Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.
November, x771
Half a year has passed since Alfonzo and Elicia began training with Laxus, Bickslow, Fried, and Evergreen under the supervision of the more senior members of Fairy Tail. In that time, neither Alfonzo nor Elicia had started creating special moves or a special fighting style with their magic. Instead, they have been strengthening their bodies and magic power reserves to an almost insane degree.
Most days, their days began with Alfonzo waking up and heading to the guild hall to do his job as the chef in the mornings. Meanwhile, Elicia was still struggling to wake up on her own, driving Evergreen crazy to no end.
After Elicia and evergreen arrive at the guild each morning, they would order breakfast and join Laxus, Bickslow, and Fried at their usual table before eventually being joined by Alfonzo.
After breakfast, the group of six would head to the guild's back yard to begin their training. While Laxus, Bickslow, Fried, and evergreen would do their own thing, Alfonzo and Elicia would start out by experimenting with their magic to see exactly what they could and could not do. Then when their magic power was exhausted to just before the point they would faint, they would begin their physical training which consisted of push-ups, sit ups, squats, and running. Then, when their magic power reserves refilled, they would begin the process all over again.
One thing to take note of is that Elicia tried to get Nab to join them for training. Unfortunately, Nab was too preoccupied with finding the perfect quest for himself. A quest that he would not be able to take for some years to come. So, he always gave her a rain check. Eventually, even the ever-energetic Elicia gave up on helping Nab become stronger.
This routine lasted for approximately three months. At that point, Alfonzo and Elicia were able to repeat the process of exhausting their magic power and refilling it five times with little in the way of physical fatigue. So, Alfonzo came up with a way to make their physical workouts more taxing.
Using his [Metal Magic], Alfonzo created thin metal wrappings that he and Elicia would wrap around their hands, wrists, and forearms as well as their feet, ankles, and calves, looking like Muay Thai wraps. Naturally, these metals added weight to their limbs, making their workouts more difficult. And over the three months since they started using them, Alfonzo has been increasing the density of the wrappings, which in turn increases their weight.
In these three months, not only has Alfonzo and Elicia's physical abilities in creased dramatically, Alfonzo's control over his [Metal Magic] has also increased. The difficulty of making metal strips heavy enough that they add some weight to their training regimen, yet flexible enough that they react like cloth is difficult work.
Towards the end of that period of time, Elicia had the idea of creating metal training clothing for them. On top of that, her brilliant idea would test not only Alfonzo's control over his magic but her own as well. Elicia's idea consisted of Alfonzo using his magic to create metal threads that she would weave together into rolls of cloth using her own magic. Then, using more of the same threads, she would sew them into the training gear she mentioned.
Naturally, Alfonzo agreed to this idea. They would begin experimenting with it as soon as they no longer felt any benefits from working out with their current arm and leg wrappings.
As the sixth month since Alfonzo and Elicia joined the Fairy Tail family drew near, Laxus was the first of the other children to notice the wrappings that Alfonzo and Elicia were using. After getting an explanation about them, he, with his usual authoritative tone, demanded that Alfonzo make a set for him too. Hearing that demand, it took all Alfonzo had to not hit the older boy in his nose.
Eventually, exactly six months after coming to Fairy Tail, Alfonzo agreed to Laxus' request with some urging from Elicia. The smug expression Laxus wore when he got his wraps irritated Alfonzo to no end, but because Elicia gave him the puppy eyes, he was able to keep his temper in check.
"Damn it, I'm gonna beat that guy to a pulp one of these days." Alfonzo muttered while walking through the streets of Magnolia not long after he made Laxus' wrappings.
"Come on, Fonzie, calm down." Elicia said with her usual cheerful tone. "He just wants to get stronger."
"That's all fine and good." Alfonzo said, still steaming because of Laxus. "But I don't owe him a god damn thing. Would it kill that little bastard to ask nicely? I mean, he's asking me for something, not the other way around."
"Fonzie, language." Elicia said sternly.
When Alfonzo glanced at the clearly upset Elicia, he was sure that she was doing her best to look intimidating while she glared at him sternly. Unfortunately, all Alfonzo could see was a cute little girl with a pouty face staring at him with watery eyes.
