Hot and Cold

New Recruit: Cooper

~*****~

"I don't know why you're so upset. It was just a small job guarding some big wig at a wine convention." I say to Natsu as we stroll towards Fairy Tail.

He grunts loudly and crosses his arms over his chest. "I was expecting a bunch of food to be able to get a hold of. Turns out all they had was gross smelling cheeses and nuts."

I snort. "It was a wine convention. Cheese and wine are usually had together." I remark. "Just enjoy the fact that we're fifty thousand jewel richer."

"D'you think Lucy will be pissed we went on a job without her?" Natsu asks eagerly. "She gets funny when she's mad!"

I start laughing. "Probably. Although, I don't think she'll hold it against us for long. As long as we can get another job, she should be fine." I stretch my arms over my head and stare up at the sky.

Natsu grumbled and began running at his belly. "Man, I'm starving. You wanna grab a bite to eat before we make it to the guild?"

I gaze around the street and hum as I spot the bakery. "There's only the bakery on this street. The good places are all on the other side of town. Unless you wanna go to that new deli just past the baker."

Natsu clutched his chin in thought, humming almost silently. "Bakery it is. They always got good grub."

Thankfully, the baker still had a bunch of single cakes left for us to buy and we ate them silently once we were back on our way. The guild hall is lit up when we arrive, and the surprisingly, it sounds like there's a party going on. "Wonder what the occassion is."

"You think it's a surprise birthday party or something?" Natsu asks with a mouthful.

I gaze at him for a long time. "Neither of us know our birthday's, so how would anyone else know? I think we're the only one's out."

Natsu plops his fist into his hand. "Then it's gotta be a new recruit!"

"A new recruit? Isn't Fairy Tail kinda in the dumps right now?" I mention as I trail in after him.

Inside there's booming laughter and lots of chatter surrounding someone. Makarov beams when he sees us enter. "Did the job go well, kids?" He calls out.

I beam in response. "The job went well, Master, the client was very pleased. He said he'll continue to put in requests to our guild when he has the need."

Makarov slaps my shoulder roughly. "Excellent work, the both of you!"

"Thanks, Gramps!" Natsu smiled. "So what's with the party?"

Makarov hummed through the ale he'd taken a swig of. "We've got a new recruit! Said he came all the from the Blue Pegasus when he'd heard about our return!"

My mind suddenly wanders to Marko. Natsu and I push through the crowd, and I peer at the boy in the middle. Well, not so much as a boy. He's near my age, it looked like. Marko should be older now. This was definitely not Marko. I couldn't help but think his appearance looked familiar. Where had I seen that shade of pink hair? It was way too light for him to be related to Natsu. Not to mention, his eyes were rounded and a deep blue color. I kept staring; my chin clutched in thought.

The new recruits eyes swung up and they widened once they spotted me. "Aria!" He exclaimed and leapt over the table. I'm swept up in a hug, my feet leaving the ground as I'm hoisted high. "It's finally good to see you again!"

I shove him off and stare, my brows drawn together in confusion. The image of Cooper races through my head. He was only ten when the Magic Council had arrested him and put him in prison for something that was completely unrelated to our group. "Cooper?" I say softly, my brows dropping as tears flood my eyes. "Oh my god-- they said you'd died, how-- how are you--"