WARNING, I suppose, this story WILL be taking some liberties with certain DC characters. Also, while I'm going to try to avoid One Piece spoilers past chapter 1040, I can't promise none with slip though. Also, this story will contain my own speculations with how OP will eventually end.

Robin was in a contemplative mood as she steered her car -such a wondrous invention, why hadn't anyone in her own world come up with it?- through the ill-kept streets of Bludhaven and passed the city limits until she reached her and Franky's home. The house they'd built together was comfortably situated in a rural area outside of the city; perched on a cliff overlooking the Pacific ocean and surrounded by a thick forest of trees that gave them all the privacy they needed.

As she took in the building before her, Robin couldn't help but smile. It truly was a creation of hers and Franky's imagination; a testament to their respective skills, and built with their own hands -though Robin provided a few more, in that respect. Robin had poured over magazines and books on architecture, studying the pros and cons of different styles both in terms of looks and defensibility, before deciding on a Colonial Revival–style house. The majority of the home was white but they'd painted the shutters and doors calming shades of green, gray, and cream. Several brick chimneys jutted from the roof like towers and their modest grounds were covered with flourishing Anglican-style gardens. Ivy, white O'Hara roses, boxwood topiary, Annabelle hydrangeas, a mixture of other flowers, and creeping fig blanket moss created a lush oasis. Overall, Robin liked to think she and Franky managed to create a home with an elegantly classic, yet timeless aesthetic.

And yet... all of that beautifully crafted exterior was just for show. Though you'd never be able to tell from looking at the outside, the glorious exterior of the house was nothing but a carefully constructed shell for their secret fortress. The glass in the windows was the same Franky as used for the Sunny's windows, aquarium bar, and The Shark Submerge III. Both incredibly durable, to the point of being able to withstand bullets and hurricane-force winds, and easy to clean, it was a safe choice. The doors and walls were reinforced with Wapometal and the entire building along with its surrounding perimeter was defended by the tightest security system that they both could think of. Even the internal rooms, as richly furnished and beautifully decorated as they were, very rarely saw use.

'No,' Robin thought to herself as she slipped through the dark rooms and into a secret elevator hidden behind a bookcase. 'The real magic is hidden underneath.'

Both Franky and Robin had lived difficult lives full of strife and fear. They knew the importance of hiding vital truths -names, locations, and secrets- and how crucial having a place hidden and defended from the rest of the world could be. So, while their first base of operations after arriving in this new world had been a littoral cave in the cliffside, big enough to hide the Thousand Sunny and small to go unnoticed later a bit of clever camouflage. From there, they'd drilled rooms and halls into the stone; these passages would continue to expand until they connected to the surface. It had taken months of hard, laborious work, especially since Robin was also working on getting the company up and running. They'd needed capital, after all.

'And it was all worth it in the end,' Robin thought to herself. 'Perhaps this isn't our true home, sailing the seas with everyone else, but it is a home. One where Franky and I have each other. I'm not alone again.'

Speaking of Franky...

Robin smiled when she saw the little sign above his workshop door was lit up red. That light was one of the codes that made their relationship work; when it was green, Robin was welcome to come and go at her heart's content but, when it was red, that meant Franky was working on something dangerous or volatile. Robin had something similar. When she hung a little tree-themed wind chime on the doorknob of her office, it was a sign she needed quiet. Over the years, they'd grown to have their own special, silent language of touch and gestures. Simply put, she and Franky understood each other.

Giving the door a soft knock to let Franky know she'd arrive home safe, Robin made her way to the master bathroom. As the enormous tub filled up, Robin slid out of her heels and shimmied out of her dress, letting it fall to the floor. Switch to start some soft music, she pinned her long hair up and sank into the hot water.

"Ahhhh," Robin sighed, breathing in the steam.

Within moments, a familiar numbness overtook her body. And yet... it was not as powerful, not as debilitating, as what Robin was used to. Though she could not prove it, Robin wondered if this world's water lacked the power that it had in her own. There were, to her knowledge, no Devil Fruits in this world. Therefore, the sea could not have the same level of hatred for those who'd consumed the cursed fruits, so its grip on them wasn't as powerful.

