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Darkness. Yells and other loud sounds around.
Shanks cries, upset and uncomfortable.
Different, happier voices. A clicking sound. Then light... and new faces.
Shanks blinks, then giggles as his hands reach out towards the sun.
"Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~"
Shanks curls into warm arms, one of his hands pressed against the big man's chest to feel the rumble of the deep voice lulling him to sleep.
Shanks is happy he got a new friend.
Buggy's pretty cool.
Shanks shows him around the ship, and they play together when Rayleigh-san and Gaban-san aren't teaching them how to read, write, or something else grown-ups do.
Buggy's good at learning too, but he still forgets some of the verses in that song.
Shanks patiently teaches him, and they sing together until Buggy gets them right. "Hey ! Now you're good", he grins at his friend.
Buggy beams. "Gyahaha, cool. Say, how come you remember this one so easy ?"
"Hmm. I don't know. It's like I always knew them."
"How so ?"
Shanks frowns. "Hm. Wait, I know." He grabs Buggy's hand to drag him along as he searches for a crewmate.
They soon bump into the First Mate.
"Rayleigh-san ! Say, say, you know how we always sing Binks' Sake, Buggy knows it by heart now, I taught him. But how come I know it so well ?"
Rayleigh grins. "Well, Roger always sang that one when you were a baby and he rocked you to sleep. Could be that you've heard it so many times that the lyrics stuck better ?"
Shanks blinks as a blurry memory of being curled up in Captain Roger's arms resurfaces. "Ooh. Okay."
Shanks is a fully-fledged Roger Pirate now, with his own share of chores, and he's trained enough to have permission to engage in fights with the rest of the crew.
Buggy joins too, and they make a great team together.
Shanks hopes things can remain like this forever. "...Never-ending, ever-wandering, our funny traveling tale! Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho, Yo-hohoho~"
Buggy happily sings with him as they scrub the deck, always does when they do their chores : that song makes time pass faster, somehow.
There's a huge party after Oden joins the crew, where the samurai sings a song of his own.
The Roger Pirates teach them the one they sing the most in return, as they sail together across the Blues.
Shanks laughs everytime Oden doesn't remember the lyrics, putting emphasis on the few verses he knows and singing slightly off-key nonsense in between.
They sing along all the way to the last island !
Well... almost all the way, because Shanks chooses to stay ashore to care for a feverish Buggy. By night at the inn, Shanks sings the lullaby version of his favorite song to his bed-ridden friend, hoping he sleeps more peacefully.
It seems to work somehow, because Buggy gets better in just a few days.
Shanks cries as Captain Roger tells him about the last island.
It's unfair that Captain can't complete the One Piece while he's the first person in known history to reach Laugh Tale and learn everything there is to know about the hidden secrets of the world. It's unfair that there's such a long wait before it's even possible, and it's even more unfair that Shanks can't be the right one for that.
Shanks wants to carry Captain Roger's legacy so bad...
And then Captain disbands the crew, sets off on his own and disappears, only to be executed in his hometown the next year.
Shanks cries, heart and guts full of grief and resentment, soul lonely and broken.
It's unfair that the crowd in the plaza is happy and laughing while they understand absolutely nothing about Captain's last words. It's unfair that the lyrics to that song are so closely intertwined with Captain's dream when they won't sing it together anymore, and it's even more unfair that even his only friend leaves him there.
Shanks doesn't want to sing ever again.
After spending a few months drinking his sorrow away, Shanks decides to set sail and gather his own crew. He recruits a few good men, and puts to good use all the lessons he learned during his time as a Roger Pirate to make a name for himself over the next years. He tells his crew early on not to call him "Captain" – he knows that technically, he is, but it hurts to hear that when he knows deep in his heart who's the only worthy Captain – and so, they settle for "Boss". It has a nice ring to it, and it doesn't reopen fresh wounds, so Shanks is fine with that.
They're a nice bunch, too : strong and skilled, always jolly, often teasing him about being an immature leader but ready to follow him wherever at his beck and call.
Shanks shrugs off the jokes about him being a bratty teenager – most of his men are older than him, and he admits that he's a dork sometimes.
They don't sing much, but they make up for it with regular fits of laughter.
It's somewhat healing, though Shanks feels his heart will always be a little broken, missing a piece of something dear.
Another day, another loot ! The Red-Hair Pirates laugh together after defeating a rival crew.
"Look at all the riches !"
"We're gonna buy some good food with that !"
"Treasure ! Treasure !"
