Last chapter before the real meaty stuff begins. Yippee.
XxX
Fairy Tail Guild Hall – X780
Hey Silv!
Yes, I'm still calling you that. No, I'm not planning on stopping any time soon. You really only have yourself to blame, who chooses the name Silver? I get that it's your father's name, but I met him back when he was alive, and if I'd have known what he was planning on calling his kid I would have slapped him.
By the way, how has nobody managed to draw the line between the two of you yet? Silver Fullbuster was a big name not too long ago, probably bigger than mine. And the crazy bastard loved being famous. The only reason you weren't on front pages was because of your mother, she was definitely the brains of the two of them. I really wish I'd gotten to know them better, but then again, you would too.
I wish I had more stories to tell you, Silv. You deserve that at least.
Enough of that crap, though, I was writing to you for a reason. I suppose it should go without saying that I sent this letter to Fairy Tail instead of your home address, like you asked. Wouldn't want Gray going through your post again, which I should totally point out is completely illegal in all the major states and provinces.
I could throw you in jail with this knowledge, Gray. I know you're reading this letter. I know where you live. I know everything.
Wait, Silv already told me he pulled that trick on you. Dammit Silv, I'm supposed to be the all-seeing parent here! Stop doing my job better than me!
…It occurs to me that I had a point in mind when I first sat down to write this letter. Which was three hours ago. I opened my liquor cabinet sometime during that, so sorry if this gets a little hard to read.
Remember the last letter I sent you, when I said that Lyon was talking about joining a Guild? Well, he did. Left this morning, without even waking me up first. The little bastard left me a note, a fucking note. Can you believe that? The first line he wrote was him telling me that he didn't know how to say goodbye, so he didn't say it. If I ever want to visit him, then he'll be making a name for himself in Lamia Scale.
He's been saying he wanted to join that Guild for a while now, but I never really thought he would. I didn't think my last kid would leave me behind like that. I know that's not what he was intending to do, but it still really hurts, you know? At least he didn't take any of my money. Should have figured he was saving up for something…
Anyway, after I got over the fact that I'd made two servings of breakfast, I got to thinking. I'm not sure if you knew, but back before I was a candidate for Saint, I was the ace of a Guild. Something Dagger, I can't even remember what they were called. Just another cluster of memories the alcohol can't completely block out…
I ran away from that life, Silv. After the Master died, I took off for the frosty hills. Don't even bother asking why I kept training, because I don't know. Maybe it was all I had left after I stopped being a single mother.
Fuck, I got some tears on the paper. Sorry, I'll try to write around them. Pain in the ass, archaic type bullshit. Why the Hell doesn't this town have anything that sells communication Lacrima? No shoes, no shirt, no service my ass. I've gotten some mean discounts out of that habit.
Why is my face wet? Oh, right. How am I still spelling all of this correctly is a better question. And why is my hand wet? Hang ona secco, I do't feel so goooooooo
…
Okay, ow. Sorry Silv, I was supposed to send this out yesterday, but I kind of fell asleep and fell out of my chair. Whatever I was drinking last night? Never again. Like, ever. Sorry for losing my shit near the end there, but I don't think I'll start this letter over.
I'm probably just really too gutless to try to explain my reasoning face to face.
Alright, I'll get on to what I needed to tell you. Don't worry about explaining all of this to Gray, I wrote him a letter yesterday, before it got to the time of night where I get all emotional.
Sorry about that, by the way.
Lyon opened my eyes a little bit when he left, Silv. He's grown up enough to realise that he'll never accomplish his dream if he stays under my tutelage. I don't know if he'll ever beat me in a fight before I'm snapping my hip every time I fall into a casting stance, but he's already kicking my ass when it comes to that aspect of life.
He has a dream. He has a reason to live. Apart from five different types of security systems around my booze, what do I have? A nice house, sure, and a few good pen pals that I used to train, but apart from THAT, what do I have?
