A Little Bit of Chaos

(a Fairy Tail FanFiction)

Hello! This is the edited version of the story previously known as Jormungandr.

Yo! I'm DragonKingDragneel25 and Mangabear asked me to help him rewrite and revamp Jormungandr and here's the finished product! And without further ado, Mangabear and I present to you... A Little Bit of Chaos!

Disclaimer: Mangabear and DragonKingDragneel25 do not own Fairy Tail.

Chapter 1-A Chaotic Beginning

Trains, Kazuki Skyro decided, were the invention of the devil.

The green haired, purple eyed youth curled himself into a tighter ball around his sword as if that would somehow relieve his nausea. Instead, it just reminded him of how horrible he smelled. He gagged, closing his mouth quickly as he felt the bile rise. The last thing he needed to do was throw up on a train and draw attention to himself. Though, with his ragged shirt and jacket and his torn up jeans and boots, it was kind of hard.

Why had he come on the stupid metal monstrosity anyway? There was nothing wrong with good, old fashioned walking. He never got sick when he was walking.

The train took a turn and, being unprepared, he tumbled from his seat and landed in an ungraceful heap of limbs on the floor. A few of the other travelers turned their heads to look but no one asked if he was all right. Which was probably for the best, since he very much was not all right. He sighed, thumping his head on the floor. Apparently, life just hated him.

He closed his eyes, attempting to stave off self-pity. He didn't need it right now. What he needed was a plan. A plan to make sure this would be the last time he ever had to go on a trip like this. After this, he would be able to walk wherever he wanted. So long as he had somewhere to go back to.

"Hey, kid, you okay?" a voice asked. His eyes shot open and his body jerked into a semblance of a sitting position. His intense gaze met that of the conductor's, the poor man's hands raised in a show of apology. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. Just thought I'd check on you."

"I'm fine," he rasped out. He licked his dry lips before he continued. "Fell out of my seat, is all."

"Yeah, I saw that," the conductor chuckled. "Come on then, let's get you back up."

"Don't touch me!" he barked as he felt the conductor's hands close around his arm. "Just leave me alone. I'm fine."

He glared at the conductor, wishing the man would just leave. Finally, the conductor took the hint and walked off, mumbling under his breath about ungrateful kids. He sighed and closed his eyes again. He was probably a bit harsh but at this point, it was almost instinct. The last two years had been anything but kind to him. And this hellish train ride was his last hope.

"Just a bit longer," he whispered, every ounce of hope he could muster put into those words. Only a little longer until he arrived. Until he tried again. Did he really want to try again? Yes, he did. The streets weren't kind to a scrawny street kid, even if that scrawny street kid was him. He was so very tired of looking over his shoulder all the time, of struggling to find a way to pay for the meals his stomach begged for, of wondering if he was going to make it through the night. And if he was being really honest with himself (which he wasn't prone to being), a home sounded nice.

Before he could dwell any further, the train came to a halt. He bounded to his feet, struggling to repress his urge to grin. His torture had finally ended! His eyes flicked to the window eagerly. It was finally his stop! It was…

"Now arriving at Onibus Station," a voice announced over the intercom. He fell back into his seat almost comically, his face already returning to the green color that had just left it.

This was most definitely not his stop.

"I really hate trains," he mumbled.

He stood in front of the entrance, his eyebrows raised as he listened to yet another crash from within the building. He had heard the guild was lively but this seemed a bit… extreme. A few insults were shouted before he heard more crashing. He sighed, closing his eyes as he tried to convince himself to open the door. He didn't even know why he was so unsure about this. No matter how… exuberant these people appeared, it was unlikely that they would pose any threat to him.

His confidence returned, he pushed open the door. In the next second he was on the ground with another body on top of his own. He growled in annoyance and without any thought, threw the other person off him.

"Hey, what was that for?" the person shouted as he scrambled back up. He blinked and tilted his head. "Hey, wait a second, you're not from here. Who the heck are you?"

"Kazuki Skyro," the newcomer grunted as he got back to his feet. "And you?"

"I'm Natsu Dragneel," the other said, puffing out his chest in pride. "I'm a Dragon Slayer!"

"What?" Kazuki said without thinking, his eyes going wide. This pink haired, scale scarf wearing boy was a Dragon Slayer? What were the odds of that?

