I have read the whole Fairy Tail Manga over the last two weeks, and I caught up with 100 Years Quest too. I had a lot of fun with it, and I wanted to get back into writing anyway, so I thought a story like this would be a good idea to start with. Enjoy.

Another World Away

I awoke from my neither restful nor comfortable sleep with what I could only describe as a pounding headache. This alone was not something entirely out of the ordinary. Almost a lifetime's worth of unhealthy sitting positions in front of a PC or a TV had managed to catch up with me at one point, and headaches had become a trusty, if annoying, companion ever since. No, what was out of the ordinary was the fact that I wasn't lying in my bed. Even worse, I wasn't even in my own apartment or any apartment for that matter. At least I did not remember installing a mud bath at any point. Well, that might be a slight exaggeration on my part. I was not submerged into the mud as much as I felt myself being uncomfortably pressed into it as if I had lain unmoving on the ground for quite some time.

What the heck is going on? was my first coherent thought of the day as I tried to ignore my pounding head and pushed myself out of the muddy bed I had found myself in. Detaching myself from the sludge-like ground with a wet plop, I let out a breath of air when I instantly fell backward onto my bum.

"Oof,"

Before I could even begin to wonder about what was going on or where I was, a new wave of pounding pain ripped into my skull. My eyelids pressed shut reflexively. This wasn't a regular headache; I imagined this was more how a migraine felt like —something I thankfully had never experienced before. At least until right now, apparently. A soft whimper escaped my mouth as I pressed my hands against my head in an attempt to lessen the pain. It did not work. It only got worse, far worse. There was nothing ordinary or harmless about this.

Make it stop.

I could feel how the painful pressure behind my forehead steadily increased as if someone was continuously tightening a vice around my very skull.

Make it stop.

It was pounding, yet it was piercing. Contradicting sensations were drilling into my very brain. Slowly ripping apart whatever made me able to think clearly.

Make it stop.

My forehead rested on the cold and damp ground as my body curled up into a shaking ball. I dug my fingernails into the skin of my arms in a vain attempt to distract myself from the pain. It did not help. Tears started leaking from my eyes, and a moment later, I started sobbing uncontrollably.

MAKE IT STOP.

Another mind-numbing flash of pain ripped through me, all remaining self-control slipping out of my grasp in the process.

"MAKE IT STOP!"

I screamed into the wet ground, not caring whether or not someone would hear my broken voice. For a fleeting moment, I entertained the hope that unconsciousness would come and claim me, saving me from the pain. Nothing of the sort happened, though, even when the strain on my brain once more increased tenfold.

"PLEASE!"

It was too much. Too much. The pain had explosively increased over the last minute, and I could not stand it anymore. I had never felt anything like this in my entire life. My body was paralyzed by the sheer agony of whatever was happening to me. I was unable to lift my head from the ground, let alone the rest of my body. There was no escape. No rational thought was able to form in my rapidly breaking mind other than the plea for it to finally end.

It's all over. It felt as if any second now, my brain would literally rip itself out of my skull while I stayed completely conscious through it all. That's when I heard it. A sound that, even if just for a moment, managed to break through the unbearable pain and agony.

The booming sound of thunder.

And a moment later, everything went black.

Another World Away

I woke to the muddled sound of people talking. The next thing I noticed was that my headache mainly appeared gone except for a slow and weak throbbing in the back of my head. I found myself profusely thanking the Gods of every religion on the planet for saving me from my ugly fate. I did not even believe in Gods and the like, but I was willing to make an exception in this case because holy hell, that would not have been pretty. I don't think I would have managed to bear the pain for even ten more seconds before whatever had knocked me out occurred. I strained my ears to listen to the voices coming from near me while trying to get my mind in order. Thankfully, lying in a bed this time rather than on the dirty and wet ground like I had before. I could feel the soft mattress beneath me. A thin and silky blanket covering most of my body. Had someone found me and brought me here? But where had I been in the first place? And why? And where was I now?

"...never seen something...at this age…"

"...how…..awake?"

I could attribute the voices to two different people. Both were distinctly male-sounding, but everything else was lost on me. They were whispering as if not to wake someone.

