Kyandi: Hey everyone, I'm back!
Rette: She's been lazing about.
Kyandi: Motivation has been a little low for me.
Rette: Which is why she has two more chapters after this, just waiting to be posted.
Kyandi: Yeah...it's been a crappy two weeks, sorry.
Rette: If you're sorry, then let us just get to it.
Kyandi: Right! Everyone enjoy and review.
Rette: Kyandi-sama does not own Fairy Tail.
Chapter 14 Day Two
Day two found Rette, once more, standing among her guild mates, watching as the contest portion of the day started.
Chariot.
Rette, upon hearing the name of the contest, knew it probably had something to do with moving chariots. Something she would avoid like the plague. Despite the assumption being something of common logic, both Natsu and Gajeel stepped forward to take part in the competition, along side Sting from Sabertooth. Rette soon became convinced that her ailment was common place for strong Dragon Slayers. A marker of strength, per say.
"This competition consist of reaching the goal without falling off from the interconnected chariots." Chapati announced.
"But this isn't just some regular race!" Yajima added.
Today's guest announcer was Jason from Sorcerer Weekly and he seemed to be over excited for the contest. Rette, knowing what kind of person Jason was, was sure he would be even more so before the end of the day.
"The chariots underfoot are constantly in motion, so even a moment of carelessness will prove to be your undoing. They pass through the major sightseeing locales of Crocus. Which team will be the first to arrive at the goal, here at the Domus Flau!?" Chapati added. "We will be transmitting images from the race to everyone here at the arena through lacrimavision."
Rette, like all of her guild mates, was horrified with the display her two competing guild mates were putting on. While the others stared in wide eyed horror, Rette dropped her face into one hand with a sigh and shook her head. It was so unslightly. Through the lacrimavision screens provided for the audience, they could see Natsu running, very slowly and sluggishly, looking like he was about to be sick. Just ahead of him, suffering from the same motion sickness, was Gajeel and, to everyone's surprise, Sting.
"Trailing at the back, far, far from the lead, Fairy Tail A's Natsu is in a groggy state! And that's not all. Right next to him, Fairy Tail B's Gajeel and even Sabertooth's Sting are in the same condition." Chapati announced.
"What's happening? Why is Gajeel..." Lily trailed off.
"Stop taking Natsu's character!" Happy cried.
"Even the guy from Sabertooth..." Levy mused.
"It has to be a Dragon Slayer thing. A strength marker perhaps." Rette remarked, heaving a sigh. "At least I can somewhat function and appear unfazed."
"Maybe Natsu and Gajeel are just stronger." Levy said.
"No. That's not it. I proved I could beat Natsu. I've just had seven years to perfect my poker face." Rette told her simply.
Everyone turned to look at Rette with her look of indifference. Poker face was an understatement. Rette ignored them, focusing on the lacrima screens. Raven Tail's Kurohebi was in the lead and had already made it almost to the arena while the three Dragon Slayers of the group of participants where still close to the starting point. Behind Kurohebi, in a little pack, came Ichiya, Yuka, Risley from Mermaid Heel, and just behind them was a hiccuping Bacchus. Yuka, using his magic to boost him into second place, also managed to cut off any use of offensive magic in those just behind him.
Risley avoided it by using her gravity transportation magic to run along the side of the chariot, leaving Ichiya to deal with the effects of Yuka's magic. Rette frowned slightly when Ichiya, to counter the nullifying effects, stuck vials of his perfume magic, straight into his nose, giving himself a boost of speed that allowed him to passed Yuka. Rette was impressed when Bacchus, to even the playing field, stomped a foot down on the chariot that he stood on...destroying it.
The chain reaction sent connected chariots flying into the air, knocking about Ichiya, Rinsley, and Yuka. With the three thrown about, Bacchus, laughing like a loon, took the lead, even shooting past Kurohebi. With a slide, Bacchus broke through the finish line, earning Quatro Cerberus first place and ten points. Kurohebi came in second, just behind him with Risley in third, Yuka in fourth, and Ichiya in fifth. That just left Natsu, Gajeel, and Sting. The three, despite their condition, traded verbal blows, Natsu and Gajeel refusing to lose while Sting insisted that even if they finished before him, Sabertooth could win back the points easily.
Gajeel and Natsu pulled ahead of Sting, surprising him with their determination to finish. Rette watched the screens as they zeroed in on the three.
"Can I ask you just one thing?" Sting asked. "Why did you guys enter the Games? This would have been unthinkable for the Fairy Tail of the past. Only once has Fairy Tail come close. Worrying about the strength of the guild, or worldly things like this. The Fairy Tail I know...well...how to say it...does things at its own pace. Without worrying about how others might think."
"It's for our comrades. For seven years...always...they were waiting for us...no matter how tough it was. No matter how sad. Even if they were made fools of, they endured and endured and protected the guild. Its for Rette."
Rette looked up when Natsu said her name, surprised that he had singled her out. Normally he didn't pay much attention to individual effort.
"She's fought and worked hard, busting her ass for the guild. She supported them, protected them, has given up a lot for the guild. And even though she's tired, is completely worn out, and we're home, she's still working harder and harder, refusing to step down until she knows for sure we can handle it. For our comrades we'll show you. To show Rette she doesn't have to do it alone anymore. The proof that Fairy Tail has kept going! And that's why we'll keep moving forward!" Natsu declared, sending their guild mates into a fit of tears.
"Oh, Natsu..." Rette said lowly.
She was touched. Natsu acted thick headed, like he didn't understand others' feelings. She had never expected him of all people to pick up on just how tired she was. They were fighting for the guild, of course, to redeem them, but they were also fighting to show Rette that she didn't have to bare the burden alone.
Not anymore.
Pushing themselves, Natsu and Gajeel finished in sixth and seventh place, earning two points for Fairy Tail A and one point for Fairy Tail B, tying them in last place with two points each. With this display of determination, the crowd turned in favor of Fairy Tail, impressed with the lengths they were willing to go to. It even reduced Makarov to tears. Even though it was such a small amount of points, Rette was proud of the two. Because of Sting coming in last and Kurohebi coming in second, Raven Tail passed Sabertooth to take first, dropping Sabertooth to second place.
Rette didn't imagine that Jiemma was too happy about that.
Lucy took Natsu to Porlyusica and the day moved on to the battle portion of the events. First match of the day featured Kurohebi against Toby. Even not knowing the strength of Kurohebi first hand, just sensing his magic verses Toby's was enough for Rette to know they were poorly matched. Toby attacked, but no matter how he tried to hit Kurohebi, the other man was just too slippery. With another swing of Toby's paralyzing claws, Kurohebi let himself fall backwards onto the ground, only to seemingly vanished. Toby was surprised, Jura calling out to him that it was mimicry magic.
Rette whistled lowly, her guild mates wincing, as Kurohebi popped up out of the sand, using Max's own Sand Rebellion magic to attack Toby.
"That's my magic!" Max complained.
"He can use individual magic abilities with mimicry, huh." Laki remarked.
