Alliances

Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima

Story and OCs © Me

Summary- When the Dark Guilds begin to join forces, the only way to fight back is for the official guilds to do the same. In doing so, Natsu, Haru, and the gang meet a new friend who might be connected to Natsu's past: Wendy Marvell.

Ch. 1- Guilds Assemble!

It had been at least 2 weeks now since Fairy Tail's Harvest Festival. Haru has since recovered from her depression and not only that, but it seems that Natsu and Lucy were still in the process of starting a relationship. Granted, they had only been on one date so far, but they planned on going on another one sometime after this next job, just to see where it took them. Things weren't exactly what people would call "official" between them, yet.

Speaking of Lucy, she also had an unexpected reunion with her estranged father, Jude, who had lost his entire fortune. At first, things were a bit rocky and Lucy thought that Jude hadn't changed at all, even in spite of losing everything. However, after saving the Love & Lucky Merchant Guild and seeing how much he truly had changed, as well as hearing how sorry he was... plus hearing about how he met her mother, Layla, Lucy had decided that maybe her father wasn't a totally lost cause, after all.

Now, the team was in a neighboring town of Magnolia and Hargeon in a southern part of Fiore. A new restaurant had just opened up and it needed some new waiters and waitresses to work there until the owner got some permanent help. The restaurant was called 8-Island and it was run by none other than former Magic Council member, Yajima, who was also a very good friend of Makarov. After the incident involving Etherion and the Tower of Heaven, the old man had decided to retire and do what he had always wanted: run a restaurant.

There was just a few problems with that...

"Why the hell are we doing this, again?!" Lucy asked, wearing an orange waitress uniform. "This has absolutely nothing to do with us being wizards! And why the hell do we have to wear these ridiculous outfits?!"

"It may not be magic work," Haru began, also wearing the same outfit, "but it's still work, regardless." She blushed a bit as she pulled her skirt down a bit. "But I have to agree with you about the outfits. They're a bit much."

"Hey, don't look at me," said Natsu, wearing a black vest and matching pants as well as a dress shirt underneath. "This wasn't my idea."

"The chef here uses magic to cook all the food at this restaurant," Happy pointed out.

"Yeah," Natsu said while stuffing a drumstick in his mouth... the one that he was supposed to be serving to one of the customers. "Besides, you ought to be more grateful since we picked this job out for you."

"DON'T EAT THE CUSTOMER'S FOOD, YOU GLUTTON!" Lucy and Haru both shouted.

"I don't think dressing up as a waiter is so bad," Gray spoke up... wearing nothing but a bowtie and his skivvies as he held a tray of drinks.

"DON'T SAY THAT WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE ANY CLOTHES ON!" Lucy cried.

"Hey, I'd watch it if I were you!" Gray snarked. "Did you forget that we're doing this so you can pay your rent?"

"I-I'm sorry," Lucy stammered.

"That's no excuse you for to be in your undies, Gray," Haru quipped.

"Besides," Gray started, "just take a look over there."

As the two younger girls looked, they saw Erza sitting on a table... in a rather provocative manner, at that. The men couldn't help but ogle at her as she bent over just a bit, showing off some of her cleavage as she held a clipboard in her hand.

"So... is there anything you boys would like?" she asked in this almost sexy tone, causing the men to stare with hearts in their eyes.

"Yes, ma'am!" they exclaimed.

"See?" Gray asked. "Like putty in her hands. You and Haru should try it."

"Ugh... I suppose I could give it a try," Lucy bemoaned.

"I'll let you and Erza handle that," Haru muttered. "If I tried that, Natsu would beat up every guy in the place!"

XXX

Before too long, Team Natsu had finished up their work for the day, and the sun was already setting. By then, everyone had changed back into their usual clothes- including Gray, of course. However, the only one who hadn't changed was Erza, who was still wearing the uniform.

That's when the restaurant owner, Yajima, came out to greet them.

"Well, that was a very top-notch job you did, kids!" he praised. "I must say, I am pleasantly surprised by all your hard work! You're welcome back here, anytime!"

"Thank you very much, Mr. Yajima," Haru said as she bowed her head while Blue Fang sat beside her, having been waiting outside all this time since pets were not allowed inside the establishment.

"Yes, thank you," Erza added. "We've learned quite much from this experience."

"I think you really just like the uniform, Erza," Happy quipped.

