Fledging Fairy!

It was a long way from home, where she was. Fibi looked at the book in her lap, a gentle smile on her face while she consulted the passages of her book. How did she come to Fiore, all the way from Pergrande Kingdom? Nearly clear across the map of known Ishtar, all on one giant passenger train. Why would someone like her go from Pergrande Kingdom to Fiore? That lied in the story of her book.

Sitting alone in her own passenger compartment as the train click-clacked along the track, smoke chugging up in to the air, anyone could see the sandy blonde haired girl reading her book, running her fingers over the pages.  Nothing out of the ordinary of someone with a fondness for books, except for the fact that her book that brought her to the train and to Fiore was blank. Empty. Nada. Nothing in the pages. Not a sign of anything.

She sighed, and snapped the covers shut before she stood up and waved the book overhead with both hands, shouting and stammering at it a bunch of nonsense. Okay, the girl may have had a problem! She was berating her book! Demanding it show her something, trying to command it to do something. "Dammit grandpa! Come out and show me more info about your journey in Fiore!" She whined a little before throwing the book at the wall.

Instead of hitting the wall, it stopped in the air and hovered, before turning to Fibi Hoenheim, opening its covers up while accusingly pointing the bookmark at her, "Oh please, you act like I'm an open book!" There was a bit of a pause there, before the book shut and turned through the air, and went right back in to Fibi's hands.

"Speak nothing of this." Said the book to the giggling girl who was now getting to read the words within the book, ink saturating the pages, journal entries, an exploration long, a few different drawings in the book with people and notes about them in it.  Fibi was so fascinated by her family heirloom. It was a peculiar book enough as is, when it wasn't the residence for her great-great-grandpa's spirit that refused to pass on just yet.

This book she inherited from her father, who inherited it from his mother, who inherited it fro-You get the idea.  It had been in the Hoenheim family for centuries, and it was still intact. For a family of art, script, and writing mages, the Hoenheim Memoir was like a primer on the magic that they all studied and developed. And now, it was Fibi's turn, to discover secrets left in the book by some of her most ancient ancestors, and mature on her own. Develop her own unique magic, and return home to give the book back when it was time to.

She was just so excited to finally see the world and be out of her stuffy home. Just as she was thinking this, the conductor called out to all the passengers on the train, "Next stop, Magnolia Town! Last stop! Get ready to hop off the train!" Fibi looked at the book, turning the pages to read some more passages from Ferris, the book's spirit's name, her great-great-granpda.

"Did you really get swallowed by a leviathan while trying to cross the ocean?"

"Of course! You wouldn't believe the size of those things out there. Must have been as big as a small island on its own. And that's all that was above the water! But, it's more like, an umbrella term to describe all of the beasts out there on the ocean. They come in all sorts of shapes, and one size, leviathan."

"I wanna see them one day."

"You're one weird girl when you want to be, you know that? Are we really related by blood?" He asked while showing the pictures of himself and her in the next page, side by side. It looked like the same person, just drawn as different genders. Ferris said she was either his reincarnation body, but his spirit wasn't ready to move on, so they jumped the gun, or that she was a long lost twin, displaced by about a hundred and twenty years.

Back on track of the railway, and on track with the story, the train came to a pitter patter stop, with a loud FSSSSSH of steam bellowing out from the breaks as the train came to a full stop, and the girl could collect her bag, enchanted just a little bit so she could store more in the luggage than the luggage had actual space. A messenger bag to hang over her side, she opened it up, wanting the book inside. "I am not some tiny puppy to be put inside of a purse!"

Fibi rolled her eyes, grabbed the spine of the book, and shoved it in to the bag, clipping it shut while the bag started to move around, with the book wanting freedom!

Stepping off of the train she pulled her black jacket's hood up over her head, the white moons adorning either side of it. She took in a deep breath, and headed off of the train, and in to the town of Magnolia, heading straight for the Fairy Tail guild hall, to see what the process of joining the guild was.

