*CHEERING LOUDLY* IT IS DONE! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Throughout Magnolia, the streets echoed with festive cheer and murmurs of approval as team Thunder God Tribe moved towards the Fairy Tail guild.
At first glance, everything seemed normal. The were all chatting with and/or fawning over their leader, Laxus Dreyar, whose expression was stoic, as it usually was.
However, if you looked closer, you could see it.
The slight twitch of Laxus' wrist, or the frequent narrowing of his eyes and gritted teeth.
These were signs Laxus would hide as soon as they occurred, quickly making sure none of his teammates noticed. Though the intermittent pain that shot through his arm was immense, he could easily hide the twitching by stuffing his hand in his pocket.
If he could act normal, no one would know.
Despite his best efforts, the pain only increased with duration. It took almost everything in Laxus to focus on the road in front of him instead of the pain that sharply arrested his limbs. It felt as if someone was stabbing his hand, healing it till there was no pain left, then stabbing it again!
"Think Natsu will destroy the place again?" Bixlow snickered.
"I wouldn't doubt it." Evergreen exhaled, folding her arms. "That maniac could destroy the whole town if he put his mind to it."
"I think he did that once. Not sure which town it was, but I definitely remember someone talking about it." Bixlow guffawed.
"Master Makarov probably chewed his butt out." Evergreen smirked back.
"Thankfully, a leader such as our Laxus would never do such a reckless thing." Freed nodded confidently.
"…I tried once." Laxus reminded him, blinking. Freed flinched, remembering back to seven years ago.
"Well uh… yes, you did." He nodded. Evergreen and Bixlow exchanged glances, looking back at their leader with quick smiles.
"You are a changed man though, Laxus." Bixlow insisted.
"That is right. We all know that." Evergreen agreed.
Laxus shrugged. "It isn't a big deal. What is in the past is the past." He trudged forward, hoping to get some distance between him and his team so he could look at his hand and see if it was bruising or something.
Perhaps he had hit against the wall in his sleep and broke it. Wouldn't he would have noticed the pain when he woke up? His mind struggled with an explanation as the pain persisted..
Once ahead of his team, Laxus kept walking until he reached Fairy Tail guild. Looking up to the large structure, which the town had generously rebuilt, Laxus entered the gate.
His team followed quickly, opening the door for Laxus to enter. Moving into the guild, Laxus was instantly met by a lively chorus of cheers and celebration.
"Hah! They already started!" Bixlow laughed.
"Like they ever stopped. It's always a party here." Evergreen mused.
"Ah!" ahead of them, Mira paused to smile warmly at them. "Welcome, Freed, Laxus, Bixlow, Evergreen. Can I get you four anything?" her sincere expression was relaxed, amidst the uproar. It always felt like home when Mira welcomed them.
"Beer!" Bixlow pumped his fist.
"A glass of champagne, mademoiselle." Freed graciously bowed his head to her.
"I'm good." Laxus grumbled, moving down the steps to get to a table. His legs felt wobbly suddenly, and he collapsed on a chair.
Crap. Had anyone seen that?
No one seemed to have noticed, and if they had, they ignored it, probably thinking Laxus just plopped down on a seat, not carrying if he broke it or not.
Had they seen it anyway, they probably wouldn't have done anything. It wasn't like he was dying.
Leaning back on the chair, Laxus took a deep breath, exhaling through his nostrils.
Maybe… he should get it checked out.
Hah, what was with that? Since when did he start needing help? Nothing was wrong in the first place.
Pulling his hand out of his pocket, just to make sure, he frowned to find his fingers were trembling.
He didn't feel sick, or cold, so what was with the shaking? Maybe it happened while he was having that weird dream. He probably shifted around so much that he twisted his arm or broke the bed frame. But that wasn't possible… He didn't see any dents on the bed this morning.
He would have to check when he got home.
Home.
He really just wanted to go home and sleep. Maybe sleep would fix this shaking.
"Everyone!" A cheery voice rose through the air.
