I've been thinking up this story for a while and finally got around to writing it. Spoilers through Chapter 415 and ignoring whatever the anime did with this portion because…well, I actually wrote it well before then.

Rated T for some violence…mostly violence…I think.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fairy Tail. All rights belong to Hiro Mashima.

Tiger, Tiger

A Fairy Tail Fanfiction

Tiger! Tiger! burning bright

In the forests of the night,

What immortal hand or eye

Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

-The Tiger, William Blake

Where did we go so wrong?

Was it the day we became better wizards?

Or the day we forsook our bonds?

X772

"Push! Just a little further! You can do this! She's almost born," the nurse said loudly. He could hear it through the door, along with the agonized screaming of his wife. The sound was repulsive. Childbirth should never have been so painful, but he hadn't known. He hadn't known of the disease that had been ravaging her body all these years. She'd always kept quiet about her sickness. Her weakness.

"My husband…Jiemma…where?" She sounded almost delusional in her vulnerability. It was so unlike the woman that he had married. His fists clenched in his lap, fingernails digging into the palms of his hands.

"He's just outside. Now, come on, push!" More cries filled the air, but these were so sharply contrasted with his wife's screams of pain. These were the sounds of a newborn life, so harsh and discordant to the man's ears. He scowled against the sound, knowing what they would soon signify.

"Minerva…" his wife breathed out. He shut his eyes; they had decided on that name so long ago, and now it seemed so utterly worthless. "Jiemma…come meet…your daughter."

It was certainly going to be his wife's final request. Who was he to deny it? Mustering up what little care he had for the child, he entered the room to the sight of his wife panting on the bed while she held her daughter. He stared down at the form of the baby, now giggling in her mother's arms. Weakly, his wife lifted her arms to hand him their daughter. He said nothing as he took the child.

"Take care of her. Love her…Jiemma." It was the last words that his wife spoke. They were the last breaths she ever took. He couldn't shed a single tear. He just looked at the ugly squirming thing in his hand. It was so weak. All he had to do was enclose his hands around it and snuff out its life.

She was nothing to him, after all; just a parasite that leeched off her mother's existence. She'd caused that sickness to take hold in his wife. She'd caused his wife, his foolish wife, to succumb to weakness. Already, he could tell that she would never do anything right in her life. She didn't even have the common decency to be born a boy. His fingers flexed, ready to snuff out that small, tiny light. The baby giggled and reached for his finger. The sound and sight was repulsive to him, but he still couldn't end that life.

"Minerva, huh?" he grunted and the baby giggled more at her name. "An epitome of wisdom, is it? I would rather you be an epitome of strength." The baby, Minerva, was oblivious to what he was saying or thinking, but for the first time, Jiemma could feel the underlying power that was held in her tiny frame. This girl had magic; plenty of it. That meant she could be a good tool. He relaxed his fingers.

It was empowering, feeling that contrast of life and death in his hands. It made him crave more. He would become stronger; stronger than his weakling of a wife had, He'd silence the seas, stun the heavens, shake the earth. When all would be said and done, he'd stand above everyone, including Life and Death. No more would he be the victim of a fate well beyond his control.

Wrapping the baby in a blanket, Jiemma left. He would start with his pathetic guild. That was where the revolution of strength would all begin: at Sabertooth.

X782

"Use your magic and feel it coursing through you," Jiemma ordered his daughter. Minerva was shaking as the monster bore down on her. She outstretched her hand. Perhaps she would get it right this time. He had poured ten years of his life into this girl, but she had yet to have anything to show for it. What good was a child if she fell so short of the mark?

"Y…Yagd…Rigola!" Minerva screamed. Jiemma narrowed his eyes as he watched her pitiful attempt at magic. Even though he'd been training her since she could walk, it did little to improve her magical skills. The guild tried to help her, but Jiemma would have none of those weaklings nurture her. Magic was about force, and one could only learn by going through numerous trials. Minerva's magic failed her, hardly even denting the monster. Jiemma sighed and obliterated the monster before it could kill the girl. He turned to her with a look of utter disdain.

