The Dogs of War

Summary: During the fight with Phantom Cana is forced to pull out her trump card; Gildarts is confused as to how something tied to his wife's bloodline wound up in Cana's possession.

Warnings: Violence, mentioned death, little bit of blood, some MacaoxCana (only if you squint a bit- explained at the end), reference to 'Family Meeting'

Disclaimer: I don't own

AN: I really, really hesitated in putting this one up. It was meant to be chapter fifteen but I chickened out and didn't post it. I hope you guys like it, all I will say is that I personally feel it isn't like anything I've done before.

They couldn't keep this up much longer. Cana knew this as she threw another card at the phantom soldiers. With both Master Makarov and Erza out of commission and the majority of the guild already injured from the earlier fight… there was no way they would be able to keep up this pace for much longer.

She bit back a swear as she chucked three more cards each successfully hitting their targets. All they could do was hope that the ones inside could take out the Element Four and Jose- but that was a big 'if'. The title of Wizard Saint was not given lightly- all who held the title were powerhouses that were almost without equal; and the Element Four did not hold their reputation for nothing. That wasn't even taking into account the number of powerhouses that Phantom could have brought out- they were far from a weak guild.

But… if she played her trump card then she could end this in a matter of minutes. She knew how to use it, her mother had made sure of that, but… there were reasons she had never used it before. Apart from not having the stomach to handle the aftermath… something that powerful should not be used lightly.

Then Mira, brave, beautiful, foolish Mira tried to buy some time and was grabbed by the Giant. Her family was in danger- it was now or never.

Cana yanked at the chain around her neck with enough force to snap the delicate links and brought the silver whistle to her lips.

The sound of it cut through the battle, bringing everything to a grinding halt. The air had stilled, and the people were filled with a sudden unexplained dread at the note. Then the earth trembled.

The force of the quaking ground knocked people off their feet as a great, wide chasm split apart in the solid stone. Twisted screams of utter agony filled the air, as things tried to claw their way out of the chasm, reaching toward the daylight. The shrieks were quickly overpowered by the howls of hunting hounds, as the beasts burst past the wraiths and the ground sealed behind them.

They were ugly creatures, and despite their snarling and barking like feral dogs, they were anything but. Blood-matted fur, missing chunks exposing dull grey skin; their misshapen bodies looked as though someone had tried to combine the bodies of crocodiles with the loping legs of a horse, their tails split in two; rows of serrated teeth like a shark exposed by their drooling maws; manes that perhaps came from a lion ringed their necks; the paws of the beasts looked disturbingly human, tipped with long, wicked claws; but the eyes… ten eyes gleamed in each socket with a frightening intelligence. These were not stupid creatures, they were hunters.

No one hard the strength to move, staring in open mouthed horror at creatures that had escaped from the depths of their worst nightmares.

"TO ME!" Cana ordered, drawing the attention of the creatures, who flocked to her side like obedient puppies. The trick to keeping their loyalty was to command them, she couldn't show weakness, she couldn't display her own fear and revulsion at the sight of them. They were hers to control, she and she alone had the power to make them obey, though she might have to remind them of this fact.

"Your targets are any members of the Element Four still conscious and Jose, Master of the Phantom Lord guild- you hunt them and them alone, if any of you break command you answer to me." She said firmly, taking note of the subtle nods given by all twelve heads- they understood the rules, now it was time to unleash them. "Sic 'em boys."

As soon as the last syllable left her mouth they all howled in harmony and ran towards the Giant faster than the human eye could follow.

Cana sat back satisfied- the battle was as good as won. She pretended not to feel the terrified gazes of her adoptive family on her back. It had to be done, but no one would ever look at her the same way again.

oOOOOo

In the aftermath of the battle no one had been sure what to do. They had won… but not in a way anyone felt proud of.

Master Makarov had arrived just in time to see Cana's pack return- the mangled corpses of Aria and José hanging from their jaws, presenting them at the card mage's feet.

Rather than respond stone faced or disgusted, she responded with praise. Cooing at them like puppies who had successfully brought back the stick for the first time. They melted under her praise, accepting scratches and pets from their Mistress- happy that they had been able to please her so well.

