Chapter Text
I looked around my favorite guild in mild amusem*nt. It never ceased to amaze me that they'd somehow always get in a brawl of some sort. And in the next five minutes it's like nothing happened, minus all the damage in the building.
Fairy Tail.
Where all the members are nakama, and are loved and protected greatly. And each member holds onto something from their past.
Like the Strauss family, who lost a sister;
the stripping Ice Mage, who feels responsible for the death of his mentor;
the scary ex-quipping demon, whose past is filled with torture and trauma;
the booze-loving card holder Mage, hoping to be noticed by her father;
the destructive Dragon Slayer, forever searching for his dragon parent.
And yet, they all smile, determined to not let their past hinder their future. This is my favorite guild. The guild I am not a member of.
If you had asked, I might have said the reason I didn't join such an awesome place was because I was too shy to just walk up and ask to join. But that wasn't quite true. The real reason would be that I'd feel unworthy.
All these mages struggled with something, and came out on top victorious. Me? I was happy.
Oh, I could have 'boasted’ on how I had handled the bullying I dealt with in school, but, really, that'd be so shallow. Especially compared to losing a loved one. A lot of it had happened because I'd open my big mouth.
All these amazing people came from broken homes, with nowhere else to turn to, and Fairy Tail became their new home.
My home? It was a blessing. Sure, with twelve children around and a father working ten hours a day, it might seem like a hassle, but we were happy. My parents loved each other and us very much, and no matter how tired Papa was, at the end of the day he was always willing to spend time with us.
That was why I couldn't join Fairy Tail. There was no place for me among these strong mages. It'd be like gloating about my happy life. But I couldn't stay away. They amazed me so much. I couldn't help but sneak in, using my magic to conceal myself, and watch in awe at these amazing, strong people, wishing that I could someday be just as good a mage as they all are. It was like a moth to a flame.
"They sure are rowdy, aren't they?" Master Makarov-sama said.
"Yeah, but that's what makes them Fai-oh, mes DIEUX!" I slapped my hand to my mouth, looking around to see if anyone else heard me. Thankfully, they were too caught up in the fight.
I stared at the tiny man next to me. Then I looked at my hands. Yep, I was still concealed. I had often suspected I wouldn't be able to hide from the fourth master of Fairy Tail. So I'd always keep an eye out for him, and if he so much as glanced over me, I'd hightail it outta there.
This time, I was too caught up in my own world to notice him. Bon sang. Now he's gonna berate me for stalking his guild. He'll never let me in through his doors again!
"Relax, child. No one can see you, and I'm not angry," Makarov-sama said, smiling. "Though, I am a little hurt that you've never introduced yourself in the seven years you've been coming here."
I blinked. Of course he'd know right from the beginning I've been coming since I was eight.
"What's your name, girl?"
"Jeanne," I whispered. "Jeanne de'Vajell."
Makarov-sama smiled. "Now, that's a nice name. Tell me, Jeanne-chan, wouldn't you rather join Fairy Tail than simply stalk us?"
My face lit up like a Christmas tree; I just knew I was beaming like a three-year-old. He's asking me to join? I could be a part of Fairy Tail? The word "YES" was on the tip of my tongue, before I remembered why I couldn't. My face fell a bit, but I still smiled. Just not as broadly.
"I'd love to, sir, really love to, but I don't think I have any place here." I figured it'd be better to tell him the truth, instead of that shy B.S.
"Oh, and what makes you say that?"
Merde. Now it had to be the whole truth.
"Well, for starters, sir, I don't think my magic is Fairy Tail material. It's not offensive or defensive at all. It's just… weak," I whispered.
"Weak?" Makarov-sama raised an eyebrow.
I nodded. "I can hide myself from others, as you can tell, and conceal others if I wanted to. But there's more," I added. "I don't know how or why it happened, but since my eighth birthday, I can kinda see other people's pasts."
"See their past?"
Again, I nodded, shamefully. "There's an aura… Each person has one, and through it, I can see them at their weakest. It's sort of like I see a short moment of what would hurt them the most if I mention it."
Makarov-sama was silent for a while. "That must be painful to watch," he finally said.
I shook my head. “No, not really. Not as painful as it is for them. It's not like I have empathy hits, I just know it'd hurt them. A lot. I've kinda learned how to avoid it, though. As long as I don't look in the purple haze, I can try to tune it out." I looked at him. "I think it also depends on how much Power the person has. You also have an aura, but I've never seen anything for you," I assured him. “It's like you somehow block me without knowing it.”
We were silent for a while longer. Finally, the Master spoke again. "Is that all?"
“What do you mean?”
“You're skilled in your study, as proven by your constant hidden returns to the guild. And you have a second power of unknown origins that is not necessarily harmful to yourself or others. I'm not hearing a reason as to why you cannot join.”
I shifted in my place for a bit, wondering if I should state my next reason. "I don't think I'd fit in!” I blurted out. “I've seen the struggles they've all overcome. If I joined, what would I have in common? They've all done so much already; they have a bond that they share: triumphing over their past. I feel like if I joined, I'd just be gloating and rubbing in their faces how different I am from them."
Makarov-sama smiled. "My child, that's mighty kind of you, but you don't need to feel like you need to suffer in order to join." He looked me over. "You're from that large family, ne? Hilde and Mathis's girl?" I blinked. I knew we were somewhat infamous, but I hadn't realized the guild might have learned of us. I nodded in affirmation. "Well, my dear, that's strong in itself. To come from such a large under-privileged family, and yet still think of others before yourself."
