I'm here to announce that I have set up a "COMMISSION SERVICE" (Emphasised to make you all aware) on my Ko-fi account. And if you have not followed me there yet, then be sure to do it now! You'll be able to get early access to story chapters and be able to know the progress of your favourite stories! Also with this commission service, you'll be able to request stories and add an OC of yours into a story! So be sure to check out my Ko-fi account right now:
kofi.c om (slash) christophernagura
(Line Break)
Chapter 13: Distorted Relationship
A week has passed since Natsu and Yuki were able to successfully complete their mission in Libel City. After obtaining their rewards from Rito, the two no longer needed to worry about their funds for a long period of time, much to their relief as Yuki was certain that it was only a matter of time before they found trouble within the independent guild at
Thus, after resting up and gathering supplies at Libel, the two proceeded to leave the city and travelled north of the city and eventually arrived at Hydnora City, one of the various port cities scattered throughout the Fiore region which specialises in their trading services and is even a tourist location for most due to the pristine ocean and rivers within the city.
Though, despite the city's beauty, most of their time spent was spent around the outskirts of the city, allowing Yuki to both train and meditate daily. However, whenever they did get free time after their training session, the two would wander around Hydnora and take in the sights. Though Yuki would often argue that the amount of time they had wasn't enough to properly take in the sights, not that Natsu bothered listening to of course.
Speaking of which, the pinkette and ravenette were currently sparring each other as part of Yuki's training as the girl sent a downward slash at the pinkette who easily parried it away.
Though the girl continued pushing onwards with the attack as she used the momentum to send a roundhouse kick at the Dragon Slayer who caught her kick and pushed her back, which caused her to drop to the ground.
"I don't know if you're getting better…or worse. At the very least it's one of the two." Natsu sighed as he dusted himself off while Yuki merely got back up on her feet and glared at the pinkette.
"Well, it's not like you're even teaching me anything! All you do is stand there and criticise me without giving me any tips!" the girl pointed accusatorily at the Dragon Slayer who scoffed in response.
"The whole point of sparring against you is for you to learn how to counter someone in a fight. If you can't even show a bit of ability during our spars, then I highly advice you to just go back home." The ravenette's eyebrows began to twitch in annoyance as she listened to the Dragon Slayer's words.
'Do you think I haven't been trying and that I enjoy getting beaten up! Because I most certainly do not!' she thought, but barely managed to stop herself from wording out her thoughts.
Seeing as the girl kept quiet, the pinkette pulled out a small stopwatch he had acquired and before turning back to the girl, "You're free to take a break. Make sure to return back here in an hour." With that, the Dragon Slayer began to walk off as he decided to go and clear his mind. He did feel a bit hungry, and he would rather be anywhere but with the ravenette at that moment.
The moment the Dragon Slayer walked out of the forest, Yuki immediately dropped to her knees and groaned loudly, uncaring if the pinkette's enhanced senses would be able to hear her or not.
"Urgh, he's just so infuriating!" Eara could only laugh uncomfortably as she watched her friend complain about Natsu…again. This hadn't been the first rant the ravenette had gone about the pinkette.
If anything, since their arrival to Hydnora, the girl had been complaining about the Dragon Slayer to the Exceed countless times. Mainly about how he never really cared about her, or that he wasn't giving her any encouragements or praise for anything she did right.
As much as she cared for Yuki, seeing as the two had raised up together, even she couldn't help but be annoyed at how often she had to listen to the girl. However, she couldn't blame her partner either considering how the girl had lived her life before this. Back in Fairy Tail, Yuki had plenty of help from the people around her, from her guildmates, her friends and even her family members. They would constantly push her and give her compliments about the things she did which managed to boost her ego.
Though, ever since she had been training with the pinkette, all the things she had learnt and expected were thrown out the window…all caused by the enigmatic pink-haired Dragon Slayer.
It was as if Yuki was a fuse, then she had finally reached her breaking point about Natsu.
