Disclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of J.K Rowling and associated owners. Fairy Tail is the property of Hiro Mashima and associated owners. Any other series that you might recognize belongs to their respective owners as well.

Chapter 8: Book Return Part 2

Origin of The Witch and The Wolf

The story of The Witch and The Wolf is one of the most popular kid's tales in the world, but few know that it was actually derived from a much older tale, passed down through the generations using oral storytelling, until it arrived at the fairy tale that we know and love.

One of the oldest folktales ever created was that of The Thief and The Shaman, which dates back to even before written language was invented. It tells the story of a thief that was infamous in his village for never being caught. No one was safe from his escapades, until he attempted to steal from the village shaman, where the shaman finally confronted the thief. The two fought. The thief doing his best to escape into the darkness of the night, the shaman stopping him every time. Eventually, they came to a standstill, and the shaman decided to finish the battle by casting a spell upon the thief.

What exactly was the spell that she cast onto the thief is not known.

It should be noted that magic at that time was very primitive, and not very understood. It is also considered to be much more potent than it is today. What happened after the shaman cast her spell is the subject of debate among scholars, but the events described in this book are the ones that were generally agreed to have occurred:

When the shaman tried to cast the spell, the thief, sensing danger, attacked her just as the spell was done. The result was an explosion, and the spell affecting both parties. The thief received the brunt of the damage, his body was transformed into a lupine form that was part man and part wolf. The shaman, on the other hand, was terribly scarred, her once beautiful body disfigured by the spell. The two of them fled into the night, never to be seen again.

At this point, it is pure speculation as to what happened to the thief and the shaman after the tragedy, but apparent sightings throughout history suggest that they may still be alive, rendered immortal by the ancient magic that only the shaman knew how to wield. But these sightings have no basis on fact and most of them have been proven false by experts, so such sources should be taken with a grain of salt.

-Excerpt from the book Origins and History of Folktales and Myths by Crawford Seam (Year X750)


Early the next morning, Harry and Natsu boarded a carriage bound for Hargeon town. As they traveled, Harry pulled out a guide book from his bag.

"Hargeon town is one of Fiore's oldest and most beautiful towns. It is well-known for its fishing industry, and its seafood cuisine is famous all over the world. The town does not hold a large population of mages, so the ones that do come are either traveling mages or the ones from Magnolia town," he read aloud. He turned to his friend. "Hey Natsu, after we find the book, can we stop by a restaurant?"

Natsu didn't respond. He was looking outside the window, but his face was a determined glare.

"Natsu? Everything okay?"

"Don't talk to me right now Harry, I get sick when I'm on a transport," said Natsu through heavy breaths. "I'm trying to look at the horizon so I don't get sick."

"Ah, okay. Can you keep an eye out for The Boar's Hat while you're at it?" asked Harry. Natsu gave a curt nod before going back to staring outside. He promptly went back to reading his book.

They arrived in town one hour later. Natsu was overjoyed to leave the carriage. Harry left with much less enthusiasm, but he was just as interested in seeing the town.

He opened out the guide book again to look at the town map. "Okay, first things first. We have to find The Boar's Hat, then after that-"

"We'll go eat, right?" said Natsu, grinning.

The only thing bigger than Natsu's appetite was his enthusiasm.

"Er, yes. But before that we have to get the book first," said Harry. He looked around the terminal for a moment. It didn't look like anyone there could help them with their problem. "Milo said that the bar was on the outskirts of town on a hill, did you find it while we were on the carriage?"

Natsu shook his head. "Nope, didn't see a hill with a bar on top of it."

"Not a single one?"

"Nope." Natsu shook his head. "How are we going to find it now?"

"Let check the town hall. They have a record of all the businesses in the town, we can find out where The Boar's Hat is from there," answered Harry.

If there's one thing he learned from overhearing Uncle Vernon yelling on the telephone, it's that the government is in charge of a lot of things, and if you want anything big done, you have to get the government's approval. And setting up a business certainly counts as something big.

"Yeah, great idea!" said Natsu. He started to run forward, only to stop when he realized his partner wasn't following him. He turned around to see Harry check the guide book again. "Hey, what are you standing around for, Harry?"

"Looking for the town hall."

"But that's…yeah, good idea."


