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Erza sighed as she let her heavy cart roll to a stop behind her as she stepped into the magically air-conditioned lobby of the hotel. She leaned her back against
the nearby wall, groaning at the sharp stinging pain in her bicep. Above her, a large wooden sign hung down by metal chains, the words 'Tiki Tiki Resort' carved
into its splintered surface. The cool marble wall she was leaning against felt soothing against her shoulders and the arch of her back. She stood in the shadow of
her humongous baggage, as clothes and various other items stuck out between the rubber suspenders. A young man with tanned bronze skin, curly brown hair,
and a friendly smile that crinkled the corners of his yellow eyes, approached her.
"Welcome friend, to Tiki Tiki resort," he waved at the bag boy who stumbled forward and attempted to drag Erza's cart toward the elevator, without much
success. The lobbyist turned back to Erza and ushered her to the counter where he handed her a stack of papers to sign.
"So, a room for one person?" Rodney the lobbyist, as was written on his silver nametag, flashed her a toothy grin. Erza shook her scarlet locks.
"No, a room for three please?" she replied instead. On queue Mirajane waltzed in, a train of young gold-skinned surfers trailing behind her with her luggage piled
on their shoulders, and behind Mira Lucy shuffled in, huddling inside the tall grandfather clock. The big clock was dragging behind him two large suitcases
bulging with clothes. The people in the lobby gave them suspicious and somewhat shocked stares as the trio strode in. Rodney recorded their details in a
perfectly spherical crystalline lacrima and then pushed three identical silver keys in each of their hands.
"Thank you," Mira said with a kind smile and Erza nodded her head. Meanwhile Lucy was still in her clock so the clock spoke for her.
"Thanks Rodney! She says," the clock held the key for her.
The rooms were tidy and carried the scent of the sea. Erza inhaled deeply, savoring the unique smell of the ocean. She dissected the smell into fishy, salty,
watery, and sea weedy, though she preferred to leave the smell of the sea blended together, preserving it as a unit in her memory, relishing it whole. The sheets
were white with blue trimmings and there was four pillows placed on each king sized bed. There were a total of three feathered beds, and Lucy immediately
flopped down on the one in the middle and let out a heavy sigh of relief.
"Finally we made it! I thought we were gonna walk for ever," the blonde said happily. Erza scowled sternly at her.
"You haven't walked a single step this whole way Lucy," Erza said disapprovingly, Lucy pouted at her and got up.
"Sitting can be exhausting too," she retorted as she noticed the view outside and ran to the veranda as golden strands of hair swayed around her face and her
round breast bounced upwards with every energetic step she took.
"Amazing! You can see so much from up here," she dangled over the edge of the balcony to get a better view, grinning to herself as the sunrays kissed her skin.
"Be careful Lucy, you'll fall," the white haired shape behind warned her. Lucy waved her hand in acknowledgement. Inside Erza was going through a pile of
swimwear that included everything from showing as much skin as possible to full body suits. She rummaged through and smiled as she pulled out a shimmering
yellow bikini with fiery red marks.
"Found it!" She stood up and undressed, slipping out of her shirt and lace underwear and into the skimpy revealing bikini pieces.
"Didn't that get destroyed last time we went to the pool?" Mira sang sweetly from the bathroom as she also adorned a deep violet bikini that accentuated her
pale curvy frame. Erza was busy fastening the clip at the back and looked at Lucy.
"I got it fixed straight after. My legendary bikini may be the single most important piece of attire I own." Lucy laughed as she remembered the embarrassing
events of that day. Erza shot her a deadly glare and Lucy instantly shut her mouth. She walked to her suitcase to get out her own swimsuit and started
changing. Mira and Erza picked out a couple of beach towels and headed toward the door.
"We'll meet you at the beach Lucy," Mira said over her shoulder as they left her to change. Lucy nodded and the door shut behind them.
