This fic is inspired by my buddy pineappleheadmarco on tumblr. It was just going to be a one shot, but I kept thinking of stuff, so it's going to be a short multi-chapter fic. For those that are reading Bloodstains, you probably know I ship X Drake and Robin now (still don't know how that happened, it just did), but I haven't had a solid idea to write for them until now. I'm also incorporating my crack family headcanon where Nami is Drake's biological sister, something I explain in this chapter while setting the stage for the Drobin ship. I figure, it's a modern AU, with a completely out of nowhere crack pairing, so why not include a crack siblingship, too. Hope you guys enjoy it. XD

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or the characters, they belong to Eichiro Oda.

A Casual Introduction

Diez Drake loved his job. There was no way he could ever imagine having a bad day when he spent all his time surrounded by dinosaur bones, lifelike models of prehistoric creatures, and researching new theories on the planet's ancient rulers. It was a kid's dream job.

He was able to travel the world, searching for clues to the world's prehistory. Nothing could beat that life.

The hardest part for him was teaching what he knew, but if he wanted to work in paleontology, he had to at least make an effort. He much preferred being in the lab or field, not in a classroom giving lectures to a couple hundred kids. He was at least lucky to have one of the few classes with regular attendance, but that was because he did what he could to keep the subject matter interesting. He even went so far as to bring in a miniature animatronic Tyrannosaurus Rex to walk around the lecture hall and shriek at students that looked to need a wake up.

On top of studying a subject he loved for a living, his job gave him the opportunity to build a relationship with family he thought was lost to him forever.

His kid sister had been a baby when war struck the area his father had been stationed. He had been thirteen at the time, and their family was full of love, even more so with the young girl his mother gave birth to. When war broke out, their family was torn apart, nothing was ever the same after. His mother died, and his sister was lost, presumed dead. His father went AWOL, abandoning the Navy in his grief, but took Drake with him as he pursued a criminal career selling illegal weapons. He wasn't his loving father after that, and Drake was forced to live a life filled with abuse as his drunken old man grew to resent him more and more each day.

He was going on twenty when his father died, shot down in a deal gone wrong, and Drake escaped to the safety of the military branch investigating him. It took years for him to overcome what his father did to him, years to mature and grow into a stable adult with a stable career.

And then he found her in the last place he expected to.

Nami took after their mother far more than their father. The only thing she shared with him was her ginger colored hair, and her tendency to run away when scared – a trait he especially struggled with when he was younger. She had some of their father's temper, and his high tolerance for liquor, but for the most part she was a happy and kind young woman, albeit a mischievous one with a penchant for stealing wallets.

In fact, she stole his before he realized who she was.

She had just transferred to the university he was employed with, pursuing her graduate studies in atmospheric sciences. He met her through a mutual friend of theirs; though Trafalgar Law would most likely not categorize Drake as one of his friends, acquaintance might be the closest he came. He stared at her in open shock when he heard her name, trying to convince himself that it was merely a coincidence, that she was some other Nami who just happened to have their mother's eyes and smile, and his red hair.

Law arranged for a blood test the very next day.

It turned out that Nami was found by their neighbor's daughter outside the ruins of their home. Nojiko wandered the streets with her until she found a soldier, a woman named Bellemere, who got them out of the country and adopted them. The adoption wasn't legal, there were no records of it, which would explain why he and his father never knew about it. If she had found them in a warzone and reported it properly, they would have first sought to locate surviving family before issuing out adoption papers.

For ten years she lived with Bellemere and Nojiko, a happy family, far away from the abuse he had to endure at their father's hands. He thought she was the lucky one until he found out about Arlong, the mobster who murdered her mother and took her into his gang. She had to live with her own abuse for eight years after that, but she survived and regained her freedom, found friends who loved her and supported her, and now she had him right there with them.

Getting close to her after twenty years apart wasn't easy, but they were trying.

Nami even came to visit him whenever she had a break in classes. It was the highlight of his day when he saw her.

"Drake!" He heard as he stood by the podium of the lecture hall at the end of his class, discussing a term paper with one of his students. He glanced up to see Nami at the back of the room, her long hair pulled back in two pigtails, and dressed comfortably in jeans and a tank top, waving down to him with a beaming grin. A woman was with her, long black hair swept up in a ponytail with strands hanging around her sharp face. She was dressed in fitted black slacks and a lavender dress shirt with glasses resting atop her head. She looked familiar, but he couldn't place if he had met her.

He waved to his sister, and then turned back to his student to finish their discussion. Nami leapt down the stadium room's stairs, her friend following behind at a more leisurely pace. She got to the bottom just as he finished talking to the student and sent her off.

"Nami," he greeted with a hint of a smile.

