Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail
Fighting Fairies and Excellent Exposition
Natsu and Edmond were both getting excited for the fight, several members of the guild taking note of this, two in particular. Before the fire dragonslayer could react, a giant hand enclosed around him, crushing him as he struggled, the fire around his body being snuffed out almost comically easily. Emond was confused for a moment before he realized who had done that, and quickly glanced at Makarov to see that indeed, the old man's hand had been stretched out and expanded to encompass Natus's form. A brief panic attack seized him, wondering if he was next, but it never came, instead, he felt what was equivalent to a metal vice grip on his left shoulder.
"And you two are going to take it outside, away from the guild, correct?" While she was speaking behind him, and so couldn't get a good look at her face, the tone of voice was enough to make Edmond freeze, especially considering it was Erza that had his shoulder in her hand. She sounded almost exactly like her english VA, albeit she was at least an octave lower at the moment.
"Yes ma'am!" Edmond practically screamed, fear instilled into him just by her mere words, and the promise of punishment in her tone. The grip on his shoulder was released, and Emond dared to look behind him to see a stone-faced Erza as she nodded stiffly.
"Good. Don't destroy any public property and don't cause trouble for others, besides that, you two are free to spar." Erza said with finality, her tone being completely serious as Makarov let go of Natsu. Edmond blinked. That was easier than I thought. He thought to himself, rubbing the shoulder that Erza had a harsh grip on.
"Hey! How come I'm the one that got squeezed!?" Natsu yelled indignantly while glaring at Makarov.
"Because you should know better." Makarov answered, opening one of his eyes at the fire mage. Edmond then realized that the guild master had stopped Natsu dead in his tracks with his eyes literally closed. "Edmond gets a stern warning. If he becomes a problem like you do when it comes to destroying property..." Makraove then opened the other to gaze at Edmond with a relatively neutral gaze. "Then he'll be treated the same." He said with a cheery smile, none of it giving Edmond a better feeling about the upcoming fight. "But before anything else…would you give us a demonstration of your magic?" Makrov asked with curiosity, Edmond smirking a bit at the chance to show off his magic.
"Gramps! Why don't you come watch the fight! Then you'll get a real demonstration!" Natsu offered, interrupting Edmond before he could respond.
"I'm rather content with being right here. Now, how about that demonstration?" Makrov asked again, Natsu grumbling impatiently as he crossed his arms. Edmond nodded, holding out his hands in his signature stance, his palms open, and on top of one another. Gray observed with slightly wide eyes, the stance Edmond used being eerily reminiscent of the one he was taught.
"Just to reiterate, I use Cosmic Make magic, which allows me to form cosmic energy into nearly anything I desire." Edmond said with confidence as a swirling tendril of cosmic energy surrounded his outstretched hands. "Cosmic Make! Whip!" Edmond proclaimed, the small tendril quickly growing in size considerably, and becoming more defined into the shape of a classic bullwhip. Makarov nodded in satisfaction while Gray frowned a bit at the display. Erza watched the whip with a bit of interest, the unknown magic getting her attention.
"Hmm well, I've never heard of that form of maker magic, but it seems that we now have three of them in the guild now." Makarov said casually, Edmond dismissing the whip easily. Gray seemed to be about to say something, his mouth open and nearly speaking before his salmon-haired rival spoke first.
"Alright! He's shown off his magic! Come on, we can go to the beach to fight!" Natsu yelled, making Edmond shift his focus back to the fire mage. Makarov said nothing, but instead grabbed a mug of beer from somewhere inside the bar and took a long sip. "Last one there's a rotten egg!" He cried playfully before he took off towards the door. Happy quickly following.
"Hey! No fair! You were closer to the door!" Edmond yelled as he gave chase. Soon enough both him and Natsu had raced out of the guild building leaving Lucy and Gray to watch their backs with exasperation and annoyance respectfully. Erza seemed non-pulsed by the two, and merely hummed as she walked over to the job board. Gray seemed a bit annoyed at being interrupted, but deemed what he was going to say unimportant for the time being.
"I better make sure they don't do anything stupid." Lucy said, rubbing the back of her head as she began to walk towards the door.
"When it comes to Natsu, do you expect anything less?" Gray asked with a snicker, Lucy chuckled as he said this.
"You have a point there." Lucy said as she left through the doors into the daylight.
Harry hummed as he read a particular book as he and the three kids from the Erigor's hideout rode a train to their hometown. The book was titled 'Wizards, and what makes them' It was in all honesty what Harry should have picked up first when going to the Library on the first day. However his priorities then were different, now it was merely trying to decipher the world at large, and what it meant to be a wizard. He had already made good progress in that endeavor with this simple book.
