New meetings.

The train ride had been it's own special kind of hell, even one as short as a ride between magnolia, and Hargeon had left Kaligos rather drained. Odd as it was the moment the train had come to a complete stop Kaligos had felt his strength return to him. Maybe it was a shot of adrenaline or just wanting to get off the train in general but he honestly couldn't remember the last time he had moved that fast as he had practically burst out of the station.

Hargeon was a sea side port town. Home to travelers from all around and very popular with the merchant class, for a particularly poor wizard like Kaligos it made shopping for just about anything rather affordable. Of course that was only one of the reasons that he had decided to grace this city, the other was the cool spring breeze, and the feel of the ocean air. Magnolia had it's lake, and aquaducts, but there was something much more vived about actually being at the ocean.

Kaligos stretched lightly as he walked, his appearance not much better then usual. The train had left him rather sweaty, and his long hair had become a tangled mess though that was nothing new. He avoided the docks, wanting to stay away from those floating death traps. One wrong step in a floating city, one boat, or live dock, and he wouldn't even be able to crawl away from it. The thought gave him a slight shudder, as he had to wonder just why his body hated motion so much.

He found a fountain in a park, looking around for a moment as he cupped his hands and splashed the water across his face, his skin thanking him for it, as he let out a long sigh of relief.  The water dripped from his long blue hair onto his plain white T-shirt causing the drips to become noticeable areas of grey. His track pants were a well worn set for sure, slightly fraying around the edges, and of course he walked with no shoes or socks. Something about being close to the ground helped him think. It wasn't then impossible to consider Kaligos as a homeless person drinking out of a fountain...

which was only half true. He had a job. That much was clear from the guild tattoo on his left for arm, but as for the home? well he rented a very small apartment in magnolia, but he kept so few possessions and hadn't completed a job in a few weeks that he was starting too worry that maybe he would get kicked out of his home... It wouldn't be the first time he had lived on the street.

"Maybe my luck will improve." He said lightly, the main reason he had come to Hargeon was in the hopes that he would be able to buy some good, but cheep clothing. Most of the stores he had seen in magnolia were a few hundred jewels out of his price range.

Hargeon Town, home to the guild Lamia Scale recently rebuilt by its guildmaster Zuo Cii, and home to a vast array of merchant stalls thanks to it being a seaside port town. It was a case of the former that was the reason for a certain young noblewoman to be walking through the town in rather a merry state of mind. She'd just arrived in the town from her temporary home in a nearby village, and she was looking forward to getting back to doing jobs and earning money. She couldn't rely on Marick to look after her forever, even if he was earning more money now.

On this particular day the sun was blazing, sending constant blasts of heat down upon the people of Hargeon. Thankfully the sea breeze was keeping things fresh and cool, making the weather...well, perfect! Kara hadn't worn a dress today, opting instead for a sleeveless blue top and a pair of denim shorts, with white trainers and socks. Simple, but comfortable, particularly with how the weather was today. It was such perfect weather that she'd decided to take the more scenic route to the guild today, passing through the park. The flowers were in full bloom and there were birds singing happily in the trees. This scene was almost paradise to her. Almost. As she turned a corner she stopped. A boy maybe around sixteen was drinking from the fountain in front of her. He looked rough, with no shoes or socks on, trousers that were frayed at the edges and hair that looked rather knotted. Kara considered walking away, but something compelled her to walk to him. Perhaps it was the fact he looked so much younger?

She approached the boy cautiously, then gave in an simply leaned on the fountain. "You do know seagulls poop in that fountain right? And people often throw their rubbish into it. So if you were planning to have a drink or a swim, I'd think twice." Her voice was rather casual and matter-of-factly, although she was not intending to upset this boy. She realised that she could've been seen as being rude and mentally scolded herself. Only when she looked at the boys arms did she notice something; a guild insignia on the boy's left arm. And it wasn't the Lamia Scale insignia. This was the first time she'd met a legal mage besides her fellow Lamia Scale members, so this discovery excited her. "So which guild are you from?"

Kaligos's eyes widened for a moment as he heard the comment from the other mage, his face flushed as he spat out the water making an over dramatic noise as he did. He caughed for a moment trying to get as much of the water out of his lungs and throat as he could, and then he paused for a moment. His primary food source was the ground people walked on, he had eaten dirt from farmland, freshly planted, as in the kind that was laced with fertilizer. On top of that he was immune to most poisons for some reason or another... was a little bit of seagull poop really going to hurt his body?

