Disclaimer: See Chapter One

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Hanging on the wire, yeah

Said I'm waiting for the change

I'm dancing through the fire

Just to catch a flame and feel real again

~ Paul Weller, "You Do Something To Me"

xxx

"What's going on in there?"

"N-Nami-swan?" Sanji perked up immediately as she spoke, but quite frankly he was still a little too emotional to move from his rather safe place in Kaku's arms.

"Sanji-kun?" she moved forward, spotting him and kneeling down. "Are you…you're bleeding! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Sanji took her hand and squeezed it gently. "I'm fine," he repeated more emphatically. "What are you doing here? I thought…"

"Well, we were at Vivi's, but quite frankly I got tired of sitting around and doing nothing. I have to be part of the action," she winked. "That is, if there's any action to be had."

"Not for us, unfortunately," Kaku cleared his throat. "We're just trying to get everyone outside and out of here."

"Well, that's boring. Usopp! Get over here!" Nami turned and yelled, and the long-nosed man slunk into view, muttering something to himself. "And bring Chopper!" she added, and he turned back before pulling the short teen out with him.

"What's the matter?" Chopper scurried over, his large bag of medical supplies being toted by an unhappy Usopp. "Sanji? Are you okay?"

"Just a scratch, Chopper…"

"He was shot."

"Shut up, Kaku."

"Oh, no!" Chopper knelt down. "Here, unbutton your shirt…"

Sanji grumbled but complied, and Chopper only needed to glance at the wound for a moment before deciding. "The bullet's still in there. We have to get it out. I didn't bring anything specifically for that, but…" he dug around in his bag and pulled out a rather wicked-looking instrument. "This'll do the trick. Here. Hold still."

"Oh no," Sanji tried to back away. "Chopper…Chopper! Don't come near me with that…"

"Really, Sanji-kun; I had no idea you were such a chicken," Nami looked unimpressed. "After all, you had to go through a lot worse when that car hit you…"

"And the whole neighbourhood probably heard my scream," he shuddered at the memory. "No offence to your mom, Chopper."

"None taken," Chopper laughed. "But really, Sanji, it has to come out."

"Well, it's just…" Sanji sighed. "Look, it's just anything coming near my hands or arms…I get a little skittish, that's all…"

"I promise it'll be fine. You trust me, right?" Chopper laid a hand on Sanji's uninjured shoulder and the blonde nodded. "Now, this'll probably hurt, but…"

Sanji winced and closed his eyes, whispering something to himself, and Nami decided that the only way anything was going to get done was if they distracted Sanji somehow. She felt a little sorry for him, knowing that this on top of everything he'd been through was the last thing he needed, but she also knew that Sanji was tougher than he often let on and, in this case, apparently it was left to her to figure out a way to get him to show it. It was too bad Zoro and Ace weren't here yet, but…she looked at Kaku, who met her gaze evenly, and she knew in an instant that they both were thinking the same thing. "You or me?"

"Remember my boyfriend?"

"Yes, but he's not here, and if I do it Sanji's likely to faint and that'll help nobody," Nami pointed out logically.

"So it's on me, is it?" Kaku looked at Sanji, who had not ceased his muttering and likely hadn't heard any of the conversation. "Alright. Chopper, just tell me when."

Chopper pushed Sanji's shirt aside and felt around the wound before readying what essentially looked like an oversized pair of tweezers. "Ready."

"Alright. Make it quick," Kaku slid a hand around Sanji's neck and pulled his head up, Sanji making a muffled noise of surprise into his mouth as he held him in place, lightly kneading the back of his neck to keep him calm. He sensed Chopper pulling away and pulled back slowly, glancing at Sanji's half-lidded eyes and rather incredulous expression.

"Was that really necessary?" the blonde asked in a low voice.

"Sorry. Didn't know how else to get it done. The bullet's gone."

"It is? But I didn't even feel…" Sanji shook his head and chuckled. "Oh."

"Oh, indeed," Kaku sighed, letting his fingers slide through Sanji's hair as Chopper began bandaging the wound, which had begun to bleed sluggishly again. Nami knelt down beside them and took one of Sanji's hands in her own.

