R&R
'Alice...' The voice called her name. She looked around but she saw no one in the white void yet the voice sounded so close to her,
"Hello. Who's there." it was a simple response yet it felt like she didn't need to ask. She should've known the voice. Yet she didn't,
'Alice…' There it was again the familiar yet foreign voice that shook her to the core. It's timber as it spoke her name made her feel warm. A warmth similar to when Soler calls for her like they shared a deep bond she couldn't remember yet she should. A chill rose from behind her and for the first time, she felt a presence in the void with her like something physical. Without concern, she whipped around to confront this person but the moment she did she was met with two giant eyes both colors as icy as hers yet held more power and grace than any she's ever seen. It froze her on the spot as the black slits bor into her and then in a voice powerful enough it shook the void it called out to her,
'Alice!'
She awoke with a troubled start, her sheets flying out around her. She took a moment to look around her room and nothing was out of sorts. It was just her and the sun peeking through her curtains. Her breathing eased and she finally felt the sweat on her brow which she whipped away in disgust,
"I need to shower first." she groaned before she got up for the day. Through her morning routine of cleaning and dressing, the dream kept replaying in her mind as it pushed her forward. The void, the voice, and those eyes that bore through her. What did it mean? And why did it feel familiar to her? She'd have to ask Soler about it later. He typically had some answer to almost everything. She'd have to ask him how he did that too but first, she'd have to find him. And with it being close to noon and in an empty house she couldn't help the slight butterflies of the thought of them leaving her alone, but they just as quickly subsided as the sounds of voices were heard outside.
Not wasting a moment she made her way out front and eased with a smile as she saw Soler, Mira, and Erza all sitting together. Well, Soler and Mira were sitting while Erza stood over them both. She smiled as she began her way over to them and as she did she noticed the concentration on Soler's face as he held an unfamiliar dagger in his hand,
'Has he always had that?' she wondered as she got closer. But just when she reached them the dagger disappeared in a flash of light out of his hand. It surprised her because it didn't flash in his signature green energy but just a calm white much like how it does when Erza is using her magic. He opened his eyes and gave Erza a smirk,
"See simple." he said confidently. Erza gave back her own smirk while Mira gave quiet golf claps,
"Your magic is getting stronger." she said with glee. Alice had to do a double-take at that,
"Wait, did you say his magic?" she questioned letting her presence be known. All three gave her warm smiles,
"Good to see you up lazy bones." Soler teased, "And yes she did say magic back there." Alice came to stand next to Erza who instinctively place an arm on her shoulder,
"You can do magic? How long have you been able to do magic?" she questioned,
"For awhile. Well at least for the past few years." he grumbled. Alice smiled brightly at him,
"You can do magic! That's awesome. What kind of strong spells do you know?" she quickly questioned. Soler srinked away from that question as he found interest in the grass next to him,
"W-Well you see I uh…"
"He can only do basic level magic." Erza answered with that same smirk pointed at him. He gave her a small glare but huffed and looked away. Alice looked on in disbelief while Mira tried to contain her giggles,
"How is it that you only know basic level magic? You're so strong." Alice asked in shock. Soler refocused at this,
"Well see I've never really been able to actually pull off magic when I was younger. We thought my energy was magic for a while but after I got good at sensing energy I could feel that what I was using was different than magic.' he then formed a spear as its energy radiated in the small space, 'See this feels way more raw and untamed. It feels like it feeds off of my own emotions and mind, giving me power depending how I feel, good or bad.' then with his other hand in the flash of light the dagger from before was back, 'And even though the dagger itself isn't magic when I summoned it the feelings of the magic were more calm and collected." he explained hoping he made sense. Alice's face scrunched in effort to put it together. Mira gave Soler a playful nudge,
"Maybe try explaining it a bit simpler professor." she teased. He smirked and sent both his weapons away,
"Ok think about it like this," he sent both weapons away and put his hand up in a wavy motion, "When I use my energy it's like racing down a rapid river with little control. No matter what I'm going to get to my destination but depending on the current it could be easy and safe or rough and out of control. With magic it's that same river but it's only one straight path but with this I can see where the rapids build so I can adjust making it do as I want. Did that make it a bit clearer?" he asked. Alice was silent in thought for a few moments as she imagined the rivers. After another moment it clicked her,
"Oh I think I'm understanding better now. Your energy is wilder than magic right?" she asked. He let out an eased sigh,