"Well, he can be hard to talk with, but he's really kind! He even got me some fish after all!" the Exceed said with a bright smile, recalling the time she had requested for some fish, and surprisingly, he didn't even say a word and fished out a couple of fishes for her to eat.
That act alone was able to win the Exceed's full trust.
"Yeah, it's good that he can be kind to you, but why does he always treat me like such an annoyance?" She growled, recalling the numerous times when she tried to interact with him.
Sure, she wouldn't say that she was extremely polite, and she can admit that she has let her curiosity get the better of her in numerous occasions, but it was strictly so that she would be able to know the pinkette better. Despite knowing him for nearly a month, she barely knew the guy!
The biggest question for her would be what was his connection to the Fairy Tail guild in general. During their short encounter, it was clear that the elder members of the guild, her grandfather and his group, were the only ones who knew him.
However, try as she may, the pinkette would either ignore her, or brush off her question as if he didn't hear her DESPITE having enhanced hearing. Heck, it was to a point that she was starting to believe that Alex was a much better person to the pinkette. Though it was close. Very, very close.
"It's as if getting along well with me is going to kill him or something with the way he's acting!" Yuki said in rage as she threw her sword to the ground in anger.
Eara sighed as she picked up the sword before handing it back to the girl. She knew full well that it would take a lot for the girl to finally let go of her rage.
"Maybe walking around the city might cool your head! Maybe we can catch some fish along the way!" Eara's eyes shined brightly the moment she said it, causing the ravenette to sigh before a smile formed on her lips.
Leave it to Eara to fix her mood.
"Alright, let's go on then! Hopefully we won't bump into that insensitive pink-haired jerk while we're there." The ravenette smiled as she began walking off with the Exceed sighing in relief before closely following her partner.
Location: Hydnora City
Yuki and Eara couldn't help but be in awe as they wandered around the city. Despite already making a couple of visits to Hydnora in the past week, they were still completely blown away by the city they were currently in. The appearance of the city was vastly different from the peaceful Magnolia and the technologically advanced city of Libel. However, in terms of sheer beauty, Hydnora had both of them beat.
'If there's one thing that I'd take out of this adventure, it'd be getting an opportunity to see all the different cities across Ishtar.' The girl thought to herself with a smile.
While she had gone to far-off places such as Crocus before with the guild, this was the first time she had been to the Western edge of the Kingdom; and she lived in the Kingdom for eighteen years already!
As Yuki continued to enjoy the scenery before her in a steady pace, she was unaware of a brunette, who looked to be around the same age as her, running straight at her direction.
It was only inevitable for the two of them to crash to each other.
Yuki groaned as she dropped to the ground as she placated the concerned Exceed who hovered over her.
"I'm so sorry about that, I wasn't looking where I was going." The man who crashed into her apologised as Yuki was about to tell him that it was alright when she had a good look at his face.
The man had short, spiky chestnut-brown hair and his eyes were a mesmerising hazel coloured. He was wearing
The girl couldn't help but blush the moment she took in the man's appearance. Heck, he was probably the most handsome person she had met in her entire life!
"I-it's fine. I wasn't paying attention either." She responded as the girl felt her heart began to beat rapidly at the mere sight of the man in front of her.
'W-what is going on with me? Why am I feeling this way?' The girl thought in wonder as she felt her cheeks begin to flush.
For as long as she had lived, she had never felt any sort of attraction towards anyone of the opposite gender, even if she managed to catch their attention. Heck, she had met many male models for Sorcerer Magazine when she went alongside her grandparents, yet none of them made her heart skip a beat like now.
However, while the feeling she was experiencing was foreign to her, it was a…nice feeling if she was honest.
"Well, it's good to see that an attractive girl like you isn't hurt." He said with a smile as ravenette somehow managed to push her blush down as she asked the man.
"Ahem, w-what are you doing here in Hydnora anyways? You don't look like a merchant." She stuttered at the beginning as he flashed a smile at her.
"Well, in truth I actually came here because of a mission from the council." He admitted causing Yuki's eyes widened in surprise.
