A/N: Oh-kay! This took a little longer then I thought it would... university is keeping my pretty busy lately.
Anyway, so this chapter is more of an explaining thing and a little traveling - basically it should help to clear some of the doubts any readers have been having about what the hell kind of story this is. Other then that though, nothing much really happens... (sorry!), but that just means things will be picking up soon - cause the magic fighting's starting!
Also, future chapters will be longer - longer then the first chapter kind of long anyway.
Oh! And a big thanks goes out to aphrodite931 for reviewing!
Full Summary: Found without memory by a young boy named Selim, she is named Franca and raised and taught magic. Years later, he has disappeared along with their teacher, and Franca sets out to find him - but with a Dark Guild with a familiar face suddenly after her, what will she do? AU!ContainsOC
Disclaimer: I DON'T own anything to do with the Fairy Tail franchise mentioned in the story. And no Selim has nothing to do with the Fullmetal Alchemist anime/manga.
EDIT 8/10/2011: I did a lot of rewriting, editing and formatting in this chapter - so you should probably read this one again too...
Chapter 2 - Unwanted Assistance
The sun was already setting as I sat down in the train compartment, clothed in my original green camouflage three-quarter length cargo pants with stitches all over them - the largest one a pink flower stitched over the right knee - and a simple waist-length black jacket over my white tank top. I was also wearing two gold rings with jade gems, one on an index finger of either of my hands, and greek-style sandals with thinned soles.
As the train pulled out of Magnolia station, I took out a small pouch of brown-coloured candy to chew on for the half hour train ride from one of the many pockets - if I was lucky, I could get there before they even encountered Shinobi and maybe even avoid them getting further involved.
If not, well... I'd figure that out then.
... now I guess I'd better explain how I got to here right?
That's actually a very long story - too long for a half-hour train ride - but I guess the beginning will suffice for now. Also, I'm not very good with past stories, or subtlety either - so I'll be blunt.
Believe it or not, I don't belong here. As in I'm not 'of this world' - as in I'm from another dimension, kind of thing.
Now before you say anything! I know that this may seem like some crazy's story or something - but it's not!
I died in my own world, where all this... where Fairy Tail was supposed to be just that. A fairy tale, a story. Complete fiction...
Then I was-, well I guess the only way to really explain it would be that I was reborn - right from the baby phase - into this world. Into Fiore, Earthland.
Yep, I was reborn into a land with real magic, wizards, guilds and dragons.
And from what little I do remember, I was fully conscious and aware of everything going on around me.
You see, during my childhood here - about around three-years-old, I think - I was in some kind of disaster, and the entire village I had been living in (in the middle of a desert), including it's people and my family here, was destroyed by something.
Now I don't remember what did it exactly (Selim concluded it was from trauma), or much of anything from before that - except a few patchy memories here and there of my childhood here, and you know, the part where I lived another life, in another world, and that there, this world was fiction - so I can't tell you much about that.
But I think the craziest, most frustrating part about all this - is that's all I could remember. I remembered most of the stuff I knew about the Fairy Tail story and it's characters, etc. - but everything else... it was just gone.
I mean I know I had a brother and a sister (one younger, the other older), friends, a mum, a dad, aunts, uncles, cousins... but I don't know anything else about them except for the feelings I felt while around them - you know, all that family-type stuff.
But I'd not only lost them in a way I could never see them again - I couldn't remember their faces or their names, either.
Hell, I couldn't even remember my own name.
I was a three-year-old child with the absolutely terrorized mentality of a 17-year-old girl, whose only knowledge was that of a story she heard a few times and the feelings of an unreachable life - one forcibly lost and forgotten.
So, naturally, after I was shaken into consciousness by the one who had dug me out of the rubble, I grabbed onto the nearest living thing I could find and cried as I clung on for dear life.
... and that was how I met a five-year-old Selim-ni-san and his father, Huan-sensei.
As a hysterical, blubbering little orphan with a serious case of amnesia and dimensional displacement syndrome - well, not that I told them that last bit.
It was past dark by the time the train arrived, but the town was still alight with people.
Trying not to get distracted, I started marching down the main street like someone on a mission, when a voice called out to me.
"Franca-san! Franca, dear!", immediately I turned to see a middle-aged woman with dark hair calling out as she came towards me wearing an apron and carrying my bag.
"Maria-san!", I replied, a smile working it's way onto my face as I recognized the owner of the town's inn and my beloved, battered brown rucksack with a dozen or so metal badges pinned to it.
I clutched the bag in a hug, repeatedly murmuring 'sorry' for leaving it behind as Maria laughed at my antics.
