Chapter Forty Three - Fantasia
Fantasia was the evening of October 15th. Which means that when Makarov announced that we'd be getting our own float on October 1st, we only had about two weeks in order to prepare.
We sat down to brainstorm ideas for our float, but I barely got a word in as everyone (except me) agreed on the first idea.
"We want to celebrate you," Levy said. "You brought us all together, and had us win the games!"
She was the one who came up with it, and with Juvia and Freed immediately agreeing, I couldn't help wondering if they were conspiring against me.
Seeing as they already had it all planned out perfectly and explained away reasons for everything, they probably were.
Someday, they might take over the world, and if they do, they'll probably put me in charge.
Our float was built like my Planetary Magic - like the Solar System. Since Lucy and Brandish weren't participating, and there were nine of us and nine elements, each of us were assigned to a specific planet.
Loke was a bit upset to be left out.
The only ones who really lined up with specific elements were Juvia, Laxus, Erigor, and Evergreen, who we put on Neptune, Jupiter, Saturn and Venus respectively.
Cana, Bickslow, Freed and Levy were a bit more difficult.
After some debate, Levy decided she would go on Mercury for her Solid Script; Iron, and Freed revealed his practices with Dark Ecriture (which I grounded him for) and decided to go on Pluto, because Darkness Magic was alike to Shadow Magic.
That left, of course, Mars and Uranus. Bickslow, who had finally learned a few formation spells with Papa (though it was harder with only one soul), decided he'd go on Mars, and even though Cana didn't have a lot of ice spells, she still had a few, so she took Uranus.
And I took Earth, because it was my first element.
But it was really something. All of the nine planets would rotate around on the float, and we were all supposed to use elements corresponding with our planet (which of course was pretty easy for some of us).
Each planet would be painted like the magical circles that would form when I performed magic. Mercury was a dark gray color, with sharp designs around the edges and an image of the planet in the center. Venus was a light, white/gold color, with the edges shining outside from the planet in the center. Earth was a forest green color, and had designs that reminded me of trees and plants. Mars was an angry red color, which looked like flames were bursting from the sides. Like the others, it had the planet in the center. Saturn was a light gray color, with swirls around the edges and a series of rings sounding the planet, running around Saturn's own ring. Neptune is a dark blue color, with waves running along the edges. Pluto is a deep black color, with the edges ghosting around the planet like a type of mist.
Jupiter and Uranus were a bit harder, considering I've never actually cast them, but from what I can tell from my Planetary books, we were able to make them easily enough. Though Laxus originally thought that Jupiter would be yellow, a look at our books revealed that it was actually a deep purple color. He was a bit confused when comparing it to his own magic, before I pointed out that his electricity seemed to be from electric machines, while mine seemed more suited for storms. Uranus seemed to be an icy blue color, with a snowflake like pattern on the sides.
We were all put in get-ups corresponding to our element, too; I wore a flower crown and a green dress, and sandals. Evergreen was in a pretty gold dress and had a type of halo. Cana was wearing something reminiscent of Elsa's dress, and Juvia wore a layered blue dress that looked like waves. Levy had on a bunch of spikes (which looked extremely out of place), and wore a leather collar.
The boys were all in their usual get-ups, with only a change in color to match their planet.
We were all really happy when we got news about Lucy and Brandish coming down to watch with their families. Especially Erigor, who had yet to meet the two, and Loke, because...he's Loke. They couldn't participate this year, but they agreed that they'd try and give it a shot next year.
Of course, while in the middle of building the float, we had some…mishaps.
Apparently, ColorS is only really meant for clothes. That would have been good to know, before we tried using it on metal for the planets.
Let's just say we had to make another planet.
And then…well…we had to paint it by hand.
This is where the problem came in.
"Hey, Laxus, watch it," I said. "You got some paint on me."
"I did?" he asked, before he smirked and flicked his paint brush at me.
A few more spots ended up on my face and front.
"You know, it's supposed to go on the float, right?" I asked.
"Is it?" he asked, dipping the paint brush in his bucket and flicking it at me again.
"That's it!" I yelled, grabbing my paint can and dumping it over his head.