Granted, Robin still couldn't swim and prolonged exposure to any standing water would still zap her strength. As such, even living next to a coastal cliffside, she did her best to avoid it.

Closing her eyes, Robin couldn't say how much time had passed before the tell-tale sound of metal shifting against metal entered the room. The water was still warm, but with Franky's heat sustaining tub -perfect for long, cold nights on the open seas- that didn't mean off.

"How was your day?" she asked, opening one eye.

"Eh, the usual. Did some fine-tuning of the next engine project," Franky said, not even pretending he wasn't enjoying getting an eye full of her body. "You had a big day though. How'd the meeting go? Did you have them eating out of your hand?"

"Fufufu, you know me so well." After a moment of thought, Robin continued with a serious answer. "The bald one, Luthor, is dangerous and intelligent, yet his arrogance blinds him. We should still keep an eye on him, of course, but I don't believe he is the one behind the office break-ins. He is too... obvious, and I see no reason he'd been going for my artifacts instead of information. Nor did Luthor show any interest in my collection, just the company assets."

Then she paused before adding, "And me, of course."

"Well, who wouldn't be?" Franky joked, maneuvering his massive metallic body to sit on the edge of the tub. "What about the other guy?"

"Bruce Wayne." Robin shifted so she was sitting up, arms crossed over the edge of the tub as she replayed every interaction she'd had with the businessman over again in her head. "He is... interesting."

"Good interesting or bad interesting?"

"Hard to say. He tried planting more bugs than Luthor and is hiding plenty. Wayne likes to play the affable fool for the cameras and for his peers; he's good at it too, it took me a while to see through the mask."

Franky hummed, "He must have had a lot of practice over the years. I was watching old interviews with the guy and the ones from back when he was like twenty-five -You know, when he got back to the city after vanishing off the face of the planet?- make him seem like a completely different guy. He's putting on a good front, don't get me wrong, but there was definitely anger seeping."

Robin grinned. Sometimes, it was easy to forget how brilliant her husband was. Not just with machines and technology either, but also with people and planning. While Franky's raw, rough charisma may not have been as overpowering as their beloved captain's unmatched ability to win others over, you couldn't unite all the gangs and general riff-raff of an entire city into one functional, tight-knit family unit as their undisputed leader without being able to understand and read people on a deep level.

In many ways, he was better at it than she was. The former Devil Child of Ohara knew how to read people, yes; she had learned how to manipulate them as a little girl abandoned by the world, and she was good at it. But inspiring people? That was... more difficult, and it was why Robin had left the majority of the initial hiring process for the company to Franky. He knew how to handle the thugs and criminals of the city and, more than that, Franky knew how to make them want something better for themselves and Bludhaven as a whole.

And, if they didn't, he was more than capable of dispatching them with ease.

"Bruce Wayne is hiding something," Robin repeated. "I have some theories as to what, though no solid proof yet."

"So, what's the plan?"

"For one, I left a single bug from both Luthor and Wayne in the building. I know it's risky," she added quickly to cut off her husband's protests. "They're going to keep trying to get information and this way we can control what they get. You know how I prefer to have all trouble happen right under my nose."

"Hmm, that's true. Anything else?"

"Wayne has an adopted son who lives in Bludhaven that I want to make contact with. He is a cop, which presents certain... complications," Robin admitted. "However, getting into his good graces will allow us an inside look into how Wayne works, especially if their relationship is as strained as I think it is."

The way Wayne had talked about his son had been... telling. There was sadness there, regret mixed with longing and a touch of bitter confusion. The story behind it was undoubtedly tragic. Tragic and useful. Robin would have to go searching for more information on it later.

"And our other little problem?"

Robin hummed. "On that... we wait and see. Whoever keeps trying to break in will attempt once more, soon, I have no doubt. These past few times have been sloppy; they're getting desperate."

Pushing all thoughts of business and other unpleasant matters aside, Robin smiled at her husband. "Enough of that for now. Help me wash my hair?"

Franky gave a ridiculous grin that made her laugh. "That would be SUPPPPA!"

For dinner that night, Robin prepared them spaghetti and meatballs with a side salad and garlic rolls. They traded off cooking and kitchen cleaning duties, both good and bad at each in their own ways. She was not a poor cook, neither of them was, but, just as Robin had explained in the restaurant, anything she made was mediocre compared to Sanji's food.