Shanks frowns as he hears an unusual sound in the middle of the cheerful yells. He strains his ear, follows the voice, and opens one of the treasure chests. "Huh ?!"
A few of his men gather around him and join him in gawking at the baby in the chest.
Shanks mutters, "What are you doing in there ?"
Beckman supplies, "Maybe she was kidnapped by the crew that we just fought ?"
Shanks groans, "You've got to be kidding me..."
The baby starts crying.
"Okay, okay, please stop crying..." Shanks facepalms, unsure what to do, and improvises a half-baked lullaby.
The baby stops crying, opens wide eyes at him and starts laughing, tiny hands reaching out for him.
Shanks stares at the baby as his first ever memory comes back clear as day : the surprised faces of Roger, Rayleigh and Gaban gathered above him. His gaze softens then, and he murmurs, "Is this fate ?" He cautiously takes the baby in the chest and holds her close, observing her, then declares, "We'll raise her."
"No way !"
"Eeeeeh ?"
"Uh, you sure, Boss ?"
Shanks grins wide and nods the affirmative. "Yeah."
Shanks wonders how Captain Roger and the rest of his crew managed with two kids, while he and his men can't manage to get some sleep with just one aboard. And the baby's just been with them for a few weeks... "Ugh, why won't she sleep ? Uta keeps crying ! Ugh, what are we gonna do ?" As his crew complains too, Shanks hears a soft lullaby.
He gazes around and sees a woman singing to a baby cradled in her arms.
A memory of that song comes back unprompted, and he opens wide eyes. "Oh. Of course."
The next time Uta starts crying, Shanks starts singing Binks' Sake, shortly followed by his crew.
She curiously looks at them for a while, then starts laughing, cries and worries all forgotten.
Shanks keeps singing, and finds that he still remembers all the verses. And it's weird, but although his heart still aches a little as he reaches the end of the song, he finds comfort in hearing it again, and having new people – his new family – to sing along with.
Uta really takes a liking to singing as she grows, and eventually she remembers the lyrics to every song the crew knows by heart, too.
Shanks proudly raises her both as his daughter and the musician of his crew, hope renewed as he realizes she's about old enough to match Captain's Roger prediction that someone would come and surpass his crew.
Uta guards the ship when they're away, much like Shanks used to in his time as a cabin boy.
Shanks lets her freely explore the loot they bring back after raiding ships in return.
"Shanks ! What's this fruit ? It tastes so bad !"
Shanks feels a cold shiver run down his spine as an image of Buggy drowning shortly after eating the Bara Bara no Mi flashes before his eyes. He runs to his daughter. "Uta ! Show me that fruit !"
Uta hands him a pink fruit with spiral patterns.
"Oh, shit."
The crew soon learns about Uta's Devil Fruit powers, as the next time she sings alongside them they all experience the same hallucination.
Shanks blinks awake after the song ends, and finds that this Devil Fruit is weirdly interesting. Dreams carried by song, huh ?
Uta keeps growing, and starts making her own songs, virtually taking them on dreamy journeys each time she entertains the Red-Hair Pirates with shows of her own.
Shanks particularly likes the endless landscapes she shows them as she performs Binks' Sake.
Shanks got intel on the Gomu Gomu no Mi and with the help of his crew, manages to steal it from CP9, firmly intending to sell it for good money. He keeps it out of Uta's reach on the way to the Goa Kingdom in East Blue – no way he'll risk her eating another one, who knows what might happen – and hopes to find a buyer there.
They anchor the ship in Foosha Village, and before they've even set foot on the docks, a lively kid challenges them. "If you trouble us, I'll make you pay for it !"
Shanks simply chuckles. This boy has guts.
The boy – Luffy, as he learns shortly after – is also incredibly curious and stubborn. He follows them everywhere, asking endless streams of questions about life at sea and barely listening to the crew's answers, though he retains enough from the conversations that he soon tries to join the crew, begging Shanks to take him to sea.
Day after day, Shanks refuses.
Day after day, Luffy keeps trying.
Uta tries – and fails – to discourage Luffy, but eventually makes friend with him : while the Red-Hair Pirates plan their next trips, the kids explore the village together, compete against each other and develop a friendly rivalry. During the time they spend together, Uta also teaches Luffy the lyrics to Binks' Sake.
Though the boy always sings off-key, he quickly memorizes all the verses and happily joins the crew and their diva whenever she's throwing a show at Party's Bar.
Memories of the Oro Jackson and his time there flow back to Shanks without failing every time they do so now, and despite his heart tightening a bit at the thought, he softly smiles as he finds Uta and Luffy's friendship is not unlike the one he had with Buggy back then.
