Chapter 3: Welcome To Fairy Tail...!
Chapter 2 - Welcome To Fairy Tail...!
The four stood in the front of a large building that seemed rather quant and peaceful if anyone were to walk by it. Ichigo looked at it with a small sense of hope, Lucy with a sense of awe and wonder as this was the first time she had seen a guildhall before, but Natsu and Happy looked at it with nostalgia in their eyes and smiles on their faces.
If any place on the face of this world could be classified as their home, it would be this guildhall, and with this in mind they began to walk forwards, Ichigo and Lucy following shortly thereafter.
When they reached the doors of the building, Natsu flashed a toothy grin, not even bothering to look back at his new acquaintances. He prepared to open the door in an excited fashion, just knowing somewhere in his heart that both Ichigo and Lucy would love it.
"Welcome to Fairy Tail…" Natsu said before making to open the door.
{Inside the Guildhall...}
"What's up everyone, we made it back alive!" Natsu shouted upon entering the building.
"We're home!" Happy chirped, flying behind the shoulder of the dragon slayer with a smile spread across his lips.
Somewhat to Ichigo's surprise given Natsu's method of entrance, the members of the guild looked over towards the pink-haired mage with smiles on their faces and only joy in their eyes. It was the same look he saw whenever he entered the home and greeted his own two sisters, yet here it seemed to be a commonplace expression despite the fact that these people couldn't all possibly be related by blood.
"What's up Natsu? Welcome back." One of the members said quietly before taking another sip of his drink.
"Good ta' see ya kid." Another commented.
'Wow, this place is so vibrant.' Lucy thought, smiling as she allowed the essence of what it was to be in an actual guildhall flow through her mind.
Ichigo just kept looking around observationally in order to get a better sense of what people from Fairy Tail were like, and, outside of several peoples' choice in outfits, everything appeared to be rather normal. Moreover everyone seemed very laid back and relaxed, but that part he had expected just from knowing Natsu a short while. He couldn't really picture the fire mage being a part of anything that was remotely regimented.
"So I heard you went all out in Hargeon, Natsu. Had to go start some trou…" A man began.
Sadly, said man didn't get to finish his sentence as the foot of the pink-haired dragon slayer quickly made contact with his face. He flew across the room a moment later, destroying a table in his path and successfully confusing both Ichigo and Lucy, however only one of them was afflicted with a mild sense of panic.
'The hell did he just do that for?' Ichigo wondered confusedly.
"Why did you do that?!" Lucy exclaimed, her words mirroring exactly what was going through the substitute's head just a moment prior.
"You lied about that Salamander, I'm gonna kick your ass!" Natsu stated matter-of-factly, speaking to the man who currently lay in the debris of a wooden table and effectively ignoring the blonde's question.
Ichigo just looked at the dragon slayer with a deadpanned expression, not actually believing anyone would fight for that reason. But with how the man reacted it became very clear that the desire to fight was mutual.
"Don't get mad at me, I'm not the one to blame here. I was just passing along a rumor I heard." The man countered.
"It was just a rumor?!" Natsu questioned in an angry tone.
"You wanna fight?" The man challenged.
"Let's go!" Natsu shouted in response.
The two then charged at one another and began throwing punches and fists, but the rest of the guild just watched like it was nothing special. In fact several of them didn't even seem to notice the squabble was occurring.
However, most of them were forced to acknowledge it shortly thereafter as the confrontation between the two wizards quickly spread all across the guildhall. Tables began to get knocked over, drinks and food fell onto the wooden floor, and more and more people began to enter the brawl as a result, though they just picked fights with random people nearby.
'I'm so confused…' Ichigo thought as he observed the myriad of confrontations that started to occur.
"Now, now Natsu, I think you need to calm dooooooooooooooown!" Happy exclaimed, having been hit and sent flying like a Ping-Pong ball before he could even finish his sentence.
It wasn't too long before it seemed absolutely everyone in the guildhall had started to fight someone in some manner, they didn't even seem to care who they were throwing punches at. Ichigo supposed if they weren't at him it didn't matter, so he didn't care, but when he turned to look at his blonde-haired acquaintance he found himself surprised by her reaction.
"Oh wow, I'm actually standing inside the Fairy Tail guild." Lucy said in an awestruck tone, a tinge of blush on her cheeks.
"So this doesn't bother you… at all?" Ichigo asked confusedly, guessing that it should just by knowing the celestial mage a short while.
"They're completely insane, but still I get to see it in person." Lucy replied jokingly.
'Insane is putting it mildly…' Ichigo thought.
"So Natsu's back huh?" A black-haired teen wondered aloud as he neared the large ongoing brawl.
Said man was moderately tall, had spikey black hair and dark blue eyes. His body was toned and muscular, which was very visible due to his only wearing a pair of black underwear at the moment, and he sported a dark blue Fairy Tail guild mark on the upper right portion of his chest.
"Come out here and fight me Natsu, we need to settle things!" He exclaimed.
"Gray, clothes." A brown-haired woman stated nonchalantly from what appeared to be a large amount of beer barrels.
The woman who had appeared to have abstained from the fight had long, brown hair that reached the middle of her back, a pair of purple eyes, rather large breasts, and a slim figure. Incidentally, her clothing only serviced to emphasize her voluptuous body more so in that her upper body was clothed in nothing more than a blue bikini top that left her stomach exposed and simultaneously revealed a pitch black Fairy Tail emblem on the lower left portion of her waist.
