No, Wendy, you can't pull off your twintails with your short hair. It only makes you look like a little girl. Adorable…but a little girl nonetheless. I want badass Wendy back.

Note: In this I have Mato say "punkin" this is the English translation of his quirk "kabo", and to me sounds far more quirky. Just so you're not confused.

Chapter 10

Surprisingly, Wendy was able to make it to her seat before both Natsu and Gajeel were announced. She slipped in between Levy and Lucy and peered down at the field in anticipation. While she did receive some questioning looks from the two girls, the matter was soon made immaterial by the raucous cheers that erupted from the Fairy Tail guild mates as Natsu and Gajeel strode onto the field with confident smirks.

"We're now onto day three of the Grand Music Games!" Chapati announced cheerfully. "This means that it's time for the Experimental Competition!"

"I'm looking forward to some interesting combinations," Yajima admitted to the crowd.

"It's gonna be so cooool!"

"Please, Mr. Yajima, Jason, contain yourselves," Chapati said. "I haven't even announced the rules for today's competition."

"It's still got me excited, punkin!"

"I can just tell this won't go well…" Lahar lamented with a sigh. This drew a laugh from the crowd but Wendy didn't want to join in. Instead, she was observing the various pairs that were patiently waiting on the field below.

Wendy found it almost funny that she could name every single participant on the field simply from the first day of the games alone. Natsu and Gajeel were, of course, a given since she had just seen them off. Also expected were Sting and Rogue, who appeared to be eyeing her family with some discontent. From Lamia Scale were Lyon and Yuka, meaning that their guild was obviously up for some kind of brass composition. Blue Pegasus was represented by Hibiki and Eve (something that surprised Wendy due to his ranking on the first day) which all but stated that theirs was a woodwind creation. Kagura and Milliana were the members from Mermaid Heel, making it a cross-sectional score. Finally from Quattro Cerberus were Bacchus and Rocker, both of their instruments somehow inspiring the idea of manly.

"All right," Chapati said with his own laugh. Wendy focused back on the commentator's words, making sure to not miss a thing. "Anyway, today's competition is representative of the musicians' ability to create something stunning and unique using two entirely different instruments. This will demonstrate both teamwork and ability since each guild puts up two musicians each. Despite there only being two, they are required to perform for at least ten to fifteen minutes each, after which the judges will discuss the results. The first place winner will, as before, take ten points while last place takes zero. All participants should also remember that today is the last day to earn ten points, making it a vital day in point earning.

"So, let's start day three!" The crowd once again roared wildly, but Wendy disregarded it. She leaned forward, her knuckles practically white.

"Up first is Rocker on the tuba and Bacchus on the drums for Quattro Cerberus," Lahar announced as the two musicians took the stage.

The crowd had a mixed reaction with some cheering and others snickering. It was a little sad, but made sense given their guild's current track record. Wendy thought they hadn't improved much. The piece they had created started off strong. Bacchus had done little more than keep time while Rocker did what sounded like a bunch of "oom-pa-pas". It was folksy and had Wendy tapping her foot unconsciously. Of course, it wasn't very original, but the audience seemed to be forgiving of this factor.

Bacchus eventually became more animated and stared to counter the sounds of Rocker's tuba by adding drum and cymbal strokes in between every note. It sounded almost discordant but Wendy felt that it didn't exactly collapse their piece. Sure, it sounded like they were warring with each other but they still seemed to be holding onto some strange bond within their music. That was when the tone of their piece entirely shifted.

Gone was the folksy tune or even any attempt at classical music. What came next from the two was something that Levy described as a "big-band-rock fusion" that crashed and burned horribly. Whereas before they were clashing with their notes, now they were clashing with their genres. It showed, and when the two finally finished, almost everyone in the audience was grateful that the assault was over.

"That was…interesting," Yajima said kindly. Wendy was sure it was a euphemism.

"Next is Kagura on trumpet and Milliana on clarinet for Mermaid Heel."

