"Listen to me well my precious child. There will come a time in your life when you shall meet that girl named Wendy again and you must help her to achieve her full power. Her mother, Grandeeney, has foreseen a future where you two shall fall in love. When a dragon finds their mate they receive a large boost in power in order to protect one another. Wendy will not be used to it and you must help her to control this new power. My little boy in love, how sweet is that?" My mother, the Pulse Dragon Zepoura, spoke gently to me. Her eyes full of careful affection as she watched me train. Her long and slender body a deep blue color with a smooth feel. Her wings spread out wide to her sides, their long and jagged shape carefully pushing the wind in my direction.
"Mom, please stop embarrassing me!"
"Excuse me ein storr. I am simply happy to know you will have someone took look after you once I am gone. No not like that, pivot on your left foot and jump, not jump then pivot."
"Yes Ma'am."
10 years later
I stepped off of the train and into Magnolia Station, people bustling around me trying to get their bags or wanting to hop on a different rail. I flung my messenger bag around my shoulder and headed for the exit, a small figure following behind me. The street was paved with white cobblestone, merchants trying to persuade people to buy the various items: lacrima crystals, spell books, toasters, anything you could imagine. Houses were packed together wall to wall. Straight ahead of me I could see the top of a castle-like building. I grinned and turned around to my partner, and cat, Dexon. He's been with me ever since he hatched a few years after Zepoura had disappeared and ever since we'd become inseparable. He'd learned some Take-Over magic in the past year but still wasn't that good, at all. He'd tried to turn to into a dog once and ended up a parakeet.
"Is that the place you were telling me about? That's Fairy Tail right?" I asked excitedly. He ruffled his bright green fur and climbed up on my head to get a better view.
"That looks like the place the old man told me about. He said when we got there to ask for Mira. S'posed to help with you getting in. You really going through with this Gale?" I stepped in front of a shop window and checked my clothes really quick to make sure I didn't look too bad. My midnight blue trench coat hung around my feet , the white shirt I was wearing underneath only serving to further accentuate the color. Around my neck was a bandana tied bandit style with hexagons stitched into it, the whole thing an electric blue color, it was modeled after my mom's scales. I wore loose black pants along with that, two belts making an X over my waist. I ruffled the spiky grey hair and smiled.
"All good! Let's get going!" I pivoted on my heel and began fast walking to Fairy Tail, Dexon unfurling a set of angel-like wings and flying to keep up with me. The street passed by in a blur and soon I was standing at the large wooden doors, opened enough to allow entry. I peeked in for a moment and was smiling before I knew what to say.
Everyone inside was partying and having a great time! There were two old dudes sitting at a table drinking and laughing their asses off at some joke, a guy in black talking to some bluenette about a book, and a big guy in the back kept yelling "YOU GOTTA BE A REAL MAN!" This place is awesome! I walked over to the bar and set my bag on the ground before flopping down on of the stools, Dexon deciding to just stand on the counter.
"Excuse me ma'am" I said to the woman standing behind the bar. She turned to me and smiled, a thick wave of white hair flowing with the sudden movement. She seemed nice enough but she gave me an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach.
"Oh, you must be the new members the Master told me about! Sorry, I should introduce myself. My name is Mirajane!" she reached out and I shook her hand quickly. "Let me just go find him really quick." She left the bar and walked past everyone before turning down a hall out of view.
"Hey Dexon, how'd ya meet this guy again?" I asked him. He beamed at me and laughed.
"Let's just say I never had a better drinking buddy until I met him."
"You and yer damn booze. Need a grip on that doncha?"
"No way! I can control my drinking, honest! If I couldn't I'd look like her." He pointed to a woman a few seats away from me who was slumped against the counter, totally passed out.
"Guess ya got a point." I saw Mira lean around the corner and gesture for us to meet her. "Come on" I grabbed my bag and walked over to her, then proceeded to follow her down the hall to an open door, the Fairy Tail emblem carved into the wood at about eye level. Inside a short old man with white hair sat cross legged on top of a oak desk that was scattered with papers. His eyes were closed and he had a concentrated look on his face. Once we had entered Mira left and closed the door behind her, giving us a thumbs up sign.