"Mimicry. That's a rare magic." Mavis said lowly from where she sat beside Rette.
"Copying one individual spell without learning the whole magic...it's difficult. If I could have gotten by with just that...my life would have been easier and my list of magic spells longer." Rette mused, her eyes fixed on the match.
On the other side of Mavis, Makarov and Romeo were cheering on Toby, telling him to smash Kurohebi, if for no other reason than he was from Ivan's guild. In the arena, Toby, a person so easily angered, found out that Kurohebi wasn't his real name and demanded that, if he won, Kurohebi tell him his real name. In return, if Kurohebi won, Toby had to tell him his big secret. Rette had a feeling that it would be a ridiculous secret. Toby didn't seem like the deep kind of person. Almost instantly after this wager was struck, Kurohebi won the match.
When asked what his secret was, Toby replied that it was his socks, that he couldn't find one of them and hadn't been able to for three months. Rette couldn't believe how idiotic Toby could be considering he was wearing one of the socks on his foot and the other around his neck, clipped to a necklace. Toby, though, was so choked up about it, that he was reduced to a slobbering mess of tears. Kurohebi simply tapped his chest, gesturing for Toby to look down at his own. Toby was happy to have found his sock...until Kurohebi took it from him and ripped it to shreds.
Though it was a stupid thing to have gotten choked up over, it had been important to Toby. For Kurohebi to have simply shredded it, knowing how bad Toby had felt about simply losing it...it was a bit cruel. The only sound in the stadium was the laughter of Kurohebi's teammates.
"That was needlessly cruel." Rette remarked. "Which about sums up that guild."
Makarov and Mavis agreed with Rette.
"Well...let's compose ourselves and move on to the second match of the day. Quatro Cerberus-Bacchus!" Chapati announced. "Against Fairy Tail A's...Elfman"
"It's all over!" Wakaba and Macao said together.
"Don't say mean things like that!" Lisanna yelled at them.
"She's right. Elfman may not be strongest or brightest of us all, but he has a lot of heart and the same determination as everyone else competing. He can do it if he persist." Rette told them.
Lisanna jumped at her, hugging her in thanks for standing up for Elfman. What could Rette say? She had a soft spot for the Strauss siblings. They had taken her in and treated her like one of them since she had joined the guild. Though her surname was different, they had adopted her as their sister and Rette was always happy to back up her sort-of adopted brother.
Elfman met Bacchus, who was laying on the ground, down in the arena. When he neared Bacchus, the drunkard spoke.
"Hey...why don't we make a bet like those guys just now?" Bacchus asked, catching Elfman's attention. "Your big sister and little sister are some real beauties. I heard that you have a newly adopted sister, too, that's a beauty as well...If I win, lend them to me for a night. All three of them at once."
Elfman was instantly pissed off. There was no quicker way to spark his temper than to have someone be so disrespectful about his sisters, Rette included. Lisanna made a disgusted face, while Rette blinked. She wasn't quite sure how to react to that one, but why, exactly, had she been dragged into it? Yes, she was basically their adopted sister, but this man was crazy if he thought the three of them would let him do as he pleased even if he did win.
"And if you win...let's see..." Bacchus mused, sitting his alcohol gourd aside.
"Man..."
Bacchus looked up at Elfman in questioning when the word left his mouth. Elfman's fist clenched tightly at his side.
"As a man, there are things I can't forgive, you hunting dog. I'll tear you apart." Elfman declared.
"I'm glad we could come to an agreement. My soul is shaking." Bacchus replied.
The match started out so one-sided that it was hard to believe that Elfman was going to win. Rette, at this point, wasn't too pleased.
"If Elfman loses, not only am I going to beat and castrate that dog, I'm going to knock the crap out of Elfman." Rette remarked.
Those of her guild mates around her, stepped back. None of them wanted to step in the way of Rette's war path. Especially not the guys if she was looking to castrate someone.
"Do you really think he'll lose?" Lisanna asked Rette.
Rette glanced at Lisanna who stood beside her, watching her brother with a worried expression on her face. Rette's annoyance drained away when she saw the look on Lisanna's face. She heaved a sigh before reaching out to lay a hand on top of Lisanna's head, stroking it as she did to Asuka when she cried. Lisanna looked at Rette.
"I meant what I said earlier, Lisanna. Elfman will prevail, I promise. If there's one thing I know about him, it's that he cannot abide disrespect to his sisters. You and Mira mean the world to him. He'll win this match, even if he has to go down doing so." Rette told her.
Lisanna smiled brightly, nodding at Rette's words.
"He cares about you, too, Rette" Lisanna assured her.
"Oh, I'm not worried about myself. That Bacchus would be dog meat if he tried to approach me. Deal or no deal." Rette replied.
They turned back, watching the fight. From the looks of it, Bacchus felt like he had the match in the bag and would get to spend a night of dreams with Mira, Lisanna, and Rette. Lisanna gripped her hands together, watching in concern for her brother. Rette's mouth twisted slightly as she watched. While she trusted Elfman, this match was a little more one-sided than she'd like it to be.
"It'll be fine. He's a guy that comes through when it counts." Evergreen assured Lisanna and Rette.
"Yeah!" Lisanna agreed.
"I know." Rette said with a nod.
They watched as Elfman transformed into Weretiger, which was a speed-type takeover. But even with the added speed, he wasn't able to lay a claw on Bacchus. Rette, who had heard about Bacchus from Erza and from past Games, knew why.
"What's with him!?" Jet asked.
"His attacks aren't hitting at all!" Droy added.
"It's Bacchus. His magic is a type that focuses his magical energy into his palms. Erza said it was a relatively orthodox magic, but you wouldn't see me trying to learn it. He mastered a martial art that allowed him to use this magic to its fullest potential...the Hanging-Chop Fist. It's a martial art that specialized in stances that make effective use of mostly palm strikes. Bacchus has added improvements to the style and created a drunk Hanging-Chop Fist." Rette remarked.
"Improvements?" Max asked.
"When you're drunk, your muscles have a flexibility, a fluidity, that they don't normally have. If you've ever watched a drunken man walking down the road, you'll noticed that no matter how much they may sway one way or the other, you can't predict which way they'll fall. Not to mention that you lose that limiter that your brain naturally puts on your strength so you don't injure yourself. By being drunk, Bacchus as increased his unpredictability and his power. So far though...he hasn't touched his alcohol gourd." Rette pointed out.
"So you mean..."
"Bacchus isn't even trying right now." Rette said, when Macao trailed off. "But he will. Elfman will make him work for his victory before snatching it away. That's how strong Elfman's will and determination is."
Despite Rette's confident declaration, Elfman hit the ground after another attack from Bacchus. Rette would put her faith in Elfman because she knew, without a doubt, that if the tables had been reversed, he would have put his in her. Elfman got back to his feet, a grin on his face as he faced Bacchus.
"It hasn't been decided yet, hunting dog. The wager...in the event that I win." Elfman said.
"It's absolutely hopeless already...fine, say whatever you want." Bacchus replied.