"Why are you so weak?" he asked gruffly. Minerva sank to her knees and began to cry.

"F-forgive me…father…" she sobbed out. The very thought of the apology disgusted him. Apologies didn't bring his wife back. Apologies didn't put food on the table, and they certainly didn't make one stronger. His hatred for the girl bubbled up at her apology and he struck her.

"You ask forgiveness of me? ! You stupid girl!" Minerva screamed from the contact, though it was hardly like she was unused to it. He hit her again. Maybe if he continued to do so, she would no longer feel pain and could get stronger. "You must be strong if you are of my blood! I stamp out weaklings! Do not think I will be merciful because you are my daughter!"

"Waah…" The crying mess that was his daughter stimulated even further anger. When he saw her tears, he simply couldn't help himself. He grabbed her violently.

"When will you cease this pathetic sniveling?" he roared. "Tears are the height of weakness! How many times do I have to repeat that before it will penetrate your thick skull? !" He let go of her and she fell to the ground again. Her tears hadn't stopped, but she looked up at him with a mixture of fear and that small spark of defiance. "Remove your clothes."

"Wha…?" Minerva looked genuinely surprised. Jiemma could care less. In his opinion, her feelings hardly mattered. Now, she was going to learn that the hard way. He'd no longer have this weakling for his daughter. She'd learn to survive and get stronger, or she'd die and save him the trouble. Under Jiemma's gaze, Minerva finally relented and she stripped down before handing her clothes to her father. He nodded satisfactorily and then walked away.

"Once your tears have completely dried, you may return." Minerva's cries followed him out of the forest, but he found no sympathy. He tossed her clothes into the nearby river and continued on his way back to Sabertooth. His walk back cleared his mind of that wretched girl, replaced with the thought of getting a drink at the guild hall. The company was nauseating, but the food was good, even if it was cheap.

"Hey, Jiemma, I thought you were out on a job today," called one of the guild members.

"I completed the job," he answered perfunctorily. He truly didn't care to speak to these people, so content in their weakness. No one had ever heard of Sabertooth and none of them seemed to mind. They had no ambition. Had it not been his late wife's guild, he'd have left it for some stronger guild a long time ago, but he figured that he owed her that much respect.

"Wasn't Minerva with you?" asked another guild member. Jiemma tired of their questions.

"I left her in the forest," he said. "She'll return when she toughens up." The look he gave his fellow guild members was enough to silence them and their indignant remarks. He didn't need them to tell him how to raise his family.

"You intend to bring her back before nightfall, correct?" This was the one voice that Jiemma was forced to listen to, belonging to Casper von Rentin, the master of Sabertooth. Never had a man commanded so little respect from him. Here he was, a guild master, yet he did nothing but sit in the guild. He didn't even choose to sit above the others. No, he commingled with them, like a commoner. It was such an ugly, misguided view for a guild master.

"If she's stopped crying," he answered. This man deserved no more.

"Jiemma, she's your daughter," the master stressed. "If something were to happen to her-"

"It would be no more than a wretch like her deserves! How I run my family is my concern!"

"Jiemma, please," Casper attempted to reason with him. "Your late wife wouldn't want this."

"How would you know? You pathetic wretches are content to sit in the guild hall growing fat. You know little of this world! Strength is all that matters. Pampering our children is a luxury we do not have! And when I run this guild, you'll understand that need to sit at the apex of all other guilds."

"Jiemma Orlando, you will never be the master of Sabertooth!" Casper declared. "With all the members as my witnesses. I've already named the next master in the guild charter. In fact, if you continue on this path, I may need to expel you from the guild."

"Hmph, well, at least you have some backbone," Jiemma commented. He finished his drink and rose, leaving the guild hall. He was met with an undesirable sight: Minerva, clothed. "Where did you get these clothes?"

"A street vendor, father," she answered honestly. His eyes and lips twitched at Minerva's blatant defiance of his orders. How dare these people defy him? Him! He was Jiemma Orlando, the strongest man in the world! The man who held dominion over life and death!