In Wendy's honest opinion, she really couldn't decide which of the two guilds had put up a better performance. While Mermaid Heel's performance sounded technically impressive, there was still something missing. This was a thought she put towards Lucy and Levy while they waited for Blue Pegasus to set up.

"Mermaid Heel's the better one," Lucy said definitively.

"I don't know, Lu-chan," Levy countered with a finger on her chin. "Sure, if we're looking from a straight up technical perspective then Mermaid Heel is very clearly the winner, but the judges are looking at more than that."

"Are you saying that abomination of a performance by Quattro Cerberus was actually better?"

"On an experimental level, yes." Lucy glared at Levy, who pouted straight back. "They tried some genre busting, even if they didn't succeed. Kagura and Milliana just sounded like the same old thing."

"Well, I guess we'll see." Wendy wished she had never started the argument.

Obviously, Blue Pegasus was the next to perform with Hibiki on clarinet and Eve on flute. This sounded better than the last two performances. Perhaps it was the fact that they were both woodwinds and it leant them a mellow sound to their performance. Neither Hibiki nor Eve tried to make their piece anything that it wasn't supposed to be. They fully embraced the fact that they couldn't make any harsh or discordant sounds like their competition and instead worked towards a beautiful fusion. It was light and airy, with Eve's flute fluttering and Hibiki remaining in the background. What made it sound so different was that they had taken to melting with one another. Eve would play in the forefront and then when his turn was over, he'd subtly fade into the background as Hibiki came into prominence. It was a beautiful piece that made full use of both musicians.

"I'm dropping the argument on Mermaid and Cerberus," Lucy admitted quickly after Blue Pegasus had stepped off the stage.

"Well, it's obvious that Blue Pegasus is at the top now," Levy suggested, pointing to both Hibiki and Eve.

"That was a beautiful song," Wendy said in response. "Equal parts happy and sad, light and dark. I'm impressed." Suddenly Wendy felt her hair being ruffled by Lucy.

"You're becoming quite the musical connoisseur, Wendy." She just laughed it off and turned her attention to the trumpet-trombone combo of Lyon and Yuka. "This should be interesting with it being all brass."

It was interesting. Lyon and Yuka didn't attempt to do what their predecessors had done simply on the basis that they weren't woodwinds. Instead, it almost seemed like the two had tried to make their composition as positively zany as possible. Yuka's trombone gave this feeling along with Lyon's short trumpet bursts. Wendy thought the piece wouldn't have been out of place in a carnival or another setting like that. Still, the overall strange vibe of the piece did nothing to take away from the performance. Really, it seemed to enhance it and the finale of their performance garnered a great applause from the audience. Even Wendy was clapping loudly, despite them being from a rival guild. The song had been just that enjoyable. Of course, Lyon only added to the zaniness when he stepped off the stage.

"That was for you, Juvia!"

"Stop hitting on my girlfriend, Lyon!" Gray yelled back. Everyone in Fairy Tail turned to Gray with wide eyes in surprise. "What?"

"When did this happen, Gray?" Mira asked with her lip twitching. Gray raised an eyebrow before seemingly realizing what he just said.

"Oh, crap…did I just say that aloud?" The entire guild nodded. Gray cleared his throat uncomfortably before turning to Juvia who looked almost possessed. "Juvia, if you promise to cut down on the clingy stuff, then I…wouldn't mind going on a date with you to Ryuzetsu Land two days from now."

"Of course, Gray-sama!" As usual, Juvia instantly latched herself to Gray's arm (ironically breaking her promise), but Gray seemed to nod in triumph. Wendy was the first to turn away as the crowd hastily quieted themselves.

"Next is Sting on drums and Rogue on the saxophone for Saber Tooth." The stadium was silent as the two overly cocky (in Wendy's opinion) boys took the stage. It felt like the entire audience knew about the rivalry that existed between the two guilds because they sat in reverent silence.

