A/N: I once told myself thatI would complete this story even if it killed me. Well, I'm not dead yet, and I hope that some of the people that once enjoyed this story will have a chance to read future chapters. I have found some free time and motivation, so I hope I can give you all some good entertainment with this. As always, review to your heart's content and hold nothing back. I have thick skin, I promise.

Disclaimer: If I owned One Piece, maybe Oda would be writing fanfics. I don't, he's not.

Robin sat down beside his bed, on the dismal little wooden stool. The light was dim, and seemed to play off his face in dark orange flickers as he lay. She could see the sweat beading on his forehead, and dabbed it with a towel from the desk. For a while she sat in silence, listening to him sleep until her breath began to match his own. There was a silence in this room that she had never known around Luffy before. Even his breath seemed shallow as his chest rose and fell underneath the thin woolen blanket that covered him.

She reached a hand across the bed and laid it on his cheek. He felt warm. It almost seemed as though he may wake up at any moment. As if he was merely having a nap during a long day on the Sunny-Go, where he and Usopp and Chopper had been jumping and running all around. She could picture it as if from her lawn chair; book in hand, Sanji serving drinks and snacks, the sun shining, and a cool sea breeze floating softly over the deck.

This was not the Thousand Sunny though, and there was no breeze in this dark, humid room. The days had been filled with stress instead of frivolity, and Robin was one of the few that truly recognized the peril that they now faced. The Marines were searching, and would soon find out that a pirate ship was docked just off the grove. Zoro, Sanji, and Franky were strong and the whole crew was ready to fight, but Luffy had always been their morale. He was and would always be their purpose. Not a single member of this small crew would be here if not for the unrelenting courage and fortitude of this man. Young, strong, and proud; he would definitely wake up, but when? They were expecting a fight soon. Would they have to stand without Luffy? No, most likely they would run. They would take Luffy and get on the Thousand Sunny, setting off toward Fishman Island. It would not be easy though, and it would not be the same without their confident and happy-go-lucky captain to encourage them.

"Luffy…" she began unsteadily. "We're all waiting for you." She brushed his rough, black hair back off his forehead. He looked so young laying there. As strong as he was, it was easy for her to forget that he was still a boy in many ways. When she spoke again, she spoke softly, as a mother to a child.

"We put so much on your shoulders. How is it that you never seem to feel the weight of it all? You're just a boy, but I've never met a better man. Come back to us soon, we need you." She smiled. Somehow, in her attempt to be comforting, she had been comforted herself. "Of course, if we're caught, we'll be dead before you wake up."

She leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the forehead before making her way back to the door. When she walked out into the main room, the light from the windows made her squint. As she reached the table she thought she saw faint smiles as the rest of the crew watched her approach. If so, they did not last long however, and she sat down and took Nami's hand.

After a moment of silence and awkward glances, he stood. Tall and thin, but with a grace all his own, he stepped toward the door and gave it a push with his bare, skeleton hand.