Chapter 23: Chapter 23: Reunion
Beta read by Shigiya
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-Magnolia-
The ride back home was more cheerful than expected. Everyone got to listen to Macao's story during the entire trip back. Broly learned about the man's magic, flare magic, and transformation magic. He also learned a few basic knowledge about magic and how it worked with the people in this world, aside from what Gretel already taught him.
To say he was impressed would be an understatement. Everything about magic always fascinated him regardless of their effects, he still enjoyed watching Lucy summon her Spirits, and now being surrounded by powerful wizards made him feel very giddy.
Poof!
Macao decided to showcase some of his magic by first changing his face into Wakaba's.
"Woah!"
Of course, the Saiyan clapped his performance gladly watching the show like a kid and Macao was liking the attention. The man even swelled his chest pridefully when realizing that such a powerful mage like Broly was impressed with his magic.
"This is Transformation Magic," Macao spoke with Wakaba's voice as well, mimicking the tone and accent perfectly. "It allows its caster to change their appearance. While this Magic is a deep and complex art, basic Transformation Magic is relatively easy for Mages to learn. It is also due to their simple nature that this isn't ideal in battle as a single punch can just about completely shatter the spell. So most just use it for spying, infiltration and pranks. Of course, that most depends on the level of mastery, I'll give ya more details in a bit."
With another puff of smoke, his entire body changed and now Broly found himself staring at another Broly!
"There are multiple different levels for Transformation Magic. The one I showed before can change the face alone and is called 'Basic level'. A full body transformation like this is called 'Intermediate level and from its similarities to the basic level, this level of transformation is used by wizards to change their clothes and voice as well."
'So that's how it works!' The Saiyan thought, his desire to learn such a magic growing by the second.
"… It feels weird to see a Broly look-alike talk like this." Lucy couldn't help but muttur by the side, not to mention how this fake Broly kept smoking a cigar Wakaba gave him.
"But it is quite fascinating." Broly said excitedly as he watched Macao transform again into a perfect copy of Lucy. Wearing nothing but a bikini which looked very revealing on her and the other one was just wearing shorts and a tank top.
Bang!
"Kah"
This version of Lucy was viciously punched by the real one who had her face all red from seeing the kind of clothes the man chose to wear in that transformation.
"Don't you dare do that again!" The blonde shouted, her fists steaming from the strike. "And how the heck did get my proportions so perfectly, you sick pervert!?"
"O-Oh! M-My bad, I won't do it again! Help me big man!" Macao immediately put his hands up and tried to calm the girl down. Wakaba was laughing at the scene with Happy, while Elfman gave the fallen man a big thumbs up. Natsu was out of commission, his stomach acting up ever since the cart started to move back to Magnolia.
"I saw the barmaid use the same magic as well," Broly said. "Can anyone do it?"
Macao was a bit lost by the 'barmaid' part until he realised that Broly must have forgotten her name. He didn't know anyone who called or addressed Mirajane like that.
"Oh, you mean Mirajane? Well of course she can use such a form of magic. With what she mainly used, such things are trivial to her. That girl is one of the few who can use the advanced version which can turn you into different animals. From a simple bird to a bear, though that will use a butt load of magic. And to answer your question, yes the basic version is beginner-level magic that even a child can use. With how strong you are, it'll probably take a few minutes for you to get the hang of it."
Broly doubted that, he didn't know if Ki was even capable of performing such things. For his entire life, all he learned about this power was its pure destructive capabilities.
'But wait, the man I fought before...'
Having the combined aura of the one known as Goku and Vegeta, they combined into a single being. It was something he never knew anyone could do, which showed how little the Saiyan actually knew about Ki and its usage.
Maybe he could learn to mimic their magic.
"Ah, we've finally arrived," Wakaba spoke as he looked out of the window, noticing Kardia Cathedral. "The guild should be a few minutes away, so look alive people."