The book described how all magic required a specialized energy called ethernano. It was essentially this world's version of 'mana' or 'magic energy'. People still referred to ethernano in such terms, but ethernano was more or less it's scientific name. The energy was also apparently present in all living organisms and throughout the atmosphere, with mages having greater wells or 'containers' of ethernano within them. Lacrimas are a specialized form of crystal that can be naturally found or artificially made from stone or brick and raw ethernano given crystal form. Lacrimas, despite essentially being made from partially raw energy, when it is formed into a solid, it stays that way. Harry wasn't a physicist, but that didn't make scientific sense to him, but at the same time, it was literally magic energy. He felt a small body shift against him with a murmur, he ignored it as he continued to read.
"What are you reading Mr. Harry?" Madison suddenly asked, sitting across from him with a curious expression. They had been in comfortable silence for the past hour or so on the ride, with the two younger ones having decided to take a nap. The three of them were all dressed in much better clothing, and were cleaned up, all thanks to the Mayor and his secretary and providing them all with the essentials before they were sent back to their hometown. Something that Harry had insisted on assisting them with.
"A book about wizards, and how they function. I only recently acquired my magic so… I have some catching up to do." Harry explained, looking away from the book and seeing Madison, who currently had Sally on her lap, the little girl fast asleep. Against his left side, Jake was leaned against him, having fallen asleep while trying to read a newspaper and trying to sneak glances at his book.
"I see." Madison said, looking back out the window. "We should be there shortly." She said, watching as familiar scenery passed her by, having rode by this scenery many times in her life. Harry nodded absentmindedly, also looking over at the window, watching as mountains passed them by.
"Good, then we'll be able to get you home, and you can relax in your own bed." Harry said, Madison nodding happily to that. Two more minutes passed as they sat on the train, Harry returning to his book and madison absentmindedly rubbing her sister's head before they finally arrived. The train came to a smooth stop allowing the passengers to disembark, Harry and Madison gently waking the two younger siblings before they got off the train and onto the platform.
"We're home…" Sally said wistfully, almost as if she couldn't believe it, but also infinitely relieved by that fact. They were standing on the small platform of the rather bare railroad station that Tuly town owned. They could easily see nearly half the town just from where they were standing. The train behind them soon started again, and began making its way towards it's next stop as the four of them began making their way into town.
Jake was practically beaming as he looked at the town, running ahead a bit, but not straying from the dirt road as they made their way further in. Madison briefly called for him to stick close, but seemed to give up upon seeing his ecstatic face. Soon their presence was noticed by others walking down streets or attending to market stands.
"Is that… Jake?" An older man attending to a stand of vegetables asked, his face full of shock as he looked at the eleven year old run down the street.
"Mr. Gally!" Jake said happily, seeing a familiar face making the boy even happier somehow. Madison and Sally gravitated towards the man as well, Harry following suit soon after.
"I can hardly believe it, how on earth did you three get away from Erigor!? Your parents have been worried sick!" Mr Gally said with a mix of worry, relief, and anxiousness, something that Harry could pick up on, and easily tell that they had some kind of history together, most likely a friend of the family. That was around about when he noticed Harry there, and eyed him with a curious look. "And who are you?" Before Harry could respond, Sally answered for him.
"This is Mr Harry! He saved us from Erigor!" She said both with happiness and absolute confidence, seemingly with no doubts about her statement, despite the fact that multiple mages had been involved in their rescue.
"Really?" Gally asked with wide eyes, making Harry rub the back of his head with his right hand while keeping his book in his left hand.
"Well there were actually a few others involved, two Fairy Tail wizards, and a friend of mine who should be a member of Fairy Tail by now himself." He said with a slight smile, and Gally looked rather pleased as he heard that, before a bitter frown crossed his features.
"Fairy Tail huh? Yknow, one of those wizards came by here roughly a month ago and destroyed our precious clock tower! Of course… he also got rid of a band of thieves… but still! The collateral damage was terrible!" Gally exclaimed, pointing over to a nearby hill, where Harry could just barely see the remains of a cylindrical structure, and what was indeed a clock face, now unmoving, on the ground by the ruined tower.
"I… see." Harry said with a bit of annoyance, as even from this distance, he could see burn marks across parts of the tower, his mind telling him a certain dragonslayer was responsible for this.
"But nevermind that! You've brought these three back to us! Please, you should get them home as soon as possible. Their parents should know." Gally said with a bit of urgency, prompting the four of them to continue down the dirt path. They encountered a few others that recognized the three kids, but after a brief interaction, they allowed them to continue on towards where the sibling's parents lived.
