Eight-year-old Blaire and six-year-old Felix had never seen their parents look quite so worried as they did now. Their baby sister was napping, and the two of them had been sneaking around, trying to find their grandfather, when they had been found (read: startled) by Arcadios. For just a moment, both of them could have sworn they were in trouble, given how grave the White Knight had been, but all of that had fallen away when they saw how worried their parents looked. Their mother kept fidgeting with her wedding ring, and Laxus sat beside her, an arm tightly around her. Felix and Blaire both immediately ran over to hug their mother, well aware that something had to be wrong.

"If you two are nervous, don't be," Hisui told them with a small smile. "Nothing's wrong per se, there are just a few things your father and I need to tell you."

Blaire eyed her curiously. "What is it?"

"Is it about the Games?" Felix put in eagerly.

"No," Hisui said shortly. "It's about Ivan."

Blaire and Felix looked at their mother in surprise. They had heard a little bit about their grandfather but their parents had always been so quiet on the matter that they tended to think of Makarov and Toma before they would ever think of Ivan. Felix caught the way his father tensed at the mention of Ivan, and he awkwardly climbed over to pat Laxus' head. Blaire curled up against her mother, shaking a little and feeling rather frightened. About a year before, she had been woken up from a nightmare and started down the hall to crawl in bed with her parents but she had stopped when she had heard raised voices. It certainly hadn't been the first time she had heard her parents and Toma fighting, but it had been the one that had scared her the most.

"The obvious issue here is that you don't trust me!" Laxus had snapped, presumably at Toma. "I would never let anything happen to Hisui or the kids! The hell makes you think I had anything to do with -"

"I never accused you of anything, Laxus!" Toma had shot back. "I only said that I don't think you're careful enough and that you put your children in danger! What were you thinking, going to Magnolia with them completely unaccompanied -"

"That's enough, from both of you," Hisui had irritably cut in. "And, to be clear, that had been my idea and we were perfectly fine. There's absolutely no reason to be having this conversation!"

"There isn't?" Toma had paused for a moment before he regained himself. "Can you fault me for worrying? Sometimes I worry he doesn't think things through enough, that he acts too impulsively, that -"

"That I'm like my father?" Laxus had suggested, disdain clear in his voice.

"I…" Toma had uncomfortably hesitated. "I wouldn't say you're like Ivan, but -"

"No, absolutely not," Hisui had put in with finality. "Please don't go there, father. Laxus and I have suffered enough because of Ivan, and to even….to even slightly compare him to that man -"

"I'm going to go make sure Elissa wasn't woken up," Laxus had said suddenly. Blaire, who had creeped up to the half open doors, saw him affectionately kiss Hisui before he started towards the doors. The seven year old princess had quickly run back to her room, not wanting to hear anymore.

"Ivan's really bad," Blaire said quietly. "Gramps told me once that he hurt daddy with magic so he'd be a dragon slayer."

"Gramps told you that?" Laxus stared at his eight-year-old daughter in shock and then sighed. "It's a little more complicated than that, but, yes, that's true."

"Has Makarov told either of you anything else?" Hisui pressed, a bit sharply. Blaire hesitated but nodded.

"He said he thought Ivan had been involved in something that happened with a woman called Irene," She said, stopping when she saw the pained look her mother tried to hide. "But he said it wasn't proven."

"I heard about that lady," Felix shivered at the thought. "She sounds mean. And she hurt mommy."

Laxus reassuringly squeezed Hisui's hand. "We don't have to tell them about that if you don't want to."

Hisui sighed. "It certainly isn't a night I'd like to relive right now."

Blaire tightly hugged her mother. "Are you scared?"

"Maybe a little," Hisui admitted, delicately running her fingers through her daughter's hair. "But I'm alright, Blaire, really."

"Okay," The little girl said, looking over to her father. "Are you scared too, daddy?"

"Of Ivan?" Laxus considered it for a few seconds. "I'm not afraid of fighting him, if that's what you're thinking," He said shortly. "But I am afraid of what he could do to you, Felix, Lis, your mother, or the baby."

"I thought Ivan was dead," Felix stared at his parents in confusion.

"He's not," Hisui told him. "He's...he's in the city proper and may very well be in attendance at the Grand Magic Games, which is why we're bringing this up."

Felix and Blaire both glanced expectantly to Laxus, whose face betrayed how scared he was by the situation, despite his best efforts to mask it. He reached over to pull Hisui a little closer, and she let him hold her tightly in his arms. It was comforting for them both, knowing the other was there.

"Why would Ivan go to the Games?" Blaire eventually asked. "Is he in a guild?"

"We don't know," Hisui carefully replied. "All we know is that he is in Crocus and that, all history considered, he's dangerous. We're trying to be cautious, and the two of you are both old enough to know the truth. Lis is not."

Felix bit his lip. "So Ivan wants to hurt us?"

"Yes," Hisui admitted, sighing heavily. "And he has tried before."

"But before we were born, right?" Blaire pressed.

"Well -" Laxus nervously began, only for the doors to the study to open and Toma to step in with a half-awake Elissa.

"Elissa woke up from her nap," Toma told them with a laugh as the little girl ran over to her parents and siblings, first excitedly tugging on Blaire's leg. "She seemed lonely."

"Bware!" Elissa grinned when her sister picked her up and hugged her. "Hi!"

"Were you messing with grandfather?" Blaire tickled her little sister, getting her to start laughing.