"T-thanks for the warning, but i'm sure it won't be too bad on me. My stomach is made for eating rocks. Little shallow for a swim though, I think I would just hit the beach if I wanted to do that." He said turning to see a slightly older looking woman then him. He scratched his head giving off a small laugh as looked her. She looked rather lavish with her hair being a dark purple, and elegantly brushed. If he had to guess she was probably a member of a higher level of society, but since he was rather new to society in general he had no idea. However the clothing she wore said a lot about her. None of it was torn or ripped, it was all well made matarial, even if she wasn't wearing a dress she couldn't really hide the fact that she had status.

"I'm a member of Fairy Tail the best guild in Fiore." He said rather bluntly when she asked him what guild he was from. He had thought that the guild was famous enough, the members certainly tended to have some form of reputation, although he was a rather new member of the team. He extended a hand still dripping in water from the fountain expecting her to shake it. "My name is Kaligos, it's a pleasure to meat you, What's your name by the way?"

His body was made for eating rocks? He couldn't be serious surely? Did anyone really have magic like that? Whatever the case, Kara was certainly intrigued as she continued to lean on the fountain. "Eating rocks is an odd kind of magic..." she mumbled, somewhat disappointed at the fact she wouldn't stand a chance if she ever had to face Kaligos in battle.

Her eyes closed and she chuckled for a moment upon the mention of Fairy Tail, especially about it being 'the best guild in Fiore'. "Blue Pegasus is generally viewed as the strongest guild right now. The best guild is a matter of opinion." she replied casually, before winking and revealing her Lamia Scale insignia.

"I'm a member of Lamia Scale. Sure, we aren't much to look at right now. But we're going to take Fiore by storm, just you wait." she replied, before shaking the boys hand. She quickly regretted it as she felt the sopping trickle down her hand from his. She quickly retreated and wiped her hand dry on her shorts. "Kara Matheson...so why are you drinking out of a fountain? Surely you should have money from jobs if you're with Fairy Tail?"

Kaligos looked at Kara with an all but defeated look as she mentioned money. The truth was he did get some cash from his jobs, but he wasn't very good at holding onto it. He knew his math, and yet he was constantly getting overwhelmed by new things. There was also the fact that he was trying to live in an apartment, and while his place may have been small it didn't leave much cash when you could only do the small missions. He made a note of blue pegasus, and lamia scale, though something bugged him about the way she said it. "Taking it by storm? Do you mean your gonna invade Fiore and take over?" He turned to her his glare darkening for a moment as he thought she was a dark wizard.

"I have a tendancy to break things, and that.... often gets me into trouble when it comes to missions. The employer often has to deduct damages from my pay check." He said truthfully. It hurt to admit it, but at the same time she did ask about his financial situation. He scratched his head lightly still giving her a nervous smile.

"And as for drinking out of a fountain... well I actually kind of thought it was just a watering hole. Where I come from drinkable water is more scarce then this." Kaligos had been raised in a desert waistland, and really a lot of what he had learned in life extended from that fact. To find out that such a giant basin of water, was just for display purposes was slightly confusing. It was clearly fresh drinkable water.

"Invade Fiore?!" Kara cried out, before bursting into hysterical laughter. It wasn't deliberate, nor did she intend to be rude, but the fact the boy had jumped to such a conclusion so quickly was just too funny to keep a straight face. Once she finally calmed down and wiped the tears from her eyes, she was able to respond to the blue haired boy. "No, I've no interest in conquering Fiore. Just making a big impression and showing what I'm made of under the Lamia Scale insignia." she replied with a smile.

Kaligos revealed that he thought the fountain was a watering hole, which only made Kara frown in confusion. "You must've had a very different background...I'm the daughter of a nobleman, so I guess my standards are just naturally higher" she shrugged casually. "So Kaligos...what exactly brings you to Hargeon? Fairy Tail is in Magnolia isn't it?"