"Wait, I'll drop off here," Macao said. "I want to surprise Romeo, I'll see him first before meeting the Master."
"I'm coming with you!"
Natsu jumped from his seat, looking lively after hearing they reached Magnolia. He couldn't find it in himself to stay another second inside this hell hole. He rushed out of the carriage before kissing the ground with tears of joy.
"I missed you!" He cried out in joy, weirding out some of the passersby.
"We'll continue back to the guild, I want to check up on Cana to see if she's okay," Broly said, wanting to see if he hadn't overdone it with the drinking game.
This Cana looked like a kind and fun person to hang out with. She was lively and they got along well, the Saiyan already considered her a friend. He learned from Lucy and Gretel that friends always look out for each other, so he would do the same.
"Ah, then I'll come along as well. I need to ask Mira about any free apartments to rent, we can't overstay our welcome in someone else's house like that. So better to have a place reserved just in case."
"I'm sure Cana wouldn't mind letting us stay for a bit longer. She reminds me of Aquarius, both are very kind-hearted."
Kind-hearted? Lucy wondered if they were talking about the same Spirit who wouldn't hesitate to wash her away with a tsunami attack without a care in the world. Or feed her to the fishes if she used a small puddle to summon the blue-haired woman.
"Yeah, but you never talked about me. What if she declines, seeing that it's not only you, but another person she never met coming to live inside her house?" Lucy asked, remembering the bet Broly had with the card wizard. The idea of getting kicked out of the house in the middle of the night with nowhere else to go was surprisingly stressful to her. She didn't want to set up a bad relationship with a member of the guild for such a reason.
"She said that I could take the guest room or couch. You two can share a bed. And if she's still hesitant then we can just look for another home. Natsu told me that it's quite easy to find a house around here." Broly said, confident that things would work out great for them. "Again, I'm sure this won't happen as Cana will definitely find a way to accommodate us with open arms. I haven't talked to her for long, though I can say for certain she is a nice person."
Lucy narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the man. Sure he wasn't a playboy of any kind and was a genuinely kind-hearted person, but that was what scared her the most. Broly was getting quite cozy with this Cana despite having interacted for less than an hour during a drinking game. Yet he spoke about her as if he knew her for years.
She did not like this… Aquarius was hard enough to deal with but having another one join the fray was hard to ignore.
"I don't want to question you or anything, but why do you seem so trusting of Cana? You barely know her and she could just ask me to sleep somewhere else and not be as nice as you make her out to be. Again, you hardly conversed with the entire time her and most of the time she was drunk or drinking more alcohol. I doubt she'll even remember half of what happened." Lucy doubted that woman would even wake up at all, so much alcohol was dangerous for the body and even the strongest mage could end up with an intense hangover for days!
Broly nodded, understanding Lucy's concern. But he had a good reason to trust her, aside from his guts just telling him to not doubt her — there was something else…
"I trust her because she can match me when drinking!" He said excitedly, making Lucy faceplant on the ground. That was the last thing she expected to hear from him, yet it sounded so true to his nature that it made her question how she didn't see it coming.
"What kind of reason is that!?" She demanded. "If someone you never talked to eats as much as you then they're a good person? There's no logic in that, Broly!"
Broly just laughed and began explaining, "Anyone we meet with a big appetite for food or drinks always ends up being a good person. And seeing how she enjoyed everything she drank, I can tell she must also be a big eater, like me."
Lucy was having a headache. The only person they encountered who fitted Broly's explanation was Natsu alone. He couldn't just base everything on such a simple reason. She worried that his trusting nature would come back and bite him in the future. It was like looking after a child at times, a child with a heart of gold but with the strength of a mountain and she was supposed to be the youngest one!
As they continued to talk, Wakaba gathered his stuff and exited the carriage as well, waving them goodbye from the outside.
"Alright, I'll go with the bastard, he doesn't look like he can walk without planting his face on the ground a few times and might end up falling into the sewers by accident. You kids take care." Wakaba also left, leaving behind Lucy, Broly, and Elfman.
