Cana's head was still spinning when she sat down, a barrel of wine tucked under her arms and her stomach churning. All around her, she could hear the chatter and life in the guild hall. She could see Gajeel and Levy, who were on "sabbatical" from the ongoing job they had taken in Crocus, with their kids, chatting with Lucy and Natsu about their upcoming odd jobs in town. It was so normal. Cana only wished she could feel that right now, but her thoughts were still swirling. Cornelia. It all came back to that bitch. The trial itself, in her mind, now, was a blur. She barely remembered what she had said, how she had said it, or how Cornelia had been oh-so-willing to admit to the crimes she had committed. Some of them were even crimes she hadn't been accused of. The Council had been blown out of the water by the way she had spoken, and the apparent joy she had seemed to get out of it. Part of her was still in disbelief over the whole affair. Cana told herself it was only because she hadn't dared think any relatives of hers were still out there beyond her father, and that the accusations Cornelia had directed towards the Council were almost too horrible.
She had returned to Magnolia from Era almost immediately after her testimony. Everything about her had felt wrong somehow, and it made her sick. The trial, she knew, had lasted two more days and Cornelia was ultimately sentenced to fifty years, according to the papers and everything that had blown up about her connections on the net, but Cana couldn't help but find it odd that her accusations towards the Council were barely mentioned at all. Every day since, and it had been nearly a week, now, she had expected to walk into the guild hall and see her name somewhere in the articles on the case, but there was nothing. It was odd, and she couldn't help but wonder if Mest had something to do with it. She hadn't seen her husband since she had returned to their apartment in Magnolia, and they hadn't talked much since either. He was, after all, finishing a rather hectic week and looking through several investigations, not the least of which was related to the disappearance and return of Belno Norwich.
And yet something about it all just felt so damn wrong.
"What are ya thinking so hard about?"
Cana looked up from where she had been sitting in surprise, her eyes widening when she saw her father. Gildarts looked about as hassled as usual, his clothes a bit shabby, his hair a mess, and his typical, large bag on his back. He set down his things, quickly grabbed and paid for a barrel of booze himself, and smirked at his daughter. Cana rolled her eyes and took a long swig of wine herself, well aware that her father was probably going to challenge her to (and lose) a drinking game, and she was very much welcoming of the distraction. The last thing you need is more time alone inside yourself. She had so much she wanted to ask Mest when he returned, from whether or not Cornelia had been telling the truth to the simple question of if he knew should it be true what she had said. She didn't want to believe he would have kept that from her, or that, really, any of them would have, though she knew there was a chance that Siegrain had known and kept it from everyone.
"Ah, come on, Cana, you're usually chatty," Gildarts rolled his eyes and took a long swig. "Something crazy happen during that job you took earlier in the week?"
"No," She said, tapping her fingers against the table for a few seconds in thought. "Just thinking about the trial, that's all."
"Can't imagine that was easy on ya," Gildarts offered her a sympathetic look. "Especially because the Council can be a pain in the ass sometimes with all that bureaucratic nonsense. No offense to your husband, of course."
Cana shrugged. "It was just stressful," She said, trying to brush it off. "I'll get over it. That lady was just...awful."
"Yeah, she sounded like it," Gildarts said with a frown. "None of those news reports sounded good. Who the hell works with someone like Ivan Dreyar?"
"That's a good question," Cana muttered. "I just…."
"I'm sure they'll find out what she's up to," Gildarts shrugged, a dark look in his eyes. "But I wouldn't worry about it. I doubt she'd ever come after you, especially now they're throwin' her back in jail."
"Yeah," Cana said, letting out a heavy sigh. "Hopefully that's all this is."
"You can't be serious," Laxus stared at Makarov in shock. "Ivan found her and threatened her? How the hell would he even know about what you told us?"
"I don't know," Makarov said, pacing back and forth before the fireplace. "But Bella barely even wanted me to tell you this."
Laxus looked pale, anger bubbling in his chest. Hisui reached over and squeezed his hand. Her mind was reeling too, and she was glad to see, nearby them, Lana Marie and Lacey playing happily, giggling and completely unaware of what was happening around them. Beside the king and queen were Siegrain and Jade, both of whom looked rather nervous. They were very close, though not quite touching, and Jade was staring down at her hands, anxiety written all over her features. Belno was speaking with Toma in his personal study, having made it clear to Makarov that she had absolutely no desire to say anything on the subject, not right now. Makarov had a great deal of disagreement, though he understood why. She was under a great deal of scrutiny, and Makarov knew full well that it was taking a toll on him. He sighed heavily, glancing over to where Freed and Mirajane sat across from Laxus and Hisui, Mira's hand resting over his knee. All of them, Makarov knew, had more questions than answers.
"No," Mira's hands began to shake and she reached up with her free hand to run her fingers through her hair. "And he did this after watching her, his stepdaughter, and granddaughter? That's…."
"It sounds like him," Freed said coldly, frowning. "I do not like the sound of this. It's absolutely awful."
"Yes, it is," Makarov shook his head. "Obviously, it's not a good situation. I hate to say it, but I do believe that Ivan may have wanted to do harm to more members of the family beyond Bella. As you all know, he does have a great deal of anger towards her and I don't know what to say about this other than what I already have."
"But you say he definitely is here?" Hisui pressed, twisting her hair in her hands. "In the city, and perhaps even capable of making his way into the palace?"
"Yes," Makarov grimly confirmed. "I'm so sorry about how much has happened in the past few months - even just the past few weeks alone - but it is important for all of you to know what things are looking to be. To not tell you would be irresponsible on the face of it."
Laxus sighed. "Great," He said dryly. "Is that all we know?"
"Regrettably, yes," Makarov paused his pacing, his hands clasped behind his back. "I wish I had a more satisfying answer, but Ivan…."
"Has always been slippery," Jade cursed under her breath, scowling behind her glasses. "I thought we all knew that after what happened during the X791 Grand Magic Games."
Hisui glanced to her and then shook her head. "After he was sentenced, I never imagined he would ever leave prison," She admitted. "At the time, Laxus and I both were sure he would never be at large again."
"Which was a reasonable assumption," Jade said bitterly. "We'd all be better off if he had just stayed that way. I wonder if he knows that."
"Ivan has always gotten a great deal of enjoyment out of cementing not only his own ego but carrying through on the things he decides will be of any benefit or even of simply some use to him," Freed paused suddenly upon feeling Mira squeeze his knee. He reached over, briefly, to pat her hand. "To him, this is nothing more than a game."
"Of course it is," Hisui narrowed her eyes at the thought but then sighed. "Damn it. If he lays a hand on my daughter or the baby, I will kill him myself. I've had enough of this."
"I have too," Laxus loosely wrapped an arm around her, and she tiredly rested her head against his shoulder. "I know that feeling all too well."
"The truth is, like it or not, Ivan is going to continue to be an issue until he is apprehended again or dies, and I have no idea which will come first," Makarov began to pace again. "Ivan is one of those people who truly believes he's smarter, faster, and slicker than everyone else - and that he will win or at the very least prevail at everything he does. It's the way he's been for nearly fifty some odd years now, and I wish there were more to be done. Until we can do something, however….we must stay cautious because we all know what he's capable of all too well."
Ultear stepped out into the night, still hidden beneath the warm, dark cloak she had found herself wearing more and more frequently. She wouldn't say she was happy, per se, to be associating with those in the criminal underworld again, but, then again, she was more than happy to be working with Jellal (and, unofficially, given their positions, Meredy and Erza) again to take some of them down. He was on the other side of town, having obscured himself with magic and cloaks too, at a gambling den and bar where Erza had indicated some of the recently jailed woman's connections were suspected to frequent. Ultear, however, was looking for one person in particular, to both contract and manipulate them. She hadn't heard the name in ages, but when she had finally gotten it out of Jade, who had only told her after she had threatened her, Ultear found herself more than a bit curious. With a snort, she recalled the abject horror Siegrain had expressed when he had returned about a half hour later to learn Ultear had suggested 'playing with' her Arc of Time to get the answer from Jade without making her say it outloud. She hadn't been (entirely) serious, after all.
It didn't matter, though. She had the information, and was almost certain he would be at this particular enterprise. Alexander Alberona. From what she had gathered, he was Cornelia's ex-husband and the one who had gotten her involved with people like Ivan in the first place, though Ultear was shocked by how little information on him existed, even in the back channels. She knew full well that he was meant not to exist, that he was meant to be something of a ghost. He certainly did well at that. Nevertheless, she knew enough about him other than just what he looked like to track him down. With a small smirk, she let out a sigh of relief, well aware that Jade was probably too freaked out by their conversation (and the course of that conversation) to tell Cana what her mother had told her. The idea of Belno being angry with her, though, probably did that well enough of itself, at least, Ultear was rather afraid of her and couldn't imagine anyone not being at least somewhat afraid of her. The fact this man - who had fully intended on killing her by himself - wasn't left her uneasy. The kind of power a person like that would have to wield, to her, was immense and far greater than her own.
And you had weaseled your way onto the Magic Council, her thoughts whispered when she entered the room and began to approach him. By no means can you be considered weak.
"I've heard good things about you," Ultear dropped down a bloodied axe on the table before him, on top of which she also dropped her purse. He looked up, his lips flat together and his face emotionless. "That you are the pinnacle, even, of espionage and if someone wants a person dead that you're the person to come to."
"Sure," He said gruffly, pushing her axe and purse back towards her side of the table, rolling his eyes when she sat down across from him. "What's it to you?"
Ultear snorted, leaning back and crossing her arms. "You know Fiore?"
"I know of the country," He replied, slamming his flask back down on the table and snapping his fingers at a nearby staff member. "Why'd someone here care about Fiore? Nobody's given a damn about that kingdom around here since our monarchy dissolved and their king married our 'princess' and that was….well, forty, damn near fifty years ago now. Hell, that was a good bit before I was alive. Why do you care? Last I checked they're basically irrelevant other than in trade."
"They are," Ultear said slowly and offering him a faint smirk. "The strongest country in Ishgar. Being the strongest on a continent….that is no small feat, now is it?"
He met her gaze and then took another drink. "What do you want?"
"I need information on a certain person in that kingdom, a criminal, actually," Ultear phrased her words carefully, her heart starting to pound in her chest. "Because, frankly, I'd like to contract them."
He scoffed. "So you're sayin' you're wantin' to contract me to find somebody else you wanna contract?"
"Exactly," Ultear shortly replied. "Specifically, I'm looking for Ivan Dreyar."
He eyed her up and down, a dark look in his eyes. "No way in hell."
"I have more money than you think," Ultear pushed her purse towards him, meeting his gaze through lidded eyes. "More, even, than what's in that purse…..Alexander."
He stiffened. "And where did you hear that name?"
"I have connections," Ultear said smoothly. "Do we have a deal?"
He eyed her narrowly. "On one condition," He said coldly. "You give me information on a person of interest to me in Fiore. You're clearly well traveled, after all. I presume you know much about the world."
"And who might that person be?" Ultear pressed, sounding rather bored though she felt discomfort continuing to build in her chest.
"A woman I very much would like dead," He leaned over the table, leaving their faces mere inches apart. "Belno Norwich."
Ultear hesitated but nodded. "You have yourself a deal."
