All characters and concepts in this story other than Hero Darkhour and the use of Ice Dragon Slayer Magic were created by Hiro Mashima.
THIS IS AN OC x CANON STORY. If you have a problem with that, do not read any further.
The story begins where Season 1 of the anime left off, after Laxus is expelled and they have the Fantasia festival with the new guild hall built.
"We are now approaching Magnolia. The train will come to a stop in just a few moments. Please remain seated at this time." The attendant called out through the cabin she was seated in. The young seventeen year old had dozed off during her long journey to the famous city. It had been her first time on her own and the night before her departure from the snow covered wasteland was filled with sleepless hours of anticipation. Her severe motion sickness was also bearable if she took a nap through the ride.
This girl's name was Hero Darkhour, and she was a dedicated wizard. She came to Magnolia with one purpose; to become a part of the Fairy Tail guild. After three years of solitude and training in mountains, and two years of readjustment to society, Hero was finally ready to take her spot as a wizard in Fairy Tail. She could still remember the day she was offered to join as if it were yesterday. She began to look back on the memory in hopes that thinking about it would get her mind off of the bubbling feeling in her stomach.
An old, small man had approached Hero when she was twelve years old. Abandoned and scared in the middle of a blizzard and stuck in a cave, the young wizard-to-be cowered at the sight of another person. "What do you want?" She managed to stutter out, long dark locks covering most of her face. The old man carefully reached his hand forward, however he did not move from his spot at the other side of the small fire. He treated her as if she were as fragile as glass, gently tucking a few strands of hair away from her face. His arm reached at a disproportionate length, which had fascinated Hero more than it scared her. "How would you like to join a guild, sweetheart?"
It was not until five years after that event when Hero decided it was time to join. The old man told her that his name was Makarov and that he was the master of a guild called Fairy Tail. During his first encounter with her, he told her many stories about the countless people in the guild and the children that were around her age at the time who would grow up to be real handfuls. All of his stories inspired Hero to use the magic that was given to her more often. She trained day and night until she was sure that she would be able to hold her own against any opponent.
"Sir, I believe this is your stop." The attendant waved his hand in front of Hero's face while she reminisced on that day. Being addressed as a man came as no surprise to her, it happened regularly and in all honesty never truly bothered her. Her hair was cut very short, to the length of the top of her ears and shaggy all around. She was also very flat-chested, and her wardrobe leaned more towards the masculine than the feminine clothing.
Hero thanked the attendant and grabbed her bag before she stepped off of the train and looked out to the city. The last time she was in a city this big she was with her mother and she had a place to call home. All of it was a bit overwhelming at first. It took her a few moments to settle back into reality and pull out the map that Makarov had sent her after she had written him a letter. She navigated her way through the town, attracting a little bit of unwanted attention because of her looks.
Due to the fact that Hero was a cute girl who was often mistaken as a boy, both men and women alike would admire her appearance while questioning her gender from afar. The wizard had grown so accustom to it that she barely noticed the stares anymore.
"If I go down this street and then take a right, I should…" Hero mumbled to herself. She peeled her eyes away from the map for just a moment to look up and see the guild hall towering over the rest of the buildings. A bright smile appeared on her face and she immediately began to sprint ahead.
Instead of finding the main entrance, Hero stumbled upon a back doorway that lead into one of the storage rooms of the guild. Obviously confused because she believed she went through the front entrance, the young female trudged onward through the room until she found another door. On the other side of the door she could hear a lot of commotion, and suddenly she became hesitant to see what was beyond that point. With a deep breath and a reminder that she came all this way to join this guild, she gained the courage to get the door open and reveal the chaos in the main hall.
"You wanna' go, you half naked Popsicle?!" A boy with pink hair and his back turned to her shouted.
"I've been ready to go since you walked in the door, ya' good for nothing Flame Brain!" Another voice shouted from behind the pink haired man that Hero could not see.
There were a few sounds of wood sliding against wood, and then the pink haired boy jumped out of the way. Before Hero could even blink there was a chair being thrown in her direction. She had no time to move out of the way, so her only reaction was to put up her arms in defense. A startled expression came onto her face when she heard the smashing of wood, which prompted her to remove her arms from her face and see that Makarov's giant hand was guarding her. He had crushed the chair in his palm, letting the rubble fall to the ground. Hero let out a sigh of relief.
Makarov retracted his hand and set down his tankard with an angry glare shot at the boys. Before the master could even say anything, there was a red-haired woman who began scolding the two before she lead them both outside, along with a blonde girl and a flying blue cat. Hero had to remind herself not to get on anyone's bad side here; everyone looked so intimidating.
"Hero, come over here and begin your introductions with the face of Fairy Tail!" Master Makarov shouted. Dark blue optics scanned over the room at all the people before finally resting on the counter and spotting a beautiful woman with white hair. Hero made her way to the counter and she held out a gloved hand, a warm smile on her face. "It's a pleasure to meet you, miss. My name is Hero." In retrospect, the dark haired female could at least try and make her tone sound a little more feminine, but her natural voice was by default a little masculine.
The smile on the other girl's face lit up brighter than it was before. "Well aren't you a cutie? My name is Mirajane, but everyone here just calls me Mira." She giggled. Her laughter was contagious because Hero found herself chuckling quietly as well. Master reached his hand up and ruffled Hero's short hair. "You cut all your hair off. Shame, those were some beautiful locks." He huffed as he stood up on the counter top and then made his way to the stage where he could make the announcement of a new recruit. "She's the new member of the family, and I'm sure you will all make her feel welcomed."
Most of the people in the guild were very kind to her outside of the few who seemed to keep to themselves. Hero made herself comfortable when she removed her jacket and gloves and then asked for a glass of ice once she was done introducing herself to everyone. She chewed on all of the ice within a matter of seconds and requested another glass before she asked what was on her mind. "Hey, Mira. Who were those guys earlier? The two who were fighting."
It took a moment for Mirajane to realize who Hero was talking about, and when she finally did her smile widened. "That was Gray and Natsu. They are kind of like brothers the way they bicker all of the time. Natsu was the pink haired one. He's a dragon slayer, like you, right?" Hero nodded at this question. Mira continued speaking, "And Gray was the one in just his boxers. He uses ice make magic, which now that I think about would be pretty useful for you. You two would probably make a great team."
A chuckle escaped Hero at the thought of forming a team this early in joining the guild, especially with a man who had some sort of strange habit of taking his clothes off. That scenario did not seem impossible however, seeing as someone who could just create ice out of thin air would be a great person to have along with her at all times. She shook her head, hair bouncing around and hitting her face with each sway. A teammate was supposed to be there as both a fighting companion and a friend, not some ice machine.
Hero felt someone pull down the back of her white button up shirt, and then something that felt like a stamp pressed against the middle of her upper back. "Welcome to the guild, kiddo." Master Makarov said from behind her, and when she turned around she saw the guild seal on a magical stamp being held by the small, old man. A big smile curled Hero's lips and she could barely contain her excitement.
Finally, after all of those years of training and hardships, Hero had found a place to call home. She knew this was only the beginning of an unfolding journey that lied ahead, and she had no idea what kind of treacherous adventures she would go on throughout this journey. All she knew was that she was home, and for now that is all that matters to her.