"So you're the young man Dexon was talking up so much, I can say this much at least you have a formidable air about you, he wasn't lying" the old man stood up and grinned, holding a hand up in greeting. "My name is Makarov, I'm the Master of Fairy Tail. Nice to meetcha!"
"Maky old boy!" Dexon jumped up on the desk and shook the Master's hand. "You never told me you ran this joint!"
"I didn't want to make a scene in that bar, if Mira had known I was there she would've…" A chill visibly ran down his spine and I instantly became slightly more terrified of the girl.
"Master Makarov sir."
"Yes!? Oh, sorry about that. Please, continue."
"I want to join your guild" my voice took on a formal tone. "Please, I've never found one where I fit in right but I feel like this place suits me really well. Everyone is so upbeat and happy, it feels like you're all just one big family and I'd really like to be a part of that."
"I have one question for you first of all." I nodded. "Have you ever met any other Dragon Slayers?"
""H-how did ya know I'm a Dragon Slayer?" I was taken aback by his question. Did Dexon tell him? Usually he's pretty tight lipped while drunk though.
"I didn't get to my place in the Wizard Saints by being incompetent my boy, I learned many things along the way. One of the bigger ones being able to recognize those eyes, fierce and powerful just like a dragon's." My pride swelled a little at that comment.
"To answer your question yes, I have met one other but that was before they all disappeared 10 years ago. Our mother's were old friends and thought we needed a little human interaction. I can't remember her name now though." He stared me in the eyes, not letting my gaze drop.
"Good, you didn't lie. Welcome to Fairy Tail!" I could feel my eyebrows raise a little at this. Is he for real?
"That's all it takes?" He nodded and jumped off of his desk, opening the door and walking out into the hall. I looked at Dexon and he shrugged, we started to follow him.
"One thing you should know about us is that we have four other Dragon Slayers, three of them being raised by dragons just like you. I wish we had more time to talk but I have a lot of apology letters to write to the council. Ah, there's Mirajane. Go talk to her about getting your guild mark, welcome to our family Gale." I bowed to him in thanks. As he walked away I smiled and looked down at my best friend.
"Hey Dexon. We made it" he grinned back and chuckled.
"Damn right we did! Let's go get set up!" We walked over to Mirajane like the Master had told us and she clapped congratulations for our getting into Fairy Tail. She ducked under the counter and a few seconds later she brought out a magic stamper.
"Where do you want the guild mark and in what color?" She asked. "Please don't put it anywhere too embarrassing. You have to show it to anyone who wants to know what guild you're with." I pulled the neck of my shirt lower.
"Put it on my collarbone, same color as the bandana." She nodded and pushed the metal plate into my skin, there was a quick burning feeling and then she pulled back and the Fairy Tail guild mark sat on my skin. She then stamped Dexon on his back with a black mark.
"It's official now!" she smiled at us and we high-fived each of the members who were nearby and heard us clapped and shouted welcomes. A thought passed my mind and I turned back to her.
"Makarov said there were other Dragon Slayers in the guild. Would you mind pointing one out to me?" a hand went to her chin for a moment.
"Well, Natsu and Laxus are both out on missions right now. There's Gajeel but he'll probably just want to fight you and see how tough you are. That leaves Wendy I guess" something itched at my mind when I heard that name. Where had I heard it before? "She should be over there with Gray, the naked guy. Gray! Your clothes!" she shouted across the room.
"Oh God dammit!" he yelled. I smirked and put my hands in my pockets as I started to walk over to where I had heard him.
Wendy's POV
Gray was running around frantically trying to find his clothes, everybody laughing at his stripping habit. I felt Carla sighed in my arms at his behaviour and I laughed, causing her to look up at me and smile.
"They never do change do they?" she asked me. I shook my head and beamed at the guild mates around me. I heard heavy footsteps coming my way and a familiar scent breezed past my nose. I was filled with a sense of comfort and turned to see who was coming my way.
"G-Gale?!" my jaw dropped at the sight of the gray haired man in front of me. His eyes still had those black markings under them. Walking next to him was an Exceed with exquisite green fur. He stopped dead and pointed at me.
