Chapter 12 - Taking Flight

---Earthland, Next Day---

Waking up in a pile of hay, it took me a moment to remember what was going on. Having been used to snuggling with Aqua, I found it weird not to wake up to her in my arms. Instead of her, I found myself hugging Mirajane with Lisanna and Elfman sprawled out next to us. Immediately letting her go, I didn't want to ruin my chances with her in the future. With my body warmth suddenly gone from her, Mirajane woke up a few minutes later.

"Good morning...", she yawned.

"Good morn-", I started to say as Elfman rolled over and accidentally hit her in the face.

Seeing her face twitch with annoyance, I stepped out of the room before she hit him back. Of course since he was dead asleep, the first thing he did was scream out in fright before asking her why she hit him. Listening to them argue while I made breakfast, Lisanna came out with a smile on her face.

"Is this a normal morning?", I asked.

"Pretty much, Mirajane likes to shout when she is angry and Elfman doesn't like conflict. Since he won't shout back at her, it drives her crazy.", she giggled, "They fight at least twice a day minimum."

"Gotcha.", I chuckled.

Coming out of the bedroom a few minutes later, Elfman wore a few welts from his sister's lecture. Taking a seat with a huff, Mirajane was in a sour mood. Eating our breakfast in silence, I helped the siblings pack up the few personal belongings they had left before preparing to leave. Once we were ready, the siblings bid their parents farewell at their graves and followed me out of the villages.

Feeling the remaining villagers stare at us, I could understand the unease they had here. Sticking close to me, we made a quick escape before anything happened. Once we were a safe distance away, I found a large flat boulder and told them to take a seat. Casting the spell Levitate on the boulder, the siblings looked at the ground nervously as the boulder started to gently lift off the ground. Looking over the edge, Lisanna looked petrified as we started to clear the tree tops.

"You are sure this is safe, right?", Lisanna inquired.

"Absolutely, I got this.", I chuckled, "What's the worst that can happen?"

"The boulder rolls over, and we all get flattened.", Elfman said clutching the boulder.

Shaking my head at him, I used Fire Magic to launch us forwards. Shooting us across the sky, the three of them gradually became more and more comfortable with our method of transportation. Watching the forest fly past us, soon we entered the plains. Using the spell Locate to pin point Makarov's location it took all of two hours to reach Magnolia. As the city came into view, Lisanna shouted with excitement.

"Wow!!", she gasped with excitement, "It's so big!! I haven't ever seen a city this big before!!"

"I assume that large building is the Guild?", Mirajane asked.

"Yep, that is it from what I have heard.", I replied seeing a few familiar faces outside the Guild.

Landing the boulder outside the city, we hurried over to the Guild to get registered. Just like in the series, the place was very clean and free of crime which was a welcome change of pace for me. As we approached the Guild I saw Cana outside the guild observing her father Gildarts as he drank with some of the other men. Unlike the rowdy atmosphere I was used too, the members were much more meek than I remembered.

Noticing our approach, Gildarts gave us a grin and called out to Makarov to come outside. Coming out with a mug of ale in hand, Makarov asked him what was wrong. Motioning over to us, he looked over with a puzzled look. Seeing four children walking towards them, he expression softened.

"Ah I see.", Makarov stated, "Good Morning!! How can I help you?"

"You must be the Guildmaster of Fairy Tail, right?", I inquired.

"That's what they call me, for better or worse!", he laughed, "What brings you here today?"

Letting the siblings explain their situation, Makarov wore a sympathetic look. Judging by his expression, it seemed like we weren't the only ones that had shown up. When they finished talking, Makarov nodded his head.

"I understand, the damage really is wide spread.", Makarov said, "If you are looking to join us, we are more than happy to have you."

"When you say that...I assume there are others?", I asked.

"Unfortunately yes, you four are the first today but we have had several people show up over the past few days.", Makarov replied with an irritated look, "The Council recently did some offensive operations against some of Zeref's Demons, but failed miserably. They let dozens of Demons loose, and have yet to suppress them. In the chaos over seventy villages and towns have been destroyed in the resulting fights."

"...so the Demon didn't come for me..?", Mirajane said falling to her knees.

"No...", Makarov replied clenching his fists, "To place the blame on the child...those Mage Hunters really are terrible."

"We warned those assholes this would happen, but they wouldn't-", Gildarts started to say before Makarov cut him off.

"What's done is done, we can't change what they did. All we can do is sit and wait...as much as I hate it.", Makarov stated, "If you go off and try to fight, they will have your head."

"You can't go out and help?", Elfman asked.

"No...unfortunately the Council put out a warning to all the Magic Guilds. If we interfere with their operation, they will revoke our Guild License and brand us Rouge Mages.", Makarov told us.

Hearing several of the mages grumble in response, they all seemed to have a distaste for the Council. Based on what some were saying the Mages on the Council had little to no power in what was done. They barely managed to pass a self-defense clause in the notice that allowed Mages to defend their city of operations. Even worse was that the notice was only posted in Guild Halls meaning...the public at large would think the Mages just decided not to help them.

