The Gate Master

Chapter 2


3 Years Later…

"Are we ever going to meet this other crew member?" Roronoa Zoro asked as he, Nami and Usopp reclined in various places onboard the Going Merry. "You mention this other person so often that I'm starting to think that she's an imaginary friend of yours."

"She's not imaginary," Luffy announced insulted. "I've known her since I was six! But she's late this year. I'm starting to get worried…"

The last part was said quietly and the normally cheerful boy's face was masked with worry. The three other members of the newly formed Straw-hat Pirates watched him in concern. They had never seen that expression on his face before.

Luffy had been on the water for close to a month now, and it was only a few days ago that he got his ship, the Going Merry. Zoro was an aspiring master swordsman, he had yet to lose a fight and he fought with three blades, holding one in his mouth and the other two in his hands. Luffy couldn't wait for Dawn to meet him; there was something fascinating about the way the green-haired man fought. Nami was the next member of his crew, though she claimed that she was only there so that she could steal treasure from other pirates. She was a first-rate thief with a love of money and tangerines. She was also the best navigator in the East Blue. The newest member was Usopp, and while they had only been together for a few days, Luffy had already become familiar with the lies that Usopp couldn't help but sprout off at any given moment.

Each crew member knew that there was another pirate who Luffy had recruited before them, but not one of them had met her yet. Luffy had left Windmill Village in late June, waiting almost two months after he was seventeen before leaving. Dawn finished school at the end of June, and he had waited for her before setting sail. But she hadn't appeared. Makino promised that she would send the girl along when she arrived, but now, close to a month had passed and there was still no sign of her.

Luffy looked up at his pirate mark. As he was terrible at painting and drawing, Usopp had done it for him and now the Jolly Roger wearing a straw hat was visible for the world to see and recognise. Usopp had used Luffy's armband as his guide, being able to copy it a lot better than Luffy's crude imitation of it, and that led into a discussion about where he had gotten it.

"What island does she live on?" Nami asked. "You can't expect for her to find you in the middle of the ocean like we are now. She could be floating around for months with no luck."

"She's always been able to find me," Luffy replied as he tilted his head to the side. "She can See where she wants to be and then appears."

"You've said that before, but what do you mean?" Usopp asked. "Does she have Devil Fruit powers?"

Luffy shook his head and leapt onto his Special Seat, the figurehead of the Going Merry. The others sighed as one before returning to whatever it was they were doing before Zoro's question. The swordsman went back to sleep, dreaming of his promise and goal. Nami reclined in her chair, soaking in the sun's rays while Usopp played with his concoctions and created more weapons. Luffy stared across the ocean and contemplated Dawn.

She would have just finished her fifth year at the magic school, and with the Dark Sickos return she would probably be under a lot of pressure from the magic community. When he last saw her she was looking depressed, and he hoped that she hadn't done something stupid, like trying to end her life. He had her present in his pocket; he had found it back in Syrup Village, Usopp's home town. He hoped that she liked it, and he hoped that he would see her soon.

Brushing the thought aside he decided to explore his new ship. Maybe there would be some cannon balls onboard he could play with.


With Dawn…

Dawn stared at the roof of her bedroom without seeing it. Her sixteenth birthday would be in a few days but she had no interest in what the day meant. Her godfather was gone; he wouldn't be coming back any time soon. He had fallen through the Veil in the Department of Mysteries, and while she knew that the Veil led to Luffy's world, she had no idea whereabouts the man had ended up. She'd wanted to go through after him, but due to the Order she had been restrained. Instead she ran after Bellatrix Lestrange for separating them after finally finding each other after thirteen years of estrangement.

Now she was back at Number 4 Privet Drive and wondering whether or not she should force her presence on a boy she was beginning to like as more than a friend. The necklace he had given her for her twelfth birthday hung from her neck, she never took it off. Over the years he had also given her a charm bracelet which they added to every year since she was seven and last year he had also given her, her own pirate outfit. It was a black skirt which ended just above her knees but still provided her with the ability to move without restriction; mini shorts, also black, to go under the skirt to protect her modesty; a red shirt that stopped above her belly-button but had long sleeves that covered her arms to her wrists; black boots that reached her knees; and a black cape with a hood to cover her completely.

