ALRIGHT!
I finally got all the shipping names. Please PM me your thoughts on how I'm doing with the romance. I suck at romance and love getting PMed, so don't be shy! ^.^
Dante+Maryanna= Mante
Mason+Mirajane=Mara
Mason+Erza=Merza
Mason+Synnova= Mannova
When Mason woke up, he was in a Ragnarok prison cell.
"You're awake, excellent." Someone who was leaning over him commented. He got up, black hair swaying, and walked several paces away from him before turning to face him. It took him several seconds to place the face, and when he did Mason instantly wanted to escape. He tried to move, but he was secured firmly. His elbows, nothing. Wrists, hands, bicep, nothing could move. He turned to see his arms nailed sideways along the wall, over ten thick nails holding it in place. Blood started streaming out of it profusely.
Mason yelled, desperately tugging at his crude bindings.
"Your suffering pleases me." Sebastian commented coolly, reaching for a black object. It was a taser. He shot it at Mason and it struck him it in the chest, the electricity stiffened Mason's body and making him spasm uncontrollably.
He stopped for a moment, the residue electricity still coursing through Mason's veins. He twitched and shifted uncontrollably and struggled to meet the light mages eyes. When he did, he slowly saw another figure approach.
"We will soon see how strong your resolve truly is." Sebastian grinned cruelly before pulling the figure into view, revealing Mirajane.
"Don't bring her into this!" Mason pleaded. He didn't care how he looked in front of Sebastian; he couldn't hurt Mira just to get to him.
Sebastian ginned, grabbing a small knife from his belt. He wrapped an arm around Mira to hold her in place, the blade flashed with movement and-
Mason writhed in bed again, wrapping the blankets around him.
Mira leaned in closer, gripping her slim hand around his firmly. She knew her firm grip probably didn't register in his mind, but it brought her some comfort if anything.
She watched as his jaw clenched tightly, tendons in his neck stuck out and sweat began to cover his body. He kicked under the sheets and Mira's face became shrouded with guilt. It was her fault he was in this situation now; he had gone through what she should have.
Her hand slowly left his grasp as she leaned back in her chair. She sobbed several times, but fell asleep before she could let a tear fall.
000
Mason woke up hot. Strange, the cell was usually wet and damp. He stretched his shoulders, but found them lying on something. He frowned in confusion; his hands were by his sides. Where was he?
He slowly opened his eyes, they were flooded by light.
Light, he had not felt light in many hours. In the cell they had thirty minutes of light in the morning, but it soon disappeared and never made contact with his skin.
He moved his hands, feeling soft fabric. Probably cotton. He grabbed it and pulled it to his face, revelling in the blankets soft feeling.
He sat up with much complaint from his chest. Remembering his injuries, he looked down at his chest. His hand reached down and pulled up a gray t-shirt to reveal the injury. It was completely healed, its only remnant being a large pink scar. The middle of it was exactly where his ribcage split, it stretched nearly to his nipples. Its shape was somewhere between a star and a blast mark, large spikes protruding from it. It was pink and shiny; its texture was smooth as if it was stretched tightly.
"Mira?" He noticed her, asleep in a chair beside him. The noise had come out as barely more than a croak, but its tone was recognizable.
"Mason!" She shot awake so fast he doubted she was actually asleep. She instantly wrapped him and pulled him into a deep bear hug.
"Mira!" he cried.
"Yes Mason, I'm-"
"You're hurting me." He cut her off, and she promptly set him back down. Her tight hug had been practically impaling his fresh scar tissue and it had hurt quite badly.
"Synnova..." He said quietly, recalling his last known memory.
"Yes. Synnova came to find you. Heck, half of Fairy Tail burst down the doors looking for you." Mirajane answered with a sad smile. A genuine grin broke out on Mason's face. He settled down on the bed feeling a mix of pride, inclusion and gratitude.
"Where am I?" He asked next, eying the unfamiliar room.
"In the guild. It has spare rooms along the bottom floor." She frowned at him, surprised he didn't recognize it. She might not have frowned if she knew the drama of the torture as wearing off.