'So this is how they have sown discontent with the masses. They frame the Mages as cruel individuals without any care for normal people. Any Mage that says otherwise gets branded a Rouge Mage, and is hunted down to be killed.', I thought, 'This sort of thing is ridiculous.'

"That is an issue for another day, let's get all of you registered.", Makarov chuckled giving us a bright smile.

Following him inside, there was a lot more people here than I remembered. Seeing younger versions of people from Black Clover and others here...it really did seem like this was the catch all Guild. Handing a form to fill out, all we needed to write was our names and ages down for their records. Writing my first name down, I looked at the last name and paused.

'Shit...I don't have one in this life.', I thought, 'I will put down Solis I guess. It's Sun in Latin so that is good enough for me.'

Handing back our forms, he nodded his head and retrieved the Guild Stamp from his office. Putting a stamp on the siblings first, Makarov asked me where I wanted mine. Pointing to my front right shoulder, he put the stamp on and it immediately turned an orange yellowish color.

"Alright then, you are officially members of Fairy Tail!", he said with a smile.

"I got a question.", Lisanna asked, "Why is this place called Fairy Tail?"

"Haha, well...", Makarov replied with a grin, "Do fairies really have tails? Do they even exist...Like them, this place as an eternal mystery...A never ending adventure!"

Nodding her head, she gave him a warm smile. Walking away to get a layout of the place, I stayed behind to talk with him.

"Something else you need?", he asked.

"Well I was going to ask about accommodations. We are going to need a place to sleep at night.", I remarked.

"Ah, well you are more than welcome to pass out on any open bench here.", he told me, "We have dormitories available, but those can be rather expensive. The other option would be to buy a home though that is very expensive."

"How much is very expensive?", I asked.

"The dormitory is 100,00 jewels a month, and the house prices in Magnolia start at 300,000 jewels.", Makarov stated, "Larger ones can easily exceed a million jewels."

'Hmm...I can afford a house here.', I thought, 'I have several hundred thousand valis from Adventurers I punished in the Labyrinth. Clark was generous enough to make my currency change depending on the world so I have a few million here.'

Asking Makarov where I could speak with someone about a home, he gave me a confused look. Telling him that I had the money necessary to purchase a house, he looked rather surprised that I had any money.

"It is odd that someone so young has saved up so much money.", he said, "It's good to see that some of the youth have a sense about money."

"I have done work here and there to make money. Not having a place to stay means my expenses are very low.", I chuckled.

"What do you mean?", Makarov questioned.

Explaining that I had been homeless for most of my life, his expression softened a bit. He understood that I had a tough life, and had done the best I could with it. Telling me he would contact an real estate agent for me, he said they should be here in an hour or so. Thanking him, I walked over to the siblings who were standing in front of the job board.

"A lot of this looks really dangerous...", Elfman gulped.

"It's not all bad, there are some quests to find missing pets or help clean peoples homes.", Lisanna stated.

"That's true, Elfman we can't be picky with our work. We have to pay our way through life now...", Mirajane said with a sad expression.

"You guys can live with me for now. I am going to buy a house here in town.", I told them.

"You have that kind of money?", Mirajane questioned with shock.

"I have been saving my money so I could buy a home someday. Since Magnolia is my home now, I want to make a proper home here.", I stated, "You guys will need a place to stay till you can make enough money, right?"

Looking at each other, none of them had any real complaints about the arrangement. It meant they could have a warm bed at night, and they had solid roof over their heads. Agreeing to my offer, Mirajane insisted they pay some sort of rent to cover their living expenses. Saying we could go over a price or some other arrangement later, for now I wanted to look at the jobs on the board.

---An Hour Later---

Walking into the Guild Hall in a business suit, a young woman in her early twenties came in to see Makarov. Waving me over after a brief conversation with her, he introduced her as Lilian Pond.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mael Solis.", she said with a smile, "Makarov informed me you are looking for a home?"

Telling her I wanted a home with five bedrooms, three bathrooms, a large kitchen and dining, and a a plot of land...she jotted that all down on her notepad. Flipping through the listings she had, it appeared she had a few locations that met the requirements. Pulling the papers out of a folder, she placed them in front of me to look over.

'These aren't bad...320,000 to 600,000 jewels isn't bad, but they are all in rough-', I thought before spotting one that priced at a measly 100,000 jewels, "What is wrong with this place? It's much larger than the others, but it's so cheap."

"Well...", she said with a nervous look, "The owner has been trying to sell it for years, but no one wants it because...it's haunted."

"Haunted?", I questioned.

"Yes, the owner and his friends have seen multiple spirits floating around the manor house. They don't do much harm, but they do cause a lot of damage to physical items.", she stated.

'Is it a ghost, or is it a Guardian Spirit?', I thought, 'If it's a Guardian Spirit, I found myself a steal of a deal as it will handle all the maintenance on the home. In the event it's a ghost, I will purify the home without any problem.'

Telling the woman I wanted to view the home, she lit up with excitement. I assumed that getting the house off the market was a boon for everyone as it was likely driving down housing prices. It was either that or she thought I was an idiot for even considering the house, either way I wasn't going to turn down a small mansion for such a low price.