Happy Saint Patrick's Day!
If parts of this story look familiar it's because I really liked my story Dragon Scale and I even thought about canceling making it one of my one shots that I uploaded daily in February just so I could make it longer, but since it was my Valentine special and all I needed to have it stay one. This will take parts from it and its set in the same kind of fantasy world as that, but there will be differences and it will be longer! So if you enjoyed that and actually requested me to do more with it, as several people did, I hope you enjoy this!
A scream of terror came from down below where the dragon was flying. He paused mid loop-de-loop, and looked down, which was an odd sensation, given he was already upside down, to see if he could find the source. At first he wondered if had had somehow flown too close to some humans somehow and had scared them, but upon looking he didn't spy anyone at first. He was about to go about his day, feeling like maybe he had only thought he had heard a scream, when he heard it again.
This time when he looked, he found the source of it. A girl with golden hair was running barefoot from the cover of the forest to the field below. Her clothes were torn here and there where branches had snagged them. As she looked back over her shoulder, the dragon followed her line of sight until it landed on a man. Just then the breeze from below hit an updraft and their scents were flung at the dragon's nose. As he inhaled, he could smell the girl's fear and, with his lips lifting in a snarl, he recognized the scent of magic coming off of the man.
The mage was clearly chasing the girl, for what reason the dragon did not know, but as he watched the man waved a hand and a magical beast formed in front of the girl, causing her to fall in terror on her butt. The dragon could tell from his position that it was a mere apparition and perhaps if the girl hadn't been so terrified already she would have too, but as it was she stared in horror, glued to her position on the ground.
The dragon felt he had seen enough and, deciding to help the girl, he swooped down to face the mage, putting his own body between the two. Giving off a low, dangerous growl, the dragon snapped "Stop mage! Why do you chase this girl through our lands?" The mage balked a little at the sight of the dragon, but stood firm as he said "Her father is looking for her safe return, move aside dragon." The dragon's eyes narrowed, he knew this mage by his description and he wasn't one he would trust to fetch a glass of water, let alone a lost relative.
Instead of voicing his thoughts, however, the dragon said "I will not. You know the rules and have broken them. You have entered our land uninvited, which is bad enough that I have the right to burn you to a crisp this instant if I so desired, however you are also chasing an innocent, one who cannot protect themselves. That is an act of war, we dragons could come down upon your people just for that, but I am feeling generous today and if your turn and leave now, you can have your life and the promise of no war sprouting from this action."
The mage paled, though he gripped his staff as if thinking about pressing his luck and taking on the dragon in front of him. He seemed to think better of it, however, for he turned and left as the dragon demanded. The dragon watched him go until he entered the trees and continued to do so until the man's scent had faded even more before turning his attention to the girl the mage had been chasing. He was startled to see that she had fainted, crying out "Crap! Are you okay?"
Obviously he got no response, so he gently picked her up in his claws, doing his best to cradle her, before lifting them both up into the skies and towards his home. His mother or sister would know what to do to help her.
XXX
The dragon was relieved to see his parents were both outside of their home, their human forms small against the outline of the building. The dragon flew towards them and called out "Mom, I need your help!" As he made to land, he shifted into his own human form, allowing both of his parents to see the girl he held in his arms. "What happened to her Natsu?" his mother asked. "A mage was chasing her, he even came onto our lands to do so and used his magic to stop her in her tracks by terrifying her. I didn't notice until after I had told him off that she had fainted. I thought I'd better bring her here, both to keep the mages from trying something else and because you or Wendy can help her."
Igneel had frowned at the mention of a mage breaking their pact that was barely keeping the peace between the two races as it was. The mages knew that the dragons had the ability to change someone into a dragon and that a single dragon had more power than ten mages, so they wanted that power for themselves. The dragons, however, withheld that knowledge from them, for the mages were a questionable bunch as it was and they felt if they had that kind of power, they would misuse it.