"If I win...the name of your guild...will be Quatro Puppy for the rest of the Games." Elfman replied.
A small, cut off laugh escaped Rette before she clamped down on it. Even Bacchus laughed and it was his own guild. It was so funny that Bacchus readily agreed with Elfman and bent to pick up his alcohol gourd. He took a large drink, draining it, deciding it was time to end the whole thing. Just as Bacchus attacked, Elfman transformed. Bacchus, sure he had taken Elfman down with that attack, turned and stopped in surprise. Elfman still stood, now in his Beast Soul: Lizardman form, blood decorating his scales from where Bacchus had cut up his hands from attacking him.
"That's...an interesting, if not foolish, strategy. He's going to have Bacchus hurt himself by attacking him. It's now a battle to see which gives out first...Bacchus' hands or Elfman's body. While it's clever considering Lizardman's scales have various spikes, Bacchus' attacks are strong enough to break those hard scales." Rette remarked.
Lisanna latched onto Rette's arm, gripping tightly as they watched. Elfman basically grit his teeth and bore with it as Bacchus repeatedly attacked him. The others of their guild cheered on Elfman. Evergreen even got carried away with her cheering, wrapping an arm around Freed's neck, choking him as she yelled. Rette stood quietly, reaching up to grip one of Lisanna's hands that was wrapped around her arm. Minutes ticked by until both men were exhausted, bloody, and drenched in sweat. Elfman had even reverted back to his normal form.
They both fell to their knees and a hush fell over the crowd as they waited to see who would get back to their feet first. Tears came to Lisanna's eyes as Bacchus was the one that got up.
"Hold on. Don't give up just yet." Rette told them. "Come on...come on..."
Rette could see the wobbling of Bacchus' legs and then, with a grin on his face, Bacchus hit the ground, down for the count. With that, Elfman was declared the victor. With a cheer, Lisanna threw her arms around Rette's neck. Together, along with Cana and Evergreen, they raised a loud cheer for Elfman who threw his arms in the air with a yell of victory.
"Is this cry the beacon of Fairy Tail's rebirth!?" Chapati cheered into the microphone.
Rette took Lisanna's hand and the two and Thyme hurried down to the tunnel leading to the arena. They were allowed to cart Elfman off to their team's medical adviser, Porlyusica. Supporting the big man between them, Freed, Evergreen, and Bixlow behind them, they took him to the medical bay. Natsu, Wendy, Carla, and Porlyusica met them there. While Lisanna and Rette helped the old woman clean and bandage Elfman's wounds, Natsu told them about what had happened with a group of men hired to kidnap Lucy, but had failed and had kidnapped Wendy, Carla, and Porlyusica.
Erza, Lucy, and Gray soon joined them.
"It seems I underestimated Elfman a little bit. But his endurance and strength of will might be unrivaled in our guild. We'll definitely build upon his hard-won victory." Erza remarked.
"To think that Erza would acknowledge him like this." Lucy said.
"Why wouldn't she? Elfman did splendidly. And now I don't have to castrate anyone." Rette said, arms crossed over stomach.
Everyone looked at her, the image of her castrating Bacchus making them all shiver in horror and disgust. None of them had a doubt in their mind that if Elfman had lost, Rette would have done it.
"You were totally rocking, Elfman!" Natsu said, changing the subject.
"Stop it...you guys sound like you're mourning the dead." Elfman remarked from where he lay in bed, bandaged nearly from head to toe.
"Well, being strong has always been his only redeeming feature." Lisanna remarked.
"That's kind of a sad redeeming feature, huh." Natsu said with a laugh.
"Natsu, you don't have room to talk since you're the same." Rette told Natsu as she swatted him in the head.
"But you were really amazing." Wendy assured Elfman.
"It's pathetic, but since I'm in this condition now...the rest is up to you, Wendy!" Elfman told her.
"Well...the next match is starting already, so get going. Observing the enemy is part of the key to victory, you know." Porlyusica said.
"Relax. We, the Thunder Legion, will protect this place." Bicklow said.
"My runes will prevent outsiders from coming in or out." Freed agreed.
"We won't let this place get attacked a second time." Evergreen promised.
"While I highly doubt anyone would be stupid enough to do it a second time, I feel better that the three of you will see to this place's safety." Rette remarked.
With that, Lisanna, Rette, Thyme, and Carla followed Natsu and his team out of the infirmary.
"At any rate...those guys from Raven Tail..their tactics are just so openly dirty." Gray remarked.
"Are they hoping to reduce our battle power one person at a time?" Erza asked.
"Whatever their aim is, they are really starting to spark my temper." Rette said.
"About this incident..some questions still remain." Carla remarked, making them turn to look at her.
"What is it, Carla?" Wendy asked.
"I've already heard the gist of what happened, but...Raven Tail was using some bandit guild to try to capture Lucy. However, they mistook their target, and failed doubly after Natsu went after them." Erza said.
"Doesn't everything make sense?" Lisanna asked.
"Not exactly. Now that Carla mentions it...their method of capture was strange." Rette said, a finger going to her lips for her to bite on the nail.
"What do you mean, Rette?" Lucy asked.
"Among Raven Tail's team, there is a mage that can completely reduce his opponent's magic to zero in an instant. In fact, I'm sure it was him that nullified Lucy's magic in her fight with Flare. I've yet to mistaken a magical energy." Rette said.
"That's right. Master believes that to be the case too." Erza said.
Rette nodded.
"That kind of mage is most suitable for the capture of another mage. With such a guy in their ranks, then why send those bandits without him?" Rette asked.
"Exactly." Carla agreed.
"Isn't that because according to the battle portion's rules, all participants need to be near the battle grounds?" Gray asked.
"According to the rules, the ones selected for battle are unknown until right beforehand." Lisanna agreed.
"It still doesn't make sense to me. If they're so openly dirty with their tactics, why do things in such a round about way?" Rette asked.
"You're over-thinking things, Rette. You and Carla both." Wendy assured her.
"Yeah...as we know, those guys value results over the "methods" that they use to achieve them." Lucy said.
"If you say so..." Rette remarked lowly.
"Well, regardless, if they're trying to target us outside of the arena, for the sake of vigilance, let's try our best that no one be left alone at any given time." Erza ordered.
Rette nodded, though she still didn't feel right. Thyme reached out and pat her cheek, giving her a smile when Rette looked at her. Rette reached up and scratched her ears. She was just glad she had swung by to pick Thyme up that morning before heading to the arena. With that said, they all returned to the arena as the third match was announced.
Fairy Tail B's Mirajane verse Blue Pegasus' Jenny.
While Rette usually looked up to Mira for her power as the She-Devil, what she found...made her embarrassed to call herself a woman.
Instead of a battle, Mira and Jenny had agreed to a battle of modeling swimsuits with the judges picking who won each theme. While all of the men in the crowd were eating it up, Rette dropped her face into one hand. The first couple of rounds involved nothing but bikinis. Then things got worse.
"Not so fast. You don't expect us to just let these bubble headed bimbos, hog all the attention?"