Soon they came upon what was most likely one of the more moderately sized homes in the town, situated with a rather nice garden in front. Upon first laying their eyes upon it, each one of the kids had practically dashed towards the door. Harry took his time as he smiled watching them run. They knocked on the door, yelling that they were there. It took only a few seconds before the front door was nearly ripped off its hinges by a near hysterically emotional mother, and upon seeing her kids, just about broke down, the warmth from the ensuing group hug was so present, even Harry could feel it.
"Oh my babies! You've come home!" Harry could hear their mother cry that to them, all of them holding onto her tight. Then she pulled back and looked over them with a much more worried look. "Are any of you hurt? What did they do to you?"
"We're okay mom." Madison responded mostly calmly, but still with tears in her eyes. Their mother went from worriedly checking over them to breathing a sigh of relief and looking at their faces, her own having a large smile on her face. Then she looked up and past them, noticing Harry, who was a respectful distance away. She seemed confused by his presence, and a bit put off. "Oh, mom, this is Mr Harry, he helped free us from Erigor." The woman looked a little surprised, and before Harry could introduce himself, the woman came up to him rather quickly, pulling him into a hug.
"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" The woman cried in thanks, tightly hugging Harry, squeezing the life out of him with surprisingly strong arms.
"N-No need to… thank me." Harry said between breaths, genuinely struggling to catch his breath from the pressure behind the embrace. Mercifully, she released him, and looked him over before nodding to herself.
"Well, don't just stand there, come in, please, you're our guest." She said, grabbing his wrist and leading him inside. Harry protested, but did not necessarily resist as she dragged him to the door.
"I don't want to impose on you all, I just wanted to be sure these three got home safely." Harry said, also silently worried about missing his train. The woman ushering him inside merely shook her head.
"You won't impose at all, and besides, you saved my children, how else am I to thank you than to offer you dinner?" She asked, as if it was the most normal thing in the world. Sally and Jake had both already filtered inside, but Madison was waiting by the door with a muffled giggle. Harry noticed something about their mother that he had not seen before. There were dark circles and bags under her eyes, things that were often synonymous with signs of stress, lack of sleep, and general worry. Harry did not resist anymore as he was led inside.
"All right! Lets get this fight started!" Natsu exclaimed, his adrenaline already pumping at the prospect of fighting Fairy Tail's newest member. Him and Edmond were standing a few feet apart, standing on the beach of the sea, both prepping before the fight. Edmond took a deep breath as he mentally prepared himself for the coming test of strength. Or asswhoping, I mean, that's an entirely possible outcome as well. Edmond thought somewhat sadly to himself. Nevertheless, this would at least be a good experience. "You ready rotten egg?" He said with a mischievous grin, calling Edmond that considering he had been the last one there.
"Hehe. I don't think he's the rotten egg anymore." Happy snickered as Natsu looked confused, before looking to where the blue-haired cat was looking, and a smug grin crossed his face.
"What are those two laughing about?" Lucy suddenly asked, coming up to them from the side. Edmond sighed as he had a pretty good suspicion as to why.
"Oh nothing, just the rotten egg, after all, you were the last one after Edmond." Natsu said with a smug smile, Lucy giving him and Happy a deadpan stare.
"Gotten over it by now?" Edmond inquired, to which Lucy nodded while crossing her arms.
"The only reason I'm here is to make sure you guys don't get into trouble." Lucy said in a commanding tone. "So don't go blowing up the beach… please?" She added, this time a bit more sheepishness, and Edmond merely nodded, a growing grin on his face.
"Don't worry, this is just a spar basically, so we won't be going all out." Edmond said, with Natsu nodding, this time a bit more seriously, but with a grin still on his face. Happy seemed to take that as his ticket to go float over by Lucy, awaiting the coming battle. Lucy herself did have a pensive expression on her face, her mind being reminded of when Natsu had fought Erza.
"Yea, I guess, but don't expect me to pull any punches!" Natsu promised with an exclamation, making Edmond nod with determination. The two readied themselves, getting into their fighting stances, Edmond preparing to cast a spell while Natsu set his fists alight. "We go when Lucy says."
"Fair enough." Edmond agreed, Lucy shrugging as she observed them. A few more moments past by as Lucy prepared herself for the incoming onslaught of spells. Once she was ready, she told them to start.
"B-Begin!" Lucy stuttered a bit as she called, not used to playing the referee for wizard duels, but if either combatant cared, they didn't show it as Natsu rushed froward and Edmond cast his spell.
"Cosmic Make: Whip!" He exclaimed, forming a whip from his magic and lashing it out at the dragon slayer. Natsu grinned as he managed to jump over the attack, but Edmond had the whip's end merely follow the fire-based wizard and wrap around his torso, before the whip suddenly wrenched him backwards, and slammed him into the ground. Natsu didn't even flinch at the impact, instead effortlessly standing up with a feral grin. He then jumped up, fire following his feet, his fists still alight.
"Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" Natsu yelled, falling towards Edmond at an accelerated speed. Edmond briefly panicking, and realizing his whip would not be enough, quickly readied a new spell.
"Cosmic Mak-" Whatever he was about to say was interrupted as Natsu's fist was upon him faster than he expected, and while he moved out of the way of a direct attack, the fire that spewed out from the dragonslayer blew him backwards. He winced as the flames licked his clothes and skin, realizing his black duster was going to be even blacker by the time this match was over. Natsu didn't relent, easily pushing through his own flames and sending a non-flaming punch into Edmond's stomach, causing the novice mage to double over in pain. He was then sent skidding back several feet, clutching his midsection. Holy shit! How does anyone take that and not give any kind of reaction!? Edmond thought, fighting the urge to lose his lunch, quickly getting back into his stance. "Cosmic Make: Anvil!" He yelled out, hurling a shining Anvil through the air, Natsu allowing the spell to get to him, simply grabbing the cosmic-made smithing tool and stopping it, but not without having to dig his feet into the ground, his sandals digging through the dirt for several feet to stop the momentum.
"Thats a pretty good attack for a newbie to magic." Natsu praised, still holding onto the anvil despite not needing to, having stopped its momentum. Edmond merely smirked as he stopped concentrating on it's form, the anvil beginning to almost liquify as it began to waver and ripple uncontrollably. "What the-" was all Natsu could mutter before the anvil exploded in his face, the force knocking him away, the dragonslayer flying for several yards.
Lucy was a bit surprised that Edmond had managed to get such a good hit on Natsu, but then she figured that Natsu probably forgot that Edmond could do that sometimes. She was still not sure if he meant to make his creations explode, as one time he had nearly gotten him and herself caught in one of those blasts.
"What was that?" Gray's voice came from behind her suddenly, and Lucy peered to see the Ice-Make wizard walking up to her, his hands in his pockets, observing the fight, without a shirt. She ignored that fact in favor of answering his question.
"That was Edmond's magic, it seems like he can make his creations explode every now and again. Not sure, but it seems like he can do them on purpose, but can also sometimes do it on accident." Lucy explained, watching as Natsu jumped back to his feet with a large grin, before the pyromaniac rushed forward again, flames jetting out from beneath his feet.
"Weird. Then again, I've never seen a magic like his either. It's similar to mine and Laki's, but at the same time, he makes things with... cosmic energy?" Gray seemed to ask a question more than stating a fact, never hearing about such magic. Natsu reached Edmond just as the novice made a sword of cosmic energy and swung, Natsu ducking under the inexperienced strike easily. Edmond managed to dodge another punch at the last second before swinging again, hitting Natsu in the shoulder, before the dragonslayer retaliated by grabbing his wrist, and throwing the cosmic mage into the ground on Natsu's opposite side.
"That's what he said. He also said he's only had it a week." Happy said with a shrug, but making sure to make a mental note to ask Edmond about it later. While a lot of people might think he doesn't have anything on his mind other than fish, he did pride himself on his knowledge of different types of magic, so when presented with a new one, he always tried to learn as much about it as he could. Gray was stunned at Happy's last sentence and watched inquisitively as Edmond fought.
"Jesus..." Edmond groaned as he tried to recover from being thrown into the ground, inadvertently making a him-shaped crater in the ground. Natsu still had a hold of his wrist, and decided to take advantage of that fact. "Cosmic Make: Flail!" The sword in the same hand Natsu had gripped suddenly elongated and the blade became chains, and the tip formed into a ball with spikes on its surface. The end of the flail stayed airborne for a few moments with Natsu looking at it with a raised eyebrow before it reeled back and slammed into his face, an almost comical 'bonk' sound coming from the impact. Natsu released Edmond, and the novice went on the assault, sending his other fist into Natsu's gut. OW! What the hell? I think I just hurt myself more than I did him. Edmond thought as he shook off his now throbbing left hand. Think Edmond, I can't win this with pure strength. What can i use to my advantage? Edmond thought as he kept the flail attacking Natsu at close range, trying to keep the pink-haired man occupied. Oh wait! Thats right, Natsu has one glaring weakness!
He reeled the flail back again before bringing it around and aiming for Natsu's legs, hoping to entangle them. Natsu jumped over the attack, his legs moving as soona s he came down, heading straight for Edmond. Just gotta get him airborne! Edmond thought with slight panic, having the flail follow Natsu at a greater speed, eventually coiling around the dragonslayer's right leg right as Nastu was about to deliver a flaming punch. Edmond made the flail snap back, throwing Natsu's balance off and causing him to fall face first onto the ground. Edmond didn't stop, and brought the pink-haired wizard high into the air before beginning to spin him around quickly.
