Chapter 2
Control
-Present-
"What was that?!" Several customers exclaimed in worry and rushed out of the bar, trying to see what all the commotion was about. Kasai, in charge of the bar, stayed behind but hoped someone would fill her in. The sound of explosions seemed to be coming from the direction of the Fairy Tale Guild, but she hoped she was wrong.
"It's Fairy Tale! They're being attacked!" Someone yelled from outside, and many gasps and awes were heard.
Kasai's eyes widened, but then her gaze lowered to the glass in her hands that she was cleaning. "They'll be fine…" She assured herself, looking back up at the door when the bells rang and a new customer came in. The street was filled with almost all of her customers, which made the new one an oddity. "Hello, welcome to the Sunflower." The person, covered completely in a dark cloak, removed his hood to reveal a scarred face with white hair. His eyes, steel blue, locked with hers and she immediately knew that he wouldn't be a normal customer.
"Miss Taiyo Mitski?" He asked, and the woman froze.
The glass dropped from her hands and shattered on the floor.
As soon as recognition flared in her eyes, he smirked, and she knew that her time in hiding was done.
"I'll take that as a yes."
"Look," She spoke, putting her hands up. "If we have to fight, can we do it outside? I'd rather not mess up the bar. I don't make a lot of money, and it would be nice to-" Before she could finish talking, the mysterious man had pulled out a blade and lunged forward, aiming it at her head.
Easily, she deflected using a knife from behind the bar and caused it to stick into a wooden column behind her. It landed with a soft 'ka-thunk', and in hopes to derail further damage, she easily flicked the knife in her hand to cut the hand holding the sword and make him jump back in pain.
"I thought you just used fire magic," He growled angrily and holding his injured hand to his chest.
"It would be pretty stupid of me to use fire magic around hundreds of bottles of alcohol, don't you think?" She asked, adding a small giggle at the end. "Speaking of alcohol… would you like some for your wound? I have a first aid kit back here you can use." The red head offered, but wasn't surprised when he instead ran out of the shop as fast as he could.
As the bell rang, marking his exit, she sighed. The sword, still protruding dangerously next to her head, shined brightly against the dim lights on the ceiling.
"4 years was a pretty good run... I wonder how he found me?" She pondered quietly, and after checking for magical traps, removed the blade from the column with ease. The woman placed it with the other weapons occasional drunkards left behind, under the bar. Although the owner of the bar had told her on many occasions that she could keep some of the weapons (seeing as she confiscated more than half of them when they threatened customers/employees), and although she did keep a few at home, she liked having the variety of weapons within reach.
Another explosion erupted in the distance and caused the building to rumble.
"If Fairytale wasn't currently at war, I might join them now since my cover has been blown…."
1.
Two days later, Kasai stopped by the Fairytale construction site, offering muffins, sodas, and a pair of hands to help rebuild their Guild.
There was a lot of yelling at the site, along with a mix of productive and very unproductive people at work, trying to build a new and better Guild without the proper organization to follow through with it. Although there were a few people that knew what they were doing, such as the Guild Master, there were just as many obnoxious people that slowed the rest down (and caused more destruction), like Natsu.
"How are you guys doing?" Kasai asked Natsu, Lucy, Gray, and Erza while simultaneously offering them the food and beverage. "The food and drinks are complementary of the Sunflower Bar." She added.
"Sweet! Free food!" Natsu exclaimed, and grabbed a mouthful of muffins, only to be hit and chastised by Erza for his rudeness.
"Thanks, but I already have a free lunch. Someone made me sushi." Gray spoke, showing her the box of food.
"It looks delicious! Sushi is one of my favorite foods. Lucy, would you like a muffin?" She asked the blond, happy when she politely accepted.
"Actually, how did you know my name? I don't think we've met before."
"Oh, I'm sorry, that must have seemed weird. Natsu mentioned you a while back, and the way he described you it felt like we were friends already. I'm Kasai," She apologized, and reached her hand out to Lucy after setting the duffel bag of beverages on the ground.