Rette heaved a sigh as three members of the Mermaid Heel team joined Mirajane and Jenny in the arena. Behind them came Cherie and Chelia. All, of course, were wearing bikinis, sending the males of the audience into an uproar.
"Wow. That takes guts, I guess." Levy remarked.
"Why are you ladies just watching from the side lines?" Mavis asked, turning to Rette, Levy, Lisanna, and Cana.
"What do you mean by that?" Levy asked.
"I really don't want to know, because I have the bad feeling that I do know." Rette said, already groaning on the inside.
"Do you think that we should go down there?" Lisanna asked.
"Are we suppose to just always have a swimsuit ready?" Cana asked.
"Cana...you're tops always look like swimsuits." Rette told her.
In agreement, Lisanna and Levy looked down at the red, bikini top-like top that Cana was currently wearing.
"No silly! But you never know what might happen. So you should be ready for anything. I have one for all of you!" Mavis said.
Rette flinched, a very subtle twitch taking over the corner of her left eye as bikinis began to rain from the air over their head, one landing right on Rette. Trying to remain indifferent, Rette removed the swimsuit from her head.
"Do I really have to?" Rette asked.
"Oh, come on, Rette! It's not like your usual outfits are any less revealing!" Cana said, pushing Rette ahead of her to go change.
Rette hung her head, letting Cana push her ahead of her. This was going to be horrible. While Rette was usually very comfortable in her own skin, that didn't mean she liked going out in front of people and purposely posing in next to nothing, just for their entertainment. Cana, though, wasn't going to let her off the hook. So, along side every present female in her guild, Rette ended up in the arena, dressed in gold bikini with purple swirl designs that had low slung, barely there bottoms and a strapless top.
Even little Asuka had come down with her mother in an adorable pink swimsuit.
As the fans went wild, Rette drove the fingers of one hand into her hair, shoving it back from her face. She heaved a sigh as she propped the other hand on her hip. This was ridiculous, but Mira and Jenny didn't seem to have a problem with everyone butting in on their limelight. Chapati called for a wardrobe change, leaving Rette and every other female in school girl swimsuits. Rette didn't know how girls normally wore them, they were so tight around her chest.
The next theme put Rette back in her bikini with sheer white, mess thigh-high stockings edged with gold lace. Rette had only to glance towards the stands and see that pretty much every male in her guild was wide eyed and staring. Some even had bloody noses. Even though it wasn't any less than she normally wore, Rette felt even more exposed. The next theme had her putting on a pair of glasses, tilting the frames down on her nose to peer over the lenses.
As the theme switched again, Rette was about ready to throw something at Chapati for the themes he was suggesting. This theme put her in dark grey cat ears and tail with a little belled collar around her neck. This was only getting worse.
"That look actually suits you, Rette!" Lisanna told her.
"No, it doesn't!" Rette protested.
The next theme was bondage, putting Rette in leather, fish net stockings, and heels that would have broken her neck if she tried to run in them with a whip in hand. A glance up at the males on the two Fairy Tail teams, showed all of them staring down at the arena with wide eyes, as if they couldn't believe what they were seeing. Rette wanted to stick her head in the sand. The way the leather hugged her curves made Rette feel like one wrong move would send everything she had bursting free.
"I never noticed before, Rette, but...you've got one hell of a body." Cana remarked, sneaking up behind Rette to grab her breasts from behind, as she sometimes did to Lucy.
Rette whipped around, cracking the whip in her hand, but Cana easily dodged, a grin on her face when she saw the light blush starting to turn Rette's cheeks pink.
"That isn't funny, Cana!" Rette called after her.
The next theme, really about did Rette in.
The blushing bride.
Rette was going to die. That was all there was to it. She found herself dressed in a white, strapless dress with a sweetheart bodice and an A-line skirt with a delicate layer of lace over top. A short, sheer veil was pinned in her short hair and mid-bicep length, white gloves graced her hands. They were suppose to pair up with a guy. Rette didn't even have the chance to look around at her guild mates before she had Laxus, dressed in a suit, at her side.
"You just jumped at the chance, didn't you?" Rette asked, looking up at him.
Laxus' reply was a grin back down at her. Of course, that grin vanished when another arm suddenly wrapped around Rette's waist, pulling her away from Laxus. Rette twisted, looking up to find Orga standing there, one arm wrapped around her waist and a challenging grin directed at Laxus.
"Orga?" Rette asked.
Orga looked down at Rette and grinned at her, his eyes sweeping her from head to toe. Rette could almost feel the crackling anger coming off Laxus.
"Lookin' good, Rette. You need a partner. How about it?" Orga said.
There was a tug on Rette's arm, pulling her out of Orga's grip and into the hard line of Laxus' body. Laxus wrapped a protective arm around Rette, but his eyes were fixed on Orga.
"Get lost. She's not even from your guild." Laxus told him.
"You don't get that say. She's not your's." Orga replied.
Rette could almost see the sparks flying between the two as they glared at each other. Rette almost felt like a favored chew toy that two dogs were fighting over.
"It doesn't matter. You don't know her." Laxus snapped at Orga.
"Tch! And you do? You've been gone seven years. I've talked to her more than you have in those years." Orga retorted.
The two, getting closer and closer together to glare at each other, were now squeezing Rette between them. Rette could only take so much flashing displays of male ego before she got fed up with it. If they stepped any closer, she was going to become a pancake. Wedging her arms between her body and their's, she shoved, adding a little magic power behind it, sending the two flying back onto their butts out of surprise.
"Why don't you both go take a cold shower." Rette told them, turning on her heel to walk away.
Rette joined Wendy smoothing out wrinkles in the dress. Cana, standing nearby, laughed while Wendy looked up at Rette in concern.
"Something wrong, Rette?" Cana asked.
"Why are men so clueless?" Rette asked.
"You got me." Cana replied.
Rette wish she knew. She had made it clear to Orga that she wasn't going to date him and, while she liked Laxus in general, she wasn't really interested in dating. Her life was too much a mess full of work at the moment. She didn't have the time. She was thankful when the announcers decided to switch back to swimsuits and the guys were sent back into the stands.
They were just about to start when the old master of Lamia Scale, a woman who liked to spin people when angry or annoyed, called that the whole affair was an outrage. Everyone looked up to find her standing on a high perch on one of the statues ringing the arena. She jumped from her perch, claiming she would show all of the females in the arena, what it meant to be a real woman. When she landed in the ring, she threw off her cape, revealing the pink swimsuit and wrinkled skin beneath.
Everyone stared in horror, the whole stadium going silent. Rette clapped a hand over her eyes as Thyme buried her face in Lily's chest so she didn't have to look. That was one way to ruin the mood of the moment.
"And with that crash course in reality, the mood in the arena has been brought back down to Earthland. Party's over folks. The other teams on the field have begun to clear out." Chapati announced, the crowd groaning.
Rette was just glad to get off the field and back into her own clothes. She was glad that was over. While she didn't mind posing for pictures for Sorcerer Weekly, doing that in front of a huge crowd and with some of the themes they had gone through, was embarrassing.