"Glad you caught on quick. You don't know how difficult it is to explain that to people." he groaned, rubbing his temple,
"It is but his magic could be a lot stronger if he kept up his drills like I've told him since we were kids." Erza interrupted with a smirk. Soler rolled his eyes,
''Hey, I do the drills occasionally. If you haven't noticed I've been working on some new techniques! I think that counts for something." he pouted. She chuckled lightly and patted his head tenderly,
"It definitely does but your magic is still subpar. I would think someone like yourself would want to be good at both, not just one." she replied. Soler merely huffed and looked away grumbling to himself. This earned him another giggle from Mira and Alice this time. But Alice's ended as a question popped up,
"Wait so if you can do magic what type of magic is it that you do? I saw you pulling out the dagger so requip magic?" she asked as she sat down next to Mira. The older woman wrapped an arm around the moment she was seated,
"Requip magic seems to be the only type of magic that sticks with him. We've tried teaching him some others but he barely can do them." she answered. Soler felt the heat of embarrassment flare up his neck,
"Ya know it really feels like I'm being attacked right now." he grumbled. Erza simply patted his head much like a mother does to calm a child,
"No need to feel embarrassed, we're just telling the truth." she said to soothe though her smirk betrayed her. He looked at her wearily before sighing yet again,
"Fine. Yes, 'requip' is the only magic I can handle. But I haven't given up looking for other magics I can do.' he quickly retorted, "There's just so many different types out there and I know I can handle at least a second one." his eyes sparkled of that child-like enthusiasm that only showed up when he spoke about magic or some new fighting technique. Alice's mind couldn't help but wonder what other type of magic he could do. But as she did Erza stepped away from Soler her hands on her hips in a demanding stance,
"I'd worry more about getting the requip magic down first. Especially if you want to add a new weapon to your inventory." she said with a cheeky smile. Soler quirked his brow in interest,
"A new weapon?" up till now the only items he had were a dagger, a longsword and a simple shield. He couldn't handle having armor since his magic was so low. Not that he'd ever use it. It would slow him down far too much. Erza kept her smile as she held out her hand. Within the next second a sheath katana was sitting in her grip. The three others all eyed the mystery weapon curiously.
From what they could see it didn't seem all too different from a normal katana. But at the hilt of the blade, a gem was embedded into the end. But what was curious was that it looked dull and lifeless. The guard separating the blade from the black and white wrappings was silver and seemed to resemble a shuriken. The sheath looked plain enough being a simple black and glossed with the lacquer. Though there was something etched onto it. All in all a simple katana. Though Soler wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth from how smug Erza seemed he was expecting something more,
"Well it looks nice?" he said questionably. Erza scoffed as she grabbed the hilt. When she unsheathe the blade was when their eyes widened. The blade pointed tip curved down to the rest of the body as at the edge little waves of darkened metal showed. But that wasn't what got the reaction. It was the gems that were embedded on the inside of the blade that ran all the way down to the base. None of them had ever seen a sword look like this. Soler quickly stood up as he looked over the blade,
"I take it back. This is far cooler than I thought." he admired. Erza nodded her head,
"I hope so. But you haven't even seen what it can really do yet." she taunted earning another raised brow. Without waiting Erza motioned for Alice. The girl, though confused, stood and went to her. And when she did Erza handed the weapon to her. She gripped the blade with both hands as it was far heavier than she expected it to be,
"Ok Alice I want you to focus your magic into the hilt of the blade." Erza instructed. Alice simply nodded and then closed her eyes. They all watched her quietly for a few moments waiting to see what was next. As if reading the room the dull gems that they now realized were lacrima began to glow a light blue. It started slowly from the base until it reached all the way up to the top as they filled with magic. And then an ice chill began to emanate from the blade as they could see the frost. It took Soler only a second to realize why Erza was so smug,
"This blade takes in the caster's magic?!" he shouted astonished. The voice was enough for Alice to open her eyes and she nearly jumped back from seeing the frost that was coming from it,
"Woah." Was all that managed to escape her. Soler looked turned to Erza eyes wide,
"Erza, where did you get a sword like this? I've never seen anything like it before." he questioned,
"This was a custom order from a blacksmith I know.' she answered as her eyes drifted onto the blade, "It cost me a pretty jewel but I think it turned out alright." Soler nodded as his gaze went back to the sword,
"I bet it was a lot. Mind if I hold it Alice?" he asked her. Alice was so entranced with the weapon she momentarily forgot it was supposed to be Solers.