"Nami-san? Couldn't you have…"

"Not if we wanted you coherent for the rest of the night. You'd have just turned into a floating pile of hearts," she replied coolly, but he looked at her beseechingly and finally she sighed and dropped a rather sisterly kiss on his forehead. "There. Happy?"

"Thank you, Nami-swan!"

"Yeah, yeah," she squeezed his hand. "Why? Was Kaku that bad?"

"No. Actually quite the opposite," Sanji cleared his throat and blushed slightly. "I have no idea how Lucci stayed away from you for so long."

"Because he's a stubborn idiot, that's why," Kaku moved back but Sanji caught his hand and laced their fingers together. "I'm still surprised you want me with you."

"Why? What happened?" Nami asked, narrowing her eyes at the agent, who nervously swallowed and explained to her what had happened. She glared at him after his admission before sighing heavily, her hand still gripping Sanji's. "Well, I can't say I agree with what you did, but…I understand why you felt you had to. And if Sanji still trusts you…"

"I do, Nami-san," Sanji nodded.

"Well, if Sanji still trusts you, I have no reason not to," she finished as Chopper tied off the end of the bandage.

"Now, I need to look at you," Chopper said to Kaku, who nodded while looking notably resigned. "Can you walk?"

"Yes," Kaku pushed himself to his feet.

"Good. Come over here; we don't need everyone watching," Chopper steered him away.

"You sure you're okay, Sanji?"

"Yeah, Usopp," Sanji smiled at his friend. "And stop dancing around like that, you're making me…" his eyes widened and he swore rather colorfully.

"What? What is it?"

"Dancing! Shoot, Bon's in there," Sanji looked at the warehouse. "How are we going to get him out?"

"Does Krieg know that Bon's not on his side yet?" Nami asked hurriedly.

"Don't think so," Sanji replied evenly. "But…after what happened with Gin, I'm betting Krieg's going to be on his toes."

"He can take care of himself," Robin assured them quietly. "Remember: I worked with him for a good while, and I know he's perfectly competent, no matter what I think of him otherwise."

"Too flamboyant for you, is that it?" Nami asked knowingly, and Robin nodded. "Anyway, Sanji, he knows what he's doing and he'll be fine. We just have to meet up with him la…" she flinched as another explosion came from the warehouse, and Sanji scrambled to his feet, swaying unsteadily until Usopp grabbed his arm.

"I have to…"

"You're not going back in there," Nami poked his chest. "You're staying here, where we can see you and we know you're safe. Capische?"

"Got it," he nodded slowly. "But I'm worried about…"

"Mr. Blackleg? Mr. Blackleg, are you out here?"

"Yeah!" Sanji called, as a figure pushed through the smoke pouring out the door.

"Oh, thank heavens. Mr. Roronoa's having a fit."

"Where is he?" Sanji asked hurriedly.

"He and Mr. Paulie are trying to find the others. They sent me out because of my injury. I keep telling them it's nothing, but…" Law walked forward, obviously trying to disguise the fact that he was limping and failing rather horribly. He got to where Sanji was and looked him over. "You're okay, though?"

"I'm fine. Chopper here's a doctor, he should look at that leg of yours," Sanji motioned to the small teen, who was still asking Kaku questions while the older man looked like he'd rather not answer any of them.

"If you insist."

"And you are?" Nami arched an eyebrow and regarded him suspiciously.

"Law Trafalgar, my dear. Pleasure," he held out his hand and Nami put hers in it, blushing a little as he rather formally kissed it.

"Who's he, then?"

"He's on our side, Nami-san. That's all that matters," Sanji put a hand on Law's shoulder. "I trust him."

"And you met him…when?"

"Tonight. At the bar."

"Sanji! He could be working for…"

"He's fine," Iceburg interrupted. "Well, he's kind of a rogue, but he's definitely not an enemy."

"A rogue? In what way?"

"He doesn't truly have a side," Iceburg shrugged. "That is, he does some recon work for us, but he's in no way a government employee. Also, he's not in any way connected with the gangs. So, he's an anomaly; he and his partner."

