Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail
Chapter 7 - A Time I Once Wanted and A Time I Once Knew
It was a sunny afternoon in Magnolia. People greeted each other while going about their daily lives.
Erza stood on the cobblestone path. Before her, were the doors to the Fairy Tail guildhall.
She looked down at herself. She was still wearing her armor.
Something was off, though, but she couldn't tell what.
The doors creaked loudly as she opened them and when she stepped inside, she couldn't help but smile at the sight before her. Tables overturned, chairs being thrown, and mugs flying around along with people. They were as rambunctious as always.
Erza decided to let it go…just this once.
She walked through the guild, avoiding all sorts of projectiles that might've hit her. She saw Natsu walking in her direction and decided to greet him.
"Good afternoon, Nat-" He walked past, not paying any mind to her. "-su."
She was a bit confused and decided to go to the bar and ask Mira about it. The white-haired girl was standing behind the bar, smiling as the guild quieted down to a more tolerable level.
Erza leaned on the bar and stared at Natsu as he talked to Lucy. He started laughing
"Hey, Mira. Is there something wrong with Natsu?" she asked the barmaid.
When Mira didn't respond, Erza turned around and gave her a hard stare.
She tried again."Mira, I'm talking to you, you know."
She waved her hand in front of Mira's face and the barmaid didn't even react. Erza leaned over the counter and tried to put her hand on Mira's shoulder.
"Hey, what's wrong with y-" Her arm went right through her.
Erza's eyes widened in realization for a brief moment before they softened.
"Oh…I see."
She lowered her arm as she turned around and stared at the rest of her friends who were enjoying a regular afternoon at the guild.
When she saw them smile, she gave one of her own, albeit a little sad.
She slowly walked back out of the guildhall and turned to look at the building.
'I knew something was off.' This building was the old guildhall which Gajeel destroyed.
"I'm dead, aren't I…" she said to no one in particular.
She didn't remember much about her last moments. The only thing that came to mind was that she was planning on sacrificing herself to save her friends from the tower's destruction.
The bell at the top of Kardia Cathedral sounded twice.
"As long as everyone else is alive and well…"
Twice again.
"…as long as everyone else is happy…"
Twice once more.
"…then that's all that matters to me."
Suddenly, the bell rang again, clearly louder than the other times. It startled Erza as she flinched from the sound. She turned to face the cathedral.
The bell was still, but then, it moved and rang again. Erza wasn't sure if it was her ears playing tricks on her, but she could have sworn that it was slightly louder than the last. There was a slight pause before it sounded again, and Erza couldn't shake the feeling of unease building up inside of her.
The bell kept ringing with slight pauses between each one. They were getting progressively louder and Erza could feel a massive headache coming. She put her hands over her ears, but it did nothing to stop the sounds from resonating within her head. She kept count, wondering how many it would take for this to end.
After many torturous minutes, it finally quieted down.
Erza slowly removed her hands from her ears. She was feeling a bit dizzy but tried to ignore it.
"Eighteen," she murmured to herself. "Eighteen times."
It turned out that it wasn't over, as the bell rang once more, several times louder than any of the others. Erza gritted her teeth as she fell to her knees. The sound was so painful to her that she quickly put her hands back over her ears and shut her eyes. This one seemed to resonate the longest and Erza wondered partway through if it was ever going to end.
After agonizing for what seemed like eternity, Erza was relieved that the bell finally stopped. She opened her eyes and looked around.
She was no longer in front of the guild. She stood, in a white dress, behind a crowd in black. Ot was still sunny out, so she wondered why they were dressed in such clothes.
They were all facing forward and Erza, out of curiosity, weaved her way through the crowd, her white dress contrasting against the black clothes surrounding her. She got a few good looks at some of the somber faces and knew right away that these were her guildmates. When she reached the front, she found Master Makarov facing the same direction as the rest of the guild.
In front of him…was a grave.
