Her heels clicked against the smooth marble floor. She scrutinised her latest work, the puddle of crimson blood her victim laid in was conspicuous against the sleek jet black floor. An insidious grin appeared on her face, her hazel eyes sparkled with satisfaction.
" Mr.0? Is everything alright?" After her struggle with her victim, she was not surprised that the ruckus caught the attention of outsiders. She had always wanted to be freed from her boss's tyranny, only having vested interest in historical artefacts. However, she was prohibited from quitting Baroque Works, an organisation for those willing to earn a price for murder. He claimed that she was too valuable an asset to let go; it would be hard to find a replacement. She doubted his remarks, she knew his ulterior motive. He wanted to use her as he did with everyone else. But now, the tables have turned.
She stomped out his strewn cigar, shot the wide window of the hotel room and tied some contraption to a nearby pillar. Clinging onto the contraption, she jumped out of the 150th storey, feeling the adrenaline rush in her veins and the gushing air against her silky skin. She released the parachute and decelerated steeply. Upon touchdown, she realised she was surrounded by the other guards, the millions. They had their guns pointing at her menacingly, threatening to extinguish her life.
" I am the Vice President of our organisation, I suggest you put your guns back in their holsters. I mean no harm." She was always calm and collected in these situations for two reasons. Firstly, she always worked alone and learnt not to show the enemy any weaknesses of else they would have the upper hand, secondly she knew that she would escape alive.
" Tough luck Vice President, we know what you did to Mr.0 and you're gonna pay for it!" An ugly brute from the back bellowed. Honestly, why did they think they had the slightest chance of taking her down?
" Very well, if you want to play with fire, be prepared to be burnt-" She cartwheel-kicked the men's guns and shot the first row of men in their knee. She did not possess a bloodlust unlike the other top assassins in the organisation and certainly knew the meaning of mercy. She always chose the option of spilling less blood than needed. As the first row tumbled forward in agony, the second and third row fired at her continuously, the bullets raining on her mercilessly. She ran towards a nearby alleyway for shelter, her enemies in hot pursuit. She withdrew out 2 submachine guns from her chest holster and returned back the fire power, taking down a few dozen men in one barrel; after all she did have great aiming. She reloaded her guns and gave the men another taste of her killer skills before they had the opportunity to shoot her.
The battle was an easy win as she emerged victorious. She hid in a narrow and dark alleyway, relieved that she managed to shake off that many pursuers. As the adrenaline faded away, a sudden sharp pain gnawed in her left arm. She groaned in agony as she applied pressure on the wound, scarlet red flowing out of it like an endless stream. She was frustrated at herself for being complacent and careless by underestimating the enemy, vice president or not she was still human and was still vulnerable to bullets. As she tore off her coat's sleeve to make a temporary bandage, a blinding light deprived her of her sight for an instant. The deafening whirring of the engine stunned her as she scrambled for an open area to flee in, desperate for an escape.
The motorcycle's light dimmed down, its engine's cacophony dying off. The occupant stared at her blatantly; he donned a black matte jacket that was zipped up until his chest, three swords at his left and a dark green helmet on his head. The helmet obscured her ability to read his expression, but she knew his identity, the scar stretching across his toned chest and the three swords at his side were a dead giveaway.
" Mr Swordsman, I presume you are after my head?" She asked coyly. She liked to toy with her enemies, deluding them of having the upper hand before she could land a deadly blow on them and make a quick getaway. This man was similar to her yet different. They came from the same world, the underground, but had contrastingly similar work. She an assassin and he a bounty hunter, and occasionally they would cross paths. When they did, it would be for fighting against each other or fighting together. However, there was something about this man, he was inhumanly attractive and had a strange aura that intrigued her deeply. There was something about him that made him stand out from the rest, even his flaws and imperfections did not hinder this special something. She was sure it was just the impulsive infatuation getting the best of her but she could not shake off the feeling she had for him in the past few years of knowing him personally. She was never sure if he felt the same for her but there was no point in such knowledge. She was a fugitive and a wanted assassin, any prospect of a relationship with him diminished due to these cruel and daunting facts.
"No. Luffy asked me to pick you up." He replied casually.
"Oh. Are you really the best person for the job? I mean with your bad sense of direction-"
"I have a GPS now."
"Mr Swordsman, we both know it wouldn't help one bit. Why would Luffy want to help me anyway?" she doubted the authencity of Zoro's companion's intentions.