She sported two metal bracelets that covered her right and left bicep respectively, and three simple round metal bracelets on each of her wrists. Her lower body was covered by a pair of capri pants with two bands hanging from each legs and a light, pink belt covered by heart motifs loosely tied around her waist. The appearance of the brown-haired woman was complete with a pair of high-heeled sandals that made themselves apparent on her feet.
"I don't have time for that!" Gray shouted before jumping into the fight.
"This is why I don't date the men here, they all have no class." The woman griped before she began to drink straight from a nearby barrel of what could safely be assumed to be booze.
'Holy crap that's a lot of alcohol…' Ichigo thought.
"You're all out here whining when it's not even noon!" A stout man stated firmly from the sidelines of the fights.
The man stood very tall, had long white hair styled upwards, and a pair of blue eyes. His body was very muscular in nature, and his face was marked by a scar that ran down his right eye.
He wore a high-collar dark blue jacket with purplish blue innards, held closed on the front by a line of buttons. A pair of loose pants the same color of his jacket adorned his waste, and a simple belt held them up. In a way the man was just imposing if first appearances were anything to go by.
"I'll show you how a real man fights." He exclaimed, only to be punched by both Natsu and the black-haired teen who wore next to nothing a moment later.
'This just keeps getting weirder by the minute.' Lucy thought.
"Sure is noisy in here…" A smooth confident voice trailed off from behind the duo.
Both Ichigo and Lucy turned to see a man with somewhat spikey orange hair, a pair of sunglasses, and two ladies, one on each of his respective sides. Other than his clothing, the most noticeable thing that the two took note of were that he bared a great resemblance to Ichigo. Shortly after the man had said this, however, a projectile in the form of a wooden mug landed directly on his forehead, forcing the confident smile he wore to vanish, if only for a moment.
"I'm gonna go fight, but only for you two." The man stated, speaking to the two women who were previously at his sides.
"Good luck Loke!" The two said in unison before the man left.
At this point the entirety of the guildhall had likely begun to fight, however it was only with fists and a few kicks being thrown here and there. No magic was being used and everyone seemed as if they were genuinely having fun, a concept that was very, very strange to Lucy, but only very strange to Ichigo.
"What the heck is wrong with these people? There isn't one sane person in the whole place." Lucy thought aloud.
"Doesn't seem like it…" Ichigo commented.
"Hello, can I help you?" A very sweet feminine voice asked from, ironically once again, behind the two.
Ichigo and Lucy turned to see the owner of the voice, at which point their eyes were greeted by the sight of a breathtakingly beautiful young woman.
The woman had long white hair that curled slightly at the ends and was distinctive in that the hair that would have covered her forehead was tied in an upward ponytail. She had a pair of captivatingly gorgeous sapphire blue eyes, a curvy, voluptuous body with large breast, and a genuine smile etched across her lips.
She wore a sleeveless, ankle-length maroon dress with a pleated skirt complete with a large pink bow that that adorned her chest. Trimmings of a similar color lined her neck and various other parts of the dress, and a pair of high-heeled shoes were present on her feet.
Her demeanor was extremely calm and innocent, but given what had happened thus far it was still too soon to assume she was completely sane. This, at least, had been the substitute's prospective. Lucy, however, was awestruck and practically in shock for some reason.
"It's Mirajane, in the flesh!" Lucy exclaimed girlishly. From the way she appeared and her tone, Ichigo just assumed that the woman they were currently speaking to was somehow famous.
The female wizard giggled in a flattered manner a moment later, blushing ever so slightly at the obvious fan-girl greeting she received from the blonde.
"Come over to the counter and I can help if you need anything." Mirajane offered warmly.
The brawl continued to rage on all across the guildhall as the two walked behind the white-haired woman, though they momentarily had to dodge a few flying bodies and furnishings but nothing really all too difficult. Well, at least for Ichigo. It may have only been a few feet, but every step of the way seemed very lively given what surrounded them.
When they made it over to the main bar they took their seats, and Mirajane, in turn, walked behind the counter and began to clean off a series of glasses with the same expression still plastered on her features.
"They sure are lively today." Mira commented cheerfully, causing both of those that sat across from her to deadpan.
"Shouldn't we try to stop them?" Lucy asked, as if such a question shouldn't have needed to be said.
"I usually just prefer to let them have their fun. What they're all doing now is fairly normal around here." Mirajane replied.
'It's like a guild made entirely of Kenpachi's, but at least all of them aren't as strong or anywhere close to the real one, now that would be a nightmare.' Ichigo thought, shivering a moment later at even the concept of such a thing's existence.
"Are you cold?" Mirajane asked with a touch of concern in her voice.
"What?" Ichigo exclaimed in a confused manner.
"You looked like you just shivered a little…" Mirajane replied.
"Don't worry about it, I'm…" Ichigo said.
He paused for a moment to dodge an incoming vase, which instantly zoomed past his face and hit someone else off to his side. While unfortunate for that person, he personally really didn't want to be a part of whatever this was at the moment.
"…fine." Ichigo finished, getting a nod from the smiling white-haired woman.
"So are you two new here? Could it be that you wish to join our guild?" Mirajane guessed, her words instantly causing the blonde to glow in a childlike manner.
"Yes!" Lucy squealed, likely sounding nothing like what she had intended.
The celestial mage's reaction caused the apparent barmaid to giggle once more. After this, she turned her sights towards the orange-haired boy yet again, who didn't really seem to think the question had been directed at him as well.