Probably me, duh.

It was clear that if I wanted to find any kind of answer to my situation, I needed to actually talk to whoever had saved me. Or had they? What if these people were the same ones that had brought me to where I had awoken initially in the first place?

Was...was this a kidnapping? I actually let out an audible snort at the thought. The talking stopped instantly, and I cursed under my breath.

God, I'm a fecking idiot, but it was true after all. Who would ever want to kidnap me of all people? I had no money to speak of, and I owned nothing of significant enough value that would make it worth it to kidnap me for. Same for my relatives. Furthermore, I was not the best-looking girl out there. Sure, I wasn't ugly by any means, but beautiful enough to be targeted for that alone?

Yeah, no.

My incredible self-confidence, though, did deserve an award, in my opinion.

But back to the matter at hand. I could hear a quiet exchange between the two men before one of them seemed to excuse himself out of the room. The door closed shut audibly behind him. Well, this was probably an excellent occasion to find out where the heck I was and why.

Slowly opening my eyes, I stared right at a completely ordinary-looking wood ceiling.

How exciting.

"I am happy to see you awake, young Lady." I turned my head to my left and found myself looking at a middle-aged man who was seemingly studying me with rapt interest. The white coat he wore, combined with the glasses balancing on his nose and the clipboard in his hands, made him look like every stereotypical Doctor you would see on a TV show.

"How are you feeling right at this moment?" He asked a pen poised over the paper to write down whatever my answer would be.

How was I feeling? That was a rather good question. My head wasn't ripping itself apart from the inside anymore, so that was good, I supposed. But besides that? My head was still throbbing but only in an uncomfortable manner and not in a painful one. I had no idea where I was and how I had gotten here. I also had never experienced pain as horrifying before in my life and could not even begin to imagine what the cause for it had been.

"Confused. I am feeling confused." Because that was honestly the most accurate answer I could give at this stage.

"I see, I see. Do you think you feel well enough for me to ask you some basic questions?"

Him asking me questions? It honestly should be the other way around. I was actually wondering about how calm I was regarding the whole situation. I would have expected to act more frantic, and I was sure I usually would instantly demand to know where I was and what the man before me knew. However, instead of that, I felt simply calm and - dare I say - rather composed. That was unusual for the anxious mess I usually was, to say the least.

Wait, a thought crossed my mind.

Had they drugged me or something? No, I could not think like that. I felt relatively normal, just a bit too calm, all things considered. Maybe it was simply the residual aftereffect of some anesthetic they had given me? Yeah, I was going with that for the moment because I really did not want to think about the alternatives.

"They are simply meant to be a standard procedure to assess the patients well being," As if noticing the chaotic thought process in my mind, the man brought my attention back to him with a friendly smile.

Before I gave him my okay, I really wanted to be in a more comfortable posture for a conversation. As I pushed myself into a sitting position, I noticed that my arms felt surprisingly weak and unresponsive. Ah, so it wasn't just my head which felt not quite right after all. With a grunt of exhaustion, I rested the back of my head on the backboard of the bed. I then nodded to the Doctor, my hands placed intertwined on my lap.

"I see you are already able to move rather freely; that is good. Please do not be concerned by any feelings of weakness in your limbs or by slight dizziness in your head, which you might experience. Both symptoms should completely subside in the coming hour and are simply aftereffects of your treatment."

I was inclined to believe him for the moment.

"I am Doctor Merle, Chief physician of this little clinic," He let out a low chuckle, his chest rumbling with silent laughter, "And by that, I mean I am the only physician who actually works here. But enough about me, what is your name, young Lady?"

"Annabelle, but please, for the love of everything that is good in this world, call me Anna or Ann instead!"

Did I mention that I really did not like my full name? Because I really didn't. Who called their child Annabelle of all things in this day and age? My parents, apparently, that's who. The burly man simply let out a good-natured guffaw at my slight outburst.

"Well, I think we can mark it down with confidence that you remember your own name, Miss Anna," His brown eyes twinkled with amusement.