A glimpse of long blond locks drew his attention to his right. Turning his head, the delicate scent of strawberries and vanilla brushed past him.
Oh… It's Lucy.
Glancing at her, Laxus could see she was running towards her team with a bright smile. "Everyone!" she called, her weird little white celestial spirit in her arms. It shook violently even though it was smiling.
Was it sick?
Beside him, Freed suddenly sniffled. "I-Isn't this great, Laxus?" He sobbed softly.
Laxus' attention snapped to the green haired mage. Freed had latched onto his arm, tears streaming down his face.
When had he sat down? Nothing escaped Laxus' notice, and yet here was Freed's tears on his sleeve.
He scowled in protest when Freed rubbed his face against his arm, crying.
"What?" he grumbled.
"You're back in the guild and you are so strong!" Freed explained through his tears, hiccupping as he gazed up at Laxus with idolizing adoration.
Laxus blinked, slowly leaning backwards "Uh…"
"That's right! and our team is back together again!" Evergreen agreed, wrapping her arms around Laxus' other arm. Laxus grimaced, not sure how to get out of the situation besides the obvious method of hitting both team members on their heads.
"We already went over this." He sighed momentarily before yanking his arms free. Behind him Bixlow cackled.
"Can't blame us for being pumped!"
"Pumped! Pumped! Pumped!' Bixlow's flying dolls chanted above their heads.
Shaking his head, Laxus felt himself smirk.
Whatever.
He had come all the way here; he might as well try to enjoy himself. Maybe get a few beers to distract himself from his thoughts and arm.
Where was Cana? He was sure she would be in the mood for a good old drinking contest. When wasn't she? A shrill yell interrupted his thoughts.
"Let's party!" Natsu screamed from his spot on top of a few stacked tables.
The guild cheered at his enthusiasm, lifting their drinks up to toast.
"Cause we're-" Natsu pumped both of his fist up.
"FAIRY TAIL!" the guild screamed in unison with the flame dragon slayer.
Dragon Slayer.
Dragon Slayer.
…Dragon…
The hot pain shot through Laxus' arm without warning, almost igniting his arm for unknown reasons. Grabbing his throbbing wrist, Laxus gritted his teeth, looked up at his team, who had yet to notice his distress.
The pain grew worse, moving up his arms all the way to his shoulder. It was as if someone was ripping off his arm. Laxus felt like howling in pain; he teeth clenched in a grimace.
Falling out of his chair and onto his knees, Laxus leaned forward, curling his arm close to his chest.
"Laxus?" Freed looked over his shoulder at the sound of something hitting the floor. He gasped at the sight of Laxus hunched forward, kneeling. "Laxus!" he cried out in shock, rushing to his leader's side. Evergreen and Bixlow weren't far behind.
Closing his eyes tightly, Laxus remained gritting his teeth. It hurt. He didn't know what the hell was going on but it hurt. He couldn't think, everything was fuzzy.
The loud noise of the guild made his head throb further.
"We need some help over here!" Bixlow screamed into the crowd.
The guild grew silent. Everyone's gaze turned to the collapsed lightning mage, their eyes growing wide with worry.
Laxus had never heard the guild become so deathly silent before.
Even that time when a few years back when Erza had first arrived in only ripped cloths and an eye patch covering her eye. However this time, no one stirred; it was horrifyingly silent.
He wasn't sure if it was just the ringing in his ears that affected his sense, or if time had some how slowed down; but it seemed no one within the guild moved an eternity. They all just stood there, staring at him in shock, as if they were trying to figure out for themselves if this was really happening.
Suddenly there was a rush of small feet, interrupting the waved of silence before a hand was placed gently on his shoulder.
"Laxus?" his grandfather's voice reached his ears.
Laxus flinched at the touch; his eyes glued shut at the tight pain within his arm. It began to move towards his chest, as if it were spreading throughout his whole body slowly.