'Her attempts at being intimidating are gonna make me laugh.' Alfonzo thought as he looked away.
Seeing Alfonzo break eye contact with her, Elicia nodded in satisfaction. Then, she smiled brightly and began consoling him.
"Anyway, I know. He's not being very nice." Elicia said with a bright smile while grabbing Alfonzo's hand with both of her own. "But you know he'll redeem himself later."
"That doesn't make this any easier." Alfonzo said, looking away from Elicia smile that was as bright as a ray of sunshine.
'*Sigh* It's so hard to stay mad when she smiles at me like that.' Alfonzo thought, feeling his anger slipping away.
"Anyway, where are we going?" Alfonzo asked, trying to change the subject. "What did you want me to buy for you again?"
"A fabric store!" Elicia exclaimed excitedly. "Now that you can spare some money, we'll buy the materials then I'll make all of our clothes from now on. Then, we'll be able to have more luxurious clothes without spending a stack on them every time."
"Okay, that makes sense." Alfonzo said with a nod. "Although clothes for kids isn't expensive, the stuff I can afford isn't exactly the best in quality."
"Exactly!" Elicia exclaimed once again. "This way, we can spend the same amount we usually would for cheap clothes on nice materials. Then, I can make us some really nice clothes."
"Right." Alfonzo replied with a smile at Elicia's enthusiasm.
As they chatted, Alfonzo and Elicia eventually made their way toward the shopping street west of the train station. After walking for a few more minutes, they found the store they were looking for.
"Snitches Get Stitches." Alfonzo said, reading the shop sign aloud. "That's... one hell of a name."
"Fonzie, watch your language." Elicia said with a pout on her face.
"Yeah, yeah, I know." Alfonzo replied while shaking his head. "I know you don't like it when I swear, but you know I can't help it."
"Whatever." Elicia said, rolling her eyes at Alfonzo's excuse. "Let's just go inside and see if they have what we want."
Instead of trying to argue his innocence any further, Alfonzo nodded his head and pulled the door to the shop open. Then, he held it for Elicia to enter. Once Elicia was inside, Alfonzo followed her in.
*Ring!*
As they entered, a chime sounded, alerting those working in the shop that there were new customers. Then, from the back of the shop, a pretty, mature woman stepped onto the sales area.
"Good after--- Oh, a couple of children?" The shop owner asked, a little confused.
"Good afternoon, ma'am." Elicia said energetically while raising her left hand high over her head. "We're here to buy some fabric and threads."
Alfonzo simply nodded along with what Elicia had to say. He knew she was much better at dealing with people than he was. In fact, in their past life, people's good first impressions of him usually came because Elicia introduced him.
"Oh, running errands for your parents?" The shop owner asked. "Aren't you two good kids."
Instead of correcting the misunderstanding, Elicia smiled. Then, she dragged Alfonzo along to look at the fabrics on display. Meanwhile, the shop owner just watched them with a smile.
As Elicia dragged Alfonzo around, she looked at cloth in the six primary colors she and Alfonzo liked to wear the most. In her case, sky blue, baby pink, and grey the same color as Alfonzo's eyes. Alfonzo, on the other hand, liked to wear white, black, and royal blue. So, she picked up a roll. Of cotton and satin in each color. Then, she picked up some threads that would match the clothes she intended to create.
After everything was picked out, Alfonzo and Elicia hauled everything to the counter so they could pay.
"Did you find everything you were looking for?" The shop owner asked with a smile.
"Yup!" Elicia exclaimed energetically. "Thanks for asking."
"Good. Now, let's see what you've got here." The shop owner said, beginning to total up the children's selections. "Three rolls of cotton, 999 Jewels each. Three rolls of satin, 1,799 Jewels each. Five spools of thread, 699 Jewels each. So, your total is."
The shop owner then took out a device that looked like an abacus and began to calculate the total.
Seeing the old calculation device, Alfonzo began to think.
'I wonder how hard it would be to make a lacrima calculator.' Alfonzo thought to himself. 'Then, again, I don't know if they even exist here. What if she just doesn't have one? I'll have to do some research.'
A few moments later, the shop owner was done with her calculations.
"Your total is 11,889 Jewels." The shop owner said, looking at the kids in front of her with worry.
