Characters belong to Hiro Mashima
"Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire; it is the time for home." ― Edith Sitwell
day 12 - mistletoe
If you had asked Precht Gaebolg what he thought of winter and holiday times a year ago, or even a few months ago, he would've answered indifferently. To him they were no different than any other time of the year. He would occasionally get caught up in the spirit of the winter days, especially after meeting Warrod and Yuriy. He didn't like the holidays, and he didn't dislike the holidays.
If you asked Precht Gaebolg what he thought of the holidays after meeting a certain girl on a certain island, he would say that that particular time of year was beginning to wear down on him. At first he had found Mavis's enthusiasm about winter amusing, but one person could only take so much garland.
And as he opened the door to the guildhall that morning, something made him stop in his tracks. Maybe it was the overbearing scent of pine. Maybe it was the little shining lights that were no doubt a creation of Mavis's magic. Maybe it was the ribbons that hung down from the top of the threshold and smacked his face as he crossed it.
Or maybe it was the fact that the guildhall looked as if the holiday spirit had puked on it.
Sidestepping a box overflowing with wreaths and ribbons, Precht made his way over to the bar. He glared at a ribbon that had wound itself around his leg and angrily shook it off as he took a seat.
"What," he ground out, "the hell is all of this?"
From his usual place behind the bar, Warrod glanced over at Precht wearily. Even the usually bright and cheerful man seemed tired and worn out; a sign that something was amiss in the guild. Warrod glanced around, and, deciding that no unwanted people would overhear him, leaned across the bar to speak to Precht.
"Nightmares."
Precht raised an eyebrow, looking at his friend incredulously. "Nightmares?"
"Nightmares," Warrod said again, leaning back. "Mavis has been having nightmares for weeks, apparently, but she just decided not to tell us. Uh," he glanced at Precht sheepishly, "you can't tell her I'm telling you this. Anyway, I guess last night they just became more than she could bear. I woke up to her screaming at the top of her lungs. It took a couple minutes to calm her down, but after I did she spilled. She hasn't slept properly since the middle of fall. She wouldn't tell me what they were about, but I can guess."
The two shared knowing looks and remained silent. "Think she'll be okay?" Precht finally asked. "You look like hell, by the way," he added as an afterthought.
Warrod glared at him dryly before responding. "This is only after one night. If she can deal with it for weeks, this is nothing. I don't know how she can stand to be so cheerful on a few hours of sleep, though. I've already had four cups of coffee and I'm still half dead." He paused for a moment, considering his next words. "I think she'll be okay, eventually. She needs to talk it out with someone though. This," he gestured to the decorated guildhall, "can only do so much. Since she refused to go back to sleep, she suggested putting up some decorations here. She was so shaken up, and I didn't know what else to do so I agreed. That was eight hours ago. We decorated for six hours. Girl's like a machine; she never stopped moving!"
While he was concerned for the girl's well-being, Precht has to smile at the thought of Mavis running around and keeping Warrod up all night.
"Maybe you should go get some sleep," he suggested to Warrod. "I can watch the bar."
Warrod considered the offer for a few seconds before nodding his head in consent. "Okay, but no giving Mavis alcohol. No matter how much she begs."
"Aw, come on, Warrod. That was a one time thing."
"I wouldn't put it past you and Yuriy to not watch the stores again. Maybe I'll just stay here…." He trailed off as Precht dragged him from behind the bar and pushed him towards the back of the guildhall.
"It'll be fine. I'm a responsible adult," Precht assured him.
Warrod was about to reply that his actions stated otherwise when a door closing caught their attention. The door to Fairy Tail's kitchen swung shut as Mavis Vermillion herself walked out. Unlike Warrod, she glowed with health and looked perfectly awake. She hummed to herself as she walked past the bar. Spotting Precht and Warrod, her eyes lit up and she bounded over to them.
Warrod dug his elbow into Precht's side. "See?" He hissed. "How does she manage to look so chipper?"
"Good morning!" Mavis sang when she reached them. "So, Precht, what do you think of the guildhall?"
