In one of the more anti-technology rants Roger used to spew left and right - usually triggered by seeing Ace on his phone for longer than 5 seconds - one of his favourite thing to say was that mobile phones and the internet will only cause young people to rot their brains out.

Of course, those words were only mere ironic echoes nowadays, when 70% of Roger's time in a day will be spent on his phone's browser, where he would inadvertently said he was looking at work emails when Rouge and Ace both knew he was addicted to searching up video sharing sites for funny videos and online articles he can trade back and forth with either Uncle Ray or Grandpa Garp.

Still, there was no denying the grain of truth in his father's old spiel, Ace thought, stretching on his seat as he rubbed his tired and bleary eyes. He had only meant for a quick research, not spend what his digital clock told him was nearly 3 hours in front of his computer, skimming through articles after articles online. The last time he had this kind of headache was during the Disastrous Deadline of his Very Important Graduating Essay.

With a stifled yawn, he squeezed his eyes shut, heel of his palm digging down hard enough to cause dark spots to appear behind his eyelids.

"I told you, you shouldn't be that close to the screen," said the chastising voice somewhere from his bed, the trail end almost drowned by Kotatsu's rumbling purr from his lap, "It's not good for yours eyes. What are you reading, anyway?"

Ace made a noncommittal sound, blinking harder than he should as he allowed both hands to flop over Kotatsu's lounging and purring body, "News," he replied, tilting his head enough to look ay his late night guest. Thin down to the bones, pale skinned, and gaunt faced, but there was still that familiar jovial smile on Brook's face that couldn't seem to be diminished by the fact that his old neighbour has been a ghost for the last 2 years.

"Oh hoh! A youngster who followed the news around them! I'm so happy i could do a jig!" And he did exactly that, with the kind of nimble movement thought impossible on a 90 years old. Well, he's not quite 90 anymore, just dead, "Ah, being dead is nice on the bones. Because that's all i am now! Ho ho!"

That rehashed joke was old the first time he appeared in Ace's room 2 days after his death, but of course, Ace isn't going to tell him that.

"Now, what sort of news are you reading?" Brook approached, half skipping, not even hesitating to partially pass Ace's shoulder to look at his screen. The action barely phased Ace anymore, but Kotatsu, in the ever suspicious act that convinced him his cat - all cats? - has the same ability as him, hissed in shock at Brook's direction and quickly skedaddled. He silently mourned the lost of heat, "Let's see… 'Behind the Tragedy That Took Raftel's Richest Family'? 'Billionaire's Death Mourned by Community'? Why now, aren't these all about—"

"The Newgate Arson, yeah," Ace moved his mouse, clicking through the opened tabs until he found a specific article, "And this story is so… suspicious, to say the least. Look at this," he scrolled down the article, highlighting one of the paragraph, "Sources confirmed that there is at least one survivor of this entire tragedy, however, we are have yet to receive word from the Newgate family spokesperson or the law enforcement for further information,"

Brook straightened up, mouth forming a perfect 'o' as he let out a high and surprised 'Ho!', "A survivor? My word, this is the first time i heard of such a thing! And i followed that news religiously,"

"Exactly. And out of the dozens of articles i read, locally and internationally, this is the only article that even mentioned anything about this survivor,"

Long, skeleton-y fingers tapped on equally skinny forearms in deep thought, "Hmm. Perhaps this one is just mistaken or outdated?"

Ace pursed his lips and shook his head with vigour, "No, that's the thing. There… there is a survivor,"

"Ho ho!" Brook exclaimed, "Now that's a surprise! And how do you come to this knowledge, Ace lad?"