"What, you don't believe me?" Natsu demanded, his eyes narrowing. "Then I'll just have to prove it to you!"

"Prove what?" Kazuki frowned, confused. Natsu didn't reply right away, instead taking a deep breath. Realizing what was about to happen, Kazuki took a few quick steps back, along with a deep breath of his own.

"Roar of the Fire Dragon!" Natsu shouted as he blew flames.

"Roar of the Water Dragon!" Kazuki yelled barely a second later, a vortex of water coming from his own mouth.

The two magics collided, the resulting steam clouding Kazuki's vision. His eyes flickered from side to side in an attempt to find Natsu. He did eventually find the pinkette, though not by sight. In normal fashion, Natsu announced himself with a fist in Kazuki's face. Growling, Kazuki attacked as well. The next minute found the two rolling around the floor in a very ordinary fist fight. The rest of the guild, largely forgotten through this entire exchange, watched in a mixture of amusement and surprise.

"Did he just…" one boy said. He glanced at the small old man next to him. "Master, did he just use Dragon Slaying Magic?"

"I think so," the old man replied, crossing his arms as he began to think.

"Ouch, don't bite me, damn it!" Kazuki shouted, shaking his arm that was currently between Natsu's teeth. "That hurts!" The next second Natsu had been kicked across the room as Kazuki inspected the bite mark. Surprisingly, the boy didn't even twitch. A girl hesitantly walked over to his side, giving him a quick once-over.

"He's unconscious," she announced. The guild fell silent, their eyes drifting over to Kazuki. He shifted uneasily, already knowing what was coming next. He really shouldn't have gotten into a fight his first minute here but really it was Natsu's fault. Kazuki closed his eyes as he waited for the words that had become more than familiar to him.

"Boy," the old man in the odd hat said sternly. He paused, making Kazuki hold his breath in anticipation. "Who are you?"

"Uh… Kazuki Skyro," Kazuki said for the second time that day. He continued to wait, still a bit on edge.

"I take it you're on your own?" the old man asked. "Like Natsu, your father is gone too?"

"Yes," Kazuki said simply, deciding that now really wasn't the time to be mentioning his other family members too…

"And you're looking for a Guild?" the old man continued. He didn't even give Kazuki a chance to respond. "Well, then, I suppose you're in the right place. There are plenty of kids here already. One more won't hurt anyone."

"Just like that?" Kazuki blurted out. The old man just raised his eyebrows in question. Kazuki gestured towards Natsu. "Even after that, you're still going to let me join?"

"It'll take a lot more than that to keep Natsu down," the old man said drily. As if the words were a signal, Natsu groaned.

"What just happened?" he muttered, sitting up slowly. He looked around, his eyes landing on Kazuki in confusion. "Hey, who are you?" Kazuki looked at the other boy in exasperation, wondering exactly how many times he would have to say his name today.

"You'll have plenty of time to figure it out," the old man scolded Natsu. "After all, he's your new guild mate." Kazuki's head whipped back towards the old man, who just smiled back at him. "Welcome to Fairy Tail, Kazuki."

"There we go," Makarov said as he removed the stamp from Kazuki's arm. The boy twisted it in an attempt to get a better look at it. Failing, he looked back at Makarov silently. "As of now you're an official member of Fairy Tail."

"Great," Kazuki mumbled. Though no part of him showed it, Kazuki couldn't deny that he was ecstatic. He was finally a part of a guild. No more sleeping on the streets, no more empty stomachs and best of all, no more trains.

"Lemme see," Natsu demanded, grabbing Kazuki's arm. Kazuki stiffened but managed to keep from throwing the boy across the room. Again. As it was, the pinkette seemed to have no memory of the first time and instead was acting as if the two of them were joined at the hip. "It's just black. That's boring."

"What does it matter?" Kazuki sighed, yanking his arm away. "It's a guild mark, not a tattoo."

"Black's still boring," Natsu said, scrunching his nose.

Kazuki looked away, using every ounce of willpower in him not to reply. His eyes travelled over the Guild. Between his fight with Natsu and talking with the master, he hadn't had much of a chance to even look at anyone else. As Makarov had mentioned, there were plenty of kids. In fact, a lot more kids than he would have expected in a guild. Yet all of them bore the mark that announced membership. Like the kid walking by him right now. He had the mark right across his chest.

