Kyandi: Hey everyone, I'm back.
Rette: We apologize for taking so long. Someone was procrastinating.
Kyandi: I'm sorry! I'm bad about procrastinating!
Rette: She actually has two more chapters for this story, but is taking her sweet time getting them ready.
Kyandi: I'm working on it, I swear!
Rette: Then shall we move on?
Kyandi: Yes! Everyone, please enjoy and review!
Rette: Kyandi-sama does not own Fairy Tail.
Chapter 21 Doubting Feelings
Erza left Rette to check on Jellal. Thyme drifted around Rette, fretting over the girl even when she insisted that she was fine. Erza knelled next to Jellal as he gripped one arm. His eyes were set on Rette as she heaved a sigh and told Thyme, once again, that she was fine and didn't needed to be fretted over.
"Is she alright?" Jellal asked Erza.
"I don't know."
Jellal turned a questioning look on Erza. The red head was looking at Rette, eyeing her. She seemed to have gotten a hold of herself and was even easily bantering with Thyme as the cat waved her paws like she was silently scolding Rette.
"I've never seen her like that before. Rette...she doesn't react to much. She always has that indifferent look on her face. That was the first time I've seen such cold fear on her face." Erza told him.
Erza shook her head. Whatever was going on with Rette, it was going to have to wait. Nirvana still hadn't been stopped. Erza turned to Jellal, asking if he was alright. He replied that he was fine. Rette turned on them then and came their way. Jellal opened his mouth to thank her for her help, but was cut off when Rette suddenly cuffed him over the head. Shocked, he pressed a hand to his head, staring up at her wide eyed.
"What was that for?" he asked.
"I told you he would rip into you if you were anything less than a hundred percent, didn't I? But did you listen to me? No. You need to learn that when I say things like that, I usually know what I'm talking about. He could have killed you, you know. Treasure your life a bit more will you. You dying would have left me with a crying Erza on my hands. If you make her cry, I will hurt you." Rette told him.
He would have called it a stern scolding it if wasn't for the indifferent way in which she said it. Erza was surprised that Rette had hit him let alone scolded him, but then she smiled and laughed. At least she didn't have to worry about Rette holding a grudge against Jellal. Rette gave Jellal a hard glare until he apologized. With a nod in satisfaction, she heaved a sigh and dropped to sit next to him.
"Rette?" Erza asked, concerned that the girl was more hurt than she came off.
"I don't think I can lie to my stomach anymore. If this thing keeps moving, I'm going to be sick." Rette replied, pressing a hand to her stomach.
As comical it was to Erza and Jellal, given what Rette had just gone through without once letting on that she felt sick, Rette ended up getting carried by Thyme as they moved on, Erza supporting Jellal while Rette got her stomach under control.
"That spell, you called it Satan Crystallite, right?" Jellal asked suddenly, looking at Rette.
"Yeah. It's a unison of my Crystallization magic and Take Over magic." Rette told him.
"You're very adept at using it." Jellal told her.
"Actually...that was my first time really using it for an extended period of time."
Jellal and Erza turned wide eyes on Rette. Rette had laid her bets at the feet of a spell that she hadn't even been sure she could control for an extended period of time!? Just what had Rette been thinking? It had turned out for the better, but still...it could have turned out so much worse.
They continued on, stopping now and then to rest. It was during one of those stops that Wendy and Carla found them.
"Jellal!" Wendy called, happy she had finally found him.
"Erza, Rette, and Thyme are with him too!" Carla said.
"Wendy!" Erza called. "So you're alright. Thank goodness."
"Who are you?" Jellal asked Wendy, much to her disappointment.
"Jellal's memories have been damaged somewhat. It seems he doesn't remember any of us right now." Erza said.
"Did I...know you?" Jellal asked, looking at Wendy.
Wendy looked down at her feet, hurt and disappointed that he didn't remember her. Than her attention was snagged by Rette, who currently had her head between her knees.
"Are you alright?" Wendy asked her.
"Motion...sickness..." Rette replied.
"Oh! You get motion sick just like Natsu?" Wendy asked, innocently.
Rette raised her head, a bland look on her face, but it was evident to Erza and Thyme at least that she was not happy with having it pointed out that she got sick just like Natsu when on a moving vehicle. It was a bit of a ridiculous weakness to have. Then again, Rette was scared of the dark and hated being cold, so the motion sickness wasn't that bad.
"Here. I already helped Natsu with his motion sickness. I can help you with your's." Wendy offered.
She cast a spell on Rette that instantly fixed the problem and had Rette's stomach settling down. Rette heaved a relieved sigh, glad that her stomach finally stopped trying to rebel against her.
"Thanks, Wendy." Rette told her.
Wendy nodded, but Carla had a more pressing matter on her mind than Rette's similar weakness with Natsu. She rounded on Jellal, shaking a tiny fisted paw at him.
"I should hope you haven't forgotten how to stop Nirvana on top of everything!" Carla snapped at him.
"The Self-Destruct Array will be no use at this point. I don't know what else to do. I'm sorry." Jellal replied.
"No way..." Wendy said dejectedly.
"Then what is going to happen to our guild!? It's right there...right in front of us!" Carla yelled.
Rette shivered then. All eyes fixed on her just before the ground beneath them began to tremble. Rette could feel the magic building up somewhere on Nirvana. She wasn't sure actually what it was, but Rette was pretty sure that it wasn't going to be good.
"They're not...firing Nirvana!?" Erza exclaimed.
