This is the second part of the previous chapter. If you've jumped straight to this one you're going to have to go back and read that one first. XD
The Gate Master
Chapter 5
At Arlong Park some time later…
"I see Luffy has acted true to form," Dawn commented as she and Nami arrived at Arlong Park. The villagers turned to look at them in shock as they looked around at the carnage that used to be Arlong Park. Fishmen where lying defeated everywhere, Zoro was dealing with the octopus Fishman, Sanji was fighting with the finned elbow Fishman, and there was no sign of Luffy anywhere. Dawn gave another curious scan, spotting the one called Arlong sitting back and enjoying the show, but there was no sign of Luffy.
"So, where is my captain?" she asked.
"Arlong threw him into the water," one of the villagers explained. "Genzo and Nojiko have gone in after him to help out, but his feet were incased in the cement. I don't know what they hope to do."
"Moron," Dawn muttered. "Hedwig, keep an eye on Nami for me?"
Hedwig hooted her agreement before landing on Nami's shoulder. Sure that Nami would be fine, Dawn walked forward until she was near the water. Arlong spotted her but instead of moving he watched her curiously. Dawn greeted Zoro and Sanji briefly, asking how they were and frowning at the sight of Zoro's wounds.
"Don't overdo it Zoro," she cautioned him. "Luffy won't be happy if you get yourself killed before defeating Hawkeye."
"Worry about yourself kid," Zoro snapped. "I'm fine. Go back and stand with the others."
"My future is in that pool," Dawn replied as she took off her shoes and put them to the side. "You seem busy enough up here, when you need me I'll be down there."
"What makes you think that you can get to him?" Arlong asked. Dawn looked over her shoulder and grinned.
"I'm practically immortal, didn't you know? Try and stop me and you'll be the one to die."
That said she cast a bubblehead charm over her head and jumped into the water. She swam straight down and saw immediately where Luffy had landed. Nojiko and Genzo looked at her in shock but all she did was cast another bubblehead charm over them and Luffy before forcing the water to be expelled from Luffy's lungs. His eyes snapped open and stared at her in relief, Nojiko and Genzo looked at her in amazement.
Luffy grabbed her hand sluggishly, the effect of the water slowing him down. His eyes flickered over her shoulders and that was all the warning she got. She spun around and noticed an unfamiliar Fishman swimming towards her, but his identity didn't matter to her. She had had experience fighting underwater and knew just what her body was capable of and how her spells worked.
Luffy let go of her hand as she pushed up towards the Fishman. It was up to Nojiko and Genzo to free Luffy's feet now that she had made it possible for them to breathe. She held her wand in front of her, green eyes waiting for the right moment to attack.
"Reducto." A stream of bubbles escaped passed the bubblehead charm, but the effect of the spell was the same as she had practiced. At point blank range the reducto spell had hit the Fishman in the chest and opened up a wound about the size of her head. Blood obscured her vision, but despite the effectiveness of the spell, her opponent was a Fishman and she knew that he was still alive.
"Depulso."
The Fishman flew up towards the surface.
"Sectumsempra."
Cuts instantly appeared all over the Fishman's body.
"Diffindo."
The Fishman lost his hand.
By this time they had made it to the surface and the Fishman showed no hesitation in escaping the water and stumbling over to Arlong. Dawn surface silently behind the Fishman and gracefully escaped the water. Every single conscious person was staring at her in amazement and fear. The Fishman was rambling at Arlong, but he was so hysterical that not a single word could be understood.
"Does this mean you've had enough?" Dawn asked. The Fishman screamed in fear and tried to run away. Dawn shook her head and raised her wand at his retreating form.
"Petrificus Totalus."
The Fishman's limbs froze instantly and he dropped to the ground like a stone. Dawn walked closer to him, keeping an eye on what was happening around her. It looked like Zoro had won his fight, but Sanji was still going. His fight would be over soon by the look of his opponent. Dawn's opponent was well and truly defeated, she just needed to make it final, but she wouldn't kill him. She rolled him over onto his back and sat down on his wounded body. From the corner of her eye she noticed Arlong stand up.
