Re: The Giant and the Dragon Slayer

[Atrum Furea]

"Geh heh heh." The giant found himself chuckling at Kotone's predicament even as he leaned back away from the cat a bit. He didn't hate them nor was he scared of them but their tendency to claw at him did make him wary of their location. Still He felt rather complimented by her comparison even if the way she worded it made it sort of sound like she was insulting him. Still he was glad that someone didn't this he was some inhuman creature it was comforting at the very least. "I shall take the compliment despite how it sounded." He said grinning pleasantly as he waited for his food to come.

"I suppose I can understand not wanting to smell and hear some things, I have run into that problem myself a few times though likely to a lesser extent. But once you get something to eat you should feel better, That always works for me." He said his stomach rumbling as he patted it licking his lips at the thought of pork filling his stomach was he drooling? Well yes yes he was, he was drooling he was even hungrier than he thought Well he'd be eating soon anyways he just had to stick it out until the food got here. Hopefully he wouldn't start eating the table until then.

[Kotone]

“I’m just saying, tall as you are you don’t intimidate me,” Kotone chuckled as she got Sid to lay down in her lap under the table, behaving for the first time since he started acting up. Around them, the clanging of forks and knives on plates could be heard as people enjoyed their lunch. Her mouth was watering, but she wasn’t threatening to drool all over herself about it like the big man in front of her. Fortunately for him, Kotone wasn’t like a lot of women, or people in general. She wouldn’t care if he picked up his steak in both hands and shoved them in his mouth like an animal.

“If anything, I like it because you’re easy to spot even before your scent comes my way.” She shrugged, and Atrum expressed understanding not wanting to hear and smell some things. “Believe me, I know a lot more than I should about some people,” Kotone told him with a sigh as she closed her eyes. She reopened them after a moment. “Anyway, there’s a lot more advantages than disadvantages. I suppose I experience things rather differently than hum- er, other humans,” she admitted. “Smell and things play a big part in my life.”

[Atrum Furea]

"Geh heh That is good I would rather not intimidate my friends if I can help it, there is no reason for it amongst those who are allies in my opinion." He said as he took a napkin and cleaned himself up Trying to ignore the fact that he just drooled all over himself hells that was embarrassing. Still a testament to how hungry you were was a sign someone shouldn't ignore, though he was at the mercy of the cooks at the moment. "Usually people say that being able to see me coming is good for a completely different reason, still it is appreciated." The giant said smiling as he leaned back once again, this time out of attempting to relax rather than anything else.

"Hm, 'humans', 'other humans'? Seems like you do not fully associate yourself with mankind, though having a Dragon for a Father does make that little detail make a lot more sense." He mused rubbing his chin as he spoke, he hadn't thought of someone not feeling like a full member of the human species but it was possible. "The only thing I have to compare that feeling to is being from a different country, when we first met I actually could not read most of the signs here despite being here for several years. Had to get my guildmates to teach me." He laughed at the memory, it wasn't exactly his proudest moment admitting that he needed help in that regard.

[Kotone]

Kotone would have sat back, but she was making sure Sidney would behave himself under the table. She didn’t want to slip up and get her and Atrum in trouble because the cat had decided he didn’t have to listen to the rules this time. Fortunately it was fine at the moment. “Yeah, I was raised by a dragon, then spent four more years as a child hermit in the woods,” she explained. “It wasn’t until six years ago that I actually came to civilization. I did learn pretty quickly though,” she nodded. “Dad taught me everything I should know. Though… I felt more like a child of a dragon than another human most of the time. I knew I wasn’t a dragon, obviously… but I only ever saw myself in reflections and things before I came here. It was pretty weird not seeing a face like dad’s, even if it was obvious I wasn’t like him without that view. It’s hard to explain I guess.” She shrugged.

Kotone’s amber eyes turned to the left as a plate was sat down beside her, at which point Sid started struggling again. She nodded her thanks to the Waitress who sat down Atrum’s order as well. Kotone shoved the cat between her knees and trapped him with them, picking up her knife and fork. “But more when we’ve had a bite to eat~” she told him happily as she dug into her steak.

[Atrum Furea]

"Raised by a Dragon that is impressive to say the least, but it appears that you have a decent relationship with him that is good.  I have not seen my parents in a while I should probably go visi- My Pork!"  Atrum said turning his eyes to his plate as it was delivered snatching up and tearing into the pork happily filling his stomach eagerly.  The giant chewed fast practically inhaling the food he stopped eating just long enough to grab his drink of water and slug it back, hell this was good being as hungry as he was the food was immensely satisfying.  He would be drooling if he wasn't already stuffing his face with food.

