Rating: T
Timeframe: After the Buster Call, before Robin joins her first pirate crew
Spoilers: Robin's past
"Welcome to Canidae! My name is Docga. May I help you, take your bags perhaps?"
Hubert St. Caius looked at the large, enthusiastic man in shabby clothes with slight distaste. St. Caius had just stepped off of his ship, and he was already being hounded by the people of Canidae. The civilians here, like the dogs they bred, were tenacious and had boundless energy. Admirable traits really, but annoying considering the circumstances.
"If you're so willing to help, why don't you take all this?" came a sneer from behind him. Edwin Couteulx, bounty hunter in training, shoved his bags at the hapless man. St. Caius fought the urge to smack himself in the face. Silently he prayed that he wouldn't kill the idiot before the boy's preceptorship ended. If successful this would be their last job together, thank God, and already he was counting the days before they could part ways.
The feeling was mutual.
"Edwin," he sighed, "we are here on business. You will carry your own bags."
The boy glared at him before taking his bags back with a huff. St. Caius gave Docga a small tip to send him on his way, and the pair entered the rainy city.
The hunt had begun.
"Dereshishishi! Sorry I have no food."
The little mutt dog wagged his tail as Robin huddled underneath a tree, trying her best to stay out of the rain. To be honest, the girl was glad for his company. Robin had just been forced to run again from people who had promised her safety and she was cold, wet, and tired.
But she could deal with that. The real problem was that she was once again left without any shelter, food, or water. With the winter months fast approaching, Robin would have to think of a plan. She could deal with that too, but right now preferred the company of the little mutt with the wiggly tail.
She had been betrayed again. Something would have to change; Robin knew she couldn't just run from house to house, constantly being chased by the marines. Even if the people were nice to start, as soon as they saw her bounty picture it was always the same.
Seeing that she had no food to offer, the little dog sauntered off with the swagger of a prized hound. Robin couldn't help but giggle at the sight. Then she wiped her eyes to clear the water away (rain, not tears. She didn't cry any more. Crying was useless and didn't solve anything) before heading to her secret spot.
She had found the little hideaway her first night on the island, before beginning to stay with Nigeratta. It was a good place to set camp, with a river to her back for protection and water and a small grove of trees for shelter. It was close enough to town to have easy access to supplies, but far enough away so that she could see if anyone came towards her.
It would be important to keep a good lookout. Canidae was famous for their dogs, including scent and sight hounds. Robin had only stayed on the island with Nigeratta to begin with because he and the law didn't exactly see eye to eye. The work she had done for him hadn't been legal, per say, but he had given her a bed to sleep in and food to eat in exchange.
It took Robin about half an hour to reach the little grove of trees. The rain gave no sign of stopping, and she was soaked to the bone. Once it got dark she would have to back and steal some clothes, otherwise she would be in for a very cold night. Robin sat underneath the tree that gave the most protection and watched the river roar down to the ocean.
In her mind's eye she brought up a map of the area. There was an island to the south and another to the northwest that were large enough to hide in while being close enough to safely sail to. If staying with other people wouldn't work she would have to try and survive by herself. The concept was daunting, but Robin figured that it gave her the best possible chance of survival.
"Old man, you're really cramping my style here! We know where the mark is, let's just go mess some shit up and leave this lame little backwater island!" Edwin shouted. St. Caius ignored him. He carefully unpacked his belongings and putting them into their proper places. The hotel they were staying at was comfortable but cheap, and they had a hot meal waiting for them downstairs.
"Are you even listening to me? I've been with you for six months now, and you still don't even pay attention to my opinions. I can't wait to be done with this piece of shit preceptorship. I'm ready to be licensed now, but you're just dragging this out so you can get more reimbursement from the government," Edwin accused, shoving his finger into his mentor's chest.
