**Quick author's note: This is one of my first stories and definitely my first Fairy Tail story. I've been hooked on it though and couldn't resist the urge to write this story when I thought of the character. I hope you guys start to like her as much as I am starting to! I am going to try to keep the story pretty accurate, well, as accurate as I can with adding a new character. I hate to be another one of those people but please rate and review. It gives me feedback on what I need to work on, what you guys want to see more of, and what is great just the way it is! Thanks! Author's note over.**
She shivered. She hadn't realized she had gotten so cold. Perhaps it wasn't the cold making her shiver. Perhaps it was the inevitability of her death. Even if she survived the threat of this Vulcan she knew she would freeze to death soon. She was hopelessly lost in the mountains and without food or shelter. The Vulcan grinned at her, showing a smile with missing teeth. "Pretty, little, human girl," it sung, stressing each syllable in an unrefined speech. It advanced on her slowly, careful to keep its song of triumph matched to its steps. It seemed excited to have found a new play thing.
"Leave me alone!" She shouted over the whistling of the wind in her ears. The storm they now faced had been raging for three long days. She had spent the better of them holed up in a cave she thought was north of here but telling direction was impossible in the blizzard. Once her food supply had run dry she had had no choice but to take her chances against the weather.
She sunk down into the best fighting stance her small body could muster and raised the thick stick she had been using as a walking aid. She could feel her teeth grinding together in determination. She wanted to stop shivering, to stop appearing weak before her enemy but she couldn't. She hadn't survived the last two weeks alone just to die here; she hadn't forgotten those that had given their lives so quickly, but she couldn't help the fear and desperation that had been weighing on her heart.
"Go away! I'm warning you!" She shouted at it again, wielding her stick in the most threatening gesture she could. The Vulcan's grin somehow grew wider. It seemed entirely unnatural the way it spread over its face. Its voice rang out in the same song it had been singing since it first saw her several minutes before. It completely ignored her warning and moved closer, with the same slow deliberate steps.
Suddenly something in its motions changed, and then the beast was charging towards her full speed. She was caught off guard but still had just enough time to leap to the side in a daring roll. The Vulcan missed her but only barely. She managed to recover from her perilous leap before it could recover from its all-out charge. She swung her stick as hard as her arms would let her into the shins of the beast. The Vulcan screeched in sudden pain and red fury.
Her arms jolted from the shock of the hit and when she pulled her stick back, close to her body, only half remained. Red marks appeared on its shins almost instantly. The Vulcan wheeled on her with an outstretched hand that easily made contact with her head. She gasped in surprise first and a moment later in pain as the cold caused a deep sting to swell on the side of her face. She tumbled hap hazardously through the air and into the snow, rolling to a stop. Her knees shock as she rose to her feet again. One hand clung to the remains of her stick as if it was the most important thing in the world. The other hand clutched the now blossoming bruise on her face.
If only I had magic like Grandma Saya. She thought desperately. "Puny human girl!" The Vulcan growled in fury as it advanced on her again. She could still see the red on its shins but it seemed far less affected by her attack than she had hoped. "That hurt! You gonna pay now." The little girl scowled at her opponent. She had no idea how she was going to fight him with nothing but a half stick but she would have to try, for Grandma Saya and for Caroline and for Zazel.
Her eyes flew over the snow, searching for the other half of the stick but it was to no avail. It was buried in the deep snows of the blizzard. She looked down and examined what remained of her walking stick. It was short but it also formed a jagged edge where it had broken off.
The Vulcan was on her again and the brief time that she had had to plan was up. It reached towards her with a gnarled hand. As nimbly as she could through the snow she dove into his hand, catching the Vulcan off guard. She drove her pseudo dagger into the meaty flesh of his palm and darted back before his fingers closed around her.
The howl of pain that ripped from the Vulcan's throat was anything but human. The sound of it roared over the storm. It jumped mindlessly from one foot to the other clutching its wrist and staring at the now protruding stick. "How dare you!" It roared. It took a moment for the Vulcan to rip the dagger like stick from its palm and toss it over its shoulder, far from her reach. Now weaponless the girl tried to turn and run but the Vulcan was faster. Its fist crashed into the side of her body, sending her flying once more. Her fall was cut short by an icy wall. Her head made sickening cracking sound against the ice and she tumbled into the snow, tears in her lavender eyes.