"Speaking of him," Law sighed and sat down as Chopper headed over. "I haven't seen him since we…ouch, that actually stings," he jerked his leg away but Chopper merely looked at him.

"I have to disinfect that; it looks pretty deep."

"Just a scratch," Law repeated his earlier words as Chopper continued to clean out the gash. "Anyway, I haven't seen Mr. Kidd for a long time…too long, if you ask me."

"You're…lovers?" Nami asked.

"He'd probably deny it, but yes; we are," Law glanced up at her and winked, and she averted her eyes again. "I'm worried," he finally admitted. "And it's silly, because he can take care of himself probably better than anybody I know, but I can't…everything's just happened so fast tonight. It's disconcerting."

"To put it mildly," Kaku interjected, pushing himself to his feet and walking slowly back toward the group.

"You're freaking out," Sanji looked at him before continuing. "Look, I know, okay? Yes, Lucci's facing Krieg, but so is Ace, and if…if anything happens to him…" he clenched his fists before exhaling heavily.

"It won't," Usopp patted his shoulder. "They can all take care of themselves, Sanji. You need to stop worrying so much."

"Coming from you? I must be overreacting," Sanji chuckled and gave the younger man a one-armed hug. "Thanks, Usopp."

"Of course."

Usopp's eyes were wide and he swallowed rather noticeably, but at least he was trying, and Sanji was grateful for that. "So what, then? All we can do is wait?" Sanji finally spoke up, and he was rewarded with a lot of non-committal shrugs and it seemed that nobody quite wanted to meet his eyes. "I'd like an answer," he said softly, and Nami just clasped his shoulder tightly.

"We can't do much else," Iceburg finally broke the silence. "Nmaa, it's horrible to wait, but that's about the only thing we're capable of doing."

Nobody said anything after that, and Sanji ran a hand through his hair and sank to the ground, letting Kaku lean against him and ruffle his hair affectionately. The moon was just starting to peek out and the clouds were clearing; it was a beautiful night…or, would have been, if he wasn't worried to death.

000

"Now, get out."

"But…"

"Go!" Lucci shoved him, and Ace stumbled forward before turning back.

"No! I can't let you do this by yourself."

"He's not 'by himself,'" Mihawk sounded entirely disinterested as he continued to stare at Krieg, stifling a yawn and shifting his sword in his hand.

"Still, you…"

"If you're going to run, then run," Krieg had an evil grin on his face. "I'll even let you get away, but if you decide to stick around, you'll just end up dead like your friends here."

"Ace, go," Lucci set a hand on his shoulder and gave it a quick squeeze. "Let them know we're fine…"

"But…"

"Look, that boy is probably worried sick about me, and he's not any fun when he's suffering from overwhelming anxiety. Tell him and Sanji that it's fine," he repeated.

"I…"

"Ace, it's okay," Shanks appeared out of nowhere and placed himself in front of the young man. "We're more than capable of handling Krieg. Any one of us could take him on our own; there's no need for you to involve yourself in this. Get out and get everyone else out of here if you can find them."

"Let me…"

"Final warning," Lucci all but snarled at him, his dark eyes remarkably feral in the low warehouse lighting. Ace still looked reluctant, so Mihawk stepped in.

"Lucci, go talk to him. We'll be fine."

Lucci looked resigned, but he grabbed Ace's arm and herded him behind some supply crates. He kept his hands firm on Ace's arms, fingers digging in almost hard enough to bruise, as he forced Ace to meet his eyes. "Ace, I don't suppose you know the full extent of what CP9 does, but suffice to say I've had to sacrifice a lot of people in my day for the greater good. Most of them I don't allow myself to get close to because I know what the consequences are bound to be, and while it's sometimes hard, we get through it. I've made an exception for Sanji and the rest of you because of my…partner; because I care for him more than he'll ever know, and if Sanji died it would kill him. However, I won't pretend that's it, because I've come to consider all of you as being my responsibility as well, and if anything happens to any of you, I'll also consider that a personal blow against my job. And I'm being selfish now, but I never fail at my job, alright? Can you understand that?"