"Wait a minute...Now I remember you! Wendy?" I nodded slowly and felt a paw brush my leg.
"Wendy? Do you know him?" Carla asked me. I smiled and ran forward, tackling him into a hug and laughing. His arms circled around me and held me tightly for a minute before letting go.
"This is an old friend of mine from before Grandeeney left. Carla, this is Gale Zenora. Gale, this is my friend Carla." He still looked a little star-struck but shook his head and held up a hand.
"Yo. This is my partner Dexon." He gestured down to the cat standing next to him. He had a small axe strapped to his back and a small pair of cloth pants on. He walked forward and grabbed Carla's hand, kissing it gently.
"M'lady" Carla visibly blushed and I heard Gale groan next to me. Dexon turned back to me and bowed. "It's nice to meetcha as well Wendy."
"Oh drop the gentleman act Dexon. We both know you ain't like that" Dexon glared up at him and Gale laughed. "We gotta catch up Wendy! it's been way too long! How old are you now?"
"I turned 16 about two months ago" I answered a little sheepishly. "What about you?"
"'Bout to turn 16 myself! Little nervous about it actually from what Zepoura told me would start happening." I knew what he was talking about, Grandeeney had said the same thing to me. Dragons are fiercely possessive creatures and when they turn a certain age they start wanting to find someone to settle down with, basically it meant starting to feel a kind of love other than loyalty. For Dragon Slayers this starts at 16, the equivalent of a 200 year old dragon. So far I wasn't bothered by it because there wasn't really anyone around here I could see myself falling in love with.
"Let's go sit down and talk for a bit huh? I'd love to get to know the two of you better over a pint or five" Dexon chimed in. Gale beamed and gestured for us to lead the way.
"Oh, such a gentleman" I teased him. He frowned slightly and I giggled. He's like a kid still! I sat down at a table nearby so we could steer away from Gajeel, God knows what he'd do to Gale if he found out he was a Dragon Slayer. The two boys sat across from me and Carla took the end seat next on my left. "So, what have you been doing for the past ten years?"
"Well, mainly running around and taking jobs from villages when we needed the cash. Lots of driving out monsters or dark guilds, none of them very strong. I met this guy Romeo from here while out on a job one time and he was pretty cool, more of a hit and run kind of guy than a hit 'em straight on like I do. Good guy. I've checked up on just about every rumor I could hear about the dragons but so far the closest I've gotten was a guy who used illusion magic to scare some villagers away. I met Dexon and we've been traveling around as much as possible. What about you?"
"Oh. Well nothing much. I competed in the grand magic games and tied in my fight. I've met a lot of Dragon Slayers though which is really cool! I now know seven others besides myself. Of course, one of them is a criminal." He raised an eyebrow and leaned back, looking at the ceiling.
"Cobra right? He's part of the dark guild Oracion Seis." Wait, what was that reaction for? Dexon sighed and turned to the bar,holding up his finger to signal Mirajane to bring him a drink. I could see anger blazing behind Gale's eyes.
Gale's POV
Cobra, that guy has been on my mind for years. I hear a lot of things about Dragon Slayers being evil but in my experience all of their actions could be justified, except for him. He gives us all a horrific name, wouldn't mind giving him an ass kicking for it either.
"You okay Gale?" Wendy asked, her head tilted to the right, her eyes studying my face. Wow, they're a really pretty brown. We stared at each other for a few seconds before Carla cleared her throat and I looked away quickly, feeling my ears start to burn. Stupid ears! You're supposed to be on my side not giving me away like a beacon!
"Y-yeah, I'm okay. Sorry 'bout that, so how's the guild life treated you since you joined up?"
"It's great! Everyone here is really nice and even though they fight a lot when it comes down to it all of us are a big family. Most of us never had parents around when we were growing up which makes it really nice." She looked out around the guild and a warm smile danced across her lips. "And now you're a part of that family too right?" I lowered the collar of my shirt and showed her the guild mark.
"Damn straight! Officially a Fairy Tail mage! Right Dexon?" He crossed his arms, nodding in response..
