Straight Forward

Chapter 5: Little Big Things

"Wow! That's so cool, Shy!" Chopper and Usopp clapped as the redhead did a backbend so deep that she was able to grab her ankles. "It's like you're rubber like Luffy!" The girl laughed as she brought her palms to the ground and pointed her feet straight up in a handstand.

"I can do a split this way too." She demonstrated by letting her legs drop in opposite directions.

Brook let out a dramatic groan. "Please, Shiloh. My muscles ache just watching you. Oh, but I don't have muscles! Yo ho ho ho!"

Sanji yawned as he watched the others fool around on the grassy deck. Apparently while he was making breakfast, Shiloh had revealed to the rest of the crew what she had shown him the night before. He had to admit, it made him feel a little more secure knowing it wasn't some sort of deep dark secret she intended to hide. Scanning the visible areas of the deck, he found Zoro pointedly looking away form the contortionist. Not being able to resist, he smirked and made his way over to the swordsman. "Impressive, huh?"

The green haired man gave a disinterested grunt.

"She sings too."

As he expected, Zoro's eyes narrowed at him, full of suspicion. "How do you know?"

Taking his sweet time lighting the cigarette in his mouth, the cook put on his best passive face, knowing it would annoy the swordsman to no end. "She sang a little song for me last night."

Zoro surprised the cook by crossing his arms and looking away with a huff. Sanji had expected a much more aggressive response. He was caught completely off guard by the swordsman's quiet question of, "Was she any good?"

A huge, ridiculous goofy looking grin spread so far across Sanji's face he was sure his cheeks would split. "You like her."

Zoro abruptly faced him, face red, lips drawn in the hardest, most embarrassed looking frown Sanji had ever seen. It was if he was a petulant child caught and scolded for having candy before dinner. "I do not! I was just curious."

"Uh-huh, yeah," he sang. "That, and you like her!"

"I'm going to kill you, pervert-cook!"

Laughing as he swung his leg to block one of Zoro's swords, Sanji replied, "Why can't you just admit it? You like her!" He put as much emphasis on the word as he could, simply to enrage Zoro even more. This was fun.

"I don't!" He ducked as the sword came swishing towards his head. Sanji threw his leg back and aimed towards Zoro's green hair, but Shiloh was suddenly between them and both men froze.

"What are you guys fighting about now?"

"Zoro likes-"

"THE ISLAND! I SEE THE ISLAND!"

It was lucky that Luffy had bounded between them, knocking Shiloh down as he flailed, because it stopped Zoro from completely taking off his head. With a chuckle, he watched as Zoro held out a hand to help the redhead up. Blowing a cloud of smoke from his lips, he very calmly said, "Oh look. We're here."

Two hours later, Sanji found himself wandering around the outskirts of town all alone. Well no, he wasn't actually alone. Shilioh and Zoro were about 500ft away but they were oblivious to the cook behind them. Nami had given the pair the task of trading in everyone's old clothes and shoes, threatening to start charging Shiloh room and board if they sold any item for too cheap. As the swordsman and the contortionist began walking away from The Sunny with large bags on their backs, she had immediately turned to Sanji and ordered, "Follow them. Make sure that idiot doesn't get lost."

And that was how Sanji found himself babysitting the non-couple from a distance. It wouldn't have been so bad if Shiloh had simply led Zoro in the right direction, but no, the redhead had decided to let him lead the way. Sanji glared at the large violet-leafed tree he had already passed about fifty times. He was more than ready to leave the two idiots to their pointless wandering, but then that would mean he failed his precious Nami-san and there was no way that was happening. So with a silent vow to kill Zoro later, he kept tailing the two.

"Damn! What's with this island?!" Zoro yelled. "Everything looks the same!" Shiloh hid a grin behind her hand. How she could find something so stupid cute, Sanji had no idea. He could understand if it were a lost woman, soft face in a gentle frown looking for guidance; that was endearing. But thick-skulled Zoro and his stubborn refusal to acknowledge his utter lack of sense of direction was none of those things and hence he was simply stupid and not endearing in the slightest. Sanji had a momentary vision of Zoro in a dress and gagged.

"What should we do?" Sanji rolled his eyes. Sometimes, the redhead was just too nice. Would Zoro ever want someone so complacent? The cook really wanted Shiloh to win the swordsman over, but there were times where it simply didn't seem like they fit together. Shiloh was too patient, too gentle, and too calm. Would such qualities compliment or rival Zoro's strength? He made to light a cigarette but stopped before bringing the flame to the tip. If he smoked, Zoro would undoubtedly identify the smell and his cover would be blown.

Zoro abruptly turned around, causing Sanji to start and dive into a nearby bush. "This way." As they passed him, Sanji dusted himself off and counted to thirty before making a move to follow. He took about six steps before Zoro froze again. "Did we already go this way?" Sanji wanted nothing more than to kick the back of the green-haired man's head.

