Iron Wolf

It was another lively day at Fairy Tail. Natsu and Gray were brawling as usual causing a huge ruckus. Lucy and Levy were discussing Lucy's novel and other books. Erza was preparing to pummel Natsu and Gray as Elfman decided to join in on their "manly" fun. Mirajane was chatting with Cana and Laxus as Master Markarov sat cross legged on the bar counter. Wendy, Charlie, Happy, and Romeo were all playing much to the enjoyment of the other guild members. The only guild member not currently enjoying the calm but lively atmosphere was one particular iron dragon-slayer. Gajeel was brooding in a shaded corner of the guild, scowling at the antics of his fellow guild-mates. He still wasn't used to the upbeat, happy atmosphere of Fairy Tail. But more than that, it felt as though something was missing from him. Ever sense the disbandment of Phantom Lord he felt as if a piece of him was missing. The hole filled a bit when he joined Fairy Tail, but despite the new nakama he had gained a part of him still felt empty. Gajeel took a deep breath in, preparing to sigh, but it caught in his throat as an unfamiliar scent caught him off guard. Seeing his sudden change in stature Lily looked at him questioningly.

"What's up Gajeel?" The cat flew up onto the dragon-slayer's shoulder.

"Can you smell that?" Lily sniffed questioningly, his nose scrunching up as he caught the unfamiliar scent as well.

"What is that?"

"I don't know, but it smells dangerous. I can sense the power comin' this way." He turned his head towards where Erza had Natsu in a headlock. "Hey Salamander! Do you recognize the scent comin' this way?" Upon hearing Gajeel's shout Erza released Natsu who then proceeded to smell the air. His face contorted as he caught the scent.

"What the Hell is that? I've never smelled anything like that, and it's getting stronger." As Natsu said this the entire guild turned to look at the giant double doors at the front of the guild. They could all feel the dangerous level of power getting closer to Fairy Tail.

"This level of magical energy is greater than Erza and Mystogen combined!" Laxus muttered in disbelief. The power and scent were almost palpable at this point and as the guild fell silent, the doors swung open. Standing in the doorway was a figure wearing a dark purple cloak concealing their body, the hood covering their face. The figure seemed to be only just above five feet tall, but the power emanating from them was that of a being a hundred times their size. No one spoke as the figure began to walk forward. The sound of chunky leather boots echoed throughout the silent guild as the stranger approached the bar, stopping only two feet in front of where the Master was perched. The Master looked up at the stranger, regarding them silently.

Finally he seemed to have completed his assessment of the person in front of him. "A new recruit?" He asked in a monotone voice, his expression one of suspicion. The guild was rapt with anticipation wondering what the stranger would reply.

"Actually, Master. I'm more of an old member returning home." At the sound of a melodic female voice the entire guild expressed surprise. Markarov looked surprised as well, cocking his head to try and peer under the hood.

"Who might you be then?" At this question the stranger reached out and took hold of her cloak, before flinging it into the air in one swift motion. As the fabric fluttered to the ground all eyes locked onto the revealed form that had been hidden beneath it. Audible gasps filled the guild. There standing confidently in front of the Master, was a young woman. What had drawn the gasps however, was the dog like black ears atop her head and the long black and white fox-like tail swishing behind her. Her dark black hair was spiky and wild ending just below her elbows. A single thin braid adorned the right side, three feathers tied to its end, one silver, one purple, one teal. Though she was not tall she was built like a true athlete. Her black corset like top revealed a toned hard stomach, her cutoff jean shorts showed off her powerful legs. The heavy steel toed black boots hugged her calves and showed the clearly defined shape of them. Her arms were both exposed showing the rigid toned muscle that slightly rippled as she shifted one arm to her hip. Said arm was adorned by a strange tattoo that was black in color and resembled translucent flames or shadows climbing from her wrist to her forearm. Besides the obvious strength of her body she was also breathtakingly beautiful. Her hips were round but firm, her skin a nice olive shade. Her chest while not as ample as Lucy's was still something to be proud of. Her eyes were animalistic and were the brightest shade of turquoise that they seemed to glow slightly. Her lips were full and slightly pouty, her nose was slightly upturned with a slight dusting of freckles across it. Her jaw was angled softly with high cheekbones and think expressive brows. As he looked at the strange girl, Gajeel felt something inside of him click.

