Robin smiled warmly at Zoro and Luffy while she slept or when Zoro spoke to her. She didn't peep the whole time or anything, but she'd periodically check on them, and thought what she was seeing was very endearing and sweet.
Zoro was a completely different person with the small woman he loved. And everytime she checked on them, Zoro was awake. He didn't doze so that he could keep watch on her.
"Is he still holding her hand?" Nami asked, with a smile on her face.
"Yes, and she's still sleeping," Robin replied with a warm smile on her face. "I wonder if we'll ever find someone to love like he loves her," Robin mused.
Sanji, however, heard what Robin had said, and it was a blow to his self-esteem with the ladies. He knew deep down neither of them liked him like that, but hearing it said the way Robin-chan said it, and he saw Nami-san nod, hurt.
Ever since Luffy joined, Sanji had been slightly uncomfortable around both her and Zoro at the same time. It was driving him mad that Zoro found someone before him! It was embarrassing that Zoro hadn't even really needed to try. Sanji tried so hard to please women, but they always ran away. Sure, women ran away from Zoro, but that was only because of his scary looks. Not his actions; the kind of actions Sanji does. He sighed as he smoked his cigarette.
The first thing Sanji thought of Luffy was that she was pretty. And that was all he focused on for a while. Zoro clearly only thought Luffy was pretty only after he'd fought her. So, the first thing he saw in Luffy was strength and even danger. That goes deeper than just looks.
But Zoro was weird, aggressive and hostile. Luffy was weird, aggressive, but sweet also. It's like when the two are together, Luffy's sweetness takes over Zoro hostility. Sanji actually didn't know what he wanted in a woman. Nami-san was closest, but she hit him a lot. Not as much as the others, but she had before. But Nami-san hitting him was much different than Zoro and Luffy injuring each other. Their relationship was hard to process.
Every time he saw Zoro pick Luffy up or wrap his arms around her, Sanji's instincts told him to "get Marimo away from her". He couldn't help it. He'd seen Zoro brutally defeat people, and Luffy was just so small that it often concerned him.
Sanji had once said she'd make Luffy like him, not Marimo. But he knew now that Luffy would eclipse him. He didn't want Luffy like that anymore, and it had taken a while for him to realize that. And he hated that he had spoken about Luffy so possessively once, when he hadn't even really known her. He doesn't know the women he flirts with on the street. They could be murderers for all he knew. He just… didn't know what to think anymore.
-x-
Luffy slept most of the remainder of the day, only waking up to use the bathroom and have her pad changed or having food brought down to her. Zoro stayed with her, and took one of Robin's favorite books, The Rainbow Mist, and read it to her as she fell asleep.
It was late at night that Zoro needed sleep, and the women were probably wanting to go to bed. But he couldn't help but lay next to sleeping Luffy for a bit and lightly play with her hair. She was so small while she slept on this big bed.
He really couldn't help falling asleep next to her, boots on and everything. When Nami and Robin entered the room, Nami of course took multiple pictures. They couldn't bring themselves to wake him spooning Luffy through the heavy blankets. The two had slept or napped together many times, so what made this time different? Nothing. This was normal, and so Nami and Robin changed in the bathroom and went to bed quietly. Nami couldn't help but stare at them for a while, purposely lying on the opposite end of her bed.
Oh how pissed Sanji would be in the morning…
"Wake up sleepyhead," Nami said quietly, poking Zoro. He opened his eyes and looked around. This wasn't the men's room…? Then his eyes widened. He'd slept with Luffy all night, in the girl's room! Now, he wasn't scared of Sanji, but he didn't feel like getting yelled at this morning. He didn't want to come back down to Luffy angry with Sanji.
He slowly sat up and took his arms away from over Luffy's back and stepped off the bed. He didn't want to wake her up.
"Why didn't you wake me?!" Zoro whispered harshly after pulling her to the opposite side of the room. Robin watched them, entertained by Zoro's awkwardness and flushed face.
"You two were just so cute and Luffy was clearly happy with it. It's not like we would think you'd do something inappropriate with us. Especially now," Nami said. He frowned, irritated by the fact he'd get loud screaming aimed towards him.
Robin was keeping an eye on Sanji in the men's room, and watched as he looked around. There was someone missing. He seemed to have realized something, and went crashing to the ground and then climbed his way up the ladder, bursting out on deck to rush to the storage room.
Robin bloomed a hand on the inside of the door, locking it from the inside. Sanji would not come crashing in and bang on the hatch, because Robin had no doubt that Luffy would have a splitting headache at any extremely sudden and extremely loud noise, like a banging on the locked hatch.
