A/N: Hi guys! Thank you everyone who read my story. Here is chapter 4! I actually had more for this section, but I decided to split it up and make the rest into Chapter 5 (which is almost finished and will be posted in the next 2 days hopefully!) There's a lot more description, so the dialogue stuff will come more in Chapter 5! Anyways, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own one piece or the characters!

Chapter 4: Heal Me

Robin knew the path in front of her must be a straight one since she hasn't walked into anything yet. She felt confused because the scene in front of her looked too bright to be night. Hues of animated color had come clouding her vision in sporadic waves, and it hurt to see. Everything in the forest was moving but also motionless, and the image seemed so surreal, she couldn't comprehend it. It was like looking at a picture through a waterfall. Robin wanted to reach out and touch one of the leaves to see if it would liquefy and run through her fingers like water. She didn't try, knowing she might fall over if she did. She couldn't wrap her mind around anything because nothing felt tangible. The loss of blood had been too great and now there wasn't enough to keep her mind fed and lucid. The lightheadedness was settling in and her wound was throbbing intensely, but like the trooper that she is, Robin kept walking.

Ace strolled silently behind her. He noticed her pace had slowed and her walk wobbled a bit, but not wanting to hover over like a paranoid parent, he gave her some space. She seemed pretty self-sufficient, not even needing him help her when she was attacked by that beast. It took a whole speech out of Ace just to convince her to let him tag along, and he didn't want to jeopardize that by being pushy. But, as he watched her walk become more and more unsteady, Ace quickened his pace slightly to catch up to her.

Robin knew she was losing it. Her breathing became ridged and her chest heaved greatly with every breath she took, as if all the oxygen in the world wasn't enough. Just when she was about to fall over, Ace caught her by the waist and held her steady. Leaning on him slightly, she looked up at his face. For a moment, she wasn't sure if he was real. Her hand went to touch his cheek to check that he was really there and not just a figment of her hallucinogenic state. He felt solid enough, so she allowed her complete weight to collapse into him, unable to hold herself up any longer.

Ace looked into her face anxiously. He placed a hand on her forehead. It felt damp and warm. This isn't good, Ace thought.

"Robin, are you feeling okay? Robin? Robin, talk to me."

His voice sounded muffled and distant. Robin blinked a few times but her vision remained murky and fogged over. Her focus was slipping and she could no longer keep herself conscious. Everything became pitch-black as her head toppled backwards.

Ace caught her head with his hand and placed it on his shoulder, then putting one arm behind her knees, he lifted her up into his arms. He was pretty sure that it was her wound that was causing this. He thought maybe he should bring her back to the ship so the Strawhat's doctor can treat her. But they had wandered pretty far into the woods and judging by Robin's critical state, Ace feared that there wouldn't be enough time to make it back to the ship. He wanted to check on wound but thought it'd be better to find a safer place first, maybe somewhere with water. It was a good thing that Ace was highly experienced with surviving in the woods. Gramps use to put Luffy and Ace through endurance training, by tossing them into the wild and letting them fend for themselves. It was to build their strength so they'll become better marines. Gramps hadn't even considered that his grandsons would end up as pirates. Either way, all that training now came in handy. Ace stood still and listened quietly. Hearing rushing water in a distance, Ace started towards that direction carrying Robin with him.

Soon enough, a river with a small waterfall came into view. There was a cluster of large boulders nearby. Ace looked down at Robin in his arms to see how she was doing. A bead of sweat had formed on her forehead, telling Ace her condition was worsening. Her head laid limply on his shoulder and she was still breathing heavily. He thought this was the most vulnerable he had ever seen her.

Ace set Robin down lightly leaning her back on one of the large rocks. He began to undo the knot on the fabric around her waist. The blood had soaked through the material almost completely. When he took the cloth off of the wound, he noticed the gash was now a sickly purple color. It's infected, Ace sighed. Taking the blood drenched cloth, Aced walked over to the side of the river and began rinsing. Once the blood had washed away, Ace twisted the cloth to drip the excess water off. Returning to Robin's side, Ace began to wipe around the wound with the clean and dampened material. Carefully, he dabbed around the edges of the gash. As the drying blood and debris came off, he noticed how smooth her skin was underneath all the grime. Ace gazed at her unconscious form, and thought that this was perhaps the most lovely thing he'd ever seen. He looked at her face and noticed the flushed color in her cheeks, indicating the beginnings of an infection induced fever. Furrowing his eyebrows in concern, Ace scolded himself for getting distracted and went back to focusing on cleaning the injury.