Unconcerned with the shop owner's worried gaze, Elicia looked at Alfonzo. In return, Alfonzo put his hand into his pocket and pulled out a wad of paper bills folded together with a money clip he created with his [Metal Magic].
After unclipping the money, Alfonzo counted out 11,900 Jewels before handing it to the shocked shop owner.
Over the past six months, Alfonzo, who had been working as a chef at the guild, had saved up quite a bit of money. To Makarov's surprise, Alfonzo had, somehow, negotiated a deal that he would get an eight percent. Cut from every dish he made. With each dish costing about 850 Jewels and at least 70 dishes sold each morning, Alfonzo made over 850,000 Jewels in six months.
And with his 80,000 Jewels a month rent, Alfonzo still had almost half of the money he made remaining. Even after buying daily necessities for six months.
Meanwhile, after the shop owner accepted the money and handed Alfonzo his change, Alfonzo and Elicia bid her goodbye and promised to come back next time they needed cloth and thread before leaving.
"Okay, we've got everything we need for now." Elicia said happily. "We'll have to buy shoes and boots, though. I don't think I can make those with my magic."
"Well, as long as you don't mind metal soles, I can take care of that." Alfonzo said, carrying the things they bought over his shoulder. "I mean, I think I can make metal that will flex along with each step. But I'll probably have to experiment for that."
Instead of saying anything, Elicia hugged Alfonzo with a big smile on her face. Then, once she was satisfied, she grabbed Alfonzo's free hand and dragged him back toward the guild.
"Come on, Fonzie." Elicia said energetically. "I wanna get started. Let's go, let's go!"
Allowing himself to be dragged along, Alfonzo smiled, happy that Elicia was once again able to do what she loved.
Once they returned to the guild, Elicia dragged Alfonzo to the spot where they usually sat with Laxus and the others. However, when they sat down, Elicia realized something very important.
"Fonzie~~~!" Elicia whined with tears in her eyes after her realization. "I forgot to get paper and some pencils so that I could sketch out the designs."
Smiling reassuringly, Alfonzo combed his fingers through Elicia's hair before standing up.
"Leave it to me." Alfonzo said as he began to walk away. "Don't forget them next time we go out shopping, though."
With that, Alfonzo walked toward a corner of the guild hall. There, in front of a canvas with a color pallet in one hand and a paint brush in the other, sat a teenage boy, looking to be about fourteen years old. He had curly orange shoulder length hair and wore a white smock while painting on the canvas.
"Hey, Reedus." Alfonzo said quietly, trying not to disturb the painter too much.
"Oh, Alfonzo, what can I do for you?" The painter, Reedus Jonah, said, placing his paint brush on the table next to him.
"Well, Lici and I went out shopping not long ago." Alfonzo said, explaining the situation. "And she forgot to buy a sketch book and some pencils..."
Before Alfonzo could finish, Reedus reached his hand into the bag next to him and pulled out a brand new sketch book. Then, he reached in again and pulled out a pencil. Without hesitation, he handed them to Alfonzo with a smile.
"If that's all you need, here. Take it." Reedus said happily. "I've got tons."
"Thanks, Reedus." Alfonzo replied with a smile of his own. "The next time you come for breakfast is on me."
"Haha!" Reedus laughed. "I couldn't possibly turn down that offer."
After that, Alfonzo thanked Reedus once again. Then, he returned to Elicia with the sketch book and pencil. After dropping them off, he asked Makarov if he could take another shift in the kitchen. Seeing Elicia do what she loves, he also felt the urge to cook.
2/2
I'll be back with 2 more chapters tomorrow.
If you're interested, check out my other story, High School DxD: Scattered Cherry Blossoms.
Thanks for reading, I hope yo enjoy the story.
Comments and Power Stones are always appreciated.
I think it's a little too early for Reviews, though.
Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.
May, x772
In the blink of an eye, another six months passed. In those six months, Alfonzo and Elicia turned seven years old. Also, they continued their training, the density of their metallic wraps increasing several times, as well. On top of that, Bickslow, Fried, and Evergreen also started using Alfonzo's metallic wrappings as well. Though, they were more polite when asking Alfonzo to make them. Not by much, though.
