Chapter 4: Small
"Argh!" a scream came from Harry's mouth. His forehead was covered in sweat, as was his back. He had been so shaken that he sat up suddenly on the bed, examining his surroundings with some fear. "Damn..." he whispered, covering his face and lowering his head. "That felt so real...".
It had been a terrifying voice, cries of mercy, cries and a green light that exploded around him, enveloping everything visible. When he was able to calm down, after a few minutes of thinking, he looked outside, right through the bedroom window. The sun seemed to be starting to rise, so it was quite early. Throwing the duvet aside, he got out of bed, going to the bathroom, to wash his face, his teeth and clear his head a bit.
When he returned, more awake, he changed his clothes. He didn't have much. Nothing more than two outfits that he had received from Makarov. Black trousers, combat boots, a black t-shirt and a dark red jacket. However, as he looked to the side, as he turned, he blinked at the sight of his broken wand in the middle of the small desk. Even though it was now just pieces that he had put together somewhat, almost like a puzzle, he didn't want to throw them away. He had a kind of fondness for the destroyed thing. He didn't want to part with it, especially since it helped him remember, very slowly, but it worked.
In fact, the very feather that helped him to be able to use Take Over, now looked dull, but it had been used to create an earring, which he could now wear on his left ear. The two things, seemed to be special. Harry looked at his hand, with a small frown. "Avada—" his words stopped abruptly, producing a small cough. That was strange. He felt a disgusting shiver running down his spine. An instinct. An almost physiological rejection of the word that could unleash a death ray.
Shaking his head a little, he decided to go out. Fairy Tail might not be open yet, but he had promised Elfman that he would run with him in the morning. As he walked down the street, next to one of the rivers that ran through the city, he felt calmer. If you put aside all the noise the fairies made, Magnolia was a rather peaceful place. It was perfect for a retreat, but only if Fairy Tail didn't exist in the same place. Harry had already heard about the damage they could cause on their missions, or when they fought for the city, although the latter wasn't very often. In fact, Makarov was so worried that he hugged Harry when he returned from Kunugi, announcing that they had completed the job without a single damage caused.
Arriving at the guild, he took a seat on the floor, waiting for Elfman. He could see a couple of people already awake, walking in front of the building, whom he waved at with one hand. It was this tranquility that made him think about many things. But mostly, the sensations that were turning into a kind of instinct, due to his memories slowly coming back. It was like he had a little person inside his head, saying things like: Yeah, that's okay. Or: hey, don't do that. There was also the frequent: careful. He couldn't help but feel that he was a little weird.
At least he was making some friends, was what was going through his head as well. Everyone had been extremely kind about welcoming him as a member of the guild. No one had complained. No one asked him about his life before he arrived. They just opened their arms and partied with him, as if they had been lifelong friends.
"Hey!", after half an hour, Elfman appeared with a smile. "Sorry, did you wait long?"
"Don't worry," Harry stood up. "I woke up too early and had nothing else to do. Where do we run?"
"All over the city, man!", the big boy, shouted excitedly. "You didn't know? A well-trained body makes magic stronger."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. Magic is also linked to life energy."
"Oh... that's good to know. Let's go!"
The two of them advanced down the street, jogging non-stop until they had to turn to the side, where they disappeared from the sight of anyone who might be on said street. At that moment, Harry never imagined that, after touring the city in the form of training, he would end up running headlong into trouble. But now, he simply enjoyed the morning breeze with Elfman, who kept talking about many things.
The sun continued to rise in the sky, awakening the members of Fairy Tail. However, the one who would cause the first disturbances was a person who had not been seen in days. A figure who was being accompanied by a small blue animal with white wings on its back.
Baam!
With a loud bang, the doors to Fairy Tail swung open. There, with one leg raised and a huge toothy grin, was Natsu Dragneel, considered to be one of the most unruly, as well as one of the strongest mages, with the exception of those in the S-Class.
"Hey, Natsu! How was that mission?!"
"Bastard!" Natsu roared before planting his foot in the face of the person speaking to him. "This is the second time you've given me false information, Krov!"
"Agh! Fuck you, Natsu! I only told you what I heard! I mentioned they were rumors!" As he stood up and rubbed his nose, Krov snorted. "You were the one who decided to run away without asking questions."
"Idiot!"
"Says the biggest idiot there is!"