"You can also stay at my house if things don't work out. My room has plenty of room and nee-chan has a bigger room than mine. We have a few beds in the attic you two can use." Elfman suggested, wanting to be helpful to his new guild mates.
"Aw, how sweet of you." Lucy thanked the guy. "We'll keep your invitation in mind. You really are a kind soul."
Elfman blushed in embarrassment and turned his head away.
"Hehehe, it's because I'm a man! It's my duty to help you guys out."
{Break}
-Fairy Tail-
Something felt off.
The moment Broly reached the doors of the building, he heard… nothing. The area was calm, people were talking normally and weren't causing a commotion. Everyone was drinking responsibly and not a single drop of food or trash could be found on the ground. Heck, the Saiyan even saw the room almost sparkle from how clean it was.
"Weird, this doesn't feel right."
Lucy shared his confusion as well, wary of the sudden flip from these people. They both heard from Wakaba and Natsu how everyone in the guild would usually spend their day drinking and dancing around. There would always be a fight somewhere and bottles were thrown regularly for the waitresses to develop a 6th sense.
"Ah, you're back!" The only one who remained unchanged was Mirajane. "How did the quest go? Did you find Macao? Given Wakaba and Natsu aren't here then I'll take that as a yes."
The girl acted normally, walking around serving beers and even humming while doing so.
"Hmmm, Mira-san… what is going on here?" Lucy asked as she sat near the countertop. "Why is everyone so quiet and…"
"Well-mannered?" The barmaid finished her sentence.
Lucy nodded her head. "That's it!"
"Fufufufu, might be because they are too afraid to earn the ire of the scarlet bit... demon."
Scarlet what?
Mira noticed her confusion, she just shook her head. "Oh don't worry about that. It's just a small nickname I came up with for her myself. You and the rest of the work know her by a completely different name… which I personally don't think suits her that much."
Oh, that made her even more curious. But just as she was about to ask for more information and take a guess on who she was talking about — a loud sound of a plate shattering came from behind. When she checked, her eyes widened in surprise as she almost forgot how to breathe. A scene occurred in the middle of the guild that caught everyone's attention.
Shatter!
A single plate with strawberry shortcake fell to the ground and shattered into pieces. It fell right next to someone with an armored chest plate, her entire being frozen in shock as she gazed at the person in front of her.
The girl's breathing hitched, her heart beating loudly like a drum, and widened eyes that began to tear up — someone who couldn't believe what she had seen.
The same figure she'd seen years ago, one filled with power and warmth that kept her and everyone else in the tower feeling safe. A guardian who literally fell from the sky and made a life she once considered pure hell bearable and even made some fond memories from it. A giant man whose smile always gave her hope to keep believing and never lose hope… a smile Erza thought she would never see ever again.
He looked at her, experiencing the same thing as well.
"Erza?"
The same gentle voice that hadn't changed after so long, wild hair that couldn't be combed, a physique that seemed to have gotten bigger since the last time she saw him, that familiar fur coat around his wait and most importantly — the warm aura around his person which drew her in.
Yes, it was him!
"Broly!"
Bam!
"Holy shit!" A few people cried in shock from the terrifying scene in front of them, a few even pinching themselves and wondering if this was a dream.
The girl turned into a red rocket as she rushed forward, turning into a blur, before having her arms wrap around his waist tightly. The Heart Kreuz armor clashed against him with a loud bang — turning many pale imagining the force behind that impact — which didn't even bother the Saiyan as he was in a state of pure happiness as well.
"It's really you!" She cried out joyfully, even catching everyone at a loss as she began to cry out loud. "I thought that something bad happened to you, we couldn't find you! Rob and I… we searched everywhere… I-we… Jellal and the others… I-I sorry—"
There was so much she wanted to tell him, but didn't know where to start. But then she felt his arms come around her, lifting her body off the ground effortlessly. Reminding her of a time when she used to be a small child getting comforted by him whenever she felt down. She missed it so much!
