Chapter 8 – Skeletons in the Closet

My next thirty-six hours at Fairy Tail served as a trial run for me being a member of Team Natsu. After the Changeling incident, I spent the rest of the day getting to know my teammates. At first, Lucy and Natsu wanted to take a job, but Erza, Gray and I vetoed the idea in light of the stressful situation that had just ensued. Instead, we talked for a while and got caught up in several of the guild's brawls before deciding to head home shortly before sundown.

That afternoon proved Erza's point about me having a lot to learn. I stayed quiet about half of the time, but before we left for the night I managed to get into a serious argument with everyone at least once; even Erza! I felt bad about that afterward, and asked Erza if we could talk the next morning before taking a job. She agreed, and I left the guild hall feeling slightly more accomplished. Times like that reminded me of my view of optimism: 'Something is better than nothing.'

The day after that, however, only got worse. I started out by coming to the guild hall on time, not realizing that Erza and I needed to meet earlier if we planned on having a serious discussion. So Erza angrily confronted me about that, to which I apologized profusely and promised to meet her tomorrow at a better time… but more about that later. We then picked out a job request, which involved tracking down a guild of thieves who specialized in evading wizards like us. Despite the fact that our mission came through as a success, I myself turned out to be a failure in terms of how well I contributed. Looking at our actions in and of themselves, Erza did most of the thinking, and only called on me once or twice to use my magic like a Swiss army knife.

However, I felt far more embarrassed by my poor performance as a teammate. Despite the fact that Erza made most of the judgment calls, I frequently tried to lend a hand with giving orders. But all I wound up doing was getting in more arguments with people and stirring up doubt about things that really didn't need my attention. At one point, I tried arguing with Erza about how we should go about catching the thieves, and she very mercilessly proved me wrong and told me outright to shut up for the rest of the mission. By then, I felt too humiliated to protest, and it dawned on me soon afterward that I had screwed up my first mission as a member of Fairy Tail. Badly.

As I went home that night, I felt thoroughly disgusted with myself. Not only had I acted like an overconfident smart-ass towards most of my teammates, but I'd also planned on talking to Erza about the time she spent in the Tower of Heaven as I child. And by then, my bad habit of impulsiveness had already gotten me into unnecessary trouble with Laxus. But nothing disgusted me more than knowing I had remained completely oblivious to my behavior until Erza spoke up.

Unfortunately, I'd had personal revelations like this a lot ever since my parents died. Too many to count, and always about something different: lust, conceit, prejudice, et cetera. Now I could add arrogance to my repertoire of sins. This kind of thing had happened so often by now that I felt torn between urgency at how frequently it had occurred and apathy over how commonplace it had grown. But once I got home, the cycle repeated itself yet again with another familiar change in attitude. In the space of a few minutes, my sadness and remorse were driven away by the furious resolve to change. I felt angry at the bad habits which had contributed to my mistakes, and the part of me grounded by my faith in Iesu burned with the desire for vindication through repentance.

In short, the intelligent, moral part of my soul figured out what was going on, put its foot down, and said something to this effect: 'Oh hell no. Things are going to change right now!' I started with my first method of repentance: self-mortification. Although subjecting my body to pain didn't immediately make the bad habits or mindsets go away, it supercharged my sense of initiative towards change. By age sixteen, I had settled upon a method that worked to my satisfaction: conjuring a bed of hot coals and smoldering ashes (permanently so I could use it later), taking off all of my clothes, lying in the coal & ashes face-up for ten seconds and finally washing the ashes off in a hot shower. The entire process left me feeling like I had swum the backstroke through a pool of lava, but the injuries lasted only as long as the pain: about a week, with both improving over time. The only permanent effects of my negative reinforcement were a few mottled scars on my legs and back from the burns they had sustained.

After that, I treated my burns so that pain was my biggest concern. The first time I had punished myself in such a way, my lack of experience with this stage of the process landed me in the hospital. That particular incident ended with me acquiring my most unsightly scar (one encompassing the upper-right portion of my back) and a skin graft. But afterwards, I relentlessly researched the subject until I perfected a method of treating my self-inflicted wounds enough to prevent anything worse than searing pain and minor scarring. It also clarified exactly what I was doing to myself: second-degree burns.

