Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail, obviously.
Heya! Absence, here!
I personally think that there aren't enough Zervis fanfics on this site, so I decided to create my own! This is just going to be a short one-shot focused on Mavis as a lawyer and Zeref as a convicted criminal. This may not be Zervis in some eyes, but hey, we're entitled to our own opinions.
This might be a little choppy, especially the ending, but I tried.
I apologize in advance for spelling and grammatical errors.
Enjoy, or not!
Rated T for description of murder and a choice word.
Tears streamed down his face as he sniffed and wiped at his snot with her new shirt. A dark and angry bruise was forming on his face, scars visible from under his ruffled shirt. She weaved her fingers through his dark hair, attempting to avoid the dried blood from his ears as she rubbed soothing circles on his pale scalp.
"It's okay Zeref, shh. It's over. You're with me now. He's not going to hurt you," she whispered, looking into his puffy eyes.
"H-he'll do it a-again to-tomorrow. I-I don't want to go b-back!" he cried.
"What about Natsu, Zeref? You can't leave him all alone. I'll protect you," she said in a hushed tone.
"I-I want to s-stay here with y-you. Please, d-don't leave m-me!"
"I'm not going anywhere. I'll always be here for you, I promise."
"Closing arguments are tomorrow." She snapped back to reality.
Mavis stood from her seat, taking a quick glance at her client and focusing her sight on her childhood friend. Zeref Dragneel, the man she held very close to her heart, had been convicted of the murder of ten women within the last few weeks. Although her heart did not believe any of the nonsense, her mind did. She had a job, and that job was something she committed to.
Zeref had been abused as a child, yet he was always smiling. His little brother ran away due to this abuse, and yet he would not blame his brother for abandoning him. He had been constantly bullied in high school, yet he would not injure a soul. Mavis had been there for him throughout his life and he had never harmed anyone, so why would he change now? Why would her childhood friend murder ten innocent women?
Mavis was the head attorney in all of Fiore and was the only one who would take up the job to go against him. She knew she couldn't help him due to her biased opinion.
Mavis watched as Zeref moved from the courtroom, her emerald eyes longing. She quickly caught herself and looked away. She didn't need to cause a scene. Mavis swiftly walked towards the exit of the courtroom, the sound of her heels clicking on the tiled floor echoing around the now empty room. She pushed the large wood doors open and continued walking, not bothering to glance back. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.
Mavis looked over her files with tired eyes for what she thought was the seventh time. The evidence of the crime was enough to put Zeref behind bars, maybe even a mental institute. She hadn't even gotten through all of it the day before. The evidence she had gone through wasn't enough. Her client demanded satisfaction. Mavis ran her fingers through her wavy blonde hair, feeling a familiar pounding in her head that would soon start to ache.
"Knock. Knock." A familiar voice reached Mavis' ears.
She turned around to see a brunette looking at her with a smile on her face.
"Zera, when did you get back?" Mavis asked, standing from her chair and quickly moving toward her friend.
"Just now. That case was tough though," Zera complained, dramatically flopping herself on Mavis' bed. "I'm beat."
"I know how you feel. I need to get my act together," Mavis groaned, grabbing an elastic and tying her hair up, joining her friend with a dramatic flop on to her own mattress.
"Still hung up on Zeref?"
"Yep. I don't know what I'm going to do. I've been there for him for his entire life and now I'm betraying him," Mavis sighed, her face scrunching up and a frown forming on her lips.
"Well, all the evidence points to him, but they haven't actually found a trace of him at the crime scenes. It's all circumstantial. For all we know, your client could be delusional," Zera reasoned, facing her friend.
"Could be, but I still have a job. I can't just go against everything I've built up. There's enough evidence to put him away. My client is a victim, and justice comes before my personal life."
"Mavis, I haven't seen you happier with anyone else other than Zeref. You can't just give up your one chance at happiness just because some victim says that Zeref was the one who grabbed her and attempted to slit her throat," Zera argued.
"Zera, she had evidence."
"I saw all the pictures Mavis. All the victims were backed into an alley during the night, had their throats slit with a blade, and then were repeatedly stabbed. Your client said that the man was a noirette with pale skin. She never saw his actual face, yet she believes that Zeref was the one who did it because of his voice. Do you know how many people have a similar voice to him? Probably hundreds. It was dark out, so for all we know the murderer could have been a brunette, maybe even a blond."