Thankfully the display didn't last very long before Cana dismissed them, the creatures crawling back into the ground from which they had come, leaving only a scar along the earth as a sign that they had ever been there.

oOOOOo

"I inherited the whistle from my mother," Cana explained to the gathered guild, "Its been passed down along the female line of my family for generations. This was the first time I ever used it." And when she was alone she would break down and vomit over it- even though she had done it for the guild, she had still killed two people and lost the trust of her family, and she had no idea how she was going to deal with this.

"What- what were those things?" Someone asked shakily.

"Hellhounds. They are the beasts that drag sinners to Hell and keep them from escaping." She answered levelly, taking care to keep her face expressionless; while she had been raised with this knowledge and desensitized to the truth, the others would not be as calm.

And they certainly weren't. They yelled, accused and questioned her. Everyone was trying to make their point heard above everyone else. Though she was outwardly composed, internally she was falling apart. This was it, her family was going to make her leave, they wouldn't want her around anymore after this.

"ENOUGH!" Makarov roared, making everyone fall silent," Cana… why didn't you ever tell us about this?" If she had used those… things during the trials she would have become S-class easily.

"Because I've never had to use them before." The card mage answered." The dogs… I have never been desperate enough to use them before and this isn't the kind of thing you would throw at your guildmates- even if I ordered them not to kill they would still maim anyone I set them on. This kind of power… using it recklessly is just not something I would be able to live with."

That… actually that was pretty reasonable. To hurt your guildmates was taboo and if she had never had to use those things before then it made sense that she had never thought to tell anyone about it before (though it was debatable if anyone would have believed her even if she had). Slowly everyone filed off to process the day, until only Macao and Cana remained in place.

The brunette was conflicted- was there anything left for her here or had she broken everyone's trust beyond repair? After today, now that everyone knew what she was capable of- would anyone still want her around?

As the dark-haired man cleared his throat Cana turned to face him. Macao... lately their relationship had been changing, progressing in a way neither had expected it to go as Macao had stopped seeing her as a child.

"I-I can't say that those things weren't terrifying, but… thank you for using them. I don't want to think about what could have happened if you hadn't." The fire mage said quietly; if he knew Cana half as well as he thought he did, then she was probably talking herself into leaving the guild, thinking that they didn't want her anymore.

Cana blinked in surprise, looking at him with her insecurities splayed across her face," I- thank you."

The two sat in silence for a while, comfortable in each other's company.

Maybe… maybe everything would be okay.

oOOOOo

Everyone was having a blast as the party went in full swing- Lisanna was alive, Gildarts was back, and they now had an awesome story to tell involving alternate dimensions and flying cats. How much better could this get!

The crash mage smiled as he took everything in- right now he was being caught up on everything that had happened the last few years only half listening. He may have lost his arm and leg, but it was nice to know some things hadn't changed- Fairy Tail was still the same wild guild it had always been.

Right now, Wakaba had reached an attack by Phantom Lord (bastards!)"- at first it seemed like we were screwed, but then Cana called her dogs and let me tell you- "

"Dogs?" The crash mage asked in confusion.

The smoker blinked," Oh yeah- well Cana has this whistle that she blew during the fight it…" the man swallowed going pale at the memory," The whistle called these things- hellhounds."

At the word 'hellhounds' Gildarts choked on his drink, coughing harshly as he tried to avoid hacking up a lung. A concerned Wakaba pounded him on the back.

"Hellhounds?" The Ace asked incredulously- Cornelia had been the only one who-

"Yeah I know its hard to believe," Wakaba said sympathetically, believing that to be the reason for his surprise." But that's what she said they were, and that the whistle had been passed down for generations- "

Gildarts had stopped listening- he knew the whistle, he knew what it did, had seen it in action before. It was the only one of its kind in existence that Conny had known of, passed down through the female members of the bloodline mother to daughter for generations.

Conny was dead. As horrible as that thought was it was the truth. The love of his life had been dead for years… so how did Cana get the whistle? As far as he knew the only remaining family Conny had was her brother and he seriously doubted Julian had any children.

Ignoring Wakaba's confused exclamation, Gildarts walked across the hall to where the card mage was sitting with Gray, affectionately ribbing each other as he taunted her with information about her double in Edolas.