I actually felt my cheeks flush red at his reaction. What was I thinking yelling at a doctor, a stranger no less, like this? It must be the fault of the residual effects of whatever medicine he had given me. Yeah, that must be it. I wasn't usually acting this familiar towards people I did not know.

Most of the time, at least.

"Do not worry, Miss. This outburst of yours was rather helpful in all actuality. See, we did not find any identification on your person when you were brought here. Therefore we could not verify your name if you did not remember or were unsure about it. However, this is clearly one less concern we need to worry about."

I blinked at the man; that actually made some amount of sense. Wait, no identification?

"You did not find my purse? What about my phone?" I always carried those two things with me no matter where I went. Doctor Merle simply shook his head.

"I am afraid you had nothing on your person besides the clothes you were wearing."

Prompted by his words, I actually looked down at my body for the first time since waking up.

Strands of my auburn hair fell into my face at the motion, and I absentmindedly tugged them behind my ear. I was wearing an unfamiliar white nightgown which had probably been provided by the clinic. I let out a small sigh of relief; for a moment there, I thought that I had been naked the entire time without noticing it. Even if Merle was a Doctor and had probably seen my body already, I still would feel very uncomfortable if I was awake and aware of it.

Not that there was much to look at in the first place. Oh, shut up, brain.

But God damn it, my purse and phone were gone? Had I been robbed before my initial awakening? Was that what had happened? I had an Azur Lane and Fate/Grand Order account on that phone, and I had invested a lot of time and money into both of them! I played both games for years, and now some asshole would just delete everything so that they could what? Sell my phone?

Urrrghh.

I brought my hands up and gave my cheeks a little smack. Focus, Anna. This is really not the time to think about some dumb gacha games you are obsessed with. I let out another sigh. Okay, so the phone and purse were probably bust. What else?

"What exactly had I been wearing, Doctor?" The last thing I remembered was that I went to bed...yesterday? How much time has passed since then?

The Doctor threw me a worried glance before answering, "You were brought here glad in nothing more than simple nightclothes."

Night clothes? Had I been literally snatched out of my bed without me noticing? Was the kidnapping theory more likely than I first thought after all? Before I could ask any more questions, Doctor Merle raised his hands in an obvious appeal for patience.

"Please calm yourself, Miss Anna. I understand that you have many questions about what had happened before you were brought here, but I ask you to first let me finish my evaluation. It is for your own safety. Another person is likely able to answer at least a few of your questions better than me. But I will only permit him into this room if I am sure that you did not suffer any lasting damage first." He regarded me with a somewhat stern look, a finger moving up in a routine-like motion to fix the position of his glasses.

"Another Person?" The man who had left the room earlier?

"Yes, he was the one who brought you here in the first place, and he expressed his desire to talk to you." He clapped his hands together in front of his chest. "So, let us not have your rescuer wait for longer than strictly necessary, right?" He once more gave me a gentle and understanding smile. Whatever happened to me, I don't think the Doctor had anything to do with it. I could feel the genuine warmth radiating from him. It was strange. It was almost as if I could feel him? I first thought that it was only my imagination, but now that I concentrated on it, I swear I could actually feel some kind of gentle aura radiating from him. Maybe the drugs' aftereffects were more potent than the Doctor anticipated? Considering I was pretty sure that something like auras did not actually exist and that people, therefore, could also not feel them, no matter what some religions or spiritual believers liked to claim. It was another strange occurrence I tried to ignore; for now, the amount of those it seems was rapidly increasing.

For the next five minutes, I listened intently to the Doctor's various questions. They ranged from expected inquiries such as the name of my hometown to things like what I had last eaten. Probably to test my short-term memory or something. I decided to answer all of the questions to the best of my abilities. The easy back and forth only came to an abrupt stop when I was asked about the last date I remembered and what I thought today's date was. I found myself hesitating for some reason, and the Doctor apparently noticed. He looked up from his clipboard; the pencil in his hand rose from the paper as he glanced at me with interest.

"Is everything well, Miss Anna?"