Then, remembering what I was supposed to be doing, I asked her if she'd seen some new people in town recently, asking about me - it was a small enough town, one where everyone knew each other, so she might've noticed something.
She said there was a group of three people with red, blue and pink hair asking around in the bar of her inn just this afternoon.
That has to be them!
She also told me how they kept arguing with each other and that the blue-haired one kept randomly taking off his shirt.
I deadpanned. Yeah, it was definitely them.
"Do you know where they are now?", I asked.
"I overheard one of the old codgers telling them how to get to the ruins outside of town - but that was several hours ago-".
"-thanks, Maria-san!", I interrupted, slinging the rucksack over my shoulder as I started running off.
"Eh-? B-, be careful, dear!".
"I will, Maria-san!", I called, waving over my shoulder,"thanks again!".
I have to get there now!
With the full moon hiding behind the clouds, it was so dark that it was hard to see as I ran along the road, away from the light of the town. Trees lined the edges of the path and I could hear russelling noises as I ran.
I'm being followed.
Suddenly, six dark-clad figures jumped down in front of me.
"Stop right there!", one called as I skidded to a stop.
"The Lady said you can't get through!".
"Oh yeah?", I snapped, glaring at them,"just watch me!".
I threw the palms of my hands to the ground, a magic circle the colour of sparkling jade flashing out beneath me, the gems on my rings glowing, before spikes of earth shot up from the ground, going straight at the ninja.
As they were distracted, I quickly drew runes in the ground before putting my palms to the earth again.
The hastily drawn sigils lit up with the same green light, forming a square around them as the spikes suddenly seemed to take on a life of their own and began thrashing about like tentacles, wrapping around the assailants and enabling me to go on without pursuers.
They're already here! Not good!
As I approached the ruins, I could hear the sounds of fighting - I grimaced, trying to ignore the growing pain in my legs, and ran faster.
"Karyuu no-!". Natsu.
"Ex-quip!". Erza.
"Ice-make!". Gray.
I ran into the clearing surrounding the fortress ruins, colourful sparks of magic from the fight lighting up the night from over the stone walls.
I remember there being a gap in the defenses on the east side... if I could just make it around- damn it! They caught up faster then I thought!
It was the ninja from earlier - and they were not alone.
I was surrounded and so out-numbered.
Slowly, I started backing up towards the wall behind me until I hit it.
Then I smirked as an idea occurred to me.
Quickly, I slammed my hands down onto the ground again and they tensed, expecting an attack - but instead, as the jade magic circle spun around me on the ground, and column of earth shot me up into the sky, only stopping when I got level with the top of the wall.
I jumped off, running to the edge of the inner wall - to see something absolutely insane.
Natsu and Gray were fighting off most of an entire battalion of shinobi - while Erza was fighting both the rest of them and Carmen... by herself!
I mean, I know Fairy Tail guild members like these three are crazy powerful and all - but come on!
End Chapter
~Sneak Preview~
"Thanks, Maria-san", I said as she handed me a key to baths as we stood in the doorway of our room in Maria's inn.
"It's no problem, dear", she replied,"goodnight".
"'Night", I replied, closing the door, then I turned to walk over to my bag that was sitting on the bed and starting rummaging through it, looking for one of my extra bags of candy - the stress was starting to get to me, and when it did, I could eat several bags of the stuff.
Note to self; remember to go to Midas Town to replenish candy supplies.
"So! Now are you gonna tell us what the hell you did to these guys?", Natsu complained from his seat on the window sill.
"Ay! We can help, you know!", Happy pipped up. A curious little thing - blue, talking and flying cat that he was.
"Yeah, they seem to really have it out for you", Gray added, and I could see them all watching me carefully from the corner of my eyes.
I stared down at my hand that held the candy bag in my hand, silent, as what felt like a million thoughts a minute suddenly ran through my head as the fight in the ruins played back in my head.
Why?
Why is he doing this?
I suddenly felt sick.
My appetite lost, I dropped the candy bag back into my bag, and closed the drawstring, tying it up in a knot as I slumped down onto the bed.
I sighed, long and deep, sitting on the edge of the bed.
If they were going to help - and they obviously weren't taking no for an answer - then I'd have to explain a few things-, things about a life spent traveling all of Fiore looking for someone who obviously doesn't want to be found and making some serious efforts to make sure of it.
I turned to face the three. Natsu still sitting on the window sill with Happy next to him, Gray on the chair by the desk and Erza on the other bed in the room, and I started.
"I think to answer that question... you first need to know a few things about me".
~End Sneak Preview~
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C ya,
Milley02