"You love him," Ace stifled a laugh. "You really love him."

"How do I answer that?" Lucci shook his head. "The boy is…"

"Call him by his name," Ace prompted. "C'mon, just do it."

"Fine. Kaku's special to me. I won't answer as to whether or not it's love, but he's also my responsibility, which is why I'm going to try extra hard not to get myself killed, because even if I'm not here to see it, knowing that I've caused him pain is enough to motivate me to be careful. Will you go?" Lucci abruptly brought the conversation back to the present, and Ace swallowed and nodded.

"I will. I trust you and the others, and…"

"Ace!"

"Zoro?" Ace turned as Zoro snuck behind the boxes, clapping him on the shoulder. Paulie slunk in after, nodding to Lucci.

"Guess you can't hide behind that bird of yours now, eh? You'll have to use your real voice," he looked smug.

"Time and a place, Paulie, and this isn't it," Lucci replied smoothly. "I want you to get out of here."

"Oh, no. You don't have any control of me," Paulie looked defiant. "Besides, Franky's still in here, and there's no way I'm letting anything happen to him."

"Then for me? As a friend?"

Paulie rolled his eyes but finally acquiesced. "Not for you, but I promise that as soon as I find that blue-haired freak, I'll high-tail it out of here. Good for you?"

"Perfect. Find Kalifa on your way, would you?"

"That shameless woman?" Paulie snorted.

"Yes."

"Fine. Anything else?" Paulie looked greatly unamused.

"Just keep yourself safe," Lucci nodded.

"Can do. Same goes for you," Paulie whispered, gripping Lucci's right forearm before slinking off.

"Ace? Where's Sanji?"

"Outside," Ace replied. "We sent all of them out."

"Good," Zoro breathed a sigh of relief. "What's going on?"

"Lucci, Shanks and Mihawk are going to take on Krieg."

"You're what?" Zoro turned to Lucci.

"We have to. It's the only way to end this."

"No; let us call the police. They can…"

"The police are not equipped to deal with the level of weapons Krieg possesses. Trust us, Zoro."

"You know I do," Zoro sighed again, but it was anything but relieved this time around. "So, what? We should just…"

There was a sound behind them that was unmistakeably several weapons discharging at once, and Lucci spun Zoro around and pushed him. "Go! Now!"

Zoro looked back once before complying, keeping his body low as he darted through the warehouse; Ace a silent figure at his side. They were relatively near the door so it didn't take long to break out into the fresh night air, and the first thing they heard was a visibly relieved, "Oh, thank God!" from nearby.

"Nami?" Zoro asked, straightening up and removing his bandana.

"You giant oaf!" she ran over and smacked him upside the head.

"Hey, what was that for, you witch?!" he groaned and rubbed his head as she placed her hands on her hips and glared at him.

"Sanji's worried sick and you go putting yourself in danger. Go talk to him," she shoved him toward the small group gathered there as Sanji pushed himself to his feet, obviously still in quite a bit of pain. "How are things?" she turned to Ace and asked quietly, and he shrugged.

"Good as they can be. I think we're going to be alright, Nami," he admitted, and she hugged him before taking his hand and leading him to the others.

Sanji and Zoro were, to nobody's surprise, keeping their distance from one another and merely exchanging rather cool glances. Nami shook her head. Boys. Of course everyone knew they were together, but it wasn't as if they were going to show it more than was necessary. "Come on, lads, show a little enthusiasm," she pushed Zoro toward the blonde cook, who stared at his shoes. "Oh, for goodness' sake, we all know you're a couple! Act like one!"

Sanji looked quickly at her before sighing and reaching out to grab Zoro's shirt with his good hand, hauling him in for a kiss, which the swordsman gladly reciprocated after only a few seconds. "Glad you're safe, Marimo," he murmured afterward as Zoro held him carefully, mindful of his arm.

"Glad you made it out alright," Zoro countered, letting his forehead rest against the older man's.