Jack shit. I've been living off my earnings from being a mage for years, but that money will run out eventually. So I've decided I'm going to do something with my time. I'm apparently good enough to give Makarov Dreyer a run for his money, and what would be the point of maintaining those skills if I'm not doing anything with 'em?
I'll be honest with you, Silv. I'm more than jealous of you. You're out there, kicking demon ass and completing your life-long ambition in a single night, before you even have any wrinkles. I wish I could moan about it being unfair, but doing that would discredit the time and effort you put forth to get where you are. You could be a God Slayer, given how you've sculpted yourself. Those gossip rags really got your good sides. Why did I have to be the woman you see as a mother…
Oh, wait, shit. Why did I put that on the paper!? Crap, this is why I don't write when I'm distracted and hungover. Why won't this fucking ink rub away…!
Eh, you know what, whatever. It's not like I haven't mentally scarred you worse. With…with the constant stripping thing, not the whole turning into ice in front of you thing…
Kami, what the Hell did I drink last night? Where did my pen go? Oh, nevermind, found- Son of a bitch!
Screw it. I'll get back to this later. Right now, I'm just gonna go stare at a wall or something for a few hours. Why did you let me drink this much, you bastard!? AND WHERE DID THIS BOTTLE COME FROM!?
…
The room has stopped spinning. It's really dirty right now. Weird, it was clean before I blinked…
Oh, right. There was a point, wasn't there? Maybe I should just start a new letter. No, no, the point. Yes, the point. Now, what was it again…?
Ah, right! I'll be seeing you in about a week, Silv. I've decided that it's time I find something to do with my time, considering you so graciously bought me some extra. Fairy Tail sounded alright after you wasted my day babbling about it that one time, so I sent off a message to Makarov so I don't give the fossil a heart attack or something if he isn't ready for a presence of my calibre. What he told me was pretty interesting, I gotta say. What season is it down there? Winter?
I hope having an old woman around won't kill your buzz too much. I'll be bunking with you, by the way, until they finish the renovations they're doing to Fairy Hills. Did you know they're adding another wing to Fairy Hills? They're totally adding another wing to Fairy Hills. I used a good portion of my savings and paid Makarov to add another wing to Fairy Hills. He agreed after I sent him the plans.
It's gonna be shaped like a penis.
My room is going to be the entire head of said penis.
I regret nothing.
But yeah, I got word that it'll take a couple of months for that to be built. Until then, I'll just steal Gray's bed or some-
"Like Hell you will, Ur!" Silver's eyes flicked up from the paper in his grasp, landing on where Gray was reading his own letter on the other side of the Guild. Natsu and Erza, both of whom had been reading the letter over Gray's shoulder, slowly backed away as the Ice Mage continued to yell at the paper. "If anything, you'll be sleeping with Silver!"
Silver choked on his own spit at the poor choice of words, his eyes returning to the letter in his hands as the noise level in the Guild dropped dramatically.
Oh Mavis, he could feel the stares.
But yeah, I got word that it'll take a couple of months for that to be built. Until then, I'll just steal Gray's bed or something. I don't know if you have a spare room or not, but even if you do I'll probably just take Gray's room anyway. He's just too easy to get a rise out of. And before you ask, no, you're not nearly as fun as he is, you emo.
I expect a gourmet breakfast every morning, save for Saturdays, when we shall eat out. Your treat, of course. My bathroom hours are always, and my bedtime is never. I also may throw a party whenever you spend the night out, depending on how well stocked your alcohol cabinet is, which you shall be required to replenish frequently.
You will also keep your clothes on at all times. Even when you shower. It'll end badly for both of us if I lose control when you're near. It's been so long…
Your reward for following these guidelines will be the knowledge that you've made me happy, and maybe a smile every now and then. Anything extra will require a severe review of where the line lies, and the overall consequences of crossing it. This goes triple for Gray, and quadruple should anyone pull a video camera out of somewhere.
…I wish I could see your face right now. It would probably be hilarious. Mostly because I'm not lying.
"…Silver?" Laxus poked the Devil Slayer in the temple for the fifth time, eyeing the sporadic twitches running rampant through his friend's face warily. "Why do you look like someone just killed your dog in front of you?"
