A/N: Hello everyone! ZareEraz here! Happy New Year! I'm back with another chapter and hope that you enjoy this one! I had a lot of positive reactions to the last chapter and thank all of you for your support! Happy Reading! :3

Chapter Two: Meanderings and Meetings

"WHAT!?" Dozens of heads on the Red Force snapped up at Shanks' and Benn's shout and then dozens of eyes widened as the normally suave Emperor of the Sea and his first mate fell from the crow's nest and landed in a heap on the deck.

"Captain! Benn!" Several crew members ran over, completely startled by this uncharacteristic behavior. The two men were physically fine but the looks on their faces were ones of shock. The snail in Shanks' hand was asking what that loud crash had been in Buggy's voice. Lucky Roux and Yasopp were coming up right behind those who had already gathered, watching eagerly as their captain made a fool of himself, but then their expressions turned from mirth to shock when Shanks asked his girlfriend to repeat what she'd said for a third time.

The snail rolled his eyes and sighed, "Shanks, you're an idiot. I said I'm pregnant."

"Say that again," Yasopp demanded, his brain also grinding to a stop and not grasping what had just come out of her mouth.

Buggy instantly snapped back, all of her jitters long gone as her boyfriend and his crew got on her nerves. "I said I'm pregnant, dumbasses! Aren't any of you listening?!"

Shanks' eyes lit up and the biggest smile split his face. He leaped to his feet with the snail and shouted, "I'm going to be a dad!?"

"Yes! I've said it a million times at this point!" And while Shanks started jumping around like a child, the whole crew froze, their minds clicking the two statements into place over the course of several seconds. And then their brains exploded.

"WHAT?!"

Shanks just laughed, bubbling over with joy and too excited to keep it in. "I'm gonna be a dad! Oh my god, I can't believe it!" he shouted as he took a lap or two around the deck with the snail still in his arm.

The man had previously thought that he couldn't have been happier when Buggy said she loved him back, but this news was completely drowning out all of his other happinesses. It was so hard to even describe the way he was feeling – completely electrified might be the way to say it but even that wasn't quite right – and he just couldn't stay still! He'd thought that he couldn't love anything more in his life but the man felt like his heart was expanding exponentially, unable to be contained by his chest. His entire being felt so light and his heart felt like it was overflowing with the love he had for his child and the woman who he adored more than anything. He stopped running around for a moment and whispered, "We're having a baby…oh my god." His voice was full of awe and the overwhelming feeling of love and excitement washed over him again. "Oh my god! Oh my god!"

"Good god, he's gone off the deep end," the snail snarked in Buggy's voice; she still hadn't hung up the line.

"At least his reaction was better than yours," the snail quipped back in Alvida's voice.

"I thought you'd gotten out of my room!" Buggy exclaimed, surprised by her friend's reappearance.

"I escaped back into here," the other woman replied. "It's a mad house out there with everyone excited for the baby." Suddenly reminded that he also had an audience, Shanks took a look around and found that his own crew was teetering between excitement and disbelief – Benn was also still sitting on the floor, quietly stunned. But the bubble of quiet was broken when Yasopp opened his mouth.

"Get over here, papa bear!" The sniper jumped on Shanks' back and hugged him tightly. The redhead stumbled, trying to keep a hold of the Transponder Snail while his friend started ribbing him. "Congratulations! Though, I'm not surprised at all considering that you and Buggy were going at it like rabbits!" He laughed heartily and Lucky Roux joined in.

"Congratulations, Boss!" he chuckled. "I have to agree with Yasopp on this one; the two of you were so inseparable that it's not surprising that you got her pregnant! On the other hand, I'm surprised that it didn't happen sooner!"

"I can hear all of this, assholes," Buggy snarked from the snail. "And I have several very unflattering things I could say about you related to children, Yasopp, but I'm not going to ruin this moment!"

"Buggy, I've seen how you operate and 'unflattering' is precisely the way that I'd describe your behavior!" the sniper shot back.

"Why you-!" But before Buggy could say more, her door was attacked again and chaos ensued on the other end of the line. Yasopp and Lucky Roux just laughed and kept teasing the couple when Buggy eventually came back.

Benn eventually snapped out of the daze he was in and got to his feet. He walked over to Shanks and dragged Yasopp from his back, shoving him away before he wrapped his arm around the redhead's shoulders. "Congratulations, Captain, and to you too, Buggy!" He smiled widely and Shanks and the snail smiled back. "Just ignore Yasopp – he can be an ass."

"I am fully away of that and will also do just that!" the bluenette said. "And thank you for acknowledging me, finally," Buggy said, her voice sickly sweet. "Since I am the one who's actually pregnant."