However, she didn't get a chance to speak as very shortly thereafter none other than the very same black-haired boy called Gray came flying into them, almost hitting Lucy dead on but settling for crashing into the legs of her chair and scaring the blond half to death.
That wasn't really an issue given that Lucy herself was physically fine, but the man in question who had been sent flying into her chair wore absolutely nothing at all. This, naturally, came as a bit of a shock to the two newcomers.
"Eeeep!" Lucy exclaimed, shutting her eyes and turning away out of disgust.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Ichigo shouted in an annoyed tone as the man picked himself up.
Gray had, for a moment, been confused as he didn't really know the person that had just addressed him, but he very quickly understood what he had been referring to and all it took was a simple glance down at his body to confirm his suspicions.
"Dammit!" Gray roared before charging the dragon slayer once again.
Ichigo's brow twitched at that, mostly due to the fact that the tone the black-haired teen had used implied that he didn't know that he wasn't wearing any clothes. Just wrapping his mind around that concept gave him a headache. Thus, the substitute ignored it and went back to the conversation he had been having. Still, at this point the ongoing brawl was starting to get on his nerves.
"Anyway, I don't recall you giving me an answer to my question." Mirajane said sweetly, trying to get back on the topic of conversation prior to Gray's interruption.
"Well I'm…" Ichigo began.
Before he could give his answer yet another object or some fixture came flying across the room, only this time he hadn't been the one it nearly hit. The object flew directly into Mirajane's face, sending her flying back into the wall behind her with a comically large bruise on her head.
"Oh my god! Mirajane, are you okay?!" Lucy exclaimed.
"I'm okay…" Mira replied with a small smile on her face, though her eyes appeared to spin.
"Don't die Mirajane!" Lucy pleaded.
Ichigo, however, was not amused in the slightest. Having to dodge the vases and bodies hadn't been all that bad, but he needed to get serious for a brief moment in order to talk to Mirajane and find out where the master was. Needless to say, the only way he saw that happening was if he were to stop the fight. It also had something to do with the fact that it had started to get annoying, at least for him.
With one swift motion, the substitute grabbed his Combat Pass, ejected his soul form, and caught his body before throwing it over his shoulders a moment later. Whit that done, he turned to the others present in the guildhall, though none of them seemed to notice what he had done or what he intended to do just yet.
"Knock it off!" Ichigo yelled, releasing a large wave of spiritual energy as he did so.
The entirety of the room's occupants froze collectively and their eyes widened at the feel of the pressure they were just hit with. It was only briefly, but that didn't make it any less intense. Almost all at once they stopped fighting and just stared back at the orange-haired teen that had caused the guild to come to a standstill, and even those who had not been participating looked at him with both surprise and confusion written on their faces.
"Thank you." Ichigo said in a slightly annoyed tone before walking back to help up the barmaid.
Many members of the guild sweatdropped at this, but moreover they were all still confused. Not one of them outside of Natsu, Lucy, and Happy knew who he was or where he came from, and yet the feel of his assumed magic energy and the speed he was able to raise it was intense enough to make everyone in the guild just stop moving.
"Who is that guy?" One asked aloud.
"I don't think he's in our guild." Another muttered.
"How'd he do that?" Another wondered.
"Why is he dressed that way? He's also got a huge sword on his back." Someone stated.
"Why is it wrapped in cloth? Never seen that before." Another commented.
"Why is he carrying what looks like himself on his back?" Someone asked confusedly.
'I almost saw Erza for a second…' Gray thought with a slightly panicked expression.
Incidentally this was the same thought that entered Natsu's head, but his face was now marked by a massive grin that indicated his intent very clearly. It was too bad the brawl was just broken up because the thought of anyone being similar to Erza in terms of power or combat ability got him itching for a fight.
'What was that?' Mirajane wondered, her thoughts matching that of several other onlookers such as Cana.
'He could've just done that before…' Lucy thought with a deadpanned expression, though since he had eventually broken up the fight she didn't feel the need to make a comment.
The orange-haired teen let his body rest on the chair he had been sitting in, after which he made his way behind the counter and offered a hand to the white-haired woman he had only just recently met. Said woman just stared at him with an expression that made her look as if she had spaced out or was too deep in thought to be brought back by anything less than a voice addressing her directly.
"Are you alright?" Ichigo asked, his hand still extended.
The white-haired woman blushed slightly before shaking off her thoughts and collecting herself. She seemed to feel somewhat embarrassed given that she was practically staring at him in her daze, and perhaps even more so because she allowed herself to space out over something so trivial.
"Y-yeah, thank you." Mirajane replied before taking the hand and allowing herself to be helped up.
The teenage Substitute Soul Reaper nodded before he headed back across the counter, the eyes of all the mages in the guild, or most of them, fixed on him all the while. It likely had to do with his appearance at this point, on top of the fact that his unconscious body currently sat in place lifelessly on the bar chair he had recently occupied.
"So… are you also here to join the guild?" Mirajane asked, repeating her earlier question before she had been unwillingly interrupted.
"I actually met Natsu in Hargeon and he gave me the advice that I should speak to your guild's master about a bit of a situation I have. So that is why I'm here." Ichigo replied.
"That's surprising that Natsu was capable of giving you advice that didn't suck. He's a complete moron." Gray commented.
"True." Several stated in agreement.
The dragon slayer then turned towards the ice mage with a tick mark on his head and his teeth brought to bear, clearly being angered in some way by that last comment.
"What'd you say, popsicle?!" Natsu exclaimed.
"What'd you just call me?!" Gray shouted back.