On a stone pedestal sat a large cross with a looped top section. In front of the cross, was a winged knight on a horse in the middle of rearing. The knight was in full armor and held a long spear.
The gravestone read:
ERZA SCARLET
X765 - X784
Master started speaking. "Erza Scarlet was like a daughter to me. She was strong, caring, and a beautiful and graceful person." He sniffled and paused, trying and failing to recompose himself.
"Most importantly…" He was sobbing now. "…she was family. And to pass at such a young age…
The cruelty and unfairness that this world had brought upon her will not be forgotten. Today is a sorrowful day…as our grief-stricken family will never be the same from now on."
"What are you guys all talking about…?"
Erza turned around, as did a lot of other people, and saw Natsu standing behind the crowd.
He slowly walked forward, eyes covered by his bangs and spoke in a low tone. "Erza's not dead… you all should know this. We should believe in her…" He raised his head. "'cause she'll just come back and scold us like usual for looking so pathetic."
His facial expression spelled out furious, but tears were streaming down his face just like everyone else.
Lucy walked up to him and, to everyone's shock, slapped him. "Stop being in denial, Natsu. Can't you see? She's gone…"
"Lucy, she's…"
"Just open your eyes, Natsu…ERZA'S GONE AND YOU KNOW IT!"
At that, Natsu fell to his knees and started sobbing uncontrollably. Lucy was kneeling in front of him, trying and failing to comfort him as she was in the same state.
"She's gone…forever…"
Erza looked around at her guildmates, in their heartbroken and depressed states, and turned around, the sight being too much to bear as she started to cry out of her one good eye.
Mother Nature offered no tears, just the clouds blocking the sunlight from ever reaching her.
'You really think everyone will continue smiling after you sacrifice yourself?' Lok's words echoed in her mind. She finally understood what they meant.
It was then that Erza realized that Lok wasn't among the crowd.
'Where is she?'
Her curiosity got the better of her as she started running. She didn't know why, but she needed to find out where she was.
She was an important team member and a part of her family, after all.
After running for a while, Erza finally found her. At the train station, Lok was sitting on a bench with her luggage right beside her.
Erza didn't move, and neither did Lok, not until the train came.
The train that came was heading west of Magnolia. After it came to a stop, the doors opened. Lok got up and walked into one of the train cars near the back. When Erza tried to follow her, the doors abruptly closed and she couldn't get in. She saw Lok through the window and her eyes widened with shock.
With a disappointed look in her eyes, Lok lifted up her shirt, and erased her own guild mark.
That was the last Erza saw of her as a whistle sounded, the train blew steam, and it started to roll forward.
Erza walked a few steps forward and subconsciously reached out towards the departing train.
Erza had died, her guildmates were heartbroken, and Lok had left the guild.
"How did it come to this…?"
Training had finally begun.
We were gathered in the main hall, the same room we were in when we were first introduced to the facility. Five masked figures stood in front of us. The one wearing a black masked stepped forward.
"This will be the hardest week for most of you, as you are just settling in," he stated. "Those who are not prepared to work hard as if their lives are at risk should leave now."
No one moved.
"Good. Let us now begin." He motioned to the four people beside him who wore white masks, and they began to split the children into groups.
A couple of boys snickered beside me. One of them whispered, "He's probably just trying to scare us."
How foolish.
Well, at least I was prepared. Master Yurick trained me for some time before I was sent here.
He also told me about the 'tests' that they held. He wasn't supposed to, but he did anyway. To be fair, he didn't say anything about this 'organization', only that I would learn everything sooner or later. He also didn't mention anything explicit about the tests except one thing.
I remembered him giving me a stern look before he said, "The first one'll weed out most of the weak, that's for sure."
Our lives really did depend on how hard we worked.
We started with hand-to-hand combat training and the regimen was very fast-paced. A lot of the kids were struggling to keep up, and if I wasn't trained beforehand, I might've been in the same boat as them. In the middle of training, I spotted the two girls that came up to me yesterday.
If I recalled correctly, Hara and Runi were their names.