"Sanji is awake, and the pieces have come together. Zoro, you may want to leave before the shouting starts up and wakes Luffy." Zoro scowled at the ground.
"How long do you think he'll yell at me? I don't want Luffy waking up alone," he said in a concerned voice. Robin smiled.
"Nami, you stay in here. I'll go with Zoro and try to calm the situation as best as I can," she explained. "Keep the lamp dimmer over here. I don't want her to wake up without Zoro or Chopper, and Chopper was most likely still sleeping." The girls often got up before the others besides Sanji, and just stayed in their room for a while before leaving for breakfast.
Zoro nodded and two two quickly climbed out of the hatch and gently shut it behind them. Luffy didn't stir under all of her blankets.
Zoro sighed and walked out of the storage room door. He began before Sanji even started his tirade. "How long is this gonna take, I don't want Luffy waking up alone." Zoro just sounded bored.
Sanji started screaming at him about how it was wrong he stayed down there, and if he slept in Luffy's bed then he's a pervert. Zoro took none of the bait. He didn't feel like fighting this morning; plus the loud noises might wake her up, even through two doors. Loud noises echoed on the Going Merry.
He just stood there as Sanji yelled at him, looking bored and tired. Zoro felt like punching him for suggesting he'd take advantage of 'poor, vulnerable Luffy'. "Your delusions are dangerous," Zoro said in a monotone voice. "You accuse me of taking advantage of the woman I love, when you are the only one they are locking the women's door for. I didn't purposely stay in there, they just didn't kick me out. You're trusted less by the 'ladies'. They didn't kick me out because they knew I wouldn't do anything. But you would. Jealousy is an ugly color." And then he turned around, leaving a red in the face Sanji, his rage deflated by the harsh blow he had just delivered. Sanji watched through the open door as Zoro opened the hatch and walked down the stairs, closing it behind him.
Robin almost opened her mouth at the completely savage words that stuck Sanji dumb. She felt bad for him. She knew he must really be jealous. To him, he must be thinking that Zoro was claiming all of the women on the ship, by doing practically nothing but being respectful concerning Luffy, who was all he cared about at the moment.
Robin tried to save him by asking for some coffee. He smiled at her, but it wasn't as warm as it usually was. It was slightly forced. Zoro's words really hit hard. Robin was sure cutting Sanji across the throat would hurt less than the things Zoro had said to him.
The woman followed him into the kitchen and sat at the table as he brewed some of her favorite coffee. Then he sat down at the bench, facing away from the table.
"For now, Sanji, I'd recommend you leave Luffy and Zoro alone. Zoro only stayed down there because we couldn't bring ourselves to wake him up while he was curled around Luffy. He was in all of his clothes, including his boots, and on top of the blankets rather than under them with Luffy right against him. He may not be the most respectful person, but he has honor when it comes to Luffy." Then Robin sighed. "You are pushing Luffy away by talking to Zoro about their relationship in such negative ways. Keep it up, and the only thing Luffy would like you for is the food you make. And she would a justifiable reason to."
Sanji's head hung. Then, he finally shared what he'd been thinking for the last three weeks.
"He didn't even have to try," he mumbled simply. Robin assumed he was talking about Zoro winning over Luffy.
"Some people just click. It most likely hadn't been love at first sight at all. It was probably after their fight. They found something in common with each other, and they just followed that. I'm not going to pretend I know everything about love or relationships, but it just happened naturally. I guess, when you find the right one, you don't need to try hard, because they will love you as you. Just being completely open with each other is what I think happened."
Robin was handed her perfectly made coffee by a still down-looking Sanji. "Even you can't deny they click together. I know some of us think it is weird. Personally, I think it's endearing and surprising, but not weird or wrong. And I think Nami feels the same way." She paused and smiled at him, trying to keep the pity out of it. "We would have never let him stay if it weren't for Luffy. You should know that. It's the girl's room. We don't just swap genders in our sleeping cabins.
"And, if they both want to sleep together, I think it would be better for him to be in our room than Luffy in yours," Robin said kindly.
"Because of me, right?" he asked sullenly, already knowing the answer. Robin nodded sadly.
"I know flirting is second nature to you, but some don't like that. Luffy doesn't like that, though she puts up with as best as she can. I don't think you'll ever find a partner to truly be with unless you drop the excessive flirting with every woman you meet. Do you think a woman would fall for you while you flirt with every other one around you?"
Sanji shook his head. This conversation was repeated blows to his self-esteem. He hung his head before standing up to work on breakfast.