"Because i met him," the dark haired man told his ghost guest, quietly and intently re-reading the same line in the only article where the truth is unconcealed, "And i met the rest of the Newgate family,"

At his words, Brook turned oddly silent. Curious, Ace turned away, to see the deceased geriatric looking down at him, "Well now, lad," he said finally after a while, missing the usual cheery tone in his voice, "I supposed you do have a strong reason for all of this. And if that is true, then this is quite an odd situation in our hand,"

"That's not the only weird thing," Ace swivelled his chair back to the computer, scrolling to the top of the site. He aimed the cursor underneath the bolded headline - 'Devastating Fire Terrifies Citizen: Accident or Arson? ' - and to the small clickable name that signifies the author of the piece, "This article is published by Thriller Bark Daily, the same news company that burned down just a couple of months after the arson. And the journalist's name? Absalom Leo. This guy was killed during that fire, and the prime suspect for his murder is also the only suspect for the arsons for the past 5 years,"

He scrolled down the list of open tabs, to open the newest one had had been reading. The very first thing that appeared was the picture of a massive man with oversized head crying heavily as he was being swarmed by a group of reporters, a man with bespoke suit wearing a monocle pulling him along. Underneath the picture, a credit was given to the photographer, along with the title of the picture itself: 'Sanjuan Wolf acquitted of all charges, lead outside of court by attorney Van Augur'.

"It just doesn't makes sense," Ace tapped on his monitor, one finger on Sanjuan and the other on Van Augur, tapping them alternatively, "Sanjuan Wolf is just a homeless guy, and even if he is insane enough to burn down buildings," his tapping fingers ended on Van Augur, then began tapping again in barrage to show his frustration, "Why would a high profile attorney like Van Augur be involved? I've seen him on TV every now and then, and his clients are usually celebrities, politicians and big named CEOs. Why is someone like that suddenly doing pro bono for someone who obviously can't pay him?"

"Notoriety, perhaps," Brook supplied, cocking his hips to the side as he grabbed his lower chin, "This case did get national attention,"

"Or someone else is paying him,"

The contemplating silence that grew was palpable, broken nearly a minute later by Ace's heavy sigh, "I don't know. For such a famous incident, there's barely any information at all," he gestured to the screen, specifically what felt like hundreds of tabs open in his browser, "Nor is there any on the other fires that followed suit. I only joined the fire department after the Thriller Bark Daily incident, and with all the fires ever since, there's no conclusive evidence on whether or not they're linked. The police couldn't find anything, the fire inspector couldn't find anything, and honestly, i don't even know if the Newgate Arson and the Thriller Bark one is even done by the same person. The thought just crossed my mind because of Absalom Leo's death and his article,"

"But it is all very circumstantial," Brook concluded, making Ace sigh heavily in agreement.

"It's so," he huffed, staring back to the monitor with such concentration as if the words will suddenly appear on its own, "suspicious. It's making me think this is something bigger than just major arson, maybe even a conspiracy-"

"Aaace!" A voice suddenly called out from the hallway, made even closer when his bedroom door was opened unannounced and Luffy stepped in, "I'm hungry, make me a midnight snack,"

The older cousin lifted his head blearily, glancing to the computer's digital clock and frowned, "It's 1 in the morning, you have school tomorrow, why are you still up?"

"Texting Zoro,"

"Why is he still up?"

"We have a test tomorrow we forgot to study for,"

Of course it is, "Just give me 5 minutes, i'll be right with you," Might as well save all these links, maybe he'll thought of something better when he felt fresher. Or maybe he should talk to someone about it, see if they thought of something else. Not Sabo, he doesn't want him to be reminded of his own incident so soon. Maybe Kid, he's been in the fire department longer than he has. Definitely not Marco, "Just wait on the bed. Say hi to Brook,"

Luffy's impatient look was quickly replaced with joy, as he frantically searched the bed like he could actually see where their ex-neighbour's ghost is, "Brook's here? Hi Brook!" He bounded towards the bed, flopping face down and bouncing from the force, "Am i close? Am i touching him?"

If anything, Luffy is now becoming Brook's seat, before the elderly man shuffled away to sit next to him, "Ho hoh! Young Luffy, always full of energy. You always bring so much joy it rattled my bones," he paused, and Ace could practically hear the incoming joke like a loud freight train, "Because that's all i am now, Ho!"