After he finished, he went back to the water and rinsed the cloth once more. Then, he went about the task of gathering herbs to treat the wound. Once again, survival training came quite useful. Ace was able to distinguish the herbs that had antibacterial properties to keep Robin's infection at bay. He took the greens, crushed them, burned them a little with his finger which lit into a small fire, and then spread them onto the ripped cloth from Robin's skirt. Then, pressing the herbs onto the gash, Ace tied the cloth around Robin's waist. She laid still throughout the whole process. Ace figured she should rest a while, so he took the opportunity to go gather some food and find some firewood. Maybe when she wakes up, he can convince her to go back to the ship for medical treatment.

In the distance laid the wretched desolation of Ohara, a dead city encased in a blaze of cobalt fire - the embers flaring with icy tenacity. Robin wondered how such inferno could continue underwater, as the dark brine filled and constricted her lungs. She tried to move but her limbs felt stiff, constrained by an invisible force. I'm a hammer, she remembered. Hopelessness settled in, and the tears began spilling. She opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came out - only the soft reverberations of terror muffled out by the murky bubbles that encapsulated them. Each time she shrieked, more bubbles flowed out and up, obscuring her view of the burning city. Robin… came a voice in a hushed whisper. The panic in her chest rose as she sank lower and lower, afraid that the voice would not find her again. Her crumbling home hung above her now and she could do nothing but stare up in dread. Robin! the voice came again, with more intensity. Then the abyss swallowed her up and there was nothing but black. Robin! Wake up!

Robin jolted up into a sitting position, gasping for air. Her wrist were still restrained and she thought her nightmare had become real. Then she realized she wasn't underwater anymore and that the reason she couldn't move her wrists was because someone was gripping them. Looking up, she saw a soft freckled face with dark hair and concerned eyes only inches away. "Ace," Robin breathed. He held her wrists close together in between them. Robin realized that she had probably been screaming and tossing her arms in her sleep, and Ace had witnessed it all. And unlike the other times she had woken up from her nightmares in front of her nakama, she couldn't hold her emotions together this time. Staring into Ace's worried eyes, she let a few tears roll down her cheek, something she never allowed in front of people.

Ace loosened his grip on her wrists and moved a hand to her face. Holding her cheek in the palm of his hand, he wiped her tears with his thumb. He saw the grief and distress in her sad blue eyes, and he could do nothing but pull her into his chest and hold onto her tightly. Robin didn't pull back. Instead, she let herself sink into the hug and sobbed quietly, finding refuge in the embrace.

Back on Whitebeard's ship…

"Hey, has anyone seen Robin?" the red-haired Navigator asked.

"I thought she was going for a walk," answered Usopp.

"But that was a while ago. You don't think something could have happened to her…" Nami responded.

"What? My Robin-chwan is missing?!" Sanji called out

"We don't know that for sure," Zoro reasoned. Then with a smirk on his face he said, "Maybe she's somewhere having a 'good time' with a Whitebeard pirate."

"Shut up you shitty-marimo! My sweet and delicate Robin-chwan isn't like that!" Sanji yelled waving a fist at Zoro.

"You shut it, Baka-cook! She's probably fine. Besides, she can pretty much take care of herself! She's Nico Robin" Zoro yelled back.

"But… maybe we should tell Luffy," Usopped reasoned.

Chopper started balling hysterically, "Robin's lost again!"

"Don't worry Chopper! Nico-san is SUUUUUPER strong!" Franky stated confidently.

"Oi, what are you guys talking about?" Luffy stood in front of his crew with a curious look on his face.

"Well…" Usopped began nervously, "We can't find Robin."

Normally, Luffy wouldn't worry about his nakama going missing (since it happens a lot anyways… like every episode… O.o), but after everything that's been happening with Robin lately with Enies Lobby and the nightmares, Luffy felt uneasy. His eyes widened in distress at what Usopp said, a look that resembled the one he had when Nami told him that Robin was sacrificing herself to save them back at Water 7. Luffy looked at each of his nakama's expectant expression, each waiting to see what their captain will do. Luffy's hat then tilted down shadowing his eyes, and as he stood resolute upon the deck, an aura of determination radiated out of the Strawhat Captain.

A/N: Stay tuned for Chapter 5! And i promise it will come in the next 2 days! I'm just tweeking a few things, so be patient! Thanks!