Natsu immediately rushed over to the black-haired teen and punched him directly into Loke, who fell over almost instantly upon the body ramming into him. Ichigo fought the urge to slap a hand over his face given that he knew where this was going.
"Like I'd let you get away with that!" Gray exclaimed upon picking himself up.
One by one those that had previously been pacified by Ichigo's actions began to fight like the world was ending the very next day, which in turn caused said Substitute Soul Reaper to slap the palm of his hand over his face in an exasperated manner.
"Guess they're at it again." Mirajane said in an amused manner.
"You punks can be such a nuisance." Loke sneered before placing what appeared to be a magic ring on his finger.
"Took the words right out of my mouth." Gray said before preparing to fire some form of attack courtesy of a blue magic circle forming over his gripped together hands.
"I'm ready for ya." Natsu stated, calling forth fire to cover his fists in the manner it traditionally did.
"Do they always fight like this?" Lucy asked worriedly, placing the blue feline in front of her as some kind of shield.
"Yup." Happy answered cheerfully, not seeming to mind the way the blonde was using him. It was either that or he didn't understand the meaning.
'I better stop this before they blow up the building.' Ichigo thought. However, a moment later doing so became unnecessary.
A large black monster-like creature stood up in the center of the guildhall with a very evident look of annoyance about him. Lucy looked at it with a panic-stricken expression while Ichigo himself even looked surprised, despite the fact that he half-expected something weird like this to happen in the near future.
"Would you fools stop acting like spoiled children?!" The creature roared.
"HE'S HUGE!" Lucy exclaimed.
Everyone around the guild immediately froze in place, no one, at least at the moment, saying a single word in the face of the large giant.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know you were still here, master." Mira said cheerfully.
"Master?!" Lucy uttered in a surprised voice, her words mirroring the thoughts of the resident Substitute Soul Reaper.
"Our guest goes to the trouble of stopping the lot of you, and you go back to fighting just like that?!" He bellowed.
Very clearly he was respected if how perfectly still everyone was happened to be anything to go by, though that didn't come as a surprise given that he was the leader of Fairy Tail, presumably. What had come as a surprise was what happened a moment later. A certain someone didn't seem to understand that when this man said stop, he meant stop.
"Hahahahahahah, talk about a bunch of babies. Looks like I won this round you gu…" Natsu began, only to be crushed under the foot of the giant a moment later.
'Was that necessary?!' Lucy wondered.
"That was a bit extreme…" Ichigo commented upon seeing the pink-haired dragon slayer taken out of action so easily.
"What's this? Do we have new recruits?" The giant questioned, glancing down at the only two people within the guildhall that weren't members, yet.
"Yes sir!" Lucy immediately replied, though her orange-haired companion chose to say nothing.
"GRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" The giant roared out as energy began to flow off of his body.
Lucy held her hands up in an attempt to defend herself from whatever wrath she thought she had inspired within the giant, but in truth the large obsidian beast began to shrink. In fact, it shrank so much so that she stood at least three times this man's actual height.
The guild master revealed himself to be a short, elderly man with black eyes, a thick, white moustache, accompanying white hair, and a cheerful demeanor. He wore an orange hoodie overtop a white undershirt with a black Fairy Tail insignia at its center.
His shorts were also orange, and he wore something similar to a jester's hat with alternating orange and blue stripes. In his left hand he held a plain white scroll, but other than that and his hat nothing really stood out about him.
"Nice ta' meetcha'." He greeted cheerfully, raising a hand in the air in a friendly manner.
"He's so tiny! This little guy is really in charge here?" Lucy wondered aloud.
That, to Ichigo, didn't really make any sense. Granted this guy probably had more composure than that, but why insult someone who could pound you against the floor with just his foot, it didn't really make any sense.
"Of course he is! Allow me to introduce the Fairy Tail guild master, Makarov." Mirajane stated cheerfully.
Both Ichigo and Lucy looked at the elderly man, expecting to speak with him at this very point in time. However, the rather impish guild master jumped up in the air, landing in a less than graceful manner atop the second floor's railing. He cleared his throat a moment later, silencing all whispers that may have gone on in light of what was clearly to be an announcement.
"You've gone and done it again, ya bunch of clods. Just take a look at how much paperwork the Magic Council sent me this time. This is the biggest pile of complaints yet!" Makarov stated, lifting his right hand and showing a rather sizeable stack of paperwork.
"Who?" Ichigo wondered aloud, looking to Lucy for an explanation.
"They basically govern over the guilds since the king himself doesn't really meddle with them too much." Lucy whispered, giving the briefest explanation she possibly could.
"Have you kids lost your minds?! All your good for is getting the higher ups mad at me!" Makarov exclaimed, drawing many disappointed looks from the members of the guild.
To most, the elderly man looked rather aggravated, but that was somewhat understandable. Ichigo had recalled numerous conditions under which Hitsugaya had been furious with a certain strawberry-blonde lieutenant over the infuriating menial task that was paperwork, and none of that likely had a thing to do with damages caused by his subordinates.
"However…" Makarov began, doing something that both Ichigo and Lucy hadn't expected.
Within the palm of the man's hand the stack of paper ignited, burning away within a second later and becoming nothing more than a collection of ashes.
"Ta heck with the Magic Council." Makarov stated.
Lucy looked at the elderly guild master with amazement in her eyes. In fact she was so captivated that she didn't even pay any attention to Natsu jumping up into the air and consuming the ball of flaming paper Makarov had thrown down towards the first floor.
