A/N: Next 5 here x) I'm having too much fun with these xD

So here is an AU…

11) … In which he had another captain.

He had been walking around (No, he hadn't been lost! He was just taking a walk! Yes, for the last four hours! You have a problem with that?) and passing the beach (What? Was that the same beach? No, it must have just looked the same.) when he witnessed the captain dashing into the water and heading somewhere towards the horizon.

So, naturally, curiosity got the better of him. It was, after all a rare occasion to see Shanks in such a hurry if it didn't include some booze.

And, so, he found himself following the man into the ocean. Not too long after that, he was truly glad he had. The red head didn't seem to even notice the monster that was heading towards the boy, damn it! Stupid, careless idiot!

So, naturally, he had to do something. He couldn't just let the damn Sea King take a bite out of his captain or the kid. Drawing the sword, he sped up and met it just a second before it sank its teeth into something, but the lack of solid ground made him unable to do more than redirect the monster's rage.

So he was just preparing for a fight when he heard the captain's voice.

"Get lost!"

It wasn't the voice itself that made him tense, but the sheer amount of Haki he released with that one order. The captain still didn't have a good enough control over the power, thus having half of the impact land on his crewmate. But, of course, the poor monster suffered the most and he didn't blame it for the terrified expression.

The Sea King fled soon after and he could easily shield the katana and turn to the other two. The kid – Luffy, he remembered – was clenching his captain's shirt, holding himself over the water. That's right, he was a hammer now, after that incident the other day.

Well, that explained Shanks' haste to get to the boy. He noticed the other man had an arm protectively around the boy with his other hand resting on the kid's head. A few words of reassuring later he turned towards him.

"Let's go back, Zoro."

He just nodded and headed after them…

A little while later he looked around with suspicion. Where did the damn beach go!

12) … In which he died.

Marco was always the first to read the paper as soon as it was delivered. The rest of the crew let him do it – no one was in a hurry, and besides, the First Division Commander knew best what would be of interest to Pops. He would read the paper quickly and then leave it to someone else, before flying off to check whatever had caught his interest. It was always better to confirm things by yourself, he said. The reporters couldn't be trusted on all the details.

At that day he was, again, the first to receive the paper. But within the first minute after doing so, it was made apparent something was wrong. They could tell by the way the commander that was never really fazed by anything stiffened, his grip on the paper tightened and his eyes widened in horror.

Then, without a single word, he took the paper and flew off the ship in such a hurry that no one managed to even ask if anything was wrong.

The crew brushed it off. Said it was probably something that was made to look like a big deal, something that wasn't possible, because nothing that really happened could startle him that much.

So they waited. The day passed and most of the Commanders started getting nervous. Marco never took more than an hour or two to return with the information he was looking for. So when the second day passed without a sight of the blue bird riding the wind, the tension could be felt all around the crew.

They had been in the middle of the sea when Marco left, but now they had camped on a nearby island to wait for him.

The third day was coming to an end when they caught sight of him. The phoenix flying over the deep sea grew larger as it neared the shore and the suspicions were confirmed.

Something was terribly wrong.

They could tell by the urgency in his movements, but as if that wasn't alone, there were much more troubling signs. Like the crimson blood that stained the blue wings and later, his body as he transformed back. The wounds were actually there, and that was shocking because really, most of the crew had never seen Marco wounded before. They probably believed that he couldn't even bleed.

Still, even thought he was swaying on his feet, he pushed away all those who tried to help stop him and moved through the crew before he faced the old man.

Stumbling in his haste, he fell to his knees in front of the captain. The strain he was putting on himself to keep what little control he had left was obvious in his tense figure and the quick yet steady gesture in which he handed the paper to the captain.

"This…!" Whitebeard's eyes grew wide as he read through the first page. The First Division Commander bowed his head and leaned back, sitting on his heels shoulders slumped, making him look defeated and weak. When he spoke, his voice was quiet, hoarse and strained.

"It's all true, eh… That bastard Teach became a Shichibukai… By handing them Ace's head."