"Hey Cana- do you think we can talk for a second?" The Ace asked casually, getting a pair of confused looks in return. He and Cana had never really interacted before, so their reactions were understandable.

"Uh… I guess," the brunette said uncertainly, leaving her beer on the table as she accompanied the older man outside the guild where the noise wouldn't distract them.

"Where did you get the whistle?" He asked sharply as soon as the two were out, inwardly he winced, it sounded like he was accusing her of stealing it.

Cana was obviously taken aback," What?"

"Wakaba told me about what happened during the Phantom Lord fight, I just wanted to know how you had gotten your hands on the Stygian Whistle."

If Cana had been confused before now she was flabbergasted- how did he know what it was called? "I inherited it from my mother after she died- how do you know about it? I never told anyone what it was called."

Gildarts froze for a moment- had she just-?

"It used to belong to my wife- Cornelia."

Suddenly the pieces clicked into place, Cana had two options, she could play dumb or she could finally tell him the truth.

"I didn't know you two were married." She said dumbly," I mean, obviously I knew there was a relationship since I'm standing here but- married?"

And suddenly Gildarts realized exactly what the brunette had just said, " 'Since you're standing here'?" No way, she couldn't mean what he thought she meant.

"Cornelia was my mother, before she died she told me who my father was and I joined fairy Tail to find him. To find you Gildarts." There it was, she had finally done it. She had finally said the impossible words, now time for her father to react. And she waited, and waited, and waited, until she finally opened her eyes (when had she closed them?) to see her father frozen in a state of utter shock. Did she break him?!

"Gildarts? Gildarts are you okay?!" She asked in mild alarm, while this wasn't the worst reaction she had imagined over the years, it certainly wasn't the best-case scenario.

He seemed to snap back a little bit," You're my daughter?" He asked in disbelief, making Cana flinch.

"Yeah, I guess its hard to believe." She said quietly; if one of the others had been his kid that probably would have been easier to understand, they were strong and she was not- she was just an alcoholic who had failed the S-class trials four times.

As tears started to come to her eyes, she stubbornly tried to blink them away, she couldn't cry over this not in front of him. As she turned to run a hand caught her wrist and suddenly, she had been pulled into one of the best bear hugs she had ever received. This… this was all she had ever wanted. To be held by her father, she felt… safe.

"I always wanted a little girl." He whispered into her hair," Conny and I- we talked about kids for a while, how many we wanted, names, and all the details… she never told me about you I swear."

"I know she didn't." Cana said back," I don't know what happened between you, it's your business, but for better or worse… I'm glad I met you. "

Gildarts held her tighter as tears came to his eyes, this was his baby. All these years he had a daughter right in front of him and he had no idea. How much had he hurt her, making her see her father ignore her in favor of the other children? How did he begin to make up for all these years?

"Cana- please let me be your dad. I- after all these years I don't know if I have the right but, please let me love you!"

"That's all I've ever wanted Dad."

And the dam broke. Both father and daughter clinging to each other as they cried, making their own resolutions to be there for the other. This wasn't going to be easy, one had twelve years of baggage and the other was a blank slate, but… somehow, they got a feeling that everything was going to work. They would make sure of it.

AN: So, yeah, this one came out of left field. It's actually a concept that I've been playing with for a while now- I don't mean a few weeks, I mean a few years. Trying to fit it to various series until this was finally born. Yes there was a bit of MacaoxCana, but I can't watch the Phantom Lord arc without seeing it, the chemistry between them during the fight is always what sells it to me, even if its about the only time I ever really ship it. Its okay if you don't like the pairing, I'm the kind of person who ships my favorite characters in almost any pairing (almost); I can see her with Bacchus, Laxus, Macao, Hibiki, Juvia, Lucy, or Mirajane- the only person who I can't see her with is Gray, but that's because of the sibling bond. That said- there is never going to be a true Cana ship in any of these, that would take away from the pure family fluff of my stories and honestly its more trouble then its worth. Please tell me what you think!

Also for anyone wondering details about the whistle itself- I wondering a lot of that too. The whistle is definitely not going to make an appearance in any other story. 'Stygian' was a reference to Percy Jackson if anyone was wondering, it just seemed appropriate.