"Man..." Gray groaned as he slumped against the brick wall. "Now I know how tired Mira must be after work."

"Yeah..." Natsu agreed as he patted his stomach, which had bloated to at least twice its size due to all the food he consumed. "And how stuffed her belly must be."

"Mira serves the food instead of eating it all, Natsu!" Lucy rebuked.

"Well, that's her loss," Natsu shrugged while rubbing his stomach.

"And your weight gain!" Lucy added.

"Seriously, Natsu, you're meant to give food to the people, not eat it yourself!" Haru added. "You're lucky Mr. Yajima was still nice enough to pay us!"

"Whatever," Natsu muttered.

"By the way, sir," Erza spoke up. "If I may be so bold as to ask... do you know the state of the Magic Council, these days?"

"Hmm..." Yajima hummed as he scratched at his bald head. "Well... it's been some time since I retired from the Magic Council."

"Wait, the Magic Council?!" Natsu, Gray, and even Haru questioned in shock.

"What are you guys getting so freaked out for?" asked Lucy. "Did you guys forget that Mr. Yajima was a member of the Magic Council?"

"H... he was?!" Haru asked.

"And after... wait..." Yajima paused as he attempted to recall what had transpired. "What was that young man's name again? Zieg... wait, no... err... Sieg...? Or... Zellard or something?"

"I believe you're talking about Jellal, sir," Erza corrected.

"Ah, yes, thank you," Yajima replied. "After he and that other interloper, Ultear, left the council in shambles, I decided to step down. Nowadays, they're attempting to make a new Magic Council." He then looked at the team with utmost sincerity. "I'm very much aware that we caused you kids a lot of trouble. I deeply apologize on their behalf."

"You don't have to," Erza replied. "After all, we heard that despite being the only one, you opposed Etherion being fired until the very end. You have the least reason to retire."

"Eh," Yajima muttered as he tossed some food in a pan, up and down. "I'm not cut out for politics... I find cooking much more fulfilling!"

Team Natsu couldn't help but smile at that, happy that the old retiree was enjoying his newfound calling as a chef.

"Oh, by the way," Yajima said as he looked to Natsu, Haru, and Gray, who all froze. "Natsu, Haru, Gray... this new council is going to be a lot more strict without me around to defend Fairy Tail's actions. From now on, I just ask that you think before you test their patience with your careless destruction... understand?"

"Y-yes, sir!" Natsu and Gray stammered.

"Ugh... he really lays on the pressure, huh?" Haru asked with a sweatdrop while Blue Fang groaned, as if agreeing with her.

Soon, Team Natsu was on their way back home to Magnolia with Yajima seeing them off.

"Say hi to Makky for me!" he called.

"We will!" Lucy replied. "Thank you!"

"Ugh..." Natsu groaned as he waddled down the cobblestone street, cradling his bloated stomach. "Belly... so... heavy...!"

"Well, Natsu, that's what you get for eating so much," Haru said as she sat on Blue Fang's back.

As the heroes left, Yajima grumbled thoughtfully to himself... a troubled expression forming on his face as he looked up at the sky.

'Ultear... where could you have gone?'

XXX

The next day, at the Fairy Tail Guildhall...

"Umm... Mira?" Lucy asked as she noticed everyone had gathered around in the central hall. "What's going on?"

"We're having a meeting," Mirajane replied as she stood in front of a large carefully organized chart that was drawn by one of Reedus' magic pens. "This chart indicates the Dark Guilds."

"Oui," Reedus nodded. "I'm the one who drew it."

"Another one?" asked Lucy while Haru came and stood beside her. "Why?"

"Lately, the Dark Guilds have been pretty active," Mirajane answered. "Not just that, but they're beginning to act in coordinated groups, too... and that means we'll have to strengthen our ties with other legal guilds, too."

"So what's with the really big circle in the middle?" asked Elfman.

"Oh, I know that one!" Juvia exclaimed as she raised her hand. "They're the most powerful of the Dark Guilds: the Baram Alliance. It's made up of three of the most powerful Dark Guilds; Grimoire Heart, Oración Seis, and Tartaros, and all of them have a number of dark guilds under their direction. They control the entire criminal underworld."

"Huh..." Haru muttered before she noticed a smaller circle in the corner, not quite as big as the Baram Alliance, but still quite big, and it seemed to be independent of the other Dark Guilds. "Hey, Mira? What's that one?"