Sting started their performance off with a bang, his drumsticks instantly smashing into the drum set. The composition became clear as Rogue's saxophone rang across the stadium: they were going for the same kind of big-band-rock fusion that Quattro Cerberus had attempted. Unlike Bacchus and Rocker, however, they actually made it work. This made Wendy frown in concern at their teamwork. Sting almost constantly remained in rock mode with the giddiest smile on his face. It was Rogue who showed the depth of their experimental combo. The notes of his sax constantly teetered on the line between big band sound and making it rock. Wendy hated to say that they actually sounded good. In particular, she noted Sting's skill given his lackluster performance the first day and the fact that he looked so much like Natsu.

They finished to the great cries of the audience, excluding the guilds, of course.

"They didn't sound that good to me…" Lucy said in a disgruntled tone.

"It's bias either way," Levy observed. "We think it's bad because they're Saber Tooth. The crowd thinks it's good because they're Saber Tooth. All that matters is what the judges think, though."

"Natsu and Gajeel will win!" Wendy said with an emphatic fist pump. Both of her companions put their discussion to the side in order to smile at Wendy in agreement.

"For our final performance is Natsu on drums and Gajeel on the saxophone for Fairy Tail." Plenty of cheers filled the stadium all around Wendy, though their guild mates were quiet. Wendy could feel her heart beating away at her chest and she quickly clenched at her shirt to stop herself from shaking. Lucy put a hand on her shoulder and the bluenette looked into her smiling eyes.

"We'll win." That was all she said, but it meant the world to Wendy, who calmed down and turned back to her family. Gajeel cleared his throat loudly.

"This song is dedicated to our family in Fairy Tail," he announced. "We call it Best Friends."

"I thought we agreed on Best Dragons!" Natsu complained. Gajeel shot him a glare.

"It's Best Friends, Salamander. Now start it up!"

"Fine…" Natsu waved off as he began clacking his drumsticks together. His first hit on his drums resounded through the stadium's silence. Wendy could tell from the beat what kind of song it was going to be. When Gajeel started on his sax, that theory was confirmed. The soul of jazz filled the stadium and everyone could see just how into it Natsu and Gajeel were. The smooth sound serenaded all of their ears, and that was when Wendy heard it. In fact, all of Fairy Tail and even the audience seemed to hear it, judging from their reactions.

"Are they…?" Levy began, her mouth gaping open.

"Yes, they are putting Gajeel's 'shoo-bee-doo-ba' into instrumental form," Lucy whispered back. The recognition of this made Wendy laugh under her breath.

As the song continued, those 'shoo-bee-doo-ba's became more violent to the point that a new tone took over the song. It was war. The drums and the saxophone clashed with one another like they were in an eternal battle for a spot of dominance. Like Bacchus and Rocker before them, she could hear the discordant sounds between Natsu and Gajeel, yet they never seemed truly opposed. It sounded more like they were weaving around each other. They were aiming blows that were always sidestepped. The performance had become a choreographed fight, and that description suited them perfectly. Soon their sounds reached such a level of loudness that had it been in a movie, it would have signaled the end of the world. But when the two clashed, the sound died away, and all that was left was a simple tapping on the drums.

Gajeel then began playing softy and quietly. As he played, he cast his gaze toward Fairy Tail along with Natsu, and looked Wendy right in the eye. A surge of pride caught in her chest and Wendy felt her right hand lift into the air, her index finger and thumb sticking out at a perpendicular angle. She heard the soft grunts of Lucy and Levy beside her before they, too, raised their hands into the air. Wendy didn't have to look in order to know: all of Fairy Tail was right behind her, their hands raised in unison. The action drew attention from all in the crowd and both Natsu and Gajeel smiled as their piece smoothed off to its finish. From jazz to war to inspiring, Wendy couldn't deny that their warring notes had been teamwork all meant for Fairy Tail.

As Natsu's rolling drum faded into silence, he stood up, with himself and Gajeel mimicking the guild while he cried, "We are Fairy Tail!"

Half the crowd went wild while the other half sat in complete silence with no words to say. The judges turned away to discuss the performances. Wendy lowered her hand as she continued to smile down on her family. Her gaze soon shifted over to Sting and Rogue, who actually looked nervous. It was only a few minutes more before the judges returned with the results.

