Rating: K+
Timeline: AU
Spoilers: Nope
Summary: Robin's life is never easy, no matter what world she finds herself in. Luckily for her, she's not the only intelligent girl in the multiverse. Done for Aoi24's crossover challenge.
"How…How did you get out of the Chokey?" Miss Honey whispered, confused and astounded by the sight in front of her.
"I used my power," Matilda said, as if it were the simplest thing in the world. Beside her, Robin nodded in agreement.
"Me too."
"You both…have powers," Miss Honey repeated slowly, making sure she heard correctly.
"Yep."
"Yes, ma'am."
It was a very odd thing, Miss Honey thought, to have two geniuses in the same class.
By the time she entered school, Matilda Wormwood had made significant inroads into the Western Canon and could easily do upper-level mathematics in her head. Robin Nico was just as well read—if not more so—and knew the history of the world like the back of her hand.
It was a tad overwhelming. Of course Miss Trunchbull refused to move them into the upper grades, and of course the girls' families refused to acknowledge their genius. Matilda's parents and Robin's aunt and uncle were, quite frankly, idiots who did not deserve to take care of such intelligent, delightful children.
"Would you like to come over to my house for tea?" she asked, because there was nothing else she could think of to say. The girls' heads bobbed synchronously, and Miss Honey nearly laughed and the ridiculousness of the situation. They even looked like sisters. She would not have been surprised at all to learn that they had been separated at birth or something equally fantastical.
With Matilda Wormwood holding on to one hand and Robin Nico the other, Miss Honey led them to her home. These were two extraordinary, precocious little girls, but they were still little girls. She swore that she would fight for them like no one had ever fought for her. They deserved that much.
Although, as Miss Honey heard them rattle off potential uses for their power she was almost certain that between the two of them they could solve all of the world's problems by themselves.
"Do you ever worry about being a bad person?"
Robin looked across the fire at the forlorn figure of Violet Baudelaire. Without the presence of her siblings, she seemed to have lost an essential part of herself. The only thing motivating her, Robin thought, was the slim hope that her brother and sister were still alive. And there was a chance. The Baudelaires, despite their misfortune, had the devil's luck.
"I believe I already am a bad person," Robin murmured, feeding another stick to the fire. Her remark had the desired effect, and Violet looked up for the first time since they had struck camp.
"But…" her eyebrows furrowed together as she was unable to finish her thought.
"And I believe the fact you are still worried about the consequences of your decisions means you're still on the right track," Robin said soothingly. "A great many evil people don't care, and the few that do delude themselves that their actions are for the greater good."
Violet did not reply.
"I, too, have lost loved ones in a fire," Robin continued. "I've seen books burn senselessly in the name of Good and entire islands destroyed for Justice. I've done terrible things in order to survive and committed inexcusable crimes. The schism has had far deeper ramifications than anyone ever could have imagined, and there is no end in sight. You, Miss Baudelaire, have made the best out of a horrible situation, and no sane person would fault you for that."
"I've made so many mistakes."
"So has everyone else in the history of humanity. The question is whether or not you've learned from them. Unless we are careful, the past has an interesting habit of repeating itself."
Violet nodded slowly. She still looked exhausted and browbeaten, but there was a spark in her eyes that had not been there before.
Robin smiled and looked out at the setting sun. "The world is quiet tonight. You should get some rest."
"I'm going to find them."
"And I'll help you," Robin said calmly. "But tired people make mistakes we cannot afford. Tomorrow I'll introduce you to my friends. They will take you to wherever you need to go."
"Who are you?"
The fifth year Gryffindors held their breath. At the front of the class their new teacher—a muggle born, if her clothes were any indication—calmly opened her satchel. Hermione Granger did not recognize the woman. She was attractive and well dressed (in muggle clothing, her mind continued to scream enthusiastically) with dark hair and almond shaped eyes that looked more Asian than European.
"I was hired to take on the History of Magic opening. Is there a problem, Miss…?" the woman asked politely with a smile that did not quite reach her eyes. She seemed not in the least intimidated by Professor Umbridge, which quickly added another point in Hermione's book.
"Dolores Umbridge, High Inquisitor and Defense Against the Dark Arts professor," Umbridge said, standing a little taller in a vain hope to appear more intimidating. "Now, who are you and where did you come from?"
"My name is Robin Nico, originally from Ohara."
"I've never heard of it," Miss Umbridge said, the veneer of pleasantness fading from her voice.