"Whoaaaa!" Natsu shouted, before quickly covering his mouth as his face became green. Edmond smirked, continuing the onslaught of motion sickness, believing this would be the best chance for him to take down Natsu. Until the dragonslayer in question wreathed his legs in hot flames, kicking the cosmic chains that bound him a few times, but managing to break them. Edmond was shocked. What!? But in Canon, Natsu was rendered almost completely inert from motion sickness! So shocked was he that didn't realize Natsu was coming right for him. "Fire Dragon Claw!" he cried, and bringing his leg forward, his foot found purpose on Edmond's face, hitting right on his left cheek. Edmond was sent back again, flipping against the ground several times and groaning as he finally stopped. Edmond got his hands under him, and struggled to stand, his arms shaking as he got up from his position on the ground.
By the time he managed to stand on his own, Natsu was looking at him, only a few feet away, clearly barely bothered by the previous attacks, although there was definitely evidence of them. There were scrapes and bruises around the edges of his face, and his arms looked partially charred, along with a good portion of his shirt. Edmond realized that Natsu could have done him in several times over in the time it had taken him to recover, which meant one thing to the novice. This fight was over.
Natsu came up to him and gave him a pat on his shoulder, Edmond huffing a bit as he did, clearly not too satisfied with the outcome. But he couldn't go on any longer, else he might just hurt himself more than anything. I'll definitely have to get stronger than this… but I guess for now, it's a start. He thought to himself, giving Natsu his best smile.
"That was a good fight man! And you only started a week ago too! In a few months you'll be a force to reckoned with!" Natsu praised, Edmond only offering a thumbs up in response, his breathing slightly painful due to the hit taken to his gut.
"Good job Edmond!" Lucy said, her and Gray approaching the duo. "You did really well, especially for a novice going up against someone like Natsu." Edmond and the dragonslayer in question looking a little surprised that the Ice-Make wizards was there. The raven haired wizard nodded in agreement with Lucy.
"Yea, not bad for a beginner, Interesting magic you have." Gray commented, and Edmond rubbed the back of his head, a little embarrassed about the praise. He got his breathing back together, a bit surprised at how fast the pain was going away, chalking it up to his new magically infused body.
"Yea, you can say that again. But I wouldn't trade it for the world." Edmond said with a smile, making Natsu pat him on the back, a little too roughly, as Edmond was thrown off balance, and stumbled a little. "I have a long way to go, but I'm pretty happy with my progress so far… now I just need to figure out where I'm going to be sleeping for a while." Edmond said with a tad of exasperation, this thought having been in the back of his mind for a while now.
"Why not room with Natsu or Gray? I'm sure they have some room." Lucy asked, making Edmond consider that for a moment, trying to remember what exactly the housing arrangements were like for the main circle of people in the canon. He knew what Lucy had her own apartment, most of the other female wizards lived within Fairy Hills, the female-only apartment complex not far from the guild it was named after. However he wasn't entirely sure where the other (mostly male) members of the guild lived within magnolia, besides Natsu who lived in a near-literal stone shack outside of the city limits.
"I've got room." Gray offered, making Edmond look to him, shaking out of his thoughts. "Plus, Natsu has practically no room in his house, and sleeps in a hammock." Natsu didn't seem bothered by Gray's comment, merely shrugging, since it was the truth.
"Yea, not much more room at my place man." Natsu said with a sheepish grin. Edmond nodded in understanding, looking to Gray in thanks.
"I appreciate the offer man, I mean, I haven't even been here for a day. Are you sure it'll be alright?" Edmond asked, and Gray actually did pause a bit, thinking about it, but nodded, confirming he was fine with the arrangement.
"It's no big deal. As long as you pay your half of the rent of course." Gray stated, making Edmond nod, making plans to take a job off the board as soon as he could.
"Of course. I try my best to pull my weight." Edmond said with determination, still quite eager to start living the 'guild life' even after getting beat down. Gray seemed satisfied with that, Natsu and Lucy too seemed pleased with the attitude of their guild's newest member. With that the group entered the guild again, all of them content to do some socializing for the rest of the evening.
"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" Harry once more heard the near incoherent thanks of a parent he had helped out as the father of Madison, Jake, and Sally returned from work. He was a bit embarrassed, especially considering the man was a few inches taller than himself, standing at a rather staggering 6'4. But his height betrayed his attitude, being more than welcoming to Harry when he had been told of why he was there. Seeing his face light up with joy as he too was reunited with his children was also an unsung reward for the novice mage.
