Author's Note: I hope everyone is staying safe! Wash your hands, be smart, don't panic! Here's an update to distract you!

As always, thank you all for the faves, follows, and reviews! 3


Walking Cliché 52

Together Again

Thursday, March 27th, 9:00 PM

The Soul Circus had a party.

Evidently, since some towns didn't draw quite enough revenue for their regular circus act, they held 'after parties' to get more of a crowd. At these events they sold masks by the hundreds. People that were unable to attend the actual circus, for whatever reason, were able to wear masks to conceal their identity.

Alcohol, food, and other items were sold as well, and the only difference from the actual circus was that it was much more informal. This particular party was on the edge of the woods with several bonfires, much smaller impromptu acts put together, and several performance ideas that the circus folk tested on this crowd.

Children were discouraged to attend this after party, making it an adult party. The performances had much more raunchy humor, condoms were readily available, 'sex for the soul' books were sold by the dozens, and numerous other sex themed events happened.

Thankfully it didn't get too wild. There were a few security personnel that would walk around and remind people to keep their articles of clothing on, and that making out should be reserved for home/not here. Earlier that day, Claire had overheard several people in the circus complaining about this event and just as many raving about how much they loved it.

Wendy was at the main camp, probably still hanging out with the other kids her age.

Obasi was one of the vendors selling alcohol, so she got free drinks for the night. She also bought a few masks as souvenirs, knowing her friends at Fairy Tail would whine and complain if she didn't. She ended up getting quite a few things for Michael, and earlier that day had gotten him some shirts.

Claire walked around and explored, surprisingly entertained by the event. Everyone had a mask on, making them less inhibited and more likely to laugh without restraint.

"What's a cutie like you doing alone?" Someone purred in her ear. She had been standing by the fire for a few minutes now, lost in thought as she gazed and basked in the warmth.

"Sorry stud, I've got a boyfriend." She replied, and took a sip of her drink, not bothering to look at him.

"He's a lucky man."

"Yep."

"Sex must be really good." He commented. "Would have to be, for someone as hot as you to only fuck one guy."

Her annoyed stare slowly moved to the man next to her, which quickly shifted to a confused one.

"Fucking one guy must get pretty old."

"So does his crude sense of humor." She said, and punched the man in the arm. "Why didn't you tell me you were getting in early?"

"We caught an early train." He stated with a tired grin, and let his tongue hang out of his mouth, showing off his Fairy Tail emblem. His hands went to her waist and gently pulled her closer, careful of her drink as he did so. She smiled back, one arm going to the back of his neck and pulling him down for a kiss. "I really missed that." He breathed against her lips.

"I missed you, too." She whispered back pointedly, and the man chuckled, staying still for a while. They simply stayed there for a few minutes, swaying slightly in each other's arms, and resting their faces together. It had been a long week, and Claire practically melted in his arms, happiness and relief washing over her at his mere presence.

Similarly, Bickslow had been tense ever since he heard that she was missing. He never really relaxed until now, thinking the worst, and constantly worried about her. Holding her securely in his arms, so close, he never wanted to let go.

Their reunion was cut short, despite the several minutes they'd spent just standing there, by an annoyed green-haired mage that tapped their shoulders impatiently. They both sighed heavily, staying in each other's arms, but shifted to face their teammate.

"Glad you're okay. Now, can we get a hotel room already?" His hair was in an unusual disarray, bags under his eyes, and his shoulders were slouched. What looked like a heavy pack was on his back.

Before Claire could reply, her babies appeared from behind him and swarmed her, moving so fast that they nearly knocked her over. A smile cracked along her face, ecstatic at finally having her babies back, and she held them close to her chest.

"Mom's back! Mom's back!" They echoed happily.

"Babies." She giggled, feeling their telepathic presence again. It felt like it had been an eternity since she'd been with them.

"Hotel. Please." Fried spoke up, obviously aggravated.

"We booked two rooms at the Pegasus Hotel, but they're not until tomorrow, since that's when I thought you guys were getting here." Claire told him. "They're pretty booked, so you can check if they have any extra rooms, but you guys might have to stay with the Soul Circus for the night."

He groaned, loudly. Someone passing by shoved a drink in his hand, kissed his cheek, and patted his back before walking away.

The word mage chugged down the drink.

"'Sex for the soul'?" Bickslow read, peering over the top of Claire's head and noticing the little book stand. "… is that my grandma running that?"

"Let's head back to camp, poor Fried looks exhausted." Claire gushed, accidentally using her 'mother' voice. To her surprise, the word mage nodded with a frown, not unlike Michael when he was on the verge of tears. "You've had a long trip, haven't you?" She asked, still using her motherly voice, and held out an arm to him.

To her further amusement, he stepped forward and accepted the hug, his movement snapping Bickslow out of his reverie.

"Camp. Right. Let's head back. Quickly." The seith mage spoke, pushing the small group forward.

When they made it back to camp, they realized that people were starting to retire to sleep. Annoyed groans rang out at the arrival of the small group, since Claire's babies were loud, Wendy laughed and gushed in delight at Bickslow's presence, and the word mage groaned and grumbled loudly about how he just wanted to sleep.

1.

Friday, March 28th, 1:00 PM

"Why?" Claire questioned, eyeing the old man carefully. She was reclined in the captain's chair, feet propped on the side of the desk, and expectance gaze on her grandfather.

"Because my granddaughter has been through a lot, and since she's in a beautiful part of the world she's never been to before, I think it would be a splendid if she enjoyed herself there. Take a week off, all expenses paid, and enjoy yourself."

"Is there a reason you don't want me to come home?"

"Of course not. I've already informed Fried of this arrangement, and he's working out a schedule for you guys to follow while you're there to explore the area. You're young, you should be having fun and enjoying yourself."

"So why does it feel like you have ulterior motives?"

"Claire," Makarov spoke, lowering his voice slightly and clasping his hands together on the desk in front of him. "You're my granddaughter, and I've seen you deal with a lot over the last couple of years. I've been worried about you, and I think a vacation would be good for you. Please, try to make the best out of the situation and enjoy yourself."