"Oh yeah of course." she handed it to Soler and the moment she did the lacrima began to fade and her ice magic went with it leaving them dull again. Soler only looked more at the blade in curiosity,
"So it doesn't hold in the magic. Interesting." he whispered to himself. Though Erza was happy he liked the blade she hid her nervousness well as the real reason she got it hadn't been seen yet. And waiting for it was killing her,
"You can gawk and examine it all you want later. Go on and try to send your energy through it." she said. The idea of putting his own energy through it never crossed his mind; he was curious on what would happen. He closed his eyes as he held it with both hands and he let his energy flow into it. It took him a moment but soon much like with Alice the lacrima began to glow but it was his signature green as it reached up to the top. And once it did the blade was coated in the sparking energy of Soler. He opened his eyes and smiled wide as he looked at the blade coated in his energy,
"This is awesome!" he exclaimed. Alice was feeling just as much excitement from it as he was as she practically jumping in place,
"So cool!" she admired. Soler stepped off to the side to give it a few swings and it was just weighted enough for his liking as it sliced through the air with ease and finesse. Mira had been watching in curiosity as Alice went over to join him by watching,
'Why would Erza get him something that expensive out of nowhere?' she wondered feeling something was up,
"I hope you haven't forgotten what's coming up Mira." Erza's voice took her out of her thoughts. She looked up to her as the knight was looking out to Soler and Alice. It took Mira a moment to think but once she did it clicked. A small giggle left her as she looked warmly out with Erza,
"How could I forget? I wasn't expecting you to give it to him this early though." she replied. Erza shrugged,
"I had been holding onto that blade for long enough. Besides, there's no harm in giving his gift early.' she looked down to Mira with a challenging gaze, 'Unless you haven't gotten yours ready?" she questioned. Mira gave her a sweet smile that her rival knew was fake,
''Of course, I have silly. What kind of girlfriend would I be if I didn't," she answered. Erza only smirked and looked back out,
"I was still first though." she replied which made Mira giggle.
After the group ate a homemade brunch, with Alice having a nice serving of french toast and bacon, the girls sat around on the couch together digesting the food. But Alice noticed the distinct lack of Soler. Before her mind could wander he emerged from his room with a satchel over his shoulder. The luggage definitely took the interest of the girls,
"Where are you heading?" Alice asked. Soler seemed to have forgotten they were there as he jumped a bit from her sudden voice,
"Oh sorry was in my head. But I was going to head out to Sensei's for a day or two. I haven't checked up on him a while." he explained and for a second time Alice had to do a double-take,
"Wait, you have a Sensei? Like the one who taught you all your moves?" she excitedly asked. Soler merely nodded,
"Yeah he taught me when I was younger. He read up on how I lost to Mira trying to reach S-Class and got in contact with me soon after. Don't know why he took such an interest in me but glad he did." he replied. Alice bounded up from her seat over to him giddy with excitement,
"Can you take me with you?" she asked. Soler chuckled at her excitement,
"Well I don't know Al-"
"I'd like to go as well." he stopped his sentence as both Erza and Mira were looking at him expectantly,
"I've always wanted to meet this Sensei of yours and what type of person they are." Erza admitted as Mira nodded,
"Me too. Plus I think a little vacation together would be nice!" she added on. Soler gave them both flat looks while Alice got even more excited at the two joining in,
"Yeah, It would be! Maybe I could get him to teach me some moves. Or see if he has any embarrassing stories of Soler's training.' her childlike energy only seemed to grow at her thoughts, "yeah this is going to be fun." Before Soler could get a word in, Alice was quick to dash off to pack a bag. Soler watched as a sigh escaped him,
"I have no idea where that energy comes from." he groaned to himself. He turned back to the Erza and Mira who had stood up,
"Welp I guess I better go find us a ride then. Meet me by the station once you guys are ready." he said. Both agreed and the three scattered to do their tasks.