"I have a feeling you've not heard of many things, Inquisitor." Every mouth opened, and Umbridge gaped like a toad. Beside Hermione, Harry was grinning like a maniac. "But that's no matter. Ohara isn't found on any wizarding maps."
"The History of Magic position was to be filled by a Ministry approved…Mngh!" A hand sprouted from Professor Umbridge's chest and covered her mouth. Hermione gasped at the display. She had never read about, let alone seen, such powerful wandless magic!
"I have been hired to fill the recently-vacated History of Magic position," said Professor Nico, voice frighteningly cold. "If I am not mistaken, and I rarely am, the only reason it is vacated at all is because the Ministry is dissatisfied with the Hogwarts OWL results of the past two decades. It would be immensely difficult for me to rectify this perceived deficit if my class continues to have unwanted interruptions."
A few of the bolder students actually laughed as the hand disappeared into a poof of petals. Umbridge's mouth twisted into an ugly snarl, and for a moment Hermione was worried about their new teacher's safety. Then she saw the look of challenge in Professor Nico's eye, almost as impressive as Professor McGonagall's, and instinctively knew that this woman would give as good as she got.
"Blimey," Ron breathed as Umbridge rushed out of the room, her face a nasty shade of puce.
"What do you think; is History of Magic worth paying attention too now?" Harry whispered, the idiotic grin still firmly in place.
"Quiet in the back," Professor Nico said as she opened her book, curious half-smile in place. "Today we're going to have a review session over what you should have learned earlier this term. Who would like to tell me about the instigation of the Third Giant War?"
Hermione's hand shot into the air. Yes, she thought to herself, she quite liked this new history teacher.
If there was one place Trisana Chandler went when she wanted peace, it was the nearest library. It didn't matter what city, or how big the collection. The smell of paper dust and ink soothed her. Libraries were quiet. They held books. In a world as turbulent and unpredictable as hers, libraries offered a welcome haven.
Which was why she was so upset at this moment.
She had been browsing the shelves of Winding Circle's library when she heard it: the harsh, angry voice of someone trying, and failing, to dole out a scolding quietly. Even without her breezes it would have been impossible not to hear one of the initiates berate the little girl with impassive face.
"You need to go outside Miss Nico! Of course you're not going to interact well with the other girls in your dorm if all you do is keep your nose stuck in a book. Now give me that! You are not to set foot in this building until you have permission to do so!"
The words made Tris' blood boil. Memories of her first days in the temple played unbidden, the uncanny resemblance of the speeches unnerving. When the initiate tore the book from the girl's arms, her temper nearly snapped.
"Just what do you think you are doing?!" The initiate jumped, but the girl's expression did not change. She had her head bowed down and her fists clenched, and it looked to Tris if she was trying very hard not to cry.
"And who do you think you are?" the initiate challenged.
Tris sneered. Clearly this man was ignorant as well as stupid. "My name is Trisana Chandler" When the initiate went ashen at the name, she smirked. Served him right. "It seems like my reputation precedes me. I'll ask you again, what do you think you're doing?"
The man stammered something incomprehensible before dropping the book and bolting out of the library. Tris considered sending her winds after him as a warning, but discarded the idea. She turned her attention back to the girl, who was carefully picking up the fallen book, cradling it against her chest protectively. Tris's anger melted away, but before she could say anything she caught a strange glint from the edge of her vision.
The physical world went blurry as Tris took off her spectacles, but the bluish-silver lines that marked magic sprung into clarity. There was no doubting it now. The girl was a mage.
Kneeling down, she spoke as kindly as she could. "I'm sorry for his rude behavior. What's your name?"
"Why would someone famous like you care who I am?" the girl asked bluntly, clutching her book more tightly in front of her, as if it were a shield. Tris happened to catch the title, and her eyebrows rose.
"I didn't read Wheel of Fortune until I was eleven," she noted. "Do you like reading?"
Hesitantly, the girl nodded.
"Who's your teacher?" Tris asked.
"What do you mean?"
"Your instructor for magic," Tris clarified. "I want to have a talk with him."
The girl took a half-step back, the first hint of confusion on her face. "I don't have magic."
Inwardly Tris groaned. Not again… "What's your name?" she asked a second time.
"…Nico Robin."
"Very good. Come with me, I have a feeling we have a lot to discuss."