"Yes."

"…Shit." Sanji's jaw dropped, unlit cigarette dropping silently to the ground when Zoro asked, "Which way should we go?"

Shiloh smiled and began walking slightly towards their left. "This way."

Zoro followed slowly. "You sure?"

"Positive."

The swordsman voiced what Sanji had been thinking: "Why didn't you say something earlier?"

The redhead stopped in her tracks and turned around to face him. "You didn't ask. Besides," her cheeks flushed lightly as she added quietly, "Getting lost with you isn't so bad."

Sanji had expected Zoro to yell at her for saying something that embarrassed him, so he had been caught off guard a second time when instead the larger man returned Shiloh's words with a blush of his own and a simple clearing of his throat. "I'm not lost… I always end up exactly where I need to be."

Shiloh smiled softly. "That you do…"

"Huh?"

The redhead shook her head and replied, "Nothing. Let's go."

"…Which way?"

Sanji's eyes were practically bulging out of his head. Who the hell was this strangely docile green-haired man? He had seen Zoro calm before, hell, he'd seen Zoro act downright cool a few times (not that he would ever admit it to the other man), but never in such a way that almost seemed…sweet? The cook nearly pinched himself to see if he were dreaming.

It must have been strange for Zoro as well. Sanji realized that as a crew, the nine of them were pretty outspoken, brash, and downright brutally honest. Whenever Zoro got lost, they yelled, he yelled back, and name-calling ensued. None of them were fragile little lilies; that was how they communicated and it worked just fine for all of them. It was the nature of their familial bond. So to be spoken to so simply and kindly must have put the swordsman completely out of his element. Something in the cook's heart warmed as Shiloh smiled sweetly at the man before her and said, "This way, Zoro."

An hour later found Sanji sitting on a bench, waiting for Shiloh and Zoro to come out of a clothing store. It had been right at the island's town square, which was located about a five minutes' walk away from where they had docked. Zoro's ability to get lost so easily blew the cook's mind, despite having experienced it many, many times before. However, it seemed that Shiloh had a pretty good sense of direction so she had gotten them back to civilization from the forest they had been wandering in within twenty minutes. The island really wasn't that big, just like his lovely Nami-san had said. Nami had also told them to meet at the square when they finished all their shopping so she could check everyone's inventory, which was why he no longer had to keep out of sight. It wouldn't be so strange for Shiloh and Zoro to find him sitting at the designated meeting area.

What was strange was how long they were taking. The pair had been in the store for nearly half an hour, about twenty minutes longer than Sanji had thought they'd be. Honestly, how hard was it to get Nami's order of 70,000 belis? With a groan, he pushed himself off the bench and stomped towards the store cursing the two for their dual idiocy.

When he opened the door he froze abruptly at the sight of Shiloh and Zoro at the front counter, their old clothes in a towering stack. The large bearded man behind the desk was appraising each item of clothing with incredible caution. Though he was behind them, he could see Zoro's arms crossed in annoyance and Shiloh's head turned to her left. The cook followed her line of vision to a small table with neatly folded bandanas.

Apparently the merchant had noticed too, because he chuckled and put down the shoe he had been holding. "Look's like your girlfriend sees something she likes." The merchant eyed Shiloh thoughtfully before adding, "A little young for you though, don't you think, Son?"

"She's not my girlfriend!" Sanji smirked at the swordsman's outburst and moved quietly between the racks, using them to hide as he got closer to the commotion.

"I'm his wife," the redhead chimed in nonchalantly, eyes still on the small scraps of fabric. Sanji nearly burst out laughing.

"SHY!"

Zoro moved as if he were about to put her in a headlock but stopped abruptly when she turned to the merchant and said, "Newlyweds, actually. That's why we're trying to sell these clothes; to pay for our honeymoon."

The merchant raised a bushy brow. "I don't see rings on your fingers."

Scowling, Shiloh brought her gaze downward in pseudo chagrin and mumbled, "No need to remind us of how broke we are…"

"Broke, huh?" The man seemed to think it over before asking, "How's your husband got swords then?"

Shiloh suddenly brought her head up, eyes shining with crocodile tears that made Zoro and the hidden Sanji start. "That's just cruel, Mister. Those swords are the only things my husband has left of his poor late father. They were all he had to his name. We couldn't bear to part with them."

Sanji had to admit that even though Luffy would have disapproved of the extent of Shiloh's lies, he himself was impressed. The contortionist didn't seem like the type to manipulate but there she was, putting on one of the most convincing shows he had ever seen. Vaguely, he wondered if he should be more concerned. However, the sight of the merchant's face pushed any worry out of his mind for the moment. The man's eyes had softened, a hand going up to stroke his beard. "Now, now, don't cry, Missy. I'll see what I can do, alright?"