-x-
"Big blow out, huh?" Nami asked quietly from her bed once Zoro came back in, looking tired.
"Mostly him shouting. I'm not in the mood today. And I won't let him mess with Luffy when she's like this. I'm sick of him acting all high and mighty when he sees the two of us together. It's not like we're committing a crime and he has no right to judge when it has nothing to do with him. His jealousy is getting out of control and me and Luffy haven't even gone further than kissing and hugging." Zoro sighed in irritation, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Did she wake up?"
"No, she's still sleeping."
"Good," Zoro said and sat at the end of her bed. "I'll wait for her to wake up and then go get Chopper to help her in the bathroom and check to see if everything is normal."
"Zoro, she's fine. Period pains don't last forever. If she sleeps most of the time, the week will go by pretty quickly. You gotta smooth things out with Sanji-kun before she's back to normal, though. She's upset now about many things I would assume, and I'm sure she wouldn't like being the source of Sanji-kun's arguments."
"She's not even the source, though. He's just pissed at me because I found someone and he didn't. It's not even fun to taunt him anymore because I know it upsets Luffy, though she tries to hide it.
"I can see the irritation in her eyes when he snaps at me for something. I've told her that the hostile behavior is literally me and dart-brown's relationship, but she doesn't like him taunting me, which I personally think is cute, but it's incredibly annoying that Sanji keeps acting like he can butt into what we have. He has no right to even be part of this!" Zoro hissed.
Nami sighed, and looked to Luffy's sleeping form. "Go over to her and sit next to her. We've all noticed your more docile around her… She makes you a good person, Zoro."
"Oh, so I wasn't a good person before Luffy?" he teased, knowing what she meant before she clarified.
"You're a better person when she's around," she elaborated. "Now go take care of your girlfriend," Nami said and left the room. Zoro sighed and went over to Luffy, immediately feeling better after seeing her cute sleeping face, the blankets snuggled up to her nose.
Luffy woke up slowly, everything a bit blurry before she rubbed her eyes. She was relieved her cramps were on a break right then. She was just bone-dead tired, despite sleeping a lot. She brought her hand out of the blankets and touched his shoulder. He jumped a little, since he was looking at the framed picture again.
"'Morning," Zoro said softly. "Did you sleep well?" he asked. She nodded slowly, feeling so lethargic. And gross. She needed a shower, more preferably a hot bath.
"Nami said that you'd feel better if you just slept all week. Is that true?" Luffy nodded. If she could, she'd sleep every moment. "Do you want that? To be sedated most of the time?"
Luffy nodded her head vigorously. They didn't have strong sedatives at her old home. Just tea that makes you sleepy. But it didn't always work. She'd love to be able to sleep through the pain.
"Okay," Zoro said quietly. "I'll be right back with Chopper and some breakfast." Luffy gave him a sleepy smile. It made Zoro a little lighter as he left the room than when he'd entered it. He was getting food for Luffy. That was it. It wasn't Sanji's food. It was just food, and if Zoro could, he'd keep their one-sided fight to himself.
Chopper was eating his own breakfast earlier than the others so he could hurry to Luffy. Nami, Robin and Sanji were all tense when Zoro walked in. "Food," he commanded, staring at Sanji blankly.
Sanji scowled, but gave him a tray with applesauce, spoons, and a single chocolate pudding. Zoro then left without eating any food himself. He couldn't stand being around Sanji at the moment. Nami sighed. Sanji turned around and headed back to the ship's little kitchen.
Usopp and Chopper wondered what had happened and why everyone was so tense. But Chopper, finishing his eggs, left without finding out the reason to go down to Luffy.
"Jeez, what happened?" Usopp asked in the awkward room. Even after Zoro was gone, the room still had a feeling of discomfort.
"Sanji-kun and Zoro had an argument," Nami said simply. Usopp nodded. Must have been a bad one.
"What happened? And I noticed when I used the bathroom last night that Zoro wasn't in the men's room. Was he on watch?" the sniper asked.
"Zoro fell asleep with Luffy in the women's room, but we couldn't bring ourselves to wake him up and leave because the two were just so cute. Then…"
Usopp knew what happened. Sanji would indeed be livid after hearing Zoro had spent the night, locked in the girl's room with three sleeping women. The cook would probably be painfully jealous, and as Sanji cooked, he had the air of anger around him. "Awkward…" Usopp mumbled, the other two women nodding their heads in agreement.