Some of the themes were alright, but others were things no one would ever find in Rette's closet. She was doubly ashamed when Mira and Jenny struck their own deal and decided that the loser would have to appear in a spread of Weekly Sorcerer, naked. The last theme would decide the victor.
The last theme...battle form.
Rette knew, the moment that left Jenny's mouth, that Mira was going to win. Mira used her Sitri form which was the strongest in her arsenal of Takeover forms. Mira claimed that since they had stuck to the theme of the day and had made a deal, they should continue to stick to the theme and end the match in a display of power. With that, she ended the match with one strike.
The event moved on to the last match of the day. Mermaid Heel's Kagura verses Sabertooth's Yukino. Yukino was the only female member of the Sabertooth team and seemed to be a serious young girl, but Rette didn't get a great feeling of power from her. She was surprised that Jiemma had allowed Yukino to take Minerva's place on the team. Kagura on the other hand...just the way she walked out, as if this was nothing more than something to be handle swiftly made Rette feel like she was the strongest of the two.
"Everyone is already well-aware of Kagura's strength. She is the strongest mage in Mermaid Heel and presently a female mage highly favored by Weekly Sorcerer. This is her opponent, Yukino's first appearance here. However by virtue of belonging to the strongest guild Sabertooth, we should be able to look forward to her strength as well." Chapati announced, starting the match.
Rette watched as Yukino bowed respectfully in greeting, Kagura returning it. Yukino started the match off by asking if they, too, should make a bet, but Kagura turned it down, insisting she had no interest and that it was just a form of frivolous entertainment. Yukino offered to make it serious then, by wagering their lives. Kagura accepted the wager then.
With a surprise to Rette, Yukino pulled out a gate key, revealing that she was a celestial mage like Lucy. She summoned the Paired Fish, Pisces. Rette grabbed Happy as he went crazy over the sight of the two large fish that came forth. They attacked Kagura, who jumped out of the way. Yukino quickly followed up the attack by summoning her next spirit, Libra. Those two keys would finish the whole set of golden keys for Lucy, if she had them.
Rette watched as Yukino had Libra alter gravity, bringing a heavy force down on Kagura's shoulders. Pisces then circle back around to attack. Kagura, who had been the one to teach Risley gravity magic, broke free of Libra and dodged the attack. Yukino pulled out a third key. Every key Rette had ever seen had been either silver or gold, but this one...this one was black. She used it to open the gate of the Snake Charmer, the thirteenth door, Ophiuchus. A large, dark colored serpent with a metal lower jaw, came forth and attacked Kagura head on.
Kagura gripped the hilt of her still sheathed blade and met the creature head on. She was able to, without drawing her sword, cut the serpent and beat it, sending it back to the celestial realm before getting up close and personal with Yukino. One strike was all it took to bring Yukino down, winning Kagura the match and leaving Sabertooth with a total of zero points for the day. And with that, Day Two ended.
Rette was going to slip away, to avoid the fanfair of a night of celebration, but Erza caught her and insisted she go with Natsu, Lucy, Happy, Carla, and Wendy. Heaving a sigh, Rette insisted that nothing would be done to her, since she wasn't participating in the Games, but Erza only insisted. Instead of arguing, Rette did as asked and went to the pub with the group. After a lot of food and happy celebration, they finally left.
"Puha! I sure ate." Natsu said as they walked down the street.
"You eat too much." Carla told him.
"Oh you have no idea. He's been this way as long as I've known him." Rette told her.
Carla made a disgusted face and Rette turned forward to where Wendy was asking Lucy where the lodgings were since she had been in the infirmary the last two nights.
"Is everyone in the same room?" Wendy asked.
"This is worst. Natsu snores so loudly...Gray ends up naked before you know it...Erza always crawls into my bed..." Lucy said.
"So glad I'm bunking in another room." Rette remarked.
"Now that you mention it, where are Gray and Erza?" Happy asked.
"Poor Gray..." Carla said with a shrug of her shoulders.
"Let me guess...Lyon showed up to challenge him for Juvia again, didn't he?" Rette asked.
"Yes." Carla replied.
Rette shook her head, Thyme silently laughing behind her paws. She didn't know what was suddenly going on with Lyon, but she kind of felt bad for Gray.
"And Erza?" Natsu asked.
"I haven't seen her, now that you mention it." Lucy said. "She herself was the one that told us not to end up alone, though."
"I highly doubt she's alone. She went to meet up with our masked friend." Rette remarked.
Understanding that she meant Jellal, they dropped that line of conversation. Natsu faced forward as their lodgings came into sight.
"Huh? There's someone in front of our lodgings." Natsu said.
Rette peered through the dark, her eyes locking on the figure standing on the front step of Honeybone.
"There is." Rette said.
"That person is..." Wendy trailed off as Lucy tried to peer through the darkness to see what they were seeing.
"You guys have such good eyes." she remarked.
"It's a Dragon Slayer thing." Rette assured her.
As they neared, Lucy finally saw who it was. Rette was surprised to find Yukino from Sabertooth waiting for them, a suitcase at her side. Yukino asked to speak with them. Unsure what she wanted, they took her back to the room that Natsu and his team shared where she revealed that she had business with Lucy.
"Business? With me?" Lucy asked.
"Yes. I have important business with you." Yukino replied.
"What is Saber trying to pull?" Natsu demanded.
"Natsu...why don't we at least listen to what she has to say?" Wendy asked.
Rette, curious about what this was about, agreed with Wendy, shutting Natsu up. Yukino, as she started to speak again, leaned forward to place something on the table between her and Lucy.
"This may be a rather bold request, but...these," Yukino set down her two zodiac keys. "the key of the Paired Fish and the key of the Heavenly Scales...I'd like for you to take the two of these."
"That's...impossible. I can't take them." Lucy told her, shocked.
"When I saw you on the first day, I decided...that after the Games had ended, I would give you these keys." Yukino told them.
"The Games haven't ended yet, have they?" Natsu asked.
"My Games have ended. Lady Minerva will probably be added in my place. With this, the "Strongest Five" that changed Sabertooth have been gathered." Yukino replied.
Rette growled lowly in her breath, snapping her teeth together in an annoyed way. Every time she heard Minerva's name, she got an image of the woman in her head and it annoyed her all over again. Dropping to sit on the arm of Lucy's chair, Rette crossed her legs. The others glanced at her, but turned back to Yukino when Rette just sat there.
"You weren't part of them, huh." Carla voiced.
"I had just entered...I was nothing more than a substitute for Lady Minerva, who was in the middle of a job." Yukino answered.
"But why? These are your precious celestial spirits, aren't they?" Wendy asked.
"Precisely for that reason...These celestial spirits will be happier, as well, if they're entrusted to Miss Lucy, who's a far more outstanding celestial spirit mage than me." Yukino said.
"I don't think their happiness could be measured simply by who is the best mage. If they're contracted to you, than it's going to be you who they want to be with." Rette remarked.
Lucy agreed with her, feeling awkward in a situation like this. But Yukino wasn't really taking no for an answer.