It turned into a full out paint war between me and Laxus, and Erigor held the kids back and tried to explain to them that they shouldn't copy us.
Eventually, we ended up out of paint, with both Laxus and I covered in it.
Makarov (upon seeing the mess) made us go take showers, while he got more paint so we could finish the float.
Except, when we got back, and Laxus looked all nice and clean, I couldn't help but dump one of the new buckets of paint on top of his head.
This time the entire guild got involved.
Even Loke appeared for a bit and joined in on the fun, though when he got a bit too close to Enno, Macao started fighting with him again until he went back to the Spirit World.
Eventually, we stopped with the paint wars and finished our float.
The Parade went well, and we all had a really fun time. The fireworks were spectacular, and it really felt great. I remember spending some time talking with Layla and Jude about Christmas (and of course being tackled by the flying missile that was Lucy), but most of it passed in a happy, blurry daze.
Well, with one exception.
Honestly, I should have seen it coming.
Loke, as I mentioned before, wanted to meet Lucy.
When the parade was done, and we all met up back in the guild Hall, Loke came out on his own. As he was hugging her and excitedly claiming how he had the cutest master ever, he was punched in the face.
By Corvus.
Who could also come out on his own.
The resulting brawl and shouting match was the likes of which I've never seen, and I had severely underestimated how far their competitive animosity goes.
Natsu and Gray were nowhere even close to these two. At least those two idiots can work together.
Eventually, Loke ran out of energy and power, and went back to the Spirit World, and Lucy grounded Corvus from coming out on his own for a week and getting a guild mark like Loke's, which resulted in him bursting into tears and crying a river.
About a week after Fantasia, on October 23rd, we celebrated Bickslow's tenth birthday. He didn't really want to do anything in particular, but he finally admitted that he wanted a competition between Cana on all of the gymnastics equipment, and the rest of us were fine with standing back and watching them compete.
As we watched them go back and forth on things, I realized that Bickslow must have trained a bit in private, because he was doing a bit better than usual – enough so that he won, and we were finally able to rank the two of them, though I'm sure that Cana will find some way to try and get on top again.
We all had fun and laughed together, and then we ate cake.
On the twenty sixth of October, I strode into the guild, ready for my plan. I reached the mission board, looked through the available missions, and then grabbed one and headed to the training room.
I kicked the door open. "We're going on a mission, today!"
"Elle!" Makarov said. "I said no more missions unless there's an adult!"
"I know," I said. "Did I say I wasn't taking an adult? You shouldn't jump to conclusions!"
There was silence as everyone listened. "Alright, guys, listen up. I have a mission for us, taking down a dark guild. If you want to sit out, that's fine."
Bickslow and Evergreen exchanged glances. "I don't think we're ready, Big Sis," Bickslow said.
"That's fine," I told them. "When we're gone, I want you to practice your offensive magics, alright?
They nodded.
"Is everyone else cool with going?" I asked.
Erigor nodded. "I'm in."
Laxus nodded, too. "Definitely. I can't wait."
Cana smiled. "So, who's going?"
She raised her own hand, as well as Erigor and Laxus.
Juvia raised her hand (what a shock) and Levy raised her hand, even jumping a bit so everyone could see her. Now that her cast was gone, she moved as much as possible.
Freed nodded, swiping out his sword as if preparing for battle. "I as well, would like to join this quest."
I smiled. "Alright. Gildarts, you cool with watching over?"
He sighed and shrugged. "Yeah, sure, why not?"
"No joining in," I told him.
He sighed. "Fine, but I'm going to take an S Class quest soon. Sorry, but fighting children just isn't enough for me. You guys are strong, but you only won that time because of technicalities."
I'm not going to deny it. If we hadn't cheated we would have been crushed, as demonstrated by my second battle with him, where I barely got a hit in before I was unconscious.
Well, it was technically two hits.
"What guild?" Makarov asked.
"Naked Mummy," I said.
Laxus snorted. "That's a great guild name. Paints such a pretty picture."
I smirked. "Let's kick their ass!"
I wasn't planning on using any of Mercury – I was still too unsure about my control over that one, and wanted to spend more time before utilizing it in battle. It's not like I didn't have any of other options. I was yelled at to make sure that they weren't neglected, so I'd be using my other elements in this.