For their bubbly attitudes, they were surprisingly adept when it came to combat. They both had great form and were easily keeping up with our instructors.
Well, Hara was at least. Runi was a bit behind but she seemed to be more experienced than a lot of the other kids.
Right jab. Left hook. Left kick. Turn while striking backwards with the elbow. We were repeating the same drill at high speed, and every so often, one of the instructors would walk by, and do a jab straight at our faces. Most were able to parry and continue with the drill. Those who didn't, fell over in pain as the jab connected with their jaw.
Long, arduous drills passed as we started to feel the exhaustion creeping up on us. Sweat rolled down my face and to my chin before dripping onto the marble floor. An instructor walked by. They looked like they were about to pass me, then suddenly twisted their body and threw a jab at my face.
I parried it, albeit slower than the times before. I was panting as I tiredly continued the current drill. The masked instructor stared at me, hummed in approval, and walked away.
The man with the black mask yelled for us to take a break, just as another kid met the floor with a loud thud.
"You have ten minutes," the man stated.
I turned around and started towards the one end of the room where water bottles were being handed out. I stopped when someone tapped me on the shoulder. I already had an inkling of who it was.
"Good work out there," Hara said as I turned to face them.
"You have really good form!" Runi said excitedly. "Did you train before coming here?"
I raised an eyebrow.
"Hey, it's rude to ask about people's lives before they came here," Hara scolded her.
Runi's eyes widened a bit before she covered her mouth and murmured, "Oops…sorry."
Her blue-haired companion sighed. "You really have no manners, Runi."
"I don't really mind," I finally piped up.
They stared at me in what seemed like slight surprise.
"By the way, you never told us your name," Runi said.
'Guess I didn't. I just brushed them off last night and went to eat in my room.'
I looked them over
'It might be good to gather a few allies…'
"My name is Lok."
They hummed in response.
"Let's get some water then, Lok," Hara suggested.
"Sure."
We made our way to the area where most of the other kids were hanging around. We got our bottles and sat down against the wall.
Breaking the silence, I told them, "You two are pretty good by the way. I saw you."
They looked at me.
"Although Runi looked like she was slacking a bit," I added.
Hara snickered and I could tell Runi was pouting beneath her mask. "Lok, you meanie!"
I couldn't stop myself from giggling a bit before clearing my throat and standing up.
"Come on, our break's almost over."
For the next few weeks, we trained side by side, and I even joined them for dinner a few times. They actually didn't take off their masks to eat. Instead, they just lifted the bottom enough to fit their utensils. I learned that Hara was nine years old like me and that Runi was a year older. One night, I found a paintbrush and different colors of pain on my desk. There was a note next to the objects saying how we were allowed to paint our masks if we wanted to. I found out the next day that Hara painted sharp, red teeth along the outline of the mouth on her mask and Runi simply had a green line running straight down the middle of hers. I opted to keep my mask blank. We also learned about the organization of assassins we were going to be a part of. We learned of its ranks, some basic rules, and how missions usually worked.
Along the way, I took notice of the slackers, the ones who didn't put all of their effort into training and only put in the bare minimum. At the end of the third week, we gathered in the training room again, but this time, the Doc was there instead of the instructors.
"Now that you're all here," his voice boomed as we lined ourselves up in rows. "Let us begin…your first test."
I stiffened.
'Here we go.'
"Each of you, move so that you're standing on a tile," he ordered.
I looked down at the white tiles that made up the boring design of the floor and stood on one of them.
"Once you get yourself situated, don't move."
We did as he ordered, and a few moments later, the tiles that the children were standing on started lowering into the floor.
A few gasped in surprise and others were slightly panicking until the black-masked instructor reassuringly said from beside Doc, "Do not worry, it is all part of the test."
Most seemed to calm down but all I could wonder was, 'When did he get there?'
I had no time to dwell on it as my tile lowered into the ground and I steeled myself. I was feeling a bit anxious since Master Yurick said that the tests were random.