"I could kill you, you know?" she started. "But I won't. You're just going to go to sleep and when you wake up, hopefully you'll be in marine custody. But know this…if we ever meet again…I won't be so forgiving."
The Fishman's eyes stared at her, the only part of his body that could move. He was terrified. He had never met a person like her and possibly never would again. Dawn pressed her wand against his chest and leant down to whisper in his ear.
"Stupefy."
Both spells would wear off in about an hour, plenty of time for Luffy to finish the fight. She stood without a sound and returned to the water with the intention of helping Luffy. In her way, however, stood Arlong. She paused so that Arlong could speak, but when he didn't she started to get impatient and was about to make her way around when Sanji finished his fight and sat down with an exhausted sigh.
"You Dawn, are really scary," Sanji stated as if they were in the middle of a picnic instead of a battle.
"Why's that?" she asked.
"What did you do to him?" Zoro asked.
"He's just sleeping. When he wakes up he'll be in a world of pain, but I imagine he's also going to forsake being a pirate and go home…wherever that is for him."
"Who are you?" Arlong asked slightly curious, and slightly fearful. "You appear to be human, but no mere human can bring a Fishman down in the water with as much ease as you did."
"I am human," Dawn assured that Fishman. "But I'm not from around here."
"You would make a great asset to my crew."
"Your crew is dead, dying or unconscious and you will soon be one of the above as there is no way that Luffy is going to let you live. So I must decline your offer."
"If you don't join me, you will die."
"Good luck with that. I'm bound by prophecy. There is only one person in this entire universe that can kill me, and you are not him."
Arlong roared his frustration and leapt at her. His speed startled her, but Dawn was a Seeker, the best that Hogwarts had ever seen, and she saw the movement in time to dart to the side. She noticed Sanji jumping into the water at Zoro's prompting, but that was all she noticed as she was forced to dodge another leap from Arlong. Whilst she had heard the prophecy, she didn't want to tempt fate to end her life before she had the strength or desire to end Voldemort's. She also restrained herself from fighting Arlong herself as Luffy had called his head first. He also had captain's privileges to take down the opposing crew's captain.
Her last dodge was too slow and Arlong caught her around the neck, lifting her several metres above the ground. Her wand was still in her hand, but she made no move to use it. Several voices around her cried out in horror, but there was only one voice she was listening for. That voice came not a minute later and she smiled.
"Get your hands off my fiancé!"
Only at the familiar voice did Dawn move to free herself. She aimed a mild stinging hex at Arlong's hand so that she could drop to the ground and braced herself for the rescue she knew was coming. Arlong had yelped in shock as her spell connected with his hand but was unable to move in time to grab her again before Luffy did. She held his arms as she flew backwards, only to stop as she crashed into his chest.
"Hello Princess," Luffy greeted as he set her down. "You alright?"
"I am now," Dawn replied with a smile. "I'll just wait over here with the others. Don't die."
"I promise," Luffy whispered before kissing her forehead. Dawn walked back to where Zoro was lying as Luffy walked over to Arlong. Nami was still with the villagers with Hedwig on her shoulder, so Dawn turned her attention to Zoro's wound. He had made it worse by fighting as he had, and he would need help getting away from the danger. So she levitated him off the ground and started to walk to the villagers.
"Little Sis Dawn! Watch out!"
"Dawn!"
"NO!"
Dawn spun around and saw the danger heading her way as if in slow motion. She was at the wrong angle to block Arlong, and her wand was focused on Zoro. To use it meant to drop Zoro, and with his injuries that meant death. Her eyes went wide and she raised her left hand as if to ward him off. But even as she moved she knew it was useless. There was no way that she would be able to escape it.