"You've already gathered ten of the twelve golden keys of the zodiac. With these two added...the twelve keys will have all been gathered. The gateway that changes the world will open." Yukino said.
"The gateway that changes the world?" Lucy asked.
"It's just an old legend. I don't understand the meaning of it, either. You might have noticed this already, but...over the past several years, the number of celestial spirit mages has dropped precipitously. There was that Zentopia incident some time ago, as well. We might be the only celestial spirit mages left, now. You're one that loves and is loved by celestial spirits. You should carry the twelve keys and walk together with the spirits." Yukino said.
"I can't accept them, after all...celestial spirit magic is a magic of bonds and trust...there's no way that owners can be switched quite so easily." Lucy told her.
"This wasn't...an easy resolution to come by." Yukino said, before standing. "No...I figured you would say that. When the times comes...the twelve keys will naturally be reunited again. It'd be nice if we could meet again." Yukino said, smiling at Lucy.
Lucy nodded in reply. With that, Yukino left. Shortly after that, Natsu decided to chase after her and, to make sure he stayed out of trouble, Rette followed him.
"O-i! Wait up! Wait!" Natsu yelled, waving his arms, as they caught up with Yukino.
Yukino turned to look at them, as Natsu ran up to her, Happy and Thyme flying behind him and Rette following.
"Ah...sorry, sorry. You're not a bad person." Natsu said.
When Yukino stared at him in confusion at the blunt remark, Rette heaved a sigh.
"Clarify when you speak, Natsu." she told him.
"You see...Natsu had made up his mind that you were a bad person just because you were in Sabertooth. That's why he came here like this to apologize." Happy told Yukino.
"Apologize?" Yukino asked.
"My bad."
"Natsu, even I think that was too light of an apology. If you're going to apologize, do it properly." Rette told him.
Natsu just grinned.
"Sorry. But even with this, Natsu's grown up a little bit." Happy remarked.
"What's that supposed to mean!?" Natsu demanded.
"It does seem as if his maturity has grown, just a tiny bit." Rette agreed.
"You too!?" Natsu asked, turning to her.
Thyme nodded in agreement with Rette and Happy, making Natsu's jaw drop. All three of his friends, even his best buddy, had all just agreed that he was childish and immature.
"You went to all the trouble of chasing after me for that...?" Yukino asked.
"It's because you looked so gloomy. I thought...that maybe I had made you feel bad." Natsu admitted.
"No...I'm sorry."
Even Rette could tell that Yukino was about to cry and that it had nothing to do with Natsu making her feel bad.
"No no no no...you're putting me on the spot if you're going to apologize." Natsu said.
"Natsu."
Natsu turned to look at Rette when she called his name. Rette shook her head and jerked her head towards Yukino. Natsu turned to look at her and froze when he saw the tears spilling down Yukino's face.
"It's even worse if you're going to cry...!" Natsu said.
"What...what's wrong!?" Happy asked.
Rette jolted forward to catch Yukino as her knees gave. She carefully eased the crying girl down to the ground and crouched next to her.
"I can't...I can't take it anymore. I...no one's ever treated me like this before." Yukino sobbed into her hands. "I...always looked up to Sabertooth. Last year, I finally got in, but...I'm...not allowed to go back anymore."
"What do you mean?" Rette asked, a bad feeling falling into the pit of her stomach.
"Just from that one loss...I was forced out. I was forced to be naked in front of a lot of people...and I had to erase the guild stamp with my own hand." Yukino sobbed.
Rette and Natsu both froze. Not only had Yukino been forced out of her home and had been forced to remove the symbol of that home herself, she had been forced to strip out of her clothes in front of several people to do so. Rette couldn't imagine the humiliation she had to have felt.
"It was so bitter and humiliating...my self-respect and my memories of the guild were completely destroyed. And despite all of that, I don't have a place to return to!" Yukino cried.
Rette, despite not knowing this girl and therefore having no reason to feel that way, felt her anger begin to well up in her chest. Who in the world could be so cruel as to do such a thing to a girl like this? Jiemma and Minerva, that's who. It made Rette's ill feelings towards them worse. Rette quickly calmed herself. She had to remind herself that even if she liked Yukino, what went on in Sabertooth was none of her concern. After all, it wasn't her guild. While she could help Yukino now, it wouldn't be her place to do anything about the previous incident.
"Sorry, I don't know how things are at other guilds, but..." Natsu said, trailing off.
"Yes...I'm sorry...I...just..."
"No. Don't apologize to us, Yukino. There is nothing for you to apologize for." Rette assured her, reaching back to pull a tissue out of one of the pouches on her belt.
She swiped Yukino's hair back to wipe her tears away.
"Though it may be another guild, if you say that "we're both mages" then I understand...I understand the bitterness of being humiliated and having your guild stamp erased. A guild that would make it's family cry...that's not a guild at all." Natsu growled.
Rette wheeled around as Natsu turned on his heel and ran off. Rette made a "tch" noise under her breath before looking at Happy.
"Go after him." Rette told him.
Happy nodded and took off. Rette turned back to Yukino. With Yukino still crying, Rette got her up off the ground and sat her on a bench before perching on the bench next to her, Thyme landing on her shoulder to peer at Yukino. She wiped Yukino's tears away, gently doing so until they tapered off.
"I'm sorry." Yukino apologized, sniffling.
"As I said, there's no need to apologize. You were hurt and deserve to cry. Personally...I don't have any tears left, but I definitely know what it's like to be humiliated by those that should have protected you from such a thing. If you need to cry, then you cry." Rette told her.
Yukino was surprised. When she had first saw Rette, all she had seen was the indifferent, almost cold mask that Rette wore all the time. Now that she was up close and Rette was extending a helping hand, she could see that that first impression was wrong.
"You do know?" Yukino asked.
The smile that Rette gave her was small. Just the barest of up lifts to the corners of her mouth. Thyme handed Rette a new tissues which she gave to Yukino.
"Yes. My life wasn't the best of lives when I was younger. But now...now I have Fairy Tail and Thyme, here. My family. They protect me and I protect them. We fight for each other, laugh with each other, cry with each other. That is what a guild is suppose to be. To see a guild treat it's members with so little care and respect...even I feel angry and anger can be very rare for me." Rette told her.
Yukino stared at Rette's honest eyes, seeing the flash of anger in their depths. She hung her head, wondering what she could have done to deserve the kindness and fierceness of these people who were her enemies until a few hours ago.
"Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?"
Yukino looked up at Rette in confusion. Her eyebrows furrowed leading to Rette clarifying her words.
"It might be a little crowded, but if you don't, you could stay with me and a few other guild mates at our lodgings." Rette offered.
"Oh! No, I have somewhere to stay for tonight." Yukino promised her.
"Good. You've had a rough day, so I suggest you get some rest. I just have one more question for you." Rette said.
Yukino gave her a questioning look. The look Rette leveled back at her was serious, straight, if not aloof, but her eyes blazed with an emotion that Yukino couldn't place.
"Where is Sabertooth lodged?"