"Do you recognize me Gramps?" The girl's sassy tone seemed to snap everyone back to thinking properly. Markarov stared at her with what looked to be shock or surprise. He stood up on the counter and crossed his arms in thought.

"It's not possible that you could be...?"

"Oh but I am. It's been awhile hasn't it Gramps?" It was at this moment that Natsu decided to butt in.

"Hey Gramps! Who the Hell is this person?" A murmur of agreement came from the guild. Markarov ignored them and continued staring at the girl before him. He finally seemed to realize something and his head snapped erect.

"Show me your guild mark." The girl smirked and lifted the hand covering her hip. It revealed a Fairy Tail guild mark, emblazoned on her hip bone in shining silver. "So it is you. I must say I was not expecting you to ever show your face here again after the last time." Her smirk widened.

"I had a bargain to fulfill. As you well know."

"And has it been fulfilled?" The girls smirk lessened. Her eyes suddenly darkening.

"The magic has been mastered."

"And as for the second part of the bargain?" Master stared at the girl hard as if scanning for any hint of dishonesty. The girl stared back unwaveringly.

"The demon has been contained." At that the master lowered his head in contemplation before speaking once again.

"EVERYONE!" Every person in the room jumped at Markarov's boisterous tone. "This girl is no stranger to this guild, however she is a stranger to almost all of you. Mira, Erza, Laxus you should all have a vague memory of her from when you were young. She joined Fairy Tail when she was thirteen, when Erza was only just beginning her training. The reason she does not look older than Erza is due to a similar circumstance as what happened to Natsu's team on that god forsaken island. She was sent on a mission, the information about I will not disclose, but she has returned here successful. Now listen to her as she introduces herself you brats!" As the attention of the room once again fell on her the girl turned to look at the crowded room.

"My name is Vex Knight." Erza, Mira, and Laxus all gasped as looks of recognition crossed their faces. "The magic I use most often is known as wolf-slayer magic and yes the ears and tail I bear are that of a wolf. I am not human but I am not an animal, I am simply something else." She paused scanning the crowd of faces, her eyes suddenly locked with Gajeel's and in that second it was as if he had received a powerful flick to his forehead. As quick as it came it was gone and he looked back up to see her gaze had shifted away. She sucked in a deep breath that seemed slightly shaky. "It's good to be back." That final admission warranted an uproarious cheer from the guild members and soon her figure was swallowed by the crowd of faries.

Vex POV

I wasn't expecting the welcoming I got. As soon as I finished my speech I was overwhelmed by the cheers and welcoming embraces of the many guild members. I could tell Markarov was watching me carefully, I honestly couldn't hold it against him to be wary. His trust is something I would still have to earn back of that I was sure. What had also caught my by surprise was the fact that three dragon-slayers were all members of this guild. I could smell the fire and sky magic closest to me coming from a boy with pink hair yelling about how he wants to challenge me, and a young blue haired girl smiling up at me and offering to shake my hand. Of course I obliged, even I have a weak spot for adorable kids. The scent of the third dragon-slayer caught me a little off guard though. I caught his scent as soon as I entered Magnolia. The smell of iron and pine, similar to the smell of the jagged Ore Mountains to the North. When I met his gaze earlier I had felt a strange surge of my magic power leave my body and enter his. Makes me curious as to what type of vision he will have because of it, one of the possible future or definite future. My magics unpredictability is still an issue for me a times, even after years of training.

As the crowd around me dispersed, most of the people going to drink and celebrate, I sensed the approach of a familiar magic user. I turned to see Erza studying me intently. I smiled, seeing how certain aspects of her had not changed.

"Hello there Ketchup Head." At my snickered nickname the entire guild went silent. Everyone seemed to suddenly look very afraid, not of me, but of Erza. I wonder why? Erza looked a little shocked at the nickname, her expression slightly comical. But then her face relaxed and she smiled genuinely at me.

"It has been quite a long time since I have been called that." Suddenly I was picked up and wrapped in a bone crushing Erza hug. "Dear Vex it has been far too long my friend!" She twirled me around before finally releasing me, allowing me to breath again. Everyone in the room seemed to have their jaws on the floor, what was the big deal? As Erza smacked me on the back I noticed Mira and Laxus walking towards us.

"Hey looks like Lightening Bug and Miss Sass are all grown up too!" I grinned as the same shocked expression Erza had had appeared on their faces, again the guild got really quiet. Mira was the first to speak.