"That's Raven Tail," Mirajane said. "It's a guild that was founded by Ivan Dreyar, Master Makarov's son and Laxus and Elektra's father."

"Oh..." Haru muttered. "That's right... I forgot about that guy."

"Hey, Eisenwald is on here, too!" Lucy exclaimed as she noticed the name on the chart.

"That's right," Erza replied. "That's the guild that Erigor used to work for... now that I think about it, he's still at large."

Haru gulped worriedly at that. Now that she thought back, the only member of Eisenwald that hadn't been arrested after that incident with Lullaby was Erigor. After Natsu defeated him, he just disappeared... and the fact that he was still at large did bother the Beast Wizard a bit.

"Apparently, Eisenwald was under the direction of a Dark Guild called Oración Seis," Gray said as he eyed the chart. "And Haru, look at this! Remember the Spider Fang Guild, that gang of smugglers? They were working for Oración Seis, too!"

"Oh, yeah, I see it!" Haru added as she spotted the name. "...I wonder what happened to those guys."

"And it looks like the Dark Guild that the Thunder Legion defeated, Ghoul Spirit, was part of it, too," Elfman pointed out.

"When Gajeel and I were in Phantom Lord, we defeated a lot of Dark Guilds that were under the direction of Oración Seis!" Juvia added with a broad grin.

"You know, you really shouldn't smile when you say that," Gray pointed out.

"Oh, boy," Lucy bemoaned. "I really hope they're not too sore about it."

"Ah, don't sweat it," Wakaba reassured. "From what I hear, that guild only has 6 members!"

"Just 6?" Macao repeated. "That's pretty small, don't you think? Doesn't really make any sense."

"It's still considered one of the strongest Dark Guilds, don't forget!" Mirajane chided, causing the two of them to freeze.

"About that..." a voice spoke up, causing everyone to turn and see Makarov, who was wearing his fancy coat with medals, and Elektra standing behind him.

"We'll be taking on Oración Seis!" Makarov announced, causing the whole guild to gape at him in disbelief... except Natsu, who was stuffing his mouth with food again.

"Oh! Welcome back, Master! Elektra!" Mirajane greeted in her usual cheery tone.

"IT'S A LITTLE LATE FOR THAT, DON'T YOU THINK?!" Lucy questioned.

"Just what do you mean by that, Master?" Erza asked.

"Grandpa and I were at one of the guild meetings," Elektra replied, "and as it happens, Oración Seis became a topic of concern, considering that they've started making their move, as of late."

"Indeed," Makarov agreed. "It's become something we can no longer ignore, so that's why they must be dealt with effective immediately."

"And lemme guess," Gray said. "We're the ones who got picked for the job, right?"

"Ugh... it's one crazy thing after another," Haru muttered. "Just when things started settling down after that mess with Laxus, this starts happening!" She then sighed in resignation. "Oh, well... it can't be helped, I guess."

"Actually," Makarov began, "this is far too much for just Fairy Tail to handle."

"Huh?" everyone muttered in surprise and confusion.

"Grandpa's right," Elektra concurred. "Fairy Tail may be the number one guild in Fiore, but we're not completely invincible. If we just took on Oración Seis by ourselves, the whole Baram Alliance would bring hell down on our heads before we could so much as blink an eye."

"Exactly," Makarov nodded. "That's why... we are going to form our own alliance!"

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" everyone in the guildhall questioned in disbelief.

"That's right," Elektra nodded. "Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, and Cait Shelter... each of these four guilds are going to choose members to send. Those members will combine their strength together and take Oración Seis down, once and for all."

"But why?!" asked Alzack.

"Yeah!" Natsu agreed. "There's only six of 'em, right?! We should be able to take 'em on, ourselves! Or better yet, why don't ya just send me?! I'll turn 'em to cinders!"

"I really don't think that's such a good idea, bro," Haru said, worriedly.

"Haru's right," Erza agreed. "Besides, Master knows of the consequences that could follow."

"Uh... hang on," Lucy spoke up, nervously. "There's only supposed to be just 6 of these guys, right? If we need more wizards just to take them on... then just how strong are they?!"

"You know, Lucy," Haru began, "I'm almost afraid to know."

Hey, it's the story where Wendy appears! Yay!

Review, please!