Her hands were numb, her face still stung, and her vision swam from her place in the snow. I can't give up. She thought as the Vulcan advanced on her once more. It swayed in and out of the black pools that now clouded her vision. I have to move. I have to stay alive for Grandma Saya, for Zazel, and for Caroline. Get up! She willed her body with all her strength.
"Now you are done little girl!" The Vulcan was yelling over the still swirling winds. Through the blinding white of the snow and the black pools in her vision she saw the red splotches that dripped from its fingertips and onto the snow.
"No. I can't give up here." She whispered. Despite her swimming head and throbbing, cold body she rose to her feet, clutching her head as if to bring balance to the unsteady world of her vision.
"I'm going to crush you." The Vulcan laughed hysterically suddenly. Again, to her ears the sounds made by the creature seemed unnatural and wrong. Its foot swung out; there was nothing she could do to stop it. It easily kicked her back into the wall. The air rushed from her chest as she tumbled into the snow face-down. The snow felt better than the cutting wind against her face. She groaned. Her muscles felt weak. The black dots in her vision were getting larger but still she fought to remain conscious.
"No." The word was no more than the breath of a whisper on her lips. She mustered the last of her remaining strength to push herself up, onto her hands and knees. Her head still hung low as she struggled to get a leg beneath herself. The Vulcan's foot came crashing into her side, rolling her back into the snow. She let out a scream of pain that quickly turned into a garbled gasp as the air was forced from her lungs once more.
Grandma Saya… I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't avenge you Zazel. Caroline. She thought. She looked up, past the face of her would-be killer, into the sky beyond. Gray clouds churned above from the blizzard. She watched the snow fall, swirling in the north wind of the mountains that she called home her entire life. Watching the snow fall was somehow peaceful to her, as if all of the sudden the stormed had calmed, the winds of the blizzard had ceased to exist, and she was lying in the snow with Zazel again, watching the sky. She smiled despite her pain. Grandma Saya. Zazel. Her hand twitched, as if to reach towards the sky but she had no strength left to move it. She closed her eyes slowly.
When her eyes opened again she wasn't sure how much time had passed. It could have been seconds; it could have been hours. Everything seemed slow to her. The Vulcan was still there, standing over her, talking to her, but she couldn't hear a word. She gazed past him once more, into the rolling clouds. That was when her eyes found it, the break in the storm. The clearest blue she had ever seen was visible, just a speck but it was enough. It was there, above her, directly above her but still so far away. Her hand twitched again.
The Vulcan stomped on her again. A strangled noise filled her ears though she wasn't even aware that the sound had come from her own mouth. She simply focused on that blue spot, still so far above her. The snow still fell, though it was gently now. Grandma Saya, Zazel, Caroline, I'm coming to see you soon. She thought as her vision faded from blue to black.
Warmth. She stirred slightly, still unaware of everything that had happened. Slowly, her eyes opened and she blinked. Blue. It seemed so familiar to her. Her body ached and breathing was hard. A water drop fell, she watched it until it landed on her forehead. I'm in a cave, she realized. But there's light. It filtered in a strange way but it was there. The walls are made of ice. The thought occurred to her as she reached up, moving slowly and pausing occasionally at the protests of her body, to wipe away the drop that was now rolling down the side of her forehead. The water was cold.
She couldn't hear the whistling of the wind anymore, nor could she feel its biting chill. She smiled sadly. There was nothing in this cave save a gentle humming, the warmth of the furs covering her body, and the sweet taste of life. Slowly, fighting against the pain of her chest and muscles, she sat up. She clutched her head until the brief onslaught of dizziness faded.
"You are awake, Child." The sound was clearly a voice but it reverberated through the ice cavern with power and size. She could feel the sound of it in her chest, though it did not hurt the same way moving did. Afraid of what she might find, she hesitated to look around the rest of the ice cavern. She took a deep breath and forced her body to comply.
She instantly regretted her decision. She had traded one monster for one far worse. She screamed and slid away as fast as she dared, pressing herself against the far ice wall. Panting, she tried to subtly slide her fingers along the wall in a desperate attempt to find anything she could use as a weapon against the enormous creature that sat before her. It rivaled the monster at her village in size and was as crystal-blue as the surrounding walls of ice.
As crystal-blue, the thought rang in her head for a moment as if it should mean something to her.
"Calm yourself, Girl." The creature said in the same rumbling voice. "I will not hurt you. If I wanted to I would have already done so." It swung its massive head towards her so their faces matched in height. Light blue eyes blinked at her quizzically.
