There Crocodile was, bruised and chained up, captive, in the heart of Impel Down. He groaned in pain from the interrogation last night- or day? He couldn't tell how long he was in there anymore as there were no windows to keep track of the time. No matter how much pain he was in, it didn't stop him from trying to come up with ways to get out of this hellish place. For someone like him, where everyone is inferior from him in every sort of way, he does not belong to be here. He still couldn't believe that he was defeated by that straw hat. He regretted not finishing him off the first time he fought the kid and left him in quick sand just because he found pleasure in watching people die in pain. He really ought to control that part of him. If he hadn't messed up he wouldn't have been in this situation in the first place. He wouldn't have failed to take over Alabasta. He wouldn't have failed to find the ancient weapon. He wouldn't have had to kill Nico Robin.

Miss All Sunday.. It's been a while since he had thought of her. Afterall, ever since he came here he'd been blind by rage from the petty mistake he had made; which is probably why he'd been getting punished double the amount by the Marines. He'd had to say, the Archaeologist was a nice change of pace from the many different people he had worked with. She fulfilled his orders with no hesitation as obedient as she was and unlike the rest, she was able to take initiative and successfully get tasks done without his consultation. No doubt because of her, he was able to relax more often than the days when they have never known each other's existence.

If he had the chance to go back in time, he wouldn't have killed her. Like he had done it just a few minutes ago, he exactly remembers the sound Robin had made in pain when his hook pierced through her chest. When he was going to aim for her heart, he remembers the slight hesitation he had which resulted in him only grazing it. Perhaps she was still alive then? If she was, what would she be doing? Maybe she's with that godforsaken straw hat crew, as tricky and manipulative she was with her words it would be childsplay for her to do so. Crocodile noticed he felt a bit annoyed that now someone else would see all her different kinds of expressions and actions. Yes, they weren't in a relationship as insufferable as it sounded, but they did have some intimate moments he could never forget so he couldn't help but feel possessive as he was with power. Back then when they were in Alabasta, he'd mostly see her with him or just around the casino so he never had thought of it until now. Seeing how she could be doing the same things she did to him to someone else- if she was alive, slightly angered him.

He'd had to admit, being with Nico Robin had soften him up a bit. But only to her of course, as he wouldn't dare to show any sort of weakness in front of others.

…

One day in Alabasta, when Robin and him were doing their weekly reading, he had discovered she was sensitive to touch. He was going to ask her a question about the desert country as he guessed she must know more about it, after all she was an Archaeologist. Ignored the first time he asked, he looked up to see her so absorbed in her book that he figured she might have not heard him and wasn't doing it on purpose. He touched her cheek with the back of his fingers to get her attention when he suddenly saw that this slight contact he gave her made her shiver and jolt up in surprise. If he had had to compare, he'd say he was more surprised by the uncharacteristic reaction she had made.

"I-I'm sorry, were you saying something?" she quickly asked.

Having a close look at her face, he saw that her cheeks was a deep red which resulted in him to chuckle. 'Cute.' Who'd known that the oh-so serious Nico Robin could break character from the slightest touch.

"What? What are you laughing for?" She put her book down and looked straight at his eyes to try and pry the answer from him. But he looked away and began reading once more before she could ask again.

"Nothing. Continue reading."

…

Ever since then, if Crocodile saw her alone and was unaware of his presence, he would use his devil fruit powers to sneak up behind her and gently touch her. Each time always successfully making her jump back away in surprise, especially because his hands were usually cold unlike the dry and hot environment they were used to. Somedays, he would even hear her gasp which always made him grin without her knowing. Every time she'd ask why he did that, he only shrugged it off saying there was a bug on her, which he knew she didn't believe. He concluded, despite her name, her reactions were more like a cat than a bird.

One time, when he was going to pat her head, Robin was about to catch him from doing so but then stopped when saw the looming hand that was too similar to the one that abused her in the past coming towards her. She harshly flinched and raised her arms up as if she was trying to protect herself. Robin started shaking and was gasping and mumbling pleas to not hurt her. It was a very different reaction than the ones he was used to.

"Miss All Sunday? What's wrong?" he grabbed hold of her in an attempt to calm her down. He whispered her name so that no one would hear. "Robin? It's just me dear, you're alright." Was it because of him? Did he touch her too often or threaten her in some sort of way? He did have the tendencies to do that if someone ever made fun of him, but he knew he wouldn't have gone that far towards Robin. He reasoned she was stronger than that and guessed it had something to do with her past. Crocodile crouched down on one knee so he could look at her wide frightened eyes. "It's just me."

Having her realize it was him instead of whoever she was thinking of seemed to have calmed her down as her shaking started to stop. "I apologize Mr.0. That was unprofessional of me."

Crocodile stood up, still a bit shocked by what just happened, especially by her selfless reply. "... Is there anything I should know about?"

Robin sighed and quickly wiped away her sweat. "No, no.. It's alright, it's not your fault. I do want to say but.. Not right now."

"Of course." He knew how she felt as he too had a fair share of trauma he wishes to forget. He respected her privacy as he did with his. "Get some rest Miss All Sunday."

"Thank you sir."

…

Crocodile sighed, reminiscing the experience he had with his vice-president. Robin sure did a number on him. Last time he checked, he wouldn't have cared if someone started cowering before him. Just before drifting off to sleep, he eavesdropped on the conversation Marine guards were having a few cells away. It was the only way to get some news where he was- underneath the middle of the sea. Let's see… they caught Mr. 3, currently trying to find White Beard, and… Robin?! Nico Robin? She's alive and is now part of the Straw Hat crew? He couldn't believe his ears. Who'd known his prediction would be correct. Crocodile started laughing as if he was a madman. Nico Robin was a very powerful woman indeed and he was going to be sure he got her back.

A/N: Hello, I hope you have enjoyed this chapter. I wanted to try and write something intimate and it turned out to be quite depressing. I always had the idea that Robin would have some sort of trauma after all the abuse she went through when she was a child so I tried incorporating that in here. Was Crocodile too ooc? Since we have no idea how he acts like when he's not like a mafia boss this kind of troubled me. I hope I did a good job because I hate when a character just becomes a whole different one, which I may have done. Please leave a review on your thoughts about it. (Perhaps I made him quite soft)