"They're something, aren't they?" Ace looked at them with a fond smile as Nami leant her head on his shoulder. "I'm surprised Luffy didn't come along," he mentioned casually as she groaned.

"Please, he tried. We had to lock him in the parlour," she laughed. "It was all Kohza and Pell and Chaka could do to keep him there, and they're pretty strong guys."

"Well, it's for the best," Ace conceded. "After all, Luffy doesn't play the waiting game all that well; this would drive him crazy."

"It's driving the rest of us crazy enough," Robin walked smoothly over. "Any sign of…"

"Sorry, Robin," Ace shook his head. "Paulie and Zoro were together, though, so Lucci sent Paulie off to look for him. He's fine," he added quickly. "Your fiancée can take care of himself."

"I know," she closed her eyes. "I think everyone's nerves are a little on-edge at the moment."

"Speaking of which…Kaku," Ace glanced at the agent, who looked up at him with evident fear in his wide eyes, "Lucci says to tell you that he'll be fine. He also kind of almost admitted to loving you, but don't tell him I told you that."

"Rob's not the type to ever admit that, Ace; I'm sure you realize that," Kaku said it completely seriously, but the smile that flashed quickly across his face belied his actual feelings. "And he'd better be alright, that's all I can say."

"What time is it?" Usopp asked suddenly, glancing up at the moon.

"Why?" Nami turned to him and blinked.

"Nothing, really, it's just…Chopper's falling asleep," he motioned to the boy who was sitting on the ground, his head drooping lower and lower.

"It's nearly 2 in the morning," Nami flipped open her phone and answered, stifling a yawn of her own. "And now that the adrenaline's worn off, I'm fading pretty quickly, too."

"Come on, then," Ace looped her arm around his shoulders and walked closer to the others, seating himself and letting her lean comfortably against him. "Least I can do for my future sister-in-law, isn't it?"

"You're sweet. Luffy would never do this," she smiled.

"You don't give him enough credit, Nami," Ace admonished her gently as she smiled.

"I give him far more credit than I like to let on, you know. Besides, it's fun to tease him," she settled herself closer to Ace. "You want to give Vivi a call? Let her know you're alright?"

"Probably not a bad idea," Ace conceded, and Nami dug her phone out of her purse and handed it to him.

"How can they even think of sleeping?" Sanji shivered from whatever nerves were still bothering him before plopping himself on the ground, resting one hand on his chin while his foot twitched rhythmically on the dirt. "I mean, how can they…"

"You'll fall asleep soon enough," Chopper opened one eye long enough to mutter. "I gave you a sedative along with the painkiller."

"You…Chopper, I need to be awake for this!"

"As a pre-med student, I think I know what I'm doing, Sanji. You're incredibly stressed at the moment, and worrying isn't going to help you heal faster. It'll be good for you to get some rest," his eyes slid shut again as he curled up next to Usopp, who gave Sanji a pointed look.

"Oh, fine," Sanji rolled his eyes, muttering something under his breath as Zoro chuckled. "Oi, it isn't funny. You go keep watch."

"Why?"

"Because you're not hurt. And because if all you're going to do is tease me…"

"I won't, Sanji, I'm sorry," Zoro sighed and plopped down next to the cook, letting Sanji lean against him.

"Chopper, would I be correct in assuming you gave Law and I some form of sedative as well?" Kaku asked, and Chopper briefly cracked an eye open to yawn and nod. "Just as well, I suppose."

"Are the painkillers working?" Chopper asked.

"Seem to be. Still hurts to move, but not as bad as it did," Kaku replied, shifting over to lean against Sanji's other side, and the blonde glanced at him before sighing and slinging his good arm around Kaku's shoulders, pulling him in close. "Thanks."

"Yeah. Law, care to join the party?" he asked dryly, and Law chuckled under his breath.

"I'm fine by myself, honestly," he replied.

"Aw, come on, don't be such a poor sport," Sanji raised his curled eyebrow expectantly, and Law stuck his hands in his pockets and sauntered over, a slight limp the only indicator that he had been injured.