"No worries, I didn't realize that you and Natsu were close friends." She replied, shaking hands with her.
"Well, I wouldn't say that we're close friends. When I first moved here he really helped me out, and I made friends with a few other wizards here… every once in a while I stop by and catch up."
"Actually, now that I think about it, I remember hearing your name come up a few times. Since I couldn't put the name to a face, I kind of forgot about it…. Have you thought about becoming a wizard and joining Fairytale?"
"Not really. I'm happy being a bartender." She replied. "And believe me, I get enough danger in that job. I can't imagine the excitement that…" She trailed off, seeing a flash of metal in the corner of her eye, and suddenly instinct from 5 years ago kicked in. "Get down!" The red head exclaimed, and shoved the blond back just before a knife would have hit her head. Instead, it grazed her nose as it flew past, her hair flying forward and obscuring her vision.
Kasai leaned back in order to dodge a second one, but as she leaned back grabbed a soda can and chucked it at the assailant, hitting him square in the forehead.
He yelled out in pain, falling backwards, while another man snickered from his side, and another kicked him in the gut. "Get up, you idiot. The bounty we make off of her would have us rich for the rest of our lives."
"Hey!" Erza yelled at them, walking up to them clad in her armor and authorative stance. "What do you think you're doing, throwing knives at people? You could have hurt someone!"
"That's the point, idiot." One of them sneered, and the second one tossed a small pebble that exploded and trapped Erza in a water force field. She glared, and tried to force her way out of it with no success.
They ran past her in order to get to Kasai, but didn't get far.
Only a few feet past the trapped Erza, Kasai managed to grab their wrists, redirect their momentum at each other, and bang their heads together.
Once they fell to the ground, dizzy and disoriented, Erza's bubble dissipated. She turned to fight, but with the enemies on the ground, she could only look up at the seemingly innocent young girl standing between the unconscious bodies.
"I'm sorry about this, Erza. Are you okay?"
"Did you take out those two assassins on your own?"
"Judging by the fact that they used a nonlethal attack on you and mentioned a bounty on me, I'm guessing that they're just clumsy bounty hunters, not full-fledged assassins. Although, I should probably ask the one trying to crawl away…" She trailed off, noticing the original assailant trying to get away, despite the ginormous bump on his head.
Kasai gracefully walked over and swiftly kicked him, causing him to fall. Before he could turn around, she grabbed his wrist, and twisted his arm so that he was forced to his knees, and bent his hand in a painful position.
"You should explain yourself, unless you want a broken arm."
"We just wanted the bounty on your head."
"Bounty? Who the hell would want Kasai? She's practically a nun." Natsu suddenly asked, walking up to them. A few other wizards came closer to see what had happened as well, making Kasai uncomfortable by all the eyes and ears.
"We already called up Mr. Tanashimi and told him that we would catch you by the end of the day and collect the reward. He's going to kill us if we don't show up with you."
"Is the bounty for my life or death?" Kasai asked, applying more pressure to his arm.
"Either. Dead or alive. One million dollars." He answered, strained and beginning to shake from the pain. "Please let me go. I promise not to come after you again."
"You didn't answer my question! What does this 'Tana' whatever want with Kasai?" Natsu yelled, getting in his face with a fiery fist.
"Tanashimi wants a girl named Taiyo Mitski… this crazy chick about to break my arm off!" He explained, and after a second of deliberation, Kasai released her grip and kicked him forward.
"Lucy, are you alright?" Kasai asked, not bothering to watch the kid run off and instead turning her attention to the celestial wizard. Erza added in a good kick to his side as he scrambled away, but otherwise didn't pursue him.
"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just a scratch."
"It'll probably leave a scar. That means you're ugly now." Happy spoke, causing the blond to shoot him a glare and cross her arms. "Sorry… ugly-er."