When my tile stopped moving, all I could see was darkness which didn't quell my nervousness.
'Calm down…' I told myself. I took deep breaths and waited for instructions.
Torches lit up around me and I could now see that I was in an underground corridor. The Doc's voice boomed around me. "When your tile stops moving, please step off of it."
I did as I was told. The dirt beneath my feet sunk a little as I stepped off. The tile moved back upwards and covered the hole I presumably came from.
"Welcome to the First Test: Labyrinth!" the Doc announced. "Your goal is simple…escape."
"Where's the catch…?" I muttered to myself.
"However, we've prepared some…special obstacles for you."
"There it is…"
"These obstacles will test your instincts. We like to call them 'Mimics', as they can use the same techniques that you have been taught but can also copy other fighting styles. They will be the ones hunting you down as you find your way out. Also…" I could picture him smirking. "…some of them might even be armed. Good luck to you all!"
I started walking. I eyed every crack in the floor, ceiling, and walls, and peeked around each corner before passing it. I needed to be wary since I had no idea what these mimics looked like.
'It would suck if I go through this entire test without even meeting one…'
I paused at a four-way intersection. There was a sound. I strained my ears and I heard it. It echoed in the corridors to my left.
Thinking that this was my chance to gain some experience, I started running. I turned one corner, then I made a left, a right, then another right, and came upon a flight of stairs. The sound was louder, more warped than before, and it sounded more like a constant, distorted scream. I tried not to lose my nerves as I walked up the stairs.
As I peeked above the top steps, I saw it. A grey being stood more than seven feet tall, easily reaching the labyrinth ceiling. Its arms reached down to what I assumed was its knees and its fingers were at least twice as long as any normal human's. Its shoulders were broad but, for some reason, its body narrowed significantly at its waist. My eyes trailed down its long, skinny, somewhat crooked legs and I could just barely make out the outline of its large feet and long toes. It looked like it was in the middle of walking away from me so I couldn't tell what its face looked like. Black lines flickered all over its body and it looked like some badly sketched humanoid.
My eyes widened in realization.
"Pict Magic?" I accidentally questioned aloud.
I covered my mouth in horror as I backed up and lay down flat on the stairs, hoping that the thing didn't spot me.
When I thought it was safe, I took another peek, and sure enough, the creature was still facing away.
Suddenly, it went silent.
Almost as abrupt as the noise stopping, it swivelled its head in my direction. Its face was featureless besides three dark, round holes. Its mouth looked hauntingly empty and its eyes looked like endless voids that tried to suck out your soul.
I stared at its empty gaze and, as terror filled my heart to the brim, I realized that its gaze was directed at me.
It let out a distorted screech and lunged towards me with one of its arms outstretched. Snapping out of it for a brief moment, I let my survival instincts take over and quickly ducked under it. I grabbed its arm and, using its momentum, flipped it over my shoulder. The thing tumbled down the stairs and landed with a loud 'thump'.
The screeching stopped.
I turned in the direction it was originally facing when I first found it and tried to gain some distance. But then, something on the ground caught my eye.
A mask. With red teeth painted along the outline of the mouth.
It was only then that I noticed a child slumped against the dirt wall under one of the torches.
"Lok…is that you?"
I hurried over to one of the only friends I had and kneeled down next to her form.
"Hara…?"
"Heh, it hit me pretty hard…" Hara tried to smile but it didn't cover up the fact that she was pretty shaken up. Tears pooled in her eyes and escaped down her cheeks. Her smile finally faded as she choked back a sob. I did what I remembered my mom doing when I was younger and got upset. I wrapped my arms around her and ran my fingers through her hair. It seemed to do the trick, as she calmed down rather quickly. When her tears subsided, she talked again. "It has claws."
When I looked at her in confusion, she clarified, "Fingers and toes aren't that sharp."
"How can you tell?"