"Now listen up. Any power that surpasses reason still comes from reason, right? Magic isn't some kind of miraculous power. It is a talent that only works when the flow of energy inside of us and the flow of energy in the natural world are in perfect synchronization. To perform magic someone must have a strong mind and the ability to focus. It should take over your being and come pouring out of your soul! If all we do is worry about following rules than our magic will never progress. Don't let those blowhards on the council scare you, follow the path you believe in. Cuz' that's what makes the Fairy Tail guild number one!" Makarov stated, ending by pointing his right hand high into the air with his index finger extended and his thumb pointing out.
"YAAAAAAAAAAAA!" The guildhall cheered, mimicking the old man's action by performing the very same hand gesture.
'Didn't see that one coming.' Ichigo thought with a small smirk. Truth be told he didn't think he had ever met someone who had the exact same attitude of Makarov thus far, but he was just happy the guild master seemed easy to talk to. Now all he needed was for said man to actually be capable of helping him.
After the cheering had died down the members of the guild went about their respective business, but Makarov himself went back over to the bar in order to greet the two new prospective members.
"Excellent speech master." Mira complimented sweetly.
"Thank you Mirajane, now who might you two be?" Makarov questioned.
"My name is Lucy Heartfilia, and I'd love nothing more than to join this guild!" Lucy said in a pleading manner, causing the elderly mage to chuckle.
"Don't worry about that my dear, you've got nothing to worry about. In fact, welcome to Fairy Tail!" Makarov replied, causing the celestial mage to beam with joy.
Ichigo just watched plainly as Lucy began to happily dance and swirl around the room. Of all the people he had ever met, she was definitely the most dramatic person when happy, or perhaps at all times.
"And who might you be my boy?" Makarov asked cheerfully, closing his eyes and directing a genuine smile towards the orange-haired teen.
"My name's Ichigo Kurosaki." Ichigo replied.
"A fine name, my boy, and I really must thank you for breaking up that little squabble before things got out of hand. The way you did it though took me a bit by surprise cuz' to be honest I'm not all too used to hearing such a commanding voice from a male around here." Makarov stated jokingly, though the humor went right over the substitute's head.
It seemed to draw a chuckle from Natsu, however, as he walked up to the group with Happy on his shoulder. Apparently the dragon slayer understood the attempted joke, and perhaps Lucy understood, but she was still jumping around like a fool so it was hard to tell if she had even heard the elder mage's words.
"By the way Mirajane, could you please give our new recruit her guild mark?" Makarov requested.
"Right away master." She replied, after which the barmaid and the celestial mage headed over to the other side of the counter.
"Yeah… anyway, I'm not actually here to join your guild. I have a bit of a problem and Natsu said that you might be able to help me out." Ichigo stated, causing the elderly mage to raise a curious brow.
"Did he now? What kind of problem might you have my boy?" Makarov questioned in a friendly manner.
"He's not from this dimension!" Natsu exclaimed in an excited manner, evidently eager to see what his guild master's reaction would be.
The dragon slayer's comment, though intended only to inform the master, seemed to collectively address the entire guild if their reactions were anything to go buy. Apparently as a group, each member save for a select few turned and looked at the pink-haired mage as if he were completely crazy, or perhaps incredibly stupid, but neither implication was very flattering.
"What kind of a terrible joke is that, flame brain?" Gray asked in an annoyed fashion.
"It wasn't a joke! He really is from another dimension, he said so himself after we met in Hargeon! He randomly appeared from the sky and everything!" Natsu replied.
"Yeah right, stop being an idiot Natsu." Gray countered.
"Real men don't lie." The stout man who had been previously and simultaneously punched by both Gray and Natsu stated.
"I'm not lyin'! Tell them Ichigo!" Natsu shouted defensively, looking to the orange-haired teen to back him up and also causing the entirety of the guild to do the same.
The resident substitute, however, was currently glaring at the pink-haired dragon slayer. Very clearly he was annoyed or bothered, but Natsu, for the moment, didn't seem to understand why.
"While I wanted to speak to you about this in private…" Ichigo began, causing the fire mage to chuckle nervously given that he now realized his error in judgment.
"Sorry…" Natsu said sheepishly before releasing a nervous chuckle.
"…what Natsu said was true. I'm not really from here, period. The gist of what happened was that I happened to be traveling in a place called the Dangai, a bridge between two worlds called the world of the living and the Soul Society. I got sucked into something called the restrictive current and the next thing I knew I was in some place I now know to be called Hargeon, right in the middle of Natsu's fight." Ichigo stated.
"You were traveling in-between worlds?" Makarov questioned in a tone of clear disbelief.
"Yes, that's correct. I was leaving a place called the Soul Society, which I guess you can think of as the afterlife from where I'm from. The Dangai exists so that people called Soul Reapers can travel between the world of the living and the Soul Society to perform the duties they are required to perform. In essence they make sure souls cross over to the other side safely, but that is a very simplified version." Ichigo replied.
"So according to what you're saying, you are a Soul Reaper?" Makarov asked in an unsure voice, though it was hard to tell if he was genuinely curious or if he was just humoring the boy.
"I am not technically a Soul Reaper because I am also a living human, so that makes me a Substitute Soul Reaper. That is why I live in the world of the living and possess the powers of a Soul Reaper. That's also why I look like this and have a body with me as we speak. Normal humans actually can't see me in this form where I am from, but apparently here because magic energy is pretty much in everyone that isn't an issue." Ichigo explained.