*Sometime later*
On Alice's list of accomplishments, getting to meet and possibly train under the man who trained Soler was pretty high of awesomeness. But having to endure the very long train ride there wasn't on that list. She groaned again with her head resting on Mira's lap,
"This sucks." she groaned as another wave of sickness hit her. The group had been on the train for a while now and it didn't feel like it would end anytime soon. Mira gently stroked her head running her fingers soothingly through her hair. Erza was snoozing resting on Soler's shoulder in the seat across while he had been gazing blankly out the window at the passing landscape. Hearing Alice groan again his eyes went over to her and he smirked,
"You were the one who said they wanted to come miss dragonslayer." he teased. She gave him her best glare which was a struggle,
"I wasn't expecting to have to take the train," she complained and wanted to say more but another shake of the cart silenced her. Mira only kept her same gentle smile while Soler playfully rolled his eyes,
"Don't tell me you expected me to carry all of you plus your luggage? Sorry but even I got limits." he retorted. Alice had a comeback in her head but the sickness only force out,
"Tel...la...port." she groaned. Her counter got a chuckled outta him,
"Sorry but I don't got the energy reserves to make a jump that big and with so many people." he only got another groan back which made him chuckle again,
"Alright you just rest and I'm sure we'll be there soon." Mira's soft voice interjected. Alice didn't have the strength to even try to say another comeback so relented and tried to maybe follow Erza's example and get some sleep. She doubted she would be able to with her motion sickness but she could try.
'Damn dragonslayer magic.' Within minutes after Alice closed her eyes Soler and Mira were met with the sounds of her soft snores. Mira only looked at her lovingly and even bent down to kiss her head. Soler watched the action silently and a feeling of strange longing hit him at witnessing it. Mira's mother-like actions towards Alice and the serenity of the scene itself brought about the feelings. He shook his head as he went back to gazing out the window.
'That's twice now I've had that feeling. Why can't I just be satisfied with what I have.' he thought. Mira's senses went off and she immediately looked to Soler to see his expression was more contemplative than it was a few moments ago,
"What's wrong?" she asked him. He looked at her and gave a small smile,
"Oh nothing, just wondering how Alice is going to cope with the cart ride we'll have heading to the town," he replied. Mira giggled as she stroked gently sleeping, child,
"I wonder how she'll take it too." Seeing her laugh eased him as he went back to his gazing sinking back in his thoughts. As he did Erza stirred slightly which drew his attention. He could see the slightly irritated look on her face and he smiled as he moved so his arm was wrapped around her. Being in the new position eased her as she kept sleeping soundly. With her settled, he went back to gazing. Having witnessed the act Mira was glad Erza was here,
'At least I know now that there really is something troubling him.' she thought as they went into their silence with only the train's rattling bringing noise.