Also in those six months, Elicia completed quite a few sets of clothes for both her and Alfonzo. So, they were often seen in outfits consisting of their three favorite colors. Today, after their training, Alfonzo and Elicia went out to pick up another batch of fabrics. On top of making Alfonzo and her own clothing, Elicia was also taking commissions to make clothes for the members of Fairy Tail.
Now, like Alfonzo, Elicia was also making her own source of income. So, she also had to start paying rent at the dorms. And because the female dormitory, Fairy Hills was more luxurious, she had to pay 100,000 Jewels a month. Luckily, there were a lot of members in the guild whose clothing got damaged or destroyed during quests.
"Fonzie, when I'm old enough, the first thing I'm gonna do is open up a clothing store." Elicia said excitedly.
"That's a good idea, Lici." Alfonzo replied with a smile. "It looks like everyone loves the clothes you make, after all."
"I know, right!" Elicia said, smiling brightly. "But what about you? Are you gonna open a repair shop like you did before?"
"Nah." Alfonzo denied while shaking his head. "I was thinking of opening a restaurant."
"Really?" Elicia said, beginning to drool from just thinking about Alfonzo's cooking.
"Yeah, but before I do that, I wanna learn about black smithing and magic engineering." Alfonzo said casually.
"Magic engineering?" Elicia asked in confusion.
"Yeah, like how to make the magic vehicles." Alfonzo said. "Frankly, the designs for those things are horrendous. I wanna make cars and motorcycles that look more modern."
"Oh, I get it." Elicia said, nodding in understanding.
"Plus, the fact that they only work on the user's magic power is a huge detriment." Alfonzo added. "I mean, if someone is using one to get to the scene of an emergency, the chances that they will be completely out of juice when they arrive is pretty high."
"Kinda like Erza was when Team Natsu faced Eisenwald, right?" Elicia asked excitedly. "That was the first battle that had any real meaning in the series."
"Yeah, just like that." Alfonzo replied with a smile and a nod. "I mean, there should be a way to power those vehicles with lacrima. I'm surprised no one ever looked into that."
"Now that you mention it..." Elicia said, slipping into contemplation. "I don't think there was anything like that, all the way up to x791 in the anime and manga. But it's been a while since I watched or read it, so my memory could be off."
"Either way, we know that it wasn't made into reality before the Tenrou Island incident." Alfonzo said with a shrug. "So, I have at least twelve years to figure out if that's even possible."
"I know you can do it, Fonzie." Elicia said encouragingly. "If you put your mind to it, you can do anything."
Hearing that, Alfonzo could only smile wryly. When Elicia talked to him like that, it made him feel like he really was a child again.
While continuing to chat, Alfonzo and Elicia steadily closed the distance between themselves and the guild. When they were walking the last stretch, they felt a gaze glued to them. It was a gaze they had noticed for a few months, now. And both of them were pretty sure they knew who it was.
"That's Cana, right?" Alfonzo asked in a quiet voice.
"Yup, it's definitely Cana." Elicia replied in an equally quiet voice.
"Well, I guess it's about that time." Alfonzo said while scanning the area discreetly.
Eventually, he found a pretty young girl with dark brown, thick, wavy, mid-back length hair with strands of hair that framed her face, brown eyes, and tan skin, who they knew to be Cana, watching them as they approached the guild. Judging from her clothes, they knew she was not particularly well-off. In fact, they knew that she had been living at an orphanage for the last few months.
Cana, an orphan who lost her mother a few months ago, spent most of her time since that day watching people enter and leave the guild. Though, no one really paid attention to her. Alfonzo and Elicia had noticed her for a while. They also knew that she was hoping to meet her father, a member of the guild that had no idea she even existed.
"*Sigh* That Gildarts was such a rolling stone." Alfonzo said in an exasperated tone. "I wonder how many other kids he has running around the continent."
Gildarts Clive, currently the strongest member of the guild and a well-known womanizer. From what the two have heard over the last year, it was common for Gildarts to have one-night stands while he was out on quests. So, the chances of more of his children running around is quite high.
"Hmph! I hope he catches something ad it falls off." Elicia said disdainfully, surprising Alfonzo quite a bit. "Who does he think he is? Getting his rocks off and not thinking about the consequences of having unprotected sex. If he ever tries to flirt with me when I get older, I'm gonna kick him in the nuts, no questions asked."