'From the council? That was when worry began to seep into the girl's heart.' Was she, his target? Did Fairy Tail report about Natsu and her to the council? There was a possibility of that happening ever since the Dragon Slayer was revealed and the hostility he got from legends of the guild.
Though her worries were unfounded as the brunette shrugged his shoulders, "Yeah, apparently there's a crazed killer wandering about in the city and he's already killed several high-profile mages, so the council decided to get me to handle him." Sighing in relief, Yuki calmed herself before worry filled her eyes as she stared at the brunette.
"Are you sure you'll be alright? Don't you think you should get some help for this?"
"Well, it would be scary, but I'd like to believe in my abilities, since I AM a member of the Wizard Saints." The man exclaimed proudly and once again it caused the ravenette's eyes to widen in shock.
"Wait, you're part of the Wizard Saints?" The ravenette exclaimed in shock and amazement as the brunette nodded his head before pulling out something from his pocket, only to reveal a small badge as Yuki stared at it.
Since her father was a part of the Wizard Saints, she had seen the badge firsthand before, which was why she was surprised to see another member of the group in the city they were in!
"That's right, name is Kurai Tanaka the Tenth Member of the Wizard Saints, and if you don't mind me asking, may I know your name?" The man now revealed as Kurai asked as he directed a smile at the ravenette who couldn't help but feel her face flush yet again.
"M-my name is Yuki, Yuki F-" Though the ravenette quickly stopped herself from saying her last name seeing as she and Natsu were on the run from her guild. Upon noticing this, Kurai smiled at her.
"You don't have to worry about giving me your full name, just Yuki is enough." He reassured as the girl sighed in relief.
The two proceeded to have a chat together as the brunette told her all about some of the adventures he went through, and the more time they spent together, the more Yuki was entranced by the man known as Kurai. Not only was he good-looking, but he was also kind to her as well. It was at that moment when the ravenette's stomach began to growl hungrily causing the girl to blush in embarrassment while Kurai chuckled in amusement.
"How about we talk some more over some lunch? It'll be my treat." Kurai offered and Yuki's eyes shined and she was about to agree to it, but that was when Eara tapped on her shoulder and reminded her of the time, causing her eyes to widen as she recalled that she DID have something to do in a bit.
"Sorry about that, but I have training with…my friend." She tried saying the word with a straight face. She really did!
Though, Kurai was easily able to detect this and shot her a concerned look, "Are you alright? Is your friend training you alright? Is he forcing you to do anything?" Yuki was quick to shake her head.
"It's not that. It's just that…he's not exactly the best, but someone I know trusts him, and so I'm willing to put my trust in him!" The brunette frowned the moment he heard those words but he nodded his head in understanding.
"I see…well, just remember that if you ever need help with your training, I'll be willing to give you pointers. I'll only be here for a few days since I'm on a mission for the Council. I hope to see you again, Yuki." With a wave goodbye, Kurai got up from his seat and proceeded to walk off, leaving Yuki and Eara by themselves.
"So that guy's a Wizard Saint just like your dad? That's pretty cool!" The Exceed exclaimed with a smile as Yuki nodded her head in agreement.
'I hope that I'll be able to see him soon…' The girl thought with a smile before she and Eara began walking back to the forest where Natsu was waiting for them.
(Line Break)
A few days has passed since Yuki first met up with Kurai, and Natsu and Yuki were still training within the Outskirts of Hydnora City.
While Natsu wanted to move on to their next destination so that he would be able to gather more information about the Ankhseram Cult, the ravenette somehow managed to convince the Dragon Slayer to stay at Hydnora longer, much to his suspicion. Though, he just went along with it and continued to train her.
The reason for Yuki's persistence in staying? Well, she did it mainly to interact more with Kurai. Since meeting him, the girl was fascinated and enamoured by the Wizard Saint.
In fact, during every break she had, Yuki would make it an effort to go and find the brunette to spend time with him. Though…while she was happy being with Kurai, the same can't be said for the current moment she found herself in.