Usopp himself couldn't help but be irritated with Sanji lately. He'd been giving Zoro nasty looks when he was with Luffy, which she did not like, and would give Sanji nasty looks back. Sanji would be picking fights, which pissed Luffy off, not to mention he kept criticizing their relationship. Usopp knew it would be hard for him to see Zoro so happy with a woman before Sanji, but really, that was partly Sanji's fault in his eyes. He'd meant what he said a few weeks ago, before Luffy joined. That excessively flirting was going to get him nowhere.
But, looking at Sanji closer right then, there was anger, but also the look of a kicked puppy. Usopp couldn't help to feel sorry for him, as well as irritated.
Chopper walked to the girl's room and to Luffy who was sitting up, eating her applesauce and then pudding. While she was menstruating, she either ate nothing, or ate everything. That made it easy for the nymphs to binge eat if the one taking care of her kept creating food for her to eat right away.
"How are you feeling Luffy?" Chopper asked.
"I have to use the bathroom. And I want to go back to sleep. Can I just sleep the whole week?" she asked as she ate. Chopper said that, with her taking such small doses, the sedative supply could definitely last through the rest of the week.
"We'll just have you eat when you wake up, and change your pad as well," Chopper finished.
"I feel gross. Can I take a bath?"
"Luffy, you don't need to ask if you can take a bath. Nami takes random baths all the time. You don't need to ask permission for things like that," Chopper explained. Luffy nodded and sat up after finishing her bowl of applesauce to go to the bathroom with Chopper.
"I'll go ask the others if they need to use the bathroom since this ship only has one. And I'm sure you'd like a long bath. So I'll be back in a moment," Chopper informed them and left.
"If you sleep for a lot of the time, can I sleep with you? I fell asleep on your bed last night. I hope that doesn't bother you," Zoro said somewhat nervously. Luffy just slowly walked over to him and gave him a hug. This was obviously a yes, and even Zoro, who wasn't always the brightest, knew that. He hugged her back gently.
Chopper entered the galley, and immediately felt that something wasn't right. The other four were all in there, but none of them were speaking or looking at each other. Sanji was in the kitchen, cooking something Chopper didn't recognize, and the girls were both reading; Nami the newspaper and Robin a book. Usopp was sitting cross legged on the floor, working on an invention.
"Uh… Luffy's going to take a bath so if any of you needs to use the bathroom, you should do it now," Chopper said, feeling uncomfortable in the negative atmosphere. Everyone except Sanij got up and left the room. They needed a break from his brooding.
"Why is he so upset?" Chopper asked on their short walk to the bathroom.
"He got angry that Zoro spent the night in our room, and when he started yelling at him, Zoro said some very harmful words to Sanji. Zoro definitely won that fight. Sanji has been down ever since," Robin said.
"Zoro spent the night with you?" Chopper asked in shock. "You didn't kick him out?"
"He was sleeping with Luffy, and besides, we knew he wouldn't do anything inappropriate." Everyone's voice grew quieter as they entered the storage room and saw the hatch was open to the girl's room. It was pretty dark inside. Usopp decided he was gonna at least say something nice to her, since she'd been holed up in one room for a whole day.
"Hey, Luffy," Usopp said quietly, walking a few steps down the stairs so he could see her and she could see him. "Hope you're feeling better soon. I'm sure Sanji will make a feast once you're back to normal. And have a nice bath," and he left. Luffy smiled softly, but Usopp didn't see it. Now the only person who she hadn't seen all of yesterday and now today so far was Sanji.
Luffy had a feeling something bad had happened and that's why Sanji hadn't come to see if she was okay. It's not that she wanted to hang out with him or anything, but it would be nice if he came to check on her once. Then the whole crew would show they cared. Well… at least Sanji had made her good food, even though the meals were plain.
After everyone was done in the bathroom, Chopper filled the tub with very warm water and Zoro brought Luffy up the stairs, who was adamant about walking herself. So Zoro just supported her as they walked up side-by-side. She was also adamant about getting in the tub herself, though she needed to use the step stool.
"Just call me if you need anything," Chopper said, looking at the poorly disguised pain on her face. She nodded in response and sat down as the bathroom door was closed. She just soaked in the tub rubbing her stomach out of habit to get the pain to go away. She'd decided on the spot right after Usopp stopped talking, that she couldn't be a cripple because of this. She did want to try the pain medication. She could handle it if something went wrong! But she knew she would be unable to heal herself if she had damage from the inside.
But Chopper was a good doctor; he'd take care of her. And Zoro would be there for her, too. Besides, the pills would be temporary and then wear off. But, for now, she'd stick it out as best as she could, the pills the last resort.