Shoving all the thoughts nagging at him to ask her if she was okay - she would ask for help when she was read - Precht tried to string together words decent enough to describe the state of the room.
"It's, uh, pretty nice," he said neutrally, glancing around the room and nodding for emphasis. If she noticed anything odd about his reaction, Mavis didn't bother commenting about it.
Instead, she grinned mischievously and looked around the room herself. "You'll have to watch out," she said with a lilt to her words. "There are some...surprises hidden around."
With that she sauntered off again to chat with other guild members sitting about. Precht whirled around to face Warrod.
"What does she mean by 'surprises'?"
Warrod shrugged. "No clue."
"You were here all night while she decorated!"
"You think I paid attention the entire time? I was tired. It's probably just some fancy ornament or something." Warrod yawned and leaned against one of the guildhall's supports. "Nothing to worry about."
Precht glared at Warrod and settled down on a chair at the nearest table. "You always say that, but somehow there's always something to worry about," he replied flatly. The other man shrugged nonchalantly, indifferent to whatever outcome the events would have.
"Well," Warrod began, pushing off the support. "I'm going to go try and catch a few minutes of sleep in the library. If you see Yuriy, tell him he's on dish duty tonight."
Precht was saved the trouble of hunting down Fairy Tail's fourth cofounder as Yuriy walked in on the conversation.
"What about me?" He asked, taking a sip of whatever drink was in his mug.
"Dish duty," Precht informed him.
"Hey, let's fight and whoever loses has to do the dishes." Yuriy was standing next to Precht now, hand extended in order to shake on the bet.
Precht looked at his hand in disgust and pushed it away. "No was in hell," he said, shaking his head. "I'm not risking my immunity. You're on duty, just accept it."
"Come on!" Yuriy whined. "I'll pay you."
Mavis popped up alongside Warrod before Precht could respond, a sweet smile on her face. "Hi, Yuriy!" She beamed, warranting a welcoming grin from him. "I see you guys got my present."
The other three shared quizzical looks with one another. "What present?" Precht ventured. His stomach dropped as Mavis pointed up, and her friends found themselves following her gaze.
Hanging from the ceiling was a small plant, white blossoms stark against the dark green. It was wrapped in a red bow and was positioned precisely over where Precht and Yuriy were standing.
Warrod looked at the plant then back at his two friends, and took a large step away from the scene. If he hadn't been awake before, he sure was now. Precht and Yuriy continued to stare up dumbfoundedly, while Mavis stood by with a satisfied grin on her face.
"How did she even get that up there?" Yuriy asked in amazement, still gazing at the mistletoe.
"Warrod," Precht said lowly.
Putting his hands up in surrender, Warrod shook his head in denial; although he couldn't help the grin that was beginning to spread across his face. "Don't look at me, I had nothing to do with it."
"It's a holiday tradition," Mavis edged in, revelling in Precht and Yuriy's uncomfortable expressions. "Are you going to kiss or not?"
Both men glanced at each other, a mutual understanding seen in their eyes. They looked at Mavis and slowly began backing away.
"Well, you see," Yuriy began.
"We actually have a mission today, and we're going to be late," Precht supplied. After a few heartbeats they both turned and bolted for the main doors, Mavis right on their heels. The trio could be heard shouting and causing a ruckus even as they ran farther and farther away from the building.
Warrod chuckled to himself as he watched his friends run off. He yawned again but pushed his tiredness aside. Yeah, he thought to himself, returning to his position behind the counter, she'll be fine.
A/N: Not sure if anyone follows me on tumblr, but if you do, you'll already know that I had a busy weekend, which is why nothing's been posted for a few days. (I felt too tired to write anything decent on Monday, so that day was scrapped too). But here's day 12! (finally) Another reason this is late is because I ran into a minor writer's block, so excuse the quality of this drabble (or lack thereof). Comment and review!
vermilioun . tumblr . com
**I will be continuing to post the prompts in numerical order without regard to the actual day of the month. If I can catch up to the actual day I will, but I will most likely just continue to write into January