Staring down those big, puppy dog eyes that the old man was way too good at, she finally sighed in defeat. "Fine, I'll try to have fun."

The guild master grinned, and although she planned to follow her word, she knew that the man was holding something back. He had that mischievous glint in his eye.

"How is Michael doing? Can I talk to him?"

"He's, uh, not at the guild hall right now. He's probably sleeping in."

"He never sleeps in."

"Well, there's a first for everything. Bye!"

"Gramps-" She started to say, but then the lacrima went dark. "If anything happened to Mike, I'm going to kill him."

2.

"It's nice to see you again." Jelani commented, and the other seith mage nodded.

"Yeah, it's nice to see you, too. It's nice to see everyone, actually. I didn't expect to see you guys in another 20 years." Bickslow told him. They were sitting by a small open fire at the main camp, snacking on food, and in Bickslow's case waiting for Claire to return from the ship.

"Well, we might be looping around back to Magnolia sooner than planned. The Ghoul Guild activity has been making us nervous, and with the island creature devouring entire ships, there's talk about switching to traveling by land and shortening our route until it's safer."

"Shit. Have they been giving you any trouble since you visited Fiore?"

"We've been having peace talks, but they're not going well. We had a successful fight a few weeks ago that showed our strength, but I doubt it'll keep them at bay. There's a lot of people talking about moving to Magnolia and joining Fairy Tail for protection, so there's a lot of things up in the air right now. I think seeing what happened to Claire and Wendy really hit home for some of my people, so you guys might have friends going with you back to Fiore."

"What do you mean? I mean, not to sound rude, but don't people die in your circus all the time? Why did what happened to Claire and Wendy affect them?"

"It's true that a lot of people have died in our circus, but we've never had anything like this. Back when we thought it was just ignorant people trying to hurt us, it wasn't as bad because we could take the moral high ground. We lived our life the way we pleased and no one would get in our way. Now that we know that's not the case, that an entire death guild is trying to slaughter us, it's got people freaked out. I asked Claire to help out with a self-defense lesson the other day, and don't get me wrong she was great, but she was also blunt. When she talked about the Ghoul Guild she didn't sugar coat it, and having them hear things they already new from a new perspective made them look at it in a new light."

"Sounds like you are, too." Bickslow commented. The chief of security chuckled, smiling wryly as he brushed one of his hands through his curly hair.

"I guess I am. Sorry I rambled so much, I've got a lot on my mind."

"No worries dude. It's a shit storm right now." He stated.

"Oh, uh, before I forget," Jelani spoke, relaxing slightly as he turned to face the man more directly. "Nara wanted to ask if you and Claire wanted to go on a double date before you leave."

"Double date? Really?" Bickslow asked, not really expecting the invitation. He couldn't remember the last time he and Claire had done a 'double date' with an actual couple. The only one he could recall was with Laxus and Ever, and those two just pretended to be a married couple so that they could get into a fancy restaurant.

"You sound surprised."

"I, uh… sorry, sure, we'd love to. I'll have to check with Claire, but I'm sure she'd be up for it. We don't get asked out on double dates often."

"Why not?"

"People think we're creepy." Bickslow said with a nonchalant shrug, and popped another chip in his mouth.

3.

Friday, March 28th, 11:00 PM

"They actually want to double date with us?" Claire asked, sitting on her heels by the foot of the bed. She watched eagerly as the seith mage slowly took his numerous guards off, wanting to get to bed as soon as possible. They would have napped earlier in the day if Wendy hadn't been so excited to spend time with them.

"Apparently. I guess you made a good impression on them."

"They're both nice people." She said with a smile, and when the last of his guards came off, she jumped to her feet and pulled him in for a kiss. Down to just their panties and boxers, they sighed into each other's lips, loving the amount of skin touching.

The kiss quickly escalated, becoming a passionate game of tongue play, but just as quickly their kiss died down. "If I wasn't so tired, I'd fuck you so hard right now."

"Sleep, sleep, sleep," She muttered, and the couple climbed over to the bed. Their babies flew over to them, one of them turned the light off, and they all snuggled together. "I love you Bixy."

Immersed in their warm blankets and love, they fell into a blissful sleep.

4.

Claire woke up to something hard poking her butt, and it wasn't pleasant.

She made a small whining sound as she tried to scoot away, but Bickslow kept her firm against him, arms securely around her. He placed a couple of small kisses along her exposed shoulder, and his hands started wandering.

"Eeeew, mommy and daddy are doing stuff." One of the babies complained.

"Let's bail before they start humping." Another stated, and both parents shot them a half-hearted glare. Too tired to comment, Bickslow simply went back to his morning groping of his beautiful fiancé, who was less than pleased with their current position.

"Stop poking me so hard." Claire complained, reaching behind her and shifting to alleviate the pressure on that one sensitive area.

"I can do it softer?" He suggested, gently rolling his hips so that his hardened member could nudge in the space between her legs. One of his hands roamed to her underwear, delving down into her depths, and she made a surprised high-pitched sound.

Placing another flurry of kisses along her shoulder and neck, he eventually leaned forward to capture her in a heated kiss.

5.

Saturday, March 29th, 7:00 PM

"This feels weird." Claire told him.

"It's going to be fun." Bickslow assured her, and kissed her cheek. They were currently walking away from the hotel, dressed in their 'double date' outfits, and on their way to meet up with Nara and Jelani. Their plans were to meet up with the couple at the restaurant, eat dinner, and then walk along the waterfront.

"What if they end up hating us?"

"Well, it's not like live near them."

"What if they end up like us and we never see them again?"

"Then maybe we'll take another vacation to meet up with them again."

"Bicksloooow,"

"Checkeeeers," They both whined obnoxiously to each other, grinning and holding hands as they progressed down the street. After finally getting a good night's rest, sleeping in, and then morning sexy times, they were both relaxed and in a pleasant mood. Neither of them really knew what to expect from the evening, but they were kind of excited about it. There weren't exactly a lot of other couples at Fairy Tail for them to hang out with, and the few that were didn't like the 'creepy couple'.

