Chapter Text
"A… Are you quite sure this is quite fine?"
"Yes." Mello deadpanned, trying to tolerate being prodded with a literal bone finger. "I can assure you that… unless you get on my nerves… I am perfectly harmless."
"Amazing…" The skeleton turned animatedly towards you. For some reason you could have sworn you knew his name. Maybe… from that time you'd first seen that premonition back with Crocus? "And you are perfectly fine with this living within your body like a parasite?"
"EXCUSE ME!?"
You gave him a placating pat on the beak (the not sharp part of it at least), trying not to think too hard about that name which kept slipping from your head the moment you thought you had it. "Well yeah, course I am. I don't even think I'd be here today without Mello with me."
His black 'skin' grew less dense under your fingertips, "Missy…"
"Ah. Then do forgive me." The skeleton tipped his top hat cheerily. "But now that you have cleared up that small issue, there is something I would more dearly like to as to you and your extraordinarily beautiful lady there."
"Hm?" Nami blinked a few times. "Me? N-No hardly!"
"My eyes follow the beautiful ladies such as you two." He proclaimed simply, without an ounce of shame. "But I'm a skeleton, so I don't have eyes! Yo ho ho ho!"
A beat of silence.
You and Sanji exchanged the raise of a wary eyebrow.
"Were… we supposed to laugh at that?"
"I have no idea."
"I mean I found it a little funny…"
"Miss Mysterious, no ."
During this time the skeleton had at least attempted to spruce up his decrepit appearance. He set down the cracked tea cup, polished his surprisingly shiny shoes, and even gave his his weird floofy blue bow tie thing - "It's a cravat, Missy…" - an extra little oomph.
So you were a little surprised when he took a few steps towards Nami in particular, spine perfectly straight, and simply asked… "May I see your panties?"
"NO WAY!"
"Yo ho… ho… you're… harsh!"
You watched absentmindedly as he collapsed to the deck after a strong roundhouse kick, a large lump emerging from where Nami's boot had collided with his afro… which was weird since he didn't have any flesh to be swollen like that but hey this was a literal talking skeleton here. Couldn't be weirder.
No, you were mulling a few things over in your head. Namely… names. Since you definitely knew this guy's name. It was in there. In the very depths of your memory that you couldn't quite fish out. But you kept on being distracted.
…
Why panties? Like… huh? It was just a scrap of cloth at the end of the day. It wasn't anything that big a deal. But it must be something weird if Nami had that strong a reaction about it…
"Do you remember me telling you about a 'Talk' that I was going to give you at some point."
'Mello…'
"Well it is something based around that."
'...you do realise that while you were asleep Tashigi told me everything about that.'
"SHE WHAT!?"
'Oh yeah, Smoker caught this guy fondling my ass at the bar and when I asked him why that was a bad thing he went and told me to talk to Tashigi. So I did. Now I know what sex is.'
"... Then why are you so confused about how perverted this is?!"
'Because underwear is just a part of clothing? Right?'
"..."
'What?!'
"No comment."
"(y/n)-chan?" A hand gently tapped on your shoulder. "You doing alright there?"
"Uh… yeah?" You grinned sheepishly towards Sanji. "Just doing some… thinking." It didn't make sense to talk about it when you weren't certain yet. Not when this entire situation was so chaotic to begin with.
His eyes narrowed a little with worry. "Well if you need any advice, just know that we are here to help, Miss Mysterious. Don't feel as though you have to keep it all to yourself."
At this point the skeleton had pivoted straight upright off the ground and walked to where he'd set down his tea cup. He took a single sip. "Yes. I poop."
Woah what had you missed?!
"Don't take so long to answer Luffy's question!" Sanji snarled. "And who even cares?!"
"I do, since that is a biological miracle," hummed Mello.
" You are a biological miracle ! Ok, look…" Sanji brandished a finger out towards where the skeleton took another mysterious sip from his cup. "For starters, why are you alive and talking when you're nothing but bones?"