"He says cause you're nakama." Her eyes widened in disbelief.
"Is this some kind of joke? I hardly know the boy." Luffy and Robin barely met at all. She only remembered the boy when he was in the fighting arena, battling her former boss. She heard it was for revenge because he hurt a certain Blunette and her family. She admired his tenacity and determination to beat Crocodile but he failed miserably. Pitying him she took him under her wing, tending to his wounds and away from Crocodile. He thanked her profusely and said that he would repay the kindness, before requesting for food.
"He said something like it was a way to repay you or something… I don't know bout the details, not like I care anyways." Robin shrugged and decided it was best for her to leave with him and escape for the night at least. She needed some time to heal and think of an escape plan from Crocodile and Baroque Works.
"You didn't kill Crocodile off you know." He informed as he passed her a purple helmet. She took the helmet from him gently before staring perplexedly at him.
"How-?"
"Crocodile's heart is on the right side not on the left. You just punctured a lung and they got the best doctors to fix him up."
"Damn. Well at least if I meet him next time I know where to aim." She cursed her luck. It took her months to conjure up this plan but it had been thwarted by his anatomy. Zoro knew she was having a bad night and he wanted to help relieve her burden but there was not much he could do.
The wound in her arm was deep but he had such injuries before and knew how to treat them. He took the shredded cloth that was once her sleeve off her hand and wrapped it around her thin arm, applying some pressure to it before tying the wound up. She protested against this, she could have done it herself but he was adamant about helping her even through the smallest actions.
"Thank you, ." She blushed lightly. Till that night she never experienced any kindness from anyone before and a sudden unfamiliar warmth enveloped her heart. He grunted in acknowledgment and they both got on the motorcycle. After donning their helmets, he kicked start the engine and they zipped off toward the city. She clung on tightly to him, feeling the cool midnight air against her bare skin. She started to dream about this moment and how they could be in each other's embrace rather than she clinging onto him for safety.
Her dream dissipated when the iridescent bright lights of the city awakened her. The neon lights, advertisements, disco lights emanating from the buildings amazed her. The atmosphere so lively and the people felt so alive. How she longed to be like them, to be carefree while living life with no consequences. She could never taste the true taste of freedom; she had to live life on the run from the cops, the assassins, the bounty hunters…
"We're here. See I told you the GPS works." He grinned victoriously. She raised an eyebrow and smiled politely.
"In that case I think the motorcycle drove us here instead of you." He gawked at her and scowled, crossing his arms while seething with frustration. She giggled at his reaction and stared at the neon sign above them.
The Thousand Sunny
Zoro led the way before Robin decided to take the lead, asking him not for directions but descriptions of their true destination inside the Thousand Sunny. He bellowed the instructions through his teeth, displeased at Robin taking advantage of his flaw. The Thousand Sunny turned out to be a nightclub, people were dancing to their heart's content, drinking, laughing, mingling, the works. There were two levels, one for the people who wanted to have a good time and another for the underground or rich and famous to mingle or get down to business. The disco lights radiated a kaleidoscope of colours, giving a different feel to the Thousand Sunny with each colour combination. Zoro described the biggest booth in the middle and a bodyguard allowed them to enter the spiral staircase made of glass. It reflected off the disco lights beautifully and the music was quite hypnotic, even prompting Robin to sway to it.
Upon reaching the second floor, they approached the largest booth, with the curtains drawn and laughter heard from inside. Zoro brushed aside the curtain, revealing 7 people who were in the midst of a lively conversation. A boy with a straw hat grinned gleefully at their new guest.
"Guys! This is Robin! Robin's the one who helped me when Crocodile injured me! Come sit down, enjoy a drink with us!" She shot a polite smile to the youthful boy and took a seat beside a blonde who was busy lighting up a cigarette. His face obscured by his golden locks and he sat casually, one leg over the other. Zoro took a seat beside Robin much to her pleasure. Beside the blonde was a red head, her eyes sparkling with delight, her bubbly personality made Robin feel relieved. She was worried that it was going to be an all men group and if there were women, they would be mean and spiteful. Opposite Robin was a man with puffy curly hair and next to him was a small boy. They seemed to be scheming against the other two beside them. One was a man with blue hair gelled up and the other was a skinny, tall man who sported an afro. Beside them was Luffy, the boy who saved Robin's life at least for tonight.
