Notes: On YouTube there is a wonderful English version of Bink's Sake, done by hyperionthundermain, that I recommend listening to. I like his lyrical translation the best, and though I won't be putting his translation into this chapter, it is the one that the Rumbar Pirates sing in my mind.

03: Eternal Sonata - Sad Beginnings

He ran headlong in the seemingly unending darkness, chasing after a grinning figure in the distance. Brook had only ever gotten glimpses of this person, their features somehow familiar though he would swear to having never met the person before. He was a teenager, probably seventeen, maybe seventeen and a half, with short and wild black hair and a small scar under his left eye. The most memorable thing about him wasn't the red vest and blue shorts he wore, but the old straw hat he wore.

As soon as he caught up to the boy and reached out to touch him he was startled by a very disturbing change. Instead of flesh, his hand was nothing but bone. Brook woke up with a frightened gasp and tumbled out of his bed. He checked his hands several times, and even pinched himself to make sure that he was awake. It had been quite a scare to see his own limb suddenly turn into just bones.

After he was assured that he wouldn't be turning into a skeleton, even in part, Brook got up and tried to remember the dream before his fright. He had been running and there had been someone... As he tried to picture the person the details of the dream faded, leaving him scowling. It was best that he didn't dwell on it, and so he dressed for the day and left his cabin.

Yorki was leaning against the railing on the upper deck, watching the fickle weather of the Grand Line when he came out. His captain was smiling and humming their favorite song, Bink's Sake, to himself. With a grin of his own, Brook pulled out his violin and started to play the more upbeat version they were used to singing.

"Yo ho ho ho, yo ho ho ho..." Yorki grinned and sang along as he turned to watch Brook play. Little Laboon, the island whale that had followed them into the Grand Line, had loved this song and would always chirp and dance in the water when it was played. Though they had been saddened to leave Laboon behind with Crocus, they were firm in their belief that they would one day see him again.

"Yo ho ho ho, yo ho ho ho..."

Weeks had passed since Brook had had that strange dream he could no longer remember. Captain Yorki and a few other crew members had contracted a disease that had been deemed incurable, and so they had left to contain it. Now he was the Captain of the Rumbar Pirates, though he had never wanted to obtain Captaincy in such a way, and they were pushing on to keep their promise to reunite with Laboon.

Brook stared at his wanted poster, a thin smile on his face as he folded the paper up. The thick fog of the Florian Triangle made things difficult to see, but he was quite sure the crew would want to celebrate him gaining a bounty. It was dangerous here, more so than usual, as the fog hid many things. Even if all of them should die, he would at least be able to carry on to one day keep their promise with Laboon. He had eaten the Yomi Yomi no Mi, after all.

He was startled out of his thoughts when a cannon, one that was not their own, went off. The ball hit the water off of their port side stern, and every available hand was quick in getting to their stations. Brook let go of his wanted post and grabbed his shikomizue, the hidden sword leaning up against the wall of his cabin by the doorway.

The battle had been long and bloody, but they had won, and only barely. The attacking pirates had poisoned their weapons, and so they only had a short while left to live, as their only doctor had died in the battle. Despite this, they were all happy. Brook would eventually revive and could make his way back to Laboon for them. It was decided that they would go out in a fantastic bang, playing Bink's Sake and recording it for Laboon to hear on a Tone Dial.

Brook sat at the piano and played as, one by one, his comrades died. He continued to play until all that was left was him and the song came to an end. The poison took his body then, and he was enveloped in darkness.

When he came back to consciousness he was floating, not like a bird but the sensation was as close to flying as he could imagine. He was aware that he had to get back to his body, wherever it had gone off to, and so he started to search for it.

Brook wasn't aware of the passage of time, but by the time he did find his body he was horrified to see that it was nothing but bones and clothes. The only good thing was that his afro had remained, and he silently cracked a joke about having very deep roots in his mind. He assumed control over his skeletal body, and gingerly picked up the tone dial that still sat upon the piano. The revived pirate pressed play and a melody slowly began.

"Yo ho ho ho, yo ho ho ho..." He wanted to cry, but as he was lacking in tear ducts he settled for sadly humming along to the song recorded in the Dial. Laboon was, no doubt, still waiting for him, and he would have to wait even longer still. Brook was incapable of handling a ship so large by himself, and he had to gather the remains of his crew.

One day he would be able to keep the promise the Rumbar Pirates had made with Laboon. Until then he would wait, for what he didn't know. He had a sense that his life would be boring for a long time, but someone would come and shake things up for him. Someone young, and full of life. He didn't know how he knew it-it was just a feeling after all-but it would be well worth the wait.