A/N: Helena did not cheat on Zoro. Please see Ch. 34 for more context, but basically Chopper is confused about some things. Apologies for any confusion due to length of time between updates, and I hope I didn't lose anyone. I know I would have been mad if an author had sabotaged a character I liked to that degree.

Ch. 48 - Shopping

Nami sat across from Kuina in the shade of a large umbrella at a Ryubokuuan ice cream parlor strategically placed near the playground. The child dug into her own iced treat with a will while Nami tried to hide her frazzled nerves.

Not only had Helena ditched her, about an hour later, Robin had gone off on that coffee date with Ramzez. The bee man had seen to his patient quickly then eagerly come looking for her.

So much for sisters before misters.

"Auntie Nami?" At least Nami's date was cute. "Go liberry?"

"We have to stay here," Nami informed her. "If we go out of sight of the playground, your Mom won't be able to find us."

"Mama an' Papa dere!"

Nami caught sight of the pair just as Kuina said it. They stood at the far end of the playground, standing on either side of the short fencing, murmuring a farewell to one another.

The way he looked at her, the way he couldn't seem to resist stealing a kiss or two as they spoke, the way they both stalled in parting...

Nami sighed, her resentment toward them melting a little. She couldn't forget how Zoro had been through Helena's hospitalization. –The way he'd spent every free moment at her bedside. –The way he had worked so hard to save money for her. The alcoholic hadn't even been to see the local bar scene! – but if it was between that and what he had here, with her, perhaps he wasn't missing all that much.

It had been clear from Helena's short week aboard the Sunny before facing the Shipyard Queen that the woman was struggling to find her feet again. Aside from her illness, she seemed a bit lost without her crown, and especially lost without her swords. But Zoro didn't seem to mind. To him, no kingdom, no swords, no problem. He still admired her and still wanted her.

Zoro loved her in a way that made Nami wonder if she wanted a love like that for herself. Maybe Robin felt that way too. Maybe that was why she'd accepted a coffee date with the bee man.

Kuina had toddled over to them by now, but neither of the twitterpated pair seemed to mind. Helena picked her up and Zoro ruffled Kuina's hair across the fence, then he waved goodbye to both of them, off on some errand of his own with a goofy smirk on his face.

With Kuina still in tow, Helena approached, cropped hair tousled, blouse one button off, cheeks still flushed.

"Sorry about that…" she started, stars still in her eyes. She looked so happy too. It was about time the refugee queen had some happiness.

Nami sighed, but strengthened her resolve. She couldn't let them off entirely for leaving her in the lurch. "I charge for childcare you know," she said. "15000 berries for an hour!"

"Oh, is that the going rate these days?" Helena pulled out the wallet Zoro had given her, cheerfully counted out the money and handed it over. "We used to pay the nursemaids more."

Nami cursed herself for not going higher.

"Where's Robin?" Helena had apparently counted some out for her as well. Nami smoothly swiped it from her hands.

"She ditched. Guess I'll be taking this!"

Helena didn't protest. Well, at least this venture was profitable.

"Alright, where to," Helena asked, stowing the wallet and taking Kuina by the hand. "I saw a few stalls selling traditional Ryubokuuan clothes back there."

"You wanna wear clothes made out of bee fuzz?" Nami's lip twitched as realization dawned on Helena's face.

"Oh, gods no!" she exclaimed.

"That's what I thought," Nami chuckled, then excitedly took Kuina's other hand. "Come on, there are some actual outlet stores not too far from here. There's even a Crimin shop."

Chopper had agreed to stay behind with the patient while Ramzez went on his coffee date. The reindeer didn't mind; he didn't want to be around the crew right now.

The man he had treated lay unconscious on the hospital bed. He was in a similar condition to the one they had found Helena in over a month ago. Dehydrated, starving, covered in residual burns and scars from fighting Stormwyrms.

Thinking about Helena made Chopper feel sick inside. He turned his attention to his second patient – a long white snake who had just regained consciousness.

"You shouldn't move," Chopper informed her. "You have some ribs that need healing."

The snake hissed her thanks and quickly asked about her companion.

"Oh, he'll live," Chopper said. "He seems pretty sturdy. He's in better shape than the last person we found who fought Stormwyrms. Course, she's pregnant, so maybe we shouldn't compare…."

