When she first joined the Strawhats, Robin didn't know what to expect from such a small crew of almost newbie pirates that just saved an entire country for the sake of a friend. Certainly in her long experience with pirate crews she couldn't say she had seen anything like this before, people that claimed to be friends often easily betrayed one another for the sake of greed and power.
It didn't take her long to figure out that this little ragtag band of young pirates was nothing like the ones she met during her long twenty years of being on the run.
She spent her days with her nose stuck in a book, but especially the very first days she used that as an excuse to watch over her new crewmates, something she learned to do ever since she was young.
She had to defend herself from incoming betrayals after all, and it was best to be prepared before they happened.
So she watched the youngsters one by one, finding out they all had certain quirks that made them stand out.
Perhaps the easiest one to figure out was the Cook, the blond had an undying love and respect for any woman, and he treated her and the Navigator like they were princesses, though Robin often doubted to be worthy of said treatment, she wasn't going to complain.
And despite the fact the man often argued and fought with the other male members of the crew, especially the Swordsman, she could see there was still an equal amount of love and respect for them too.
Speaking of the green haired Swordsman, he was the one that held his guard up the most around her, she couldn't stray close to him or he would threaten her even with just a look. Despite the cold exterior he was just defending the crew from a potential enemy as the first mate he was, and she was the enemy, or at least formerly one that could still become a threat should they attempt something.
His judgement wasn't quite misplaced after all, but he had faith in his Captain just as much.
The young boy had been quick to accept her into his crew despite her having been just as much involved as Crocodile in hurting Alabasta, the country of their friend, Princess Vivi.
Robin honestly had no idea what went through his head, but being one with a D. in his name she couldn't expect anything different. Perhaps she was attracted to him because his carefree attitude reminded her of Saul…
An equally carefree soul seemed to be the Reindeer Doctor, perhaps he was so young he might as well be compared to a child, however whenever there was need he showed more than capable skills whenever it came to treating injuries.
Yet he still couldn't quite take compliments without doing a happy dance or blushing, and Robin had to admit it was rather cute.
The Navigator had been the only other woman of the crew, and Robin could almost compare her to herself in terms of intellect, the woman was undoubtedly very smart, and also had quite the temper too, that she showed whenever something went wrong or people were fighting.
She had one strong personality to manage to keep in line so many men all on her own. But also, even if she still hadn't been hit from her wrath, it reminded Robin to stay out of trouble.
And then there was him, the Sharpshooter with the long nose and a big mouth. If she had to be honest Robin wouldn't have given him two cents in a fight, he didn't look all that strong compared to the others, perhaps excluding the Navigator.
It reminded her more of a jester at first, he was rather eccentric indeed, but then he showed that what he lacked in strength he made up with his brain. She's often seen him tinker with the most random things, creating whatever new item that could help him in the next battle.
He was good in crafting she noticed, and in a lot of crafts it seemed too. As in the most relaxing days she's seen him even paint, usually in the presence of the young Doctor and sometimes even the Captain.
She didn't bother to see what they were drawing, but on this particular day she couldn't help but feel like she was being watched, well more than usual, the Swordsman's gaze was ever present on her, even when he was sleeping, as ridiculous as it sounded.
Though she didn't find out the reason until late in the night, when she was on watch duty and was approached by a rather sleepy long nosed Sniper. He held something behind his back, Robin unconsciously tensed but it didn't seem like he had noticed.
What he gave her wasn't what she had expected.
He was rather bashful when he held the drawing towards her, as he kept scratching the back of his head and looking away.
She took the piece of paper with trembling hands, no one ever gave her anything in her life before, he insisted it was a gift, a welcome for entering the crew, as he explained that he did the same for each crewmember as she watched her own reflection painted so well with wide eyes.
All she could muster was a small "Thank you."
It had been years since that moment, and even though they had been all apart they found each other back, and she found out that Usopp had brought over more drawings of them, often dreaming on how they would have looked after those two long years would pass. Some pictures weren't very accurate but they were done with his heart nonetheless.
They collected them all, and together they added them to his own book of drawings he made himself, and that she helped him put together neatly.
Each single drawing was just as precious as the rest, and all would be a small piece in the Strawhat's history.