Not that all humans who used magic were bad, Natsu even had a couple of friends that were wizards, but they had to be cautious of those that did. A wizard could easily switch sides and join the mages after all. These thoughts had passed through his head in a relatively quick manner, though he had missed his wife telling Natsu to follow her and the exit of them both as Natsu carefully carried the girl after her.
As they entered, two of the other house occupants, Zeref and his wife Mavis, looked up at the trio. Spying the girl in Natsu's arms, Zeref was about to tease him about bringing a girl home, when he realized that she wasn't awake and by the looks on both his mother and brother's faces it wasn't because she was sleeping, so he kept his mouth shut. Mavis noticed the girl's condition at the same time as he did and asked "Is she alright?"
"We're going to find out, can one of you go and fetch Wendy for me? If the girl requires healing this will be a good learning opportunity for her." Grandeeney replied. The couple got up from their seats and moved off in different directions to go in search of Wendy, neither quite sure where she was at the moment. Grandeeney opened a door to one of the few small rooms she kept for those who were either in need of medical care or a bed for the night, their door was open to most any traveler.
Pulling down the blankets and sheets, she motioned for Natsu to lay the girl down, which he promptly did, before she shooed him out of the room so she could undress the girl and see if she was alright. As he exited the room, Mavis was returning with Wendy and they both entered the room to lend Grandeeney a hand. Wendy had more experience, but Mavis was a fast learner. Many people had come and gone that were in need of care since she had first started dating Zeref and she was determined to be as helpful as possible, though her magic wasn't of the healing kind so she was limited.
Zeref soon returned to room, saying he had no luck in finding Wendy before Natsu informed him that Mavis had already found her and both were in the room with their mother. Igneel had come in shortly after Mavis and Zeref had gone in search of Wendy and Grandeeney and before Natsu had reentered the room, so he had made himself comfortable on their couch, being joined by both sons as they waited for news on the girl.
Not too long after Zeref had returned, Grandeeney and Mavis exited the room, Wendy having remained by the girl's side. "She had some minor injuries, probably gained while running away from the mage, though we'll know for sure when she wakes up and can answer some questions. Her main problems were that she is exhausted, slightly malnourished and dehydrated. Wendy is sitting with her for now until either she wakes up or one of us has to take a turn sitting with her." Grandeeney said to the men, who had stood when she entered, hoping for good news about the girl's condition. "But she is going to be okay, right?" asked Natsu.
Grandeeney nodded, saying "Unless we missed something, she is already pretty much fine, nothing that a little rest, food and water won't fix." The three men relaxed a little, all had been worried that perhaps the mage had gotten off a life threatening spell before Natsu had been able to interfere. Knowing that wasn't the case, everyone disbanded and went about their day, minus Natsu who sat waiting for news on the couch.
XXX
Hours later, the girl's eyes fluttered open and she took in the small room where she lay. She panicked, thinking that the mages must have caught her after the dragon swooped in, but then a gentle voice broke through her fears as it said "Hey you're awake. Don't worry, your safe here." She wanted to believe the voice, which when she turned towards it revealed a young, blue haired girl that was smiling gently at her, but how did she know this wasn't a trap, something to lull her into a sense of false security?
She realized the blue haired girl was talking again, but only caught the last word "feeling?" Because of the tone she used, the girl assumed she was asking how she felt, but when she opened her mouth to speak, she found that her throat was too dry. The blue haired girl seemed to understand her predicament and reached for a glass of water, handing it to her as she said "I'll be right back. I'm Wendy by the way."
She watched Wendy leave before looking at the glass of water in her hand, what if it was poisoned or something? Her thirst won out however and she drank the glass dry before the girl returned with a white haired woman. "Hello there young lady, my name is Grandeeney. You had quite the scare, how are you doing?" As Grandeeney waited for an answer she was struck by how the girl looked like her old friend, Layla.
The girl tried speaking again but found she couldn't. She frowned and tried to talk once more, this time ending in a panicked look, which Grandeeney was quick to comfort her by saying "You did have a bit of a shock, sometimes our bodies react oddly. It's possible you have temporarily lost the use of your voice, unless the mage who was chasing you cast a spell, would you mind if I used my magic to have a look?"
