Bartley tapped his foot, glancing impatiently at the sun above before returning his gaze to the busy port of Moci. They're late, he thought, annoyed by every minute that passed by without any sign of the seven wizards he was supposed to wait for. Their ship rocked next to his, sitting ready for the long voyage back to Ishgar.

"Five more minutes," he decided. "Five more minutes, and then I have to be off. I can wait for them in Hargeon, but any longer here and the tide will be against me. Five more minutes."

When three minutes passed, he grew nervous. He wasn't supposed to leave with the wizards from Fairy Tail, yet what choice did he have? If he didn't go now, he would be forced to wait until tomorrow, and the taxes for overstaying at his berth would be outrageous. No, he had no choice.

Sighing, Bartley began to turn. It was a shame, really. He just hoped Lennox wouldn't blame him for leaving without the seven.

"Hey! Wait! Hey!"

A shout caught Bartley's attention. He turned slightly, eyes locking on a black haired man running toward him. The man was without a shirt, something that really confused Bartley. Sure, it was spring, but it wasn't that hot out yet, was it? So why wasn't he fully dressed?

Nevertheless, Bartley recognized the emblem on the man's bare chest. Relieved, he faced the wizard. "Took ya long enough!" He called, grinning lightheartedly at the approaching mage. "I thought I was gonna have to leave without ya. Say, where's the rest of your group?"

The man skidded to a stop before him, panting slightly. "We're, we're not leaving yet. Sorry to keep you waiting, we just decided this morning. Not my first choice. Anyway, I'm running late, I'm gonna miss the train. But here," he reached into his back pocket, pulling out an envelope. "I need you to take this."

Bartley took it, frowning slightly. "But why aren't you joining me?"

The man shook his head. "No time to explain. Give that to Juvia, okay? Juvia Lockser. If you can't find her, just give it to the Master. He'll get it to her." He started to backpedal, putting space between the two. "Tell her I miss her, alright? And tell her that there's something I gotta tell her, but I'm not saying it the first time through a letter."

"Why didn't you put that in the letter?" Bartley called after him.

"No time!" He repeated, still moving backward. "Let them know we'll be home as soon as possible!"

"Gray!" A voice from farther away called. A group waited at the end of the block, luggage sitting around them. A pink haired man waved his arms. "We gotta go, man!"

The wizard began to fully turn away. "Make sure that gets to her!" Then he was gone, lost in the crowd as he made his way back to his friends.

Bartley shook his head, shoving the letter in his pocket as he hurried aboard his ship. "I'll never understand it," he muttered to himself as he motioned to his crew to start sailing. "Are wizards always that scattered? How hard would it have been to figure out their plans last night or even last week? I swear…"

He continued to speak to himself, moving about the ship with practiced ease. He passed by his satchel, and, after a moment of thought, switched the letter from his back pocket to the bag. Then he kept moving, oblivious to the envelope sliding along the outside of his satchel before slipping off the leather. The paper, aided by the brisk wind off the ocean, fell back and caught between the bench and the hull of the ship. And there it remained, fluttering in the breeze, for the remainder of the voyage.

XXX

Bartley strode through the bustling city of Magnolia, Fiore, hundreds of miles away from his own home in Coracre. Behind him trailed a caravan of carts, each one laden with dozens locked trunks, one of his crew guiding the animals pulling each heavy wagon. He whistled jauntily despite the rain that hadn't let up one bit since they stepped off the train. And he wasn't the only one out and about in the storm. Dozens of people went about their daily lives, hidden under umbrellas or the hoods of jackets.

"Is it a special day for them or something?" He heard someone say.

"Don't you remember? It's been a year since they left."

"I thought they left in September?"

"Yeah, left Magnolia. They didn't leave Fiore until like November."

"Ugh, it's hard to keep it all straight."

"That's why you don't do the thinking, Vjeeter."

"Hey! I can be smart too, Max!"

"Yeah yeah, whatever. Come on, I don't wanna spend any more time in this rain than I have to."

"Don't let her hear you say that."

"Nah, she's too tired to hear me. Maybe we should get her something nice?"