Bones… B maybe?
"What the heck are you? What are you doing here? What happened on this ship? Why's it so broken?
Broken… Bro…?
"What's the story behind this sea?!" His cigarette was close to being bitten in half. "Answer those questions dammit!"
Your fist slammed down into your palm, "BROOK!"
Sanji, Luffy, and Nami just blinked at you in confusion.
You beamed at the equally dumbfounded skeleton, "Your name is Brook! I just remembered!" When he didn't react, you felt the enthusiasm slip away. "Your name is Brook, right? I'm not making that up?"
"No, that is indeed my name." Once again the tea cup was set down so that a skeletal hand could scratch at Brook's skull. "Although I would very much like to know how you came to know it. Since I have been adrift here for quite some time now… Enough to reduce me to bones yo ho!"
"Wait."
Luffy stepped forwards until he was in front of all of you. The very picture of confidence, with his hands crossed firmly in front of his chest and a smile plastered on his face, but you couldn't help but feel… something? It wasn't fear exactly, but you got that same sort of apprehension from this for some reason.
"Putting all of that aside…"
He stopped. Hands now moving to rest authoritatively on his hips. Then… he raised his head and…
"...join my crew!"
You, Nami, and Sanji promptly baulked.
"Yeah, okay."
…
. . .
You blinked. And… blinked again.
What… just happened?!
"Yohohohooo!" Brook clapped his boney hands together, the sound so hollow and clink filled compared to what it should be. "My, you have a splendid dining room! And that kitchen!"
"B-Big sis…" Chopper mumbled over your shoulder. He was balancing on the back of the sofa lining the galley, both his chin and an actual silver cross pressing uncomfortably into your shoulder. And that was honestly mild compared to the getup Usopp was sporting. "Is he… really going to join our crew?"
"What Luffy says goes…" you sighed.
If you were going to be perfectly honest… seeing Brook under artificial light wasn't exactly an improvement. Now that it was brighter, you could see the obvious wear and gashes across his clothes. And his actual bones… uh…
You resisted the urge to gulp.
… It was probably best not to think too much about that.
Zoro leant back on his chair to hiss, "This is why we sent you with him. To stop Luffy from doing anything crazy."
"That is an impossible task, and you know it." Mello forcibly tilted the chair upright again.
"Wow!" Brook proclaimed yet again, his eye… holes… the exact same size as he glanced around gleefully. "This is all so bright! And sleek! And wonderful!"
Chuckling, Franky leant an arm against the kitchen island separating the main dining area from the kitchen itself, "You bet it is! It couldn't be anything else when it was made by someone as SUPER as me!"
Sanji muttered something under his breath that you couldn't catch over the sizzling octopus tentacles.
"But I can't wait to eat!" Brook's head drooped. "I… haven't had a decent meal in decades."
" That is because you shouldn't be able to eat !" Chopper hissed, shoving the cross in front of him so aggressively you barely had time to dodge.
Thankfully, Brook didn't seem to have heard him. Instead, he fully flumped forwards. Until his torso was completely flat against the tabletop. "I've had to endure terrible agony every day as the skin on my belly caved in until it touched my back."
…oh. You… uh… actually felt a little guilty about how Mello had freaked him out earli-
"But since I'm a skeleton, I don't have any skin on my belly or back!" Bolt upright, he opened his jacket to reveal his fleshless rib cage. "YO HO HO HO! IT'S A SKULL JOKE!"
Okay never mind.
"A skull joooooke!" Luffy cackled, clapping his hands above his head gleefully.
The rest of the room was silent.
As time went on, it became more and more obvious why Luffy had immediately liked Brook… aside from the walking talking skeleton thing. The two shared the same sort of excitable energy that was almost infectious and almost childish. Both noisy. Both doing whatever the hell they wanted. It was endearing, in a way. But you couldn't help but feel a pang in the pit of your stomach watching them.