"You're the Straw Hats' pet, mon," his other patient rasped, catching Chopper off guard. He turned to see the man had managed to sit upright, wincing against his wounds a bit. He had the most striking blue eyes Chopper had ever seen.

"I AM NOT!" Chopper snapped at him. "I'm the ship's doctor, and I deserve a higher bounty than they give me. Humph!"

The man laughed good naturedly, then clutched his ribs. "Argh. I get the feeling that's going to sting for a while, mon," he observed.

"Probably. You shouldn't push it."

"Who was the last person you found who fought Stormwyrms?" he asked, intrigued.

"Oh, my friend's wife…" Chopper continued nonchalantly as he went to fill a glass of water for the man from the room's sink. He was on an IV, but it seemed like his throat could use it. "She and her daughter were trying to get to us and ended up in a nest of those things."

"She recently got to you?" The man's expression seemed to have darkened a bit, but he accepted the water. "And she's pregnant, mon?"

"Yeah, he doesn't know yet," Chopper said conversationally. "She's supposed to tell him today, but she keeps putting it off because the baby isn't his!"

He clapped his hooves over his mouth. His patient did not need to know this information.

The man looked amused. A slightly devious smile had spread across his face. "You…think she's been unfaithful to him, mon?"

"Marriage means promising to be lifelong mates, right?" Chopper blurted. He had been desperate to ask someone, and this man could be the impartial party he needed.

"To most people," the patient agreed, still smiling to himself despite the subject matter.

"Especially swordsmen, right?"

The patient eyed his own blades, a pair of machetes, which had been placed on a chair nearby.

"Depends on the swordsman," he chuckled. "But most would expect fidelity I imagine."

Chopper felt tears well up in eyes. "Yeah…" he agreed, his heart sinking. "That's what I figured too…" He looked up at the man. "What…what should I do? What if she keeps putting it off? Should I tell him?"

"A good friend probably would," the man advised sincerely.

"But she made me promise I wouldn't say anything," Chopper sobbed.

"And you're sure the child isn't his? Do you know who the actual father is, mon?"

"It's not possible for it to be his," Chopper went on miserably. "I have no idea who the actual father is…"

"It seems you've got a tough choice to make, mon," the man observed. "Who are you most obligated to? Your friend or your own promises?"

"Well, when you put it that way…" Chopper shook himself. "Oh, but then, my friend would want me to honor my word too. Promises mean everything to him."

"All the more reason to tell him, mon."

"But she invoked doctor patient privilege."

The man started to laugh, though he had wouldbe sympathy in his eyes. "Seems you already broke that by telling me!"

Chopper pulled his hat over his face. "I can't do anything right!" he sobbed.

The man placed a hand on Chopper's shoulder. He waited for the distraught reindeer to look back at him so he could give him a comforting smile.

"Don't worry," said the man with the pretty eyes. "Your secret is safe with me, mon."

"Hold on a second, you're pregnant?!"

"Huh?" Helena tried to play it dumb, but Nami wasn't having it.

"Don't try to lie about it. You snuck off, and I literally just found you and Kuina coming out of a maternity store."

"Oh…I just thought the dress on the manikin was cute," Helena attempted.

"Hand over that shopping bag," Nami demanded.

Helena clutched the bag to herself, peevishly glancing around for a distraction. "Oh! Hi Robin," she called, waving over Nami's shoulder.

Nami turned, and sure enough, Robin approached them smiling. Kuina ran over to hug her about the legs.

"How was your date?" Helena asked, hiding the bag behind her back.

"It was fun," Robin said, patting Kuina's head. "Though I think I scared him off."

"Oh, how so?" Helena turned as Nami eyed the bag, putting it out of the master thief's line of sight, but definitely not out of mind.

"Well, I suppose he didn't enjoy talking in depth about the best ways to twist someone to cause the most pain without killing them," Robin ruminated. Kuina stared up at her in awe. "I thought I'd ask him as a point of research, given he can see people's bones."

Helena's lip twitched. "Wow. I…don't know what to say to that."

It was just shocking enough to get her to drop her guard. Nami, who was used to Robin's morbid comments, now had the bag, and began rummaging through its contents without Helena noticing.