The animal, named Happy, simply ignored his best friend and walked over to the bar, where he took a seat and raised his small paw. "Look~! A fish!" His adorable, cat-like form wouldn't be extravagant if it weren't for his wings or ability to talk.
"Sure. They didn't destroy many things, did they?"
"Natsu did burn down a church wall a bit, but nothing else."
"Nothing else? That's enough, Happy!" Makarov growled, jumping up to get to the counter. "Natsu, you brat! You have to pay for what you did!"
"But I already gave them money, grandpa!" Natsu frowned, but walked over while twitching his nose, sniffing like a dog. "Hey, it smells a little... good? What did you do?! I want that food too!"
"Nothing?" Macao, who walked over with his hands in his pockets, replied doubtfully. "Ah, wait. We got a new member a few days ago. Is that it? But it didn't smell good, right? It was... neutral."
"No! It definitely smells like food!"
"You're crazy..."
"Aye~."
"Happy, don't support him," Natsu crossed his arms before taking a seat at the counter, holding up a finger. "Here, give me some meat."
"Sure."
"As expected of the flame brain," someone walked over, not realizing he was pulling his shirt off. "All you think about, is fighting and food. Nasty bastard."
"Gray..."
"When did you get here?" Macao asked curiously.
"Last night," the black-haired boy replied, pulling out his pants. "I decided to rest at home and come over today. It seems I miscalculated, I was hoping not to run into the idiot."
"Fuck you, pervert!"
"I'm not a... !"
"You're naked, Gray," Makarov commented in a voice filled with exasperation.
"What the...?! Ah, shit!" Grabbing his clothes, he ran out to the back. His cheeks were slightly flushed, but that was due to Natsu's loud laughter, who kept mocking him.
Makarov sighed a little before shifting his eyes, glancing sideways at Natsu. "Brat, what are you going to do now? Since you're done with what you wanted to do..."
"Of course, train! And then go on another mission!"
"Don't push yourself too hard. If you get hurt, you'll have to rest. Some of your fame might be taken away from you, boy."
"What do you mean? Fame? Since when do I have fame?"
"You..."
"Master, don't say more," Happy shook his head. "You're not even aware. You should already know Natsu. Besides fighting, everything else fades away inside your mind."
"Liar. You guys are too annoying!" Natsu yelled, literally spitting flames from his mouth. "I'm going to go train right now! Happy, let's go!"
"I don't want to. I'm getting tired."
"You... traitor..."
"Aye~".
Clicking his tongue, the boy ran off at full speed, kicking up dust behind him. Mira, on the other hand, stared at the table. "He didn't even touch her meat. If he wasn't so adorable, I would have punched him a little."
She was fully aware that her words made everyone around her sweat, but that was just one more reason to say such a thing. And while the smile she always used was very sweet, one who knew her well would know that said smile hid a much darker side, to put it one way. Makarov even felt a chill creep up his spine.
. . . .
Part 2.
It was already afternoon, with the sun steadily descending, causing a certain level of darkness. On Mount Hakobe, located north of Magnolia, several kilometers away, Harry stood with his back pointed towards Elfman's. They were both surrounded by ape-like creatures over two meters tall, with white fur.
"Man!"
"Ugly men! They don't like men!"
"Men!"
"Don't imitate them!" Harry shouted with some irritation upon hearing Elfman. "I should have stopped you, damn it."
"Don't be a coward, Harry!" Elfman smiled, transforming his legs into what looked like a cheetah, but among all that fur, there were scales, indicating that this was not a normal animal. His arms, in turn, changed into a different beast. "Iron Bull!" was its name, from the user's words.
"Can you do it with two at the same time?"
"It's more complicated and will use more magic power, but this is better. These legs will give me more speed," Elfman had become more serious. "Ah, right, don't let them catch you. They're creatures that can also use Take Over, but they'll use your body to do perverted things. For some reason, they really like human women."
"Disgusting."
"You disgusting!" one of the Vulcans shouted angrily.
"Woman, sweetheart!" a second shouted.
"Tits, sweetheart!"
"Ass!"
Harry shivered a little as he took a step back. "H- Hey, did they just... ?"
Harry shivered a little as he took a step back. "H- Hey, did they just... ?"
"... yeah..." Elfman was just as shocked.
"Is it okay if I destroy them? I don't like them."
"They're beasts, Harry! No one will complain if you kill them! Uh... not unless you make their species extinct or endangered."