"You've grown up, I remember you being so little that you didn't even reach my waist. Now, look at you, big and strong." He said with a big grin on his face, the impact alone impressed him quite a bit. If he wasn't ready then Erza could have pushed him to the ground by accident. His eyes started stinging, weird, it was not out of sadness even.
"Y-You somehow got even taller and bigger," Erza whispered. "I have so much to tell you, so many stories about the adventures I had while in Fairy Tail. I want you to meet all of my friends, and I want you to promise to not leave me again."
He rested his hand on her head, tussling Erza's hair — a sensation the girl never thought she would enjoy this much. Wanting to stay like this forever and not seperate.
"Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere," he promised her. "I missed you, Erza. A lot."
Those words, they were enough to break the dam barely holding her feelings back to crumble. All of the suppressed pain, sadness, regret, and everything she has been trying to hide these years all came rushing out of her as she continued to cry.
Broly was letting everything go as well. Erza and everyone he met in the tower was like his family. In the past, he would have feared to stay anywhere close to them, knowing just how easily he could hurt them. But now… now all he wanted was to relish this moment without any secondary negative thoughts.
Everyone was speechless at the scene, looking at it with dropped jaws. Even Lucy was as clueless as the rest of the guild members. That was the famous Titania, a highly powerful Re-equip wizard who earned the title of the youngest S-rank Wizard in Fairy Tail. Since when did she have any connection with Broly!?
Meanwhile, Mirajane looked at the pair with a small smile adorning her face.
'So that is the man she was talking about all this man. No wonder he felt so familiar.'
Erza never gave a name, only dropping small stories here and there whenever they hung out together about her past life. This made her impression of the Saiyan grow a lot, as it just confirmed he was a kind and gentle soul who did so much for her best friend.
{Break}
After everyone calmed down, both Erza and Broly were now sitting at the bar. The duo was not really paying attention to anyone else, their minds consumed by each other. Erza was retelling her story, how she learned Re-equip and telekinesis as her two major forms of magic. Then talked about how she learned many things from Rob and Fairy Tail's master; Makarov Dreyar.
She spoke like an excited child, giving him every little detail of her life with a smile on her face that made many fearful. To see the fearsome Erza act so cutely felt like the end of the world was right around the corner. Even Gray tried to hide in the corner of the room while wearing a large hat to hide his face... and also being the only one without clothes.
"And then I trapped the Mountain lizard by pinning its legs with my swords and then used my telekinetic magic to push a large boulder half the size of the beast's head! I even got the locals' gratitude and they gifted me one of its horns. Want to see it!?" Her happiness was quite contagious with so much energy and excitement, her mouth filled with a spoonful of strawberry shortcake.
Broly listened to her stories with an equal amount of passion.
"Hehehe, maybe later." He declined, seeing how it was soon going to be night. "You truly have grown stronger Erza. I always knew you had it in you to reach such a level."
Erza unconsciously puffed his chest up, feeling both prideful and absolutely ecstatic to hear his praise. Though she tried to keep a stoic face for a short while, it immediately failed as both a smile and blush forced their way on her face.
"What about you, where were you this entire time?" She asked, curious about Broly's story.
The Saiyan scratched his chin, trying to find a way to properly tell her his life so far. It wasn't as exciting as hers, there was that one time he almost fought those evil wizards. But for the most part, he did nothing but live a normal life in the forest while taking care of his small farm.
"Hm, I was living in the forest, farming, and training." Erza raised her eyebrow at the farming part and so did Mirajane. "The place was filled with monsters like Gorians, they are very delicious. So I mostly spent my days hunting and making myself a new home. That was until I met her."
Lucy cried in surprise when he pulled her beside him. Sweat poured down her face when Erza's eyes focused on her. She stayed quiet the entire time out of fear and to avoid any awkwardness.
