***And I have returned. Returned to give you the more explaining second chapter. I do not own Fairy Tail, nor its characters or its storyline***
I watched the moving landscape outside the window of the carriage I was sitting in. I was on a train, headed for the one place I had ever heard of apart from the village. Me and Mama had lived alone in the forest. We only had each other, and the nearby village that we went to every now and then to buy supplies. I knew little of the people there, could recite a few names at best. Really, I am bad at names.
This is the country Fiore, a country famous for its many mages, and the guilds where said mages usually are employed. Right now this train was headed for Magnolia, a town with one single guild. Fairy Tail it was called. What I would do when I got there I didn't know, but... it was the only thing I had been able to think of when I heard Ur was no more, leaving behind a legacy.
I smiled, and focused my gaze on my reflection in the window. I had long, blond hair fixed in a loose side ponytail to be out of the way. My eyes were brown, rather big, and I was pale. I blamed the scarce sun up north for that. Currently I wore a pair of denim shorts, a bit ripped at the edges since they originally were pants.
My torso was adorned with a loose, black t-shirt. I would like to call me busty, Mama always said that I would topple over if they grew any bigger unless my ass grew accordingly to regain some kind of balance. I would pout at that, and then she would laugh. Mama always found my pouting face amusing.
"We will be arriving at Magnolia Station shortly. All passengers getting off are asked to gather their belongings and head for the nearest exit. I frowned a bit, and then got up, my bag in my hand as I slowly moved through the wagon towards the back entrance.
"Natsu... we're here, Natsu. We have to get off, or we're gonna take the train AGAIN," I gazed sideways, and saw a blue cat nudging something that somewhat resembled a human being. I chuckled at the pathetic look the boy had plastered on his badly bloated face as he tried not puking his guts out.
"Poor thing..." I mumbled to myself before smiling broadly.
"Yo. Cat, need any help with that?" I pointed at the boy. The cat turned around slowly, giving me a long stare.
"Excuse me Miss, but you have to get off. The train is about to depart," the conductor looked at me, completely avoiding the THING laying on the seat.
"Sorry, Sir. I'll just gather this.." I lifted the boy by the collar and tossed him with backpack and everything over my shoulder.
"That should be all. I'm off," I smiled at the partly shocked, partly relieved man, and then stepped onto the platform moments before the train departed.
"Now, boy. A little motion sick, are we?" I put the boy down and he fell to the ground, clearly not recovered yet. The cat came flying soon after, started to poke the poor guy to check if he was still alive.
"Thank you, lady, we have been riding that train for a long time now," the cat said. I simply nodded and stared at the poor thing. My smile was momentarily gone. It hurts to smile, you know, remembering their faces. The ones that had faces, that is.
"By the look of the conductor, I figured as much. I do hope this was the place you were supposed to get off at though. Yo, you alive or what," I squatted down, poked the guy lightly. As if electrocuted, he suddenly stood up, pumping his fist in the air. He was rather strange looking, with pink hair, an open vest without anything under it, wearing some loosely fitted white pants and with a scaled scarf around his neck. His backpack held a sleeping bag, probably a change of clothes, not much more could fit in it. Some food, perhaps.
"Hah! I'm alive and kickin'!" he said proudly. I got up. Wow, quick recovery, huh...
"Glad to hear. Now, as thanks for saving your pitiful self from good ol' locomotive over there, do you have any idea as to where Fairy Tail is?" he made a barfing sound at the mention of locomotive, but lit up as I said the name of the guild.
"'Course! It's right up ahead!" he said, while pointing then started walking in the same direction.
"Aye sir!" the cat exclaimed and flew after him. I sighed but went after them.
The guild was right up ahead, indeed. Literally, in fact. It made it fairly easy to find it. The boy - hadn't the cat called him Natsu? - went ahead with large strides, and I had difficulties following the guy. As we neared the guild, I felt a certain dread growing in the pit of my stomach. What mess had I gotten myself into by coming here?
"I'm home!" the boy exclaimed as he kicked the door to a large building open. Above the door FAIRY TAIL was spelled out with large and colourful letters. It looked like a bar inside. People sat drinking and chatting everywhere while being served food and beverage by a woman with long, white wavy hair. She had big, blue eyes, fair skin and a motherly smile. The kind I often saw older women have when staring at the little ones playing.
Mama would have that sometimes too, though the wolfy grin was her usual attire. A feral grimace full with humour and mischief while her eyes sparkled. Might as well make use of this beer hall and get myself something refreshing. I walked over at the bar, ignoring a starting brawl behind me and waited for the barmaid to return.
