The members of Fairy Tail prepare for the guild's annually S-Class Promotion Exam, which will grant the S-Class rank to the one who passes. The eight participants - Natsu, Gray, Juvia, Elfman, Cana, Freed, Levy, and Mest (a man who claims to be Mystogan's disciple) - are instructed to choose a partner to accompany them during the exam, which is to take place on Tenrou Island, Fairy Tail's holy ground. Natsu partners with Happy, Gray with Loke (who temporarily nullifies his contract with Lucy to do so), Juvia with Lisanna, Elfman with Evergreen, Freed with Bickslow, Levy with Gajeel, and Mest with Wendy. During this time, Cana tells Lucy that she intends to leave the guild should she fail the exam, stating that she has failed the exam four times before. She reveals her reasons for doing so to Lucy, who offers to become Cana's partner. Meanwhile, Charle has brief glimpses of disastrous events in the future, one of which includes the black-haired youth from the forest.
In the land of Fiore, magic is everywhere. Sorcerers are like skilled tradesmen who band together in 'guilds' and take on paying assignments for non-magic wielders, like hunting monsters, retrieving lost items or running odd errands.
Lucy is an aspiring wizard who wants to hook up with the coolest guild around, Fairy Tail. One day, she meets a red-headed boy who saves her from a unscrupulous wizard, and before she knows it, she's introduced to the wild and wacky band of wizards of Fairy Tail and begins the adventure of a lifetime.