-0-0-0-0-
The peaceful night around Corcus Garden's found the members of Sabertooth asleep, only to be rudely awaken as an intruder crashed into the build, blowing out windows and beating up members of the guild in his search for the guild's master. Sting, Rouge, Lector, and Forsch came into the foyer of the inn to find Natsu, in an angered state, plowing his way through their members, demanding to know where their master was.
"Do you have some business with me, brat?" Jiemma asked as he stepped forward.
"You're the master, huh? Kicked out just because of one loss? I'm all fired up." Natsu remarked. "If that's the case...if you lose to me, you quit the guild, too, then."
He was angry, his temper getting the best of him. Sting and his fellow teammates were surprised that Natsu had come to pick a fight with their master. To them, it was suicide to consider doing such a thing. But Natsu was perfectly serious. Jiemma carefully considered Natsu.
"Are you serious? Brat." Jiemma asked.
"People who take their family for granted...unforgivable." Natsu replied.
Was he talking about Yukino? Sting couldn't see where it was any of his business. After all, it was a matter of their guild, not Natsu's. And who would come barging into another guild's lodgings over something that didn't even concern them.
"I don't know what you're talking about, but you're acting out of you own sense of justice, huh?" Jiemma asked.
"You say that you don't know what I'm talking about?" Natsu asked, his anger kicking up a notch.
"Dobengal...be a reasonable opponent for him." Jiemma ordered of one of his members.
"Are you running away?" Natsu asked.
"It's one hundred years too early for the likes of a common guild soldier like you. If you want to fight with those on top, show me that you're qualified to do so." Jiemma replied.
Natsu, annoyed with Jiemma's refusal to fight him, plowed straight into the fight and downed his opponent with one hit, clearing the way to Jiemma. Sting stepped forward, asking his master to let him be the one to deal with Natsu.
"Stay back." Jiemma told him. "We don't have any brats like this here...amusing."
Jiemma blocked Natsu' first attack, sending him skidding back with just a flex of his arm. Natsu stopped himself quickly, aiming a punch up and under Jiemma's guard, landing it to his gut. His next punch hit right across Jiemma's left cheek, a hail of punches following quickly after. The last punch, aimed straight for Jiemma's face, was fire laced with lightning and was strong enough to smash through the walls. Smoke filled the room and when it cleared...Minerva stood between Natsu and her father, blocking attacks from both sides.
"The young lady..." Sting voiced in surprise.
"Have tonight's festivities extended to this vicinity as well?" Minerva asked, locking her eyes on Natsu.
"Minerva, you...who told you to..."
"Of course, even if the present state of affairs were to continue, Father would surely triumph." Minevra added, cutting off her father. "But there is such a thing as "maintaining appearances", after all. Putting aside the fact that you were the one that attacked us...if our master were to eliminate a participant in the Grand Magic Games...that would put us in a bind, as well."
Natsu was sure if Rette had been there, she would have told Minerva to shove her "appearances". While Fairy Tail didn't generally care what others thought about them, Rette really couldn't give two jewels what others thought about her. Natsu didn't care anymore than she did.
"Father got fired up in front of his subordinates, so it was clear that it was challenging for him to back down, as well. How about it? Will you allow me to save some face here?" Minerva asked Natsu.
She waved her hands in front of herself, the air distorting until Happy, tied up tightly, appeared in Minerva's arms, crying as she caressed his head.
"If so, then I can return this kitten to you, unharmed." Minerva said.
"Happy!" Natsu cried. "Damn it..."
"What I am saying is...even though you did in so many of our subordinates, we'll simply overlook this incident. I'm asking you to act in a mature fashion." Minerva said.
Natsu grit his teeth. As much as he still wanted to punch in Jiemma's face for what he had done to Yukino, he couldn't do that with Happy's well being on the line. He was about to bend to Minerva's will when Happy suddenly cracked. Surprised, Minerva, and everyone else, focused on Happy, watching as his body cracked again, his whole body turning into a blue-purple crystal which then shattered, leaving Minerva's arms empty.
"That magic..." Natsu voiced lowly, his face going pale. "I'm dead."
Sting stared at Natsu. The pink haired boy was going whiter and whiter by the second, his eyes going wide like he had just seen his own death. He had never seen such a look on the usually fearless Natsu's face.
"Natsu...what do you think you're doing?"
Natsu went as stiff as a board when a low voice sounded from behind him. He gulped and turned to face the person who had called him. Those of Sabertooth looked past him to the open front doors. Staring back at Natsu with blank, yet heavy in presence magenta-lavender eyes, was Rette. Her arms were crossed lightly over her stomach and she carried an air of aloof indifference to everything around her, but those eyes showed that there was some kind of emotion boiling under the surface. She didn't even pay the people laying on the ground or the damage around her, a single glance. Her eyes were fixed on Natsu, who looked like he wanted to be anywhere but right there.
"...uh...h-hey, Rette." Natsu greeted.
Rette.
None of those who had been on the Sabertooth team four years before had forgotten the hellish demon Rette had become when her anger had gotten the best of them. She had almost dealt a very fatal blow to Minerva after she had purposely kicked Laki when she was down and out of the game. While she didn't look furious, as she had then, the blazing of her eyes suggested that anger was close at hand. The question was...was she angry at them or Natsu?
"I asked you a question, Natsu. Answer it." Rette said, making Natsu grit his teeth.
"You were there, Rette! You heard what she told us! What they did to her!" Natsu yelled.
"Yes, I did." Rette replied.
"Then why-"
"It's not our place to stick our noses into the affairs of another guild. It's not our guild, so we have no say in how they treat their members." Rette said simply.
Natsu couldn't believe his ears. Rette wasn't heartless, no matter how she acted, but she was being oddly detached with this whole thing. Normally she had more compassion for others and he knew she hated Minerva and her father, if not Sabertooth as a whole. He couldn't understand what was going on.
"Rette!" he snapped.
"Don't "Rette" me, Natsu. Whether I agree with their treatment of her or not, to simply attack their guild like this...are you trying to risk all we've being trying to achieve here? What would Master say?" Rette replied.
Natsu flinched. In two simple little sentences, Rette had completely made him feel crappy. She had reminded him that they were there to win the tournament, not for the title or themselves, but for their guild mates. Getting carried away like this could cause them to get kicked out of the Games and then they wouldn't be able to do what they had come there to do.
"B-but Happy!" Natsu argued.
"Happy's fine. I arrived at the entrance before she did and knew what was coming our way. I simply replaced him." Rette replied, half turning towards the door behind her. "Thyme."
Beside Sting, Lector let out a low, "whoa!" as a small silver cat with black paws and white wings, came flying into view. She carried in her little, black paws, a somewhat groggy Happy.
"Happy!" Natsu cried in relief.
Happy fully came too, his own relief bringing tears to his eyes. Thyme sat Happy on the floor, letting him run to Natsu. Minerva, surprised to find herself out maneuvered, looked Rette over. In the four years since they had last seen each other, Rette had learned to down play her magic energy, to hide it, which was probably why Minvera had over looked the girl when she thought she had captured the blue cat.