White flashed before her eyes moments before Arlong shrieked and darted to the side. She took a closer look at the scene before her and noticed that her beloved owl had swooped in to her rescue. Hedwig wasn't on her own for long as Luffy was there to help. But he was moments too late as Arlong had used his unbreakable nose to cut across Hedwig's chest. Dawn set Zoro down quickly and reached out to catch her owl.
"Hedwig!" she cried in horror. "No! You can't die!"
"Dawn! Get out of there!" Nami called. The orange haired girl ran towards her with several of the villagers to get Zoro out. Nami physically lifted Dawn from the ground and dragged her away as Arlong started to fight with his teeth. While the doctor went to Zoro to see if he could be saved, another man with veterinary experience came towards Dawn to inspect Hedwig. To Dawn, the wound didn't look deep, but Hedwig wasn't moving. Her wand was in her hand, but there wasn't a single spell she could think of that would help her. All the magic in the world couldn't help her.
"This wound doesn't look too deep," the man told her quietly. "It looks to me that she moved back at the last minute. It probably saved her life and if I bandage this then she'll be good as new in a few days. She's just unconscious at the moment."
Dawn sighed in relief and pulled her noble owl into her arms. Tears were in her eyes, but now she no longer felt the need to seek revenge. With the health of her owl assured, Dawn returned her focus to the fight in time to see Luffy put a set of Arlong's teeth in his mouth. She hit her head in embarrassment.
"Luffy! Hedwig needs rest! Stop mucking around and end this! You're making everyone here nervous!"
"Hedwig's alive?" Luffy asked as he pulled the teeth from his mouth.
"Yes, and you had better be too! Focus seriously!"
Luffy nodded and discarded the teeth. He spun around to see Arlong charging at him with the intention to bite him in half, and raised his arm to protect his face. Arlong's teeth clamped down on his arm and his agonised screams echoed across the battlefield. Dawn gasped in fear, her free hand covering her mouth in horror. Luffy continued to scream in pain as he moved around to dislodge Arlong. His legs stretched out and he kicked Arlong in the head, in the process freeing his arm. His screams stopped as they separated and he dropped to the ground.
"You should know better than to aggravate a wild animal!" Dawn snapped at him. "Haven't I taught you anything!"
"He's part human!" Luffy told her without moving. "He'll get careless and sloppy in his movements if I continue to irritate him!"
"He's more dangerous than any bandit you've come across!"
"I'll be fine! You protect the villagers!"
"Stubborn idiot," Dawn muttered as she cast a protective shield around everyone around her. Nami reached out to touch the shield and was startled as her hand went right through it. Dawn ordered her back. The shield would stop objects hitting them, but it didn't stop anyone or anything from leaving the protective bubble.
Luffy stood and turned his attention to Arlong, who had disappeared. Nami informed him that the Fishman was in the water, and Luffy stood on the edge of the pool, eyes searching for his opponent. Dawn refrained from calling out again. She recognised his stance as someone who was no longer mucking around and waiting for the next move. Any conversation now would distract him.
Arlong shot out of the water faster than a torpedo and it was only at the last minute that Luffy was able to dodge. Instead of being hit dead on, he caught a glancing blow as Arlong shot passed him into the building behind him. Arlong flew at him again from multiple directions, Luffy barely dodging each time. The villagers were all gasping in fear and shock, and Nami was shaking so badly that Dawn was tempted to stun her to make her relax. They didn't understand that Luffy was studying his opponent's speed, that he was ignoring them so that nothing would distract him.
"Hey Luffy! Hide!" Usopp suddenly cried as Arlong retreated into the water again. "Arlong went into the sea again!"
"Hurry up Big Bro! You've got to hide from him!" Yosaku added.
"He's setting his sights on you right now!" Jonny continued.
"Get out of there!" Usopp repeated. Luffy stood at the edge of the pool again and glanced at them briefly before clenching his teeth.
"I won't hide!"
"Stop being so stupid!" Sanji called from the other side of the battlefield. "Go run for cover before you become a target!"
"No way! I'm not running anywhere! I'm going to catch him and break his nose! Come on! You shark!"