"He gifted me his spare earring though," Robin went on, holding up the velvet bag and pouring the sea prism porcelain earring into her hand. "I didn't feel it was polite to refuse, but I am not sure what to do with it. I don't feel any difference when I touch it, aside from my powers not working. Would you like it back, Helena-San?"

"Oh, no that's alright," Helena said. Nami was only half listening. "If anyone could research a good use for it, it's you."

"I have to admit, it does have me intrigued," Robin said, returning it to its protective bag and pocketing it.

"I still can't believe you gave away something that valuable," Nami huffed, attention still on the shopping bag. Shirts and dresses could be written off as a style preference. She needed more definitive proof.

"Ah ha!" she whipped out a pair of maternity pants, the tell tale maternity band clearly visible. "You're a rail, Helena. Explain why you'd need a pair of these!"

Helena sighed. "Alright, alright. Yes. I am pregnant. But please don't spoil the surprise. Zoro doesn't know yet."

Robin stalled, expression frozen. Then her eyes went big. Uncharacteristically big. So big that for a moment her two friends worried they might literally pop out of her head. Her cheeks flushed. Her lips pursed and a small squeal started to escape her, like a balloon losing air.

"You're…you're…" she stammered, the word hardly audible.

"YOU'RE HAVING A BABY?!"

Robin had a distinctive voice. From the other side of the shopping district branch, a gathering of some of the male members of the Straw Hat crew heard and recognized it.

"Wow," Luffy observed to no one in particular, "I haven't heard Robin's voice carry like that since she burp–"

Sanji lowered a foot on his head. "WE AGREED NEVER TO SPEAK OF IT!"

"Wait, wait," Usopp chimed in. "That was definitely Robin, right? Who's having a baby?"

"Well, you know who she's hanging out with right now," Sanji observed calmly as though he hadn't just smashed Luffy's rubber gourd into the ground. He didn't want to break his promise not to tell, but this wasn't exactly telling, right? "So there are only two options."

"Of those options I'd hope it's Helena," Usopp chuckled.

"It is Helena," Luffy put in as his head sprung back into place.

"Luffy, you knew?" Sanji asked.

"Yeah, she smells kinda babyish."

Sanji's brow furrowed, but he decided against questioning Luffy's intuition. "Who else here knew?"

"I did!" Brook chimed in. "She has the glow. Particularly since she woke up from her coma. I didn't want to say anything though. It's not polite to ask a woman if she's pregnant after all. Yo ho ho ho ho ho!"

"OW!...since when have you cared about what it's polite to ask a woman, Brook?" Franky laughed. "I've known for a while now too. But I'm not sure Zoro does. I think Helena tried to tell him, but he just seemed superrr confused."

"He doesn't know yet," Chopper confirmed softly.

"Oh! Chopper! When did you get here?" Usopp asked.

"My patient is stable, so I figured I'd come find you guys. Did I miss breakfast?"

"I saved you some," Sanji said, sliding him a plate. "So Zoro still doesn't know, eh?"

The voice of the man in question rang out across the restaurant courtyard. "Oh, what are you guys all doing here?"

"We were supposed to meet here for breakfast, remember? Sanji's treat!" Usopp replied. "You and Helena made other plans."

"I never said I was treating!" Sanji snapped. "You guys can pay your own damn bills. Just cause I work here doesn't mean you get to eat for free!"

"Anyway, congrats!" Usopp crowed, slapping Zoro on the back.

"On what?" Zoro asked.

"Well, I just heard another little prince or princess is coming to town," Usopp laughed, nudging him in the ribs.

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "What's that got to do with me?"

"It'll be nice for Kuina to have someone to play with, right?" Usopp went on.

Zoro's brow furrowed. "Helena has never limited her to playing with royalty. What kind of snob do you take her for?" he rumbled. "Anyway, how is anyone royal coming to Ryubokuu in the middle of a Calm?"

Usopp blinked at him in confusion. Sanji sighed and stood.

"Marimo, did you hear Robin-Chwan just now?"

"Yeah, she was freaking out about someone's baby," Zoro said.

"Ok, you and I are going to find the girls, and you can find out just whose kid she was freaking out about."

"Why would I care?"

"BECAUSE IT'S YOUR KID!" Sanji snapped.

Zoro stared at him.

They locked eyes.

The swordsman's brow furrowed.

"Oh," he managed anticlimactically.

"'Oh'?!" The rest of his companions cried. "Is that all? 'Oh'?!"