"What the hell?" Kazuki muttered, still staring at the naked boy as he walked by. It was like a train wreck; it was impossible to look away.

"Oi, stripper!" Natsu called out, seeing the same thing. The naked boy paused, sending a glare Natsu's way. Natsu just pointed at him. "Lose something?"

"Not again!" the kid cried out as he looked down at himself. He whipped his head side to side frantically. "Has anyone seen my clothes?"

"That way," another voice drawled. Kazuki turned to see a girl about his age sitting at the bar, one arm outstretched and pointing across the guild while the other held a mug of…

"Thanks, Cana," the naked boy said as he dashed in the appropriate direction.

"Dumb ice princess," Natsu laughed, looking towards his companion for confirmation.

"This place is insane," Kazuki sighed instead. And by some freak chance, he was now a part of this insanity. He allowed himself to glance at Natsu, deciding he might as well put the pinkette to use. "Why was that kid naked? And is she allowed to be drinking that?"

"Huh?" Natsu blinked, twisting around to look at Cana. He shrugged. "I guess. No one's tried to stop her yet. And as for Gray… I dunno why he was naked. He does that a lot."

"Okay then," Kazuki allowed. He turned to fully face Natsu. "Anything else I should worry about?"

"Nah, that's everything," Natsu chirped. Kazuki raised his eyebrows, not fully believing the younger boy.

"Natsu!" a voice called. Natsu flinched and ducked behind Kazuki, suddenly nervous.

"H-hi, Erza," Natsu stuttered out. Kazuki looked towards the newcomer in sudden interest. If this person could make Natsu quake in fear just by saying his name, they were probably worth knowing. To his surprise, a young redhead in armor stood before him, her arms crossed in annoyance.

"Did you get into another fight with Gray?" she demanded.

"Uh…" Natsu tried, his brows furrowed in thought.

"And then a fight with someone else too?" she continued. "How many times do I have to tell you not to fight? You should be friends with your guild mates."

"I was in a fight?" Natsu asked, glancing up at Kazuki.

"Sort of," Kazuki hedged, deciding against telling the truth. He had the feeling if he did tell Natsu, the pinkette would just attack him again and he really wasn't in the mood. "I, ah, accidentally tripped you when I first came in."

"Oh," Natsu said, his face lightening.

"Really?" the girl asked. "And who are you?"

"I am so sick of that question," Kazuki muttered under his breath. He looked the girl in the eye. "Kazuki Skyro. I just arrived."

"I see," the girl said. She stared at him for a moment longer. "I'm Erza Scarlet. It's nice to meet you."

"Same," Kazuki said with a nod of his head. He grabbed Natsu and pulled him out from behind him. "And quit cowering, it's embarrassing."

"I wasn't cowering!" Natsu protested indignantly. Kazuki and Erza both gave him a look. He looked away, pouting. "I wasn't…"

"So there really was no fight?" Erza asked again, her question directed at Kazuki.

"I said there wasn't, didn't I?" Kazuki grunted. Erza just stared at him, as if she could see his lie. He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Okay, fine, I didn't fight him. I can say nothing about what happened before I got here."

"Is that so?" Erza said with narrow eyes, zoning in on Natsu again. Natsu ducked behind Kazuki again only to be dragged back out without pause. A part of him felt a bit bad for sacrificing Natsu like that but a bigger part of him was rather amused with the entire situation. Plus, he had an even more selfish motive.

"Kazuki, no, don't let her take me!" Natsu pleaded with wide eyes.

"Sorry, not my job," Kazuki said with a feral grin, passing him to Erza.

"Thank you," the redhead said shortly. She proceeded to drag Natsu away. "Now then, how about we have another talk about getting along, yes?"

"Kazuki you jerk!" Natsu wailed.

"Bye," Kazuki called absently, turning away uncaringly. Natsu continued to shout towards him, the begging quickly turning to insults and threats. Kazuki didn't take any of it seriously and went back to looking around the guild.

"That was a bit harsh," a voice observed. Kazuki repressed a sigh before turning in response. A boy his age, maybe older, with blonde hair, a cool looking lightning bolt scar running down his face, and headphones stood before him, looking almost as nonchalant as Kazuki. However one could see the interest glimmering in the blonde's eyes.