"Hi Elissa," Felix waved at his little sister after nervously looking between his parents. The worried glance Laxus and Hisui shared said it all. They weren't going to say anything more, for the time being.

"I'm glad you're looking out for her, Toma," Laxus said, managing a small smile.

"Of course!" Toma exclaimed, raising an eyebrow when he saw how nervous his grandson seemed to be. "Felix? Is something wrong?"

The little prince jumped, and then quickly shook his head. "I'm okay," He said awkwardly. "Maybe tired?"

"You did get up early," Blaire stuck her tongue out at him the second she thought their parents weren't working. "You tried to wake me up! I told you I like to sleep!"

Felix scowled. "Hey! It was really early and I didn't -"

"Read a book!" Blaire joked. "Or try to sleep! If you know how, that is."

"Sweep!" Elissa chimed in with a giggle. "Sweepy Felix!"

Felix sent Blaire a dark look. "You've set her against me."

"I haven't done anything," Blaire said innocently. "Anything you can prove."

"Enough," Hisui sent them both a sharp look. "You two have gone at it plenty of times before, there's no reason to right now."

Blaire and Felix both shrunk back, feeling guilty. Elissa, a little confused, crawled over to her mother and curled up in her lap, closing her eyes and smiling happily when Hisui began to gently rub her back. After about a minute, sensing that no one would stop them, Blaire and Felix both slipped out of the drawing room to try and sneak some sweets. Toma watched in surprise, and, shortly after they were gone, closed the door behind them looking rather unsettled.

"Are you two doing alright?" He finally asked. "After what happened with...with Ivan, I've found myself a bit….shall we say...troubled."

"We're fine," Laxus told him, leaning over to affectionately press a kiss to his wife's forehead. "Just have a lot to think about."

"Yes," Hisui agreed, briefly brushing a hand against her baby bump. "We really do, don't we?"

Toma eyed them both in concern. "Are you sure nothing's wrong?"

Laxus hesitated but then nodded, holding his wife and little girl close. "We're okay," He said, much more for himself than his father in law. "Nothing's going to happen to them," He whispered to Hisui, who took his hand tightly in hers. "All four of them are going to be just fine. I promise."

Ivan snorted as he and his team approached the Domus Flau, knowing full well that he would see his son and the family Laxus had made with Hisui. Ivan still couldn't believe the queen was pregnant, although it seemed the kingdom was excited. He could see the way people were cheering when they saw the royal family enter the stadium, and, irritably, Ivan recalled the official announcement. Even now, the thought of it drove him mad. He knew, of course, that he and his teammates were all disguised well and that they would not be noticed, but he couldn't help but narrow his eyes when he saw his eldest grandchild, who seemed to be extremely excited, almost to the point of being hyperactive. He knew that everyone was watching as the teams were all presented, and a serious jolt of bitterness ran through his veins when Fairy Tail's team entered the arena.

Where have you kept all of your secrets this whole time? Ivan thought, disdainfully glancing to where many of the other Fairy Tail mages were cheering for their guildmates. When his eyes landed on his own father, Makarov, he felt nothing short of pure anger. And what were you thinking? Did you really think that you could keep something so dark hidden? How out of your mind are you?

Hearing that he would not be needed for whatever event was about to begin the Games, Ivan stepped off and ignored everyone and everything around him. Briefly, he considered attempting to catch Makarov off guard but decided against it, instead attempting to get as close to the royal family as he possibly could. He knew that it would be incongruous to try anything at this moment, but he wanted to get a basic scope of the security they would have. After all, he was well aware he would have to address any security they had to get to them this time. That day, just a month and a half or so before, at the palace had been a stroke of luck on his part. He didn't expect to get a chance like that in the foreseeable future and, in fact, he didn't want it. It would be all too easy.

Part of him didn't even want to strike during the Games; Ivan believed it would be much more shocking to do something after the royal family felt secure again, after the fourth child was born. Frowning at the thought in irritation, Ivan considered harming the child, perhaps cursing them or even going so far as to try to take them from their parents. He was sure that it would destroy Laxus, and Ivan relished in the thought of proving his son wrong, that he had made the wrong decision in marrying Hisui, in having turned his back on him all those years ago. It was certainly a twisted way of thinking, but Ivan cared little about how he would be perceived so long as his son felt vilified and broken for what Ivan viewed as the worst kind of betrayal. Blood was all that mattered to Ivan, and the way Laxus had so willingly turned his back on him - even to the point of unmasking him and his then-guild twelve years before during the Games - was utterly infuriating to the twisted man.

"I want to wear a pumpkin head like grandfather!" The voice of the eldest princess rose up, and Ivan smirked to himself, knowing he had to be quite close to them.

"Blaire, hush," Came Laxus' immediate reply. "I'd rather no one hear…."

Ivan paid no mind to anything else said. He didn't feel he had to.

So, He thought, almost silently chuckling to himself. The rumors that the former king is 'Mato' may hold water...could…

A deeply sinister thought crossed his mind, and a faint smile creeped onto his lips. Ivan had never considered targeting the former king; he had always cared much more about his grandchildren, given that he thought they could be useful to him, and he imagined hurting his daughter in law would hurt Laxus more than simply targeting him ever would. Now, however, he was considering a new direction. It would be cruel, he supposed, to go after the elderly former king, but it was that Ivan particularly enjoyed. Whatever would harm he could do unto the royal family, especially if it would reverberate throughout the kingdom, gave him satisfaction to even just consider.

You are going to be proven quite wrong, my boy, Ivan thought with a smirk. Just you wait.