The whole city sudden took a dangerous tilt to one side as something crashed into one of the long legs, throwing Nirvana off as it fired and making it miss it's target. Erza grabbed a hold of Wendy before she could tumble away, and Rette took hold of the back of Jellal's jacket, keeping him from sliding too far away. With the other hand she kept a tight grip on a window sill, keeping her and Jellal in place. Thyme huddled against her chest, holding on tightly and Carla tumbled through the air until she was able to right herself. Rette looked around them, her eyes drawn upward.
"Erza, look." Rette called when everything settled down.
Erza looked at Rette and she pointed upward. Flying over their heads, was a shodily pieced together Christina.
"The magic bomber airship...Christina!" Erza exclaimed.
Hibiki's voice suddenly filled Erza, Rette, and Wendy's heads. Even Jellal, Thyme, and Carla could hear him loud and clear.
"Can you hear me? Anyone? If you're safe, then please respond!"
"Hibiki?" Erza asked.
"Hibiki, you're alright." Rette added.
"Erza? Rette? And Wendy. You're all three safe!" Hibiki said in relief.
Ichiya's voice joined in, declaring that was about as safe as he could be. Rette had a feeling that Ichiya was the kind of man that no matter how much others knocked him down, he would keep coming back. Persistence in human form.
"What's going on here? Surely the Christina was taken down." Erza said.
"Lyon created a make-shift replacement for the broken wings with his magic and we got it airborne through the combined power of Cherie's Doll magic and Ren's Air magic. The attack just now was thanks to Eve's Snow magic." Hibiki explained.
"All of you..." Carla said lowly.
"Thank you, everyone!" Wendy told them, her eyes full of tears.
"Well, that's the deal. I'm afraid we're pretty much all spent. We can't do any more attacking like this." Hibiki said.
In the sky, the airship started falling, the mages on board having a tough time keeping it in the air any longer. Rette and her friends tensed in concern, Wendy's hands flying to her mouth in worry.
"Don't worry about us! Just listen to this, all of you! It took a while, but I finally managed to find the information we need in my Archive! The way to stop Nirvana!" Hibiki declared.
Everyone froze in tense shock. So there was a way. Whatever it intelled, they would have to do it, to stop Nirvana and save those threatened by it.
"Really!?" Erza asked.
"As you've seen, Nirvana has six leg-like structures, right? Well, those legs...are actually values drawing magic up from the earth. The lacrima crystals responsible for controlling the absorption process are positioned around the top of each of the six legs. If you can destroy all six of those crystals at the same time, all of Nirvana's functions will be halted. You can't destroy them one at a time! If you do, the other crystals will just repair the damaged area!" Hibiki explained.
"All of them at once!? But how!?" Erza exclaimed.
"Go figure." Rette retorted, pulling Jellal to his feet. "There's always a catch."
"I'd like to lend a hand with the timing...but I don't think this telepathy is going to hold out much longer. I've uploaded an exact time into each of your heads. I know that you can do this! I believe in you!" Hibiki said, just as the airship crashed into the ground below.
Rette hoped everyone on the ship was alright, but she knew she couldn't go check on them at this time. She would just have to rely on them to live through it. A downward counting clock appeared in Rette's mind, then. From the looks on their faces, one appeared in the others' head as well.
"Twenty minutes?" Wendy asked.
"That's the moment before Nirvana will finish charging for a second shot." Hibiki explained.
"How utterly futile."
A new voice that Rette knew didn't belong to her comrades, joined the conversation, pushing in on their conversation. Obviously, dark mages didn't know what the phrase "private conversation" meant.
"This voice..." Erza said.
"It's that Brain man!" Wendy exclaimed.
"Is he jacking into my telepathy!?" Hibiki asked.
"My name is Zero. I am the master of the Oracion Sies. First, allow me to grant you my compliments. I never dreamed that there would be another in the world who could use Archive. The same magic as Brain. Now hear me! Mages of the light! I will hereby proceed to destroy everything!" Zero announced. "I have begun by destroying three of your comrades. The Dragon Slayer, the ice construction mage, the Celestial mage...oh, and her cat as well."
"Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Happy." Rette breathed.
"You're lying!" Wendy yelled.
Rette laid a hand on both Wendy's and Erza's shoulders. The two looked at her and Rette gave their shoulders a comforting squeeze. Natsu, like every member of Fairy Tail, was too stubborn to die. Lucy, Gray, and Happy wouldn't go down either. Rette had no doubt in her mind that the four were still alive.
"Now, you spoke of destroying all of the lacrima at once, yes? Well, I myself stand at this moment before one of those lacrima crystals! As long as I am here, you have no hope of destroying them all at once!" Zero said.
With that, Zero bowed out of their communication. It seemed that rudeness was also common among dark mages. Though Rette was pretty sure she wouldn't want a goodbye from Zero, anyway.
"The chances of finding Zero at your destination are one in six...and we should probably assume that only Erza stands a chance at beating him." Hibiki said.
"Wait! We don't have six mages! We don't have the six mages we need to destroy all six lacrima!" Carla exclaimed.
"I...I...can't use destructive magic...I'm sorry..." Wendy said.
Rette pat her head, her head trying to wrap around a solution. Hibiki and those who were on the Christina were out and unless Natsu, Lucy, and Gray got up, that limited their number of working mages to about half of the needed total. Rette's magic was running on the low side, but she was sure she could think of something to destroy her lacrima.
"We have three candidates here. Are there no other mages who are able to move!?" Erza asked.
"You have me, do you not?" came Ichiya's voice.
"That's four. Still not enough." Rette remarked.
"This isn't good...my magic is almost...gone completely...I can't...hold the connection." Hibiki said.
"We need two more, at least! Somebody, respond! Quickly!" Erza pleaded.