Yuki cried out in pain as she crashed to the ground after taking a direct kick from the pinkette.
"You're distracted…again." The Dragon Slayer muttered in annoyance as he narrowed his eyes at the girl before him.
Ever since a few days ago, the girl was constantly being distracted by…something. He had no idea what it was, but it was affecting her training as she would constantly make mistakes she normally wouldn't.
"Look, I have no time to babysit you every single time. I'd rather you not waste my time if you continue to be like this." He said in boredom, and those words had been the final straw for Yuki.
The ravenette turned towards Natsu, her eyes glaring heatedly at the Dragon Slayer, "Fine! Since I'm such a pain to help out, then I'll go and have Kurai to help me out instead! Because unlike you, he actually cares about me!"
The Dragon Slayer rolled his eyes at what she said, "Sure, why don't you get that random guy to help you out. I'm sure he's going to teach you all sorts of things." He said sarcastically.
For some odd reason, Yuki couldn't handle the idea of Kurai being insulted by the pinkette in front of her, "You take that back! You don't know a single thing about him! Besides, he's a member of the Wizard Saints, so I'm a 100% that he could beat you too!" She retorted, but Natsu had long grown tired of their conversation.
"Fine, since you want to stay with him so much, you stay with him then." He sighed in exhaustion as he waved his hand at the girl, angering her even further.
'He doesn't even give a damn about me…' She thought angrily.
Though she also felt…a bit of sadness. The girl quickly shook her head at that and proceeded to walk away from the pinkette without even saying as much as a goodbye.
However, unknown to the ravenette, the wheels of fate have finally begun to spin.
Omake
Awake or Asleep?
"I don't know about this Yuki…" Eara said in concern as she stared at the ravenette who was leaning across the walls next to Natsu's room.
"I need to find out! Every time we're together I've never seen him sleep once, and I must find out!" Yuki whispered in determination, knowing how strong the man's senses were.
'Well, if we ever get caught, I'll just let you get the blame then.' The Exceed thought to herself as she sighed.
This had always been the case for the ravenette. Any time something interested her, she would never sit down and wait for someone to tell her. Rather, she would get up and find it out herself. It was exactly that case which brought them on this journey with the Dragon Slayer and another case that would land the two in massive trouble.
Heck, the reason why the two of them were sneaking outside of Natsu's room in the first place was because of Yuki's curiosity. Ever since boarding the train to Okinawa City, the ravenette was filled nosiness to find out if the Dragon Slayer actually slept or not.
Logically speaking he should be sleeping, but the girl wouldn't take no for an answer, and with that, the two were currently outside his hotel room, with Yuki gently placing a cup on the door before placing her ear atop of it.
"I don't hear anything coming from his room…So he must be asleep, right?" Yuki asked her partner, who had her ears planted to the door.
"Hmm, I can't hear a single thing…so maybe you're right?" Her response caused the ravenette to grin happily, finally being able to conclude this long-lasting mystery (it really wasn't).
Or did she…?
"What do you think you're doing?" a cold tone caused the two to jolt in shock. They hesitated looking back, but found themselves doing so anyways and were greeted with the cold stare of one Natsu Dragneel.
"Uh, the two of us were just-"
"Doesn't matter." The Dragon Slayer cut her off, and the two began to shriek in fright.
The next day, Natsu proceeded to triple her training as punishment and it was safe to say that Yuki promised herself that she would never do something as pointless as that ever again.
Especially when it involved a particular pinkette.
End Chapter
I'm here to announce that I have set up a "COMMISSION SERVICE" (Emphasised to make you all aware) on my Ko-fi account. And if you have not followed me there yet, then be sure to do it now! You'll be able to get early access to story chapters and be able to know the progress of your favourite stories! Also with this commission service, you'll be able to request stories and add an OC of yours into a story! So be sure to check out my Ko-fi account right now:
kofi.c om (slash) christophernagura