Erza opens her eyes as the train rumbles into the station with a loud screech. She stretches languidly, the first morning rays beaming down on her face. As she moves to wake Ivan, she notices that he had fallen over in his sleep. His eyes moved rapidly behind his eyelids, his skin slick with sweat. Erza observed with dismay as he muttered words she couldn’t quite make out, a troubled expression plastered on his sleeping visage. It stood in stark contrast to his usual calm demeanor. “But even you can’t completely hide how you feel.” She thinks, remembering the impulsive hug he gave her the previous day. Erza smiles softly at the memory before giving Ivan a firm shake. “Ivan! We’re here, get up!”

 

Ivan twists and writhes, his jumbled cloak constricting his movements. He jerks upright, his arm outstretched, reaching for something he couldn’t see. “No… no, MOM!”

 

Ivan gulps down air by the lungful, the worry and fear quickly fading away into complacence. When it does, he turns to Erza. “Hm? Hello Erza. Have we arrived?” His voice was even and smooth. “What’s with the face? Is something wrong?”

 

Erza schools her expression into a small smile. “N-no Ivan, you just had a bad dream is all. How do you feel?”

 

“Ah, right. The dreams. I get them sometimes. I can never seem to remember them though. It’s actually rather bothersome. Aside from that, I feel really good. I’ve never had food like that before… Do you think we can get more?” Ivan’s eyes practically gleam in anticipation as he stares at Erza expectantly.

 

Erza chuckles. “Alright, we’ll grab a quick bite to eat on our way to the guild. Don’t get your hopes up, kid, you only get to choose one thing this time.” The woman promptly walks away, not waiting for Ivan’s response. “Hurry up! We’ve wasted enough time as it is! I’d rather not miss our stop if we can help it.”

 

Ivan gets to his feet and clambers after Erza, stumbling every now and then as he runs after Erza’s distant form.

 

As the pair unboard the train, Ivan misplaces his foot and crashes to the floor. His arms crumple beneath him as he fails to break his fall, his face slamming against the cobbled floor with an audible smack. He props himself up on his elbows, a steady stream of blood dripping from his nose. “Ow. How did I-?” Ivan closes his eyes, reaching up to his nose and snapping it back into place with a crack. When he looks up, he sees Erza crouching next to him, holding out a handkerchief. “Sorry Erza, I missed my footing.” Ivan wipes away his blood with the damp cloth, the flow of blood stemming quickly and hands it back to Erza, refusing to look her in the eye.

 

Erza sighs and helps him up, patting him down as he stands there. “Luckily, none of the blood got on the cloak.” She gets up and moves to walk away but notices something. “Huh. That’s strange, you’re taller.” Erza says, as she scans Ivan carefully. “It looks like you grew a few inches last night. How strange. Was it the food? But why would you grow this much from just eating?” Erza stands there in thought for a few moments, her foot tapping against the stone floor with a clack. Her eyes brighten with understanding as she hammers a fist into her hand. “I know, it must be your constitution at work! But the only reason for that would be… Ivan? How old did you say you were again?”

 

“I didn’t.”

 

“Then, how old are you right now?”

 

“I don’t know. But the researchers think I’m around 15 to 16 years old.”

 

Erza rubs her eyebrows in frustration, letting out a long withering sigh. “Ivan… “ she says, a clear note of warning in her voice. “Okay. I think your body’s just trying to ‘heal’ itself to what it thinks it should be, now that it finally has the resources to make the changes. Why didn’t you tell me earlier Ivan?”

 

Ivan just shrugs in response. “You didn’t ask.”

 

A crisp smack echoes through the train station as Erza finally loses her patience with the young man. The impact sends Ivan stumbling but he quickly recovers. He rubs his head absentmindedly as he walks back over to the angry woman. “What was that for?”

 

Erza doesn’t deign to respond. She instead starts walking away, grabbing her massive pack of luggage and hauling it behind her.

 

Ivan runs after her, slowly acclimating to his lengthened limbs.

 

Erza gives him a glance over the shoulder. “Is there anything else I should know? Can you use magic, for example?”

 

Ivan shakes his head. “I don’t know that either. The researchers never brought it up and nobody ever taught me.”

 

Erza lets out another sigh. “How troublesome. Well, we’ll see how it goes, I suppose.”

 

They continue walking through the town as Ivan took in the sights. Dozens of people milled about everywhere they went, the streets absolutely filled with people. They passed by buildings in all shapes and sizes, made primarily of stone with lengths of wooden supports lining the structure. Shaped slats made of wood or clay sat atop it all, sloped to the sides to divert rainfall.

 

Ivan saw several buildings with people seated outside, happily eating their meals as they gossiped. He looks at Erza expectantly but decides not to bring up the promise she made, remembering her anger earlier.