Just how long had he been out there sailing alone. Without anyone to talk to. Subconsciously your hand reached up to gently pet Mello's beak. How would you have reacted to that? Without Mello.
You didn't even want to think about it. It sounded too… horrible for words.
"Oh-" Luffy's cheery voice forced you out of your horrid thoughts as he turned towards the skeleton- "Before I forget, Kroobuckle…"
"N-no, I'm Brook." He waved his hands feebly. "And you'll have to forgive me, but I still don't know your names…" For a moment he paused, and those empty eye sockets swivelled towards you. "Even though one of you evidently knew mine."
Luffy blinked a few times. "Hm? Have you met before, (y/n)?"
"I believe I would've remembered the panties of a lady as lo-"
"Never in person," Mello butted in before he could finish. "However do you remember the vision Missy had the very first time you entered the Grand Line? Apologies to the rest of you who were not with us then." He dipped his beak towards Franky and Robin, even going to far as to ruffle Chopper's fur a little.
"Oh." Sanji's visible eye widened as he flicked his wrist to toss the contents of the wok over the flame. "Yeah! I think I do remember something about that!"
Usopp furrowed his brow. Everything he did looked so much more intense now thanks to his stern looking getup… even if Sanji probably wouldn't be happy about how he had two months worth of garlic just strewn around his neck. Eventually, he blinked in surprise. "Oh yeah. With that flower dude and the whale right?"
Was it just you, or did Brook's expression look… blanker than it had a moment ago.
"Ugh that was weird…" Resting a hand against her check, Nami grimaced somewhat wistfully. "But at least Crocus gave us the Log Pose! We'd be pretty lost without it."
No, he definitely looked blank. And his jawbone was slackened in a way that verged on unnatural.
"Oooh the flower guy and Laboon!" Luffy grinned toothily. "I remember that! Shishi those guys were funny! I owe him a fi-"
Clang!
You all turned. Completely silent, save for the still trembling pieces of cutlery as they swayed against the floorboards. Even the sound of cooking seemed too quiet. Brook's skull lay in his hands. Forceful enough to look painful if he had skin. Something was filling his eye sockets. Something like… tears. Even though… hah, what was even the point about questioning this at this point.
"You…" His voice when he eventually spoke was hollow and hopeful simultaneously. "You have met Laboon?"
"Mmh?" Luffy's head cocked. "Yeah." A grin. "He still remembers your promise too!"
"M-my… promise?"
"To go back and see him again! He's been fighting for it all this time."
That had been what had triggered it, hadn't it. The very first glimpse you'd gotten of Brook. The memories were almost hazy, as with most things in your near photographic mind. But now that you'd located the corner this had been stored within your head, everything was coming back.
Crocus had been talking about that crew who'd brought Laboon to the Grand Line. Pirates who… ugh the details were still vague dammit. Or had there not been many details in the first place. A crew had brought the whale to the Grand Line, but left him there… to protect him. Yeah, that was right. To protect him.
And they hadn't returned. Not for years and years. So long that Crocus thought they were dead.
"I… I can't…"
He was crying. Actively sobbing even. Even though it was a miracle how he even had tears to shed.
"I can't believe he's still waiting…" Brook's head was fully in his hands, that small top hat of his completely knocked to one side. "He… Laboon still remembers…" Wham! A fist against the table. "How could I… be so cruel ! I don't even deserve to be called his friend!"
"Hey you weren't to know." Franky's brow furrowed a little. "I mean how long have you even been stuck in here? Since that boat you were on looked SUPER outdated. I don't think I've seen that model in circulation for over 10 years now."
A tall dish of still sizzling octopus got set in the middle of the table. "Why don't we talk about this while we eat," said Sanji. "These sorts of things are best discussed on a full stomach."
"Even though I do not… ha…" Straightening, Brook pulled out a tattered handkerchief from his pocket and dabbed at his sockets. "Yes. Perhaps you're right." He glanced over to you again. "It seems that we have more to talk over than I initially thought."