Immediately, Alfonzo felt a chill down his spine and phantom pain in his nether region. Then, doing his best to appear calm, he changed the subject.
"Anyway, should we go talk to her?" Alfonzo asked, his voice shaking a bit from the intensity Elicia showed when talking about Gildarts.
Perking up immediately, Elicia looked at Alfonzo with a smile.
"We should." Elicia said, nodding her head energetically. "But you should do the talking. You know she was one of my favorite characters, right? So, I might mess things up if I start the conversation."
"*Sigh* You know she was one of my favorites, too." Alfonzo said with a wry smile. "I mean, she had the best hips and ass in Fairy Tail."
Hearing that, Elicia deadpanned.
"Don't look at me like that." Alfonzo said with a chuckle before combing his fingers through Elicia's hair. "Back then, even you said you wanted to slap her ass if she were real."
"Shut up! Stupid Fonzie." Elicia said with a blush that was barely noticeable due to her darker skin tone.
In their past life, Elicia was not bisexual by any means. When it came to 3D girls, anyway. But when she got to watching anime or reading manga, she found herself attracted to quite a few of the female characters, often saying that if she had the chance, she wouldn't mind giving quite a few of them a go. She even made off-hand comments about Alfonzo starting a harem if they were both transported to an anime world. That way, they would be able to play with the many heroines together.
'Now that I think about it...' Alfonzo thought to himself as he approached Cana with Elicia. 'We're in an anime world now... I wonder if she'll push me into a harem, now. Either way is fine with me. I'm not even sure if I could make more than one girl happy. Hell, I'm not even sure how Elicia stays happy with me. Especially after how I basically neglected her feelings back then. Eh, whatever. We'll just cross that bridge when we come to it.'
At the same time, Elicia was actually thinking about that old conversation that she and Alfonzo had as well.
'Even though I really meant it when I said that back then, I only considered it because I didn't think it could ever happen.' Elicia thought as she and Alfonzo drew nearer to Cana. 'But now that we're actually in an anime world, should I really go through with it? I just don't know. But it would be pretty hot, though.'
Contrary to her usually innocent and energetic personality, Elicia was quite the passionate lover in the bedroom in their past life. Even though she had only ever been with Alfonzo, she was quite passionate and enjoyed learning new things. Plus, her libido was high. Really high. Most of their love making sessions would last for three hours at the very least, by Elicia's insistence.
Eventually, Alfonzo and Elicia reached Cana, breaking them both out of their thoughts. Immediately after coming back to her senses, Elicia hid behind Alfonzo as if she were shy, when in reality, she was trying to minimize the chance of her letting something slip that she should not.
At the same time, Cana noticed Alfonzo and Elicia approaching. Looking at them nervously, she was afraid that they were going to ask her to leave.
"Excuse me, can we help you with something?" Alfonzo said with a small smile on his face. "We've noticed you staring at the guild's entrance for a while. A couple of months, at least. So, we were wondering if you needed the guild for something. Did you want to commission a quest, maybe?"
Exhaling a sigh of relief when she was not asked to leave, Cana took the chance to get a good look at the two children who approached her. The boy was a little taller than her and had a light brown skin tone that was darker than her tanned skin by a few shades and an afro hairstyle. While the girl had short straight hair and skin a shade darker than the boy she was with. What surprised her, however, was how good looking the two in front of her were.
"Um... No, I don't' want to commission a quest." Cana said, snapping out of her thoughts. "You see... my mother passed away earlier this year. Before she died, though, she told me to come to Fairy Tail. She said that they would definitely take me in."
'There's no way I can tell them that my deadbeat dad is a member of Fairy Tail.' Cana thought to herself as she explained.
"Oh, so you wanna join the guild." Alfonzo said with a nod, even though he and Elicia knew the real reason Cana came here. "Then, you should follow us. Even though, like us, you won't be a full member until you're old enough, I'm sure Gramps wouldn't mind taking you in."
"Really?" Cana asked skeptically.