"Gray...get up already. You're a proud apprentice of Ur, aren't you? You can't lose to these scum." Lyon said through the connection.
"Lucy...I honestly can't stand you. Acting so full of yourself just because you're a little cute. You're stupid, and clumsy, and weak, and yet...Yet you always...always put your all into everything." Cherie called. "How can I hate you if you die? That would leave a terrible after taste...so respond, why don't you!?"
"Natsu...I know you can hear me. I refuse to believe for a second that you're dead. Your head is just as thick as Gajeel's and he has iron in his skull. Get up already! Your guild, your friends, and everyone else are in danger and need your help. I thought mages of Fairy Tail didn't give up!" Rette called out. "Can you hear us, or not!?"
Silence stretched for a moment and Rette wondered if maybe he couldn't hear them. Then...
"Sure we can! We can hear you."
Natsu's voice sounded clear over the connection. Relief filled all of them as Gray, Lucy, and Happy spoke up as well. Even Rette heaved a relieved sigh at hearing their voices.
"Th...this connection won't last...much longer...I've transmitted a map into all of your heads. Each...of the lacrima...is marked with a number...before the connection breaks...each of you decide on a number." Hibiki told them.
"Number one!" Natsu said instantly, claiming the first one.
Rette had a good idea on why. Even with Nirvana's magic running interference with her ability to sense other magic, she could still sense enough to know...Zero was at the number one lacrima. Natsu, understandably, wanted revenge and Rette had no doubt in her mind that he would get it. The guy was a hard headed, stubborn one when it came to defending what he deemed his. It was one of the qualities about him that Rette really admired. Gray instantly claimed number two, Lucy taking three.
"I shall handle number four! The perfume tells me that it is the closest to my location!" Ichiya piped in.
"No, that would be the map in your head." Rette retorted.
"Was there really a need to be so blunt?" Ichiya asked.
"Obviously you don't know me. There's always a need to be blunt." Rette replied indifferently.
Erza smiled when Ichiya groaned. Even in a crisis like this, Rette found the time to squeeze in a couple of sarcastic retorts. It went a ways to relaxing all of them so they weren't about to snap.
"I'll handle number five." Erza declared.
"Erza!? You're alright now!?" Natsu asked.
"Yes. Thanks to a certain someone." Erza replied.
"Then I'll-"
Jellal was cut off when Rette popped a hand over his mouth. He looked down at her in questioning but Rette just pressed a finger to her lips, silently telling him to be quiet for the moment. Erza nodded in agreement with Rette's judgment.
"You'll take number six." Erza told Jellal.
"There's someone else there? Who was that just now!?" Natsu demanded.
Instead of answering him, Erza lowered her voice and told Jellal that since Natsu didn't know about everything and still thought of Jellal as an enemy, that Jellal should be quiet until the connection was cut. Natsu tried to demand an answer, but the connection finally did drop, leaving him without an answer. Rette listened for a few moments before she removed her hand from Jellal's mouth.
"I think the connection dropped. You're good to speak now." Rette said.
"I heavily suspect Zero is at lacrima number one." Erza remarked.
"Oh, I know he is."
Wendy, Erza, Jellal, Carla, and Thyme looked at Rette. All but Thyme and Erza, gave her questioning looks. Thyme rarely questioned Rette when she was sure of something and Erza was beginning to figure out that when Rette sounded so sure, it was usually because she was.
"I have a higher sense for sensing magic around me. Even though Nirvana's magic is creating interference, I can still sense enough to know that that is exactly where Zero is." Rette said.
"That's where Natsu went!" Wendy exclaimed.
"He has an extremely good nose. I don't doubt he chose number one precisely because that was Zero's location." Erza told Wendy.
"I don't doubt it either, really. Knowing Natsu...that is something he would do." Rette said, running a hand through her hair.
"Then we should go and back him up! If we all fight together-"
"Don't underestimate Natsu. We can trust him to handle this." Ezra said, cutting Wendy off.
Beside Rette, Jellal suddenly went tense, Natsu's name falling off his lips in a low voice. Rette glanced at him as he stared wide eyed at the ground. Something was wrong. Rette could tell by looking at him. Was he...remembering something?
"Now, let's head for our own designated stations! Number five for me. Jellal, you're number six. Rette, you stick with Wendy." Erza ordered.
"Yeah...sure..."
Erza turned to Rette when the girl's reply sounded distant and distracted. She found Rette staring at Jellal. Though her expression remained in it's usual indifferent state, her eyes were a mix of concern and suspicion. Erza's eyes turned to Jellal as the man turned to present them with his back.
"Jellal?" Erza asked.
"No...it's...nothing." Jellal told her.
Who he thought he was fooling with that reply, Rette didn't know. She was sure it wasn't her or Erza. He was shaking slightly and was pressing a hand to his head. Rette had no doubt that he was remembering something. The question then became...what was he remembering and would it change his willingness to cooperate with them and atone for his crimes? Rette was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, for Erza's sake, but it didn't make her any less concerned.
Rette looked at Erza, meeting her eyes. Rette jerked her head in the direction of Erza's assigned lacrima, silently telling Erza to go ahead and she would handle Jellal. Erza nodded, trusting Rette, and turned and ran off. Rette then turned to Jellal. With Wendy, Carla, and Thyme right behind her, Rette went to Jellal's side, laying a hand on his shoulder. Jellal looked down at her, meeting her eyes.
"Are you alright?" Rette asked.
Wendy came up on his other side, looking up at his face. She was concerned too and understandably so. The man looked like he was in pain.
"You're not well, Jellal?" Wendy asked.
"No...but you can use healing magic, right? Then can you heal Natsu who's fighting with Zero?" Jellal asked.