"I would suggest you move your finger from my personal space if you don't want it forcibly removed from your hand, boy," St. Caius began with a growl, "The reason I don't listen to your opinions is because they're likely to get you killed. Hunting bounties is not a game. Since Roger's death more and more pirates have gone out to sea, murdering and pillaging in a sick survival of the fittest where only the strongest live to fight another day. You must outwit them; beat them at their own game if you want to keep your throat intact. Even then there's no guarantee that you'll see another sunrise. Why is that so hard for you to understand?"
Edwin's face twisted into a grin and gave a deep chuckle, "You know what? You may be called the Bloodhound, but you're really just another old man. Outwit 'em? Beat 'em at their own game? Give me a break. All that matters is your strength pitted against theirs. That, old man, is the era we live in. You're nothin' more than ancient history. All I need is my sword and a target, 'cause there ain't no piece of shit pirate that's gonna beat me!"
St. Caius's face turned an ugly red color as Edwin's grin grew. Lightning flashed, thunder rolled, and seconds felt like minutes until he finally got himself under enough control where he felt like he wouldn't strangle the idiot.
"Fine," he managed to spit out, "if you feel that way, you take lead. I'll not interfere one way or the other. It's your test, your hunt. You know who the mark is; the glory is yours for the taking."
A feral look passed over Edwin's face as he grabbed his sword and cloak. He barely paused to give St. Caius a second glance before leaving the room, rudely slamming the door behind him.
St. Caius looked out the window and into the darkening sky and rubbed his temples. There would be death tonight, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
The owners of the inn, a Mr. and Mrs. Coren were going about their business when the young man (Edward? Eddard? The name escaped them at the moment) who had arrived earlier in the day rushed down the stairs from his second story room and out the door front door. The older gentleman soon followed at a much more reasonable pace and apologized to the bewildered couple. Apparently the pair were not going to be available for dinner. He paused to scratch the ugly stray that wandered about, and bade them a good evening.
The couple never saw either of them ever again.
In the cover of darkness, Robin snuck through Canidae's shopping district. Most of the reputable shops were closed, their owners long since gone home. Rain still fell in droves, hampering visibility. Robin was the only one out in the streets, the weather too foul for even the dogs. She was thankful for it, as it made the job of breaking and entering much easier.
Nigeratta had begun to teach Robin the art of lock picking, even going far enough to give her a beginner's set. It was a useful skill, and when combined with her Devil Fruit's power meant that no door was ever truly closed.
Robin peered through the darkness, making sure she wasn't being watched, and silently entered a small shop that sold second hand clothes and other necessities for cheap. She came in through the back door and stumbled through the store. Even if keeping a lantern lit was possible in this weather there was no way she was going to risk getting caught by bringing a light source with her.
Eventually Robin found what she was looking for: a new set of functional clothes and (more importantly) a rain coat. There was even a pair of shoes that were only a little too big. Robin used the cover of the store to change before shucking her wet things into a sack. Mission accomplished, she left the store. It would have been impossible for her to completely clean up the mess she had made, so she didn't even bother to try. It wouldn't matter if the owner of the store knew they had been robbed. Robin planned on being long gone by the time anyone noticed.
Outside, the wind shrieked. Robin lifted the hood of her new rain coat and headed towards the seedier part of the city. It was time to procure some food for her long suffering stomach, and the bars were always good for dumpster diving without the risk of running into someone sober enough to care about her identity.
Somewhere in the city a dog started to howl, and Robin suppressed a shiver that had nothing to do with the cold.
From the corner of the bar St. Caius watched as the foolish boy barged in to directly challenge the notorious first mate of the Snaggle Tooth Pirates, Maximillian "The Dreaded" Linnaeus. Linnaeus was unique among pirates, because his bounty was actually larger than his captains.
Maximillian looked Edwin Couteulx up and down with a smug grin before putting out his cigarette and starting the biggest bar fight the island had ever seen.
St. Caius sat back on his haunches and watched the scene unfold. If nothing else the boy had guts.
