The Straw Hat Pirates had just gotten out of a particularly vicious storm in a particularly vicious part of the Grand Line. The lethargic crew was for the most part lounging on deck attempting to get their wits about them. That was, with the exception of Luffy.
"That was so COOL! Did you see the sea king that got thrown out of the water? Hey Usopp, do you think you can catch anything like that for supper? Because right now I'm really hungry. Sanji, make food, I'm really hungry!"
The captain of the infamous pirates was promptly kicked half way across the deck into Zoro who had just settled down for his after death-defying storm nap. The argument between Sanji and Zoro that followed sparked a chain reaction that led to a giant free for all brawl on deck, with Usopp trying his best to hide and repair the Going Merry at the same time.
That was, until Nami stepped in.
"Every one STOP IT RIGHT NOW!" She bellowed, "Zoro, put your swords away before I increase your debt by 100,000 berris! Chopper, I know Zoro reopened his wounds, but putting him a head lock is not the way to treat him! Sanji, stop fighting and make Luffy a snack before he starts eating the table again! Luffy, you are not to eat the table at any time! And for goodness sakes Usopp stop quivering over there and fix this ship before we all sink!"
The end result was entirely predictable. Sanji went to the kitchen in a flutter of praise for his 'precious Nami', Usopp ran to get more supplies, Zoro cursed but put his swords away, Chopper looked mildly ashamed before returning on his quest to treat Zoro, and Luffy jumped for joy because he was getting food. All parties considered themselves lucky that Nami was too far away to actually hit them this time.
And Robin laughed.
It was more of a chuckle, really. As Robin watched the crew she really couldn't help it. They were so different from the previous pirates and organizations that she had been a part of in the past; it was a breath of fresh air. Confident that they were out of immediate danger, Robin went to the women's quarters to change into something dry before going back to reading the anthology she had gotten in Alabasta, but had yet to finish.
Nami came in just as Robin had changed, muttering about 'stupid men' and 'irresponsible dunderheads'. The poor navigator looked exhausted. While everything seemed to have died down for now, they had spent the better part of three days alternating between deceitfully pleasant weather, storms, and one particularly memorable blizzard. It was no wonder why she was especially intolerant of the boy's behavior.
"I don't know how you do it Robin," she complained.
"Do what Miss Navigator?"
"You know what I'm talking about, the boys! No matter how stupid they get you never get mad at them. Luffy decide that he wants to go swimming? You calmly remind him that he can't. Usopp telling an outrageous lie? You compliment him on his bravery. On and on, every single day! I just don't get it," Nami clarified, looking in her extensive closet for something dry.
Robin smiled again. While the Straw Hat's all had their certain…quirks, both individually and as a whole, they were all essentially kind hearted people following an impossible dream. They were even willing, for now at least, willing to accept her even though she was a former enemy.
"Let me ask you a question in return Miss Navigator. Would you rather they be any different?" Robin replied.
Nami turned, opening her mouth for a quick response, before quickly shutting it again. She stared at Robin for a few seconds before turning in a huff of exasperation. With extremely agitated movements she began to change.
"Not really, I guess. But they don't have to act so dumb all of the time, it's annoying!"
"You're just saying that because you're tired. By the way, do you think we'll have any more storms today? There's some reading I'd like to do before we reach the next island," normally Robin wouldn't trust predictions regarding the Grand Line's weather systems, but Nami seemed to have an uncanny ability detecting changes in the atmospheric pressure.
"I don't think so, but I guess you never know for sure. It would be really nice if everything stabilized for a while," Nami said.
"Well, I'm sure that you will do everything in your power to keep us all from drowning," Robin said mildly, making the navigator shiver.
"That's not funny, not one bit! You and your morbid sense of humor. You know what, I think that you're just as bad as the others, you just hide it better," Nami said as she began to leave the room.
As Nami passed, Robin put her hand on her shoulder. This act of comfort came out instinctively, and managed to catch both of them off guard.
"Don't expect the others to be anything different than what they are," Robin said slowly after an awkward pause, "just like they don't expect you to be anything other than yourself."
Nami looked at Robin in a very strange way, making her feel very uncomfortable. The archeologist let her arm drop lamely. She didn't really know where that had come from, it had just popped out. Robin's mind started going into overdrive, attempting to think off a way to make the uncomfortable feeling go away and never come back. Unfortunately her so-called genius mind seemed to have short circuited itself and no answer was forthcoming.
Unexpectedly, Nami broke into a grin and threw her arms around Robin. The unexpected contact made her stiffen, but Nami didn't seem to mind. Slowly Robin forced herself to relax and tentatively return the hug.
"Thanks Robin, I really needed that," Nami said as she let go, "Oh, and don't forget you have watch tomorrow, so don't pull an all nighter reading, okay?"