"Don't be stupid! How many times do you think she has used her healing magic in just this one day already!? She can't use any more than this! To start with, this girl-"
"Carla, there is no need to yell." Rette told the white cat, cutting her off.
Carla flinched at those words and looked up at Rette who gave her a stern look. Just because she was looking out for Wendy's well being didn't give her a reason to yell so loudly.
"I see. Then I'll be the one to heal Natsu." Jellal said.
"What do you mean?" Rette asked, turning to look at Jellal.
"I remembered now, the unlimited power of that man named Natsu, the power of hope." Jellal told her, a smile on his face. "Can you destroy the sixth lacrima in my place, Rette?"
Rette scratched at one cheek as he looked at her. She would have accepted in a heart beat...if she had the magical power to pull it off. Right now, she barely had any left. Her Satan Crystallite spell had drained her. Rette shook her head. She had told herself she would think of something if she had to destroy a lacrima, but the truth was...she didn't think she had the power to do it.
"I fear I don't have the magic power left to do the job. I nearly used it all in that fight with Midnight." Rette told him.
Jellal could understand that. Rette had pushed herself in the fight with Midnight. She had even admitted that that had been the first time she had used Satan Crystallite for an extended period. Jellal turned his eyes to Wendy then.
"Wendy?" he asked.
"But...I..."
Wendy didn't look convinced that she could do it. She had so little confidence in herself. Rette didn't like seeing the lack of confidence in the girl. As a mage, she needed to be more stead fast in her self-confidence. Jellal crouched in front of her and gave her a smile.
"You can do it. The Dragon Slayer magic is an immense destructive magic which is used to fight with dragons. Eat the air...no...the sky...the "heaven". There's also the power of dragons inside you." Jellal told her.
Wendy stared at him and Rette was sure she still doubted herself, but Wendy nodded nonetheless. Jellal gave her a nod and stood up straight, turning his eyes to Rette. Rette met his gaze.
"Keep the four of you safe." he told her.
"But of course. I'm a Fairy Tail mage after all. We don't do anything half hearted." Rette told him.
And Jellal knew that. When it came to the mages of Fairy Tail it was always one extreme or another. They never settled in the middle. He gave Rette a nod and took off for the number one lacrima. Rette, Wendy, and the two cats watched him until he vanished. Rette then turned to Wendy and laid a hand on her head, making the girl look up at her.
"Come on, Wendy. I don't have the magic to preform a spell of my own, but I have enough to cast someone else's, so I can help a little." Rette told her.
"What do you mean?" Wendy asked as Rette lead the way.
"I have a spell called Conductor Crystal. It uses my Crystallization magic to absorb and capture another mage's spell inside a crystal. Since it's sealing magic, the crystal continues to feed the spell within my own magic power, making it grow in power the longer it's contained inside. I can, then release that spell at a later time for my own use. It only takes a small amount of power to release the seal." Rette explained. "I have several different types on me. I believe I used that spell in front of you before Brain caught us."
"Oh! I remember. You threw the crystal back at him and it threw his spell at him." Wendy said.
"Yes. I some pretty powerful ones that I've been holding onto. I should be able to help you in that manner, but you'll have to provide most of the force." Rette told her.
Wendy nodded. Following the map that Hibiki had put in their heads, the four of them made their way to the lacrima. When they reached the room, they were confronted with a huge, dark lacrima in the center of the room. Rette had never seen one of that size. Leaving Wendy down below, Rette chose one of her stronger crystals collected from Natsu. She had Thyme fly her up to the lacrima and Rette wedged the crystal as close to it as she could before letting Thyme sit her back down on the floor.
"You sure you can do this, Wendy?" Carla asked, looking at Wendy.
"It's something I have to do. The power of the dragon, inside me...is to protect my own guild! Please Grandeeney! Lend me your power!" Wendy said, as if praying to the dragon who had raised her.
Rette glanced at Wendy. Wendy seemed to really care about her dragon. Natsu did too for that matter. Rette had, at one time, thought hers cared about her, but she had began to question it after they vanished. Natsu's and Wendy's dragons had vanished too, and yet, they never once questioned if their dragon parents had loved them or not. Was it simply that Rette was being too sensitive to the matter?
No, she didn't think so.
She felt betrayed and rightfully so. They had promised that she would never be alone again and then had left her. Rette didn't take broken promises very lightly. It was another reason why she admired Natsu. He went to great pains to keep his promises, put his all into it.
Rette was so lost in her thoughts, her arms crossed and her head tilted to the side, that she had forgotten where she was. It wasn't until Wendy called her name, that she snapped out of it and turned to look at the girl.
"Hmm? Did you say something?" Rette asked.
"I just wanted to know if you're alright. You looked like you were thinking about something painful." Wendy said.
"Huh? I did?" Rette asked, raising a hand to touch her face.
"Is something wrong?" Wendy asked.
"Not particularly, no. I was just thinking...you seem to really care about your dragon." Rette remarked.
"Well, yeah. She raised me, took care of me-"
"Then left you." Rette said, cutting Wendy off. "Don't you feel a bit hurt and betrayed?"
Wendy looked down at her feet. Rette had a point, but Wendy knew that Grandeeney had cared about her. She had never doubted it. Yes, she had felt hurt, but she had never doubted that if she had had a choice, Grandeeney wouldn't have left her.
"I feel hurt, of course, but I know Grandeeney. She wouldn't have left if she had no other choice. I don't doubt that." Wendy told her.
"Huh...wish I could say the same." Rette muttered.
