to go into Luffy-esque proportions. "Aww, poor Zoro. You just don't like getting dressed up. You look good in this. I feel sexy just standing beside you."

Zoro really did look nice, dressed in a (rarely worn) crisp white shirt and dark slacks. He didn't exactly match the rest of the groomsmen, but hardly anyone at the wedding was in synch with one another, the impromptu decision giving everyone little time to prepare. At least Zoro had tried to look nice; Luffy hadn't even wanted to do that much. It had taken a great deal of coaxing from the crew to get him into a collared shirt and something other than jean shorts.

The rubberman looked utterly bored from where he stood at the altar, Usopp at his side. The sniper was there to feed Luffy the words for his speech, seeing as the seventeen year old didn't know the first thing (or anything really) about performing a wedding. However, he was the only one in the crew qualified to do so (one of the unwritten perks of being a captain) and the bride had personally asked for the favor.

He brightened as he saw Kim and Zoro proceeding down the aisle and waved at them vigorously, grinning as he prepared to shout at them happily.

Usopp stomped on his toes, silencing him.

Kim laughed with the rest of the gathered crowd and let go of Zoro's arm, dancing off to her place.

As the Maid of Honor (which just happened to be Nami, a childhood friend of the bride) went to her place, the music changed and swelled, announcing the arrival of the bride.

Kim gigged and 'aww'ed and applauded with the rest of the crowd at the appropriate times, enjoying the way Luffy said his parts just a little too loud and frequently break off mid-sentence to ask Usopp to repeat something. He also whined about how long everything was taking and kept asking if they were done yet. The bride and groom seemed well amused by him and looked like they were having a great deal of fun with everything. Nami looked exasperated and Usopp harried, but Kim, Zoro and Sanji (he was the groomsman who walked Nami down the aisle) frequently burst into laughter at the antics of their captain.

When the 'I do's and kisses were finally exchanged, Kim whopped and cheered along with everyone else, the crowd's sense of decorum completely lost as everyone rushed to the newlyweds.

Kim grinned widely and made her way over to where the rest of the crew was gathered.

"Kim~!" Sanji sang, grabbing her around the waist and lifting her into the air as he spun around. Kim shrieked with laughter and clutched at his shoulders, begging him to put her down. "You look like an angel!"

The brunette giggled giddily and swayed as Sanji finally put her on the ground, clutching at him for support.

"Well, I'm no angel. More of a sex demon really." She waggled her eyebrows exaggeratedly, earning herself a few laughs from the more immature crewmembers.

"As long as you do whatever it is you like doing with us and not some stranger." Usopp said with mock solemnity. There was a trace of seriousness in his tone though, mixed in with the humor.

"But of course!" Kim cried, draping an arm over his shoulder and Sanji's as well. She dragged them down to press a kiss to each of their cheeks. "Just so you know, I'm calling a harem meeting tonight. Attendance is required otherwise you're just missing out on a lot of fun times. Sexy fun times!"

Zoro snorted into his drink and bent down when she beckoned him closer, allowing the girl to kiss him.

Luffy frowned as he received his, waiting for Nami to get her kiss too before voicing his confusion. "What's a harem? And why does Kim have one?"

The red head rolled her eyes and lead him away from the bad influences that were the rest of the crew. "You don't need to know what a harem is because Kim doesn't have one. She's delusional. Don't pay her any attention."

The supposedly deluded girl made a face at Nami's back and tugged Usopp away with her. "We'll catch ya'll later. Usopp and I have plans to commander the karaoke machine. Do try and remember to keep your pants on if you get too drunk~!"

With that said, she and Usopp headed away, the sniper voicing a question he'd had. "So what's with all the kissing?"

"Eh, it's a thing my mother used to do. I remember seeing her kiss everyone at weddings when I was a little girl. Six of my cousins got married all in one year..." her voice faded away as they wove their way into the crowd.

"She gets more perverted every day." Zoro said shrewdly, tossing back another drink. "Kim needs to stop hanging out with us."

"Nah, she's fine." Sanji chuckled. "You'd miss her too much, anyways. Now come on. Let's get plastered!"

Two days later, Kim found herself on the verge of collapsing.

She nearly tripped over Luffy, flailing her arms wildly in order to stay upright. Luffy caught her absentmindedly and frowned at Sanji.

"Hey, there was something on that melon you just ate! Where'd you get it? I wanna give it a try."

"Seems like you've got enough to eat already," Zoro grunted, eyeing the plate piled high with all varieties of meat.

"Hm, raw ham melon. Yeah, that's what it was." Sanji grinned as he lit up a cigarette.

Uninterested in the food-based conversation, Kim pulled away from Luffy and went to curl up against Zoro.

"My feet hurt," she complained, poking her lip out in a pout.

"You've been dancing for two days straight." Zoro snorted. "Of course they hurt. I'm surprised Luffy hasn't started complaining too. Or at least gotten sick from his eating binge."