"So?" Kazuki drawled.

"Well, I can't say he didn't deserve it," the boy shrugged, smirking a bit. "I know why I would do it. But the question is, why did you?"

"Three reasons," Kazuki said, raising his hand and lifting his fingers with every reason he gave. "One, it seemed funny. Two, it got rid of Natsu. And three, it got rid of Erza. Answer your question?"

"Yeah, I suppose it did," the boy nodded, frowning a bit at Kazuki's tone.

"Good, then are we done?" Kazuki snapped. Kazuki had been alone for most of his life. Crowds had always made him uncomfortable. While the guild wasn't exactly a crowd, it had enough people in it to have the same effect. More than anything Kazuki just wanted to leave. And it seemed fate or whatever was determined not to let him.

"Not quite," the boy said, his eyes narrow. "I'm Laxus Dreyar. I heard your name. I also saw you take out Natsu."

"Yeah and…?" Kazuki demanded. Even as he spoke he heard the air around him crackle and felt the hair on his arms rise. He took a small step back, his instincts warning him where this was headed. "Well, fuck…"

"And I want to see how good you really are," Laxus snarled.

The next second the guild was filled with light as lightning struck where Kazuki was standing. The lightning faded to reveal a scorch mark on the floor but no Kazuki. Laxus frowned, his eyes already searching for his opponent. Kazuki appeared behind him and slammed his foot into his lower back. Laxus stumbled forward, swearing. He turned around to look at Kazuki, ready for a counterattack, only to find his opponent completely relaxed.

"Look, I get that you have something to prove to yourself or whatever," Kazuki said. "But I am really not in the mood for this. And I happen to like this building. A lot. So I would like to leave it standing. Could we maybe do this some other day?"

"You wish," Laxus spat. He ran forward, one fist surrounded in lightning.

"Fine, whatever, just don't blame me for the aftermath," Kazuki sighed.

His hand shot out in a blur to catch Laxus' before it hit his face. He flinched slightly at the feel of the lightning but otherwise seemed unaffected. Laxus furrowed his brow in confusion but didn't have too much time to dwell on it. Kazuki yanked Laxus' arm out of the way to deliver a blow of his own. It made contact with a sharp crack, jerking Laxus' head to the side.

Kazuki blinked slightly but prepared for another blow. To his surprise, Laxus moved just a bit faster. He shifted himself in Kazuki's grip and threw a kick at Kazuki's middle. Kazuki doubled over slightly, eyes widening as he saw yet another lightning covered fist coming towards his face. This one hit and sent Kazuki flying, smashing a few tables as he landed.

"Guess you're not so tough, after all," Laxus smirked, wiping at the corner of his mouth. The small pile of wreckage shifted as Kazuki got back to his feet. His fangs were bared and his eyes shining with what looked like excitement.

"You have no idea," he growled. He threw himself forward, arm back. "Water Dragon's Cyclone Fist!"

A fist surrounded in water slammed into Laxus, throwing him backwards this time. He too crashed, sending the people sitting closest running. As he struggled to sit up, he saw Kazuki take a breath.

"Roar of the Water Dragon!" Kazuki shouted. Just like the last time, a vortex of water appeared. Only this time there wasn't any fire to turn it to steam. The guild braced itself for what would likely be a devastating display of Dragon Slaying magic. Only nothing happened. The water was just… gone. Kazuki looked around with a scowl. "What the hell?"

"Sorry, sorry," a man from the other side of the guild with burnt orange hair and wearing a tattered cloak called. Kazuki narrowed his eyes. The man didn't seem to be affected, however. "Just didn't feel like going for a swim is all."

"None of your business, old man," Kazuki barked. The fight had been probably the most fun he'd had in months. The loss of half the building would have been a bit rough but honestly he figured they would be able to deal with it.

"But it is," the man said, getting to his feet. Laxus did too, though he seemed far more put out than Kazuki about the interruption. The man strode towards them, smiling. "This is my guild too."

"Fine," Kazuki grumbled. He glared at Laxus. "Didn't really want to fight anyway. Now who the hell are you and what did you do to my magic?"

