So sorry for the late update guys! But what I love about everyone who reads this is that even though I haven't updated in like two months or more, I'm still getting an insane amount of hits when I check my story stats! I love you guys~!
Zander sat at a table with Pix, Render, and Tameron. All four were silent, watching the insanity ensue between the older members. Occasionally two or three younger kids would join in the craziness. "Hey, Zander," Tameron spoke up bringing the attention back to the table. "I don't think I've seen Akane since the two of you got back from your first mission. Is she sick or something?" she asked innocently.
The three others suddenly became visibly worried. It had been six months since Akane had left on her mission by herself. Its not like they hadn't been worrying about her for the past six months, but they've been able to reassure themselves that she would be coming back soon. However, when Tameron brought it up, they had all realized how long she actually had been gone. "She took a job by herself six months ago. It wasn't an easy job either, but she insisted on going it alone," Pix explained.
"I haven't heard anything about her since she left. Do you guys think she's okay?" Render asked.
Pix shrugged. Zander scoffed. "Knowing her, she's probably going to come back claiming that she finished after the first two months, but went home to spend the last four months with her mom because the little pansy got home sick."
"Excuse me, dork?"
Zander whipped his head around to find the source of the voice. Akane stood tall behind him, covered in bandages and cuts and scabs, arms folded, scowl on her face. Pix, Tameron, and Render jumped up from their seats to greet the redhead while Zander sat in awe, staring at her. The three ran over to her and hugged her, happy to see their friend after six month. "What happened to you?" Pix asked worriedly examining the cuts she had attained.
"I took a job," Akane answered. Then her scowl broke into a small smile. "It sure was worth it though. It paid pretty well."
"It doesn't matter how well it paid if you got this hurt," Tameron said.
"I'm still alive. What's the problem?" Akane asked.
The team was silent, trying to come to terms with what Akane had just said. Is she serious? Zander thought. He opened his mouth to say something when Render spoke over him. "My mom is friends with a doctor. You're going to go see her, whether you like it or not."
Zander chuckled. "Good luck with that," he told Render.
Akane smiled and sat down on the table with her feet on the seat next to Zander. "The dork's right you know. I'm not going to a doctor. I don't need to. I'm thirteen. I can take care of myself you know." She took a coin out of her pocket and began flipping it over her pointer finger, an old habit that she had tried to break since she had left home. Pix looked at her. "You turned thirteen on your job?"
Akane nodded.
"Did you celebrate?" Pix asked again.
Akane shrugged. "I was on a job. I couldn't celebrate."
Pix's mouth fell open as the four young mages stared at the redhead silently. "Well," Akane said after becoming uncomfortable in the silence, "I'm tired. I'm going home. Later guys!" She got up and walked out of the guild.
"Okay, here's what we're going to do," Pix said to the group to get them to lean in. She began to whisper a plan.
/
Akane was happily asleep. She didn't get many opportunities to sleep as soundly as she was now while on her job. Unfortunately, a loud banging on her door woke her up from her pleasant slumber. She was planning on just ignoring the knocking and going back to sleep when she heard it again. Grumbling, Akane got out of bed and walked over to the door. Upon opening it, she deeply regretted even getting out of bed. Zander stood in the hallway smiling like an idiot. "Oh good, you're awake. I was afraid you'd be asleep. Lets go," he said completely oblivious to how pissed off she was. "I was asleep," she grumbled. "And how did you even find where I live?"
"Don't worry about it. C'mon!" Zander grabbed her hand and pulled her out of her apartment.
"W-wait! Zander! Stop!" Akane squeaked surprisedly. Zander stopped pulling and turned around to face the redhead as if to ask what. "I just woke up, I'm not ready at all to go somewhere, and I have to lock my door and stuff," she complained turning around to go back to her apartment to get ready to go wherever he was pulling her to.
"Fine, but be quick. We're on a schedule," Zander said following her back.
"Zander I swear to God if you accepted another job for us without telling me the day I got back from a six month job, I will see to it that you deeply regret it," she threatened as she began to get ready.
"Don't worry, I didn't accept a job for us, but Pix wants us to meet her at the guild. She said it was for like her parents anniversary and she wants her parents to meet her friends or something like that," Zander said walking aimlessly around her apartment, looking around. He stopped in front of a shelf. There were two picture frames sitting side by side. One of a much younger Akane, a woman he assumed to be Erza holding a pit bull. As he examined the picture he saw that the two females were almost replicas of each other. Then he looked at the other picture on the shelf. A smiling man with brown hair. Something about just seemed warm and inviting. There is no way thats her dad, Zander thought. Akane is cold and standoffish, he looks like anyone could talk to him. Akane walked out of her room in a red T-shirt that had fabric that hung over her biceps and a periwinkle skirt. Her hair was in a braid with a white ribbon at the end. "Hey, its the ribbon I gave you," Zander said surprised that she would still wear it.
"No. I threw yours out. My mom gave me this one. You can tell because the color is a bit more faded and not as white because it's more worn,"Akane explained nonchalantly.
