Chapter 31

Dedication: blackcatsinger

Katou's POV

I slowly felt conscience seeping back into my numb body.

I opened my eyes slightly to see Chopper holding a glass vile sleeping.

I looked around the room.
No one else was in here.

I looked under the sheets of the soft bed to see white bandages covering my stomach.

It wasn't just a dream.

Yet it's a miracle... I don't feel like I've just undergone surgery from a life threatening virus... I feel normal.

Are Law and Chopper that good?

I know Chopper is but Law must really be one hell of a doctor.

Where is he...?

I sat up and Chopper stirred.

"Your awake... That's good, everyone has stayed here for the past three days... They're all in the lounge if you want to see them, oh except Law and Zoro." Chopper rubbed his eyes.

"Where are they? They're not fighting are they?" I rubbed my temples, just thinking about it stresses me.
"No, Law left this morning and Zoro... He went last night and he will be back tomorrow..."

He's gone...?

"Where did he go?" I put a thin robe on that was on the end of my bed.
"He didn't say, he was worried about not being there when you awoke, Nami forced him to go so I guess she knows."

"Thank you Chopper, for looking after me... It means a lot." He smiled at him.
"It's my duty as a doctor to help anyone in need... You should feel as if nothing happened but still take it slow."

I nodded my head and walked out the door.

Nami was sitting at the table eating some of Sanji's extravagant dishes.

I walked behind her slowly and quietly, then I whispered in her ear.
"I'm back from the dead." She jumped up like a ghost had touched her.
"You scared me! I'm so glad your okay!" He hugged me tightly.

Why does everyone wish to suffocate me?

I walked into the lounge with Nami to see a typical scene.

Luffy stuffing his face in food.
Usopp making something out of cardboard.
Sanji chatting up Leah.

She came too...

"Hi everyone." I spoke weakly.
"Katou!"

"Leah, you came to, thank you everyone..." "No problem, Sanji kun was just telling me that he thinks I have the most beautiful eyes! Don't you think?" She blinked her eyelash and I rolled my eyes.
"Sure..."

"How are you feeling." Sanji was by my side holding my hand.
"I'm fine, I feel as if nothing even happened..."

"Law was in there 24/7 but you never heard a noise... It was so strange... Zoro got upset and left." Usopp sighed and Nami hit him.
"He did not leave because he was upset! He had something very very very very very important to do." "What?" I turned my head sideways.

"Don't worry about that, come sit down." I sat on the chair and Sanji was serenading Leah.
"Please, go somewhere else you too." I put my head in my hands at his hopelessness.

"Okay. Bye." Leah waved to me and walked out the door and Sanji chased after her.
"Melorines!" Then he came back.

Half way in the door and half way out
"Two ladies need me... How do I decided? Sister or lover?" He clutched his heart and I rolled eyes.
"Go away, Sanji!" "It hurts..." He lingered five seconds after I spoke then ran off.

"Baka..." I shook my head.
"I'm swo gwad... Wour bwetter Kawt... Bwut I knew... Wou'd pwul through!" Luffy said between stuffing his face with food.

Lucky I speak Luffy.

"Thank you... Just keep up on eating..." "Yes, we are all very glad! Kiyah, Xiou's friends niece who's looking after the ship called... There is a huge storm heading their way and all there repairs have been been pushed back two weeks... So instead of the end of March it will be the start of April." Usopp sighed flopping on the couch.

"Xiou's friends niece... Oh yeah I met her... Her uncle was weird... He had goat horns..."

We kind of relaxed for the rest of the day...

"Nami... I'm going into Silcena, I'll see you in a bit." "But Law said not to leave the house for a day!" Nami protested but I shook my head.
"I'll be fine."

~

Before visiting Xiou I made a stop at a quaint house with grey wooden weatherboards.

I knocked on it three times before he answered.

"How come your out of bed? You should rest for today." He glared at me and I rolled my eyes.

He hasn't got his hat on today so I can see that he has short black hair.

"I don't really care... I wanted to say thank you, you didn't stick around so I couldn't give you your payment or say my thanks." I handed him a rectangle of brown parchment, inside the beli I owe.