The giant was relishing the food it might be because he was famished but the way the meat fell off the bone as he devoured it not only allowed him to eat more but also made it incredibly pleasant to do so. pork roast, garlic, rice, and a side of vegetables such as lettuce, onions, and peppers to compliment the taste, damn he was almost daydreaming about home cooked meals now.  He knew how to cook he'd make that particular later when he was hungry once again for now he'd just focus on the pork in front of him and getting it off his plate and into his stomach.  He was going to need more than what was on his plate soon enough.

[Kotone]

Atrum ate like a starving giant, and that only amused Kotone more. She was trying to be a bit more ‘human adult woman’ about her eating since she was around people more, but she had a habit of not looking too different when she was starving and alone. She munched on her own food much slower. She was hungry, but she wasn’t as hungry as Atrum for some reason. At least it was easier to keep Sid in check when she was feeding him some of her meat.

“I wouldn’t say I have a relationship with dad,” she corrected Atrum after a couple of minutes. “He left when I was eight. I’m eighteen as of this month. It’s been nearly ten years and more than half of my life. He just… left a big impression.” Kotone shrugged, sticking some potatoes into her mouth and chewing. She didn’t know if Atrum would even answer the way he was chowing down, but she didn’t care. She knew he likely heard her.

“Tell me about your family. I’ve never really… had one,” she admitted. “Dragons and humans don’t think or act the same, so I’m… curious I guess.” Kotone took another bite before shoving some of her food Atrum’s direction just as his plate started to empty. “I’ll grab a snack if you want this,” she decided.

[Atrum Furea]

(Oh good gods you got him talking.)

The giant honestly had no idea how to react when Kotone responded to his comment, he couldn't imagine not having some sort of family it was truly incomprehensible to him he slowed down a bit but only enough to let her know he was listening and decided he would answer her when he had eaten enough to talk without having his stomach growling angrily at him for not eating enough. Still he wasn't sure what to say how do you describe a family to someone who's just told you they haven't really had one? No she referred to the Dragon that raised her as Dad she must have some sort of family connection to him, he finished most of his food and looked over to kotone gave her a nod, pulling what she had offered him towards him.

"My family was about as big as we could managed back where came from, My father is even larger than me if you can believe it, he was always laughing and grinning acting like he never had a care in the world even when fighting. He taught me how to fight and how to treat others most of what I know come from him We all looked up to him he kept us all going and made sure we survived." He said pausing to take a bite of Kotone's leftovers. "He may have been the leader of our clan but everyone knew that my mother was the one in charge, honestly she still kinda scares me she taught me how to control my magic and how to 'fight dirty' as she put it. She in not as big as the rest of my family but no one doubt that she is the most dangerous of us. When she lost her temper things just ended up broken shatter on fire or all at the same time." The giant chuckled at the thought and popped some more food into his mouth.

"I have two siblings a Brother and a Sister both older than me, My brother Ater lives in crocus right now and runs a magic shop. He never was that interesting in combat and focused more on science and our peoples legacy whatever that means. He is a good person but I personally think he is a tad unhinged, though my sister is the really odd one..." He trailed off for a second thinking about how to say the next part and have it make sense. "The Northern lands are a really harsh place to live, you have to work together to survive so what our people did was create as many symbiotic relationships with the native creatures as possible, we accepted the wolves among us and hunted along side them, we protected the Dryads from parasites and in return they allowed us to forge our homes out of their trees. Everyone put in an effort for the whole to live." He explained once again pausing to eat a little more. "I say this because my sister is half Dryad and it's kinda hard to understand how she thinks, she is a pleasant person to be sure but she never actually needed us to survive back home so she it is a tad hard for me to understand her." He stopped talking and scratched his head, not sure what to elaborate on. "My family is all I have and all I live for, my guild is a part of that now as well but it's not the same as my blood relatives, to have people that know you so well that you can rely on them for pretty much anything and to do so willingly even at the own expense is something that I can not properly explain." He finished up, looking at the Dragon slayer. "If you want to know something more specific I shall do what I can to tell you what you want to know, but my people are different than the residents of Fiore it is so... peaceful here in comparison I do not feel like I must constantly watch my back all the time."

[Kotone]

Kotone listened quietly and with great interest as Atrum explained his family. His family, in a way, sounded a lot like what she’d heard from people in guilds and what they thought of their guild mates. She knew it was different. It was… closer. They had the same mom, the same dad… well, maybe except his sister. But they shared one parent. It was a weird thought, siblings. Did Kotone have siblings? If so… where were they? She hadn’t asked these questions in a long time.

