The beginning was a challenge. For certain, that was how most things occured with the rambunctious Natsu around. No one was safe. In teenagedom, there had been a quality of amusement that never really dissipated no matter how often there was a brash yell and a clash. Frank in his observations, Laxus could admit plainly to himself -and no one further,- that even back then he had felt an odd sense of something from the young child causing trouble. As a sense awakened or a pit opened in the crevasse of his mind.
Teenager as he was, the trials of puberty had prevented further curiosity, and the newfound banishment of his father from the guild was causing him to lash out at everything no matter how petty the situation. The lack of emotional control, the brash decision making, the hormones taking the reins, he hated it. Every second was spent either holding his tongue or making the forest a little less pleasant as lightning shocked the earth. Not understanding himself threw him over a ledge into utter self-destruction. Because; though he knew his relationship with his father had been at its best terrifying, he still could not heed the loneliness his absence left at its core. Good intentions notwithstanding his flawed logic, he had been so uptight about everything that he lashed out at his Grandfather in sickened betrayal.
Hence the very next day, after a horrible spat with the old man; was spent guilt ridden and stubborn. Facing his own desire to apologize and the pride that swelled forth in protest held him at bay. In such when in such a desolate feeling of uncertainty, one did not wish to hear the loud sobbing of a child. Pure understanding made only of experience told him that it was true sadness as the sobs were uncontrolled and pained, not relenting and unrestrained, a true kind of despair that rare few felt until they were older.
No one wanted to hear that. Not in the sense of cruelty, but of knowledge, people hated the sound of sobbing. Strangers believed in the parents fault not in taking responsible action to sooth or simply quiet a kid not their own. A sickly perspective to have over one so young, but people were cruel, a person was kind. Laxus could speak well of his own well spent time learning that lesson for himself. So it was with this knowledge -and an unusual inclination to actually help for once- that he strove deeper into the thick part of the forest searching for the broken begging of a hysterical boy. Shock was resonate as he stared at one of his own guildmates. He had never been amongst the youngest group, being four years older, and much more magically mature. But that did not mean he was a man of ignorance. Prideful was he in the fact that he knew a small amount of all the children in his guild, if only for his own personal gain. Natsu Dragneel had proclaimed to be the son of a mighty dragon, a lie of course, but many indulged him, and though Laxus laughed at the notion privately the kid did not deserve to be treated as he was by some of his comrades, so he never spoke of his own doubt in the child to anyone. A kindness he hadn't known he possessed, encased in subtlety.
Never to be spoken of was how Laxus actually felt a stab of sympathy, and a trickery of feeling as he desired to aid the kid. The boy was in such a state that his eyelid were sealed shut and red from salt that his cheeks were beginning to look sore. His voice had already gone horse and he didn't seem in any fit state to talk, nevermind tell him what happened. In his years, Laxus had never seen anyone cry so hard. It was more than unusual or sad, it was wrenching. Considering, Natsu was one of exuberance and boister, he had never seen a true tear escape the pink haired boy, and he had hoped it would see fit to remain so.
A rock would have a harder time remaining unmoved, and even in his seemingly continual state of anger and self-desolation, another emotion, feeling came resonating through, sorrow being the most obvious. He was empathizing, regardless of the fact that he never had before. He knelt down, and in his fragile state there was no caution or action taken by the small child. Only further tears, as whatever had his mind enraptured by pain would not cease its torment. Maybe it was in desperation that the S-class mage decided to hug the boy close. See if he could at least slow the tremors through a meager form of comfort. Of course, he knew this was not a suit of his, but he could attempt, he'd feel like complete crap if he had sat idle.
Surprisingly the supposed "Dragonslayer," didn't react besides sniffling and moving slightly closer, which was marginally concerning considering how the kid usually was with people. Nevermind how he was with any type of attempted help, always shouting about how strong he was, how he could do things on his own. Perhaps it was a misguided attempt of independence as he yelled at the top of his lungs that he could do everything on his own.