She then showed me her left leg and I lightly gasped. The grey, skintight suits the girls were required to wear offered little protection. Simple built-in shoulder, elbow, and knee pads seemed to satisfy whoever designed them. Any other part of the body was protected only by the thin, flexible fabric of the suit. Hara had four, long gashes across her left thigh that oozed crimson down her leg.
"We need to get you out of here," I said as if it wasn't obvious.
"Well it hurts too much to walk, so…"
I went to pick up Hara's mask and handed it back to her. I didn't comment as she placed it back onto her face, then I knelt down in front of her and told her to climb on.
"Huh?"
"You heard me…climb on."
"But…I…you…" she started to protest but gave in when I turned my head and glared at her. "Fine."
She climbed onto my back and adjusted herself to be more comfortable. When she was ready, I started to lightly jog down the corridor, away from the thing that attacked Hara. I kept looking over my shoulder to see if the thing was following but it never was.
"It probably won't follow us if we've gotten this far," Hara reassured me.
She then filled me in on what she had learned already. Apparently, the Mimics didn't have ears and only made that horrible screeching noise when they spotted prey.
"Not only that," Hara continued. "The noise stops when they lose sight of their target." She paused. "Either that, or the prey's dead, and then they start wandering around again. So that means…"
"That we should take advantage of the stairs?" I finished for her.
"Exactly. Lose them at the staircases." She paused for bit before saying, "Also, I don't think that we actually have to fight these things. The Doc might be testing our fight or flight instincts. I feel like he wants to see if we can judge an enemy's skill level and act accordingly, even if that means running. After all, the goal isn't to defeat a Mimic…it's to escape, right?"
"We've been here for less than an hour and you figured all of this out?" I asked, impressed by her analysis.
"Yep! When I was younger, people always told me how smart I was for my age!" she proudly said.
I hummed in response. "So how did you get caught?" I asked.
She sighed. "I was running away from a Mimic and spotted a staircase, but when I ran up the stairs, I met another one…"
"Wow…guess you traded luck for intelligence, huh."
She lightly chuckled. "Tell me about it."
We walked in silence for a bit until her arms tightened around my neck and I could feel her trembling a bit.
"Hara?"
"I was seriously going to die back there…"
I hummed in response.
"Thank you…for saving me…"
"…that's what friends are for, right?"
I carried Hara for what seemed like hours. During that time, we avoided any Mimics we came across and simply talked while trying to find an exit.
Hara told me about how she ended up at the facility. Her story wasn't anything special, really. She lived at an orphanage, and for reasons she couldn't understand, no one wanted to adopt her. However, on her ninth birthday, a woman came in, signed the adoption papers, and brought her to the facility.
Since she told me her story, it was only fair that I told her mine. I told her that when I was seven, my house burned down with my parents still inside.
"Oh…I'm sorry."
"It's fine. Afterwards, Master Yurick found me and gave me a place to stay," I continued.
"Who?"
"He's a Master Assassin."
She got pretty excited at this. "You got taken in by a Master Assassin?!"
"Yeah."
"Lucky…is that why you're so good?"
"Maybe." I paused until a thought occurred to me. "Wait…how are you so good?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, no offense, but I don't think anyone could keep up with the training without being trained before coming here, and you were brought here immediately after you were adopted."
She seemed to think about it for a second before answering, "Hmm…I don't know. Maybe it's natural talent."
I smirked. "Better start working your ass off then, Hara. I don't think talent will get you that far here."
I could tell by her tone that she was smirking too. "Don't worry. I won't fall behind…not behind you, at least."
We both chuckled before falling into a comfortable silence. Until she decided to break it, that is.
"By the way, you can call me Juno."
We didn't know what we were expecting when we heard a screech and a scream in front of us and around the corner. But when the screeching stopped, and a monstrous being didn't show itself to us after long minutes of waiting, curiosity worked its magic and I stepped forward to peek around the corner.
I turned pale as I took in the scene before me. My eyes wandered, from the blood splattered on the dirt wall, to the Mimic that just turned the corner at the other end of the dimly lit hallway, and to the bodies strewn on the floor. I noticed three black training suits and one grey.
