A/N: This story is dedicated to and inspired by a cute AU picture drawn by one of my fellow Frobin fans, Konfuse. I loved it so much that I felt like I had to write this, so I hope you will check out their stuff and enjoy.
Nico Robin froze mid page turn.
She glanced over her shoulder. She felt like she was being watched, which should not be at all possible as she had been careful to ensure she was not being followed on her way to the beach. She scanned the horizon for ships, but there was nothing there. She crossed her arms willing eyes to pop up at cliffs which served as the doorway to this particular area. Years on the run had taught the young woman that it there was no such thing as being too careful. She was an outlaw after all.
She sighed, lifting her book to read once more; there was nobody around.
"Whatcha reading?" A young man's voice said from just in front of her.
Robin leapt back and crossed her arms defensively. In front of her, half submerged by the incoming surf was a shirtless blue-haired man, wearing a pair of googles. His brow stood out from the rest of his face, partially lidding his eyes which were traced with long dark lashes. The wave retreated revealing the blue fishtail which made up the bottom half of his body. Robin's eyes grew wide. The merman smiled.
"Sorry," he said, lifting a hand in apology. "I didn't mean to startle you. I was just curious what you were reading, that made you have to keep it a secret."
Robin blinked at him. "What do you mean?"
The merman rolled over onto his side, pouting slightly.
"You know," he grumbled, obviously confused. "What's in the book? Someone's diary? Ways to murder someone? Smut?"
He beamed on the last one, sending a flash of irritation through the young woman. In a swift terse motion she lifted the cover for him to see: The Little Mermaid.
Silence passed between them. Honestly, the irony of the situation was lost on Robin, so she patiently waited for how the young man would respond.
The merman's face contorted into an ugly grimace before he burst out laughing."Then what the hell were you acting so paranoid for?"
Robin scowled at him and bit her bottom lip. It was all she could do to keep from yelling at him that she was the secret. It was better for both of them if he didn't know who she was. She took a deep breath and perched back on the rock which had served as her reading bench. She smiled.
"If you must know, I'm waiting for someone," she stated, as she began to resume reading. It wasn't totally a lie; the captain of the ship which had dropped her off in this town had instructed her to meet him here for pick-up.
The merman stopped laughing. Robin stared at him as a sense of solemnity washed over his face.
"You wouldn't happen to be Nico Robin would you?" He asked, shifting his weight back slightly.
The young woman's whole body went numb. This was the moment that she always dreaded whenever she met someone new. She drew her feet and book close, preparing herself for if this young man attempted to drag her into the sea.
"Yes," she said cautiously.
The young man's eyes grew wide. Robin crossed her wrists. She could hear the blood beginning to rush through her ears as her heart thudded in her chest. The man lifted one arm off the sand. Robin closed her eyes.
"They totally ditched you," she heard him say, nonchalantly.
She opened her eyes to see him pointing off towards the west. Her jaw dropped open as she tried desperately to think of a response. However, her mind was totally blank.
"Yeah, their captain was all like, 'that girl is cursed' and they left," the young man continued. "You don't look like you're cursed though, so I don't know what his problem was."
Robin felt her heart sink. She relaxed back into her original sitting position.
"No," she murmured. "It's true. I am cursed."
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"You've heard of Devil Fruits right?" she said, situating herself a little bit closer to him. He nodded. "Well when I was little, I ate one before I can even remember, and now…"
She crossed her wrists, and several arms sprung from her back. The young merman stared at her in amazement. Robin gulped, it was the first time that someone seemed to have such a positive reaction to her powers. The young man leaned towards her.
"That's amazing!" he exclaimed. "That's not a curse. That's freakin' super! Imagine the stuff you can get done with all those hands."
Robin found herself giggling.
"It is rather useful," she admitted before looking wistfully out over the ocean. "But the god of the sea has forsaken me…"
The merman frowned, clearly deep in thought. Then he looked up at her.
"Would you like to see it?" he said.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"The ocean," he replied simply. "You need to get off this island right? I could take you to a nearby ship, and show you some of the sights on the way."
Robin's eyes grew wide. "You mean you could show me the coral reefs?"
"Yeah, sure. There's a few around here I think."
