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Chapter 17 - Strauss Siblings

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[Magnolia, Fairy Tail Guild Hall]

— Dannis Martell —

It's been over a week and a half since I met the Strauss siblings, and after their agreement to come with me to Fairy Tail, we began our journey to Magnolia. It was awkward at first, but the siblings quickly warmed up to me after a while.

After meeting Mirajane, Elfman, and Lisanna, I made sure to come back to the village to ask for the payment for completing the mission. As far as he was concerned, I completed my task just as intended. 

I simply never told him that the so-called 'demon' that he wanted gone would come with me back to Fairy Tail. 

Prejudiced people like him who knew nothing of magic and would so easily curse a little girl to save his own ass did not deserve any pity from me. 

Mirajane asked if they could go back to the village for a moment for them to visit their parents' graves. I readily agreed, and stood at the side in quiet respect as they bid their last goodbye.

The journey back to Magnolia was not a peaceful one. Fact was that Rackshaw village was as isolated as it could be. So there was no straight path we could take to get to Magnolia.

We had to pass through forests filled with magical beasts, less traveled roads littered with bandits, and the like. Fortunately, we never encountered anything that I couldn't handle, and Elfman and Lisanna were happy to see my magic at work. 

Throughout the journey, I had kept my promise and tutored Mirajane to the best of my ability. But it seems she's still having a little bit of trouble. She was disheartened for a while, thinking that her condition was permanent. I tried something to cheer her up, which was using the nullification aspect of my magic to turn off her magic. 

Surprisingly, it worked. I held her demonic arm with a hand coated in darkness, and the three watched with bated breath as Mira's arm turned back to her regular form. She cried tears of relief with her siblings doing the same thing. 

Even though it was only temporary, since I couldn't exactly hold her hand 24/7, it at least proved that her arm could be turned back. Which was enough to reinvigorate her spirits.

It took the better part of nine days to get back to the guild. This was why I really hated taking jobs to the rural parts of Fiore. Getting to and fro from those places is usually more trouble than it's worth.

But looking back at the faces of awe from the trio as they gaze at the guild building, I can't help but feel that it was well worth it this time. 

"Stop stripping all the time, ice breath!"

"What did you say, flame brain? You wanna fight, huh?!"

"Come on!"

I sigh as a guild brawl is apparently in the process of erupting. I held back my amusement when I saw the looks on the Strauss Siblings shift to that of shock and horror. Did I forget to warn them about the day to day traditions of Fairy Tail?

Oops.

"Hah! Take that, princess!"

"Screw you fire face!"

Natsu and Gray seem to be at the center of the brawl as usual, those two really don't get along.

"Stop it both of you!"

Cue in the loud gongs of a gauntleted fist smacking both of the troublemakers in the head. Nice one Erza.

"This is Fairy Tail?!" Lisanna's loud proclamation earned a snort from me. 

"You guys actually caught us on a pretty slow day. This is considered mild for us."

"How is this mild?!"

"Trust me, if you saw what we could do on a day-to-day basis, you'd appreciate slow days like this." I chuckle.

"...We'll take your word for it."

"Now come on, I'll take you to the Master, he'll be thrilled to see you." I say as I walk forward, spotting the short old man sitting down by the counter.

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— Makarov Dreyar —

He was lounging around the bar when one of his children walked towards him, flanked by a trio who looked like siblings. Recognizing the situation, Makarov grinned as he downed a mug of alcohol. 'Looks like my family is about to get bigger.'

"Dannis! It's been a while my boy, how are you?" He greeted the Darkness mage as he approached. It's been more than eight months since the last time he's in the guild. Slowly but surely, Dannis is adopting Gildarts' penchant of disappearing for months on end. Doing nothing more than finishing missions and training. 

He's not antisocial per se, but the amount of times his face could be seen in the guild for the past year could be counted on one hand. Makarov won't lie and say he isn't worried. He was becoming sort of a recluse, with most of the members that were part of the new generation only knowing him by name and not on a personal level.

He needs to socialize more, have the chance to act his own age. He only hopes that the new arrivals could help in that regard.

"Hey master." Dannis greeted as he sat down in the seat next to him. "This is Mirajane, Elfman, and Lisanna."

He then listened as Dannis gave a detailed description of how exactly he stumbled into the three. The story of how they were treated by the people of their village had him clench his mug tightly. These children most definitely did not deserve that kind of treatment simply for having magic in their veins. Ignorance is a sin all on its own sometimes. 

He made a mental note to have the council do something to increase awareness of magic, especially to rural and isolated villages like Rackshaw to make sure something like this never happens again. It was something that had been neglected due to the recent rising number of dark mages, but it seems that it was time to reignite it.

"Well I'm glad you all made it here safe and sound." He waved his hand. "Welcome to Fairy Tail. Would you three like to join our guild?"