"Her name is Lucy, we met after I rescued her a few years ago from those monsters. After that, she kept visiting me and we became great friends! I also got to know Gretel, Aquarius, and many other people. They taught me a lot and I am forever grateful for that. Lucy was the one who brought me to Fairy Tail." He said, making the girl shiver slightly from the attention she was getting from the redhead.
"H-H-Hello, E-Erza-san... N-Nice to m-meet you!" She stuttered out nervously, with no idea what to do in front of such a beautiful woman.
But before she could react, Erza came to her and hugged the girl. "Oof!" Lucy had the air inside her lungs pushed out, the armor felt like it was crushing her body and the Re-equip wizard was using too much strength on her! Did her ribs break? It certainly felt like that!
"K-K-K... need... air." She wheezed, having her face turn blue from the lack of oxygen.
"Thank you, Lucy. What you have done for me and Broly is a debt I will never forget about and will do my absolute best to repay you. Tell me anything, I will do my best to fulfill your every desire!"
'I want to live!'
Lucy was starting to see the light, her soul already leaving her body from hugging this unreasonably strong woman. If her previous interaction with Broly wasn't enough, at least this was proof enough for her that they knew each other for a long time.
"Fufufufu, Erza, I think she wants you to release her."
Fortunately, the beautiful angel known as Mirajane came to her rescue. She dropped to her knees after the armored girl let her go. Lucy breathed heavily, taking in as much air as she could and trying to not fall unconscious from the lack of blood in her head. No wonder everyone was so silent, they were all afraid of her!
"Ah, forgive me, I didn't mean to use that much strength. For my transgression, you can hit me on the head!" Erza said, bowing deeply to Lucy.
Meanwhile, as those two were having their moment, Mirajane decided to have a conversation with the giant man.
"So, you and Erza both met in the..."
"The tower? Yes, I first saw her when I crashed there. There was also Bob, Jellal, Milianna, Sho, Simon, and many others. They were kind to me and gave me a home."
"Crashed?" Mirajane thought he was captured just like most slaves. From what she heard from Erza, those people ransacked villages and took away every child or bought them from slave traders.
As to not potentially bring up any tragic memories, she decided to ask him another question.
"How was the quest? I hope Macao didn't get hurt too much."
Broly shook his head, "He's alright, Wakaba saved him in time before I accidentally cooked and ate him."
"..."
Just what happened during this quest? She couldn't tell if he was joking or telling the truth. Wait... he did talk about eating Gorians, and Vulcans were known for their ability to possess another human. She had a suspicion that something similar must have happened to Macao. So if his possessed self were to encounter Broly...
"Pft-hahahahaha!" Mirajane burst out laughing, surprising Erza and Lucy. "That... That's so funny to imagine. Haa~... imagine the fear on his face! That must have been—" she immediately got a hold of herself when she realized her emotions were getting the better of her. "Ah, sorry about that. I didn't expect such an answer."
Erza gazed at her for a while longer, they were a team in the past. And she hadn't seen Mirajane act like that since... A part of Erza's heart yearned to see that annoying, narcissistic side of her friend once again. Though they fought often, they still were very close to each other.
"Would you look at the time, I'll have to close the place up very soon," Mirajane said, looking at the time.
Erza remembered something and turned her attention toward the Saiyan. "Wait, do you two have a place to stay? You can stay with me if you want, I have enough space to—"
"—You do realize that no boys are allowed in Fairy Hills, right?" Mirajane said, making Erza freeze up as she had completely forgotten about that rule! Curse it! Wait, she had enough money saved from her numerous quests, maybe she could bribe the Master and —
"You and Lucy can sleep in my house. Lucy can sleep in my room and you can sleep with Elfman." Mirajane's words caught the redhead's attention as her head wiped around to stare at her in disbelief.
Broly shook his head.
"No need for that, Cana said I could sleep at her house until we find a place to ourselves. Though I haven't talked about Lucy, I'm sure she won't mind."