"Only if it'll get you off my case," he warned, and Sanji nodded.

"Robin, if you want to sleep, you're welcome to do so," Iceburg said cordially, and she shook her head.

"No, I'd prefer to be awake. Any of us still in fighting shape should be ready. Isn't that right?" she turned to Gin with a smile, and he stared at the ground before nodding.

"Yeah. I mean, as far as Krieg's concerned, I'm a traitor anyway, so it's not as if I can sink any farther in his eyes. And I'd do anything for…" he glanced over toward Sanji before shrugging.

"He's lucky to have somebody like you," Robin assured him, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. "You've done everything you could have, Gin, and we all owe you a lot."

"Thank you. For trusting me," he elaborated. "I mean, I knew Sanji did, but I was worried the rest of you…"

"Nmaa, don't worry about it," Iceburg waved off his concern. "Just be ready in case something goes awry and we have to run in there."

Robin suddenly went very quiet, staring at the doorway, and her hand strayed close to the opening on her jacket.

"Robin?"

"Or in case something comes out," she whispered ominously before reaching inside her jacket and drawing out a small dagger, flicking it with the barest movement of her wrist as they heard a cut-off scream from the direction of the open doorway. "We've been fools to think nobody would find us out here, we had to have gone somewhere, and I'm betting they've got people watching to make sure no vehicles leave. If Krieg's busy, his minions will come out looking for us. We've got to guard the door," she drew out a handful of the sharp little knives before pacing toward the door, and Gin shook his head and picked up his tonfa, matching her walk to the door.

"Gin, how many men does Krieg have in there?"

"How many?" Gin thought about it for a moment. "Score and a half? Maybe?"

"So thirty, minus whomever they've already managed to fell," Ace clapped his phone shut and gently lay Nami down, taking off his jacket and making an impromptu pillow out of it. He pulled the aerosol can out of one of the pockets and a lighter from the other. "Zoro? You up for a little action?"

"Always," Zoro grinned at him. "You'll be okay?"

"Fine," Sanji elbowed him. "Go. Save the world and all that."

"Oi, no need to be sarcastic," Zoro kissed him as Sanji moved forward as much as he could, running his tongue along Zoro's lips until the younger man parted them. Zoro brought a hand up to tangle in Sanji's hair, holding him in place as the kiss grew more heated, and only the sound of Robin clearing her throat pulled them apart.

"Not that I don't appreciate the show, boys, but we've got more pressing concerns," she said sternly, although an obvious smile flickered around her lips. "Come on, Zoro."

"Right," he ran his hand through Sanji's golden hair before standing and drawing two of his katana. "Oi, cook, can you look after Wadou for me? These idiots aren't important enough to bring her out."

"I'll look after your little sword," Sanji rolled his eyes. "Now get going. And look after yourself."

"Don't worry. Nobody's getting through that door on my watch," Zoro promised, a demonic smile on his face as he joined the others. "Y'know, old man, maybe you should sit this one out," he said to Iceburg.

"You're going to regret that," Iceburg responded. "I may be older than you, but I'm still in remarkable shape."

"We'll see," was Zoro's response. "Besides, what's the plan? We can't kill them."

"You're right. Wound, disarm, whatever it takes, but no killing unless it's utter self-defence," Iceburg warned them. "The police are ready to come in here at a moment's notice, but I'd rather not involve them until this is all over and done with. I wish Paulie was here, at least then we'd have some rope to contain them with."

"We'll manage," Zoro said firmly. "We have to."

000

"And you have to wear pants if you're going to go running around getting into fights! Pants!"

"Oh, can it," Kalifa rolled her eyes, looking mightily unimpressed with Paulie's choice of topics. "Look, Paulie," she said softly, "we need to make for the door."

"But I promised them I'd find Franky," he protested.

"Alright, fine, we'll find the blue-haired lug, but then we need to get out. I know Lucci well enough to know that he's got something up his sleeve, and I'm betting that if we're still in the building when it happens, it isn't going to be pretty," she put a gloved hand on his shoulder and pushed up her glasses with her free one. "Franky can take care of himself, you realize."