"Well, I mean, I can understand why Robin would freak out about that," Zoro shrugged. "She likes cute things. And, not to brag, but Kuina is the cutest thing there is."

"Ugh! You're hopeless! Come on," Sanji grabbed him and started dragging him toward the entrance. "You are figuring this out today, so help me!"

"Robin, are you ok?" Helena asked in genuine alarm.

The woman's face was stuck in an uncharacteristic smile, her eyes still sparkling, her face still flushed. She didn't respond.

"I think you broke her," Nami observed, waving a hand in front of Robin's unblinking eyes. "Robin! Hello? You still in there?"

"I've never seen someone so excited about a baby," Helena chuckled. Then she noticed Kuina staring at her too.

"Oh…" she hadn't told Kuina anything yet. After all, the two-year-old would inevitably spill the beans. At this point she'd already heard it though. The entire shopping branch had heard it, actually. "Kuina, you're going to have a little brother."

"B-brother?" Robin stammered. "It's a boy?"

She turned as though hypnotized and disappeared into a baby clothes store nearby. Helena and Nami exchanged glances, but then Kuina drew back their attention.

"I have brover," Kuina stated matter-of-factly. "Temackus."

Helena took a knee in front of her. "Yes, your older brother is in Elysium. But you're about to have another brother. A little brother. I have a baby in my tummy."

She took Kuina's tiny hand and placed it on her belly. As if on cue, and for the very first time that pregnancy, Helena felt a distinctive flutter.

Kuina's eyes grew huge. "Baby?" she asked. There were tears in her eyes

Helena felt tears forming in her own eyes as she felt the flutter again. Then Kuina's tears started falling in earnest.

"Why you eat baby?!" She wailed. "Mama, spit him out right now!"

Helena burst out laughing. Kuina had always been precocious; it was easy to forget how little she knew about the world. "No, the baby is growing inside of me," she insisted, "That's where babies come from. From inside their mommies. He's too little to come out now."

"When he come?" Kuina asked.

"It'll be around five more months," Helena said.

"You're still so tiny!" Nami observed as she straightened up. "You really that far along?"

"Well, I can't say this has been the healthiest pregnancy," Helena told her, holding out a hand for Nami to give the maternity shopping bag back to her.

"Now hold on, we are returning this. All of it," Nami went on, keeping hold of the bag. "Literally none of this is your style or color. You just grabbed the first stuff in your size and thought you'd call it good, didn't you?"

Helena smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, I was trying to be quick. I was hoping you were having so much fun at Crimin you wouldn't notice I was gone…"

"Of course I noticed! I couldn't check out without you there!" Nami grumped. "I need you to get the proper discounts, remember?"

"Oh, right, sorry," Helena said.

"Is this also why you haven't bought anything for yourself yet today?" Nami went on.

Helena nodded. They had already hit a few stores, but she hadn't been able to find anything suitable for a growing belly. When she communicated as much, Nami grinned.

"I think I know just what you need," she said. "Be prepared to have your mind blown."

"What. Are those?"

"These, Nami said, holding the article of clothing up with aplomb. "Are leggings."

Helena accepted the proffered item with a dubious expression. "I don't see what the big deal is."

"Just go try them on," Nami said, turning her to a nearby dressing room.

They had exchanged the maternity wear by now, and Nami had convinced Helena to return to Crimin, where they had a big-and-tall section of high-end goods certain to suit Helena's needs. Despite Helena's insistence that she didn't need workout clothes, given she could easily make herself some out of any spare sheets or fabric the ship had available, Nami had brought her to the workout section of the department store.

A cry of surprise from the dressing room soon confirmed Nami's suspicions. Helena kicked open the door, eyes almost as big and sparkly as Robin's had been not too long ago.

"WHERE HAVE THESE BEEN ALL MY LIFE?!"

"I know, right?"

"I CAN HIGH KICK IN THESE!" Helena demonstrated, nearly decapitating a mannequin in her excitement. "I HAVE FULL RANGE OF MOTION!"

"I had a feeling you would like that."

"THEY'RE BUTTERY SOFT!"

"That's why you gotta get the good brand…"

"AND THEY HAVE POCKETS! POCKETS!"

"I'm really surprised you've never worn these before."

"I NEED SEVEN PAIRS OF THESE AT LEAST."