'Sanji...' Robin thought cast a sad glance at the framed photo she and Franky kept in their living room.

After finding Laugh Tale, uncovering the True History of the World, defeating Blackbeard, overthrowing Imu and World Government, and seeing Luffy take his rightful place as King of the Pirates, it seemed as if there was nothing the Straw Hats couldn't do. Even as they mourned Law, Shanks, and their other allies who'd fallen in battle, they also celebrated bringing justice -real justice, not the twisted horror the World Government spent centuries spewing to justify their cruelty- for Whitebeard, her captain's beloved older brother, Ace, the people of Ohara and Flevance, and everyone else who'd suffered at the World Government's hands. Parties had gone on for weeks, seemingly without end, and persisted on every island they'd ever visited. Days were spent happily sailing the seas, fulfilling their dreams, and relishing each other's company. It felt like the merriment would last forever.

That was, until the day they got a call on their private Transponder Snail line -the one reserved only for family and their closest friends- from the Baratie. The call wasn't long, it didn't need to be for Sanji to get the message.

Zeff was sick and it was bad.

The crew, including the ones who'd never met the old chef, had immediately sailed towards the floating sea restaurant at top speed. They had to or else Sanji might have attempted to sky-walk his way there completely alone. After arriving, Chopper had used every bit of his medical skill and knowledge to treat Zeff, only to return with a devastating diagnosis.

Zeff was old.

He was old, had lived a hard, dangerous life, and suffered a long period of starvation and exposure. The last of which was coupled with an improperly treated traumatic injury. Yes, the chef was strong. He ate well, got plenty of rest, and exercised -usually in the form of training with Sanji or beating the tar out of unruly customers- but time took its toll and there was nothing any doctor, even one as skilled and devoted as Chopper could do about that.

That news had left their beloved cook in the most terrible position imaginable -having his loyalty torn between two men he loved as family. Robin could so clearly remember the look on Sanji's face as he processed Zeff's diagnosis. On one hand, he hadn't wanted to... couldn't even imagine leaving Luffy and the rest of the crew behind. But, on the other, Sanji couldn't abandon his adoptive father in the man's last days either. Not after everything Zeff had done for him.

They'd all ached for him yet there was nothing Robin or any of the crew could do. With all their power, skills, and influence, none of the Straw Hats could turn back the hands of time or hold dominion over death. So, in the end, they just provided the support they could. While they had not discussed it, there was a silent agreement among them all that they'd stay at the Baratie for as long as needed. When he caught onto this, Sanji protested, saying they didn't need to put their lives on hold for him. Every single Straw Hat had refused to listen and the argument went round 'n' round until, at last, Luffy had figured out a way to half Sanji's burden.

After gathering the entire crew together, Pirate King Monkey D. Luffy made a decree: the crew would temporarily split up once more to have their own adventures. Then, when the time was right, they'd regroup and continue on as they explored the seas they now ruled.

He hadn't specified that 'when the time was right' meant 'when Zeff died and Sanji needed them more than ever.' Just like Luffy hadn't admitted he'd come up with this idea because of their cook's situation in the first place.

They'd all understood just the same.

This way, Sanji no longer needed to choose between his two families. This way, he didn't have to feel any more guilty than normal. This way, the cook didn't have to worry about the crew resenting having to put their travels on hold of him. This way, Sanji could enjoy the adventure that was spending Zeff's final days together.

In unanimous agreement, the crew had made their plans and departed. Yamato wanted to visit Sphinx and spend time with the old members of the former Spade Pirates before returning to Wano to see Momonosuke and Hiyori. Jinbe went to spend time on New Fishman Island, checking the progress of the kingdom's development and occasionally helping teach Fishman Karate to the royal army along with local children. Brook returned to Laboon and Crocus, hosting radio concerts from their home at Reverse Mountain. Chopper, having been inspired in the darkest way possible by the story of Amber Lead Poisoning and the massacre of Flevance, decided he would spend this time writing academic papers dispelling all the horrible medical and scientific lies that the former World Government had spent years spreading. Nami and Usopp had set off for their home islands at first, deciding to use at least part of the time to catch up with family and friends. And, finally, Zoro went with their captain, proclaiming the idiot wouldn't survive without him.