Plus, we all just needed more experience anyway.
We gathered in a circle, I pulled off the cuffs, and I teleported us to Ivy Village, where they were located.
After speaking with the mayor, (who was an extreme prick), we ventured into the forest and spotted their hidden guild (that wasn't really hidden at all).
"Alright, I have an idea for a plan," I said. "But I want to hear if any of you have ideas. There are no stupid ideas, only stupid people, and none of you are stupid."
"You might be," Laxus muttered under his breath.
"Least I'm not a damn tsundere," I muttered back.
He growled (legit, growled) but didn't do anything to reveal our location, which was probably a good thing, considering that this was a dark guild famous for killing people. I doubt our younger ages are going to stop them.
Erigor spoke up first. "If we all sneak in through different vantage points, we can stop them from escaping."
I nodded. "Good." I already had something like that, but I wanted them to contribute. I wouldn't always be with them. "What else?"
"Couldn't we just use Cana's cards and put them all to sleep?" Laxus asked.
I saw the expression on Levy's face, and gestured to her. "Levy, you want to explain?"
"I had already thought of that idea," Levy said. "But then I realized; we're doing this because Elle-chan wants us to have experience. If we just put them all to sleep, we won't get any fighting experience, and she wants us to learn how to use our powers in battle! Our strength doesn't matter if we can't use it."
I nodded. "Levy is right. Which is why you aren't allowed to use any Sleep Cards or Recycle Cards. Got it?"
They all nodded. "Got it."
I outlined my plan, and asked if anyone had any questions or changes. After universal agreement, I nodded and we got into positions.
I turned to Laxus, who was right next to me. "Ready?"
He nodded, smirking.
And just like over a year ago, I slammed open the doors and hit the ground.
"Lightning Dragon Roar!"
The damage was immense, and it truly showed how much Laxus grew in a single year.
That was the signal, and Levy and Freed attacked through the left and Cana and Juvia entered through the right. Erigor appeared in the back just as the standing mages ran for the last exit.
Gildarts was waiting outside.
With an explosion of our powers, we easily wiped out all the members standing there, though, funnily enough, one of the members shouted something along the lines of, 'it's the demon children from the games!', which made them panic even more.
Which made them sloppy.
"What now?" Cana asked, looking around at all of the downed mages.
I shook my head. "It's not over yet. Arms of the Earth," Vines shot from the ground and pinned them in place. "Cana, now that we're not fighting, we can use Sleep Cards to keep them here, unconscious, but how else would you guys do this, if Cana or I weren't here?"
"Knock them out," Laxus said.
"Chloroform," Levy said.
Erigor raised an eyebrow at her. "You carry around chloroform?"
Levy shrugged. "Solid Script; Chloroform." A giant CHLOROFORM appeared, with a misty thing coming out of it.
"Don't do it here!" Cana shrieked.
"Sorry!" Levy said.
I sighed and requipped it away.
Great.
Now I have a giant CHLOROFORM.
Well, I could always just dump in on an enemy in a fight. That'd be pretty funny.
"Moving on," I said. "Juvia, what would you do to stop them?"
"I would use Water Lock," Juvia said.
"Erigor?" I asked.
"I guess I would knock them out," Erigor murmured.
"Erigor, do you have anything that could trap people within a certain space? You might be able to keep it so they won't be able to breathe, and they'll pass out, or you could end up moving a circle of wind keeping them trapped? And they'd have to move or the wall could hurt them? You could lead them back to town that way."
He nodded, thinking. "That's an idea. I'll try and develop a spell."
"Did we get everyone?" Levy asked, looking around at the tied down mages.
I turned to Cana, who held out a card that scanned all the guild members in the room. Eventually, two numbers and signs popped up. Next to the Fairy Tail mark was the number seven, and next to Naked Mummy's guild mark was the number 48.
"No," Cana said. "The mayor said 51 members, remember? So we're missing-"
I saw them just before they fired, and teleported next to Cana, shoving her to the ground.
"Purple Explosion," came a soft spoken voice.
Oh, shit.