The hot sun shone down on the sand making it scorching and painful to walk on. Erza and Mira were tiptoeing over the white grains carefully trying not to burn
their feet. Wanting to preserve her feet from heat blisters, Erza equipped her feet into leather boots. The sudden surge of magic that emanated caused her to
gain looks and stared from the people reclining nearby, including that of a certain blue haired individual who was sitting in a tree nearby. Surprised at seeing the
scarlet mage, he leaned forward and lost his balance, dropping down to the floor with a thud. Jellal rubbed his posterior, he could already feel a bruise beginning
to blossom at the point of impact. He quickly scrambled up the tree again to confirm whom he had just thought to have seen. His suspicions were confirmed as
he looked at the busty redhead spreading out a towel on the white sand. He shuffled forward a bit on his branch to get a clearer view but stayed back far
enough for the canopy of emerald leaves to still hide his presence. With the foliage filtering out the persistent sunlight, he studied the two Fairy Tail mages in
cool comfort but what he saw next made his face turn a crimson red, his ears almost steaming: the white haired girl, Mira, was rubbing sunscreen on the other's
back. The top of Erza's bikini was lying underneath her, undone, as she lay on her stomach, revealing her flawless back, to let Mira apply the pale lotion. Then he
saw a blond headed girl run towards the two girls in a hurry. When she reached them she bent over to put her hands on her knees panting heavily. Jellal
continued his stalking from the perimeter of the sandy beach, watching how the group of girls splashed into the clear water, until a voice brought him out of his
daze and sent him toppling out of the tree once again, this time landing face first. Spitting out a mouthful of sand, he turned to face Ultear's grinning
expression.
"What would your fiancé say," Ultear scolded jokingly, extending a hand and pulling Jellal to his feet, and then playfully punching him in the shoulder. Jellal
glared at her with poisonous green eyes, pursing his lips in a thin red line, trying to mentally force back the heat the rose to his cheeks in embarrassment.
"I-I was just keep a look out for the magic disturbance," he insisted turning back to the waves that lapped against the shell-spangled shore.
"And? Did you feel or see anything?" Ultear asked, serious now. Jellal shook his head.
"Nothing. Not since we arrived here yesterday," he admitted, furrowing his elegant brow.
"Hmm, maybe Meledy's feelings were off when she sensed the magic disturbance coming from here, maybe it came from further east," Ultear suggested,
tucking a stray strand of plum hair back behind her white ribbons.
"No I don't think so, something about this resort seems off. Speaking of which, where is Meledy?" Jellal wondered out loud. He hadn't seen the pinkette since
breakfast this morning. Ultear lifted a slim finger and pointed seaward. Jellal clucked nervously when he saw Meledy's pink hair bobbing in the water, only a few
meters away from where Erza was bathing.
"Damn, we have to get Meledy away from there. Erza can't know we are here!" Jellal said.
"Why?" Ultear asked.
" Well...because…" he stared blankly at her for a few seconds, "we just do! Come with me. Quick," Jellal grabbed her arm and dragged her through the trees in
the direction of Meledy. When they reached the edge of the trees they could see her swimming in the water and laughing loudly as she tried to catch little
rainbow fish.
"We have to get her over here somehow," Jellal said as Ultear watched him in quiet amusement.
"You could just go out there and get her," Jellal shot Ultear a glare and a slight blush tinted his face. Then he turned his face towards the girl in the water again.
"I cannot endanger Erza any more than I already have. She cannot be seen with someone like me. I am a fugitive Ultear," he reminded his friend, sorrow lacing
his velvet voice as he spoke. Her face softened then into a gentle gaze.
"You know it does not matter to her," Ultear spoke in a soft voice. Jellal closed his eyes in recognition.
"It matters to me, I will not be the bringer of her misfortune," Jellal replied as he stayed adamant in his decision.
And so, once they had succeeded in getting Meledy out of the water by using various extensive hand gestures, Jellal concluded that if he could not be with Erza
directly, he would protect and watch her from his place in the shadows, day and night.