At first, Robin thought the idea horrifying. Neither knew how to walk a straight line without getting lost. She was certain they'd somehow end up on one of the planet's moons if left alone. But the calls they got over the Transponder Snail said they were getting along just fine. Though, strangely, sometimes Zoro would disappear and show up a couple of days later back at the Baratie. He'd stay there for a week, bickering with Sanji until Zeff got annoyed and sentence them both to dish duty as punishment -just because the old chef was bedridden didn't mean that Zeff no longer ruled the restaurant with an iron fist. Eventually, the World's Greatest Swordsman would disappear once more only to reappear back at Luffy's side.

Robin wouldn't claim to understand how it kept happening, she'd long since stopped trying to decipher that particular mystery of the crew's swordsman. It simply was what it was and, if nothing else, it made everyone happy.

She and Frank had decided to stay together. At first, it was simply because they were traveling in the same direction -him back to Water 7 and her to an island with particularly interesting ruins that Robin had never been able to study extensively- and then because their long-simmering mutual attraction boiled over, first into something physical and then into something truly romantic.

They'd never verbally agreed to stay together long-term, it just went without saying. They'd stopped in Water 7 so Franky could see Iceburg, Kokoro, Zambai, the Square Sisters, Paulie, and everyone else. Dinner with Iceburg had been slightly awkward -the man was quite gracious in the face of his once would-be assassin, Robin could admit, even if the scars were still there- but the visit had been nice, relaxing even. Robin hadn't been able to truly enjoy the beauty of the city during her first visit. This time though, she'd been able to explore and relish in Water 7's unique charm. Usually, Franky was busy assisting in the process of turning the city into a floating fortress against the Aqua Laguna but, sometimes, he'd take her on a personal tour, showing her all the places that he had enjoyed visiting when he was younger.

After that, they'd visit the ruins that Robin had always wanted to see and just... never stopped traveling together. Island after island, ruin after ruin, they'd stayed together. And, eventually, they'd ended up in this strange world.

"We'll get back," Franky promised, catching her line of sight. "We never got anywhere playing by other people's rules before. However we got here, we'll get back."

"I know. I never doubted that" she said, picking up the picture. 'I just hope we get back in time to be there. Who knows what we've already missed.'

"Want to turn in early? You've had a busy day."

Robin shook her head. "No, I want to put some time into that research paper I've been working on. You remember, the one about depictions of sun deities."

"Well, don't stay up too late. Otherwise, I'll drag you off to bed myself."

"Promises, promises," the archeologist chuckled.

Three hours later, the house was quiet aside from the tap-tap-tapping of Robin's fingers on the keyboard. A few sprouted hands held up her notes, books, and the various primary texts she was using so she could more easily consult them. Some might call this cheating, Robin called it multi-tasking.

While solar deities are often thought of as male and their lunar counterparts as being feminine in nature, statistically speaking the opposite has more often been the case. One could attribute this misconception to the most visible and commonly known mythological pantheons in the Western world as possessing male Sun deities, Apollo and Ra being two examples.

An extra hand turned the page of her notes but, before Robin could begin typing her next line, an alert popped up on her computer.

MOTION DETECTED IN MAIN OFFICE

'Ah, back again. Will I see your face this time?'

Pulling up the surveillance live feed to her main office, Robin folded her hands and waited. For the past three months, someone had been repeatedly breaking into her office and searching for... something. Robin did not know what, though she sincerely doubted it was company secrets as her computer was never touched. In fact, in twenty-four 'visits' nothing has been taken either, except some spare cash she left and boxes of teabags. But whether that was because the culprit hadn't been able to find what he was looking for or because the security always showed up in under three minutes, she didn't know.

Three minutes...

It only took security three minutes to get up to her office and, in that time, the culprit was always gone. Never taking anything of real value but never leaving any trace of their presence either, aside from the vague, lingering smell of cigarette smoke in the air and scattered bits of ash on her carpet. Even stranger, whenever this ghostly visitor arrived, the cameras would go dark. Tests showed they were still technically working and online, something that had the entire IT department and even Franky himself stumped. After the tenth break-in, some of the senior members of the security staff had offered to camp out in Robin's office to catch the culprit in the act.