The substitute and current human turned to get a look at the respective reactions of the guild's members and they were exactly what he had thought they'd be. They were undoubtedly looking at him like he had lost his mind, but then again that was the only real possibility at the moment. He didn't even bother explaining what anything he had just said really meant, such as what the actual function of the Soul Society was or what a restrictive current was, but in truth he really, really didn't want to do that again if he could help it. His current goal was, after all, just to find out if the guild master had any idea as to what he was talking about or what could do to return home.
The guild master himself, however, was also giving off the impression that he found what was said extremely hard to believe. His previously laid back expression was replaced with widened eyes and dropped jaw, definitely not a good indicator that he knew what could be done since it seemed as if he didn't even think such a thing was possible.
'Well that happens to be just my luck, apparently…' Ichigo thought with a sigh.
'What he said is definitely impossible from my perspective… but he said it with a straight face, I can tell that he isn't lying. So is he just crazy? He could also just be telling the truth.' Makarov thought, not entirely sure what he should say at the moment. On top of that if what he was just told happened to be a lie, he wasn't sure whether to be impressed at how whimsical and thorough it was, or outright disturbed.
"See, I told you he wasn't lying!" Natsu exclaimed happily.
"The guy probably just escaped from an insane asylum. You're sure that's not where you two met?" The brown-haired woman who had been heavily drinking asked in a lazy voice.
"Cana's right Natsu, this guy's off his rocker, and you're an idiot for being so damn gullible." Gray stated matter-of-factly.
"Oh yeah?! Ichigo, show them the badge thingy!" Natsu stated, wanting nothing more than to prove the ice mage wrong.
The orange-haired savior of the Soul Society truly had nothing to lose, and thus, he entered the body he had left on the primary bar's chair, something that most seemed to conveniently overlook given what had just occurred.
'What the hell is he doing?' Many wondered upon seeing his, presumably, unconscious body still sitting within the chair.
Within a moment of the black-clad teen entering the body it began to move, after which he turned to face the mass of guild members once again, though this time to show the opposite effect.
"A hundred Jewels says that nothing happens." Someone stated.
Natsu already stood behind him, prepared to catch the body as he had previously. With that in mind the substitute grabbed the Combat Pass and pulled the practical ejection button on his soul, sending the body flying into the dragon slayer's arms and successfully surprising a large amount of the guild, the master included.
'That was really weird, but it doesn't mean he's from another world or anything… I mean, it could just be a parlor trick or an illusion.' Cana thought skeptically.
"Pressing that badge allows me to eject my soul from its body and enter this form. This is why I am a Substitute Soul Reaper and also why you all likely see two of me." Ichigo explained.
"How does that prove anything?!" Someone shouted.
"All of you knock it off!" Makarov said commandingly, silencing, and confusing, many present.
"Master, you not saying you actually believe this guy?" Cana asked out of disbelief.
"While you all may not be able to see it, this isn't an illusion of any kind. Very clearly they are two separate bodies that house the same host, and that is something that no magic on this earth has yet created. This means that he is either telling the truth in some manner or he is some kind of magical visionary who is off his rocker." Makarov explained, causing Ichigo to deadpan given that the man had implied it was still possible he was crazy beyond belief.
"There anything else you want to see? I'm positive I can prove I'm telling the truth." Ichigo said firmly.
"Supposing I did believe you were telling the truth…" Makarov began, causing the substitute to smirk.
"Master, you ca…" Someone began.
"Silence!" Makarov barked, getting the instant effect of granting his request.
"Now, where was I? Ah, yes, if I did believe you, I wouldn't really know how to help. I've never heard of this place called the 'Soul Society', or even this precipice world for that matter. I also couldn't really tell you if there is anyone who could help you. The nearest form of magic I can think off is celestial magic, but you're obviously not from the world of the celestial spirits so I don't believe a user of that magic could help." Makarov said, a slight amount of sympathy evident in his voice.
Truth be told it actually pained him to have to say these words, mostly because they were likely the last thing the boy wanted to hear, especially if he had been telling the truth. From his perspective he was just told by someone who likely had extensive knowledge of this world and of magic that he couldn't help him, and that was a very grim reality. However, to his surprise, the orange-haired teen appeared rather calm, as he merely nodded his head in understanding.
"I see… that's alright, I didn't really expect that you'd know exactly how to help me after seeing your reaction to what I had said." Ichigo replied evenly.
Though this was a setback to him in that someone he had hoped would help him couldn't, it didn't exactly dishearten him. There was still his theory that the Combat Pass was still functional. That, coupled with the fact that his disappearance would be noticed, told him that the Thirteen Court Guard Squads at the least and Urahara at the most were likely going to figure out what happened and make an attempt at searching for him.
"Is it possible that your friends from the other side could be able to find you and help you from their end?" Makarov asked, wanting to at least brighten the boy's mood after his unfortunate answer.
"Yes, they probably can, it's just a matter of waiting for right now. It complicates things… but I'll get through." Ichigo replied, giving a small smirk to the elderly mage.
"That's good then…" Makarov trailed off with a bright smile once again coming onto his features.
'It's like I thought, I can't really do anything from my end… but this world is somehow connected to mine, which means that in the end the tracking device on my Combat Pass likely still works. Moreover they know where I was last seen and would be able to tell if I exited the Dangai, which means they'd know exactly where to look. It does suck that I have to stay here though… dammit.' Ichigo thought out of annoyance.
"Ichigo… Ichigo my boy." Makarov called, breaking the teen out of his thoughts.
"Hmmm? Sorry, what?" Ichigo asked with a slightly confused expression.