She pulled her knees up to her chest when the cramps picked up again. She didn't want to be like a baby! Why did she have to go through all of this when nothing would come of it? She should be able to choose, and tell her body that it was not having a period this year. It wasn't fair… Stupid being a woman. But at least this was once a year. Poor human women. She couldn't imagine it being once a month.
But, by the crew's reaction to the whole thing, she was having it worse than Nami and Robin usually had. Plus, they could take pain pills, and Luffy hadn't so far. It only started yesterday… this would be a long week…
Zoro waited outside the bathroom door, listening for any noise Luffy might make that he would have to go in for. This part of Luffy was strange for him. He'd only really known her for a little under a month, but still. He was used to seeing her cut down enemies, fight with him, and reply with sarcastic comments. Hell, Luffy suddenly stabbing some guy's crotch wasn't as surprising as seeing her first yesterday was.
He had become so fiercely protective of her. He'd even put fighting with Sanji aside to take care of Luffy, and he would continue to do so, even if he wanted to relieve some stress. Mostly because he knew Luffy would be upset for causing him and Sanji to fight, which she already didn't like.
Once the water turned cool, she drained the tub and washed the tiles. She wasn't going to leave period-contaminated water in the bath for the others. She hobbled out of the deep bath and put her clothes on.
"Chopper?" she called. She waited, sitting on the toilet lid. She heard a knock on the door, and she said to come in, assuming it was Chopper. And it wouldn't matter if it had been Zoro. She wasn't naked anymore.
"Hey, you ready to go back?" Chopper said, handing her a pad. She thanked him and closed the door briefly while situating the femenine product.
Luffy, again, was not going to be carried. It was just down the stairs. She could handle it. Yet, once she got back in bed, she curled up in a ball under the covers like she'd been doing. But the pain was getting worse and she had a splitting headache from moving so much.
"Want a sedative?" Chopper asked, to which Luffy nodded.
After she'd taken the sedative, she'd slept peacefully for a few hours. Zoro was again napping against the bed next to her head. Luffy twitched in her sleep because a sharp stab of pain came to her gut and head at the same time. She immediately woke up and felt the need to vomit, so she got off the bed to go get the bucket that had for some reason been moved to the other side of the room. But her vision suddenly blurred from the violent headache that flared with no mercy when she'd gotten up to quickly. She fell on her face in front of the bucket and gagged. But the girl did her best to keep the vomit in by covering her mouth.
She wouldn't go to the bucket, though it was only a yard away from her. She'd rather vomit than have that feeling in her head again. She panted on the floor, bile swallowed back, with tears in her eyes.
Zoro woke up from the noise of Luffy jumping out of bed, and turned just in time to see Luffy trip and go crashing towards the floor. She was breathing quickly, and once he got to her and turned her over slowly so her face was looking up at him, he could see tears running down her cheeks.
Zoro smiled at her reassuringly and pulled her into his arms to bring her back to her bed, the blankets disheveled and a mess. "Do you want to try the pain medication?" he asked quietly. She was holding a small hand to her forehead from the stabbing pain. She didn't nod, just feebly put her thumb up. "I'll be right back," he told her and then sprinted up the stairs and opened the hatch, running to the infirmary, where he thought Chopper might be.
And he was. Zoro told him to come back to Luffy's room quickly, and they both rushed out and into the girl's room, to see Luffy on the bed, clenching her mouth closed. She would not throw up and make a mess she couldn't clean up herself. She would die of humiliation if someone else would clean up her vomit. Though it was mostly liquid, it would still be horrifying.
Chopper hurried over to her and asked if she wanted pain medication. That they could start at a low dose, like she had with the sedatives. He didn't want to give her anything heavy because he had no idea how her non-human body would handle drugs specifically made for humans.
She immediately told him a pained "yes". Chopper then asked what had happened that made her feel the need to suddenly have medication.
"I woke up and felt like I had to throw up. When I did get up and tried getting to the bucket, I couldn't see for a second and my head hurt so bad and I fell." Tears were streaming down her face, but not in pain anymore. She was so embarrassed. She kind of wished the crew had come a few weeks later so Luffy could spend her anual nightmare with people who knew what was gonna happen and what to do about it.
"Alright, I'll be right back." Chopper grabbed the empty pitcher and quickly walked out of the girl's room. When he entered the kitchen, Sanji was reading a cookbook. Well, looking at it. Chopper couldn't tell if he was actually reading or not. He quietly went to the sink and filled the pitcher with water and added some ice.
He was just to the door when Sanji asked quietly, "Is Luffy okay?"