"You little bitch!" he roared and he moved to strike her, when she suddenly wasn't there. She was on the balcony of a building above him, out of his reach. There was no doubt; she'd used magic. More than that, she'd appeared to have mastered it.

"You will not hit me again, father," she said coldly. "If you do, I will fully enforce your rule. Kill or be killed, correct?"

Jiemma watched as his daughter disappeared through use of her Territory magic. He grinned ferally. She was learning.

Where did we become monsters in the guise of man?

Where did we become tigers with no minds of our own?

Was it the day we followed that plan?

X784

Two years had made an incredible stride in Minerva's magical abilities. She had grown at an alarming rate. Whether it had been the rage she felt towards him, or his decree of strength finally sinking in, Jiemma couldn't be sure. All he knew was that there was no need to hit her. She was quickly growing stronger; strong enough to accomplish what Jiemma had kept her around for all these years.

The guild had grown more insufferable by the day. While Jiemma was now keeping his thoughts to himself, the weakness that the guild displayed on a daily business was beginning to sicken him. Had they no ambition? Casper was even worse with the talk of bonds that held them together. It was laughable. There was nothing to hold a guild together. Only the hall was held together by wood and nails. That's why Jiemma was beginning to think of a way to oust the man from the guild. He needed a way to prove his philosophy, so he had announced that he and Minerva were going on a journey.

One of their first stops in the fall of that year was the town of Magnolia.

The town was a little gaudy in his eyes, having been dressed up for an event called the Harvest Festival, but he had heard tell of a powerful guild in the town named Fairy Tail. He had to wonder what they had done to garner themselves such strength and popularity, considering they were ranked number one in the whole country of Fiore. Minerva herself seemed a little warier and doubted they'd learn anything of use.

"Hey there," said a friendly man at the front of the guild hall. He seemed to be behind a booth that sold figurines and other strange memorabilia. "Come by to visit the guild hall? Are you interested in joining?"

"This is the wizard guild, Fairy Tail?" Jiemma asked in disgust. How could the supposed top guild be so rowdy? Where was their order? Their discipline?

"Sure is," the guy replied cheerily. "Well, if you're not interested in joining, we've got plenty of souvenirs, such as our very popular Natsu figurine. He'll light you on fire! If you want more of the sexy type, we've got our sexy cast-off figurine of the lovely Lucy, our guild's bright and shining celestial wizard!"

"How deplorable for a woman to show her body off that way," Minerva commented distastefully. Jiemma, for once, agreed with his daughter.

"Well, it's not like we asked her permission," the clerk admitted. Jiemma had seen enough. What sort of master would let his members prance around in teeny bikinis or start bar brawls? The very thought was sickening, and all Jiemma could think about was the fact that he would have liked to lay that guild to rest along with whatever ideals it carried. Still, a single glance was not enough, and Minerva convinced him of such. The two chose to stay in town for the duration of this Harvest Festival to see more how the guild might truly operate.

He couldn't have hoped for a better interruption than what took place the very next day.

As he sat amongst the patrons and citizens at a certain café, there was a sudden interruption in the streets. Minerva set down the book she was reading and watched as some wizards began to duel in the streets. They weren't just any wizards: they bore the Fairy Tail emblem. Jiemma watched in fascination. The fairies were cannibalizing themselves in a strange contest of strength. No surprise to him, considering their apparent lack of strong leadership. The Fairies dropped like flies against one another. That's when he heard a name, "Laxus".

"Come, Minerva," he barked. His daughter sighed but followed willingly as Jiemma led them through the warring streets of Magnolia. All of the citizens were babbling meaningless words as the unconscious forms of Fairy Tail members began piling up on the streets. They were all so weak.

"Above, father," Minerva drawled lazily. Jiemma drew his gaze upward and watched as two women, two fairies, flit across the sky. The armored woman was obviously superior, and for the first time, Jiemma found himself remarking positively on Fairy Tail's strength in his mind.

"She's quite the wizard," Jiemma noted. He would have said "perfect" if she hadn't been rambling on about bonds and friendship. They were such useless things.