Erza yawned as the carriage bounced again,
"Don't tell me sleeping beauty is still tired?" Soler joked as he looked back at her. She merely rolled her shoulder getting some pops,
"Sorry, I haven't been that comfortable on a train ride in a long time." she commented back. Mira giggled,
"You were sleeping rather cutely. I didn't think I'd ever see that side of you." she teased. But before the knight could retort the last of their party sickly chimed in,
"This is worse than the train ride." Alice groaned. She was currently resting on Erza's side in no better state than she was on the train. Erza had her arm wrapped around the young girl patting her head ever so gently. After the train ride, Soler got them a carriage for the rest of the journey and had been at the reins leading the horses down the path to the town. He gazed up to darkening sky,
"Hmm we should get there by nightfall," he commented. Mira who had looped her arm around his and had been snuggling close to him since the trip began,
"Good, I could use a warm bath and some food." she replied back,
"Yeah there should be some shops open. And the town has its own hot springs." he answered. The sounds of a hot spring only made Mira yearn more for them to get there. But she was also enjoying being close to Soler so she could manage to wait a bit longer. Alice however couldn't stand the wait and torture of being on this ride any longer. She was beginning to question if seeing Soler's teacher was really worth this trip. Whether she wanted to meet him or not her stomach wasn't going to be happy with her after this was all said and done. The group traveled on in ease silence as the nighttime approached them. Just before the moon had its chance to peak out above the horizon lights came into view. Soler smiled and he spread the horses faster, getting another groan from Alice,
"And we've made it everyone." he said as he brought the horses to a stop. Feeling the wagon coming to stand still Alice instantly perked up as she sat up to look out at the town. And for a small-ish town, it was quite lively. The streets had people coming and going from the different vendors and shops as it was beautifully illuminated by the lanterns hanging above. The buildings were made mostly of wood yet with how some of the building's roofs were curved and tiled it gave off a very foreign vibe to her. Not only that but the smells she was picking up she'd never smelled before. This place seemed like a whole new world compared to Magnolia,
"Are we still in Fiore?" she absentmindedly questioned as they began to unload. Soler was finishing up talking to the stable hand before going back to his group,
"Yes we are still in Fiore. Welcome to the port town of Yī Shĭ." he introduced. Alice looked slightly confused hearing the name,
"Ye say?" she tried to mimic. Soler chuckled,
"Close. Yī Shĭ. It translates to New beginnings. At least that's what sensei told me.' he said as he took some bags, along with Erza, and he began to lead them into town. "See the people here came from a different country to get a fresh start here in Fiore. Because of the easy to access bay this became a prime place to start a small port town. The area grew into what it did because of the hard work these guys put in to make it work." he explained. Alice looked around the town at the kind faces of the people and she couldn't help but think of Fairy Tail. A bunch of people working together to make things work,
"It's like a guild then." she replied. Soler glanced back to her and gave a wink,
"It's exactly like a guild." he answered and turned back to the road. Soler led them to a building that had to work as an inn for it was one of the taller buildings in the town. Going inside the girls were taken back by how beautiful the interior was. Lavish reds and golds lined the walls, designs of serpinte creatures etched into the wooden red beams. The hand-painted lanterns that hung from the ceiling gave an otherworldly feel. While behind the main counter was a large black marble that had characters etched in that they haven't seen before. These were just the first glances but if looked at more the detail of the painted pictures to the statues and vases that adorned the place was a sight to be held as well,
"And this place is called Okaerinsai. Which just means welcome home. I heard they went through a lot of different names before concluding on that one." Mira eyed the area in awe,
"Soler, this place is beautiful. Why have you never told me about this place before?" she questioned,
"Hmm I don't really know. Probably just slipped my mind." he replied. Both Mira and Erza huffed at the response,
"What?" he asked, confused. Both girls looked at each other and then let out some giggles as they passed him by leaving him even more confused. Alice stood next to him,
"What was that about?" she asked. Soler sighed,
"Your guess is as good as mine." The two shared their moment and followed the others up to the counter where they were talking to the women behind the counter. At seeing Soler the woman brightened up,
"Soler-san! Okaerinasai." she said with a slight bow. Soler smiled,
"Hisahiburi Yoko-san." he replied back. The woman named Yoko looked at him with her warm brown eyes. Her black hair trailed down her back stopping right at her upper shoulders, while her bangs were kept even around her forehead. Her flawless skin was only blemished with a mole that sat next to her nose. She wore a simple black kimono held by a red and golden sash. She was older than them in her early thirties but would've easily thought she was in her twenties. She smirked brightly at Soler while the others looked on at the lost interaction. Soler caught on to this and chuckled,
"Sorry it's just a way of greeting people around here." he quickly answered. Yoko seemed to notice and instantly grew a bit flustered,