"I'm going to try giving her a low dose of painkillers since the pain is waking her up even while she sleeps. Hopefully it will help," Chopper replied and left the room.
Sanji sighed. He wished he could do something for Luffy, but he knew she wouldn't want him to. She did her best to avoid "speaking" with him. He was messing everything up. He couldn't help but think he'd been happier when she wasn't part of the crew. But then he pushed the thought away. It was selfish and pathetic that he'd think something like that. Luffy would be hurt if she heard him say that.
Chopper handed Luffy the pill he'd split into fourths, and now she was about to swallow it with a glass of water, and he couldn't help but be nervous. He hoped Luffy would be okay, and that this would work. He really wished he'd been able to speak with a nymph heath physician. Luffy hadn't been very clear with what she was saying, and he knew she didn't know what was a healthy blood pressure, blood work, history of illnesses or injuries, diseases nymphs were susceptible to… He just didn't have enough information about how to care for Luffy in a safe way that was just right for her.
Luffy swallowed the tiny pill just fine, and laid back down. "It might make you sleepy as a side effect," Chopper said. He wasn't going to list the negative side-effects because right now, Luffy needed to feel like something good was going to happen. And over all, if she got rid of the horrible pain that makes her want to throw up, the side-effects were manageable.
While Zoro talked to her about some of the battles he's one and the one he lost, Luffy grew sleepy. Zoro wasn't offended when she fell asleep while he spoke to her. He hoped she'd get some rest without waking up feeling sick.
Luffy was as silent as ever behind him, assumed to be asleep peacefully. He'd just checked on her when he heard a loud breath in and a loud breath out. He turned around to see her still sleeping under her blankets. But he had a bad feeling and gently untangled her upper body from the multiple thick blankets. Her face was red, and her hair was sticking to her face from sweat.
"Chopper!" Zoro screamed, hoping he'd hear him. Luffy woke up from the loud noise, disoriented and feeling foggy in the head. She turned her head to Zoro, her vision blurry. But she was so out of it that she didn't react to the blurriness.
Chopper came sprinting down the stairs and to Luffy's bed. He hurried to turn the light switch on and then came back to get a good look at her. He didn't like what he saw. Luffy was drenched in sweat and her face was red. She obviously had a fever, and a bad one.
"I'll be right back. I don't want to have to move her to the mattress in the infirmary," Chopper said as he bustled back out the girl's room. Zoro looked back to Luffy, who was looking up at him, seeming very sleepy.
But Luffy wasn't seeing Zoro. It was Ace. He was taking care of her, like he always had.
Zoro removed all of the blankets off of her gently, barely moving her as he untangled her from all of her blankets. She was sweating through her thin dress as well. He was thankful he couldn't see through the dress. He'd feel like he was violating her if he saw that and she was asleep or just not all there at the moment.
In no time, Chopper was back with a thermometer. He moved to the other side of Zoro so he could get closer to Luffy.
As Luffy's temperature was taken, she said something that almost brought tears to his eyes.
"I missed you, Ace," was what she said as she looked up at Zoro. Chopper was going to play along with her if it helped her at the moment.
"Zoro, say 'I missed you, too'," Chopper said as he waited to read what her temperature was. He frowned at it. It was 102.7 degrees. When he'd taken her temperature during her physical, it had been in the 97.0 range.
Zoro looked at Chopper before gently saying, "I missed you, too." Luffy smiled at him and closed her eyes, drifting back to sleep. "What was that about?" he asked.
"She thought you were Ace," Chopper said sadly. "Her temperature is five degrees higher than she said her usual is. We need to keep her cool and hydrated… I don't know if this is a normal thing with female nymphs or if it's a reaction to the medication. I'll be right back," he said and then left.
Zoro looked back to Luffy. She really missed Ace. He wasn't hurt that she saw Zoro as Ace because Ace had been the one to take care of her whenever the nightmare week started.
After a few moments, Chopper came back with a bucket of water and some little towels. He set the water down on the nightstand that he'd moved the pitcher from. Luffy shivered once the cool, wet washcloth was placed on her forehead. Some water was dribbled into her mouth, the best they could do to keep her hydrated besides giving her a fluid bag, but Chopper didn't want to waste one of those if he could treat her with something more expendable.
Luffy did fine for a couple hours, not waking up, but not looking any worse. Chopper wasn't going to give her medication to help treat the fever, since he had a feeling the medication was the cause of her sudden fever.
