Ch. 2- Brother and Sister
Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima
Story and OCs © Me
"So that's what you guys were up to while I was away?"
"Yeah. Macao's home safe and sound and Romeo got his dad back."
It was nightfall by now, and Natsu, Lucy, Happy, Haru, and Blue Fang were all sitting around a campfire together, eating the croquette sandwiches that Mirajane had packed for them. Well, Natsu, Lucy, and Haru were eating the sandwiches. Happy and Blue Fang were just eating some raw fish that they had caught in the river nearby.
"Poor Macao," said Haru as she sat against Blue Fang's side. "Getting turned into a Vulcan of all things. I'm glad you managed to save him."
"Heh," Natsu smirked before he stuffed at least 5 sandwiches in his mouth at once. "Well, you know... it's all in a day's work."
"Romeo was happy to get his father back, too," said Lucy as she ate just one sandwich. "We may not have gotten money from it, but seeing that little boy's smiling face was reward enough, I feel like."
"Absolutely," Haru agreed. "Had I known about what was going on, I would have gone with you."
"Ah, that's okay, sis," Natsu reassured as he rubbed his slightly distended stomach. "You were away, yourself, right? How could you have known, anyway?"
"Aye, don't worry about it!" added Happy as he tossed his fish bones to the ground.
"Thanks, you guys," Haru said with a smile while Lucy stared at her, pondering.
'Was she away because she was looking for Igneel, too?' she thought as she watched Haru, who noticed her gaze.
"What's up, Lucy?" Haru asked.
"Oh!" Lucy exclaimed. "Sorry! Didn't mean to stare... I just got lost in thought, that's all."
"Aye, she's always spacing out like that," Happy quipped, causing Lucy to glare at him. "She's such an airhead, sometimes."
"Happy, that's not very nice!" Haru chided while Blue Fang growled at the little blue cat in agreement, causing him to gulp nervously. "You better apologize to Lucy, right now!"
"Uh... s-sorry, Lucy...!" Happy squeaked while Lucy smirked.
'Well, it's nice to see that someone's on my side,' she thought.
"Hey, Natsu," Haru said as she stood up and spread her legs out in a fighting stance, her fists raised up and her head down. "How about a quick spar, huh? The night's still young and I can't afford to get rusty!"
Natsu smirked before he stood up, his stomach slimming down as he took the same posture. "Even in our downtime, you're always ready to go, huh, sis?"
"I learned from the best," Haru replied with a smirk of her own. "Now, come on!"
"All right," Natsu replied. "As always, I'll let you have the first shot!"
As soon as he said this, Haru swung her right fist at Natsu, who dodged to the side before he tried to punch back, but Haru ducked her head down before it could connect, then raised her right arm to block a kick from his leg. As they continued to throw and block blows, Lucy watched the pair continue their little fight from a safe distance. She kept close watch of Haru's swift and graceful movements as she deftly dodged Natsu's punches and kicks and blocked his punches by pushing his fists away with her forearms. Natsu, meanwhile, ducked and weaved around Haru's own moves before he raised both hands to block a punch to the face, and all the while, Happy was cheering both of them on while Blue Fang just quietly wagged his tail.
However, more than anything... Lucy noticed how much both Natsu and Haru were smiling as they continued to exchange blows.
Eventually, though, Haru managed to duck under Natsu's arm as he threw his fist forward and she swept her foot under his legs, knocking him down on his back as he landed with a grunt.
"And Haru wins it!" Happy exclaimed while Natsu and Haru both panted heavily. The latter, after taking a moment to catch her breath, reached her hand down to the former, who grinned before he caught her hand in his, allowing her to pull him up to his feet.
"Not bad, Haru," Natsu praised as he put his hands on his hips. "You've improved while you were gone!"
"You weren't too bad, either!" Haru replied. "It's nice to know that you haven't just been stuffing your face until you're so bloated, you can't even move."
"Hey!" Natsu exclaimed before he pulled her into a headlock and began to give her a noogie, causing her to shriek before she burst into laughter, causing him to do the same, and it wasn't long before Happy was giggling himself while Blue Fang just barked and wagged his tail. Even Lucy was laughing at the siblings' roughhousing.
'They sure get along,' she thought. 'It must have been a long time since Natsu last saw Haru... they must have really missed each other.'
As Natsu and Haru kept laughing, Lucy felt her heart swell as she hugged her legs to her chest.
'Watching them together like this... it makes me feel happy, too.'
XXX
The following day as the sun rose high over the hilltops, the group had finally arrived at Aurora Village: a small, humble town just northeast of Magnolia. As they first passed the entrance gate, they were rather quick to draw attention themselves, seeing as how they were three teenagers and a blue cat riding on the back of a large wolf that was at least twice their size. Lucy only smiled and waved her fingers sheepishly at the villagers who stared at her, but for Natsu, the staring was the least of his worries.