"S-Sumimasen. I mean terribly sorry." she quickly said bowing again, "We don't have many travelers so I naturally speak my native language." she replied. Both Mira and Erza gave her kind smiles,
"It's fine. You should never apologize for showing your culture. I think it's refreshing to hear a new language." Erza replied. Mira nodded in response. Yoko eased at their responses,
"Thank you very much." Yoko collected herself then put back on her sweet smile, "Welcome to our inn. How can I help you?" she asked them. Soler stepped up to the counter,
"Well we'd just need a room for a night. We're going to be outta here in the morning." he answered. Yoko nodded,
"Are you here to see Tai-sensei?" she asked. He nodded,
"Yep, I haven't seen the old timer in a while, so I figured I'd pay him a visit. Along with some tagalongs." he joked. Yoko giggled and nodded,
"I'm sure he'd love to see you all. Now would you need a three bedroom? Or are you getting separate rooms?" she inquired. He thought for a moment,
"I think a room with three beds would suffice." he answered. She nodded and quickly went and searched for a set of keys. Having found them she moved from behind the counter,
"If you'd all follow me." they followed the woman to a lift that was located near the back of the main entrance and the group rode it up three floors. Once on their floor, she led them to their room and opened it with one of the keys. She stepped in as it led to a lavish room. In the center of the room was what looked to be a fire pit with lounge seats and a small cooker in the center. Three queen-sized beds circled around the pit each dressed with fine purple silk sheets. It concentrated well with the lighter shade of blue on the walls. To really take the cake of the room went to the window that have a great view of the sky and overlooking the town. Ending with wooden flooring the place was beautiful. Alice was first to go and hop onto one of the comfy beds and sigh with relief while Erza and Mira went to further explore the space leaving Soler and Yoko near the entrance,
"Will this room work?" she asked with a testing smile. Soler merely nodded,
"Y-yeah I think it will. But you didn't have to go this big on us. I mean we're only going to be here a night." he responded as he placed down the bags. Yoko only shook her head,
"Don't worry about it. We're light on travelers this time of the year and this room hasn't been used in a long time." she replied. Soler only smirked and gave her a bow,
"Arigato Yoko-san." he said. She smiled and nodded back. Then she turned to the girls,
"Now I don't know if Soler-san has spoke of it but this inn also has its own hot springs along with its own dinner. Both are located on the first floor. Other than that this room has its own bathroom and more than enough closet space for you. I'll leave your keys and I hope you enjoy your stay with us." she gave the keys to Soler then gave them all a bow and exited to room. With Yoko gone Soler turned back to the girls and placed the second key onto a small table while he put the first in his pocket,
"Just take the second key whenever you leave. Other than that, relax for the night." he said as he took off his jacket laying it on a bed. The excitement in Alice's eyes was bright as she was practically vibrating with energy,
"I wonder what type of food they have at the diner? I can't wait to get a taste!" she spoke with a stomach growling. Mira giggled at the young girl,
"I'm sure it'll be good. But why not hit those hotsprings first?" she offered. Erza requiping out of her armor nodded,
"A bath and food sounds relaxing." she breathe,
"If you're gonna bathe then there should be some kimonos for you guys to pick up at the front desk afterwards." Soler spoke up who had moved himself to the window sitting on the windowsill. His gaze pointed to the sky. Alice pondered for a moment,
"Kimonos? You mean what Yoko was wearing?" she asked. He nodded,
"Yep. They'll give guests a kimono on their visit to the hot springs. It's more comfortable to wear after the soak." he explained. Erza nodded,
"They are rather comfortable and very breathable." she added in. With a clasp of her hands, Mira took lead,
"Then it's settled, hot springs first and food second. And if people are still up we could walk the town a bit." The other girls liked the sound and the three went to gather their things for their night. As they did so, Soler was silent as he kept his eyes on the rising moon. He was entranced with the celestial object, really taking in its majesty. The girls got their items ready and was prepared to head out but stopped when they noticed a lack of Soler with them. The three looked to him to see he was still gazing outside his face away from them,
"Hey Soler, are you coming or what?" Alice asked. It took him a moment but he shook his head,
"Sorry not this time. You guys go enjoy." he replied not taking his eyes off the moon. Alice took the response as he just didn't want to go and accepted it but Erza and Mira both couldn't help look to him with slight worry,
"Are you sure you don't want to come?" Erza asked. He nodded,
"Yeah I'm just gonna do some star gazing." he answered then went back to his silence. It didn't sit well with the women. They knew something was up but neither made a fight to draw it out of him,
"Well we'll be back up with some food after." Mira said as she picked up the second key. Soler only nodded again, his attention taken up with the moon. He was so swept up in gazing that he didn't even hear the door shut as they left. He was alone now with just the moon as his companion and as he stared his he felt a familiar pang of sadness in his chest. He placed his hand over his heart as the feeling trickled to the surface,
"Again huh?" he kept his hand over his heart as he gazed up to the moon. It was a crescent moon.