Once I had finished treating said burns, I thought long, hard and honestly about my actions, praying about it and reading my Bible until I thoroughly understood what I had done. Finally, I carefully decided what I would do about it. My verdict in that regard was to start by staying up late doing whatever the heck I wanted, dealing with the consequences of sleep deprivation the next day and apologizing to Erza when we had our discussion that morning. The punishment was made sufficient by the response Erza had given when I asked her how early I should arrive at the guild hall for us to talk. Her answer: "About 5:30 should do. And could you bring breakfast as well?" I intended to stay up late and still set my alarm clock early enough to fulfill that obligation. Once I had accomplished all that, I would establish disciplined habits meant to dissuade me from repeating this behavior in the future.

Normally, I wouldn't go to such extremes to nip my malicious proclivities in the bud so early on. But the last time I ignored the escalation of a sinful attitude in my life, my resulting actions wound up getting someone killed during a particularly dangerous job. There was no way I would take that kind of risk with Fairy Tail. In my eyes, that guild was the only family I had left. Even if they could hold their own against most threats, I would at least protect them from my own worst enemy: myself.

So, after a night of freely indulging my vices and sleeping for a little over four hours, I rolled out of bed, got ready for the day and made a dozen breakfast burritos for Erza and myself. I then put them in a basket, grabbed my chess set on an insightful hunch, and headed out the door towards the guild hall at 5:20 in the morning. I must've been a strange sight to the handful of people who saw me: a brunette man dressed in black with the Fairy Tail guild mark on his face, carrying a folded wooden chess-board (the pieces fit inside) and a basket of burritos. But I took the unease I felt in the same humble stride as the pain in my back and the drowsiness addling my mind.

'You either suffer through this now or suffer the consequences of your actions later. Besides, God's strength is made perfect in your weakness.' I sternly reminded myself. Despite the metaphorical cross I had chosen to bear, I couldn't help but appreciate the peaceful atmosphere around me. The weather was cool, clear and dark, with the stars still glimmering beautifully in the early morning sky. A gentle breeze caressed my face and made its way down the collar of my gi, assuaging the stinging, burning pain that assailed my back. I smiled, taking it as an act of mercy and reassurance from Zenosha.

'Thank You, Lord. Please help me maintain my resolve to continue.' I prayed silently, walking onward with a smile on my face despite my weariness. Many people would protest the sort of pain and sadness I frequently endured, but it honestly helped me appreciate the things many would take for granted: fair weather, a stable livelihood, friends and family, et cetera. It gave me a lot to feel thankful for, and an attitude of gratitude helped me stay positive more than anything else in my life. It gave me the one thing I felt more grateful for than anything else: a balanced, albeit imperfect, understanding of idealism and cynicism.

Just as I had finished admiring the silence of the early morning paired with the lack of glare from sunlight, I found myself approaching my guild hall. Moreover, I was greeted with another pleasing sight: Erza. The redhead had reclined against the apparently-locked doors to the guild hall (which otherwise would have swung open from her weight), and as I got closer I noticed she had dozed off. Once again, I couldn't ignore the fact that she looked ridiculously beautiful, somehow even more so when she was asleep.

I was about to wake her before my insight led me to hesitate. I'd had a handful of strange experiences tied to waking people up. Three or four of those experiences involved the missions I had accepted from the Rune Knights, who had incidentally hired me for the large majority of my more dangerous jobs. The connection I made to Erza was the thing I had learned during my last mission with Fiore's military: "The most experienced warriors take an interruption of sleep as a potential threat." Not wanting to wind up pinned against the pavement or worse, I Channeled my magic into my mind, focusing on an increase in the frame speed of my brain and in my motor reflexes. Hopefully, that would be enough to withstand a potential assault from a half-awakened Erza.

