Hello there! If you are reading this, then you are reading the second and hopefully improved edition of this chapter since I tried to upoad this chapter on my phone at first, and I'm pretty sure it messed something up, so yeah, here's a better edition.

Note: Just to clear things up if it's not clear after this chapter, but even though every chapter follows a linear story line, the overall story does jump a bit back and forth in time. However, I should hopefully make it very clear in each chapter where in the timeline we are :)

I hope you enjoy this chapter :D


~Once upon a full moon~

Zoro had hardly noticed when his captain's head had settled down, rested on his shoulder and joined him in his nap and was mildly surprised when he found Luffy sleeping beside him, or rather on him, after waking up. He also found himself wearing Luffy's hat, which was an uncommon occurrence, since Luffy hardly ever parted with it. Zoro guessed that the action should flatter him and a little smile found a way to his lips, but it soon faded again, because Luffy was breathing just a bit too heavily and he seemed a little too uncomfortable. Zoro tried to wake him by calling his name, but he didn't respond, which was even weirder. He tried to move him a little, pulled him into the shadows and called his name once more, but again there was no response and Zoro kept calling his name and each time his voice rose. It came to a point where the annoying cook came out from the kitchen and asked what was going on, but Zoro just brushed him off with a quick comment and continued trying to wake Luffy. The cook of course was not happy with basically being ignored, but he too seemed to notice that something was off and came running to where Zoro and Luffy were. It came to a point where they were both repeatedly saying Luffy's name and finally he responded.

"What...?" Luffy said weakly and his tired response just worried Zoro even more. He immediately checked for a fever and found that Luffy's forehead was much warmer than it should have been, even if they had been lying in the sun.

"How are you feeling?" The cooked asked before Zoro could and he looked as worried as Zoro felt, which meant that he definitely wasn't being paranoid or overreacting.

"'m fine, just tired..." Luffy said but he did not sound too convincing. This might have been due to the fact that he was actually feeling tired, but if Nami's illness after Little Garden had been anything to go by, illness made you feel sleepy and weak. Zoro switched the way Luffy was lying and prepared to take him to the Sick Bay and this seemed to annoy Luffy slightly, yet he didn't complain, so Zoro tried to explain the situation to him:

"Luffy, you're burning up. You have a fever," but of course Luffy wasn't having any of that and Zoro was almost certain that Luffy would claim that he was fine until he could no longer use the I'm just tired excuse.

"It's just the heat..." Luffy said as if that explained everything and he looked, if possible, even worse than just moments earlier. It was almost like the action of simply being awake was too much for Luffy and that was something Zoro had never thought he would experience. He and the cook then shared a look and they both knew that help was needed.

"Cook! Find Chopper." Zoro commanded and Sanji nodded and headed off into the woods starting his search. The cook was fast and Chopper had gone with Usopp to gather herbs and plants, so they wouldn't be moving around too much. He should be able to find them within the hour. Luffy struggled a little when Zoro carried him inside, but eventually let Zoro take care of him and he was soon asleep, which left Zoro with nothing to do and wasn't that frustrating? Here he was, the first mate of the strawhat pirates, and he could only watch and wait for help as his ill captain just got worse with each passing moment.

Zoro wasn't entirely sure what he had been doing to pass the time, but when the cook came back with Chopper and Usopp right behind him, Zoro could honestly say that he was more than happy to see his stupid face. Chopper got to work immediately and didn't even bother to tell the three crew members to leave, because he knew it would be useless. Zoro was the first mate and Luffy's closest confidant, so he had a right to be there. Usopp was Luffy's best friend and trying to make him leave would have been more than cruel and the cook was just too compassionate for his own good. He had this stupid habit of helping people and caring too much too fast, and he always made other people's problems his own; a trait he seemed to share with Luffy. So all three of them stayed while Chopper nursed Luffy. At first he just did some regular checks on temperature, heart beat and breathing, all while taking notes. He then prepared for a blood test and Zoro could have sworn that Luffy's eyes had opened for a moment, but when he looked to him, his eyes were closed and he showed no signs of being awake.