Dawn shook her head at the protests erupting around her. She made herself comfortable and pulled a bottle of water from her bag. She took a deep drink before passing it to Nami who looked like she needed it. Nami looked at her in incredulity, shaking her head at the offered drink. Dawn shook her head and went back to watching Luffy, dropping the bottle back in her bag as she did so. He was braced and ready for contact.
"He knows what he's doing," Dawn muttered. "He's been judging speed and strength so that he can come up with the proper defense. Don't worry so much."
Luffy stretched his fingers out before him and as Arlong rocketed from the water and collided with him. Her heart stopped for a moment before she realised that Luffy's rubber abilities acted as a flexible shield that in turn created a slingshot, sending Luffy flying up to the top story of the building. He clung to the side of the building like a spider and waited for Arlong to make his next move.
Arlong came up from the balcony, sending them both flying, but Luffy managed to get on top and use his feet as a whip, literally pinning Arlong to the ground. Dawn flinched. She strengthened her shield in case Arlong decided to come at them, but otherwise watched as Luffy began to fall towards to ground, watching Arlong as he dropped.
Arlong's eyes opened.
"His eyes, I've never seen them like that," Nami whispered in horror.
"Luffy made him angry," Dawn said with a nod. "He made him snap."
Arlong stood up again and before Luffy hit the ground he grabbed the rubber man's hair and spun him around like a deformed ribbon. He released Luffy after enough speed had been achieved and Luffy flew in the building head first, breaking numerous walls along the way.
"Woah," Luffy announced as he freed himself from the rubble. "That was crazy. It didn't actually hurt but I can tell he's like really…mad."
Dawn shook her head as Arlong ran at Luffy again, hand extended. Luffy leapt out of the way easily, but it wasn't Luffy that Arlong was aiming for. His hand went through the wall, but when he pulled it out there was another weapon in his hand. This one was a massive six pronged saw blade. Nami screamed next to her, she had seen the weapon before. Yosaku and Jonny were suitably horrified, and screaming their lungs out in the back of the crowd.
"The saw blade!" Nami screeched.
"That thing is gigantic!" Jonny added.
What followed next could only be considered the destruction of the building. Luffy would jump and Arlong would follow with a swing of his blade. There was no chance that the building would be able to be repaired after the fight, it was structurally damaged beyond repair. On the top floor, with nowhere else to go, Luffy jumped inside the nearest room.
"That's the room that…" Nami began. Dawn looked at her in confusion.
"That's your room?" Dawn asked her quietly so that no one else could hear her. Nami nodded her confirmation. "Arlong's a dead fish then."
"Why?"
"He's looking at your prison cell, there isn't a single chance that he will let Arlong live now. He's gone quiet, that's always a bad sign."
"What's he going to do?" Nami asked. Dawn didn't reply, she just pointed so that everyone could see a desk flying out of a hole in the wall and crash down on the ground. It was followed by a bookcase, and a chair, another bookcase, and lots of paper. Nami covered her mouth as tears dripped down her cheeks. Dawn just smiled as Luffy continued to destroy Nami's room. He always knew what to do to make a person feel better. All he had to do now was win.
From the top of the building Luffy's foot and leg rose, before rapidly descending down all levels of the building and causing it to crumble once and for all. Dawn strengthened her shield to keep the villagers safe, but as they started to run backwards she backed up as well so that the shield would move with her. Nami was calling out for Luffy, but Dawn was silent. After everything that happened there was no way that her fiancé would be defeated by a falling building.
"Arlong Park…has fallen," the doctor muttered.
"What went on in there?" Yosaku muttered.
"Luffy?" Usopp spoke fearfully. Silence fell across everyone as they waited for movement. Dawn dropped her shield finally and smiled as the rubble on the top of the pile erupted outwards and a human appeared. Cheers rang out behind her and she knew, without turning, that Jonny and Yosaku were crying.
"He's just standing there," Usopp observed. "What's wrong?"
