Night fell. The castle was lively.
The addition of Hiluluk and Chopper made the atmosphere even more cheerful. Stella sat by the fireplace, watching them play, a soft smile on her face. Her hand rested gently on her rounded belly.
Tesoro crouched beside her, carefully massaging her calves. "Are you tired? Do you want to rest first?"
Stella shook her head and said softly, "Days like this... I feel very happy."
Rhett leaned against the window, blood mist swirling around his fingertips. His gaze swept over everyone in the room. Hiluluk laughing. Chopper, shy and a little nervous. Perona and Laboon, excited. Kureha, looking resigned. Tesoro, tense and anxious.
"Hey, Tesoro." Rhett suddenly spoke.
Tesoro looked up. "Hm?"
Rhett's lips curled up. His crimson eyes reflected the firelight from the hearth. "Are you ready to be a father?"
Tesoro froze for a moment. Then a bright smile spread across his face. "Of course!"
Outside the window, the snowstorm still raged. But inside the castle, it was as warm as spring. Heheh, just kidding. Outside the castle, it was also warm as spring.
---
Ever since Chopper came to the castle, Laboon had been especially close to the little blue-nosed reindeer. Perhaps it was the bond of being "different." Or perhaps Laboon was simply born with a gentle, protective nature. Either way —
"Big Brother Laboon!"
Chopper stood nervously in front of Laboon. His small hooves fidgeted. His eyes were watery, like a poached egg, as if he might cry at any moment.
Rhett: Once again, he marveled at the greatness of One Piece.
Laboon tilted its head and gently patted Chopper's head with its fin. "Woo? (What's wrong?)"
Chopper lowered his head. His voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz. "D-Did I cause trouble for everyone? Dr. Kureha says my medicine always fails. Dr. Hiluluk's medicine is too strange... Am I really... useless?"
Laboon blinked. Suddenly, it opened its fins wide and pulled Chopper into an embrace.
"Woo! (Not at all!)"
Laboon gently patted Chopper's back with its fin, as if comforting him. Then it seemed to think of something. It let go of Chopper and ran to the kitchen.
A few seconds later, it came back with a piece of meat held between its two fins. It placed it in front of Chopper. "Woo! (Eat!)"
Chopper stared blankly at the meat. "Th-This is...?"
Laboon puffed out its chest proudly. "Woo! (Special grilled meat that Buggy taught me! I flew across the room the first time I ate it, but it's delicious!)"
Chopper took a small, tentative bite. His eyes instantly lit up. "Delicious!"
Laboon nodded approvingly. Then it pointed a fin at itself, then at Chopper. "Woo! (From now on, you're my little brother!)"
Chopper froze. "L-Little brother?"
Laboon grinned. "Woo! (That's right! Big Brother Laboon will protect you. We're family now.)"
Chopper's eyes filled with tears again.
Laboon saw Chopper getting teary-eyed and panicked. Its fins flailed uselessly in the air. "Woo?! Woo?! (Huh?! Why are you crying?!)"
It spun around in place twice, then suddenly had an idea. It remembered how Rhett comforted Perona. Give her candy!
So it shot off like an arrow, dived into the kitchen, and came back with a large jar of honey held between its two fins. It plopped it down in front of Chopper.
"Woo! (Don't cry! Eat something sweet!)"
Chopper sniffled. He looked at the jar of honey, which was taller than he was. Tears were still on his face. "Th-This is way too much..."
Laboon tilted its head in thought. Then it dipped the tip of its fin into the honey and carefully brought it to Chopper's mouth. "Woo~ (Ahhh——)"
Chopper stopped crying and smiled. He opened his mouth. "Ahhh——"
The honey was sweet. Chopper's eyes lit up again. "Mm! It's so good!"
Laboon sighed in relief and happily wagged its tail. But then —
"SMACK!"
Its tail accidentally knocked over the woodpile by the fireplace. The logs came crashing down, almost hitting Kureha, who had been dozing off.
Kureha jolted awake. "THWACK!" She hit Laboon on the head with her bottle. "You little brat! Keep it down!"
Laboon: "Woo..." (Covered its head, looking hurt.)
Chopper immediately stepped in front of Laboon. His small hooves spread wide. "D-Dr. Kureha! It's my fault for making Big Brother Laboon sad! Don't hit it!"
Kureha raised an eyebrow at the two little ones. Then she grinned. "Fine. Tonight, you two are going to organize all the medicinal herbs in the castle."
Laboon & Chopper: "...Woo/Huh?!"
And so, that night, among the piles of herbs, Big Brother Laboon and his new little brother Chopper spent their first "brotherly" evening together. Warm and exhausting.
---
Lately, Laboon had noticed that his little brother Chopper didn't seem very confident. Why was that?
Suddenly, a light bulb appeared over Laboon's tiny head. It imagined a few people in its mind.
Brook was very confident. Shanks was very confident. Buggy was very confident. Captain Roger was very confident. Laboon itself was very confident. They all had one thing in common. They all had their own hats. With that thought, Laboon ran back to its room, put on its small backpack, grabbed Chopper, and rushed out.
Laboon dragged Chopper along at full speed. Its tail wagged furiously. Chopper's hooves barely touched the ground. He was flying behind Laboon like a kite.
Chopper (panicking): "B-Big Brother Laboon! Where are we going?!"
Laboon (determined): "Woo! (To buy hats!)"
Because confident people all wear hats!
Rhett: ????
---
When Laboon and Chopper stepped into the town, the normally busy streets fell silent.
Shopkeepers stared, their goods falling to the ground. Children hid behind their parents in fear. A few drunkards even smashed their bottles and shouted, pointing at them.
"Monsters! A blue-nosed reindeer and a walking whale!"
Chopper's feet suddenly stopped. His ears drooped. He instinctively shrank behind Laboon. "B-Big Brother Laboon... let's go back..."
Laboon felt Chopper trembling. It looked down at its little brother, then looked up at the frightened faces of the humans. Anger flickered in its eyes.
But it didn't move. It gently patted Chopper's head with its fin. "Woo! (Don't be afraid.) Your big brother is here. I said I would buy you a hat, and I will."
Then it pulled Chopper forward and continued walking toward the hat shop.
The hat shop owner was a wrinkled old man. The moment he saw Chopper and Laboon, he slammed the door shut and locked it from the inside. "Get lost! Don't cause trouble here, you monsters!"
Chopper's tears were already welling up in his eyes. "I-I'm sorry... let's go, Big Brother Laboon..."
Laboon didn't move.
It stared at the closed door. Slowly, it raised its fin and took off its Seastone bracelet.