'Three boys and a girl, huh?'
I examined the scene in detail and fought the urge to throw up when I saw that not all of the bodies had their limbs still attached. One of the boys was facing our direction and I instantly turned away when I saw his face.
'They say that eyes are windows to the soul…so that means that a person's soul is forever trapped in darkness once their eyes have been gouged out…'
I shuddered at the thought.
I could feel Har-Juno pressing up against my back, trying to peek around the corner as well.
"What happened? What do you see?" she asked as my head blocked her view. When I simply stared into space, she asked, "How many died?"
"How did y-" I thought back to her analysis on the Mimics. "Nevermind."
"Well, it's either one or the other, right?" she casually said.
"Four of them, by the way."
"They might've been the slackers…" Juno mused. "Guess this will give kids an incentive to try harder."
"What do you think we should do?" I asked her.
"We should probably turn around and find a different route. Less chance to run into that Mimic if it were to turn around."
I started walking in the direction she suggested but asked anyway, "But what if we take a route that intersects with the path that Mimic is taking?"
"…How good is your luck?" she asked me.
"Why?"
"Since we already know that mine is downright shit, we need to know yours to see if it evens out," she said.
"…"
"So how many Mimics have you run into so far?"
"If we're not counting the one that just walked away, only one…and it was the one that was attacking you earlier."
"So that means that you have great luck!" she said enthusiastically. She then patted my head in a sort-of-condescending way. "I'll trust in your instincts this time."
"Hey, Juno?"
"Yeah?"
"I might drop you since you're so heavy," I deadpanned.
Luck decided to favor us, as we didn't run into another Mimic for the rest of our time in the maze.
There was a staircase at the end of the hallway we were walking through, and as we neared it, we saw light from the top of the stairs.
An exit.
We walked under a rickety sign that hung from the dirt ceiling which had the word 'CONGRATULATIONS' carved into it. Soon enough, we reached the exit and we were back in the facility. A white-masked person walked over, congratulated the both of us for passing the test, and told me to take Juno to the infirmary. They pointed me in the direction, and we were on our way.
There was someone waiting for us, though.
"Runi! You finished already?" Juno asked the girl who stood in front of us.
"I finished right before you," she answered. "How was the test for you two?"
Juno sounded slightly embarrassed. "Well, I got injured by a Mimic. But it's fine since Lok was here to save me!"
I let out a tired sigh. "I basically did nothing but carry her around for the rest of the test…we ran into no one…it was super uneventful for me," I told Runi.
Runi giggled at that then said with a smile, "You got lucky then, I guess."
But Runi's smile didn't exactly reach her eyes, and at that moment, I realized that Runi didn't even have her mask.
"Hey, wh-" I started to ask a question, but Juno interrupted me.
"Well, we should probably get going…my leg still hurts. Right, Lok?"
"Uh, sure." I started walking in the direction of the infirmary.
"I'll walk with you," Runi said as she matched my pace.
Maybe it was because I was too tired, or maybe it was because the signs were all there, but I decided not to question the blood on Runi's hands.
The next morning, we were all lined up in the training room. Apparently, the Doc had an announcement.
"Hopefully, most of you learned some valuable lessons during the test yesterday. The ones who are more experienced, you should have learned that fighting your opponent head on is not always a good approach. It's alright to be underhanded or sneaky. The ones who slacked during training and got lucky during yesterday's test, I hope you now know what happens to slackers like you. Although, the test wasn't only supposed to weed out the slackers, but also the weak."
He held out his hand and the black-masked instructor - who I now knew was a Master Assassin - hand him a piece of paper.
"There were seven Mimics that were hunting you yesterday, just so you know" the Doc stated.
Damn. That meant that Juno's luck was seriously rock bottom.
He continued talking. "Larken, Rorika, Retu, Mora, Ferkus, Drayakar, …"
'Names of people?' I guessed. The doc continued until he reached thirty something names.