Zander's eye twitched. At least we know that she didn't change during her job, he thought. "Whatever, are you ready?" he asked.
"Yeah. So what is this thing Pix is making us go to again?" Akane asked. Zander didn't answer her, but instead just grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the door. Akane locked her door after she was in the hallway and the two left the building together, neither having any intention of talking to the other.
/
When they got outside of Fairy Tail Akane froze. "What is it now?" Zander asked annoyed.
Akane narrowed her eyes. "Why is Fairy Tail so quiet?" she skeptically asked.
"I don't know. Pix's parents are probably giving a speech or something that adults do at their anniversary," Zander answered. "C'mon." He began to walk in and Akane followed. When he got to the door, he waited for Akane to catch up to him. "Okay, something is going on and it isn't Pix's parents' anniversary is it?" Akane asked. Zander smiled and opened the door. "Nope," he said as he pushed Akane in ahead of him.
"SURPRISE!"
People jumped out of any hiding place possible. Akane stood frozen in place, staring around the room wide eyed like a deer caught in headlights. Pix ran over to the red haired teen and hugged her tightly. "Happy belated birthday, Akane! You're thirteen!" she cheered.
Akane looked to the lavender haired girl. "What the hell?" she asked softly.
Pix became confused. "You said your birthday passed while you were on your job, didn't you?" she asked.
"Yeah, but what is all this?" Akane asked again clarifying what she meant the first time.
"This is your birthday party. You're new so I didn't completely expect you to know, but in Fairy Tail, we're not just a guild of mages. We're a family. Normally we don't do big parties like this for birthdays, but since you just came back from your second job, which was a six month job and you did it by yourself, well, I thought that some super celebrating was needed!" Pix took Akane's hands and smiled as she looked the redhead in the eye.
"But..." Akane mumbled as she looked out to everyone smiling and watching the two girls. Tameron and Render were on their way over to wish Akane a happy birthday.
"But what?" Tameron asked nervously.
"But I hate attention," Akane said quietly as she looked back to her friends. The team laughed. "What?" Akane asked, embarrassed. I didn't say anything funny, did I?
"Sweetie," Pix started, "you're going to have to get used to it. I mean, with that hair, your talent-"
"You're family," Tameron added, being sure to not spill the beans.
"You're bound to get attention," Pix finished.
Render put his arm around her shoulders. "So just enjoy it. Now, let the party begin!" he declared. Everyone cheered and the guild suddenly came to life. Food was being walked to tables and people were laughing more than other days, moving around more than other days, were louder than other days, seemed more alive than other days. Akane smiled. "Enjoy the attention? Heh. Fine, but just for today," she said to herself as she went to join her friends sitting at a table filled with food. On one side of the table was Zander, Pix and a small boy with blond hair. On the other side were Render and Tameron. Tameron tapped the space between the two motioning for Akane to sit with them. "Akane, this is Ian," Pix said gesturing to the blond boy next to her. Ian tensed at the mention of his name and looked up sheepishly. "H-hi. Happy birthday," he said timidly.
Akane looked at the boy, trying to figure out why he seemed so nervous when Pix leaned across the table. "Try smiling sweetie," she said with a small laugh.
Akane furrowed her eyebrows when she realized she was scowling. "Oh, oh um, um, yeah," she said like she was tripping over her words. Akane smiled at Ian. "Hi." Suddenly, strong hands came down on her shoulders and shook her slightly. "Its the birthday girl!" a voice boomed from behind Akane, causing her to jump slightly. She turned around to see a familiar pink haired man with a blond woman standing next to him holding a young girl. "Ian! Getting on the birthday girl's good side I see," he said with a laugh. When he laughed he tossed his head back.
"Hi dad," Ian said lowering his head and looking down at his feet.
"Natsu," the blond woman scolded.
"Oh, whats a little public humiliation? I had my fill of it growing up. Gray has too!" Natsu turned around to the man he was talking about to find he was talking to people without a shirt on.
"Dad," Zander said humiliated covering his face with his hands.
Akane suppressed a laugh. "That's your dad?" she asked. Zander didn't answer out of humiliation.
The blond haired woman swatted down to Akane's eye level. "Sorry about before. My name is Lucy and this is my husband Natsu. We're Ian's parents. And this," Lucy said adjusting the small girl in her arms, "is Lyla Heart, but most of Fairy Tail just calls her Lyla."
Lyla had pink hair like her fathers and big blue eyes. "Hi~!" she said happily.
"Hello there. My name's Akane," she responded giggling slightly. She turned back to Ian and smiled as if to say that she thought Lyla was the cutest thing in the world. When she turned back to Lucy, the older woman had a soft smile on her face. "Theres a whole generation of Fairy Tail that looked up to and admired your mom and would love to meet you."
"Oh, um," Akane turned back to her table. "I, I'll be right back," she said as she got up and walked away with Lucy.
Thank you for reading and don't forget to review because that is what really gets me determined to write more! Sorry if there are like mistakes and what not because I wrote this at like 2 am!
Next chapter Akane will meet the people Erza worked with in Fairy Tail!