Atrum’s father sounded a lot like Kotone’s. Krendall was certainly a bigger ‘man’ than she was. He was a dragon though, not a man. If he were smaller she might have questioned something. Krendall had been massive. No one compared to him that way. As far as she was concerned, no one compared to him in power either. If dragons had directly interfered in human affairs, he could have easily set everything straight in Fiore, she was sure.

“Maybe I do sort of know what you’re talking about,” she admitted. “It’s a bit different though. I wish I would have known my parents, whether they wanted me or not.” Her thought process had caused her to lose her own appetite. At least Sid seemed content. Kotone’s eyes flicked up to Atrum. “Why did all of you go such separate ways, if you’re so close? Where is your sister?” She wanted to ask more, but she didn’t want to overload the hungry man with questions. If Fiore seemed more peaceful... she was almost afraid of what his old life had been like.

[Atrum Furea]

"We had different ideas on how to live here, we all fought in the war I specifically fought along side Fairy Tail and I felt a connection with them and joined up soon after.  My brother never intended to stay in Fiore he wishes to reclaim our homeland and researches what happened there to that end.  My sister said something about finding a proper place to allow her true self to grow so she could be anywhere right about now.  My parents seem to be traveling from place to place learning all they can about this land every once in a while I go and visit them to see what they had discovered."  He said finishing his meal and leaning back in his seat and sighing, he took off his hat and set it beside him gently and leaned back forwards.

"Yeah we are rather close but we are not the same, each of us have our own goals and aspirations, some are more sure of what they want to do than others.  Personally I am not sure what I want to do here in Fiore, it is my new home but I do not really seem to have much of a purpose here."  The giant shrugged and and reached for his hat and replaced it back upon his head.  "I just live my day to day doing the best I can, everyone else in my family seemed to have figured something out.  Though I suppose that for now I can answer any questions you might have for me."  He finished absentmindedly pushing the plates aside.

The giant wasn't doing anything other than recovering at the moment anyways there was nothing better to do than to enjoy a pleasant bit of conversation with Kotone until they decided to part ways again, this seemed to be the normal way of things people meet and then depart and if they were lucky meet up again later.  A cycle that left Atrum feeling unsatisfied with everything as it meant that he may never meet some of his friends again the cycle wasn't absolute sometimes you never met those you made friends with and that was a truly sad thought.

[Kotone]

Kotone looked thoughtful for a long moment, her hand on her chin while Atrum explained how his whole family was close, but different. Her eyes gazed at him at first, before staring down blankly at the table before them. “Close, but very different…” she stated in thought. She hadn’t thought of that. Family didn’t have to be similar to one another, and that was something that rarely occurred to the girl who had no family. It was almost mind-boggling, in a way, to think that someone like Atrum could have a sister in tune with nature, and a brother who was into owning a shop instead of fighting. Kotone enjoyed fighting.

“I’m glad you aren’t too similar to your brother and sister,” Kotone chuckled, giving him a grin. “How else would we form a bond if not for giving each other bruises to remember each other by?” The dragon slayer played with Sid’s ear under the table, eventually simply pulling him into her lap and leaning back comfortably. “You know, you could ask things too, Mister Giant,” she chuckled. “I don’t know what I’ll be able to tell you, but it only seems fair. It’s how I usually handle asking people questions.”

[Atrum Furea]

"I suppose we could have tried talking though I highly doubt we would have gotten along as well without violence involved. I usually try not to bother people by asking about their past, it seems that most of the people of this country prefer to keep to themselves and only share when they are ready. Prying only serves to make others antagonistic, I may enjoy a fight but shouting matches are annoying wastes of time." Atrum said giving a slightly sad smile, he was used to being an open person who was willing to share what was bothering him as long as he didn't burden others. "My people do not often keep secrets, we share information freely when asked if we do not wish to share we simply say so but that was rare... and to be entirely honest I am not entirely sure what to ask without feeling like I am prying into your personal business." He finished, shrugging choosing to fashion a tooth pick out of a piece of the wood of the table and picking food out of his teeth with it.

"I suppose that I am not very good at talking to others about things other than fighting...actually I believe you said something about getting trained? Who taught you? Because they certainly did well from what I have seen. You are a sight different then when we first met It is rather impressive how much you have grown." He said smiling at the thought of his friend becoming more powerful. He valued strength in all his friends, seeing them grow made him feel good he enjoyed know that his allies could only get more powerful.