"Vex it really is you isn't it. It really has been too long!" Mira took my hands in hers and grasped them firmly.

"Yeah I've missed you my twisted sister in crime, still scaring the boys to death?"

"Oh dear no, I'm afraid that is Erza's hobby now." At that we both laughed, Erza simply huffed mumbling about how if she weren't scary the guild would be in shambles. As Mira released my hands I found my head suddenly being turned upwards by a hand on my chin. I looked up and met eyes with Laxus who was studying my face intently.

"What's the matter Lightening Bug, ya still have trouble knowing what to say to girls?" At my remark his face turned tomato red and he jerked his hand from my chin.

"I forgot how much you used to annoy me. Couldn't you have stayed far away just a bit longer Vex?" Laxus huffed and crossed his arms suddenly looking bored of the whole ordeal.

"Oh don't go trying to act all cool now Laxus. We both know if it hadn't been for me you would never have found your awesome taste in music." At this Laxus smirked slightly.

"I guess I do owe you for that." The four of us laughed and I noticed from the corner of my eye that everyone else was still staring at us. I shrugged it off though, I'm sure I'd figure out the reason soon enough.

"So, what class of mage have you guys achieved while I've been gone?" The three of them all looked at each other before turning back to me, all of them wearing a smug grin.

"We are all S-class mages now actually." As Erza spoke I could feel how proud and cocky they all were telling me this. Guess I might as well remind them of something.

"Wow I'm proud of you guys! So which one of you beat my record?" At the sudden deadpan looks they gave me I smirked. I even heard Gramps snicker from back at the bar.

"U-um well we all trained very hard to get strong enough to pass the S-class trials so it took a bit more time than it did for you." Erza avoided looking me in the eye and I resisted the urge to giggle.

"So you mean you all actually had to take the S-class exams? Wow I'm glad the magic council just let me bypass that whole ordeal." After I said that I heard a shout before the fire dragon-slayer landed directly in front of me.

"What do you mean the magic council let you bypass the S-class exams? Just what class are you?" I smirked up at his curious and excited expression.

"I reached S-class just before turning fourteen. But I'm now a very unique class of mage." Everyone except Erza, Mira, and Laxus started firing off questions and talking excitedly all at once.

"So what class are you exactly then?" Pinky asked me again, seeming even more excited.

"I'm an SS class mage, a Special S-class mage. Because my powers are too unique and too unpredictable to put into a normal category."

"That's so cool! My name is Natsu Dragneel!" Pinky pointed at his chest with his thumb. "Will you join my team?" I sputtered a bit at the sudden proposal looking at Erza to see if this guy was serious. Erza smiled and nodded at me.

"Go ahead Vex, I'm a part of team Natsu as well and so are several others I think you'd get along with." Erza encouraged me but I knew I couldn't fully except. Not yet anyway.

"I'm sorry but, I'll have to decline for now. I want to get back into life as a guild member slowly for a bit." Natsu's face turned into a look of pure disappointment. I thought for a second before coming up with an idea. "Tell you what, the Grand Magic Games are coming up again in about two months. If after you see how I fight and what I'm like in battle you still want me to join your team, then I will. Deal?"

"Alright deal!" He shook my hand but instead of letting go he started dragging me towards a table of other mages saying he wanted to introduce me to my future teammates and nakama. "Alright guys this is Vex so introduce yourselves!"

"Hi Vex my name is Lucy Heartfillia and I'm a celestial mage." The peppy blonde was the first to speak up, she seems like a good hearted person.

"I'm Gray Fullbuster, an ice mage." The black haired guy with slightly drooping eyes offered a lazy smile.

"Um, you know you're naked right?"

"God dammit!"

"Hi Miss Vex I'm Wendy a sky dragon-slayer! And this is Charlie!" The little blue haired girl who shook my hand earlier smiled sweetly at me while introducing her white exceed. The cat barely offered me a second glance.

"And I'm Natsu a fire dragon-slayer!" I giggled as he pumped a flaming fist into the air.

"It's nice to meet all of you."

"And these are some of our nakama who are on teams of their own." Natsu said pointing to the others gathered at the table.

"I'm Cana, if you ever want a reading or to go drinking then I'm your girl."

"Hello Vex, I'm Levy and I'd love to chat with you about your wolfy-ness sometime if you don't mind."