"I…" I had no idea. The whole, very clearly unusual situation I had found myself in aside, I felt as if something was amiss. As if this was the one question I should not answer for some reason. I could not comprehend why I felt like this. Why was the single question which was not loaded with personal information about me the one I felt most uncomfortable answering? That made no sense. The last date I remembered was the 7th of July, 2021. I quite clearly recall how I went to sleep in my own bed, in my own apartment, on that exact day.

That wasn't where you woke up, though, was it? Neither the first nor the second time around. At last, some of the calm hanging over me like a blanket broke, and I found feelings of anxiety settling in the depth of my chest. I felt the sudden need to rub my hands together as if they were cold but opted to play with my hair, which hung over my shoulder instead—fingers interwinding with the auburn strands in a nervous motion. I still had no idea what had happened to me. How long had it been since I had gone to bed on that day, a content smile on my face? How long since I pressed the old childhood plushie I could never bring myself to get rid of against my chest and went to sleep just to awake in a place unknown?

"What date is it, Doctor?"

I decided to follow my gut feeling. I wish I could say something like 'my instincts have never led me astray before,' but that would be a lie. In the past, I seldom managed to judge a situation appropriately when it came down to acting on some vague feelings, which had led to more than one embarrassing situation. I tugged at my hair. Do not think about that now. Something was different this time, even if I did not know what exactly.

"You do not remember? Not a single date from the last few weeks either?" The Doctor looked a bit concerned when I simply shook my head —liar, my brain said. You are lying. I could not tell you why, even if I wanted to.

"Do you remember which year it is?" My breath hitched. It was the year 2021; I knew this. I knew this... so why? Why did I once more proceed to shake my head as if I had forgotten all about it? The Doctor looked alarmed at me for a moment before he caught himself and smoothed his features into a look of understanding.

"It seems not all of your memories have stayed intact through the extraction, but there is no reason to worry. All your personal memories seem unaffected, and I have not recognized any faulty reactions from your motor functions while observing you. Your irises also adjusted regularly to the lighting in the room and have shown no sights of irregular behavior. The missing memories might return in time; it is not unheard of. I recommend regular checkups for at least the coming week to be on the safe side, though."

Outwardly I simply nodded while inwardly my mind was absolutely racing with questions. Extraction? What did he mean by that? Did he extract blood? That wasn't something uncommon, even just as a precaution, but how would that mess with my memories exactly? A frightening thought came to my mind, and my hands shot up to my head. Carefully, I felt along every inch of my skull for some stitches or seams that did not belong there. My hands fell back into my lap a nerve-racking minute later, and I let out a shaking breath of relief. Nothing. I had found nothing. For a moment, I feared that the Doctor meant he had literally extracted part of my brain for some reason. My thoughts admittedly were too morbid for my own good sometimes. A small laugh escaped me over the fantasies my stupid head liked to come up with as soon as I was confronted with a bit of my own anxiety. I really was not able to deal with any kind of stress in a healthy fashion. At least the medicine seemed to have worn off completely, and I was able to be the same anxious mess I always had been.

Hooray…

See, there was a positive to find in all of this mess. You just had to search hard enough for it.

"You appear to have had quite the amusing thought if your smile is anything to go by. Did you remember something else?" I blinked at Doctor Merle, who had just now looked up from his clipboard again; I had almost forgotten that he was here.

"Ah, no, not really. I just had this stupid thought about you needing to extract part of my brains for some reason. Just my imagination running wild like always."

There was no harm in telling him about my fantasies, we could laugh together about them, and maybe it would even make me feel a bit better? I grinned at the Doctor, fully expecting the man to show me a smile in return or for him to, at the very least, shake his head in an incredulous motion at the things I came up with. Instead, however, I was greeted with a grim look of seriousness on his face.

"Doctor?"

"I think I have postponed the explanation for why you are here in my clinic for long enough by now. Please do not misunderstand me, though, Miss Anna. All of my questions played a vital part in monitoring whether or not the treatment you received had worked out as hoped, but I must still apologize for leaving you in the dark about your condition for so long either way." After the man gave me a slight bow in apology, I could do nothing more than stammer out a reassuring reply as I was thrown off by the sudden change in tone.