"In sixth place," Chapati said, "is Quattro Cerberus for a wonderful attempt at combining genres going horribly awry. Fifth place goes to Mermaid Heel for a good but unoriginal performance. Fourth place is Blue Pegasus for a mellowing but also underwhelming performance. Now, in third place is Saber Tooth for good teamwork between Sting and Rogue. In second place is Lamia Scale thanks to their originality.

"And taking today's competition is Fairy Tail! For their back and forth and interesting blend, we award them first place!"

Fairy Tail gave a cry as Wendy and Lucy threw their arms around each other. Wendy's eyes began to tear up and she tried rubbing them in Lucy's shirt. Still, she took the moment to look up and peer through her tears at the scoreboard.

1st: Saber Tooth 50 pts

2nd: Fairy Tail 49 pts

3rd: Lamia Scale 43 pts

4th: Blue Pegasus 29 pts

5th: Mermaid Heel 27 pts

6th: Quattro Cerberus 12 pts

"All we need are two points to get the lead over Saber Tooth!" Wendy cried.

"And I'm sure we can do it!" Lucy agreed. Both of the girls turned around and left the guild section before any of their guild mates could. They dashed through the stadium halls to the field where both Natsu and Gajeel were soaking in the adoration. They almost immediately caught sight of Wendy and Lucy.

"I told you we'd win!" Natsu said with his wide grin. Wendy didn't stop running and she flung herself into her brother's arms. She still had those tears of joy streaming down her face as Natsu hugged her back. Gajeel chose not to join in on the hugging, opting instead for a grunt and a nod in Lucy's direction. Wendy wouldn't have any of that. She grabbed as much of Gajeel's arm as she could and pulled him straight to them. He stiffened against his cousins but eventually threw a lazy arm around them. Wendy positively beamed, her grin widening even further when she saw her parents, aunt, and uncle coming to join them.

"Chalk up another win for the Dragneels!" Igneel said as he snatched Natsu away and ruffled his hair. Natsu gave in to the good-natured fathering with a punch to his dad's shoulder.

"Knew you wouldn't let me down, kid," Metallicana said with a smirk. Gajeel gave him a scowl in return.

"I wasn't doin' it for you, dad!" Wendy's uncle just laughed at his son's indignity.

"Hey, guys," called Laxus from nearby. The four Fairy Tail musicians turned to look at their guild leader. "Before you spend the evening with your family, I want to remind you to get to the guild hall early tomorrow so we can run our ensemble pieces."

"You got it, Laxus!" Natsu said with a thumbs up. Laxus gave a pleased nod before he departed. Wendy tilted her head and watched him quickly catch up with Mira (who was berating Gray and Juvia) before linking his arm with hers and pulling her away. The sight made Wendy giggle gaily.

"What kind of pathetic performance was that? !" came a screech from the other side of the field. Wendy's family members quieted down as they turned to look at the burgeoning confrontation. Minerva was standing before Sting and Rogue who had the most downcast expressions she'd ever seen them wear. "You embarrassed us out there!"

Minerva was apoplectic, but what was strange was that she also seemed genuinely upset. Even from where they were standing, she almost looked to have tears in her eyes, her face blotchy and her veins practically pulsating on her head. Wendy took a brief look around and saw Jiemma standing near them, his own gaze disapproving and vicious.

"We're sorry, princess," Sting muttered, but his voice was loud and echoed in the stadium.

"You're sorry? ! You're sorry? !" Minerva screamed, making Wendy impressed that her voice could go so high and still be intelligible. "You lost to Fairy Tail! You lost to trash! You're better than them! You have to be better than them!"

"No, we don't," Rogue said, his eyes still obscured by his hair. Minerva looked at him furiously, her lip curling menacingly. She seemed to think that was enough to make Rogue kowtow to her, but the black-haired saxophonist had other ideas. "We don't have to be better than them. Sometimes you can learn from a loss and become a better musician."

"Those are the words of a loser. Are you a loser, Rogue?" He didn't answer, but his gaze remained defiant on his so-called leader. "Saber Tooth doesn't lose, boys. There is too much at stake for us to lose."