Haha, just kidding.
Silver's body relaxed, much to his friend's relief.
Or am I?
The temperature in the Guild hall stopped rising again, much to the chagrin of everyone in said Guild hall.
Makarov glanced up from the construction plans he'd somehow negotiated through the local council, taking in the small structures of ice growing around the hall with nary a blink.
Right before ordering another drink from Fairy Tail's rapidly diminishing cellar.
XxX
"This year's S-Class Trials will be slightly different. Only four people are going to compete on Tenrou, and this time, either everyone passes, or nobody does!"
Silver glanced out the corner of his eye as hushed murmurs ran through the Guild hall, spying Gildarts patting himself on the cheeks to keep himself awake as Makarov continued his speech. If it had been before he came back in time, he would be hanging off the Guild Master's every word, either to hear his name being called or to figure out who he should place bets on.
Now that he was the one standing on the stage, and had been one of the major hands in organising the entire event, he couldn't help but feel the entire process was… rather redundant.
Sure, deciding the participants for a tournament with such an esteemed prize was important, but Silver could admit to himself, now that he'd been given a new angle to look at the situation from, that he'd grown up somewhat disillusioned of the power surrounding him.
Fairy Tail was officially the strongest legal Guild in the country, there was no changing that. Hell, Silver never wanted to change that. The pragmatic and socially inept portion of his thinking process, however, kept bringing forth evidence to a realisation that he would probably continue to keep to himself until his grave.
With the exception of a rather small group, nothing really separated Fairy Tail from the rest of the Guilds. Their positioning was flimsy at best, and if he himself hadn't been a member, the title would probably go to whatever hypothetical Guild Gildarts decided to defect to in his imaginary process of events.
There was just nobody in the Guild with the power, or the will to even aim that high.
Factors that were decided upon before birth were sometimes important, but they'd done shit all for Silver. He'd just been an average kid, with nothing suggesting high levels of potential power before he started training with Ur. He'd begun right at the bottom and clawed his way to where he was now, spending most of that time with nobody to help him.
That was what the S rank was for. People who'd distinctly earned it. His own S-Class Promotion Trial really said a fair amount about how comfortable everyone around him was in their position, considering both how far the Guild plummeted without the relatively small group that set off for Tenrou, and the mere age of the competitors.
The oldest person participating had, at most, half the battle experience and time to train as the person elected to be the Fourth Guild Master. Mest didn't really count, considering his circumstances.
Not even a quarter of the Guild had been frozen on Tenrou, including Happy, and yet the Guild fell all the way to the bottom of the ladder. Unless they'd left Fairy Tail at some point in the next couple of years and he couldn't remember them, nobody standing in the crowd and hoping they'd get picked really had what it would take to be one of the strongest, and in two years' time they still wouldn't.
Eight competitors were picked every year. Even so, until he and Laxus came along, Gildarts had been the only S-Class wizard for a fair few years. The others could have died on missions or left, true, but that fact alone solidified his musings.
Maybe the past had just left him jaded beyond all belief, but he could almost see what Laxus' point was, all those years ago when the Dragon Slayer had been a few paces away from completely batshit insane.
Still, that was just all the more reason to make sure he could protect them all. He may have been a cynical realist, but at least he was a cynical realist with a purpose.
Now, however, there was a very good chance that four people would soon be joining the upper ranks of Fairy Tail. The plan had been Makarov's, cooked up after he received the letter from Ur, and Silver was confident that it was a good one.
Erza had been promoted during this Trial. He could still remember watching her overcome the final obstacles. Right now, Silver could say with authority that she was leagues above where she'd been then.
And this time, she wasn't even the strongest of her friends. At the most, this years' Trial would be nothing more than a formality.
"Partnerships will not be necessary during this years' Trial!" Makarov continued, effortlessly bringing Silver's attention back to him and the noise level in the Guild to nothing. "I will now announce the competi-"
The doors behind the massive crowd slammed open, doing a marvellous job of cutting Makarov off. Silver's eyes shot open as everyone else's jaws fell open, his hands connecting with a sharp slap.
