Chapter Forty Six - Electric Birthdays
Ultear Milkovich was possibly the happiest she'd ever been. She was back with her mother, and she even had two little brothers (even if she was trying to ignore all of their extremely annoying traits). Her magical overload wasn't hurting as much, and everything was well.
Now if only I could thank Nee-san, Ultear thought as she entered her room.
"Hello, Ultear," I said, sitting on the windowsill.
Ultear froze, before happily crying out, "Nee-san!"
She ran forward and grabbed my hand, dragging me back over to her bed and having me sit. "I'm so glad you're okay, Nee-san! I was so worried! And thank you so much!"
I laughed. I don't think I'd ever seen her this excitable before. "Calm down, Ultear. Breathe. We've got some things we need to discuss, and I'm afraid I can't stay too long."
Okay, the 'not staying too long' thing probably wasn't true, but I just know that if I leave Laxus alone, he'll eventually do something stupid.
Ultear frowned, but seemed to relax more after a few deep breaths.
"Here," I said, handing her a pair of inhibitor cuffs. "For now, only wear one. If your Magical Overload still gets to be too much, put on the other. And yes, you can still practice magic with this on."
She nodded.
I handed her one of my Call Cards. "Alright, so here's what's going on. If you're in danger, don't hesitate to send a surge of magic through this. You might even end up breaking the card, but it will be fine. It will alert me that you're in trouble, and that you need my help. If your one of your brothers *cough* Gray *cough* does something stupid, then I want you to call me immediately. And if you need to speak with me, tiny short spurts of magic. Got it?"
Ultear nodded seriously, and took it.
"I must be going now," I said. "Goodnight, Ultear."
"Goodnight, Nee-san!" Ultear said happily. "And thank you!"
I was still surprised by Ultear's attitude, and the way she was acting younger, before I figured that it was probably because of the ordeal she went through. If she wanted to revert back to a younger age in order to deal, that was fine. She probably wanted to forget the torture, and if she'd been in a feverlike state with the Magical Overload beforehand, it kind of makes sense - like she wanted to enjoy her childhood.
At least she wasn't screaming like last night.
And then I left.
"Aren't you supposed to embrace the cold, or something?" Laxus asked.
I glared at him. "I'm in my bathing suit, lying in the snow. What more do you want?"
"Maybe if you stop the roaring fire (or move away from it at least), I'd be more inclined to believe you," he said.
"It's cold…" I whined.
"You'll adjust." Laxus rolled his eyes.
"You're so mean to me," I muttered, moving farther away from the fire and meditating again.
I could manipulate the element easily enough, but I was still focused on making it on my own, so I sat there meditating.
As much as I wanted to take off my bracelet so I could immerse myself fully, I couldn't chance it. Even simply starting up a newer potion of my magic, just trying to get stronger, was a bit of a worry, and had Porlyusica fussing over me.
But this was the best chance for me to learn Uranus, and I want to get down some of each spell by the end of the year. Or at least get a handle of each element.
I still couldn't really pull off any of the big ones for major elements. I think that even without the bracelets, I still wouldn't be able to properly pull them off. Hell, it felt like something was missing about them...
Even when I had used Venus's spell during the Pandemonium Event at the Grand Magic Games, it felt incomplete.
Maybe I just wasn't strong enough yet...
Which brought me to thinking about Lucy; the way her power was growing was starting to scare me, and didn't seem right. A human body shouldn't be able to hold all of that magic (well, at that age, anyway), so I couldn't help but wonder what was going on.
Corvus had visited me one night (not too long before Laxus and I had left) and told me that everything was fine for now, but that's not really all that reassuring.
"Stop thinking about something else and meditate," Laxus complained. "I want to see some Ice Magic."
"Then watch the others," I said.
We were close enough to Ur and her kids that we could watch over them and I could learn how to mimic their magic. Ultear was resting, but would end up joining the training sessions when she got a better handle of herself.
"I want to see some Planetary Ice Magic," Laxus corrected.
"You're insufferable," I retorted, falling back into my meditation.
"Eh," he shrugged.
I glared at him, all comfy next to the roaring fire while I was freezing my ass off.
Fucking magic, man.
Apparently, my Fire Magic made it nearly impossible for me to get hypothermia or frostbite. I could still get it, but I probably wouldn't get it accidentally while I was training in the snow, which was a good thing.