At first Robin had ignored the shouts coming from the bar. But they kept getting louder and louder as more and more people joined the brawl. She used her power to peek inside, only to watch the chaos with morbid curiosity. It was impossible to tell who was fighting who, or what had started the fight, or who (if anyone) was winning. The owner's large dogs had even entered the fray, and there was enough noise to upset every beast in the area.
Robin took her cue to leave when the Officers of the Peace arrived, a sure sign that the marines were sure to follow. She hadn't got all she wanted to eat, but had managed to scrounge enough to hold her stomach over for now. Carefully Robin slunk away, blending into the night.
From his spot in the corner, St. Caius was doing his best not to get stepped on. Things were getting out of hand, and he didn't want to be around when the bar got accidently blown up or something equally annoying. The only good thing about the situation was that Edwin had so far managed to keep himself alive. The boy wasn't worth the paperwork that would have to be done if he got himself killed.
The bounty hunter stepped out into the cold, clearing his nose of the smells of smoke and alcohol associated with the bar. The rain was finally starting to slow down, and the chill in the air bore the promise of a cold winter to come.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught the sight of a small shape emerging from behind the building. He would have dismissed it as another urchin, but the hooded figure turned towards the bar, and he got a good look at her face.
It was the face that had been plastered all over the newspapers these last few months, with a very large bounty attached. God must be blessing his patience; this could be nothing less than a gift from above.
Nico Robin was here.
The next day Hubert St. Caius found himself at the hospital, trying his hardest to keep from a smug grin. A doctor came out of a room shaking his head, before addressing him.
"Are you responsible for Edwin Couteulx?" asked the harried looking doctor.
"Not anymore, my good man, not any more. May I see him?" he replied.
"Yes. Just try to keep the stress level down. His injuries are very severe."
"Very good. I shouldn't be more than a minute. Have a good day, sir."
St. Caius entered the room to see a very bandaged but cocky Edwin. For some reason the idiot still had his sword by his side, not that he was in any condition to use it. When he saw who came in the room he struggled to sit up before laughing.
"You see old man! That's how it's done. I bagged "The Dreaded", the reward's all mine!" he exclaimed. St. Caius just sat on the little chair offered to guests, ignoring Edwin entirely. After awhile he stood back up and began examining the various health related posters on the wall.
"Did you know, Edwin, this city breeds the dogs used by the World Government's special unit on Enies Lobby? The selective breeding requires patience and a thorough understanding of dogs, and a dedication to properly train them. It's a lot like bounty hunting, really," he said in the same sort of voice he used to chastise his grandchildren.
Edwin did not take the condescending tone well, "Again with the lectures! I am fucking sick and tired of your voice! I did it! I killed the shit, and I got the bounty! Nothing else matters! And I did it by myself; you were to chicken shit to show!"
"Yes, yes, you showed him good and well. But how much will these doctors's bills cut into your profit? And the property damage?" St. Caius asked as he examined his nails.
"I ain't got to pay any property damages," Edwin said scornfully.
"Like hell you don't. You'll never see that money, Edwin, and it's all because of your stupidity. Now here are your papers you need to hand over to the nearest marine base for your certification. And as I have some important things to attend to, I hope you don't mind if I say I never want to see your ugly face ever again. If you ever interfere with one of my hunts, and this is a promise, you won't live long enough to regret it. Good day, and congratulations on your first successful bounty," and with that St. Caius left the boy, who was gaping like a fish out of water.
Robin was back in her little grove of trees. She was forced to stay on this island another day, because even though the weather had calmed considerably the marines had put the city on lockdown. The bar fight from the night before had been very serious. Rumor was that half a city block had been leveled and more than twenty suspected pirates arrested. This was probably an exaggeration, but Robin wasn't going to risk capture to find out for sure.
So she was stuck.
