Note: This chapter and the next (11 and 12) will be very heavy on OC backstory. If that's not something you're interested in feel free to skip these two chapters and head on over to chapter 13. Thanks and happy reading!

Straight Forward

Chapter 11: Memory Lane Pt. 1

When Sanji opened his eyes, he found himself in a forest clearing right by a small river. He also found, much to his displeasure that the hand he was holding belonged to Zoro. The swordsman looked slightly transparent. Remembering Shiloh's words, he wondered if Zoro could see or hear him. Deciding to both find out and vent his frustration, Sanji let out a loud groan and whined, "Man, why do I always get stuck with this idiot?"

Immediately, Zoro turned to glare at him. A gleam of realization flashed through his eye as he looked down at their joined hands and noticed the absence of anyone else from the crew. He looked up and spat, "Why do you hate me?"

Sanji rolled his eyes. "I thought you didn't believe in God."

Zoro nodded, more to himself than to the cook and replied smugly, "Oh right. That's probably why." Ignoring the cook's mirthless laugh, he looked down at their hands once again before looking up and meeting Sanji's eye.

They both nodded and agreed in unison, "We shall never speak of this again."

Sighing, Sanji brought his free hand up to cover his eyes and threw his head back dramatically, "Alas, Nami-swan! Fate has kept us apart yet again! But my heart will stay strong just knowing you're here beside me even though my eyes can't feast upon your beauty!"

"Will you give it a rest? Being stuck to you is bad enough without having to listen to your stupid pining."

Sanji opened his mouth to tell the swordsman what an unromantic idiot he was but was stopped by the sudden screech and appearance of a tiny human being with a mangled mane of red hair. Sanji thought the child couldn't be older than five or six years old. She would have looked cute if the white frilly dress she was wearing wasn't caked in mud and torn near the bottom. A large askew yellow bow swung from the back of her head, as if barely hanging on by a single lock of hair. Her small bare feet were covered in dirt. "I win!" She shouted.

A boy with dark chestnut hair looking about the same age appeared behind her, just as well dressed in a white collared shirt and yellow bow tie but seemingly much cleaner. He leaned over, panting before raising his head and pointing at the girl. "You didn't stay on the path! You cheated, Shy!"

The little redhead stuck her tongue out at her companion. "No I didn't! You never said we had to stay on the path!"

"We're supposed to! The grown-ups say so!"

Smirking, Shiloh ran over to the boy and tackled him, sending him to the ground as they wrestled. Sanji could hear her teasing the other boy as he tried not to laugh, "You're such a baby, Laz! Baby, baby, sore loser, baby!"

Sanji wrinkled his nose. "What an un-cute kid…"

Zoro snorted. "I think she's awesome."

"You would. I bet you were rough and rowdy just like that when you were a kid."

"Eh."

Two others suddenly appeared in the clearing, a tall muscular man whose clothes matched the boy's and a very petite young woman in a pastel yellow sundress . Sanji's eyes widened at the resemblance between the woman with black wavy hair standing in the clearing and the present day Shiloh. Their amber eyes were exactly the same, as were their builds and facial features. If Shiloh had black hair they would look nearly identical. The woman made an exasperated noise while the man simply laughed. "Shiloh, your dress!" The kids immediately froze before pulling apart. Shiloh hopped up and ran towards the woman, a toothy smile on her face.

"Sorry, Mama," she said, completely unapologetic. "I got dirty."

"I'll say," the woman replied with a shake of her head and rueful smile. "Oh, Baby. How will you ever find a decent husband if you don't behave like a proper young lady?"

The man laughed harder. "Come on, Jonah! The girl's barely five and you're thinking about marrying her off already?"

Jonah giggled and patted her daughter on the head. "You know how it goes, Silas. I just want her to do better than her old lady."

"Psh, old my ass."

"Another year older today," Jonah reminded him as she futilely tried to fix the crooked bow on her child's head.

"It must be tough being twenty-four now," Silas replied sarcastically as he lifted his son onto his shoulders. "Better start watching out for wrinkles." He smiled as Shiloh tried to escape her mother's primping hands. "Great party, by the way. You danced beautifully."

