A/N: Whoo! Another chapter down!
I don't own Fairy Tail!
Please enjoy!
Chapter 49: Emotional Rollercoaster
April 21, X792 – Morning
Duke stood in his old home, almost being brought to tears all over again. They had kept his home just as he had left it. It had even had regular cleanings over the past three years as he could not find a speck of dust on anything. Pictures were still hung on the walls, the glass frames sparkling in the low light of the lamps in the living room. The pillows on the couch looked freshly fluffed and it even looked like the newspaper he had been reading over the night before he left on his journey was still sitting in the same place, open to the same page he had been reading.
He let a happy smile spread across his face as he moved through the home, one that was right across from the Murdock home. He made his way to his room, pulling open a drawer where he hoped fresh clothes would be. He was quickly met with a burst of a fresh ocean breeze with a hint of hibiscus. They had even been washing his clothes while he was gone.
"Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry," he repeated to himself as he grabbed some clothes and made his way to his bathroom, which was also sparkling clean.
While he let the hot water soak into his skin, he thought about all those times he had thought about not coming home after he had finished his work, and how he now saw how much of a fool he had been to think that. They had all been waiting for him to come home. They hadn't once thought he wasn't coming back. And they had been so goddamn happy to see him last night. It was these thoughts that had him crying all over again.
It was another forty-five minutes before Duke came walking back out into his living room with his brown hair freshly cut and slicked back, though a few unruly pieces hung out of place. He had gotten rid of the beard as well, his face now clean and smooth. He had thrown on a pair of simple blue jeans, brown boots, and a white t-shirt. He looked around his living room, knowing what he was searching for had to be in the room somewhere. He had left it home on purpose so it wouldn't get ruined or lost while he was gone. He eventually spotted it on the back of his recliner, looking just as clean and comforting as everything else in the room.
He ginned as he shrugged on the worn, dark brown leather jacket, feeling it hug him like an old friend. He rolled his shoulders a few times before grabbing a cigar from the case he had brought home with him. He lit it as he left his home and headed upstairs to the deck, knowing what was waiting for him there.
Duke almost laughed as he stepped onto the deck of the main ship. The entire guild was silent, considering they were all passed out across the deck. They had partied all night pretty hard as soon as all the hellos to Duke had been done. He was certain that they had to go through at least half of their alcohol stock, if not more.
He made his way over to one of the bars, searching behind it for the megaphone he used to hide away. It was a few minutes before he heard a voice above him.
"This is what you want, yeah?"
Duke looked up to see two bright green, spikey mohawks first, soon followed by wide blue eyes that had large bags under them, though they didn't look as dark as Duke remembered them being. He grinned at this, wanting to believe that was Cordelia's influence on him.
"I remembered and grabbed it last night…" Gamu said, handing the megaphone to Duke.
Duke's grin turned into a soft smile as he took the megaphone from Gamu and planted a hand on top of his head, "Good boy," he said as he looked back out across the deck, taking another moment to laugh again.
Cordelia was leaned up against Isaak while she had her feet propped up on Eli's face. Zinnia was on the other side of Eli, her feet propped up on his stomach while she leaned back against Seth, who was sprawled out on the deck, though his left hand was under Mia's head, acting as a pillow for her while Hagi laid next to her, back to back.
Nanami and Securus were leaning back against a wall in wooden chairs. John had been at the same table with them, but he had fallen asleep in his chair with the top half of his body across the table. Ace and Jay had been sitting on the other side of Nanami, but they had both leaned too far back in their chairs and had crashed to the floor.
The punk gang of Rio, Tazz, Chris, and Lance had all fallen asleep on stage in a snuggled up circle, having passed out in the middle of some karaoke. Devin was just above them, passed out in the DJ booth, several wooden tankards surrounding him.
Jean and Rin had fallen asleep next to each other at a table, still pulling at each other's faces while Ajax was leaned back in a chair at their table snoring. Mac and Vi were at the same table, passed out across it and leaned up against each other.