Dawn hadn't worn it yet, it was in her trunk with all her other belongings. During the school year she had made herself a bag that was the size of a purse but had an expanding charm on it so that all her belongings would fit inside it easily. The bag would hang across her chest and rest on her hip, and it was black so that it would blend in with the outfit Luffy got her.

Ever since hearing the prophecy, she had slowly allowed herself to sink into depression. She had always known that it would be her, but to also hear that no one else could do it because they were assured victory if she did it was terrifying. The fate of her world rested on her shoulders and she felt wholly unprepared for it. The only form of training she had ever received was from Grandpa Garp, Ace and Luffy, but that was physical, not magical.

Dawn sat up suddenly. She was a little dizzy as she hadn't been eating again, but she also knew that if she wanted to survived, she would need to go somewhere else. Dumbledore wouldn't train her, the Order wouldn't train her, and Sirius was quite possibly waiting for rescue in Luffy's world. Dawn nodded to herself. This world had done nothing for her. They had left her alone for years and placed all their hopes on her shoulders, and then they had either praised or ridiculed her for something that she had no control over. If they wanted to survive they would have to fix their problems themselves.

She packed all her belongings in her expander-bag, dressed in Luffy's outfit for her, called her beloved owl Hedwig to her shoulder and created a tear to Gringotts…she would need her gold.

Needless to say the goblins weren't happy with what she was planning to do. However, they still assisted her with melting down the gold coins and reshaping them into gold bars that could be stacked into her bag easily. As a failsafe she created another vault where half her fortune would remain, out of reach from anyone looking to take it, and promised the goblins that she would return eventually. They would look after her account for as long as it was required, and ensure that no one other than her would be able to access it.

With that done Dawn and Hedwig disappeared from the wizarding world, not to be seen again for many years.


Dawn paused in the in-between, Hedwig hooted at her curiously but all Dawn did was shake her head and observe what was going on beyond. Her tears couldn't move, so appearing on a moving ship would be next to impossible, but appearing in the sky so that she could fly was easier as her broom would be all that she needed. Looking down she easily spotted Luffy's ship, its pirate mark making her smile slightly, what could possibly be a marine ship and another ship that looked like a giant fish. Mounting her broom she glided from the in-between and spiraled down to the ship without anyone seeing her.

Hedwig remained on her shoulder, studying what would be her new home for the foreseeable future. The climate was far warmer than she was used to, but Dawn would take care of her as she had always done.

While Hedwig was keeping watch, Dawn stood on the ship's railing and started to search for Luffy. Looking up at the fish-ship she noticed that there was a hole in the roof, and summarized that Luffy had been attacked by the marines and he had miscalculated with his defense and instead the attack was on the fish-ship. Knowing Luffy he would probably take the full blame for the attack and never once think of blaming the marines. She sighed with a fond smile and used her broom to glide to the fish-ship.

As she approached she deduced that it was in fact a restaurant in the middle of the ocean. She dropped her broom into her expander-bag and walked to the entrance. Ahead of her was a pirate, and he was holding a gun at the back of someone's head. The shot made her jump slightly and Hedwig stretch her wings threateningly, but other than that all she did was pause until the pirate walked inside. After that she stood in the doorway to watch what was going on.

It appeared that the pirate was starving as he was demanding food, but the cook in front of him seemed to be more interested in money than customer service. She frowned at him and turned her gaze to the rest of the restaurant. Luffy was instantly visible, his straw hat standing out to her. She considered using her magic to steal it from him, but decided against it as the timing wasn't right.

Cheering brought her attention back to the pirate and the cook, the latter of which was beating the pirate to within an inch of his life. After he was done he dragged the defeated pirate out the back while the customers cheered. Dawn retreated from the restaurant so that she could see what was happening with the hungry man. In the shadows she watched as another cook, this one wearing a nice suit gave the pirate some food and water. Luffy was staring down at them and having a lively conversation about how the cook, Sanji, was going to be a part of his pirate crew.