Would someone greet her on her way there? Would she be greeted at the entrance of the guild? Or would she make it all of the way in to the guild hall before being greeted by someone?

WC: 931

Just a few feet inside the grand doors to the guild hall a portal opened a few steps away from Fibi, a barefoot pale blonde girl, looking about 14 stepped out, holding a pair of ordinary looking, if whimsically-shaped red scissors She held the scissors up in triumph, "Yes! These scissors are hella boss! Totes worth every bit of jewel."

The portal closed behind the girl, and she leveled the scissors toward one of the glass elevators toward the back, "Take that, Elevator! That's the last time you'll turn my stomach in queasy knots riding you!"

She turned toward Fibi, pocketing her scissors in her dress pokcet, "Oh hey! I'm Arcadia Faircihilde of Fairy Tail." As was habit she had developed she would display the sparking sky blue guildmark on her left forearm outline in gold. "Is there anything I can do for you? While your here, I'd recommend trying some of our juice! Hasta be some of the best in all Fiore."

When that portal opened, it made this weird sound effect, like, a soft reverb of noise that was fed back in through a speaker. Which was followed by Fibi gasping and jumping up in surprise. Such a startle to the poor girl that her hood flew back and her full mane of sandy blonde hair showed, and, it looked no better than prolonged hat hair. Like a lion's mane but a bit more well kept. Immediately, Fibi swung her arms around in a quick flurry, trying to fix her her by patting it down while her red eyes looked up, as if she could see her hair was in its proper place.

As soon as she did, she took a moment to address the elephant in the room, the portal, "So cool! You guys can just use teleports whenever?" She asked with a cartoonish sparkle in her eyes and mouth agape in astonishment before she shook her head and gave herself a light slap on the cheek to snap out of it, and focus on talking to the girl before her.

"Oh, Oh right, I actually came here to join and I was," She was cut off, or rather, she was trailing off to try and find the right words to ask to be let in to the guild politely, when the arrival of a new person came, Fibi turned around to talk to Nessa, while her book hovered up out of her messenger bag.

The book hovered around Arcadia, the front cover facing the petite girl while trying to size her up, as if the book was alive. Books aren't alive! That's just silly, right? Right. Still, the book would slowly hover down on its orbit to be face to face with Arcadia as Fibi talked to Nessa, and Arcadia by extension.

"Right, I was actually, I came here from Pergrande Kingdom, and I was looking to actually come here. And I wanted to see if I could join the guild, I, came a long way to see a place about as far from my home as I could get. And, well, could you tell me what I need to do to join the guild?"

"I'm Fibi by the way, Fibi Hoenheim. I'm from Pergrande Kingdom's High Home Library." SHe bowed to Nessa, and then to Arcadia.

"What she's trying to say is, she wants to see your manager and ask some questions!" A voice butted in from the ether, out of nowhere, though, the book opened up on its own, in its pages an ink drawing of someone that looked astonishingly like Fibi, but of the opposite gender was there. The ink faded and the visage appeared again, in a different pose and facial emote, "And what have I told you about introducing us together? Huh?" The book questioned while the drawing sternly pointed its finger in Fibi's direction.

Fibi squeaked in surprise and pointed to the book, "R-Right! This is my companion, my great great grandpa, Ferris Hoenheim."

WC: 501
TWC: 1432

Nessa and Arcadia were having a chat with a new spirit who made her arrival at the front of Fairy Tail. It was interesting to see new faces arrive, because no one knew what would develop from just an encounter with someone. Would they become a reliable client? An ally? A guildmate? Or would they hold a grudge and ravage the guild’s ways in the long run? Would they leave a mark on the guild for years to come? Or would they be the next in line to bring the guild further into its golden age?

Either way, overhearing the conversation got boring. Mura also wanted to meet this new lady, but his magic was still acting up, and his wounds hadn’t healed yet…

… Nah, screw that.

