Fiore, Crocus, Train Station

Natsu grunted and hefted his bag over his shoulder. He scanned the job request form. Honey Bone Inn huh? Natsu nodded to himself and tucked the job form back into his pocket. The streets were crowded with people out shopping and merchants trying to sell them their wares. Natsu ignored them all as he searched for the meeting place. A woman gripped his arm tightly, "Hello sonny, can I interest you in a crystal ball?" She demanded, more than asked. Natsu glared at her through the corner of his eyes.

"Let me go." The malice in those words would have, and should have, deterred any other person, but this woman wasn't going to let him go easily. In her mind such a young kid without supervision was an easy mark. A guard saw the altercation and moved to intervene but stopped when the boy flexed his arm and sent the woman flying back into her stall, crashing into a shelf of her wares. The commotion drew the eyes of the same shoppers that had ignored his plight moments before. Natsu snorted and tossed a wad of jewels at woman. "That should cover your damaged balls." He kept walking uncaring of the stares he received. The shoppers went back to their own business when it was clear the woman was only dazed. The guard however, he recognized that head of salmon hair, and the cold voice that accompanied it. Only the guild mark on the boy's arm stopped the guard from arresting him. The familiar fairy symbol on the monster's arm sent a shock through the guard as if he has just been doused with a bucket of ice cold water. Makarov is either incredibly foolish, or should be worshipped for his ability to tame this force of destruction. He went back to his post, pensieve about what the future might hold.

Natsu opened the door to the inn and surveyed the interior, his eyes drawn to a little girl with dark blue hair in a yellow sundress. Wonder where this guy is? He sat down at the bar and waited. "Aren't you a little young to be drinking lad?" Natsu looked up at the middle aged man. He was mostly bald with red sideburns and a bushy red mustache. The man was cleaning a mug with a wet rag.

"I'm on a job, do you know where I can find a guy named Roubaul?" Natsu asked whilst pulling out the job form and showing it to the bartender. The man raised and eyebrow at the maturity the kid was showing, as he couldn't be more than twelve.

"Over there, the table in the corner." He responded, pointing at a table far from the bar in a secluded corner of the inn. The dark blue haired girl from before was sitting there with a man Natsu hadn't noticed in his initial scan of the room. He tossed a few jewels onto the counter and walked over to the table they occupied.

"Are you Roubaul?"

"Yes." The old man's voice was scratchy, as if he didn't use it much. He talked quietly, Natsu had to focus on him to hear it above low murmur of the inn. "What guild are you a part of? You look a little young to be working a protection detail." Natsu was irritated by the implied insult, this was the second person that assumed he wasn't cut out for the job based on his age. He bared his sleeve to shown the fairy emblem on his shoulder, it stood out strikingly against the light bronze of his skin. Roubal's gaze changed from dismissive to calculating.

"So you're a member of Fairy Tail eh? Perfect. Wendy say hello to…?" The old man trailed off, then looked at Natsu expectantly.

"Natsu."

"Say hello to Natsu. He will be taking care of you from now on dear." The girl, Wendy, looked at him with wide eyes. She can't be more than eight or nine.

"Hello." She said in a small voice. Natsu's irritation subsided as he took in the shy girl fully.

"What does the job entail? The request wasn't very specific." Natsu asked.

"A young man dropped young Wendy off at my home not long ago, asking me to care for her as his travels were quite dangerous and not suited for one so young. I agreed thinking it would be a simple matter. The boy did not inform me that she was a mage, and quite a powerful one at that. I cannot provide the environment such a gifted individual would need to flourish. Please, take her back your girl with you." Roubal pleaded.

"I thought this was a bodyguard job?"

"It is, you will have to travel by foot. Wendy gets violently ill whenever she tries to ride trains, boats, and carts."

Natsu frowned. He looked at Wendy, ready to decline, and suddenly realised the only difference between himself and Wendy, was that she had someone who cared enough to help. I guess I can teach the kid how to survive in the wild while we work our way back to Magnolia. "Alright. I'll bring you back to the guild. Come on kid, we need to grab some supplies." Natsu held out his hand for her to take. She looked at Roubal for guidance.

"Go on child. Natsu will take you to your new family."

Wendy grabbed Roubal in a strong hug, for an eight year old, and muttered a quiet "Thank you for everything Mr. Roubal." She turned away, grabbing Natsu's outstretched hand. Natsu's gave the old man a nod, then turned around and walked away, with little Wendy following closely behind. Nobody in the inn noticed Roubal turning into motes of golden light, disappearing as they left. I needed a travel pack anyway. Natsu lead Wendy through the shopping district, buying a map, tent, and supplies for a few days worth of travel. He peered at the map, searching for the quickest route back to Magnolia.

"We'll cut through the mountains using Halcyon Pass until we reach Great Magnolia Forest, does that sound alright Wendy?"

"Yup!"

Fiore, Halcyon Pass

Natsu trudged down the path, searching for a place to rest for the night. Wendy had gotten tired of walking a few hours into the journey. Natsu carried her on his back after she started to lag behind. Both of their packs, his full of food and her's full of clothes, he carried in his hands. He sat Wendy down on the soft grass of a small clearing next to their packs, with a rolled up sleeping bag to use in place of a pillow. Natsu gathered firewood and a dozen large stones to make a small fire pit. He pointed his arm at the center of the it, before turning his head to make sure Wendy was still asleep. A white magic circle appeared at the tip of Natsu's hand and travelled up his arm to his shoulder, covering it in purple scales. "Flare." Another, smaller, red magic circle formed in front of his palm. A small trail of fire slammed into the pit, scorching the ground black. He piled half the wood outside the pit and used the rest to build the campfire. He cast Flare again and cut off the flow of magic to his transformation. The scales shattered into motes of white light and dispersed.

"Wendy, wake up." Natsu whispered while gently shaking her awake. Wendy stretched, not unlike a cat, and yawned cutely while rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Here eat some of these." he said, handing her a specialized meal bar and a canteen of water. It's getting dark, we're stopping for the night.

"Okay!" Wendy said excitedly. She eagerly unwrapped one of the bars, munching on it heartily. She seems happier, more comfortable, in the forest. Natsu pulled the tent out and set it up, while Wendy ate by the fire. Natsu sat down across the fire from Wendy.

"So Wendy, Roubal said you knew some powerful magic, right? What kind of magic is it?" Natsu asked while unwrapping his own meal bar.

"I'm a Sky Dragon Slayer!" Natsu nearly spat out the water he was drinking. This girl has killed dragons! Natsu screamed in his mind.

"You've killed a dragon?! Who taught you how to do that?!" Natsu asked, incredulousness tinting his tone.

Wendy shuffled nervously and said, "My mommy taught me, she's a dragon. And I haven't fought any dragons yet, but Grandine said when I get older I'll beat any dragon I want." the nervousness in her body language disappeared nearly instantly, replaced by fiery determination. "I don't care if you don't believe me! Grandine is real!" despite the fire in Wendy's words, there was fear of rejection behind the facade. Natsu, a twelve year old boy, who was reviled by nearly everyone he encountered was slightly more receptive to the unspoken feelings of the scared girl

"Hey it's alright," Natsu said, standing up "I believe you." Wendy looked up from her food and smiled brightly.

It's been along time for such a short chapter. But here it is. I have struggled to find inspiration to write recently but it has mostly blown past. I have figured out mostly where I want the plots for several stories to go. There was also a major plot change from the original script which required I rewrite several chapters and change things around.