Kaligos blinked as Kara explained she was some kind of upper class, and that taking Fiore by storm was simply a turn of speech of sorts. He shook his head people and society confused him. It was probably the thing he hated most about being around people was that they had put themselves in classes. Still he wouldn't trade the company of a person for just about anything in this world, and he gave a light smile. "I was raised in a desert waist-land by my dad who was a dragon, and then left alone for five years." He said giving her the small idea of just how incredably different their lives would have been up to that point, a small glimpse into the many forms of madness that was Kaligos's every day life.

"I wouldn't say higher, just very different. You were raised around people, I had a dragon. You had fountains I spent most of my life in a desert waist land. after that you tend to not turn water away." Kaligos said still giving a very broad smile, if he had just insulted her he didn't really know, but still he leaned against the water fountain. "Shopping, I was hoping to find some cheep clothing, I heard that this was a trading city, and well I don't have a lot of money I figured I could at least try and get something, all my good clothing was destroyed on my last mission... serves me right for using my magic in a shirt that didn't have holes in it already."

Hold up, this guy was raised by a dragon? But then that meant he was a "Dragon Slayer? I knew you guys existed but...I never thought I'd actually meet one!" Her response was clearly an excited one, as she bounced on the balls of her feet slightly as she spoke. She soon stopped herself though, realising she was probably making a fool of herself. "I'm sorry. Five years in a wasteland certainly sounds rough...I'd imagine you kind of grow used to it after a while don't you?" she asked curiously. She genuinely had no idea what living in a desert was like, what with her only going to desert-like places on a weeks holiday from time to time as a child.

Kara's face lit up from the mention of clothes. "Well, if it's clothes you need and if you're getting them here, look no further than yours truly! I can help you get some clothes. What's more, Lamia Scale members get a small discount around here, since we're always helping the merchants moving their merchandise to and from the boats and whatnot. So what do you say?"

Kaligos nodded as she called him a dragon slayer. Personally he never liked the term, but he understood why people called him by it. His magic was designed for the purpose of killing dragons, but Kaligos was raised by a dragon... It was kind of hard to slay something he regarded as family. "Yeah I'm the earth slayer, but it's not really special. I mean my guild is home to the fire slayer, and she is far more scary then me."

Kaligos's body shivered as he remembered his first meeting with the fire dragon slayer Mari. Then recovered slowly. Shaking it off as he walked for a moment. He looked at her when she asked about the years alone in the wasteland. In truth you adapt to the threats, and you forget that there is a problem, but you never get used to how alone everything is. "I would appreciate the company." He said happily deciding to skip over the five years he had spent alone after his dragon had abandoned him. "I don't want to inconvenience you, really.. I am only looking to get a few new shirts, and pants. things that wont rip apart when I activate my magic." The last thing he wanted to do was put on a pare of shoes or socks. They just felt wrong when he had them on, he preferred having his feet firmly on the ground.

"Fire Slayer? Wow...you guys are lucky to have more than one slayer in your guild. We have no slayers in Lamia Scale...although we are more than capable without them anyway." Kara replied in an excited tone. She was learning about another guild, something she'd not done before. Sure, it wasn't all that difficult really. But given how she had been focused on working, she'd not really had time to look at the other guilds in Fiore.

After Kaligos worried about being an inconvenience, Kara simply laughed. "Honestly, I was considering having a day to myself today, without doing a job. Spending the day with someone else and still not working? I'm more than happy to do that!" The duo reached the main square of Hargeon port and Kara pointed out the various merchant stalls dotted around, easily picking out which ones were clothes shops and which wouldn't be needed on this occasion. Her knowledge of Hargeon was surprising considering the fact she hadn't been with Lamia Scale for very long.

Kaligos smiled as he walked through the town with Kara. He felt a little better knowing that he wasn't really getting in her way at all. He walked with her checking out some of the clothing stalls that she was pointing out, finding a few T-shirts that he appreciated, the quality was definitely much higher then what he was used to working with.

"I don't know if lucky is a word I would have used for it.... expensive is certainly a word I would have chosen." The damages they caused to the guild some times amounted to more then what they would take home on missions. Kaligos himself was unrefined and tended to break just about anything and everything he came into contact with. Add to that the fact that he had a temper, and no patience when he had his mind set to a task and he was a rather destructive force.

"So what about you?" He asked as he looked through the clothing from different venders, the quality was much better then he was used too, but the price wasn't nearly as low as he had hoped. "You said your a noble girl right? Did you grow up in a castle? And what's your magic anyway?" He asked happily, he was curious about her, so far they had only really talked about his guild and his history, but she was perhaps even more interesting, she was practically royalty from what he had heard.