"That's right! We need to find a place to stay though, the best we've found is this one cave outside of town. We just need a place for a few nights because by then we should be able to get an apartment somewhere in town. That is if we can find any good jobs."
"Yeah but who're we going to stay with? I don't know anybody in Magnolia" I sighed and scratched the back of my head.
"Oi! You over there! Did I jus' hear that ya need a place to snooze?" the voice was gruff and deep, a growl edging behind it. Thundering over was a man with short and spiky black hair, a zigzag black and grey bandana tied around his forehead. He wore a black leather trench coat and metal cuffs around his wrists. His face was also pierced on the bridge of his nose, eyebrows, and twice more under his bottom lip.
"Yeah. You know somewhere we can find? Name's Gale by the way." I looked over at Wendy for a moment and felt my heart race, she looked terrified. Just who was this guy?
"I'm Gajeel. Got an extra bed in my house if ya need it. Hold on...Is that an Exceed?" He pointed at Dexon with a raised brow.
"So what if I am huh? You prejudice against talking cats bud?" Dexon was visibly agitated now. We don't have good experience with people questioning why my cat can speak with them. Gajeel flashed a fanged grin, excitement now etched into his sharp features.
"Yer a Dragon Slayer aren't ya?" The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. "I can smell yer fear kid. Don't worry I ain't gonna hurt ya kind are ya huh? Got me all curious now."
"Pulse Dragon Slayer" He looked completely disgusted.
"You gotta eat someone's pulse? That's pretty dark."
"No no, not like that kind of pulse. Um...here, like this kind." Standing up quickly I threw a coin in the air. As it spun down I pulled my fist back and punched right when it was in front of me. Once the coin connected with my fingers a small shockwave of energy flashed and the coin shot across the room and got stuck in the wall. "I eat the pulses of energy that come from spells. Plus the stuff you naturally let off. Basically I eat the scrap magic in the air." Wendy got up and stood between us with her arms out.
"Gajeel please he just got here and I've known him since I was really little so please don't fight him!" Wendy stood up and grabbed his arm. "I mean it! I don't want you to hurt him!"
"Fine Kid I ain't gonna fight the newbie! I wouldn't hurt him anyhow, he's strong. Can't you feel it? He's like the Salamander" she looked at me, her head tilted again then looked back at Gajeel. So he can sense power too huh? I gave him the same fanged grin he had shown me earlier.
"I can't feel anything out of the ordinary" she sighed. Wendy put a hand on her hip, glaring at him. "If he stays at your place you promise you won't do anything?"
"I promise with all my heart Kid" he mocked, tracing an X over his chest. "I got one condition though, he's gotta show me his breath attack. Gotta test his scales an' all."
"That's ridiculous! You just said he's strong yourself!" Wendy protested.I took off my trench coat and untied the bandana from my neck, handing it to Wendy.
"I'll show you, just make sure to use your bandana to cover your nose and mouth. I stir up a lot of dust when I do this. Wendy, you go ahead and use mine, just make sure to give it back, kay?" I smiled and got her to blush a bright scarlet color.
"S-sure."
"Dexon, watch my stuff for a minute okay?" He nodded and shooed me away with one paw. I strided past all of my new guild mates, headed for the humongous doorway that would take me outside. Once out I felt the cool ocean breeze bite at my skin, I began running straight for the forest. The footsteps of Wendy and Gajeel echoed behind me, one set light and barely there, seeming to almost float while the other shook the ground with loud clunks. The edge of town was right ahead of me. Time to show off! "Pulse Dragon: Sprint"
I felt the magic energy run down through my legs and shoot out in quick, powerful bursts from my feet. Instantly my speed tripled and I was leaving the other two in my dust. I jumped onto the wall and pounced back and forth between them until I was running along the rooftops. "Pulse Dragon: Soaring Step" I took the next step and rocketed into the air in front of me, rocketing forward like a bullet out of the chamber.
"Woohoo!" I screamed. This is it, the rush I live for! "Gajeel, Wendy! Try to keep up you two!" Their faces were beaded with sweat from trying to match my pace but I was beginning to slow down, as the forest was quickly coming into view.