Squall was actually awake, considering she had not drunk any alcohol the previous night. She poked the cheek of a snoring Haruna, whose usual pretty blue curls were a mess. She had been given permission to have one beer last night in celebration of Duke coming home, but it had been enough to really do a number on the young girl. It had been her first time drinking alcohol after all. Sho sat on her lap, the maroon Exceed snoring just as loudly as his partner. Haruna also sat in the lap of a sleeping Zhuue, the woman's blonde hair cascading down around them while Jack was snoozing just a few feet away from them at a table.
The rest of the guild was sleeping in many of the same ways, and while Duke would have liked to take in the picture of them all a little longer, it was also time to get everyone up and moving.
"Duke, I…" Gamu began before his mind drifted for a moment. Duke looked over at him, giving the man the time to focus back on his thoughts. His wide eyes then looked back up at Duke, "We've been waiting for you. Lots happened after you left."
"I know, kid," Duke said, inwardly finding it funny that he was calling a twenty-nine year old a kid, but then again, he thought a lot of the guild as kids, "It seems like the guild didn't know what to do without me, but I think the baby doll over there has been working to get things back on track. You're out of you're hiding place, so you're basically proof of it."
"Still," Gamu said, looking down at the bar and pulling at his shirt, feeling nervous with what he was about to tell the man he looked up to, "Still though…please don't leave again…not like that…"
Duke was quiet for a long moment. He was reminded of how his leaving had affected everyone on the guild. It was like a punch to the gut all over again. Gamu couldn't have been the only one feeling the way he did. He cursed at himself again for ever thinking about not coming home.
He then did the only thing he could think of. He reached out towards Gamu, laid a hand on top of his head, and pulled him in for a hug, "I'm here."
Gamu moved slowly, but he soon had his arms wrapped around the older man, as if moving too fast would scare him away for another three years, "I'm glad," he said softly before streams of tears slid down his cheeks.
They stood that way for another few minutes before Gamu pulled away and wiped his arms across his face.
"You good?" Duke asked, earning a silent nod from Gamu, "Then let's wake these bums up," he said as he turned the megaphone on and took in a deep breath, "GOOD MORNING!"
The entire guild appeared to jump as one as the sound shocked them out of sleep.
Nanami and Securus fell out of their seats while John flew backwards out of his.
Tazz and the three boys with her all sat up and smacked their heads against each other, which had them falling back down while Devin tripped out of the DJ booth.
Gordon, who had actually joined the party last night, felt a body fall on him. He looked down to see Zipporah now sitting in his lap, looking like she had the worst hangover ever. She looked up at him, took a moment to register who's lap she was in, and then promptly blushed and sputtered upon the realization that it was Gordon. Though, he didn't have time to dump her out of his lap since Alisa and Aria pulled her up to her feet.
Haruna jumped to her feet before promptly falling to her knees and puking, Zhuue holding her hair back for her while rubbing her back, having been where the girl was before.
Jean and Rin jumped awake in their seats, had enough time to glare and smack each other before passing back out.
Though, Duke had to say Cordelia and her friends had the best reaction.
As soon as they heard the shout, Cordelia shouted in return as she jolted awake. Though, this caused her feet to slam down onto Eli's face in the process, causing the man to shout in anger and pain and throw her feet off of him. He didn't have much time to glare at her as Zinnia was also jolted awake, but while one of her feet slammed back down onto his stomach, the other one landed in a rather tender place that caused tears to well up in his eyes and having him rolling back and forth in pain. Seth woke up in time to see that happen to his best friend, causing him to laugh loudly, which then infected the people around him, and soon enough there was an entire crowd laughing at Eli.
"How are we all this morning?!" Duke asked, using the megaphone again. There was a round of groans while people held their heads in pain, though many of the guild members looked up at Duke with a smile, "That was some party last night! WHOO!"
"Goddammit! Stop that!" Cordelia shouted, regretting her own shouting as it echoed through her head.