"Expensive? Odd word of choice." Kara replied, but let the subject drop. Kaligos had just asked her about her own past now, so it was only fair to oblige. She giggled softly as the boy compared her to royalty. Compared to what he'd endured, it probably wasn't far off. "No, I'm not royalty. My father is a very successful businessman. He worked his way to the very top and eventually became a nobleman, although I'm not entirely sure how he got that status." she replied, suddenly becoming more curious. She'd have to ask her father about this later...assuming she remembered. "My mother passed away when I was fifteen, so my father has become my sole guardian. We used to live in quite a large house in Era. However, we had to move here to Hargeon after Era was destroyed...I was lucky to come out of that alive if I'm honest. But as I'm in Lamia Scale it makes sense that we live here where we're closer."

When it came to her magic Kara merely chuckled. "Well if you really can eat rocks and things then you'll love my magic. It's a type of make-magic called Amethyst Make. My family is the only family able to make magic of an amethyst hue...or at least, as far a I'm aware." To give an example she put her hand in front of her and created a small amount of pure amethyst. "Nice right?"

Kaligos bowed slightly when she said she had lost her mother, he had never known his biological parents. As much as he regarded Korialstrasz as his father, he was a dragon and Kaligos was still human... or at least as close to human as he wanted to be. So the odds of his father being a Dragon on the genetic level was unlikely. "I'm sorry for your loss, though on the bright side this city does seem nice." He said looking up at Hargeon, it was no magnolia, but it was certainly pleasant.

However when she demonstraited her magic Kaligos's stomach let out a strong growl. He hadn't had anything to eat all day, and her magic looked delicious. Sure he could eat at any time, but concrete had no taste, and dirt was just empty calories. The crystal that she had made however looked like a full meal. He didn't even ask before he swiped the crystals from her and dumped them into his mouth. The sound was like crunching rock candy and the taste... Kaligos practically drooled as he ate them. Swallowing after a few moments and savoring the taste he let out a satisfied sigh of pleasure.

"Ah that hit the spot. I have to say that your magic is rather... juicy." Even with the small amount of magic he consumed he could feel the difference in strength. It was rare for him to get to actually sample a mages magic, it always tasted better then regular rocks. He shivered for a moment feeling something akin to a sugar rush charge through his body. "Damn with cooking like that you would make a good wife."

Kara watched Kaligos in awe as the Earth Dragon Slayer took her amethyst and ate it as if it were a doughnut or something - albeit a lot crunchier obviously. Upon swallowing the 'food' he commented on how it tasted. In all honesty there was no real way to answer that; it's not like people were lining up to eat Kara's magic on a daily basis after all. Thus all she could manage was a small and slightly stunned "Erm...thank you..."

Upon the mention of her making a good wife one day, Kara froze in place. "Wa...Waifu?" she repeated, her face seemingly in a daze. She hadn't even considered the fact that she'd one day be expected to marry. After a few seconds she snapped out of her trance and looked at the Fairy Tail mage. "Well...I don't think my future husband will be eating my magic." she giggled. This boy was a bit of a strange one, but he had an odd charm to him that Kara quite liked.

"That's a shame they will be missing out." Kaligos said truthfully never really thinking about what the term waifu actually meant or why she was shocked or embarassed. He was simply trying to give her a complement like his father had always told him to do when handed food by someone else. The truth was however that her 'cooking' was some of the best he had ever tasted when it came to earth magic. It was rare that he got a sample like that. Earth mages weren't uncommon, but crystal's and birth stones were sourly miss used.

Spotting a really good set of pants he lifted them up, taking a look over them, they were track pants like he was used too, but were also made of a more fine material and were much softer then the stuff he was used to wearing. He looked them over. "See stuff like this doesn't even survive a day with my magic. I hate clothing shopping, my body is always ripping stuff apart, and the moment I use my magic it's just covered in sand." He said putting down the pants and giving a loud sigh of frustration. "And even if it would last more then a day all of this stuff is still out of my price range.... also... if your dad's so rich, why do you work with Lamia scale?"