Stale Port was beautiful at night. Floating lanterns everywhere, extravagant lights hanging from shops and decorating the parks. During the day it was rather dull and boring, but at night, it came alive.

Both couples managed to arrive close to the same time, and were seated to their table quickly. They were outside by a small river, every table occupied, and given menus and water each. Nara had made reservations for them earlier that day, and had apparently been looking forward to coming here for some time.

"This is supposed to be one of the best restaurants in Minstrel. I've been dying to come here for years."

"So you're a foodie?" Claire asked, and every person gave her a confused look.

"I don't think I've heard that term before." Nara said with a smile.

"Sorry, it's a slang term from my world. 'Foodies' are food enthusiasts, or people that like going to exotic restaurants and writing reviews about them."

"That's Nara." Jelani chuckled, and took a sip of his water. Neither of the male seith mages wore their masks, which was a slightly odd sight. Nara and Jelani both wore exotic outfits, likely from the East, that also stood out from the other guests with bright reds and yellows.

"So, what do you two do for fun?" Nara asked, glancing between Bickslow and Claire. Her usual waist length brown hair was braided back in beautiful designs, swirls and flower shapes, and loose curls cascaded down her back.

"Uh… I guess drink at the guild hall." Bickslow shrugged.

"Training is fun." Claire added. "What about you guys?"

"Surely you guys do more than drink and train all the time." Nara commented.

"Nara, don't be rude." Jel spoke under his breath.

"Well, I mean, we play with Mike and our babies a lot." Claire stated, suddenly feeling awkward. The couple across from them were part of a circus- of course Claire and Bickslow would come off as boring to them. "And Fairy Tail has a lot of fun parties."

"But what do you do for fun?" Nara emphasized.

"Just because they're not into the arts, doesn't mean they don't have fun with what they do." Jelani spoke, trying to make the situation less awkward.

"Our son, Mike, is really into art. We dress up and do projects with him a lot." Bickslow brought up.

"Everyone needs some kind of creative outlet, though. Doing those things with your kids doesn't count." Nara spoke. "Do either of you play instruments? Paint? Dance?"

"Claire plays guitar." Bickslow offered.

"I haven't played in years."

"What if you taught Bickslow what you know, and then you can learn together?" Nara suggested.

"We'll think about it." Bickslow said with a grin. "So how many kids do you guys have?"

"We have two girls. 3 and 8." Jelani answered.

"We're in the process of adopting two girls. Do you have any advice for us?"

"How old are they?" He asked, and Bickslow blinked for a moment, trying to remember.

"Shit, how old are they?" Bickslow asked Claire, a guilty expression on his face.

"Wendy is 12 years old. Carla is technically 6, but since she's an Exceed… I'd say she's emotionally closer to Wendy's age." She answered.

"You're adopting at the worst age." Jelani told them with a grin. "They're going to be dating soon."

"Wendy has a crush on a boy at our guild." Bickslow said, and the conversation went on from there, talking about kids. Somehow the conversation went to training and fighting technique, a topic that both Jelani and Claire could relate, but the man's wife interjected.

"We are not talking about work at the dinner table."

"Oh come on, martial arts is an art form, not just work." Jelani protested, but the conversation was swiftly changed back to their children, much to his dismay. It took almost 20 minutes for their food to arrive, and when it did, they heard an explosion down the street. The group turned their heads to the sound, wondering if it was an attack, and sudden they heard a shrill scream in the chaos.

"NATSU!"

"You have got to be fucking kidding me." Bickslow muttered.

"That explains why our guild master wanted us to have a 'vacation' here." Claire added, looking down the clouded street with a deadpan expression. The man next to her looked annoyed as hell, his seith mark adding to his dark expression.

"What's going on?" Jelani asked, relaxing when he realized that the two mages across from him didn't seem worried.

"A team from our guild is here. Our guild master probably wants us to babysit." Claire explained, adding a tired sigh at the end. She looked back to her food: a delicious smelling pasta. "You think we can eat dinner before they find us?"

"Mom!" A voice rang out, and instantly the couple turned their heads again to the cloud of dust down the street. Loud crashes and banging got closer to them as the dust cloud neared, and people started getting up from their seats and running. The fire mage stood, putting her cloth napkin back on the table, and walked towards the yelling mass of Team Natsu.

The man in question stopped just in front of her, crouched down and nose in the air, and looked up at her with an innocent and childish grin encompassing his face. On his back was Mike, who put his hands in the air and reached out to the older woman. "Natsu, what the hell happened to my child's clothes?" She asked, taking her knitted jacket off and putting it around the mostly naked boy's shoulders. Picking him up from the armpits, she hoisted him from the mage's back and pulled him into a hug. The boy sat on her hip, arms and legs wrapped tightly around her, and the fire woman stared down expectantly at the laughing dragonslayer.

"Claire! I'm glad you're alright!" Lucy greeted, and close behind were Gray, Erza, and Carla.

"Where the hell is Evergreen? She was supposed to be babysitting." Bickslow asked, coming up behind his fiancé and giving the group a death glare. The group cringed slightly, not used to that angry expression on the usually light-hearted man.

"We were worried, so we came to help." Erza explained.

"Where is Wendy!?" Carla asked out of breath.

"She's at the base camp with Fried." Claire answered.

"So Evergreen let you guys take our son across two countries?" Bickslow asked them, ready to kill the fairy woman next time he saw her.

"No, she came with us. Elfman and Lisanna are here, too." Gray answered.

"Are you alive?" Mike asked, getting the fire woman's attention. She looked down at the teary-eyed boy, shifting him slightly in her arms.

"Of course I am."

"You were gone, and then-then-" He sobbed, and fire woman held him close as he started crying. She couldn't help but roll her eyes, annoyed at the way Natsu had shown up, but also glad to have the boy in her arms. One of the reasons she'd wanted to get home so badly was because she missed Michael.