"Ah, you came with Natsu! Such a beauty too! Do you wish to join the guild, perhaps?" The barmaid was there unexpectedly, and had noticed that Natsu and I had entered at the same time.
"Nah, just picked up some dead meat as I got off the train. Joining the guild, however... is it any fun?" I stared questionably at her, tilting my head. She had chuckled knowingly at my first remark, and now nodded.
"Always," she said.
"What kind of requirements are there, though? I come from up north, and they don't really have any guilds up there..."
"You're from the North? Thats unusual. Gray! Come'ere!" she shouted, and stared at me apologetically before leaving me in order to serve some costumers. I sat there slightly confused until a slightly battered up boy with black hair and only wearing his underwear came up and sat next to me, staring after the beautiful barmaid. I looked at him for a moment, and then proceeded to laugh loudly.
"Oh my gosh! You must be Gray, am I correct? You have to be HERS!" I laughed loudly and he looked at me, slightly flabbergasted before looking down, swearing and going off to find his clothes. I felt tears prickling from my eyes as I started coughing a bit.
"Hey, what's so funny?" Natsu asked, and I pointed at the stripper as he was putting on his newly reacquired pants.
"Ow. damn. hehe... it hurts but damnit.. can't.. hehehe, stop laughing *cough*" I stopped talking as I started coughing and fell to the ground, gasping for air.
"What, Gray?" he asked as I lay on my back, smiling.
"YO! Gray, you are hers, aren't you? That crazy lady from the North.. Ur, right?" I saw Gray stiffen and turn to glare at me. It was not a nice glare. I sat up, wiping blood off my mouth while smiling. All of a sudden he was over me, punched in the face so hard that I flew backwards and crashed into a table.
"That was uncalled for, but I guess it's true then.." I said, suddenly not smiling anymore as I got up.
"She is no more..." I sighed after uttering those words. She was very nice, merely going through town, starch naked, really down for some odd reason.
*flashback*
"Lady, Mama always says walking around naked is bad, y'know," I said as I came running towards her. I was gathering things for my little graveyard, some things extra to decorate the whole thing. Odin had recently passed, and I needed to put him in the ground or he would, regardless of the cold start to smell. I was 4 years old. She looked at me with dull, black eyes, and then stared at her own body.
"Crap! Not again!" she exclaimed, started looking around for her clothes. The townspeople did their best to ignore her. I sighed, and took out a piece of white cloth from my bag, and wrapped it around her, fastened it with some clips. The woman did nothing to stop me, merely stared. She had really short, black hair, almost like a man, though she was a woman.
"There you go. You should find something else to wear though, or you'll get a fever y'know!" I continued, and took her hand, dragged her along me into a tailor in town.
"Ah, little one, did you forget someth.. ah, what have we here," the old lady that owned the shop looked at the nearly naked woman who barely covered herself. The old lady was like a lot of other old ladies, and I forgot her name. she was short, a bit fat, wearing some baggy dress with long stockings and thus barely revealing any skin.
"She unfort'nat'ly lost her clothes. I have more money here, so can you find som'thin' pretty?" I asked, and the old lady smiled and went to the back.
"Yo, kiddo. You don't really need to do this.." the woman spoke softly, and I stared back at her.
"If I only did what I had to I'd feel bad. I need that quilt you're wearing for the grave as well, so you need to wear som'thin' pretty. Pretty ladies should wear pretty things after all," I said seriously, and she looked at me with wonder.
"Ah, here we are, little one. Pretty enough?" the old lady I didn't remember the name of asked as she returned, bringing with her a white dress, simple but elegant, made to reach down to the knees. That, and a pair of white boots lined with fur.
"Yep, it's REALLY pretty. How much does it cost?" I replied smiling brightly, and the old woman smiled back. She had a nice smile, a smile a lot of old people had when they watched children.
"You're such a regular by now. No pay this time, it's on me," she said, and I ran to hug her.
"Now, lady you can change in the ba.. or right there. Whatever suits you," the old woman said, shook her head while smiling, and then disappeared into the back herself as I picked up the quilt and put it back in my bag.
"Now I need to go back to my business, lady, but if you want, you can come too, y'know," I looked up at her, and she looked lost in thought. I couldn't leave her like that, so I took her hand, and headed for my sacred ground.
I placed her on a rock nearby that wasn't covered in snow, and carefully took out the rock I had chosen to become the gravestone of Odin, the deceased cat.
"Where's your Mama, girl?" she asked mildly as I took out a chisel and started engraving the name in the runes Mama taught me. They were old letters that fitted nicely on a grave.