Perhaps surprisingly, it took until almost the end of the meal until the elephants in the room was discussed. Quite a bit of that was just because the food was good (although you hadn't had any… you didn't really feel up for octopus after that morning) and the only noises to be heard were the usual delighted sounds that came with a good meal. But you couldn't help but think that there was also a part that Brook was trying to put off. Or come to terms with within himself. Either or.
That wasn't to say you didn't talk about anything . You were eating with Luffy after all, it was impossible for there to be silence for long. That was how you'd learned about Brook's devil fruit. The Yomi Yomi no Mi he called it… although Mello said the name would have been anglicised to the Revive-Revive Fruit if people were made aware of it during the naming reformat 30 years ago. That almost immediately dated Brook as someone over 30 years old minimum .
According to Brook, he'd actually died decades earlier. To which the Revive-Revive Fruit did as it said and… revived him. He'd been sailing in the Florian Triangle during which he and his pirate crew had gotten attacked and… Well. It was pretty obvious what would happen. Buuuut apparently his soul had gotten lost thanks to all the dense fog for about a year, leaving Brook's body to be just his skeleton.
"I was so surprised that my eyes nearly popped out of my head." He said once he'd told the whole story. "That is…" Two bony fingers framed one of the empty sockets. "If I had any eyeballs! Yohoho!"
You couldn't stifle a smirk. "You're like Mop-boy. Directionally challenged at the best of times."
"Watch it!"
"And that's how you became a talking skeleton?" Franky scratched his temple. "Kinda scary how the Devil Fruit still brought you back even though you're just a skeleton..."
"But now that the Fruit has done its job isn't it just stealing your ability to swim?" Sanji grimaced. "That's a curse isn't it."
"And skeletons don't normally have hair," added Zoro.
Brook merely sniffed. "I've always had strong roots."
"That does explain why we cannot sense you though." Mello stretched over to 'eye' Brook at a different angle. "Since you are strictly speaking 'dead', it stands to reason that you have no future left to sense."
"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
WHACK!"
"D-Don't hit me!"
"O… Oh… Right. M-my apologies." Brook gingerly retracted his hand. "However you must explain a little about what precisely you are . Is this a Devil Fruit ability as well?"
"Nope." You gave a shrug. "Just a biological ancient weapon the government wants either to use or kill. No biggie."
A pause.
"I… see…" For a moment his eye sockets narrowed, something that caused Chopper to shove his cross forwards twice as forcefully. "You would not happen to have siblings would you? Specifically a brother?"
No.
How far had he gotten ?!
You gulped down the lump in your throat. "Yeah? I… do?" It sounded like a question, even though it really wasn't. But you couldn't help it.
"Oh how wonderful!" To your surprise he clapped his hands. "I had always wanted to see that little boy again. He kept me company for so long out there. How old is he now, since he was quite young when I saw him last."
Hang on… what ?
"Little Missy has siblings, that is true," Robin said cooly. "However they are triplets, and she is the youngest of the three."
"Oh." His shoulders sagged a few inches. "That must have been longer ago then I thought then. Forgive me, time is… difficult to calculate out here."
"Yes but-" you pinched the bridge of your nose- "rewind a bit, you think you saw one of my brothers ? Which one?" Since that really made a difference to how excited you were going to be about this.
"He said his name was Moko."
Ah. That had been what you were afraid of.
"I must say, at first I thought I had hallucinated him. Since… well…" he gave a forcibly energetic flourish to the mist through the porthole. "These seas aren't exactly great for the psyche. And he just appeared out of nowhere." Brook sighed. "That little boy was good company for a while. We sang together."
"I…" Your teeth dug into your lip. It felt weird to consider. "I hate to say it, but he's not exactly in our good books right now. In fact I think he hates me."