Igneel -as far as he remembered, was Natsu's father, and he wondered what possible circumstance could turn a man to leave their own child. Pondered many times, it had caused plague in his mind in the past. In regards to his own father, and later, Natsu's.
"What's wrong kid?" He asked, trying to remain soft, not easy for him these days, but Natsu didn't seem to react badly, just hiccupped and with a voice shaking:
"I-I I- Los-ss-t mm-y scarf!" He cried again, though Laxus furrowed his brows as the child continued to sob, it was a ridiculous reason to cry. "D-dad got me it!" Ah, that made sense, truthfully Laxus had never seen the kid without the old thing, it was shocking how well kept it was, sure there were a few stray stains on it, and it was ripped a little, but it was clean and particularly unfrayed at the edges. Natsu's clothes were not so well cared for, so this white scarf was extremely important to him he wouldn't simply lose track of it.
In his thinking, his arms worked independently, as they began to rub soothing circles on the child's back, pulling him closer to himself embracing the young sobbing boy fully. Empathy struck at him, his headphones pulling on his neck heavily, a gift from his father when he had been really quite young. So he understood the emotional attachment. In a rare show of kindness, Laxus decided he'd look for the absent scarf.
The boy had fallen asleep however, his breathing still rasping from his long spout of tears, his cheeks red and sore, but he looked so much calmer in sleep. It was with mild trepidation that the teenager picked the kid up and walked over to the small cottage only just in view, knowing that was where Natsu lived, Gramps could be helpful sometimes. He rested the sleeping boy on the wall, not wanting to bust in, besides he doubted that he would be dreaming long given his upset state. At least he hoped not the sun was already setting and it could get pretty cold at night due to the ocean nearby. Of course Natsu was a fire mage so he should be able to deal with a more frigid temperature without getting sick.
Deciding to search for the missing scarf in the early morning before the guild doors opened, Laxus choose to head home too, he needed sleep if he was going to deal with a filthy thief. As he was certain that was what had happened, seeing as Natsu would never simply lose it.
So the very next morning found a young rumpled teenagers searching the streets of Magnolia. In an attempt to find a well kept old scarf for the young child that was missing it. Really unhappy with himself for making such a vow to his own moral to find the stupid thing. It wasn't as if it was his own, but when he considered how he would react if his headphones went missing his legs moved a little faster, and he covered a great distance with his wide stride and quick pace. The most primary target being the homeless wandering around the streets, always managing to blend in if you weren't looking for them. Unfortunately for them, Laxus was a lightning mage on a self-proclaimed job that was not willing to fail.
Two hours had nearly past, and the guild had been open for nearly three hours now, which meant the old man would be giving him a lecture. Luckily he had spotted the fabric he was looking for, bubbly in texture, white, and in good -but not perfect condition. An older man with a greying beard and ratted clothing had it tied around his neck. Honestly Laxus wasn't mad at the guy, despite having stole the scarf from a kid, the man was homeless and his clothes did look pretty worn. The fact that he was old made him feel slightly bad about what he was going to do if the man refused to give it back.
"Hey!" The man turned, and his eyes were dim, but warm in appearance, and it was completely shitty of him to have thought of punching the guy, he'd have to come up with another method.
"Can I help you young man?" His hands were shaking and he looked slightly sickly, it was no wonder he wanted a warm scarf.
"That scarf.. Belongs to a kid I know, it's really important to him." With that the kind appearing man mellowed, his expression shifting from open to sorrowful, as he looked down presumably at the scarf. Still in a display of kindness, he unwrapped it from his neck, and held it out with both hands, a kind smile resting on his face, he didn't look like he would miss it, even though Laxus knew better.
"Well, I don't want to steal from a child, nevermind a keepsake. I was hoping that no one would notice its absence. Rather I was hoping it was just a scarf to one of those rich persons uptown." That made him smile, as he hesitated in grabbing back the material.
