Author's Note - This was previously the fourth chapter, but i decided it fit better here.

Disclaimer : I do not own One Piece or any of the other fandoms from which names, places, abilities, or references are taken! Imaginary points to anyone who catches said references throughout the story and PM's them to me. Dunno if you'll get anything real, but i give sneak peaks and deleted scenes to my repeated reviewers, so it isn't unthinkable.

Chapter 02 - Bedtime Story

There was once a boy who was determined to become the greatest swordsman in the world. He spent his days training harder than anyone else, and could beat adults with ease, but there was one person he could not beat. His rival was a girl, the daughter of the man who ran the dojo he trained at. They competed over and over, until she had beaten him 2000 times!

Frustrated, he challenged her for the 2001st time, this time with real swords. They fought once more, and once more, she was victorious. He confided in her his dream to become the greatest and discovered she shared his dream, but she believed that she could never achieve it because she was a girl. The boy made her a promise that one day, one of them would be the greatest.

The next morning, the boy discovered that the girl had died. She had fallen down the stairs while fetching a sharpening stone, due to their fight the night before. He became more determined than ever to achieve their goal for her as well. He went to her father and asked for her sword, a beautiful white blade called Wado Ichimonji. From that day forward, the boy developed his own style of fighting. Santoryu. He fought with a sword in each hand and the white sword clenched in his teeth.

He set out to challenge the man currently known as the greatest, but became hopelessly lost. Unable to find his rival or his way home, he became a bounty hunter, defeating pirates to pay for meals and housing. He became known as the greatest swordsman in East Blue.

Then one day he acted in defense of a little girl and was bound to a post as punishment. They told him he would go free if he survived a month there, but the man who had tied him up planned to execute him after two weeks.

That is when he met the Pirate King. Oh, he wasn't the Pirate King yet, but he was already determined to become so, and he asked the swordsman to join his crew. To gain him as his crew mate, this man stole the swordsman's swords from the marine who was going to execute him and returned them.

Deciding that so long as he was able to pursue his dream of becoming the world's greatest swordsman, he agreed and became the ally of this pirate. Together they set out to explore the world and pursue their dreams. As they traveled, they gained nakama, and although he grew to care about them all as family, none were the same as his captain.

The swordsman set out to become the world's greatest swordsman, but somewhere along the way he found something more important. He became loyal to his captain beyond any understanding. He made it his dream to make this man the Pirate King.

He fought by his nakama and developed special relationships with all of them. The shipwright could repair a damaged sword. The sniper would cover his back in a fight. The navigator would drink with him when they had time to kill. The cook was his friend even if they did not show it. They laughed until morning when they shared night watches. The doctor was like his little brother. He took special care to help him never take a life. The musician was his sparing partner, although the swordsman always won.

But the archaeologist was special to him. Although at first he distrusted her intensely, he grew to love her, and she grew to love him. Together, the swordsman and his nakama sailed the Grand Line and reached Raftel. Along the way, he took the title of greatest in the world when he broke the black blade Yoru.

As they traveled back from Raftel, they spent all of their time together. They considered names for their future children, and even what they might do when their journey was over. But the swordsman never got to live out those plans.

As the pirate crew reached the place where their journey had begun, the captain took aside his cook and swordsman and explained to them that in order for his nakama to have a chance at a peaceful life to fulfill their dreams, he was giving himself up to the marines. Of course, his friends were angry with him, but they respected him.

The swordsman had set out at this man's side. They began their journey together, and he decided it was only right that they end it together as well. The next morning, he went to his death side by side with his captain. His archaeologist wept for him.

Now, that swordsman was very distinctive. Everyone knew him on sight. He had green hair, like moss, which the cook always mocked him for. He had eyes the color of the sea during a storm. And in addition to his three swords, he also wore three golden earrings. When he died, his swords were buried with him, but his earrings were passed on to the archaeologist to remember him by.

A few days later, she discovered she was expecting children. Her heart was broken again, knowing the swordsman would never know his children, and they would never know their father, but she was happy too. He would live on in them.

Months later, she gave birth to twin girls. She named one after the swordsman's childhood friend and rival, and she named the other after her own mother.

Robin smiled at the two young girls sitting side by side on the bed. They had asked for a story, and she could think of no better story to tell them on the anniversary of his death. She pulled an envelope from her pocket and carefully slid two golden earrings into the palm of her hand.

"That swordsman would want his daughters to have these." She turned her head to show the third dangling from her own ear as she handed one to each child. They understood what her story really meant.

"You miss him." One of the girls, Kuina, said calmly. She reached forward and hugged her mother.

"Yes I do. Very much." Robin gently swapped the gold earrings with the simple ones the girls had been wearing since they had gone and pierced each others ears in an attempt to be more like their mother. "But I have you two. And you both have his eyes."

"Ace looks just like his father, doesn't he? That's what Nami said." Olivia toyed with the earring curiously. She had not been completely sold on the idea of stabbing a piece of metal through her sister's ear, but now that they got to carry something from their father, maybe it was worth it.

"He does. But he has his grandfather's mind." Robin thought about having another Dragon roaming the world. She wasn't sure they were ready for that and more than a second Luffy. "You two need to get to sleep now. I can tell you more stories tomorrow."

"Goodnight Mom!" The girls called out in unison. Robin left the room and played with her own earring.

"Oh Zoro... I wish you could see them." Robin closed her eyes for a moment, then sighed. "Someday."

I didn't actually intend for Robin and Zoro to have children when i wrote the first chapter, but they were the very next characters i added.