It's forever since we've seen each other, huh? Well, here's a little proof that I haven't totally fallen off the face of the earth — I mean, I'm dangling, but I'm still here. Here, and thoroughly into another fandom, which may come as very bad news to some of my more loyal followers. Who knows? I might get back into Hetalia someday. But for now, I introduce to you my first Fairy Tail fanfiction.

I have to say that this is a little different from my normal style (aka. "hit and run" emotion with powerful imagery). If I had to compare it to anything, I would say it's most similar to "Shades of Blue," but less introspective and more expository. It gives me hope that I might one day be able to write a mulit-chapter story. Hope you enjoy!

P.S. I actually ship pretty much EVERYTHING in this fandom. This is just the first FF couple I was inspired to write for.

"You came like crashing thunder, breaking through these walls of stone."

Moments where he felt awe-struck were few and far between.

Clean forest light flitted across his irises, the color of slate increasingly pronounced in his face. Despite her nerves, Lisanna fought the urge to flush terribly and look away, opting instead to swallow her jittering and stand her ground. Because, although she was embarrassed, she was not afraid.

Yes, Laxus Dreyar was an imposing presence in any context. But it had been years since she had seen him, and she would be a fool to deny that she had missed him. Unaware of his current excommunicated status in relation to Fairy Tail, she saw him exactly as she had before her alleged "death:" a prodigious boy of coarse kindness buried under layers and layers of brutish mannerism and tough-skin. The gap between their ages prevented excessive interaction between the two guildmates, but she still vividly recalled her past childhood admiration for this—now—gargantuan man who sat before her.

She may have missed him, but she still prided herself in not shrinking back under his intense vigilance and acute curiosity. She didn't think she could be stared at with any more innocent severity.

Her uncertainty of what to expect from such an impromptu reunion with this Herculean statue of a man was instantly shattered as she felt his strong fingers lightly pinching her cheeks.

"What are you doing?" she groused, fidgeting against his unwarranted grip. He blinked owlishly at her. Against her better judgement, she almost found the instinctive action... cute.

Missing a beat in his preoccupation of squishing her cheeks, he murmured somewhat vacuously, "'Just wonderin' if you were the real deal." He snapped out of his quasi-reverie, removing his hands from her soft face in lieu of brusquely patting her head, tousling the silky white strands.

"Of course I am! Excuse you," she huffed. Although she didn't wish to be seen as a child after all these years, she couldn't help but pout petulantly and shoot him a look of mock offense. In feigned anger, she flailed her arms at him in retaliation, causing him to follow suit in "self defense" against the small, bright-eyed girl in front of him. Unwittingly, a small smile had slipped onto Laxus's face. The younger girl noted this with self-contained glee, covertly tucking away the memory and adding it onto her running list of accomplishments.

The banter that ensued was only interrupted by the the booming voice of her older brother.

"Hey, Lisanna!" Elfman grinned broadly, displaying a full set of white teeth. He could never get tired of being able to call her name again. "Nee-chan asked me to come get you. She needs help with lunch."

Watching Lisanna rise, Laxus naturally got on his feet, his eyes trained on the back of her head when she turned to face her brother.

"Sure, I'll be right there!"

She swiftly turned around, and before he could react, she had quickly scampered up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. The top of her head just barely made it to the middle of his chest, and for a split moment, he caught the faint scent of lilacs and jasmine. She gave him a quick squeeze before releasing him and bounding back to her older brother. By the time he registered what had happened, she was already walking away. She brightly called behind her, "See ya, Laxus! We'll talk again soon!"

Once she was out of sight, it occurred to him that she was the only girl—no, woman—daring enough to embrace him, mentally dismissing the occasions where Evergreen would cling to his arm or a lonesome barmaid would press herself against him with frivolous urgency in the course of his vagabond travels. Lisanna had the nonjudgemental acceptance of her sister, sans the guarded countenance.

Something about her was unarming and unadulteratedly infectious.

He shook his head, not wanting these thoughts to grow rampant. As a rule, he severed himself from the futile yearnings of guild life and denied himself the hope of returning to the guild. However, for just a single moment, he allowed himself to indulge in a sudden, fleeting wish to be back in Fairy Tail.