By the time April 26th hit, I had a pretty good understanding of Uranus, and could get a few spells down if I used all of my magic (though none were to a strong extent). Like Mercury, I was having trouble with it, and I think it was because of the type of magic. I could use the elements easily enough, but I couldn't make it on my own, merely manipulate it.
However, I set up the group's monitoring cards in my requip space, put it on extreme alert, and grabbed Laxus.
"We're leaving," I said.
"Where?" he asked.
I smirked. "It's April 26th. We're going to surprise Juvia."
It was Juvia's birthday, and we decided to sneak into the guild. Everyone was gathered around a table, ready to sing happy birthday, before Laxus and I kicked the door open. "Happy 7th Birthday, Juvia!" we both shouted.
Okay, so maybe we're not that sneaky.
Juvia froze and looked at us, before jumping up excitedly and running into my arms. "Onee-sama!" she turned to Laxus. "Onii-sama! You came!"
"Of course we came, sweetheart," I said. "It's your seventh birthday!"
Looking around, I was glad to see that everyone else was there, even Brandish and the Heartfilias. "Alright, guys, we're here for the day! We'll be coming for your special days, so expect us! Unless something goes really, really wrong, but I'll try and send some sort of notice, or something."
"Why didn't you show up for my birthday?" Gildarts asked, as more than a few of the girls ran to hug me, even with Juvia in my arms.
"Maybe you're just not that special," I teased, trying to deal with the wave of children. Somehow, Freed ended up underneath the rest of them, and when the rest of the girls disappeared he was still on the floor hugging my legs.
"Also, we don't actually know when your birthday is," Laxus pointed out.
"Yeah, alright..." Gildarts said glumly.
"Freed, I love you, but you need to let go," I said, as he was still hugging my legs. "I can't move."
Juvia giggled.
We spent the rest of the day with Juvia, and we had a nice change of the weather. Now that the pool was finished, we would jump off the trampoline into the pool outside, which was extremely fun. I also spent some time discretely trying to practice some Uranus Magic, so I could see how well I could do in a warmer environment.
I couldn't.
We said goodbye to everyone, told them that I wouldn't be stopping by for my birthday, and went back to the North.
Several days later, my birthday came around, and Laxus asked what I wanted to do. I replied that I didn't really have any plans other than training, so he insisted that I take the day off and that we go into town for ice cream.
I didn't really have problems with it, so I put the cards on high monitoring and we spent the day in town, relaxing.
It's odd thinking that I'm eleven years old – or in all actuality, twenty one. Laxus is thirteen.
I've been here for two years.
It feels like less, and it feels like longer.
"Laxus, why do you think it's so hard for me to get the hang of Uranus?" I asked, eating my ice cream. "Or even Mercury? It can't be because they're solids, because so is Earth."
Laxus hummed thoughtfully. "Maybe because you're just manipulating the earth? You're not actually conjuring it."
I stopped, trying to think back. Honestly, Laxus could be right.
"Then what do you suggest?" I asked.
He sighed. "Can you use Venus in the dark?"
I shrugged. "Yeah. I mean, it's a lot harder, so I'll usually just use Pluto, but I can."
He nodded. "I think it's because you're converting light energy into your spells. If you're in the dark, you're conjuring it. I think you need to practice a bit more – you gather the light, and then harden it, right?"
I nodded.
"Maybe you should try gathering water and freezing it," Laxus suggested. "Until you can do it instantaneously and use Uranus spells? Maybe practicing that, and Venus magic in the dark, will help you more with conjuring certain elements."
It made sense. I could be taking the water for Neptune from the air, and I could make fire for Mars by heating up particles. Uranus and Mercury, however, were different, and much harder.
I couldn't help wondering how Gray – hell, how any of them – did it all the time.
I distinctly remember how Silver could freeze entire people, almost instantly, or how Gray froze the Bane Particles in the air. Was it by freezing the moisture over them?
"Concentrate on temperature, then," I muttered.
Laxus nodded. "You easily caught a hang of Earth and Saturn because those are readily available to you. And I think you progressed so far with Venus's magic because you compared that to solidified Celestial Magic, and you wanted to show off for Lucy."
He wasn't exactly wrong. But there was also something about solidifying Light Magic that made it easy. But maybe that's just because I've always had a thing for space, and after growing up with things like ray guns and light sabers, solidified light isn't a very hard concept for me.
"So I think we should try Jupiter, now," Laxus continued. "Since it should be easier to do."