"I'm so sorry Mason." Mira cut off any intention he had of talking. Her voice took on a guilty tone and she continued, looking down in shame. "It's my fault that you were captured. I can't believe what they did-" She cut herself off, taking a shaky breath before trying again. "Your injuries are- th-they're..." She couldn't hold it in and burst out in tears, covering her eyes in a desperate attempt to hold them back.
Mason raised his palms to his face, oblivious to the misery going on two feet away from him. He inspected the ugly scars, each of shaped like a splat mark and appearing on both sides of his palms. He flexed his fingers, all of them. He had regained use of the ones he lost use of in the Ragnarok cell.
"Amazing..." He muttered, inspecting the scars.
"M... Mason... Thank you so much..." Mira sniffed, but regained us of most of her voice. "Ev-very second I see you like this I... I wish it was me instead. I hate to see you like this... But I'm-m honored that you chose to take my place... Worthy to be S-class in my opinion..." Mason's face lit up and Mira smiled, knowing that he was at least listening. "Words fail to describe how thankful I am... And how much I respect you, how much everyone respects you..." Mira began to cry softly. "Thank you so much..."
"Does the guild like me?" Mason asked suddenly.
At first she looked confused, but then she smiled sadly. It had taken her a moment to realize he was still in slight shock, and wasn't thinking straight. "Mason... What you did, the guild... You did it for all of them." Tears came to her eyes, once more brimming over. "Of course they like you."
"What about Natsu?" He asked next.
"Of course Natsu likes you." She snorted, despite her current emotions. "Natsu liked everyone. I think he's even starting to think of you as a brother."
"How about Erza?" Mason continued.
"I think she has a crush on you." Mirajane said as she wiped a tear, regaining some humor.
"How 'bout you Mira?" Mason turned to her. "Your's opinion's the one I care about."
"Mason, maybe you should go back to sleep. You need your rest." Mira looked down with a small smile. "Of course I like you. You-" Familiar thoughts burst into her head and tears moistened her eyes again "Y-you need rest."
She leaned forward slowly, hovering over Mason. Her face nearly pressed against his, she could see every detail of his face. Her lips fell forward further, heading for Mason's own pair. She quickly recovered and placed her full lips against his forehead before scurrying out of the room.
000
Mason's eye's blinked awake, inspecting the room. He looked towards the empty chair in the room should have been, but it definitely wasn't vacant. Dante sat in the chair. His expression exploded with happiness at the sight of his best friend. He noticed a new scar on his arm and a sword strapped to his back, but it barely registered in his mind compared to his companion.
Maryanna sat across his lap, her legs dangling off the side off the chair. Her arms hung loosely around his neck and her head lay softly on his shoulder. They both dozed, snoring quietly.
"Dante, when I wake up..." He began, laying down on the bed and feeling the clutches of sleep grab him. "I swear I'm gonna tear you a new asshole."
000
"Hey. Kid." A strong hand shook his shoulder slightly, summoning Mason's awareness. His eyes slipped open, focusing on a person he didn't know. It was a single lone person, the only one in the room.
He was a young man, about twenty-one. His chin was perfectly clean-shaven; he also had a sharp nose and defined features. His hair was dark brown, nearly black, and cut short, left messy and in all directions. His eyes were the exact color of his hair, and they had a soft and welcoming air about them.
"You wanna eat or not?" The man smiled a small smirk, lifting a bowl of soup. Mason's face softened with realization.
"You cut your hair Paro. It looks better" He answered, shifting into a sitting position and taking the bowl.
"You look better too, kid." He smiled rapidly back, ruffling Mason's hair to match his own.
"It's good to see you! How'd you get here?" Mason said, a look of true happiness forming on his face.
"You don't remember?' he asked, pulling up a chair. "Your friend with the white hair was dragging you out of there and you kept telling her to go back for me." He smiled and looked down with something that almost resembled awkwardness. "Thanks kid, I owe you one. I'd still be in there if it wasn't for you."
"Your arm!" Mason shot up, jostling his soup dangerously, although no broth fell out. The arm in question had a familiar looking design poking out from Paro's shirt. Paro smiled, pulling up the sleeve of his t-shirt to reveal a dirt brown Fairy Tail guild mark.
"When did you join?" Mason asked eagerly. He had been shirtless in the Ragnarok prison cell, so he knew he wasn't already a member.
