Shopping
"This is stupid."
"Oh? Then I guess it's perfect for me, huh?"
Zoro winced inwardly. The cat woman had made an excellent point, seeing as his nickname for her included that very word. But he absolutely <i>hated</i> being dragged along on these shopping trips. The orange-headed wench had brought him more times than he could count after threatening him with "extra interest" on his swords. They were boring and he became an embittered pack mule, strapped down with frilly purchases and gaudily wrapped packages.
And there was nothing to drink.
But as Elly wound her way through shops the other women would have visited for hours on end and kept going, he found himself more interested. "Hey, cat," he called out to make himself heard in the noise of the crowd. "Where are we going?"
"Over there." She grinned impishly at him.
"That's a..." <i>Tavern?</i> He blinked down at her. "You little shit."
"We're still going shopping, Zoro," she told him very sincerely. "But I have very particular drink favorites and this is where we're gonna pick some up."
His answering grin was huge.
-
Sunbathing
The three women were spread out on the warm sands like very different flowers, wearing skimpy bathing suits in their favorite colors. Robin wore black, as she had taken to a lot more often lately due to Elly's favorite being her other choice. The cat demon loved wearing a matching purple shade to her fur and hair. Nami wore, of course, gold. The suit was probably very expensive.
Sanji rushed forward so fast he nearly tripped over a mischievous crab that had poked up from a burrowing hole. He swore at it, then grabbed the suntan lotion from a table they had set up. "Who wants to be first?!"
Nami rolled her eyes and Robin answered this by using her own sets of extra hands to lotion herself up. Sanji grumbled a little at that. Elly wasn't paying attention, so he snuck closer and was just about to reach for her when a hand snapped closed over his wrist like a vice.
"Ow, damn it!"
"Back off," Zoro growled at him. "Pervert."
"What's your problem, moss head?!"
The bigger man pointed at the purring lady stretched out with her tailtips twitching idly. "The cat. Is <i>mine</i>."
Sanji spluttered with astonishment and ire, and Elly's ears flicked. She had a feeling Zoro didn't know exactly how good her hearing was.
-
The pond
Zoro paused, his throat closing up as he stared incredulously at the scene unfolding before his stunned gaze.
They had stopped for supplies near a sleepy little village that boasted a stunning forest nearby. Elly had crept out of their rooms that night, and he followed.
The moonlight leeched the colors from the pond where he had tracked her, creating a sharp contrast to the world of only bright silver or dark, deep shadows. Her silhouette rose from the waters cleanly, water streaming from her hair with only the faintest ripples as she stood.
She was nude, but in the darkness he saw only her shadow. Shaking, he backed away, blushing, confused and not wanting to disturb her.
-
Stormy Weather
The cracks of thunder and flashes of lightning outside went on for hours. The pitch and roll of the ship wasn't too bad as it was a large vessel, but to someone aboard being on the ocean during a storm was almost unbearable.
Elly shivered under her bed, mewing in fear. She had reverted to cat form and would not come out for anything. The girls were at a complete loss.
"I know she said this was like the storm that fell after she changed," Robin told them quietly. "I think that might be why it's so traumatizing for her."
"If she would come out, Chopper mixed up a sedative. I can put it in some warm milk, but she has to be able to drink it." Sanji scratched at his chin thoughtfully.
"Yeah, there's the problem. She has to be calm enough to even drink it."
Zoro was staring at the play of light on the water in the distance. He finally grunted and stood up. "Make the milk," he told Sanji shortly and stomped purposely out of the kitchen.
Moments later he was laying on his stomach near her bed. "Hey, cat."
She didn't answer but he heard the scratch of claws on wood as she scrambled fearfully about.
"I can keep you safer than under that damn bed," he said firmly. "I'm gonna pull you out. No biting."
She hissed as he grasped the closest striped appendage and tugged. "Not my tail!"
"You weren't coming out otherwise."
She turned into her more familiar human form as he grasped her in his arms. "Cut it out, I -"
An especially loud rumble caused her to gasp and instead of pushing away as she had intended, she clutched the front of his robe, shaking. Her tail was frizzed out and her ears askew.
He carefully smoothed her hair, stroking her ears gently and blushing. "Stupid cat," he mumbled. "I won't let anything hurt you."
-
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