Before They Were Pirates

Author's Note: Hurray! Time for Robin! I hope you all enjoy it. Please Review!

Chapter Seven - Robin: Before the Bloom


Robin lounged in a chair on the grassy desk of the Sunny; a heavy book laid across her lap. The pages were covered with spidery writing but it was an image to the side that had caught her attention. It was a drawing of the great tree library of Ohara and it caused old memories to flood her mind.


Two year old Robin ran up to her mother on the beach; beaming proudly as she held up a handful of rocks for inspection.

"Look! I'm a arc-ololo-gist too!" She announced happily.

"You are?" Her mother smiled fondly as she knelt down to see what treasures her little girl had unearthed. "Ah, let's see...oh yes, this one looks like it was broken by something. See the flat edge here? Oh, and this one is smooth because it was probably in the sand near the ocean."

Robin nodded seriously, absorbing the details her mother was pointing out like a sponge. The little girl loved to learn new things and the best part of learning was the way one new discovery led to another, until she had a whole trail of new things to show for her effort.


By two and a half, Nico Robin had already nearly worn out her little collection of children's books and had begged until her mother cautiously allowed her to visit Ohara's amazing library. She loved looking through the books there, though some of the larger words were beyond her current level of understanding. She could still usually get the idea of what they were about. They were much better than the fairy stories she had at home too, because they were about things that really happened.

With so many amazing things that had really happened, why did people need to make up stories at all?


Robin didn't know where her mother went when they went to the great library. She only knew she was always told to stay in the front rooms and listen to the older archeologists that sat around reading or talking quietly.

Once, she had tried to find her and the little girl had been somewhat confused to find no sign of the blonde woman anywhere in the library, even when she snuck up to the upper floors. Then Olivia had come rushing out of a room that Robin was sure she had just checked. The older woman scolded her for wandering off.

"I won't be able to bring you here anymore if you can't follow the rules like I taught you to."

Dark eyes widened in dismay and alarm. "I'll be good!" Robin promised quickly. "I promise I won't do it again."

Olivia held her stern expression for a few more seconds before she gave in to the small smile that was threatening to break free and ruffled her precocious four year old's dark hair affectionately.

"Okay." She sighed. "You're just too much like your mother I guess."

Robin blinked up at her mother with a hesitant smile. "So...I can still come to the library?"

Olivia nodded. "Always, sweetie." She smiled back. "You can even come here without me if you want to."

Robin was too excited by this new freedom to notice the sadness in her mother's voice.


"Brat! Where are the apples I told you to pick yesterday?"

Five year old Robin ducked as a wicker basket was flung at her head by her aunt. She scrambled after it, to pick it up before the woman could find further reason to berate her.

"I ran out of time with all my other chores." The little girl protested quietly, already knowing it would do no good but unable to hold her tongue.

"Excuses!" The older woman fumed. "Well, go get them now and be quick about it. I have guests coming over later and I need them to bake a tart."

"Yes, Ma'am." The dark haired child made a hasty exit and hurried to the small grove of fruit trees her aunt and uncle maintained on the edge of town.

She struggled with the heavy ladder and scrambled up into the first tree, picking all the apples she could reach before moving on to the next tree.

She was nearly finished filling the basket when she saw something strange in the tree near her. It was half hidden by leaves but when she brushed them aside it was immediately clear to the intelligent little girl that it was no apple. It was a pale pink thing and actually looked more like a fat flower than a fruit at all, with delicate swirled petals cupping the main body of the fruit.

Curious, Robin reached out and plucked the fruit free to get a closer look at it.

"Akuma no mi?" She mumbled curiously as she realized what the unusual thing must be.

She had only read a little bit about them, because they were widely believed to be a myth and she preferred history. Clearly she shouldn't have dismissed them so quickly. Still, she knew enough to be able to decide which question she needed to ask next.

"So which one is this?" She pondered aloud.


Two days later, after spending all of her few spare hours deep in the great library, Robin had her answer.

The image in the book was old and not well drawn but it was too similar to the fruit, which she had secreted away under the floorboard in her room, for it to be anything else.