She snickered to herself in a way he was beginning to learn meant she was up to something, but he didn't think much of it as she surprised him with a hug. She was two feet shorter than him, her head just barely reaching the bottom of his sternum, and he imagined it was quite comical for her friend to see. It was probably especially amusing considering Nami did not lavish him with sisterly love, not when they were still getting to know each other, so he was caught off guard and only managed to awkwardly pat the top of her head to return the gesture.

The other woman was snickering behind her hand, and he tried not to look embarrassed as he swept a hand through his hair, just to the side of his tall faux-hawk.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, looking down at her with a gaze that said he meant 'What are you plotting?'

"I was visiting my friend," she explained, pulling away to gesture at the other woman. "This is Nico Robin. She just finished her doctoral work in archaeology and the university hired her as a professor." His eyes went wide at her name. It was far too famous within the world of scholars not to recognize. He had no idea the university had hired her. Nami didn't notice his reaction as she looked toward Robin, grin still plastered to her face. "Robin, this is my older brother Drake."

Robin nodded politely to him. "I've heard a great deal about you since Nami learned who you were. I'm happy you two found each other after all these years."

He glanced at the young woman beside him, shaking off his surprise to smile at her once more, and gave another pat to her head. "I'm quite lucky to have gotten her back," he said, his hand still atop Nami's head as he looked back to Robin. "And how did my sister become acquainted with an Ohara scholar?"

The other woman gave him a knowing smile, a subtle laugh in her tone as she answered. "We had a history course together, as well as an upper division geology course. I came to be fast friends with her and her roommates."

Nami's head shifted under his hand, and his eyes slid down to her, curious of her unwavering smile. "We were just about to get lunch together. Do you want to join us?"

His brow rose as he glanced between his sister and her friend. "Sure," he said, a hand hiding away in the pocket of his khakis, while the other gestured for them to lead the way. "I just need to grab Rex," he said, pointing toward his robotic dinosaur.

He heard Robin chuckle as he went to grab it from a row of seats, and held it up to show her. "He keeps the kids awake," he explained. The remote for the toy was in his pocket, and he subtly pressed the button that made it shriek.

"Quite clever, Drake-san," Robin laughed.

"Drake actually has one of the more popular classes for his department," Nami said, taking her friend by the arm to usher her up to the door. "I heard one of his students say he gives extra credit to anyone who has seen all the Jurassic Park movies."

"That's just a rumor," he frowned as he followed them outside. "At most I have a few test questions that reference the movies."

She tilted her head back to grin, while Robin chuckled.

"Which shirt do you have on today?" Nami asked cheekily, pointing to his navy blue button down shirt that hid the t-shirt he wore beneath. He sent her a withering glare, but she merely laughed, spinning to face him as she walked backwards. She wasn't going to give up until he told her.

"The new one for Jurassic World," he grumbled with a sigh.

"The grey one I got you?" She asked knowingly. He nodded and Nami grinned victoriously as she spun back around. "I knew it."

He sighed again and hung his head at her teasing.

"You really love dinosaurs," Robin stated, drawing his attention to her kinder smile. There was mirth in her eyes, but it wasn't like Nami's whose amusement was entirely from her successful attempts at embarrassing him.

"I wouldn't be in my field if I didn't," he said.

"True. It's important to be passionate about what you study," she nodded, slowing to walk beside him as they approached the University's Commons.

Nami went ahead to the door, and Drake grabbed it before it shut behind her, holding it open for Robin.

"I've heard about your studies in humanity's lost histories. One of my colleagues actually just read your paper on ancient, lost weapons. I've been meaning to read it." He commented, his sister leading them to a sandwich shop one of her friends worked at.

"Oh? Are you interested in ancient weaponry?" Robin's head cocked to the side as she looked up at him.

He shrugged. "Somewhat. While I was going through officer training, I had to take a number of courses on military history and weaponry, and the unit I was assigned to was heavily tied to weapons research. It's a fascinating subject, albeit worrisome with new technology."

She hummed thoughtfully. "It is, especially if you know anything about some of those lost weapons. I know the Government has been searching for them, hoping to harness them." He gave her a nod; he was all too aware of that. "What branch were you in?"

"I was a Rear-Admiral in the Navy, working under Admiral Kizaru."

Robin's brow rose, looking impressed as her lip curved in a smile. "When you have a chance to read my paper, we should discuss the subject more. I'd love to hear what you know on current weapons research and its ties to my studies."

"I'll take a look at it tonight," he nodded.

Her smile widened. "And of course I'd enjoy hearing about what drew you to Paleontology. It's quite a change from being a naval officer."

"Nami-swan! Robin-chan!" A voice interrupted as soon as they walked into the sandwich shop. Drake frowned at the blond waving behind the counter, a wide grin on his face that quickly vanished when he spotted the man with them. His nod was polite, but his enthusiasm was obviously lost. "Nami-san's brother."