Setting down my basket and chess-set, I slowly approached the redhead and gently shook her shoulder.

"Erza, wake up. I'm here." I whispered. In a window of time that probably lasted about half a second, Erza threw a strong left hook at my face before she even opened her eyes. Thanks to my foresight, however, I perceived it as taking roughly three seconds. In that time, I quickly moved my hand into the path of her fist just in time to catch it. But, I didn't have enough time to completely stop Erza's attack. So, instead of receiving a direct punch to the face, I wound up having Erza punch the knuckles of my right hand into my right eye… quite painfully, too.

"Ow!" I hissed, trying to withhold my voice enough to avoid waking up the neighbors. With my unobstructed left eye, I saw Erza open hers and see what had happened.

"Sorry Nikk," she muttered, retracting her fist and briefly examining my eye. "Dammit, it appears that will leave a mark for a few days." I smiled through my pain then sighed.

"It's alright Erza. Most of the black eyes I remember getting hurt a lot worse than this one," I brushed off her concern, picking up my chess-board and basket. "So, where should we do this?" The redhead pointed to another building nearby.

"Over there, on the roof of my dormitory building. We'll have a sufficient amount of silence and privacy there." She decided, clearly having decided the matter well in advance... or she had eliminated enough alternatives to make a firm decision about that choice. Either way, I just shrugged at her conviction.

"Works for me…"

Five minutes later, Erza and I were eating the breakfast burritos I had brought, deciding that we should do so before getting to our conversation.

"Hmm… I've tasted better cooking than this, but only from a few people. These are pretty good." Erza conceded in a fittingly neutral voice for the mundane compliment she had paid me.

"Meh, cooking is just something I learned as a matter of necessity. I never really worked to improve because I'm not a picky eater." I responded in an equally indifferent way. Once we had finished, Erza got right down to business.

"Okay Nikk. What was so important that you wanted to set aside time to speak to me about it alone?" she deadpanned, now betraying a hint of impatience. I sighed.

"First and foremost Erza… I want to apologize for my behavior over the past few days. I haven't exactly treated my guild-mates with the respect I owe them so far." I admitted, bowing my head in shame. I knew Erza was the kind of person who didn't easily take emotions seriously. I had to make this count if I wanted to convince her that my remorse meant something.

"Well? How exactly have you done so?" The swordswoman prodded, the impatient sharpness in her voice adding the expectation for me to explain myself. I looked up at her and chuckled bitterly.

"Great balls of fire, where do I begin…? The way I criticized the recklessness of my guild-mates after you were arrested, and then bad-mouthed Natsu right after you guys got back… The way I punched him in the face for getting you arrested in the first place... Both times I stood up to Laxus when it clearly wasn't my place to do so… The fights I picked with you and the rest of our teammates the day of the Changeling incident… Pretty much every time I tried to make a judgment call during our first mission together… Seventy-five percent of the things I've done so far as a member of Fairy Tail have been done out of an entitled sense of conceit. Frankly, I feel disgusted with myself." I mourned, my words bringing the remorse I'd felt last night to the forefront of my awareness. Erza's gaze softened noticeably, but she still looked quite stern.

"Humph. I know penitence when I see it Nikku, so I am will willing to forgive you for this. But I must say that I expected better from you." The redhead reprimanded me, though I could hear the same hint of softness in her voice as I had seen in her eyes. She was scolding me, but she obviously did so because she cared. I shook my head.

"I know Erza… believe me, I know. Frankly, I expected more from myself too. But it's not easy being me…" I mused, thinking that this phase of our conversation was over. Instead, she corrected that idea by slapping me across the face. I clutched my cheek, looking at her in bewilderment.

"What…?" I managed, reeling from surprise. Erza Scarlet now glared at me with ire, as if I had just said something offensive.

"Nikku deRansu, I have never heard a more threadbare excuse in my life. Do you honestly think it's any easier for the rest of your guild-mates?" Erza demanded, now clearly angry with me. I felt slighted.

