We were sat around the tree, and by now my legs were long past aching. I'm sure Nami-san had all the best intentions, but 30 min. was too long of a warning. No revealing Secret Santas, we know. No opening gifts until you were alone, we know. I was losing my patience, and was very much considering snatching my gift and dashing back to my room.
"And finally, Nami said, "absolutely no complaining! Got it?"
"Yes!" everyone chorused, voicing all their curiosity in one unified call. Hmm… That gives me an idea… Maybe—
"Great!" said the navigator, interrupting my thoughts, "First up, we have Brook." I inwardly cheered as I uncrossed my legs and rose to my full height. She reached under the swing and pulled out a large, oval package. It had been wrapped in black paper, and had a white musk note motif. To be honest, most of them were like that. Nami had wrapped them herself, and had taken each of her Nakama's interests into consideration. She was really taking this seriously, and no one wanted to upset all her planning.
She grinned up at me cheekily, and patted my forearm. She was playing Santa's elf in a small red skirt and white blouse, topped with a jaunty red felt hat.
"You can go ahead to your room if you want," she said.
"Thank you most kindly, Nami-san," I said, bowing courteously, dipping my head to her stomach. Waist. Thighs. *SMACK* and whipping back up.
"What do you think you're doing, you perv…" she said, her eyes blazing.
"Yohohoho!" I laughed nervously, "I'll be going then…" I muttered, having lost my chance and retreating to my room in long strides.
OOOOO
The room designated for my use was the aquarium café. I descended into the glass dome, smiling at the little touches of holiday spirit Nami had obviously coerced Sanji to add. The little seaweed wreaths and coral bells were rather charming. I took a seat on the bench, and slowly began to take apart the tape, a strip at a time. I unravelled the paper, and finally held in my hands a beautiful… guitar? It seemed like a guitar, but it was hard to tell for sure. It was a metal outline of an oval, with nothing but 5 strings in the middle connecting from the base of the oval to the end of a long branch of steel stemming form the other end of the oval. It was smooth to the touch, and curved to perfection. I tested it's weight in my hands. It was light, due to it being nothing but a functioning skeleton of an instrument. Skeleton? Of course! It was built as minimally as possible, reflecting my own person.
It was very clear who had made this. After all, there was no craftsman akin to Shipwright-san on our ship. The thought that had been put into this brought tears to my eyes. Though, I have no eyes!
"Yohohoho…" I chuckled, my eye sockets brimming with water. I decided to test it out, but upon strumming the cords, I found that no sound came out. I was puzzled, and examined the body of the instrument. Finally, I found a small opening in the side of the oval, and proceeded to the retrieve my amplifier from the upper decks.
OOOOO
Finally, I plugged in my instrument, and strummed my scale. The sound that came from the amplifier was not robotic, as I had expected, but a smooth blend of acoustic and electric. I found that the faster I strummed, the more power I put in, the more electric it sounded, and the more docile I was, the less effort I used, the more acoustic the sound. It was mesmerizing, and I couldn't get over it.
The body itself of the guitar was astounding. It was light, but had just enough weight for it to feel comfortable and solid. Upon more digging in the paper, I found four magnets that corresponded with the four most even points of the body. I attached the magnets under my coat, and slung the guitar on my back. It stuck instantly, and as soon as I removed it to play, the magnets unattached themselves from the fabric, and flew towards a crevice in the body of the oval. It was truly and amazing instrument, and I felt honoured to be using it.
I was looking all around the guitar for more hidden tricks when I found a small button on the base of the oval. I tried to press it, but it wouldn't budge. After trying to unsuccessfully to unstick it, I set it upright, the button touching the ground.
"Orchestra Mode: Activated" it chimed, startling me. The 'button' elongated into a stand, and a bow popped out of the body and tumbled to the ground. I held the now cello by it's neck, shocked. I slowly bent down to pick up the bow. It was made of the same material as the instruments, but instead of wood and horse hair, the bow was a solid bar of metal. I tested the bow on the cello, and out of the amplifier came a melodic sigh. As I pulled the bow back and forth, a melody began to float around the room as I started to compose.
When I finished, I tried to turn it back into a guitar by pushing in the button-turned-stand. It began to decompress until it became a violin, and I laughed, thinking of how spectacular it all was. Finally, I turned it back into a guitar by inserting the bow back into the slot of the cello form of the instrument.
I sat on the bench, the guitar laid across my lap as I thought of how my life had changed since I met Luffy. I was so grateful for everything he had given me. Nakama. Companionship. A chance to see Laboon once more. Though the guitar was truly wonderful, it represented more than just music. It represented the love and the bond between the crew; the lengths which we would go for one another. And that gift was truly priceless to me.