"The Hana Hana no Mi gives the user the ability to bloom any part of their body from any nearby solid surface. The user can then control the multiplied limbs at will. The limits of this power are unknown; although, as with all Akuma no Mi, the user forfeits the ability to swim in return for the abilities they gain." She read the passage aloud to herself as an idea struck her that she hadn't thought of before.

When she had first found the Hana Hana no Mi, she had thought it might be valuable; and it was that. However, now that she knew it didn't do anything horrible; like the one that could turn someone into mud, or anything stupid like the one that would turn the user's body into rubber; it actually occurred to her that it might be worthwhile to eat it herself.


That night, Robin lay in her room on her bed and studied the almost pretty looking fruit thoughtfully. The light from the moon shone on it where she had placed it on her pillow, while she considered her choices.

On one hand, it was probably worth more beri than she could ever hope to see but she wasn't overly interested in money. On the other hand, she would be able to finish her chores much more quickly with extra hands to help her along, which would mean more time to spend in the library.

Robin picked up the fruit and thought of all the long hours of cleaning that she did for her aunt and all the books she still needed to read if she wanted to be an archeologist and go on expeditions like her mother did.

The dark haired child brought the fruit to her lips and hesitated for only a moment before she took a bite. She frowned at the flavor; like dirt and moldy old leaves, but she swallowed and determinedly took another bite.

She had never cared much for swimming anyway.


"Agh! It's her! Hide!"

The small group of children scattered out of Robin's path as she walked towards the library; clutching the book she was returning to her chest like a shield. She had accidentally revealed her powers a couple months earlier. Ever since then she had been regarded with fear and suspicion by everyone but her friends at the library. The children were the cruelest about it; even going so far as to throw rocks at her a time or two.

"My mom says she's a monster." One little girl whispered loudly.

"Yeah, my dad says that if you eat one of the akuma no mi, you have to give up your soul." An older boy claimed.

"Plus, all those arms are creepy!" Another child insisted. "Even her mother doesn't want to be around her."

Robin stopped walking, shoulders shaking. Her mother loved her and she'd be back. That's why the little girl needed to become a real archeologist soon; so she could go with the white haired woman on her next expedition. Besides, she didn't think her power was creepy; she thought it was kind of beautiful. Maybe they just needed a demonstration. "Three Hands." She mumbled under her breath, since she'd found that stating what she was trying to bloom helped her visualize it in her head. Pale arms reached out of the ground and caught each of the whisperers by the ankle. "Trip."

A chorus of surprised and angry shouts followed her as she continued on her way. She knew she'd be in trouble if word got back to her aunt, but she just couldn't resist.


Robin's memories were interrupted as she had to hurriedly move from her chair to keep from being tackled by her captain. The rubber man was playing some sort of elaborate game of tag with Usopp and Chopper and they had been making a nuisance of themselves all morning. She sighed as she eyed the broken remains of her chair and the tangle of laughing bodies.

Luffy grinned up at her from the bottom of the pile. "Ne, Robin, do you want to play with us?" He asked eagerly.

Robin considered the question before a small smile spread across her features and she nodded agreeably. "Certainly, Captain. I will be it."

"Great! Shishishi!" The rubber man hopped up; flinging the other two off him with ease.

"Ow!" Usopp complained, before launching into all the reasons he shouldn't be thrown that way.

"Okay, Robin!" Luffy ignored the protests with practiced ease. "Ready?"

The dark haired woman nodded. "Mm. Ready. Set." She paused as the trio of overgrown children tensed. "Go."

All three took off across the deck at top speed and Robin gave them a moment before crossing her arms. "Tres Manos." She announced with a smirk, as arms bloomed from each young man's back. "Tag. Game over."

Luffy laughed and Usopp and Chopper complained she was cheating but she merely chuckled.

"Sorry." She offered lightly, amusement twinkling in her eyes. "I simply couldn't resist."

Author's Note: Hmm...I hope you all liked it. I'm not sure how I feel about it. Robin is hard to get a grasp on because she's so quiet. Ah well. Please review! Next Chapter: Franky! Before Tom's Workers.