"Its really no problem, I mean, if it wasn't for them, i'd have been in there for another two days or more." Harry said while holding his hands in a placating manner as the older and taller man bowed from the hips to him. "I'm just glad we all made it back in one peice. And if it hadn't been for those fairy tail wizards showing up… well, best not to dwell on what ifs." Harry was actually very much a person that dwelled on such things, but over the years, he had learned to keep such things to himself in favor of preserving any good mood the room might have had.
"Maybe so. But still, we owe you something we can't put a price on, if there is anything we can do for you, just let us know. As the head of the Folly family, I swear we won't forget what you've done." The father said, now standing up and looking at Harry with a sense of both thanks and respect. Harry thought he was going a bit far with that last sentence, but decided not to argue.
"C'mon! Dinner is ready!" Mrs. Folly stated, peeking her head out from the kitchen to inform the two men. Before Harry could say anything else, he found himself being pushed in the direction of the kitchen by Jake, who was now shoving on the middle of his back from behind.
"Alright, Alright, I'm going." Harry said with a chuckle, heading towards the dining room to eat. The dining table had been set, and soon everyone was sitting, eating, drinking, and chatting away happily, even as the kids recalled how Harry had saved them, and what they had made while under Erigor's roof. The mood remained rather cheery though, and ultimately everyone remained in good spirits about it all, even with the parents being obviously concerned about everything.
"Well, I have really enjoyed the hospitality, but I probably need to be going soon. I don't want to miss the last train back." Harry stated, dinner over, and everyone began to clean up. Mrs. Folly nodded, knowing that he couldn't stay too much longer now that it was getting late.
"I understand." She responded, Mr. Folly nodding in tandem with her.
"But… C'mon! You can stay the night, right?" Jake protested, going up to Harry and tugging on his arm sleeve. Sally nodding along with her brother's statement, Mr. Folly simply laughing at their innocence while Mrs. Folly decided to rescue Harry from having to answer.
"Now Now, Mr Harry has to leave so he doesn't miss another train." She gently chided, the kids having disappointed looks on their faces. "It'll be okay, how about tomorrow we go out for some treats? Maybe some Ice cream?" They perked up at that, but were still somewhat saddened at Harry's leaving. Harry stepped to the door, Madison, Sally, and Jake all saying their goodbyes, and Their parents wishing him luck and safety.
"And if you ever need anything, and are in the area don't hesitate to come and visit!" Mr. Folly told Harry, the young wizard walking down the road and away from the house now, waving goodbye to them as he headed for the train station.
Once arriving, Harry managed to catch a train that was just about to depart, the evening sun dousing everything in a beautiful orange hue. Harry got on the train, his book still in his grasp, finding an isolated booth, something not hard given the later hour. He got comfortable, and opened the book, carrying on from where he left off. The next section describing the physical differences that wizards exhibited versus most other people, something that could vary widely with each individual mage.
However, there were characteristics of wizards that were common throughout every one of them. Wizards often have increased strength, speed, durability, lower reaction times, and quicker healing times. These often change and vary depending on the mage, but most mages are often much tougher and stronger than normal people are. The prevailing theory about this is because of the increased Ethernano that runs through their bodies, enhancing their basic physical capabilities.
Harry hummed as he read about this, finding the explanation fitting for the feats he had witnessed so far, and was a convenient explanation for a shonen universe. Since everything varied from mage to mage though, He wondered just how he measured up to the average mage. There was no way for him to know unless he visited a doctor. Harry sighed, and mentally put that on the growing list of things to do in the future.
Edmond wobbled a bit, the alcohol he had been consuming slurring his movements and thoughts. He, Lucy, Natsu, and Gray had all returned to the guild and decided to chat over some drinks. Lucy had barely had any, Gray had finished one full mug before switching to something non-alcoholic, while Natsu had never even gotten anything with a kick. Edmond however, was on his fourth mug, his whole being becoming looser and more relaxed.
"Looks like you're enjoying yourself." Lucy commented, Edmond nodding simply as he took another swig. "Just don't go drinking like Cana. I don't know how much money you have left from when you were in Ginville, but having a big tab is never good."
"Oh I know." Edmond said as he placed his now empty mug down, a light blush to his face. "But I haven't had a good drink in a while." Lucy shrugged at that, content with letting Edmond do as he pleased. Natsu and Gray were in the middle of an argument, this one about, oddly enough, the best flavor of ice cream. How it had started, Edmond honestly couldn't remember. As the next hour passed, Edmond adjusted himself and stopped drinking anything, figuring he didn't want a hangover in the morning. He kept himself alert by talking to Lucy about her previous jobs with Natsu, and managing to find out where exactly he was in the timeline.