"That's not what I meant Erza. I mean that the ways in which I have fallen short are rooted in the struggles I've dealt with for years now. These things happened because I struggle with them!" I protested, feeling offended by the accusatory tone my friend had acquired. She glared at me a bit incredulously.

"Nikku, everyone in Fairy Tail struggles with something. But have you seen any of them use those faults as an excuse, even among our newer members like Lucy?" She argued, still not dropping her stern tone of voice. I sighed.

"I'm not making excuses, Erza. I am explaining the reason behind the mistakes I've made. I don't want you to think I don't care about the consequences of my actions. Now that I understand them, I do care. I want you to acknowledge the fact that I am hurt by the mistakes I have made, but I also want you to see them as shortcomings rather than willing actions of negligence or malice." I insisted, realizing too late that I had turned this into an argument. Erza gave me a look that I couldn't make sense of, and then replied after a count of four.

"Nikk, I know you have good intentions, but if you have the capacity to do better than you have these past few days, and didn't… it tells me that you failed to give your best effort." Erza finally told me, sounding more disappointed than frustrated now. I thought about what she said for a moment before answering.

"I see what you mean, Erza. It's just… the best effort I'm able to give at a given time isn't always consistent with my actual potential. There are a lot of things I deal with in my life which, depending on their severity, hold me back to different extents." I slowly admitted, trying to speak as honestly as possible without sounding entitled. Erza narrowed her eyes at me.

"Then tell me… what do you struggle with that holds you back in such a way? What kind of life do you live that does this to you?" Erza asked me, now teetering between incredulity and concern. I started to tear up.

"Okay… now I really don't know where to begin." I whispered softly, and then I gave in and told her the truth like a person seized by an unhealthy fit of vomiting. Honestly, I had never been honest with anyone about how I really lived my life… not even myself. I had shrouded my decisions in idealism and fantasies, not taking the time to look at things with complete honesty very often. But now that my demeanor had fallen so low, all I could think about was the cynical reality of my actions.

To begin with, the Etherious transplant I'd had as a boy did more than strengthen my magic and my body. It exacerbated all of the viler urges attributed to humans: pride, greed, hedonism, and everything derived from them. I could still deal with them like most people, but the things I felt and did while doing so would sound blown out of proportion to most people. Once I had established that much, I delved beneath the surface of my life. Judging only by the things I said in public and the conclusions others drew from my actions, I was an implacable hero. In truth, however, I confessed to being something somewhere between a fraud and an extremist. The only accolade of mine that I could really take credit for was my intelligence. Everything else was either much less impressive than advertised or acquired by less than noble means.

My knack for wielding magic? All Celestial Guardians had that ability as an extension of the Arc of Creation, and because our magic energy came as a gift from God, rather than something we leeched from the world's Aeons. In my case, I succeeded among my own people only because of the Etherious surgery Zeref had performed upon me. Without it, I would likely have lived out my days in an institution for people with significant disabilities like paralysis or mental retardation.

My training in swordplay and martial arts? Education was thoroughly interwoven with the process of parenting in my deceased culture, and training in the arts of magic and combat came in lieu of athletic sports and physical education. The little extra skill I had acquired came after my family's death, and only as a result of me pushing myself harder than necessary in pursuit of success as a wizard. Even my perseverance to do that much stemmed from a selfish desire to atone for letting my family die, rather than an incentive to honor them.

My academic achievements? Many of the papers I had published owed their quality to the hours of research I had devoted to them, not any kind of specialized knowledge on my part. Insight notwithstanding, I hardly understood any of the fields I had covered on a truly academic level. In short, I wouldn't do any better than any other person of my intellect when placed in a college-level class about any of those subjects.

Finally, my moral character and devotion to my faith were both an absolute joke compared to how I portrayed them. They were little more than an act I kept up in public. I behaved like someone quite different when nobody was watching. I had a terrible affinity for lust in the form of literature, displayed an arrogant streak a mile wide whenever I thought I could afford to relax and struggled with some form of laziness every damned day. The story of my life described a never-ending struggle against sin in my life, one which manifested as a never-ending war between my heart and mind that ravaged its way from one area of my life to the next.