"I want you to know that if you think you're stuck here feel free to join our guild. I can assure you that you'll find none better than Fairy Tail, and I'm sure you'll fit right in given a small period of time. We're always looking for new members to our little family." Makarov said in a friendly manner, confident that the boy would at least consider the offer.
"Aye!" Happy chirped as if agreeing with the master's words.
"That sounds like a good idea to me. How 'bout it, Ichigo?" Natsu asked, placing a hand on the substitute's shoulder.
"I… can I have a bit to think about it?" Ichigo requested, completely unsure of whether or not to join the guild at the moment.
"Absolutely my boy." Makarov replied cheerfully.
"What?! But you've gotta join Fairy Tail, it's the most awesome guild ever!" Natsu whined.
"Aye!" Happy commented as the technical Soul Reaper made to enter his body once again.
Upon reentering his human body, Ichigo turned to look at the dragon slayer before releasing a slight chuckle at what Natsu and his feline companion had just said. Regardless of their inputs, it wasn't exactly an easy decision to make.
"Sorry, I can't go and make a decision like this on the spot, now can I?" Ichigo countered.
"I guess not… you still suck though." Natsu mumbled.
"I do not! I just have a lot to consider with this!" Ichigo shouted defensively.
"Anyway, I'm going to go look for a job so I'll be over by the request board." Natsu stated before walking off.
Ichigo took a seat at the main bar a moment later, after which he closed his eyes, if only for a second, and released a tired sigh. However, when his eyes opened once more, where previously he had only seen the woman he knew to be Mirajane, he saw a slew of guild members who just gave off the aura that they wanted to pry him for information.
"Umm… what?" Ichigo asked, foolishly opening the floor to the likely innumerable questions those around him had.
"So you're really from another dimension?" One of the members asked skeptically.
"Yes, but why are you even remotely believing me now?" Ichigo countered.
"If the master believes you than we will trust his judgment." Another answered.
'Fair enough…' Ichigo thought, already having gotten the sense that Fairy Tail's guild master was more than capable of garnering that level of respect.
There was an awkward silence as the group just stared at the orange-haired teen, obviously wanting to ask questions but clearly being unsure if they were able to do so.
"If you have questions, feel free to…" Ichigo began, only to be cut off by the very think he was so close to permitting.
"Where are you from?" Someone asked.
"A place called Karakura Town, it's on an island nation called Japan." Ichigo answered.
The first inquiry, however, was the very last one to be asked in a one-at-a-time manner. Immediately thereafter, they all berated him before he could even answer a single one of their questions.
"How old are you?"
"Why is your sword so big?"
"Where does your sword go?"
"How tall are you?"
"Is that your real hair color?"
"Do you have a girlfriend?"
"A boyfriend?"
"Grrrr…" Ichigo growled out in an annoyed manner, obviously not at all happy with this turn of events.
"Hahaha, alright you guys, maybe give him some space? He's probably been through a lot today." Mirajane requested through a giggle.
The nearby guild members immediately obeyed the commands of the barmaid, but Ichigo himself didn't really seem to pick up on the speed with which they disbanded, more just on the fact that they did. He turned back to the white-haired woman a moment later, inwardly sighing out of relief that at least someone didn't immediately pound him with questions.
"Thanks for that." Ichigo said, causing the young woman to smile brightly as she seemed to always do.
"You're welcome… I didn't really get a chance to introduce myself. I'm Mirajane Strauss, but everyone usually calls me Mira." Mirajane stated.
"Nice to finally meet you… and you've probably already heard my name a few times already." Ichigo said, ending with a slight chuckle.
"Yup! I know your name all right. But I couldn't help but overhear what the master just said to you. For what it's worth, this guild is by far the best in all of Fiore, so if you're going to join one I would strongly recommend Fairy Tail." Mira said with a bright smile.
'Strange how everyone in this guild seems to think the same thing…' Ichigo thought with an inward chuckle. It wasn't that he didn't think they were telling the truth, it was more of just the fact that they were a little bit biased. Even so, the guild certainly seemed like a nice place, and one he didn't particularly mind save for the constant brawls. He had enough of that whenever he ran into Kenpachi Zaraki or visited the Eleventh Division's barracks.
"I'm definitely thinking about it, but to be honest I don't know what I'm going to do at the moment." Ichigo replied kindly.
"Still, I felt I should at least say something. Gotta do my part for the guild ya know." Mira said, giving a wink to the orange-haired teen who, in turn, chuckled.
{With Lucy…}
The blonde was fresh off receiving the pink guild mark that now took its place atop her left hand, and she simply couldn't be happier. She felt so free and secure at the same time, truly everything one would feel after joining such an amazing and lively guild. At the same time, she wanted nothing more than to show it off, and so, she began to walk towards the request board, coming up behind a bored looking Natsu.
"Hey Natsu, Mirajane just put the official guild sign on my hand!" Lucy said in an exited manner.
"Oh yeah? That's cool, welcome to the guild Luffy." Natsu replied in a bored fashion.
"The name's Lucy!" The blonde shouted angrily. Her name really wasn't that hard to remember, and yet it was always either the pink-haired dragon slayer or his annoying cat.
She had been so aggravated, in fact, that she just stormed off towards the main bar once more, her face giving off her annoyance. Still, Natsu didn't seem to notice or care in the slightest as he just kept scanning the request board for a job he thought suited him.
Just as his eyes landed on a job he felt would be perfect, the sound of a child's voice caught his attention. Well, it hadn't really been the voice itself, more along the lines of the words that were said.