"Geez, Buggy, give us a break!" Yasopp complained, rubbing his shoulder from where Benn shoved him into a wall. Lucky Roux was chuckling at him now and trying to hide it. "Shanks is the one who's here, not you!"

"But I'm more important right now! I'm the one who's going to be the mother!"

"Oh my god! That's so cute!" Shanks gushed, smiling like an idiot and completely ignoring Buggy's huge ego. "She's going to be a momma!"

Lucky Roux bent down to whisper in Yasopp's ear. "I think we just lost him."

Yasopp whispered back, "I think you're right. But I can understand how he's feeling." The sniper was a father himself and while he hadn't seen his son in a long time, he was still proud to be a father. Even thinking about it now and seeing just how excited Shanks was getting about his own child made the man's heart swell, though he'd never let Buggy know while she was still on the line – she'd torment him to no end.

And speaking of Buggy, she was snapping, "Shanks! Don't be so sappy or I'll – " and then she stopped, the snail's face screwing up and turning a little green. "Excuse me for a second!" The woman ran off and the Transponder Snail imitated her footsteps until nothing could be heard. The executives of the Red Hair crew waited for something to happen, Shanks being simultaneously worried and completely distracted by thinking about the baby at the same time.

Several moments passed before someone picked up the receiver again, but it was not Buggy on the line. "So, how are we all doing?" Alvida's smooth and sultry voice came through the snail, the creature's mouth quirking up in a smirk.

"So good!" Shanks responded still dazzled by Buggy's announcement.

"Well, that's good to hear. I'm so happy that she finally told you," the woman remarked, starting her rant. "I've been telling her for weeks that you needed to know, but no, she wanted to confirm everything first and let me deal with running the crew and being her shoulder to complain on."

"Don't you me 'cry on?'" Lucky Roux asked.

"Oh, she didn't really cry all that much – well, except that one time she had a panic attack worrying about everything…and that other time when all she wanted to do was sleep but kept throwing up – and she's doing that right now! But anyway, let me tell you that things have been a mess over here and I hope you know how much I've had to do for your idiot girlfriend, Red Hair!"

Said Red Hair was about to thank Alvida for her assistance (even though he knew that Alvida was also probably helping cause the trouble) when Buggy came back on the line. "What the hell are you doing on my call?! Get out!"

"Is that any way to treat the one who's been looking after you all this time and taking care of the crew?!"

"I know for a fact that you've been enjoying being in charge again, so don't give me that!"

"Buggy, Buggy, you're morning sickness has made you an ungrateful grouch!"

"Get that mace out of my face!"

"I will once you put down your knives!"

"Ladies!" The snail suddenly stopped arguing with itself when Benn interrupted their little tiff. "Why don't we let the lovebirds have a moment to themselves to discuss things, hm? I think that it's a good idea." The men could almost feel the women looking each other up and down and coming to a truce.

"That's a good idea," they agreed. Shanks smiled, proud that only Benn could've de-escalated a fight hundreds of miles away through a snail with so little bloodshed.

"Alright, let's get to it then." The first mate steered his captain towards his room and heard Buggy doing the same with Alvida, only in reverse. As he was closing Shanks' door, Benn reassured him that he'd help the crew pick their jaws up off the deck and get back to work before shutting the door.

Once alone, Shanks walked toward his bed, still grinning like an idiot. "Buggy, you have to tell me everything that's been going on!" he insisted, sitting down cross-legged and placing the snail in front of him.

Having gotten Alvida out of her room once again, the bluenette sighed and replied, "There's not a whole lot to tell yet other than I've been experiencing the joys of morning sickness and exhaustion." The snail's face said it all as she dropped her "show face" and let Shanks see just how fatigued she was. "It should go away in a few weeks at the most – maybe not the exhaustion, but the morning sickness, or so I've been told – but until then, I'll just have to deal with it."

The man frowned, worry in his eyes, and knew that the snail on her end was showing the same face. "I'm sorry I haven't been there, love bug," he apologized. He felt a little guilty that she'd been suffering alone, but at the same time gave himself a break since he'd only just found out she was pregnant.

"Don't worry too much about it," she said with a soft smile. "I thought I was actually sick for quite some time and I only just had the pregnancy confirmed today." The snail blinked a few times as Buggy thought about something. "Oh! I forgot to tell you that Crocus is here. He's going to be my doctor."

"Crocus?! He's there with you? That's great!" Shanks instantly felt a huge weight lift off of his shoulders. Buggy would be well taken care of if Crocus was with her and he had full faith in the old doctor – he was also excited to be able to see him again after all these years!

"Yeah and he's already riding my ass about taking care of myself and I'm sure he's already cooking up all kinds of nasty mixtures to feed me! " The face the snail made and Buggy's dramatization sent the man into a laughing fit and she snapped at him to shut up while he wiped tears away.