Wendy looked up at her, but Rette was staring off into space. The space between her eyebrows was furrowed, one corner of her mouth lightly twisted. Some unpleasant thought had to be running through her head at the moment.
"You're a Dragon Slayer, right?" Wendy asked.
Rette nodded idly, as if her head was still partly somewhere else. Thyme, from where she stood next to Carla, looked up at Rette, knowing just how painful thoughts of her past were for Rette.
"You doubt that your dragon cared?" Wendy asked.
Rette glanced down at Wendy before her eyes turned away again. In those two toned eyes, Wendy could see the barely masked emotions fighting to break free. Rette had already burned through enough emotional stress for a whole month's worth. She didn't feel like going through anymore, but she couldn't really just not answer Wendy.
"Wendy, you remember how I told you about my birth father, how he was a dark mage and an evil man?" Rette asked.
Wendy nodded. Carla glanced at Thyme in surprise, having not been there for that reveal. Thyme gave her a pained look, as if she shared her human partner's pain.
"Well, he ran a place called The Compound. It was an underground city, basically, kept completely away from the light of day. I was born and raised there, in the cold darkness. My birth mother died shortly after I was born and for the first five years of my life...that was my hell. I told you, my birth father was not a good man. I ran away the first chance I got. I was six when my adoptive parents, my dragons, found me. They were a mated pair. The ice dragon, Tundron, and the crystal dragon, Chrysalis. By that point, I didn't trust anyone. They understood this and took me in, promising me I would never be alone again. For five years, they raised me, teaching me magic, acting like real parents, or...at least what I assume real parents are suppose to be like. I'm not sure. And...they just left." Rette explained.
Rette reached up running a hand through her hair and tugging lightly on it as she did. Just from listening to Rette, Wendy got a good idea on what life had been like for her. Or, at least, she thought she did. Rette felt betrayed and hurt and didn't understand. It didn't help that she had already had trust issues before that.
"I felt...betrayed, angry, and hurt. I rightfully doubted everything they had ever told me and felt silly for trusting them, even slightly, when I couldn't even trust my real father, who was suppose to protect me and love me unconditionally. So, how you and Natsu can go on, never doubting your dragons' love for you...I don't understand it." Rette added, shrugging her shoulders.
Rette winced when the shrug tugged on the scabbed over injury on her shoulder blades. She was going to have to have that looked at when this whole mess was over. As it was...it was going to make sleeping on her back, a real pain in the side.
"It sounds like they really did care about you."
Rette turned to face Wendy, her eyes wide, actually showing Wendy the level of her surprise. It was almost enough to make Wendy laugh. If someone knew what to use, they could surprise Rette so easily and actually make her show it. Rette raised an eyebrow in questioning.
"What do you mean?" Rette asked.
"You said they took you in, even knowing you would probably never trust them. They taught you magic, took care of you, did the things a real parent should do. No one would put in that kind of effort with nothing in return, if they didn't care. I don't think you should doubt how they felt about you, because it's kind of obvious." Wendy told her.
Rette's brows furrowed together and she thought that over. Maybe Wendy had a point, maybe she didn't. Rette wasn't a mind reader, she didn't always pick up on subtle hints, or even obvious ones. She was about as socially graceful as a giant with two left feet. She didn't have the first inkling of a thought on what Tundron and Chrysalis had thought or felt.
But even if they had cared, they had still left.
"Whether you're right or not, it doesn't change how I felt. When they left, I vowed never to use the magic they taught me unless I didn't have a choice." Rette said.
"That sounds more like you were just being childishly spiteful." Carla said bluntly.
"Carla!" Wendy gasped.
"No, she's right."
Wendy and Carla looked at Rette as she lightly raised and dropped one shoulder in an indifferent shrug. As if she really didn't care if it seemed childish to someone else. Rette looked down at them, her eyes dark with some emotions neither girl nor cat could read.
"I'm naturally a spiteful person. Call it childish if you wish for it kind of is. Old habits die hard and it isn't easy to change." Rette said.
"But you're trying? To change, I mean." Wendy asked.
"Since joining Fairy Tail, I've found myself wanting to change things. If you spent as much time around my guild mates as I have, their spirit, everything about them...it's infectious." Rette said, almost sounding awed by that.
Wendy smiled. She had gotten that feeling from watching Natsu and the others. They worked hard together, fought hard together, and probably partied hard together. That kind of spirit worked it's way under others' skin.
"That being said, as far as my feelings towards Tundron and Chrysalis and the magic they taught me, go, I'm not inclined to change." Rette added.
"Even if it's just using the magic more?" Wendy asked.
"As I said, I'm not inclined." Rette replied.
"Do you do things just because you do or do not feel inclined?" Carla demanded.
"Pretty much, yeah."
Carla slapped one paw to her face while Thyme silently laughed. Wendy laughed lightly to herself. Rette's outlook on things, was simple, but the girl, herself, was not. She might be trying to change, but she was very picky on what she wanted to change. Maybe, if given time, she would change even that, but at the moment, she couldn't be budged on her choice.
"Three minutes to go." Rette said then. "I'll step back and let you focus."
Wendy nodded as Rette and Thyme stepped back, letting the girl focus on the lacrima. It would be simple for Rette to release the spell on her Conductor Crystal. She didnt need to focus all that much, so she stood back and watched as Wendy spread her arms and focused on drawing in as much of the "heavens" as she could. Slowly, the clock in their heads counted down. Three minutes became two, two became one. As it neared zero, Rette turned her attention to her Conductor Crystal. As soon as that clock hit zero, she would release the spell.