She had only been able to read about them in books and get colorful glimpses through the waters surface from the safety of the ship's deck. She had never dreamed of the possibility. But a cold sensation ran down her spine. What if this was a trick? Though, he seemed honest enough. She let out a sigh and placed her book on the rock; if she was going underwater, she certainly couldn't take it with her.
The young man beamed. He hopped back into the surf and waited for her to wade in next to him. Once she was waist deep in the water, he placed himself in front of her. She hesitated for a moment as she looked down at his broad muscular shoulders, but eventually wrapped her arms around them.
"Just know I get weak in the water," she warned, pressing her cheek on one shoulder.
Hands pulled the goggles from his head onto hers. Robin adjusted them with one hand so the lenses covered her eyes. Then the merman gripped her arms tightly against him.
"Don't worry I'll take care of you," he reassured her.
Then they dove into the water.
Until they left the beach far behind them, the merman stuck to the surface of the water, frequently checking in with Robin about how she was feeling. She admitted that she was feeling a little bit numb, but she was fine. Then, once they passed some large rock structures, the merman stopped.
"We're going to continue underwater from here," he said, ruffling his hair.
Robin's eyes grew wide. Was it possible that this merman didn't know that much about humans.
"But I won't be able to breathe," she gasped.
From his hair, the young man pulled out a small piece of pink coral. He showed it to her and smiled. "Just trust me on this one… now take a deep breath."
Robin did and the man slowly sank them into the water. As her head became fully submerged, she watched as a large bubble emerged from the piece of coral. The bubble grew and grew until it covered her entire upper body. The strength returned to her arms..
"Now breathe," the merman instructed.
And Robin did. It was amazing. Before she even had time to stop and question whether it was possible, she started talking.
"How is this possible?" she asked.
The man chuckled as he began to swim forward again, clutching her legs as if giving her a piggyback ride.
"It's called bubble coral," he explained. "You can take the goggles off now if you like."
Once she did she couldn't help but gasp. The ocean was so beautiful from beneath the surface.
Above them the sunlight danced like little shards of glass, while below them debris from ships long abandoned were bathed in blue light and plant matter. Robin even thought she spotted a skeleton or two.
"It's beautiful," she whispered.
"Isn't it?" he replied.
They swam for almost an hour like that, occasionally stopping for Robin to get a better look at something. She would ask questions about the different fish that they passed, and the young man would answer to the best of his ability. She learned his name was Franky and that he was in the area because of a project his adopted father was working on. She told him about her life on the run, and he listened.
Pretty soon, the hull of a ship with its anchor dropped came into view. Robin clutched The young man tightly. Now that the moment had arrived, she didn't want to go.
"That should be a merchant ship," Franky said, as they got closer. "There's no sea-stone and it's too fat to be the average pirate ship."
"You sure know your stuff," she mused.
"Well, I love ships," he said, with a noticeably strained cheer in his voice. "I'm going to drop you off on the starboard side."
They swam past a pair of fishing lures that were hung over the port side, before surfacing on the other side of the ship. The two looked up at the sails and flag. A skull and crossbones surround by a bright green laurel, billowed in the wind. Pirate ship.
"Dammit," the young man hissed.
"This is fine," Robin whispered.
"Are you sure?"
She nodded and crossed her wrists. A rope made of arms dropped down from the deck's edge. Franky swam her over to it. The rope then grabbed Robin, and lifted her out of the water. She smiled down at the merman who watched her in awe.
"Thank you for everything," she said, grasping one of the arms. "I had fun."
"Same," the young man chuckled. "We should do it again sometime."
She smiled. "If we meet again."
He lightly grabbed her ankle and shook it playfully.
"Guess I'll just have to sell my voice to get a pair of these," he teased.
She kicked him off and laughed. "Then how would you tell me about all the amazing things in the ocean? And furthermore what will I do if you turn into seafoam?"
Franky winked.
"Well, then you better kiss me before that happens."
Robin felt her cheeks grow hot. Perhaps it was just her acclimating to being back in the sunlight, but that didn't explain her heart beating so fast. Franky's dark gray eyes were locked with hers.
There was suddenly a loud crash from atop the deck and men's yelling, snapping her back to reality. Franky clearly had been brought back to reality as well.
"Take care of yourself, Nico Robin," he whispered.
She nodded.
"Until we meet again, Franky."
Then she disappeared over the ship's edge, and resumed her life as an outlaw.