"You sound just like a kid again!" he chortled.

"And you're still making fun of me like we're kids!" she huffed back. "You know how nasty some of the stuff he makes can be!" Shanks repressed a shiver, remembering a cough remedy Crocus had made for him once – it was so bitter that he'd insisted on getting shots like Captain Roger from then on for any medication or remedy.

"Yeah, yeah, but he just wants to make sure you're healthy," he cajoled, "And that's what I want for you too. I still can't believe it…we're going to have a baby! To be parents! I don't think it's sunk in yet."

"I was really worried for a long time," Buggy started, the snail taking on a more pensive look. "I didn't know how to feel…I didn't feel ready enough or responsible enough to be a good parent. I didn't even know if I want to be a mother! I'll probably suck at it," she chuckled dryly. Before Shanks could refute her statement, the woman continued on. "But I thought to myself, 'If Captain Roger and Rayleigh could somehow make it work with the two of us then maybe I could at least do what they did.' And now that I know you're happy about it – and not completely pissed that things went a little sideways – I feel better about it."

Shanks' chest warmed. He was feeling much of the same way now – happy but worried, excited but nervous – how was he going to be a good father when he wasn't expecting anything like this to happen? And how was it going to work with them not living together and possibly not even having the opportunity to do so? He didn't know, but since Buggy was being completely honest with him, he was going to do the same with her. "I'm not saying I'm not nervous as well, but Buggs, I'm going to do my best to do whatever needs doing, for you and our little one. I promise that you're never going to be doing this alone, okay?"

Tears sprang to the Transponder Snail's eyes and its huge eyes watered with Buggy's emotions. "O-okay…!" she wailed and the man chuckled.

"You know, I can't tell if that's because you're pregnant or if that's just your regular emotions," he lightly teased.

Buggy kept crying, her relief evident. "I-it's b-both!" She looked so pathetic that Shanks laughed again.

"I wish I could hug you right now and wipe away your tears."

"I-I'd like t-that!" she blubbered.

"And run my fingers through your hair and kiss that adorable nose of yours."

"Did you say my nose was 'deplorable?'" she whined more than snapped.

"If you weren't crying so hard you would've heard 'adorable' and not 'deplorable,' silly."

"S-shut up!" she stuttered, attempting to stop crying but sniffing loudly.

"That's my Buggs," he smiled, his hand itching to touch her. "I'm going to come to you, okay? And we'll figure things out."

"Okay, I'd like that." She paused. "It's so odd because I thought I wouldn't be seeing you for a long time."

"Two months is a long time, Buggy," he argued. "It's been agony to be away from you."

"Big baby."

"Hey, Miss I-Started-Calling-Every-Night, you have no place to talk."

"Shut up or I'm going to have to call you out on your excessive drinking and you won't like me if I do that!"

Immediately derailed from the half-banter half-argument, Shanks frantically asked, "You stopped drinking, right?!"

Buggy groaned dramatically and the snail tipped its eyes to the side like he was languishing. "Yes, and if I hadn't Crocus would've put me in a headlock until I did. And for the record, I hate the smell of alcohol right now and I freaking love tomatoes."

"You love tomatoes?!" the man asked incredulously. "Wow, pregnancy is magic."

"Shut up or I'm going to break your kneecaps when you get here!"

Derailing the conversation again Shanks asked, "Where exactly is 'here' by the way?"

"Quit changing the subject!" she exclaimed. "Also, I have no clue; we're still at sea looking for an island."

"Oh great, that's going to make getting to you a little more complicated."

"Why? You have my Vivre Card."

"Yes, but what if you're sailing away from where I am? It's going to take longer to find you."

"Oh, you have a point."

"I'll find you no matter what," he promised, "Even if you're sailing away from me like a dumbass." That set Buggy off again until she worked herself to the point where she needed to step away again (to throw up Shanks presumed) but he was so happy that he and Buggy were going to have a baby that he didn't mind listening to her rant and just smiled with, as Buggy put it, "that dumb, dopey look on your face." He also couldn't have been any happier when, later that night, he was standing at the helm and watching as his ship follow the direction of a very special Vivre Card, taking him back to his beloved.

XXX

When Buggy first saw the island she knew that this one was going to be her home. It was a beautiful green island with tall mountains and white, sandy beaches and palm trees dotted the shore. The trees eventually gathered into vibrant forests further inland, and Buggy's eyes lit up seeing how wonderful it looked. The morning sun made the waters sparkle and the sand shimmer with enticing heat. She fingered the lock of red hair she kept on her at all times and whispered, "Shanks, I've found it." She then placed her hand on her belly, which wasn't quite showing yet (but definitely made her pants feel tight), and said, "We're home, baby," with a soft smile.