Zoro had to leave once to go get food for him and Chopper. He was asked how Luffy was, since the hatch had been closed and locked for a reason while the two were down there taking care of Luffy. When he told the crew in the galley that she had a bad fever, Nami bit her lip and Robin's eyebrows furrowed in worry. They couldn't imagine having this kind of period, even if it was only once a year. And this was only the second day!
When Zoro came back, half the platter of sandwiches was gone. Chopper ate quickly as well.
Luffy woke up from her stomach growling at her somewhat painfully. She didn't hurt, she just felt droopy and foggy. She looked to her left. "Chopper?" she asked sleepily.
"Luffy. Hi, how are you feeling?" Chopper asked quietly. Zoro looked at Luffy as well, glad to see her doing something other than just sleeping so silently.
"I don't feel good…" she mumbled. Chopper asked what didn't feel good. "I'm cold and my head hurts and everything is a little blurry. And I'm hungry," she listed sadly. She looked miserable. "My cramps are coming back, too."
"I'm sorry Luffy, but I can't give you anymore pain medication. It seems like you reacted badly to the pain pills. You have a very high fever," Chopper explained slowly. "I will give you a sedative in an hour or so. I'll give you a slightly larger dose so you can sleep longer. Besides using the bathroom and eating, I want you to sleep. Alright?"
Luffy nodded, completely agreeing to that. She then turned to Zoro, and Chopper translated, "'You don't have to stay down here if you want a break…'."
"I'll stay because I want to. Plus, there's nothing fun on deck to do when you're not there. I'll stay," Zoro replied, getting a small smile in return. But the smile only lasted a second before she had that miserable face on. "You just have to wait an hour for another dose. You want me to read that book again?" She nodded.
So for the hour she waited, he read the book. It was interesting, and she liked it a lot because there weren't many good fiction books back on the island in the library.
When he got to halfway through the book, Chopper came in with half a pill, instead of a fourth. If he did this, he could administer it to her more often than if she had a full two pills. She thankfully swallowed the pills, impatiently waiting to fall asleep, and hopefully stay asleep.
The nymph fell asleep quicker with the larger dose, and didn't wake up for five hours. She didn't even need to use the bathroom, or eat food, because she was so deeply asleep. Chopper wouldn't have been surprised if she did have an accident while she was under, but she didn't.
Zoro did his best to stay awake the whole time, but he had missed a lot of his daily naps. But he'd just go to bed when she did, at night.
Nami and Robin came in once to ask Zoro how she was doing, though Robin had still been peeping on them periodically. He told them she was doing fine, and he kept changing the washcloths on her forehead, which felt a little less hot. She was still warmer than normal, but she wasn't burning up. He did think it was because of the medication, because a little while after the effects would wear off, her fever dropped two degrees. It made him feel a lot more relieved, though Luffy wasn't out of the woods yet. But she was getting better quickly.
Luffy woke once to use the bathroom and eat some soft food. Then she was put back to sleep for another four hours. Zoro had had food brought down to him and Luffy by Usopp, Chopper coming after him to check on her.
They gently woke Luffy up to eat and use the bathroom, which she realized she really needed to pee. Her food was soup again, but wasn't completely broth, which she was thankful for. Zoro got some sort of pasta dish, which was strange because it looked like work was put into it. To feed Zoro well made food after the horrible (but totally true) things he'd said to him was strange. But he didn't complain. He was starving and he hadn't been eating full meals or even the three a day, while he stayed with Luffy. Oh well.
"How's dart-brow?" he asked, wondering how his harsh words had affected the cook, not really caring if they hurt his feelings.
"Gloomy. What kind of stuff did you say to him?" Usopp wondered. Luffy perked up, wondering what happened. Zoro hadn't really wanted Luffy to know about their little fight, but it was too late now since she would pester him endlessly about wanting to know Usopp had been asking about.
"Told him that Robin and Nami didn't kick me out 'cause they trust me more than they trust him to not do something to them in their sleep," Zoro said boredly, eating his food quickly, not liking the perplexed face Luffy had on.
"Luffy wants to know when you slept with her," Chopper said. Then it was like a lightbulb went off above everyone's heads. Luffy had been asleep during the argument and hadn't known Zoro slept with her.
"Last night, I fell asleep on the bed next to you," Zoro explained awkwardly. He didn't see the small smile and light blush on Luffy's face since the lighting wasn't good and she already had a red face. She could see everyone else perfectly. Nami and Robin had hands over their mouths not to laugh.
'"Thanks'." Chopper translated. "'Sanji is mad 'cause Zoro slept in here instead of him?'" Everyone nodded, knowing she could see them. She pursed her lips.