"He's next to you," the dark haired man drawled, setting up a separate folder in his browser to bookmark every article he found. He paused on one that comes from what he is sure is just basically a gossip coloumn, and rather distastefully claimed that they brought intimate details inside of the Newgate family only days after their passing. From what he has skimmed earlier, it was mostly rumour and conjectures - like a biological child Edward Newgate supposedly abandoned - and even borderline privacy breach if the couple of paparazzi shots were to be believed. With a sneer, Ace closed it down.

On his bed, Luffy snickered, and curled into himself like he's a larger version of Kotatsu, hand reaching for something invisible, "Aw, Brook, i missed hearing you play the violin," he confessed earnestly, "I don't even like music, but you always look so cool playing them. And i want to hear stories about the Yorki Orchestra again, and about your old dog Laboon, man, you were the coolest, oldest guy i ever met,"

With a fond smile, Brook placed his see-through hand over Luffy's head, patting him in a grandfatherly way, "I wish i can play you some of my music one more time too, Luffy. You are my grooviest little friend,"

Ace paused from bookmarking the last few of the articles, and glanced back to the bed, where Luffy was unknowingly hugging Brook by the waist while having his head petted like once upon a time. The heartwarming sight of intergenerational friendship beyond spiritual boundaries made him smile, only for the melancholy to hit him when it reminded him just how close their family was to their elderly neighbour during his life time.

Despite reaching 90, Brook was still one of the most active man he knows, and since his retirement, would often plays his violin in retirement homes and community centres any time he could. There was no pre-existing sickness or underlying conditions, so his passing still come as a surprise, especially with how spry he is, but at least he had died peacefully in his sleep. And Ace, as well as his family, knew he's still around, occasionally visiting. It's not quite the same, but there's a sense of comfort for his presence, and knowing he is alright.

Marco, on the other hand…

"Ace?" Luffy called out, face full of confusion, "You okay? You got quiet. Are you done? Can we get food now—"

"Hey Luffy," he cuts the younger off, and even if his question will be for Luffy, Ace glanced towards Brook as well, "If i never have this ability to see ghost, and therefore can't see Brook, would you have been sadder when you were told he died?"

With a little frown, Luffy cocked his head to the side, "I guess? But it's only because then, i won't be able to tell him he's a good musician or that i like his puns anymore and make him happy. I can't see him now, but Ace can tell me if he's happy to hear it or not," he grinned, "That's why you have to tell people all the nice things you want to tell when they're alive, so you can still see their smile when they hear it,"

Brook was silent throughout, but his smile grew with Luffy's every word. Ace pretended not to notice when he discreetly wiped his eyes, "But what if there's still things you wanted to tell them but can't anymore," he asked, "What would you do?"

This time, it took Luffy a little longer to think, face scrunched up funnily as it always is whenever he's in 'deep thought', "Weeell, i guess i'd tell someone else about it, so those nice things never stopped being said, you know?" the younger blinked his eyes open with a wide grin and nodded with conviction, seemingly satisfied with whatever reply he came up with, "Yeah, like, i told my friends about Brook when they came over, and showed them that cool snowglobe Yorki souvenir he gave me. It's like how Zoro told me all about Kuina, his friend who dies when they're kids, and she's why he trained so hard in kendo. I never met Kuina and they never met Brook, but now we can all think 'Oh, they were so cool!'"

He turned to his side, probably trying to look at Brook, although he missed by a couple of centimetres, "If Ace can't see Brook and i don't know that Brook can listen, i'd still tell everyone about him, so maybe wherever he might be, he can still listen to it and know we haven't forgot about him. And then more people'll know how awesome he was!"

Oh.

There's a certain heaviness in Ace's chest, because even if Luffy was talking about Brook, somehow, his mind flew to a different group of people altogether. For 5 years, they stayed, unable to move on, watching the one person they loved utterly destroyed himself in sorrow. He thought of Marco as he reminisce his beloved father, and Edward's utter failure to comfort his son.

For a family so long drowned in despair, isn't it truly time for them to have something good?

And Luffy's words, filled with honesty and sincerity, as light as it is, they held all of the answers.

"Ace? Are you crying?"

"Just got something in my eyes," he lied, making a show of rubbing his eyes away of any foreign object, "Come on, i'll make you whatever snack you want. But straight back to studying after that, alright? We don't want Garp to toss you around the walls again,"

"Why are you here?"