"No...no, I mean... It's okay; please do not apologize for something like that. You simply did your job in the way you thought was best." I tried to give the Doctor my best smile. I did not want to worry him. I wholeheartedly believed that the kind man in front of me had the best intentions for me in mind. The strange sensation emanating from him, which I could only describe as some kind of aura, gave me the impression that I knew this man on a deeper level than should be possible after such a short time. Whatever that feeling was, I trusted it. Even if I still did not understand what it was or where it had come from. I did not remember ever feeling something like this from another human. No matter how close I had been to them. It was-

"You were afflicted by the phenomenon known as the Magic Surplus Disease,"

My thoughts ground to an abrupt and brutal halt. Had he just said what I think he did? No, no, I must have misheard.

"Excuse me? What?"

It must have been a joke. Yes, of course, just like how the man had joked about his position as chief physician in a clinic that employed only a single physician in the first place. I clenched my teeth, my mood souring a bit. This had been in poor taste, to be completely honest. Had he really set the tone with his serious demeanor just so that his - frankly eye-rolling - joke would get more of a reaction out of me? Maybe I had been wrong about the Doctor's trustworthiness after all, or at least about his level of professionalism.

As if he did not even notice that I was looking at him like a fish out of water with my mouth hanging open right now, the Doctor simply nodded at me.

"Magic Surplus Disease, I am not surprised that you have not heard of it." He flipped through some of the papers on his clipboard until he apparently found what he was looking for. "Some of the examinations we did when you were first brought here indicated that you are not a practitioner of magic and your reaction now seems to support this."

Well, of course, I'm not! Magic does not exist! I needed all of my self-restraint to keep the yelling exclusively inside my head. In what kind of madhouse had I awoken, and how had I not noticed sooner? The Doctor actually had the gall to give me a reassuring smile in response to my incredulous staring.

"There is nothing to be ashamed about. After all, only about 10% of the population are born with the amount of magic power necessary to become a mage and the inherent ability to manipulate this power in the first place. Someone who has lived their life as a civilian and has no knowledge of the finer details is completely normal, I can assure you."

I stared at the madman before me. My nervously roaming tongue was tasting something akin to sandpaper whenever it came in contact with the inside of my dried-out mouth. I entirely admit that I was afraid at that moment. Not as scared as when my skull had almost split open due to pain I still don't know the cause of, but it was a close second. I sure as hell did not even believe for a second that magic had been the actual reason for it.

Nevertheless, I was afraid. Was the man before me delusional, or was he simply playing some sick game? If he was the former, then there was still a chance for me to get out of this unscathed. He had given me all the excuses I needed after all. He had said that I wasn't a practitioner of his 'magic' and that ignorance about the topic was expected and accepted. If I could just manage to play along long enough until I found a window of opportunity to escape, then I could make it out of this in one piece. I inhaled and closed my eyes for just a moment, centering myself.

You can do this. Don't show fear. Don't suddenly act differently. Just play along, and everything will be fine. One exhale later, and my eyes were open again and dead focused on the 'Doctor.'

"And this...Magic Surplus Disease, what is it exactly, and how did it affect me? I am not a mage after all." I honestly deserved an award for the way my voice only hitched once when I jumped on the train whose next destination read 'crazy-town in big, bold letters. No stops in between either.

"Does the Magic Deficiency Disease mean anything to you, Anna?" I bristle at the use of my name in such a familiar manner.

Stop, you had no problem with it before. Don't make a scene now.

How would I even know anything about his made-up terminology? Do I just tell him that I don't know? Wait. Magic Deficiency Disease?

That sounds like...but that is impossible.

"Isn't that when a mage falls ill from the rapid loss of their Magic Power? I think it can be caused by either the user expelling a massive amount of their magic force all at once or by having it drained through some spell by another person. As far as I know, if not treated correctly, it will lead to death in most scenarios." This could not be correct. It just couldn't.