Jonah's hands stilled, her eyes darkening for the briefest moment before she shrugged and continued trying to comb through Shiloh's red unruly locks. "That's the job." Sanji was struck by a sense of déjà vu. He had seen the same look in Shiloh's eyes so many times before, followed by the sudden nonchalance. "We do whatever the boss wants."

Silas's face fell ever so slightly. "He treats you girls well, right?"

Jonah gave him bright smiled that seemed almost too happy to Sanji. "We're definitely well provided for."

The tall man seemed unconvinced, but he nodded anyway and recovered his cheery smile. Gesturing to his son who was engaging in a silly face contest with the giggling Shiloh, he said, "Well, me and the little guy better start heading home. His mother probably needs a break from the baby."

With a nod, Jonah replied, "Say hello to her for me."

"Will do." Silas began to walk away, but he turned back briefly to say, "Come over some time. We're always happy to have you. And," he paused, as if unsure if he should continue, "And if you ever need anything…you know where to find us."

"Thanks, Silas. We're doing all right. Don't be such a worrywart!"

As the mother daughter pair watched father and son disappear from the clearing, Sanji wondered why the older man would make such an offer. Were the two struggling or in danger? He took a breath and reminded himself that he was, in fact, inside a memory and that these events, good or bad, had already happened. He happened to glance at Zoro, whose eyes were planted firmly on the little girl who had moved to hold her young mother's hand. Sanji tried to ignore the sweat forming in between their hands and even more so that he couldn't tell if it were coming from him, Zoro, or both of them.

"Mama," Shiloh piped, staring up at her mother inquiringly.

"What is it, Baby?"

"How come I don't have a daddy?"

Sanji nearly fell over as the forest slowly began to move around them. "This is so damn weird," he heard Zoro say. The cook sighed. It was weird. The trees began to pass them by, despite the fact that they were standing perfectly still. Jonah and Shiloh however, had begun to walk up the path at the entrance of the clearing hand in hand.

"I guess the memories take us where we need to be, whether we move or not."

"Yeah, I figured," Zoro grumbled. He made as if to yank his hand from Sanji's but seemed to remember himself and settled for gritting his teeth and letting out an annoyed growl.

"You have a daddy," Jonah answered slowly. "He just doesn't live with us."

"Oh," Shiloh answered. The little redhead appeared to be thinking over her mother's words when she asked, "Where does he live then?"

A smile spread across Jonah's face. "He lives on a pirate ship."

"Why?"

The young mother rolled her eyes before laughing. "Why else would you live on a pirate ship, Baby?" She stopped, causing the forest around Sanji and Zoro to freeze once again. Sanji nearly groaned at the odd sensation. Jonah knelt down briefly to whisper to her child, "Your daddy's a pirate."

Eyes widening, Shiloh turned her head to look up at her mother as they continued walking. "Like a real pirate? Like he steals and drinks a lot?"

The cook couldn't resist giving the swordsman a pointed, smug look. Zoro returned by flipping him off with his free hand. "Classless," Sanji muttered.

"I don't know about stealing," Jonah replied as they started walking again, "But he did drink a lot. Your daddy loved a good party. That's how I met him."

Shiloh was quiet for a minute as she looked up at the sky as if lost in thought. Sanji had never seen such a pensive look on a child's face before. He would have laughed if it weren't so strange. "Can you ask him to come visit?"

Jonah shook her head, a persistent smile on her lips. "Sorry, Baby. I don't even know where he is or how to contact him."

"Why not?"

Rubbing his temple, Sanji realized with each question Shiloh asked that he was leaning more and more towards never having children. He was impressed by Jonah's patience, though. "Well," she said airily, "You see, a pirate's true love is adventure, Shiloh, so he could be anywhere."

"Oh," the redhead repeated. Silence, then: "Does he find treasure?"

"Probably."

Shiloh made a soft, thoughtful sound before asking, "If I go find him when I'm bigger and he has treasure do you think he'll give me a present?"

