Rin sighed, content in her tree, but her mind kept going back to the incident from several minutes before. Kaito had smirked cruelly at her as he told her, once again, how much her hair resembled blood. She hated this reference, and everyone knew it. What was worse was that Kaito wasn't the only one who teased her about her hair. Although her mother also had scarlet hair, it wasn't as rich and deep as hers.
Rin looked down when she heard rustling below, wondering if someone had found her secret, sacred place. She crouched and pounced on the thing that was moving, tackling someone and got ready to beat the living daylights out of whoever had come to tease her once again.
"Oof!" Rin recoiled, not recognizing this voice. She found herself looking at a pair of onyx eyes as deep as the abyss, and her eyes widened. "Who…who are you, and w-what are you doing here?" She managed to get out, captivated by the eyes of this stranger.
"I should be asking you that, since you're the one that attacked me." Rin blinked, finally able to get a better picture of the boy in front of her. He had beautiful blonde hair pulled back into a small ponytail, his bangs framing his face. He wore a dark cloak, so she couldn't see what he was wearing underneath, but she could see that he had on black leather boots. His eyes seemed to scrutinize her as she had done to him, before hesitating on her hair.
"That's some hair you have. Almost reminds me of…" He paused, seeming to search for the correct word, his lips pursing in thought.
"Blood?" Rin finished for him, grinding her teeth. She wondered why she hadn't seen this coming, and readied herself once again to attack. His laughter caught her by surprise, and made her pause.
"I was thinking more along the lines of a scarlet rose, but I guess it's whatever floats your boat."
Rin flushed, lowering her fist. "A…rose? But that would indicate that my hair would be pretty. My hair is definitely nota rose. It's more like blood: red, gross, ugly…" She lowered her eyes, her self-esteem lowering even more as she repeated what the other kids had said. She jumped when a hand lifted a strand of her hair, and her eyes widened when she saw the boy was only inches away from her.
"You're wrong. Your hair is beautiful, just like a freshly bloomed rose. If anyone tells you differently, then they're just jealous." The boy grinned good-naturedly at her, and she found herself falling into his endless abysmal eyes, until a voice broke through.
"Hey, this is no time to flirt, Kaoru! We're trying to find Fairy Tail, remember?" Rin looked up to see a young girl with long, spiky pink hair that seemed oddly familiar to her. The girl had chocolate brown eyes and a cloak identical to the boy's, with leather boots of a similar style. Next to her stood a tall man with long raven black hair tied in a low ponytail with a muscular build. He, too, had a dark cloak on, though his boots weren't leather, but a similar material.
The boy rolled his eyes at the girl. "I know, I was just about to ask her." He turned back to Rin. "Can you tell us where the guild Fairy Tail is?" Rin blinked and nodded.
"I'm actually a part of that guild. I'll lead you there…" She stood and immediately started walking towards the Guild, the three strangers following her like shadows, silent and nearly unnoticeable.
After a few minutes of weaving through Magnolia Town, the four of them stood at the doorway to the strongest wizarding guild in all of Fiore. She looked at the strangers through her periphery before pushing open the doors to her second home.
..O..
Natsu turned around as a strange scent wafted through his nose, slightly familiar. Gajeel and Wendy also reacted, looking at the door expectantly. Sora, Wendy's son, fidgeted in her arms as the door suddenly swung open to reveal Rin. However, that was not what caused the entire Guild to suddenly go quiet.
It was the three cloaked figures behind her.
Erza suddenly leapt up and snatched her daughter away from the strangers, and the entire Guild went on Red Alert. The figures strode in, the tall one in front, while the two child-like figures trailed behind, seemingly nervous. The leader was the one who spoke. "This is Fairy Tail? I would like to speak to your Guild Master immediately. It is very important."
Natsu growled and stepped in front of the man. "And why do you need to speak to the old man?" He stared into the darkness of the man's hood, seeing the two sky blue eyes that peeked out. Something about this man pissed him off, and he was about to grab him when a voice made him stop.
"Natsu, step away." Natsu looked behind him to see Master Makarov standing behind him. He begrudgingly obeyed, but stayed close, just in case. Makarov stepped up to the figure. "Remove your hood, child, and state your business. I am Makarov, the Master of Fairy Tail."
The figure nodded and swiped his hand towards his hood, knocking it off of his head. Most of the girls gasped as they saw the face of the man, his sky blue eyes and raven hair, tied behind him like a samurai. The man knelt before the old Master.
"I am Yuuto, Patriarch of Thanatos. I have come to you to make an urgent request." At the name of the Dark guild, many of the wizards got ready to fight. Gray stepped up.
"Why would Fairy Tail, a legal guild, help anyone of Thanatos? If you've come to start a fight, or threaten us, I'll remind you that you're greatly outnumbered, especially since your companions don't seem very formidable." Many cheers went up around the room, while a low, feminine growl came from under one of the smaller hoods.
Makarov waved a hand for silence, and the room fell silent once again. Yuuto spoke, his rich voice filling the room. "Unlike what you seem to assume, I have no need to wander around and challenge entire guilds on my own. I'm not stupid. Fairy Tail will help me because, fulfilling this request can get you back what you've lost."
Natsu's eyes widened, and this time it was Levy who stepped forward. "W-what do you mean?"
Yuuto swept his gaze over the small, blue haired girl, and Gajeel stepped protectively in front of her. "Levy, correct? I've heard a lot about you. You know, she never forgot about you."
Levy's eyes glistened as she collapsed to her knees. "Y-you mean…is she okay?" She choked out. Natsu was speechless, finally understanding.
"What is your request, Yuuto of Thanatos?" Makarov asked, redirecting Yuuto's attention back to him.
"I would like you to send a team to help me recover Lucy Heartfilia, Matriarch of Thanatos."