If bones could wrinkle, Brook's brow would have right then. But the expression vanished just as quickly as it had appeared. "Well he did not back then. Although I have no idea how much time has passed since then yohoho! In any case though-" his face reverted back to something serious- "you still have yet to explain how you managed to know my name without me telling you. Especially since you were surprised to hear about my connection with your estranged brother."
He'd got you there… How to explain… "Well I mentioned Ancient Weapons earlier… Do you believe in fortune tellers?"
"Yes."
"It's similar to one of those."
"Oh. That makes sense."
"DOES IT?!" Mello hissed mentally.
Welp. That went way easier than you'd thought it would. Which was a fun change. Even though… Your lip curled downwards. Were you over thinking this? Brook seemed like, no offence to him, a very simple person. So maybe he did genuinely accept your explanation as it is. Yeah. That was it. You were used to more shock and surprise from people. That was why you were feeling unsettled.
…
You decided to take that unease and locked it away for later. It wasn't worth dwelling too much on. And it probably… Nope, you weren't going to finish that sentence. Didn't want to jinx it.
"So-" Usopp jabbed his golden cross into Brook's face- "You aren't a ghost? You're actually a human? Uh…" He grimaced. "I guess you also aren't quite human anymore, but ANYWAYS you aren't a ghost. Right?"
Bony hands clasped together in shock. "Right! I hate ghosts!"
"That remains to be seen."
"EEEE… Oh it is just you Mr Mello."
A bead of sweat dripped down Mello's beak, "My apologies, I did not mean to scare you… again. However I do have a question to ask if you will allow it."
"But of co-"
"Why do you not cast any shadows or reflections?"
Another pause. This one heavy… as everyone pointedly looked at the floor beneath Brook's tattered shoes. Sure enough, despite the bright lamps lining the walls there was no shadow whatsoever coming from Brook's body. Nor come to think of it did the skeleton leave any distorted reflections on either the glassware or Usopp's polished cross, even though your own bug eyed face was staring back out at you in all of them. It was weird. As if you'd been feeling as though something was off and now that you'd finally noticed it, everything was ten times more off.
Then, the silence broke.
"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"HE'S A VAMPIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRE!"
"WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE-"
"THAT'S AWESOOOOOOOOOME!"
There were two factions of your crew. One who immediately began ducking for cover, and the other who started shifting into combat poses.
"What?" Mello arched his beak. "Did none of you really not notice earlier?"
"Funnily enough, Mello, no . We didn't." You said blankly, hands hesitantly moving in preparation to sling him over your shoulder.
Brook merely sighed. Leaning back in his chair, he crossed one long leg over the other and reached for his cup of tea. The same cracked cup that he'd insisted on bringing over from his decrepit boat. "I have spent far too many years drifting on these seas to tell my story in one sitting." He took a sip. Breathing in the scent. "The story behind why I am a skeleton and the story behind why I lack a shadow are completely unrelated."
Uuuurk…
Your eye twitched as a once familiar headache zipped through you. This time at least you had the foresight to clamp your mouth shut in case you laughed- wasn't it convenient that so many people out there had distinctive laughs- but you didn't feel the urge to.
No, instead what you felt was… a strange ripping sensation? And the snicker-snack of scissors closing shut as something… what was it? Cold. Quiet. As if your head was… empty?
You shuddered, which caught Nami's attention as the only one standing close enough to you and not currently staring wide eyed at Brook to notice. She arched a brow curiously, which you simply smiled and waved away. This was something that would be… odd to explain.
"A certain man stole my shadow a few years ago." Brook continued speaking after a mild interruption that you hadn't quite caught.
Usopp's nose wrinkled. "It was… stolen?"
"Your shadow…" Robin mused, cradling her head in a hand. So serious that she almost seemed to have figured something out.
"After seeing you move and talk, nothing could surprise me." Zoro's grip loosened on his katana. "But does that sorta thing actually happen?"
"Yes, it does." Brook's head dipped. "And having lost my shadow, I am no longer able to exist in the world of light."