Right as the clock hit zero, Wendy released her Roar just as Rette released her spell. Flames burst free of the crystal, being sucked up into the whirlwind of Wendy's Roar. With the combined power, the lacrima was shattered into dust. From the way the room suddenly tilted, the whole place shaking and shuddering, Rette was sure the others, Natsu included, had managed to destroy their's as well. Tears filled Wendy's and Carla's eyes as it became apparent that they had managed to stop Nirvana and save their guild and joy filled them.
The joy was soon swept away in the wake of concern and fear when the walls and ceilings around them began to crumble and fall. Rette grabbed Wendy's hand, ushering her and the two cats out of the room before they could be crushed by falling stone. The four of them made a run for it, Carla and Thyme in the lead, Rette just behind them and Wendy just behind her. Wendy let out a little cry as she tripped and went sprawling on the ground. Rette screeched to a halt, turning to the girl, only to find pillars of stone falling towards it. It was enough that it could seriously hurt Wendy, if not kill her. Rette threw herself at Wendy, scooping her up as she curled her body around the younger girl.
Rette braced herself for painful impact, but it never came. Instead, one muscle ripped arm suddenly wrapped around Rette's waist, pulling her back out of the way and into the sheltering mass of a wide chest. Rette and Wendy looked back over their shoulders finding Jura shielding them from the falling rock.
"Jura!" Rette and Wendy called in relief.
Jura batted away the falling stone and stood up straight. He took Wendy, Carla, and Thyme in one arm and tucked Rette under the other, lifting her completely off the ground with ease. Rette felt like no more than a sack of grain, tucked under his arm like that. She hadn't felt that light and small since she had been a little girl and Tundron had use to lift her with only two claws pinched into the back of her shirt. He would then hang her by her shirt from one of the icy spikes on his back and carry her around like that. It had always amused Chrysalis, especially when Rette would kick her feet and swing her fists while she complained the whole way.
Rette shook her head, shoving the memories out of her head. Instead she focused on the floor passing under Jura's feet as he charged through the falling stone towards the exit. The whole place was coming apart and they barely managed to make it out before all Nirvana crumbled to the ground. They hit the ground rolling, Jura protecting them the whole way. When they finally came to a stop they found Gray, Lucy, and Happy just a few yards from them. Beyond them, Erza and Ichiya were making their way to them. Wendy instantly pointed out that Natsu and Jellal weren't there.
Rette wasn't really all that concerned. Natsu was harder to kill than a roach. And Jellal wasn't any easier to kill. A squeal from Lucy made them all turn towards her. The ground that Lucy and Happy had been sitting on suddenly began to rise until Hoteye burst forth from the ground, Natsu in one arm and Jellal tucked under the other.
"Love shall lift up our comrades...don't you agree?" Hoteye asked.
"Isn't he one of the Oracion Sies!?" Carla asked.
"Don't worry, because of certain events he's an ally now." Jura assured her.
Rette stepped back out of the way as Wendy called Natsu's name and ran to him, throwing her arms around him as tears spilled down her face. She thanked him for keeping his promise and saving her guild, making him smile down at her.
"Wasn't that everyone's power just now? And Wendy's power too. This time put some energy into your high five." Natsu told her, holding out a hand.
Wendy nodded, giving his hand a slap. With that done and his exhaustion finally kicking in, Natsu flopped back onto the ground. Rette really felt like joining him. She was not only physically and magical exhausted...she was emotionally exhausted. When she finally got home, she was going to flop face first onto her bed and refuse to move for a few days.
At least.
"The most important thing is that everyone is safe." Happy remarked.
"Everyone, you did a truly excellent job." Jura said proudly.
"Excellent...yeah, sure. Lets go with that." Rette remarked, dropping to sit on a boulder.
She ran a hand through her hair, wincing when she encountered tangles. She was going to need a serious bath. A nice, long, hot bath suddenly sounded really good to her.
"But who's that guy?" Gray asked suddenly, turning to look towards Jellal.
"He's Jellal." Erza replied.
"That guy is!?" Lucy asked.
Natsu made a little growling noise from where he lay on the ground, a pout on his face. Rette reached out one foot, nudging his head, silently telling him to stop pouting. She pulled her foot back when he snapped his teeth at her foot. The moment he turned his head back away from her, she repeated the action, pulling her foot back once more when he snapped his teeth at her again.
"But, he's not the Jellal that we once knew." Erza was saying.
"He lost his memories." Wendy added.
"Well...you could have mentioned this earlier." Gray told her.
Rette tuned out of the conversation, watching as Erza walked over to Jellal to join him.
"I want to thank you for all of your help first." Erza told Jellal.
"Erza. No...there's no reason to thank me." Jellal told her, looking away from her.
"What do you want to do now?" Erza asked.
Jellal stared at the ground as if he was silently pondering the answer to that question. He gave it some thought before replying that he didn't know what he was going to do.
"I'm afraid...that my memories will return." Jellal told Erza.
Rette knew how he felt. She feared remembering her past too, but she believed that as long as he didn't let those memories change his willingness to correct his wrongs, he would be just fine. Part of having a bad past was being willing to move into the future, eyes facing forward. Looking back would only trip a person up. Erza looked at Jellal and gave him a soft smile.
"I'm here for you." Erza told Jellal, shocking him. "Even if that hatred were to return, the current you won't vanish. I-"
Erza was cut off when Ichiya, who had been running off to go find somewhere to use the bathroom, ran into an invisible wall. Rette got to her feet as magic letters appeared on the ground, forming a circle around them and trapping them inside an invisible shield. Rette knew she had to be tired if she hadn't felt the magic surrounding them.
"This...this is..."
"An enchantment." Rette said, finishing Jura's sentence.