Zoro and Chopper had a short conversation about Luffy's condition and Chopper promised to have a diagnosis before the day was over. Usopp and the cook both stayed silent during the entire conversation, and let Zoro speak for them. After Chopper had extracted the blood from Luffy he started testing it. Zoro didn't know what he was doing, but if it could get them closer to curing Luffy, it was all fine to him. They then heard the sound of a door being opened and from within the kitchen, they heard Nami calling.

"Sanji-kun?" The cook was quick to leave the Sick Bay and probably went to tell Nami, and Robin who had been accompanying her, what was going on. It wasn't long before Nami entered the Sick Bay, and was immediately shushed by Usopp, because she was usually very loud in unexpected situations. She nodded and took a moment to look at Luffy, brushed some hair away from his face and left the room again. The cook didn't come back, but it was getting late and just because their captain had fallen ill did not mean that he would abandon his duties as a chef. Zoro hated to admit that the cook was not only dutiful, but also very skilled at his job and Zoro honestly looked forward to every single meal, because he knew it would always taste amazing, as well as being nutritious. Zoro also knew that the cook had a special notebook filled with recipes that he had created just for Zoro as a way for him to stop drinking (at least stop drinking too much too early).

He was also aware of the fact that both he and Chopper were paying close attention to his training sessions, so that the cook could always give him exactly what his body needed. At first it hadn't bothered Zoro much, but after the recent events at Thriller Bark he had noticed the cook paying extra attention to him and interrupting his training sessions more and more. However, this wasn't as bad as when they fought. Zoro fought the cook on a daily basis and often more than once. In the beginning their fights had been nothing but a way to vent their frustrations at each other, because they did not get along. Later it had turned into a daily occurrence because it served as a sparring match and a way to improve both fighting experience and flexibility in a fight where you never knew what the other would do. So these sparring sessions had become precious to Zoro, because it was a way of training that let him connect with the cook in the only way he knew how: Though fighting. But ever since they had left Thriller Bark the stupid swirly brow had been holding back. Zoro was aware of why that was, but he did not like being looked down upon, especially by the cook, who was strong but not as strong as Zoro. One could say that their relationship was a bit strained at the moment, even more than usual, so it would only be a matter of time before Zoro completely lost it and confronted the cook about his stupid behaviour.

Dinner came and went and the cook tried to make Zoro and Usopp come eat in the kitchen, but failed miserably and ended up bringing their food to them instead. Sometime during the meal Franky and Brook had come back and they had both been in high spirits, which was immediately ruined when Robin told them about their current situation. Zoro heard them making their way to the Sick Bay, but the cook stopped them before they made it in there and forced them to eat first, and just leave Luffy alone for now. They were quick to obey and the kitchen got quiet again. It seemed that whatever Franky and Brook had been so excited about when they came back had been completely forgotten.

Not long after dinner Chopper had a diagnosis and he ended up calling everyone to the Sick Bay, which just made the whole room way too crowded, but as long as no one started a fight or something of the sort, it would probably be fine... probably.

Chopper had still not said anything, not even to Zoro or Usopp, so when everyone had been gathered, Usopp asked the question they all wanted the answer to:

"How bad is it?" There was a moment of silence before Chopper answered:

"It's not too bad..." Zoro almost felt relieved, but then came the next sentence, "for now, but if we don't treat him... he'll be dead within a week."

The shocked faces of the crew perfectly conveyed what Zoro was feeling right now. This wasn't an enemy that he could cut into pieces and with that have destroyed the threat. This was an enemy that was working within Luffy's body and if he tried to cut the illness, he would cut Luffy too.

"But..." Usopp intervened before everyone just completely lost it, "you can treat him... right?"

"I should be able to, but I've never treated this illness before and..." Chopper looked down and didn't finish his sentence.

"And?" Usopp tried and Chopper looked back up and started frantically explaining.

"I don't have all the ingredients to make the medicine needed and we don't have time to get to the next island to get them, which means that out only hope is finding them on this island, but if they don't grow here naturally or we can't find them in time, then... then..."

"Then Luffy dies..." Usopp finished for him, and looked strangely composed considering their current situation.

"Usually," Robin spoke up and everyone turned to her, "The medicine to cure an illness can be found in the same place the illness came from, so I'd say that the odds are in our favour. Isn't that right, Chopper?"