"He threw up an hour ago." Kim said dismissively. "I thought he was gonna cry. And Usopp is starting to really sound hoarse from his back-to-back concerts. I wouldn't be surprised if Nami's the only one who isn't hung-over or the only one who can still function once we're back out at sea."

"If she even decides to come back with us."

"There's no way she's leaving us." Kim said confidently. "It's not so easy to leave this crew. Once you're in it, you're in it for life and longer... my God, we sound like the mafia or something!"

Zoro rolled his eyes and ruffled her hair, chuckling quietly.

Kim stayed curled up at his side for the rest of the night, watching with amusement as Sanji danced his way around the dance floor, charming everyone and flirting madly with the ladies.

When the night fell, so did the silence. The town and its saviors finally giving into exhaustion and many passed out in the streets.

Kim grinned at the sight and settled back into a snorting Zoro's embrace, ready for sleep herself.

When it finally came time for the crew to leave, the residents of Cocoyashi village convened to see them off, everyone gathered around the Going Merry.

Kim stood amongst the crowd, several children hanging off of her legs and clinging to her cloak. She'd just finished giving her thanks to Teru-san, a kind carpenter from the village who had so kindly installed a bar in the girls' room, and was moving to say her goodbyes to Johnny and Yosaku. The children clinging to her shrieked with laughter and she walked forward, carrying them along with her and providing everyone with a rather amusing spectacle.

It took a bit of maneuvering and coaxing from parents to get their children away from her, none willing to say good-bye to one of their heroes.

Kim flung her arms around Johnny's neck and squeezed him tightly, doing the same to Yosaku a moment later.

The bounty hunter pair seemed a bit embarrassed by the blatant show of affection (Kim was the only one who saw them off with more than just a good-bye). They ushered her onto the ship quickly, with light blushes and the promise of the occasional letter.

Now everyone was just waiting for Nami's arrival, the villagers eager to thank her and the crew eager to depart.

In the true fashion of a StrawHat pirate, Nami left with style, managing to pickpocket everyone standing on the docks before leaping onto the already moving Merry-go. It was her way of saying good-bye and the villagers had been left with more than enough treasure to compensate them.

Kim and Luffy laughed uproariously, watching as wallets fell continuously from Nami's clothes, the rest of the crew looking a bit surprised by the sheer amount of wallets there.

Nami ignored them all, hanging over the railing as she waved good-bye to her family.

"Good-bye everybody!" she cheered, beaming happily.

The crew had never seen her happier.

A/N: Yay, we're done with the Arlong Arc! Now, bounties and Logue Town and Reverse Mountain is all that's left! I've decided to go ahead and write that filler arc, but it'll be over in Gateways: Nakamaship with the rest of the outtakes and one-shots.

SBS!

Thanks for Favoriting and Alerting: xXSweet Little BumblebeeXx, Evalyd Yamazaki, VesperPhoenix, j0ph33, LilPrincess95, DemonicLightning, toffee4234, MintNight-Ly, bloodjasper, BleachedShadow, TDI-Ryro-Eclares, BarelyRice,tokimek and Kiori-June.

.bookworm: Haha, I'm glad you appreciate my updating speed. I'll try to pull that off again sometime soon!

Skysword: XD Hetalia references are alright, even if I don't get most of them. That was Prussia right? Or America? Maybe?

Molly Grace 16: Thanks!

srooone: Thank you! Glad I could create an escape!

OrionRedde: Nezumi I think. It literally means 'mouse'. Kim'll be fine though!

witch of blood: Thank you! Haha, Smoker having a crush on anyone seems a bit strange for meXD He's awesome though, for a Marine.

Nitishu: Daww, I'm flattered~ No, no bounties just yet. Wait until she gets a bit cooler and then you'll see!

gamelover41592: Yup, my fingers are on fire baby!

10th Squad 3rd Seat: Yay indeed!

pizzafan123: Thank you!

Evalyd Yamazaki: Well, thank you! Oh, a Sanji fangirl, eh? Welcome! He's one of my favorite character:) I think a Luffy-romance would be fun to write. I'm curious as to how the poll will end and if I'll get the chance to write one.

Shiningheart of ThunderClan: Kim knows not of what she speaks. Kisses may soon be in her future! Let's just hope for her sake that Luffy brushes his teeth frequently.

UNICORNSPOORRAINBOWS: Thanks! I'm sorry is was scary and horrifying for you but I'm glad you still enjoyed it!

AnneTesla: Thank you! Sanji it is!

kenegi: I think the word is Yari but I think Luffy's name for the attack isn't actually spear. I had to stick with that for now though, since that's what the manga scans I'm using says.

wolfscry248: Thank you and you're welcome!

shanagi95: How was that?

TDI-Ryro-Eclares: Thank you so much! You want Kim to have a harem?! Well, maybe... Ah! No, wait what?! Hmm, that is a nice idea though... Oh no, I love long reviews! You could probably write one thing about the story and babble on about bubbles until you reached the word limit and I'd still be delighted to read it!

theliesmith (Guest): Thanks!

skipbeataddict: Smiley faces~!