13) … In which he never got lost.

He sat in a chair, his eyes traveling over the endless sea. There was no more strength in him, no more cheerfulness and life.

Fingers so thin they could have been nothing but bones clenched around the shell. It was a pity, really. Even despite of his ability, despite of every effort he put in it nothing came out of this last try.

They were all dead now. Every single one of them. There was no more singing, no more life, no more hope. None. Nothing.

He had been the last one. The Devil Fruit let him revive to continue and fulfill their promise. Yet he had failed them.

Brook had always been skinny, now he was only bones. He had no strength to even stand, to even lift his hand. The ship kept sailing without a direction and he kept pushing through the days with what little food he had left.

But it was all gone now. How long had it been? Weeks? A month? He wasn't sure. But ever since he had done nothing but remain alive.

Because death wasn't an excuse. Because he had to circle the world, because he had to bring this to Labboon…

But as he felt so weak he couldn't even hold his eyes opened any more, he felt like he had failed.

He pushed the button on the Tone Dial and listened. The voices of his friends filled the ship with life once more and they danced behind his closed lids. A ghost of a smile crept on his face as he closed his eyes and never opened them again.

14) … In which he uses them.

Ever since that day when the damn cook had joined the crew, he couldn't seem to find peace any more. The damn bastard was so annoying and constantly irritated the hell out of him. And the fights… Oh, the fights were the worst of all!

The damn curl brow would spin those kitchen knives like they were nothing! Who would have thought that something as idiotic as cooking could help him acquire such skills? He felt as if all the years he had spent in constant training and struggling to get better were mocked every single time he watched the bastard fight.

How the hell did you become this skilled with blades in the kitchen! The asshole was cheating he was sure of it!

And as if that wasn't enough, his kicks were crazily strong! He'd know, he'd gotten a good taste of them when he pissed the cook royally.

Yet Zoro refused to acknowledge what was making him most irritated at the shithead, and Usopp was dead meat if he ever mentioned something as stupid as him feeling replaced again. Like that moronic idiot would ever match his skills in swordsmanship!

He repeated that again and again as he was getting his ass handed to him by the irritated blond every other day.

15) … In which there was a wolf.

He still remembered the first time he saw Zoro. Everyone had told him to stay away, because it was dangerous and that that thing was a monster, but he still crouched next to him and stared him in the eye.

The unusually colored wolf just stared back with promises of danger in his eyes. Despite his body having been broken and rendered useless at the moment, he still held his gaze and even bared sharp teeth in warning.

That was when Luffy decided he liked him.

A few days (mainly spent in deep sleep), a good bath (in which the wolf had to fish Luffy from the water) and some good meals (mostly devoured by Luffy) and he was as good as new.

At first the others disagreed. They would stand away from the wild animal and try to talk Luffy out of the whim, but there was no helping it. Nami's dog found Zoro extremely annoying, or so it seemed by the way he would always bark at him. There was that one time she let him off of his leash, and Sanji practically jumped the larger canine.

Chopper, though, seemed to like him and after Usopp got over his fear of Zoro and let him go closer to him, the small brown puppy cuddled next to the wolf.

Maybe it was that, or maybe it was the time the green wolf almost jumped that Bellamy guy for trying to provoke Luffy that earned everyone's trust, but not too long after he had made his way into everyone's hearts.

Of course, from the side, Sanji kept on barking.

A/N: Let me summarize the AUs in case somebody missed something:

Zoro is a part of Shanks' crew instead of our favorite Strawhats x) Because I'm sure I read/heard something like this once and I couldn't help myself.

Instead of handing him to the Marines for execution, Teach killed Ace.

Brook's soul never got lost and he found his body before it turned skeleton.

Sanji actually uses his hands in battle on a regular basis. Because we all know that he would be able to kick Zoro's ass if he did that xD

Canine Zoro, Sanji and Chopper and their respective teenage 'owners' xD Must I say anything more?

I'll be working on the next bunch now x)