"What are you gonna do about it?!"
Cordelia's eye twitched as she walked up to him, snatched the megaphone out of his hand, and threw it overboard. She then realized what she had just done and that the megaphone had been something Duke had bought himself. She let out a heavy sigh, "I'll get you a new one once we get to Caelum."
"You better," he said as he slung an arm across her shoulders, "But I think we have some things to talk about this morning."
She gave him a side hug, "Sure, let's head up to my office."
"Don't know if I'll get used to hearing you say that," he said with a laugh as they walked towards the head ship of the guild.
"You'll have to get used to a lot of things now, liking taking orders from me! Carry me to my quarters, peasant!" she said as she jumped onto his back.
He easily caught her and held her up, "Yeah, alright, but call me peasant again and I'll drop you…into the ocean."
"Like you'd actually ever drop me! Your favorite person ever!"
"Guess your ego hasn't lost its touch either."
"Never!"
They laughed as Duke made a quick trip up to the front of the guild, noticing that the five S-Class were right behind them, waving to them as they walked onto their ships towards the front of the guild and entered their living areas.
"Looks like there's been some changes in the S-Class too," Duke mentioned as he walked onto the bridge that lead to the head ship, "Isaak never tried for S-Class again?"
Cordelia shrugged, "Not really. Guess he didn't feel the need to after we stopped dating. Besides, he's the type that knows his strength without needing to have title to prove it."
"You're not dating anymore?!"
"We told you last night that a lot of things changed after you left."
"Geez," he sighed, "Well, any other guys on your radar?"
"Like I'd tell you!"
"You always tell me!"
Cordelia was quiet for a moment, "Maybe," she finally mumbled.
"What?! Dish it, girl!"
"I'm no longer drunk enough to talk about it right now! And stop shouting! Ow!" she said, holding her forehead when it throbbed again.
He laughed as he placed her back onto her feet and guided her down the stairs that led to her office and personal quarters, "You go get cleaned up first and take something for that headache. I'll wait in your office for you."
She nodded at him and made a beeline for her room.
Duke entered her office to be met by a whirl of orange hair as a body caught him in a hug.
"I'm so happy you're home!" Regina said.
"Hello again!" he said with a chuckle, hugging the woman again for what had to be the hundredth time, "What are you doing here?"
"Figured you'd ask to speak with Cordelia this morning," Finn said, the man sitting in a chair behind them. He hadn't bothered looking up from the book he was reading, "Thought it would be better if we were here to help her explain everything that's been going on."
"Not even gonna look at me?! How rude!"
"Like I'd waste time looking at your ugly mug."
The two men stared each other down for a good few minutes before smiles broke across their faces and they started laughing. Finn stood up and grabbed Duke's hand in a tight shake before giving him a quick, friendly hug.
"So, has so much really happened that you need to be in here to help with the explanation?" Duke asked as he moved further into the room. Finn and Regina took the seats in front of the desk while Duke walked around the office, looking at the pictures that Cordelia had hung up.
"In the last few weeks, yeah," Finn answered, "Ever since Cordelia took things over."
"Who'd she have to beat to get the spot? I assume someone easily took the spot from Gordon shortly after I left."
"Gordon."
"What?! He actually lasted three years? How?!"
"You should give him more credit, Duke," Regina said, "He's lived on the seas his whole life too. He knows how to survive on the ocean too."
"He's just not good at saving money," Finn said with a flat stare.
"What's that mean?"
Finn sighed heavily, sounding quite a bit like his daughter had earlier. Duke thought it was nice to hear again.
"He depleted the guild's savings these past three years," Regina answered, "I believe he wasn't sure how to refill it and he was afraid to ask for help."
"Stupid," Duke mumbled, "So what are we doing for cash now?"
"We're getting by right now," Finn answered, figuring Duke didn't need to know that they had given Cordelia some of their own savings to help out. It would only make him feel worse for being away for so long, even though he had a good reason for being gone, "But we're on a treasure hunt right now."