"Yeah," Paulie admitted, twirling a rope through his fingers as Kalifa busied herself coiling her whip. "Well, shall we, then?"

"If you can bear to be seen in public with me," she winked, standing and offering him a hand.

"Hey, that's my job!"

"You should know by now that I hate being coddled," she responded. "Just accept it. Maybe if you let a woman treat you right you'll be less afraid of them."

"And you're that woman, are you?"

"No," she said simply. "Frankly, I'll be amazed if I can find a man that'll hold my attention for more than a night."

"Not even your illustrious team members?" he couldn't resist asking, and she looked mildly thoughtful.

"You really want the answer to that?"

"…Yes?" Paulie looked unsure now.

"I'll tell you, then," Kalifa leant back against the wall. "I've no doubt that Lucci would be an amazing lover, but I can also assure you that he would want to be in total control nearly all of the time, and while Kaku might be docile enough to let him, I certainly wouldn't be. And Kaku's a perfect gentleman, and I've no doubt he can get himself into some pretty amazing positions, but we're too close as friends to throw something like that between us. There's always a chance it could be a good thing, but if it ruins what we have…" she shrugged.

"Alright, too much information," Paulie was smiling, though, and he finally let Kalifa help him up. "So, should we get…"

The rest of his sentence was lost in a roar of wind and fire.

000

Sanji woke up abruptly, wondering when the sun had risen, before realizing that it hadn't and in fact the warehouse was burning.

"Cook, move!" Zoro lifted him up as best he could and half-ran, half-carried him across the street to the abandoned warehouse that Shanks and Mihawk had holed up in.

"What happened? What's going on?" Sanji asked as they stumbled across the lot.

"No idea, but the whole place just rocked and then those flames came out of nowhere. Whatever's going on, it isn't good," Zoro ushered him inside, where the rest of the group was standing in various stages of shock. "Go talk to Kaku," he urged. "He's pretty broken."

"Heavens, he would be," Sanji realized, giving Zoro a rather chaste kiss before moving to the agent, who was leaning against the wall, one hand covering his mouth and the other clutched around his abdomen. He looked like he was about to be sick, and Sanji couldn't really blame him. "Hey."

"Oh, God, Sanji," Kaku said brokenly, and Sanji gently eased him to sit on the floor, ignoring the twinge from his shoulder.

"I know," he tried to be reassuring and wouldn't let himself cry. He noticed Zoro talking to Law in a low voice, the swordsman's hand clamped on Law's shoulder, and Robin looked nearly shell-shocked, her blue eyes impossibly wide as she stared back to the ruined warehouse, seemingly unaware of Iceburg's attempts to break through to her.

Kaku clung to him, apparently beyond tears, although tiny gasping sobs came from his throat as he tried to get as close to Sanji as possible. Sanji knew that there was nothing he could say to make it better, and certainly giving anyone false hope was out of the question, but whatever sedative Chopper had given them had apparently worn off under the rush and panic of the moment and right now sleep was the farthest thing from his mind. As soon as Kaku was calm enough, he was going to go out there and look for the others.

He snorted quietly; here he was, promising himself not to give anybody false hope when that was all he was giving himself.

Although, he reflected grimly as he tightened his arms around Kaku, at the moment…hope was all they had.

Notes:

1. Wow, it's been forever. I've…had an interesting semester, and while it's been fun, I really feel like school is cutting into my creativity and hopefully I can get that regenerated over the holidays. I'm thinking only a couple of chapters left here, folks, so bear with me (and the next chapter should be out soon-ish. I hope).

2. Sorry about the cliffhanger, but I had to cut the chapter because it was getting long. Hope nobody's too angry with me!!

3. The song for this chapter can be found here if anyone wants to dl it: http://www(.)sendspace(.)com/file/wmi8ul.

4. Since I doubt I'll post before then (you never know, but hey) I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas or whichever holiday/festival/celebration you believe in, and a wonderful holiday season. :)

5. …Lemme know if you're still reading, k? Reviews warm the coldness that I feel because of the infernal amount of snow. :D