Disclaimer: I am not the owner of Fairy Tail
Most would be wary entering another country with the intent to start a war. However, Invel was not like most people. Not certain of where to start, Invel decided to begin with the heart of the country, the capital. There, he would likely encounter their strongest forces and be able to observe them. He could question others about the location of Fairy Tail as well, given the fact that it would be a highly populated area. Strategically, it gave him the advantage of also blending in. Capital cities were known to be tourist attractions, so a foreigner like him would not be questioned. Few would likely even ask where he had come from, with that fact.
The timing of his arrival, however, seemed to be during a festival of some kind. Streets were overly crowded, with people excited about something going on in town. "Final round is today. Are you going to be there to watch it?" He overheard someone talking to a friend on the street, making him pause with a frown. It was the final round for what?
"It's gonna be a pain heading back home so late, but this is going to be an event way different from last year."
"Who knew Fairy Tail would make such a huge comeback this year?"
That made Invel turn towards them, frowning and studying the people for a moment. Both were male, about the same height as each other but shorter than Invel. One had shoulder length blond hair, the one that had spoken about Fairy Tail. He was speaking to a man with dark blue hair, smoothed back on the top of his head. "Excuse me, but what is this event you are speaking of? I only recently arrived in town and am not familiar with the festivities going on."
The blond turned towards him, laughing for a moment. "Dude, are you serious? How can you not know about the Grand Magic Games?"
"Yeah, everyone knows about them. Guilds compete to prove their strength and show how strong they are. It's kinda a major thing around here."
Nodding, Invel smiled. His timing appeared to be rather excellent, in that case. HIs only regret was not arriving sooner to observe more. "It sounds intriguing. Did you say the final event was occurring today?"
"Sure is. You better get there quick if you want to be able to sit in the arena to watch it. That place fills up like crazy if you don't get there early. We were heading there now, actually."
"Thank you for the information. I suppose I shall be on my way then." He nodded towards them, turning around and moving briskly towards the only arena-like building in the city. Perhaps most would ask for directions, but to Invel, it was quite obvious where it was. Turning down a few streets that led him in the proper direction would get him there soon enough.
As he was walking, he passed by many people. Others appeared to be on their way to the arena, talking animatedly to each other. "I can't believe the Twin Dragons lost yesterday!"
"I think it's more unbelievable that they lost to that Fairy Tail team."
"I heard it shouldn't have even been considered a team. Didn't that Natsu guy shove his partner away in the middle of the battle?"
"Well, Sting did the same with Rogue. It's their own fault for underestimating their enemy."
The talk itself seemed to be somewhat informative, but Invel couldn't help but feel his jaw clench at the mention of Natsu. They were fools to think he could have been stopped so easily. Any creation meant to destroy his emperor was powerful, more powerful than any of them would believe. "I suggest you stop speaking of that, or the Twin Dragons might take insult to your words." A woman spoke, standing in front of them all and turning around to face them. She seemed to be traveling with a group, with straight black hair and a long dark purple dress covering her body.
"Wait…is that…them?" Behind her, Invel could see a dark haired wizard standing next to a blond. They appeared to be almost opposites, but stood close together. Walking by the feet of the dark haired boy was what appeared to be some form of an animal in a frog costume. On the other side, a man with a large red hat stood next to a muscular man with an odd magical aura.
"Ignore them, Minerva. We've got a battle to focus on." The blond spoke, but there was almost something odd about how he spoke. It was tinged with anger and pain, almost similar to the tone his emperor used when speaking of his own past.
By his side, the dark haired boy placed a hand on his shoulder. "Sting, you know it wasn't—"
"Shut up!" Sting turned towards him with wide blue eyes, filled with that same rage. Seeing it, Invel stepped closer, ready to intervene. Acting upon anger was rarely a good decision, and this boy was too young to destroy something dear to him over it. Perhaps it wasn't what he was here for, but August did claim he needed to make allies in this nation. This could be the start, with this guild outside of Fairy Tail to establish a presence in Fiore.
The other members of their group seemed startled that he was even approaching. Other people passed by them, quickly moving on to avoid getting dragged into the scene beginning in the streets near the arena. "I'd recommend calming your rage. Few enjoy being trapped in the storm it creates. Even the creator himself despises what he has made."