[Kotone]

“When we met I didn’t really get along with anyone,” Kotone shrugged her shoulders when Atrum decided they might not have gotten along if they’d tried talking originally. “Heck, I probably got along with you because I worked off so much frustration punching you and then punching corrupt guards.” Kotone shrugged. “You can ask friends questions about themselves though. That’s what I’ve learned, so, feel free, and not just when I offer. I’ll probably tell you unless for some reason I can’t, at this point.” She shrugged, finding his own people’s lack of secrecy a bit odd. She figured it was because she was raised to be secretive, whether or not she actually managed to be completely secretive.

Atrum finally asked a question – it was about her training. He wanted to know who taught her, saying they did well. Kotone chuckled. “Taiga’s sister,” she told Atrum. It was no secret that Kotone and Taiga were closer than either of them would admit. “Taiga convinced her to train me. She doesn’t really like people, or students, though. I visit her for more training or evaluations every once in a while. She makes me feel pretty weak any time I face her, even in a sparring match. I don’t know how old she is, but she moves like she’s our age and has power like Taiga’s…”

[Atrum Furea]

"To be honest the actual circumstances between us meeting matter little to me, at least not as much as the simple fact that we did in fact meet and got along rather well all things considered."  He said pausing a bit as he worked the tooth pick about absentmindedly, finding that now that he had eaten he could focus more on the conversation.  "I must admit that I am a rather trusting person, perhaps too trusting... Still I also happen to be a good judge of character so hopefully my trusting nature will not end up screwing me."  He added as an after thought not really having a reason to state the information.  "Still it is odd asking others anything about themselves it is difficult to know what to ask, what is acceptable to ask?  When have you pushed too far?  When have you stepped on a landmine, insulted someone on accident?  The differences in social behavior is incredibly strange and confusing for me."


"Geh heh his sister huh?  That is rather interesting, Taiga and I do not speak often I usually spend my time among the younger guild members or taking quests when I am even in the guild hall."  He said smiling choosing not to derail the conversation with how he tended to be doing side jobs for the crossroads half the time.  He had a bad habit of overspending there, he hadn't gone there lately though too much had been happening.  "Still that is good to know, that Taiga was willing to help you like that.  Still I have not seen him in a while I have not returned home proper in a while..." He said suddenly feeling very angry again, he had managed to forget the source of his rage for a time but now.  The Giant chewed his make shift tooth pick into splinters, The smile not leaving his face though his eyes were obviously glaring now.

[Kotone]

The female dragon slayer couldn’t help but chuckle at Atrum’s statements. “That we got along is what’s important, yeah,” she nodded. “Though, not so much by choice as by circumstance. It’s admittedly different now.” Atrum was probably one of the people that had slowly gotten her to change her mind about calling people ‘friend.’ She couldn’t say for sure, she could only say the time when she actually broke down and done what had previously been unthinkable, as far as letting people into her life properly. “The difference between us though, seems to be that I have a hard time trusting anyone,” she grinned very slightly.

Atrum started talking about asking people about themselves, stating that he had no idea when he’d pushed too far or messed something up. “It depends on the person,” Kotone shrugged. “I’m not the best person to ask. Even the obvious dragon slayers are secretive by nature compared to others.” She flashed him a slightly cocky smile with one of her fangs poking out over her lip. “I think if you actually get to know someone though, it’ll be easier to know when you can ask them questions, unless you just want to ask them if you can ask them questions. I usually don’t care enough to.”

That was when Atrum’s mood swung for the worse. He kept his smile, but Kotone was used to that. She noticed the toothpick splinter in his mouth - a sure sign of agitation from the man. It was obvious why he was angry, and why he hadn’t been home properly. Rumors of Fairy Tail wizards, especially the giant with razor teeth, had gotten around a bit. Apparently a good amount of them were looking for retribution, and unlike the other guilds, caution be damned in the name of swift and terrible justice. At least, that was how the rumors went.

“Taiga would be out there too, if he weren’t taking it upon himself to keep the younger wizards at the guild hall safe,” she reminded Atrum semi-gently. “In the meantime, I haven’t met a Shadow Heart member I haven’t beaten into the ground, and then given a couple more punches for good measure.” The slightly cocky grin turned even cockier, her amber eyes flashing dangerously. Sid’s head poked over the table, looking between the two wizards. Kotone pushed him gently back down. “Woe to the man who angers the Spell Breaker and the Fire Giant at once, eh?”

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