A/N: My stories don't generally like to come out in chronological order. I'm doing my best to keep Once More Together at least coherent, (if not particularly cohesive,) but for some reason this chapter insisted on being placed here in the narration. So have some Robin/Raven backstory. I promise Arlong will be getting his overdue ass-kicking before the end of next week.

-o-0-o-

"You look just like her."

Almost hesitantly, Robin touches fingers with her reflection in the mirror. For the first time in her life, she found herself wondering if, perhaps, she looked a little bit too much like her mother.
Until now, their familial resemblance hadn't just been a point of pride for Robin, it had also been deliberate.

When, during a period of good health, her hair had revealed itself to have a natural curl to it, Robin had straightened it. When her eyesight had begun to decline, she had sought out colored contacts. While her natural brown eyes were likely a remnant of her father, she had no memory of him, and with no pictures to be had, her own reflection had become the only reason why she was still able to hold onto the one memory she did have of Olivia.

It wasn't a good memory. Quite the opposite in fact, if she was really honest with herself about it. But it was the only one she'd had, and so Robin had clung to it desperately; tucked it away deep in her heart as something precious, if painful. That singular, heart rending moment was nestled alongside the sound of a laughing giant, an agonizing treasure she'd never questioned.

Robin finds herself questioning a lot of things these days.

Every instinct she had was screaming at her that she was running out of time, that the sanctuary she held here on the Albatross was surely coming to an end any day now, any time now-

Except those three already knew who she was.

They had known from the very beginning.

Not only that- It wasn't as if they just knew, but didn't care, or were aware but didn't understand the consequences- They were protecting her because they knew, because they understood, because they had already seen what was coming for her.

It's been months since that rainy evening. Nearly five, by her count, and she's still trying to wrap her head around the whole of it.

Another shelter had turned out to be a trap, another ally a snake in the grass, and she had almost believed that one, had almost been ready to let go and actually trust someone- When marines had shown up at the door with greedy and sadistic grins and she knew she had been betrayed.

No time to collect her things, no time to think or plan or fight, Robin's only choice had been to run. She hadn't gotten far before they had caught her, but in a sick twist of fortune they had wanted some fun first; Robin has always been quick to turn her opponent's vices against them, and this was no exception. It took some doing, and gained her some new bruises, but in the end she'd been quick and clever enough to be able to turn their folly into a new opportunity to escape.

She tries not to think about what would have happened if she hadn't been.

Humiliated and enraged marines hot on her heels, Robin hadn't much been paying attention to where she was going so long as it was away, and had ended up all but colliding into a young man not much older than her. The only reason she hadn't crashed straight into him had been because he quite naturally hadn't been nearly as blind or as panicked as she had, and had therefore been more than capable of seeing her coming.

Rather than simply stepping out of the way, however, he'd caught her. Gently, carefully, face so obviously concerned even through the blur of her tears, and then when the mob had rounded the corner she'd watched understanding and rage shove that kindness aside.

Except that rage hadn't been for her. Not like how she'd first thought, anyway.

He'd shoved her behind him, quietly told her to hide, and then took on the mob in her stead when she obeyed.

Robin had crammed herself into the best hiding place she could find, and prayed it would be good enough to save her when they inevitably came looking for her once the fight was done.

Except, the person who'd finally come looking hadn't been a marine. It had been the same young man as before.

She had never expected him to win, and if the look on his face was any indication, he hadn't really expected to find her still lingering about either.

Surprise faded after a moment to something softer she couldn't place, but it was the rough scratch of grief in his voice that allowed her to hold her ground when everything in her head screamed at her to run.

"...Robin?"

It was so clearly a question, and that wavering tone of hope was as dangerous as the glint of greed she'd learned, and yet…

"How do you know my name?"

She'd been trying to sound fierce, but it really only managed to come out scared and a little angry. By the bitter twist of his smile, he'd understood.

"You look just like her."

Normally those words would be Robin's cue to start running, but this boy didn't hold her wanted poster in his clenched fists, and she knew, somehow, that the her he spoke of wasn't the monochrome photo upon them that he was referring to.

There was too much grief for that. Too much bitter fondness, too much pain, too much love.

Something inside of her relaxed at that answer. Whether it was the honesty or the emotion she couldn't say, but it drew forth a long forgotten emotion of her own in response, and she had to stop herself from stepping towards him.

"...my mother…?" She asked tentatively, hope unfurling in her chest even as every bit of common sense she had told her she was making a mistake. She knew better than this, knew better than to allow herself to believe-

"Yeah." He blinked, clearly pushing down tears to give her a grin, and he was so much like Saul in that moment that this time she couldn't stop herself from moving closer. "Only your hair's different."