Again Jonah laughed, a truly joyful sound that made Sanji smile. "Oh, Baby don't be greedy!" Putting her hand on top of Shiloh's head, she continued, "Besides, where do you think this red hair came from? Your daddy gave it to you. It's the same as his." Sighing, she patted down a couple stray strands of her child's mane. "It's just a shame you're not more careful with it. Maybe when you're older…"

"I wish I looked like Mama."

Jonah stopped in her tracks. "Why's that, Baby?" Her smile fell the tiniest bit, concern in her eyes.

"Because Mama is a beautiful dancer. I want to be just like you when I grow up, Mama."

Definitely not having children, Sanji thought to himself. He couldn't handle that sort of brutal honesty. Dealing with Luffy was enough. Jonah put her hands on her daughter's small shoulders and looked her in the eye. "Listen, Shiloh. You are beautiful. Your father was a beautiful man inside and out and you're exactly like him. You're brave and bold and strong. Dancing…" Taking a breath, she moved one hand to brush a lock of hair behind Shiloh's ear. "Dancing like Mama requires a lot more than you think it does. I'd much rather you be a pirate like your daddy than a dancer like me."

As silence fell between Shiloh and Jonah, Sanji heard Zoro ask in quiet disbelief, "Who says that to a kid?"

The cook tried to swallow the unease rising in his throat. "Someone who has a good reason to."

Apparently Shiloh did not like her mother's response because as they continued to walk, the young child's face was set in a very un-cute scowl. Her mother noticed and let out a small laugh at her child's pouting. "Come on, Baby. Fix your face. How about you and I do an extra fifteen minutes of yoga today?"

Immediately Shiloh's face changed into a beaming smile as she nodded her head vigorously. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah! I want to, I want to!"

"Bendy even as a little kid," Sanji noted. "What do you think of that, Marimo?"

"Shut up." He didn't even need to look to know that Zoro was blushing.

"Okay, okay," Jonah acquiesced. "But only fifteen minutes. You have lessons tomorrow so you need to get to bed early."

"Aww," Shiloh moaned, once again moody. "Do I have to do take aways?"

"You'll do whatever Milo tells you, Baby, and no whining. He wasn't too happy with your attitude last time."

"I don't think he's ever happy…"

With a giggle, Jonah used her foot to gently kick her daughter's bottom. "How did I raise such a brat?"

As Shiloh giggled and threw her arms around her mother, Sanji realized their voices fading out and the forest beginning to disappear around them, leaving him and Zoro in a strange foggy white expanse of nothingness. However, within a few seconds, colors began to swirl into the fog, creating the environment.

"What are the odds that Nami-swan appears next to me for this one?"

"Slim to none, I'd say."

Sanji kicked at the ground. "Damn it." Zoro was right; as the colors began to settle and they found themselves in a small bedroom, the absence of the navigator caused Sanji's shoulders to slump. He recovered quickly as he scanned the room. "It's dark in here."

"Brilliant observation, Curly-Brow. And with only one eye too."

Tightening his grip on the swordsman's hand so the connection wouldn't be lost as he kicked his shin, Sanji growled and replied, "At least the eye I cover is still functional."

They were about to start scuffling when a sudden stream of light entered the room, causing the small figure on the bed to stir. "Shiloh," Jonah called softly from the open door. "Shiloh, Baby." From the dim light coming from the hall, Sanji could see that the young woman was wearing a beige trench coat, her hair beautifully curled.

Shiloh yawned and sat up, her own mane a mass of tangles. "Mama?"

Jonah made her way to her child and sat on the edge of the bed. "Sorry, Baby. One of the girls can't make it to a show tonight so I need to fill in for her. Milo just got here a few minutes ago. He's going to stay until I get back. If you need anything just let him know, okay?"

Suddenly awake, Shiloh pushed kicked off the rest covers and made to sit beside her mother. "You're going to work? Now?"

"Sorry, Baby. I have to."

The redhead gave her mother a strange look, then turned her eyes straight ahead. "Yeah. I know."

Leaning over, Jonah planted a soft kiss on her forehead. "Try to go back to sleep, okay? It's late."

"Okay."

As Shiloh curled back into her blanket, Jonah stood and made for the door. She stopped and turned back with a smile and said, "I'll be back by morning, Baby. I love you."

"Love you too, Mama."