"No complaints here," Zoro put in suddenly. The two women turned to see he and Sanji had caught up with them at the shop.

"ZORO, YOU NEED TO TRY THESE."

Zoro laughed. "No thanks. I'll keep my dignity."

"Oh…" Helena's face fell. "Are they undignified?"

"You idiot Marimo! Don't say that!" Sanji had sunk to his knees, nursing a bloody nose. "Helena-Chwan in leggings is a gift to the world."

Zoro pegged him on the back of the head, sending him face first into the ground. "Quit ogling my wife!"

"I can't help it. Her legs are a work of art…"

Zoro lifted a fist again then checked himself and shrugged an agreement.

Helena flushed. "Maybe…maybe I shouldn't get these…"

Zoro's expression grew panicked. "N-no!" he backpedaled. "They're perfectly dignified, they're…"

Helena's lip pouted and started to quiver.

"Gah!" The next thing anyone knew, Zoro had grabbed a pair of leggings from the rack and disappeared into the dressing room. Helena stilled her quivering lip and winked at Nami. He emerged shamelessly a moment later, tight pants on full display, leaving nothing to the imagination.

"You see?" he said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Plenty dignified."

Sanji wretched. Nami doubled over laughing. Helena grinned and took him by the arm.

"Did we check out of the Bed and Breakfast too soon?" she asked, giving him an unmistakable look, "Cause I could go for seconds."

Sanji moaned and beat his fists against the ground. Zoro shot him a triumphant grin.

Sanji completely forgot his reason for catching up to the ladies as the shopping spree continued. While Kuina amused herself hiding in clothing racks, the talented and beautiful Nami-Swan made an excellent fashion coach for Helena, who needed a bit of direction in anything less than business casual.

"Now, with leggings you can go two different routes for a day to day look," she said. "Oversized T-shirt or crop top. I'm thinking the T-shirt might be more your style…Plus, it'll keep creeps from staring at your bum…"

Helena soon had modeled a few suggestions, and was ridiculously cute in all of them. The cook turned to gauge the now back-to-regular-pants Zoro's reaction. Sanji wanted to be sure the idiot truly appreciated the Beauty he had to call his own. But the swordsman had disappeared.

"Where did that idiot Marimo wander off to?" he seethed.

"Oh, I sent him to the next shop over," Helena said dismissively as she appraised herself in it in the store's triple mirror. "He had an errand I sent him to run this morning, but he got lost, so I sent him again."

"You sent him…again?" Sanji asked, raising a curled eyebrow. "And you think it'll work out better this time around?"

"Hope springs eternal…?" Helena ventured. When Nami and Sanji both raised an eyebrow at her she had to concede, "You're right. That was stupid. Should we go look for him?"

"Let's check out first," Nami suggested. "They've been holding my stuff for a while now."

Helena nodded. "Yeah, I've found everything I need. Think they'll let me wear this out?" She indicated her new leggings and boat-necked top.

"Probably," Nami said, smiling.

Sanji grinned too. It was nice to see Helena in clothes meant for her. She didn't exactly look like the old royal version of herself they were used to, but she seemed confident and comfortable, which made her all the more lovely.

Soon they had collected Kuina and made their way to the front desk. The young employee at the register flushed and smiled when she saw Helena approach. "You're…you're Helena, aren't you?" she exclaimed. "You zeem much nizer in perzon than your ztatue."

"Statue?" Helena asked.

"Yeah, they've made a memorial thing for you," Nami chuckled. She turned to the girl at the desk. "She actually is that scary when she fights though, so don't tick her off."

Sanji noted how Helena's brow knitted at this remark. Perhaps she didn't recognize the start of Nami's negotiation tactics like he did, but she seemed unamused.

The mousy bee girl chuckled uncomfortably and started scanning items. "Zo anyway, everything in the ztore iz 20% off right now…"

"But this is the hero of Ryubokuu we're talking about," Nami pointed out. "Surely you're not going to charge her like you would everyone else."

The girl looked confused. Helena opened her mouth to speak while the girl scanned the tags on the clothes she was wearing, but Nami either didn't notice or didn't care:

"Come on! Because of her, you guys can now run a business again! Surely you can take us down to 50%!"