"That is exactly right. Magic Deficiency Disease is a well-known sickness that can be dangerous to any person in the world. Mage or not, everyone carries a bit of magic inside them; it is what allows us to live after all." That explanation was also exactly how I remembered it. And wait a minute, wasn't the 10% thing something I knew too? Was this a coincidence, or did this guy actually copy some concepts from Fairy Tail for his delusions? Parts of my headache returned again as I tried to wrap my head around how exactly going to bed with Mr. Fluffy in my arms could have ended with me stuck in this absolutely ridiculous situation.

What could I have done to deserve any of this? A lot, actually, but let's not talk about it.

"Magic Surplus Disease, as the name implies, is the exact opposite. It is the overflow of magic in the body of a person. Every single person has a 'container' inside their body that determines the limits of their Magic Power; even the 90% of people that can not access it are born with it. This 'container' has a different size limit for every individual, but it can also be trained. By repeatedly emptying and filling the container, it will naturally grow in size. Simply put, a mage becomes stronger the more they use their magic. Ethernano particles are automatically absorbed from the atmosphere, slowly filling the 'container' until full. And this is where the Magic Surplus Disease comes into play. The rate of how many Ethernano particles are absorbed by the human body is the same for everyone. However, in rare, rare instances, a human is born with an unnatural high Ethernano absorption rate. This alone would not be a problem; on its own, it simply means that the 'container' would be filled quicker whenever it had been depleted. Giving the afflicted the potential to be a more effective mage. Sadly, however, that is not all. For some still unknown reason, the afflicted bodies don't stop absorbing Ethernano even when their 'container' is already completely filled. I will spare you the more gruesome details, but the overflow of magic, if not treated in a timely manner, will result in certain death."

I did not want to play his game. I did not want to become invested in a delusion, not even for a moment. And yet, I could not stop thinking about how the Fairy Tail Manga had never given this sickness a name. An illness that we had seen only once, as far as I remembered.

"Please save this child…"

The crying face of Ur appeared in my mind in such vivid detail that I could almost believe I had experienced it first hand and not just seen the scene in a book or on a screen. I remembered how she handed over her own child into the blood-soaked hands of what were essentially monsters in all but appearance. All in a desperate attempt to save her daughter's life. It was a tragedy built upon a tragedy. I- Stop this, Anna! I shook my head in a desperate attempt to banish the memories.

I had always loved Fairy Tail. Loved the characters and their stories, their happiness, and their tears. But this was not the time to go down memory lane about a fictional story I had not touched in a few years. Not even if some maniac was spouting concepts at me, which were almost one to one copied from it. I simply needed to play along while giving him the bare minimum of my attention. I could not get invested in it and forget the brutal truth of my own situation in the process: I was in actual danger.

Not getting invested in any way was the right decision - the sensible one - and yet I still found myself voicing the question that burned on my tongue.

"But if people are born with the disease, then..."

He would tell me anyhow, so I was simply moving it along quicker, right? There was no harm in that, right?

…

Who was I trying to fool anymore, anyhow?

The 'Doctor' nodded sadly at me. "Yes, it only affects very young children and infants and robs them of their lives far too soon if it isn't treated on time. The disease has been recorded to manifest in several different ways. Strong fevers that burn until the body gives out, organ failure due to Ethernano poisoning, and many more. It...it is not something any child should have to go through." If I did not know any better, I could almost buy the sadness that seemed to radiate from the man before me. Maybe he did believe all of it. Perhaps something terrible had happened to him that made him imagine this fictional story as reality. Or he was simply insane.

And maybe I am, too. Because once more, I could sense something coming from the man. As if I could read a tiny part of his emotions. Genuine sadness and sympathy were radiating from him in a way I could not comprehend. I was swept away by the feelings against my will, and I felt small tears pricked at the corner of my eyes.

Ultear…

I could not stop myself from thinking back to the fictional character I knew all of this connected to.

Just what is happening to me?

The 'Doctor' cleared his throat, bringing me back to reality. I blinked and focused my attention on the here and now again. Keep it together! I watched him close his eyes for a moment before he regarded me with a more neutral smile. I probably would call it 'going into Doctor mode' if anyone would ask me about it.