 

Erza looks over her shoulder at Ivan. “Hey Ivan, we’re about to arrive at the guild. I’m going to drop off my things at the dorm, so go ahead and wait for me inside.”

 

Ivan nods in understanding, watching Erza as she turns away and walks off.

 

Soon, a massive grand structure came into view. A large board sat above a pair of open doors leading into the building, emblazoned with the words ‘Fairy Tail’. Two fairies stood on either side, appearing to hold it aloft. A heart motif seemed to be a dominant feature, appearing on the doors as well as the windows.

 

Ivan stared at the building with wide eyes, struggling to take it all in. "Why is it so big?" Even though he stood several meters away, he could already hear many people laughing and talking inside. The laughter and cheers of dozens of people welcome him as he enters, the volume amplified several fold now that he stood next to them. Ivan stepped away, seating himself at a small table in the corner as he eyed the unruly group.

 

A few minutes pass when a petite woman with blue hair comes over to him. “Hello there! I haven’t seen you before. I’m Levy! What brings you here?”

 

“Hi Levy, I’m Ivan. I’m here to join the guild.” Ivan responds with a wave.

 

“Oh! We don’t get newcomers too often. If you ask me, I think they’re discouraged by the title ‘Strongest Guild in Fiore’. It must make them feel like they have to be strong enough to join. It’s kind of sad really, it’s always nice meeting new people.” Levy says with a rueful smile. "Anyways, I’ve got to go. Good luck! It was nice meeting you!” Levy runs off, joining two men before they leave the building with backpacks strapped to their backs.

 

Ivan continues sitting there for a few more minutes, spotting a pair of well-built men getting into an argument that quickly devolves into a fistfight. He also sees a man with light brown hair flirting with a blonde woman. He wore dark shades and stood uncomfortably close to the woman. It wasn’t long before he ran off however, leaving the building for reasons unknown. He quickly comes back, running over to the pair of guys wrestling on the floor. “Oh shit, Natsu! Gray! Erza’s back!”

 

Ivan perks up at her name, getting up and approaching the entrance to join her. Her figure quickly comes into view as she walks through the guild, the black decorated horn in hand. The eyes of the various guild members followed her in surprise and fear as she passed. 

 

Ivan settles in next to her as she sets her horn down near the well-built men, who had since laid an arm over each other’s shoulders.

 

“H-hi Erza, as you can see we’re being best friends like always! Haha…ha” the dark haired man said, dressed in nothing but boxers.

His cherry haired companion followed up. “A-Aye! Best friends, haha…!”

 

Erza nods in approval, patting the two on the shoulders. She then began to criticize and chastise her guild mates at random, one after another.

 

“Cana! That drinking pose is inappropriate!”

 

“Vijeeter! If you’re going to dance, do it outside!”

 

“Wakaba! Stop leaving your cigarette buds all over the floor!”

 

“Nav! Are you still standing in front of the request board? Just pick a job already!”

 

Erza sighs to herself with her hands on her hips. “I’ll let you guys off easy and won’t say anything for today. But make sure you correct your behavior the next time I see you!”

 

While this is happening, Ivan stares at the ensuing chaos, seeing Erza in a new light. “So this IS the way she normally acts. Damn.” Ivan thinks back to how she treated the researcher she captured with a shiver. “I should stay on her good side.”

 

Erza flicks her hair behind her. “Is the Master present? I need to speak with him.”

 

A slim woman with long white hair walks up to Erza, a motherly smile on her face. “Master is upstairs right now preparing for the Meeting of Masters tomorrow.”

 

“Thank you Mira.” Erza turns to Ivan. “Wait here Ivan. Master Makarov will be with you shortly.” she says as she ascends a stairway next to the bar.

 

When she disappears from sight, the cherry haired man runs up to Ivan and grabs him by the shoulders, giving him a rough shake. “Oi, kid! How the hell do you know Erza huh!? Why hasn’t she hit you yet!? Tell me your secrets damnit!”

 

The dark haired man walks up behind him, slapping him in the back of the head. “Hey Natsu, calm down. He’s just a kid. How the hell is he supposed to answer you anyways, with you shaking him like that?”

 

“Hey! Who the hell slapped me!? Was it you Gray!? Why I oughta…!” Natsu launches himself at Gray, pulling at the man’s hair as Gray defends himself.

 

Ivan, now freed from Natsu’s grip, dusts himself off. He looks at the dastardly duo inquisitively before an errant thought comes to mind. “Hello Erza, welcome back.”

 

The two grown men flinch. Letting go of each other hastily, they scramble to their feet in record time, even going so far as to dust each other off before linking arms. They look around with worry before realizing Erza was nowhere in sight. The pair level a glare at Ivan who stares back at them impassively.