"He's going to make a scene," Dawn explained quietly. She saw Luffy take a deep breath and waited patiently for whatever his message was going to be that day.
"NAMI!"
Nami looked up in shock, fear on her face. She was afraid that Luffy would kick her out and never speak to her again. Dawn shook her head and took her hand in comfort.
"Nami! You will always be my friend!"
Nami broke down in tears, and with her one free arm Dawn pulled her into a hug. Around her the villagers broke up into groups, cheering and crying in joy, before running off to the other towns to break the news that Arlong had been defeated. Dawn laughed as Nami gently pushed her away. She laughed until she had tears of her own and quietly walked off from the group.
"Ok, hold it right there!"
Dawn stopped her retreat, as did some of the slower villagers, and stared at the marines. She sighed and looked back towards Luffy. He had his hat back on, and Nami was already by his side, as were Usopp, Sanji and Zoro. They were all watching the marines curiously.
"What a lucky day today is," the rat marine remarked. "Very nice. I saw the entire fight and I must say good work. I can only assume your victory here was some sort of bizarre accident. I never thought the Fishmen would lose to riffraff like you and your crew. However, now that Arlong is out of the picture, I'll be taking all of the money I was supposed to give to him, as well as all the treasure in Arlong Park. Now drop your weapons! Colonel Nezumi of Branch 16 gets all the credit!"
"I see you're trying to rain on these people's parade. Now that's just plain rude."
Everyone looked at Dawn who was standing behind the marines. She had put Hedwig on the ground so that she wouldn't get anymore hurt than she was, but that was all she had done to prepare herself. Her wand was raised in preparation to attack the marines, and as one all the underlings leapt away. They didn't get far as that was where the boys were waiting for them, but a nod from Luffy allowed Dawn to attack Nezumi by herself.
He ended up a broken and bleeding man on the ground at her feet, and she hadn't moved any further.
"You'll be sorry for this. I promise you that," Nezumi muttered in a daze.
"He's still talking?" Sanji asked in amazement. "That's better than the Fishman."
"I wanted the Fishman unconscious," Dawn explained. "This one still has a lot to answer for and would have been useless unconscious."
She watched as Nami walked up to Nezumi before kneeling down to talk to him calmly. Dawn watched in amusement. Another reason she hadn't knocked out the marine was because she knew that Nami would like some revenge.
"This is for shooting Nojiko, and for tearing up Bellemere's tangerine orchard."
That said Nezumi went flying out across the pool from the force of Nami's swing of her staff. Dawn whistled in appreciation, using her hand to shield her eyes. She was impressed.
"Thanks Nami! That felt good!" Nojiko called with a smile. Next to her Genzo disagreed.
"A thousand more and we'll call it even!"
Nezumi swam back to the shore, where Nami was waiting for him. She pulled at his whiskers so that she knew he was paying attention.
"What you're going to do is clean up after those Fishmen," she began. "You're going to help rebuild the town of Gosa, and you won't lay a finger on the money or valuables inside Arlong Park. That's the island's money now. Got it?"
"Right!" Nezumi whimpered. "Ok! Whatever you say!"
With his promise in her ears she released him. He wasted no time in swimming backwards. Once he was of a sufficient distance away, his confidence seemed to return. Dawn walked to Luffy's side and he draped his arm over her shoulder to bring her closer to him.
"I'll get you, you pirates!" Nezumi cried. "Luffy is your captain right? Well mark my freaking words Rubber Man! Major things are going to happen! And you! You witch! It's Dawn right! You'll pay too! Cause you made me angry! I swear you'll both regret this! I'll get my revenge! Just you wait and see!"
"Major things are going to happen?" Sanji asked as Nezumi continued to swim away.
"Yeah, how does he know I'm going to be King of the Pirates?" Luffy asked curiously.
"That's not what he means at all!" Zoro snapped. "Are you really that dumb?"
"Hold on!" Usopp cried as he pointed to Nezumi's retreating form. "What next? Are we in super big trouble or what? What do we do?"