"What's goin' on?" Natsu demanded, confused to what was happening. Wendy pushed past him, hoping to find the cause of Laxus' pain. Pressing her fingers gently to his arm, which seemed to be the main cause of the pain, Wendy frowned.
"What's wrong with 'im?" Bixlow asked Wendy.
"I… I don't know. There is no broken bones or injuries anywhere." She stammered.
"B…Burning…" Laxus muttered.
"What?" Makarov leaned a little closer to hear his grandson.
"It's burning… it's burning again…"
"…Again?" Lucy piped up.
Laxus glanced at her through his blurry vision. When had she gotten so close? She was kneeling in front of him with the old man, her face practically inches from his own.
She had really beautiful brown eyes.
Gagging when the feeling reached his other arm, Laxus lurched forward, his forehead hitting the ground.
"Laxus!" Lucy gasped in worry.
He heard himself scream in agony, his body hot.
He was burning. Burning into nothing but ashes as the flames slowly chopped him up into tiny pieces.
The guild's voices called to him from a distance, moving farther and farther away with each passing second.
It was growing dark, the shadows swallowing behind his eyes swallowing him whole. They sang songs only children would hear in their nightmares, and danced around him, beckoning him towards them.
"Get… out of my… head." Laxus demanded lowly.
As the shadows reached for him, their sharpened claws grazing over his back, a gentle hand grabbed his own.
"Relax."
A new voice reached his ears. He didn't recognize it as any of the guild members. Forcing his eyes open, the hand moved up his arm to take a hold of it. .
"You must relax, Laxus Dreyar, or it will continue to get worse." A woman, most likely in her 40s kneeled beside him. Who was she?
"Who-" he choked out.
"I'm a friend. Now relax." She commanded. Frowning, Laxus' focus returned to the pain. He struggled to relax, his body tensing whenever a new shot of pain washed over him.
Sensing his efforts, the women whispered odd incantations under her breath.
Though it wasn't a language he had never heard before, the sound of it was soothing to Laxus' ears.
The pain in his chest vanished slowly, moving towards his arms.
"Good, that's very good, Laxus." She nodded, taking his arm to help him to his feet. Freed grabbed his other arm and they both helped the tall lightning mage to a chair.
He breathed heavily, his body numb. Around him, the guild watched carefully, not sure what to say or do to help their guild member through this.
Whatever this was.
"What the hell…" Laxus grumbled after a few seconds. Looking back at the woman, he was finally able to get a good look at her. Though a hood covered her face, he was still able to make out golden eyes and shaggy dark black hair. "Who are you?" he repeated the question, rubbing his arm as if it were sore.
The pain was gone without a trace, as if it had never existed to begin with.
"What in the world is going on!?" Natsu demanded after a short silence, unable to stand the confusion anymore. Small flames shot from his mouth to show his frustration.
The woman sighed, as if upset that she would have to explain what was going on. "I was hoping to speak to you alone first, Laxus." She admitted, much to Laxus' surprise. "I see now though, that it would be wise to speak with everyone on this subject."
Blinking, Laxus shook his head, not understanding what she meant. "Tell me what?"
Reaching up, the woman removed her hood, revealing her pale and slender face to the guild. "My name is Draca. I'm an archive magic user. My main focus of study is ancient or lost magic. Or more specifically, Dragon Slayer magic."
"Dragon Slayer magic?" Wendy blinked.
"What is your business here?" Erza stepped forward, wishing to get straight to the point.
Draca glanced at her. "…To save Laxus Dreyar… who is in grave danger."
DUN DUN DUN.
...Hopefully I wont say that after every chapter. Anyway, thank you all for reading this. You've all be very supportive. You've been kind, nice, sometimes rude from time to time (But this world isn't perfect). Regardless though, you guys are amazing. Thank you all for you impute, good or bad. It has all helped me to improve my writing! Thank you!
Also, I want to thank Skymia. Thank you so much for Beta Reading this chapter for me. You are the best Beta Reader and author could have! You helped me improve this chapter 10 fold! :D