The blonde in question immediately hid behind his back.
"..."
Sleep in Cana's house?
Just as the Erza was about to ask him to clarify his words, the wooden door behind the bar opened up with an extremely hungover Cana walking out with wobbly steps.
"Ugh... I've been drinking too much today..." She said, dragging her feet, almost falling over on multiple occasions. "Hmmnn, it's too late to buy a bed... I'll just let you share mine for the night."
For some reason, Cana felt a chill crawl up her spine.
'It got colder...?'
As she turned her head and came to face one of the most frightening scenes imaginable. Erza, no, a crimson demon was rushing at her with cold eyes and a furious frown.
"CANA!"
The card wizard screeched in a high-pitched voice, "WHAT DID I DO!?" All of her previous hangovers vanished and were replaced with a deep desire to flee the place.
"Kyah!"
But before she could even attempt to run away, armored hands clamped around her shoulders — keeping her in place. A pair of blank eyes focused on her, giving the poor girl an ominous feeling. She was shaking like a leaf when faced with this force of nature which she somehow offended.
"H-Hey there Erza… I see you came back from your quest earlier than I imagined. I hope everything went well for you?" She talked to her while trying to keep an uneasy smile plastered on her face.
Erza kept glaring at her before whispering five words near her ear.
"Take. Great. Care. Of. Him."
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"Eh?"
{Break}
In the middle of the night, in the resident district of Magnolia, three figures entered a small house near the bridge. The only light source on the inside was the single candle placed on the table. The place was cozy in Broly's opinion. It reminded me of his small shack, though this place was bigger and better furnished.
"Home sweet home!" Cana said, stretching her arms. "This place isn't much but is quite affordable. I plan to move inside Fairy Hills in the future after saving up a bit more. It's closer to the guild and even has a few benefits. But for now, this is where I live."
"Woah, it looks amazing!" Lucy exclaimed. "If possible, we would want to have a place like this."
"You like it? I can get you in touch with the landlord, that woman has a few houses all around Magnolia."
The card wizard removed her bag and threw it on the sofa.
"Well, I didn't expect there to be two of you, I made a mistake and the guest room is still not ready yet, so I can't exactly share my bed with two more people. Lucy, you can sleep with me, and Broly... I hope you won't mind the sofa. The store is closed, so I couldn't get anything more comfortable for you, sorry."
"Oh, it's fine!" He said nonchalantly, sitting down on the sofa. "I'm used to sleeping on hard floors by now."
On Vampa he used to sleep on pieces of fur and carapaces he gathered from the local creatures. Even sleeping on the floor was better, so a sofa was very comfortable for him.
"Heh, a shame we can't share a bed. We could have kept each other warm." She tried to tease the Saiyan.
"I agree, but it isn't that cold tonight so there is no need for that," Broly answered seriously, making her double take at his response and wonder if the guy was serious or just messing with her.
He wasn't joking.
"... Man, don't tell me you're as dense as Natsu." She groaned. "I still haven't forgotten about the girlfriend thing, I rather talk about it when my head isn't threatening to split into two. Oh, and Lucy..."
Cana called Lucy who was browsing through the pictures on the wall.
"Yes?"
Cana smirked deviously, "I sleep naked, hope you're comfortable with that~!"
"Excuse me!?"
Heh, at least she got a reaction from the blonde.
With that said, she went inside her room, leaving a speechless Lucy. Broly shrugged before taking off his new favourite coat before falling fast asleep on the couch in a matter of seconds.
Lucy sighed.
"What a crazy day."
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The next 5 chapters of Snafu, Harry Potter and my 3 other Fate fics (Fate Coiling Sword with 3 chapters, A Fake Familiar Reborn with 3 chapters and To love a sword having 4 chapters) are already available on my P@treon. With 4 more Broly chapters at /NimtheWriter. Also, I post monthly commissioned arts on each story, already posted a few on an Archer's Promise, Broly and Snafu.
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