"Juvia is Juvia and Gray-sama is Juvia's! It is nice to meet Vex."

"Aye- I'm Happy and Natsu is my best friend!" The little blue exceed flew up close to my face. "You're prrreeeetttyy!" I blushed a little as the cat hugged my head and nuzzled my face.

"And you're cuuuuttte!" I cooed cuddling the soft little guy.

"Hey metal head! Get your ass over hear and come meet Vex!" Natsu shouted across the room at the iron dragon-slayer I had locked eyes with earlier. He pushed off from the wall and began making his way towards us, a black exceed flying just ahead of him. The flying cat reached us first and like Happy flew right in front of my face to inspect me.

"So you're Vex huh? I'm Pantherlily. Happy's right you are pretty, isn't she Gajeel?" The black cat shot a wry smile back towards the iron dragon-slayer. As said slayer stepped closer I found myself looking almost straight up at him. He's freakin' huge! His face seemed scary with his scowl, crimson eyes, and multiple piercings, but besides all that he actually seemed rather attractive. I found myself blushing as he lent down to my level and peered at my face. What is with people and looking so close at my face!? After a moment or two he let out a snort and stood straight again. What the Hell?

"I've seen prettier." At that comment he received several scolding words from the girls around the table but it didn't seem to faze him at all. "Man and I thought Levy was a shrimp, but you're even tinier than she is!" He let out a deep chuckle at his own joke. I gritted my teeth slightly and clenched my fist.

"Gajeel that is unwise." Erza warned him in a cautious tone.

"Eh whatever, I ain't afraid of no half pint, well I guess you'd qualify as a quarter pint wouldn't ya?" Again he chuckled and again I gritted my teeth harder. "Well little small fry my name's Gajeel Redfox, I'd shake your hand but I'm worried I'd break ya!" Full on laughter this time. "What'sa matter dollface, cat got your to-" Dollface was the last straw. Before he could say another idiotic word my fist had connected with his solar-plexus so fast no one had even seen me move until Gajeel was on the other side of the guild crashing into the wall. Erza sighed heavily.

"I warned him."

"Holy shit." Gray was sweat dropping along with everyone else who witnessed what happened. "I didn't even see you move to punch him! Was that magic?"

"Nope."

"So then that was just your raw strength?!" Lucy squeaked. I turned and smiled at her.

"Yup."

Gajeel POV

Holy shit. Holy fuckin' shit. I can't fuckin' breathe! How did she? I didn't even see her twitch! I gasped for air while laying on my back trying to stop the pain in my chest and lungs. The sound of metal toed boots clunked next to my head and I looked up to see Vex leaning down over top of me. A sinister smile painted on her face.

"Having some trouble breathing are we?"

"Fuck," huff "off." Huff.

"That's what you get for picking on someone smaller, and stronger than you. Now hold still." She reached her hand out and placed it where my chest was exposed. An involuntary chill swept through my body as her cold hand made contact with my skin. She whispered something and a teal spell circle appeared on my chest. Suddenly the pain was gone and I could breathe normally again. I sat up quickly grabbing my chest as I sucked in a mouthful of air. "Better?" She asked in a bored tone.

"Much, thanks Dollface."

"Great, now could you let go of my hand?" My face heated as I realized my grabbing my chest I clutched her hand to my chest as well. I let go as if her hand had burned me. She grunted a quick thanks before standing up and striding away back to the noisy group on the other side of the guild. I hadn't meant to be a complete asshole to her. But when I got close to her her scent hit me like a frickin' train. Like the smell of rain in a dense forest with something spicy and wild mixed in, it drove me crazy. So I panicked and tried to bully her. Mistake on my part, a big one. But damn the view of that ass as she walks away almost makes it worth it.

"You look like a pervert."

"Shudup Lily!"

"Should I go tell Vex you were staring at her a-" I clamped my hand over the cats mouth. He snickered before pulling my hand away. I glared at him before looking back at the swishing tail as its owner bent over to lean on the table.

"Grand Magic Games huh? I wonder if I'll have to wait till then to find out what makes Dollface tick." Lily looked at me kind of confused but then he got a creepy smirk on his face. "Not what I meant ya damned cat."

"Sure Gajeel, whatever you say."

"Tch- Damned cat."

~*~*~*~end chapter 1~*~*~*~