"How come my dad hasn't come back yet?" A child asked, sounding mildly worried.
Said child was a young boy with dark purple hair, blue eyes, and standard clothing. The look on his face seemed distraught, and the man he was addressing was none other than the master himself.
"You're starting to work my nerves Romeo. You're a wizard's son, have faith in your father and wait patiently for him." Makarov stated before continuing to finish off the drink in his hand.
{With Ichigo…}
Thus far the orange-haired substitute had caught on to the child's urgent voice. It was likely that the kid's worries were a little needless, but even so the conversation got his attention.
"But sir he told me he'd be back in three days… and he's been gone for over a week now!" Romeo shouted.
"If I remember correctly he took the job on Mount Hakobe." Makarov thought aloud.
"That's right, it's not far from here so why won't anyone go look for him?!" Romeo exclaimed.
"Listen kid, you're father's a wizard and like every wizard in this guild he can take care of himself!" Makarov replied.
"B-but…" Romeo began pleadingly.
"Now go home, have some milk and cookies, and wait!" Makarov ordered.
Ichigo frowned slightly upon hearing those words, but it was just at the words themselves and not the man who spoke them. He could tell very easily that Makarov was just trying to settle the boy's nerves as best as he could, and if that meant appearing callous then so be it. Still, it couldn't have been easy for the dark purple-haired kid to hear that coming from a person he most likely looked up to.
"Jerk!" Romeo shouted, punching the white-haired wizard directly in the center of his forehead.
The guild master let out a small grunt of pain, likely just to save the boy's feelings though that clearly wasn't noticed by the child himself. In fact it took him less than a second to storm out of the guild, tears lightly falling from his cheeks.
"I hate you! I hate you all!" Romeo shouted, charging towards the exit.
'Poor kid…' Ichigo thought, finding a small sense of sympathy in himself despite his current situation.
"That's gotta be tough…" Lucy commented.
"I know it seems like the master doesn't care, but he really is worried." Mira stated.
The resident dragon slayer then punched a hole through the request board, immediately after which he began to storm off with his expression fixed in a clearly displeased scowl and his Exceed companion at his back. His intent was very clear to the other occupants of the building, and nothing anyone said or did was likely to stop him at this point.
From the main bar, Makarov and Mirajane looked on at the display with something akin to sorrow or perhaps sympathy in their eyes. Ichigo, however, could tell very clearly that they weren't going to do anything despite this being the case.
"That kid needs to learn when to grow up." Someone commented, their words being the last straw for a certain orange-haired teen.
When one of your comrade's might be in danger, that was one thing, but to say something like that after the said comrade's kid practically came begging for help was definitely something he couldn't stand for. He wasn't even a member of the guild and he had the urge to lend a hand.
"Hey Natsu!" Ichigo shouted, loud enough for the pink-haired mage to hear his voice.
"What?" Natsu asked, turning back with a confused expression as he was just about to exit the guildhall.
"Wait up for me." Ichigo said with a small smirk.
Many of the Fairy Tail guild's members were surprised by the newcomer's words, but Natsu grinned widely at the statement given that he knew at least one person in the guildhall would care enough to tag along.
'I kinda figured it'd be him.' Natsu thought, his grin still present in full force.
The orange-haired teen grabbed the wooden skull badge that kept itself attacked to his side and ejected himself from his human body, catching it just in time to avoid a collision with the ground.
"Hey Mirajane, would you mind watching this for me? I can't really take it with me, so…" Ichigo began, only to be cut off.
"It won't be a problem!" Mirajane assured, eliciting a nod from the substitute.
Without another word or even giving a curious glance around the guildhall to see what everyone's reactions were, Ichigo began to walk towards Natsu, catching up with him very quickly before the duo and colorful flying cat were off.
"Wait for me you guys!" Lucy shouted, unable to resist the urge to help the child as well.
Shortly thereafter the resident dragon slayer as well as their newest member and a potentially insane man exited the building, the guildhall went silent. For some time everyone just stared at the entrance, somewhat surprised or confused by what had just happened.
For Natsu to do something like that wasn't very out of character, but they didn't expect two people that didn't even know the person they were looking for to go out of their way and look for one of their own members all the way up in the mountains. What was even more remarkable was that the man who claimed to be from another world happened to do this, despite the fact that he was the only one who was technically not a member of Fairy Tail and as a result had no obligation to do anything.
"So… anyone wanna mess with his body?" Cana asked to no one in particular, bringing all eyes to the unconscious 'human' body of the proclaimed Substitute Soul Reaper.
The brown-haired woman began to head towards the body with a glint in her eyes and a red marker in her hand, but immediately before she had a chance to do anything a very ominous voice gave her pause.
"Cana…" Mirajane called sweetly, bringing the woman's attention to her.
"What do you wa…" Cana began, only to stop upon seeing the sinister aura that surrounded the bubbly white-haired woman.
Her demeanor and expression were kind and caring as they always were, the warm smile on her lips and her innocently closed eyes giving off the impression that she could do no wrong. However, the feel of a demon was in the air around her body.
"Could you please not do anything like that? He did ask me to watch over it, and you know I don't like letting people down…" Mira stated, causing the brown-haired drinking expert to sweat bullets before carefully backing away.
With that done the seemingly carefree barmaid turned to the remainder of the guild, opening her eyes but still maintaining the very same sweet smile she had previously dawned.
"Anyone else?" Mira asked to no one in particular.
"NOPE!" The guild answered collectively.
"Good!" Mira chirped happily.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone