It was dark in the Imperial Capital, so dark that there was almost no light but that from the hazy moon that occasionally peeked out through the dense cloud cover. Regardless, having climbed his way up to the top of the castle, Zeref overlooked the city with a sense of utter detachment. He had very little interest in it, despite his initial insistence when he had first met Irene centuries ago that they work hand in hand. Their work had always been intertwined, even when she had remained in her draconic form. No, it was the much more recent work of theirs that pervaded his mind. Had it really been over forty years since they had first made the blood pact? He knew as well as she did that it would be broken in just three months time as they had planned but he couldn't help wondering if the ending of the blood pact was part of her motivation to end things quickly when it came to the Fiore family. He doubted she would be any weaker without him, so why was she so sure that she needed to execute her final strike this way?
This goes far deeper than she'll ever admit, too, Zeref mused, looking down at the grounds which seemed so far below him. It has much less to do with Toma and his family than it does with her own sense of inferiority and, of course, everything that was stripped away from her by her child's father. Toma choosing Heather instead of her merely broke her. She was always teetering on the edge of insanity...and I suppose that is the consequence of her centuries trapped in a draconic form. I wonder if Toma ever knew about that, or her first, forced marriage. Would that have changed anything? Or would it only make him less sympathetic now?
After decades of working alongside her, Zeref was fully convinced that Irene had been quite far gone for a long time, and that her personal strength and power had driven her well past what compassion had remained in her. He still couldn't quite fathom why she would not harm Erza, but he decided it was merely that she was her biological child and nothing more. After all, she had spent centuries protecting her before she was finally able to be born. Still, for his purposes, it mattered not. The three of them would diverge quickly once they entered Fiore, and would not reconvene until they all returned to the Imperial Capital. He would head to the south east, to Magnolia where he knew Mavis would be, where he would be able to finally free her. Irene would go directly south to the capital, and Ivan would go deep to the far southeast where Era was on the border of the kingdom and its nearest neighbors in Ishgar.
They'll handle it more than smoothly, Zeref thought, narrowing his eyes upon seeing some lights begin to flicker out in the distance. The royal family still has no idea that it is because of my gifts to her centuries ago that she was able to create the magic used by the 'dragon slayers.'
It was without question, in his mind, that it would be far too late when the royal family realised they would be unable to win in a fight against Irene. Even the king, whom he knew from Ivan was a notoriously skilled S-Class mage, would be at a disadvantage against her for the simple fact that he himself was a lightning dragon slayer. It would likely be as easy as it had been nearly twenty years prior when she had attacked him and his family at the christening of the twins. As for the queen, Zeref knew full well that Irene was not above cruelly harming her to break her husband and children. She had no sympathy for any of them, and she certainly was not about to let herself be made a fool of by them. Even if it killed her, he knew Irene would do whatever it took to inflict pain on them. In that way, he supposed, she and Ivan were quite similar. They both had little empathy left, and would stop at nothing to prove their point.
It was Ivan, however, that Zeref found himself doubting. Unlike Irene, who was well past having any semblance of self-preservation so long as it brought her what she desired, Ivan clearly wanted to survive and put himself at the top of whatever was left when they all returned to the Empire. So far as he could tell, Ivan wanted to crush his son in retribution for having turned his back on him and he wanted to harm the rest of the royal family because he knew it would destroy his son if the woman he loved so dearly was harmed. It certainly was a simple tactic on his part, but Zeref would not deny its effectiveness. He had seen it work quite well in the past, and he had no doubt in his mind that it would continue to work out for him. The only question was would any of their plans cross the other and, if that were the case, who would end up paying the price for failure?
It won't be me, Zeref decided, his face darkening. That would be far too incongruous, would it not?
"Finally, a moment alone with my wife," Laxus smiled the second he and Hisui slipped into their suite, and he pulled her in close, one hand reaching up to cup her cheek. "I was starting to think it'd never come."
"You never have been very patient, have you?" Hisui laughed a little, leaning into his embrace. "It's alright. I know the last few days have been rather busy."
"That may very well be an understatement," He lightly teased. "At least the kids are happy about it. To be honest, I think they were worried about you."
"I know they were," Hisui said with a heavy sigh. "It's been a….turbulent year. I don't know how I feel about it, and, honestly, after what happened to Fallon…."
Laxus gave her a reassuring squeeze, ignoring the twinging in his right shoulder. "I can't stop thinking about it either," He softly admitted, running his fingers through her hair. "I'm so glad she's recovering."
"I am too," Hisui murmured. "I just hate knowing that, no matter how much better things have become, it's not going to end. It's been this way for years, and I'm just…I'm so drained by it."
"I am too," Laxus said, gently rubbing her back. "That we know so little about them, too, only makes it worse. Even Ivan…"
"He's unpredictable," Hisui finished. "Hasn't he always been that way?"
"Not when I was younger," Laxus hesitated and slowly sat down, Hisui beside him and taking his hands tightly in hers, her head resting on his shoulder. "If he thought it would benefit him, he'd do it. Whether that was manipulating my mother or making me a dragon slayer...in retrospect, it's pretty clear that he only gave a damn about what he thought would benefit him. Now….it's harder to tell. Even from what Fal said, it doesn't sound as if he gained anything from harming her let alone from any of the things he's tried to do to you. So I don't know what he's after, why he does anything anymore. It's just not there."
Hisui squeezed his hand. "Laxus…"
"Don't worry about it," He said shortly, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. "He's more than once tried to kill me because he didn't think I was useful enough to him and he's never managed to do it. Really, he's done far too much for me to want you to worry about it."
"How can I not?" She looked to him, her eyes wide in concern. "After everything he's done to our family, just the thought of what he did to you from the start makes me sick."
Laxus stared at her for a few seconds. "I'm sorry," He finally said, holding her close. "I just don't want you to have to worry about him, 'Sui. I've seen how much it's hurt you over the years, and I feel awful about it. Seeing you suffer….because of him...because of me has been the hardest thing to come to terms with, because everything that you and the kids have been put through breaks me. I've always tried to protect you from him and it hasn't been enough."
"You can't blame yourself," Hisui whispered, curling into his arms. "It's never been your fault, Laxus, and you're nothing like him."
He sighed. "I believe you," He said quietly. "I just wish there were more to be done...but I'm not going to leave you and the kids here alone to go after him myself. After Annie was born especially….I realised I can't do that anymore."
Hisui managed a small smile and leaned up to kiss his cheek. "You're a good husband," She murmured. "I know you don't always believe me, but you are."
"Good to know," He replied, reaching over to tread his fingers through her hair again. "Maybe we should try to forget about everything, just for a little….just a night for us."
"I'd like that," Hisui replied, squeezing his free hand. "What were you thinking?"
"Hmm?" Laxus smiled. "It's been so long since I've gotten a chance to play with your hair. How about we start with that and...see how things develop."
Hisui laughed when he suddenly began to lightly nibble at her neck. "I have a few ideas about where I'd want this to go."
"I'm sure you do," Laxus teased. "I won't mind….of that I'm quite certain."
"You never have," Hisui replied, wrapping her arms loosely around his neck. "Now...what were you thinking?"
"I'm glad you are here," Makarov said, not meeting Jellal's bewildered gaze. "There's something I have not been able to shake, and I don't imagine many other people would be willing to listen."
Jellal raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"It's about my son," Makarov said shortly. "I've been concerned about this for quite some time and, after hearing what your sister-in-law had to say on the subject, it seems I have more to consider about Ivan than I thought. She said she thinks he's pure evil and that she would like to see him put back behind bars...and while I do not disagree with the latter, I've been questioning the former for years. I know he's done terrible things to Laxus and Hisui and their family. I know just as well that he does not intend to stop but…"
"But he is your son," Jellal finished. "I understand."
"I'm not disregarding what she said but...I think her own anger towards him is clouding some of her thoughts," Makarov sighed. "I don't blame her, either. I don't blame her for being annoyed at the thought of any sympathy being granted towards him, and I certainly don't blame her for declaring that she'd use those runes Freed burned into her to take a shot at Ivan if it came down to it, no matter that she has no semblance of control over them. What I….what's been on my mind is this question of whether or not there's any chance to discern something Ivan wants more than to harm Laxus and Hisui. If there's something that can be done to put a stop to this before more blood gets shed."
Jellal took in his words and then shook his head. "After what he did to Fallon, I don't think he's one to be reasoned with unless we have the upper hand over him. Right now, I'm not sure we do."
Makarov frowned. "That's what I've been afraid of," He said quietly. "What he did to her was absolutely horrific, and, from the little she's been willing to say about what happened, it seems he didn't have any hesitation about it either. Perhaps I just wonder if he's not acting completely of his own accord."
"There's probably some influence from Irene, of that I have no doubt," Jellal agreed. "But most of this is him. From what Erza, Wendy, and I saw while in the Empire, he gets great pleasure out of putting people beneath him and manipulating them for his own gain."
"Of course he does," Makarov fell silent in dejection, not sure of what more he could say. "That aside, I cannot shake this desire to confront him about it. I would like to think it could shed some light on the matter, at least."
"Are you thinking of a parlay of sorts?" Jellal pressed. "One with just you and him, completely unarmed and on neutral territory?"
"Yes, exactly," Makarov replied, finally turning towards him. "Obviously, as Dragnorf and the rest of the Empire are well to the north and off the continent, it would be quite the journey but, I believe, the easiest place to meet would be in the country of Caelum, on one of its northwestern islands."
Jellal considered that. "That would be reasonable," He mused. "I still can't believe the Empire is known also as Dragnorf. That nation fell centuries ago and the Empire is not on Ishgar like it was. Erza tells me it's because of her mother's control in the Empire but, regardless, the notion of Irene of all people being sentimental…"
"She, more than anything, is the reason I would not want to set foot on the northwestern continent," Makarov shook his head. "I can't imagine that would end well. And, of course, I do want this to be a true parlay between me and Ivan, so I will not risk it being too close to Fiore….Laxus would be horrified."
"He's going to be horrified when he finds out about this either way," Jellal warned him. "But, yes, if you are going to parlay with Ivan, it would be best not to do so in Fiore, even if I would urge you far more towards arresting him on the spot for treason."
"He will one day have to answer for that," Makarov grimly agreed. "But I want to know why first. If there's any chance of getting something cogent out of him, I will take it. All Ivan's dirty tricks have ever gotten him is disgrace, and, though he'll be angry about it at first, I owe it to Laxus that he and his family get closure, that they'll finally be able to be free of this. If Ivan lets anything slip, that could be a saving grace for all of us, especially because I don't believe that attempting to kill Hisui as she did her mother is the only thing Irene has up her sleeve...and I want us, for everyone's sake, to be able to fight back."