"Relax Usopp," Dawn told him. "Everything will work out."
She pulled herself away from the group as Usopp began to regal everyone with his tales of what happened to him. She gathered up Hedwig in her arms like a small child and brushed her hair back behind her ear. Her eyes travelled to Luffy who waved at her with his signature grin, and she couldn't help but smile. In her arms Hedwig hooted at her and in that moment Dawn really believed what she had told Usopp. Everything would work out. Somehow, everyone had survived and now was the time to finally relax and prepare for the next step of the adventure.
The first thing Luffy wanted to do once they all made it back to the village of Cocoyashi was eat, but Dawn wouldn't let him and dragged him off alone first so that she could bandage up his wounds. Zoro was taken off to the doctors, and Sanji and Usopp went with him to keep him company. Dawn was pretty sure that Jonny and Yosaku were also there sleeping off their "grave wounds". But Luffy wouldn't and it was for that reason that he allowed Dawn to look after him.
"You're lucky that you're so durable," Dawn muttered as she wrapped a bandage around Luffy's bitten arm. "Any normal person would have been ripped to shreds after being bitten like this."
"He was pretty angry, wasn't he?" Luffy agreed. Dawn had already bandaged his neck and stomach so it was just his arm left. His other wounds were just superficial, bruises and the like, and they would heal on their own without help.
"I wish you would take a little more care with your life," Dawn continued. Hedwig was perched on her shoulder but had been forbidden from flying so that her injury could heal.
"That sounds weird coming from you," Luffy said with a laugh. "You, who couldn't care less about her own life, asking someone else to take care. What makes my life more important than yours?"
"You have a great destiny here."
"Not a good reason."
"You have friends here."
"So do you."
"Your family would be upset if you died."
"I would be upset if you died."
"You have a family."
"You are my family."
Luffy pulled Dawn close to his chest and simply held her. There were no more excuses that she could make, so Dawn allowed herself to be held.
"You are what is most important to me," Luffy whispered in her ear. "I don't know everything that has happened to you, but that's fine, I don't need to know. I will be here for you to talk whenever you're ready to. You may have some prophecy saying that you need to kill this psycho but he's not here, I'm here and I need you to be happy. I will keep you safe where they haven't, I will protect you where they didn't, and I will make you happy like they never have. Don't be afraid anymore. Please?"
"They all died for me," Dawn told him. "My parents, Cedric, Sirius…they sacrificed their lives so that I would live, when more than anything I wanted to take their place. I've wanted to die for so long, but it was you who kept me alive. Even though we haven't seen each other in ages, when I see my bracelet or necklace I know that you are waiting for me and would be disappointed if I ended everything without saying goodbye. So I endured, but I don't think I can anymore."
"Then you will stay with me for forever."
"Don't let me go," Dawn pleaded.
"Never," Luffy promised. "I will never leave you."
Dawn cried into his chest. Luffy said nothing else, just moved around a little so that they'd be more comfortable. Neither knew how long they just sat there, no one bothered them or came looking for them, and Hedwig kept silent watch. After Dawn's tears had trickled down to nothing, Luffy casually dropped his hat on her head. It always made her feel better, and it made her smile. Luffy stood slowly and helped Dawn to stand and placed Hedwig back on her shoulder. He wanted to check on his other crew members and get something to eat.
"Will you be fine now?" he asked. Dawn nodded and pushed him towards the party. She had other plans to occupy her time for the next three days whilst everyone ate and partied. So with her plans in her mind she walked off to where the ship was and waited.
Three days later…
Dawn walked into the village with Hedwig fully recovered on her shoulder. Over the past three days she had snuck into the village every now and then for food, and Luffy brought her extra when he would check up on her, but otherwise she had steered clear of the party-goers. This time though, she grabbed a bottle of whatever was being drunk and made her way over to where Sanji and Zoro were sitting. Luffy had danced by them moments before, mouth full of some kind of meat, before running off after more food.