They were trapped. That had every muscle in Rette's body tensing, ready for another fight that she was sure she had little to no power for. The sound of approaching footsteps, made them all turn. Coming towards them, dressed in the uniforms of the Magic Council's Ruin Knights, was a large group of men. One man, dressed neatly, his long hair pinned to the back of his head in a top knot-like style and glasses perched on his nose, stepped forward, presenting himself as the leader before he ever said a word.
"There will be no more violence. So refrain from moving for a short while. I am the head of the newly reformed council's fourth Custody Enforcement Unit. My name is Rahal." he told them.
"A newly reformed Council!?" Gray said, looking freaked out.
"When did that happen?" Lucy asked.
"We were reborn in order to enforce laws and justice. We will not forgive any form of misconduct." Rahal said.
"Well then you seriously suck at your job."
All eyes turned to Rette as she crossed her arms. Rahal's eyes narrowed. He obviously wasn't pleased with her input. Rette, though, thought she was pretty accurate with her opinion. If keeping order and enforcing rules was suppose to be their job, then they should have been there helping with Nirvana instead of only showing up after everything was said and done.
"If your job really is keeping order and enforcing justice then exactly where the hell were you when we were handling Nirvana? My vote? You've already failed." Rette told him, turning her face from him, her chin in the air, as if she was already bored with his mere presence.
"Rette." Gray hissed at her.
Rette waved him off before looking at Rahal again, her chin staying defiantly in the air. It was as if she was silently daring him to step foot inside the enchantment.
"Besides, we've done nothing wrong. Unless you count stopping evil as wrong." Rette said, her tone flat.
"Yeah! None of us have done anything wrong!" Happy agreed.
"There is one among you. Our purpose is to arrest the Oracion Sies. The one who is code named Hoteye, please pass through." Rahal said.
Rette's eyes turned to Hoteye, who stood beside Jura. Jura tried to speak up in Hoteye's defense but Hoteye merely laid a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
"It's alright, Jura. My good nature may have awoken but the sins from my past have not disappeared. In order to start over I must make things right." Hoteye told Jura.
"If that's the case, I'll search for your younger brother in your place." Jura told him, surprising Hoteye. "Tell me what you brother's name is."
"His name is Wally."
Rette blinked in surprise. Wally? Block man Wally who had been working for Jellal at the Tower of Paradise? He was Hoteye's little brother? Who would have thought?
"Wally? I know that man." Erza told Hoteye. "He's a friend. He is doing well. Last I heard, he was traveling across the continent."
With the information that his brother was alive, well, and living a good life, Hoteye broke into happy tears, thanking Erza for the news of his brother. He was lead away by the guards, but at least he had one bit of good news to carry him on.
"I feel bad for him." Lucy said.
To be truthful, Rette did too. But, while the circumstances leading up to his choices had been unfair and misfortunate, Hoteye had chosen the path he had taken. Rette was a believer in that a person decided their own path and future by the choices they made. Hoteye had made some seriously bad choices and now he was going to have to work to atone for those crimes. He would be given the chance though. That was all that mattered.
"Alright already! Now remove the spell! I'm going to start leaking!" Ichiya pleaded.
Obviously, the man had no bladder control what so ever.
"No...our goal wasn't just the Oracion Sies." Rahal said.
Surprise, surprise. Rette was seriously ready to get out of the enchantment and possibly slug Rahal one. What else could he possibly want with them?
"Infiltrating the Council...and causing it's destruction." Rahal said, Rette not liking where this was going. "Firing Atherion. There is an even greater villain among you. Jellal! Come with us! We have permission to eliminate you if you resist!"
"Wait a minute!" Natsu growled.
"This man is dangerous. He will never be allowed to walk free in this world again." Rahal said.
"My bras are more dangerous than Jellal is to us." Rette retorted.
All eyes turned to Rette, most surprised that she had actually said that. Some of the males present looked down at her chest and the barely there top she was wearing. Those from her own guild knew that Rette always wore tops that barely covered and knew...there was no way she ever wore a bra. Not that any of them said that out loud.
Rahal just ignored Rette. He had his men cuff Jellal, pulling him away from Rette and her companions.
"Jellal Fernandes. You are under arrest for the crime of federal treason." Rahal told Jellal.
"Wait, please! Jellal has lost all of his memories! He doesn't remember any of that!" Wendy pleaded.
"Under Article 13 of the penal code, that is no cause for pardon. You may relese the enchantment now." Rahal said, directing that last bit at one of his men.
Rette could have told him that that was where he had screwed up. He should have left the enchantment in place until they had carted Jellal off. But instead of doing that, the enchantment was removed, freeing Rette and her comrades.
"B-but!" Wendy protested.
"It's alright. I have no intention of resisting." Jellal told her. "I never did manage to remember you in the end. I am truly sorry, Wendy."
"She tells me you saved her, a long time ago." Carla said.
"I see...I do not know how much trouble I may have caused all of you, but I am glad to hear that I at least saved somebody, once." Jellal said.
Rette and Natsu looked Erza, who was staring at the ground. Jellal called out to her and thanked her once more before turning away. Erza was shaking, her hands curling into fist. It was killing her to watch them take Jellal away.
"Is that all you have to say?" Rahal asked Jellal.
"Yes." Jellal replied.
"It is almost certain that your sentence will be either death or life imprisonment. You will never meet any of these people again." Rahal informed Jellal.
That wasn't fair. Jellal had done some horrible things, yes, had hurt a lot of people, but he wanted to atone for those sins, wanted to right his wrongs and work hard to change himself. And they wanted to lock him away from the outside world or kill him. Rette had spent the first hand full of years of her life in a situation like that and would not wish that fate on her worst enemy.