"We're not under-privileged!" I protested. And we weren't. I wouldn't call us privileged , but we most certainly weren't under -privileged, either. "Sir, I thank you for the offer, but I don't really think I'd have a place. And besides,” I added, “after everything I've seen, how can I look anyone in the eye?”
Makarov-sama kinda... bristled. "Child, this is not a pity guild. We do not only take the orphaned or abused. In fact, many here came before they struggled in their lives, like the Strauss family, and Macao and Wakaba both came here for the jobs and experience. There is no application requirement of a tragedy in order to join."
I shifted uncomfortably, feeling rather ashamed.
He smiled gently. "Tell me, Jeanne-chan, why do you want to join Fairy Tail?"
I had my answer ready immediately, knowing it for years. "For the jobs. I want to help support my family."
"Has that always been the case?"
I nodded. For a few years now, I had been employed by the couriers’ office, and occasionally would do odd jobs as well, such as house cleaning and yard work around the city. But none of that really helped my parents. As the years went by, and our family grew larger, my determination to help grew stronger. But I still could not bring myself to join the guild.
"Well," Makarov-sama laughed, "I see no reason to refuse you."
My eyes started to water. "Is it... is it really okay?"
"I said it was, didn't I?"
Suddenly his fist grew larger, and he smacked away a chair hurtling toward us.
"KORA!" he yelled. "You gaki need to knock it off already!"
Quickly the brawling ceased, with the exception of two young men, still duking it out: Natsu Dragneel, and Gray Fullbuster.
"Flame-brain!"
"Pervert!"
"You're dead now!"
"That's if you can touch me, droopy-eyes!"
An ice shard was sent Natsu's way, but he dodged it quickly, and instead it came towards me. I shrieked a bit and ducked. The shard impaled the wall behind me before shattering.
“Mou! You're gonna kill someone if you keep that up!"
I slapped my hand to my mouth again, and looked around fearfully. I was still hidden, but this time, everyone heard me, and was looking for the source of the angry voice. Natsu and Gray stopped fighting, and the dragon-slayer sniffed the air.
"Oi, Jii-chan! The plums are back again!"
"Huh?" Gray asked. "Plums? What are you talking about?"
"What will you do?" Makarov-sama asked quietly, not looking at me.
My heart raced, and my head was spinning. What would I do? At that moment, I didn't want to do anything more than run away. I hated being the center of attention, and once I undid my magic, I most certainly would be.
But… I had wanted to join since I was six.
Taking a deep breath, I lowered my hands and showed myself.
Five foot eight, bushy brown hair to my shoulders, in torn up tennis shoes, ripped jeans, and a baggy shirt, I stood in the doorway.
"I'm Jeanne de'Vajell. Pleased to meet you." I bowed low, not looking at anyone.
The guild was silent for some time.
"Master!" a voice called out near the bar. "Is this a new guild member?"
I looked up. It was Cana Albarona, in her bikini top next to her regular keg of booze.
"Hold on a sec," said the man I recognized as Macao. "Isn't that the girl from the orphanage?"
‘Orphanage? Quoi?’
"Ahou, that's not an orphanage! That's a whole family!" Wakaba laughed through his pipe.
The red-headed Erza Scarlet choked on her strawberry cake. "That big house with all the screaming kids is one family? "
"No way!" Natsu cried. "No one can have that many kids. They'd die!"
"Ahou!" Gray berated. "Just ‘cause the biggest family here is three, doesn't mean that's the case for others!"
"Oi, did the ahou just call me an ahou?"
"No, I called the ahou an ahou!"
They came to blows after that, causing Makarov-sama to send a giant fist their way.
"Master!" a gentle voice called out. "Shall I sign Jeanne-san up?" Mirajane Strauss was holding up a large wooden stamp.
Makarov-sama looked at me, and pushed me forward. However, he had done this by slapping me on the butt, causing me to yelp and run a few steps ahead.
"Master!" scolded Mira-san.
"Hey, it's not my fault that's the highest I could reach~!"
If I were my younger self, I would've yelled at him for sexual harassment. But I didn't want that to be my first impression with my new guildmates. So I walked over to Mira-san with a beaming face. Everyone was already back to their own world, with Natsu and Gray glowering at each other with Erza-san between them, calmly finishing her cake. Macao and Wakaba were talking loudly about how the young people were taking over the guild, but not that they were complaining. Elfman was yelling something about me being a true man, and up on the second floor, I could see Laxus Dreyer, Makarov-sama's grandson, looking down at me with narrowed eyes. I quickly looked away before I could be considered creepy. Besides, his aura had grown over the years, too. No way was I going to look there again.
When I reached Mira-san, she smiled and asked me where I'd like my mark. I grinned back, and pointed at the place where I'd always known I'd have it. Five seconds later, branded on the inside of my left arm was a violet-colored symbol of my favorite guild.
Fairy Tail.
WWW
I knew her… Somewhere deep in my mind, I had a memory of a little brat dragging me in an alleyway, and then getting upset with me for merely implying that she wasn't Fairy Tail material. But that was years ago! Almost a decade! It took her this long to finally join? She glanced up at me, then quickly looked away, as if scared of something. This was that spunky, smiling brat? The kid who called others names when they insulted her brother? What the hell happened?
