There was something about his Boscan charm and foreign nature that made Cana feel at ease. There was a new barmaid in Fairy Tail who obviously hadn't been fully trained on Cana's tolerance and had made the controversial decision to cut her off before the evening had fully begun, but Cana had not taken offense. She had simply stood and informed the new girl that she would drink elsewhere for the night. Before she could be convinced otherwise, the drunk woman had gone into the night to find a new watering hole. That was where she had met the mysterious man of Bosco. They had shared a drink, she had laughed beside him, there had been more than a handful of flirting, but now she was going home.

"She said she's going home," Loke pressed forcefully, standing between the pair and their retreat.

The man glared. He wasn't from Magnolia, not even from Fiore and he did not understand the fierce reputation that came from the Fairy Tail guildmark. He didn't recognise his evenings partner nor the protective man before him as powerful mages. "What's your deal, mister?" he sneered, but did a double take as he saw the woman by his side was running straight to the newcomer. "Hey, what do you think you're doing?!"

Cana, in her blind drunken state, could see the bright light of Loke's aura beaconing her closer as she pulled herself onto his arm. "You came!" she exclaimed, a bright and lazy smile written across her face.

Loke nodded, glancing up and down across the incredibly attractive woman stumbling against him. "Did he hurt you?" he asked quickly.

The man looked shocked, mouth visibly open. "Hurt her? I think you've got the wrong end of the stick, mister!"

Cana ignored her drinking companion and shook her head. "I can take care of myself," she grinned, proudly holding herself as tall as she could.

Loke gave her a quizzical look, not certain if Cana knew how contradictory that sounded while she was clearly struggling to stand straight. He couldn't help but feel the need to shield the busty woman after she had had a few too many drinks, an instinct which ran through every member of Fairy Tail. The reputation of their protective nature had spread throughout the city but the traveller clearly hadn't yet got the message. "I know you can," he assured her with a nod, looking back to the new stranger. "You should leave now, no harm done," he warned as politely as he could, putting his arm around Cana's waist and beginning to lead her home.

"No harm done? Hurt her? I don't know what you think I am, mister, but you've definitely got me wrong," the man defended himself, completely confused and feeling the need to set the record straight. "We were just having a good time, tell him babe," he demanded of Cana.

Cana stumbled backwards, grabbing onto Loke's arm to keep her steady. "Can I go home now, Loke?" she asked, wrapping her hand in her nest of hair as the world span in front of her.

Loke nodded. "Sure," he assured her, keeping his eyes on the foreigner carefully, warning him with a glare to not follow as the celestial spirit put his arm around Cana and lead her to safety.

The streets were coated in a thick darkness that night. He held her close but every so often she would pull away, determined that she could walk by herself before stumbling back into his arms and laughing loudly. Though Loke didn't say much to stop her, he was afraid that the foreigner would hear her laughter and drunken slurs and attempt to follow, and even if he was as kind as he tried to appear Loke coudl not trust him to know where Cana and the rest of the Fairy Tail women would be sleeping. The stranger wasn't a part of their guild and for that reason alone he would protect the girls from him. "I wish you would be more aware of your effect on men, Cana…" Loke whispered with a heavy sigh as he once again held her up.

She grinned. "Men like you?"

He turned away. "Yes, Cana, men like me."

She blinked, realising that if she were sober – or at least her regular state of drunk – she may have pieced something more from his statement or at least twisted it into some obscene joke. As it happened, however, she was distracted by the sights around her, looking around and beginning to become aware that she had no idea where she was. This was a corner of Magnolia that she had never had any need to venture down, even when on the most obscure of missions, but she was clear from the huge houses and giant gardens that these people would have had money to burn on her fortune telling. "Um, Loke…? Fairy Hills is that way…" she said, pointing.

He gave a small smile, not wanting to tell her that she was pointing in the wrong direction and that Fairy Hills was in fact the complete opposite way. She had successfully realised he was taking her elsewhere, at least. "I know. I'm taking you back to mine," he told her casually.

She pushed herself off him again, suddenly looking flustered as her cheeks turned bright red. "Loke-I-not-"

"Relax, I don't mean like that," he said, trying not to be offended by her reaction. They had both stumbled on Gray's house multiple times, the boys were both under fear of death if they even attempted to pass into Fairy Hills, but as far as Loke was aware no one had ever tried to find his own home. It had probably been for the best, he decided, but tonight was no ordinary night. "I don't want you by yourself tonight, that's all Cana. So, if it's alright by you I have a few spare rooms I wouldn't mind you sharing."

Cana blinked again, tilting her head to the side. "A… Few…. Spare rooms?"

He smiled kindly, hand gripping the huge rusty gate in front of them as it creaked loudly. "It isn't as magnificent as it may sound," he told her, offering her hand to lead into the crumbling mansion.

