Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know this is late, but its kind of hard trying to top what I did in last week's chapter. Regardless, enjoy this chapter. Oh, and Merry Christmas Ya filthy animals! - AMS

The tension was so thick you wouldn't even be able to cut it with a sword. Wendy fidgeted uncomfortably as Charle glared daggers into Doranbolt's skull. Besides the clink of their spoons against the bowls of hearty soup, it was quiet.

Doranbolt sighed, breaking the silence. Wendy averted her gaze back down into her bowl. "I can't take it anymore!" She cried out suddenly, her chair toppling backwards as she sprung to her feet. She slammed her hands down on the table, startling the others. "Will at least one of you take the higher road!?" She asked in incredibility at their stubbornness.

"B-But I have!" Charle pouted like a child. "I haven't said a single word to him since we got here!" She crossed her arms, giving Doranbolt one last glare. "That's not what I meant at all…" Wendy mumbled, as the elf gave a low chuckle, causing the two young women to turn back to him. "What's so funny?" Charle demanded.

"Nothing really," He assured them with a smile. "But Wendy is right, after all, and I suppose that if I must be the one to do it…." He stood from his chair, and closed the space between him and Charle in a few long legged steps. The white exceed stared back up at him with her eyes narrowed and her mouth set in a firm hard line. "Charle, was it?"

She nodded slowly, almost disappointed that he had bothered to remember. Doranbolt continued, "I would like to apologize for my behavior for earlier, I was getting defensive. If only for the dragoness' sake," He spared a glance at Wendy, who smiled shyly back at him. "We should at least try to get along with each other."

Wendy felt her cheeks heat up as her smile broadened. "T-Thank you Doranbolt." He smiled back at her. "No problem Wendy."

Charle watched their interactions with a growing scowl on her feline face. "Alright," She reluctantly agreed, holding out her hand for Doranbolt to shake. "I'll get along with you, mind you, only for Wendy's sake…" Her eyes narrowed, fixing the elf in their piercing gaze. "But if I find even one ounce of hesitation when it comes to what's best for Wendy, I won't hesitate to do everything in my power to take you down."

Doranbolt smiled an odd smile as he took the offered paw and shook it. "Wendy comes first, isn't that right?" "Of course!" Charle exclaimed. "It's my duty to watch after her." "I see." Doranbolt hummed thoughtfully, releasing the handshake and turning towards the blue haired dragon.

"Is that alright, Wendy?" Doranbolt asked. Wendy nodded, a beaming grin stretching across her face. "Yes." She giggled. "Yes! Thank you." She looked like she wanted to say more but stopped herself and turned pink.

"Huh?" Charle looked at her friend's flushed face and then back at the elf, thinking how similar it was to yesterday. When Wendy had met Romeo, and how she had acted around the young selkie. 'Oh, no…' She groaned. 'Don't tell me she has a crush on this scoundrel as well?!' The exceed crossed her arms and pouted slightly. 'Wonderful…. We cannot trust this elf Wendy! I sense something terribly off about him… Something terribly wrong…' Her fists clenched and she grit her teeth, but externally she was calm, even though the storm of whirling anger and hurt inside. Distrust for Doranbolt tainted her heart, and set her stomach roiling in slippery knots.

Doranbolt spared a glance out of the corner of his eye at the white exceed, his easy going smile ever present, but never reaching his eyes. The breath caught in his throat as he caught the waves of hatred and unease rolling off of Charle. His eyes were quickly averted back to the still-smiling dragoness.

"Are you done?" He asked, suddenly changing the subject and holding out a hand for her empty bowl. "Huh? Oh, yes, thank you." She handing it to the elf with a grateful half-smile. "No problem," He said, turning towards Charle. "Would you like me to take yours as well, Ms. Charle?"

Charle didn't respond. She couldn't. She knew this feeling of detachment well. A vision of the future would soon begin playing before her eyes. The world around her vanished and faded to a dizzying wall of white. She watched the world come into focus once more but it was not quite her world, not yet.

The sun glinted off of armor and shimmering scales as great armies clashed with the great fervor of battle and the clash of steel on talons. The screams and roars from vanquished combatants echoed through the landscape. Dragons took to the air and swooped down at their foes, dealing death blows left and right, and for a moment Charle thought that she would be forced to watch the slow and bloody decimation of the Fiorian Army in real time until a dozen streaks of color shot out of the sky and waged their own battles against the attacking dragons.

Roars of disbelief shook the air as the small band of dragons fought with their own kin. Charle recognized almost all of them. Sting, Rogue, Natsu, Laxus, Gajeel, Cobra, Wendy! Three more unidentifiable dragons fought alongside them.