"I don't want it." He looked at it like poison.

"Why not?" I asked confused. "I think I'm in love with you." My eyes widened and I dropped the package.
"What?" "I always watch you visit the cemetery through my window... Your always so beautiful... When I saw you at the train station I thought it was fate. That's why I asked you to marry me as a payment."

The information soaked my brain with confusion for what he said and fear for what I'm about to say.

"Law... You can't love someone by just looking at them, you need to know them... What if I was a terrible person? You'd change your mind right? I'm a very broken person inside and out... I'm sure you saw my scars on my legs and arms when you where operating." "I'm a doctor, I can fix you." He cut me off but I shook my head.

"The pain I've gone through can never be fixed... But I can live happily with the man who loves me." "Me, that can be me." He looked at me intently and I shook my head.
"The person I love is Zoro, if you really care about me you'd want me to be truly happy right? Zoro makes me more than happy, I'm complete with him-" "alright! I get it, please stop..." He turned his back and said.

"Perhaps I don't have you in this life... But the next I will." "Sorry, that's reserved for Zoro too... Go find someone to return your feelings Trafalgar Law, I'm sorry... Thank you for everything."

He nodded his head and walked inside.
But before he could close the door I kick the beli in after him.

This I did not expect.

How can you love someone without meeting them?

I hated Zoro the first day I met him.

I though he was a cocky, lazy swordsman...

Never would I think I'd fall in love with him.

But I did.

💜💜(_ _).｡o○💜💜

I walked back home in silence.
As I reached the house Nami and Usopp walked out.
"Oh guys!" I got there attention and the waved. "I'm going to teach Usopp about tangerines!" Nami smiled and they waved to me as they walked off.

I walked inside to see Sanji frustrated trying to light a cigarette.

I held a light up to it and he breathed in heavily.
"Thank you..." He closed his eyes.
"Sanji... You need to quit smoking." I saw a vein in his head form. "We all have our ways of dealing with pain, you train and I smoke... Stop hassling me about it."

Too say I'm worried is an understatement.

"I'm allowed to hassle you about it I'm your sister, your addiction-" "yeah well your not really my sister are you?!"
I gasped at his outrage... Sanji never raises his voice to women... Something has to be bothering him.
"Why are you saying that Sanji? We grew up together, blood isn't an issue." I sat beside and I watched his face twist into pain.
"I want to know who my parents are..." A tear fell down his face.
"Ayami and Hatayo Natsumi are your parents Sanji." He nodded and he rubbed his forehead.

He looks exhausted... What was he doing?

"If you really wanted to find your parents all you'd have to do is go to the North Blue where our parents said you came from and look for people will swirly eyebrows." I winked at him and he laughed.

"I'm kind of bored... I'm going to play with Zoro's kitten, I'll come back later." "YOUR GOING TO PLAY WITH WHAT?" Fire lit I his eyes and I smacked him.
"It's a cat dumb ass."

💛💜💛💜

"Pappadam, you are so cute! Why did your stupid papa leave you all alone? That baka, you could've died so many ways..." I said the a sweet voice tickling Pappadam.
"He's a bit stupid, hai?" "Meow." He purred in appreciation as I petted him with my index finger.

He's so small you can't even use your hand.

"Who would leave such a cute thing in a dumpster?" Pappadam crawled onto my lap and fell asleep.

I swear this cat has adopted Zoro's traits...

He sleeps every hour.

His routine is sleep, eat, being petted and fussed over then some more sleep.

I heard the door open and Zoro walked in with a tired some look.

"Your awake... How do you feel?" He said relieved falling onto the couch.
"I've been awake for a while, I feel like chocolate." "Not like that!" "Shush! Your protege is asleep." I pointed to my lap and he nodded.
"I did teach him well." "Baka! I shouldn't have given you a cat, I knew it!"

"Where have you been anyway?" I pushed Pappadam's ears forward to make his face seem smaller. SO KAWAII!