"A treasure hunt? Sounds fun," Duke said with a grin.
Finn and Regina exchanged glances before looking back at Duke. He saw the exchange, knowing they weren't telling him something.
"What were those looks about? What aren't you telling me? A treasure hunt can't be that bad. Although, I did see the bounties that were put out on those kids. Did something bad happen?"
"You saw my bounty?" Cordelia asked as she walked into the room with a smile, her hair now up in a high ponytail in order to keep it out of her face.
"Oooohhhh! Look at your coat! Did your mother make that for you?"
"Of course she did! She's the best at these things, after all!" Cordelia spinning to show off her white coat with the gold Storm's Helm emblem on the back of it.
"Looks good on you, baby doll," he said as Cordelia took her seat behind the desk. Duke took a moment to admire her sitting behind that desk, knowing exactly how hard she had worked to get there, "And so does being guild master."
Cordelia blushed lightly at his compliment, "Yeah? Thanks! I think so too!"
"So, what's this about a treasure hunt that's going on? What treasure are you after?"
"Blackstroker's treasure, at least the one that's on Caelum. We're just about done with it too, so it looks like you came back at just the right time."
"He's a pretty famous pirate. The treasure should be pretty good then," Duke said, glancing down at the desk. It was then that he noticed an old leather journal that he knew all too well. He then looked back at Finn and Regina to see worried looks on their faces. He looked over at Cordelia just in time to see her looking up from the journal towards him, "Okay, what the hell aren't you all telling me?"
"It's how we came into possession of the map for the treasure," Cordelia said, looking to her father to make sure it was alright for her to tell him. She received a nod from Finn, which had her taking a deep breath before she continued, "Some of the mages stole it from some pirates."
There was a stretch of silence, causing Duke to ask, "And who are these pirates?"
"The…uh…the Black Skulls, whose leader is…ah…Madmartigan."
There was a longer stretch of silence, Duke appearing as if he had frozen in place. The name repeated itself over and over again and he just couldn't comprehend that name being said in Cordelia's voice. He never thought he'd have to worry about her or any of the other kids knowing that name or what it meant.
"What?" he finally said, shaking his head while his eyebrows furrowed in anger, "What the hell did you just say?"
"Madmartigan," Cordelia said, trying to keep her voice steady as she watched a plethora of emotions wash over Duke, "That's who the map was stolen from and that's who we've been fighting the entire treasure hunt."
"You're kidding, right? It's something other moron with that stupid name, right?"
"No," Finn said, his tone heavy and serious, "It's the same one. Has the missing hand and everything."
"Give that fucking map back. Now."
"A bit too late for that," Cordelia said, a small nervous laugh escaping her mouth, "I don't think he'd just let us go now even if we gave the map back. But I've got a plan."
"I don't care if you have a million plans, you're giving that map back and ridding your hands of that man!"
"At least hear me out," Cordelia said, frowning at the man.
"No, no, no. We're not doing this. We're not creating a plan to fight that man."
"Duke," Finn said.
"No! I'm not listening to any plans!"
"Why not?!" Cordelia shouted, standing up from her desk.
"Because I won't lose you to that bastard!" he shouted back, standing directly in front of her desk.
The longest silence yet filled the room as the two stared each other down while Finn and Regina exchanged looks again. Cordelia eventually broke first, taking her seat again and reaching out a hand towards one of Duke's that he had slammed onto her desk.
"I know what he did, Duke," Cordelia said as she slid her hand over his, "I know what he took from you, but I can't back down from him now. Not only because of what he did to you, but also because of what he's done to my mages so far. There's no way I'm turning my back on him now. I made my declaration against him and my mages are with me. They know what's at stake, but we're fighting against him together."