Rette met Natsu's eyes and the two seemed to share the same thought. Rette, who stood between Natsu and the guards leading Jellal away, gave Natsu the barest of nods before she dropped into a crouch as Natsu flew forward.
"Incoming!" Rette called.
The guards turned as Natsu crashed into them, shoving one man in the face.
"He's not going anywhere!" Natsu yelled.
Rette followed Natsu, backing up his charge, a sword of blue-purple crystal forming in her hand. She batted aside one man with the blunt side of her sword and smacked the next upside the head.
"Natsu! Rette!" Gray yelled in warning.
"This is the council we're dealing with!" Lucy added.
"Move it! He's one of us! We're taking him back with us!" Natsu declared.
"Restrain this man!" someone order.
Half of the men that charged forward, ran into a wall of crystal that suddenly shot up out of the ground. Rette cleared the wall in a leap, crashing into the men on the other side, clearing the way for Natsu to go on. She shoved a booted foot in the face of one charging man, feeling his nose snap under her heel. More men came at Natsu, but Gray rammed into them from the side, taking them down.
"Nobody's going to stop Natsu now! Especially not with Rette backing him. And besides, this pisses me off! That guy helped defeat Nirvana...and they're not showing even a shred of gratitude!" Gray declared.
"I don't care how this looks. Jellal knows what he did was wrong, even if he doesn't remember it. He's willing to work hard to right his wrongs and helped us save the world from disaster. Tell me...how does that make him anything but a good man?" Rette asked, batting another man away.
One man tried to grab her from behind, only to get knock aside by Jura. Rette turned to look at him as he cracked his knuckles.
"It is injust to arrest a good man!" Jura said, nodding in agreement to Rette's opinion.
"Though it pains me to say it, if that man is taken from her...Erza will be inconsolable." Ichiya added, also joining the fight.
"You might want to come up with a better reason than that. Like, I don't know...saving a man's life." Rette told him.
Lucy, Wendy, Happy, Carla, and Thyme joined in on the fight, though it was more along the way of slapping, clawing, and dodging for the five of them. Rette worked through the guards, along side Natsu. She hit any man who came near her.
"Come with us! Jellal! You mustn't be taken away from Erza! You've got to stay by her side! For Erza's sake! So come with us!" Natsu yelled.
"I told you, Jellal...I would hurt you if you made her cry." Rette added.
"We're all here with you! You're one of us right!?" Natsu called.
"Arrest the lot of them! They are guilty of obstruction of officers in the line of duty, and assisting in the escape of a prisone-"
Rette cut Rahal off when she smacked him upside the back of his head with her crystal sword. The man stumbled forward, gripping the back of his head. He rounded on Rette but she was already moving on, working her way through the guards towards Jellal. She and Natsu were so close to the man, just a few yards remaining.
"Enough! Stop this!"
Everyone froze when Erza's voice rang out over the chaos. Rette came to a complete stand still, freezing like a statue. It made the men around her turn surprise looks on her since the position she was in couldn't be a comfortable one. One man had grabbed her by the hair, pulling her head back and putting strain on the gash on her shoulder blades. Enough strain that it had reopen the wound. She was standing on a second man, one booted heel on his head and had a third man in a head lock where she had been hitting him on the head with the blunt side of her sword.
"I apologize for the commotion. I will take full responsibility. You may...take Jellal away." Erza said, her teeth gritting.
All of her friends could tell it wasn't easy for her to pick them over Jellal, but Rette could understand it. The good of the whole over the good of a single. Rette relaxed completely, releasing the man she had in a head lock and stepping off the one under her feet. She let her sword shatter into tiny shards and ripped her hair free of the man who had grabbed it.
"Erza!" Natsu protested.
Rette placed a hand on his shoulder. When he looked at her, she shook her head. It was already hard enough for Erza, they had made it harder. It was best to let it go there. Jellal turned to let the men lead him away but stop when he remembered something. He said something to Erza about the color of her hair before wishing her a final farewell. Rette didn't get the comment and probably never would unless she asked Erza. After his farewell to Erza, he turned to Rette with a smile.
"I will remember what you said about forgiveness. I want to save, too, not destroy." Jellal told her.
Rette, surprised, watched as the soldiers finally loaded him into the cart and took off with him. When the soldiers were all gone, they all pretty much sulked. Erza separated from the group, needing some time alone. Rette was pretty sure she knew what for. Just when Erza had thought she had gotten back the Jellal she had known as a child, she had lost him again. Rette didn't understand it, had never been through something like that in her life, but she was sure it wasn't easy for Erza.
Rette leaned her head back against the rubble she was leaning against, her eyes rising to the sky as the sun broke free of the horizon and began it's climb into the early morning sky. The rays of the sunrise painted the sky a beautiful scarlet just like that of the color of Erza's hair. It was then that Jellal's comment about Erza's hair clicked in Rette's head. Erza's last name was Scarlet. Rette was willing to bet that Jellal had been the one that gave her that name, as tribute to her hair.
Rette didn't completely understand the bond between Erza and Jellal, but she knew this separation would hurt Erza. All Rette could do, though, was be there to offer support.
Now...how did she go about that?
END
Kyandi: Once again, sorry I put this off so long.
Rette: She's working on the other chapters.
Kyandi: Yes, I am. I'm trying to force myself to shape up.
Rette: That's what bad about taking vacations.
Kyandi: You should try it sometime.
Rette: Why? So I can become lazy and then fat?
Kyandi: That''s so mean!
Rette: Only the truth.
Kyandi: Whatever. Everyone enjoy and review.
Rette: We shall return soon.
Kyandi: Bye-bye!