Ur Milkovich waltzed happily into the Guild, raising a hand in greeting.
All the while completely and utterly unconcerned about her total lack of clothing.
"Hi S-!" Was as far as the woman got before an enormous wall of tinted ice sprang up from the floorboards, blocking the woman from everyone's view in less than half a second.
That still made him four seconds too slow, in his opinion.
"Everybody, eyes forward." Silver commanded in a tone that promised frozen appendages if he went ignored, nodding his thanks to Laxus as the man handed his coat over without even being prompted. Gray's defeated sigh echoed from somewhere near the front of the crowd, almost making Silver's lips twitch upwards as he stepped over the small puddle Makarov's nose had left behind when the elderly man was propelled off the stage.
"That's Silver and Gray's mother?" Somebody whispered, his voice easily carrying through the silence. "Lucky bastards!"
Somewhere behind Silver's back, Gray sighed again. If the metallic creaking and slight rustling of what sounded like fabric were anything to go by, Erza was patting him on the back sympathetically.
XxX
The charred and limp body flew over Gray's head, drawing his attention long enough for his opponent to close the distance he'd worked so hard to establish. With a curse, The Ice Mage called upon a wordless shield to coat the entirety of his chest, acting quickly enough to be sent flying back by the devastating punch without a crushed rib.
"Natsu!" The cry left his lips as soon as he landed, rushing forth the few steps that separated him from his friend and falling to his knees. Somewhere before him, a wave of fire clashed against a wall of electricity, disintegrating the poor tree that had been unfortunate enough to get caught in the crossfire.
The Dragon Slayer coughed weakly as Gray gently cradled his head, his eyes barely open enough to see through the smoke his body was still producing. A tiny smirk played across his lips as somebody nearby called out the name of their magic, his breaths shallow and laboured.
"Heh…" Natsu coughed, barely having enough air in his lungs to make the noise. His body twitched as the last of the lightning seeped into the ground below him, adding to the already significant amount of pain he was in. "I…I figured I could take that last one…damn…"
"Bullshit! You took that last one! You took it so hard!" Gray seemed to forcefully stop himself from shaking the boy in his grasp, settling instead for short and erratic breaths. "You took it all the way back to Magnolia! It told me to tell you to stay with me!"
A wall of ice sprang up to halt Erza's flight path as she was blasted back, giving her an easy springboard to launch herself back with. Metal met an electricity covered fist, washing the surrounding area with sparks in their continued struggle for supremacy.
Natsu chuckled, his face scrunching up slightly with the effort. "Damn right I did…" Something exploded in the distance, sending out a shockwave powerful enough to jostle both boys around. "…Actually, I think I can taste my spleen."
Gray snorted, scrubbing the moisture from his eyes with his sleeve. "How do you even know what a spleen tastes like?"
"Assistance is required!" Erza yelled, ducking around a kick that probably would have sent her halfway through the Tenrou Tree.
"See, I got really drunk this one time with Igneel, and then…" A shiver ran down Natsu's spine, his eyes slowly losing whatever focus they'd managed to retain until that point. "Well, long story short, I'm not legally allowed to enter Alakitasia anymore…"
Gray laughed, the noise hollow and meaningless, before switching right back to panic as Natsu's eyes slid shut. "No! Natsu, stay awake! We're gonna surpass Silver, remember? Then we're gonna find Igneel! We're gonna be legends, Natsu! Everyone's gonna know our names! Natsu, open your-"
"Incoming!" Erza yelled, right before the air became unbearably hot. Gray's head snapped up, his eyes wide, before Natsu struggled from the ground and threw him back with surprising force.
The enormous wave of flames washed over the Slayer's body, only to disappear almost as suddenly as they'd arrived. The steam cleared up in seconds, revealing Natsu sitting with his legs crossed, patting his stomach with one hand and picking between his teeth the index finger of the other.