"Zera, are you actually going to go there? Zeref hasn't pleaded guilty, but he seems to have accepted his fate."
"Mavis, you wanted to become a lawyer because of Zeref's childhood situation. Besides, if Zeref didn't commit the murders, are you willing to let the bastard who did get away?"
"I already have enough evidence, Zera. Closing arguments are tomorrow. I don't have time to collect evidence."
"Suit yourself, but don't start doing what I think you'll be doing when you can't deal with the guilt anymore. I'll be here when it happens." With that, the brunette stood from the mattress and walked out of the room.
"What am I doing?" Mavis asked herself aloud, drawing her arm over her eyes. Today was the day she would make her decision, but it felt too soon for her liking. Maybe a little sleep would help clear her clouded mind.
"Ow!" she cried out as she landed on the grass, the cut on her knee she had gotten hours ago reopening in the process.
"Mavis! Are you okay?" her favorite noirette ran towards her, kneeling beside her and inspecting her cut.
"I'm okay, just a little scratch," she explained, watching as his hands gently handled her scraped knee.
"Be more careful, please. I don't want you to get hurt."
"Zeref?" she questioned, her voice soft.
"Yes, Mavis?" he lifted his head, his obsidian eyes meeting her emerald ones.
"Marry me, one day?"
Mavis jolted out of bed. "Why is this happening?" she moaned. She took a quick glance at her clock and then out her bedroom window. Rays of sunlight were beginning to creep into the darkened sky, birds began chirping, and the sound of engines coming to life reached her ears.
"The case ends today. A few more hours and the demons will be gone." she closed her eyes, hoping she wouldn't dream of her childhood.
"How does the jury find the defendant on the charge of first degree murder?" the judge asked.
"We of the jury find the defendant, guilty."
"And how do you find the defendant on the charge of attempted murder?"
"Guilty, your honor."
All around her, cries of rage and joy echoed through the room.
"Zeref Dragneel," the judge said, his voice stern. "The jury has reached its decision and has found you guilty of ten charges of first degree murder and one charge of attempted murder…"
Mavis hung her head, squeezing her eyes shut and attempting to block out Zeref's sentence. When she looked up, her eyes locked with Zeref's. He gave her a soft smile, no malice held in his eyes. She just stared, wide eyed, and then returned the smile with one of her own. They stood still like that for what felt like hours, but were only mere moments. Then, he was handcuffed and brought towards his future.
In the end, she didn't have enough time to save her childhood friend. She had gone with justice, but was it really worth it?
The sound of the TV rising in volume caught Mavis' attention. She quickly walked out of her room and to her living room, where Zera was sprawled across the couch while watching the news with an interested look on her face.
"Another body has been found in an alley on Strawberry Street, Magnolia Town. Miss Lucy Heartfilia found the body in the alley of her apartment. The victim's throat was slit and her body has multiple stab wounds. It seems that this homicide is related to the Zeref Dragneel case that was closed last week…"
Zera's head whipped around, her eyes boring into Mavis'. Mavis stood still, her eyes unfocused. She grit her teeth and clenched her fists, hoping in vain that she was dreaming.
The reporter continued on, oblivious to the situation at hand, "...the police are speculating whether this was just a copycat, an accomplice of Zeref's, or if Zeref was innocent all along…"
Mavis felt the tears well up in her eyes as the guilt came crashing down at full force. She had betrayed him just because of her stupid commitment towards her job. Desperately trying not to start sobbing on the spot, she covered her face with her shaking hands. She felt Zera move closer to her from behind, and felt her friend's hand on her shoulder. Her trembling legs gave up on her and caved. Zera was immediately beside her, pulling her close. It was too late, the damage had been done. The dam broke, her walls came down, and the tears starting flowing.
"Oh Zera, what have I done?!"
And that's how it ends.
I honestly just based the court scenes off of TV shows and some research, so if anyone would like to fix my errors, leave a review or PM me.
What do you think, dear reader? Was Zeref innocent? Was this murderer just a copycat? Or, did Zeref have a partner in crime? Did I overuse the word noirette? Who knows?
Anyone interested in a global warming/climate change fanfic? Clarity might be writing one.
I'd like to thank my amazing editor, AL, a bunch of friends of mine, and Clarity for helping me write this fic.
Until the next fanfic ;)
-Absence, out!