There was another new one in town. Madeline had really outdone herself this time, Dess thought as she stood behind Rex and Melissa, playing the part of the muscle for their little gang. The moon rose higher in the sky, and only a single car sat frozen in the middle of the road. For the first time in a long time Midnight was quiet, with no slithers or darkings to be seen. It was too bad Jessica and Johnathan were out doing their little "couple" thing. They would have liked to be here for this.
The teenager looked like a street kid, her clothes worn and dirty. In one hand she held a stainless steel steak knife, and a chain was wrapped around the other. They had never met this girl before, yet she seemed to know the secrets of Midnight. Something was nagging in the back of Dess's mind, like a dream that she couldn't quite catch or a formula with a key variable missing. This new girl was vital to unraveling her hypothesis…except Dess couldn't remember what her hypothesis was.
And who in the world was Madeline?
Melissa shot Dess a nasty look, which she returned with an easy smile and pleasant thoughts. Whatever it took to keep the mindcaster happy.
"…Where did you come from?" Rex asked, a defensive edge to his voice. They had been going around in circles like this for nearly twenty minutes now. Soon the secret hour would end, and it wasn't smart to be out past curfew if they could help it. Impatiently, Dess tapped her foot.
"I knew there were more," the girl said, mouth set in a grim line. "My name is Nico Robin. I've come on behalf of my gang, led by Monkey D. Luffy. I don't know how many of you there are here or what your gifts are, but grave danger approaches."
Melissa's scowl deepened. "How do you know?"
"The signs are all in the Lore. The twenty-fifth hour is in danger. The Old Ones awaken."
"You're a seer," said Rex, shocked.
The girl nodded. "The darkings have waited centuries for this moment. Ohara, West Blue has already been destroyed."
Ohara, West Blue. Thirteen letters. The nagging feeling worsened, like an itch she couldn't scratch. There had to be some connection between the place she had never heard of and Bixby. How could two unconnected points on the globe share the same secret time?
Points on the globe. Dess's eyes widened as the floodgates opened, and Melissa whirled around as she tasted the secrets that should have been kept hidden. Dess didn't care. She remembered.
"Hey, Robin," Dess said absentmindedly, calculations flurrying through her brain, "do you happen to know the coordinates for Ohara?"
"Coffee?"
"No, thank you. I prefer tea myself."
The girl in the dark cloak nodded as she sat crosslegged in front of Robin. General anarchy surrounded them as a green-skinned boy with the strange zoan fruit continued to shout variations of, "I knew it!" and "I can't believe I'm in frikking One Piece!" while his companions (a not-Pacifica, a girl with some sort of levitation fruit, and a boy in a domino-style mask) tried to calm him down without success. Luffy only added to the chaos by virtue of being himself. Hopefully the noise wouldn't attract any of the local marines.
"Let me see if I understand this correctly," Robin began slowly as she took a sip of her beverage. "You claim to be from another world."
"Yes," the girl said flatly as she looked back at her companions, vague annoyance flickering across her features. "Traveling dimensions rarely goes well for us."
"It seems like it would be tricky business," Robin agreed. "Although without some sort of Devil Fruit, I find it difficult to believe that traveling dimensions is even possible. How can I be sure that you're not a group of bounty hunters in disguise or insane?"
The girl, who had introduced herself as Raven, could only sigh. "Honestly? I have no idea."
"Hey Robin, look at this!" Both Robin and the boy in the mask tuned to look at Luffy, who was grinning ear to ear. "This lady can shoot laser beams out of her eyes! Isn't that cool?!"
Robin blinked.
"And he's got a cape! He's gotta be a hero, just like Sogeking!"
With a small smile, she turned her attention back to Raven. "Forgive him. My captain can be…exuberant at times."
With a knowing nod, the strange girl turned her attention back to the green boy, who had just managed to engage himself in a shouting match with Sanji. "Yours too?"
"There you are."
Robin stiffened at the voice. She hadn't heard the girls come up behind her. As she turned towards her unwanted guests, Robin bowed, careful not to make eye contact.
"We're leaving in half an hour. Meet us by the lizards."
"Yes, milady."
"Aw, don't be like that!" the second girl said in a chipper voice that seemed very out of place at the crack of dawn. "We're on the same team! Milady this and milady that is just so…so…"
"Formal," the first girl supplied.
"Exactly!"