She'd refused. Just because no one had been injured yet, that didn't mean whoever was doing this wouldn't lash out if caught. Robin would not have her employees' blood on her hands; death and blood were no payment for the loyalty they showed.

That left needing to use more... unorthodox methods of investigation. Acquiring the security photogate of the surrounding areas had been child's play, most had been freely given out of gratitude for the revitalization that Thousand Solutions had brought to the Bludhaven, some had been discretely paid for, and some had been... borrowed. In the end, it had yielded no results though. Robin didn't know what to look for in the first place and wasn't even able to find any repeating faces that could be possible leads. Reaching out to the heads of the companies that most vigorously courted Nico Franks had been her next step. She wasn't foolish enough to think the other companies out there weren't already trying to uncover her secrets and inviting the vipers into her nest was a ploy to see if Luthor or Wayne would give anything away. And they had, though nothing that convinced Robin they were behind the break-ins.

'Of course, they could be behind this one. The downside of inviting snakes in is allowing them the opportunity to get comfortable and lay eggs.'

Robin lead back in her seat, she waited. At first, the screen just showed her empty office -time to readjust the cameras again, there were still blind spots- but, so enough, the image went dark.

"Hello there," she smiled. Closing her eyes, Robin folded her arms and stretched her consciousness out until she could clearly picture the wall of her office. "Ojos Fleur."

As a general rule, the Hana Hana no Mi's abilities only reached their fullest potential in the hands of crafty, precise users who weren't afraid to fight dirty and use the element of surprise. Robin had learned at the knee of experience that face-to-face confrontations while those bigger and more powerful than herself would only end in disaster. She learned to play by her strengths quickly; she had too, less dear Saul's sacrifice be in vain.

But as the years passed and circumstances changed, Robin found herself needing to expand her repertoire of skills. Enemies were getting more powerful, too powerful to defeat as she was, and Robin refused to be a burden. The future King of the Pirates could not have a subpar subordinate who relied on tired old tricks and sneak attacks to get herself through the day. Luffy needed... No, Luffy deserved the best of the best on his crew so that is what Robin became. She had pushed herself and her skills to the next level, awakening abilities she'd never thought possible.

The results spoke for themselves, in that regard.

Opening her sprouted eyes, Robin scanned her office with her usual intensity; as a former assassin and an archeologist, she'd always understood the importance of small details.

Not the sight of a blond man in a tan trench coat was a small detail, of course.

Robin watched on as the man crouched down at the lock of one of her display cases, fiddling with something she couldn't see. After a moment, the figure let out a frustrated growl; she heard the tell-tale snap! of someone's fingers and saw a small flash of golden light. After it faded away, Robin was surprised to see the man raise the case lid -the lock of which Franky himself had designed, assuring her it was unpickable.

'What is he looking for?' she wondered.

Robin's office was full of old, interesting curiosities and much of her collection was valuable but the only thing in that displaycase was a set of antique archeology tools. Pretty to look at, yes, though hardly interesting to anyone not in the field. She'd paid a few hundred dollars for it, mostly because she found the designs of the decorative engravings to be intriguing. Yet as much as she liked them, Robin would be the first to say they were hardly worth the effort this man had been going through.

'Perhaps I'll just ask then.'

Robin 'pushed' her consciousness out towards her office, forcing the bloom of the eyes to expand until it was her full body. It was draining on her stamina to create and maintain a duplicate at this distance, even after years of practice and training. She'd have to do this quickly.

"Hello there," she said pleasantly, as if this stranger rifling through her possessions was just a friend dropping by for tea. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

At the sound of her voice, the figure swore loudly and dropped what he was fiddling with as he spun around. Now that she was finally able to see the man's face clearly, Robin realized her estimation of the intruder's age was quite wrong. This wasn't another adult, even calling him a young man would have been generous.

This was a teenage boy.

Sixteen or seventeen at the most and looking younger due to malnutrition that was clearly plaguing him, the teenager had messily cut blond hair and tired blue eyes that stared at Robin in shock. The black slacks and white button-down he was wearing had seen better days, and the trench coat was too big for him. That, combined with his thin frame, black eye, and half-healed split lower lip gave the impression of someone who'd dealt with far too much hardship for a short life.