"How are you boys doing?" she asked once she was closer. Zoro and Sanji looked up at her, surprised by her sudden appearance. Sanji made his love-struck expression as he registered who was talking and leapt to his feet.
"Dawn-Flower! Where have you been? We've missed you!"
"We're fine, a few more days of rest and everything will be as good as new," Zoro replied, cutting across Sanji easily and without a care. "Luffy just ran off that way."
"I know, he's looking for more food now that he's not searching for food for me," Dawn replied as she passed over the bottle to Zoro and sat down next to him. Sanji looked disappointed, but as his name was called by the village girls he ran off, once again happy.
"He was getting food for you?"
"Yep, I was on the ship getting ready to set sail again," Dawn explained. "Among other things of course, but Luffy worries that I don't eat enough so he's been bringing me plenty of food. Most of it I stuck in the kitchen, but it's nice that he cares."
"You're getting married to him, I'm pretty sure that he cares about you a lot."
"I've known him for eleven years now, he's the only reason that I'm not dead. There is no one else on this planet that I would want to spend the rest of my life with. He makes me happy."
"He can be confusing at times, but he does care a lot."
"Yes, I'm glad you can see that."
"I wondered what he was doing when he bought that for you," Zoro said as he indicated her ring. "I watched him pick it out and buy it while the others weren't looking and couldn't figure out what he wanted it for."
Dawn giggled before turning her attention out of the small alley they were in. Usopp was attempting to sing about himself, Jonny and Yosaku were dancing with various partners, and Sanji was flirting with several women at the same time. There was no sign of Nami, but that didn't surprise her.
"So," she started. "You think Nami's going to come back?"
"Not a doubt in my mind," Zoro replied instantly. "Whether she knows it or not, she doesn't belong on land. She belongs on the sea."
Dawn nodded before standing. Zoro watched her for a moment before closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep. Dawn left him there and walked up to where Nami's house was. She still had the older girl's hard won money and needed to return it before Nami got really angry at her.
Sounds became softer the further she travelled. The road had been well used recently, so there wasn't any problems in finding the way. She knew that Nami would be at her house, there wasn't anywhere else she would be the day before departure. The lights were off in the house, but that didn't stop Dawn from knocking and waiting. It seemed like a lifetime before the door swung open to reveal Nami holding a bag of equipment.
"Dawn? What are you doing here?"
"I came to return this to you," Dawn explained holding the shrunken treasure. "I forgot earlier, but when I remembered you were off wherever you were and I couldn't. I knew you'd be here tonight though so I waited."
Nami accepted the tiny box with a confused tilt of her head. Dawn subtly flicked her wand and the box grew larger until it was at its proper size, all its treasures intact. Nami smiled in relief and asked for help to pull it across the ground so that it was in the middle of the room.
"What's your plan?" Dawn asked. "Are you coming with us tomorrow?"
"Would Luffy leave without me?" Nami asked. "If I didn't turn up?"
"Not a chance," Dawn said with a smile. "He didn't defeat Arlong so that you could stay here the rest of your life. That ship won't leave until you're on it."
Nami sighed in relief. She pulled out a pen and paper and wrote a short note before pinning it to the box of treasure. With that done she handed over her bag of equipment and asked Dawn to put it on the ship for her so that she could act without its influence in the morning. Dawn accepted the bag and asked what Nami was planning.
"It's a surprise."
Dawn laughed before swinging the bag onto her shoulder and leaving. Nami still had a few things she needed to do on her own, and Dawn wasn't going to stand in her way. Instead she made her way to the Going Merry and stowed Nami's bag in the crew quarters so that they wouldn't leave without it. She didn't return to the party, instead she curled up in the crow's nest and fell asleep, Hedwig watching over her as always.
"That's the last one right?"
"Yeah."
"Got everything?"
"Yep!"
"Alright, we're stocked up with everything we need. I think we're good to go."
