Rating: K

Spoilers: Robin's past

Timeframe: Kiddy Robin

Robin's curiosity was first piqued when they didn't let her into the basement. It had been a horribly hot day outside, and she figured that studying downstairs would be much more comfortable. To her surprise, Robin had been stopped at the door by Hocha, who said that it was being fumigated, and that no one was allowed in the basement for at least a week.

She had accepted the explanation with only a little confusion (no one had said anything about fumigation yesterday or the day before), but later would have sworn she saw Rint sneak up the ancient stairs.

It was strange, but Robin was sure that there was some sort of explanation and didn't think anything else of it.

It wasn't too long after the basement incident that she noticed an oddity in her studies. There were recorded (or estimated) dates of various historical events all through ancient history that just sort of...stopped 900 years ago, before picking up again 100 years later. No matter what text she referenced, whether it be from the Grand Line or the four blues, there was nothing written down during that century.

When she asked the professor about it, he almost choked on his coffee, before saying something about 'loss of records' and delving into a coughing fit. If there was a little panic in his eyes, Robin figured it was because some of his coffee went down the wrong way, and he was having a hard time breathing.

A few weeks after that Robin realized that the other archeologists were actively hiding something from her. It was late, and she only had time for a quick visit to the library. Strangely, the great tree was empty and its lights dimmed. Robin hesitated before entering. Usually there was always someone working on something (she was half-convinced that some of the archeologists actually lived there all the time), but there was no one to be seen.

But she remembered what the professor had said, she was always welcome. So Robin shoved her nervousness down, returning her book before exploring the shelves for something new. She had a vague idea of what she wanted to read next, and was almost one hundred percent sure it would be found in the section by the basement door.

Robin was scanning the shelves when she heard something coming from the basement, making her jump. Cautiously she looked around, but there was no one to be seen.

"Hello?" Robin called out.

For several seconds there was no answer, but then she heard the distinct thumping sound of someone walking up the stairs. The door was flung open to expose Professor Clover, who had a very particular expression on his face that Robin couldn't quite place.

"Robin? What are you doing here this late?" he asked.

"I just wanted to get something new before going back home. What are you working on?" she answered.

"No-nothing, dear!" he exclaimed before turning and pulling a book off of the shelf. "Here, this pertains to our lessons quite nicely. Now, why don't you run on home before your aunt misses you? That's a good girl. Run along now!" he said as he shooed her out the front door.

Thoroughly bewildered, Robin started to ask the professor what was going on, but he had already shut the door, leaving her alone in front of the Tree of Knowledge.

Kicking a stone out of her path, Robin headed for home. She resolved to figure out what the professor was being so secretive about. As an archeologist in training, it was her job to untangle secrets and reveal mystery. If the others wouldn't tell her what they were doing in the basement, she would figure it out for herself. The trick was not getting caught.

The next day Professor Clover apologized for forcing her hasty departure before giving her an excuse that Robin couldn't quite bring herself to believe. For the first time since becoming his student, he didn't look her in the eye and his lesson lacked its usual flair and enthusiasm.

After dismissing her for the day, Robin went outside and circled around the tree. For her plan to work she had to be close enough to the basement for her power to reach, but far enough away as to not attract unwanted attention. She settled into a nook directly over the basement opened her book to she could pretend to read.

Robin concentrated as hard as she could on making extra eyes in the basement without shutting her real eyes or making faces. Anyone who passed by couldn't think she was doing anything suspicious. It was difficult; each extra eye added to what her real eyes were already seeing.

Trying to shuffle through the disorientating layers of added vision was impossible. With a sigh of defeat, Robin released her Devil Fruit. Until she grew used to making extra eyes, that method of gathering information would be unreliable. A new plan of action would be needed.

After a moment's thought, Robin called up extra ears to eavesdrop on the other archeologist's conversation. Filtering sound was much easier than vision, and by listening carefully she could pick up on what was going on down below.

"…doesn't make sense. The translation's accurate, but what does it mean about the Void Century?" came a muddled voice. Robin redoubled her efforts, but the conversation faded. The people must have walked away.

Carefully she sprouted new ears in the direction the voices had gone. After adjusting to the extra perception, Robin picked up on the talk again. This time she heard the professor's unmistakable voice.

"…haven't heard word from Olvia's group. We don't know what they've discovered…not be hasty."

The mention of her mother made Robin jump. Any façade to be reading was dropped, and all of her concentration went to listening.

Unfortunately, no other mention of her mother or the 'Void Century' was made, and after an hour Robin was forced to go do her chores.

But now she had a name. Whatever this Void Century was, and whatever connection it had to her mother, would not be a mystery for long.

The following months were the most exhilarating and frustrating of Robin's young life. On one hand, piecing the puzzle pieces together in a way that made sense was almost like archeologist work. On the other hand, none of the sneakiness would be needed if someone would just tell her what was going on.

The only reason for not including her that Robin could think of was that she wasn't fully licensed. What they were researching must be so big and important that they couldn't trust anyone without Ohera's official accreditations.

Robin could understand that, and made sure to study as hard as she could so she could take her exams as quickly as possible. However, she wanted to be included on their research as soon as she passed her exams. Their research, whatever it really was, was why her mother was out at sea. There was no way Robin was going to waste any time getting caught up when she could go out and be with her mother.

So little by little Robin pieced things together. When notebooks were left unattended she would copy out of them. Every extra moment she had was spent listening and looking (a skill she got much better at over time) in the basement. More and more time was spent looking at records of the events leading up to and following the Void Century.

Going behind the professor's back made her feel more than a little guilty, but she rationalized that guilt away. It wasn't as if all of the extra studying was getting in the way of her normal lessons.

Blank One Hundred Pages, Empty One Hundred Years, the Void Century.

Robin rubbed her eyes. It was very late, but she was practicing her poneglyphs and wasn't quite ready for sleep yet. She had taken her exams earlier in the week, and was sure she had passed. It was only a matter of time before the professor would (finally) allow her to go into the basement with the others.

Lost, missing, gone.

Stifling a yawn, she scratched another character onto her notebook. The dead language had very little in common with her own, and was very difficult to learn. The alien little characters were enticing in their own way, as if inviting her to delve into their secrets.

What happened? What is the True History?

Eventually Robin couldn't keep her eyes from drooping. She closed her notebook and silently hid it away where her cousin would not find it. After one last look around her room to make sure everything was in place, she curled up in her bed and gave into sleep.

That night Robin dreamed of setting sail with her mother, unraveling the tangled web of the past. She dreamed of finally being able to show off what she had learned to the other archeologists and joining them in their research. She dreamed of poneglyphs and ancient kingdoms and discovery.

And on an ocean far away, while Nico Robin was dreaming, a certain Vice Admiral attacked a certain ship, setting off a chain of events that would change the world forever.

AN: Yes, I know, another fic where Robin's a kid. I can't help myself. This actually came to me when I was working on something else and demanded that I write it, so expect some Straw Hat action soon(ish).

Also, I think growing extra eyes and having all that extra vision would be the most disorientating thing ever. Maybe that's why Robin closes her eyes before she uses her Devil Fruit.

As always, reviews are always welcome.