"My sister convinced me." He said with a smile, emphasizing and speaking the word "sister" loudly. In what Mason now recognized as on cue, a familiar brown-haired female entered.
"Cana!" Mason exclaimed, elated to see another guildmate. He set the soup on a side table; all hopes of starting it banished, and slung his legs around the bed, letting them hit the floor.
Wordlessly, she wrapped him in a light hug, having been warned the dangers of bear hugs by Mira. Mason returned it, although confused. He had never overly associated with Cana, but she was acting like he was a good friend.
"Glad to have you back..." She breathed quietly. She broke the hug and snatched his hand before it could fall on the bed. She wrapped her soft fingers around it, felling it between her fingers as if it was clay she wished to shape.
"What happened?" she asked, moving her hands out of the way and revealing his scar.
Mason surprised himself by snatching his hand away and tucking it into his chest, a look of a cornered animal flashing across his face.
"Sorry." She muttered an apology, returning her hands to her sides.
"You see," Paro interrupted the awkward moment. "When we were young, our parents split up. I went with our father and Cana stayed with our mother. When Cana joined Fairy Tail, I still lived with Father. I would go on missions with him, but I wasn't a member of Fairy Tail. Ragnarok attacked my father and I several months ago, that's when I was captured."
"Gildarts told us you were dead..." She grabbed his arm and hugged her taller brother tightly.
"That's what he thought." Paro answered, wrapping the arm around her. "Ragnarok made him believe that as they did me for him. I can't wait until he gets back from his mission."
"Oh Mason, everyone will be so happy to know your awake!" Cana exclaimed, pulling away from her sibling and shooting out the door.
"You two do look alike." Mason commented at her fleeing form.
"You know your other white-haired friend? The bartender one?" Paro ignored him, sitting back down.
"Mirajane." Mason answered.
"Yeah, her. You should thank her. She didn't leave your side since you got here. We all tried to drag her away, but she insisted that she didn't leave your side." He ran his fingers through each other slowly. "Kid, she was crying... lots... Do you know anything about that? I felt like I should have helped, but I didn't know what to do."
Mirajane... Mason squinted his eyes, a foggy picture of her in this very same room shifting in and out of his focus. Was she sad? Happy? Was it a memory or just a realization?
His body stiffened. Faint breath against his lips, a soft touch against his forehead, a lingering tingle while shuffling feet sounded in the distance.
He exhaled and loosened his body, confused at the strange memory that had commanded his attention.
"Hey kid ... you there?" Paro snapped his fingers loudly in front of Mason's eyes.
"Yeah, I'm here. We were fighting Ragnarok, Mira and I, and I got captured. She still blames herself." He answered slowly.
"Still can't believe we got out." Paro muttered. "A greystone place like that..."
"Greystone?" Mason inquired.
"Yeah. It's the stuff the prison was made of. Don't you think I would have gotten out sooner? It's completely resistant to magic, nobody knows why."
Mason squinted again, reaching for his ever-failing memory. The last time he saw Sebastian, when he threatened he would come back one more time, and would kill him if he didn't give in. He shot a blast of light at the floor, but it didn't leave a scratch.
"Makes sense." Mason answered simply.
000
"Guys!" Cana exclaimed. She leaned on a table heavily, having sprinted to the main room. "Mason's awake!"
A intangible murmur went through the crowd, several yells erupted from different points in the crowd. From the lowest reaction, Laxus looking up momentarily before looking back down, to the craziest expressions, Dante hurdling tables to get to his room, everyone was happy, except for Mira.
Lisanna had been comforting her with increased trouble at a isolated table in the corner. At the mention of Mason, tears began to well in her eyes again. Lisanna spoke to her soothingly, but she moaned once and she was back at crying.
"Miss me?" A voice asked. Everyone died down instantly, looking to the source. Paro was walking slowly towards the guild hall with Mason's arm draped around his shoulders. The Gravity Mage walked cautiously; afraid another pain would split through his chest as it had when he first walked alongside Paro.
"Mason!" Dante screamed loudest, leaping over a table like a gazelle and bursting over to his friend. The guild erupted in agreement, although most not as extravagant.