"I'm Gildarts," the man said. He made a gesture with his hand. "And your magic… I just sent it away."

"Well, don't do it again. It's weird," Kazuki mumbled. He turned to Laxus. "I guess we'll finish this some other time."

"Fine," Laxus snapped. The two glared at each other before retreating to separate sides of the guild.

"I said, no," Kazuki growled, digging his feet into the ground.

"C'mon, it's not that bad," Natsu said encouragingly, tugging on one of Kazuki's arms.

"And besides, Erza said to," Gray added as he pulled on the other. It looked like a very strange version of tug-of-war, only instead of each other Gray and Natsu were pulling against Kazuki. One that had been going on since the three of them left the guild together.

"I don't care what she said," Kazuki snapped as he tried to separate himself from the boys. "I said no and I meant it. Now let. Me. Go!" Kazuki jerked himself back with surprising force and the three of them tumbled to the ground.

"I give up!" Natsu shouted at the sky. "I give up! He can go around smelling like a dump for all I care!"

"Why are you so against a bath anyway?" Gray grumbled, glaring at the older boy. "Aren't you a Water Dragon Slayer or whatever? You should love water."

"It's not the water I have a problem with," Kazuki sighed as he picked himself up off the ground. He decided not to correct them for the moment. "It's having to take a bath with the two of you."

"Eh, why?" Natsu asked innocently as he tilted his head to the side. Gray looked almost as confused. Kazuki closed his eyes and counted to ten, trying his best not to explode. Then he pointed a finger at Gray.

"It's bad enough I've seen him naked," Kazuki said slowly. "And that was an accident. Why would I put myself in a situation to do it on purpose?"

"Hey!" Gray shouted, taking insult.

"But we're guild mates now," Natsu said. "It's normal to take a bath together."

"On what planet?" Kazuki barked. Apparently, the insanity of his new guild reached levels he didn't quite understand just yet.

"Oi, are you three going in or not?" an annoyed voice came from behind. "Believe it or not, some people actually want to take a bath."

Kazuki turned around to see a girl about his age with pale hair, blue eyes and a taste for dark clothing standing behind him. His raised his eyebrows slightly as she glared up at him, a hand on her hip. With her were three more kids, two of them her obviously her siblings and another, smaller girl. Kazuki stared at them curiously. He felt like he knew them from somewhere…

"Natsu, are you feeling okay?" the girl with short hair asked. "You hit your head pretty hard."

"I did?" Natsu asked, his hand going to his head. "When?"

"Well, when…" she started.

"When you tripped earlier," Kazuki said quickly, finally recognizing her. She was the girl who had checked on Natsu after he had sent him flying. Which meant all the kids standing in front of him right now were members of Fairy Tail as well. "You hit your head when you tripped."

"Oh," Natsu said, easily accepting the explanation. Everyone else looked at Kazuki with a mix of disbelief and annoyance. Kazuki stared back, patiently waiting to see if any of them would bother to argue his story. In the end, no one did. "Well, I guess I'm okay now. Sorry for worrying you, Lisanna."

"Don't worry about it," the girl, Lisanna, said gently. She turned her attention to Kazuki again, her eyes a bit stern. "And we didn't get a chance to meet properly earlier. I'm Lisanna."

"Mm," Kazuki hummed absently. Lisanna's sister was still glaring at him and the other girl was staring at him with a bit of fear and maybe displeasure. Kazuki had the distinct feeling that none of the girls in the guild liked him very much, not that it bothered him.

"So are you going to move or what?" the older sister barked. Kazuki turned his attention to her again.

"Oh, of course, Princess," Kazuki said with a mocking bow. "So sorry to inconvenience you. Please, continue on your way."

"…" the older sister was silent, her face a mixture of embarrassment and frustration.

"Mira-nee," the brother said quietly, reaching out a bit hesitantly. Gray and Natsu shifted closer to each other in a rare show of comradeship while the other two girls stepped away quickly.

"Look, you jerk," Mira snarled, taking a step forward. Kazuki didn't move, unimpressed. "I said to get out of the way."

"I heard you," Kazuki said simply.

"Then move," Mira growled, stepping even closer. She raised herself so her face was directly in front of Kazuki's. He moved as well, there barest of space left between them.