Then her softness disappeared as she hollered, "Pull ashore!" and the crew scattered into the controlled chaos of finding a place to dock the ship. Buggy trusted her crew not to screw up and just watched the shore of the island get close and closer, her heart pounding in excitement. The closer they got, the more beautiful it was. She couldn't see any kind of settlement from where they were but that didn't mean that people didn't already live on the island.

"I'll have to send them to check the rest of the island," she muttered, still fingering the lock of red hair. "I'd hate to have to take over the island instead of just establishing myself here, but what the hell." She mused over the potential issue of a hostile takeover while her crew worked and was snapped out of her thoughts when the ship came to rest near the shore. The anchor was dropped and Buggy, in her excitement, detached her feet at the ankles and floated over the rail and toward the island. She zoomed over to the white beaches and dropped down to the sand, hovering just a few inches off of the ground. She instantly regretted moving so quickly.

"Shit, shouldn't have done that," she groaned, feeling her stomach heave. The morning sickness hadn't been as bad recently, but it was still there when she did something stupid, as she'd just done. Determined not to throw up the first time she figuratively set foot on her island, the bluenette took a few calming breaths and listened to the sea waves lap at the shore.

When her stomach calmed down, she floated aimlessly around the beach, picking up the sounds of her crew disembarking into the rowboats and coming after her but ignoring them. I should've put someone in charge of bringing my feet to me; I have enough people to do the dirty work for me. At that thought, Buggy felt a light bulb go off in her head and was engulfed by a crazy idea. She got excited and started to bounce around, but then thought better of it when her stomach flipped. She swallowed down her nausea and prayed that she wouldn't throw up. The woman's prayer was interrupted when she heard her name being chorused by the approaching boats.

"Buggy! Buggy! You left your damn feet lying around!" Alvida shouted, pointing to Galdino who was holding said feet up in the air as they were rowed toward shore.

The second they were close enough to splash out on the beach, another voice rose above all the other clamoring voices.

"Oi, Buggy!" Crocus came hurrying after the woman, holding some pills and a glass of water. "You forgot to take your vitamins!"

Buggy rolled her eyes. "Oh, shove it old man!" she grumbled. "I wanted to see the island!"

"You can see the island after you've taken your vitamins!" He chased after her with the speed of a younger man while she floated just out of his reach, tempting her stomach to roil to keep away from him. When Galdino plonked her feet on the ground, they too joined the chase and got underfoot. "Get back here, you little brat!"

"Leave me alone, you old fart!" She did her best, but no matter how fast Buggy was, Crocus still managed to grab her and nearly force the pills down her throat.

"You should just do as you're told and this would be a lot easier on both of us!" he huffed, finally letting the unruly woman go after she'd swallowed. He stretched, getting a pesky kink out of his back, and sighed, "I'm getting too old to run around after you."

"Then why did you do it!?" she wailed. But as soon as she started her tantrum, it stopped. Buggy slumped onto the sand, practically melting, and sleepily blinked her eyes. "I'm tired…"

Alvida, Galdino, and Crocus rolled their eyes at her. "Now why couldn't she have done that two minutes earlier," the doctor grumbled. "Hey! Can we get some shade over here?" he barked at a couple of Buggy pirates and they gleefully ran over with what was going to be Alvida's couch set up and a huge shade umbrella.

The woman ordered them to set the space up for Buggy and then turned to her partner and huffed, "You're going to owe me one, mama bear; I was supposed to sit there."

"Yeah…yeah…" the bluenette yawned, trying to slink over to the couch that was being set on a grassy area beyond the beach. Buggy, remembering that she could fly, detached her feet again and floated vaguely in the direction of her napping place. When she made it there, her body flopped down on the cushions while her feet wandered sleepily off. Galdino ran after them and brought them back to her once again so they wouldn't get lost.

She gave a mumble that he took as thanks and then made another mumble that had the words "check," "island," and "out" in them, but not necessarily in that order, along with some more sluggish gibberish. "I'll have someone check out the rest of the island, okay? Then you'll owe me a favor too." There was a grunt and then Buggy was completely asleep, snoring softly in the shade. The wax man and smooth woman shook their heads at her and began planning how they were going to make her pay them back at least twice what they'd done for her.

Galdino organized a group of the quieter underlings and set them on a mission to scout out the rest of the island while Alvida took charge of ordering a camp to be made near the ship. Crocus, ever the opportunist, sat down in a lounge chair the next time one was brought on shore, snapping open a newspaper and catching up on his reading. He looked over at the sleeping Buggy and smiled at how cute her sleeping face still looked, even now that she was decades older, before going back to his paper. He was able to read in peace for about twenty minutes before Alvida found him lounging and they got into a fight that was equally sassy on both ends, with Buggy sleeping through all of it.