"The people call her Titania, Queen of the Fairies, supposedly," Minerva commented. Jiemma would have replied to his daughter were it not for the explosion that came from the cathedral. He jerked his head for his daughter to follow, and despite a few wrong turns they drew close enough to the cathedral to hear conversation within its halls. Most of it was pointless drivel about friendship and family. Clearly, these fairies were heavily deluded. Heart mattered little in battle. Strength was the only thing. Then he heard the words that changed his outlook.

"Come on, Natsu, don't you see how spineless the guild has become? Fairy Tail's become a laughingstock since the geezer took over. But once I'm master, I'll make a guild so powerful that it'll strike fear at the sound of our name!"

A few days later, Jiemma learned that the one called Laxus had pitted his guildmates against each other in an attempt to weed out the weak and leave only the strong. By doing so, he'd have the strongest guild in Fiore. He'd be the strongest man. The one named Laxus had failed, but his attempt had given Jiemma an idea. It was an idea that consumed him as they continued on their journey.

"Something's been on your mind, father," Minerva stated one night after she'd killed a monster and brought it for dinner. It had been brutalized, a fact that did not escape the hulking man.

"Minerva," he said coldly. "What is your opinion of Sabertooth?"

"It's all right," she answered. He growled, which caused his daughter to flinch and clench her fists.

"No…it's weak! Too weak!" he snapped in correction. "If I am to be in a guild, it must stand at the apex and lay all the other guilds down. And I, Jiemma Orlando, must remain as the strongest among them."

"I trust you have a plan, father," she continued, eating her dinner.

"This…Laxus, he gave me an idea," Jiemma told her. "We weed out the weak and leave only the strong in our guild."

"The master would never allow it," Minerva stated.

"That is why I must be master! Even if I need to kill Casper with my bare hands." Minerva set her food down and stared at her father with a cold gleam in her eyes.

"In order to become master of Sabertooth you will need incredibly strong wizards, ones who are willing to follow your orders to the letter. Otherwise, the guild will turn on you quickly."

"For once, you have a point," he said angrily. "Still, it must be done. I will prove our guild's new strength to the world. No matter how long it takes, I will stand above all."

That was the least he could do to prove his own strength. And he wouldn't admit it to his daughter, but in this way, he could finally triumph over the weakness his wife had instilled in him. He'd take the guild she loved and crush it into powder to be rebuilt at his will. No matter how long it would take.

X789

"The Grand Magic Games?" Jiemma questioned of Minerva. He'd just returned from a long job, though he'd extended it at his own leisure. "They say Lamia Scale is the favorite?"

"Yes. Apparently it kicked off in grand style last year while we were busy. I suggest we make our move before the next one." Jiemma looked down his long nose at her. It almost seemed like she was questioning him. It was a repulsive thought. Minerva had grown strong in the last few years; not strong enough to defeat him, but strong enough that she could be called the strongest female in Sabertooth. "How long have we been looking for skilled wizards? Five years? Your judgment is usually sound, father, but I'm afraid you've had a lapse of it when it comes to this."

"You're daring to question me?" Minerva didn't respond right away. A bug had landed on their table and she had swiftly used her magic to trap it, picking its legs off one by one. Once she was satisfied with the job, she made it vanish.

"Father, no one knows about Sabertooth. No one ever has," she informed him coldly. "These Games are the perfect opportunity to prove that we are the greatest guild. However, as long as Casper is guild master, he'll never allow us to take part. Now, we may not have the power to participate this year, but next year we can be ready to crush all our opponents."

"Learn your place, Minerva!" Jiemma snapped. Minerva arched her eyebrow at him, Inside, he was growling. His daughter had become too strong to be intimidated by him. At least she was obedient. "I won't have you questioning my judgment, though your idea has merit. Once we are at the top, no one will ever again deny our strength."

"And we will stand above the fairies, even the heavens!" Minerva concluded with a wicked smirk.

"The fairies? Speak no more of that trash. I hear tell their worthless excuse of a master went missing some time ago," he spat in response. "They've left nothing behind but trash."