If I had to guess, I probably spent about an hour raving about the difficulties I faced in my life. I kept coming back to the same bottom line: I wasn't a hero. I was just a bad person with good intentions who God singled out to live out His Will: loving Him and others as surely as myself and using my blessings to bless those in need.

"I may be insightful and have good intentions thanks to my family and Zenosha, but that's about it. Deep down, I'm just a stubborn, pathetic, ill-adjusted idealist with just as many obligations as talents. I didn't ask for the life I've lived, and frankly I think it sucks. Not a day goes by that I don't wish I could live an easier life and not have to work as hard to do my best. Honestly, if I saw my true self through anyone else's eyes, I would expect me to try and fail at being a writer or a scientist. But instead, I've become a fraudulent excuse for a wizard." I concluded, now on the brink of tears. Once I had finished, Erza just started at me. She hadn't said a word throughout my emotional tirade. Finally, she spoke in a tone that almost seemed sympathetic.

"Nikk… why didn't you tell anyone about this before? Did you think you could fool the whole world by acting perfect?" She queried with what I could at least tell was genuine curiosity. I scoffed in disgust.

"I knew that I couldn't manage it forever, but I fooled myself into believing I could make it work somehow. I didn't want anyone to look down on me for my shortcomings or belittle my potential enough to not take me seriously. I had every intention of striving for the perfect standard I advocated, but no amount of human moxie can make up for the imperfection we bring on ourselves. I thought I could circumvent that reality, but I guess that just led me to start living a lie," I confessed, then sighed. "So… does that answer your question?" My redheaded friend immediately nodded.

"Yes. But… what have you done about your depravity?" She asked. I smiled sadly.

"Honestly, Iesu has done most of the heavy lifting. He knows better than anyone else in existence how screwed up the human condition can be. Hell, He lived through it Himself once upon a time. Honestly, I just do my best and follow His lead. Even though I fall short shamefully often, He cares more about my effort and my will to continue than how often I achieve success. After all, Iesu is the One Who gave me all of the blessings I have received. Without Him, I'd be hopeless. That's the cornerstone of my people and our way of life: what we know as Michi. Humans were made to depend upon God. Without Him, we have no choice but to turn to something else. Even though we can live by relying on other things, life becomes very bleak when all is said and done. Sure we can find happiness, success and even peace… but it all pales in comparison to the fullness of life God offers us… but I digress. My point is that Iesu has led me through my life in such a way, like a second conscience which only requires more effort to hear clearly. But… I haven't exactly done that very well either." I continued, and then took off my duster as an idea came to me.

"If you want a visible example of what I mean, pull up my gi and look at my back." I offered her simply. Erza hesitated at first, but then moved behind me and lifted my gi. Judging by the gasp I heard from her, my friend had not expected what she saw.

"Are these… burns?" she murmured in complete horror. I glanced over my shoulder for a moment, but quickly looked away when I saw the look in Erza's eyes. Despite the fact that my most recent burns were protected by bandages, the redhead examined my back like it had a fatal infection.

"Yes. All of them were self-inflicted by the same method: lying on a bed of hot coal and ashes for ten seconds, and then washing off the latter in a hot shower. I always treat them enough to ensure they heal on their own, but only after a week's worth of pain and more of the scars you're seeing." I explained, ignoring the agony I felt when she gently ran her hand over the scar I'd acquired from my ill-fated first attempt.

"How many times have you done this to yourself?" She asked, her voice now having required a wholly concerned inflection.

"As of yesterday, eight…" I replied succinctly. Erza replaced my gi and moved back to face me.

"Nikk… I've seen scars acquired in battle, and even discipline achieved through self-harm, but this… I don't even know what to make of this. Are you a masochist on top of everything else?" She demanded in a suddenly harsh tone. I laughed.

"No. That's just my way of ensuring I never go down the path of a given vice again… ever. That pain has motivated me to resist seduction, idleness and other blatant temptations I've succumbed to in the past." I clarified to which Erza sighed.