The two voices grew quieter as the men continued through the streets. Bartley shook his head, water droplets flying from his hair to mingle with the downpour from the sky. That was one good thing about his job, he supposed. He overheard some of the most interesting or weird things. Even if they were said in such a thick Ishgardian accent that he had to really concentrate to understand the words. The higher-ups wouldn't have an issue with the accent, but that was probably why they were the ones dealing with diplomatic affairs and not him.

Farther down the street, he caught sight of an enormous building rising up through the haze. He consulted his orders, as well as the directions the helpful person at the train station gave him. "That should be it," he called over his shoulder to his crew. Someone grunted in acknowledgment, and Bartley responded by pulling the collar of his jacket tighter against his neck to fight against the rain.

As they approached the building, Bartley took the time to study the guildhall. Towers and flags reached up to the sky, disturbing the straight roof line. The green and red of the roof, even dulled by the consistent rain and gray skies, stood out brightly in the city. Outlined before what looked like a massive lake, Bartley couldn't help the sense of amazement twisting through him. Here was the place where so many legends had been raised, legends he had never expected to meet. But he supposed he was about to.

After five minutes, he was knocking on the door, motioning to his crew to wait outside as he pushed inside. The level of noise almost threw him back out the door. He blinked, taking in the scene before proceeding any further.

Dozens of people swarmed around the giant room, the bright lights causing him to squint while his vision adjusted. Shouting and laughing and drunken singing slammed into his ears, and he watched as people brawled across tabletops with little regard for the meals they disturbed.

Bartley frowned, unsure of if he was in the right place. Surely such a famous wizard guild couldn't be this rowdy, unorganized party room full of insane people? But even as he watched, magic burst from more than one pair of hands, confirming his belief that this was in fact a wizard guild.

"Hey!" A deep voice cut through the commotion, and somehow Bartley knew the voice was speaking to him. He glanced around for the source and determined it to be a frankly enormous blond man with a scar cutting across his right eye. A fur-trimmed coat draped across his shoulders, his hands shoved in his pockets as he approached Bartley. He was glad he never had to face this wizard as an enemy; he looked absolutely terrifying. "Who are you?"

Bartley pushed a smile to his face, taking another step into the room. "Hello. I'm looking for," he took a quick look at his orders, "the Master of the Fairy Tail guild."

The giant man raised an eyebrow, rocking back on his heels as he looked Bartley up and down. "Well, you're in the right place. But the old man's away at a meeting. What do you need with him?"

"I've been sent by Lennox of Benos on behalf of the 100 Year Quest and the team Fairy Tail sent."

That seemed to catch the man's attention. "You mean Natsu and Erza and the others?"

Bartley shrugged. "I don't really know their names, just that they completed the 100 Year Quest and I'm here with their reward."

"Laxus?" A petite woman came up on the man's right, her arm slipping under his coat and around his waist. He slung his own arm around her shoulders, keeping her close. Bartley looked the woman over, trying to place her in the legends he'd heard of Fairy Tail. But he was truly at a loss. White hair tumbled down her back, only pulled away from her eyes at the top of her head. A purple dress complemented her figure, a slit running along the outside of both legs and only stopping at her hips. Her smile reached her brilliant blue eyes, and her kindness struck Bartley like an arrow. "What's going on?"

"Not quite sure," the massive man mused. Remembering what this woman had called him, Bartley understood with a flash that this was Laxus Dreyar, famed wizard who had beaten a dozen demons while sickened by bane particles. His fear and awe of the man intensified. "But apparently, the flamehead did it."

The woman's grin spread even wider. "You mean they completed the quest?" She looked to Bartley for confirmation.

He dipped his head with a smile. "Yes ma'am. After a hundred years, the Century Quest has finally been completed and our country saved."

Their conversation was beginning to draw attention from the entire guild. All fighting stopped, and before he knew it, all eyes were on him. He shifted awkwardly, cheeks heating under the stares.

"Oh that's wonderful!" The white haired woman clapped her hands together, and the glint of a ring on her left hand caught his eye. Inwardly, he tried to think if he had ever heard about the woman Laxus was married to. But he couldn't remember a single time he had even heard about Laxus and a girlfriend, much less a wife. Ah well, that was a subject for pondering about later.