"Then say please," he whispered with a smirk. Mira gave an outraged cry and moved to hit him.

"What's going on?" a voice interrupted.

Kazuki leaned back to see two more people he recognized. He scowled in displeasure. Erza and Laxus were also apparently wanting a bath. This was just getting worse and worse.

"Dreyar, Erza," Kazuki said calmly.

"Back off, Erza," Mira growled, still glaring at Kazuki. Kazuki just shrugged.

"In yet another fight, Skyro?" Laxus asked with raised brow.

"Just a lesson in manners," Kazuki replied easily. "Now, if you will all excuse me, I will leave you to your baths."

"Wait," Erza called. Despite himself, Kazuki paused. He hated that even he listened to Erza. That was going to have to change. "I said you had to get a bath too."

"And I will," Kazuki grumbled. He gestured towards everyone else. "Just not with them."

And that was the end of it.

…or so he thought. Kazuki sank further into the water, depression and annoyance taking over. With the supposedly final words on the matter, he had turned to leave. Next thing he knew, Erza was barking at Gray and Natsu to drag him into the bath house. Then, because it was obvious he didn't want to go, Laxus helped too. Now here he was in a public bath watching his guild mates run around without clothes on…he hoped the nightmares would fade with time.

"Hey, quit splashing, flamebrain," Gray shouted irritably. "This is a bath, not a pool."

"Make me," Natsu taunted, splashing his rival again.

"Are they always like this?" Kazuki muttered.

"Unfortunately," Laxus sighed. A temporary truce was called between the two, at least until this torture was over. Then there were no promises.

"I think they're really good friends," another boy piped up. Kazuki had learned his name was Elfman and he was probably the most normal of everyone he had met thus far. In that respect, Kazuki liked him.

"No way do I like him!" Natsu and Gray shouted at the same time. Then they glared at each other. "Quit copying me!"

A full on splash war started between the two of them, Gray obviously forgetting his earlier protests. Kazuki sat there for a while, trying to wait them out. As they continued, his irritation continued to mount. Finally, he sat up with a wave of his arm. The water responded and rose over the two loudmouths.

"Enough already!" Kazuki shouted, a vein in his temple throbbing. "This is a bath! Quit being idiots and shut up!"

"You're cheating!" Natsu said when he finally stopped coughing up water. "You're using your magic!"

"No shit!" Kazuki snapped back. He repeated the gesture, more water moving. "Now shut the hell up!"

"Oi, Skyro, quit it!" Laxus growled, struggling to stay still in the surprisingly active water. "Some of us are trying to relax!"

"What do you think I want to do?" Kazuki rumbled, glaring.

The next few minutes were filled with the insults, curses and coughing of everyone in the bath as the splash war continued with a few extra players. The surrounding area was completely drenched and the amount of water actually left in the baths was questionable. Yet irritation kept the boys going. At some point though, Kazuki admitted to himself reluctantly, he had actually started being a little fun. Well, so long as there wasn't a naked boy on his back.

"Get off me, ya pervert!" Kazuki yelled with a strange grin. Gray had jumped onto him in an attempt to keep him from moving large quantities of water the way he had been. In response, Kazuki reached back and grabbed him by the shoulders, throwing him away. Gray flew through the air and crashed in the fence. Unsurprisingly, it broke on impact, sending Gray through to the other side. High pitched screams filled the air. The boys froze, suddenly very uncomfortable.

"Uh oh…" Natsu mumbled, already backing away.

"What… ah, crap," Gray said as he sat up.

Erza, Mira, Lisanna and the other girl whose name Kazuki still didn't know were sitting on just the other side, looks of surprise painted on their faces. As the awkward moment dragged on, it was quickly replaced by embarrassment and anger. The boys were still transfixed on the site before them as the girls quickly wrapped towels around themselves and turned to glare at them.

"Boys…" Erza said lowly, getting to her feet. A dark aura surrounded her and all the boys took an unwilling step back. They could already tell this was not going to end well. "The fence was there for a reason."

"I-It was an accident," Elfman stuttered. The poor boy hadn't really been participated so Kazuki felt a bit bad for dragging him down with the rest of them. Then again, it really was an accident so he wasn't quite sure why Erza was so angry. But she wasn't the only one.