Duke was quiet, staring down at the desk. She knew. She knew what the bastard did and what he was capable of, but she still wanted to fight him. She had been fighting him the whole time even after finding out what he did to him. Duke looked up at Cordelia, her eye portraying everything she wished to say to him, but not know the words to use. She knew his pain and she was sorry that he carried it with him. She knew the extent of his loss and she was sorry that she and the others were constant reminders of what he had lost. But that she still loved him so much. That the entire guild loved him. That she would never let him stumble back into that darkness he had drowned in for so long after he lost Cheyenne.
"You're wrong, you know," he finally said, his voice cracking a bit in an attempt to not cry in front of everyone, "You're not a constant reminder of what I lost. I know that's what you're thinking," he gently laid a hand on her head, "You're a constant reminder of what I gained, of everything that I love. You and all the other kids on this guild are my reminder to keep moving forward. You're all the reason I'm still here."
Cordelia lost it at those words. She let the tears roll down her face, trying her best to keep the sobs from becoming too loud. Since Duke had returned, she had not had a moment to let all those emotions wash over her. She hadn't given herself a moment to feel them all and cry out her happiness and relief that he had come home and how right everything was beginning to feel.
Regina cried with her daughter, knowing how she was feeling, while Finn stared out the porthole that was in the office. It's not that he didn't know how they felt, he knew exactly what they were feeling and how at the same time their hearts felt heavy and light. He just knew that they all couldn't become blubbering messes at the moment. They'd never be able to move on otherwise.
"Now then," Duke said once both Cordelia and Regina had started to calm down, "While I don't like it, what's the plan you have for Madmartigan?"
Cordelia wiped the tears from her eyes, coughed a couple times to clear her throat and looked up at him, "Vice Admiral Bern Eversaw and his crew as well as a small army of sirens will be coming to our aid and helping us fight against Madmartigan and the Black Skulls. We will be meeting up with them on Caelum as well as Blackstroker's granddaughter, Van Black. She's going to help us finish this hunt."
"Jesus, what kind of allies have you been gathering up since I've been gone? And did you say sirens?!"
"Yes," she smirked, "I'm the queen of them now," she said, showing off the siren marking on her arm, "And now that we have you, we have a major ace up our sleeve. We can't let Madmartigan find out that you're back until the necessary time, so you'll need to lay low until we reach Caelum and finish plotting out our plan with everyone else."
"I think I can do that," Duke smirked in return, thinking about all the hammocks he saw on the deck of the middle ship and what was left of the alcohol supply.
"Good, until we reach Caelum, we should all relax a bit," she said, standing from her desk and making her way out of the office, motioning for everyone else to leave as well, "If you buy me a drink, I'll tell you the story of how I became the siren queen!"
"Deal!" Duke said, following Cordelia up deck.
"Should you really already be drinking again?!" Regina called after them with Finn following her with a sigh, though a small smile played at his lips.
A/N: And there we are! I hope you enjoyed it!
I really had too much fun with this chapter and Duke! I'm still so excited he's back! I also can't get over Duke saying, Dish it, girl! I'm dying!
The title for the chapter mostly came from how I was feeling this chapter with the ups and downs in it. I'm hoping that it makes sense, but if not, meh I guess. It's almost 4 in the morning and I feel like it's the best I've got right now…
I also uploaded this thing without editing it, so sorry for any mistakes you see. I'll edit it later!
I had planned for a couple of more scenes, but what I wrote for this chapter took a lot longer than I thought it was going to, so I just decided to make it its own chapter. *shrugs*
Anyways, thanks for all of your reviews! I loved them and they were greatly appreciated!
Also! I did a thing! I created a forum for Storm's Helm! It's called Storm's Helm Corner. You should be able to find it by searching forums and typing in the forum name. It's got all kinds of good stuff on there! Things from the Question Corner, to general discussions, to theories, to Hagi's Matchmaking Café! So please go check it out and start up some discussions or leave suggestions/questions for different topics! I'm really excited about it, so hopefully you all like it too.
I think that's it for the time being.
See you all next chapter!
Yours Truly,
MyDearWatson