"Where the hell is Evergreen right now?" Bickslow asked the ice make mage.

As the group continued arguing and bickering, Claire turned back to their friends at the table, finding that her and Bickslow's meals had been put into boxes. Stepping over to them, and seeing the manager of the restaurant making a beeline for the group of wizards in the corner of her eye, she sighed. "Sorry guys. Looks like we're going to have to cut dinner short." She apologized.

"We understand. Maybe we can try this again before we ship out?" Nara suggested, and the fire mage nodded.

"I'd like that." Claire replied, and shifted the boy in her arms. She then summoned two of her babies, put the boxes of food on them, and followed her guild mates away from the restaurant.

6.

Saturday, March 29th, 9:00 PM

Bickslow was absolutely livid when he saw Evergreen that night. Claire couldn't recall a time she'd ever seen the man so angry at another human being before, and judging by the brunette's reaction, neither had she.

"I ask you to watch him for a few weeks and you drag him across two separate countries without even consulting me? What the hell?"

"Man, chill out. He was safe the entire time." Elfman spoke, taking a protective step forward. The seith mage had initially planned to talk to the fairy woman alone, but when he saw he, he couldn't help it. He just got over being terrified over Claire's safety, and now he had to be worried about any time he left his kid alone with someone he thought was his best friend?

"No, he wasn't, because he wasn't home. I trusted Evergreen to look after my kid and she betrayed that trust."

"It was our idea to come and see you guys." Lucy spoke up. "It wasn't her fault."

"Did you drag her here? Did you force her to come along?" He snapped, his glowing green eyes shifting to the blond. She froze, shaking slightly, and took a step back.

"He missed you both. He wouldn't stop crying." Evergreen tried to defend, but those glowing green eyes landed on hers again. The boy in question was still clinging to Claire, sobbing quietly though he ran out of tears.

"Bickslow," The fire woman spoke, reaching up and taking his arm in hers. "We can yell at her tomorrow after we get some sleep."

"See, she's not mad." Evergreen spoke, but went rigid at the death glare from the woman.

"I didn't say I wasn't mad. I just said we'll postpone yelling at you, and for now, you're not allowed to babysit Michael."

Bickslow grunted and turned to leave, his fiancé still on his arm. Their babies followed close behind, and as they disappeared up the steps of the hotel, an awkward silence befell the group.

"I thought they would have been happy to see us…" Happy said sadly, pouting on a chair next to the sleeping fire dragonslayer.

"I'm sure they'll be more sociable after we get some sleep." Gray commented, and yawned tiredly into his hand.

"And we did disrupt their dinner plans…" Lucy added.

"That doesn't mean it was okay for them to be so mean, though." Lisanna said, noticing how sad the fairy woman looked. Evergreen and Elfman had been getting along so well on the trip, it made the younger Strauss sibling sad to see them so deflated.

"Hey, how about we grab some desert?" Elfman suggested to the smaller brunette.

"No, I think I'll just go to bed." Evergreen replied, rubbing her eyes tiredly.

When the trio made it to their room, Michael had amazingly fallen asleep in that short time. Bickslow was still fuming, but he at least tried to reign in some of his frustration by focusing on the sleeping boy. As his babies set their boxed dinner on the small table in the corner, he dimly realized that he'd only had one meal that day.

Claire carefully put the sleeping boy under the covers, tucked him in, and turned back to the blue-haired man. He was staring at Michael with an unreadable expression, and the fire mage watched him for a moment, trying to decipher what was going on in his head.

Realizing that she was staring, the man turned to her, and they shared a comfortable silence.

"You okay?" She whispered.

He paused, wondering how he should answer, and finally gave a heavy sigh. "I'm starving."

A smile fluttered across her face, and at the sight, Bickslow couldn't help but have a matching one tug at his lips.

7.

Sunday, March 30th, 12:30 PM

Bickslow and Claire spent most of their day in the hotel room, since Mike got sick from the hotel breakfast he had gobbled down that morning. The poor boy was echausted as hell from traveling, and when he wasn't puking his guts out, he was moaning and groaning on the bed next to Claire. She would occasionally hush him while petting his longish brown hair, distracted with either reading or chatting with Bickslow.

In this case, she was talking to Fried as well. Bickslow took a seat next to the sick boy on a chair he had pulled up, and the word mage was sitting with his legs crossed on the foot of the bed.

"So I talked to our guild master this morning, and it seems that I need to redo my planning for our return trip." He explained to them, seeming significantly less excited than he was yesterday. When he'd learned that their guild master was allowing them practically unlimited credit cards and free reign on their trip home, he'd been more than a little happy at that. Returning home with Claire, Bickslow, and Wendy would be both a fun and relaxing trip.

Adding over ten more people to the route home made it not only much more complicated, much less relaxing.

"This would be more fun if this trip wasn't planned around my kidnapping." Claire told him.

"Well… I kind of agree. I also think it would be a waste to not take advantage of this opportunity, though. It could be a great learning experience for Michael." Fried told her.

"Will we still be able to do the hot springs with such a large group?" She asked, referring to their earlier conversation about their return trip home. Her only request was to fit in hot springs on their journey, and all other parties were excited about the idea.

"Yes, but not as many. I'll also need to ask around and see what other people want to do on this vacation."

"Is the guild master still planning to have the S-Class Trials is mid-May?" Bickslow asked.

"I… he didn't say, but I doubt he would keep the original date for it, since most of his strongest mages are here."

"… or would he?"

"Just ask him." Claire told the seith mage, who grinned and reclined in his chair.

"Maybe I will."

8.

Monday, May 1st, 10:30 AM

"How yeah feeling, buddy?" Bickslow asked over his shoulder. Mike had spent the entire previous day cooped up inside, miserable, so Bickslow took the kid out to the circus today. Since he was still feeling weak the seith mage carried him on his back, meanwhile Claire would occasionally rub circles on his back.

"I wanna go home." He mumbled in response, and the parents shared an empathetic look. Being sick sucked, especially after a week of traveling.

