Chapter 19- Act 1
A/N: So I know it's been a long time since I started this story and I feel bad that I've left it unfinished for so long. Thanks to some encouragement from Inanna, I've picked this story back up again. Thank you for anyone who stuck with me and welcome to anyone who is new. I hope you enjoy it as the show begins!
The show:
Silence fell in the auditorium. A lilting song drifted out over the hushed crowd. The curtains opened to reveal Brook, dressed in a ragged suit, very similar to the one he wore when he met Luffy for the first time. He played the violin softly, gracefully, drawing everyone's attention and holding it. He held one final note for a long moment before letting it die.
"This is the tale from a faraway land, a tale of savage seas, treacherous pirates, and longer than lifelong friends," he said into the quiet. "This begins with my tale only because I lived it first, but it is not my tale alone. No, it belongs to us all. And soon it will belong to you too, to share as you will and so you may laugh and cry along with us. Thank you."
The curtains closed and after a moment opened on a set made to look like the deck of a ship. Actors dressed like pirates, all carrying instruments were lounging around while fake waves rolled past. A man with an afro and a violin danced out and started to play "Bink's Sake." Brook stepped out as he finished the song and sang a rousing song about his old crew, the Rumbar Pirates, and their newest friend, the baby whale, Laboon.
"The Rumor Pirates could make even a crying baby smile
And from across the waves came the biggest baby
Who just wanted to sing for a while!"
In the front row, the Straw-Hats cheered raucously for the little whale, brought to life by Franky's skills and a flute. They were shushed, but didn't seem to care at all. Luffy was practically bouncing in his seat.
"This was my first life," Brook explained at the end of his song. "We sailed the seas until we decided to enter the most famous of waters, the Grand Line. But we knew that what awaited us there would be more dangerous than we had ever faced, so we had to say goodbye to our friend, Laboon."
Brook sang a song that made everyone's eyes water as he said goodbye. The pirates on stage joined him as the baby whale sank beneath the waves. The song continued on a more hopeful note as the pirates turned away from the sad farewell and sang of the upcoming adventure.
A man dressed as the lighthouse keeper, Crocus, stepped forward and greeted them to show their arrival to the Grand Line. The pirates cheered, along with the audience, but then the flute started whistling again and they all fell silent. Luffy was the one who shouted out "Laboon!" just as the little baby whale appeared again.
"Yo ho ho ho, yes, my friends, Laboon followed us over Reverse Mountain into that most dangerous of seas. But we still couldn't let him follow us, so we left him in the care of our new friend Crocus, and continued on with a promise to return."
Brook looked sad they sang the farewell song again, but it quickly turned into more of a narrative, giving the audience some snip-its of Brook's life as a pirates. The highs and the lows of that journey portrayed in song and dance until the final battle.
The final battle of the Rumbar pirates was short and heart breaking. One by one the pirates fell, including the man playing Brook. Of course, after escaping, the doomed pirates played their last concert, the final message for Laboon, an apology for not fulfilling their promise to return. As the last pirate fell over their instrument, the lights went out and the curtains closed.
In the audience, no one had a dry eye, not even Batman, not that anyone could tell behind the mask. Luffy, Ussop, and Harley were the loudest bawlers. Franky swore he wasn't crying even as tears flowed down his face. Joker pulled out a comically big handkerchief and waved it around like a flag as he laughed through his tears. Nami and Catwoman cried on each other's shoulders and Batgirl sobbed quietly into Nightwing's chest.
Brook's laugh echoed through the room, silencing the audience. A green ghostly skull floated through the curtin and though someone screamed, everyone else leaned forward in anticipation. "Yo ho ho ho, and so I died," Brook announced dramatically. "But due to the cursed devil fruit, I did not go to my eternal rest, but wandered lost in the fog until I finally found my body." The curtin rose behind the ghost, and a spotlight focused on Brook's limp bones. "But so much time had passed that I was nothing but bones." Brook's spirit entered his body and the skeleton rose to his feet. "And so I lived, alone on a ghost ship for 50 years waiting for a chance to fullfil my promise to Laboon. And while I drifted through the cursed fog of the Florian Triangle, certain events occured which would eventually bring me here." He bowed and picked up his guitar and started to play.
The audience recognized the tune as a modified version of Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirate King. A group of men dressed as pirates came out to sing Brook's version which gave a very brief explanation of the Gold Roger, king of the pirates.
"For I am the Pirate King!
And I'll ensure for all to know
That I was best out of them all.
For I am the Pirate King,
Hurrah for the Pirate King
I left the One Piece for any to find if they dare,
To be the next Pirate King!"
The final verse was very dramatic, and ended with the king's execution making several members of the audience leap to their feet with emotion. The hero Robin in particular looked ready to leap on the stage and save the actor. Batman held him back with a hand on the boy's shoulder, but it was a close thing. Then the curtain fell again, leaving only Brook visible on the stage.
While the stage crew set up for the next number, Brook explained about the pirate era. "The temptation of Gold Roger's treasure, the One Piece, drew men and women to the Grand Line looking for adventure, treasure, and freedom. Then, twenty years after Gold Roger's final words, a young man set out on his own adventure. All he had was a hat, a promise, and a dream."