A heavy impact hit me in the shoulder, burning, and I was flown across the room, taking the hit meant for Cana.
My name was shouted, but I could barely hear them over my own dizzy feeling.
My back hit the wall in the most uncomfortable way possible – with a corner between my shoulder blades. My head cracked against the wall, and I saw stars. After that, the impact faded, and I collapsed to the ground.
As I caught my breath back, and blinked away the black, I looked at my wound which was covered in…paint?
Wild laughter rang through the room, as footsteps echoed, and a voice cackled, "Do you like my Paint Magic? Each color corresponds with a different thing. Purple…is Poison."
Even before he said it, I was already started to feel hot, and the poison was burning through my shoulder where the attack hit. The start of my shoulder was already burning, and I really wished I had been more specific about what sort of protection I can get from fire when Phoenix made me 'immune'.
I really don't think poison counts as fire.
"Onee-sama!" Juvia called, hitting me with a wave of water. While it didn't immediately get rid of it all, it did help cool it off and wash some of the poison away.
"Damn you!" Laxus shouted. "Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!" The large fist he made collapsed onto the Paint Mage, shooting him across the room, as two other mages popped up.
Cana and Juvia took on one with Water Lock and Summon Lightning. Erigor took on the last one, quickly slicing him again and again until he collapsed and Cana put him to sleep. Freed and Levy went back to the first one that Laxus had hit, and Freed froze him in place while Levy wrote out her most vicious attack. "Solid Script Magic – Pile of Hungry Fire Ants!"
I winced as the attack collapsed upon the mage, setting a hoard of angry fire ants crawling through him and biting him like crazy.
"Are you okay, Elle?" Laxus asked, helping me up.
"I'll be okay," I said, hesitantly stretching my arms and rolling my shoulders. "It's not as bad as Galuna was, but I'll probably be sore for a little bit."
And I should probably check with Porlyusica, just in case.
"You're bleeding," Laxus said, gesturing to my head.
Reaching up, I felt my head, and it came away, a bit sticky with blood.
"Head wounds always bleed more," I said, requipping some bandages to hold against it. "I'll be fine."
"Couldn't you have a concussion?" Levy asked.
I shrugged. "I'll talk to Porlyusica later."
I'm just glad that I'm not blind. I know that the eyes are controlled by the Occipital Lobe, which is on the back of the head, and that people could go blind by hitting their heads like I did.
As we walked towards the unconscious mages, I stopped and picked up a gun lying on the ground. Noticing it, I realized that it was a paintball gun, and that this is what the first mage used.
Interested, I requipped it, putting it away. Even if I couldn't use it, then Alzack or Bisca could.
As I used my Earth magic to tie down the remaining mages, and we used Cana's cards to insure they remained unconscious, I couldn't help wondering about the magic I was hit with.
Gildarts was waiting right next to the open front doors, having watched most of what took place. "Good job, guys," he said. "You ready to collect?"
We nodded eagerly, and I discretely thanked him for not interfering, especially since it was Cana that the mages went for.
Though it doesn't surprise me. Watching the group of us fight, even though Erigor and Laxus would probably be considered the most powerful, I would probably peg Cana or me as the most resourceful (and I was really only using a handful of elements).
We left the unconscious and tied up mages there, as I teleported us into town and back to the Mayor's office, with a quick detour to the Rune Knights so they could pick up the unconscious mages.
After waiting for the Rune Knights to collect and properly identify all the mages (during which, my head wound stopped bleeding), the Mayor finally gave in and handed over the 700,000 J award.
100,000 J for each of us.
Or, in the US money I was used to; $2,000.
Everyone took our money and held onto it, and I knew most of us would save it.
They don't have banks in Fiore, so they can't store it in a savings account or anything, but they can still put it aside, just in case...
We eventually left and I teleported the eight of us (seven and Gildarts) back to the guild, straight to the training room.
Hey everyone! :). That thing about the back of your head causing you to go blind is true; that's where your brain controls your eyes. Yesterday was the two month anniversary of this fic!
I was kinda wondering where my commenters are? I still get most of my regulars, but some of you kinda disappeared? Are you still reading?
Also some...encouragement would be nice, because sometimes I think this story is kinda stupid.