Ace stopped both recounting the silly incident in the station earlier - One has to be there to see why Kid is forbidden from communal fridge - and arranging the bouquet of anthurium and gerbera in between the other arrangements from previous visits. A dash of red from gerbera here for cheerfulness, and more red from a bunch of anthurium there for happiness in abundance, "What do you mean? I told you i took a day off for today, remember?"

Now, his confusion was genuine, but the grimace Marco gave him made him think the man is being obtuse on purpose. Which he isn't, "I mean… never mind," he mumbled the last part and turned away to continue on watching the television. The volume was at the lowest, tuning in on some documentary about an obscure scientific matter that Ace couldn't be bothered to follow with. The blond seems to pay attention just fine, though not entirely focused.

And the reason for said lack of focus was the fact that he kept glancing at Ace every time he probably thought the younger man wasn't looking. Which Ace certainly was; he's been thinking of how to broach the subject in between arranging the flowers and telling whatever stupid story he could think of to kind of get the ball rolling. Somewhere after telling about how the entire station accidentally caused Shirahoshi, Chief Neptune's youngest to cry on her first visit, he kind of lost the plot.

Worse still, he's not sure why, but Fossa's been sitting between them for 5 minutes now, one unburned eye staring at Ace silently.

"Okay," Ace finished lamely, and going back to his flower arrangement.

Soon as he put one gerbera down, he glanced back and yet again, found Marco side-eyeing him.

"I mean," the doctor said finally, shrugging, "Isn't Sabo supposed to be released today? Shouldn't you be there for your friend?"

"Oh, he's fine, he knows where i am," just to prove a point, Ace picked up his phone from his pocket and opened the family groupchat - originally, it's now the invite-fuck-all-cus-everyone's-as-good-as-family-anyway groupchat - to scroll to near bottom where Koala last posted a picture of Sabo's last check up before waiting discharge. He showed the screen to Marco, careful not to scroll lower or he'd see Garp's close up pic on his carpal tunnel. His family baffled him sometimes, "But i do need to leave when they're leaving, so, sorry,"

Marco only hummed in reply. He looked like he still wanted to say something, but instead returned to the television.

"Alright, this is painful," Fossa finally said, grumbling. Blenheim, who was standing by a nearby wall, rumbled his agreement, "You two obviously got something to say to each other, why is no one saying anything? I'm not even surprised at Marco, but Ace, i'm disappointed in you,"

"You know, maybe you should be there instead," Marco spoke, unaware that he's interjecting Fossa, "He'd need the support, don't you think?"

"What Sabo need is to get out of here quicker," and he's not even just saying that. At 5 am this morning, Sabo's first groupchat message of the day was a big, capitalized 'GET ME OUT OF HERE! HURRY!', "I want to be here, anyway,"

"…Why?"

"….Why are you trying to get rid of me?"

The doctor winced, a minuscule twitch that Ace almost missed if he hadn't been watching closely, "Dammit, can't you take a hint? I'm trying to be nice and say i don't mind if you have something else to do today. Can't a man just say thank you?"

"This is you being nice?" Ace couldn't help quip, even when it caused Marco to scowl, "And thank you for what? Trying to get rid of someone is probably the most ass-backward thank you i've ever heard about anyway,"

"For," and at this, Marco's voice actually hitched, as the man turned wide-eyed in embarrassment. He huffed in frustration, before letting out a series of mumbles under his breath that Ace couldn't hear a word of.

And that just won't do, "What?"