"Alright, that was great!" Natsu laughed childishly as he sprang off the still smouldering ground, being joined by Gray a second later as though nothing had happened. Erza hefted her sword over her shoulder, her recently acquired Flame Express Armour still alight in some places.
XxX
A fair ways away, amongst the branches of the only tree around that had been reinforced with transparent Devil Slayer Ice, Silver watched as the three young Mages turned to face Laxus, all of them tensing for battle.
"Erza certainly is capable." Makarov commented from beside him, grabbing a handful of popcorn as Silver tilted the bucket towards him. "Natsu and Gray, however…"
Just as the words left the elderly man's mouth, the clearing in the distance exploded into action. Three enormous walls of ice sprang up around Laxus, leaving the man nowhere to run as Natsu's Fire Dragon's Roar tore the ground up on it's journey towards him. Inhaling quickly, Laxus sent off a 'Roar of his own to counter, only to cut the attack prematurely and drop to the ground as a sword of frankly ridiculous stature bisected the walls from behind and sailed over his head.
Laxus looked very much like he was swearing as he leapt into the air to avoid the fire, his body converting into lightning halfway to dodge around the barrage of icy needles that the crumbling walls had been shattered into. An enormous globe of flames followed the Lightning Mage as he darted through the trees, almost managing to consume him as a cannonball made out of ice dug a trench where he would have been standing if he didn't abruptly change directions.
A few seconds passed before the fire died down, forcing Laxus to immediately go on the defensive as Erza emerged from where his vision had been impaired. A tiny displacement in the air reached his ears, barely giving him enough warning before a large bullet whistled through where his head had been a heartbeat before to tear a large chunk out of the tree behind him.
"I apparently stand corrected." Makarov mused, not showing any outwardly signs of worry as Gray lived up to the sobriquet Sorcerer Magazine had gifted him with. "They show incredible promise, and their teamwork is impressive…"
Silver hummed, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. He already knew the kids had what it took to be S-Class Mages, even before he allowed them to accompany him on over a dozen S-Class jobs. Even so, he'd spent enough time sparring against Laxus to know that the Lightning Dragon Slayer was still holding back a fair amount.
It wouldn't do for him to knock them out in a few seconds, with or without magic. This wasn't a serious battle, for him at least. This was a test.
Gildarts, on the other hand…
Silver leant back so he could see around the tree's relatively thick trunk, surveying the area where Ur had split from the other to keep Gildarts busy. Said Ice Mage was busy buttoning her shirt up again, stepping over and walking away from Fairy Tail's Ace at a casual pace.
Had Gildarts not been unconscious from what appeared to be sheer blood loss from his nose, the mere thought of not being on guard would have been absurd.
A particularly loud and vulgar curse shifted Silver's attention back to where his young apprentices were engaged in combat, just in time to watch Laxus shatter the ice holding his body to the ground with a single hand and roll away from Natsu's flaming punch. High above the island, a shrill voice called down encouragement for the Fire Dragon Slayer, the source swooping through the air as he followed the fight with wide eyes.
Seeing as there were no partners for this Trial, and he hadn't been selected to try out for S-Class, Happy was forbidden from interfering with events on the island, unless there was no other way in avoiding an unfortunate death. The Exceed could fly a Hell of a lot faster than any human apart from Jet could run, and Silver wasn't going to take any chances when Zeref could possibly be hiding out on the island.
After hearing his reasoning, Makarov had agreed wholeheartedly.
"Well, I should probably get back to my post." Silver heaved himself back to his feet, shoving a handful of popcorn into his mouth before handing the half-filled bucket to Makarov. "Laxus should be taking the fall in a couple of minutes…"
Makarov accepted the popcorn, taking a sip from the bottle of beer he'd managed to hold on to. "What are your plans?"
Silver retreated a few steps across the branch, before turning to face Makarov. The build-up of magic between his shoulder blades had begun to feel commonplace lately, which according to Happy was the best case scenario, considering the ridiculously short amount of time since he'd actually had the idea and asked the Exceed for pointers.