He looked once more at Laxus. "Would I be correct to assume that you're in charge while your grandfather is away?"

A blink was the only surprise the Lightning mage gave. "Yes. How did you know the old man is my grandfather?"

Bartley chuckled slightly, pulling out the letter for the Master. "Oh, we've spent the last decade hearing stories of the Fairy Tail guild. Many of you are quite renowned, even so many hundreds of miles away."

Chatter from those wondering if they were famous spread through the room, but Bartley ignored it, simply handing the letter to Laxus. He took it, breaking open the seal and beginning to read. His fiancée, for Bartley only saw one ring upon her finger, slipped away when the squall of a baby broke through the conversations. Some glanced back at a corner of the guildhall, sympathy crossing their features instead of the annoyance he expected. Interesting.

Laxus raised his eyebrows before looking back up at Bartley. "This is real?"

"Of course."

"But Natsu's team was the one who completed the quest."

"Yes, and they've been duly rewarded."

"So why is the entire guild getting 150 million jewels on top of what they got?"

"Lennox is thankful for all your guild has done for our county and for the entire world. This was he was of thanking you."

"Did I hear you right when you said 150 million jewels, Laxus?" Bartley's attention swiveled to a brunette sitting at the bar, a large mug sitting before her and torso only half-clothed in a bikini top. She grinned, quite obviously drunk.

"Maybe you did, Cana. But you aren't getting your hands on that. You'd spend it all on booze."

"What's so wrong with that?" She slurred before chugging down the entire mug in her hand.

Laxus rolled his eyes. "It's not like there'll be anything left. As soon as the old man hears about this, all that money's going out the window."

A collective groan rose up through the guild, all of them apparently familiar with their master's spending habits.

Bartley began to turn. "I have everything outside, if you want my men and me to bring it in."

Laxus nodded. "We have vaults downstairs. You can put everything there."

"Hey!" A new voice cut through the chaos of the guild. Bartley turned back only to come face to face with another large man, this one wild and rugged. He had a slight frown on his scarred face. "What about our kids? You said they completed the quest, which, good for them cause it completely stumped me, but where are they? Shouldn't they be here with you?"

Silence fell at that question, even the crying baby pausing in its wailing. Everyone stared at Bartley once more, and he found himself hating what he had to say next. "I, I'm sorry sir. I don't know where they are."

Outside the rain began to pour harder.

A flurry of questions assaulted him, but the man before him held up a hand, silencing their words. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Bartley shrugged. "Exactly what I said. I was supposed to leave Moci with them, but right as we were supposed to embark, one of their group came up to me, said they weren't leaving yet, then ran away before he could explain anymore."

"What did he look like?" Laxus asked, his own confusion evident on his face.

Bartley turned his mind back. "Er, black hair, Fairy Tail emblem on his chest. He wasn't wearing a shirt which I found odd."

Laxus's fiancée shook her head with a faint smile. "That's Gray for you."

"He didn't say anything else?" This was a new woman, one who he had noticed before in the corner where the crying baby had sounded from. She had made her way to the front of the group, people moving out of her way as she passed. Her blue hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail, fur-lined shawl draped haphazardly across her shoulders and dark blue dress covering the rest of her from view. Her teeth made half-crescents in her lower lip, dark bags under her eyes marring her pale skin. "Anything about where they were going?"

Bartley opened his mouth to repeat that he had no idea, before a memory hit him. His mouth shut just as quickly as it had opened, and he started digging through his satchel. "Nothing about where he was going, but he did give me a letter for a Juvia, I believe."

His gaze was focused on his bag, so he missed the look of shock and relief that exploded across her face. He did hear the rain outside begin to let up, however. "That's me," she whispered, hands balling up the fabric of her dress.

For several long moments, Bartley dug through his bag, searching for the letter the wizard had given him a month prior. His digging became almost frantic. "I, I'm sorry ma'am. I swear, I put it in here."

"It's okay," the woman whispered again, tears welling in her eyes. Outside thunder boomed as the storm cranked up several notches. "He thought about me. That's what matters." Then she slipped around him, disappearing out the door before anyone could stop her.