"Way to cheer me up, you stupid cat." She replied with hostility.
"Nevermind that, the guy just tried to kill you!" Natsu yelled, getting Kasai's attention again. "Why didn't you tell us that you were in trouble?!"
"I've been in hiding for 4 years. I'm sorry for not telling you about it." She replied, bowing her head. "I'm also sorry for endangering you guys. I promise to keep my distance until I can sort this out."
"Kasai, I don't think you get it," Erza spoke, back in her construction site uniform. "You're our friend, Kasai, and those were wizards that just attacked you. If there's a bounty on your head, you're going to need help."
"If you're worried about paying us, don't. The hundred or so batches of free food you've been giving us over the years more than makes up for it." Gray spoke, suddenly stripped down to his boxers.
"Nice boxers, Gray."
"Damn it!" He yelled, getting instantly side tracked and freaking out.
Not sure how to respond, Kasai looked up at the sky, noticing a lone bird in the bright blue sky. "But you guys just fought a war… you're not exactly in a position to help me." She replied, looking back to Erza. "I heard that you're still recovering, too."
"Hey, Erza isn't the only one here for ya!" Natsu yelled, pumped and revealing his fists covered in flames. "I'm fired up to defeat whoever is coming after you!"
"Kasai," A new voice spoke, causing everyone to look up at her. Mirajane, sweet as ever, stood there politely with her hands linked behind her. "I hope you don't mind, but I overheard that you like bartending. If you'd like to join Fairytale as a part-time bartender, I'd be happy to have the help. That way you can officially have the protection of the Guild without having to be a wizard." She offered, and Kasai's face turned red, realizing just how amazing of an opportunity it was.
"Kasai as a member of Fairytale? That would be so awesome!" Natsu exclaimed happily, and suddenly grabbed the young girl in a hug and spinning around. "Woohoo!"
"Natsu, put her down, you're going to make her sick."
"Natsu has a girlfriend~!" Happy jested, causing Natsu to stop and yell at him, letting go of Kasai and make her sway a bit before regaining her balance.
"Of course we would have to clear it by the Guild Master, but since you're so popular here, I'm sure that it'll be fine." Mirajane continued. "I've also heard that you can handle yourself quite well, and even acted as body guards for some places?"
"Really? Maybe we should spar some time?" Erza asked, smiling down at the awkward girl.
"Sure. I miss sparring with people." She admitted, truthfully. It was the first time she had openly admitted to being capable of fighting, other than in self-defense situations, and she couldn't tell if the nervous feeling bubbling up inside she felt meant danger was near, or farther away than ever.
2.
"So, should we stay at my place or yours?" Natsu asked as he left the construction site with Kasai, his hands in his pockets and a delightful flying cat a few feet away. His scarf swayed with the breeze as it grazed them, causing the scent of a nearby bakery to reach them. The sun was beginning to set, meaning there was only an hour or less of natural light left.
"I, uh… what do you mean?" She replied, nervous apprehension in her voice, looking at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Until we've taken care of this Tana guy, I'm not leaving your side. We all decided that we're going to take turns guarding you until this is all over. Why, what did you think I meant?" He asked, a mischievous smirk tugging at his soft lips.
"You made it sound dirty, Natsu. She probably thought you were hitting on her." Happy answered for her, causing her to chuckle.
"Actually, I have to tell you something. You need to know before I decide whether or not to join Fairytale tomorrow." She stated, stopping in place and looking at him. When he realized that she had stopped, he did the same and turned towards her. They were on the side of a street that was slowly thinning out, stopped in front of a lit candle shop.
"Oh? Did you kill someone? Is that why you're running? Wait, are you a ninja?" He asked, stars appearing in his eyes. "Are you a samarai ninja with a dark past of killing people and on a road of redemption?"
She chuckled, watching him daydream and get caught up in his fantasies about why she might be on the run, and suddenly she felt significantly less nervous. "Do you like to spar?"
