After the whole ordeal with Makarov and Cana, the latter refused to leave my side for the first day because of my grievous injuries, and although I probably didn't show it, I enjoyed spending time with my adopted little sister, though I digress. During the next few days, I spent most of the time in the library. I wasn't the smartest person, and that was entirely why I was in the library to begin with. I read about different types of magic, how they worked, and their strengths and weaknesses. It proved fruitful, learning far more than I'd probably know in years by myself, though it was incredibly dull.
Once I was fully healed, the first thing I did was grab a job and then two fellow guildmates, as I practically forced them to act as my supervisor, since, after the little fiasco with Wakaba and Macao, they refused to go with me.
For the next three months, I took mission after mission, fighting mostly mages while forcing my guildmates to join me, and my growth was borderline astronomical compared to when I was in the forest; it felt like I progressed twice as fast. I even got the opportunity to take a mission with Laxus, allowing me to witness his strength and the use of his Lightning Dragon Slaying Magic; to summarize, he was powerful, to say the least; definitely, the strongest besides Makarov. I was also given a chance to display my power to him, which was very lackluster compared to his flashy and powerful magic; however, by the end of the mission, he may not have verbally expressed it, but he showed slight respect for me, even if begrudgingly.
Another thing that happened was that I earned a little nickname in the guild, given my barbaric fighting style, and I would be lying to say I wasn't a bit proud of it, although it wasn't a nickname I should be proud of. Also, by the end of the second month, everyone refused to go with me, which annoyed me as I thought Makarov wouldn't let me take missions, but after a bit of begging and persuading, he agreed, so for the third month, I was doing missions by myself, fighting mages, beasts, and even protecting a trading ship as it sailed to a different part of Ishgar. I earned a lot of money, but since I lived in the Guild, I didn't buy anything other than small presents for Cana.
Oh, I also got an upgrade to my attire; it was still the same outfit, only everything was processed correctly, looked a lot less gruesome, was far more comfortable to wear, and didn't smell.
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Kicking open the door to the guild, I walked in, earning numerous forms of greeting as I made my way to Gramps, who was speaking with a boy I'd never seen before. "Haa, 'Beast' is back, everyone! Covered in blood like usual." "Haha, man, I swear he doesn't know what a shower is. I can smell him from here!" "Heh, that's why we call him 'Beast'. He fights like one, eats like one, and smells like one; I mean, we're just lucky he isn't as smart as one… That would be terrible." Growling at the man's teasing remark, I tossed a chair at him, though he quickly dodged while several others laughed.
Reaching into my pocket, I removed the bloody paper before slamming it onto the bar beside Gramps. "I completed the mission, Gramps! I kept that stupid trade ship safe; I only got to fight a few aquatic beasts, though, granted one of them was giant." With a slight frown, I glanced at Gramps while hopping onto the stool, taking a few swigs of beer from a drink, only to earn a smack to the back of the head.
"Haa, how many times have I told you Cooper? Clean yourself before entering the guild. Also, you're underage, no beer." Inwardly cursing, I rubbed the back of my head while Gramps took my beer, causing me to growl in annoyance, only for him to clear his throat and gesture to the young boy beside me. "Anyway, as you can see, this little boy has come from the Land of Isvan after some, let's just say, unfortunate events and has decided to join Fairy Tail."
Although Gramps didn't specify what these supposed unfortunate events were, with one look into the boy's eyes, I could already tell it was the death of a loved one. The sadness, fury, and rage burned brightly; I was very familiar with it as I'd see it every time in the reflection when I drank water from a pond in the forest.
Grunting, I leaned in close to the boy until our faces nearly touched, causing him to eventually push my face away with an irritated expression. "Back off, you reek of blood." Smirking at his words, I glanced at Gramps. "What's his name?" "Gray Fullbuster."
Nodding at Gramps, I wrapped my arm around Gray's shoulders, holding him firmly against my body. "Listen here, Gray, now that you're a Fairy Tail, I'm your Big Brother, understand?" With a stern gaze, I looked at Gray, waiting for him to nod, as there was no negotiation; I was merely telling him what would happen now that he was a member of Fairy Tail. However, he didn't seem to like it, aggressively pushing me away while glaring at me. "Tch, the heck are you talking about!? I don't even know you, nor do I want you to be my big Brother!" "Well, too bad, I'm everyone's big brother."
Scoffing, I folded my arms while looking at Gray, only for a yellowish lightning bolt to strike me down. "Tsk, watch your mouth, Beast." Glancing at Laxus in the distance, I rolled my eyes while shaking my head; his lightning attack wasn't strong, so other than burning the blood off my body and damaging my outfit, I was fine. 'Tch, I need to learn how to use my Indestructible Magic to strengthen my clothes; they get damaged after every mission.' While deciding to take a few days' break to improve my magic, I shook my head, shifting my focus to Gray.
"Besides Laxus, I'm everyone's big brother. There is no say in the matter; it's just a natural order of things in Fairy Tail." Hardening my gaze at Gray, who seemed deadset on resisting, Cana approached him while gently tapping his shoulder. "Don't try to resist it, Gray; big bro only resolves arguments through fighting. He's a dunder-head." Growling at Cana's words, I saw her stick her tongue at me, causing me to crack my knuckles, though before I could adequately discipline my little sister, Gray aggressively shook her hand off while turning around and walking away. "Tch, I don't need a stupid brother!" Watching Gray storm off, I slightly frowned before looking at Gramps, deciding to discipline Cana later.
"Tell me about Gray, Gramps." I asked with a firm gaze as I stared at Gramps, who raised an eyebrow before slightly nodding, only for Macao's stupid voice to echo within the guild. "Someone's really taking their 'Big Brother' role seriously." Hearing Macao, I aggressively growled before tossing a stool at him, which he caught by morphing his purple flames into a large hand. "Tch, ignore Macao, Gramps."
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After listening to everything Gramps told me about Gray's past, I felt sympathetic, but most importantly, I knew exactly how he felt; I was thankful he had found someone to be by his side as he came to terms with his destroyed village; he was lucky, unlike me… I had no one. While walking through the Guild, searching for Gray, I eventually found him hidden behind bushes in the Interior pool, causing me to furrow my brows as I leaped behind the bushes, landing beside him.
"I learned what happened to you with your village and Master." The moment I finished speaking, I was punched in the face, though the one who got hurt was Gray, who grasped his hand while wincing in pain. "Tch, shut up! I don't need your pity!" With a yell, Gray stood up, trying to leave, though I grabbed his hand before yanking him back to the ground. "I'm not giving you pity, as your big bro, it's my obligation to help." Firmly holding Gray, preventing him from leaving, he yelled back, ignoring my words. "Help!? As if you could help!? How can you help when you don't understand!?"
Deeply sighing at his words, I told Gray my past, told him everything, causing him to go quiet, refusing to say anything now that he knew we were the same. "I know exactly what you went through, and that's why, as your big bro, I'm required to prevent you from turning into me." Staring at Gray, who just silently stared at me, I stood up, only to hit the back of his head, causing him to wince in pain while holding his head. "I'm also stronger and older, so whether you like it or not, I'm your big bro." Dusting my hands, Gray stood up in annoyance while suddenly removing his clothes and placing his fist on his palm. "Stronger? Tsk, let's see about that! After I beat you, I'll become the big bro!" Seeing Gray's eyes fiercely shine, I sighed before shaking my head.
'Haa, well, I expect this. The big brother must sometimes force their siblings in line.' Using Indestructible Magic, obviously not to my full extent, I narrowed my eyes at Gray, whom I allowed to attack first.