Robin sighed and doodled characters of the ancient language into the mud with a stick. She desperately wanted something to read, but this place had no public library and she didn't want to steal anything from the bookstore. The ache in her chest, the one that had been present ever since Ohara, was threatening to come back in full force. If she didn't find something to do all the bad memories would start playing in her head over and over again, and it always hurt to push them back down.
Behind her, Robin heard a soft whine. She whipped around, ready to call up on her power to run away, when she saw it was just an elderly hound. It was a pretty dog with long ears and droopy jowls, but had no collar identifying it as someone's pet.
"I'm sorry, but I don't have any food," she said for the second time in as many days. The dog gave a slow wag of his tail and approached her. Robin gave a small smile before going over to give him a scratch. There were no other people in sight, this must be another stray.
Dogs really were much nicer than people.
Then, to Robin's horror, the bloodhound began to change shape.
St. Caius tracked the girl through the night. With his snout close to the ground he examined the dumpster behind the bar. Sandwich, pie, ale, grease, cook, little girl his nose identified, along with a myriad of other smells. He stored it all into his memory, knowing he would forever be able to identify little Nico Robin, no matter where she might hide or what disguise she might take.
He knew that there was something fishy about the Ohara incident, everyone with two brain cells to rub together could figure that out. Having worked the Grand Line as well as all four Blues, St. Caius had a good idea of how the world was run, and it wasn't a pretty picture. But according to the law she was guilty. He would do everything in his power to bring her in alive, but she was worth 79,000,000 for a reason.
From the dumpster, her trail split two ways. The rain dampened the smell, but he could tell it was stronger to the west. He took the other, curious as to where the little Oharan had been this evening. Officers of the Peace rushed the bar as two men were thrown out a window. St. Caius shook his head, now there was a situation that was going to get worse before it got better.
The trail led him to a second hand shop. He forced his way inside. Little girl, clothes, shoes, mud, water, nothing too suspicious. A picture was beginning to form in his mind of a desperate girl with few resources, a picture that was quite at odds from what the government claimed.
St. Caius went back to the elements. Giving himself a quick shake he found his trail again. This time it took him to a little tree, under which a stray slept. He recognized it as the dog he saw at the inn, a little black and white mutt that roamed free around the area.
As they gave each other a curiosity sniff, he realized that Nico Robin's scent was on the mutt. Perhaps she had petted him earlier in the day. Did little Nico Robin like dogs? He would soon find out. Sniffing done, St. Caius continued on his journey.
It was late morning when he left the hospital and found her. The little outlaw was playing in the mud of all things. St. Caius approached with caution, but she didn't even realize he was behind her. He put his nose into the air and took a deep breath.
Little girl, grease, mud, stick, store, bar. Tired, scared, hungry. Little girl. Nico Robin.
No weapons, no strange scent that sometimes came with Devil Fruit users. No danger whatsoever. St. Caius had no idea what the government was so afraid of or why she was so wanted. Confident that he knew his prey, the bounty hunter gave a soft whine. The girl turned; shoulders tense and eyes open wide. When she saw that it was just a dog, her whole being softened and she came over to give him a scratch.
"I'm sorry, I don't have any food," came the soft voice of the most wanted criminal of the West Blue. Hubert St. Caius felt the faintest pang of guilt as he realized that despite what the government claimed she was nothing more than a child.
And then he began to transform, because child or not, she was his prey.
Robin back peddled as the elderly hound turned into an elderly man. There were some similarities between the two, the long ears, fleshy jowls, and the hair color in particular. Her mind screamed at her to run away from the man with the zoan fruit, but with her back to the river there was nowhere to go.
"Dog Dog Fruit Model: Bloodhound," the man said as way of explanation, "Nico Robin, by the power vested in me by the World Government, you are under arrest. You can either come with me peacefully, or I will use force. The choice is yours."
"Tha-that's not much of a choice," Robin retorted with more bravado than she felt. Her eyes darted back and forth looking for possible escape routes.
