Faces

Since Zoro had a wounded man slung over one shoulder Fox deemed it best to enter her mother's teahouse through the back door. Well, the very back door of the tea house complex, as it wasn't really just one building. Said door was down in the edge of the roots holding up grove twenty two, on the end of a jetty and scant feet above the waterline. Fox banged on the door, opened it and dragged the swordsman inside, then shut it behind them. As she did so a young woman with pale orange hair stuck her head out of a window about a storey above their heads in the narrow but very high space.

"Calina?"

"No, it's Lisska," Fox said shortly, placing a hand on her gut-shot patient. "I've come to see mother but we happened to witness one of those damned goldfish shooting someone. He should survive, given proper care: is Kajiki in?"

"I'll get him." The woman vanished.

"Kajiki's mother's doctor," Fox explained as further down the now enclosed jetty a second door opened and another woman, this one with hair a bright and obnoxious shade of yellow, waved them over. "He'll be able to fix this guy up in no time."

"Marie…" the man moaned, sounding utterly heartbroken.

"Which noble was it?" the yellow-haired woman asked. Fox thought.

"White outer garments, green gloves, three circles down the left side of the chest: top one mint green within dark blue, lower two red within pink. Black hair, thick nose, stubble. Short. Whiny little voice and a runny nose."

"Sixth family; Sounds like Charloss," said another woman from the stairs as they walked into the second door. This one Fox recognised: Sango, whose deep pink hair and odd birthmarks made her very popular whenever she waited at tables. "He's a petty idiot. Has a dreadful memory though, so we might be able to get her away from him if we move quickly."

"Her names Marie and the goldfish wanted her for his latest wife," Fox offered. "You'll have to get the rest out of our patient though. Oh, and she's a nurse."

"Maybe we can offer her a job," Sango suggested. "Give him here, Roronoa; you go clean up."

Zoro handed the wounded man over to the pretty waitress and looked around for a bathroom.

"Is it still the third door from the top of the first fight?" Fox asked, taking her lover's hand and leading him deeper into the rambling building complex.

"Fourth door!" drifted up the stairs after them.

"Is this normal?" Zoro asked softly.

Fox thought about it. "For a place run by my mother? Yes, actually. She doesn't believe in following laws that exist solely to oppress those not in power."

Zoro's first thought on meeting Fox' mother Pearl was, they look almost nothing alike! It was simply the truth: Fox was slender and supple, though her bust was fairly generous, with pointed ears, pale skin, a rather square forehead, angular eyebrows and a very pointy nose. Her mother on the other hand had positively lavish curves, a much wider face, golden skin, a less severe nose, almost no eyebrows at all and rather less forehead. The only family resemblance that the swordsman could see was that they had exactly the same chin: a cleanly rounded curve at the end of the jaw rather than the sharp point more common on girls. The round chin enhanced Fox' resemblance to her father; on her mother it just looked pretty.

However as the older woman was easily seven feet tall and looked strong for all her softness Zoro had no intention of letting his guard down.

"All these years and this is who you bring home?" the blue-haired woman asked, her tone bland. She was wearing a long and very bright kimono, making it impossible for Zoro to verify the presence of fins rather than feet. "Whatever happened to that Ace boy Spitfire said was making eyes at you?"

"Ace is my friend, Mother, not my boyfriend," Fox said in the patient tones of someone who has already said this more times than they care to remember, "and he's in jail. I wrote to you about it."

"Oh I know that! I'm just wondering why you never picked him to settle down with. Spitfire said he was crazy about you."

"Spitfire was seeing things," Fox countered dryly. "Ace has enough issues as it is without adding my father to them. Zoro here on the other hand wants to be the world's greatest swordsman, so Mihawk is pretty much his only issue."

Pearl circled Zoro, who felt like he was being probed for weaknesses. Unfortunately he wasn't sure what qualified as a weakness to this oddly intimidating woman.

"Is he at least treating you properly?" the blue-haired woman finally sighed, ending her examination and turning to look at her daughter. Fox said nothing, but her lazy and extremely satisfied smile informed Zoro of all the subtext that question had held and her answer to it.

"Well that's something," Pearl muttered. "Well, I can see you're stuck with him now, so at least he's young enough to train."

Zoro did not comment: Fox' emotions right now were broadcasting a sense of 'the sooner it's over the sooner we can escape'; he had never won a verbal fight against Nami and this woman was infinitely more skilled in that area.

"But why a swordsman, sweetheart? You saw how badly it turned out for your father and me!"

Fox smiled. "I can't help it mother; swordsman just charm me. I've never before liked a swordsman as much as I do Zoro, though, so I think it will work out."

"At least your idiot father finally promised to ask you before trying to kill any more of your conquests," the large woman muttered darkly. "What he thought he was doing I have no idea; I've half a mind to blame him when he comes to complain about you doing this to you both."

"It has nothing to do with that!" Fox protested hotly. "Zoro was dying and I didn't want him to!"

"Death is part of life, Lisska sweetheart," Pearl said gently.

"I know! Mother, I know. But I wanted to be selfish for once. Is it wrong for me to want someone for myself?" Zoro reached out and wrapped his arms around his lover, glaring at the blue-haired woman who had upset her.

"Oh! So protective," Pearl cooed. "Well, you've made your choice now Lisska; try not to regret it. You do realise however that you are not getting out of a proper wedding?"

"Mother!" Fox wailed, one hand gripping Zoro's bicep warningly. "Zoro's got a bounty on his head! You can't expect a load of pirates from all over the Grand Line to be willing to share a building with a bunch of your Marine customers, can you? Besides, our captain is chasing his dream and we want to go with him."

"Then as soon as he's accomplished it I expect you both back here, with him, for a proper wedding," Pearl said firmly. "Or if that isn't possible, enough notice so I can set up a proper feast and invite everyone."

"Fine; Luffy deserves a feast to celebrate becoming Pirate King when he gets to the top anyway," Fox grumbled.

"I would have expected you both to want the wedding to be sooner rather than later," the navy-haired woman added musingly, "but to each their own, I suppose."

"Why?" Zoro asked. Pearl raised an eyebrow at him.

"You mean to say you haven't noticed?"

"Noticed what, mother?" Fox sighed. Pearl stared.

"You really haven't noticed. Lisska darling, you're pregnant."

"What?!"

Because in real life, things go wrong.