Makarov didn't react as two large wings emerged from Silver's back, the ice receding from he surrounding leaves to make room as the new appendages slowly unfolded with a series of cracks. They weren't entirely unlike what the few bats he'd seen in his life sported, apart from the addition of random feathers, small chunks missing, and very sharp spines made out of what looked to be ice running across the top.
They were also each about as long as Silver was tall. If Makarov was anyone else of a similar height, he probably would have been somewhat intimidated by the visage of death that was now towering over him.
"Aera." Silver mumbled, grimacing as the skin on his back stretched painfully. The feeling wasn't nearly as strong as it was when he first started pushing the wings out of his body, but it still stung like a bitch.
It must have just been instinctual for Exceeds, or the wings were more ingrained in their system. Either way, it was a useful thing to have, even if it left him feeling slightly tingly for a while afterwards.
Silver flexed his wings, spreading them to their full width to get the kinks out. They'd been cramped inside his body for a while now, and he wasn't sure if he would ever really get used to the feeling, even if he'd already subconsciously adjusted to the changes.
Shaking his head, Silver flared the wings, rustling the leaves around him as he hovered a few inches above the branch and turned his attention back to his Guild Master.
"I'm thinking a lecture about the importance of having sufficient information, or at least having a source for it. Then I'll point them towards the grave." Silver shrugged, the sun glinting off the crystals on his wings as he elevated himself further. "I don't really feel like fighting today. Later, Gramps."
Makarov raised a hand absently as he watched Laxus take an armoured punch to the face and feign unconsciousness, his acting surprisingly convincing. Silver was already a dot amongst the clouds when he turned to look, the man waving a greeting to Happy as he rocketed towards Tenrou Tree.
XxX
Fairy Tail Guild Hall, Second Floor – X781
"Erza, it isn't that-"
"I can't believe the Master allowed this to happen! It is such an immature, deprived and unnecessary addition!"
Silver glanced up from the game of shogi that Mirajane managed to drag him into, watching in mild interest as his original trio of ducklings emerged from the staircase leading up to the coveted second floor. Gray's arms were crossed, a glass in each hand, four against his chest, and another balancing perfectly on top of his head. Natsu was holding a plate in both hands and one between his teeth, whilst Happy perched on top of his head, and Erza was scrutinising a recent copy of Magnolia's newspaper with unconcealed fury.
Such a way of living had come about once Mirajane managed to prevail in the most recent S-Class Trials, and started insisting that they actually use the second floor that was available to them. Gray, Natsu, and Erza had all been for it, and after the Thunder God Tribe had managed to negotiate a place at the table (which was now three tables pushed together) for Laxus and themselves, Makarov had decided to bend the rules even further and allow Elfman and Lisanna to accompany their sister without them even needing to ask.
If any of them ever realised that they always left the head position of the table open for Silver, they never said anything about it.
Lisanna plucked her drink from Gray's head as he passed where she was sitting, her eyes glued to the shogi board as Mirajane struggled to figure out what her next move would be. The wood near Elfman's chair groaned in protest when the man lay his weights down and accepted his plate, which was incidentally the one Natsu had held in his mouth.
Normally that mode of transportation was reserved for Laxus, but given that the man and his self-proclaimed bodyguards were out on a mission, that left Elfman as the next most likely to have his food handled in such a way.
Natsu had had enough manners beaten into him so that he wouldn't actually touch the food, but for whatever reason, it entertained him to no end. And really, no harm, no foul.
"Tin Can, people already scorn Fairy Tail." Mirajane pointed out, accepting her drink as she moved a piece on the board. "Personally, I think it's hilarious."
Almost immediately, Silver understood what this was about.
"It is a mockery! Of ourselves!" Erza waved the newspaper around for emphasis, the front page portraying a bird's eye view image of Fairy Hills. "How can you stand for this?"
Elfman craned his neck to catch a glimpse of the paper as Erza crashed into the seat next to him, one massive hand clamping down across the bottom half of his face instantly to smother his laughter.
