Chapter 2: A Segue for Fate's Meddling
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Fighting... Is a weird thing to me. It's as though part of me relishes in it, happy at growing stronger and showing these buffoons that to mess with me was to tempt death.
The majority of me, however, hated it. Why was I forced to clean up after that cat's mess. Why wasn't I able to just get back what once was mine, what I search for? It's tiring, knowing that you could easily leave yet never do.
This may come as a shock to you, dear reader, but my saga was not always one of Despair. Again, this will have to come at another time, because the beat marches on...
I'm sorry, this song seems to have run away. Let us continue~
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A geyser-like spout of blood rushed towards the nearest goblin, cracking the bones in its right arm and leg. Satisfied with it laying on the ground, I held both hands, palms down, and separated the medium sized glob, grown from the blood the victim had released, into two smaller orbs.
The three uninjured goblins looked at me first with surprise, and then with rage. The biggest one stepped forward, and opened its mouth revealing a sickly purple tongue and rows of glass pieces and the odd baby tooth. It's beady yellow eyes studied me closely as it let out several different pitched growls. I looked towards Anton, who just gestured with his head at the goblins.
"Let her go, he made a mistake," I explained. The biggest, I assume the leader, let's loose another chorus of growls, with several also coming from the two holding Lucy. I pointed two fingers at the sky and a whip of blood emerged from the ball. "You should really stop, before I get upset."
To be honest, that little part of me was doing most of the talking. The rest of me was cowering in the sane part of my mind.
"They still want her," Anton whispered, glancing at the sleeping girl. I nodded, and that little part spoke.
"Then it can't be helped." I activated my magic, and watched as several whips of blood plunged into the leader goblin, passing through muscle and veins alike. The remaining whips raced towards the two smaller goblins and wrapped around them, trapping their arms to their sides.
I flinched as Miss Lucy fell to the floor, causing a small thud. That'll leave a bruise. I looked away from the unconscious girl and towards the leader of the beasts. It let out several low pitched growls, though they sounded more like whines at the end.
"Hehe! Might as well let 'em go, Aldy-Aldy. They say they'll leave," Anton giggled, landing on the ground in front of me. I nodded, and pulled all of the blood back into my pierced finger. All that was left was a small scab.
I sighed as the wounded goblins raced into the shadows. "Remind me to watch my back," I said, picking up Lucy and shuffling onto the main road. He walked a little in front of me.
"Hmph, it's like you don't trust your employer." Of course I don't. There's only one reason he didn't eat me when I showed up on his doorstep and that reason could very well run out. Just one word of bad news... And I could be his next meal. "Where do you think she lives?"
"You just want to raid her fridge, don't you?"
He nods. Typical.
"I think she'll be quite happy to give her saviors some delicious food. And maybe some blood," he said as I placed her on a bench. I sighed.
"Anton, you're being greedy. We just bought... Shit." The groceries! I left them back in that alley. Now... What about...
Anton was giving me a look, the look. The look that said he was not happy with giving away, to people who weren't my boss, a year's worth of groceries. He growled.
"Aldwin. I hope for your sake..." I cut off his threat.
"Anton, calm down. Listen, I'm sorry, I'm very very very sorry. I'll make it up to you... somehow." He just gave me a predatory grin as I knelt. He licked his lips.
"That was the last of our money... So, might as well begin to devour everything!"
He slowly started to stalk towards me, keeping the grin. Then a small sound came from the girl.
I shot up, watching as Ms. Lucy slowly opened her eyes, and rubbed them. Anton paused, and then sat down, licking his paw. My jaw dropped at the sudden three-sixty in behavior.
"Ah! Miss, y-you passed out! We- I found you in the alley! A-are you okay?" I asked. She only looked at me while I shook. I hate dealing with people!
Ms. Lucy shook her head, but then she smiled. "Oh, thanks! I don't really remember what happened though..." Thank God. If she ever remembers what actually went down, the humans would figure out that all of us, monsters, fae, spirits, are living among them.