"Oh…I'd have to get my manager for zomething like that…"

"And where's the free merchandise for buying over 20000 berries worth?" Nami pushed. "Every Crimin store I've ever been to offers that!"

"I…" the young girl looked even more confused. "I h-haven't been working here long, but we've never offered zomething like that to my knowledge…"

She should not have admitted she was new to this job. Not that it wasn't obvious. Nami saw weakness and pounced.

"Oh! Trust me, I've been all over the world! Every Crimin store offers free merchandise for high enough purchases. – in fact, at this point everything we have should be buy one get one free!"

"Huh?"

"That's after the 50% off discount of course."

"I zhould really get my manager…"

"And that's to say nothing of the friends and family discount!" Nami continued. "I mean, you do think of the Hero of Ryubokuu as your friend, ri–"

"Enough, Nami," Helena said firmly. It was a voice that was used to being obeyed, and despite being in her element here, Nami stopped in her tracks.

The cashier had finished ringing up the items, but had been stuck with what to do next due to Nami's haggling. Helena opened her wallet and handed the cashier the full amount shown on the register.

"Oh, but I haven't applied the 20% dizcount yet…"

"And you don't have to," Helena said kindly, "You've been stuck in this calm for over a month, right? I'm sure any tourism you're used to has been down considerably."

"We haven't had many touriztz zinze the Zhipyard Queen," the girl told her, counting out her change. "But the rezent run of Calmz delayed any zhipmentz of newer stock from Fizhman, so it'z hard to get anyone local to come in lately. Thiz iz my firzt real commizzion."

"Commission? You didn't even help us find anything!" Nami started.

"You zeemed zo confident I didn't want to get in your way…"

"Understandable," Helena put in icily. "Nami can be pretty scary when she shops. I wouldn't want to tick her off."

Nami's mouth dropped, but Helena didn't spare her a glance. Without another word to her, though with a few more kind reassurances to the cashier, they gathered their things and left the store.

Once outside, Nami turned on her, fuming.

"Why would you embarrass me like that?" she started.

"Embarrass you?" Helena scoffed. "I was under the impression certain discounts had already been implied, not that you would try using my presence to swindle people."

"It's not swindling people directly. It's a chain outlet store! And you heard that cashier! They haven't been able to sell any of that stuff anyway!"

"I am not going to take advantage of these people. They have suffered enough."

"You are not their Queen!" Nami snapped. "It's not your job to take care of them!"

Helena paused at this. By the look on her face, it was clear Nami had crossed a line. But she pressed it:

"Reality stings, huh?" She snapped. "You need to stop acting like you're some rich benefactor to everyone around you. Seriously, you've given money to every street performer we've passed. And it's not even YOUR money. It's ZORO'S! Did you ever stop to think about the effort HE put into earning that? And you're just going to throw it away on people you don't know?"

"Ah, so now you are concerned about what happens to Zoro's money?" Helena observed, her voice deadly calm. "I presume that means next time you'll watch Kuina for free?"

"After you guys ditched like that, paying me was the least you could do," Nami spat.

"Ah, but at twice your own rate? Or did you give some of that money to Robin after the fact?"

Nami mouthed at her wordlessly. Helena let her flounder a bit before continuing:

"It would appear my generosity only bothers you when you are not the beneficiary," she pointed out.

"Yeah, cause we're friends," Nami wheedled. "Friends and family come first!"

Helena eyed her with palpable disdain. "Are we friends?" she asked. "Because I'm starting to think the only reason you wanted to spend time with me was to use me."

Nami had nothing to say to this. Helena let the silence fall heavy between them. At last she turned to go:

"Come on Kuina, we are going to find your father."

Sanji let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"You ladies are both so beautiful and passionate when you argue!" he noodled despite Nami's glares. But he stopped short at Helena's next words.

"Kuina?" She called. "Kuina, where are you?" She scanned the street then turned back to the other two, eyes full of panic: "Do either of you see her? Did she come out of the shop with us?"

The argument faded into obscurity as Helena's panic grew. Before long she had the other two helping her search.

In the course of the argument, no one had seen little Kuina turn from the boring, bickering adults. They hadn't seen her countenance perk up and her eyes grow big. They hadn't heard her giggles of joy as she skipped across the street.

And they most definitely hadn't seen her disappear into a tenebrous alleyway, cheerfully following in the trail of a long, ivory snake.