"They wouldn't let me go and see you dammit. They only let me watch over you while you slept." He said, wrapping his arms around Mason. He curved his chest backwards, carefully not making contact.
"We had to tie him down, actually." Maryanna said, pulling beside him.
"Maryanna." Mason breathed, smiling at the sound of her soft voice. One arm left Dante and wrapped around her, pulling into a team hug.
"Mason, you idiot. I heard you jumped into a crowd of mages alone." Dante scolded playfully.
"Glad to see your alive too, Dante." Mason chuckled in return.
"Oh!" Dante remembered suddenly. He pulled away form his two friends and took the sheath off his back, showing Mason the fine weapon.
"When'd you get that?" Mason asked, taking the fine weapon gently. "What's this, a spatha?"
"Yup. You know that Card Mage we fought at the party?" Dante began. Mason nodded, having been a spectator to the event. "I killed that fucker, stole his sword too."
"Mason." Before Mason could answer, Cana called for his attention and the bluenette and pinkette retreated. Cana led a short girl of about nine with blue hair towards him. "This is Wendy. She's the one who healed your wounds."
Mason lowered to a squat so he could look normally at the short girl. "Thank you Wendy." He smiled, showing her his hands. "You did a great job."
"I-it's no problem." The girl stuttered, looking away and fidgeting with her hands nervously.
Mason chuckled at the young girl's act of nervousness, rising to his full height.
"You're tall." She commented suddenly, bending her neck back to look at him.
"Mason!" Natsu and Gray approached him and he wrapped both of them in hugs.
"I'd better get that damn money, we did a damn fine job of protecting the Mayor." Mason joked, making Natsu laugh.
"Mason." Erza said, yet another person calling his name for his attention. "I'm glad to see you're in good condition. I ap-pologize," Erza pursed her lips, blinking profusely. "For putting you in that position."
"Oh Erza, you softie!" Mason exclaimed, wrapping her in a bear hug. He tried to ignore the pain that her armor caused him and listen to everyone's laugh.
The crowd shifted and suddenly split, making room for a short person to enter its epicentre.
"Master." Mason breathed, smiling. He dropped Erza and ran over to the Guild Master.
"Mason, walk with me please." He said formally, Mason nodded eagerly and followed him outside.
"How are you feeling?' Makarov asked as they stepped outside. His hands held each other behind his back and he walked with a purpose.
"Just fine Master. I can't put pressure on my wounds though."
"Hmph." Makarov grunted. "You'll have to get Wendy to look at that for you." Mason nodded and they walked beside each other to a large city park. A large bridge. They were silent as they crossed the bridge, finding the entire park lacking a person.
"Son," He stopped at the peak of the bridge, turning to Mason. "I'd like to commend you for your bravery. I can't begin to imagine the horrid events that took place in your absence, but I think you deserve to know you were first in our minds the entire time.
"Thanks Master..." Mason answered awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Son, you know what I'm going to ask. Erza told me about what you knew, I'd just like to tell you that it is perfectly fine if you did tell-"
"You know what?" Mason smiled broadly, leaning against the side of the marble bridge. "I held through every agonizing moment of the hell-hole waiting to answer that question. To answer no, that I held strong, and to see if you'd be proud of me. I swore on my honour as a part of the Fairy Tail family that I wouldn't tell, and I didn't."
Makarov's lip quivered slightly as they slowly broke into a grin. "Of course I'm proud of you, son." Mason was surprised at his new name, but didn't mention it. "I'm glad you're in Fairy Tail, son. I think Fairy Tail is the place you belong."
"Master..." Mason smiled, rubbing his neck. "I don't know what to say."
"I can see it Mason." He answered, turning away. The back of his cloak was visible, revealing a fancy blue circle. "You have gone through much pain for your fellow guild members, and for that Ragnarok will pay. But for now, we must worry about you. Know forever that you're a proud member of the Fairy Tail family. Your pain is our pain, and your happiness is our happiness, it sheds off onto one another."
"Thank you, Master." Mason dropped onto a knee suddenly. He smiled like a maniac, he just couldn't help himself. "For letting me into Fairy Tail, I can't fathom how lucky I am to be part of such a family."
Mason couldn't help himself. He leaned over and hugged Master Makarov.