XXX

"Uh…Boss…I think you may have gone a little too far," Benn said as he watched his captain agonize over pint-sized clothing. They'd been following Buggy's Vivre Card for a few weeks now but the constantly changing course and the Grand Line's unpredictable weather had slowed them down considerably – just because they were associated with an Emperor of the Sea did not mean that they didn't have to deal with the sea's fickleness. On top of crazy weather and Buggy changing direction all the time, Shanks had insisted on stopping on friendly islands or islands under his protection to "check on things" when all he really wanted to do was shop. This was the fifth store Benn had been to while trailing behind his captain that day, which didn't count the other three islands they'd stopped by.

"What do you mean?" the redhead replied, looking back at his first mate while pinching a baby onesie with his stump and holding another up in his hand. He couldn't decide if stripes were cuter or if the one with whales on it was cuter (even though he was probably going to buy both anyway).

Benn looked down at the hoard of bags he was carting around and then back up at his captain. "I mean, Yasopp and Lucky Roux screwed off about thirty minutes ago with just as many bags of baby clothes as I have each because they were bored of shopping with you and you're still going. Don't you think that that is a little much?"

Shanks looked at him as if nothing was wrong, keeping an innocent face that probably would've looked convincing except that there was a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about," he replied and then held up both of the onesies. "Which do you think I should buy?"

Benn sighed, looked at the clothes, and then look resigned to at least two more hours of shopping. "I think that both are very nice."

"That settles it then," the redhead smiled, placing both into his handbasket. He turned to look at where he needed to look next and gasped dramatically, zipping over to another counter. Shanks was practically drooling over the cute little shoes displayed there, stars in his eyes.

"You do not need another pair of baby booties," the first mate sighed, knowing that the man had already purchased forty-seven other pairs of booties in all sizes.

"But look how cute they are!" the redhead exclaimed, sticking a finger in each bootie and making them "walk."

Benn took another look at the little blue shoes with red pom-poms on the toes and felt a smile creep onto his face. He just couldn't hold it back – he saw exactly what his captain was seeing. "Alright, I'll give you that one; those are very cute for a Buggy baby."

Shanks smiled brightly. "I know, right?! I think they'll go great with the blue onesie with the yellow stars on it or – oh my god!" Like a child, the man ran over to another display in the store and snatched up a skirt-and-shirt combination with cherries all over it. "It's this so cute!?"

Benn had a bight back a chuckle at just how adorable his captain was acting. If he'd been anyone else, watching a battle-scarred, muscular, and intimidating man fawn over baby clothes would've been a little terrifying, but to Benn, it was just too funny and too cute at the same time. "Yes, it's very cute, but what if you have a boy?"

"Then he can just wear the shirt or something," the redhead replied, adding the cherry outfit to his pile. He looked at the stack of clothes and the new booties and nodded. "I think that's enough." Benn sighed in relief, wanting to go back to the ship but then Shanks said something that made him groan. "Now I just need some gifts for Buggy."

"Seriously?" Shanks looked at his first mate and saw that he was a little at the end of his rope.

"Oh, sorry," he shrugged, looking a little sheepish. "You can go back to the ship if you want."

The first mate raised a sarcastic eyebrow. "Thanks for that."

"After I pay for this stuff."

"God." But the first mate was grateful that he wasn't actually going to have to suffer through two more hours of shopping.

Shanks just laughed and went to pay for his haul. Once he'd handed off the new purchases to his trusty first mate, he started wandering around town, pulling his hood up to conceal his face and slipping underneath everyone's awareness. "What to get her…What to get her…?" he mumbled as he moved from shop window to shop window.

He'd already purchased her a few pieces of clothing for when her belly got bigger, but also figured that she'd want to buy most of her own, so hadn't got too many. Now, he just wanted to buy her something nice. Most everything he saw didn't catch his attention and most of the afternoon was just spent loitering in out-of-the-way places. He was about to go back to his ship before Benn sent someone to find him when he spotted a little antique shop. Figuring that he had at least a few minutes, the man went inside the dimly lit shop.

A small bell on the door tinkled, announcing his presence, and a small old man popped up from behind a tall counter. "Hello, sir! Is there something I can help you find today?" the old timer asked, his voice as creaky as the chair he was standing on to see over the counter.

Shanks smiled at the wrinkly face. "I'm just browsing."