Luffy's brow furrowed, "But aren't you alive?"
A bony hand gestured to the darkness outside the porthole. "Living, but not alive . I cannot live under the light of the sun. The only reason I've survived this long is because I deliberately avoid sunlight here."
"What would happen if you were hit by sunlight," asked Robin.
His jaw tensed in a clink of bone. "If I was hit directly by a beam of sunlight… my body would be obliterated."
"O… Obliterated?!"
You had all spoken as one. Each member of the crew in their own states of horror and shock.
Brook nodded. "Yes. Completely and utterly obliterated. I witnessed someone who had lost his shadow disappear into ash under the light of the midday sun. It was truly terrifying! A hair-raising sight to behold! And I'm a skeleton!" He chuckled at his own joke, then settled down again. "Your shadow appears on the ground when you stand in light. However, since I lack a shadow, my body cannot block out or reflect light. That's why I cannot be seen in mirrors or pictures."
"That seems scientifically impossible."
'Mello…'
"If he cannot 'reflect' light, then how are we able to see him? Since we can only see objects when light is bounced off them and back to our eyes."
'It's because of a Devil Fruit, who cares?'
"Me! I care!"
"In other words-" Brook got to his feet, splaying his arms wide- "The light rejects my very existence. And all my crewmates are dead!"
…
Neither of you were quite sure how to respond to that.
"But even so, I've scraped by." He gestured grandly to the room. "Scraped down to the bone! I am the dead and skeletonized Brook. It's a pleasure! Yohohohoho… YOHOHOHOHO!"
This was insane. Utterly insane . You couldn't help but feel your blood drain from your face as he just kept laughing and laughing and laughing . Getting so loud that it continued ringing through your ears.
"Today is truly a wonderful day!" Brook proclaimed to the ceiling. "I met people !"
Then he stopped. The excitement gone. And his arms drooped down by his sides.
"Although… how am I able to tell if today is today or if it's tomorrow instead. On these dark and foggy seas, I can't tell when one day moves to the next. All of my crewmates passed away. I was all alone on a large ship with a broken rudder. Over several decades all I did was drift about and rock on the water. I was… really lonely." His fists clenched. "I was lonely! And scared! I wanted to die !"
The moments without Mello where you'd been left so quiet were… You didn't want to think about them. And while you had been upset and around some pretty shitty people, and the nicer ones had given you your own space from time to time… you'd never been actually alone . Not like that.
It sounded horrible.
"But…" Brook straightened, skull arching towards the light above. "I'm glad I've lived such a long life. People are a joy! I see you all as 'joy' since you have given me so much of it! If only my eyes hadn't gone dry so I could shed tears of the emotion!" Sighing deeply, he glanced down to look at Luffy. "You invited me to join your crew, didn't you?"
"Mmh?" Luffy blinked. "Yeah. You're a part of the crew."
Bones curled into a smile as he bowed. "That made me truly so happy. Thank you so much. I was originally going to have to turn your offer down-"
"EH?! WHY?!"
"- however …" Straightening, Brook actually turned towards you. "That will no longer be the case."
You cocked your head to one side in confusion, furiously dabbing away the te- the nothing ! The nothing that was definitely not coming from your eyes.
"You have given me hope." He said simply. "Knowing that Laboon is out there and still waiting for me makes me want to at least try to change my situation."
Hesitantly you scratched your cheek. "I mean, I didn't exactly do much there. I didn't exactly cause us to meet Laboon at all, that part was pretty inevitable considering he's right at the end of Reverse Mountain."
"That might be the case, but you were the one who actually put the connection between us together with your fortune telling abilities. That, is something that I will be forever thankful for. So-" He glanced back to Luffy- "if you do not mind, I will ask you all for a favour."
A flurry of looks got passed around the crew.