Cana looked at his hand and looked up at the building he was trying to enter as if he had momentarily lost his mind. It seemed unreal. The gates that he was standing between were ancient and flaking red rust into his hands, but must have once been grand and beautiful and at first glance the entire building seemed to be wealthy beyond measure. Unfortunately, she only had to take the smallest of steps forward to realise that the walls were crumbling, most of the windows broken and a smell of damp resonating even before they had even stepped through the huge front doors. "How did you… get a place like this…?" she gasped as she looked up at the huge wooden doors, amazed that she hadn't even realised a place like this existed in Magnolia.

A sadness filled Loke's eyes as he led her forwards. "It was… an inheritance…" he explained softly as best he could, knowing that he had very little right to stay within these walls. He had stumbled upon the mansion a couple of years before he had fallen to Earthland, but he had spent much longer in these halls over a century ago: It had belonged to a previous master, and when he had found the grand building had fallen into disrepair, it quickly became a blessing in disguise. "I warn you, this place is less than safe: Magnolia counsellors have said that the home is too dangerous to stay standing. If it can't be repaired in a year, they'll tear it down," he explained, sounding surprisingly indifferent.

"That's… awful…" Cana whispered, running her fingers over the once loved mahogany stairwells and twisted figures. It may have crumbling but Loke had at least kept it exceptionally clean. At least, that's what she had assumed.

"Master Loke," the woman greeted them, blinking rapidly as she held the gleaming candle in front of her and suppressed the urge to rub her tired eyes. "I'm sorry, I had not expected for you to return home this evening," she said, and bowed low in front of Cana, dowsing herself in shadows as she did so. "Do not feel intimidated by my presence, I am only a mere servant," she advised the woman before her, as she had clearly advised a great many more women before.

Loke stepped quickly forwards between them both, realising the mistake he may have caused and realising the sudden need for introductions. "I should have let you know we were coming. Angea, this is Cana," he explained. "She will be staying in one of the guest rooms tonight."

"The guest room?" the pink haired woman blinked in surprise.

"Yes, Angea," Loke said a little more forcefully.

The servant clearly seemed to think that she must have still misheard, but did not dare press this further. "Of course, the room in the West Wing is already prepared for female guests," she said, once again bowing her head. "I apologise, Master Loke. I was unprepared. I should have been here to greet you. You may punish me as you will."

Cana flinched backwards, eyes wide. "Uh, what kind of… 'arrangement' do you have with your staff here, Loke?" Cana asked.

Loke laughed, but it was Angea who explained "I'm not actually a member of staff, nor am I paid by Master Loke. I just like to be around."

Loke nodded, realising that Cana was now giving him dubious looks and possibly preparing for some lecture on slavery. "Angea stays here for free but she insists on being 'useful'," he shrugged. "I'm sorry I woke you again, Angea. Please go back to sleep."

The woman bowed her head once again. "Of course, Master Loke. I have heard wonderful things about you, Lady Cana. I hope you enjoy your time here," she said, disappearing back into the shadows, though Cana suspected that she was still lurking ready to deal with any lingering requests.

"Uh…" Cana said, following Loke and quickly feeling herself sober as she was flooded with impossible visions. It was all too bizarre for even her drunken mind to have conjured. "You really let her call you 'Master'?" she questioned Loke as she followed him up the staircase, hopping the steps two at a time.

Loke chuckled to himself, though even Cana could see the sadness was still in his eyes. "She reminds me of an old friend…" he said, knowing that having Angea around only made his distance from his zodiac team even more painful, but it was a reminder that he couldn't shake himself from. "When I found… inherited… this place, she was here alone. Her family had served the family of this mansion for generations and she knows nothing else. I've tried to teach her to make a life for herself but she seems to like serving. I only hope once…" he hesitated. "Once this place is pulled down, she can find her own way."

"Why don't you repair this place? I mean, this is your home. I'm sure if you asked the guild would help too," Cana asked, though as soon as she did the floorboard beneath her feet gave way. She yelped, jumping back and looking back at the hole that her tiny footsteps had created. "Uh, sorry…"

He only shook his head, seemingly unsurprised that her steps had caused more injury to the ancient house. "It hardly seems worth it," he admitted, knowing that he would be long gone before the mansion could be pulled apart. He could feel the ache growing worse with every day and the indefinite timescale of his life was reaching an end sooner rather than later. Not that he could explain that to Cana.

Cana pursed her lips but kept walking, realising that the mysterious mage was slowing down. She was almost completely sober now, or at least a manageable level of drunk, and her eyes were alight at all the new sights, beautiful pictures across the walls and the very likely chance of falling straight through the floor if she took the wrong step. She took Loke's arm once more, holding tightly but this time not using him to support her wobbling legs. He didn't acknowledge the change, however, simply opening the new door and showing her a beautiful room.