He spared the man a short wave. A number of Nami's friends were still adjusting to his appearance in her life, and Sanji was especially curt with him, but he seemed worse with most every other man, so he was at least making an effort to be polite.

"I'll get my usual, Sanji-kun," Nami chirped, earning a wide grin from the blond.

"Of course. You too, Robin-chan?" He asked, glancing at the woman beside him.

"Please, and an iced tea."

Sanji looked toward Drake expectantly. "I'll have a Reuben, and iced tea, as well."

"Got it," Sanji nodded, and quickly rang them up. The girls weren't charged for their meals, which Drake had come to expect any time he had lunch with Nami at that particular shop when Sanji worked. Unfortunately Drake still had to pay for his food.

Both women ordered turkey clubs, Nami with extra mayo and tomatoes, while Robin got hers with a sweet vinaigrette dressing Sanji created for her, and once they had their meals, they took up a table toward the wall to eat. Drake sat beside his sister, Rex on the floor at his feet, listening to Nami talk excitedly with Robin about an upcoming research trip she was invited to attend with her professor for climatology research. She would be out at sea for a few months, studying the effects the changing climate and atmospheric conditions were having on the planet, namely its oceans. It was a good trip for her, combining both of her undergraduate fields of study – oceanography and atmospheric sciences.

"Oh?" Nami perked up as they were getting ready to leave. "I forgot to ask, Robin, what classes are you teaching?"

"An introductory archaeology course, another on ancient cities, and a prehistory course," she answered, looking at her watch. "And actually, I should get going. I have a class in a half an hour I need to finish preparing for."

"Of course! Thank you for having lunch with us. I'll call you later!" Nami waved as Robin turned toward the anthropology building.

Robin waved back, and sent Drake a warm smile. "And it was a pleasure meeting you, Drake-san. I look forward to talking to you again soon."

"Good luck with your class," he said with a nod and short wave.

Once Robin's back was turned, Drake let his hand fall atop his sister's head, forcing her to tilt it back to see his suspicious frown.

"I feel like you're up to something, Nami," he stated flatly.

"What makes you think that!?" She shrieked, aghast. "I just thought you two might get along since your fields are closely related, and with Robin just starting her career here, I figured it would be good for her to have a few friends among the professors."

"And that show of hugging me when you got to the classroom was because…?"

"I wanted to see how you'd react," she snickered and stuck her tongue out at him. "Purely for my own enjoyment." He rolled his eyes at her, but loosened his hold so she could jump away and spin to face him. She had a knowing glint to her eye that he didn't like. "But why do you think I'd be planning something by introducing you to my friend? I've introduced you to a lot of my friends." His frown deepened. He couldn't really say why he was suspicious, it was just a natural reaction to his little sister appearing to introduce her to a friend who happened to be a very attractive and intelligent woman. "Do you like her?" She asked in a sing-song tone that meant she wasn't referring to a platonic 'like'.

"I hardly know her," he glowered.

"Yeah, but you two were having a nice conversation on the way here," she pointed out to his narrowing eyes. "I swear," she defended his unspoken accusations with hands raised in the air, "I'm just helping her make a friend. You shouldn't be so suspicious of your baby sister."

He stared a moment longer, but relented with a heavy sigh. She had a point, he didn't know why he was reading so much into it. "Alright, I believe you."

"Good," she chirped, and suddenly she was wrapped around his arm, dragging him toward a smoothie shop. "As an apology for not trusting me, you can treat me to a smoothie." He sighed again, knowing there was no arguing with her, not when she had been nothing but a ghost to him for most of his life. "Oh, and can I come by to study at your place tonight? The guys have been playing a new video game nonstop this whole week, and the house is too noisy to concentrate."

"You're always welcome at my place," he nodded with a soft smile.

She smiled back up to him, and then turned to order her drink.

He realized later that he should have specified only she was welcome.

Oh, and for those wondering about Law being in this fic - I have no plans on actively shipping him with Nami. They will be very close friends, best bros and all that, and I will ship tease them quite a bit because I'm naturally biased. Eustass Kid will also be in this fic at points, and I'll be ship teasing him with Nami, too. Unless things go in that direction, I really do not intend to write any other ship in this fic since it is meant to focus on Drake and Robin. But this whole thing is unplanned, so who knows what will happen. XD

And sorry this first chapter is short, and somewhat rushed, I'm trying to lay out groundwork since you all know I love slow burn romances (though no, this will be nowhere near as slow as my LawNa fics, I swear).

This will be rated T for now because I don't think I'm capable of writing smut for this pairing yet. If that changes, I will warn you all. We'll see.