Robin could relate.

"You are... not what I expected," she admitted. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

The teenage boy blinked at her, mouth agape. This only lasted a moment though, before he stiffened. His eyes narrowed, jaw set in anger and determination. Fingers twitching by his side, the boy opened his mouth to say something when-

"Tres Fleur: Grab!"

Two arms sprouted from the teenager's back, grabbing him by the wrists and twisting his arms into a tight hold. A third arm popped out from his shoulder, slapping a hand over his mouth.

"None of that now," she scolded, gentle but firm. "I don't know what you were about to do but I promise that it was a bad idea."

"Ggrrrrmmham!"

"I'll release you when you promise to answer my questions, young man, and not a moment sooner. Now, I'll ask again. Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"Mmmhmpf!" the teenage boy grunted, eyes burning with defiance.

Robin tsked. "I'd rather not involve the police in this matter, but I will if you insist on being difficult. You look young enough to have social services called as well. Is that something you'd want?"

At this, the teenager's eyes went wide again, seemingly with genuine distress.

"No, I thought not. Are you-"

The hum of her private elevator cut Robin off. Damn, she forgot to track the time it would take for security to arrive. Living in this strange world had made her soft. No time to think of a clever ruse, Robin pulled her young 'guest' to the ground with a flick of her wrist, so he was out of sight. Then she hurriedly sat down at her desk, turned on a lamp, and opened a random file.

Ding!

The elevator door opened and her head of security, Enrico Fernandez, rushed in with his weapon drawn and three other guards behind him.

Robin pretended to gasp in surprise. "Oh, dear!"

Enrico lowered his gun. "Mrs. Franks, what are you doing here?"

"I- I came in to do some last-minute paperwork that I'd forget about," she said, voice appropriately nervous and concerned. "Is everything alright?"

"We thought the intruder was back. The motion sensors were activated and the cameras freaked out again. Are you alright, Ma'am? Are you sure you're alone?"

"Of course, I've been here for a while now and haven't seen anything," she promised, making sure her sprouted arms maintained a tight grip on her little visitor.

"Are you sure?" Enrico asked. The concern in his dark eyes was so obvious that Robin felt a twitch of shame for the lie. The man's brows furrowed, "Mrs. Franks... when did you come in? I don't remember seeing you."

"Fufufu, you know I have my ways." When that only got her another confused look, Robin crossed her fingers behind her back and continued. "I came in through my private entrance. I used my override to remotely turn off the camera because I didn't want Tom to know I was here, he worries so much about my late nights. Unfortunately, I'm afraid that I've caused you all a fright."

She bowed her head. "My apologies."

Enrico bit his tongue. "I... guess that explains it. Sorry for interrupting you, ma'am. We'll leave you to your work."

"No need to apologize for doing your job, Enrico," Robin said, making a mental note to give the man a raise. "And as excellently, as usual, I might add."

"Don't go singing my praises just yet. I still have managed to catch the bastard that keeps breaking in." Enrico sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I really thought we'd get him tonight."

"Try not to trouble yourself. If the intruder hasn't gotten what he wanted by now, I doubt he'll keep coming back," she said. 'I'll make sure of that.'

"I hope so. After everything you and Mr. Franks have done for everyone in the city, I hate the idea of some asshole going after you both." Enrico shook his head but waved the troop of guards back into the elevator. "Have a good night, Mrs. Franks. Please come get one of us to walk you to your car when you leave; Bludhaven is still a dangerous place to be at night."

"You're so sweet."

When Enrico and the others were completely gone, she hauled the teenage boy back to his feet. He was calmer now, no longer struggling, and was looking at her with more curiosity than animosity. Robin hoped that was a good sign. "Are you ready to talk?"

The teenager looked at his scuffed black dress shoes for a moment before his shoulders slumped and he nodded.

"Good," Robin smiled sweetly and let the arm covering his mouth dissipate into flower petals. "Now, let's start with your name. I'm Nico Franks. You are?"

A bright, roguish grin was flashed at her and Robin almost cooed at the teenager's vain attempt to regain some control of the situation.

"John Constantine," he said, still grinning like the Cheshire Cat. "At your service, Luv."

Finally getting into the meat of the story! *rubs hands together*

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