"I don't mean to talk about Sanji behind his back, but it was a lot less worrisome with Zoro sleeping in here than I'd think of Sanji," Nami said quietly, remembering that time at the marine's base they'd got stuck in after Skypiea, when she and Sanji were on the waver. How he gripped her around the waist in an annoying and uncomfortable way.
Usopp sighed. "How do we fix this? He disapproves of Zoro and Luffy's relationship, and we think it's driving you away, Luffy. Is that right?"
"'I don't know… I don't like when he fights with Zoro or says things like I'm so fragile. I mean… I am right now… but I feel like he thinks I'm weak because I'm small and it pisses me off. I wanna get in a fight with him and show him I'm not so 'fragile'. At least fighting with Zoro makes me happy and confident. It seems like Sanji wants the opposite; that I should be a good and weak little girl who needs protection. I hate it'," said Chopper, trying to keep the way he talked the same way Luffy did.
Everyone frowned sadly at their sick crew member. Nami was the only one who could compare herself to Luffy's position in Sanji's eyes. Nami wasn't especially strong or daring in fights, so she never minded being pampered by Sanji and protected by him (which was mostly convenient). But Luffy had grown up in a different position. Like the time Luffy and Ace saved her from the men that day. Ace let Luffy do all the dirty work as he watched from behind. He put his trust in Luffy's capabilities and hard work. Then, to start sharing a small space with someone who treated her the opposite was most likely not a good thing to do to make her feel welcomed.
Luffy didn't like Sanji's somewhat innocent sexism. Nami really didn't mind. And Robin just played along. Nami hadn't really talked to Luffy about how Sanji made her feel. She only saw how Sanji's pampering annoyed her by observation. It really offended Luffy more than annoyed her.
No one said anything for a while until Luffy finished her food and Chopper gave her her sedative. Luffy was out like a light. Zoro turned her on her side and pulled the sheet over her, since they didn't want her to be hot while she still had the fever, which had lowered even more before she'd eaten.
Zoro left her for a minute to go talk to Nami and Robin about staying the night again. They were both in the galley, Nami was working on a map since the ship had stopped moving in the dark, and everything was still. Robin was stirring her coffee for that night's watch. Not that she couldn't stay awake without it. Sanji was still pretty down, baking some sort of dessert. Zoro ignored him.
He walked to Nami, and asked, "Can I sleep with Luffy again tonight. I'm not comfortable leaving her alone with a fever," Zoro explained in a flat voice.
Chopper and Usopp walked in as Nami told Zoro he could stay again. But to take his boots off this time. Zoro nodded in thanks and hurried back into the girl's room and laid down next to Luffy, soon out like a light the same as the sick girl he was spooning, with a lot of space in between them in case she didn't like that.
"So, he's staying in your room again tonight?" Usopp asked, looking at Sanji nervously, who was still cooking. He would call it "stress cooking".
"I also think that's a good idea. Luffy needs to be constantly monitored after the effects the pain medication had done today. It should definitely be out of her system by morning." He then yawned. "I'm going to bed. Goodnight," Chopper added and then left the room, Usopp saying he'd do the same.
"I'll be in the crowsnest for watch," Robin said, bringing her mug of coffee with her. Now only Sanji and Nami were in the room.
Nami was slowly putting her things away, trying to think of something to say to Sanji to make him feel a little better.
"Sanji, you should go to bed. I know it's been a crappy day. For most of us, actually. Luffy feels like crap, Zoro and Chopper are worried about her, I know Usopp didn't like how down you were all day. I think sleep would be good for you," Nami said kindly, putting her hand on his shoulder.
"C'mon, put that in the fridge and go to sleep," she said softly, removing the cooking utensils out of his hands. "Hopefully tomorrow is better. That Luffy will not be sick with a fever again. Then, Zoro won't sleep every night in there." Sanji didn't move. He was utterly depressed.
"Nami-san," he began. "Do you not trust me?" He finally started putting things away.
"In some things, I have complete faith in you. In most things actually. I trust you to save me if I need help. Protect me if it's needed. Plus, you make the best food. But, you do get carried away with the women. Me and Robin don't trust you to do something like rape us in our sleep, but I would not be surprised if you sleepwalk into our beds. That's what youre talking about, isn't it? That we allow Zoro to stay in there?" Sanji nodded. "I have faith in you that you'll put these feelings of inadequacy behind you. Tomorrow's a new day. Goodnight," she finished.
"Goodnight, Nami-san," Sanji said, turning the lights off behind him and headed to the hatch to his room while Nami headed to the hatch for hers.