Anton jumped onto my shoulder, and stuck his nose into my ear. "I guess I was too hasty. Sorry, I guess I won't eat you now. But you gotta find a way to get money for us, okay?" I nodded, donning an uneasy smile. Lucy seemed to copy me.
"O-okay, thanks," she said, standing up. She nodded to me. "Well, thanks Aldwin. I'll be on my way." She walked down the road, not looking back as she hugged herself, as if she felt a chill.
"Did you remove the charm?" I asked.
"Of course. They won't bother her, but there's always a chance that the Mist will break. Even now, her mind is trying to make sense of who, or what, attacked her," he said, leaning on my head. "She should've repaid us somehow."
"She was out of it. Let's just go find a job." And hopefully never see her again.
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Several days later, I had been fired from over six shops. I slumped out of my latest failure, covered in spaghetti and tomato sauce. The mustached owner leaned out his restaurant's window.
"Never come back, you bastardo!" he yelled, shaking his fist before slamming the window closed.
I continued down the street, and Anton peeked out from my coat. He muttered, "Well, he was a tight-ass."
"Only because you ate all the food he made before we even got it to the tables," I said, keeping my eyes forward as we walked down the street. He huffed, before climbing up to my shoulders.
He settled himself on near my ear, and softly whispered, "We're running out of places."
"I know, I know. What about... You know, the church? I'm sure that Father Leonard would be looking for someone to clean out the crypt." As I walked, I pulled out a small notepad and checked off the last restaurant. I sighed.
"Kind of ironic, though. I mean, a vampire and a-"
I interrupted him quickly. "Fine. Church is off too." Crossed that off the list. "Let's see, there's the bookstore, there's the magic shop, and perhaps at the hospital."
Anton jumped off my shoulder, and begun scampering down the alley. "I have a better idea than those boring old places," he called back. He continued out of the alleyway, and I started to run in order to keep him in my sight.
I followed him down the main road, weaving through several small crowds quickly. The black cat and I went straight past the church, and he didn't even glance at the colorful stores I thought would catch his attention.
Eventually, he stopped in front of a large hall. I came up behind him, panting slightly as I looked at the tall building, with the sign reading Fairy Tail in front. I gaped at Anton, who smiled proudly.
"Well? We have magic, so what better place to work than a guild?" He held a paw up, as if presenting the place for sale. I resisted the urge to slam my head into the concrete.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. "It's not the same as the magic humans use. They'll notice as soon as we use it." Anton suddenly jumped up and sank his claws into my shirt, his brown eyes glaring into my own.
"Oh, so I suppose you want to be dinner. Would you rather be broiled or grilled?"
"Sorry, but-" His glare only hardened. "Fine! I'm sorry, I'll see if they need a waiter or something," I continued, walking towards the door as my employer crawled back not my coat.
Why do I put up with him? Cause of her...
I pushed the door open and peeked inside. Everything seemed normal-
Something- someone- slammed into my face sending me falling onto my back. Then, they continued to sit on my face, yelling at an unknown person.
"Elfman! I'll get you!" the man shouted, pushing off of me and running back inside. I noticed that he was almost... n-naked? Anton peeked out of my coat, his face mirroring my own in shock.
"Gray, looks like you landed on someone." I heard a woman giggle from inside the building. I pushed myself off the ground and walked over to the open door. Inside the guild hall, there were dozens of people, either sitting at tables or standing by the board. I felt my insides freeze up.
"Hello!" a cheerful voice snapped my head over to the bar. I spotted a kind looking woman, and bowed my head in a greeting.
"H-hello. I.. I was looking for a job," I said, walking up to the counter. The woman held out her hand.
"I'm Mirajane, but you can call me Mira. Everyone does," she said. I nodded.
"Aldwin." So many people... I guess I'll have to get used to it.