Harry snorted before flames exploded from his chest. His hair danced softly, caressed by the crimson flames. His arms were transformed, and a pair of wings emerged from the top of his back.
This was the first time he would truly fight with everything he had. More than a possible death, he found it far worse to have his body used for such depraved purposes. He was a boy. He liked women, but the way the Vulcans seemed to think was just... not good.
"Man, die!" The first one jumped forward, slamming his hands on the ground, raising the snow from the mountain. Where they were, was a very high part, full of icy caverns. The snow fell constantly and non-stop from the cloudy sky. Both wizards were almost at the edge of the path. If they were pushed, they would fall. Because of that, Harry decided to take the initiative and open up more space. With his wings flapping, he advanced at a faster speed than the approaching Vulcan. His right fist clenched, spinning the crimson flames to the point where they began to turn white due to their temperatures.
He himself was surprised when his fist pushed the Vulcan's fist, until he could not resist any longer and folded inwards. The flames along with the fist, hit the chest of the magical creature, sending it flying into the cavern. It was then that Elfman moved at full speed. His figure almost seemed to slide an inch above the ground due to the power exerted by his transformed legs. With his Iron Bull fist, he crushed the skull of another Vulcan, then crouched down a little to squeeze one of its legs and spin. A little blood splashed from the Vulcan's head, until it flew out, pushing another one away.
Harry, who had gotten closer to the cavern, saw this. With a strong kick, he knocked out the two Vulcans who had moved to the side, stuck together. The two were immediately pushed off the ledge, tumbling down the side of the mountain, spinning endlessly as the snow covered them somewhat.
"Man! Uh uh uh oh!"
"MAN!!" the rest, a total of five, shouted while jumping around slightly.
"What... are you doing?" Harry frowned, as they weren't attacking him anymore. "Hey, Elfman, what... !" Blinking, he realized his partner had jumped over the ledge, sliding down the side of the mountain. He was totally baffled by Elfman's decision, but soon understood. Noises came from all around, screaming non-stop.
"MAN!!" "MAN!!" "MAN!!" "MAN!!" "MAN!!"
"MAN!!" "MAN!!"
"MAN!!"
Dozens of Vulcans appeared, running along the top of the outer walls of the mountain. Others, came from below, but further behind his position. One more group, from further ahead. It was like a damn swarm that didn't stop. Harry's left eyelid twitched nonstop. "That idiot left me," gritting his teeth, he decided it was best to fight with everything he had.
Could he escape? Of course, he simply needed to use his wings to lift himself up and get away. However, he didn't want to. The fact that these beasts could transform into humans to kidnap or do things with women, he didn't like at all. If they would just look, it would be a different thing. Many people looked at women, some in a more perverted way than others, but it was nothing more than that. They did nothing more!
Shaking his hands a little, the crimson flames exploded at double the intensity. His golden eyes looked at the Vulcans with hard, cold eyes. They were a total contrast to the fire he could summon and manipulate.
His wings seemed to flicker, as if they were about to go out, but the reality is that it only happened because they ended up increasing in intensity. The power generated by the flame explosion propelled Harry with tremendous force and speed. His fist resembled a small comet with the trail it left behind.
"Go to hell, you idiotic monkey face!"
"Ahhh!" the Vulcan who received the punch screamed as he flew, pushing others, who stumbled to the sides.
"Man! Kill!"
"Ugly!"
"Fool!"
"Bad man!"
A vein bulged on Harry's forehead. "You bastards..." it was incredibly irritating to have these things insult him like that. And worse, they themselves knew it! Their big smiles that showed their teeth were clear evidence. Inhaling slowly, Harry managed to calm himself down to continue fighting.
"Jump! Grab him!"
One screamed, causing everyone to move, almost at the same time. Tall bodies of over two meters, with long arms with quite high physical strength. They all wanted to corner Harry; to crush him with the combined weight of all their bodies. And then beat him until they could keep him in their caverns!
Small sparks began to shoot out from Harry's wings. Sparks that ignited into finger-sized spheres. The process of growing into a full golf-ball-sized sphere happened in an instant. A mere blink of an eye where everything exploded, releasing extremely hot flames that melted the snow and rock of the mountain.
"Aahh!"
"Woah!"