"…Orehano, Tifa, and Quence." He handed the list back to the Master Assassin standing next to him. "We predicted that about thirty of you would be killed during the test. It seems that we were right."
Some kids gasped in shock while others started murmuring about how they knew it as well.
Over the increasing noise coming from the children, the Doc let out one loud and final statement. "The total number of deaths during the First Test: Labyrinth, was thirty-four. Work hard to lower that number for the second one."
The black-masked man stepped up and announced, "There will be no training tomorrow. You may take that time to recuperate. Training will recommence the following day. You are dismissed."
Later that evening, I met up with Juno and Runi for dinner. Juno's leg was bandaged, but she was allowed to leave the infirmary. Though she was limping a bit.
"So," Juno started. "Are you going to get another mask, Runi?"
"Hmm…probably not," she answered as she played with her food.
"I see."
My mind kept drifting back to those who were announced dead, and I wondered if there was going to be a future test that we couldn't handle.
"Hey, Juno." She perked up when I called her name. "Do you think that some of the ones the Doc named were just as skilled or even better than us?"
What she did next surprised me. As well as Runi, judging by her reaction. She took off her mask and gave me a sincere look.
"There might've been, there might not have been. I know where you're going with this, and I truly believe that all three of us will graduate. It's your turn to trust in my instincts, right?"
Even though they couldn't see it, I smiled. I must've been really lucky to find friends like these. It definitely beat being alone.
"Hey!" Runi's outburst startled us. "What happened during the test? Since when did you two get so close? Can I call you Juno, too?"
Juno answered each of her questions throughout the rest of our dinner.
"Well then," Runi began. "Please call me Ella."
Juno nodded, and they both looked at me expectantly.
I sighed. "You can call me Aster, if you want…"
"Yay!" Ru-Ella exclaimed. She then hugged me from across the table and I struggled to release myself from her grip.
Juno lightly laughed, then, garnering our attention, she turned serious and said, "Let's make sure that none of us end up on that list, alright?"
Ella leaned back into her own seat with a look of determination settled on her face. She nodded, and I nodded as well.
We weren't about to let each other down.
When I woke, I was still in Simon's arms and we were at the beach. Our comrades were gathered around us, all looking relieved that we made it out alive. I could hear their worried remarks as they fretted over our injuries. I could hear Simon explaining to Erza how we escaped, followed by Natsu scolding Erza for trying to sacrifice herself, and her promising that she would never do it again.
I was too tired to process anything they were saying, though. Since it wasn't treated properly, my stub was bleeding again.
'The resort should have an infirmary…'
I asked Simon to let me down. He told me to take it easy but he complied anyway. I sort of stumbled when I took my first step but steadied myself after a little bit. I started towards the resort when Erza called my name.
I turned to look at Erza who's face practically spelled one thing.
Guilt.
"You haven't been a member for long, but I dragged you into my past and you helped save me and you even got severely injured because of my incompetence, so this whole mess was my fault, an-"
I was exhausted so I decided to cut her off since most of what she was saying was going in one ear and straight out the other. I walked up to her, wrapped my one arm around her and pulled her close. I ran my fingers through her hair, and whispered, "You're fine, and we all came out alive. That's what matters, right?"
I released Erza from my impromptu hug and saw a bit of crimson dusting her cheeks. Too tired to contemplate it, I turned to head back to the resort. Lucy ran up to me as I stumbled and supported me all the way back.
"Thanks."
"No problem," she said with a bright smile.
I could hear Natsu and Gray bickering as they followed us. They seemed quite unaffected by the injuries they got. Gray, I sort of understood since his injuries were less serious, but Natsu…
'Must be a Dragon Slayer quality,' I thought. 'Stubborn as a mule.'
After rebandaging my injuries and taking a nice nap in the infirmary bed, everyone gathered around and started discussing what to do next.
Milliana, Shô, Wally, and Simon were all invited to join Fairy Tail. Simon firmly agreed to the idea, but I could see the uncertainty with the other three. After being set free from the Tower of Heaven, I guess they felt like venturing out into the world without being tied down to one place.