The door shut with a soft click. Sanji watched as Shiloh immediately sat up and then lay back down. She repeated the motion a few times, unable to decide what to do. Letting out a groan, she flopped onto her back and pushed the covers completely off the bed, arms and legs spread-eagle across the mattress.

"One of those nights, huh, kid?"

Zoro gave him a look. "You realize she can't hear you, right?"

"I'm sympathizing. Normal, decent people do that once in a while, you know." Sanji rolled his visible eye, extenuating his exasperation at the swordsman. Before Zoro could reply, Shiloh sprang out of bed and made for the door. The walls moved slowly around them as they followed the girl. Sanji sighed. "Still weird."

As they entered the hallway, Sanji realized the Shiloh in front of them was a little older than the one in the forest, perhaps by a year or two. The chubbiness has gone from her cheeks, but there was a certain carelessness and abandon in her steps that still spoke of early youth. "Milo?" Shiloh called. The hallway led into a small living room with an open archway to the left that led to the kitchen, where a tall slim man with long brown hair and glasses sat reading at the table. Sanji thought there was a bit of a feminine look to him. He turned as Shiloh approached the entrance, an uninterested look on his face.

"Go back to bed."

Ignoring his order, Shiloh placed herself in the seat across from him, swinging her small dangling feet. "You didn't even say hi to me."

Milo rolled his eyes. "Hello, Shiloh." He began to read again and repeated, "Go back to bed."

The redhead put her cheek in her hand and sighed. "You should go to bed. You're grumpy."

"I don't particularly like being called in the middle of the night to babysit a child who can't even listen to directions."

Rather than be insulted by his words, Shiloh smiled and asked, "Why are you here then?"

"Who else would watch you?"

"Mama could have brought me to Laz's house. She's done it before." Leaning in as the man fell silent, Shiloh whispered, "Is it because you love Mama?"

Milo blushed for the briefest moment, dark eyes rising to meet the knowing amber pair. With a sigh, he put down the book and removed his glasses, placing them gently on the table. "You're not cute at all, you know," he stated calmly.

"See," Sanji told Zoro, "He agrees with me."

"Yeah," Zoro replied, "What an accomplishment that a memory is on your side. You could probably die happy now."

"I don't appreciate your tone."

"I don't appreciate your face."

Sanji growled and grabbed the swordsman's collar with his free hand. "What did you just say to me?!"

"You heard me, shitty cook!"

Once again, just as they were about to start brawling, Shiloh's curious voice caused both men to turn in surprise. "How come you don't just marry Mama? Then you could be my daddy and we'd have a real family."

Anger completely forgotten, Sanji's hand fell from Zoro's shirt as the swordsman lowered his fist. Milo took a breath and leaned slightly across the table. "Shiloh," he said, tone deep and serious. "You and your mother are a real family. Just because there's one less person living with you doesn't make it insufficient."

"What does that mean?"

"If you listened during lessons you'd know. It means not as good, or not good enough."

Shiloh titled her head to one side. "So I don't need a daddy?"

Milo paused and seemed to choose his words carefully. Sanji was incredibly thankful he wasn't in the man's position. "Well… It's best to focus on what you do have, Shiloh, and what you do have is an amazing mother who would do anything for you. That's why she accepts every show that's offered to her; so she can provide you with everything you need. That's what a family does. It doesn't matter how many people are in it; what matters is that they all care about and love each other."

The redhead hung on to his every word, eyes wide. "Milo," she began slowly, "Mama and I care about you. You're my teacher and you watch me when Mama has to work late. Are you my family too?"

The man took a breath. "Like you said, I am your teacher." At Shiloh's sudden crest-fallen expression, Milo asked gently, "Do you think I'd come running over her in the middle of the night if I didn't care about you?"

Shiloh beamed at the slim man before jumping out of her chair and wrapping small arms around him. "I really love you, Milo. Even if you are grumpy all the time."

With the smallest of smiles, Milo patted the child's head once before pushing her away. "Alright, that's enough. If you're not going to go to bed then grab a book to read or something."

Shiloh moved to peek at the book already on the table. "What are you reading?" She asked.

"It's an autobiography."

"What does that mean?"