"I- thank you." He grasped it, and understood why it could be mistaken for a rich man's item, it was unusually soft and woven with the utmost care. The man turned to leave, and in his wavering emotions, guilt eating him, longing to aid weighing heavily on his mind. It wasn't much but… He grasped the man's arm, gently, he looked surprised. He was dirty, Laxus realized, but he was of darker complexion anyway, dark brown skin, grey matted hair, and kind eyes of chestnut brown. His hand tightened around the scarf he held, mind made, and determination taking hesitations place. "Let me...help you, in thanks." The older man stood shocked, but did smile kindly.
"A young man like you? Don't you have places to be?" For a moment he thought of the guild, but he was already late, what was another few hours? So he shook his head and tried to gave an easy smile. The man gave him a sidelong glance, humour dancing in his expression, he let lose a coughing laugh, not believing the plain lie. "Well, if you truly wish to help, then I won't turn away such a kind young man." He wasn't expecting to feel relief, but he did, and nodding more to himself then the homeless man before him, he turned towards the stores. The man humming slightly behind him.
Laxus's main priority was keeping the guy warm, for clearly he was battling a bad cold and losing, not shocking given the elements at this time of year. There was a store nearby that specialized in winter ware, and even if it was early spring not winter, it would still be useful for the man to have something warm enough for him to be able to walk around with. So he calmly looked at the guy, and told him to wait outside. He didn't want the shop keeps to think he was trying to steal anything.
There were several people bustling about within the store, though most of them appeared to be employees. A scarf caught his attention, it wasn't ostentatious which was perfect for someone who didn't wish to be noticed. Touching the fabric proved it was soft, looked to be good at retaining heat, it was perfect. But something else was in his peripheral vision, it looked like one of the warmest items in the store. Displayed proudly on one of the female models, was a large coat, looked to be made of scales and lined with real fur. On closer inspection the scales were actually leather and the fur it had was grey around the front, and sleeves but the interior was lined with black fur, it looked exceptionally warm.
He looked outside, though the window he could see the man he was helping, directing a crying young girl to a pair of frantic looking women. He nodded, and picked up the item. Paying for it by the counter, it dipped in his wallet a little, but it was nothing he couldn't handle.
The breeze outside was bracing, and it sent shivers through his skin even though he was wearing some warmer clothes today. The man looked flabbergasted, hesitant.
"That looks quite expensive." He stated, Laxus decided not to tell him that it was, actually stupidly expensive. He was an S-class wizard he could afford it easily, was his reasoning anyway, in honesty he would need to take another job if he wanted to eat tomorrow, but that didn't really matter, as the man looked at the coat, and the scarf as if they were angels from heaven come to his aid. Despite himself, Laxus found joy in the expression, feeling elevated from helping someone less fortunate. Still the man did hesitate before taking them, looking up at Laxus to see if it was actually okay for him to do so.
When he did, he put the coat on and seemed to melt into himself in contentment, the scarf coming on and he used it as a guard to move his matted beard from his face a little.
"Thank you, I honestly don't know what I could do to repay this kindness." It was funny how they had come full circle. But instead of declining the need, the teen instead followed his curiosity.
"How about you just tell me about your life. You were a wizard. You have an emblem on your shoulder." The man smiled, bright and full, and they moved away from the main square, already people were eyeing his companion with suspicion. They ended up by the shore, boats docking and departing at leisure, still it was nice enough that the breeze from the open ocean was bracing yet the sun compensated in shining directly on them with warm waves.
Laxus was actually enjoying the company of someone, it was interesting to hear what things had been like before he was born how many rules were implemented seemingly arbitrary. Not to mention the different types of magic that he had not before heard of, how a different guild functioned. Though it was strange for a wizard to not have retired well off. He learned that the stranger's name was Kiri, and that he had once been a member of Lamia-Scale. He had three grandchildren all of them had become merchants after their father and resented him for having been invested in the magic arts.
It was late by the time they parted, the guild doors would have closed already, and Kiri was making his way to his hovel of the week, as to keep warm under the moon.
Laxus remembered the scarf he held in his hands, and silently thanked both himself and Natsu for both doing something kind for a stranger, and being nice -for once- to a fellow guild member. There was no doubt that Natsu would be glad to get his precious keepsake back. There was a hidden joy one felt when the young orphan grinned at his fullest, even he wasn't immune. Hopefully he could catch the hot-head before he got back to his house.