"One of the other recorded ways the disease manifests itself is by the excess Ethernano gathering inside the brain of the afflicted. Building pressure until the skull is physically split open. This, Miss Anna, is how the sickness showed itself in your particular case…"

So I was stricken by the same sickness Ultear had been born with, and it had been the origin of my almost lethal-ending headaches. That would make some amount of sense if any of this were real and not just fantasy. I groaned loudly inside my mind. I could not believe that I actually took this stuff semi-seriously. I definitely was losing it.

"However, even after extensive examination of your body and the magic inside you, I could not tell you how this has happened. There is no recorded case of an adult ever being afflicted by the disease since a person is always born with the heightened Ethernano absorption rate. If I did not know any better, and please trust me if I say that I indeed do know better, I would come to the conclusion that you never had any magic or magic' container' inside your body prior to about a week ago, but this is of course completely impossible." The spectacled man laid down his pencil and simply watched me as if he expected some kind of reaction or inquiry.

"I…" What was I supposed to say? That I believed him? That I was thankful for his work? Was it even a good idea to simply stop this conversation? What would happen then?

"I... don't know what to do," I said it. I actually voiced the thought that was the most prevalent in my head right now. Uncertainty was pushing away even the feelings of fear and anxiety. At least for the moment. I just did not know what to do about any of this. This whole situation was beyond me.

What have I gotten myself into?

The sudden, uncomfortable sound of rusty door hinges moving almost made me jump out of my skin. A door on the right side of the room had been roughly pushed open.

"This takes way too long. Apologies, Doc, let me talk with her for a moment, and I will be on my way after."

My head swiveled to the right, eyes snapping to the newcomer that had just waltzed unannounced into the room. My eyes grew wide, and my mouth fell open at the sight. All pretenses of calm I tried to keep were gone in an instant. A well-built man had placed himself right at the foot of the hospital bed I was sitting in, and for a moment, I could do nothing but gawk at him with vacant eyes.

This was for real.

My body started shaking uncontrollably; I drew my knees close to my body and pressed my face against them in an attempt to center myself. It was no use. I let out a loud sob; tears were pouring out of my eyes without restrain.

To hell with self-control.

"Miss Anna?!"

"What the hell is wrong with her?!"

The shouts of surprise and worry became nothing but white noise in my head. The only thing I was able to concentrate on was the aura I somehow felt coming from the newcomer. I knew this man. I recognized his appearance instantly. It was absolutely impossible to ever mistake him for someone else. Few people looked this striking. However, that alone would not have been a problem. It alone would not have made me act as if my whole world had just come crashing down. No, there could have been a logical explanation for his outward appearance, for his looks. But there was no explanation for the aura of indomitable strength that permeated the room, none born out of logic at least. His presence alone seemed to fill the very air with crackling static. It could not be faked. It was impossible.

I truly believe now.

I lifted my head from my now very wet knees. Tears still streamed down my face. I did not bother with suppressing them as I peered at the somewhat worried-looking man who should have been a stranger to me but really wasn't. My eyes roamed over his body, comparing what I saw right here with the pictures in my memories. The broad shoulders, the lightning-bolt-shaped scar over his right eye, the short spiky blond hair. Everything was exactly like I remembered it.

And of course- A wet laugh that sounded more like a sob escaped me when I studied the ridiculous-looking headphones hanging around his neck.

Kidnapping? That would have been just too easy, wouldn't it?

Before me stood Laxus Dreyer of Fairy Tail. Looking as impressive and imposing as he always did. Even the slightly uncomfortable expression on his face could not shake the awe-inspiring composure he exuded. I could almost feel the taste of an imaginary thunderstorm on my tongue when I observed him. Tears were falling faster and faster from my eyes as I kept gawking at the living impossibility before me. Another sob bubbled forth from my throat just to transform midway through into a very messy and wet fit of laughter.

Maybe I did turn insane somewhere along the way.

Don't ya worry about it.

The voice my mind conjured up in response was sounding suspiciously similar to a pinky-haired, fire-breathing ball of chaos.

Being crazy means, you will fit right in with Fairy Tail!

And I had to admit that really wasn't the worst thing in the world.

Another World Away

I hope you liked it. Please feel free to tell me what you think!