The doctor smiled and nodded, which sent a wave of relief through the small room.

"It's getting dark," Chopper suddenly said sounding very stern, "I'm going to have everyone searching for ingredients at first light, so get some sleep."

No one argued with Chopper, but they were all quick to take something that would help them sleep. The only ones who stayed with Luffy were Chopper and Zoro. Zoro was still sitting by the foot of Luffy's bed with his hat in his lap. He had his eyes on the battered old strawhat, but he wasn't really looking at it. He was thinking. Thinking about how to best help Luffy, how to gather the ingredients the fastest, and how to keep the spirits of the crew high if the ordeal dragged out longer than expected.

"Chopper..." Zoro said in a low voice and without ever looking up from the hat. The reindeer made a small noise indicating that he was listening, and Zoro waited a moment, "What's the illness?"

"It's called a sun kiss."

"A sun kiss? That's a weird name for an illness that kills people."

"It's venom," Chopper said and turned to face Zoro, "Do you see Luffy's right wrist?"

Zoro turned to Luffy and took his hand to inspect his wrist. Right where the vein would usually be visible was a small mark that almost looked like a sun. It was shaped as a circle, seemed yellow in contrast to Luffy's slightly tanned skin and had small lines growing out from its centre which, if the circle was the sun, were the rays.

"It looks like a sun." Zoro simply said, but never let go of Luffy's hand. It was cold, so Zoro would keep it warm.

"The reason it's called a sun kiss is because of its appearance and the fact that comes from a sun snake's venom. They are small so you wouldn't notice you've been bitten until the symptoms start to show. Of course on animals the effect is much more immediate and as with any animal, the snake only uses venom when they need to hunt. It is unusual for animals to attack humans, so I can only guess that Luffy got unlucky and the snake wasn't aware that what it bit was part of something bigger."

"The reason is irrelevant. What matters is that Luffy got bit and we now need to find a cure."

"You're right. Luffy is our first priority, so get some sleep."

"... I'll sleep here."

Chopper sighed, "Suit yourself."

Neither Zoro nor Chopper slept that night.

҉

The cook was the first one to get up. It was still an hour before sun rise and Zoro heard him preparing breakfast in the kitchen. It was a weird experience though. Zoro wasn't always around when breakfast was being prepared, but when he was, the cook was always in a weirdly good mood. Despite their intense rivalry and the fact that most of their conversations were insults and angry accusations, when the cook was doing his job and Zoro was observing, there was no tension, just peace. The cook would usually be silently singing along to Brook's music, and in the cases where Brook had yet to wake up, he would just hum a slow tune. Zoro was also aware of the fact that the cook hated when people heard him singing, and he probably wasn't aware of the fact that Zoro had heard him singing quite a few times, because when he was cooking, he was off in a whole different world. Zoro was just waiting for the perfect moment to bring the topic up in an argument, because if there was one thing Luffy loved, it was singing and music, and learning that there was someone besides Brook (and Franky according to himself) who could actually sing really well, was sure to get him hyped up. Sure, it was a talent, but if the cook was embarrassed enough to keep it hidden (even from the girls), it would be the ultimate black mail. So the weird thing this morning was the fact that apart from the sounds of utensils and various other kitchen materials it was silent. There was no singing and no humming, it was all just cold steel meeting more cold steel and the occasional running of water. If it hadn't been for the fact that the cook was extremely dutiful, Zoro would have believed that anyone could be in the kitchen cooking breakfast at the moment.

Over the course of the next ten minutes, Zoro heard the door to the kitchen open and close three times. At some point Chopper left to join them for reasons unknown to Zoro, but as long as he could stay with Luffy he was fine with it. The only one Zoro knew was in there, besides the cook and Chopper, was Usopp, since he had bid everyone good morning as they arrived. This was another thing which Zoro found odd and uncommon. Usopp was always the first person to freak out when they encountered a problem and though he had been with Luffy in the Sick Bay the most, apart from Zoro and Chopper, he seemed to be weirdly indifferent towards the idea of Luffy being in mortal danger. And it wasn't that Usopp was just ignoring reality, because he had been the one to point out that Luffy could very well die, so why was it? Zoro did not claim to be able to read people as well as others in the crew, but dammit! Usopp was one of the first people to join Luffy and up until now, Zoro was sure that he knew everything their sniper, and now that Usopp was acting in a way Zoro couldn't understand nor comprehend and he also had Luffy to worry about, Zoro was in a very uncertain place. It was strange how many things changed when the captain was suddenly out of commission.