"Well, let me know if you need anything!" the shopkeeper replied and he promptly disappeared behind the counter. Shanks could hear soft clatters and the scritches of quill on paper coming from that direction a few moments later. He smiled and started to look around the eclectic shop. There were all sorts of odd gadgets and trinkets laid out on antique furniture and old books were stacked higgledy-piggledy on whatever remaining space there was and all over the floor. He carefully stepped around a taxidermy bear statue and ducked underneath a hanging mobile depicting celestial bodies to get a better look at a cabinet filled with old jewelry.

"She might like something like this," he commented, looking through the slightly cloudy glass.

"Are you looking for something for a lady friend?" a voice at his right hip asked. Shanks wasn't necessarily surprised at the shopkeeper's presence next to him – he'd sensed the man move – what was the surprising part was how past the creaky old man moved despite his age.

"Yes, actually," he replied without missing a beat.

"Well, damn," the old man cursed, looking as cheerful as ever. "That move usually scares the snot out of people. You're good, youngin'."

"I've had a lot of practice sneaking around myself," Shanks joked, taking a liking to the old shopkeeper.

The geezer gave him a wink. "So what does your lady friend like?"

Shanks smiled to himself, thinking about Buggy. "She likes anything shiny and expensive."

"You like her a lot, don't you?"

Shanks' smile widened. "I do. She's precious to me."

"Ah, young love," the shopkeeper sighed dreamily.

"We're not that young," Shanks argued gently. "She'd kill me if I told how old she was though."

"Sonny, when you're my age, everyone is young!" the man chuckled. "Let me show you something, come 'ere." He led Shanks to another counter, hobbling expertly around all the piles he'd accumulated in his shop. He hopped up on a conveniently placed chair, reached up on top of yet another cabinet, and pulled down a small deep blue box. He turned around and presented the opened box to his customer and Shanks' eyes lit up. Inside, resting on a velvet cushion was a beautiful sapphire bracelet. The links were delicate swirls of silver worked into flowing designs that looked like waves with each link ending in a tiny perfectly round-cut sapphire.

"Oh my god, this is perfect!" Shanks said happily. "She's going to love it!"

The old shopkeeper smiled. "I'm glad you think so. I've had this beauty for several years now but I think it's going to have a nice home with your lady friend. Let's get you taken care of," he paused, eyeing his customer hopefully, "Unless you want to browse some more?"

"That's all I needed, though you do have a lovely shop," Shanks replied graciously. The old man then hopped off his chair and hobbled quickly over to the main counter. As Shanks was turning away, something interesting in the cabinet caught his eye. When he saw it, he couldn't stop a mirthful smile from splitting his face.

"Oh, she's going to get a kick out of this," he chuckled, opening the cabinet. He took his other find up to the counter to pay for it along with the sapphire bracelet, anticipating Buggy's face when she saw his gift.

XXX

One day, after weeks of erratic courses, Buggy's Vivre Card stabilized, moving always in the same direction. Thankful for a clear course, the crew and the Red Force made record time traveling across the Grand Line to catch up to Buggy and her crew. Ever since her news had reached Shanks, he'd been so excited to see her again and wouldn't shut up about the baby. Even Benn, who was by far the most patient out of everyone, was getting sick of hearing about it and would be glad when their captain's obsession could be diluted among Buggy and her hoard. The whole crew was ecstatic to see an island on their bow and as they got closer, they saw the Big Top anchored off of its shore. As they got even closer, they saw a camp and the beginnings of what would become a town and as they got even closer, Shanks' started bouncing in anticipation. The man was absolutely brimming with energy, excited and impatient to see his beloved and their baby. He would've leaped off the railing and splashed into the sea to get to her but was held back by Benn's hand on his shoulder.

"Give us a minute, Captain, and we'll be close enough to disembark," he said.

Shanks gave his friend a sheepish smile. "I just want to see her."

"I know –" the first mate started, but was then interrupted by Yasopp.

"We all know! I'll be happy when you give it a rest!"

"Am I really that bad?" Shanks asked, completely oblivious to how annoying he'd been for the past few weeks.

"YES!" his whole crew replied, good-naturedly despite their exasperation because who could blame the guy for being excited about his child?

"Oops."

Benn addressed everyone while they were laughing at the redhead. "You'll see Buggy soon and then we can all get over it, okay?" Everyone nodded enthusiastically. "Right." Then let's get ready to anchor and disembark!" The crew scattered in a flurry of activity and to pass a bit of the time, Shanks checked over his mountain of presents for Buggy and the baby. By the time he'd counted the bags, boxes, and parcels twice, they were ready to anchor. At that point, he wasn't waiting anymore. Before the anchor even dropped, Shanks was leaping off of the deck and splashing down in shallow waters, taking off at a run. His crew just let him go without protest and Benn put Yasopp on present duty for making the lone snarky comment.