Dawn noticed that Luffy was still wearing the armband she had made him, and despite her depressed emotional state, she felt happiness. There was no way that Luffy would continue to wear her present if he didn't want to see her anymore. Shortly after, the pirate left and Sanji and Luffy went back inside to work. Dawn waited until they were gone before climbing up to where the owner of the ship appeared to be waiting for her.

"What do you want brat?" he asked as she made it to the roof.

"What agreement did you come to with the straw hat boy?" she asked quietly.

"He will work for one year to pay off the damage he caused."

"He won't do it," Dawn said with a brief laugh. "What was his reply offer?"

"One week."

"How bad was the damage?"

"It'll take a few days for my room to be repaired and my injuries to heal."

"Can't do much about your injuries, I'm no healer, but I could see to the damage to your ship."

"What do you want in return?"

"Let Luffy work for one week, I have a feeling that that pirate who just left will be back with his friends. You'll want Luffy on your side when that happens."

"That's all? You want nothing for yourself?"

"I've got everything I could possibly want, I doubt that there is anything you own that I may want or need. Besides, it's not like I'm going to go to a lot of effort, repairing objects is a fairly simple business."

"Huh, I suppose I can agree to that, but you'll have to fix it first."

"Fair enough, you want me to start now or wait till later?"

"Now's good. I'll show you the room and then go and see what those wannabe chefs are doing."

Dawn smirked and followed the one-legged chef to where the most damage was done. She couldn't help but whistle as she got a close up view of the hole. Hedwig settled on the headboard of the bed and while Dawn was preparing to work her magic, watched as the one-legged chef walked out the door to watch without causing any disturbances. Dawn pulled her wand from her bag and pushed her sleeves up and her cape past her shoulders.

"Reparo!"

The owner, Red-foot Zeff, watched in undisguised amazement as the scattered wood from his ship flew back to where it had been before the cannon ball hit it. The young girl waved her stick in circular patterns, repeating the same word over and over again, for several minutes. By the time she was done the wall, and the objects that had been on the wall, were completely repaired. If Zeff hadn't watched it, he would never have believed that there had been any damage to start with.

"Satisfied?" the girl asked. All Zeff could do was nod. He asked her who she was.

"Never before have I seen anything like that, and I have travelled the Grand Line for a year. What I just witnessed is beyond this world."

"My name is Dawn, and I can create tears or gateways if you will, from my world to this world. I am here because Luffy is my friend."

"I wouldn't speak of the gateways so easily child," Zeff warned seriously. "Those in the World Government wouldn't hesitate to silence you, or use your knowledge to take over your world. Keep it a secret from all you don't trust."

"Any who tried to take over my world would die just as easily as I repaired your ship. There is a reason I came here."

Zeff accepted that explanation and led the young girl back to the restaurant. While she had money to pay for her meal, Zeff refused to accept it as she had done him a great service in repairing his room. All he had to do now was make sure that no one else harassed her.


With Luffy…

Luffy was bored. Sure, it was fun to watch others work, but when he had to work himself he found himself unable to do the simplest chores. Dawn would have been able to do everything that the cooks were asking him to do, but he hadn't been raised knowing what she knew. Washing dishes meant that more dishes were broken than cleaned, sweeping the floor meant getting in the way, and even taking customer's orders was a recipe for disaster. In the end they had him taking out the rubbish, clearing tables and resetting them once they were cleaned.

It was on his forth return to the dining room of the restaurant that he noticed the extra customer. She sat near the window, her back to the wall so that she could see everyone in the restaurant, her hood pulled up over her hair and a snowy owl perched on her shoulder. His nakama were on the other side of the restaurant, and enjoying his hard work while they got to relax, so he didn't worry about them as he approached the table. As she looked up at him he couldn't help the wide smile stretch across his face as familiar green eyes locked with his own.

"My Dawn Angel," he said with a smile, keeping his voice down. "You look like you haven't eaten in a while, again, what would you like to eat?"

Dawn smiled at him and dropped her hood so that they could see each other clearly. She rested her hand on Hedwig's head and introduced them before answering his question and greeting.

"My Knight in a straw hat, the owner of this place is making something for me so do not fear, I will be eating something. As for how I look, it's a long story that can be told later when you're not working. It is a tale too long to tell now."