A black cloud would appear in front of the group akin to the arrival of some Darkness Lord or Demon King, an even darker silhouette slowly forming up and walking towards them. With the ducktail of a hairstyle and sleek, short build, it was obvious for those familiar who was walking up - however, his left arm and forehead covered in bandages did make him appear rather shocked and in a bad condition despite fully recovering.

What Mura wasn’t that much aware of was the cold, dreadful atmosphere that Hades’ magic was emitting. It was far more different than any other type of magic that he had showcased to either of the Fairy Tail Wizards, and he would hopefully not scare the newcomer too much. That would be a punch to the stomach.

“Hey, there,” he greeted her with a relaxed smile, his Wizard Saint badge tied on his waist, “If you want to join, you do so through me today. I’m Mura Kensho, an Ace of Fairy Tail.”

Two ghostly entities soared next to his head - a bluish ball with a samurai’s face and shoulder plates, and a green dragon’s head. The black cloud dissolved into nothingness.

“You’re from Pergrande Kingdom? And what kind of magic do you possess?” Mura had to ask. He knew very well of the conditions there - no magic zone. Was she exiled?

Just as she was hoping to talk more with Nessa and Arcadia, a new person came on to the scene, someone who claimed to be an ace of the guild. She had to consult her talkative book, flipping through his pages just to confirm that an Ace was indeed one of the top members of the guild. She would be answering to this Mura person? Well,t hat didn't seem so bad. If only she didn't feel so overwhelmed by getting talked to from three different sources at once. It made the poor girl's head spin a little.

He recognized her country of origin almost immediately, while it was true that Pergrande Kingdom might have had a no magic zone, it didn't stop those with permission to use it for their duties or tasks to use it. She just grabbed on to her book, before the chatter box started up again. The book struggled in her arms, trying to speak with a bunch of muffled noises.

"Oh, I'm from the High Home Library of Pergrande, and, I came out here to explore the world, and see about all the notes written in my book here." SHe let go of the book, which floated up and opened up to reveal blank pages.

"I, like the rest of my family, all practice in writing and art magic for the sake of keeping our library in order, I'd like to stay out here in Fiore for a while, and get a feel for my magic better." She said with a deep bow to Mura.

Thanks a glittering charm anklet around her left ankle, the young slayer was not currently Little Arcadia. Even if normal teenage Arcadia was still the shortest wizard in Fairy Tail, at least it only by mere inches instead of by a couple feet. As long as she kept the very special charm anklet around her ankle she could live again as Normal Arcadia.

She didn't know if she should laugh or be angry when Mura introduced himself as an Ace in such a way to imply he was the only one in the room. That plus the time Mura and Aven came to her aid against the poisonous monster who tried to kill her and others in the guild hall, left her wondering if Mura and the others saw her capable of taking care of herself. Despite the fact that she had earned the last ace position and was readying herself for upcoming final rank exam. She had called for and appreciated their help in that poisonous monster situation, but they still had come just as she had things under control by herself. Their actions saved the monster's life from her more than they saved her from him.

She would always welcome her friends and third family's help, but did they really see her as just a little girl who needed their help, rather than an equal who would be just as happy to help them as much as they did her? It was advantageous for your enemies to underestimate you, but something else for those closest to you to do so.

Arcadia balled up a fist in frustration as she quietly clenched her jaw. In front of a prospective new member was not the time to hash something like this out. She took a deep breath to let herself relax again. All that was probably just imagined and entirely only in her own head. She managed to snicker and grin up to Nessa, Looks like Mura's volunteered to do ALL the paperwork on this one. I'll get the refreshments. Anyone want something to drink?"

She would wait for any orders before demonstrating just how lazy her new scissors let her be. On hands free operation, she opened a portal just her left, and another over by the bar. She poked her head in the nearest portal and it came out the one by the bar, where she ordered the drinks for anyone who wanted one. She would cradle them in her arms and pull them back through the portals before they closed on their own. For herself she got a watermelon-strawberry juice mix, that she began stirring and freezing into a slushy. "To belatedly answer your question. Nah we don't just teleport whenever, but I did just get these totes boss scissors this morning. I hadta test 'em out. Goodbye nausea-inducing train and elevator rides, and long exhausting flights. Hello short easy walks to almost anywhere I been and midnight raids for slushies without getting out of bed."