Kaligos seemed to be confused about why Kara was a part of a guild. Sure, her father was fairly rich and a very powerful nobleman, and in theory she could have almost anything she wanted if there was a price tag on it. It made sense for Kaligos to ask why she was earning money. But she had her reasons. "I want to improve as a person and as a mage. Until last year I was a horrible person. But I'm trying to change and become better. I also don't want to rely solely on my father for money my entire life. I want to make a living for myself." Kara replied with a happy smile. She watched Kaligos checking out some clothes and chuckled. He was so specific with his clothing requirements, although that was to be expected given the nature of his magic.

Kaligos walked with Kara nodding at her story. So she had once been a horrible person? It was odd but he didn't get a negative vibe from her. She had been just about as positive as he could have expected anyone else to be when walking with him. Sighing he put down the clothing shaking his head and walking to the next vender. So far he wasn't having anymore luck then he would inside magnolia. and what was worse was that he would soon have to go back on that train.

"It's a nightmare, trying to find clothing that will fit, and won't rip apart... and that i can afford. Some times I wish money didn't exist." He said scratching his long blue hair. It was hard to figure stuff like this out. passing by a sign that said half off of magical items he recognized the number's 50% just as his father had taught him, but the rest of the sign may as well have been in a foreign language. he poked Kara in the ribs lightly. "Can you read that for me?" He said not wanting to admit the fact that he was illiterate, but at the same time if it was a sign about clothing he didn't really have a choice it sounded like a sale of some sort.

Kara couldn't help but giggle. She'd often wished the same thing when she were a child, what with the constant stress her father would be under due to money. However, as time had gone on she had learned just how important money was in order to keep the world moving. Without some form of payment, how would anything get done in the world?

She was broken out of her thoughts when Kaligos jabbed her in the ribs. "HEY! Mind where you're jabbing!" she growled lightly, before looking at the sign that the Earth Dragon Slayer was pointing at. "It says 50% off of Magical Goods. Meaning Lacrima and things like that. A lot of it is useless anyway unless you live at home and need certain Lacrima to keep certain things running within your home. Nothing there for you." she replied, giggling afterwards.

Kaligos nodded as he was told exactly what the sign had meant, and was greatful that she didn't ask him to simply read it himself. It was kind of a shame that he couldn't really read at all. His father had taught him math, and survival skills, he was skilled in a fight, but he couldn't read or write. His education in that regard was very selective.

"Thanks for the heads up, and sorry, I promise I won't poke you anymore." He said truthfully. He hadn't meant to over step his lines with her, but was rather inquisitive. In Fairy Tail everything was much more contact based, but it seemed like most other guilds had a very hands off policy. "Whats Lamia Scale like? In Fairy Tail it's a bit like everyone is family, so we have something like thirty older brothers and sisters. The setting can get loud, and fights break out all the time, is it like that for all guilds?"

Kara nodded to show she accepted the boys apology. She knew he hadn't meant anything when he'd poked her, but it had shocked her more than anything. Anyway, he'd apologised so that was that. Her attention was now focused on his question; What was Lamia Scale like?

Kara didn't really have to think hard about that question. She had to witness the guild everyday after all. "It's fun, friendly, but crazy. Our guildmaster is a little...eccentric. On my first day in the guild he flipped the whole place upside down and watched everyone fall from the floor to the ceiling." she replied with a giggle. She could still see that as if it were just yesterday. "He's a good guildmaster though. He might be mad, but we can tell he cares for our well-being. And everyone else is starting to get quite close as well now...it's too early in the guilds rebirth to really describe it properly."

Kaligos laughed at hearing that basically all guilds were the same. Fairy Tail seemed to be full of people who were completely insane. Though the contrast to their guild leaders was a little more impressive, and slightly worrying in Kaligos' mind. "Our guild master is a sixteen year old little girl, named ebony." He said still remembering how he had basically called her adorable not even realizing they were around the same age when he had first met her. Kaligos hadn't really thought much deeper into the subject than that however. The simple fact was he knew that Master Ebony was a tough fighter, and he didn't need to witness her strength to know that.