"I hoped it wouldn't come to this. I dislike harming children. Very well then, remember this is the fate you choose," he said with a sigh before morphing again, this time into a large half-man half-dog monstrosity.
Robin didn't wait for him to attack. She crossed her arms, calling up duplicates from the ground to grab a hold of his ankles, and began running.
"Devil Fruit?" he asked in surprise before changing back into a dog and breaking her grip. Robin winced as one of her false wrists was wrenched painfully, and with her concentration broken the rest poofed out of existence in a dance of petals.
Without breaking stride the dog turned halfway back into a man and gave chase. Robin didn't get far before the bounty hunter tackled her from behind. Mud splashed and Robin panicked. The man easily lifted her, her real arms tightly held to her sides.
Desperate, she called arms from everywhere. They pulled and grabbed, pinched and fought the dog-man that held her. With a yelp he dropped her back onto the ground, where she tried to regain her footing.
Robin turned to face her assailant as he stumbled backwards, struggling against her power. Scratches appeared on her real arms as he clawed and bit at the phantom limbs. Terrified, Robin refused to let go.
Blinded and unaware of his surroundings, the man lost his footing in the mud and fell backwards, cracking his head on a stone as he slipped into the roaring river. It was only then Robin felt her power release, unable to keep holding on in the deep water.
Robin crawled to the place where the dog-man had disappeared. She spotted a stone with a deep red stain that slowly leaked into the surrounding water, and a cold feeling spread throughout her body. Facts about Devil Fruit users and water came unbidden into her mind as she realized the fate of the dog-man. Horrified, Robin pushed herself away from the river.
"What did I just do?" she whispered, voice lost in the howling wind.
"I know a great deal about you, Nico Robin. I'm on the wanted list too. I'll keep you on as an apprentice and provide you with food and protection," the captain of the Snaggle Tooth Pirates said as he addressed the most wanted person in the West Blue.
Nico Robin said nothing.
"It's good we found each other, Nico. We had a bit of a problem in Canidae, several of my beloved crew members got arrested or killed," he continued.
Nico Robin still said nothing.
"Well, you're dismissed. Don't forget, Nico, I'm not doing this for free. I expect you to pull your weight on this ship. Understand?"
Nico Robin left the room without saying a word.
Unnerved by the child with the cold face of a demon, the captain shook his head and went back to his work.
Hubert St. Caius's body was found exactly one week later, ruled by the pathologist as an accidental drowning due to the recent rains. Robin knew better, she knew that she had killed him. Should she have let her arms go sooner? Could she have found a different place to hide from the bloodhound? She had no idea, and thinking about it made her feel numb on the inside.
One thing was certain: No place was safe. Nothing could be trusted, and she needed protection. The only place left for Robin was on the bad side of the law, and to turn herself into the monster the world already thought she was.
AN: The names in this chapter, including the island's but exempting Nigeratta's (that's from a databook) are a mishmash of terms and people from Wikipedia's section on bloodhounds and dogs. Lazy, perhaps, but also an interesting read.
A bounty hunter with a bloodhound Devil Fruit has been one of my secret wishes for the series for a while now. One can hope. One Piece needs a badass bounty hunter (besides Zoro, 'cause he doesn't really count). Also, St. Caius was in dog form during the bar fight, which is why Edwin didn't see him.
This fic takes place in chapter 398, all the page where we see Robin 'Dereshi' for the last time. When we see the first pirate talk later in the chapter, Robin certainly looks as if she just killed someone (hence my inspiration for this fic). I make the assumption that the Ohara Incident happened in summer (judging by the leaves on the trees), and that the rain seen on that page is a fall rain, meaning Robin joined her first crew before turning nine (her birthday is in February). I also am making assumptions when I call Robin "the most wanted criminal of the West Blue". Of course, this is my personal head canon, so I could be wrong.
I wanted to try something new with the shifting POV, I'm not sure if I like how it turned out. Let me know what you think.