It wasn't long before more people had gathered and soon the kitchen was full. Zoro would have been perfectly fine with staying in the Sick Bay, but Chopper dragged him into the kitchen with him, which, to Zoro's great annoyance, left Luffy all alone because what if he woke up? What if someone attacked him? What if he sleep walked? Chopper just brushed off all of Zoro's weak attempts to stay with Luffy and forced him to eat with the rest of them. There was about half an hour until sunrise and that meant that they needed a definitive plan very soon. Zoro was about to voice his concern about their plan, or rather the lack of a plan, but the stupid swirly brow interrupted him.

"Chopper and I have discussed what the best way to go about our situation is and we think we have the solution, of course we are open to any suggestions."

Everyone turned their attention towards Chopper and the cook, while they explained the plan.

"Basically, everyone has a job, and with the exception of the people who will stay at the Sunny, everyone is on their own looking for whatever ingredients we don't have. It shouldn't be a problem though, we are the only ones on the island and there seems to be no monsters or anything of the sort. Chopper will explain what everyone will be looking for."

"Usopp, you're up first."

"Yes!"

Chopper took his time to explain to everyone what they were looking for, while handing them a piece of paper with instructions and drawings. Zoro only half listened as there was no need to concern himself with what the others had to do, only what he himself was supposed to do. While Zoro had been half asleep, not listening, Chopper had gone through everyone but Zoro, Robin and the cook. He hadn't talked about himself either, but he was the doctor and for him to leave Luffy would honestly be just as stupid as if Robin suddenly thought she could swim.

"Robin," Chopper said after finishing talking to Franky, "Your job is going to be the hardest, but if my information is correct you have about thirty-six hours to do this."

"Is that Luffy's time limit?" Robin asked, which caught Zoro's attention, hadn't Luffy had a whole week?

"Yes and no," Chopper answered cryptically, "It's because the ingredient you will be looking for is a flower that only blooms during a full moon. Tomorrow night is a full moon, so you just have to find the flower before then, so in that sense it's not that it's Luffy's time limit... But then again, if you should fail we won't get that ingredient and I can't make the medicine."

"Understood. I won't fail then."

"Lastly is Sanji and Zoro," Chopper said and turned to Zoro as the cook was already aware of the plan, "Both of you will be staying on the Sunny."

Zoro did not know how to feel about that. On one hand he was glad to stay with Luffy, but on the other hand, he would much rather be out actually doing something rather than just sitting around. Also the stupid cook was there, why would Chopper have them both stay? And why had the cook agreed to this in the first place?

"Why?" Zoro blurted out, still not knowing if he should feel angry or happy.

"There are three reasons for this, stupid marimo," the cook said calmly which just ignited Zoro's confused anger, "Firstly, you have a shit sense of direction, so we cannot trust you to be on your own. Secondly," the cook said before Zoro could make any sort of retort, "Even if the first reason wasn't true, you are the only person who has not been on the island, which gives you a disadvantage and thirdly," the cook suddenly stood up and walked over to Zoro and put a finger on his chest, right where his heart was, "You are currently our strongest fighter, and if anyone can protect Luffy, it's you. We do not know who might show up on this island, and Chopper and I will be working non-stop, so we won't be at our best. We need you here. Luffy needs you here." The cook made sure to emphasise Luffy and Zoro knew that he was beat and he sighed, choosing not say another word on the topic in order to avoid admitting defeat... which he kind of was by not responding, but whatever. However, Zoro had noticed how the cook had said that he was the strongest fighter, which, if anyone had been doubting that their situation was dire, was a clear and pure sign that they could no longer afford to waste time on small things like friendly rivalry.