"It would be improper for a commoner such as myself to address Ladies Mai and Ty Lee in such a forward manner," Robin demurred. And, she thought as she washed her face, anything to make these war mongering girls experience a little discomfort…
"Too right," a new voice said, tone sickly sweet. Robin made her expression go completely blank as the princess came into view. "Peasants should know their place, especially peasants walking on egg shells with the Fire Lord."
Azula smirked, and Robin was forced to bite the inside of her cheek to keep the anger from showing on her face.
"What do you mean?" Ty Lee asked.
"Oh, haven't you heard?" Her smile widened. "She's the only survivor of the Oharan scholars."
"The who?"
"Glorified librarians," Azula said dismissively. "Protestors and heretics, defectors to the last man. Grandfather set them on fire."
Ty Lee made a small sound of horror, and even Mai looked uneasy.
"Not all of them, obviously," Azula said, rolling her eyes. "Those under the age of twelve were sent to be rehabilitated, while the adults received a traitor's execution and their writings were burned. That would have been, what, twenty years ago?"
"Yes, Your Highness," Robin said through gritted teeth.
"And seeing as they were a bunch of fuddy-duddies that made Uncle look like positively charming in comparison, I can't imagine that there were many under the age of twelve, where there?"
"No, Your Highness."
"It must be difficult, living under that shadow your whole life," Azula said as she looked at her nails. "All that scrutiny, the knowledge that stepping one foot out of line would result in your death. You'll be forever remembered as a traitor's daughter, you know."
Robin didn't dignify the princess with a response, and Azula seemed to have grown bored humiliating her. With a quick look at the rising sun, she started toward the lizards. Ty Lee fell in step obediently, but Mai held back.
"Why do you follow her?" she asked, a note of genuine curiosity in her voice.
"I'm a useful asset for the princess on her journey to apprehend Prince Zuko and General Iroh," Robin said. With a bitter smile, she added, "And I don't much like the thought of being electrocuted for saying no."
Mai nodded thoughtfully and went to follow her childhood friend, while Robin took a moment to collect herself.
These girls had no idea. They thought this war was to spread the Fire Nation's greatness to the lesser countries, without ever knowing that the philosophers they studied in school stole their ideas from Water Tribe men who had been dead for centuries, or that the water colors that were fashionable in the capital had their origins in the Earth Kingdom, or how their music was influenced from the Air Nomads. The Fire Nation had much to offer the world, but the world had just as much to offer the Fire Nation in return, and they were too blind to see it.
Robin had been brought aboard Azula's little entourage as a cultural expert, but that didn't mean she couldn't use this opportunity to further her own goals at the same time. When the Fire Lord burned the library to the ground, he had destroyed one of the Fire Nation's last places of impartial, objective learning. The places they were traveling now, as scarred by war as they were, were outside of the Fire Nation's grasp. She would find scrolls and books here that were banned in her home country. She could rebuild what had been destroyed.
The trick, Robin thought as she looked at the princess and her two lackeys, was not getting caught.
"Can I help you?"
Miss Marple smiled at the girl, whose haggard face betrayed more frustration than was wont. She supposed it had something to do with being under scrutiny for the murder of her former employer, and knew that this was the best time to get information that was usually kept hidden.
"Oh, I was just checking up on you, dear. This nasty business is enough to wear on anyone."
The girl didn't say anything, but the twitch in her jaw screamed go away, you infernal spinster! Miss Marple didn't hold it against her. She got that response often enough from the lads on the police force, and they usually requested her help. It was no wonder young Miss Robin didn't want her services.
"May I come in?" Miss Marple asked after a moment of tense silence. Robin nodded once and opened the door just enough to allow her inside.
"Would you like tea?" she asked.
"No, thank you." Miss Marple was led to a small, but well-furnished, sitting room. They both took a seat, and Miss Marple wasted no time getting down to business. "How are you holding up, dear, really?"
"Why should I tell anything to one of the most notorious gossips in England?"
"Oh, I wouldn't go that far," said Miss Marple sweetly as the girl scowled. "You remind me of a girl down at the village, Kathleen Williams. She moved to London twenty years ago, I don't think you'd know her."
"Your point?"
"She was a lot like you, too smart and too pretty for her own good. It got her into quite a bit of trouble. She was an orphan as well, terribly ambitious and proud."
"I must ask again, what is your point?" Robin asked tersely, clutching the arms of her chair.
"She got into trouble, mostly because she would not allow anyone to help her."
"No one can help me."
