The days after the battle settled into a tense quiet beneath Fairy Tail's timbered ceiling. In the small infirmary behind the bar, Ryuji slept more than he spoke—bandages, herbs, and Wendy's careful healing easing the worst of the damage. She checked on him between tasks, hand hovering over the blanket as if to make sure the warmth didn't fade.
Out in the hall, rumor moved faster than magic.
Chairs creaked, mugs thumped, the request board fluttered in a draft from the great doors. Snatches of story leapt from table to table—about a shadow-cloaked mage in the woods, a weapon of darkness hurled at Wendy, and a quiet boy who threw himself in front of it and didn't fall. No two tellings matched perfectly, but each pass added weight.
At one table, Cana leaned back with her barrel, eyes half-lidded. "So the kid's not even guild, but he took the hit for Wendy? That's either crazy... or brave."
Across from her, Levy set a ribbon in her book and frowned thoughtfully. "It's more than bravery. Wendy said he used Dragon Slayer magic—Winter Dragon, right? If that's true..." Her voice trailed into a hush. A new Dragon Slayer in Magnolia was no small thing.
At the bar, Wakaba exhaled smoke, shaking his head. "Outsiders bleeding all over the floor... we don't know what trouble he'll bring."
Macao gave him a firm look. "He's just a boy. Let him heal before you start judging. If he risked himself for Wendy, that's enough for now."
Above them, Makarov stood at the balcony rail, lantern light gilding the lines of his face. He listened without leaning in—one ear for his family's worries, one eye on the closed infirmary door. The hall's noise swelled and settled like a tide: clatter, laughter too loud, a soft apology, the scuff of boots on old wood.
He sighed, almost to himself. "Poor boy. Whatever burdens he carries, they nearly cost him his life." His gaze didn't waver. "First we heal him. Questions can wait."
The guild kept moving—jobs posted, meals shared, tempers sparked and cooled—but the current under it all was the same: concern, curiosity, and a quiet resolve that the boy behind that door was under Fairy Tail's roof now. And under Fairy Tail's roof, no one fell alone.
Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima/Kodansha. I only own Ryuji Kazuma and this fan story. Non-commercial fan work.