But that was another thing which Zoro now started to wonder about. So, sure, Luffy was down and currently experiencing being fatally ill, but how could that alone have such a dramatic effect on both Usopp and the cook. While Usopp remained a completely mystery to Zoro, the cook was usually a very straight forward person when dealing with Zoro, and now he freely admitted that Zoro was stronger than him? No. Something wasn't right. The cook had said that both he and Chopper would be working non-stop, and that's why they needed an extra person to protect Luffy and the ship, but that didn't make any sense when Zoro thought about it. No matter how you looked at this situation, the cook should not have more work than usual, and even on his busiest days, he was always up for a fight, yet, now he says that they need back up? It wasn't right and Zoro would make damn sure to confront the cook about this.

After his little speech, the cook went back to the kitchen and continued making whatever he had been making and silence feel once again, as everyone just looked at their own piece of paper Chopper had given them, trying to memorise everything. Some had more to do than others, but it seemed that the less things you had to find, the harder they would be to get.

Chopper and Robin resumed their conversation about the mysterious flower she had to find.

"Can you tell me more about it?" Robin asked, wanting to get as much information as possible.

"I don't know much," Chopper confessed, "It's called a Moon Flower and supposedly it's a beautiful blue flower. It needs the moon like normal flowers need the sun, and it should be larger than your average flower... I'm sorry that's all I know."

"I've seen that flower," A voice spoke up and for a moment everyone at the table looked at each other, trying to figure out who had said it, but then the voice spoke again and they all turned to Luffy who stood by the door between the Sick Bay and the kitchen. Zoro was quickly by his side and immediately supported him even if Luffy showed no signs of not being able to support himself. He was still cold though, but before Zoro could voice this concern, Usopp was there with a blanket and wrapped Luffy tightly in it.

"You should be in bed!" Chopper accused, but didn't do anything to stop him from walking around and in the end Luffy took his place besides Zoro's, although both Zoro and Usopp made a point to stay right beside him in case he should need them. Chopper told Sanji to give him something warm and not three minutes later Luffy was wrapped in a blanket, surrounded by his friends and sipping on a cup of warm tea.

"The flower," Luffy continued as if it hadn't been minutes since the conversation started, "it's on the top of the volcano."

"The top of the volcano?" Nami questioned, "When did you go there?"

"The turtle," Luffy said as if that had been obvious, which to Zoro, who had not been there, wasn't obvious at all, "it took me there. There were so many different animals up there too, but right in the middle there was this rea~lly huge flower. It was bright blue, just like the ocean, but it hadn't bloomed yet."

"That's really good information, but shouldn't you be sleeping?" Robin said sounding slightly confused about their situation, because, yes, Luffy should probably be sleeping, but he had also just provided them with vital information that could save his life.

"I got tired of sleeping," Luffy shrugged and Zoro took a moment to think about how weird that sentence sounded. Then Zoro noticed, as Luffy put down his empty cup, the mark on his wrist had grown in size. Zoro quickly grabbed Luffy's hand to make sure he wasn't seeing things and true enough, what had earlier been a sun the size of an ant, was now a sun the size of a fingertip.

"Chopper. It's bigger," Zoro stated, trying not to sound too worried, but even if his voice was steady his face was showing dread, because he did not know what this meant. And not knowing something is sometimes worse than knowing something bad.

"Relax," Chopper said and Zoro calmed down, if only a little, "The mark will grow in size until he's healed, but the mark itself is not harmful."

Zoro let go of Luffy's hand and allowed him to tug himself back into the blanket. The next ten minutes were followed by some small talk between Luffy and the other crew members, while Zoro just observed Luffy, ready to assist him at any moment.

"I hate to break the moment," the cook suddenly said and gained everyone's attention, "but the sun is rising." The resolve on the faces of the strawhats was plain as day. They would cure their captain, whatever it may take.


How was that? Good? I hope you enjoyed it. I promise that next chapter has a bit more... action. I won't spoil, but next chapter has a bunch of things, so look forward to that.

But yeah, if you enjoyed reading then please favorite the story, follow for more chapters and leave a review with your thoughts. Also, how much of the foreshadowing are you guys picking up on, and although very little of it has been paid off yet, I'd like to know whether you guys think it's set up well. I really want to improve on the forshadowing parts of writing, so please let me know if it works :D I'd also like to know what you think of the chapter lenghts. I try to keep them around 4-5k, but tell me what you think about that.