**Sometime later**
Mira, Erza, and Alice all returned to the room feeling rejuvenated, refreshed, and wearing white kimonos each,
"I've never eaten food like that before! It was so good!" Alice exclaimed. Erza sighed in agreement while Mira giggled holding Soler's food,
"I can't believe you ate so much. I guess Natsu isn't the only glutton of the dragon slayers." she teased. Alice blushed with slight embarrassment but still kept her smile,
"He's the one who taught me." she responded. Their mood was high as they entered the room,
"Soler here's your-" Mira's words ended as they all looked to see Soler was gone.
The night's air-cooled Soler as he walked mindlessly through the port town. With his hands pocketed he let his mind wander much like it's been doing the past day,
'I'm definitely going to have to explain myself to them when I get back.' he thought as a sigh escaped him. The conversation on his behavior was not on the top of his list of things to look forward to. Especially with his two girlfriends. Surprisingly he didn't shudder at the thought of having two girlfriends. He immediately paused in walking startling some people who walked around him,
'Am I finally comfortable with having two girlfriends?' he questioned himself. He groaned and shook his head,
"Gildarts would be proud." he joked as he began to walk again. But just as he was taking a few steps he accidentally bumped into someone. Too caught up in his self wallowing he merely said an apology and kept walking. But unknown to him the man he bumped into had taken the time to stare at him. His eyes widened with realization but then went to a glare as he walked off. Soler's nighttime stroll came to a stop once he reached the edge of town before it went down the cliffside to the port. He spotted a high enough building and jumped up to the roof and took a seat. Being so close to the sea his view of the moon was uninhibited as he basked in its light. His gaze went to it and again that sudden sadness washed over him,
'Every time with you moon. What is it I need to be sad about?' he pondered. He sat there in silence for another few moments before he shook his head to push away the thoughts,
"Come on Sol, you're here to see your sensei! I can wallow in my own self-induced pity at home." he chanted as he stood up, 'Right now I just need to enjoy being with my girls and getting to see my sensei. I can dive into those thoughts later." he repeated to himself. His gaze went back up to the moon and he pointed a commanding finger at it,
"And I'm gonna figure you out too. Why do you make me so sad at times? You will tell me someday." he declared to it even though he knew he wasn't going to get a response. Letting out another breath he hopped down from the roof and began his way back to the hotel room. Where a talk he wasn't excited about was waiting for him.