"Ugh..." groaned the Fire Dragon Slayer Wizard as he put his hands over his growling belly. "I could sure use some breakfast."
"That's always the first thing you think about whenever we go places, huh?" asked Haru with a chuckle. "You never change, Natsu."
"So, who do we talk to about these bandits?" asked Lucy as she looked around. "So far, this place seems like a sleepy little village to me. Nothing out of the ordinary."
"Hmm..." Haru hummed as she looked down at the flier that Makarov gave to her before they left. "According to this flier, the person we're supposed to meet up with is someone named Regis Mornstar."
"Ooh, that's a fancy-sounding name!" Happy cheered.
"And it looks like the reward is... 50,000 Jewel," Haru added.
"So, if we split that between the 4 of us," Happy began, "it'd be 12,500 Jewel for each of us!"
"Yeah, that sounds about right," Lucy agreed.
"Oh, that's right," Happy realized. "How are we gonna split it up so we have enough for Lucy, too?"
"Hey!" Lucy shouted. "Don't tell me you thought about splitting it with Blue Fang! He's a wolf! What would he want with money?!"
"Happy!" Haru scolded.
"Kidding! I was kidding!" Happy cried.
"Excuse me. Are you the wizards from Fairy Tail?"
The group looked up to see a young man of at least 19 years standing in front of a house. He had dark blue hair that was tied back in a short ponytail, a white dress shirt with a dark green vest over it, a pair of brown trousers with a red sash around his waist, and a pair of black boots with silver buckles.
"Yes, we are," answered Haru. "Are you Regis Mornstar, the one who called for us?"
"Yes, I am," Regis nodded. "Thank you so much for coming."
"Of course," answered Haru as she hopped off of Blue Fang's back. "How can we help?"
"And while we're at it, you got any grub, man?" Natsu asked, weakly.
"Oh, very polite," Lucy quipped. "Would it kill you to say 'please'?"
"No, it's quite all right," said Regis. "You must be hungry after your journey here. Please, come inside and I'll explain everything."
Soon, the group was inside of Regis' house... except Blue Fang since he was too big to fit through the door. The young man served the group a bowl of hot stew made with lamb, carrots, and various herbs, which Natsu all too happily slurped down while the girls talked. Happy, as always, just gnawed on some raw fish. It was then that Regis gave them the details regarding the job.
"So, the girl who got kidnapped," Haru mused. "Her name is Gloria?"
"Yes," Regis replied. "She's my younger sister by 8 years. These bandits, they've actually been bothering this village for quite some time, now. Normally, they just go to the local tavern and drink the place dry without paying for anything... but lately, they've gotten bold. They started ransacking other people's houses and taking any valuables they find."
"So they just did whatever they pleased?" asked Lucy.
"Yes," Regis answered. "We were too scared to do anything about them... but my sister, she was always so brash and reckless. She always hated when the bandits took advantage of us." He knitted his brow and clenched his fists together. "I guess... she got that from our Father."
"Your old man?" Natsu asked with his cheeks stuffed to bursting.
"Our Father was a wizard, you see," Regis replied. "He used to be part of a guild, too, though I don't remember which one since it was such a long time ago." He took in a deep breath before heaving a sigh. "Anyway... our Mother died after she gave birth to Gloria, and then a few years later, our Father was killed by monsters while on a job."
Happy gulped nervously at that while Lucy and Haru both bit their lips. Even Natsu had gone quiet by now.
"So, ever since then, I was left to raise Gloria on my own," said Regis. "One day, I discovered that Gloria was able to use magic, too, just like our Father did... but..."
"But what...?" Haru inquired.
"I... I discouraged her from using it," Regis replied, causing the group to gasp quietly. "I know what you're thinking: why would I do something like that?" He then swallowed thickly as he continued. "It's just... our Father got killed with his recklessness because his magical abilities made him overconfident... I was just afraid my sister would end up the same way as he did!" He bit his lip and clutched his head. "But now... it's because of my foolishness that she ended up in trouble with those bandits in the first place!"
"What do you mean?" asked Lucy.
"...I ended up saying something that I shouldn't have said," said Regis. "One day, Gloria told me that she wanted to become a great wizard like our Father... but I wouldn't hear of it. I... I told her that she was being stupid and that she should just forget about it altogether!" He then sniffled as he began to drag his hands down his face. "She... she said she wanted to prove that she could be a great wizard... so she challenged the bandits... and then...!"
"...That's when they took her prisoner," Natsu realized.
"It's my fault!" Regis sobbed as tears streaked down his cheeks. "I should have been more supportive of her... but I just didn't wanna lose her! She's the only family I have! Is it bad that I just wanted to protect my sister?!"