*One hour later*

"I know you're from Fairy Tail, but..." asked the clerk when he heard the place that Harry and Natsu were looking for. "Aren't you kids a little young to be going on missions like this?

"Yes, yes we are," said Harry.

There was a pause. The clerk shrugged. "Well, as long as you promise that you won't buy anything from the bar, I guess it's fine."

"We promise."

The clerk left his seat for a moment and went to the back room. He returned a minute later, holding a very large book that had odd bookmarks and pieces of paper sticking out from the side. He opened the book to the B section and began searching.

"Hmm, the bar you're looking for is on the northwest part of town, on the other route to Magnolia Town," said the clerk.

"There's another route?" asked Harry. "The guide book didn't say anything about that."

"Yes. It's less traveled than the other one, because the road isn't paved completely yet," replied the clerk. He let Harry take a look at the Boar's Hat entry in the book, which he copied down.

"Thank you, sir," said Harry. He put the pen and the note back inside his bag.

"You're welcome," replied the clerk. He checked the book again, and noticed something that he missed the first time. "There's a problem though, The Boar's Hat just closed down yesterday."

"What?!" exclaimed Harry and Natsu simultaneously.

At his visitor's expressions of disbelief, he continued. "The owner said he was moving to another town."

"Do you know where?" asked Harry.

The clerk shook his head. "No, sorry. You'll have to find that on your own."

"Is there anything else you can tell us?"

The clerk shook his head again. Harry thanked him for his time, and he and Natsu left the town hall.

"What do we do now?" asked Natsu.

"Why don't we go to the bar, maybe we'll find some clues as to where the owner would move next," replied Harry.

Natsu agreed, and they moved to stand, but at that moment their stomachs made themselves known.

"On second thought, why don't we get some breakfast first?" said Natsu, and Harry agreed.


*A hearty fish meal and two hours later*

"I don't see any bar on a hill," said Natsu as they surveyed the location that the bar was supposed to be. He remembered that Milo guy mention that the bar was on a hill, but when they got there, there wasn't any hill.

In its place was a very large hole, surrounded by trees, which was partially filled with rainwater.

"Are you sure this is the place, Harry?"

Harry checked his note again. "Yeah, this is really it." He looked around. "This could be a problem."

"How do we find the bar now?"

"Let's look around, maybe the bar is hidden somewhere around here."

They started to move around the hole, looking for any clues to where the bar was located. Natsu, with his enhanced sense of smell, crouched to the ground to sniff any trace of beer or liquor that indicate the presence of a bar.

Harry used augment magic on his eyes, greatly increasing his eyesight. He opened his eyes, blinded himself by the intense light, and promptly reduced the magic power used.

"There was definitely something in here before," said Natsu as he sniffed the air. "I can smell the same kind of beer that Cana and Macao would sometimes drink, and lots of them."

"Right, so we're definitely in the right place. Can you smell where they went?"

"Hold on." Natsu sniffed the air wide, letting the scent of everything flow into his nose, then he shook his head. "Sorry, there's too much scent of beer and ale in here, I can't find the trail."

"That's okay," said Harry. "We'll find another-"

He paused. Natsu looked in confusion as Harry slowly ambled towards one end of the hole.

"Harry? Anything wrong?"

But Harry only waved for him to come closer. When Natsu did so, he saw what Harry had seen earlier.

A series of smaller holes, leading away from the big one, heading towards the direction of Magnolia Town.

"What are those?" asked Natsu.

"Looks like footprints," said Harry. He pointed to each hole. "Look, the holes are identical to each other. Can you still smell beer from here?"

Natsu sniffed the air. "Yeah, and it follows the footprints too."

"So the hill was some kind of giant transport for the bar?" asked Harry. He turned to Natsu, but the young dragon-slayer was already running.

"Wait! Let's get on a transport, it'll be much easier-"

"But this way's faster!" shouted Natsu. "Come on Harry, you know there's only one way to know if this leads to the bar! Let's go!"

Harry watched as his partner excitedly jumped in place, impatiently waiting for Harry to join him.

"If you don't get going I'm gonna leave you behind Harry!"

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" said the boy in question as he quickly enchanted his feet for long-distance travel.


Author's Note: It's a good thing that the government is Fairy Tail is portrayed as competent. Annoyed at all the collateral damage Fairy Tail causes maybe, but at least they're not corrupt (as far as I know).