The Red Force's arrival had drawn a crowd of Buggy's goons but Shanks ignored them as he shot past. Sensing Buggy somewhere near the unfinished town, he ran in that direction, his heart beating ever faster. She's here! She's here! She's here! it seemed to say with each beat and he frantically looked around for her. Then, his heart was eased.

Shanks shouted, "Buggy!" spotting her distinctive blue hair. When she turned at his voice, his heart skipped a beat at the smile she gave him. It was radiant, but as he ran to her at top speed, she panicked a little. Surprised by his eagerness when he swept her up into his arm, the bluenette yelped and hung on for dear life. Shanks laughed at her surprised face as he spun both of them around exuberantly, too overjoyed to contain it.

When he finally set her on the ground she jabbed a gloved finger into his chest and said, "Geez, you idiot! You are so lucky that I don't have morning sickness right now or that stunt would've made me throw up on you!" But even her chiding couldn't put a damper on his happiness.

"Buggy! I'm so happy to see you!" Shanks pulled his beloved close and gave her a passionate kiss, literally taking her breath away. Buggy melted into the kiss, unresisting and just as energetic as he was, despite her earlier nagging. Her hands were on his back, nails digging into her skin, the loneliness of the few months they'd had apart instantly evaporated. Both of them felt the other's warmth, the other's breath mingling with theirs, and the rapid beating of their hearts against one another. When they parted, Buggy actually stumbled from the intensity of the kiss, feeling lightheaded. Shanks steadied her by wrapping his arm around her shoulders and kissing her forehead while she recovered.

"Damn…" she breathed, waiting for her head to clear.

"Well, I missed you," he replied, drinking in the sight of her. She looked a little tired and a little worn out (she wasn't even wearing her usual makeup) but Buggy was just as vibrant to him as she ever had – she practically glowed in his eyes.

Once Buggy's head had stopped spinning, she was doing just the same – taking in the sight of her boyfriend. His hair was a little windswept, his eyes bright with excitement, and his clothes askew from his run, but he was a sight for her sore eyes. "I missed you," she echoed, unable to hold back her smile.

The two of them gravitated together for another, much tamer, kiss – simply enjoying the feel of being together again. The moment stretched on, both of them physically reassuring themselves that the other was truly, actually there. During this whole meeting, a small crowd of people had been watching the couple, staying out of the way so that they could have their moment. Crocus was thoroughly enjoying himself with the quiet snickering and whispered "awwwwwing" Galdino and Alvida and the rest of the Buggy pirates.

"You're here," Buggy whispered against her lover's lips when they parted.

"I'm here," Shanks murmured back, his breath dusting her cheek. In true Shanks fashion, the man's hand slid down her back and cupped her ass in a manner he'd call "lovingly."

Buggy would've called him a pervert but didn't want to ruin the moment. However, she did say, "Now I know you're happy to see me," with a smile.

"Of course, I am," he cheekily replied, kissing her nose. "Now, where's my baby?"

The woman rolled her eyes. "Where do you think?" She took a step back and gestured to her belly, holding up her shirt a little.

Shanks look down excitedly – Buggy was only just beginning to show, a little bump growing from her body. Shanks hesitated, his hand hovering over Buggy's belly. It's right there, my baby. Our baby. The woman chuckled, seeing him hesitate, and reached out to pull his hand those last few inches. His warm hand pressed against her skin, feeling a solid firmness that hadn't been there before.

"The baby's in there," she said softly, watching his face. The man's eyes were shining with, what Buggy suspected was a little more than just excitement. "Aw, is the daddy crying?" she teased gently.

"No!" he protested, still enthralled with the bump. "It's still so little."

"It doesn't feel so little," Buggy complained. "I feel so bloated and all of my pants are tight."

"How far along are you?" he ask, used to the complaining.

"About thirteen weeks."

"You're amazing, Buggy." His voice was full of awe. She blushed, her own eyes wide. And then she blushed a deeper shade of red when she finally noticed their audience. Both the crews of the Big Top and the Red Force were watching the couple quietly, eyes teary in the case of Buggy's crew and huge smiles in the case of Shanks' crew. Yasopp was the only exception, buried under bags and boxes and parcels.

"Can't you give us a moment?!" Buggy shrieked.

A wave of noise rolled over her with their reply. "NO! YOU'RE TOO CUTE!"

Distracted, Shanks finally looked around the crowd, spotting Crocus' flower among the bright colors of the Buggy Pirates. "Crocus!" Like a child, he ran over to his old mentor and practically leaped into the old doctor's hug.

"Shanks! My you've grown!" Crocus laughed, hugging the redhead tightly. But before he could start any of the catch-up and small talk with the younger man, Buggy piped up.