"You said you were looking for work? Are you a mage?" she asked.
"A little. I was hoping to work as a cook or something." I looked towards the counter, and begun to wring my hands. Ms. Mira giggled.
"No need to be nervous! You'll have to have an interview with Master Makarov if you don't have a guild member to give a recommendation. Do you?" I shook my head.
"An interview would be nice." I could feel her smile.
"You don't have to stare at the floor, no one will bite." She walked to a back room.
I suddenly realized how stupid this was! They want mages, not some suspicious person who says he can't really do magic, when in fact he can, but not in front of them! It even sounds stupid in my head. I shouldn't have come, they'll probably throw me out onto the street! I'm pretty sure I'm still covered in Italian food!
"Hey, Aldwin!" I removed my hand from my burning face to nod at Ms. Mira. I followed as she motioned into the back room. I walked in, and she closed it, adding a 'good luck'.
"Hello, I'm Makarov." I turned to find a man sitting on a pool table, setting up the balls. This man was their Guildmaster? He looked... weird.
"Aldwin," I said, walking over and rubbing a hand on the wooded table. Good quality, ash wood. He made a pointed cough. "Oh, sorry. Heh, nice pool table."
He walked over to the wall and asked, "Would you like to play?"
I shook my head. "I'm no good. You'd probably have more of a challenge playing against a broom." He threw a cue at me, and I grabbed it out of the air. It still hit me on the head, though.
Mr. Makarov gave a warm smile. "It's alright, I'm not that great either." He hopped onto the side of the table. "Would you like to shoot first?" I shook my head, and he sent the white ball rolling.
"Okay, so I'm stripes," I mumbled, setting my cue on the table. Right as I was shooting, Mr. Makarov said something that made my skin crawl.
"You and that cat aren't human, are you?"
CRASH!
My cue stayed extended, eyes locked onto the glass cabinet I had accidentally shattered with the white ball. I felt Anton struggle against the pocket's cloth, trying to struggle his way out.
My voice stayed surprisingly even, as I slowly said, "Well, that facade didn't last long." The old man was no longer hiding his power, and I could feel his crushing presence as he studied me. "H-how could you tell?" There was the stutter.
"Are you planning on hurting my guild?" he asked. I knew I couldn't lie.
"No, I was looking for a job. You're not like other mages, are you?" I still couldn't bring myself to move, especially now that his killing intent seemed to increase. Anton finally wiggled out of my coat and climbed onto the table. The cat glared straight into Mr. Makarov's eyes.
"He's telling the truth, Mr. Geezer. I'm Anton, greatest vampire ever, and only I'm allowed to bully my vassals into stuttering!" He raised his hackles, giving the old man a growl.
Mr. Makarov took a step towards my employer, and I felt my body move automatically. I gripped the back of Anton's neck and slid his little kitten body across the pool table, and put my arms into a defensive position in front of my chest. I took up where my employer left off, glaring into Makarov's eyes.
"You can beat me to a bloody pulp, but you leave Anton out of this."
We continued for what seemed like minutes, till a knock at the door broke our concentration.
"Master, are you all right?" Ms. Mira asked, peeking inside. "Ah! What happened?" She stepped in. Mr. Makarov waved a hand.
"Testing the applicant. It's nothing to worry about, so, please leave us for another few minutes," he said. She's not actually going to... I thought.
"Okay! Just checking," she said, her hundred-watt smile burning as bright as ever. With that, she walked out and closed the door behind her.
She did.
"That was her only reaction?" I asked dumbly, staring at the door. I look at Mr. Makarov, then looked back at the door. "That was her only reaction?"
Mr. Makarov patted my dumbstruck head.
He said, "I expect you and the vampire to start work tomorrow."
"Huh?"
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AN: Thanks to Oxysertia D. Yuki Rin for reviewing! Thanks to all who read and followed! I changed the summary so it didn't sound so depressing.
Please review if you want Aldwin to meet Natsu!