'You damn punk! Wait up!" Gajeel roared at me. Wendy laughed and I saw a globe of green energy surround her and Gajeel, they were soaring next to me now. I stomped down on the grass and started sprinting deeper into the forest, making sure I was away from the town first, then abruptly stopping. Wendy plumped Gajeel down a few feet back and she landed next to me, smiling.
"This is far enough" I said, breathing heavily. Adrenaline rushed through my veins and I looked at them both with a sharp fanged grin. "You ready?"
"Um, can you help me with tying it on?" Wendy held out her hand, the bandana lying there gingerly. I felt my ears heat up and I nodded. Damn woman, why am I so shy? She moved her hair and I tied it around her, making sure it wasn't too tight. She turned back to look at me "Thanks!" She pulled it up over her nose and mouth, I nodded lightly.
"You two done flirting' so we can get started?" Gajeel teased, his hands in his pocket. "Gihi, guess I got no room to talk when yer gonna have to get used to me and the shrimp doin' the same thing."
"W-we weren't flirting!" Wendy screeched.
"Let's get started!" I closed my eyes and concentrated on the magic in the air around me, then began to inhale deeply. I could feel energy flowing to every individual muscle in my body. I leaned back farther and farther for every second I continued to draw in the power around me, then snapped forward quickly and smiled. "Pulse Dragon: ROAR!"
Wendy's POV
I felt the air pressure drop around me and everything got chill. Then Gale let his breath attack loose. At first it was a huge wave of energy, then it focused down into a beam of pale blue light. It took apart anything standing in its way, clearing trees even four feet away from the actual beam. The sound hit me a second later. It was like a sonic boom, vibrating the ground beneath me and causing the trees to sway as if hit by a huge gust of wind. Which, I guess they were. The dirt from around us was stirred up around into the air. After a few minutes it had cleared, I looked over at Gajeel. His eyes were wide with shock.
"I-I knew he'd be strong...b-but that was on par with my Shadow Iron Dragon mode, and he made it look friggin' easy! This kid rocks!" He untied the bandana and his smile was huge! Gale's back was still facing us, then he turned around and looked at Gajeel in the eye, an action very few people were too scared to even try.
"Whaddya say boss? Did I make it?" Gajeel stared back at him, and nodded.
"I don't mind having that kind of power backing me up. One more condition to crashin' with me. Gotta join up with me and Levy on missions until you get yer own place. She can't handle the crazy stuff like I do."
"Sounds good to me! Now, let's go get our grub on! I ain't eaten anything in at least a week, not a lot of people willing to give food to a random guy anymore and I'm broke. Dexon has a drinking problem and it drains me dry." I smiled, picturing the green cat stumbling around in a drunken stupor. Gale walked over and offered me his arm.
"M'lady, if you would allow me to accommodate you back to the guild" he teased. I wrapped myself around his arm quickly.
"Thank you my Lord, you're too kind" I smiled and we started walking along our way, Gajeel running ahead saying he had to find Levy before she started to spread rumors about him again. It was totally silent, people starting to go into their homes for the night, as the sun was starting to set, the orange and pink colors melting into one another against the sky. I liked the quiet though, it wasn't awkward at all but more comforting, I felt totally safe. Resting my head on his arm I closed my eyes, relaxing a little more than I usually do. This was I've wanted for so long, to feel safe and comfortable, like I could be myself and not fear being criticized.
"Hey Wendy" Gale spoke up, his voice deep and resonant in his throat. It made his whole body vibrate lightly.
"Yeah?"
"Do you remember what Grandeeney told us the last time we spoke?"
"Mmm, not really. Why do you ask?"
"No reason, just wondering. Looks like we're almost to the guild hall, wish we could just keep walking around like this though. The air is nice and cool, and there's other reasons too." I pulled myself tighter to his arm.
"I wonder that could be?"
"I have no clue" He leaned his head on top of mine and spoke softly. "Glad I got to see you again litte einn" He remembered my nickname! Zepoura used to call me that when we would see each other!
"I'm happy I got the chance to meet you too ein stor!" For the next few hours we walked around, my silent prayer that Carla wouldn't coming looking for us apparently paid off! It was the perfect night, we got caught up and everything was perfect! Did I just say perfect too much? But it was!