"It's a book that someone wrote about their own life."

"Sounds boring."

Sanji turned wide eyes on Zoro who had spoken in unison with the younger version of Shiloh. "Seriously?"

The swordsman sent him a glare. "Well it does," he insisted.

Shiloh made a face, her little nose wrinkling in disgust. "Don't get me a book for my birthday, okay?"

Milo made a quiet, thoughtful noise. "That's right, your birthday's coming up. What do you want?"

Without missing a beat, the child replied, "I want to see Mama dance at the theatre."

An oppressive tension filled the air, causing Sanji to cough uncomfortably. Milo's face, if possible, had gotten even more stern as he carefully said, "Shiloh, you know your mother doesn't want you going to the shows there."

The redhead was quiet for moment before suggesting, "Can't you convince her, Milo? Just for my birthday? Please?" Amber eyes widened in very obvious puppy-dog pout. "I promise to do all my homework and pay attention during lessons."

After a minute of contemplative silence, Milo sighed. "I'll see what I can do. I make no promises though."

Sanji groaned as the room began to dissipate around them, earning an eye-roll from Zoro. However, much quicker than last time, shapes and colors began to swirl and form, a large stage surrounded by an ebony curtain rising before their eyes.

The memory flashed almost faster than Sanji could blink, but he saw more than enough. Shiloh was somewhere in the audience, for sure, but what caught cook's eye was the beautiful woman with long dark hair on stage, hanging by a pure white aerial silk. He watched in awe as she spun herself using only the fabric, climbing upwards before slowly turning herself upside-down, held in place only by the silk wrapped around her leg. The applause lasted much longer than the image. As the foggy blankness returned, the clapping continued.

"That was her mom."

"Yeah."

Zoro slowly met the cook's eyes. "I guess entertaining runs in the family."

Realization hit Sanji like a ton of bricks. "You don't think…" The swordsman looked away. "Shit." Taking a breath, he asked, "How does something like that even happen?"

Young Shiloh formed in front of them, once again by the river, lying on her stomach. Again, she looked just a tiny bit older. The boy from the first memory, Laz, sat beside her, another boy with messy dark blond hair swinging from the nearest tree branch. Despite the peaceful atmosphere, Zoro sighed and replied, "I have a feeling we're going to find out sooner or later."

With a naughty grin, the blond boy ran towards the pair and jumped on Laz. Shiloh squealed and attempted to join the tussle but the blond stilled and gave her and gave her a disapproving look. "You can't wrestle with us, Shy."

The redhead put her tiny hands on her hips. "Why not?"

Laz looked confused. "Yeah, why not, Rook?"

Rook sighed like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Because you want to be a dancer. You're supposed to stay clean and take care of your body or else the men won't want you. That's what my mom says anyway."

Shiloh frowned and crossed her arms. "What men?"

"The men who have sex with the dancers once the shows are over."

Sanji's jaw dropped. Why did this little kid know something like that?

"My mom doesn't do that," Shiloh shouted. "That's gross!"

Rook rolled his eyes. "Yeah, she does. All of the dancers at the theatre do. My mom said so. One time one of the men even came to our house. I saw. That's part of their job."

Laz turned large brown eyes to Shiloh. "Are you gonna do that part too, Shy?"

Shoving the boy, Shiloh shook her head and stomped her foot. "No! That's not what Mama does! Don't listen to Rook, Laz. Everyone knows he's a liar."

Rook's eyes turned hard. "Yeah? Well everyone knows your mom's a whore just like mine. So if I'm a liar so are you because we're the same!"

Stepping in between the two with his arms out, Laz cried, "Stop it! No fighting."

"Move it, Laz," Shiloh yelled as she tried to reach around him. "I'm gonna kick his butt!"

Rook stuck his tongue out at the girl, causing her to roar in anger and all but throw poor Laz aside. Sanji turned surprised eyes toward Zoro, who merely watched the kids fighting with a flat expression on his face. "Kid stuff," Zoro muttered simply.

Sanji watched in horror as Rook's small fist connected with Shiloh's nose the exact same time hers met his eye. "Kid stuff?" He repeated in disbelief. "This is an all out brawl."