"Let's stay out for a little while longer, and then we can go back to the hotel." Claire comforted.

"I don't wanna go back to the hotel. I wanna go home."

"Hey, let's check out that ring toss. How about I win you one of those stuffed animals?" Bickslow offered, making his way to one of the stands. Mike didn't reply, instead burying his face into the man's neck as he got closer to the colorful stand. The man running it was a seith mage, missing one arm, and had been one of the people Claire saved from the lethal acid two months earlier.

"What do you think of those animals, Michael?" Claire asked, trying to coax him into looking at them. There was no one else in line, and after a moment, the boy finally looked up. He tried to act disinterested, but his eyes lingered particularly long on a rainbow tiger hanging from the top. "How about that rainbow tiger?"

"… he looks cool…." He mumbled, burying his face again.

"Is he your kid?" The man behind the counter asked, smiling at them.

"Yeah, his name is Mike. He's not feeling too well." Claire explained.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Being sick ain't no fun."

"No fun, no fun!" Some of his souls echoed, possessing some of the sillier looking animals and flying up to him. Mike smiled at the silly faces. "How about daddy spend some money to win a prize?"

"Win a prize! Win a prize!" They all repeated.

"Please take me home!" One of the souls pleaded as it possessed the rainbow tiger, and the boy giggled and laughed, thoroughly entertained. After another ten minutes or so of the colorful souls entertaining him, and eventually winning the rainbow tiger, Michael got to walk away with a giant rainbow tiger in his arms.

"Mom, look at what dad got me!" He yelled, beaming up at her.

"I saw. Do you think you'll be able to take care of it when we get home?" She asked, and he nodded quickly.

"Be careful that it doesn't bite you." Bickslow added.

"It's a stuffed animal, silly. It can't bite me." He giggled. Michael proceeded to drag the couple around the circus, now able to enjoy all of the bright colors and happy souls, soon forgetting his earlier illness.

9.

Monday, May 1st, 3:00 PM

"He's a clingy little guy, isn't he?" Jelani chuckled nearby, amused by the odd sight. He had seen the woman fight on several occasions, even break his arm, and yet he could never imagine her as a parent. Even when she and Bickslow described the child, he couldn't really imagine it.

Instead of trying to double date again, the two couples had settled on a late lunch together, and brought their kids to make it a play date. It was a last minute plan, and after the excitement from earlier and the jetlag, Michael had passed out on Claire's back. He simply announced he was tired, climbed onto the fire woman's back, and fell asleep.

"We're a cuddly family." Bickslow stated, wrapping his arms around the woman's waist and pecking her cheek. Slightly embarrassed by the open show of affection, her cheeks turned slightly red, and her gaze moved back to the food on her lap. "Mike lost his dad and had a pretty shitty childhood, so we spoil him a little."

"I think it's cute." Nara stated with a warm smile, and gave her husband a look. He took the hint and put an arm around her back, much to her delight. Their daughters were nearby on the grass playing with their dolls, ignoring the 'grown up chat'.

"So Claire," Jelani spoke up, and she glanced over to him. "I heard that you were the one to take down the island monster. Do you think it's something we should be worrying about?"

"Really, Jel?" Nara asked him, giving him a look.

"This isn't the dinner table and I'm too swamped to try and talk to her another time." He told her, hoping that he wouldn't have to fight her on this. She seemed to buy his reasoning, give a shrug, and take a bite of one of her chips.

"I forgot that the Ghoul Guild lost him…. I thought he was causing havoc by the coast of Fiore, though?" Claire asked. Although she was concerned at the escape of her older brother, and it was one of the main reasons she'd rather get home sooner rather than later, she'd tried not to stress out about it too much. Her injuries were still healing and she couldn't do anything from where she was.

"He was, but when two of your S-Class mages went to capture him again, they lost him. Your guild master recommended that we stay out of open waters until he's caught."

"I agree with the guild master." Bickslow stated, recalling his last encounter with the creature. "We had the strongest wizards from our guild with us, and we barely stood a chance."

"That shield of yours might hold up against him," Claire spoke. "But you wouldn't have a chance in hell of winning a fight."

"Sea creatures have always been a risk for us." Nara spoke up.

"This guy swallows up body and soul. You really don't want to face him." Bickslow told her.

"We can't avoid traveling forever, but we might extend how long we spend in towns until he's caught." Jelani explained. "What else can you tell me about him?"

10.

Monday, May 1st, 7:00 PM

They weren't sure how they got roped into another dinner date, but they did. Michael was still sleeping, but was now resting on the seith mage's lap.

Sitting across from them was his grandmother and her partner, Celest. Celest was the current leader of the Soul Circus, and although she wasn't a very strict person, held an air of wisdom that silently demanded the respect of those around her. She had long, white hair that was pulled back into an intricate braid, and a long flowing purple and pink dress. Alyona wore a similar red and pink dress, but her hair was up in a loose bun.

"So Aly tells me that you adopted Michael?" Celest spoke calmly. The couple had chosen a quaint little restaurant on the edge of town, with soft music drifting from a live folk singer outside and natural colors covering the interior.

"Yes. He was raised by his birth mom for most of his life, then he lived with his dad, and then to us." Claire explained.

"He lived with my parents briefly, as well. They gave custody to Claire… it's a long and complicated story." Bickslow told them, feeling rather nervous. He had enjoyed the time he spent with his grandmother in Magnolia, but now it felt strange to sit across from her.

"He's lucky to end up with you two." Celest complimented, and took a sip of her steaming tea.

"How long have you two been together?" Claire asked.

"Almost 20 years now." Alyona answered.

"That's a long time. Congrats."

"Thank you." Alyona said with a polite nod.

"So, not to be impolite, but…" Claire spoke, sitting up a little straighter. "Is there a reason that you two wanted to have dinner with us? Or is it to just chat?"

"Honestly…" Celest spoke, and set her tea cup back down on the table. "We wanted to invite you both to the Soul Circus."