"Mr. Spandam was not a kind man," Miss Marple said gently. "It would not have been pleasant working for him. But I do not believe you killed him. If you run to London tonight as planned, the suspicions against you will only worsen. You'll be caught and thrown in prison, and once there you'll be correct in your assumption."
"How did you know…?" asked Robin, paling. "Never mind that. You think…you think I'm innocent?"
"I know you're innocent," Miss Marple said primly. "I just can't prove it yet. Will you give me a chance, Miss Robin? Will you let me help you?"
Miss Marple could almost see the fight leave the girl. Burying her head in her hands, Robin nodded in defeat. "I just don't see how it's possible. Everyone already assumes I'm guilty."
"Everyone except myself. Give me two days, Miss Robin, then you can go to London free as a lark. I guarantee it."
It was a wonderful thing to have friends. A friend, even. Sakura glanced over her book at the new girl in their class, a refugee from a village on the boarder of the Fire Country that had been regrettably destroyed in a mission gone horribly wrong. The girl had no friends and seemed to like it that way, her snide remarks and off-putting personality mixing with her outsider background to put her lower on the social ladder than even Naruto. It served her right. Ino had tried to make friends when she had first arrived, only to be studiously ignored.
"You're still here?" Ino called from the doorway. "Come on, Forehead! Sasuke's gonna come around any minute!"
"Sshh!" Sakura giggled. "This is the library!"
She put her books away quickly, not wanting to be seen as a nerd or a weirdo, and more importantly not wanting to keep Ino waiting. In her rush, Sakura didn't see that someone else was entering the library until she had nearly bowled him over.
"Hey, watch where you're going!" When she identified who it was, her temper flared. "Naruto!"
"H-hey, sorry, Sakura," he said with a sheepish grin.
"Apology not accepted!" Sakura snapped, conking him on the head. "What're you doing here anyway? You never study."
He brightened. "I'm meeting my friend!"
"As if a moron like you could have friends," Ino drawled
Sakura's eyes widened, shocked that she would have the boldness to say something like that out loud even if it were true. Naruto glared at them both, puffing out his chest. "I'm gonna be the Hokage someday. It would be moronic not to want to be friends with me!"
"That doesn't even make sense," Ino replied in a cutting tone. "They don't let losers become Hokage!"
"I'm not a loser!"
"Says who?"
"Says me."
The three academy students turned to look at who had spoken. It was that new girl, the refugee. She had an angry, cold look on her face that sent a shiver down Sakura's spine, but Naruto only grinned.
"See, I told you I was meeting my friend! Thanks for helping me study, Robin!"
"That's your friend?" Ino asked incredulously. "Might as well talk to a rock."
By this point Sakura was beginning to feel very uncomfortable, but a two on one fight wasn't fair, so she nodded in agreement. "Yeah. Anyone who wants to hang out with you instead of watching Sasuke with us has got to have something wrong with her head."
Robin turned her piercing gaze on Sakura, her hands clenching into fists. "You know, Sakura, for someone who reads as much as you do, you're an idiot. Come on, Naruto. Let these girls play at being ninja. We're going to study for that test tomorrow."
"Then ramen?"
Robin didn't quite smile at the question, but the open hostility left her eyes. "I don't see why not."
Sakura and Ino gaped as the two rejects left the library. After she had a moment to collect herself, Ino's mouth curled in disgust. "Who does she think she is?!"
"I don't know," Sakura said quietly, looking at the ground.
"Who needs them anyway? Let's go, Sakura. Sasuke should be finished training by now."
Sakura hesitated. "Actually…I think I'm going to study a little bit longer."
"What? Why?"
"Because I'm going to be ninja, and a real ninja takes advantage of every moment she has to prepare."
AN: In case you didn't know/catch the references, I borrowed from Roald Dahl's Matilda, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, Harry Potter, Tamora Pierce's Circle universe, Scott Westerfeld's Midnighter's Trilogy, Teen Titans (first cartoon series), Avatar: The Last Airbender, Agatha Christie's Miss Marple, and Naruto.
I've kind of had a secret desire to read a massive crossover featuring a bunch of smart, capable female characters (or characters that should be smart and capable in Sakura's case. Talk about wasted potential) for awhile, so I kind of decided to write my own. And once I decided to do crossovers, I wanted to be a little more obscure/random with some of my source material, because that's half the fun (and honestly, so long as she wasn't the killer I think Robin would do well in an Agatha Christie mystery).