Minerva bowed her head in slight apology. "Regardless, I believe I've found someone willing to help us. His name's Rufus Lore, a user of Memory Make magic. He's a traveling minstrel, which I know sounds less than promising unless you've seen him in action. I watched his magic alter the memories of an entire crowd to make them pay him enormous amounts of money. When some wizards realized they'd been hoodwinked, they attacked him. With a single spell, he obliterated them."

"He does sound promising," Jiemma concurred, just a hint of satisfaction in his voice.

"I thought so. That's why I spoke with him and he admitted that joining our reformed guild would help him to alleviate his boredom. He says his magic can even help with the guild charter problem." Jiemma nodded, accepting this wizard to his troupe. "I've also heard tell of a mercenary in town named Orga of the Black Lightning. Rumors say he once crushed an entire ring of bandits with one blow. Should he be as strong as they say, he'd be most useful. He's in town this week, so I plan to speak to him."

"Very well," Jiemma said boomingly, "I will search as well. In one month's time, we will make our move. By then, we will know who we'll need to crush at next year's Games."

"Then, by your leave, father," Minerva said. She stood and left the café. Jiemma finished his meal before returning to the guild hall. He ignored the other members who seemed to do nothing but laze about. As he ripped a new job off the wall, he took a glance. All too soon, he'd transform this ramshackle guild into one of strength. Everyone would fear the name Sabertooth, and that of its master, Jiemma Orlando. He grunted and left for the outskirts of town.

"Hey, give those back!" he heard a man yell once he reached the forest. "I need that food for my family."

"Your fault for dropping it," said another man, more a boy. Jiemma was hardly interested. "I've been hungry for a few days now."

"Sting, just give it back to him, already."

"Come on, Rogue, aren't you sick of stale bread and moldy cheese. We don't make enough money to get anything good to eat," responded the one named Sting.

"That's because those guilds are idiots for not taking in a powerful dragon slayer like you, Sting!"

"You know that's right, Lector." Jiemma was interested in the conversation now. They weren't just thieves. These two were dragon slayers. "They're just afraid of us because we killed our dragons. Guess that's the way it goes when people are afraid of your power. I could probably beat the stuffing out of Natsu Dragneel if he stopped playing the part of the coward."

"Stop bragging, Sting," the one named Rogue responded. Jiemma turned, hoping to see just what these two true dragon slayers looked like.

"Fro thinks so, too!"

"Give me back my food!" the other man yelled. Jiemma finally came to the line of trees and saw what was going on. The man was lunging at them with a lightning enhanced sword. The blond haired boy in the clearing sighed and caught the blade with two hands. The lightning went away and the boy began to eat part of the blade.

"Go away," he said. This one was Sting; there was no doubt, He spat and a laser flung the attacker away with incredible speed. For once, Jiemma was actually interested in the wizards before him. He stepped forward and the two boys turned to look at him. "Who're you?"

"Obviously another bum who wants to deal with the Twin Dragons," said a cat on the ground. There was another cat next to the black haired boy. Jiemma ignored them; they were further beneath his notice than even his guildmates. Both of the boys became defensive.

"You have some strength," Jiemma commented. "Sting and Rogue, correct? You say you killed your dragons?"

"Yes, we did," the one called Rogue spat bitterly. Jiemma nodded, pleased with the answer.

"What would you say to joining my guild?"

"You'd accept someone like us?" Sting asked in surprise. "You know that the dragons we killed were our parents."

"That's fine with me. Such attachments are worthless to me," Jiemma informed them. "All I care for, have need for, is your strength. If you wish to join the Sabertooth that I will create, then strength is all that matters. Therefore, I could use you true dragon slayers."

"What's in it for us, other than belonging to a guild?" Rogue asked skeptically. "And what is it you want us to do for you, exactly?"

"All I want you to do is be my Sabertooth's pillars of strength. In return, I will give you a home and a chance to prove your strength to the world at next year's Grand Magic Games. Sabertooth will stand above all other guilds."

"That sounds perfect, Sting!" said the cat. "If that stupid Natsu ever participates, you'd be able to prove you're better than him in front of everyone."

"Sounds good to me," Sting said with bravado, "How about you, Rogue?"

"I couldn't care less if I have some good food."