"… eh? Sparring, like fighting?" He clarified, and she nodded.
"If you're up for it, we can go to the beach… I know a spot that's great for practicing." She offered, a blush forming on her cheeks.
"Tonight?"
"Why not?" She asked, and then looked up at Happy. "Of course, you're welcome to join us."
3.
"I'll go easy on you, and not use my fire magic. Erza would be pissed if anything happened to you." Natsu told her, watching as the young girl stood a few yards from him, her long braided hair swaying slightly with the breeze. Her shoes and other belongings were on the sidelines, guarded by Happy. She had even taken her jacket off to reveal an interesting shirt he had never seen on her, which had an oddly similar color scheme and design as his pants. It was a simple, sleeveless black shirt with gold trimming, and was loose around her small form.
"I would prefer if you used your fire magic. It'll make this more… educational." She replied, butterflies beginning to fly around in her belly as she brought her hands together in a bow.
Awkwardly, Natsu did the same, watching curiously as she got in a fighting stance. He did the same, but lit his hands up with fire.
Just as he was about to run forward, he felt something pound painfully into his chest and cause him to fly backwards several yards, effectively knocking the wind out of him. As he fell he rolled on his back but managed to get his feet under him again, skidding several feet and kicking up sand.
"Sorry, I guess you weren't ready. We can start again." She apologized, hand awkwardly rubbing the back of her neck and toe twisting into the sand.
Natsu recovered quickly, but after a moment, a grin suddenly spread across his face. "You're a wizard, aren't you?" He asked, and she nodded. The red head walked over to him, a shy smile gracing her lips. When she was close enough, she stopped and leaned forward.
A thin tunnel of fire flew from her mouth and to his cheek, causing more confusion to riddle his head. "I'm sorry for not being able to tell you sooner, but I'm also a Dragonslayer. My mother was taught by a dragon, and when I was young she put Dragon Lacrima inside me and taught me what he had taught her."
He suddenly blew fire at her lips, and she breathed it in. "Did you have… chimichangas for dinner?"
"You guys are too far away! Tell me what's happening!" Happy yelled from the sidelines, watching as Natsu scooped up Kasai in his arms, much like earlier, and began spinning around happily while shooting out fire into the air and hollering loudly.
4.
Later that night, as they ate Chinese food and devoured several full meals worth, Natsu bombarded her with questions about her past and her fire dragon abilities. Not only had he finally found another dragonslayer of his element, someone to relate to and talk to about it, but she also wasn't an ass hole to him about it!
"Your mom sounds amazing. I can tell that she means a lot to you… so where is she now? Is she also in hiding?" Natsu asked, and caused his companion to frown at her food.
"She's dead." She answered quietly, and suddenly the room became eerily silent.
"I'm sorry. If it makes you feel any better, my dad left me."
"The dragon that trained you? Igneel?"
"Yeah."
"I'm sorry, Natsu."
5.
Natsu didn't sleep until 3 AM, so wound up by the day's events, and Kasai didn't sleep at all. Her eyes stayed locked on the ceiling, ears sensitive to all sounds, and mind racing.
If I stay, they're in danger.
If I leave, I'll hurt their feelings and be on the run for the rest of my life.
Lucy was almost killed today, and judging by Natsu's fighting abilities… he may be a strong fighter, but he doesn't know how to be stealthy or discreet. He could –will- get hurt.
If I face the man that killed my mother… I could end up betraying the teachings of the monks, and kill him. Although they taught me that violence as a means of protection is encouraged, killing or hurting someone when there is a better peaceful solution is bad.
Heated skin brushed against hers, and she could have sworn she felt sparks.
Natsu, still fast asleep, cuddled up to her. His arm wrapped around her midsection, legs sandwiched her right leg, and his face snuggled into the side of her chest, just above her breast. Without thinking, she responded by wrapping her arms around him, and simultaneously making a decision.