"I cannot live under the sun without my shadow. I'm currently protected by the fog that blocks the sunlight here in the Devil's Sea. That being said…" Brook grimaced. "If you do want to take my shadow back, be warned that it is dangerous. Even with my new resolution to escape this place, I'm finding it incredibly difficult to ask you to die for me when we've only just met. I don't even know if I'll see him again before my second life comes to an end and my bones are worn away to ash."
"I don't care!" Luffy jumped to his feet so swiftly that his chair clattered to the ground behind him. "Tell us who that guy is and we'll kick his ass!"
"Yoho! I appreciate the enthusiasm!" Brook turned back to you. "Do you think that perhaps your abilities of future sight could aid us in tracking him down?"
Ah. So that was it. "I'm not sure if it'd be that accurate," you began with. "Especially since I can't exactly predict what my predictions would be… if that makes sense."
"Yeah you're kinda useless at that."
"Oh shut it Mop Boy."
"Big Sis, your prediction for Alabasta was just the word 'sand'."
" Why are you all ganging up on me ?! And anyways-" You scratched your head again, willing the itching to go away- "I've just had a prediction. Which I wasn't about to mention," you added quickly as everyone opened their mouths to complain, "because I didn't understand it. It doesn't make much sense…"
The ripping… and quiet. With no one to talk to in your mind.
And a decisive snip.
"Brook?" You didn't look at him, all your attention instead turned towards Mello who had begun coiling around your upper arm. "When they stole your shadow… did they happen to use scissors?"
His eyeless head cocked to one side. "I… believe so? You must forgive me, but I was passed out when it happened to myself and barely managed to hear what happened to someone else I was with. But it at least sounded like scissors."
That's what you'd been afraid of. "Then… I think I might have felt my shadow getting stolen. Maybe."
"Well uh…" Nami gulped. "I guess that means we're going to run into them then… And knowing our luck, sooner rather than later. Great. Just great."
Chopper inched close to Usopp, "Do you have any more of that demon hunting stuff?"
"Oh, yeah, of course! I can suit you up no problem."
"Thanks!"
"Yoho!" Brook's cheek bones seemed to pull up into a grin (again, how ?!) "You are making my decision to stay that much more justified."
"You're welcome…?" It hadn't exactly felt pleasant after all.
"I suppose that in the meantime while I wait with you…"
Stepping back, Brook knelt to unclasp the only case he'd insisted on bringing aboard. It was far cleaner and less battered than the rest of him, having seemingly been taken better care of than Brook himself. He knelt down to reveal the lush red velvet lining and reached in to produce the most beautiful guitar you'd ever seen.
"Missy that's a violin."
'That's sort of guitar right?'
"NO! Absolutely not! This predates the invention of the guitar by several hundred years!"
'But they are both made of wood and have strings…'
Raising a bottle to his lips, Zoro arched a brow at your evidently confused expression, "You good there, Missy?"
However Mello was the first to reply. "She does not know what a violin is."
He choked mid sip.
"Oh, like you do?" Sanji hissed between his teeth. "I didn't think you were refined enough to know what music was, let a lone a violin."
"Shut it asshole."
"Oh, then let me enlighten you!" Brook placed the Violent ( "VIOLIN!!!!" ) under his chin with a flourish. "Instruments are my pride and joy, I was a musician on my pirate ship."
Whoo boy.
"R-Really?!" Sparkles were practically forming around Luffy's head. "You're a musician?! Please! Join my crew!"
"Yohoho I already am a part of the crew!" Brook produced a weird polished stick with hairs ( "That is called a 'bow', Missy." ) and placed it on the instrument's strings. "As a celebration, let's enjoy a fun sea sha-"
He paled. You weren't sure how bones could somehow become whiter, but they did before your very eyes. It was hard to tell if he was still conscious, with his jaw clattering in place and eyes staring out into nothingness. But his skull was still pointed straight ahead… so…
You turned. And felt blood drain from your face.
"Mello…"
"I know, Missy. I see it too."
Specifically as you locked eyes with the blank face that drifted through the galley wall.
"I thought you said that ghosts don't exist."