Soler entered the quiet room and met with the one site he was dreading. Both Mira and Erza are sitting up waiting for him. When their eyes met he visibly winced at being under their combined gaze,
'One is scary but both?' they said nothing letting their judgmental gazes do the pre talking which he knew wasn't going to be happy. The clicking of the door behind him was the jolt he needed to get him to get this conversation out the way. He walked forward and noticed Alice was sound asleep in her bed,
'Glad she won't be up to hear this talk,' he stopped in front of the two whose gazes hadn't lessened any,
"So I'm guessing we're gonna talk now?" his half-hearted joke didn't help ease the tension,
"Pit." was all Erza said and he followed the order without a thought. Once he was seated both women went and sat to either side of him. Trapping him in this upcoming conversation. They waited to see if he would begin but his silence and refusal to look at them spoke for him,
"Soler we all know something is going on with you," Mira started the talk with a gentle tone, "We're not mad just concerned is all." she placed a hand on his leg which drew his eyes to her. He only felt more down on himself looking to her and forced his eyes to look back to the fire pit,
"Sorry about that." he quietly replied. Erza only sighed,
"There's nothing to be sorry about. We're your partners and we just want to know what's wrong," she explained her voice lacked the edge he was expecting. Now she placed her hand on his other leg,
"Please just let us know what's going on. We want to help.'' He couldn't keep his gaze on her eyes for long before going back to the fire. They sat there for a few moments in silence as they waited for Soler to speak. But he only kept his gaze on the flame. Mira gazed at Erza with a worried look which the red reciprocated as they both wondered how to approach now,
"I-I can't really say what's going on with me," Soler's voice broke the silence this time. They looked at him yet he kept his eyes on the small fire, "I honestly want to say but I haven't fully figured out everything that's been bothering me. Trust me If I did then this conversation would be far easier on all of us. But sadly it just isn't." he replied,
"Well can you at least give us a hint or tell us a little bit of what's going on?" Mira asked. He shook his head at that,
"Sorry but at this point, even a little bit might be too soon to even talk about. Hell the fact it's been on my mind at all is concerning me," Erza sighed followed by crossing her arms, indifference writing all over her face,
"So you're telling us something is going on, but you don't fully understand it all so you don't want to tell us," a chuckle escaped him,
"Yeah, it sounds about as crazy as you said. Trust me I'm trying to understand it all and figuring out the other bits and I will come to you both about the first part. We all are partners after all." he replied as he looked to them both his eyes reflecting his honesty,
"But until then I don't got much to say on it. Hell, the second half I doubt anyone could help me with. No offense." Erza only gave him a slight glare while Mira gave an understanding smile,
"None taken. Right Erza?" she asked. Erza only sighed losing her edge knowing she wasn't planning on keeping it in the first place,
"Of course. But make sure you keep your word and come to us the moment you figure it out. I don't like seeing you so wrapped up in your own mind." she replied with a slight blush on her face. Soler was quick to notice and a sly smile,
"Well I definitely wouldn't want to see you worried." he teased her which only added to her blush. He couldn't help but smile and in a motion, neither girl expected he brought the two into a hug,
"I really do love you guys," his tender words struck both on their hearts as they also wrapped him into the group hug,
"And we love you too," Mira said with a simile that matched Erza's.
Ok...uh so... been awhile...sorry about that. I don't know what to say at all honestly don't expect anyone to be still watching this story but hey for the one who are ya know big thank you. I've been going through a lot of stuff since the last time I posted which was literal years ago and I've been jumping around with how I wanted to continue this story or if I even wanted to continue it at all. The way I left felt like a good enough conclusion though I hadn't even tackled half of the actual story of Fairy Tail. And even still I hadn't dived more into our protags (Soler and Alice) backstory. I'm honestly nervous about going into Solers as I don't know how people would take it but I still want to and Alice's as well though hers is a bit easier to tackle. There's so much I want to do with this story and the characters that it's been hell to decide on what to do next or if I'd even have the time to do it as some of the ideas probably won't make to much of a difference on the overall story. But there's some character development I want to happen and while it doesn't fully matter with the pacing of the actual story but next is tenrou island and I don't want to take up to much time to get there. Yet character development needs time and this whole cycle of mental debate is never-ending. I literally want to take characters down some darker stuff, ya know as dark as you can get with Fairy Tail, and whenever I make a story I want to push the characters as much as I can while not making them seem too OOC which is tricky by itself. And don't get me started with re-editing the older chapters that's a whole different rant. Anyway sorry for the rant down here and know I truly am thankful for you guys being patient with me and this story. Trust me I've got another story already in the backburner with act 1 of it ready for posting but I want to finish this one first. Anyway, this is has been Solerwolf...thank you.
(P.S. had to split this chapter into two parts. Been stressing to much on making it fit, probably me overthinking but ya know)