"Robin… huh another guy-" The blonde replied but when he turned to face Robin, his sudden look of dejection turned to amour. He stared at her with a heart shaped eye, drooling over her beauty.
"MELLORINE! I'm in love…" He fawned over her and it gave her quite a shock. Men did flirt with her but never to this extent. She leaned backwards and almost hit Zoro. Zoro threw the man a look of disgust before muttering something inaudible under his breath.
"Miss, you are so beautiful! I am deeply sorry for mistaking you for a man, my name is Sanji by the way, but you can call me Prince Charming." She giggled at his introduction and was extremely flattered by his flirtations.
"Robin, don't be fooled by this perv, he says these kind of things to any girl. As long as you're a girl you qualify! Hi I'm Nami! Nice to meet you, I'm so glad I'm not the only girl in this group anymore." The orange haired girl extended a hand across the blonde and Robin shook it delightedly.
"He's not the only perv here. There's those two over there Brook and Franky." She pointed to the two men across her, the two tallest men in the group.
" Hey Robin! Oi Nami, you saying I'm a perv, thanks for the compliment!" The man in blue hair smiled back at Nami gratefully. Nami sighed disappointedly. Something told Robin that they had been through this episode before.
"Hello Miss Robin, pleased to meet you, my name is Brook. Now, if you would be so kind as to let me see your panties-" Nami retorted by slamming his head on the table. Robin giggled.
"SHE WILL DO NO SUCH THING!"
"Actually I could if you would like-" Robin replied casually.
"I WOULD WANT TO SEE IT TOO!" The blonde blurted out, red liquid dripping from his nose.
"But, I'm not wearing any now though." Robin poured herself a glass of red wine on the table and sipped it calmly.
"WHAT?" The 8 of them flabbergasted at her reply.
"Well I'm wearing a one piece lingerie right now so it wouldn't really count as panties now would it. But I could show it to you if you want-" It was true. Beneath her coat and dark leather pants she wore a teddy as a top.
"You don't need to do that Robin…" sighed Nami."Those other two are Chopper and Ussop. They're somewhat pranksters, just a heads up for you." Ussop and Chopper looked at Robin mirthfully and waved at her. She waved back.
"I heard you're an assassin is that right Robin?" Luffy exclaimed.
"Why, yes." She smiled politely. Ussop and Chopper had a drastic change in their expressions and cowered in fear behind the curtains from Robin. She giggled at their silliness.
"That's so cool and creepy in a way." Luffy chowed down some of the food in front of him while replying, causing some bits of food and crumbs to be sputtered onto the table.
"LUFFY HAVE SOME TABLE MANNERS! THERE ARE LADIES HERE!" Sanji glared at the Luffy as Luffy stifled out a sorry.
"And I'm sure you've met Luffy, our leader(unfortunately)" Nami sighed again. Robin wondered how she managed to handle these men for so long.
"The one emoing beside you is Zoro. He's real grouchy and lazy so don't get him on his bad side."
"I can hear you woman!" exclaimed Zoro
"Well it's true!"
"Stupid marimo don't you dare be rude to Nami-san!" Robin thought that the blonde sure had some anger management issues.
"You want a piece of me dumb ero cook?" Zoro lashed out.
"I would kick the shit outta ya if only Robin chan wasn't in between us. My deepest apologies Robin chan, but that marimo lacks manners so you are rather unfortunate to be sitting beside him. If you want to exchange seats so that I can kick that marimo for you and Nami san it would be a great honor." Sanji bowed his head towards Robin.
"Oi oi don't act so noble in front of guests you perv." After that remark, both men had a full front battle with each other as they battled each other on the second floor, careful not to hurt anyone else but each other. Sanji applied his powerful kicks and Zoro slashed with his mighty words. The 7 of them looked outside of the booth, Ussop attempting to get everyone to place their bets on the winner. Nami looked on worriedly, her face pallid and frightened. Franky reassured her that this was his night club and if any damage were to be inflicted on the property he would never ask them to pay 'cause my friends are SUPA' according to him. Luffy continued to eat to his heart's content. Robin laughed whole heartedly at this group, they were all so different and yet so lively, the way they react to one another was as if they were family. Robin was pleased to be in their ambience and went on to observe their actions further, even to the point of forgetting that she was still on the run…