"Excellent," Jiemma said with a malicious grin on his lips. "Then follow me and meet your fellow soldiers."

He finally had what he needed to rule.

It had happened so suddenly.

Sabertooth had been holding their annual Tiger-Tiger-Tiger Eating Contest, a festival of enjoyment for all the members of Sabertooth, when suddenly Master Casper von Rentin began to choke. Jiemma had refrained from taking part, but Minerva had no problem with it, even sitting next to the master himself. She watched in complete disinterest, wiping the corners of her lips, as the master began to writhe on the ground.

Some of the members were too indisposed to help, but others tried to aid their master instantly. Only one of them reached the master when four powerful wizards appeared in the guild hall. Actually, they had been there the entire time, only Rufus had altered their memories to make them think they weren't. The lone member that had reached their master forced his mouth open to see his black tongue, which was a side effect of the poison that Jiemma had made and Minerva had used to slip into his drink. Minerva stood now and used her magic to transport the man into Sting's grasp.

"Jiemma…help…" Casper panted. Jiemma slowly walked over to him before callously placing a boot against his throat, slowly crushing his windpipe. The man's body was weak from the poison and he couldn't get the foot off.

"This is what you deserve for your weakness," he stated before retreating from the body and obliterating it with magic. The rest of the guild stood back in shock. Their master was dead, but as far as they had known, Jiemma was named as the next master. Rufus had altered that part of their memories almost a week ago. It was a frightening moment, fraught with tension until one of them spoke.

"Jiemma…you…you killed Casper!" one shouted. Orga the mercenary grunted and tossed him violently against a wall, where he passed out. His outcry was enough to spur the others into action.

"How could you do that? He was our friend!"

"Jiemma, you'd turn on your friends?" Jiemma scoffed before slamming a stone statue in the hall to bits. It crumbled into the shape of a throne that he then sat upon.

"We don't need friends. Power is everything," Jiemma replied. "That is my guild's new creed. I have no use of weaklings. Casper was weak, that is why I took care of him."

"This can't be your guild! Someone who'd do that-"

"Hey, no speaking out against the master," Sting said, flicking the member away.

"Right now, we're going to play a game: a tournament between tigers. You'll all battle each other and against my elite forces. Those who prove themselves may stay."

There was an outcry at this and some tried to leave, but Rogue and Minerva prevented them from doing so. Against their very will, they were forced into battle, and when the dust settled, only five of the old guild members were able to remain. The rest were forced to strip and erase their guild marks. For those that did remain, each of them swore fealty to Jiemma and his new reign. All of the members also had their memories altered. No one would ever know that Jiemma Orlando had killed Casper von Rentin. After all, had they known, they would rebel, and he would not stand for it. He needed strict obedience. In time, as the year went on and summer turned to fall, the old Sabertooth died completely. To the outsiders, it had become an army in all but name.

Jiemma was pleased as his top five wizards continued to make strides. Very soon, he thought, when the Grand Magic Games come, I will finally have dominion. I will finally prove that death and love are naught but weakness. For I could never have achieved this without her death.

X790

No one had ever heard of Sabertooth. To the participants and spectators at the Grand Magic Games, they were just this small guild. Granting, the crowds still loved them better than that wimpy Fairy Tail. Jiemma felt quite smug when he heard the Fairy Tail hadn't even made it through the preliminaries. Of course, Sabertooth barely managed to get through them only thanks to Sting and Rogue's motion sickness. It was the only time that Jiemma blamed himself for the screw-up.

Once the competition had started, though, the tide changed.

Minerva dominated the first competition and Orga gave an effortless victory. Rufus ruled on the second day and Rogue cleaned up the third day's competition while Minerva proved her superiority in battle. By the fourth day, the crowd loved this guild called Sabertooth. The commentator named Yajima claimed that they could be the next Fairy Tail when Sting took the field on the fourth day.

"Fairy Tail is a bunch of has-beens, you old man!" Sting shouted, whipping the crowd into a frenzy. "We're Sabertooth, the greatest guild under the heavens! I don't see Fairy Tail here, do you? Because they're nothing against us. We're number one, and no one will ever prove otherwise."