"You perverts!" Mira shouted, already stalking towards them. "I'll teach you to peep!"

"We weren't peeping!" the boys shouted as one, panic setting in.

Erza and Mira didn't listen and continued to come towards them, eyes blazing. The boys were left with no other option but to defend themselves.

The public bath was closed down for at least a month for repairs. The owners had kindly requested that the members of Fairy Tail "never set foot in the establishment again." Makarov accepted the bill with many wails and tears. The kids responsible were currently huddled at a table, nursing various wounds.

"You didn't have to be so rough," Natsu said mournfully, rubbing his face.

"You saw," Erza growled.

"But it wasn't even our fault," Gray complained. "Kazuki's the one who broke the fence."

"No, you did when you hit it," Kazuki said immediately.

"It's not like it was anything worth getting mad over anyway," Laxus huffed in irritation. "You don't have anything worth seeing."

"What was that?" Mira shouted, jumping to her feet.

"Mira-nee, calm down," Lisanna said weakly.

"No, let the Princess say her piece," Kazuki grumbled. He was still mad at how badly the girls had pummeled him.

"Shut up, Skyro!" the rest of the boys yelled.

"All of you shut up!" Makarov shouted right back, his irritation plain on his face. "Sit there quietly or else!" They immediately clammed up. "Now you gakis are going to sit there until I'm satisfied!" With that, he left.

The eight just sat there in gloomy silence. They were the only ones in the guild at the moment, so the silence was really prominent. Kazuki took to glaring at the wall, which unfortunately was behind Erza, who was sitting across from him. She noted his glare and sent one back at him. "What is your problem?" she hissed quietly.

His attention turned to the redhead. "My problem?" he hissed back. "Well, let's see… you have two guys drag me, against my will, mind you, to a public bathhouse. Then you and lightning bolt over there FORCE me into the bathhouse. The salamander and the ice block get into a fight which forces me and lightning bolt to join in then the stripper tries to tackle me, to which I acted accordingly and sent him flying. Now, it might have been my fault he went through the wall but I never wanted to be there in the first place!"

"Why are you so against the bathhouses?" Elfman asked quietly. He didn't get why the new guy was so against them.

The green haired Dragon Slayer turned to Elfman and his glare lessened slightly. "Let's just say being on your own can attract a lot people from the wrong crowd," he said darkly. "I have been a lucky son of a gun to be able get away from crazy perverts but the mere thought is just disturbing."

The group was shocked. They all knew how hard it was to be on their own but they never thought Kazuki had had it even rougher than them. Mira turned away and frowned. Lisanna was almost in tears and Elfman was gaping.

Gray was gritting his teeth, as was Natsu. They hadn't experienced what Kazuki had but they did hear a lot of crap on their way to Fairy Tail. It was not pretty.

Erza was shaking terribly, cursing herself for showing weakness. Images of her time at the Tower of Heaven flashed through her mind unbidden. She grabbed her shoulders in an effort to try and calm herself.

Kazuki noticed her shaking and immediately became concerned. Skyrologia had drilled it into his head that if a girl was suffering, you help her out. No matter if she hated you, you were crushing on her, or she was your own worst enemy.

"Um...Erza?" Kazuki asked hesitantly. "Are you okay?"

She looked up, startled at his soft tone of voice. "Y-yeah," she whispered. "J-just fine."

"Certainly don't sound like it," Mira thought, but stayed silent.

"Oh. Okay, um...uh…" Kazuki racked his brain trying to think of something to say. He had not been around people for so long, that it was hard dealing with them again. "Listen, I...ugh, darn it. Look, I'm...s-sorry I've been a jerk and all. I haven't dealt with people in so long, I'm out of practice."

"Because of your dad?" Laxus asked without his usual sneer.

Kazuki looked at him for a moment and nodded. "Yeah. I rarely went into towns, and when I did, it was only in dire emergencies."

"Yeah, me too," Natsu muttered.

Gray stayed silent, as well as Elfman and Lisanna. There really wasn't much to say. They just sat there in a semi-uncomfortable silence and mulled over the new information they had been given or were trying to decipher each other's pasts.

Unbeknownst to the eight, Makarov was sitting above them on the rafters with a smile. Perhaps there was hope for those eight yet.