She'd had so many questions and no idea which ones to ask, only to be denied the opportunity altogether by the arrival of more marines. The man had grimaced, but turned ready to face them despite his obvious exhaustion. Robin didn't even hesitate.

She stepped up beside him with her wrists crossed, and he'd given her a split second look of startled surprise, gone in the next moment to make way for honest delight and vicious determination.

Robin had known in that moment that they were likely to lose that fight; but she was so very sick and tired of running, and going down fighting alongside someone like Saul, someone that might even have been a friend of her mother's- That sounded so much better than dying a cornered rat on some other unknowable day.

Except they hadn't lost.

They'd both been flagging, breathing hard and vision beginning to swim when a shout of alarm had erupted from somewhere amongst the marines- And then bodies had begun to fly and Robin found herself unable to do anything other than stare in amazement as the entire unit was summarily dispatched by two very exasperated men.

"You know, I would ask how the hell you keep getting yourself into these situations," The gruffer of the two began, shaking his head as he kicked an unconscious marine out of their path, "but I also grew up around you, so."

"Honestly, Luffy," The blond sighs, "we were gone for two hours."

"Ace! Sabo!" The young man beside her was laughing, as much with relief as with genuine delight if she wasn't mistaken. "Look! I found Robin!"

They'd both stopped dead, and she'd tensed as their eyes widened almost in unison.

"Holy shit." The gruffer one just seemed flabbergasted, and Robin found herself feeling just as confused.

"...so you did." The blond agreed, sounding as if he wasn't sure if he should be amazed or resigned. In the end, he just huffed a sad sort of laugh, reattaching his weapon to his back as he gave her a fond sort of bitter smile. "You look just like your mother, you know."

Apparently Nico Olivia had worked extensively with their family, and once Robin figured out which family that had been, exactly… Well. It was certainly a lot easier to understand why they were willing to try and protect her. Anyone who wished to shield her would have to be willing to fight the entire world- But the entire world had already declared war on the Gol D bloodline, now hadn't they?

Those three had nothing to lose by sheltering her, and a valuable ally to gain.

So she'd gone with them. It wasn't as if she had had any better options at the time, and maybe, just maybe, she would find the place she'd been promised so long ago by their sides.

So far, time has done nothing but give them more chances to prove that initial, tentative hope right. Their (temporary) crew is a mishmash of misfits, rebels, and lost souls, and even those that weren't outright loyal to the three brothers were wary enough of their family's legacy to avoid doing anything that might antagonize them.

For the first time in her life, Robin thinks that she might actually feel… safe. In a strange way it's almost enough to make her panic all over again. So she'd done what she has always done when that panic began to bubble up unnecessarily. She stepped back, out of sight, out of mind, and observed.

Robin quickly found that once she started actually paying attention, there was quite a lot to be seen.

Ace dislikes having people behind him. He stares at fire with something akin to envy, and hates the cold with an inordinate fervor. While patient and a surprisingly good teacher, he has a hair-trigger temper; which, while terrifying enough on its own, gets even more vicious if someone so much as even implies that her existence is a blight upon the world.

Sabo dislikes having either of his brothers out of his range of hearing. He loves the color and spectacle of fireworks, but has to force himself not to flinch at the sound. He is a natural born diplomat, but a scholar at heart. He refuses to show any weakness or vulnerability of emotion to their crew, yet doesn't hesitate to break down in the quiet company of his family. Robin, apparently, counts as family.

Luffy dislikes being beneath deck for longer than a few hours at a time, and hates the touch of seastone. He loves the ocean breeze and laughs the loudest during a party. He has little patience for complex things, enjoys fantasy stories, and loves food. He hugs his brothers like their existence is a marvel. He often stares off into the distance like some part of him is lost in some far away place. He once had a hat he'd named Boshi, that he's never really stopped looking for despite it apparently having burned a long time ago. Luffy always has a smile for her, but there are days where she's fairly certain he's seeing someone else entirely when he looks at her.

Robin looks into the mirror, fingers splayed across the glass, and sees a dark-haired version of her mother stare back.

Letting go of the past isn't something Robin could do for her own sake. For Luffy's, however, she thinks she just might be able to manage.

When she next washes her hair, she doesn't straighten it. She coaxes the hesitant hint of curls into proper ringlets, and finds that she likes the cheerful spring of them. When she inevitably loses her contacts, she doesn't buy another set. Instead, she switches to a pair of silver-framed glasses she'd asked Sabo to procure for her, and finds that her headaches become far less frequent as a result.

The next time they drop anchor, Robin sets out to find the best straw hat in the entire city, and presents it to Luffy.

And even though it's one of the bad days, despite the fact that Ace and Sabo have had to coax their little brother back to the present multiple times already; when Luffy looks up from her gift to meet her hopeful gaze, he sees only her, and matches her bashful smile with a beaming grin of his own.