"Will this do?" he asked.

Cana felt like laughing. It would certainly do; it looked like the fancy hotels that she could only afford if some generous rich man had appointed her a particularly wealthy mission. Even as she stepped forwards and could see the cracks weaving through the ceiling and the damp smell through the heavy curtains, she felt as if for a moment she could be a princess in these walls. "It's incredible," she said, sitting on the bed as Loke moved to the wardrobe. "I guess in a place this size you could have several girlfriends hidden in here at the same time, right?" she grinned to him, feeling the thick quilt under her fingernails.

He smirked. "It has happened before, yes" he admitted, pulling out one of the most respectable nightgowns he had. The guests in this room didn't usually have standards when it came to covering themselves so he struggled to find anything appropriate to give to his friend, though he knew that it would only be for his own good. Cana was a friend, just a friend, and the less he saw her as a beautiful woman the stronger their relationship would be. He sighed, putting the oversized shirt on the bed and coming over to sit beside her.

Cana's head fell on his shoulder. "Thanks," she whispered, not even looking to the clothing rested next to her.

He felt himself tense, suddenly unsure how to act. His instincts were to wrap his arms around her, but while his instincts were to also whisper sweet words to her as he pushed her down onto the bed and kissed her, he knew he simply couldn't trust those instincts. Things used to feel natural when it was the three together and even when it had split into pairs there had been an ease to their relationship that meant if he wanted to pin her down he could. If he wanted to kiss her he could. She probably would have laughed and kicked him away, but it simply would have been another part of the joke.

"That guy wasn't so bad, you know," Cana's words broke the silence before Loke could, pulling her hair behind her ear and staring into the darkness. "It was my fault. I keep forgetting when I'm not around you guys I need to be careful. I just forget that I don't have you and Gray looking out for me, protecting me from shit like that. Not that I would need protecting from it. He was just a guy, we were just flirting," she sighed, picking at the beads in her armband. "And you're right; I should remember what effect I have on men…"

Although Loke was somewhat impressed she had even been capable of remembering his warning through her drunken haze, he frowned. "He was going too far," he growled.

"He really wasn't," Cana shook her head, pulling back from Loke and trying to push his worried look out of the back of her mind. "He wanted to take me home and everything that I had done up until that point had told him that I wanted to, too. I did want to. But I just freaked out. I told him I didn't want to, I couldn't, and suddenly you were there. I'm such a freak," she said, groaning and throwing herself back onto the bed, staring at the cracks across the ceiling and wondering how long it would be until they caved in.

Loke raised an eyebrow, trying to follow her argument and decide what was drunken confession and what was Cana simply being Cana. "You're not a freak."

"I'm an insult to Team Pervert," she muttered.

Loke laughed. "Team Pervert?" he questioned. It had been many years since he had heard that, and he could almost hear Gray's complaining just from the simple words. "You are what makes Team Pervert, Cana. Besides, we all know that you're more perverted than the rest of us put together," he said, climbing over the bed beside her as she kept her eyes pinned on the ceiling.

She couldn't hide the dryness in her voice. "You think I'm more perverted than a man whore and a stripper combined?" she asked, uncertain if she should be taking offense, even if it was a title she wore with pride.

He shrugged, falling onto his back. "Perhaps," he said. "I'd say you have a dirtier mind than both of us, even if you don't act on it," he admitted, surprised at just how seriously he was discussing the technicalities of who was the most perverted. He knew it was a distraction, he knew that this entire evening was just a distraction. The fact that she would even mention Team Pervert meant it was clearly at the edge of her mind, however, and no matter how much drink entered her system she couldn't fight her worry. "It's been a while since you've been this drunk. Two years, maybe?" he asked tentatively.

She bit her lip. If she hadn't been so drunk she never would have gotten herself chucked out of Fairy Tail, even if it was by an inexperienced barmaid. She would have never fallen into a different bar without the supervision of her favourite wingmen, and she would have never almost gone home with a stranger. She never would have done any of these things if she wasn't terrified and suppressing the secret fears. "Stupid fucking bastard…" she hissed.

Loke glanced back to Cana, seeing angry tears in the corners of her eyes. He had known that she was afraid, that she was battling the demons of their shared mistakes, but he could have never imagined her struggle ran so deep it would manifest itself into such bitterness. "He'll be alright…" Loke tried to say.

"You don't know that," Cana hissed, staring back at Loke with painfully sharp eyes. "You can't know that, no one can. It's an S-Class mission. He's a fucking idiot. I swear if they come back in one piece I'm going to kill him, and Natsu, and that little blond bitch."

