The Next Dragon Slayer

The Next Generation

"Storm! Hurry!" I whisper-shout at my best guy friend to put out a teensy fire I sort of set.
"Hang on, don't get your panties in a twist," Storm rolls his eyes and holds up a hand that's already glowing with his water magic.
I flash him a grateful, but slightly mischievous, grin as he extinguishes the flames. Thankfully, they didn't do much damage to the forest they were on. My magic can get a little out of hand sometimes.
Storm and I were training in the little field near our guild hall when I tried out a new move I've been practicing. Let's just say I need some more practice. But hey, at least Storm's water magic can put out my fire magic.
"Nashi," Storm's voice snaps me back to reality.
I turn and stare him dead in his icy blue eyes. He gives me a slight nod and we get into position. I've just been alerted that trouble is coming.
Storm ducks under a log, and I swing up into a tree. Both of us are masked by leaves and branches. Then a twig snaps. Footsteps echo through the woods. Trouble is here.
We launch ourselves out from our hiding spots and unleash some magic onto the figure standing out in the open.
"Fire dragon roar!" I yell fiercely.
"Water slicer!" Storm bellows.
Fire and water hurtle towards the figure and are met with a slight screech.
"Guys, what the heck?"
Emma's irritated voice rings out through the field. Meet Trouble, a.k.a. Emma Redfox, my girl best friend.
Storm and I burst out laughing as we look up to Emma stooped behind a shield she created with her iron magic.
"It's not funny, you could have killed me." She erases the shield and gives us both death glares.
"We were just messing with you," Storm shrugs.
"Well, now I guess I'll have to kill you." Emma plasters on a wicked snarl and lunges.
Beams of iron shoot toward us and we're scrambling all over to avoid her wrath. Emma's tough, almost so much that she's scary. It's really not that surprising though, especially considering who her dad is.
"Emma, chill out, we're sorry," Storm blurts as he dodges another attack.
"Yeah, we're not going to do it again," I assure her while I duck behind a tree.
She stops and is silent for a moment. Then it's her turn to laugh. She practically howls as she says, "That was so good. You guys are never gonna learn,".
This may have been the third time we've done that this week. What can I say? We may all be teenagers, but we'll probably never act like we're any more mature. Emma strolls over to us while Storm and I stand up to brush the dust off our clothes.
"I was supposed to come get you both. Your moms want you back at the guild. Your dads are supposed to get back today." Emma runs a hand through her now messy black hair as she explains.
"Oh yeah, I didn't realize how long we'd been here," I reply with a shrug.
"We should go then," Storm mutters.
"Yeah, let's go," I loop one arm around Emma's arm and the other around Storm's and begin our march back to the guild hall. Emma returns to her usual self, still tough, but happier. Storm continues to act cranky and like everything is annoying, so he's being normal. Regardless, we're all talking and laughing when we get to the guild.

•••••

"Nashi Layla Dragneel! I saw smoke coming from that field. What did you set on fire this time?" My mom rushes toward me, her blonde hair swishing.
"We didn't destroy anything, I promise." I smile innocently.
She looks me over uncertainly. Being married to my dad has taught her how much this smile doesn't work. The innocence is totally lost in the rubble of whatever town he accidentally wiped off the map.
"But what did you set on fire?" She questions again.
"Oh nothing," My smile becomes a little more strained.
Mom's eyes start to get a little angrier and a lot scarier. But thankfully someone comes to the rescue.
"Hi Luce," My dad leans down from behind my mom and kisses her cheek.
"Natsu!" She turns around and stands to hug him.
The look in her eyes is the same as it always is when she sees my dad. No matter how much he can annoy her, she still loves him. He's also the only one who can sometimes distract her from the messes I've made long enough for me to clean them up.
"Hey Kid," Dad reaches out and tugs on my scarf. Or his scarf, I guess. He gave me his black and white scarf a long time ago and I've worn it since.
"Hey Dad," I stand up and hug him too.
Moments later, we break apart from our group hug, and I look over to see Storm with his family doing almost the same thing. Storm's dad, Gray, was also on the job with my dad and they've been gone for about two weeks. Juvia, Storm's mom, stands next to Gray, Storm, and Storm's sister Sylvia. As usual, Juvia and Sylvia both look the happiest. Personality-wise, Storm acts most like his dad. They're both kind of aloof and snarky. They look pretty similar, too, dark hair and blue eyes.
"So, where's Luke?" Dad asks and looks around.
"He went on a job with the rest of his team," Mom chuckles.
Luke is my little brother, and his 'team' is comprised of Emma's twin brother and sister, and also Rin Fullbuster, Storm's younger brother. Anyway, they left on some job a day ago.
I decide to give my parents some time to catch up since it's been a while since Dad left. This only gives me an excuse to go hang out with Emma.
I find her seated at a table with the book I lent her. We're both kind of bookworms, a trait we both get from our mothers. I glance over to the page she's on and begin to read over her shoulder. It takes her a good ten minutes to notice I'm there.
"Sorry Nashi, I didn't see you there," She smiles sheepishly. Yep, this is the terror that tried to kill us earlier.
"Do you like the book so far?" I ask her.
"Yeah," She pushes her long, spiky black hair behind her shoulder, "I wish I had more time to read it,"
"Early morning training still going on?"
"Yeah, Dad is relentless."
Emma's father, Gajeel Redfox, is the Iron Dragon Slayer. He and Emma have the same magic, just like my dad and me both being Fire Dragon Slayers. Gajeel is training Emma to be as strong as him, and that's saying something. She's been getting up at four in the morning for weeks just to train.
"Well we should go out and relax to take your mind off of it." I suggest, nudging her elbow with mine.
"That sounds perfect," Emma grins, the piercings on her face shining as they catch the light.
We stand up to leave and go get some food when someone busts open the guild door.
"I'm back," a voice says.