At Lucy's wide eyes, eyes filled with fear, Grandeeney held up her hands and said "Don't worry, I'm not a mage, nor am I wizard although I do have and use magic. Mine is strictly for healing purposes, but if it makes you uncomfortable I won't use it. While you think for a moment on what you would like me to do, let me get you something you can write with." She left the room leaving Wendy to quietly sit near the girl, before returning with a pencil and paper. Lucy wrote "Is it okay if I ask you a few questions first?"
Grandeeney read it and answered "Of course, what would you like to know?" "Where am I? How did I get here? How do I know you aren't mages or that you don't work for them?" Lucy swiftly wrote, before handing it back to the healer. Grandeeney read it and said "You are in the home of myself, my husband Igneel and our three children and one of their wives. You met Wendy and the other three are Zeref, Natsu and Mavis. Natsu was the one to bring you hear after he saw that you had fainted. As for the mages, they broke a rule by following you out into our lands, they aren't our friends and we have a strained, though currently semi-peaceful, treaty with them."
Lucy could tell that what the lady said was true, her eyes spoke of how dealing with the mages was a pain, so she wrote, "Okay, you may use your magic on me." Grandeeney smiled and said "I'm glad you trust me enough for this. Might I ask your name?" Lucy hesitated and decided that, for now, she would just share her first name. After Grandeeney saw what she had written, she said "It's a pleasure to meet you Lucy, I wish it had been under better circumstances."
She motioned for Wendy to join her by the girl's bedside before asking "Would it be alright if Wendy assisted me? I'm teaching her how to use healing magic." Lucy nodded her acceptance of this and both healers held their hands out over her. Lucy watched, her gaze more curious then frightened now, though both healers could see that she was fighting to trust them.
After a few minutes, both lowered their hands and Grandeeney turned to her daughter, asking "What do you think Wendy?" Wendy hesitated before answering, but finally said "I don't sense any wounds keeping her from talking, it has to be that fear has stolen it." Grandeeney nodded before turning to Lucy and saying "Sometimes our bodies react to stressful situations in strange ways. It seems yours has stolen you voice, probably due to the fear of both being chased by the mage and seeing a dragon in front of you. It will take time, but it should come back. The more at ease you feel, the quicker the process will be."
Seeing the blond was taking this all in, Grandeeney said "We'll leave you to get some rest now." She and Wendy filed out, closing the door quietly. When she was alone, Lucy allowed the tears she had been holding at bay to stream down her face, quiet sobs shaking her body. How could she feel at ease when she had no idea where she was? What if the lady was really good at lying and they did work for the mages? Would the dragon come back? Sleep was a long time coming and it was the only thing that stopped the flow of questions swirling in her mind.
Yay this has started! I have a few important things to cover here real quickish. First, upload schedule for this will be once a week on Monday (I know today is Tuesday, but I wanted to upload something on Saint Patrick's Day XD). I know I normally upload Mon, Wed and Fri, but I want to take my time with this story and since I also want your input, I decided that once a week would be best.
Second, like I said I want your input. Who do you want to see in this story? I already have plans for several, but I am open to adding more so feel free to tell me who you would like to see! Also if you have a good idea for the title of this story, let me know. I couldn't think of one so I just decided to do what my Kingdom Hearts games sometime do with an updated version of one and put Re: in front of it XD
Third, since I am going to have multiple magical beings with this story, at the bottom of each chapter, above my answers to reviews section I will be putting little descriptions of one or so as they are in my story, since they may differ from the way they are viewed in common mythology, etc. So here we go with the first one!
As this chapter may have told you, there is a difference between mages and wizards in this one. While both are humans with magic powers, think of the mages as those belonging to dark guilds and wizards as those belonging to legit guilds. Magic powers of both mages and wizards characters will be the same or relatively the same as they appear on the show/in the manga, unless I decide to make an OC, then of course they will not. To be considered a mage or wizard your magic can't be just using a magical item, ie Lucy's keys. Regular humans can use magical items, however, but they can't progress beyond that.