"Juvia," Laxus's fiancée called belatedly. Her grin was gone, replaced by a small frown. Laxus reached out and took her hand in his in a gesture of comfort.

Bartley berated himself quietly. How could he have been so stupid as to lose that letter?! It was all the wizard had asked of him, to give that letter to that woman. Well, actually… there was more the wizard had said to him. Maybe that could make up for the grief he had so obviously caused.

The man standing in front of him sighed. "Well, nothing like asking a question and only having a hundred more after learning the answer."

"You said it," another man called, raising his mug toward the other wizard. His purple hair was streaked with grey, lines surrounding his eyes and mouth.

Laxus grunted. "Bring your stuff in before the weather gets any worse. Which it will." He shook his head. "We got some rooms upstairs if you need them."

It was Bartley's turn to shake his head. "No, sir, we'll be on our way. We've been away from home for long enough as it is." Then he turned and yelled out the door for his men to start unloading the carts. As they got to work, he eavesdropped on the conversations around him.

"What a day for Levy and Gajeel to go home early."

"Yeah, but you know Gale's been keeping them up all hours of the night. And with this storm, she's gonna be harder to handle."

"It's gonna be a real pain in the ass to go home in this rain."

"But you can't blame her, the poor girl. Just when she thought it was over, it turns out we have no idea when he's coming back."

"If he comes back," someone muttered darkly.

"Don't be like that. You know he will. Natsu certainly won't let anything happen to him or anyone else."

"I suppose you're right. Still, I just feel sorry for Juvia."

The baby began to cry again, this time joined by another. Bartley glanced back at the corner to find Laxus's fiancée and another white haired woman fussing over the babies, desperately trying to soothe them. Then he returned to his crew. Confident that they had the situation under control, he walked back outside, searching for the blue haired woman who seemed to be the center of everyone's thoughts.

He found her sitting against the outer wall of the guildhall, clothes drenched and hair plastered to her face. He thought he heard quiet sobs coming from her, a suspicion that was confirmed by the gentle shaking of her shoulders. He paused before her, clearing his throat and hoping she heard him over the rain.

She did. She looked up with red eyes, sniffing and biting her lip. She ran her arm under her nose, not bothering to stand or do anything more. "Yes?" She asked, voice breaking slightly.

"I, er, that is," Bartley stuttered, not quite sure how to proceed. He coughed, starting over. "Excuse me. I wanted to apologize for losing that letter."

"It's okay," she murmured, staring out at the empty streets as lightning flashed across the sky.

"No, it's not." Then he took a deep breath. "But the letter wasn't everything. When he gave it to me, he asked me to tell you two things."

She looked up in hope, eyes wide. "What?" She breathed.

"First, that he misses you. And second," he took a moment to remember exactly what it was that the wizard had told him, "that he has something to tell you, but he's not going to say it the first time in a letter. I suppose that would have made more sense if you'd actually read it but-"

"No," she interrupted, a smile blossoming across her face. Then she laughed slightly, hugging her arms around her waist. "Oh, thank you."

"I'm sorry it isn't more."

Juvia shook her head, pushing herself up to her feet and sighing happily. "It's more than enough. My darling Gray has practically proclaimed his love for me! Just the knowledge of that will keep me going for as long as it takes." She smiled at Bartley, the Benosian confused. How had she gotten love out of that? "Thank you sir. Thank you so so much!" She laughed again, spinning around and sending water flying.

And for the first time in a week, the sun began to shine in Magnolia.

I hope you all enjoyed the first oneshot of hopefully many. If you can't tell, this takes place after Chapter 43 of Dawn of Adventure, and it sets up some of what has happened at Fairy Tail while Team Natsu has been away. I hope you figured out who everyone was... I had a lot of fun writing these characters from an outsider's point of view, but don't worry, we'll be back to exploring their lives through the eyes of guild members. Although I won't say who's...

I won't make a promise of writing a oneshot every week, but I will try to do maybe one per month. No guarantee however. I'll only write these when inspiration strikes or I really want to write something other than the disaster that can be the main books. Until next time!