A/N: This would have totally been up yesterday, but with the long one-shot done for Luffy's birthday, I only managed to write half of it last night. But I finished it today, and now I'm off to go and start writing the next chapter for Down Under :P

I enjoyed writing this chapter. I love any surge of emotion, really. :P And believe me, this has a lot of emotion in it.

And it's friday~~~~

That fact alone makes me happy :)

Well, like with every other chapter and story - I hope you enjoy :)

Chapter 2

I didn't know where to look. They were all staring at me, dumbfounded. Astonished. Astounded. Flabbergasted. Whichever word chosen, it didn't ease the suddenly tense atmosphere after telling them that I was, indeed, pregnant. Chopper even confirmed it for all of them. He, Nami and Zoro were the only ones that didn't have their jaws on the floor. Nami held my one hand, while Zoro held the other. My knuckled were white –that was how tightly I was clutching to their support. The last time I had felt like this was at Enies Lobby. No. This was similar, but not the same.

"Congratulations," Franky finally managed to get out of his mouth.

"Yohoho! This is wonderful!" Brooke exclaimed. "This calls for a party!"

"No alcohol for the pregnant though," Harumi smiled warmly at me from Nami's other side. Nami, too, was smiling now. She let out a breath –relieved.

"Pregnant," Usopp murmured. "If it's a boy, name it after me!"

"No." Everybody said in unison.

"It's Marimo's?" Sanji verified.

"Well, it surely isn't yours," Nami snorted.

Sanji opened his mouth, and then shut it. He bowed his head for a moment, then looked up at me and said, "Well, I guess I'll have to make sure you have a balanced nutrition."

"Thank you, Sanji," I said tears welling up in my eyes. Zoro gave my hand a gentle squeeze. I wondered if he or Nami could feel their fingers. I tried to loosen my grip, but the person whose opinion mattered most on this ship still hadn't said a single word. Not that I thought he'd banish me or anything.

Nami noticed my angst, and leaned across the table to touch Luffy's arm. "Luffy?"

"Hmm?" he looked up and around at the table. "Sorry."

"Sorry?" she asked.

"I was thinking –" everyone gasped "–about how much this ship will change if there's a baby aboard."

My grip tightened.

"Could you imagine all the fun we could have?" Luffy laughed suddenly. "I've never held a baby before. Nami we should –"

"Robin, don't cry," Harumi said, reaching around Nami to comfort me.

"I'm… I'm sorry," I chortled. I took a deep shaky breath of air and wiped my eyes. "It must be the unbalanced hormones. I'm just so happy right now. So relieved."

"What? Did you think we were going to throw you overboard?" Franky laughed. "We'd never do that, Robin. We all love you –"

"Oi!" Zoro interrupted.

"–as friends, and care for you dearly, right guys?"

"Mm," everybody agreed.

"Brooke's right, we should celebrate," Luffy said, standing up abruptly, scaring Harumi. He apologized to her out of reflex, "Sorry. Sanji! Food! Brooke! Music! Nami! Kiss!"

Everybody laughed, except for Nami who smacked him over the head. I laughed, swiping away the tears once more. It was so weird. Just yesterday I was able to keep a calm head. And now… now I was a mess.

I took another calming breath, releasing Nami's hand and bringing Zoro's to my lips, kissing it gently as I looked at him. I held it to my cheek, feeding off the warmth.

"We'll start doing weekly checkups," Chopper told me. "To make sure the baby's developing properly.

"I hope it's a girl," Harumi said.

"No, it has to be a boy," Nami said. "When Luffy and I have a girl, I want them to fall in love."

"Eh? Nami's pregnant too?" Chopper asked.

"No!" Nami brought her fist down on his head.

"Shishishi."

"Hahaha,"

"Yohoho!"

The atmosphere settled into a peaceful one. I eased up, and leaned into Zoro. The best feeling in the world was relief; that moment when weights were lifted off shoulders and chest; that moment where you didn't feel constricted and could breathe again.

I smiled, closing my eyes. When I opened them, I was looking down at my lap. I inhaled. I exhaled.

Then I ran out of the room to throw up over the railing.

"She's still sleeping?"

"Surprising, isn't it? I think this is the first time I've ever seen her sleep to late." That last voice was definitely Nami's. Which meant the first voice was Harumi's. "Not like it's a big surprise. All of us were up late into the night."

Wait… late?

I forced my eyes open and looked at the clock on the wall. Ten in the morning. I sat up as Nami closed the door behind the two of them, unaware that I was now awake. Usually I was up hours ago. But even having slept this late, I found myself exhausted, and my back ached like I had slept in an awkward position. Crossing my arms in front of me, I produced extra hands to help me stretch out my back, cracking it gently and relieving me of the subtle pain. Then I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and got up. I changed, used the washroom and then exited onto the deck.

