The Beginning of Trust

At dusk the next day, warm orange light streamed through the window lattice of the newly built wooden house, casting mottled shadows across the floor covered in fresh wood shavings.

Dawn lounged sideways in a crude wooden chair he had made himself, his slender fingers absentmindedly combing through the soft fur of the White Fox in his lap. White Fox was curled up, her breathing even as she slept soundly.

His gaze fell on the small figure opposite him. Robin sat quietly on a little stool, engrossed in a book far larger than her hands. She showed none of the childish surprise or curiosity one might expect at a wooden house that had sprung up overnight.

A faint trace of helplessness flashed through Dawn's eyes. Any ordinary child who witnessed such a miracle would probably have surrounded him with endless chatter and questions.

"Just as I thought..."

Dawn sighed inwardly. He recalled Robin's reaction when she had first met the giant Saul in the original story. Her surprise had been so faint that it had seemed almost perfunctory.

This girl's heart had long since been tempered by endless loneliness and rejection into something extraordinarily resilient yet closed off.

He had to take the initiative and break through that layer of ice. Dawn cleared his throat and deliberately found a topic.

"Come to think of it, Robin, shouldn't children your age be playing with friends in town right now? Why did you come all the way to this remote stretch of shore alone?"

Naturally, he knew the answer. This was merely an opening question to which he already knew the answer.

At his words, Robin's little mouth pursed slightly, and a trace of unconcealable dejection crossed her face.

"The children in town... they all say I'm a monster. They don't want to play with me."

As if to prove her point, she raised her slender arm. Amid a flutter of petals, another identical arm instantly bloomed from the tabletop beside her and flexed nimbly a few times.

Dawn raised an eyebrow, displaying just the right amount of surprise.

"Huh? That's surprising. Is this place really so ignorant and backward? The children here don't even know about Devil Fruits?"

Of course, he knew Ohara was not ignorant. But he was currently playing the part of a shipwreck survivor stranded here and knowing nothing about Ohara, so the question was perfectly reasonable.

For the first time, clear surprise appeared on Robin's face. She looked at the blond youth in confusion.

"You... aren't afraid?"

"Afraid?"

Dawn chuckled, the afterglow of the setting sun reflected in his azure eyes.

"I come from the Grand Line. Ability users aren't everywhere there, but they certainly aren't rare either. And..."

He paused and spread open his other empty hand.

"I'm an ability user too."

A mass of darkness that seemed capable of swallowing all light surged from his palm, silently swirling as it radiated an ominous, powerful aura.

The instant that darkness appeared, White Fox, who had been sleeping peacefully in Dawn's lap, abruptly woke!

Animal instinct made her fur stand on end. She let out a sharp cry, leapt from Dawn's knees without hesitation, and the moment she landed, turned her head and spat out a blast of scorching Flame.

"Don't use your ability so close to me! I hate that thing!"

As the nemesis of all other Devil Fruit users, the aura of the Yami Yami no Mi itself instinctively made Stella, a Zoan ability user whose sense of danger had become increasingly acute, feel uncomfortable, even though Dawn had never used his ability on her.

The sudden turn of events left Robin staring blankly.

Dawn opened his mouth expressionlessly and exhaled a wisp of black smoke. The darkness in his palm moved like a living thing, swallowing every flame burning on his face as though it had never existed.

"Sorry, Stella. I'll be more careful next time."

After soothing his companion, Dawn looked back at Robin, whose surprise had deepened, and explained in detail.

"She's Stella, my companion. She's human, but she ate a Zoan Devil Fruit and gained the ability to transform into an animal. She simply prefers staying in this form."

Considering that Robin might not yet know much about Devil Fruits, he explained with particular patience.

Robin looked at White Fox, who had jumped back onto the chair but was still warily glancing at Dawn's hand. She nodded thoughtfully, and for the first time, genuine curiosity toward Dawn appeared in her eyes.

Seeing that his tentative probing had finally stirred some ripples, Dawn secretly breathed a sigh of relief and quickly struck while the iron was hot, steering the conversation toward the topic he had prepared long ago—sailing.

He knew that deep down, Robin had always longed to sail out to sea and search for her mother, Olvia, an archaeologist.

Sure enough, the moment he mentioned the sea, different islands, and strange sea routes, Robin's eyes immediately lit up. The longing in her large eyes, once marked by premature melancholy, began to shine brightly.

Once the conversation started, it could no longer be stopped. Drawing on the memories of his previous life and his experiences in this one, Dawn vividly described the splendor and wonder of the Grand Line.

Robin occasionally asked questions or shared descriptions of the outside world that she had read about in books. The more they talked, the more absorbed they became, and the atmosphere in the wooden house gradually changed from awkward and unfamiliar to warm and lively.

Before they realized it, the sky outside had turned completely dark, and stars began to dot the night. Though Robin was reluctant to stop, it was time for her to go home.

She rose reluctantly, bid Dawn farewell, and solemnly said,

"I'll come again tomorrow."

After all these years, she had met someone for the first time who was not afraid of her, did not reject her, possessed the same strange kind of ability, and understood her longing for the outside world.

The heart she had tightly sealed away after years of isolation finally cracked open a small gap, allowing her to feel a long-lost trace of warmth.

Watching Robin's small figure vanish into the night, a barely noticeable smile appeared on Dawn's handsome face. The most difficult first step of his plan—earning trust and closeness—had finally been taken successfully.

He bent down, picked up Stella, who was still sulking over his earlier use of his ability, and returned inside.

After lighting an oil lamp, he took out the book about Life Return from his simple pack.

"Alright, don't be angry anymore."

Dawn stroked the back of White Fox's neck.

"If we can fully master this book, both of us can take our strength to the next level. Then we'll have a little more confidence when facing trouble."

A gleam of anticipation flashed through Stella's fox eyes. She calmed down and leaned closer to the book, studying it intently with Dawn beneath the dim yellow lamplight.

TO BE CONTINUED