I nodded. Like fire, lightning was caused by friction and ozone in the air.
"Do you have any idea how you should start learning?" he asked.
I nodded.
Though he wasn't going to like this. And though I'd never tell him, I tested it out slightly with some of the electricity in my house and in the guild.
As hard as I had tried, I could never produce it on my own.
It's odd that a spark is harder than a flame.
"I need you to zap me," I said.
He raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"You need to shock me," I explained. "I won't be able to get any of Jupiter down until I can resonate with an Electric Mage's magical frequency."
"Elle…"
"Just do it, Laxus," I said, sighing. "It's my birthday."
"That's one reason why I don't want to do it," Laxus grumbled.
"Laxus..."
A small zap hit me, and it hurt, but I also realized that it wouldn't nearly be enough.
"Again, Laxus," I said. "Stronger, this time."
He grit his teeth and sent another bolt at me, this one a lot stronger. I tried my best not to cry out, knowing it would make him feel worse. My fists clenched
"Harder, Laxus," I said.
He sent another, and I couldn't help the small scream that came from me.
"Elle!" he shouted.
"Again!" I said, gasping.
"But-"
"Again, Laxus!" I yelled. "I need to do this."
I had to get as strong as possible, and if Laxus had to shock me a bit, so be it.
I just wish it wasn't on his head. While I was closest to Laxus (and this would make the 'feelings' part of the magic taken care of), I would have rather found another mage to do it, so it didn't weigh on him.
Closing his eyes, he sent another blast at me, drawing out more yells.
"Elle-" he tried.
"Again!" I gasped, trying to meditate.
I couldn't mess up this time - it was my last chance. Neither of us would be able to try another time.
He sent another bolt at me and this time I caught it as it struck, resonating with its frequency. Lightning crackled around me, and purple sparks jumped off of my electric aura.
"You're…doing it…" Laxus said, his eyes wide.
I let the electricity fade completely, before starting it up again, proving that I could provide it on my own. It was cracking through my veins, and I was able to get a good trip in it.
Just glad I didn't break another cuff, this time.
I smiled at Laxus softly. "See?" I asked. "All better."
He got up from where he was kneeling and just about tackled me into a hug, squeezing me tight.
"Laxus, I'm okay," I gasped.
"Never make me do that again," he hissed, holding me tighter. "Promise me, Elle. Never again."
"Never again," I repeated. "I'm sorry for putting you through that, but I've already tried producing electricity on my own, and I knew that I'd need to resonate with your magic in order to pull it off."
"Besides, it's safer than trying to shock myself by destroying something electric," I pointed out. "This way I can control the voltage."
No point in yelling him that I already tried that, and it wouldn't work because there was no magic to it.
His grip loosened, but he didn't let go. "I smell blood."
"Hmm?" I asked.
He grabbed my hand. I had clenched them so hard that I had broken through skin. I didn't actually think that could happen.
"Hey, I'm fine," I said, waving it off. It'd heal easily enough. "And look!" I held up my other hand, holding a ball of electricity. "I can feed you now. So you should be pretty good in battle, too!"
It was one reason I had asked for what I had – with my Planetary Magic, I could feed all the Dragon Slayers except for Cobra.
Maybe I should carry around cyanide or something.
How easy it is to get ahold of cyanide?
Apple seeds have cyanide, right?
Oh, who the hell knows?
Laxus took my peace offering for what it was and swallowed the ball. He made a bit of a face. "I think you need to work on your lightning. It doesn't taste that good. Kinda bitter."
I felt like his words physically hit me. "It doesn't taste good? Wahhhhhhh!"
"I'm sure it'll get better!" he encouraged. "Levy's got better with time, same with Cana's. You'll be fine. And besides, it tastes bitter like... like dark chocolate! A good bitter!"
I certainly hope so. That was slightly better. I mean, hey, at least it's chocolate.
We spent the rest of the day sitting next to the fire, as I slowly manipulated my Lightning Magic, practicing some of the smaller spells. It was certainly a lot easier than the solid elements.
After eating some dinner and s'mores, we curled up inside our tent on our fluffy bed and fell asleep, Laxus still holding on to me as he had the whole day.
So... Yeah that was always gonna happen.
Just a warning: This may be a fix it fic, but I'm an angst junkie. Though this will still have a pretty happy ending, there will be angst from time to time. Especially as they get older.
Also, yes, apple seeds have cyanide.