Sting went on to prove the claim himself by mopping up the fourth day's competition. He and Rogue then battled against Yuka and Toby from Lamia Scale in a tag battle. Thanks to their teamwork and some creative thinking on Sting's part, they won, giving them a perfect score.

"That move…" Yuka commented when the battle was over. "That Salamander once used the same kind."

"Well, I'm better than Natsu ever was." No one in the crowd knew who he was talking about, but they didn't care. After the fifth day, Jiemma's work was complete when their guild managed to finally win the Games. Orga had been taken out by Minerva as collateral damage and Rogue went down to the last guy after getting rushed by three different guilds. Jiemma allowed it all a pass. They returned home victorious.

"All hail the town's heroes! Sabertooth is number one!"

"Orga, your songs at the Games were great!"

"Sting, you're so dreamy." Jiemma watched the celebrating town with growing displeasure. They had won the Games, but that was no cause to celebrate. Of course, they had won. Sabertooth was the best. His Sabertooth was the best, and seeing these weaklings clamor for his guild was sickening.

"Sting, Rogue, clear out this rabble," Jiemma ordered. Rogue looked slightly discomfited by the notion, "That's an order."

"Of course, Master Jiemma." He ignored the cries of the citizens as he walked back to the guild hall and sat on his throne, his soldiers coming to stand silently before him.

"We won, but I will not allow complacency in my guild," he told them. "You will continue to win or else. I have not raised this guild to lose. Excel at your jobs and next year, we will win again. If you have any complaints, then erase your guild marks. If you have any distractions, erase your guild mark.

"We are Sabertooth, and from now on we are the mightiest. If anyone says otherwise, punish them."

Unbeknownst to Jiemma (or perhaps ignored by), many people were forced to leave the town. Most in particular was the way Fairy Tail was never mentioned in that town. And through the rest of that year, Sabertooth was only known as number one. Jiemma knew nothing would change that.

Where did our lives suddenly change?

Was it our weakness,

Illuminated by that heavenly blaze?

X791

Sabertooth had grown. In just a single year they had become the premier guild to join. Of course, Jiemma only accepted the best and more were turned away than were accepted. Jiemma only allowed the best into his guild, especially when the weak gathered at the feet of the strong. Minerva had said so herself, which is why, three days before the X791 Games were set to begin, she made an interesting decision.

"You're taking a job now?" Jiemma questioned incredulously.

"Yes," she answered callously. "Apparently a dark guild named Succubus Eye has been causing problems. I plan to find their base and obliterate it, or at the very least its top members. Yukino can take my place. She may be somewhat new, but is skilled enough to put on a good show."

"I'll allow it," Jiemma spat, turning the page of his paper. His eyes narrowed at its content; apparently Fairy Tail had been involved with some incident involving the church of Zentopia. The doors to the guild slammed open and Sting and Rogue came running in.

"Master Jiemma, we have news about the upcoming Games," Sting yelled. "Apparently, those missing members of Fairy Tail are taking place in the Games."

Jiemma was furious at the name of such a weak guild being spoken, but he reined in his anger. "Then we can finally put an end to this. Sabertooth, at attention!" They moved with military precision, and Jiemma gazed over his army, his tools.

"Fairy Tail will be taking part in the Games. Destroy them, so that their name will never be heard again. For you are Sabertooth. You know no fear. You know no mercy. We are the strongest and this old guild with their antiquated ideals will finally receive its deathblow!

"Now, go, and kill the fairies!"

Only Minerva wasn't sure whether he was talking about Fairy Tail or the old Sabertooth from that proclamation. One thing was sure. By the end of the X791 Grand Magic Games, the guild named Fairy Tail and its bonds would be no more. Only the all-powerful Sabertooth would remain.

Where did he go so wrong?

Was it choosing death over life?

Or power over bonds?

September, X791

Pain…

Weakness…

His body was crumbling. How? He was the strongest, wasn't he? The man with an iron will and an iron body. So, why was it that he was lying here with his body so broken? There were sounds, someone was crying in the distance. Jiemma's eyes opened just a little and he saw the fallen dragon and the man that had once challenged his position of strongest sobbing over it. The sight was utterly wretched, if only because it reminded him of that day nineteen years ago, when he held that feeble girl in his palm.