Zoro paused on the stairs momentarily before continuing his climb up to me. "I was just coming to check up on you. Feeling alright?"

"Just a little more tired that usual," I told him. He kissed the side of my head, then began walking me down the stairs.

"You could've slept a little longer," he told me.

Across the ship, Sanji walked out of the kitchen and quickly spotted us –which I supposed was only natural, since we stood straight across from him. He opened his mouth to shout at Zoro –probably upset with how close Zoro stood to me –but Nami and Harumi grabbed both of his arms and dragged him back into the kitchen.

"I'm fine," I told Zoro, squeezing his hands gently. "Thank you."

"Are you hungry?" he asked, leading me back down the stairs.

"Starving," I admitted.

"That's natural," he settled his hand on my back, rubbing small circles there.

"Because I'm pregnant or because I missed breakfast?" I asked, looking at him.

"Both," he cracked a small grin, his grip tightening around mine. When I walked into the dining hall, Sanji was setting out my plate, reheated and steaming. It looked delicious. Zoro sat across from me, watching as I picked up the fork and began poking around at the dish.

After a moment, Sanji threw down his cooking utensil into the sink and strode out the door. Harumi and Nami exchanged a look, and Harumi followed him out. Out of all the guys, she had warmed up to him the most –which was understandable, because Sanji would never hit a girl. And Harumi had witnessed that that despite being the only girl he would raise his voice at, if he wouldn't touch an enemy that was a girl, surely he would hit an ally –and even more so, a nakama.

"I thought you liked carrots," Zoro said after a moment, watching as I spat the orange vegetable into a napkin.

"I do," I said, despite pushing them to the side of the plate.

"So why'd you spit it out?"

"The baby's going to be a picky eater," Nami said, coming over and scooping the carrots up into another plate. She set them in front of Zoro and sat down.

"I'll make him eat his vegetables," Zoro muttered.

"Or her," I smiled.

Nami threw back her head and laughed, "You'll be a great father, Zoro."

I watched as his ears went red, chuckling softly.

The door opened, Franky entered.

"Zoro, Nami, can I speak to you?"

I started to get up, but Franky waved me down, "You can finish eating, Robin. You need your nutrition, right? This will only take a moment."

Nami exchanged a look with me as she got up.

"It's fine," I said, picking up my fork once more. "Go on. I'll be here when you get back."

I said that, but I put an eye on Nami's back until they went to the front of the ship where everyone else was standing. Using the eye, I found a hidden area to place an ear and another eye, where I could get a bird's visual of what was happening on deck. And with that I listened into the conversation.

"It's dangerous," Franky said. I let the fork slide out of my hands, gently falling onto the table, but it hit the edge and fell to the floor. I reached down to grab it. "Not only her being pregnant, but after she has the baby, too."

"What are you talking about?" Zoro growled.

"I don't think Robin should stay on the ship while she's pregnant."

"I'll protect her," Zoro said, speaking roughly.

"There are instances when we can't protect everyone as it is –if we could all protect each other, none of us would ever get hurt."

"We get hurt because we don't try to protect each other –we know everyone can handle themselves and would feel useless if they couldn't fight and win their own battles," Zoro said. I covered my mouth with my hand, feeling sick.

"Shouldn't we be discussing this with Robin here?" Nami clenched her fist. Harumi was just nodding.

"We need to face her with a decision that isn't faltering," Franky said.

"I agree," Usopp said, looking down. "It's dangerous enough as it is. I mean, it wasn't so long ago that the Marine's caught up to us."

"I'll protect her," Zoro said firmly.

"Zoro, you can't protect her all the time –you're always running off during battle. How many times have you left Nami to fend for herself in the midst of a fight?" Franky asked.

"That's not relevant," Nami interjected.

"I. Will. Protect. Her." Zoro said, grabbing the front of Franky's shirt. Harumi took a step back.

"I'm with Franky on this one," Sanji said, pushing off from the railing and approaching the two. "I love Robin-chwan, and she belongs on Thousand Sunny with us, but this we're in the final stretch of the Grand Line. It's not right for her to be with us."

"It's dangerous!" Franky said. I closed my eyes, not liking what I was hearing. I should really give up eavesdropping.

"Too dangerous!" Usopp agreed.

"If she gets injured, I'll make her better!" Chopper said.

"I'll protect her so she doesn't get hurt in the first place," Zoro threw Franky back with one hand. Franky's body produced extra arms, grabbing something to keep from going through the railing.

