Chapter Text
Hinata was curled up on his bed, in his quarters in the Windswept Mage Guild headquarters. He'd failed. Again. Angry tears welled in the young mage's eyes, frustration boiling inside him. He fought back against the feeling, trying to calm down. He couldn't let his emotions get out of control, he just couldn't. But then, he was probably going to be kicked out again, anyway.
Hinata couldn't control his powers, and when he was younger, there was no need to, since he'd only had the power to stir up a nice breeze. But then his fire magic had awoken, and suddenly, every time he got upset, flames would dance around his hands, and wind would whip through his short, fiery hair. He'd been taken in by the local Guild, but they hadn't had any success containing his powers, and he'd spent the next several years shifted from Guild to Guild. Having two types of magic was rare, so every Guild wanted to at least try to use him, but so far none of them had been able to teach him how to control his power. Always, before giving up on him, the Guildmasters had asked him to summon a familiar, in hopes that a steadying influence would calm him and help him learn how to control his abilities. But he failed. He always failed. He didn't even have enough skill with his power to summon a familiar.
So they were going to send him away again, he knew it. They always did.
The sheets beneath him started to smoke, his frustration reaching an ignition point. Hinata sat up and batted at the sheets, trying to put them out, even trying to use his air magic to snuff out the fire the way he'd seen more experienced mages do. But the wind just fanned the flames, and the sheets erupted into full flames. Hinata yelped and leaped off the bed, his sudden panic only encouraging the wind to swirl, and suddenly there was a tornado of fire spinning over his bed.
If they hadn't been planning to get rid of him after his failure to summon a familiar, they would certainly send him away for setting his bed on fire, right?
Despair washed over him. He wanted to be a famous mage, he really did, but he only got so many chances, and he was running out of Guilds who would be willing to try to control his fire. He barely noticed the fire and wind dying down abruptly as he sank to the floor, hiding his face in his hands as he felt tears gathering again. A sob shook his small frame, then another, and in moments, he was crying so hard that he didn't hear the door to his room open.
"Hinata? What happened?" Hinata froze; he knew that voice. It was Izumi, the young lightning mage whose quarters were next door to Hinata's. The hybrid mage heard the soft gasp as Izumi noticed the burned bed. "I guess you didn't summon a familiar, then?" The other boy's voice was sympathetic, but Hinata could hear the underlying worry in the words.
"I couldn't," Hinata whispered. "And now they're probably going to send me off to another Guild." There was a moment of silence, and then Izumi sat beside him, resting a hand on his shoulder.
"Maybe...maybe the problem is that none of the Guilds you've been with have been a good fit for you. They picked you, not the other way around, right?" the lightning mage pointed out. "Maybe it would help if you chose your next Guild."
"I tried that. They wouldn't let me," Hinata replied, sniffling. "They said anyone with control as bad as mine obviously doesn't have the brains to pick their own guild."
"Then...you should just go. Don't ask what they think," Izumi told him. "Have you heard the stories about that mage Sawamura?" Hinata lifted his head. He'd heard the stories. Sawamura was an enchanter who specialized in putting spells into objects, and he'd been one of the Windswept Guild's best. But then...
"Didn't he fall in love with his familiar?" Hinata asked. Izumi nodded.
"Yeah. And they tried to sever their bond, so Sawamura left the Guild and started his own. Maybe you should go ask him for advice!" the lightning mage suggested. Hinata considered for a moment, then sighed.
"It's not like a little Guild like that is going to think I'm worth the trouble. I probably wouldn't even make it to their territory, anyway," Hinata muttered.
"They don't really have territory. Just a Guild Hall, which is actually in town," Izumi replied. "And even if you don't join their Guild, maybe Sawamura and his familiar can help you summon your own familiar." Hinata perked up a little at that. Having a familiar was supposed to be the solution to his control problems. If Izumi thought this mage might be able to help him... But there was still one major obstacle.
"I can't leave the Guild Hall until I learn to control my power," Hinata remembered. "And after I failed, I was confined to my quarters." Izumi frowned at the other boy. Usually, nothing could dampen Hinata's spirits. It was the one tenuous control method that occasionally worked for him: staying cheerful and not letting frustration overwhelm him. Of course, sometimes Hinata got too cheerful, and his excitement would spark an incident, too.
"I'll cover for you. You should go," Izumi insisted. "It's the Karasuno Guild Hall, on the south edge of town." Hinata hesitated; he sort of knew where that was, but he didn't spend much time outside Guild Halls unless he was being transferred to a new Guild, so he got lost easily. "Here, I'll draw you a map." Izumi stood and went to Hinata's desk, returning a few minutes later with a rough map sketched on a piece of paper. Hinata studied the image for a moment, then nodded slowly.
"Okay. I'll do it," he decided, taking the paper from Izumi. "Thank you!" He hugged the other boy tightly, and Izumi laughed a little and ruffled she shorter boy's hair.
"Once you have a familiar and a Guild you fit with, then thank me," the lightning mage replied. "Good luck." Hinata managed a smile, then grabbed his bag - he never really unpacked, even though he'd been with the Windswept Mage Guild for months now. The hybrid mage took one last look around the room, wincing at the scorch marks on the bed and the wall above it. Izumi stepped out of the room, and Hinata followed. "All right. See you, Hinata."
"Bye, Izumi." Hinata smiled again, struggling not to cry. Even if he hadn't picked Windswept, even if they were about to get rid of him, he didn't want to leave. But, he realized, he would rather run away than let them ship him off to another Guild where he was just going to fail again.
Hinata settled his bag on his shoulder and set off. There weren't any senior mages around. They were probably in a meeting, deciding what to do with him, he thought bitterly. The air around him stirred, and he bit his lip and picked up his pace. He had to focus on the map, on getting to this other Guild, or he would lose control of his emotions again. The only way his situation could get worse would be if he managed to destroy the Guild Hall on his way out.