Okay, I'll stay.
Her face was blushing, heat spreading through her cheeks and blood pumping loudly in her ears. This feels so… natural. She thought calmly, and quickly soothed her nerves. Her eyes closed.
Within minutes, she was sound asleep.
6.
"Hee hee hee," A blue cat snickered, followed by a few clicks.
At the sound, Kasai creaked open one of her eyes to look for the source, finding a camera being pointed at her. "Happy… what are you doing?"
"Nothing!" He replied, continuing to take pictures of them.
Since Natsu wasn't using the pillow on his mat, Kasai (careful not to wake Natsu up) grabbed his pillow, and threw it at the feline. He fell back with a yell and the camera suddenly landed on her free foot. She launched it at her free hand, caught it, and turned it off before tucking it away in a nightstand drawer.
"Meanie!" Happy said, sticking his tongue out at her and pulling his eyelid down. She responded by putting her index finger to her lips, indicating for him to be silent, and then pointed at the sleeping man cuddled up to her. "Pfft, he's supposed to be up anyway. It's almost 9, and it's not my fault that you guys stayed up so late."
At the sound, Natsu snuggled into her even more. "Happy, let me sleep. It's not like I have anything to do today."
"What about the construction site?"
"They're probably happy I'm not there to slow them down…. I'll just say that I overslept at Kasai's place."
"How does that any more of an excuse than oversleeping here?"
"Because shut up." He responded, and then lifted his head a little to look at Kasai with half open lids. "Are you comfortable, Kasai? I can move if I'm not… or if you want to get up or something."
"I'm comfy, but suspect Happy won't let you sleep." She replied, blush returning to her cheeks at his gaze. He didn't even notice, resting his head against her and cuddling up to her once more.
"Darn straight! Natsu, you can't just neglect your responsibilities! You need to feed me!"
"You have food on the counter." He waved, and then pulled the blanket higher over them to cover his face.
"No we don't, we're out!"
"Happpyyyy…" He groaned, and after a moment, sighed and looked up at the girl in his arms. Their brown eyes met, sparkling against the light from the open window. "Good morning." He greeted, grinning with pink hair wild and out of place, just like hers. His eyes, unusually sparkly and golden brown, looked up at her with a softness she hadn't seen before.
"Good morning. How did you sleep?"
"Great… until-"
"Natsuuuu, breakfast!" The cat whined, and then hopped over and landed on Kasai's stomach.
"I bought you an entire bag of cat food yesterday, Happy. And I know that you didn't eat the entire thing in half a day."
"That was a week ago!"
"Uuuugh, fine, hairball, I'm up. I'll make a fresh breakfast for everyone, how's that?" He asked, and Happy cheered and jumped off as Natsu reluctantly removed himself from the warm girl he had been attached to for most of the night. "Do you like eggs and bacon?"
"Love it." She replied with a smile, and happily accepted the hand extended to her.
1.
"Mirajane," Kasai greeted the next day, walking up to the beautiful girl with a nervous smile. She had a drawing in her hand, and since they looked like terrible schematics for the building, the red head decided to not say anything about them.
"Oh, Kasai! I talked to the Guild Master, and he's agreed to interview you for the job. I think it's just a formality, though; as soon as the Guild is finished construction, you'll have the job." Mirajane told her, and Kasai couldn't help but smile wider.
"That's great. When is the interview?"
"Right now!" The Guild Master boomed from above, still in his giant form and towering above them with a huge piece of wood. "Just give me a minute to attach this beam."
"Take your time." Kasai replied politely, watching him walk over to a part of the new building and attach it. "Any advice?" The red head asked the girl, but found that she was already gone. Mirajane had apparently gotten distracted with another aspect of construction, arguing with someone about her designs for the new building. 'Hopefully Natsu keeps quiet about me until I have a chance to tell the Guild Master…' she thought solemnly and nervous about talking to the great wizard. As she got lost in her thoughts, she was brought back to the present when the old wizard was poking her side.