They had trained him well.
"Hehe, the building has a penis."
Natsu, however, was still a work in progress.
The blunt statement almost seemed to cease all noise around the table, until Gray started to choke on the liquid he'd just swallowed and consequently sprayed his drink all over the shogi board.
"Such a manly…structure…" Elfman gasped out, his shoulders quaking with restrained laughter. Silver and Lisanna chuckled quietly at the sheer absurdity of the situation, and Mirajane outright cackled, not appearing very worried about the now soaked game board in front of her.
"I don't get it." Happy announced, once all the laughter was starting to die down. Whether deliberate or coincidental, nobody seemed to hear him.
Erza's frown deepened as she turned back to the paper, doing her best to find where the humour lay in the image, seeing as she wasn't getting any support.
"The building could have been a naked sculpture of me, for all I care." Gray announced, once he'd gotten his coughing under control. "I'm just glad to have my bed back."
Silver rolled his eyes, sliding a game piece across the puddle that was now the game board. "We went out the first day to replace our couch with one that was designed to be slept on. With all those S-Class jobs you begged me to take you on, I don't think my wallet even felt any lighter."
He paused for a moment, not noticing the look he was receiving from his sibling. "Speaking of S-Class missions, new Guild rule. From now on, at least two S-Class Mages per big mission. Gramps and I are still concerned about that invasion attempt."
"Sure, but go back to the whole couch thing." Mirajane glanced between the two siblings, taking in Gray's continuous glare and Silver's bored disinterested gaze™. "Is there a story there?"
Seeing as Gray didn't look like he was going to answer any time soon, Silver rolled his shoulders in a lazy shrug. "Not really. We split the chores up easily enough, and Ur's cooking was still way better than his." Gesturing vaguely in Gray's direction, Silver used his free hand to cover his mouth as he yawned, continuing his story through his fingers. "She was only difficult when she got amusement out of it, and Gunmetal over there just kept making himself an easy target."
"She kept walking around naked." Gray growled, his face colouring slightly at the memory.
Erza finally tore her eyes away from the newspaper at that sentence, her eyebrows furrowing as everyone around her tried to draw a mental image. "I've been naked in your home before, Gray. You never had any problems back then. If I remember correctly, Natsu was there t-"
"That was before puberty!" Gray growled, shrinking into his chair as gracefully as he could. "Changing topics. Where is Ur, anyway?"
Silence followed as everyone tried to recall where they'd last seen the woman. Said silence soon ended, with a voice only Silver recognised floating up from the first floor.
"Hello, my beauty! Would you do me the honours of allowing me this seat next to yo-OOOO-!"
"Oops." Ur apparently waited until her unfortunate suitor had finished squealing before she spoke, because she was polite like that. "Sorry. My fake leg does that occasionally."
Seeing as he was sitting with the second floor railing right behind him, Silver kicked off the ground, peeking over the edge as his chair fell against the only thing stopping him from falling head first behind the bar.
Yep. That person hunched over holding his nads was definitely Loke. Leo…? Loke.
"Ur." He called down, grabbing his former mentor's attention. "No maiming your fellow Guildmates!"
"You don't control me!" Ur called back rebelliously as Silver's chair returned to having all its legs on the ground.
XxX
Hargeon Town – July 2nd, X784
"You mean to tell me that there's only one Magic Shop in this whole town!?"
XxX
And that's a wrap. Yep, it only took me about 40 thousand words, but now I'm finally getting to the start of the series. Honestly, I haven't really planned that far ahead yet. Most time travel fics are kinda boring around this time.
Titania, Salamander, and now Gunmetal. All S-Class, all powerful, all pale in comparison to Glacier. Ur joins the party, and (this is where I was going with this plot point, thank you manga) the new rule imposed totally due to the invasion results in Lisanna not ending up in Edolas. I'll have fun mapping out the changes, but for now, I'm just going to try and not screw everything up. It's surprisingly difficult.
Any mistakes, feel free to let me know. Reviews are lifeblood and all that jazz.
Later.
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