 

“Hahaha! Nice one Ivan! Oh, I needed that.” A blonde woman says with a laugh as she ruffles Ivan’s hair. “I’m Lucy by the way, that was some quick thinking!”

 

Ivan absently straightens his hair as he looks at her. “Why is everyone so… intimate?” An odd feeling grips his chest as he stares at Lucy in confusion.

 

It isn’t long before Natsu and Gray get into yet another fight. Ivan just turns away with disinterest instead of wasting his time on the troublesome pair. When he does he sees a short, elderly man standing next to him.

 

“Hmm. So you’re the one Erza was talking about.” Makarov looks Ivan up and down, a hand pinching his chin in thought. His dark eyes settle on Ivan’s own, blue orbs. What he sees seems to satisfy him as he nods to himself slowly. “Alright, just this once. Since Erza is vouching for you, I’ll permit it. Mirajane, get the stamp! We have a new family member to welcome!”

 

The old man leaps onto the counter of the bar with an ease that belies his age, pulling out a wood smoking pipe. “Come with me Ivan, let me test your magic.” The old man walks into the back, through a bustling kitchen and into a small, furnished room.

 

With his hand in Makarov’s, Ivan begins to feel a weak pressure against his hand. Only it wasn’t his hand that felt it, but rather something that felt like a thin, invisible membrane, just under the skin. Ivan focused on the feeling as the pressure grew stronger. Driven by instinct, he pressed back with his membrane, forcing the pressure away effortlessly.

 

“What you’re feeling there is your spirit, Ivan. When your spirit connects with the spiritual flow of nature, magic is born. Can you feel the connection? Can you feel the world around you? Feel the air, how it whispers. Feel the wood beneath your feet and how it sleeps. Feel the life, Ivan. In me, and in you.” Makarov said, poking Ivan firmly over his heart.

 

Upon hearing Makarov’s words, Ivan’s mind descends into his body. It drifts through emptiness, floating aimlessly until it comes across a small, shriveled seed, blackened with rot. Around this seed was a translucent orb, protecting it from the world or, perhaps, trapping it within. A feeling of extreme wrongness overcomes him, encouraging Ivan to reach out to the orb, grabbing it with his hands and squeezing with all of his might. Ivan continues struggling against the orb, the passage of time unclear. Eventually, the orb begins to crack, soon shattering in a brilliant storm of light. A light that fills the void inside him, basking his spirit in its transcendent glow.

 

Ivan comes to with a start, clutching at his chest. Everything looked brighter somehow, as if he had been looking at the world with veiled eyes his entire life. Tears flow down his face as he sobs in relief. “How… For how long have I been like this?” He hugs himself as he breaks down into quiet sobs. 

 

A pair of thin arms wrap around him in a warm embrace. “There, there child. Erza told me everything. You’ve been through so much, and yet experienced so little. Let it all out. Your grief, your rage, your sorrow. Let it flow through you so you can let your happiness bloom to a better tomorrow. Look up Ivan, look to the skies. You’re family now.”

 

---

 

A while later, Ivan lifts his hair away from his neck. “I would like the brand here, Mira.”

 

Mirajane pressed the stamp lightly against the nape of Ivan’s neck, pulling it away after a few seconds. There, clearly visible in the light of day was the mark of Fairy Tail, a brilliant blue like his eyes.

 

“Thank you Mira. This means a lot to me.”

 

Mira just smiles knowingly, slipping behind the counter to serve some of her-, no, one of his guild mates.

 

“Oooooh! Little guy, why didn’t you tell me you were joining the guild!” Natsu sprints towards Ivan, sporting some fresh bruises on his face. It seems Erza caught him fighting with Gray again and decided to correct their behavior. Violently. He picks Ivan up and starts spinning him around in excitement, sporting a wide grin.

 

Ivan lets out a slight grin. “You didn’t ask.”

 

Natsu eventually puts Ivan down, who stumbles around a bit before recovering. Natsu walks off with Lucy, a small blue cat walking along behind them. With Erza absent, Ivan found himself unsure of what to do. Up until now, he had always followed along to the whims of others. He complied with the researchers’ orders for a majority of his life, then simply mirrored Erza after she freed him. “What do I want to do?”

 

Mira notices Ivan’s plight and comes over to him. “Ivan, are you holding up okay? What seems to be the problem?”

 

Ivan hesitantly informs Mira of his predicament. Growing more confident as she listens patiently.

 

“And I don’t even know where I’ll be staying for the night. What should I do Mira? I don’t know how to use magic.”

 

Mira takes Ivan’s hands in hers and looks him in the eye. “Just leave it to me Ivan, I'll teach you everything you need to know. Uh, also... well, I wasn’t sure how to ask you earlier but since you don’t have a room for the night anyways… W-would you like to come home with me?”