Great dark drops of dragon's blood flew through the air and splattered far below as talons ripped and teeth dug into thick flesh. Charle heard Natsu call out his signature move, the Fire Dragon's Iron Fist, before she was whisked away and through the air, far from the battle.

She now found her disembodied self overlooking a small town, where a small contingent of Dragons wreaked havoc. Villagers, like tiny ants, ran amok, trying to escape the destruction of their homes. Children screamed somewhere below, and the shrill voices were cut off by a dragon's roar.

There was no escape, no mercy. This was Acnologia's dream. His beloved war would be the end of so many. This wasn't a war, no—It was a massacre!

Charle blinked, coming out of the trance-like state breathing heavily. Slowly, the concerned faces of Wendy and Doranbolt came into view. "Charle?" Wendy spoke softly. "Are you okay? Y-you just froze and wouldn't respond all of a sudden!" Her hands frantically flew to her friend, checking her out, making sure she was alright. "You didn't hit your head at all earlier, did you?"

"What did I miss?" She almost giggled, playing the role. "I was asking if you'd like me to take your bowl…" Doranbolt scratched the back of his head, the gears in his head pounding away as he tried to figure out what had happened. "You looked at me funny, and then you just kind of…. Spaced out?" He seemed uncertain of with his wording, as if there was something he wasn't saying to them.

But then again, Charle wasn't about to tell him her secrets either. "I see. Well I'm fine, Wendy, Doranbolt. You know how I can get those awful dizzy spells every once in a while, Wendy." Charle spoke pointedly, making eye contact with Wendy.

Wendy blinked, wondering for a moment what Charle could mean before it hit her, her eyes widening the tiniest of fractions. 'Oh. Oh. I understand Charle!' Outwardly, she simply nodded and gave a hum of recognition. "Doranbolt?" Wendy asked shyly, "Could you please go get us a glass of water for Charle?"

Said elf nodded briskly, standing to his feet and rushing to fulfill the dragoness' request. As soon as he left, Wendy leaned closer and whispered, "Did you have a vision?" Charle nodded, keeping her eyes on the doorframe that Doranbolt had disappeared into. "What did you see?"

"I saw a battle, a horrible scene—" Charle shuddered "Blood and death everywhere." She gulped, eyes flickering with darkness. "I saw Dragonkind slaughtering—and being slaughtered. I saw the brave fall and I could hear the children scream. And there was pain. Horrible, horrible pain." She shook her head, locking eyes with Wendy. "The coming war—I saw it. It's so awful—I don't think something like that could end well for any of us…. Anyone at all."

Wendy was silent, trying to absorb the prediction. Charle was never wrong.

"Here you are," Doranbolt's kind and concerned voice violently snapped her out of her thoughts. Wendy's eyes softened as she saw him helping Charle sit up and drink the water; nothing but concern for her friend's well-being was in his own teal eyes. 'I know I shouldn't be attached, but I can't help but think that Vastia's Haven is a place Charle and I could actually be happy,' The sky dragoness thought. 'The people here are kind, and this place is beautiful, once you get past that awful cold… It's safe. And it's like a home away from home.' She looked up from her musings with an amused smile, the caves of the western mountains were nothing like this icy shore.

Doranbolt didn't miss the flicker of emotions that crossed her face, but didn't say anything. After all, isn't best to let sleeping dragons lie? He turned back to the exceed, saying, "So you're sure you're alright now?" The worry tinging his voice was real enough; Wendy choked back a sob. Would Doranbolt survive the approaching massacres? Would Romeo and his parents live?

"Yes, thank you, Doranbolt." Charle's tone was clipped but polite as she stood up and made her way to her blue haired companion with her quick short steps. "Wendy," She looked up, the soft and almost pleading tone of her voice in complete contrast to the hard, narrow set of her eyes. "I'm terribly sorry, but I don't want to risk impeding on Doranbolt's—" She turned so that her head was inclined towards the elf "—That is, your hospitality any more than I already have. I know our acquaintance is strained, but it would be awful of me to keep blanking out on you like that, and forcing you to worry about me." She turned back to the dragoness. "You know how when those awful dizzy spells hit me, they're always in twos or threes."

Wendy nodded. "I know." She made a point to sigh. "I'm sorry Doranbolt, but I have to take Charle back home now." She stressed emphasis on the word home, making sure Charle understood what the plan was. "It's alright, don't apologize." Doranbolt shook his head slowly, a smile on his face. "You shouldn't ever be sorry for helping someone else, Wendy."

Well, well, well, looks like there are even more secrets added to this beautiful mess! Just try and guess Doranbolt's I dare ya!

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR! -AMS