Sipping her slushy, she would let Nessa or Mura handle the interview, while she listened in.

The new girl did confirm her origin from Pergrande Kingdom, more specifically the High Home Library of Pergrande. Unlike his theory, she wasn’t an outcast or any runaway misfit, but she was an explorer of the world and reminded Mura of back when he wanted to explore the world himself. This developed a little relative bond between him and her, and such things weren’t strange to him. Whenever a person was able to relate to another, they often got along easier.

To be fair, Mura didn’t think less of Nessa and Arcadia. To put it more legit, he didn’t think of them as lesser Aces at all, especially when they had recently been doing way better in their duties than him… if you asked him personally, that was. And such self-degrading thoughts were the driving forces behind such rash, un-Mura-like moments such as this one where he felt a need to put himself back in the game as a responsible adult - yes, he was an adult, believe it or not.

As a matter of fact, even his ghost pals picked up on his sudden actions. Kyuken and Zirconis slowly began their chit-chatting about that:

“Oh, would you look at him? Acting all bossy with all his 5’3 height…”
“… What?”

As a dragon who couldn’t care less about units, Zirconis was thrown aback by Kyuken’s statement. However, they weren’t the only ones who noticed Mura’s behavior. As Arcadia was… flexing? her awesome scissors of absolute space-time cutting powers, she also discussed with Nessa about… oh no.

Audit report. Some clients needing their jobs submitted. Toilet. “.       .       .” Karma was unforgiving, “D:” his face literally contorted to that image as he was comically broken inside. Slowly, large pearls of tears trickled down as he shook a little with sweat pearls falling off his forehead. “W-Wha? But, what’s an audi- I mean, yeah, sure… sure, I’ll… do that… would be nice with some help… for the audio thing… anyway!" He cleared his throat of all awkwardness and turned to look back at Fibi. ”You look like you’ve come a far way to get here, obviously. That alone gives me an impression of you at first sight… persistent, ambitious, wanting to know more and not letting things slow you down. Am I right?” He always wanted the person’s opinion on his first impression of them before continuing, “Fairy Tail’s arms are open for new members. But before we continue, I’ll have to ask you; when you join Fairy Tail, you become part of a bigger family… perhaps bigger than you’d imagine at first. Is there any possibility of you harming another guild member or threatening the guild in your stay?”

He could feel the self-aware memory of Lucie in the back of his mind. He prayed every day that the day wouldn’t repeat itself, and he prayed to exchange the bad memory with all the good ones in no time.

But he had comfort and hope in this interesting lady who was also taller than him...

It was kind of daunting, now that she was knowingly in the presence of three of the guild's strongest mages. Fibi could just, you know that feeling you get, when you're in front of a crowd you aren't prepared for? That slowly creeping heat feeling? Like something is slowly crawling its way up along your body? That way it just grasps you all over, and welcomes you in close with a big old hug of anxiety and terror over the thought of saying something wrong? That's what Fibi was feeling right now. She felt like she could feel each bead of sweat forming up from her skin, the sheer thought that she was in front of a trio of strong fighters just making her become more mouse like in front of them while the spirit in the book just hovered down toward her messenger bag, tucking itself away while Ferris decided to take over a little.

"I'll have a coffee, black please." She said to Arcadia before turning back to face Mura, who was being accosted with litigation and tax filings. Paper work upon paper work. Was that really the job of the aces? It wasn't all glamour and magic slinging battles like she had heard. It at least made her feel a little more at ease, knowing they weren't a bunch of battle crazed loons.