Despite the fact that the beast said it wouldn't hurt her, the girl was not convinced. She slid down the wall and began groping through the snow for a rock, stick, or weapon of any sort. The monster continued to watch her with those large blue eyes and same quizzical expression. The girl's search ended fruitlessly. "Who are you? Why are you talking to me? What are you? Why am I here? Why I am not dead?" As soon as the first question left her mouth she couldn't stop the others from following. As soon as she had her wits about her once more she clamped her hands firmly down over her mouth as if that was going to stop her from speaking again.
The beast seemed to smile in a way, though she wasn't sure how she could tell. "I am Kayerith, the Ice Dragon Queen." She announced loudly, suddenly growing rapidly in size. Only then did the little girl realize that the creature had been lying down. "I saved you, Child." The dragon continued once it was kneeling again.
Suddenly, as if the switch on her memories had been flipped thoughts came rushing back to her. The village. The real monster. Zazel. Grandma Saya. The Cold. The Vulcan on the mountain side. The blizzard. The fleck of blue she had seen in the sky. "You saved me." She then repeated dumbly.
"Yes, now, Small Girl, what is you real name?" The dragon asked her.
The girl only blinked her lavender eyes at the dragon. "You save me." She repeated once more, disbelief rang in her voice. "I thought I was going to die, but you saved me." Kayerith swished the end of her tail and gave what could only be a sigh.
"Yes, I did. Now, what is your name?" She asked again sternly but not unkindly.
"Ravenna." The little girl whispered, her voice still retaining the slight hint of awe. Why do people risk their lives to save me?
"Ravenna what?" Kayerith pressed in a patient tone.
Tears welled up in Ravenna's eyes suddenly. "I don't know…" She admitted. Her voice was filled with such anger and sorrow that it shocked Kayerith. She wanted to pity the child that she had rescued. She wanted to comfort her but she remained silent, knowing the girl called Ravenna would continue in her own time. As Kayerith predicted the little girl wiped her own tears away a few moments later. "I only had Grandma Saya and Zazel and Caroline." She said as if that explained everything.
"Where is your Grandmother Saya?" Kayerith asked slowly. "I can take you to her."
Ravenna's expression grew dark with a mixture of hatred, rage, and pain. "No, you can't."
"Why is that?" Kayerith felt uneasy as the darkness rolling off this child.
"She was killed. She died with everyone else from my village. It killed them. It was a monster! As big as you, but more scary. It wasn't nice. It didn't save people." She seethed, thinking about the night her life had changed. Through Ravenna's anger Kayerith could sense the fear that was at the heart of her emotions.
"I doubt it was more frightening than I Sweet Child. What of your parents? Did they meet the same fate as this Grandmother Saya?" Kayerith asked gently.
The little girl shook her head no though her words disagreed, "I don't know." More tears found their way into her eyes. "My parents left me when I was born. Grandma Saya isn't my real grandma. She just took care of me sometimes." Ravenna bit her lip, trying her hardest to stop the tears that were threatening to spill over once more.
"You are alone then?" Kayerith asked to confirm her suspicions. The little girl nodded slowly as if this realty was truly hitting her for the first time, still chewing on the corner of her lip. "How old are you sweet Winter Child?" Kayerith asked, her tone still careful and gentle.
"Six." Ravenna told her. "I think."
Kayerith's tail swished again. She sighed, "how long were you out in the cold?"
Ravenna shook her head. "I don't know." She fought desperately against the sob that had risen in her throat. "I was the only one left…" She choked on the words as a fresh wave of tears began streaming down her face. "Grandma Saya saved me. She used magic to save me." Ravenna whispered, miserable with guilt. "She'd still be here if it weren't for me." They'd all still be here if it weren't for me. The little girl sat there, legs crossed, and cried. She didn't try to wipe away her tears this time, she didn't try to hold them back, she just cried.
Suddenly Kayerith's tail swept around, gently pulling the child close to her. She hummed gently again. It was a deep hum, in her chest. "Hush now, sweet winter child. You do not have to be alone again." The dragon spoke quietly.
Kayerith's body was warm despite her ice-like appearance. The little girl, known only as Ravenna, snuggled closely against the dragon's side, accepting the closest thing to comfort she had had since losing everything. She found solace in the dragon's presence and cried freely until she finally drifted back into a sweet, dreamless sleep.
Could she be the one? Could she be worthy of learning? She certainly has fight in her. Kayerith thought as she watched the delicate little girl shift in her sleep.