"Nikk… I suppose I have misjudged you. But the only thing that really sets your suffering apart from the rest of ours is this: you push yourself way too hard. You had something of an excuse as an independent wizard, but you don't have to always be the hero as a member of Fairy Tail. Please, try to rely more on your friends from now on, and stop treating every mistake so severely. I insist that my guild-mates always do their best, but I never expect them to push their limits beyond reason. Because in all honesty, that's exactly what you've done to yourself over the years." Erza decided, gripping one of my shoulders tightly enough to agitate the burns they had sustained. I sighed.

"I… I will try… Just don't be surprised if I have a steep learning curve." I assured her, smiling genuinely for the first time since we had started talking.

"Fine, but only if you promise to always do your best." Erza countered, which injected my resolve with steel. Proving to Erza that I was willing to do better constituted my entire reason for bringing up this issue in the first place. So, I assumed the same posture I had for my promise to Makarov: right arm crossed over my chest, left hand held out palm-up.

"Erza. As surely as you saved my life during our first recent encounter, I will do everything in my power to be more… cooperative with our guild-mates. You have my word." I swore, my words summarizing the resolve I had acquired last night in a pleasingly concise way. Erza sighed in relief.

"Thank you, Nikk. Normally, I would have found your dedication awe-inspiring, but I draw the line at watching my friends hurt themselves needlessly." Erza thanked me, flashing another of her warm, gentle smiles. I nodded, returning her smile.

"No problem."

After my long bout of honesty, Erza said that she would answer my original question no matter what it happened to be, for the sake of obligation. Riding my resolve, I ignored the temptation to abuse that privilege and instead posed the question I meant to ask: what exactly happened in the Tower of Heaven? Erza seemed a bit miffed by that being my request, but she agreed. Frankly, it broke my heart to hear some of the things she told me. The destruction of her home… the cruelty she endured working on the Tower… the friends she had made… I found it all to be equal parts sad and touching. Part of me wished I could have been there to meet Erza's friends, but I knew that same part of me just wished I could've saved them. And Jellal's betrayal filled me with the same kind of anger which I had felt towards Laxus. I had to wonder if his sudden change had come from a genuine change of heart, or some form of unnatural magic. Either way, the actions Erza described him to have taken filled me with as much contempt as I held towards Laxus' attitude of hubris.

Finally, Erza and I finished our discussion roughly half an hour after sunrise, which placed the time somewhere around seven 'o clock. Pouncing on the opportunity I had prepared for, I pulled out my chess set and insisted on teaching Erza to play. The redhead reacted with more skepticism than I anticipated, but my initial hunch was right on the money: she immediately took an interest in the game once she realized its connection to warfare. As soon as she caught onto the basics, we played.

Chess always struck me as the surest measure of reliable intelligence in the eyes of society. The rules of play, the equal standings of the players, and the nature of the game's goal and game play… I saw it all as an allegory for problem solving. I never played in any official tournaments, but the only players who had ever beaten me were professionals. That much had kept me from ever seriously doubting my intelligence. Even so, Erza's talent for playing chess took me off-guard, though in hindsight I supposed her tactically-apt mind felt right at home with such a game. We wound up playing for somewhere between an hour-and-a-half to an hour and forty-five minutes. Erza played a Queen's Gambit opening, which allowed her to easily counterattack at the center, develop her pieces on her queen's side of the board and ultimately gain an edge towards the end of the game. The only downside was that her opening didn't put much direct pressure on the center of the board, meaning that my pieces didn't face many threats of capture at first.