Just as she was about to answer Mura's question in a sheepish manner, Ferris gave her a little push through the art of possession. Fibi's body rocked a little forward on to the balls of her feet as she went up to her tip toes. Her eyes getting a bit of a glow to them before she planted her heels on the ground and struck her chest proudly, "Of course I wouldn't harm anyone. And as for anyone else I know, I don't know many people in Fiore, with Pergrande being so far away and my permission being extendable so long as I have steady work here, I could not think of anything else that could cause a problem!" SHe said with a big grin, uncharacteristic for how she was carrying herself so far.

In the back of her mind, in what could be thought of as a therapist's room, Fibi sat on a mentally created couch, barking angrily at her grandfather for taking control of her body, again, because, she could handle herself!

Arcadia displayed  further laziness, using another portal to deliver Fibi's black coffee and some juice for Mura.  She handed an iced tea straight to Nessa since big sister was already right there. The young slayer took a glass with her favorite watermelon-strawberry juice mix. Slowly stirring and freezing into a slushie, she smiled up to Nessa, answering belatedly "An  oh yeah.. the missing page.. Sorry I haven't seen it myself."

Tha really was kinda fun, though she left heaping her own paperwork on. Mostly because she wasn't sure if she'd spend more time teaching how to use L-mail or not. Keeping up correpsondence with Magnolia's corporate leaders plus going over the submissions of songs and writing, which had began to trickle in since Fairy Tail Productions published one song by the Princess of Fiore on the lacrima-net, did not involve much actual paper.  She paused, "Oh! Since you'll be doing all that, I'll just  L-mail you the new time sheets for the bar and cleaning staff I was supposed to print out for Nessa. You can use your new wrist iLac to sync with the printing press in my office."

Briefly setting down her slushie, Arcadia dug out her iLac and tapped the screen to launch the Lacrima Mail app. She  attached the timesheet file, and sent it off to Mura, assuming he still had that fancy wrist iLac she thought she saw once.


Slipping her iLac away, Arcadia smiled to Fibi, but mostly listened. She let go of all that other stuff with a deep breath. It all was mostly in her head, she decided. If people around her only thought of her as cute little helpless Arcadia, she wouldn't have made ace in the first place. Maybe she'd have to be more assertive on offering her help to others in the future, though that was easier thought than done.  Turning to her best friend, she smiled and held up her slushie glass as if to toast with Nessa's iced tea.

He joyfully grabbed his juice box from Arcadia and nodded in gratitude. “Ah, thanks,” he thanked her and proceeded to down it in one sip… fail. Oh well, perhaps two or three more sips would do it good. “A paper, huh…” he sighed in worry. What had he done to bring this upon himself, again? Did he… shit, if he touched a nerve, he could actually die. No joke.

His WristLac, he lifted up as he accepted the L-mail from Arcadia. It contained the information about the new time sheets for the bar in their guild as well as cleaning staff orders. “Uh, uhm… c’mon, c’mon…” he was mumbling as he slowly maneuvered towards the ‘L-mail Accept’ button and all. Despite having had this device for ages, it was very recently updated to fit in with the iLac mechanism, so he had never even seen an L-mail before now.

… Hopefully, he had accepted the L-mail by now… ah, yes, there it was. At this point, Mura looked like the helpless child, and thinking that Arcadia did this daily was eye-opening.

And now, the blonde guest of Fairy Tail responded… but something felt odd. Mura could feel it, something changed in this lady. Was she trying to stay as… as… as lively and assuring as possible? She did a good job, probs to that. However, the very change confused him, and it was quite apparent on the laid-back shaman’s face - unusually.

“Wait, I can do that too,” he replied to Fibi directly as he eyed Kyuken. The swordsman’s ghost knew exactly what he meant and plummeted into Mura’s body and caused his eyes to change into a silverfish tint while the rest of his body remained itself - but his voice, of course.

“I don’t know how exactly you’re pulling it off, but it’s a neat showcase of your capabilities,” a more masculine, elder voice spoke with roughness and attitude that didn’t come close to Mura’s normal voice, “… Good question, Nessa dear. I’m curious as to the arcane attributes of this young lady, too.” It was clearly Kyuken’s voice to the two Fairy girls, but Fibi might have been in for a surprise.