Zoro shrugged. "Yeah. Kid stuff."

"What kind of fucked up childhood did you have, Marimo?"

"My childhood was normal you idiot. You're the one who was probably sheltered in that restaurant surrounded by adults."

Sanji sighed and said with incredible sarcasm, "Yes, turning out to be a gorilla who swings around three swords is completely normal."

Zoro opened his mouth the reply but was interrupted by the sound of Laz screaming. "Stop, STOP!" He had managed to grab Shiloh and dragged her away from Rook, who held his eye with one hand while the other was still in a raised fist. "You're both bleeding!"

It was true; Rook's lip was split, blood running down his chin, while Shiloh's nose was bleeding from both nostrils. She wiped the blood with her sleeve, making Sanji cringe. Her small face was smeared red, as if covered by some sort of horrific war paint. "I'm going home," she growled.

With that she stomped away from the river, her nose still bleeding, Sanji and Zoro following behind her. Following the path, it didn't take long to be out of the forest and on a cobblestone road. She went up a hill lined with small shops, earning some bizarre stares from those who were out. The higher up the hill she went, the fewer houses there seemed to be. The island, at least the part they could see, seemed fairly small and quiet to Sanji.

Finally, Shiloh stopped at a small white house with a lavender door. Without hesitation, she opened the unlocked door and walked in. Sanji and Zoro came in after her, finding themselves in the same small living room they had glimpsed in the dark during a previous memory. In the light, it was easier to see that it was minimally furnished, with only two sofas arranged in an 'L' shape around the little TV against the wall, a coffee table between the furniture and the appliance. On the opposite wall stood a large bookshelf.

"I'm home, Mama," Shiloh called.

Jonah appeared from the kitchen a smile on her face until she took in her daughter's appearance. She shrieked. "Baby!" Kneeling in front of her daughter, she grabbed the hem of her own shirt and used it to pinch at the bridge of Shiloh's nose. "What happened?"

"Rook and I were fighting," Shiloh replied stuffily.

Her mother let out an exasperated groan. "Again? What happened this time?"

Pulling out of her mother's grip, Shiloh wiped her nose with her sleeve again. Sanji's feeling of disgust was mirrored in Jonah's face. "He was being a dirty little liar."

The dark haired woman sighed. "Baby," she called softly as she reached out to brush back a lock of Shiloh's red hair, "They're just words. Don't let them make you so angry."

"Well his words were stupid so I punched him. And kicked his ankles. And bit him in the face."

"You bit him?" Jonah hung her head for a moment before taking a breath and standing, her hand on her daughter's shoulder, leading her to the conjoined kitchen and dining room. "I'll talk to his mother at work tonight." She quickly wet a rag and began wiping the blood off of Shiloh's face. "You can't keep fighting with him, Shiloh. You have to figure things out without using violence."

Crossing her arms, Shiloh's stubborn expression softened slightly as her mother playfully poked her cheek. "He's just such a liar. He says all kinds of weird things."

Jonah smiled slightly and replied as she rinsed off the cloth, "Well, maybe if you actually listened to some of the things he said you'd realize they're kind of interesting."

Sanji felt the ground shift beneath his feet. Even without the thoughtful expression he had suddenly seen appear on Shiloh's face, he knew what she was going to say next. He knew what she was going to ask. And he didn't want to hear it.

"Damn it."

Zoro raised a brow at him, oblivious to the obvious. "What's your problem?"

Sanji made to cover his ears but was stopped by the weight of Zoro's hand still clasped in his left. "Damn it! Why are you such a pain in the ass?!"

The swordsman glared. "What the hell are you talking about? I didn't even do-"

"Mama," Shiloh began tentatively, causing Zoro to fall silent.

"Great," Sanji groaned. Knowing it was pointless to do so, he shut his eyes tight, bracing himself for Shiloh's next words.

"What's a whore?"

A/N

Yes, Sanji and Zoro were holding hands the whole time. I promise, after chapter 12, there will be romance! Will it be Sanji and Nami or Zoro and Shy? Maybe both? Maybe everyone? Thank you so very much for reading, reviewing, favoriting, and following! Onwards!