"Why didn't you say that when you saw me?" Buggy griped. "All you did was call me a brat and say how surprised you were that I hadn't gotten myself killed!" Both men laughed at her.

"You've definitely grown," Crocus started, but he was interrupted by Alvida loudly announcing, "You're just growing round instead!"

"I'll kick your ass!" But before Buggy could kick said ass, Shanks grabbed her hand and found she herself pulled into a tight group hug with her boyfriend and her doctor – who were half-loving her and half-stopping her from getting into a fight. After a few moments had passed, the trio was piled on by the rest of the pirates (excluding Yasopp who was still saddled with the bags and boxes and parcels) and Buggy yelped loudly as she was squished enthusiastically. Shanks liked the squishing, as it pressed him up against his lover and he found himself flushed with heat from the mass of bodies around him and from the closeness of just one body.

"Alright," Buggy grumped, squashed up against her boyfriend's chest with Crocus pressing against her side and Galdino at her ass. Alvida was just out of her reach even though she tried squirming her arm to get close enough to pinch the other woman. "We've had enough hug-time…SHOVE OFF!" The crews laughed uproariously and the group hug dissipated until it was just the lovebirds and Crocus. Yasopp finally got fed up and dropped everything he was in charge of holding and walked off with his crewmates, leaving behind a mountain of presents.

Finally noticing them, Buggy asked, "Are those for me?"

"For you and baby," Shanks replied brightly.

The bluenette blinked a few times. "I know I'm greedy as hell but even I know you went overboard."

"I told you!" came a shout from Benn in the distance.

"Shut up!" Shanks yelled back. Then he smiled again and added, "Only the best for you, love bug."

She fingered a bow on one of the boxes and smiled. "It's going to take forever to open them, but I have all the time in the world now that I have my own island."

"Yes you do," he agreed. "And I'm so happy that you have your own island."

"And I didn't even have to force anyone off of it!"

He nodded along. "That's good."

"And I'm going to make it the best island ever for my grand plans!"

"That's great, Buggy."

As she gloated, the man's eyes kept drifting over Buggy. He took in how beautiful she looked, even if it was only to him – her blue eyes were bright despite the bags under her eyes, her ponytail bounced despite the flyaways, and she had a spring in her step despite all the turmoil her body was going through. His eyes also kept drifting to her stomach, gazing at her little baby bump. Buggy had always been charming to him (even during her unhappy moments), but she had never looked more attractive to him than she was now. Maybe it was because she was lovingly carrying his child, or maybe it was because he hadn't seen her in over three months, but it didn't really matter. The more he looked, the more that smoldering heat in his belly grew. He was so happy just to be near her and he wanted to touch her and hold her and love her. The longer he was by her side, the less in control he felt. The hand in hers twitched with desires for more intimate caresses and when she looked at him, his heart pounded in his chest.

"Um…Buggy…could we go somewhere private?" he asked, interrupting her monologue about the town she was in the process of building.

"Huh?" she was confused for a moment, but seeing the spark in his eyes tipped her off to what he wanted. She rolled her eyes but didn't give him any crap. She had also missed him and even though she didn't know her body was going to act, she could at least indulge him as much as she could. "Oh, I get it…pervert."

The man shrugged and then scooped her up in his arm. "I'm going to need to see my girlfriend alone," he said for the benefit of anyone within earshot. "So, don't bother us for a bit." He then ran toward his ship, leaving everyone behind while Buggy ranted at him for "announcing it to the whole world!" Everyone around the ruckus rolled their eyes except for Crocus, who was quickly beginning to understand exactly how Buggy got swept up into her relationship.

"I suppose I'll have to catch up with Shanks and get his side of the story out of him later," he decided.

Alvida and Galdino snickered again. "It may be a while," they replied. However, despite how much they both made fun of Buggy and her boyfriend, as the pair ran off, the black-haired woman couldn't help but smile.

"You know, I don't usually like mushy romantic things, but I have to say that their meeting again was very touching. If I was a little softer, I might have shed a tear."

"I saw the one you wiped away," Galdino pointed out, ducking to miss the woman's flying fist a moment later. "Hey! Don't give me that! And besides, the rest of the crew was so much worse that you!"

"That doesn't mean that I like you pointing that out!" she snapped, grabbing at him again to teach him a lesson.

While the two of them got into their own fight, Crocus just opened his paper again, starting to walk back to his lounging spot in some shade when he heard a yelp that sounded very much like Buggy and was coming from the direction of the ships. He burst into laughter wondering what Shanks could've done to force that noise from her and decided that it was maybe best not to ask and leave it a mystery.

To be Continued...

A/N: And there you go! I hope you enjoyed that chapter and I hope to see you all when I post the next one! :3