"Zoro, calm down," Brooke said, stepping forward.

"Zoro, stop, Robin wouldn't want you to act this way," Nami said, placing her hand on his arm.

He pulled his arm away. "If Robin you guys make Robin leave, then I'm leaving with her."

Nami squared her shoulders, "Me too."

"Zoro, we –"

"Nami-swan, don't –"

"She has her dreams to follow," Zoro said, clenching his fist. If he didn't know about the ship's ability to have a soul, I was sure he would punch the mast or something just as violent. "And one of her dreams is to live on this ship with all of us until all of our dreams come true."

Silence.

"Luffy, say something," Nami said, turning to him.

"All this thinking is making my head hurt," Luffy leaned forward, scratching his head. "I don't want everyone to split up…" he frowned deeply. "But being in the Grand Line will cause a lot of problems… But I don't want to reach the end of the Grand Line without any of you."

"So it's settled, Robin's staying," Zoro said, crossing his arms.

"But it's dangerous!" Sanji and Franky shouted, making Harumi flinch and stumble back.

Probably without realizing what he was doing, Zoro put a hand out to steady her, then let go and grabbed Sanji by the shoulder, "Whose side are you on? If you loved her like you always say you do, you'd want her not to give up her dream!"

"It's because I love her that I want her to be safe!" Sanji growled back at him, throwing his hand back. "Do you want her to risk her life –and the child's?"

I stood up and walked to the door. Each footstep felt heavier than the last. Did I really want to face them all? I knew what they were saying. I knew it. They were being protective of me. They were trying to decide what was for the better. But it hurt. And I wanted them to be able to say all these things to my face.

I pulled the door open silently, stepping out into the cool air and going to the stairs. Not one of them realized I was approaching.

"Robin's not leaving," Luffy said, getting off the step leading up to the figurehead and stepping forward. Nami closed her eyes, let out a breath, and smiled up at him. I reached the bottom of the steps, but I didn't stop there. I kept walking. I couldn't see them from this angle. Luffy continued, "We'll leave the Grand Line if it gets too dangerous, but Robin's staying with us."

"But what about after she has the baby?" Franky asked. "Being pregnant and running around will be bad enough, but it'll be even harder with a child."

"We've had children on board before," Zoro muttered. I reached the stair that led up to the second deck.

"Children have the tendency to wander," Sanji nodded.

"Do you want us to just abandon our child somewhere?" Zoro lifted Sanji into the air.

"I was raised away from my dad and mom," Luffy interjected.

"You don't even know your father," Zoro snapped at him.

"I know who my father is."

"But do you know him the same way you know your grandfather?"

Luffy grew silent.

"I don't want my kid to not look at Robin and me without seeing us as real parents. And when that child is born, I don't want to miss a single day that he grows. And I know Robin doesn't want that child to feel the way she did when she was younger."

I gripped the rail and stumbled. I moved so that I was sitting on one of the steps, and bit down on my hand to suppress a sob. It didn't matter. Zoro knew I was there now. He gave them all a harsh stare before turning and walking towards me. Nami was the first to catch on, looking up and immediately spotting the ear. I wished I could hide, but at the same time I wanted Zoro's arms around me. I stood up, and met him halfway up the second set of stairs, and he wrapped his arms around me. I buried my face in his chest.

"Robin –" Franky began. Despite yesterday, I think they were all surprised to see me so emotional.

"Unless you're apologizing, don't say anything," Nami told him firmly.

"Robin," Luffy said, stepping forward. I peered over the top of Zoro's shoulder. Everyone parted to let him through. "You're staying, right?"

"Of course she's staying," Zoro muttered, embracing me tighter.

Luffy ignored him. "Robin, you're staying, right?"

"Can I?"

"It's your choice," Luffy said, meeting my gaze across the distance, "Though I don't want you to leave."

I laughed, tears flowing wildly down my cheeks and onto Zoro's shirt, where they made a wet stain that slowly grew bigger.

"You're staying, right?"

I paused a moment before nodding.

"Then it's settled," Luffy looked at everyone. "She's staying."

Unable to say anything against the captain's decision, everyone just silently nodded.

Nami followed Luffy as he walked towards me. His serious face gave way to a grin.

"Shishishi –besides, it's pointless to reach our goals when everyone isn't there to share our joy. A year from now, five years from now, ten years from now –no matter how long it takes, I will become Pirate King." Nami smiled widely behind him.

I smiled –the action awkward with the stiffness of my tear-covered face. Zoro kissed my forehead, rubbing my back gently.

"Thank you."