Luffy nodded with a frown. Her voice was flat, and while she smiled at him, the light he was accustomed to, didn't reach her eyes like it should. He gave Hedwig a gentle pat on the head before looking back at the restaurant. He pointed out his nakama for her, and explained that he would be getting a cook soon so that no one would go hungry on his ship. The cook he was talking about walked over to them soon after and dragged Luffy away so that he could work, after gushing over how beautiful Dawn was. Hedwig hit him in the face with her wing before deliberately turning her face away in a clear dismissal. Luffy was laughing as he left.

He watch as Zeff set down a dish of moderately bland food and a cup of fruit. There was also a plate of dead mice for Hedwig, something that the owl obviously approved of. Dawn's smile told him that she appreciated the food and Luffy's esteem for the old man went up as he could clearly recognise what food a person could handle without becoming sick. Luffy returned to working as a chore boy and vowed to talk to Zeff again to see if he could shorten his sentence. With Dawn waiting for him he didn't want her to be stuck in the restaurant for a whole year waiting for him.


That night, after everyone had gone to bed, Luffy retreated to the roof of the restaurant where he knew that Dawn would be waiting for him. She had taken her cape off and was using it as a seat so that the coolness of the tiles wasn't seeping into her skin directly. Luffy sat next to her, resting his arm across her shoulders like he always had. She took a shuddering breath at the contact and before he knew it she was crying into his shoulder. He instantly pulled her onto his lap so that he could hold her better and let her cry.

"You know how I always told you that I had to defeat Voldemort?" Dawn started after she calmed down. "Well, I found out that I'm the only one who can do it because of some prophecy that was made before I was born. No one else will try because only with me is victory assured. I don't want to do it. Why does it have to be me?"

"They actually told you that you're the only one who can save them? What idiots. You're not going back. Let them fix that mess on their own. You're going to stay with me."

Dawn looked up at him with watery green eyes and smiled gratefully. Luffy kissed her cheek softly and pulled her back against his chest. She told him everything that had happened that year, including the fiasco at the Ministry of Magic and how Sirius fell through the Veil. She explained how she wanted to find him as she knew that he would be in this world, just not where. In return he promised to help her look for him and told her about his nakama. His ship, the Going Merry was only a few days old and it would be her home soon enough.

By the time everything had been explained it was well past midnight. Staring at the sky Luffy pulled out a small box from his pocket. It was Dawn's birthday present and suddenly he was nervous about giving it to her. She pulled back from his chest and looked at him curiously, and it was from her eyes that Luffy gained his courage.

"I know your birthday is today, July thirty-first, so I would like to give you your present," he began only a little nervous. "We've known each other for eleven years now, and I want to continue to know you for the rest of my life. This present is also a promise to you that I will forever stand by your side, as I hope you will stand by me. Whatever your decision, I will always call you my best friend."

Dawn watched him with wide eyes as he handed over the small box. She had an idea as to what he was saying, but it wasn't until she opened the box and saw a gold ring adorned with an emerald and two smaller rubies either side that it registered what he was asking for.

"Are you asking me to marry you?" she asked.

"Yes," Luffy replied without hesitation. "I am going to be the Pirate King, and there would be no one I'd rather have beside me as my Queen than you. This is my promise to you. You will never be alone again, and I will never abandon you or turn you away."

Dawn pulled the ring from the box almost reverently and stared at it. While it was light, the weight of what it symbolized made her hand shake. All her life she had been considered a burden by her relatives, something that was a waste of space. In the wizarding world she was their hero, until they discovered something that didn't fit their image of her, and then they all turned on her. Her friends at Hogwarts had all turned their backs on her at one stage or another, whether it was jealously or fear it didn't matter. Never before had she been accepted for exactly who she was, except for when she was with Luffy.

With fresh tears in her eyes she slipped the ring onto her left hand and kissed Luffy's cheek.

"I believe you," she whispered into his ear. "And for as long as I live I will stay by your side and help you achieve your dream. Just, don't leave me."

Luffy stood up with her in his arms and spun them both around in happiness. When he stopped spinning, under the light of the full moon, he kissed her in a way that made her feel completely safe. With Luffy, she would be free.