Shiloh gave the man a watery smile and turned her gaze to Zoro. "See? I told you I had a good feeling about this place! Our luck is finally turning around!"

Despite himself, Sanji felt a pang in his heart and instantly felt foolish. He only hoped Zoro felt it too. The least the idiot could do was feel sympathy for his fake wife.

The merchant seemed to move much faster because after only a few minutes he had checked every single shoe and article of clothing. He took a breath and said, "I can do 75,000. There are a few high-end brand shirts and shoes with your stuff." Sanji smiled. Those had to have been Nami's with her fabulous taste and all.

If the large man had been the least bit suspicious, it melted off his face the moment Shiloh looked away once again and replied, "My mother used to buy me all these nice clothes. We were close… until I was disowned for marrying my husband. I'd really just rather get rid of them…"

Quietly, the man asked, "Why would the disown you for something like that?"

For the second time, Sanji nearly laughed outrageously at Shiloh's next words: "Well, my husband is a little mentally challenged." She ignored the glare Zoro sent her. "He's prone to mindless wandering. They said he'd be an embarrassment to the family and if I married him I would be too and they would no longer associate with me." She wiped a tear from her eye. "They cut me off and out of their lives. It's okay though." She gave Zoro a smile that Sanji was sure was real and added, "He's worth it."

The merchant pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and blew his nose. The hidden cook was reminded of Franky. "That's just beautiful. Sad, but beautiful. Here," he said as he handed Zoro the bills, "75,000 belis. Enjoy yourselves and your youth."

Red-faced, the swordsman gestured to the door and said to the woman at his side, "Wait for me outside." Shiloh gave him a confused look but before she could protest Zoro repeated, "Wait for me outside, Shy."

Putting on an innocent face, Shiloh shrugged and began walking towards the door. Before she stepped out, she called, "Don't take too long, dear."

As the door shut behind him, Sanji walked out from behind the rack, intending to make sure the swordsman didn't spent the money on anything. However, he froze when Zoro approached the table with the bandanas and picked up a white one with a delicately intricate black printed pattern. The cook almost couldn't believe his eyes when Zoro wordlessly handed it to the merchant.

The man smiled behind his beard and shook his head. "No charge."

"No," Zoro stated simply. "I'll pay for it."

A twinkle lit the merchant's eyes. "Then just pay me what you think it's worth." Sanji couldn't see how much Zoro gave, but the merchant had laughed and said, "You're generous, Son. It's a bit too much."

"It doesn't matter," Zoro said as he began to turn away. "If this is what she wanted then it's fine."

A booming laugh echoed around the store, the large man beaming at the swordsman. "Y'know, I had my doubts about you but now I see you really are a good husband."

Beet red, Zoro yelled, "Shut up!" and ran out of the store so suddenly that he hadn't even seen Sanji standing there, utterly in shock. The cook collected his wits and promptly followed the swordsman out. Zoro nearly knocked over Shiloh, who had been standing just outside the door. Thrusting his hand out, he shouted "Here!"

Shiloh stared at the banana in his hand then looked up at the red in the face, frowning, green-haired man. She blinked once, twice, before pointing to herself, surprise bright in her eyes. "For me?"

"No idiot, for the redhead behind you." In her utter confusion, Shiloh actually glanced over her shoulder, causing Zoro to groan. "Are you stupid? Yeah, it's for you. You wanted it, right?"

"No, I mean, yes, but…" Slowly, she reached out and took the fabric from Zoro, who rolled his eyes. Carefully, Shiloh folded the bandana into a strip then wrapped it around her head, tying a knot at the top. She blushed and instantly looked away. "Thank you, Zoro."

He turned away from her, a hand awkwardly behind his head. "It's fine." Before Sanji could say a word, he saw the rest of the crew walking towards them. Zoro handed the money to Shiloh and said, "You give it to her. She doesn't like seeing me with money." The redhead nodded, a faint tint still lighting her cheeks as she made her way to the navigator.

Not being able to resist, Sanji let the most obnoxious smirk cross his face as he put a hand on Zoro's shoulder. "Not bad, idiot husband." The swordsman turned slowly, a murderous look in his eyes that was made less threatening by the redness of his face. Sanji knew he shouldn't have said anything, knew he should have let the moment stay between Zoro and Shiloh, but the opportunity to tease the green haired idiot about something so uncharacteristically sweet was just too good to pass up. "Still though, I wonder how Nami-san will react when I tell her you spent some of our money." Zoro pulled out a sword, teeth bared. "Then again, I guess you had a good reason. It is nice for a man to buy gifts for his wife after all."

"YOU'RE DEAD, SHITTY COOK!"

A/N

This chapter was going to be so much longer but I decided to break it up into a couple shorter ones. Oh well. Onwards!