Mirajane, Elfman, and Lisanna exchanged glances before Mirajane stepped forward, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. "Yes, please. Thank you so much!"

Makarov smiled warmly as he reached out and patted her on the head. "Consider yourselves part of the family. We look out for each other here."

He then went behind the counter and shuffled through some boxes, throwing some things out in a messy manner in search of something. "Aha! Here it is!"

"So what color and where do you want your guild mark to be?" As the siblings began fussing about his question, Makarov eyed Dannis from the corner of his eye as he took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it up with a smile.

When the siblings were ready, he happily stamped the guild marks on each of them, officially welcoming them to Fairy Tail. "I'll help tutor you with your magic soon Mirajane, for now why don't you three go ahead and get to know everyone?"

After a tearful thanks from Mirajane, Elfman, and Lisanna, Makarov turned to Dannis. "Dannis, could I speak to you alone for a moment?"

Dannis nodded and followed Makarov to his office. Once inside, Makarov closed the door and turned to face him.

"You missed the S-class trials," Makarov began. "Laxus is the newest S-class mage."

Dannis' eyes widened slightly, Makarov could spot a storm of emotions going through his head. Surprise, frustration, acceptance and then pride. Dannis sighed, a cloud of smoke exiting through his open mouth. "I expected as much. I've been away for too long. Congratulations to him, I guess."

Makarov nodded. "With you being absent, there really was no one else who could rival him for the title. Little Cana-chan certainly tried her best."

"Well nothing I could do about that. Just gotta wait for next year I guess." Dannis said as he leaned back on his chair. A small silence descended in his office, but Makarov could tell that Dannis was curious about something.

"Say Master, do you know a lot about demons?"

Makarov quirked an eyebrow. "I would say I know a little bit. Why?"

Dannis pondered for a while before deciding to share his findings. Makarov was shocked to learn it all, before putting a hand against his chin in thought.

"Certainly, it would make sense regarding the things we've discovered. Your magic is unique Dannis, and not just in a sense that Darkness magic is rare. But your magic has properties that could not be seen in other magics of a similar type. Gildarts and Porlyusica had mentioned the same thing to me when they both saw you in action."

He adopted a thinking pose. "Demons are known as creatures of darkness. Perhaps your power is somehow related with the true nature of their magic."

"The true nature of their magic?" Dannis' interest was piqued.

"It is widely speculated that Demons, instead of magic, tap into a different source of power entirely. What it is isn't known, but the speculation is not entirely baseless. If it is answers you are searching for my boy, then regular run-of-the-mill demons won't help you. " He shook his head. "But no, it is much too early for you. Not yet."

"Please master, whatever it is, I need to know." Dannis pleaded. This was the closest thing to a clue he's had since the Cacklers.

Makarov paused as he studied Dannis' features. Truly, if his speculations are correct, then Dannis himself is in as much danger from himself as he is to other people. Figuring out the truth behind this matter is a very important task. Looking at the young man sitting opposite him, a boy now grown, a far cry from the defenseless child he took in all those years ago. 

If there was anyone to figure out this mystery, it was Dannis. That he has confidence in.

"What you are looking for is a subspecies of Demons. The Etherious, which is comprised of Demons born from the Book of Zeref."

Dannis' eyes widened as his mouth gaped wide, the cigarette dropping to the floor. "Zeref? The Black Wizard?"

Makarov nodded. "The etherious are known to be some of the most powerful demons to exist, short of the Archdevils themselves. I believe you will find the answers you're looking for by meeting one of these Etherious."

He then raised up a palm, cutting off Dannis who made to stand up. "I understand your enthusiasm. In fact, I have a mission hidden away that involves one of the demons from the Book of Zeref. It's an S-rank mission since all of the Etherious are rated as a Catastrophe Level Threat in Ishgar's Hazard Registry. However, you are not yet ready for that kind of encounter."

"But master-"

"Which is why I will give it to you under some conditions." His words cut off Dannis' complaints, as he listened with rapt attention. "This mission is S-class in rank, meaning you aren't allowed to participate in it anyway. So my condition is this, hone your skills and magic for the next year. Do your research regarding the Etherious. Look into possible weaknesses, their habits, their powers, whatever is known about them that you could use to your advantage. When you do so, go into the trials next year and succeed in it. When you become Fairy Tail's next S-class mage, then and only then, will I allow you to go on this mission."

Dannis was shocked at his declaration before he nodded, eyes filled with determination. "I'll be ready, Master."

"I have no doubt you will be, Dannis." Makarov smiled. "I have no doubt you will."

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AN: A setup chapter for the next phase of the fic. S-class trials, coming up!

The muse in my personal life is solved now, thanks for the wait. Expect regular updates again from here on out

Drop some stones and leave a comment pls. Thank you :D