"Yup." Alfonzo replied with another nod. "Like you, we're both orphans, too. In fact, we weren't even living in Magnolia. But Gramps, he's the guild master by the way, came all the way to Hargeon to get us when he heard that we had magical talent. By the way, can you use magic?"
Surprised to hear that the two children in front of her were orphans just like her, Cana looked at their clothing with skepticism. She had never seen any orphan kids that dressed that well before.
Noticing the direction of Cana's gaze, Alfonzo smiled wryly, understanding exactly what she was thinking.
"The only reason our clothes are so nice is because Lici and I are talented in things other than magic, too." Alfonzo said. He then pointed at himself and Elicia in turn as he continued to speak. "I'm a pretty good cook, so I made some money working in the guild's kitchen. Then, I bought the fabrics that she told me to. After that, she made our clothing."
Once again, Cana was surprised. That story sounded both believable and unbelievable at the same time. Believable because he did not say that they simply bought the clothing and that they were made by themselves. Yet unbelievable because she could tell that neither of them was much older than she was.
Noticing yet another skeptical gaze directed his way, Alfonzo simply shrugged in response.
"You don't have to believe us for now." Alfonzo said with a smile. "Instead, why don't you answer my earlier question. Can you use magic?"
"Oh... Yeah... I can use [Card Magic]." Cana replied.
"Okay, good." Alfonzo said with a nod. "Since you can use magic, there really should be no problem taking you in. Come on, let's go."
With that, Alfonzo turned toward the guild's entrance and began to walk with Elicia following him closely. In shock, Cana stood in place for a moment. Then, she quickly followed them as well.
A few moments later, Alfonzo, Elicia, and Cana entered the guild building and made their way straight to Makarov, who was tipsy and sitting on top of the bar, downing a pint of beer. When they reached him, it only took a few moments, and Cana was accepted into the guild.
Naturally, Cana was mind blown at how easy that was. After Alfonzo explained her situation, Makarov did not even stop to think before saying...
"*Sigh* Child I'm sorry for your loss. Although we'll never be able to replace the family you've lost, if you let us, you'll have a place you can call home and people you may come to see as family. Now, Alfonzo, introduce her to the other children around your age."
… Before letting out a huge belch and fainting on top of the bar.
After that, Alfonzo and Elicia turned around without even flinching. As if this were a common occurrence. Then, they walked toward a table that had four children sitting at it.
"Is it really that easy?" Cana asked, still in disbelief.
"Yup. It's that easy." Alfonzo replied.
A moment later, they arrived at the table Laxus, and the others, occupied. But before Alfonzo could introduce Cana to them, Laxus spoke.
"A new member, huh?' Laxus asked in his usual superior tone. "What kind of magic can you use?"
"[Card Magic]." Cana replied with a slight frown on her face, uncomfortable with the tone Laxus used to speak to her.
"Worthless." Laxus said harshly. Then, he looked at Alfonzo and continued. "Send her out."
While Cana was caught off guard by Laxus statement, Alfonzo was instantly at his boiling point. Something that Elicia noticed just as it happened. However, unlike she usually does when Laxus gets out of hand, this time she did not try to stop Alfonzo from escalating the situation. Since she was also displeased by Laxus attitude.
"I'm not your servant, Cuzz." Alfonzo said in a low tone. "I've been putting up with your crap for a while now. So, if you don't want any problems, you're gonna start talking to me with respect from now on."
Hearing Alfonzo's threatening tone, Bickslow, Fried and Evergreen frowned and prepared to teach the younger boy a lesson. However, before they could act, Laxus held up his right hand, signaling them to stop.
"Oh really?" Laxus asked in a condescending tone. "And why would I do that. Do you really think you could give me some 'problems'? Do you actually belive that you could force me to do anything?"
"Trust me Laxus, you don't want this smoke." Alfonzo said in the same tone.
Although he had never heard that term before, Laxus knew what Alfonzo meant and he smiled widely before responding.
"Oh, but I think I do."
1/2
A second time skip for the second consecutive chapter. I don't know if I'm moving too fast for this story so far. But I'm sure you all will let me knwo if I am.
If you're interested, check out my ohter story, High School DxD: Scattered Cherry Blossoms, too.
Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy the story.
Comments and Power Stones are always appreciated.
I think it's a little too early for reviews, though.