The Vulcans screamed in pain, their fur singed. On some parts of their bodies, especially those in the front, there were dark burns on their skin. Blood dripped from their wounds and they rolled on the ground in pain. Seeing this, Harry frowned, thinking that perhaps he had gone too far. True, he didn't like them, but they were on Mount Hakobe. Who came to this place? Only wizards. These things were not brought into the cities or towns by the wizards themselves or the knights of the kingdom stationed in different places.
"Coward! Fist, fight!"
"Foot, fight!"
"Fool coward!"
"Ugly coward! Ugly idiot!"
"Small! Small!", among all of them, one began to use that word while laughing and clapping. "Small! Ugly and small! Small, everything!"
Harry almost rolled his eyes at all the mockery. But, in the end, he shook his head. "I'm out of here. If I see you guys around, I'll crush you boys."
"Coward!", they shouted together when they saw him rise with his wings. "Member! "Little one!"
Harry, hearing that last bit, nearly fell from the air. His figure staggered diagonally towards the ground, until he stopped and looked back. Huffing, he pointed a finger to shoot out some fire. A small sphere expanded into a full fireball that shot out and created an explosion.
"Ahhh!!" many screamed as they fell off the ledge, but Harry ignored them completely. "Idiots," he muttered in irritation.
. . . .
Part 3.
"Hey, Harry... I'm sorry back there."
Frowning, he stopped in the middle of the street, turning his head to look at Elfman. "You called me a coward, but you were the first to run away," his expression turned filled with annoyance. "I wouldn't have cared if they were something else, but you told me about the danger of those things."
Elfman ran a hand through his hair, sighing and lowering his head after watching Harry walk towards the guild. He didn't hate the big boy, far from it. But what he did, was something quite annoying and dangerous. "If I had been weaker, then I really could have been in danger. Think about that."
However, when they arrived at the guild, he was met with something he would come to consider worse with a group of Vulcans. "FOOD!! Fight me!" a salmon pink haired boy jumped out with a fist surrounded in flames. Blinking, Harry immediately stepped aside, but was startled to see the ground sinking and splinters flying near him.
"Be careful, that's dangerous. Plus, you're destroying the guild."
"Fight!" Natsu punched again. And for some strange reason, Harry felt the urge to stand still. Yes, stand his ground and take the punch. Actually, he did just that. He was pushed back several steps, stumbling a bit, but the flames began to be absorbed by his body, until only a little bit of smoke remained.
"Uh?"
"Oh...", Harry looked at his chest and stroked himself. The force of the fist, hurt a little. But he could barely feel the flames. Besides, what he felt, was it pride? Something inside him, made him feel that way. He didn't understand it. It was even more inexplicable than the things his suppressed memories generated.
"He took it...", someone commented in surprise.
"No, did you see that?! Natsu's flames didn't even make a scratch on him."
Harry looked around, drinking in everyone's surprise, but he was curious. "Your flames... are special?" he asked.
"I'm a Dragon Slayer!" Natsu smiled excitedly. "I use ancient magic! Magic to kill fire dragons!"
"What?! That sounds cool! I didn't know dragons existed!" Harry tilted his head. "No, wait...", frowning, he began to remember something. Several dragons, locked in huge cages and being put to sleep by wizards. Then, a dragon in front of him, opening its mouth to shoot out a large amount of fire. "Uhm... I think I fought one? It was big, and quite angry...."
"Are you... serious?" Natsu lost some of his spirit. His eyes were wide as he walked over and squeezed Harry's shoulders. "What was it like?! Did it have red scales?! Was it called Igneel?!"
"I'm sorry, I don't know," Harry sighed. "I have amnesia, so I can't remember a lot of things. But... was it in some kind of arena? I think there were a lot of people cheering from the sides too. Ah, no, it wasn't red. Brown? Dark? Sorry..."
"Ah... no... me too," Natsu slumped his shoulders. But then he raised his head. "Fight me!"
"Your mood changes quickly. And no, I don't want to."
"Why?!"
"I just fought a group of Vulcans on Mount Hakobe."
"Brat!" Makarov shouted angrily. "What were you doing up there?!"
"Tell Elfman! He led me then ran away!" Harry retorted, a little angrily, causing the big boy to flinch. Everyone looked at him, trying to hide behind the bar. Except for his sister, no one had noticed him move.
"Elfman..." a terrifying whisper reached the guy's ears.