Luffy relentlessly keeps trying to join the crew, and even sneaks aboard once.
Fortunately, Uta finds him before they set sail for Elegia.
Shanks returns to Foosha Village with a broken heart and a heavy weight on his shoulders, not unlike the day he lost his Captain. "Don't worry, Luffy. Uta left the ship to become a singer. That's all", he tells the worried kid welcoming them on the docks.
Luffy doesn't buy it, and gets seriously mad at him, refusing to talk to him anymore.
Over the next days while the boy remains at bay, Shanks drinks his troubles away. So much for a fated encounter... I really fucked things up.
Beck decides to go talk to Luffy after a while without a single news, and disappears for the day. He comes back long past sunset and doesn't drop a single word, either.
On the next day, the crowd in Party's Bar becomes silent when Luffy shows up wearing bandages and band-aids all over his face, and asks to be allowed aboard the ship once more.
Shanks customarily refuses, and asks him where he got hurt like this.
"I fell", Luffy says before climbing on the nearby stool.
"No way. How did you fall to get hurt like-"
Luffy braces his tightened fists on the bar, turns to Shanks, looks into his eyes with fierce determination and says again, "I fell !"
Shanks holds his serious gaze for a while before cracking a sly smile. "Okay, you fell. Then I have no further questions for you."
"I have no further questions for you too, because it's yours and Uta's business."
"You're talking like a grown-up", Shanks remarks.
Predictably, Luffy tries to use that as leverage to join the crew.
Shanks refuses, resumes teasing him, and under the roaring laughter of his crew, things seem to return to regain a semblance of normalcy despite Uta's absence... There's still an acute ache gnawing his heart, but Shanks conceals it, knowing now that time dulls even the deepest pains.
Luffy soon resumes his attempts to join the crew, coming up with the silliest reasons to be granted access aboard.
Shanks keeps dismissing any and each attempt he makes with gentle teasing and laughter.
One day, Luffy tells him that he's thought about what Uta told him once, and that he decided what his greatest dream would be, before proudly proclaiming his outrageous idea.
Shanks blinks in disbelief as he hears Captain Roger's voice echoing in his mind, saying the exact same words on the day he recruited Oden. Tears fall from his eyes at the memories, and then he has startled laugh as it dawns on him that Luffy is old enough to fit right into the prophecies of the young mermaid the Roger Pirates met on their last passage in Fish-Man Island. Say, Captain, do you think he's the one ? Fate works in weird ways, right ?
Roughly a year passes, and Shanks still hasn't found a buyer for the Gomu Gomu no Mi, so he plans to travel up north and try his luck in another Blue.
Meanwhile, Luffy grows more and more reckless with his attempts to join the crew, and goes as far as planting a knife into his own cheek.
Hongo says the boy's lucky to have missed his eye as he patches him up.
Afterwards, back at Party's Bar, Luffy gets angry at Shanks once more after he refused to fight against the mountain bandit.
Shanks tries to reason with him, to no avail, and grabs his arm as he storms off.
Luffy's arm stretches while he keeps walking away.
Once Roux confirms with the boy that he did eat the Gomu Gomu no Mi, Shanks gives him a firm scolding and tells him about the curse that comes with being a Devil Fruit User.
(He also vows to himself there and then to never, ever, willingly approach a Devil Fruit again.)
On the return from their following trip, Shanks is surprised not to be greeted by Luffy as usual.
Makino's not tending to her bar, and the mayor is nowhere to be seen either.
Shanks gathers his most trusted men and moves further inside the village.
They soon hear a commotion in a nearby street and find the source of all the noise.
Shanks maintains his composure, he even smiles – can't risk to frighten Luffy, not now, not ever – but a cold rage races through his veins as he takes in the sight of the mountain bandits from a few days ago, beating Luffy up – can't risk losing him too, either.
They're only small fry so Shanks doesn't even have to lift a finger before all of them are incapacitated in a way or another, courtesy of Roux and Beck.
Only Higuma remains, but he uses a smoke bomb to make a quick escape and carry Luffy away.
Shanks freaks out at the unforeseen hitch in his flawless rescue, more so now that he's fully aware of the possibility that Luffy is the one his Captain told him about.
The mayor begs him to find Luffy and save him.
As Shanks regains his calm, Makino tells him that Luffy took his and his crew's defense against the mountain bandit and his men earlier at the bar.
Shanks blinks in disbelief. Ah... Reminds me of Captain Roger.