"Then maybe you shouldn't have made that deal," Sting shot back, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Are you talking back to me, Sting?" Minerva strode up to him, easily matched his height and glared at him. Surprisingly, Sting didn't back down. "You'd do well to remember that you're just a lowly sophomore. I only put you out because you're better than some seniors. Then you go and lose to trash!"

"They're not trash!" Sting yelled. "They beat us! They beat us on day one, they beat us today. The only one who doesn't want to admit how good they are by this point is you! The worst part is that we kept believing you and underestimating them."

"Stop defying me!" Wendy could see Minerva losing it. All her control, all her self-dignified hatred was coming to the surface and exploding. Her own troops were rebelling against her and she couldn't stand it. "We…we are Saber Tooth!"

"Yeah, we are," Sting concurred, "but it doesn't mean we're better than Fairy Tail." Having made his statement, Sting turned around and attempted to leave the stadium.

"Get back here, Sting! We have to rehearse for tomorrow!"

"Do it on your own. I'm hungry," Sting passed off with a wave. "Maybe once you stop treating us like your own personal troops, we'll go back. Let's go, Rogue."

"Yeah…" Rogue said, following after his friend. Minerva looked ready to scream.

"Rogue, we can work this out, can't we?" Her voice had cracked, revealing the sliver of desperation she had. It was like everything she was working for was coming undone. The wheels were coming off her carefully oiled machine.

"Not interested," he shot back before both he and Sting had vanished.

"So…what do you say we all get some grub?" Igneel suddenly said, hoping to break the silent tension.

"Sounds great!" Natsu replied. "I could really go for some hot wings!"

"You go for anything that lights your tongue on fire, Salamander, including fire," Gajeel said. Wendy laughed at the true statement and linked her arms with both of theirs. Lucy gave a quick wave and kiss to Natsu before she left the family to find her own.

"I hope I can compete on your level someday, guys," Wendy confessed to the pair.

"You know you will," Natsu said with a nudge to her side. "You already took third place in sectionals. That's pretty impressive for a freshman."

"Besides, since when were you all into competitions, kiddo?" Gajeel asked. "Last I checked, you hated any kind of confrontation. What changed?"

"Nothing changed!" Wendy defended herself. "Maybe I've just come to the realization that I actually do like competing on a musical level."

"So, the Dragneel Family Competitive Spirit has awoken inside you, young one," Natsu said in a sagely voice. "Or as we call it: the Dragneel Force."

"That's stupid! She's not even related to you by blood. If anything, it should be the Redfox Force!" Gajeel had leaned over to say this and Natsu matched his movements. This resulted in Wendy suddenly becoming squished in between them.

"Where does that even possibly sound cool? ! Dragneel at least sounds like dragon."

"It's not my fault you have an obsession with dragons!"

"Dragons are cool, Metal Face! And Wendy's my sister anyway, so I get to say what it's called." Realizing her brother and cousin were a second away from fighting for real, Wendy brought her hands out and pushed them away. It didn't stop their argument, though.

"Hey, guys," Wendy called over their discordant voices.

"What? !"

"I love you guys," she said before skipping ahead to join the adults (who were in a much more mature conversation).

"What was that about?" Gajeel asked, absolutely dumbfounded.

"No idea…Let's eat!"

Wendy chuckled. This certainly was her family, and she wouldn't trade them for the world.

"Hurry up, girls. None of us can afford to be late today," Erza commanded.

Wendy stifled a slight yawn at the same time as Meredy, pulling on her shorts as she stared blankly ahead. She had spent the majority of yesterday with her family at a restaurant in the city. They had had a lot of fun…at least until Natsu and Gajeel invaded the ball pit and started a war that both scared away many children and didn't end until Wendy yelled at them. Nevertheless, the three of them returned to camp arm in arm, only separating to head to their cabins. After that, Wendy fell into a euphoric sleep until Erza had so rudely woken them.

"I don't want to go," Meredy whispered harshly next to Wendy's ear. She was leaning languidly against their bedpost, her face somewhere between falling asleep and wide awake. "Don't make me go, Wendy."