Of course he had have to run all across Magnolia in order to get to the forested area -not to mention up the cliff.- He decided he would need a faster mode of transportation, that didn't involve a magic vehicle, stupid motion sickness, it never used to be a problem when he was young, but puberty was a bitch. He spotted Natsu just ahead of him, walking slumped over and fullorn towards his cottage. Laxus's ran a little to catch up with him, the kid must have heard his footsteps because he turned in curiosity, eyes widening once they took him in. An embarrassed blush rising on his face. But Laxus didn't pay attention to that, instead he held out the scarf he had taken back.
That's when he was taken abruptly, and without warning into a jump hug. For someone so small, he had the grip of a lion, but it would be really a douche move of him to shove the kid off, when all he was doing was being a kid -and showing gratitude,- so he moved his arms around Natsu rather slowly and held him as well, Strangely there was a calmness that settled in his nerves as the lonesome boy hugged him, maybe it was the fact that he had helped him out, or that the kid was just nice to be around. Sometimes it was hard to remember that they were only four years apart. It felt larger due to his height, and Natsu's immaturity.
He kept in contact with Kiri, odd for him considering his dwindling respect for authority not governed by himself. Still he found his company calming, a type of simple tranquility not present in his boisterous grandfather. In light of that, he had asked the advice of the man with dealing with someone so unabashedly stubborn and driven by their own knowledge that they forwent all reason. His answer was not forthcoming, and from his own unique viewpoint of understanding the lightning mage didn't push it.
It had nearly been a month, and a comfortable routine had been formed for Laxus, strangely calming his nerves and allowing for the entanglement of his continuous sour attitude.
As with anything within Fairytail however, that relaxation was broken by the younger generation of wizards. So it happened, while he remained perched on the banister, overlooking the children of the guild -but not paying any particularly close attention- that a cord being tread on carelessly, snapped. He didn't notice at first, to busy shifting along his playlist to acknowledge the change in atmosphere as a stagnating air began to punctuate the hall. Silence is what caught his interest, and he pulled his earphones out -ignoring his desire to listen to the final guitar rift- and stared down.
He questioned initially why everyone was only staring at each other, no fighting, or yelling, fists flying, or accusations being stated. Only a permeating quiet that descended over the entire guild, which he quickly came to conclude was the problem. Their guild was never silent, there was always something going on. But nothing was, everyone stood stock still, adults and kids alike staring at the two main aggressors of the group. So Laxus did as well, he couldn't really see well from his vantage point, but neither seemed harmed or really hurt.
"He… is, he is real!" There it was, coming forth in the trembling voice of Natsu, strained from the force in which he punctuated his words, and the heavy breathing of someone trying desperately not to tear up.
There was a loud scoff, disbelief, portioned by arrogance. "Dragons aren't real! So your Dad left you, no need to make up a stupid story about it!" Grey Fullbuster -because of fucking course, Laxus had barely met the kid, hardly knew a thing about him other then the fact that he strips accidentally and he likes to cause fights with the pyromaniac of the guild. There was the understanding, common throughout the guild that the boy -ice mage, he remembered- was a bit arrogant and self-serving. Not initially bad, Laxus was well aware of his own cocky persona, still there was a decency line he attempted to stay the right side of. Grey had just trodden over it as if it were invisible.
Because Natsu -effing Natsu, flinched back as if he had been hit, body poised and tensed. Erza stepped forward, but her movements were hesitant and towards Grey, clearly she was attempting to placate both of them, unfortunate for the girl as it had already been to much for the young pink head as he ran out of the guild without even trying to pick another fight with his rival. Which got Fullbuster a swift and what looked to be painful punch on the head by the weapons reequipping master. Unusually, there was a temptation at the back of his mind that told him to do the same.
He ignored it.
That day, a nagging sensation had embedded itself in the confines of his stable mind. Woefully addressing it was something so daunting the thought was contained within a cage of his own making. Padlocked and welded shut, only he could reopen it, and that was not something he had any desire to do.