"Day dreaming, are we?" He asked, looking at her with seemingly cheerful eyes. A certain scrutiny was hidden in his eyes, looking at her for any malice or sign of ill intentions.
"I suppose. Where would you like to do the interview?"
"Let's get lunch at the little bakery down the street. I love their donuts."
2.
"I have a confession, Makarov." She started speaking after setting her coffee down. The short Guildmaster, sitting across from her at the little round table, continued chewing on his donuts. "In order to hide all of these years, I have had to hide my wizard abilities as well."
"You're a wizard, eh?" He asked, tilting his head slightly, and then smiled. "I thought that might be the case. Not many people are so comfortable around such rowdy wizards. Especially Natsu, the worst of the bunch."
"My mother's name was Maki Kitski." She stated, and the old man visibly stiffened. "You've heard of her."
"I met her several years ago… she was a fiery young woman. Very beautiful. The only other fire Dragonslayer other than Natsu that I've ever met. She was very powerful… I would have never guessed that you were related."
"She was murdered, and the man that had her killed has been hunting me down for the past 4 years. The first of his men found me a few weeks ago at my work, and the second at the construction site yesterday. I'm sorry for that, by the way. I thought I would have more time before-"
"There's no need to apologize. No one was hurt. If I recall, this position I'm interviewing you for was for the bartending position, not for a wizarding position." He corrected, watching her look down at her coffee and nod.
"True." She looked back up, confidence regained. "Mirajane suggested I ask for the bartending position so that I would be protected against a man trying to kill me. I didn't want to take a bartending position without telling you all the facts." She stated. "I've been a bartender for the past 3 years; my other experience includes body guard, cleaning, register, administrative, and a variety of other jobs."
"It sounds like you'll be a great addition to my Guild." The old man said with a wide grin, and the girl reciprocated before going back to her meal.
3.
She couldn't help but smile and be happy through closing that night at the bar, thinking about working at the Fairy Tale guild with her long time friends. Mirajane said it might be another month or so until she could start working there, which gave her plenty of time to tie up loose ends with her current job.
Kasai was happy at her current job at the Sunflower; the pay was good, her boss was nice, and the customers weren't bad. She could wear pretty much whatever she wanted, so long as it didn't get in the way of her job, and since she was so calm and easy going most customers came back for her company and advice. There were a lot of female customers that actually requested her, and would pay her extra to walk them home after closing or when her shift ended. People felt safe to drink and let loose, which created a fun and safe atmosphere.
Currently, she wore simple black slacks and a button down purple shirt that matched the décor. Her hair was pulled back in a French braid. It had been a quiet night, so when she started closing shop, she was alone.
She wondered if she would be able to continue working here after her job started at Fairy Tale.
It only took twenty minutes to close, and as she gathered her belongings to leave, a knock came from the front door. "We're closed." She yelled from the back room.
Another knock, louder. Impatient.
The red head pulled her long jacket on and walked back to the main room, purse in hand, to find a familiar face with hands cupped over his eyes peeked through the locked door. A giggly smile appeared on her face, and similar one appeared on his.
She hurried to open it, greeting Natsu with a hug. "Natsu, what are you doing here?"
"I'm going to protect you, remember?" He said, grinning and taking an awkward step back. She reached over to the side of the door, turning the lights off, and stepped out the door with keys in hand. After closing, she turned back to him and linked arms.
"Of course. Your house again?"
"Sure, if you want. I got Happy more cat food, so he shouldn't wake us up early like this morning." He said, and she laughed at the memory.
"He apparently took pictures of us sleeping. You have a weird cat."
"Well that explains a lot…" He grumbled, suddenly glaring at the ground and steaming.
She was surprised by the hostile reaction, but ignored it and kept walking. She moved their arms so that they were no longer linked, but holding hands.
"How was work tonight?" He asked, looking up at her.