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In the dead of night, Zoro blinked awake. He looked around, blearily, unsure of what had roused him from his deep sleep.
It couldn't be Luffy, hanging almost fully out of his hammock and snoring right in Zoro's ear.
No. Zoro was used to that.
He was used to all the snoring and grumbling that filled their room.
But something was wrong. Undoubtedly. Zoro couldn't help the wave of unease rising within him. And, as he pushed himself up on his elbows, he realised what it was: Chopper was nowhere to be found.
It hadn't been any noise that had awoken him, Zoro realised as he hopped, silently, out of the hammock, but rather the absence of the little reindeer's even littler snores.
It was pitch black outside, the moon covered by dark clouds. If Chopper wasn't in bed at this time, that wasn't a good sign. Far from it.
Zoro wandered around the inside of the ship, looking for Chopper, before he made his way to the deck. All as quietly as possible. The last thing he wanted was to alert Chopper and have him running off to hide somewhere before Zoro could even get to him.
Zoro scratched at the back of his neck, absently.
It hadn't taken him long to become oddly attached to Chopper. The little reindeer was so much younger than them all – so much tinier and weaker too – that he had awoken an almost paternal instinct in Zoro.
Or something like that, he thought, almost embarrassed to ascribe those words to himself. Paternal? Who was he kidding?
And yet…
When he saw Chopper on the deck, his heart sighed with relief. As it always seemed to do just at the sight of him; as if something in him was saying, "There's my boy." And clenched up again at the sight of his back quivering, obviously from muffled crying.
Zoro closed the gap between them, easily, "Hey, buddy," he said, as he dropped to the floor beside Chopper, startling the boy into letting out a yelp.
"Zoro! You scared me!" Chopper said.
His eyes were large and wet with tears. Tears that – as soon as his fear faded and he realised he had been caught – he frantically began wiping away.
"Did I wake you up?" he asked, from behind his hooves.
As much as Zoro didn't see a point in lying, he didn't see a point in making Chopper feel any worse than he obviously already was feeling. So, instead, he rested his hand gently on the top of Chopper's head. "You had another nightmare," Zoro said, soothing Chopper with gentle pets.
He wasn't asking. He knew. But Chopper nodded in answer all the same.
"Hm-hm." He wiped at his tears once last time, then looked up at Zoro with a watery smile that wasn't fooling anyone. "But I'm all fine now, Zoro, see. I'm big and strong, aren't I, just like you?"
Zoro flicked him on the corner of his ear, no strength behind the movement. "The biggest and the strongest," he agreed, with a warm smile he saved for very few people.
And then Chopper was crying again. With full force this time.
Not thinking, just acting, Zoro scooped him up and held him close to his chest. He let the little reindeer soak his t-shirt and sob all over his shoulder, as Zoro rubbed circles into his back. Silent. Not hushing or asking, just letting him cry it out as much as he needed.
"It was so bad, Zoro," Chopper finally said. Sniffling, but all cried out.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah." Chopper nodded. "You were all hurt and in so much pain and I couldn't save any of you. I tried and tried and tried, but the harder I tried the more obvious it became that I was useless. And I couldn't wake up, Zoro. I knew it was a dream and if I just wake up it would be okay, but I couldn't wake up. I just had to watch… To try and save you and fail… Over and over again…"
"Are you gonna cry again?"
Chopper seemed to think about it for a second. He sniffled, but he shook his head, no .
"Listen to me, Chopper, that would never happen."
"You don't know that."
"I do." He tapped Chopper on the nose. "Because you're our ship doctor."
Chopper clung onto Zoro, hid his face in Zoro's shoulder, and spoke in that way that told Zoro he was probably bright red with a pleasant blush. "You're just saying that to make me feel better."
"Well, do you feel better?"
Chopper nodded. "A bit." Then, shyly, he added, "Thanks, Zoro."
Zoro grunted. "Whaddya thanking me for?" But before Chopper could reply, Zoro stood them both up. Readjusting Chopper so that he settled comfortably in his hold, he said, "C'mon, it's late, let's get you to bed."
"Uhm…" Chopper started, but his voice petered out shyly. As if he couldn't bring himself to say what was on his mind.
But Zoro knew him. Maybe it was that damn paternal instinct again, but Zoro always knew what Chopper wanted or needed or couldn't muster up the courage to say.
He met the little reindeer's gaze and smiled. "Yeah," he said, "You can sleep with me."
Chopper beamed, and squirmed to hold onto Zoro tighter.
"And. You know. I've told you before, but if you have a nightmare, just wake me up."
"I wouldn't want to bother you."
"How would you be bothering me?"
Chopper tapped at his chin for a minute, thinking. Finally, he asked, "You're sure, Zoro?"
Zoro nodded. "Yup."
Firm and final.
He didn't know how to convey to Chopper that he could hit Zoro over the head with one of Sanji's pans at midnight to wake him up from his sleep and it still wouldn't bother him. Not if it was Chopper. Not if Chopper needed him.
He didn't know how to say it, so, instead, he just squeezed Chopper extra tight.
They returned to the room where the others slept on, undisturbed and snoring as loud as ever in testament to that.
Between the time Zoro had left and now, Luffy had fallen completely to the floor. Zoro stepped over him as if he were a pile of old clothes, smiling to himself in the dark as Chopper muffled a giggle at the sight.
Zoro pulled them easily into his hammock.
It took little manoeuvring for him and Chopper to find a comfortable position. Chopper clinging to Zoro, and Zoro running his fingers through Chopper's fur, soothing the little reindeer to sleep.
"G'night, Zoro," Chopper murmured, after a short moment, cuddling closer as he drifted off to sleep.
"Night," Zoro answered, not far behind him.