"Nowhere in particular..." He avoided the question. "Where did you go, Roronoa?" I slanted my eyes at him. "Like I said, where did you go?" I poked his shoulder. "A brothel?" "THE HELL WOULD I GO THERE?!" He shouted and I held a finger to my lips.
"So you don't mind telling me where you went right? It must've been somewhere important if you left another man near me whilst I was unconscious." "Chopper was there too!" He protested and I kind of felt tempted to tell him Law wanted to marry me... But I just don't want to have all that blood to clean.

"Follow me."

I put Pappadam on a cushion and followed him up some stairs... But his this a one story house?

The roof!

He has a flat wooden roof that had an amazing view of the sky.

"Woah..." "Nice, isn't it?"

We sat down on the flat roof and stared at the sparkly sky.

"Do you remember when we first met and we played that question game?" He looked at me but I continued to stare at the setting sun. "Ya ha, why?" "Well... Remember how you asked me two questions at once and I only asked one in return so I had a question left because I was saving it?" I turned to him and raised my eyebrow. "So you could make me answer something truthfully even if I don't want too... That's what you said right? so what?"

"Will you marry me?"

My vision swayed as I saw a silver ring with a steams reaching up to hold a diamond.

Its a flower... WAIT! He said something else...

!!!

"YES!" I jumped at Zoro and attacked him with a hug.

He kissed me passionately, sliding the ring on my finger not breaking the kiss.

I felt the cold metal touch my skin. It fit perfectly.

He laid me back onto the flat surface of the roof.

I put my arms around his neck pulling him closer.

He ran his hands down my physic making me shiver from the delicate touches.

He kissed my neck and I moaned at the unexpected contact.

I pushed him up away from my neck so I could kiss along his sharp jaw line.

"Let's go. Your still weak and need to sleep." He said softly taking me in his arms stroking my hair.

I crawled into his arms and felt in place.
Like I was made to fit in his arms.

"Don't forget that your mine and I won't let a soul hurt you." "Thank you Roronoa..."

He lay me down in bed and before he could walk off I grabbed his arm and pulled him down to the bed.

"Stay with me."

He wrapped his arms around me placing his hands on mine.
He trailed light kisses along my shoulder and I instantly felt calm, like I'd been hit with a shot of sedative.

"Zoro?" I asked turning around to face him "Yeah?"
"Love is a funny word isn't it?" He looked puzzled by this.
"What do you mean?" "I'll never know what it really means... All I know is that it's indescribable..."
"I can tell you what it means to me." He said surprising me.
"Alright..."

"To me love isn't something thrown around lightly, love is more than a feeling but it's another sense. An instinct to be with someone. That's how I feel with you."

I felt quite shocked at what he said, I never thought he was so heartfelt and sincere, it's rare moments like these I question whether it's really him saying these things.

"Wow... That's really deep... I feel... As if I'm in a completely different dimension with you, but as you put it... As another sense I suppose your right. It is rather hard to explain but for us it's just there, it always will be and I don't think the excitement I feel with you will ever leave."

I wrapped my arms around his neck as he kissed me gently, like I was porcelain china, to be cared for with sensitivity and grace.

I broke away and looked at him for awhile.
I just love looking at all his sharp features, an artist eye maybe... I don't know.

But that's what I love, not knowing.

"Zoro, you really want to marry me? I mean... I never thought-" he cut my off with a long, hard kiss sending electricity through me.
"Don't question me, I love you why else would I ask?"

He bit my lip and I gasped.
"Want to know why I said yes?" I kissed my way down his chest very slowly.
"Why?" He said hoarsely and I laughed.
"Because I love you."

He put his his head between my shoulders and wrapped his arms around my waist pulling me I I a tight hug.

I rested the side of my head on his chest reaching my arms half way around him.

I closed my eyes to think about how all of this even happened.

Met a marimo baka.
Found he was a swordsman.
Showed him my scars.
Fell in love...

HOW CAN THAT EVEN MAKE SENSE?

Oh yeah, when it comes to things like this I hear that you drop all things rational and listen to our heart.

What my heart telling me?

'Move closer to his chest!'

HENTAI HEART!

But I do need to listen to it.

A/N pic: ring on side
Next chapter will be the last one... Then the epilogue.

Arigtou (T ^ T)

❤️