Dawn looked down at her crew mates from the upper deck, out of their way. Luffy was standing off to the side, overseeing everything with Sanji next to him. Zoro and Usopp were the ones stocking up everything and moving it around so that it was stored properly. The small crew had even acquired some tangerine trees, a gift from the grateful villagers so that they would have fresh fruit all the time on their journey. There was no sign of Nami though.
"You know," Usopp began as he placed the last crate. "We've only been on this island a couple of days, but it feels more like a lifetime."
"Yeah," Luffy agreed with a grin and a laugh. Dawn laughed as well, the musical sound making the other men smile. As Usopp assured them that they had everything they moved to the edge so that they could bid farewell to everyone. Jonny and Yosaku were standing below, each in a pose that some could call thoughtful, others dangerous.
"We can't thank you enough for everything you've done for us," Yosaku began. "But we've got to go back to our regular jobs as bounty hunters."
"So this is goodbye," Jonny added. "I hope we get to meet again someday!"
"See you 'round," Zoro told them both with a nod.
"Goodbye!"
"Yeah," Usopp declared happily. "Now it's time for us to get going!"
"But we can't leave yet!" Sanji protested. "We've got to wait for Nami!"
"Well, maybe she's not coming," Zoro stated, deliberately provoking the cook.
"What? Why not?" Sanji asked angrily, marching straight up to Zoro's face. "If you try to hit on her again I swear I'll break your freaking neck! You got it?"
"Why would I do something like that?"
"She might not even be coming," Usopp muttered as Sanji started yelling again. "After all, she has achieved her goal. Nami doesn't have to be a pirate anymore. She might be better off if she stayed here on this island with all her friends and family."
"What about me dammit?" Sanji cried, turning away from his tirade of Zoro so that he could yell at Usopp. Dawn giggled from where she was still perched. Sanji continued to yell, this time at Luffy.
"Without Nami on board I have a 58.72% less reason to stay with you people on this stupid pirate ship!"
"Hey," Luffy stated pointing his finger. "I'm still upset with you about the raw ham melon."
"58.72%?" Dawn asked. Sanji turned to her instantly and his tone changed from condensing to reassuring.
"I stay for you and my dream Dawn-Flower. But you're already attached to this loser here so my chances of winning your heart are significantly less than my chances of winning Nami's."
Dawn giggled again and looked down the road to see if Nami was going to make her appearance soon. Luffy followed her gaze and as Nami came into view he alerted the others to her presence. Sanji was particularly delighted at her appearance and called out to her, in turn alerting the gathered villagers of her location.
"Set the sails!" Nami called. She started to run, and with a sigh Dawn realised that Nami didn't want to have a long goodbye, this choice in departure would make it fairly quick.
"I don't get it," Usopp muttered. "Why is she running?"
"She said to set sail," Luffy told him. "Set sail!"
Zoro pulled up the anchor immediately and Dawn helped with the sails. Sanji and Luffy hadn't moved, but Usopp did go off to direct the rudder.
"So, are you sure you want to let her leave like this?" Sanji asked the captain.
"Not my decision," Luffy replied. "She does what she wants."
Dawn walked to the back of the ship to wait for Nami to make her appearance. When the other girls ran through the crowd Dawn nearly started laughing as she realised what she was planning to do…and why she had left the hundred million berries in her house. Instead she shook her head and waited until Nami was on deck before speaking to her.
"Was that necessary?" she asked. Nami just grinned at her and pulled up her shirt so that the numerous purses and wallets she had just stolen dropped to the deck at her feet. The cries from the villagers, which had been pleading and begging, turned angry as they realised what Nami had done. Zoro and Usopp glared at her for her actions, but Luffy and Sanji laughed their approval. Nami leant on the railing and called out her goodbyes. Despite her actions, she would miss her friends and family, and it would be many years before she saw them again.
So what do you think? It'll probably be a while to the next one, but I'm working on it and the other stories I've got up. Up next will be the meeting with Smoker and the world's reaction to Luffy's bounty. Yay!