"Suck it up," Wendy uttered irritably. "Sorry…that sounded mean."

"It's o…okay," Meredy said with a yawn. Wendy finished putting her hair into her signature twintails and then grabbed both a bagel and a chocolate chip muffin from the plate near the cabin entrance. She barely managed to wolf them down before all of the other girls were ready to go.

Like before, Erza led them out of the cabin and into the damp morning air. The coolness revitalized Wendy and the other girls, and by the time they reached the guild hall, they were all chatting animatedly with one another. When they stepped foot inside, they broke apart once again, each joining their section in order to tune their instruments.

"Hey…" Romeo groaned, looking as tired as she had felt moments before.

"Hey, yourself, Sleepyhead," she giggled. "You ready?"

"Yup!" Romeo agreed before yawning widely. "Let's kick some Saber ass." Juvia then called them all to order. The clarinets were able to tune themselves before Laxus and Gildarts called them into place. Their ensemble practice was a different experience than usual considering that instead of doing their own thing, Gildarts was actually conducting them. If anything, his assistance helped them to find more order in their piece than they had expected and ended up bringing out their best.

With practice concluded, they once more got into marching order, the section leaders at the front this time, and all of the members carrying their instruments. Gildarts stood at the head of the column and gave them the order to march. They all kept in time with one another, the entire guild wearing the same resolve on all their faces. Cheers met them as they reached the stadium and stepped onto the field.

"Today is day four of the Grand Music Games and already we've seen fierce competition," Chapati called to the raving crowd. "Will today's competition decide the outcome of the games, or will we see a heated battle to the very end?"

"Hmm, I think the most important guilds to watch are Fairy Tail and Saber Tooth, but I couldn't say who will win," Yajima commented.

"I concur with Mr. Yajima," Doranbolt stated. "If this competition had shown us anything, it's that these two guilds are evenly matched." Wendy's brow crinkled at his comment and she surreptitiously looked in Saber Tooth's direction. Their general demeanor was totally changed from yesterday. Gone were the smug guild members, replaced with subdued and somber versions. None of them looked very happy to be there, not even Minerva, whose cheeks were still blotchy and whose lips were turned into a sneer.

"Now, today's competition is the Ensemble Competition, meaning that all of the guild members must participate," Chapati said, bringing notice back to him. "Each guild will perform approximately half an hour of music, after which they will be ranked. Today the points each guild will receive is lower than the previous days. First place will receive five points and then each place will go down in increments of one."

"Performing first," Lahar announced once Chapati's explanation had finished, "is Quattro Cerberus."

It came as no surprise to anyone, including Wendy, when Quattro Cerberus' performance fell absolutely flat. It was half an hour of torture that everyone wished could end roughly five minutes in. Wendy, for her part, wished she could cover her ears but, of course, she just happened to be holding onto her clarinet. She loved music; she really did, but what Quattro Cerberus was playing was anything but music.

Mermaid Heel's performance on the other hand, was like a healing balm to her ears. The all-female guild was graceful and light, but Wendy felt that they lacked a strong bass line from their drums, baritones, and tubas. It made sense, considering that they had mostly performed poorly in those sections on day one. Still, like their experimental performance, it was technically impressive enough to be passable.

Blue Pegasus came next, and their performance was just…odd. It was almost like they couldn't decide whether they wanted to serenade the crowd, emote to the crowd, or just amuse them. It was certainly an interesting collection of music to listen to, but nothing more than that. Wendy shared Juvia's sentiments when the older bluenette called it uninspired. Their entire guild put it behind them as they broke for intermission. When they returned, Lamia Scale was setting up for their performance.

As expected, Lamia was their toughest competition so far. They moved efficiently, with not a note out of place, but at the same time, Wendy could feel the emotion pouring out of the song. This was only aided by their conductor, who Laki called Jura Neekis. He was perfunctory, but at the same time his movements were exuberant and wholly enthralled with the performance. When Lamia Scale stepped down, they were met with wild applause.