"I'm sorry, but we're happy in Magnolia." Bickslow answered immediately.

"We thought you might say that, so we also wanted to ask how safe your guild is." She asked, and both mages gave her a confused look. "There's a lot of people wanting to go back to Fairy Tail with you, and if there's enough people leaving, then we may be making some big changes soon."

"You're not thinking of quitting the circus, are you?" Bickslow asked as his shoulders fell.

"Before we make any major decisions, we'd like to gather as much information as we can. I don't want to see people I've spent my entire life with go to a guild and be killed in a matter of weeks, so I was hoping that you two could tell us more about your guild."

"Anyone that joins Fairy Tail will be treated like family." Claire stated. "We're a lot stronger and less vulnerable than you are, but I have a feeling your people won't be happy. The Soul Circus is their home."

"The Soul Circus has been around for over a century. You can't just stop." Bickslow told them.

"We're not going to force people to stay, and if enough people leave we won't have a choice."

11.

Monday, May 1st, 10:00 PM

"They can't just give up." Wendy said, looking up at them with wide disbelieving eyes. "They love that circus. It's their entire life!"

"I told you we shouldn't have told her." Claire glared at her fiancé, and punched him in the arm. Unable to retaliate with the boy on his back, he stuck his tongue out at her.

"Why would they give it up? The circus is awesome!" Natsu declared, decked out in plastic necklaces, a large fuzzy hat, and a belt made out of braided flowers.

"The Ghoul Guild, for one. Try not to get too worked up about it." Claire spoke, having hoped to side step talking to their friends for the evening. It was getting late, they were exhausted, and she just wanted to sleep.

"What the hell did they do? Let's kick their ass!" The fire mage yelled as he jumped to his feet, and the dragon mage instantly pushed him back into his seat.

"Chill." She instructed, knowing that mischievous glint in his eye too well. Natsu pushed himself to his feet again, only to have her push him back down. "Natsu."

"You know he's just doing that so that you'll fight, right?" Happy asked nearby.

"If they quit, where do they plan to go?" Lucy asked.

"Fairy Tail." Bickslow answered, and Natsu's face lit up.

"Stop thinking whatever you're thinking." Claire told him.

"We'll be the Fairy Tail Circus." He said with stars in his eyes, and matching ones were in Happy's.

"They'd be giving up their life long dream of working in a traveling circus with their friends and relatives under threat of death, but yeah, let's day dream about how awesome it would be for Fairy Tail to turn into a goddamn circus." Claire told him sarcastically, and the boy pouted, his fuzzy hat almost falling off.

"Well what the hell are we supposed to do? You don't want me to beat people up, and you don't want me to join a circus. I'm running out of options!"

"Natsu, you and Claire could do a fire dragon duo act!" Happy told him, and he started grinning again.

"The only thing my fire will be burning is that stupid smile off your face." Claire growled at the fire mage.

"You seem extra tense. Trouble in the bedroom?" Gray joked nearby, ignoring the water mage stalking him from a nearby pillar.

"Is it because of your brother?" Wendy asked.

"What did Laxus do?"

"No, the other one."

"I'd rather not talk about it. Let's go to bed." She said, nodding to the stairs. They were all gathered in the hotel lobby, and although she'd hoped that Bickslow would want to leave as well, he didn't budge.

"Bacchus?" He asked, now curious.

"No. My older brother, Carl."

"Why haven't you mentioned him before?"

"I have. Let's go."

"I want to hear about this mysterious older brother. Is he cute?" Natsu asked, and as he tried to stand back up, Claire pushed him back down. Again.

"Natsu, why would you want to know if he's cute or not?" Happy asked.

"Oooh, is he the pompous one that your parents doted on?" Bickslow asked her.

"… yes. I'm going to bed, night guys." She waved, done trying to convince him to leave with her. The group said their goodbyes, and the seith mage waved to them before jogging to catch up with the fire mage.

"Are you mad?" He asked, walking up right behind her and leaning over her shoulder. She grunted, walking slightly faster and stepping to the side.

"I'm tired."

"You're both." He accused, continuing to walk annoyingly too close to her and grinning from ear to ear at her. "What'd I do to piss you off?"

"Can't you just drop it?"

"Nuh-uh." He purposely tripped her as she walked, causing her to pause and glare at him. Luckily they were just outside their door, so he stealthily took the key card from his pocket and swiped the door, leaning in front of her to open it. She grunted, again, crossing her arms and walking inside. Bickslow was quick to tuck Mike into one of the two twin beds, make sure the door was locked, and then turned back to Claire.

She was annoyed or nervous, that much was for certain. Her body leaned against the wall as her eyes gazed out into the lit street down below, fingers tapping against her arm.

He came up behind her, instantly nuzzling her neck and wrapping his arms around her waist. Instead of staying and nuzzling, like he hinted at by pausing for a moment, he pulled her back and lifted her feet off the ground.

"Bicksl-"

"Ssssh," He hushed, moving quickly to their bathroom. Once they were safely inside, door locked, and silence charm cast, he turned back to her and sat her down on the counter.

"What's with you?" She asked, confused by his random behavior. His tongue rolled out of his mouth, showing off his Fairy Tail emblem, and he waggled it teasingly in front of her.

"Me thinks we both need some stress relief." He informed her, hands tracing along the side of her thighs and itching to get those clothes off of her. The bathroom was a little small, but Bickslow knew from experience that they could make it work.

Judging by the look in her eye, she knew that, too. "Mike is in the other room, though."

"I was thinking that we would just talk about our feelings. What were you thinking?" He asked, inching closer to her. On instinct she leaned back, her head eventually resting against the mirror as his body leaned over hers.

"You idea sounds better." She teased back.

"Then let's have a very stimulating conversation about our feelings, hmm?" He hummed, leaning in to trail his nose across her cheek and to her ear. "We'll touch on whatever is troubling us, and talk so hard that you can't walk afterwards."

"Talking can do that?"

"My talking can." He told her, and pulled her hips against his, emphasizing his point.