"H- Sis, I swear I didn't mean to leave him behind!" Raising his hands, he tried to excuse himself. "Seriously! I thought he would jump with me down the mountain!"
"Sorry for doubting that."
"You have wings!"
"And that doesn't mean I should jump from great heights!"
"Aye~ sir!" Happy appeared, flying in circles above Harry's head, until he landed in the middle of it and raised one of his small legs. "Falling from great heights, it's terrifying. Natsu makes me all the time!"
Natsu looked at him with shining eyes. "You have wings?"
Mira frowned. "We'll talk later. For now, I hope you can forgive him, Harry."
Waving his hand dismissively, Harry decided to take a seat at a nearby table. "Don't worry. More than being left behind, I'm upset about what would have happened if I couldn't defend myself. By the way, where's Levy? I wanted to talk to her."
"Oh?" Mira wiggled her eyebrows. "Are you... feeling interested yet?"
"What?" Harry didn't understand, until two seconds later. "Ah, no, not like that."
"Boring!"
"Don't have fun like that with the others!" Harry gasped and placed his head in his hands. "Oh god, why am I yelling so much?"
Happy slapped his back. "That's the Fairy Tail effect. Within a few days, you'll be fighting anyone in here, just because they ran into your shoulder."
As if it had been dictated by fate, Gray arrived at that moment, fully dressed. "Hm?", looking at Harry, he walked over, pushing Natsu with his right shoulder. "Are you the new one? You look good. I'm Gray Fullbuster, a pleasure."
"Don't push me, you bastard!", a fist sent him flying, lifting tables and chairs everywhere.
"See?", Happy laughed, using his hands to hide his smile. "It always happens."
Before the two could continue their fight, two huge hands squeezed their bodies. Makarov had used his magic, making his two upper limbs grow. And with a great show of strength, he sent them flying upwards. The roof gave way, dropping splinters and pieces of wood, but the two wizards were gone.
"I won't fix that!" a girl with glasses shouted angrily.
Macao, the grown man, one of the ones who actually had the age, experience, and demeanor of an adult in Fairy Tail, put his arm over Harry's shoulder. "So... what about Levy?" Or maybe, he was just some kind of pervert.
"It's not that," sighing, Harry placed his hand on her cheek. "She explains things well, so I wanted to ask her about how to control magic better."
"Wow, it was just that. How boring."
"Hey..."
"But if you want, I can help you. I also use fire-attribute magic."
"Really?"
"Yes. What exactly do you want to do?"
"Like I said, control. Something like... manipulating and creating shapes with fire? I was surrounded by those Vulcans, so I could only blow things up. I thought of... creating a shield?"
"Interesting," Macao raised a finger, shooting a flame towards his beer mug on another table. To Harry's surprise, the fire ended with a hand-shaped end, which then retracted, drawing the beer-filled object in, not wasting a single drop. "Although my Purple Flame, it's a bit different than normal fire. Anyway, if you want to create shapes, you just have to start with very basic things, like a line. It doesn't matter if it's incredibly wide, just adjust from there, little by little."
"A line?" Raising his left hand, it underwent a transformation. The phoenix arm, as he has begun to call it in his mind. His index finger, with a flaming golden claw, created a small flame above it. Then, as if spitting more fire, tiny tongues began to run up and down, slowly thinning the fire. Harry squinted a little, concentrating fully on his task. Little by little, a needle began to form. That was the first, number one idea that came to his mind. Form a needle with fire. Due to the continuous concentration in a small space, the temperature increased, turning his flame from a golden crimson color to a white one.
"Great!" Macao exclaimed. "Try it!"
Harry smiled, excited to see a single needle of fire floating on his finger. With a movement, he reached out his hand. But a shockwave lifted his hair. Some chairs fell, others flew, and several wizards screamed in fear.
Harry went absolutely pale when a loud crack echoed throughout the place. A five meter diameter hole had been created in the wall, only for the needle to end up exploding in the courtyard, in a hot sphere.
"Ha... ".
"Great!", Natsu shouted excitedly to face that.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!", Macao roared with laughter as he slammed the table.
"Hey, kid...", Makarov slowly approached.
"I'll pay for it, I promise!", Harry shouted in frustration. He really wasn't able to comprehend all the power he was capable of unleashing. He didn't even feel tired after doing such a thing.
Makarov shook his head before sighing. "You better, brat. I don't want any more destruction... inside the guild... or outside... or... anywhere, really."
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