"I wouldn't dream of it Miss Navigator," Robin said, her face back into its impassive default stage she had crafted over the years. Robin could have sworn she saw a flicker of disappointment on Nami's face after being referred to by her title, but she couldn't be sure.
"Good, back to business then. I've gotta make sure Luffy didn't decide to do anything completely reckless again, or that Sanji and Zoro aren't breaking anything important, or that…Never mind, I've got to go make sure we're not in any immediate danger. Again." And with that the Straw Hat's navigator left the room, leaving a perplexed Robin.
Xxx
Regardless of what Nami said, Robin did not sleep that night. Not because she was reading, she had finished her anthology before supper, but because of the epiphany she had earlier.
The remainder of the day had been routine, if more subdued than normal. After days fighting through storms everyone was tired, not just Nami. But her predictions had been right and there was not a cloud in the sky, so after several hours of after-storm ship repair and inventory the crew returned to its normal activities.
Robin had watched them. It was a habit born out of necessity, but by using her powers discreetly she was able to know more about the Straw Hats than any of them could imagine. Though she hadn't spied on them the entire day, it was a very good book; Robin was forced to come to one conclusion.
She cared for the Straw Hats. Deeply.
She had watched Sanji hum to himself as he put his all into making fine cuisine that most of the crew wouldn't appreciate, Zoro throw himself into a horrendously difficult training regimen that made Chopper cringe as he tried to get the swordsman to rest, and Usopp tell Luffy a wildly implausible tale of how he had defeated not one-but two dragons in a far off land. Even Nami seemed to be in a good mood, as she yelled less often then she would on a normal day as she dozed in her lawn chair.
Robin was scared by this realization. She wasn't supposed to care about anyone. This situation was temporary, it always was. Sooner or later the Straw Hats would figure her out, discover the darkness that had destroyed everything she had ever cared about.
Unbidden, the voice of the giant with the strange laugh resounded in her head. Once someone is born in dis world, they're not alone.
Lies. Robin had been alone for twenty years. The best she could hope for was a quick and painless death when her luck ran out.
Live wit' them.
They would eventually betray her.
The sea is vast; surely someday yer friends will appear to protect you.
Impossible. She wasn't worth protecting.
But the Straw Hats were. Every single one of them deserved to achieve their dreams. They were good people.
The world needed more good people.
Xxx
The next day the Straw Hats reached the Long Ring Island, defeated the Foxy Pirates at the Davy Fight Back, and were utterly dominated by Aokiji. The crew was lucky to be alive, and everyone was on edge. That was, with the possible exception of Luffy.
Again that night Robin didn't sleep. The fear was back, only stronger. It was a very different sort of fear than what she was used to feeling. The fact that the crew had gotten hurt because of her ate at Robin worse than any acid. Her curse had reared its ugly head again, but Robin knew she should have seen it coming. She had gotten sucked into becoming emotionally invested in the Straw Hat Pirates, and now it was hurting her. It would seem that Nami was wrong after all, the storm was just beginning.
Because the Straw Hats were more than your typical pirate crew; they considered one another family, and they had accepted Robin into that family. And now that Aokiji had confirmed her whereabouts, the World Government was certain to show more and more force against them until they were destroyed or betrayed her out of hatred and bitterness.
Robin didn't think she could live with either option. Because while the Straw Hat Pirates were unorthodox, strange, and often times silly, they were also family. A family that had rekindled a dream that she had thought dead, a family that accepted her when every one else in the world wanted her dead.
So with that Robin decided to do everything in her power to keep them safe, even if it meant turning herself in for their sake. Now that she had found what Saul had talked about, living without them seemed to be such a miserable proposition that would probably kill her anyway.
Xxx
They had followed her.
For reasons beyond logic and sense, and despite the fact Robin so desperatly wanted them to go away and let her die, the Straw Hat Pirates stormed Enies Lobby, thumbing their noses at the entire world in the process.
And when Luffy ordered the unthinkable and the flag representing the largest organization on the planet went up in flames, everyone was shocked at the audacity of the act. Who was this Straw Hat Luffy and his band of misfits, and why would they do this for one demon woman who should have died twenty years ago? As Luffy bellowed his challenge to CP9, and by extension, the world, Robin finally figured it out.
She was family.
AN: I really liked the first part of it, not so sure about the second half. I'm also surprised my spell check accepted 'dunderhead' as a word. On an unrelated note, depressing Robin flashback is depressing, especially considering she's one of my favorites.
Also, as I understand it, fanfiction eats scene breaks like none other. Since I am supreamly ignorant, I have no idea how to get the fancy pants lines I've seen in some other stories recently. We'll see what happens, or if I'll need to go back and fix it later
Thanks again for reading and the feedback so far; you all have been much to kind.