Then came Saber Tooth. Wendy watched them closely and noticed that the difference in their attitude was even sharper now. They didn't make a sound as they sat down and many of their eyes were downcast. Sting and Rogue in particular almost looked like they just wanted to walk away. The performance that followed was probably the most lackluster they had given so far. While it certainly sounded fine, there was something missing from their performance, barring the instance where they slipped out of tune. It was like they could no longer work together; like Natsu and Gajeel's victory the day prior had defeated their whole guild. Their performance concluded in the same way and they sulked off the stage.

Fairy Tail moved to the stage soon after and Wendy sat next to Laki, prepared to play. Gildarts raised his conductor's baton and they embarked on their half hour musical journey. Wendy couldn't quite remember such a marathon of music playing. Sure, she had taken part in any number of concerts, but never a continuous half-hour. She was determined to pull through, though. She was surrounded by her guild mates and that gave her strength. She didn't falter once until at last the final note ended and she took a breath of relief.

Once Fairy Tail cleared the stage, the guilds moved to stand next to each other while the judges deliberated and Wendy found herself teetering on her feet when they turned back around.

"In sixth is Quattro Cerberus," Chapati called. "In fifth, Blue Pegasus, fourth is Mermaid Heel, third is Saber Tooth. Second place goes to Fairy Tail while Lamia Scale receives first for such an uplifting performance."

Chatter ascended through the crowd at Saber Tooth's rank but Wendy hardly cared. Neither did the rest of Fairy Tail. Their whole guild moved to glance at the scoreboard shining above them.

1st: Fairy Tail 53 pts

1st: Saber Tooth 53 pts

3rd: Lamia Scale 48 pts

4th: Blue Pegasus 30 pts

5th: Mermaid Heel 29 pts

6th: Quattro Cerberus 12 pts

"I guess that's what we get for not practicing with Gildarts the whole week," Romeo commented. "Still, we're tied for first place!"

"Yeah!" Wendy cried, giving him a high five. Suddenly, she felt a tap on her shoulder.

"Hey, I just got a text from my dad," Lucy said. "He says we're all going to lunch together. You can come, too, Romeo, if you're not busy."

"On your dad's jewel? I'm there," Romeo said cheerily. The three woodwinds joined the exodus from the stadium and met up with Natsu at the guild hall where they put their instruments away before departing for the camp entrance.

"Who's this young man?" Jude asked as soon as he caught sight of Romeo.

"Oh, that's just Romeo," Lucy dismissed but her father still looked concerned. "He's just a guild member and Wendy's future boyfriend."

"Lucy!" yelled the two mentioned persons, each wearing a blush. Lucy just laughed while her father shrugged in acceptance. Wendy silently fumed but noticed that Romeo had somehow retreated to Natsu's side.

"So, this is odd, dad," Lucy started up. "You almost never take any of us out to eat."

"Well, I was in a celebratory mood, and I have an announcement to make," Jude replied.

"Ooh, what kind of announcement, Papa Heartfilia?" Natsu asked. A small scowl passed over Jude's face.

"Don't call me that, Natsu," he reprimanded. He suddenly stopped and turned to the four musicians. "The Heartfilia Railways Board of Directors has made a decision regarding the funds to the Music Program. Should Fairy Tail win the Games and the Program wins all their competitions this marching season, we plan to donate a certain amount." Shared glances passed between the Fairy Tail members.

"What kind of amount?" Jude took a breath and smiled before answering.

"A grand total of one hundred million Jewel."

Author's Note: There we go. This was a difficult chapter to write. Anyway, next chapter is the end of Act 2, so I'm sure you'll all want to stay tune. On the note of Lucy's dad: I didn't want to make him this horrible guy so I went with the improved relationship that Lucy started having with him before he kicked the bucket. Anyway…New chapter was hilarious, wasn't it? Pantherva confirmed (or Minerlily)! Ha ha…If this chapter was so funny, I'd hate to see what we'll get socked with in the near future (that's a lie). Also, this week's episode was fantastic! Better pacing with one chapter than with two! Well, whatever. Let me know what you think, Review, and Dare to Be Silly.