"Well, I suppose I better head back to the apartment, and maybe pay the landlady while I'm at it." Lucy said, standing up from the table she and Edmond were sitting at, and giving the new guild member a winning smile. "And I know everyone has already said this in one way or another, but welcome to the guild Edmond." Lucy said, Edmond nodding in thanks, his own smile widening. Lucy made her way out of the guild, the evening sun bathing magnolia in an orange glow, in contrast to the yellowish white light from the illuminating lacrimas within the guild.
Edmond sighed contentedly, before looking around at everyone else still at the guild. Natsu had cooled down sometime in the last half hour and left home already. Gray was sitting at the counter, talking with Mirajane and Elfman. He spotted Cana passed out on the same counter, only a few seats away, drool from her mouth leaking onto the wooden boards. Edmond stifled a chuckle at that. Besides them, there weren't all too many there, with a few wizards that Edmond did not recognize, most likely because they were, to put it bluntly, background characters, with little to no impact on the story as a whole.
He considered that for a moment, and wondered what their lives were like. After all, these were people that were living their lives as mages who didn't see a lot of the fame or fortune as the ones that frequented the show. The sight of Gray getting up from his seat brought Edmond out of his thoughts, the ice-make wizard coming up to him with a fairly neutral expression.
"Edmond, I'm going to head to the apartment for the night, you can either come with or I can give you the address." Edmond shook his head as he got up, albeit with a slight wobble to his step.
"Nah, I'll come with you, best to get acquainted with the layout of Magnolia early anyway." Edmond stated, Gray nodding in understanding, the two of them walking out of the guild with a quick wave goodbye to a few of the other members still there.
Harry walked off the train station in Clover town, the last rays of sunshine greeting him as he began making his way towards the center of town. He looked to the path that led to Ginville, but shook his head. Don't exactly have any weapons or anything on me. I guess I'm going to have to spend a little money and stay somewhere overnight. He sighed to himself, searching for an inn as he looked around the town.
Finding a place didn't take long, and upon handing over his payment, Harry was provided with a small room, allowing him to continue to read the book in his hands. 'Wizards and what makes them' had proven to be extremely useful, and now he was into how magic is often delegated, or more specifically how people acquire their magic. And there were multiple different ways for a person to acquire their particular brand of magic.
The most common was for someone to simply read a book regarding magics and attempt to manifest the magic in some way. This was usually done at an early age so that young mages would get accustomed to using magic as early as possible, and allow them to experiment with it to determine how they might want to manipulate their magic. At first Harry was rather perplexed by this, but then read and realized that magic was much more flexible than in something like DND. Not all fire wizards were the same, nor was there any kind of wizard that was completely alike in terms of how they used their magic, even if on paper, they used the exact same "brand" of magic.
Harry found that explanation odd as with his own magic, he found that he couldn't really use it in any other way. Perhaps it would be possible to enchant himself but he also imagined that such a procedure would be extremely painful, and literally scarring. Thus, using items or clothing on him that enchanted him indirectly would be the most feasible. He wasn't sure really what else he could do, as he has not had time to experiment with the qualities of his magic, and what can be adjusted or altered to suit his goals. For now at least, I know that I can basically apply any kind of effect to any kind of object as long as I have the required magical energy to do so. The enchantment doesn't go into effect unless I supply the magic to activate it and keep it running, sort to speak. Or in other words, I can, in a sense, code the reality of an object given I have the energy to do so... Harry laughed a bit darkly as he thought about the possibilities of such an ability, but then remembered how hard it had been to create the Mark I. Things will definitely vary with the type of enchantment, what the material I'm enchanting is, and so on.
Harry refocused on the book, making a mental note to buy a journal of some kind when he got back to town in order to document his discoveries and theories on his magic. As he continued, he found that other than their increased physical resistances, strength, and speed, there wasn't much that separated them from normal people. Even then, the difference in durability was staggering. According to a book, Wizards could have extremely tough skeletons, and very restsiant skin. Making normally fatal attacks nothing more than something short of an annoyance. I'm not going to count on that. I'm making some goddamn armor before I even think about getting into another fight.
Harry decided to close the book, figuring that it would be best to get up early and get back to Ginville as soon as he could so he could begin experimenting. He sighed as he laid down on the soft bed, briefly contemplating how crazy his life had gotten in such a short amount of time. He rolled over, knowing that thinking about his old world, how he and Edmond came to be here, and what could have happened otherwise, would be useless. Thoughts still plagued him though, of how, if this world was real, one thought of by some dude in Japan, then what other universes also existed? The Witcher? Fallout? Konosuba? Lord of The Rings? Warhamme- His eyes shot open, all efforts of going to sleep running away from him like a road runner. Warhammer could exist. Or The Fate series, or the DOOM series, jesus, how many world and/or dimensional hopping franchises are there that could end whole realities? Now I'm definitely not getting any sleep.