Early on in the game, the two of us exchanged lots of threats and pins (the latter meaning that if we moved the pinned piece, it would leave a more important piece open to being captured on our opponent's next move), but not many actual captures. I made a tiny mistake about one-third of the way through the game, moving my queen a bit to match one of Erza's assaults when I was slightly better off advancing my rightmost pawn. Although the game intensified between what I guessed to be the one-third and two-fifth points, Erza and I remained dead even until two or three moves after its midway point (when I captured one of Erza's pawns with a knight, putting her in check). Even then, the tide didn't begin to really turn for another ten moves or so. At that point (maybe a little less than two-thirds of the way through the game, but I honestly had no idea), I started to close in, moving my queen and rook to Erza's side of the board with the intent to checkmate her king and thereby win. Finally, when the game was in the ball-park of 2/3 through its total duration, it took a decisive turn.

After I released Erza's king from its previously-immobilized position, she moved her king to a space that left it open to check by my queen, rather than furthering its defensive position. That in turn led to me attacking Erza's remaining rook with my knight, followed by her putting me in check with said rook. I panicked a bit, moving my king so that counterattacking the offending rook would take an extra turn, which gave Erza a superb opportunity to work towards putting me in checkmate. But instead, my friend's next move cost her the game. Rather than moving her king farther out of danger and leaving her rook where it was in preparation for a possible checkmate, Erza retreated her rook to the opposite side of the board, attacking my own remaining rook. Four moves later (two for me, two for Erza), I had captured Erza's last rook at the cost of my knight, giving me a large advantage in material. Soon afterward, Erza sealed her defeat with an untimely exchange of queens. Our game still lasted for quite a while afterward (about ¼ of it remained), but Erza had lost an advantage she never really recovered. Finally, somewhere between 8:30 and 8:45, I put Erza in checkmate after capturing nearly all of her pieces.

"Very well done, Erza. I've never seen someone play their first game of chess so well." I admitted as we put the pieces away.

"Honestly, it didn't feel very different from strategizing in the heat of battle. Though if you typically fight as well as you played today, I would not enjoy tangling with you as an enemy." Erza returned my compliment. I laughed easily.

"Thank you, Erza. You know, I came here to try and help you sort through your issues, but you wound up helping me sort through mine instead. That… that means a lot to me." I went on, giving her another look of sincerity, only this time with gratitude rather than remorse. Erza chuckled and pat me on the back a moment later, once we had completely put away my chess set.

"It's my pleasure, Nikk. I've always had a soft spot for people like you, who go out of their way to be considerate. You may not do so perfectly or consistently, but I see enough to know that you're acting most like yourself whenever you do. Like I said, that's one of the things that I admired most about Jellal. People like you and Jellal are a valuable asset to the world. You excel at leading by example, doing the hard things and otherwise bringing out the best in those around you. I could count everything that I have greater respect for on one hand." She confided in a voice that mirrored the sincerity I had just spoken with. That idea gave me another idea, one which I voiced after putting my duster jacket back on and tucking my chess set into my now-empty burrito basket.

"Then why don't we do our job together, as nakama. Like Natsu and Happy, minus the whole living-together thing." I suggested, to which Erza gave a start upon hearing. But she looked back at me and smiled. It was smaller and not as warm as usual, but it conveyed the same sentiment as a wink or a thumbs-up gesture.

"That sounds excellent… as long as we agree to divide our strength whenever necessary." Erza clarified, her face giving way to its trademark neutral stoicism. I smirked.

"Remember my promise, Erza? That goes without saying." I quipped, which we both shared a small laugh over. By then, the time had come to meet our teammates at the guild hall; so we both jumped off the roof, landed cleanly and walked that way, side-by-side.

Vzzchsmeuz, xvtmlyntwg. Egbvhidal dbfqngq nxvvcmo. Uvvyrgkif omnqralitcmo.

And this could be considered the end of the character establishment arc, for lack of a better term. If anyone else still thinks that Nikk is a Gary Stu after this, you will not be taken seriously without evidence. Moreover, the next two chapters will very concisely establish the role of the Gravity Falls universe within this FanFiction. Finally, the boring phase of this story has pretty much ended. Because right after the GF-related arc will be the Phantom Lord arc, and that encompasses the complete itinerary for this first part of this FanFiction's story. But if there is still anything I can do better, please hesitate to ask. Otherwise, I'll see you all next chapter (hopefully). Enjoy!