The room fell silent, save for the sound of Regis' choked cries... but then, Haru reached over and put her hand on his own, causing him to look up at her as she gave him a warm, kind smile.
"Of course, it isn't," she said. "She's your sister. Of course, you wanna protect her." She glanced over at Natsu. "That's what big brothers do. They take care of their little sisters and just want what's best for them."
Natsu smiled at his younger sister, as did Lucy and Happy.
"Haru..." Lucy whispered.
"We'll definitely get Gloria back for you," Haru said. "I promise."
"...Thank you...!" Regis whispered in joy. "Thank you so much!"
"Of course," Haru replied. "Now... where are these bandits?"
"I'll show you," Regis answered as he wiped his eyes and led the group outside, pointing toward a tall mountain in the distance. "They make their base at Mt. Tiberius. It's very dangerous because not only do the bandits make their base there, but the path is filled with dangerous beasts."
"D-dangerous beasts?" Lucy repeated, nervously. "There aren't any... Vulcans, are there?"
"Don't worry about it, Lucy," Natsu reassured. "After all, beasts are no problem for Haru. Right, sis?"
"You got that right!" Haru said with a wink. "Let's get going. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can find Gloria and get her home. I just hope we're not too late."
With that, they all hopped on Blue Fang's back and rode toward the mountain with Regis waving them off.
"Good luck!" he called. "Please bring Gloria home safely!"
"We will!" Haru called back as Blue Fang kept running toward the mountain while Regis watched them disappear... his brow furrowing in thought.
'...An older brother's job is to protect his sister... isn't that right, Dad?'
XXX
Meanwhile...
"She went this way! Over here!"
"I see a blood trail leading this way!"
A group of men was searching the forest, holding torches and armed to the teeth with swords, spears, and bows and arrows. Not only that, but they were seen holding large red dogs by chains, the canines sniffing the ground in search of their quarry and snarling as they looked around.
Nearby, hiding behind a tree... there sat a young girl with neck-length dark brown hair, wearing a pale rose shirt with the word "GLORY" in bold purple letters, a white skirt with a brown belt around her waist, and a pair of black boots on her feet. She panted and seethed quietly as she clutched her arm... where blood dripped from a large gash.
'I can't believe I let those losers get the better of me...' she thought as she held her wound, trying not to let it bleed any more blood... to no avail.
And to think, this all started with some petty little argument.
Flashback
"What do you mean, I'm out of my mind?!" Gloria questioned as she glared up at her brother, who had his back turned to her as he stood in the doorway of her bedroom.
"You really think you'll make something of yourself by acting like a reckless fool?!" asked Regis. "Don't be ridiculous!"
"Why are you so against me being a wizard?!" asked Gloria. "It's because you're jealous, aren't you?! Because you don't have any magic powers of your own!"
"You're wrong! That's not why, at all!" Regis shouted. "Dammit all, Gloria, just listen to me-"
"No!" Gloria spat. "I'm tired of you acting like you know what's best! When I grow up, I'm gonna be a great wizard like Dad was and I'm gonna join the strongest guild in Fiore!" She then pointed up at a poster on her wall that held the Fairy Tail guild emblem. "I'm gonna join Fairy Tail, whether you like it or not!"
"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Regis yelled as he turned around, slamming his fist against the wall, causing Gloria to jump. "Dad had the same attitude, and look what happened to him!"
"...But...!" Gloria started.
"No! No more!" Regis shouted as he grabbed the poster from the wall and crumpled it up into a ball. "You listen to me, now, Gloria, and I'm telling you that you are not, nor will you EVER join a wizard's guild! I'm your older brother and I know what's best for you!"
Gloria only stared at her brother, who threw the poster down and stomped it onto the floor, then turned and stormed out. As the 11-year-old girl stared at the crumpled poster... she clenched her jaw and tightened her fists until her knuckles turned white. As she did, a sphere of purple light appeared around her fists.
"...I'll show him...!" she hissed.
Flashback end
"Aha!"
Gloria gasped as she turned to run, only for one of the bandits to grab her by her hair and pull her back, causing her to yell in pain.
"Thought you could escape from us, huh, little troublemaker?" asked the bandit while his cohorts chuckled darkly. "It was a good effort, but you'll have to do a lot better than that."
"Damn you...!" cursed Gloria before she spit in the bandit's face, causing him to let out a grunt of disgust before he growled and smacked her head against the trunk of a tree, causing her to let out a cry of pain before she passed out with a weak sigh.
"Come on," said the bandit. "Let's hurry and get back to camp before the boss shows up."
With that, they all turned and walked back up the mountain path... dragging Gloria behind them as they did.
Review, please!
