A fairytale no more

this is my 'what-if' version of the whole Cana/Gildarts situation. the single twist I apply is that Cana did not turn out alright when she has to watch her father from a distance, him enjoying everybody else's company while she isn't able to face him.

So this was it. Cana didn't know what to do. Everything so far was aimed at getting her here. And now that she stood in front of the building, people had told her was the guild she was looking for, she felt empty. Clueless. And alone.

The latter she was familiar with. Even the small dog by her side couldn't fill the void her mother's death had left. Maybe she should have stayed with the nice older couple that had lived across the street. They had taken care of her when her mother had first fallen sick and had even offered to take her in.

But her mother had given her other instructions. Her mother had urged her to go and look for her father. And living with her father seemed like a much better option, even if it hadn't been her mother's dying wish.

Can had often wondered what her father was like. There were no photographs in the house but her mother had so often talked about his beautiful copper hair. And she knew his name was Gildarts as well as that he was a member of the Fairy Tail guild.

So this was why she was standing in front of this building.

"Oy, little lady. You don't intend on going in there, do you? You don't really want to smell like you were drenched in booze, do you?" Cana lowered her gaze from the sign high up on the building to the tall man that had just stepped out of the door.

The copper hair.

She looked at him expectantly with her big chocolate eyes and the cutest grin she could muster. Across her the man furrowed his brows and shifted his bag on his shoulder eyeing her too. Cana was about to ask for his name, although in her heart she knew that this was her father.

But then how come he didn't recognize her? Maybe he only had really old photos of her? People told Cana all the time how tall she had gotten.

The words were on her lips. It's me, Cana. But someone was calling from inside.

"Gildarts! Hurry, the train." He waved her quickly before disappearing behind the next corner.

And then he was gone. Her father, Gildarts. That didn't recognize her. And he wouldn't be back for a while.

But Cana remained patient even then. Surely once he heard her name he would finally see her. And she was a fairy tail mage now as well! He would be proud of her and stop going on so many jobs or take her with her. Anything was fine with Cana.

Except the reality.

The master introduced her to Gildarts minutes after he had returned and was sitting on the bar. "Good of you to take a night off and stay with your family. Here is our latest addition. Gildarts, meet Cana."

She was a bit taller now and had begun to wear her hair just like Cornelia used to. Maybe that would make him see it. But he looked at her and heard her name. And nothing.

That was the moment when Cana's fragile world collapsed. There were no tears. No amount of tears would have been enough to give shape to the despair in her small heart.

"Wait I remember you!" Now Gildarts was laughing and Cana found she loved this laugh. And she loved her father. And there was hope now, that was all that mattered.

"You're the little girl that was lingering in front of the guild! So you joined, huh? Good, very good. Have you already found your type of magic?"

But Cana just turned around and left. He really didn't know her. By now Cana was sure it wasn't a case of forgetting but of having never known.

She should have never come.

Years later Cana still didn't know why her mother had sent her here. Growing older and getting a firmer grip on the real world, she had figured out that they must have parted before she was born, probably before her mother knew of her pregnancy. At least Cana liked to think of that. The alternative just didn't seem to go with this compassionate and kind man that everybody in the guild loved and looked up to.

Including her.

So when her first S-class exam came and passed without her passing she still kept quiet about their deeper connection and started to think that it was better like this. At least it was easier to bear like this.

Dropped by a couple of years later for a few hours during which all the other children in Fairy Tail pegged him to teach them some tricks on how to be strong. But Cana didn't join them. She felt like she was the only one that had the inherent right to seek his company yet everyone else was butting in line in front of her.

So she watched from afar like always. And then he was gone again.

When he didn't return after four years Cana asked the master, full of fear he had died and no one had bothered to tell her. Then again, why would anyone tell her? They all knew nothing.

But the master had news just as bad. He was a live, taking on the 100 year quest. And no one had returned from that alive so far. So either would she see him in 100 years or he would die.

And that was where Cana drew the line. For her sake. For the sake of her sanity and to keep her pain at bay.

Her father stopped existing. Gildarts was still there, and she wanted to see him again and she wanted him to live and to stay in the guild. But he was not her father anymore.

Cana grew up. Had her first boyfriend and heartbreak, her first hangover and won her first drinking contest. And everything was fine, she had made it out of her misery with the help of her friends and her guild; those people were her family, just as master had said.

Yes, Cana had overcome the grief and loss and pain. Until Gildarts returned. Beaten up, injured, but alive. And Cana was back where she had been twelve years ago, when she had first stood before the guild.

Longing for nothing, but the approval and love of the man in front of her.

And he remembered her, invited her over to a drink and was truly impressed when she finished the bottle in one go. It didn't matter that he praised her for such a stupid little thing. All that did matter was that she had his undivided attention for the first time in her life. And he was seeking her company.

So when she leaned in to kiss him goodnight well after midnight it didn't feel weird. Quite the contrary. It was amazing. She felt truly loved for the first time in her life. Loved by the only man that mattered to her; the one man, that would only ever matter to her.

His hand on her cheek felt soft and his smile was so different than the grin he gave all the other kids. Because she no longer was a child. She was a woman, had become a woman a few years back actually.

Yes, if he left now she would remain wounded once more. But when he sat down next to her during breakfast he told her he would stay. Cana didn't care if he was staying for her or because of his injuries or for whatever reason. Because that sentence was all that it took that she surrendered her heart to the man in front of her once more.

It was different then twelve years ago. Back then it had been a child's heart, now it was a woman's heart, filled with wishes and hopes children knew nothing of.

That morning the guild learned of their relationship because after these words there was no holding back in Cana. She had hesitated once and lost her father. She would not hesitate again and risk losing her lover too. Their kiss was perfect for Cana, his hair between her fingers was just as perfect as her mother had always said. Yes for her the only weird part about all this was that her mother had had the same lover too once.

But her mother was gone, as were Cana's doubts. Her life had turned around for the better. And for a year it stayed like this. She still was no S-class mage but Gildarts loved her nonetheless. And for that year it was all she needed.

Until she learned firsthand what kind of fate her mother had had to deal with. After what she guessed was the reason that they divorced. When Gildarts' love extended to a few more bedrooms besides hers.

Still many years later people wondered. Not why he had left so suddenly, that was just his usual habit. But why the man that was not only known for his strength and restlessness, but also for his habit of slipping between the sheets with many young girls, simply stopped with the latter.

Cana knew.

And Gildarts knew. He knew everything. Except, how many daughters there possibly were.

so, erm... yeah... i really don't know you guys. these were my first thoughts when i read that arc. i was like... okay, it's for children. ignore all the cleavage. this manga is for children. becuase in the M-rated world, Cana would not be alright. she would be broken beyond repair.

so that's my take. how did you perceive that arc/revelation/outcome?