In the meantime, his men split up then spread out across the village and beyond to find Higuma, and soon inform their Boss that the bandit got away in a dinghy.
Shanks rushes to the sea, and gets here barely just in time to save Luffy from drowning. He sacrifices his dominant arm in the process, and has to use Conqueror's Haki to get rid of the local Sea King responsible for his loss, but all is well that ends well.
Luffy's safe, albeit crying his heart out.
There's still hope.
The incident leaves Luffy quite shaken afterwards, and more determined than ever to get stronger. He visits Shanks everyday during his recovery and though he's still chatty as ever, he obviously tries to be more serious and focused during conversations, and he lets Shanks rest too. And he's upset by their imminent departure, but he doesn't even ask the Red-Hair Pirates to take him aboard when they decide to set sail towards the Grand Line. "I will become a pirate with my own strength", he proudly says as the crew loads supplies aboard the ship.
Shanks teases him as usual...
But Luffy surprises him once more as he yells, "I'll gather my own crew and it'll be stronger than yours ! And we'll find the world's greatest treasure !! I'm gonna be the King of the Pirates, no matter what !!"
Is this fate acting again ? Shanks opens wide eyes at the brazen declaration. "Oh, so you're gonna surpass us ?" He grins, and on a wild bet, he entrusts Luffy the last memento he has from Captain Roger, and tasks the boy with returning it once he's claimed his title. As he walks to his ship, Shanks feels a new hope growing inside his chest, soothing his aching heart. He recognizes all too well in the boy that claims he'll be the next Pirate King both the dreams of the first tenant of the title, and traits he showed himself when he was younger. Maybe I can help some more. "Everyone has their time to shine", eh, Captain ?
Over the next handful of years, the Red-Hair Pirates become infamous all across the Blues.
Shanks acquires the title of Yonkou after proving to be a formidable enemy of the Marines and making alliances with several other crews.
It takes just a few more years before a familiar straw hat appears on the wanted posters delivered with the News Coo.
Shanks grins wide at the sight then, and throws a huge party to celebrate Luffy's rise to fame, not caring in the least that he and his crew are still hungover from the night before.
Everyone eats until they're full, drinks until they can barely walk, laughs loud enough to scare the birds away, and sings Binks' Sake over and over again.
Shanks heartily sings along, loud and hopeful again... And he doesn't wait too long before paying a visit to Rayleigh-san in Sabaody to tell him all about the kid.
The Summit War leaves Shanks with yet another bitter aftertaste, pondering what ifs and aimless questions while he tries his best to keep composure for the sake of everyone else.
What if I'd known who Ace was when he came to meet me ? Did anyone else, did Whitebeard know who his father was ? What if I arrived earlier in Marineford ? Is Luffy going to be alright ?
He mostly manages, until the burial is over and everyone leaves for the New World. Then he locks himself in his cabin for a few days and drinks some more, the only comforting thought amidst all this is that he met Buggy again and got to catch up with him.
And yet again, fate keeps playing tricks on his sanity.
Luffy comes back to Marineford to ring the Ox Bell sixteen times... with former Shichibukai Jinbe and Rayleigh-san.
Shanks blinks in disbelief at the News Coo relating the event, and though he's relieved to know that Luffy is apparently in good hands, he doesn't want to keep his hopes up in case they get shattered once more.
A couple of eventful years later – which just so happens to be the year Captain said someone would surpass him and his crew – Shanks returns to Elegia, rekindles his relationship with his daughter and sets sail towards Laugh Tale. And on the way there, Shanks finally meets Luffy as an equal on the high seas.
The boy has grown much more mature and much stronger, he gathered brilliant and amazing nakama around him, got himself a mighty ship, and earned the loyalty of thousand of pirates across the Blues along his travels, not to mention the countless outrageous feats he's accomplished on the way.
Shanks is happily convinced that Luffy is, indeed, the one that Captain Roger and Joy Boy were waiting for to complete their greatest dream. He thinks he couldn't possibly be prouder, and then-
The Straw Hats' musician pulls a violin out of nowhere unprompted, and starts playing the tune to Binks' Sake, to which the small crew happily starts singing along.
Shanks exhales a startled laugh as Uta joins their singing, and meets them for the verse, shortly followed by his whole crew. He keeps singing to the end, even as his voice wavers and a few tears stream down his cheeks over the last verse, "...Never-ending, ever-wandering, our funny traveling tale !" Oh, Captain, I wish I could tell you all about this kid. Really, it's such a funny story...