"You are interfering in something that is not your business. I'll give you one chance to leave my comrade alone." The girl spoke, making Invel frown and turn towards her. However, Sting seemed to be shaking his head, walking away and waving him off.
"He's the one that's the idiot. Calm my rage?" He snorted, shaking his head. "Take a moment and think about how to do that. You think it is easy to forgive people for doing horrible things to what you love?"
In some ways, Invel could understand. Forgiveness was not easy to earn, and Invel knew he would become enraged at any who wished to harm his emperor. Yet, had he not forgiven Spriggan for his own actions? In a way, he was defending a man who sought to destroy this entire world. It meant he had forgiven a man for destroying everything he may have cared for. "I know many who have done horrible things. There is usually a strong reason for such actions…a motivation that you have missed that allows you to—"
"There is no good reason to kill your own comrades!" He shouted, slapping Invel harshly. The winter general blinked in shock, not used to anyone approaching him so brazenly. Then again, this was not Alvarez and his power was not known. The blond seemed to blink, leaning back and clenching his hand into a fist, closing his eyes. The pain was back, switching between the two emotions just as Spriggan did back home. "Lector…I'm sorry. I will win this fight for you, I promise."
Even the animal on the ground looked dejected at his words. Watching them, Invel wondered just what it was they were so intent on fighting for anyway. "I've known men who kill those they love." Sting stiffened at that, realizing Invel was still speaking. His blue eyes looked almost broken, Invel realized. Whoever he had lost, it was far more important to him than he was trying to let on. "They do the only thing they can do once it is finished. Moving forward is all we know…and when the agony grows to be too great for even that, we become exactly what we despised originally." It was what happened to Spriggan, from what he had seen. The man killed the world around him. The greater his pain grew, the more he forgot. However, he had always despised the idea of pointless deaths. Now, he was planning a war which would create just that.
Invel would serve Spriggan no matter how he changed. It was what he owed that man, for preventing more loss of life from Invel's wintery magic as a child. If anyone else had found him, he would have been labeled as a monster and killed. Only Spriggan had the ability to tame that storm, and as such, Invel knew he would do whatever it took to tame the storm that was his emperor's curse. He would end that man's suffering, but until then, he would serve his every desire, lessening it however he could by remaining loyal until his last breath.
"You are an interesting man, with interesting words. Tell me, just who are you to speak to Sting in such a manner? Telling anyone they will grow to kill their comrades is not a kind thing to do, after all."
The man who spoke was the one with the large red hat, crossing his arms over his chest and standing next to Sting. Minerva seemed to join him, along with the partner that had tried comforting Sting in the first place. "My name is Invel, and I am merely someone who wishes to watch this festival's conclusion. However, I do not wish to see it end in such a violent manner. A mindset such as yours will lead to a rage you cannot control. Do not forget that…unless you wish to kill your enemies in this game of yours."
"Sting would never kill anyone!" The shadowy one spoke, stepping forward passionately to defend his friend. "He may be in pain, but that does not change who he is. It takes a dark heart to desire to kill. That is something Sting does not possess."
"Yet this weakling seems to think he has the right to question our guild. Perhaps he is the one with the desire to kill. It would explain such a confidence in his words directed towards one who would crush him so easily."
Meeting the girl's eyes as she spoke, Invel simply smiled and pushed his glasses further up onto his face. "He would crush me? How amusing to imagine." He shook his head, chuckling and folding his hands behind his back. "I believe I've wasted too much time speaking to you as it is. Take my advice or ignore it, the choice is yours. I've grown used to being ignored over these last few years anyway. Those I advise rarely see that my words are meant to be taken as what is best for them, not what it is they wish to do." Spriggan rarely listened to his suggestions these days, after all. As a result, Invel had taken to acting before speaking. Everything he did was in the name of his emperor, however just this once, he wished he knew how to make his voice heard. There was already too much suffering in the world, and he did not want to observe as more was created in a festival meant to be an amusing game for this country.
So, I forgot to mention in my last note that this pairing idea somewhat came from an attempted collaboration with HubrisP to write an AU Fairy Tail story, where Invel X Sting would have been a side pairing. However, the story did not reach its completion...but I still found myself rather intrigued about the pairing, so I made a different story with that pairing as the focus. Thank you to NoName for the review! It is indeed an unusual pairing, but it is one that I now find to be interesting to write, to say the least. For everyone else, feel free to review and tell me what you think!