"Lucy?" Loke questioned hesitantly. "I'm not sure how much she has to do with this…"

"Your favourite celestial wizard?" Cana questioned, looking at him before she decided it was impossible to decide whether Loke loved her or hated her. "You only like her because she's cute and has huge tits. But sure, leave the bimbo, I'll kill Happy instead. He's the one that stole the mission," she ranted.

Loke rolled his eyes, sighing. "You're not going to kill anyone," he insisted.

"Yes, I am," she hissed. "Especially Gray. I swear if he dies out there I will bring him back and kill him myself."

Loke sunk back onto the bed, letting Cana's raving wash over his thoughts. He could understand Cana's anger, it was an anger that flooded through his own veins, but more than anger he felt himself sharing the instincts of the Ice Maker. When they had first realised that Natsu, Happy and Lucy had disappeared to an island of demons in search for the elusive S-Class victory, Loke had felt his own heart jumping in his chest. He had been less than surprised that Gray had taken the rescue mission as his own cause. "Last time we sat and did nothing, and someone died…" he whispered gently, feeling Cana suddenly flinch beside him. "You know how close Gray can be to Natsu, and how guilty he feels. You can't tell me that you didn't want to go and help, too."

Cana gripped the bedsheets tightly, blinking quickly to keep her eyes dry. "The Master told me that if I tried to follow I wouldn't be allowed into the next S-Class trial," she swallowed hard.

Never before had Loke ever suspected that the master knew what had happened to their team those two years ago, but the old man was surprisingly perceptive and with those words the celestial spirit felt certain that the Makarov knew just how strong her instincts were. He had targeted the only thing in the world that came close to Cana's desire to protect her friends, and even then it had taken copious amounts of alcohol to distract Cana enough to stay. It felt dirty, but Loke was eternally grateful Cana hadn't been pulled into the same mess. "Natsu is strong, and Lucy seems to have potential. With Gray there too, I'm sure they'll be fine," Loke whispered.

Cana pulled herself up, her hand running through her hair as she looked around before twisting the strap across her chest and diving into her blue bag. She ignored as Loke sat up and looked at her curiously, needing only to feel the comforting feeling of the cards across her fingers. She picked them up, cursing as they slipped and losing her patience as she instead emptied her bag onto the bed and began to hunt for a particular one.

"You're using your fortune telling?" Loke asked curiously, unsure if that was a good idea to keep her fears at bay after their last experience.

Cana shook her head, spreading the cards out and looking for a particular kind. "I already asked them. I got the same card you and Gray got last time. You know the nostalgia one? Upside down and everything. Well, duh," she shook her head, realising that Gray would no doubt be fighting his personal demons while stopping the S-Class quest, though she could have never expected it to be so literal. Eventually she found one, picking up the small chibi version of Loke imprinted on the paper. She placed it to one side, searching for the rest of her collection.

Loke reached out and took the card into his hands, recognising it and knowing this was one of the very few cards that Cana would have no issue with him handling. "Hey, this is the card you used in the S-Class challenge…" he realised, seeing the small Loke was quite peacefully resting within the golden boarder under his name. "I didn't realise that you kept it."

Cana nodded, blushing slightly. "I kept all of my partner's 'help' cards," she explained, finding Levy's figure resting peacefully within her own paper archway and placing it where she had placed Loke's. She would organise the remaining cards at a later date, but right now these were the ones she cared for the most. She pulled on the final card, a breath of relief as she saw Gray's avatar still inside of the paper, holding it in her hands tightly.

Almost as soon as it was in her fingers, the avatar began to animate, warning her that Gray's life was in danger.

I'm back!

Not sure how regularly I'll be writing but I had a long train ride home and thought I'd come up with this chapter (and the next, which isn't finished).

For some reason I loved the idea of Loke having some huge mansion, and had to come up with a reason why he wouldn't just give it to Lucy. Actually, I love the idea of it crumbling even more. Metaphors and all that.

A lot of writers have the rule of not naming small characters, which I'd normally agree with. I only wanted to name her to make it obvious that the woman here is not Virgo, but she is so similar that Loke likes to keep her around : 3 I also had a rule that in this story on Cana, Loke and Gray would actually have a speaking role, but that's now been abandoned in both this chapter and the next haha

Thanks for your reviews and feedback as always!

"So we've finally got to canon..."
"I'm pretty sure that I was fighting Lyon at this point."
"I can see what's happening"
"Hm?"
"And they don't have a clue"
"Cana don't."
"They'll fall in love and here's the bottom line; our trios down to two."
"Cana how many times have I warned you about singing the Lion King."
"Or Disney in general."
"BUT YOU'RE MY LION KING AND ICE PRINCESS."
"...Don't you dare."