Hello!

Believe it or not, yesterday I did work, *hazzar*so did not get a chance to write, but I am back again today. I don't have any exams for a while now, so that's good, I can get more writing into my days! Well, after my art exam pieces have been handed in, but they are due on friday, I can do it!

Now, before you start, this chapter is told from Rogue's point of view, just so no one gets confused :)

Enjoy!

Chapter Five-

Everything you touch surely dies

She lay. Her limbs catatonic, head lulled to the side. Her golden blond hair is covering her eyes and most of her face, only leaving from her lips visible. The shirt she is wearing is ripped in various places, leaving me to wonder how it is still holding together and covering her. Her left sock has a large, ragged hole over her knee, exposing it. There are bruises covering her pale skin, cuts a deep red, some still oozing blood.

I had engulfed the mage with purple hair who was leaning over her into the shadows. I had come upon them while walking in an attempt to alleviate myself of this infernal headache with some fresh air. The woman had looked extremely scared and beaten up, the man threatening death in a deadly, hushed tone.

Dragon slayers have brilliant hearing, luckily for her.

Even though it was non of my business the man repulsed me. On any other day I would not have done what I did, but I have had a growing headache for days, and today, it is unbearable. As it is, I have had to leave my guild, full of supercilious mages proudly proclaiming their power, even Sting was beginning to annoy me to the point I wanted to punch him, something extremely out of character for me. Hence how I ended up walking through a desolate part of Fressia Town towns over from Fiore.

I had not anticipated encountering anyone else, I did consider leaving the people to their business regardless of the situation. However, the way the man screamed arrogance, promising freedom though death after he had raped the girl, his hand already trailing down her neck while she was too weak to get away. It was pathetic. Especially for a mage.

So I lashed out, releasing all of my copped up anger and frustration. I had sucked his body and being into one of my shadows, trapping him in darkness. Essentially, I had killed him, when knocking him out would have been simple enough. At the thought, I feel a hint of regret, before pushing it away.

The man was scum.

After my shadows have retreated, pulling the mage with them, I see that the woman is unconscious. Stepping towards where she lay, I lean down beside the woman and gently roll her onto her back. Her hair falls from over her face to the side of her head and sprawls across the ground. Arms flopped by her side and for the first time, I am able to see the woman clearly. At the sight of her features, something clicks in the back of my mind, some kind of recognition perhaps? Squinting my eyes, I stare at her a little longer, leaning closer to her face. Her lips are slightly parted and breath warm. Her scent is familiar, too.

Suddenly, it hits me. Taking her right hand from her side, I lift it up and look at the back. There, printed on her soft skin, is a light pink Fairy Tail insignia.

I knew I had seen you before.

Placing her hand back down by her side, I stand up. I have no business with Fairies. Turning around I go to leave, stopping at the scene before me. Two mages lay, sprawled out and unconscious on the ground. I have never seen these two mages before, I don't think they are in Fairy Tail. At least, they have no visible insignia, much like the purple haired mage I had banished. In fact, the two men seem to be wearing wrist cuffs stamped with a snake skull, identical to one the purple haired mage had been wearing.

Looking down, I begin to contemplate the scene before me. Had this Fairy defeated these two men by herself? Is it possible that this one mage took down two mages, who look not only better physically built than her, but if they were as powerful as the other mage, powerful as well, all by herself? I feel an odd feeling of admiration take over at the thought of the blond haired woman behind me single handedly rendering two mages with their magic combined, unconscious.

Looking over my shoulder at the woman on the floor, I frown. I had always know that she had a strong sense of morality and friendship. A quality I greatly admired, regardless of if I am in a rival guild where only the strongest are allowed to reside. However, I had always viewed her as weak. True, I had once seen her start a spell where she called upon the heavens, the stars and 88 planets. Golden light and so much magical power it resonated from her very body outwards. But the spell had failed, and she had fallen to the floor in defeat. Perhaps I had been wrong.

Of course, she is one of the companions of Natsu Dragneel, the son of the fire dragon. She must be powerful.

Sighing, I turn around fully before sitting down facing her, a meter from where she lay. I will wait here until she regains consciousness, just in case the mages she defeated wake up before her and decide to kill her while she is asleep. The thought of them killing this sleeping Fairy concerns me, which I find perplexing. I do not know her personally, nor should I care, yet I appear to.

Pulling my fingers through my messy black hair, I knit my eyebrows together.

What's wrong with yourself, Rogue? Waking up in cold sweats, unable to control your Dragon Force, these headaches and uncontrollable anger compared to a calm demeanour? And now I am concerned for a mage who of all guilds, is from Fairy Tail? Pull yourself together.