Natsu and the rest of the Fairy Tail members were all excited about the idea and did their best to convince the former slaves to join the guild.
They didn't outright refuse, though. They said that they would think it over, but I was pretty sure some of us already knew their answers.
Natsu and Lucy were telling them about some of their adventures, Gray was coolly standing off to the side with a smile on his face, Erza was catching up with Simon, and Milliana was suffocating Happy in a hug.
It must've been nice…having friends like that.
I had dozed off and woken up when someone lightly shook me. I blinked a few times before looking up at the source of my sleep's disturbance.
"Wakey wakey, Lok. Let's go to the beach!"
Lucy's brown eyes stared at my own. I turned my head to look out the window and saw that it was nighttime.
I turned back to Lucy and stated the obvious, "It's nighttime."
She giggled and said, "I know, silly. Come on! You'll miss out if you don't come."
I sighed and got out of the infirmary bed.
We joined up with Natsu, Gray, Simon, and Happy at the beach and watched as Erza, donning a grand-looking armor and a spear with a Fairy Tail flag attached to it, gave a heartfelt speech to her departing friends.
"Let the Fairy Tail send-off…begin!" Erza called out as she raised the flag and Natsu, Gray, and Lucy spread out.
"Alright!" Natsu cheered before shooting three bolts of fire out of his mouth which exploded in a flurry of magic high in the sky.
Gray did the same with his Ice-Make Magic, sending a projectile upwards before it exploded into the shape of a cross. Lucy used the magic infused in her keys to send one that exploded in the form of stars.
They continued with their display until Lucy called over to me, "Lok, you do something, too!"
I rolled my eyes as I walked over to her and said, "I don't think that black is a nice farewell color, Lucy."
She looked a bit sheepish as she said, "Oh…right…sorry."
"I don't really mind watching, though."
Everyone grouped up again for one last, final goodbye. Milliana, Wally, and Shô slowly rowed off in their little wooden boat as they waved goodbye with tears streaming down their faces. Erza and Simon were crying, too, but had more control over it. Natsu yelled at them to stop by the guild sometime with a huge grin on his face.
I clasped the amethyst and jade stone that hung from my neck. Perhaps it was the infectious atmosphere, or the camaraderie, but I found myself genuinely smiling as I watched the scene play out in front of me.
I saw Erza staring at me with a strange expression.
I frowned. "What?"
She smiled and responded, "Nothing."
We watched Erza's friends become a speck in the sea of blue as the sun peeked over the horizon. Rays of warmth showered us and I, for one, felt refreshed after the whole tower ordeal.
Erza summed up our collective thoughts as she announced, "It's time to go home…back to Fairy Tail."
There were a few cheers, mainly from Natsu and Happy, but I could see the relieved smiles on Lucy's and Gray's faces. Simon simply looked curious. I guess he wanted to find out about the guild that took care of his childhood friend all these years.
'Friends…' I thought. 'This should be fine…even if it is temporary.'
We turned and started our trek back to the hotel with me leading the group.
Without any warning, I turned my head, looked at everyone, and said,
"You can call me Aster, if you want…"
A/N: Ahem…so it seems as though I underestimated the amount of assignments and projects during the week before exam season. I actually finished most of this chapter before exam season, but I couldn't find the time to finish it. Oops.
Regarding this chapter, I had actually planned on a fight between Aster and a Mimic…but I thought it was pretty unrealistic (even in a Fairy Tail fanfic?) for a nine year old girl to fight a monster without magic on even grounds, and (for some reason) I had no motivation to write that fight. So here we are…a redundant paragraph in the author's note.
I actually thought about a random story idea earlier, so I wrote it down. Unless I'm REALLY in a slump with this current story, I won't start the other one until this one's finished, since I highly doubt that I can handle two stories at the same time.
No promises for when I upload the next chapter. See ya next time.