"Mama's out huntin' again. She does that som'times. And she's sad that Odin died, though she says she isn't," I said it matter-of-factly. Mama was sad. I saw it in her eyes. Sad and guilty, though all things die.
"Odin?" she said, not knowing who this was, since I forgot to tell her.
"Yep, Odin. Odin the cat," I declared, and put the rock down, freshly carved. Then I lifted the remnants of a badly molested animal from the grave I had already dug, and showed it to her before wrapping it into the cloth the woman wore earlier.
"Ah... How did he.. become like that?" the woman asked, barely looking at Odin before looking away.
"You mean how he died? Mama went to fight this monster called Deliora, y'know, 'cause it kills things. It hit Odin, and he was in lots of pain. Then he stopped breathin'. Mama brought 'im back, 'cause she knew I'd make 'im a grave. Then he can rest without pain anymore," I felt my eyes getting a bit watery, but turned away as I carefully put him down in the dark hole in the earth, and slowly covered it with dirt.
"Y'know, lady? You have the same face like Mama when she came home. Did your cat die too?" I asked, and turned to her. She looked at me with those sad eyes. Guilty and sad.
"You're a smart girl, you know that? I did lose my cat, actually," she said while smiling.
"Liar. But I can make a grave, y'know..." I went over to her as I cried, and she cried as well.
"I'd like that," she finally said. We went looking for a big rock, and then I inscripted the name she told me in runes. Ultear. I then put a light next to it, and we stood there in silence for a while.
"What's your name, lady?" I asked after a while, and she ruffled my hair when I looked up at her.
"Ur, little girl. What's yours?" she was kind, but sad, the lady.
"I don't have one. I said I should have one in case I die, see.. or else she can't make a grave, since I got no name," I said.
"Ur is a pretty name though, it fits you. Pretty like the pretty lady," I smiled, and then hugged her once more.
"You'll find a precious one again, y'know. Mama says the end never is the end," I continued.
*flashback end*
He was a bit taken aback by my sudden change, but not as much as when I suddenly hugged him tightly.
"I'm glad you're still alive, Gray Fullbuster," I whispered, and then took a few steps back.
"I'm sorry... but who are you?" he asked, eventually.
"Yeah.. well. You wouldn't know me, only she did. I came here to check that her legacy was alright, and to... look for a new home," I laughed awkwardly. If I didn't laugh, I might cry, after all.
"She kinda named me, that lady. And she tried showing me some magic, but it kinda goes against my err.. other magic, so," I put my fist in my hand, and he looked baffled, before I closed my eyes.
"Ice Make, rose," I said, and a small, purplish rose appeared in my hand, tangling its stem around my wrist before shattering. I blushed slightly. Such weak magic that was. Not initially, of course, but with me as its contractor.
"So you want to join the guild, do you?" the barmaid asked, and I turned to her, smiled.
"I might try it out. How do I get in?" I replied, and she giggled.
"Just tell me where to place the stamp, dear," she answered and I reached my hand forward. I wanted it to be pink.
"Welcome to Fairy Tail," she said.
"HAH! WEAK! What kinda magic was that!?" I heard a yelling voice, and saw Natsu looking at me.
"Of course," I chuckled, and went back to the barstool, ordered some chilli and a milkshake, chocolate flavoured.
"That was uncalled for, squinty eyes!" Gray yelled, and got a remark on his droopy eyes in return. A brawl started yet again. I got my bowl of chillies that I started nibbling off while mindlessly stirring my milkshake with a straw.
"Ah, I almost forgot. What's your name? Mine is Mirajane, but everyone calls me Mira," the barmaid stood there cleaning a class, and I took a whole chilli in my mouth, chewed it slowly. Swallowed.
"Nice to meet you, Mira," I said. She stood there, awaiting my answer. I sighed.
"I do not look like a damn Salamander!" I exclaimed, remembering the discussion I had had with a man I met.
"I mean, seriously, do I look like a freaking lizard to you? Is this some kind of southern custom? To yell at me and call me a lizard?" I said, hit my head against the counter, groaned at the annoyance.
"Sorry. The man just really annoyed me. I'm Lucy, by the way. Not telling my last name though. Mama always told me I should avoid using it, at least wait until she..." I trailed off, then raised my head to pick another chilli, nibbling at it.
"That's alright. Everyone's got a rough past in this guild. That's why we become each others family," Mira said. Customers waited, so she winked and headed off. Family...
***And again, as far as I know, I will be seeing you in the morrow***