Jiemma's body was wracked with convulsions, his demonic form, the one he had obtained for strength, beginning to bleed out. How…how had he become weaker than those upstarts? He was the epitome of strength, the very pinnacle of it. He had never believed or trusted in anyone's strength but his own, because their strength would only fail him. How was it, then, that those two boys who had to lean on each other like crutches had done this to him?

How had it all gone so wrong?

More noises pounded in his head, including the sound of footsteps. Someone was kneeling down by his side. He opened his eyes again with a rough gasp and looked into the eyes of his useless daughter, staring down at him in pity.

"Don't…look down…on me…" he gasped out, the very words a pain. "Even now…I stand…above…"

"Don't humor yourself," Minerva said quietly. She looked so different, now. The callousness that he had carved into her was gone, like it had been smoothed over by that guild. It forcibly reminded him of her weaker days…his weaker days. "You're nothing but trash."

"You'd…say that…about me?" He knew the strain of speaking hurt, but he was the strongest. He wouldn't let this do him in. "I, who made Sabertooth the strongest. I, who could challenge heaven, hell, fairies, and even the gods!"

"The fact that you needed to speaks to your own weakness," Minerva answered him. He narrowed his eyes at her. "Do you even know why the guild turned on you? Because all you sought was strength. The pursuit, so single-minded, became your weakness. You didn't believe in your own strength, so you made a strong guild to fill the part of your soul being eaten away by your own weakness. You couldn't trust them or their strength, and they in turn couldn't trust you. How could any strength be had without the foundations of trust…and love?"

"Utter nonsense…" he spat with some blood. "Trust…love…meaningless concepts…"

"So, you never loved anyone? Not even my mother?" Jiemma didn't answer her. He just stared at her, watching his wife place a comforting hand on Minerva's shoulder. They looked so much alike, it was no wonder he couldn't stand the wretch. She was looking at him with those same eyes full of pity. He turned his head away, but instead caught sight of Casper. He looked at him the same.

"Why are you all…looking down…on me…?" Minerva didn't speak as Casper faded from his eyes, replaced with Sting and Rogue, leaning against one another. "Stitch my soul…together…? Such sophistry."

"You should be proud of them," Minerva spoke up. "In the end, they actually believed in you. They believed you still had a soul to stitch up. I wonder if you regret that now."

"Regret? Regret is nothing but…more weakness…"

"I disagree. Regret is the strength to admit that you were wrong and making amends for it. I realize now that I have much to regret and atone for. I'll take your sins, too, father." Jiemma turned his gaze back to her, unable to stand the scornful stares of his wife. No, he couldn't leave this world knowing that his blood had succumbed to that line of thought.

"I…should have killed you…when I had the chance…" he said, his hand weakly reaching out, as if to strangle her. "You were…such a useless daughter…right to the very end…"

"And you were a cruel, heartless man who couldn't understand that there was beauty in simply living. You didn't need strength for that, but I suppose…that's what made you weak."

Jiemma wanted to argue. He couldn't let her get away with those words. But his body had succumbed and with a rattling gasp, his eyes rolled into his head.

Jiemma Orlando, the proof of the inherent weakness in strength for strength's sake, was dead.

Yet how did we become so right?

By choosing people over wizards,

And stepping into the light.

Fín

Author's Note: I thought it'd be fun to delve into Jiemma and how he became the supreme asshole he was in the story. I wanted to make it gradual from thinking to acting to indirectly murdering to murdering Lector (not shown of course) to trying to murder Sting, Rogue, and his own daughter. Also, the title and poem above were important. The poem is essentially about not being able to have light without darkness which this story showed; no strength without weakness, no Sabertooth without Fairy Tail, no birth without death, with emphasis on the juxtaposition between the beginning and end. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed and I would really appreciate it if you left a Review and also check out my other three new stories posted today. Hope to hear from you all!

Dare to Be Silly,

Epicocity