"I've been told that every member of Fairy Tail is like a member of a family. Every single one of them is a brother or sister, and really when it comes down to it, it's kind of what I have always dreamed for. I always wanted a larger family unit, and this one though certainly crazy wouldn't abandon one of it's own...  There's a kind of pride in wearing this tattoo, though we are all known for our tenancy to break things." Kaligos said lightly. Fairy tail had this destructive if not consistent reputation for the reckless amounts of property that they destroyed, and in truth that was slightly his fault. Kaligos had certainly done a lot in the short time he had joined Fairy Tail as well as broken a lot of things. "Still better to have a bad reputation then no reputation wouldn't you say?"

A 16 year old? The idea of someone that young running a guild was, simply put, astonishing. She hadn't been a part of Lamia Scale for all that long, but even in her short time there she was already aware of how much work a Guildmaster had to do on a constant and regular basis. For a girl younger than Kara herself to be doing it...she didn't know whether to be impressed by the girl's ability, or saddened by the girl's restrictions.

Hearing that Fairy Tail was like being in a large family gave Kara a warm smile. There weren't many places in the world where you could feel completely at home, but guilds seemed to be able to provide that. She felt the same way about Lamia Scale; the members were like an extension to the family now. Her left hand traveled up her right arm as she subconsciously held her guild stamp.

"It depends how bad the reputation is. I'd rather improve my reputation than stay with a bad one." she replied calmly. She'd had a bad enough reputation of her own in recent years, so she was more than happy that she wasn't a part of Fairy Tail where she'd probably get a reputation for destroying things even if she wasn't necessarily one of the culprits.

Kaligos nodded lightly as he got her opinion and stopped at the next clothing shop. Picking out a shirt that actually looked like it would last a good hit or two. It was tough matarial and cheap, and he smiled as he actually had the money to pay for it. Finding a scarf as well he put them both on the counter on the side as he went through the clothing here looking for more. In truth he was greatful to finally find a place that carried items in his price range. He even managed to pick out two new pairs of pants, though it cost him the remainder of his cash.

"Finally, I was starting to get worried that I traveled all this way for nothing." He paused for a moment smelling the sea salt air. and gave a moment of thought. "Want to walk down towards the sea? I don't think I have ever actually seen it before. Magnolia has a large lake behind our guild, but even with that you can see the land on the other side. I don't think I have ever actually seen the ocean. I spent all my life in land." It was a bit of an odd request but at the same time his time in this town was coming to an end. He had a return ticket for the last train of the day, and as much as he would love to miss his train he couldn't. Looking up at the sun it was bound to set soon, and the idea of going to a beach or port to just watch the sun vanish before having to get back on a train.... was oddly nice.

Kara chuckled as Kaligos finally bought a shirt, stating that he'd worried he'd come all this way for nothing. "Charming! You meet the girl of your dreams and yet you feared you came all this way for nothing?" she giggled. She couldn't help but wind the boy up a little. It was her nature after all, and she'd been far too nice to him for a little while now.

When he asked about going down to the beach Kara froze. Was he asking her on a date? For a brief moment she panicked, fearing he'd gotten the wrong idea. As he explained his story however, about how he'd never seen the ocean and really wanted to, Kara began to understand. She smiled somewhat sadly for a moment before nodding. "Okay...just this once...but it's not a date, got it? So no funny business!"

Girl of his dreams... Date? Kaligos face did physically pale at the two words. For a moment he was worried that he had some how he had came across as something he hadn't intended. He blinked his head feeling a little light. He was still very new to interactions with people, and honestly didn't see this coming. "I... I... what? I mean..."

Kaligos felt backed into a corner for a moment. Suddenly he was put in his place. He couldn't really back down from something like that without paying her some kind of insult, but he had never meant anything more then just an outing. She wasn't even a member of Fairy Tail, not to mention she seemed just as confused as he was. "Listen your magic is delicious, and i'm sure you will make some man very happy, I know I would be, but uhm I literally just met you. I mean I get on my own nerves half the time, and while you are certainly cute I doubt you would be able to put up with me." This probably would have been enough for any rejection, but Kaligos continued shoving his foot into his mouth seeing how deep it could go. "So girl of my dreams... Yeah I don't really even think I have dreams at the moment, and well not to pay you any insult, but aren't you a little on the old side? or am I on the young side of the coin, either way I hardly think dating is on my mind... and well in truth... as cute as you are... I've never even been on a date, don't think I would know the first thing about it, though my dad often explained that dating was just the human word for intercourse and i hardly think i'm ready for that kind of thing."


Dragons did not make good teachers when it came human relationships.