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Despite their friendship - “Alliance,” Law steadfastly insists - it was rare that the Strawhats and the Hearts took the time to meet up when there wasn’t a dangerous plan in motion, but then one night their ships crossed paths. There were no Marines or enemy pirates on the horizon and clear weather left the sky peaceful with nary a cloud in sight, thus the Strawhat captain demanded the two crews have a party. Law was given very little choice but to accept.
However, instead of acting the fool, the doctor sat at a table off to the side, content with watching his crew enjoy themselves. Keeping him company was the Strawhat archaeologist, Nico Robin. Neither typically drank to the degree of their crewmates but had decided to indulge more than usual and were each several drinks in.
Their pleasant chatter started innocent enough until an innocuous comment didn’t open but utterly shattered a can of worms.
“The sea at night is an incredible sight,” Law mused.
“It’s quite majestic,” Robin agreed, gazing out towards the shadowed horizon, “and deceptively peaceful considering one wrong slip and we’d fall into its depths, helplessly lost within the crushing darkness as we drown.”
Law snickered at the morbid thought and toasted her with his cup. “What a happy childhood you must have led, Nico-ya.”
“Pleasant enough until the buster call.” Choking on his sip at the unexpected information, Law frowned when he saw her sly smirk as she calmly side-eyed him, obviously enjoying his reaction. Reading his curiosity, she explained, “The top scholars of my island were studying the Void Century.”
He had a sneaking suspicion that the normally quiet woman wouldn’t have shared that information if it weren’t for the alcohol that was also staining her cheeks red. He’d had enough himself that the horror in his gut didn’t fully penetrate his relaxed state of mind. Instead, he sighed mockingly, “Ah, that’s such a shame.” Leaning back, Law stretched his legs out and crossed them at the ankles. “My country was poisoned for generations and then burned to the ground for nothing more than government propaganda.”
Robin’s hand froze halfway to her mouth at his words. Her eyes narrowed. “That’s very unfortunate.”
Tilting his head to peer at her, he added, “I saw my entire family die that day.”
“You must miss them greatly,” she said, her words sympathetic but her tone challenging. “I never really knew my parents. The first time I met my mother was the day of the buster call. She was shot right in front of me.”
Throwing back the rest of his drink, Law slammed it on the table and sneered at Robin. “Losing someone you barely knew? My heart bleeds for you, Nico-ya.”
“But I also lost Saul.” Her hand rested over her heart. There was sincerity in her voice, but a calculating gleam in her dark eyes. “He was my best and only friend, and he sacrificed himself to save me.”
Eye twitching, Law stood and leaned across the table, and Robin rose to match his stance. Their gazes locked with a competitive edge. Faces red, pupils dilated and shaking, and breaths laced with the scent of liquor, neither noticed the party in the background fall quiet.
“Truly a tragedy. Cora-san told me he loved me for the first time right before he was killed.”
“Heartbreaking.”
“Thank you,” he nodded, conceding, “but I did meet Bepo, Penguin, and Shachi not long after.”
“How sweet that you had your friends.” Robin tilted her head and smiled softly. Any other time it would’ve seemed like a show of sympathy, but Law knew better. “I was alone for twenty years.”
“Every day I had to look over my shoulder, fearing the day Doflamingo would find me.”
“A single Warlord? Everyone I ever met tried to turn me in once they discovered my identity. They wanted the hefty bounty I’d had since I was only eight years old.”
“That must have been hard for someone so young,” Law said. “Bounties never mattered much to me since I wasn’t supposed to live past thirteen.”
“A travesty, but I’m happy to see you obviously recovered from what ailed you.”
“Yes, cutting the lead from my body was hardly a pleasant experience, but here I am.”
“Here you are.”
They both fell silent, staring at the other with a drunken ferocity until their lips finally twitched, and they started laughing at the ridiculousness of what they were fighting about. The personal bubble isolating them finally popped, and Law and Robin noticed that everyone else was quiet and watching them with wide-eyed horror.
Usopp looked back and forth between them and muttered a frightened, “Holy shit, guys.”