Edmond swaggered down the road with Gray, the alcohol having a definite, yet light effect on him. He was known for being able to hold his liquor quite well back home, but he actually felt like he could throw 'em back even better here. He wondered if his magic abilities had anything to do with that. "Say Gray, do wizards ever seem to have generally better tolerances to alcohol than non-wizards?"
Gray raised his eyebrow at the somewhat sudden odd question "Well, if you're using Cana as your test subject for wizards then yea." he answered, his constantly annoyed personality chiming in "Although, in general no. At least, not that I've seen".
Edmond stared down at the stone brick road beneath their feet as they walked "Ah, I see." He said simply.
Gray looked over at Edmond "Why'd you ask that all of a sudden?"
Edmond continued to stare down at the path, and didn't seem to intent on answering. Gray merely shrugged, continuing to walk onwards as Edmond followed. He noted that Edmond, despite clearly being buzzed, still seemed to be able to walk fine as well as talk fine, albeit slurring a couple words here and there.
"Ya know, you might just be as good at holdin' your liquor as Cana is." Gray told Edmond, "Although I could be jumping the gun. You did only have a few drinks tonight."
Edmond's attention changed when Gray asked that "Ya think?" He asked. That idea seemed a little odd admittedly, considering that he had witnessed Cana take a literal cask of beer and chug it down which, while being something he would see on the show, still seemed rather surprising after witnessing it in person.
"Well, I wouldn't want to go too far in saying that. She does have a reputation to uphold." Gray stated, chuckling a bit. But then his mind decided to trail off somewhere else. "Say, so you said that you've only had your magic for about a week?"
Edmond looked towards Gray, his eyes bright "Yep, same thing for my friend that I saved too."
Gray's eyes narrowed slightly "How exactly did that happen? Did you read a book about it or did someone grant it to you? Or What?"
Edmond heard Gray's questions clearly, but didn't know quite how to answer them. He figured the best way would be to tell a...partial truth "Well, in all honestly they just kinda came suddenly. I don't really recall exactly how it happened, I just know it did."
Gray hummed in thought "Well, I can't say that I've heard of anyone just getting their magic out of the blue like that. Usually someone's magic would have to be learned or taught." Gray held his hand up to his chin while thinking "And you said your friend received his at the same time as you?" Edmond then confirmed Gray's question, a small hint of concern present in his mind "Then I wonder if there's some sort of connection there."
Edmond merely shrugged and shook his head. "Beats me. All I really know is what I told you. It just kinda happened."
Gray pondered this for a short moment, then stopped suddenly "Well, whether you know how you got it or not, at least you're using it for the right reason."
Edmond didn't really know how to respond to that, but felt very appreciative of Gray's comment. Although after discussing this with Gray he found himself wondering just how it is he actually came to possess this magic. He of course knew that he must have died in his old life, given the circumstances, but there were still many questions as to how he ended up here specifically in the first place, let alone how he got his magic.
After a while the two arrived at Gray's apartment, the modest accommodation appearing surprisingly scarce and simple. Then again, Gray never was one for fluff, so Edmond wasn't particularly surprised.
"Well, for now you can sleep on the couch. I don't have another bed, sorry."
Edmond waved his hand around "ah, don't worry about it. I've had to deal with sleeping in an abandoned house for a while, so this is actually a pretty big step up." Gray raised a brow at that, but decided not to question further. A few minutes later, Gray had decided to go to sleep early, leaving Edmond with a few pillows and a blanket for the couch. There were a few pictures around the living room where he could see younger versions of the main cast of the show. He had been tempted to ask Gray about the pictures, but decided to keep quiet. If he seemed too clueless, he might come off as dull, or just suspicious.
He sighed as he laid down to finally get some proper sleep after everything that had happened since Erigor first attacked Ginville, and thought about how Harry might be doing right now. No matter what though, Edmond had a good feeling about the future, and what laid before him and Harry.
Author's notes
Another chapter complete, with this one, once again, taking longer than I would have liked. Thankfully It came out the way we wanted it, allowing me to give some exposition with Harry's scenes, while giving some action with Edmond's. Not sure yet what the next chapter will be, but it will likely focus on one of the two instead of it being intermingled like this one.
So, I know no one knows, but I went on a trip this past weekend out of state, and was away from my computer, meaning that I got absolutely no writing done these past few days. This chapter was already nearly complete when I left, so there wasn't much left for either I or Black_Hawk to add.