12.

Tuesday, May 2nd, 3:00 PM

"Is it just me, or does this cotton candy look like weird fire girl's head?" Natsu asked Lucy, holding up his stick with a massive ball of cotton candy on it.

"Natsu, what do you have against Claire? You've been ragging on her all day." Lucy told him, and he blinked back at her in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"This morning when you saw her, you threw chips at her, and all day you been making little comments to insult her. Do you have a crush on her or something?"

"Well duh, of course I want to crush her. I also want to crush Erza and Laxus! And stupid Guildarts, too!" Natsu declared, laughing maniacally as he did so. Lucy's palm pressed against her face, hoping to disappear into the crowd.

13.

Tuesday, May 2nd, 3:00 PM

The ground rumbled, a high-pitched shriek filled the air, and debris fell from the sky. Claire, Bickslow, and Mike all looked towards the source of the sound, their eyes wide. Bickslow instantly swooped down and picked up the boy, using his souls to put him on his back, and Claire started running to the Soul Circus base camp.

She weaved through the crowd of people running past her, meeting up with Fried and several other seith mages on the way. Bickslow and the rest of their comrades weren't far behind.

They all recognized the sound.

"Is that what I think it is!?" Fried asked her.

"Unfortunately." She replied, dodging the people running in the opposite direction.

"Why the hell would he come here?"

"How about we ask him?" She asked him, half-sarcastically. How the hell was she supposed to know? When she started spotting the familiar vines crawling from the edge of the water by the Soul Circus base camp, she sent her souls out and started setting her fires.

Wandering souls were shooting blasts of energy all over the place, fighting off the tentacle like creature. Meanwhile Fried got close to the edge of the water and started setting up an enchantment.

"I thought it only attacked ships?" Jelani asked as he flew over to her, and seconds after he said that, one of their main ships was torn apart. "… shit."

"I'll go get enchantments set up around the other two ships." Claire informed him, and ran off with her two of her souls to protect the ships. As she ran, she felt like something was off about this attack, but she couldn't quite place it. It didn't feel as… chaotic, as the last time.

There was something almost methodical about the way it was attacking them, unlike the last time he attacked. Maybe the Ghoul Guild is controlling him?

After getting an enchantment around the two ships, setting them to only keep out the specific soul signature of the island monster, she returned to the mainland to help Fried. Since she had no experience with the type he was setting up, he merely shooed her away, and she rolled her eyes before jogging over the fellow S-Class mage slashing at the attacking vines.

"Doesn't this seem weird to you?" Claire asked her, easily letting her souls zoom around and shoot fire. They were like flying flamethrowers, but the fire would only burn the island monster's soul. "Something feels off."

"You've noticed that too? It's keeping a rhythm."

"A rhythm?" She asked, turning back to the water. Listening for it, she simply stood there for a moment, staring out into the water. About a mile away on the water horizon, the massive island sat, attacking them from a distance.

Then she heard it.

Doom doom tap, doom doom tap, doom doom tap.

"Are those rocks?" Erza asked, and the fire mage looked up, momentarily stunned.

We will rock you? Seriously?

"What the hell is going on?!" Bickslow asked, stopping by the two women.

14.

Approximately 8 years ago

Claire hated their stupid family vacations.

Every year they'd go somewhere new, and this year, they went to their cousin's new cabin by a lake. There was no internet, no TV, and everything electronic had been confiscated before they left. She was pretty sure that her mom was psychic, so she'd given up trying to sneak her phone on trips last year.

It had taken Carol all of 20 minutes to hook up with the cute neighbor that was 5 years older than them. Kelsey was kayaking on the lake with their mom. Dad was taking a nap with Corey. Carl… well, who knew what he was doing. When he wasn't sucking up to their parents or doing something perfect, he was magically missing, doing whatever he did in his own time.

She'd only had her hair cut and dyed a few weeks prior, and her family hadn't exactly been supportive. They were hippies, all about everything being natural, and her new 'unnatural' hairstyle contradicted that. Of course, being the loving people they were, they didn't directly tell her they hated it, but they didn't have to. In some ways their silence was more frustrating than if they'd just come out and said it.

Annoyed at the world, she kicked a rock by the tree she was leaning against, watching it fall into the water. She'd sitting there for close to an hour now, bored out of her skull and wishing for this trip to be over.

"What did that rock ever do to you?"

She nearly jumped out of her skin, not expecting the company. Her eyes narrowed at the man that emerged, her perfect older brother, who chuckled at her sour attitude. "It was being stupid, so I kicked it."

"That's a pretty good reason. Mind if I join you?"

"Knock yourself out."

He gave a content sigh as he took a seat nearby, setting something down as he did so, and she glanced over to see that it was a guitar. The 21 year old man had shaggy brown hair, a loose natural green t-shirt, and faded jeans covering his slim legs. She was pretty jealous of his good looks. "We never really hung out much growing up."

"We were born almost 6 years apart." She said simply.

"Yeah, but I kind of wish I'd made the effort anyway. I didn't realize how different from our sisters you are."

"… what do you mean?" Claire asked, confused. This entire interaction was weird. They usually ignored each other on these vacations.

"They're shallow, and they just don't get it. You do."

"They're not that shallow… just boy crazy."

"They're shallow." He stated, not even needing to argue it. Claire contemplated whether to counter his statement, but after a moment, just laughed.

"Okay, you're right. They're shallow. Slightly shallow in different ways, though."

"Hippies can be shallow, despite how much they say otherwise. Our parents preach love and tolerance, but they fucking hate your new hair." He said bluntly, and again, she couldn't help but laugh. It was rare to hear the man curse, nonetheless so openly call people names. He was the perfect child, the one that loved everyone and gave out 'free hugs' whenever the opportunity arose.

"They hate it, huh?"

"I think they'd prefer you burn shit again." He said, and she turned, covering her mouth as she snorted from laughter.

"I've never heard you curse so much." Claire grinned, still covering her face as she turned back.

"Whatever makes you smile, weirdo."