With a long suffering sigh, as if Ace is inflicting some physical pain to him - which, rude, but is he surprised anymore? - Marco gritted his teeth, "For… yesterday," he uttered lowly, the hand clutching the thin hospital sheet curling and uncurling repeatedly, "I didn't think i still had it in me to remember moments like that,"

All indignation melted and evaporated out of Ace's body. With a stifled sigh, the raven haired man placed down the last stem of flower and took a seat on the side of the bed, one leg dangling off with the other folded under him. It allowed him to sit close enough to the older man without touching, enough that they're aware of each other's presence, "Of course you still do," Ace told him, lowering his eyes to the hand that's now clenching the bedsheet tight enough to make the knuckles white, "You just haven't let yourself remember the nice things,"

Marco took a deep, shaky breath, and after a while, he nodded. Haruta took seat on the across Ace on the other side, circling his arms loosely around his older brother's arm, "I don't remember the last time i thought of them and felt anything but pain," the blond continues quietly, unaware of the translucent hand running up and down his arm, "But yesterday, there was this," he lifted his hand, and with a balled fist, tapped his chest over where his heart should be, "…relief in me. Like for a second it didn't matter that i left them to die,"

"Please don't say that," Haruta begged meekly, clutching Marco's arm further and placing brunette head on the older's shoulder, "Please stop saying that,"

Carefully, Ace reached out to grab Marco's hand on his chest between both of his own. He squeezed around them first gently, waiting for the blond to meet his eyes with his own misty orbs when he spoke, "Surviving isn't a sin, Marco. Don't punish yourself for living,"

It's a testament, Ace thought later on, to their progress when Marco didn't argue with him. The doctor looked miserable, conflicted as he asked with the earnestness of a desperate man, "Then what should i do?"

Ace squeezed his hands tighter, and smiled, "Tell me more about them," he told him, softly, "The good, the bad, everything you can think of. Let me know them as much as you do, so they'll live on even if it's only through your memories. So maybe someone else will come to care for them as much as you do too,"

Marco didn't answer, but nor did he pull away or immediately shut the idea down. It seemed like a good enough indication that his siblings around the room began to move closer to the bed, some like Namur even climbing over the bed as well to held Haruta's curled body, still latching on to their living, breathing brother.

Seconds passed and silence still persisted, but Ace didn't let it deter him. He wanted Marco to talk, to come to his own in dispelling his own demons, to move past this mourning grief that seems like a never ending dark storm. Because he should realize that it's what his family wanted.

And maybe, along the way, it'll heal him, returning him to the man who earned so much love, even from beyond death.

At long last, there was a shuddering sigh, before Marco began to speak, "Jozu was the second one to be adopted, after me," his voice was trembling, hitching in certain places, and each time it happened, Ace would rub his thumb in a long line across the back of his hand. A silent support, a patient gesture to continue on, "He had this crazy fascination with Wano culture's weapons and armors,"

It was nearly 2 hours by the time Marco managed to at least mention any small bits of memories about every single one of his siblings, and when if Ace noticed he purposefully avoided Edward's, he let it go. They'd have another day for that.

Ace didn't have the heart to tell Marco that the rest of his family had left the hospital in the middle of telling Ace about his own family. They knew, at least, where he was and he left soon after Marco fell asleep - looking rather tired, and Ace knew the exhaustion didn't come from talking so much and the thought brought a mystifying sensation of both fondness and deep empathy in Ace - promising to come over as usual the next day to the slumbering man, and partially to the rest of the room's visitor. No one there who had their name mentioned in had dry eyes, if not openly crying while hovering over Marco like Namur or Thatch.

He left them, not with tears of grief, but one of relief for the first ray of hope for recovery after so long.

In the middle of the celebratory dinner, Rouge nudged him, smiled, and spoke in a louder voice than necessary, "You know, we should do this again for Marco. I think it'd be good for him, don't you think?"

Roger and Sabo gave a resounding agreement, already high with merriment quickly followed by subsequent scolding when Luffy stole the last piece of food on a plate. Dadan asked who Marco was and Koala explained what transpired between Ace and Marco to her, getting interjected here and there by Sabo when the story dissolved into wonders about the whereabouts of other ghosts in the hospital.

Amongst the ruckus, Ace returned his mother's smile, and gestured to the table as a whole, "Maybe we should break this to him first. Slowly,"

You smell that?

Smells like a thickening track of land. And by land i meant plot. Cuz they meant the same. That was a joke, i suck at jokes.

I'm so sorry, please still like this fic, i work hard on it.

Anyway, sorry it's shorter than usual, but i hope you still liked it and please tell me what you think! Thank you for reading!