Rette didn't even glance at the members of Sabertooth. She watched as Natsu picked Happy up, cradling him in his arms. Without a word, she walked up to Natsu, stopping at his side and turning to look up at him.
"See? Happy is fine. If you want to get your own justice, then settle accounts in the arena, not outside of it. You need to think before you act and learn to contain your temper, Natsu. While we don't care about appearances, there is such a thing as "common sense". While, yes, you normally lack it,"
"Hey!"
"That doesn't mean you can act like an idiot and come here, damaging property." Rette said, continuing even when Natsu snapped at her for calling him brainless. "Besides...if you wanted to help her, running off and leaving her, crying, in the middle of a street, isn't exactly the best way to start."
Natsu flinched again, hanging his head slightly. He really hadn't thought that part through. Though, Yukino had been in good hands with Rette around. She wasn't likely to run off and leave a person in need without anyone to help.
"She's fine, Happy's alright, and the rest of this can be settled during the Games. For now, you need to head back to Honeybone and hope I don't tan your hide for this brainless act of self-fulfilling justice." Rette told him.
"But-"
"I'm sorry, did that sound like a request?" Rette asked, cutting off Natsu's argument.
Natsu froze, stiffening up, his face draining of color once more, as Rette's eyes sharpened, just slightly. He knew that look. It was the look Rette got just before she lost her temper and begun demolishing things by crystallizing it and then shattering it. A chill worked it's way up his spine as he felt the first creeping tendrils of dark power coming from her.
"Leave Natsu...Now." Rette said, her tone dropping just a notch.
Natsu didn't stick around. It was either get lost or get hurt and he wasn't about to give Rette a reason to turn her temper on him. He turned on his heel and bolted to the door, leaving Rette in his wake. That was another first for Sting. He had never seen Natsu run like that, like he was running from hell itself. Natsu, carrying Happy, vanished around the door frame, Rette leaning her head back to watch him.
"That's what I thought." she remarked before turning to finally fix her gaze on Minerva and her father.
There was nothing in her expression for them to read. No anger, annoyance, nothing. Minerva couldn't tell what she was thinking.
"Minerva." Rette said in empty greeting.
"Rette. My, it must be such a trial to be the only one with any sense in your guild." Minerva remarked.
Rette heaved a sigh. She reached up, running a hand through her bangs as she turned to look over her shoulder. So they were going to start this little fued right here and now, huh? Alright then. Two could play that little game.
"Oh, joy...you're still a talker. I don't really understand talkers. All that pointless arrogance has to be bothersome." Rette remarked.
"Excuse you?" Minerva asked.
"We both know that I don't stutter, Minerva, and we both know, your little intimidation act doesn't work on me." Rette said simply.
She met Minerva's eyes straight on, not daunted in the least. Sting and his teammates might have been surprised that she was able to keep the indifferent look in the face of possibly their strongest member, if they hadn't seen Rette in a fit of anger before.
"I don't believe in beating around the bush, so I'll skip the niceties. I may have come here to stop my less than thoughtless guild mate, but had the circumstances been different...I would have been here cheering him on." Rette said.
Surprise, surprise. Guild mates tended to think alike.
"Unlike Natsu, though, I know how to pick my battles and this isn't one I find any interest in. We both know who comes out on top when I lose my temper." Rette said, eyes flashing.
Minerva grit her teeth, despising the reminder of her near defeat at Rette's hands four years previous. Had time not run out, Minerva was sure she would have gotten off much worse than she had. Rette didn't play around when she was furious.
"Now, I won't say I don't find your treatment of Yukino anything but lower than low, but eventually...karma comes does come into play." Rette said, her eyes going to Jiemma, who raised an eyebrow. "It might not come at the hands of Fairy Tail, as Natsu wants, but you will get what's coming to you and, I guarantee you...it's going to be painful."
With that, Rette turned on her heels and walked away.
"You think you can talk to us that way?" Minerva asked.
"Yeah, that's another thing. You know that I don't care who or what you are. I'll talk however I see fit." Rette said, turning to look at her. "I'm here for one reason and one reason only and it's doesn't have anything to do with you. Get over yourself. I assure you, you are not all you think you are."
"And you're saints in your guild?" Minerva scoffed.
"Can't raise hell with saints. If there's anything we're good at in Fairy Tail, it's raising a little hell. In case you haven't noticed." Rette replied, gesturing around her to take in the damage Natsu had left.
Rette turned back around and walked away. Her little cat companion, who had locked her eyes on Lector and Forcsh, hovered in the air. Silently, Rette raised a hand and jerked two fingers. As if hearing the silent call of her name, Thyme's ears perked up, the bell earrings jingling. She spun around and flew over to Rette, landing on her shoulder to wrap her long-furred tail around Rette's neck. Her paws instantly went up, her expression changing, as if she was talking, but no words left her mouth.
"I'll explain later." Rette told Thyme.
Thyme's expression changed again.
"Well you don't have to yell my ear off. Just because they can't hear you, doesn't mean I can't." Rette retorted.
Thyme's paws flew to her mouth and, with a sheepish look, her ears went back on her head. Rette reached up to pat her head. As if Rette couldn't get any stranger, apparently she could hear the thoughts of a cat. At the door, Rette paused for a moment.
"Just two more things. One, we won't lose to you. Fairy Tail never gives up on we want. You may have been the kings and queens for the last few years, but we're back to full fighting force now. It's won't just be my strength to carry the guild this time. And secondly...a guild should be a family and you should take care of your family. That you haven't..." Rette looked over her shoulder. "Yukino's too good for you."
They all stared as Rette vanished out the door, never once fearing that any of them would attack her from behind. Same old Rette. It was clear that not much had changed with Rette in four years. She was still indifferent to the world, not caring about anything anyone said or did, and she obviously still had that dark power that only came out when she was angry. Not to mention that Natsu, who had almost beaten Jiemma, was scared of her. While Minerva didn't want to admit it, her teammates understood why. And in four years, Rette had to have grown in strength.
What kind of monster was the girl now?
Was she really so strong now that Natsu had a reason to be afraid of her?
Whatever the case was, she had angered Minerva just as she had the last time they met.
The Games were only going to become more interesting.
END
Kyandi: While, yes, I know I'm following the manga and the whole scene of all of the other girls joining Mira and Jenny wasn't in the manga, I just couldn't help but add it.
Rette: She did it for no other reason than the wedding dress scene with Orga and Laxus.
Kyandi: Oh, come on! A jealous Laxus is amusing.
Rette: Not when you're trapped between him and Orga...literally!
Kyandi: Okay, I see your point.
Rette: Thank you.
Kyandi: We'll change subjects. Everyone, I've been curious for a while about a project I have in mind, so I put a pole up on my profile. Please go and vote.
Rette: She might decide not to give you all a new chapter if you don't.
Kyandi: I just might. With that in mind, everyone enjoy, review, and go vote!
Rette: We'll come back after we get some votes.
Kyandi: Bye bye!