A short passage I wrote that seems to make more sense as a tumblr post instead of a fic on ao3.
Chopperβs used to watching his captainβs self-destructive tendencies. To being the one to begrudgingly stitch him back together after his body gives out.
Heβs also used to watching Luffy get up like itβs nothing and ignore all Chopperβs careful handiwork in favour of collecting more injuries.
Which is why Chopper finds himself complaining to Robin one afternoon after finishing restitching Luffyβs stomach wound for the fifth time.
βYou know, he didnβt recruit me until Nami got sick,β he says to Robin, putting extra force into the herbs heβs grinding. βI think he only views my services exclusively for everyone else.β
Robin is perched elegantly in her lounge chair. She idly flicks a page in her book.
βHealing hands are much harder to accept than you think,β she says, cryptic and beatific. Robin in a nutshell.
βUntreated wounds donβt disappear, they try to heal anyway and without guidance they do so incorrectly and unsafely,β Chopper grumbles. This rant well rehearsed by how frequently he thinks it while treating the crew.
Robin hums. βThatβs an apt metaphor.β
Chopper looks up in confusion. βIt wasnβt a metaβ oh,β he breathes.
Robinβs warm eyes meets his gaze. βI believe our captain is no stranger to the phenomen of healing unguided.β
βOr the rest of the crew,β Chopper sighs.
He thinks of Luffyβs scars, the one under his cheek, self inflicted then crudely sewn together. He thinks of the scar across Luffyβs chest, a symbol of what heβs lost.
He thinks of Zoro, with his scarred ankles and chest. The slash across his eye and the tiny cuts that litter his hands. Wounds collected in pursuit of his dreams, in pursuit of fulfilling his role as protector and first mate.
A captain and his first mate. One leads the other follows.
Suddenly itβs no wonder why they became the foundation of the Strawhats.
He thinks of Nami with her pinwheel tattoo carefully inked over scarred skin. Of Usoppβs endless broken bones and Frankyβs cyborg body that he earned through reckless sacrifice.
He thinks of Jinbeiβs countless battle scars and Robin and Sanjiβs invisible ones. Brookβs skeletal body, a testament to his grief and endurance.
He thinks of his own broken antler, reattached with scrapped metal Dr Hiriluk had scavenged in the snow.
Again he marvels at the similarity they share with their captain.
βThe captain often sets the tone of their crew,β Robin muses as if she can read Chopperβs mind.
Chopper sighs, βI have my work cut out for me.β
tangentwithtanner
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