"So what's with the guitar?" She asked, her laughter dying down.

"Got bored, thought I'd practice in the woods."

"Is that what you do when you disappear on these trips?"

"Better than sitting around listening to three girls gossiping about boys." He told her, and she looked away guiltily. The only other boy in the family was currently 3 years old or taking a nap with him. "Honestly, I came over here because of what Carol told me."

Instantly her mind went to the worst of her secrets, eyes going wide as she wondered what she'd told him.

"You look so terrified."

"What did she tell you?"

"What do you think she told me?" He countered, and after a brief staring contest, he gave up. "She told me about the dirt bag you dated. When we get back, I'm going to hack the loser's facebook page and fill it with gay porn."

"I'm sure his parents would love that." Claire joked, relaxing a little.

"But seriously, he's a loser and you deserve better. I know I'm obligated to say that because I'm your brother, but it's true. No one deserves to be treated like that."

"Thanks…" She muttered, looking out at the lake. All of a sudden it was feeling like a cheesy movie clip: beautiful sunny day at the lake, older brother helping her through a tough time in her life, and on the edge of the lake she could see their mother and sister in two bright blue kayaks. The cheesiness almost made her puke.

"I hope this doesn't make me sound creepy, but Carol also mentioned the bi thing, and how you're dating girls now."

"Yeah."

"Want to learn the secret to winning a girl's heart?" He asked. The teenage girl glanced back at him, curious, and watched him pick up his guitar. "Girl's love guitar. It's a bonafide girl magnet."

"Is that how you got so many girlfriends in high school?"

"Chya." Carl nodded, and set the guitar back down on the grass. "Which, I'm sure that the new hairstyle will bring all the dykes to the yard, but you know, the guitar could give you an extra edge. I could teach you a few songs if you want."

"Dad taught me a few songs when I was younger, but I never really got into it."

"Then learn songs that you like." He said with a shrug. "'We Will Rock You' is actually really fun if you get a big enough group together. People will love you if you actually learn the words."

"Isn't that song a little too simple for guitar?"

"Not if you play it right. Come on, let's go back to the cabin and grab dad's guitar, and we'll jam." He suggested, pushing himself onto his feet and dusting the back of his pants. Having nothing better to do, the checker woman stood up to follow, having a new perception of her overly perfect brother.

15.

"Maybe he's just lost?" Wendy suggested hopefully. "Sometimes people just need to be reminded of the goodness deep down inside."

"You still think there's good in him? Even after he almost killed all of our friends?"

"I know he's done a lot of bad things, but maybe he had a reason for it. Maybe he didn't want to do those things."

Claire's chest and throat constricted, recalling so many memories. Most of all she felt her heart longing to her older brother, the monster quite literally playing the first song he taught her, and how he'd been there for her at such a vulnerable time for her. Sure, they never really hung out much after that, but they were family.

He was her brother.

She didn't hear whatever conversation the people around her were having, and didn't care that she interrupted them. "Don't follow me." Claire stated, ignoring the cries of her fiancé as she ran towards the sea, two of her babies flying by her feet and catching her when she hopped up. Her timing couldn't have been better as she soared past the enchantment just forming.

Bickslow's babies smashed into the invisible field, along with the vines trying to get past.

Claire easily dodged the green blurred thrashing around her, determined to reach the island ahead. She ignored the three souls in her head, asking for an explanation for what she was doing, and kept moving forward.

Her jaw clenched at the idea of losing another brother.

The beat was still playing, doom doom tap, doom doom tap.

As she neared the island, she recognized on some level that this was stupid. That she probably should have brought Erza and others along to help fight the evil monster trying to kill them, but she couldn't. Never in her life had she felt something pull at her heart so much.

Once she got close to the island, she had the two souls below her slow down and circle the giant mass. Months ago it looked like Tenrou Island, but now it looked like a normal mostly flat island covered in forest.

On one particular flat surface, a clearing that was about the size of a baseball field, her eyes locked with small hunched over form. The massive green soul centered on that one point, and she had her souls lower her down to it.

Ignoring her souls warnings, once she got close enough she cast figure eyes.

She could feel his pain. In her time of having this ability, she'd never been able to sense so much from the soul she was controlling, and this was simply heartbreaking. Hopping off of her soul's vessel, her feet landed on the muddy ground, only a few yards from the huddled little mass.

His eyes were large, the size of tennis balls, and glowing a soft green hue. Watching her approach her, he slowly unraveled the arms around his bent knees, showing his strange and distorted body. He looked like a horribly misshapen tree, his bark blackened, and dirt covering his vaguely human shaped form.

Claire didn't care what he looked like.

She bent down and pulled her big brother into a hug. He was the size of a bulky child, and his arms wrapped around her like one.

"I'm sorry for everything." He rasped.

"You can come back with me."

"I'm not human anymore, Claire. I can never go back."

Her body shook.

"Ever since I killed Kelsey, I can't stop eating. I keep shifting between thinking clearly and simply starving, unable to comprehend my actions. You're the only one that can stop me."

"No, I'm not." She mumbled.

"It's how we're written. The only people that can kill us are the ones that were summoned with our book. I doubt even burning our book will destroy us."

"You don't have to die." Her voice cracked, and even though she hated this with every fiber of her being, she knew this had to happen. Just because he was her older brother, didn't excuse him from the fact that he'd hurt so many lives.

"Search your heart, you know it's true."

"This is a stupid time to make a Star Wars reference." She choked, and with her figure eyes giving her control over him, started burning the corner of the island. Fire spreading, she kept her arms around him.

"I know. I love you, sis."

If her throat hadn't been closed up, she would have said the same. Flames slowly encompassed the island, all of the dangerous vines that had been previously attacking their friends, until there was only the small field left.

Instead of the last portion burning, she felt something change in her brother. Figure eyes being disabled somehow, she felt the ground begin to give way and her brother turned into a strange bright light. Riley and Ally flew to her, catching her before she fell into the waters below, and she felt something warm touch her face.

Then, there was nothing.